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What is the world's most widespread poisonous snake ? It is found in most of Europe and Northern Asia to the Pacific coast ? | Europe's most venomous snakes - Venomous, Poisonous, Dangerous, and other Wonders
Venomous, Poisonous, Dangerous, and other Wonders
snakes >
Europe's most venomous snakes
Europe is generally not the dream destination for snake enthusiasts and herpetologists. The venomous species there are also not so numerous and far from being the most dangerous in the world. There is, for instance, only one venomous species in the United Kingdom, and no snake at all in Ireland (thanks to St Patrick!).
Yet, Europe does host a very nice variety of snake species. Many of them belong to the large and varied Colubrid group, and are either non-venomous or only slightly venomous and by no means a danger to humans. The only truly venomous snakes in Europe therefore all belong to the Viper family and, unlike their American counterparts, are all true vipers - as opposed to pit vipers-.
Vipers possess a very sophisticated venom delivery system with large tubular hinged fangs placed in the front of their mouth which can be folded back when not in use. They are known to inflict very deep and painful bites.
Following is an overview of the main viper species found in Europe.
- Common Adder or European Adder (Vipera berus)
This small viper - 45 to 60 centimeters, or 18 to 27 inches- is very common throughout much of Europe. It is also the only poisonous snake occurring in the United Kingdom. It can be found in a variety of habitats, from grassy fields to rocky slopes, and on farms and cultivated lands.
The Common Adder's color is variable: males are light brown to steel gray, and female are more colorful, ranging from yellow to brown or even brick red. Some individuals are completely black, while most have the striking dark zigzag stripe pattern running the length of their bodies above a line of oval spots. The Common Adder also bears a distinctive "X" or "V" black marking on its head.
The Common Adder is reputed for its irritable disposition and can strike without warning when startled or handled. Its venom haemotoxic, destroying blood cells and causing tissue damage. Most bites are inflicted on campers, hikers, and field workers..
- Asp Viper or Asp, Aspic viper, European Asp, European Viper, Jura viper (Vipera aspis)
The Aspic Viper, which name - "aspis" means "viper" in Greek, is found in south-western Europe: northeastern Spain, Andorra, most of France- inckuding in the Ile de Re and Oleron islands -, Monaco, Italy, the islands of Elba, Montecristo and Sicily, San Marino, Switzerland; northwestern Slovenia and extreme southwestern Germany - southern Black Forest-.
In 2006, a number of individuals were discovered in a wooded area south of Rotterdam, in the Netherlands. It is likely that one or more escaped or were set loose in the area since the Asp Viper is not native in this country.
The Asp Viper likes warm areas that are exposed to the sun, with some plant cover and comparatively dry soils. In Italy and France, it is often found in areas with low mountains or hills, notably in limestone regions, though it sometimes occurs in lower plains. It can be found in scrublands, glades, mountain meadows, forest clearings, in areas bordering woods, in mesic chestnut/oak woodlands, near streams or even in rubbish dumps and stone quarries. Though not specifically a snake of high altitudes, the Asp Viper has been found in the Pyrenees mountains as high as 2,100 m - 6,500 feet - above sea level.
This 60 to 65 cm long - roughly 25 inches - viper has a distinctive very short tail and a broad, triangular head with a slightly upturned snout. The dorsal markings are highly variable, but only rarely take the form of a clear zigzag, as in the Common Adder.
Bites from this species can be more severe than those from the Common Adder (Vipera berus); not only can they be very painful, but they are fatal, if untreated, in about 4% of all cases. It is considered the most dangerous snake in France and it is responsible for 90% of all cases of snakebite in Italy.
Envenomation symptoms include rapidly spreading acute pain, followed by edema and discoloration. Severe haemorrhagic necrosis sometimes occurs after a few hours. Vision may also be severely impaired, probably because of the degradation of blood and blood vessels in the eyes. The venom has both coagulant and anticoagulant effects and may also affect glomerular structure, which can lead to death due to renal failure. In some cases, the victims develop neurotoxic symptoms, including difficulty in breathing and swallowing, as well as paralysis of the bitten limbs.
Five subspecies are currently recognized.
- Long-nosed Adder or Nose-horned Viper (vipera ammodytes)
Occurs in south-eastern Europe, from Hungary and Austria to Italy, Romania, former Yugoslavia, and northern Albania.
This small viper - 45 to 90 cm, or 18 to 36 inches - is commonly found in much of its range in habitats varying from farms, open fields and cultivated land to rocky slopes.
The name "long-nosed" or "nose-horned" comes from the projection of tiny scales it has on the tip of its nose. This gray to reddish viper also bears a distinctive dark brown or black zigzag pattern running the length of its back.
The Long-nosed Adder is responsible for many bites which can be fatal, though chances of survival are good with medical aid. Its venom is haemotoxic, causing severe pain and massive tissue damage.
- Pallas' Viper (Akistrodon halys)
This gray to yellow snake is a close relative of the American copperhead, which it resembles. The Palls' Viper occurs throughout southeastern Europe where it is found in farming regions, open fields or hillsides.
It is a shy snake which seldom strikes. It has a haemotoxic venom that is rarely fatal to humans.
- Ursini's Viper, or Orsini's Viper, or Meadow Viper (Vipera ursinii)
This snake can be found in south-eastern France, central Italy, west Balkans (former Yugoslavia), northern Greece, Albania, Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, and Germany.
It inhabits meadows, grassy fields, farmlands or rocky hillsides.
Ursini's Viper has the same coloration and dorsal zigzag pattern as the Common Adder and Long-nosed Adder. This little snake - 45 to 90 cm or 18 to 36 inches - is known to have an irritable disposition. It will readily strike when approached. It has an haemotoxic venom which is quite potent and has caused human deaths, though on rare occasions.
- Lataste's Viper or Snub-nosed Viper, Snub-nosed Adder
(Vipera latastei)
This viper occurs in the extreme southwestern Europe - France, Portugal and Spain- and northwestern Africa - the Mediterranean region of Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia-.
It grows to a maximum length of about 72 cm - 29 inches -, but is usually shorter.
Lataste's Viper had the specificity of being classsified as "Near Threatened" on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (2001). Indeed, it is believed to be in significant decline mostly because widespread habitat loss - but also persecution - throughout much of its range. As further population declines are likely, this species could locally become extinct, notably in Tunisia.
- Seoane's Viper or Baskian Viper, Iberian Cross Adder, Portuguese Viper (Vipera seoanei)
This venomous viper species is found in extreme southwestern France and the northern regions of Spain and Portugal (Basque country, mountains of Galicia and Cantabrici).
The Seoane's Viper is normally shorter than 75 cm - 30 inches - and has very variable colorations. It can have well-developed, brown zigzag pattern down the back set against a beige or light-gray to brownish ground color;
The pattern can alternatively be a fragmented zigzag, a roughly twin-striped, or it can have no back marking at all.
- Ottoman viper or Turkish Viper, Rock Viper, Coastal Viper, Near East Viper, Mountain Viper (Vipera xanthina)
The Ottoman Viper is a widely distributed species which occurs in northeastern Greece and European Turkey, as well as in some Aegean Sea islands (Simi, Kos, Kalimnos, Leros, Lipsos, Patmos, Samos, Chios and Lesbos). Its population is presumed to be quite large.
This snake is light in color, varying from gray to white with a black zig-zag pattern running along its back. It is a fairly big viper usually measuring some 70 to 95 cm - 28 to 38 inches-, but reaching up to 130 cm - 52 inches - on some Greek islands.
- Nikolsky's Adder or Forest-steppe Adder (Vipera nikolskii)
This venomous viper is endemic to central Ukraine.
Adults are short and thick-bodied, growing to a maximum length of 68 cm - 27 inches-.
- Milos viper (Macrovipera schweizeri)
This Greek viper is limited to the islands of Milos, Kimolos, Polyaigos, and Sifnos.
Sources:
| Adder |
"Which French phrase meaning "" freedom of action"" literally translates as ""blank sheet of paper"" ?" | worlds most venomous... English
...SNAKE (Hydrophis belcheri) Faint-banded Sea snake (also called Belcher Sea Snake)
(Hydrophis belcheri) Belcher SEA SNAKE
The snake, which is a sea snake, has an extremely mild temperament and you have to mistreat the snake very badly before it bites you. Those who normally get bitten by this snake is the fishermen who get them in their nets. Of those who get bitten, it is only 25% that is poisoned because the snake doesn't very often inject much of their venom. Based on these facts, and the snake's calm temperament, they're normally do not count as one of the most poisonous snakes. Some snake-specialists believe that (Enhydrina schistos) Beaked sea snake or (Oxyuranus microlepidotus) The Inland Taipan has the most dangerous poison. Belcher SEA SNAKE venom has a value of 0.00099 in the Scenic City Reptiles LD50-scale (read more about the scale further down the page), which is about 100 times more potent than the venom of the Inland Taipan. The snake lives in the Indian Ocean (Philippines, New Guinea), Gulf of Thailand, Australia (Northern Territorium, Queensland), Solomon Islands, and especially around the Ashmore Reef in the sea in north-western Australia. The snake's usually only around one meter long and live on fish eggs, fish and eels.
Type of poison: Nerve Poisons (neurotoxin) that effect the central nervous system, breathing and heart rate. It breaks down muscle cells and red blood cells, which plugs back into the liver so that it becomes acute liver failure. You can pee brown, then broken down muscle fibers and other things coming out, and you can not move arms and legs. Severe pain, Other symptoms are joint stiffness, muscle cramps and spasms, blindness, unconsciousness, and shortness of breath. You can die anywhere between two minutes and two days. But it usually goes very quickly with sea snakes and that means an extremely painful death.
( Enhydrina schistos ) Beaked sea snake
...INLAND SNAKE ( Oxyuranus microlepidotus ) The Inland Taipan.
( Oxyuranus microlepidotus ) Inland Taipan
The Inland Taipan is a poison snake that lives in Australia and New Guinea. It can grow to 3 meters long and, besides toxic, even dangerous, this because it can attack without warning, and also cut several times. Fortunately for us humans the snake lives in inhospitable areas in central Australia. There is also an antidote developed, but a piece of human being must have access to the antidote very quickly in order not to die. Without prompt treatment with antidotes, mortality is very high, close to 100%. Among terrestrial snakes are the only raw bite of the black mamba, which has a higher proportion of deaths. Although the snake's toxicity, said according to several sources, no one died of its bite in Australia.
A single bite from the Inland Taipan contains enough venom to kill up to 100 adult men or 250,000 mice. The snake's feed on small mammals, mostly rats.
Type of poison: Nerve Poisons (neurotoxin)
General information on venomous snakes
The toxicity is related to both the size of the lethal dose of poison from a snake, and how much of that poison which the serpent at secrete a bite, and those two data varies from source to source. Toxicity should not be confused with hazard, because the risk of being bitten and dying also have with other factors to do. Some of these are the prevalence of a snake species is, how aggressive it is and how far it is to the nearest hospital. In practice it even less of a role which the snake that provide the greatest "overdose" - you can surely only die ...
If a snake can kill 100 or 30 people with one bite is of minimal importance. If you die in one way or another by a snake and dies almost as quickly it does not really matter. There are approximately 300 species of snakes that can kill you and out of the 50 worst varieties you die in a matter of minutes and can not get help and is out of the jungle or desert without serum. Then does it matter if you get bitten by an Inland Taipan, or a King Cobra?
There are about 3000 pieces species of snakes in the world. Of these, only about 10% which is toxic, but it is usually them everyone talking about. These are divided into about 16 families. The family, which includes far the two largest species, the family is snakes (Colubridae) with about 2200 species. Most of these are non-toxic, but no toxic also occur, such as the African Boom slang. Compared with snakes is the next largest species-poor families. Family vipers (Viperidae) and family poison snakes (Elapidae) both consist of between 170 and 190 species. For viperider counted vipers, lance snakes and rattlesnakes, while elapiderna includes cobras, coral snakes, sea snakes and mambas among others. A fourth family that may be worth mentioning (Boidae), where the boas and pythons are. Nearly 100 species belonging to the family.
The deadliest snakes in the world (NOT necessarily the most toxic snakes):
1. Russell's viper (Daboia russelli)
Russell's viper (Daboia russelli)
Lives in all of South East Asia, living on lizards and frogs but most rats, approximately 1-1.5 meters long, causing about 6,000 deaths a year. The high amount of deaths because the snake is very common, found in large numbers and in proximity to humans and attack rather than flee. Very aggressive. Type of poison: blood poison.
2. Saw-scaled viper (Echis carinatus)
Sandrasselorm (Echis carinatus)
Lives in arid areas of North Africa, Middle East, India and Sri Lanka. It feeds on mice, scorpions and lizards, the maximum 80 cm long. Highly aggressive and also digs down into the sand a few centimeters, so it is not visible. Many thousands of lives on his conscience every year. Type of poison: blood poison.
3. Indian cobra (Naja naja), better known as "four eyes".
Indian cobra (Naja naja)
Lives in India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal. It feeds on frogs, mice, rats, lizards and birds. The snake is most active at night and flee rather than attacking. If the snake is disturbed, it can attack and bite, but two thirds of these are stab with closed mouth or no venom is injected. One estimate is that every 10 bites results in death. Despite this, they kill around 3000 people each year. It is 2-2.5 feet long. Type of poison: neurotoxin.
4. Banded Krait (Bungarus fasciatus)
Banded Krait (Bungarus fasciatus)
The snake is present in many countries in Asia but are most numerous in eastern India. It eats lizards and other snakes. This snake is the longest of all the krait, it can be up to 2 meters long. The snake is not aggressive but curl up and hide his head under the body. The most common accident with krait affects farmers who are out walking at night and not see the snake. When the bite is painless ignore many of to see a doctor. If you get bitten you can become unconscious after a few minutes of the very strong poison, but it can also be long before the symptoms come on. There are antidotes but probably dies about 50% of all bitten, despite treatment. Type of poison: neurotoxin.
5. Common lance head (Bothrops atrox)
Common lance head (Bothrops atrox)
You can find this snake in Southern Mexico, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador and Panama. It's between 1.8 to 2.4 meters long. It feeds on small mammals and birds. The snake is on the ground and is common around the human trials and are therefore also stands for most snake bites in Latin America. Most people bitten survive but 2500 people die each year. The bites are very painful and uncomfortable and the poison is very strong. Type of poison: blood poison.
6. King Cobra (Ophiophagus hannah)
King Cobra (Ophiophagus hannah)
The snake lives from India to the Philippines (Southeast Asia). This is the world's longest venomous snake and can grow to 6 meters long. Favorite food is other snakes, but it also eats rats, mice and birds. King Cobra is the only snake that builds a nest, and together with all other cobras to kill about 15,000 people per year. The snake's venom is not very strong but because of the amount of toxin it produces (and inject at bite), it can kill an elephant in three hours. At the attack position may be the snake to raise 1 / 3 of its body and can be higher than a man. Type of poison: neurotoxin.
7. The black mamba (Dendroaspis polylepis)
The black mamba (Dendroaspis polylepis)
Living in the southern and eastern parts of Africa. The snake is the largest venomous snake in Africa and the second largest in the world after the king cobra. Mamba can reach up to 4.5 meters long but normal length is 2.5 meters. Despite its name the color of the skin changes between gray and olive-colored. The name has been given after the black skin on the inside of the mouth. It is also the fastest snake in the world and can reach a speed of 20km/h, it rather escape danger than to catch their prey. It feeds mainly on rodents and small birds. If the snake is disturbed it can be very aggressive and venom is very strong. The venom in a bite can kill up to 40 people and the mortality rate is 100% (highest in the world) without treatment (within 15 min). Type of poison: neurotoxin.
8. Puff adder (Bitis arietans)
Puffader (Bitis arietans)
Living in central to southern Africa and is considered Africa's most dangerous snake because of its spread and to be the most common snake. Although the size, strength and quantity of the poison and his willingness to cut making it dangerous. The normal length between 1 to 1.8 meters and very thick. A particular feature of snake is that it moves laterally. Their diet consists of rodents, amphibians, birds and lizards. Type of poison: blood poison.
9. Tropical rattlesnake (Crotalus durissus)
Tropical rattlesnake (Crotalus durissus)
Living in southern Mexico, most of South and Central America. Becomes between 1,5-2 meters long and live on rabbits, rats and lizards. A dangerous snake with a short fuse. Together with Lance head (Bothrops Atrox) the snake is responsible for most snake bites in South America. Many people have died of snake venom. Before any serum existed 72% of the bitten in Brazil died. After the serum introduction (1966-1973) decreased the number to 6%. Type of poison: blood poison.
10. The Egyptian cobra (Naja haje)
The Egyptian cobra (Naja haje)
Living in all of Africa, western and southern parts of the Arabian Peninsula. Becomes between 1,5-2 meters long and live on lizards, toads, frogs, birds, rats and mice. The poison is highly toxic and the snake has killed many people. Type of poison: neurotoxin.
This is not a poisonous snake, but a species of boa constrictor.
In this context it is worth to mention the second most toxic land snake in the world, King Brown (Pseudechis australis). It occurs mostly in Western Australia, often in populated areas. It gets about 2 meters long and feeds on rats, mice and lizards. The snake is both extremely toxic and aggressive. The bite is extremely painful and the victim who's been hit almost directly loss consciousness. A snake expert was similar to the bite to being run over by a 9 ton truck. Type of poison: neurotoxin.
King Brown (Pseudechis australis)
In Australia, there is 500-3000 snake bites every year, but few deaths. This is because there's serum of almost all poisonous snakes. Australia has the world's most venomous snakes if you look at the strength of the poison in comparison to other snakes. A comparison of the hazard and damage the bites cause in humans pale Australian snakes in comparison to some other species such as the Asian cobra or the rattlesnake are American. A bite from Australian snakes "cured" relatively quickly with antidotes, and gives in most cases no permanent damage. A hard bite of an Asian cobra or American rattlesnake very often leads to extensive tissue damage and amputation of the affected body parts.
In Asia, most people die of snakebite in the world, but it should be pointed out that most people who die go barefoot, is far from any doctor or can not afford to go to one. Here is a rare chance to encounter the cobra, the famous "snake eye", but then usually in the snake charmers basket.
Cobras have a narrow head, unlike many other venomous snakes that have broad back of the head. Cobras are not very afraid of themselves and they are reluctant to people, because where there are people, there is garbage and so even rats. Especially in the big city slums they are most common. A threatened cobra rises on one-third of the body and cut out the neck, the rest is up-curled on the ground.
The gray beige King Cobra is the largest venomous snake and can measure up to 6 meters. But there are lots of other cobra locations in Asia, as Chinese cobra, Indochinese spitting cobra, cobra Burmese, Malaysian cobra to name a few.
...FROG (Phyllobates terribilis) Golden Poison Frog
Golden Poison Frog (Phyllobates terribilis)
Is by far the most toxic of all Poison Dart Frogs. It is more than 20 times more toxic than any other species. However, toxicity depends on the diet they eat. Without the ants that lives of in the wild, it doesn't produce the extremely toxic poison.
Poisonous frogs belong to the world's most venomous animals and includes about 120 species in Central and South America. They are small, 2-5 cm long and often very sharp and beautifully colored. But in reality they are quite harmless for those who learned to deal right with them. They are not animals that aggressively attack anything that moves. These frogs have poison only as a defense! To be injured by the poison from poisonous frog it's required to enter the bloodstream! And for this to happen, you both have to have wounds on your hands, and that you deal carelessly, or clumsy, with them! Do you need to touch poisonous frog you should therefore first ensure that your hands are not sore, and after that it touched them, wash your hands thoroughly! To be absolutely safe you should use plastic gloves, it is sufficient for protection. It should be clear that some species are extremely toxic. Reportedly, there are poisonous frog whose venom is so strong that only 0.00001 grams is sufficient to kill a man, or a frog has so much poison that can kill about 2200 people.
Poisonous frogs living on ants and other small insects and get about ten years old. The name terribilis means "terrible" in Latin.
...FISH (Scorpaenichthys) Scorpio fish (Cabazon)
(Scorpaenichthys) Scorpio fish (Cabazon)
Scorpion fish is the world's most venomous species of fish and the family is large, with many subspecies. They come in all the world's tropical seas and temperate zones, but is still mostly to the Pacific. General characteristics of this fish includes a compressed body, ridges and/or tags on the head, one or two tags on the gills-shield, and three to four tags in the jawbone. Caudal fin has 11-17 tags, they are often long and separated from each other, and side fins are well developed, with 11-25 tags. It will be between 45-60 cm long and grow up to 47 years old.
Most species of scorpion fish live on the bottom and eat where gastropods or smaller fish and sometimes paralysis of one of the many gift tags, before swallowing. Scorpion fish are very territorial and often lie in wait, waiting for a victim must overcome its abode. Either jump on then quickly forward, open mouth, and swallows the fish in a single blow, or as paralyzing the victim and takes it quite calmly before finally swallowed a fish hook, line and scale.
Scorpaenid-scheme is complex and unexplored. Fish-researchers have been able to identify 10 in families with a total of 388 species, something not everyone agrees. Although the scorpion fish thrive in the oceans and are found worldwide, there are sub-species of which also live in lakes. The species that have venom glands located in the lower part of their fins, used only as self-defense. You should still handle the Scorpion fish with great respect, because they produce a neuro-toxin that affects the psyche of its victims, which means that one can be both "mad" or blood poisoning if you get a sting from it.
They have a high commercial value because they are edible and considered to have a tender and good meat. They may be hunted freely, both for use as food and as aquarium fish and is therefore not endangered.
The scorpion fish is dangerous for humans and depends on its ability to camouflage itself. People who wade, divers and others see it as a rule, not until it's too late, where it lies motionless on the bottom, and stick it where awards are often very painful - yet it is nothing compared to what happens next. Blood pressure drops dramatically, the heart rise out of control, you become nauseous and vomit violently, all body fluids flowing out of you, arms and legs paralyzed, you have breathing difficulties and after 30 minutes you're dead ...
SCORPIO FISH: Scorpaenichthys
CLASS: Actinopterygii
Of the sea approximately 23.700 known species is expected around 1700 which, more or less toxic. It is more than any known toxic vertebrate together.
...PANTS Jeans
The jeans in the pictures are NOT representative toxic but the models are nice.
Jeans are (one of) the world's most venomous clothes. A variety of chemicals used in dyeing and washing of the pants. A few jeans manufacturer has produced jeans from organic cotton.
Gramoxone
Paraquat (Paraquat) is an extremely hazardous and hazardous spray. It is often used in developing countries and the workers who spread paraquat do not know that it is unhealthy and has no protective clothing. Paraquat causes workers to lose the nails and have breathing problems. Minimum quantity of Paraquat in the mouth leads to death.
Paraquat is the trade name for N, N'-dimethyl-4, 4'-bipyridin often sold as a binary chloride salt. It is often sold under the name Gramoxone. It is reduced readily to a superoxidjon that bind to unsaturated lipids in membranes. It is used mostly as herbicides but is also toxic to humans. Paraquat was produced for commercial use in 1961 by ICI (now Syngenta).
In Sweden, Paraquat has been banned since 1983 because of its acute toxicity, irreversible toxic effects and the risk of fatal accidents. With an EU Directive in 2003 as Paraquat may be marketed in the EU. Since 2005-05-01, this is legal in Sweden again. A large number of countries including Sweden has notified Paraquat to the Rotterdam Convention. Paraquat is forbidden in many countries, among others, as in Malaysia.
Paraquat is used as herbicides in many parts of the world. It works quickly and is non-selective in green plants, played only the parts of the plant that contains chlorophyll. Paraquat appears e.g. not on roots and bark. It is used with the intention to limit the growth of non-crop, i.e. weeds, and thus compete with the intended crops for water, light and nutrients. Within the EU, there has been used for wine, olive and hazelnut groves. Paraquat is also used to include the cultivation of coffee beans, tea plants, rice, corn, bananas, oil palms, rubber trees and pineapples and other fruit and vegetables.
Paraquat is acutely toxic to both animals and humans. To date there is no antidote. Depending on how you come into contact with it so it can take up to about a month before you die. Diluted paraquat are less dangerous. The greatest risk for accidental poisoning is greatest when you mix the paraquat solution and load distribution apparatus. There are also documented cases of suicide by ingestion of Paraquat. Exposure can occur through dust, air spray or liquid with Paraquat in contact with the skin (especially at long contact or broken skin), eye, or comes into the bronchial tubes.
Light doses of exposure (through air spray to the lungs) may lead to symptoms such as irritated eyes and skin, damage to liver, lung, airway, heart and kidney as well as dizziness and nosebleeds within days to weeks. At high doses, except the low dose symptoms but also bloody diarrhea, coma, spasm, muscle weakness and inability to breathe occur. Those who suffer a large dose is likely to not survive. The direct cause of death is usually suffocation. Exposure over long periods or in repeated can lead to damage in the same organs as above
The manufacturers say that Paraquat is not dangerous for farmers if they scrupulously follow the safety instructions. The usual objection to this is that many in the developing world can not read. Manufacturers are responding with that they have made pictures on the packages that will serve as adequate precautions.
…PROTEIN ricin
Ricinbeens
It would be quite possible to put ricin into grass. All the animals that ate the grass would die. Ricin is a strong poison contained in castor bean-tree seeds. The average lethal dose of ricin is not more than 0.2 milligrams, making it about twice as toxic as cobra venom. Ricin is toxic by inhalation, injiciering or intake of food. The toxin works by inhibiting the body's protein synthesis. There is no known cure. In small doses, such as those found in castor oil for medical use, causing the poison strong associations spins in the intestines resulting in the laxative effect.
Ricin consists of two parts: A ricin found in many foods and known to inhibit RNA in the cell and thus stops protein synthesis, and ricin B, which is only available in the ricin-plant. Ricin B affects cell wall so that the ricin A can penetrate and exert its effect on RNA.
Ricin-bush toxicity has long been known, but the substance is ricin was isolated until 1888 by Mark H. Still, who also named the substance. When ricin-bush are used as food for livestock the poison is first broken down by heating plant parts to 140 degrees Celsius for 20 minutes. Some studies suggest that sufficient residues can persist to cause toxic effects.
Pure ricin can easily be produced from plant or from castor oil. The remains after the pressing contains five weight percent pure ricin, which, given the lethal dose is a large amount of poison.
…SPIDER (Phoneutria fera) Brazilian Wandering Spider
(Phoneutria fera) Brazilian Wandering Spider
The Brazilian wandering spider is one of the few spiders in the world that have strong enough poison to kill a man. The body is up to 5 cm and total spindle can be up to 15 cm. Available over the whole of South America in tropical areas of the Court. Feed on crickets, large insects, small lizards and mice. Between 1926 and until 1996, 14 people died of bites from these spiders. After 1996, no deaths have occurred since a serum prepared at the Butantan Institute in Sao Paolo Brazil.
The Brazilian land bird spider is often called the Tarantella, because of their similar appearance. But it really belongs to the genus "wandering spiders." Unfortunately, it is not unusual for Mark Bird Spider is inside people's houses. They hide in shoes, hats, and clothing, and bites are not uncommon. The Land tarantula has a very strong poison, and is extremely fast and very aggressive doesn't not make things better. It is believed that some of the bites that you impute to fera coming from misidentified spiders probably been nigriventer. The immediate effects after a bite is intense local pain and swelling of the bite site, followed by severe systemic effects such as irregular heart rhythm, prevention of blood clotting, priapism, pulmonary edema and vomiting. One bite will of course not be taken lightly even though statistics show that mortality risk is relatively small. If you have bad luck, it can cause unpleasant effects and even death as a result and you should be extra careful if serum is not available. If the spider feels threatened smallest bite it furiously and ejecting large amounts of poison in any bite. When it is threatened or disrupted travel on the front legs and expose their large fangs. Spindle has enough poison to kill 225 mice. Thankfully, there is a good antidote to the spider now, but the banana plantations where most bites occur, it is difficult to obtain in time the antidote in time as the poison works fast. Symptoms of a bite is seizures, and respiratory disorders, and tissue death, amputation of affected body parts are not uncommon.
The Brazilian land bird spider is also called the "Banana Spider" due to the input that it is quite common that the spider slips with the load on the banana boats carrying bananas to foreign countries.
Type of poison: neurotoxin. LD50 0,3 mg/kg
More about spiders:
(Latrodectus mactans) Black Widow Spider
(Latrodectus mactans) Black Widow Spider
Black Widow Spider (Latrodectus mactans) is "just" one of the world's most venomous spiders. The poison is called latrotoxin, the bite is not usually fatal to a healthy person. Black widow got its name because the female, like many other spider species, kills and eats the male after completion of mating, where a hundred kids come out, and partly because it is black. It is about 1 cm and in the diet can include small spiders and insects. Like most other spiders, they use nets. The spider is not very large, the body can grow up to 1.5 cm long and has a lifespan of 8-10 years. It feeds on small insects and other spiders.
There is actually about 30 kinds of Widow Spiders (Latrodectus), all of which are more or less toxic - they occur on all continents except Antarctica. Thus, there Widow Spiders in southern Europe (Latrodectus tredecimguttatus), in Africa, Asia, South America and Australia (Latrodectus hasselti). In central and southern United States are three varieties of which one is the infamous Black Widow Spider (Latrodectus mactans). The spherical black body and the familiar red hourglass-shaped spot on the underside of the abdomen is easily recognizable - the most Widow Spiders shares the often-color combination black and red. It was once common on the outhouse, which could have its risks for the human visitor. It has also been the example followed by cars imported from the southern United States. A dozen specimens of the spider discovered in Sweden annually and Natural History National Museum said that the spider is about to establish themselves in the country.
The bite is usually not fatal except for old or sick people, but in those parts which are exposed to spider can be very painful. One bite of a black widow may go unnoticed for a few minutes. Then the sharp pain radiating from the bite that spreads to the body's musculature. The pain can be very difficult and the victim may have difficulty breathing. The symptoms subside after about two days. It is only the female that is dangerous because the male is much too small to bite through our skin. Nowadays there is an antidote to that very successfully reduced the number of casualties.
During the late 90s, researchers who studied how female spider devoured her partner, that only a few develop a special serotin which differs from the usual venom. Why only some females develop this particular poison is not known. What we do know is that after the bite of the so-called "[nontoxida black widow]" stunned and solidifies the victim's body musculature. The spider may then time to catch the victim and eat it. What poison do damage to humans is not known, since no cases have been reported. The venom is 15 times stronger than the Diamond rattlesnake
LD50 5,5 mg/kg
And even more about spiders:
(Atrax robustus) Sydney funnel-web spider
(Atrax robustus) Sydney funnel-web spider
This is "just" one of the most venomous spiders in the world but definitely the most dangerous of all. The Sydney funnel-web spiders common in the suburbs to the city of Sydney (Australia), it is also very common in areas south of the city. It is therefore urban living and are found commonly in gardens, where they often come in contact with small children and they are sometimes the most deaths have occurred. There are 13 recorded cases of bites from the spider deaths.
The Sydney funnel-web spider spends most of their lives in their burrows, with short hunting excursions at night. Adult males, however, leave the home during certain periods and wander off in search of females, usually during late summer and early autumn. It is usually when the spiders come in contact with people. When males is lost into houses or garages, often via gaps under doors. The spider can grow up to 4.5 cm in height. It feeds on insects mostly but also small lizards and frogs.
The Sydney funnel-web spider is unlike other spiders, very aggressive, especially the wandering males, who also are more toxic than the females, which is due to the substance in the venom that attacks the human nervous system only in the male. This is slightly strange as those of any other poisonous spiders, the female who are the most venomous. If the spider feels threatened it does not hesitate to attack and bite ferociously until the attacker runs away.
The effect of the bite becomes clear very quickly, and the area around the bite becomes painful and then numb. The affected sweat tremendously, can become sick and eventually ill and eventually collapse. This may be followed by difficulty breathing because the lungs is obstructed and the bitten turn blue from lack of oxygen. Violent cramping pain in the legs and stomach and delirium attacks may eventually be followed by convulsions and coma and even death. However, there is now an effective antiserum against the venom and no deaths have occurred since it became operational.
The Sydney funnel-web spider venom is particularly dangerous for the primates (humans, apes, etc), while other animals such as cats and dogs are more or less resistant. The spider has eight grams of poison in his body, 0.1 gram is enough to kill a man. Type of poison: Nerve Poisons (neurotoxin).
…APPLE PIE
The world's most delicious apple pie? Nutmeg (Myristica fragrans)
Due to a clerical error in the recipe to the "world's best apple pie" has two milliliter nutmeg accidentally become full 20 nuts. In August 2008, this happened the newspaper The Food magazine. A reader had baked the cake for the recipe and invited three people to eat it. Oooooops!!! All showed poisoning symptoms such as dizziness and headache.
Nutmeg is a nice gentle, but highly aromatic spice that is used in moderation so as not to dominate. Nutmeg-nut grated directly over the dish to be seasoned. Nutmeg is used to advantage in various potato dishes such as mashed potatoes and creamed potatoes or other vegetables, cooked or stewed white-or cauliflower, spinach and egg and cheese dishes. B�chamel sauce flavored with nutmeg can be used for lasagna. Or the apple pie. Nutmeg exist as whole and ground. Nutmeg is also easy narcotic if you take it in larger quantities. A tablespoon swallowed with water gives an effect similar to a light marijuana intoxication, but the after effects learn to do that no one tried this more than once. Large amounts can lead to serious health risks and symptoms of poisoning, even death is possible.
…QUOTES
Most venomous quotes
Do you know someone who needs to be bullied? If so, this is the perfect book for you. Here you will find poisonous and scathing lines about politicians, actors, artists, men and women. All the important topics and the major issues addressed here with toxic tongue. Feel free to use the quotes of someone you know. Read for inspiration and take revenge, or just for your own pleasure..
Loneliness would be an ideal state if only one could select those you wish to avoid.
Karl Kraus
Unfortunately I don�t remember your name but don�t tell me what it is.
Alexander Woollcott
If it turns out that God exist I don�t think he is evil. The worst thing you can say about him is that he is underperforming.
Woody Allen
If you look like your passport photo, you most likely need that holiday.
Earl Wilson
He was the closest a human being you can get without being one.
Spike Milligan
Radium 88 isotop 224 Radium Radium - Bohrs model
Radium 224 is the most toxic of all elements. This isotope (variant of the same element that differ by the number of neutrons in the nucleus) occurs naturally and is 17.000 times more toxic than plutonium 239.
Isotopes are atoms of the same atoms but with different number of neutrons and thus different atomic masses. Atom team is determined by the number of protons, atomic number, and determines the chemical properties of a substance. In the nuclear science there have been observed that there are atoms in the same types of atoms that have different atomic masses.
…BOX JELLYFISH (Chironex fleckeri) Sea Wasp
(Chironex fleckeri) Sea Wasp
Many of the Box jellyfish have a very strong poison. They live in tropical oceans around the world but the most toxic variety is common in Australia, the Philippines, and also occurs around the rest of the Indian Ocean. Box Jellyfish gets its name from the shape of the clock. The clock has a group with tentacles hanging down from the four corners. They also have four compound sensory organs who sits on the sides just above the lower edge. They consist of a number of equilibrium body, well-developed eyes and the mouth which is square and very short. Box jellyfish is usually very small only 5-25 cm high, but there is also much larger ones where the tentacles can be up to 10 m long.
The most dangerous Box jellyfish belongs to the genus Chiropsalmus and Chironex. They live for the most far out in the Pacific but in summer they can float into the coast. Chiropsalmus quadrigatus is the most common species of Box jellyfish. The Box jellyfish feed mainly on crustaceans and in its pursuit of shrimp it can swim into shallower bays. Jellyfish is very hard to be seen in the water, the poison is fast acting and each jellyfish may contain as much poison that would be enough to kill 60 people. And the pain will be hard to beat, plus that you get permanent scars similar to lashes where the tentacles have been hit you.
The numerous stinging cells, though in most cases less than one millimeter, but is nonetheless highly refined weapons. In each cell there is a little poison capsule with a thin coiled nettle-wire. On the cell surface is a trigger. If the trigger is touched by something the nettle-wire shoots out very fast and penetrate like a harpoon into the victim and squeezes venom. The Box jellyfish has probably the world's most powerful poison, or at least the most dangerous to humans. Have you been in touch with one Box jellyfish you can die within minutes. In recent years, 50 people died (every year) because of damage caused by contact with jellyfish. Luckily pops jellyfish just up around the coast at certain times each year. As these times are known and there are warning signs on beaches reduces mortality significantly. Even dead jellyfish and severed tentacles may be very toxic. An interesting note is, strange but true, so you can protect yourselves against the jellyfish poison with the help of ordinary tights. Also available equipment for divers who work the same way. Type of poison: Nettle Poisons
LD50 0,2 mg/kg
…OCTOPUS (Hapalochlaena maculosa) Blue-ringed Octopus
(Hapalochlaena maculosa) Blue-ringed Octopus (Hapalochlaena lunulata)
The world's two most toxic eight arms octopuses are two species blue-ringed octopuses (Hapalochlaena maculosa) located along the Australian coasts, and the slightly larger version (H. lunulata), another Australian species also found in Indonesia and the Philippines. Squids are neither related to jellyfish and fish, but most closely related to snails, and they are in the majority of cases, completely harmless to humans. The blue-ringed octopus is a very small squid, no larger than 20 cm between the arms and weighs about 100 grams. It lives in tropical waters from Japan down to Australia, where it mainly feeds on crabs.
The blue-ringed octopus are usually yellowish brown, but when it's exposed to danger or disturbed changing the color changing into a light blue hue.
If, for example in a bath at the Australian coast you should be bitten by a blue-ringed octopus at the beginning you not even know you have been bitten, although the animal is highly toxic. Only after several hours gives rise to poison more severe reactions. The insensibility of the limbs, go blind for hours or days and may even die of respiratory paralysis. Octopus poison found in saliva, and pushed in when it bites its victim with its parrot-like "beak". The poison is the same type held by the highly poisonous puffer fish.
There is no anti-serum against blue-ringed octopuses in the world. Fatalities have occurred, but are rare. Type of poison: Neurotoxin (Tetrodotoxin).
…SCORPION (Leiurus quinquestriatus) Death Scorpion
(Leiurus quinquestriatus) Death Scorpion
Death Scorpion (Leiurus quinquestriatos) living in eastern North Africa and the Middle East. It feeds on insects and baby mice and is at most 12-15 cm long. Has the strongest venom of all scorpions, death is rare. There is also an effective antidote. A sting from the scorpion can cause: severe pain, fever, coma, increased heart rate, blood pressure, and shortness of breath. The cause of death is usually cardiac arrest. It bears only at 0.25 mg of its venom, which is rarely enough to kill an adult human. Type of poison: Nerve Poisons (neurotoxin).
(Androctonus australis) Fat-tail scorpion
(Androctonus australis) Fat-tail scorpion
If the scorpion above, i.e. Death Scorpion (Leiurus quinquestriatos), the most toxic so is this definitely the most dangerous. It also causes many deaths each year.
It is up to 10.5 cm incl. tail and is found in North Africa, from Morocco to Egypt, Sinai, Middle East, India. It feeds on insects that it can get hold of, and baby mice, and it can survive up to a year without food and water. They live in dry areas, and avoid areas near the coast. Scorpio does not dig deep burrows, unlike many other species, preferring to hide under stones, or cavities. The fat-tailed scorpion is unfortunately very common in populated places, and are often hidden in different cavities in the house.
Has a very strong poison and the scorpion is in the top of the list of deaths each year. They can kill a dog within seven minutes and a man who is not given treatment for 6-7 hours. The fat-tailed scorpion is a pretty quiet personality, but if disturbed or attacked it doesn't hesitate to counterattack. Type of poison: Nerve Poisons (neurotoxin).
The Scorpions are the largest spider-animals, and is famous because of its toxicity. Most species found in warmer regions and is night-active predators. The body is divided into a front body and a rear body ending with a tail and a poison sting at the end. The toxin is produced in two sack like glands that each have a pipe to the sting. All scorpions are poisonous, but a smaller number represents a danger to humans.
…MAN-MADE POISON TCDD
Biohazard Warning 2,3,7,8-tetraklordibenso-p-dioxin (TCDD)
Seveso disaster took place in Seveso in northern Italy (about 25 km north of Milan) on 10 July 1976, when several kilograms of the dioxin TCDD (2,3,7,8-tetraklorodibenso-p-dioxins) released into the air from storage tanks at a small chemical factory, ICMESA. Tens of thousands of pets (including farming) died or were a result of the accident slaughtered, but it is believed that no one died immediately as a result of the accident. However, developed several hundred inhabitants chloracne and many pregnant women chose to have abortions.
2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin, abbreviated as TCDD, is an environmental toxin. TCDD as a reference substance for other dioxins and dioxin-like substances, such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). It is also the most toxic substance produced by humans. It was discovered in 1872 is considered to be 150 000 times as toxic as cyanide.
Dioxin is the name of some 210 chemical substances which almost all are extremely toxic. In this group there is found some of the most toxic substances ever known. Dioxins are not normally intended to be formed during manufacture parts gets but can be formed during combustion of organic material in the presence of chlorine. They are also formed by the natural combustion such as forest fires, but emissions from such limited compared to the rest. Some combustion processes where the formation of dioxin is combustion of fossil fuels in cars, burning of household and industrial waste and many factories. Dioxins are believed, on good grounds, damage the brain and other central nervous system, manipulate and disrupt hormone levels, damage the immune system and impair our ability to reproduce. They also cause cancer.
The Ukrainian President Viktor Jusjtjenko
Before After
Todays President of Ukraine, Viktor Jusjtjenko, was poisoned by the most dangerous type of dioxin - TCDD.
In 2004, Jusjtjenko announced that he intended to stand as independent candidate in the Ukrainian presidential election. The campaign was often bitter, controversial and violent. In the middle of election campaign, in September 2004 for sick Jusjtjenko quickly in acute pancreatitis. It was found later that he was poisoned by the substance dioxin, probably taken during a dinner with a group of Ukrainian government officials. After the suspected murder trial, his face scarred and swollen difficulty of vesicles.
Dutch doctors who made the analysis of Jusjtjenko's blood, stating that he had been in unusually large quantities of dangerous dioxin TCDD. According to doctors, he somehow got in the 100 000 units TCDD in the blood, which is the second highest concentration ever measured, according to Ekot (Radio news in Sweden). Of the amount of poison that the judge correctly finds the doctors that it can not move on anything other than a deliberate poisoning. It is unlikely that Jusjtjenko may have ingested the poison at the same time without the ingestion of small amounts over a long period of time. 23 January 2005 he was installed in the presidency.
The Dioxin-type is known to have existed in the plant toxin Agent Orange used by U.S. during the Vietnam War. Agent Orange is a poison that has had lasting effects on the health of both Vietnamese and Americans who served in Vietnam.
…LIZARD (Heloderma suspectum) The Gila monster
(Heloderma suspectum) The Gila monster
It is between 45 - 70 cm in height and are from Mexico up to California. Like to eat eggs, but also birds, squirrels, small rabbits, and other lizards.
The Gila monster spends most of his time hiding under the ground, and is therefore very difficult to detect. It is precisely because there is very little information about this lizard. It is primarily three things that make The Gila monster is be adapted to live in that kind of seemingly harsh conditions. For one, they're pretty big (North America's largest lizard) between 45-70 cm in total length, and they are also more skilled than other lizards that do not burn the food they eat. They store food in the form of fat in the tail and the rest of the body. Second, they eat very much. It has been observed The Gila monster in the wild that have eaten meals at the third part of their whole body weight. The last reason is that The Gila monster burn very little energy.
The Gila monster (Heloderma suspectum) is one of only two kinds of poisonous lizards. The cousin Scorpion Poison Lizard is the other. They do not have fangs like snakes, but the poison begins to flow along the grooves of the lower jaw and chewed into the prey animal. It has often featured information about the monitor lizards are poisonous, but there are bacteria in the mouth of several species can cause severe, life-threatening infection!
Although The Gila monster can see a little sluggish and slow out should be very careful. If it becomes irritated, it can strike with lightning speed and with great force. Even if the bite is not considered lethal for a human being, it is very painful, and you must go at once to the nearest hospital. In a study conducted by 34 people who had been bitten by The Gila monster (mostly captive) showed that eight had died, but most of them were in poor condition, or intoxicated at the time.
The Gila monster poison is almost as strong as the highly toxic Diamond rattlesnake. The bite does not cause less severe injuries due to the amount it uses is much smaller. Have a tissue destructive poison, which caused the death. Type of poison: Blood Poison (Hemotoxiner).
(Heloderma horridum) The Beaded lizard
(Heloderma horridum) The Beaded lizard
The Beaded lizard has a dark body with yellow bands on the tail, and they have small bumps that cover the whole body. They feed on eggs, birds, small mammals, and lizards, and the hunt all year round at night. Lizard swallows always change completely, except for eggs which they crush first. It lives in Mexico and Central America.
It is a moving lizard that can both climb, swim, and bury themselves. Lizard living in dry desert areas, like in some rocky areas, where they dig small holes with their strong legs, and is found mainly at night and late at evening. Lizard is usually around 60 cm long, but can be up to 90 cm long, of which the thick and heavy tail accounts for about 50% percent of the body.
The Beaded lizard has sharp poison-teeth in the lower jaw. They have a short temper, and if the threat turns itself against the aggressor with her mouth wide open ready to bite. The Beaded lizard is greater than the Gila monster, but not as poisonous. The bite can still cause great damage if a person is attacked. No known deaths. Type of poison: Blood Poison (Hemotoxiner).
…TOWN Ankleshwar, India
India Gujarat - Ankleshwar
Sidewalks are so poisoned that it wears out six pairs of shoes in a year. But it is even worse for children. Barefoot, they are forced to play the dumped industrial waste that makes them sick in the world's most toxic town. A greenish-yellow ensure seeping out of a hundred rusty barrels behind a pipla-tree. The poison is in the clear light of day. In Ankleshwar is leukemia, tuberculosis, and the insidious eye diseases in every home. Every day someone dies of leukemia. The lungs corrode. The skin falls off. The hair fading of drinking water
It never seems to be someone responsible for environmental crimes in cities like Ankleshwar. Forces are faceless, anonymous. The symbiosis between industry leaders and local politicians have reached the point where no longer responds. There degraded environment and broken health is considered as the price one must pay for jobs and growth. And it is the poor who pay the highest price.
Ankleshwar is the city that God - or at least the Indian government - forgot. It is as if it does not exist. But it is there, just a few hours train ride north of Bombay, in a valley that was once wonderful, but now it stinks and ferment. 1500 chemical plants are intermingled in a city of the size of Link�ping (swedish town, about 145.000 residents) . Black chimney smoke shoots into the sky. For every hundred yards, after nearly every new street corner, a new, pungent smell of chlorine, sulphate, ammonia, phosphorus, solvents... The river has been there in 10,000 years, maybe more, was the area's lifeblood. Now being poisoned by the factories emissions. Wastes are being dumped and creeps slowly down into the groundwater and wells. Sure, there are environmental laws here. But give some rupies to the right people, you get basically an exemption for anything. Also to spread death.
The third world's environmental degradation is a ticking time bomb. The cancer and pulmonary explode already. It's simply a slow, relentless erosion of soil and habitat. And there is always the poor man's life, liberty, health and natural weight of the easiest. There's no question about who will eventually lose.
The measure of ACUTE TOXICITY is called the LD50-value.
The only way to compare data is drop by drop. The lower the value the more toxic it is.
LD50 is a measure used in medicine to roughly indicate how toxic a substance is. LD50 is the abbreviation of the English word "lethal dose" 50%. The value of LD50 for a specific substance obtained by the experiments exposing different groups of animals to varying doses of the compound, whereupon some of the animals die. From the relationship between dose and mortality in relation to the individual experimental animal mass can then be using statistical analysis to calculate the dose that kills 50% of the animals.
Usually set to LD50 in rats or mice. It is generally not possible to draw any of these values completely accurate conclusions about how poisonous a substance is to humans, but the more similar to humans as the species of experimental animals - mainly to the body weight and close genetic relatedness, such as primates - the more accurate value.
Ordinary table salt = NaCl has an LD50 of 3000mg/kg body weight. This means that an adult male, weighing 70 kg, in danger of dying if he can take 3000 x 70 = 210 000 mg sodium chloride, = 210 gr.
Compare this with Belcher SEA SNAKE value of 0.00099. You don�t need much venom to kill a man.
Botulinum toxin (Botox): an estimated 1 ng / kg, or 1 billionth of a gram / kg or 0.000000001 grams / kg.
All values apply when the substances are orally taken.
Do you think there is something missing in me "the world's most venomous ..."? Send me an email if so. Now there should be some subtans in the whole and not any personal opinions. That may be the example your grandmother is the "most toxic" grandmother because she is 98 years old and jumping backwards up the stairs to the third floor. But this is hardly what I want here. I think you know what I mean. And it doesn't have to be the "most toxic" in the word's real meaning, i.e. the deadliest, but it can be for example the "most toxic" car with 3000 hp. Pictures are not necessary but preferred. Your name will be published together with your contribution.
Finally, if you can find pure error, or what you believe is wrong, you are welcome to contact me. Thanks for your help.
| i don't know |
Cricket - which Indian was the first to play in 100 test matches ? | India Cricket Team & Players| India Match Schedule, News, Statistics, Records | India Team Photos & Videos at Cricketcountry.com
Captain: Virat Kohli
India Biography
Few historians or sociologists can explain the craze for this sport in India learned through the colonists. Cricket has definitely found its masses through the Indian population. As Ashis Nandy had said, "cricket is an Indian game that was accidentally discovered by the British".
India played its first Test in 1932. Indian cricket had mostly been confined to individual brilliance of greats like Vijay Merchant, Vijay Hazare, and Vinoo Mankad till attained it adulthood in 1971 with the twin victories over England and West Indies at their den. The victories also coincided with the rise of Sunil Gavaskar, and towards the end of the decade he was joined by Kapil Dev; the latter led India to their maiden World Cup triumph in 1983.
With satellite television and Sachin Tendulkar ruling over Indian hearts the 1990s, the popularity of cricket in the country reached new heights. India became a world-class team as giants of the stature of Anil Kumble and Rahul Dravid appeared on the scenario.
In 2007 MS Dhoni led India to the inaugural ICC World Twenty20 title; four years later he ended India s 28-year quest for the World Cup. As things stand, the Indian Premier League plays a huge role in the financial market of world cricket. With a new star emerging in the form of Virat Kohli, one can only hope things get better from here.
India Biography
Few historians or sociologists can explain the craze for this sport in India learned through the colonists. Cricket has definitely found its masses through the Indian population. As Ashis Nandy had said, "cricket is an Indian game that was accidentally discovered by the British".
India played its first Test in 1932. Indian cricket had mostly been confined to individual brilliance of greats like Vijay Merchant, Vijay Hazare, and Vinoo Mankad till attained it adulthood in 1971 with the twin victories over England and West Indies at their den. The victories also coincided with the rise of Sunil Gavaskar, and towards the end of the decade he was joined by Kapil Dev; the latter led India to their maiden World Cup triumph in 1983.
With satellite television and Sachin Tendulkar ruling over Indian hearts the 1990s, the popularity of cricket in the country reached new heights. India became a world-class team as giants of the stature of Anil Kumble and Rahul Dravid appeared on the scenario.
In 2007 MS Dhoni led India to the inaugural ICC World Twenty20 title; four years later he ended India s 28-year quest for the World Cup. As things stand, the Indian Premier League plays a huge role in the financial market of world cricket. With a new star emerging in the form of Virat Kohli, one can only hope things get better from here.
| Sunil Gavaskar |
"The ""Electraglide"" is a famous motor-cycle model, produced by which company ?" | Records of Indian Cricket Players
1975 against East Africa under captaincy of S Venkataraghavan
First Test Won
Againt England in Madras, 1951-52
First Test Series Victory
First Test Series Victory outside Indian Subcontinent
Against New Zealand, 1967-68
First Indian Bowler to take wicket
Mohammad Nissar
First Cricketer to score a half century
Amar Singh
First Cricketer to score a century
Lala Amarnath in 1933 against England in South Bombay
First Cricketer to score a double century in Test
Polly Umrigar, 223 against New Zealand at Hyderabad in 1955-56
First Cricketer to score a triple century in Test
Virender Sehwag, 309 against Pakistan in Multan in 2004.
First Cricketer to score a century in ODI
Kapil Dev, 175* against Zimbabwe in the 1983 Cricket World Cup.
First Cricketer to score a double century in ODI
Sachin Tendulkar, 200* against South Africa at Gwalior, 24 February 2010.
First Hat-trick in Test match
Harbhajan Singh against Austrlia in March 2001
First Hat-trick in ODI match
Chetan Sharma against New Zealand in 1987
First Cricketer World Cup Championship Win
At the 1983 Cricket World Cup
First Batsman to complete 10,000 runs in Test Cricket
Sunil Gavaskar (He was the in the world to achieve this feat.)
First Batsman to complete 10,000 runs in ODI Cricket
Sachin Tendulkar (He was the in the world to achieve this feat.)
First Cricketer to score 100 centuries in Test and ODIs combined
Sachin Tendulkar
Bowler to take all 10 wickets in an innings
Anil Kumble, 10/74 against Pakistan in Delhi,1999
First Batsman to score 50 centuries in Test Cricket
Sachin Tendulkar
726/9 against Sri Lanka in Mumbai,2009
Lowest Test Score
42 against England in 1974
Highest ODI Score
418/5 against West Indies,2011 at Indore
Lowest ODI Score
54 against Sri Lanka in Sharjah, 2001
Highest Winning margin in ODI
257 against Bermuda in West Indies,2007
Highest Winning margin in Test Match
Innings and 239 runs against Bangladesh, Mirpur 2007
Highest Score run by WicketKeeper in ODI
Mahendra Singh Dhoni , 183 againt Sri Lanka, 2005
Most Wicket taker in Test Match
Anil Kumble,619 in 132 matches
Most Wicket taker in ODI
Anil Kumble,334 in 269 matches
Highest Individual Score in Test Match
Virender Sehwag, 319 against South Africa, Chennai, 2008
Highest Individual Score in ODI Match
Rohit Sharma, 264 against Sri Lanka, Kolkata 2014
Most dismissals in Test career by wicketkeeper
MS Dhoni
Most catches in Test career (non-wicketkeeper)
Rahul Dravid, 209 in 163 matches
Highest wicket partnerships in Test Match
Vinoo Mankad & Pankaj Roy, 413 aginst New Zeleand in 1956
First Cricketer to awarded Arjuna Award
Salim Durani
Most number of Man of the Match Awards In ODI
62 by Sachin Tendulkar
Most Consecutive Man of the Match Award In ODI
4 by Sourav Ganguly
Most number of Man of the Series Awards In ODI
16 by Sachin Tendulkar
First Batsman to score two centuries in same test match
Vijay Hazare against Autralia in Adelaid, 1947-48
First Batsman to score pair of ducks in same test match
Vijay Hazare against England in Kanpur, 1951-52
First Bastsman to Score 1000 Runs
Vijay Hazare
First Indian player to score a century in three successive Test matches
Vijay Hazare
Only Player to achieve 4000 test run and 400 test Wickets
Kapil Dev
India's first ever foreign coach
John Wright
First stadium to host a Test match in India
Gymkhana Ground in Bombay, 1933
Wicket Taken on the first bowl of carrier in Test Match
Nilesh Kulkarni, against Sri Lanka, Colmbo, 1997
Wicket Taken on the first bowl of carrier in ODI
S Ramesh, against West Indies,1999 Bhuvneshwar Kumar against Pakistan, 2012
Fastest Century in ODI
Virat Kohli, 52 Balls against Australia, 2013
Fastest Half Century in ODI
Ajit Agarkar, 21 balls againt Zimbabwe, 2000
Fastest Century in Test Match
Kapil Dev and M Azharuddin, 74 balls
First Batsman to Score Three Triple Centuries in First Class Match
Ravindra Jadeja
Fastest 50 Wicket taker in Test Match
R Ashwin
Fastest Test Century on debut
Shikhar Dhawan, against Australia, 85 balls
6 sixes in an over
Yuvraj Singh, against England 2007
Fastest Half Century in T20
Yuvraj Singh, against England 2007 in 12 balls
Man of the Match on ODI debut match
Sandeep Patil
Indian bowler to top in the ICC ODI bowler's List
Anil Kumble
Most Sixes in an ODI Innigs
Rohit Sharma, 16 Sixes against Australia in Bangalore, 2013
Most Fours in an ODI Innings
Rohit Sharma, 33 Fours againsts Sri Lanka in Kolkata, 2014
First to score two Double Centuries in ODI
Rohit Sharma
| i don't know |
The capital of Uganda is Kampala. What was its former capital ? | Kampala Map | Map of Kampala City, Uganda
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Disclaimer : All efforts have been made to make this image accurate. However Compare Infobase Limited,its directors and employees do not own any responsibility for the correctness or authenticity of the same.
About City :
Kampala is the capital of Uganda and has a population of over 2 million. It is the largest city in the country and is the political as well as commercial center of the country. English, Luganda and Swahili are the most prevalent languages here.
The city was the capital of the Buganda Kingdom until in 1890 when Frederick Lugard constructed a port in the area for trade purposes under the British East Africa Company. In 1893, it was declared a British protectorate and served as such until the independence of the country in 1962 when it was established as the capital of the country.
Geography :
Kampala sprawls over a series of hills, each housing one sector of the city and covers a total area of 189 sq km. It lies in the south of Uganda with Lake Victoria to its south. It is located to the north of Mengo which was the capital of the Buganda kingdom during the 19th century. The city has been divided into five boroughs, namely the divisions of Kampala Central, Kawempe, Lubaga, Makindye and Nakawa in order to supervise local planning.
How to Reach (Transport) :
The city is served by the Entebbe International Airport which lies on Lake Victoria’s shores at a distance of 41 km from the city center and is accessible by the Kampala-Entebbe Highway. Airlines like African Airways, British Airways, KLM, Emirates and Qatar Airways operate passenger flights from several cities like London, Brussels, Amsterdam, Juba and Istanbul. Taxis, hotel shuttles and minibuses to Kampala are easily available outside the airport.
Nairobi operates a biweekly train to and from the city which offers a very pristine and scenic journey. Kampala is accessible from cities of Kabale, Fort Portal, Jinja and Kasese by bus. A daily ferry service connects Kampala to the islands of Sesse.
Inside the city, there are three major means of transport, namely, motorcycles (locally known as boda-bodas), minibuses (called matatus) and taxis (also called special hires). Taxis both metered or otherwise, while expensive are comfortable and relatively safer than the other two. Although boda-bodas are very fast, they have been known to have mostly reckless drivers who operate the vehicle at dangerously high speeds. Minibuses, although frequent and cheap, are mostly very crowded and slow.
When to Visit :
Kampala features a tropical rainforest climate and has two wet seasons, one from August to December and a shorter one from February to June. The city has a uniform temperature between 20 degree Celsius and 30 degree Celsius throughout the year. The best time to visit this city is from June to September when the weather is relatively drier as well as cooler.
Fairs and Festivals :
Kampala celebrates several religious and cultural festivals throughout the year catering to its rich heritage.
The Kampala International Film Festival, also known as the Amakula Kampala Cinema Caravan Festival, takes place all over the country from September to November. It conducts several workshops, showcases various old and new films and is one of the most important festivals of the city.
Bayimba International Festival of Music and Arts, held in September, is hosted in the Uganda National Theatre. It brings together all the visual art forms and offers a great platform to local as well as foreign artists.
Nile Gold Jazz Safari, hosted in October, is a one day jazz festival. Musicians from all over the world gather in the city to celebrate this musical event.
Other festivals include the Independence Day, Easter and Christmas.
Points of Interest (Places to Visit) :
Following are some of the must see places of the city:
The Kasubi Tombs, built in 1881, is located on the Kasubi Hill. It is a World Heritage Site of UNESCO and has several buildings made of traditional bark cloth as a testament to the people.
The Uganda National Museum, founded in 1908, has several exhibits showcasing the traditions, heritage and culture of Uganda. The most famous exhibit is the collection of musical instruments which are playable.
Bwindi Impenetrable National Park houses over 100 kinds of ferns and 150 types of trees. It also has some of Africa’s endangered species of animals including several chimpanzees.
The Botanical Gardens, located on the shores of Lake Victoria, is about 20 minutes from the city. It has exquisite picnic grounds and a variety of flora.
Other places to visit are Wamala Tombs, Bahai Temple, National Theatre, Rubaga Cathedral and Namirembe Cathedral.
Accommodation :
Kampala offers several kinds of accommodation options. Luxury hotels include Sheraton Kampala, Kampala Serene Hotel, Protea Hotel Kampala and Royal Suites which have modern and spacious rooms, swimming pools, restaurants as well as beautifully manicured grounds. Midrange hotels include Humura Resort, Silver Springs Hotel, Rivonia Suites and Casa Miltu Hotel which offer comfortable amenities at reasonable prices. Hotel Africana, a popular mid range hotel, is the only hotel which has its very own mosque. Golf Course Apartments have comfortable apartments with fully equipped kitchens as well as saunas and gardens and offer daily maid services. Several budget hotels including Red Chili Hideaway, The Kampala Lodge and Hotel City Square offer cheap and clean surroundings as well as free wireless internet.
| Entebbe |
The pop group UB40 were very popular in the 80's and early 90's. How many number 1 hit records did they have ? | Political Map of Uganda | Uganda Districts Map
Political Map of Uganda
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Disclaimer : All efforts have been made to make this image accurate. However Compare Infobase Limited,its directors and employees do not own any responsibility for the correctness or authenticity of the same.
Uganda Political Map helps in finding out the provinces of the country together with the position of Uganda in the world. Some of the provinces of Uganda are Arua, Nebbi, Kitgum, Mpigi and Lira. The capital city of this eastern African country is Kampala.
Uganda Location
Uganda is located in Eastern Africa to the west of Kenya. It falls on the coordinates of 1° North latitude and 32° East longitude. It is bordered by Sudan in the north, Kenya in the east, Tanzania and Rwanda in the south and Zaire in the west. Uganda covers an area of approximately 236,040 sq km. Uganda Political Map shows the various provinces into which the country is divided.
Uganda Provinces
Some of the important provinces of Uganda are given below:-
Arua
Mpigi
They have been marked on the Uganda Political Map by a white square.
The Sese Islands lies in the south-eastern part of Uganda and has been shown by a dark black font on the Uganda Map. The national and the international boundary have been very clearly shown on the map by black uneven lines.
Capital of Uganda
Kampala, which is the capital city of Uganda, lies on the coordinates of 0° 19' North latitude and 32° 25' East longitude. It is marked on the Political Map of Uganda by a red square. It is located at a height of 1202 meters above sea level. This place can be accessed from the Entebbe international Airport. Some of the nearby locations include Mengo, Lugala and Makerere.
District
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On this day, February 19th.in 1897, Mrs. Hoodless of Ontario, Canada founded which well - known organisation ? | This Month in Canadian Herstory - February | heroines.ca, Guide to Women in Canadian History
Herstory
This Month in Canadian Herstory: February
February is Black History Month in Canada, a great opportunity to celebrate the achievements of notable Black women in our history. A few examples:
Zanana Akande
Zanana Akande. The first Black female to serve in the cabinet of the Government of Ontario.
Marie-Joseph Ang�lique (ca. 1709-1734). A desperate slave who fought for her personal happiness, but was hung in Montreal after allegedly starting a major fire.*
Jean Augustine. First Black woman elected as a federal Member of Parliament.
Addie Aylestock. Canada's first female Black minister.
Carrie Best. Co-founded a newspaper called The Clarion, which became The Negro Citizen.
Mary Bibb. Courageous anti-slavery leader who was co-editor of the newspaper Voice of the Fugitive.**
Lucie Blackburn. A runaway slave who settled in Toronto and worked with her husband to become a successful entrepreneur.**
Violet Blackman. Involved with Marcus Garvey in the founding of the Universal Negro Improvement Association.
Rosemary Brown (1930-2003). First Black woman in Canadian history to become a member of a parliamentary body.** More
Measha Brueggergosman
Measha Brueggergosman. Award-winning Canadian soprano.
Anne Cools. First Black person in the country to be named to the Senate of Canada.
Viola Desmond. A civil rights icon who stood up against racial discrimination in Canada.**
Esi Edugyan. Talented Canadian author, winner of the 2011 Scotiabank Giller Prize for her novel Half-Blood Blues.
Rose Fortune (ca. 1774-1864). First female police officer in North America.*
Hattie Rhue Hatchett. A musician who wrote a marching song for Canadian soldiers in the First World War.**
Violet King Henry. First Black female lawyer in Canada, called to the bar in Alberta in 1954.
Gwendolyn A. Johnston. Co-founded the Toronto Third World Bookstore.
Jeni LeGon. A talented dancer, actress and choreographer with a long career in show business.
Daurene Lewis. First Black woman in Canada to be elected as a mayor.
Anne Packwood. A member of the Coloured Women's Club in Montreal.
Micheline A. Rawlins. The first Black woman to become a judge for the Ontario Provincial Court.
Betty Riley. First Black woman in Canada to become a television producer.
Marie Marguerite Rose. A onetime slave who gained her freedom and ran a business in the Fortress of Louisbourg.**
Beverley Salmon. First Black woman to became a Provincial Human Rights Commissioner.
Mary Ann Shadd (1823-1893). First woman to publish a newspaper in Canada.*
Glenda Simms. Became President of the Canadian Advisory Council on the Status of Women in 1989.
Harriet Tubman (ca. 1820-1913). A conductor on the Underground Railway who led many slaves to freedom in Canada.*
Juanita Westmoreland-Traore. First Black judge in Quebec.
Portia White (1911-1968). First Black Canadian woman to become a famous singer.*
* This woman is featured in the book 100 Canadian Heroines: Famous and Forgotten Faces .
** This woman is featured in the book 100 More Canadian Heroines: Famous and Forgotten Faces . Just ask for the books at your local bookstore, or order online.
February 1963
Fashion industry pioneer Marilyn Brooks opened her first boutique in Toronto: The Unicorn. See marilynbrooks.com for more information about Marilyn and her collections.
Lady Aberdeen in Ottawa, 1894.
(William James Topley/Library and Archives Canada/PA-027338)
February 1, 1897
Lady Aberdeen, wife of the Governor-General of Canada, and the National Council of Women announced plans for a special commemoration of Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee: the creation of an organization that became known as the Victorian Order of Nurses. The VON website.
February 2, 1897
Clara Brett Martin became the first female lawyer in the British Empire. She set up a law practice in Toronto.
February 10, 2000
Lois Hole became Lieutenant-Governor of Alberta. She was also the co-owner of a large greenhouse business, an author of gardening books, and a longtime school trustee.
February 10, 1908
West Coast composer Jean Coulthard was born in North Vancouver. More about her career from the Canadian Music Centre .
A historic Valentine's Day Card c. 1911
February 14
Valentine's Day.
February 16, 1967
The Royal Commission on the Status of Women was created by Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson. Ottawa-based journalist Florence Bird became the chairwoman. After public hearings were held across Canada, the commission produced a report with 167 recommendations relating to issues such as birth control, family law, equal pay and maternity leave.
February 19, 1897
Born on an Ontario farm, Adelaide Hunter Hoodless founded the world's first Women's Institute in Stoney Creek, Ontario to support the needs of the wives of farmers. More about the organization from the official website of the Federated Women's Institutes of Canada .
February 21, 2000
Dr. Lynda M. Haverstock became the 19th Lieutenant-Governor of Saskatchewan. Born in Swift Current, Dr. Haverstock dropped out of school but later earned a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology as well as a Master of Education degree. Prior to her appointment with the provincial government, she taught at university and worked as a psychologist.
February 28, 1996
For the first time in history, a Canadian won four Grammies in one year. Singer and songwriter Alanis Morissette won the awards for Best Rock Song, Best Female Rock Vocal Performance, Best Rock Album and Album of the Year. Alanis was born in Ottawa, Ontario and released her first single at the age of 11. More about Alanis from her website .
February 29, 1860
Mrs. Kwong Lee arrived in Victoria, British Columbia, becoming the first female Chinese immigrant to the land that became known as Canada.
More pages from This Month in Canadian Herstory:
| Women's Institutes |
On this day, February 19th. In 1906 , The Battle Creek company of Michigan introduced onto the market which well-known foodstuff ? | Inverbrena 2003 by Flixx Graphics - issuu
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•• A note on “Inverbrena”.
The name first appears in the Annals of the Four Masters as “Inver Brena” the mouth of the Bren river and identifies the narrow neck of water through which the tide rushes into Loch Cuan.
Chairman’s Note.
We are now in the 21st century and on reflection what great changes have occurred in that period. The world war spawned a revolution for our civilisation and the old customs, ways of life, characters and sayings will all be obliterated, if we are not careful, by the hurly burly of modern day life with today’s overwhelming technology obliterating yesterday’s achievements. “Today” is our only opportunity to record our yesterdays for posterity and our members have once again delved into the past in their own memories and just as important the memories of the public who have made many contributions to this book. If we don’t record these items they may and will be, lost for ever. There is still a lot of material in our countryside uncovered and waiting for discover; if you don’t want to write it down yourself; tell to someone who will. Now I will detain you no longer and let you get on with reading this year’s publication and if it “jogs” more memories our efforts will not have been in vain. Regretfully, I wish to record the sudden death of a very promising member, Seamus Savage who with his wife Maureen, joined us recently. Our deepest sympathy to the family.
Willie Crea, Chairman.
“For the olden memories fast are flying from us Oh! that some kind hand would come And bind them in a garland e’re the present hardens And the past grows cold and dumb.” Anon
Cover pic: Punts assembling for the start of a race in 1947 From the left to right - Pat Swail’s “Star of the Sea” fitted with splashboards The Rev Larmour’s punt (No.5) and the “Barracuda” (No.14) owned by Hugh Tweedie and Johnny McDonnell. The original car ferry the “Malcolm” docked at the slip and Tommy Quail’s ferryboat the “Jennie” on her mooring in the background.
1
Recollections of Sailboat Racing in Strangford............................. Bobby Magee
3
The Race (poem)................................................................... Imelda Fitzsimons
9
Isle o’ Valla - The Charter School...........................................Eamon McMullan
11
A Country Shop...................................................................... Mena McKeating
16
The Womens’ Institute 1983-2003................................................... Pieg Denvir
17
Articles on “Home Words”............................................................. Isobel Magee
28
The Legend of the Castlemahon Flat Stone.................................... Isobel Magee
42
The Strange Powers of Frank Kane and Vincent Curran.................... Willie Crea
43
Recording of Local Place Names.................................................. Alan Johnston
45
The McKibbens in New Zealand........................... Ronnie & Rhoma Buchanan
45
Danes and Norsemen..................................................................... Isobel Magee
50
The Labourers’ Cottages in Lecale C 1900............Sheila Campbell Cunningham
54
Una Burnett records some of her memories on tape....................... Una Burnett
60
Nostalgic Memories of Christmas .....................................................P.J. Lennon
61
Acknowledgments The editors Peig Denvir and Eleanor McGurnaghan wish to thank; All members of our group and the people of the area who compiled or submited the articles for this issue. Damian McKee and staff of Flixx Graphics for their pleasent helpfulness at all times. Down County Council Community Relations Section.
2
• • Recollections of Sailboat Racing in Strangford by Bobby Magee
The Punts
Part 1 On a Saturday evening in late July 1946 I wandered down to the quay to find a sailing race in progress and although I missed the start of the this race I became enthralled as the race progressed. So much was I captivated about this event that I was hooked on the sport of sailing and it has remained with me for over fifty years. I recall that it was one of those perfect days for sailing with wind strength of Force 2/3, the tide on the flood approaching high water and the sun shining at its best. I am not sure who organised the race, it might have been a race postponed from the Regatta as members of the Regatta Committee were on duty on the Quay, namely Frank McCausland who was starter/gunman, Major Armstrong performed the duty of timekeeper, other members of the shore party included Master McMullan, Ivan Burke and Johnny Travers. The boats that took part in that historic race were “Star of the Sea” a 15’ Murnin built punt owned by Pat Swail and sailed by John McCausland, the “Unknown” a 15’ craft constructed and owned by Nicky Curran and sailed by Tommy McKeating, the legendry one legged boatman from Portaferry. Others included the “Little Flower” which was a 16’ punt built and owned by Christy Breen and sailed by Tommy Fitzsimmons. I cannot recall the names of the remaining punts but the other details were a 15’ craft owned by the Mullan family from Portaferry and helmed by Tommy (TaHey) Mullan, a 15’ varnished boat built by William Conway from Strangford owned by Joe Traynor and sailed by Malachy Rodgers. A 15’ punt from the local Murnin boatyard, which was painted white, was owned by Pat Swail and skippered by Joe Breen. A 14’ punt also sporting a varnished finish created and sailed by Hugh Tweedie and owned by Rev Larmour of Portaferry and finally a small 14’ built by James Swail from Castleward, owned by his brother John and sailed by Pat Swail, grandfather of Joe Swail the top snooker player. During the race many place changes occurred but in the main the race was dominated by the “Unknown” and the “Star of the Sea” with John McCausland at the helm, not too far away. On the final leg of the course the wind eased and the tide began to ebb between the Quay and Swan Island and the punts bunched up. Tommy Mullan and Tommy Fitzsimmons gained ground on the leading boats by staying to the Portaferry Shore longer. The last 50 yards to the finish line which was between the lamppost on the Quay and the Island pillar, was very slow but exciting. The “Star of the Sea” was to leeward along the Island Shore in the slacker tide, the “Unknown” was to windward but in the stronger tide. Then Tommy Mullan picked up a friendly puff and got to weather of Tommy McKeating but the finishing line came too soon to take full advantage of his good fortune. Meanwhile when the “Unknown” was covered by the third boat, the “Star of the Sea” inched to the front and won by about 2 feet with Tommy McKeating holding on to second by about the same distance. Quite a cheer greeted the winning Strangford boat from the large group of spectators who had gathered on the Quay and calls for a repeat race were the order of the day. The buzz of excitement continued into the next day and the following week. I remember being outside Mrs Fitzsimmons’ shop when the Sunday papers came in on the 11.30 bus from Downpatrick. This was the focal point and a meeting place where 3
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sport, politics and gossip of the week were debated. The main topic that Sunday morning was the punt race of the previous day and Frank McCausland suggested that a series of races be organised and a cup be obtained for a prize. With the enthusiasm at fever pitch another race was arranged but the weather and tidal conditions combined to give a very fluky race with Malachy Rodgers sailing the William Conway built craft to victory by the width of the river. William was over the moon at the success and duly celebrated. Racing continued with a couple of races before the end of the season and Portaferry (Cook St) held a further two races which started from Cook St. slip. For these impromptu races, rigging, sails and steering gear were scavenged from far and near, some of which had come from punts that had raced pre-war, the names of which I heard talked about included “Star of the Sea”, “Anna”, “New Design”, “Fan Tan” and “Ninrum” (Murnin spelt backwards). Working sails had to be enlarged to racing sizes, mostly with parachute and target cloth, both of which were in abundant supply due to the close proximity of the RAF Training Squadron based at Bishopscourt. History tells me (an eleven year old schoolboy could not be party to such far reaching proposals) talks were taking place to form a club and so on 12 September 1946 at a meeting in the Cuan Hall the Club was duly founded. The first Commodore was Sholto Cooke who lived at Ferry Quarter with Senan Sharvin as Vice-Commodore, Ivan Burke was Secretary and Alex Henderson from Castleward was Treasurer. In addition to the flag officers above, committee members representing the three participating districts of the Club, namely Strangford, Castleward and Kilclief attended. It was quite a large committee and included Tommy Fitzsimmons, Pat Swail, Fred Farrow, Hedley Quayle, Joe Breen, Paddy Beattie and Johnny McDonnell from Strangford. The Swails (Earnest, John and James) and Willie Johnston were the Castleward delegates, while Willie Swail, Bill Fitzsimmons, Christy Breen and Pat Breen represented Kilclief. The name of the Club agreed on was Strangford Sailing and Rowing Club. Rowing was a big part of pre-war Regattas and the tradition was carried on by a lot of the potential membership. The Club was distinct from the Regatta Committee although some were members of both organisations. With arrangements on a more formal base, rules were essential for the smooth running of the fledgling club. The punt, of course, was elected as the class boat. The maximum length was to be 15 feet length overall but a tolerance of six inches would be accepted. A boat measuring 15’7” would be a sixteen-foot punt. These measurements accommodated all but one of the existing fleet so to comply with the rule, Christy Breen duly reduced the length of the “Little Flower” by one foot. The rig was to be the traditional punt arrangement with a single sail of unlimited measurements. A fin (a flat steel plate attached with brackets to the keel) to assist the punts to beat to windward was to be fitted. Punts fitted with centreboards had to have them permanently locked and sealed in the down position throughout the length of the race. The boats were primarily built for rowing and therefore had a low freeboard and being open boats splashboards were permitted to help keep water where it belonged, in the Lough and not in the boat. A practice in the early punt races, which was later banned, was to carry bags of gravel as ballast in fresh breeze conditions and to deposit the bags in Davy Jones’ Locker at the end of the last beat or if the wind eased. I remember a debate at the top of the slip on the merits of ballast versus an additional crew member. Pat Swail said “the stones did 4
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what you told them to do and stayed in the bottom of the boat while the additional crew would move about and think of self preservation if the going got tough” Meanwhile a club was formed at Cook Street (Portaferry) A meeting to discuss matters common to both sides of the River took place and at the meeting it was agreed to adopt the Strangford Rules for the specification of the boats. It was also decided that each boat should have a number on the sail and that the Strangford boats should have even numbers and the odd numbers be assigned to the Portaferry based boats. Racing to take place on alternate Saturdays at Strangford and Cook Street at 6 o’clock. In those days a lot of workers did not stop work until 3 o’clock on Saturdays. The newborn club required finance in addition to the membership fee, which I think, was about 5 shillings; I know that when I formally joined the club around 1950 that was what I paid. Dances were organised in the Cuan Hall kindly loaned by the Sharvin Family and in the Granary in Castleward freely provided by Lord and Lady Bangor. These were great social occasions which sometimes led to many happy marriages and were enjoyed by all and provided the necessary funds to get the club on a solid financial footing. It was arranged that racing would commence on the first Saturday in May 1947. The Committee decided to buy a cup to be awarded to the overall winner of the Strangford Series of races. One race was to be held in Castleward and one in Kilclief. One Saturday three members went to Belfast on the bus to make the purchase and their choice was an elegant trophy which would rival the FA Cup or other prestigious sporting prizes. The cup cost £21 and 10 shillings and was called “The Swan Island Cup” and could be won outright by the boat winning the series three years in succession. The points system used was three points for a win, two for second, and one for third, with one point being awarded for starting in a race and one point for finishing. This was to encourage The writer finally gets his starters and for boats to continue even hands on the legandry when their chances of a place were “Swan Island Cup” at gone. A win was therefore worth five Strangford Sailing Club’s points, second – four, third – three. Golden Jubilee exhibition in The Secretary, Ivan Burke, had the 1996. safe keeping of the Cup until the Pat Swail’s punt is on display winner was awarded the following in the background. September. I first saw the trophy when my classmate, Ralph Burke, 5
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invited me to his house after school on the Monday and I dreamt and prayed that one day I would win a cup like it. When the 1947 season started some changes in the fleet had taken place. Joe Breen had obtained the use of Sholto Cooke’s Murnin built, the “Swallow”. This was the punt that the Murnin Family built for the Stella Maris new church building fund. Hugh Tweedie built a nice 15’ punt named the Barracuda for Johnny McDonnell with the builder at the helm. This boat was allocated No. 14 and equipped with a good wellproportioned sail made by McKenzie from the Clyde. John Waterson, the official Pilot for Strangford Lough, took over as skipper of Rev Larmour’s punt. Pat Swail sailed his own “Star of the Sea”. James (Cordie) Mullan was recruited to helm the “Little Flower”. Bobby Mullan changed places with his brother Tommy in the Family boat. John Fitzsimmons sailed John Swail’s boat when at home on leave from the Royal Navy. Malachy Rodgers and Tommy McKeating continued to sail their 1946 craft while John Fitzsimmons, on occasions, would sail Ernest Swail’s “Saucy Sue”.
Punts just after the start of the 1956 Regatta L-R “Wanderer” “Sharfit” “New Design” Marie Bawn” “Patricia” “Barracuda” The season was a great success, with Pat Swail winning “The Swan Island Cup” for the first time and the “Barracuda” winning the Portaferry Series. The next couple of years continued much the same as 1947. Pat Swail won “The Swan Island Cup” for the third time in succession in 1949 and was declared the outright winner. The cup is cared for in pristine condition by the Swail family. A new boat was superbly built by master craftsman Nicky Curran for Pat Breen. 6
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The “Unknown” stopped sailing and Tommy McKeating sailed the new boat but she was a disappointment under sail and was later sold to Christy Swail for lobster fishing. When this boat arrived the first night at Strangford slip someone (I think it was Vincent Sharvin) enquired the name of the boat and Tommy McKeating jokingly replied it was the “New Look” – the name of the ladies fashion vogue of the time and the name stuck. In the early fifties punt racing suffered a decline but with coaxing from Joe Breen, a fleet was assembled for the Regattas. By 1954 fortunes were on the up again. Joe Breen had a new boat built by James
A windward start for the punts between the Quay and Swan Island. Note the big sails used by some of the punts. (J) Swail of Castleward and was very successful in the hands of Tommy McKeating. Malachy Rodgers purchased the “Barracuda”. Pat Breen, after failing to purchase “Anna” from Frank McCausland, located the former McCausland owned “New Design” in a field near Comber and brought the successful Murnin creation back home and although measuring 16’ she was reduced in length to meet the Club rules. Two other Murnin built boats were purchased and joined the fleet. Willie John Mullan and Willie Swail found a yellow painted punt and named it “Patrica”. Brendan Sharvin and John Fitzsimmons got their craft from Martin Nicholson in Killyleagh and renamed it “Sharfit”. Peter Tomelty commissioned Hugh Tweedie to build the “Marie Bawn”. George McDonnell had a Murnin built boat called “Imelda” and she was brought into service using the rig from the “Star of the Sea”, a boat with similar looks and measurements. Pat Swail was the helmsman. Pat required his own boat for his day job at the creels. Nicky Cooke sailed the “Swallow” when home on holidays from college. The fleet was completed by a Bernard Mullan self-built punt named “St. Theresa”. This was a very prosperous period for the punts. Flag officers of the Club at this time included Senan Sharvin as Commodore, Joe Polly as the Secretary and Willie John Mullan as Treasurer. The introduction of younger crewmembers gave back the enthusiasm of 1947. In the 1940’s it seemed that anyone under 40 would not have enough experience 7
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to crew a punt and a helmsman would have to have celebrated his half-century – the youth knocked that theory on its head! All the racing at this time was started from Strangford and as the original ‘Swan Island Cup’ was won outright, the Sharvin family presented the “Cuan Cup” as a replacement. Racing was very keen with some close finishes, some punts had narrow beams such as “Sharfit” and were light weather flyers, but overall the broader beamed boats came out on top. The two outstanding boats were owned by the brothers Breen, Pat’s “New Design” and Joe’s “Wanderer”. The “Cuan Cup” like the ‘Swan Island Cup’ was won outright in 1954, 55 and 56, this time by the “New Design” sailed mostly by John Watterson. I was curious why Joe called his boat “Wanderer”. I thought Joe, being a big Country and Western fan, had got the name from the ballad “Under a Wandering Star” but when I asked Joe I discovered that it came from a more divine inspiration. The last two lines of the first verse of the hymn “Hail Queen of Heaven” which goes “Mother of Christ, Star of the Sea pray for the Wanderer, pray for me” and as there was already a “Star of the Sea” he called his pride and joy “Wanderer”. Up to the 1964 revival I would have watched virtually every race from the shore and been present when alterations would be made to the trim of the punts e.g. repositioning the fin or altering the rake of the mast to give the right feel to the helmsman. Then, at the start of the season I was lucky to get a place in the crew of the “New Design”. We operated what would now be called, in football terms, a squad system. Other members, in addition to helmsman John Watterson, were Malachy Polly, Bernard Breen, Pat Breen and Joe Polly and were used as required by the wind strength and availability due to work commitments and we enjoyed our share of success including winning the “Cuan Cup” and the “Wilson Cup” at Portaferry Regatta. As the 1950’s season progressed, a win at all costs syndrome crept into the racing. If a boat lost a race one Saturday you would simply come back for the next race with a bigger sail. Some boats ended up with sails from a class of heavy 18’ centreboard boats, which were popular in the 1930’s. In fact Senan Sharvin owned a very successful Murnin built craft of this class called the “Stella Maris”. Most of these boats had migrated to Kircubbin and had stopped racing with the introduction of the Flying Fifteen as the Club boat. John Watterson obtained a mainsail from the “Hazel” for the “New Design”. Joe Breen borrowed the sail of the “Joey Elizabeth” from Joe Gagen to power the “Wanderer”. These were big sails and the punts were clearly over canvassed and as the boats were not fitted with buoyancy tanks nor was it the practice to wear personal life jackets, anxiety spread in the Club and the villages that a tragedy was waiting to happen. Thank God it did not. The punts were steeped in tradition with their clinker construction, gaff/gunter sail and the technique of the helmsman and crew. To change such a powerful inheritance and custom would have required the diplomacy of the highest order, but sadly it was not available and the demise of the punts had regrettably started. Some people were thinking a new approach would help sailing to survive. A new set of rules was suggested but was opposed by the traditionalists and that was that. During the 10/12 years the punts were racing, great enjoyment was given to the owners, crews and the supporters who faithfully gathered on the Quay season after season Personalities such as Pat Swail, Tommy McKeating, Hugh Tweedie, Tommy Hutton and John Watterson gained an everlasting place in local folklore but to me the man of the punts was Joe Breen. He was always there from the first race to the last and his 8
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quiet diplomacy averted many disputes and his enthusiasm and love of the punts held the Club together when times were looking bleak. The next option was to find a class of boats to suit the local conditions but that is for another day.
The Race
by Imelda Fitzsimons There are sailing boats anchored along by the quay Bobbing up and down by the movement of the sea. Some have just raced around the Lough In calming waters, sometimes turning rough. Those yachtsmen who love the feel of the sail Spend many hours with brush and pail And oil and wax and polish as well So that their boat can meet the swell. For whenever those sea breezes blow And catch the sails, watch how they flow In sunshine and showers or overcast sky, For life it seems goes drifting by. There have always been races on the water; Rowing punts, wychtcraft, fifteens the latter While those who could only stand and cheer Often longed to buy – if not so dear. It’s lovely to see when they set off together To race round the buoy in all kinds of weather, The rivalry between the various crew Like double-dutch to me and you. And though we don’t have yachts of our own As we stand and watch, cheer or moan When we see a face with a cheeky grin First past the line – what a win! They’ll come ashore and relive what they’ve done How they reached the buoy and got the gun Took the prize and been the one For the fastest time and the race they just won.
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• • Strangford Port The following “snippet” was found in a late 50’s issue of the Down Recorder and Bobby Magee has a relevant story. For many years in the past the rural port of Strangford has been mainly associated with the loading of potatoes and the unloading of coal. However we have seen within the past nine months many varied cargoes. Late last summer we saw the unusual cargo of hides being unloaded in the company of lumbers and recently the M.V Michael Sweden of Rotterdam arrived from Pool with an assorted cargo of pipes for use in the sewage scheme in progress in the Downpatrick area. The Strangford branch of Messers W&A McMullan under the management of Mr H. McAfee was in control of the discharging of the ship. At the moment the loading question in the village is “What next? Who knows. Maybe” shrimps boats” a comin.!”
The Hide Boat
as remembered by Bobby Magee The ocean going cargo ship the SS Lassell went aground on the North Rock off Cloughey on the Ards Peninsular coast on 10 August 1952. She was fully loaded with a cargo of hides and timber. The effort to refloat the stricken vessel included transferring the load to relief ships and the first boat docked in Strangford around lunchtime on Saturday 16 August loaded with hides, to be discharged and stored in Messer’s W & A McMullan’s store. This particular Saturday happened to be the day of a regatta, which was organised in Ballyhornan and as most of the dockers were involved with the punts, labour was hard to obtain that day. An agent from Lloyds who had the responsibility to minimise the cost of the tragedy and get the ship floating again as soon as possible offered anyone who would work rates of pay five or six times the going rate, so desperate was he not to have a total loss of the Lassell and its cargo. In the end he recruited a team of young people including apprentices and students. Work continued into the night and the first part was completed on Sunday evening when all the hides were stored and in control of Mr Hugh McAfee the Manager of McMullan’s Strangford Branch. When it came to the payout time the agent, true to his word, paid what he promised and the work force went home with their pockets bulging with money. One apprentice joiner used his windfall wisely and bought a quality suit and when he attended a youth meeting one Sunday wearing his purchase he received quite a lot of scoffing. His reply was to take the sleeve in the time honoured method of testing the quality of cloth between the finger and thumb saying “look at that - pure hide”! The mainstream dockers having missed out at first had good fortune when it was decided to transfer the timber cargo from the Lassell to the harbour. The rates of pay were not as generous as for the hides but long hours were worked and the economy of 10
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Strangford benefited. After a period the unusual cargoes for Strangford were loaded onto what was reported to be the largest ship to dock at Strangford and departed to their original destination together with their distinctive aromas. *******
Isle o Valla - The Charter School by Eamon McMullan
Isle O Valla, a large imposing structure with a tree lined avenue driveway up to its ornate Georgian door with its oversized fanlight above and narrow side windows to bring light into the entrance hall, was a well known house to me. As a youngster in the 1930’s I went there for buttermilk, eggs or potatoes on many a Saturday morning. In those days the house was owned by Frank McCausland, a friend of my father who visited our house on most Sundays on his way home from the Meeting House on the Quarry Hill. He was an imposing figure of a man, like the house he lived in. Well over the six foot mark and very much the successful gentleman farmer, down to the red satin handkerchief he wore in the breast pocket of his tweed ‘Sunday go to Meeting suit’. His sister Anna looked after the house – her name was Rosanna or Susanna, or something like that. but she always was known by the short version, Anna. She had a phobia about cleanliness and would never put her bare hand on the door knob for fear of contamination. She always used her apron or a drying cloth. As a child I was always impressed by the height of the ceilings and windows which gave the place a church-like institutional atmosphere, cold and echoy. And that’s just what it was, a Charter School, as I found out years later when talking to Isle O’Valla House my sister-in-law Winifred Murphy whose great grandmother was a pupil there in the 1830’s – after the Charter had been rescinded. Her name was Margaret Ardiss. An interesting side note is that this same lady’s sister was the great grandmother of Pauline, Godfrey and Herby Quayle, thus connecting one of the leading Catholic families in the village to one of the leading Protestant ones – so ‘we’re all the same beneath the skin’. But more about that later and the physical, real connection that has come down to us via this lady. Education in Ireland was originally for the elite. HenryVIII introduced parish schools to teach English in 1537 but to a large extent this was ignored. In the early 16th century, 230 charity schools were in existence, catering for about 3,000 children. During these 11
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Penal times Catholics were forbidden their own schools although the ‘hedge school’ succeeded in giving some a basic education. Out of these charity schools the Charter School system evolved. The main purpose in the minds of the original founders, a committee of 15 leading citizens of the day, was to bring the native Irish from ‘their wild kind and manner of living’ and ‘reclaim them from the dangerous errors of their Papish ways’. Dr Maule, Bishop of Cloyne, wrote to George II in 1730 and made him aware of the need, stressing the fears of the Protestant minority surrounded by a million uneducated Papists and, at the King’s desire, Dr Boulter, Primate of Ireland, created the ‘committee of 15’. They proposed an educational system ‘to propagate the Protestant faith and the English language’. Primate Boulter in a letter to the Bishop of London showed concern about ‘the obstinacy with which the Irish adhere to their own religion, occasions our trying what may be done with their children to bring them over to our church’. So the schools were to become a distinct method to proselytise the children of the native population by the well-meaning, though misguided, committee of 15. It was in these circumstances and in that atmosphere that the ‘Incorporated Society for Promoting English Protestant Schools in Ireland’ came into being. Its schools became known as ‘Charter Schools’. George’s Charter having been granted in 1733. The children of the poor boarded in the school, on average thirty per school, but it was found that they were still ‘under the influence of their Papish parents’, so a system of transportation was introduced to remove the pupils from their local area and educate them at a safe distance from the influence of their own people. All children coming into the system went first to Dublin and were then farmed out to whichever school had room for them. It was ordered, in 1740, that no more than 10% if the intake should be Protestant. Two months later they changed their minds and proposed that no Protestants be admitted, they not being in need of enlightenment. By 1746 twenty-two schools had been opened. The Strangford school was founded by a grant of £500 from the Earl of Kildare. His dowager later gave two acres of land and another twenty at half rent. Originally girls were to be taught housecraft and boys agricultural pursuits but, as times were changing so those in power decided to include the spinning and weaving of linen as part of the curriculum. This eventually led to an abuse of the system and some of the masters feathered their own nests and lined their own pockets by selling the results of the labour and keeping the proceeds. The ‘kidnap’ methods used to recruit students created heartache and resentment and many parents travelled great distances to rescue their children. So much so that in 1749 a law was passed that those engaged in such affairs should be brought to court ‘within the month’. Throughout there formative years the organisers and founders were convinced in the righteousness of their cause and morally justified in the methods they used, after all were they not trying to enlighten a poverty stricken and ignorant people and raise them from the ‘depths of their Popish idolatry?’ Masters and Mistresses were hired with little regard to their ability or suitability for the posts they were to fill. On meagre salaries, around £35 to £45, it was inevitable that they would augment their income by buying less food and clothing for their students, heat the schools frugally and profiteer on the produce of the children’s labour. Gradually a condition of near slavery evolved and it was common for the master to hire out his charges and to run a sweat shop especially in the linen trade. The original concept was for the schools to be self sufficient, boys growing and tending the garden, girls sewing 12
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and making the clothing. In reality the type of person the regime produced was ‘surley and loutish’ and ‘such miserable objects that they were a disgrace to all society’. The educational side became low priority and almost forgotten. These conditions were noted by the board in 1773 who reported that they were of the opinion that the whole situation ‘was the cause of great injury and discredit to society’. John Wesley, on visits to Ireland in 1773 and 1785 reported to the Incorporated Society on the ‘squalid conditions and the lack of educational effort’ within the schools and, following these reports, in 1778, the House of Commons enquired into the workings of the Society, and produced the first report on the conditions. ‘Abysmal’, ‘dirt’, ‘squalor’, ‘neglect’, ‘sickly’, ‘half starved’, ‘infirm’, were words that cropped up with unusual frequency in the report, produced by John Howard, a Quaker, who visited most of the establishments in 1782-88. Then, in 1808, a new account was submitted – praising the system, the schools and the masters. It said that the children were ‘uncommonly healthy’. However, a further inspection some years later claimed that the two clergymen and the secretary of the Board of Education, Mr John Corneille, had been ‘deceived by the masters or misled by the kindness of their own dispositions’. As a consequence of these deteriorations, 1809 saw the closure of five schools – although at that time there was also an increase in the number of pupils. The explanation is that the masters manipulated the figures and books because they were paid and supplied according to numbers on the rolls – a case of what could be called ‘Roll Deceit’. The quality of the apprentices coming out of the schools was poor in the extreme. Boys were ‘slothful, dirty and vicious’ and girls ‘easy to fall victim of the seducer’. It was therefore common for the boys to recruit into the army. The girls on the other hand were difficult to place in employment, ‘not even the offer of a bounty would tempt anyone to hire them’. In 1818 the Rev Elias Thackery, cousin of William Makepeace, reported that the schools were performing in the manner for which they had been created – ‘as asylums for the orphan and distressed’. No mention being made of the former purpose of converting children to the ‘true Church’. Obviously this aim had been found to be unattainable, Gradually the whole system degenerated in a downward spiral and became an acute embarrassment to the managing body. Public aid, over a short time, was withdrawn and Government funding also dried up and eventually ceased in 1832. By that time Strangford and Ballycastle were the only two establishments left in the north of the country. Clonmel, Sligo and Strangford were the three schools in which the regime was particularly severe so far as cruelty was concerned.. Cane, stick, taws and whip were the usual punishment, especially for those who were bold enough to tell the inspectors the truth. A boy who wanted his ‘whole milk’, the ‘sup’, which was recommended by the board, refused the broth made from the boiling water of the days dinner of pigs feet and beef and was flogged in the Strangford school. Jeremiah Fitzpatrick an inspector of Prisons reported that the conditions were ‘tolerable’ and the teaching ‘acceptable’ in the Strangford school, but then Elias Thackery sacked two of the masters in the same place for being ‘incapable of teaching anything to anyone’. It was discovered that young girls were in danger at the schools – they all became single sex institutions, Strangford for boys, Ballycastle for girls. In 1817-18 Strangford was rebuilt at a cost of £4,000. Reported in O/S memoirs of 1833. The ‘Charter School’ can be seen on George Johnston’s map of 1755 – so – perhaps the original building by the Earl of Kildare was a much less imposing one, £500 being all it cost. Or did inflation run mad in the intervening 62 years? 13
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Alexander Nimmo’s map of 1821 places the school well south of Ferry Quarter in Cloughy at where I think John Johnston’s house is situated, before Tullyhill, - just about a mile out. Was the school built in the 1730’s, or in 1817-18? George Johnston and the O/S memoirs differ and I leave the question unanswered. After the Charter was removed in 1830 it is probable that the property was handed back to the Earl of Kildare, then rented to a Rev Samuel Livingstone who ran a school there for local children. One of these was the Margaret Ardiss mentioned earlier, an artistic child, who created a little work of art in her needlework class, In years to come this would become the property of her great grandchild Winifred Murphy, who handed it over to her daughter Joan Richie, who happens to be my niece and who still treasures the little picture in her home, in Grenaside, in England. After the departure of the Rev Livingstone the house became the residence of the local judge, the Honourable, or maybe not so honourable, Sumerset Ward – no doubt a connection of the Bangor line.
Johnston’s map of narrows Around 1910 Isle O Valla (the island road), became the property of the McCausland family of Portaferry. They made their money through the salvage business and also 14
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Nemmo’s map of narrows owned a hotel. A son, John, ran the hotel in the 20’s and also became an international Bridge player. His brother Frank became the owner of the house and farm at Isle O Valla, on the death of his father. His claim to fame was that he was looked on by the local people as being the cause of the closure of the little nine hole golf course which marched with his land. A beautiful varnished gate used to grace the front entrance to the house. It was an attractive work of art with a ship’s wheel as its centrepiece. Unfortunately vandals or opportunistic thieves sawed the wheel out of the gate in the fifties and so a beautiful piece of the carpenter’s art was destroyed. A ship’s keel used to span the narrow channel between the Black Islands and the mainland. It was used as a bridge but finally became unstable and unusable. It was said to have come from a sailing ship that ran aground on the Cloughy Rocks. Perhaps both artefacts came from the wreck and were salvaged by the same McCausland family. When Frank died the farm was bought by the Lowe family, later inherited by Elizabeth, now Mrs Warren, a lady who was most gracious to me on the phone when I was in the midst of my enquiries. I would also like to thank Kenneth Milne, author of ‘The Irish Charter Schools 17301830’ and Joseph Robins, author of ‘The Lost Children’ for background information. Other background information came from Harris ‘State of County Down’, Bassett’s ‘County Down’, Stevenson’s ‘Life in Down’ and O’Laverty’s ‘History of Down and Connor’. Needle craft of Margaret Ardiss (1830) Now Isle O Valla house stands alone and falling into neglect with 15
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Black Islands Bridge only the lonely cries of the seagulls perched on its roof, as I eyed its crumbling shell, disturbing the tranquil silence. In my imagination I also heard the tragic cries of those lost children and the slap of their cold bare feet on the chill stone floors echoing the slap of the cane on their poor skinny, under nourished bodies, as they tried to speak English and avoid another mark on the tally stick hung round their necks, leading to more whippings when the marks amounted to ten. Goodbye to those ‘good old days’ and good riddance to the cold-blooded people whose misguided sense of righteousness led to such abuse. They may have meant well, but oh what a cruel life it gave to the unfortunate inmates of their establishments. Robbed of their parents, friends and families, transplanted many miles from home with no one to turn to, no one to befriend them or hold out a helping hand. Such a sad, sad note on which to end, yet end I must.
A Country Shop by Mena McKeating
When the larder is bare or the freezer looks empty, we get into our car and drive to the nearest supermarket. With its well stacked shelves, meat and fish counters, fresh fruit and vegetables and even ready cooked meals and the tempting offers ‘buy two and get one free’, no wonder we buy too much and leave the supermarket with our trolleys piled high and over flowing. It was different in the 1930’s when we only went to town once a month, by bus with a half a mile walk to and from the bus stop. Each village had its grocer’s shop, and weekly shopping was usually done on a Saturday. Nearly every town land had its own shop, from the very small sales, selling just cigarettes and sweets, to the larger ones like McMullans in Ballynarry selling most groceries including bacon sliced on a bacon slicer and homemade ice-cream in the summer. Our shop was Lizzie Watterson’s just two fields away. She must have been in her seventies and she wore a large apron down to her toes, and a man’s cap with the peak at the back. She owned a farm and lived in a one-storey house with a slate roof and a 16
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porch at the front. The kitchen had a flagged floor, and an open fire with an oven at the left hand side. The porch was also the shop and we sat in the kitchen as she put our groceries into a basket, but when it came to the biscuits she came into the kitchen and took them out of the oven. As a child it always amazed me how Lizzie could bake the biscuits and wrap them at the same time. It was only in later years I realised that she stored them there because it was dry and airtight. Old age and bad health forced Lizzie to leave her farm and shop, so she went to live with her sister Annie in Belfast. She died a few years later and she was buried on a cold snowy day in St. Malachy’s cemetery in Kilclief. She was the last of the Wattersons. At that time there were eleven families living in Drumroe, now only one family name remains. The houses are still there plus four new bungalows, but the old family names like Murray, Hynds, Fitzsimmons, McAlea, McCartan, Magee and Crean are, like Lizzie’s wee shop, gone forever. I stand alone Blue sky and cloud Thinking I rarely speak aloud Among the thoughts that crowd my mind Little things like these I find Your hand upon my head A book we both have read Daffodils and swallows Hills and hollows Simple things but no more You have left, departed, gone.
Woman’s Institute 1983 - 2003 Compiled by Peig Denvir.
The history of ‘The Woman’s Institute’ in the Strangford area is undoubtedly worthy of record in our local history and so we bring you a flavour of our twenty years in existence through our recollections. Our founder, Greta McMordie, with her vast experience in every facet of the worldwide Federation of Institutes, set up our first meeting in her drawing room in Avenue Cottage where she and her husband Harry came to reside in their retirement. Over cups of coffee and home-made scones she steered us to our inaugural meeting in the ‘Lobster Pot’. At this time we had no venue but Greta approached Fr Kelly, the then P.P. of Strangford, for permission to use the school dining hall for our subsequent meetings on the first Thursday of the month. The locals and those who came to retire in the lovely surroundings of Strangford got to know each other better and so shared many interests and activities. Greta was a tireless worker for Cross Community Relations. Her effort in this regard was also evident and appreciated by the Inverbrena Community Committee. 17
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Alas, time brings changes and the busy life-style of the younger generation has depleted our membership so, sadly, we have had to cease as an Institute but friendships endure. We have enjoyed coming together to bring you these flash-backs contributed by some of our ‘scribes’ as we proudly go into the history book, if not the Calendar, for posterity!!
Our inaugral meeting in St.Josephs School.
Forward by Greta McMordie The first Women’s Institute in the world was organised at Stoney Creek, Saltfleet, Ontario, Canada on 19th Feburary 1897 by Mrs Adelaide Hunter - Hoodless whose ancestors came from Co.Monaghan. The aim of the Institute is: “To unite in promoting any work which makes for the betterment of our homes and the development and improvement of conditions of rural life, by providing a centre for educational activities and social intercourse”. It was originally a rural organisation which spread to the villages and towns throughout the world. As a newcomer to Strangford and having been a member of the Upper Falls Institute for many years, I thought it would be a good idea to form an Institute in Strangford; this to include women of the village and surrounding townlands. My main purpose in doing so was to get women to meet together in friendship and for the betterment of the community. Its sister organisation in the south of Ireland is the Irish Country Women’s Association. We have had many enjoyable exchanges with them and made many friendships. Some of our members have had interesting week long scholarships at their head-quarters in “An Grianan” near Dublin I take great joy in seeing the fruits of our endeavours endure Greta and even though we have ceased officially, may these friendships McMordie continue in our community. 18
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The inclusion of our story in the Inverbrena Journal guarantees that we will be remembered. Many thanks to all who have contributed.
Outings Strangford W.I. 1983 – 2002 by Phyl Johnston
Our very first outing was in Shannie’s bus to see a play at the Lyric in Belfast and on the way home, on a very cold, clear night, the bus broke down about a mile out of Strangford. How were we to get help? We were stranded quite near Sally and Joe Maguire’s home by the little lake near Bannaghan Road, so Sally and I got off the bus and began to walk in our high heels along the slippery, ice covered road towards her house. The cold grabbed us and we walked carefully along. I remember the bare, dark trees against the night sky. The road was deserted – twenty years ago there was far less traffic than there is today.
Howth 1994 Sally’s house was warm and inviting and we phoned some of the husbands. Soon Leslie McCullough, Brian Denvir and Alan Johnston arrived in their cars and began to ferry the twenty or so ladies home. One of our earliest all day outings, maybe summer 1984,I remember sitting at the back of the bus talking to Brenda Croke. She was born and bred in and near Strangford while I was a newcomer. She told me the names of different parts of the road into Downpatrick – Quarry Hill, the Doctor’s Hill, Buck’s Hill etc. etc. I wish I could recall more of them!
June 1994 We left Strangford in a McDermott bus from Portaferry with a new young driver 19
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who had not previously taken a group to the south of Ireland. The ladies of the Howth Guild of the Irish Countrywomen’s Association had invited us for lunch. At Hilltown the noise of the exhaust alarmed us and we stopped for repairs. The newly refurbished Downshire Arms supplied us with coffee while we waited. On to the lovely seaside town of Howth where our hostesses waited courteously for us – even though we were two hours late – and gave us a delicious lunch in their attractive hall. They took us on a historical tour of Howth and its famous Castle, followed by afternoon tea and Irish coffee from the friendly ladies. On the way North we stopped for an evening meal at Dundalk. Other memories:- When Norah Reid was on a W.I outing she often stood at the front of the bus, playing familiar tunes on her mouth organ, and we all joined in singing the songs. There were many enjoyable theatre outings to Downpatrick and also to Belfast’s Lyric Theatre on the embankment. Our very last outing was to Hillsborough for a tour of the Castle and its gardens, followed by shopping and a special last dinner at the ‘Marquess of Hillsborough’. The twenty years of friendship at Strangford W.I. has been an enrichment of my life here.
Competitions and Thrift Table by Kathleen Price & Sally Maguire
At each meeting we had a competition and points were awarded to the winner. A different item was selected each month such as an unusual button, the prettiest Christmas decoration, Granny’s beauty tip or an old postcard – the range was many and varied. One of the highlights was when an Antique Dealer, Caesar Doyle was our Guest Speaker and members were invited to bring an antique to be valued. He also selected the prize-winning item for the competition. At the end of the year the member with the most points won the Brownlee Rose Bowl. Each month we had a ‘Thrift Table’. This consisted of members donating items such as Jam, Flowers, Pot-Plants,Vegetables etc. Members purchased these and the proceeds were donated to one of the W.I. Charities.
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Dramas
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by Mary Rooney During the period of the Strangford W.I., from September 1983 to July 2002, we staged many sketches written and produced by our members. The highlight of each year was in March when we had our ‘Irish Night’. We celebrated with Irish stew and Apple tarts, singing, music and Irish Dancing and of course the evening was not complete without the Drama group performing a funny sketch. These evenings were also enjoyed by many of the local people. Everyone was welcome to join in the fun. On ‘Hospitality Nights’ we entertained many other Institutes who enjoyed the talents and skills of our members. On our 10th Anniversary we had a great Hospitality Night with music, singing and dancing. We ended with a one-act play which was a very funny farce called “Mixing with the Right People”. It was acted and produced by our Drama group. Sadly, this was the last play we performed. The most memorable and funniest play we ever staged was in 1987 and was written and produced by our members. It was called “A Strangford Ferry Story”. The scene was set on the Strangford Ferry boat and centred around the passengers who were crossing to Portaferry. There was much laughter, gossip and ridicule until thick fog set in and the boat broke down. The scene then changed to panic and commotion and all feared they were going to a watery grave. Maurice, the Ticket Collector, calmed the crowd whilst the Captain set off distress flares and contacted the Coastguard. There were loud cheers when the ‘Blue Peter V’ lifeboat came into sight and all sang “We are Sailing” – like all good Ferry Tales this one had a happy ending! The Cast was as follows:
The cast of “A Strangford Ferry Story” Captain (Kathleen Price) – not worried about the fog – the boat is unsinkable and only out of drydock. Ticket Collector (Sally Maguire) – trying to keep the passengers in order and a little worried about the fog. Elizabeth (Moya Magee) – prim and proper schoolgirl worried about getting to Chemistry class on time. Gloria (Freda Sharvin) – happy go lucky schoolgirl prancing about to Heavy Metal music from her Walkman. 21
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Granny Taylor (Josie Connolly) – pushing Baby Bonnie in her buggy. Granny was one of the most memorable characters. She ad-libbed because she could not remember her lines. This caused hilarious laughter throughout the play. Baby Bonnie (Edith Hynds – in her baby grow) sitting in her buggy with a big dummy in her mouth and entertaining all with her baby talk. Mrs Poots (May Johnston) – she is a regular – “On the way to the Chemist for my medicine” she says. Her bag is packed with empty bottles on the way over and full ones on the way back! Mrs Piper (Joan Millar) – scarf wrapped round her jaw and continually moaning – on her way to the Dentist. Lady X (Peig Denvir) – snooty lady with a poodle under her arm and a large suitcase covered with labels. Her private launch has broken down. Captain Rodgers, the Lifeboat skipper (Maisie Brownlee) – the hero of the day – Captain Rodgers arrived in her Blue Peter V lifeboat and saved passengers and crew. Narrator – Maud Evans Guitar – Maire Denvir Stage Managers – Virginia Hardy Choir – Breda Croke Jill Schofield Eileen Hanna Producer – Mary Rooney Lucy Hanna Maureen Hunter Una McMullan
Fashion Shows by Pat McCullough
The talks at our monthly meetings were always interesting and informative, but like women everywhere, we liked to keep up to date with current fashion trends. Our first show was organised by Mrs. Jean King, who owned a dress shop in Castlewellan. Jean’s sisters, Kathleen Price, Sally Maguire and Mary Rooney were members of the Institute, so Sally and Kathleen with Phyl Johnston, Claire Atherton and Moya Magee agreed to be the models who displayed the clothes, which they did with great elegance in the dinner hall of St. Joseph’s School. The school was the setting for our second fashion venture, when Mrs. Hazlett brought an extensive selection of the stock from her “Options” shop at St. Patrick’s Avenue. She also brought several experienced models who were joined by Phyl, Sally and Claire. I was a rather nervous compere that evening, but I need not have worried, as Mrs. Hazlett supplied me with cards describing each outfit and Erin Bradshaw giving the prices so that everyone was fully informed. It is now ten years since our final show.We had become much more adventurous and with the kind co-operation of Dunnes Stores, who agreed to lend the clothes, we decided to book the Inverbrena Hall and open the evening to 22
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the public. Dunne’s manager agreed that our models, Sally, Phyl, Claire and Mina Juliffe could choose the clothes they would wear, so they set off for Belfast to make their selection. This was a summer show, so frocks for weddings, yachting gear and evening outfits, as well as casual clothes for picnics and barbecues, were gleefully selected and brought back to Strangford. Children’s fashions were to be included so Erin and Niall Bradshaw, Sean O’Reilly and Ronan Conway were cajoled or bribed into taking part. Erin remembers the embarrassment Niall Bradshaw, Sean O’Reilly of one particular outfit “a flowery & Ronan Conway jumpsuit” which she had to wear so obviously the children weren’t allowed much choice in their outfits! As compere again I had to get the details of the items on to cards and I recall everything from the smallest to the largest article seemed to be priced in so many pounds and ninety-nine pence. Why stores take off that odd penny baffles me! The Inverbrena committee had built a cat walk for us extending almost the length of the hall and they even carpeted it for our models comfort. Kit Juliffe, then of Castleward, spent the afternoon stapling greenery along the sides of the walkway so with beautiful flower arrangements in the foyer and main hall, the scene was set for a great evening. It was all well worthwhile and we had a large and appreciative audience. The models swished by in their finery and everyone loved the children who behaved so well and did all they were asked, displaying the outfits to the best advantage. Certainly these were three memorable evenings in the life of Strangford W.I., but just three of the many which we fondly recall. The fun and the friendships which were established, and the laughter which we shared at W.I. meetings will no doubt be long remembered.
Irish Nights Remembered by Peig Denvir
Irish Nights at the March meetings was Greta’s idea and all joined in enthusiastically. Members wore something green; a scarf, a brooch, a jumper or some such item, just to mark the night that “was innit”. However Phyl Johnston stole the show when she arrived as an Irish Colleen. She looked so coy in her red flannel skirt and plaid shawl while the little basket on her arm finished the picture. Each year varied in its format but always the young Irish dancers of the area performed 23
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in their lovely colourful costumes and the music from Billy Mannion set the atmosphere for the evening. Of course Irish Stew and apple tart, made by the committee, was served to all. It became standard practice to finish up with everyone dancing the “Waves of Tory”. In preparation we learned the “sevens” and the jig step involved. Getting the waves right was hilarious – not up to the standard of our dancing maestro, Tommy Reid, but our agility was certainly put to the test and when the music went into march time we straightened up, put our shoulders back and boldly carried on! Phew! Our resident poetess, Joan Millar put it in verse.
The Night our Friend Peig Tried to Teach us to Dance! On a cold winter’s night with the wind blowing hard We drove up the road to Denv ir’s farmyard. The welcome was cordial, “Come on away in.” “We are ready and waiting, let dancing begin.” Oh the night our friend Peig tried to teach us to dance! May got so excited, she near bounced off the wall. We all thought for sure she would head for a fall. Poor Tilly kept shouting, her voice growing higher, “This carry on bates me, I’ll away home to the byre.” Oh the night our friend Peig tried to teach us to dance! Phyl kept quiet and cool and looked at her feet, All her actions so calm and her steps very neat. The others all showed us how the dance should be done. They were kind and forbearing, they made it all fun. Oh the night our friend Peig tried to teach us to dance! We have had few rehearsals, so don’t be too hard On all of the experts our efforts may jar. It was done for a laugh and to give you some fun To celebrate St. Patrick and all he had done. May he bless our friend Peig who taught us to dance!
JM
Another year Una Kelly, as a slip of a lass once graced the International stage in the ‘Come Dancing’ series, was really chuffed that she fitted into her costume and bravely danced with her little daughter to rapturous applause and “well done” as she flopped into her chair exhausted! The Ceili House was the theme another year. It was held in the Church of Ireland hall on the Quarry Hill. We had a make-believe hearth fire and an old-fashioned double-burner oil lamp to light the proceedings. Phyl was the bean-a-ti in her armchair by the fire, her shawl around her shoulders and her glasses on the point of her nose. She rocked to and fro 24
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as she gave a hearty welcome to all the neighbours as they dropped in for a sing-song and a bit of craic. Percy Artherton delighted us with a few songs and Billy Mannion set our feet tapping to his accordion reels and jigs. Greta added a little sobriety at this point by her beautiful reading from the Annals of St. Patrick, which was most appropriate.And of course no Irish night was complete without the stew, the apple tarts and the “waves” – no appreciable improvement on the intricacies of the foot work but as enjoyable as ever! After singing the Country Women’s Song the bean-a-ti wished us “Slan-a-bhaile” until next year. Then again it was Peig’s turn so she dressed up as a leprechaun. As she sat on her wee stool, Carmel Hanvey, with her little school children choreographed the fairies, tripping barefoot to the music of the fiddle, scattering snowdrops on their way while Peig recited Richard Rowley’s poem about “The Fiddler o’ Legananny” who tramped the roads o’Mourne and whom they lured into their magic fort and held him captive under their spell for a hundred years. Sometimes our ‘Hospitality Night’ when we invited guests from other Institutes, co-incided with our Irish Night. This one was very recent and as it happened, our grand finale as an Institute. It was a most memorable one. Numerically our committee was depleted but we bravely carried on. Rhoma Buchannan and friends volunteered to make Irish Stew on her Aga in Compass Hill, for over sixty guests. Apple tarts and cream came from somewhere and everywhere. Our entertainment was provided by Eamon McMullan with his barber shop quartet, as they sang old familiar numbers with an Irish theme. The audience showed their delight and appreciation by clapping and joining in. Many of our guests lingered on afterwards to reminisce and congratulate us on a most enjoyable night. These are just a few of the wonderful memories of fun and laughter we had at Strangford W.I.
Letter to Greta
Our first Honorary Member Dear Greta, We’re very pleased to gather here With thoughts and wishes most sincere. You’ve been our skipper all the way To steer us lest we go astray. Led by your charm and blarney too We dared what once we dared not do. We ventured seas to lands unknown, Found friendships there that since have grown To enrich our lives and make them better. Our thanks to you, our dearest Greta.
Celebrating with Greta 25
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Your enthusiasm is most inspiring, Buzzing around and never tiring Baking shortbread or what’er it takes, Laying tables, some traybakes, Arranging posies, wrapping gifts to boot, And all is done for the Institute. Your lovely smile and active brain Your busy bustling walk, Your bicycle and cloud of hair – Of these we will not talk! But on your good deeds we will dwell – Your hospitality And how you raised, with tea and laughs Money for charity
We honour you on this special day, Tho’ you’re semi-retired, we’re glad to say We still have you as an active member With many more years to enjoy and remember May we not forget, as we tell your story, To mention Harry on your day of glory, Gratitude to him is surely due For the nights spent alone in The Avenue.
From your friends in Strangford W.I. January 1999
Senior Citizens Christmas Dinners.
The Senior Citizen’s dinner was organised by our Institute and was the highlight of the year. The entertainment was provided by Billy Mannion and Joe Stratten and later by Gerry and Maurice Curran. Pat Fitzsimons led the singing from the locals and had little trouble in coaxing a song from Nora Reid, W.J. Cull, Eileen Hanna and Muriel Reid while a few yarns were enjoyed from the effervesant James Curran. With much cajoling Margaret Rooney’s rendering of ‘The Galway Shawl’ was most memorable. In these earlier years the Institute held the Christmas Dinners in the Lobster Pot under the management of Seamus McMorrow,Walter Dabernig and then McComb Bros. They were all most accommodating and obliging and we thank them sincerely. The year that the Lobster Pot was under refurbishment and was not available, the proprietors put on transport and brought all our citizens to their Templeton Hotel in Antrim where they entertained us to a superb meal and drinks – courtesy of the management – an unforgettable gesture. The Senior Citizen’s Dinner became very popular but the dwindling numbers in our Institute found it difficult to carry on so the younger and more energetic St.V. de Paul took over the task. We still gave a subscription as did all our annual sponsors and we
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are very grateful to them. The Cuan is the regular venue for the annual event now and is enjoyed by all our senior patrons. Peter McErlean, the perfect host in his tall white hat, mingles with the guests and with his crack and blarney, gives that special touch to the festivities.
Strangford Women’s Institute. Year 1983/84 1984/85 1985/86 1986/87 1987/88 1988/89 1989/90 1990/91 1991/92 1992/93 1993/94 1994/95 1995/96 1996/97 1997/98 1998/99 1999/00 2000/01 2001/02
President Mary Brownlee Mary Brownlee Mary Brownlee May Johnston Greta McMordie Greta McMordie Leah Bradshaw Phyl Johnston Phyl Johnston Leah Bradshaw Greta McMordie Greta McMordie Mina Juleff Mina Juleff Deirdre Hanna Deirdre Hanna Deirdre Hanna Maureen Hunter Hazel Rogers
Secretary Breda Croke Breda Croke Breda Croke Pat McCullough Dorothy McCaughan Maxine Phoenix Deirdre Hanna Betty Conway Betty Irwin Nicola Conner Maureen Fox Hazel Rogers Maureen Hunter Maureen Hunter Hazel Rogers Jean Hughes Maureen Hunter Lynette Gudgeon Lynette Gudgeon
Treasurer Lucy Hanna Phyl Johnston Phyl Johnston Jill Schofield Imelda Fitzsimons Imelda Fitzsimons Josie Connolly Betty Irwin Jill Schofield Mina Juleff Mina Juleff Kathleen Price Mary Rooney Mary Rooney Leah Bradshaw Phyl Johnston Mary Rooney Mary Rooney Deirdre Hanna
And so ends our story in song by Joan Miller
There’s a wee place called Strangford, it lies by the sea The people who live there are like you and me. They’re sober and on drugs don’t get high, And the ladies love going to the W.I. On a Tuesday they meet and their tongues really wag But with speakers and ballots the time doesn’t lag May keeps them in order and calls them to rule But Josie thank goodness, keeps playing the fool Like all other ladies they like drinking tea But the chat goes with it is really the key To the fun and the friendship that always abounds 27
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And smiles are more frequent than gloomy old frowns. But beneath all the laughter and joking and fun They are willing to see that each job is well done When they’re asked for a cake or maybe some funds They open there purses and drown us in buns! ******
Articles on “Home Words” by Isobel Magee
Introduction An interesting discovery was made in the home of the late John Orr, Ballyculter. When the farm house was having the roof repaired in the 1960s, on the wall beneath the slates was found little booklets called Home-Words dated 1877, 1878, 1879. The name of Mr Harry Torney was written in pencil on them. The builder did not discard them although they were damp and tattered and very fragile. They were given to George McKibben. George placed them together and sorted them out and took great care to have them photocopied and sorted into four page magazines, which they originally consisted of. One for every month of the year. It is interesting to read how life went on around Ballyculter, Killough, Portaferry, Kilclief, Dunsford, Ballee, Rathmullen, Saul etc. in the 1800s. So we will include some articles and sketches for our Inverbrena History Book:In the January issue Vol VII No. 1 of Home Words we have the circulation of copies and introduction for the new year of 1877:- May the facts brought forward be an encouragement to scatter Home Words far and wide; They will tend to make the hearths brighter and the hearts there, happier during the many days of the new year, and which we trust will be to all a joyous and prosperous one.
An article on Belfast and Ards Railway. An application to Parliament to construct a railway between Belfast and Portaferry, a distance of 31 miles. As it is proposed to carry this line to the shores of Portaferry it is hoping that everyone in their own interest, place a suitable steamer to ferry from both sides - Strangford and Portaferry. So in 1877 they were much aware of the long journey around to Portaferry, and the distance from Downpatrick. 28
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And the article on coffee rooms in Downpatrick where tea, coffee or soup could be had for reasonable prices. Tea or coffee with a slice of bread and butter 2 1/2d, soup with bread 3d. The daily papers were also supplied and in a second room writing materials etc. for people doing business. You could also leave your parcels in charge of the manager and collect them later. Behind the coffee rooms you could stable your horse and leave your trap for 2d each, while you attended the fair on the fair green, and did your business.
The Sermon for the New Year 1877 was:We now avail ourselves of the opportunity afforded us in our Home Words of reaching the homes of many in whose welfare we are deeply interested, and thus causing it to be the messenger of a few words, expressing our heartfelt good wishes for the New Year. Another year has been added to our lives and again we are spared to enter upon a new one. But let us not do so without a serious review of the past, reflecting on the many mercies God has bestowed upon us, the numerous blessings that have been strewed around our pathway, and the dangers and trials from which a loving Father’s omnipotent hand has shielded us. We may not however rest satisfied with this retrospect, but must dive into the inner recesses of our hearts, and there apply the telling question; hath the “one thing needful” been the principal object of our course hitherto? Martha was careful and troubled about many things but Mary had chosen the good part which should not be taken away from her:- If the answer be doubtful, let it no longer remain so: choose once, and for ever that good part and the Lord’s promise will hold good that “as thy days, so shall thy strength be”. Life, even in its sunniest moments, is but a pilgrimage, a journey through the wilderness like that of the Israelites of old; but He, who delivered them from bondage in Egypt and led them through the way of the Red Sea, will also now, as then, guide each pilgrim’s footsteps “by day in the pillar of a cloud, and by night in a pillar of fire”. We earnestly hope this New Year may be rich in blessings and prove bright to all, nought of its brightness will be lost – but ever increased – by the addition of the true “light of the knowledge of the glory of God”. There is also included a poem every month with the initials A.H. It would be nice to know who the lovely poems were written by (does anyone know who AH was?).
Farewell to the Old Year In the solemn shade of midnight A lonely watch we keep, While with joy and sadness mingled We lay the year to sleep; For our hearts are moving strangely As we hear its passing bell. And to its hours departed We bid a last farewell! We mourn our own weak spirit 29
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That yielded in the strife. We weep with prayerful pity For the many woes of life; For the hearths by sorrow wasted, For the serpent mid the flowers For the storm-cloud looming darkly O’er this fair world of ours. But we joy that the rays of heaven Have shone our pathways o’er, That the presence of our Father Is with us evermore. That nearer, ever nearer To our journey’s end we come And burning purer, clearer Are the beacon lights of home; For we know, if faith be steadfast. That the love will never fail. That the anchor of our safety. Is firm within the veil. Then strong with hope immortal Our eyes undimmed with fear. We gird us to the battle And hail the dawning year! A.H.
The last page of this month’s magazine January, is the life of St. Patrick, to be continued every month. This is interesting reading as it refers to many local places. In the September magazine is the story of Strangford Lough, continues in the March, April, June, July, August, September, October and December of 1878. May and November are missing. The March 1879 magazine contains The Anglo-Norman families of Lecale, which is good reading; the principal Irish families in the year 1879 include such names as McKeatins, Hynds, Maglenons (with the Mac dropped) Glennon, Hannets became Hanna, Connors, Magreedys, Taggarts, McConveys, Crangles, McKearney became Kearney, Killens, McIlmeals, McCumuskey’s, many names which are with us in Lecale today.
Comment:I have spelled the words as they are written. Names and words are used differently today. Remember this was 1800s. February Magazine 1877,Vol VII No. 2 of Home Words. A concert was held in Ballyculter school. The schoolroom was decorated with ivy interspersed with mottoes suitable to the season and occasion, shown off by the brilliant lighting . The concert was in aid of London East End mission. The selection during 30
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the evening was from the works of the great masters – Beethoven, Mozart, Mendelsohn, Handel, Haydn, and Schumann – the concert was very much enjoyed by all. The amount raised at the door was £8 and doubled later with donations. The total amount realised would support a child for a year in one of the “Homes” connected with the Mission. The proceeds of the latter went to Dr Barnardo’s Home. The sermon of the month “Rescue the Perishing”.
The March magazine 1877 Vol VII3 of Home Words. Lord Bangor wished to have a library with instructive books religious and secular. In some future numbers we propose making a few observations on the “Objects of Reading”. The books can be obtained from Mr Lugate at the School House Ballyculter. Wrecks and Casualties Under this heading “The Times” daily records the fate of many vessels and their crews, and with the still more alarming notice of “Disasters at Sea”, we read of numbers of ships leaving their ports and never afterwards being heard of. It is sad to reflect upon all the hearts and hearths which are thus left anxious and mourning. The Psalmist truly says, “They that go down to the sea in ships, and do business in great waters, these see the works of the Lord and His wonders in the deep”. Such accidents have been more than usually prevalent this winter in consequence of the continuous and excessive storms of wind and rain, surrounded as this locality is by the sea, we can, alas! not reckon our shores as exempt from these wrecks, which happily however have caused no loss of life. Amongst those was that of a large German vessel on voyage from China to Glasgow with a valuable cargo of sugar. She had been out 115 days, and although provided with a pilot, taken on board at Queenstown, went ashore early in the morning on Kearney point, and three hours afterwards the ship and cargo were totally lost. The crew numbering fourteen were gallantly and providentially rescued by five men from Tara coastguard station, who risked their own lives through a tremendous sea in a small boat, which on its return from the ship almost sank with the additional weight. A coasting vessel went ashore near Killard Point, and another German vessel was lost close to the entrance of our Lough, the owner of which said that she had been wrecked on account of there being no light although a lighthouse tower was there. Frequent casualties and loss of lives have occurred from the same cause. This structure on Rock Angus was erected at a large cost in 1853, but still is in darkness though earnest endeavours are constantly being made in vain, by the shipping interest with the Board of Trade and other authorities, to obtain for the entrance of this important harbour of refuge the suitable light. Within the eight years ending December 31st 1874, 3,357 vessels have entered this harbour for trade and 1,577 for shelter, in tonnage amounting to 137,952. Notwithstanding this fact, Strangford Lough and harbour are not of sufficient consequence to be properly lighted; but all those persons who are competent to judge in the matter, affirm that it is absolutely necessary for the preservation of ships and lives that the demands of our harbour should receive the same attention as is granted to almost every other one in this maritime country. Sad Case of a Distressed Family. We are often called upon to show prayerful sympathy for those who toil on the great deep. They are exposed to the fury of the storm and the dangers of the sea; and the 31
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sudden death that seizes upon many an active sailor and fisherman comes where there is no earthly friend to offer up the prayer of faith, and no loving hand to close the eye. Among the homes made desolate during the present inclement season has been that of the late William Jordon of Killough. He was for many years one of the most fearless and successful fishermen along the coast and was enabled by his industry to keep his family in comfort and respectability. He was drowned one stormy morning last month in Killough Bay by the capsizing of his boat, leaving his invalid wife and three helpless young children utterly destitute. We appeal to our readers on behalf of these bereaved ones, and request their aid in raising a small sum for their present necessities. Contributions for this object will be thankfully received by the Hon. Somerset Ward, Isle O Valla House Strangford; and the Rev. J. O’Flaherty, Killough, Co. Down. We are reminded the circulation of February numbers of Home Words exceeded 400 copies. The Editor the Rev. Charles Bullock offers his thanks for the interest taken. There was also the appearance of a Ballyculter Parish Almanack (but no records of it).
The April 1877 Magazine Vol VII No. 4 The April magazine refers to school examinations, the following extract from reports examined by Rev. J. W. Williams for Killough School. Arithmetic steadily improving, out of 83 questions 52 were worked quite correctly in the second class; and out of 38 questions 30 were quite correct in the upper class. Grammar very good. Scripture examination well done and the repletion capital. The children are always neat, quiet, and orderly: this time they were remarkably so and I must give them credit for all absence of whispering or ‘copying’. Ballyculter School – examined by Rev. W. S. Darley, in Church Formularies. The general answering of the children was remarkably good and afforded me much satisfaction. The appointed portion of the Church Catechism was perfectly well said. The junior division repeated the Apostles’ Creed and the Ten Commandments as well as could be desired. Of the girls, Eliza Orr was the best. Of the boys Thomas Ludgate and Johnston Hughes were almost equally deserving. This judgment includes the answering both in Holy Scripture and Church formularies. The usual vestry meetings were held in the Parish Church Ballyculter. Mr John Hughes and Mr Henry Brown were appointed church wardens in place of Mr Andrew McGhie and Mr James Porter Jun; and Mr J. Keaghey was reappointed secretary. We are happy to record that the sum of £34-1s has been already collected for the fisherman’s family in Killough. June 1877 Magazine Vol VII No. 6 We wish to state, that out of the amount mentioned in our last number, as having been received for the Jordan family the sum of £20-14s-6d was collected in Killough previous to the appeal made in Home Words for March. The circulation of Home Words for May reached 480 copies. The Destruction of the Firstborn Tis night in the land of Egypt, 32
Exodus XII 29.30
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And the night is dark and calm, The moon is shining fitfully, The air is filled with balm; O’er a mighty nation’s slumbers The clouds their covering spread, The stars divide, disdain to shine, And nature’s face seems dead.
The tempest cloud is rising, And wilder grows the sky, The lightning swift, on its wings of flame, Is darting from on high; And the Lord’s destroying angel With a dark and gloomy smile, Is sweeping fast on the midnight blast, Down the valley of the Nile! The eye of the mighty cherub, Gleamed high with a fearful light, Like the burning sun at meridian prime, Or a meteor of the night; On the rolling clouds of thunder, He rides on his awful road, In his hand he bears the flaming sword Of the wrath of the living God.
July 1877 Magazine Vol No. 7 The July magazine was devoted to the meeting of the general Synod 1875 – 1876 held in Dublin 10th April. August 1877 The Lecale Farming Society. The Annual Cattle Show of the above Society was held on the Fair Green Downpatrick on Thursday July 5th: and notwithstanding the threatening aspect of the morning, and the heavy thunder showers which fell at intervals, there was a large attendance of those interested in the farming operations of our barony. The Society was established in 1844 and for many years bore its present title. It was very successful in improving the breed of cattle by the introduction into this neighbourhood, principally by Lord Bangor and the late Mr Maxwell of Finnebrogue, of pure bred short horn stock. Some years ago the area of the Society was extended so as to embrace the whole Union, and it was then styled “The Downpatrick Union Farming Society”. From that time the interest which the farmers of this barony had hitherto manifested in the Society, seemed to diminish, and very few of them appeared as competitors at the annual shows. Two years ago it was determined that the Society should be re-established on its original basis, and its operations limited to the barony of Lecale, and that it should revert to its old name, “The Lecale Farming Society”. The 33
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show which has just been held in Downpatrick has proved the wisdom of this decision, the interest which the Lecale farmers formerly manifested seems to have revived and the Society has every prospect of a future of much usefulness. There was a marked improvement this year both in the number and the quality of the stock exhibited . We are glad to see among the winners of prizes the names of Mrs Hughes of Churchtown, and Mr Hugh Magraw of Ballylena both residents in our own parish and we trust that on future occasions, many of our parishioners may be equally successful. We also hope that at the next Annual Show more of the gentry will come forward to compete in the amateur class with Lord Bangor and Major Maxwell. The Society does not confine its efforts to the Annual Cattle Show; it also aims at promoting the proper cultivation of the farms, and offers prizes with this object. We hope that all the farmers in the barony will show that they appreciate the Society by enrolling themselves among its members.
September 1877 S.R.W. The September magazine quoted the Assizes on Friday 13th July. His Lord Chief Justice May, who having been for many years a distinguished barrister presided for the first time as judge. His lordship in addressing the Grand Jury, congratulated them on the satisfactory state of the county as shown by the few cases returned for trial. And the new serial at the end of the magazine is on Strangford Lough. October 1877 October magazine, the sermon was on the presence of Christ. And a concert at Strangford held in Lord de Ros’s National School House. The object in view was to raise a sum for procuring new desks and forms to furnish the schoolroom, and we believe £7-14s was the amount raised. The concert was much enjoyed by the repeated applause by the audience. Another lovely poem by A.H.
The Seasons
I would not lose the smiles of Spring When nature wakes in gladness When blossoms bud and sweet birds sing, And lose their winter sadness. When wears the sky a deeper blue And e’en the trees have voices When bloom the flowers with brighter hue And all on earth rejoices I would not lose the summertime When blush the queenly roses. When flowers and fruit have reached their prime And calm the earth reposes.
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When seems the sky to overflow With soft and melting glory, When rests the mist, enwreathing low The mountains summit hoary.
I would not lose the autumn’s breath, Across the branches playing. While scattered leafleats far beneath Tell nature’s slow decaying, While colder blows the northern breeze, The tender floweret blasting And seems to sigh athwart the trees, “No joys of earth are lasting”. I would not lose the winter’s night, When embers from the fire Flash on the wall in circles bright And then in gloom expire. When round the social household hearth Assemble gay and weary, While robes of ermine deck the earth And all without is dreary. I would not lose the seasons’ round, Nor April’s sun and showers, Nor graceful May, with hawthorn crowned, Nor June, bedecked with flowers. Not dying autum’s shortening days Nor winter, stern and hoary, For each in turn their Maker praise And tell creation’s story.
A.H.
November 1877 November magazine. We hear again of the Ballyculter Parish Almanack. The Almanack or Calendar was first published last year and had a large circulation. We intend to issue one for the year 1878. We hope to be able to offer for sale the 1878 Almanack for one penny. School Feast at Strangford. On Wednesday afternoon, the 26th of September the annual school-treat was given by Lord de Ros in the picturesque grounds of Old Court to the young people (108 in number) attending Strangford National School. The children arrived at 3 o’clock when Lady de Ros kindly distributed a variety of useful gifts. Tea and cake were then abundantly supplied. Amongst those present were Lady Catherine Coke, Miss S. Coke, Miss Kerr, Miss C. Kerr, Hon. A. Dawson, Mr E. Boyle, Miss Nora Ward, Captain and Mrs Hill, Rev. A. and Mrs Vesey, Mrs Thetford, Mrs Hockley. 35
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We wish to remind our readers that it is a year since Ballyculter Parish Magazine was first established. The following is an estimate of monthly circulations. Ballyculter and Strangford 170; Downpatrick 77; Dunsford 50; Killough 26; Portaferry 24; Saul 15; Rathmullan 12; Tyrella 11; Ballee 6.
Religious Education. Report of Inspection of Strangford National School on the 22nd of August 1877, by Rev. W.S. Darley – Senior Division – “The general answering of this class was very satisfactory. The psalms and formularies were very well said by all the class, and the Scripture answering was in some cases very good, one girl having answered the full number of questions vis, “Mary Lord’. Junior Division – “The psalms, creed and ten commandments were well said by the class, and with some exceptions the Scripture answering was fair”. Names of children passed: Senior Division Junior Division Mary Lord Annie Pitt Margaret Lord Walter Wallace Alice Perrott William McDowell Annie Lord Samuel Montgomery Sarah Lord Lissie Lord Lettie Pitt. Number of children examined 17. Result Fees 13s 6d. Master - Mr G. Lord, Clergyman – Rev. A.Vesey.
December 1877 Ballyculter Schools It must be apparent to every thoughtful person that the subject of education is at the present time, one of very great importance. In this age of competitive examinations, many opportunities of rising to a position above that in which they were born, are offered to those of the humbler classes who have more than average talent. But the possession of good abilities is not in itself sufficient; they must have, in the first place the means afforded them of developing and improving their talents; and secondly perseverance and application in the use of those means. The responsibility of providing the former rests with the Government, landed proprietors, and ratepayers by erecting suitable schoolhouses and securing the services of competent teachers; while the latter depends on the parents insisting on the regular and punctual attendance of their children at school, and on the children paying attention to the instruction which they there receive. Lord Bangor, recognising his responsibility as a landlord has determined that nothing shall be wanting on his part in providing everything needful for the improvement of the children of his tenantry; and believing that education does not only consist in the acquirement of intellectual knowledge, but also includes the cultivation of habits of order, regularity, cleanliness and neatness has, with that view, rearranged and put into a state of thorough repair, his schoolhouses in Ballyculter. It may be interesting to our readers to have a brief sketch of improvements which have been effected. 36
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Miss Doran and pupils 1911 The stone flags with which the rooms were floored have been replaced by boards; the greater portion of the old rafters have been taken away, those that remain have been cased with pitch pine and varnished with white alabastor work in the intervals between each rafter and supported by strong iron girders painted blue, which gives the rooms a more lofty appearance than they formerly had; a wainscoating of varnished pitch-pine rises from the floor to a height of four feet, above which the walls have been distempered and coloured grey; new porches have been erected, one in front of the centre, and one on each end of the building; the two latter through which the boys and girls enter their respective school-rooms, have been roofed to correspond with the interior of the house, floored with octagonal tiles and fitted with pegs for hats and cloakes in order to promote cleanly and tidy habits on the part of the children. New lavatories have been built behind the schoolhouse. The old furniture has been entirely removed, and two complete sets of the newest pattern obtained from Messrs Sullivan Dublin. By a simple arrangement the desks can be turned over to the back of the forms, and thus become comfortable seats for people attending lectures etc., and by another arrangement equally simple, they can be formed into tea-tables. The boundary wall in front has been lowered to a height of two feet from the ground. And an iron railing about two feet high fixed upon it, connected from each end with the building by side railings, on the outside of which are the paths leading to the schoolrooms. The ground in front will thus be private and Lady Bangor proposes having it laid out as a flower-garden. In order to carry out the work we have detailed, it was necessary that the schools should be closed for a considerable time which we fear has inconvenienced many families, but we are sure that all will agree that the improvements which have been made, fully compensate for the inconvenience which as been suffered. The patron and patroness look with confidence to the teachers, parents and children to co-operate cordially with them in making the schools in Ballyculter patterns of discipline, punctuality, order and regularity. S.R.W.
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NB. A reminder at the bottom of the page of Home Words says: “The improvements in Ballyculter School houses have been most efficiently carried out by Mr George Stockdale, builder, Downpatrick”.
The magazine Home Words. Arrangements have been made in London for binding the year’s numbers at wholesale price of (one shilling). All readers desiring to have their numbers bound to send them to Castleward Downpatrick with money enclosed. The twelve monthly numbers must be tied together and owner’s name and address written on the title page. They are to have attractive cloth covers with gilt letters, ornamental design and parish title on cover. A Harvest Thanksgiving Service was held in the Parish Church of Ballyculter. The Church was neatly decorated with suitable texts, fruit and flowers. The sermon was preached by the Rev. T.J. Welland. The collection amounted to £12-12s which was given to the India Famine Relief. We acknowledge the sum of £1-2s-6d from the labours of Castleward demesne. 16s from Killough subscribed by the children of Lord Bangor’s School there. End of Year 1877. Comments:- On Ballyculter School. It is interesting to note the builders were Mr George Stockdale. The family name of Stockdale is still in Ballyculter today. The school was built in 1823 by Lord Bangor as a voluntary one and the Trust headed by Lord Bangor and his successors provided the money. Then sometime later the Educational Committee contributed to the funding. The improvements must have been around 18771878 some 55 years later. It certainly has stood the test of time. For 60 years
Ballyculter School 38
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afterwards a number of us in Inverbrena History Group here, went as pupils in the 1940’s and 1950’s. It still had the same layout as quoted in Home Word’s except for a few divisions of one classroom during the war years when the pupils increased with the evacuation of children from the towns to the country. It remained so until Ballyculter P.E.S. closed in 1969. It is now a private residence with the garden, that the late Lady Bangor attended to, still as lovely kept by the present owners. The stone fence around the school yard and the stile at the upper end of the playground are there also. And the Chestnut trees still remain, except one that grew near the girls porch had to be taken down. The seat, naturally made of rock, at the back wall of the playground, seated five small pupils is still there. The playground is a lawn now and the iron railings around the front garden have gone. They were a big hazard; many a pupil climbed over when the ball went out of play only to have the seat of his pants ripped. So Stockdales the builders work, certainly stood the test of time. Isobel Magee.
The Life of St. Patrick
as serialised in Homewords Parish Magizine - January 1877. It is now our purpose to give an account of one who has deservedly been called the ‘Apostle of Ireland’, as it will, it is hoped be seen by the brief history which we trust may appear in successive numbers to the readers of our Magazine. As he was closely connected both in his life and works with our own county and the adjoining one of Armagh, we think it may excite not a small amount of interest to obtain some authentic information of the true St. Patrick. Most of the popular accounts of this great man are purely legendary and do him serious injustice; enlarging chiefly upon miracles and wonders of an absurdly sensational character, which were invented merely to suit the public taste of various ages. His own works, however, in their purity and simplicity, prove him to have been a faithful single minded, and devoted preacher of the Gospel; exhibiting him in the true light of a Christian missionary, and as such well is he fitted for what St. Paul exhorts Timothy to be, - “example of the believers, in word, in spirit, in faith, in purity”. But little is known of the real life of St. Patrick, though endless traditions abound, but the few facts which are received suffice to give an idea of his origin, and an outline of his labours in Ireland in the fifth century. In his confession (or declaration), he mentions that when sixteen years of age he lived at a place called Bannaven Taberniae, supposed to be the present Dumbarton in Scotland, and that he was sadly deficient both in piety and knowledge. There is much difference as to the place of his birth A.D. 372 or 373, so that we cannot arrive at any certainty with regard to such. Some say he was born in Scotland, others in Cornwall; whilst many think, in the north of France. Three of his ancestors had been in holy orders, - Calpornius his father a deacon; his grandfather Potitus, a priest, son of Odipus also deacon. Though at first a slave in Ireland St. Patrick was freeborn of Christian parents as his descent proves, and besides this fact we know that the Scotic (Irish) princes would have despised the teaching of a slave. We may observe that Ireland was called Scotia and the people Scots from the end of the third century until 39
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the beginning of the eleventh. “It was,” an ancient historian says “properly the country of the Scots”. The Scoti were the rulers and the Hiberneginac composed the mass of the people. The Scoti were a colony from Spain and are said by the Irish bards to have settled in Ireland in the year 1000B.C. led by the sons of Golane Miled i.e. Miles, or Knight, from whom they are popularly called Milesians. St. Patrick’s original name was Sucat, signifying god of war, but he assumed the Latin one of Patricius, (Patrician was a title borne by the descendants of the Roman senators) by which he was known in his missionary travels amongst the far-off Celtic tribes of Ireland. In his sixteenth year he was taken captive A.D. 388 or 389, by some Irish pirates, and sold for a slave to a Pagan prince in the north of Ireland, which circumstance he alludes to in his confession as a just judgement from God for turning astray from Him. He was for six years retained in slavery by Milchu the chieftain of North Dalaradia, near Slemish, in county Antrim.
February 1877 When alluding to his time of slavery (in the county of Antrim) St. Patrick says: “The Lord then brought me to a sense of my unbelief, that I might even at a late season call my sins to remembrance; and turn with all my heart to the Lord my God who, taking pity on my youth and ignorance, guarded me before I knew Him or could understand anything, and strengthened and comforted me as a father does his son”. Further on, he says, speaking of the goodness of the Almighty to him “I was employed every day in feeding cattle, and frequently in the day I used to have recourse to prayer and the love of God was thus growing stronger and stronger and this fear and faith were increasing in me”. He escaped from Ireland and returned to his parents, but had no peace whilst reflecting on the sad conditions of the Irish heathen. He had no occasion to return to Ireland except the gospel and its promises: but these he could not resist, the language of Holy Scripture urging this mission so strongly upon him. Having had no opportunity for education in his younger days St. Patrick felt it now the more needful to apply himself with diligence to such studies as might be needful to him in his serious undertaking. We are informed that he placed himself under the care of Germanus, Bishop of Auxerre, in France, directing his mind to the learning of the Holy Scriptures and also that he studied with St. Martin, Bishop of Tours, and was made by these prelates deacon and afterwards priest. He thence travelled to the south of France, where he remained for some time in the island of St. Honorat (formerly called Lerius), in the Tuscan Sea, with the monks of a celebrated collegiate institution. It is uncertain by whom St. Patrick was ordained bishop but some of the earliest accounts say it was by Amathorex, a bishop in Gaul, as doubtless he started on his missionary wanderings from that county. Long after his escape from slavery he fulfilled his desire of coming to preach to the Irish A.D. 432, and brought many companions to assist him in his work. He touched first at the mouth of the Vartrey River in county of Wicklow, but meeting here with opposition from the pagans he sailed northward to the province of Ulster, where he before had been a captive. He entered the mouth of Strangford Lough (in the county of Down), and passing where now are Audleys and Welshestown castles, steered westwards between the Laushags and Salt and Gore’s island, till he came to a little inlet or estuary opposite to where Mr Keown’s house now stands. The spot where he rested on disembarking was called Brena, afterwards Ballybren, and now Ballintogher, a townland in the parish of Saul. The creek which his boat entered on landing is formed by a stream called the Slany beside the headland of Ringbane. The Book of Armagh calls this creek Fretum 40
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Brennese, and the mouth of the little stream Ostium Slainge. St. Patrick now began to preach with great success and gained numerous converts to the faith in this part of the North of Ireland. He however, reproached himself for having once fled from his master Milchu, and determined to offer him a double ransom, namely an earthly one – in money and goods; and a spiritual one – by making known to him the gospel of salvation. March 1877 Whilst journeying onwards and not far from his landing place (Ballintogher) St. Patrick made his first convert to Christianity, and it is very probable that his subsequent attachment to this neighbourhood, including Down and Saul parishes, arose from the favourable reception he met with here at the opening of his missionary labours in Ireland. He and his fellow-workers were frequently treated as enemies, and almost met with death, but Dichu (the Scoti or Irish convert above alluded to) prince of this territory, shielded and received them. He forewith displayed his zeal for the good cause by having a church provided for the benefit of those of his subjects who like himself had adopted the Christian faith by means of St. Patrick’s ministry. This church is said to have been called Patrick’s Barn and was afterwards named Sabhall or Saul. St. Patrick continued his journey on foot in search of his former master, but his pious endeavours proving unsuccessful with the latter, he returned to the county Down. Having sown the good seed in Ulster he determined to visit the residence of the Irish kings at Tara, in Meath, and there to preach Christianity. He reached this locality on the eve of Easter, and the first contest between Christianity and Druidism in Ireland then commenced in the following manner:- St. Patrick lighted the paschal fire on the hill of Slane to celebrate, but the Pagan law was, that “Whosoever kindled one before the King’s fire appeared on the hill of Tara, that soul should be cut-off from the people”. The Druids thus detected rivalry, and declared that “the fire should be extinguished, else it would get the better of their fires and bring about the downfall of their kingdom”. But St. Patrick strengthened himself from above and even rejoiced at the idea of appearing before the king and preaching the gospel in his presence. It was then he composed his Irish hymn, which he sang on entering the palace to show the spectators on what foundation his courage was placed, but he succeeded not in convincing the king although some of his subjects received the glad tidings. From Tara St. Patrick started for the distant lands of the West in the direction of Killala near the Atlantic, and many were the hardships endured and the perils encountered on the way thither by this noble missionary. He is said to have “penetrated the hearts of all in these wild regions, leading them cordially to embrace the Christian faith and doctrines”. After his stay in Connaught, returning through Ulster and Meath he visited Leinster (A.D. 442 or 443), carrying on his work here with great success. The princes of the country accepted his religion and encouraged the spread of it amongst their subjects. After some time spent in these parts he directed his steps towards Munster, first visiting Cashel, the royal residence of this province. Angus, the prince of the latter, soon became a convert, and joined St. Patrick in settling the state of the Church in his kingdom. After completing his mission in Munster, he went to the Abbey of Saul, in Down; here, in the place where success first crowned his labours St. Patrick brought them to a close, and after having founded (A.D. 455) the cathedral church of Armagh, he spent his latter days in retirement. He died on the 17th of March hence the origin of the commemoration of that day from time immemorial; but the year 41
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of his death is uncertain, though generally supposed to have been A.D. 492. April 1877 Concluding notes on the Life of St. Patrick:It is believed that St. Patrick returned as a missionary to Ireland, when sixty years of age, but the exact date is not known. Although Armagh, on account of its local importance at this early period was selected to be the seat of Primacy and has always been regarded as the principal church in Ireland, it was not the place where St. Patrick ended his days, not where his remains were interred. As before mentioned, he breathed his last at Saul, and the cleric who administered the dying rites to him was St.Tassack of Raholp, a place near at hand. The Armagh clergy made an effort to convey St. Patrick’s remains for interment to their own church but were unsuccessful and the churchyard of Downpatrick became the depository of such, until in after times his bones were disinterred for the purpose of being enshrined, and eventually were scattered and disappeared. We thus learn that in the parish of Saul (adjoining our own of Ballyculter) this great and faithful preacher of the Gospel passed to his rest, his unwearied zeal never having ceased from the date of his return to Ireland until the day of his death. The closing sentence of the Confession of St. Patrick may be considered as a brief summary of the true purpose of his life. He says, “Behold, again and again I briefly set forth the words of my confession. I bear witness in truth and joy of heart, before God and his Holy Angels, that I never had any occasion, except the Gospel and its promises, to return to that nation from which at first I escaped with difficulty. But I pray those who believe in, and fear God, whoever may vouchsafe to look into or receive this writing which I Patrick the sinner and unlearned, wrote in Ireland, that no one may ever say that my ignorance is to have the credit of it, if I have proved any little matter according to the will of God. But do you judge, and let it be most firmly believed, that it was the gift of God. And this is my confession before I die”.
The Legend of the:- Castlemahon Flat Stone.
On Seamus McMullan’s farm in Castlemahon lies a flat stone of a large size, half way up the mountain. Now this stone is alongside a river in marshy ground. Some have tried to remove it mechanically but to no avail so the river had to be diverted around the stone. We are told the legend is:- That St. Patrick and his followers were preaching around the mountains of Lecale, when he met up with another preacher and his followers, also preaching to the people. When they met they had an argument on a certain point. St. Patrick became angry and said to the other preacher, “When you die you will burn in hell for misleading the people” so they parted. Now sometime after, this preacher died and his followers said “Where shall we bury him”? “Somewhere on a mountain and somewhere high up”! So this is where he is buried – high up on Castlemahon Mountain where he cannot be removed or burned. So the legend says? (This is how it was told to me by Seamus).
I.M.
Home Words print of cover photocopied by G. McKibben. Compiled by Isobel Magee. Photo of Ballyculter School Children lent by the Seeds Family. Photo of Ballyculter School taken by Mona Cooper, Ottawa, Canada. 42
• • The Strange Powers of Frank Kane and Vincent Curran by W. Crea.
I have been told many times that these two boys could find old unseen building foundations by using a piece of copper wire. As they both live locally; Frank at the back of the Wall and Vincent on the Pea Hill at the Scadden, Brian Fitzsimons agreed to set up a demonstration one evening in a field at Tullyratty where I knew there had been old buildings forty years ago but now no trace remained for the field had been cropped many times since. I knew that neither Frank nor Vincent was aware that any foundations existed. So an evening was arranged to meet at the site at seven thirty up the dead end road opposite Banaghan road. Colly Holland was building a wall along this wee road and the three cars passed him waving recognition. I was the last on the scene and seeing the puzzled look on Collie’s face, I stopped and wound down my window. “What’s on up there this evening anyway”?, enquired Colly,“is there a disco or a wake”? I said I wasn’t sure but if he heard any music to come on up. I motored on to the demonstration. Frank produced his instrument, a piece of L shaped copper wire; one leg was about Vincent Curran twenty-four inches long and the other about six inches. He grasped the short side in both hands with the long piece sticking out in front horizontally. I showed him the ground where the foundations might be (giving nothing away). After walking about fifteen feet the long section of the wire turned at right angles. “That’s a corner”, said Frank. He turned a right angle and the wire turned straight in front of him again. He walked on about ten feet and it turned again. He followed the direction of the wire again and completed a rectangle pinpointing a doorway on his journey. I watched in astonishment whilst Brian measured the foundations. The building had been nineteen feet by seventeen with a room inside eight feet by seventeen. I asked Frank how he knew he could do this. He said he discovered it from Paddy Fitzsimons, Brian’s father. I have seen Paddy divining an underground water source with a hazel forked stick and also with a silver watch. Brian didn’t know how his father came to realise his abilities and the mystery remained. Now,Vincent Curran, not to be outdone, took the wire and set out on a different direction and by the same method found another set of foundations, measuring twenty one feet by fourteen and containing four doorways and four rooms. All this mystery set off much discussion and Brian was asked to try his hand. He followed the instructions with great care. He walked and he walked, he turned and he turned, but no response whatsoever. There was now much discussion as to why Brian was a failure. After much deliberation it was concluded that Brian must have been programmed to a much higher plane than the rest of us and that foundation finding was unworthy of inclusion. We were preparing to go home when 43
Frank said “You have a go Willie”. I protested that I had no abilities like this. They persisted and having nothing to lose, I agreed. I grasped the wire very tightly, hoping to stop it turning even if it wanted to do so. Ah’m damned if it didn’t work for me too! I did my best to stop it turning but it would have taken the skin off my hands if I had persisted. I came home in greater wonderment than ever.
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Frank Kane
Now another interesting character enters the scene, George Jackson ,who had emigrated to Vancouver in 1955, was home on holiday and at the young age of 93 was very interested when heard about Frank Kane and his foundations Now George himself also had some strange talents. He could divine a water supply with a accuracy in two ways, with a forked hazel twig and also with a silver watch. He wanted to see Frank Kane finding these foundations so he prevailed upon Leslie Mc Kibben to bring him to see him. Frank produced his copper rod and performed to perfection. George was very impressed and asked if he could try. George grasped the copper rod and it turned strongly whenever he encountered a foundation (invisible to him). George was delighted at this discovery and then revealed that he had another “gift”. He asked for a needle and thread and revealed that he could tell the sex of an unborn child. Unfortunately there were no pregnancies that they were aware of to set up a demonstration, so he made Leslie bare his forearm. He now explained that if the unborn child was female the needle would swing in circles and if was a male it would oscillate pendulum fashion. He now suspended the needle above Leslie’s forearm and, as anticipated, it swung swung back and forward thus confirming what most of already knew that Leslie was a male. It was a pity that his demonstration on Leslie was only a substitute for the real thing; but George assured his audience that it had worked without fail on many pregnancies back in Vancouver. George was pleased with his evening and returned to Vancouver having enjoyed his holiday, discovered that he had one more strange power to show his friends.
Recording of Local Place Names By Alan Johnston
There is a wealth of local place names in and around Strangford, which do not appear on any map. Some are familiar, some less so and many have facinating derivations often linked to personalities or happenings of the past. It would be a sad loss to coming generations if these were simply to disappear either from a lack of usage or from older folk not having passed them on to their offspring. Fortunatly there are plenty of younger 44
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people who have at least some interest in their local history but there are probably even more who at present are not interested. But that can change. The task of recording information on place names within Strangford and in the radius of some 5 miles has already been started before they might disappear from people’s memories. The information gleaned is being recorded on maps and it is planned to complete this as far as possible within the coming year. So, if you were born and bred in the area or if you are interested as an incomer (as I have become over the past 20 years) then please contact by telephone, 44881250, and we can arrange to meet and exchange information, whilst recording on a map what your contribution might be, with seperate listings of origins of place names. At some point during 2004 a meeting may be called with a view to sharing and corroborating information gathered up to that point. Perhaps next years’s issue of this journal might then record the findings. In the meanwhile I would welcome any comments on the subject. 28.10.03
The McKibbins in New Zealand Ronald and Rhoma Buchanan
Emigration has long been a feature of life in Ireland, and many of us have relatives living abroad, especially in North America. The McKibbins of Ballyculter are different; their relatives went to New Zealand, and when Leslie McKibbin heard that my wife and I were planning to go there with a party of members of the Ulster New Zealand Trust, he asked us if we could find the family graves, in “ a place called Arrowtown”. May Johnston, a neighbour in Strangford, had visited Arrowtown a year previously but had been unable to track them down. Our trip began in Christchurch, the largest city in South Island, situated in the famous sheep country of the Canterbury Plains, and close to the east coast. Later we were to travel to North Island, with its volcanoes and hot springs, and Auckland, with its beautiful bay, setting for the America’s Cup yacht race, held just a few weeks before our arrival. South Island is very different, slightly cooler, and with a high chain of rugged mountains along its western coast. Here are snow-capped peaks, deep fjords and glaciers, and well inland, to the east of the mountain crest, is Arrowtown, situated in the valley of the Arrow River and surrounded by an upland plateau. Much of this higher land is open grazing and scrub, tawny brown with the approach of autumn Ronnie and Rhoma Buchanan when we came here in late February; 45
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but the lower hill slopes and valley bottom are well-farmed, in a landscape of enclosed fields and scattered homesteads. It is an attractive countryside, much like home and hard to imagine that little more than a century ago it was scarcely inhabited, its woods and rivers used by the native Maoris for seasonal hunting and fishing. Arrowtown proved to be a small town, not much bigger than Strangford, with a scatter of modern homes along the road to Queenstown.The houses are built of timber, the older with horizontal cladding, painted white or in attractive pastel shades of light green, gray and blue; roofs are mainly corrugated iron, unusual to our eyes but common in New Zealand. The streets in the older part of town are tree lined, and the shops, few in number, have verandahs covering the pavement and proving shelter from summer sun and winter snow. Walking into town is rather like entering the set for a Wild West film; the comparison is apt, for Arrowtown began as a gold-mining camp, its first buildings erected soon after gold was found in the Arrow River in l862. A year after the initial discovery 2000 miners lived in the vicinity and 6000 ounces of gold were being shipped by pack animals to Dunedin and other eastern ports. Most of the miners came from the goldfields in Victoria and southern Australia, and from California and Montana in the U.S.A., where the famed gold –rushes occurred a decade earlier. Some were Chinese who lived in a small community on the edge of town, still known as Chinese Village. Within twenty years mining had finished, but a permanent settlement had been established, acting as a service centre for the farmers who came after the miners, and cleared the woodland and scrub for cultivation. The first crop, a two-acre paddock of oats, was harvested in l862, and was sold for £42! By the 1870ies Arrowtown had three churches, Anglican, Presbyterian, and Roman Catholic; and it had a cemetery, built high on the hillside on the edge of town. Here we started our search for the McKibbins, the group spilling out of the coach and fanning out across the graveyard; it wasn’t long before the cry went up:” Here they are!” Our explorers had spotted three headstones, the largest and most prominent in the cemetery, placed along the boundary wall at its highest point. The most marked the grave of William McKibbin: “Native of Marshall Town, Downpatrick, County Down, Ireland, and late of Crown Terrace and Dunedin. Arrived New Zealand 1868, and died 10 October 1942 Aged 87 years.” Alongside were the graves of William’s two brothers, Henry and John, and members of the family. But how had they come to be buried on this remote hillside, so very far from home? Unfortunately there is very little information among the surviving relatives in Ballyculter. The last contact was a letter to Leslie from William’s grandniece, Elaine Hamilton, who had written following a visit from Mrs. Martin Lowe in l979. She wrote:” We were very pleased to hear there are so many young McKibbins coming on. I’m afraid we are finished in New Zealand.” Elaine had one son, John; she was about 50 when the letter was written, and sadly we didn’t have enough time to see if she is still alive; she seems to have lived in Dunedin, but had a holiday home in Arrowtown. . From the information on the gravestones and from Elaine’s letter, it seems that the 46
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48
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three brothers were born on the family farm in Marshallstown in the 1850ies and came to New Zealand six years after the start of the gold rush at Arrowtown. All three were incredibly young: Henry, the eldest, was fifteen, William thirteen and John only nine. They probably landed in Dunedin, some 150 miles from Arrowtown, and continued to have family links there down to the present. At the time of their arrival, Dunedin was already an established though small port, and a centre of Scottish settlement. I imagine the McKibbin brothers must have come to the Arrowtown district some time in the 1870ies, when land was available and steadily being brought into cultivation. Elaine remembered her father saying: “they were wonderful farmers”, but she added “.. the farms were at 2000ft, and they have changed hands many times since”. Apparently they brought out a young man, Joseph Miller, possibly a relative from home, who died at Arrowsmith in the l970ies when he was over ninety. Of the three brothers, John, Elaine’s grandfather, died in 1894 when he was only thirty-five; his daughter, Elaine’s mother, was born that same year. William, the middle brother, was the longest lived, dying in Dunedin in 1942, seven years after his wife, Sarah Frances, who had been born in “Borris Inossory, Queen’s County, Ireland” in 1862. Leslie has a copy of their marriage certificate: her maiden name was Talbot, her father a farmer, and the marriage took place at St. Paul’s Anglican Church in Arrowtown on May 15th 1889. William’s tombstone is the largest in the graveyard, and unlikely though it may seem, Elaine states that“…all three family tombstones were ordered from France before their deaths”. Henry, the eldest of the three, died in Arrowtown in 1923, aged seventy. He seems to have been the most prosperous: he was a JP, a mayor of the town, and owned “shops and land in the main street. A photograph taken when he was in his mid fifties, shows a comfortable figure wearing a well-cut suit, thoughtful and serious in expression, but with laughter lines around his eyes. His wife, Elizabeth, died in 1895 when she was only 32; on their tombstone she is stated to be:“A native of Money Carra, Downpatrick”. Had Henry travelled home to find a bride, or had he met her in New Zealand? We don’t know. The story of the McKibbins of Marshallstown is similar to that of many families in this district and Henry McKibbin elsewhere in Ireland, driven to find new lives overseas Mayor of at a time of agricultural depression, when life on a small Arrowtown farm was especially difficult and there seemed better opportunities elsewhere. But the McKibbins were unusual in two respects, in their age and their choice of destination. It is hard to imagine three young boys, the youngest only nine years old, setting off to such a distant land on their own. Surely they must have travelled in the care of someone from home, or at least, have been met by a relative or friend at the end of their long voyage lasting at least seven or eight weeks. Perhaps that is why they went to New Zealand, for it was the least likely destination for emigrants from County Down at that time. Most emigrants went to the United States and Canada, and some to Australia and within New Zealand the main centre of Ulster immigration was Kati Kati, a fertile district in the aptly named Bay of 49
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Plenty. But whatever the reasons that led them to leave home and settle in Arrowtown, their story is similar to so many families in our district. Most of us have relatives living abroad, and like the McKibbins, many have lost touch across the generations. Others have managed to stay in contact, to their mutual benefit, and with the advantages of modern telecommunications and e-mail it is much easier to do so now. Our group of travellers much enjoyed their encounter in the graveyard: may the readers of this article be encouraged to follow their example, and find descendants of their relatives who left home and found new lives in lands that are not so distant now as once they were.
Danes & Norsemen by Isobel Magee
There is very little historical information about the Danes and Norsemen who came to this district and gave Strangford its name; But 80 years ago, David E. Lowry published a booklet with the title of “Norsemen and Danes of Strangford Lough”. It has been out of print for many years, but the explanation the author gave of some of our local place names and dialect words, are of continuing interest. The following extracts are taken from this booklet. (Reprinted from Proceedings, Session 1925-26 of Belfast Natural History and Philosophical Society with additions and illustrations). Isobel Magee.
Norse names and Islands in Strangford Lough.
As a rule all islands ending in ey, or a, Old Norse for Island, may be taken as dating back to the Scandinavian invasion and in the north west of the Lough these names are most numerous; an island far removed from the entrance to the Lough has a name which well describes it though its derivation is generally assumed to be a botanical one:- Boretree Island.
Bortr-ey – From Norse Bortr far away and ey. An island. Rolly – Rollo’s Island. Rollo very common, Norwegian name, the name of the Conqueror of Normandy. Rollo, son of Earl of More. Thorney – Thorn-ye,Thorn Island - a descriptive name frequently given by Northmen to over-grown islands. Raney. Ran’s island, probably from the dangers of the currents about it. Ran, the SeaGod in whose nets the souls of drowned men were caught or from Rani, a hog-backed hill. Calf Island. Beside Mahee, a small island lying close to a larger one in the Orkneys group there is one, also beside the Isle of Man. 50
Cow and Calf, Kalfr?
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Sheila. Hut island, from Sheil or Shali - a hut, here we have the termination a, often used instead of ey. Scatrick, which name we find in an old deed of gift to Waldron Prior to Nendrum by John Cardinal Legate, as Scatra, possibly the island where the conquered Irish paid their scat or tribute to the Norse conquerors of the district; we have still the phrase, getting off scat or scot free, without having to pay tax or fine. Scattery Island in the river Shannon was probably so named for similar reason. Bradock – Braid ox. Broad axe, describing the shape of the island the only one in the Lough to which the term would apply. Whelp. From Norse Swelp, a young dog. Guns Island – south of Lough. Gunner Island Battle Island, Gunner a battle. Skull-Martin Rock – Rock north of Strangford Lough, from Norse Skull, a skull Masern, a porpoise. The Porpoise skull rock, from a fancied resemblance. Portavogie. Norse Porte, a gate, Vogti guard. The guard gate on the north of the entrance to Lough. Routing Wheels – A whirlpool, between Portaferry and the mouth of the Lough, from Norse rouda, - to snore - a name which exactly describes the sound made by this whirling pool at half tide. Ramharry – Whirlpool off Copeland Islands. Old Norse, Ramm – strong, Hari – rough. Idiomatic Sentences. “Gleg At The Uptak” (of quick perception) Old Norse. Glogg, - clever, clear sighted, Upptaka, - understanding. Lang-Hame Brae. Hill of Killinchy, descending to graveyard. Old Norse, Lang - long; Heim, - home; the hill leading to the long home, - grave. Words and names in general use about Strangford Lough and around East Coast of County Down.
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Local Words & Idioms
Old Danish
Ram Headstrong Ramm-strong (In a headstrong stuttering way) Stam Stranr-stuttering Toom Empty Tomr Empty (better a toom house than a bad tenant) Rik-rak A mess Rekyr Trouble, spoil Rekless Careless headstrong Reckyr Trouble: Lauss without Ramshackle Mixed up Ramshakkr Crazy, chaotic Rafter A roof support Raftr A roof tree Reek Smoke Reykr Smoke or mist Spor Small bird Sporr Sparrow Tether To tie cattle Tyodra To tether, to tie Thole To endure Thola To endure, to bear Laase To loose Lauss To unfasten Greet To weep Groeta To weep Sprauchle To stumble Sprokla To sprawl, to kick with the feet Squak To shout, to yell Skvakka To bawl Squall To cry or shout Skvall Noisy talk Slither To walk slowly carelessly Slorda To trail oneself along Slag To slash (hatchet) Slag A blow or stroke Shen To climb a tree quickly Skymda To make haste Skrake A screech Skeekr A yell Greith Harness Grefna Accoutrements Balderdash Nonsense Balderdask A rush or noisy nonsense Bairn Child Barn Child Glourin Staring Gleonde Staring
Flit Stour Hand clout Hesp Gowk Nab Rib Smiddy Kitling Groots Greet Dyke Clammer Back-board Board claith 52
To remove Dust Towel Latch (Cuckoo foolish person) To catch To remove Blacksmith shop Young cat Husked corn To weep Ditch To quarrel Bakeboard Tablecloth
Flyt Stor Haandklaede Haspe Gjoge Nappe Rydde Smedie Killing Grudtet korn Groede Dige Klamres Bagebord Bordkloede
To run away Dust Towel Latch Cuckoo To hold To remove Blacksmith shop Young cat Husked corn To weep A bank Noisy fight Bakeboard Table cover
Greipe Mire-Snipe
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Mogreve (mog-dung) Dung fork Myri-snipa Snipe
Cormorant – On the north coast of Antrim the old Norse name Skarf is still preserved, and used instead of Cormorant. Skart A cormorant Skarfr A cormorant Sark A shirt Serkr A shirt Spell A turn a share (work) Spjall A part a share Sti Brae Steep hill Stegi A ladder, a steep climb Braut A road (a ladder like hill) Slocken To quench thirst Slokna To extinguish Skrog A low wood thicket Skogr A wood Skelly To squint Skialgi To squint BlAeberry Mountain berry Blabber The blueberry (Myrtellus) Bilberry Blather Blether to Bladr To speak inaccurately talk nonsense Dree To endure (to dree Drygja Verdr To expatiate fate, one’s weird) to endure one’s fate Quern Stone hand mill Kvern A stone mill Hale Hearty Heill Healthy, sound Til Meaning unto Til To (instance: “You must not mention it til him”) Poke Bag (a pig in a poke) Poki (swein in poki) Ar A sCar Ar-scar A mark of wound Hair-kame Haircomb Harkamr Hair comb Mirk Darkness Myrkr Darkness Stane Stone Steinr Stone Stra Straw Stra Straw Full Drunk Tullr Drunk Riff raff Common rascals Rifr robber
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53
• • The Labourers’ Cottages of Lecale c.1900 by Sheila Campbell
Until a few years ago when the last of the original ‘labourer’s cottages’ was demolished, the traveller in the Lecale area could not have failed to notice the neat little homes that fronted the roads and laneways and speckled the drumlin sides. The design was of childlike simplicity – a door between two windows on one side, and one on the other. Two chimneys straddled the roof ridge. The front door led straight into the kitchen/living room. A tiny pantry lighted by a small window on the back wall held the cooking utensils and crockery and buckets of Susan Bell’s Cottage, water which had to be drawn from a Ringwoody C1900 nearby well or, for the more fortunate, a pump in the yard. All ablutions both domestic and personal had to be performed in the kitchen. Three bedrooms opened out of the kitchen also. They contained a bed, but there was space for little else – perhaps a chair. Clothes were hung on the back of the door. Electricity arrived in the late 50’s and “we had light to light our lamps by.” The designer was Eddie Nolan, county engineer and originally from Kerry who won a competition for the best design for a labourer’s cottage. The original plans hung with pride above the sideboard of his home at the Quoile, Downpatrick where he lived with his wife Rita (my grandaunt) and seven children from the late 1880’s till his early death at the age of 47. After the famine and subsequent emigration,Victorian social consciences woke up to the terrible housing conditions in the country. Some people began to propound the need for landlords to provide new and better cottages for their tenants. In 1883 a Parnellite introduced as a private member’s bill, the first of the Labourers (Ireland) Acts, and the principle was established that public authorities had a part to play. The original idea was that each cottage should have an acre of land, but to this the farmers objected violently, both to the loss of so many acres, and to the fact that the labourers were inclined to spend more time on Renovation 1967 Kearney’s, Ballynarry Four Roads their own land than on ill-paid service; 54
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so the plot was reduced from an acre to an mere rood. By 1906 the cost of building a cottage was £150. Brian Fitzsimmons of Tullyratty describes the construction as follows: “Built of stone or brick, the cottages had a kitchen/livingroom with a small scullery, three bedrooms, two at one end and a larger one at the other. Bedrooms had wooden floors. Living room and scullery had clay tiles 12” square and 2” thick. Front and back there was a full and half door. The windows were fully sashed and paned – four at the top and eight at the bottom. The hip roof was constructed with Bangor blue slates and red terracotta ridge tiles. There were two red brick chimneys each with two flues serving the bedrooms, each of which had a metal fireplace across the corner, and the kitchen with its open fireplace, hob on each side and crook on which the kettle was hung. This fireplace was often replaced later with a “Modern Mistress” range. The bedroom doors were ledged and sheeted, with a rim lock and brass knobs. The exterior was rendered and pebble-dashed. Those that were brick-built had red quoins at the corners and around the windows. The guttering was cast iron, and short pipes back and front drained rain water into stone butts. This water was used for washing. There was a small open shed and dry toilet at the rear with a corrugated iron roof pitched to the front. Most of the cottages had a wrought iron gate. Given that 50 years before in 1860 there were reportedly 600,000 people living in mud cabins in Ireland, these little cottages must have seemed palaces. They were built around 1900-1915 for farm workers on 1/2 acre of land enabling the family to grow vegetables. They were not usually available to fishermen, though Margaret Gill of Ballyhornan reckons that her father’s friendship with Eddie Nolan secured one for her family. Willie Crea recalls that the Aberdeen brick to build the cottages came from the Clyde in Scotland in “puffers” – single cylinder engined, flat bottomed boats. They beached on full tide in Ballyhornan, unloaded their cargo on the sand and floated off on the ebb tide. Horses and carts had to take the bricks away before the next full tide. Extract from Bill McStay’s memories: “Our front door carried in its upper centre the brass numerals 385 and about halfway down its length had a solid block of wood sloped on the outside, nailed across its width. This prevented rain from trickling down between the main door and the parallel half-door on its outer side. Half-doors were a common sight in the country then, but belong to an Ireland that has gone. The half-door was severely practical. It permitted the main door to be left open in good weather, increased the amount of natural light in the kitchen, was useful for leaning on to chat with a passerby, and prevented the hens, except for an occasional adventurous one, from wandering into the house. It did not prove a similar deterrent to the cat, who could surmount the barrier with an agile leap. To unlatch the half-door (for the big door stood open even on the coldest of days), and to step into our kitchen you had entered the working and living centre of the house. You were in a room about 15 feet square. It had a good amount of natural light from the windows back and front and from the half-door. Just as well, for the lamp wouldn’t be lit until the room was bathed in a half-light relieved only by the glow of the fire. The fire was in the centre of the left-hand wall, set into a fireplace with two vertical 55
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panels on either side. The whole was surmounted by a mantelpiece which was a simple shallow shelf about eye-level height. All around its front edge ran a decorative brass strip, held in place by nails at three inch intervals. I remember it so clearly because a regular daily chore consisted of applying Brasso to eliminate finger prints, and then polishing the whole thing with a soft cloth which soon turned black from the process. It was worth the effort, for the brass gleamed satisfactorily when the lamplight or a stray sunbeam caught it. On top of the mantelpiece at either end stood two white delph dogs, of a kind to be found in every neighbouring household, turning their unwavering gaze towards the middle of the room. When I refer to the fire I don’t mean an open fire, for we didn’t have one. Other cottages did though, and how I envied those that did. Not only did they cast their heat into the whole room but they cheered it with their flickering, dancing flames. Not only that but they gave enough light that the weekly Down Recorder could be perused by the light from the hearth. And in these fortunate houses another pleasure was the comforting sputter from the big logs which could be laid right across the hearth and sizzle away for most of a night. Turf would have made a great fire but it didn’t exist in our part of Down. In fact, the first time I ever saw turf was in the Donegal Gaeltacht when I was sixteen. Instead of an open fire, which would have made not only a kettle but my heart sing, we had a cast-iron range rejoicing in the name of “The Modern Mistress”. This was a squat construction requiring liberal doses of blacklead to make it look half-presentable. It coyly concealed the actual fire from your casual gaze, so that you had to peer through a grille about a foot square to detect the glowing innards. Logs didn’t fit into this narrownecked and narrow-minded beast. It refused anything approaching a log with a kind of dumb insolence, exhibiting that cussedness of all inanimate things. It really would accept only coal or slack, and then only through a moveable lid about the size of a dinner plate. The kitchen furnishings were simple in the extreme. The floor was made up of large flags of stone, though almost the entire area was covered with linoleum. My job from quite an early age was to attend to the daily household chores, whenever my mother was out working. She was out often so I became quite expert as a deputy. When I would arrive from school, there was the Modern Mistress to be cajoled for she was the key to the next task. When some hot water was available from m’lady’s condescension, there were the morning’s dishes to wash, beds to make, furniture to dust and the floor to be polished. I took pleasure in this last operation, for when the polish had been well rubbed in and a good shine applied, the gleam and the fragrant smell contributed to a sense of well-being. The pantry opened from the kitchen’s north-west corner (remember my compass reference?) and was about 10 feet by 4. Certainly two people couldn’t pass in what was really a cul-de-sac ending in an outside wall lighted by a small window. Under the window stood a low table, and here reposed our two buckets of water. At a glance it was clear when it was time again to fetch more water. The pantry’s furnishings were completed by two wooden shelves along the wall which was the back wall of the cottage. Here were the pots, pans, plates, cups and other utensils needed for cooking and eating. You couldn’t wash the dishes here, for there wasn’t enough room. You couldn’t wash or 56
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shave here for the same reason. So what you couldn’t do in the pantry you had to do in the kitchen. The back door of the house opened out of the pantry. That meant that if someone was getting a drink whilst someone else was opening the back door to go out, the drinker stayed a prisoner until the door was shut again. Three bedrooms opened out of the kitchen also, at the north-east south-east and south-west corners. These rooms contained a bed each and not much else for want of space. You went to bed in the dark, unless you went early enough to avail of the still burning kitchen lamp. A lamp in the bedroom wouldn’t have been thought of, because of the danger of it “cowping” over, and also because it was considered an extravagance. So reading in bed was just not possible, and maybe that’s why in adult life the few pages before switching off the light is a nightly and enjoyable ritual. The other kitchen fittings were as satellites to the dominant MM. A kitchen table sat against the north wall. Covered most of the time in brightly-coloured oilcloth, which was taken off when baking or washing needed to be done, it was revealed unclothed to be a whitish colour from constant scrubbing. A couple of chairs stood at each narrow end, augmented when necessary by additional chairs from round the room. Place of honour, squarely in front of the fire was given to a battered armchair. By unspoken convention this was reserved for my father when he came home from work and settled to a nap or the weekly Recorder. Directly across from the fire was a sideboard, running almost the whole length of the east wall. This was a massive piece of furniture, more suited to a Victorian drawing room than our small kitchen. It must have been acquired from an auction or maybe handed on by one of my mother’s employers. It certainly wasn’t always there, for its predecessor was a traditional dresser of a type very common in rural households of the period. It had cupboards along the bottom, and ranged along the top shelf were large plates partly functional and partly decorative. One of these was the Willow Pattern plate, part of a set which seemed to crop up in all houses around. In glazed blue and white, it told in pictures the willow pattern story, in which oriental ladies in kimonos crossed little bridges or waved their fans underneath stylised cherry trees as delicate birds twittered overhead. Our sideboard was of dark polished wood, with three commodious and constantly used cupboards comprising the bottom section. Immediately above that was a split level surface, with its middle section about six inches below the polished wooden surfaces to either side. This lower surface was a glazed and speckled tile which could be washed with a damp cloth. It was backed by a large mirror in which you could see reflected the fire behind you, or your own head and shoulders if you wanted to admire them! In the days when we had only a paraffin lamp, it stood on this glazed surface. Its weak light didn’t carry to every part of the room, so when the time came when I had to do “serious” homework, I did it at the sideboard near the lamp. What an inconvenience my nightly chores must have been to everybody else in the kitchen! The wireless must have been silent, conversation must have been muted, and nobody else must have been able to read, with me monopolising the lamplight. Underneath the front window of the kitchen sat a sofa which you could touch with your left hand as you came in through the front door. It was covered with a tartan-type 57
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loose cloth which in the nature of such things was always creasing and slipping. After his dinner was over and he had smoked a pipeful of tobacco, my father would quite often adjourn to the sofa for a nap. He wasn’t the only one. It was a great place for cocking your ear to the wireless nearby, and often the comfortable posture induced its inevitable consequence. One convenience we didn’t have was a bath, for anyway there was not water supply. You made what shift you could with a tin bath and mostly cold water, maybe de-iced a little bit with a kettle of hot water. The other picture, in the bedroom where I slept was a cheap print which you saw repeatedly in Catholic houses of the time, probable a relic of a long ago Mission in the Parish. It was a coloured drawing and was entitled “Mass in the Penal Days”. The scene depicted a priest in full vestments standing at a Mass rock in a winter landscape. Huddled at his feet was a ragged group of worshippers. At the edge of the print a patrol of redcoats was heading in the direction of the group, obscured from the Mass gathering by the snowy hills lying between them. Between worshippers and soldiers was a running man, arm upraised in warning. The viewer was left to speculate on the outcome of the impending threat. Many a time I did as I studied the well-known scene. Would the priest be spirited away in time? Would the yeomanry level their muskets and discharge a murderous fire? Would the snow soon run red with martyrs’ blood (for I knew what side I was on, and held out little hope that the defenceless peasants could all make good their escape)? This then completes the recollection of my boyhood home. One last image. It is of the large dried fish which hung from a nail on the pantry door. It was hard, flat, and about the size of a half newspaper page. It was called ling. If you fancied a piece between meals you hacked it off with a knife, and roasted it at the bars of the range just as you would a slice of bread for toasting. When cooked to your satisfaction it was utterly delicious. I’ve never since come across ling in that natural form.” Until the 1950’s water had to be carried from the nearest well for those who were not fortunate enough to have a pump in the yard. Electricity arrived in the late 50’s and “we had light to light our lamps by”. In the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s many homes added an extra wing at the back making an L-shaped sheltered yard. Some added porches and later, conservatories. Central heating arrangements greatly improved comfort in our time.
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Francis Joseph Bigger, the Belfast antiquarian describes romantically his ideal cottage. “It should be whitewashed inside as well as out – wallpaper should be avoided. A few Irish pictures and Gaelic mottoes go far to make the home bright and attractive. There should be in all cases a half-door. The washing-up is usually done in a bucket or basin on a large stool or low table, and the contents thrown out as soon as the work is done. This is cleaner and never so unwholesome as a sink”. He built three pairs of model cottages near Glengormley of which one survives almost unchanged. Instead of wasting money on bathroom, lavatory, cooker or kitchen sink, he installed a panel of Celtic interlace in the porch with door furnishings hand-made by local craftsmen. It is not recorded whether he actually lived for any length of time in such a cottage”.
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In 1915 Eddie Nolan built the “Bungalow” at Killard for his family to enjoy summer holidays. Sadly he died the following year. Generations of his descendents are still enjoying Killard, despite the attractions of warmer and more exotic holiday destinations now available.
75 years later in 1990, his great grand niece Fionnuala Cregan, ending a school essay at the age of 13 writes; “If passers-by looked in the window of the Bungalow they would see a musty, old untidy looking house. Little would they know it holds a host of happy childhood memories, those memories The Bungalow at Killard. belonging to me”. I’m sure she speaks for many who knew and loved the local “labourers’ cottages”.
1999 replacement cottage at Ballynarry four roads, now owned by Noel & Mary Kearney 59
• • Una Burnett records some of her memories on tape (transcribed by Peig Denvir).
I wasn’t very old at the time Father and Mother brought us round to the ruins of Old Court. My mother told us this was where the drawing room was and this was where the sitting room was. I still have a brass plate; it was a round ornate thing. I lifted it out of the ashes and cleaned it all up. Because I remembered so much I was accused of being nosy or making it all up but there are others can verify what I’ve said! My mother had a sentimental attachment to Old Court in that she had been brought up in Strangford and her father was attached to Lord De Ros family. Father had to go over to England with them sometimes. My father had been to sea and must have been a boat builder. Lord De Ros commissioned him to build a sailing yacht called the “Red Rose” and when the yacht was finished he asked him to sail it over to Strangford. He was later given the job of head boatman so he accepted and brought his family and grandmother over to Strangford. The ‘De Ros’s fixed up a house for them. My father had two big sailing boats to look after, ‘The Red Rose’ and ‘The Mabel’. They had to be moored off the pier at Old Court. There were about 20 boats in the harbour. There was a double boat they used to take out. On one of the yachts it was split in two and then was screwed together, lengthwise. All belonged to De Ros. Boats were used by everyone, they didn’t have motor cars.They were for the staff – to go to Portaferry for messages, provisions etc. My mother rowed across every week for our groceries. She was taught how to row and sail and could have gone anywhere. She taught her son Harry to sail. If I needed anything for my sewing I would row across myself. It wasn’t unusual for women to sail. We were well instructed to know the run of the tide. Regatta times there were rowing races. On one occasion we had to take Isobel Watson who lived at Isle O’Valla, over to Browns of Portaferry for a chest off drawers. She bought and paid for it and thought she’d get McDonnells to bring it home sometime. I suggested I’d get the boat and I’d bring it across. I rowed over to Portaferry and got the men to put it on the boat for me and then on the first of the ebb tide I rowed back to the Black Islands, up to the bridge to her cottage. Taking one drawer at a time was the way we got the chest of drawers from Portaferry to Isle O’Valla! A coastguard left Killard to do his shopping but on his return he must have got caught on one of the ‘routing wheels’ for he was never seen again (about1920’s). Entertainment. Boys played football. Played cricket in Castleward, down off the Buebell Walk ,Lord Bangor encouraged them and they played in a league .John Joe Shields played. After the war it folded. My brother Harry was a star player. Races The gentry had the ”River Class” yachts - Lord Bangor Cook Forde.They had races every Saturday, Castleward to Whiterock. Mother would be away round the avenue watching them coming back from Whiterock. Some sailed over to the Isle of Man, round to Ardglass and Bangor. The “River Class” would travel to Clyde – this is where they originated and were built. Tennis Club at the Rectory. 60
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It was started by Canon Foster, I loved the tennis. We used to go to Balee and Downpatrick had two clubs, Quoile and Cathedral. Played in the Rectory Grounds. They were young and keen to give the youth something to do. Before 1939 earl 30’s. The Golf course was before that.
For well over 30 years my father operated a barber’s shop in the village of Strangford. And for at least half of those years he did his best to encourage me to follow in that trade. But like youth, as always, I was far too restless and impatient; the idea of my being cooped up all day in the same room, especially on a Friday or a Saturday night labouring away dutifully at the patrons’ hairy chins just didn’t appeal to me. Give his due he didn’t give up very easily and would often remind me: “It’s much better than working for the farmer, and I should know. At this job you’ll never get your feet wet.” Despite the prospect of continual dry feet I spurned all association with the razor in this context. However, there was one time in the year when you couldn’t have kept me away from the shop with the barber’s pole, and that was Christmas Eve. From early that evening men and women be arriving in the village to do their shopping and it seemed to me then – and looking back, that thought hasn’t changed – that the people at that time did the maximum amount of purchasing on this day. Into my father’s shop would call the people, in particular old men who perhaps hadn’t been in the village more than once since the previous Christmas. All through the evening and the night they would come to be greeted like long lost brothers.The talk, good talk would be endless. You would hear about big nights at barn dances, great step-dancers, women who were first-class bakers, good butter makers, how to grow your own tobacco, make your own wine, football matches, hurling games, people in America, and the price of drink. There was no end to it. I often thought my father took his time just to ensure that crack would continue on that night uninterrupted. When the head was trimmed and the face maybe shaved and a few coppers handed over to the custodian of the clippers there was always time for a pull of the pipe. Then the patrons would rise, tap out their pipes and walk out into the December night with a cheery salute “Happy Christmas !” Likely then they would join the members of their family for a drink before they would step out with heavily laden baskets towards home; there were no buses or taxis to take the weight of their arms. The nearest thing they would probably use to ease the burden would be the handlebars of a bicycle. I could never quite just realise why I always felt a twinge of sadness when I watched 61
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some of the hearty old men walk out of our home on a Christmas Eve. It was only when I heard the parish priest at that time remark during his sermon at the Christmas Mass, “well we’ve lived through another year, but I wonder how many of us will live to see round again,” that brought it home to me. True enough more often than not when the following Christmas came there was always a well-known face that no longer required a shave. When I was young, as I’m sure it is so with children of to-day, the days before Christmas were full of excitement and hope. Hurried last-minute notes were dispatched to a big toy factory above the clouds and long stockings were sorted out.There was never any trouble getting us off to bed. But sleep didn’t come easy — the mind was far too full of anticipation: time and the sandman, of course, took great care that we got some sleep Looking back it seems to me now that although we never got all, or even half, of the things we prayed, hoped, and wrote for, disappointment was short lived. Once I recall, I must have been going into my teens then, the house was quiet, the rest of the family were in bed and my mother said to me: “You might as well come round the shops with me.” I jumped at this chance to view everything that was on show first hand. Anyhow, as we crossed the street she remarked: “I had to wait until I got the rest to bed; I want to get a few things for their stocking.” Now up to that very moment, I had a very strong belief in the man with the red cloak. All the way around the few shops that there were, my mind was in turmoil, but never once, as the saying goes, did I “let on “ that a great dream had been shattered. From that night onwards the concept of Christmas took on a new and different meaning. As a rule on Christmas morning everything in the house moved in action very early, and although breakfast was a leisurely affair there were still a few hours to go before the event of the day. More often than not my pals and I would meet and if the weather was dry we would go for a long walk. Walking was very much part of our life in the countryside, but on this we generally added a few more miles for good measure and, of course, to while away the hours. Probably we would walk up Chapel Brae over the Pigeon Hill, past the White Houses, through the Clay Hollows along by the Black Islands through Cloughey past the boatbuilders over the Mount and on to Kilclief Castle. If we had still time on our side, we could continue past Buchanan’s Corner, keep King’s blacksmith’s shop on our left through Drumroe and Legnegoppack and up the Brow Hill.Then it was downhill by Creenstown to Blackcauseway and a short canter home. I still get a kick out of these place-names when I hear them used. After dinner we would join forces yet again and we would adjourn to a boat with a cabin which belonged to one of the boys. There we would play forty-five, whist, or pontoon until it was time to go for tea. About 7.30 we would gather with other men and boys who were crossing the ferry for a night at the pictures. By the time we returned to Strangford, Christmas Day had practically gone for yet another year. Our way of spending the holiday was simple and uncomplicated, but we certainly enjoyed what we had.
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In which country is Lake Disappointment ? | Lake Disappointment, Western Australia, Australia Fishing Lake Maps | MyFishMaps.com
Home » International Fishing and Outdoor Maps & Locations » Australia » Water Locations » Lake » Lake Disappointment
Lake Disappointment
Lake Disappointment Lake is drawn on the Nationala Geospatial Agency (NGA) Map. Lake Disappointment is located in the Western Australia Area of the Country of Australia. The Lake is located at the latitude and longitude coordinates of -23.5 and 122.833333. Fishing enthusiasts interested in fishing near or at Lake Disappointment should print out the Google map and take it with them on their fishing trip. This could be one of the best fishing or outdoors adventure locations in the regions of Americas/Western Europe. We truly hope your fishing and outdoor adventures are enhanced by our social fishing website (www.myfishmaps.com) so we ask that you share your experiences with other fishing enthusiasts both young and old. Fishermen and Fisherwomen should also submit a comment or report on Lake Disappointment to help out their fellow anglers. The fishing site also provides users the ability to easily track fishing catches and experiences with exact GPS location on the body of water, create fishing groups to communication with your fishing buddies, find tackle shops fishing schools and marines and port located near your fishing sites and last be not least enter fishing contests to win fishing equipment and supplies.
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London landmarks - Which building was built principally for the Great Exhibition held in London in 1851 ? | Optimism at Lake Disappointment - Bush Telegraph - ABC Radio National (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)
Optimism at Lake Disappointment
Image: Companies such as Rum Jungle Resources are banking on Australia having potash resources of its own. (Rum Jungle Resources)
Potash, a key ingredient in fertiliser, is seen as the new frontier in mining as the world's demand for food increases and farmers around the globe search for higher yields.
Just last month BHP's CEO Andrew Mackenzie described potash production as his company's "fifth pillar" alongside iron ore, copper, petroleum and coal. The company has invested heavily in Canada where the world's largest known deposits of potash lie. Other big players such as Rio Tinto are also investing in potash projects internationally.
However smaller players are hoping potash can be found closer to home, banking on the hope that Australia has a vast untapped resource of its own. Dr Terry Mernagh, is a research scientist with Geoscience Australia, a government agency that has surveyed Australia's salt lakes for potential resources. He says potash was one of the main resources found.
David Muller is managing director of Rum Jungle Resources, a mining company that has a potash mining exploration operation at Karinga Lakes, 300 km south of Alice Springs. He believes Australia could be sitting on a resource of world class potential. He says potash production is something totally new for Australia and his company is bringing in expertise from China to set the industry up. He says the Karinga Lakes has the potential to meet half of Australia's requirements.
The Ironically one place where there's huge optimism that a potash develop will go ahead is Lake Disappointment, in the remote Gibson Desert in WA. The traditional owners of the area the Martu people signed an indigenous land use agreement with a mining exploration company back 2011. Noel Whitehead, CEO of the Western Desert Lands Aboriginal Corporation, says the Martu people could see benefits of $60 million flow from the project over the next 15 to 20 years.
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Tennis - What became the first brother and sister team to win the Wimbledon mixed doubles championship in 1981 ? | Upcoming Congresses - The Tennis Congress
The Tennis Congress
THE 2016 TENNIS CONGRESS – Registration Opens WED APRIL 27 at 11am ET
Thursday October 6 (6pm) – Sunday October 9 (9pm)*
* Optional Extended program Monday October 10 (8am-Noon)
Created by serious tennis players for serious players, The Tennis Congress gives passionate adults (low-intermediate through high-performance NTRP 5.0) access to world-class training usually reserved only for top juniors and professionals. We invite you to join fellow tennis fanatics and 80 master professionals, Grand Slam legends, physical conditioning coaches and sport psychology experts, and equipment gurus from all around the world for a uniquely fun and inspiring experience covering all aspects of training necessary to improve your game– on and off the court.
EXPERIENCE THE DIFFERENCE
Winner of the industry’s award for “Most Innovative Tennis Event of the Year,” The Tennis Congress is an unprecedented experience that enables you to tailor a training program specific to what you personally need. Your program includes a series of rigorous on-court and off-court classes led by some of the most brilliant tennis minds in the world. Building on the innovative ideas we introduced in the first three years, some of the highlights of this year’s event include:
* 14 Hours of Customized On-Court Assessment and Training (4.5-5 Hours per Day): We will create a customized schedule just for you, featuring multiple small-group training sessions (4:1 coach-to-athlete ratio) built around on your level and the objectives you identify in advance. Drawing from the elite ranks of renowned teaching professionals as well as the international tennis tour, where we’ve recruited some of the most accomplished Grand Slam champions, coaches, tour players, and Davis Cup participants, you will have the opportunity to work under the close guidance of approximately six to eight coaches with unique and proven expertise in the areas you have prioritized.
* 10 Hours of Elective Specialized Off-Court Workshops (3+ Hours per Day): Because success in tennis is about more than hitting a good ball, we offer you a choice of off-court classes with world-renowned experts on topics ranging from strategy, mental conditioning, fitness, nutrition, and equipment to supplement your core training plan.
* Your Own Personal Head Coach and “Team”: To help you process and apply all that you’re learning during the event, you’ll be matched up with a personal Head Coach and core training “team” at the start of the Congress. Daily training sessions with your team and Head Coach will provide opportunities to practice and reinforce ideas from specialized classes. On the final day, your Head Coach will help you prioritize post-Congress goal-setting and action steps.
* Personalized Fitness Guidance: To help ensure that your program is in tune with your body’s capabilities, elite trainers with the International Tennis Performance Association (ITPA) will be available throughout the weekend to help you assess your strengths and limitations. Then they will steer you towards the best classes for your unique needs and recommend the most effective pre- and post-match exercise, drills and sample workout routines to take home.
* Access to Video Class Highlights on the Edufii App: We are partnering with Edufii, a social network for skills development, to enable you and your team members to capture and share key takeaways on video so you can retain knowledge and accelerate your improvement after returning home.
* All Meals and Special Evening Programs: The sessions may be intense, but once the racquets go back in the bag it’s time to relax, recharge, and socialize with your new tennis friends. The 2016 program includes dinner on Thursday-Sunday nights as well as breakfast and lunch Friday-Sunday. We also have a number of group activities planned to keep the fun going!
* Special Extended Program Option: Real-Time Match Play Analysis and Coaching (Monday 8am-Noon): Due to popular demand, this year we’re offering an extended option that enable you to apply lessons learned into match situations in a non-judgmental setting while benefiting from real-time match play analysis and coaching (singles or doubles) for 4 hours on court on Monday. To provide an intimate coaching experience, two coaches will be on every court (2:1 faculty-to-athlete ratio), enabling coaches to interact constantly with players. Note: this program is limited to 56 athletes and requires advance sign-up during your registration
AN INCREDIBLE VALUE
The full program cost for the 2016 Tennis Congress is $2395, which includes all customized on-court classes, off-court elective workshops, plus all meals and special activities. The Extended Program Option (Monday 8am-Noon), limited to 56 athletes on a first-come basis during registration, is an additional $395. Registered participants are eligible for a special discounted $139/night room rate at the Hilton El Conquistador, a AAA Four Diamond Resort in warm, sunny Tucson, Arizona (valid 3 days prior and 3 days after the Congress).
Faculties:
Gigi Fernández
Gigi Fernández has been a dominant fixture in the tennis world since turning pro in 1983. During her 14-year WTA Tour career Fernández won seventeen Grand Slam doubles crowns, as well as two Olympic Gold Medals. Fernández was Puerto Rico’s first professional female athlete and coach of the year in Puerto Rico in 2003. In 2000 Fernández was named Puerto Rican Athlete of the Century.
Fernández was ranked first or second in the world from April 1991, up to the time of her retirement in 1997. She is also a member of the International Tennis Hall of Fame. Since retirement, Fernández has coached the Puerto Rican National Team, along with serving as head coach at the University of South Florida in Tampa. She also coached tour pros Sam Stosur and Lisa Raymond to their first Grand Slam win in 2005.
She currently works at Chelsea Piers where she runs the adult curriculum and also conducts “Master Doubles with Gigi” clinics throughout the country.
She is the proud mom of 6 year old twins Karson and Madison.
Wimbledon doubles titles: 1992, 1993, 1994, 1997
French Open doubles titles: 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1997
U.S. Open doubles titles: 1988, 1990, 1992, 1995, 1996
Australian Open doubles titles: 1993, 1994
Olympic Gold Medalist: 1992, 1996
Country: Connecticut (Puerto Rico)
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Owen Davidson
Owen is one of the most well rounded tennis professionals of his time. He finished his junior career as the no. 2 junior in the World to John Newcombe. Owen then went on and played on 5 winning Australian Davis Cup Teams from 1962-1967. Throughout his career he was coached by the greatest coach of all time, Mr. Harry Hopman. In 1967 he was named All England Club Professional at Wimbledon and Manager of British Competitive Tennis. He held that job until leaving in 1971 to resume his professional tennis career.
During his professional career Owen won 13 Grand Slams, 4 Wimbledon’s, 5 US Opens, 1 French Open and 3 Australian Opens. He spent three years as Director of Tennis at the Houston Racquet Club and then eight years as Director of Tennis at the Woodlands Inn and Country Club, in Texas. He was also the Director of the John Newcombe/Owen Davidson Competitive Edge Tennis Academy at the John Newcombe Tennis Ranch in New Braunfels, TX, coaching thousands of juniors from all over the world and specifically Texans. Owen spent many years on the Professional Tennis Tour coaching such players as his mixed doubles partner, Billie Jean King, Andrea Jaeger, Bill Scanlon, Sammy Giammalva, David Wheaton, Annabel Croft, Susan Mascarin, and numerous others.
Owen played on and coached World Team Tennis Teams in Minnesota, Boston, Hawaii, and Houston. In 1991 he also became Chief Operating Officer of Grand Slams Sports Marketing, marketing specialty tennis events to hundreds of major companies throughout the world. He continues to this day in that capacity. From 1976 – 1986 he worked as Tour Director for the ATP in the Woodlands, Texas, initiating the advent of the Satellite Circuit. Currently he is working at the Woodlands Country Club, in the Woodlands, Texas, coaching members and juniors. In 2010 he was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame and in January of 2011 was inducted into the Australian Tennis Hall of Fame. Owen, with Leslie Bowrey and Billie Jean King, won the calendar Grand Slam in 1967. Most people consider his partnership with Billie Jean King as the greatest of all time!
Country: Australia
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Emilio Sánchez
Emilio Sánchez is President of the Academia Sánchez-Casal , located in Barcelona Spain and Naples Florida. The Academia Sánchez-Casal uses a unique training system, based on the Spanish method of understanding tennis, focused on maximizing the strength, balance, speed, stamina and agility of the student’s lower body. It incorporates specific exercises used by successful Spanish players, which have boosted the game of students including Svetlana Kuznetsova, Andy Murray, Daniela Hantuchova, Grigor Dimitrov, Juan Monaco, among many others.
As a player, Emilio won three Grand Slam doubles titles and the men’s doubles silver medal at the 1988 Olympic Games. He achieved an ATP world #7 ranking in singles and #1 ranking in doubles. He was the coach of multiple Grand Slam winner (and sister) Arantxa Sánchez Vicario. He also captained Spain’s Davis Cup team to success in 2008. In 2012 Sanchez was a tournament director for two wheelchair tennis events.
Country: Spain
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Michael Russell
Michael is the current owner of Michael Russell Tennis , which features elite tennis training and private coaching in Houston, Texas. Russell’s website www.michaelrusselltennis.com features full-time weekly and monthly programs as well as private tennis lesson packages.
Michael grew up in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan and attended a private high school, where he even played high school tennis including winning the State Championships. Growing up, Michael was fortunate to be able to practice with several ATP Professionals and his father, a top level pro, which helped in his development. After winning the USTA Boy’s 16 Nationals in Singles and Doubles in Kalamazoo, Michigan, Michael achieved the year end #1 Ranking in Singles and Doubles. Weighing the options to turn professional or attend a university, he committed to play at the University of Miami, Florida on a full scholarship, after turning down several offers to play at Ivy League Schools. At the time Michael finished his freshman year with the best single season singles record of any player in University of Miami history, including winning the Rolex National Indoor Championships and being named Rolex National Rookie of the Year.
Michael turned professional in 1998, and after two and half years on tour he broke into the top 100 in the world after reaching the fourth round of the French Open. Throughout his 17 year career, he overcame three career threatening knee surgeries, a torn labrum and rotator cuff, a broken arm, a bulging disc, pulmonary blood clots, multiple ankle sprains, and numerous muscle strains. Most athletes would have walked away from the sport with all of the adversity faced, however Michael’s perseverance and determination is unmatched by most. He played in 34 Main Draw Singles Grand Slams, 115 Main Draw ATP Singles Events, he holds the all-time record for Men’s USTA Singles Circuit Titles, and is on the top 10 List of Most ATP Singles Challenger Titles. He defeated many players in the ATP World Tour top 10 Rankings including Tomas Berdych, Juan Martin del Potro, Marin Cilic, Grigor Dimitrov, Mardy Fish, James Blake, and Lleyton Hewitt. Michael played against numerous ATP World Ranked #1’s (Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Andy Roddick, Lleyton Hewitt, Marcelo Rios) and competed on the Stadium Court at all four Grand Slams including Night Match at both the US Open and Australian Open as well as opening the Wimbledon Championships. Michael currently resides in Houston, Texas with his wife, Lilly.
Professional Highlights:
Turned professional in 1998
In 2001, he was the first player to qualify into all four Grand Slam events consecutively
As a qualifier reached the round of 16 at the 2001 French Open holding match point against eventual champion world #1 Gustavo Kuerten
Missed the entire 2003 and most of 2004 seasons recovering from bi lateral knee surgeries
Reached the round of 16 at the 2007 BNP Paribas Indian Wells event defeating top 10 player Tomas Berdych
Reached a career high ranking of ATP #60 in the world in 2007
Missed 9 months in 2008 with a torn labrum and rotator cuff tear
Reached first ATP Doubles Final at the 2012 BB&T Atlanta Open
Reached the Semi-Finals of three ATP World Tour events on three different surfaces: 2012 U.S. Men’s Claycourt Championships, 2013 International
Tennis Hall of Fame Grass Court Championships, and the 2014 U.S. National Indoor Tennis Championships
Holds the all-time record 23 USTA Pro Circuit Singles Titles
Has won 15 ATP Challenger Singles Titles which is tied for fifth all-time
Has competed on Center Court at all four Grand Slams
Has competed in 34 Main Draw Singles Grand Slams and 115 Main Draw Singles ATP World Tour events
Ranked in the top 100 for the majority of 17 year career including five straight years over the age of 30
Notable wins include Tomas Berdych, Juan Martin del Potro, Mardy Fish, James Blake, Marin Cilic, Kevin Anderson, Grigor Dimitrov, Ivo Karlovic, Lleyton Hewitt, Nicolas Almagro, Jack Sock, Steve Johnson, Fabio Fognini, Donald Young
Has competed against top 5 players Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray, Andy Roddick, Stanislas Wawrinka, Kei Nishikori, and David Ferrer among others
Country: Texas
Quote: Holds the all-time record for Men’s USTA Singles Circuit Titles. Achieved ATP #60 in the world. Competitor in 34 Main Draw Singles Grand Slams and 115 Main Draw ATP Singles Events.
Twitter: MRusselltennis
Email: [email protected]
Jeff Salzenstein
Jeff Salzenstein is the founder and president of Jeff Salzenstein Tennis , an organization focused on helping tennis players improve their games through online tennis instruction in the areas of technique, footwork, nutrition, injury prevention, motivation and athletic development. He is a USPTA Professional 1, Specialist in Competitive Player Development and a Certified Nutritional Therapy Practitioner.
A member of the Colorado Tennis Hall of Fame, Salzenstein set the standard for tennis in Colorado with an unsurpassed record as a player at the amateur and professional levels. As he regularly competed against the best players in the world, he became a serious student of the game and an accomplished world-class competitor.
Salzenstein turned professional in 1996 after graduating from Stanford University, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in economics. In 1997, Salzenstein was named Rookie of the Year by Tennis Week magazine. He played in all four Grand Slams—Wimbledon, US Open, French Open, Australian Open—and had wins over Mardy Fish, David Nalbandian, Greg Rusedski, and Fernando Verdasco. In 2004, despite having two major surgeries, Salzenstein broke into the top 100 in the world for the first time and was the first American to accomplish this feat after his 30th birthday. He concluded his playing career in 2007 and became a high-performance tennis coach in Denver, Colo.
Salzenstein’s website, www.jeffsalzensteintennis.com , shares cutting-edge tennis tips and lessons to help players improve their games.
Country: Colorado
Quote: Former Top 100 ATP Tennis Player. High Performance Tennis Coach. Expert In Peak Performance, Nutrition, Fitness, Rehab and Motivation.
Twitter: JeffSalzenstein
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John Austin
John Austin is the Director of Tennis at the International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport, Rhode Island.
Winning a Wimbledon trophy is a major accomplishment for any tennis player, but winning a major championship with a sibling is a rarity in the record books of any sport. For John and Tracy Austin, the 1980 Wimbledon mixed doubles title put them in the record books as the first brother-sister team to win the prestigious Wimbledon championship. They also reached the Wimbledon mixed doubles final in 1981.
There is no question that Austin has tennis in his DNA. Born into a family of five siblings, four of whom competed at Wimbledon, Austin climbed the international rankings to a top 40 world ranking in six years competing on the ATP Tour. Among his wins were victories over #1-ranked John McEnroe, former French Open champion Yannick Noah, Andres Gomes, Wojtek Fibak, and twins Tim and Tom Gullikson. He was also selected three times as an alternate/practice partner for the US Davis Cup team.
Prior to entering the professional ranks, Austin was a member of the victorious 1976 UCLA NCAA championship team and a 1978 NCAA doubles champion. He reached the NCAA doubles final in 1977.
Austin’s earliest memories are from the vantage point of the tennis courts at the historic Jack Kramer Club in Rolling Hills, CA where his mother worked in the tennis shop, and Austin received his tennis direction from renowned coach Robert Lansdorp.
Austin followed in his famous coach’s footsteps becoming a teaching professional upon his retirement from the professional tour. Among the players Austin has worked with as a Touring Professional are Pete Sampras, Michael Chang, Jim Grabb, Chuck Adams, Robbie Weiss, Alexandra Stevenson, and Amy Frazier.
While pursuing his teaching career, Austin remained passionate about his own tennis, attaining two No. 1 USTA national rankings in the Men’s 40 Singles in 1997 and Men’s 35 Doubles in 2002.
Austin’s wife, Karen, is a teacher. He has two sons, Christopher, 28, and Reed, 18.
TOURING PROFESSIONAL
1978-1984
CAREER WINS
Defeated #1 John McEnroe, Yannick Noah, Andres Gomez, Wojtek Fibak, Tim and Tom Gullickson, Tim Wilkison
TOURNAMENT HIGHLIGHTS
2002 Ranked #1 in the US Mens 35 and over doubles
2002 USTA National Mens 35 and over Hard court doubles champion
1998 USTA National Men’s 40 and Over Grass Court Singles Champion
1997 USTA National Men’s 40 and Over Grass Court Singles Champion
1997 USTA National Men’s 40 and Over Indoor Singles Champion
1997 USTA National Men’s 40 No. 1 Ranking
Member of the 1989 First Place “New Jersey Stars Professional Team Tennis”
1981 Wimbledon Mixed Doubles Finalist with sister, Tracy Austin
1980 Wimbledon Mixed Doubles Champion with sister, Tracy Austin
1978 NCAA Doubles Champion
US Davis Cup team – selected 3 times/alternate/practice partner
7 Career titles won
6 Career finalist appearances
COACHING EXPERIENCE
As a touring professional coach, he has worked with Pete Sampras, Michael Chang, Jim Grabb, Chuck Adams, Robbie Weiss, Alexandra Stevenson, and Amy Frazier.
Country: Rhode Island
Quote: Wimbledon Champion with Sister Tracy Austin, Director of Tennis at the International Tennis Hall of Fame
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Paula Scheb
Paula Scheb, is the Director of Tennis and Fitness at the Bonita Bay Club, which encompasses 18 clay courts and a 10,000 square foot fitness facility. She is a USPTA Master Professional, the highest accreditation given to tennis professionals. Currently, less than 130 professionals in the country (less than 1% of the 14,500 members in the USTPA) have this distinctive title.
She is on the National Advisory Staff for Head/Penn and is also on their National Speaker’s Bureau. Paula presents regularly throughout the country on various tennis and business topics. She most recently presented a doubles seminar “Infinity and Beyond: Progressing your Players form 3.0 to 4.5” at the USPTA Florida Division Conference in West Palm Beach.
Scheb was the Director of Testing and Certification for USPTA for over 12 years, certifying and testing over 1,300 professionals. She was also the USPTA Pro of the Year for the Florida Division.
Paula grew up under the tutelage of Nick Bollettieri, when he first arrived in the States from the Rockefeller Resort in Puerto Rico. As a teenager she taught various clinics with Nick all over the world. And more recently has hosted clinics with some of the biggest names in tennis Evonne Goolagong, Gigi Fernandez, Rick Leach, Billie Jean King, Tom Gorman, Jim Loehr, Tim Mayotte, Rick Macci, Stan Smith, Jack Groppel, Fred Stolle, Mikael Pernfors and Jimmy Arias, to name a few.
Paula has been a regular contributor to “Tennis Magazine”, with various tips and articles that have been featured in the magazine. “Tennis Magazine” also featured Paula and some of her teaching tips, in a special edition periodical titled “Tips from the Masters”, which they promoted at the US Open.
Her You Tube videos, “Paula’s Pointers for Club Players,” have received praise and accolades from recreational and professional players alike. Paula and the Bonita Bay Club members host one of the largest tennis fundraisers in the country, with over 20 former touring professionals, eight former #1’s and 4 Tennis Hall of Famers, the event raised over $300,000 this year for a pediatric cancer pharmacy in the new Tom Golisano Children’s Hospital in Ft. Myers.
Paula graduated from the University of Florida with a BS degree in Business Marketing. She played college tennis for the #2 nationally ranked Lady Gators and was a doubles All-American while attending the UF.
Country: Florida
Quote: USPTA Master Professional. Former USPTA Florida Pro of the Year. National Advisory Staff for Head/Penn and for Reebok. Former All-American in Doubles.
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Mark Kovacs, PhD
Dr. Mark Kovacs is a renowned performance physiologist, researcher, university professor, author, speaker and coach with an extensive background training and researching athletes at all levels. He serves as both the Executive Director of the International Tennis Performance Association (iTPA) and Director of the Gatorade Sports Science Institute. Dr. Kovacs’ work has helped improve the way the physical aspects of tennis are trained throughout the world, and he has personally tested and trained hundreds of world class athletes in numerous sports. He formerly directed the Sport Science, Strength & Conditioning and Coaching Education departments for the United States Tennis Association (USTA).
Dr. Kovacs is a Fellow of the American College of Sports Medicine, has published over 50 peer-reviewed scientific articles and abstracts in top journals and was the Associate Editor-in-Chief of the Strength & Conditioning Journal. He is on the editorial board for multiple journals including the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition and has presented workshops, keynote addresses and well over 100 presentations on four continents.
Along with his academic and scientific background, Dr. Kovacs is also a coach and former professional athlete. While originally from Melbourne, Australia, he was an All-American and NCAA doubles champion in tennis at Auburn University. After playing professionally, he completed his graduate work at Auburn University and earned his Ph.D. in Exercise Physiology from The University of Alabama. Dr. Kovacs is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist through the National Strength and Conditioning Association, a Certified Tennis Performance Specialist (CTPS) through the ITPA, a certified Health/Fitness Specialist through the American College of Sports Medicine, a United States Track and Field Level II Sprints Coach and Certified Tennis Coach.
He has published five books on topics ranging from dynamic stretching to recovery. Mark has organized a number of medical and sport science conferences aimed at improving the education of medical professionals, coaches, athletes, parents and sport administrators. In 2010 he was awarded the prestigious Plagenhoef Award for sport science achievement (youngest ever recipient); in 2012 he was the youngest ever International Tennis Hall of Fame Educational Merit Award winner.
Country: Georgia (Orig. Australia)
Quote: Director, Gatorade Sports Science Institute and Executive Director, International Tennis Performance Association (iTPA). Former All-American and NCAA doubles champion.
Twitter: @MKovacsPhD
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Debbie Graham
Debbie Graham Shaffer is a former top #30 in the world singles on the WTA Tour and top #10 in the world in doubles. She was awarded the WTA award for the “Most Impressive Newcomer” in 1992. As a touring pro Debbie played Fed Cup for the USA three times and was undefeated in Fed Cup play. Debbie was a semifinalist at Wimbledon, the Australian Open, and the US Open. Before becoming pro, Debbie was the NCAA singles Champion at Stanford. Debbie played on three NCAA winning teams and then left school to play professional tennis. Debbie graduated from Stanford in three years in order to play professional tennis. For 8 years Debbie was one of the “National High Performance Coaches” for women with the USTA at the USTA Training Center in Carson, CA. Debbie Currently works with top pros, juniors, and collegiate players. Two of Debbie’s players have made it to Grand Slams including the US Open, French Open, Wimbledon, and Australian Open. Currently she is the Director of Little Aces Tennis, where she is teaching young kids to play tennis with low compression balls, smaller rackets, and smaller nets.
Country: California
Quote: Former WTA world top #30 in singles and top #10 in doubles. 1992 WTA Most Impressive Newcomer. 3-Time Fed Cup Player. USTA National High Performance Coach.
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Emma Doyle
Emma Doyle is director of acecoach.com.au and a sports consultant impacting and inspiring over 100,000 tennis players and coaches over the past 20 years. She is a Tennis Australia High Performance Coach (USPTA – Pro 1 & PTR – PC) with a background as a touring professional where she helped numerous Australian female players reach career high singles and doubles rankings inside top 120 WTA. She now continues to travel the world as a professional speaker specializing in helping people to maximize and live their potential using tennis as the vehicle. She is an expert communicator (NLP, EI, Life / Workplace Coach), who incorporates a range of skills in practical, fun and tailored hands-on programs to suit the needs of the passionate players through to elite coaches.
Country: Australia
Quote: Director of Ace Coach. Tennis Australia High Performance Coach (USPTA – Pro 1 & PTR – PC). Expert Communicator (NLP, EI, Life / Workplace Coach).
Twitter: ACE_Coach_
Email: [email protected]
Allistair McCaw
Allistair McCaw is an internationally recognized leader in the field of athletic performance enhancement. His well-proven method of athlete training, “The McCaw Method,” has set the standard for providing world-class athletes and coaches with cutting-edge training and knowledge.
A fitness expert and highly motivated coach, with over 20 years experience, Allistair has trained a host of world class athletes including 11 Grand Slam Champions, 3 World #1 Tennis players, 4 World #1 & World Champion Squash players, PGA Golfers and several Olympians.
He holds various qualifications in the field, and is a certified Tennis coach, USA Track & Field coach, USA Youth Basketball coach and ISSA Performance specialist.
Allistair is a highly sought after keynote speaker and has regularly appeared on national television in the United States. He is a former 5 time world championship Duathlete competitor, 2 time national fitness champion and just recently completed 7 marathons and 7 half marathons in 7 weeks.
Voted as one of the most 50 Influential coaches by Coachseek, Allistair released his first book in 2016 entitled “7 Keys to being a great Coach” and regularly contributes articles to various magazines on performance enhancement training, motivation and mindset.
Allistair is based in Tampa, Florida.
Country: Florida (South Africa)
Quote: Sports Performance Specialist & Fitness/ Movement Coach to 11 Grand Slam Champions, Six Olympians, and Four World Number #1’s
Twitter: @AllistairMcCaw
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Craig O’Shannessy
Craig is an Australian tour coach and Director of the Brain Game – a sports science website that specializes in the video analysis of tennis matches that teaches the patterns of play that dominate our game.
Craig is widely recognized as the world leader in teaching tennis tactics and is the strategy analyst in 2015 for Wimbledon and the Australian Open as well as the ATPWorldTour, WTATennis and the New York Times.
Craig has researched thousands of matches using his unique Dartfish Match Tagging software to unlock the secrets of our game and uncover the patterns and percentages that really matter. He teaches this knowledge through his website and also on court with players at all levels of the game.
Craig started coaching on the pro tour 20 years ago and recently helped direct Kevin Anderson from outside the top 150 in the world into the top 50 in around 12 months. In 2011 he resurrected the career of Rajeev Ram who was 28 years old and languishing at 272 in the world. Within twelve months Craig had Rajeev back inside the top 100 enjoying his first top 20 win of his career. Craig has coached on center court at Wimbledon, the US Open and the Australian Open and passes along the learning from his pro tour experiences to juniors just beginning their life-long journey in our wonderful sport.
Craig began his coaching career in 1991, working with world-renowned tennis management company, Peter Burwash International (PBI) in the Woodlands, Texas. Craig was voted runner-up for Rookie of the Year in 1992, and was part of the globe-trotting PBI Tennis Show, performing in California, Guam, Seoul, Jakarta, Bali and Oman in the Middle East.
Craig moved back to his homeland of Australia in 1995 to open the O’Shannessy Tennis Academy at the Wodonga Tennis Center — Australia’s largest tennis facility with 52 courts (30 grass/22 clay). It quickly developed into one of the leading academies in the region, attracting players from New Zealand, Indonesia, Korea and Japan. In 1997, Craig guided Andrew Bronneberg to victory in the Australian National Junior Grasscourt Championships in singles and doubles.
Craig also worked with Canadian, Vanessa Webb, who won the 1998 NCAA Women’s Singles Championships while at Duke University. Craig then coached Andrew and Vanessa as they transitioned to the pro tour. Craig returned to the U.S. in 2001 to direct the junior academy at the T Bar M Racquet Club in Dallas, Texas. Craig also continued his work on tour with tour players Jeff Salzenstein, Andrew Ilie, Amer Delic, Brendan Evans and Ansley Cargill. At Wimbledon in 2011, Craig directed #262 Melinda Czink, from Hungary, to a first round, straight-sets victory over world #10 Samantha Stosur, of Australia.
Country: Australia
Quote: Pro Tour coach. World leader in teaching tennis tactics. 2015 Strategy analyst for Wimbledon, Australian Open, ATPWorldTour, WTATennis and the New York Times.
Twitter: @BrainGameTennis
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Page Love
Page Love, MS, RD, CSSD, LD, CSCS, USPTA, is an expert on sport nutrition and eating disorder issues particularly with elite athletics. In 1992, she founded Nutrifit Sport Therapy Inc., a company of professionals dedicated to helping clients reach their wellness goals through performance eating. Page has assembled a team of caring and experienced dietitians with specialties in nutrition for disease prevention and control, weight management, treatment of eating disorders, development of nutrition and fitness plans, and much more.
She has worked with professional players, college teams as well as individual athletes. Her past and current clients include the ATP Men’s Professional Tennis Tour, the Women’s Professional Tennis Tour (WTA), U.S. Tennis Association, the Atlanta Braves, U.S. Figure Skating, and U.S. Synchronized Swimming and she served as a nutrition consultant during the Olympic Games in 1992, 1996, 2000, and 2004.
Page’s tennis experience includes being a certified tennis teaching professional with the United States Professional Tennis Association and serves on the Sport Science Advisory Board for the Professional Tennis Registry. She played division one collegiate tennis at Baylor University and still plays competitive league tennis in Atlanta year round. She shares a passion to help young through professional tennis players learn how to better fuel and hydrate their bodies. She has just published a tennis sport nutrition specific education kit for players and coaches. See nutrifitga.com for more information. Page has served as the dietitian for the Australian Open, The Sony Open, Indian Wells, The Kremlin Cup, and the US Open. Page will serve as the onsite dietitian for the China Open in fall of 2014.
Page Love’s extensive credentials include being a Registered Dietitian and a Certified Specialist in Sport Dietetics of the American Dietetic Association, a strength and conditioning specialist certified by the National Strength and Conditioning Association, past president of the Atlanta Dietetic Association and past media spokesperson for the Georgia Dietetic Association. Page is often consulted by media both locally and nationally, and she has been featured many times as an expert by programs and publications such as CNN’s On the Menu, CNN Headline News, Peachtree Morning, Good Day Atlanta, Women’s Sports Illustrated, Tennis Magazine, People Magazine, WSB Radio, Z93 Radio, and Fox News.
Country: Georgia
Quote: Expert on Sport Nutrition, Advisor to ATP and WTA
Twitter: @nutrifit_ga
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Jorge Andrew
Jorge is the Immediate Past President of the Professional Tennis Registry (PTR), the most global teaching organization in the world. He is also Director of Tennis Operations at the Lexington County Tennis Complex/Cayce Tennis & Fitness Center in South Carolina.
A former Venezuelan Davis Cup player and captain, Andrew played on the professional tour for more than ten years, including appearances at Wimbledon, U.S. Open, French Open and Australian Open. His highest ATP ranking was 61st in singles , while he reached 69th in doubles.
Jorge is a member of the USTA National Local Play and Competition Committee. He is a member of the USTA Southern Junior Team Tennis Committee and a member of the USTA South Carolina nominating Committee. Jorge is a member of the USTA South Carolina Hall of Fame.
He is a USTA National 10 and Under Master Trainer, a Recreational Coach Workshop Master Trainer. Andrew is also on the National Advisory staff and Speakers team for Head/Penn.
In 2008, Jorge received the USTA South Carolina Lucy Garvin Award as “Volunteer of the Year”, the USTA Southern Quick Start Tennis “Trainer of the Year”, the Racquet Sport Industry “PTR Member of the Year”, and the USTA/USPTA “Community Service Award.”
Jorge was the 1991 PTR “Pro of the Year”, 2003 and 2006 PTR “Member of the Year for South Carolina”, and the 2006 USPTA Southern “Professional of the Year.”
Country: S. Carolina (Orig Venezuela)
Quote: 2d in World to Become Dual PTR/USPTA Master Professional. Former PTR President. Venezuelan Davis Cup player and captain.
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Will Hamilton
Will is the co-founder of FuzzyYellowBalls.com . He’s worked with Bob & Mike Bryan and Patrick Rafter to create instruction for recreational players so they get more fun and enjoyment out of the game.
In his spare time, Will likes to invent silly handshakes.
Country: Washington DC
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Jeff Greenwald
Jeff Greenwald, M.F.T. is an internationally recognized sport psychology consultant, author and licensed family therapist. He was named Athlete of the Year at UC Santa Barbara in 1988 and went on to become a world-ranked player on the ATP Tour in singles and doubles. He was also formerly the No. 1 world and U.S. ranked ITF men’s 35 player, and is winner of two senior ITF World Championships. Jeff has been the mental coach for numerous top professional, college and junior tennis players around the world for the past 15 years. From 1993-1995 Jeff coached top junior players as the Director of Junior Development at the Uhlenhorster Hockey and Tennis Club in Hamburg, Germany. He has been a certified tennis professional by the USPTA since 1996 and currently serves on the Speaking Bureaus for both the USTPA and Wilson Sporting Goods.
Jeff has spoken across the world at numerous tennis clubs, associations, universities and corporations. He also was an adjunct faculty member and supervisor at JFKU for graduate students in the sport psychology program. He served as a consultant for the USA High Performance coaches program from 2005-2010. He earned his B.A at the University of California at Santa Barbara. He has been in private practice since 1998. He holds as Master’s Degree in Clinical psychology with a specialization in sports psychology. He is author of Amazon’s best-selling double-CD audio, Fearless Tennis and The Best Tennis of Your Life and serves as Associate editor for TennisPlayer.net .
Visit Jeff’s website: http://www.jeffhgreenwald.com
Country: California
Quote: Renowned sports psychology consultant. Former No. 1 world-ranked ITF men’s 35 tennis player. Winner of two senior ITF World Championships.
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Joanne Wallen
Joanne Wallen is the Director of Adult Individual Play for the United States Tennis Association, based at USTA’s national headquarters in Lake Nona, Florida.
A native of England, Joanne Wallen became a top junior player there after taking up tennis at the age of four. She came to the U.S. in 1988 on a six-year scholarship to the Bollettieri Tennis Academy in Bradenton, Fla. That year she also signed with sports marketing giant IMG, the youngest player ever to do so at the time. She played for 14 years on the International Tennis Federation and Women’s Tennis Association tours, winning 15 events and achieving a world #252 ranking in singles and and #179 ranking in doubles.
In 2005 she joined the Lexington Tennis Club in Kentucky as Director of Junior Development and was promoted to General Manager in 2009. Throughout her career, Wallen has devoted countless hours to growing the sport of tennis by developing her own skills and teaching those around her. Wallen’s involvement in tennis has been multifaceted, and includes serving on Board of Directors of USTA Kentucky, and chairing its Junior Competition Committee. She also served on the USTA Southern Junior Competition Committee. In addition, Wallen has coached multiple USTA Southern junior teams. Meanwhile, she has become a USTA Certified High Performance Specialist, working with top juniors to prepare them for competition, and a tester for the U.S. Tennis Professional Association (USPTA), certifying tennis instructors in Kentucky and surrounding states. In 2012, she was named “Newcomer of the Year” by the Professional Tennis Registry.
Country: Florida (Orig. England)
Quote: USTA Director Adult Individual Play, Former top UK junior and world-ranked player, 2012 PTR Newcomer of the Year. .
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John Yandell
John Yandell is the Editor and Founder of Tennisplayer.net . Over a twenty year career, he has been a leading force in the creation of new teaching and educational resources in tennis, including a series of highly regarded instructional books and videos. His high speed filming projects for Tennisplayer and Advanced Tennis Research have created the resources that take our understanding of the game to a new level. John has done personal video analysis for hundreds of high level competitive players, including Justine Henin-Hardenne, Taylor Dent, Gabriela Sabatini, and John McEnroe, among others. A cum laude graduate of Yale University, he also did graduate study at the PhD level in both history and religious studies. The John Yandell Tennis School is located in San Francisco, California.
Country: California
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Butch Staples
Butch Staples is currently the National Tennis Director for Midtown Athletic Clubs, which owns and operates 7 clubs around the United States and one in Montreal, Quebec.
He is a PTR Master Professional, a USPTA Professional 1 and a Tennis Canada certified coach. From 1982-1989, he was Chairman of Tennis Canada’s Coach and Instructor Development Committee. He has been a USTA RCW and 10 and Under Trainer since the inception of these programs and he is currently a USTA Master Trainer. He was named USTA Trainer of the Year in both 2006 and 2009. In recent years Butch has been recognized for his industry involvement being honored as the 2009 USPTA Midwest Pro of the Year, 2009 PTR Clinician of the Year and 2010 PTR Pro of the Year. As a result of his work in youth tennis and his application of scientific principles in his teaching, Butch was awarded the 2009 USOC “Doc” Counsilman Science Award. Also, he was a co-recipient of the 2010 RSI Junior Tennis Champion Award.
Butch is also co-owner/operator of Tennisclub of the Low Country in Bluffton, SC. Previously Butch spent 8 years with Tennis Corporation of America (TCA) as Director of Tennis at the Midtown club in Weston Florida and the Head Tennis Professional at Midtown Tennis Club in Chicago. While at Midtown Chicago, he led a team of 34 professionals, helped build the largest indoor tennis programs in the country and was instrumental in developing the model for 10 and under tennis programming. Midtown juniors were the poster children for USTA Youth Tennis. As a testimony to his success, five of his young players were selected to play between the quarter final matches of the US Open in 2010 and four participated in the stadium show of the Arthur Ashe Kids Day.
Butch began his tennis coaching career after graduating from college with a B.A., a B.P.E. and an M.S. He spent 4 years teaching primary, elementary and secondary physical education and then spent 10 years on the athletic staff at McGill University in Montreal where he coached Tennis and Basketball.
Country: South Carolina
Quote: National Tennis Director for Midtown Athletic Clubs. PTR Master Professional. Former USTA Trainer of the Year, PTR Pro of the Year.
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Shaun Zemanek
Shaun is the Head Staff Professional at Topnotch Resort. He originally hails from Brisbane, Australia. During his time at Topnotch he has trained many successful USTA teams and competitive players, sharing his experience from working with some of the world’s best coaches and players.
Throughout his junior playing career, Shaun finished top 10 in state and top 100 in national rankings, in both singles and doubles. After graduating, Shaun started training full time under former Wimbledon Champion, Ashley Cooper. Over the following years, he travelled around Australia and internationally competed in many ITF and national tournaments. During this time, Shaun was fortunate enough to train with many great Australian champions, such as former world no.1 Patrick Rafter and top 25 player Scott Draper, who both shared with him a lot of their secrets to success.
Shaun started his coaching career working with some of Australia’s top junior players. To further his education, Shaun studied under one of Australia’s most respected coaches, Mal Murphy. He completed his Level 1, 2, and advanced coaching degree with the Australian Tennis Professional Coaches Association (A.T.P.C.A.). Shaun then moved down to Australia’s Gold Coast and began working alongside former Wimbledon Champion, Pat Cash, and top physical trainer, Gavin Hooper. There he was exposed to many different coaching methods and learned first hand what it takes to be the best at the sport.
After leaving Cash Hopper, Shaun was offered the Head Tennis Professional position at the prestigious Hayman Island Resort. After 2 years of building a successful tennis program he moved back home to Brisbane and began working as the Head Pro at the state’s top tennis school and helped them win a state championship.
In 2003 Shaun moved to Stowe and began working as a seasonal tennis pro at Topnotch. In 2005 he became the Head Staff Professional, helping to make Topnotch one of the most renowned tennis programs in the country.
Shaun’s motto is, “Practice doesn’t make you perfect, perfect practice make you perfect.”
Country: Vermont (Orig Australia)
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Kathy Toon
Coach Toon is President and Founding Coach of Glam Slam Tennis, which delivers holistic content and training exclusively for women who are passionate (if not obsessive) about tennis.
She a jack-of-all (coaching) trades and master of a few. Her quest to gain an edge on the competition led Coach Toon down many paths: sports medicine, exercise physiology, nutrition, time management and sports psychology to name a few.
COACH: From 1990-2004, Kathy was the Associate Head Coach for Women’s Tennis at the University of California-Berkeley, where she guided three doubles teams to NCAA championship victories. Her collegiate tennis coaching career includes stops at the University of San Diego and Mills College.
CONSULTANT: Kathy also serves as a sports psychology and performance consultant to university and high school teams in the Bay Area. Her client list includes the University of California- Berkeley, where she works with the women’s basketball, men’s soccer, women’s field hockey, women’s golf and lacrosse teams. Other clients include Menlo High School, Marin Academy, Campo Lindo High School, Katherine Delmar Burke School and the Riekes Center. In addition, organizations such as the ITA, USTA, LGPA, NCAA, Pac-10 and Prince Corporation have hired Kathy to lead performance seminars.
SPEAKER: In addition, Kathy is a senior trainer for the internationally recognized Positive Coaching Alliance, having conducted hundreds of workshops for thousands of coaches, athletes and parents across the country.
AUTHOR: Coach Toon’s first book, Get Your Game Face On!, teaches you the powerful yet little-known 4-step process top athletes use to deliver their best performance under pressure. Complete with a daily training log, Get Your Game Face On! is the essential guide for anyone seeking excellence both on and off the playing field.
Kathy is also the author of the book Raising Champions: Revealing Stories from Parents of Great Athlete—and Great People. In this book, ordinary parents of some of the world’s most extraordinary athletes—on and off the field—share their stories about what it was like to raise them.
Country: California
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Jonny Fraser
Jonny has a wealth of experience in tennis having been a tennis strength and conditioning coach for over seven years. In the past he has worked with a range of junior tennis players to full time professionals. Jonny is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) alongside being a certified Level B coach with the GPTCA and a licensed tennis coach with the LTA in the United Kingdom. Jonny has certification as a Master Tennis Performance specialist with the International Tennis Performance Association (iTPA). Jonny is also the owner of Science in Tennis , a sport science provider solely focused on providing support to tennis centers and players.
Academically he has an MSc in Sport and Exercise Science from Sheffield Hallam University and has also taught at Sheffield Hallam University in the UK teaching on sport science and sports coaching degrees.
Country: United Kingdom
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Ajay Pant
Ajay is currently the General Manager for the Tennis Center at College Park, Maryland. Prior to his current position, Pant was the National Tennis Director for Tennis Corporation Of America (TCA). Ajay was with Tennis Corporation Of America for 18 years and also served as Head Tennis Professional, Club Manager and General Manager for TCA clubs in Chicago and other parts of the United States.
Pant has worked at the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy in Florida. He was the Coordinator for the Arthur Ashe/Nick Bollettieri “Cities” Tennis Programs in New York, New Jersey, Kansas and Missouri.
Ajay is a Master Professional and currently serves on the Board of the Professional Tennis Registry (PTR). The PTR has honored Ajay as Tester, Clinician and Pro Of The Year.
Pant is also a USPTA Master Professional.
Ajay is a member of the USTA Ten and Under Faculty. He currently serves as the Chair for the USTA National Ten and Under Committee.
Country: Maryland
Quote: PTR and USPTA Master Professional, former PTR Pro of the Year, Chair for the USTA National Ten and Under Committee
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Oliver Stephens
Oliver “Ollie” Stephens is a PTR Clinician and Tester. He is certified as a PTR Professional in all 4 pathways and also holds the PTR Master of Tennis certification in Performance and Development coaching, one of two coaches in the States to hold both. In addition, Ollie is an International Tennis Performance Association (iTPA) Master Tennis Performance Specialist.
Ollie has been published numerous times in PTR Magazine and has spoken at Regional, National and International conferences. In 2001, Ollie was the PTR China coach of the year, in 2010 he was the PTR Illinois Coach of the year and in 2012, he was the PTR Tester of the Year.
Ollie currently works as a private tennis professional in Chicago to several Sectionally and Nationally ranked juniors and also runs PTR coaches workshops on a regular basis.
Previously, Ollie was the National Junior Coach of Hong Kong and the National Coach of Vietnam. Also, he was the Junior Competitive Director at Midtown Tennis Club in Chicago, the busiest tennis club in the world.
Country: South Carolina
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Steve Keller
Steve has been a PTR member since 1986, is now responsible for the educational direction and content of the organization’s four certification pathways as well as the Master of Tennis programs. He will oversee PTR clinician training to ensure continuity of content delivery as well as design and develop professional development courses to create opportunities for certified members to fulfill the new continuing education requirements. Steve will also serve as the national liaison to the USTA Coaching Education department. Prior to joining PTR, Steve spent 18 years with the Van der Meer organization directing sites in Missouri, Florida and South Carolina prior to joining Tennis Corporation of America. Steve earned the distinguished USTA/PTR Public Service Award in 1996.
Country: South Carolina
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Ramona Husaru
Ramona Husaru is the Education and Multimedia Manager for the USPTA. In her role, Ramona is in charge of overseeing the continuing education program and expanding its resources, including: the “On Court with USPTA” TV show that airs on the Tennis Channel, stroke analysis, conferences, workshops, webinars, and TennisResources.com . She is also a USPTA Tester and part of the USPTA Under 30 initiative, developing opportunities through education and leadership for fellow young professionals. Ramona was named the 2015 USPTA Texas Tester of the Year, being one of the youngest females to win the award. She is a former WTA-ranked player and a two-time NCAA Division II National Team Champion with BYU-Hawaii. Ramona holds a master’s degree in Sports Psychology.
Country: Texas
Quote: Education and Multimedia Manager for the USPTA. named 2015 USPTA Texas Tester of the Year. former WTA-ranked player and a two-time NCAA Division II National Team Champion with BYU-Hawaii. part of the USPTA Under 30 initiative.
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Lucas Regas Melero
Lucas is a RPT & USPTA-certified tennis coach at the Academia Sánchez-Casal in Naples, Florida. Once a student at the Academia Sánchez-Casal in Barcelona, Lucas was of Spain’s Top 16 players under 16 and under 18 and went on to become one of the Top 100 Spanish nationally ranked players from 1998 to 2002, winning over 30 National Tennis Tournaments. He achieved a World ATP ranking in doubles in 2002 and began coaching at the Academia Sánchez-Casal while playing nationally and internationally. In 2003, Lucas won a full tennis scholarship to pursue a degree in Business Administration at Georgia Perimeter College in Atlanta. He became the #1 ranked player in the United States in NJCAA in 2003 and was #2 in 2004. While in Atlanta, Lucas coached at Tennis Academy of the South and at Country Club of the South where he taught adults and began a junior academy. In 2009, Lucas was a travelling hitting coach for top 20 WTA player Maria Kirilenko. And in 2011, he also coached another top 100 WTA player, Edina Gallovits. He also assisted World #1 team Bob and Mike Bryan in 3 tournaments as hitting partner. He has also coached at Tennis 360 in Dubai, UAE.
Country: Florida (Orig. Spain)
Quote: Sanchez-Casal Coach, Former Spanish Top 100 player, Achieved ATP World Ranking, Was #1 NJCAA-Ranked player in U.S.
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Greg Lappin
Greg played college tennis at the University of Minnesota. After traveling the world for a few years through tennis he settled in Minnesota holding various tennis teaching and director positions.
In 1985, he conceived of and developed the Flagship Athletic Club, a 19 court multipurpose club in Eden Prairie, Minnesota.
In 1993, he moved to Rochester, Minnesota where he developed the Rochester Athletic Club, a 270,000 square foot multipurpose club also with 19 tennis courts. Greg served as the general manager for 300 employees and 13,000 members. Greg was also a minority owner. The tennis program produced a world junior champion; players who participated in all the Grand Slams; Sports Illustrated National Athlete of the Year winner; numerous Division 1 scholarship recipients; multiple state champions. It averaged 3 adult teams per year going to USTA Nationals. The RAC was named a USTA Facility of the Year.
Greg served as the national tennis director for LifeTime Fitness for 2012- 2015. He oversaw the tennis operations for 21 clubs.
Greg has received IHRSA’s Dale Dibble Distinguished Service Award, was a winner or finalist for seven NOVA 7 Awards. These are the Academy Awards for the fitness industry. He was the first recipient of the USPTA General Manager of the Year Award. The Rochester Athletic Club received the Better Business Bureau Integrity Award for the state of Minnesota in 2009.
Greg authored Tennis Doubles, Wining Strategies for all Levels, a national bestseller.
Greg was elected to the Board of Directors of IHRSA and the TIA. He has served as President for his USTA & USPTA sections.
Greg has been a volunteer for the USTA at the national level for over 20 years serving on the Adjunct Facility, various committees, and chaired the Learning & Leadership committee. Currently, he serves on the Nominating committee.
Greg was selected by the USTA in 2015 to write the Rally the Family guide- a guide to redefine how to attract new tennis players to the game.
Greg has been a presenter at multiple IHRSA, USPTA, PTR, ATP, WTA, and USTA conferences.
Country: Minnesota
Quote: Winner/finalist for seven NOVA 7 Awards. Developer of multiple athletic facilities, including a USTA Facility of the year. served as the national tennis director for LifeTime Fitness. Author of Tennis Doubles, Wining Strategies for all Levels, a national bestseller.
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Anni Miller
Recently inducted into the USPTA Hall Of Fame, Anni is also a PTR International Master Tennis Professional, USPTA Elite Professional, and on Wilson’s National Speaker’s Bureau.
She is also the 5-time USPTA National Coach of the Year, 5-time USPTA PNW Pro of the Year, 7-time Oregon Coach of the Year, and winner of the National High School Coach of the Year for all US high schools.
Anni’s legendary high school teams won over a dozen Oregon State High School Tennis Titles during her 24 year High School Coaching career at Lakeridge High School.
In the 1970’s Anni was cutting off wooden racquets for Tiny Tot lessons, in the early 80’s she ran the original high school “no cut” policy, in the early 90s she pioneered tennis in China, and at the turn of the century she was a spokeswoman for the Leukemia Society fighting for her grandson’s life and others like him.
As a 28-year Director of Tennis for the City of Lake Oswego, Oregon, programming and teaching have been a passion for her for all ages, 5 to 95!
Other than being a clinician both here and abroad, Anni’s travels annually include teaching trips to Jamaica. Anni has been published in numerous magazines and newspapers, as well as been a Tour Photographer and a Player Services Representative.
Currently her time off court is writing a book, For The Love of Play!, which is being contributed to by her 3 grandchildren– 9th generation Oregonians! And as a member of the legendary Order of the O, Anni’s team passion is for the Pac 12 Champion Ducks!
Country: Oregon
Quote: 5-time USPTA National Coach of the Year. PTR International Master Tennis Professional. Legendary High School Coach.
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Hans Römer
Born and raised in the Netherlands, Hans has been active in the tennis industry for over 25 years and started his coaching career after obtaining a BA Degree in Physical Education from the prestigious CIOS Sport College. In addition to being the only USPTA Master Professional in the State of Maine he has achieved a PTR Professional 5A rating and earned his KNLTB (Dutch Tennis Association) High Performance certification. After hosting the USPTA 2012 World Conference in Monterey, CA he received the 2012 USPTA NorCal “Pro of the Year” Award. Hans can also be seen on the Tennis Channel™ hosting two instructional shows titled “Secrets to the One-Handed Backhand” and “Depth: The #1 Weapon”. During the winter months he conducts his own TENNIS207 programs in Maine and in the summer he is active as Director of Tennis at the prestigious The Dunes Club in Narragansett, Rhode Island.
Country: Maine (Netherlands)
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Dominic King
Dom is Head of Athlete Development for Everyball Tennis at Halton Tennis Centre, a leading Tennis Centre in the UK.
He is an iTPA Master Tennis Performance Specialist (MTPS), one of only a small number to hold this designation worldwide, as well as an Accredited Strength & Conditioning Coach (ASCC) with the UK Strength & Conditioning Association, NASM Performance Enhancement Specialist (PES) and holds numerous other professional qualifications.
As Head of Athlete Development he works as part of an interdisciplinary team to deliver, among other things, Strength & Conditioning Coaching, Mental & Emotional Skills Training and Nutritional & Lifestyle Management.
Based at Halton since 2007, he has a wealth of experience in training players of all ages and abilities. As part of the High Performance Programme, this can range from 6 years old up to professional, aware of the different needs at each age and stage and what is required to train a player ‘from the cradle to the tour’!
He also trains club players anywhere from 8 to 80 + years old and loves helping each person improve and develop as a tennis athlete.
His own tennis-playing background and Tennis Coaching qualifications mean he is able to understand the requirements of the sport and help the transition ‘from the gym to the court.’
Dom is a highly motivated coach, committed to getting the best out of each athlete he works with; he also trains athletes from other sports and likes to explore the transferable aspects of training between all sports.
Email: [email protected]
Bob Litwin
Bob Litwin was a Long Island tennis teaching professional for thirty-five years. In 1992 he founded the Sports Focus Institute to develop and teach athletes in all sports how to improve performance through all aspects of the mental game.
Bob is known as The Focus Coach. He has worked with every sport imaginable and consulted for the NY Knicks and the NY Islanders. The founder of The Focus Coaching Group, LLC, Bob is a full time performance coach for Hedge Funds and individuals in any field of endeavor, business and sports alike.
He never played in college or on the tour and at 32 started to compete thinking he might be able to win some matches. He lost a lot for several years.
Then he won a gold and bronze medal at the 12th Maccabian Games in the 35 and over. In summer 2013, 20 years later, he won the Gold Medal in the 65s singles at the 19th Maccabian Games.
He has won 18 USTA National Championship titles.
He won the ITF World Championships in 2005 and was ranked #1in the World in the 55 and over.
He was inducted into the Eastern Tennis Hall of Fame in 2011.
After being out of the game for nearly three years due to two hip surgeries, he got back to work and has climbed back to the top and in June was the #1 ranked 65 and over player in the USA.
After going undefeated in Colorado tournaments this year his 18 year undefeated streak in sectional age group matches continues.
His book, Live the Best Story of Your Life: A World Champion’s Guide to Lasting Change, was released in May and touted by Huff Post as the #1 self help read for the summer of 2016.
Country: Colorado
Quote: The Focus Coach. winner of 18 National titles. Achieved #1 in the World Ranking 55 & Over and #1 in USA in 65 & Over. Author of "Live the Best Story of Your Life: A World Champion’s Guide to Lasting Change".
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Nadim Naser
Nadim is a former top-rated German junior, who came to the USA in 1998 as a 17-year old to play on the pro circuit. He achieved a world ranking in singles on his first attempt, but a severe shoulder injury changed his path. In January 2000, Nadim joined the University of South Florida men’s tennis team and played 4 years for them, winning conference championships, captaining his junior and senior years, and making the All-Conference USA Team.
After graduating college with a B.A. in Marketing in December 2003, Nadim took on coaching high performance juniors (incl. No. 1 U16 in the USA) full-time before going back to school and earning his M.B.A. from the University of Tampa, where he acted as Assistant Tennis Coach for the women’s tennis team between 205 and 2007.
Since 2007, Nadim has been residing in Miami, where he enjoyed a 4-year spell from 2007-2011 as Co-Director and Head Pro at the renowned Cliff Drysdale Tennis (CDT) operated Ritz Carlton Tennis Garden in Key Biscayne, FL and Co-Director of the CDT Junior Summer Camp at Crandon Park. This is where his passion for technical tennis instruction came to the forefront, honing his skills in high performance junior development, as well as recreational adult training.
During his first year in Miami, Nadim met Florian Meier, founder and owner of OnlineTennisInstruction.com (OTI). In recent years, Nadim has studied extensively and adopted the OTI teaching methods and co-hosted all 8 Florida-based OTI tennis clinics together with Florian. His passion for proper technical tennis instruction led him to join forces with OTI and become an expert instructor for OTI clientele, offering lessons in Ft. Lauderdale, FL year-round, starting July 2015. Nadim serves as a representative of OTI at this year’s US Tennis Congress.
Also, in 2011, Nadim co-founded and now owns WAM Sports – Premier Student Athlete Services, where junior athletes and families from around the world go to obtain the best advice and guidance in their college recruiting process, matching them with their best-fit colleges.
Country: Florida (Orig Germany)
Quote: COACH & MENTOR TO TOP JUNIOR AND COLLEGE TENNIS PLAYERS; SPARRING PARTNER TO SEVERAL WTA/ATP TOUR PLAYERS; OWNER OF WAM SPORTS; EXPERT TENNIS INSTRUCTOR AT ONLINETENNISINSTRUCTION.COM
Twitter: @nadream81
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Jennifer Fuchs
Jennifer has been the Director of Tennis at the El Conquistador since 1999. A former world class touring pro, she has distinguished herself as an outstanding player. As a junior, Jennifer became the number one ranked player in the nation. She was also a part of the Junior Federation Cup and competed in both the Junior US and Italian Open, where she and her partner won the doubles. Following her junior career, Jennifer played two years at UCLA, becoming a two time All-American. Having played all the major events and all 4 grand slams as a touring professional, Jennifer reached the round of sixteen in the Australian Open Doubles Championship.
Country: Arizona
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Scott Mitchell
Scott, a former #1 mixed doubles player in the U.S. is the current Executive Director at the Greater Midland Tennis Center. The Greater Midland Tennis Center is the largest tennis center in the Midwest and one of the top 10 in the U.S. Voted the USTA Best Tennis Town in 2009 the tennis center has 40 courts, 36 hard courts (16 indoor) and 4 clay courts and 3,200 members taught by 21 tennis professionals.
Scott came to Midland following his time as the Director of Tennis at The Landings Club in Savannah, Georgia the largest residential clay court facility in the U.S. Scott was also the tournament director for the St. Joseph’s Candler Savannah Challenger, which has seen such players as Mardy Fish, Ryan Harrison, John Isner, James Blake and others. Scott is now the Tournament Director of the prestigious Dow Corning Tennis Classic, the longest running USTA Challenger on the tour. The tournament is also one of the most well attended events on tour with over 15k fans through the week along with reaching over 4k youth during the event through many outreach programs.
Scott has been nominated for many awards over his career and in 2015 The Landings Club won the prestigious Tennis Community of the Year award from Real Estate Scorecard. In 2014 The Landings Club was also selected by the ITF to be one of 12 Clubs nationwide to take part in their Clubmark pilot program. In 2013 Scott was awarded the USTA Georgia Director of Tennis award. Scott was also selected to work with the U.S. Olympic Committee, USTA, USPTA and PTR as a faculty member of their new collaborative initiative Coach Youth Tennis. In 2011 he was awarded the USPTA Georgia Pro of the Year. In 2009 he won the PTR Clinician of the Year award. He has also been nominated for countless other PTR, USTA and USPTA awards over the years.
Scott is a routine contributor to magazines, radio and websites such as Tennis View Magazine, Centre Court, Net News, Tennis World and many others providing tennis tips and articles. He has also presented at conferences all around the country for PTR, USPTA and the USTA. Scott’s coaching background is extensive, as he has won a National Championship as an assistant coach at Georgia Perimeter College. He also coached the GPC #1 player to a win over then NCAA #1, has been a USTA National Zonal Coach working with many of the nations top boys and girls 15 and 16 year olds, he has coached over 50 league champions and continues to work with tennis players of all ages and levels.
He is married to Ashley a former Florida State University, ACC doubles champion and they have 3 children, Brady-8 and girl/boy twins, Brooklyn and Cason, 5 years.
Country: Michigan
Quote: Former #1 mixed doubles player in the U.S. Executive Director of largest tennis center in the Midwest. Former USPTA Georgia Pro of the Year and PTR Clinician of the Year.
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Feisal Hassan
Feisal, a PTR 5A Pro and USPTA Master Professional. He is also a member of the Head/Penn Racquet Sports National Advisory Board and National Speaker’s Bureau and holds USPTA specialist degrees in Competitive Player Development, Facility Management, Little Tennis and Sports Science. He is a USTA Recreation Coach National and Quickstart Trainer, a member of the National Cardio Tennis Speakers Team and co-chairs the USPTA National Education Committee and the USPTA College Curriculum Committee. He is also on the USPTA Testing Committee and USTA National Youth Education Committee. He was also the Director of Certification & Testing for the USPTA Middle States division and was co-chair of the USPTA National Diversity Committee.
Feisal was also the Director of Coaches’ Education and Junior Davis Cup Team Coach for Tennis Zimbabwe. He was also voted in Tennis Industry magazine’s prestigious “40 Under 40” list for being one of the top 40 men and women under 40 years old who have had and will continue to have a strong influence in the sport and in the business of tennis– both nationally and internationally.
Hassan writes and conducts seminars, workshops and clinics for international, national and sectional organizations and events. He has also written the book, How to Handle Difficult Players and Conditions, and is currently working on his second book, Doubles: Phases & Situations.
In 2011, he was awarded the USPTA’s most prestigious award, the Alex Gordon National Professional of the Year and the 2011 Racquet Sports Industry Champions of Tennis Award. This is the Racquet Sports Industry’s (RSI) most prestigious awards recognizing and honoring the people, businesses and organizations that are making a difference in the tennis industry. He was also a recipient for the USPTA Mid-Atlantic Hall of Fame recipient Inaugural Class of 2012 and the 2012 USPTA George Bacso National Tester of the Year.
Previous accolades include the USPTA Industry Excellence Award in 1999, 5-time Division Tester of the Year, 11-time USPTA Division/State Pro of the Year, and 9-time national Top-10 point holder in the USPTA’s Career Development Program.
Country: Virginia (Orig. Zimbabwe)
Quote: 2011 USPTA Professional of the Year. 11-time USPTA Division/State Pro of the Year. Member Head/Penn Racquet Sports National Advisory Board.
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Bill Previdi
Bill Previdi began his tennis career at the age of 15 at the Port Washington Tennis Academy under the Direction of the legendary Harry Hopman. Bill attended St. John’s University in New York on a tennis scholarship and played for George Seewagen, a member of the ITA (Intercollegiate Tennis Association) Hall of Fame. He began teaching part time during college and decided to make it his career. He was appointed Head Pro at the Guilford Racket Club in Connecticut at the age of 24 and remained in that position for 26 years. During that time he began working on a system for playing and teaching doubles. From that work came The Previdi System… doubles for smart players. Bill has created a comprehensive program of drills and games to perfect the techniques, tactics and positioning that will make for a coherent way to play doubles. Although Bill continues to teach players and groups of all ages his passion is for doubles and for teaching it to adult players. Bill has also been a successful high school and college coach.
A few years ago Bill also developed a program called Point Play, the competitive tennis workout. It’s a game for six players and in an hour and a half players get a workout, play a high energy competitive game and have a fun and make new friends. Many clubs in Connecticut are now playing this game and Bill runs at least 10 groups a week at this club.
Bill is passionate about playing tennis as well. He continues to play as much as possible and has been nationally ranked in singles, doubles and Father-Son doubles. Bill and his son Matt were ranked #1 in New England and #20 on the Nation in 2008.
Country: Connecticut
Quote: Specialist in Doubles Training. Earned #1 New England and #20 US Ranking in Father-Son Division in 2008.
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Matt Previdi
Matt is a private and traveling high performance coach in La Jolla California, where he has led the La Jolla High men’s tennis team to an 85-11 record over the past 6 years. In 2011 the USPTA named him “Pro of the Year” in San Diego. Since then, Matt has helped his Father Bill pioneer “The Previdi System”– a doubles system geared towards adults who want to master the art of doubles.
Matt’s enthusiasm for tennis equipment knows no bounds. His background as a sought-after coach of all levels led him on a journey to better understand what the pros on tour know: that your equipment and how it is pieced together may be equally as important to your game (and your health) as technique, fitness and strategy/decision making.
Matt currently serves as the resident equipment expert for Solinco. His quest for equipment enlightenment has led him to take the Solinco stringing team to events such as the Easter Bowl, the Ojai, and the 2011 Fed Cup where Matt was the stringer for the Championship Team from Italy. His love of customization and modern string theory has led him to string for Rafael Nadal and lead seminars for the USPTA.
Matt’s goal is to take the knowledge that Pro players receive on the tour from top stringers and customizers and disseminate it to the general public and people who play for fun!
Country: California
Quote: USPTA San Diego Pro of the Year, High Performance Coach, Expert in Stringing and Racquet Customization
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Jorge Capestany
Jorge is one of only ten people worldwide that is a Master Professional with both the USPTA and PTR. He is a 6-time Michigan Pro of the Year a 2-time Midwest Pro of the Year. In 2015 he was named USPTA National Professional of the Year.
Jorge has coached hundreds of ranked juniors including 3 national champions. In Jorge’s career, his programs have developed more than 180 HS State Champions in Michigan. An internationally recognized speaker and author, Jorge serves many organizations in the tennis industry and is a member of the Wilson national speaker’s bureau team.
Jorge is the founder of Capestany Tennis Inc, which runs websites for tennis coaches and tennis players alike. His Coaches website – www.tennisdrills.tv – has more than 700 subscribers in over 65 countries. The site features more than 1,000 tennis drills.
The Player’s website – www.JorgeCapestany.com – features 100% free instruction and a Free Mental Toughness Video course that includes a free eBook.
Jorge has been a featured speaker at most of the largest tennis conferences in the world including, the PTR International Symposium, the USTA Tennis Teachers Conference in NYC at the US Open, the Australian Grand Slam Tennis Coaches conference in Melbourne, the Norwegian Tennis federation’s tennis coaches conference in Olso, the USPTA World Conference on tennis, and the ITF’s world-wide coaches conference in Mexico.
Country: Michigan (Orig. Cuba)
Quote: One of 10 People Worldwide Honored by PTR and USPTA as a Master Professional. 2015 USPTA National Professional of the Year.
Twitter: @CapestanyTennis
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Marti Capestany
Marti has been a certified tennis professional for more than 30 years and has worked with players of all level including many nationally ranked juniors. Marti has been ranked in the top 10 nationally in USTA women’s 35 division. Marti was a member of the 5.0 USTA women’s team that finished 2nd in the national championships. Marti still plays competitively and is still rated as a 5.0 player at age 54. She is a Tennis Pro at the Dewitt Tennis Center at Hope College in Holland MI and works extensively with her husband and Master Professional, Jorge Capestany.
Country: Michigan
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Joe Dinoffer
Joe Dinoffer has had an extensive “world class” career in the tennis industry, and has conducted clinics and exhibitions in over 50 countries, personally logging over 30,000 hours of instruction in English, Spanish, and German. He is a Master Professional in both the PTR and USPTA, a distinction awarded to only a select few in the tennis industry. Joe also received the prestigious 2006 USPTA Tennis Industry Excellence Award and was also selected as the 2012 USPTA Texas Pro of the Year.
Joe is the author and editor of 7 books and 17 DVDs. He writes regularly for www.TennisOne.com and Racquet Sports Industry Magazine, and also has numerous tips airing on the Tennis Channel . As a member of the Head/Penn Advisory Staff and National Speakers Bureau, Joe is a frequent speaker at national and international tennis conferences, having conducted over 250 workshops since 1995.
He is also the founder and president of Oncourt Offcourt, Ltd ., a company exclusively serving the needs of tennis, fitness, and physical education coaches with innovative training aids and educational tools. Joe lives in Dallas, Texas, with his wife, Monika, and their daughter, Kalindi.
Read some endorsements for Joe´s work here .
Country: Texas
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Ian Westermann
Ian Westermann is the owner and founder of Essential Tennis , an online leader in digital tennis instruction. He founded ET in 2008 after becoming frustrated with the daily challenges of being a full time on-court tennis pro. Since then his online instructional courses have been taken by over 20,000 tennis players in over 100 different countries. Ian specializes in both video and audio instructional content including the first audio tennis instruction podcast in the world: the Essential Tennis Podcast. Since 2008 he has published over 200 episodes of the show which is the highest rated tennis podcast on iTunes. Before leaving his on court teaching job to run Essential Tennis full time in April of 2011 Ian was a teaching professional at Congressional Country Club in Bethesda, Maryland for six years. Congressional is currently rated the #2 private country club in America and hosted the PGA U.S. Open in 2011. His college career was spent in the Professional Tennis Management program at Ferris State University in Big Rapids, MI. Ferris created the very first PTM program in 1989 and it’s still the biggest of it’s kind in the US. While there Ian played both singles and doubles on their UCAA Division II men’s team while earning a bachelors degree in Business Marketing and a minor in Professional Tennis Management. Ian recently moved back to his home town of Milwaukee, Wisconsin with his wife of 9 years, Alison, and their two children. He plans to continue using the most cutting edge and innovative methods possible to reach passionate tennis players all over the world.
Country: Wisconsin
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Angelo A. Rossetti
Angelo currently serves as the director of tennis at Weston Racquet Club. He is a USPTA P1/Elite & PTR teaching professional, being first certified in 1992.
Angelo played Varsity tennis at Hamden High School en route to being a top Division I player at the University of Connecticut, where he earned a B.S. degree in Sports Marketing. He won the USTA New England Sportsmanship award in 2005. In 2007, he & his identical twin brother, Ettoré, were ranked #1 in New England Men’s Open Doubles and top 10 in singles. Angelo is a 2X Guinness World Records of two different tennis titles; the longest tennis rally and the longest tennis volley rally.
Angelo earned the 2007 USPTA Regional Teaching Pro of the Year & 2007 Open Player of the Year. He earned the National 2009 USPTA Tennis Industry Excellence Award, also for New England in 2008 as well as the National 2016 USPTA Lessons for Life Award by raising over $100,000 for the Save the Children charity. Angelo has both coached ladies teams & played on 5.0 & Open USTA men’s teams that have gone to nationals. His most recent certifications are Developing Mental Toughness & USTA High Performance.
In August of 2008, he & Ettoré, set the official Guinness World RecordTM for the Longest Tennis Rally totaling 25,944 continuous strokes, lasting over 14 hours & 31 minutes. On August 8th of 2015 Angelo and his brother set the Guinness World RecordTM for the Longest tennis volley rally, 30,576 volleys lasting 5 hours and 28 minutes. Both records were contemplated and set to raise money and awareness for charities.
Angelo speaks every summer the International Tennis Hall of Fame, where their record is featured in the permanent exhibits. He is philanthropic minded & still raises money for notable charities. He has spoken at several schools and also to over 3,000 people at the CT Invention Convention. Angelo & his wife, Pam, live in Hamden with their daughter, Madison and son, Andy. Angelo has a passion for caring and inspiring people at every age, on and off the court. He believes in the 4 Gs: Get a Dream, Goal Set, Goal Get and Give Back, which leads to success in tennis and in life. Angelo maintains a mental skills blog for tennis players and athletes at www.tennacity.org .
Country: Connecticut
Email: [email protected]
IZTOK BOMBAC
Iztok is currently a Tennis Pro at Life Time Peachtree Corners, USTA Regional Tennis Center and premier Atlanta tennis facility. Before moving to the United States, he served as Managing Partner & Head Coach at TC Ljubljana, Slovenia—one of the most successful European tennis clubs, which produced several ATP and WTA players and men’s and women’s medals from the European Club Team Championships. As Head Coach he successfully developed club teams and players and is the only Slovenian coach with a Bronze medal from the European Team Club Championship for Men (2003). As a personal coach, he worked for 3 years with Blaž Kavčič, the first Slovenian male tennis player to break into the ATP top 100. He worked with several other players with ITF, ATP and WTA points as their personal coach as well.
Iztok was Slovenian Junior Davis Cup Captain from 1996 – 2000, during which time he led Boys 16 & Under National Teams to the World Junior Championships two years in a row (1998 and 1999), while helping teams and players achieve 6 other medals at different European Championships and Youth Olympic Games between. He worked with Katarina Srebotnik (former #1 in WTA doubles), Gregor Žemlja (top 50 ATP), Aljaž Bedene (top 50 ATP), Blaž Rola (top 100 ATP, NCAA Singles Champion), Maja Matevžič (top 30 WTA), Tina Pisnik (top 30 WTA) and other future top 100 WTA/ATP players.
Other Accomplishments
Served as the Assistant National Tester for University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Sport and Slovenian Tennis association for all three levels.
Member and Vice-President of Slovenian Tennis Coaches Association (1995 – 2014).
Member and Vice-President of Slovenian Tennis Players Development & High Performance Committee (1997 – 2001 and 2003 – 2007).
Founder and Tournament Director of $50,000 ATP Challenger BMW Ljubljana Open (2007).
Lecturer at different conferences e.g. ITF Worldwide Workshop 2007, 2009, TennisEurope 2000, 2001, PTR 2007, Sweden 2001, Croatia 2002, Slovenia 1995 – 2007, MTM 2015 (1995 – present)
Translator of ITF publications/books from English to Slovenian language. Translated ITF Advanced Coaches Manual (2010) and Technique Development in Tennis Stroke Production (2015).
Motion-analysis specialist (SiliconCoach motion analyzing software).
Certifications: USTA High Performance, Slovenian Tennis Coaches Association High Performance, USPTA Elite Pro, PTR Professional, MTM.
Country: Georgia (Orig. Slovenia)
Quote: High Performance Coach to ATP and WTA players. Former Slovenian Junior Davis Cup Captain. Bronze Medalist at European Team Club Championship.
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Adam Lane
Adam Lane has coached and played tennis all over the world. He was a four-year All-Conference player in both Singles and Doubles at Belmont University where he majored in History and Political Science.
He started his coaching career at Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama. His teaching career has taken him to Korea, Costa Rica, New York, Florida, China, Australia and currently back to Puerto Rico for the second time where he currently is in charge of tennis for Dorado Beach, a Ritz Carlton Reserve, the first 6 star resort in the Western Hemisphere.
Having worked with recreational players, resort guests, top internationally ranked juniors, and top 50 ranked professionals on the WTA tour his experience covers all facets of tennis teaching. In 2013 he was named the Junior Federation Cup coach for Puerto Rico. He is certified by both PTR and Tennis Australia.
Country: Ohio
Quote: Director of Tennis for Dorado Beach, a Ritz Carlton Reserve. Certified by both PTR and Tennis Australia. Four-Year All-Conference player in Singles/Doubles at Belmont University.
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Email: [email protected]
Tim Bustle
Tim Bustle is the Assistant Tennis Director/Adult Tennis Director at Midtown Athletic Club in Chicago, Illinois. Tim oversees the largest adult instructional program in the US with over 600 weekly participants. Tim was instrumental in the development of Midtown’s Adult Development Pathway, which is utilized at all 10 Midtown family of clubs and is responsible for it’s on court content delivery by the clubs 35 coaches. Tim’s coaching has led USTA and CITA teams to local, regional and sectional championships and he is a lead administrator for Midtown’s patented Tennis in No Time program.
Within the industry, Tim holds four Professional Tennis Registry certifications: Adult Development, Junior Development, Junior Competitive, and 11-17 Pathways. He has been a speaker at PTR Midwest Conferences and has been published in TennisPro Magazine. Tim is also a TIA Cardio Tennis Global Trainer and has been a part of the development of the L2 Cardio Tennis certification.
Country: Illinois
Quote: Assistant Tennis Director/Adult Tennis Director at Midtown Athletic Club. Holds 4 Professional Tennis Registry Certificates. TIA Cardio Tennis Global Trainer.
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Email: [email protected]
Frank Giampaolo
Frank Giampaolo is a 30 year sports education veteran. He was honored as the USPTA Southern California Tennis Director of the Year and received numerous awards as a top teaching professional by Southern California Tennis & Golf Magazine.
Frank is a popular international convention speaker, a sports educator, instructional writer for ITF (International Tennis Federation) Coaching & Sports Science Review, UK Tennis magazine, the USPTA, Tennis Magazine and Tennis View Magazine. He is the best selling author of Championship Tennis (Human Kinetics Publishing), Raising Athletic Royalty, The Tennis Parent’s Bible.
His television appearances include The NBC Today Show, OCN-World Team Tennis, Fox Sports, Tennis Canada and Tennis Australia.
Frank founded The Tennis Parents Workshops in 1998, conducting workshops across the United States, Mexico, Israel, New Zealand, Australia, Canada and Spain.
Frank’s commitment to coaching excellence helped develop approximately 100 National Champions, hundreds of NCAA athletes, numerous NCAA All-Americans and several professional athletes. His innovative approach has made him a worldwide industry leader. Frank is currently the Vice Chair of the USTA/SCTA Coaches Commission.
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“I am very interested in giving back to the game that has brought me everything. I’m seeking the brotherhood. The elite coaches on the faculty are my colleagues . Everything I’ve heard from them about you… points me there.”
Country: California
Quote: 30 Year Sports Education Veteran. Awarded USPTA Southern CA Tennis Director of the Year. Best Selling Author. Instructional Writer for ITF.
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Email: [email protected]
Kendall Chitambar
Kendall is the Director of both Tennis and Player Development for the Rocky Mountain Tennis Center . He is a former professional player trained by some of the top coaches in the game with over 22 years coaching experience. Kendall directly oversees all aspects of the teaching programs and is widely recognized for his success in developing competitive players. Kendall also has his PTR Master of Tennis-Performance certification.
Kendall was named PTR Member of the Year for the State of Colorado. This award is presented to a PTR member in the United States who has shown dedication and diligence in promoting and supporting tennis and PTR.
PTR certified in 1989, at just 18 years old, Chitambar has spent his life in tennis. As a player, he was trained by some of the world’s best coaches, including Agassi’s coach, Fritz Nau. He competed internationally on the ITF Satellite Circuit, playing in Bulgaria, El Salvador, France, Hungary, Korea, Mexico, Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovenia, Turkey and the USA.
As a tennis instructor and coach, Chitambar has worked with some of the industry’s top names, including Dennis Van der Meer, under whom he got his start.
Currently, Chitambar is managing a year round high performance program that has been instrumental in developing many of the top juniors in Colorado and the USTA Intermountain Section. Since its inception in 2008, the program has also helped nearly 30 juniors achieve national rankings.
In 2011, Chitambar was in the inaugural class of the PTR Master of Tennis – Performance program, and earned the highest rating offered by PTR. He is currently enrolled in the PTR Master of Tennis – Junior Development program.
With his wife and business partner, Donna, Duke Paluch and Bill Boothby, Chitambar spent six years developing the Rocky Mountain Tennis Center. The doors opened in 2012. The facility boasts 33 courts, eight of which will be clay and 14 indoor. The courts are lined for regulation tennis, as well as for 10 and Under Tennis. The Rocky Mountain Tennis Center is a major contributor for tennis development in the Colorado area.
Country: Colorado
Quote: Director of both Tennis and Player Development at the Rocky mountain tennis center. Named PTR member of the year for the state of Colorado. Over 22 Years of coaching experience. Certified as a PTR Master of Tennis - Performance.
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Isaac Galindo
Isaac Galindo is Founder and Academy director at Galindo Tennis USA, a subdivision of GMG United, a full-service sports company providing complete management services worldwide.
Isaac brings great expertise in stroke analysis and sports science. He has put great emphasis in the development of young American athletes by bringing the Spanish system to the U.S by understanding and applying principles of perfect biomechanics and positioning.
He also represents and counsels several top ITF/ATP players in the world.
He recently started Love 4 Sports Foundation with the goal of helping the community and less fortunate through sports.
PLAYER EXPERIENCE
Top 150 Spanish nationally ranked player
Played professional ATP events around the world with wins over top 500 ranked players
Posted a record of 32-6 at Florida Southern College NCAA D2 School leading the team to the highest national ranking in school (3rd in the county)
Ranked #9 in the Nation in singles
2005 All-Region Team(S). 2005 ITA All-American(S). SSC Commissioner’s List of Outstanding Achievement (2007)
Hitting partner for both ATP and WTA players
COACHING EXPERIENCE
Galindo Tennis USA, Academy Director.
Beerman Tennis Complex, Florida: Head Tennis Professional
Private Coach for Top Junior/ ITF Players: Stephen Madonia, Benoit Paradis, Isaac Nortey.
Florida Southern College Assistant Coach
Coach and Teaching Pro – San Diego, California. Taught private and group lessons at the Scripps * * Ranch Tennis
Center. Coached top juniors, organized summer camp programs and assisted with coordinating junior adult leagues.
EDUCATION
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Gerard Galindo
Gerard Galindo is co-founder of Galindo Tennis USA. He is the ITF/WTA/ATP Academy Director. He is also in charge of the international business department which embraces the marketing and finance areas of all international programs the academy offers abroad.
PLAYER EXPERIENCE
* Top 150 Spanish nationally ranked player
* Top Junior Player in Spain. Classified for the Under 16’s national championship.
* Played professional ATP events with wins over world ranked players.
* Hitting partner at several ATP events.
* Posted a record of 14-2 at East Carolina University (Division 1) and 15-2 at Alliant International University.
* ITA Rolex Southern California Regional Singles Finalist
* Ranked #16 in the U.S.
* 2005 ITA All-American (S)
* Pro Player Academy Director at Galindo Tennis USA.
* Coach and Assistant Pro at Bermudez Tennis Academy.
* Assistant Coach at the University of Arkansas, Little Rock, Arkansas.
* Coach and Teaching Pro – San Diego, California. Taught private and group lessons at the Scripps Ranch Tennis Center
* Participated in several exhibition matches and clinics in Europe and U.S.
EDUCATION:
* University of Arkansas- Bachelor in International Business with Minor in foreign languages: Spanish, May 2008.
* Certification in Nutrition (ISSA)
* Concussion in Sports Certificate (NFHS)
* Personal Trainer (International Sports Science Association)
* Fluent in Spanish, Catalan and English.
Country: Florida (Orig Spain)
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Michele Krause
Michele Krause is the Cardio Tennis Manager working for the Tennis Industry Association (TIA). Cardio Tennis is a fun, group fitness activity consisting of fast paced tennis drills and games for players of all ability levels providing a full body calorie-burning workout. Michele has overseen the program since its inception in 2005 and since the rollout and there are now 1,800 Authorized Providers, 1.4 million Cardio Tennis participants in the US and the program has spread to over 30 countries.
Michele oversees the entire Cardio Tennis program both in the US and internationally. Her responsibilities include all the day-to-day operations: administration, programming, curriculum, event planning, training and marketing. She manages the TIA Global Cardio Tennis Team which is made up of 25 Trainers who assist her with training, educating and consumer events. She also serves as the coordinator for those countries who are in the process of establishing, launching or continued development of Cardio Tennis. She speaks at many industry conventions, (PTR, USPTA, IHRSA, ITA, ITF, PBI and USTA) meetings and events to provide ongoing education on the Cardio Tennis program. She also trains coaches how to deliver the product through national and international courses. Internationally she has conducted courses in Portugal, the UK, the Caribbean, Ireland, Poland, Greece and Canada. She spent 2 years working with Tennis Australia helping them to develop the program for their country.
Michele has developed Cardio Tennis Kids, Supersize Cardio Tennis and TRX Cardio Tennis. Cardio Tennis was featured on NBC’s the Biggest Loser under Michele’s guidance with Anna Kournakova and she secured Anna as the Cardio Tennis spokesperson.
Michele is a USPTA and PTR tennis professional who managed tennis facilities throughout the US for over 16 years. She is formally educated in TRX Suspension Training and is a Certified Ignite 360 (Combine 360) Trainer. Michele received the TIA/PTR Industry Excellence award on 2012. Michele continuously strives to improve the Cardio Tennis experience for both the tennis professional and the consumer.
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Christophe Delavaut
Christophe is founder of TennisOxygen.com , which specializes in online private coaching using personal stroke video analysis that draws extensively on high-speed video footage of today’s top professionals.
He holds a Professional #1 rating by both the USPTA (1996), PTR (1986), and MTM (2012). He has competed and coached at every level from juniors collegiate and professional. He has been the USPTA District #9 President since 2010 and is also a monthly contributor to TennisOne.com , one of the leading tennis teaching web sites in the world.
Christophe is currently the Director of Tennis of the Grand Harbor Golf and Tennis in Vero Beach FL (since 1995) during the winter months and at The New Seabury Club on Cape Cod MA from Memorial Day to Labor Day since 2011. He also serves as a board member of the Indian River Tennis Foundation, a foundation dedicated to raise funds to award lesson scholarships to local juniors.
During summers has has acted as Director of Tennis of The Lloyd Neck Bath Club in Cold Spring Harbor NY (1996-1999), Tennis director of the Country Club of Detroit in Grosse Pointe MI (2000-2006), Tennis Director at the Walloon Lake Country Club in Wallon Lake MI (2007-2011), and Tennis Director at The New Seabury Club on Cape Cod MA (2011-present).
In 1987 he was the original founder and Director of the Sugarbush Tennis School, which was rated as one of the World’s Best Tennis Schools by Tennis Magazine. Roger Cox, Senior Travel Editor for Tennis Magazine, described the Sugarbush Tennis School as the most dynamic and innovative tennis school in the country.
Christophe is the author of Tennis Atlas: The Ultimate Doubles Program, a 200-page tennis teaching manual geared to help teaching professionals guarantee improvement to their students. He holds a B.S Business degree from Franklin Pierce University, (1987).
Country: Florida (Orig. France)
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Stan Oley
Stan is employed by Playmate Ball Machines as their Product Marketing Specialist. Stan is Founder of FBT60 (Fit By Tennis in 60 Days). FBT60 is a new tennis/fitness program combining nutrition and a series of ball machine drills
Stan is a USPTA Master Professional. Less than 160 of the 14,000 USPTA Pros have this distinction. Stan is a member of the USPTA, PTR, USTA. Stan was named 2016 Florida USPTA Pro of the Year. Stan was named 2016 Florida USPTA District 15 Pro of the Year. Stan was the USPTA District 15 President from 2007-2012. Stan was Florida USPTA District President of the Year in 2007 and his District was District of the Year in 2008.
Stan has attended 20 USPTA World Conferences, speaking at 11 of them. Stan has spoken at over 100 USPTA Divisional Conventions. Stan has performed different USPTA Specialty Courses at 18 USPTA Division or World Conferences.
During his 30 years as a teaching professional (29 years USPTA Certified), he was a teaching professional at John’s Island Club in Vero Beach, FL, the head tennis professional at the International Tennis Center in Key Biscayne, FL (Home of the Miami Open Championships), as well as a teaching professional at the Eau Gallie Yacht Club in Indian Harbour Beach, FL.
He has been working and teaching with ball machines for over 25 years. He has also published drills and articles for USPTA Addvantage Magazine, Tennis Week, and PTR Tennis Pro Magazine. Stan was featured on the Tennis Channel’s One Minute Clinic, “On-Court with the USPTA” and has three full length DVDs, “Ball Machine Drills, Drills, Drills” featuring drills with a ball machine, “Rip Your Returns Like the Pros” featuring the serve return, (which recently won Honor of Distinction at a recent communications awards event), and “Zone It to Own It” featuring strike-zones and stroke production.
Stan is very proud to be sponsored by adidas and Babolat tennis products
Country: Florida
She is also a PTR 11-17 Clinician and Tester.
Milena was named the 2015 PTR Mississippi Professional of the Year.
Country: South Carolina (Orig. Brazil)
Quote: Former #1 in Brazil, 2015 PTR Mississippi Professional of the Year
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Julio Godreau
Julio Godreau holds certifications with the USPTA (Elite), PTR (Master of Tennis Performance), and the USTA (High Performance). He currently serves as the Director of Junior Tennis for the USTA Texas section.
As a coach he has developed players in Orange Ball (2 Southern #1 ranked players and 3 Southern Closed Champions) and Yellow Ball (player ranked as high as #5 in the US and quarterfinalist at Orange Bowl and Eddie Herr tournaments). At the collegiate level his students have accomplished scholarships at prestigious conferences such as the Pac-12 and SEC, and have won NCAA Division 1 team championship. Aside from his on court success with Junior Players he has also guided adults to State, Sectional, and National Championships.
He has been the recipient of numerous awards from the USPTA, PTR, and USTA including Southern Pro of the Year. As an educator he often presents at sectional events and has been a speaker at The USPTA World Conference and PTR International Symposium.
Julio was a top Junior player in the Caribbean, NCAA Division I Scholarship Collegiate Player, and has played at the Pro level. He is also fully bilingual (English and Spanish) and has a Masters Degree in Business Administration and an undergrad in Psychology. He has been married for twelve years to Charisse and has two daughters, Emma (6) and Sophie (9).
•PTR Master of Tennis Performance (Equivalent to ITF Level 3)
•USPTA Certified Professional Level 1
•PTR Certified Professional Level
•USPTA & PTR Player Development Specialist
•USTA High Performance Orange Bowl World Class Junior Player Development Study
•USTA High Performance US Open Pro Player Development Study
•USTA High Performance 10 & Under Certified
•USTA Referee Certified
•USTA Tournament Director Certification (TDM)
AWARDS
•PTR Mississippi Member of the Year 2014
•USPTA 10 & Under Southern Pro of the Year 2012
•USPTA Southern Pro of the Year 2007
•USTA Southern Pro of the Year 2008
•USPTA Mississippi Pro of the Year 2006 & 2007
•USTA Mississippi Pro of the Year 2008
•USPTA Developmental Pro of the Year 2004
•USPTA North Cal Rookie Pro of the Year 1997
USTA INVOLVEMENT
•Selected to coach USTA National Level 1 camp at USTA Center in NY (US Open Location) along with coaches Tom Gullikson, Richard Ashby, Kent Kinnear, Jay Gooding, and Geoff Russell.
•Chairman 10 & Under USTA Southern Committee
•Vice Chairman USTA Southern Player Development Committee
•Representative for USPTA & PTR Pros in USTA Mississippi
•Chair USTA Southern Talent Identification Camps Committee
•Chair USTA Mississippi Junior Council Committee
•Member USTA National Pro Circuit Committee
•Head Coach USTA Competitive Training Center (CTC) Mississippi
•Coach USTA Southern and Mississippi Talent Identification Camps
•Coach USTA Southern and Mississippi Talent Identification Camps
•Coach USTA Middle States 12 and under Zonal National Team
•Coach USTA Southern 14 and under Zonal National Team
USPTA AND PTR INVOLVEMENT
•Speaker at USPTA World Symposium
•Speaker at USPTA Winter Southern Conference
•Chairman USPTA Multicultural Committee
•Speaker at PTR International Symposium
•Speaker at USPTA Southern Conferences
•Speaker at USPTA Tennessee, Mississippi, & Louisiana Workshops
•Speaker at Mississippi’s High School Coaches
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Joel Drucker
Joel Drucker is one of the world’s leading tennis writers – spanning everything from coverage of the contemporary game to recreational play, history, humor and more. Over the last 30 years, his work has appeared in dozens of print and broadcast media. These include Tennis, Tennis Week, USTA Magazine and many others. Drucker’s tennis work also extends to dozens of general interest media, including Men’s Journal, Los Angeles Magazine, the San Diego Reader, People and Cigar Aficionado. In television he has worked with Tennis Channel since the network’s start ten years ago, starting as co-producer of the interview show “Center Court” and currently as Tennis Channel’s story editor for its coverage of the Grand Slam events, as well as an ongoing series of tournaments, documentaries and special programs. His book, Jimmy Connors Saved My Life, is considered one of five “must-read” tennis books by Sports Illustrated. Joel has been playing tennis for more than 40 years, including experience as a Southern California junior and instructor for Tony Trabert.
In August 2016 Joel was appointed the first American “ Historian-at-Large ” for the International Tennis Hall of Fame.
Country: California
Quote: Writer and Editor for The Tennis Channel and Tennis magazine. Historian-at-Large for International Tennis Hall of Fame.
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Rod Heckelman
Rod Heckelman’s career started in 1966 the summer after his junior year in high school when he began his five-year role as a teacher at John Gardiner’s Tennis Ranch in Carmel Valley, Calif. Later he opened as the resident pro for Gardiner’s Tennis Ranch on Camelback in Scottsdale, Ariz. At 20 years of age, he was one of the youngest pros to be the Head Pro at what some considered one of the top tennis resorts in the world.
In 1976 he made his way back to his home state of California, where he took over as Head Pro/Tennis Director at the Mt. Tam Racquet Club in Larkspur. He added the title and responsibilities of General Manager in 1982. From his early teaching years, Rod has been involved with developing top players. He has developed over 15 national champions at the junior level and 4 at the senior level. As a competitor he has played and been ranked at both national and sectional levels, breaking the top 5 in 1991. Rod published an instructional manual in 1992 for tennis teachers to use with their students called “Down Your Alley.”
For the last couple of years, excerpts from his “Facility Manager’s Manual” were being published in Racquet Sports Industry magazine. The manual is now available digitally through the Tennis Industry Association for managers and clubs to use as a model for operating their businesses. More recently, he created a “Business Handbook for Tennis Pros,” that is also being produced by T.I.A. In 2010 he was awarded “Manager of the Year” for the USPTA NorCal division and later announced by the USPTA as the “Manager of the Year” at the World Conference. Rod travels the country lecturing to fellow pros about management skills and helping them transition into management. Rod continues to expand his knowledge on all aspects of the tennis business, and he is a frequent presenter at industry events throughout the country including speaking at IRHSA World Conference in San Francisco in 2011, the first person to represent the tennis industry at an IRHSA convention in over 25 years.
Rod recently was selected to the new Babalot Advisory Board and came out with his second instructional book, “Playing Into the Sunset,” an instructional book for senior players available through BoomerTennis.net.
Country: California
Quote: Author "Playing Into the Sunset", Developed 15 national champions at the junior level and 4 at the senior level
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Bill Riddle
Bill is a veteran with over 27 years of college, junior and club coaching and management experiences and is recognized as a High Performance Tennis Specialist by the PTR, USPTA & USTA. He currently serves as the Director of Tennis for the Bluegrass Yacht & Country Club in Hendersonville, Tennessee and owns and operates a tennis management firm that consults on tennis event, program and facility needs. For the last 17 years he has directed the tennis program at BYCC coaching and teaching all levels of players. During his time there, Bluegrass has been recognized as a Top 50 Tennis Welcome Center in the nation and was awarded the Professional Tennis Registry Facility of the Year for Tennessee and the USPTA Tennessee Tennis Facility of the Year in 2013.
Bill spent nine years coaching tennis at the collegiate level. His college teams and players have had success both on and off court at the national levels. He has coached 9 All-American players and numerous with national singles and doubles rankings. While coaching college tennis he was a two time recipient of the USPTA Southern Division College Coach of the Year award and a two time ITA/ USTA College Coaches Community Service award. Additionally he was named TranSouth Conference Coach of the Year and Regional Coach of the Year.
He has been a speaker at a number of national and international coaches and player workshops and seminars around the world including the USTA Tennis Teachers Conference at the US Open, the PTR International Symposium, various USPTA Divisional and State Conventions and the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Coaches Convention. He is a member of the Global TIA Cardio Tennis Team and conducts workshops and seminars for tennis coaches, professionals and fitness providers. In 2006 he was one of only ten coaches chosen in the USA to represent the USTA High Performance Coaches Program at the Wimbledon Championships. He has since been selected by the USTA High Performance Coaches Program for the coaches program at the USA vs. Switzerland, USA vs Spain and USA vs Brazil Davis Cup ties as well as several US Open Championships.
Service to the tennis industry has always been important to Bill as he has served in a number of areas and capacities including:
– United States Professional Tennis Association Tennessee State Chapter President
– USPTA Tester and Southern Tournament Director and Circuit Chairman
– Tournament Director for the Professional Tennis Registry International $25,000 Tennis Championships
– Served as PTR Tennessee State Representative
– PTR International Tester and Clinician
– Served on United States Tennis Association Tennessee Board of Directors (PTR Representative)
– Served on USTA Tennessee Player Development Committee
– Served as Chairman for USTA Tennessee 10 & Under Tennis Committee
– USTA Southern Pros Relations Committee and USTA Southern Innovations Committee
Bill was recently honored with the 2014 USPTA National Lessons for Life award at the US Open. He has been selected as the USTA Tennessee 2011 Tennis Professional of the Year and is the only three time USPTA Tennessee Pro of the Year and two time PTR Tennessee Pro of the Year award winner in Tennessee history. Bill not only coaches and teaches players from around the world to play tennis but also works with tennis coaches to help improve their coaching and teaching abilities. He has conducted player evaluations and seminars in a variety of countries including England, Bermuda, Jamaica, Holland, Canada and throughout the Caribbean and the USA. He has organized and directed tennis camps in Anguilla, St. Martin and Jamaica for both adults and junior tennis players for the last 12 years and in 2010 and 2011 worked with the Classic of Champions event in Sweden. He is a member of the PRINCE Elite Team and the adidas National Advisory Staff.
No stranger to entertainment and tennis promotions, he created and co-hosted the award winning weekly radio show called “Tennis Talk” that aired on WLAC out of Nashville. In 2012 Bill served as an “on air” TV announcer and commentator for the WTA Tour Dallas Women’s Pro Tournament on the FOX Sports South Network and ESPN. He has also been involved with a TV show for the Tennis Channel and has also been featured on local and regional TV and radio networks promoting tennis and offering tennis tips.
One of Bill’s passions is the annual Music City Tennis Invitational charity tennis tournament that raises money for the Vanderbilt University Children’s Hospital Child Development Center. For the last 15 years he has worked with and served as a Co Chairman and Tournament Director for this premier music and tennis event that has raised over $2,000,000 for local charity’s in Nashville. He has organized and directed high profile events consisting of a “who’s who” list of current and former ATP and WTA tour players as well as music industry artists and leaders including Jake Owen, Brad Paisley, Vince Gill, Martina McBride, Sarah Evans, Billy Ray Cyrus, Brooks and Dunn and Lady A’s, Hillary Scott to name a few.
Bill and his wife Stephanie are natives of Middle Tennessee and have two children, Blakely who was a top ranked state junior tennis player and member of the 2 time state high school team championship tennis team at Ravenwood High School and Will who is an avid soccer and baseball player but is also a top state ranked junior tennis player.
Country: Tennessee
Quote: PTR, USPTA & USTA High Performance Coach. Recipient of Tennis Professional of the Year awards from USTA, USPTA and PTR
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Bruce Levine
Bruce “Mad Dog” Levine has been involved in the tennis industry 36 years and during that time has gotten his hands into most aspects of the industry and game. His diverse experience includes playing, coaching and teaching from the grassroots through high school, college, and the tour levels of tennis. Bruce has also owned and managed clubs in the northeast and is currently working as a consultant in several clubs.
One of the “Dog’s” main responsibilities in the tennis industry has been that of the Technical Advisor and Lead Racquet/String Tester for Tennis Magazine and tennis.com. Bruce has been helpful to players and coaches alike in understanding the technical and playing characteristics of the multitude of racquets and strings in today’s market.
In addition to his playing, coaching, and management experience, Mad Dog currently serve the tennis community as the USPTA Board Member and Regional Vice President in the Middle States Section and also is on the USTA Middle States Board of Directors.
Country: Northeast US
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Marlon Dal Pont
Marlon is from Foz do Iguacu Brazil, where he was the #3 ranked junior in the state of Parana and one of the nation’s top 150 juniors under 18. He went on to study and play tennis at Lindsey Wilson College in Kentucky, and in 2013 was named Mid-South Conference Men’s Tennis Player of the Week.
He currently serves as Head Coach for the Lindsey Wilson college men’s and women’s tennis programs, following a successful tenure as assistant coach from 2014-15. In his first season at the helm of the tennis teams in 2016, Dal Pont took both programs to new heights as the women’s team advanced to the NAIA National Championship match and the men’s team advanced to the NAIA National Semifinals, the highest finishes in history for both squads. Both teams had tried and failed multiple times to advance past the quarterfinal and semifinal rounds before Dal Pont helped guide them to the best finishes in history in 2016.
Dal Pont guided both teams to both the MSC regular season and tournament titles and was named the MSC Coach of the Year on the women’s side in 2016. In his first season, Dal Pont coached four NAIA All-Americans, one MSC Player of the Year, one MSC Freshman of the Year, eight First Team All-MSC selections, three Second Team All-MSC selections, three NAIA Scholar-Athletes and 10 Academic All-MSC honorees.
Prior to his coaching days, Dal Pont had an outstanding three-year playing career with the Blue Raiders from 2010-13. He compiled a 40-13 singles record and a 51-11 doubles record. His singles and doubles victories rank him in the top 10 all-time in Lindsey Wilson men’s tennis history. He earned First Team All-MSC honors as a senior during the 2013 season.
Marlon received extensive training in Brazil through the (FPT) Parana Tennis Federation and (CBT) Brazilian Tennis Confederation. He speaks English, Spanish and Portuguese fluently.
Country: Brazil
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Keith Henderson
Keith currently serves as the Head Tennis Professional at the Danville Country Club in Lexington Kentucky and also is a Teaching Professional at the Lexington Tennis Club. He is a PTR Professional for Junior Development (11-17) and also holds the USTA 10 & Under Certification. A former USTA Top 10 player, Keith played college tennis at Transylvania University and was a three-time recipient of HCAC All-Conference honors. In 2013 he was USTA Kentucky Junior Southern Cup Coach. In 2014 he was a Special Recipient for the Paul Arber Young Coaches Award presented by the International Tennis Performance Association (ITPA).
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Doug Miller
Doug Miller has been an integral part of Tucson’s Tennis community for 15 years, though his career as a coach began long before, back in 1981 at the Port Washington Tennis Academy. Over the years, his career has grown to encompass teaching and coaching at all levels, and all ages. A USPTA Professional Elite coach, Doug brings a unique perspective to the court, as well as an infamous sense of humor.
Doug’s coaching career has been built on being an active participant, on the court and off. Currently a member of the Head Advisory Staff, USTA Southwest Slam Series Doubles Champion, and 2014 Tucson City Champion in Men’s 55 and over.
As a sectionally and nationally ranked player, in both singles and doubles, Doug relates to all levels of play, whether competitive or social. Currently Doug divides his time between Senior Team Coaching, individual player development and a few budding junior players as well. Doug’s priority on the court for any player is enthusiasm for the sport… bring a positive attitude and have fun.
Country: Arizona
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Debi Vincent
Debi Vincent has spent more than 20 years in the fitness industry as a trainer, educator and competitor. She is a recognized leader in the industry and is regularly called upon to share her knowledge and expertise with other trainers across the country.
Debi holds numerous fitness certifications, including being a Tennis Performance Trainer (TPT) of the International Tennis Performance Association (iTPA). She is also a Nationally Certified Peak Pilates Instructor and Master Trainer, a Nationally Certified personal trainer and TRX trainer, and a group exercise, zumba and spinning instructor. She is the owner of Active Body & Health Inc., a 2000 square-foot Personal Training, Pilates and Sports Performance facility located in Severna Park, MD that features the A3 Sports Performance Program designed for athletes seeking to develop and improve their skills in their respective sports.
As a competitor, Debi has been a national aerobics competitor, regional champion, and a highly competitive collegiate gymnast. Her specialized training and competitive experience, coupled with her energy, enthusiasm, and passion for sharing knowledge, have been the foundation of her successful business. She has numerous dedicated clients who are continuously inspired by her enthusiasm, knowledge, and constant support.
Debi holds a degree in Fitness Management from Lock Haven University.
Learn more at http://activebodyandhealth.com
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Ted Murray
Ted Murray’s has nearly four decades of experience in the tennis industry internationally, working in over 30 countries while developing new programs for numerous first-class clubs, resorts, and academies. He was a founding member and 20-year contributor to Peter Burwash International (PBI), the worlds first and largest tennis management company founded in 1975. He owned a world-class tennis and fitness club in Florida for 10 years and has taught students of all ages from absolute beginners with no athletic ability to juniors who went on to win Olympic medals and dozens of Grand Slam titles. He has shared his passion for the game by training thousands of coaches, writing articles and books, and being part of some of the revolutionary trends in the sport. He was an original member of the Cardio Tennis Speakers Team in 2005 that trained coaches throughout the world.
Ted is the founder of “Tennis From The Heart,” an organization dedicated to creating a new paradigm for teaching tennis that emphasizes not only world-class training techniques but also the potential for tennis to be a forum for self-discovery, personal growth, and skill building needed to be a champion in life. He is also Senior Advisor to the Tennis Legacy Fund, a nonprofit founded in 2014 to catalyze high-impact initiatives in the tennis industry that benefit both people and the planet.
Country: Colorado
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Benny Morentin
Since 2008, Benny Morentin has been the Director of Tennis at the Tucson Country Club. He is a member of both the PTR and USPTA. In 2013, Benny was named PTR Pro of the Year for Arizona. With the PTR, Benny is a certified clinician and is certified to teach 10 years and under children, as well as 11-17 year olds. Currently he is working on his Master of Tennis with the PTR. For more than 25 years Benny has inspired junior players in the Tucson community. He began teaching in 1989 at Himmel Tennis Center where he was the Director of Junior Development and the Assistant Head Pro. Since then he has been Assistant Head Pro at the Tucson Racquet Club and Director of Tennis at Omni Tucson National before coming to Tucson Country Club.
Benny has been the coach for the USTA inter-district and inter-sectional teams and Area Training Center. At one time he was the head coach for St. Gregory Preparatory School. Many of Benny’s students have gone on to become successful high school and collegiate athletes, as well as nationally ranked juniors. Additionally, Benny teaches adults and interclub teams. He has coached five USTA teams to Nationals in the past six years at the Tucson Country Club.
Benny’s own accomplishments include being an All-American collegiate player and was ranked 4th in the nation in doubles while at Grand Canyon University in Phoenix, Arizona. He played three years at the USTA National 5.0 Tennis Championships, and was a member of the 2010 USTA National 4.5 team. In 2008, Benny was one of a small group of professionals in Tucson to have been invited to complete the USTA Elite Coaches High Performance Training class. This accolade truly establishes Benny Morentin as one of the top tennis-teaching professionals in the area, as evidenced by his coaching popularity from beginners to elite players.
Country: Arizona
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John Adamek
John is Director of Fitness and Head Strength and Conditioning Coach at Magnus: Expand Human Performance , a leading fitness facility located at CourtSense in New Jersey. He is also an iTPA Certified Tennis Performance Specialist (CTPS). John has a deep resume of working with high profile clients in both the athletic and rehabilitation facilities, and has had the honor and pleasure of training various CEO’s, celebrities, Division I and professional athletes. John holds numerous certifications including; Certified Personal Training, Corrective Exercise Specialist, and Performance Enhancement Specialist from the National Academy of Sports Medicine; Sports Performance Coach through the United States of American Weightlifting; and High School Strength and Conditioning Specialist from the International Youth Conditioning Association. John is an active member of the Greater New York Chapter of the American College of Sports Medicine where he is on the Education Committee.
John himself was a three-sport athlete growing up playing baseball, football and basketball. His baseball career took him from high school to college and eventually to the semi-professional level in Europe.
Country: New Jersey
Quote: CTPS. Head Strength and Conditioning Coach at Magnus: Expand Human Performance. Expert in Functional and Tennis-Specific Training
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Trevor McPherson
Trevor is a strength and conditioning coach at Magnus: Expand Human Performance , a leading fitness facility located at CourtSense in New Jersey. He is also an iTPA Certified Tennis Performance Specialist (CTPS). Trevor has a strong passion for the health and fitness industry, and his training draws on extensive experience as a tennis player and long distance runner. Trevor was a ranked junior in the United States Tennis Association (USTA) for over 5 years. Tennis gave him a strong understanding of body movement, endurance and flexibility. As a distance runner, Trevor has completed various half and full marathons all over the tri-state area. Searching for creative and dynamic ways of training is the constant goal for Trevor, who is certified in the Functional Movement Systems (FMS), as well as being a certified personal trainer through the ISSA.
Country: New Jersey
Quote: CTPS. Strength and conditioning coach at Magnus: Expand Human Potential. Expert in Tennis-Specific and Functional Training.
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Tom Ruth
Currently Director of Tennis at Moss Creek, 2015 Outstanding Tennis Facility, in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. PTR Professional 10 & Under, 11-17, and Adult Development as well as a clinician in the 11-17, Adult Development and Senior Development pathways. Went through the USTA High Performance Coaching Program in 2011. He is also an iTPA-certified Tennis Performance Trainer (TPT). Has served the USTA SC as coach at Southern 10 and Under camps and tournaments as well as Southern 14 and Under Sectional Tournaments. Currently Head Coach for Early Development Camps in South Carolina. Tom also serves on the USTA SC and USTA Southern Tennis Professionals Committees. Formerly Tom was the Youth Tennis Professional in Sumter, SC from 2009-2012. Played collegiate tennis at Saint Joseph’s College in Rensselaer, IN where he earned All-GLVC (Great Lakes Valley Conference) honors.
Country: South Carolina
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Jenny Robb
Jenny Robb is the Assistant Department head at Life Time Athletic and Tennis Peachtree Corners, Norcross, GA. Jenny played NCAA Division I tennis at Samford University in Birmingham, AL where she earned her Bachelor of Arts in English/Language Arts. During her college years she coached summer camps at Hampton Racquet Club in East Hampton, NY and internationally in Canazei, Italy. Over the last 15 years Jenny has coached in a variety of training environments including: Country Clubs, Park and Recreation facilities, Tennis Academies, and Fitness Centers. She has coached adults and juniors at the State, Sectional, and National level and helped numerous young athletes achieve college tennis scholarships. Jenny is a certified Elite Professional with the USPTA, and a certified Professional with the PTR, where she earned the distinction of Master of Tennis – Junior Development. She is also a certified Tennis Performance Trainer with the iTPA. She has been on the USPTA Alabama State board for 4 years, and is the current USPTA Alabama President. Since moving to Georgia in August, she is now a USPTA Georgia State Board Member. She was awarded USTA-Southern-Alabama Tennis Professional of the Year. Jenny’s love of coaching has helped players of all ages reach their individual goals and experience a greater enjoyment of the game.
Country: Georgia
Quote: USPTA Alabama President, USTA Alabama Pro of the Year, USPTA Elite Professional, PTR Master Professional in Junior Development
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Tom Lepisto
Tom Lepisto recently joined the Omni Tucson National Resort as their Director of Tennis and is working to invigorate the tennis and recreation program, bringing energy and enthusiasm to all of the resort’s adult and junior tennis programs. Tom’s been teaching tennis for over 30 years and was previously at the Westward Look Wyndham Grand Resort & Spa in Tucson, Arizona for 12 years. Tom taught tennis in the Fountain Hills area northeast of Phoenix for 15 years, most recently as Director of Tennis at Firerock Country Club and served on the town’s Parks and Recreation committee. He spent seven summers as Director of Tennis at the Northland Country Club in Duluth, Minnesota. Tom is a graduate of the University of Minnesota Duluth, as well as a tennis team alumnus. He led the team as the number one singles player for four years.
Tom was named the Professional Tennis Registry (PTR) Member of the Year for the State of Arizona in 2009. Tom also assisted Westward Look in becoming USTA Facility of the Year for Southern Arizona in 2013. Tom works closely with several non-profit organizations to promote and grow tennis in the Tucson area.
Country: Arizona
Quote: 2009 PTR Member of the Year for Arizona. Former #1 Singles Player for 4 Years at University of Minnesota Duluth.
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2014 United States Tennis Congress
Whether you’re a beginner or a 5.0-rated player, if you are passionate about the game of tennis you’ll love the 2014 United States Tennis Congress!
Imagine…
…The inspiration of working with the tennis world’s best coaches — never before assembled in one place like this for adult players.
…The power of choosing master classes with leading authorities that focus on exactly what you need to improve.
…The fun and electricity of an event with 200 of the world’s most avid adult players who are just as passionate as you about tennis and achieving their personal best.
Join us for an inspiring, innovative, customized learning experience with the world’s top experts covering all aspects of training necessary to improve: technique, movement, strategy, fitness, injury prevention, and mental conditioning.
Faculties:
Owen Davidson
Owen is one of the most well rounded tennis professionals of his time. He finished his junior career as the no. 2 junior in the World to John Newcombe. Owen then went on and played on 5 winning Australian Davis Cup Teams from 1962-1967. Throughout his career he was coached by the greatest coach of all time, Mr. Harry Hopman. In 1967 he was named All England Club Professional at Wimbledon and Manager of British Competitive Tennis. He held that job until leaving in 1971 to resume his professional tennis career.
During his professional career Owen won 13 Grand Slams, 4 Wimbledon’s, 5 US Opens, 1 French Open and 3 Australian Opens. He spent three years as Director of Tennis at the Houston Racquet Club and then eight years as Director of Tennis at the Woodlands Inn and Country Club, in Texas. He was also the Director of the John Newcombe/Owen Davidson Competitive Edge Tennis Academy at the John Newcombe Tennis Ranch in New Braunfels, TX, coaching thousands of juniors from all over the world and specifically Texans. Owen spent many years on the Professional Tennis Tour coaching such players as his mixed doubles partner, Billie Jean King, Andrea Jaeger, Bill Scanlon, Sammy Giammalva, David Wheaton, Annabel Croft, Susan Mascarin, and numerous others.
Owen played on and coached World Team Tennis Teams in Minnesota, Boston, Hawaii, and Houston. In 1991 he also became Chief Operating Officer of Grand Slams Sports Marketing, marketing specialty tennis events to hundreds of major companies throughout the world. He continues to this day in that capacity. From 1976 – 1986 he worked as Tour Director for the ATP in the Woodlands, Texas, initiating the advent of the Satellite Circuit. Currently he is working at the Woodlands Country Club, in the Woodlands, Texas, coaching members and juniors. In 2010 he was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame and in January of 2011 was inducted into the Australian Tennis Hall of Fame. Owen, with Leslie Bowrey and Billie Jean King, won the calendar Grand Slam in 1967. Most people consider his partnership with Billie Jean King as the greatest of all time!
Country: Australia
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Emilio Sánchez
Emilio Sánchez is President of the Academia Sánchez-Casal , located in Barcelona Spain and Naples Florida. The Academia Sánchez-Casal uses a unique training system, based on the Spanish method of understanding tennis, focused on maximizing the strength, balance, speed, stamina and agility of the student’s lower body. It incorporates specific exercises used by successful Spanish players, which have boosted the game of students including Svetlana Kuznetsova, Andy Murray, Daniela Hantuchova, Grigor Dimitrov, Juan Monaco, among many others.
As a player, Emilio won three Grand Slam doubles titles and the men’s doubles silver medal at the 1988 Olympic Games. He achieved an ATP world #7 ranking in singles and #1 ranking in doubles. He was the coach of multiple Grand Slam winner (and sister) Arantxa Sánchez Vicario. He also captained Spain’s Davis Cup team to success in 2008. In 2012 Sanchez was a tournament director for two wheelchair tennis events.
Country: Spain
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Jeff Salzenstein
Jeff Salzenstein is the founder and president of Jeff Salzenstein Tennis , an organization focused on helping tennis players improve their games through online tennis instruction in the areas of technique, footwork, nutrition, injury prevention, motivation and athletic development. He is a USPTA Professional 1, Specialist in Competitive Player Development and a Certified Nutritional Therapy Practitioner.
A member of the Colorado Tennis Hall of Fame, Salzenstein set the standard for tennis in Colorado with an unsurpassed record as a player at the amateur and professional levels. As he regularly competed against the best players in the world, he became a serious student of the game and an accomplished world-class competitor.
Salzenstein turned professional in 1996 after graduating from Stanford University, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in economics. In 1997, Salzenstein was named Rookie of the Year by Tennis Week magazine. He played in all four Grand Slams—Wimbledon, US Open, French Open, Australian Open—and had wins over Mardy Fish, David Nalbandian, Greg Rusedski, and Fernando Verdasco. In 2004, despite having two major surgeries, Salzenstein broke into the top 100 in the world for the first time and was the first American to accomplish this feat after his 30th birthday. He concluded his playing career in 2007 and became a high-performance tennis coach in Denver, Colo.
Salzenstein’s website, www.jeffsalzensteintennis.com , shares cutting-edge tennis tips and lessons to help players improve their games.
Country: Colorado
Quote: Former Top 100 ATP Tennis Player. High Performance Tennis Coach. Expert In Peak Performance, Nutrition, Fitness, Rehab and Motivation.
Twitter: JeffSalzenstein
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John Austin
John Austin is the Director of Tennis at the International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport, Rhode Island.
Winning a Wimbledon trophy is a major accomplishment for any tennis player, but winning a major championship with a sibling is a rarity in the record books of any sport. For John and Tracy Austin, the 1980 Wimbledon mixed doubles title put them in the record books as the first brother-sister team to win the prestigious Wimbledon championship. They also reached the Wimbledon mixed doubles final in 1981.
There is no question that Austin has tennis in his DNA. Born into a family of five siblings, four of whom competed at Wimbledon, Austin climbed the international rankings to a top 40 world ranking in six years competing on the ATP Tour. Among his wins were victories over #1-ranked John McEnroe, former French Open champion Yannick Noah, Andres Gomes, Wojtek Fibak, and twins Tim and Tom Gullikson. He was also selected three times as an alternate/practice partner for the US Davis Cup team.
Prior to entering the professional ranks, Austin was a member of the victorious 1976 UCLA NCAA championship team and a 1978 NCAA doubles champion. He reached the NCAA doubles final in 1977.
Austin’s earliest memories are from the vantage point of the tennis courts at the historic Jack Kramer Club in Rolling Hills, CA where his mother worked in the tennis shop, and Austin received his tennis direction from renowned coach Robert Lansdorp.
Austin followed in his famous coach’s footsteps becoming a teaching professional upon his retirement from the professional tour. Among the players Austin has worked with as a Touring Professional are Pete Sampras, Michael Chang, Jim Grabb, Chuck Adams, Robbie Weiss, Alexandra Stevenson, and Amy Frazier.
While pursuing his teaching career, Austin remained passionate about his own tennis, attaining two No. 1 USTA national rankings in the Men’s 40 Singles in 1997 and Men’s 35 Doubles in 2002.
Austin’s wife, Karen, is a teacher. He has two sons, Christopher, 28, and Reed, 18.
TOURING PROFESSIONAL
1978-1984
CAREER WINS
Defeated #1 John McEnroe, Yannick Noah, Andres Gomez, Wojtek Fibak, Tim and Tom Gullickson, Tim Wilkison
TOURNAMENT HIGHLIGHTS
2002 Ranked #1 in the US Mens 35 and over doubles
2002 USTA National Mens 35 and over Hard court doubles champion
1998 USTA National Men’s 40 and Over Grass Court Singles Champion
1997 USTA National Men’s 40 and Over Grass Court Singles Champion
1997 USTA National Men’s 40 and Over Indoor Singles Champion
1997 USTA National Men’s 40 No. 1 Ranking
Member of the 1989 First Place “New Jersey Stars Professional Team Tennis”
1981 Wimbledon Mixed Doubles Finalist with sister, Tracy Austin
1980 Wimbledon Mixed Doubles Champion with sister, Tracy Austin
1978 NCAA Doubles Champion
US Davis Cup team – selected 3 times/alternate/practice partner
7 Career titles won
6 Career finalist appearances
COACHING EXPERIENCE
As a touring professional coach, he has worked with Pete Sampras, Michael Chang, Jim Grabb, Chuck Adams, Robbie Weiss, Alexandra Stevenson, and Amy Frazier.
Country: Rhode Island
Quote: Wimbledon Champion with Sister Tracy Austin, Director of Tennis at the International Tennis Hall of Fame
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Paula Scheb
Paula Scheb, is the Director of Tennis and Fitness at the Bonita Bay Club, which encompasses 18 clay courts and a 10,000 square foot fitness facility. She is a USPTA Master Professional, the highest accreditation given to tennis professionals. Currently, less than 130 professionals in the country (less than 1% of the 14,500 members in the USTPA) have this distinctive title.
She is on the National Advisory Staff for Head/Penn and is also on their National Speaker’s Bureau. Paula presents regularly throughout the country on various tennis and business topics. She most recently presented a doubles seminar “Infinity and Beyond: Progressing your Players form 3.0 to 4.5” at the USPTA Florida Division Conference in West Palm Beach.
Scheb was the Director of Testing and Certification for USPTA for over 12 years, certifying and testing over 1,300 professionals. She was also the USPTA Pro of the Year for the Florida Division.
Paula grew up under the tutelage of Nick Bollettieri, when he first arrived in the States from the Rockefeller Resort in Puerto Rico. As a teenager she taught various clinics with Nick all over the world. And more recently has hosted clinics with some of the biggest names in tennis Evonne Goolagong, Gigi Fernandez, Rick Leach, Billie Jean King, Tom Gorman, Jim Loehr, Tim Mayotte, Rick Macci, Stan Smith, Jack Groppel, Fred Stolle, Mikael Pernfors and Jimmy Arias, to name a few.
Paula has been a regular contributor to “Tennis Magazine”, with various tips and articles that have been featured in the magazine. “Tennis Magazine” also featured Paula and some of her teaching tips, in a special edition periodical titled “Tips from the Masters”, which they promoted at the US Open.
Her You Tube videos, “Paula’s Pointers for Club Players,” have received praise and accolades from recreational and professional players alike. Paula and the Bonita Bay Club members host one of the largest tennis fundraisers in the country, with over 20 former touring professionals, eight former #1’s and 4 Tennis Hall of Famers, the event raised over $300,000 this year for a pediatric cancer pharmacy in the new Tom Golisano Children’s Hospital in Ft. Myers.
Paula graduated from the University of Florida with a BS degree in Business Marketing. She played college tennis for the #2 nationally ranked Lady Gators and was a doubles All-American while attending the UF.
Country: Florida
Quote: USPTA Master Professional. Former USPTA Florida Pro of the Year. National Advisory Staff for Head/Penn and for Reebok. Former All-American in Doubles.
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Mark Kovacs, PhD
Dr. Mark Kovacs is a renowned performance physiologist, researcher, university professor, author, speaker and coach with an extensive background training and researching athletes at all levels. He serves as both the Executive Director of the International Tennis Performance Association (iTPA) and Director of the Gatorade Sports Science Institute. Dr. Kovacs’ work has helped improve the way the physical aspects of tennis are trained throughout the world, and he has personally tested and trained hundreds of world class athletes in numerous sports. He formerly directed the Sport Science, Strength & Conditioning and Coaching Education departments for the United States Tennis Association (USTA).
Dr. Kovacs is a Fellow of the American College of Sports Medicine, has published over 50 peer-reviewed scientific articles and abstracts in top journals and was the Associate Editor-in-Chief of the Strength & Conditioning Journal. He is on the editorial board for multiple journals including the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition and has presented workshops, keynote addresses and well over 100 presentations on four continents.
Along with his academic and scientific background, Dr. Kovacs is also a coach and former professional athlete. While originally from Melbourne, Australia, he was an All-American and NCAA doubles champion in tennis at Auburn University. After playing professionally, he completed his graduate work at Auburn University and earned his Ph.D. in Exercise Physiology from The University of Alabama. Dr. Kovacs is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist through the National Strength and Conditioning Association, a Certified Tennis Performance Specialist (CTPS) through the ITPA, a certified Health/Fitness Specialist through the American College of Sports Medicine, a United States Track and Field Level II Sprints Coach and Certified Tennis Coach.
He has published five books on topics ranging from dynamic stretching to recovery. Mark has organized a number of medical and sport science conferences aimed at improving the education of medical professionals, coaches, athletes, parents and sport administrators. In 2010 he was awarded the prestigious Plagenhoef Award for sport science achievement (youngest ever recipient); in 2012 he was the youngest ever International Tennis Hall of Fame Educational Merit Award winner.
Country: Georgia (Orig. Australia)
Quote: Director, Gatorade Sports Science Institute and Executive Director, International Tennis Performance Association (iTPA). Former All-American and NCAA doubles champion.
Twitter: @MKovacsPhD
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Allistair McCaw
Allistair McCaw is an internationally recognized leader in the field of athletic performance enhancement. His well-proven method of athlete training, “The McCaw Method,” has set the standard for providing world-class athletes and coaches with cutting-edge training and knowledge.
A fitness expert and highly motivated coach, with over 20 years experience, Allistair has trained a host of world class athletes including 11 Grand Slam Champions, 3 World #1 Tennis players, 4 World #1 & World Champion Squash players, PGA Golfers and several Olympians.
He holds various qualifications in the field, and is a certified Tennis coach, USA Track & Field coach, USA Youth Basketball coach and ISSA Performance specialist.
Allistair is a highly sought after keynote speaker and has regularly appeared on national television in the United States. He is a former 5 time world championship Duathlete competitor, 2 time national fitness champion and just recently completed 7 marathons and 7 half marathons in 7 weeks.
Voted as one of the most 50 Influential coaches by Coachseek, Allistair released his first book in 2016 entitled “7 Keys to being a great Coach” and regularly contributes articles to various magazines on performance enhancement training, motivation and mindset.
Allistair is based in Tampa, Florida.
Country: Florida (South Africa)
Quote: Sports Performance Specialist & Fitness/ Movement Coach to 11 Grand Slam Champions, Six Olympians, and Four World Number #1’s
Twitter: @AllistairMcCaw
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Page Love
Page Love, MS, RD, CSSD, LD, CSCS, USPTA, is an expert on sport nutrition and eating disorder issues particularly with elite athletics. In 1992, she founded Nutrifit Sport Therapy Inc., a company of professionals dedicated to helping clients reach their wellness goals through performance eating. Page has assembled a team of caring and experienced dietitians with specialties in nutrition for disease prevention and control, weight management, treatment of eating disorders, development of nutrition and fitness plans, and much more.
She has worked with professional players, college teams as well as individual athletes. Her past and current clients include the ATP Men’s Professional Tennis Tour, the Women’s Professional Tennis Tour (WTA), U.S. Tennis Association, the Atlanta Braves, U.S. Figure Skating, and U.S. Synchronized Swimming and she served as a nutrition consultant during the Olympic Games in 1992, 1996, 2000, and 2004.
Page’s tennis experience includes being a certified tennis teaching professional with the United States Professional Tennis Association and serves on the Sport Science Advisory Board for the Professional Tennis Registry. She played division one collegiate tennis at Baylor University and still plays competitive league tennis in Atlanta year round. She shares a passion to help young through professional tennis players learn how to better fuel and hydrate their bodies. She has just published a tennis sport nutrition specific education kit for players and coaches. See nutrifitga.com for more information. Page has served as the dietitian for the Australian Open, The Sony Open, Indian Wells, The Kremlin Cup, and the US Open. Page will serve as the onsite dietitian for the China Open in fall of 2014.
Page Love’s extensive credentials include being a Registered Dietitian and a Certified Specialist in Sport Dietetics of the American Dietetic Association, a strength and conditioning specialist certified by the National Strength and Conditioning Association, past president of the Atlanta Dietetic Association and past media spokesperson for the Georgia Dietetic Association. Page is often consulted by media both locally and nationally, and she has been featured many times as an expert by programs and publications such as CNN’s On the Menu, CNN Headline News, Peachtree Morning, Good Day Atlanta, Women’s Sports Illustrated, Tennis Magazine, People Magazine, WSB Radio, Z93 Radio, and Fox News.
Country: Georgia
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Jeff Greenwald
Jeff Greenwald, M.F.T. is an internationally recognized sport psychology consultant, author and licensed family therapist. He was named Athlete of the Year at UC Santa Barbara in 1988 and went on to become a world-ranked player on the ATP Tour in singles and doubles. He was also formerly the No. 1 world and U.S. ranked ITF men’s 35 player, and is winner of two senior ITF World Championships. Jeff has been the mental coach for numerous top professional, college and junior tennis players around the world for the past 15 years. From 1993-1995 Jeff coached top junior players as the Director of Junior Development at the Uhlenhorster Hockey and Tennis Club in Hamburg, Germany. He has been a certified tennis professional by the USPTA since 1996 and currently serves on the Speaking Bureaus for both the USTPA and Wilson Sporting Goods.
Jeff has spoken across the world at numerous tennis clubs, associations, universities and corporations. He also was an adjunct faculty member and supervisor at JFKU for graduate students in the sport psychology program. He served as a consultant for the USA High Performance coaches program from 2005-2010. He earned his B.A at the University of California at Santa Barbara. He has been in private practice since 1998. He holds as Master’s Degree in Clinical psychology with a specialization in sports psychology. He is author of Amazon’s best-selling double-CD audio, Fearless Tennis and The Best Tennis of Your Life and serves as Associate editor for TennisPlayer.net .
Visit Jeff’s website: http://www.jeffhgreenwald.com
Country: California
Quote: Renowned sports psychology consultant. Former No. 1 world-ranked ITF men’s 35 tennis player. Winner of two senior ITF World Championships.
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Joanne Wallen
Joanne Wallen is the Director of Adult Individual Play for the United States Tennis Association, based at USTA’s national headquarters in Lake Nona, Florida.
A native of England, Joanne Wallen became a top junior player there after taking up tennis at the age of four. She came to the U.S. in 1988 on a six-year scholarship to the Bollettieri Tennis Academy in Bradenton, Fla. That year she also signed with sports marketing giant IMG, the youngest player ever to do so at the time. She played for 14 years on the International Tennis Federation and Women’s Tennis Association tours, winning 15 events and achieving a world #252 ranking in singles and and #179 ranking in doubles.
In 2005 she joined the Lexington Tennis Club in Kentucky as Director of Junior Development and was promoted to General Manager in 2009. Throughout her career, Wallen has devoted countless hours to growing the sport of tennis by developing her own skills and teaching those around her. Wallen’s involvement in tennis has been multifaceted, and includes serving on Board of Directors of USTA Kentucky, and chairing its Junior Competition Committee. She also served on the USTA Southern Junior Competition Committee. In addition, Wallen has coached multiple USTA Southern junior teams. Meanwhile, she has become a USTA Certified High Performance Specialist, working with top juniors to prepare them for competition, and a tester for the U.S. Tennis Professional Association (USPTA), certifying tennis instructors in Kentucky and surrounding states. In 2012, she was named “Newcomer of the Year” by the Professional Tennis Registry.
Country: Florida (Orig. England)
Quote: USTA Director Adult Individual Play, Former top UK junior and world-ranked player, 2012 PTR Newcomer of the Year. .
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John Yandell
John Yandell is the Editor and Founder of Tennisplayer.net . Over a twenty year career, he has been a leading force in the creation of new teaching and educational resources in tennis, including a series of highly regarded instructional books and videos. His high speed filming projects for Tennisplayer and Advanced Tennis Research have created the resources that take our understanding of the game to a new level. John has done personal video analysis for hundreds of high level competitive players, including Justine Henin-Hardenne, Taylor Dent, Gabriela Sabatini, and John McEnroe, among others. A cum laude graduate of Yale University, he also did graduate study at the PhD level in both history and religious studies. The John Yandell Tennis School is located in San Francisco, California.
Country: California
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Ajay Pant
Ajay is currently the General Manager for the Tennis Center at College Park, Maryland. Prior to his current position, Pant was the National Tennis Director for Tennis Corporation Of America (TCA). Ajay was with Tennis Corporation Of America for 18 years and also served as Head Tennis Professional, Club Manager and General Manager for TCA clubs in Chicago and other parts of the United States.
Pant has worked at the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy in Florida. He was the Coordinator for the Arthur Ashe/Nick Bollettieri “Cities” Tennis Programs in New York, New Jersey, Kansas and Missouri.
Ajay is a Master Professional and currently serves on the Board of the Professional Tennis Registry (PTR). The PTR has honored Ajay as Tester, Clinician and Pro Of The Year.
Pant is also a USPTA Master Professional.
Ajay is a member of the USTA Ten and Under Faculty. He currently serves as the Chair for the USTA National Ten and Under Committee.
Country: Maryland
Quote: PTR and USPTA Master Professional, former PTR Pro of the Year, Chair for the USTA National Ten and Under Committee
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Oliver Stephens
Oliver “Ollie” Stephens is a PTR Clinician and Tester. He is certified as a PTR Professional in all 4 pathways and also holds the PTR Master of Tennis certification in Performance and Development coaching, one of two coaches in the States to hold both. In addition, Ollie is an International Tennis Performance Association (iTPA) Master Tennis Performance Specialist.
Ollie has been published numerous times in PTR Magazine and has spoken at Regional, National and International conferences. In 2001, Ollie was the PTR China coach of the year, in 2010 he was the PTR Illinois Coach of the year and in 2012, he was the PTR Tester of the Year.
Ollie currently works as a private tennis professional in Chicago to several Sectionally and Nationally ranked juniors and also runs PTR coaches workshops on a regular basis.
Previously, Ollie was the National Junior Coach of Hong Kong and the National Coach of Vietnam. Also, he was the Junior Competitive Director at Midtown Tennis Club in Chicago, the busiest tennis club in the world.
Country: South Carolina
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Steve Keller
Steve has been a PTR member since 1986, is now responsible for the educational direction and content of the organization’s four certification pathways as well as the Master of Tennis programs. He will oversee PTR clinician training to ensure continuity of content delivery as well as design and develop professional development courses to create opportunities for certified members to fulfill the new continuing education requirements. Steve will also serve as the national liaison to the USTA Coaching Education department. Prior to joining PTR, Steve spent 18 years with the Van der Meer organization directing sites in Missouri, Florida and South Carolina prior to joining Tennis Corporation of America. Steve earned the distinguished USTA/PTR Public Service Award in 1996.
Country: South Carolina
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Lucas Regas Melero
Lucas is a RPT & USPTA-certified tennis coach at the Academia Sánchez-Casal in Naples, Florida. Once a student at the Academia Sánchez-Casal in Barcelona, Lucas was of Spain’s Top 16 players under 16 and under 18 and went on to become one of the Top 100 Spanish nationally ranked players from 1998 to 2002, winning over 30 National Tennis Tournaments. He achieved a World ATP ranking in doubles in 2002 and began coaching at the Academia Sánchez-Casal while playing nationally and internationally. In 2003, Lucas won a full tennis scholarship to pursue a degree in Business Administration at Georgia Perimeter College in Atlanta. He became the #1 ranked player in the United States in NJCAA in 2003 and was #2 in 2004. While in Atlanta, Lucas coached at Tennis Academy of the South and at Country Club of the South where he taught adults and began a junior academy. In 2009, Lucas was a travelling hitting coach for top 20 WTA player Maria Kirilenko. And in 2011, he also coached another top 100 WTA player, Edina Gallovits. He also assisted World #1 team Bob and Mike Bryan in 3 tournaments as hitting partner. He has also coached at Tennis 360 in Dubai, UAE.
Country: Florida (Orig. Spain)
Quote: Sanchez-Casal Coach, Former Spanish Top 100 player, Achieved ATP World Ranking, Was #1 NJCAA-Ranked player in U.S.
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Bob Litwin
Bob Litwin was a Long Island tennis teaching professional for thirty-five years. In 1992 he founded the Sports Focus Institute to develop and teach athletes in all sports how to improve performance through all aspects of the mental game.
Bob is known as The Focus Coach. He has worked with every sport imaginable and consulted for the NY Knicks and the NY Islanders. The founder of The Focus Coaching Group, LLC, Bob is a full time performance coach for Hedge Funds and individuals in any field of endeavor, business and sports alike.
He never played in college or on the tour and at 32 started to compete thinking he might be able to win some matches. He lost a lot for several years.
Then he won a gold and bronze medal at the 12th Maccabian Games in the 35 and over. In summer 2013, 20 years later, he won the Gold Medal in the 65s singles at the 19th Maccabian Games.
He has won 18 USTA National Championship titles.
He won the ITF World Championships in 2005 and was ranked #1in the World in the 55 and over.
He was inducted into the Eastern Tennis Hall of Fame in 2011.
After being out of the game for nearly three years due to two hip surgeries, he got back to work and has climbed back to the top and in June was the #1 ranked 65 and over player in the USA.
After going undefeated in Colorado tournaments this year his 18 year undefeated streak in sectional age group matches continues.
His book, Live the Best Story of Your Life: A World Champion’s Guide to Lasting Change, was released in May and touted by Huff Post as the #1 self help read for the summer of 2016.
Country: Colorado
Quote: The Focus Coach. winner of 18 National titles. Achieved #1 in the World Ranking 55 & Over and #1 in USA in 65 & Over. Author of "Live the Best Story of Your Life: A World Champion’s Guide to Lasting Change".
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Jennifer Fuchs
Jennifer has been the Director of Tennis at the El Conquistador since 1999. A former world class touring pro, she has distinguished herself as an outstanding player. As a junior, Jennifer became the number one ranked player in the nation. She was also a part of the Junior Federation Cup and competed in both the Junior US and Italian Open, where she and her partner won the doubles. Following her junior career, Jennifer played two years at UCLA, becoming a two time All-American. Having played all the major events and all 4 grand slams as a touring professional, Jennifer reached the round of sixteen in the Australian Open Doubles Championship.
Country: Arizona
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Feisal Hassan
Feisal, a PTR 5A Pro and USPTA Master Professional. He is also a member of the Head/Penn Racquet Sports National Advisory Board and National Speaker’s Bureau and holds USPTA specialist degrees in Competitive Player Development, Facility Management, Little Tennis and Sports Science. He is a USTA Recreation Coach National and Quickstart Trainer, a member of the National Cardio Tennis Speakers Team and co-chairs the USPTA National Education Committee and the USPTA College Curriculum Committee. He is also on the USPTA Testing Committee and USTA National Youth Education Committee. He was also the Director of Certification & Testing for the USPTA Middle States division and was co-chair of the USPTA National Diversity Committee.
Feisal was also the Director of Coaches’ Education and Junior Davis Cup Team Coach for Tennis Zimbabwe. He was also voted in Tennis Industry magazine’s prestigious “40 Under 40” list for being one of the top 40 men and women under 40 years old who have had and will continue to have a strong influence in the sport and in the business of tennis– both nationally and internationally.
Hassan writes and conducts seminars, workshops and clinics for international, national and sectional organizations and events. He has also written the book, How to Handle Difficult Players and Conditions, and is currently working on his second book, Doubles: Phases & Situations.
In 2011, he was awarded the USPTA’s most prestigious award, the Alex Gordon National Professional of the Year and the 2011 Racquet Sports Industry Champions of Tennis Award. This is the Racquet Sports Industry’s (RSI) most prestigious awards recognizing and honoring the people, businesses and organizations that are making a difference in the tennis industry. He was also a recipient for the USPTA Mid-Atlantic Hall of Fame recipient Inaugural Class of 2012 and the 2012 USPTA George Bacso National Tester of the Year.
Previous accolades include the USPTA Industry Excellence Award in 1999, 5-time Division Tester of the Year, 11-time USPTA Division/State Pro of the Year, and 9-time national Top-10 point holder in the USPTA’s Career Development Program.
Country: Virginia (Orig. Zimbabwe)
Quote: 2011 USPTA Professional of the Year. 11-time USPTA Division/State Pro of the Year. Member Head/Penn Racquet Sports National Advisory Board.
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Jorge Capestany
Jorge is one of only ten people worldwide that is a Master Professional with both the USPTA and PTR. He is a 6-time Michigan Pro of the Year a 2-time Midwest Pro of the Year. In 2015 he was named USPTA National Professional of the Year.
Jorge has coached hundreds of ranked juniors including 3 national champions. In Jorge’s career, his programs have developed more than 180 HS State Champions in Michigan. An internationally recognized speaker and author, Jorge serves many organizations in the tennis industry and is a member of the Wilson national speaker’s bureau team.
Jorge is the founder of Capestany Tennis Inc, which runs websites for tennis coaches and tennis players alike. His Coaches website – www.tennisdrills.tv – has more than 700 subscribers in over 65 countries. The site features more than 1,000 tennis drills.
The Player’s website – www.JorgeCapestany.com – features 100% free instruction and a Free Mental Toughness Video course that includes a free eBook.
Jorge has been a featured speaker at most of the largest tennis conferences in the world including, the PTR International Symposium, the USTA Tennis Teachers Conference in NYC at the US Open, the Australian Grand Slam Tennis Coaches conference in Melbourne, the Norwegian Tennis federation’s tennis coaches conference in Olso, the USPTA World Conference on tennis, and the ITF’s world-wide coaches conference in Mexico.
Country: Michigan (Orig. Cuba)
Quote: One of 10 People Worldwide Honored by PTR and USPTA as a Master Professional. 2015 USPTA National Professional of the Year.
Twitter: @CapestanyTennis
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Marti Capestany
Marti has been a certified tennis professional for more than 30 years and has worked with players of all level including many nationally ranked juniors. Marti has been ranked in the top 10 nationally in USTA women’s 35 division. Marti was a member of the 5.0 USTA women’s team that finished 2nd in the national championships. Marti still plays competitively and is still rated as a 5.0 player at age 54. She is a Tennis Pro at the Dewitt Tennis Center at Hope College in Holland MI and works extensively with her husband and Master Professional, Jorge Capestany.
Country: Michigan
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Joe Dinoffer
Joe Dinoffer has had an extensive “world class” career in the tennis industry, and has conducted clinics and exhibitions in over 50 countries, personally logging over 30,000 hours of instruction in English, Spanish, and German. He is a Master Professional in both the PTR and USPTA, a distinction awarded to only a select few in the tennis industry. Joe also received the prestigious 2006 USPTA Tennis Industry Excellence Award and was also selected as the 2012 USPTA Texas Pro of the Year.
Joe is the author and editor of 7 books and 17 DVDs. He writes regularly for www.TennisOne.com and Racquet Sports Industry Magazine, and also has numerous tips airing on the Tennis Channel . As a member of the Head/Penn Advisory Staff and National Speakers Bureau, Joe is a frequent speaker at national and international tennis conferences, having conducted over 250 workshops since 1995.
He is also the founder and president of Oncourt Offcourt, Ltd ., a company exclusively serving the needs of tennis, fitness, and physical education coaches with innovative training aids and educational tools. Joe lives in Dallas, Texas, with his wife, Monika, and their daughter, Kalindi.
Read some endorsements for Joe´s work here .
Country: Texas
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Ian Westermann
Ian Westermann is the owner and founder of Essential Tennis , an online leader in digital tennis instruction. He founded ET in 2008 after becoming frustrated with the daily challenges of being a full time on-court tennis pro. Since then his online instructional courses have been taken by over 20,000 tennis players in over 100 different countries. Ian specializes in both video and audio instructional content including the first audio tennis instruction podcast in the world: the Essential Tennis Podcast. Since 2008 he has published over 200 episodes of the show which is the highest rated tennis podcast on iTunes. Before leaving his on court teaching job to run Essential Tennis full time in April of 2011 Ian was a teaching professional at Congressional Country Club in Bethesda, Maryland for six years. Congressional is currently rated the #2 private country club in America and hosted the PGA U.S. Open in 2011. His college career was spent in the Professional Tennis Management program at Ferris State University in Big Rapids, MI. Ferris created the very first PTM program in 1989 and it’s still the biggest of it’s kind in the US. While there Ian played both singles and doubles on their UCAA Division II men’s team while earning a bachelors degree in Business Marketing and a minor in Professional Tennis Management. Ian recently moved back to his home town of Milwaukee, Wisconsin with his wife of 9 years, Alison, and their two children. He plans to continue using the most cutting edge and innovative methods possible to reach passionate tennis players all over the world.
Country: Wisconsin
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Michele Krause
Michele Krause is the Cardio Tennis Manager working for the Tennis Industry Association (TIA). Cardio Tennis is a fun, group fitness activity consisting of fast paced tennis drills and games for players of all ability levels providing a full body calorie-burning workout. Michele has overseen the program since its inception in 2005 and since the rollout and there are now 1,800 Authorized Providers, 1.4 million Cardio Tennis participants in the US and the program has spread to over 30 countries.
Michele oversees the entire Cardio Tennis program both in the US and internationally. Her responsibilities include all the day-to-day operations: administration, programming, curriculum, event planning, training and marketing. She manages the TIA Global Cardio Tennis Team which is made up of 25 Trainers who assist her with training, educating and consumer events. She also serves as the coordinator for those countries who are in the process of establishing, launching or continued development of Cardio Tennis. She speaks at many industry conventions, (PTR, USPTA, IHRSA, ITA, ITF, PBI and USTA) meetings and events to provide ongoing education on the Cardio Tennis program. She also trains coaches how to deliver the product through national and international courses. Internationally she has conducted courses in Portugal, the UK, the Caribbean, Ireland, Poland, Greece and Canada. She spent 2 years working with Tennis Australia helping them to develop the program for their country.
Michele has developed Cardio Tennis Kids, Supersize Cardio Tennis and TRX Cardio Tennis. Cardio Tennis was featured on NBC’s the Biggest Loser under Michele’s guidance with Anna Kournakova and she secured Anna as the Cardio Tennis spokesperson.
Michele is a USPTA and PTR tennis professional who managed tennis facilities throughout the US for over 16 years. She is formally educated in TRX Suspension Training and is a Certified Ignite 360 (Combine 360) Trainer. Michele received the TIA/PTR Industry Excellence award on 2012. Michele continuously strives to improve the Cardio Tennis experience for both the tennis professional and the consumer.
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Christophe Delavaut
Christophe is founder of TennisOxygen.com , which specializes in online private coaching using personal stroke video analysis that draws extensively on high-speed video footage of today’s top professionals.
He holds a Professional #1 rating by both the USPTA (1996), PTR (1986), and MTM (2012). He has competed and coached at every level from juniors collegiate and professional. He has been the USPTA District #9 President since 2010 and is also a monthly contributor to TennisOne.com , one of the leading tennis teaching web sites in the world.
Christophe is currently the Director of Tennis of the Grand Harbor Golf and Tennis in Vero Beach FL (since 1995) during the winter months and at The New Seabury Club on Cape Cod MA from Memorial Day to Labor Day since 2011. He also serves as a board member of the Indian River Tennis Foundation, a foundation dedicated to raise funds to award lesson scholarships to local juniors.
During summers has has acted as Director of Tennis of The Lloyd Neck Bath Club in Cold Spring Harbor NY (1996-1999), Tennis director of the Country Club of Detroit in Grosse Pointe MI (2000-2006), Tennis Director at the Walloon Lake Country Club in Wallon Lake MI (2007-2011), and Tennis Director at The New Seabury Club on Cape Cod MA (2011-present).
In 1987 he was the original founder and Director of the Sugarbush Tennis School, which was rated as one of the World’s Best Tennis Schools by Tennis Magazine. Roger Cox, Senior Travel Editor for Tennis Magazine, described the Sugarbush Tennis School as the most dynamic and innovative tennis school in the country.
Christophe is the author of Tennis Atlas: The Ultimate Doubles Program, a 200-page tennis teaching manual geared to help teaching professionals guarantee improvement to their students. He holds a B.S Business degree from Franklin Pierce University, (1987).
Country: Florida (Orig. France)
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Alex Ramirez
Alex is the founder and president of ProTenn International . ProTenn was founded in 1998 as a tennis academy and has grown into a company that not only trains and develops players but also offers its clients financial services, video analysis software and services and is now venturing into the online media business and sponsorship of professional tennis players.
Alex’s system of training along with his team of experts is truly a world class combination. Players come from all over the country–many from Mexico, Canada and Europe– to train part-time and full-time in the program.
Alex competed as a junior, played collegiate tennis and competed as a professional before focusing his efforts to the development of players. His system has developed local, sectional, national and international champions. Alex has worked with many world class tennis players as a consultant to the head coach, as an assistant coach overseeing stroke development and as a video analysis expert on stroke production and match strategy analysis. Currently he is coaching full time on the women’s tour and consulting on the men’s tour.
Country: Arizona
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Stan Oley
Stan is employed by Playmate Ball Machines as their Product Marketing Specialist. Stan is Founder of FBT60 (Fit By Tennis in 60 Days). FBT60 is a new tennis/fitness program combining nutrition and a series of ball machine drills
Stan is a USPTA Master Professional. Less than 160 of the 14,000 USPTA Pros have this distinction. Stan is a member of the USPTA, PTR, USTA. Stan was named 2016 Florida USPTA Pro of the Year. Stan was named 2016 Florida USPTA District 15 Pro of the Year. Stan was the USPTA District 15 President from 2007-2012. Stan was Florida USPTA District President of the Year in 2007 and his District was District of the Year in 2008.
Stan has attended 20 USPTA World Conferences, speaking at 11 of them. Stan has spoken at over 100 USPTA Divisional Conventions. Stan has performed different USPTA Specialty Courses at 18 USPTA Division or World Conferences.
During his 30 years as a teaching professional (29 years USPTA Certified), he was a teaching professional at John’s Island Club in Vero Beach, FL, the head tennis professional at the International Tennis Center in Key Biscayne, FL (Home of the Miami Open Championships), as well as a teaching professional at the Eau Gallie Yacht Club in Indian Harbour Beach, FL.
He has been working and teaching with ball machines for over 25 years. He has also published drills and articles for USPTA Addvantage Magazine, Tennis Week, and PTR Tennis Pro Magazine. Stan was featured on the Tennis Channel’s One Minute Clinic, “On-Court with the USPTA” and has three full length DVDs, “Ball Machine Drills, Drills, Drills” featuring drills with a ball machine, “Rip Your Returns Like the Pros” featuring the serve return, (which recently won Honor of Distinction at a recent communications awards event), and “Zone It to Own It” featuring strike-zones and stroke production.
Stan is very proud to be sponsored by adidas and Babolat tennis products
Country: Florida
She is also a PTR 11-17 Clinician and Tester.
Milena was named the 2015 PTR Mississippi Professional of the Year.
Country: South Carolina (Orig. Brazil)
Quote: Former #1 in Brazil, 2015 PTR Mississippi Professional of the Year
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Julio Godreau
Julio Godreau holds certifications with the USPTA (Elite), PTR (Master of Tennis Performance), and the USTA (High Performance). He currently serves as the Director of Junior Tennis for the USTA Texas section.
As a coach he has developed players in Orange Ball (2 Southern #1 ranked players and 3 Southern Closed Champions) and Yellow Ball (player ranked as high as #5 in the US and quarterfinalist at Orange Bowl and Eddie Herr tournaments). At the collegiate level his students have accomplished scholarships at prestigious conferences such as the Pac-12 and SEC, and have won NCAA Division 1 team championship. Aside from his on court success with Junior Players he has also guided adults to State, Sectional, and National Championships.
He has been the recipient of numerous awards from the USPTA, PTR, and USTA including Southern Pro of the Year. As an educator he often presents at sectional events and has been a speaker at The USPTA World Conference and PTR International Symposium.
Julio was a top Junior player in the Caribbean, NCAA Division I Scholarship Collegiate Player, and has played at the Pro level. He is also fully bilingual (English and Spanish) and has a Masters Degree in Business Administration and an undergrad in Psychology. He has been married for twelve years to Charisse and has two daughters, Emma (6) and Sophie (9).
•PTR Master of Tennis Performance (Equivalent to ITF Level 3)
•USPTA Certified Professional Level 1
•PTR Certified Professional Level
•USPTA & PTR Player Development Specialist
•USTA High Performance Orange Bowl World Class Junior Player Development Study
•USTA High Performance US Open Pro Player Development Study
•USTA High Performance 10 & Under Certified
•USTA Referee Certified
•USTA Tournament Director Certification (TDM)
AWARDS
•PTR Mississippi Member of the Year 2014
•USPTA 10 & Under Southern Pro of the Year 2012
•USPTA Southern Pro of the Year 2007
•USTA Southern Pro of the Year 2008
•USPTA Mississippi Pro of the Year 2006 & 2007
•USTA Mississippi Pro of the Year 2008
•USPTA Developmental Pro of the Year 2004
•USPTA North Cal Rookie Pro of the Year 1997
USTA INVOLVEMENT
•Selected to coach USTA National Level 1 camp at USTA Center in NY (US Open Location) along with coaches Tom Gullikson, Richard Ashby, Kent Kinnear, Jay Gooding, and Geoff Russell.
•Chairman 10 & Under USTA Southern Committee
•Vice Chairman USTA Southern Player Development Committee
•Representative for USPTA & PTR Pros in USTA Mississippi
•Chair USTA Southern Talent Identification Camps Committee
•Chair USTA Mississippi Junior Council Committee
•Member USTA National Pro Circuit Committee
•Head Coach USTA Competitive Training Center (CTC) Mississippi
•Coach USTA Southern and Mississippi Talent Identification Camps
•Coach USTA Southern and Mississippi Talent Identification Camps
•Coach USTA Middle States 12 and under Zonal National Team
•Coach USTA Southern 14 and under Zonal National Team
USPTA AND PTR INVOLVEMENT
•Speaker at USPTA World Symposium
•Speaker at USPTA Winter Southern Conference
•Chairman USPTA Multicultural Committee
•Speaker at PTR International Symposium
•Speaker at USPTA Southern Conferences
•Speaker at USPTA Tennessee, Mississippi, & Louisiana Workshops
•Speaker at Mississippi’s High School Coaches
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Rod Heckelman
Rod Heckelman’s career started in 1966 the summer after his junior year in high school when he began his five-year role as a teacher at John Gardiner’s Tennis Ranch in Carmel Valley, Calif. Later he opened as the resident pro for Gardiner’s Tennis Ranch on Camelback in Scottsdale, Ariz. At 20 years of age, he was one of the youngest pros to be the Head Pro at what some considered one of the top tennis resorts in the world.
In 1976 he made his way back to his home state of California, where he took over as Head Pro/Tennis Director at the Mt. Tam Racquet Club in Larkspur. He added the title and responsibilities of General Manager in 1982. From his early teaching years, Rod has been involved with developing top players. He has developed over 15 national champions at the junior level and 4 at the senior level. As a competitor he has played and been ranked at both national and sectional levels, breaking the top 5 in 1991. Rod published an instructional manual in 1992 for tennis teachers to use with their students called “Down Your Alley.”
For the last couple of years, excerpts from his “Facility Manager’s Manual” were being published in Racquet Sports Industry magazine. The manual is now available digitally through the Tennis Industry Association for managers and clubs to use as a model for operating their businesses. More recently, he created a “Business Handbook for Tennis Pros,” that is also being produced by T.I.A. In 2010 he was awarded “Manager of the Year” for the USPTA NorCal division and later announced by the USPTA as the “Manager of the Year” at the World Conference. Rod travels the country lecturing to fellow pros about management skills and helping them transition into management. Rod continues to expand his knowledge on all aspects of the tennis business, and he is a frequent presenter at industry events throughout the country including speaking at IRHSA World Conference in San Francisco in 2011, the first person to represent the tennis industry at an IRHSA convention in over 25 years.
Rod recently was selected to the new Babalot Advisory Board and came out with his second instructional book, “Playing Into the Sunset,” an instructional book for senior players available through BoomerTennis.net.
Country: California
Quote: Author "Playing Into the Sunset", Developed 15 national champions at the junior level and 4 at the senior level
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Bruce Levine
Bruce “Mad Dog” Levine has been involved in the tennis industry 36 years and during that time has gotten his hands into most aspects of the industry and game. His diverse experience includes playing, coaching and teaching from the grassroots through high school, college, and the tour levels of tennis. Bruce has also owned and managed clubs in the northeast and is currently working as a consultant in several clubs.
One of the “Dog’s” main responsibilities in the tennis industry has been that of the Technical Advisor and Lead Racquet/String Tester for Tennis Magazine and tennis.com. Bruce has been helpful to players and coaches alike in understanding the technical and playing characteristics of the multitude of racquets and strings in today’s market.
In addition to his playing, coaching, and management experience, Mad Dog currently serve the tennis community as the USPTA Board Member and Regional Vice President in the Middle States Section and also is on the USTA Middle States Board of Directors.
Country: Northeast US
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Keith Henderson
Keith currently serves as the Head Tennis Professional at the Danville Country Club in Lexington Kentucky and also is a Teaching Professional at the Lexington Tennis Club. He is a PTR Professional for Junior Development (11-17) and also holds the USTA 10 & Under Certification. A former USTA Top 10 player, Keith played college tennis at Transylvania University and was a three-time recipient of HCAC All-Conference honors. In 2013 he was USTA Kentucky Junior Southern Cup Coach. In 2014 he was a Special Recipient for the Paul Arber Young Coaches Award presented by the International Tennis Performance Association (ITPA).
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Doug Miller
Doug Miller has been an integral part of Tucson’s Tennis community for 15 years, though his career as a coach began long before, back in 1981 at the Port Washington Tennis Academy. Over the years, his career has grown to encompass teaching and coaching at all levels, and all ages. A USPTA Professional Elite coach, Doug brings a unique perspective to the court, as well as an infamous sense of humor.
Doug’s coaching career has been built on being an active participant, on the court and off. Currently a member of the Head Advisory Staff, USTA Southwest Slam Series Doubles Champion, and 2014 Tucson City Champion in Men’s 55 and over.
As a sectionally and nationally ranked player, in both singles and doubles, Doug relates to all levels of play, whether competitive or social. Currently Doug divides his time between Senior Team Coaching, individual player development and a few budding junior players as well. Doug’s priority on the court for any player is enthusiasm for the sport… bring a positive attitude and have fun.
Country: Arizona
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Ted Murray
Ted Murray’s has nearly four decades of experience in the tennis industry internationally, working in over 30 countries while developing new programs for numerous first-class clubs, resorts, and academies. He was a founding member and 20-year contributor to Peter Burwash International (PBI), the worlds first and largest tennis management company founded in 1975. He owned a world-class tennis and fitness club in Florida for 10 years and has taught students of all ages from absolute beginners with no athletic ability to juniors who went on to win Olympic medals and dozens of Grand Slam titles. He has shared his passion for the game by training thousands of coaches, writing articles and books, and being part of some of the revolutionary trends in the sport. He was an original member of the Cardio Tennis Speakers Team in 2005 that trained coaches throughout the world.
Ted is the founder of “Tennis From The Heart,” an organization dedicated to creating a new paradigm for teaching tennis that emphasizes not only world-class training techniques but also the potential for tennis to be a forum for self-discovery, personal growth, and skill building needed to be a champion in life. He is also Senior Advisor to the Tennis Legacy Fund, a nonprofit founded in 2014 to catalyze high-impact initiatives in the tennis industry that benefit both people and the planet.
Country: Colorado
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Benny Morentin
Since 2008, Benny Morentin has been the Director of Tennis at the Tucson Country Club. He is a member of both the PTR and USPTA. In 2013, Benny was named PTR Pro of the Year for Arizona. With the PTR, Benny is a certified clinician and is certified to teach 10 years and under children, as well as 11-17 year olds. Currently he is working on his Master of Tennis with the PTR. For more than 25 years Benny has inspired junior players in the Tucson community. He began teaching in 1989 at Himmel Tennis Center where he was the Director of Junior Development and the Assistant Head Pro. Since then he has been Assistant Head Pro at the Tucson Racquet Club and Director of Tennis at Omni Tucson National before coming to Tucson Country Club.
Benny has been the coach for the USTA inter-district and inter-sectional teams and Area Training Center. At one time he was the head coach for St. Gregory Preparatory School. Many of Benny’s students have gone on to become successful high school and collegiate athletes, as well as nationally ranked juniors. Additionally, Benny teaches adults and interclub teams. He has coached five USTA teams to Nationals in the past six years at the Tucson Country Club.
Benny’s own accomplishments include being an All-American collegiate player and was ranked 4th in the nation in doubles while at Grand Canyon University in Phoenix, Arizona. He played three years at the USTA National 5.0 Tennis Championships, and was a member of the 2010 USTA National 4.5 team. In 2008, Benny was one of a small group of professionals in Tucson to have been invited to complete the USTA Elite Coaches High Performance Training class. This accolade truly establishes Benny Morentin as one of the top tennis-teaching professionals in the area, as evidenced by his coaching popularity from beginners to elite players.
Country: Arizona
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Ben Maes
Ben is orginally from Hamme, Belgium. He started playing tennis at the age of 8. Always in the Belgium Top 5 rankings in his junior career, Ben was selected to represent his country on the Belgian National Team multiple times. His most signficant career wins include victories over Filip De Wulf (French Open semi-finalist) and Dick Norman (Wimbledon quarter-finalist). Ben won four International Doubles Tournaments in Ireland and England with Frank Ofori (who represented Ghana in the Davis Cup).
Ben’s coaching career began at the Waregem Happy Tennis Academy under the supervision of Carlos Rodriguez, the current coach of Justin Henin-Hardenne. Ben became co-owner of the academy in 1993 before joining his sister Vicky (the University of Arizona head women’s coach) on the professional women’s tour from 1996 to 1998. In 1998 Ben was hired as the Raquets Manager for David Lloyd Leisure in Belfast, Northern Ireland. In 2001 Ben was nominated Racquets Manager of the Year across the chain of clubs in the United Kingdom, and served for many years as head professional at the Peachtree City Tennis Center in Georgia.
Ben is currently the Racquet Sports Director of the Rochester Athletic Club in Rochester, MN.
Country: Minnesota (Orig Belgium)
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Gustavo Sanchez
Gustavo is a passionate tennis coach who enjoys the sport as a lifelong journey that teaches invaluable lessons. His unique way of coaching adapts great to each player’s set of skills and aptitudes.
Former hitting partner to Grand Slam champions Victoria Azarenka and Bethanie Mattek-Sands.
Former hitting partner to Monica Puig, gold medalist in Rio 2016 Olympics.
Former assistant coach to USA’s Angela Haynes, who reached the round of 16 at the 2009 BNP Paribas Open.
PLAYING CAREER HIGHLIGHTS
Career-high ATP Doubles Ranking: 870
Career-high NCAA National Singles Ranking: 7
EDUCATION & PERSONAL
Fluent in English, Spanish, and Portuguese. Attended Dowling College in New York, and Grand Canyon University in Arizona, obtaining degrees in Sport Management and Master of Business Administration respectively.
Attained coaching certifications through the PTR, iTPA, and USPTA.
Gustavo is a tennis professional at Ocotillo Village Health Club and Spa in Chandler, Arizona. He’s also the founder of ProBallerz.com , a tennis instructional website.
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PRIVATE ALUMNI PRE-PUBLIC REGISTRATION PAGE
Whether you’re a beginner or a 5.0-rated player, if you are passionate about the game of tennis you’ll love the 2014 United States Tennis Congress!
Imagine…
…The inspiration of working with the tennis world’s best coaches — never before assembled in one place like this for adult players.
…The power of choosing master classes with leading authorities that focus on exactly what you need to improve.
…The fun and electricity of an event with 200 of the world’s most avid adult players who are just as passionate as you about tennis and achieving their personal best.
Join us for an inspiring, innovative, customized learning experience with the world’s top experts about all aspects of training necessary to improve: technique, movement, strategy, fitness, injury prevention, and mental conditioning.
Faculties:
Emilio Sánchez
Emilio Sánchez is President of the Academia Sánchez-Casal , located in Barcelona Spain and Naples Florida. The Academia Sánchez-Casal uses a unique training system, based on the Spanish method of understanding tennis, focused on maximizing the strength, balance, speed, stamina and agility of the student’s lower body. It incorporates specific exercises used by successful Spanish players, which have boosted the game of students including Svetlana Kuznetsova, Andy Murray, Daniela Hantuchova, Grigor Dimitrov, Juan Monaco, among many others.
As a player, Emilio won three Grand Slam doubles titles and the men’s doubles silver medal at the 1988 Olympic Games. He achieved an ATP world #7 ranking in singles and #1 ranking in doubles. He was the coach of multiple Grand Slam winner (and sister) Arantxa Sánchez Vicario. He also captained Spain’s Davis Cup team to success in 2008. In 2012 Sanchez was a tournament director for two wheelchair tennis events.
Country: Spain
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Jeff Salzenstein
Jeff Salzenstein is the founder and president of Jeff Salzenstein Tennis , an organization focused on helping tennis players improve their games through online tennis instruction in the areas of technique, footwork, nutrition, injury prevention, motivation and athletic development. He is a USPTA Professional 1, Specialist in Competitive Player Development and a Certified Nutritional Therapy Practitioner.
A member of the Colorado Tennis Hall of Fame, Salzenstein set the standard for tennis in Colorado with an unsurpassed record as a player at the amateur and professional levels. As he regularly competed against the best players in the world, he became a serious student of the game and an accomplished world-class competitor.
Salzenstein turned professional in 1996 after graduating from Stanford University, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in economics. In 1997, Salzenstein was named Rookie of the Year by Tennis Week magazine. He played in all four Grand Slams—Wimbledon, US Open, French Open, Australian Open—and had wins over Mardy Fish, David Nalbandian, Greg Rusedski, and Fernando Verdasco. In 2004, despite having two major surgeries, Salzenstein broke into the top 100 in the world for the first time and was the first American to accomplish this feat after his 30th birthday. He concluded his playing career in 2007 and became a high-performance tennis coach in Denver, Colo.
Salzenstein’s website, www.jeffsalzensteintennis.com , shares cutting-edge tennis tips and lessons to help players improve their games.
Country: Colorado
Quote: Former Top 100 ATP Tennis Player. High Performance Tennis Coach. Expert In Peak Performance, Nutrition, Fitness, Rehab and Motivation.
Twitter: JeffSalzenstein
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Paula Scheb
Paula Scheb, is the Director of Tennis and Fitness at the Bonita Bay Club, which encompasses 18 clay courts and a 10,000 square foot fitness facility. She is a USPTA Master Professional, the highest accreditation given to tennis professionals. Currently, less than 130 professionals in the country (less than 1% of the 14,500 members in the USTPA) have this distinctive title.
She is on the National Advisory Staff for Head/Penn and is also on their National Speaker’s Bureau. Paula presents regularly throughout the country on various tennis and business topics. She most recently presented a doubles seminar “Infinity and Beyond: Progressing your Players form 3.0 to 4.5” at the USPTA Florida Division Conference in West Palm Beach.
Scheb was the Director of Testing and Certification for USPTA for over 12 years, certifying and testing over 1,300 professionals. She was also the USPTA Pro of the Year for the Florida Division.
Paula grew up under the tutelage of Nick Bollettieri, when he first arrived in the States from the Rockefeller Resort in Puerto Rico. As a teenager she taught various clinics with Nick all over the world. And more recently has hosted clinics with some of the biggest names in tennis Evonne Goolagong, Gigi Fernandez, Rick Leach, Billie Jean King, Tom Gorman, Jim Loehr, Tim Mayotte, Rick Macci, Stan Smith, Jack Groppel, Fred Stolle, Mikael Pernfors and Jimmy Arias, to name a few.
Paula has been a regular contributor to “Tennis Magazine”, with various tips and articles that have been featured in the magazine. “Tennis Magazine” also featured Paula and some of her teaching tips, in a special edition periodical titled “Tips from the Masters”, which they promoted at the US Open.
Her You Tube videos, “Paula’s Pointers for Club Players,” have received praise and accolades from recreational and professional players alike. Paula and the Bonita Bay Club members host one of the largest tennis fundraisers in the country, with over 20 former touring professionals, eight former #1’s and 4 Tennis Hall of Famers, the event raised over $300,000 this year for a pediatric cancer pharmacy in the new Tom Golisano Children’s Hospital in Ft. Myers.
Paula graduated from the University of Florida with a BS degree in Business Marketing. She played college tennis for the #2 nationally ranked Lady Gators and was a doubles All-American while attending the UF.
Country: Florida
Quote: USPTA Master Professional. Former USPTA Florida Pro of the Year. National Advisory Staff for Head/Penn and for Reebok. Former All-American in Doubles.
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Mark Kovacs, PhD
Dr. Mark Kovacs is a renowned performance physiologist, researcher, university professor, author, speaker and coach with an extensive background training and researching athletes at all levels. He serves as both the Executive Director of the International Tennis Performance Association (iTPA) and Director of the Gatorade Sports Science Institute. Dr. Kovacs’ work has helped improve the way the physical aspects of tennis are trained throughout the world, and he has personally tested and trained hundreds of world class athletes in numerous sports. He formerly directed the Sport Science, Strength & Conditioning and Coaching Education departments for the United States Tennis Association (USTA).
Dr. Kovacs is a Fellow of the American College of Sports Medicine, has published over 50 peer-reviewed scientific articles and abstracts in top journals and was the Associate Editor-in-Chief of the Strength & Conditioning Journal. He is on the editorial board for multiple journals including the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition and has presented workshops, keynote addresses and well over 100 presentations on four continents.
Along with his academic and scientific background, Dr. Kovacs is also a coach and former professional athlete. While originally from Melbourne, Australia, he was an All-American and NCAA doubles champion in tennis at Auburn University. After playing professionally, he completed his graduate work at Auburn University and earned his Ph.D. in Exercise Physiology from The University of Alabama. Dr. Kovacs is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist through the National Strength and Conditioning Association, a Certified Tennis Performance Specialist (CTPS) through the ITPA, a certified Health/Fitness Specialist through the American College of Sports Medicine, a United States Track and Field Level II Sprints Coach and Certified Tennis Coach.
He has published five books on topics ranging from dynamic stretching to recovery. Mark has organized a number of medical and sport science conferences aimed at improving the education of medical professionals, coaches, athletes, parents and sport administrators. In 2010 he was awarded the prestigious Plagenhoef Award for sport science achievement (youngest ever recipient); in 2012 he was the youngest ever International Tennis Hall of Fame Educational Merit Award winner.
Country: Georgia (Orig. Australia)
Quote: Director, Gatorade Sports Science Institute and Executive Director, International Tennis Performance Association (iTPA). Former All-American and NCAA doubles champion.
Twitter: @MKovacsPhD
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Allistair McCaw
Allistair McCaw is an internationally recognized leader in the field of athletic performance enhancement. His well-proven method of athlete training, “The McCaw Method,” has set the standard for providing world-class athletes and coaches with cutting-edge training and knowledge.
A fitness expert and highly motivated coach, with over 20 years experience, Allistair has trained a host of world class athletes including 11 Grand Slam Champions, 3 World #1 Tennis players, 4 World #1 & World Champion Squash players, PGA Golfers and several Olympians.
He holds various qualifications in the field, and is a certified Tennis coach, USA Track & Field coach, USA Youth Basketball coach and ISSA Performance specialist.
Allistair is a highly sought after keynote speaker and has regularly appeared on national television in the United States. He is a former 5 time world championship Duathlete competitor, 2 time national fitness champion and just recently completed 7 marathons and 7 half marathons in 7 weeks.
Voted as one of the most 50 Influential coaches by Coachseek, Allistair released his first book in 2016 entitled “7 Keys to being a great Coach” and regularly contributes articles to various magazines on performance enhancement training, motivation and mindset.
Allistair is based in Tampa, Florida.
Country: Florida (South Africa)
Quote: Sports Performance Specialist & Fitness/ Movement Coach to 11 Grand Slam Champions, Six Olympians, and Four World Number #1’s
Twitter: @AllistairMcCaw
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Will Hamilton
Will is the co-founder of FuzzyYellowBalls.com . He’s worked with Bob & Mike Bryan and Patrick Rafter to create instruction for recreational players so they get more fun and enjoyment out of the game.
In his spare time, Will likes to invent silly handshakes.
Country: Washington DC
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Jeff Greenwald
Jeff Greenwald, M.F.T. is an internationally recognized sport psychology consultant, author and licensed family therapist. He was named Athlete of the Year at UC Santa Barbara in 1988 and went on to become a world-ranked player on the ATP Tour in singles and doubles. He was also formerly the No. 1 world and U.S. ranked ITF men’s 35 player, and is winner of two senior ITF World Championships. Jeff has been the mental coach for numerous top professional, college and junior tennis players around the world for the past 15 years. From 1993-1995 Jeff coached top junior players as the Director of Junior Development at the Uhlenhorster Hockey and Tennis Club in Hamburg, Germany. He has been a certified tennis professional by the USPTA since 1996 and currently serves on the Speaking Bureaus for both the USTPA and Wilson Sporting Goods.
Jeff has spoken across the world at numerous tennis clubs, associations, universities and corporations. He also was an adjunct faculty member and supervisor at JFKU for graduate students in the sport psychology program. He served as a consultant for the USA High Performance coaches program from 2005-2010. He earned his B.A at the University of California at Santa Barbara. He has been in private practice since 1998. He holds as Master’s Degree in Clinical psychology with a specialization in sports psychology. He is author of Amazon’s best-selling double-CD audio, Fearless Tennis and The Best Tennis of Your Life and serves as Associate editor for TennisPlayer.net .
Visit Jeff’s website: http://www.jeffhgreenwald.com
Country: California
Quote: Renowned sports psychology consultant. Former No. 1 world-ranked ITF men’s 35 tennis player. Winner of two senior ITF World Championships.
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Joanne Wallen
Joanne Wallen is the Director of Adult Individual Play for the United States Tennis Association, based at USTA’s national headquarters in Lake Nona, Florida.
A native of England, Joanne Wallen became a top junior player there after taking up tennis at the age of four. She came to the U.S. in 1988 on a six-year scholarship to the Bollettieri Tennis Academy in Bradenton, Fla. That year she also signed with sports marketing giant IMG, the youngest player ever to do so at the time. She played for 14 years on the International Tennis Federation and Women’s Tennis Association tours, winning 15 events and achieving a world #252 ranking in singles and and #179 ranking in doubles.
In 2005 she joined the Lexington Tennis Club in Kentucky as Director of Junior Development and was promoted to General Manager in 2009. Throughout her career, Wallen has devoted countless hours to growing the sport of tennis by developing her own skills and teaching those around her. Wallen’s involvement in tennis has been multifaceted, and includes serving on Board of Directors of USTA Kentucky, and chairing its Junior Competition Committee. She also served on the USTA Southern Junior Competition Committee. In addition, Wallen has coached multiple USTA Southern junior teams. Meanwhile, she has become a USTA Certified High Performance Specialist, working with top juniors to prepare them for competition, and a tester for the U.S. Tennis Professional Association (USPTA), certifying tennis instructors in Kentucky and surrounding states. In 2012, she was named “Newcomer of the Year” by the Professional Tennis Registry.
Country: Florida (Orig. England)
Quote: USTA Director Adult Individual Play, Former top UK junior and world-ranked player, 2012 PTR Newcomer of the Year. .
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John Yandell
John Yandell is the Editor and Founder of Tennisplayer.net . Over a twenty year career, he has been a leading force in the creation of new teaching and educational resources in tennis, including a series of highly regarded instructional books and videos. His high speed filming projects for Tennisplayer and Advanced Tennis Research have created the resources that take our understanding of the game to a new level. John has done personal video analysis for hundreds of high level competitive players, including Justine Henin-Hardenne, Taylor Dent, Gabriela Sabatini, and John McEnroe, among others. A cum laude graduate of Yale University, he also did graduate study at the PhD level in both history and religious studies. The John Yandell Tennis School is located in San Francisco, California.
Country: California
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Butch Staples
Butch Staples is currently the National Tennis Director for Midtown Athletic Clubs, which owns and operates 7 clubs around the United States and one in Montreal, Quebec.
He is a PTR Master Professional, a USPTA Professional 1 and a Tennis Canada certified coach. From 1982-1989, he was Chairman of Tennis Canada’s Coach and Instructor Development Committee. He has been a USTA RCW and 10 and Under Trainer since the inception of these programs and he is currently a USTA Master Trainer. He was named USTA Trainer of the Year in both 2006 and 2009. In recent years Butch has been recognized for his industry involvement being honored as the 2009 USPTA Midwest Pro of the Year, 2009 PTR Clinician of the Year and 2010 PTR Pro of the Year. As a result of his work in youth tennis and his application of scientific principles in his teaching, Butch was awarded the 2009 USOC “Doc” Counsilman Science Award. Also, he was a co-recipient of the 2010 RSI Junior Tennis Champion Award.
Butch is also co-owner/operator of Tennisclub of the Low Country in Bluffton, SC. Previously Butch spent 8 years with Tennis Corporation of America (TCA) as Director of Tennis at the Midtown club in Weston Florida and the Head Tennis Professional at Midtown Tennis Club in Chicago. While at Midtown Chicago, he led a team of 34 professionals, helped build the largest indoor tennis programs in the country and was instrumental in developing the model for 10 and under tennis programming. Midtown juniors were the poster children for USTA Youth Tennis. As a testimony to his success, five of his young players were selected to play between the quarter final matches of the US Open in 2010 and four participated in the stadium show of the Arthur Ashe Kids Day.
Butch began his tennis coaching career after graduating from college with a B.A., a B.P.E. and an M.S. He spent 4 years teaching primary, elementary and secondary physical education and then spent 10 years on the athletic staff at McGill University in Montreal where he coached Tennis and Basketball.
Country: South Carolina
Quote: National Tennis Director for Midtown Athletic Clubs. PTR Master Professional. Former USTA Trainer of the Year, PTR Pro of the Year.
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Steve Keller
Steve has been a PTR member since 1986, is now responsible for the educational direction and content of the organization’s four certification pathways as well as the Master of Tennis programs. He will oversee PTR clinician training to ensure continuity of content delivery as well as design and develop professional development courses to create opportunities for certified members to fulfill the new continuing education requirements. Steve will also serve as the national liaison to the USTA Coaching Education department. Prior to joining PTR, Steve spent 18 years with the Van der Meer organization directing sites in Missouri, Florida and South Carolina prior to joining Tennis Corporation of America. Steve earned the distinguished USTA/PTR Public Service Award in 1996.
Country: South Carolina
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Bob Litwin
Bob Litwin was a Long Island tennis teaching professional for thirty-five years. In 1992 he founded the Sports Focus Institute to develop and teach athletes in all sports how to improve performance through all aspects of the mental game.
Bob is known as The Focus Coach. He has worked with every sport imaginable and consulted for the NY Knicks and the NY Islanders. The founder of The Focus Coaching Group, LLC, Bob is a full time performance coach for Hedge Funds and individuals in any field of endeavor, business and sports alike.
He never played in college or on the tour and at 32 started to compete thinking he might be able to win some matches. He lost a lot for several years.
Then he won a gold and bronze medal at the 12th Maccabian Games in the 35 and over. In summer 2013, 20 years later, he won the Gold Medal in the 65s singles at the 19th Maccabian Games.
He has won 18 USTA National Championship titles.
He won the ITF World Championships in 2005 and was ranked #1in the World in the 55 and over.
He was inducted into the Eastern Tennis Hall of Fame in 2011.
After being out of the game for nearly three years due to two hip surgeries, he got back to work and has climbed back to the top and in June was the #1 ranked 65 and over player in the USA.
After going undefeated in Colorado tournaments this year his 18 year undefeated streak in sectional age group matches continues.
His book, Live the Best Story of Your Life: A World Champion’s Guide to Lasting Change, was released in May and touted by Huff Post as the #1 self help read for the summer of 2016.
Country: Colorado
Quote: The Focus Coach. winner of 18 National titles. Achieved #1 in the World Ranking 55 & Over and #1 in USA in 65 & Over. Author of "Live the Best Story of Your Life: A World Champion’s Guide to Lasting Change".
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Jennifer Fuchs
Jennifer has been the Director of Tennis at the El Conquistador since 1999. A former world class touring pro, she has distinguished herself as an outstanding player. As a junior, Jennifer became the number one ranked player in the nation. She was also a part of the Junior Federation Cup and competed in both the Junior US and Italian Open, where she and her partner won the doubles. Following her junior career, Jennifer played two years at UCLA, becoming a two time All-American. Having played all the major events and all 4 grand slams as a touring professional, Jennifer reached the round of sixteen in the Australian Open Doubles Championship.
Country: Arizona
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Feisal Hassan
Feisal, a PTR 5A Pro and USPTA Master Professional. He is also a member of the Head/Penn Racquet Sports National Advisory Board and National Speaker’s Bureau and holds USPTA specialist degrees in Competitive Player Development, Facility Management, Little Tennis and Sports Science. He is a USTA Recreation Coach National and Quickstart Trainer, a member of the National Cardio Tennis Speakers Team and co-chairs the USPTA National Education Committee and the USPTA College Curriculum Committee. He is also on the USPTA Testing Committee and USTA National Youth Education Committee. He was also the Director of Certification & Testing for the USPTA Middle States division and was co-chair of the USPTA National Diversity Committee.
Feisal was also the Director of Coaches’ Education and Junior Davis Cup Team Coach for Tennis Zimbabwe. He was also voted in Tennis Industry magazine’s prestigious “40 Under 40” list for being one of the top 40 men and women under 40 years old who have had and will continue to have a strong influence in the sport and in the business of tennis– both nationally and internationally.
Hassan writes and conducts seminars, workshops and clinics for international, national and sectional organizations and events. He has also written the book, How to Handle Difficult Players and Conditions, and is currently working on his second book, Doubles: Phases & Situations.
In 2011, he was awarded the USPTA’s most prestigious award, the Alex Gordon National Professional of the Year and the 2011 Racquet Sports Industry Champions of Tennis Award. This is the Racquet Sports Industry’s (RSI) most prestigious awards recognizing and honoring the people, businesses and organizations that are making a difference in the tennis industry. He was also a recipient for the USPTA Mid-Atlantic Hall of Fame recipient Inaugural Class of 2012 and the 2012 USPTA George Bacso National Tester of the Year.
Previous accolades include the USPTA Industry Excellence Award in 1999, 5-time Division Tester of the Year, 11-time USPTA Division/State Pro of the Year, and 9-time national Top-10 point holder in the USPTA’s Career Development Program.
Country: Virginia (Orig. Zimbabwe)
Quote: 2011 USPTA Professional of the Year. 11-time USPTA Division/State Pro of the Year. Member Head/Penn Racquet Sports National Advisory Board.
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Jorge Capestany
Jorge is one of only ten people worldwide that is a Master Professional with both the USPTA and PTR. He is a 6-time Michigan Pro of the Year a 2-time Midwest Pro of the Year. In 2015 he was named USPTA National Professional of the Year.
Jorge has coached hundreds of ranked juniors including 3 national champions. In Jorge’s career, his programs have developed more than 180 HS State Champions in Michigan. An internationally recognized speaker and author, Jorge serves many organizations in the tennis industry and is a member of the Wilson national speaker’s bureau team.
Jorge is the founder of Capestany Tennis Inc, which runs websites for tennis coaches and tennis players alike. His Coaches website – www.tennisdrills.tv – has more than 700 subscribers in over 65 countries. The site features more than 1,000 tennis drills.
The Player’s website – www.JorgeCapestany.com – features 100% free instruction and a Free Mental Toughness Video course that includes a free eBook.
Jorge has been a featured speaker at most of the largest tennis conferences in the world including, the PTR International Symposium, the USTA Tennis Teachers Conference in NYC at the US Open, the Australian Grand Slam Tennis Coaches conference in Melbourne, the Norwegian Tennis federation’s tennis coaches conference in Olso, the USPTA World Conference on tennis, and the ITF’s world-wide coaches conference in Mexico.
Country: Michigan (Orig. Cuba)
Quote: One of 10 People Worldwide Honored by PTR and USPTA as a Master Professional. 2015 USPTA National Professional of the Year.
Twitter: @CapestanyTennis
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Joe Dinoffer
Joe Dinoffer has had an extensive “world class” career in the tennis industry, and has conducted clinics and exhibitions in over 50 countries, personally logging over 30,000 hours of instruction in English, Spanish, and German. He is a Master Professional in both the PTR and USPTA, a distinction awarded to only a select few in the tennis industry. Joe also received the prestigious 2006 USPTA Tennis Industry Excellence Award and was also selected as the 2012 USPTA Texas Pro of the Year.
Joe is the author and editor of 7 books and 17 DVDs. He writes regularly for www.TennisOne.com and Racquet Sports Industry Magazine, and also has numerous tips airing on the Tennis Channel . As a member of the Head/Penn Advisory Staff and National Speakers Bureau, Joe is a frequent speaker at national and international tennis conferences, having conducted over 250 workshops since 1995.
He is also the founder and president of Oncourt Offcourt, Ltd ., a company exclusively serving the needs of tennis, fitness, and physical education coaches with innovative training aids and educational tools. Joe lives in Dallas, Texas, with his wife, Monika, and their daughter, Kalindi.
Read some endorsements for Joe´s work here .
Country: Texas
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Ian Westermann
Ian Westermann is the owner and founder of Essential Tennis , an online leader in digital tennis instruction. He founded ET in 2008 after becoming frustrated with the daily challenges of being a full time on-court tennis pro. Since then his online instructional courses have been taken by over 20,000 tennis players in over 100 different countries. Ian specializes in both video and audio instructional content including the first audio tennis instruction podcast in the world: the Essential Tennis Podcast. Since 2008 he has published over 200 episodes of the show which is the highest rated tennis podcast on iTunes. Before leaving his on court teaching job to run Essential Tennis full time in April of 2011 Ian was a teaching professional at Congressional Country Club in Bethesda, Maryland for six years. Congressional is currently rated the #2 private country club in America and hosted the PGA U.S. Open in 2011. His college career was spent in the Professional Tennis Management program at Ferris State University in Big Rapids, MI. Ferris created the very first PTM program in 1989 and it’s still the biggest of it’s kind in the US. While there Ian played both singles and doubles on their UCAA Division II men’s team while earning a bachelors degree in Business Marketing and a minor in Professional Tennis Management. Ian recently moved back to his home town of Milwaukee, Wisconsin with his wife of 9 years, Alison, and their two children. He plans to continue using the most cutting edge and innovative methods possible to reach passionate tennis players all over the world.
Country: Wisconsin
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Michele Krause
Michele Krause is the Cardio Tennis Manager working for the Tennis Industry Association (TIA). Cardio Tennis is a fun, group fitness activity consisting of fast paced tennis drills and games for players of all ability levels providing a full body calorie-burning workout. Michele has overseen the program since its inception in 2005 and since the rollout and there are now 1,800 Authorized Providers, 1.4 million Cardio Tennis participants in the US and the program has spread to over 30 countries.
Michele oversees the entire Cardio Tennis program both in the US and internationally. Her responsibilities include all the day-to-day operations: administration, programming, curriculum, event planning, training and marketing. She manages the TIA Global Cardio Tennis Team which is made up of 25 Trainers who assist her with training, educating and consumer events. She also serves as the coordinator for those countries who are in the process of establishing, launching or continued development of Cardio Tennis. She speaks at many industry conventions, (PTR, USPTA, IHRSA, ITA, ITF, PBI and USTA) meetings and events to provide ongoing education on the Cardio Tennis program. She also trains coaches how to deliver the product through national and international courses. Internationally she has conducted courses in Portugal, the UK, the Caribbean, Ireland, Poland, Greece and Canada. She spent 2 years working with Tennis Australia helping them to develop the program for their country.
Michele has developed Cardio Tennis Kids, Supersize Cardio Tennis and TRX Cardio Tennis. Cardio Tennis was featured on NBC’s the Biggest Loser under Michele’s guidance with Anna Kournakova and she secured Anna as the Cardio Tennis spokesperson.
Michele is a USPTA and PTR tennis professional who managed tennis facilities throughout the US for over 16 years. She is formally educated in TRX Suspension Training and is a Certified Ignite 360 (Combine 360) Trainer. Michele received the TIA/PTR Industry Excellence award on 2012. Michele continuously strives to improve the Cardio Tennis experience for both the tennis professional and the consumer.
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Christophe Delavaut
Christophe is founder of TennisOxygen.com , which specializes in online private coaching using personal stroke video analysis that draws extensively on high-speed video footage of today’s top professionals.
He holds a Professional #1 rating by both the USPTA (1996), PTR (1986), and MTM (2012). He has competed and coached at every level from juniors collegiate and professional. He has been the USPTA District #9 President since 2010 and is also a monthly contributor to TennisOne.com , one of the leading tennis teaching web sites in the world.
Christophe is currently the Director of Tennis of the Grand Harbor Golf and Tennis in Vero Beach FL (since 1995) during the winter months and at The New Seabury Club on Cape Cod MA from Memorial Day to Labor Day since 2011. He also serves as a board member of the Indian River Tennis Foundation, a foundation dedicated to raise funds to award lesson scholarships to local juniors.
During summers has has acted as Director of Tennis of The Lloyd Neck Bath Club in Cold Spring Harbor NY (1996-1999), Tennis director of the Country Club of Detroit in Grosse Pointe MI (2000-2006), Tennis Director at the Walloon Lake Country Club in Wallon Lake MI (2007-2011), and Tennis Director at The New Seabury Club on Cape Cod MA (2011-present).
In 1987 he was the original founder and Director of the Sugarbush Tennis School, which was rated as one of the World’s Best Tennis Schools by Tennis Magazine. Roger Cox, Senior Travel Editor for Tennis Magazine, described the Sugarbush Tennis School as the most dynamic and innovative tennis school in the country.
Christophe is the author of Tennis Atlas: The Ultimate Doubles Program, a 200-page tennis teaching manual geared to help teaching professionals guarantee improvement to their students. He holds a B.S Business degree from Franklin Pierce University, (1987).
Country: Florida (Orig. France)
Email:
Alex Ramirez
Alex is the founder and president of ProTenn International . ProTenn was founded in 1998 as a tennis academy and has grown into a company that not only trains and develops players but also offers its clients financial services, video analysis software and services and is now venturing into the online media business and sponsorship of professional tennis players.
Alex’s system of training along with his team of experts is truly a world class combination. Players come from all over the country–many from Mexico, Canada and Europe– to train part-time and full-time in the program.
Alex competed as a junior, played collegiate tennis and competed as a professional before focusing his efforts to the development of players. His system has developed local, sectional, national and international champions. Alex has worked with many world class tennis players as a consultant to the head coach, as an assistant coach overseeing stroke development and as a video analysis expert on stroke production and match strategy analysis. Currently he is coaching full time on the women’s tour and consulting on the men’s tour.
Country: Arizona
Email:
Stan Oley
Stan is employed by Playmate Ball Machines as their Product Marketing Specialist. Stan is Founder of FBT60 (Fit By Tennis in 60 Days). FBT60 is a new tennis/fitness program combining nutrition and a series of ball machine drills
Stan is a USPTA Master Professional. Less than 160 of the 14,000 USPTA Pros have this distinction. Stan is a member of the USPTA, PTR, USTA. Stan was named 2016 Florida USPTA Pro of the Year. Stan was named 2016 Florida USPTA District 15 Pro of the Year. Stan was the USPTA District 15 President from 2007-2012. Stan was Florida USPTA District President of the Year in 2007 and his District was District of the Year in 2008.
Stan has attended 20 USPTA World Conferences, speaking at 11 of them. Stan has spoken at over 100 USPTA Divisional Conventions. Stan has performed different USPTA Specialty Courses at 18 USPTA Division or World Conferences.
During his 30 years as a teaching professional (29 years USPTA Certified), he was a teaching professional at John’s Island Club in Vero Beach, FL, the head tennis professional at the International Tennis Center in Key Biscayne, FL (Home of the Miami Open Championships), as well as a teaching professional at the Eau Gallie Yacht Club in Indian Harbour Beach, FL.
He has been working and teaching with ball machines for over 25 years. He has also published drills and articles for USPTA Addvantage Magazine, Tennis Week, and PTR Tennis Pro Magazine. Stan was featured on the Tennis Channel’s One Minute Clinic, “On-Court with the USPTA” and has three full length DVDs, “Ball Machine Drills, Drills, Drills” featuring drills with a ball machine, “Rip Your Returns Like the Pros” featuring the serve return, (which recently won Honor of Distinction at a recent communications awards event), and “Zone It to Own It” featuring strike-zones and stroke production.
Stan is very proud to be sponsored by adidas and Babolat tennis products
Country: Florida
Email:
Julio Godreau
Julio Godreau holds certifications with the USPTA (Elite), PTR (Master of Tennis Performance), and the USTA (High Performance). He currently serves as the Director of Junior Tennis for the USTA Texas section.
As a coach he has developed players in Orange Ball (2 Southern #1 ranked players and 3 Southern Closed Champions) and Yellow Ball (player ranked as high as #5 in the US and quarterfinalist at Orange Bowl and Eddie Herr tournaments). At the collegiate level his students have accomplished scholarships at prestigious conferences such as the Pac-12 and SEC, and have won NCAA Division 1 team championship. Aside from his on court success with Junior Players he has also guided adults to State, Sectional, and National Championships.
He has been the recipient of numerous awards from the USPTA, PTR, and USTA including Southern Pro of the Year. As an educator he often presents at sectional events and has been a speaker at The USPTA World Conference and PTR International Symposium.
Julio was a top Junior player in the Caribbean, NCAA Division I Scholarship Collegiate Player, and has played at the Pro level. He is also fully bilingual (English and Spanish) and has a Masters Degree in Business Administration and an undergrad in Psychology. He has been married for twelve years to Charisse and has two daughters, Emma (6) and Sophie (9).
•PTR Master of Tennis Performance (Equivalent to ITF Level 3)
•USPTA Certified Professional Level 1
•PTR Certified Professional Level
•USPTA & PTR Player Development Specialist
•USTA High Performance Orange Bowl World Class Junior Player Development Study
•USTA High Performance US Open Pro Player Development Study
•USTA High Performance 10 & Under Certified
•USTA Referee Certified
•USTA Tournament Director Certification (TDM)
AWARDS
•PTR Mississippi Member of the Year 2014
•USPTA 10 & Under Southern Pro of the Year 2012
•USPTA Southern Pro of the Year 2007
•USTA Southern Pro of the Year 2008
•USPTA Mississippi Pro of the Year 2006 & 2007
•USTA Mississippi Pro of the Year 2008
•USPTA Developmental Pro of the Year 2004
•USPTA North Cal Rookie Pro of the Year 1997
USTA INVOLVEMENT
•Selected to coach USTA National Level 1 camp at USTA Center in NY (US Open Location) along with coaches Tom Gullikson, Richard Ashby, Kent Kinnear, Jay Gooding, and Geoff Russell.
•Chairman 10 & Under USTA Southern Committee
•Vice Chairman USTA Southern Player Development Committee
•Representative for USPTA & PTR Pros in USTA Mississippi
•Chair USTA Southern Talent Identification Camps Committee
•Chair USTA Mississippi Junior Council Committee
•Member USTA National Pro Circuit Committee
•Head Coach USTA Competitive Training Center (CTC) Mississippi
•Coach USTA Southern and Mississippi Talent Identification Camps
•Coach USTA Southern and Mississippi Talent Identification Camps
•Coach USTA Middle States 12 and under Zonal National Team
•Coach USTA Southern 14 and under Zonal National Team
USPTA AND PTR INVOLVEMENT
•Speaker at USPTA World Symposium
•Speaker at USPTA Winter Southern Conference
•Chairman USPTA Multicultural Committee
•Speaker at PTR International Symposium
•Speaker at USPTA Southern Conferences
•Speaker at USPTA Tennessee, Mississippi, & Louisiana Workshops
•Speaker at Mississippi’s High School Coaches
Email:
Rod Heckelman
Rod Heckelman’s career started in 1966 the summer after his junior year in high school when he began his five-year role as a teacher at John Gardiner’s Tennis Ranch in Carmel Valley, Calif. Later he opened as the resident pro for Gardiner’s Tennis Ranch on Camelback in Scottsdale, Ariz. At 20 years of age, he was one of the youngest pros to be the Head Pro at what some considered one of the top tennis resorts in the world.
In 1976 he made his way back to his home state of California, where he took over as Head Pro/Tennis Director at the Mt. Tam Racquet Club in Larkspur. He added the title and responsibilities of General Manager in 1982. From his early teaching years, Rod has been involved with developing top players. He has developed over 15 national champions at the junior level and 4 at the senior level. As a competitor he has played and been ranked at both national and sectional levels, breaking the top 5 in 1991. Rod published an instructional manual in 1992 for tennis teachers to use with their students called “Down Your Alley.”
For the last couple of years, excerpts from his “Facility Manager’s Manual” were being published in Racquet Sports Industry magazine. The manual is now available digitally through the Tennis Industry Association for managers and clubs to use as a model for operating their businesses. More recently, he created a “Business Handbook for Tennis Pros,” that is also being produced by T.I.A. In 2010 he was awarded “Manager of the Year” for the USPTA NorCal division and later announced by the USPTA as the “Manager of the Year” at the World Conference. Rod travels the country lecturing to fellow pros about management skills and helping them transition into management. Rod continues to expand his knowledge on all aspects of the tennis business, and he is a frequent presenter at industry events throughout the country including speaking at IRHSA World Conference in San Francisco in 2011, the first person to represent the tennis industry at an IRHSA convention in over 25 years.
Rod recently was selected to the new Babalot Advisory Board and came out with his second instructional book, “Playing Into the Sunset,” an instructional book for senior players available through BoomerTennis.net.
Country: California
Quote: Author "Playing Into the Sunset", Developed 15 national champions at the junior level and 4 at the senior level
Twitter:
2016 TC for Home Page
Faculties:
Gigi Fernández
Gigi Fernández has been a dominant fixture in the tennis world since turning pro in 1983. During her 14-year WTA Tour career Fernández won seventeen Grand Slam doubles crowns, as well as two Olympic Gold Medals. Fernández was Puerto Rico’s first professional female athlete and coach of the year in Puerto Rico in 2003. In 2000 Fernández was named Puerto Rican Athlete of the Century.
Fernández was ranked first or second in the world from April 1991, up to the time of her retirement in 1997. She is also a member of the International Tennis Hall of Fame. Since retirement, Fernández has coached the Puerto Rican National Team, along with serving as head coach at the University of South Florida in Tampa. She also coached tour pros Sam Stosur and Lisa Raymond to their first Grand Slam win in 2005.
She currently works at Chelsea Piers where she runs the adult curriculum and also conducts “Master Doubles with Gigi” clinics throughout the country.
She is the proud mom of 6 year old twins Karson and Madison.
Wimbledon doubles titles: 1992, 1993, 1994, 1997
French Open doubles titles: 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1997
U.S. Open doubles titles: 1988, 1990, 1992, 1995, 1996
Australian Open doubles titles: 1993, 1994
Olympic Gold Medalist: 1992, 1996
Country: Connecticut (Puerto Rico)
Email:
Emilio Sánchez
Emilio Sánchez is President of the Academia Sánchez-Casal , located in Barcelona Spain and Naples Florida. The Academia Sánchez-Casal uses a unique training system, based on the Spanish method of understanding tennis, focused on maximizing the strength, balance, speed, stamina and agility of the student’s lower body. It incorporates specific exercises used by successful Spanish players, which have boosted the game of students including Svetlana Kuznetsova, Andy Murray, Daniela Hantuchova, Grigor Dimitrov, Juan Monaco, among many others.
As a player, Emilio won three Grand Slam doubles titles and the men’s doubles silver medal at the 1988 Olympic Games. He achieved an ATP world #7 ranking in singles and #1 ranking in doubles. He was the coach of multiple Grand Slam winner (and sister) Arantxa Sánchez Vicario. He also captained Spain’s Davis Cup team to success in 2008. In 2012 Sanchez was a tournament director for two wheelchair tennis events.
Country: Spain
Email:
Michael Russell
Michael is the current owner of Michael Russell Tennis , which features elite tennis training and private coaching in Houston, Texas. Russell’s website www.michaelrusselltennis.com features full-time weekly and monthly programs as well as private tennis lesson packages.
Michael grew up in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan and attended a private high school, where he even played high school tennis including winning the State Championships. Growing up, Michael was fortunate to be able to practice with several ATP Professionals and his father, a top level pro, which helped in his development. After winning the USTA Boy’s 16 Nationals in Singles and Doubles in Kalamazoo, Michigan, Michael achieved the year end #1 Ranking in Singles and Doubles. Weighing the options to turn professional or attend a university, he committed to play at the University of Miami, Florida on a full scholarship, after turning down several offers to play at Ivy League Schools. At the time Michael finished his freshman year with the best single season singles record of any player in University of Miami history, including winning the Rolex National Indoor Championships and being named Rolex National Rookie of the Year.
Michael turned professional in 1998, and after two and half years on tour he broke into the top 100 in the world after reaching the fourth round of the French Open. Throughout his 17 year career, he overcame three career threatening knee surgeries, a torn labrum and rotator cuff, a broken arm, a bulging disc, pulmonary blood clots, multiple ankle sprains, and numerous muscle strains. Most athletes would have walked away from the sport with all of the adversity faced, however Michael’s perseverance and determination is unmatched by most. He played in 34 Main Draw Singles Grand Slams, 115 Main Draw ATP Singles Events, he holds the all-time record for Men’s USTA Singles Circuit Titles, and is on the top 10 List of Most ATP Singles Challenger Titles. He defeated many players in the ATP World Tour top 10 Rankings including Tomas Berdych, Juan Martin del Potro, Marin Cilic, Grigor Dimitrov, Mardy Fish, James Blake, and Lleyton Hewitt. Michael played against numerous ATP World Ranked #1’s (Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Andy Roddick, Lleyton Hewitt, Marcelo Rios) and competed on the Stadium Court at all four Grand Slams including Night Match at both the US Open and Australian Open as well as opening the Wimbledon Championships. Michael currently resides in Houston, Texas with his wife, Lilly.
Professional Highlights:
Turned professional in 1998
In 2001, he was the first player to qualify into all four Grand Slam events consecutively
As a qualifier reached the round of 16 at the 2001 French Open holding match point against eventual champion world #1 Gustavo Kuerten
Missed the entire 2003 and most of 2004 seasons recovering from bi lateral knee surgeries
Reached the round of 16 at the 2007 BNP Paribas Indian Wells event defeating top 10 player Tomas Berdych
Reached a career high ranking of ATP #60 in the world in 2007
Missed 9 months in 2008 with a torn labrum and rotator cuff tear
Reached first ATP Doubles Final at the 2012 BB&T Atlanta Open
Reached the Semi-Finals of three ATP World Tour events on three different surfaces: 2012 U.S. Men’s Claycourt Championships, 2013 International
Tennis Hall of Fame Grass Court Championships, and the 2014 U.S. National Indoor Tennis Championships
Holds the all-time record 23 USTA Pro Circuit Singles Titles
Has won 15 ATP Challenger Singles Titles which is tied for fifth all-time
Has competed on Center Court at all four Grand Slams
Has competed in 34 Main Draw Singles Grand Slams and 115 Main Draw Singles ATP World Tour events
Ranked in the top 100 for the majority of 17 year career including five straight years over the age of 30
Notable wins include Tomas Berdych, Juan Martin del Potro, Mardy Fish, James Blake, Marin Cilic, Kevin Anderson, Grigor Dimitrov, Ivo Karlovic, Lleyton Hewitt, Nicolas Almagro, Jack Sock, Steve Johnson, Fabio Fognini, Donald Young
Has competed against top 5 players Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray, Andy Roddick, Stanislas Wawrinka, Kei Nishikori, and David Ferrer among others
Country: Texas
Quote: Holds the all-time record for Men’s USTA Singles Circuit Titles. Achieved ATP #60 in the world. Competitor in 34 Main Draw Singles Grand Slams and 115 Main Draw ATP Singles Events.
Twitter: MRusselltennis
Email: [email protected]
Jeff Salzenstein
Jeff Salzenstein is the founder and president of Jeff Salzenstein Tennis , an organization focused on helping tennis players improve their games through online tennis instruction in the areas of technique, footwork, nutrition, injury prevention, motivation and athletic development. He is a USPTA Professional 1, Specialist in Competitive Player Development and a Certified Nutritional Therapy Practitioner.
A member of the Colorado Tennis Hall of Fame, Salzenstein set the standard for tennis in Colorado with an unsurpassed record as a player at the amateur and professional levels. As he regularly competed against the best players in the world, he became a serious student of the game and an accomplished world-class competitor.
Salzenstein turned professional in 1996 after graduating from Stanford University, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in economics. In 1997, Salzenstein was named Rookie of the Year by Tennis Week magazine. He played in all four Grand Slams—Wimbledon, US Open, French Open, Australian Open—and had wins over Mardy Fish, David Nalbandian, Greg Rusedski, and Fernando Verdasco. In 2004, despite having two major surgeries, Salzenstein broke into the top 100 in the world for the first time and was the first American to accomplish this feat after his 30th birthday. He concluded his playing career in 2007 and became a high-performance tennis coach in Denver, Colo.
Salzenstein’s website, www.jeffsalzensteintennis.com , shares cutting-edge tennis tips and lessons to help players improve their games.
Country: Colorado
Quote: Former Top 100 ATP Tennis Player. High Performance Tennis Coach. Expert In Peak Performance, Nutrition, Fitness, Rehab and Motivation.
Twitter: JeffSalzenstein
Email:
Paula Scheb
Paula Scheb, is the Director of Tennis and Fitness at the Bonita Bay Club, which encompasses 18 clay courts and a 10,000 square foot fitness facility. She is a USPTA Master Professional, the highest accreditation given to tennis professionals. Currently, less than 130 professionals in the country (less than 1% of the 14,500 members in the USTPA) have this distinctive title.
She is on the National Advisory Staff for Head/Penn and is also on their National Speaker’s Bureau. Paula presents regularly throughout the country on various tennis and business topics. She most recently presented a doubles seminar “Infinity and Beyond: Progressing your Players form 3.0 to 4.5” at the USPTA Florida Division Conference in West Palm Beach.
Scheb was the Director of Testing and Certification for USPTA for over 12 years, certifying and testing over 1,300 professionals. She was also the USPTA Pro of the Year for the Florida Division.
Paula grew up under the tutelage of Nick Bollettieri, when he first arrived in the States from the Rockefeller Resort in Puerto Rico. As a teenager she taught various clinics with Nick all over the world. And more recently has hosted clinics with some of the biggest names in tennis Evonne Goolagong, Gigi Fernandez, Rick Leach, Billie Jean King, Tom Gorman, Jim Loehr, Tim Mayotte, Rick Macci, Stan Smith, Jack Groppel, Fred Stolle, Mikael Pernfors and Jimmy Arias, to name a few.
Paula has been a regular contributor to “Tennis Magazine”, with various tips and articles that have been featured in the magazine. “Tennis Magazine” also featured Paula and some of her teaching tips, in a special edition periodical titled “Tips from the Masters”, which they promoted at the US Open.
Her You Tube videos, “Paula’s Pointers for Club Players,” have received praise and accolades from recreational and professional players alike. Paula and the Bonita Bay Club members host one of the largest tennis fundraisers in the country, with over 20 former touring professionals, eight former #1’s and 4 Tennis Hall of Famers, the event raised over $300,000 this year for a pediatric cancer pharmacy in the new Tom Golisano Children’s Hospital in Ft. Myers.
Paula graduated from the University of Florida with a BS degree in Business Marketing. She played college tennis for the #2 nationally ranked Lady Gators and was a doubles All-American while attending the UF.
Country: Florida
Quote: USPTA Master Professional. Former USPTA Florida Pro of the Year. National Advisory Staff for Head/Penn and for Reebok. Former All-American in Doubles.
Twitter:
Email:
Mark Kovacs, PhD
Dr. Mark Kovacs is a renowned performance physiologist, researcher, university professor, author, speaker and coach with an extensive background training and researching athletes at all levels. He serves as both the Executive Director of the International Tennis Performance Association (iTPA) and Director of the Gatorade Sports Science Institute. Dr. Kovacs’ work has helped improve the way the physical aspects of tennis are trained throughout the world, and he has personally tested and trained hundreds of world class athletes in numerous sports. He formerly directed the Sport Science, Strength & Conditioning and Coaching Education departments for the United States Tennis Association (USTA).
Dr. Kovacs is a Fellow of the American College of Sports Medicine, has published over 50 peer-reviewed scientific articles and abstracts in top journals and was the Associate Editor-in-Chief of the Strength & Conditioning Journal. He is on the editorial board for multiple journals including the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition and has presented workshops, keynote addresses and well over 100 presentations on four continents.
Along with his academic and scientific background, Dr. Kovacs is also a coach and former professional athlete. While originally from Melbourne, Australia, he was an All-American and NCAA doubles champion in tennis at Auburn University. After playing professionally, he completed his graduate work at Auburn University and earned his Ph.D. in Exercise Physiology from The University of Alabama. Dr. Kovacs is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist through the National Strength and Conditioning Association, a Certified Tennis Performance Specialist (CTPS) through the ITPA, a certified Health/Fitness Specialist through the American College of Sports Medicine, a United States Track and Field Level II Sprints Coach and Certified Tennis Coach.
He has published five books on topics ranging from dynamic stretching to recovery. Mark has organized a number of medical and sport science conferences aimed at improving the education of medical professionals, coaches, athletes, parents and sport administrators. In 2010 he was awarded the prestigious Plagenhoef Award for sport science achievement (youngest ever recipient); in 2012 he was the youngest ever International Tennis Hall of Fame Educational Merit Award winner.
Country: Georgia (Orig. Australia)
Quote: Director, Gatorade Sports Science Institute and Executive Director, International Tennis Performance Association (iTPA). Former All-American and NCAA doubles champion.
Twitter: @MKovacsPhD
Email:
Debbie Graham
Debbie Graham Shaffer is a former top #30 in the world singles on the WTA Tour and top #10 in the world in doubles. She was awarded the WTA award for the “Most Impressive Newcomer” in 1992. As a touring pro Debbie played Fed Cup for the USA three times and was undefeated in Fed Cup play. Debbie was a semifinalist at Wimbledon, the Australian Open, and the US Open. Before becoming pro, Debbie was the NCAA singles Champion at Stanford. Debbie played on three NCAA winning teams and then left school to play professional tennis. Debbie graduated from Stanford in three years in order to play professional tennis. For 8 years Debbie was one of the “National High Performance Coaches” for women with the USTA at the USTA Training Center in Carson, CA. Debbie Currently works with top pros, juniors, and collegiate players. Two of Debbie’s players have made it to Grand Slams including the US Open, French Open, Wimbledon, and Australian Open. Currently she is the Director of Little Aces Tennis, where she is teaching young kids to play tennis with low compression balls, smaller rackets, and smaller nets.
Country: California
Quote: Former WTA world top #30 in singles and top #10 in doubles. 1992 WTA Most Impressive Newcomer. 3-Time Fed Cup Player. USTA National High Performance Coach.
Twitter:
Email:
Emma Doyle
Emma Doyle is director of acecoach.com.au and a sports consultant impacting and inspiring over 100,000 tennis players and coaches over the past 20 years. She is a Tennis Australia High Performance Coach (USPTA – Pro 1 & PTR – PC) with a background as a touring professional where she helped numerous Australian female players reach career high singles and doubles rankings inside top 120 WTA. She now continues to travel the world as a professional speaker specializing in helping people to maximize and live their potential using tennis as the vehicle. She is an expert communicator (NLP, EI, Life / Workplace Coach), who incorporates a range of skills in practical, fun and tailored hands-on programs to suit the needs of the passionate players through to elite coaches.
Country: Australia
Quote: Director of Ace Coach. Tennis Australia High Performance Coach (USPTA – Pro 1 & PTR – PC). Expert Communicator (NLP, EI, Life / Workplace Coach).
Twitter: ACE_Coach_
Email: [email protected]
Allistair McCaw
Allistair McCaw is an internationally recognized leader in the field of athletic performance enhancement. His well-proven method of athlete training, “The McCaw Method,” has set the standard for providing world-class athletes and coaches with cutting-edge training and knowledge.
A fitness expert and highly motivated coach, with over 20 years experience, Allistair has trained a host of world class athletes including 11 Grand Slam Champions, 3 World #1 Tennis players, 4 World #1 & World Champion Squash players, PGA Golfers and several Olympians.
He holds various qualifications in the field, and is a certified Tennis coach, USA Track & Field coach, USA Youth Basketball coach and ISSA Performance specialist.
Allistair is a highly sought after keynote speaker and has regularly appeared on national television in the United States. He is a former 5 time world championship Duathlete competitor, 2 time national fitness champion and just recently completed 7 marathons and 7 half marathons in 7 weeks.
Voted as one of the most 50 Influential coaches by Coachseek, Allistair released his first book in 2016 entitled “7 Keys to being a great Coach” and regularly contributes articles to various magazines on performance enhancement training, motivation and mindset.
Allistair is based in Tampa, Florida.
Country: Florida (South Africa)
Quote: Sports Performance Specialist & Fitness/ Movement Coach to 11 Grand Slam Champions, Six Olympians, and Four World Number #1’s
Twitter: @AllistairMcCaw
Email:
Jeff Greenwald
Jeff Greenwald, M.F.T. is an internationally recognized sport psychology consultant, author and licensed family therapist. He was named Athlete of the Year at UC Santa Barbara in 1988 and went on to become a world-ranked player on the ATP Tour in singles and doubles. He was also formerly the No. 1 world and U.S. ranked ITF men’s 35 player, and is winner of two senior ITF World Championships. Jeff has been the mental coach for numerous top professional, college and junior tennis players around the world for the past 15 years. From 1993-1995 Jeff coached top junior players as the Director of Junior Development at the Uhlenhorster Hockey and Tennis Club in Hamburg, Germany. He has been a certified tennis professional by the USPTA since 1996 and currently serves on the Speaking Bureaus for both the USTPA and Wilson Sporting Goods.
Jeff has spoken across the world at numerous tennis clubs, associations, universities and corporations. He also was an adjunct faculty member and supervisor at JFKU for graduate students in the sport psychology program. He served as a consultant for the USA High Performance coaches program from 2005-2010. He earned his B.A at the University of California at Santa Barbara. He has been in private practice since 1998. He holds as Master’s Degree in Clinical psychology with a specialization in sports psychology. He is author of Amazon’s best-selling double-CD audio, Fearless Tennis and The Best Tennis of Your Life and serves as Associate editor for TennisPlayer.net .
Visit Jeff’s website: http://www.jeffhgreenwald.com
Country: California
Quote: Renowned sports psychology consultant. Former No. 1 world-ranked ITF men’s 35 tennis player. Winner of two senior ITF World Championships.
Twitter:
Email:
Feisal Hassan
Feisal, a PTR 5A Pro and USPTA Master Professional. He is also a member of the Head/Penn Racquet Sports National Advisory Board and National Speaker’s Bureau and holds USPTA specialist degrees in Competitive Player Development, Facility Management, Little Tennis and Sports Science. He is a USTA Recreation Coach National and Quickstart Trainer, a member of the National Cardio Tennis Speakers Team and co-chairs the USPTA National Education Committee and the USPTA College Curriculum Committee. He is also on the USPTA Testing Committee and USTA National Youth Education Committee. He was also the Director of Certification & Testing for the USPTA Middle States division and was co-chair of the USPTA National Diversity Committee.
Feisal was also the Director of Coaches’ Education and Junior Davis Cup Team Coach for Tennis Zimbabwe. He was also voted in Tennis Industry magazine’s prestigious “40 Under 40” list for being one of the top 40 men and women under 40 years old who have had and will continue to have a strong influence in the sport and in the business of tennis– both nationally and internationally.
Hassan writes and conducts seminars, workshops and clinics for international, national and sectional organizations and events. He has also written the book, How to Handle Difficult Players and Conditions, and is currently working on his second book, Doubles: Phases & Situations.
In 2011, he was awarded the USPTA’s most prestigious award, the Alex Gordon National Professional of the Year and the 2011 Racquet Sports Industry Champions of Tennis Award. This is the Racquet Sports Industry’s (RSI) most prestigious awards recognizing and honoring the people, businesses and organizations that are making a difference in the tennis industry. He was also a recipient for the USPTA Mid-Atlantic Hall of Fame recipient Inaugural Class of 2012 and the 2012 USPTA George Bacso National Tester of the Year.
Previous accolades include the USPTA Industry Excellence Award in 1999, 5-time Division Tester of the Year, 11-time USPTA Division/State Pro of the Year, and 9-time national Top-10 point holder in the USPTA’s Career Development Program.
Country: Virginia (Orig. Zimbabwe)
Quote: 2011 USPTA Professional of the Year. 11-time USPTA Division/State Pro of the Year. Member Head/Penn Racquet Sports National Advisory Board.
Twitter:
| john and tracy austin |
What is the name of Sherlock Holmes's housekeeper ? | Upcoming Congresses - The Tennis Congress
The Tennis Congress
THE 2016 TENNIS CONGRESS – Registration Opens WED APRIL 27 at 11am ET
Thursday October 6 (6pm) – Sunday October 9 (9pm)*
* Optional Extended program Monday October 10 (8am-Noon)
Created by serious tennis players for serious players, The Tennis Congress gives passionate adults (low-intermediate through high-performance NTRP 5.0) access to world-class training usually reserved only for top juniors and professionals. We invite you to join fellow tennis fanatics and 80 master professionals, Grand Slam legends, physical conditioning coaches and sport psychology experts, and equipment gurus from all around the world for a uniquely fun and inspiring experience covering all aspects of training necessary to improve your game– on and off the court.
EXPERIENCE THE DIFFERENCE
Winner of the industry’s award for “Most Innovative Tennis Event of the Year,” The Tennis Congress is an unprecedented experience that enables you to tailor a training program specific to what you personally need. Your program includes a series of rigorous on-court and off-court classes led by some of the most brilliant tennis minds in the world. Building on the innovative ideas we introduced in the first three years, some of the highlights of this year’s event include:
* 14 Hours of Customized On-Court Assessment and Training (4.5-5 Hours per Day): We will create a customized schedule just for you, featuring multiple small-group training sessions (4:1 coach-to-athlete ratio) built around on your level and the objectives you identify in advance. Drawing from the elite ranks of renowned teaching professionals as well as the international tennis tour, where we’ve recruited some of the most accomplished Grand Slam champions, coaches, tour players, and Davis Cup participants, you will have the opportunity to work under the close guidance of approximately six to eight coaches with unique and proven expertise in the areas you have prioritized.
* 10 Hours of Elective Specialized Off-Court Workshops (3+ Hours per Day): Because success in tennis is about more than hitting a good ball, we offer you a choice of off-court classes with world-renowned experts on topics ranging from strategy, mental conditioning, fitness, nutrition, and equipment to supplement your core training plan.
* Your Own Personal Head Coach and “Team”: To help you process and apply all that you’re learning during the event, you’ll be matched up with a personal Head Coach and core training “team” at the start of the Congress. Daily training sessions with your team and Head Coach will provide opportunities to practice and reinforce ideas from specialized classes. On the final day, your Head Coach will help you prioritize post-Congress goal-setting and action steps.
* Personalized Fitness Guidance: To help ensure that your program is in tune with your body’s capabilities, elite trainers with the International Tennis Performance Association (ITPA) will be available throughout the weekend to help you assess your strengths and limitations. Then they will steer you towards the best classes for your unique needs and recommend the most effective pre- and post-match exercise, drills and sample workout routines to take home.
* Access to Video Class Highlights on the Edufii App: We are partnering with Edufii, a social network for skills development, to enable you and your team members to capture and share key takeaways on video so you can retain knowledge and accelerate your improvement after returning home.
* All Meals and Special Evening Programs: The sessions may be intense, but once the racquets go back in the bag it’s time to relax, recharge, and socialize with your new tennis friends. The 2016 program includes dinner on Thursday-Sunday nights as well as breakfast and lunch Friday-Sunday. We also have a number of group activities planned to keep the fun going!
* Special Extended Program Option: Real-Time Match Play Analysis and Coaching (Monday 8am-Noon): Due to popular demand, this year we’re offering an extended option that enable you to apply lessons learned into match situations in a non-judgmental setting while benefiting from real-time match play analysis and coaching (singles or doubles) for 4 hours on court on Monday. To provide an intimate coaching experience, two coaches will be on every court (2:1 faculty-to-athlete ratio), enabling coaches to interact constantly with players. Note: this program is limited to 56 athletes and requires advance sign-up during your registration
AN INCREDIBLE VALUE
The full program cost for the 2016 Tennis Congress is $2395, which includes all customized on-court classes, off-court elective workshops, plus all meals and special activities. The Extended Program Option (Monday 8am-Noon), limited to 56 athletes on a first-come basis during registration, is an additional $395. Registered participants are eligible for a special discounted $139/night room rate at the Hilton El Conquistador, a AAA Four Diamond Resort in warm, sunny Tucson, Arizona (valid 3 days prior and 3 days after the Congress).
Faculties:
Gigi Fernández
Gigi Fernández has been a dominant fixture in the tennis world since turning pro in 1983. During her 14-year WTA Tour career Fernández won seventeen Grand Slam doubles crowns, as well as two Olympic Gold Medals. Fernández was Puerto Rico’s first professional female athlete and coach of the year in Puerto Rico in 2003. In 2000 Fernández was named Puerto Rican Athlete of the Century.
Fernández was ranked first or second in the world from April 1991, up to the time of her retirement in 1997. She is also a member of the International Tennis Hall of Fame. Since retirement, Fernández has coached the Puerto Rican National Team, along with serving as head coach at the University of South Florida in Tampa. She also coached tour pros Sam Stosur and Lisa Raymond to their first Grand Slam win in 2005.
She currently works at Chelsea Piers where she runs the adult curriculum and also conducts “Master Doubles with Gigi” clinics throughout the country.
She is the proud mom of 6 year old twins Karson and Madison.
Wimbledon doubles titles: 1992, 1993, 1994, 1997
French Open doubles titles: 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1997
U.S. Open doubles titles: 1988, 1990, 1992, 1995, 1996
Australian Open doubles titles: 1993, 1994
Olympic Gold Medalist: 1992, 1996
Country: Connecticut (Puerto Rico)
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Owen Davidson
Owen is one of the most well rounded tennis professionals of his time. He finished his junior career as the no. 2 junior in the World to John Newcombe. Owen then went on and played on 5 winning Australian Davis Cup Teams from 1962-1967. Throughout his career he was coached by the greatest coach of all time, Mr. Harry Hopman. In 1967 he was named All England Club Professional at Wimbledon and Manager of British Competitive Tennis. He held that job until leaving in 1971 to resume his professional tennis career.
During his professional career Owen won 13 Grand Slams, 4 Wimbledon’s, 5 US Opens, 1 French Open and 3 Australian Opens. He spent three years as Director of Tennis at the Houston Racquet Club and then eight years as Director of Tennis at the Woodlands Inn and Country Club, in Texas. He was also the Director of the John Newcombe/Owen Davidson Competitive Edge Tennis Academy at the John Newcombe Tennis Ranch in New Braunfels, TX, coaching thousands of juniors from all over the world and specifically Texans. Owen spent many years on the Professional Tennis Tour coaching such players as his mixed doubles partner, Billie Jean King, Andrea Jaeger, Bill Scanlon, Sammy Giammalva, David Wheaton, Annabel Croft, Susan Mascarin, and numerous others.
Owen played on and coached World Team Tennis Teams in Minnesota, Boston, Hawaii, and Houston. In 1991 he also became Chief Operating Officer of Grand Slams Sports Marketing, marketing specialty tennis events to hundreds of major companies throughout the world. He continues to this day in that capacity. From 1976 – 1986 he worked as Tour Director for the ATP in the Woodlands, Texas, initiating the advent of the Satellite Circuit. Currently he is working at the Woodlands Country Club, in the Woodlands, Texas, coaching members and juniors. In 2010 he was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame and in January of 2011 was inducted into the Australian Tennis Hall of Fame. Owen, with Leslie Bowrey and Billie Jean King, won the calendar Grand Slam in 1967. Most people consider his partnership with Billie Jean King as the greatest of all time!
Country: Australia
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Emilio Sánchez
Emilio Sánchez is President of the Academia Sánchez-Casal , located in Barcelona Spain and Naples Florida. The Academia Sánchez-Casal uses a unique training system, based on the Spanish method of understanding tennis, focused on maximizing the strength, balance, speed, stamina and agility of the student’s lower body. It incorporates specific exercises used by successful Spanish players, which have boosted the game of students including Svetlana Kuznetsova, Andy Murray, Daniela Hantuchova, Grigor Dimitrov, Juan Monaco, among many others.
As a player, Emilio won three Grand Slam doubles titles and the men’s doubles silver medal at the 1988 Olympic Games. He achieved an ATP world #7 ranking in singles and #1 ranking in doubles. He was the coach of multiple Grand Slam winner (and sister) Arantxa Sánchez Vicario. He also captained Spain’s Davis Cup team to success in 2008. In 2012 Sanchez was a tournament director for two wheelchair tennis events.
Country: Spain
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Michael Russell
Michael is the current owner of Michael Russell Tennis , which features elite tennis training and private coaching in Houston, Texas. Russell’s website www.michaelrusselltennis.com features full-time weekly and monthly programs as well as private tennis lesson packages.
Michael grew up in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan and attended a private high school, where he even played high school tennis including winning the State Championships. Growing up, Michael was fortunate to be able to practice with several ATP Professionals and his father, a top level pro, which helped in his development. After winning the USTA Boy’s 16 Nationals in Singles and Doubles in Kalamazoo, Michigan, Michael achieved the year end #1 Ranking in Singles and Doubles. Weighing the options to turn professional or attend a university, he committed to play at the University of Miami, Florida on a full scholarship, after turning down several offers to play at Ivy League Schools. At the time Michael finished his freshman year with the best single season singles record of any player in University of Miami history, including winning the Rolex National Indoor Championships and being named Rolex National Rookie of the Year.
Michael turned professional in 1998, and after two and half years on tour he broke into the top 100 in the world after reaching the fourth round of the French Open. Throughout his 17 year career, he overcame three career threatening knee surgeries, a torn labrum and rotator cuff, a broken arm, a bulging disc, pulmonary blood clots, multiple ankle sprains, and numerous muscle strains. Most athletes would have walked away from the sport with all of the adversity faced, however Michael’s perseverance and determination is unmatched by most. He played in 34 Main Draw Singles Grand Slams, 115 Main Draw ATP Singles Events, he holds the all-time record for Men’s USTA Singles Circuit Titles, and is on the top 10 List of Most ATP Singles Challenger Titles. He defeated many players in the ATP World Tour top 10 Rankings including Tomas Berdych, Juan Martin del Potro, Marin Cilic, Grigor Dimitrov, Mardy Fish, James Blake, and Lleyton Hewitt. Michael played against numerous ATP World Ranked #1’s (Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Andy Roddick, Lleyton Hewitt, Marcelo Rios) and competed on the Stadium Court at all four Grand Slams including Night Match at both the US Open and Australian Open as well as opening the Wimbledon Championships. Michael currently resides in Houston, Texas with his wife, Lilly.
Professional Highlights:
Turned professional in 1998
In 2001, he was the first player to qualify into all four Grand Slam events consecutively
As a qualifier reached the round of 16 at the 2001 French Open holding match point against eventual champion world #1 Gustavo Kuerten
Missed the entire 2003 and most of 2004 seasons recovering from bi lateral knee surgeries
Reached the round of 16 at the 2007 BNP Paribas Indian Wells event defeating top 10 player Tomas Berdych
Reached a career high ranking of ATP #60 in the world in 2007
Missed 9 months in 2008 with a torn labrum and rotator cuff tear
Reached first ATP Doubles Final at the 2012 BB&T Atlanta Open
Reached the Semi-Finals of three ATP World Tour events on three different surfaces: 2012 U.S. Men’s Claycourt Championships, 2013 International
Tennis Hall of Fame Grass Court Championships, and the 2014 U.S. National Indoor Tennis Championships
Holds the all-time record 23 USTA Pro Circuit Singles Titles
Has won 15 ATP Challenger Singles Titles which is tied for fifth all-time
Has competed on Center Court at all four Grand Slams
Has competed in 34 Main Draw Singles Grand Slams and 115 Main Draw Singles ATP World Tour events
Ranked in the top 100 for the majority of 17 year career including five straight years over the age of 30
Notable wins include Tomas Berdych, Juan Martin del Potro, Mardy Fish, James Blake, Marin Cilic, Kevin Anderson, Grigor Dimitrov, Ivo Karlovic, Lleyton Hewitt, Nicolas Almagro, Jack Sock, Steve Johnson, Fabio Fognini, Donald Young
Has competed against top 5 players Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray, Andy Roddick, Stanislas Wawrinka, Kei Nishikori, and David Ferrer among others
Country: Texas
Quote: Holds the all-time record for Men’s USTA Singles Circuit Titles. Achieved ATP #60 in the world. Competitor in 34 Main Draw Singles Grand Slams and 115 Main Draw ATP Singles Events.
Twitter: MRusselltennis
Email: [email protected]
Jeff Salzenstein
Jeff Salzenstein is the founder and president of Jeff Salzenstein Tennis , an organization focused on helping tennis players improve their games through online tennis instruction in the areas of technique, footwork, nutrition, injury prevention, motivation and athletic development. He is a USPTA Professional 1, Specialist in Competitive Player Development and a Certified Nutritional Therapy Practitioner.
A member of the Colorado Tennis Hall of Fame, Salzenstein set the standard for tennis in Colorado with an unsurpassed record as a player at the amateur and professional levels. As he regularly competed against the best players in the world, he became a serious student of the game and an accomplished world-class competitor.
Salzenstein turned professional in 1996 after graduating from Stanford University, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in economics. In 1997, Salzenstein was named Rookie of the Year by Tennis Week magazine. He played in all four Grand Slams—Wimbledon, US Open, French Open, Australian Open—and had wins over Mardy Fish, David Nalbandian, Greg Rusedski, and Fernando Verdasco. In 2004, despite having two major surgeries, Salzenstein broke into the top 100 in the world for the first time and was the first American to accomplish this feat after his 30th birthday. He concluded his playing career in 2007 and became a high-performance tennis coach in Denver, Colo.
Salzenstein’s website, www.jeffsalzensteintennis.com , shares cutting-edge tennis tips and lessons to help players improve their games.
Country: Colorado
Quote: Former Top 100 ATP Tennis Player. High Performance Tennis Coach. Expert In Peak Performance, Nutrition, Fitness, Rehab and Motivation.
Twitter: JeffSalzenstein
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John Austin
John Austin is the Director of Tennis at the International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport, Rhode Island.
Winning a Wimbledon trophy is a major accomplishment for any tennis player, but winning a major championship with a sibling is a rarity in the record books of any sport. For John and Tracy Austin, the 1980 Wimbledon mixed doubles title put them in the record books as the first brother-sister team to win the prestigious Wimbledon championship. They also reached the Wimbledon mixed doubles final in 1981.
There is no question that Austin has tennis in his DNA. Born into a family of five siblings, four of whom competed at Wimbledon, Austin climbed the international rankings to a top 40 world ranking in six years competing on the ATP Tour. Among his wins were victories over #1-ranked John McEnroe, former French Open champion Yannick Noah, Andres Gomes, Wojtek Fibak, and twins Tim and Tom Gullikson. He was also selected three times as an alternate/practice partner for the US Davis Cup team.
Prior to entering the professional ranks, Austin was a member of the victorious 1976 UCLA NCAA championship team and a 1978 NCAA doubles champion. He reached the NCAA doubles final in 1977.
Austin’s earliest memories are from the vantage point of the tennis courts at the historic Jack Kramer Club in Rolling Hills, CA where his mother worked in the tennis shop, and Austin received his tennis direction from renowned coach Robert Lansdorp.
Austin followed in his famous coach’s footsteps becoming a teaching professional upon his retirement from the professional tour. Among the players Austin has worked with as a Touring Professional are Pete Sampras, Michael Chang, Jim Grabb, Chuck Adams, Robbie Weiss, Alexandra Stevenson, and Amy Frazier.
While pursuing his teaching career, Austin remained passionate about his own tennis, attaining two No. 1 USTA national rankings in the Men’s 40 Singles in 1997 and Men’s 35 Doubles in 2002.
Austin’s wife, Karen, is a teacher. He has two sons, Christopher, 28, and Reed, 18.
TOURING PROFESSIONAL
1978-1984
CAREER WINS
Defeated #1 John McEnroe, Yannick Noah, Andres Gomez, Wojtek Fibak, Tim and Tom Gullickson, Tim Wilkison
TOURNAMENT HIGHLIGHTS
2002 Ranked #1 in the US Mens 35 and over doubles
2002 USTA National Mens 35 and over Hard court doubles champion
1998 USTA National Men’s 40 and Over Grass Court Singles Champion
1997 USTA National Men’s 40 and Over Grass Court Singles Champion
1997 USTA National Men’s 40 and Over Indoor Singles Champion
1997 USTA National Men’s 40 No. 1 Ranking
Member of the 1989 First Place “New Jersey Stars Professional Team Tennis”
1981 Wimbledon Mixed Doubles Finalist with sister, Tracy Austin
1980 Wimbledon Mixed Doubles Champion with sister, Tracy Austin
1978 NCAA Doubles Champion
US Davis Cup team – selected 3 times/alternate/practice partner
7 Career titles won
6 Career finalist appearances
COACHING EXPERIENCE
As a touring professional coach, he has worked with Pete Sampras, Michael Chang, Jim Grabb, Chuck Adams, Robbie Weiss, Alexandra Stevenson, and Amy Frazier.
Country: Rhode Island
Quote: Wimbledon Champion with Sister Tracy Austin, Director of Tennis at the International Tennis Hall of Fame
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Paula Scheb
Paula Scheb, is the Director of Tennis and Fitness at the Bonita Bay Club, which encompasses 18 clay courts and a 10,000 square foot fitness facility. She is a USPTA Master Professional, the highest accreditation given to tennis professionals. Currently, less than 130 professionals in the country (less than 1% of the 14,500 members in the USTPA) have this distinctive title.
She is on the National Advisory Staff for Head/Penn and is also on their National Speaker’s Bureau. Paula presents regularly throughout the country on various tennis and business topics. She most recently presented a doubles seminar “Infinity and Beyond: Progressing your Players form 3.0 to 4.5” at the USPTA Florida Division Conference in West Palm Beach.
Scheb was the Director of Testing and Certification for USPTA for over 12 years, certifying and testing over 1,300 professionals. She was also the USPTA Pro of the Year for the Florida Division.
Paula grew up under the tutelage of Nick Bollettieri, when he first arrived in the States from the Rockefeller Resort in Puerto Rico. As a teenager she taught various clinics with Nick all over the world. And more recently has hosted clinics with some of the biggest names in tennis Evonne Goolagong, Gigi Fernandez, Rick Leach, Billie Jean King, Tom Gorman, Jim Loehr, Tim Mayotte, Rick Macci, Stan Smith, Jack Groppel, Fred Stolle, Mikael Pernfors and Jimmy Arias, to name a few.
Paula has been a regular contributor to “Tennis Magazine”, with various tips and articles that have been featured in the magazine. “Tennis Magazine” also featured Paula and some of her teaching tips, in a special edition periodical titled “Tips from the Masters”, which they promoted at the US Open.
Her You Tube videos, “Paula’s Pointers for Club Players,” have received praise and accolades from recreational and professional players alike. Paula and the Bonita Bay Club members host one of the largest tennis fundraisers in the country, with over 20 former touring professionals, eight former #1’s and 4 Tennis Hall of Famers, the event raised over $300,000 this year for a pediatric cancer pharmacy in the new Tom Golisano Children’s Hospital in Ft. Myers.
Paula graduated from the University of Florida with a BS degree in Business Marketing. She played college tennis for the #2 nationally ranked Lady Gators and was a doubles All-American while attending the UF.
Country: Florida
Quote: USPTA Master Professional. Former USPTA Florida Pro of the Year. National Advisory Staff for Head/Penn and for Reebok. Former All-American in Doubles.
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Mark Kovacs, PhD
Dr. Mark Kovacs is a renowned performance physiologist, researcher, university professor, author, speaker and coach with an extensive background training and researching athletes at all levels. He serves as both the Executive Director of the International Tennis Performance Association (iTPA) and Director of the Gatorade Sports Science Institute. Dr. Kovacs’ work has helped improve the way the physical aspects of tennis are trained throughout the world, and he has personally tested and trained hundreds of world class athletes in numerous sports. He formerly directed the Sport Science, Strength & Conditioning and Coaching Education departments for the United States Tennis Association (USTA).
Dr. Kovacs is a Fellow of the American College of Sports Medicine, has published over 50 peer-reviewed scientific articles and abstracts in top journals and was the Associate Editor-in-Chief of the Strength & Conditioning Journal. He is on the editorial board for multiple journals including the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition and has presented workshops, keynote addresses and well over 100 presentations on four continents.
Along with his academic and scientific background, Dr. Kovacs is also a coach and former professional athlete. While originally from Melbourne, Australia, he was an All-American and NCAA doubles champion in tennis at Auburn University. After playing professionally, he completed his graduate work at Auburn University and earned his Ph.D. in Exercise Physiology from The University of Alabama. Dr. Kovacs is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist through the National Strength and Conditioning Association, a Certified Tennis Performance Specialist (CTPS) through the ITPA, a certified Health/Fitness Specialist through the American College of Sports Medicine, a United States Track and Field Level II Sprints Coach and Certified Tennis Coach.
He has published five books on topics ranging from dynamic stretching to recovery. Mark has organized a number of medical and sport science conferences aimed at improving the education of medical professionals, coaches, athletes, parents and sport administrators. In 2010 he was awarded the prestigious Plagenhoef Award for sport science achievement (youngest ever recipient); in 2012 he was the youngest ever International Tennis Hall of Fame Educational Merit Award winner.
Country: Georgia (Orig. Australia)
Quote: Director, Gatorade Sports Science Institute and Executive Director, International Tennis Performance Association (iTPA). Former All-American and NCAA doubles champion.
Twitter: @MKovacsPhD
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Debbie Graham
Debbie Graham Shaffer is a former top #30 in the world singles on the WTA Tour and top #10 in the world in doubles. She was awarded the WTA award for the “Most Impressive Newcomer” in 1992. As a touring pro Debbie played Fed Cup for the USA three times and was undefeated in Fed Cup play. Debbie was a semifinalist at Wimbledon, the Australian Open, and the US Open. Before becoming pro, Debbie was the NCAA singles Champion at Stanford. Debbie played on three NCAA winning teams and then left school to play professional tennis. Debbie graduated from Stanford in three years in order to play professional tennis. For 8 years Debbie was one of the “National High Performance Coaches” for women with the USTA at the USTA Training Center in Carson, CA. Debbie Currently works with top pros, juniors, and collegiate players. Two of Debbie’s players have made it to Grand Slams including the US Open, French Open, Wimbledon, and Australian Open. Currently she is the Director of Little Aces Tennis, where she is teaching young kids to play tennis with low compression balls, smaller rackets, and smaller nets.
Country: California
Quote: Former WTA world top #30 in singles and top #10 in doubles. 1992 WTA Most Impressive Newcomer. 3-Time Fed Cup Player. USTA National High Performance Coach.
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Emma Doyle
Emma Doyle is director of acecoach.com.au and a sports consultant impacting and inspiring over 100,000 tennis players and coaches over the past 20 years. She is a Tennis Australia High Performance Coach (USPTA – Pro 1 & PTR – PC) with a background as a touring professional where she helped numerous Australian female players reach career high singles and doubles rankings inside top 120 WTA. She now continues to travel the world as a professional speaker specializing in helping people to maximize and live their potential using tennis as the vehicle. She is an expert communicator (NLP, EI, Life / Workplace Coach), who incorporates a range of skills in practical, fun and tailored hands-on programs to suit the needs of the passionate players through to elite coaches.
Country: Australia
Quote: Director of Ace Coach. Tennis Australia High Performance Coach (USPTA – Pro 1 & PTR – PC). Expert Communicator (NLP, EI, Life / Workplace Coach).
Twitter: ACE_Coach_
Email: [email protected]
Allistair McCaw
Allistair McCaw is an internationally recognized leader in the field of athletic performance enhancement. His well-proven method of athlete training, “The McCaw Method,” has set the standard for providing world-class athletes and coaches with cutting-edge training and knowledge.
A fitness expert and highly motivated coach, with over 20 years experience, Allistair has trained a host of world class athletes including 11 Grand Slam Champions, 3 World #1 Tennis players, 4 World #1 & World Champion Squash players, PGA Golfers and several Olympians.
He holds various qualifications in the field, and is a certified Tennis coach, USA Track & Field coach, USA Youth Basketball coach and ISSA Performance specialist.
Allistair is a highly sought after keynote speaker and has regularly appeared on national television in the United States. He is a former 5 time world championship Duathlete competitor, 2 time national fitness champion and just recently completed 7 marathons and 7 half marathons in 7 weeks.
Voted as one of the most 50 Influential coaches by Coachseek, Allistair released his first book in 2016 entitled “7 Keys to being a great Coach” and regularly contributes articles to various magazines on performance enhancement training, motivation and mindset.
Allistair is based in Tampa, Florida.
Country: Florida (South Africa)
Quote: Sports Performance Specialist & Fitness/ Movement Coach to 11 Grand Slam Champions, Six Olympians, and Four World Number #1’s
Twitter: @AllistairMcCaw
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Craig O’Shannessy
Craig is an Australian tour coach and Director of the Brain Game – a sports science website that specializes in the video analysis of tennis matches that teaches the patterns of play that dominate our game.
Craig is widely recognized as the world leader in teaching tennis tactics and is the strategy analyst in 2015 for Wimbledon and the Australian Open as well as the ATPWorldTour, WTATennis and the New York Times.
Craig has researched thousands of matches using his unique Dartfish Match Tagging software to unlock the secrets of our game and uncover the patterns and percentages that really matter. He teaches this knowledge through his website and also on court with players at all levels of the game.
Craig started coaching on the pro tour 20 years ago and recently helped direct Kevin Anderson from outside the top 150 in the world into the top 50 in around 12 months. In 2011 he resurrected the career of Rajeev Ram who was 28 years old and languishing at 272 in the world. Within twelve months Craig had Rajeev back inside the top 100 enjoying his first top 20 win of his career. Craig has coached on center court at Wimbledon, the US Open and the Australian Open and passes along the learning from his pro tour experiences to juniors just beginning their life-long journey in our wonderful sport.
Craig began his coaching career in 1991, working with world-renowned tennis management company, Peter Burwash International (PBI) in the Woodlands, Texas. Craig was voted runner-up for Rookie of the Year in 1992, and was part of the globe-trotting PBI Tennis Show, performing in California, Guam, Seoul, Jakarta, Bali and Oman in the Middle East.
Craig moved back to his homeland of Australia in 1995 to open the O’Shannessy Tennis Academy at the Wodonga Tennis Center — Australia’s largest tennis facility with 52 courts (30 grass/22 clay). It quickly developed into one of the leading academies in the region, attracting players from New Zealand, Indonesia, Korea and Japan. In 1997, Craig guided Andrew Bronneberg to victory in the Australian National Junior Grasscourt Championships in singles and doubles.
Craig also worked with Canadian, Vanessa Webb, who won the 1998 NCAA Women’s Singles Championships while at Duke University. Craig then coached Andrew and Vanessa as they transitioned to the pro tour. Craig returned to the U.S. in 2001 to direct the junior academy at the T Bar M Racquet Club in Dallas, Texas. Craig also continued his work on tour with tour players Jeff Salzenstein, Andrew Ilie, Amer Delic, Brendan Evans and Ansley Cargill. At Wimbledon in 2011, Craig directed #262 Melinda Czink, from Hungary, to a first round, straight-sets victory over world #10 Samantha Stosur, of Australia.
Country: Australia
Quote: Pro Tour coach. World leader in teaching tennis tactics. 2015 Strategy analyst for Wimbledon, Australian Open, ATPWorldTour, WTATennis and the New York Times.
Twitter: @BrainGameTennis
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Page Love
Page Love, MS, RD, CSSD, LD, CSCS, USPTA, is an expert on sport nutrition and eating disorder issues particularly with elite athletics. In 1992, she founded Nutrifit Sport Therapy Inc., a company of professionals dedicated to helping clients reach their wellness goals through performance eating. Page has assembled a team of caring and experienced dietitians with specialties in nutrition for disease prevention and control, weight management, treatment of eating disorders, development of nutrition and fitness plans, and much more.
She has worked with professional players, college teams as well as individual athletes. Her past and current clients include the ATP Men’s Professional Tennis Tour, the Women’s Professional Tennis Tour (WTA), U.S. Tennis Association, the Atlanta Braves, U.S. Figure Skating, and U.S. Synchronized Swimming and she served as a nutrition consultant during the Olympic Games in 1992, 1996, 2000, and 2004.
Page’s tennis experience includes being a certified tennis teaching professional with the United States Professional Tennis Association and serves on the Sport Science Advisory Board for the Professional Tennis Registry. She played division one collegiate tennis at Baylor University and still plays competitive league tennis in Atlanta year round. She shares a passion to help young through professional tennis players learn how to better fuel and hydrate their bodies. She has just published a tennis sport nutrition specific education kit for players and coaches. See nutrifitga.com for more information. Page has served as the dietitian for the Australian Open, The Sony Open, Indian Wells, The Kremlin Cup, and the US Open. Page will serve as the onsite dietitian for the China Open in fall of 2014.
Page Love’s extensive credentials include being a Registered Dietitian and a Certified Specialist in Sport Dietetics of the American Dietetic Association, a strength and conditioning specialist certified by the National Strength and Conditioning Association, past president of the Atlanta Dietetic Association and past media spokesperson for the Georgia Dietetic Association. Page is often consulted by media both locally and nationally, and she has been featured many times as an expert by programs and publications such as CNN’s On the Menu, CNN Headline News, Peachtree Morning, Good Day Atlanta, Women’s Sports Illustrated, Tennis Magazine, People Magazine, WSB Radio, Z93 Radio, and Fox News.
Country: Georgia
Quote: Expert on Sport Nutrition, Advisor to ATP and WTA
Twitter: @nutrifit_ga
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Jorge Andrew
Jorge is the Immediate Past President of the Professional Tennis Registry (PTR), the most global teaching organization in the world. He is also Director of Tennis Operations at the Lexington County Tennis Complex/Cayce Tennis & Fitness Center in South Carolina.
A former Venezuelan Davis Cup player and captain, Andrew played on the professional tour for more than ten years, including appearances at Wimbledon, U.S. Open, French Open and Australian Open. His highest ATP ranking was 61st in singles , while he reached 69th in doubles.
Jorge is a member of the USTA National Local Play and Competition Committee. He is a member of the USTA Southern Junior Team Tennis Committee and a member of the USTA South Carolina nominating Committee. Jorge is a member of the USTA South Carolina Hall of Fame.
He is a USTA National 10 and Under Master Trainer, a Recreational Coach Workshop Master Trainer. Andrew is also on the National Advisory staff and Speakers team for Head/Penn.
In 2008, Jorge received the USTA South Carolina Lucy Garvin Award as “Volunteer of the Year”, the USTA Southern Quick Start Tennis “Trainer of the Year”, the Racquet Sport Industry “PTR Member of the Year”, and the USTA/USPTA “Community Service Award.”
Jorge was the 1991 PTR “Pro of the Year”, 2003 and 2006 PTR “Member of the Year for South Carolina”, and the 2006 USPTA Southern “Professional of the Year.”
Country: S. Carolina (Orig Venezuela)
Quote: 2d in World to Become Dual PTR/USPTA Master Professional. Former PTR President. Venezuelan Davis Cup player and captain.
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Will Hamilton
Will is the co-founder of FuzzyYellowBalls.com . He’s worked with Bob & Mike Bryan and Patrick Rafter to create instruction for recreational players so they get more fun and enjoyment out of the game.
In his spare time, Will likes to invent silly handshakes.
Country: Washington DC
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Jeff Greenwald
Jeff Greenwald, M.F.T. is an internationally recognized sport psychology consultant, author and licensed family therapist. He was named Athlete of the Year at UC Santa Barbara in 1988 and went on to become a world-ranked player on the ATP Tour in singles and doubles. He was also formerly the No. 1 world and U.S. ranked ITF men’s 35 player, and is winner of two senior ITF World Championships. Jeff has been the mental coach for numerous top professional, college and junior tennis players around the world for the past 15 years. From 1993-1995 Jeff coached top junior players as the Director of Junior Development at the Uhlenhorster Hockey and Tennis Club in Hamburg, Germany. He has been a certified tennis professional by the USPTA since 1996 and currently serves on the Speaking Bureaus for both the USTPA and Wilson Sporting Goods.
Jeff has spoken across the world at numerous tennis clubs, associations, universities and corporations. He also was an adjunct faculty member and supervisor at JFKU for graduate students in the sport psychology program. He served as a consultant for the USA High Performance coaches program from 2005-2010. He earned his B.A at the University of California at Santa Barbara. He has been in private practice since 1998. He holds as Master’s Degree in Clinical psychology with a specialization in sports psychology. He is author of Amazon’s best-selling double-CD audio, Fearless Tennis and The Best Tennis of Your Life and serves as Associate editor for TennisPlayer.net .
Visit Jeff’s website: http://www.jeffhgreenwald.com
Country: California
Quote: Renowned sports psychology consultant. Former No. 1 world-ranked ITF men’s 35 tennis player. Winner of two senior ITF World Championships.
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Joanne Wallen
Joanne Wallen is the Director of Adult Individual Play for the United States Tennis Association, based at USTA’s national headquarters in Lake Nona, Florida.
A native of England, Joanne Wallen became a top junior player there after taking up tennis at the age of four. She came to the U.S. in 1988 on a six-year scholarship to the Bollettieri Tennis Academy in Bradenton, Fla. That year she also signed with sports marketing giant IMG, the youngest player ever to do so at the time. She played for 14 years on the International Tennis Federation and Women’s Tennis Association tours, winning 15 events and achieving a world #252 ranking in singles and and #179 ranking in doubles.
In 2005 she joined the Lexington Tennis Club in Kentucky as Director of Junior Development and was promoted to General Manager in 2009. Throughout her career, Wallen has devoted countless hours to growing the sport of tennis by developing her own skills and teaching those around her. Wallen’s involvement in tennis has been multifaceted, and includes serving on Board of Directors of USTA Kentucky, and chairing its Junior Competition Committee. She also served on the USTA Southern Junior Competition Committee. In addition, Wallen has coached multiple USTA Southern junior teams. Meanwhile, she has become a USTA Certified High Performance Specialist, working with top juniors to prepare them for competition, and a tester for the U.S. Tennis Professional Association (USPTA), certifying tennis instructors in Kentucky and surrounding states. In 2012, she was named “Newcomer of the Year” by the Professional Tennis Registry.
Country: Florida (Orig. England)
Quote: USTA Director Adult Individual Play, Former top UK junior and world-ranked player, 2012 PTR Newcomer of the Year. .
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John Yandell
John Yandell is the Editor and Founder of Tennisplayer.net . Over a twenty year career, he has been a leading force in the creation of new teaching and educational resources in tennis, including a series of highly regarded instructional books and videos. His high speed filming projects for Tennisplayer and Advanced Tennis Research have created the resources that take our understanding of the game to a new level. John has done personal video analysis for hundreds of high level competitive players, including Justine Henin-Hardenne, Taylor Dent, Gabriela Sabatini, and John McEnroe, among others. A cum laude graduate of Yale University, he also did graduate study at the PhD level in both history and religious studies. The John Yandell Tennis School is located in San Francisco, California.
Country: California
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Butch Staples
Butch Staples is currently the National Tennis Director for Midtown Athletic Clubs, which owns and operates 7 clubs around the United States and one in Montreal, Quebec.
He is a PTR Master Professional, a USPTA Professional 1 and a Tennis Canada certified coach. From 1982-1989, he was Chairman of Tennis Canada’s Coach and Instructor Development Committee. He has been a USTA RCW and 10 and Under Trainer since the inception of these programs and he is currently a USTA Master Trainer. He was named USTA Trainer of the Year in both 2006 and 2009. In recent years Butch has been recognized for his industry involvement being honored as the 2009 USPTA Midwest Pro of the Year, 2009 PTR Clinician of the Year and 2010 PTR Pro of the Year. As a result of his work in youth tennis and his application of scientific principles in his teaching, Butch was awarded the 2009 USOC “Doc” Counsilman Science Award. Also, he was a co-recipient of the 2010 RSI Junior Tennis Champion Award.
Butch is also co-owner/operator of Tennisclub of the Low Country in Bluffton, SC. Previously Butch spent 8 years with Tennis Corporation of America (TCA) as Director of Tennis at the Midtown club in Weston Florida and the Head Tennis Professional at Midtown Tennis Club in Chicago. While at Midtown Chicago, he led a team of 34 professionals, helped build the largest indoor tennis programs in the country and was instrumental in developing the model for 10 and under tennis programming. Midtown juniors were the poster children for USTA Youth Tennis. As a testimony to his success, five of his young players were selected to play between the quarter final matches of the US Open in 2010 and four participated in the stadium show of the Arthur Ashe Kids Day.
Butch began his tennis coaching career after graduating from college with a B.A., a B.P.E. and an M.S. He spent 4 years teaching primary, elementary and secondary physical education and then spent 10 years on the athletic staff at McGill University in Montreal where he coached Tennis and Basketball.
Country: South Carolina
Quote: National Tennis Director for Midtown Athletic Clubs. PTR Master Professional. Former USTA Trainer of the Year, PTR Pro of the Year.
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Shaun Zemanek
Shaun is the Head Staff Professional at Topnotch Resort. He originally hails from Brisbane, Australia. During his time at Topnotch he has trained many successful USTA teams and competitive players, sharing his experience from working with some of the world’s best coaches and players.
Throughout his junior playing career, Shaun finished top 10 in state and top 100 in national rankings, in both singles and doubles. After graduating, Shaun started training full time under former Wimbledon Champion, Ashley Cooper. Over the following years, he travelled around Australia and internationally competed in many ITF and national tournaments. During this time, Shaun was fortunate enough to train with many great Australian champions, such as former world no.1 Patrick Rafter and top 25 player Scott Draper, who both shared with him a lot of their secrets to success.
Shaun started his coaching career working with some of Australia’s top junior players. To further his education, Shaun studied under one of Australia’s most respected coaches, Mal Murphy. He completed his Level 1, 2, and advanced coaching degree with the Australian Tennis Professional Coaches Association (A.T.P.C.A.). Shaun then moved down to Australia’s Gold Coast and began working alongside former Wimbledon Champion, Pat Cash, and top physical trainer, Gavin Hooper. There he was exposed to many different coaching methods and learned first hand what it takes to be the best at the sport.
After leaving Cash Hopper, Shaun was offered the Head Tennis Professional position at the prestigious Hayman Island Resort. After 2 years of building a successful tennis program he moved back home to Brisbane and began working as the Head Pro at the state’s top tennis school and helped them win a state championship.
In 2003 Shaun moved to Stowe and began working as a seasonal tennis pro at Topnotch. In 2005 he became the Head Staff Professional, helping to make Topnotch one of the most renowned tennis programs in the country.
Shaun’s motto is, “Practice doesn’t make you perfect, perfect practice make you perfect.”
Country: Vermont (Orig Australia)
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Kathy Toon
Coach Toon is President and Founding Coach of Glam Slam Tennis, which delivers holistic content and training exclusively for women who are passionate (if not obsessive) about tennis.
She a jack-of-all (coaching) trades and master of a few. Her quest to gain an edge on the competition led Coach Toon down many paths: sports medicine, exercise physiology, nutrition, time management and sports psychology to name a few.
COACH: From 1990-2004, Kathy was the Associate Head Coach for Women’s Tennis at the University of California-Berkeley, where she guided three doubles teams to NCAA championship victories. Her collegiate tennis coaching career includes stops at the University of San Diego and Mills College.
CONSULTANT: Kathy also serves as a sports psychology and performance consultant to university and high school teams in the Bay Area. Her client list includes the University of California- Berkeley, where she works with the women’s basketball, men’s soccer, women’s field hockey, women’s golf and lacrosse teams. Other clients include Menlo High School, Marin Academy, Campo Lindo High School, Katherine Delmar Burke School and the Riekes Center. In addition, organizations such as the ITA, USTA, LGPA, NCAA, Pac-10 and Prince Corporation have hired Kathy to lead performance seminars.
SPEAKER: In addition, Kathy is a senior trainer for the internationally recognized Positive Coaching Alliance, having conducted hundreds of workshops for thousands of coaches, athletes and parents across the country.
AUTHOR: Coach Toon’s first book, Get Your Game Face On!, teaches you the powerful yet little-known 4-step process top athletes use to deliver their best performance under pressure. Complete with a daily training log, Get Your Game Face On! is the essential guide for anyone seeking excellence both on and off the playing field.
Kathy is also the author of the book Raising Champions: Revealing Stories from Parents of Great Athlete—and Great People. In this book, ordinary parents of some of the world’s most extraordinary athletes—on and off the field—share their stories about what it was like to raise them.
Country: California
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Jonny Fraser
Jonny has a wealth of experience in tennis having been a tennis strength and conditioning coach for over seven years. In the past he has worked with a range of junior tennis players to full time professionals. Jonny is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) alongside being a certified Level B coach with the GPTCA and a licensed tennis coach with the LTA in the United Kingdom. Jonny has certification as a Master Tennis Performance specialist with the International Tennis Performance Association (iTPA). Jonny is also the owner of Science in Tennis , a sport science provider solely focused on providing support to tennis centers and players.
Academically he has an MSc in Sport and Exercise Science from Sheffield Hallam University and has also taught at Sheffield Hallam University in the UK teaching on sport science and sports coaching degrees.
Country: United Kingdom
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Ajay Pant
Ajay is currently the General Manager for the Tennis Center at College Park, Maryland. Prior to his current position, Pant was the National Tennis Director for Tennis Corporation Of America (TCA). Ajay was with Tennis Corporation Of America for 18 years and also served as Head Tennis Professional, Club Manager and General Manager for TCA clubs in Chicago and other parts of the United States.
Pant has worked at the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy in Florida. He was the Coordinator for the Arthur Ashe/Nick Bollettieri “Cities” Tennis Programs in New York, New Jersey, Kansas and Missouri.
Ajay is a Master Professional and currently serves on the Board of the Professional Tennis Registry (PTR). The PTR has honored Ajay as Tester, Clinician and Pro Of The Year.
Pant is also a USPTA Master Professional.
Ajay is a member of the USTA Ten and Under Faculty. He currently serves as the Chair for the USTA National Ten and Under Committee.
Country: Maryland
Quote: PTR and USPTA Master Professional, former PTR Pro of the Year, Chair for the USTA National Ten and Under Committee
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Oliver Stephens
Oliver “Ollie” Stephens is a PTR Clinician and Tester. He is certified as a PTR Professional in all 4 pathways and also holds the PTR Master of Tennis certification in Performance and Development coaching, one of two coaches in the States to hold both. In addition, Ollie is an International Tennis Performance Association (iTPA) Master Tennis Performance Specialist.
Ollie has been published numerous times in PTR Magazine and has spoken at Regional, National and International conferences. In 2001, Ollie was the PTR China coach of the year, in 2010 he was the PTR Illinois Coach of the year and in 2012, he was the PTR Tester of the Year.
Ollie currently works as a private tennis professional in Chicago to several Sectionally and Nationally ranked juniors and also runs PTR coaches workshops on a regular basis.
Previously, Ollie was the National Junior Coach of Hong Kong and the National Coach of Vietnam. Also, he was the Junior Competitive Director at Midtown Tennis Club in Chicago, the busiest tennis club in the world.
Country: South Carolina
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Steve Keller
Steve has been a PTR member since 1986, is now responsible for the educational direction and content of the organization’s four certification pathways as well as the Master of Tennis programs. He will oversee PTR clinician training to ensure continuity of content delivery as well as design and develop professional development courses to create opportunities for certified members to fulfill the new continuing education requirements. Steve will also serve as the national liaison to the USTA Coaching Education department. Prior to joining PTR, Steve spent 18 years with the Van der Meer organization directing sites in Missouri, Florida and South Carolina prior to joining Tennis Corporation of America. Steve earned the distinguished USTA/PTR Public Service Award in 1996.
Country: South Carolina
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Ramona Husaru
Ramona Husaru is the Education and Multimedia Manager for the USPTA. In her role, Ramona is in charge of overseeing the continuing education program and expanding its resources, including: the “On Court with USPTA” TV show that airs on the Tennis Channel, stroke analysis, conferences, workshops, webinars, and TennisResources.com . She is also a USPTA Tester and part of the USPTA Under 30 initiative, developing opportunities through education and leadership for fellow young professionals. Ramona was named the 2015 USPTA Texas Tester of the Year, being one of the youngest females to win the award. She is a former WTA-ranked player and a two-time NCAA Division II National Team Champion with BYU-Hawaii. Ramona holds a master’s degree in Sports Psychology.
Country: Texas
Quote: Education and Multimedia Manager for the USPTA. named 2015 USPTA Texas Tester of the Year. former WTA-ranked player and a two-time NCAA Division II National Team Champion with BYU-Hawaii. part of the USPTA Under 30 initiative.
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Lucas Regas Melero
Lucas is a RPT & USPTA-certified tennis coach at the Academia Sánchez-Casal in Naples, Florida. Once a student at the Academia Sánchez-Casal in Barcelona, Lucas was of Spain’s Top 16 players under 16 and under 18 and went on to become one of the Top 100 Spanish nationally ranked players from 1998 to 2002, winning over 30 National Tennis Tournaments. He achieved a World ATP ranking in doubles in 2002 and began coaching at the Academia Sánchez-Casal while playing nationally and internationally. In 2003, Lucas won a full tennis scholarship to pursue a degree in Business Administration at Georgia Perimeter College in Atlanta. He became the #1 ranked player in the United States in NJCAA in 2003 and was #2 in 2004. While in Atlanta, Lucas coached at Tennis Academy of the South and at Country Club of the South where he taught adults and began a junior academy. In 2009, Lucas was a travelling hitting coach for top 20 WTA player Maria Kirilenko. And in 2011, he also coached another top 100 WTA player, Edina Gallovits. He also assisted World #1 team Bob and Mike Bryan in 3 tournaments as hitting partner. He has also coached at Tennis 360 in Dubai, UAE.
Country: Florida (Orig. Spain)
Quote: Sanchez-Casal Coach, Former Spanish Top 100 player, Achieved ATP World Ranking, Was #1 NJCAA-Ranked player in U.S.
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Greg Lappin
Greg played college tennis at the University of Minnesota. After traveling the world for a few years through tennis he settled in Minnesota holding various tennis teaching and director positions.
In 1985, he conceived of and developed the Flagship Athletic Club, a 19 court multipurpose club in Eden Prairie, Minnesota.
In 1993, he moved to Rochester, Minnesota where he developed the Rochester Athletic Club, a 270,000 square foot multipurpose club also with 19 tennis courts. Greg served as the general manager for 300 employees and 13,000 members. Greg was also a minority owner. The tennis program produced a world junior champion; players who participated in all the Grand Slams; Sports Illustrated National Athlete of the Year winner; numerous Division 1 scholarship recipients; multiple state champions. It averaged 3 adult teams per year going to USTA Nationals. The RAC was named a USTA Facility of the Year.
Greg served as the national tennis director for LifeTime Fitness for 2012- 2015. He oversaw the tennis operations for 21 clubs.
Greg has received IHRSA’s Dale Dibble Distinguished Service Award, was a winner or finalist for seven NOVA 7 Awards. These are the Academy Awards for the fitness industry. He was the first recipient of the USPTA General Manager of the Year Award. The Rochester Athletic Club received the Better Business Bureau Integrity Award for the state of Minnesota in 2009.
Greg authored Tennis Doubles, Wining Strategies for all Levels, a national bestseller.
Greg was elected to the Board of Directors of IHRSA and the TIA. He has served as President for his USTA & USPTA sections.
Greg has been a volunteer for the USTA at the national level for over 20 years serving on the Adjunct Facility, various committees, and chaired the Learning & Leadership committee. Currently, he serves on the Nominating committee.
Greg was selected by the USTA in 2015 to write the Rally the Family guide- a guide to redefine how to attract new tennis players to the game.
Greg has been a presenter at multiple IHRSA, USPTA, PTR, ATP, WTA, and USTA conferences.
Country: Minnesota
Quote: Winner/finalist for seven NOVA 7 Awards. Developer of multiple athletic facilities, including a USTA Facility of the year. served as the national tennis director for LifeTime Fitness. Author of Tennis Doubles, Wining Strategies for all Levels, a national bestseller.
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Anni Miller
Recently inducted into the USPTA Hall Of Fame, Anni is also a PTR International Master Tennis Professional, USPTA Elite Professional, and on Wilson’s National Speaker’s Bureau.
She is also the 5-time USPTA National Coach of the Year, 5-time USPTA PNW Pro of the Year, 7-time Oregon Coach of the Year, and winner of the National High School Coach of the Year for all US high schools.
Anni’s legendary high school teams won over a dozen Oregon State High School Tennis Titles during her 24 year High School Coaching career at Lakeridge High School.
In the 1970’s Anni was cutting off wooden racquets for Tiny Tot lessons, in the early 80’s she ran the original high school “no cut” policy, in the early 90s she pioneered tennis in China, and at the turn of the century she was a spokeswoman for the Leukemia Society fighting for her grandson’s life and others like him.
As a 28-year Director of Tennis for the City of Lake Oswego, Oregon, programming and teaching have been a passion for her for all ages, 5 to 95!
Other than being a clinician both here and abroad, Anni’s travels annually include teaching trips to Jamaica. Anni has been published in numerous magazines and newspapers, as well as been a Tour Photographer and a Player Services Representative.
Currently her time off court is writing a book, For The Love of Play!, which is being contributed to by her 3 grandchildren– 9th generation Oregonians! And as a member of the legendary Order of the O, Anni’s team passion is for the Pac 12 Champion Ducks!
Country: Oregon
Quote: 5-time USPTA National Coach of the Year. PTR International Master Tennis Professional. Legendary High School Coach.
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Hans Römer
Born and raised in the Netherlands, Hans has been active in the tennis industry for over 25 years and started his coaching career after obtaining a BA Degree in Physical Education from the prestigious CIOS Sport College. In addition to being the only USPTA Master Professional in the State of Maine he has achieved a PTR Professional 5A rating and earned his KNLTB (Dutch Tennis Association) High Performance certification. After hosting the USPTA 2012 World Conference in Monterey, CA he received the 2012 USPTA NorCal “Pro of the Year” Award. Hans can also be seen on the Tennis Channel™ hosting two instructional shows titled “Secrets to the One-Handed Backhand” and “Depth: The #1 Weapon”. During the winter months he conducts his own TENNIS207 programs in Maine and in the summer he is active as Director of Tennis at the prestigious The Dunes Club in Narragansett, Rhode Island.
Country: Maine (Netherlands)
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Dominic King
Dom is Head of Athlete Development for Everyball Tennis at Halton Tennis Centre, a leading Tennis Centre in the UK.
He is an iTPA Master Tennis Performance Specialist (MTPS), one of only a small number to hold this designation worldwide, as well as an Accredited Strength & Conditioning Coach (ASCC) with the UK Strength & Conditioning Association, NASM Performance Enhancement Specialist (PES) and holds numerous other professional qualifications.
As Head of Athlete Development he works as part of an interdisciplinary team to deliver, among other things, Strength & Conditioning Coaching, Mental & Emotional Skills Training and Nutritional & Lifestyle Management.
Based at Halton since 2007, he has a wealth of experience in training players of all ages and abilities. As part of the High Performance Programme, this can range from 6 years old up to professional, aware of the different needs at each age and stage and what is required to train a player ‘from the cradle to the tour’!
He also trains club players anywhere from 8 to 80 + years old and loves helping each person improve and develop as a tennis athlete.
His own tennis-playing background and Tennis Coaching qualifications mean he is able to understand the requirements of the sport and help the transition ‘from the gym to the court.’
Dom is a highly motivated coach, committed to getting the best out of each athlete he works with; he also trains athletes from other sports and likes to explore the transferable aspects of training between all sports.
Email: [email protected]
Bob Litwin
Bob Litwin was a Long Island tennis teaching professional for thirty-five years. In 1992 he founded the Sports Focus Institute to develop and teach athletes in all sports how to improve performance through all aspects of the mental game.
Bob is known as The Focus Coach. He has worked with every sport imaginable and consulted for the NY Knicks and the NY Islanders. The founder of The Focus Coaching Group, LLC, Bob is a full time performance coach for Hedge Funds and individuals in any field of endeavor, business and sports alike.
He never played in college or on the tour and at 32 started to compete thinking he might be able to win some matches. He lost a lot for several years.
Then he won a gold and bronze medal at the 12th Maccabian Games in the 35 and over. In summer 2013, 20 years later, he won the Gold Medal in the 65s singles at the 19th Maccabian Games.
He has won 18 USTA National Championship titles.
He won the ITF World Championships in 2005 and was ranked #1in the World in the 55 and over.
He was inducted into the Eastern Tennis Hall of Fame in 2011.
After being out of the game for nearly three years due to two hip surgeries, he got back to work and has climbed back to the top and in June was the #1 ranked 65 and over player in the USA.
After going undefeated in Colorado tournaments this year his 18 year undefeated streak in sectional age group matches continues.
His book, Live the Best Story of Your Life: A World Champion’s Guide to Lasting Change, was released in May and touted by Huff Post as the #1 self help read for the summer of 2016.
Country: Colorado
Quote: The Focus Coach. winner of 18 National titles. Achieved #1 in the World Ranking 55 & Over and #1 in USA in 65 & Over. Author of "Live the Best Story of Your Life: A World Champion’s Guide to Lasting Change".
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Nadim Naser
Nadim is a former top-rated German junior, who came to the USA in 1998 as a 17-year old to play on the pro circuit. He achieved a world ranking in singles on his first attempt, but a severe shoulder injury changed his path. In January 2000, Nadim joined the University of South Florida men’s tennis team and played 4 years for them, winning conference championships, captaining his junior and senior years, and making the All-Conference USA Team.
After graduating college with a B.A. in Marketing in December 2003, Nadim took on coaching high performance juniors (incl. No. 1 U16 in the USA) full-time before going back to school and earning his M.B.A. from the University of Tampa, where he acted as Assistant Tennis Coach for the women’s tennis team between 205 and 2007.
Since 2007, Nadim has been residing in Miami, where he enjoyed a 4-year spell from 2007-2011 as Co-Director and Head Pro at the renowned Cliff Drysdale Tennis (CDT) operated Ritz Carlton Tennis Garden in Key Biscayne, FL and Co-Director of the CDT Junior Summer Camp at Crandon Park. This is where his passion for technical tennis instruction came to the forefront, honing his skills in high performance junior development, as well as recreational adult training.
During his first year in Miami, Nadim met Florian Meier, founder and owner of OnlineTennisInstruction.com (OTI). In recent years, Nadim has studied extensively and adopted the OTI teaching methods and co-hosted all 8 Florida-based OTI tennis clinics together with Florian. His passion for proper technical tennis instruction led him to join forces with OTI and become an expert instructor for OTI clientele, offering lessons in Ft. Lauderdale, FL year-round, starting July 2015. Nadim serves as a representative of OTI at this year’s US Tennis Congress.
Also, in 2011, Nadim co-founded and now owns WAM Sports – Premier Student Athlete Services, where junior athletes and families from around the world go to obtain the best advice and guidance in their college recruiting process, matching them with their best-fit colleges.
Country: Florida (Orig Germany)
Quote: COACH & MENTOR TO TOP JUNIOR AND COLLEGE TENNIS PLAYERS; SPARRING PARTNER TO SEVERAL WTA/ATP TOUR PLAYERS; OWNER OF WAM SPORTS; EXPERT TENNIS INSTRUCTOR AT ONLINETENNISINSTRUCTION.COM
Twitter: @nadream81
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Jennifer Fuchs
Jennifer has been the Director of Tennis at the El Conquistador since 1999. A former world class touring pro, she has distinguished herself as an outstanding player. As a junior, Jennifer became the number one ranked player in the nation. She was also a part of the Junior Federation Cup and competed in both the Junior US and Italian Open, where she and her partner won the doubles. Following her junior career, Jennifer played two years at UCLA, becoming a two time All-American. Having played all the major events and all 4 grand slams as a touring professional, Jennifer reached the round of sixteen in the Australian Open Doubles Championship.
Country: Arizona
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Scott Mitchell
Scott, a former #1 mixed doubles player in the U.S. is the current Executive Director at the Greater Midland Tennis Center. The Greater Midland Tennis Center is the largest tennis center in the Midwest and one of the top 10 in the U.S. Voted the USTA Best Tennis Town in 2009 the tennis center has 40 courts, 36 hard courts (16 indoor) and 4 clay courts and 3,200 members taught by 21 tennis professionals.
Scott came to Midland following his time as the Director of Tennis at The Landings Club in Savannah, Georgia the largest residential clay court facility in the U.S. Scott was also the tournament director for the St. Joseph’s Candler Savannah Challenger, which has seen such players as Mardy Fish, Ryan Harrison, John Isner, James Blake and others. Scott is now the Tournament Director of the prestigious Dow Corning Tennis Classic, the longest running USTA Challenger on the tour. The tournament is also one of the most well attended events on tour with over 15k fans through the week along with reaching over 4k youth during the event through many outreach programs.
Scott has been nominated for many awards over his career and in 2015 The Landings Club won the prestigious Tennis Community of the Year award from Real Estate Scorecard. In 2014 The Landings Club was also selected by the ITF to be one of 12 Clubs nationwide to take part in their Clubmark pilot program. In 2013 Scott was awarded the USTA Georgia Director of Tennis award. Scott was also selected to work with the U.S. Olympic Committee, USTA, USPTA and PTR as a faculty member of their new collaborative initiative Coach Youth Tennis. In 2011 he was awarded the USPTA Georgia Pro of the Year. In 2009 he won the PTR Clinician of the Year award. He has also been nominated for countless other PTR, USTA and USPTA awards over the years.
Scott is a routine contributor to magazines, radio and websites such as Tennis View Magazine, Centre Court, Net News, Tennis World and many others providing tennis tips and articles. He has also presented at conferences all around the country for PTR, USPTA and the USTA. Scott’s coaching background is extensive, as he has won a National Championship as an assistant coach at Georgia Perimeter College. He also coached the GPC #1 player to a win over then NCAA #1, has been a USTA National Zonal Coach working with many of the nations top boys and girls 15 and 16 year olds, he has coached over 50 league champions and continues to work with tennis players of all ages and levels.
He is married to Ashley a former Florida State University, ACC doubles champion and they have 3 children, Brady-8 and girl/boy twins, Brooklyn and Cason, 5 years.
Country: Michigan
Quote: Former #1 mixed doubles player in the U.S. Executive Director of largest tennis center in the Midwest. Former USPTA Georgia Pro of the Year and PTR Clinician of the Year.
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Feisal Hassan
Feisal, a PTR 5A Pro and USPTA Master Professional. He is also a member of the Head/Penn Racquet Sports National Advisory Board and National Speaker’s Bureau and holds USPTA specialist degrees in Competitive Player Development, Facility Management, Little Tennis and Sports Science. He is a USTA Recreation Coach National and Quickstart Trainer, a member of the National Cardio Tennis Speakers Team and co-chairs the USPTA National Education Committee and the USPTA College Curriculum Committee. He is also on the USPTA Testing Committee and USTA National Youth Education Committee. He was also the Director of Certification & Testing for the USPTA Middle States division and was co-chair of the USPTA National Diversity Committee.
Feisal was also the Director of Coaches’ Education and Junior Davis Cup Team Coach for Tennis Zimbabwe. He was also voted in Tennis Industry magazine’s prestigious “40 Under 40” list for being one of the top 40 men and women under 40 years old who have had and will continue to have a strong influence in the sport and in the business of tennis– both nationally and internationally.
Hassan writes and conducts seminars, workshops and clinics for international, national and sectional organizations and events. He has also written the book, How to Handle Difficult Players and Conditions, and is currently working on his second book, Doubles: Phases & Situations.
In 2011, he was awarded the USPTA’s most prestigious award, the Alex Gordon National Professional of the Year and the 2011 Racquet Sports Industry Champions of Tennis Award. This is the Racquet Sports Industry’s (RSI) most prestigious awards recognizing and honoring the people, businesses and organizations that are making a difference in the tennis industry. He was also a recipient for the USPTA Mid-Atlantic Hall of Fame recipient Inaugural Class of 2012 and the 2012 USPTA George Bacso National Tester of the Year.
Previous accolades include the USPTA Industry Excellence Award in 1999, 5-time Division Tester of the Year, 11-time USPTA Division/State Pro of the Year, and 9-time national Top-10 point holder in the USPTA’s Career Development Program.
Country: Virginia (Orig. Zimbabwe)
Quote: 2011 USPTA Professional of the Year. 11-time USPTA Division/State Pro of the Year. Member Head/Penn Racquet Sports National Advisory Board.
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Bill Previdi
Bill Previdi began his tennis career at the age of 15 at the Port Washington Tennis Academy under the Direction of the legendary Harry Hopman. Bill attended St. John’s University in New York on a tennis scholarship and played for George Seewagen, a member of the ITA (Intercollegiate Tennis Association) Hall of Fame. He began teaching part time during college and decided to make it his career. He was appointed Head Pro at the Guilford Racket Club in Connecticut at the age of 24 and remained in that position for 26 years. During that time he began working on a system for playing and teaching doubles. From that work came The Previdi System… doubles for smart players. Bill has created a comprehensive program of drills and games to perfect the techniques, tactics and positioning that will make for a coherent way to play doubles. Although Bill continues to teach players and groups of all ages his passion is for doubles and for teaching it to adult players. Bill has also been a successful high school and college coach.
A few years ago Bill also developed a program called Point Play, the competitive tennis workout. It’s a game for six players and in an hour and a half players get a workout, play a high energy competitive game and have a fun and make new friends. Many clubs in Connecticut are now playing this game and Bill runs at least 10 groups a week at this club.
Bill is passionate about playing tennis as well. He continues to play as much as possible and has been nationally ranked in singles, doubles and Father-Son doubles. Bill and his son Matt were ranked #1 in New England and #20 on the Nation in 2008.
Country: Connecticut
Quote: Specialist in Doubles Training. Earned #1 New England and #20 US Ranking in Father-Son Division in 2008.
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Matt Previdi
Matt is a private and traveling high performance coach in La Jolla California, where he has led the La Jolla High men’s tennis team to an 85-11 record over the past 6 years. In 2011 the USPTA named him “Pro of the Year” in San Diego. Since then, Matt has helped his Father Bill pioneer “The Previdi System”– a doubles system geared towards adults who want to master the art of doubles.
Matt’s enthusiasm for tennis equipment knows no bounds. His background as a sought-after coach of all levels led him on a journey to better understand what the pros on tour know: that your equipment and how it is pieced together may be equally as important to your game (and your health) as technique, fitness and strategy/decision making.
Matt currently serves as the resident equipment expert for Solinco. His quest for equipment enlightenment has led him to take the Solinco stringing team to events such as the Easter Bowl, the Ojai, and the 2011 Fed Cup where Matt was the stringer for the Championship Team from Italy. His love of customization and modern string theory has led him to string for Rafael Nadal and lead seminars for the USPTA.
Matt’s goal is to take the knowledge that Pro players receive on the tour from top stringers and customizers and disseminate it to the general public and people who play for fun!
Country: California
Quote: USPTA San Diego Pro of the Year, High Performance Coach, Expert in Stringing and Racquet Customization
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Jorge Capestany
Jorge is one of only ten people worldwide that is a Master Professional with both the USPTA and PTR. He is a 6-time Michigan Pro of the Year a 2-time Midwest Pro of the Year. In 2015 he was named USPTA National Professional of the Year.
Jorge has coached hundreds of ranked juniors including 3 national champions. In Jorge’s career, his programs have developed more than 180 HS State Champions in Michigan. An internationally recognized speaker and author, Jorge serves many organizations in the tennis industry and is a member of the Wilson national speaker’s bureau team.
Jorge is the founder of Capestany Tennis Inc, which runs websites for tennis coaches and tennis players alike. His Coaches website – www.tennisdrills.tv – has more than 700 subscribers in over 65 countries. The site features more than 1,000 tennis drills.
The Player’s website – www.JorgeCapestany.com – features 100% free instruction and a Free Mental Toughness Video course that includes a free eBook.
Jorge has been a featured speaker at most of the largest tennis conferences in the world including, the PTR International Symposium, the USTA Tennis Teachers Conference in NYC at the US Open, the Australian Grand Slam Tennis Coaches conference in Melbourne, the Norwegian Tennis federation’s tennis coaches conference in Olso, the USPTA World Conference on tennis, and the ITF’s world-wide coaches conference in Mexico.
Country: Michigan (Orig. Cuba)
Quote: One of 10 People Worldwide Honored by PTR and USPTA as a Master Professional. 2015 USPTA National Professional of the Year.
Twitter: @CapestanyTennis
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Marti Capestany
Marti has been a certified tennis professional for more than 30 years and has worked with players of all level including many nationally ranked juniors. Marti has been ranked in the top 10 nationally in USTA women’s 35 division. Marti was a member of the 5.0 USTA women’s team that finished 2nd in the national championships. Marti still plays competitively and is still rated as a 5.0 player at age 54. She is a Tennis Pro at the Dewitt Tennis Center at Hope College in Holland MI and works extensively with her husband and Master Professional, Jorge Capestany.
Country: Michigan
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Joe Dinoffer
Joe Dinoffer has had an extensive “world class” career in the tennis industry, and has conducted clinics and exhibitions in over 50 countries, personally logging over 30,000 hours of instruction in English, Spanish, and German. He is a Master Professional in both the PTR and USPTA, a distinction awarded to only a select few in the tennis industry. Joe also received the prestigious 2006 USPTA Tennis Industry Excellence Award and was also selected as the 2012 USPTA Texas Pro of the Year.
Joe is the author and editor of 7 books and 17 DVDs. He writes regularly for www.TennisOne.com and Racquet Sports Industry Magazine, and also has numerous tips airing on the Tennis Channel . As a member of the Head/Penn Advisory Staff and National Speakers Bureau, Joe is a frequent speaker at national and international tennis conferences, having conducted over 250 workshops since 1995.
He is also the founder and president of Oncourt Offcourt, Ltd ., a company exclusively serving the needs of tennis, fitness, and physical education coaches with innovative training aids and educational tools. Joe lives in Dallas, Texas, with his wife, Monika, and their daughter, Kalindi.
Read some endorsements for Joe´s work here .
Country: Texas
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Ian Westermann
Ian Westermann is the owner and founder of Essential Tennis , an online leader in digital tennis instruction. He founded ET in 2008 after becoming frustrated with the daily challenges of being a full time on-court tennis pro. Since then his online instructional courses have been taken by over 20,000 tennis players in over 100 different countries. Ian specializes in both video and audio instructional content including the first audio tennis instruction podcast in the world: the Essential Tennis Podcast. Since 2008 he has published over 200 episodes of the show which is the highest rated tennis podcast on iTunes. Before leaving his on court teaching job to run Essential Tennis full time in April of 2011 Ian was a teaching professional at Congressional Country Club in Bethesda, Maryland for six years. Congressional is currently rated the #2 private country club in America and hosted the PGA U.S. Open in 2011. His college career was spent in the Professional Tennis Management program at Ferris State University in Big Rapids, MI. Ferris created the very first PTM program in 1989 and it’s still the biggest of it’s kind in the US. While there Ian played both singles and doubles on their UCAA Division II men’s team while earning a bachelors degree in Business Marketing and a minor in Professional Tennis Management. Ian recently moved back to his home town of Milwaukee, Wisconsin with his wife of 9 years, Alison, and their two children. He plans to continue using the most cutting edge and innovative methods possible to reach passionate tennis players all over the world.
Country: Wisconsin
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Angelo A. Rossetti
Angelo currently serves as the director of tennis at Weston Racquet Club. He is a USPTA P1/Elite & PTR teaching professional, being first certified in 1992.
Angelo played Varsity tennis at Hamden High School en route to being a top Division I player at the University of Connecticut, where he earned a B.S. degree in Sports Marketing. He won the USTA New England Sportsmanship award in 2005. In 2007, he & his identical twin brother, Ettoré, were ranked #1 in New England Men’s Open Doubles and top 10 in singles. Angelo is a 2X Guinness World Records of two different tennis titles; the longest tennis rally and the longest tennis volley rally.
Angelo earned the 2007 USPTA Regional Teaching Pro of the Year & 2007 Open Player of the Year. He earned the National 2009 USPTA Tennis Industry Excellence Award, also for New England in 2008 as well as the National 2016 USPTA Lessons for Life Award by raising over $100,000 for the Save the Children charity. Angelo has both coached ladies teams & played on 5.0 & Open USTA men’s teams that have gone to nationals. His most recent certifications are Developing Mental Toughness & USTA High Performance.
In August of 2008, he & Ettoré, set the official Guinness World RecordTM for the Longest Tennis Rally totaling 25,944 continuous strokes, lasting over 14 hours & 31 minutes. On August 8th of 2015 Angelo and his brother set the Guinness World RecordTM for the Longest tennis volley rally, 30,576 volleys lasting 5 hours and 28 minutes. Both records were contemplated and set to raise money and awareness for charities.
Angelo speaks every summer the International Tennis Hall of Fame, where their record is featured in the permanent exhibits. He is philanthropic minded & still raises money for notable charities. He has spoken at several schools and also to over 3,000 people at the CT Invention Convention. Angelo & his wife, Pam, live in Hamden with their daughter, Madison and son, Andy. Angelo has a passion for caring and inspiring people at every age, on and off the court. He believes in the 4 Gs: Get a Dream, Goal Set, Goal Get and Give Back, which leads to success in tennis and in life. Angelo maintains a mental skills blog for tennis players and athletes at www.tennacity.org .
Country: Connecticut
Email: [email protected]
IZTOK BOMBAC
Iztok is currently a Tennis Pro at Life Time Peachtree Corners, USTA Regional Tennis Center and premier Atlanta tennis facility. Before moving to the United States, he served as Managing Partner & Head Coach at TC Ljubljana, Slovenia—one of the most successful European tennis clubs, which produced several ATP and WTA players and men’s and women’s medals from the European Club Team Championships. As Head Coach he successfully developed club teams and players and is the only Slovenian coach with a Bronze medal from the European Team Club Championship for Men (2003). As a personal coach, he worked for 3 years with Blaž Kavčič, the first Slovenian male tennis player to break into the ATP top 100. He worked with several other players with ITF, ATP and WTA points as their personal coach as well.
Iztok was Slovenian Junior Davis Cup Captain from 1996 – 2000, during which time he led Boys 16 & Under National Teams to the World Junior Championships two years in a row (1998 and 1999), while helping teams and players achieve 6 other medals at different European Championships and Youth Olympic Games between. He worked with Katarina Srebotnik (former #1 in WTA doubles), Gregor Žemlja (top 50 ATP), Aljaž Bedene (top 50 ATP), Blaž Rola (top 100 ATP, NCAA Singles Champion), Maja Matevžič (top 30 WTA), Tina Pisnik (top 30 WTA) and other future top 100 WTA/ATP players.
Other Accomplishments
Served as the Assistant National Tester for University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Sport and Slovenian Tennis association for all three levels.
Member and Vice-President of Slovenian Tennis Coaches Association (1995 – 2014).
Member and Vice-President of Slovenian Tennis Players Development & High Performance Committee (1997 – 2001 and 2003 – 2007).
Founder and Tournament Director of $50,000 ATP Challenger BMW Ljubljana Open (2007).
Lecturer at different conferences e.g. ITF Worldwide Workshop 2007, 2009, TennisEurope 2000, 2001, PTR 2007, Sweden 2001, Croatia 2002, Slovenia 1995 – 2007, MTM 2015 (1995 – present)
Translator of ITF publications/books from English to Slovenian language. Translated ITF Advanced Coaches Manual (2010) and Technique Development in Tennis Stroke Production (2015).
Motion-analysis specialist (SiliconCoach motion analyzing software).
Certifications: USTA High Performance, Slovenian Tennis Coaches Association High Performance, USPTA Elite Pro, PTR Professional, MTM.
Country: Georgia (Orig. Slovenia)
Quote: High Performance Coach to ATP and WTA players. Former Slovenian Junior Davis Cup Captain. Bronze Medalist at European Team Club Championship.
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Adam Lane
Adam Lane has coached and played tennis all over the world. He was a four-year All-Conference player in both Singles and Doubles at Belmont University where he majored in History and Political Science.
He started his coaching career at Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama. His teaching career has taken him to Korea, Costa Rica, New York, Florida, China, Australia and currently back to Puerto Rico for the second time where he currently is in charge of tennis for Dorado Beach, a Ritz Carlton Reserve, the first 6 star resort in the Western Hemisphere.
Having worked with recreational players, resort guests, top internationally ranked juniors, and top 50 ranked professionals on the WTA tour his experience covers all facets of tennis teaching. In 2013 he was named the Junior Federation Cup coach for Puerto Rico. He is certified by both PTR and Tennis Australia.
Country: Ohio
Quote: Director of Tennis for Dorado Beach, a Ritz Carlton Reserve. Certified by both PTR and Tennis Australia. Four-Year All-Conference player in Singles/Doubles at Belmont University.
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Email: [email protected]
Tim Bustle
Tim Bustle is the Assistant Tennis Director/Adult Tennis Director at Midtown Athletic Club in Chicago, Illinois. Tim oversees the largest adult instructional program in the US with over 600 weekly participants. Tim was instrumental in the development of Midtown’s Adult Development Pathway, which is utilized at all 10 Midtown family of clubs and is responsible for it’s on court content delivery by the clubs 35 coaches. Tim’s coaching has led USTA and CITA teams to local, regional and sectional championships and he is a lead administrator for Midtown’s patented Tennis in No Time program.
Within the industry, Tim holds four Professional Tennis Registry certifications: Adult Development, Junior Development, Junior Competitive, and 11-17 Pathways. He has been a speaker at PTR Midwest Conferences and has been published in TennisPro Magazine. Tim is also a TIA Cardio Tennis Global Trainer and has been a part of the development of the L2 Cardio Tennis certification.
Country: Illinois
Quote: Assistant Tennis Director/Adult Tennis Director at Midtown Athletic Club. Holds 4 Professional Tennis Registry Certificates. TIA Cardio Tennis Global Trainer.
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Email: [email protected]
Frank Giampaolo
Frank Giampaolo is a 30 year sports education veteran. He was honored as the USPTA Southern California Tennis Director of the Year and received numerous awards as a top teaching professional by Southern California Tennis & Golf Magazine.
Frank is a popular international convention speaker, a sports educator, instructional writer for ITF (International Tennis Federation) Coaching & Sports Science Review, UK Tennis magazine, the USPTA, Tennis Magazine and Tennis View Magazine. He is the best selling author of Championship Tennis (Human Kinetics Publishing), Raising Athletic Royalty, The Tennis Parent’s Bible.
His television appearances include The NBC Today Show, OCN-World Team Tennis, Fox Sports, Tennis Canada and Tennis Australia.
Frank founded The Tennis Parents Workshops in 1998, conducting workshops across the United States, Mexico, Israel, New Zealand, Australia, Canada and Spain.
Frank’s commitment to coaching excellence helped develop approximately 100 National Champions, hundreds of NCAA athletes, numerous NCAA All-Americans and several professional athletes. His innovative approach has made him a worldwide industry leader. Frank is currently the Vice Chair of the USTA/SCTA Coaches Commission.
Quote:
“I am very interested in giving back to the game that has brought me everything. I’m seeking the brotherhood. The elite coaches on the faculty are my colleagues . Everything I’ve heard from them about you… points me there.”
Country: California
Quote: 30 Year Sports Education Veteran. Awarded USPTA Southern CA Tennis Director of the Year. Best Selling Author. Instructional Writer for ITF.
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Email: [email protected]
Kendall Chitambar
Kendall is the Director of both Tennis and Player Development for the Rocky Mountain Tennis Center . He is a former professional player trained by some of the top coaches in the game with over 22 years coaching experience. Kendall directly oversees all aspects of the teaching programs and is widely recognized for his success in developing competitive players. Kendall also has his PTR Master of Tennis-Performance certification.
Kendall was named PTR Member of the Year for the State of Colorado. This award is presented to a PTR member in the United States who has shown dedication and diligence in promoting and supporting tennis and PTR.
PTR certified in 1989, at just 18 years old, Chitambar has spent his life in tennis. As a player, he was trained by some of the world’s best coaches, including Agassi’s coach, Fritz Nau. He competed internationally on the ITF Satellite Circuit, playing in Bulgaria, El Salvador, France, Hungary, Korea, Mexico, Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovenia, Turkey and the USA.
As a tennis instructor and coach, Chitambar has worked with some of the industry’s top names, including Dennis Van der Meer, under whom he got his start.
Currently, Chitambar is managing a year round high performance program that has been instrumental in developing many of the top juniors in Colorado and the USTA Intermountain Section. Since its inception in 2008, the program has also helped nearly 30 juniors achieve national rankings.
In 2011, Chitambar was in the inaugural class of the PTR Master of Tennis – Performance program, and earned the highest rating offered by PTR. He is currently enrolled in the PTR Master of Tennis – Junior Development program.
With his wife and business partner, Donna, Duke Paluch and Bill Boothby, Chitambar spent six years developing the Rocky Mountain Tennis Center. The doors opened in 2012. The facility boasts 33 courts, eight of which will be clay and 14 indoor. The courts are lined for regulation tennis, as well as for 10 and Under Tennis. The Rocky Mountain Tennis Center is a major contributor for tennis development in the Colorado area.
Country: Colorado
Quote: Director of both Tennis and Player Development at the Rocky mountain tennis center. Named PTR member of the year for the state of Colorado. Over 22 Years of coaching experience. Certified as a PTR Master of Tennis - Performance.
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Isaac Galindo
Isaac Galindo is Founder and Academy director at Galindo Tennis USA, a subdivision of GMG United, a full-service sports company providing complete management services worldwide.
Isaac brings great expertise in stroke analysis and sports science. He has put great emphasis in the development of young American athletes by bringing the Spanish system to the U.S by understanding and applying principles of perfect biomechanics and positioning.
He also represents and counsels several top ITF/ATP players in the world.
He recently started Love 4 Sports Foundation with the goal of helping the community and less fortunate through sports.
PLAYER EXPERIENCE
Top 150 Spanish nationally ranked player
Played professional ATP events around the world with wins over top 500 ranked players
Posted a record of 32-6 at Florida Southern College NCAA D2 School leading the team to the highest national ranking in school (3rd in the county)
Ranked #9 in the Nation in singles
2005 All-Region Team(S). 2005 ITA All-American(S). SSC Commissioner’s List of Outstanding Achievement (2007)
Hitting partner for both ATP and WTA players
COACHING EXPERIENCE
Galindo Tennis USA, Academy Director.
Beerman Tennis Complex, Florida: Head Tennis Professional
Private Coach for Top Junior/ ITF Players: Stephen Madonia, Benoit Paradis, Isaac Nortey.
Florida Southern College Assistant Coach
Coach and Teaching Pro – San Diego, California. Taught private and group lessons at the Scripps * * Ranch Tennis
Center. Coached top juniors, organized summer camp programs and assisted with coordinating junior adult leagues.
EDUCATION
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Gerard Galindo
Gerard Galindo is co-founder of Galindo Tennis USA. He is the ITF/WTA/ATP Academy Director. He is also in charge of the international business department which embraces the marketing and finance areas of all international programs the academy offers abroad.
PLAYER EXPERIENCE
* Top 150 Spanish nationally ranked player
* Top Junior Player in Spain. Classified for the Under 16’s national championship.
* Played professional ATP events with wins over world ranked players.
* Hitting partner at several ATP events.
* Posted a record of 14-2 at East Carolina University (Division 1) and 15-2 at Alliant International University.
* ITA Rolex Southern California Regional Singles Finalist
* Ranked #16 in the U.S.
* 2005 ITA All-American (S)
* Pro Player Academy Director at Galindo Tennis USA.
* Coach and Assistant Pro at Bermudez Tennis Academy.
* Assistant Coach at the University of Arkansas, Little Rock, Arkansas.
* Coach and Teaching Pro – San Diego, California. Taught private and group lessons at the Scripps Ranch Tennis Center
* Participated in several exhibition matches and clinics in Europe and U.S.
EDUCATION:
* University of Arkansas- Bachelor in International Business with Minor in foreign languages: Spanish, May 2008.
* Certification in Nutrition (ISSA)
* Concussion in Sports Certificate (NFHS)
* Personal Trainer (International Sports Science Association)
* Fluent in Spanish, Catalan and English.
Country: Florida (Orig Spain)
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Michele Krause
Michele Krause is the Cardio Tennis Manager working for the Tennis Industry Association (TIA). Cardio Tennis is a fun, group fitness activity consisting of fast paced tennis drills and games for players of all ability levels providing a full body calorie-burning workout. Michele has overseen the program since its inception in 2005 and since the rollout and there are now 1,800 Authorized Providers, 1.4 million Cardio Tennis participants in the US and the program has spread to over 30 countries.
Michele oversees the entire Cardio Tennis program both in the US and internationally. Her responsibilities include all the day-to-day operations: administration, programming, curriculum, event planning, training and marketing. She manages the TIA Global Cardio Tennis Team which is made up of 25 Trainers who assist her with training, educating and consumer events. She also serves as the coordinator for those countries who are in the process of establishing, launching or continued development of Cardio Tennis. She speaks at many industry conventions, (PTR, USPTA, IHRSA, ITA, ITF, PBI and USTA) meetings and events to provide ongoing education on the Cardio Tennis program. She also trains coaches how to deliver the product through national and international courses. Internationally she has conducted courses in Portugal, the UK, the Caribbean, Ireland, Poland, Greece and Canada. She spent 2 years working with Tennis Australia helping them to develop the program for their country.
Michele has developed Cardio Tennis Kids, Supersize Cardio Tennis and TRX Cardio Tennis. Cardio Tennis was featured on NBC’s the Biggest Loser under Michele’s guidance with Anna Kournakova and she secured Anna as the Cardio Tennis spokesperson.
Michele is a USPTA and PTR tennis professional who managed tennis facilities throughout the US for over 16 years. She is formally educated in TRX Suspension Training and is a Certified Ignite 360 (Combine 360) Trainer. Michele received the TIA/PTR Industry Excellence award on 2012. Michele continuously strives to improve the Cardio Tennis experience for both the tennis professional and the consumer.
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Christophe Delavaut
Christophe is founder of TennisOxygen.com , which specializes in online private coaching using personal stroke video analysis that draws extensively on high-speed video footage of today’s top professionals.
He holds a Professional #1 rating by both the USPTA (1996), PTR (1986), and MTM (2012). He has competed and coached at every level from juniors collegiate and professional. He has been the USPTA District #9 President since 2010 and is also a monthly contributor to TennisOne.com , one of the leading tennis teaching web sites in the world.
Christophe is currently the Director of Tennis of the Grand Harbor Golf and Tennis in Vero Beach FL (since 1995) during the winter months and at The New Seabury Club on Cape Cod MA from Memorial Day to Labor Day since 2011. He also serves as a board member of the Indian River Tennis Foundation, a foundation dedicated to raise funds to award lesson scholarships to local juniors.
During summers has has acted as Director of Tennis of The Lloyd Neck Bath Club in Cold Spring Harbor NY (1996-1999), Tennis director of the Country Club of Detroit in Grosse Pointe MI (2000-2006), Tennis Director at the Walloon Lake Country Club in Wallon Lake MI (2007-2011), and Tennis Director at The New Seabury Club on Cape Cod MA (2011-present).
In 1987 he was the original founder and Director of the Sugarbush Tennis School, which was rated as one of the World’s Best Tennis Schools by Tennis Magazine. Roger Cox, Senior Travel Editor for Tennis Magazine, described the Sugarbush Tennis School as the most dynamic and innovative tennis school in the country.
Christophe is the author of Tennis Atlas: The Ultimate Doubles Program, a 200-page tennis teaching manual geared to help teaching professionals guarantee improvement to their students. He holds a B.S Business degree from Franklin Pierce University, (1987).
Country: Florida (Orig. France)
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Stan Oley
Stan is employed by Playmate Ball Machines as their Product Marketing Specialist. Stan is Founder of FBT60 (Fit By Tennis in 60 Days). FBT60 is a new tennis/fitness program combining nutrition and a series of ball machine drills
Stan is a USPTA Master Professional. Less than 160 of the 14,000 USPTA Pros have this distinction. Stan is a member of the USPTA, PTR, USTA. Stan was named 2016 Florida USPTA Pro of the Year. Stan was named 2016 Florida USPTA District 15 Pro of the Year. Stan was the USPTA District 15 President from 2007-2012. Stan was Florida USPTA District President of the Year in 2007 and his District was District of the Year in 2008.
Stan has attended 20 USPTA World Conferences, speaking at 11 of them. Stan has spoken at over 100 USPTA Divisional Conventions. Stan has performed different USPTA Specialty Courses at 18 USPTA Division or World Conferences.
During his 30 years as a teaching professional (29 years USPTA Certified), he was a teaching professional at John’s Island Club in Vero Beach, FL, the head tennis professional at the International Tennis Center in Key Biscayne, FL (Home of the Miami Open Championships), as well as a teaching professional at the Eau Gallie Yacht Club in Indian Harbour Beach, FL.
He has been working and teaching with ball machines for over 25 years. He has also published drills and articles for USPTA Addvantage Magazine, Tennis Week, and PTR Tennis Pro Magazine. Stan was featured on the Tennis Channel’s One Minute Clinic, “On-Court with the USPTA” and has three full length DVDs, “Ball Machine Drills, Drills, Drills” featuring drills with a ball machine, “Rip Your Returns Like the Pros” featuring the serve return, (which recently won Honor of Distinction at a recent communications awards event), and “Zone It to Own It” featuring strike-zones and stroke production.
Stan is very proud to be sponsored by adidas and Babolat tennis products
Country: Florida
She is also a PTR 11-17 Clinician and Tester.
Milena was named the 2015 PTR Mississippi Professional of the Year.
Country: South Carolina (Orig. Brazil)
Quote: Former #1 in Brazil, 2015 PTR Mississippi Professional of the Year
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Julio Godreau
Julio Godreau holds certifications with the USPTA (Elite), PTR (Master of Tennis Performance), and the USTA (High Performance). He currently serves as the Director of Junior Tennis for the USTA Texas section.
As a coach he has developed players in Orange Ball (2 Southern #1 ranked players and 3 Southern Closed Champions) and Yellow Ball (player ranked as high as #5 in the US and quarterfinalist at Orange Bowl and Eddie Herr tournaments). At the collegiate level his students have accomplished scholarships at prestigious conferences such as the Pac-12 and SEC, and have won NCAA Division 1 team championship. Aside from his on court success with Junior Players he has also guided adults to State, Sectional, and National Championships.
He has been the recipient of numerous awards from the USPTA, PTR, and USTA including Southern Pro of the Year. As an educator he often presents at sectional events and has been a speaker at The USPTA World Conference and PTR International Symposium.
Julio was a top Junior player in the Caribbean, NCAA Division I Scholarship Collegiate Player, and has played at the Pro level. He is also fully bilingual (English and Spanish) and has a Masters Degree in Business Administration and an undergrad in Psychology. He has been married for twelve years to Charisse and has two daughters, Emma (6) and Sophie (9).
•PTR Master of Tennis Performance (Equivalent to ITF Level 3)
•USPTA Certified Professional Level 1
•PTR Certified Professional Level
•USPTA & PTR Player Development Specialist
•USTA High Performance Orange Bowl World Class Junior Player Development Study
•USTA High Performance US Open Pro Player Development Study
•USTA High Performance 10 & Under Certified
•USTA Referee Certified
•USTA Tournament Director Certification (TDM)
AWARDS
•PTR Mississippi Member of the Year 2014
•USPTA 10 & Under Southern Pro of the Year 2012
•USPTA Southern Pro of the Year 2007
•USTA Southern Pro of the Year 2008
•USPTA Mississippi Pro of the Year 2006 & 2007
•USTA Mississippi Pro of the Year 2008
•USPTA Developmental Pro of the Year 2004
•USPTA North Cal Rookie Pro of the Year 1997
USTA INVOLVEMENT
•Selected to coach USTA National Level 1 camp at USTA Center in NY (US Open Location) along with coaches Tom Gullikson, Richard Ashby, Kent Kinnear, Jay Gooding, and Geoff Russell.
•Chairman 10 & Under USTA Southern Committee
•Vice Chairman USTA Southern Player Development Committee
•Representative for USPTA & PTR Pros in USTA Mississippi
•Chair USTA Southern Talent Identification Camps Committee
•Chair USTA Mississippi Junior Council Committee
•Member USTA National Pro Circuit Committee
•Head Coach USTA Competitive Training Center (CTC) Mississippi
•Coach USTA Southern and Mississippi Talent Identification Camps
•Coach USTA Southern and Mississippi Talent Identification Camps
•Coach USTA Middle States 12 and under Zonal National Team
•Coach USTA Southern 14 and under Zonal National Team
USPTA AND PTR INVOLVEMENT
•Speaker at USPTA World Symposium
•Speaker at USPTA Winter Southern Conference
•Chairman USPTA Multicultural Committee
•Speaker at PTR International Symposium
•Speaker at USPTA Southern Conferences
•Speaker at USPTA Tennessee, Mississippi, & Louisiana Workshops
•Speaker at Mississippi’s High School Coaches
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Joel Drucker
Joel Drucker is one of the world’s leading tennis writers – spanning everything from coverage of the contemporary game to recreational play, history, humor and more. Over the last 30 years, his work has appeared in dozens of print and broadcast media. These include Tennis, Tennis Week, USTA Magazine and many others. Drucker’s tennis work also extends to dozens of general interest media, including Men’s Journal, Los Angeles Magazine, the San Diego Reader, People and Cigar Aficionado. In television he has worked with Tennis Channel since the network’s start ten years ago, starting as co-producer of the interview show “Center Court” and currently as Tennis Channel’s story editor for its coverage of the Grand Slam events, as well as an ongoing series of tournaments, documentaries and special programs. His book, Jimmy Connors Saved My Life, is considered one of five “must-read” tennis books by Sports Illustrated. Joel has been playing tennis for more than 40 years, including experience as a Southern California junior and instructor for Tony Trabert.
In August 2016 Joel was appointed the first American “ Historian-at-Large ” for the International Tennis Hall of Fame.
Country: California
Quote: Writer and Editor for The Tennis Channel and Tennis magazine. Historian-at-Large for International Tennis Hall of Fame.
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Rod Heckelman
Rod Heckelman’s career started in 1966 the summer after his junior year in high school when he began his five-year role as a teacher at John Gardiner’s Tennis Ranch in Carmel Valley, Calif. Later he opened as the resident pro for Gardiner’s Tennis Ranch on Camelback in Scottsdale, Ariz. At 20 years of age, he was one of the youngest pros to be the Head Pro at what some considered one of the top tennis resorts in the world.
In 1976 he made his way back to his home state of California, where he took over as Head Pro/Tennis Director at the Mt. Tam Racquet Club in Larkspur. He added the title and responsibilities of General Manager in 1982. From his early teaching years, Rod has been involved with developing top players. He has developed over 15 national champions at the junior level and 4 at the senior level. As a competitor he has played and been ranked at both national and sectional levels, breaking the top 5 in 1991. Rod published an instructional manual in 1992 for tennis teachers to use with their students called “Down Your Alley.”
For the last couple of years, excerpts from his “Facility Manager’s Manual” were being published in Racquet Sports Industry magazine. The manual is now available digitally through the Tennis Industry Association for managers and clubs to use as a model for operating their businesses. More recently, he created a “Business Handbook for Tennis Pros,” that is also being produced by T.I.A. In 2010 he was awarded “Manager of the Year” for the USPTA NorCal division and later announced by the USPTA as the “Manager of the Year” at the World Conference. Rod travels the country lecturing to fellow pros about management skills and helping them transition into management. Rod continues to expand his knowledge on all aspects of the tennis business, and he is a frequent presenter at industry events throughout the country including speaking at IRHSA World Conference in San Francisco in 2011, the first person to represent the tennis industry at an IRHSA convention in over 25 years.
Rod recently was selected to the new Babalot Advisory Board and came out with his second instructional book, “Playing Into the Sunset,” an instructional book for senior players available through BoomerTennis.net.
Country: California
Quote: Author "Playing Into the Sunset", Developed 15 national champions at the junior level and 4 at the senior level
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Bill Riddle
Bill is a veteran with over 27 years of college, junior and club coaching and management experiences and is recognized as a High Performance Tennis Specialist by the PTR, USPTA & USTA. He currently serves as the Director of Tennis for the Bluegrass Yacht & Country Club in Hendersonville, Tennessee and owns and operates a tennis management firm that consults on tennis event, program and facility needs. For the last 17 years he has directed the tennis program at BYCC coaching and teaching all levels of players. During his time there, Bluegrass has been recognized as a Top 50 Tennis Welcome Center in the nation and was awarded the Professional Tennis Registry Facility of the Year for Tennessee and the USPTA Tennessee Tennis Facility of the Year in 2013.
Bill spent nine years coaching tennis at the collegiate level. His college teams and players have had success both on and off court at the national levels. He has coached 9 All-American players and numerous with national singles and doubles rankings. While coaching college tennis he was a two time recipient of the USPTA Southern Division College Coach of the Year award and a two time ITA/ USTA College Coaches Community Service award. Additionally he was named TranSouth Conference Coach of the Year and Regional Coach of the Year.
He has been a speaker at a number of national and international coaches and player workshops and seminars around the world including the USTA Tennis Teachers Conference at the US Open, the PTR International Symposium, various USPTA Divisional and State Conventions and the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Coaches Convention. He is a member of the Global TIA Cardio Tennis Team and conducts workshops and seminars for tennis coaches, professionals and fitness providers. In 2006 he was one of only ten coaches chosen in the USA to represent the USTA High Performance Coaches Program at the Wimbledon Championships. He has since been selected by the USTA High Performance Coaches Program for the coaches program at the USA vs. Switzerland, USA vs Spain and USA vs Brazil Davis Cup ties as well as several US Open Championships.
Service to the tennis industry has always been important to Bill as he has served in a number of areas and capacities including:
– United States Professional Tennis Association Tennessee State Chapter President
– USPTA Tester and Southern Tournament Director and Circuit Chairman
– Tournament Director for the Professional Tennis Registry International $25,000 Tennis Championships
– Served as PTR Tennessee State Representative
– PTR International Tester and Clinician
– Served on United States Tennis Association Tennessee Board of Directors (PTR Representative)
– Served on USTA Tennessee Player Development Committee
– Served as Chairman for USTA Tennessee 10 & Under Tennis Committee
– USTA Southern Pros Relations Committee and USTA Southern Innovations Committee
Bill was recently honored with the 2014 USPTA National Lessons for Life award at the US Open. He has been selected as the USTA Tennessee 2011 Tennis Professional of the Year and is the only three time USPTA Tennessee Pro of the Year and two time PTR Tennessee Pro of the Year award winner in Tennessee history. Bill not only coaches and teaches players from around the world to play tennis but also works with tennis coaches to help improve their coaching and teaching abilities. He has conducted player evaluations and seminars in a variety of countries including England, Bermuda, Jamaica, Holland, Canada and throughout the Caribbean and the USA. He has organized and directed tennis camps in Anguilla, St. Martin and Jamaica for both adults and junior tennis players for the last 12 years and in 2010 and 2011 worked with the Classic of Champions event in Sweden. He is a member of the PRINCE Elite Team and the adidas National Advisory Staff.
No stranger to entertainment and tennis promotions, he created and co-hosted the award winning weekly radio show called “Tennis Talk” that aired on WLAC out of Nashville. In 2012 Bill served as an “on air” TV announcer and commentator for the WTA Tour Dallas Women’s Pro Tournament on the FOX Sports South Network and ESPN. He has also been involved with a TV show for the Tennis Channel and has also been featured on local and regional TV and radio networks promoting tennis and offering tennis tips.
One of Bill’s passions is the annual Music City Tennis Invitational charity tennis tournament that raises money for the Vanderbilt University Children’s Hospital Child Development Center. For the last 15 years he has worked with and served as a Co Chairman and Tournament Director for this premier music and tennis event that has raised over $2,000,000 for local charity’s in Nashville. He has organized and directed high profile events consisting of a “who’s who” list of current and former ATP and WTA tour players as well as music industry artists and leaders including Jake Owen, Brad Paisley, Vince Gill, Martina McBride, Sarah Evans, Billy Ray Cyrus, Brooks and Dunn and Lady A’s, Hillary Scott to name a few.
Bill and his wife Stephanie are natives of Middle Tennessee and have two children, Blakely who was a top ranked state junior tennis player and member of the 2 time state high school team championship tennis team at Ravenwood High School and Will who is an avid soccer and baseball player but is also a top state ranked junior tennis player.
Country: Tennessee
Quote: PTR, USPTA & USTA High Performance Coach. Recipient of Tennis Professional of the Year awards from USTA, USPTA and PTR
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Bruce Levine
Bruce “Mad Dog” Levine has been involved in the tennis industry 36 years and during that time has gotten his hands into most aspects of the industry and game. His diverse experience includes playing, coaching and teaching from the grassroots through high school, college, and the tour levels of tennis. Bruce has also owned and managed clubs in the northeast and is currently working as a consultant in several clubs.
One of the “Dog’s” main responsibilities in the tennis industry has been that of the Technical Advisor and Lead Racquet/String Tester for Tennis Magazine and tennis.com. Bruce has been helpful to players and coaches alike in understanding the technical and playing characteristics of the multitude of racquets and strings in today’s market.
In addition to his playing, coaching, and management experience, Mad Dog currently serve the tennis community as the USPTA Board Member and Regional Vice President in the Middle States Section and also is on the USTA Middle States Board of Directors.
Country: Northeast US
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Marlon Dal Pont
Marlon is from Foz do Iguacu Brazil, where he was the #3 ranked junior in the state of Parana and one of the nation’s top 150 juniors under 18. He went on to study and play tennis at Lindsey Wilson College in Kentucky, and in 2013 was named Mid-South Conference Men’s Tennis Player of the Week.
He currently serves as Head Coach for the Lindsey Wilson college men’s and women’s tennis programs, following a successful tenure as assistant coach from 2014-15. In his first season at the helm of the tennis teams in 2016, Dal Pont took both programs to new heights as the women’s team advanced to the NAIA National Championship match and the men’s team advanced to the NAIA National Semifinals, the highest finishes in history for both squads. Both teams had tried and failed multiple times to advance past the quarterfinal and semifinal rounds before Dal Pont helped guide them to the best finishes in history in 2016.
Dal Pont guided both teams to both the MSC regular season and tournament titles and was named the MSC Coach of the Year on the women’s side in 2016. In his first season, Dal Pont coached four NAIA All-Americans, one MSC Player of the Year, one MSC Freshman of the Year, eight First Team All-MSC selections, three Second Team All-MSC selections, three NAIA Scholar-Athletes and 10 Academic All-MSC honorees.
Prior to his coaching days, Dal Pont had an outstanding three-year playing career with the Blue Raiders from 2010-13. He compiled a 40-13 singles record and a 51-11 doubles record. His singles and doubles victories rank him in the top 10 all-time in Lindsey Wilson men’s tennis history. He earned First Team All-MSC honors as a senior during the 2013 season.
Marlon received extensive training in Brazil through the (FPT) Parana Tennis Federation and (CBT) Brazilian Tennis Confederation. He speaks English, Spanish and Portuguese fluently.
Country: Brazil
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Keith Henderson
Keith currently serves as the Head Tennis Professional at the Danville Country Club in Lexington Kentucky and also is a Teaching Professional at the Lexington Tennis Club. He is a PTR Professional for Junior Development (11-17) and also holds the USTA 10 & Under Certification. A former USTA Top 10 player, Keith played college tennis at Transylvania University and was a three-time recipient of HCAC All-Conference honors. In 2013 he was USTA Kentucky Junior Southern Cup Coach. In 2014 he was a Special Recipient for the Paul Arber Young Coaches Award presented by the International Tennis Performance Association (ITPA).
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Doug Miller
Doug Miller has been an integral part of Tucson’s Tennis community for 15 years, though his career as a coach began long before, back in 1981 at the Port Washington Tennis Academy. Over the years, his career has grown to encompass teaching and coaching at all levels, and all ages. A USPTA Professional Elite coach, Doug brings a unique perspective to the court, as well as an infamous sense of humor.
Doug’s coaching career has been built on being an active participant, on the court and off. Currently a member of the Head Advisory Staff, USTA Southwest Slam Series Doubles Champion, and 2014 Tucson City Champion in Men’s 55 and over.
As a sectionally and nationally ranked player, in both singles and doubles, Doug relates to all levels of play, whether competitive or social. Currently Doug divides his time between Senior Team Coaching, individual player development and a few budding junior players as well. Doug’s priority on the court for any player is enthusiasm for the sport… bring a positive attitude and have fun.
Country: Arizona
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Debi Vincent
Debi Vincent has spent more than 20 years in the fitness industry as a trainer, educator and competitor. She is a recognized leader in the industry and is regularly called upon to share her knowledge and expertise with other trainers across the country.
Debi holds numerous fitness certifications, including being a Tennis Performance Trainer (TPT) of the International Tennis Performance Association (iTPA). She is also a Nationally Certified Peak Pilates Instructor and Master Trainer, a Nationally Certified personal trainer and TRX trainer, and a group exercise, zumba and spinning instructor. She is the owner of Active Body & Health Inc., a 2000 square-foot Personal Training, Pilates and Sports Performance facility located in Severna Park, MD that features the A3 Sports Performance Program designed for athletes seeking to develop and improve their skills in their respective sports.
As a competitor, Debi has been a national aerobics competitor, regional champion, and a highly competitive collegiate gymnast. Her specialized training and competitive experience, coupled with her energy, enthusiasm, and passion for sharing knowledge, have been the foundation of her successful business. She has numerous dedicated clients who are continuously inspired by her enthusiasm, knowledge, and constant support.
Debi holds a degree in Fitness Management from Lock Haven University.
Learn more at http://activebodyandhealth.com
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Ted Murray
Ted Murray’s has nearly four decades of experience in the tennis industry internationally, working in over 30 countries while developing new programs for numerous first-class clubs, resorts, and academies. He was a founding member and 20-year contributor to Peter Burwash International (PBI), the worlds first and largest tennis management company founded in 1975. He owned a world-class tennis and fitness club in Florida for 10 years and has taught students of all ages from absolute beginners with no athletic ability to juniors who went on to win Olympic medals and dozens of Grand Slam titles. He has shared his passion for the game by training thousands of coaches, writing articles and books, and being part of some of the revolutionary trends in the sport. He was an original member of the Cardio Tennis Speakers Team in 2005 that trained coaches throughout the world.
Ted is the founder of “Tennis From The Heart,” an organization dedicated to creating a new paradigm for teaching tennis that emphasizes not only world-class training techniques but also the potential for tennis to be a forum for self-discovery, personal growth, and skill building needed to be a champion in life. He is also Senior Advisor to the Tennis Legacy Fund, a nonprofit founded in 2014 to catalyze high-impact initiatives in the tennis industry that benefit both people and the planet.
Country: Colorado
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Benny Morentin
Since 2008, Benny Morentin has been the Director of Tennis at the Tucson Country Club. He is a member of both the PTR and USPTA. In 2013, Benny was named PTR Pro of the Year for Arizona. With the PTR, Benny is a certified clinician and is certified to teach 10 years and under children, as well as 11-17 year olds. Currently he is working on his Master of Tennis with the PTR. For more than 25 years Benny has inspired junior players in the Tucson community. He began teaching in 1989 at Himmel Tennis Center where he was the Director of Junior Development and the Assistant Head Pro. Since then he has been Assistant Head Pro at the Tucson Racquet Club and Director of Tennis at Omni Tucson National before coming to Tucson Country Club.
Benny has been the coach for the USTA inter-district and inter-sectional teams and Area Training Center. At one time he was the head coach for St. Gregory Preparatory School. Many of Benny’s students have gone on to become successful high school and collegiate athletes, as well as nationally ranked juniors. Additionally, Benny teaches adults and interclub teams. He has coached five USTA teams to Nationals in the past six years at the Tucson Country Club.
Benny’s own accomplishments include being an All-American collegiate player and was ranked 4th in the nation in doubles while at Grand Canyon University in Phoenix, Arizona. He played three years at the USTA National 5.0 Tennis Championships, and was a member of the 2010 USTA National 4.5 team. In 2008, Benny was one of a small group of professionals in Tucson to have been invited to complete the USTA Elite Coaches High Performance Training class. This accolade truly establishes Benny Morentin as one of the top tennis-teaching professionals in the area, as evidenced by his coaching popularity from beginners to elite players.
Country: Arizona
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John Adamek
John is Director of Fitness and Head Strength and Conditioning Coach at Magnus: Expand Human Performance , a leading fitness facility located at CourtSense in New Jersey. He is also an iTPA Certified Tennis Performance Specialist (CTPS). John has a deep resume of working with high profile clients in both the athletic and rehabilitation facilities, and has had the honor and pleasure of training various CEO’s, celebrities, Division I and professional athletes. John holds numerous certifications including; Certified Personal Training, Corrective Exercise Specialist, and Performance Enhancement Specialist from the National Academy of Sports Medicine; Sports Performance Coach through the United States of American Weightlifting; and High School Strength and Conditioning Specialist from the International Youth Conditioning Association. John is an active member of the Greater New York Chapter of the American College of Sports Medicine where he is on the Education Committee.
John himself was a three-sport athlete growing up playing baseball, football and basketball. His baseball career took him from high school to college and eventually to the semi-professional level in Europe.
Country: New Jersey
Quote: CTPS. Head Strength and Conditioning Coach at Magnus: Expand Human Performance. Expert in Functional and Tennis-Specific Training
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Trevor McPherson
Trevor is a strength and conditioning coach at Magnus: Expand Human Performance , a leading fitness facility located at CourtSense in New Jersey. He is also an iTPA Certified Tennis Performance Specialist (CTPS). Trevor has a strong passion for the health and fitness industry, and his training draws on extensive experience as a tennis player and long distance runner. Trevor was a ranked junior in the United States Tennis Association (USTA) for over 5 years. Tennis gave him a strong understanding of body movement, endurance and flexibility. As a distance runner, Trevor has completed various half and full marathons all over the tri-state area. Searching for creative and dynamic ways of training is the constant goal for Trevor, who is certified in the Functional Movement Systems (FMS), as well as being a certified personal trainer through the ISSA.
Country: New Jersey
Quote: CTPS. Strength and conditioning coach at Magnus: Expand Human Potential. Expert in Tennis-Specific and Functional Training.
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Tom Ruth
Currently Director of Tennis at Moss Creek, 2015 Outstanding Tennis Facility, in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. PTR Professional 10 & Under, 11-17, and Adult Development as well as a clinician in the 11-17, Adult Development and Senior Development pathways. Went through the USTA High Performance Coaching Program in 2011. He is also an iTPA-certified Tennis Performance Trainer (TPT). Has served the USTA SC as coach at Southern 10 and Under camps and tournaments as well as Southern 14 and Under Sectional Tournaments. Currently Head Coach for Early Development Camps in South Carolina. Tom also serves on the USTA SC and USTA Southern Tennis Professionals Committees. Formerly Tom was the Youth Tennis Professional in Sumter, SC from 2009-2012. Played collegiate tennis at Saint Joseph’s College in Rensselaer, IN where he earned All-GLVC (Great Lakes Valley Conference) honors.
Country: South Carolina
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Jenny Robb
Jenny Robb is the Assistant Department head at Life Time Athletic and Tennis Peachtree Corners, Norcross, GA. Jenny played NCAA Division I tennis at Samford University in Birmingham, AL where she earned her Bachelor of Arts in English/Language Arts. During her college years she coached summer camps at Hampton Racquet Club in East Hampton, NY and internationally in Canazei, Italy. Over the last 15 years Jenny has coached in a variety of training environments including: Country Clubs, Park and Recreation facilities, Tennis Academies, and Fitness Centers. She has coached adults and juniors at the State, Sectional, and National level and helped numerous young athletes achieve college tennis scholarships. Jenny is a certified Elite Professional with the USPTA, and a certified Professional with the PTR, where she earned the distinction of Master of Tennis – Junior Development. She is also a certified Tennis Performance Trainer with the iTPA. She has been on the USPTA Alabama State board for 4 years, and is the current USPTA Alabama President. Since moving to Georgia in August, she is now a USPTA Georgia State Board Member. She was awarded USTA-Southern-Alabama Tennis Professional of the Year. Jenny’s love of coaching has helped players of all ages reach their individual goals and experience a greater enjoyment of the game.
Country: Georgia
Quote: USPTA Alabama President, USTA Alabama Pro of the Year, USPTA Elite Professional, PTR Master Professional in Junior Development
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Tom Lepisto
Tom Lepisto recently joined the Omni Tucson National Resort as their Director of Tennis and is working to invigorate the tennis and recreation program, bringing energy and enthusiasm to all of the resort’s adult and junior tennis programs. Tom’s been teaching tennis for over 30 years and was previously at the Westward Look Wyndham Grand Resort & Spa in Tucson, Arizona for 12 years. Tom taught tennis in the Fountain Hills area northeast of Phoenix for 15 years, most recently as Director of Tennis at Firerock Country Club and served on the town’s Parks and Recreation committee. He spent seven summers as Director of Tennis at the Northland Country Club in Duluth, Minnesota. Tom is a graduate of the University of Minnesota Duluth, as well as a tennis team alumnus. He led the team as the number one singles player for four years.
Tom was named the Professional Tennis Registry (PTR) Member of the Year for the State of Arizona in 2009. Tom also assisted Westward Look in becoming USTA Facility of the Year for Southern Arizona in 2013. Tom works closely with several non-profit organizations to promote and grow tennis in the Tucson area.
Country: Arizona
Quote: 2009 PTR Member of the Year for Arizona. Former #1 Singles Player for 4 Years at University of Minnesota Duluth.
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2014 United States Tennis Congress
Whether you’re a beginner or a 5.0-rated player, if you are passionate about the game of tennis you’ll love the 2014 United States Tennis Congress!
Imagine…
…The inspiration of working with the tennis world’s best coaches — never before assembled in one place like this for adult players.
…The power of choosing master classes with leading authorities that focus on exactly what you need to improve.
…The fun and electricity of an event with 200 of the world’s most avid adult players who are just as passionate as you about tennis and achieving their personal best.
Join us for an inspiring, innovative, customized learning experience with the world’s top experts covering all aspects of training necessary to improve: technique, movement, strategy, fitness, injury prevention, and mental conditioning.
Faculties:
Owen Davidson
Owen is one of the most well rounded tennis professionals of his time. He finished his junior career as the no. 2 junior in the World to John Newcombe. Owen then went on and played on 5 winning Australian Davis Cup Teams from 1962-1967. Throughout his career he was coached by the greatest coach of all time, Mr. Harry Hopman. In 1967 he was named All England Club Professional at Wimbledon and Manager of British Competitive Tennis. He held that job until leaving in 1971 to resume his professional tennis career.
During his professional career Owen won 13 Grand Slams, 4 Wimbledon’s, 5 US Opens, 1 French Open and 3 Australian Opens. He spent three years as Director of Tennis at the Houston Racquet Club and then eight years as Director of Tennis at the Woodlands Inn and Country Club, in Texas. He was also the Director of the John Newcombe/Owen Davidson Competitive Edge Tennis Academy at the John Newcombe Tennis Ranch in New Braunfels, TX, coaching thousands of juniors from all over the world and specifically Texans. Owen spent many years on the Professional Tennis Tour coaching such players as his mixed doubles partner, Billie Jean King, Andrea Jaeger, Bill Scanlon, Sammy Giammalva, David Wheaton, Annabel Croft, Susan Mascarin, and numerous others.
Owen played on and coached World Team Tennis Teams in Minnesota, Boston, Hawaii, and Houston. In 1991 he also became Chief Operating Officer of Grand Slams Sports Marketing, marketing specialty tennis events to hundreds of major companies throughout the world. He continues to this day in that capacity. From 1976 – 1986 he worked as Tour Director for the ATP in the Woodlands, Texas, initiating the advent of the Satellite Circuit. Currently he is working at the Woodlands Country Club, in the Woodlands, Texas, coaching members and juniors. In 2010 he was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame and in January of 2011 was inducted into the Australian Tennis Hall of Fame. Owen, with Leslie Bowrey and Billie Jean King, won the calendar Grand Slam in 1967. Most people consider his partnership with Billie Jean King as the greatest of all time!
Country: Australia
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Emilio Sánchez
Emilio Sánchez is President of the Academia Sánchez-Casal , located in Barcelona Spain and Naples Florida. The Academia Sánchez-Casal uses a unique training system, based on the Spanish method of understanding tennis, focused on maximizing the strength, balance, speed, stamina and agility of the student’s lower body. It incorporates specific exercises used by successful Spanish players, which have boosted the game of students including Svetlana Kuznetsova, Andy Murray, Daniela Hantuchova, Grigor Dimitrov, Juan Monaco, among many others.
As a player, Emilio won three Grand Slam doubles titles and the men’s doubles silver medal at the 1988 Olympic Games. He achieved an ATP world #7 ranking in singles and #1 ranking in doubles. He was the coach of multiple Grand Slam winner (and sister) Arantxa Sánchez Vicario. He also captained Spain’s Davis Cup team to success in 2008. In 2012 Sanchez was a tournament director for two wheelchair tennis events.
Country: Spain
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Jeff Salzenstein
Jeff Salzenstein is the founder and president of Jeff Salzenstein Tennis , an organization focused on helping tennis players improve their games through online tennis instruction in the areas of technique, footwork, nutrition, injury prevention, motivation and athletic development. He is a USPTA Professional 1, Specialist in Competitive Player Development and a Certified Nutritional Therapy Practitioner.
A member of the Colorado Tennis Hall of Fame, Salzenstein set the standard for tennis in Colorado with an unsurpassed record as a player at the amateur and professional levels. As he regularly competed against the best players in the world, he became a serious student of the game and an accomplished world-class competitor.
Salzenstein turned professional in 1996 after graduating from Stanford University, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in economics. In 1997, Salzenstein was named Rookie of the Year by Tennis Week magazine. He played in all four Grand Slams—Wimbledon, US Open, French Open, Australian Open—and had wins over Mardy Fish, David Nalbandian, Greg Rusedski, and Fernando Verdasco. In 2004, despite having two major surgeries, Salzenstein broke into the top 100 in the world for the first time and was the first American to accomplish this feat after his 30th birthday. He concluded his playing career in 2007 and became a high-performance tennis coach in Denver, Colo.
Salzenstein’s website, www.jeffsalzensteintennis.com , shares cutting-edge tennis tips and lessons to help players improve their games.
Country: Colorado
Quote: Former Top 100 ATP Tennis Player. High Performance Tennis Coach. Expert In Peak Performance, Nutrition, Fitness, Rehab and Motivation.
Twitter: JeffSalzenstein
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John Austin
John Austin is the Director of Tennis at the International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport, Rhode Island.
Winning a Wimbledon trophy is a major accomplishment for any tennis player, but winning a major championship with a sibling is a rarity in the record books of any sport. For John and Tracy Austin, the 1980 Wimbledon mixed doubles title put them in the record books as the first brother-sister team to win the prestigious Wimbledon championship. They also reached the Wimbledon mixed doubles final in 1981.
There is no question that Austin has tennis in his DNA. Born into a family of five siblings, four of whom competed at Wimbledon, Austin climbed the international rankings to a top 40 world ranking in six years competing on the ATP Tour. Among his wins were victories over #1-ranked John McEnroe, former French Open champion Yannick Noah, Andres Gomes, Wojtek Fibak, and twins Tim and Tom Gullikson. He was also selected three times as an alternate/practice partner for the US Davis Cup team.
Prior to entering the professional ranks, Austin was a member of the victorious 1976 UCLA NCAA championship team and a 1978 NCAA doubles champion. He reached the NCAA doubles final in 1977.
Austin’s earliest memories are from the vantage point of the tennis courts at the historic Jack Kramer Club in Rolling Hills, CA where his mother worked in the tennis shop, and Austin received his tennis direction from renowned coach Robert Lansdorp.
Austin followed in his famous coach’s footsteps becoming a teaching professional upon his retirement from the professional tour. Among the players Austin has worked with as a Touring Professional are Pete Sampras, Michael Chang, Jim Grabb, Chuck Adams, Robbie Weiss, Alexandra Stevenson, and Amy Frazier.
While pursuing his teaching career, Austin remained passionate about his own tennis, attaining two No. 1 USTA national rankings in the Men’s 40 Singles in 1997 and Men’s 35 Doubles in 2002.
Austin’s wife, Karen, is a teacher. He has two sons, Christopher, 28, and Reed, 18.
TOURING PROFESSIONAL
1978-1984
CAREER WINS
Defeated #1 John McEnroe, Yannick Noah, Andres Gomez, Wojtek Fibak, Tim and Tom Gullickson, Tim Wilkison
TOURNAMENT HIGHLIGHTS
2002 Ranked #1 in the US Mens 35 and over doubles
2002 USTA National Mens 35 and over Hard court doubles champion
1998 USTA National Men’s 40 and Over Grass Court Singles Champion
1997 USTA National Men’s 40 and Over Grass Court Singles Champion
1997 USTA National Men’s 40 and Over Indoor Singles Champion
1997 USTA National Men’s 40 No. 1 Ranking
Member of the 1989 First Place “New Jersey Stars Professional Team Tennis”
1981 Wimbledon Mixed Doubles Finalist with sister, Tracy Austin
1980 Wimbledon Mixed Doubles Champion with sister, Tracy Austin
1978 NCAA Doubles Champion
US Davis Cup team – selected 3 times/alternate/practice partner
7 Career titles won
6 Career finalist appearances
COACHING EXPERIENCE
As a touring professional coach, he has worked with Pete Sampras, Michael Chang, Jim Grabb, Chuck Adams, Robbie Weiss, Alexandra Stevenson, and Amy Frazier.
Country: Rhode Island
Quote: Wimbledon Champion with Sister Tracy Austin, Director of Tennis at the International Tennis Hall of Fame
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Paula Scheb
Paula Scheb, is the Director of Tennis and Fitness at the Bonita Bay Club, which encompasses 18 clay courts and a 10,000 square foot fitness facility. She is a USPTA Master Professional, the highest accreditation given to tennis professionals. Currently, less than 130 professionals in the country (less than 1% of the 14,500 members in the USTPA) have this distinctive title.
She is on the National Advisory Staff for Head/Penn and is also on their National Speaker’s Bureau. Paula presents regularly throughout the country on various tennis and business topics. She most recently presented a doubles seminar “Infinity and Beyond: Progressing your Players form 3.0 to 4.5” at the USPTA Florida Division Conference in West Palm Beach.
Scheb was the Director of Testing and Certification for USPTA for over 12 years, certifying and testing over 1,300 professionals. She was also the USPTA Pro of the Year for the Florida Division.
Paula grew up under the tutelage of Nick Bollettieri, when he first arrived in the States from the Rockefeller Resort in Puerto Rico. As a teenager she taught various clinics with Nick all over the world. And more recently has hosted clinics with some of the biggest names in tennis Evonne Goolagong, Gigi Fernandez, Rick Leach, Billie Jean King, Tom Gorman, Jim Loehr, Tim Mayotte, Rick Macci, Stan Smith, Jack Groppel, Fred Stolle, Mikael Pernfors and Jimmy Arias, to name a few.
Paula has been a regular contributor to “Tennis Magazine”, with various tips and articles that have been featured in the magazine. “Tennis Magazine” also featured Paula and some of her teaching tips, in a special edition periodical titled “Tips from the Masters”, which they promoted at the US Open.
Her You Tube videos, “Paula’s Pointers for Club Players,” have received praise and accolades from recreational and professional players alike. Paula and the Bonita Bay Club members host one of the largest tennis fundraisers in the country, with over 20 former touring professionals, eight former #1’s and 4 Tennis Hall of Famers, the event raised over $300,000 this year for a pediatric cancer pharmacy in the new Tom Golisano Children’s Hospital in Ft. Myers.
Paula graduated from the University of Florida with a BS degree in Business Marketing. She played college tennis for the #2 nationally ranked Lady Gators and was a doubles All-American while attending the UF.
Country: Florida
Quote: USPTA Master Professional. Former USPTA Florida Pro of the Year. National Advisory Staff for Head/Penn and for Reebok. Former All-American in Doubles.
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Mark Kovacs, PhD
Dr. Mark Kovacs is a renowned performance physiologist, researcher, university professor, author, speaker and coach with an extensive background training and researching athletes at all levels. He serves as both the Executive Director of the International Tennis Performance Association (iTPA) and Director of the Gatorade Sports Science Institute. Dr. Kovacs’ work has helped improve the way the physical aspects of tennis are trained throughout the world, and he has personally tested and trained hundreds of world class athletes in numerous sports. He formerly directed the Sport Science, Strength & Conditioning and Coaching Education departments for the United States Tennis Association (USTA).
Dr. Kovacs is a Fellow of the American College of Sports Medicine, has published over 50 peer-reviewed scientific articles and abstracts in top journals and was the Associate Editor-in-Chief of the Strength & Conditioning Journal. He is on the editorial board for multiple journals including the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition and has presented workshops, keynote addresses and well over 100 presentations on four continents.
Along with his academic and scientific background, Dr. Kovacs is also a coach and former professional athlete. While originally from Melbourne, Australia, he was an All-American and NCAA doubles champion in tennis at Auburn University. After playing professionally, he completed his graduate work at Auburn University and earned his Ph.D. in Exercise Physiology from The University of Alabama. Dr. Kovacs is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist through the National Strength and Conditioning Association, a Certified Tennis Performance Specialist (CTPS) through the ITPA, a certified Health/Fitness Specialist through the American College of Sports Medicine, a United States Track and Field Level II Sprints Coach and Certified Tennis Coach.
He has published five books on topics ranging from dynamic stretching to recovery. Mark has organized a number of medical and sport science conferences aimed at improving the education of medical professionals, coaches, athletes, parents and sport administrators. In 2010 he was awarded the prestigious Plagenhoef Award for sport science achievement (youngest ever recipient); in 2012 he was the youngest ever International Tennis Hall of Fame Educational Merit Award winner.
Country: Georgia (Orig. Australia)
Quote: Director, Gatorade Sports Science Institute and Executive Director, International Tennis Performance Association (iTPA). Former All-American and NCAA doubles champion.
Twitter: @MKovacsPhD
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Allistair McCaw
Allistair McCaw is an internationally recognized leader in the field of athletic performance enhancement. His well-proven method of athlete training, “The McCaw Method,” has set the standard for providing world-class athletes and coaches with cutting-edge training and knowledge.
A fitness expert and highly motivated coach, with over 20 years experience, Allistair has trained a host of world class athletes including 11 Grand Slam Champions, 3 World #1 Tennis players, 4 World #1 & World Champion Squash players, PGA Golfers and several Olympians.
He holds various qualifications in the field, and is a certified Tennis coach, USA Track & Field coach, USA Youth Basketball coach and ISSA Performance specialist.
Allistair is a highly sought after keynote speaker and has regularly appeared on national television in the United States. He is a former 5 time world championship Duathlete competitor, 2 time national fitness champion and just recently completed 7 marathons and 7 half marathons in 7 weeks.
Voted as one of the most 50 Influential coaches by Coachseek, Allistair released his first book in 2016 entitled “7 Keys to being a great Coach” and regularly contributes articles to various magazines on performance enhancement training, motivation and mindset.
Allistair is based in Tampa, Florida.
Country: Florida (South Africa)
Quote: Sports Performance Specialist & Fitness/ Movement Coach to 11 Grand Slam Champions, Six Olympians, and Four World Number #1’s
Twitter: @AllistairMcCaw
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Page Love
Page Love, MS, RD, CSSD, LD, CSCS, USPTA, is an expert on sport nutrition and eating disorder issues particularly with elite athletics. In 1992, she founded Nutrifit Sport Therapy Inc., a company of professionals dedicated to helping clients reach their wellness goals through performance eating. Page has assembled a team of caring and experienced dietitians with specialties in nutrition for disease prevention and control, weight management, treatment of eating disorders, development of nutrition and fitness plans, and much more.
She has worked with professional players, college teams as well as individual athletes. Her past and current clients include the ATP Men’s Professional Tennis Tour, the Women’s Professional Tennis Tour (WTA), U.S. Tennis Association, the Atlanta Braves, U.S. Figure Skating, and U.S. Synchronized Swimming and she served as a nutrition consultant during the Olympic Games in 1992, 1996, 2000, and 2004.
Page’s tennis experience includes being a certified tennis teaching professional with the United States Professional Tennis Association and serves on the Sport Science Advisory Board for the Professional Tennis Registry. She played division one collegiate tennis at Baylor University and still plays competitive league tennis in Atlanta year round. She shares a passion to help young through professional tennis players learn how to better fuel and hydrate their bodies. She has just published a tennis sport nutrition specific education kit for players and coaches. See nutrifitga.com for more information. Page has served as the dietitian for the Australian Open, The Sony Open, Indian Wells, The Kremlin Cup, and the US Open. Page will serve as the onsite dietitian for the China Open in fall of 2014.
Page Love’s extensive credentials include being a Registered Dietitian and a Certified Specialist in Sport Dietetics of the American Dietetic Association, a strength and conditioning specialist certified by the National Strength and Conditioning Association, past president of the Atlanta Dietetic Association and past media spokesperson for the Georgia Dietetic Association. Page is often consulted by media both locally and nationally, and she has been featured many times as an expert by programs and publications such as CNN’s On the Menu, CNN Headline News, Peachtree Morning, Good Day Atlanta, Women’s Sports Illustrated, Tennis Magazine, People Magazine, WSB Radio, Z93 Radio, and Fox News.
Country: Georgia
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Jeff Greenwald
Jeff Greenwald, M.F.T. is an internationally recognized sport psychology consultant, author and licensed family therapist. He was named Athlete of the Year at UC Santa Barbara in 1988 and went on to become a world-ranked player on the ATP Tour in singles and doubles. He was also formerly the No. 1 world and U.S. ranked ITF men’s 35 player, and is winner of two senior ITF World Championships. Jeff has been the mental coach for numerous top professional, college and junior tennis players around the world for the past 15 years. From 1993-1995 Jeff coached top junior players as the Director of Junior Development at the Uhlenhorster Hockey and Tennis Club in Hamburg, Germany. He has been a certified tennis professional by the USPTA since 1996 and currently serves on the Speaking Bureaus for both the USTPA and Wilson Sporting Goods.
Jeff has spoken across the world at numerous tennis clubs, associations, universities and corporations. He also was an adjunct faculty member and supervisor at JFKU for graduate students in the sport psychology program. He served as a consultant for the USA High Performance coaches program from 2005-2010. He earned his B.A at the University of California at Santa Barbara. He has been in private practice since 1998. He holds as Master’s Degree in Clinical psychology with a specialization in sports psychology. He is author of Amazon’s best-selling double-CD audio, Fearless Tennis and The Best Tennis of Your Life and serves as Associate editor for TennisPlayer.net .
Visit Jeff’s website: http://www.jeffhgreenwald.com
Country: California
Quote: Renowned sports psychology consultant. Former No. 1 world-ranked ITF men’s 35 tennis player. Winner of two senior ITF World Championships.
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Joanne Wallen
Joanne Wallen is the Director of Adult Individual Play for the United States Tennis Association, based at USTA’s national headquarters in Lake Nona, Florida.
A native of England, Joanne Wallen became a top junior player there after taking up tennis at the age of four. She came to the U.S. in 1988 on a six-year scholarship to the Bollettieri Tennis Academy in Bradenton, Fla. That year she also signed with sports marketing giant IMG, the youngest player ever to do so at the time. She played for 14 years on the International Tennis Federation and Women’s Tennis Association tours, winning 15 events and achieving a world #252 ranking in singles and and #179 ranking in doubles.
In 2005 she joined the Lexington Tennis Club in Kentucky as Director of Junior Development and was promoted to General Manager in 2009. Throughout her career, Wallen has devoted countless hours to growing the sport of tennis by developing her own skills and teaching those around her. Wallen’s involvement in tennis has been multifaceted, and includes serving on Board of Directors of USTA Kentucky, and chairing its Junior Competition Committee. She also served on the USTA Southern Junior Competition Committee. In addition, Wallen has coached multiple USTA Southern junior teams. Meanwhile, she has become a USTA Certified High Performance Specialist, working with top juniors to prepare them for competition, and a tester for the U.S. Tennis Professional Association (USPTA), certifying tennis instructors in Kentucky and surrounding states. In 2012, she was named “Newcomer of the Year” by the Professional Tennis Registry.
Country: Florida (Orig. England)
Quote: USTA Director Adult Individual Play, Former top UK junior and world-ranked player, 2012 PTR Newcomer of the Year. .
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John Yandell
John Yandell is the Editor and Founder of Tennisplayer.net . Over a twenty year career, he has been a leading force in the creation of new teaching and educational resources in tennis, including a series of highly regarded instructional books and videos. His high speed filming projects for Tennisplayer and Advanced Tennis Research have created the resources that take our understanding of the game to a new level. John has done personal video analysis for hundreds of high level competitive players, including Justine Henin-Hardenne, Taylor Dent, Gabriela Sabatini, and John McEnroe, among others. A cum laude graduate of Yale University, he also did graduate study at the PhD level in both history and religious studies. The John Yandell Tennis School is located in San Francisco, California.
Country: California
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Ajay Pant
Ajay is currently the General Manager for the Tennis Center at College Park, Maryland. Prior to his current position, Pant was the National Tennis Director for Tennis Corporation Of America (TCA). Ajay was with Tennis Corporation Of America for 18 years and also served as Head Tennis Professional, Club Manager and General Manager for TCA clubs in Chicago and other parts of the United States.
Pant has worked at the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy in Florida. He was the Coordinator for the Arthur Ashe/Nick Bollettieri “Cities” Tennis Programs in New York, New Jersey, Kansas and Missouri.
Ajay is a Master Professional and currently serves on the Board of the Professional Tennis Registry (PTR). The PTR has honored Ajay as Tester, Clinician and Pro Of The Year.
Pant is also a USPTA Master Professional.
Ajay is a member of the USTA Ten and Under Faculty. He currently serves as the Chair for the USTA National Ten and Under Committee.
Country: Maryland
Quote: PTR and USPTA Master Professional, former PTR Pro of the Year, Chair for the USTA National Ten and Under Committee
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Oliver Stephens
Oliver “Ollie” Stephens is a PTR Clinician and Tester. He is certified as a PTR Professional in all 4 pathways and also holds the PTR Master of Tennis certification in Performance and Development coaching, one of two coaches in the States to hold both. In addition, Ollie is an International Tennis Performance Association (iTPA) Master Tennis Performance Specialist.
Ollie has been published numerous times in PTR Magazine and has spoken at Regional, National and International conferences. In 2001, Ollie was the PTR China coach of the year, in 2010 he was the PTR Illinois Coach of the year and in 2012, he was the PTR Tester of the Year.
Ollie currently works as a private tennis professional in Chicago to several Sectionally and Nationally ranked juniors and also runs PTR coaches workshops on a regular basis.
Previously, Ollie was the National Junior Coach of Hong Kong and the National Coach of Vietnam. Also, he was the Junior Competitive Director at Midtown Tennis Club in Chicago, the busiest tennis club in the world.
Country: South Carolina
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Steve Keller
Steve has been a PTR member since 1986, is now responsible for the educational direction and content of the organization’s four certification pathways as well as the Master of Tennis programs. He will oversee PTR clinician training to ensure continuity of content delivery as well as design and develop professional development courses to create opportunities for certified members to fulfill the new continuing education requirements. Steve will also serve as the national liaison to the USTA Coaching Education department. Prior to joining PTR, Steve spent 18 years with the Van der Meer organization directing sites in Missouri, Florida and South Carolina prior to joining Tennis Corporation of America. Steve earned the distinguished USTA/PTR Public Service Award in 1996.
Country: South Carolina
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Lucas Regas Melero
Lucas is a RPT & USPTA-certified tennis coach at the Academia Sánchez-Casal in Naples, Florida. Once a student at the Academia Sánchez-Casal in Barcelona, Lucas was of Spain’s Top 16 players under 16 and under 18 and went on to become one of the Top 100 Spanish nationally ranked players from 1998 to 2002, winning over 30 National Tennis Tournaments. He achieved a World ATP ranking in doubles in 2002 and began coaching at the Academia Sánchez-Casal while playing nationally and internationally. In 2003, Lucas won a full tennis scholarship to pursue a degree in Business Administration at Georgia Perimeter College in Atlanta. He became the #1 ranked player in the United States in NJCAA in 2003 and was #2 in 2004. While in Atlanta, Lucas coached at Tennis Academy of the South and at Country Club of the South where he taught adults and began a junior academy. In 2009, Lucas was a travelling hitting coach for top 20 WTA player Maria Kirilenko. And in 2011, he also coached another top 100 WTA player, Edina Gallovits. He also assisted World #1 team Bob and Mike Bryan in 3 tournaments as hitting partner. He has also coached at Tennis 360 in Dubai, UAE.
Country: Florida (Orig. Spain)
Quote: Sanchez-Casal Coach, Former Spanish Top 100 player, Achieved ATP World Ranking, Was #1 NJCAA-Ranked player in U.S.
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Bob Litwin
Bob Litwin was a Long Island tennis teaching professional for thirty-five years. In 1992 he founded the Sports Focus Institute to develop and teach athletes in all sports how to improve performance through all aspects of the mental game.
Bob is known as The Focus Coach. He has worked with every sport imaginable and consulted for the NY Knicks and the NY Islanders. The founder of The Focus Coaching Group, LLC, Bob is a full time performance coach for Hedge Funds and individuals in any field of endeavor, business and sports alike.
He never played in college or on the tour and at 32 started to compete thinking he might be able to win some matches. He lost a lot for several years.
Then he won a gold and bronze medal at the 12th Maccabian Games in the 35 and over. In summer 2013, 20 years later, he won the Gold Medal in the 65s singles at the 19th Maccabian Games.
He has won 18 USTA National Championship titles.
He won the ITF World Championships in 2005 and was ranked #1in the World in the 55 and over.
He was inducted into the Eastern Tennis Hall of Fame in 2011.
After being out of the game for nearly three years due to two hip surgeries, he got back to work and has climbed back to the top and in June was the #1 ranked 65 and over player in the USA.
After going undefeated in Colorado tournaments this year his 18 year undefeated streak in sectional age group matches continues.
His book, Live the Best Story of Your Life: A World Champion’s Guide to Lasting Change, was released in May and touted by Huff Post as the #1 self help read for the summer of 2016.
Country: Colorado
Quote: The Focus Coach. winner of 18 National titles. Achieved #1 in the World Ranking 55 & Over and #1 in USA in 65 & Over. Author of "Live the Best Story of Your Life: A World Champion’s Guide to Lasting Change".
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Jennifer Fuchs
Jennifer has been the Director of Tennis at the El Conquistador since 1999. A former world class touring pro, she has distinguished herself as an outstanding player. As a junior, Jennifer became the number one ranked player in the nation. She was also a part of the Junior Federation Cup and competed in both the Junior US and Italian Open, where she and her partner won the doubles. Following her junior career, Jennifer played two years at UCLA, becoming a two time All-American. Having played all the major events and all 4 grand slams as a touring professional, Jennifer reached the round of sixteen in the Australian Open Doubles Championship.
Country: Arizona
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Feisal Hassan
Feisal, a PTR 5A Pro and USPTA Master Professional. He is also a member of the Head/Penn Racquet Sports National Advisory Board and National Speaker’s Bureau and holds USPTA specialist degrees in Competitive Player Development, Facility Management, Little Tennis and Sports Science. He is a USTA Recreation Coach National and Quickstart Trainer, a member of the National Cardio Tennis Speakers Team and co-chairs the USPTA National Education Committee and the USPTA College Curriculum Committee. He is also on the USPTA Testing Committee and USTA National Youth Education Committee. He was also the Director of Certification & Testing for the USPTA Middle States division and was co-chair of the USPTA National Diversity Committee.
Feisal was also the Director of Coaches’ Education and Junior Davis Cup Team Coach for Tennis Zimbabwe. He was also voted in Tennis Industry magazine’s prestigious “40 Under 40” list for being one of the top 40 men and women under 40 years old who have had and will continue to have a strong influence in the sport and in the business of tennis– both nationally and internationally.
Hassan writes and conducts seminars, workshops and clinics for international, national and sectional organizations and events. He has also written the book, How to Handle Difficult Players and Conditions, and is currently working on his second book, Doubles: Phases & Situations.
In 2011, he was awarded the USPTA’s most prestigious award, the Alex Gordon National Professional of the Year and the 2011 Racquet Sports Industry Champions of Tennis Award. This is the Racquet Sports Industry’s (RSI) most prestigious awards recognizing and honoring the people, businesses and organizations that are making a difference in the tennis industry. He was also a recipient for the USPTA Mid-Atlantic Hall of Fame recipient Inaugural Class of 2012 and the 2012 USPTA George Bacso National Tester of the Year.
Previous accolades include the USPTA Industry Excellence Award in 1999, 5-time Division Tester of the Year, 11-time USPTA Division/State Pro of the Year, and 9-time national Top-10 point holder in the USPTA’s Career Development Program.
Country: Virginia (Orig. Zimbabwe)
Quote: 2011 USPTA Professional of the Year. 11-time USPTA Division/State Pro of the Year. Member Head/Penn Racquet Sports National Advisory Board.
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Jorge Capestany
Jorge is one of only ten people worldwide that is a Master Professional with both the USPTA and PTR. He is a 6-time Michigan Pro of the Year a 2-time Midwest Pro of the Year. In 2015 he was named USPTA National Professional of the Year.
Jorge has coached hundreds of ranked juniors including 3 national champions. In Jorge’s career, his programs have developed more than 180 HS State Champions in Michigan. An internationally recognized speaker and author, Jorge serves many organizations in the tennis industry and is a member of the Wilson national speaker’s bureau team.
Jorge is the founder of Capestany Tennis Inc, which runs websites for tennis coaches and tennis players alike. His Coaches website – www.tennisdrills.tv – has more than 700 subscribers in over 65 countries. The site features more than 1,000 tennis drills.
The Player’s website – www.JorgeCapestany.com – features 100% free instruction and a Free Mental Toughness Video course that includes a free eBook.
Jorge has been a featured speaker at most of the largest tennis conferences in the world including, the PTR International Symposium, the USTA Tennis Teachers Conference in NYC at the US Open, the Australian Grand Slam Tennis Coaches conference in Melbourne, the Norwegian Tennis federation’s tennis coaches conference in Olso, the USPTA World Conference on tennis, and the ITF’s world-wide coaches conference in Mexico.
Country: Michigan (Orig. Cuba)
Quote: One of 10 People Worldwide Honored by PTR and USPTA as a Master Professional. 2015 USPTA National Professional of the Year.
Twitter: @CapestanyTennis
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Marti Capestany
Marti has been a certified tennis professional for more than 30 years and has worked with players of all level including many nationally ranked juniors. Marti has been ranked in the top 10 nationally in USTA women’s 35 division. Marti was a member of the 5.0 USTA women’s team that finished 2nd in the national championships. Marti still plays competitively and is still rated as a 5.0 player at age 54. She is a Tennis Pro at the Dewitt Tennis Center at Hope College in Holland MI and works extensively with her husband and Master Professional, Jorge Capestany.
Country: Michigan
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Joe Dinoffer
Joe Dinoffer has had an extensive “world class” career in the tennis industry, and has conducted clinics and exhibitions in over 50 countries, personally logging over 30,000 hours of instruction in English, Spanish, and German. He is a Master Professional in both the PTR and USPTA, a distinction awarded to only a select few in the tennis industry. Joe also received the prestigious 2006 USPTA Tennis Industry Excellence Award and was also selected as the 2012 USPTA Texas Pro of the Year.
Joe is the author and editor of 7 books and 17 DVDs. He writes regularly for www.TennisOne.com and Racquet Sports Industry Magazine, and also has numerous tips airing on the Tennis Channel . As a member of the Head/Penn Advisory Staff and National Speakers Bureau, Joe is a frequent speaker at national and international tennis conferences, having conducted over 250 workshops since 1995.
He is also the founder and president of Oncourt Offcourt, Ltd ., a company exclusively serving the needs of tennis, fitness, and physical education coaches with innovative training aids and educational tools. Joe lives in Dallas, Texas, with his wife, Monika, and their daughter, Kalindi.
Read some endorsements for Joe´s work here .
Country: Texas
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Ian Westermann
Ian Westermann is the owner and founder of Essential Tennis , an online leader in digital tennis instruction. He founded ET in 2008 after becoming frustrated with the daily challenges of being a full time on-court tennis pro. Since then his online instructional courses have been taken by over 20,000 tennis players in over 100 different countries. Ian specializes in both video and audio instructional content including the first audio tennis instruction podcast in the world: the Essential Tennis Podcast. Since 2008 he has published over 200 episodes of the show which is the highest rated tennis podcast on iTunes. Before leaving his on court teaching job to run Essential Tennis full time in April of 2011 Ian was a teaching professional at Congressional Country Club in Bethesda, Maryland for six years. Congressional is currently rated the #2 private country club in America and hosted the PGA U.S. Open in 2011. His college career was spent in the Professional Tennis Management program at Ferris State University in Big Rapids, MI. Ferris created the very first PTM program in 1989 and it’s still the biggest of it’s kind in the US. While there Ian played both singles and doubles on their UCAA Division II men’s team while earning a bachelors degree in Business Marketing and a minor in Professional Tennis Management. Ian recently moved back to his home town of Milwaukee, Wisconsin with his wife of 9 years, Alison, and their two children. He plans to continue using the most cutting edge and innovative methods possible to reach passionate tennis players all over the world.
Country: Wisconsin
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Michele Krause
Michele Krause is the Cardio Tennis Manager working for the Tennis Industry Association (TIA). Cardio Tennis is a fun, group fitness activity consisting of fast paced tennis drills and games for players of all ability levels providing a full body calorie-burning workout. Michele has overseen the program since its inception in 2005 and since the rollout and there are now 1,800 Authorized Providers, 1.4 million Cardio Tennis participants in the US and the program has spread to over 30 countries.
Michele oversees the entire Cardio Tennis program both in the US and internationally. Her responsibilities include all the day-to-day operations: administration, programming, curriculum, event planning, training and marketing. She manages the TIA Global Cardio Tennis Team which is made up of 25 Trainers who assist her with training, educating and consumer events. She also serves as the coordinator for those countries who are in the process of establishing, launching or continued development of Cardio Tennis. She speaks at many industry conventions, (PTR, USPTA, IHRSA, ITA, ITF, PBI and USTA) meetings and events to provide ongoing education on the Cardio Tennis program. She also trains coaches how to deliver the product through national and international courses. Internationally she has conducted courses in Portugal, the UK, the Caribbean, Ireland, Poland, Greece and Canada. She spent 2 years working with Tennis Australia helping them to develop the program for their country.
Michele has developed Cardio Tennis Kids, Supersize Cardio Tennis and TRX Cardio Tennis. Cardio Tennis was featured on NBC’s the Biggest Loser under Michele’s guidance with Anna Kournakova and she secured Anna as the Cardio Tennis spokesperson.
Michele is a USPTA and PTR tennis professional who managed tennis facilities throughout the US for over 16 years. She is formally educated in TRX Suspension Training and is a Certified Ignite 360 (Combine 360) Trainer. Michele received the TIA/PTR Industry Excellence award on 2012. Michele continuously strives to improve the Cardio Tennis experience for both the tennis professional and the consumer.
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Christophe Delavaut
Christophe is founder of TennisOxygen.com , which specializes in online private coaching using personal stroke video analysis that draws extensively on high-speed video footage of today’s top professionals.
He holds a Professional #1 rating by both the USPTA (1996), PTR (1986), and MTM (2012). He has competed and coached at every level from juniors collegiate and professional. He has been the USPTA District #9 President since 2010 and is also a monthly contributor to TennisOne.com , one of the leading tennis teaching web sites in the world.
Christophe is currently the Director of Tennis of the Grand Harbor Golf and Tennis in Vero Beach FL (since 1995) during the winter months and at The New Seabury Club on Cape Cod MA from Memorial Day to Labor Day since 2011. He also serves as a board member of the Indian River Tennis Foundation, a foundation dedicated to raise funds to award lesson scholarships to local juniors.
During summers has has acted as Director of Tennis of The Lloyd Neck Bath Club in Cold Spring Harbor NY (1996-1999), Tennis director of the Country Club of Detroit in Grosse Pointe MI (2000-2006), Tennis Director at the Walloon Lake Country Club in Wallon Lake MI (2007-2011), and Tennis Director at The New Seabury Club on Cape Cod MA (2011-present).
In 1987 he was the original founder and Director of the Sugarbush Tennis School, which was rated as one of the World’s Best Tennis Schools by Tennis Magazine. Roger Cox, Senior Travel Editor for Tennis Magazine, described the Sugarbush Tennis School as the most dynamic and innovative tennis school in the country.
Christophe is the author of Tennis Atlas: The Ultimate Doubles Program, a 200-page tennis teaching manual geared to help teaching professionals guarantee improvement to their students. He holds a B.S Business degree from Franklin Pierce University, (1987).
Country: Florida (Orig. France)
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Alex Ramirez
Alex is the founder and president of ProTenn International . ProTenn was founded in 1998 as a tennis academy and has grown into a company that not only trains and develops players but also offers its clients financial services, video analysis software and services and is now venturing into the online media business and sponsorship of professional tennis players.
Alex’s system of training along with his team of experts is truly a world class combination. Players come from all over the country–many from Mexico, Canada and Europe– to train part-time and full-time in the program.
Alex competed as a junior, played collegiate tennis and competed as a professional before focusing his efforts to the development of players. His system has developed local, sectional, national and international champions. Alex has worked with many world class tennis players as a consultant to the head coach, as an assistant coach overseeing stroke development and as a video analysis expert on stroke production and match strategy analysis. Currently he is coaching full time on the women’s tour and consulting on the men’s tour.
Country: Arizona
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Stan Oley
Stan is employed by Playmate Ball Machines as their Product Marketing Specialist. Stan is Founder of FBT60 (Fit By Tennis in 60 Days). FBT60 is a new tennis/fitness program combining nutrition and a series of ball machine drills
Stan is a USPTA Master Professional. Less than 160 of the 14,000 USPTA Pros have this distinction. Stan is a member of the USPTA, PTR, USTA. Stan was named 2016 Florida USPTA Pro of the Year. Stan was named 2016 Florida USPTA District 15 Pro of the Year. Stan was the USPTA District 15 President from 2007-2012. Stan was Florida USPTA District President of the Year in 2007 and his District was District of the Year in 2008.
Stan has attended 20 USPTA World Conferences, speaking at 11 of them. Stan has spoken at over 100 USPTA Divisional Conventions. Stan has performed different USPTA Specialty Courses at 18 USPTA Division or World Conferences.
During his 30 years as a teaching professional (29 years USPTA Certified), he was a teaching professional at John’s Island Club in Vero Beach, FL, the head tennis professional at the International Tennis Center in Key Biscayne, FL (Home of the Miami Open Championships), as well as a teaching professional at the Eau Gallie Yacht Club in Indian Harbour Beach, FL.
He has been working and teaching with ball machines for over 25 years. He has also published drills and articles for USPTA Addvantage Magazine, Tennis Week, and PTR Tennis Pro Magazine. Stan was featured on the Tennis Channel’s One Minute Clinic, “On-Court with the USPTA” and has three full length DVDs, “Ball Machine Drills, Drills, Drills” featuring drills with a ball machine, “Rip Your Returns Like the Pros” featuring the serve return, (which recently won Honor of Distinction at a recent communications awards event), and “Zone It to Own It” featuring strike-zones and stroke production.
Stan is very proud to be sponsored by adidas and Babolat tennis products
Country: Florida
She is also a PTR 11-17 Clinician and Tester.
Milena was named the 2015 PTR Mississippi Professional of the Year.
Country: South Carolina (Orig. Brazil)
Quote: Former #1 in Brazil, 2015 PTR Mississippi Professional of the Year
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Julio Godreau
Julio Godreau holds certifications with the USPTA (Elite), PTR (Master of Tennis Performance), and the USTA (High Performance). He currently serves as the Director of Junior Tennis for the USTA Texas section.
As a coach he has developed players in Orange Ball (2 Southern #1 ranked players and 3 Southern Closed Champions) and Yellow Ball (player ranked as high as #5 in the US and quarterfinalist at Orange Bowl and Eddie Herr tournaments). At the collegiate level his students have accomplished scholarships at prestigious conferences such as the Pac-12 and SEC, and have won NCAA Division 1 team championship. Aside from his on court success with Junior Players he has also guided adults to State, Sectional, and National Championships.
He has been the recipient of numerous awards from the USPTA, PTR, and USTA including Southern Pro of the Year. As an educator he often presents at sectional events and has been a speaker at The USPTA World Conference and PTR International Symposium.
Julio was a top Junior player in the Caribbean, NCAA Division I Scholarship Collegiate Player, and has played at the Pro level. He is also fully bilingual (English and Spanish) and has a Masters Degree in Business Administration and an undergrad in Psychology. He has been married for twelve years to Charisse and has two daughters, Emma (6) and Sophie (9).
•PTR Master of Tennis Performance (Equivalent to ITF Level 3)
•USPTA Certified Professional Level 1
•PTR Certified Professional Level
•USPTA & PTR Player Development Specialist
•USTA High Performance Orange Bowl World Class Junior Player Development Study
•USTA High Performance US Open Pro Player Development Study
•USTA High Performance 10 & Under Certified
•USTA Referee Certified
•USTA Tournament Director Certification (TDM)
AWARDS
•PTR Mississippi Member of the Year 2014
•USPTA 10 & Under Southern Pro of the Year 2012
•USPTA Southern Pro of the Year 2007
•USTA Southern Pro of the Year 2008
•USPTA Mississippi Pro of the Year 2006 & 2007
•USTA Mississippi Pro of the Year 2008
•USPTA Developmental Pro of the Year 2004
•USPTA North Cal Rookie Pro of the Year 1997
USTA INVOLVEMENT
•Selected to coach USTA National Level 1 camp at USTA Center in NY (US Open Location) along with coaches Tom Gullikson, Richard Ashby, Kent Kinnear, Jay Gooding, and Geoff Russell.
•Chairman 10 & Under USTA Southern Committee
•Vice Chairman USTA Southern Player Development Committee
•Representative for USPTA & PTR Pros in USTA Mississippi
•Chair USTA Southern Talent Identification Camps Committee
•Chair USTA Mississippi Junior Council Committee
•Member USTA National Pro Circuit Committee
•Head Coach USTA Competitive Training Center (CTC) Mississippi
•Coach USTA Southern and Mississippi Talent Identification Camps
•Coach USTA Southern and Mississippi Talent Identification Camps
•Coach USTA Middle States 12 and under Zonal National Team
•Coach USTA Southern 14 and under Zonal National Team
USPTA AND PTR INVOLVEMENT
•Speaker at USPTA World Symposium
•Speaker at USPTA Winter Southern Conference
•Chairman USPTA Multicultural Committee
•Speaker at PTR International Symposium
•Speaker at USPTA Southern Conferences
•Speaker at USPTA Tennessee, Mississippi, & Louisiana Workshops
•Speaker at Mississippi’s High School Coaches
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Rod Heckelman
Rod Heckelman’s career started in 1966 the summer after his junior year in high school when he began his five-year role as a teacher at John Gardiner’s Tennis Ranch in Carmel Valley, Calif. Later he opened as the resident pro for Gardiner’s Tennis Ranch on Camelback in Scottsdale, Ariz. At 20 years of age, he was one of the youngest pros to be the Head Pro at what some considered one of the top tennis resorts in the world.
In 1976 he made his way back to his home state of California, where he took over as Head Pro/Tennis Director at the Mt. Tam Racquet Club in Larkspur. He added the title and responsibilities of General Manager in 1982. From his early teaching years, Rod has been involved with developing top players. He has developed over 15 national champions at the junior level and 4 at the senior level. As a competitor he has played and been ranked at both national and sectional levels, breaking the top 5 in 1991. Rod published an instructional manual in 1992 for tennis teachers to use with their students called “Down Your Alley.”
For the last couple of years, excerpts from his “Facility Manager’s Manual” were being published in Racquet Sports Industry magazine. The manual is now available digitally through the Tennis Industry Association for managers and clubs to use as a model for operating their businesses. More recently, he created a “Business Handbook for Tennis Pros,” that is also being produced by T.I.A. In 2010 he was awarded “Manager of the Year” for the USPTA NorCal division and later announced by the USPTA as the “Manager of the Year” at the World Conference. Rod travels the country lecturing to fellow pros about management skills and helping them transition into management. Rod continues to expand his knowledge on all aspects of the tennis business, and he is a frequent presenter at industry events throughout the country including speaking at IRHSA World Conference in San Francisco in 2011, the first person to represent the tennis industry at an IRHSA convention in over 25 years.
Rod recently was selected to the new Babalot Advisory Board and came out with his second instructional book, “Playing Into the Sunset,” an instructional book for senior players available through BoomerTennis.net.
Country: California
Quote: Author "Playing Into the Sunset", Developed 15 national champions at the junior level and 4 at the senior level
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Bruce Levine
Bruce “Mad Dog” Levine has been involved in the tennis industry 36 years and during that time has gotten his hands into most aspects of the industry and game. His diverse experience includes playing, coaching and teaching from the grassroots through high school, college, and the tour levels of tennis. Bruce has also owned and managed clubs in the northeast and is currently working as a consultant in several clubs.
One of the “Dog’s” main responsibilities in the tennis industry has been that of the Technical Advisor and Lead Racquet/String Tester for Tennis Magazine and tennis.com. Bruce has been helpful to players and coaches alike in understanding the technical and playing characteristics of the multitude of racquets and strings in today’s market.
In addition to his playing, coaching, and management experience, Mad Dog currently serve the tennis community as the USPTA Board Member and Regional Vice President in the Middle States Section and also is on the USTA Middle States Board of Directors.
Country: Northeast US
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Keith Henderson
Keith currently serves as the Head Tennis Professional at the Danville Country Club in Lexington Kentucky and also is a Teaching Professional at the Lexington Tennis Club. He is a PTR Professional for Junior Development (11-17) and also holds the USTA 10 & Under Certification. A former USTA Top 10 player, Keith played college tennis at Transylvania University and was a three-time recipient of HCAC All-Conference honors. In 2013 he was USTA Kentucky Junior Southern Cup Coach. In 2014 he was a Special Recipient for the Paul Arber Young Coaches Award presented by the International Tennis Performance Association (ITPA).
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Doug Miller
Doug Miller has been an integral part of Tucson’s Tennis community for 15 years, though his career as a coach began long before, back in 1981 at the Port Washington Tennis Academy. Over the years, his career has grown to encompass teaching and coaching at all levels, and all ages. A USPTA Professional Elite coach, Doug brings a unique perspective to the court, as well as an infamous sense of humor.
Doug’s coaching career has been built on being an active participant, on the court and off. Currently a member of the Head Advisory Staff, USTA Southwest Slam Series Doubles Champion, and 2014 Tucson City Champion in Men’s 55 and over.
As a sectionally and nationally ranked player, in both singles and doubles, Doug relates to all levels of play, whether competitive or social. Currently Doug divides his time between Senior Team Coaching, individual player development and a few budding junior players as well. Doug’s priority on the court for any player is enthusiasm for the sport… bring a positive attitude and have fun.
Country: Arizona
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Ted Murray
Ted Murray’s has nearly four decades of experience in the tennis industry internationally, working in over 30 countries while developing new programs for numerous first-class clubs, resorts, and academies. He was a founding member and 20-year contributor to Peter Burwash International (PBI), the worlds first and largest tennis management company founded in 1975. He owned a world-class tennis and fitness club in Florida for 10 years and has taught students of all ages from absolute beginners with no athletic ability to juniors who went on to win Olympic medals and dozens of Grand Slam titles. He has shared his passion for the game by training thousands of coaches, writing articles and books, and being part of some of the revolutionary trends in the sport. He was an original member of the Cardio Tennis Speakers Team in 2005 that trained coaches throughout the world.
Ted is the founder of “Tennis From The Heart,” an organization dedicated to creating a new paradigm for teaching tennis that emphasizes not only world-class training techniques but also the potential for tennis to be a forum for self-discovery, personal growth, and skill building needed to be a champion in life. He is also Senior Advisor to the Tennis Legacy Fund, a nonprofit founded in 2014 to catalyze high-impact initiatives in the tennis industry that benefit both people and the planet.
Country: Colorado
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Benny Morentin
Since 2008, Benny Morentin has been the Director of Tennis at the Tucson Country Club. He is a member of both the PTR and USPTA. In 2013, Benny was named PTR Pro of the Year for Arizona. With the PTR, Benny is a certified clinician and is certified to teach 10 years and under children, as well as 11-17 year olds. Currently he is working on his Master of Tennis with the PTR. For more than 25 years Benny has inspired junior players in the Tucson community. He began teaching in 1989 at Himmel Tennis Center where he was the Director of Junior Development and the Assistant Head Pro. Since then he has been Assistant Head Pro at the Tucson Racquet Club and Director of Tennis at Omni Tucson National before coming to Tucson Country Club.
Benny has been the coach for the USTA inter-district and inter-sectional teams and Area Training Center. At one time he was the head coach for St. Gregory Preparatory School. Many of Benny’s students have gone on to become successful high school and collegiate athletes, as well as nationally ranked juniors. Additionally, Benny teaches adults and interclub teams. He has coached five USTA teams to Nationals in the past six years at the Tucson Country Club.
Benny’s own accomplishments include being an All-American collegiate player and was ranked 4th in the nation in doubles while at Grand Canyon University in Phoenix, Arizona. He played three years at the USTA National 5.0 Tennis Championships, and was a member of the 2010 USTA National 4.5 team. In 2008, Benny was one of a small group of professionals in Tucson to have been invited to complete the USTA Elite Coaches High Performance Training class. This accolade truly establishes Benny Morentin as one of the top tennis-teaching professionals in the area, as evidenced by his coaching popularity from beginners to elite players.
Country: Arizona
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Ben Maes
Ben is orginally from Hamme, Belgium. He started playing tennis at the age of 8. Always in the Belgium Top 5 rankings in his junior career, Ben was selected to represent his country on the Belgian National Team multiple times. His most signficant career wins include victories over Filip De Wulf (French Open semi-finalist) and Dick Norman (Wimbledon quarter-finalist). Ben won four International Doubles Tournaments in Ireland and England with Frank Ofori (who represented Ghana in the Davis Cup).
Ben’s coaching career began at the Waregem Happy Tennis Academy under the supervision of Carlos Rodriguez, the current coach of Justin Henin-Hardenne. Ben became co-owner of the academy in 1993 before joining his sister Vicky (the University of Arizona head women’s coach) on the professional women’s tour from 1996 to 1998. In 1998 Ben was hired as the Raquets Manager for David Lloyd Leisure in Belfast, Northern Ireland. In 2001 Ben was nominated Racquets Manager of the Year across the chain of clubs in the United Kingdom, and served for many years as head professional at the Peachtree City Tennis Center in Georgia.
Ben is currently the Racquet Sports Director of the Rochester Athletic Club in Rochester, MN.
Country: Minnesota (Orig Belgium)
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Gustavo Sanchez
Gustavo is a passionate tennis coach who enjoys the sport as a lifelong journey that teaches invaluable lessons. His unique way of coaching adapts great to each player’s set of skills and aptitudes.
Former hitting partner to Grand Slam champions Victoria Azarenka and Bethanie Mattek-Sands.
Former hitting partner to Monica Puig, gold medalist in Rio 2016 Olympics.
Former assistant coach to USA’s Angela Haynes, who reached the round of 16 at the 2009 BNP Paribas Open.
PLAYING CAREER HIGHLIGHTS
Career-high ATP Doubles Ranking: 870
Career-high NCAA National Singles Ranking: 7
EDUCATION & PERSONAL
Fluent in English, Spanish, and Portuguese. Attended Dowling College in New York, and Grand Canyon University in Arizona, obtaining degrees in Sport Management and Master of Business Administration respectively.
Attained coaching certifications through the PTR, iTPA, and USPTA.
Gustavo is a tennis professional at Ocotillo Village Health Club and Spa in Chandler, Arizona. He’s also the founder of ProBallerz.com , a tennis instructional website.
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PRIVATE ALUMNI PRE-PUBLIC REGISTRATION PAGE
Whether you’re a beginner or a 5.0-rated player, if you are passionate about the game of tennis you’ll love the 2014 United States Tennis Congress!
Imagine…
…The inspiration of working with the tennis world’s best coaches — never before assembled in one place like this for adult players.
…The power of choosing master classes with leading authorities that focus on exactly what you need to improve.
…The fun and electricity of an event with 200 of the world’s most avid adult players who are just as passionate as you about tennis and achieving their personal best.
Join us for an inspiring, innovative, customized learning experience with the world’s top experts about all aspects of training necessary to improve: technique, movement, strategy, fitness, injury prevention, and mental conditioning.
Faculties:
Emilio Sánchez
Emilio Sánchez is President of the Academia Sánchez-Casal , located in Barcelona Spain and Naples Florida. The Academia Sánchez-Casal uses a unique training system, based on the Spanish method of understanding tennis, focused on maximizing the strength, balance, speed, stamina and agility of the student’s lower body. It incorporates specific exercises used by successful Spanish players, which have boosted the game of students including Svetlana Kuznetsova, Andy Murray, Daniela Hantuchova, Grigor Dimitrov, Juan Monaco, among many others.
As a player, Emilio won three Grand Slam doubles titles and the men’s doubles silver medal at the 1988 Olympic Games. He achieved an ATP world #7 ranking in singles and #1 ranking in doubles. He was the coach of multiple Grand Slam winner (and sister) Arantxa Sánchez Vicario. He also captained Spain’s Davis Cup team to success in 2008. In 2012 Sanchez was a tournament director for two wheelchair tennis events.
Country: Spain
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Jeff Salzenstein
Jeff Salzenstein is the founder and president of Jeff Salzenstein Tennis , an organization focused on helping tennis players improve their games through online tennis instruction in the areas of technique, footwork, nutrition, injury prevention, motivation and athletic development. He is a USPTA Professional 1, Specialist in Competitive Player Development and a Certified Nutritional Therapy Practitioner.
A member of the Colorado Tennis Hall of Fame, Salzenstein set the standard for tennis in Colorado with an unsurpassed record as a player at the amateur and professional levels. As he regularly competed against the best players in the world, he became a serious student of the game and an accomplished world-class competitor.
Salzenstein turned professional in 1996 after graduating from Stanford University, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in economics. In 1997, Salzenstein was named Rookie of the Year by Tennis Week magazine. He played in all four Grand Slams—Wimbledon, US Open, French Open, Australian Open—and had wins over Mardy Fish, David Nalbandian, Greg Rusedski, and Fernando Verdasco. In 2004, despite having two major surgeries, Salzenstein broke into the top 100 in the world for the first time and was the first American to accomplish this feat after his 30th birthday. He concluded his playing career in 2007 and became a high-performance tennis coach in Denver, Colo.
Salzenstein’s website, www.jeffsalzensteintennis.com , shares cutting-edge tennis tips and lessons to help players improve their games.
Country: Colorado
Quote: Former Top 100 ATP Tennis Player. High Performance Tennis Coach. Expert In Peak Performance, Nutrition, Fitness, Rehab and Motivation.
Twitter: JeffSalzenstein
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Paula Scheb
Paula Scheb, is the Director of Tennis and Fitness at the Bonita Bay Club, which encompasses 18 clay courts and a 10,000 square foot fitness facility. She is a USPTA Master Professional, the highest accreditation given to tennis professionals. Currently, less than 130 professionals in the country (less than 1% of the 14,500 members in the USTPA) have this distinctive title.
She is on the National Advisory Staff for Head/Penn and is also on their National Speaker’s Bureau. Paula presents regularly throughout the country on various tennis and business topics. She most recently presented a doubles seminar “Infinity and Beyond: Progressing your Players form 3.0 to 4.5” at the USPTA Florida Division Conference in West Palm Beach.
Scheb was the Director of Testing and Certification for USPTA for over 12 years, certifying and testing over 1,300 professionals. She was also the USPTA Pro of the Year for the Florida Division.
Paula grew up under the tutelage of Nick Bollettieri, when he first arrived in the States from the Rockefeller Resort in Puerto Rico. As a teenager she taught various clinics with Nick all over the world. And more recently has hosted clinics with some of the biggest names in tennis Evonne Goolagong, Gigi Fernandez, Rick Leach, Billie Jean King, Tom Gorman, Jim Loehr, Tim Mayotte, Rick Macci, Stan Smith, Jack Groppel, Fred Stolle, Mikael Pernfors and Jimmy Arias, to name a few.
Paula has been a regular contributor to “Tennis Magazine”, with various tips and articles that have been featured in the magazine. “Tennis Magazine” also featured Paula and some of her teaching tips, in a special edition periodical titled “Tips from the Masters”, which they promoted at the US Open.
Her You Tube videos, “Paula’s Pointers for Club Players,” have received praise and accolades from recreational and professional players alike. Paula and the Bonita Bay Club members host one of the largest tennis fundraisers in the country, with over 20 former touring professionals, eight former #1’s and 4 Tennis Hall of Famers, the event raised over $300,000 this year for a pediatric cancer pharmacy in the new Tom Golisano Children’s Hospital in Ft. Myers.
Paula graduated from the University of Florida with a BS degree in Business Marketing. She played college tennis for the #2 nationally ranked Lady Gators and was a doubles All-American while attending the UF.
Country: Florida
Quote: USPTA Master Professional. Former USPTA Florida Pro of the Year. National Advisory Staff for Head/Penn and for Reebok. Former All-American in Doubles.
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Mark Kovacs, PhD
Dr. Mark Kovacs is a renowned performance physiologist, researcher, university professor, author, speaker and coach with an extensive background training and researching athletes at all levels. He serves as both the Executive Director of the International Tennis Performance Association (iTPA) and Director of the Gatorade Sports Science Institute. Dr. Kovacs’ work has helped improve the way the physical aspects of tennis are trained throughout the world, and he has personally tested and trained hundreds of world class athletes in numerous sports. He formerly directed the Sport Science, Strength & Conditioning and Coaching Education departments for the United States Tennis Association (USTA).
Dr. Kovacs is a Fellow of the American College of Sports Medicine, has published over 50 peer-reviewed scientific articles and abstracts in top journals and was the Associate Editor-in-Chief of the Strength & Conditioning Journal. He is on the editorial board for multiple journals including the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition and has presented workshops, keynote addresses and well over 100 presentations on four continents.
Along with his academic and scientific background, Dr. Kovacs is also a coach and former professional athlete. While originally from Melbourne, Australia, he was an All-American and NCAA doubles champion in tennis at Auburn University. After playing professionally, he completed his graduate work at Auburn University and earned his Ph.D. in Exercise Physiology from The University of Alabama. Dr. Kovacs is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist through the National Strength and Conditioning Association, a Certified Tennis Performance Specialist (CTPS) through the ITPA, a certified Health/Fitness Specialist through the American College of Sports Medicine, a United States Track and Field Level II Sprints Coach and Certified Tennis Coach.
He has published five books on topics ranging from dynamic stretching to recovery. Mark has organized a number of medical and sport science conferences aimed at improving the education of medical professionals, coaches, athletes, parents and sport administrators. In 2010 he was awarded the prestigious Plagenhoef Award for sport science achievement (youngest ever recipient); in 2012 he was the youngest ever International Tennis Hall of Fame Educational Merit Award winner.
Country: Georgia (Orig. Australia)
Quote: Director, Gatorade Sports Science Institute and Executive Director, International Tennis Performance Association (iTPA). Former All-American and NCAA doubles champion.
Twitter: @MKovacsPhD
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Allistair McCaw
Allistair McCaw is an internationally recognized leader in the field of athletic performance enhancement. His well-proven method of athlete training, “The McCaw Method,” has set the standard for providing world-class athletes and coaches with cutting-edge training and knowledge.
A fitness expert and highly motivated coach, with over 20 years experience, Allistair has trained a host of world class athletes including 11 Grand Slam Champions, 3 World #1 Tennis players, 4 World #1 & World Champion Squash players, PGA Golfers and several Olympians.
He holds various qualifications in the field, and is a certified Tennis coach, USA Track & Field coach, USA Youth Basketball coach and ISSA Performance specialist.
Allistair is a highly sought after keynote speaker and has regularly appeared on national television in the United States. He is a former 5 time world championship Duathlete competitor, 2 time national fitness champion and just recently completed 7 marathons and 7 half marathons in 7 weeks.
Voted as one of the most 50 Influential coaches by Coachseek, Allistair released his first book in 2016 entitled “7 Keys to being a great Coach” and regularly contributes articles to various magazines on performance enhancement training, motivation and mindset.
Allistair is based in Tampa, Florida.
Country: Florida (South Africa)
Quote: Sports Performance Specialist & Fitness/ Movement Coach to 11 Grand Slam Champions, Six Olympians, and Four World Number #1’s
Twitter: @AllistairMcCaw
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Will Hamilton
Will is the co-founder of FuzzyYellowBalls.com . He’s worked with Bob & Mike Bryan and Patrick Rafter to create instruction for recreational players so they get more fun and enjoyment out of the game.
In his spare time, Will likes to invent silly handshakes.
Country: Washington DC
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Jeff Greenwald
Jeff Greenwald, M.F.T. is an internationally recognized sport psychology consultant, author and licensed family therapist. He was named Athlete of the Year at UC Santa Barbara in 1988 and went on to become a world-ranked player on the ATP Tour in singles and doubles. He was also formerly the No. 1 world and U.S. ranked ITF men’s 35 player, and is winner of two senior ITF World Championships. Jeff has been the mental coach for numerous top professional, college and junior tennis players around the world for the past 15 years. From 1993-1995 Jeff coached top junior players as the Director of Junior Development at the Uhlenhorster Hockey and Tennis Club in Hamburg, Germany. He has been a certified tennis professional by the USPTA since 1996 and currently serves on the Speaking Bureaus for both the USTPA and Wilson Sporting Goods.
Jeff has spoken across the world at numerous tennis clubs, associations, universities and corporations. He also was an adjunct faculty member and supervisor at JFKU for graduate students in the sport psychology program. He served as a consultant for the USA High Performance coaches program from 2005-2010. He earned his B.A at the University of California at Santa Barbara. He has been in private practice since 1998. He holds as Master’s Degree in Clinical psychology with a specialization in sports psychology. He is author of Amazon’s best-selling double-CD audio, Fearless Tennis and The Best Tennis of Your Life and serves as Associate editor for TennisPlayer.net .
Visit Jeff’s website: http://www.jeffhgreenwald.com
Country: California
Quote: Renowned sports psychology consultant. Former No. 1 world-ranked ITF men’s 35 tennis player. Winner of two senior ITF World Championships.
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Joanne Wallen
Joanne Wallen is the Director of Adult Individual Play for the United States Tennis Association, based at USTA’s national headquarters in Lake Nona, Florida.
A native of England, Joanne Wallen became a top junior player there after taking up tennis at the age of four. She came to the U.S. in 1988 on a six-year scholarship to the Bollettieri Tennis Academy in Bradenton, Fla. That year she also signed with sports marketing giant IMG, the youngest player ever to do so at the time. She played for 14 years on the International Tennis Federation and Women’s Tennis Association tours, winning 15 events and achieving a world #252 ranking in singles and and #179 ranking in doubles.
In 2005 she joined the Lexington Tennis Club in Kentucky as Director of Junior Development and was promoted to General Manager in 2009. Throughout her career, Wallen has devoted countless hours to growing the sport of tennis by developing her own skills and teaching those around her. Wallen’s involvement in tennis has been multifaceted, and includes serving on Board of Directors of USTA Kentucky, and chairing its Junior Competition Committee. She also served on the USTA Southern Junior Competition Committee. In addition, Wallen has coached multiple USTA Southern junior teams. Meanwhile, she has become a USTA Certified High Performance Specialist, working with top juniors to prepare them for competition, and a tester for the U.S. Tennis Professional Association (USPTA), certifying tennis instructors in Kentucky and surrounding states. In 2012, she was named “Newcomer of the Year” by the Professional Tennis Registry.
Country: Florida (Orig. England)
Quote: USTA Director Adult Individual Play, Former top UK junior and world-ranked player, 2012 PTR Newcomer of the Year. .
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John Yandell
John Yandell is the Editor and Founder of Tennisplayer.net . Over a twenty year career, he has been a leading force in the creation of new teaching and educational resources in tennis, including a series of highly regarded instructional books and videos. His high speed filming projects for Tennisplayer and Advanced Tennis Research have created the resources that take our understanding of the game to a new level. John has done personal video analysis for hundreds of high level competitive players, including Justine Henin-Hardenne, Taylor Dent, Gabriela Sabatini, and John McEnroe, among others. A cum laude graduate of Yale University, he also did graduate study at the PhD level in both history and religious studies. The John Yandell Tennis School is located in San Francisco, California.
Country: California
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Butch Staples
Butch Staples is currently the National Tennis Director for Midtown Athletic Clubs, which owns and operates 7 clubs around the United States and one in Montreal, Quebec.
He is a PTR Master Professional, a USPTA Professional 1 and a Tennis Canada certified coach. From 1982-1989, he was Chairman of Tennis Canada’s Coach and Instructor Development Committee. He has been a USTA RCW and 10 and Under Trainer since the inception of these programs and he is currently a USTA Master Trainer. He was named USTA Trainer of the Year in both 2006 and 2009. In recent years Butch has been recognized for his industry involvement being honored as the 2009 USPTA Midwest Pro of the Year, 2009 PTR Clinician of the Year and 2010 PTR Pro of the Year. As a result of his work in youth tennis and his application of scientific principles in his teaching, Butch was awarded the 2009 USOC “Doc” Counsilman Science Award. Also, he was a co-recipient of the 2010 RSI Junior Tennis Champion Award.
Butch is also co-owner/operator of Tennisclub of the Low Country in Bluffton, SC. Previously Butch spent 8 years with Tennis Corporation of America (TCA) as Director of Tennis at the Midtown club in Weston Florida and the Head Tennis Professional at Midtown Tennis Club in Chicago. While at Midtown Chicago, he led a team of 34 professionals, helped build the largest indoor tennis programs in the country and was instrumental in developing the model for 10 and under tennis programming. Midtown juniors were the poster children for USTA Youth Tennis. As a testimony to his success, five of his young players were selected to play between the quarter final matches of the US Open in 2010 and four participated in the stadium show of the Arthur Ashe Kids Day.
Butch began his tennis coaching career after graduating from college with a B.A., a B.P.E. and an M.S. He spent 4 years teaching primary, elementary and secondary physical education and then spent 10 years on the athletic staff at McGill University in Montreal where he coached Tennis and Basketball.
Country: South Carolina
Quote: National Tennis Director for Midtown Athletic Clubs. PTR Master Professional. Former USTA Trainer of the Year, PTR Pro of the Year.
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Steve Keller
Steve has been a PTR member since 1986, is now responsible for the educational direction and content of the organization’s four certification pathways as well as the Master of Tennis programs. He will oversee PTR clinician training to ensure continuity of content delivery as well as design and develop professional development courses to create opportunities for certified members to fulfill the new continuing education requirements. Steve will also serve as the national liaison to the USTA Coaching Education department. Prior to joining PTR, Steve spent 18 years with the Van der Meer organization directing sites in Missouri, Florida and South Carolina prior to joining Tennis Corporation of America. Steve earned the distinguished USTA/PTR Public Service Award in 1996.
Country: South Carolina
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Bob Litwin
Bob Litwin was a Long Island tennis teaching professional for thirty-five years. In 1992 he founded the Sports Focus Institute to develop and teach athletes in all sports how to improve performance through all aspects of the mental game.
Bob is known as The Focus Coach. He has worked with every sport imaginable and consulted for the NY Knicks and the NY Islanders. The founder of The Focus Coaching Group, LLC, Bob is a full time performance coach for Hedge Funds and individuals in any field of endeavor, business and sports alike.
He never played in college or on the tour and at 32 started to compete thinking he might be able to win some matches. He lost a lot for several years.
Then he won a gold and bronze medal at the 12th Maccabian Games in the 35 and over. In summer 2013, 20 years later, he won the Gold Medal in the 65s singles at the 19th Maccabian Games.
He has won 18 USTA National Championship titles.
He won the ITF World Championships in 2005 and was ranked #1in the World in the 55 and over.
He was inducted into the Eastern Tennis Hall of Fame in 2011.
After being out of the game for nearly three years due to two hip surgeries, he got back to work and has climbed back to the top and in June was the #1 ranked 65 and over player in the USA.
After going undefeated in Colorado tournaments this year his 18 year undefeated streak in sectional age group matches continues.
His book, Live the Best Story of Your Life: A World Champion’s Guide to Lasting Change, was released in May and touted by Huff Post as the #1 self help read for the summer of 2016.
Country: Colorado
Quote: The Focus Coach. winner of 18 National titles. Achieved #1 in the World Ranking 55 & Over and #1 in USA in 65 & Over. Author of "Live the Best Story of Your Life: A World Champion’s Guide to Lasting Change".
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Jennifer Fuchs
Jennifer has been the Director of Tennis at the El Conquistador since 1999. A former world class touring pro, she has distinguished herself as an outstanding player. As a junior, Jennifer became the number one ranked player in the nation. She was also a part of the Junior Federation Cup and competed in both the Junior US and Italian Open, where she and her partner won the doubles. Following her junior career, Jennifer played two years at UCLA, becoming a two time All-American. Having played all the major events and all 4 grand slams as a touring professional, Jennifer reached the round of sixteen in the Australian Open Doubles Championship.
Country: Arizona
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Feisal Hassan
Feisal, a PTR 5A Pro and USPTA Master Professional. He is also a member of the Head/Penn Racquet Sports National Advisory Board and National Speaker’s Bureau and holds USPTA specialist degrees in Competitive Player Development, Facility Management, Little Tennis and Sports Science. He is a USTA Recreation Coach National and Quickstart Trainer, a member of the National Cardio Tennis Speakers Team and co-chairs the USPTA National Education Committee and the USPTA College Curriculum Committee. He is also on the USPTA Testing Committee and USTA National Youth Education Committee. He was also the Director of Certification & Testing for the USPTA Middle States division and was co-chair of the USPTA National Diversity Committee.
Feisal was also the Director of Coaches’ Education and Junior Davis Cup Team Coach for Tennis Zimbabwe. He was also voted in Tennis Industry magazine’s prestigious “40 Under 40” list for being one of the top 40 men and women under 40 years old who have had and will continue to have a strong influence in the sport and in the business of tennis– both nationally and internationally.
Hassan writes and conducts seminars, workshops and clinics for international, national and sectional organizations and events. He has also written the book, How to Handle Difficult Players and Conditions, and is currently working on his second book, Doubles: Phases & Situations.
In 2011, he was awarded the USPTA’s most prestigious award, the Alex Gordon National Professional of the Year and the 2011 Racquet Sports Industry Champions of Tennis Award. This is the Racquet Sports Industry’s (RSI) most prestigious awards recognizing and honoring the people, businesses and organizations that are making a difference in the tennis industry. He was also a recipient for the USPTA Mid-Atlantic Hall of Fame recipient Inaugural Class of 2012 and the 2012 USPTA George Bacso National Tester of the Year.
Previous accolades include the USPTA Industry Excellence Award in 1999, 5-time Division Tester of the Year, 11-time USPTA Division/State Pro of the Year, and 9-time national Top-10 point holder in the USPTA’s Career Development Program.
Country: Virginia (Orig. Zimbabwe)
Quote: 2011 USPTA Professional of the Year. 11-time USPTA Division/State Pro of the Year. Member Head/Penn Racquet Sports National Advisory Board.
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Jorge Capestany
Jorge is one of only ten people worldwide that is a Master Professional with both the USPTA and PTR. He is a 6-time Michigan Pro of the Year a 2-time Midwest Pro of the Year. In 2015 he was named USPTA National Professional of the Year.
Jorge has coached hundreds of ranked juniors including 3 national champions. In Jorge’s career, his programs have developed more than 180 HS State Champions in Michigan. An internationally recognized speaker and author, Jorge serves many organizations in the tennis industry and is a member of the Wilson national speaker’s bureau team.
Jorge is the founder of Capestany Tennis Inc, which runs websites for tennis coaches and tennis players alike. His Coaches website – www.tennisdrills.tv – has more than 700 subscribers in over 65 countries. The site features more than 1,000 tennis drills.
The Player’s website – www.JorgeCapestany.com – features 100% free instruction and a Free Mental Toughness Video course that includes a free eBook.
Jorge has been a featured speaker at most of the largest tennis conferences in the world including, the PTR International Symposium, the USTA Tennis Teachers Conference in NYC at the US Open, the Australian Grand Slam Tennis Coaches conference in Melbourne, the Norwegian Tennis federation’s tennis coaches conference in Olso, the USPTA World Conference on tennis, and the ITF’s world-wide coaches conference in Mexico.
Country: Michigan (Orig. Cuba)
Quote: One of 10 People Worldwide Honored by PTR and USPTA as a Master Professional. 2015 USPTA National Professional of the Year.
Twitter: @CapestanyTennis
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Joe Dinoffer
Joe Dinoffer has had an extensive “world class” career in the tennis industry, and has conducted clinics and exhibitions in over 50 countries, personally logging over 30,000 hours of instruction in English, Spanish, and German. He is a Master Professional in both the PTR and USPTA, a distinction awarded to only a select few in the tennis industry. Joe also received the prestigious 2006 USPTA Tennis Industry Excellence Award and was also selected as the 2012 USPTA Texas Pro of the Year.
Joe is the author and editor of 7 books and 17 DVDs. He writes regularly for www.TennisOne.com and Racquet Sports Industry Magazine, and also has numerous tips airing on the Tennis Channel . As a member of the Head/Penn Advisory Staff and National Speakers Bureau, Joe is a frequent speaker at national and international tennis conferences, having conducted over 250 workshops since 1995.
He is also the founder and president of Oncourt Offcourt, Ltd ., a company exclusively serving the needs of tennis, fitness, and physical education coaches with innovative training aids and educational tools. Joe lives in Dallas, Texas, with his wife, Monika, and their daughter, Kalindi.
Read some endorsements for Joe´s work here .
Country: Texas
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Ian Westermann
Ian Westermann is the owner and founder of Essential Tennis , an online leader in digital tennis instruction. He founded ET in 2008 after becoming frustrated with the daily challenges of being a full time on-court tennis pro. Since then his online instructional courses have been taken by over 20,000 tennis players in over 100 different countries. Ian specializes in both video and audio instructional content including the first audio tennis instruction podcast in the world: the Essential Tennis Podcast. Since 2008 he has published over 200 episodes of the show which is the highest rated tennis podcast on iTunes. Before leaving his on court teaching job to run Essential Tennis full time in April of 2011 Ian was a teaching professional at Congressional Country Club in Bethesda, Maryland for six years. Congressional is currently rated the #2 private country club in America and hosted the PGA U.S. Open in 2011. His college career was spent in the Professional Tennis Management program at Ferris State University in Big Rapids, MI. Ferris created the very first PTM program in 1989 and it’s still the biggest of it’s kind in the US. While there Ian played both singles and doubles on their UCAA Division II men’s team while earning a bachelors degree in Business Marketing and a minor in Professional Tennis Management. Ian recently moved back to his home town of Milwaukee, Wisconsin with his wife of 9 years, Alison, and their two children. He plans to continue using the most cutting edge and innovative methods possible to reach passionate tennis players all over the world.
Country: Wisconsin
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Michele Krause
Michele Krause is the Cardio Tennis Manager working for the Tennis Industry Association (TIA). Cardio Tennis is a fun, group fitness activity consisting of fast paced tennis drills and games for players of all ability levels providing a full body calorie-burning workout. Michele has overseen the program since its inception in 2005 and since the rollout and there are now 1,800 Authorized Providers, 1.4 million Cardio Tennis participants in the US and the program has spread to over 30 countries.
Michele oversees the entire Cardio Tennis program both in the US and internationally. Her responsibilities include all the day-to-day operations: administration, programming, curriculum, event planning, training and marketing. She manages the TIA Global Cardio Tennis Team which is made up of 25 Trainers who assist her with training, educating and consumer events. She also serves as the coordinator for those countries who are in the process of establishing, launching or continued development of Cardio Tennis. She speaks at many industry conventions, (PTR, USPTA, IHRSA, ITA, ITF, PBI and USTA) meetings and events to provide ongoing education on the Cardio Tennis program. She also trains coaches how to deliver the product through national and international courses. Internationally she has conducted courses in Portugal, the UK, the Caribbean, Ireland, Poland, Greece and Canada. She spent 2 years working with Tennis Australia helping them to develop the program for their country.
Michele has developed Cardio Tennis Kids, Supersize Cardio Tennis and TRX Cardio Tennis. Cardio Tennis was featured on NBC’s the Biggest Loser under Michele’s guidance with Anna Kournakova and she secured Anna as the Cardio Tennis spokesperson.
Michele is a USPTA and PTR tennis professional who managed tennis facilities throughout the US for over 16 years. She is formally educated in TRX Suspension Training and is a Certified Ignite 360 (Combine 360) Trainer. Michele received the TIA/PTR Industry Excellence award on 2012. Michele continuously strives to improve the Cardio Tennis experience for both the tennis professional and the consumer.
Email:
Christophe Delavaut
Christophe is founder of TennisOxygen.com , which specializes in online private coaching using personal stroke video analysis that draws extensively on high-speed video footage of today’s top professionals.
He holds a Professional #1 rating by both the USPTA (1996), PTR (1986), and MTM (2012). He has competed and coached at every level from juniors collegiate and professional. He has been the USPTA District #9 President since 2010 and is also a monthly contributor to TennisOne.com , one of the leading tennis teaching web sites in the world.
Christophe is currently the Director of Tennis of the Grand Harbor Golf and Tennis in Vero Beach FL (since 1995) during the winter months and at The New Seabury Club on Cape Cod MA from Memorial Day to Labor Day since 2011. He also serves as a board member of the Indian River Tennis Foundation, a foundation dedicated to raise funds to award lesson scholarships to local juniors.
During summers has has acted as Director of Tennis of The Lloyd Neck Bath Club in Cold Spring Harbor NY (1996-1999), Tennis director of the Country Club of Detroit in Grosse Pointe MI (2000-2006), Tennis Director at the Walloon Lake Country Club in Wallon Lake MI (2007-2011), and Tennis Director at The New Seabury Club on Cape Cod MA (2011-present).
In 1987 he was the original founder and Director of the Sugarbush Tennis School, which was rated as one of the World’s Best Tennis Schools by Tennis Magazine. Roger Cox, Senior Travel Editor for Tennis Magazine, described the Sugarbush Tennis School as the most dynamic and innovative tennis school in the country.
Christophe is the author of Tennis Atlas: The Ultimate Doubles Program, a 200-page tennis teaching manual geared to help teaching professionals guarantee improvement to their students. He holds a B.S Business degree from Franklin Pierce University, (1987).
Country: Florida (Orig. France)
Email:
Alex Ramirez
Alex is the founder and president of ProTenn International . ProTenn was founded in 1998 as a tennis academy and has grown into a company that not only trains and develops players but also offers its clients financial services, video analysis software and services and is now venturing into the online media business and sponsorship of professional tennis players.
Alex’s system of training along with his team of experts is truly a world class combination. Players come from all over the country–many from Mexico, Canada and Europe– to train part-time and full-time in the program.
Alex competed as a junior, played collegiate tennis and competed as a professional before focusing his efforts to the development of players. His system has developed local, sectional, national and international champions. Alex has worked with many world class tennis players as a consultant to the head coach, as an assistant coach overseeing stroke development and as a video analysis expert on stroke production and match strategy analysis. Currently he is coaching full time on the women’s tour and consulting on the men’s tour.
Country: Arizona
Email:
Stan Oley
Stan is employed by Playmate Ball Machines as their Product Marketing Specialist. Stan is Founder of FBT60 (Fit By Tennis in 60 Days). FBT60 is a new tennis/fitness program combining nutrition and a series of ball machine drills
Stan is a USPTA Master Professional. Less than 160 of the 14,000 USPTA Pros have this distinction. Stan is a member of the USPTA, PTR, USTA. Stan was named 2016 Florida USPTA Pro of the Year. Stan was named 2016 Florida USPTA District 15 Pro of the Year. Stan was the USPTA District 15 President from 2007-2012. Stan was Florida USPTA District President of the Year in 2007 and his District was District of the Year in 2008.
Stan has attended 20 USPTA World Conferences, speaking at 11 of them. Stan has spoken at over 100 USPTA Divisional Conventions. Stan has performed different USPTA Specialty Courses at 18 USPTA Division or World Conferences.
During his 30 years as a teaching professional (29 years USPTA Certified), he was a teaching professional at John’s Island Club in Vero Beach, FL, the head tennis professional at the International Tennis Center in Key Biscayne, FL (Home of the Miami Open Championships), as well as a teaching professional at the Eau Gallie Yacht Club in Indian Harbour Beach, FL.
He has been working and teaching with ball machines for over 25 years. He has also published drills and articles for USPTA Addvantage Magazine, Tennis Week, and PTR Tennis Pro Magazine. Stan was featured on the Tennis Channel’s One Minute Clinic, “On-Court with the USPTA” and has three full length DVDs, “Ball Machine Drills, Drills, Drills” featuring drills with a ball machine, “Rip Your Returns Like the Pros” featuring the serve return, (which recently won Honor of Distinction at a recent communications awards event), and “Zone It to Own It” featuring strike-zones and stroke production.
Stan is very proud to be sponsored by adidas and Babolat tennis products
Country: Florida
Email:
Julio Godreau
Julio Godreau holds certifications with the USPTA (Elite), PTR (Master of Tennis Performance), and the USTA (High Performance). He currently serves as the Director of Junior Tennis for the USTA Texas section.
As a coach he has developed players in Orange Ball (2 Southern #1 ranked players and 3 Southern Closed Champions) and Yellow Ball (player ranked as high as #5 in the US and quarterfinalist at Orange Bowl and Eddie Herr tournaments). At the collegiate level his students have accomplished scholarships at prestigious conferences such as the Pac-12 and SEC, and have won NCAA Division 1 team championship. Aside from his on court success with Junior Players he has also guided adults to State, Sectional, and National Championships.
He has been the recipient of numerous awards from the USPTA, PTR, and USTA including Southern Pro of the Year. As an educator he often presents at sectional events and has been a speaker at The USPTA World Conference and PTR International Symposium.
Julio was a top Junior player in the Caribbean, NCAA Division I Scholarship Collegiate Player, and has played at the Pro level. He is also fully bilingual (English and Spanish) and has a Masters Degree in Business Administration and an undergrad in Psychology. He has been married for twelve years to Charisse and has two daughters, Emma (6) and Sophie (9).
•PTR Master of Tennis Performance (Equivalent to ITF Level 3)
•USPTA Certified Professional Level 1
•PTR Certified Professional Level
•USPTA & PTR Player Development Specialist
•USTA High Performance Orange Bowl World Class Junior Player Development Study
•USTA High Performance US Open Pro Player Development Study
•USTA High Performance 10 & Under Certified
•USTA Referee Certified
•USTA Tournament Director Certification (TDM)
AWARDS
•PTR Mississippi Member of the Year 2014
•USPTA 10 & Under Southern Pro of the Year 2012
•USPTA Southern Pro of the Year 2007
•USTA Southern Pro of the Year 2008
•USPTA Mississippi Pro of the Year 2006 & 2007
•USTA Mississippi Pro of the Year 2008
•USPTA Developmental Pro of the Year 2004
•USPTA North Cal Rookie Pro of the Year 1997
USTA INVOLVEMENT
•Selected to coach USTA National Level 1 camp at USTA Center in NY (US Open Location) along with coaches Tom Gullikson, Richard Ashby, Kent Kinnear, Jay Gooding, and Geoff Russell.
•Chairman 10 & Under USTA Southern Committee
•Vice Chairman USTA Southern Player Development Committee
•Representative for USPTA & PTR Pros in USTA Mississippi
•Chair USTA Southern Talent Identification Camps Committee
•Chair USTA Mississippi Junior Council Committee
•Member USTA National Pro Circuit Committee
•Head Coach USTA Competitive Training Center (CTC) Mississippi
•Coach USTA Southern and Mississippi Talent Identification Camps
•Coach USTA Southern and Mississippi Talent Identification Camps
•Coach USTA Middle States 12 and under Zonal National Team
•Coach USTA Southern 14 and under Zonal National Team
USPTA AND PTR INVOLVEMENT
•Speaker at USPTA World Symposium
•Speaker at USPTA Winter Southern Conference
•Chairman USPTA Multicultural Committee
•Speaker at PTR International Symposium
•Speaker at USPTA Southern Conferences
•Speaker at USPTA Tennessee, Mississippi, & Louisiana Workshops
•Speaker at Mississippi’s High School Coaches
Email:
Rod Heckelman
Rod Heckelman’s career started in 1966 the summer after his junior year in high school when he began his five-year role as a teacher at John Gardiner’s Tennis Ranch in Carmel Valley, Calif. Later he opened as the resident pro for Gardiner’s Tennis Ranch on Camelback in Scottsdale, Ariz. At 20 years of age, he was one of the youngest pros to be the Head Pro at what some considered one of the top tennis resorts in the world.
In 1976 he made his way back to his home state of California, where he took over as Head Pro/Tennis Director at the Mt. Tam Racquet Club in Larkspur. He added the title and responsibilities of General Manager in 1982. From his early teaching years, Rod has been involved with developing top players. He has developed over 15 national champions at the junior level and 4 at the senior level. As a competitor he has played and been ranked at both national and sectional levels, breaking the top 5 in 1991. Rod published an instructional manual in 1992 for tennis teachers to use with their students called “Down Your Alley.”
For the last couple of years, excerpts from his “Facility Manager’s Manual” were being published in Racquet Sports Industry magazine. The manual is now available digitally through the Tennis Industry Association for managers and clubs to use as a model for operating their businesses. More recently, he created a “Business Handbook for Tennis Pros,” that is also being produced by T.I.A. In 2010 he was awarded “Manager of the Year” for the USPTA NorCal division and later announced by the USPTA as the “Manager of the Year” at the World Conference. Rod travels the country lecturing to fellow pros about management skills and helping them transition into management. Rod continues to expand his knowledge on all aspects of the tennis business, and he is a frequent presenter at industry events throughout the country including speaking at IRHSA World Conference in San Francisco in 2011, the first person to represent the tennis industry at an IRHSA convention in over 25 years.
Rod recently was selected to the new Babalot Advisory Board and came out with his second instructional book, “Playing Into the Sunset,” an instructional book for senior players available through BoomerTennis.net.
Country: California
Quote: Author "Playing Into the Sunset", Developed 15 national champions at the junior level and 4 at the senior level
Twitter:
2016 TC for Home Page
Faculties:
Gigi Fernández
Gigi Fernández has been a dominant fixture in the tennis world since turning pro in 1983. During her 14-year WTA Tour career Fernández won seventeen Grand Slam doubles crowns, as well as two Olympic Gold Medals. Fernández was Puerto Rico’s first professional female athlete and coach of the year in Puerto Rico in 2003. In 2000 Fernández was named Puerto Rican Athlete of the Century.
Fernández was ranked first or second in the world from April 1991, up to the time of her retirement in 1997. She is also a member of the International Tennis Hall of Fame. Since retirement, Fernández has coached the Puerto Rican National Team, along with serving as head coach at the University of South Florida in Tampa. She also coached tour pros Sam Stosur and Lisa Raymond to their first Grand Slam win in 2005.
She currently works at Chelsea Piers where she runs the adult curriculum and also conducts “Master Doubles with Gigi” clinics throughout the country.
She is the proud mom of 6 year old twins Karson and Madison.
Wimbledon doubles titles: 1992, 1993, 1994, 1997
French Open doubles titles: 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1997
U.S. Open doubles titles: 1988, 1990, 1992, 1995, 1996
Australian Open doubles titles: 1993, 1994
Olympic Gold Medalist: 1992, 1996
Country: Connecticut (Puerto Rico)
Email:
Emilio Sánchez
Emilio Sánchez is President of the Academia Sánchez-Casal , located in Barcelona Spain and Naples Florida. The Academia Sánchez-Casal uses a unique training system, based on the Spanish method of understanding tennis, focused on maximizing the strength, balance, speed, stamina and agility of the student’s lower body. It incorporates specific exercises used by successful Spanish players, which have boosted the game of students including Svetlana Kuznetsova, Andy Murray, Daniela Hantuchova, Grigor Dimitrov, Juan Monaco, among many others.
As a player, Emilio won three Grand Slam doubles titles and the men’s doubles silver medal at the 1988 Olympic Games. He achieved an ATP world #7 ranking in singles and #1 ranking in doubles. He was the coach of multiple Grand Slam winner (and sister) Arantxa Sánchez Vicario. He also captained Spain’s Davis Cup team to success in 2008. In 2012 Sanchez was a tournament director for two wheelchair tennis events.
Country: Spain
Email:
Michael Russell
Michael is the current owner of Michael Russell Tennis , which features elite tennis training and private coaching in Houston, Texas. Russell’s website www.michaelrusselltennis.com features full-time weekly and monthly programs as well as private tennis lesson packages.
Michael grew up in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan and attended a private high school, where he even played high school tennis including winning the State Championships. Growing up, Michael was fortunate to be able to practice with several ATP Professionals and his father, a top level pro, which helped in his development. After winning the USTA Boy’s 16 Nationals in Singles and Doubles in Kalamazoo, Michigan, Michael achieved the year end #1 Ranking in Singles and Doubles. Weighing the options to turn professional or attend a university, he committed to play at the University of Miami, Florida on a full scholarship, after turning down several offers to play at Ivy League Schools. At the time Michael finished his freshman year with the best single season singles record of any player in University of Miami history, including winning the Rolex National Indoor Championships and being named Rolex National Rookie of the Year.
Michael turned professional in 1998, and after two and half years on tour he broke into the top 100 in the world after reaching the fourth round of the French Open. Throughout his 17 year career, he overcame three career threatening knee surgeries, a torn labrum and rotator cuff, a broken arm, a bulging disc, pulmonary blood clots, multiple ankle sprains, and numerous muscle strains. Most athletes would have walked away from the sport with all of the adversity faced, however Michael’s perseverance and determination is unmatched by most. He played in 34 Main Draw Singles Grand Slams, 115 Main Draw ATP Singles Events, he holds the all-time record for Men’s USTA Singles Circuit Titles, and is on the top 10 List of Most ATP Singles Challenger Titles. He defeated many players in the ATP World Tour top 10 Rankings including Tomas Berdych, Juan Martin del Potro, Marin Cilic, Grigor Dimitrov, Mardy Fish, James Blake, and Lleyton Hewitt. Michael played against numerous ATP World Ranked #1’s (Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Andy Roddick, Lleyton Hewitt, Marcelo Rios) and competed on the Stadium Court at all four Grand Slams including Night Match at both the US Open and Australian Open as well as opening the Wimbledon Championships. Michael currently resides in Houston, Texas with his wife, Lilly.
Professional Highlights:
Turned professional in 1998
In 2001, he was the first player to qualify into all four Grand Slam events consecutively
As a qualifier reached the round of 16 at the 2001 French Open holding match point against eventual champion world #1 Gustavo Kuerten
Missed the entire 2003 and most of 2004 seasons recovering from bi lateral knee surgeries
Reached the round of 16 at the 2007 BNP Paribas Indian Wells event defeating top 10 player Tomas Berdych
Reached a career high ranking of ATP #60 in the world in 2007
Missed 9 months in 2008 with a torn labrum and rotator cuff tear
Reached first ATP Doubles Final at the 2012 BB&T Atlanta Open
Reached the Semi-Finals of three ATP World Tour events on three different surfaces: 2012 U.S. Men’s Claycourt Championships, 2013 International
Tennis Hall of Fame Grass Court Championships, and the 2014 U.S. National Indoor Tennis Championships
Holds the all-time record 23 USTA Pro Circuit Singles Titles
Has won 15 ATP Challenger Singles Titles which is tied for fifth all-time
Has competed on Center Court at all four Grand Slams
Has competed in 34 Main Draw Singles Grand Slams and 115 Main Draw Singles ATP World Tour events
Ranked in the top 100 for the majority of 17 year career including five straight years over the age of 30
Notable wins include Tomas Berdych, Juan Martin del Potro, Mardy Fish, James Blake, Marin Cilic, Kevin Anderson, Grigor Dimitrov, Ivo Karlovic, Lleyton Hewitt, Nicolas Almagro, Jack Sock, Steve Johnson, Fabio Fognini, Donald Young
Has competed against top 5 players Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray, Andy Roddick, Stanislas Wawrinka, Kei Nishikori, and David Ferrer among others
Country: Texas
Quote: Holds the all-time record for Men’s USTA Singles Circuit Titles. Achieved ATP #60 in the world. Competitor in 34 Main Draw Singles Grand Slams and 115 Main Draw ATP Singles Events.
Twitter: MRusselltennis
Email: [email protected]
Jeff Salzenstein
Jeff Salzenstein is the founder and president of Jeff Salzenstein Tennis , an organization focused on helping tennis players improve their games through online tennis instruction in the areas of technique, footwork, nutrition, injury prevention, motivation and athletic development. He is a USPTA Professional 1, Specialist in Competitive Player Development and a Certified Nutritional Therapy Practitioner.
A member of the Colorado Tennis Hall of Fame, Salzenstein set the standard for tennis in Colorado with an unsurpassed record as a player at the amateur and professional levels. As he regularly competed against the best players in the world, he became a serious student of the game and an accomplished world-class competitor.
Salzenstein turned professional in 1996 after graduating from Stanford University, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in economics. In 1997, Salzenstein was named Rookie of the Year by Tennis Week magazine. He played in all four Grand Slams—Wimbledon, US Open, French Open, Australian Open—and had wins over Mardy Fish, David Nalbandian, Greg Rusedski, and Fernando Verdasco. In 2004, despite having two major surgeries, Salzenstein broke into the top 100 in the world for the first time and was the first American to accomplish this feat after his 30th birthday. He concluded his playing career in 2007 and became a high-performance tennis coach in Denver, Colo.
Salzenstein’s website, www.jeffsalzensteintennis.com , shares cutting-edge tennis tips and lessons to help players improve their games.
Country: Colorado
Quote: Former Top 100 ATP Tennis Player. High Performance Tennis Coach. Expert In Peak Performance, Nutrition, Fitness, Rehab and Motivation.
Twitter: JeffSalzenstein
Email:
Paula Scheb
Paula Scheb, is the Director of Tennis and Fitness at the Bonita Bay Club, which encompasses 18 clay courts and a 10,000 square foot fitness facility. She is a USPTA Master Professional, the highest accreditation given to tennis professionals. Currently, less than 130 professionals in the country (less than 1% of the 14,500 members in the USTPA) have this distinctive title.
She is on the National Advisory Staff for Head/Penn and is also on their National Speaker’s Bureau. Paula presents regularly throughout the country on various tennis and business topics. She most recently presented a doubles seminar “Infinity and Beyond: Progressing your Players form 3.0 to 4.5” at the USPTA Florida Division Conference in West Palm Beach.
Scheb was the Director of Testing and Certification for USPTA for over 12 years, certifying and testing over 1,300 professionals. She was also the USPTA Pro of the Year for the Florida Division.
Paula grew up under the tutelage of Nick Bollettieri, when he first arrived in the States from the Rockefeller Resort in Puerto Rico. As a teenager she taught various clinics with Nick all over the world. And more recently has hosted clinics with some of the biggest names in tennis Evonne Goolagong, Gigi Fernandez, Rick Leach, Billie Jean King, Tom Gorman, Jim Loehr, Tim Mayotte, Rick Macci, Stan Smith, Jack Groppel, Fred Stolle, Mikael Pernfors and Jimmy Arias, to name a few.
Paula has been a regular contributor to “Tennis Magazine”, with various tips and articles that have been featured in the magazine. “Tennis Magazine” also featured Paula and some of her teaching tips, in a special edition periodical titled “Tips from the Masters”, which they promoted at the US Open.
Her You Tube videos, “Paula’s Pointers for Club Players,” have received praise and accolades from recreational and professional players alike. Paula and the Bonita Bay Club members host one of the largest tennis fundraisers in the country, with over 20 former touring professionals, eight former #1’s and 4 Tennis Hall of Famers, the event raised over $300,000 this year for a pediatric cancer pharmacy in the new Tom Golisano Children’s Hospital in Ft. Myers.
Paula graduated from the University of Florida with a BS degree in Business Marketing. She played college tennis for the #2 nationally ranked Lady Gators and was a doubles All-American while attending the UF.
Country: Florida
Quote: USPTA Master Professional. Former USPTA Florida Pro of the Year. National Advisory Staff for Head/Penn and for Reebok. Former All-American in Doubles.
Twitter:
Email:
Mark Kovacs, PhD
Dr. Mark Kovacs is a renowned performance physiologist, researcher, university professor, author, speaker and coach with an extensive background training and researching athletes at all levels. He serves as both the Executive Director of the International Tennis Performance Association (iTPA) and Director of the Gatorade Sports Science Institute. Dr. Kovacs’ work has helped improve the way the physical aspects of tennis are trained throughout the world, and he has personally tested and trained hundreds of world class athletes in numerous sports. He formerly directed the Sport Science, Strength & Conditioning and Coaching Education departments for the United States Tennis Association (USTA).
Dr. Kovacs is a Fellow of the American College of Sports Medicine, has published over 50 peer-reviewed scientific articles and abstracts in top journals and was the Associate Editor-in-Chief of the Strength & Conditioning Journal. He is on the editorial board for multiple journals including the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition and has presented workshops, keynote addresses and well over 100 presentations on four continents.
Along with his academic and scientific background, Dr. Kovacs is also a coach and former professional athlete. While originally from Melbourne, Australia, he was an All-American and NCAA doubles champion in tennis at Auburn University. After playing professionally, he completed his graduate work at Auburn University and earned his Ph.D. in Exercise Physiology from The University of Alabama. Dr. Kovacs is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist through the National Strength and Conditioning Association, a Certified Tennis Performance Specialist (CTPS) through the ITPA, a certified Health/Fitness Specialist through the American College of Sports Medicine, a United States Track and Field Level II Sprints Coach and Certified Tennis Coach.
He has published five books on topics ranging from dynamic stretching to recovery. Mark has organized a number of medical and sport science conferences aimed at improving the education of medical professionals, coaches, athletes, parents and sport administrators. In 2010 he was awarded the prestigious Plagenhoef Award for sport science achievement (youngest ever recipient); in 2012 he was the youngest ever International Tennis Hall of Fame Educational Merit Award winner.
Country: Georgia (Orig. Australia)
Quote: Director, Gatorade Sports Science Institute and Executive Director, International Tennis Performance Association (iTPA). Former All-American and NCAA doubles champion.
Twitter: @MKovacsPhD
Email:
Debbie Graham
Debbie Graham Shaffer is a former top #30 in the world singles on the WTA Tour and top #10 in the world in doubles. She was awarded the WTA award for the “Most Impressive Newcomer” in 1992. As a touring pro Debbie played Fed Cup for the USA three times and was undefeated in Fed Cup play. Debbie was a semifinalist at Wimbledon, the Australian Open, and the US Open. Before becoming pro, Debbie was the NCAA singles Champion at Stanford. Debbie played on three NCAA winning teams and then left school to play professional tennis. Debbie graduated from Stanford in three years in order to play professional tennis. For 8 years Debbie was one of the “National High Performance Coaches” for women with the USTA at the USTA Training Center in Carson, CA. Debbie Currently works with top pros, juniors, and collegiate players. Two of Debbie’s players have made it to Grand Slams including the US Open, French Open, Wimbledon, and Australian Open. Currently she is the Director of Little Aces Tennis, where she is teaching young kids to play tennis with low compression balls, smaller rackets, and smaller nets.
Country: California
Quote: Former WTA world top #30 in singles and top #10 in doubles. 1992 WTA Most Impressive Newcomer. 3-Time Fed Cup Player. USTA National High Performance Coach.
Twitter:
Email:
Emma Doyle
Emma Doyle is director of acecoach.com.au and a sports consultant impacting and inspiring over 100,000 tennis players and coaches over the past 20 years. She is a Tennis Australia High Performance Coach (USPTA – Pro 1 & PTR – PC) with a background as a touring professional where she helped numerous Australian female players reach career high singles and doubles rankings inside top 120 WTA. She now continues to travel the world as a professional speaker specializing in helping people to maximize and live their potential using tennis as the vehicle. She is an expert communicator (NLP, EI, Life / Workplace Coach), who incorporates a range of skills in practical, fun and tailored hands-on programs to suit the needs of the passionate players through to elite coaches.
Country: Australia
Quote: Director of Ace Coach. Tennis Australia High Performance Coach (USPTA – Pro 1 & PTR – PC). Expert Communicator (NLP, EI, Life / Workplace Coach).
Twitter: ACE_Coach_
Email: [email protected]
Allistair McCaw
Allistair McCaw is an internationally recognized leader in the field of athletic performance enhancement. His well-proven method of athlete training, “The McCaw Method,” has set the standard for providing world-class athletes and coaches with cutting-edge training and knowledge.
A fitness expert and highly motivated coach, with over 20 years experience, Allistair has trained a host of world class athletes including 11 Grand Slam Champions, 3 World #1 Tennis players, 4 World #1 & World Champion Squash players, PGA Golfers and several Olympians.
He holds various qualifications in the field, and is a certified Tennis coach, USA Track & Field coach, USA Youth Basketball coach and ISSA Performance specialist.
Allistair is a highly sought after keynote speaker and has regularly appeared on national television in the United States. He is a former 5 time world championship Duathlete competitor, 2 time national fitness champion and just recently completed 7 marathons and 7 half marathons in 7 weeks.
Voted as one of the most 50 Influential coaches by Coachseek, Allistair released his first book in 2016 entitled “7 Keys to being a great Coach” and regularly contributes articles to various magazines on performance enhancement training, motivation and mindset.
Allistair is based in Tampa, Florida.
Country: Florida (South Africa)
Quote: Sports Performance Specialist & Fitness/ Movement Coach to 11 Grand Slam Champions, Six Olympians, and Four World Number #1’s
Twitter: @AllistairMcCaw
Email:
Jeff Greenwald
Jeff Greenwald, M.F.T. is an internationally recognized sport psychology consultant, author and licensed family therapist. He was named Athlete of the Year at UC Santa Barbara in 1988 and went on to become a world-ranked player on the ATP Tour in singles and doubles. He was also formerly the No. 1 world and U.S. ranked ITF men’s 35 player, and is winner of two senior ITF World Championships. Jeff has been the mental coach for numerous top professional, college and junior tennis players around the world for the past 15 years. From 1993-1995 Jeff coached top junior players as the Director of Junior Development at the Uhlenhorster Hockey and Tennis Club in Hamburg, Germany. He has been a certified tennis professional by the USPTA since 1996 and currently serves on the Speaking Bureaus for both the USTPA and Wilson Sporting Goods.
Jeff has spoken across the world at numerous tennis clubs, associations, universities and corporations. He also was an adjunct faculty member and supervisor at JFKU for graduate students in the sport psychology program. He served as a consultant for the USA High Performance coaches program from 2005-2010. He earned his B.A at the University of California at Santa Barbara. He has been in private practice since 1998. He holds as Master’s Degree in Clinical psychology with a specialization in sports psychology. He is author of Amazon’s best-selling double-CD audio, Fearless Tennis and The Best Tennis of Your Life and serves as Associate editor for TennisPlayer.net .
Visit Jeff’s website: http://www.jeffhgreenwald.com
Country: California
Quote: Renowned sports psychology consultant. Former No. 1 world-ranked ITF men’s 35 tennis player. Winner of two senior ITF World Championships.
Twitter:
Email:
Feisal Hassan
Feisal, a PTR 5A Pro and USPTA Master Professional. He is also a member of the Head/Penn Racquet Sports National Advisory Board and National Speaker’s Bureau and holds USPTA specialist degrees in Competitive Player Development, Facility Management, Little Tennis and Sports Science. He is a USTA Recreation Coach National and Quickstart Trainer, a member of the National Cardio Tennis Speakers Team and co-chairs the USPTA National Education Committee and the USPTA College Curriculum Committee. He is also on the USPTA Testing Committee and USTA National Youth Education Committee. He was also the Director of Certification & Testing for the USPTA Middle States division and was co-chair of the USPTA National Diversity Committee.
Feisal was also the Director of Coaches’ Education and Junior Davis Cup Team Coach for Tennis Zimbabwe. He was also voted in Tennis Industry magazine’s prestigious “40 Under 40” list for being one of the top 40 men and women under 40 years old who have had and will continue to have a strong influence in the sport and in the business of tennis– both nationally and internationally.
Hassan writes and conducts seminars, workshops and clinics for international, national and sectional organizations and events. He has also written the book, How to Handle Difficult Players and Conditions, and is currently working on his second book, Doubles: Phases & Situations.
In 2011, he was awarded the USPTA’s most prestigious award, the Alex Gordon National Professional of the Year and the 2011 Racquet Sports Industry Champions of Tennis Award. This is the Racquet Sports Industry’s (RSI) most prestigious awards recognizing and honoring the people, businesses and organizations that are making a difference in the tennis industry. He was also a recipient for the USPTA Mid-Atlantic Hall of Fame recipient Inaugural Class of 2012 and the 2012 USPTA George Bacso National Tester of the Year.
Previous accolades include the USPTA Industry Excellence Award in 1999, 5-time Division Tester of the Year, 11-time USPTA Division/State Pro of the Year, and 9-time national Top-10 point holder in the USPTA’s Career Development Program.
Country: Virginia (Orig. Zimbabwe)
Quote: 2011 USPTA Professional of the Year. 11-time USPTA Division/State Pro of the Year. Member Head/Penn Racquet Sports National Advisory Board.
Twitter:
| i don't know |
Above which number on a computer keyboard is the Pound sign ? | Pound Sign
Pound Sign
£
How to use
Press and hold the ALT key and type the number 0163 to make a Pound symbol.
Use unicode Pound symbol in a html document or copy paste the character.
Suppose in keyboard,Numerical button off so how to generate currency symbol
githin 2016-08-31 05:17:38
it's working on my keyboard window 7
£££...yay!!
Virag 2016-08-02 08:57:38
On my Hungarian keyboard Alt+0163 gives Ł, and Alt+156 gives ť, and Alt+0156 gives ś. None of these letters are actually part of the Hungarian alphabet though! I've tried all combinations mentioned in the comment section, still to no avail :(
pete 2016-07-14 17:24:25
too find the pound sisn..press shift and number 3...££££
Umair 2016-07-09 19:41:56
It works! Thanks for sharing :).
Sunil Munshi 2016-04-27 06:06:32
I have a totally different question. In Autocorrect how does "correct accidental use of cAPS LOCK key" work. Till date I have not been able to get an answer from anyone
Thanks in advance
suki 2016-04-07 11:21:12
Thank you Tim! I was using the numbers on top with ALT instead of the number pad and was frustrated!
Sandra B 2016-03-10 10:50:43
Thanks Linda O,G re shift 3 pound sign, great it works been trying for ages the alt0163 does not work for me
Roto 2016-03-03 16:01:29
Just cut and paste the pound sign....£
Some Guy 2016-02-27 05:05:35
Rather than doing all that just do this
Control Panel - Clock, Language and Region - Keyboards and Languages - Change Keyboards - Add - Add the UK Keyboard
Then in the task bar you will find a button in the left of "Show Hidden Icons". Click on it, change it to UK and just press Shift+3
Shift+3 = £
ta da
Linda O'G 2016-02-23 00:13:53
OMG, none of those were working on my new apple keyboard, but I just found the pound sign accidentally - it was shift3 (numbers above the letters) - it suggests that that should give the hash sign, but actually that was alt3.
Look//££££££££££££££ yay!!
Clair 2016-02-19 14:02:35
If your keyboard does not have a number pad (or if you are on a laptop like me) just copy and paste the pound sign from up above and into your writing. I tried this and it worked for me :3
Kuldeep 2016-02-15 11:48:07
Bless you for alt and 0163!
Tom 2015-12-04 20:22:07
On laptops, try pressing the function key (fn) as well as the alt key then the code, e.g fn+alt+156 gives you £. the 156 must be on the number pad, which in most laptops is marked out on the JKLUIOM789 keys.
HARISH (+919799511021) 2015-09-23 06:51:41
Thanks.................Its working for British Pound ALT+0163
kika 2015-09-21 22:40:31
> Type ALT + 3 on the Number Pad
> Highlight the heart
> Click on Font size box
> Manually enter a number such as: 500, 800 or 1000 (as long as it fits on your page)
> Then, press enter and check the heart.
Richard 2015-08-21 14:05:59
Thanks to Ted for typing a comment saying "First, you must hold the ALT key down while typing all the digits and IMPORTANT, I think you can ONLY use the number pad on a standard keyboard and not the numbers across the top. On my keyboards it only works with the number pad"...
ABSOLUTELY CORRECT WITH THE KEY PAD!
Tim 2015-07-03 03:27:28
Thanks to Ted for typing a comment saying "First, you must hold the ALT key down while typing all the digits and IMPORTANT, I think you can ONLY use the number pad on a standard keyboard and not the numbers across the top. On my keyboards it only works with the number pad"... I'd have been there all day if I hadn't noticed Ted's comment. Also the character only appears after you release the Alt button just in case someone didn't know (like me).
Sue 2015-06-29 14:58:30
I have a keyboard from Hong Kong and cannot get the British pound sign using any of the number combinations you all suggest...any ideas??
Mat 2015-06-16 16:17:50
For a heart alt code just hold alt and hit numpad 3. To make it bigger change your font to 72 or something.
ebony 2015-05-16 12:44:29
how can i make like a big like a really BIG heart
june 2015-05-09 14:19:18
thank you all ..i tried a few and got it with ALT 0163 Using numbers keypad.
Ted 2015-03-09 19:53:58
First, you must hold the ALT key down while typing all the digits and IMPORTANT, I think you can ONLY use the number pad on a standard keyboard and not the numbers across the top. On my keyboards it only works with the number pad.
Akash 2015-01-30 17:25:21
Help me if you can
venantius 2014-12-02 05:22:39
i have tried on a laptop but not suceeded
Leon 2014-07-14 20:13:56
For Pounds, You may as ell use ALT + 156(Better and shorter than this one) ;)
Wendy 2014-06-19 16:58:48
Anyone know how I can make a pound sign using a Spanish laptop keyboard with no numbers on the right hand side?
I have tried Alt+0163 and Alt+156 and the same with Alt gr for good measure!
Noelia 2014-05-19 14:28:58
How do I make the Seoul currency symbol?
Chas 2014-04-23 01:30:29
Both alt+0163 & alt+156 produce the pound symbol on my keyboard. I never knew this and it has come in handy immediately. I have also found alt+123={ alt+125=} alt+124=| alt+126=~ the latter I use quite often and usually google it then copy and paste.
JWT 2014-03-30 12:25:18
I am British and I made the mistake of buying an american keyboard. the code Alt+0163 works on this style of keyboards for the £ symbol
Riemer 2014-02-16 09:41:32
The result of Alt 0163 on an American 104 keyboard apparently is: £
Hannah 2013-12-06 04:23:53
Greg is right: the British pound sign is ALT+156 (£), different from the Polish Ł.
Seán 2013-10-02 09:42:15
Both work on my German keyboard (using Win7): ALT+156 and ALT+0163 make the £-sign appear.
Les D 2013-09-20 06:37:25
Actually it's not English it's British or UK £ and the code on Americam keyboards is ALT 156, I just used it. Alana, it is not on US keyboards, I know, I have one.
Greg 2013-05-14 05:27:05
Actually this code is for Polish letter Ł, alt-code for British pound is ALT+156
Zeemaster 2012-10-27 11:42:20
But on american keyboards it is not.
alana 2012-08-12 06:49:38
this is already on the keyboard anyway! =D
ENG 2012-07-20 22:31:01
| three |
Margaret Thatcher, prime minister from 1979 to 1990, served as M.P. For which constituency ? | The keyboard number keys and symbols above them will not work. I nothing at all except a space or they last letter key used, but works fine in other applications such as MS Word. The number pad works just fine. Any one have any thoughts on this. | Firefox Support Forum | Mozilla Support
This thread was archived. Please ask a new question if you need help.
The keyboard number keys and symbols above them will not work. I nothing at all except a space or they last letter key used, but works fine in other applications such as MS Word. The number pad works just fine. Any one have any thoughts on this.
10 replies
Posted
8/2/11, 8:24 PM
I had to do a reinstall and upgrade to Windows 7, so I may have missed something. Running a 64bit OS. Problem only seems to be in the browsers.
I had to do a reinstall and upgrade to Windows 7, so I may have missed something. Running a 64bit OS. Problem only seems to be in the browsers.
Chosen solution
Adobe PDF Plug-In For Firefox and Netscape 10.1.0
NPRuntime Script Plug-in Library for Java(TM) Deploy
Shockwave Flash 10.3 r181
Next Generation Java Plug-in 1.6.0_26 for Mozilla browsers
Application
User Agent: Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 6.1; WOW64; rv:5.0.1) Gecko/20100101 Firefox/5.0.1
More Information
Hasan 469 solutions 5600 answers
Posted
8/2/11, 9:22 PM
You may have Switched ON Caret Browsing. press F7 (on Mac: fn + F7) to toggle Caret Browsing ON/OFF
click Firefox button and click Options -> Advanced -> General -> remove Checkmark from Always use the cursor keys to navigate within pages
http://kb.mozillazine.org/Accessibility_features_of_Firefox
Check and tell if its working.
You may have '''Switched ON Caret Browsing'''. press '''F7 (on Mac: fn + F7)''' to toggle '''Caret Browsing ON/OFF''' * click '''Firefox''' button and click '''Options''' -> Advanced -> General -> remove Checkmark from '''Always use the cursor keys to navigate within pages''' * http://kb.mozillazine.org/Scrolling_with_arrow_keys_no_longer_works * http://kb.mozillazine.org/Accessibility_features_of_Firefox Check and tell if its working.
8/3/11, 7:36 PM
Question owner
Gave that a try. the Caret Browsing was off and there was not a check mark on the "Always use the cursor keys to navigate within pages". So no dice, I even put a different keyboard on with the same results.
Thanks for the suggestions.
Gave that a try. the Caret Browsing was off and there was not a check mark on the "Always use the cursor keys to navigate within pages". So no dice, I even put a different keyboard on with the same results. Thanks for the suggestions.
onedave 0 solutions 1 answers
Posted
8/11/11, 2:48 PM
I had this problem after installing Adobe Flash Player 10.3.183.5. I have Windows 7 and Firefox 5. I later found out the Adobe Flash Player installation was unsuccessful so I installed it again, this time successfully, and my keyboard problems went away!!
I had this problem after installing Adobe Flash Player 10.3.183.5. I have Windows 7 and Firefox 5. I later found out the Adobe Flash Player installation was unsuccessful so I installed it again, this time successfully, and my keyboard problems went away!!
Hasan 469 solutions 5600 answers
Posted
8/11/11, 7:49 PM
Question owner
Gave all of your suggestions a try without success. There is a conflict going on some where as the problem will go away when the OS in booted into Safe mode with networking. I just cannot seem to find it, thanks for the help and suggestions.
Gave all of your suggestions a try without success. There is a conflict going on some where as the problem will go away when the OS in booted into Safe mode with networking. I just cannot seem to find it, thanks for the help and suggestions.
Hasan 469 solutions 5600 answers
Posted
-> click Firefox button and click Options -> Advanced panel -> General tab -> Remove Checkmark from Use Hardware Acceleration when available -> click OK
Check and tell if its working.
-> click '''Firefox''' button and click '''Options''' -> Advanced panel -> General tab -> Remove Checkmark from '''Use Hardware Acceleration when available''' -> click OK Check and tell if its working.
9/25/11, 8:41 PM
Question owner
Found a solution to this problem. Comcast has a product bundled with their Norton antivirus suite called Constant guard. When I removed it the number and symbols keys above the alpha keys began to function properly in Firefox and other browsers. Thanks for the helpful suggestions.
Found a solution to this problem. Comcast has a product bundled with their Norton antivirus suite called Constant guard. When I removed it the number and symbols keys above the alpha keys began to function properly in Firefox and other browsers. Thanks for the helpful suggestions.
Hasan 469 solutions 5600 answers
Posted
| i don't know |
John Major, prime minister from 1990 to 1997, served as M.P. For which constituency ? | John Major - Biography - IMDb
John Major
Jump to: Overview (4) | Mini Bio (1) | Spouse (1) | Trivia (13) | Personal Quotes (15)
Overview (4)
6' (1.83 m)
Mini Bio (1)
John Major was born on March 29, 1943 in London. He was the son of Tom Major-Ball, a retired circus performer who was 65 when John Major was born. He attended Cheam Common Primary School and Rutlish Grammar School, where he had an undistinguished academic career. In the mid '50s, his family was forced to move to Brixton, a poor neighborhood in South London and live in a cramped flat on Coldharbour Lane. John Major did not do well in secondary school and dropped out at age 16. Much later, he said that he could have been a better student and wished he had stayed in school. Throughout the early 1960s, John Major worked odd jobs, but was unemployed for much of the time. He occupied himself by joining the Young Conservatives. He finally found steady employment in 1963, working for the London Electricity Board. He also took a correspondence course in banking, which would become his main career. He took a job as an executive at the Standard Charter Bank, which sent him on a business trip to Nigeria in 1967. Nigeria was in the middle of the Biafra War and John Major almost died in a car crash there. He survived the car accident, but lost a kneecap. He married his wife, Norma Wagstaff, in October 1970 and they have two children. In the 1979 General Election, John Major was elected Conservative MP for Huntington. He served in Parliament for twenty-two years. When neighboring MP John Wakeham was badly injured in the 1984 Brighton bombing, John Major acted as substitute MP for Wakeham's constituency. The following year, John Major was appointed Minister for Pensions and Social Security. He was appointed Chief Secretary to the Treasury in 1987 and in 1989, was appointed Foreign Secretary. He accompanied Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher on the trip to Malaysia to meet with heads of other Commonwealth Countries. But after being Foreign Secretary for only three months, he was moved to the post of Chancellor of the Exchequer. In November 1990, Michael Heseltine contested Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher for the leadership of the Conservative Party. Margaret Thatcher did not win the required two-thirds majority to remain leader, so a second ballot was held. Margaret Thatcher's cabinet all told her that she would lose a leadership ballot to Michael Heseltine and encouraged her to resign. So on November 22, 1990, Margaret Thatcher stood down as Prime Minister. But the Conservatives still had to elect a new leader. Michael Heseltine was in for the second ballot. John Major now entered the contest, as Margaret Thatcher's preferred candidate. So did Douglas Hurd, the Foreign Secretary. John Major won the second ballot and went on to become Prime Minister. John Major had some giant shoes to fill on becoming Prime Minister. At first, people welcomed his quiet, low-key and modest public manner, but it quickly became clear that John Major was just not up to the job. Nonetheless, he narrowly won the 1992 General Election for the Conservative Party. Major's term in office brought Britain's humiliating withdrawal from the ERM in late-1992. He tried to steer a middle course on Europe, but only angered both the pro-Europeans and the Eurosceptics in the Conservative Party. His failure to ratify the Maastrict Treaty in Britain cost him. He tried to re-focus the Conservative Party on "basics"--rule of law, police, family values, education--but this backfired as the media was encouraged to start digging for scandal, and they found it. His authority was so badly diminished that in 1995, he brought matters to a head by calling a leadership ballot for July and vowing to step down if he did not receive the required majority. His line to his opponents was "Put up or shut up." He won the ballot, but it resolved nothing and he spent his last two years in office marking time. The Conservative Party lost its majority in Parliament in December 1996, but John Major managed to stay in office for a few more months. Finally, his term ran out and he called a General Election for May 1997. It was a long campaign, in which he hoped to stave off defeat and give the Labour Party, now led by Tony Blair, enough time to trip up and lose the election. But on 1 May 1997, the Conservative Party suffered its worst-ever defeat. Labour won by a landslide, with a 179 seat majority in Parliament. John Major held his seat, but a number of cabinet ministers went down to defeat. John Major resigned as leader of the Conservative Party immediately after the election, but he remained in Parliament until he stood down in the 2001 election. As Prime Minister, John Major engaged in the first real negotiations with Sinn Fein to bring about peace in Northern Ireland and lay the groundwork for the Good Friday Agreement of 1998, which ended the thirty years of violence in Northern Ireland.
- IMDb Mini Biography By: Jeff Fallis
Spouse (1)
( 3 October 1970 - present) (2 children)
Trivia (13)
Became a Conservative member of Parliament for Huntingdon in 1979.
Children: Elizabeth (b. 1971) and James (b. 1975).
Retired from the Commons at the 2001 General Election.
Younger brother of his biographer Terry Major-Ball and the youngest son of Tom and Gwen Major.
President of Surrey County Cricket Club (2001-2002).
Created "A Companion of Honour", on his retirement from Parliament.
Is one of three former Prime Ministers to have declined a peerage, which would have given him a seat in the House of Lords. The other two were Winston Churchill and Edward Heath . Harold Macmillan declined a peerage upon his retirement from the Commons in 1964, although he accepted an hereditary peerage in 1984 and became the 1st Earl of Stockton.
Was made a Knight Companion of the Order of the Garter on April 23, 2005, and is now known as Sir John Major.
Educated at Rutlish Grammar School and left with 'O' levels in History, English Language and English Literature. He is one of very few British prime ministers who did not attend a university.
President of Surrey County Cricket Club. [July 2001]
His father was a former circus Acrobat. This led many pundits and comedians to joke that Major was the first child to run away from the circus to become an accountant.
He briefly worked at the London Electricity Board in 1963 which is where incidentally his successor as Prime Minister, Tony Blair, also worked when he was young.
Personal Quotes (15)
As I prepare to leave the House I wish to see it thrive, because, for all its shortcomings, it remains the best and least corrupt system of government that I have ever seen.
People say elections are tough and gruelling and, up to a point, they are true but they are also a lot of fun.
I have been a Member of Parliament for 18 years. I have been a member of the Government for 14 years, of the Cabinet for ten years and Prime Minister since 1990. When the curtain falls it is time to get off the stage and that is what I propose to do.
We must go back to basics. We want our children to be taught the best; our public services to give the best; our British industry to be the best. And the Conservative Party will lead the country back to these basics right across the board: sound money; free trade; traditional teaching; respect for the family and the law.
"I was forty-seven, I had the job I had wanted all my life and I had only had it for a year." (On being Margaret Thatcher's final Chancellor of the Exchequer)
I know the Labour Party. I grew up with it. I know the envy - and, yes, the spite - that so often motivates it.
Labour's vision is clear. It goes as follows. If it is successful - tax it, penalize it, control it, nationalize it.
Labour don't trust the people with their own money, with their own choices, with their own future.
Losing power doesn't particularly worry me, it's the nature of politics, you win some you lose some.
In economic policy, in further privatisation, in law and order, I was no counter-revolutionary. In these policies, I led the Thatcherite march onwards with conviction - for I believed in it.
New Labour owes me a great debt. Very many of the ideas put forward against us in the 1997 general election campaign were ones I myself had advocated five years earlier: choice, ownership, responsibility and opportunity.
The language of New Labour may have been first-rate, but it was second-hand.
We've had over 20 British albums top the charts in countries around the world. It's not just the established stars like The Beatles and The Rolling Stones . You have Adele , One Direction , Susan Boyle . Wherever you go, they're household names and they have an implication for perception and thus soft power. That is a background that few countries can match in terms of profile and that is important for our diplomacy. Because people see and think about Britain, because of these elements of soft power, and because of our history, there is...a greater tendency to trust the British in diplomacy.
In every single sphere of British influence, the upper echelons of power in 2013 are held overwhelmingly by the privately educated or affluent middle class. To me, from my background, I find that truly shocking.
Alright, okay, we lost.
| The Huntingdon |
Above which number on a computer keyboard is the Percentage sign ? | Patron, trustees and supporters - The Cromwell Museum
Patron, trustees and supporters
The Cromwell Museum, Huntingdon High Street
Patron
The Rt Hon Sir John Major KG CH
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom 1990-1997
Sir John entered the British Parliament in 1979, and Government in 1983. He joined the Cabinet as Chief Secretary to the Treasury in 1987; was appointed Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs in July 1989; and Chancellor of the Exchequer in October 1989. He served as Prime Minister from November 1990 to May 1997, and retired from the House of Commons at the UK General Election in May 2001.
On New Year’s Day 1999, HM The Queen appointed Sir John a Companion of Honour in recognition of his initiation of the Northern Ireland Peace Process. On St George’s Day 2005, HM The Queen appointed him a Knight Companion of the Most Noble Order of the Garter. In May 2012 he was awarded the Grand Cordon of The Order of The Rising Sun by the Emperor of Japan.
Since leaving Parliament, Sir John has taken up Chairmanship of various International Advisory Boards, and also serves as Patron or President of a number of charitable organisations both in the UK and overseas. In October 2011, he was appointed Chairman of The Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Trust, a Commonwealth-wide initiative established to create a lasting legacy to Her Majesty’s 60 years as Sovereign.
As a lover of history and – for 22 years – the Member of Parliament for Huntingdon, Sir John has long had an interest in the life and times of Oliver Cromwell. He believes the Cromwell Museum is an important part of our national and local history.
Trustees
Peter Johnson, Chairman
Peter is a third generation fine art dealer who has been involved with the Cromwell Museum since 1968. He lives 12 miles from Huntingdon and has been successful in buying a number of objects for the Cromwell Museum, particularly the portrait of General Fairfax and an important portrait of Charles I. His father gave a portrait of Oliver Cromwell to the Museum.
He has sold the famous pair of pictures by George Stubbs, Reapers and Haymakers and particularly the portrait of Arthur Balfour by John Singer Sargent. He has recently sold a picture of Cambridge by James Ward to the Museum of Cambridge.
He has been very involved in setting up four charities and is very happy to be made Chairman of the Cromwell Museum trust.
Jonathan Djanogly MP
Jonathan has been Member of Parliament for the Huntingdon constituency since 2001. He qualified as a solicitor, joining City law firm S J Berwin LLP, becoming a partner specialising in corporate law and corporate governance.
Before election to Parliament, Jonathan served as a Councillor on Westminster City Council. In the Commons, Jonathan served on the Select Committee for Trade and Industry and was appointed Shadow Minister for Home, Constitutional and Legal Affairs, Shadow Solicitor General and also Shadow Minister Trade and Industry with specific responsibility for corporate governance and employment law.
During the Coalition government, Jonathan served as a Justice Minister with responsibility for the courts, legal aid and civil law. He is now Chairman of both the Corporate Responsibility and the Corporate Governance All Party Parliamentary Groups. An admirer and student of 16 and 17th Century history, Jonathan has long been a supporter of the Cromwell Museum in his constituency.
Camilla Nichol
Camilla Nichol is the Chief Executive of the UK Antarctic Heritage Trust, a UK-based charity which cares for six heritage sites on the Antarctic Peninsula. She studied Geology at the University of Edinburgh followed by Museum Studies at the University of Leicester. She has had a varied 20-year museum career working with collections as diverse as geology, scientific and medical instruments, anatomy and pathology, Scottish football and the early oil industry. Previously she was head of Collections for Leeds Museums and Galleries, headed up the science team for York Museums Trust as curator of geology and prior to that worked in curatorial and technical roles at the Hunterian Museum in Glasgow, Almond Valley Heritage Trust and the Scottish Football Museum. She was Museum Mentor for Whitby Museum and continues as a Trustee for the Burton Constable Foundation, a large stately home in East Yorkshire.
Allen Packwood
Allen is the Director of the Churchill Archives Centre and a Fellow of Churchill College, Cambridge. He is a registered archivist and brings relevant experience of managing and exhibiting collections, and of promoting interest in, and the study of, history through the lives of prominent individuals.
Erika Clegg
Erika is co-founder and creative director of Spring, a strategic communications design agency based on the Suffolk Coast, in Southwold. With clients including the Moroccan National Tourism Office, EDF Energy, Age UK, the East of England’s Cultural Tourism programme, and the National Trust, Spring describes itself as ‘the Agency for Change’ and specialises in transformational brand communication projects for places, cultural organisations and businesses.
Erika is also a board director of the Design Business Association and Norwich’s Theatre Royal, and a Trustee of the Southwold Music Trust. She is married, with a young son and teenage stepdaughter; her interest in the Cromwell Museum and Trust was piqued by the fact that she is one of Oliver Cromwell’s many descendants, though her first action upon joining the Trust was to study his family tree which revealed her closer connection to his ancestor, Thomas.
| i don't know |
In which country is Fiordland National park, established in 1952 and one of the largest in the world ? | Located in the Fiordland region
Read details...
Introduction
Fiordland National Park (established in 1952) has spectacular ice-carved fiords, lakes and valleys, rugged granite tops and pristine mountain to sea vistas.
Highlights
Scenery to take your breath away - imagine standing high in the mountains, looking over a vast landscape of snow-capped peaks, glistening fiords, icy lakes in tussock and sheer, ice-carved valleys with rivers winding through the native forest.
A local and international treasure - Fiordland National Park has international World Heritage status as part of Te Wāhipounamu - South West New Zealand World Heritage Area.
Glimpse a famous mountain peak - rising above stunning Milford Sound is Mitre Peak, rising 1692 m above sea level and adding awe to any photo, no matter what weather. The Milford Road journey will get you there.
Unique and endangered wildlife - Fiordland is home of the Takahē Recovery Programme. This unique bird, the largest living member of the rail family, was once thought to be extinct. After rediscovery of the takahē in the Murchison Mountains in 1948, a special area of 500 km2 was set aside in Fiordland National Park for its conservation.
See marvellous marine scenes - Black coral is an underwater beauty and in Fiordland can be seen at shallower depths than elsewhere due to the freshwater layer. Sea lovers - check out the 10 Fiordland marine reserves .
Experience a world-famous Great Walk - Fiordland National Park features three world class Great Walks tracks with stunning scenery: Kepler Track, Milford Track and Routeburn Track.
Place overview
| New Zealand |
"Horse racing - which jockey, in the top 10 ""flat racing"" jockeys of 2012 in Britain, with 72 winners, is unique in that he swiched from being a ""jump jockey"". In national hunt racing , he had won most of the top races, including the Grand National in 2004 on ""Amberleigh House ?" | Cruising Through the Rainforest of New Zealand’s Fiordland National Park – TheNationalMotorist.com
by Wayne and Judy Bayliff
Cruising Through the Rainforest of New Zealand’s Fiordland National Park
The “Other Down Under” destination of New Zealand is on the Bucket List of many Americans — and justly so. Problem is, New Zealand is a long way from anywhere U.S.A. Consequently, most tourists want to see as much as possible on their first visit. Our suggestion for an orientation trip to New Zealand – book a cruise.
The rationale
A cruise will visit several ports on the two islands of New Zealand, which is a great way to get a taste of the entire country – and all without packing and repacking. And, if you fancy an endless array of delicious gastronomical delights included in the price of your vacation, all the more reason to choose a cruise.
On our fourth trip to Australia and New Zealand we blocked out time for a voyage on one of our favorite ships, the Golden Princess .
There is not enough space in this brief article to adequately describe all the picturesque ports-of-call we visited in New Zealand, so let’s just concentrate on one very special destination…
Fiordland National Park
Established in 1952, New Zealand’s largest national park (3 million acres) was formed over the eons by gigantic glacial flows that gradually crushed and moved the earth into the sea leaving deep navigable canyons of water in the South Island coast.
The park fiords are lined with steep cliffs from which giant fingers of gushing water emerge to crash-dive into the sea below.
This park is extraordinary because of its almost incomprehensible size and unsurpassed isolation. Much of the flora and fauna found in the rainforests of the park are just as they were many thousands of years ago.
Entering the park
On the previous night, the ship’s captain alerted us that we would be entering the park at the break of day.
We woke about 5:30 and walked up to one of the observation decks just as the sun started to peek over the majestic mountains on our port side.
The sea was quiet, and there was a veil of still mist in the air.
At first we could only hear, but finally did see, our first waterfall. There were “oohs,” and “ahhs,” aplenty.
Watch for the bears
We had a naturalist on board who narrated our passage through this otherworldly wilderness. He jokingly entreated the passengers to keep a keen eye out for bears along the nearby rocky shoreline (there are no bears in New Zealand). A fellow passenger retorted, “Bears hell, look out for dinosaurs.” It’s that kind of place.
At sunset we left the park for the open sea.
That evening at dinner, we joined a group of passengers celebrating the experience of spending a day cruising through time. None of us will soon forget the primitive beauty of Fiordland National Park.
If you go
The New Zealand Department of Conservation administers the fiords, lakes, mountains, and rainforests of the Fiordland National Park. Check out their website here .
The next sailing with our exact itinerary on the Golden Princess will be January and March 2017, but you needn’t wait because Princess has other ships that cruise throughout New Zealand. Check out other dates and itineraries here .
Happy travels!
If you have an interest in cruising, the authors suggest reading their four other articles involving Princess Cruises and the Golden Princess.
| i don't know |
London landmarks - What was built to stage the British Empire Exhibition held in London in 1925 ? | KING OPENS EMPIRE EXHIBITION | colonialfilm
KING OPENS EMPIRE EXHIBITION
This film is held by the BFI (ID: 493862).
Synopsis
ACTUALITY. An amalgamation of two events featuring the British Empire Exhibition at Wembley. The opening of the exhibition by King George V (23/4/1925) and the royal visit with King Ferdinand and Queen Marie of Rumania (14/5/1925).
Main title. No series number. "Pictures Exclusive to Topical Budget" (4). A Panorma presenting some of Wembley's Wonders" (8). Iris out to LS of the buildings at the British Empire Exhibition, Wembley, pan left (27). "Burma" (28). Iris out of Burma pavilion -…
ACTUALITY. An amalgamation of two events featuring the British Empire Exhibition at Wembley. The opening of the exhibition by King George V (23/4/1925) and the royal visit with King Ferdinand and Queen Marie of Rumania (14/5/1925).
Main title. No series number. "Pictures Exclusive to Topical Budget" (4). A Panorma presenting some of Wembley's Wonders" (8). Iris out to LS of the buildings at the British Empire Exhibition, Wembley, pan left (27). "Burma" (28). Iris out of Burma pavilion - still under construction (37). "Canada. (from the lake)" (39). Iris out to Canadian pavilion (49). "India. (from the lake)" (51). Iris out to LS of the India pavilion viewed across the ornamental lake (68). The Coronation coach passing down The Mall with crowd lined streets and Household Cavalry escort; King and Queen not visible (92). "As the King declared the Exhibition open all the flags are broken at the mast" (94). LS of the massed choirs at one side of Wembly Stadium (99). GV of the stadium with marching band performing (118). View over the crowd as the King and Queen arrive in an open landau (145). "The Massed Choirs" (147). Return shot of choirs and crowds, now waving and cheering (153). Closer view of the royal procession as it progresses around the perimeter of the stadium, King George V and Queen Mary seen (183). "Garlands of Welcome at the Indian Pavilion" (185). LS down wide, long corridor of Queen Mary, Queen Marie of Rumania receiving garlands from a man and woman in Indian dress, King Georege and King Ferdinand are given similar garlands. The royal party walk to camera (214). "At Queen Victoria's Memorial" (216). Closer shot of the royal party as they pass through an indoor exhibition (235). "From India to Burma by Railodok Car" (239). View through dense crowds of royal party travelling in long, covered carriage (not horse-drawn) with driver (254). "At Burma:- Umbrella of State" (257). Pan down Burma pavilion (264). LS the royal party leaving the pavilion under the state umbrellas (274); closer view of the King leaving (281); Queen Mary and Queen Marie pass the camera under the umbrellas (290). "Their Majesties had to make their way through dense throngs " (295). Viewed from an elevated position the royal party make their way (with police escort) through the cheerig crowd (312). "Crossing Old London Bridge" (314). LS Pan of entrance to the bridge - a long ramp with an arch between two towers, the royal party is not visible (325). "Leaving H.M. Government Buildings after Lunch" (319). ELS the royal party descends steps of building, cheered by crowd in foreground (350). "At Newfoundland" (352). Royal party leave the Newfoundland pavilion and walk along planks on the grass (372). "At Fiji" (373). Royal party leave another building (397ft).
Note: (0-183ft) is from TOPICAL BUDGET 661-1 KING OPENS EXHIBITION; (183-397ft) is from TOPICAL BUDGET 664-2 MONARCHS' TOUR OF BRITISH EMPIRE.
Context
The Empire Exhibition was conceived in 1913 by Lord Strathcona (Stevenson, 1925, 610). Put on hold due to the 1914-18 war, the project finally received parliamentary backing in 1920. Wembley was chosen as the location, principally because of its good rail links (MacKenzie, 1982, 107). The first event to take place at the Wembley site was the 1923 FA cup final, held at the newly built stadium. In the succeeding years there were two Empire Exhibitions.
The formal opening of the 1924 Exhibition…
The Empire Exhibition was conceived in 1913 by Lord Strathcona (Stevenson, 1925, 610). Put on hold due to the 1914-18 war, the project finally received parliamentary backing in 1920. Wembley was chosen as the location, principally because of its good rail links (MacKenzie, 1982, 107). The first event to take place at the Wembley site was the 1923 FA cup final, held at the newly built stadium. In the succeeding years there were two Empire Exhibitions.
The formal opening of the 1924 Exhibition took place on 23 April at Wembley Stadium. Here, the Prince of Wales (the future Edward VIII), who served as President for the Exhibition, addressed his father, King George V, and outlined the purpose of the event: ‘I hope, Sir, the result of this Exhibition will be to impress vividly upon all the peoples of your Empire the advice that you have given to them on more than one occasion, that they should be fully awake to their responsibilities as the heirs of so glorious a heritage; that they should be in no wise slothful stewards, but that they should work unitedly and energetically to develop the resources of the empire for the benefit of the British race, for the benefit of those other races which have accepted our guardianship over their destinies, and for the benefit of mankind generally’ (Knight and Sabey, 1924, 12). As part of this drive, sixteen of the participating colonies and dominions were given a representative building in which to advertise their culture and their wares: for example, the Burmese pavilion was based on a temple in Mandalay; the Ceylonese pavilion was modelled on the Temple of the Tooth in Kandy; and Hong Kong by a street of Chinese (‘British Empire Exhibitions 1924-1925’). The Prince declared that this display represented ‘the whole Empire in little’, and that the event provided an opportunity ‘to take stock of the resources, actual and potential, of the Empire as a whole’ (Knight and Sabey, 1924, 130).
This film is combined from two news reports, one centred on the attendance of King George and Queen Mary at the opening ceremony, while the other focuses on the visit of King Ferdinand and Queen Marie of Romania, who on 14 May 1924 accompanied a returning King George and Queen Mary to the exhibition. Marie was one of Queen Victoria’s granddaughters; she is credited with enlisting Romania on the side of the Allies in World War I, and of enlarging her country’s territory in the Treaty of Versailles (The Times, 15 May 1924, 15).
The films were made by the Topical Film Company, which was founded by William Cecil Jeapes and Herbert Holmes in 1911. They would originally have been seen as component items in editions of ‘Topical Budget’, the company’s bi-weekly newsreel. During World War I the Topical Film Company came under the control of government, and in 1919 it was purchased by the newspaper proprietor Edward Hulton. ‘Topical Budget’ was one of the three major British newsreels in the silent era, and under Hulton’s guidance it witnessed its greatest period of popularity, reaching a weekly audience of up to five million (McKernan, ‘Topical Budget (1911-1931)’).
Analysis
Royal Topical Budget films and the Empire Exhibitions were similar in outlook. Luke McKernan has noted that the Royal Family were one of the most popular subjects of Hulton-era Topical Budget films, and that footage of their tours of Empire countries offered home audiences contrived representations of ‘the extent of Britain’s apparent power’ (McKernan, ‘Topical Budget: British Identity and Empire’). He notes that these films were always made with a British perspective…
Royal Topical Budget films and the Empire Exhibitions were similar in outlook. Luke McKernan has noted that the Royal Family were one of the most popular subjects of Hulton-era Topical Budget films, and that footage of their tours of Empire countries offered home audiences contrived representations of ‘the extent of Britain’s apparent power’ (McKernan, ‘Topical Budget: British Identity and Empire’). He notes that these films were always made with a British perspective in mind, and that they ‘showed traditionalist Britain what it wanted to be shown of its Empire’ (McKernan, ‘Topical Budget: British Identity and Empire’). They thus chime with the Empire Exhibition itself, which offered an idealised representation of Britain’s colonies and dominions.
The presence of Royalty was prioritised at the Empire Exhibition, and it is also the focus of these Topical Budget films. In the footage of the opening ceremonies we can see the exterior of some of the pavilion buildings, but there is no clear sight of any of the people from the colonies. Moreover, just as the Exhibition arranged the countries of the Empire in order to show them in their best light, here we get the studied movements of the Royal party. Smither and Klaue note how ‘King George and Queen Mary quietly but deliberately oblige the cameras, knowing when to pause, when to move, always aware that they are on show to the millions’ (Smither and Klaue, 1996, 70). Indeed, this was a media event through and through. The opening ceremony was broadcast on the radio and was ‘heard by millions’; it was also issued for sale as a gramophone recording (Knight and Sabey, 1984, 115). It should also be noted that there was something inherently filmic about the Empire exhibition itself: its various displays operating like stage sets. John MacKenzie notes that it was ‘suggested that Wembley should become the British Hollywood’ (MacKenzie, 1984, 112).
The film of the Romanians’ visit offers a slightly different perspective from that of the opening ceremony. The royal couples are the centre of attention, but here they are filmed, predominantly in long shots, amongst the Wembley exhibits. We receive our first clear sights of colonial people: at the Indian Pavilion the High Commissioner Sir Dadiba Dalal and his wife can be seen as they garland the royal couples with flowers (The Times, 15 May 1924, 10). However, what is conveyed most strongly in this segment of the film is the popularity of the Exhibition and of the royal family – throughout there are thronging crowds.
The Empire Exhibitions presented a particular image of the Empire, one in which the colonies and dominions profited from manufacturing goods for export to the Metropolis, and one in which British aid was seen to be helping to transform life. In these films we do not see the interior of any of pavilions, but there is some sense of how the Exhibition put the Empire on display. The colonies are represented in a rationalised and modernised form: only the finest architecture is on show; we see the visitors pass easily between the countries on foot, and we also see them using the futuristic ‘rail-o-doc’ car to span the continents. Conversely, the bizarre juxtapositions, such as a Burmese pagoda next to the concrete Canadian pavilion, serve to highlight the extent and variety of Britain’s colonial lands. There is also an illustration of where the power lies in this relationship. We witness the King traversing his ‘Empire in little’, and we also get to see the mock governmental buildings of the metropolis, which were a feature of the Exhibition.
MacKenzie quotes an eastern European visitor, Eric Pasold, who visited the exhibition and remarked on the ‘endless variety of human types’ on display. Pasold continues: ‘yet all were members of one great empire, united under one king and flag, linked by the English language, financed by sterling, ruled by British justice and protected by the Royal Navy. How proud they must feel, I thought, and how I envied them’ (MacKenzie, 1984, 112). Such a reaction was the aim of the Exhibition, and was also desired of these Topical Budget films.
Richard Osborne (February 2010)
‘British Empire Exhibitions 1924-1925’, http://www.20thcenturylondon.org.uk/server.php?show=conInformationRecord.86 .
Knight, Donald R., and Alan D. Sabey, The Lion Roars at Wembley: British Empire Exhibition 60th Anniversary 1924-1925 (London: Barnard & Westwood, 1984).
MacKenzie, John M., Propaganda and Empire: The Manipulation of British Public…
‘British Empire Exhibitions 1924-1925’, http://www.20thcenturylondon.org.uk/server.php?show=conInformationRecord.86 .
Knight, Donald R., and Alan D. Sabey, The Lion Roars at Wembley: British Empire Exhibition 60th Anniversary 1924-1925 (London: Barnard & Westwood, 1984).
MacKenzie, John M., Propaganda and Empire: The Manipulation of British Public Opinion 1880-1960 (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1984).
McKernan, Luke, ‘Topical Budget (1911-1931)’, Screenonline, http://www.screenonline.org.uk/film/id/583128/index.html .
McKernan, Luke, ‘Topical Budget: British Identity and Empire’, Screenonline,
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Tennis - Who was the first black person to win a Wimbledon championship, in 1957 ? | Wembley | Exploring London
Exploring London
8 structures from the London that never was – 2. Watkin’s Tower…
November 12, 2014
Designed as London’s response to the Eiffel Tower, Watkin’s Tower was the brainchild of railway entrepreneur and MP Sir Edward Watkin.
Following the opening of the Eiffel Tower in 1889, Watkin wanted to go one better in London and build a tower than surpassed its 1,063 feet (324 metres) height.
He apparently first approached Gustave Eiffel himself to design the tower which was to be located as the centrepiece for a pleasure park development at Wembley Park in London’s north (which, incidentally, would be reached by one of Sir Edward’s railway lines – he opened Wembley Park station to service it). But Eiffel declined the offer and Watkin subsequently launched an architectural design competition.
Among the 68 designs received from as far afield as the US and Australia were a cone-shaped tower with a railway spiralling up its exterior, a Gothic-style tower (also with a railway), a tower topped with a 1/12 scale replica of the Great Pyramid, one modelled on the spire of Bow Church in Cheapside and one topped by a giant globe (you can see the catalogue of all entries here ).
The winning entry was submitted by Stewart, MacLaren and Dunn who proposed a steel eight legged tower soaring 1,200 feet (366 metres) into the sky. To be lit with electric lighting at night, it came with two observation decks with restaurants, theatres and exhibition space as well as winter gardens, Turkish baths, shops, promenades and a 90 room hotel as well as an astronomical observatory. The top of the tower would be reached by a series of elevators.
The first stage of the project – formally known as London Tower or the Wembley Park Tower – had still not been completed when Wembley Park opened in May, 1894 – standing 154 feet (47 metres tall), it was finally finished in September the following year.
It was to never rise higher. The project become mired in problems – Watkin retired through ill health (and died in 1901), the structure started to subside and the construction company went into liquidation. Dubbed Watkin’s Folly and the London Stump, what there was of the tower was eventually demolished between 1904-1907.
While the dream of the tower never came to be, the site nonetheless became a popular vehicle for recreation and the site was later used for the 1924 British Empire Exhibition with Wembley Stadium built over the spot where the tower had once stood.
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LondonLife – London from above…
March 25, 2014
A website launched last year – Britain from Above – boasts some unique perspectives on London among its more than 61,000 images including this one above of the South Bank site of the Festival of Britain – a national exhibition held at various venues across Britain as a post-war “tonic” for the nation – under construction, taken on 14th August, 1950. The website features images taken as part of a collection of aerial photographs taken between 1919 and 1953 by pioneering air survey company Aerofilms Ltd. It has been created by English Heritage, the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland and the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Wales following their joint purchase of the company’s collection of more than 1.26 million negatives and 2000 photo albums and forms part of a four year project which aims to conserve and digitise some 95,000 of the oldest and most valuable photographs in the collection. Under the project, the general public is invited to share and record their knowledge and memories of the photographs featured. To get involved, head to www.britainfromabove.org.uk . Below can be seen an image of the FA Cup Final being played between Sheffield Wednesday and West Bromwich Albion (Sheffield were 4-2 victors) at Wembley Stadium on 27th April, 1935. PICTURES: © English Heritage. Aerofilms Collection EAW031792/© English Heritage. Aerofilms Collection EPW046905.
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Olympics Special – The Olympic Torch Relay, part II…
July 27, 2012
We take a break from our regular series this week to bring you some images from the second half of the Olympic Torch Relay as it made it’s way around London toward tonight’s Opening Ceremony…
Day 67 (24th July): Tennis player Oliver Golding holds the Olympic Flame in between the Olympic Rings at Kew Gardens, London.
London Underground employee John Light carries the Olympic Flame onto an underground train at Wimbledon Station.
Day 68 (25th July): Former World Cup winning footballer Gordon Banks carries the Olympic Flame down Wembley Way, at Wembley Stadium.
Prince Charles, Duke of Cornwall, and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, pose with young entrepreneur Jay Kamiraz and Paralympian Scott Moorhouse as they kiss together Olympic torches in Tottenham.
Day 69 (26th July): Disaster mapping charity volunteer Wai-Ming Lee passes the Olympic Flame to mountain rescue team leader John Hulse in front of Buckingham Palace in the presence of Prince William, Kate, Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry.
Wheelchair basketballer Ade Adepitan carries the Olympic Flame on Millennium Bridge.
Student Ifeyinwa Egesi holds the Olympic Flame inside the Globe Theatre.
For more on the Torch Relay, see www.london2012.com/torch-relay/
ALL PICTURES: LOCOG.
10 Historic Sporting Events in London – 4. The 1966 FIFA World Cup at Wembley…
July 25, 2012
The home of English football, in 1966 Wembley Stadium in north-west London played host to the FIFA World Cup and witnessed England win the coveted cup.
Led out onto the ground by Bobby Moore, the English team, under manager Alf Ramsey, were locked in a 2-2 draw with West Germany when the game went into extra time. English player Geoff Hurst, who had already scored a goal, went on to score two more goals (one of which was particularly controversial with some still believing it didn’t cross the goal-line), giving him a hat-trick of goals and handing England the cup in a 4-2 win.
The team received the Jules Rimet trophy (named for former FIFA president Jules Rimet and replaced with the current FIFA World Cup Trophy in the 1970s) from Queen Elizabeth II.
While the history of Wembley goes back to 1923 when the Empire Stadium, referred to as the “Twin Towers” thanks to its distinctive two domed towers, was built on the site, the current stadium was only officially opened in 2007. Capable of seating 90,000, it is the second largest stadium in Europe.
As the Empire Stadium, the ground – originally built for a British Empire Exhibition – had played host to events including the 1934 Empire Games, the 1948 Olympics, and numerous football finals including the so-called “White Horse final” when a mounted policeman went on the pitch to contain the estimated 200,000 fans who watched the Bolton Wanderers FC defeat West Ham United FC 2-0 in the 1923 FA Cup final.
The current stadium with its iconic arch now plays host to the FA Cup as well as other high-profile matches like the FA Community Shield and large events including rock concerts (a recent vote on the Wembley website found that the greatest event ever held there was a 2007 concert by Muse).
This Olympics, Wembley is hosting numerous football matches including the gold medal match for both men and women, on the 11th and 9th August respectively (the last time the men’s final was played here during an Olympics was in 1948 when England won the bronze). It’s hoped a new record will be set for the number of people attending a women’s Olympic football match (the current record of 76,489 was recorded at the 1996 Olympics in Georgia at the Stanford Stadium) during the Games.
With a one kilometre circumference, the stadium encloses some four million square metres (equivalent apparently to the space taken up by 25,000 London double-decker buses) and features a Royal Box in the middle of the north stand from where all trophies are presented. The roof is partly closable.
There are tours of the stadium (although it’s closed during the Olympics), details of which are below.
WHERE: Wembley National Stadium, Wembley (nearest Tube stations are Wembley Park and Wembley Central or the Wembley Stadium British Rail station); WHEN: Selected dates – see website for details; advance booking strongly recommended (the stadium is closed for events, including the Olympics and before and after); COST: £16 an adult/£9 a child (under 16, under five’s free)/£9 seniors/£41 family ticket (zip wire ride extra); WEBSITE: www.wembleystadium.com/Wembley-Tours.aspx .
PICTURE: Action Images/Paul Harding (courtesy of Wembley National Stadium).
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Around London: Olympic Torch Relay hits London; mascots pop-up all over the city; and Shakespeare at the British Museum…
July 19, 2012
• The Olympic Torch Relay arrives in London tomorrow night before working its way around all of the city’s 33 boroughs and reaching the Olympic Stadium for the Opening Ceremony next Friday. The torch will arrive in the city by helicopter from Guildford tomorrow night and then be abseiled into the Tower of London where it will spend the night ensconced with the Olympic medals. The relay will travel 200 miles over the next week, carried by more than 980 torchbearers. The route is as follows:
Saturday, 21st July – Greenwich via Newham, Tower Hamlets and Hackney to Waltham Forest (highlights include a visit to the Cutty Sark);
Sunday, 22nd July – Redbridge via Barking & Dagenham and Havering to Bexley (highlights include a ride on the London Eye and a crossing of the Thames);
Monday, 23rd July – Lewisham via Bromley, Croydon, Sutton and Merton to Wandsworth (highlights include a visit to a live filming of Eastenders);
Tuesday, 24th July – Kingston via Richmond, Hounslow, Hillingdon and Denham to Ealing (highlights include a visit to Kew Gardens);
Wednesday, 25th July – Harrow via Brent, Barnet and Enfield to Haringey (highlights include a visit to Wembley Arena);
Thursday, 26th July – Camden via Islington, the City of London, Southwark, Lambeth, Wandsworth, Kensington & Chelsea and Hammersmith & Fulham to Westminster (the many landmarks to be visited include St Paul’s Cathedral, Shakespeare’s Globe, Trafalgar Square, Buckingham Palace and Hyde Park);
Friday, 27th July – From Hampton Court Palace (where it will be taken into the maze) on board Gloriana via the Thames to Olympic Park for the Opening Ceremony.
The 70 day torch relay, which kicked off on 19th May, will have travelled a total distance of about 8,000 miles and have involved 8,000 torchbearers by the time it reaches its end. LOCOG and Transport for London have advised people to see the relay at a location closest to their home given the expected crowds. For more detailed route information, see www.london2012.com/torch-relay/route/ . PICTURE: LOCOG
• Still talking all things Olympics and London’s largest ever ‘pop up’ shop – where you can buy Olympic merchandise – was officially opened by multiple gold medalist Sir Steve Redgrave in Hyde Park last week. The shop, located on Rotten Row, will be the site of special athlete visits during the Games and visitors can have their photo taken with the Olympic Torch.
• Meanwhile, life-sized versions of the Olympic mascot Wenlock and Paralympic mascot Mandeville are popping up at some of London’s key tourist locations. The 83 two metre tall sculptures capture various elements of life in London with incarnations including a Beefeater, a giant red phone box and a replica of Big Ben. The figures can be found on the routes of Stroll, six new discovery trails designed to help both tourists and Londoners get more out of the city. A QR code on the bottom of each of the sculptures directs smartphone users to further information about the discovery trails. The discovery trails are part of the Mayor of London Presents, a city-wide programme featuring free events, shows and activities. For more on what’s happening in your area, see www.molpresents.com . Some of these events are also being run as part of the Festival of London 2012. For more on this, see http://festival.london2012.com .
• On Now: Shakespeare: staging the world. Part of the World Shakespeare Festival taking place in London, this exhibition at the British Museum looks at the then emerging role of London as a “world city” as interpreted through Shakespeare’s plays and examines the role the playhouse performed in this. The museum has collaborated with the Royal Shakespeare Company to produce the exhibition which features more than 190 objects including paintings, jewels and rare manuscripts. These include the Ides of March coin, a Roman gold aureus commemorating the assassination of Julius Caesar (Julius Caesar), the Lyte Jewel, presented to Thomas Lyte in 1610 in thanks for his work in tracing King James I’s lineage back through Banquo (Macbeth), and a 1610 bird’s-eye view of Venice (Othello and The Merchant of Venice). Runs until 25th November. Admission charge applies. For more, see www.britishmuseum.org .
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10 Historic Sporting Events in London – 3. The 1934 Empire Games…
July 18, 2012
Come the end of this year, London will have become the first city in the world to host three Olympic Games. But it’s only hosted the Commonwealth Games – then known as the Empire Games (one of several names changes the Games have been through) – once, in 1934.
Only the second time the Games were held (following the holding of the first British Empire Games in Hamilton, Canada, in 1934), London was selected after the Games were initially awarded to Johannesburg in South Africa but concerns were raised, notably by Canada, about the impact South Africa’s Apartheid policy would have on visiting athletes and officials.
The Games were held in early August and involved 500 competitors from 16 different nations (as a comparison, almost 7,000 competitors attended the 2010 Commonwealth Games held in Delhi, India). Among those countries sending competitors for the first time were Hong Kong and India, Caribbean nations Jamaica and Trinidad, and Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) in Africa as well as Newfoundland, representatives of which took part independent of the Canadian team, and the Irish Free State (the only Games in which they participated).
Six sports were featured in the Games and, following its use in the 1908 Olympic Games, organisers again turned to White City to host most of the events which included athletics, boxing, lawn bowls and wrestling (although cycling was held in Manchester and swimming and diving (seen as one sport) at the Empire Pool in Wembley). In what was seen as a breakthrough for women everywhere, selected athletic events were included for females (those not deemed “too exhaustive” apparently).
England topped the medal tally with 72 medals (29 gold) followed by Canada, Scotland, South Africa and Australia. Numerous new records were set in the pool.
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10 Historic Sporting Events in London – 2. The 1948 Olympic Games…
July 11, 2012
We took a break from our Wednesday special looking at 10 historic sporting events in London but today we resume with a look at the 1948 Olympics.
The first Games held in 12 years due to outbreak of World War II, the XIV Olympiad were known as the “Austerity Games” due to the post-war rationing and economic climate. Britain had been named as host of the 1944 Games in June 1939 but following its cancellation, it was suggested as a venue for the 1948 and in 1946 was duly awarded them over other cities including a Lausanne in Switzerland and a number of US cities such as Los Angeles.
In so doing, London became the second city to host the Games twice (Paris had already done so in 1900 and 1924). Interestingly, when it hosts this year’s Games, London will become the first city to do so.
Due to the economic climate, no new venues were constructed for the Games and the athletes were accommodated in existing properties – RAF camps and London colleges – rather than a purpose-built Olympic village. The key venue was the Wembley Empire Exhibition Grounds – the opening ceremony (King George VI officially opened the Games), closing ceremony, athletics and football and hockey finals were all held in Wembley Stadium (pictured above as it is today – we’ll be looking at the “home of British football” in more detail in a later post) while fencing was held in the Palace of Engineering and swimming, diving and water polo at the Empire Pool.
Other London venues included Empress Hall at Earls Court for boxing, weightlifting and gymnastics, the Harringay Arena in north London for basketball and wrestling, the Herne Hill Velodrome for cycling and numerous football and hockey grounds including Arsenal Stadium in Highbury.
More than 4,000 athletes including 390 women took part in 136 events (Japan, Germany and the USSR were not represented while other countries such as Burma, Syria and Venezuela, were among the record-making 59 nations for the first time).
Memorable moments at the Games, which ran from late July into August, included 17-year-old Bob Mathias’ win in the decathlon only four months after taking up the sport (he remains the youngest man to win a men’s athletics event) and that of Dutch woman Fanny Blankers-Koen, the ‘flying housewife’, who won four gold medals in running events.
The Games were also notable for being the first to be shown on household televisions (although few people would have watched the Games this way), for introducing starting blocks for sprinters and for the use of the first covered pool – the Empire Pool at Wembley.
In a sign of things to come, the US won the most medals (84) followed by Sweden (44), and France (29). Great Britain came 12th with 23.
For more, check out the official Olympic website – www.olympic.org/london-1948-summer-olympics .
For more on Olympics history, check out London Olympics, 1908 and 1948
.
PICTURE: Courtesy of Wembley Stadium
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In the Sherlock Holmes stories, what is Doctor Watson's first name ? | Sherlock Holmes true original full name Sherrinford Hope
THE NAME OF SHERLOCK HOLMES
Author: SherlockExtra - Translator: Revati
Sherlock Holmes – the name means logical thinking, just like the name of Albert Einstein. Holmes is a world famous character, and when someone says something stupid or states a thing that is obvious, we funnily call him/her Sherlock. But where does the name of the great detective originate from?
It is not an easy question. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle renamed his hero many times, and in addition to that we have to take into consideration that Sherlock was created long ago, and many rumours were around him and his name. In the following we list the major anecdotes which blend into an interesting story.
Sherlock Holmes and hope
Sherrinford Hope
Originally Doyle wanted to call his detective Sherrinford Hope. Hope was the name of a whaling ship sailing from Scotland’s Peterhead to Greenland. There are suppositions that in 1880 Doyle was bored of studying and he fled to the ship. The truth is that in those days medical students often served on ships for months, because they could practice their future profession and help whalers whose job was hard and dangerous. Conan’s classmate was assigned for Hope, but he could not take part on the journey. He offered his place and Doyle snatched at the opportunity. He wrote a diary about his days on board, which was later published with the title Dangerous Work: Diary of an Arctic Adventure.
In the end the detective was renamed, because Louisa, the first wife of Doyle thought the name Sherrinford Hope was awful, so she persuaded her husband to change it. Doyle chose the name Sherrinford Holmes. But Hope is not far from the British sleuth, as his greatest merit is that though he is a fictional character, he is still able to raise hope. We write more detailed about his relationship with hope in the following article: I believe in Sherlock Holmes
The picture in the middle belongs to bio.com ,
where you can read more about Oliver Wendell Holmes
Oliver Wendell Holmes
A famous Holmes
While the model of Holmes was Scottish surgeon Joseph Bell, his family name is a kind of salute to another doctor similar to him. The American Oliver Wendell Holmes thought that meticulous observation and good deducting skills are essential in medical practice. He was a lecturer and a true reformer. His thinking was rational. He looked upon homeopathy as false science – he published his arguments and analysed the misbeliefs.
He was not as tall as Bell, but he too wrote poems. He was an outstanding literary personality, who was an acclaimed novelist and poet.
In Doyle’s novels the detective is a solitary genius, while the doctors who inspired him were married and had children. Oliver sometimes had a moustache like Doyle, and sometimes he was clean-shaven like dr. Bell.
The name Sherlock Holmes is born
Sherrinford or Sherringford Holmes?
So our hero got the name Sherrinford Holmes. Or Sherringford Holmes? Sometimes there is a „g” in his first name. Doyle liked both versions, so the fans of the great detective use them too. Nowadays we could read the adventures of Sherrin(g)ford Holmes, but publishers rejected the stories. Seeing this, Doyle chose a new name that sounded better for British ears: Sherlock. This name met with success.
Doyle also renamed the faithful chronicler of Holmes – his name changed from Ormand Sacker to John Watson. Dr. Patrick Watson was the colleague and close friend of Joseph Bell, he was a real gentleman. Though Doyle modelled Watson after himself, he also used Patrick Watson as inspiration.
According to the Sherlock Holmes Society of London the name 'Sherlock' originates from the famous violinist, Alfred Sherlock.
Conan was a fan of cricket. He maybe chose the name Sherlock because of two revered British cricket players, Mordecai Sherwin and Frank Shacklock. (We must note that the former was a professional footballer as well.)
SHERwin + ShackLOCK = SHERLOCK
SHERLOCK = shear + lock
The name Sherlock has Old English origins. It has the following meanings: bright-haired, short-haired, sheared. It is worth to mention that when Jeremy Brett accepted the role of the great detective, it was his idea that Sherlock must be bright-haired to show his brilliant mind.
The name also means short-haired – in the novels and on the original illustrations by Sydney Paget Sherlock has short, black hair. But his hair colour often changed both on illustrations and onscreen. Anthony Higgins played him with long hair in the movie Sherlock Holmes returns.
The brilliant detective became a real icon with the name Sherlock Holmes. Later some parodies played with it too – he was called Herlock Sholmes or Sherlock Hemlock.
The full name of Sherlock Holmes and his middle name
William Sherlock Holmes Scott - the real name
In some adaptations appears the name William Sherlock Holmes Scott as the true name of the detective. But you find no traces of it in the original Canon - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle always calls his hero Sherlock Holmes.
If you want to get more acquainted with the personality of Sherlock Holmes
and with the misbeliefs surrounding him, please read these articles:
| John |
Which 17th century English ruler re-admitted Jews to the country ? | Sherlock Holmes - Fanlore
Sherlock Holmes
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This is a general article about Sherlock Holmes fandom. For the character, see Sherlock Holmes (character) . For other pages, see Sherlock Holmes (disambiguation) .
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (22 May 1859 – 7 July 1930)
Date(s):
Literature; later plays, movies, and tv series as well
Country of Origin:
9 References
The character Sherlock Holmes and the stories about his detective work began in 1887 with the first story written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Since then, the stories have expanded into a large collection of literature, film, and television — some authorized by Conan Doyle's estate, some not. [1]
The Canon
The 56 short stories and 4 novellas that comprise the Holmesian canon were written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle between 1887 and 1927. During the past century they have been adapted into countless plays, films and TV shows.
Characters
The Fandom
History
At the time they were written, the stories were immensely popular; Conan Doyle famously became tired of his other work being overshadowed by his detective stories and finally killed Holmes off in "The Final Problem" (1893), provoking an intense public outcry. Many people wore black mourning bands, newspapers around the world reported on Holmes' death or ran obituaries, and over 20,000 people cancelled their subscriptions to Strand Magazine, in which the stories had previously been published. A decade later the author finally gave in and resurrected the detective for another three volumes' worth of adventures.
Conan Doyle generally wrote the Holmes stories quickly and with a minimal amount of editing, and as a result the canon contains a huge number of mistakes and inconsistencies. It was from these that the practice of "Holmesian speculation" arose, which consists of pointing out discrepancies in the canon and devising (sometimes reasonable, sometimes extremely outlandish) explanations for them . Frequently discussed problems in the canon include the chronology of the stories (Conan Doyle was very often careless about dates, leading to a number of puzzling inconsistencies); the number of times Dr. Watson was married (a topic heavily intertwined with the chronology problem); and the question of Watson's war wound (said to be in his shoulder in A Study in Scarlet and in his leg in The Sign of Four). The earliest recorded examples of this fannish activity are from 1902 [2] , but the work that is considered to have really kicked off the fandom is Ronald Knox's 1911 essay, "Studies in the Literature of Sherlock Holmes," in which he satirized modern Biblical criticism by applying those same methods of analysis to Conan Doyle's stories.
As Knox jokingly compared them to the Bible, the early fandom quickly took to referring to the collected works as the "Canon" or the "Sacred Writings" (in fact, Holmes fandom was the first to use the word canon in its fannish sense).
Organized Sherlock Holmes fandom dates from 1934, when the Baker Street Irregulars were founded in New York City and the Sherlock Holmes Society arose in London. Both are active today, although the London organization was disbanded in 1937 and reformed in 1952. These groups expanded Holmesian speculation to create "the Great Game", which assumes that the stories are all accounts of true events written by Dr. Watson, and that Conan Doyle was merely Watson's literary agent. These assumptions, and the resulting scholarship, might be regarded as early manifestations of meta -- speculative or analytical material seeking to resolve apparent contradictions in Doyle's canon.
In 1941, Rex Stout first proposed his infamous "Watson Was a Woman" theory, in which he pointed to numerous instances of what, today, would probably be considered slashy subtext in order to conclude that Watson was really female and that she and Holmes were married. The Baker Street Irregulars were not amused, although Stout's essay was very obviously tongue-in-cheek. This is notable as an early fannish discussion of genderswap , and the concept has reappeared consistently both in modern fanfic and in television adaptations -- notably the 1987 TV movie The Return of Sherlock Holmes featuring Margaret Colin as Jane Watson, and the 1999 animated series Sherlock Holmes in the 22nd Century , in which Inspector Beth Lestrade is a key character.
In 1947, Jay Finley Christ devised the system of abbreviation that is still in use in the modern fandom: each canon story is represented by the first four letters of the first "significant" word in the title: so "A Scandal in Bohemia" is SCAN, "The Adventure of the Empty House" is EMPT, and so forth .
Despite the huge numbers of Holmes fans around the world, the fandom's online presence is surprisingly small; small enough, at least, that up through 2011, it remained an approved fandom for the annual Yuletide rare fandoms fic exchange. (In 2012, mainstream Holmes was ruled ineligible, but certain specific sub-fandoms continue to be permitted.) Nonetheless, Holmes/Watson slash fan fiction has become much more popular in recent years (more details needed re: popularity of slash).
Vocabulary
Pastiche was the word for "fanfiction" in traditional Holmes fandom. Today the two terms are sometimes used interchangeably; but fanfic more often refers to works published online, especially those written within the context of the broader media fan community; while pastiche is more often applied to print publications.
The Hiatus is the fannish term for the three-year (or in the real world, ten-year) period between The Final Problem and The Empty House, during which Holmes was presumed dead. Fans have entertained themselves for decades speculating on precisely what he was really up to during this period.
The Master is an old fannish nickname for Holmes himself. It's not used very commonly in the modern Internet-based fandom, possibly to avoid confusion with the archvillain from Doctor Who .
Sherlockian fandom has also given fandom in general the terms Watsonian vs. Doylist , as labels for different ways to interpret a source text.
Fanart
A source for slash Sherlock Holmes zines is at Gay Sherlock Holmes
Vids
Until the premiere of Sherlock Holmes (2009), the few vids available online were mostly from the Granada series with Jeremy Brett. However, more vids are now being made from a number of different adaptations. See Sherlock Holmes (Granada) and Sherlock Holmes (2009) for examples. Lots of fans are also vidding Sherlock (BBC) .
A few vids using clips from multiple adaptations have also appeared. mresundance managed to fit Sherlock, Sherlock Holmes (2009), the original stories, and the fandom itself into one slash vid, Whole New Way ( Bascon 2010).
Fannish Resources Online
list of Sherlockian fansites on GeoCities .
Fannish Online Discussion
Changes in Sherlock Holmes fandom over time , posted by damned colonial to the queering_holmes dreamwidth community on May 14, 2010 [3]
Published Pastiches
Extra-canonical Sherlock Holmes literature is unusual, in that it includes both a large body of fan-produced work and a large body of professionally published material, much of the latter written by highly respected authors -- all of it arguably falling under the fanfiction umbrella. Sherlockian journals (the fandom's equivalent of fanzines ) have existed for over a century, featuring both fiction and scholarly articles; according to some accounts, apocryphal Holmes stories comprise more than half of all English-language literary pastiches. [4]
In one notable example, Dorothy Sayers , author of the Lord Peter Wimsey mysteries, once wrote a crossover in which an eight-year-old Peter Wimsey enlisted the help of Sherlock Holmes to find a lost kitten. [5] Some of these derivative works , like Shadows Over Baker Street are approved by the Holmes estate, while others are not.
A sampling of professionally published Holmes-related fiction includes:
The Final Solution by Michael Chabon
The Last Sherlock Holmes Story by Michael Dibdin (about Holmes' involvement with Jack the Ripper's killings)
The Doctor's Case, by Stephen King
The Professor Moriarty series by Michael Kurland (beginning with The Infernal Device)
The Seven-Per-Cent Solution by Nicholas Meyer (a crossover in which Holmes meets Sigmund Freud)
Shadows Over Baker Street: New Tales of Terror! edited by Michael Reaves and John Pelan, an anthology of crossovers with the Cthulhu Mythos . (Contains A Study in Emerald by Neil Gaiman , which won a Hugo Award for Best Short Story.)
The Holmes-Dracula File, by Fred Saberhagen (first of several Holmes pastiches in Saberhagen's "Dracula" series)
A sampling of extra-canonical works derived from the Holmes mythos is listed on Wikipedia. [6] . A considerably more complete bibliography is The Universal Sherlock Holmes , hosted by the University of Minnesota Library's Special Collections. [7]
Some pastiches (notably the Mary Russell series and Gaiman's "A Study in Emerald") have spawned their own sub-fandoms, in which fanfic writers create stories that take place in the alternate universe established in the relevant source pastiche. Crossovers are a well-established trope in the fandom; Holmes has apocryphally encountered almost any real person or fictional character of the late 19th century one might care to name. In particular, having Holmes tackle the case of the Jack the Ripper murders is an extremely popular premise which has been used numerous times in books, film and video games. The detective has also been pitted against Count Dracula in multiple pastiches. The crossover tradition stretches back to one of the very earliest works of Sherlockian pastichery, John Kendrick Bangs' Pursuit of the House-Boat (1897), in which the ghosts of various real people, mythological figures and fictional characters mingle in the afterlife . This is also a rare example of a Holmes fic that was actually Jossed , as it was written during the period when Holmes was presumed dead after his battle with Professor Moriarty at the Reichenbach Falls.
Outside of the English-speaking world
The Holmes stories have been quite popular in translation all over the world, and many popular adaptations and published pastiches exist in languages other than English.
Russian pastiche
Bones as Holmes in The Adventures of Sherlock Bones #2
Star Trek: The Next Generation
The Star Trek: The Next Generation episodes "Elementary, Dear Data" and "Ship in a Bottle" feature the character of Professor James Moriarty (introduced in the canonical story "The Final Problem"), as re-created by the holodeck computer on the USS Enterprise-D. The latter episode occurs several seasons after the first; the show's producers had initially assumed that Moriarty's character was in the public domain, but were contacted by the Doyle estate after "Elementary, Dear Data", which believed otherwise and sought payment for Moriarty's appearance. [8]
House, M.D.
The character of Dr. Gregory House who solves medical mysteries in the TV show House, M.D. , is a conscious echo of, or homage to, Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes. His friend Dr. James Wilson bears some resemblances to Watson in the Sherlock Holmes stories. [9]
Gallery of Sherlock Holmes Fan Art
"Sherlock Horse and Fox Watson," art by MJRiddle (1992)
| i don't know |
"Which group won the BRIT award for ""Best British single record"" in the years 1993, 1994 and 1996 ?" | BRIT Awards: Best British Single Winners (1977 - 2011) - Video - Capital
Schedule
BRIT Awards: Best British Single Winners (1977 - 2011) - Video
As listeners of Capital FM are now voting for the BRIT Awards 2012 Best British Single, we take a look back at previous BRIT's winners of the prestigious category.
The winner of this year's most prestigious and hotly contested award category at the BRIT Awards will be announced at the O2 Arena on 21st February 2012.
The longlist features songs by Adele ('Someone Like You'), Ed Sheeran ('The A Team'), Example ('Changed The Way You Kissed Me'), JLS featuring Dev ('She Makes Me Wanna'), Jessie J ('Price Tag'), The Wanted ('Glad You Came'), Olly Murs featuring Rizzle Kicks ('Heart Skips A Beat'), One Direction ('What Makes You Beautiful'), Pixie Lott ('All About Tonight') and Military Wives ('Wherever You Are').
Whoever walks away from the 2012 event with the sought after BRIT Awards' statue will be in good company. We take a look back at previous winners in the Best British Single category.
Best British Single 2011: Tinie Tempah - 'Pass Out'
British born rapper Tinie Tempah tied with Arcade Fire for most awards won by a single artist at the 2011 BRITs. In addition to scooping the Best British Single award for 'Pass Out', he also took home the gong for British Breakthrough Act.
It was a busy night for Tinie - between his two acceptance speeches he took to the stage to perform a medley of his hits, including 'Pass Out', 'Written In The Stars' and 'Miami 2 Ibiza'. Watch Tinie Tempah's 2011 BRIT Awards performance below.
Latest Tinie Tempah News - Tinie Tempah - 'Pass Out' (Official Video)
Best British Single 2010: JLS - 'Beat Again'
As well as taking home the award for Best British Single for Vodafone Big Top 40 No.1 'Beat Again', Marvin, JB, Oritse and Marvin also left the 30th BRIT Awards ceremony with the gong for British Breakthrough Act. They were pipped to the post of most gongs won by Lady Gaga, who left the event with the award for all three possible international categories she could win in (International Female, International Breakthrough Act and International Album).
JLS made a dramatic entrance for their performance of 'Beat Again', arriving on stage via zip wires which lowered them from the rafters of Earl's Court in London. Leather clad, they were joined on stage by dozens of backing dancers. Watch JLS' 2010 BRITs performance below.
Latest JLS News - JLS Featuring Dev - 'Beat Again' (Official Video)
Best British Single 2009: Girls Aloud - 'The Promise'
Cheryl, Nicola, Sarah, Nadine and Kimberley had the audience guessing if they were naked behind giant pink feather fans when the girls appeared on stage at Earls Court to perform their Best British Single-winning hit, 'The Promise'. When the fans came down, Girls Aloud revealed tiny gold-sequinned leotards.
It was the only award of the night for Girls Aloud; Welsh singer Duffy was the big winner of the 2009 event, scooping three awards including the one for Best British Album. Watch Girls Aloud's 2009 BRIT Awards performance below.
Latest Girls Aloud News - Girls Aloud - 'The Promise' (Download on iTunes)
Best British Single 2008: Take That - 'Shine'
A self-confessed "p***ed" Alan Carr took to the stage at Earls Court to present Take That with their British Single award for supermarket Morrisons' soundtrack 'Shine'. It was the second win of the night for Gary, Mark, Howard and Jason, who earlier in the evening took the award for British Live Act, and was the second year in a row they picked up the British Single award, which, apparently, was a closely fought vote between Take That and Leona Lewis, with the band and The X Factor queen neck and neck until the eleventh hour.
Take That - 'Shine' (Download on iTunes)
Best British Single 2007: Take That - 'Patience'
After winning the award for British Single for comeback track 'Patience', Take That took to the stage all dressed in black for a stripped back performance of the 'Beautiful World' album hit. Other winners on the night - which was hosted by Katy Perry's ex Russell Brand - included Amy Winehouse, James Morrison and The Killers.
Watch Take That's 2007 BRIT Awards performance below.
Take That - 'Patience' (Download on iTunes)
Best British Single 2006: Coldplay - 'Speed Of Sound'
Chris Martin and co's 'Speed Of Sound' (taken from the album 'X&Y') beat James Blunt's smash hit single 'You're Beautiful' to claim the award for Best British Single in 2006 - the first time Coldplay had won in the category despite previous nominations. The band were presented with their award by A-ha frontman Morten Harket; Chris Martin lay down on the stage and threw his fists in the air, before telling the audience that being British meant they weren't great at acceptance speeches but that on this occasion they'd agree with the voting public that Coldplay were, in fact, "great".
Watch Coldplay's 2006 Best British Single acceptance speech below.
Latest Coldplay News - Coldplay - 'Speed Of Sound' (Download on iTunes)
Best British Single 2005: Will Young - 'Your Game'
The second single from Will's second album ('Friday's Child') - a collaboration with Taio Cruz - took the award for Best British Single in 2005. Other big winners at the 2005 event included Keane, Franz Ferdinand and Scissor Sisters, who took home three awards in all possible international categories.
Latest Will Young News - Will Young - 'Your Game' (Download on iTunes)
Best British Single 2004: Dido - 'White Flag'
Opinion-dividing singer Dido took home the Best British Single award for 'White Flag' (taken from the album 'Life For Rent') as well as the gong for Best Female Solo Artist in the year Cat Deeley hosted the BRITs at Earls Court. In the same year Duran Duran were honoured in the Outstanding Contribution category while The Darkness took home the most awards, winning in three categories including Best British Album.
| Take That |
"Which singer won the BRIT award for ""Best British single record"" in the years 1999, 2000 and 2001 ?" | Take That - MusicBrainz
Take That
Annotation
Originally disbanded 1996-02-13
But, on 2005-11-25 the group (less Robbie Williams) announced they are reforming and going on tour in 2006. See: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/4469098.stm
On 2010-07-15, Robbie Williams rejoined Take That.
Annotation last modified on 2011-01-16 00:05 UTC.
| i don't know |
What undersea rail tunnel, 33.5 miles long is the longest operational underground railway tunnel in the world ? It was completed in 1988 and connects the islands of Honshu and Hokkaido in Japan. | 7 record-breaking tunnels from around the world | Fox News
7 record-breaking tunnels from around the world
Published April 04, 2013
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Tunnels provide travelers with a quick and easy way to access hard-to-reach destinations, so it’s no surprise that every year cities map out new tunnel designs. But high-tech building materials and advances in design are allowing for engineering feats never seen before. At higher altitudes, over longer distances, here are seven record-breaking tunnels that are stand alone tourist destinations.
1. Gotthard Base Tunnel, Switzerland
AlpTransit Gotthard Ltd.
Once completed in 2016, the Gotthard Base Tunnel will be the longest railway tunnel in the world. The 35-mile tunnel cuts under the Swiss Alps at 8,000 feet below sea level and is expected to reduce travel time between Zurich and Milan by about an hour. The building of the tunnel was an arduous feat as eight lives were lost during the process. For an up-close look at the construction, the public can visit a multimedia exhibition for free or take a tour of a construction site along the tunnel.
2. Yerba Buena Island Tunnel, California
Caltrans
To cross over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, drivers must travel through Yerba Buena Island by way of the Yerba Buena Island Tunnel. The tunnel, completed in 1936, remains the largest single-bore tunnel in the world, measuring 76 feet wide and 58 feet high. To accommodate the large amount of traffic that travels across the bridge, the tunnel consists of two decks, each carrying five lanes.
3. Lærdal Tunnel, Norway
Innovation Norway
Stretching 15 miles long, the Lærdal Tunnel is the longest road tunnel in the world. The tunnel cuts through a mountain range that sits between the cities of Oslo and Bergen, providing a faster and safer route for drivers, especially during the wintertime. To keep drivers alert during the 20-minute underground journey, architects built in three “caves” or resting areas that feature vivid blue and yellow lights.
4. Aizhai Extra Large Suspension Bridge, China
Hunan Government
This two-way, four-lane bridge is the highest and longest tunnel-to-tunnel suspension bridge in the world. The bridge, built to ease traffic, measures almost 4,000 feet long and crosses over a canyon 1,164 feet deep. It carries the Jishou-Chadong Expressway, which runs through a total of 18 different tunnels.
5. Channel Tunnel
Eurotunnel
The Channel Tunnel, commonly referred to as the Chunnel, is the world’s longest undersea tunnel. Of its 31 miles, 23 miles are situated beneath the English Channel. The tunnel transports passengers and freight from Folkestone, Kent in England to Coquelles, Pas-de-Calais in France in as little as 30 minutes. As an added bonus, the Le shuttle and Eurostar trains that travel through the tunnel operate 365 days a year.
6. Seikan Tunnel, Japan
Hokkaido Railway Company
Until the Gotthard Base Tunnel is completed in 2016, the Seikan Tunnel holds the title of the longest operational railway tunnel in the world. Completed in 1988, the tunnel measures 33.5 miles long and links the islands of Honshu and Hokkaido. It is located almost 800 feet below sea level (beneath the Tsugaru Strait), making it one of the deepest railway tunnels in the world. Before the installation of the tunnel, ferries carried passengers across the strait, but when a typhoon sank five ferries killing over 1,000 people, Japan honed in on a new means of transportation.
7. Fenghuo Mount Tunnel, China
AP
The Fenghuo Mount Tunnel is the world’s highest railway tunnel, reaching an elevation of 16,093 feet. The tunnel encases part of the scenic Golmud-to-Lhasa route, which is a route on the Qinghai-Tibet Railway. The train that travels the railway is nicknamed the “rocket to the rooftop of the world” because 80% of its route is at an elevation above 13,000 feet. To compensate for the lack of oxygen at such an altitude, the train is equipped with two oxygen sources as well as personal oxygen canisters.
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| Seikan Tunnel |
A Royal Society report of 1713 found in favour of Isaac Newton, in a long running dispute with which mathematician over the invention of Calculus ? | Feb 7, 2012 12:06pm
Lake Vostok, Sealed in Antarctic Ice, Reached by Russian Drillers
Two and a half miles beneath Antarctica�s ice lies Lake Vostok, a mysterious body of water, 160 miles long and 30 miles wide, that is believed to have been sealed off from the rest of the world for 20 million years.
Now, the Russians, who run the Vostok research station at the surface, say they may have reached the lake with a drill bit, though they are still checking their data. The plan was for the drill to break through the ice into the hidden lake, and automatically withdraw so as not to contaminate the water below.
...
Lake Vostok, seen so far only on radar, is believed to be warmed by geothermal energy. But why drill to it, beyond feeling the tug of mystery?
�According to our research, the quantity of oxygen there exceeds that on other parts of our planet by 10 to 20 times. Any life forms that we find are likely to be unique on Earth,� said Sergey Bulat, the chief scientist of Russia�s Antarctic Expedition, as quoted by Russian Reporter magazine.
There are other scientists who are doubtful. Too much oxygen, they argue, could actually be toxic to life. So Lake Vostok could turn out to be unique � the first place found on Earth where there is water in liquid form but nothing living.
...
The Russians, despite the cold, despite limited money for scientific research, have been drilling down toward Lake Vostok for 14 years now. What will they find in the water there?
Lake Vostok: Russian Scientists Claim Success in Antarctic
...
Valery Lukin, the head of Russia's Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute (AARI) in charge of the mission, said in a statement today that his team reached the lake's surface Sunday. They had been cautious until now, saying they wanted to check readings from sensors on their remote-controlled drill.
...
Scientists watching the project said they worried that 66 tons of lubricants and antifreeze used in the drilling might spoil the pristine lake. But Lukin said in his statement that about 1.5 cubic meters of kerosene and freon poured into tanks on the surface from the boreshaft, proof that the lake water streamed from beneath, froze, and blocked the hole.
...
« Reply #82 on: February 08, 2012, 03:38:38 PM »
boring of Israel's first-ever railway tunnel
http://www.roytov.com/articles/burma.htm
On February 6, 2012, the boring of Israel's first-ever railway tunnel began. A tunnel boring machine (TBM) began digging a 3.6 km tunnel from Latrun to Shaar Hagay. Two additional TBMs will soon begin to dig two more tunnels between Nahal Yitleh and Nahal Luz near Mevaseret Tzion; each one would be 11.5 km long, qualifying as Israel's longest tunnels.
By 2017, a fast train would cross the tunnels regularly, linking Tel Aviv and Jerusalem�via Ben Gurion Airport and Modiin�in just 28 minutes.
...
The railway would be able to deliver troops and weapons to a Jerusalem under siege when the time comes; the tunnel will assure that the new route is more defensible than Highway #1.
...
In 2017, the first passengers are expected to reach the underground Jerusalem Railway Station, deep below downtown Jerusalem. Elevators and escalators will help them to ascend the eighty meters separating the railway from the surface. This sounds similar to the soviet nuclear bunkers disguised as metro stations in Moscow. In fact, this is another Israeli attempt to camouflage Jerusalem and prepare it against a possible answer to an Israeli attack on Iran. Israel still lives the Burma Road trauma.
...
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/152459
Video: The Train is Coming to Jerusalem
Arutz Sheva was present as workers began boring the railway tunnels that will connect Jerusalem to Tel Aviv
« Reply #84 on: February 17, 2012, 11:45:55 PM »
Tunnelling and Underground Space Technology
http://www.journals.elsevier.com/tunnelling-and-underground-space-technology/
Tunnelling and Underground Space Technology is an international journal which publishes authoritative articles encompassing the development of innovative uses of underground space and the results of high quality research into improved, more cost-effective techniques for the planning, geo-investigation, design, construction, operation and maintenance of underground and earth-sheltered structures. The journal provides an effective vehicle for the improved worldwide exchange of information on developments in underground technology - and the experience gained from its use - and is strongly committed to publishing papers on the interdisciplinary aspects of creating, planning, and regulating underground space. Towards this end, up-to-date reports of the International Tunnelling Association (ITA) working groups and important papers from major conferences sponsored by the ITA and other bodies are a regular feature of the journal.
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« Reply #89 on: February 20, 2012, 02:00:21 AM »
How did I miss this story?
China 'has up to 3,000 nuclear weapons hidden in tunnels', three-year study of secret documents reveals
Georgetown University student spent three years translating secret military documents and blogs
Focus of research centred on 3,000 miles of underground tunnels dug by Second Artillery Corps
Investigation launched after 2008 earthquake in Sichuan revealed existence of collapsed tunnels
Study claims China could have as many as 3,000 nuclear warheads - far more then current estimates of between 80 and 400
By Daily Mail Reporter
Last updated at 2:36 PM on 1st December 2011
China may be using thousands of miles of underground tunnels to hide a nuclear missile arsenal that is far bigger than current estimates, according to researchers.
They spent three years translating secret military documents, scouring the internet and studying satellite images for clues � and concluded that China may have as many as 3,000 missiles, compared with general estimates of between 80 and 400.
The researchers at Georgetown University, led by a former senior Pentagon official, concentrated on a 3,000-mile network of tunnels dug largely in Sichuan province by the Chinese Second Artillery, a secretive unit responsible for protecting the country�s nuclear weapons.
In 2008, thousands of radiation technicians were sent to the region after it was hit by a huge earthquake. When TV pictures showed oddly collapsed hills across the province, officials eventually admitted there was a network of tunnels underneath, dubbing it their �Underground Great Wall�.
The 363-page study, as yet unpublished, has been discussed in Congress and circulated among defence officials. It was commissioned as �homework� by the students� professor, Phillip Karber, a prominent Washington defence strategist during the Cold War.
...
China has long been the most secretive of the five nuclear powers recognised by the international Non-Proliferation Treaty.
While Russia and America have bilateral treaties that ensure their stockpiles are monitored, the Chinese have simply claimed they keep a small number of missiles for �minimum deterrence�.
...
American Timken Company makes parts for China
Record setting TBMs on Yellow River drives
Four tunnel boring machines working on the Yellow River Diversion project in Shanxi Province in China are setting record rates of performance and advance.
Portal of Tunnel 5 and culvert between Tunnels 5 and 6 on the Lot II contract
Since starting in 1998/1999 the four � 5m o. d. machines two new Robbins TBMs, a used Robbins TBM, and a new NFM-Boretec machine - have turned in averages of up to 220m/week each and a combined average of more than 3,060m/month working three 8h shifts/24h day, 6 days/week. In January 2000, one of the new Robbins TBMs recorded an advance of 1,821m of 4.92m o. d. (4.3m i. d.) lined tunnel in one month. Even the slowest of the four machines has averaged nearly 800m/month for more than a year.
While recognizing these data as world records of their class, a visit to the project presented one of those rare opportunities to examine the experiences, performances and details of a group of similar sized machines working through similar host rock material, and to understand the influences that affect project-wide progress.
The four machines are working towards completing some 88.7km of 4.2 to 4.3m i. d. reinforced precast concrete segmentally lined water tunnel for the project on Lots II and III. These two contracts were awarded in August 1997 to a JV of Impregilo (Sponsor - 48%) and CMC (42%) of Italy and with Chinese partner construction Bureau 4 of CWCHM, the China Water Conservancy and Hydropower Ministry (10%).
Adaptation of Underground Space
An examination of the opportunities and challenges of keeping paper, film, and magnetic media in underground facilities
by Tom Benjamin March 1999
The degree of security afforded your important records is one of the most important considerations when choosing a records storage site whether on-site or off-site. Nothing else will matter if something happens to your important records. A visual inspection and evaluation of your records storage location could be the best time investment you might ever make
Hey, you're underground and in the middle of no where!
Low cost compared to above ground.
Underground construction costs are relatively low.
Underground maintenance costs are low.
Underground power costs are low.
Underground property taxes are low.
http://www.earth-house.com/html/deep_vaults.html
Around the USA and elsewhere you'll find deep vaults that have been carved out of the earth. Some were former mines where the resources have dried up. Here you'll find secure storage facilities. Some for private individuals, works of art, government files, compressed air and more. Who knows, there may be one under your feet right now
example:
Louisville's Underground-the 100-acre cavern under the Louisville Zoo has remained an unrealized business opportunity, virtually dormant since the last load of limestone was mined nearly 20 years ago to build bridges and roads across the Midwest.
Industrial leasing activity remains strong at Meritex Lenexa underground. Meritex announces five new leases and tenant expansions totaling 173,000 square feet of space at Meritex Lenexa Executive Park.
Lenexa, KS (PRWEB) March 01, 2012
Meritex announces five new leases and tenant expansions totaling 173,000 square feet of space at Meritex Lenexa Executive Park. Leasing activity in 2012 has started off strong following more than 370,000 square feet of leasing activity last year. �This winter has been fairly mild, but it�s continued to stay �hot� in our underground project,� said Lonnie Cannon Property/Leasing Manager. �We continue to see tenants and prospects wanting to take advantage of the underground economies.�
http://www.sciencefriday.com/pages/2000/Sep/hour2_092900.html
Hour Two: Limestone Living: Converting Mines to Human Space
What to do with an old limestone mine? Fill it -- with people, supplies, offices, and warehouses. In the greater Kansas City area, an estimated 20 million square feet of business and industrial space lies below the ground, squirreled away in space created by the mining of Bethany Falls and Argentine limestone. That accounts for over 10 percent of the business and industrial space in the area.
When mining began in the area in the late 1800's, limestone was mainly quarried. But starting in the 1950's, mining began to take place with an aim to leaving usable subterranean space behind. Tunneling into the hills and bluffs in the area, miners carefully extracted stone in a grid-shaped pattern, leaving behind large rooms with massive, evenly spaced pillars holding up the "roof" of the mine. Miners remove a 12-foot thick layer of rock some 150 feet underground, leaving a thick ceiling between the underground space and the outside world.
A truck in part of Subtropolis.
http://www.huntmidwest.com/ >Hunt Midwest photo)
Costs for converting such spaces are low - the process mainly involves painting, pouring a concrete floor, wiring, and putting up a few walls.
Consequently, leasing costs are also low -- in some cases, half of what above-ground space would lease for. The relatively constant temperature, around 65 degrees, makes the old mines a useful place for long-term archival storage. (The original prints of 'Ben Hur' and 'Gone With the Wind' call a Kansas City area mine home.)
Costs for insurance, taxes, heating and cooling, and security are also less underground.
Food companies use the space, saving on refrigeration costs. The US Postal Service, the largest tenant of underground space in the area, uses mine space for fulfilling orders for stamps for collectors. A massive duty-free warehouse holds goods from around the world. Other uses for the space have included a college library, health center, and computer lab.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bettmann_Archive
The Bettmann Archive is a collection of 19 million photographs and images, some going back to the United States Civil War and including some of the best known U.S. historic images. The Archive also includes many images from Europe and elsewhere
...
In 1981, Bettmann sold the archive to the Kraus Thomson Organization.
In 1995, the archive was sold to Corbis, a digital stock photography company founded by Bill Gates. Issues arising from this sale regarding the restriction of access to the collection were described in the editorial "Goodbye to All That" in the May 2001 issue of American Heritage magazine.[1]
In 2002, to preserve the photos and negatives, Corbis moved the archive from Manhattan to the Iron Mountain National Underground Storage Facility, a former limestone quarry located 220 feet (67 m) below ground in western Pennsylvania.
...
The archive began with Otto Bettmann's personal collection of 15,000 images which he brought with him in suitcases when he escaped from Nazi Germany.[1] Over the years, it acquired other collections, including the Gendreau Collection of Americana in 1967, the Underwood & Underwood Collection of material from late 19th century to World War I in 1971, and the United Press International collection in 1984.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iron_Mountain_Incorporated
...
The best known Iron Mountain storage facility is a high-security storage facility in a former limestone mine at Boyers, Pennsylvania near the city of Butler in the United States. It began storing records in 1954 and was purchased by Iron Mountain in 1998. It is here that Bill Gates stores his Corbis photographic collection in a refrigerated cave 220 feet (67 m) underground.[10]
Iron Mountain has additional underground storage facilities in the United States and the rest of the world. Most of the company's over 1,000 storage locations are in above-ground leased warehouse space located near customers.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 21, 2011
Underground Archives Joins Forces with Hollywood Vaults
WAMPUM, PA � Underground Archives, a company specializing in archival records management, has announced a partnership with Hollywood Vaults to offer a unique cold storage solution for the long-term archival preservation of film and media assets.
The subterranean vault, built by Underground Archives in its highly secure facility, is provided to Hollywood Vaults� clients for all of their specialized cold storage and preservation needs.
« Reply #95 on: March 21, 2012, 06:39:53 PM »
Plattsburg AFB NY
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plattsburgh_Air_Force_Base
Plattsburgh Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force Strategic Air Command (SAC) base covering 3,447 acres (13.7 km�)[1] in the extreme northeast corner of New York, 20 miles (32 km) south of the Canadian border. It is located on the western shore of Lake Champlain[2] opposite Burlington, Vermont, in the city of Plattsburgh, New York.
...
Atlas Missiles
Plattsburgh AFB had the only intercontinental ballistic missiles ever deployed east of the Mississippi River. During 1961 and 1962, the physical appearance of the area surrounding Plattsburgh AFB underwent changes as construction began on 12 Atlas F missile sites. The sites were built within a 50 miles (80 km) radius of the base and were completed in 1963, at an average cost of $3 million each.
The missile silos were built inside gigantic holes 174 feet (53 m) deep and 54 feet (16 m) wide into solid rock. Approximately 8,000 cubic yards (6,100 m3) of concrete and tons of structural steel were used in each hole to create a blast proof, underground silo, protected by massive overhead doors for the 81-foot (25 m) tall missiles. A single underground blockhouse containing launch consoles and personnel quarters was constructed at each site. The squadron was equipped with 13 missiles, allowing each silo to have its Atlas missile with one left for spare. When one missile in a silo was scheduled for maintenance, the spare missile kept at PAFB was sent to replace it. This allowed the 380th to maintain 12 ready to launch missiles seven days a week.
All sites were in New York state except for two located on the other side of Lake Champlain in Vermont. The 556th Strategic Missile Squadron, formerly assigned to Presque Isle Air Force Base, Maine, was transferred to Plattsburgh AFB on 1 October 1961 and became completely operational on 20 December 1962. This was the last Atlas squadron to be accepted. The 556th's last operational day was 30 April 1965 with the Squadron's inactivation on 25 June 1965. The inactivation was part of a phase-out of US first-generation missiles, the Atlas series and Titan 1 models, which was announced by Robert McNamara, Secretary of Defense, on 19 November 1964.
With Commentary By Shepard Ambellas & Alex Thomas
April 10, 2012
(The following is Part 1 of an exclusive underground base series brought to you by The Intel Hub with excerpts from the book Hidden in Plain Sight: Beyond the X-Files, written by acclaimed underground base researcher and author, Dr. Richard Sauder.)
In the preliminary stages of my research in the early 1990s, I had no informed idea of how deep below the surface underground bases could reach. By chance I had gone to hear a public talk by a man I did not know, on a topic that had nothing whatsoever to do with underground bases.
However, during the talk he unexpectedly made an offhand comment that caused me to think that he knew something about secret underground facilities. A few days later, I telephoned him and asked if I could come by his office to speak with him.
He consented to give me a little of his time, so I went by and asked him some questions, including about a specific location where I believed there was a secret underground base. He verified that there was a base there and told me that it was one mile deep.
At the time, that seemed improbably deep to me. I now understand, however, that it is well within the state of the art of the underground excavation and construction industries to build facilities one mile deep. In fact, facilities can be even deeper than that.
Other information that has since been given to me has raised the question of facilities possibly as deep as 12 to 14 miles. Frankly, I do not know what the technological limits are in the super-secret, black budget realm of compartmentalized programs.
But I can make some fairly well educated deductions based on what I have been told and information gleaned from the open engineering and industrial literature.
At a minimum, my investigation suggests that depths up to three miles are feasible, and that conclusion is based on a careful reading of the open scientific, mining and civil engineering literature.
At one time I considered greater depths than that as unattainable, but no longer. While I don�t know the limitations of the technology in the clandestine realm, based on everything I have heard over the years it must surpass the limits found in the open technical literature.
It could be that with classified improvements in material science and mining engineering that bases can be sited many miles beneath the surface of the land or the seafloor. Frankly, I now surmise that we are dealing with a science-fiction-like reality that has been held back from public knowledge.
In that regard, it is clear to me that there are power structures on this planet that closely interface with, and yet remain separate from, the official power establishment of any nation as publicly presented in the mainstream news media.
The sum total of all the many years of reading and research I have done, coupled with the myriad conversations I have had with an extremely eclectic selection of individuals, even raises the question as to whether some control structures and agencies for this planet may possibly extend off-planet.
But even if that is not the case, we are certainly dealing at the least with trillions of dollars of off-the-books money, very advance technology, an incredible infrastructure of secrecy, thousands and thousands of people who are in the know but say little or nothing about what they know, all of which revolves around projects of tremendous scope and complexity, carried out over a long period of time, and about which there is almost zero public knowledge.
Alex Thomas: �The trillions of dollars off the books, advanced technology, and the infrastructure of secrecy have all been brought about by numerous globalist organizations such as the CFR, the Trilateral Commission, and the Bilderberg Group as well as many other even more secretive groups that are not even known by name. Those involved with underground bases may literally know that they will be immediately killed if they speak out about what they know.�
I don�t know how many secret underground bases there are, but they surely do exist, there is no question of that.
In 1987, Lloyd A. Duscha, the then-Deputy Director of Engineering and Construction for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, gave a talk at an engineering conference entitled �Underground Facilities for Defense � Experience and Lessons.� In the first paragraph of his talk he stated that:
After World War II, political and economic factors changed the underground construction picture and caused a renewed interest to �think underground.� As a result of this interest, the Corps of Engineers became involved in the design and construction of some very complex and interesting military projects. [1]
A little further on he said:
Although the conference program indicates the topic to be �Underground Facilities for Defense � Experience and Lessons,� I must deviate a little because several of the most interesting facilities that have been designed and constructed by the Corps are classified. [2]
Subsequently Mr. Duscha went into a discussion of the Corps� involvement in the 1960s in the construction of the large and elaborate NORAD base buried deep beneath Cheyenne Mountain, in Colorado. And then he said:
As stated earlier, there are other projects of similar scope, which I cannot identify, but which included multiple chambers up to 50 feet wide and 100 feet high using the same excavation procedures mentioned for the NORAD facility. [3]
You will not find a franker public admission of the existence of secret, underground bases than that.
It carries all the more weight coming from Lloyd Duscha, given his high position in the military-industrial complex.
Shepard: �I myself have conducted an interview with the owner of a major private underground base & shelter construction firm. What he told Bob Tuskin and myself off air during a commercial break was absolutely mind-blowing.
He literally admitted that most of his clientele is Illuminati affiliated, including politicians, movie stars, and more. He maintained that client confidentiality was a factor, claiming that half of the business is reinforced homes. Leaving the other 50% up to speculation.
The company has even built 3 massive arks for a doomsday scenario just like you see in the movie 2012. This was covered by CNN.�
The Project Paperclip, Nazi Connection
It is not accidental that Lloyd Duscha mentioned the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers� increased interest in underground bases and construction in the post-World War II period.
In the closing stages of WW II, the U.S. military overran the Third Reich and confiscated a treasure trove of Nazi technology, engineering facilities and research laboratories.
The American military also apprehended and detained large numbers of Nazi scientists, engineers and technicians, many of whom were brought to the United States under the auspices of the infamous �Project Paperclip� and integrated into American industry, research institutes and into the military and other official agencies.
Read Project Paperclip File 1
Read Project Paperclip File 2
Read Project Paperclip File 3
The cases of such Project Paperclip notables as Wernher von Braun, and other �ex�-Nazis who were put to work building rockets and missiles for the military and NASA, are well known.
The American political and military establishments were very impressed with Nazi V-2 and buzz bomb missile technology, and brought Von Braun and his team to the USA at war�s end to continue and advance the research and design they had done under Hitler�s Third Reich.
The development of the manned space program, satellite technology, deep space probes, intercontinental nuclear missiles and cruise missiles are all fruits of their work.
But Project Paperclip had another aspect which has received almost no publicity. And that aspect had to do with the underground facilities that the American military discovered when they entered the remnants of the Third Reich in the concluding stages of open military hostilities between the Allied and Axis powers in the European theater.
I have two declassified Project Paperclip memoranda in my files that specifically request four men with expertise in underground construction, one of whom is Xaver Dorsch.
Project Paperclip File Xaver Dorsch File
The other men are not known to me, but Xaver Dorsch is. He was the director of the so-called Todt Organization in the closing phase of WW II.
The Todt Organization was originally headed by Fritz Todt, whence the name. Fritz Todt was the designer and creator of the well-known German autobahn system of highways.
The Todt organization served a somewhat analogous function in the Third Reich to that of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers or the U.S. Navy Seabees in the present American military system.
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In other words, it was a civil engineering agency that supported the operations of the German military, though, unlike the case of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers or the U.S. Navy Seabees in the American system, the Todt Organization was not a formal part of the German military structure.
However, it did play a crucial role in the Nazi war effort and constructed many facilities for use by the German military and industry. Some of the underground structures that it built were impressively large and sophisticated.
In 1942 Fritz Todt was killed in an airplane crash and by war�s end control of the agency had effectively passed to Xaver Dorsch. In the closing stages of the war, Hitler specifically tasked Dorsch with developing a series of huge, underground, industrial manufacturing facilities.
Allied bombing raids were shredding German manufacturing and the Nazi command wanted to shift production underground, out of reach of American and British bombs. The collapse of the Third Reich ultimately put an end to those plans.
I remain persuaded, however, that a great deal of what the Allies found when they went into Germany remains classified to the present day, and that includes the full extent of the underground facilities built by the Todt Organization.
Xaver Dorsch was taken prisoner by the American military on 7 May 1945. I have two moderately lengthy documents that he wrote for the Americans, evidently as part of his debriefing by them.4 One was produced in 1946, the other in 1949-1950.
The documents deal with the administrative structure and operational activities of the Todt Organization during the war. I strongly suspect that Dorsch supplied a great deal more information to his American captors during that period that has yet publicly to see the light of day.
Xaver Dorsch may even have worked directly for the American military on the construction of secret, underground bases in the USA, just as he had done for the Nazis during the Third Reich.
It is a fact that he was in American military captivity and was requested specifically by Project Paperclip.
During the course of my research I spoke with an expert who is personally familiar with some of the Nazi underground constructions in Europe and his observation to me was that they were very well made facilities.
One of the best accounts of such facilities that I have found in the open literature is the anecdotal history related by Colonel Robert S. Allen that details what General Patton�s army discovered when it entered Germany in the closing stage of World War II.
Col. Allen revealed that Patton�s forces found four large underground bases in the vicinity of the grim Nazi concentration camp near Ohrdruf, Germany; other underground facilities were reported in nearby towns. Col. Allen provided the following description:
The underground installations were amazing. They were literally subterranean towns. There were four in and around Ohrdruf�. None were natural caverns or mines. All were man-made military installations. The horror camp had provided the labor. An interesting feature of the construction was the absence of any spoil. It had been carefully scattered in hills miles away.
Over 50 feet underground, the installations consisted of two and three stories, several miles in length and extending like the spokes of a wheel. The entire hull structure was of massive, reinforced concrete. Purpose of the installations was to house the High Command after it was bombed out of Berlin. The Ohrdruf installations were to have been used by the Signal Communications Section.
One, near the horror camp, was a huge telephone exchange equipped with the latest and finest apparatus. Signal Corps experts estimated their cost at $10,000,000.
This place also had paneled and carpeted offices, scores of large work and store rooms, tiled bathrooms with both tubs and showers, flush toilets, electrically equipped kitchens, decorated dining rooms and mess halls, giant refrigerators, extensive sleeping quarters, recreation rooms, separate bars for officers and enlisted personnel, a moving-picture theater, and air-conditioning and sewage systems. Begun in 1944, the installations had been completed but never occupied. [5]
The Regenwurmlager in Poland
Another spectacular example of Nazi underground engineering prowess was the subterranean Regenwurmlager complex that still sprawls for many miles deep beneath the countryside of western Poland. Several years ago Paul Stonehill wrote an eye-opening article about this site, replete with color photos, in FATE magazine. [6]
The Regenwurmlager was an obvious Nazi analog on the eastern German border region to the well-known Maginot Line that the French had built in their eastern border region, in that it also, like the Maginot Line, was comprised of many miles of underground tunnels and electric train lines connecting bunkers, fortifications and other critical military facilities.
Amazingly, the full extent of the huge complex is not known, even today. It is not known if either the Poles or the Russians have ever fully explored the many miles of tunnels and underground emplacements.
According to Stonehill, the facility has many secret or hidden entrances, and an underground subway system with an electric train on rails that ran through a tunnel approximately 100 to 165 feet below the surface.
On the surface, there were numerous military fortifications and bunkers crammed with weaponry, connected by secret passages to a sprawling labyrinth of tunnels below ground, said to be 30 miles or more in length.
Stonehill reports that Adolf Hitler is alleged to have visited the Regenwurmlager in 1937, riding in on the underground subway train. [7]
It happens that the Regenwurmlager complex of military bunkers and underground tunnels and subway trains was located in territory that was overrun by Soviet troops in the closing stages of World War II, so the American military may never have examined the facility.
However, I consider it very likely that Xaver Dorsch would have had personal knowledge of this facility, and it is quite likely that he extensively briefed his American captors on the large Regenwurmlager system of underground tunnels and bunkers.
This book cannot provide an exhaustive treatment of Nazi underground facilities, but the examples provided suffice to demonstrate that 65 to 75 years ago, Nazi engineers already had a sophisticated capability to construct elaborate, large facilities underground.
The American military understood this clearly at war�s end, and urgently wanted to bring Nazi experts to the USA to build underground facilities here also.
By the time you finish this book, you should understand that this mission was accomplished.
While we still do not know the full scope of what the Nazis did underground decades ago, we also still do not know the full extent of what the American military, and other agencies and corporations, have built underground right here in the USA, and elsewhere in the world.
What can be said with certainty is that an extensive program of secret underground construction began in earnest in the years following WW II and that program continues in effect to this day.
In part 2 of this exclusive series we will be discussing known locations of underground bases as well as areas believed to house the bigger, more secretive ones. At the conclusion of this 5 part series we will be conducting a major roundtable discussion on the the topic. Please spread this article and the entire series to your friends and family!
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Sources
1.Lloyd A. Duscha, �Underground Facilities for Defense � Experience and Lessons,� in Tunneling and Underground Transport: Future Developments in Technology, Economics and Policy, ed. F.P. Davidson (New York: Elsevier Science Publishing Company, Inc., 1987), pp. 109-113.
2. Ibid.
3. Ibid.
4. Xaver Dorsch, Diplomingenieur, Former Head of the Chief Office of the Organisation Todt, The Organization Todt in France and Germany, Steinlager Allendorf, 1 September 1946. Also, Xaver Dorsch, Organization Todt (Dorsch Project), MS # P-037, English Copy, translated by G. Weber, edited by J.B. Robinson, reviewed by Capt. W.F. Ross, Foreign Military Studies Branch, Historical Division, Headquarters United States Army Europe, 1949-1950.
5. Colonel Robert S. Allen, Lucky Forward: The History of Patton�s Third Army (New York: The Vanguard Press, Inc., 1947).
6. Paul Stonehill, �Secrets of the Regenwurmlager,� FATE vol. 55 no. 10 issue 631 (November 2002): 28-33.
7. Ibid.
8. �From Zero To 300 In 60 Seconds Otis High-Speed Elevator Systems Selected For Landmark 88-story Melbourne Tower,� http://www.otis.com/news/newsdetail/0,1368,CLI23_NID11699_RES1,00.html , 2002.
9. �Micro Craft Does Major Business,� http://www.microcraft.com/InsideOutlook/WN_tenn.htm , 2002.
10. �World�s Fastest Elevator,� http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/extreme_machines/2004/3/elevator/print.phtml , 2004.
11. Jason Goodwin, Otis: Giving Rise to the Modern City (Chicago: Ivan R. Dee, 2001).
12. Timothy Good, Alien Contact: Top-Secret UFO Files Revealed (New York: Quill, William
Morrow, 1993).
http://whitehouse.gov1.info/tunnel/index.html
The White House Construction Project - "The Big Dig"
In 2010, the White House Deep Underground Command Center project secretly got underway. The construction equipment arrived and tall fences went up around the West Wing of the White House. An initial ill-conceived scheme to deceive the public about the true nature of the construction led to the widespread reporting of a mere "utility upgrade" project. However, the massive scope of the construction led to many questions and outrageous conspiracy theories.
...
Deep Underground Command Center
Since the early 1960's, the need for a Deep Underground Command Center (DUCC) has been studied. This Top Secret 1963 memo outlined the requirements for the construction of a DUCC. Because of limits in technology at that time, the project was deferred. Fifty years later, the DUCC is finally becoming a reality.
The new underground command center serves two purposes: 1) To protect key people with sufficient staff and data to render critical decisions and 2) Ensure the survival of the facility to allow dissemination of these decisions. The DUCC can only serve this purpose if the President and his team can secretly relocate there on very short notice.
Unlike the Presidential Emergency Operations Center (PEOC) which is currently located below the East Wing of the White House, the DUCC will house its own massive communications center that interfaces with all military, intelligence, and critical federal agency systems. For security purposes, the exact specifications of the DUCC facility are classified.
| - -- -
Re: Underground Bases and Tunnels links - Richard Sauder
« Reply #106 on: September 12, 2012, 10:38:20 PM »
It staggers the mind. These freaks have interconnecting tunnels, transport systems, hospitols, dining areas, command centers or basically underground citys. Our money built them, they will run there if the shit implodes. We are not card carrying elites are we, these underground rats nests are exclusive.
In Turkey, underground tunnels were discovered, miles of them thousand of years old, carved in stone. Living quarters, water entrys,Air supplys, livestock areas, etc,. These were not simply caves.www.ancient-wisdom.co.uk/turkeyderinkuyu.Over 200 underground cities at least two levels deep have been discovered in ... Entry is through tunnels that force one to almost crawl on occasion in order to be hidden..
The elites are privy to historical fact as we the people have been kept in a mental bubble fed shiiit, like mushrooms. Even the Vatican has records, eyes only shiite. I can not imagine what the elite have,or the so called collectors, super-rich have spent their life and fortunes paying for discoverys we will never see.
Just my oppinon...They may nuke a few areas that interfere with the goals and create terror and genocide on a controlled scale, however I have a gut feeling it will not be all out nuke war, other methods of human extermination don't mess with the green. Biowarfare, mass chemical infusion into specific areas, as one of the many.
Human nature, nievity, psuedo beleifs, in some cases upper crust religion, goverment infiltrators, have and the elitist have a keen knowledge of human nature, present tech, and historical facts we will never see.
A number of military citadels are known to have been constructed underground in central London, dating mostly from the Second World War and the Cold War. Unlike traditional above-ground citadels, these sites are primarily secure centres for defence coordination.
It is already well known that a large network of tunnels exists below London for a variety of communications, civil defence and military purposes.[1] [2] It is much less clear how these tunnels, and the various facilities linked to them, fit together, if at all. Even the number and nature of these facilities is unclear; only a few have been officially admitted to
Pindar
The most important military citadel in central London�and arguably in Britain�is Pindar, a bunker built beneath the Ministry of Defence on Whitehall. Its construction, which took ten years and reportedly cost �126.3 million, finally came to a conclusion in 1994, but Pindar became operational two years earlier, in 1992. The high cost became the subject of some controversy in the early 1990s. Much of the cost overrun was related to the facility's computer equipment, which proved extremely difficult to install due to the very limited degree of physical access to the site.
Pindar's main function is to serve as a crisis management and communications centre, principally between the MOD headquarters and the actual centre of military operations, the Permanent Joint Headquarters in Northwood. It is reported to be connected to Downing Street and the Cabinet Office by a tunnel under Whitehall.[3] In addition, despite rumours, armed Forces Minister Jeremy Hanley told the House of Commons on 29 April 1994 that "the facility is not connected to any transport system."[4]
Although Pindar is not open to the public, it has had some public exposure. In the 2003 BBC documentary on the Iraq conflict, Fighting the War, BBC cameras were allowed into the facility to film a small part of a teleconference between ministers and military commanders. Also, in 2008 the British photographer David Moore published his series of photographs, The Last Things, widely believed to be an extensive photographic survey of Pindar.[5]
The name Pindar is taken from the ancient Greek poet, whose house alone was left standing after his city was razed.
...
The NSA Is Building the Country�s Biggest Spy Center (Watch What You Say)
By James Bamford
The spring air in the small, sand-dusted town has a soft haze to it, and clumps of green-gray sagebrush rustle in the breeze. Bluffdale sits in a bowl-shaped valley in the shadow of Utah�s Wasatch Range to the east and the Oquirrh Mountains to the west. It�s the heart of Mormon country, where religious pioneers first arrived more than 160 years ago.
...
Under construction by contractors with top-secret clearances, the blandly named Utah Data Center is being built for the National Security Agency. A project of immense secrecy, it is the final piece in a complex puzzle assembled over the past decade. Its purpose: to intercept, decipher, analyze, and store vast swaths of the world�s communications as they zap down from satellites and zip through the underground and undersea cables of international, foreign, and domestic networks. The heavily fortified $2 billion center should be up and running in September 2013.
Flowing through its servers and routers and stored in near-bottomless databases will be all forms of communication, including the complete contents of private emails, cell phone calls, and Google searches, as well as all sorts of personal data trails�parking receipts, travel itineraries, bookstore purchases, and other digital �pocket litter.� It is, in some measure, the realization of the �total information awareness� program created during the first term of the Bush administration�an effort that was killed by Congress in 2003 after it caused an outcry over its potential for invading Americans� privacy.
...
...
A short time later, Inglis arrived in Bluffdale at the site of the future data center, a flat, unpaved runway on a little-used part of Camp Williams, a National Guard training site. There, in a white tent set up for the occasion, Inglis joined Harvey Davis, the agency�s associate director for installations and logistics, and Utah senator Orrin Hatch, along with a few generals and politicians in a surreal ceremony.
Standing in an odd wooden sandbox and holding gold-painted shovels, they made awkward jabs at the sand and thus officially broke ground on what the local media had simply dubbed �the spy center.� Hoping for some details on what was about to be built, reporters turned to one of the invited guests, Lane Beattie of the Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce. Did he have any idea of the purpose behind the new facility in his backyard? �Absolutely not,� he said with a self-conscious half laugh. �Nor do I want them spying on me.�
...
Within days, the tent and sandbox and gold shovels would be gone and Inglis and the generals would be replaced by some 10,000 construction workers. �We�ve been asked not to talk about the project,� Rob Moore, president of Big-D Construction, one of the three major contractors working on the project, told a local reporter.
The plans for the center show an extensive security system: an elaborate $10 million antiterrorism protection program, including a fence designed to stop a 15,000-pound vehicle traveling 50 miles per hour, closed-circuit cameras, a biometric identification system, a vehicle inspection facility, and a visitor-control center
...
It needs that capacity because, according to a recent report by Cisco, global Internet traffic will quadruple from 2010 to 2015, reaching 966 exabytes per year. (A million exabytes equal a yottabyte.) In terms of scale, Eric Schmidt, Google�s former CEO, once estimated that the total of all human knowledge created from the dawn of man to 2003 totaled 5 exabytes. And the data flow shows no sign of slowing. In 2011 more than 2 billion of the world�s 6.9 billion people were connected to the Internet. By 2015, market research firm IDC estimates, there will be 2.7 billion users. Thus, the NSA�s need for a 1-million-square-foot data storehouse. Should the agency ever fill the Utah center with a yottabyte of information, it would be equal to about 500 quintillion (500,000,000,000,000,000,000) pages of text.
The data stored in Bluffdale will naturally go far beyond the world�s billions of public web pages. The NSA is more interested in the so-called invisible web, also known as the deep web or deepnet�data beyond the reach of the public. This includes password-protected data, US and foreign government communications, and noncommercial file-sharing between trusted peers. �The deep web contains government reports, databases, and other sources of information of high value to DOD and the intelligence community,� according to a 2010 Defense Science Board report. �Alternative tools are needed to find and index data in the deep web � Stealing the classified secrets of a potential adversary is where the [intelligence] community is most comfortable.�
With its new Utah Data Center, the NSA will at last have the technical capability to store, and rummage through, all those stolen secrets. The question, of course, is how the agency defines who is, and who is not, �a potential adversary.�
...
Quote from: chris jones on December 02, 2012, 06:04:21 PM
An old friend told me about these tunnels years ago, does history repeat, this is not the twilight zone, its true.
Derinkuyu Underground CityFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaJump to: navigation, search Derinkuyu Underground City is an ancient multi-level underground city of the Median Empire in the Derinkuyu district in Nevşehir Province, Turkey. With its five floors extending to a depth of approximately 60 m, it was large enough to shelter approximately 20,000 people together with their livestock and food stores. It is the largest excavated underground city in Turkey and is one of several underground complexes found across Cappadocia.
It was opened to visitors in 1969 and to date, about half of the underground city is accessible to tourists.
The underground city at Derinkuyu could be closed from the inside with large stone doors. The complex has a total of 13 floors. Each floor could be closed off separately.8th�7th centuries B.C according to the Turkish Department of Culture,[3] the underground city at Derinkuyu may have been enlarged in the Byzantine era.Inside Underground Tunnel Cappadocia, Turkey 112308 - YouTube► 9:29► 9:29www.youtube.com/watch?v=7R4UKVyRMX0
14/12/2008 - V�deo enviado por froggy4378
Inside Underground Tunnel Cappadocia, Turkey. ... Watch Later Derinkuyu, Underground city, Ancient ...
Some of these places are beautiful. this is Derinkuyu.
Eight Underground Cities
Crossrail: Where is it in the list of 'big digs'?
By William Kremer
BBC World Service
The tunnelling for Crossrail, London's new east-west rail network, is now in its most intense phase - and the scale of the engineering challenge is as jaw-dropping as the cost is eye-watering.
The tourists and shoppers in Red Lion Street in central London can have little idea that 30m under their feet something is going on, although people in buildings with deep foundations may feel a curious tingle.
Two tunnel boring machines (TBMs), named Phyllis and Ada, are worming their way through the earth. Each one is the length of 14 London buses and weighs 1,000 tonnes.
Europe's largest current construction project is now halfway through, having absorbed over 25 million working hours and produced around eight miles of tunnels. Last year and this year the project supported the equivalent of 13,800 full-time jobs throughout the supply chain
When the project is completed in late 2019, the route will start in Maidenhead in Berkshire, stretch out a tentacle to Heathrow, then pass through central London before going on to Shenfield in Essex and Abbey Wood, near Greenwich. It will bring one and a half million people within a 45-minute travelling distance of central London.
The TBMs have tungsten carbide cutting tools on the face that cut away the ground, with the loose earth fed back down the machine on a conveyor belt. What happens to all that debris? Much of it - 4.5 million tonnes - will eventually form the new RSPB nature reserve of Wallasea Island.
Six of the most expensive tunnels
Thames Tunnel 1825-1843
The Gotthard Tunnel 2004-2016
The Yantai-Dalian Tunnel (proposed)
Blueprints exist for a 76.4-mile undersea tunnel linking the Chinese cities of Dalian and Yantai - over twice the length of the Channel Tunnel
...
Subterranean London is riddled with Tube tunnels, secret passages, Roman ruins, high-voltage cables, long-forgotten aquifers and deep building foundations. The route squirms past these obstacles, passing just 1.5m over the Tube's Northern Line.
...
Then there was the problem of bombs.
"It's estimated that there's about 17,000 tonnes of bombs that were dropped on London in WWII and the rule of thumb is about 10% failed to explode," says Simon Cooke from consultancy 6Alpha. While some bombs were removed, others were missed or even abandoned because they were too dangerous to deactivate
...
After the tunnelling concludes, some of the tunnel boring machines, which each cost �10m, will be lifted out in pieces. But where there is no nearby shaft to the surface that can't happen.
"Then it's not cost effective to dismantle the machine underground and it's quite risky for the workforce to do that," says Andy Alder. "So in those cases we would look to bury the TBM and leave it underground forever - we strip out all the valuable components, but the basic shell of the machine we'll leave underground."
...
Thirlmere Aqueduct, England
1890-1925
At 95 miles, some consider this the longest tunnel in the world - a set of tunnels and pipes carry water from the Lake District to Manchester
Hawks Nest Tunnel, West Virginia, US
1927-1932
This three-mile tunnel, constructed as part of a hydroelectric project, possibly holds the record for most lives claimed during its construction - after mining silica without masks many workers died of silicosis - a congressional hearing placed the toll at 476, but it may have been higher
Seikan Tunnel, Japan
1964-1988
This tunnel, linking the islands of Honshu and Hokkaido, is currently the world's deepest and longest railway tunnel at 240m below sea level and 33.5 miles long
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In what opera does Police Chief Scarpia appear ? | Tosca | Opera Idaho
Soldiers, police agents, altar boys, noblemen and women, townsfolk, artisans (chorus)
Overview
Giacomo Puccini’s melodrama about a volatile diva, a sadistic police chief, and an idealistic artist contains many famous arias, including “Vissi d’arte” (Tosca) and “E lucevan le stele” (Cavaradossi). Soprano Eleni Calenos returns as the ill-fated title character – Eleni has previously appeared with Opera Idaho in the title roles of La bohème and Madama Butterfly, and as Micaela in Carmen. Steven Crawford returns to conduct his ninth opera for Opera Idaho.
Both during his lifetime and in posterity, Puccini's success outstripped other Italian opera composers of his time, and he has been matched in this regard by only a handful of composers in the entire history of opera. Three of Puccini's operas (Tosca, La bohème and Madama Butterfly) rank among the top ten works performed worldwide. This will be Opera Idaho’s fifth production of Tosca, making the opera one of the company’s most oft-performed operas. The most recent production was in 2003.
Act I
Rome, June 1800. Cesare Angelotti, an escaped political prisoner, rushes into the church of Sant’Andrea della Valle. He hides in one of the chapels just before the painter Mario Cavaradossi arrives to work on his portrait of Mary Magdalene. The painting has been inspired by the Marchesa Attavanti, whom Cavaradossi has seen in the church but does not know. He is struck by the resemblance of the dark-haired beauty of his lover, the singer Floria Tosca, and that of the blonde Marchesa Attavanti. Angelotti, who was a member of the former Bonapartiste government, emerges from his hiding place. Cavaradossi recognizes him and promises help, then hurries him back into the chapel as Tosca is heard calling from outside. She jealously asks Cavaradossi whom he has been talking to and reminds him of their rendezvous that evening. Suddenly recognizing the Marchesa Attavanti in the painting, she accuses him of being unfaithful, but he assures her of his love. When Tosca has left, Angelotti again comes out of hiding. A cannon signals that the police have discovered the escape, and he and Cavaradossi flee to the painter’s house. The sacristan enters with choirboys who are preparing to sing in a Te Deum celebrating the recent victory against Napoleon at the Battle of Marengo. Their excitement is silenced by the arrival of Baron Scarpia, chief of the secret police, who is searching for Angelotti. When Tosca comes back looking for Cavaradossi, Scarpia shows her a fan with the Attavanti crest that he has just found. Seemingly finding her suspicions about her lover’s infidelity confirmed, Tosca bursts into tears. She vows vengeance and leaves as the church fills with worshippers. Scarpia sends his men to follow her to Cavaradossi, with whom he thinks Angelotti is hiding. While the congregation sings the Te Deum, Scarpia declares that he will bend Tosca to his will.
Act II
In his study at the Palazzo Farnese, Scarpia anticipates the pleasure of having Tosca in his power. The spy Spoletta arrives with news that he was unable to find Angelotti. Instead he brings in Cavaradossi. While Scarpia interrogates the defiant painter, Tosca is heard singing at a royal gala in the same building. Scarpia sends for her and she appears just as Cavaradossi is being taken away to be tortured. Frightened by Scarpia’s questions and Cavaradossi’s screams, Tosca reveals Angelotti’s hiding place. Cavaradossi is brought in, badly hurt and hardly conscious. When he realizes what has happened, he angrily confronts Tosca, just as the officer Sciarrone rushes in to announce that Napoleon in fact has won the battle, a defeat for Scarpia’s side. Cavaradossi shouts out his defiance of tyranny and is dragged off to be executed. Scarpia calmly suggests to Tosca that he would let Cavaradossi go free if she’d give herself to him. Fighting off his advances, she declares she has dedicated her life to art and love and calls on God for help. Scarpia insists, when Spoletta interrupts: faced with capture, Angelotti has killed himself. Tosca, now forced to give in or lose her lover, agrees to Scarpia’s proposition. Scarpia orders Spoletta to prepare for a mock execution of Cavaradossi, after which he is to be freed. Tosca demands that Scarpia write her a safe-conduct. When he has done so, she grabs a knife from a table and stabs him.
Act III
At dawn the next morning, Cavaradossi awaits execution at the Castel Sant’Angelo. He bribes the jailer to deliver a farewell letter to Tosca, then, overcome with emotion, gives in to his despair. Tosca appears and explains what has happened. The two imagine their future in freedom. As the execution squad arrives, Tosca implores Cavaradossi to fake his death convincingly, then hides. The soldiers fire and depart. Cavaradossi doesn’t move and Tosca realizes that Scarpia has betrayed her. Just as Spoletta rushes in to arrest her, she leaps from the battlement.
Opera Idaho
| Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976 |
The Swiss have completed construction of which underground rail tunnel which is over 35 miles long ? This tunnel will provide a railway link through the Alps and will become operational in 2017. | “Sleep with me, or your boyfriend dies!” sings wicked police chief. What will Tosca do?
Who's Who?
Floria Tosca, a singer, is a devout Catholic, a compassionate, warm-hearted individual, and a passionate, jealous lover.
Mario Cavaradossi, a painter, loves life, liberty, and Floria Tosca (and maybe a striking blonde as well).
Baron Scarpia is a lecherous, power-mad chief of police.
Cesare Angelotti was once the consul of the short-lived Roman Republic; now he’s a political prisoner newly escaped from Scarpia’s jail.
Spoletta is Scarpia’s sadistic lackey.
Sciarrone is another of Scarpia’s evil henchmen.
The Sacristan works in the church of Sant’Andrea della Valle.
The Jailer works at the Castel Sant’Angelo.
The Shepherd likes to take his sheep out to graze along the Tiber and sing sad songs in the very early morning.
Where and When?
Rome, June 17 and 18, 1800
What's Going On?
ACT I
Cesare Angelotti, an escaped political prisoner, enters the church of Sant’Andrea della Valle and hides within a chapel. An artist and revolutionary, Mario Cavaradossi, comes in to work on his portrait of the Madonna, inspired by the Marchesa Attavanti. While an old Sacristan performs his morning duties, Cavaradossi compares the blonde Madonna he is painting to the raven beauty of his lover, the singer Floria Tosca. When the Sacristan leaves, Angelotti emerges from hiding and asks for Cavaradossi’s help. They are interrupted by the entrance of Tosca, who has come to see her lover. Cavaradossi, who keeps Tosca from seeing Angelotti, has to quiet her jealous fears about the woman in his portrait of the Madonna before she will leave. The two men hear a cannon shot—a signal that Angelotti’s escape has been discovered. They flee to hide Angelotti at Cavaradossi’s villa.
The Sacristan and the acolytes enter, excited about the army’s supposed victory over Napoleon. Scarpia, chief of police, enters, having tracked Angelotti to the church. Tosca returns to find her lover gone. Scarpia sows seeds of jealousy in Tosca, suggesting that her lover is having an affair with the Marchesa. Tosca, crazed with jealousy, rushes out to find the painter. Scarpia sends his minions to follow her, hoping that Tosca will lead them to Cavaradossi and Angelotti. As a joyful crowd fills the church to celebrate Napoleon’s supposed defeat, Scarpia, ignoring the celebration, dwells on his lust for Tosca.
ACT II
Scarpia, in his headquarters in the Farnese Palace, sends for Tosca. Spoletta arrives with Cavaradossi, and Scarpia interrogates the painter about Angelotti’s whereabouts. He gets nowhere, and sends him off to the torture chamber adjacent to his office. Tosca appears, and her actions reveal to Scarpia that she knows something about Angelotti. He makes her listen to Cavaradossi’s torture. She can’t bear it, and tells Scarpia where Angelotti is hiding. Scarpia cruelly lets Cavaradossi know that Tosca has talked. A message comes that Napoleon has won, and Cavaradossi indulges in a cry of victory and defiance. Cavaradossi is dragged to prison, and Tosca is left to bargain with Scarpia for her lover’s life. Scarpia suggests that Tosca yield herself to him in exchange for the painter’s freedom. Tosca fights off Scarpia and prays to God for help. But, eventually, she agrees to Scarpia’s demands in exchange for a mock execution and a safe conduct pass for her and Cavaradossi. After he has written the pass, Tosca stabs Scarpia and rejoices in his death.
ACT III
Before dawn, on the roof of the Castel Sant’Angelo, Cavaradossi writes of his love for Tosca. Tosca arrives at the prison with the safe conduct letter and tells Cavaradossi how she killed Scarpia. She then instructs him to feign death before the execution squad. The soldiers come; they shoot; Cavaradossi falls. Tosca waits until the soldiers leave, rushes to Cavaradossi and finds that Scarpia has thwarted her. The bullets were real and Cavaradossi is dead. The police arrive to arrest Tosca for Scarpia’s murder. She mounts the parapet and cries, “Scarpia, we will meet before God” and plunges to her death.
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What is the name of the substance obtained from the dried bladders of fish, used in brewing and wine-making ? | May 11 – “Isinglass” — Wine Word of the Day
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 36:05 — 33.2MB)
Hello everybody and today is May 11.
How many surrealists does it take to screw in a light bulb?
Fish!
I’m reminded of that riddle because do you know whose birthday it is? That’s right, Salvadore Dali’s.
And that brings us to today’s Wine Word of the Day: Isinglass
Okay, this may get a little surreal for you but, Isinglass is (and I’m quoting Wikipeadia again so you don’t think I’m a freak, like Dali), “is a substance obtained from the dried swim bladders of fish. It is a form of collagen used mainly for the clarification of wine and beer.”
Lovely, huh?
We’ve never used isinglass in Moonstone Cellar’s wine, mind you, but many wineries do in order to make their white wines sparkle.
And before you get too grossed out, the isinglass is left behind in the wine making process so it rarely finds its way into a bottle of wine. However, that still doesn’t sit too well with vegans who don’t appreciate animals being used in their food and beverages.
So, I guess they won’t be pairing their clarified white wine with chicken or FISH then, eh?
For transcripts, links and more podcasts please go to moonstonecellars.com/wwd. If you have any suggestions for more words, historical facts, or tips on how to keep my stopwatch from melting, please send emails to [email protected]
And until next time, Hellooooo Dali.
TASTING ROOMORS (Happenings in the Tasting Room)
MOONSTONE CELLARS CLUB ANNIVERSARIES
Gail Ortenberger 6 years–off to Africa
Kim & Rob Maston 6 years–opening a new steakhouse
Rick & Amy Auricchio 6 years
Christine Bellwood 6 years
| Project Isinglass |
In which Eastern Mediterranean country is the city of Tyre ? | Vegan Food and Beer Fest hits Portland Saturday
Vegan Food and Beer Fest hits Portland Saturday
Event held at Zidell Yards
KOIN 6 News Staff Published:
June 9, 2016, 7:33 am
Updated:
Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
Drinks offered at the Vegan Beer and Food Fest. (KOIN)
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — The Vegan Beer and Food Fest will be held on Saturday at the Zidell Yards.
A vegan big mac. (Instagram/ Vegan Beer and Food Fest)
The event kicks off at 1 p.m. Tickets are being sold online and give patrons access for over 40 vegan restaurants, a pop up marketplace and live music.
The general admission ticket gives you a 4oz tasting glass, 40 vouchers redeemable for 1 pour of beer or wine each and bottomless pours of kombucha, craft soda and cold brew.
What’s the difference between vegan beer and regular beer?
Here is a list of the most common animal products that are used in brewing:
Isinglass– Clarifier that is very common in brewing. Comes from the dried swim bladders of fish. Almost all cask conditioned ale uses isinglass as a clarifier, although it is more common in England than the U.S.
Gelatin– Clarifier obtained from the skin, connective tissue, and bones of animals. Typically taken from cattle and frozen pigskin.
Casein/Potassium Caseinate– Protein found in cow milk used as a clarifier.
Charcoal– Used for filtering. A portion is usually produced from animal bones.
Diatomaceous earth– Used in filtering. Comes from fossils or sea shells.
Insects– Made into dyes and used for coloring.
Glyceryl monostearate– Animal derived substance used to control foam.
Pepsin– Also used to control foam; it is sometimes derived from pork.
White sugar– Flavor additive often whitened using bone charcoal.
Albium– Refers to any protein that is water soluble. Most common type in brewing is serum albumin, which is taken from animal blood.
Lactose– Beers labeled as sweet, milk, or cream stouts may or may not contain lactose. Sometimes the description refers to the texture and not the ingredient. It’s best to double check these to be sure. Milk chocolate is common in certain styles, but some so-called “chocolate” porters or stouts actually contain no real chocolate at all. Some malted barley is called “chocolate malt” simply to describe the flavor the roasting imparts.
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"""They also serve who only stand and wait"" is the last line of a sonnet by which English poet ?" | They also serve who only stand and wait | EnglishClub
They also serve who only stand and wait
This page is about the saying "They also serve who only stand and wait".
Possible interpretation: We all have a place in this world and we all perform a function, regardless of our ability or disability. The word order of this sentence may make it more difficult to understand. In normal English it would be something like: "They (those people) who only stand and wait, also serve."
Origin: Quotation from the great English poet John Milton (1608-74). After going blind, Milton wrote the poem "On His Blindness". In the sonnet's last line, he reflects that even with his disability he has a place in the world:
When I consider how my light is spent
Ere half my days in this dark world and wide,
And that one Talent which is death to hide
Lodged with me useless, though my soul more bent
To serve therewith my Maker, and present
My true account, lest He returning chide,
"Doth God exact day-labour, light denied?"
I fondly ask. But Patience, to prevent
That murmur, soon replies, "God doth not need
Either man's work or his own gifts. Who best
Bear his mild yoke, they serve him best. His state
Is kingly: thousands at his bidding speed,
And post o'er land and ocean without rest;
They also serve who only stand and wait.
serve (verb): do duties or services for other people
stand (verb): have an upright position on one's feet
wait (verb): do nothing until something happens
Quick Quiz:
"They also serve who only stand and wait" suggests that we all have a place in this world whether or not we have
a. any disabilities
| John Milton |
What type of foodstuff is a MOREL ? | When I Consider How My Light Is Spent - Poems | Academy of American Poets
Academy of American Poets
The Academy of American Poets is the largest membership-based nonprofit organization fostering an appreciation for contemporary poetry and supporting American poets. For over three generations, the Academy has connected millions of people to great poetry through programs such as National Poetry Month, the largest literary celebration in the world; Poets.org, the Academy’s popular website; American Poets, a biannual literary journal; and an annual series of poetry readings and special events. Since its founding, the Academy has awarded more money to poets than any other organization.
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poem
About this Poem
Composed sometime between 1652 and 1655, John Milton's "Sonnet 19 [When I consider how my light is spent]" grapples with the subject of the poet's blindness later in life, as well as his changing relationship with God. Many of Milton's best-known poems, including the epic work Paradise Lost, were composed through dictation, transcribed by others, including the poet's daughters and the English metaphysical poet Andrew Marvell.
John Milton , 1608 - 1674
When I consider how my light is spent, Ere half my days in this dark world and wide, And that one talent which is death to hide Lodged with me useless, though my soul more bent To serve therewith my Maker, and present My true account, lest He returning chide; "Doth God exact day-labor, light denied?" I fondly ask. But Patience, to prevent That murmur, soon replies, "God doth not need Either man's work or His own gifts. Who best Bear His mild yoke, they serve Him best. His state Is kingly: thousands at His bidding speed, And post o'er land and ocean without rest; They also serve who only stand and wait."
This poem is in the public domain.
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What type of foodstuff is a MORELLO ? | Tart Cherry (Pie Cherry, Sour Cherry) | Uncommon Fruit
Tart Cherry (Pie Cherry, Sour Cherry)
(Prunus cerasus)
Background
Evans tart cherry
Compared to other common tree fruits, cultivar choices for P. cerasus are limited, but those that are available are hardy, adaptable and self-fertile, which limits the need for additional cultivar selection. The gold standard for the tart cherry processing industry continues to be ‘Montmorency’, which was selected in Montmorency, France, more than 400 years ago.
There are two types of tart cherry, ‘Morello’ and ‘Amarelle’. ‘Amarelle’ are bright red with clear to yellow flesh. Consumers are most familiar with this type because ‘Montmorency’ is in this group and is the most widely grown cherry for processing. ‘Morello’ types have a dark red fruit with red flesh and dark red juice. Often overlooked in the U.S., this type is of particular interest because the intense pigmentation indicates high anthocyanin levels associated with enhanced nutritional benefits. (See NC State reference, below.)
All cherries are known to be excellent sources of vitamins, minerals and nutraceuticals. They are one of the few food sources that contain melatonin, an antioxidant that helps regulate heart rhythms and the sleep cycle (See references, below.)
Observations at Carandale Farm
Meteor tart cherry plantings in Carandale’s commercial orchard. The tree in the background is 37 years old.
Tart cherries have been part of the commercial fruit orchard at Carandale Farm for more than 40 years. ‘Meteor’ has been and continues to be a reliable producer of good quality ‘Amarelle’-type fruit. The semi-dwarf tree has dense foliage that seems to discourage major bird predation. ‘Northstar’ is a dwarf tree that produces ‘Morello’-type fruit, but it had a short life span in the commercial planting. Fruit quality wasn’t consistent, and it was attractive to birds.
Based on past experience with tart cherries of both types (‘Amarelle’ and ‘Morello’), Carandale growers were excited to read about an option that might combine the benefits of both. ‘Evans’ (also called ‘Bali’) was being promoted as “the best-selling fruit tree on the Canadian Prairie. Incredibly hardy, possibly even to Zone 2. Large, even huge, crops of English ‘Morello’-type fruit virtually every year.” (See Fedco Trees reference, below.)
Dormant Evans tart cherry tree
In the spring of 2004, five trees were purchased from St. Lawrence Nurseries . These natural dwarf trees were started from tissue culture, so they are on their own rootstock (not grafted). The trees were small but transplanted well. They have had good resistance to most insect and disease pressure but have shown susceptibility to cherry leaf spot. The tree size, productivity and winter hardiness have met expectations, but the big disappointment is that they are not a ‘Morello’-type cherry and therefore do not have the enhanced anthocyanins, which was a major reason for the trial. (St. Lawrence Nurseries did not promote them as a ‘Morello’-Type cherry, but many other sources did, and continue to do so.)
‘Evans’ is a good cultivar, and if it lives up to its winter hardiness claims, it would still be a good choice for northern areas. Compared to ‘Meteor’, the fruit ripens a little later, may be slightly larger, has comparable yields and is somewhat sweeter when dead ripe. The fruit is softer and may have more handling damage. Susceptibility to brown rot appears to to be about the same.
| Cherry (Yui song) |
In the periodic table of elements, which chemical element would come last alphabetically ? | What is a Morello Cherry? (with pictures)
What is a Morello Cherry?
Images By: Chamillew, Jeppestown, Elena Blokhina
Last Modified Date: 24 December 2016
Copyright Protected:
Top 10 unbelievable historical concurrencies
A morello cherry is a sour cherry cultivar . Morellos are distinguished by their very dark skin, flesh, and juice. They are extremely popular for things like cherry pie, cherry jam, and cherry preserves , and they are also used in an assortment of other desserts. The rich, complex flavor of the morello cherry complements an assortment of ingredients, especially chocolate . You may be able to find morello cherries at a market in season, and they are often available frozen; you can also try growing them, if you live in USDA zones four through eight.
Sour cherries are more formally known as Prunus cerasus, and at one point there were a number of sour cherry cultivars. Unfortunately, the advent of industrial agriculture led to a decline in overall crop diversity, including diversity among the sour cherries, and the morello was one of the few cultivars left behind. Agriculturally, the morello cherry is preferred because it flowers later than other cherries, reducing the risk of damage as a result of frost or severe storms.
One interesting trait of sour cherries is their resistance to pests and diseases, which is one reason why this cultivar has become so popular. The morello cherry is also self fertile, making it popular with gardeners who have limited space to dedicate to cherry cultivation, as a tree for the purpose of cross fertilization is not required. Cherry trees are relatively easy to cultivate, as long as they are planted in well drained soil and fertilized on a regular basis.
Alone, the morello cherry can be a bit too bitter to be pleasant. However, the bitter flavor is much more complex than that of sweet cherries, making morello cherries more suitable for desserts. They can also be used in savory dishes, as is common in the Middle East. People who like lightly sweetened desserts like to use sour cherries because the level of sweetener can be more easily controlled, ensuring that the dessert is not too intensely sweet. The dark color of the morello cherry is also desirable for many cooks, as it is quite striking.
When selecting morello cherries from your market, look for firm specimens without signs of mold, discoloration, or sliminess. Store the cherries for up to four days under refrigeration before use, and remember to wash them before you utilize them. If you're going to be working with a lot of morello cherries, you may want to consider acquiring a cherry pitter , which will make processing the cherries much easier. If you want to freeze the cherries for later use, spare yourself some heartache and pit them before freezing.
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What is the anthem of the European Union ? | EUROPA - The European anthem
Europa
ECAS Login Create an ECAS account
The European anthem
The melody used to symbolize the EU comes from the Ninth Symphony composed in 1823 by Ludwig Van Beethoven, when he set music to the "Ode to Joy", Friedrich von Schiller's lyrical verse from 1785.
The anthem symbolises not only the European Union but also Europe in a wider sense. The poem "Ode to Joy" expresses Schiller's idealistic vision of the human race becoming brothers - a vision Beethoven shared.
In 1972, the Council of Europe adopted Beethoven's "Ode to Joy" theme as its anthem. In 1985, it was adopted by EU leaders as the official anthem of the European Union. There are no words to the anthem; it consists of music only. In the universal language of music, this anthem expresses the European ideals of freedom, peace and solidarity.
The European anthem is not intended to replace the national anthems of the EU countries but rather to celebrate the values they share. The anthem is played at official ceremonies involving the European Union and generally at all sorts of events with a European character.
Listen to the European Anthem
| Ode to Joy |
Who took over the important position of Pope in 2013 ? | Beethoven's Ode To Joy and the European Union National Anthem
Beethoven's Ode To Joy and the European Union National Anthem
Classical Music Expert
By Aaron Green
In 1972, the same European committee that designed the European flag adopted Beethoven's 'Ode to Joy' from his 9th Symphony . Several years later, in 1985, it became the official anthem of the European Union. The text written by Friedrich von Schiller expressed his belief that all men can become brothers; a belief also shared by Beethoven. Several arrangements of the piece were made and performed. Although the words are not in the anthem, the music conveys the same ideas of freedom, peace, and unity.
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What is the national anthem of Australia ? | Australian National Anthem - Advance Australia Fair, Lyrics and Music midi
Australian National Anthem
words and music composed by
Peter Dodds McCormick
Australians all let us rejoice
For we are young and free
We've golden soil and wealth for toil,
Our home is girt by sea:
Our land abounds in nature's gifts
Of beauty rich and rare,
In history's page let every stage
Advance Australia fair,
In joyful strains then let us sing
Advance Australia fair.
Beneath our radiant Southern Cross,
We'll toil with hearts and hands,
To make this Commonwealth of ours
Renowned of all the lands,
For those who've come across the seas
We've boundless plains to share,
With courage let us all combine
To advance Australia fair.
In joyful strains then let us sing,
Advance Australia fair.
Our National Anthem was the British Anthem "God Save the Queen". It was decided by those who know that it needed to be changed. Then they decided to have some sort of competition where the general public were to submit songs etc. Anyway apparently none were considered good enough. That left a choice between "Advance Australia Fair", "Waltzing Matilda" and "God Save the Queen"
This is of course quite ridiculous - a choice between three songs. Basically if you didn't like the Queen well then that left two. Hard Yakka if you didn't like any of them.
"Advance Australia Fair" was already a fairly popular song among Australians. So bear up you Aussies who don't like it, you will have to make the best of it - don't we always? Besides it is not that bad.
Many people thought that Waltzing Matilda should be our anthem, the trouble here is of course the words are about a Swagman - a jolly one - but never-the-less a Swagman who also steals sheep. Images Australia would not have a problem with that in fact it would suit Australia's quirky streak. No this does not mean we approve of stealing sheep - we just like the melody.
Perhaps we should have two anthems, then we judge the event and play the one most suitable for the occasion. Oh heck let's go for over-kill and play both of them they are both great songs. Imagine for instance the Olympic Games we would have the longest time, the audience would become rather restless - we might even be run out of town - but what do we care - hey we are doing them a favor it is not everyone who has two anthems. This is of course a little presumptuous assuming we will win a medal.
What about the Queen you ask - well we are all grown up now don't you know
Oh yah
Oh by the way if you are feeling a bit nostalgic go to the National Anthems of the World page and you can hear "God Save the Queen" (once our National Anthem) like you have never heard it before. The musical arrangement is by Images Australia and also the other music featured throughout this site.
You will notice that some of the original verses have been left out of the official version and we believe rightly so as they no longer reflect Australia's present multi-cultural population. While it is nice to know they were once included and that Captain Cook discovered Australia and sailed into Botany Bay etc. etc. it is not applicable for Australia now. History is history and nothing can change that but we must move on and have an Anthem that all Australians can relate to. If you want history look it up in a history book or an encyclopaedia it will be much more accurate and informative.
We know a lot of people will disagree with our opinion and that is their right, but please don't resort to sending offensive and argumentative e-mails.
Verse One
| Advance Australia Fair |
"In the periodic table of elements, which chemical element is the only one to begin with the letter ""V"" ?" | Australia's National Symbols - Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
Australia's National Symbols
Travel advice for countries and events
Passports
The Australian Passport Office and its agents are committed to providing a secure, efficient and responsive passport service for Australia.
Within Australia: 1300 555 135
Outside Australia: +61 2 6261 3305
SMS: +61 421 269 080
Australia's National Symbols
The Australian Flag
The stars of the Southern Cross represent Australia's geographic position in the Southern Hemisphere. The large Commonwealth star symbolises the federation of the states and territories, and the Union Jack reflects Australia's early ties to Great Britain.
Our National Colours
Australia's national colours are green and gold, the colours of its national floral emblem, the Golden Wattle.
The Coat of Arms
The Australian coat of arms consists of a shield containing the badges of the six Australian states symbolising federation, and the national symbols of the Golden Wattle, the kangaroo and the emu. By popular tradition, the kangaroo is accepted as the national animal emblem. The Golden Wattle was proclaimed the national floral emblem in August 1988.
National Anthem
Advance Australia Fair has been Australia's official national anthem since 19 April 1984.
Australians all let us rejoice,
For we are young and free;
We've golden soil and wealth for toil;
Our home is girt by sea;
Our land abounds in nature's gifts
Of beauty rich and rare;
In history's page, let every stage
Advance Australia Fair.
In joyful strains then let us sing,
Advance Australia Fair.
Beneath our radiant Southern Cross
We'll toil with hearts and hands;
To make this Commonwealth of ours
Renowned of all the lands;
For those who've come across the seas
We've boundless plains to share;
With courage let us all combine
To Advance Australia Fair.
In joyful strains then let us sing, Advance Australia Fair.
National Day
Australia Day is celebrated each year on 26 January. The date is the anniversary of the unfurling of the British flag at Sydney Cove in 1788.
National Holidays
Australia has 12 public holidays a year, including New Year's Day, Australia Day and Anzac Day.
An Australian soldier carries a wounded comrade near North Beach, Gallipoli (AWM H10363)
Did you know?
Anzac Day, 25 April, is a national day of commemoration for all Australians who have fought in wars. It is the day the Australia and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) landed at Gallipoli in Turkey in 1915 during World War I. To mark Anzac Day, Australians and New Zealanders attend ceremonies at home and around the world, including in Gallipoli. In 2015, Australia marked the centenary of the Anzac landing with a ceremony at Gallipoli.
| i don't know |
"Which American pop group, who did not reach the number 1 spot in the U.K., had their most successful number 1 hit in America with ""Livin' on a Prayer"" in 1986 ?" | Daily Music Sheets - Free Downloadable Sheet Music
1.13MB - 1983d ago
Alanis Morissette
Alanis Nadine Morissette (born June 1, 1974) is a Canadian-born singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress. She has won 12 Juno Awards and seven Grammy Awards, and has sold over 55 million albums worldwide. Morissette began her career in Canada, and as a teenager recorded two dance-pop albums, Alanis and Now Is the Time, under MCA Records. Her international debut album was the rock-influenced Jagged Little Pill, which remains the best-selling debut album by a female artist in the U.S., and the highest selling debut album worldwide in music history, selling 30 million records worlwide. According to RIAA and United World Charts, Alanis is the biggest selling female rock artist in music. Her following album, Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie, was released in 1998 and was a success as well. Morissette took up producing duties for her subsequent albums, which include Under Rug Swept, So-Called Chaos and latest release Flavors of Entanglement. In February 2005, Morissette became a naturalized citizen of the United States while maintaining her Canadian citizenship.
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Domenico Alberti
Domenico Alberti (c. 1710 – 14 October 1740) was an Italian singer, harpsichordist, and composer whose works bridge the Baroque and Classical periods.
Alberti was born in Venice and studied music with Antonio Lotti. He wrote operas, songs, and sonatas for keyboard instruments, for which he is best known today. These sonatas frequently employ a particular kind of arpeggiated accompaniment in the left hand that is now known as the Alberti bass. It consists of regular broken chords, with the lowest note sounding first, then the highest, then the middle and then the highest again. This pattern is repeated. Today, Alberti is regarded as a minor composer, and his works are played or recorded only irregularly. The Alberti bass was used by many later composers, and it became an important element in much keyboard music of the Classical music era.
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Coldplay
Coldplay are a rock band formed in London, England in 1997. The group comprises vocalist/pianist/guitarist Chris Martin, lead guitarist Jonny Buckland, bassist Guy Berryman, and drummer/multi-instrumentalist Will Champion. Coldplay have sold 34.6 million albums, and are also known for their hit singles, such as "Yellow", "The Scientist", "Speed of Sound", "Fix You", "Viva la Vida" and the Grammy Award-winning "Clocks".
Coldplay achieved worldwide fame with the release of their single "Yellow", followed by their debut album, Parachutes (2000), which was nominated for the Mercury Prize. Its follow-up, A Rush of Blood to the Head (2002) won multiple awards such as NME's Album of the Year and was later included on Rolling Stone magazine's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list, ranking at #473. Their next release, X&Y (2005), received a slightly less enthusiastic yet still generally positive reception. The band's fourth studio album, Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends (2008), was produced by Brian Eno and released again to largely favourable reviews. All of Coldplay's albums have enjoyed great commercial success.
Coldplay's early material was compared to acts such as Jeff Buckley, U2, and Travis. Coldplay have been an active supporter of various social and political causes, such as Oxfam's Make Trade Fair campaign and Amnesty International. The group have also performed at various charity projects such as Band Aid 20, Live 8, and the Teenage Cancer Trust.
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Anatoly Alexandrov
Anatoly Nikolayevich Alexandrov (Russian: Анато́лий Никола́евич Алекса́ндров) (May 25 1888 – April 16, 1982) was a Russian composer of works for piano and for other instruments, and pianist. His initial works had a mystical element, but he downplayed this to better fit Socialist realism. He led a somewhat retiring life, but received several honors.
Alexandrov was the son of a Professor of Tomsk University. He attended the Moscow Conservatory (which he left in 1915), where he was a pupil of Nikolai Zhilyayev, Sergei Taneyev and Sergei Vasilenko (theory), Alexander Ilyinsky (composition) and Konstantin Igumnov (pianoforte). His early music revealed the influence of Nikolai Medtner and Alexander Scriabin. He was appointed Professor at the Moscow Conservatory in 1923. Viktor Belyaev, Alexandrov's first biographer, wrote in 1926: "If Myaskovsky is a thinker, and Feinberg a psychologist, then Alexandrov is, before anything else, a poet." Alexandrov was also a strong proponent of Stanchinsky and edited much of his compositions for publication.
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Rachmaninoff
Sergei Vasilievich Rachmaninoff (1 April 1873 - 28 March 1943) was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor. He was one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, the last great representative of Russian late Romanticism in classical music. Early influences of Tchaikovsky, Rimsky-Korsakov and other Russian composers gave way to a thoroughly personal idiom which included a pronounced lyricism, expressive breadth, structural ingenuity and a tonal palette of rich, distinctive orchestral colors.
Understandably, the piano figures prominently in Rachmaninoff's compositional output, either as a solo instrument or as part of an ensemble. He made it a point, however, to use his own skills as a performer to explore fully the expressive possibilities of the instrument. Even in his earliest works, he revealed a sure grasp of idiomatic piano writing and a striking gift for melody. In some of his early orchestral pieces he showed the first signs of a talent for tone painting, which he would perfect in The Isle of the Dead, and he began to show a similar penchant for vocal writing in two early sets of songs, Opp. 4 and 8. Rachmaninoff's masterpiece, however, is his choral symphony The Bells, in which all of his talents are fused and unified.
Rachmaninoff sometimes felt threatened by the success of modernists such as Scriabin and Prokofiev and wondered whether to cease composing even before he left Russia. His musical philosophy was rooted in the Russian spiritual tradition, where the role of the artist was to create beauty and to speak the truth from the depths of his heart. In his last major interview, in 1941, he admitted his music, like Russian music, was a product of his temperament. He said, on another occasion, "The new kind of music seems to create not from the heart but from the head. Its composers think rather than feel. They have not the capacity to make their works exalt—they meditate, protest, analyze, reason, calculate and brood, but they do not exalt."
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Gloria Estefan
Gloria Estefan (born Gloria María Fajardo on September 1, 1957) is a Cuban American singer and songwriter. she is in the top 100 of best selling music artists with over 90 million albums sold worldwide, with 15.5 million of those alone in the United States. She has won five Grammy Awards becoming among the most successful crossover performers in Latin music to date.
She will be awarded by the Latin Grammy Award Recording Association as the "Person of the Year" in the ceremony to be aired on November 2008, the award will be given to her for her long career of more than 20 years and her worldwide success, she's also the first female singer to receive this prestigious award.
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70.42KB - 2016d ago
Natalie Cole
Natalie Maria Cole (born February 6, 1950), better known as Natalie Cole is an American singer, songwriter and performer. The daughter of jazz legend Nat King Cole, Cole rode to musical success in the mid-1970s as an R&B artist with the hits "This Will Be (An Everlasting Love)", "Inseparable" and "Our Love". After a period of failing sales and performances due to a heavy drug addiction, Cole reemerged as a pop artist with the 1987 album, Everlasting, and her cover of Bruce Springsteen's "Pink Cadillac". In the 1990s, she re-recorded standards by her father, resulting in her biggest success, Unforgettable... with Love, which sold over seven million copies and also won Cole numerous Grammy Awards.
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The Smashing Pumpkins
The Smashing Pumpkins are an American alternative rock band that formed in Chicago, Illinois in 1988. While the group has gone through several lineup changes, The Smashing Pumpkins consisted of Billy Corgan (vocals/guitar), James Iha (guitar/backing vocals), D'arcy Wretzky (bass guitar/backing vocals), and Jimmy Chamberlin (drums/percussion) for most of the band's recording career.
Disavowing the punk rock roots shared by many of their alt-rock contemporaries, the Pumpkins have a diverse, densely layered, and guitar-heavy sound, containing elements of gothic rock, heavy metal, dream pop, psychedelic rock, arena rock, shoegazer-style production and, in later recordings, electronica. Frontman Billy Corgan is the group's primary songwriter—his grand musical ambitions and cathartic lyrics have shaped the band's albums and songs, which have been described as "anguished, bruised reports from Billy Corgan's nightmare-land".
The Smashing Pumpkins broke into the musical mainstream with their second album, Siamese Dream (1993). The group built their audience with extensive touring and their follow-up, the double album Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness (1995), debuted at number one on the Billboard charts. With approximately 18.25 million albums sold in the United States alone, The Smashing Pumpkins were one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed bands of the 1990s. However, internal fighting, drug use, and diminishing sales hampered the band and led to a 2000 break-up. In April 2006, the band officially announced that it was reuniting and recording a new album. Returning members Billy Corgan and Jimmy Chamberlin were joined by musicians Jeff Schroeder (guitar/vocals), Ginger Reyes (bass/vocals), and Lisa Harriton (keyboard/vocals) in 2007 to tour in support of their new release, Zeitgeist.
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625.72KB - 2013d ago
Blackmore's Night
Blackmore's Night is a Renaissance-inspired folk rock band led by Ritchie Blackmore (electric and acoustic guitar) and Candice Night (lyricist and lead vocals).
The origins of the band lie in 1989 when Candice Night was working at a local New York rock music radio station. She first encountered Ritchie Blackmore, then with Deep Purple, at a football game in which he was playing. The two became romantically involved and discovered that they shared a passionate interest in the Renaissance.
After leaving Deep Purple in 1993 and recording the album Stranger in Us All in 1995, on which Night contributed backing vocals and some of the lyrics, Blackmore became interested in the idea of bringing Renaissance music to a contemporary audience. Night's personality and singing ability made her the natural choice as "frontwoman." In 1997 the pair were ready to launch the band, the name being a pun of their own names, and which would consist of themselves plus session musicians.
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Ludovico Einaudi
Ludovico Einaudi (born 23 November 1955) is an Italian contemporary classical music composer and pianist.
Although Einaudi would prefer not to be labeled as any particular type of genre, he is sometimes referred to as Minimalist. This is despite his music not sharing the key musical properties associated with minimalism. This may be due to his music possessing sparse orchestration and simplistic melodies that some may wish to refer to as 'minimalist' despite not belonging to the musical movement of Minimalism.
Einaudi's own words on the matter reflect this viewpoint, with Einaudi referring to Minimalism as "elegance and openness", despite its more formal definition as a musical movement to which he arguably does not belong.
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Jim Brickman
Jim Brickman (born November 20, 1961) is an American composer and pianist. Brickman is known for his solo piano compositions, which are classified as new age music. However, he is as well known for his original love songs and performing them with vocalists such as Martina McBride, Michael W. Smith, Michelle Wright and others.
His music career started when he was nineteen, when Jim Henson hired him to write tunes for Sesame Street. He was also hired to write commercial jingles while in college.
Brickman signed with Windham Hill Records to release his first album, No Words, in 1994. The song "Rocket To The Moon" from that album was the first solo instrumental song ever to be ranked on Billboard's charts. Four of his albums (By Heart, Picture This, The Gift, and Destiny) have all sold over 500,000 copies, qualifying them as gold records in the United States.
Brickman writes a wide variety of music. Besides his piano compositions and love songs, he has also created arrangements of other songs. Several of his albums feature arrangements of children's music; he has produced two Christmas-themed albums The Gift (1997) and Peace (2003); and his 2005 album Grace concentrates on arrangements of well-known Christian music.
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The Smiths
The Smiths were an English alternative rock band, formed in Manchester in 1982. Based on the song writing partnership of Morrissey (vocals) and Johnny Marr (guitar), the band also included Andy Rourke (bass) and Mike Joyce (drums). Critics have called them the most important alternative rock band to emerge from the British independent music scene of the 1980s. The group were signed to the independent record label Rough Trade Records, for whom they released four studio albums and several compilations, as well as numerous non-LP singles. Although they had limited commercial success outside the UK while they were still together, and never released a single that charted higher than number 10 in their home country, The Smiths won a growing following, and remain cult and commercial favourites. The band broke up in 1987 and have turned down several offers to reunite since then.
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148.23KB - 2015d ago
David Lanz
David Lanz (born June 28, 1950 in Seattle, Washington) is a Grammy-nominated New Age pianist. He has released 13 albums, each having some chart success. His most famous album, Cristofori's Dream, topped the New Age charts in 1988, which was Number One on Billboard's first adult alternative/New Age chart for 27 weeks and eventually sold platinum. Natural States peaked at place 125 on the Billboard 200.
Lanz's goal is to have his music create an atmosphere of enlightenment. In an interview with Barnes & Noble, Lanz stated that he wanted to create an atmosphere similar to that of Steven Halpern's music, but with a "more popular hook in it".
Lanz has said himself, " is the most divinely inspired instrument on the planet. It presents a great attraction to our left-right brain relationship. My goal is to create entertainment that also provides enlightenment."
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Tom Waits
Thomas Alan Waits (born 7 December 1949) is an American singer-songwriter, composer, and actor. Waits has a distinctive voice, described by critic Daniel Durchholz as sounding "like it was soaked in a vat of bourbon, left hanging in the smokehouse for a few months, and then taken outside and run over with a car." With this trademark growl, his incorporation of pre-rock styles such as blues, jazz, and vaudeville, and experimental tendencies verging on industrial music, Waits has built up a distinctive musical persona. He has worked as a composer for movies and musical plays and as a supporting actor in films, including The Fisher King, Coffee & Cigarettes, Bram Stoker's Dracula, and Short Cuts. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his soundtrack work on One from the Heart.
Lyrically, Waits' songs contain atmospheric portrayals of bizarre, seedy characters and places, although he has also shown a penchant for more conventional ballads. He has a cult following and has influenced subsequent songwriters despite having little radio or music video support. His songs are best-known to the general public in the form of cover versions by more visible artistsâfor example, "Jersey Girl," performed by Bruce Springsteen; "Downtown Train" and "Tom Traubert's Blues" performed by Rod Stewart; and "Ol' '55," performed by the Eagles. Although Waits' albums have met with mixed commercial success in his native United States, they have occasionally achieved gold album sales status in other countries. He has been nominated for a number of major music awards and has won Grammy Awards for two albums, Bone Machine and Mule Variations.
Waits currently lives in Sonoma County, California with his wife and their three children.
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79.94KB - 2016d ago
Matchbox 20
Matchbox Twenty (or MB20, MBT, M20, originally spelled Matchbox 20) is a rock band formed in Orlando, Florida.
Matchbox Twenty has sold over 44 million albums worldwide from the releases of Yourself or Someone Like You, Mad Season, and More Than You Think You Are. They released their latest album, Exile on Mainstream, on October 2, 2007. The current members of the band are Rob Thomas, Paul Doucette, Brian Yale, and Kyle Cook. Rhythm guitarist Adam Gaynor left the band in 2005, after performing on their first three studio albums. Rob Thomas is the principal songwriter and lead singer. Rob Thomas has created a well-established solo career for himself after releasing the album, …Something to Be.
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Oscar Peterson
Oscar Emmanuel Peterson, CC, CQ, O.Ont. (August 15, 1925 – December 23, 2007) was a Canadian jazz pianist and composer. He was called the "Maharaja of the keyboard" by Duke Ellington, "O.P." by his friends, and was a member of jazz royalty. He released over 200 recordings, won seven Grammy Awards, and received other numerous awards and honours over the course of his career. He is considered to have been one of the greatest jazz pianists of all time, who played thousands of live concerts to audiences worldwide in a career lasting more than 65 years.
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Switchfoot
Switchfoot is an American alternative rock band from San Diego, California. The band's members are Jon Foreman (vocals, guitar), Tim Foreman (bass guitar, backing vocals), Chad Butler (drums, percussion), Jerome Fontamillas (guitar, keyboards, backing vocals), and Drew Shirley (guitar). Known for their energetic live shows, the three guitarists in the line-up often operate simultaneously, building on the pop sensibilities of Jon's songwriting, and, rounded out by Jerome's work on the synthesizer, bringing his industrial roots to the sound, the band works up "the Switchfoot sound"– a melodic crunch of densely layered sound featuring some electronic experimentation, and often driven by hard-charging guitar riffs, while throwing in a few softer, spacey ballads as well.
Switchfoot first gained mainstream recognition after the inclusion of four of their songs in the 2002 movie A Walk to Remember. This recognition led to their major label debut, The Beautiful Letdown, which was released in 2003. It went on to sell over 2.6 million copies and produced the band's best-known singles, "Meant to Live" and "Dare You to Move".
According to Jon Foreman, the name "Switchfoot" is a surfing term. "We all love to surf and have been surfing all our lives so to us, the name made sense. To switch your feet means to take a new stance facing the opposite direction. It's about change and movement, a different way of approaching life and music".
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Regina Spektor
Regina Spektor (born February 18, 1980) is a Soviet-born Jewish-American singer-songwriter and pianist. Her music is associated with the anti-folk scene centered on New York City's East Village.
Spektor has said that she has created 700 songs, but that she rarely writes any of them down. She has also stated that she never aspired to write songs herself, but songs seem to just flow to her. Spektor possesses a broad vocal range and uses the full extent of it. She also explores a variety of different and somewhat unorthodox vocal techniques, such as verses composed entirely of buzzing noises made with the lips and beatbox-style flourishes in the middle of ballads, and also makes use of such unusual musical techniques as using a drum stick to tap rhythms on the body of the piano or chair.
Her lyrics are equally eclectic, often taking the form of abstract narratives or first-person character studies, similar to short stories or vignettes put to song. Spektor usually sings in English, though she sometimes includes a few words or verses of Latin, Russian, French, and other languages in her songs.
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G. F. Handel
George Frideric Handel (German: Georg Friedrich Händel; pronounced ) (23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-English Baroque composer who is famous for his operas, oratorios, and concerti grossi. Handel was born in Germany in the same year as JS Bach and Domenico Scarlatti. He received critical musical training in Italy before settling in London and becoming a naturalised British subject. His works include Messiah, Water Music, and Music for the Royal Fireworks. He was strongly influenced by the techniques of the great composers of the Italian Baroque and the English composer Henry Purcell. Handel's music was well-known to many composers, including Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven.
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Jekyll & Hyde
Jekyll & Hyde is a Broadway musical based on the novel, The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson. The original stage conception was by Steve Cuden and Frank Wildhorn. The music was composed by Wildhorn and the lyrics were written by Leslie Bricusse.
The show opened on Broadway on April 28, 1997. There were 44 preview performances starting on March 21. The show ran for 1,543 regular performances, closing on January 7, 2001 and is the longest-running show in the history of the Plymouth Theatre.
Despite the long run, the musical lost money in the end: more than $1.5 million.
The show has also been adapted into a film starring David Hasselhoff and Coleen Sexton. The film was directed by Don Roy King.
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Hairspray
Hairspray is a 2007 musical film produced by Zadan/Meron Productions and distributed by New Line Cinema. It was released in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom on July 20, 2007. The film is an adaptation of the Tony Award-winning 2002 Broadway musical of the same name, and a remake of John Waters' 1988 comedy film of the same name. Set in 1962 Baltimore, Maryland, the film follows a "pleasantly plump" teenager named Tracy Turnblad as she simultaneously pursues stardom as a dancer on a local TV show and rallies against racial segregation.
Adapted from both Waters's 1988 script and Thomas Meehan and Mark O'Donnell's book for the stage musical by screenwriter Leslie Dixon, the 2007 film version of Hairspray is directed and choreographed by Adam Shankman. Hairspray stars John Travolta, Michelle Pfeiffer, Christopher Walken, Amanda Bynes, James Marsden, Queen Latifah, Brittany Snow, Zac Efron, Elijah Kelley, Allison Janney, and introduces newcomer Nikki Blonsky as Tracy Turnblad. Hairspray features songs from the Broadway musical written by Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, as well as four new Shaiman/Wittman compositions not present in the original Broadway version.
Opening to mostly positive reviews, Hairspray met with financial success, breaking the record for biggest sales at opening weekend for a movie musical, which the film held until July 2008 when it was surpassed by Mamma Mia!. Hairspray went on to become the fourth highest grossing musical film in U.S. cinema history, behind the film adaptations of Grease, Chicago, and Mamma Mia!. Available in a variety of formats, Hairspray's Region 1 home video release took place on November 20, 2007. The USA Network has purchased the broadcast rights to Hairspray and is scheduled to debut the film on cable television in February 2010.
Adam Shankman and John Waters are currently working on a sequel to the film.
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Linkin Park
Linkin Park is an American rock band from Agoura Hills, California. Since their formation in 1996, the band has sold more than 50 million albums and won two Grammy Awards. They achieved mainstream success with their debut album, Hybrid Theory, which was certified Diamond by the RIAA in 2005. Their following studio album, Meteora, continued the band's success, topping the Billboard 200’s album charts in 2003, and was followed by extensive touring and charity work around the world.
Recognized for their adaptation of the nu metal and rap rock genre into a radio-friendly yet densely-layered style in Hybrid Theory and Meteora, the band moved away from this and explored a variety of other genres in their latest studio album, Minutes to Midnight. The album topped the Billboard charts and had the third best debut week of any album that year. They are also known for their several collaborations, most notably with rapper Jay-Z in their mash-up album Collision Course, and many other artists on Reanimation.
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Depeche Mode
Depeche Mode (IPA: , də-PESH) are an English electronic band who formed in 1980, in Basildon, Essex. The group's original line-up consisted of Dave Gahan (lead vocals), Martin Gore (keyboards, guitar, vocals, chief songwriter after 1981), Andrew Fletcher (keyboards) and Vince Clarke (keyboards, chief songwriter 1980–81). Vince Clarke left the band after the release of their 1981 debut album, and was replaced by Alan Wilder (keyboards, drums, production) with Gore taking over songwriting. Wilder left the band in 1995 and since then Gahan, Gore, and Fletcher have continued as a trio.
Depeche Mode are one of the most successful, longest-lived bands from the early 1980s. They have had forty-five songs in the UK Singles Chart and #1 albums in UK, US and throughout Europe. According to EMI, Depeche Mode have sold over 75 million albums worldwide, as part of total worldwide record sales (including singles) in excess of 100 million.
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Felix Mendelssohn
Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy, born, and generally known in English-speaking countries, as Felix Mendelssohn (February 3, 1809 – November 4, 1847) was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period.
The grandson of the philosopher Moses Mendelssohn, he was born into a notable Jewish family, although he himself was brought up initially without religion, and later as a Lutheran. He was recognized early as a musical prodigy, but his parents were cautious and did not seek to capitalise on his abilities. Indeed his father was disinclined to allow Felix to follow a musical career until it became clear that he intended to seriously dedicate himself to it.
Early success in Germany was followed by travel throughout Europe; Mendelssohn was particularly well received in England as a composer, conductor and soloist, and his ten visits there, during which many of his major works were premiered, form an important part of his adult career. His essentially conservative musical tastes however set him apart from many of his more adventurous musical contemporaries such as Liszt, Wagner and Berlioz. The Conservatory he founded at Leipzig became a bastion of this anti-radical outlook.
Mendelssohn's work includes symphonies, concerti, oratorios, piano and chamber music. He also had an important role in the revival of interest in the music of Johann Sebastian Bach. After a long period of relative denigration due to changing musical tastes and antisemitism in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, his creative originality is now being recognized and re-evaluated. He is now among the most popular composers of the Romantic era.
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Green Day
Green Day is an American rock trio formed in 1987. The band has consisted of Billie Joe Armstrong (vocals, guitar), Mike Dirnt (bass guitar, vocals), and Tré Cool (drums, percussion) for the majority of its existence.
Green Day was originally part of the punk rock scene at 924 Gilman Street in Berkeley, California. Its early releases for independent record label Lookout! Records earned them a grassroots fanbase, some of whom felt alienated when the band signed to a major label.
The band has sold over 65 million records worldwide, They also have three Grammy Awards, Best Alternative Album for Dookie, Best Rock Album for American Idiot, and Record of the Year for "Boulevard of Broken Dreams".
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The Fugees
The Fugees were an American hip hop group that rose to fame in the mid-1990s, whose repertoire included elements of Hip hop, soul and Caribbean music, particularly reggae. The members of the group are rapper/singer/producer Wyclef Jean, rapper/singer/producer Lauryn Hill, and rapper Pras Michel. Deriving their name from the term refugee, Jean and Michel are Haitian Americans, while Hill is American. The group recorded two albums—one of which, The Score (1996), was a multi-platinum and Grammy-winning success—before disbanding in 1997. Hill and Jean each went on to successful solo recording careers; Michel focused on soundtrack recordings and acting, though he found commercial success with his song "Ghetto Supastar." In 2007, MTV ranked them the 9th greatest Hip-hop group of all time.
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Debussy
Achille-Claude Debussy (August 22, 1862 – March 25, 1918) was a French composer. Along with Maurice Ravel, he is considered one of the most prominent figures working within the field of Impressionist music, though he himself intensely disliked the term when applied to his compositions. Debussy was not only among the most important of all French composers but also was a central figure in all European music at the turn of the twentieth century.
Debussy's music virtually defines the transition from late-Romantic music to twentieth century modernist music. In French literary circles, the style of this period was known as Symbolism, a movement that directly inspired Debussy both as a composer and as an active cultural participant.
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Tori Amos
Tori Amos (born Myra Ellen Amos on August 22, 1963) is a pianist and singer-songwriter of dual British and American citizenship. She is married to English sound engineer Mark Hawley, with whom she has one child, Natashya "Tash" Lórien Hawley, born on September 5, 2000.
Amos was at the forefront of a number of female singer-songwriters in the early 1990s and was noteworthy early in her career as one of the few alternative rock performers to use a piano as her primary instrument. She is known for emotionally intense songs that cover a wide range of subjects including sexuality, religion and personal tragedy. Some of her charting singles include "Crucify", "Silent All These Years", "Cornflake Girl", "Caught a Lite Sneeze", "Professional Widow", "Spark", and "A Sorta Fairytale".
Amos had sold 12 million records worldwide as of 2005 and has also enjoyed a large cult following. Having a history of making eccentric and at times ribald comments during concerts and interviews, she has earned a reputation for being highly idiosyncratic. As a social commentator and sometimes activist, some of the topics she has been most vocal about include feminism, religion, and sexuality.
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Jon Bon Jovi
Jon Bon Jovi (born John Francis Bongiovi, Jr. on March 2, 1962) is an American musician, songwriter and actor. As lead singer and founder of the rock band Bon Jovi, he has sold just under 156 million albums worldwide (August 2008). He is also the owner of an Arena Football League team, the Philadelphia Soul.
In June 2007, Bon Jovi released their new tenth studio album, Lost Highway. The album debuted at number #1 on the Billboard charts, the first time that Bon Jovi have had a number one album on the US charts since the release of New Jersey in 1988. Thanks to the band's new country music fanbase, the album sold 292,000 copies in its first week on sale in the U.S., and became Bon Jovi's third US number one album. The first single from the new album was "(You Want to) Make a Memory", which debuted (and peaked) at #27 in the Billboard Hot 100, Bon Jovi's highest ever debut in the U.S. charts. The album reached Number #1 in Japan, Canada, Australia and Europe, and reached number #2 in the UK.
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Death Cab for Cutie
Death Cab for Cutie is an American indie rock band formed in Bellingham, Washington in 1997. It began as a solo project of Ben Gibbard, now the band's vocalist and guitarist. Gibbard took the band name from the title of the song written by Neil Innes and Vivian Stanshall and performed by their group the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band in The Beatles' 1967 film Magical Mystery Tour.
Gibbard's first album, You Can Play These Songs with Chords, was released as a demo, leading to a record deal with Barsuk Records. It was at this time that Gibbard decided to expand the project into a complete band, and recruited band members to join. The band has released six studio albums, four EPs, and one demo to date. Their most recent album, Narrow Stairs, was released on May 12, 2008 in the United Kingdom and was released on May 13, 2008 in the United States.
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Mariah Carey
Mariah Carey (born March 27, 1970) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. She made her recording debut in 1990 under the guidance of Columbia Records executive Tommy Mottola, and became the first recording artist to have her first five singles top the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart. Following her marriage to Mottola in 1993, a series of hit records established her position as Columbia's highest-selling act. According to Billboard magazine, she was the most successful artist of the 1990s in the United States.
Following her separation from Mottola in 1997, Carey introduced elements of hip hop into her album work, to much initial success, but her popularity was in decline when she left Columbia in 2001, and she was dropped by Virgin Records the following year after a highly publicized physical and emotional breakdown, as well as the poor reception given to Glitter, her film and soundtrack project. In 2002, Carey signed with Island Records, and after a relatively unsuccessful period, she returned to pop music in 2005.
Carey was named the best-selling female pop artist of the millennium at the 2000 World Music Awards. She has had the most number-one singles for a solo artist in the United States (eighteen; second artist overall behind The Beatles), where, according to the Recording Industry Association of America, she is the third best-selling female and sixteenth overall recording artist. In addition to her commercial accomplishments, Carey has earned five Grammy Awards, and is well-known for her vocal range, power, melismatic style, and use of the whistle register.
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Miley Cyrus
Miley Ray Cyrus (born Destiny Hope Cyrus; November 23, 1992) is an American pop singer and television and film actress. Cyrus is best known for starring as the title character in the Disney Channel series Hannah Montana. Following the success of Hannah Montana, in October 2006, a soundtrack CD was released in which she sang eight songs from the show. Cyrus' solo music career began with the release of her debut album, Meet Miley Cyrus on June 23, 2007, which included her first top ten single "See You Again". Her second album, Breakout, was released on July 22, 2008. Breakout is Cyrus' first album that does not involve the Hannah Montana franchise. Both albums debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200. In 2008, she appeared in the Hannah Montana & Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert film.
Cyrus also starred in Bolt in 2008, and recorded "I Thought I Lost You" for the soundtrack for which she earned a Golden Globe nomination. She starred in the film spin-off of Hannah Montana, titled Hannah Montana: The Movie which was released on April 10, 2009. In 2008, Cyrus was listed in Time magazine's 100 Most Influential People in The World. Forbes magazine ranked her #35 on the "Celebrity 100" list with earnings of $25 million in 2008. Her rank improved to #29 in 2009.
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Mussorgsky
Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky (March 21, 1839 – March 28, 1881), one of the Russian composers known as the Five, was an innovator of Russian music. He strove to achieve a uniquely Russian musical identity, often in deliberate defiance of the established conventions of Western music.
Like his literary contemporary Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Mussorgsky depicts in his music "the insulted and the injured" with all their passion and pain. He raises these characters to tragic heights until the grotesque and majestic coexist. Mussorgsky could accomplish this not simply out of compassion or guilt towards them, but because in his works he almost becomes them. Mussorgsky's music is vivid, confused, feverish and ultimately hypnotizing —again, like Dostoyevsky at his best.
Many of his major works were inspired by Russian history, Russian folklore, and other nationalist themes, including the opera Boris Godunov, the orchestral tone poem Night on Bald Mountain, and the piano suite Pictures at an Exhibition. However, while Mussorgsky's music can be vivid and nationalistic, it does not glorify the powerful and is at times (such as in The Field-Marshal) antimilitaristic. For this reason, it was perceived as being directed against the state and its composer "under suspicion." He, like the others in The Russian Five, were considered dangerous extremists by the emperor and his court. This may have been the reason Tsar Alexander III personally crossed off Boris Godounov from the list of proposed pieces for the imperial opera in 1888.
For many years Mussorgsky's works were mainly known in versions revised or completed by other composers. Many of his most important compositions have recently come into their own in their original forms, and some of the original scores are now also available.
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Vanessa Carlton
Vanessa Lee Carlton (born August 16, 1980) is an American soft rock/Piano pop singer, songwriter, and pianist best known for the Billboard top five, Grammy-nominated single "A Thousand Miles" from her debut album, Be Not Nobody which was released April 30, 2002, and certified platinum in the U.S.
Her music, along with that of her contemporary Michelle Branch to whom she is sometimes compared, has had an influence on female solo pop singer-songwriters in the 21st century, including Kate Voegele, Lights, Sara Bareilles (another piano pop artist), Colbie Caillat and Tristan Prettyman.
Carlton's second album, Harmonium (released November 9, 2004), debuted at number 33 on the U.S. Billboard 200 and had sold 179,000 copies as of February 2006, with the single "White Houses," peaking at 86 in the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. She subsequently parted company from her record label A&M, though she still holds a dedicated fanbase.
Her third album, Heroes and Thieves, was released on October 9, 2007 by the The Inc./Universal Motown record labels.
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| Bon Jovi |
"T.V. Sitcoms - What was the name of ""The Vicar of Dibley"", played by Dawn French ?" | Daily Music Sheets - Free Downloadable Sheet Music
1.13MB - 1983d ago
Alanis Morissette
Alanis Nadine Morissette (born June 1, 1974) is a Canadian-born singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress. She has won 12 Juno Awards and seven Grammy Awards, and has sold over 55 million albums worldwide. Morissette began her career in Canada, and as a teenager recorded two dance-pop albums, Alanis and Now Is the Time, under MCA Records. Her international debut album was the rock-influenced Jagged Little Pill, which remains the best-selling debut album by a female artist in the U.S., and the highest selling debut album worldwide in music history, selling 30 million records worlwide. According to RIAA and United World Charts, Alanis is the biggest selling female rock artist in music. Her following album, Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie, was released in 1998 and was a success as well. Morissette took up producing duties for her subsequent albums, which include Under Rug Swept, So-Called Chaos and latest release Flavors of Entanglement. In February 2005, Morissette became a naturalized citizen of the United States while maintaining her Canadian citizenship.
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Domenico Alberti
Domenico Alberti (c. 1710 – 14 October 1740) was an Italian singer, harpsichordist, and composer whose works bridge the Baroque and Classical periods.
Alberti was born in Venice and studied music with Antonio Lotti. He wrote operas, songs, and sonatas for keyboard instruments, for which he is best known today. These sonatas frequently employ a particular kind of arpeggiated accompaniment in the left hand that is now known as the Alberti bass. It consists of regular broken chords, with the lowest note sounding first, then the highest, then the middle and then the highest again. This pattern is repeated. Today, Alberti is regarded as a minor composer, and his works are played or recorded only irregularly. The Alberti bass was used by many later composers, and it became an important element in much keyboard music of the Classical music era.
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Coldplay
Coldplay are a rock band formed in London, England in 1997. The group comprises vocalist/pianist/guitarist Chris Martin, lead guitarist Jonny Buckland, bassist Guy Berryman, and drummer/multi-instrumentalist Will Champion. Coldplay have sold 34.6 million albums, and are also known for their hit singles, such as "Yellow", "The Scientist", "Speed of Sound", "Fix You", "Viva la Vida" and the Grammy Award-winning "Clocks".
Coldplay achieved worldwide fame with the release of their single "Yellow", followed by their debut album, Parachutes (2000), which was nominated for the Mercury Prize. Its follow-up, A Rush of Blood to the Head (2002) won multiple awards such as NME's Album of the Year and was later included on Rolling Stone magazine's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list, ranking at #473. Their next release, X&Y (2005), received a slightly less enthusiastic yet still generally positive reception. The band's fourth studio album, Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends (2008), was produced by Brian Eno and released again to largely favourable reviews. All of Coldplay's albums have enjoyed great commercial success.
Coldplay's early material was compared to acts such as Jeff Buckley, U2, and Travis. Coldplay have been an active supporter of various social and political causes, such as Oxfam's Make Trade Fair campaign and Amnesty International. The group have also performed at various charity projects such as Band Aid 20, Live 8, and the Teenage Cancer Trust.
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Anatoly Alexandrov
Anatoly Nikolayevich Alexandrov (Russian: Анато́лий Никола́евич Алекса́ндров) (May 25 1888 – April 16, 1982) was a Russian composer of works for piano and for other instruments, and pianist. His initial works had a mystical element, but he downplayed this to better fit Socialist realism. He led a somewhat retiring life, but received several honors.
Alexandrov was the son of a Professor of Tomsk University. He attended the Moscow Conservatory (which he left in 1915), where he was a pupil of Nikolai Zhilyayev, Sergei Taneyev and Sergei Vasilenko (theory), Alexander Ilyinsky (composition) and Konstantin Igumnov (pianoforte). His early music revealed the influence of Nikolai Medtner and Alexander Scriabin. He was appointed Professor at the Moscow Conservatory in 1923. Viktor Belyaev, Alexandrov's first biographer, wrote in 1926: "If Myaskovsky is a thinker, and Feinberg a psychologist, then Alexandrov is, before anything else, a poet." Alexandrov was also a strong proponent of Stanchinsky and edited much of his compositions for publication.
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Rachmaninoff
Sergei Vasilievich Rachmaninoff (1 April 1873 - 28 March 1943) was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor. He was one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, the last great representative of Russian late Romanticism in classical music. Early influences of Tchaikovsky, Rimsky-Korsakov and other Russian composers gave way to a thoroughly personal idiom which included a pronounced lyricism, expressive breadth, structural ingenuity and a tonal palette of rich, distinctive orchestral colors.
Understandably, the piano figures prominently in Rachmaninoff's compositional output, either as a solo instrument or as part of an ensemble. He made it a point, however, to use his own skills as a performer to explore fully the expressive possibilities of the instrument. Even in his earliest works, he revealed a sure grasp of idiomatic piano writing and a striking gift for melody. In some of his early orchestral pieces he showed the first signs of a talent for tone painting, which he would perfect in The Isle of the Dead, and he began to show a similar penchant for vocal writing in two early sets of songs, Opp. 4 and 8. Rachmaninoff's masterpiece, however, is his choral symphony The Bells, in which all of his talents are fused and unified.
Rachmaninoff sometimes felt threatened by the success of modernists such as Scriabin and Prokofiev and wondered whether to cease composing even before he left Russia. His musical philosophy was rooted in the Russian spiritual tradition, where the role of the artist was to create beauty and to speak the truth from the depths of his heart. In his last major interview, in 1941, he admitted his music, like Russian music, was a product of his temperament. He said, on another occasion, "The new kind of music seems to create not from the heart but from the head. Its composers think rather than feel. They have not the capacity to make their works exalt—they meditate, protest, analyze, reason, calculate and brood, but they do not exalt."
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Gloria Estefan
Gloria Estefan (born Gloria María Fajardo on September 1, 1957) is a Cuban American singer and songwriter. she is in the top 100 of best selling music artists with over 90 million albums sold worldwide, with 15.5 million of those alone in the United States. She has won five Grammy Awards becoming among the most successful crossover performers in Latin music to date.
She will be awarded by the Latin Grammy Award Recording Association as the "Person of the Year" in the ceremony to be aired on November 2008, the award will be given to her for her long career of more than 20 years and her worldwide success, she's also the first female singer to receive this prestigious award.
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70.42KB - 2016d ago
Natalie Cole
Natalie Maria Cole (born February 6, 1950), better known as Natalie Cole is an American singer, songwriter and performer. The daughter of jazz legend Nat King Cole, Cole rode to musical success in the mid-1970s as an R&B artist with the hits "This Will Be (An Everlasting Love)", "Inseparable" and "Our Love". After a period of failing sales and performances due to a heavy drug addiction, Cole reemerged as a pop artist with the 1987 album, Everlasting, and her cover of Bruce Springsteen's "Pink Cadillac". In the 1990s, she re-recorded standards by her father, resulting in her biggest success, Unforgettable... with Love, which sold over seven million copies and also won Cole numerous Grammy Awards.
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The Smashing Pumpkins
The Smashing Pumpkins are an American alternative rock band that formed in Chicago, Illinois in 1988. While the group has gone through several lineup changes, The Smashing Pumpkins consisted of Billy Corgan (vocals/guitar), James Iha (guitar/backing vocals), D'arcy Wretzky (bass guitar/backing vocals), and Jimmy Chamberlin (drums/percussion) for most of the band's recording career.
Disavowing the punk rock roots shared by many of their alt-rock contemporaries, the Pumpkins have a diverse, densely layered, and guitar-heavy sound, containing elements of gothic rock, heavy metal, dream pop, psychedelic rock, arena rock, shoegazer-style production and, in later recordings, electronica. Frontman Billy Corgan is the group's primary songwriter—his grand musical ambitions and cathartic lyrics have shaped the band's albums and songs, which have been described as "anguished, bruised reports from Billy Corgan's nightmare-land".
The Smashing Pumpkins broke into the musical mainstream with their second album, Siamese Dream (1993). The group built their audience with extensive touring and their follow-up, the double album Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness (1995), debuted at number one on the Billboard charts. With approximately 18.25 million albums sold in the United States alone, The Smashing Pumpkins were one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed bands of the 1990s. However, internal fighting, drug use, and diminishing sales hampered the band and led to a 2000 break-up. In April 2006, the band officially announced that it was reuniting and recording a new album. Returning members Billy Corgan and Jimmy Chamberlin were joined by musicians Jeff Schroeder (guitar/vocals), Ginger Reyes (bass/vocals), and Lisa Harriton (keyboard/vocals) in 2007 to tour in support of their new release, Zeitgeist.
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625.72KB - 2013d ago
Blackmore's Night
Blackmore's Night is a Renaissance-inspired folk rock band led by Ritchie Blackmore (electric and acoustic guitar) and Candice Night (lyricist and lead vocals).
The origins of the band lie in 1989 when Candice Night was working at a local New York rock music radio station. She first encountered Ritchie Blackmore, then with Deep Purple, at a football game in which he was playing. The two became romantically involved and discovered that they shared a passionate interest in the Renaissance.
After leaving Deep Purple in 1993 and recording the album Stranger in Us All in 1995, on which Night contributed backing vocals and some of the lyrics, Blackmore became interested in the idea of bringing Renaissance music to a contemporary audience. Night's personality and singing ability made her the natural choice as "frontwoman." In 1997 the pair were ready to launch the band, the name being a pun of their own names, and which would consist of themselves plus session musicians.
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Ludovico Einaudi
Ludovico Einaudi (born 23 November 1955) is an Italian contemporary classical music composer and pianist.
Although Einaudi would prefer not to be labeled as any particular type of genre, he is sometimes referred to as Minimalist. This is despite his music not sharing the key musical properties associated with minimalism. This may be due to his music possessing sparse orchestration and simplistic melodies that some may wish to refer to as 'minimalist' despite not belonging to the musical movement of Minimalism.
Einaudi's own words on the matter reflect this viewpoint, with Einaudi referring to Minimalism as "elegance and openness", despite its more formal definition as a musical movement to which he arguably does not belong.
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Jim Brickman
Jim Brickman (born November 20, 1961) is an American composer and pianist. Brickman is known for his solo piano compositions, which are classified as new age music. However, he is as well known for his original love songs and performing them with vocalists such as Martina McBride, Michael W. Smith, Michelle Wright and others.
His music career started when he was nineteen, when Jim Henson hired him to write tunes for Sesame Street. He was also hired to write commercial jingles while in college.
Brickman signed with Windham Hill Records to release his first album, No Words, in 1994. The song "Rocket To The Moon" from that album was the first solo instrumental song ever to be ranked on Billboard's charts. Four of his albums (By Heart, Picture This, The Gift, and Destiny) have all sold over 500,000 copies, qualifying them as gold records in the United States.
Brickman writes a wide variety of music. Besides his piano compositions and love songs, he has also created arrangements of other songs. Several of his albums feature arrangements of children's music; he has produced two Christmas-themed albums The Gift (1997) and Peace (2003); and his 2005 album Grace concentrates on arrangements of well-known Christian music.
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The Smiths
The Smiths were an English alternative rock band, formed in Manchester in 1982. Based on the song writing partnership of Morrissey (vocals) and Johnny Marr (guitar), the band also included Andy Rourke (bass) and Mike Joyce (drums). Critics have called them the most important alternative rock band to emerge from the British independent music scene of the 1980s. The group were signed to the independent record label Rough Trade Records, for whom they released four studio albums and several compilations, as well as numerous non-LP singles. Although they had limited commercial success outside the UK while they were still together, and never released a single that charted higher than number 10 in their home country, The Smiths won a growing following, and remain cult and commercial favourites. The band broke up in 1987 and have turned down several offers to reunite since then.
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148.23KB - 2015d ago
David Lanz
David Lanz (born June 28, 1950 in Seattle, Washington) is a Grammy-nominated New Age pianist. He has released 13 albums, each having some chart success. His most famous album, Cristofori's Dream, topped the New Age charts in 1988, which was Number One on Billboard's first adult alternative/New Age chart for 27 weeks and eventually sold platinum. Natural States peaked at place 125 on the Billboard 200.
Lanz's goal is to have his music create an atmosphere of enlightenment. In an interview with Barnes & Noble, Lanz stated that he wanted to create an atmosphere similar to that of Steven Halpern's music, but with a "more popular hook in it".
Lanz has said himself, " is the most divinely inspired instrument on the planet. It presents a great attraction to our left-right brain relationship. My goal is to create entertainment that also provides enlightenment."
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Tom Waits
Thomas Alan Waits (born 7 December 1949) is an American singer-songwriter, composer, and actor. Waits has a distinctive voice, described by critic Daniel Durchholz as sounding "like it was soaked in a vat of bourbon, left hanging in the smokehouse for a few months, and then taken outside and run over with a car." With this trademark growl, his incorporation of pre-rock styles such as blues, jazz, and vaudeville, and experimental tendencies verging on industrial music, Waits has built up a distinctive musical persona. He has worked as a composer for movies and musical plays and as a supporting actor in films, including The Fisher King, Coffee & Cigarettes, Bram Stoker's Dracula, and Short Cuts. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his soundtrack work on One from the Heart.
Lyrically, Waits' songs contain atmospheric portrayals of bizarre, seedy characters and places, although he has also shown a penchant for more conventional ballads. He has a cult following and has influenced subsequent songwriters despite having little radio or music video support. His songs are best-known to the general public in the form of cover versions by more visible artistsâfor example, "Jersey Girl," performed by Bruce Springsteen; "Downtown Train" and "Tom Traubert's Blues" performed by Rod Stewart; and "Ol' '55," performed by the Eagles. Although Waits' albums have met with mixed commercial success in his native United States, they have occasionally achieved gold album sales status in other countries. He has been nominated for a number of major music awards and has won Grammy Awards for two albums, Bone Machine and Mule Variations.
Waits currently lives in Sonoma County, California with his wife and their three children.
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79.94KB - 2016d ago
Matchbox 20
Matchbox Twenty (or MB20, MBT, M20, originally spelled Matchbox 20) is a rock band formed in Orlando, Florida.
Matchbox Twenty has sold over 44 million albums worldwide from the releases of Yourself or Someone Like You, Mad Season, and More Than You Think You Are. They released their latest album, Exile on Mainstream, on October 2, 2007. The current members of the band are Rob Thomas, Paul Doucette, Brian Yale, and Kyle Cook. Rhythm guitarist Adam Gaynor left the band in 2005, after performing on their first three studio albums. Rob Thomas is the principal songwriter and lead singer. Rob Thomas has created a well-established solo career for himself after releasing the album, …Something to Be.
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222.51KB - 2025d ago
Oscar Peterson
Oscar Emmanuel Peterson, CC, CQ, O.Ont. (August 15, 1925 – December 23, 2007) was a Canadian jazz pianist and composer. He was called the "Maharaja of the keyboard" by Duke Ellington, "O.P." by his friends, and was a member of jazz royalty. He released over 200 recordings, won seven Grammy Awards, and received other numerous awards and honours over the course of his career. He is considered to have been one of the greatest jazz pianists of all time, who played thousands of live concerts to audiences worldwide in a career lasting more than 65 years.
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Switchfoot
Switchfoot is an American alternative rock band from San Diego, California. The band's members are Jon Foreman (vocals, guitar), Tim Foreman (bass guitar, backing vocals), Chad Butler (drums, percussion), Jerome Fontamillas (guitar, keyboards, backing vocals), and Drew Shirley (guitar). Known for their energetic live shows, the three guitarists in the line-up often operate simultaneously, building on the pop sensibilities of Jon's songwriting, and, rounded out by Jerome's work on the synthesizer, bringing his industrial roots to the sound, the band works up "the Switchfoot sound"– a melodic crunch of densely layered sound featuring some electronic experimentation, and often driven by hard-charging guitar riffs, while throwing in a few softer, spacey ballads as well.
Switchfoot first gained mainstream recognition after the inclusion of four of their songs in the 2002 movie A Walk to Remember. This recognition led to their major label debut, The Beautiful Letdown, which was released in 2003. It went on to sell over 2.6 million copies and produced the band's best-known singles, "Meant to Live" and "Dare You to Move".
According to Jon Foreman, the name "Switchfoot" is a surfing term. "We all love to surf and have been surfing all our lives so to us, the name made sense. To switch your feet means to take a new stance facing the opposite direction. It's about change and movement, a different way of approaching life and music".
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Regina Spektor
Regina Spektor (born February 18, 1980) is a Soviet-born Jewish-American singer-songwriter and pianist. Her music is associated with the anti-folk scene centered on New York City's East Village.
Spektor has said that she has created 700 songs, but that she rarely writes any of them down. She has also stated that she never aspired to write songs herself, but songs seem to just flow to her. Spektor possesses a broad vocal range and uses the full extent of it. She also explores a variety of different and somewhat unorthodox vocal techniques, such as verses composed entirely of buzzing noises made with the lips and beatbox-style flourishes in the middle of ballads, and also makes use of such unusual musical techniques as using a drum stick to tap rhythms on the body of the piano or chair.
Her lyrics are equally eclectic, often taking the form of abstract narratives or first-person character studies, similar to short stories or vignettes put to song. Spektor usually sings in English, though she sometimes includes a few words or verses of Latin, Russian, French, and other languages in her songs.
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G. F. Handel
George Frideric Handel (German: Georg Friedrich Händel; pronounced ) (23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-English Baroque composer who is famous for his operas, oratorios, and concerti grossi. Handel was born in Germany in the same year as JS Bach and Domenico Scarlatti. He received critical musical training in Italy before settling in London and becoming a naturalised British subject. His works include Messiah, Water Music, and Music for the Royal Fireworks. He was strongly influenced by the techniques of the great composers of the Italian Baroque and the English composer Henry Purcell. Handel's music was well-known to many composers, including Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven.
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Jekyll & Hyde
Jekyll & Hyde is a Broadway musical based on the novel, The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson. The original stage conception was by Steve Cuden and Frank Wildhorn. The music was composed by Wildhorn and the lyrics were written by Leslie Bricusse.
The show opened on Broadway on April 28, 1997. There were 44 preview performances starting on March 21. The show ran for 1,543 regular performances, closing on January 7, 2001 and is the longest-running show in the history of the Plymouth Theatre.
Despite the long run, the musical lost money in the end: more than $1.5 million.
The show has also been adapted into a film starring David Hasselhoff and Coleen Sexton. The film was directed by Don Roy King.
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Hairspray
Hairspray is a 2007 musical film produced by Zadan/Meron Productions and distributed by New Line Cinema. It was released in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom on July 20, 2007. The film is an adaptation of the Tony Award-winning 2002 Broadway musical of the same name, and a remake of John Waters' 1988 comedy film of the same name. Set in 1962 Baltimore, Maryland, the film follows a "pleasantly plump" teenager named Tracy Turnblad as she simultaneously pursues stardom as a dancer on a local TV show and rallies against racial segregation.
Adapted from both Waters's 1988 script and Thomas Meehan and Mark O'Donnell's book for the stage musical by screenwriter Leslie Dixon, the 2007 film version of Hairspray is directed and choreographed by Adam Shankman. Hairspray stars John Travolta, Michelle Pfeiffer, Christopher Walken, Amanda Bynes, James Marsden, Queen Latifah, Brittany Snow, Zac Efron, Elijah Kelley, Allison Janney, and introduces newcomer Nikki Blonsky as Tracy Turnblad. Hairspray features songs from the Broadway musical written by Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, as well as four new Shaiman/Wittman compositions not present in the original Broadway version.
Opening to mostly positive reviews, Hairspray met with financial success, breaking the record for biggest sales at opening weekend for a movie musical, which the film held until July 2008 when it was surpassed by Mamma Mia!. Hairspray went on to become the fourth highest grossing musical film in U.S. cinema history, behind the film adaptations of Grease, Chicago, and Mamma Mia!. Available in a variety of formats, Hairspray's Region 1 home video release took place on November 20, 2007. The USA Network has purchased the broadcast rights to Hairspray and is scheduled to debut the film on cable television in February 2010.
Adam Shankman and John Waters are currently working on a sequel to the film.
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Linkin Park
Linkin Park is an American rock band from Agoura Hills, California. Since their formation in 1996, the band has sold more than 50 million albums and won two Grammy Awards. They achieved mainstream success with their debut album, Hybrid Theory, which was certified Diamond by the RIAA in 2005. Their following studio album, Meteora, continued the band's success, topping the Billboard 200’s album charts in 2003, and was followed by extensive touring and charity work around the world.
Recognized for their adaptation of the nu metal and rap rock genre into a radio-friendly yet densely-layered style in Hybrid Theory and Meteora, the band moved away from this and explored a variety of other genres in their latest studio album, Minutes to Midnight. The album topped the Billboard charts and had the third best debut week of any album that year. They are also known for their several collaborations, most notably with rapper Jay-Z in their mash-up album Collision Course, and many other artists on Reanimation.
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Depeche Mode
Depeche Mode (IPA: , də-PESH) are an English electronic band who formed in 1980, in Basildon, Essex. The group's original line-up consisted of Dave Gahan (lead vocals), Martin Gore (keyboards, guitar, vocals, chief songwriter after 1981), Andrew Fletcher (keyboards) and Vince Clarke (keyboards, chief songwriter 1980–81). Vince Clarke left the band after the release of their 1981 debut album, and was replaced by Alan Wilder (keyboards, drums, production) with Gore taking over songwriting. Wilder left the band in 1995 and since then Gahan, Gore, and Fletcher have continued as a trio.
Depeche Mode are one of the most successful, longest-lived bands from the early 1980s. They have had forty-five songs in the UK Singles Chart and #1 albums in UK, US and throughout Europe. According to EMI, Depeche Mode have sold over 75 million albums worldwide, as part of total worldwide record sales (including singles) in excess of 100 million.
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Felix Mendelssohn
Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy, born, and generally known in English-speaking countries, as Felix Mendelssohn (February 3, 1809 – November 4, 1847) was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period.
The grandson of the philosopher Moses Mendelssohn, he was born into a notable Jewish family, although he himself was brought up initially without religion, and later as a Lutheran. He was recognized early as a musical prodigy, but his parents were cautious and did not seek to capitalise on his abilities. Indeed his father was disinclined to allow Felix to follow a musical career until it became clear that he intended to seriously dedicate himself to it.
Early success in Germany was followed by travel throughout Europe; Mendelssohn was particularly well received in England as a composer, conductor and soloist, and his ten visits there, during which many of his major works were premiered, form an important part of his adult career. His essentially conservative musical tastes however set him apart from many of his more adventurous musical contemporaries such as Liszt, Wagner and Berlioz. The Conservatory he founded at Leipzig became a bastion of this anti-radical outlook.
Mendelssohn's work includes symphonies, concerti, oratorios, piano and chamber music. He also had an important role in the revival of interest in the music of Johann Sebastian Bach. After a long period of relative denigration due to changing musical tastes and antisemitism in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, his creative originality is now being recognized and re-evaluated. He is now among the most popular composers of the Romantic era.
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Green Day
Green Day is an American rock trio formed in 1987. The band has consisted of Billie Joe Armstrong (vocals, guitar), Mike Dirnt (bass guitar, vocals), and Tré Cool (drums, percussion) for the majority of its existence.
Green Day was originally part of the punk rock scene at 924 Gilman Street in Berkeley, California. Its early releases for independent record label Lookout! Records earned them a grassroots fanbase, some of whom felt alienated when the band signed to a major label.
The band has sold over 65 million records worldwide, They also have three Grammy Awards, Best Alternative Album for Dookie, Best Rock Album for American Idiot, and Record of the Year for "Boulevard of Broken Dreams".
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The Fugees
The Fugees were an American hip hop group that rose to fame in the mid-1990s, whose repertoire included elements of Hip hop, soul and Caribbean music, particularly reggae. The members of the group are rapper/singer/producer Wyclef Jean, rapper/singer/producer Lauryn Hill, and rapper Pras Michel. Deriving their name from the term refugee, Jean and Michel are Haitian Americans, while Hill is American. The group recorded two albums—one of which, The Score (1996), was a multi-platinum and Grammy-winning success—before disbanding in 1997. Hill and Jean each went on to successful solo recording careers; Michel focused on soundtrack recordings and acting, though he found commercial success with his song "Ghetto Supastar." In 2007, MTV ranked them the 9th greatest Hip-hop group of all time.
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Debussy
Achille-Claude Debussy (August 22, 1862 – March 25, 1918) was a French composer. Along with Maurice Ravel, he is considered one of the most prominent figures working within the field of Impressionist music, though he himself intensely disliked the term when applied to his compositions. Debussy was not only among the most important of all French composers but also was a central figure in all European music at the turn of the twentieth century.
Debussy's music virtually defines the transition from late-Romantic music to twentieth century modernist music. In French literary circles, the style of this period was known as Symbolism, a movement that directly inspired Debussy both as a composer and as an active cultural participant.
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Tori Amos
Tori Amos (born Myra Ellen Amos on August 22, 1963) is a pianist and singer-songwriter of dual British and American citizenship. She is married to English sound engineer Mark Hawley, with whom she has one child, Natashya "Tash" Lórien Hawley, born on September 5, 2000.
Amos was at the forefront of a number of female singer-songwriters in the early 1990s and was noteworthy early in her career as one of the few alternative rock performers to use a piano as her primary instrument. She is known for emotionally intense songs that cover a wide range of subjects including sexuality, religion and personal tragedy. Some of her charting singles include "Crucify", "Silent All These Years", "Cornflake Girl", "Caught a Lite Sneeze", "Professional Widow", "Spark", and "A Sorta Fairytale".
Amos had sold 12 million records worldwide as of 2005 and has also enjoyed a large cult following. Having a history of making eccentric and at times ribald comments during concerts and interviews, she has earned a reputation for being highly idiosyncratic. As a social commentator and sometimes activist, some of the topics she has been most vocal about include feminism, religion, and sexuality.
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Jon Bon Jovi
Jon Bon Jovi (born John Francis Bongiovi, Jr. on March 2, 1962) is an American musician, songwriter and actor. As lead singer and founder of the rock band Bon Jovi, he has sold just under 156 million albums worldwide (August 2008). He is also the owner of an Arena Football League team, the Philadelphia Soul.
In June 2007, Bon Jovi released their new tenth studio album, Lost Highway. The album debuted at number #1 on the Billboard charts, the first time that Bon Jovi have had a number one album on the US charts since the release of New Jersey in 1988. Thanks to the band's new country music fanbase, the album sold 292,000 copies in its first week on sale in the U.S., and became Bon Jovi's third US number one album. The first single from the new album was "(You Want to) Make a Memory", which debuted (and peaked) at #27 in the Billboard Hot 100, Bon Jovi's highest ever debut in the U.S. charts. The album reached Number #1 in Japan, Canada, Australia and Europe, and reached number #2 in the UK.
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Death Cab for Cutie
Death Cab for Cutie is an American indie rock band formed in Bellingham, Washington in 1997. It began as a solo project of Ben Gibbard, now the band's vocalist and guitarist. Gibbard took the band name from the title of the song written by Neil Innes and Vivian Stanshall and performed by their group the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band in The Beatles' 1967 film Magical Mystery Tour.
Gibbard's first album, You Can Play These Songs with Chords, was released as a demo, leading to a record deal with Barsuk Records. It was at this time that Gibbard decided to expand the project into a complete band, and recruited band members to join. The band has released six studio albums, four EPs, and one demo to date. Their most recent album, Narrow Stairs, was released on May 12, 2008 in the United Kingdom and was released on May 13, 2008 in the United States.
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Mariah Carey
Mariah Carey (born March 27, 1970) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. She made her recording debut in 1990 under the guidance of Columbia Records executive Tommy Mottola, and became the first recording artist to have her first five singles top the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart. Following her marriage to Mottola in 1993, a series of hit records established her position as Columbia's highest-selling act. According to Billboard magazine, she was the most successful artist of the 1990s in the United States.
Following her separation from Mottola in 1997, Carey introduced elements of hip hop into her album work, to much initial success, but her popularity was in decline when she left Columbia in 2001, and she was dropped by Virgin Records the following year after a highly publicized physical and emotional breakdown, as well as the poor reception given to Glitter, her film and soundtrack project. In 2002, Carey signed with Island Records, and after a relatively unsuccessful period, she returned to pop music in 2005.
Carey was named the best-selling female pop artist of the millennium at the 2000 World Music Awards. She has had the most number-one singles for a solo artist in the United States (eighteen; second artist overall behind The Beatles), where, according to the Recording Industry Association of America, she is the third best-selling female and sixteenth overall recording artist. In addition to her commercial accomplishments, Carey has earned five Grammy Awards, and is well-known for her vocal range, power, melismatic style, and use of the whistle register.
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Miley Cyrus
Miley Ray Cyrus (born Destiny Hope Cyrus; November 23, 1992) is an American pop singer and television and film actress. Cyrus is best known for starring as the title character in the Disney Channel series Hannah Montana. Following the success of Hannah Montana, in October 2006, a soundtrack CD was released in which she sang eight songs from the show. Cyrus' solo music career began with the release of her debut album, Meet Miley Cyrus on June 23, 2007, which included her first top ten single "See You Again". Her second album, Breakout, was released on July 22, 2008. Breakout is Cyrus' first album that does not involve the Hannah Montana franchise. Both albums debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200. In 2008, she appeared in the Hannah Montana & Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert film.
Cyrus also starred in Bolt in 2008, and recorded "I Thought I Lost You" for the soundtrack for which she earned a Golden Globe nomination. She starred in the film spin-off of Hannah Montana, titled Hannah Montana: The Movie which was released on April 10, 2009. In 2008, Cyrus was listed in Time magazine's 100 Most Influential People in The World. Forbes magazine ranked her #35 on the "Celebrity 100" list with earnings of $25 million in 2008. Her rank improved to #29 in 2009.
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Mussorgsky
Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky (March 21, 1839 – March 28, 1881), one of the Russian composers known as the Five, was an innovator of Russian music. He strove to achieve a uniquely Russian musical identity, often in deliberate defiance of the established conventions of Western music.
Like his literary contemporary Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Mussorgsky depicts in his music "the insulted and the injured" with all their passion and pain. He raises these characters to tragic heights until the grotesque and majestic coexist. Mussorgsky could accomplish this not simply out of compassion or guilt towards them, but because in his works he almost becomes them. Mussorgsky's music is vivid, confused, feverish and ultimately hypnotizing —again, like Dostoyevsky at his best.
Many of his major works were inspired by Russian history, Russian folklore, and other nationalist themes, including the opera Boris Godunov, the orchestral tone poem Night on Bald Mountain, and the piano suite Pictures at an Exhibition. However, while Mussorgsky's music can be vivid and nationalistic, it does not glorify the powerful and is at times (such as in The Field-Marshal) antimilitaristic. For this reason, it was perceived as being directed against the state and its composer "under suspicion." He, like the others in The Russian Five, were considered dangerous extremists by the emperor and his court. This may have been the reason Tsar Alexander III personally crossed off Boris Godounov from the list of proposed pieces for the imperial opera in 1888.
For many years Mussorgsky's works were mainly known in versions revised or completed by other composers. Many of his most important compositions have recently come into their own in their original forms, and some of the original scores are now also available.
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Vanessa Carlton
Vanessa Lee Carlton (born August 16, 1980) is an American soft rock/Piano pop singer, songwriter, and pianist best known for the Billboard top five, Grammy-nominated single "A Thousand Miles" from her debut album, Be Not Nobody which was released April 30, 2002, and certified platinum in the U.S.
Her music, along with that of her contemporary Michelle Branch to whom she is sometimes compared, has had an influence on female solo pop singer-songwriters in the 21st century, including Kate Voegele, Lights, Sara Bareilles (another piano pop artist), Colbie Caillat and Tristan Prettyman.
Carlton's second album, Harmonium (released November 9, 2004), debuted at number 33 on the U.S. Billboard 200 and had sold 179,000 copies as of February 2006, with the single "White Houses," peaking at 86 in the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. She subsequently parted company from her record label A&M, though she still holds a dedicated fanbase.
Her third album, Heroes and Thieves, was released on October 9, 2007 by the The Inc./Universal Motown record labels.
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Who was Margaret Thatcher's most famous press secretary ? | Margaret Thatcher's former press secretary Sir Bernard Ingham refuses to apologise for telling Liverpool to "shut up about Hillsborough" - Mirror Online
Unrepentant: Sir Bernard Ingham (Photo: Getty)
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Sir Bernard Ingham, formerly the chief press officer to Margaret Thatcher, has reportedly refused to apologise for having blamed innocent Liverpool FC fans for the 1989 Hillsborough disaster.
According to a report in the Liverpool Echo, Ingham responded to questions regarding his previously stated views on the disaster by saying: “What have I to apologise for?”
The Echo reports that Ingham, now 80, had written a letter to Liverpool fan Graham Skinner (whose friend Eric Hughes died in the disaster) in 1996, which was this week passed to the Hillsborough Family Support Group.
In it Ingham reportedly wrote: “I have, however, one suggestion to make: for its own good, Liverpool – with the Heysel disaster in the background – should shut up about Hillsborough.
“Nothing can now bring back those who died – innocent people who, by virtue of being in the ground early, had their lives crushed out of them by a mob surging in late.”
The Echo reports that it had contacted Ingham at his home in Surrey with regard to the views expressed in the letter, in the light of the findings of the Hillsborough Inquiry which completely rejected the lie that Liverpool fans were in any way responsible for the disaster.
Ingham, who admitted he had not read the Hillsborough Report , reportedly refused to apologise for the discredited opinion about "a mob surging in late".
Referring to the content of the 1996 letter, he said: “That seems reasonable to me, I most certainly do [think that] if there is any respect for the 96 who died. I think people should be concerned about those who died.”
In 2012, before the Hillsborough Report was published, Ingham had reportedly claimed that the day after the disaster Thatcher was briefed by senior police officers that "a tanked-up mob" were responsible for the deaths of the 96.
In black and white: The Hillsborough Report exposed the lie that Liverpool fans were responsible - but Sir Bernard Ingham (centre, head bowed, with then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher at the ground) hasn't read it (Photo: Getty)
This police version of the cause of the disaster has since proved to be utterly false and the police found to have engaged in a concerted effort to peddle a 'tanked-up mob' fiction to shift responsibility on to Liverpool fans.
The Echo reports that the Hillsborough Family Support Group chair Margaret Aspinall responded to Ingham's refusal to apologise by saying: “Just like the woman, he is not for turning. We know the truth and deep down he knows the truth, he just can’t face it. We have proved that he’s wrong.”
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"In a John Betjeman poem, what lady was... ""burnished by the Aldershot sun"" ?" | Margaret Thatcher funeral guest list: Who is going to St Paul's service? - Mirror Online
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Margaret Thatcher funeral guest list: Who is going to St Paul's service?
Marco Pierre White, Hugh Scully and Sir Frank Williams are among the latest names to confirm they will attend the ceremony
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The funeral of former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher is to be held at St Paul's Cathedral next Wednesday .
The Queen and Prince Philip will be at the service. Downing Street has sent 2,000 invitations out to foreign dignitaries, UK politicians and family friends of Baroness Thatcher.
The guestlist was drawn up after discussions between Lady Thatcher's family , her representatives the government and the Conservative Party.
Those who will receive invitations to the 11am ceremonial service include ex-US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson.
Confirmed guests so far include her successor Sir John Major, Tony Blair and wife Cherie, Gordon and Sarah Brown and current Prime Minister David Cameron.
Labour leader Ed Miliband, Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond, Welsh First Minister Carwyn Jones, Northern Ireland First Minister Peter Robinson and London mayor Boris Johnson will also attend.
Former South Africa leader FW de Klerk, singers Dame Shirley Bassey and Katherine Jenkins, composer Lord Lloyd Webber and wife Madeleine and Lord Jeffrey Archer with wife Mary will also be in the congregation.
Former Republican congressman Newt Gingrich, actor Michael Crawford - most famous for his roles in Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em and Phantom of the Opera, and Sir Tim Berners-Lee, inventor of the world wide web have accepted their invitations.
Singers Dame Vera Lynn and Elaine Paige, actors Sir Michael Caine and Robert Hardy and veteran wildlife broadcaster Sir David Attenborough will all be at St Paul's.
Others on the guestlist are Olympics supremo and Joan Collins, broadcasters Sir Terry Wogan, Sir Trevor McDonald and Sir David Frost, fashion designer Anya Hindmarch, sitcom queen June Whitfield and lyricist Tim Rice.
Celebrity chef Marco Pierre White, artist Michael Noakes, who painted her portrait, writer William Shawcross, veteran newsreader Martyn Lewis, motor racing's Sir Frank Williams, Antiques Roadshow presenter Hugh Scully and Daily Mail editor Paul Dacre have all confirmed they will attend.
All surviving former US Presidents - Jimmy Carter, George Bush, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush - a Reagan family representative, and former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton were invited to the event. But President Barack Obama announced a Presidential delegation would be sent led by George Shultz and James Baker III, Secretaries of State from the Thatcher era. Also part of the delegation are Barbara Stephenson, Charge d'Affaires at the US Embassy in London, and Louis Susman, former American Ambassador to the UK and Northern Ireland. Former US vice-president Dick Cheney and ex-secretary of state Henry Kissinger will also be there but not as part of the delegation.
Germany leader Angela Merkel was invited but is instead sending Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle. Spanish PM Mariano Rajoy is also staying away. Argentina's ambassador has turned down his invitation.
Ten members of staff from the Ritz hotel, where Lady Thatcher died on Monday , have also been invited to her funeral as thanks for the care she received. The 87-year-old had been staying at the five-star hotel since Christmas.
Family, friends and colleagues will also be at the ceremonial service, which will take place with full military honours.
Other confirmed attendees include:
Michael Portillo and his wife Carolyn
Lord Charles Powell, Lady Thatcher's former private secretary
Lord Carrington, Margaret Thatcher's first Foreign Secretary and later head of NATO
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper
Former Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulrooney, who was in office from 1984 to 1993
Former Australian Prime Minister John Howard, and wife Janette, representing Australia
Lord and Lady Harris of Peckham. Lord Harris is a Tory donor and chairman of Carpetright.
Lord Maurice Saatchi. Saatchi & Saatchi was the advertising firm behind the famous 'Labour isn't working' poster used in the 1979 election campaign which saw Margaret Thatcher become Prime Minister
Journalist Andrew Neil, who presents the BBC's This Week, Daily Politics and Sunday Politics
Metropolitan Police commissioner Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe
Businessman Gerald Ronson, who was jailed for his part in the Guinness shares scandal
Sir Bernard Ingham, chief press secretary to Margaret Thatcher during her years as Prime Minister, and his wife
Director of The British Forces Foundation Mark Cann
Archbishop of York Most Rev John Sentamu
Two-time US presidential candidate Ross Perot
Military guests including: General Sir David Richards, Field Marshal Lord Bramall, Marshal of the Royal Air Force Lord Craig of Radley, General Sir Peter Wall, Field Marshal Sir John Chapple, Air Chief Marshal Sir Stephen Dalton, Air Chief Marshal Sir Stuart Peach, Major General Ed Davis and General Sir Michael Jackson
International dignitaries include: Italy Prime Minister Mario Monti; His Highness Sheikh Jaber Mubark Al-Sabah, Prime Minister of Kuwait; Sheikh Nasser Sabah Al-Ahmed Al Sabah, son of the Ruler of Kuwait and Minister of the Amiri Diwan (Kuwait),; Valdis Dombrovskis, Latvia's Prime Minister; Ruud Lubbers former Dutch Prime Minister; Donald Tusk, Poland's Prime Minister; Crown Prince Pavlos and Princess Marie-Chantal of Greece
Other guests include: Lady Solti, Lord Sterling of Plaistow, Stuart Wheeler, Sir Robert Worcester, Philip Woodhouse, of Grocers Hall, Michael Cox, of The Worshipful Company of Vintners, The Lord Grabiner QC, The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn, Mark Wood, of the NSPCC, Sir Roy Newman, Stephen Boateng, of International Democrat Union, Farhad Moshim, Frank Field MP, Keith Vaz MP, Sir Leonard Appleyard, Sir Anthony Bamford, the Chairman of JCB, Sir George Christie, Lady Annabel Goldsmith and George Goring, of Goring Hotels.
Those who can expect to receive invitations to attend or send a representative include:
All surviving members of Lady Thatcher’s Cabinets, from close allies like Norman Tebbit to old enemy Michael Heseltine and Geoffrey Howe who played a key role in bringing her down
The current Cabinet
President of the European Commission Manuel Barroso
Malaysia's former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, who was in power from 1981 to 2003
A representative of Nelson Mandela
all surviving members of her Cabinets
former Chiefs of Staff
Members of the Order of Merit
St Paul's can hold 2,300 people and is expected to be full.
Invitations will be sent out on Friday 12 April. The white VIP invitations will see guests seated under the Cathedral's famous dome. A red or green stripe will show whether they are to sit on the port or starboard side. Other invitations are colour-coded relating to where guests are to be seated in the cathedral.
Guests at the funeral will be asked to wear full day ceremonial dress without swords, morning dress with a black waistcoat and black tie or dark suit, day dress with hat. Medals and decorations may be worn.
A spokeswoman said: "Those invited include family and friends of Lady Thatcher, those who worked with her over the years, including all surviving members of her Cabinets, former Chiefs of Staff, Conservative associates, peers and MPs, members of the Cabinet, peers and MPs, members of the Order of the Garter, members of the Order of Merit, foreign associates and dignitaries and representatives from the wide range of groups she was associated with.
"In agreement with Lady Thatcher's representatives, around 200 states, territories and international organisations are being invited to send an official representative to the funeral service.
"We have invited those countries and institutions with whom we have normal diplomatic relations. In addition, there are invitations being made in a personal capacity to some current and former world leaders as well as others from overseas who had a close connection to Baroness Thatcher."
Mikhail Gorbachev will not be attending due to ill health, and Nancy Reagan whose husband Ronald worked closely with Thatcher as the Cold War drew to an end , has said she cannot attend due to her age.
Lord Kinnock, Labour leader during most of the Thatcher years , will not be there as he had already promised to go to the funeral of a councillor in his old constituency.
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"Geography - which ""Strait"" in the North Atlantic lies between Greenland and Iceland ?" | Map of Denmark Strait - World Straits, Denmark Strait Map Location - World Atlas
Map of Denmark Strait - World Straits, Denmark Strait Map Location
Denmark Strait
The Denmark Strait, between Greenland and Iceland, is a navigational passage, 300 miles (480 km) long, and 180 miles (290 km) wide at its narrowest point.
The very cold East Greenland current passes through the strait and carries icebergs south into the Atlantic Ocean.
Greenland, the world's largest island, (after the continent of Australia) is about 81% ice-capped. Danish colonization began in the 18th century, and Greenland was made an integral part of Denmark in 1953. In 1979 it was granted self-government by the Danish parliament. Denmark still exercises control over Greenland's foreign affairs.
Iceland was first settled by Norwegian and Celtic (Scottish and Irish) immigrants during the late 9th and 10th centuries A.D., and boasts the world's oldest functioning legislative assembly, the Althing, established in 930. Independent for over 300 years, Iceland was subsequently ruled by Norway and Denmark. It gained independence in 1944 from Denmark.
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"Which American pop group, who did not reach the number 1 spot in the U.K., had a number 1 hit in America with ""Sweet Child O' Mine"" in 1988 ?" | Greenland Sea
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Greenland Sea
The Greenland Sea is the northernmost part of the North Atlantic Ocean immediately south of the Arctic Ocean . It encompasses some 1,205,000 square km (465,000 square miles). The average depth of the Greenland Sea is close to 1,450 m (4,750 ft). The deepest recorded point of 5600m has been found at Molloy Deep, in the Fram Strait between northeastern Greenland and Svalbard.
Geography
Greenland Sea is bounded to the west by the island of Greenland , and to the south by the Denmark Strait and Iceland . To the southeast, behind the Jan Mayen island lies the vast expanse of the Norwegian Sea , of which Greenland Sea may be considered an extension. Across Fram Strait to the northeast the sea is delimited by the Svalbard archipelago .
Ocean currents
This arm of the Arctic Ocean is the ocean's main outlet to the Atlantic. The progressively colder waters of North Atlantic Current sink in the Arctic Ocean, returning south in the form of cold East Greenland Current, an important part of the Atlantic conveyor belt. Due to drifting Arctic ice, the northern part is rarely open to navigation.
Fauna
The Greenland Sea is densely inhabited by the organisms that form the base of the oceanic food chain . Large invertebrates , fish (such as cod, herring , redfish , halibut , and plaice), birds and mammals (including seals , whales , and dolphins ) all feed on the smaller invertebrates and small organisms . (Wikipedia)
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"T.V. Sitcoms - What was the name of the lead character, the time traveller, played by Nicholas Lyndhurst in ""Goodnight Sweetheart"" ?" | Nicholas Lyndhurst returns to Goodnight Sweetheart | ATV Today
Nicholas Lyndhurst returns to Goodnight Sweetheart
July 05, 2016 Broadcasting Doug Lambert
Nicholas Lyndhurst is to reprise his lead role of time traveller Gary Sparrow in a one-off special of sitcom Goodnight Sweetheart.
“The whole sitcom season is geared towards giving comedy royalty their due recognition, and in Goodnight Sweetheart we have heavy-weight writing and performing talents reunited in this hugely popular and fondly-remembered show. The conceptual update is sublime and it was heart-skipping stuff to read – it’s an absolute belter.” – Shane Allen, Controller of BBC Comedy Commissioning
Original creators Laurence Marks and Maurice Gran have written a brand new episode as part of the beeb’s landmark sitcom season. Goodnight Sweetheart a hit for BBC One in the 1990s, and still drawing the viewers to UKTV’s Gold with regular re-reuns, ran for six series set in London between the then present time and the 1940s war years of the capital.
The new episode sees us rejoin Nicholas Lyndhurst seventeen years since he last played the character of Gary Sparrow, a former TV repairman and accidental time traveller who leads an extraordinary double life. Now the original creators Laurence Marks and Maurice Gran have written a brand new script which sees Gary Sparrow face the consequences of his time travel and go somewhere he’s never been before, as Goodnight Sweetheart is about to be catapulted into the 21st century.
Goodnight Sweetheart will be part of the BBC’s landmark sitcom season celebrating the heritage and legacy of BBC comedy over the past 60 years. The season which airs in the autumn will be revisiting some of Britain’s iconic sitcoms including Are You Being Served?, Porridge and Young Hyacinth – a prequel to Keeping Up Appearances; alongside launching brand new comedy shows including Motherland and Home From Home.
“I’ve long been keen to catch up with the life and various times of Gary Sparrow, so it’s an absolute delight to see Goodnight Sweetheart take its place in the landmark sitcom season.” – Jon Rolph, Executive Producer of Goodnight Sweetheart
Goodnight Sweetheart was commissioned by Charlotte Moore, Controller of BBC Channels and iPlayer, and Shane Allen, Controller of BBC Comedy Commissioning.
Further casting for Goodnight Sweetheart will be announced in due course.
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| List of Goodnight Sweetheart characters |
In baseball, how many players are in a team ? | Saz G Sitcom Blog
Saz G Sitcom Blog
Nicholas Lyndhurst
Nicholas Lyndhurst (April 26, 1961) is an English actor best known for his role as Rodney Trotter in Only Fools and Horses and as Gary Sparrow in Goodnight Sweetheart.
Famous for being a shy actor he always manags to find his tongue when he has adrenelinge pumping through his body before and after a performance.
As a child student at Corona Stage Academy, he appeared in a succession of commercials and children's films in the early 1970s it was purely by chance that he ever apperared in a sitcom but found himself at home and continued through the years untl he first found recognition in Butterflies at the age of 17.
In between 1997 and 1999 Nicholas Lyndhurst was the public face of the stationery chain store WH Smith, starring as all four members of a family in their adverts. He won a BAFTA for his acting in the adverts.
Whether he is playing a bumbling brother, husband, or son, he's sure to bring a smile to your face with his ingratiating, pleasant personality.
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Is radio still important to the development of sitcoms?
Sitcoms started on radio and in the 1950’s had massive success. However with the introduction of modern technologies they are no longer as valued on the radio. Some radio comedy shows however are still aired to day on BBC 7 a few of these include Stilgoe’s around from the 1980’s, the men from the ministry from the 1970’s and many more old classics that are still remembered today. Although some still listen to the old radio classics most people prefer to watch them on T.V so the expressions and performance of the humour can be seen aswell as hearing the great lines. Many of the sitcoms that are now on television started off on the radio or where inspired by a radio programme. As today’s society are relaxing into new technologies they no longer appreciate a good radio show. The main reason now for people to be listening to the radio is to listen to music most do this while driving so having a comedy show to listen to would distract them music does not as this is purely background noise not many really listen to it.
I believe that through past radio shows new T.V sitcoms have been produced based on a similar idea on the other hand sitcoms do not rely on old radio sitcoms to create a show their have been many which are a fresh idea.
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6.4.08 1 comment:
The United Kingdom has produced a wealth of sitcoms, many of which have been exported to other nations or adapted for other countries. The British sitcom tends to rely less on quick-fire jokes and quirky characters, and focuses more on plots, the analysis of the British individual, and exaggerated caricatures of everyday stereotypes.There is also a tendency towards black humor. A frequent theme in British sitcoms is that of people trapped in an unpleasant situation or, more often, in a dysfunctional relationship.
Many British sitcoms are re-made for American audiences. For example, Till Death Us Do Part became All in the Family; Man About the House became Three's Company; and, the immensely popular Steptoe and Son became Sanford and Son. The Office was also remade for an American audience using the same title. Political sitcom The Thick of it is currently going an American adaption, also under the same name. However, most British sitcoms usually fare better in their original forms. Re-makes of Red Dwarf, Men Behaving Badly, Coupling, and One Foot in the Grave fell victim to adaptations that largely removed the essence of the comedy and did not stand the test of time.
Possibly the best example of this was Fawlty Towers, in which there were three attempts to Americanize the show. The first attempt was a proposed series titled Chateau Snavely in 1978 but a pilot was never produced. The second attempt at Americanising Fawlty Towers was Amanda's, where the character of Basil became a woman played by Beatrice Arthur. This eliminated the roles of the hen-pecked lead and the dragon-like wife. Amanda's was picked up by ABC in 1983 but never attracted an audience and was cancelled soon after. The final attempt to remake Fawlty Towers was Payne, in which John Larroquette played the title role. It was seen on CBS in 1999, but like Amanda's it was soon dropped by the network.
The UK is home to the world's longest running sitcom, Last of the Summer Wine. The show's pilot was broadcast in early 1973 with the first series starting that autumn. The series continues to this day with the show's 29th series, coming soon in 2008.
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Layout of Yes Minister
3 series with 6 episodes each
they then changed the name to yes prime minister and aired a further two shows however this time round they extended them to 8 episodes a series.
As the series revolves around the inner workings of central government, most of the scenes take place in private locations, such as offices and exclusive lounges. There was not a single scene set in the house of commons because... government does not take place in the House of Commons; some politics... and much theatre takes place there. Government happens in private. As in all public performances, the real work is done in rehearsal, behind closed doors. Then the public, and the House, are shown what the government wishes them to see.
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Character Profile: James "Jim" Hacker
Jim Hacker (Paul Eddington) was an academic political researcher,polytechnic lecturer and editor of a newspaper, Reform, before entering Parliament, where he apparently spent a good deal of time in Opposition before his party won the general election. In Yes Minister he is the Minister for Administrative Affairs (a fictitious ministry of the British government) and a cabinet minister. Hacker received his degree from the London School of Economics for which he is frequently derided by the Oxford-educated Sir Humphrey. His early character is that of a gung-ho, but naïve, politician, bringing sweeping changes to his department. Before long, Hacker begins to notice that Civil Service tactics are preventing his planned changes being put into practice. As he learns he becomes more sly and cynical, and uses some of the Civil Service ruses himself. While Sir Humphrey initially held all the aces, Hacker now and again plays a trump card of his own.
Throughout Yes Minister, Hacker is often portrayed as a publicity-mad bungler, incapable of making a firm decision, prone to potentially embarrassing blunders, and who elicits bad press and stern lectures from the party apparatus, particularly the Chief Whip. In Yes, Prime Minister Hacker quickly develops statesmanlike skills. He practises more grandiose speeches, dreams up his "grand design", and hones his diplomatic skills, and these nearly all land him in trouble.
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In baseball, how many innings are in a match ? | College Baseball 101: The Seventh-Inning and Mercy Rules - Banners On The Parkway
Banners On The Parkway
College Baseball 101: The Seventh-Inning and Mercy Rules
The Seventh-Inning And Mercy Rules Made Easy
The Mercy Rule is reserved for games like this...
Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images
Welcome back to another post in our College Baseball 101 series. Last time, I delved into the NCAA rules on composite/metal baseball bats . My fellow musketeer, MarshallMarks , has also taken some time to discuss the College World Series . This time around the bases, I'll briefly explore two big differences between college and professional baseball, the seventh inning and mercy rules.
One common refrain among casual college baseball fans can be heard every season – exactly how many innings are they supposed to play? Is it seven? Is it nine? Fortunately, the answer isn't too complicated. Ordinarily, the NCAA prefers that teams play full nine-inning games. By further clarifying exactly when a game can be seven innings, they have recently begun to openly encourage teams to have as many nine-inning games as possible. There are two specific exceptions to this policy. Seven-inning games are allowed if (A) it's the final day of an intra-conference series or (B) two teams (in a non-conference match) have a scheduled double header. Because these certain circumstances are fairly uncommon, an overwhelming majority of games in college last the full nine innings.
Another rule that separates the different levels of baseball is the mercy rule – which means that one team forfeits a game when the opposing team has a 10-run lead after seven innings. If the game is already scheduled for seven innings, the mercy rule applies in the fifth. Certain conferences have particular tweaks on the rule, applying it only for Sunday games or the final day of a conference series (in an effort to aid the visiting team with travel restrictions). In other conferences, the mercy rule is only permitted if there is a tournament with schedule constraints. Despite all of these selective applications, each and every baseball team feels the same way about the mercy rule – they'd always rather be the team with a 10-run lead.
Well, that will conclude this outing. But rest assured, we'll be back right quick with more college baseball coverage. Just in case you're curious, we'll be getting past the introductory stuff and into the Xavier-specific nitty gritty real soon...
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Seton Hall Pirates @ Xavier Musketeers
9:00 PM - Cintas Center - Cincinnati, OH
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What was the Roman name for Wales ? | How many innings are in a softball game? | Reference.com
How many innings are in a softball game?
A:
Quick Answer
A game of softball has seven innings as opposed to a nine-inning baseball game. Each inning is broken into a top half and a bottom half, and the game is won by the team with the most runs scored when the bottom of the seventh inning ends.
Full Answer
The only times a softball game may be longer than seven innings is if the game is tied after the bottom of the seventh or if there is a mercy rule in effect. A mercy rule causes the game to end early if one of the teams is ahead by a certain large number of runs after the third, fourth or fifth inning.
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Much in the news at budget time,exactly what body is known by the acronym OBR ? | Budget Resolutions and Economic Situation - Hansard Online
Hansard Online
Debate resumed (Order, 8 July).
Question again proposed,
That—
(1) It is expedient to amend the law with respect to the National Debt and the public revenue and to make further provision in connection with finance.
(2) This Resolution does not extend to the making of any amendment with respect to value added tax so as to provide—
(a) for zero-rating or exempting a supply, acquisition or importation;
(b) for refunding an amount of tax;
(c) for any relief, other than a relief that—
(i) so far as it is applicable to goods, applies to goods of every description, and
(ii) so far as it is applicable to services, applies to services of every description.
11.29 am
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Good morning, Madam Deputy Speaker.
When one cuts through the rhetoric and the headlines that the Chancellor spun, one sees that yesterday’s Budget leaves working people worse off. It is the working families of Britain on low incomes, trying their hardest to do the right thing, who will pay the price for the gap between what the Chancellor said and the truth of what his Budget actually means. The Office for Budget Responsibility has flatly contradicted the right hon. Gentleman’s claim to have lowered taxes, pointing out on the first page of its analysis that tax increases are twice as big any tax cuts over the course of this Parliament. It is a Budget that is entirely concerned with chasing headlines to further the Chancellor’s well known political ambitions, rather than putting the working people of Britain first.
Pulling the rug from under people on low incomes with a hefty work penalty in the tax credits system— 3.3 million working families will lose out from these changes, with 500,000 families losing tax credits entirely—despite Tory denials before the election, will hurt those in work.
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I did not realise that the hon. Lady was a conduit for the former Labour Chancellor of the Exchequer. I will certainly look closely at what he said, but I did not hear him say those words this morning.
I want to ask Ministers about the work penalty that they have introduced into the tax credits system. Did they know before the election that they were going to hit those who needed tax credits to make work pay, or was it deliberately hidden from public view because of the shock that such a cut to incomes would create? This was a Budget that exposed the Chancellor’s skewed priorities—a Budget that failed to build the more productive economy that we need, that ducked long-term decisions on vital infrastructure projects, and that sought to substitute spin for the support people need to go to work.
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I will give way to the very eager Conservative Members in a moment, but I want to make a little progress.
We do recognise that sensible savings are needed to get the deficit down, and we will support measures that tackle tax avoidance and control overall household benefit levels. We regret that the Budget fails to address the overpayments and errors in welfare expenditure, which have ballooned in recent years during the welfare Secretary’s time in office, let alone his lamentable record on delivering the mythical universal credit, for which so many people are still waiting. As my right hon. and learned Friend the acting Leader of the Opposition said yesterday, we will be a responsible Opposition; we will not oppose for opposition’s sake, and we welcome a number of the Budget measures.
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I have not used those words. The hon. Gentleman is reporting words that have apparently been said.
I believe it is important that the Opposition today look at the spin and the headlines that the Chancellor created in his Budget yesterday. Less than 24 hours later, the Budget is beginning to unravel—[Interruption.] Have I said something wrong? The Budget is beginning to unravel and I will explain why, but in the spirit of magnanimity I want to explain that there are Budget measures that we welcome. The Budget fails to address the long-term challenges Britain faces—[Interruption.]
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Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker.
Many parts of the Budget were suggested by Labour in recent months. Abolishing permanent non-dom status—that sounds very familiar to my hon. Friends. Increasing the minimum wage—again, we have repeatedly called for that. We welcome any action on low pay—by the way, the Conservatives opposed the creation of the national minimum wage in the first place—but this so-called national living wage is unravelling as it becomes clear that it is nothing of the sort. It is the rebranding of an increase in the national minimum wage—as I say, Labour created that in the first place—which, with the tax credit changes, will still leave working families worse off.
We will support steps to tackle tax avoidance—again, we have consistently pressed the Government on that—but this Chancellor has a poor record on hitting tax avoidance targets, with the amount of uncollected tax increasing to £34 billion last year and his so-called tax deals continually failing to bring in the revenues he predicted. In yesterday’s Budget, the Conservatives broke their manifesto promise to deliver £5 billion of savings by 2017-18. The Chancellor made that promise at the last general election, and he is now saying that we might perhaps get it by the end of this Parliament. We will file the supposed £5 billion of tax avoidance measures in the “believe it when we see it” category.
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May I say how much I welcome my hon. Friend’s statement that Labour welcomes the Government’s announcement yesterday to move towards a living wage? Will he confirm in the Chamber what he has said elsewhere—that we will engage very constructively, looking imaginatively at the Red Book, to try to make this more comprehensive and to extend it to the public sector? Does he accept that the more success we have in developing this idea with the Government, the fewer people will be eligible for means tests, and that our aim is not to change means-tested benefits in line with such increases, but to make sure that people can earn enough not to be eligible for means-testing?
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My right hon. Friend is right that we should be thoughtful about the Government’s proposals. It is sometimes difficult to see through the political fog of the games that the Chancellor is trying to play and the tactics he is trying to use. Oh, the look of innocence on his face! My right hon. Friend is right that it is important to take on questions of welfare reform and work through them methodically. We will not oppose everything just for the sake of it. My right hon. and learned Friend the acting Leader of the Opposition was right to say yesterday that while that might be the temptation, we will look at the proposals and be reasonable about those we can support.
We welcome the steps taken in the Budget to reduce pension tax relief for the highest earners, and of course the rise in the personal allowance threshold, as we support steps to cut taxes and try to get a better settlement for those in work.
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The hon. Gentleman was doing so well until the little barb at the end of his intervention. Of course we want a situation—there is more political consensus on this than people perhaps realise—in which people in work are better off than they otherwise would be. The problem, which I will come on to later, is the Chancellor’s approach with this particular set of Budget measures. He is pulling the rug from beneath people’s feet while higher wages are not yet available. When we look at the package as a whole, we see that people will be worse off during that period. He cannot just shovel that beneath the rug.
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I want to make some progress, but I will give way again in a minute. [Interruption.] I will give way now to the hon. Member for Rossendale and Darwen (Jake Berry) if he wants to intervene. [Interruption.] He complains that I am not giving way, but he does not want to intervene.
We will not support self-defeating false economies in the Government’s approach to social security. We do not support an approach that will leave more than 3 million working families poorer, and in turn mean that the poorest children are more likely to grow up into poor adults, which will cost society far more in the longer run.
The Chancellor and Ministers on the Front Bench have a track record when it comes to false economies, particularly during the last Parliament. They scale back nurse training, and then spend a fortune hiring nurses from private agencies, as my hon. Friend the Member for Denton and Reddish (Andrew Gwynne) knows. They cancel major road schemes, such as the one involving the A14, and then revive them later on at vast expense. They pay redundancy to senior officials at the Ministry of Defence or the Foreign Office, and then rehire them at higher cost. They restrain local councils from tackling fraud in housing benefit, and then the level of overpayments escalates to £1.5 billion. They reduce the number of Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs staff so that phone calls go unanswered from businesses that need to get through, and then are surprised when the tax gap gets wider and revenues go uncollected. And we have a Chancellor with the gall to boast of a northern powerhouse while simultaneously pulling the plug on the electrification of major commuter rail lines.
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It has been said many times, but the powerhouse has become a power cut. As time goes on, many—not just in the north but in the midlands—will see through the rhetoric to the reality that they are experiencing.
The Government are undercutting, not supporting, a productive economy. It says everything about the Chancellor that the impact of his Budget has been to worsen the outlook for productivity in our economy over the rest of this Parliament rather than to improve it. The OBR has done the calculations and its prediction is on page 77 of its report. Its conclusion is stark. The Opposition know that more productive businesses, and a more productive economy, are the key to a virtuous circle of higher growth, higher living standards and, as a consequence, more effective deficit reduction. For the Conservatives, productivity springs magically from thin air, but for us it is decent infrastructure and decent public services that can make all the difference to business success.
In his March Budget, the Chancellor did not even mention productivity, so perhaps we should be glad that he at least found time to mention it yesterday, even if we are still waiting for the much trumpeted productivity plan. I gather that it will be published on Friday, although the House is not actually sitting that day so we will not be able to scrutinise the details. Under this Chancellor, UK productivity has, in the words of the Office for National Statistics, undergone a period of “unprecedented” stagnation.
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I have not read the comments by the former Chancellor, although I keep hearing about them from Members. I will have a good look at them, but it is important that we scrutinise the Government’s record on productivity. Unless we improve productivity in our economy, we will not generate the revenues to deal with the deficit and raise living standards. In 2012 and 2013, our productivity growth was negative, and last year it was just 0.2%. That compares with an average of 2.2% under the Labour Government from 1997 until the global financial crisis hit. It is, therefore, almost beyond belief that on the OBR’s analysis the Budget could lead to lower productivity growth, now estimated to be 0.4% lower than the forecast for next year, 0.2% lower in 2017, 0.1% lower in 2018 and 0.2% lower in 2019—productivity down next year, the year after, the year after that and the year after that.
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Government Members will not be interested in scrutinising the compositional issues that are arising in our economy, but the share of jobs that are high-skilled is shrinking back, according to the Office for National Statistics, and being replaced by an increasing share of low-skilled jobs. That is definitely something to be concerned about. In fact, the OBR has voiced its concerns about the productivity threat to our economy, saying:
“If productivity fails to recover as predicted but wage growth continues to accelerate, the MPC could be forced to raise interest rates more quickly”
and wage growth will fall short of its forecast.
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Hold on. Let us just pause to scrutinise that. I think the hon. Gentleman just said that people should be grateful that they are having those tax credits taken away because that will free them up and make work pay—[Interruption.] Hon. Members speaking from a sedentary position call those tax credits a perverse incentive. I just do not think they understand the lives of those on low pay who are struggling to make ends meet and who rely on the support that tax credits have been able to give. That work penalty is going to cause real problems.
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No, not yet.
There was no mention of science or research and development in the Budget speech and no steps to increase mobility in the housing market. In fact, the OBR says that 14,000 fewer affordable homes will be built by 2021. How on earth that helps to reduce the housing benefit bill, I do not know. At the same time, the Government are delaying rail improvements, systematically decimating renewable energy investment and kicking the decision on airports into the long grass. There are tough choices to be made, and lower priorities where savings can be made, but the Chancellor has failed to prioritise those public services that boost productivity, and that will cost the country more in the longer run.
Seven Budgets on, it is time that that this Chancellor took some responsibility for his failure to eliminate the deficit this year, as he promised; for the drag on our economy and public finances caused by woeful performance on productivity; for the stagnation in living standards; and for the overruns in the social security budget. Growth has been revised down by the OBR, as has capital investment. These are incredibly difficult times for the wider global economy, but where is the urgent help to support our exports and productivity to tackle that other deficit, which has worsened significantly under this Chancellor—
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I shall give way in a moment; I just want to talk about the other deficit: the current account deficit, where our trade gap with the EU has worsened and our balance of payments problems have set alarm bells ringing at the Bank of England. The Chancellor’s priority should be to build up the productive capacity of our economy so we can pay our way in the world, but we are still too vulnerable to external turbulence. It should not be neglected in this way. Britain’s current account deficit has widened to 5.9% of GDP, which the OBR states is
“the largest annual peacetime deficit since at least 1830”.
The OBR also reveals that the Chancellor is £367 billion short of his £1 trillion goal on exports that he promised by the end of this Parliament.
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Is the hon. Gentleman talking about the imminent leadership elections in the Conservative party or the Labour party? I do not know what is going to happen in the Conservative party leadership contest. There were of course a few little jokes about the hon. Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip (Boris Johnson), and we will see how that pans out. I know that other Cabinet Ministers are a little concerned about the way that the Budget panned out for them; it is going to be difficult for them over the next few years.
This was the Chancellor’s second Budget in four months. He said in March that that was his Budget for the longer term, yet four months on he has delivered a different plan to a different agenda. He has been chopping and changing, with three different sets of figures in the past nine months alone—so much for his consistency. We learned more about the Chancellor and the nature of this Government in one hour of his Budget speech than we learned in the months of the election campaign. In March, when the Work and Pensions Secretary was pressed about where their £12 billion of welfare cuts would fall, he said:
“As and when the time is right, we will make it very clear what our position is.”
Is it any coincidence that the time is right for these Conservatives two months after an election rather than two months before it?
Before the election, the Conservative manifesto assured us that there would be only a two-year freeze in working benefits, but yesterday the Chancellor doubled that to a four-year freeze in most working-age benefits which will take £4 billion from households by 2020-21. That is one of the fastest-broken promises in political history. [Interruption.] There is an awful lot of noise from Conservative Members. I shall give way to the hon. Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Rishi Sunak) because he has been trying to intervene.
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I will not give way because Conservative Members are not being reasonable and letting me make progress with my speech.
The impact of the work penalty in the tax credits system should have been set out at the election. A lone parent with two children working 16 hours a week on the minimum wage would gain just over £400 from the move to the new national living wage, as the Chancellor calls it, but would lose twice that—£860—from the change to tax credits next year. A couple on the minimum wage who work full time and have two children will gain £1,500 from the change to the minimum wage but lose over £2,200 next year from the changes to tax credits. As the Government were hitting the low-paid, the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions was punching the air. Working families did not vote for that, and they will not be fooled by the Chancellor’s hollow words.
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So the Secretary of State is saying that the childcare change will come in at the beginning of that financial year—in 2016. We have heard it from the Secretary of State’s mouth, so it must be true: the childcare changes will come in in 2016. That is the announcement from the Government. It is a bit of an improvement on the announcement we heard from the Chancellor yesterday, who I thought said that the childcare changes were being pushed back to 2017.
The reasons that the cost of social security is £25 billion higher than the Conservatives expected are the underlying drivers of low pay, higher housing costs and insecure work. For all the Chancellor’s spin, this is a Budget that attacks the low-paid and will leave many people in the lurch, unable to make ends meet. If the Conservatives think a solution is to pull the rug from beneath the poorest, stigmatise claimants, rub out the statistics that measure child poverty and hope that the issue will go away, they are deeply mistaken.
We have to deliver a practical route out of poverty, provide a ladder of opportunity and view this challenge as integral to our long-term economic prosperity. We must help people into decent jobs that can be sustained. Cutting tax credits in this way and taking far more with the one hand than is being given with the other will leave too many people trapped on low incomes with low living standards. The ladder is being pulled away from those who want to get on. The achievement of the Labour Administration in significantly reducing child poverty staved off billions of pounds of longer-term welfare expenditure. Those who are in work pay taxes and improve the public finances as a result.
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I have given way quite generously to Government Members and I would like to make some progress, if they do not mind.
The Institute for Fiscal Studies confirms that the introduction of tax credits played an extremely powerful part in the movement in the child poverty figures. The Conservatives cannot call themselves the party of working people, as they now do, when their Budget leaves millions of working people worse off. How exactly does decreasing their work-related assistance help those who become too sick to work and are on employment and support allowance? Does that policy not run the risk of increasing the number of people who are placed in the more expensive ESA support group, as has been the case in recent years, when the Government have overspent by £4.5 billion on their original plans?
What motivation has a council tenant to get a better job and work for promotion if he or she is on the living wage and the Government take that money away immediately? That is the crude nature of the rent rise that they are proposing. Seeking a contribution from higher earners is, of course, important, and it is one solution, but, as the Government’s own analysis pointed out before the election, going about it in the wrong way will result in perverse incentives and penalties for work.
This was more a Budget of tax rises than a Budget of tax cuts. A rise of more than 50% in the rate of insurance premium tax to raise £8 billion over this Parliament will be a tax hit on the insurance for the family home, the family holiday and the family car. The new car tax will be a surprise that raises £1.5 billion by the end of this Parliament, and—much to the Secretary of State’s surprise—the Government have shelved the childcare tax support that was due this summer until 2017, even if the Secretary of State has now brought that forward by a year.
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When we are writing our manifesto for the 2020 election, I shall give the hon. Gentleman a call. I am afraid that we lost the most recent election, but I think it important for us to reflect on what the Government propose and what the Chancellor announced in his Budget. It is our job as an Opposition to make sure that his spin does not necessarily colour the view of the realities.
The Budget statement revealed that the Chancellor has the wrong priorities for Britain: headlines for himself rather than help for low-income households. We have a chronic shortage of affordable housing, and home ownership is increasingly out of reach for first-time buyers, but the Chancellor’s main housing policy was to reduce the number of affordable homes by 14,000. We need to encourage young people from poorer backgrounds to aim for higher education, but axeing student grants for the least well-off—and, by the way, taking the cap off tuition fee rises, which was not particularly trumpeted by the Chancellor—will make it harder, not easier, for them to do so.
This should have been a Budget to support working people, and to tackle the long-term challenges that our economy faces. The Chancellor is already crowing at his own perceived success in the headlines, but his work penalty in the tax credit system will hit those in work, and leave working people worse off. The Government have failed to make the big decisions that are needed to deliver the modern infrastructure that can make our businesses more productive. They have done nothing to address our alarming and widening trade deficit, and their rhetoric of a living wage has begun to unravel in less than 24 hours.
These are difficult times, and they require tough choices. The deficit needs to fall year on year, our debts need to be reduced, and sensible social security savings are also necessary. But this Budget made the wrong choices for working people and prioritised political gains over the long-term needs of our economy. As ever with this Chancellor, it will be the British people who pay the price for his ambitions.
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I welcome—[Interruption.] I must be more statesman-like.
I welcome yesterday’s Budget statement from my right hon. Friend the Chancellor. He is in serious danger of coming to be seen as one of the great Chancellors of this country.
Yesterday my right hon. Friend set out a Budget of great significance. At its heart it is a Budget for working people. First, he set out the steps that we have taken to bring the economy back from its knees, where it was left by the Labour Government. It is only through a strong economy that we can deliver the growth and jobs that working people need. In the previous Parliament we created 2 million jobs, and the budget deficit is now less than half the 10% rate that we inherited. As we look forward, the Office for Budget Responsibility has forecast growth of 2.4% for 2015. That means that for the second year in a row, Britain is expected to have the strongest economic growth of any major advanced economy in the world. The economy will be in surplus by 2019-20, and it will be the largest surplus in structural terms in at least 40 years. Because of the steps taken by the Government, Britain is again standing tall in the world.
Secondly, the Budget sets out the actions we are taking on tax evasion, avoidance and planning, and the imbalances that were left to us in the tax system. This makes a vital contribution to bringing our public finances back into line, meaning that we can continue to provide the essential public services that working people in this country rely on.
Thirdly, the Budget sets out the steps we are taking to boost productivity and skills and to back business. We will have an innovative new apprenticeship scheme, which I hugely welcome, and we will introduce a levy on large employers to fund a big increase in apprenticeship starts and quality. The hon. Member for Nottingham East (Chris Leslie) spoke about productivity. This is one of the ways we will get productivity improvements. In England, firms will be able to get back more than they put in if they train a sufficient number of apprentices—a real incentive to get on and reskill. It is about ensuring that people in this country have the skills they need to get jobs, increase their hours and secure higher pay.
Fourthly, the Budget sets out the work that this Government are doing to support business. It is only when businesses are thriving that the people of our country can thrive too. One of the great things about the last election, apart from the fact that we won, is that it brought into the House so many of my new colleagues who have run businesses, started businesses and know what it is like to cut that pay cheque week in, week out. That is hugely different from the Opposition. We have been relentless in our commitment to cut corporation tax. In the previous Parliament it fell to 20%, the joint lowest rate in the G20. In this Parliament it will fall to 18%, sending out what my right hon. Friend the Chancellor said was a clear message that Britain is open for business.
Fifthly, the Budget sets out the measures that we are taking to reduce tax, to help people save, to help them own their own homes, and to support them in one of the most basic human aspirations—to pass something on to their children—through the changes we are making to inheritance tax.
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Indeed. I shall shortly come to how these imbalances created disparities for people in work and trapped on low income.
We are sticking to two of our most important manifesto promises on personal tax. We are starting the journey to raise the tax-free personal allowance to £12,500 from next year. Once £12,500 is reached, as my right hon. Friend the Chancellor said, we will legislate so that the personal allowance always rises in line with the minimum wage—a great move to protect working people. We are keeping our commitment to raise the threshold at which people pay the higher 40p rate of tax to £50,000, starting with an increase to £43,000 from next year.
I consider one measure from yesterday’s Budget to be more significant than all the others—indeed, it is perhaps the most significant measure in all the Budgets that I have listened to during my many years in this House. The Government believe that if people work hard, they should be rewarded. In our growing economy, people should be able to expect a decent wage if they move into work and increase their hours. That is why, starting from April 2016, the Government have announced that we will move to a national living wage—set initially at £7.20, but rising to £9 by 2020. We will ask the Low Pay Commission to recommend future increases to the national living wage that achieve the Government’s objective of reaching 60% of median earnings by 2020. I believe that that is groundbreaking, and I hope that all Members of the House, instead of cavilling about it, will come to support it.
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One of the lowest-paid sectors is the care sector, and it is right that it should get a pay increase. The Local Government Association has calculated that to pay the current living wage to all care workers who are directly employed by local authorities, and those employed by private firms that provide services to local authorities, would cost £0.75 billion. By 2020 that will rise to about £1.5 billion, or more. Will that be regarded as a new burden on local authorities for which the Treasury stands the cost, or will it be a further £1.5 billion cut to local authority services?
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I apologise. That is a matter for his leader but—what can I say? Labour has no leader at the moment.
The hon. Member for Nottingham East was talking about the minimum wage and the living wage, and I want to pick up on something he said a fortnight ago:
“Do not the Government need a serious strategy to address low pay and boost productivity? They should be providing incentives for a living wage and new opportunities for high-quality skills, as a more positive route out of poverty.”
Absolutely. He went on to speak about the Chancellor’s Budget before it had been delivered and said:
“Unless he is planning a rise of 25% in the minimum wage, that will not happen.”—[Official Report, 25 June 2015; Vol. 597, c. 1038.]
Well, my right hon. Friend the Chancellor listened to that and initiated a rise of 38% to the minimum wage. The hon. Gentleman must be overjoyed, and will want to tell the House what a great man the Chancellor is and what a great Government we are.
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I notice that the hon. Gentleman said “at this time” when talking about tax credits. We can take note of that. It suggests to me—indeed, I am sure of it—that after the next couple of years Labour will have abandoned its opposition to the measure.
The measures that I set out in the Budget are vital to delivering the commitments that this Government have always made. We are committed to ensuring that a renewed economy goes hand in hand with a renewed social settlement, yet consider what we inherited in 2010: nearly one in five households with no—[Interruption.] Labour Members really do not like listening to this, but they have to hear it—[Interruption.] I will give way in a minute. Perhaps the hon. Member for Bishop Auckland (Helen Goodman) will sit down. Let me remind her what Labour left behind when it left government: nearly one in five households had nobody working; 1.4 million people had been on benefits for most of the previous decade; the number of households where no one had ever worked had doubled; and close on half of all households in the social rented sector had no one in work. Surely that is a shameful record.
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I do understand that, and I am coming on to speak about tax credits. For some time I have believed that the way tax credits operated distorted the system, so that there were far too many families not in work, living in bigger and bigger houses and getting larger while being subsidised by the state, while many others—the vast majority of families in Britain—made decisions about how many children they could have and the houses they could live in. Getting that balance back is about getting fairness back into the system. It is not fair to have somebody living in a house that they cannot afford to pay for if they go back to work, as it means that they do not enter the work zone and their children grow up with no sense of work as a way out of poverty.
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The answer to my hon. Friend’s question, which I wanted to come to, is that that is the perverse nature of tax credits. About 40% of those on tax credits had tax taken off them, which was recycled through the system with some of it being given back to them. That seems to be a rather bizarre and absurd system.
The tax credit system was the brainchild of the previous Prime Minister, Gordon Brown. The original tax credit system, introduced by the Labour Government, cost £1.1 billion in its first year; the tax credit system now costs some £30 billion a year, most of which is spent on child tax credits. This money was pumped into the system in a clear attempt to chase what was then a moving poverty line. In fact, under the previous Government, £258 billion of hard-earned taxpayers’ money was recycled to be spent cumulatively on tax credits—a huge sum.
We saw massive spikes in tax credit spending in the run-up to election years. In the two years before the 2005 election, spending increased by £10 billion—a 70% increase. In the two years before the 2010 election, it increased by some £6 billion, or 25%. It is worth looking again at the in-between years, when it suddenly flattened but rose before an election. There were disproportionate increases in the child element, in an attempt to keep up with that moving median line. The child element was increased by more than earnings in 2004-05 and from 2008-09 to 2010-11, so that by 2010-11 the child element had increased by 25% more than if it had been uprated in line with average earnings since 2003-04.
One of the worst aspects of the system was the way people had to predict their income for a year. If their actual earnings turned out to be different, they were left with large overpayments or underpayments. This caused misery for families and left a gaping hole in the public finances. Although Labour Members have never owned up to it, we lost billions through that process. To try to deal with the situation, a large disregard was introduced. People then did not have to tell the Government if their income changed by up to £25,000 in the course of a year. To have the disregard at that level was completely irresponsible. It was an attempt to use taxpayers’ money to plug holes in a failing system.
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I am very pleased that the Secretary of State has given way. It is ancient history for those of us who are here now. This is the right hon. Gentleman’s sixth year in government and the system is becoming more and more unfair. Will the Department for Work and Pensions carry out an equalities impact statement on the changes in the Budget? [Interruption.] I will repeat that, because the right hon. Gentleman is having trouble hearing. Will the Department for Work and Pensions carry out an equalities impact assessment in relation to changes in the Budget, both on employment and support allowance and on the changes to families, to ensure that ethnic minority families are not discriminated against and that the lives of people with disabilities are not being worsened by this evil policy?
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There are impact assessments in the Red Book. There will be relevant impact assessments before Second Reading, as there always are.
The key point on tax credits is what they got for all of that: unsustainable spending that went up jerkily, but by huge amounts; and a subsidy for employers, which enabled the payment of lower wages and completely distorted systems, and presented a bizarre set of incentives for moving in and out of work. It is now well documented that for many people it made sense to work only 16 hours —no more, no less—and we saw spikes in the employment data at 16 hours. There were huge spikes of people clustered around 16 hours, because it did not pay to work anything else.
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I do. As my hon. Friend makes clear, if people can afford to work only 16 hours, businesses will not invest in them and their training because it will not be worth their while. That means their chances of progressing are nil. Many rotated and crashed out of work directly, because they had no sense that they could go on any further. She is absolutely right.
We believe that two-fifths of those who received tax credits ended up paying for the tax credits they received. It was a bizarre system.
This Government are different. We are building on the firm foundations of a welfare system by balancing the books and fixing the economy, while continuing to provide a strong safety net to support the most vulnerable. Our record in the previous Parliament spoke for itself, so I am going to say it again. Despite all the doomsday predictions from the Opposition—
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I must say that that would have to be pretty quick work. If they have done that much work in a matter of hours, I want to employ them in my Department. No, I do not agree with that, and here is why. I fully support food banks. What people do to help with food banks is a very good idea. However, the figures on usage put out by food banks have all been proven to be incorrect. In Germany, 1.5 million people a week use food banks and its benefit system is meant to be more generous than ours. In Canada, more than 800,000 a month use food banks. This country has a very low number compared with other countries. Those figures speak for themselves.
As we build on this, we must meet our commitments to protect the elderly and the most vulnerable, protecting those benefits that provide for additional costs arising from disability or caring, and protecting pensioner benefits. My right hon. Friend the Chancellor and I make no apology for that, with good reason. When we took office, pensioners were some of the most vulnerable people suffering from a very, very low income. We have begun to put that right, and we intend to be proud of it.
It is right that we provide extra support for those who face the biggest challenges in changing their income levels. Spending on the main disability benefits—disability living allowance, personal independence payment and attendance allowance—will be higher in every single year to 2020 compared with 2010. Our commitment to protecting the most vulnerable is why we have protections in place on policies such as the benefit cap, so that people are exempt if someone in a household is claiming DLA, PIP or working tax credits. Wherever possible, we are introducing measures on a flow basis to give people the time and knowledge to prepare for the changes.
We are also ensuring that people on benefits face the same choices as those in work and not on benefits. Our measures will mean people making decisions and choices about their lives, which is why we are introducing the two-children element on a flow basis, and why we are lowering the benefits cap to £23,000 in London and £20,000 elsewhere, emphasising that it is not fair for someone on benefits to receive more than many people in work. I think that that principle is well accepted and popular around the country. In London, about four in 10 households earn less than £23,000, and outside London the same proportion earn less than £20,000.
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No, I have given way twice to the hon. Lady; I am going to make some progress.
We remain relentlessly focused on supporting people to move into work. Universal credit is now rolled out to half of all jobcentres in Britain, and by the new year will be rolled out to all of them and will then be expanding. It will provide people in work with even better help and support, meaning that those on low pay will do better as a result of universal credit, which was a big reform that was opposed by the other side but which we will deliver and make work.
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I have to say to my hon. Friends that I really have to make some progress, because lots of Members want to speak. They will have a chance to speak later.
With universal credit, people will get up to 85% of their childcare costs paid, which is up from 70% under the previous system. In addition, there will be 15 hours of free childcare if someone has a two-year-old, or a three or four-year-old, and if they are working, while the 30 hours of free childcare a week will be worth £5,000 a year. By the way, the 30 hours of free childcare will start exactly when I said it would—it will be cutting in in the 2016-17 period.
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In that case, to clarify, the 30 hours of free childcare for working parents with three and four-year-olds has not been delayed; it will start to be introduced in September 2016. Thank you very much; now let’s move on.
If someone needs support to improve their skills or talk to their employer about increasing their hours, universal credit comes in again. For the first time, it will stick with them and help them to increase their hours, which is why it will complete the process of supporting people back into work. Even with the changes we are making, the welfare system will remain generous.
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No, no; the hon. Gentleman had his chance.
About five in 10 families with children will still be eligible for tax credits as a result of these reforms. These figures show that we are taking a balanced approach to welfare—an approach that expects people to stand on their own two feet whenever possible but which provides them with the support to do that, by reducing their taxes, providing childcare, skills and back-to-work support, introducing universal credit to make work pay and asking employers to play their part by increasing wages at a time when our economy is growing.
In conclusion, ours is an approach that continues to provide a generous safety net and support for those who need it and expects people to face the same choices as those in work and not on benefits. At its heart, it is about moving from a low-wage, high-tax, high-welfare country, to a high-wage, lower-tax, lower-welfare country. It is a positive vision for Britain under a one nation Conservative Government delivered by a great Chancellor and a great Prime Minister.
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I am sure that the hon. Lady is well aware that Scotland’s childcare offer is significantly better than that enjoyed by people in other parts of the UK, and that our housing situation is not exacerbated by real rent imbalances similar to those experienced in London and the south-east of England in particular. I will pick up on that later.
The hon. Lady will also be aware that the Scottish block grant is calculated on the basis of the contents of the Red Book. The money currently allocated to Scotland is determined by this Chamber, so this Budget is relevant to everybody throughout the UK. It would be very wrong to ignore the fact that the purse strings are still controlled here, and that is one of the reasons why I argue for those powers to be sent up the road to Scotland, where we can use them more wisely.
I want to return to the issue of child poverty and the paper exercises conducted to measure it. Whatever we do to massage the figures, I do not think any of us can avoid the evidence of our own eyes in our constituencies. We are seeing growth in child poverty on the ground. We see it in the rise of food banks, which have already been alluded to, and in the larger number of people coming through MPs’ doors with income-related problems. That is also being experienced by advice bureaux. We also see it in the evidence of organisations that work directly with vulnerable families and those on low incomes.
In my constituency, one in five children is growing up in poverty. That might come as a surprise, because we enjoy some of the lowest unemployment in the whole country. A very small percentage of people are not in work, but many thousands of people are in low-paid work, and it is those working poor who are going to be most affected by what was announced yesterday.
More families than ever are running to stand still, and under this Government more people are being left behind. The UK has a deeply polarised labour market, and the ability of people in low-paid work to get ahead is severely curtailed.
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I will not give way at the moment.
Amid all the rhetoric and the hyperbole of Budget day, it would have been very easy to form the impression from the media lines being trotted out yesterday that tax credits are predominantly a benefit paid to unemployed people, when in fact the opposite is the case. In Scotland, the overwhelming majority of tax credits are paid to working people. In fact, half of all families benefit from tax credits, and 95% of tax credits in Scotland are paid to families with children. We should make no mistake about where the cuts are being targeted.
It is inevitable that today we will consider the short-term consequences, because those cuts will put acute pressure on families, but we should be under no illusion: growing up in poverty has serious long-term consequences for children, too. It is associated with poorer educational attainment, poorer job prospects, poorer health throughout life and lower life expectancy. That is why asking families to bear the brunt of the cuts is so short-sighted. It has not only an enormous social cost, but an enormous economic cost: it holds back our economic progress and productivity, which are what we should really be focusing on and trying to improve.
The Government have tried to argue, today and yesterday, that the cuts will be offset by increases to the minimum wage and changes to the personal allowance, but that claim simply does not stand up to scrutiny. I think we all welcome the announcement of a long-overdue increase in the minimum wage to £7.20 an hour from next year and, indeed, the changes to national insurance, but let us not kid ourselves that rebranding the minimum wage as a living wage will actually make it a living wage.
There is already a living wage: it is calculated by the Living Wage Foundation and is already used by employers in the public, private and third sectors, including, I am very pleased to say, the Scottish Government. The living wage is based on the actual cost of living and it is already £7.85 an hour outside London and is due to go up again in November. We need to be absolutely clear that £7.20 is not a living wage and it will not offset the cuts in tax credits.
The critical point about the living wage is that it has been calculated on the basis of low-paid workers claiming their full entitlement to tax credits at the present rate, so any cut in tax credits means that the living wage will have to go up even further in order for it to provide enough for people to live on. If the Government take on board only one of the points I make today, I want it to be that one.
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Scotland has already shown the progress we are making towards a high-skill economy. I was interested to hear yesterday’s announcement on improving the apprenticeship scheme in England. I hope the Government will aspire to do what the Scottish Government have already done. The uptake has been phenomenal and we are well on course to reaching 30,000 apprenticeships a year, which is far more proportionately per head of population than the current number in England. The Opportunities for All scheme guarantees a place in education or training for every single young person. It has been a phenomenal success, with more than 90% of our young people going into sustained employment afterwards. Instead of waiting until people have been unemployed for a year before intervening, we are intervening early so that every school leaver gets those opportunities. The approach is much more carrot than stick. The scale of the uptake shows that in Scotland we are committed to having a more successful economy and to growing it to meet the needs of our population.
I want to return to tax credits and not be distracted from them. Today the Resolution Foundation, which has done so much to promote the living wage and highlight the issue of in-work poverty, has said that the living wage would need to be £10 an hour by 2020—not the £9 announced yesterday—to keep pace with the cost of living under the new tax and benefits regime. Let us be clear: we are not going to get out of the poverty trap with this rebranded minimum wage. We need to bring it up to the level of a living wage if we are going to take away the support currently provided through tax credits.
The huge cuts in tax credits will make the gap between the minimum wage and the living wage even greater and it will leave the earnings of low-paid workers even further below the actual cost of living. At present, a family with two children where both parents work and who live in a house with average rent will be below the breadline, and the changes announced yesterday will not change that. Such families will still struggle to keep their heads above water and their children will still grow up disadvantaged.
We need to recognise that bringing up children is expensive—for everyone, in all income groups—but children are not some sort of luxury lifestyle accessory. Having children and encouraging family life is an essential, necessary and natural part of the human life cycle. For some years, however, we have made it really difficult for younger adults to even contemplate starting a family, simply because of the pernicious combination of low pay, job insecurity and exorbitant housing costs.
That brings me to the differential impact of this Budget on women, because, in spite of the progress that has been made, women are still heavily concentrated in low-paid work. We are far more likely to be working part-time or in zero-hours jobs, and we are more likely to be the primary carer of children or, indeed, frail or disabled relatives. Too many women end up in low-paid, part-time work such as cashiering or cleaning simply because they can work their hours around their family responsibilities. While I welcome the increase in the personal allowance, we need to recognise that many of those women working part time in low-paid jobs will not see the full benefit of it. Indeed, the key beneficiaries are, of course, higher-rate tax payers like ourselves, and 80% of the benefit of the increase will fall in the upper half of the income spectrum.
I have a number of questions for the Government about limiting tax credits to two children. I am not sure why they would do this—certainly in Scotland, we have a worryingly low birth rate so we should not be trying to deter people from having more children. I ask Ministers for clarification about the basis on which the number of children eligible for support through tax credits will be determined. Will it be a couple’s first two children together, or will children from a previous relationship be counted in the total? What will happen, for example, if a woman has her first child with a partner who already has two children from previous relationship or if a mother’s third child is the father’s first? As anyone who ever runs a constituency surgery will know, these are not abstract questions, and I hope Ministers will address them this afternoon.
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The point I am trying to make is how important it is for us to have children. If our birth rate stays as low as it is, we will be storing up long-term economic problems for ourselves. Scotland has the lowest birth rate in the UK and one of the lowest anywhere in Europe. That is precisely because people know that they have to combine their incomes even to get a starter flat. They do not have room for a baby, they do not know how they would pay for a baby if one parent had to work part time, they do not know how they would be able to continue to pay a mortgage—still less a mortgage on a bigger house—and they do not know how they would pay the rent. People have to make serious choices, but the bigger social picture is that we must absolutely encourage people to have a family and encourage family life.
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The key point is that a falling birth rate is not good for anybody in whatever decile. Even those of us who do not have children are going to be dependent on the next generation being large enough to support us in our dotage when we need people to come in and look after us. The economics do not stack up. In the context of worryingly low birth-rate projections, we desperately need to encourage and make it easier for people in all deciles to decide whether having children is a possibility for them.
I have to say that I was appalled at the reference on page 88 of the Red Book to
“protections for women who have a third child as the result of rape, or other exceptional circumstances.”
I know this point was picked up yesterday, but I think the implications need to be addressed more thoroughly. It is perhaps important to acknowledge that rapes do not necessarily result in pregnancy. After all, rape is a crime that affects pre-pubescent children and post-menopausal women, as well as people of child-bearing age. How does the DWP intend to establish that a child has been born as a consequence of rape? Will there seriously be a box to tick on the form? Will a criminal conviction against a perpetrator be required?
We know that rape is one of the most unreported and poorly prosecuted serious crimes in the UK, with most surveys suggesting that 85% of women who are raped do not report it—for a variety of reasons, not least because most victims know their assailants and know that securing a conviction is a very long shot under our criminal justice system. Many simply do not want to put themselves through another traumatic ordeal.
I put it to Ministers that the women most likely to become pregnant as a result of rape are those in long-term abusive relationships who are being repeatedly assaulted. They are among those least likely to report rape, and those in the most extreme danger if they do. So I ask again, what will this “protection” mean in practice? How will the DWP arbitrate? Will women be believed? What steps will be taken to preserve their dignity and privacy? I would like to hear some answers to those questions.
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My hon. Friend raises a very pertinent point—we should not be stigmatising children whatever their parentage. This could indeed cause many problems.
Before I conclude, I want to address the lowering of the benefits cap. One aspect that always seems to get lost in the debate is that the main driver of the excessively high benefit payments we see in London, the south-east and a few other hotspots across the UK is excessively high private sector rents. In most cases, the claimant does not see a penny of that money; it goes straight into the pockets of the private sector landlords. This is a very serious problem, but I think the Government are tackling it from entirely the wrong angle. They need to address the chronic under-supply of affordable housing, because until they address that underlying issue, rents will continue to soar and housing—to rent or to buy—will continue to be completely unaffordable for people on low and average incomes, by which I mean people who earn normal wages doing normal jobs. Plans to force housing associations to sell their properties to tenants will only make matters worse.
I remember that when the benefits cap was first introduced, I went to the Library to look at the impact on my own constituency. There was a grand total of three claimants affected, and two of them were people in temporary accommodation—they were in a short-term transitional situation. That was simply because our rental market was not quite so out of control as the rental market in some other parts of the UK.
My main concern about the new benefit cap is that it is entirely arbitrary and will mostly affect people in the private rented sector in high-rent hotspots. Fundamentally, it does not tackle the underlying problem of affordable housing supply, which is one of the main drivers of income poverty right across the UK. Instead, it seems to me that this arbitrary cap will create perverse incentives for people to move to areas or stay in areas of low economic growth where housing is more affordable but jobs are thinner on the ground. That gets us to the heart of the problem with this Budget. It puts a desperate squeeze on low and middle-income families, but there is little in the Budget to boost productivity. There is nothing to give Scotland a competitive advantage or give us a jobs boost. Instead, those who have already carried the can for the banking collapse of 2008 will stay trapped in work that does not pay.
Austerity has been a failed policy. It has held back our economic recovery and has harmed the most disadvantaged people. That is why we need powers over our economy, our employment and our benefits system to be devolved to the Scottish Parliament, where we can use them to build a more successful and a more equitable country that is in everyone’s long-term interest.
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As the City’s MP, it would be remiss of me not to touch on the issue of the bank levy. When it was introduced in the immediate aftermath of the financial crisis, it was specifically designed to reflect the cost to the public purse of the implicit insurance provided by the Government to the finance sector. The suspicion is that more recently the bank levy has become as much an instrument to assist in deficit reduction.
I understand why the Chancellor sought to outwit his political opponents in March’s coalition Budget—that close to an election, I guess there were few votes to be gained by siding with bankers—but now that we have political stability, I welcome his commitment to ensuring that in future the replacement surcharge does what was initially intended. I suspect that this will sufficiently impress HSBC to stay for now, although I appreciate that perhaps too much good will has been expended by the Government on the ring-fencing arrangement for much to change in that regard—despite the threat to the international competiveness of the UK financial services from elements of the Vickers regime.
The more significant medium-term threat to banks remaining headquartered here in London probably arises from the “reckless banking” legislation. Once this is properly tested in the courts, it will be instructive to see just how many senior executives in the largest global banking conglomerates regard London as a place where they will be happy to be domiciled. That is work in progress for most of the City and the Treasury.
I shall say a quick word on the infrastructure and airport capacity debate. My constituency will undoubtedly be adversely impacted by the enlarged flight paths that will accompany the proposed third runway at Heathrow. I am also deeply concerned about air quality, even before the prospect of additional aviation pollution. However, all of us west and central London MPs need to recognise the national interest. There were certainly only anti votes when I supported Crossrail, which has disruptively carved its way through several residential districts in my constituency, but this major infrastructure is essential. Similarly, the UK and London economies desperately require additional airport capacity.
I would have been keener had the Davies commission come out in favour of Gatwick, but it has unequivocally come out in favour of expansion to the north-west of the Heathrow site. It is a finely balanced judgment, and I think there will be some funding problems when we come to put this in place in the years to come, but with reluctance I now take the view that the Government should move ahead with minimal delay and implement the Davies commission’s clear conclusions.
The Government have been wise to raise their horizons in addressing the sustainability of the UK’s recovery in an ever-expanding sea of global debt. At the last emergency Budget, in June 2010 as the last Parliament began, the Chancellor assumed that the then £1.32 trillion of accumulated national debt would cost some £66.5 billion annually to service. The debt pile has now risen to £1.63 trillion, but here’s the rub: we are expecting that to cost only about £51 billion a year in debt interest.
At this point, it should be said that the Chancellor’s determined rhetoric of fiscal retrenchment has earned him the confidence of the capital markets, which I am sure would rapidly have deserted any Labour Finance Minister. However, there is a herd of investors in the capital markets pricing Government debt with a deceptive, even dangerous, sense of calm. Incidentally, it is worth noting that the record low global interest rates apply to Government bonds issued by all but the most basket-case economies, even in the eurozone. In large part, there is a fear that deflation might be here to stay and that a prolonged period of stagnant or very low growth could be in the offing.
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I will not, if the hon. Gentleman will forgive me; we are under a strict time constraint.
In such uncertain circumstances, taking on Government debt often seems the safest bet in the markets. The impact of quantitative easing and the excess demand for bonds, driven largely by EU regulatory requirements to invest in safe havens, have both helped to reduce the cost of borrowing by Governments. At the same time, however, our own Office for Budget Responsibility, along with the International Monetary Fund, is projecting healthy growth for the UK economy in the years to come. They are both predicting not a period of Japanese-style deflationary stagnation implied by the pricing of Government debt but solid year-on-year growth at a rate of 2.5% to 3%. The trouble that lies ahead for the UK economy is that once the markets catch up to this reality, it is a racing certainty that the cost of servicing our debts will rise, and fast.
In short—and perhaps paradoxically—it is a sustained economic recovery that risks blowing a huge black hole in future years’ budgets as the UK continues to grapple with the vastly expanded debt that has been accumulated over the past decade. That is why the Government are absolutely right to say that drastic and determined Government action on deficit reduction is essential for the medium-term health of the economy. The Chancellor is right to tackle the debilitating impact of entitlement in much of our welfare system, and now is clearly the time to do that, while the sun is shining. Given all the difficulties in the markets, and all that is going on in Greece and China, our positive economic news might not be around for much longer.
At the beginning of this year, analysis by the McKinsey Global Institute revealed that global debt had risen by some 17% since the final quarter of 2007, when the collapse of Bear Stearns and Lehman Brothers was in the offing. The racking up of debt on this scale represents the biggest experiment we have ever conducted in the global economy. Short of the unleashing of a burst of unprecedentedly high levels of output and sector-wide productivity growth, or alternatively a programme of fiscal contraction hard to imagine in an era of welfare dependency and universal suffrage, it is impossible to see how the developed world will ever be able to repay these levels of debt properly.
Historically, Governments have dealt with debt piles by allowing a little inflation to develop. The other option is to introduce what the economists call fiscal retrenchment. The double whammy of the 1930s depression and the cost of fighting world war two in the following decade left all western economies with equivalent debt levels relative to national income. Between the 1950s and 1970s, yields from Government bonds were deliberately set at just below inflation. As a consequence of the alchemy that comes with compound interest, a lot of our debts were paid off.
That might seem to be a comforting parallel, but there are key differences today. One is that we live in an age of free cross-border capital flows, and much of our borrowing comes from international sources. The model of squeezing creditors by means of negative real interest rates and rising prices simply will not work when credit is denominated in a foreign currency or in a deflationary era. We need only look at the ongoing travails of the eurozone to see the limits of imposing financial repression when nation states are locked into a monetary straitjacket.
Much is made of the fact that one third of UK Government bonds have been mopped up by the Bank of England, which has helped to keep interest rates very low—we have now had 76 consecutive months at the emergency 0.5% rate. More distorting still is the fact that more than 40% of our gilts are owned by foreigners. In this uncertain world, those overseas creditors might take on the chin the impact of artificially low returns on their bonds, but they may be considerably less sanguine about the impact of currency risk. The market sentiment towards sterling is currently benign, despite record current account deficits, but if that were to change and if the pound were to fall, sterling-denominated gilts in the hands of foreign investors would rapidly lose their value. The prospect of such overseas creditors losing confidence in the UK economy would then be very real.
For that reason, the Government’s actions are of critical importance. They must persist in reducing the deficit as a matter of national urgency, to ensure that we collectively start to live within our means as rapidly as possible. What really concerns me, and what should concern policymakers, is that at the moment it is difficult to imagine the circumstances in which the cost of credit might be rapidly increased—as will be necessary in the years to come—without the economic roof falling in.
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It is a pleasure to follow the right hon. Member for Cities of London and Westminster (Mark Field) in this debate. I listened carefully to what he said about the issues of importance to his constituents, and it struck me that the issues of importance to my constituents are very different. The Budget has been presented to us as a Budget for working people, and a one nation Budget because we are all in this together, but I have to say to those on the Government Front Bench that it just will not be seen in that way in the north-east of England.
I have no quarrel with the Government’s desire to drive up wages, to increase productivity and to broaden and deepen the private sector employment base in the north-east of England, but we do not think that those things will actually happen. We believe that we will get all the welfare expenditure cuts but not the increased wages or the longer working hours, or the chance to earn a living in the private sector marketplace.
The maximum grants for students from households with incomes below £25,000, which encourage youngsters to go to university, are being converted into loans. In my constituency, one elector in five is a student. The change will mean that those in the very poorest households will be the ones leaving university with the highest debts, and that just does not seem fair. Similarly, the assault on working families tax credits will penalise the working poor. That point was very well made by the hon. Member for Banff and Buchan (Dr Whiteford)
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In fairness, Mr Deputy Speaker, I took the intervention, but I accept what you say.
There is an issue for those who rely on working families tax credits and who are in relatively low-paid jobs in the north-east of England. Let us take the example of a lone parent with two children who is working 16 hours a week on the minimum wage. Once both changes have come into place, the Chancellor’s living wage announcement makes up about £400, which is just under half the £860 that person would lose from the tax credit change. I listened to the earlier exchange between the Front-Bench teams. I take into account what was said and accept that it might ameliorate the position; none the less, the change is shown in the Red Book as a saving to the Exchequer, which means that it is money that my constituents get now but will not be getting in the future.
The reduction in the employment and support allowance to jobseeker’s allowance levels will not help anyone find a job; it just makes them poorer. The public sector pay freeze of 1% for the next four years is on top of a public pay policy that saw a freeze for two years from 2011, then below-inflation settlements of 1% up to the current financial year. This will be the longest sustained public sector pay freeze ever, and it is just not fair on the workers, especially the low-paid public sector workers. The benefit tapers have been narrowed, and on top of all that there is the benefits cap itself. I am not against the cap in principle, but reducing it from £26,000 to £23,000 in London and imposing a lower regional ceiling of £20,000 outside London is harsh on the English regions.
The Chancellor has burdened housing associations with an unwanted right to buy, which is good for the few but not for the many. Local authority housing stock is still burdened by the bedroom tax, which is not just unjust but actually counter-productive in communities such as my own constituency where a private one-bedroom bedsit in Jesmond costs more to rent than a two-bedroom council flat in Walker. Yet full housing benefit will go to the one-bedroom flat, and those in the two-bedroom local authority-owned flat will be penalised by £8 a week. I do not see how any of this helps the north-east. Certainly, it does not help to make work pay.
In some parts of the country, it may be reasonable to argue that employers should pay better wages rather than rely on the state to top them up, but the danger for the north-east is that those who rely on working families tax credit will not be able to get extra hours at work to make up for the shortfall in their weekly income and will not be able to get a pay rise because there is not sufficient profitability in the business for that to be sustained.
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The even greater irony is that I was the Government Chief Whip when we put through the minimum wage legislation. My hon. Friend the Member for Sheffield South East (Mr Betts) was the Whip on the Committee that went right through the night on this. But that is going down memory lane. Indeed, it was the current Secretary of State for Defence who was making the case in the Committee at the time. There was some substance in the point, which is why I make it now in relation to the specific circumstances of the constrained nature of the private sector economy in the north-east of England. A broader, deeper and stronger private sector economy is the way forward for our region. It will help to give us the wages and the breadth of job opportunities that the south-east of England enjoys.
The great hope offered by the Government to the north-east is in their northern powerhouse initiative. The Chancellor is right to take regional policy seriously, but he just does not seem to understand how the north-east of England works and what precisely it needs. Indeed, he did not reference us once in his Budget speech when he was going through the offers to the other English regions. The only practical manifestation of the Government’s northern powerhouse policy so far is in the rail upgrades, and they have been delayed.
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When I was the regional Minister in the previous Labour Government, I met representatives of Hitachi in Downing Street. They were considering locating in the north-east of England, and wanted to discuss how they could bring that about. I give credit to the current Government for having seen that programme through, because it does involve Government support and they could have cancelled it but they did not. But it was a shared endeavour, and it was certainly coming into place well before the northern powerhouse initiative. However, the hon. Gentleman is quite right that it is exactly the sort of initiative that we would like to see for our region. If it comes under the northern powerhouse brand, I shall take no exception to that.
The problem is that we do not know the geographical boundaries of the northern powerhouse initiative or the functions ascribed to it. We do not even know whether it is some form of local government reorganisation or a regional economic development initiative, or both. We are being told in the north-east that we must sign up to a metro mayor, but not why. The Government have given no details of the powers, functions, workings, accountability or budget for the post, yet they say we must have one.
The past five years have seen a plethora of initiatives that have had no practical impact on the problems in the north-east. The new local enterprise partnerships simply do not have the resources and capacity to address the scale of the problems. The LEPs have been followed by city deals, enterprise zones, regional growth funds, local growth deals and joint leadership boards. They are fragmented, piecemeal initiatives that collectively do not amount to an effective, focused regional policy from the Government. Metro mayors risk being just the latest addition to this confused approach. There is a serious question as to whether so many proposed policy responsibilities can and should be invested in one single individual. People in Newcastle who rejected the local government version of the elected mayor in 2012 and the wider north-east should at the very least be given a choice on this in a referendum.
The past five years have seen a persistent focus on structures and process at the expense of any real, meaningful action. We continue to lag behind in jobs. We have high unemployment and a lack of skills and investment in infrastructure. We simply cannot afford to waste the next five years dithering on structures.
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I rise today to congratulate the Chancellor on his Budget. His amazing job yesterday is warmly welcomed by most of the country. I am disappointed to follow the right hon. Member for Newcastle upon Tyne East (Mr Brown), who said that the Budget will make no difference—he probably said the same thing about previous Budgets brought in by the same Chancellor. Surely unemployment is down in his constituency; I cannot believe that it has gone up. What did his Government do, in all the years they were in power, to help people in the north-east? They did not do anything, which is why there have been problems. This Government, though, have made a difference.
I am also disappointed to follow the hon. Member for Banff and Buchan (Dr Whiteford). I found it astonishing that she should be advocating that people on benefits should be allowed to have—encouraged to have—more than two children. Completely responsible people who recognise that children are expensive to bring up and cannot afford to because they are not on benefits subsidise those who the hon. Lady would like to have three, four or five children. That is completely mad.
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I recognise that most people getting tax credits are in work, but I still do not believe that people who are in work, not receiving tax credits, acting responsibly and having the number of children they can afford should be subsidising those who want to have more children. That is completely topsy-turvy economics; perhaps it is how some Opposition Members from Scotland deal with economics there, but it is not what we want to do here in London. I am very disappointed by the hon. Lady’s attitude, and I feel that she completely misrepresents what the Government are doing.
I congratulate the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on doing a fantastic job in bringing the welfare budget under control. It was not under control for many, many years—it was completely out of control, which is one reason why this country got into such difficulty with the deficit.
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One of the things that we hear about in the Budget is the importance given to increasing productivity, but if we are to increase productivity, we need incentives for investment in the economy. The Government are incentivising those who have financial assets by changing the inheritance tax rules to benefit the type of people who sit on the Government Front Bench. That is the reality of what they are doing. If we want to make sure that work pays, we need to drive investment in the economy, and we need incentives for business to do so. [Interruption.]
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Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker.
I will ignore what the hon. Gentleman said because, again, it is topsy-turvy economics. We are trying to increase investment in business to provide more jobs. We have created 2 million more jobs in the past five years, and that is carrying on. Apprenticeships are increasing, which will help people into work. In my constituency of Mid Derbyshire, which started off with 1,267 claimants in 2010, the figure went down to 340 this May. That is a huge reduction. I would still like those 340 people to be in work.
Some hon. Members have talked about youth unemployment. I started off in Mid Derbyshire with 350 such claimants; the figure is now down to 80. That is a huge increase in the number of young people who have jobs, thanks to our brilliant local industries. Young people are better off in work—everyone is better off in work than on benefits. We want to stop the culture of people relying on benefits.
As the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions said, when the Labour party was in government, it put up benefits before an election, flatlined them and then put them up again before the next election. Labour Members should not be playing politics with benefit claimants, who need honest, clear benefits. Those who need benefits will get them under this Government, but we want to get more people into work because that is better for their self-esteem and health; it is also better for their children to have as a role model someone who is in work.
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As the hon. Gentleman knows, we did not know what the result of the election would be. We did not even know that we would be in government; we thought that we might be in a coalition. It might have been the Labour party in a coalition. We have now had a Budget that sets out extremely clearly for the electorate exactly what we will do over the next five years. We want to invest in business. We want to help businesses, so that they can employ more people. That has certainly happened in my constituency, as it will have done in his constituency and those of every hon. Member, because business has created so many jobs. The climate is right for business. Britain is open for business, and we need to get more people working hard.
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My hon. Friend is absolutely right. One of the ways in which we will do that, hardly mentioned by Opposition Members, is by changing inheritance tax. People have paid taxes on their money. They have bought their houses, and it is good to allow them to leave their houses to their children, so that they can benefit as well. The housing market is difficult for younger people. If parents can leave their houses to their children, that will benefit society.
Something that has not been mentioned at all is the 2% commitment on defence. I would have thought that everyone in the Chamber would welcome that; it was certainly welcomed by Government Members yesterday. I cannot believe that no one wants to mention it at all. Surely the Opposition believe that that is a very good thing for the country, to secure our safety and security here.
Labour Members should welcome the fact that the success of our long-term economic plan has created jobs and is encouraging growth, which has meant that spending on welfare as a percentage of GDP has been falling since 2012.
I should like to finish because time is short—I apologise, Mr Deputy Speaker. This is a good Budget for jobs, for employment and for this country. I commend the Chancellor and the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions for their sterling work and how they have put this country on a much better footing.
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I represent a south-west London suburban constituency, not an area normally associated with high housing stress, difficulties and problems. I have had the great fortune to be the MP for Mitcham and Morden— the place of my birth—for the past 18 years. Half the people I see at my advice surgery come to me with housing issues.
For 16 years, before I first entered the House, I worked for Battersea Churches Housing Trust and, before that, for Wandsworth Council in the homeless persons unit. I have seen long queues for bed-and-breakfast accommodation. I have seen people in desperate straits, but that has not prepared me for the length and depth of the problems that people face in securing housing in my constituency.
I sometimes hear myself tell constituents things like, “Oh, please don’t go homeless on a Friday or a Monday, because God only knows where the council will be able to put you. You see, they can’t take into account the fact that your daughter is doing her A-levels or O-levels, that your mum is ill, that you have a job. They have to put you in temporary accommodation where they can find it.” These are things I say without even thinking about them.
On a Friday night, I regularly see vulnerable children with vulnerable mothers go off to bed and breakfasts on the other side of London, if not in Birmingham. I am not ashamed to say that I wake up in the night and think about what happens to those families—what sort of accommodation they are going to and how they will manage. However, it is not on behalf of those people that I stand to talk this afternoon because many Opposition Members will do that more eloquently than I can.
The people I want to speak for are all those in good jobs who save their money, but cannot get a foot on the housing ladder. They cannot buy their homes partly because they are being eased out of London by those who already own a home: the buy-to-let landlords. Housing is becoming an investment model, rather than somewhere to live, have a family, put down roots and become part of the community. It has become a real problem for that generation. The possibility of buying the home in London that my family had in the fifties and I had in the eighties is not there for the generation coming up now. We have to do something for them if we are to avoid the family breakdown and problems that will inevitably arise if we do nothing.
For those reasons, I welcome the Government’s announcement that they will look at the £14 billion in tax breaks that landlords can claim every year. There are not many things that I, the Chancellor and my hon. Friend the Member for Islington North (Jeremy Corbyn), who is standing in the Labour party leadership election, agree on, but reform of buy to let and how buy-to-let landlords are treated in the tax system is one of them. The Exchequer gives tax relief on mortgage interest payments, money spent on repairs and maintenance, and even accountants’ fees to help landlords to take full advantage of the relief. Some of the tax breaks help tenants—we should encourage landlords to keep their property in a good state of repair and to improve living conditions—but it is completely unfair to give landlords a £6 billion tax break on mortgage interest payments.
Why is it right to subsidise the mortgages of people buying their second, third or fourth home with taxpayers’ money when so many people cannot afford even to take out their first mortgage? People paying off the mortgage on their own home that they live in do not get those tax breaks. We should be incentivising buying to live, not buying to let. Mortgages for landlords are cheaper than mortgages for first-time buyers, in part thanks to that subsidy, and it distorts the housing market. As of last week, the cheapest two-year buy-to-let mortgage cost less than half the cheapest two-year first-time buyer deal, according to brokers. That puts first-time buyers at a real disadvantage compared with buy-to-let landlords, who are swamping the market and shutting out first-time buyers. A third of Members of this House are themselves buy-to-let landlords.
The changes announced by the Chancellor yesterday are a drop in the ocean and do little to tackle the ridiculous double taxpayer subsidy of private rental landlords. We are, in effect, giving a double taxpayer subsidy to buy-to-let landlords because we give tax breaks of £6 billion that encourage people to buy to let and monopolise the housing stock, and then, when tenants cannot afford the growing rent, the taxpayer has to give them housing benefit. Housing benefit paid to private landlords has now reached £9.3 billion, or 38% of the total bill. With fewer people able to buy homes, there is more demand in the private rental sector, which in turn pushes up rents.
I am pleased that the Government have agreed this is a problem, as the Budget shows, but their proposals utterly fail to confront the buy-to-let taxpayer subsidy in any significant way. The flawed principle that landlords can claim tax relief on their mortgage interest will remain; landlords will simply get a slightly lower tax relief. The Government’s own documents estimate that it will save the taxpayer just £665 million pounds a year by 2020—just one tenth of the £6 billion in mortgage interest claimed back in tax breaks by landlords in 2012-13.
To seriously tackle the root causes of the housing crisis in this country, we have to go further than reducing these unfair tax breaks by a meagre 10%. Taxpayer subsidies should be used to help people to get on the housing ladder, not to pull the rug from under their feet. By looking again at mortgage interest tax breaks for landlords, and cutting them by more than just 10%, or even limiting them to new builds, the Government could save up to £6 billion—the equivalent of grants to housing associations that could enable them to build 100,000 new social housing units. Spending the money on building new homes, instead of on existing bricks and mortar, also helps to stimulate the economy and provides jobs. For every £1 spent on housing construction, an additional £2.09 of economic output is generated.
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My problem with the current plans is what they will do to the security and continuing support that housing associations can provide, but if the Government can provide a model whereby we can replace those properties, one for one, my answer is: almost certainly.
Many constituents come to me afraid they will never be able to save enough to put down a deposit on their first home; most of their monthly pay packet goes straight on rent and there is nothing left to save. Their rent is driven up by buy-to-let landlords, who monopolise the housing supply and charge what they want. As a result, 82% of people in London who do not own a home believe they will never be able to do so. If the unfair advantage given to buy-to-let landlords is removed, more people will be able to buy their first home; in addition, there will be reduced demand in the private rental sector, so rents and the housing benefit bill will fall. I urge the Chancellor to look again and do more with buy-to-let mortgage tax breaks.
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Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker, for giving me the opportunity to make my maiden speech. It is a pleasure to follow the hon. Member for Mitcham and Morden (Siobhain McDonagh).
Standing here now, I realise how wise were the words of my hon. and good Friend the Member for Tamworth (Christopher Pincher) when he, during his maiden speech, suddenly understood the significance of the occasion and said,
“nobody is looking forward to the end of my speech more than I am”.—[Official Report, 2 June 2010; Vol. 510, c. 526.]
I can assure the House that this is definitely the case for me, too.
Having said that, I am delighted to have been called in this debate following the first Conservative Budget for 19 years, as during the election economic competence was one of the key issues raised on the doorstep. I know that many of my constituents will be pleased that the Chancellor has already implemented promises made in our manifesto, especially the increase in the lower tax threshold and the introduction of 30 hours of free childcare.
I pay tribute to my predecessor, Dan Byles. He was my local MP, so I can confidently say that he served our community with true integrity and commitment. Dan stood up resolutely for his constituents and was seen as champion, fighting for them on issues that mattered—none more so than the mitigation and compensation for those affected by HS2. I will continue to fight for that cause in the manner for which he was so respected. As a result of Dan’s hard work and that of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, unemployment dropped to the lowest level ever in our constituency. Dan was rightly proud of that.
It was an outstanding achievement for Dan to win the seat in 2010, with the smallest Conservative majority of just 54 votes, although I note that, following the last election, 54 is a cushion that many colleagues would be delighted with. As his constituency chairman in 2012 and 2013, I confidently predicted that not only would he win in 2015, but I would ensure that we doubled his majority. Having now increased the majority to nearly 3,000—[Hon. Members: “Hear, hear!]—that may be the only target that I have been happy to get wrong by such a considerable margin. Indeed, should this career not work out, then, given that margin of error, I see a possible future as a pollster. [Laughter.] I am sure that many constituents and indeed many Members of this House will join me in thanking Dan for his work and send him and his family the very best wishes for their future.
My own route into politics was not exactly a traditional one. Until recently, I subscribed to the thoughts of the eminent historical figure Blackadder that “Wanting to be a politician should actually ban you for life from ever being one.” I grew up in the renowned Conservative heartland that is Durham city and attended the local comprehensive, Framwellgate Moor. My dad was one of 15 children and moved from Ireland in 1960s, when he met my mum in London. They moved back to her native north-east and eventually set up and built their own business, which they have now run for over 40 years, employing many local people in the process. It was from them that I learned the Conservative belief of aspiration, and that with hard work and resilience almost anything is possible. They inspired and encouraged me to start my own business at 21, and it is some testament to them, and to the tolerance of the British people, that I still ran that business until I was elected to the House just a few weeks ago. I will miss my three staff—Laura, Allison and Georgia—but I am sure that they now realise they did all the work anyway and do not really need me.
The North Warwickshire and Bedworth constituency is a wonderful mix of towns and villages, boasting a rich history of coalmining and industry. The small market town of Atherstone sits on the old Roman Watling Street, and the town centre has changed very little in 750 years, even though the traditional hatting industry has now disappeared. The town still plays an annual Shrove Tuesday ball game, a tradition that has survived for over 800 years, although given the physical nature of this game, the lifespan of competitors is significantly less.
Coleshill is a historic coaching town in the western part of North Warwickshire, lying close to the outer edge of Birmingham. It is a thriving community, which also hosts successful companies such as Sertec, BMW and a host of others at its Hams Hall estate. Incidentally, it is also famous for being the town that invented Brylcreem.
The largest town is Bedworth. Although predominantly thought of as an ex-coalmining area, it also formed an important part of the 19th-century silk ribbon weaving industry of Coventry and North Warwickshire. One world famous ribbon maker still operates in Bedworth—Toye, Kenning and Spencer, which produces high-class medal ribbons and masonic regalia that are exported around the world. In the centre of the town is Bedworth’s hidden gem, the picturesque Nicholas Chamberlaine almshouses, managed by the Nicholas Chamberlaine Trust, which celebrates its 300th anniversary this year. Bedworth also proudly hosts the largest and most famous Armistice Day parade in Britain, which is always held at the exact hour, day and month each year.
The constituency is dotted with many smaller villages that all have their own identity, such as Fillongley, Austrey, Newton Regis, Warton, Grendon, Baddesley, Shustoke, Mancetter and—not forgetting my home for the last 15 years—Shuttington, a small village that is famous not just for the Wolferstan Arms pub, but as the birthplace of Charles Bonner, a recipient of the Victoria Cross.
Our major local issue remains HS2. The line will run through a number of areas, such as Water Orton, Kingsbury, Middleton and Polesworth. I will do all that I can to support residents in their opposition to the HS2 route, and to assist them with their mitigation and compensation cases.
The main hospital in our constituency, George Eliot, has undergone a huge transformation in recent years, thanks to the hard work and dedication of the staff there, working in partnership with the Government. It has recently achieved a good rating, and I will work with it to ensure that this excellent upward progression continues.
I am very proud of the previous Conservative record on increasing apprenticeships, and this is an area that I will continue to champion. It is important that we not only deliver high-quality qualifications that benefit local students and employers, but give pupils a real choice in the path that they take when leaving school.
Finally, we are rightly respected across the world for our outstanding military, and it is great to see many colleagues now on these Benches who previously have served their country. Although I did not serve myself, I am very proud of the nearly 10 years that my wife Karen spent in the RAF, seeing active service in the first Gulf war. In such volatile times, we must remember that the first duty of Government is to protect their citizens. Equally, we have a duty to ensure that, when we ask our brave servicemen and women to put themselves at risk for their country, we do so safe in the knowledge that we have provided them with the best possible training, equipment and resource to do so. On that, I welcome the Chancellor’s commitment to the 2% figure.
I want to finish by expressing my thanks to the people of North Warwickshire and Bedworth for electing me to be their representative in Parliament. This is a role that I do not take lightly or underestimate. I relish the challenge of making North Warwickshire and Bedworth an even better place to live over the next five years.
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Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. It is a pleasure to follow the hon. Member for North Warwickshire (Craig Tracey).
There can be no greater privilege than becoming a Member of this House, the mother of all Parliaments, and I am particularly proud to be delivering my maiden speech as the Member for Bradford South. This great sense of pride and privilege has been possible only because the good people of Bradford South placed their trust and confidence in me. For that, I will be eternally grateful, and I promise I will never let them down. I am proud to be the first woman to represent Bradford South, and to be the first woman parliamentarian from the transformational Ruskin College.
My predecessor, Gerry Sutcliffe, served Bradford South for 22 years from 1994, following the untimely and sad death of the hugely respected Bob Cryer. With Gerry’s departure, the House has lost a generous, approachable and extremely popular Member. Many in this House, from all political parties, will have benefited from his sound advice, his sharp wit, and perhaps most importantly, his pearls of wisdom about this season’s football player transfers. Incidentally, you would get such pearls irrespective of whether you had actually asked for them.
Bradford South is one of five constituencies covering the metropolitan area of Bradford. We are renowned first and foremost for our proud industrial and cultural heritage, but we are also recognised by the discerning for other—often under-appreciated—reasons. For example, the village of Howarth was home to the great literary Bronte family, a fact known all too well by the Japanese tourists who annually pay homage. Our creativity is legendary, a fact recognised by UNESCO when it bestowed upon Bradford the prestigious UNESCO city of film status. In the world of British politics, few would be aware of the fact that it gave birth to the Independent Labour party, fighting for social justice, thus giving its chairman, Keir Hardie, his seat in this House in 1900. In the world of sport, I know that all Members will be aware of the fact that we are home to the world-famous Bradford Bulls.
I have spoken about Bradford as a place, but, as the cliché goes, a place is only as good as the people who live there, and in that regard I am most fortunate indeed. The people of Bradford South are fair-minded, good-natured and hard-working folk. In return, they rightly expect fairness and justice, security and respect in old age, a decent education for their families, affordable homes to call their own, access to free healthcare on demand and a job that pays a fair day’s wage. These fundamental needs are what all people in our country should expect. I promise to dedicate my next five years to working to ensure that these fundamental needs are respected and upheld for the people of Bradford South. Sadly, they are all too often beyond the grasp of hard-working people in my constituency, and that must change. I will campaign tirelessly for Bradford South until these fundamental needs are met to their fullest. It will be on these fundamental needs that I will hold this Conservative Government to account during this Parliament.
I am in the Chamber today to pursue the same struggle that led Keir Hardie to this House some 115 years ago—the fight for social justice. People living across Bradford deserve social justice, a phrase that is sometimes overcomplicated by academics and commentators alike. To me, it is not complicated; nor is it to the people of Bradford. By the same token, neither is injustice complicated—the upwelling of discomfort in the pit of your stomach in the face of injustice will be familiar to all.
We see injustice on pensions. We would all agree that we need to look after the elderly, yet pensioner poverty is still a reality. Those who have worked hard all their lives and paid into the system deserve dignity and security in old age, yet far too many of our older generation are still struggling to get by. This simply cannot be right and it must change.
We see injustice in housing. As a country, we need to ensure that all our citizens have access to affordable homes—a home to raise their family and a home in which to enjoy their retirement years. We need a housing sector that delivers for the ordinary people of this country.
We see injustice in access to healthcare services. Too few people are able to access timely appointments at their local GP surgeries and NHS dentists. As a country, we need to look after our young and old, our mums and dads, our daughters and sons. Without good health, so much else becomes increasingly difficult, or even impossible—working a job, looking after our families, playing in the local park. Good healthcare services are the cornerstone of a thriving community. Our healthcare services need to support our local communities and at the moment that is simply not happening. Increased resources for those critical services must be a priority.
We also see injustice in access to further education. Too few of my constituents are able to access the courses they so desperately need. Without access, they will not be able to develop the skills critical to a prosperous career in the global market we inhabit. The reason for that is simple: insufficient investment. Education equips people for a successful and prosperous life, where they get on and are able to cope with life’s challenges. In Bradford, we are blessed with two outstanding education institutions, Bradford College and Bradford University. They have transformed the life chances of countless generations of young people in Bradford over the decades, but without sufficient resources their ability to continue to transform the lives of Bradford’s people, both young and adult learners, will be stunted. In higher education, the abolition of the student maintenance grant, announced yesterday, is a backwards step, which will limit aspiration and undermine the concept of one nation that the Government seek to champion.
We also see injustice when we look at the number of jobs that pay a fair day’s wage. Weekly pay in my constituency is significantly below the national average, and the consequences of that are stark. For example, HMRC child poverty figures reveal that in my constituency an appalling 28.3% of our children—the future of this country—are stranded in poverty. Without family incomes rising in line—and, indeed, above inflation—children are always the first to suffer. We need those children to become the scientists, the artists, the wealth creators and the inspirational leaders of tomorrow, but we condemn them to the most deplorable start in life. That must change. At first sight, yesterday’s Budget announcement on the living wage appeared to offer hope to the working poor, but closer scrutiny reveals that any benefits accrued will easily be wiped out by deep cuts to in-work benefits.
I pledge to stand up for the people of Bradford South against such cynicism, and I conclude with words of warning from Martin Luther King, who said:
“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”
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It is a great privilege to follow the hon. Member for Bradford South (Judith Cummins)—a fine constituency and a fine city. I am sure that she will do an excellent job as the constituency’s new MP. I also pay tribute to my hon. Friend the Member for North Warwickshire (Craig Tracey), an outstanding individual who will, I am sure, do a great job for his constituents. I also pay tribute to his good lady wife for her service to Queen and country.
At a time of uncertainty abroad—be it in Greece, Russia or the middle east—the Chancellor delivered a Budget that prized economic stability at home. It was a one nation Budget that will provide security for working people in Weaver Vale, greater Cheshire and the north-west as a whole. Despite the chaos in the eurozone, Britain is still growing faster than any other major advanced economy in the world—faster than America and Germany. Our economy grew by 3% last year, a figure revised upwards from the 2.6% we expected in March. Our long-term economic plan is working. Indeed, before the election, the US President commented that the UK must be doing something right on its economy.
British businesses, backed by the Government through tax cuts and the removal of red tape, have created 2 million new jobs since 2010. I know that businesses across Weaver Vale welcomed the announcements made by the Chancellor yesterday about the extension of the employment allowance to £3,000 and the news that corporation tax will fall to 18% in 2020—from the 28% we inherited five years ago.
Earlier, the shadow Chancellor said that science and technology were not mentioned in the Budget, but the Chancellor has a fine record on such investment, including in Sci-Tech at Daresbury. The previous Labour Government took investment away from Daresbury, and when I became MP for the area in 2010 I was advised by the then Chairman of the Science and Technology Committee—he is no longer a Member, but he was a fine Chairman and I pay tribute to him—to watch like a hawk to ensure that the new Government did not take away investment from Daresbury as the previous Government had done. Instead, the Chancellor invested £150 million recently in big data, and I was proud that, just before the election, IBM signed a £130 million partnership with the Science and Technology Facilities Council that will secure high growth and high-tech, well-paid jobs for my constituents in the long term. That is good for my constituency and for the country, as we become an international hub for science and technology and big data.
The OBR has predicted that a further 1 million jobs will be created over the next five years, but we are the party of ambition and we want to go further. We are working towards a target of full employment—a job for everyone who wants one and a country that is open for business. In the past five years, Government-backed schemes such as the right to buy have helped 200,000 people on to the property ladder. That is vital, because home ownership is central to the aspirational country that we are building. Owning their own home means so much more to families. I was born in a council house, the youngest of four children. My family lived there for 20 years and, in 1972, Ted Heath’s Conservative Government offered us the opportunity to purchase the property, so my parents did so. My father died when I was a teenager and my mother had security in old age and retirement because they had invested in that house. The right to buy is central to the Conservative party’s philosophy that everyone should have a home of their own.
Yesterday, my right hon. Friend the Chancellor gave Britain a pay rise. Over the course of the Parliament, the introduction of the national living wage could be worth more than £5,000 to someone working full time for the minimum wage. I need not tell the House how much that extra income will mean to hard-working families trying to get on. Not only will working people earn more, they will keep more of what they earn. Typical taxpayers will pay £905 less tax than in 2010, thanks to the increases in the personal allowance over the last five years.
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I have to confess that I have not seen those figures, but the Government’s overall mantra is “A higher wage, lower tax, lower welfare economy”, which will benefit all of our constituents. That is in contrast to the Labour party, which had a high-tax, low-wage, high-benefit culture. That is the debate we are having today: the Conservatives want high wages and low benefits and I believe that the Budget will move Britain in that direction. That will be good for the country, for my children and for our country’s future. We are a beacon in Europe, as its second biggest economy, and if we continue down the same road, in 10 to 15 years we will become the biggest economy in Europe. The whole world is watching this great country, and we are the beacon for how things can be done in difficult economic circumstances.
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I am most grateful to the hon. Lady. I will indeed look into those figures. I hold surgeries every Friday, so I will see constituents about that. What I would say to her is that unemployment in Weaver Vale has dropped by 70% since 2010, and that is 80% full-time, good quality jobs.
I am not saying it is easy, but these difficult decisions have to be made. When Gordon Brown introduced working tax credits, he said the figure would be £2 billion. It is now £30 billion. The Labour party has to decide—I asked this question yesterday and did not get a reply—whether £30 billion is too much, too little or about right. We have to make these difficult decisions, but the hon. Lady makes an important point. I am not saying for a moment that it will be easy, but we are the party of aspiration. We are the party that always makes work pay, which is something that did not happen under 13 years of Labour.
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I extend my congratulations to the hon. Member for North Warwickshire (Craig Tracey) and my hon. Friend the Member for Bradford South (Judith Cummins) on their excellent maiden speeches today.
I am grateful to the people of St Helens South and Whiston for the faith they have placed in me to represent them here in this great Chamber. St Helens South and Whiston has a proud economic heritage and is at the heart of British industry and innovation. It is therefore only right that we continue to build on innovation and provide more and better jobs for our residents. This is a key element of my maiden speech.
First, I pay tribute to my immediate predecessor, Shaun Woodward, who had a distinguished ministerial and parliamentary career. I pay tribute in particular to his work in Northern Ireland and his support in securing the construction of the new St Helens South and Whiston hospital and the demise of the workhouse that was our hospital. I wish Shaun every happiness and success.
I would like to express my sincere appreciation for the genuine support given to new Members by the Commons staff. They are simply wonderful people and a credit to Westminster.
My constituency gave the world household names such as Pilkington and Beechams, as well as being home to the first railway trials, at Rainhill, when Stephenson’s Rocket became famous the world over. It is a constituency that quite literally enabled Britain to become the industrial powerhouse of the world. Britain would not be what it is today if it was not for the coalmines of Bold, Clock Face, Cronton and Sutton Manor. Over 30,000 people were once employed in my constituency in the great British industries of coal, manufacturing and pharmaceuticals, all of which revolutionised the world. Sadly, these jobs are gone, replaced too often by low-paid, short-term, part-time and insecure agency employment. I have seen nothing that the Government have done to help to eradicate that. We have 8,600 children in working families that are receiving either child tax credits or child and working tax credits. I am deeply concerned about the impact of yesterday’s Budget on those families.
However, today I want to talk about how my constituency can once again make Britain great and how it can be at the leading edge of innovation and creativity. Just last year, NGF Europe, based in my constituency, won the Queen’s award for innovation. Although I worked in the glass industry for 37 years, I will not pretend to know exactly what a small filament diameter glass cord actually does. But what I can say is how proud I am that they are made by skilled workers employed by NGF Europe, continuing our great glass-making tradition.
My constituency sits at the heart of the much talked about northern powerhouse—it was previously the northern way—as a generator of wealth and jobs. We aim to be a centre for logistics in St Helens and Whiston—a centre with connectivity and a place where industry and manufacturing can grow once again. The development of advanced manufacturing is our goal, leading to good, well paid jobs, high-level skills development, work experience and qualifications.
As hon. Members can tell, my constituency has always been at the heart of industrial change, and its heart has suffered from that change. Losing so many jobs from our economy crippled many families and tore not only the heart but the soul from their lives. My constituents literally lived through industrialisation and de-industrialisation. My hope is that they will live through further advanced manufacturing and industrialisation.
In 2008, the global financial crisis, caused by Lehman Brothers, had a devastating impact on my constituency. Quite simply, our plans were put off track. The Government of the day had to borrow to save our banks and, perhaps even more importantly, the savings of ordinary working-class people. But that was by the same Chancellor who paid off more debt than any previous Government on record. I am proud of that Chancellor.
The result of change has been the creation of a resilient people, often innovative in their own way and willing to try something new—proud people, with values underpinned by trade unionism; people who are warm and caring, with a great sense of humour. We have over 13,000 unpaid carers and over 400 recorded young carers—that is, children caring for their parents. It is estimated that there are 2,000 unrecorded young carers. As hon. Members will see, we are a strong community, compassionate and caring. We help each other. Above all else, my community has a strong heart—a resilient heart. That is why I want to see economic development that repairs the wounds of the past and gives each and every person an opportunity to shine—an opportunity to embrace new industries so that they can thrive.
In trying to grow our economy, we have great support. Our businesses are supported by a remarkable chamber of commerce—one of the largest in the country and twice awarded British chamber of the year. It is nationally recognised for its passionate approach to tackling the skills agenda for both employed and unemployed young people and for supporting business start-ups. We are also supported by a local enterprise partnership that is focused on business growth and ensuring fairness and equity in the jobs market. We connect industry, colleges and universities to nurture innovation and advanced manufacturing. My constituency shares its values with the rest of Liverpool city region, in that it is outward looking and strongly committed to helping our young people and graduates into work.
A strong economy goes hand in hand with a strong society, and we have an excellent voluntary sector. I pay tribute to the 93 voluntary organisations and the army of volunteers. We are proud of the many volunteers who support our Willowbrook hospice, awarded the Queen’s award for volunteering. We are proud of and thankful for all the support and volunteering given to our food banks to ensure that our families do not go hungry. We are very proud of St Helens and Whiston’s new state-of-the-art hospitals, a major NHS employer that provides the highest standards of medical care and just last month was recognised for providing the best patient experience in the UK.
We have St Helens—Saints—the internationally recognised rugby league team, twice former World Club champions and current Super League holders, now at Langtree Park, our world-class new stadium, and also providing good employment opportunities. Indeed, Russell Crowe, the star of “Gladiator” and “Les Misérables”, chose to come to Langtree Park rather than appearing at the Oscars this year.
We will continue to look forward to the economic challenges, building on the strength of our excellent manufacturing base. We will continue to champion skills, transport and business growth at every opportunity. We will continue to afford all the people of my constituency the dignity of work that is respected and rewarded with fair and just conditions and pay. My constituency already plays a leading role in manufacturing and in exporting goods to Europe and the rest of the world. We are willing and able to play an even bigger role in championing the growth of advanced manufacturing and exports of the future.
My constituents and I believe that Government should encourage and support such economic growth by investing in infrastructure and incentivising the private sector to invest to do what Britain is best at—innovating, producing, and exporting—thereby reducing the trade deficit and increasing revenues so that all people may benefit. This is my focus and my firm intent during this Parliament. I will not let my constituents be let down. I will ensure that my voice is heard and that my constituents get a fair, just hearing in this great Chamber.
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It is a great pleasure to follow the maiden speech by the hon. Member for St Helens South and Whiston (Marie Rimmer); I have a sneaking suspicion that she is going to be quite a formidable presence on the Opposition Benches during the next five years.
Britain has come a long way over the past five years. Tough decisions have been made to get the country’s deficit under control, to reform the welfare system, to make business more competitive, and to create new jobs. Unemployment in my constituency has fallen by more than 50% since 2010. In the black country, part of which I represent, there has been a significant manufacturing revival such that the region has been one of the fastest-growing of any in the United Kingdom over the past two years.
At the heart of this Budget is a recognition that we need to continue the work to rebalance the British economy away from London and the south-east, to make sure that we have a productive and balanced economy in the midlands, the west midlands and the north. Devolution of power, funding and decision making is absolutely fundamental if the regions of the United Kingdom, including the black country, are to reach their potential.
We need to encourage more jobs and investment in the black country, where we have a huge number of brownfield sites that can be used for development. One need only think of the industrial heritage of the black country to know that huge swathes of its land can be used for the development of industrial sites and for housing. I urge the black country’s local enterprise partnership and local authorities to identify appropriate brownfield sites for economic development to bring new jobs, taking advantage of the powers and responsibilities that the Government are offering to develop those sites. We should not go down the route of a recent idea by Dudley council to develop a huge industrial site on green-belt land just outside Halesowen. That is a very bad idea. I am the first to want to get jobs and investment into the black country, but the policy of Dudley’s LEP and local authority should be to focus first on brownfield in developing new jobs and opportunities.
At the heart of the plan to make Britain a more productive economy is further investment in skills to make sure that our young people are equipped to take advantage of the opportunities out there. That is why I welcome the Chancellor’s announcement in the Budget of a levy on larger companies to encourage further investment in quality apprenticeships. There have been 4,000 new apprenticeship starts in my constituency since 2010, but we need more and we need them to be better matched with the available opportunities in the local economy. That will build on the success of the Government’s city deal in the previous Parliament, which saw a significant level of investment, with about £1 million coming into the area for the development of a science and technology apprenticeship centre at Halesowen College.
Those are precisely the sorts of high-quality opportunities that we need in our local economy to encourage a greater focus on science and engineering—for example, to support the supply chain of Jaguar Land Rover. At the heart of this Budget, and absolutely fundamental to the future of the country and of the regions of Britain, is the continuation of the work that we started over the past five years to tackle the productivity problem by investing in high-quality skills so that people can take advantage of these opportunities.
While the Budget recognises the need to rebalance the economy and to make our businesses more competitive by cutting business taxes and creating more jobs, there is also—this has not been mentioned so far—the welcome commitment to further substantial real-terms increases in our national health service over the next five years. The Budget is clear in its commitment that this Government will support Sir Simon Stevens’s five-year plan for the NHS to continue the work of making it one of the best health services in the world. This Government, through this Budget, are committed to those real-terms increases over the next five years.
As the Financial Secretary to the Treasury is on the Front Bench, I want to make the case—which fits into the narrative of the new Government on one nation Conservatism, supporting people and making a more resilient and productive economy—that some of the new money being allocated to the NHS should be focused on improving mental health care. I was chairman of the all-party group on mental health in the previous Parliament. The argument is strong, given that mental health will become the most important health challenge that we face over the next 20 to 25 years. I am pleased that the Conservative party manifesto had specific pledges on mental health in the NHS, focusing on extending the range of availability of psychological therapies across the country, that are now being translated into action in government. The previous Labour Government introduced the IAPT—improving access to psychological therapies—programme, and the coalition Government invested £500 million in developing it. Now we need to take it further to give it to anybody who needs it.
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I thank the hon. Lady; she makes a very good point. The Conservative party manifesto had a commitment to extend the range and availability of psychological therapies. The Department for Work and Pensions has been running pilots on specific forms of back-to-work support for people suffering from mental health problems—for example, individual placement and support.
We need to invest further in child and adolescent mental health services because—this is why I raise the issue in the context of the Budget—it makes economic sense to do so. It fits into the thrust of the Budget, which is that we need to build a more resilient and productive economy. We have a commitment to invest in perinatal mental health. If we get the investment in mental health care right, it will lead to huge economic benefits for Britain, a more productive society, stronger families and more resilient individuals—people capable of stepping up to the plate and taking advantage of the opportunities out there.
I urge Ministers to be sympathetic to the cause of mental health in the national health service as they consider further investment in our public health system, and to continue the work of achieving the Conservative manifesto commitment to greater parity of esteem between mental and physical health in the NHS.
A more productive economy, a more competitive business environment with lower taxes and a focus on high-quality skills and further job creation in a highly competitive global economy, combined with investment in our health service and in meeting the key health challenges of the future, such as mental health care and building more individual resilience—all that is the true measure of a one nation Conservative Government. We are creating an economy that can generate millions more jobs, building on the jobs that we have already created in the last five years, and a more entrepreneurial society, in which people are prepared to take risks and invest for the future. We are building not only a more competitive economy, but a more compassionate society.
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Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker, for giving me the opportunity to make my maiden speech in this magnificent Chamber. The sense of history and occasion in here is tangible. It has long been a place of high emotion and drama, from the plotting of Guy Fawkes to the second world war, when it was bombed no fewer than 14 times. Those events should remind us of the fragility of liberty and democracy—something we must never forget.
We in the SNP are invested in an open, civic, inclusive and aspirational polity that seeks a better Scotland in a better world. We have made many friends in this place already, and I hope we will continue to do so.
I represent a constituency that is one of the most beautiful and diverse in these islands. Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk is vast and varied, stretching almost from one coast to the other. Its many towns and villages are proudly independent, and each has its own identity, traditions and history. As a native, I am delighted and proud to call the Scottish borders my home. I urge anyone to visit—all my colleagues seem to have done the same, but my constituency is the first one you come to as you cross the border—and to see the many and varied attractions, from Sir Walter Scott’s home at Abbotsford to the ruined abbeys across the region. You will find no warmer welcome anywhere, I promise.
Hon. Members should know, however, that borderers have fierce pride, huge family loyalty and, if roused, fire in their hearts. For centuries, political authority was loose in my constituency. Indeed, some parts were known as the debatable lands. Cattle were moved backward and forward over the border, clan feuds were common and arguments were often settled in brutal fashion. In this Chamber, convention has it that opposing Members are separated by two sword lengths. That has never been a propriety observed in my part of the world.
Close by in Northumberland lies Flodden, where in 1513 Scotland’s finest fell in a battle that is remembered across the borders in our common ridings in places such as Hawick, Coldstream and Selkirk. Every year, the Selkirk common riding honours the single Scottish warrior who crawled back holding an English banner. The Liberal Democrats must now understand what that feels like. [Laughter.]
I want to single out one Liberal Democrat in particular—my predecessor, Michael Moore. Michael was an immensely hard-working MP, who was rightly held in great affection in the constituency. I have always found him a warm, gracious and principled adversary, as well as a highly capable politician. One of his greatest achievements was his private Member’s Bill in the last Parliament, which legally bound our Governments to allocate 0.7% of GNP to overseas aid. That is a worthy testament to an honourable career. I am sure that all Members will join me in wishing him all the best for the future.
Our borders landscapes are not just varied and beautiful; they are a hugely important part of our economy, generating revenue and sustaining employment. We do, however, face real disadvantages. Rural Scotland, including my constituency, can feel like a forgotten land—a policy afterthought: take technology infrastructure and, in particular, mobile phone spectrum licensing, where the UK Government’s clamour for money leaves rural areas short-changed. If other countries can mandate 99% coverage and insist on rural areas being covered first, we can too.
Rural areas also suffer from poor transport links. As the argument rages over HS2, we would be happy just to get better conventional rail. Of course, our new Borders Railway opens in September. That is a welcome investment by the Scottish Government. Now, we must examine the feasibility of extending it to Hawick and Carlisle. I call on hon. Members on both sides of the Border and from all parts of the House to join me in advancing that important project.
We also need support for our Scottish farming communities. This is an area where the UK Government are wantonly failing to provide assistance. The EU’s common agricultural policy provides a lifeline for many farmers, but Scotland will end up bottom of the payments league on pillar 1 by 2019 and is already at the bottom on pillar 2. UK Ministers have cynically failed to pass on more than €220 million of convergence money that was intended for Scotland. On pillar 2, the EU’s newest member state, Croatia, already has a budget more than 20 times that awarded to Scotland. That is a remarkable abandonment. UK Ministers have been not so much sleeping on the job as comatose in the corner.
The Prime Minister promised to respect Scotland, but he and his Government continue to neglect our national interests. The Smith commission agreed that Scotland should lead on EU fisheries talks when appropriate. There was therefore an expectation that when the UK Minister was unable to attend talks some weeks ago, the Scottish Cabinet Secretary would do so. The UK Government blocked that, and instead sent an unelected Conservative peer with no involvement in fisheries. Such behaviour flies in the face of assertions by the Prime Minister and his colleagues that all parts of this United Kingdom are equal. Indeed, it presents a compelling argument for Scottish independence—and so does the behaviour we have seen from the Government in recent days. To reject every single SNP amendment to the Scotland Bill, while also suggesting that it should be amended in another place, is to laugh in the face of Scottish democracy.
Moreover, the crippling austerity Budget with which we were presented yesterday completely ignores the traditional Scottish—and, indeed, United Kingdom—values of fairness, protection of families, and decency. My hon. Friend the Member for Banff and Buchan (Dr Whiteford) made an excellent speech that gave a voice to some of the vulnerable groups the Budget targets.
But there is hope. There are times when the Government’s stubbornness can be broken by the will of this House, as we have seen today with the suspension of plans for English votes for English laws. Ministers have retreated in the face of parliamentary numbers, and we have sent them homewards to think again. I welcome that, and urge them to learn their lesson and do the same more often.
Despite the Government’s hostile actions, we have not come to this place to agitate for independence. We are here to protect and promote Scotland’s interests, and to stand with all those who will oppose austerity and work for freedom, human rights and social justice. We want to be constructive, and to fulfil our constitutional role in opposing this Tory Government—and, at times, opposing the official Opposition too. Our 56-strong SNP team were elected to this place in the most powerful affirmation of a people’s democratic will ever seen within the Union. The move towards a better, fairer, more democratic Scotland took a huge leap forward in May. This is our time. We come from an ancient nation, but we bring new thinking. I urge all Members to listen to what we have to say, for we have much to offer.
Let me end by asking Members to reflect on the words of the French philosopher Voltaire—[Hon. Members: “Ooh!”] I am sorry that it is not Robbie Burns. Voltaire famously remarked
“we look to Scotland for all our ideas of civilisation.”
We may be the elected representatives of a highly civilised nation, but my colleagues and I come here without conceit. We know that we will not always be right, but we want to listen, make friends and forge alliances. We seek fairness and a fair hearing, and we will always sit at the right hand of those who are at hame wi’ freedom. Like all in this place, regardless of politics or party, we want to do what we can to build a better world. Let that better world be the continuing and permanent vision and aspiration of each and every one of us, and, together, let us spare no toil in making it so. [Applause.]
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It is a pleasure to follow the hon. Member for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk (Calum Kerr). I wish him a long and distinguished career in the House. I hope that he and his colleagues will forgive me if I add that I hope to see his seat represented here for a long time. We are, of course, relieved to learn that the SNP is no longer agitating for independence from the House. As a Unionist, I am greatly reassured by that.
It is also a pleasure to follow the maiden speech of the hon. Member for St Helens South and Whiston (Marie Rimmer). Many people have asked what the boundaries of the northern powerhouse will be, but I can see that, in typical northern fashion, she will be boundless in pursuing the interests of her constituents. I pay tribute to her for making a characteristically warm speech. I also pay tribute to the hon. Member for Bradford South (Judith Cummins).
I warmly welcome the Budget as both a strong plan for the country’s finances and an important statement containing a considerable number of measures that will affect my constituency. As many Conservative Members have already noted, the continued strength of the recovery in the economy is impressive. Our growth is outstripping that of the rest of the G7, employment continues to rise, and unemployment continues to fall.
In my constituency, substantial progress has been made over the last five years under a Conservative-led coalition Government. Since 2010, there has been a fall in the number of people claiming jobseeker’s allowance, and an even more impressive fall of 58% in youth unemployment. Those may sound like the dry statistics that are pronounced all too regularly in the House, but they are much more than that. They reflect real people. The 49% fall in unemployment in my constituency represents 713 people: 713 people with greater prospects, greater financial security and greater peace of mind when it comes to providing for themselves and their families.
It is against that background that I want to speak briefly about two specific measures in yesterday’s Budget. My right hon. Friend the Chancellor’s announcement of a living wage of £9.00 an hour by 2020 is to be welcomed. Tackling low pay is part of our plan to move to a higher-wage, lower-tax, lower-welfare society, building a more productive Britain and giving families the security of well-paid work. This measure will benefit 6 million workers across the country, and will boost pay for those who are currently earning the minimum wage by £5,200 a year. To see just what that means to working families on low wages, one had only to look at the expression on the face of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, such was his obvious joy at the announcement.
Beyond the euphoria of that moment, however, it is worth considering the careful balance that has been struck between the new living wage for employees and what we must do to offset the resulting cost to employers. Small businesses can be reassured by the plans to extend the employment allowance to £3,000, cutting the jobs tax for firms, so that a business will be able to employ up to four people, full time, on the new national living wage and pay no national insurance at all. Larger companies will benefit from a reduction in corporation tax from 20% to 18% between now and 2020. As part of the Government’s plan to make work pay, the announcement of an increase in the personal allowance is also significant. A further 727 people in my constituency alone will pay no tax at all, and the total number of beneficiaries will be some 34,677. Again, those are seemingly dry statistics, but there is a real, positive story behind them.
While the Chancellor was able to pull the living wage rabbit out of the hat, the nettle that he had to grasp was that of tax credits. Members will, I hope, forgive me for reminding them that tax credit expenditure trebled in real terms between 1999 and 2010 to an estimated £30 billion—a far higher level than was expected by the “prudent” Labour Chancellor of the time. Some Chancellors can be accused of robbing Peter to pay Paul, or giving with one hand and taking with the other. However, the policy of tax credits itself, created by the last Labour Government, meant that the state would, in effect, tax with one hand and “give” benefits with the other, thus creating an inefficient cycle of tax and spend. The policy succeeded in greatly inflating the size of the welfare state and bloating the system that was required to administer it, but by taking money away from people in tax only to credit it back to them later, it did little to increase their net income and standards of living. My right hon. Friend the Chancellor is now faced with the unenviable task of unpicking that knotted system, built up under 13 years of Labour rule. It is no easy task, but the Budget makes some important headway.
As I have said, I welcome my right hon. Friend’s Budget. I believe that, by allowing people to earn more and, most importantly, to keep more of what they earn, it will raise the living standards, prosperity and wealth of the country as a whole and my constituents in Hazel Grove in particular, and I commend it to the House.
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Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker, for giving me an opportunity to contribute to the Budget debate.
As we heard from my hon. Friend the Member for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk (Calum Kerr), history is important. We can learn much by studying the social and economic conditions of the past, and my constituency holds many lessons that are relevant today, for I represent the part of Scotland that endured the clearances. Indeed, it would be remiss of me if I did not begin my speech by paying tribute to the remarkable families, and the crofters, who lost their livelihoods, their homes and their lives during that shameful period of history.
The clearances were perpetrated during the 18th and 19th centuries when highlanders were forced from land they had held for generations. The clearances shifted land use from farming to sheep raising because sheep were considered more valuable than people. In the process, a way of life was exterminated to further the financial ambitions of aristocratic landowners. The evictions that took place are remembered for their brutality and for the abruptness of the social change that they prompted. At the time this Parliament compounded the inequity by implementing legislation to prohibit the use of the Gaelic language, the playing of bagpipes and even the wearing of tartan. The cumulative effect devastated the cultural landscape of the counties that I represent and the resulting impact destroyed much of Scotland’s Gaelic culture.
This Parliament’s policy ultimately failed, although I suspect that the Chagos islanders would recognise this account. In those dark days the cries and pleas of innocent families were ignored. If they were lucky, those families were dragged screaming from their homes, evicted and left to face destitution. If they were unlucky, their homes were simply set alight as they sat within them. The clearances forced the migration of highlanders to the sea coast, the Scottish lowlands, and further afield to the new worlds of north America and Australasia. Today more descendants of highlanders are found in those diaspora nations than in Scotland itself. These dispossessed highlanders travelled the world and applied their creativity and resource in ways that have benefited all of humankind. The economic and social contribution of the ancestors of people from my constituency stand today as a shining example of why the free movement of people is something no Government should hesitate to encourage.
As we debate the Government’s Budget, it is unfortunate that the cries and pleas of many people in my constituency continue to be ignored. Whereas in history the people of the highlands were burned out of their homes so that others could profit from sheep, the beneficiary of this Budget will be the financial markets that continue to take precedence over people. The impact will be that vulnerable people will face impoverishment owing to lack of economic opportunity, low wages, Europe’s lowest pensions, further experimentation with the failed system that we know as universal credit, the erosion of working tax credits and, frankly, the stifling lack of imagination that is self-evident in the austerity these measures promote, and that has raised the UK to be the fourth most unequal society in the developed world in terms of wealth inequality. For many in my constituency, past and present, the hardship, misery and impoverishment that accompany this inequality are the only consequences of the Government’s long-term economic plan that has been over 300 years in the making.
While some here today speak of economic laws, I choose to highlight the fact that many of our fellows are starving. It is time we recognised that economic laws are made not by nature, but by human beings. These laws are chosen for implementation by human beings and their effect will be felt by human beings. A further £12 billion of cuts, accompanied by a punitive sanctions regime, will do nothing except ensure that the jeely piece, of which my hon. Friend the Member for Glasgow South (Stewart McDonald) spoke in his maiden speech, will remain a significant feature of childhood for far too many of our children.
Until 8 May my constituency was a Liberal stronghold. As long ago as 1918 the seat of Caithness and Sutherland was held by Sir Robert Leicester Harmsworth, Baronet of Moray Lodge in the Royal Borough of Kensington. I don’t think he was a local. Later the seat was held for many years by Robert Maclennan, who sits now as Baron Maclennan of Rogart just a short walk away, and more recently by the 3rd Viscount Thurso, John Archibald Sinclair, the fifth generation of the Sinclair family to represent Caithness in this Parliament. I pay tribute to Lord Thurso. In the past few weeks I have learned that he was a popular member of the establishment here at Westminster and I wish him well for the future.
I have lived in the highlands of Scotland for the greater part of my life and I can confirm that Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross is one of the very largest parliamentary constituencies by area and, despite what many of my colleagues will claim, it is easily the most beautiful—spectacularly so. It is a great honour for me to represent a highland seat in this Parliament. It seems clear that in my constituency at least, few ordinary people have had that privilege.
Beautiful as my constituency is, it is subject to great acts of vandalism. Cape Wrath is the only site in Europe where live 1,000 lb bombs are dropped. The bombing is enormously destructive to fragile wildlife and excludes communities from the proximity for up to 120 days each year. Similarly, Scotland’s oldest royal burgh, Tain, is tormented by fast jets flying as low as 150 feet to drop 1,000 lb concrete bombs just a few miles from housing estates and primary schools. It is instructive that while many of my constituents work tirelessly to protect our marine animals, our rivers, our wildlife and our environment, this Government consider it acceptable to bomb the land that we consider precious. I say instructive because this seems to be the manifestation of the one nation ideal that my hon. Friends and I are expected to be impressed by, but from which communities in my constituency derive only disadvantage.
I have spent much of my adult life in the voluntary sector, working with those cruelly challenged by the UK Government’s long-term economic plan. Like others, my family and I pay the punitive electricity charges and excessive carriage charges that this Government impose. We are exposed to the reform of rural fuel duties that has brought a new and vital meaning to the word “failure”. My communities prepare for the disastrous repercussions of the recent announcement of the closure of three Royal Bank of Scotland branches in our rural areas, and our businesses endure the iniquitous transmission charging regime maintained by this Government, which acts as the main obstacle to securing energy supplies and wealth for Scotland.
We are used to empty promises, but in the early days of this Parliament, Scotland has chosen to watch as the promises of something
“as close to a federal state as possible”,
where
“all the options of devolution are there and are possible,”
are publicly erased from the Scotland Bill. The Government know that for many, this Budget visits hardship on disadvantage.
Like my hon. Friend the Member for Inverclyde (Ronnie Cowan), I grew up fascinated and inspired not just by the technological achievements of Project Apollo, but by the social achievements of the civil rights movement. As a child I learned of the bravery of Rosa Parks and how she changed the world, and as an adult I learned of the personal challenges met and overcome by, and of the uncommon political imagination of, Franklin Delano Roosevelt. In those individuals I found examples not only of bravery but of imagination: the imagination to perceive the benefit of change in a world that aspires to achieve, not receive.
Many of those who supported me on 7 May did so in the belief that it is now time to achieve, and their uncommon political imagination sits around me today. Our aim is to achieve the right to build a fairer Scotland; we aim to establish a state of affairs where our old, our disadvantaged and our vulnerable are valued, and where our poor are protected not punished.
I made the decision to stand for election to this Parliament knowing, as Mrs Parks did, that
“I had the strength of my ancestors with me”,
and I know, as you do, Madam Deputy Speaker, that “all are equal”. Indeed, I stand here today knowing, as Mr Roosevelt did, that the
“test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundance of those who have much, it is whether we provide enough for those who have little”.
In that task we will not be found wanting for, like Roosevelt:
“We are going to make a country in which no one is left out.”
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It is an honour to speak after the hon. Member for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk (Calum Kerr), who spoke eloquently. I was particularly interested to hear how his constituency is similar to mine and faces many of the same issues—it is a rural constituency where rural broadband and transport are key issues. I was also interested and honoured to speak after the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross (Dr Monaghan) who made an equally passionate speech. I look forward to hearing many more speeches from him on similar subjects in the future.
This Conservative Budget is a Budget of core Conservative values—financial security, national security, and making work pay—and I wish to identify three different areas that I think should have cross-party support. The first is preparing our young people and getting them into work. It is about apprenticeships and the first step for our young adults to make their way in life. There can be little criticism of a scheme that helps to provide the foundations of the highly skilled workforce that we need for a competitive British economy. Through the apprenticeship levy, businesses are encouraged to take on and train our next generation, which will benefit from in-work training. We created 2 million apprenticeships in the last Parliament, and are committed to creating 3 million more—an ambition that surely must be welcomed.
The second point is about ensuring that for those in work, work pays, and that is achieved through the introduction of a national living wage. The concept of a living wage has had support from many quarters, including small and large businesses, parties across the political spectrum, and consumers across the country. The previous Government increased work opportunities across the country, and those in work must be paid fairly for the work they do, and be able to support themselves and their families from their own income. The new living wage starts to address that issue.
The living wage will also make headway in closing the gender pay gap. Historically, women have suffered more from low pay than men, and that has been a key factor in the gender pay gap. By increasing the minimum wage to a living wage, women stand to benefit and we take another step towards wage equality. Some have said that the amount the living wage is set at may not go far enough quickly enough. I note, however, that the right hon. Member for Doncaster North (Edward Miliband) called for an £8 minimum wage by 2020. The Chancellor has given us a £9 wage by the same date.
Thirdly, and critically, we must live within our means as a country. We cannot leave unnecessary debts to the next generation. In 2010 many said that it was not the right time to reduce the deficit. We had one of the highest deficits in the western world and we were coming out of recession with high unemployment. However, those who did not support the deficit reduction in 2010 must surely support it now. This year, the economy is predicted to grow by 2.4%, making us the fastest-growing western economy. We have the most competitive corporation tax in the G20. Our businesses have created 2 million more jobs since 2010, and the Office for Budget Responsibility forecasts that 1 million more will be created in the next five years. If now is the not the time to cut the deficit, when is?
The question must not be whether to cut the deficit to bring the country back to a surplus, but how. A Budget that makes efficiency savings, reduces tax avoidance and ensures we have a welfare system that rewards work must be, and is, the fairest way to achieve a stable recovery for all.
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The hon. and learned Lady and many others on the Government Benches have referred to the cut in corporation tax and the low and competitive rate of corporation tax in this country as an aid to economic development. I appreciate that we need to maintain competitiveness on corporation tax, but I put it to her that all that has happened in the past eight or nine years is that British companies have used that tax cut to build up something in the region of £550 billion of cash reserves that they are not investing. The weakness in the Budget yesterday is that it did nothing to encourage those companies to invest and raise productivity.
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I pay tribute to those who have made maiden speeches. The hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross (Dr Monaghan) spoke passionately about inequality and the disadvantaged. I think many of us will share those sentiments. I have been to his constituency and it is very beautiful. I am pleased that I can still go there on holiday without having to go abroad. The hon. Gentleman was generous to his predecessor. John Thurso chaired the Finance and Services Committee in this House and did an excellent job of putting the internal finances of this House into good shape. He should be congratulated on that. My hon. Friend the Member for Bradford South (Judith Cummins) mentioned her predecessor, Gerry Sutcliffe. I would have to say, with a bit of tongue-in-cheek, that Gerry has certainly left a big hole in the defence of the parliamentary football team, but I will move on.
The Budget has certainly received big headlines, but I will try to focus on one or two details that probably do not make quite such good reading for Government Members. The Chancellor is coming back in the autumn with his forecast for cuts to departmental spending. Local authorities in the previous Parliament had £10 billion of the £27 billion of Government grant cut—nearly 40%. That has disproportionately affected poorer authorities in the north. The forecast is for another £9.5 billion of cuts in this Parliament on top of that. Local authorities have done very well to be as efficient and effective as possible with the spending they are left with. They simply cannot carry on delivering the services that our constituents want from them if those £9.5 billion cuts follow on from the cuts in the previous Parliament. Why has local government been disproportionately singled out for cuts compared with other services? That is the question the Government have to answer.
There are two areas where I think there is a particular problem. I support the principle of the Government’s devolution proposals if they are not simply a mechanism for passing on more cuts for local authorities to deliver. We have to have some concerns about that. I would say, however, that, given that they are primarily about trying to rebalance the economy and with the talk of the northern powerhouse, we should look at what has happened to local authority spending on planning and economic activity. Local Government Association figures show a massive 55.4% cut in spending on planning and economic development in high-cut authorities in the last five years, and even in medium-cut authorities that figure is 47%. Those sorts of figures will not support the economic regeneration and development in the north that the Government and everybody else want, which is a matter of particular concern.
We have a real problem in social care. The NHS has had some protection, but 300,000 fewer elderly people are getting social care from local authorities now than in 2010, because authorities now offer it only to those in the greatest need. Age UK says that more than 1 million people needing care are not getting it, which puts pressure on the NHS and accident and emergency units and results in beds being occupied by people who should be in their own homes being properly looked after; and this year, there will be a further cut of more than £1 billion to those services.
We cannot carry on like this. If we are going to have proper joined-up health and social care, social care needs some protection as well. I raised this point with the Secretary of State. Social care has some of the lowest paid employees of any sector in local government or any other service. If the living wage is applied at £9 per hour to everyone in the social care sector, it will cost local authorities about £1.5 billion by 2020. Local authorities cannot find that money on top of the cuts they have to make anyway. They simply cannot do it. This is an added burden that the Treasury must bear by giving that money back to local authorities. Instead of showing in the Red Book, as it does, a £1.5 billion saving in the welfare budget, the Treasury has to give this money back to local authorities to compensate them—and that does not include the cost of paying other workers in a similar way.
I hoped the Budget would boost house building in this country, but let us look at the hidden effects. The cap on local authority borrowing has not been lifted, but the rents that housing associations and local authorities can charge have been reduced from the commitment by the previous Housing Minister, the hon. Member for Hertford and Stortford (Mr Prisk), who promised rent increases of CPI plus 1% over 10 years, to a 1% reduction per year. The Chancellor said yesterday that it would come from efficiency savings. No, it will not. Housing associations and local authorities cannot cover 4% a year less in rents through efficiency savings. The LGA has said that it will reduce the ability of local authorities and housing associations to invest in new homes and improve existing ones, while the National Housing Federation said today that, on a conservative estimate, it would reduce the amount of money available for development by £3.9 billion and mean 27,000 fewer social homes being built. That did not appear in any of the Budget headlines. I repeat, some 27,000 fewer social houses will be built because of the Budget and there will be a £50 million loss to the housing account in my own city of Sheffield. Those are figures that the Chancellor did not crow about yesterday, but they are there in the bottom lines of the Red Book.
There are additional problems, particularly for housing associations and local authorities, arising from the impact of welfare reforms, rising rent arrears, extra collection costs and the uncertainty of the right to buy scheme. These are all issues that will affect the ability of associations to borrow more money. They have already borrowed on the strength of the forecast rent increases, and now those increases have been taken away from them. No one can run a business like that, with the Government constantly chopping and changing the forecast revenue streams.
There is this idea of extra rents for higher-paid social housing tenants. Outside London, I think it is £30,000 a year. That is not particularly high pay for a family. Why should families who have been social housing tenants for years and have suddenly started earning £30,000 be penalised? It does not happen to owner-occupiers. What sort of system will be set up to do this? Will local authorities and housing associations have to means-test their tenants to identify those who earn more than £30,000 a year? Otherwise, how are we going to do it? When someone starts to earn £30,000, will their rent suddenly jump up overnight, or will there be a system of tapers? It is just another system where, as people earn more, the state takes more back. How does that make work pay? How is it consistent with the rest of the Budget? There are some questions that the Government simply have to answer.
Does the rent increase apply to supported housing with care? Housing association and local authority arrangements mean that wages form about 80% of the cost of those packages and it is not possible to get out of them. If the rent revenue to fund them suddenly drops, those care supported packages and that particular sort of specialist accommodation will no longer be viable. Have the Government thought that through or will they exempt rents in care and supported-package housing?
Finally, I want to address the issue of 18 to 21-year-olds not having an automatic entitlement to housing benefit. A lot of these people are very vulnerable indeed. The Albert Kennedy Trust told me the other day that 24% of people who go to Crisis and Centrepoint are from the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community. They are often very frightened and very worried. They have probably just come out to their parents and are frightened to go home because they are not welcome there. Are they now going to be excluded from entitlement to housing benefit? What will the exceptions be? How will the Government set them down, and will they consult on them so that they are actually meaningful?
A lot of the detail in the Budget did not come out in yesterday’s headlines. I am really worried about the effect of the impact of cuts on local authorities—will the Government fund the living wage?—and about the impact on the development of badly needed social housing, which will be drastically cut by the Budget.
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It is a delight to follow those who have already spoken, including the hon. Members for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross (Dr Monaghan) and for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk (Calum Kerr), who made their maiden speeches. It was interesting to hear the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross talk about the clearances in a dark period of history. That took me back to learning the history of my own church, where I was baptised and confirmed, in Plympton on the outskirts of Plymouth. It was desecrated by troops loyal to Cromwell in reprisal partly for its support of the royalist cause in the civil war. It is interesting to see the statute that stands outside it today. I enjoyed the speech of the hon. Member for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk. We have had the UK and US versions of “House of Cards”, and given the content of his speech, we know he could write the Holyrood version.
I welcome the Budget outlined by the Chancellor yesterday and the many steps it sets out. I am particularly interested in the investment plan for the south-west of England. The description that has been given of infrastructure in the southern part of Scotland reminded me of last night’s Adjournment debate on infrastructure in the south-west, for which there is a £7.2 billion investment plan. That is about not just the big ticket projects, such as the Stonehenge tunnel, which will open up the A303 into the south-west, but the smaller projects, such as creating the new station in Edginswell in my constituency; the south Devon link road, which will open at the end of this year after a nearly 60-year wait; and the investment towards opening the Whiterock business park, which will create new opportunities for high-skilled, high-paid jobs in an area that perhaps for too long has been reliant on more seasonal employment and lower-paid trades.
The living wage is also welcome. The work of many of the social care staff in the bay has been undervalued for too long. Obviously, there needs to be a discussion about what will happen with local government funding, but it is right that their work is being valued more than perhaps has been the case in the past.
On investing in productivity and the future of our economy, I am pleased about some of the investment that has already gone into my constituency, including the coastal communities fund, which is delivering improvements. Gooch & Housego has used the regional growth fund to expand its production facility in Torquay, and, as we speak, the coastal communities fund is being used to help bring more shops to our high street. There is also support for the future electronics and photonics innovation centre, which, although it will serve Torbay, is about 100 metres over the border in the constituency of my hon. Friend the Member for Totnes (Dr Wollaston). Its work with South Devon College will provide real opportunities for local companies and local students.
I also welcome the news about the increase in the tax allowance, which will take more of my constituents out of income tax altogether. This will combine with the impact of another year’s welcome freezing of the fuel duty so that people can see the real benefits stemming from the result of the general election on 7 May, as well as from the performance of the Government before that.
The debate on the living wage is interesting. Last year, I become the first Conservative candidate or MP in 102 years to attend a meeting of the Torbay TUC, when I was invited along to discuss its living wage campaign. Afterwards, it pointed out that I had just broken that particular record. I have certainly been pushing my local council—sadly, not a living wage employer—to look at picking this up, and I am pleased that compulsion will now apply from a national level.
It would be remiss of me not to reflect on the support offered to our NHS. Torbay has many attributes, and one is that we have an older than average population. One ward in my constituency has 9% of the entire population aged over 85 and it is soon to become 10%, which presents a range of challenges for managing chronic illnesses and care conditions, along with other elements that follow from that type of demographic. In Paignton, too, the number of over-60s is expected to be 30% above the average, so I welcome the continuing support for the NHS and hope that we can work closely at the local level to deliver an integrated care package for local people to ensure they get the best available services.
In reflecting on some of the proposed changes to benefits, it has been interesting to hear some of the protests over the last 24 hours. We should recall that back in October 2013, Labour’s spokesperson on this subject claimed that Labour would be “tougher on benefits” than the Tories. It is interesting to hear all the vitriol coming one way without hearing any proposals to clarify what Labour means. Yesterday, the acting leader of the Labour party, the right hon. and learned Member for Camberwell and Peckham (Ms Harman), mentioned that some benefit cuts would have been inevitable, so let us hear some of them outlined. We understand that other Labour Members oppose that and want to put up taxes instead, but it is somewhat hypocritical for them to come here and criticise every policy without putting up their own. The visionary aspect comes from the fact that we are outlining our policy today, knowing that it will be Labour’s policy tomorrow.
I very much welcome the continuance of the £90 million coastal communities fund. Comments have been made today by a couple of London colleagues about aviation infrastructure. My appeal would be to make the debate about aviation for the whole country and how best to service the whole country rather than how to provide an extra runway for the south-east. Many routes to key markets in the south-west inevitably pass through Heathrow, but we need a wider aviation debate, not just one—probably for the third time in this place—about whether there should be an extra runway at Heathrow or Gatwick. That debate becomes too narrow for me as an MP representing a constituency in the south-west of England.
It is a pleasure to welcome the Budget. As a practising Christian, it would be remiss of me not to say that I have some concerns about the proposals on Sunday trading. For me, Sunday—certainly at St Matthias in Torquay, which I currently attend—is a joyous and fun day. It is a day when people can come to church as a family, but its value is not attained only when people come to church—often people spend time with their families and enjoy a day that is different and special by comparison with the other six days of the week. There is nothing missing if there are 18 hours during which people cannot visit a large Tesco or Sainsbury. I respect the fact that other Members take a different view, but for me there is something special about Sunday, so any changes made must be appropriate. I am not sure how productive it would be to have a shop in Torbay opening until 5 pm while one in Teignbridge can open only until 4.30. I await with interest the detailed proposals that the Government will bring forward.
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I would not necessarily agree with the right hon. Gentleman. There were issues involving local licensing authorities, going back to before the reforms that were brought in a decade ago, which meant that some authorities would permit later closing than others. That had worked for some years. There might be a challenge for local planning authorities, however, in that if slightly later opening were permitted, there could be pressure for development on the edge of their area to get around restrictions in neighbouring communities. I understand the difference that the proposals would make for consumers. At the moment, we all know that large supermarkets tend to open between 10 o’clock and 4 o’clock on Sundays, although some of them exploit the ability to have browsing time beforehand.
This is a positive Budget. It is one that we can take pride in, and it will take the country forward. It is notable that it has been based on policies that were agreed and supported by the electorate. The policies were endorsed by 51 of the 55 MPs in the south-west, and I am pleased to be able to support them today.
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I should like to start by congratulating all those who have made their maiden speeches this afternoon. I pay particular tribute to the excellent speeches by my hon. Friends the Members for Bradford South (Judith Cummins) and for St Helens South and Whiston (Marie Rimmer).
It will be easy for me, as a Hull MP, to keep my remarks about the Budget fairly brief. That is because the words “Hull” and “Humber” did not appear once in the Chancellor’s speech, or in the Red Book, despite the northern powerhouse being a key policy for the Government and Hull being an important city in the north. As my right hon. Friend the Member for Newcastle upon Tyne East (Mr Brown) said, we all want to broaden, deepen and strengthen the economy in the north, but it looks as though the northern powerhouse has now become the northern power cut, particularly in regard to investment in rail improvements.
Just a few days ago, the Minister with responsibility for the northern powerhouse, the Under-Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, the hon. Member for Stockton South (James Wharton), appeared not to know where the north was, so I shall help him by saying that we are the ones who had our rail investment paused, unlike those in the south, where no such pause has taken place. But never mind—we have been offered a plastic Oyster card to make up for the cancellation of the electrification of the TransPennine Express route and the lack of any new rolling stock.
I also want to talk about renewables. The Humber area is working hard to be the UK’s renewable energy estuary, in the interests of energy security, of fighting fuel poverty and climate change and of growing this important area of our economy for the nation. It is therefore unhelpful to keep getting so much hostility to renewable energy from those on the Government Benches. The Budget introduces a change to the climate change levy, which will now also apply to companies that use renewable energy. That will effectively be a charge of £490 million for companies that have switched to renewable energy, and it will discourage firms from using renewable energy in the future. By 2020, the cut will amount to £910 million a year, which will discourage investment in renewable energy sources.
The Chancellor claims that this is a Budget for “working people”. The centrepiece is the pledge of a living wage of £9 an hour by 2020 for those over 25. Younger workers get no such pledge. That is not the living wage. Of course we welcome the increase in the minimum wage—we called for it in our manifesto—but what the Government have announced will not be a living wage because the rate will be too low by 2020. Outside London, the living wage needs to be over £10, not £9, to be worthy of the name. Also, the rate proposed for 2020 is lower than the current London living wage, which is £9.15.
Worse still, the proposals do not compensate for cuts in tax credits. This lunchtime, Paul Johnson of the Institute for Fiscal Studies has said that
“there is simply not enough money going into the new minimum wage to anywhere near compensate…people on tax credits”.
We should be cutting the need for tax credits rather than the tax credits themselves. It is a fact that 75% of children in Hull North live in households that depend on tax credits. They will be worse off overall, just as they were at the end of the 2010 Parliament. One of my constituents, Maureen Craven, will also be worse off even though she is doing the right thing. She told me:
“I have had my grandson living with me since he was four months old. He is now seven years old and I rely on my child tax credit to buy shoes and school uniform.”
Such families, who are doing the right thing, will be affected by this policy.
It is also difficult to take the Tories seriously on the living wage when they have failed to enforce the legal national minimum wage. There have been only two prosecutions for minimum wage non-payment since 2010, and the number of inspections for compliance is falling. Will the Government get tough with big businesses to enforce a living wage? Will they help small businesses that have genuine fears about being able to afford the living wage? Will lower-paid local government workers, who will have years more of 1% pay increases, be paid at the living wage level? Will councils be funded for the costs they have faced—in the light of the cuts—over the past five years? As my hon. Friend the Member for Sheffield South East (Mr Betts) said, there are already growing concerns about the care sector and how it will cope with an additional cut of £1.5 billion that will have to be borne by local authorities.
When it comes to motivating the richest to increase productivity, it means, in the Tories’ view, boosting their income, including unearned income. There is no austerity for them. That is because the Tories have always thought that all wealth creation comes from those at the top of the income scale. For the poorest workers, and everyone in the public services, it involves cutting real incomes and redefining child poverty to cover up the deed. Their welfare to work is really welfare to charity, as we will see, I am sure, at Hull’s food banks. It is the food banks that will need the longer Sunday opening hours, and not local shops, as the Chancellor announced in the Budget.
This was a Budget of selective austerity. It will leave people in a more complex poverty trap. They will have more debt and their work will not pay. After the millionaire tax cut, children of millionaires now get to inherit more unearned income to fund—in the Chancellor’s own words—“their lifestyles”. Meanwhile, aspiring youngsters from working families in Hull trying to get the qualifications for skilled jobs that we want in the city see student maintenance grants axed and turned into loans, and the cap for tuition fees removed.
Let me raise very quickly my concerns about limiting support to two children. It is a particularly ill-thought through policy and will lead to more and more children living in poverty. I am appalled—I use that word advisedly; I do not normally speak like this—by what the SNP spokesperson highlighted yesterday. She spoke about the proposal that a woman who had been raped and conceived a child would, if it was a third child, have to go to the DWP and provide evidence of the rape, and about the stigma that could be attached to the child. It is a disgraceful policy that the Government have brought forward.
As Jonathan Freedland stated today in the media, the rabbit that was pulled out of the hat was very thin. Under close scrutiny, things do not stand up. We will see falling incomes, especially in places like Hull and especially for lower paid women workers. The Chancellor talked about trying to improve wages for people in this country, but that will not be reflected in what this Budget actually delivers.
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I congratulate all those who have made their maiden speeches today, including the hon. Members for St Helens South and Whiston (Marie Rimmer), for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk (Calum Kerr), for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross (Dr Monaghan) and for Bradford South (Judith Cummins), as well as my hon. Friend the Member for North Warwickshire (Craig Tracey). They all made excellent speeches.
I welcome the Budget, as it ensures security for working people by putting the public finances in order, and sets out a plan for a more productive and balanced economy. I was particularly pleased to see a number of measures that will make a real difference to my constituents in Lewes. The first was the announcement on transport. The freezing of fuel duty for another year is to be welcomed. My constituency, like many, is rural—many residents are heavily reliant on cars, as the area has little or no public transport. Many businesses are reliant on farm vehicles and heavy goods vehicles.
Any increase in fuel duty would have had a significant impact on the amount of money in the local economy, so the freeze is very welcome, as is the announcement on ring-fencing vehicle excise duty and making the owners of more expensive cars pay more. The money raised will be ring-fenced for the English strategic road network. That is welcome news for my constituents, as more money will be used to repair existing roads and to pay for improvements to roads such as the A27, for which the right hon. Member for Doncaster North (Edward Miliband) pledged that he would cut funding if Labour was elected. The A27 in my constituency is a busy and congested road, and this year alone there have been a number of deaths from accidents. The investment in that road is very welcome.
In addition, investment in rail infrastructure is very welcome indeed. Yesterday, I spoke in a Westminster Hall debate on the issues we face locally in dealing with Southern rail. A number of MPs from Sussex, Surrey and London and from both sides of the House were there to raise issues about trains being consistently late, consistently cancelled and consistently overcrowded. I am sure that many hon. Members who came here by train today, the day of the tube strike, know exactly what I mean.
Our line from the Sussex coast up to London is at capacity. I was pleased to read in the Budget that the Government will extend the scope of the Lewes to Uckfield study, which is taking place this summer, to consider improving the line between London and the south coast and to re-examine the Department for Transport’s feasibility study of the Brighton main line, too. That is a real way to get a second rail main line from the Sussex coast to London. This work cannot come soon enough for the residents of Sussex.
As a nurse, I very much welcome the extra £8 billion to be invested in the NHS to provide a seven-day-a-week service. Owing to the changes made locally by hospital management, which I raised in Health questions this week, patients from areas of my constituency such as Seaford, Polegate and Alfriston now have to travel to Hastings for basic services. The extra £8 billion will go towards more local services and making services available at weekends and evenings, so that local people can obtain the care that they need every day of the week.
Housing is a huge issue in my constituency—not just the availability of housing, but its affordability for those who want to buy or rent. I am pleased that the rent-a-room relief will increase from £4,250 to £7,500 next April. I am also pleased that a level playing field between buy-to-let landlords and homeowners will be created by addressing mortgage tax relief for landlords. In my constituency, family homes are increasingly being bought for student lets and used as houses in multiple occupation. This change will free up family housing for local people in my constituency.
Finally, I welcome the welfare changes announced yesterday. As someone from a working-class background, I am only too aware how much of a struggle life can be on a low income. I am pleased that the Budget supports low-paid workers by increasing the tax threshold from £10,600 to £11,000 now and to £12,500 by 2020. I am also pleased about the announcement on the living wage. We have heard much debate about that this afternoon, but it is definitely welcome.
A report last year by the Scottish Public Health Observatory found that changes to tax and benefits could do more to impact on health inequalities than changes to health care itself. It found that the implementation of a living wage is among one of the most effective interventions to reduce inequality and improve health. According to Public Health England, there is currently a seven-year difference in life expectancy between those who receive benefits and those who do not. Anything we can do to get people off benefits and into work must surely be welcome, and the living wage is one way to do that. Introducing the living wage is a massive step forward.
I welcome the Budget, which moves Britain from being a low-wage, high-tax, high-welfare economy to being a high-wage, low-tax, low-welfare society, and I congratulate the Chancellor on it.
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On this issue, we are as one. We are working together in the west midlands to construct the midlands powerhouse and realise the full potential of the midlands. What was surprising yesterday was that the Chancellor waxed lyrical about the remarkable Greater Manchester, mentioned the northern powerhouse in considerable detail and referred to just about every other part of Britain, and at the end of his remarks made a throwaway reference to the midlands powerhouse. That has not gone down well in the midlands.
Crucially, at the next stages what the Chancellor cannot do is empower but impoverish. One of the great problems with this Government is that everything they do is characterised by a fundamental unfairness of approach. Some £700 million has been cut from the budget of Birmingham City Council—£2,000 for every household—yet in the Chancellor’s own constituency there has been an increase in spending power of 2.6%. Likewise, the West Midlands police have been treated unfairly. If they were treated fairly, they would be entitled to £43 million more—enough for 500 police officers back on the beat.
We will never be one nation while the Chancellor and the Government continue to demonise and divide, with their talk of shirkers or strivers, work or benefits. I was born in poverty—my father a navvy, my mother training to be a nurse; they worked hard to get on. I have always believed that those who can work should work, but I object to wicked caricatures of the sort we heard yesterday in relation to the young homeless—“they come out of school, they go on benefits, then they want to get a flat”.
Three years ago, I hosted in the House of Commons the Homeless Young People’s Parliament in Parliament—quintessentially middle England, middle Scotland, middle Wales young people, the best of Britain, who had ended up homeless, overwhelmingly through no fault of their own. Last Friday, I was at Orchard Village, which serves young homeless people in my constituency. It is substantially dependent on housing benefit for its income and now faces closure.
If we are to be one nation, the Chancellor cannot continue to play politics with the United Kingdom, posing one nation against the other. EVEL—if ever there was an accurate acronym, that is it.
As for the Tories being the party of working people, they introduced in the Budget a tax on aspiration, saying to working families in social housing, “If you get on, you have to pay much more or move out.” The party of working people? On Sunday trading, I agree with what was just said. One of Labour’s greatest achievements, the weekend, is now threatened by this Conservative Government, who would compel seven-day working, in reality forcing millions of retail workers, particularly women, to work on Sunday and putting at risk thousands of small stores all over the country.
The party of working people, with the so-called living wage? Yesterday, when the Chancellor spoke about this, he grinned like a Cheshire cat and the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions punched the air, as if England had scored the winning goal in the World cup. The living wage? Twelve years ago, I was a founder member of the drive for the living wage, working through the former Transport and General Workers Union, with the East London Citizens Organisation and London Citizens, to organise, for example, thousands of cleaners in Canary Wharf and the City of London and the first-ever strike in the history of the House of Commons to win the living wage. This is not the living wage or a “new contract” with the British people, as the Chancellor called it this morning; this is a con trick by a cunning Chancellor, who gives with one hand and takes away with the other.
In the west midlands, 56% of families are on tax credits and 300,000 children depend on tax credits. Yet a family with two children and one full-time earner on £20,000-plus now faces losing £2,000: for every £1 they get from a higher living wage, they will lose £2 in tax credits. What is the Government’s answer? They say, “Ah, the £9”. That is £9 in 2020, but they are cutting tax credits in the here and now.
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The hon. Gentleman and I both come from a trade union background. I feel for public servants such as the firefighters, the police officers, the nurses. All those who do excellent work for the communities we serve, who have already been squeezed for five years, now face a 1% increase for the next four years. Effectively, that means a substantial cut in the living standards of millions of public servants.
The Chancellor says that the £7.20 rate will start next April, but the real living wage—I repeat, the real living wage—is already £7.85, or £9.15 in London; that is not based on cutting tax credits. As for the Chancellor being the workers’ friend, I did not come down with the last rainfall, and neither did the country. It is not a living wage if people cannot live on it. As the reality dawns and millions feel the pain of what the Chancellor has done, the last 24 hours of triumphalism on the part of the Conservative party will give way to the grim reality as Government Members go back to their constituencies and explain why they are inflicting cuts in living standards on the hundreds or potentially thousands of families they represent. The IFS’s verdict today is absolutely damning: for 13 million families, the living wage will not compensate for the tax credit cuts, and the poorest will be hit much harder.
When it comes to the Tories as the party of working people, let us not forget that this was certainly not a Budget for young working people. The crucial test of any Government is how they treat the next generation. Young people need the basics in life to get on—a decent job or education, and a roof over their heads. The Budget fails on all those points. It locks young people out of the living wage, makes higher education increasingly a luxury and cuts housing benefit for thousands who would otherwise end up homeless.
At this defining moment for our country, we must ask ourselves about what kind of country, economy and society we want. For me, it is an economy with a real living wage, not a phoney one. Crucially, as I have argued throughout my trade union life, it is the high-pay, high-quality, high-productivity culture of the kind that can be seen in the Jaguar factory in my constituency. We need a serious long-term economic plan if we are to promote such a high-pay, high-quality, high-productivity culture throughout our country, but the Budget failed lamentably on the fundamentals of productivity, skills, homes, rail and road. Ultimately, this country will never succeed and working people will certainly never succeed if we proceed on the basis of a low-waged, low-productivity economy.
What kind of country do we want? It has to be one in which our citizens are safe where they live and work, their children are protected and we are protected from terrorism. It is therefore fundamental folly for the Government, having cut 17,000 police officers, to continue down the path of cutting 17,000 more police officers. What kind of society do we want? Before the Budget, the OECD was right to warn against measures that would slow recovery and harm the poor, but that is exactly what will now happen.
Rick was a lifelong Tory and an ex-sergeant-major in the British Army, but he has joined my local Labour party. He told me, “I was a lifelong Tory, but I have joined the Labour party because I believe in both aspiration and support for the vulnerable.” He is in sharp contrast to a cunning Chancellor who gives hubris a bad name and is ambitious not so much for the country as for himself. After the last 24 hours—and the last century—now and in the future, the simple reality is that the party for the working people always was and always will be the Labour party.
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It is a pleasure to follow the hon. Member for Birmingham, Erdington (Jack Dromey), and we have also heard five excellent maiden speeches this afternoon. Between them, they covered Walter Scott, the Brontës, George Eliot, Roosevelt and Voltaire. I do not want to sow any dissension within the ranks of the Scottish National party, but I will leave it to the hon. Members for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross (Dr Monaghan) and for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk (Calum Kerr) to sort out between themselves who has the more beautiful constituency, to which they both laid claim. All five maiden speakers exhibited the great passion with which I am sure they will defend their constituents in the future. I hope that they would all agree that in setting any budget—for a household, a company or a country—it is best to start with reality.
The reality that we face is a deficit of £90 billion a year and a national debt of 80% of GDP. That should have a sobering effect on all our considerations and, clearly, the former Chancellor Alistair Darling is well aware of it, given his remarks this morning. I hope that where he leads the official Opposition will follow. It is the easiest thing in the world to run up a deficit, and a Government can become very popular in doing so. As the House knows, it is very painful to get it back under control.
The Budget can be commended on many grounds, but its most important characteristic is that it means we can anticipate our national finances returning to surplus during the lifetime of this Parliament—and a healthy and growing surplus at that. To have eliminated a deficit of £150 billion is a historic achievement.
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I am delighted that the Chancellor set out a clear, smooth plan that will get us to a surplus of £10 billion—a larger surplus than was anticipated previously—by the end of this Parliament, and it will grow from there. I recognise the point the right hon. Gentleman makes, but I am proud of what the Chancellor has managed to achieve. I am sure the right hon. Gentleman would accept that the elimination of a deficit of £150 billion is no mean feat.
As we all know, the best way to eliminate a deficit is to achieve growth in the economy. The best news, which I am sure we would all endorse, is the forecast from the OBR of continuing growth in our economy. It is a solid basis on which to build. I especially welcome the extra 8% investment from business in 2014, and the fact that that is expected to grow this year and next will be an important part of our recovery programme. It is great that we are achieving that growth notwithstanding the external headwinds. The shadow Chancellor was a little ungenerous in criticising us for having fewer exports to the eurozone: we are growing as an economy, but the eurozone is in a sorry state and it is no wonder that our exporters are suffering at the moment.
All economic forecasts, however, including those of the wise men and women of the OBR, are of course vulnerable. We only need to look at China and Greece at the moment to realise that no one with any credibility would ever claim that we can abolish boom and bust. I therefore welcome the Chancellor’s publication of the new rules of the fiscal charter. This Government, once they have returned the country to surplus within this Parliament, will still be looking to the future. The fiscal charter will help this Parliament and, in particular, future Parliaments to hold the Government to account, to ensure that in normal times they continue to pay down our national debt and restore our national fortunes. Without sound and sustainable public finances, there is no economic security for working people. With sound and sustainable public finances, we will ensure that by the 2030s Britain is the most prosperous major economy in the world.
The whole House would recognise that that prosperity, while welcome, is not a goal in itself. It would be a hollow success if that prosperity was not widely shared among all our citizens. That is why I welcome the Chancellor’s creation of the national living wage and the raising of the basic tax threshold to £11,000. I am delighted that it is a one nation Conservative Government who are seeking to take the lowest paid out of income tax altogether. I went on record supporting the principle of a living wage during the election campaign. It seems to me a positive step in ensuring that work pays for all those who undertake it. The principle that we have a society in which everyone has access to work and is fairly paid for it is surely a good one. Higher wages and lower taxes must be a principle that surely Members on both sides of the House would endorse. The natural corollary of that is that in good times there will be lower welfare expenditure.
I welcome the progress on corporation tax, making the UK an enormously fiscally attractive place in which to operate a business. Combined with the employment allowance, this will ensure that the costs for business of meeting the new national living wage are offset. Similarly, I note what my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions said earlier about tax credits. The original system cost just over £1 billion but has risen to £30 billion, which is not sustainable. It needs to be addressed, and I note that we will still maintain expenditure on tax credits in real terms at around the level spent in the 2007-08 fiscal year, under the last Labour Government.
Lastly—I recognise that time is short, Madam Deputy Speaker—I welcome the Chancellor’s announcement on the road fund and the increased expenditure on the NHS to meet the NHS’s own five-year plan, as recognised earlier by my hon. Friend the Member for Halesowen and Rowley Regis (James Morris). My constituency of Horsham has had to accept significant additional house building. That is a concern for many residents. Those concerns will not be eradicated, but they can be mitigated if we all know that there will be enhanced infrastructure to meet the needs of an expanding population. That is especially the case with healthcare, and I look forward to taking up specific issues with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health. I welcome the additional expenditure on the NHS as a positive recognition that, while we cannot have increased NHS spending without a growing economy, a growing economy may also place increased and different demands on the NHS. I congratulate the Chancellor on an excellent Budget.
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First, may I congratulate all the Members who have made their maiden speeches today? It has been fascinating to hear what they had to say and about their constituencies, which are very different from my constituency of Luton North.
The Budget has given me a tax cut that I do not need, which has been paid for by young people, students, the poor and public sector workers. Social justice would require the opposite of that, so I do not buy the idea that the Chancellor has somehow inched towards the centre ground of politics. He is still a right winger, concerned primarily with helping and protecting the wealthy. As my hon. Friend the Member for Birmingham, Erdington (Jack Dromey) has recorded today, the IFS calculates that 13 million UK families will lose an average of £260 a year, while those with estates of £1 million will not have to pay any inheritance tax, so we know where the Chancellor’s heart really lies.
Much more interesting than the Budget, which is a typical Tory Budget really, is the OBR’s report “Economic and fiscal outlook”, published at the same time. There are indeed myths about the economy that have to be dispelled. Britain’s economy is not healthy; indeed, the opposite is the case. Britain is a low-wage, low-investment, low-productivity economy. Indeed, the productivity of Germany and France are 25% greater than Britain’s and we are sixth in the G7, with only the ailing Japan behind us—so there are problems, and the Budget will not make much difference to that fact.
Over several decades, Britain’s manufacturing sector has shrunk drastically, and it is now far too small to sustain what we need ourselves. As a result, our trade balance, especially with the rest of the EU, is in enormous and chronic deficit. In his Budget statement, the Chancellor made very little reference to the wider macroeconomic environment—which the hon. Member for Horsham (Jeremy Quin) touched on—and that is very worrying indeed.
The Government chant their mantras about the Government deficit and public finances while private debt is surging once again. An asset price bubble continues to grow that will inevitably burst, with drastic consequences for households and the economy as a whole. One million of our people are now dependent on food banks—a number that will be dwarfed when the crash comes. I use the word “crash” because that is what we face, with inept and misguided economic policies at home and global factors again driving us towards recession. China’s economy is decelerating and is now in a share price crisis; Japan’s economic weakness continues, with no end in sight; the eurozone is a basket case; and the USA has seen a false economic dawn, with another asset price bubble driven by corrupt share buy-back schemes, among other factors.
“Demand is slowing, share prices will be devastated, and recession is coming, with downturns that will be remembered in 100 years.” Those are not my predictions but the words of Crispin Odey, one of London’s leading hedge fund managers, who tends to get his predictions right, including on the 2008 crisis. My own conclusion is simply that globalisation—neo-liberalism—does not work and that leaving the financial markets and the global corporations free to do what they like, with no effective economic borders to constrain them, has caused one disaster and another is coming.
The Government’s claimed economic success since 2010 is a mirage. After 2010, they first tried savage cuts in public spending, in theory to reduce the public finance deficit, but by 2012 they realised that this was simply driving the country into recession, so they reduced their pressure on the economic brake and tried a bit of quantitative easing. Asset prices began to rise, notably in housing, and consumer spending edged upwards, producing a modest rise in economic growth. However, we still have low productivity—a chronic disease in Britain’s economy—and we still bump along, sustained only by low wages and income from asset sales to foreigners: another version of selling the family silver, as Harold Macmillan so famously put it.
The one advantage that Britain does have is its own currency, able to flex to appropriate parities with other currencies. After the 2008 crisis, sterling depreciated against the euro by 27% and against the dollar by 31%, offering a degree of protection against the worst ravages of the crisis. But even that example has been wasted, with sterling surging against the euro from €1.02 to €1.40, increasing our export prices and decreasing import prices by over a third, and driving Britain’s ongoing and gigantic trade deficit with the rest of the EU. That deficit—over £1 billion a week—is equivalent to exporting at least 1 million jobs to the continent. Page 71 of the OBR report shows a gigantic current account deficit of some 6% of GDP—about £100 billion, or £1,600 for every person in Britain.
There are sensible alternatives to all this economic nonsense, and with much more time I would have been pleased to spell them out. In the short term, however, we must not be fooled into believing that the Government and their predecessor coalition have got things right when all the elements are present for another economic crisis. The Government are doing nothing to protect our economy from the next crisis, and they must not be allowed to escape the blame when it comes.
Before I conclude, I must again emphasise my concern about the sterling exchange rate. Some Members may remember that I raised my concerns about sterling’s over-valuation with Gordon Brown during his time as Chancellor. He responded sotto voce that it was not Government policy to target the exchange rate. In more recent times, I have raised the same issue in this Chamber with the Prime Minister and this Chancellor, with similar measured, if negative, responses. In my very last oral question before Dissolution, I again asked the same question of the now-departed Business Secretary, Vince Cable. He responded, astonishingly, by suggesting that there was no evidence that the exchange rate was a significant factor in the economy’s performance. Only a few days later, it was reported that manufacturing was suffering from the high euro exchange rate and that the economy was being sustained only by domestic consumer demand, with the main risks coming from the eurozone.
Much has been made of Britain’s greatly improved automotive sector, which I applaud. It is true that we make excellent-quality vehicles, including the Vauxhall Vivaro, made in Luton, but it remains the case that we import twice as many cars from the rest of the EU as we export to it. Had I had an opportunity to do so, I would have reminded Vince Cable of the big depreciation after 2008; the rapid recovery from the 1992 exchange rate mechanism debacle, driven by a large exchange rate reduction; and even the 1931 departure from the gold standard, which laid the foundation for the economic recovery from the inter-war depression.
An appropriate exchange rate is not a sufficient condition for economic success, but it is a vital one. Had Britain been stuck in the euro, at a parity perhaps as high as €1.50 to the pound, the economy would have been utterly wrecked, with Britain almost certainly crashing out of the euro, probably bringing down the whole euro edifice in the process.
The Government are riding for a fall if nothing is done to bring down Britain’s bloated exchange rate, and soon. Writing recently in The Guardian, Larry Elliott said that the Government were sitting on an economic time bomb. That is surely the case, and the priority must be to bring down sterling’s exchange rate with the euro. The Budget must be seen in that wider context and the Chancellor’s mind should be focused on those wider international dangers, or we will all be in trouble.
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I congratulate all those who have made their maiden speeches today. I remember making mine only a few weeks ago. I was glad just to get it over with, to be frank.
What we heard in this place yesterday was one of the great set-piece Budgets—a resetting Budget—along the lines of Lord Howe’s in 1981, Lord Lawson’s in 1986 and, in a less positive way, Gordon Brown’s Budgets of the early 2000s, when he decided to do away with the careful fiscal management he inherited from my right hon. and learned Friend the Member for Rushcliffe (Mr Clarke) in favour of a massive expansion of the welfare state and the hyping up of supposed golden rules, which seemed to change according to his whim or to disguise unsupportable Government expenditure.
The Budget contained many measures that will be welcome in my constituency, in particular the extra money for the national health service. Solihull has an ageing population with particular health challenges, so that money will go a long way there. The higher personal allowance, which I will return to in detail, is a fantastic move for the population of Solihull, as it is a hard-working town. I am delighted to report that its unemployment rate is 1.6%. That is because it is the hard-working engine of the west midlands.
The Chancellor has effectively reset how the state interacts with the economy and the individual, subtly, cautiously and over time. In the Opposition debate on tax credits, I acknowledged the important role that tax credits play in many of my constituents’ finances. They help them to get over humps in the road in their lives and can be very helpful. I am pleased that the Chancellor recognised that, as I knew he would, and that the overwhelming majority of people who receive help through the tax credits system will continue to do so.
In the same debate, many of my hon. Friends made the point that tax credits were propping up low pay and effectively trapping many people in welfare dependency, and that many people on salaries far higher than the national average were receiving state help when, frankly, they should not be. Over the past decade or so, many of our fellow citizens have moved into a relationship with the state that, over the long term, is unhealthy for their career ambitions, business more widely and the nation’s finances.
The Chancellor has pressed the reset button on that situation. We will see a freeze in working-age benefits and a narrowing of the people who can claim tax credits. To ease the transition away from tax credits for some people, there is a raising of the personal allowances, which cuts out the middle man by letting people keep more of their own cash, rather than having to go through a complex tax credits system. There is an expansion of childcare provision; the introduction of the living wage, which will rise to £9 by 2020; and support for business, as part of this transfer, through lower corporation tax—something that was opposed by the Labour party in its manifesto—and the ongoing reduction in national insurance contributions for new employees.
The Government are moving from being a nanny who keeps individuals wedded and chained to a fiendishly complex system prone to substantial fraud and endemic overpayment to being a facilitator. Good Governments should be there to create the correct environment for individuals and businesses to flourish. If that is brought to fruition, it will mark the end of Brown economics, and not before time.
That is all big-picture stuff from the Chancellor, as we would expect, but I should like to say something about the smaller bits of the Budget, and the good news that we have received. I was delighted that he accepted Budget submissions from me and from my hon. Friend the Member for Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport (Oliver Colvile). We asked him to raise the rent-a-room scheme allowance, which had been languishing at just £4,250 a year since 1996. By raising it to £7,500, he has made up for nearly 20 years of inflation, and will help thousands of home owners who want to let a room to make ends meet, or even just to have some extra company at home. The measure should also increase the availability of rooms to rent in the private sector, which will be particularly helpful to young people who want to strike out on their own in the world.
Another welcome step was the decision to up the compensation for Equitable Life members by an estimated £80 million. There are many former members of Equitable Life in my constituency. It is a black mark on the Labour Government that they first allowed the development of a regulatory regime which effectively allowed the world’s oldest mutual to collapse, and then, when its administration was found wanting by the parliamentary ombudsman, wriggled like mad to avoid paying what was due to people who had seen their life savings largely disappear. When the country had the money with which to compensate the members of Equitable Life, the Labour party chose not to use it.
I believe that it is great credit to the Chancellor and to my hon. Friend the Economic Secretary to the Treasury that they have not forgotten about those wronged individuals, but—despite the global recession, and despite having inherited the worst public finances since the war—have sought to help. The compensation is not perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but the Government, like the coalition before them, are doing their best within the confines of the current fiscal position.
There are many other highlights in the Budget. The apprenticeship levy, for instance, will help to secure fairness in the apprenticeship system, and the best employers will be rewarded. Like my hon. Friend the Member for Torbay (Kevin Foster), I am no fan of trading on the Sabbath, but I welcome the Chancellor’s indication that it should be up to local mayors to set Sunday trading hours. Should we have an elected mayor in the “midlands engine”, I shall welcome the opportunity to lobby for a sensitive approach, along with my friends in local church groups. That is real devolution.
Finally, there will be a great deal of cheer over the freezing of fuel duty, which means that it is 18p lower than it would have been if Labour’s anti-motorist plans had been implemented.
That is what this Budget is all about. We are on the side of normal people who want to get their kids into work, keep more of their cash, and interact with the state in the right way. It is about a hand up, not a handout. The Budget sends a loud and clear message: we are the workers’ party now.
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I congratulate Members who have made their maiden speeches today. I will not list them all, as some of the Scottish constituencies in particular are quite lengthy, but they all spoke with great passion about the areas that they represent. I especially welcome my hon. Friend the Member for St Helens South and Whiston (Marie Rimmer), who has served in local government for a long time, and has been a great public servant. I am sure that she will repeat that role in the House.
I believe that in the Budget the Chancellor has put rhetoric above reality. He has talked about a northern powerhouse, but at the same time he has put key transport projects at risk. He has offered nothing positive to constituents such as mine, not least because he has been unable to establish whether my constituency is part of the northern powerhouse. As for the living wage, about which I shall say more shortly, it is nothing of the sort. Perhaps the clearest example of rhetoric over reality, however, was the Chancellor’s statement that this was a Budget for one nation. This is not a one nation Budget; it is divisive. It is a Budget that says, “If you lose your job, if you are sick, if you have what the Chancellor deems to be too many children, if you get disabled, if you’re young, if you’re disadvantaged—you’re on your own.” This is not a one nation Budget; it is a two generational Budget.
It is clear that the Government have taken a cynical decision to attack young people, presumably on the basis that they are less likely to vote. If there is anything that will motivate young people to vote, I believe it is this Budget. Let us look first at the so-called living wage. I see no reason to limit it to people over the age of 25. Are people not adults at 24, 23 or 22? Is their contribution any less deserving at that age? I am worried that employers will, in effect, be incentivised to sack people when they reach the age of 25. What a fantastic 25th birthday present that will be.
Many others, including the Living Wage Foundation, have commented that next year we will not see an above-average increase in the living wage: we will see an increase in the minimum wage, and that is what we should go on calling it. It is not only a rate far lower than that proposed by the independent Living Wage Foundation and already paid by living wage employers, but when we consider the tax credit cuts, it represents a huge reduction in income for the many who will receive it.
What about those good employers who already pay the living wage rate of £7.85 an hour? What message does the Budget send out to them? Whatever the headlines proclaim, the details tell a very different story. A single parent in my constituency on the minimum wage stands to lose around £1,500 a year under these proposals. A couple could lose around £2,000 a year. For both of them, it is about 10% of their annual income. I agree that subsidising low pay with tax credits is not the way ahead for this country, but for five years this Government and the Chancellor have made no attempt to tackle in-work poverty. The focus has been on the low-wage insecure economy that we still see today. They cannot take away tax credits without putting in place a proper system to replace them.
Rebranding the minimum wage is not a proper system to tackle low pay. This Budget is an attack on the family. Penalising the third-born and denying families access to tax credits is not a humane approach and will only increase child poverty. I have heard it said that the state should not support more than two children. Are the Government trying to prevent the third child from attending school or accessing the NHS or other public services? Of course not. That would be ridiculous, but the cost of a child’s education far outweighs the cost to the taxpayer in tax credits. That exposes this proposal as a cheap, cynical and calculated attempt at division.
A further attack on young people is the replacement of student maintenance grants with loans. I recall Government Minister after Government Minister speaking out in favour of the £9,000-a-year tuition fee system on the basis that the least well off would be supported by grants. That did not last very long, did it? How many will now decide that what they will have to repay is so prohibitive that they cannot even contemplate higher education? Starting a working life with debts of over £50,000 is surely a daunting prospect for anyone, and we already know that the loan system is unsustainable because of the low levels of repayment. The new system will increase debt and decrease opportunity.
One of the big challenges that we face is in relation to housing benefit costs. I note that the Budget proposes a modest reduction in social housing rents, but it seems completely to ignore the spiralling cost of private rents, which make up the bulk of the increase in the housing benefit bill. One serious consequence of the measures in the Budget is that the reduction in income for housing associations and council housing revenue accounts will reduce further the amount of social housing that is built. It has been estimated that around 27,000 homes a year will be lost as a result of these measures. That will put more pressure on the private housing market, increasing the housing benefit bill further. What we need is meaningful action to reduce private sector rent levels, but we have heard nothing from the Government about that.
Another worrying measure is the removal of housing benefit from those under 21. It means that if people are young, work hard, move out of the family home and are then unlucky enough to lose their job, they will lose their home as well. What kind of message does that send out to children who want to get on?
The proposal that households with higher incomes should pay more rent will penalise young people in work. Those who are living with their parents but are saving up for a home of their own will be penalised. Already a constituent in this situation has told me that the money they were putting aside for a deposit will now be used to pay the increased rent that their parents will have to pay. How is that going to create more homes for everyone?
As for the northern powerhouse, I could not get an answer yesterday, but I think we are getting closer to finding out where it is. I note that in the Red Book there is something called “Transport for the North” which will be established as a statutory body with statutory duties. That will help us to identify where the northern powerhouse is. I see that an interim partnership board already has representatives from Manchester, Liverpool, Sheffield, the north-east, Hull and Humberside, but there is no mention of Lancashire or Cheshire. About half the north-west does not appear to be in the northern powerhouse at all. There is nothing in the Budget for my constituency, and across the country there is nothing to tackle chronic insecurity in the workplace, or to encourage the transition from part-time to full-time work. There is nothing about job creation, improving public transport, or creating a sustainable and fair economy.
It can be no coincidence that the Budget projects personal borrowing to increase significantly over the next few years, because what we have is a conjuring trick of the Chancellor giving with one hand and taking back with both hands. He is taking more than he is giving, and people will discover that reality in the next few months once the headlines have faded. Members of the House will have to deal with the reality of a con trick.
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I congratulate all those who have made their wonderful maiden speeches today.
I received a tweet from a constituent that said: “I’m seriously scratching my head to that bit.” Members might ask, “What bit?”, because we were scratching our heads to quite a few bits of the Chancellor’s Budget speech. My constituent was referring to the bit about the minimum wage, or the “living wage” as the Chancellor likes to call it. I fully support the increase to £7.20 an hour, rising to £9 by 2020, but that is an increase in the minimum wage; it is not a living wage, however many times Government Members like to say it is. As I have said previously, “You can fool some of the people some of the time, but you can’t fool all the people all the time”, yet I fear that is what they are trying to do.
The Living Wage Foundation currently considers that to achieve a minimal acceptable standard of living someone must be paid £7.85 outside London, and £9.15 in inner London. That is the living wage. If the Chancellor needs some help, perhaps he could congratulate Brent council on its work in championing the £9.15 living wage, and on incentivising employers to pay it. The Opposition need to humanise the Government’s policies as they seem not to know many of the people whom their policies adversely affect. The living wage calculation is also based on tax credits that have helped to boost low wages, but if those are removed, the living wage would be £11.65 an hour—that is how much someone would need to be paid if tax credits are removed.
I want to support working people—we all do, and, I might add, more seriously on the Labour Benches. The Chancellor seems to feel that working people live a lavish lifestyle that he wants to curb. Before the election, Jenny Jones asked the Prime Minister to put to bed rumours that he planned to cut child tax credit and restrict child benefit. David Cameron replied: “Well thank you, Jenny. I don’t want to do that.” What has changed?
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Apologies, Madam Deputy Speaker. I think that at the time he was not the Prime Minister, but I apologise.
Brent has the above average number of 5,609 lone parents, which is 11% of all households. Some 64% of families in Brent Central are receiving tax credits. It is okay to have universal credit—I agree with that; I used to work in the employment service—but the Institute for Fiscal Studies has stated that 13 million families will be affected by the benefit cap, and that 3.4 million working families will lose £1,000 a year. There will be an increase in absolute child poverty.
Why is that happening? In Brent, we have large Muslim and Irish communities. Many families have more than three children per household. I would like to challenge the Chancellor to do a husband swap with some of my constituents. I am sure they would be able to give him advice on managing budgets and debt. Given that family breakdown costs the country an estimated £49 billion a year, this is a false economy. The OBR has forecast that household debt will rise even above the record levels seen prior to the crash in 2007-08. What does that mean for the future of our country? The root cause of welfare spending is low pay and high housing costs, so in one fell swoop the Chancellor could build more affordable and social housing, and more people would be in work and paying taxes. We should just stop playing politics and make it happen.
Millions of households are forecast to plunge into debt. We will see another increase in homelessness and children living in absolute and relative poverty. That is not scaremongering—this afternoon the IFS has said just that. Is this really the legacy that the Chancellor wants as he launches his bid to become the Prime Minister? He has lost weight, he has got longer trousers and he has styled his hair differently. All he needs now are some workable policies for working people. The Chancellor always mentions fixing the roof while the sun is shining, but he always forgets to mention the Thatcher legacy of £19 billion worth of household repairs that Labour had to make. Now, with these supposed fixes, the first Tory Budget in almost 20 years is taking the roof from over the heads of my constituents. He should be a little bit embarrassed about that.
The Chancellor spoke about apprenticeships. The reality is that the majority of apprenticeships in the previous Parliament were rebranded jobs. People were already working for companies and their jobs were rebranded as apprenticeships. We have actually seen a reduction in apprenticeships of almost a quarter, from 82.3% under the Labour Government to 63.2% under this Government.
As I said, I used to work in the employment service. I welcome the simplifying of the benefit system, but I am afraid the Chancellor needs to seek some advice from the Social Security Advisory Committee and examine any variations in his policy. Do not say that young people in university have a future and then burden them with about £53,000 of debt when they finish. It was estimated that 923,000 young people would take up maintenance grants in 2014-15. Do not tell me that that will not have an effect on my constituents and young people in Brent Central when they are choosing whether to go on to further and higher education.
This is a reminder of who the Budget is really for: the haves, not the have-nots. I see nothing in the Budget that aims to address the scandal of a 50% increase in long-term youth unemployment among black, Asian and minority ethnic—
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It is a privilege to be able to speak in the Budget debate. It would be remiss of me not to accept that a number of good points have been made today and I do not want to demean them. One point clearly relates to the Ulster Unionist party policy on the living wage, which the Conservatives have adopted. That will be extremely helpful, but I have concerns about how it will be implemented. There needs to be support for employers and businesses along the way, particularly small and medium-sized businesses. It may have the effect of SMEs employing fewer people to meet that living wage, so I hope the Government have a plan in place to bring forward definitive proposals to help those small and medium-sized businesses.
Secondly, I am extremely positive about the reduction in corporation tax. I come from Northern Ireland, to which the Government have helpfully promised to devolve corporation tax. The reduction here will make our 12.5% much more realistic and help make us competitive with our neighbours in the Irish Republic. We have a land border with another EU state, so I welcome the reduction set out in the Budget, which will make it much easier for us to implement our reduction. Thirdly, I also welcome the 2% year-on-year increase in the defence budget, which is helpful and will leave the UK right at the centre of world defence.
A lot of today’s debate has been taken up with tax credits. I note that 164,100 families in Northern Ireland are in receipt of tax credits and that almost 70% of them are working families. In recent months, one of the huge difficulties in our constituencies has concerned the HMRC helplines available to people making inquiries about their tax credits, and that is only going to get worse after the reduction. I therefore appeal to the Government to invest more resources to help constituents who are worried they might lose some or all of their tax credits. It is a worrying time for them. It is difficult even for us, their elected representatives, to get answers. HMRC needs to do a major job of work to provide that assistance and support mechanism. I feel that there is going to be a huge reduction in the tax credit element, which will create particular issues in areas such as Northern Ireland, where we have a lower wage base. These families, many of whom are working, cannot afford to spend up to 60 minutes on the phone waiting for answers to their tax credit queries, but that is what is happening.
I am also concerned about the effect on the Barnett formula and the Northern Ireland Executive budget. The Government will know of the difficulties around the welfare reform proposals in Northern Ireland. I noted in yesterday’s statement the reference to the Stormont House talks. I want to make it clear that there was no agreement around those talks, as we have now realised, because some parties are now reneging on the proposals. We want to ensure that the £90 million agreed for welfare reform, to be taken from other budgets, can be implemented, because it is important for those suffering in our communities, such as the most deprived and the severely disabled. It is important they have the help and support they require, so I am looking to hear from the Government how we can ensure that the people most in need can be assisted.
The Budget is a curate’s egg: there are some good parts, but there are also some difficult issues to deal with, particularly around tax credits.
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I have heard a lot of self-congratulation and hubris and I have even seen some fist-pumping from those on the Government Benches about the long-term economic plan, of which this Budget is part, but the people of Redcar and Teesside have seen what the last five years of the Tory’s economic plan have meant for them and will be forgiven some scepticism about what they heard yesterday.
In Redcar in the last five years, we have seen six food banks a week, where formerly there were none; we have seen nearly 2,000 people hit by the bedroom tax and forced from their family homes; we have seen people sanctioned for accidentally filling in a form wrong or for missing an appointment because a child has had to go to hospital; we have seen pay freezes and redundancies and half of all women on less than a living wage, many of whom will be reliant on tax credits. Nationally, we have seen 500,000 more children in absolute poverty since 2010; the biggest fall in wages since 1874; rampant job insecurity; escalating private debt; a ballooning trade deficit; a shocking productivity record; and stagnating business investment.
In fact, if the Chancellor had any decency or integrity, he would have left himself a note in May saying, “I’m afraid there is still no money”, because the past five years have seen a greater increase in debt than under 13 years of Labour, a total failure to eradicate the deficit as promised, the loss of our triple A rating, mass under- employment, terms and conditions being undercut, a huge increase in bogus self-employment and rampant low pay.
What about this Budget and how it should deal with those issues? As many of my colleagues have said, it is a Budget of smoke and mirrors. Its living wage is not actually a living wage: it is 65p per hour less than the living wage should be. Some 4,000 people in my constituency of Redcar will be worse off because of the impact on tax credits, and the one nation narrative is divisive. The Budget turns nation against nation, public sector workers against private sector workers, north against south, the inherited haves against the have-nots, the young against the old, and taxpayers against fellow citizens.
As for the northern powerhouse, it is nothing more than a slogan. The north-east was not even mentioned in the Budget speech. One in three children in the north-east is still in poverty. Our unemployment rate is still the highest in the country, and the trend in our region is going up, not down. We lost 60,000 public sector jobs and they were not magically replaced, as predicted, by private sector jobs. Those left now have the indignity of a pay rise of less than 1% for the next five years.
The plug has been pulled on infrastructure, and that includes the cancellation of the electrification of the railways. Spending on transport in the north-east is £5 per head compared with £2,600 per head in London. Local authority budgets have been cut by a third, despite higher levels of deprivation in our area. All we have got from this Chancellor is the change of name from the A1 to the M1, without any accompanying infrastructure investment.
In summary, I congratulate the Government on finally acknowledging that the past five years have been a disaster for wage levels, but their solutions provide nothing but smoke and mirrors and will leave my hard-working constituents, who are doing their best to feed their families and get through the month, worse off than ever.
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I shall keep my remarks brief, to allow time for other speakers.
I fully agree with what my hon. Friend the Member for Ellesmere Port and Neston (Justin Madders) said about the northern powerhouse.
The so-called living wage is a complete sham. Even the national minimum wage is not enforced in this country, with the TUC estimating that 350,000 workers are already paid below it, so what guarantees do we have that a living wage would be enforced?
I want to focus most of my attention on the changes to tax credits to limit them to two children. It is wrong to punish children by putting them into poverty for being born into families with one or more siblings. I would also like to stress that there are 3,000 children in this country waiting to be adopted. Since baby P, there has been a huge increase in the need for fostering and adoption places. Many of those placements are found in kinship care and often in families who already have children. If the Government insist on going ahead with capping tax credits at two children, will they provide some flexibility and exempt those who choose to adopt or foster one of the 3,000 children who are desperately seeking a home in this country?
This Budget is an attack on the younger generation. Cutting housing benefit for under-21s will particularly affect lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender youth, who are more likely to find themselves homeless. Student grants are now gone and have been turned into loans, thereby passing more debt on to some of the poorest students as they graduate and begin life. The fact that the so-called living wage does not apply until age 25 just goes to show that there is little understanding of the fact that someone aged 25 or under still needs a roof over their head and still needs to buy food. All that costs the same as it does for a consumer or renter over the age of 25.
Frankly, this Budget does not work for young people, the north or families. Worst of all, I left the Chamber after the Budget speech thinking that, although I personally will be better off, family members of mine who work in minimum wage jobs and who try to balance the demands of having young families are worse off, and that is wrong.
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I shall tackle three areas and be brief. First, student finance has clearly been a controversial issue for a number of Parliaments. The tripling of tuition fees in the last Parliament was obviously highly controversial, and we now know that it was also an unsustainable system, with almost half of current students unable to repay their loans and the Government building up a huge amount of debt.
What is curious is that by abolishing the maintenance grant, the Government seem to be repeating the mistake. The Chancellor boasted yesterday that students from poorer backgrounds had not been put off going to university, but as hon. Members have pointed out, that was partly because these maintenance grants existed. Taking them away is likely to make that less the case. We should not underestimate the numbers involved. I was surprised to find that at Anglia Ruskin University in my own city, 5,697 students were in receipt of maintenance grants, while at the University of Cambridge, there were 2,720. Almost 8,500 young people in my constituency will, I suggest, all be angry when they learn about this.
The problem is not solved either, because more debt is created for the next generation, and the Government’s cunning plan to solve all this is to sell off the student loan book and raise huge amounts of money from it. We know that is controversial, too. Warning bells should be ringing if people read the small print on page 59 of the Red Book, where the Government say they will “review the discount rate”. What that basically means is that students will pick up the tab. They will notice this—and they will be loud.
My second point is about the proposal to limit public sector pay rises to 1% for the next four years. I do not think anyone knows what the economic situation is going to be in four years’ time. Frankly, it is hard to predict for four weeks when it comes to interest rates, oil prices and all the rest. One thing I do know is that rents in a city like Cambridge are shooting up and up. What that means is that for public sector organisations such as our national health service, recruitment—already difficult—will become near impossible in the future. Some of the high-flying research scientists in Cambridge are, in fact, public servants, and they had been waiting to see a sign that things were going to improve. I fear that what the Chancellor has done is in effect to write their exit visa to other countries. Our brightest and best—the people we need if we are to be competitive in the future—are being told that they can expect 1% over the next four years. That is not sustainable.
Finally, let me deal with housing, which is the key issue in Cambridge. There was nothing in the Budget to deal with the things that really matter in a city like Cambridge—nothing on more affordable housing, nothing on the huge trend of people from foreign countries buying up housing off-plan before it is even built, and nothing on the dreadful insecurity faced by tenants in the private rented sector, who are a different group of people these days. Conservative Members stole quite a few things from Labour’s manifesto, but they could do with stealing some of our proposals on the private rented sector, which would really help. As for the extension of the right-to-buy process, I have to say that almost half of all council homes sold in Cambridge under right to buy since 1980 are now back in the private rented sector, building up the housing benefit bill, which has increased by 51% since 2010.
Let me conclude by making one or two general points about the assault on council housing, including the threat to lifetime security of tenancy. Many people have told me about the difference it made to them when they actually got a council home that really was a secure home for them. People cannot be treated as if they are simply pawns in a game that can be moved from place to place. We are talking about people’s homes; if they are not secure, it makes thing very different for them.
Conservative Members have no understanding of what council housing was intended to be. It used to be a public service, not a safety net. We need to remember that tenants pay rent, and some of these houses have been paid for time after time. Extraordinarily, if there is any cross-subsidy going on, all too often, thanks to the vagaries of housing finance, it is happening the other way round, so council tenants are subsidising the wider community. Who can forget the dreadful “daylight robbery” situation under the last Conservative Government when council tenants were in effect subsidising all those on housing benefit.
The housing situation is deeply complicated. I finish by saying that the great goal of British housing policy was mixed communities. Nye Bevan famously said that he wanted a situation in which
“the doctor, the grocer, the butcher, the farm-labourer all live in the same street”.
We can update that image. We know that mixed communities work best, but they are hard to achieve, and this “pay to stay” is exactly the wrong thing to be doing. We need people to stay in their communities, not to be driven out. What a ridiculous situation it is when people who have done well are faced with a false choice, as my hon. Friend the Member for Ellesmere Port and Neston (Justin Madders) suggested. An income of £30,000 in a city like Cambridge is not extraordinary. My friend Councillor Kevin Price, the executive member for housing in Cambridge, tells me that people will face a 45% rise in rent if this proposal goes through. For a lot of those people, the sensible thing to do would then be to work fewer hours or for one person in the household not to go to work at all, which is the exact opposite of what the Government are claiming to want.
There is a real danger that we could lose our mixed communities and create no-go areas and dumping grounds of despair, fomenting future discontent. That is not about building one nation; it is about a divided nation, at a time when we should be bringing people together. I genuinely urge Conservative Members to think hard about these dangers and to step back from these proposals. These might just be a few lines at the bottom of a page in the Red Book, but they could do serious damage to our communities. and I urge Conservative Members to dissociate themselves from them.
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Let me begin, as others have, by congratulating all those who have made their maiden speech during the debate: my hon. Friends the Members for St Helens South and Whiston (Marie Rimmer) and for Bradford South (Judith Cummins) and the hon. Members for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk (Calum Kerr), for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross (Dr Monaghan) and for North Warwickshire (Craig Tracey). The House enjoyed hearing from each of them today and we look forward to hearing from them again in the years to come.
Yesterday’s Budget contained a number of ideas that we support, not least because we campaigned for them at the election. For example, we argued that the pathway to a surplus that the Chancellor committed to in March would in fact lead to spending cuts so extreme that they would not be credible. We discovered yesterday that the Chancellor had caved in and accepted our argument. He has deferred the planned surplus for a further year, and I have to say that that was a sensible U-turn. He might have told us that that was what it was, but he did not. As a result of his U-turn, the scale of the cuts, though still substantial, will no longer be as extreme as he suggested in March.
We said that it was unreasonable to try to take £12 billion out of the social security budget in two years. The Chancellor has done a U-turn on that as well. He now plans to do it over four years. We also campaigned for Britain to have a pay rise, stating that an increase in the national minimum wage was key to reducing the cost of welfare. The Chancellor has accepted that argument. On the basis that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, we welcome his change of heart on that as well.
It is a great disappointment, however, that productivity growth is so low. My hon. Friend the Member for Luton North (Kelvin Hopkins) was right to draw the House’s attention to what the Office for Budget Responsibility had to say about that. It has stated that productivity growth has fallen short of expectations once again. It is a relief that this Budget speech at least mentioned productivity—there was no such mention in March—although it was accompanied by a very thin package. My right hon. Friend the Member for Newcastle upon Tyne East (Mr Brown) and my hon. Friend the Member for Kingston upon Hull North (Diana Johnson) pointed out that the cancellation of the electrification of the TransPennine line was a glaring failure if we are to bring about the infrastructure investment necessary to improve productivity across the country. It is a big disappointment that so little is being done.
It is a tragedy that the Chancellor is accompanying his welcome U-turns with such a swingeing attack on the incomes of working families. The analysis published today by the Institute for Fiscal Studies highlights the fact that the proposed tax credit cuts focus on working families. It is working families that are going to be hit. They have been badly let down by a party that had promised to be a party for working people. That promise seems to have been torn to shreds in everything other than the rhetoric. Vital support has been ripped away at a time when so many of those working families are already struggling to make ends meet.
In 2010, the Chancellor promised
“we will bring down the benefits bill”.
At the beginning of this year, the Institute for Fiscal Studies said:
“Real terms benefit spending…is forecast to be almost exactly the same in 2015–16 as it was in 2010–11.”
The benefits bill has not been brought down. The reason is that, in the previous Parliament, the Government failed to tackle low wages and rising private rents, which are the real drivers of welfare spending. As a result we saw 400,000 more people who are in work forced to rely on housing benefit to pay the rent, and 1.5 million more people paid less than a living wage at the end of the Parliament than was the case at the beginning. That led to a £25 billion overspend on welfare by the Secretary of State’s Department. With this Budget, working families are being told to pay for that failure—so much for being on the side of working people.
The Chancellor is cutting tax credits immediately, but taking five years to increase pay. As my hon. Friends have pointed out, the tax credits cuts hit immediately, full scale, from the beginning of the next financial year. The pay rises intended to compensate for them, which in fact do not compensate for them, are being phased in over five years. Working families are losing out in a very big way. This is not about making work pay, but about making working families pay, which is wrong.
Today, the IFS said:
“Unequivocally, tax credit recipients in work will be made worse off”.
That is the reality of what was announced in the Budget yesterday. The Chancellor’s decision to cut tax credits leaves 3 million families worse off. Working families who are doing the right thing are finding that the rug has been pulled out from under them. A couple with one person working full-time on average earnings will lose more than £2,000 in tax credits next year. A single parent trying to provide for her two children, working 16 hours a week, will lose £860 in tax credits next year. Those losses are nowhere made up for by the modest pay rise that that person is likely to receive.
I cannot help wondering what happened to the families test. The Prime Minister promised that
“every single domestic policy that government comes up with will be examined for its impact on the family.”
Well, here are working families being hammered. The measures clearly fail the families test, but they are being announced nevertheless. That is another broken promise from this Government when so many families are losing out.
The IFS says that the striking consequence of yesterday’s cuts is that the work incentive effects of universal credit—if we ever see universal credit; only 1% of benefit claimants have been switched on to it so far, and at that rate it will take 150 years or so to roll out fully—are being substantially reduced.
I have made it clear that we welcome the increase in the national minimum wage—indeed, we campaigned for it. However, as my hon. Friends have pointed out, just because the Chancellor calls it a living wage does not make it a living wage. My hon. Friends the Members for Birmingham, Erdington (Jack Dromey) and for Ellesmere Port and Neston (Justin Madders) emphasised that point in particular. The Living Wage Foundation, the custodian of the living wage, made the position clear last night. It said that
“this is effectively a higher National Minimum Wage and not a Living Wage.”
That is the reality. Simply calling it a living wage does not make it one. The Chancellor is trying to sell us a dud.
That was not the only dud in the Budget speech. I cannot resist the temptation of quoting what the Financial Times said about the Budget speech yesterday: “When you heard” the Chancellor
“say six times in his Budget speech that he had moved British towards a ‘lower tax society’, he made a small but important mistake. He really meant ‘higher tax’.”
Of course that is right. The living wage is based on the full take-up of benefits such as tax credits and housing benefit. With the cuts to tax credits, the current figure for the living wage will no longer be enough and will certainly have to be revised upwards. We are in favour of tax cuts for those on middle incomes and we support the increases in the personal allowance and the higher rate threshold, but cuts to tax credit mean yet again that the Chancellor is giving with one hand and taking away with the other.
What a missed opportunity the Budget was to promote a proper living wage by introducing Labour’s plan for tax breaks for firms that pay a proper living wage! My hon. Friend the Member for Brent Central (Dawn Butler) drew attention to the excellent initiative that Brent Council has introduced along those lines. It is clearly succeeding, and our make-work-pay contracts could have started to boost wages straight away.
My hon. Friend the Member for Lancaster and Fleetwood (Cat Smith) was right to point out that, once again, young people have been badly hit by the Budget, but where there are good reforms, we will support them. We support the Government’s plan for a youth obligation, which is strikingly similar to our manifesto pledge and the Institute for Public Policy Research proposal that underpins it. The principle of earn or learn is right. Of course, it is absolutely vital that the right exemptions to the withdrawal of housing support should be in place. My hon. Friend the Member for Sheffield South East (Mr Betts) underlined that absolutely rightly. Can the Minister confirm in winding up that young people leaving care, those who are at risk of abuse or homelessness and those who are the parents of young children will still be eligible for housing support under these proposals?
We will not support cuts for disabled people. We were told in the election campaign that the £12 billion package would protect the vulnerable and the disabled, but cutting employment support allowance will hit those who are assessed as not fit for work, which is the reason why they are not on jobseeker’s allowance. That includes people with cancer and people with Parkinson’s disease. Ministers said that they would protect sick people in these changes; instead, they are cutting their support, and that will hit some very vulnerable people very hard. It will also drive even more claimants into the ESA support group at even higher cost. In 2010, Ministers said that they would cut the cost of ESA. In fact, given their failure to manage assessments and the failure of the Work programme for ESA claimants, costs have rocketed. ESA will cost £4.5 billion more this year than they said it would in 2011, but that is no justification for punishing the sick.
There is nothing in the Budget to boost the number of homes being built. The cost of renting and buying is soaring out of reach, particularly in London and south-east. My hon. Friend the Member for Mitcham and Morden (Siobhain McDonagh) drew attention to that. Yet again, rather than tackling the housing shortage and bringing rents down, the Government have chosen to cut housing support.
We welcome the Chancellor’s U-turns from his election campaign, but this is not the Budget that working people need. It leaves working people worse off. Working people needed a Budget that supported them and their families, not one that cut the support that so many people rely on. We support reform that protects those who cannot work and that makes work pay. We will not support cuts that make working families pay.
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This has been a lively debate on a summer Budget that puts the country’s security first—economic security, national security and financial security for the record numbers of people in this country who are now working, including the 2 million who have joined the workforce since 2010. It is a Budget that continues to carry Britain toward a secure, prosperous future by backing the aspirations of working people at every stage of their lives.
For too long, we have been a low-wage, high-tax, high-welfare society—one that took money away from the poorest in taxes, then gave it back to them in the form of tax credits and welfare. In this Budget, we are changing that around. We are setting out to build a high-wage, low-tax, low-welfare economy: an economy in which work always pays and working more always pays more; an economy in which working households are supported through higher wages and lower taxes, not subsidised through a tax credits system that even Labour Members have described as simply not sustainable; an economy that gives 2.5 million people—those on the lowest pay today—a 10% direct pay rise and establishes a living wage that could, at this Parliament’s end, exceed £9 an hour.
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The IFS figures do not include, for example, the full impact of the increased offer of free childcare. According to the Treasury figures, eight out of 10 working households will be better off as a result of the changes, acting in combination, by 2017.
As a country, we have 1% of the world’s population, we produce 4% of global GDP, and we are responsible for 7% of the world’s welfare payments. That is not right, it is not sustainable and it needs to be reformed. In introducing the reforms, we have set out four principles. The first is protecting the most vulnerable—that is fundamental. It is why we will honour our commitments to uprate the state pension according to the triple lock; we will neither means-test nor tax disability benefits—in fact, all disability benefits are exempt from the four-year freeze of working-age benefits—and we will increase funding for domestic abuse victims and for women’s refuge centres.
The second principle is to expect those who can work to look for work and to take work when it is offered, because work is the best route out of poverty. The third principle is to place the entire welfare system on an affordable and sustainable footing, fulfilling our commitment to run a budget surplus, because that is the best route to long-term economic security.
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My hon. Friend makes an extremely good point. Even when we announce elements of policies they were campaigning on only weeks ago, Labour Members seem to be unable to bring themselves to welcome the measures.
The Budget is not just about making changes to welfare; it is about ensuring that those who are in work do not face more difficult choices than those on benefits. Full-time benefits should never pay more than full-time work. Those are the principles underlying the welfare reforms. Over the next two years, eight out of 10 working households will have benefited from the measures announced in this Budget, such as our introduction of the national living wage. By 2020, a full-time worker on the national living wage should be earning over £5,200 more in cash terms. The tough decisions we are taking now will lead us into a more prosperous and more secure future.
We enjoyed five maiden speeches. My hon. Friend the Member for North Warwickshire (Craig Tracey) has a remarkable distinction that may be in the record books. He succeeded a colleague with a majority of 54 and took the majority up to nearly 3,000, which is a remarkable achievement.
I enjoyed the maiden speeches of the hon. Members for Bradford South (Judith Cummins) and for St Helens South and Whiston (Marie Rimmer). I understand that there is already a bit of a rivalry between them—they support different rugby league teams—which will be followed closely during their time representing those areas in Parliament.
We heard from Members from two beautiful areas of Scotland. The hon. Member for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk (Calum Kerr) spoke eloquently about the Scottish border country, which we all know is exceptionally beautiful. He speaks for his party on agriculture and rural issues. He succeeded the former Secretary of State for Scotland, the Liberal Democrat Michael Moore, and spoke eloquently about his lasting contribution in the form of the 0.7% commitment that he achieved through his private Member’s Bill. That was no mean feat, as I discovered early on in this place. The hon. Gentleman also received something you may have frowned on, Madam Deputy Speaker—a round of applause for his excellent delivery. I will say no more on that because he might get into trouble.
We also heard from the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross (Dr Monaghan). I have yet to visit his part of Scotland, but it sounds absolutely wonderful. After he had taught us about the history of the highland clearances, I was sorry that he could not welcome with greater fervour the significant increase in wages for people working in his constituency, which currently enjoys the lowest unemployment in its history.
A range of other issues were raised, and I will briefly go through some of the questions asked. Several Members made the point that the national living wage was different from the living wage calculated by other organisations. I can clarify that the methodology that has been followed is based on the work of Sir George Bain, who wrote the paper “More than a Minimum” for the Resolution Foundation. Labour Members carped on endlessly about the methodology, but none of them welcomed the fact that this represents a 10% pay rise for the lowest-paid 2.5 million working people in the UK.
Several Members raised student finance, and representatives of university towns paid particularly close attention to such points. The former Labour Chief Whip, the right hon. Member for Newcastle upon Tyne East (Mr Brown), probably remembers that a Labour Government abolished maintenance grants completely back in 1998. He probably had to do some deals in 2004, when maintenance grants made their reappearance. He is chuckling in his place about his memories of that time, so I am sure he had to make many arguments about how wise the policy was when his Government implemented it. I want to emphasise that students from low-income households will not have to pay up front. Over the course of their lifetime, people who go to university will earn more—women who go to university will earn £250,000 more over their lifetime—and the cash they receive through their student loan will be more generous than it was before.
The hon. Member for Fermanagh and South Tyrone (Tom Elliott) and other Members asked about support for businesses. I can confirm that we will increase by 50% the amount that businesses can receive through the employment allowance. That will enable the small businesses that are the backbone of our economy to take on four people paid the national living wage. Effectively, it will be kept at the same level: employers will pay no national insurance for four people working full time on the national living wage. Employers will also benefit from my right hon. Friend the Chancellor’s announcement of a reduction in the corporation tax rate to 18% over this Parliament.
Several questions were asked about housing. I can reassure Opposition Members that there will be consultations on the housing changes, and a lot of exemptions in vulnerable cases.
In the brief time available, I conclude by saying that this is a Budget for the working people of Britain. It is a Budget that supports Britain’s working households not through state subsidies, but through lower taxes and higher wages.
Ordered, That the debate be now adjourned.—(Jackie Doyle-Price.)
Debate to be resumed on Monday 13 July.
| Office for Budget Responsibility |
In which city would you find Frederic Chopin airport ? | archive2015
Saudi snake to eat itself?
The Saudi dictatorship has found itself in the news for two contrasting reasons this week. The first was the local elections in which women were allowed to stand as candidates and even allowed to vote. The second was the announcement that the Saudis had formed a military alliance with 34 other Muslim countries to fight terrorism. Something akin to the Nazis forming an alliance to fight fascism?
The UK government and media reported the first of these news items as ‘progress’. That would be from the 18th to the 19th century perhaps in social terms? The second got little coverage, even though the Saudis fall into the category of ‘dictators we like’, as they buy lots of UK weapons, are opposed to President Assad in Syria and the Iranian regime at all costs.
In what was only the country's third-ever elections of any kind, the monarchic dictatorship gave women the right to vote, as well as to seek election to office. Nearly 1,000 women ran throughout the country, but while there were 1.36 million men registered to vote, only 130,000 women could vote.
While 21 women were elected, the extent to which this marks any kind of progress is questioned by many Saudi women themselves. Some women, like Aziza Youssef, who made a name for herself in the campaign to push the Saudi government to lift its ban against women driving, do not see the election as a significant step.
"I'm boycotting the election," she says. "In my point of view, it's putting backward the women movement for rights. ... This election is just — it's for the West, it's not for us. ... It's good for our picture in the West."
Her daughter, Sarah Alkhalidi, agrees that the elections do not mean much.
"I can't open a bank account for my children that takes money out of my paycheck and, like, for a savings account for them. I can't do that — their dad has to do that," Alkhalidi says. "So it's like the whole guardianship issue. ... Even if my guardian tries to renew my passport, I can't pick it up. He has to pick it up for me. So I feel like these issues are more significant and more — like they have more influence on my daily life."
Guardianship rules dictate how women move around in Saudi society. They move with the permission of men, a father, a brother, a husband or a son. Men also act as so-called guardians who oversee women's choices and escort them in public places.
The so-called Islamic military alliance, devoted to fighting global terrorism, has got off to an interesting start, with some countries not even realising that they were a part of it. Pakistan for example has asked its Saudi ambassador to get details. Similarly the governments of Malaysia and Lebanon found, to their surprise, that they had also been signed up. Even more bizarrely, nations such as Uganda, Gabon and Togo, not known for significant Muslim populations, have been baffled by their inclusion in the so-called alliance.
Those actual Muslim countries, which are consciously a part of the alliance, do not include Iran or Iraq, major Shia Muslim nations, or Afghanistan or Indonesia. The Saudis are keen to claim that this is not a strictly Sunni alliance against the Shia Muslim world but on the available evidence that is hard to believe.
Quite apart from anything else, it is unclear what the alliance is aiming to do. The closest to a manifesto so far issued is that "nothing is off the table" and that the alliance will not only have a military component but also tackle terrorist funding and ideology. Saudi Arabia has also gone to lengths to suggest that the alliance would not be limited to attempts to fight the Islamic State, but would focus on terrorism in general.
However, there is widespread scepticism as to how much effort the Saudis put into fighting Islamic State anyway given that IS targets both Iraq and Syria, not exactly friends of the Saudis. Also the tackling of terrorist funding and ideology would entail the Saudi snake having to eat itself, given the role of Saudi clerics in spreading fundamentalism around the world, based upon the ultraconservative Wahhabi school of Sunni Islamic thought.
The Saudi record on democracy, human rights and the rights of women does not make it an ally the West should be proud to be associated with, however many weapons it buys.
13th December 2015
Does this change everything?
With a flourish of the already famous green gavel, French Foreign Minister, Laurent Fabius, declared the deal was done. The historic climate change deal, agreed in Paris yesterday by 195 nations, truly must be seen as a breakthrough moment, especially after the failure to get any international deal following the failed 2009 Copenhagen summit. The deal commits nations to hold temperature rises to “well below 2C and endeavour to reach 1.5C” with each nation making an individual commitment to reduce carbon emissions. The deal also sees a commitment by developed countries to raise $100bn a year to help poorer countries. This figure will progressively increase.
The Kyoto conference in 1997 established the principle that climate change was on the international agenda but did not get agreement to significantly reduce emissions or monitor the effectiveness of the proposed actions. The United States, the world’s largest carbon emitter at that time, stood outside of the Kyoto protocols.
The Paris deal relied, first and foremost, on both the US and China, responsible for 50% of the world’s carbon emissions between them, being on board. Without them there would effectively be no deal of any consequence. For both the US and China coal fired power remains a major part of the economic energy mix and there will be a strong lobby in both nations to resist the pace of change implied by the Paris deal.
However, in both Washington and Beijing there is a recognition of the fact that failure to address climate change will have longer term environmental and economic consequences. More pragmatically, there is a growing recognition of the economic opportunities which investment in new green technologies could bring. In short, the market is waking up to the reality that there is money to be made from carbon reduction.
While economics rather than altruism may be a key driver, the fact that a deal has been reached at all should not be underestimated. The 1.5C target was a key negotiating point of many smaller island nations, whose very existence is threatened by rising sea levels, and even with that target there will be no guarantees. However, even cities such as Shanghai, and areas of the US such as Manhattan and Miami, would be threatened by sea levels rising uncontrollably, so the 1.5C target has wider appeal.
The current pace of carbon emissions means that, even with the pledges of Paris, reducing emissions to limit global warming to 2C by the end of the century will be a tough ask. There will undoubtedly be difficulties and conflicting pressures on the way but Paris represents a starting point and an aspiration to which global leaders must be held, once the euphoria of having reached an agreement dies down and the day to day business of implementation begins.
The science on the relationship between carbon emissions and global warming remains imprecise. As Stephen Harrison of the University of Exeter has noted,
“Keeping temperatures to manageable levels also assumes that we know what the precise link is between atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations and the global temperature response. We don’t know this, nor the nature of natural feedbacks in the climate system that might drive future warming.”
However, as Emily Shuckburgh of the British Antarctic Survey points out,
“The ice core and observational records show so strikingly how as humans we have dramatically altered our global atmosphere in such a short time, with all the attendant risks to this and future generations.”
This recognition is the starting point for the implementation of the Paris deal. If we as humans have done so much to alter the global atmosphere, it is our duty to do something to address the damage caused.
The Paris deal is also an opportunity to draw the attention of global leaders to the issue of priorities and what other action can be taken for the wider benefit of the planet. The cost of investment in green technology and renewable energy is often cited as a barrier, for example. How much more productively could the estimated £100bn cost of replacing Trident nuclear submarines be spent? How about £100bn investment in the area of renewable energy technologies, rather than on weapons of mass destruction?
Repeat this equation worldwide and the cost of developing new energy technologies may not look so ominous. Politicians will cry that life is not so simple and money cannot simply be transferred between projects in this way. They are wrong, it can and it must be. Paris is a start but the fight to save our planet from all means of destroying it does not end there. The pressure on all fronts must be sustained.
5th December 2015
Cameron’s pyrrhic victory
The UK press and media had it mapped out as a bad week for Jeremy Corbyn even before it started. Massive numbers of Labour MPs would vote with the government on the proposal to bomb Syria. The Shadow Cabinet was so split that a majority would not follow Corbyn’s anti-war line and Labour would be plunged into further internecine battles. To cap it all Labour would just squeak home in the Oldham West by-election, only holding off UKIP by a whisker.
Yet again, the BBC and right wing press have been forced by real events to tear up the pre-arranged script. The government did win the vote in the House of Commons to extend airstrikes to Syria but only 66 Labour MPs voted with them, far less than ‘anticipated.’ The majority of the Shadow Cabinet voted with Corbyn to oppose the extension of airstrikes. In Oldham West the Labour candidate was returned with a thumping 10,000+ majority, even increasing Labour’s share of the vote to 62.1%, up from the 54.8% of the General Election.
In a by-election which UKIP leader Nigel Farage had dubbed a referendum on Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership, the outcome was doubly satisfying. Farage’s protests that the Asian population had too many postal votes, and this had somehow rigged the outcome of the poll, was clearly such sour grapes that even his usual cheerleaders at the BBC could not give it any credibility.
The BBC did their best to talk up the contribution of Shadow Foreign Secretary, Hilary Benn, to the debate on Syria, as evidence of an alternative centre of power in the Shadow Cabinet. In reality Benn’s speech was high on rhetoric but lacking in substance, when it came to the questions of how the UK had been steered into such a ludicrous foreign policy impasse, or how to get out of it.
The assault on Corbyn’s leadership will not end with the events of this week. Benn may yet emerge as an alternative leader but he will only do so on the basis of leading Labour back into the dead end politics of the New Labour years, a fate which must be resisted.
The Syria debate did serve to bring the Tory leader David Cameron’s views into the light. At a meeting of backbench Tory MPs the night before the vote he had described those who opposed airstrikes as ‘terrorist sympathisers’, a slur for which he has failed to apologise and which will follow him to the graveyard of his political career.
Only one hour after the vote, RAF Tornado jets took off from Cyprus and were immediately bombing Islamic State positions in Northern Syria. It would appear that a respectable period of reflection upon the debate, the vote and its outcome was not required before the RAF were required to act.
One of the claims which allegedly swayed some on the Labour benches was the claim made by Cameron, and backed by the Joint Intelligence Committee (JIC), that 70,000 moderate Syrian opposition fighters were waiting to be unleashed following UK airstrikes. This is the same JIC which claimed that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction, which could strike the UK “within 45 minutes”. The JIC dossier, now passed into legend as the “dodgy dossier”, was presented to Tony Blair in September 2002 and became the basis of the argument for the ill fated invasion of Iraq.
Quite where the 70,000 moderates have been while 12 other nations have been bombing Syria over the past year has not been explained, nor has the likelihood of their appearance at the sound of the bombs of the RAF. Even Cameron has moved his view of the 70,000 in a short space of time from stating last week that,
“Although the situation on the ground is complex, our assessment is that there are about 70,000 Syrian opposition fighters on the ground who do not belong to extremist groups.”
to a position articulated in his speech to the House of Commons on Wednesday where he stated,
“The majority of the 70,000 are from the Free Syrian Army. Alongside the 70,000, there are some 20,000 Kurdish fighters with whom we can work. I am not arguing – this is a crucial point – that all of the 70,000 are somehow ideal partners.”
In plain English the 70,000 Syrian moderates are from the same school of fiction as the Iraqi weapons of mass destruction.
While the British debated their position in the House of Commons, in Northern Syria, where real people are being really bombed, the Turkish shooting down of a Russian fighter plane was perhaps the most defining moment of the week. With Turkey being a NATO member the potential for this to become a significant flashpoint was real and may yet be the real turning point in the conflict.
While discussions continue the key players, Russia, Iran and NATO, remain some distance apart. However the reality remains that negotiations will be the only way forward and continuing to talk, through the UN, remains the only route for a solution to the crisis in Syria. In essence this was the position, not widely reported by the UK media, that Jeremy Corbyn was taking in his speech to the House of Commons on Wednesday, widely supported by the majority of people in the UK. Perhaps Cameron and his cohorts should take note, their victory may yet turn out to be a pyrrhic one.
Welfare pays for warfare
The media and establishment campaign to de-stabilise the leadership of the Labour Party under Jeremy Corbyn shifted up a gear this week. The week opened with the Strategic Defence Spending Review, proceeded through the Autumn Statement of Chancellor George Osborne and was underpinned by a rumbling debate on the ethics or otherwise of bombing Syria. These three strands of political debate are intrinsically linked and the extent to which the media has emphasised certain aspects of them is a reflection of the ongoing fear of the establishment that politics in the UK may be undergoing a sea change.
The Strategic Defence Spending Review commits the UK to meet the NATO target of using 2% of GDP on the military. The main winners from the review were the intelligence services, special forces and the Royal Air Force (RAF). Following the recent attacks in Paris, staff numbers at the GCHQ intelligence agency and in the security services are to rise, by 1,900 in total. The SAS and other special forces will get a further £2 billion for new equipment. The RAF will get a £12 billion rise in its ten-year equipment budget, to £178 billion.
There is a £2 billion programme to buy nine Boeing P8 maritime-patrol aircraft and the submarine-borne Trident nuclear deterrent is to be renewed, at an estimated cost of £31 billion. Opponents of Trident estimate that this cost will be nearer £100bn over the lifetime of the programme.
Army reorganisation will result in two 5,000-strong “strike brigades” that can be sent off to fight at short notice. Defence Secretary, Michael Fallon, claims that the new brigades will not come at the expense of Britain’s ability to deploy heavily armed forces , as in Iraq or Afghanistan. However, it is clear that as far as Fallon is concerned, whatever form it takes, UK boots on the ground are not ruled out.
By remarkable coincidence, the extra £12bn handed out to the RAF in the defence review is precisely the amount George Osborne is planning to take from the poor as part of his review of welfare spending. The much trailed and long awaited Autumn Statement, last Wednesday, came with so much spin attached it was impossible not to feel dizzy by the end of the evening’s news analysis.
The headline news was that Osborne had scrapped the £4.5bn reduction in working tax credits, due to be implemented from next April. However, the abolition of the tax credit reduction did not come with any reduction in Osborne’s target to cut welfare by £12bn. The universal credit system, which will replace tax credits over the life of the parliament, will be extended in April and have a creeping impact upon families as the range of existing credits it replaces are phased out. The biggest losers, lone parents, could still find themselves £2,600 a year worse off.
Forcing Osborne to back down from the working tax credit cuts is a victory but it is a short term one. Vigilance will still be needed to combat the impact of welfare cuts over the coming years. As Julia Unwin, Chief Executive of the Joseph Rowntree Foundation stated,
“Cancelling the tax credit cuts will be welcomed by low income working families in the short term. But many working families will still find themselves worse off due to upcoming reductions in universal credit. By 2020 families with children will be better off only if both parents work full time on the ‘national minimum wage’, something only a small minority of families can manage.”
These families and others may take some comfort in the knowledge that the £12bn taken out of their pockets is being spent on RAF fighters. That, presumably, is Osborne’s hope.
The Autumn Statement was predicated upon the assessment of the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) suggesting that Osborne had £27bn he was not aware of to spend, thus cushioning the short term impact of some of the cuts. The OBR found the extra £27bn by recalibrating its economic model and finding that it had been underestimating future receipts from income tax, corporation tax and VAT. Essentially the OBR is guessing that more money will be available in the future, than they had guessed previously.
The only problem is that the OBR has not guessed very well in the past. Their assumptions are based upon stable growth over the next five years and no increase in interest rates from the bank of England until early 2017 at least. Not exactly ‘bankers’ by any stretch of the imagination. Will Osborne cancel a few jets if the money does not come through, or will he squeeze the poor a bit harder? No prizes for guessing, even guessing better than the OBR.
Finally, David Cameron’s ongoing campaign to reinforce the UK’s position as an Islamic State target continues apace. Jeremy Corbyn has quite sensibly written to Labour MPs outlining his anti-war position, emphasising the fact that the statement by David Cameron in the House of Commons did not lay out a convincing case, in military or political terms, or on the grounds of national security.
For the absence of doubt, what Corbyn said in his letter to Labour MPs was as follows,
“In my view, the PM has been unable to explain the contribution of additional UK bombing to a comprehensive negotiated political settlement of the Syrian civil war, or its likely impact on the threat of terrorist attacks in the UK.
For these and other reasons, I do not believe the PMs current proposal for air strikes in Syria will protect our security and therefore cannot support it.”
A wave of vitriol in the media has been unleashed following Corbyn’s remarks. The failure of the backstabbing tendency on the Labour front bench to support Corbyn has led the right wing press to conclude that Corbyn is out of touch with his own colleagues. The reality however is that Corbyn’s colleagues are out of touch with the Labour membership and the country as a whole.
Anti-war protests took place in major cities across the UK this weekend, while Tory ministers rang around Labour MPs in an effort to persuade them to support bombing, in a vote which may take place as early as Wednesday this week.
The position on Syria may well be defining for many Labour MPs. For those on the front bench it should be. Those failing to support the anti-bombing position should be sacked and take their chances with constituency parties when it comes to re-selection.
Those calling for ‘strong leadership’ from Corbyn should get exactly what they wish for.
21st November 2015
Air strikes make targets of us all
If anything serves as an example of the British government’s desire to justify its unnecessary levels of military spending the ‘case’ for air strikes on Syria takes some beating. At present air strikes in Syria are being conducted by the United States, France, Australia and, until recently, Canada. The Russians recently added themselves to that list but their air power has at least been co-ordinated with Syrian and Kurdish ground forces to some effect.
Up until mid November this year the majority of airstrikes from the US led coalition had been conducted by the US Air Force, a staggering 6,353 of the 8,125 conducted to date. Of the remainder, carried out by other coalition partners, only 146 were in Syria. Air strikes began in August last year. In the period since May alone Islamic State have captured key cities such as Palmyra in Syria and Ramadi in Iraq. We have seen the devastation caused by Islamic State in Egypt, Beirut and Paris in recent weeks.
Quite how the argument that more bombs, and in particular British bombs, stacks up as a strategy to prevent this ongoing slaughter is something of a mystery. The French response to the killings in Paris last week was to immediately bomb the Islamic State ‘capital’ of Raqqa, to little great effect other than the French being seen to flex their muscles and respond somehow.
Using the diplomatic route the French, jointly with the US, have formulated a resolution agreed by the United Nations, asking countries to,
“take all necessary measures, in compliance with worldwide law, in particular global human rights, refugee and humanitarian law, on the territory under the control of Isil [Isis] in Syria and Iraq, to redouble and co-ordinate their efforts to prevent and suppress terrorist acts committed specifically by Isil … and to eradicate the safe haven they have established in Iraq and Syria”.
However, the resolution falls short of providing a legal basis for military action against the so-called caliphate. Nevertheless UK Prime Minister, David Cameron, sees the vote as an opportunity to advance the case for air strikes more vociferously, stating that
"I will continue to make the case for us to do more and to build support in Parliament for the action that I believe is necessary for Britain to take to protect our own security."
Pointing out the contrary view Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn, in an attempt to inject some sanity into the debate, is expected to use a speech today to point out that the UK being "at the centre of a succession of disastrous wars" had undermined British security.
Cameron is also likely to cite the position of the foreign affairs select committee chairman, Crispin Blunt MP, to support his position. The committee had previously taken a position against air strikes but Blunt now claims that “we are facing a completely different set of circumstances” and that the preconditions for air strikes in Syria had now largely been met.
The reality of the situation was revealed by Blunt however when he added,
“In truth, the importance of UK air strikes and the UK’s eight additional planes is more political than military. It is in honesty a micro military issue. There is no great military necessity for the UK to be involved since planes are queueing up from a wide range of countries over the skies of Syria. There is not a shortage of assets in Northern Syria but a shortage of targets. But there may be a political requirement to be involved.”
In spite of this there will be Labour MPs voting for air strikes. The Tories will no doubt beat their chests in the usual gung-ho fashion. Jeremy Corbyn will be accused of being ‘soft’ on terrorism, while the right wing press will cheer Cameron on in his mission to make targets of us all.
15th November 2015
Chaos needs call to cohesion
Killing innocent civilians in cold blood has always been the most cowardly form of political statement. It is cowardly when carried out in the name of national security and it is cowardly when carried out in the name of national liberation. It is cowardly when carried out in the name of religious fanaticism; Christian, Muslim or Jew.
In any war situation there will always be ‘collateral damage’, a term that has almost become a euphemism for the unnecessary targeting of civilians, but which in reality is a recognition of the fact that, in any conflict, accidents will happen. By the same token, it has to be accepted that in any conflict most people are non-combatants. The many young people attending a concert at the Bataclan Concert Hall in Paris, those going out for a meal to the local restaurant, whatever their thoughts about the crisis in the Middle East, or Islamic State in particular, did not deserve the brutal executions they suffered.
It has been a brutal two weeks, of which the killings in Paris are the latest manifestation. The bombing of the Russian passenger plane in Egypt recently was followed only a few days ago by the less widely publicised killing of 49 people in a bombing in a Hezbollah controlled area of Beirut. Over 400 deaths in the three incidents and many more wounded, Islamic State claiming responsibility for each.
It is a grim irony that the latest killings overshadow the West’s celebration of the non-judicial execution of the terrorist Mohammed Emwazi, dubbed ‘Jihadi John’ by the popular press, just a few days ago. The Paris killings have also overshadowed the significant advances made by Kurdish troops in re-taking the city of Sinjar from Islamic State, opening up the possibility of moving towards a critical assault on Mosul, and cutting off key supply lines for Islamic State fighters.
Islamic State have made a point, in their statement on the killings, of stressing the role of the French in air strikes upon Islamic State targets in Syria, stating,
“France and those who follow her voice must know that they remain the main target of Islamic State and that they will continue to smell the odour of death for having led the crusade, for having boasted of fighting Islam in France and striking Muslims in the caliphate with their planes.”
The French President, Francois Hollande, has been equally robust in his response, stating,
“We will be merciless towards the barbarians of Islamic State. Faced with war, the country must take appropriate action.”
For the moment that action has been to declare a national state of emergency, the first in France since 1961; deploy 1,500 troops to support the police in Paris; and to announce three days of national mourning for the victims of the attacks.
Islamic State have also released a video, calling on Muslims to continue attacking France with the exhortation,
“…you have been ordered to fight the infidel wherever you find him. What are you waiting for?”
With regional elections scheduled in France in two weeks time, there is widespread fear that the right wing, anti-Islam, Front National will pick up even more votes than expected. While campaigning in the elections has been suspended, out of respect for those killed, Front National leader, Marine Le Pen, spoke immediately after the killings, stating,
“We are living the horror…yesterday evening the centre of France was struck by an exceptional barbarity. It was an escalation of Islamist terrorism and the sixth time this year that Islamists have attacked our country…Islamic extremism must be crushed.”
The rhetoric on all sides is in danger of bending the reality to suit its own purpose, rather than looking at ways to de-escalate the tension.
France is widely quoted as having the biggest Muslim population in Western Europe, with an estimated 5 million Muslims in the community. However, that figure assumes that all those living in France of North African descent are Muslim. A poll conducted by l’Institut Francais d’Opinion Publique (Ifop) in 2011 found that only 40% of that number called themselves “observant Muslims” and only 25% attended Friday prayers. Recent events in the Middle East may have led to more radicalisation amongst some but the numbers are unlikely to have shifted so dramatically in such a short space of time.
Tensions within the North African community in France in recent years have not been about religion but about the lack of jobs, police brutality and racial discrimination. The attitude of the right wing has been to marginalise this community as ‘Arabs’ or ‘Muslims’ but they are a largely secular community born and raised in France. Many have no affinity with the culture of their first generation immigrant parents but are equally disenfranchised from mainstream French society.
Such a group is ripe for radicalisation of one kind or another, without action to support them there is the danger that the Islamists could prevail.
There is the clear danger that, for the supporters of Le Pen, the call to crush Islamic extremism will be read as a call to crush the North African community in France and further entrench both informal and institutionalised discrimination.
International talks on the future of Syria and exploring ways to resolve the crisis resume in Vienna this weekend, with diplomats from twenty nations involved in the discussions. The interventions of the West in destabilising both Iraq and Syria have provided the ground in which Islamic State has been able to spread rapidly over the past eighteen months.
Chaos has created the opportunity for Islamic State to grab land and resources. Cohesion of some kind must be the outcome of Vienna. Adding UK planes to the plethora of air power already ranged at Islamic State targets, as some will inevitably call for, will only add more fuel to the fire. The West may have to give up on its ill fated attempt to overthrow Bashir al-Assad in Syria and its opposition to the Russians playing a role in any agreement. Failure to do so will only mean that the killings and the chaos continue in the Middle East and, increasingly, across Europe.
8th November 2015
Soft targets, hard talking
It can only have been a matter of time before the ruthless fundamentalists of Islamic State found a way to strike at a soft target, which would lead to hundreds of deaths. It seems increasingly likely that the Russian jet brought down this week, after take off from Sharm el-Sheikh in Egypt, was the target of a terrorist bomb. Soon after the breaking news Isis in the Sinai Peninsula made the claim that they had planted the bomb and claimed that they would produce evidence to this effect. While no direct evidence has yet been forthcoming, circumstantial evidence appears to support the group’s claim.
The Sinai desert area is a part of Egypt but has long had an ambivalent relationship with the metropolitan centre in Cairo, with its nomadic Bedouin population being regarded as second class citizens by the Egyptian elite. The attractiveness of its beaches and the development of the tourism industry at Sharm el-Sheikh however has resulted in an influx of the Egyptian middle classes, looking to take advantage of the boom which the tourism sector has brought to the southern Sinai area.
It is estimated that traditional Bedouin inhabitants now number as few as 25% of the half million official residents of the area. The exclusion of local people from deals to exploit natural resources, like oil and gas, has further exacerbated the sense of injustice in the area.
The Sinai has a long border with Israel, including a direct connection with the Palestinian Gaza strip, and its history as a smuggling route has seen it play a role in supporting the beleaguered people of that occupied area. In this context the potential for resentment and opposition to the established order in Egypt and the wider Middle East has, paradoxically, found fertile ground in the desert of the Sinai.
According to Mohammed Sabry, author of Sinai: Egypt’s Lynchpin, Gaza’s Lifeline, Israel’s Nightmare,
“There is only one umbrella group, Wilayat Sinaa (Sinai Province). It simply brought together every militant jihadist in Sinai and from across Egypt. They all dissolved within the greater umbrella of Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis, which began operating in 2011 and pledged allegiance to Isis in 2014 to become recognised as the strongest branch of Islamic State outside of Syria and Iraq.”
The response of the Egyptian army to Islamic militancy in the Sinai has been characteristically brutal, with a range of reprisals and military operations, more likely to create a new generation of militants then root out old ones.
To suggest that the West has little grip on the situation and fewer ideas about how to deal with it is an understatement. Since 2000 the US has based its Middle East thinking on an influential document, Rebuilding America’s Defenses, published by the neo-conservative think tank, the Project for the New American Century (PNAC). The document’s main tenet is that the US should "seek to preserve and extend its position of global leadership" arguing in further detail that, "The true cost of not meeting our defense requirements will be a lessened capacity for American global leadership and, ultimately, the loss of a global security order that is uniquely friendly to American principles and prosperity.”
Central to the US approach in recent years has been the shift in the relationship between the United States and the Islamic Republic of Iran. One year before the administration of President Hassan Rouhani took office in 2013, top officials from the US and direct representatives of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, were holding regular meetings in Oman. Those discussions were the starting point for the agreement which has been reached over Iran’s nuclear programme recently and paved the way for Iran’s inclusion in the talks on the conflict in Syria, being held in Vienna.
Even this ‘new approach’ brings problems for the West however, as rapprochement with Iran runs counter to current allegiances with the dictatorship in Saudi Arabia and the Israeli regime, both of which see Iran as a direct threat to their strategic interests in the region.
The call of the hawkish UK Defence Secretary, Michael Fallon, for UK involvement in the bombing of Isis targets in Syria seems unlikely to add to the chances of peace. If the destruction of the Airbus this week was an Isis response to Russian intervention in the conflict, it seems unlikely that the chances of UK citizens being targets will lessen with increased air strikes.
The suspension of all Russian flights to Egypt indicates that the bomb theory is increasing in credibility. The US Department of Homeland Security has announced additional airport security measures. In a setback for tourism in Egypt, France and Belgium have advised their citizens against travelling to Sharm el-Sheikh, from where the Airbus A321 airliner took off before crashing in the Sinai desert. Ireland, Germany, and the Netherlands have suspended flights to and from Sharm el-Sheikh.
The resumption of talks in Vienna, on the future of Syria later this week, will clearly be overshadowed by the Russian Airbus incident. While the West is keen to see the removal of President Assad in Syria this is unlikely to be a position supported by the Russians and Iranians. It will require some hard talking but without some kind of deal in Vienna the only certainty is that the killing and bloodshed in the Middle East will continue. Quite where that will end is, at the moment, anyone’s guess
1st November 2015
Only chains left to lose
The Tories’ poor bashing tendencies were rather bizarrely curbed this week by the unelected House of Lords. While the respite may well be temporary, given the government’s track record in this area, the debate which has been generated over working tax credits has once again exposed the Tories as the government of the rich, by the rich, for the rich.
It is ironic that just a month after the Tory Party Conference, where George Osborne proclaimed the Tories as the party of working people, the shallowness of that claim has once again been exposed. The Tories’ plans aimed to cut £4bn from the £12bn George Osborne is looking to cut from the welfare budget. The impact of the proposals meant that 3.2 million families would lose on average £1,300 per year, over £100 per month, to support the Tories justification of the need to “get the economy straight”, according to Education Secretary, Nicky Morgan.
The furore in Tory ranks has been more about the pace of cuts rather than the fact of the cuts in principle. Scottish Tory leader Ruth Davidson, with one eye on Holyrood elections next May, has claimed that the cuts need to be introduced more carefully, stating,
“It is not acceptable. The aim is sound, but we can’t have people suffering on the way.”
Davidson is basing her judgement on the assumption that the proposed national living wage policy, announced by George Osborne, will kick in and fill the gap left by working tax credits. As leaps of faith go, given the current trajectory of the economy, that is a significant one and not something which is going to give those families struggling to make ends meet much succour.
It is no secret that the stated aim of the Tories is to generate a budget surplus on year to year spending and on capital infrastructure. The top rate of tax would be lowered, effectively paid for by the poor.
However, many economists are coming to the glaringly obvious conclusion that making the rich richer does not do enough to re-launch the economy, if the rest of the population have little to spend. Aggregate demand is the fancy term for it, total spending in the economy is a simpler way of putting it.
In spite of the analogy made famous by Margaret Thatcher, running a national economy is not like running a household budget. There is no economic logic to running a budget surplus for the sake of it. On the contrary, the finance needed to spend and invest in long term projects to ensure that transport, building and technical infrastructure is modernised cannot be found from in-year budget management.
Short of calling upon the Chinese, or other foreign governments to build nuclear power stations or other infrastructure projects, the money must come from central government as part of a long term plan for the public good. That will mean the government having to borrow in order to spend money to build things. That will mean employing people to do that work. Those people will spend more money and pay more taxes, money which goes back to the government.
Economics, even capitalist economics, is a bit more complex than that but the basic principles are there. Of course, that does not really concern Cameron, Osborne and their ilk. Any claims they make to help “hard working families” or to support the “working poor” are a fig leaf for their real objective of making the UK little more than a tax haven for international financiers.
The ripples of change are there however. The election of Jeremy Corbyn as Labour leader, on a clear anti-austerity programme is one such indicator. The House of Lords vote, even though for a mixed bag of reasons, is another. The People’s Assembly movement continues to gather momentum. A new People’s Movement has just been launched to focus on the living wage campaign. The Tories will continue to press ahead with austerity for their own ideological reasons, there is certainly nothing inevitable about the ‘solutions’ to the crisis which they are proposing.
They may find however that, as they push the poor down further and make the burden of the crisis even heavier, the poor come to some conclusions of their own; that they have nothing to lose but their chains, perhaps.
25th October 2015
The Reds are here
There was a time, in the days of the Cold War, when the reds coming was the mantra to terrify every school child and justify a whole range of insupportable policies, such as building nuclear weapons and supporting oil rich dictatorships. The reds of those days were the Soviet Union, the long established bogey men of the West, having had the audacity to carry out and sustain a revolution, before going on to build a state which became one of the world’s two superpowers.
A combination of internal pressures and incessant external propaganda saw the defeat of the Soviet Union in the early 1990’s, to be replaced by the gangster capitalism eventually headed up by Vladimir Putin, with the Russians as little more than a pale alternative to the machinations of the West on the international stage.
In the mean time the Chinese have been quietly busying themselves building an economy of their own. The revolution in Russia came in 1917, for the Chinese somewhat later, in 1948, so the socialist world invariably looked to the Soviet state for leadership, as the trail blazer on the world stage. With the defeat of the Soviet Union the gradual emergence of the Chinese, as the only thing currently resembling a socialist superpower, has been an increasing feature of the world economy over the past twenty years.
Increasingly for Western economies the Chinese are the reds whom everyone wants to do business with. While the growth in the Chinese economy has slowed recently, rates of expansion remain at levels Western leaders would give their eye teeth for, and the market potential of over one billion people has business in the West drooling.
There is also the issue that the Western neo-liberal model of capitalism is running out of steam. The banking crisis of 2008 continues to reverberate and, while pundits talk up recovery, there is little on the ground to suggest that Western economies are doing anything but struggling. This is at a time when, for the past six years, central banks have been applying all forms of stimulus known to traditional economic models.
Larry Summers, former US Treasury Secretary, has suggested that the combination of lower interest rates, cheaper currencies and quantitative easing has nowhere left to go. In fact Summers has recently stated that,
“Long term low interest rates radically alter how we should think about fiscal policy. Just as homeowners cannot afford larger mortgages when rates are low, government can also sustain higher deficits.”
In effect, Summers’ call is for a boost in public spending to restart economic growth. The IMF shares that view. Jean-Claude Trichet, president of the European Central Bank, is also critical of the over reliance on monetary policy in Europe.
So, whatever the reservations of the West about China’s economic model, human rights policy or reach into many developing economies, its sheer scale of presence on the global stage can no longer be ignored. The week long state visit of Chinese President, Xi Jinping, to the UK culminated in a statement which commits both countries to build “a global, comprehensive strategic partnership for the 21st century”, pledging to “enhance bilateral trade and investment” and to deepen partnership between the financial and private sectors.
Major infrastructure projects appear to have been part of the deal with the Chinese having a stake, though not clearly defined, in the government’s Northern Powerhouse initiative as well as stating that the UK “welcomes the progressive participation of Chinese companies in its civil nuclear energy projects”. A feasibility study to look into a China – EU free trade area has also been agreed.
The government have claimed that the likely benefit of the Chinese visit will be deals worth up to £40bn to the UK economy, although there appears to be some confusion over how that figure was arrived at. It is certain that cheap Chinese steel on the world market has been of no assistance to the nearly 2000 workers made unemployed last week with the closure of the steel works in Redcar.
The commitment to nuclear technology, which seems to be little more than a glorified private finance initiative in which the Chinese cannot lose and the UK foot the bill, is at the expense of investment in renewable energy technologies. The government has just cut a meagre £9 a year subsidy for wind and solar power by 87%, although the Chinese will get a guaranteed £92.50 per megawatt hour, double the usual price, for the nuclear deal.
Cameron and Osborne may be heralding their week long kow-tow to the Chinese leadership a success but it is yet to made clear how the people of the UK will reap the rewards in the long term. Hopes appear to be being pinned on a ‘special relationship’, the benefits of which have proven dubious in other areas.
How the political dynamics with the rest of the EU and how the relationship on the UN Security Council, the UK and China are both permanent members, develops will be interesting to watch. Whether the Chinese are to be the saviours of Western capitalism remains to be seen, it is certain though that capitalism in the West feels it cannot do business without them.
18th October 2015
Act against the arms trade
Much has been made this week in the UK media of the decision by Prime Minister, David Cameron, to cancel a £6m contract to provide advice to the dictatorship in Saudi Arabia on how to run its prison services. Justice Minister, Michael Gove, has been feted in some quarters, reviled in others, as a closet ‘liberal’ for being the architect of the cancellation. Foreign Secretary, Phillip Hammond has allegedly accused Gove of naivety.
Anyone who witnessed the dismantling of comprehensive education in the UK under Gove in the last government would be hard pressed to endorse any ‘liberal’ credentials and, in the context of the government’s wider approach to relations with Saudi Arabia, cancelling a £6m contract appears to be little more than a smokescreen.
The prison contract cancellation is supposedly a reflection of the government’s concern over human rights abuses in the desert dictatorship but the wider relationship with the Saudis suggests that some crocodile tears may have been shed in the past week.
Since the Tories came into government in 2010 the UK has licensed £4bn of arms sales to Saudi Arabia, according to the Campaign Against the Arms Trade. The Stockholm based International Peace Research Institute estimates that the UK is the world’s biggest arms supplier to Saudi Arabia, providing 36% of all Saudi arms imports.
The UK Trade and Investment Defence and Security Organisation (UKTI), a front for UK businesses looking to deal with the Middle East in general, has identified that the “global policing and security market has ballooned”, seeing political uncertainty and crisis in the region as a business opportunity.
UK business is meant to be conducted through the Overseas Security and Justice Assistance (OSJA) policy that, in its own terms, is meant to ensure that security and justice activities are “consistent with a foreign policy based on British values, including human rights.”
Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn, is seeking an independent review of OSJA and has written to David Cameron, stating,
“By operating under a veil of secrecy, we risk making the OSJA process appear to be little more than a rubber stamping exercise, enabling the UK to be complicit in gross human rights abuses.”
There is no evidence that Cameron has responded to this request although The Observer does report today that,
“The UKTI is offering grants to support businesses, including those selling security equipment, to take part in overseas exhibitions aimed at specific emerging markets, notably Saudi Arabia.”
As the Campaign Against the Arms Trade (CAAT) point out, over 100 people have been executed in the first six months of this year in Saudi Arabia. As CAAT state,
“The Saudi regime has an appalling human rights record, yet it remains the world’s largest buyer of UK weapons. How many more people will be tortured and killed before the UK government finally says enough is enough?”
In terms of the wider politics of the region the UK continues to back the Saudis as a counter weight to the growing influence of Iran. The Saudis have actively opposed the Assad regime in Syria, supplying weapons to the opposition, many of which have fallen in to the hands of al-Qaeda and Islamic State. There has been more than a hint in some quarters that Saudi weaponry ending up with Islamic State has been no accident, with the fundamentalists seen as a further bulwark against Iranian influence.
At a time when the UK Parliament is moving towards a vote on increasing the chaos in Syria, by adding UK airplanes to the conflict, it is ironic that UK weaponry is already playing a major role in the crisis by the back door. We can only hope that will be a consideration in any Parliamentary vote.
More information on the Campaign Against the Arms Trade can be found at https://www.caat.org.uk/
10th October 2015
Baking for a better world
The Great British Bake Off has become something of a television institution in the UK in a very short space of time. So much so, that the BBC estimated an audience of 14 million people watched the final on Wednesday night, when Nadiya Hussain emerged as the competition winner, much to the delight of the many millions watching. It was clearly Nadiya’s baking skills which won her the coveted award but for many it was also her charm and personality which were a winning combination. This may hardly seem remarkable but as an overtly Muslim woman, who wore hijab throughout the competition, Nadiya’s victory brought into sharp focus key questions of what is meant by both ‘great’ and ‘British’.
Inevitably there are two ends to this spectrum. The right wing UK paper The Mail, and its sister paper The Mail on Sunday, positioned themselves at one end of the scale. The Mail group has deviated little in its political line since the now infamous Hurrah for the Blackshirts! editorial by its owner Viscount Rothermere in January 1934. From a stable blessed with this pedigree the following comment on the up and coming Great British Bake Off final, in the Mail on Sunday last week, by columnist Amanda Platell was characteristic,
“We are left with Muslim mum Nadiya Hussain, gay doctor Tamal Ray, and New Man Ian Cumming. Poor Flora Shedden never stood a chance. She was far too middle class – and was booted off this week after her chocolate carousel was deemed sub-standard. Perhaps if she’d made a chocolate mosque she’d have stood a better chance.”
There will no doubt be conspiracy theorists, those who regard the BBC as ‘too left-wing’ for example, who may wish to make something of the fact that the Great British Bake Off final was broadcast on the last day of the Conservative Party conference in Manchester, featuring the key note speech by Tory Party leader and UK Prime Minister, David Cameron. It will certainly have attracted more viewers.
The real juxtaposition however is with the speech made by UK Home Secretary, Theresa May, last Tuesday. May went out of her way to attack immigration as a threat to social cohesion in the UK, suggesting that migrants were causing British workers their jobs and that they were making it impossible to build a cohesive society, stating,
“Of course immigrants plug skills shortages and it is right we should try to attract the best talent in the world, but not every person coming to Britain right now is a skilled electrician, engineer or doctor.”
May went on to say that,
“For people in low paid jobs, wages are forced down…while some people are forced out of work altogether.”
going down the age old Tory route of scapegoating ‘foreigners’ for unemployment, in spite of the fact that the evidence suggests that immigration does not cause significant displacement from the labour market.
More significantly such comments are in themselves a threat to social cohesion by fuelling the sort of prejudice which gives rise to the ‘simple’ answers pedalled by the likes of UKIP and the BNP. If this is May’s philosophy of ‘Britishness’ it has more in common with the nineteenth century than the twenty first and certainly has little that can be deemed ‘great’ about it.
Not to be left out David Cameron, in his conference speech on Wednesday, took on the subject from a different angle with a vitriolic attack on Labour Party leader, Jeremy Corbyn. Cameron used the time honoured device of misquoting your opponent, then attacking what he is alleged to have said, to justify your own political point.
Cameron turned his fire upon Corbyn for allegedly claiming that the death of Osama bin Laden was a tragedy. Plumping himself up to full self righteous ‘leader of the nation’ mode Cameron stated,
“You only really need to know one thing: he thinks the death of Osama bin Laden was a ‘tragedy’. No. A tragedy is nearly 3,000 people murdered one morning in New York. A tragedy is the mums and dads who never came home from work that day. A tragedy is people jumping from the towers after the planes hit.
My friends, we cannot let that man inflict his security threatening, terrorist sympathising, British hating ideology on the country we love.”
It is bad enough that this is bombast of the highest order, it is made worse by the fact that it is dangerous bombast from a political leader who should be seeking to promote social cohesion, not dissolve it.
What Jeremy Corbyn actually said is widely available but was not reported by the BBC when covering Cameron’s speech. Needless to say, Corbyn’s comments were somewhat more nuanced than Cameron suggests. In an interview with Iran Press TV, speaking about the extrajudicial killing of bin Laden, Corbyn said,
“I think that everyone should be put on trial. I also disagree with the death penalty under any circumstances. On this there was no attempt whatsoever, to arrest him, to put him on trial, to go through that process. This was an assassination attempt, and is yet another tragedy, upon a tragedy, upon a tragedy.”
For the record it is also worth noting that Corbyn has made his position on how tragic the World Trade Center attack was, stating,
“The World Trade Center was a tragedy, the attack on Afghanistan was a tragedy, the war in Iraq was a tragedy. Tens of thousands of people have died.”
Quite what can be described as “security threatening, terrorist sympathising, British hating ideology” in any of Corbyn’s statements is only something David Cameron and his ilk can work out. They certainly feel threatened by his plain speaking ability to connect with the British people, whatever their creed, colour or ethnic origin.
Like The Mail newspapers, the Tories are out of touch with the realities of what is truly ‘great’ and what is truly British in the daily lives of the people of the UK. Speaking at the Durham Book Festival this weekend, writer and journalist Yasmin Alibhai-Brown, had a much clearer assessment. The ability of the British people to welcome, absorb and adopt a diversity of former Empire cultures makes the UK unique in Western Europe. Whatever the evils of Empire, and there were many, the contacts between ordinary people, able to share insights into their extraordinary cultures, is still a positive outcome.
A Muslim woman winning the Great British Bake Off will not change the world, but it may be a sign that the world can still be changed, for the better.
4th October 2015
No ‘good guys’ in Syria
Russian bombs in Syria are an outrage, it would seem. Not United States or French airstrikes; not Saudi and Qatari equipped anti-regime opposition units; not UK funds, being poured in to support ‘moderate’ rebels but ending up in the hands of al-Qaeda and Islamic State. The Russians are, after four years of civil war and external intervention in Syria by all of the above, the bad guys. This narrative is hugely convenient for the NATO military alliance and is being used as a smokescreen to get the West off the hook for the political and humanitarian calamity taking place in Syria.
For the ordinary people of Syria external intervention has merely been a precursor to catastrophe. The initial opposition to the Assad regime was hijacked so quickly by external forces that it remains difficult to assess how much popular support it would have gathered. The Assad regime is by no means a model of democracy, based as it is on a family autocracy which has ruled Syria for close to fifty years. Syria’s Iranian ally, an Islamic theocracy that tortures, imprisons and exiles any real opposition, does not look much better. Putin’s Russia hardly merits inclusion in the list of the most inclusive democracies on the planet.
In short, those forces ranged in support of the Assad regime and against Western intervention, hardly have clean hands. Unfortunately, those who have taken it upon themselves to intervene in the Syrian conflict, the Russians are the only ones invited in by the existing government, do not fare much better.
Democracy in Saudi Arabia and Qatar is non-existent. Turkey does have an elected government but also has an alternative agenda in settling its own score with the Kurdish independence movement. The track record of the NATO led Western interventions in Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya does not augur well for the fate of ordinary Syrians. The chaos following Western intervention in both Iraq and Syria has allowed Islamic State to take advantage of the weakness of both states and make its own push for territory.
For US President Barack Obama to suggest this week that intervention by Russia into this arena is a “recipe for disaster”, has more than a hint of ‘closing the stable door after the horse has bolted’ about it. For those remaining in Syria and for the many making the treacherous journey to seek refugee status, ‘disaster’ has long since struck.
The disaster in the Middle East is the unravelling of nearly 100 years of Western foreign policy, which has sought to sustain ‘friendly’ dictatorships, in order to guarantee the flow of oil.
Intervention by NATO has been selective and based upon support for regime’s or opposition groups sympathetic to the West. Initial intervention in Afghanistan was in opposition to the communist regime in the 1970’s; in Iraq to overthrow Saddam Hussein, a dictator initially backed by the West in opposition to Iran; in Libya to support opposition to Colonel Qadafi, resulting in tribal chaos. In Syria the intervention has been to back the opposition to Bashar al-Assad regime, not a Western ally.
Western troops have not been mobilised to support opposition in Saudi Arabia, Qatar or Bahrain. Little is done by the West to restrain the Israeli military machine in its crushing of resistance to occupation in Palestine.
Good guys? Bad guys? As ever, such over simplifications do not fit the Middle East.
Ultimately, there must be a political solution to the situation in Syria but more blood will be shed before that is reached. The intervention by Russia is part of a wider struggle to assert influence and reshape the regional balance of power. As the West loses its grip on the region, other forces are beginning to make their play. A Russian backed alliance stretching from Iran, across Iraq and into Syria would form a powerful presence in the region. In part, the Western intervention is aimed at resisting this, while at the same time seeking to minimise the influence of Islamic State. The Sunni based Saudis, in alliance with the West, want to arrest the spread of Shia Muslim Iran.
At the moment there are no clear winners in Syria, the losers however remain the Syrian people.
27th September 2015
Scrapping Trident and cowardly generals
As the Labour Party prepare for their first conference under new leader Jeremy Corbyn, the establishment backlash against Corbyn’s election continues to rumble. The most outrageous story of the week centres on the comments of an ‘anonymous’ Army General that if Corbyn became Prime Minister, committed to leaving NATO, scrapping Trident or reducing the military budget, there would be the “very real prospect of an event which would effectively be a mutiny.”
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) condemned the remarks but ruled out the prospect of an inquiry, on the basis that it would be almost impossible to identify the culprit from the 100 or so generals serving in the army. Whether this means the MoD think all 100 share this view, or that none of them would be brave enough to own up to it, is not quite clear.
Given the extent of the remarks, widely quoted in the press, it would surely not be beyond the wit of the MoD to at least make a show of identifying the perpetrator. After all, imagine the following being said about the military response to an incoming leader in any other Western democracy,
“You would see a major break in convention, with senior generals directly and publicly challenging Corbyn over vital, important policy decisions such as Trident, pulling out of NATO and any plans to emasculate and shrink the size of the armed forces. The Army just would not stand for it. The general staff would not allow a prime minister to jeopardise the security of this country and I think people would use whatever means possible, fair or foul, to prevent that.”
Outrageous, anti-democratic, scandalous, worthy of a robust and assertive response at the very least! You may well think. The Ministry of Defence plumped itself up and let out a roar fit for the cowardly lion in The Wizard of Oz,
“These remarks are not helpful. No one thinks it is a good idea for a senior serving officer to undermine a potential future government.”
Well if that doesn’t make those pesky generals quake and help us all sleep safely in the embracing arms of British democracy, nothing will.
Quite how the concept “to jeopardise the security of this country” is defined is at the heart of the anonymous general’s statement. The illegal invasion of Iraq in 2003 was a significant act of jeopardy to “the security of this country”. Engagement in Afghanistan, Libya and Syria have all contributed, directly or indirectly, to jeopardising “the security of this country.” Invading Muslim countries gives Islamic fundamentalists the excuse they need to engage in acts of terrorism against UK military and civilian targets, in the name of holy war against the West. The recent massacre in Tunisia is clear evidence of this.
In the eyes of the generals none of these military adventures have jeopardised “the security of this country” yet these very actions result in the UK military being a target, as well as “jeopardising the security” of civilian citizens doing little more than enjoying time on a beach.
The political and military establishment in the UK are desperate to sustain their role as world policemen, although junior to the United States these days, and maintaining an inflated military budget is key to this. Every opportunity is taken to reinforce this view, from the events to commemorate the centenary of World War One, to the 70th anniversary of victory in World War Two and this week’s activities to mark the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Britain.
When so many families are touched by the tragedy of wars, those long past and those present, it is difficult for politicians to argue that the way forward is to de-escalate our role in conflict, cut back on our military capability and prioritise diplomacy over weaponry. It is also difficult because many jobs are tied up in the military industry and its supply chains. The trade union movement is not united in its opposition to Trident for example, for precisely this reason. Scrapping Trident is seen as a threat to jobs in the defence sector and it is a danger that unions will prioritise the immediate interests of their members over those of society more widely.
In order to win this argument Corbyn needs to tread a fine line between the threats of the generals and the concerns of the defence workers. Scrapping Trident should be an opportunity to unite both sides of this particular line. Off the record, many generals acknowledge that Trident is of purely symbolic rather than any practical military value.
Getting rid of Trident should not, in itself, present a threat to the scale of conventional military forces, which it is widely accepted we will continue to need. Reassurance that scrapping Trident does not mean scrapping conventional defence should satisfy enough of the generals to at least open up the debate. At the same time a planned programme of re-investment in socially useful job creation, working hand in glove with defence sector workers to identify alternatives to manufacturing weapons of mass destruction, should also be feasible.
Scrapping Trident is a worthy and necessary objective but it must be seen to be part of a planned strategic process, rather than being portrayed as a kneejerk reaction. It will not be easy but the end will be worth it.
20th September 2015
Europe – last resort of the desperate
The calamitous consequences of the past century of Western policy in the Middle East continue to unfold, as thousands of migrants are forced to seek sanctuary from war zones in affluent Europe. The Sykes-Picot agreement of 1916, which divided up the region following the fall of the Ottoman Empire in the first World War, laid the basis for the current exodus. Subsequent interventions, to support a wide range of oil rich dictatorships who would be sympathetic to the West, characterised the twentieth century approach to the region. The unravelling of Western patronage as the people of the Middle East have sought to find their own voices, in a variety of forms including militant Islam, has been one of the pressures leading to the current crisis.
In addition, the well documented Western military interventions in recent years have exacerbated the widespread feeling that the Middle East has been little more than a resource rich supplier for the West. While a handful of rich sheiks and oligarchs have benefitted from such an approach, the reality for the peoples of the region has been quite different, with little in the way of democratic or financial benefits flowing their way.
The US invasion and occupation of Iraq in 2003 was arguably the turning point. After the fall of the Taliban in Afghanistan, suddenly the radical Islamist groups had found a new cause and a new fight. They learned new tactics and the dream of a caliphate that would spread across the Arab and Muslim world began to take shape.
As al-Jazeera journalist, Imran Khan has noted,
“Angry that the US had invaded another Muslim country, money and weapons were donated in huge number from Muslim countries by individuals who might never have thought about donating to a cause that was violent in nature. Once irrelevant, al-Qaeda became a threat again, and for the first time the group found a foothold in Iraq.”
The wars in Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya and now Syria have built upon the ongoing displacement of millions of Palestinian refugees, to swell the numbers of those who have lost their homes, their livings and often their families, as the tide of political and economic restructuring sweeps the Middle East.
While the Western media focus has been upon the thousands who have made their way to Europe many more refugees are in the countries surrounding the key areas of conflict in the Middle East. Lebanon, a country of just under 6m people, has absorbed an estimated 2 million recent refugees to add to the thousands of Palestinians, many of whom have been there for sixty years. A further estimated 2 million refugees are displaced into the other countries of the Middle East, many escaping the conflict in Syria and the prospect of a draconian form of Islam imposed by Islamic State.
An estimated 350,000 refugees and economic migrants are currently the focus of the crisis in Europe, a continent of 500m people, so presumably capable of absorbing such relatively small numbers.
However, for most refugees, to flee to Europe is very much a last resort.
Culture, religion and language are all alien and, as recent events in Hungary, Serbia and Croatia have shown, there is no promise of a warm welcome. Even the ostensibly magnanimous action of German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, in opening the doors to Syrian refugees, was seen to have many caveats once the surface was scratched.
Europe clearly needs to come to an agreed position of accepting the need for a quota system, to give those refugees who find their way to Europe safe haven. However the wealthy Gulf States, beneficiaries of Western military support and providers of oil and other resources, continue to apply strict rules in relation to refugees, in spite of many taking to social media to suggest that they have a duty too.
The apparent failure of Muslim governments to look after fellow Muslims is already being exploited by extremists' propaganda as they allege that this is further evidence of current Muslim rulers' "apostasy" and disdain for the "ummah", arguing that only their Islamist state or caliphate can provide for Muslims' welfare.
With conflicts in Libya and Yemen currently ongoing, but not yet adding to the steady flow of refugees in the region, the problem is only likely to get worse.
Addressing the current refugee crisis and dealing with the humanitarian issues is only the beginning. Addressing the rise of Islamic State and the causes of that rise, in the form of the economic disparities and inequalities in the region, is a longer term proposition.
The fate of the region is in the hands of the people of the region and the defeat of Islamic State will only be complete when the people of the Middle East are leading that rout. To that extent recent activity in Iraq is promising, with mass protests having gripped the country since the end of July, of which the Iraqi Communist Party states,
“The popular uprising has come as an expression of the explosion of people’s anger as a result of the failure of governments of the sectarian-ethnic power-sharing system, both at the federal and provincial levels, and the inability of governments to run the country, serve the interests of the people and the country and provide the bare minimum of security and services for a decent dignified life, as well as failing to effectively combat terrorism and its instruments, including the terrorist organization ISIS (Daesh).”
Action from within, and international solidarity for such action, are the first steps in the return of the Middle East to the people of the region, with progressive governments committed to serving the interests of the people.
12th September 2015
Corbyn clinches it; the gloves are off!
The right wing entryist clique, which has been extending its grip over the Labour Party for the past thirty years, suffered its first major setback today with the election of veteran left-winger Jeremy Corbyn as leader of the Labour Party. This represents a serious blow to the Oxbridge set who see the Labour Party as an alternative career in politics and gives hope to those for whom the convergence of Labour and Tory policies over the past decades has alienated them from politics.
The media conspiracy against Corbyn has been gathering momentum as the likelihood of his success became clear in the past month. Questions have been raised about his association with left-wing groups; his support for liberation movements; his defence of those who are unemployed or forced into welfare; and his opposition to billions being spent on weapons of mass destruction, in the form of the Trident nuclear submarine programme.
While all of the other candidates dithered and equivocated Corbyn set out a clear position in opposition to the Government’s anti-people austerity programme. This is what has engaged so many new people in the political process, not the machinations of the left or the trade unions, as the right wing media would have us believe.
Corbyn’s response to all of these attacks, from both the media and the other leadership candidates, has been to stand firm and defend what has clearly been a principled position on key issues of concern to the British people. The expressions of pique from the camps of Andy Burnham, Yvette Cooper and Liz Kendall are testament to their failure to read the mood following the election defeat in May. The test of Corbyn’s approach has been the extent to which his campaign has enthused thousands of new supporters, many of them young people, to join the Labour Party, to engage them in political debate and to take them seriously.
While the Tory front bench have been sneering behind their well -manicured hands at the prospect of a Corbyn victory, the guard did slip recently when George Osborne suggested that Corbyn would be a threat to national security because of his opposition to Trident. Osborne’s outburst represented the first sign that the ruling circles in the UK may take the prospect of a Corbyn victory seriously and that it may threaten their cosy consensus with the Labour careerists.
The leadership victory is of course merely the first step. Reactionaries within the parliamentary Labour Party are already plotting to undermine a Corbyn leadership and are alleged to have had ‘informal discussions’ after Parliament returned from recess this week. Many of the reactionary group have been stating that they would not serve in a Corbyn Cabinet assuming, somewhat prematurely, that they would be invited to do so anyway. A Cabinet without Liz Kendall, Yvette Cooper, or even Andy Burnham, would hardly be a disaster.
The press in the UK has euphemistically termed the reactionaries within the Labour Party as ‘modernisers’, hence the assertion in the Independent newspaper yesterday that,
“Modernisers fear that the left would seize the levers of power in the party while Mr Corbyn is leader – giving more control over policy to its annual conference and national executive committee and less influence to the Parliamentary Labour Party.”
Outrageous indeed! A party that must be responsive to its membership and those elected to its NEC, rather than being controlled by those selected to be its Members of Parliament. Who would contemplate such a thing? Clearly not Labour’s so-called ‘modernisers’ that’s for sure.
The coming weeks will undoubtedly see a major battle to bring the Labour Party back to its true role of representing the needs, hopes and dreams of working class people. The firepower of the right wing media will be ranged against the Left. The Tories will do their best to caricature such a Labour leadership as a threat to ‘the nation’. The defeated heirs of Blair and Mandelson will wring their hands about Corbyn’s unelectability and how the Left have hijacked their project, failing to realise that this is not a hijack but a rescue mission.
Perhaps for the first time in thirty years in British politics, the gloves are off!
4th September 2015
Cutting through the nuclear smokescreen
The focus upon Iran’s nuclear programme in recent years has seen the issue of human rights in the Islamic Republic take second place in the West. Now that a deal on the nuclear issue is on the table, the pressure for domestic political reform in Iran needs to be stepped up.
The protracted negotiations, involving Iran and the P5+1 group of nations, which concluded in Vienna in July, appear to have secured a deal which is both acceptable to the West and the regime in the Islamic Republic. In exchange for closer inspection of Iran’s nuclear centrifuge production and limitations on its domestic nuclear energy programme, the West will begin the process of lifting the economic sanctions, which are crushing the Iranian economy.
As ever with any deal on such a scale, there is a quid pro quo. The assistance of Iran and the Shia militia it supports in Iraq and Syria has been vital for the West in tackling the rise of Isis. While co-operation between the Islamic Republic and the West has not been formally acknowledged, there is considerable evidence to support the reality on the ground. It is clear that such co-operation would be undermined by an Iran buckling under the weight of economic sanctions. The momentum to find a path to a nuclear deal has therefore been accelerated.
While the Iranian regime has been smiling to the West it has been less flexible in its dealings with internal pressures.
In fact, the response to internal dissent has intensified over recent months as trade unionists, political activists and human rights campaigners face increased harassment from the regime.
In May, the Committee for the Defence of the Iranian People’s Rights (CODIR) launched an appeal calling for the release of trade unionists jailed in the Islamic Republic of Iran. The appeal took the form of a letter to Iranian president, Hassan Rouhani, who was elected in 2013, on a platform of greater reform and transparency in Iran.
The CODIR statement was also linked to the demands for economic reform in Iran, calling upon President Rouhani,
“…to fulfil the promises he made during his 2013 election campaign to act on the legitimate demands of Iranian workers for a decent living wage and the right to form, join and belong to a trade union of their choice.”
Since July 2014, large groups of workers, including miners, auto workers, teachers and nurses across Iran, have taken to the streets and demonstrated outside the Iranian Parliament to demand their rights, as set out in international conventions.
CODIR Assistant General Secretary, Jamshid Ahmadi, underlined the significance of keeping the fate of trade unionists in Iran in the public eye.
“Over the years we have received many reports of workers and trade unionists being arrested, imprisoned, fired and deprived of their livelihood,” he said. “Many trade union activists are serving prison sentences for the sole 'offence' of being trade unionists and campaigning for decent wages and improved working conditions. We hold that no workers should be detained in prison for demanding their internationally accepted rights.”
ILNA (Iran’s Labour News Agency) is the only news agency authorised by the Islamic Republic of Iran to provide limited coverage of labour related news and developments.
However, on 20th June this year, the entire ILNA labour affairs group were sacked on the spot by Chief Executive, Massoud Heydari. Preceding the mass sacking the web site of ILNA had stopped covering labour news for 2 days. There was no official statement by ILNA for this decision. News in the social media sphere within Iran revealed however that there had been major disagreements between ILNA’s labour affairs group and the management, especially on editorial interference, gagging orders and pressure for self-censorship.
A letter from the sacked journalists, released by CODIR, substantiated social media claims that management interference in how news was covered was key to the dispute. In particular, the protest by workers from the Farsit Daroud factory on 18th June was characterised by management as being unjustified because the demands were excessive.
As the sacked journalists asserted in their letter, “we as the journalists are not in a position to pass judgement on the legitimacy of the workers’ trade union protests…our duty is to publish this news”.
The journalists indicated that the most important aspect of their dispute with management concerned the setting up of a trade union body within ILNA, in order to advance legitimate demands for paid overtime, shift payments and holidays. Two days after management received a letter outlining these demands, signed by all ILNA’s journalists, editors and typists, the mass sacking occurred.
As CODIR has emphasised previously, the action against trade unionists is part of a coordinated policy of the Islamic Republic of Iran, to maximise pressure upon activists, their colleagues and family members in order to silence them and pressurise the trade union movement in Iran.
It is vital, at this time when the eyes of the world truly are upon Iran, that the success of the negotiation around the nuclear issue is not used as a smokescreen to hide the limitations of the Islamic Republic on the domestic front. Trade unionists, political activists and human rights campaigners must maintain the pressure upon the Iranian regime and press for the freedoms their colleagues languishing in Iran’s prisons deserve.
The full version of this article is available in the current issue of Iran Today, published by the Committee for the Defence of the Iranian people’s Rights (CODIR), available at www.codir.net
23rd August 2015
Tsipras bails out
The transformation of Greek Prime Minister, Alexis Tsipras, from alleged left wing firebrand to darling of the international banks was completed this week. The signing of a third memorandum, or ‘bailout’ for the Greek economy marks a remarkable departure from the anti-austerity posturing of Syriza at the time of its election earlier this year. The writing was always on the wall when Syriza eschewed any coalition of the Left for an alliance in government with the right wing nationalists of ANEL and insisted, without any prompting, of their continued support for both the EU and NATO.
Tsipras has called snap elections for the 20th September which are, in effect, a referendum on the terms of the new deal with the EU, European Central Bank and the IMF, the so-called ’troika’ with whom Greece has been negotiating. In the terms of the new deal the government is burdening the people with a new loan worth €86 billion, accompanied by savage measures including the further reduction of people’s income; new heavy taxes; the maintenance of ENFIA (the new property tax); a significant increase of VAT on items of mass popular consumption; the reduction of pensions; the implementation of a new and more draconian social-security regime, the gradual abolition of EKAS (supplementary pensions for poor pensioners); and increased privatisation of state assets.
If this package is not austerity then it is hard to see how else it can be described?
Inevitably, the same blackmail tactics are being used to browbeat the Greek people as those that have been deployed repeatedly for 5 years now in order to make them accept austerity measures. If the memorandum is not accepted, the argument goes, a new even harsher memorandum or state bankruptcy, via an exit from the Eurozone is likely and would be even worse. On each of the previous two occasions austerity has been presented to the Greek people as the “lesser” evil but has inevitably led to the greater evil. The SYRIZA-ANEL coalition government today is using the same tactics and rhetoric.
The Communist Party of Greece (KKE) has once again made clear its opposition to austerity and reinforced its critique of the tactics of Syriza stating,
“The KKE from the beginning argued and demonstrated that SYRIZA did not want and was not able to prepare the people for the confrontation against the memoranda and the monopolies, both Greek and European, precisely because it has no orientation for resistance and conflict. On the contrary, it did what it could to keep the people passive, so that they would sit and wait to cast their “protest vote” in the elections. It deceived the people that it could pave the way for pro-people changes, inside the predatory alliance of the EU.”
In calling the election for September Tsipras has claimed that he felt “ a moral obligation to place this deal in front of the people, to allow them to judge…both what I have achieved, and my mistakes.”
Syriza itself, in any case a loose coalition of forces, has split over the issue with 29 MPs leaving to form the Popular Unity party headed by former energy minister, Panagiotis Lafazanis. In its initial pronouncements, the new party has pledged to oppose austerity and leave the Eurozone, “if necessary.”
Lafazanis has insisted that,
“The country cannot take more bailouts. We will either finish off the bailouts, or the bailouts will finish off Greece and the Greek people. The country cannot breathe and stand on its feet unless a big part of the debt is cancelled.”
Whatever the outcome of the election on 20th September the fate of the Greek people will be in the hands of the European banks, more than in the hands of those who may be voted into parliament. Without a massive shift in the balance of power in Greece, in favour of the working people, the illusion that growth and prosperity for ordinary people can be found within the capitalist EU alliance will persist.
The KKE has called for all anti-austerity forces to take to the streets and oppose the new memorandum while demanding real people’s power in Greece, through the formation of a strong labour movement and people’s alliance. It may sound like a step too far for some but for the Greek people, there may be little else left to try.
16th August 2015
Cuba /US - small steps towards normalisation
The official ceremony opening the U.S. embassy in Cuba took place on 14th August, although the embassy has been functioning as such since 20th July. Hundreds within the grounds and surrounding area witnessed what has been described as a historic event.
The flag raising ceremony at the U.S. embassy in Havana was led by Secretary of State, John Kerry, and constituted the official opening of the diplomatic mission. Special participants were James Tracy, Mike East and Larry Morris, the three Marines who lowered the flag in 1961. The three carried the U.S. flag raised in front of the building located on Havana’s emblematic waterfront.
Embassy Charge d'affaires Jeffrey DeLaurentis welcomed the U.S. delegation, as well as the Cuban, led by Josefina Vidal, the Foreign Ministry’s director for the United States, commenting that the day marked a new beginning in the two countries’ relationship.
The Cuban-American poet Richard Blanco recited his poem “Matters of the sea-Cosas de mar,” followed by Kerry’s remarks, in which the Secretary of State emphasised that the time was right for the reestablishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
The formal opening of the embassy, and Kerry’s visit to Cuba, concludes the first phase of efforts underway to normalise relations, announced on 17th December by Presidents Raúl Castro and Barack Obama.
Kerry’s visit is the first by an American Secretary of State since 1945, in the period before the revolution, when the island was little more than a playground for prostitution for the American corporations who bled the economy for decades. Without any apparent irony, Kerry used his speech to call for “genuine democracy” in Cuba. With the US corporations now gearing up to bankroll a successor to Barack Obama, in a presidential election in which less than 50% of the people usually vote, the Cuban people could be forgiven for not taking any lessons in “democracy” from the United States.
The Cuban Foreign Minister, Bruno Rodríguez Parilla, held a joint meeting with John Kerry and discussed the next steps, as the countries move toward normalising relations. Rodríguez said that, to begin this next stage, agreement had been reached to establish a Bilateral Commission to identify questions which can be addressed immediately, as well as more complicated issues which have accumulated over the past 50 years.
In this context, Rodríguez indicated that in the coming weeks, representatives from the two governments will meet to establish the working framework for this Commission.
Referring to the speech made by Kerry at the U.S. embassy’s opening, the Cuban Foreign Minister said that despite differences, a bilateral dialogue and increased collaboration between the two countries is possible, reiterating that Cuba is willing to talk, accepting the fact that it will be difficult to reach agreement on some topics.
Rodríguez emphasised that during his meeting with Kerry at the Ministry’s headquarters, he had reiterated Cuba’s call for an end to the blockade as an essential step towards normal relations, in addition to the return of territory illegally occupied by the United States at Guantánamo Naval Base.
He likewise noted that progress must be made on the issue of compensation for damage caused to the Cuban people by 50 years of an aggressive policy of economic blockade. Rodríguez reaffirmed Cuba’s commitment to re-establishing relations based on respect for the country’s sovereignty and non-interference in domestic affairs. Despite the differences, he said, it is possible for the two governments to establish constructive relations, which will be different from those of the past.
A few days before the Embassy opening, participants at the 6th Assembly of Caribbean Peoples, which took place in Main Camp in Curacao, approved a statement in which they demand that the President of the United States, Barack Obama, put an end to the economic, financial and commercial blockade of Cuba.
Representatives of trade union, political, feminist, environmental, campesino and youth organisations from 12 countries of the area also called on Obama to return the territory illegally occupied in Guantánamo to the Cuban people.
The Assembly recognised the material and human resources provided by the governments of Cuba and Venezuela to promote the wellbeing and socio-economic development of Caribbean countries, a project that began ten years ago thanks to the solidarity of Fidel Castro and Hugo Chávez.
(With thanks to Granma – Official Voice of the Communist Party of Cuba Central Committee for detail in this report – find out more at http://en.granma.cu/ )
9th August 2015
Little Boy pushed his way to the front,
Had to be first in the queue.
Fat Man groaned as the boy shoved past,
‘Hey son, I was there too.’
In the cold war light the atomic flash
Turned people to shadows on the floor,
Shedding thousands of tears in the seventy years,
Since opening the nuclear door.
Don’t leave Nagasaki burning
With the shame of this regret
Don’t leave Nagasaki wondering
Why no justice yet?
At The Hague they try war criminals
So the world can understand,
But there is no space to try the case
Of the melting of Japan.
The United States stands for freedom,
The United States stands for law.
Is there anyone outside of the United States
Who believes that, anymore?
Don’t leave Nagasaki burning
With the burden of this war crime.
Don’t leave Nagasaki thinking
That there could even be a next time.
Note
“Little Boy” was the name given to the atomic bomb the United States dropped on the Japanese city of Hiroshima on 6th August 1945. “Fat Man” was the name given to the bomb dropped on Nagasaki three days later, on 9th August 1945. An estimated 70,000 people died in each of the bombings. Tens of thousands more have died subsequently from burns and radiation.
2nd August 2015
Roots of migrant crisis missed
Governments across Europe are wringing their hands over the migrant crisis, which is on the agenda of the EU and in every European parliament. Scenes of chaos from Calais this week have given this issue a particularly Anglo-French feel, although Greece and Italy have featured recently as key points of entry for those fleeing poverty or persecution in North Africa. On one level the solution is quite simple; stop bleeding the economies, or fighting proxy wars in North and Central Africa, so that the population can settle and thrive.
In all of the heat generated by the discussion in Europe, it is forgotten that the wealth of European nations has been built upon the enslaving of Africans; exploitation of their labour and natural resources; and stringent military and political control over many African nations, to the detriment of their development.
The distorting impact of European support for apartheid in South Africa has been well documented, in terms of the inequalities in that particular country. South Africa was also the dominant political economy in the south of the continent, which meant that the distortions of the South African economy were reflected in those of the surrounding countries of Angola, Zimbabwe, Mozambique and beyond. South African military intervention in those countries was also a distorting factor, only resisted by the strength of the liberation movements and, in the case of Angola, external support from Cuba.
While the apartheid regime policed the south of the continent a series of unstable dictatorships ruled the central and western areas of the continent, usually linked to their former imperial paymasters for economic support. Relative stability in certain parts of East Africa historically relied upon strong links with former colonial powers, primarily the UK and France. Recent activity by al-Shabab in Somalia and Kenya has seen a change in the perception of this part of the continent.
The unravelling of North Africa has been documented in the so-called Arab Spring, with the decline of dictatorships formerly supported by the West having been replaced by dictatorships either more ambivalent to the lure of the West or part of a degeneration into historical tribal warfare. The continents biggest country, Nigeria, remains locked in a conflict with Islamic extremists Boko Haram in the north, while attempting to establish coherent democratic processes across the country
Little of this, across a huge resource rich continent, speaks of stability, security or prosperity for the majority of Africans. The lack of investment in a public health infrastructure or universal education, by elites concerned that their power would be undermined, has meant that poverty and disease remain prevalent in huge parts of the continent.
The lack of equity in relationships with former colonies is fertile ground for the various forms of Islamic extremism which have been able to take root in parts of Africa, from al-Qaeda, to al-Shabab, to Boko Haram and recruitment to Islamic State from across North Africa. The appeal of such groups is limited to the few so, against this background, it is little wonder that people trafficking to prosperous Europe has become a roaring trade across Africa and the Middle East as people look for a better life.
It was typical of UK Prime Minister, David Cameron, this week in commenting on the migrant crisis to turn it into an opportunity to say how well the UK economy is doing, stating,
“You have got a swarm of people coming across the Mediterranean seeking a better life, wanting to come to Britain because Britain has got jobs…”
This is not quite true. Of the 180,000 migrants who have reached Greece or Italy by sea this year only a few thousand have made their way to Calais. In the first four months of this year over 250,000 people claimed asylum in an EU member state of which only 7,000 claims were made in the UK. Nearly 40% of applications were made in Germany.
While the right wing press are quick to demonise the illegal immigrant hanging from the back of a lorry bound to the UK from Calais, the reality is different. Most estimates suggest that 80% of illegal immigrants are likely to be those who have come to Britain legally and overstayed, certainly more likely to be Australian than Eritrean. Those currently arriving in the EU, in Greece and Italy, are predominantly Syrian with some Eritreans, Afghans, Somalis and Iraqis, fleeing civil war, violence and oppression of one kind or another.
David Cameron may not like to hear it, and the Daily Mail may not rush to print it, but the migrant crisis in Calais goes deeper than unleashing “more dogs”. The sooner the West admits to the need to address the causes of the migration crisis rather than simply addressing, somewhat poorly, the symptoms, the more chance there will be of finding a solution.
26th July 2015
Corbyn calls the shots
Just a few weeks ago, the idea that lifelong Leftie and perennial backbencher, Jeremy Corbyn, would be shaking the political establishment in the UK would have appeared to be the stuff of dreams. Yet he is little more than a whisker away from becoming the next leader of the Labour Party. The accepted wisdom amongst the political literati at Westminster is, not so much that Corbyn’s message has resonance with the Party and the public, but that the other candidates are failing to get their message across, leaving the field clear for Corbyn by default.
It is ironic that this argument is exactly that which the Labour establishment use when criticising the Left’s assessment of the General Election result. The Left, goes the argument, cannot accept the political reality of Labour’s defeat and are blaming the electorate for ‘getting it wrong’ by not voting for the platform offered by Ed Miliband. This is a gross caricature but is the same argument dressed up in new clothes when looking at the leadership contest. Labour Party activists are lining up to vote for the ‘wrong’ candidate, how can they be so foolish?
The Labour leadership has for so long been an apologist for the City of London; signed up to the US led NATO military alliance; accepting of the need for ‘austerity’ as outlined by George Osborne; and scared of being characterised as defending those on benefits, that it cannot believe it when someone comes along and simply challenges these things. They find it hard to believe that there is also a huge constituency out in the country who will support Corbyn’s stand on these issues and may even be persuaded to vote for a Labour Party that puts them front and centre.
In tackling this phenomenon the sophistry of the politically sophisticated is simply breathtaking. Corbyn, they argue, is attracting support from ageing diehard Lefties, looking for a last hurrah before the stable door is bolted, and the naïve young activists who do not know any better.
Andrew Rawnsley of The Observer (27/07/15) is the epitome of this tendency, commenting that,
“Things inevitably feel different to younger generations, for whom Margaret Thatcher and the Militant Tendency are history that they never lived. The young have been shaped in reaction to the experience of New Labour in power and the failure of Miliband Labour to unseat the Tories….To younger audiences, I can see why the Piped Piper of Islington can sound like a refreshingly idealistic change from the robotic mantras of besuited career politicians.”
Rawnsley may have added the ‘robotic mantras of besuited parliamentary journalists’ to the last sentence but perhaps he had a ruthless editor.
It may come as something of a shock to Rawnsley and his ilk but, if they paused to look out of their study window, they may find that large parts of the country have suffered profoundly after five years of austerity. There is no indication that those who have suffered over the past five years are set to fare any better in the next five.
It may be that the discouraged, the disaffected and the dispossessed see in Corbyn someone who will stand up for them. It may be that the upsurge in support for Corbyn within the Labour Party is not a misdirected idealism but a recognition of the fact that five more years of Tory government will decimate the little that post war Labour governments did achieve. This is caricatured as Labour resorting to the politics of protest rather than the pragmatism required to regain power.
However, whatever Tony Blair and his current incarnation, in the form of Liz Kendal may think, Labour in government exercised very little power. They won three elections, and were undoubtedly in office, but in reality the power remained with the banks and corporations of the City of London, as ever, to whom Labour gave more latitude and freedom than ever. Blair has said that he saw himself as the heir to Thatcher. It is difficult to come up with an assessment more damning than that.
The reality is that the political establishment view Syriza in Greece, Podemos in Spain, even the SNP in Scotland, and growing popular movements across Europe, with trepidation. They see, in even these relatively tame expressions of opposition to austerity, a threat to the established order. Even a slight shaking of the tree is a worry for them.
Jeremy Corbyn winning the leadership of the Labour Party will not change the realities of politics in the UK overnight. In such a position Corbyn and his supporters will be demonised by the BBC and the rest of the right wing media, as a threat to the state. Right wing Labour will licks its wounds but re-group and look to challenge Corbyn before the 2020 election. It will be messy, it will be unpredictable and there can be no certainty about the outcome.
However, a Corbyn victory is the best chance there has been in some time to galvanise the Left in British politics around an alternative vision for society and re-energise the interest of the young and old in politics across the UK. The grass roots are stirring around the People’s Assembly movement. As unlikely as it may have seemed at little while ago, Corbyn may yet be poised to give popular opposition to the Tories a figurehead.
19th July 2015
One true blue nation?
The one-nation rhetoric, from Prime Minister David Cameron and Chancellor George Osborne, following the Tory election victory in May, was always going to be a smokescreen. The Tories are only ever interested in keeping on board enough of the working class vote to get them elected. That means that if enough people are in work, enough of the time, and anyone on benefits can be demonised as a scrounger, there is a reasonable chance of hanging on to office. Whatever the high-falutin rhetoric of the pundits, that is the story of the last election.
Having successfully pulled off that confidence trick on the nation, it would be unlike Cameron and Osborne to leave it there. The so-called emergency budget of 8th July further reinforced the message that work should pay and benefits are for the lost, the lame and the losers. The language was not quite so blunt. Much talk of ‘hard working families’ filled the air. Raising the lower earnings limit on taxation was heralded as a great leap forward. More childcare places a startling innovation. A higher minimum wage touted as evidence of Tory commitment to the working poor. The limit on benefits came down from £26,000 to £23,000 for those in London and £20,000 for those outside.
All very well if the economy is delivering the jobs to absorb those who require them, at rates of pay capable of providing them with a living wage, but the evidence is not promising. Job creation remains slow and in largely insecure, low paid areas of the economy; private sector investment is still limited as banks and companies sit on cash mountains and await the outcome of the Eurozone crisis; public sector investment is not prioritised and major infrastructure projects are delayed as Osborne promotes ‘austerity’ as the route to growth.
The recently announced Trade Union Bill compounds the fact that Tory one-nation rhetoric is little more than hot air, with a crackdown on trade union rights described by a number of leading trade unionists as “more savage than even many activists were expecting.”
The proposals contained in the Trade Union Bill include:
•strikes would be unlawful unless 50 per cent of those being asked to take action vote in the ballot
•in key public services (education, health, fire, transport, border security and energy), there must be a 50 per cent turnout, and 40 per cent of all those eligible to vote must back the strike
•unlawful picketing would become a criminal offence
•unions would have to renew any strike mandate within four months of the first ballot
•the rules banning employers from hiring strike-breaking agency staff would be repealed
•unions to give employers at least a fortnight’s notice before the start of any action
•new limits on the amount of time any public sector workers can spend on trade union activities
•union members would have to opt-in to paying a union’s political fund.
The application of such restraints is not proposed for those making investment decisions in companies, or those deciding to which political party to donate company funds. The eligibility to vote restrictions will not apply in local, parliamentary or European elections. The current Government enjoy their position with the active backing of only 24% of the electorate.
It is assumed that the “opt-in to paying a union’s political fund” will automatically reduce how much unions have available to contribute to the Labour Party. In the short term this may well be the case but the plan could backfire if the Labour Party address the concerns of union members to such an extent that they actively do support their policies. Quite how likely that is, given the current array of leadership candidates is a moot point, but the race is shaping up to be more interesting than at first expected.
Ultra-Blairite, Liz Kendall, darling of the right wing media, is struggling to get nominations from Constituency Labour Party branches. Front-runners Andy Burnham and Yvette Cooper are doing better but not showing as strongly as they would like. The wild card is Left Labour MP, Jeremy Corbyn, who is garnering more support than expected from constituencies and trade union activists, keen to see Labour return to its roots.
This had prompted the Daily Telegraph to, ironically, call upon Labour to elect Corbyn as leader as he would, in their view, be ‘unelectable’ in a General Election. It has also got the softer Left leaning press worried that their misplaced assessment of Labour’s defeat, that they need to appeal more to the middle classes, may not be bought into by many party members themselves.
It will be interesting to see how the contenders for the Labour leadership address the Trade Union Bill as it progresses through Parliament. Jeremy Corbyn’s position at least, will be clear. Corbyn’s position on the call by the TUC and anti-austerity campaigners, for a demonstration outside the Tory party conference on 4th October, is not difficult to predict. The worrying thing is that there is no guarantee that leadership front-runners Burnham or Cooper will be there.
13th July 2015
Power from the barrel of a gun
The Greek people face a terrible choice as they look down the barrels of the gun pointed at them by the EU, the IMF and the European Central Bank. They face the prospect of death by further austerity measures, in a new ‘bailout’ deal, or death by expulsion from the Eurozone and a return to the drachma. It is even possible that they may be hit by both barrels and exit both the EU and the Eurozone in one fell swoop. Sections of German capital would like this, preferring not to carry the burden of weaker economies within the single currency. The French, playing the part of capitalists who believe in social responsibility, are trying to keep Greece in the Eurozone and the EU, albeit on draconian terms.
The Greek people, if one is to believe the media, have had their say in the 5th July referendum in which they voted ‘No’ to the terms of the bailout then on the table from the EU, only to find themselves, several days later, being asked to say ‘Yes’ to terms worse than the original offer!
In the debate leading up to the referendum vote, Dimitris Koutsoumpas, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) had warned the government,
“…the KKE clearly pointed out to you that you were calling on the people to take part in a referendum with a “yes” or “no” that only had superficial differences, as both the “yes” and the “no” meant the acceptance of a new memorandum, perhaps worse than those we have already seen.”
It now transpires that this is the case and the Greek people, thinking that they had voted against continued austerity, are likely to be faced with even greater austerity if a third memorandum and ‘bailout’ terms are agreed.
The real tragedy for the Greek people is that they are being led down a path of illusion by so-called left wing forces in the form of the Syriza led government. Characterised as far Left by the Western media, Syriza has nonetheless consistently taken positions which support continued EU and NATO membership. Negotiations around the third memorandum or bailout have focussed upon restructuring Greek debt so that payments are spread over a longer period, the argument being that there will be more resources left to re-build the economy.
However, with the economy having shrunk by 25% in the past five years it is difficult to see how increases in VAT, more public sector wage cuts and a further squeeze on pensions is going to lay the basis for growth. In fact, these sound remarkably like the austerity based policies which have failed the Greek people for the past five years.
The current Greek government may well accept these terms as the price for, what to them is the holy grail, of remaining in the Eurozone. The EU finance ministers and banks may not pull the trigger because Greek exit from the currency would send out negative signals to the market and potentially undermine confidence in the euro. The only guaranteed losers in either scenario are the Greek people, the only winners, in the short term at least, will be the EU banks and finance houses.
In the longer term the question is just how much austerity can the Greek people take. After them how much will the Spanish, Italians, Portuguese or Irish tolerate? The contradictions inherent in the EU will not go away, indeed they are only likely to increase as the struggle for markets in Europe continues. The United States, the Far East and China will all be eyeing developments in Europe with interest waiting to step in where the euro project fails.
Until the EU is truly a Europe of the peoples, rather than the Europe of the bankers, there can be no long term solution to the crisis. Where the Greeks go today, much of Europe may follow tomorrow.
Middle East – the people must be united
Further discussions between the Western P5+1 group and the Iranian government are to resume in Vienna on Tuesday. The talks are aimed at restricting the development of Iran’s nuclear programme, which the West claims is aimed at developing nuclear weapons. Iran has been steadfast in its claim that the programme is purely for the purposes of energy generation. The carrot held out to the Iranian regime is that of relief from Western sanctions, which are crippling the Iranian economy.
The bigger picture inevitably includes the Israelis, who regard Iran as a major regional threat, and have periodically threatened to bomb Iranian nuclear plants. The Israelis remain quiet about their own US backed nuclear programme which, in regional terms, is a far greater threat than anything the beleaguered Islamic Republic can muster.
More widely still the conflict in Syria and Iraq, with the Western forces ranged against the Islamic State (Isis), is one in which the West have covertly courted Iran’s backing. The government in Iraq is of the Shia Muslim variety, as are the Iranians, while Sunni Muslim Isis has received covert support from the Gulf states and Saudi Arabia. The fact that the Gulf states and Saudis are also Western ‘allies’ does not appear to be a contradiction for them. If Isis can in any way dislodge the Shia government of Iran, that would suit them.
For the West a formal accommodation with Iran could allow for a more concerted push against Isis, at the more extreme end of the Sunni spectrum, while still keeping the oil rich Gulf states and Saudi Arabia on board. Re-asserting strategic hegemony, in a region which is falling apart due to the botched interventions of the West, in Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya and Syria, remains a key goal of the US, NATO and the European Union states. There is not a clear path to such a goal and strange alliances will continue to be a feature of the dynamics of the region for some time to come.
For the population in the Middle East the realities on the ground remain grim. The Palestinians continue to be besieged by the Israelis, with periodic bombing excursions with little international sanction. The consequence of the collapse of Libya is a mass of warring factions vying for control. Iraq and Syria are under threat from Isis. Afghanistan is set to see the return of the Taliban to some role in government.
The Committee for the Defence of the Iranian People’s Rights (CODIR) have this week drawn attention to the fact that journalists in Iran have been sacked for reporting on labour disputes in the country as the government seeks to keep a close grip on internal dissent.
ILNA (Iran’s Labour News Agency) is the only news agency authorised by the Islamic Republic of Iran which is allowed to provide limited coverage of labour related news and developments. On 20th June, the entire ILNA labour affairs group were sacked on the spot by Chief Executive, Massoud Heydari. Preceding the mass sacking the web site of ILNA had stopped covering labour news for 2 days. There has been no official statement by ILNA for this decision.
CODIR has released a letter from the sacked journalists which substantiates social media claims that management interference in how news was covered was key to the dispute. The journalists indicate that the most important aspect of their dispute with management concerned the setting up of a trade union body within ILNA, in order to advance legitimate demands for paid overtime, shift payments and holidays. Two days after management received a letter outlining these demands, signed by all ILNA’s journalists, editors and typists, the mass sacking occurred.
CODIR also revealed news this week of the detention of Ismail Abdi, a member of the board of the Teachers Union. Abdi was detained on 21st June, when attempting to pass through the border crossing into Armenia. Officers at the border prevented him from leaving the country and confiscated his passport.
Abdi was travelling through Armenia on his way to visit Canada to participate in the annual Education International Annual conference. Instead he was asked to report to Evin prison. Mr Abdi has been in trouble with the authorities of the Islamic Republic over the protest by teachers demanding better salaries, improved conditions of service and job security. Nearly 70 teachers accompanied Mr Abdi when he attended the session to answer questions by the authorities. They were worried that the authorities may attempt to arrest him, fears which turned out to be justified.
Since last July, large groups of workers, including miners, auto workers, teachers and nurses across Iran, have taken to the streets and demonstrated outside the Iranian Parliament to demand their rights, as set out in international conventions.
The voices of the people of the region do exist and have been voiced in a joint statement recently signed by the Tudeh Party of Iran, the Lebanese Communist Party, the Communist Party of Sudan, the Iraqi Communist Party, Progressive Tribune – Bahrain and the Kuwaiti Progressive Movement.
Part of the statement provides the following analysis,
“It is now evident that Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Israel have reservations about the US policy of accommodating an Iranian powerhouse with significant influence in certain parts of the region. One consequence of this situation has been a sharp upsurge in the proxy wars in a number of countries of the region and in particular Syria, Iraq and Yemen with catastrophic human, economic, cultural and environmental consequences.
In our view this drive to ethnic and religious conflict, war and terrorism in the region, if not challenged and brought to a halt, could rapidly engulf other countries with unimaginable consequences. We believe that the communist parties of the region have a historic responsibility to campaign against attempts to divide any country of the region along ethnic and religious lines.”
The joint statement shows that there are many in the Middle East opposed to the religious and ethnic division of the region and in favour of uniting the people of the Middle East in common cause. Continuing to support them in these efforts is more vital now than ever.
28th June 2015
Isis feeds on democratic void
The weekend headlines in the Western press are filled with the horror of the 37 tourists massacred on a beach in Tunisia by a single gunman. In France, the security alert has been raised to its highest level following the discovery of a decapitated body, which appears to have been linked to an attempt to blow up a US gas company factory. Buried more deeply on the inside pages is the news that, on the same day as the other attacks, 27 people were killed in an attack on the Imam al-Sadiq mosque in Kuwait. The common theme amongst all three attacks appears to be a connection with Islamic State (Isis).
The attack on the mosque in Kuwait City is perhaps the most significant in terms of the long term course of developments in the Middle East. Stirring up Sunni/Shia sectarianism is part of the Isis game plan. The attacks on tourists and in France should not be underestimated. However, Isis has already signalled its readiness to attack soft Western targets, with the attack at the Bardo Museum in Tunisia earlier in the year and the Charlie Hebdo shootings in Paris. A further attack was only a matter of time. In the general narrative against which Isis sees its role in the world, the sub-division of the Middle East following the First World War into a number of artificial states, controlled by Western powers, is at the root of the various crises in the area.
While it is impossible to entirely disagree with this analysis the solution proposed by Isis, to set up a caliphate, which will effectively take those living under it back to a form of medievalism, is not the solution. However, the position of Isis remains that the West and its citizens are legitimate targets in the holy jihad to redress the injustices of Western imperialism as they see it.
It is not that Isis have entirely avoided Muslim targets. Their advance across Syria and Iraq has seen the extension of their influence across both countries, inflicting terror upon the Shia Muslim population and dealing brutally with those who do not adhere to their interpretation of the Sunni Muslim faith. On two consecutive Fridays in May this year, Isis claimed responsibility for two attacks in Shia mosques in Saudi Arabia, in Dammam, resulting in four deaths and in Qatif province, where 21 people were killed.
As the Muslim world enters the holy month of Ramadan Isis spokesman, Abu Mohammed al-Adnani, has called for further strikes which would lead to greater blessings in the afterlife. Kuwait has been identified as a target due to the significant Shia population, an estimated 30%, although the population is predominantly Sunni. Kuwait is also home to a major US air force base and has supported US air strikes against Isis. On the same basis the UAE, Bahrain and Qatar, all of whom have contributed to the strikes against Isis targets, may find themselves in the firing line.
The fact that the Gulf state dictatorships are Western backed is not lost on people within those countries who struggle to gain a democratic foothold in the face of autocracy and repression. While the flight of Western citizens to support Isis gains the headlines in the West, the fact remains that hundreds of disaffected young people in the Middle East see Isis as a means of self expression not afforded them in their own countries.
An estimated 800 Kuwaitis have travelled to join Isis. Tunisia, the heart of the so-called Arab Spring, has supplied more Isis recruits than any other Middle East state, with 3,000 estimated to have made the journey to support Isis. The suicide bomber in Kuwait City last week was a Saudi citizen. There are known Isis supporters in Egypt, Libya and Yemen. The Isis promise of something better is an illusion but to the disaffected across the Arab world it may appear to hold out more hope than the lack of opportunity faced at home.
In spite of this there are voices suggesting that the military advances across Syria and Iraq over the past year may not be sustainable.
Isis needs to win over the Sunni population in areas under its control by striking a balance between its radical religious platform and traditional Arab nationalism. It also needs to subdue Iraq's Shia population, or at least, force them to leave Sunni areas to Isis to control. Isis has so far shown no inclination to transform itself into a nationalist Sunni insurgency. It has ruled vast Sunni areas since last June but millions of Sunnis have left their homes and refuse to return. Others are taking arms to fight Isis in the name of Iraqi nationalism.
The Iraqi Shia, for whom Isis is an existential threat, are not interested in a compromise with Isis fighters. The Iraqi state, under their control, still enjoys legitimacy and support. If their frontline militias can sustain their overwhelming firepower and motivation in the fight against Isis they still sense that victory is possible.
Isis has survived setbacks and may well make new advances but its ability to sustain a nation state or even victory in the war remains very much in the balance. The extent to which it can develop such capability may rely on its supply of recruits from the West and other Middle Eastern countries. The extent to which that supply continues may depend upon the degree of engagement young people feel in the democratic process in those countries. For now, many continue to fall a long way short. That must change if the ideological as well as the military battle against Isis is to be won.
21st June 2015
Beware of bankers bailouts
The maxim ‘beware of Greeks bearing gifts’ harks back to the hero of The Odyssey by Homer. The wily Odysseus outmanoeuvred the Trojans by constructing a wooden horse, which he offered to them as a gift after ten years of war. The Trojans accepted the offering only to find that the gift was filled with Greek soldiers who proceeded to sack the city of Troy. The modern day Greek people may feel that they are currently on the receiving end of such a bargain, as the IMF and EU bailouts for their economy serve only to plunge it more deeply into crisis. Beware of bankers offering bailouts may be their watchword.
Like the Odysseus of myth, the international bankers portray themselves as friends but are only interested in the plunder they can exact. While €240bn has been spent on supporting the Greek economy since 2010 an estimated 90% of that figure has gone to international banks as interest payments. The scope for the Greek government to invest in and rebuild its economy, driven to the brink of bankruptcy by overlending bankers in the first place, has been limited to say the least.
As negotiations between the Syriza government and the EU reach a critical point an impressive demonstration in Athens and large rallies in Thessalonica and 58 other cities took place on 11th June. These demonstrations sent the message that anti-people measures will meet strong resistance. The mobilisations, which were organised by the All-workers’ Militant Front (PAME) and supported by 700 trade unions and other popular organisations are seen as a launching pad for the escalation of the struggle.
Dimitris Koutsoumpas, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE), made clear the demonstrators demands stating,
“At this moment, we are struggling for increases in salaries, pensions and benefits, for the consolidation of collective labour agreements, for the return of the minimum monthly salary to 751 euros and of course for the abolition of all the anti-people laws, so that there can be a real recovery of the people’s losses and so that the unemployed are supported in a substantial way.”
The EU and the IMF have made sure that they have looked after their own since the banking crisis of 2008 and done everything in their power to stabilise their financial institutions. The fact that this stabilisation has been largely at the expense of the people’s of the EU is a fact that is beginning to hit home across the continent. Greece alone has seen a 25% drop in gross domestic product; a 28% reduction in public sector employment; a 28% drop in food consumption; and a 61% drop in the average pension. If this is being ‘bailed out’ the people of Greece may well wonder how bad the alternative can be.
In the UK, in London, Glasgow and Liverpool yesterday (20th June), hundreds of thousands took to the streets in anti-austerity protests co-ordinated by the People’s Assembly.
The People’s Assembly is planning an unprecedented four-day protest outside the Tory conference in Manchester later this year, with a national demonstration to be staged on 4th October as part of the follow up to the successful turnout this weekend. It is anticipated that protests on specific issues will follow in order to keep up the anti-austerity momentum.
Significantly, the only Labour leadership candidate at the protests this weekend was veteran left-winger, Jeremy Corbyn MP. While it is widely accepted that Corbyn has little chance of winning the contest it is important that his presence on the ballot paper will allow some progressive policies to be aired as part of the debate.
More important still will be the extent to which extra-parliamentary struggle, in the form of the protests co-ordinated through the People’s Assembly, can continue to pressurise both the Labour leadership and the Tory government. The presence of many trade unions and activists yesterday underlined the continuing strength of workplace pressure and the importance of solidarity across the Labour movement. The popular protests need to shift the terms of the debate way from the little Englander agenda of the Tories and emphasise the impact of Tory policies upon the poor, the weak and the vulnerable.
In short the objective must be, if austerity is all that the government can offer the UK, then by a combination of action inside and outside Parliament, the UK is rendered ungovernable well before the scheduled election in 2020.
Anti-austerity action is happening across the EU and re-energising people in political debate. Far from being on the periphery of Europe, the actions of the Greek people may be central to its future.
14th June 2015
Fighting enforced austerity
The election of Ada Colau as the Mayor of Barcelona is another step in the growing disaffection of people across Europe with the enforced austerity of the European Union and the central banks. Colau is the spokesperson for Barcelona en Comú (Barcelona in Common) which articulates a broad platform in support of community engagement, participatory democracy, tackling corruption and rejecting austerity. As a founding member of Plataforma de Afectados por la Hipoteca (PAH) (Platform for People Affected by Mortgages), Colau came to prominence in 2009 following the banking crisis of 2008 as an activist on housing issues.
The coalition Colau heads may only hold 11 of the 41 seats in the assembly in Barcelona but her victory in the Mayoral contest is symbolic of a shift which is recognised across Spain as a challenge to the established orthodoxy. Left orientated parties also have established themselves in Madrid, with Manuela Carmena as Mayor. Left leaning Compromis retain a foothold in Valencia, as do Zaragosa en Común in Zaragosa.
With the well established Izquierda Unida (United Left) in Spain also polling close to 1 million votes (4.7%) in recent local elections it is clear that the movement for change in Spain is more than a blip. In several other cities Left wing coalitions, which also include Podemos, are set to govern.
Colau has begun her tenure with a populist emergency plan, which will see the Mayoral salary cut from €140,000 to €35,000 with official cars abolished and pressure upon bankers to explain evictions in the city. There is also increasing pressure within Barcelona to deal with the negative impacts of tourism. While the industry has brought significant benefits over the years, estimated at €12bn per year supporting 100,000 jobs, there is a growing view that local people are being priced out of the city by developers looking for opportunities to increase hotel and tourist apartment developments.
Colau has made inequality one of the key elements of her platform pointing out that,
“In the past four years the difference between the most rich and the most poor of the city has increased by 40%. An unequal city is a city that can be broken easily, it’s an insecure city.”
In common with much of Spain unemployment in Barcelona is high, especially amongst the young. Addressing this will not only be a significant challenge but one which cannot be addressed at a local level. To that extent the concerns raised by the range of Left wing parties in the recent municipal elections will need to be carried to a national level later in the year and into action at a European level. In both instances, there will be resistance.
As the success of Syriza in Greece illustrates, a party can come into government on an anti-austerity platform. However, the Syriza experience also illustrates how hard the bankers will dig in their heels at even the mildest threat to their profits. The negotiation with Syriza over recent months appears to have been little more than the European bankers and IMF hoping the Greek government will crack or, failing that, calculating how much of a loss to the eurozone a Greek exit would mean. As it stands it appears that a Greek exit may be seen as a price worth paying.
From a Greek point of view Syriza may also be calculating that this would be no bad thing. Since the first so-called bailout of 2010 the Greek economy has contracted by 20% while unemployment has risen from 12% to 26%. The Greek repayments are largely fuelling credit on loans to German banks, so any bailout funds are not directly stimulating the economy anyway.
Enforced austerity is not working in Greece. It is being increasingly rejected by the people of Spain. Whatever George Osborne may think, being elected on 37% of the popular vote is hardly a mandate to force more austerity upon the people of the UK.
Austerity as a response to the banking crisis is a failed response to a failure of the market system itself. Depressing public expenditure only leads to a reduction in private incomes, less demand for spending and thus less jobs in the economy. Less jobs means less income for the Exchequer and so the spiral continues inexorably downwards. Osborne’s obsession to avoid borrowing has gone a step further as he proposes to bind governments, not just to budget balances, but budget surpluses during “normal times”. Quite who decides when times are “normal” is a moot point. Whether or not there is any prospect of normality on the horizon, the struggle against the failed policies of austerity must continue.
7th June 2015
End Austerity Now – the people assemble
The Syriza movement in Greece and Podemos in Spain have been gaining a lot of profile in recent months due to their anti-austerity positions. In Greece this is given added profile because Syriza are now in government, albeit in a rather bizarre coalition with right wing nationalists. While the UK has been absorbed by the recent General Election campaign and the Labour Party now embarks upon its search for a new leader, popular stirrings have been afoot in the form of the growing People’s Assembly movement.
What is the People’s Assembly? In its own words, taken directly from its website, www.thepeoplesassembly.org.uk its claims are as follows:-
The People’s Assembly:
1. Is a broad united national campaign against austerity, cuts and privatisation in our workplaces, community and welfare services, based on general agreement with the signatories’ Founding Statement.
2. Is linked to no political party, committed to open non-sectarian working and dedicated to supplementing, rather than supplanting, trade union, student, pensioner and community opposition to austerity measures.
3. Is based on affiliation by individual supporters, unions nationally and locally, anti-cuts campaigns, and other student, pensioner, unemployed, disabled people’s, women’s, Black people’s, youth and LGBT campaigning organisations.
4. Aspires to support, encourage, coordinate joint action, and facilitate a transfer of experience rather than to command.
5. Encourages the establishment of new local campaigns and/or People’s Assemblies.
6. Organises newsletters, a website, twitter, Facebook and social media, meetings, conferences, lobbies, rallies, marches, demonstrations and other events.
7. Vehemently opposes all proposals to “solve” the crisis by discrimination or scapegoating on grounds of disability, race, religion, ethnic origin, nationality, gender, age, sexual orientation or identity.
8. Liaises closely with similar movements in other countries resisting austerity measures.
9. Encourages a wide debate on how to protect the welfare state and develop an alternative programme for economic and social recovery.
The organisation already claims to have over 70 groups established in the UK and is currently mobilising for a national demonstration against austerity on 20th June in London.
Given the extent of doom and gloom on the Left in the UK, following five years of Tory led coalition and the prospect of five years of unbridled Tory government to come, the People’s Assembly has to be seen as a welcome development. The organisation’s positions are further elaborated in the People’s Charter and People’s Manifesto documents, both of which give an overview of an alternative economic platform, rejecting austerity and arguing the case for more public investment to regenerate the economy.
With the Tories moving swiftly to take advantage of the post-election disarray in the wider Labour Movement, including a budget planned for 8th July, the People’s Assembly call to action comes at the right time. With the backing of key trade unions and progressive MPs the steps taken so far could be the basis for a wider popular movement, which is actually addressing the needs of the people.
How the media report the 20th June action, if at all, will be interesting to watch. The BBC is unlikely to become a cheerleader for a popular movement of the Left as readily as it did for the right wing UKIP. In any event the conventional channels of media will not be the ones which make the People’s Assembly work or not. Like Syriza and Podemos, the success of the People’s Assembly will depend on the extent to which it can tap into the day to day concerns of ordinary people and to articulate those concerns by alternative means.
If the People’s Assembly can begin to establish some real grass roots success, building upon addressing people’s real needs, ultimately there will be nothing the BBC or the right wing press can do to stop it.
Support for the 20th June demonstration will be a real start.
End Austerity Now - National Demonstration - Saturday, 20th June
Assemble 12pm, Bank of England (Queen Victoria St) City of London
Nearest tube: Bank
31st May 2015
Blue collar blues
The Conservatives are promising to be the party of working people. The Queen’s Speech this week outlined a range of measures, which they claim to be the cornerstones of blue collar Conservatism. How well did they do in their efforts to capture the aspirations of the blue collar voter? Here are some highlights.
Welfare benefits – the cap on the total amount of benefits a household can claim is down from £26,000 to £23,000. All very well, if employment is available and workers have the skills to move into the available jobs. No indication however that the Tories will prioritise full employment, just bash the poor. Child poverty in particular looks set to increase as a consequence.
Extremism – a new bill to ban so-called extremist (even if non-violent) groups and Ofcom will get further powers to act against channels which broadcast alleged “extremist content”, although quite who defines what is ‘extremist’ is yet to be determined.
Investigatory powers bill – this is already dubbed the ‘snooper’s charter’ and will give police and the security services access to personal e mail and text activity and internet browsing habits. Quite where this one ends is anyone’s guess but it is clear that the security services will effectively have carte blanche to spy on anyone they choose, whether suspected of a crime or not.
National insurance contributions/finance bill – this follows up on the Tories election promise not to increase income tax, national insurance or VAT. Ostensibly popular but one which gives the Chancellor little room for manoeuvre in addressing the changing economic fortunes of the economy in the next five years.
Cities and local government devolution bill – dressed up as more power to the regions but effectively a dilution of the powers of local government and transferring of responsibility for areas such as transport, policing and economic development to a quasi-regional tier of government.
Scotland Bill – more on the devolution question but particularly as it faces the Scots, with a promise to implement the Smith Commission proposals but which does not satisfy a newly emboldened SNP contingent in the House of Commons.
European Union referendum bill – one to buy off the Tory right wing and try to tempt back the defectors to UKIP. Cameron wants this one out of the way as soon as possible to settle the EU question. Like the referendum in Scotland last year however it will do no such thing. A victory for a ‘yes’ vote will entrench those opposed to the EU even further and encourage them to make life difficult for the government in the House of Commons. A victory for the ‘no’ camp will entrench those who want to stay in the EU even further and encourage them to make life difficult for the government in the House of Commons. How much of this becomes popular support for either camp on the streets of the UK will be interesting to see.
Housing Bill – extending the so-called ‘right to buy’ to around 13 million housing association tenants. As charities, housing associations will be forced to sell their assets, which could lead to some interesting legal situations. Imagine if right to buy extended to private landlords! Housing charities and most other sensible people see the whole thing as a recipe for disaster, which will do nothing to address the housing crisis or encourage further affordable homes to be built. The Tories will press on regardless; await the mess.
Trade union bill – more anti-democratic attacks upon trade unions lined up in this one with votes for strike action having to achieve a turnout of 50% to be legal. No plans to apply the same rules to local, parliamentary or European elections though, as we would have very few representatives in many of our public institutions. Also, no plans to apply the same rules to the boards of companies or to company shareholders. Any hint of bias here? Same applies in this bill to the political levy trade union members can currently opt out of paying. The Tories are saying there should be an opt-in, meaning a likely reduction in funding for the Labour Party. Will company shareholders have the same say over political donations to the Tories? We will see…..
GMB general secretary, Paul Kenny summed this one up saying,
”It’s one rule for the Tory slush fund, hedge funds and another for trade union members. It is not sustainable to allow the elite and companies unfettered and unlimited rights to fund the Tory party while shackling the bodies that have funded the political opposition to them for more than a century.”
While the Tories are at pains to tell the nation how ‘blue collar’ they have become the realities tell us otherwise. Once the Tories’ election victory was confirmed, more than £100m of central London property was sold in 24 hours, with estate agents working through the night to cope with the interest from wealthy buyers. Labour’s mansion tax was not going to happen and the tax loophole for non-doms had been preserved.
Oxfam reported recently that the five wealthiest families in the UK are richer than the poorest 20% of the entire population. Nothing in the Queen’s Speech looks set to make any difference to that statistic.
One area that the Tories have seen some sense on, at least in the short term, is that of repealing the Human Rights Act and bringing in a so-called British Bill of Rights. Repeal of the HRA is complicated due to the tie up with the obligations of the UK under the Convention of Human Rights and the European Court of Human Rights. Even some leading Tories appear to have twinge of conscience about that, or at least they acknowledge the legal difficulties. It may just be that, with all of the other controversy the Queen’s Speech is likely to stir up, they feel they simply have enough on their plate for the time being.
24th May 2015
Defining aspirations
Is it too soon to say, less than a month after the UK General Election, that the Labour Party will not win the General Election in May 2020? Pose the question differently, is anyone on the Left of British politics prepared to bet their house on a Labour victory? Not many takers, you can be sure of that. ‘Outrageous pessimism, sir!’ is the cry, ‘everyone knows that a week is a long time in politics, a lot can change in five years!’ This is true, of course, but if a lot is to change, a lot must be done to make it happen.
The analysis of Labour’s defeat has concentrated on the character of Ed Miliband’s leadership, as determined by the UK media; the generalised notion that the Labour campaign was not sufficiently pro-business, a line repeated this week by leadership candidate Yvette Cooper; and the equally generalised idea that Labour did not appeal to people’s aspirations.
The reality of the election outcome does not reflect such a straightforward assessment of the reasons for defeat or the way back to power. The Tory 12 seat majority was won on less than 37% of the vote. Labour lost votes to both the SNP and the Greens to the left, and to UKIP on the right, but still advanced in London and the big cities. If the small town little Englander’s were Labour’s Achilles Heel this is not something that was not already known before the campaign. There are certain parts of England where Labour votes will never stack up.
The logic, you might think, would be to analyse why the Green vote increased, why disaffection drove many working class voters in to the arms of UKIP and what the SNP did to virtually sweep the board in Scotland. Some of the outcomes of such an analysis may reveal incompatibilities. The pro-Green vote will certainly be more pro-Europe and less anti-immigration that the average UKIP voter. The national question in Scotland currently has a momentum which is not entirely class based but the haemorrhage of Labour’s vote in its traditional heartland certainly is.
However, Labour has always been a coalition of its core working class vote; the unemployed, disaffected and disenfranchised by capitalism; and the intellectual Left, whose commitment comes not because of their personal poverty but because they are fired by a strong sense of social justice. Is the building of such a coalition on offer from any of the candidates for the Labour leadership? The question is, sadly, rhetorical.
Yvette Cooper promises to go “beyond old labels of left and right” by claiming that Miliband’s pitch was anti-business and anti-growth and that Labour should support further cuts in corporation tax. The other heavyweight contender, Andy Burnham, claims that Labour’s mansion tax had merely spoken to “the politics of envy.”
There is no polling evidence to suggest that these policies lost Labour the election. On the contrary, evidence suggests that being tough on big business cheats, as well as being tough on austerity, were popular policies. The fact that a Labour victory may have meant big business footing more of the bill for the austerity crisis it largely caused, is of course the real story. However, if Labour’s leadership contenders are on the back foot in relation to big business now it does not augur well for the coming parliament. With five years of opposition ahead it would do Labour well to get a backbone and do some opposing.
All politicians want to appeal to the aspirations of their people, before proceeding to paint these aspirations in colours of their own choosing. The reality however is that the aspirations of the people do not change fundamentally. The Bolsheviks were swept to power in the Russian Revolution in 1917 not because the Russian people were great readers of Marx, Engels or Lenin, most were illiterate, but because their slogans spoke directly to the people’s needs; peace, bread and land.
Throughout the UK, demonstrations to celebrate May Day, have for decades found variations on this basic formula. In Newcastle upon Tyne the slogan ‘peace, health, homes and jobs’ adorned banners for many years. The post-war Labour government delivered on just these themes.
Are people’s aspirations today fundamentally any different? Top of the list would be job security, a decent wage, good schools for the kids, somewhere decent to live, health care that is accessible and freedom from the threat of terror or war. The candidates for the Labour leadership should listen less to the Tory press and the whining of failed business leaders. The above list gives plenty of scope for a coalition of the core constituency to which Labour needs to appeal. It may even excite the odd little Englander, but do not bet the house on it.
17th May 2015
Myths and reality
While the Labour Party prepares for a long hot summer of internecine warfare, Tory Chancellor, George Osborne, is licking his lips like the cat that got the cream and preparing to unveil another budget on the 8th July. Central to the budget will be Osborne’s strategy to intensify the austerity drive, primarily by slashing a further £12bn from the welfare budget, with child benefit being the most likely candidate for reductions in some form, along with working families tax credit.
Ironically, the budget, along with the first wave of policies anticipated in the forthcoming Queen’s Speech, will all be presented under the banner of blue collar conservatism, an attempt to re-brand the Tories as the party of ‘hard working families’. The welfare cap reduction from £26k per annum to £23k will be heralded as part of this drive, as will the proposals to get tough on so-called benefit tourism, making access to UK benefits tougher for other EU citizens.
With the Royal Charter of the BBC coming up for renewal during the course of the present parliament, new DCMS Secretary, John Whittingdale, will be charged with exorcising the BBC of its alleged ‘left wing bias’ and reshaping the organisation. As the state broadcasting corporation, the BBC does a sterling job in reflecting the overarching political orthodoxy of the day. Any ‘left wing’ imaginings are largely in the imaginations of the Tory right wing, never at home with the social conscience some of the BBC’s journalists periodically display.
The same misguided thinking is evident in the approach of the government to the Human Rights Act (HRA) and the proposal for its abolition. As ever, such proposals are based upon misinformation, prejudice and bigotry, including the bizarre assertion that the HRA was imposed on the UK by the European Union. A useful summary of the issues around the HRA is available from the civil rights organisation Liberty and can be found here:-
https://www.liberty-human-rights.org.uk/human-rights/what-are-human-rights/human-rights-act/human-rights-act-myths
Like the myths that the government is economically prudent, supports wealth creation and saved the country from the Labour induced crash of 2008, the idea that the HRA is somehow external to UK law and an imposition, which prevents the UK from dealing with terrorism, is patently nonsense. However, the drip feed of stories to the popular press, which suggest that the HRA is responsible for everything from pornography in prisons to early prisoner release has created a climate in which any new bill drafted to replace the HRA will inevitably be selective in its approach.
It will be interesting to see how the new found blue collar conservatism of the Tories extends to support for workers being paid the living wage. With an estimated £11bn of taxpayers money going to ‘in-work benefits’, to top up poverty wages, the burden of ‘austerity ‘ could be borne by employers dipping into their pockets to allow people enough to live on in the first place. The Treasury might even recoup some additional tax to balance up that £12bn benefit shift it is looking for. Just a thought.
The usual targets for austerity bashing over the past five years have been local authorities, who have collectively made budget reductions of £20bn since 2010, in the region of 40%, to bail out the Tories friends in the banks, the real perpetrators of the 2008 crash. This time round however the Chancellor may have to think twice before simply putting the squeeze on hard pressed Councils. The Conservative controlled Local Government Association (LGA) have warned of the consequences of further cuts. In a letter to The Observer (17/05/15) endorsed by 375 local authorities the LGA state that,
“Further local government funding reductions over the next five years is not an option. The new government must consider the consequences that further cuts, without radical reform of the way public money is spent, will have on the services that bind our communities and protect the most vulnerable.”
The LGA go on to say that the outcome of public sector cuts is to simply displace spend into other areas, such as the NHS, which then have to pick up the pieces when local Councils are not able to care effectively for the most vulnerable. We will see how far Chancellor Osborne is persuaded by this argument, it has not washed in the last five years, but in the coming five years even deeper cracks in local services will begin to show.
An EU referendum seems to be on the cards sooner rather than later, with even Labour leadership candidates suggesting 2016 would be better to settle the question once and for all. A tough renegotiation of the UK/EU relationship, with stricter controls on immigration, seems have been bought into across the political spectrum, another myth accepted as reality that the Tories can chalk up as a victory.
Still, in spite of all of this, we appear to have £100bn spare to spend on weapons of mass destruction, in the form of Trident nuclear submarines. At least we will all be safe from harm.
9th May 2015
Back to basics the only way for Labour
The Liberal Democrats melted down even further than anyone could have hoped. The Scottish Nationalists virtually swept the board in Scotland, heralding more talk of devolved powers and constitutional crisis. The Labour Party failed to do as well as under Gordon Brown in 2010 and registered its worst election result since 1987, securing only 232 seats. All of these facts were big surprises in the UK election on 7th May but the biggest surprise of all, after five years of unrelenting austerity, was the delivery of a majority for the Conservatives with 331 seats in the new Parliament.
The Tory surprise element was compounded by the fact that all of the opinion polls preceding the vote suggested that the UK was heading for another hung parliament, with weeks of wrangling before a government could be formed. The polls, it turned out, were spectacularly wrong and it was not until the exit poll, announced on the BBC at 10pm on election night, that anyone had a hint that a Tory victory was a possibility. Even that poll only suggested 316 seats for the Tories, an underestimation as it turned out.
So, how did so many pundits read the signs so wrongly for so long?
The answer seems to lie in a number of factors, one of which was the aggressive targeting of marginal seats by the Tories, where the contest was primarily with the LibDems. In total 15 seats, which pollsters suggested would be LibDem, fell to the Tories. Such an outcome could be understood, as the LibDems have revealed themselves to be little more than Tories in sheep’s clothing over the course of the 2010-15 parliament.
More worrying for Labour however, was that 40 seats which pollsters projected as being Labour, fell to the Tories. This, added to the meltdown in Scotland, with Labour losing all but one of its seats meant that the chances of Ed Miliband getting his hands on the keys to No 10 quickly collapsed. In addition UKIP, while only winning 1 seat came second in 118 seats, many to Labour, and gained over 3 million votes.
Given that UKIP essentially represent a strand of right wing Toryism, fronted by those unable to make it in the actual Tory Party, it is of some concern that so many working class voters were persuaded by their message.
In terms of vote share, the two main parties showed little change on 2010 with Labour up 1.5% to 30.4% and the Tories up 0.5% to 36.9% of the national vote. The LibDem share of the national vote collapsed from 23% in 2010 to a mere 7.9% in 2015, effectively helping the Tory bounce in the South of England marginals especially. Leadership resignations from Nick Clegg, Nigel Farage and Ed Miliband confirmed the scale of the Tory victory.
Throughout the campaign the push from the Tory right, UKIP and the national media has contributed significantly to an agenda focussed upon the politics of fear; fear of immigration, fear of the European Union, fear of economic instability, fear of a Labour government supported by the SNP. In addition, the Tories have succeeded over the past five years in pinning the blame for the banker fuelled economic crash of 2008 on the Labour government at the time.
However much Labour denied that overspending caused the crash, the ‘deficit deniers’ claim was made to stick by a compliant media. Lord King, the former governor of the Bank of England, and Sir Nicholas Macpherson current permanent secretary to the Treasury, both agreed with Labour’s analysis but Daily Mail headlines and BBC leaders did not scream out these facts.
The media in the UK are always a massive factor but are never the whole story. In Scotland, the views of the metropolitan elite were of little consequence to a population fed up with austerity, unemployment and the bedroom tax, and opposed to spending billions on weapons of mass destruction in the form of Trident nuclear submarines. Add to that the perceived distance, both geographically and philosophically, of Westminster from Scottish concerns and the SNP were able to overturn a Labour Party only capable of offering a Tory-lite version of the future.
There are already calls that Labour needs to re-capture the votes of the ‘aspiring middle classes’ if it is to win in 2020 and that a leader in the mould of Tony Blair is required. The numbers would suggest however that the working class vote, taken for granted with spectacular consequences in Scotland, is in need of some attention from the Labour Party. Pandering to middle class metropolitan concerns will get you so far but if Labour does not take a more back to basics approach to its core support, it will not be as far as Downing Street.
1st May 2015
Miliband burns his bridges
The latest leaders’ debate in the UK General Election on 30th April produced what could well turn out to be its most decisive moment. When pressed over whether a deal with the SNP would be on the cards, if no party gained an overall majority, Labour leader Ed Miliband was unequivocal.
“Let me be plain. We’re not going to do a deal with the Scottish National Party, we’re not going to have a coalition, we’re not going to have a deal.
Let me just say this to you – if it meant we weren’t going to be in government, not doing a coalition, not having a deal, then so be it. I am not going to sacrifice the future of our country, the unity of our country. I’m not going to give in to SNP demands around Trident, around the deficit or anything like that.
I just want to repeat this to you: I am not going to have a Labour government if it means a coalition with the SNP.”
There are not many ways to read this statement. Miliband would rather see David Cameron back in 10, Downing St than negotiate an anti-Tory coalition with the SNP. There is no other conclusion.
This position is decisive for a number of reasons.
Firstly, Miliband clearly sees “the future of our country” as being safer in the hands of the deficit obsessed, anti-welfare Tories, or a Tory led coalition, than in a government he would lead with SNP support.
Secondly, it illustrates that Miliband and his advisers are clearly in denial about the position in Scotland. They cannot accept that they have lost the confidence of many voters because they have only offered Tory-lite policies, while the SNP have appealed to working class concerns. If Miliband thinks his position will terrify voters back into supporting Labour he is miscalculating massively. Scottish voters are siding with the SNP because they are being offered a vision they understand, articulated by a leader with charismatic appeal.
Thirdly, the particular terms of Miliband’s rejection of the SNP are revealing. He is not going to “give in to SNP demands” around Trident, a £100bn burden on the nation; the deficit, which all parties want to reduce but simply differ over timing; or the “unity of our country”, a concept the SNP clearly do reject but which all parties in Westminster will have to come to an accommodation with, sooner or later. The closest thing to a progressive coalition the people of the UK could hope for from this election would be a Labour / SNP alliance of some sort. The leader of what could be the biggest party in Parliament has ruled it out.
Where does that leave us?
Election arithmetic is a dangerous game but the following scenario is plausible. Of the 650 seats on offer the SNP win 50 in Scotland. As things stand, Labour will not go into coalition with them and the SNP will not have anything to do with the Tories. That leaves 600 seats left from which a government could be formed. An assortment of UKIP, the Ulster Unionists, Plaid Cymru and Greens could win 20 seats, keeping the numbers round and the maths simple. The Lib Dems, with a fair wind, could retain 30 MPs. That would leave 550 seats between Labour and the Tories. For either one of them to form a majority coalition they would need at least 300 of those seats. Assuming they could even reach that tally, the Lib Dems will once again end up in the decisive, balance of power, position.
Public opinion may shift dramatically in the coming week. The numbers above may not add up. If they do though, is a pro-Trident, pro-Nato, pro-austerity Labour Party propped up by the Tory-lite Lib Dems the best the British people can now hope for on the 7th May? It certainly looks like it. Even then it’s a long shot. David Cameron is not likely to be putting in that call to the removal men yet.
26th April 2015
The Tories’ three card trick
Promoting yourself as the party of the rich, for the rich, who will govern in favour of the rich, is not the way to win more than a handful of votes. This presents problems for the Tories at election time so stratagems have to be devised in order to give the Conservative Party at least the veneer of popular appeal. The approach taken by David Cameron and his hapless cronies in the 2015 General Election in the UK has been to pronounce themselves to be the party of working people, the party to represent ‘hard working families’. It is a strategy remarkable in its audacity.
It is the culmination however of the approach taken by the Tories in government over the past five years. While the LibDem involvement has given the fig leaf of Coalition to the governance of the UK, it is nonetheless the Tories who have been steering the economy, setting the tone and pushing through the harshest cuts to the public sector and welfare provision for a century.
The claim of economic competence in particular has been the biggest confidence trick the Tories have attempted to perpetrate upon the UK population in the past five years. However, there are significant signs that voters are not falling for it. Coming to office in 2010, following the bankers generated economic crash of 2008, the Tories were able to quite easily and quickly ‘blame the other lot’. The crisis was all the fault of the previous Labour government, who were clearly economically incompetent, and George Osborne’s Plan A for austerity was the only way out of the situation.
In fact, the economy in 2010 was on the brink of a recovery in output, which the austerity programme choked off by focussing upon deficit reduction rather than investment in growth. The increase in VAT and cut backs in capital spending virtually brought the economy to a standstill. The job losses and reduced income for the Exchequer which followed, meant that growth in the UK economy did not return until 2013. Economies generally tend to grow during a recession as there is plenty of spare capacity and interest rates can be kept low without risking inflation. Since 1945 the average growth rate of the economy has been 2.5%; since 2010 it has averaged only 1.5% a year.
This may sound like it is at least better than nothing, travelling in the right direction but as Larry Elliott, economics editor of The Guardian, points out,
“…most of the growth has been the result of a rising population rather than higher productivity. Growth per head has been nugatory, which explains why real incomes have been squeezed. It may also explain why voters are resistant to one of the Conservative party’s favourite soundbites, namely that the “long term economic plan is working”.”
The basis of the savagery of Osborne’s Plan A was to eliminate the budget deficit in the period of one parliament. By 2012, when it was clear that the plan was not working, Osborne revised his targets and claimed that deficit reduction would be achieved in two parliaments. Although not officially marketed as Plan B this is, in effect, what Osborne embarked upon, with a strategy of ramping up the housing market through the Bank of England’s funding for lending scheme and the Help to Buy initiative.
The outcome of Plan B has been noted by the independent Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) as follows,
“Strong growth of residential investment and ongoing growth in house prices and property transactions leave households’ gross debt to income ratio rising back towards its pre-crisis peak.”
In other words, people are in danger of being financially stretched to the point of breaking, with the economy heading once again for crisis when the housing bubble bursts.
The economic confidence trick which the Tories have been playing over the past five years has also been to shift the terms of the debate about economic policy. Before 2010 tackling the budget deficit was never a significant goal of economic policy. In a nation as rich as the UK some degree of deficit could always be tolerated as part of the price of investment and controlling inflation. Increasing productivity and raising living standards has traditionally been a key objective of economic policy, narrowing the gap between rich and poor has even had the occasional mention.
The extent to which this shift has become a reality was noted in a recent New Statesman article by Simon Wren-Lewis, professor of economics at Oxford University, who observed that,
“It also helps that the BBC can be easily intimidated. When its former economics editor Stephanie Flanders dared suggest that a lack of productivity growth might be a problem, Iain Duncan Smith made a formal complaint.”
The upshot of the past five years is neatly summed up by Larry Elliott once again,
“Manufacturing and construction output have yet to regain their pre-recession levels, while the service sector has expanded the number of low pay, low skill jobs. Britain now has a triple deficit problem: a budget deficit of 5% of national income; a balance of payments deficit of 5.5% of national income; and a productivity deficit that means output per hour worked is 30%lower than in rival nations.”
A real three card trick from Chancellor Osborne!
The sleight of hand that the Tories hoped would see them back in Downing Street is looking decidedly dodgy, hence the resort to questioning Ed Miliband’s prime ministerial qualities or demonising Nicola Sturgeon and the SNP. Having relied on the economic competence story to justify the votes of those beyond the circle of bankers, land gentry and the rich who will vote for them anyway, the Tory narrative is looking a bit thin. The final two weeks of the campaign should see it finally evaporate.
19th April 2015
Defending socialist Cuba
As the news of a rapprochement between the Cuban government and the United States makes headlines across the world it is worth noting that the illegal activity of the US against the Cuban people has deep roots. This week marked the anniversary of the Bay of Pigs debacle, on 17th April 1961, when the United States’ attempt to quash the Cuban revolution was fought back.
The decision by the United States, on 14th April 2015, announcing its intent to withdraw Cuba from its list of state sponsors of international terrorism, is long overdue and was greeted by the Cuban government as follows,
“The Cuban government recognizes the just decision taken by the President of the United States to eliminate Cuba from a list on which it never should have been included, especially considering that our country has been the victim of hundreds of acts of terrorism that have cost 3,478 lives and disabled 2,099 Cuban citizens.”
The following article, reproduced from Granma – the Official Voice of the Communist Party of Cuba Central Committee, was published this week and re-affirms the socialist path of development of the Caribbean island.
April 16, Cuba reaffirms its socialist character
Fifty four years ago, on April 16, Fidel declared the socialist character of the Cuban Revolution, which the people ratify today as the country embarks on a profound transformation to develop a prosperous and sustainable socialism.
The country is currently focused on updating the nation’s economic model in a process involving all social actors, looking to boost production and promote development. Cuba cannot, however, forget the events which marked the month of April in its history.
On April 15, 1961, enemy aircraft camouflaged with Cuban military logos bombarded a Havana airport and an air base in the locality of San Antonio de Los Baños, south of Havana, as well as an air field in eastern Santiago de Cuba.
These air raids marked an escalation in U.S. aggression toward Cuba, to defeat the Revolution. These and other actions, designed and financed in the United States included the bombing of the ship, La Coubre, the burning of sugar cane plantations, armed raids by speedboats against coastal settlements, bomb attempts against government and public facilities, all with a large number of victims.
To that point in time, the Cuban government had passed important legislation, such as the land reform, while a large contingent of young people were carrying out the Literacy Campaign throughout the island.
On April 16, during the burial of the victims of the previous days’ air raids, the Cuban people flocked to areas near Havana’s Colon Cemetery, where Cuban flags were waved from balconies and flowers thrown to the streets.
Fidel addressed the massive demonstration at a busy corner near the cemetery, saying, “This is the socialist and democratic revolution of the humble, with the humble and for the humble….and for this revolution of the humble, by the humble and for the humble we are determined to give our lives.”
Referring to the U.S. administration, Fidel said what Washington could not withstand was the fact that Cubans made a socialist revolution right before the eyes of the United States.
With his statement, the Cuban leader was declaring the socialist character of the Revolution, just hours before a U.S. organized mercenary invasion took place at the Bay of Pigs, on the southern-western coast of Cuba.
Fidel accused the U.S. of blocking the peaceful development in Cuba, of destroying the people’s economic resources, and killing Cuban citizens. He also demanded that the United States assume responsibility for such aggression.
“These events will teach us. These painful events will illustrate and show, perhaps more clearly than any previous ones, what imperialism really means,” said Fidel.
Images of the people raising guns spoke for themselves, clearly reflecting support for the road to be taken from that moment on by the revolutionary process - still unfolding on this Caribbean island nation.
For more information on Cuba go to http://en.granma.cu/
12th April 2015
Trident will bleed the NHS
Election muscle flexing in the UK this week came in the form of the debate about Trident nuclear submarines, or rather the lack of it. This was certainly true of the two prime ministerial contenders, David Cameron and Ed Miliband. The positions of the Tories and Labour, on the question of retaining the UK’s so called ‘independent nuclear deterrent’, are exactly the same; spend the money and damn the consequences. Not that such phrasing made it into the speech of either party leader this week but it should have.
Trident nuclear submarines are not independent. As part of the NATO military alliance the UK is not in a position to press the nuclear button without the say-so of the US President. Whichever way you spin it, relying on the Head of State of a foreign power to decide on whether or not you can use your own weapons would not make it as a definition of ‘independent’ in any dictionary.
In the post Cold War re-alignment of the world it is also difficult to see how the nuclear option represents, in any real sense, a deterrent. In the post war arms race, which saw nuclear weaponry stacked to the point of mutually assured destruction (MAD) in the 1980’s, the deterrence argument played to the gallery at the gatherings of Tory faithful. Quite what comfort was to be had in the knowledge that, if we go they go with us, is hard to fathom but the deterrence mantra was routinely linked to security for the UK and protection from the so-called Soviet threat.
For those who hanker for the relative certainties of the Cold War period, building up the Russians as the new threat to peace in Europe is one strand in the continuing argument for deterrence. The EU and NATO manufactured crisis over Ukraine is part and parcel of the demonising of Russia, with the intention of justifying a new arms race in the West. The anti-Russia hysteria has not quite reached the dizzy heights of 1980’s anti-Sovietism but there is time yet.
The realities of the 21st century are of course quite different to those of the late 20th century. Any threat to ‘Western security’ is more likely to come from cyber attack, suicide bombing or random acts of terrorism than it is from an itchy finger on the nuclear button in the Kremlin. Quite what role Trident will play in ‘deterring’ such actions is unclear to say the least.
The headline figure for the replacement of Trident is estimated as £25bn but CND calculate that over the lifetime of the system costs would be in the region of £100bn. That is £25bn to build, then £3bn per year for the next 30-40 years, figures which have not been disputed.
As CND have stated quite succinctly in their campaigning literature,
“At a time of huge cuts to public spending, people are quite rightly questioning why more than £100bn of our money should be spent on a Cold War weapons system which even senior military figures have described as “completely useless”. Next year the NHS faces a £2bn funding gap, while £3bn will go on Trident. That doesn’t sit well with people. With further cuts in the pipeline, Trident is set to be a major issue at the next election: and local people want to know where the candidates stand.”
For the big parties, what Trident is perceived to buy is nothing to do with defence or deterrence. Trident buys prestige. It buys a place at the UN Security Council as one of the five permanent members, all nuclear armed states. This is, in itself, a 20th century historical anachronism but not one that any of the big five (US, UK, Russia, China, France) are likely to want to see challenged.
Trident also feeds the profits of the military industrial complex in the West, the network of military and aerospace manufacturers, who have no qualms about bleeding the NHS to fund weapons of mass destruction, as long as their shareholders benefit.
CND has worked with organisations, including the Communication Workers Union, Nuclear Information Service, Pax Christi, Scientists for Global Responsibility and War on Want to establish the Rethink Trident network. Launched on 20th September 2014, Rethink Trident brings together a host of organisations and individuals from trade unions, faith communities, cultural backgrounds and campaigning organisations who are opposed to Trident.
As part of their activities, CND has organised a People’s Ballot on Trident, follow the link here http://act.cnduk.org/lobby/77 to cast a vote.
Finally, in spite of the big party consensus on the subject of Trident, the Tories’ Defence Secretary, Michael Fallon, sought to make a fight of it. He claimed that Ed Miliband could not be trusted with the security of the UK as he had stabbed his brother in the back to win the Labour Party leadership. Presumably the Tories have a clause preventing siblings standing against each other in internal election contests?
Fallon, whose remarks were subsequently supported by David Cameron, compounded his stupidity by suggesting that, as a consequence of his ‘backstabbing’ activities, Miliband would do a backstairs deal with the SNP to rid the nation of Trident? If only…..
Fallon’s comments have had the benefit of focussing attention upon the extent of the Tories’ negative campaigning and their general weakness in defending their position. That augurs well for the election outcome. If Labour can be persuaded to take a progressive position on Trident, that would augur even better for all of our futures.
6th April 2015
Finding a real alternative
The leaders’ debate televised last week, involving leaders of the main political parties contesting the UK General Election, crystallised many of the contradictions of the current election campaign in the UK. It may have been coincidence but the most progressive positions were clearly taken by the three female leaders, with Nicola Sturgeon (SNP) well ahead followed by Leanne Wood (Plaid Cymru) and Natalie Bennett (Greens) a close third. Of the primary contenders to be in 10, Downing Street, Ed Miliband for Labour clearly out punched a weak David Cameron, defending the Tory record, while Nick Clegg (LibDem) and Nigel Farage (UKIP) trailed in at a largely irrelevant sixth and seventh.
The performance of Sturgeon in particular came under the closest media scrutiny and won the widest public applause. Those outside of Scotland were able to assess Sturgeon directly, free of the usual right wing media spin, while SNP supporters north of the border felt vindicated in their support for her as leader.
Unsurprisingly, it was not long before a thinly orchestrated smear campaign emerged, not surprisingly through the Tory supporting Daily Telegraph. The right wing broadsheet claimed to have evidence that, in a meeting with the French Ambassador, Sturgeon had claimed that she would rather see David Cameron re-elected as Prime Minister, as Ed Miliband was not prime ministerial material. Naturally, the UK media was quickly abuzz with the story, which Sturgeon was equally quick to refute.
In her defence the SNP leader was able to call upon the French Ambassador herself, who claimed no such exchange had taken place, and the Ambassador’s aide, who minuted the meeting, and supported both the French Ambassador and Nicola Sturgeon’s version of events. In most cases this would be conclusive evidence that the story was a plant and that the media should be investigating the who and why of such a direct smear attempt. Instead, the UK state broadcaster , the BBC, continued to run with the story as one in which Sturgeon had a case to answer.
The response of the Tories and Labour was equally predictable. The Tories seized upon the suggestion that Miliband is not prime ministerial material by taking a line of ‘we told you so’. Labour, rather sadly, took the bait and went with the media line that this was ‘evidence’ that a vote for the SNP would allow David Cameron into No.10 by the back door. Not only that, Miliband took to the media to castigate Sturgeon for the ‘revelation’.
Both Cameron and Miliband have their respective reasons to fear the SNP. For Labour it must now be clear that the anti-austerity, anti-Trident, pro-public service investment message of the SNP campaign has resonance across the UK, not just in Scotland. They would do well to catch up with it. For the Tories the fear is that such a message will give the SNP enough Westminster MPs to hold the balance of power and, to coin a phrase, allow Miliband into No 10 by the back door.
Labour have ruled out a formal coalition with the SNP. The SNP have ruled out any scenario which would let the Tories back into office, if they have the MPs to prevent it, even down to voting against a minority government Queen’s Speech, if the Tories are the largest party but do not have a majority.
Depending on the balance of votes an unholy trinity of the Tories, LibDems and UKIP could even be a possibility. None will admit to it at present but faced with a Labour / SNP alliance their respective brands of opportunism could easily surface.
Unless voting intentions shift significantly in the next three weeks a hung parliament is just about the only certainty in British politics at the moment. Nicola Sturgeon has taken a clear position and asked Labour to support an anti-austerity alliance to keep the Tories out. Labour are set to lose many seats to the SNP in Scotland anyway. Ed Miliband cannot get into Downing Street without their support.
Labour need to understand that austerity is a choice; buying Trident nuclear submarines is a choice; supporting the public sector is a choice. Of course Labour will be demonised in the media for taking a progressive position on these issues but the media will demonise Labour and Miliband anyway, there is no point in pretending otherwise.
A Labour / SNP alliance on the 7th May will not be a revolution in British politics, although the media would no doubt paint it that way. It would however wrest the agenda back from the banks and corporations, for whom the Tories are running the economy, and give some hope to those who have been paying for a crisis they did not create. If the majority of British voters are prepared to vote against the Tory led coalition, the least they deserve is a real alternative.
29th March 2015
On your marks…..
The official starting gun for the already seemingly interminable UK election will be officially fired this week. The Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011 allows for the dissolution of Parliament 25 days before polling day. The parties are then out of the traps and on their way to polling day on 7th May. There can be no doubt that the outcome of the 2015 election will be the most difficult to call for over 50 years.
The post war hey day of the two party system when elections would usually, though not always, deliver a hefty majority for either Labour or Conservative appear to be long gone as the class identities which those parties relied on become less clearly defined.
That, at least, is certainly true when it comes to Labour. Born from the trades union movement and the struggle of working people for better pay, terms, conditions and Parliamentary representation, the Labour Party was established to represent the interests of the working class. While much sociological debate is expended to define precisely the concept of class, and obfuscate the issue with new terminology, there remains a majority of the population who have nothing but their labour to rely on to earn a living.
Whether that labour is spent in a call centre or a coal mine does not change the objective relationship of the worker to the means of production, over which they have no ownership or control. The coal miner has historically been more powerful than any call centre worker is likely to be, as mining produced more direct wealth than telephone answering, but the loss of a job would put either on the breadline.
The Conservatives have always been the party of the ruling class and those who aspire to be part of that charmed circle. To that extent they have suffered from less of an identity crisis than Labour. As well as those with the real wealth and power, the Conservative appeal continues to be with the petty bourgeois small business owner and the working classes taken in by the notion that a vote for the Tories is a vote for their ‘betters’. As the overt party of the establishment the Tories continue to exude an air of smugness associated with their sense of entitlement.
This may well come from the ideological victory of Conservatism in the post war period being sealed by the pronouncement of three time election winning Labour leader, Tony Blair, proclaiming himself as Thatcher’s heir.
The Labour Party under Ed Miliband seems to be making some effort to turn the ideological tide but it is so far up river that even the mildest radical statement is pounced upon as evidence of a left-wing conspiracy in Labour ranks.
Ironically, the territory which Labour has abandoned across large parts of the UK, has been seized upon in Scotland by the Scottish Nationalist Party (SNP), who look set to sweep a large proportion of the 59 seats on offer north of the border. While the SNP makes no apology for its longer term objective of secession from the UK, the prospect of a 50+ strong contingent of SNP representatives at Westminster will make both Labour and the Tories sit up and take notice.
The SNP has built its programme around a reduction in austerity cuts, abolition of the bedroom tax, opposition to the wasteful spend on Trident nuclear submarines, and increased spend on public services. To say that this is making the Daily Mail and its readership see red is an understatement. It is also a clear statement that the tug of war on the right wing between the Tories and UKIP is not the only fault line in UK politics.
If the UK really is Better Together, then all of the voices around the table need to be heard. The much heralded ‘economic recovery’ may be reaching the traditional Tory heartlands in the south but it is not making headway in Scotland or the North of England.
It is no coincidence that while the issue of the future of the UK is seen in nationalist terms, the reality remains a class one. The referendum in Scotland last September rejected independence, yet SNP membership has soared since the vote, as the SNP offer working class Scots a vision Labour is failing to match. The real lesson of the Scottish referendum is not that the break up of the UK is on the agenda at this election but that class is back as an issue.
The Conservatives have no problem defining which side of that divide they are on, they never do. The SNP have discovered that nationalism and class politics are not mutually exclusive and are positioning themselves in the anti-austerity, anti-nuclear vanguard. South of Berwick however an SNP vote is not an option.
Labour need to grasp the baton on behalf of the working class and make that dash to the finish line.
22nd March 2015
Israeli right hangs on
The outcome of this week’s general election in Israel has been widely acknowledged as a blow to the already faltering peace process, as Benyamin Netanyahu’s right wing Likud emerged as the party with the most seats in the Knesset. With 120 seats on offer, the 30 won outright by Likud, ahead of the 24 won by the centre-left Zionist Union, give Netanyahu a position from which a coalition of the hardline right will be fashioned.
Those who will join Netanyahu’s reactionary alliance include Jewish Home led by Naftali Bennett, ultra nationalist and pro-occupation in its outlook. Kulanu, a centre right party led by former Likud finance minister, Moshe Kahlon is also likely to form part of the coalition. There are also a clutch of ultra-orthodox religious parties, winning enough seats to gain a foothold in the Knesset, who would form part of an anti-Palestinian alliance to keep Netanyahu as Prime Minister.
Perhaps the one glimmer of light in the election outcome was the emergence of the Arab-Jewish Joint List, which took 14 seats, making it the third largest group in the Parliament. How great an impact the group can have remains to be seen but its presence gives the lie to those who suggest that the right in Israeli politics speak for the entire nation.
The right had to stoop low to gain its victory, with Netanyahu proclaiming on polling day that, “Arab voters are going to the polls in droves”, suggesting that the right needed to get out and vote in case the outcome was not in their favour. That the Arabs voting in “droves” were the 20% of the Israeli population who, as citizens, are perfectly entitled to vote gives an insight into the thinking of Netanyahu, that those Israeli citizens who are Arab are essentially the enemy within.
As Netanyahu’s position hardened, closer to the poll itself, he not only declared himself opposed to a two-state solution to the illegal occupation of Palestinian territories by the Israelis but also in favour of continuing settler occupation of Palestinian land, as part of the creeping takeover of Palestinian territory which has been going on for over 40 years.
Immediately following the election Netanyahu did back track, stating that,
“I don’t want a one-state solution. I want a sustainable, peaceful two-state solution. But for that, circumstances have to change.”
As the main barrier to any efforts to broker a peace deal in recent years it is difficult to see the circumstances under which Netanyahu would actively promote a just settlement which would recognise the legitimate boundaries of a Palestinian state. His campaign rhetoric even brought an unusual rebuke from Israel’s staunchest ally and chief weapons supplier, the United States, with the White House critical of the “divisive rhetoric” used by Netanyahu in the campaign.
The Palestinians have responded by taking action of their own, in pursuing a case at the International Criminal Court to have the Israeli government charged with war crimes for its illegal occupation of Palestinian territory. As senior PLO official, Yasser Abed Rabbo made clear,
“Israel chose the path of racism, occupation and settlement building, and did not choose the path of negotiations and partnership between us. We must complete our steps to stop security co-ordination and go to the Hague tribunal to move against settlements and Israel’s crimes in its war on Gaza.”
It is also possible that the Palestinians will seek to increase the international isolation of the Israelis by returning to the UN Security Council with a resolution condemning the occupation of Palestinian lands. A previous resolution in December last year was rejected at the UN. Whether the UN will this time have the bottle to support the Palestinian cause will be an interesting test of international justice.
19th March 2015
A budget to buy votes
The introduction of fixed term parliaments in the UK was always going to mean that the budget immediately before the General Election would be aimed squarely at the voters with any cracks in the economy, of which there are many, papered over. The budget speech by UK Chancellor, George Osborne, yesterday did exactly that. Five years of brutal public sector spending cuts, drastic welfare reductions and the creation of a low pay, low skills economy were brushed aside as Osborne donned his rose coloured spectacles and waxed lyrical about the UK’s ‘achievements.’
However, as TUC General Secretary, Frances O’Grady, was quick to point out,
“The chancellor’s Britain, where happy people skip to their secure jobs to celebrate their rising living standards, is not one that many will recognise.”
It will certainly not be recognised by those at the sharp end of the £12bn worth of welfare cuts which have been made over the past five years, or the likely victims of the further £12bn of welfare cuts yet to come. Given that half of welfare spending is on pensions, which will be protected from the welfare cuts, that will mean a disproportionate burden falling upon those who are the most vulnerable, particularly the poor and the young.
It is, as ever, all about political choices. Osborne is presiding over an economy which is presently benefitting from the windfall of lower oil prices, cheaper borrowing costs and higher than expected economic growth but has chosen to protect Whitehall departments rather than help those on welfare.
Exactly how the Chancellor will tackle the welfare budget remains unclear. Interviewed on Radio Four’s today programme this morning (19th March) he failed to identify exactly where the axe would fall. Given that the predictions for housing benefit suggest it will rise from £17bn in 2008-09 to £27bn by 2018-19, with the 962,000 claiming the benefit set to rise to 1.2m by 2018-19, the detail of Osborne’s proposals are eagerly awaited.
The austerity programme in the public sector is set to continue with the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) being widely quoted as stating that,
“One important consequence of all this is that implied public services spending is on a rollercoater profile through the next parliament, with deeper real cuts in the second and third years than we have seen to date followed by the sharpest increase for a decade in the fifth.”
Quite what base any sharp increase will be from, given the level to which the public sector will be reduced, is another matter and may simply be a means of holding out hope in advance of the next General Election, scheduled for May 2020.
The bells and whistles of the help to buy ISA, a penny off a pint of beer and the freeze on fuel duty may be the headline grabbers Osborne was looking for, but the reality remains that Britain still has its biggest current account deficit since 1845 and that manufacturing and construction output are both below where they were at the beginning of the recession.
The banks got something of a bashing, with £5.3 bn to be raised from the industry in the next five years, but this is hardly commensurate with the damage they have done to the economy as a consequence of the 2008 financial crash.
Whether Labour can land any political blows in relation to the budget remains to be seen. In his response to the budget, interviewed on the BBC, Labour Shadow Chancellor, Ed Balls, was unconvincing and was easily steered into a position of accepting that Labour would not reverse anything proposed in the budget. The opportunity to make a decisive link to the bigger picture and the blight which the austerity programme has wreaked across large swathes of the country was missed. As long as Labour fight shy of making popular but decisive proposals, to nationalise keys areas of transport, hit the unearned income of the rich harder and to tackle the growing scourge of youth unemployment more decisively, the electorate are likely to see them as a pale shadow of the current government.
How the debate on the budget unfolds over the coming week will effectively be the start of serious election campaigning as we move towards 7th May. If Osborne’s plans are not to be implemented, Labour needs to make sure that the alternative is both louder and clearer.
14th March 2015
Teachers take action in Iran
The Committee for the Defence of the Iranian People's Rights (CODIR) has reported this month that further action has been taken by teachers in Iran, following an unprecedented strike by thousands of teachers for two consecutive days in January. On both occasions, action has been organised to protest against hardship, job insecurity and the economic policies of the Iranian regime.
In what has been hailed as the biggest workers protest in recent years in Iran, more than 100,000 teachers held coordinated rallies in Tehran and other provincial capitals earlier in March, demanding better pay and conditions. Teachers across the country stayed away from classrooms. Their representatives held protest rallies outside the Majlis, the Iranian parliament, and provincial offices of the Ministry of Education.
Teachers are concerned that the government is planning to limit their salary increase to below the rate of inflation. In the draft budget presented to the parliament for the financial year 2015/16 the budget of the Ministry of Education is seriously limited. This is at a time when the budget for favoured departments, such the Islamic Guards Corps, has increased by 60%.
Protesting teachers were also demanding health insurance for teachers, respecting the right of teachers to engage in trade union activities and calling for the release of a number of teachers who are serving long prison sentences for engaging in trade union activities.
Privatisation is an ongoing concern of teachers as the government seeks to meet IMF requirements to deregulate the economy. As part of its restructuring programme, during the next ten years, the Islamic Republic intends to significantly reduce the number of school teachers and reduce the status of teaching through drafting in retired teachers, university graduates and volunteers to fill any gaps.
In a recent letter of solidarity with teachers in Iran, Christine Blower, NUT General Secretary stated,
"Today in Iran teachers are faced with threats against their pay and pay progression. They are faced with difficult working conditions, job insecurity and privatisation in education. Furthermore, there is little room for dissent and trade unions voices are silenced. Nonetheless we stand in solidarity with the teachers of Iran."
CODIR has called for support for the teachers in Iran and asked for other trade unions to also show their support by writing to the Iranian teachers' organisation to show solidarity.
CODIR Assistant General Secretary, Jamshid Ahmadi, stressed the significance of the ongoing action by teachers,
"As we have said before, teachers in Iran find themselves living on the breadline at a time when education to support the future needs of the economy is vital. Keeping teachers on low pay and cutting their numbers so dramatically underlines the lack of vision in the Islamic Republic and their inability to forge a path independent of the strictures of the IMF."
As CODIR has emphasised previously, the action against teachers is part of a coordinated policy of the Islamic Republic of Iran, to maximise pressure upon trades union activists, their colleagues and family members in order to silence them and pressurise the trade union movement in Iran.
For further information go to www.codir.net
8th March 2015
Holding up half the sky
Today is International Women’s Day (IWD) and there can be no doubt that the position of women in the West has improved significantly since the day was first recognised in 1908. The day came about as a result of working women New York in the United States taking to the streets to demand better pay, terms and conditions. It was taken on board as an international day when a proposal by German socialist, Clara Zetkin, tabled at the second International Conference of Working Women in Copenhagen in 1910, was unanimously agreed by the conference delegates. From 1911 onwards the day has assumed a truly international character.
In the Soviet Union and former socialist countries, IWD was a national holiday, something which has continued in many of the former Soviet republics as well as in Cuba, China and Vietnam, amongst others.
While the focal point of IWD is to celebrate the many achievements of women, there is inevitably an acknowledgement that not all the desired aims of those fighting for equality have been achieved. While the visibility of women in positions of influence and power has increased in the West in general, there remain fewer women than men as MPs across Europe, fewer women in leading business positions and fewer women with positions of influence in the media. Women’s pay remains, on average, less than that of men.
In the UK the state supported Church of England regards itself as progressive, having just allowed women to become Bishops after hundreds of years. In the Catholic Church the prospect of a female Pope is not even contemplated, while the position of women in Islamic culture remains both subservient and secondary. Political prominence has been achieved by women in the West, not least Margaret Thatcher in the UK, Angela Merkel in Germany and increasingly Marine Le Pen in France. Hillary Clinton is being tipped as the next US President, she would be the first woman to hold the office. However, these examples merely serve to illustrate the fact that women in prominent political positions is no guarantee of progress towards equality, either for women in particular or society in general.
It should also be pointed out that, while women enjoyed greater prominence in the workforce in the Soviet Union and former socialist countries, they rarely found their way to leadership positions. The same is true of China today where the higher echelons of the Communist Party are hardly an advertisement for gender balance, in spite of Mao’s acknowledgement that ‘women hold up half the sky.’
Nevertheless, the progress of gender equality is inextricably linked to the struggle for economic and social equality in society as a whole. Whatever concessions are won from capitalism, in terms of women’s voting rights and any progress on pay issues, the nature of the system is such that progress is always under threat. As well as the anachronistic position of the Church of England on women Bishops, the outdated system of Monarchy in the UK retains succession through the male line, serving to underline its irrelevance to progress more than is already obvious.
The Church and state in the UK are imbued in gender prejudice and as models for wider society are backward looking and reactionary. So far the media in the UK have succeeded in keeping the Church and Monarchy ‘above politics’ insofar as they are not generally regarded as targets for political debate. Such opposition as is voiced is usually characterised as unrepresentative or ‘extreme’. However, as the debate around the role of the nations of the UK takes on new and previously unanticipated directions, it is likely that the institutions which support the status quo will come under greater scrutiny.
The extent to which such institutions, supported by the media and the wider political superstructure, defend entrenched class interests and impede progress towards economic and social justice will become more apparent. Only when such questions are asked, and the need for a socialist republic based upon equality of opportunity, regardless of gender, race or ethnic origin is realised, will significant steps towards equality be made. In the meantime any degree of change is better than none. Any steps, which illustrate that the contribution of women to society is of equal value to that of men need to be taken. We then need to unite to build upon such gains and ensure that they are taken further.
1st March 2015
Newcastle Unites Against Racism
The first ever UK rally of the far right Pegida group took place in Newcastle upon Tyne yesterday, with the neo-fascists mustering a mere 300 supporters, while a counter demonstration, organised under the Newcastle Unites banner, saw 3,000 people take to the streets of the city. The attempts of the Pegida UK organisers to suggest that the group is not far right in its views was given the lie by the clear right wing sympathies of those huddled in Newcastle’s Bigg Market to hear the proclamations of bigotry from the platform.
Police in the city held a clear line to keep the counter demonstrators apart from the Pegida rally, which would have been easily overwhelmed by the weight of numbers on the Newcastle Unites protest. Local and national media have been unable to deny the clear difference in numbers but have been reporting up to 400 at the Pegida event and as low as 1,000 in opposition. However, the TV pictures from both events clearly support the assertions of many present, and organisers, that the Newcastle Unites activists outnumbered Pegida by close to 10:1.
With the event being the first organised by Pegida outside Germany, it was vital that a clear message was sent to those seeking a platform for racism and Islamophobia that they were not wanted in the UK or in the North East of England. The history of exposing the neo-Nazi sympathies of the National Front, the neo-fascist bigotry of the British National Party and the ongoing anti-European bombast of UKIP, is strong on the Left in the UK and representation from across the country was evident at the protest against Pegida in Newcastle.
Significantly, the protest brought together a wide age range of representatives from across political parties and those from a range of religious faiths. Whatever the differences in belief of those attending the protest, they were united in their opposition to the racism and bigotry on offer from Pegida.
Pegida started life in Germany, in particular in the city of Dresden, and is an acronym for the Patriots of Europe Against the Islamisation of the West. The rise of Pegida is symptomatic of the growth of right wing groups in certain parts of Europe, as the economic crisis arising from the 2008 economic crash, results in a lashing out in certain areas against easy scapegoats. The rise of Pegida is the culmination of a wave of arson attacks by neo-Nazis on refugee shelters, which began in Germany in the 1990’s and have resulted in the progressive tightening of laws protecting the rights of asylum seekers in Germany.
That Pegida should arise in Dresden in particular, one of the major cities of the former GDR (German Democratic Republic), is not entirely surprising. Since the GDR was annexed into the new unified Germany 25 years ago the citizens of the East have had to suffer unemployment, hardship, and a rising cost of living. The German economic miracle remains one primarily made in the West of the country, rather than being evenly spread. Preying upon the dissatisfaction this situation breeds, neo-Nazi groups and anti-Islamists such as Pegida have sought to take advantage by putting the blame for economic ills at the door of immigrants, rather than the banks and corporations running the economy.
This is the oldest divide and rule trick in the book and one which is being carried out with increasing efficiency in many parts of Europe, in particular by the Front National of Marine Le Pen in France. The fact that Le Pen is being talked of as a serious contender for the French presidency should give cause for concern across the continent. Le Pen has a superficially plausible message about being against the corporations, against the bureaucracy of the EU and for ‘the people’. Yet the problems facing the French are primarily, according to Le Pen, to do with mass immigration.
The rhetoric of opposing the banks and the EU is merely a smokescreen for the real anti-immigration message which is at the core of the Front National’s position. In a recent interview with the BBC Le Pen stated that the world is divided into “nationalists and globalists”, siding herself with the nationalists looking to address the interests of ”the people” in their particular country.
What Le Pen failed to acknowledge were internationalists, those who are opposed to the EU of the banks and the corporations, but would welcome a Europe of mutually supportive socialist states, which would be open to migrants, opposed to racism and would truly be run in the interests of and by the people. The basis of such an approach is a Marxist one, anathema to the likes of Le Pen and Pegida, but the only approach which would give truly people based government and drive the neo-fascist agenda underground.
The very important demonstration in Newcastle this weekend laid down an important marker for Pegida and its like in the UK. However, in the UK and the rest of Europe, there is still more work to be done.
22nd February 2015
Greeks bail out
Anyone on the Left who was still under any illusion that the Syriza led Greek government is little more than a trusty capitalist supporting social democratic party, in the traditional mould, should have had their eyes opened this week. All talk of Syriza representing a hard Left tilt at the power of capital in Europe has been exposed, as negotiations over the Greek debt and bail out terms conclude with the Greek people being no better off than they were before. Worse still, there is little prospect that things will improve.
The so called troika of foreign lenders, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the European Central Bank (ECB) and the European Union (EU) were the focus of much energy during the Greek election campaign, with Syriza promising that it would tear up the memoranda that the previous right wing Greek government had agreed, and which was responsible for the austerity forced upon the Greek people.
The so called bailout, amounting to €240bn, has resulted in the Greeks having to suffer soaring unemployment and collapsing economic output. The vast majority of the funds have gone straight back in repayments to private sector speculators, including French and German banks, largely responsible for the bleeding of the Greek economy in the first place. Austerity as a stimulus to growth is not working elsewhere in Europe, as the ECB recently agreed €60bn a month money printing programme demonstrates, so there is no reason to believe it would work in Greece.
Syriza had a strong mandate, in terms of popular support in the elections and the evidence of economic stagnation across Europe, to back the case for debt cancellation and an even playing field for the weaker economies of the Eurozone. Instead Greek finance minister, Yanis Varoufakis, offered from the start that,
“Greece is a permanent and inseparable member of the European Union and our monetary union.”
Syriza has stated that it agrees with 70% of the “reforms” included in the original troika memoranda and disagrees with 30%, which it describes as “toxic”. Further still, it has stated that it will not act unilaterally, but will seek a new agreement with the lenders. The only difference appears to be that this time the new agreement will not be called a memorandum, but a programme, agreement or bridge. To add to the absurdity, the lenders will no longer be the ‘troika’ but the ‘institutions’. Finally, the bailout becomes the Master Facility Agreement.
These semantic somersaults disguise nothing in reality of course. The deal on the table for the Greek people is exactly the same as it was before. The Greek economy will be supervised by the troika. The Greek government will submit detailed reform proposals for their inspection. Syriza will not engage in reforms which may threaten “fiscal sustainability”. The coup de grace is that the Greek government will accept financial support “on the basis of the conditions of the current agreement.” That will be for four months, not the six months the Greeks had requested.
The tone was set earlier in the week when German Finance Minister, Wolfgang Schӓuble, stated that whatever platform Syriza had been elected on, they had to honour the commitments of the previous Greek government to the terms of the bailout. Quite what this means for democracy in the EU is an interesting point, if any agreement signed by one government is there in perpetuity, whatever the programme of any incoming government.
What the Greek people will make of the deal remains to be seen. Having been elected on an anti-austerity programme, selling more austerity back to its supporters will not be easy for Syriza. The final acts in the drama initiated by the Greek general election have yet to be played out.
The Communist Party of Greece (KKE) sum up neatly the next steps,
“Thus, the Greek people and the other peoples should not fall into the trap of being separated into “merkelists” and “obamites” and divided in a struggle under “false” flags. They have to organize their struggle and demand the recovery of the losses as regards their income and their rights. They should demand the solution of all workers’ and people’s problems according to their contemporary needs. They must struggle for the way out that will bring hope: the socialization of the monopolies, the disengagement from the imperialist unions of the EU and NATO with the people holding the reins of power. This will pave the way for the only timely and realistic path that leads to the true emancipation of the people: the construction of a new, socialist society.”
15th February 2015
Black ties, white noise
Let’s face it, no-one is really surprised that international banks, such as HSBC, would indulge in a bit of advice to the rich, helping them to avoid paying tax. Not many will be surprised that, even presented with the evidence of such activity, Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) did not spend a lot of time chasing the rich around the world to cough up what they owe. If we are honest, the only surprise is that the banks and the tax dodgers have been caught at it.
However, the scale of the concealment of cash by HSBC’s Swiss bank seems to have been sufficiently eye opening for even the most craven apologists of the secret bank account system to acknowledge that there has to be a fall guy. For the time being, HSBC is it. Leaked files, revealed this week that secret accounts were held for people alleged to have been involved in drug running, corruption and money laundering operations. Other areas of interest appear to have included bankers who had looted from former Soviet states, cash from cocaine smuggling in the Dominican Republic and the proceeds arising from the doping of professional cyclists in Spain.
The revelations came through the French daily, Le Monde in collaboration with the UK based The Guardian and have generated some interesting responses. The Chairman of Le Monde’s supervisory board Pierre Berge has attacked the newspaper for “informing” on those exposed in the HSBC files, sparking a stormy debate on press freedom in France. A similar line was taken by Matthieu Pigasse, Head of Lazard bank in Paris, who claimed that,
“There is a balance to be struck between disclosing information that is in the public interest and falling into a form of fiscal McCarthyism and informing.”
Quite which elements of the rich dodging tax, not to mention international criminals using unnamed accounts to launder the proceeds of crime, that are not in the public interest, Pigasse does not make clear. What is evident however is that those who previously felt they had a safe haven, free from the taxes which are the obligation of the majority, are finding their position of privilege under scrutiny.
In the UK the political fallout has inevitably focussed upon the historic party of the rich, the Tory Party. Former Tory Treasurer, Lord Fink no less, backed down from a threat to sue Labour leader Ed Miliband for accusing him of tax avoidance for the very reason that he had to admit he had avoided paying taxes. His defence, as reported by the London Evening Standard, was summed up quite neatly as “..tax avoidance, everyone does it.” Further mitigation was offered by the good Lord in the claim that,
“What I did was at the vanilla, bland, end of the spectrum.”
So, a little bit of tax avoidance is okay it would seem!
Not content with getting themselves embroiled at the sharp end of an international tax dodging story, the Tories’ reputation for ineptitude was compounded by their black tie winter ball, a fundraiser for the posh to boost the Tory General Election war chest. With £12m in the coffers, and the capability to outspend every other party combined at the General Election, the Tories nevertheless proceeded to squeeze their supporters just a bit more, to be on the safe side.
Prospective contributors were invited, in an auction style event to bid for, a trip on a private jet to the Greek islands; the use of a luxury 12 bed chalet in France; a pheasant and partridge shoot; or a spot of shoe-shopping with Home Secretary, Teresa May; amongst many other delights. When Chancellor George Osborne argues to continue the austerity programme, because we are “all in it together”, events like these reinforce the reality that some are not quite so deeply “in it” as others. Tory claims that Labour being supported financially by the trade union movement is in any way undemocratic are also exposed as being thin.
The Tory lack of judgement in fiscal matters is reinforced by the fact that former HSBC executive chairman, Stephen Green, was not only made a peer by the Tories in 2010, he was then elevated to a position in government as Trade Minister. By 2012 US Department of Justice officials had uncovered sanctions busting and money laundering activity at HSBC which led them to claim the bank’s culture was “pervasively polluted” by such activity, clear something which had not just started after the departure of Green. The US scandal resulted in a fine of $1.9bn after the Senate committee report revealed, amongst other things, that Mexican and Colombian drugs cartels had used HSBC to launder at least $881m.
All of this has given Labour leader, Ed Miliband, the opportunity to land some pre-election punches, characterising David Cameron as being strong on the weak but weak when it comes to dealing with the strong and pointing out in a speech yesterday that there is “one rule for the rich and powerful and another for everyone else.”
Quite how far the debate on tax avoidance has yet to go remains to be seen but any hopes David Cameron may have had of sweeping it under the carpet have been dealt a blow by the Treasury Select Committee, who will be calling HSBC and HMRC officials to give evidence. Whatever that may reveal, the case for ongoing austerity is certainly a lot weaker than that for spreading the pain a bit more evenly.
7th February 2015
Ukraine – peering over the edge
Having generated the crisis in Ukraine, through a combination of political and diplomatic manoeuvres, Western politicians are now attempting to set themselves up as peacemakers. At yesterday’s talks in Moscow, German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, and French President, Francois Hollande, took the initiative to meet with President Putin to find a way through the current crisis and bring the leaders of Ukraine back from the brink. With many US senators openly calling for the US to arm the Ukrainian government, the success or failure of the Merkel/Hollande mission could be the difference between reinstating a ceasefire and all out war.
At a conference in Munich today the focus will be on a new blueprint agreed at the talks in Moscow involving Putin, Merkel and Hollande. The aim is to reach a solution to the crisis before it turns into a major east-west confrontation. It is expected that the new plan is likely to be based on the failed September Minsk ceasefire and peace accords, which the West accuses Moscow of failing to adhere to.
Whatever the detail of the Minsk accords, the real issues in Ukraine are rooted in the attempt by the US and EU to draw the country into the orbit of the West, by pushing both EU and NATO membership. Russia has been subject to punitive sanctions, having been characterised by the West as the aggressor in the Ukraine, while its intervention in relation to the Crimea has been positively mild, compared to the engagement of the West in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria and Libya.
While President Putin’s style, characterised by Seumas Milne of The Guardian recently as “oligarchic nationalism” is clearly not to everyone’s taste, it is hard not to disagree with his assessment that the US has tried to dominate the world through “unilateral diktat” and “illegal intervention”, disregarding international law and institutions if they got in the way. Putin’s assessment that the result of this process has been conflict, insecurity and the rise of groups such as Isis, with the US and its allies “constantly fighting the consequences of their own policies”, is also hard to disagree with.
To that extent, the view of the Ukraine crisis in many parts of the world is that of Russia acting as a counterweight to the unilateral power of the US. While the hawks in the US may call for more weapons to be poured into the hands of the volatile Ukraine government of President Poroshenko, others recognise that the US is already straining to contain Isis, in Iraq and Syria, without committing itself to additional engagement in Ukraine.
The Merkel/Hollande initiative may be the first sign in the West that a negotiated solution is the only way forward and that the long term strategic interests of the West may lie in having Russia as a strategic ally, rather than an enemy. It will be interesting to see how negotiations unfold.
Bob Marley
"I tell you what: some people got everything;
Some people got nothing;
Some people got hopes and dreams;
Some people got ways and means."
Survival - Bob Marley
Yesterday (6th February) marked the day on which Bob Marley would have been seventy years old. Marley died at the age of 36 leaving behind a legacy of music and militancy that inspired many when he was alive and arguably more since his death. Widely regarded as the first third world or world music superstar, Marley consistently railed against injustice, poverty and imperialism. His musical legacy is testament to this, described by author and lecturer, Vivien Goldman, as,
“A musician who laid his life on the line for his beliefs, expressed in songs a child could hum….”
Marley’s legacy is not without ambivalence however. Rooted in the Rastafari religion, Marley’s message is imbued with the belief in the deification of Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia, regarded as the second coming of Christ by those who follow the creed. Whether the people of the impoverished nation he ruled for forty five years would see Selassie in such glowing terms is open to dispute.
However, the essential nature of Marley’s music, its roots in the poverty he knew in Trench Town Jamaica, remain a progressive element in his work. Popularising the independence struggles of African nations, attacking apartheid in South Africa and arguing against the destruction of the planet marked him out from many of his contemporaries and ahead of most songwriters of today.
As a legacy goes, that is still something not many can match.
1st February 2015
One step forward, two steps back?
The widely anticipated outcome of the Greek parliamentary election last Sunday resulted in the Syriza party gaining 36.3% of the vote against the 27.8% gained by the right wing New Democracy (ND)Party. ND has overseen the austerity programme in Greece in recent years, in partnership with social democrats of PASOK, whose vote fell from over 12% to 4.7% of the popular vote. The fascist Golden Dawn vote was down slightly but still at a worrying 6.3% while, more positively the Communist Party of Greece (KKE)saw its vote increase from 4.5% to 5.5%, giving it 15 members of parliament. The right wing Independent Greeks, whom Syriza have chosen to go into coalition with, saw their vote drop from 7.5% to 4.8% of the electorate.
These figures reflect a number of things. Firstly that the to and fro of Greek politics, between the ND and PASOK, is effectively over. Secondly, that while the right wing in Greece is still able to garner a significant number of votes, there is a distinct appetite for a different approach to the economy. The combined ‘left’ vote of Syriza and the KKE is comfortably over the 40% mark and ostensibly represents a desire for change. Thirdly however, the bizarre composition of the coalition in Greece signals only a conditional ‘victory’ for the anti-austerity forces and reinforces fears, voiced by the KKE, that Syriza may not be as radical as the capitalist press would have the European public believe.
Whether the Syriza government is capable of being moved to a position which is actually a radical one, in relation to withdrawal from the EU and NATO, remains to be seen. However, its short term success will certainly be judged by the extent to which its policies can improve the lives of ordinary Greek people, who have suffered under the austerity programme of the past five years. The current position of Syriza remains that it does not want to leave the euro or default on its debts. How hard a line the Germans and Europe’s central bankers take may determine whether Syriza is forced into making tougher choices that it wants to, sooner rather than later. Which way it jumps, right or left, may be the point at which a decisive shift comes.
The anti-austerity ball is certainly rolling across Europe, with Podemos in Spain mobilising 100,000 supporters in the centre of Madrid yesterday to a rally addressed by Podemos leader, Pablo Inglesias, sending out a message of anti-austerity and anti-corruption. With municipal, regional and general elections all coming up in Spain this year the progress of Podemos, which has only been on the political scene for the past year, will be watched closely by the EU hierarchy.
However, like Syriza, whether Podemos is offering a genuine alternative to the iniquities of the banker dominated EU, or merely riding the crest of a popular backlash against austerity is the real question. Neither are offering a truly radical analysis of the cause of the crisis across the EU and capitalist world; neither is taking a decisive position against the ongoing military interventions of NATO; and neither is taking a decisive stand against the distorting and reactionary influence of the United States at the United Nations.
There is also a trend amongst capitalist economists in Europe, which advocates greater investment for growth, as opposed to austerity, on the basis that it will lead to greater profitability for capital in the long term. Such voices may be regarded as ‘wet’ by those who advocate structural reform, usually a euphemism for reduced pay, terms and conditions, but they do illustrate that there is not uniformity within the ranks of capital about the best way forward. Allowing Syriza and Podemos to shift the ground slightly, while not fundamentally challenging the power of capital, may be seen as an acceptable price to pay if it breaks the current spiral of decline in the Eurozone.
It is certainly true that challenging the institutions of capital, whether economic or military, in the forms of the EU and NATO, is only one part of the struggle. Ownership and control of the economic and military agenda, led by governments of the people, acting in the interests of the people, is the only solution in the long term. It would be a miracle if any of the general election outcomes in 2015 deliver change on that scale.
25th January 2015
The illusion of ‘inclusive capitalism’
The World Economic Forum took place in Davos, Switzerland this week. It is a gathering of the world’s big economic players to analyse the international economic situation and propose solutions to the world’s economic ills.
This year the Davos glitterati have discovered inequality and they think it may be a bad thing. At least they seem to think that too much of it might be a bad thing. There was no hint from Davos that economic equality is on the agenda, just that things being too unequal can not only make capitalism look bad but can also be a bit tricky when it comes to selling goods. A poorly paid workforce has little in the way of disposable income so cannot afford to buy things, unless they use credit and we are living through the consequences of that.
The fact that capitalism is a system based upon exploitation and therefore has inequality built into it, was not up for discussion. The best option on offer was so called ‘inclusive capitalism’, championed by Barack Obama amongst others, as a means of ameliorating the suffering of the poor by making sure that the crumbs from the table, upon which they feed, are slightly bigger than usual.
The occasion for the hand wringing was the publication of a report on Inclusive Prosperity, from an international commission chaired by Harvard professor Larry Summers and Shadow Chancellor, Ed Balls. The report does indeed show that capitalism is not working. The income growth of the bottom 90% of the workforce in industrialised countries is slowing, while actually falling in the UK and US. Austerity is stunting economic growth, a familiar reality in the UK.
The report also suggests that unrestrained executive pay is a bad thing and calls for the return of stronger trade unions and collective bargaining. The report appears to have influenced Barack Obama’s State of the Union comments in which he asked how much longer can we ”accept an economy where only a few of us do spectacularly well” before going on to outline a set of tax increases on high incomes.
In the week of the Davos conference the charity Oxfam reported that, according to figures gleaned from Credit Suisse, by 2016 the combined wealth of the world’s richest 1% will overtake that of the remaining 99% of the world. The richest 1% currently own 48% of world’s wealth. Next year that figure will exceed 50% for the first time.
Globalisation and the technological revolution are to blame, it would seem, as more goods can be produced with less workers. Such changes in the past have been accompanied by the demand for a shorter working week and an increase in leisure time, rather than wholesale sackings and communities on the scrapheap. However, even such progress will only turn the tide temporarily.
Capitalist production is not coherently planned and is inherently competitive. This inevitably leads to increased monopoly and crises of over production, where supply outstrips demand for a particular product and its price collapses. The global oil price reducing by 50% in the past six months is a classic example. Less demand from both China and the US has left too much oil on the market and the price collapse has followed.
In addition the austerity frenzy which has gripped the UK and the Eurozone, following the 2008 economic crash, does nothing to encourage growth within a capitalist context and leaves consumers penniless to buy products.
The best outcome from Davos may be that capitalism, once again, attempts to draw back from its worst excesses, tries to cushion the blows for those worst off and, in public relations terms, tries to present itself with a human face.
Unfortunately, history has shown that leopards do not change their spots. Whatever short term fixes the ‘inclusive capitalists’ come up with this time they will not be enough in the long run. The tendency of the system to reward the rich and penalise the poor will continue to prevail. Until such time as the relationship to the means of production, ownership and power are changed the struggle for real equality, socialist equality, must continue.
18th January 2015
Syriza - Greeks bearing gifts?
With Greek parliamentary elections scheduled for 25th January there is much media heat being generated about the prospect of the left wing Syriza party coming to power with a mandate to renegotiate the Greek debt. Two years ago the tone of the pro-capitalist press was bordering on the hysterical when talking about Syriza, seeing them as far left, anti-capitalist, anti-EU and a threat to the interests of the bankers and industrialists running the Eurozone.
That tone has now been modified due to the repositioning of Syriza itself, to a position where the party hopes to negotiate an agreement with Germany and other creditors, that would allow Greece to remain part of the single currency. Since 2010 the Greeks have received 252bn euros as part of the bailout package agreed with the Troika of the European Central Bank, the IMF and the European commission.
It sounds like a lot but only 10% of that money has gone into supporting the Greek economy directly. A staggering 90% has gone to the banks and hedge funds in Eurozone countries and in debt repayments and interest to creditors. The so-called bailout has not stemmed the tide of austerity, which the Greek people have had to suffer, nor has it provided the funds for investment required to turn the economy round and create jobs and tax revenues. Instead, the bailout money has effectively gone back to line the pockets of those who created the crash in the first place. As ever, it is austerity for the many which is bailing out the few.
It is estimated that if it was not for having to pay interest on its debts, Greece would not be living beyond its means. The reality for the Greek people remains stark however. Unemployment is currently running at 25%, with GDP down 30% since before the crisis, and debts at 175% of GDP. The Syriza call for an international creditors conference for Greece is increasingly gaining traction as it is recognised within the Eurozone that if there is no negotiation about the debt, the Greeks will be likely to default anyway.
Economists in the Eurozone are also coming round to the realisation that austerity may just be the ‘cure’ that is doing the patient more harm than good and that, even from a capitalist point of view, stepping back from the brink of a Eurozone departure may be the way forward.
The opposition in Greece is by no means united around the Syriza position, which would effectively retain Greece inside the Eurozone, albeit with a newly negotiated status, but still effectively beholden to the banks, hedge funds and the ECB for its economic choices. The Communist Party of Greece (KKE) has been particularly vociferous in its criticism of Syriza, who it sees as having taken advantage of the popular wave against austerity to promote a position to the left of the ND-PASOK right wing government, but not radical enough to justify the support of the Greek people.
In a recent statement the KKE made its position quite clear pointing out that,
“Both the coalition government of ND-PASOK and SYRIZA, despite their differences, deceive the people, promising the same thing: that if the capitalist economy is strengthened, the people will benefit. They are lying. Any form of capitalist recovery will be based on the ruins of the workers’-people’s rights, it will not provide decent work for the millions of unemployed. The so-called “comparative” advantages for the reconstruction of the country’s economy that are invoked by SYRIZA are related to the potential for big business to achieve even greater profitability.”
http://inter.kke.gr/en/articles/Appeal-of-the-Central-Committee-of-the-KKE-concerning-the-parliamentary-elections-on-the-25th-of-January-2015/
With the expectations of the Greek people running high an election outcome which delivers little more than ‘more of the same’ will be unlikely to sustain popular support for very long. The KKE may find that its consistent and principled anti-austerity message is one which finds increasing resonance. Even a negotiated write down of Greek debt, negotiated by a Syriza government after next Sunday, may be insufficient to stem the anti-austerity tide from flooding across Europe.
11th January 2015
Nous sommes tous Charlie, mais……
(We are all Charlie, but….)
The killings in Paris, which have dominated the Western news media for most of the past week, cannot be condoned. The operation to assassinate journalists and cartoonists at the Charlie Hebdo office, followed by the taking and killing of hostages at a Jewish supermarket have, quite rightly, resulted in international condemnation. The hundreds of thousands turning out on the streets of Paris today will be a further illustration of the desire of ordinary people across, Paris, Europe and the world, to live in peace and freedom.
The impact of the killings has had particular poignancy for many in France, as the victims were household names, part of the culture of political satire within French civil society, a safety valve that could challenge the often pompous outpourings of the political establishment and provide, through the use of humour, an alternative take on the politics of the day. Perhaps the nearest equivalent in the UK is the magazine Private Eye, with its gentle establishment mockery occasionally metamorphosing into a more hard hitting challenge to some of the hypocrisies which characterise national politics.
Whether it is Charlie Hebdo, Private Eye, or the cartoons which feature in many newspapers and journals, the right to challenge, caricature, poke fun at the political and religious establishment, within the framework of the law and mores of society must be upheld. Freedom of speech is never a straightforward, black and white issue, but in broad terms it is held that political and religious icons are fair game for some mockery, whether they be the Prophet Mohammed, Jesus Christ, the Pope, the Monarchy, the President or Karl Marx.
Iconoclasm is a measure of the degree to which a society has confidence in itself and its ability to use rational argument as a vehicle for debating the issues of the day.
Again, this is not without contradiction. It is a crime in the UK to deface the coin of the realm, as it bears the image of the Queen, who is both Head of State and Head of the Church of England. Mocking the Pope or the Catholic Church will not go down well in parts of Ireland, Italy, Spain or France. Literature, TV and film are often areas in which the establishment is challenged and the limits of ‘free speech’ tested. The Monty Python comedians in the UK, now widely held up as national treasures, were reviled by many upon the release of their film, The Life of Brian, which mocked some of the core tenets of Christianity.
However, while the boundaries may be tested, most accept that the pen, rather than the sword, is the method through which such discussions should be resolved.
The line of course must be drawn at work that openly advocates racial hatred or attacks individuals for their religious beliefs. Scapegoating those with a different skin colour or different belief systems is not acceptable and is the last resort of those looking for easy solutions to complex problems. Attacking mosques and demonising the Muslim population in Europe will not solve the issues behind the killings in Paris.
For the same reason, political commentary and satire cannot be expected to shy away from issues because they are difficult or challenging. The extent to which the Jewish people suffered in the holocaust, for example, does not excuse the illegal actions of the present state of Israel in occupying Palestinian land. An attack on Benjamin Netanyahu, his government and the actions they sanction however, is not an attack on the Jewish people, whatever Netanyahu may say.
The actions of the present government of the Islamic Republic of Iran, in systematically arresting torturing and executing political prisoners, must be condemned. Holding the leaders of the Islamic Republic to account is not, however, an attack on either Islam as a religion or the Iranian people as a whole. Like the Israeli example, it is an attack upon the political actions of the leaders of these nations, which are unacceptable and should be exposed.
Not every US citizen can be held to account for the Vietnam war, the CIA backed coup d’etat in Chile, the invasion of Iraq, the occupation of Afghanistan or the bombings of Libya and Syria. These are the actions of governments, which must be challenged, both internationally and by their own people. If those challenges are not happening, then every effort must be made to explain why they should be, and the consequences if they are not.
Not every UK citizen can be laden with guilt for the atrocity exhibition that was the British Empire, on which the sun never set and the blood never dried, though we do have a responsibility to recognise the reality of this history and to make sure it never happens again.
It is history however, which informs much of the activity which resulted in the atrocities we have seen on the streets of Paris in the past week. The press and politicians have been keen to characterise the killers as deranged, as maniacs, lunatics on a killing rampage. Such evidence as has emerged does not point in this direction. Those involved appear to have been part of a carefully planned operation, linked, directly or indirectly to al-Qaeda but certainly taking the oppression of the Muslim world by the West as its starting point and justification.
For certain political trends in the Arab and Muslim world the propensity of the West to invade, bomb and occupy its way across the Middle East, in the name of protecting ‘Western’ interests, is reason enough to resort to acts of terror. The Islamic State and al-Qaeda are no more representative of the Muslim diaspora than the actions of NATO and Western governments represent the collective view of the peoples of Europe and the US. However, there can be no doubt that European Union and United States foreign policy in the recent past has been a major factor in radicalising many young people and adding to the threat of recrimination from those who advocate violence as the only way forward.
Just as the 9/11 attack in New York did not come ‘out of nowhere’, nor did the attacks in Paris this week.
The leaders of the ‘free world’ will be marching in Paris with the Chilcott inquiry into the invasion of Iraq unpublished; with Edward Snowden unable to return to the United States due to his leaking of classified National Security Agency secrets; with WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange effectively imprisoned in the Ecuadoran embassy in London; with Israeli nuclear weapons capability still being officially denied, yet known to everyone; and with the collusion of the West to sustain the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territory, reinforced only two weeks ago at the United Nations.
The journalists at Charlie Hebdo, and those caught up in the supermarket killings in Paris, are the latest victims in a conflict, which has no easy solutions. Unless the West looks to put its own house in order and governments are truly held to account for their actions, this week’s victims in Paris will not be the last. That means a radical re-examination of foreign policy towards the Middle East and developing world, a commitment to the principle of the right of nations to self-determination, and an undertaking to base relationships with other states on the principle of peaceful co-existence.
Whether the leaders of the West can commit to such principles, then actively work to make them happen, will be a measure of how many more victims there have to be before any resolution is possible.
5th January 2015
Fissures open up
In The Collapse of the Second International (1915) Lenin famously outlines the symptoms of a revolutionary situation, the most famous of which is
“…when it is impossible for the ruling classes to maintain their rule in an unchanged form; when there is a crisis, in one form or another, among the ‘upper classes’, a crisis in the policy of the ruling class which causes fissures, through which the discontent and indignation of the oppressed classes burst forth. Usually, for a revolution to break out it is not enough for the ‘lower classes to refuse’ to live in the old way; it is necessary also that the ‘upper classes should be unable’ to live in the old way.”
Lenin is also clear that not every revolutionary situation results in a revolution. Much depends upon the balance of forces at the time and the leadership qualities of the working class movement, critically its ability to show decisive leadership. Lenin’s polemic of a century ago was aimed at the Socialist Party leaders across Europe, who passed worthy resolutions condemning the impending war, but then sided with their respective bourgeois governments once the war was underway.
The General Election scheduled for 7th May in the UK does not take place in conditions of revolutionary change, or the immediate prospect of it. However, in considering the international situation there are significant changes which suggest that the ruling class, considered globally, is at the very least, struggling to live in the old way.
Firstly, there is the retreat from the unwinnable war in Afghanistan by NATO forces, formally completed just weeks ago. In spite of the massive commitment of troops and resources to the conflict the Taliban remain a key force in many parts of the country. Over ten years of occupation was not enough for NATO to impose itself upon one of the world’s poorest nations. If the defeat of the United States in the Vietnam war was the first nail in the coffin of the idea of US military invincibility, the outcome in Afghanistan surely nails the lid shut.
Across the world, in the Middle East in particular, while Western military force is still to be feared it is no longer considered unbeatable. Apart from being unable to enforce the position in Afghanistan the West has not succeeded in pacifying Iraq and is under pressure from the Islamic State across Iraq and Syria. The growing confidence of Islamic fundamentalist groups and the increasing difficulty of installing pro-Western regimes in the Middle East will continue to threaten Western ‘interests’ and add to the volatility of the region.
The West’s major client state in the Middle East, Israel, looks increasingly beleaguered and continues to rely upon its chief backers in the UN, in the form of the US and UK, to keep legitimate demands for Palestinian statehood at bay. Last week, in the UN Security Council, a vote supporting a resolution calling for an end to the Israeli occupation within three years, was only lost due to last minute pressure being brought to bear upon Nigeria, by the US, to abstain in the vote.
The second key change has been in the world economic situation since the financial crash of 2008, which has seen austerity as the order of the day across the Western economies. Stirrings of opposition to the austerity programme are beginning to show in both Greece and in Spain, where popular movements of the Left are gathering support. The snap election in Greece, scheduled for the 25th January, triggered due to the failure of parties to agree a president, offers the most immediate test.
Bailouts to Greece from the so-called troika of the EU, the European Central Bank (ECB) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have amounted to £188bn over the past two years but have come with harsh terms. The left wing anti-austerity coalition Syriza, led by Alexis Tsipras, is seeking to write off the Greek debt of nearly £300bn and renegotiate the terms of the bailout.
The war drums have already begun as the international money markets try to frighten the Greek people into voting differently and prevent the exit of Greece from the Eurozone. However, after six years of recession, resulting in 1.5 million people unemployed, 3 million facing poverty and many unable to pay their bills or heat their homes, the appetite of Greek voters for more hollow promises from Europe’s leaders is not great.
Syriza are promising instant debt relief, food relief and homes and electricity for those hardest hit by the austerity programme. That such promises are even necessary in an area as conspicuously wealthy as the Eurozone is in itself a damning indictment. If Syriza win in Greece the fear in the EU is that the Spanish Podemos party might take the same route in elections later in the year.
In this context it is no surprise that the first shots in the UK General Election have already seen Labour characterised as ‘too left wing’ and unable to handle the economy. The Labour programme will of course be a modest adjustment within the terms of capitalism but will still be attacked with the vehemence reserved for a call to popular uprising. The reality is that the Labour Party is not left wing enough but will still need to articulate an alternative to the Tories that has some credibility if they are not simply going to surrender the election.
That may mean a closer look at what happens in Greece and elsewhere in Europe. The economic crisis cannot be written out of the manifesto of any party. The “fissures, through which the discontent and indignation of the oppressed classes burst forth”, cannot simply be papered over. If the Left is not able to seize the moment when it arises, there are those that will.
2nd January 2015
Workers assert their rights in Iran
posted by Morning Star in Features
www.morningstaronline.co.uk
As international sanctions exert a tightening grip on the Iranian economy it is the workers who are paying the price. Jane Green assesses their response.
The coming to power of Hassan Rouhani in the Iranian election of June 2013 was sold, both nationally and internationally, as a turning point in the politics of Iran.
Rouhani was heralded as a liberal, someone with whom the West could do business, someone who would negotiate a satisfactory deal on the disputed nuclear projects undertaken by the theocratic regime — hence an end to international sanctions — and liberalise social practices in Iran.
Good for the people, good for the economy, was how the picture was painted.
Eighteen months into Rouhani’s tenure the promises made at the time of his election are now coming back to haunt him. There is no indication in social practices in Iran that the tide has turned.
Trade unionists continue to be arbitrarily arrested. Women continue to be persecuted for dressing and behaving in ways deemed to be “un-Islamic.” Young people engaging in activities on social media networks face arrest and prosecution.
Economically the picture is no better. Sanctions imposed by the US and the EU, aimed at exacting concessions from the regime regarding its domestic nuclear energy programme, continue to have a disproportionate impact upon the economy.
The rapid decline of the price of crude oil over the past year, a commodity upon which the economy of Iran is heavily reliant, has squeezed the revenues coming in to the Iranian exchequer even further putting greater pressure on its beleaguered workforce.
As a result, in recent months, workers in Iran have increasingly engaged in a wave of strikes which have challenged President Rouhani and his administration.
Strikes have a variety of origins but are often due to the failure to pay back payments — at the Haft-Tappe sugarcane factory and complex, Bandar Imam Petrochemicals, Gilana tile factory and the Assaluyeh natural gas company for example.
Other major issues of concern to workers include mass scale redundancies, worsening work conditions and attempts to intimidate labour activists and workers representatives.
The reality is that, while Rouhani has promised to increase domestic production in Iran, strikes across the country demonstrate the limits of his promises.
The miners’ strike at Bafgh in central Iran, which took place in 2014, had echoes of the pits, jobs and communities slogan of the 1984/85 miner’s strike in Britain.
At Bafgh 5,000 workers have gone on strike twice. Several workers have been arrested and the presence of the police indicates that these strikes have become a serious issue, only resolved with the government’s retreat.
These strikes also reveal workers’ fears over privatisation.
The miners initiated the strike on May 17 in opposition to the sale of the mine’s shares to the private sector. This transfer followed the decision of Iran’s minister of industry, mines and trade, Mohammadreza Nematzadeh, to transfer control of the mines to the private sector.
Since 2000, more than 70 per cent of this mine’s shares had been sold. The announcement, in May, concerned the remaining 28 per cent of shares. The strike initially lasted until June 24, ending after issuing the government with a two-month ultimatum to reconsider its position.
However, toward the end of August, just before the end of the ultimatum period, arrest warrants were issued for 18 workers, with some being taken into custody.
On August 19 the miners staged a second strike to protest at the arrest of two of their colleagues, Ali Sabri and Amirhossein Kargaran.
On August 31, a political-intelligence mission representing the government entered Bafgh to negotiate with the workers. Three days later, after the release of the arrested workers and the cancellation of the private-sector transfer, the strike ended.
Significantly, the strike had the full backing of the people and local government officials including the city council and even the Friday imam. This broad base of community support was critical for its success.
The opposition to the ongoing privatisation of the mine was based upon the experience of Iranian workers in other sectors where asset stripping, closure and job losses have been the order of the day.
More recently 150 workers took action at the Arak Pars Wagon factory following the dismissal of the workers’ representative by the management board. In addition 750 more workers went into the factory but refused to start work in protest against management’s action.
Earlier this week, the Union of Metalworkers and Mechanics of Iran (UMMI) declared its full support and solidarity with workers engaged in this industrial action and called for the reinstatement of their workers’ representative.
It has been reported that, after a week of action, workers were successful and their council representative’s dismissal was overturned on Sunday December 28. This was in spite of threats from the Revolutionary Guards and the intervention of state forces to try to break the action.
As a result of these and other actions the government is stuck. The continuing sanctions are crippling the economy. The neoliberal economic policies of the regime are worsening the situation. The pressure on workers has become increasingly worse.
Codir’s assistant general secretary, Jamshid Ahmadi, met in November with the leadership of the IndustriALL Global Union in Geneva to discuss the worsening situation of the workers in all industrial sectors. He reported that “the catastrophic economic situation in Iran and the policies of the regime have taken away the protection of labour law from workers… millions of Iranian workers have grievances against their employers for unpaid wages, for being laid off and for other violations of their basic rights.”
Ahmadi further explained: “In Iran, arrests and detentions take place on a regular basis; workers are frequently arrested for supporting the right to organize workers and for building independent trade union structures. Torture is routinely used to extract confessions, and political prisoners are systematically denied medical care.”
Codir continues to mobilise public opinion and, in particular, trade unions internationally to stand in solidarity with the Iranian workers as they struggle for human and democratic change in Iran and for the Iranian regime to abide by the internationally accepted norms and ILO conventions.
Jane Green is the National Campaign Co-ordinator of CODIR, Committee for the Defence of the Iranian People’s Rights. For further information on events and developments in Iran contact [email protected] or visit www.codir.net
| i don't know |
"What Chinese dish is described as ""meat-filled dumplings"" ?" | Traditional Dim Sum Chinese Dumpling Recipes
By Rhonda Parkinson
Updated October 08, 2016.
China has been perfecting the art of dumpling making since the Sung dynasty. Chinese dumplings may be round or crescent-shaped, boiled or pan-fried. The filling may be sweet or savory; vegetarian or filled with meat and vegetables.
In northern China, it is customary for families to spend New Year's Eve preparing batches of Jiaozi together, to be enjoyed after midnight. And, just as 19th-century English cooks hid a silver thruppence inside each batch of Christmas pudding, one lucky family member may bite into something hard and discover a gold coin inside their dumpling.
Recreating homemade versions of dim sum favorites can be a challenge when you're faced with recipes for "Jiaozi," Har Gow," and "Siu Mai," with no pictures. Here is a description of different types of Chinese dumplings, and links to recipes for making them in your own kitchen.
These crescent shaped dumplings with pleated edges are normally filled with meat or vegetables, although you'll occasionally find recipes calling for more unusual ingredients such as shrimp and even winter melon.
continue reading below our video
How to Make Har Gau
The filling ingredients are enclosed in a flour and water dough that is thicker than a wonton wrapper . Jiaozi can be boiled, pan-fried or steamed. These dumplings are very popular during Chinese New Year celebrations.
Potstickers (Guotie, Peking Ravioli)
Potsticker dumplings are pan-fried on the bottom and then steamed. It's traditional to flip them over before serving so that the browned, pan-fried side is on top. Potstickers are one of the most popular types of Chinese dumplings.
Har Gow (Har Gau)
Har Gow are tasty shrimp dumplings with the translucent wrappers served at Chinese dim sum.These plump snacks filled with shrimp and bamboo shoots are famous for their smooth, shiny skin. The secret to the dough is wheat starch, available in Asian markets - you won't get the same result using a flour and water dough or wonton wrappers.
Siu Mai
Also called Cook and Sell Dumplings, these are mild tasting steamed dumplings recognizable by their cup or basket shape, with the filling sticking out at the top. One food writer compared eating Siu Mai to biting into a soufflé, because the dumpling is so soft and puffy. Traditionally they are filled with pork, although shrimp or prawns are also used. Siu Mai are normally made with round skins: use round (gyoza) wrappers or square wonton wrappers cut into circles.
Shanghai Steamed Buns
Not buns at all, but meat or seafood-filled dumplings famous for being very juicy and flavorful. Shanghai Steamed buns are recognizable for their unique design, as the filled wrapper is gather up into several folds prior to steaming.
| Wonton |
What is the second largest castle in England and Wales ? | Chinese Pork Dumplings Recipe - Allrecipes.com
Baking Nana
8/9/2012
Hubby says these are A++ Better than the best Chinese restaurant dumpling he has ever had. A couple of tips, don't over fill or your dumplings will be hard to fold and will pop open when you c...
leah
9/9/2012
SO DELICIOUS! I would recommend however making the filling a little bit more extravagant if you have a few extra minutes. I minced mushrooms, broccoli, and green cabbage, and added that to the p...
Christina
8/24/2012
WOW, these were AWESOME! I used regular fresh chives (couldn't find Chinese chives), and also, could not find dumpling wrappers anywhere, so I used wonton wrappers that I cut into circles...work...
hildigunnur
4/7/2013
Really liked the recipe. Made one change, instead of pouring water over the dumplings after frying I had boiling water in another pan on the side and threw the dumplings in, then the pan was rea...
Mily
8/26/2012
I cook them in water first during 6-8 minutes and when water has evaporated then a pour some oil and let them brown.
Lindsay
1/19/2013
Very good. Tasted a lot like the kind we get at the restaurant. I used regular chives as I could not find the stated version. I had roasted garlic rice vinegar so I used that. Once I got the...
hooie
9/2/2012
What a good recipe! This is at least as good as my favorite Chinese restaurant's fried pork dumplings. My whole family loved them. I got 34 dumplings (utilizing Wonton wrappers since my store do...
hapatite
1/3/2016
With the typical dumpling wrappers you find in the store, you cannot fit 1 tablespoon of filling in the wrapper with room to crimp the edges. This might be because the wrappers we had were squar...
Isis
3/9/2015
I made 20 dumplings, so I pan fried in 2 batches of 10 first, then added water to cook for 5 mins for each batch. Had leftover water after the 1st batch, so I added the 2nd batch without adding ...
| i don't know |
Alphabetically speaking, which British prime minister of the 20th century would come first ? | BBC NEWS | UK | Politics | Churchill 'greatest PM of 20th Century'
Tuesday, 4 January, 2000, 15:23 GMT
Churchill 'greatest PM of 20th Century'
Sir Winston Churchill: World War II leader topped the poll
Wartime leader Sir Winston Churchill was the greatest prime minister of the 20th Century, according to a BBC survey.
The Conservative, whose leadership and speeches inspired the UK through the Second World War, beat the last Liberal prime minister David Lloyd George into second place.
The results in full
2. David Lloyd George (Lib)
3. Clement Attlee (Lab)
7. Marquess of Salisbury (Con)
8. Stanley Baldwin (Con)
9. Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman (Lib)
10. Harold Wilson (Lab)
13. Andrew Bonar Law (Con)
14. Ramsey MacDonald (Lab)
15. Sir Alec Douglas-Home (Con)
16. Arthur Balfour (Con)
19. Sir Anthony Eden (Con)
Churchill's successor, Labour's Clement Attlee, was voted third greatest.
Twenty prominent historians, politicians and commentators were asked by BBC Radio 4's The Westminster Hour to rank the 19 prime ministers from Lord Salisbury at the turn of the century through to John Major in the 1990s.
Britain's current leader Tony Blair was not included because his spell in Downing Street is not complete.
The programme announcing the results of the poll was being broadcast on Boxing Day on Radio 4.
Andrew Rawnsley was asking five of the "voters" to have their say - political heavyweights Roy Jenkins, Barbara Castle and Kenneth Baker; and the historians Professor Ben Pimlott and Andrew Roberts.
Winston Churchill led Britain during the Second World War after returning from the political wilderness.
He lost the first election after the war but returned as a peacetime prime minister in the fifties.
David Lloyd George took over as PM at the height of the First World War, replacing another contender, Herbert Henry Asquith.
He was voted fourth in the list while free market champion and union law reformer Margaret Thatcher was fifth
Her successor, John Major, whose premiership was blighted by Tory infighting over Europe, fared badly, rated 17th out of 19.
Only Neville Chamberlain (18th) and Sir Anthony Eden (19th) did worse.
Who do you think was the greatest? Send us your views using the form below. Here is what you have said so far.
The best 20th Century Prime Minister is Clement Attlee for the foundation of the welfare state, still a model of welfare worth preserving. The previous Liberal model proved woefully inadequate as Beveridge found, and the free market left to it's own devices will provide neither security nor choice for the majority. This was evident to the Liberals almost a century ago. Margaret Thatcher is unquestionably the worst 20th Century Prime Minister. Not just for her appalling record in government - the massive wealth distribution from poor to rich, the battering of workplace rights, the attacks on health and welfare provision etc. - but more insidiously for her poisonous political legacy. Thatcher has so mesmerised Labour that they see no alternative to actively supporting such disasterous Thatcherite measures as the privatisation of the health service through Public Private Partnerships, the impoverishment of pensioners and the preservation of massive and increasing inequality!
The result being that we will continue to pay a heavy price for Thatcher for many years to come.
Keith MacAskill, UK
Two of the rankings excite particular surprise: the high placing of Herbert Asquith and the relatively low placing of Margaret Thatcher. Mr Asquith's overall record should not, I think, justify him being placed in the top ten, let alone the top five. Many of the 'reforms' which occured during his Administration were the work of men other than him. If Mr Asquith is ranked too highly, then, Mrs Thatcher is, surely, ranked too low. Whatever one's personal views about Mrs Thatcher, her impact - both politically and otherwise - on the life of the nation was, and continues to be, profound, much more so than any of the other Prime Ministers of the century, including Mr Churchill during his 1955-55 occupation of the Premiership. She should, therefore, be ranked second in the list and if one were to judge on their peacetime record alone, Mrs Thatcher would have to be ranked first.
Peter Just, England
Atlee and Aquith deserve equal credit as PM of the 20th century for their achievements in the Welfare State. Thatcher was a dictator who led Britain into two of the worst recessions this century, and was reelected due to patriotism, a lack of opposition and the greed of society. I fully agree with Major's position - although Blair inherited a healthy economy, most of the benefits were a result of Britain pulling out of the ERM. Major spent billions trying to maintain our position within it.
Simon Toller, UK
Churchill, without doubt. He had the greatness to take risks, and dared to be wrong (which he was, often). But he had a hatred for tyranny that drove him throughout life, and fought it in every way he knew, and without compromise. He may have upset the working classes in the 1920's, but he preserved their freedom to detest him.
Hugh Allen, England
Yeah, Churchill rocks! This man stood up to the established government's opinion of 'peace in our time' and took the risks involved in war to preserve freedom and democracy in the world. The USA had such a leader in the 1980s, Ronald Reagan
Adam Scheblein, USA
Clement Atlee is given credit, by many, for the welfare state but in fact the previous government was responsible by authorising the Beveridge report
Dr.F. B. Singleton, Canada
Churchill and then Thatcher without a doubt! These two PM's are known the world over for their strength and leadership and are the envy of many of the global electorate. Maggie is still in demand for public speaking all over the world. Some may not have liked the heavy hand that these two displayed, but look at the results!
C.S. Gannon, British Columbia, Canada
Though I did not agree with all the changes Thatcher made I would be inclined to vote for her as she was the most courageous PM in my opinion. She changed so much and introduced many unpopular polices and therefore it takes someone who is extra special to win three general elections. She was also the first female leader of the Tory party.
Rhaynukaa Mehta, UK
For me, Churchill was by far the greatest PM this century but John Major has been sadly underrated. He not only left the economy in a good state but also kept a difficult and rabble Conservative Party together in spite of many problems left after its decline in the later years of Thatcherism. She herself was brilliant at the beginning of her reign but declined sadly towards the end - tending towards a dictatorship. In hindsight, perhaps it would have been better had she had left earlier and allowed someone else to continue for a few years. She could then have come back into active mainstream politics with fresh ideas and perhaps renewed popularity.
Brian B. Warren, England, U.K.
Having read Time Magazine's essays on the person of the century (Winston Churchill did not figure in the top three, but his relationship with Franklin Delano Roosevelt was praised), it is gratifying to see that history seems to paying him the compliment he deserves. I must say that John Major has been done a great injustice by your poll, and would ask that he be given a fairer hearing.
His economic policies may have led to some problems initially, but the UK survived better than most during the world-wide recession, bounced back quicker than most - and I believe is still the best all-round economy - and should continue to be.
Joseph de Graft-Johnson, UK
History will be the final judge. There really needed to be two categories- best peacetime and best wartime prime minister. There is no doubt, Sir Winston saved the nation and the world, in their hour of need against nazi tyranny- and Margaret Thatcher did the same- but this time the tyranny was from within and was not of such major significance. Nevertheless, In my view she will go down as the greatest peacetime prime minister ever.
Tim Parker, UK
Churchill was a reactionary, war-obsessed and possibly xenophobic leader. He deserves none of the credit he receives, much of which stems from Britain's obsession with a small-minded and parochial nationalism that seems to engulf the nation whenever the world wars are mentioned. Thatcher, similarly, was a tyrant who ravaged this country and made it hospitable for the rich at the detriment of the poor. Atlee gets my vote. The welfare state was a noble principle and policy, and I find it abhorrent that successive Tory/New Labour governments have tried to dismantle it.
Tom Eyers, England
I think it is significant that the judges chose two successful wartime leaders as the greatest prime ministers and two disastrous ones as the most insignificant. I have no quarrel with the choice of Churchill as No. 1, but Lloyd George is a totally different matter. His plotting against the generals and his abuse of the honours system do not appear to justify his place as No. 2.
On the other hand, it must be remembered Chamberlain was a great social reformer, and though Anthony Eden's Suez campaign ended in shambles, had it been success, he would almost certainly be acclaimed today as the man who saw off militant nationalism in the region.
The two greatest peacetime leaders were undoubtedly Attlee and Asquith, the one put in the shade today by his predecessor and the other by his successor.
The greatest diplomatic triumphs were achieved by Heath and then again by Major in their negotiations in Europe. It should also be remembered the latter left the economy of the country in a remarkably healthy state.
Duncan Macintosh, Thailand
Not only was Churchill the greatest PM, he was probably the greatest American citizen ever. (Remember that he was awarded honorary American citizenship by Congress.) There may be many talented PMs on the list, but Churchill displayed leadership beyond talent -- he was alone, in the wilderness, crying out against the gathering Nazi storm, when most Brits would not even care to listen. Churchill was a giant who ensured that Britain would survive WWII, even if the Empire would not. No one else on the list could have provided that necessary leadership. No one.
Adam Burczyk, USA
This says more about Radio 4 listeners than about the British population - the ordinary British public wouldn't have put a leader who wrecked the NHS, destroyed teachers moral and introduced the Poll Tax - 5th! She only won so many times because the opposition was in such a bad state in the 80s.
Kevin Larkin, UK
Sir Winston Churchill and FDR were the two greatest leaders of the 20th century without a doubt. Their leadership took us to final victory. Today we see no such leadership in the free world!
Lieutenant Colonel(Ret) Greg Taylor, USA
I am very surprised Thatcher placed as low as 5th. She was the one peacetime leader who challenged the prevailing orthodoxy, and against an incredible amount of opposition from the establishment revitalised the flagging UK economy and renewed our national self confidence. I can�t see how Asquith, Atlee or Lloyd George measure up to this record - their actions were more a reflection of the general mood at the time they governed.
Elizabeth Truss, UK
The choice of Winston Churchill conveniently forgets his less than kind treatment of British people during the General Strike. Churchill, like Thatcher, was a rabid warmonger. Both displayed a cavalier contempt for human life. I would look more to the individuals who had to pick up the pieces after the glory boys had gone away. Atlee would make a far better choice as a man who had to pick up a shattered nation. Why else did the nation reject Churchill so convincingly after the war? Why did people riot in the streets against Thatcher? Real leaders inspire confidence and respect, not hatred and disgust.
Peter Cameron, HongKong
Winston Churchill was unquestionably the greatest PM of Great Britain during the last hundred years. Churchill deserves a "thank you" from every person on this earth who enjoys the greatness of freedom. During WWII, Sir Winston faced an enemy who had taken over most of Western Europe in one year. He faced a German air force numbering over 5,000 planes. Despite these drawbacks, Churchill led Britain with confidence through a dark period in time. Not only is Churchill the PM of the century, I believe he is the man of the century.
Kevin Boland, Washington D.C., USA
Churchill is the clear choice. I do not believe there are enough words in the English language to describe this great man. He is not only the greatest PM but the person of the century. I do not understand Atlee's second place finish. There must have been a concerted effort by Labour to put someone high on the list so they chose the socialist with who was a good and decent man though a failure as PM.
John Smarto, USA
I vote for Clement Atlee. I lived and worked in Britain for most of the 1960s. I came to appreciate the nobility of the welfare state and do not join in the present denigration of that fine concept.The National Health service alone places Atlee at the top of the list.
Janet Kenny, Australia
Sir Winston Churchill and Mrs Thatcher would have to share the honour. He was the man who did more than any other to save the civilised world from Nazi terror and she saved it from socialist bungling.
Peter Laverick, Australia
Churchill is my choice. But for his courage and guts in 1940 resisting the strong pressures in his Cabinet for a negotiated truce with Hitler this country would have been occupied by German forces. I was a young man then and remember how Churchill's inspiring use of the English language reinforced our determination and strength. He was the most popular politician in the country. In 1945 the country rejected the Conservative Party, not Churchill himself who was returned with a handsome majority as MP for Woodford.
Paul Barraclough, UK
I did admire Maggie in her hey days but Winston is my first choice.
Monica Farrugia, Malta
Thank God this great man appeared when he did to help rally the world, and the US of A. against Hitler, and then warn a post WWII free world of an "Iron Curtain" that was being put in place by the Russian's in eastern Europe, and waking up America to the realities of a new enemy, just as dangerous as Hitler's Germany. Donald Schave, US
Winston Churchill would be my first choice followed by Margaret Thatcher.
Tim Nicholls, UK
Churchill was a great war leader, without him I doubt we would enjoy the freedoms we take for granted. However reading historians and other colleagues of his in his second spell, I really think he should have quit after the war, he spoiled his record by being PM in the 50's. Even Ted Heath admits that his mind was still in the war, when he created himself Minister of Defence. My own personal choice would be Asquith, who virtually reformed the constitution and gave way for the first tentative steps for the welfare state.
Neil Greggor, UK
Without doubt Winston Churchill was the Prime Minister of the Century. No other Briton, PM or not, had a larger influence on British politics than Churchill, and no other Briton could have rallied, and ultimately saved, the country as Churchill did during those dark months in the summer of 1940.
Philip Carruthers, Brazil
I disagree strongly with the notion that Winston Churchill was the greatest PM of the 20th century. He wasn't If he was he would have the general election immediately after the war, which was based on him being a successful war leader. My mother tells me of occasions in cinemas where Churchill would appear on newsreels and he would be booed by civilian and military cinema goers alike. His general election victory in the fifties was won under unusual circumstances, the Tories actually polled less votes than Labour. Churchill was never really popular with the people that mattered at that time, the electors. They saw what he was like, a vain and ambitious man who they never fully trusted. Churchill became more popular after his death than ever he was during life. Historians have made the basic mistake of associating a blustering drunken PM with the heroism of the civilian and military forces during that period.
Malcolm McCandless, Scotland
Without a doubt, Winston Churchill was the greatest PM of the 20th Century. He was a man before his time and knew Hitler was up to something long before anyone suspected Hitler. However, no one listened to Churchill and that was a mistake.
Carole Scott, USA
Maggie has to be the best all round PM, she brought the UK kicking and screaming from the socialist backwater it was in the early 80's to a competitive Euro-player. Churchill was a PM for the wartime and a truly great man, but a wartime leader was his true calling.
Chris Clarke, UK ex-pat in Canada
Margaret Thatcher hands down!!!!!!! Us Yanks have the likes of the Clintons, who have no dignity. You Brits can hold your heads high with leaders like Margaret.
Anthony Hornbrook, US
I think Major will be seen by history as a better PM than the participants in the discussion gave him credit for. I've never voted Conservative in my life and probably never will. However, Major left the Country with a considerable legacy of economic prosperity, and had a good record in holding his party together in the face of abject adversity. Europe moved on without the UK, but we continued to have the opportunity to take part in all EU activities via the Maastricht opt-out, bravely secured by JM despite having a minimal parliamentary majority and a very significant part of his party against it. Add to that an election victory no one expected, and with the highest number of votes for the Conservatives ever. I think you have a PM with the standing of at least a Heath, a Callaghan or a Wilson.
Jonathan Carling, UK
| Asquith |
Thick footballers ? Which Liverpol footballer is currently halfway through a Maths degree course with the Open University ? | BBC NEWS | UK | Politics | Churchill 'greatest PM of 20th Century'
Tuesday, 4 January, 2000, 15:23 GMT
Churchill 'greatest PM of 20th Century'
Sir Winston Churchill: World War II leader topped the poll
Wartime leader Sir Winston Churchill was the greatest prime minister of the 20th Century, according to a BBC survey.
The Conservative, whose leadership and speeches inspired the UK through the Second World War, beat the last Liberal prime minister David Lloyd George into second place.
The results in full
2. David Lloyd George (Lib)
3. Clement Attlee (Lab)
7. Marquess of Salisbury (Con)
8. Stanley Baldwin (Con)
9. Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman (Lib)
10. Harold Wilson (Lab)
13. Andrew Bonar Law (Con)
14. Ramsey MacDonald (Lab)
15. Sir Alec Douglas-Home (Con)
16. Arthur Balfour (Con)
19. Sir Anthony Eden (Con)
Churchill's successor, Labour's Clement Attlee, was voted third greatest.
Twenty prominent historians, politicians and commentators were asked by BBC Radio 4's The Westminster Hour to rank the 19 prime ministers from Lord Salisbury at the turn of the century through to John Major in the 1990s.
Britain's current leader Tony Blair was not included because his spell in Downing Street is not complete.
The programme announcing the results of the poll was being broadcast on Boxing Day on Radio 4.
Andrew Rawnsley was asking five of the "voters" to have their say - political heavyweights Roy Jenkins, Barbara Castle and Kenneth Baker; and the historians Professor Ben Pimlott and Andrew Roberts.
Winston Churchill led Britain during the Second World War after returning from the political wilderness.
He lost the first election after the war but returned as a peacetime prime minister in the fifties.
David Lloyd George took over as PM at the height of the First World War, replacing another contender, Herbert Henry Asquith.
He was voted fourth in the list while free market champion and union law reformer Margaret Thatcher was fifth
Her successor, John Major, whose premiership was blighted by Tory infighting over Europe, fared badly, rated 17th out of 19.
Only Neville Chamberlain (18th) and Sir Anthony Eden (19th) did worse.
Who do you think was the greatest? Send us your views using the form below. Here is what you have said so far.
The best 20th Century Prime Minister is Clement Attlee for the foundation of the welfare state, still a model of welfare worth preserving. The previous Liberal model proved woefully inadequate as Beveridge found, and the free market left to it's own devices will provide neither security nor choice for the majority. This was evident to the Liberals almost a century ago. Margaret Thatcher is unquestionably the worst 20th Century Prime Minister. Not just for her appalling record in government - the massive wealth distribution from poor to rich, the battering of workplace rights, the attacks on health and welfare provision etc. - but more insidiously for her poisonous political legacy. Thatcher has so mesmerised Labour that they see no alternative to actively supporting such disasterous Thatcherite measures as the privatisation of the health service through Public Private Partnerships, the impoverishment of pensioners and the preservation of massive and increasing inequality!
The result being that we will continue to pay a heavy price for Thatcher for many years to come.
Keith MacAskill, UK
Two of the rankings excite particular surprise: the high placing of Herbert Asquith and the relatively low placing of Margaret Thatcher. Mr Asquith's overall record should not, I think, justify him being placed in the top ten, let alone the top five. Many of the 'reforms' which occured during his Administration were the work of men other than him. If Mr Asquith is ranked too highly, then, Mrs Thatcher is, surely, ranked too low. Whatever one's personal views about Mrs Thatcher, her impact - both politically and otherwise - on the life of the nation was, and continues to be, profound, much more so than any of the other Prime Ministers of the century, including Mr Churchill during his 1955-55 occupation of the Premiership. She should, therefore, be ranked second in the list and if one were to judge on their peacetime record alone, Mrs Thatcher would have to be ranked first.
Peter Just, England
Atlee and Aquith deserve equal credit as PM of the 20th century for their achievements in the Welfare State. Thatcher was a dictator who led Britain into two of the worst recessions this century, and was reelected due to patriotism, a lack of opposition and the greed of society. I fully agree with Major's position - although Blair inherited a healthy economy, most of the benefits were a result of Britain pulling out of the ERM. Major spent billions trying to maintain our position within it.
Simon Toller, UK
Churchill, without doubt. He had the greatness to take risks, and dared to be wrong (which he was, often). But he had a hatred for tyranny that drove him throughout life, and fought it in every way he knew, and without compromise. He may have upset the working classes in the 1920's, but he preserved their freedom to detest him.
Hugh Allen, England
Yeah, Churchill rocks! This man stood up to the established government's opinion of 'peace in our time' and took the risks involved in war to preserve freedom and democracy in the world. The USA had such a leader in the 1980s, Ronald Reagan
Adam Scheblein, USA
Clement Atlee is given credit, by many, for the welfare state but in fact the previous government was responsible by authorising the Beveridge report
Dr.F. B. Singleton, Canada
Churchill and then Thatcher without a doubt! These two PM's are known the world over for their strength and leadership and are the envy of many of the global electorate. Maggie is still in demand for public speaking all over the world. Some may not have liked the heavy hand that these two displayed, but look at the results!
C.S. Gannon, British Columbia, Canada
Though I did not agree with all the changes Thatcher made I would be inclined to vote for her as she was the most courageous PM in my opinion. She changed so much and introduced many unpopular polices and therefore it takes someone who is extra special to win three general elections. She was also the first female leader of the Tory party.
Rhaynukaa Mehta, UK
For me, Churchill was by far the greatest PM this century but John Major has been sadly underrated. He not only left the economy in a good state but also kept a difficult and rabble Conservative Party together in spite of many problems left after its decline in the later years of Thatcherism. She herself was brilliant at the beginning of her reign but declined sadly towards the end - tending towards a dictatorship. In hindsight, perhaps it would have been better had she had left earlier and allowed someone else to continue for a few years. She could then have come back into active mainstream politics with fresh ideas and perhaps renewed popularity.
Brian B. Warren, England, U.K.
Having read Time Magazine's essays on the person of the century (Winston Churchill did not figure in the top three, but his relationship with Franklin Delano Roosevelt was praised), it is gratifying to see that history seems to paying him the compliment he deserves. I must say that John Major has been done a great injustice by your poll, and would ask that he be given a fairer hearing.
His economic policies may have led to some problems initially, but the UK survived better than most during the world-wide recession, bounced back quicker than most - and I believe is still the best all-round economy - and should continue to be.
Joseph de Graft-Johnson, UK
History will be the final judge. There really needed to be two categories- best peacetime and best wartime prime minister. There is no doubt, Sir Winston saved the nation and the world, in their hour of need against nazi tyranny- and Margaret Thatcher did the same- but this time the tyranny was from within and was not of such major significance. Nevertheless, In my view she will go down as the greatest peacetime prime minister ever.
Tim Parker, UK
Churchill was a reactionary, war-obsessed and possibly xenophobic leader. He deserves none of the credit he receives, much of which stems from Britain's obsession with a small-minded and parochial nationalism that seems to engulf the nation whenever the world wars are mentioned. Thatcher, similarly, was a tyrant who ravaged this country and made it hospitable for the rich at the detriment of the poor. Atlee gets my vote. The welfare state was a noble principle and policy, and I find it abhorrent that successive Tory/New Labour governments have tried to dismantle it.
Tom Eyers, England
I think it is significant that the judges chose two successful wartime leaders as the greatest prime ministers and two disastrous ones as the most insignificant. I have no quarrel with the choice of Churchill as No. 1, but Lloyd George is a totally different matter. His plotting against the generals and his abuse of the honours system do not appear to justify his place as No. 2.
On the other hand, it must be remembered Chamberlain was a great social reformer, and though Anthony Eden's Suez campaign ended in shambles, had it been success, he would almost certainly be acclaimed today as the man who saw off militant nationalism in the region.
The two greatest peacetime leaders were undoubtedly Attlee and Asquith, the one put in the shade today by his predecessor and the other by his successor.
The greatest diplomatic triumphs were achieved by Heath and then again by Major in their negotiations in Europe. It should also be remembered the latter left the economy of the country in a remarkably healthy state.
Duncan Macintosh, Thailand
Not only was Churchill the greatest PM, he was probably the greatest American citizen ever. (Remember that he was awarded honorary American citizenship by Congress.) There may be many talented PMs on the list, but Churchill displayed leadership beyond talent -- he was alone, in the wilderness, crying out against the gathering Nazi storm, when most Brits would not even care to listen. Churchill was a giant who ensured that Britain would survive WWII, even if the Empire would not. No one else on the list could have provided that necessary leadership. No one.
Adam Burczyk, USA
This says more about Radio 4 listeners than about the British population - the ordinary British public wouldn't have put a leader who wrecked the NHS, destroyed teachers moral and introduced the Poll Tax - 5th! She only won so many times because the opposition was in such a bad state in the 80s.
Kevin Larkin, UK
Sir Winston Churchill and FDR were the two greatest leaders of the 20th century without a doubt. Their leadership took us to final victory. Today we see no such leadership in the free world!
Lieutenant Colonel(Ret) Greg Taylor, USA
I am very surprised Thatcher placed as low as 5th. She was the one peacetime leader who challenged the prevailing orthodoxy, and against an incredible amount of opposition from the establishment revitalised the flagging UK economy and renewed our national self confidence. I can�t see how Asquith, Atlee or Lloyd George measure up to this record - their actions were more a reflection of the general mood at the time they governed.
Elizabeth Truss, UK
The choice of Winston Churchill conveniently forgets his less than kind treatment of British people during the General Strike. Churchill, like Thatcher, was a rabid warmonger. Both displayed a cavalier contempt for human life. I would look more to the individuals who had to pick up the pieces after the glory boys had gone away. Atlee would make a far better choice as a man who had to pick up a shattered nation. Why else did the nation reject Churchill so convincingly after the war? Why did people riot in the streets against Thatcher? Real leaders inspire confidence and respect, not hatred and disgust.
Peter Cameron, HongKong
Winston Churchill was unquestionably the greatest PM of Great Britain during the last hundred years. Churchill deserves a "thank you" from every person on this earth who enjoys the greatness of freedom. During WWII, Sir Winston faced an enemy who had taken over most of Western Europe in one year. He faced a German air force numbering over 5,000 planes. Despite these drawbacks, Churchill led Britain with confidence through a dark period in time. Not only is Churchill the PM of the century, I believe he is the man of the century.
Kevin Boland, Washington D.C., USA
Churchill is the clear choice. I do not believe there are enough words in the English language to describe this great man. He is not only the greatest PM but the person of the century. I do not understand Atlee's second place finish. There must have been a concerted effort by Labour to put someone high on the list so they chose the socialist with who was a good and decent man though a failure as PM.
John Smarto, USA
I vote for Clement Atlee. I lived and worked in Britain for most of the 1960s. I came to appreciate the nobility of the welfare state and do not join in the present denigration of that fine concept.The National Health service alone places Atlee at the top of the list.
Janet Kenny, Australia
Sir Winston Churchill and Mrs Thatcher would have to share the honour. He was the man who did more than any other to save the civilised world from Nazi terror and she saved it from socialist bungling.
Peter Laverick, Australia
Churchill is my choice. But for his courage and guts in 1940 resisting the strong pressures in his Cabinet for a negotiated truce with Hitler this country would have been occupied by German forces. I was a young man then and remember how Churchill's inspiring use of the English language reinforced our determination and strength. He was the most popular politician in the country. In 1945 the country rejected the Conservative Party, not Churchill himself who was returned with a handsome majority as MP for Woodford.
Paul Barraclough, UK
I did admire Maggie in her hey days but Winston is my first choice.
Monica Farrugia, Malta
Thank God this great man appeared when he did to help rally the world, and the US of A. against Hitler, and then warn a post WWII free world of an "Iron Curtain" that was being put in place by the Russian's in eastern Europe, and waking up America to the realities of a new enemy, just as dangerous as Hitler's Germany. Donald Schave, US
Winston Churchill would be my first choice followed by Margaret Thatcher.
Tim Nicholls, UK
Churchill was a great war leader, without him I doubt we would enjoy the freedoms we take for granted. However reading historians and other colleagues of his in his second spell, I really think he should have quit after the war, he spoiled his record by being PM in the 50's. Even Ted Heath admits that his mind was still in the war, when he created himself Minister of Defence. My own personal choice would be Asquith, who virtually reformed the constitution and gave way for the first tentative steps for the welfare state.
Neil Greggor, UK
Without doubt Winston Churchill was the Prime Minister of the Century. No other Briton, PM or not, had a larger influence on British politics than Churchill, and no other Briton could have rallied, and ultimately saved, the country as Churchill did during those dark months in the summer of 1940.
Philip Carruthers, Brazil
I disagree strongly with the notion that Winston Churchill was the greatest PM of the 20th century. He wasn't If he was he would have the general election immediately after the war, which was based on him being a successful war leader. My mother tells me of occasions in cinemas where Churchill would appear on newsreels and he would be booed by civilian and military cinema goers alike. His general election victory in the fifties was won under unusual circumstances, the Tories actually polled less votes than Labour. Churchill was never really popular with the people that mattered at that time, the electors. They saw what he was like, a vain and ambitious man who they never fully trusted. Churchill became more popular after his death than ever he was during life. Historians have made the basic mistake of associating a blustering drunken PM with the heroism of the civilian and military forces during that period.
Malcolm McCandless, Scotland
Without a doubt, Winston Churchill was the greatest PM of the 20th Century. He was a man before his time and knew Hitler was up to something long before anyone suspected Hitler. However, no one listened to Churchill and that was a mistake.
Carole Scott, USA
Maggie has to be the best all round PM, she brought the UK kicking and screaming from the socialist backwater it was in the early 80's to a competitive Euro-player. Churchill was a PM for the wartime and a truly great man, but a wartime leader was his true calling.
Chris Clarke, UK ex-pat in Canada
Margaret Thatcher hands down!!!!!!! Us Yanks have the likes of the Clintons, who have no dignity. You Brits can hold your heads high with leaders like Margaret.
Anthony Hornbrook, US
I think Major will be seen by history as a better PM than the participants in the discussion gave him credit for. I've never voted Conservative in my life and probably never will. However, Major left the Country with a considerable legacy of economic prosperity, and had a good record in holding his party together in the face of abject adversity. Europe moved on without the UK, but we continued to have the opportunity to take part in all EU activities via the Maastricht opt-out, bravely secured by JM despite having a minimal parliamentary majority and a very significant part of his party against it. Add to that an election victory no one expected, and with the highest number of votes for the Conservatives ever. I think you have a PM with the standing of at least a Heath, a Callaghan or a Wilson.
Jonathan Carling, UK
| i don't know |
Much in the news at budget time,exactly what body is known by the acronym IFS ? | Budget Resolutions and Economic Situation - Hansard Online
Hansard Online
Debate resumed (Order, 8 July).
Question again proposed,
That—
(1) It is expedient to amend the law with respect to the National Debt and the public revenue and to make further provision in connection with finance.
(2) This Resolution does not extend to the making of any amendment with respect to value added tax so as to provide—
(a) for zero-rating or exempting a supply, acquisition or importation;
(b) for refunding an amount of tax;
(c) for any relief, other than a relief that—
(i) so far as it is applicable to goods, applies to goods of every description, and
(ii) so far as it is applicable to services, applies to services of every description.
11.29 am
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Good morning, Madam Deputy Speaker.
When one cuts through the rhetoric and the headlines that the Chancellor spun, one sees that yesterday’s Budget leaves working people worse off. It is the working families of Britain on low incomes, trying their hardest to do the right thing, who will pay the price for the gap between what the Chancellor said and the truth of what his Budget actually means. The Office for Budget Responsibility has flatly contradicted the right hon. Gentleman’s claim to have lowered taxes, pointing out on the first page of its analysis that tax increases are twice as big any tax cuts over the course of this Parliament. It is a Budget that is entirely concerned with chasing headlines to further the Chancellor’s well known political ambitions, rather than putting the working people of Britain first.
Pulling the rug from under people on low incomes with a hefty work penalty in the tax credits system— 3.3 million working families will lose out from these changes, with 500,000 families losing tax credits entirely—despite Tory denials before the election, will hurt those in work.
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I did not realise that the hon. Lady was a conduit for the former Labour Chancellor of the Exchequer. I will certainly look closely at what he said, but I did not hear him say those words this morning.
I want to ask Ministers about the work penalty that they have introduced into the tax credits system. Did they know before the election that they were going to hit those who needed tax credits to make work pay, or was it deliberately hidden from public view because of the shock that such a cut to incomes would create? This was a Budget that exposed the Chancellor’s skewed priorities—a Budget that failed to build the more productive economy that we need, that ducked long-term decisions on vital infrastructure projects, and that sought to substitute spin for the support people need to go to work.
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I will give way to the very eager Conservative Members in a moment, but I want to make a little progress.
We do recognise that sensible savings are needed to get the deficit down, and we will support measures that tackle tax avoidance and control overall household benefit levels. We regret that the Budget fails to address the overpayments and errors in welfare expenditure, which have ballooned in recent years during the welfare Secretary’s time in office, let alone his lamentable record on delivering the mythical universal credit, for which so many people are still waiting. As my right hon. and learned Friend the acting Leader of the Opposition said yesterday, we will be a responsible Opposition; we will not oppose for opposition’s sake, and we welcome a number of the Budget measures.
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I have not used those words. The hon. Gentleman is reporting words that have apparently been said.
I believe it is important that the Opposition today look at the spin and the headlines that the Chancellor created in his Budget yesterday. Less than 24 hours later, the Budget is beginning to unravel—[Interruption.] Have I said something wrong? The Budget is beginning to unravel and I will explain why, but in the spirit of magnanimity I want to explain that there are Budget measures that we welcome. The Budget fails to address the long-term challenges Britain faces—[Interruption.]
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Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker.
Many parts of the Budget were suggested by Labour in recent months. Abolishing permanent non-dom status—that sounds very familiar to my hon. Friends. Increasing the minimum wage—again, we have repeatedly called for that. We welcome any action on low pay—by the way, the Conservatives opposed the creation of the national minimum wage in the first place—but this so-called national living wage is unravelling as it becomes clear that it is nothing of the sort. It is the rebranding of an increase in the national minimum wage—as I say, Labour created that in the first place—which, with the tax credit changes, will still leave working families worse off.
We will support steps to tackle tax avoidance—again, we have consistently pressed the Government on that—but this Chancellor has a poor record on hitting tax avoidance targets, with the amount of uncollected tax increasing to £34 billion last year and his so-called tax deals continually failing to bring in the revenues he predicted. In yesterday’s Budget, the Conservatives broke their manifesto promise to deliver £5 billion of savings by 2017-18. The Chancellor made that promise at the last general election, and he is now saying that we might perhaps get it by the end of this Parliament. We will file the supposed £5 billion of tax avoidance measures in the “believe it when we see it” category.
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May I say how much I welcome my hon. Friend’s statement that Labour welcomes the Government’s announcement yesterday to move towards a living wage? Will he confirm in the Chamber what he has said elsewhere—that we will engage very constructively, looking imaginatively at the Red Book, to try to make this more comprehensive and to extend it to the public sector? Does he accept that the more success we have in developing this idea with the Government, the fewer people will be eligible for means tests, and that our aim is not to change means-tested benefits in line with such increases, but to make sure that people can earn enough not to be eligible for means-testing?
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My right hon. Friend is right that we should be thoughtful about the Government’s proposals. It is sometimes difficult to see through the political fog of the games that the Chancellor is trying to play and the tactics he is trying to use. Oh, the look of innocence on his face! My right hon. Friend is right that it is important to take on questions of welfare reform and work through them methodically. We will not oppose everything just for the sake of it. My right hon. and learned Friend the acting Leader of the Opposition was right to say yesterday that while that might be the temptation, we will look at the proposals and be reasonable about those we can support.
We welcome the steps taken in the Budget to reduce pension tax relief for the highest earners, and of course the rise in the personal allowance threshold, as we support steps to cut taxes and try to get a better settlement for those in work.
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The hon. Gentleman was doing so well until the little barb at the end of his intervention. Of course we want a situation—there is more political consensus on this than people perhaps realise—in which people in work are better off than they otherwise would be. The problem, which I will come on to later, is the Chancellor’s approach with this particular set of Budget measures. He is pulling the rug from beneath people’s feet while higher wages are not yet available. When we look at the package as a whole, we see that people will be worse off during that period. He cannot just shovel that beneath the rug.
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I want to make some progress, but I will give way again in a minute. [Interruption.] I will give way now to the hon. Member for Rossendale and Darwen (Jake Berry) if he wants to intervene. [Interruption.] He complains that I am not giving way, but he does not want to intervene.
We will not support self-defeating false economies in the Government’s approach to social security. We do not support an approach that will leave more than 3 million working families poorer, and in turn mean that the poorest children are more likely to grow up into poor adults, which will cost society far more in the longer run.
The Chancellor and Ministers on the Front Bench have a track record when it comes to false economies, particularly during the last Parliament. They scale back nurse training, and then spend a fortune hiring nurses from private agencies, as my hon. Friend the Member for Denton and Reddish (Andrew Gwynne) knows. They cancel major road schemes, such as the one involving the A14, and then revive them later on at vast expense. They pay redundancy to senior officials at the Ministry of Defence or the Foreign Office, and then rehire them at higher cost. They restrain local councils from tackling fraud in housing benefit, and then the level of overpayments escalates to £1.5 billion. They reduce the number of Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs staff so that phone calls go unanswered from businesses that need to get through, and then are surprised when the tax gap gets wider and revenues go uncollected. And we have a Chancellor with the gall to boast of a northern powerhouse while simultaneously pulling the plug on the electrification of major commuter rail lines.
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It has been said many times, but the powerhouse has become a power cut. As time goes on, many—not just in the north but in the midlands—will see through the rhetoric to the reality that they are experiencing.
The Government are undercutting, not supporting, a productive economy. It says everything about the Chancellor that the impact of his Budget has been to worsen the outlook for productivity in our economy over the rest of this Parliament rather than to improve it. The OBR has done the calculations and its prediction is on page 77 of its report. Its conclusion is stark. The Opposition know that more productive businesses, and a more productive economy, are the key to a virtuous circle of higher growth, higher living standards and, as a consequence, more effective deficit reduction. For the Conservatives, productivity springs magically from thin air, but for us it is decent infrastructure and decent public services that can make all the difference to business success.
In his March Budget, the Chancellor did not even mention productivity, so perhaps we should be glad that he at least found time to mention it yesterday, even if we are still waiting for the much trumpeted productivity plan. I gather that it will be published on Friday, although the House is not actually sitting that day so we will not be able to scrutinise the details. Under this Chancellor, UK productivity has, in the words of the Office for National Statistics, undergone a period of “unprecedented” stagnation.
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I have not read the comments by the former Chancellor, although I keep hearing about them from Members. I will have a good look at them, but it is important that we scrutinise the Government’s record on productivity. Unless we improve productivity in our economy, we will not generate the revenues to deal with the deficit and raise living standards. In 2012 and 2013, our productivity growth was negative, and last year it was just 0.2%. That compares with an average of 2.2% under the Labour Government from 1997 until the global financial crisis hit. It is, therefore, almost beyond belief that on the OBR’s analysis the Budget could lead to lower productivity growth, now estimated to be 0.4% lower than the forecast for next year, 0.2% lower in 2017, 0.1% lower in 2018 and 0.2% lower in 2019—productivity down next year, the year after, the year after that and the year after that.
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Government Members will not be interested in scrutinising the compositional issues that are arising in our economy, but the share of jobs that are high-skilled is shrinking back, according to the Office for National Statistics, and being replaced by an increasing share of low-skilled jobs. That is definitely something to be concerned about. In fact, the OBR has voiced its concerns about the productivity threat to our economy, saying:
“If productivity fails to recover as predicted but wage growth continues to accelerate, the MPC could be forced to raise interest rates more quickly”
and wage growth will fall short of its forecast.
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Hold on. Let us just pause to scrutinise that. I think the hon. Gentleman just said that people should be grateful that they are having those tax credits taken away because that will free them up and make work pay—[Interruption.] Hon. Members speaking from a sedentary position call those tax credits a perverse incentive. I just do not think they understand the lives of those on low pay who are struggling to make ends meet and who rely on the support that tax credits have been able to give. That work penalty is going to cause real problems.
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No, not yet.
There was no mention of science or research and development in the Budget speech and no steps to increase mobility in the housing market. In fact, the OBR says that 14,000 fewer affordable homes will be built by 2021. How on earth that helps to reduce the housing benefit bill, I do not know. At the same time, the Government are delaying rail improvements, systematically decimating renewable energy investment and kicking the decision on airports into the long grass. There are tough choices to be made, and lower priorities where savings can be made, but the Chancellor has failed to prioritise those public services that boost productivity, and that will cost the country more in the longer run.
Seven Budgets on, it is time that that this Chancellor took some responsibility for his failure to eliminate the deficit this year, as he promised; for the drag on our economy and public finances caused by woeful performance on productivity; for the stagnation in living standards; and for the overruns in the social security budget. Growth has been revised down by the OBR, as has capital investment. These are incredibly difficult times for the wider global economy, but where is the urgent help to support our exports and productivity to tackle that other deficit, which has worsened significantly under this Chancellor—
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I shall give way in a moment; I just want to talk about the other deficit: the current account deficit, where our trade gap with the EU has worsened and our balance of payments problems have set alarm bells ringing at the Bank of England. The Chancellor’s priority should be to build up the productive capacity of our economy so we can pay our way in the world, but we are still too vulnerable to external turbulence. It should not be neglected in this way. Britain’s current account deficit has widened to 5.9% of GDP, which the OBR states is
“the largest annual peacetime deficit since at least 1830”.
The OBR also reveals that the Chancellor is £367 billion short of his £1 trillion goal on exports that he promised by the end of this Parliament.
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Is the hon. Gentleman talking about the imminent leadership elections in the Conservative party or the Labour party? I do not know what is going to happen in the Conservative party leadership contest. There were of course a few little jokes about the hon. Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip (Boris Johnson), and we will see how that pans out. I know that other Cabinet Ministers are a little concerned about the way that the Budget panned out for them; it is going to be difficult for them over the next few years.
This was the Chancellor’s second Budget in four months. He said in March that that was his Budget for the longer term, yet four months on he has delivered a different plan to a different agenda. He has been chopping and changing, with three different sets of figures in the past nine months alone—so much for his consistency. We learned more about the Chancellor and the nature of this Government in one hour of his Budget speech than we learned in the months of the election campaign. In March, when the Work and Pensions Secretary was pressed about where their £12 billion of welfare cuts would fall, he said:
“As and when the time is right, we will make it very clear what our position is.”
Is it any coincidence that the time is right for these Conservatives two months after an election rather than two months before it?
Before the election, the Conservative manifesto assured us that there would be only a two-year freeze in working benefits, but yesterday the Chancellor doubled that to a four-year freeze in most working-age benefits which will take £4 billion from households by 2020-21. That is one of the fastest-broken promises in political history. [Interruption.] There is an awful lot of noise from Conservative Members. I shall give way to the hon. Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Rishi Sunak) because he has been trying to intervene.
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I will not give way because Conservative Members are not being reasonable and letting me make progress with my speech.
The impact of the work penalty in the tax credits system should have been set out at the election. A lone parent with two children working 16 hours a week on the minimum wage would gain just over £400 from the move to the new national living wage, as the Chancellor calls it, but would lose twice that—£860—from the change to tax credits next year. A couple on the minimum wage who work full time and have two children will gain £1,500 from the change to the minimum wage but lose over £2,200 next year from the changes to tax credits. As the Government were hitting the low-paid, the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions was punching the air. Working families did not vote for that, and they will not be fooled by the Chancellor’s hollow words.
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So the Secretary of State is saying that the childcare change will come in at the beginning of that financial year—in 2016. We have heard it from the Secretary of State’s mouth, so it must be true: the childcare changes will come in in 2016. That is the announcement from the Government. It is a bit of an improvement on the announcement we heard from the Chancellor yesterday, who I thought said that the childcare changes were being pushed back to 2017.
The reasons that the cost of social security is £25 billion higher than the Conservatives expected are the underlying drivers of low pay, higher housing costs and insecure work. For all the Chancellor’s spin, this is a Budget that attacks the low-paid and will leave many people in the lurch, unable to make ends meet. If the Conservatives think a solution is to pull the rug from beneath the poorest, stigmatise claimants, rub out the statistics that measure child poverty and hope that the issue will go away, they are deeply mistaken.
We have to deliver a practical route out of poverty, provide a ladder of opportunity and view this challenge as integral to our long-term economic prosperity. We must help people into decent jobs that can be sustained. Cutting tax credits in this way and taking far more with the one hand than is being given with the other will leave too many people trapped on low incomes with low living standards. The ladder is being pulled away from those who want to get on. The achievement of the Labour Administration in significantly reducing child poverty staved off billions of pounds of longer-term welfare expenditure. Those who are in work pay taxes and improve the public finances as a result.
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I have given way quite generously to Government Members and I would like to make some progress, if they do not mind.
The Institute for Fiscal Studies confirms that the introduction of tax credits played an extremely powerful part in the movement in the child poverty figures. The Conservatives cannot call themselves the party of working people, as they now do, when their Budget leaves millions of working people worse off. How exactly does decreasing their work-related assistance help those who become too sick to work and are on employment and support allowance? Does that policy not run the risk of increasing the number of people who are placed in the more expensive ESA support group, as has been the case in recent years, when the Government have overspent by £4.5 billion on their original plans?
What motivation has a council tenant to get a better job and work for promotion if he or she is on the living wage and the Government take that money away immediately? That is the crude nature of the rent rise that they are proposing. Seeking a contribution from higher earners is, of course, important, and it is one solution, but, as the Government’s own analysis pointed out before the election, going about it in the wrong way will result in perverse incentives and penalties for work.
This was more a Budget of tax rises than a Budget of tax cuts. A rise of more than 50% in the rate of insurance premium tax to raise £8 billion over this Parliament will be a tax hit on the insurance for the family home, the family holiday and the family car. The new car tax will be a surprise that raises £1.5 billion by the end of this Parliament, and—much to the Secretary of State’s surprise—the Government have shelved the childcare tax support that was due this summer until 2017, even if the Secretary of State has now brought that forward by a year.
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When we are writing our manifesto for the 2020 election, I shall give the hon. Gentleman a call. I am afraid that we lost the most recent election, but I think it important for us to reflect on what the Government propose and what the Chancellor announced in his Budget. It is our job as an Opposition to make sure that his spin does not necessarily colour the view of the realities.
The Budget statement revealed that the Chancellor has the wrong priorities for Britain: headlines for himself rather than help for low-income households. We have a chronic shortage of affordable housing, and home ownership is increasingly out of reach for first-time buyers, but the Chancellor’s main housing policy was to reduce the number of affordable homes by 14,000. We need to encourage young people from poorer backgrounds to aim for higher education, but axeing student grants for the least well-off—and, by the way, taking the cap off tuition fee rises, which was not particularly trumpeted by the Chancellor—will make it harder, not easier, for them to do so.
This should have been a Budget to support working people, and to tackle the long-term challenges that our economy faces. The Chancellor is already crowing at his own perceived success in the headlines, but his work penalty in the tax credit system will hit those in work, and leave working people worse off. The Government have failed to make the big decisions that are needed to deliver the modern infrastructure that can make our businesses more productive. They have done nothing to address our alarming and widening trade deficit, and their rhetoric of a living wage has begun to unravel in less than 24 hours.
These are difficult times, and they require tough choices. The deficit needs to fall year on year, our debts need to be reduced, and sensible social security savings are also necessary. But this Budget made the wrong choices for working people and prioritised political gains over the long-term needs of our economy. As ever with this Chancellor, it will be the British people who pay the price for his ambitions.
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I welcome—[Interruption.] I must be more statesman-like.
I welcome yesterday’s Budget statement from my right hon. Friend the Chancellor. He is in serious danger of coming to be seen as one of the great Chancellors of this country.
Yesterday my right hon. Friend set out a Budget of great significance. At its heart it is a Budget for working people. First, he set out the steps that we have taken to bring the economy back from its knees, where it was left by the Labour Government. It is only through a strong economy that we can deliver the growth and jobs that working people need. In the previous Parliament we created 2 million jobs, and the budget deficit is now less than half the 10% rate that we inherited. As we look forward, the Office for Budget Responsibility has forecast growth of 2.4% for 2015. That means that for the second year in a row, Britain is expected to have the strongest economic growth of any major advanced economy in the world. The economy will be in surplus by 2019-20, and it will be the largest surplus in structural terms in at least 40 years. Because of the steps taken by the Government, Britain is again standing tall in the world.
Secondly, the Budget sets out the actions we are taking on tax evasion, avoidance and planning, and the imbalances that were left to us in the tax system. This makes a vital contribution to bringing our public finances back into line, meaning that we can continue to provide the essential public services that working people in this country rely on.
Thirdly, the Budget sets out the steps we are taking to boost productivity and skills and to back business. We will have an innovative new apprenticeship scheme, which I hugely welcome, and we will introduce a levy on large employers to fund a big increase in apprenticeship starts and quality. The hon. Member for Nottingham East (Chris Leslie) spoke about productivity. This is one of the ways we will get productivity improvements. In England, firms will be able to get back more than they put in if they train a sufficient number of apprentices—a real incentive to get on and reskill. It is about ensuring that people in this country have the skills they need to get jobs, increase their hours and secure higher pay.
Fourthly, the Budget sets out the work that this Government are doing to support business. It is only when businesses are thriving that the people of our country can thrive too. One of the great things about the last election, apart from the fact that we won, is that it brought into the House so many of my new colleagues who have run businesses, started businesses and know what it is like to cut that pay cheque week in, week out. That is hugely different from the Opposition. We have been relentless in our commitment to cut corporation tax. In the previous Parliament it fell to 20%, the joint lowest rate in the G20. In this Parliament it will fall to 18%, sending out what my right hon. Friend the Chancellor said was a clear message that Britain is open for business.
Fifthly, the Budget sets out the measures that we are taking to reduce tax, to help people save, to help them own their own homes, and to support them in one of the most basic human aspirations—to pass something on to their children—through the changes we are making to inheritance tax.
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Indeed. I shall shortly come to how these imbalances created disparities for people in work and trapped on low income.
We are sticking to two of our most important manifesto promises on personal tax. We are starting the journey to raise the tax-free personal allowance to £12,500 from next year. Once £12,500 is reached, as my right hon. Friend the Chancellor said, we will legislate so that the personal allowance always rises in line with the minimum wage—a great move to protect working people. We are keeping our commitment to raise the threshold at which people pay the higher 40p rate of tax to £50,000, starting with an increase to £43,000 from next year.
I consider one measure from yesterday’s Budget to be more significant than all the others—indeed, it is perhaps the most significant measure in all the Budgets that I have listened to during my many years in this House. The Government believe that if people work hard, they should be rewarded. In our growing economy, people should be able to expect a decent wage if they move into work and increase their hours. That is why, starting from April 2016, the Government have announced that we will move to a national living wage—set initially at £7.20, but rising to £9 by 2020. We will ask the Low Pay Commission to recommend future increases to the national living wage that achieve the Government’s objective of reaching 60% of median earnings by 2020. I believe that that is groundbreaking, and I hope that all Members of the House, instead of cavilling about it, will come to support it.
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One of the lowest-paid sectors is the care sector, and it is right that it should get a pay increase. The Local Government Association has calculated that to pay the current living wage to all care workers who are directly employed by local authorities, and those employed by private firms that provide services to local authorities, would cost £0.75 billion. By 2020 that will rise to about £1.5 billion, or more. Will that be regarded as a new burden on local authorities for which the Treasury stands the cost, or will it be a further £1.5 billion cut to local authority services?
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I apologise. That is a matter for his leader but—what can I say? Labour has no leader at the moment.
The hon. Member for Nottingham East was talking about the minimum wage and the living wage, and I want to pick up on something he said a fortnight ago:
“Do not the Government need a serious strategy to address low pay and boost productivity? They should be providing incentives for a living wage and new opportunities for high-quality skills, as a more positive route out of poverty.”
Absolutely. He went on to speak about the Chancellor’s Budget before it had been delivered and said:
“Unless he is planning a rise of 25% in the minimum wage, that will not happen.”—[Official Report, 25 June 2015; Vol. 597, c. 1038.]
Well, my right hon. Friend the Chancellor listened to that and initiated a rise of 38% to the minimum wage. The hon. Gentleman must be overjoyed, and will want to tell the House what a great man the Chancellor is and what a great Government we are.
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I notice that the hon. Gentleman said “at this time” when talking about tax credits. We can take note of that. It suggests to me—indeed, I am sure of it—that after the next couple of years Labour will have abandoned its opposition to the measure.
The measures that I set out in the Budget are vital to delivering the commitments that this Government have always made. We are committed to ensuring that a renewed economy goes hand in hand with a renewed social settlement, yet consider what we inherited in 2010: nearly one in five households with no—[Interruption.] Labour Members really do not like listening to this, but they have to hear it—[Interruption.] I will give way in a minute. Perhaps the hon. Member for Bishop Auckland (Helen Goodman) will sit down. Let me remind her what Labour left behind when it left government: nearly one in five households had nobody working; 1.4 million people had been on benefits for most of the previous decade; the number of households where no one had ever worked had doubled; and close on half of all households in the social rented sector had no one in work. Surely that is a shameful record.
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I do understand that, and I am coming on to speak about tax credits. For some time I have believed that the way tax credits operated distorted the system, so that there were far too many families not in work, living in bigger and bigger houses and getting larger while being subsidised by the state, while many others—the vast majority of families in Britain—made decisions about how many children they could have and the houses they could live in. Getting that balance back is about getting fairness back into the system. It is not fair to have somebody living in a house that they cannot afford to pay for if they go back to work, as it means that they do not enter the work zone and their children grow up with no sense of work as a way out of poverty.
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The answer to my hon. Friend’s question, which I wanted to come to, is that that is the perverse nature of tax credits. About 40% of those on tax credits had tax taken off them, which was recycled through the system with some of it being given back to them. That seems to be a rather bizarre and absurd system.
The tax credit system was the brainchild of the previous Prime Minister, Gordon Brown. The original tax credit system, introduced by the Labour Government, cost £1.1 billion in its first year; the tax credit system now costs some £30 billion a year, most of which is spent on child tax credits. This money was pumped into the system in a clear attempt to chase what was then a moving poverty line. In fact, under the previous Government, £258 billion of hard-earned taxpayers’ money was recycled to be spent cumulatively on tax credits—a huge sum.
We saw massive spikes in tax credit spending in the run-up to election years. In the two years before the 2005 election, spending increased by £10 billion—a 70% increase. In the two years before the 2010 election, it increased by some £6 billion, or 25%. It is worth looking again at the in-between years, when it suddenly flattened but rose before an election. There were disproportionate increases in the child element, in an attempt to keep up with that moving median line. The child element was increased by more than earnings in 2004-05 and from 2008-09 to 2010-11, so that by 2010-11 the child element had increased by 25% more than if it had been uprated in line with average earnings since 2003-04.
One of the worst aspects of the system was the way people had to predict their income for a year. If their actual earnings turned out to be different, they were left with large overpayments or underpayments. This caused misery for families and left a gaping hole in the public finances. Although Labour Members have never owned up to it, we lost billions through that process. To try to deal with the situation, a large disregard was introduced. People then did not have to tell the Government if their income changed by up to £25,000 in the course of a year. To have the disregard at that level was completely irresponsible. It was an attempt to use taxpayers’ money to plug holes in a failing system.
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I am very pleased that the Secretary of State has given way. It is ancient history for those of us who are here now. This is the right hon. Gentleman’s sixth year in government and the system is becoming more and more unfair. Will the Department for Work and Pensions carry out an equalities impact statement on the changes in the Budget? [Interruption.] I will repeat that, because the right hon. Gentleman is having trouble hearing. Will the Department for Work and Pensions carry out an equalities impact assessment in relation to changes in the Budget, both on employment and support allowance and on the changes to families, to ensure that ethnic minority families are not discriminated against and that the lives of people with disabilities are not being worsened by this evil policy?
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There are impact assessments in the Red Book. There will be relevant impact assessments before Second Reading, as there always are.
The key point on tax credits is what they got for all of that: unsustainable spending that went up jerkily, but by huge amounts; and a subsidy for employers, which enabled the payment of lower wages and completely distorted systems, and presented a bizarre set of incentives for moving in and out of work. It is now well documented that for many people it made sense to work only 16 hours —no more, no less—and we saw spikes in the employment data at 16 hours. There were huge spikes of people clustered around 16 hours, because it did not pay to work anything else.
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I do. As my hon. Friend makes clear, if people can afford to work only 16 hours, businesses will not invest in them and their training because it will not be worth their while. That means their chances of progressing are nil. Many rotated and crashed out of work directly, because they had no sense that they could go on any further. She is absolutely right.
We believe that two-fifths of those who received tax credits ended up paying for the tax credits they received. It was a bizarre system.
This Government are different. We are building on the firm foundations of a welfare system by balancing the books and fixing the economy, while continuing to provide a strong safety net to support the most vulnerable. Our record in the previous Parliament spoke for itself, so I am going to say it again. Despite all the doomsday predictions from the Opposition—
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I must say that that would have to be pretty quick work. If they have done that much work in a matter of hours, I want to employ them in my Department. No, I do not agree with that, and here is why. I fully support food banks. What people do to help with food banks is a very good idea. However, the figures on usage put out by food banks have all been proven to be incorrect. In Germany, 1.5 million people a week use food banks and its benefit system is meant to be more generous than ours. In Canada, more than 800,000 a month use food banks. This country has a very low number compared with other countries. Those figures speak for themselves.
As we build on this, we must meet our commitments to protect the elderly and the most vulnerable, protecting those benefits that provide for additional costs arising from disability or caring, and protecting pensioner benefits. My right hon. Friend the Chancellor and I make no apology for that, with good reason. When we took office, pensioners were some of the most vulnerable people suffering from a very, very low income. We have begun to put that right, and we intend to be proud of it.
It is right that we provide extra support for those who face the biggest challenges in changing their income levels. Spending on the main disability benefits—disability living allowance, personal independence payment and attendance allowance—will be higher in every single year to 2020 compared with 2010. Our commitment to protecting the most vulnerable is why we have protections in place on policies such as the benefit cap, so that people are exempt if someone in a household is claiming DLA, PIP or working tax credits. Wherever possible, we are introducing measures on a flow basis to give people the time and knowledge to prepare for the changes.
We are also ensuring that people on benefits face the same choices as those in work and not on benefits. Our measures will mean people making decisions and choices about their lives, which is why we are introducing the two-children element on a flow basis, and why we are lowering the benefits cap to £23,000 in London and £20,000 elsewhere, emphasising that it is not fair for someone on benefits to receive more than many people in work. I think that that principle is well accepted and popular around the country. In London, about four in 10 households earn less than £23,000, and outside London the same proportion earn less than £20,000.
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No, I have given way twice to the hon. Lady; I am going to make some progress.
We remain relentlessly focused on supporting people to move into work. Universal credit is now rolled out to half of all jobcentres in Britain, and by the new year will be rolled out to all of them and will then be expanding. It will provide people in work with even better help and support, meaning that those on low pay will do better as a result of universal credit, which was a big reform that was opposed by the other side but which we will deliver and make work.
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I have to say to my hon. Friends that I really have to make some progress, because lots of Members want to speak. They will have a chance to speak later.
With universal credit, people will get up to 85% of their childcare costs paid, which is up from 70% under the previous system. In addition, there will be 15 hours of free childcare if someone has a two-year-old, or a three or four-year-old, and if they are working, while the 30 hours of free childcare a week will be worth £5,000 a year. By the way, the 30 hours of free childcare will start exactly when I said it would—it will be cutting in in the 2016-17 period.
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In that case, to clarify, the 30 hours of free childcare for working parents with three and four-year-olds has not been delayed; it will start to be introduced in September 2016. Thank you very much; now let’s move on.
If someone needs support to improve their skills or talk to their employer about increasing their hours, universal credit comes in again. For the first time, it will stick with them and help them to increase their hours, which is why it will complete the process of supporting people back into work. Even with the changes we are making, the welfare system will remain generous.
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No, no; the hon. Gentleman had his chance.
About five in 10 families with children will still be eligible for tax credits as a result of these reforms. These figures show that we are taking a balanced approach to welfare—an approach that expects people to stand on their own two feet whenever possible but which provides them with the support to do that, by reducing their taxes, providing childcare, skills and back-to-work support, introducing universal credit to make work pay and asking employers to play their part by increasing wages at a time when our economy is growing.
In conclusion, ours is an approach that continues to provide a generous safety net and support for those who need it and expects people to face the same choices as those in work and not on benefits. At its heart, it is about moving from a low-wage, high-tax, high-welfare country, to a high-wage, lower-tax, lower-welfare country. It is a positive vision for Britain under a one nation Conservative Government delivered by a great Chancellor and a great Prime Minister.
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I am sure that the hon. Lady is well aware that Scotland’s childcare offer is significantly better than that enjoyed by people in other parts of the UK, and that our housing situation is not exacerbated by real rent imbalances similar to those experienced in London and the south-east of England in particular. I will pick up on that later.
The hon. Lady will also be aware that the Scottish block grant is calculated on the basis of the contents of the Red Book. The money currently allocated to Scotland is determined by this Chamber, so this Budget is relevant to everybody throughout the UK. It would be very wrong to ignore the fact that the purse strings are still controlled here, and that is one of the reasons why I argue for those powers to be sent up the road to Scotland, where we can use them more wisely.
I want to return to the issue of child poverty and the paper exercises conducted to measure it. Whatever we do to massage the figures, I do not think any of us can avoid the evidence of our own eyes in our constituencies. We are seeing growth in child poverty on the ground. We see it in the rise of food banks, which have already been alluded to, and in the larger number of people coming through MPs’ doors with income-related problems. That is also being experienced by advice bureaux. We also see it in the evidence of organisations that work directly with vulnerable families and those on low incomes.
In my constituency, one in five children is growing up in poverty. That might come as a surprise, because we enjoy some of the lowest unemployment in the whole country. A very small percentage of people are not in work, but many thousands of people are in low-paid work, and it is those working poor who are going to be most affected by what was announced yesterday.
More families than ever are running to stand still, and under this Government more people are being left behind. The UK has a deeply polarised labour market, and the ability of people in low-paid work to get ahead is severely curtailed.
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I will not give way at the moment.
Amid all the rhetoric and the hyperbole of Budget day, it would have been very easy to form the impression from the media lines being trotted out yesterday that tax credits are predominantly a benefit paid to unemployed people, when in fact the opposite is the case. In Scotland, the overwhelming majority of tax credits are paid to working people. In fact, half of all families benefit from tax credits, and 95% of tax credits in Scotland are paid to families with children. We should make no mistake about where the cuts are being targeted.
It is inevitable that today we will consider the short-term consequences, because those cuts will put acute pressure on families, but we should be under no illusion: growing up in poverty has serious long-term consequences for children, too. It is associated with poorer educational attainment, poorer job prospects, poorer health throughout life and lower life expectancy. That is why asking families to bear the brunt of the cuts is so short-sighted. It has not only an enormous social cost, but an enormous economic cost: it holds back our economic progress and productivity, which are what we should really be focusing on and trying to improve.
The Government have tried to argue, today and yesterday, that the cuts will be offset by increases to the minimum wage and changes to the personal allowance, but that claim simply does not stand up to scrutiny. I think we all welcome the announcement of a long-overdue increase in the minimum wage to £7.20 an hour from next year and, indeed, the changes to national insurance, but let us not kid ourselves that rebranding the minimum wage as a living wage will actually make it a living wage.
There is already a living wage: it is calculated by the Living Wage Foundation and is already used by employers in the public, private and third sectors, including, I am very pleased to say, the Scottish Government. The living wage is based on the actual cost of living and it is already £7.85 an hour outside London and is due to go up again in November. We need to be absolutely clear that £7.20 is not a living wage and it will not offset the cuts in tax credits.
The critical point about the living wage is that it has been calculated on the basis of low-paid workers claiming their full entitlement to tax credits at the present rate, so any cut in tax credits means that the living wage will have to go up even further in order for it to provide enough for people to live on. If the Government take on board only one of the points I make today, I want it to be that one.
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Scotland has already shown the progress we are making towards a high-skill economy. I was interested to hear yesterday’s announcement on improving the apprenticeship scheme in England. I hope the Government will aspire to do what the Scottish Government have already done. The uptake has been phenomenal and we are well on course to reaching 30,000 apprenticeships a year, which is far more proportionately per head of population than the current number in England. The Opportunities for All scheme guarantees a place in education or training for every single young person. It has been a phenomenal success, with more than 90% of our young people going into sustained employment afterwards. Instead of waiting until people have been unemployed for a year before intervening, we are intervening early so that every school leaver gets those opportunities. The approach is much more carrot than stick. The scale of the uptake shows that in Scotland we are committed to having a more successful economy and to growing it to meet the needs of our population.
I want to return to tax credits and not be distracted from them. Today the Resolution Foundation, which has done so much to promote the living wage and highlight the issue of in-work poverty, has said that the living wage would need to be £10 an hour by 2020—not the £9 announced yesterday—to keep pace with the cost of living under the new tax and benefits regime. Let us be clear: we are not going to get out of the poverty trap with this rebranded minimum wage. We need to bring it up to the level of a living wage if we are going to take away the support currently provided through tax credits.
The huge cuts in tax credits will make the gap between the minimum wage and the living wage even greater and it will leave the earnings of low-paid workers even further below the actual cost of living. At present, a family with two children where both parents work and who live in a house with average rent will be below the breadline, and the changes announced yesterday will not change that. Such families will still struggle to keep their heads above water and their children will still grow up disadvantaged.
We need to recognise that bringing up children is expensive—for everyone, in all income groups—but children are not some sort of luxury lifestyle accessory. Having children and encouraging family life is an essential, necessary and natural part of the human life cycle. For some years, however, we have made it really difficult for younger adults to even contemplate starting a family, simply because of the pernicious combination of low pay, job insecurity and exorbitant housing costs.
That brings me to the differential impact of this Budget on women, because, in spite of the progress that has been made, women are still heavily concentrated in low-paid work. We are far more likely to be working part-time or in zero-hours jobs, and we are more likely to be the primary carer of children or, indeed, frail or disabled relatives. Too many women end up in low-paid, part-time work such as cashiering or cleaning simply because they can work their hours around their family responsibilities. While I welcome the increase in the personal allowance, we need to recognise that many of those women working part time in low-paid jobs will not see the full benefit of it. Indeed, the key beneficiaries are, of course, higher-rate tax payers like ourselves, and 80% of the benefit of the increase will fall in the upper half of the income spectrum.
I have a number of questions for the Government about limiting tax credits to two children. I am not sure why they would do this—certainly in Scotland, we have a worryingly low birth rate so we should not be trying to deter people from having more children. I ask Ministers for clarification about the basis on which the number of children eligible for support through tax credits will be determined. Will it be a couple’s first two children together, or will children from a previous relationship be counted in the total? What will happen, for example, if a woman has her first child with a partner who already has two children from previous relationship or if a mother’s third child is the father’s first? As anyone who ever runs a constituency surgery will know, these are not abstract questions, and I hope Ministers will address them this afternoon.
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The point I am trying to make is how important it is for us to have children. If our birth rate stays as low as it is, we will be storing up long-term economic problems for ourselves. Scotland has the lowest birth rate in the UK and one of the lowest anywhere in Europe. That is precisely because people know that they have to combine their incomes even to get a starter flat. They do not have room for a baby, they do not know how they would pay for a baby if one parent had to work part time, they do not know how they would be able to continue to pay a mortgage—still less a mortgage on a bigger house—and they do not know how they would pay the rent. People have to make serious choices, but the bigger social picture is that we must absolutely encourage people to have a family and encourage family life.
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The key point is that a falling birth rate is not good for anybody in whatever decile. Even those of us who do not have children are going to be dependent on the next generation being large enough to support us in our dotage when we need people to come in and look after us. The economics do not stack up. In the context of worryingly low birth-rate projections, we desperately need to encourage and make it easier for people in all deciles to decide whether having children is a possibility for them.
I have to say that I was appalled at the reference on page 88 of the Red Book to
“protections for women who have a third child as the result of rape, or other exceptional circumstances.”
I know this point was picked up yesterday, but I think the implications need to be addressed more thoroughly. It is perhaps important to acknowledge that rapes do not necessarily result in pregnancy. After all, rape is a crime that affects pre-pubescent children and post-menopausal women, as well as people of child-bearing age. How does the DWP intend to establish that a child has been born as a consequence of rape? Will there seriously be a box to tick on the form? Will a criminal conviction against a perpetrator be required?
We know that rape is one of the most unreported and poorly prosecuted serious crimes in the UK, with most surveys suggesting that 85% of women who are raped do not report it—for a variety of reasons, not least because most victims know their assailants and know that securing a conviction is a very long shot under our criminal justice system. Many simply do not want to put themselves through another traumatic ordeal.
I put it to Ministers that the women most likely to become pregnant as a result of rape are those in long-term abusive relationships who are being repeatedly assaulted. They are among those least likely to report rape, and those in the most extreme danger if they do. So I ask again, what will this “protection” mean in practice? How will the DWP arbitrate? Will women be believed? What steps will be taken to preserve their dignity and privacy? I would like to hear some answers to those questions.
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My hon. Friend raises a very pertinent point—we should not be stigmatising children whatever their parentage. This could indeed cause many problems.
Before I conclude, I want to address the lowering of the benefits cap. One aspect that always seems to get lost in the debate is that the main driver of the excessively high benefit payments we see in London, the south-east and a few other hotspots across the UK is excessively high private sector rents. In most cases, the claimant does not see a penny of that money; it goes straight into the pockets of the private sector landlords. This is a very serious problem, but I think the Government are tackling it from entirely the wrong angle. They need to address the chronic under-supply of affordable housing, because until they address that underlying issue, rents will continue to soar and housing—to rent or to buy—will continue to be completely unaffordable for people on low and average incomes, by which I mean people who earn normal wages doing normal jobs. Plans to force housing associations to sell their properties to tenants will only make matters worse.
I remember that when the benefits cap was first introduced, I went to the Library to look at the impact on my own constituency. There was a grand total of three claimants affected, and two of them were people in temporary accommodation—they were in a short-term transitional situation. That was simply because our rental market was not quite so out of control as the rental market in some other parts of the UK.
My main concern about the new benefit cap is that it is entirely arbitrary and will mostly affect people in the private rented sector in high-rent hotspots. Fundamentally, it does not tackle the underlying problem of affordable housing supply, which is one of the main drivers of income poverty right across the UK. Instead, it seems to me that this arbitrary cap will create perverse incentives for people to move to areas or stay in areas of low economic growth where housing is more affordable but jobs are thinner on the ground. That gets us to the heart of the problem with this Budget. It puts a desperate squeeze on low and middle-income families, but there is little in the Budget to boost productivity. There is nothing to give Scotland a competitive advantage or give us a jobs boost. Instead, those who have already carried the can for the banking collapse of 2008 will stay trapped in work that does not pay.
Austerity has been a failed policy. It has held back our economic recovery and has harmed the most disadvantaged people. That is why we need powers over our economy, our employment and our benefits system to be devolved to the Scottish Parliament, where we can use them to build a more successful and a more equitable country that is in everyone’s long-term interest.
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As the City’s MP, it would be remiss of me not to touch on the issue of the bank levy. When it was introduced in the immediate aftermath of the financial crisis, it was specifically designed to reflect the cost to the public purse of the implicit insurance provided by the Government to the finance sector. The suspicion is that more recently the bank levy has become as much an instrument to assist in deficit reduction.
I understand why the Chancellor sought to outwit his political opponents in March’s coalition Budget—that close to an election, I guess there were few votes to be gained by siding with bankers—but now that we have political stability, I welcome his commitment to ensuring that in future the replacement surcharge does what was initially intended. I suspect that this will sufficiently impress HSBC to stay for now, although I appreciate that perhaps too much good will has been expended by the Government on the ring-fencing arrangement for much to change in that regard—despite the threat to the international competiveness of the UK financial services from elements of the Vickers regime.
The more significant medium-term threat to banks remaining headquartered here in London probably arises from the “reckless banking” legislation. Once this is properly tested in the courts, it will be instructive to see just how many senior executives in the largest global banking conglomerates regard London as a place where they will be happy to be domiciled. That is work in progress for most of the City and the Treasury.
I shall say a quick word on the infrastructure and airport capacity debate. My constituency will undoubtedly be adversely impacted by the enlarged flight paths that will accompany the proposed third runway at Heathrow. I am also deeply concerned about air quality, even before the prospect of additional aviation pollution. However, all of us west and central London MPs need to recognise the national interest. There were certainly only anti votes when I supported Crossrail, which has disruptively carved its way through several residential districts in my constituency, but this major infrastructure is essential. Similarly, the UK and London economies desperately require additional airport capacity.
I would have been keener had the Davies commission come out in favour of Gatwick, but it has unequivocally come out in favour of expansion to the north-west of the Heathrow site. It is a finely balanced judgment, and I think there will be some funding problems when we come to put this in place in the years to come, but with reluctance I now take the view that the Government should move ahead with minimal delay and implement the Davies commission’s clear conclusions.
The Government have been wise to raise their horizons in addressing the sustainability of the UK’s recovery in an ever-expanding sea of global debt. At the last emergency Budget, in June 2010 as the last Parliament began, the Chancellor assumed that the then £1.32 trillion of accumulated national debt would cost some £66.5 billion annually to service. The debt pile has now risen to £1.63 trillion, but here’s the rub: we are expecting that to cost only about £51 billion a year in debt interest.
At this point, it should be said that the Chancellor’s determined rhetoric of fiscal retrenchment has earned him the confidence of the capital markets, which I am sure would rapidly have deserted any Labour Finance Minister. However, there is a herd of investors in the capital markets pricing Government debt with a deceptive, even dangerous, sense of calm. Incidentally, it is worth noting that the record low global interest rates apply to Government bonds issued by all but the most basket-case economies, even in the eurozone. In large part, there is a fear that deflation might be here to stay and that a prolonged period of stagnant or very low growth could be in the offing.
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I will not, if the hon. Gentleman will forgive me; we are under a strict time constraint.
In such uncertain circumstances, taking on Government debt often seems the safest bet in the markets. The impact of quantitative easing and the excess demand for bonds, driven largely by EU regulatory requirements to invest in safe havens, have both helped to reduce the cost of borrowing by Governments. At the same time, however, our own Office for Budget Responsibility, along with the International Monetary Fund, is projecting healthy growth for the UK economy in the years to come. They are both predicting not a period of Japanese-style deflationary stagnation implied by the pricing of Government debt but solid year-on-year growth at a rate of 2.5% to 3%. The trouble that lies ahead for the UK economy is that once the markets catch up to this reality, it is a racing certainty that the cost of servicing our debts will rise, and fast.
In short—and perhaps paradoxically—it is a sustained economic recovery that risks blowing a huge black hole in future years’ budgets as the UK continues to grapple with the vastly expanded debt that has been accumulated over the past decade. That is why the Government are absolutely right to say that drastic and determined Government action on deficit reduction is essential for the medium-term health of the economy. The Chancellor is right to tackle the debilitating impact of entitlement in much of our welfare system, and now is clearly the time to do that, while the sun is shining. Given all the difficulties in the markets, and all that is going on in Greece and China, our positive economic news might not be around for much longer.
At the beginning of this year, analysis by the McKinsey Global Institute revealed that global debt had risen by some 17% since the final quarter of 2007, when the collapse of Bear Stearns and Lehman Brothers was in the offing. The racking up of debt on this scale represents the biggest experiment we have ever conducted in the global economy. Short of the unleashing of a burst of unprecedentedly high levels of output and sector-wide productivity growth, or alternatively a programme of fiscal contraction hard to imagine in an era of welfare dependency and universal suffrage, it is impossible to see how the developed world will ever be able to repay these levels of debt properly.
Historically, Governments have dealt with debt piles by allowing a little inflation to develop. The other option is to introduce what the economists call fiscal retrenchment. The double whammy of the 1930s depression and the cost of fighting world war two in the following decade left all western economies with equivalent debt levels relative to national income. Between the 1950s and 1970s, yields from Government bonds were deliberately set at just below inflation. As a consequence of the alchemy that comes with compound interest, a lot of our debts were paid off.
That might seem to be a comforting parallel, but there are key differences today. One is that we live in an age of free cross-border capital flows, and much of our borrowing comes from international sources. The model of squeezing creditors by means of negative real interest rates and rising prices simply will not work when credit is denominated in a foreign currency or in a deflationary era. We need only look at the ongoing travails of the eurozone to see the limits of imposing financial repression when nation states are locked into a monetary straitjacket.
Much is made of the fact that one third of UK Government bonds have been mopped up by the Bank of England, which has helped to keep interest rates very low—we have now had 76 consecutive months at the emergency 0.5% rate. More distorting still is the fact that more than 40% of our gilts are owned by foreigners. In this uncertain world, those overseas creditors might take on the chin the impact of artificially low returns on their bonds, but they may be considerably less sanguine about the impact of currency risk. The market sentiment towards sterling is currently benign, despite record current account deficits, but if that were to change and if the pound were to fall, sterling-denominated gilts in the hands of foreign investors would rapidly lose their value. The prospect of such overseas creditors losing confidence in the UK economy would then be very real.
For that reason, the Government’s actions are of critical importance. They must persist in reducing the deficit as a matter of national urgency, to ensure that we collectively start to live within our means as rapidly as possible. What really concerns me, and what should concern policymakers, is that at the moment it is difficult to imagine the circumstances in which the cost of credit might be rapidly increased—as will be necessary in the years to come—without the economic roof falling in.
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It is a pleasure to follow the right hon. Member for Cities of London and Westminster (Mark Field) in this debate. I listened carefully to what he said about the issues of importance to his constituents, and it struck me that the issues of importance to my constituents are very different. The Budget has been presented to us as a Budget for working people, and a one nation Budget because we are all in this together, but I have to say to those on the Government Front Bench that it just will not be seen in that way in the north-east of England.
I have no quarrel with the Government’s desire to drive up wages, to increase productivity and to broaden and deepen the private sector employment base in the north-east of England, but we do not think that those things will actually happen. We believe that we will get all the welfare expenditure cuts but not the increased wages or the longer working hours, or the chance to earn a living in the private sector marketplace.
The maximum grants for students from households with incomes below £25,000, which encourage youngsters to go to university, are being converted into loans. In my constituency, one elector in five is a student. The change will mean that those in the very poorest households will be the ones leaving university with the highest debts, and that just does not seem fair. Similarly, the assault on working families tax credits will penalise the working poor. That point was very well made by the hon. Member for Banff and Buchan (Dr Whiteford)
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In fairness, Mr Deputy Speaker, I took the intervention, but I accept what you say.
There is an issue for those who rely on working families tax credits and who are in relatively low-paid jobs in the north-east of England. Let us take the example of a lone parent with two children who is working 16 hours a week on the minimum wage. Once both changes have come into place, the Chancellor’s living wage announcement makes up about £400, which is just under half the £860 that person would lose from the tax credit change. I listened to the earlier exchange between the Front-Bench teams. I take into account what was said and accept that it might ameliorate the position; none the less, the change is shown in the Red Book as a saving to the Exchequer, which means that it is money that my constituents get now but will not be getting in the future.
The reduction in the employment and support allowance to jobseeker’s allowance levels will not help anyone find a job; it just makes them poorer. The public sector pay freeze of 1% for the next four years is on top of a public pay policy that saw a freeze for two years from 2011, then below-inflation settlements of 1% up to the current financial year. This will be the longest sustained public sector pay freeze ever, and it is just not fair on the workers, especially the low-paid public sector workers. The benefit tapers have been narrowed, and on top of all that there is the benefits cap itself. I am not against the cap in principle, but reducing it from £26,000 to £23,000 in London and imposing a lower regional ceiling of £20,000 outside London is harsh on the English regions.
The Chancellor has burdened housing associations with an unwanted right to buy, which is good for the few but not for the many. Local authority housing stock is still burdened by the bedroom tax, which is not just unjust but actually counter-productive in communities such as my own constituency where a private one-bedroom bedsit in Jesmond costs more to rent than a two-bedroom council flat in Walker. Yet full housing benefit will go to the one-bedroom flat, and those in the two-bedroom local authority-owned flat will be penalised by £8 a week. I do not see how any of this helps the north-east. Certainly, it does not help to make work pay.
In some parts of the country, it may be reasonable to argue that employers should pay better wages rather than rely on the state to top them up, but the danger for the north-east is that those who rely on working families tax credit will not be able to get extra hours at work to make up for the shortfall in their weekly income and will not be able to get a pay rise because there is not sufficient profitability in the business for that to be sustained.
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The even greater irony is that I was the Government Chief Whip when we put through the minimum wage legislation. My hon. Friend the Member for Sheffield South East (Mr Betts) was the Whip on the Committee that went right through the night on this. But that is going down memory lane. Indeed, it was the current Secretary of State for Defence who was making the case in the Committee at the time. There was some substance in the point, which is why I make it now in relation to the specific circumstances of the constrained nature of the private sector economy in the north-east of England. A broader, deeper and stronger private sector economy is the way forward for our region. It will help to give us the wages and the breadth of job opportunities that the south-east of England enjoys.
The great hope offered by the Government to the north-east is in their northern powerhouse initiative. The Chancellor is right to take regional policy seriously, but he just does not seem to understand how the north-east of England works and what precisely it needs. Indeed, he did not reference us once in his Budget speech when he was going through the offers to the other English regions. The only practical manifestation of the Government’s northern powerhouse policy so far is in the rail upgrades, and they have been delayed.
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When I was the regional Minister in the previous Labour Government, I met representatives of Hitachi in Downing Street. They were considering locating in the north-east of England, and wanted to discuss how they could bring that about. I give credit to the current Government for having seen that programme through, because it does involve Government support and they could have cancelled it but they did not. But it was a shared endeavour, and it was certainly coming into place well before the northern powerhouse initiative. However, the hon. Gentleman is quite right that it is exactly the sort of initiative that we would like to see for our region. If it comes under the northern powerhouse brand, I shall take no exception to that.
The problem is that we do not know the geographical boundaries of the northern powerhouse initiative or the functions ascribed to it. We do not even know whether it is some form of local government reorganisation or a regional economic development initiative, or both. We are being told in the north-east that we must sign up to a metro mayor, but not why. The Government have given no details of the powers, functions, workings, accountability or budget for the post, yet they say we must have one.
The past five years have seen a plethora of initiatives that have had no practical impact on the problems in the north-east. The new local enterprise partnerships simply do not have the resources and capacity to address the scale of the problems. The LEPs have been followed by city deals, enterprise zones, regional growth funds, local growth deals and joint leadership boards. They are fragmented, piecemeal initiatives that collectively do not amount to an effective, focused regional policy from the Government. Metro mayors risk being just the latest addition to this confused approach. There is a serious question as to whether so many proposed policy responsibilities can and should be invested in one single individual. People in Newcastle who rejected the local government version of the elected mayor in 2012 and the wider north-east should at the very least be given a choice on this in a referendum.
The past five years have seen a persistent focus on structures and process at the expense of any real, meaningful action. We continue to lag behind in jobs. We have high unemployment and a lack of skills and investment in infrastructure. We simply cannot afford to waste the next five years dithering on structures.
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I rise today to congratulate the Chancellor on his Budget. His amazing job yesterday is warmly welcomed by most of the country. I am disappointed to follow the right hon. Member for Newcastle upon Tyne East (Mr Brown), who said that the Budget will make no difference—he probably said the same thing about previous Budgets brought in by the same Chancellor. Surely unemployment is down in his constituency; I cannot believe that it has gone up. What did his Government do, in all the years they were in power, to help people in the north-east? They did not do anything, which is why there have been problems. This Government, though, have made a difference.
I am also disappointed to follow the hon. Member for Banff and Buchan (Dr Whiteford). I found it astonishing that she should be advocating that people on benefits should be allowed to have—encouraged to have—more than two children. Completely responsible people who recognise that children are expensive to bring up and cannot afford to because they are not on benefits subsidise those who the hon. Lady would like to have three, four or five children. That is completely mad.
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I recognise that most people getting tax credits are in work, but I still do not believe that people who are in work, not receiving tax credits, acting responsibly and having the number of children they can afford should be subsidising those who want to have more children. That is completely topsy-turvy economics; perhaps it is how some Opposition Members from Scotland deal with economics there, but it is not what we want to do here in London. I am very disappointed by the hon. Lady’s attitude, and I feel that she completely misrepresents what the Government are doing.
I congratulate the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on doing a fantastic job in bringing the welfare budget under control. It was not under control for many, many years—it was completely out of control, which is one reason why this country got into such difficulty with the deficit.
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One of the things that we hear about in the Budget is the importance given to increasing productivity, but if we are to increase productivity, we need incentives for investment in the economy. The Government are incentivising those who have financial assets by changing the inheritance tax rules to benefit the type of people who sit on the Government Front Bench. That is the reality of what they are doing. If we want to make sure that work pays, we need to drive investment in the economy, and we need incentives for business to do so. [Interruption.]
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Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker.
I will ignore what the hon. Gentleman said because, again, it is topsy-turvy economics. We are trying to increase investment in business to provide more jobs. We have created 2 million more jobs in the past five years, and that is carrying on. Apprenticeships are increasing, which will help people into work. In my constituency of Mid Derbyshire, which started off with 1,267 claimants in 2010, the figure went down to 340 this May. That is a huge reduction. I would still like those 340 people to be in work.
Some hon. Members have talked about youth unemployment. I started off in Mid Derbyshire with 350 such claimants; the figure is now down to 80. That is a huge increase in the number of young people who have jobs, thanks to our brilliant local industries. Young people are better off in work—everyone is better off in work than on benefits. We want to stop the culture of people relying on benefits.
As the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions said, when the Labour party was in government, it put up benefits before an election, flatlined them and then put them up again before the next election. Labour Members should not be playing politics with benefit claimants, who need honest, clear benefits. Those who need benefits will get them under this Government, but we want to get more people into work because that is better for their self-esteem and health; it is also better for their children to have as a role model someone who is in work.
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As the hon. Gentleman knows, we did not know what the result of the election would be. We did not even know that we would be in government; we thought that we might be in a coalition. It might have been the Labour party in a coalition. We have now had a Budget that sets out extremely clearly for the electorate exactly what we will do over the next five years. We want to invest in business. We want to help businesses, so that they can employ more people. That has certainly happened in my constituency, as it will have done in his constituency and those of every hon. Member, because business has created so many jobs. The climate is right for business. Britain is open for business, and we need to get more people working hard.
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My hon. Friend is absolutely right. One of the ways in which we will do that, hardly mentioned by Opposition Members, is by changing inheritance tax. People have paid taxes on their money. They have bought their houses, and it is good to allow them to leave their houses to their children, so that they can benefit as well. The housing market is difficult for younger people. If parents can leave their houses to their children, that will benefit society.
Something that has not been mentioned at all is the 2% commitment on defence. I would have thought that everyone in the Chamber would welcome that; it was certainly welcomed by Government Members yesterday. I cannot believe that no one wants to mention it at all. Surely the Opposition believe that that is a very good thing for the country, to secure our safety and security here.
Labour Members should welcome the fact that the success of our long-term economic plan has created jobs and is encouraging growth, which has meant that spending on welfare as a percentage of GDP has been falling since 2012.
I should like to finish because time is short—I apologise, Mr Deputy Speaker. This is a good Budget for jobs, for employment and for this country. I commend the Chancellor and the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions for their sterling work and how they have put this country on a much better footing.
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I represent a south-west London suburban constituency, not an area normally associated with high housing stress, difficulties and problems. I have had the great fortune to be the MP for Mitcham and Morden— the place of my birth—for the past 18 years. Half the people I see at my advice surgery come to me with housing issues.
For 16 years, before I first entered the House, I worked for Battersea Churches Housing Trust and, before that, for Wandsworth Council in the homeless persons unit. I have seen long queues for bed-and-breakfast accommodation. I have seen people in desperate straits, but that has not prepared me for the length and depth of the problems that people face in securing housing in my constituency.
I sometimes hear myself tell constituents things like, “Oh, please don’t go homeless on a Friday or a Monday, because God only knows where the council will be able to put you. You see, they can’t take into account the fact that your daughter is doing her A-levels or O-levels, that your mum is ill, that you have a job. They have to put you in temporary accommodation where they can find it.” These are things I say without even thinking about them.
On a Friday night, I regularly see vulnerable children with vulnerable mothers go off to bed and breakfasts on the other side of London, if not in Birmingham. I am not ashamed to say that I wake up in the night and think about what happens to those families—what sort of accommodation they are going to and how they will manage. However, it is not on behalf of those people that I stand to talk this afternoon because many Opposition Members will do that more eloquently than I can.
The people I want to speak for are all those in good jobs who save their money, but cannot get a foot on the housing ladder. They cannot buy their homes partly because they are being eased out of London by those who already own a home: the buy-to-let landlords. Housing is becoming an investment model, rather than somewhere to live, have a family, put down roots and become part of the community. It has become a real problem for that generation. The possibility of buying the home in London that my family had in the fifties and I had in the eighties is not there for the generation coming up now. We have to do something for them if we are to avoid the family breakdown and problems that will inevitably arise if we do nothing.
For those reasons, I welcome the Government’s announcement that they will look at the £14 billion in tax breaks that landlords can claim every year. There are not many things that I, the Chancellor and my hon. Friend the Member for Islington North (Jeremy Corbyn), who is standing in the Labour party leadership election, agree on, but reform of buy to let and how buy-to-let landlords are treated in the tax system is one of them. The Exchequer gives tax relief on mortgage interest payments, money spent on repairs and maintenance, and even accountants’ fees to help landlords to take full advantage of the relief. Some of the tax breaks help tenants—we should encourage landlords to keep their property in a good state of repair and to improve living conditions—but it is completely unfair to give landlords a £6 billion tax break on mortgage interest payments.
Why is it right to subsidise the mortgages of people buying their second, third or fourth home with taxpayers’ money when so many people cannot afford even to take out their first mortgage? People paying off the mortgage on their own home that they live in do not get those tax breaks. We should be incentivising buying to live, not buying to let. Mortgages for landlords are cheaper than mortgages for first-time buyers, in part thanks to that subsidy, and it distorts the housing market. As of last week, the cheapest two-year buy-to-let mortgage cost less than half the cheapest two-year first-time buyer deal, according to brokers. That puts first-time buyers at a real disadvantage compared with buy-to-let landlords, who are swamping the market and shutting out first-time buyers. A third of Members of this House are themselves buy-to-let landlords.
The changes announced by the Chancellor yesterday are a drop in the ocean and do little to tackle the ridiculous double taxpayer subsidy of private rental landlords. We are, in effect, giving a double taxpayer subsidy to buy-to-let landlords because we give tax breaks of £6 billion that encourage people to buy to let and monopolise the housing stock, and then, when tenants cannot afford the growing rent, the taxpayer has to give them housing benefit. Housing benefit paid to private landlords has now reached £9.3 billion, or 38% of the total bill. With fewer people able to buy homes, there is more demand in the private rental sector, which in turn pushes up rents.
I am pleased that the Government have agreed this is a problem, as the Budget shows, but their proposals utterly fail to confront the buy-to-let taxpayer subsidy in any significant way. The flawed principle that landlords can claim tax relief on their mortgage interest will remain; landlords will simply get a slightly lower tax relief. The Government’s own documents estimate that it will save the taxpayer just £665 million pounds a year by 2020—just one tenth of the £6 billion in mortgage interest claimed back in tax breaks by landlords in 2012-13.
To seriously tackle the root causes of the housing crisis in this country, we have to go further than reducing these unfair tax breaks by a meagre 10%. Taxpayer subsidies should be used to help people to get on the housing ladder, not to pull the rug from under their feet. By looking again at mortgage interest tax breaks for landlords, and cutting them by more than just 10%, or even limiting them to new builds, the Government could save up to £6 billion—the equivalent of grants to housing associations that could enable them to build 100,000 new social housing units. Spending the money on building new homes, instead of on existing bricks and mortar, also helps to stimulate the economy and provides jobs. For every £1 spent on housing construction, an additional £2.09 of economic output is generated.
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My problem with the current plans is what they will do to the security and continuing support that housing associations can provide, but if the Government can provide a model whereby we can replace those properties, one for one, my answer is: almost certainly.
Many constituents come to me afraid they will never be able to save enough to put down a deposit on their first home; most of their monthly pay packet goes straight on rent and there is nothing left to save. Their rent is driven up by buy-to-let landlords, who monopolise the housing supply and charge what they want. As a result, 82% of people in London who do not own a home believe they will never be able to do so. If the unfair advantage given to buy-to-let landlords is removed, more people will be able to buy their first home; in addition, there will be reduced demand in the private rental sector, so rents and the housing benefit bill will fall. I urge the Chancellor to look again and do more with buy-to-let mortgage tax breaks.
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Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker, for giving me the opportunity to make my maiden speech. It is a pleasure to follow the hon. Member for Mitcham and Morden (Siobhain McDonagh).
Standing here now, I realise how wise were the words of my hon. and good Friend the Member for Tamworth (Christopher Pincher) when he, during his maiden speech, suddenly understood the significance of the occasion and said,
“nobody is looking forward to the end of my speech more than I am”.—[Official Report, 2 June 2010; Vol. 510, c. 526.]
I can assure the House that this is definitely the case for me, too.
Having said that, I am delighted to have been called in this debate following the first Conservative Budget for 19 years, as during the election economic competence was one of the key issues raised on the doorstep. I know that many of my constituents will be pleased that the Chancellor has already implemented promises made in our manifesto, especially the increase in the lower tax threshold and the introduction of 30 hours of free childcare.
I pay tribute to my predecessor, Dan Byles. He was my local MP, so I can confidently say that he served our community with true integrity and commitment. Dan stood up resolutely for his constituents and was seen as champion, fighting for them on issues that mattered—none more so than the mitigation and compensation for those affected by HS2. I will continue to fight for that cause in the manner for which he was so respected. As a result of Dan’s hard work and that of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, unemployment dropped to the lowest level ever in our constituency. Dan was rightly proud of that.
It was an outstanding achievement for Dan to win the seat in 2010, with the smallest Conservative majority of just 54 votes, although I note that, following the last election, 54 is a cushion that many colleagues would be delighted with. As his constituency chairman in 2012 and 2013, I confidently predicted that not only would he win in 2015, but I would ensure that we doubled his majority. Having now increased the majority to nearly 3,000—[Hon. Members: “Hear, hear!]—that may be the only target that I have been happy to get wrong by such a considerable margin. Indeed, should this career not work out, then, given that margin of error, I see a possible future as a pollster. [Laughter.] I am sure that many constituents and indeed many Members of this House will join me in thanking Dan for his work and send him and his family the very best wishes for their future.
My own route into politics was not exactly a traditional one. Until recently, I subscribed to the thoughts of the eminent historical figure Blackadder that “Wanting to be a politician should actually ban you for life from ever being one.” I grew up in the renowned Conservative heartland that is Durham city and attended the local comprehensive, Framwellgate Moor. My dad was one of 15 children and moved from Ireland in 1960s, when he met my mum in London. They moved back to her native north-east and eventually set up and built their own business, which they have now run for over 40 years, employing many local people in the process. It was from them that I learned the Conservative belief of aspiration, and that with hard work and resilience almost anything is possible. They inspired and encouraged me to start my own business at 21, and it is some testament to them, and to the tolerance of the British people, that I still ran that business until I was elected to the House just a few weeks ago. I will miss my three staff—Laura, Allison and Georgia—but I am sure that they now realise they did all the work anyway and do not really need me.
The North Warwickshire and Bedworth constituency is a wonderful mix of towns and villages, boasting a rich history of coalmining and industry. The small market town of Atherstone sits on the old Roman Watling Street, and the town centre has changed very little in 750 years, even though the traditional hatting industry has now disappeared. The town still plays an annual Shrove Tuesday ball game, a tradition that has survived for over 800 years, although given the physical nature of this game, the lifespan of competitors is significantly less.
Coleshill is a historic coaching town in the western part of North Warwickshire, lying close to the outer edge of Birmingham. It is a thriving community, which also hosts successful companies such as Sertec, BMW and a host of others at its Hams Hall estate. Incidentally, it is also famous for being the town that invented Brylcreem.
The largest town is Bedworth. Although predominantly thought of as an ex-coalmining area, it also formed an important part of the 19th-century silk ribbon weaving industry of Coventry and North Warwickshire. One world famous ribbon maker still operates in Bedworth—Toye, Kenning and Spencer, which produces high-class medal ribbons and masonic regalia that are exported around the world. In the centre of the town is Bedworth’s hidden gem, the picturesque Nicholas Chamberlaine almshouses, managed by the Nicholas Chamberlaine Trust, which celebrates its 300th anniversary this year. Bedworth also proudly hosts the largest and most famous Armistice Day parade in Britain, which is always held at the exact hour, day and month each year.
The constituency is dotted with many smaller villages that all have their own identity, such as Fillongley, Austrey, Newton Regis, Warton, Grendon, Baddesley, Shustoke, Mancetter and—not forgetting my home for the last 15 years—Shuttington, a small village that is famous not just for the Wolferstan Arms pub, but as the birthplace of Charles Bonner, a recipient of the Victoria Cross.
Our major local issue remains HS2. The line will run through a number of areas, such as Water Orton, Kingsbury, Middleton and Polesworth. I will do all that I can to support residents in their opposition to the HS2 route, and to assist them with their mitigation and compensation cases.
The main hospital in our constituency, George Eliot, has undergone a huge transformation in recent years, thanks to the hard work and dedication of the staff there, working in partnership with the Government. It has recently achieved a good rating, and I will work with it to ensure that this excellent upward progression continues.
I am very proud of the previous Conservative record on increasing apprenticeships, and this is an area that I will continue to champion. It is important that we not only deliver high-quality qualifications that benefit local students and employers, but give pupils a real choice in the path that they take when leaving school.
Finally, we are rightly respected across the world for our outstanding military, and it is great to see many colleagues now on these Benches who previously have served their country. Although I did not serve myself, I am very proud of the nearly 10 years that my wife Karen spent in the RAF, seeing active service in the first Gulf war. In such volatile times, we must remember that the first duty of Government is to protect their citizens. Equally, we have a duty to ensure that, when we ask our brave servicemen and women to put themselves at risk for their country, we do so safe in the knowledge that we have provided them with the best possible training, equipment and resource to do so. On that, I welcome the Chancellor’s commitment to the 2% figure.
I want to finish by expressing my thanks to the people of North Warwickshire and Bedworth for electing me to be their representative in Parliament. This is a role that I do not take lightly or underestimate. I relish the challenge of making North Warwickshire and Bedworth an even better place to live over the next five years.
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Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. It is a pleasure to follow the hon. Member for North Warwickshire (Craig Tracey).
There can be no greater privilege than becoming a Member of this House, the mother of all Parliaments, and I am particularly proud to be delivering my maiden speech as the Member for Bradford South. This great sense of pride and privilege has been possible only because the good people of Bradford South placed their trust and confidence in me. For that, I will be eternally grateful, and I promise I will never let them down. I am proud to be the first woman to represent Bradford South, and to be the first woman parliamentarian from the transformational Ruskin College.
My predecessor, Gerry Sutcliffe, served Bradford South for 22 years from 1994, following the untimely and sad death of the hugely respected Bob Cryer. With Gerry’s departure, the House has lost a generous, approachable and extremely popular Member. Many in this House, from all political parties, will have benefited from his sound advice, his sharp wit, and perhaps most importantly, his pearls of wisdom about this season’s football player transfers. Incidentally, you would get such pearls irrespective of whether you had actually asked for them.
Bradford South is one of five constituencies covering the metropolitan area of Bradford. We are renowned first and foremost for our proud industrial and cultural heritage, but we are also recognised by the discerning for other—often under-appreciated—reasons. For example, the village of Howarth was home to the great literary Bronte family, a fact known all too well by the Japanese tourists who annually pay homage. Our creativity is legendary, a fact recognised by UNESCO when it bestowed upon Bradford the prestigious UNESCO city of film status. In the world of British politics, few would be aware of the fact that it gave birth to the Independent Labour party, fighting for social justice, thus giving its chairman, Keir Hardie, his seat in this House in 1900. In the world of sport, I know that all Members will be aware of the fact that we are home to the world-famous Bradford Bulls.
I have spoken about Bradford as a place, but, as the cliché goes, a place is only as good as the people who live there, and in that regard I am most fortunate indeed. The people of Bradford South are fair-minded, good-natured and hard-working folk. In return, they rightly expect fairness and justice, security and respect in old age, a decent education for their families, affordable homes to call their own, access to free healthcare on demand and a job that pays a fair day’s wage. These fundamental needs are what all people in our country should expect. I promise to dedicate my next five years to working to ensure that these fundamental needs are respected and upheld for the people of Bradford South. Sadly, they are all too often beyond the grasp of hard-working people in my constituency, and that must change. I will campaign tirelessly for Bradford South until these fundamental needs are met to their fullest. It will be on these fundamental needs that I will hold this Conservative Government to account during this Parliament.
I am in the Chamber today to pursue the same struggle that led Keir Hardie to this House some 115 years ago—the fight for social justice. People living across Bradford deserve social justice, a phrase that is sometimes overcomplicated by academics and commentators alike. To me, it is not complicated; nor is it to the people of Bradford. By the same token, neither is injustice complicated—the upwelling of discomfort in the pit of your stomach in the face of injustice will be familiar to all.
We see injustice on pensions. We would all agree that we need to look after the elderly, yet pensioner poverty is still a reality. Those who have worked hard all their lives and paid into the system deserve dignity and security in old age, yet far too many of our older generation are still struggling to get by. This simply cannot be right and it must change.
We see injustice in housing. As a country, we need to ensure that all our citizens have access to affordable homes—a home to raise their family and a home in which to enjoy their retirement years. We need a housing sector that delivers for the ordinary people of this country.
We see injustice in access to healthcare services. Too few people are able to access timely appointments at their local GP surgeries and NHS dentists. As a country, we need to look after our young and old, our mums and dads, our daughters and sons. Without good health, so much else becomes increasingly difficult, or even impossible—working a job, looking after our families, playing in the local park. Good healthcare services are the cornerstone of a thriving community. Our healthcare services need to support our local communities and at the moment that is simply not happening. Increased resources for those critical services must be a priority.
We also see injustice in access to further education. Too few of my constituents are able to access the courses they so desperately need. Without access, they will not be able to develop the skills critical to a prosperous career in the global market we inhabit. The reason for that is simple: insufficient investment. Education equips people for a successful and prosperous life, where they get on and are able to cope with life’s challenges. In Bradford, we are blessed with two outstanding education institutions, Bradford College and Bradford University. They have transformed the life chances of countless generations of young people in Bradford over the decades, but without sufficient resources their ability to continue to transform the lives of Bradford’s people, both young and adult learners, will be stunted. In higher education, the abolition of the student maintenance grant, announced yesterday, is a backwards step, which will limit aspiration and undermine the concept of one nation that the Government seek to champion.
We also see injustice when we look at the number of jobs that pay a fair day’s wage. Weekly pay in my constituency is significantly below the national average, and the consequences of that are stark. For example, HMRC child poverty figures reveal that in my constituency an appalling 28.3% of our children—the future of this country—are stranded in poverty. Without family incomes rising in line—and, indeed, above inflation—children are always the first to suffer. We need those children to become the scientists, the artists, the wealth creators and the inspirational leaders of tomorrow, but we condemn them to the most deplorable start in life. That must change. At first sight, yesterday’s Budget announcement on the living wage appeared to offer hope to the working poor, but closer scrutiny reveals that any benefits accrued will easily be wiped out by deep cuts to in-work benefits.
I pledge to stand up for the people of Bradford South against such cynicism, and I conclude with words of warning from Martin Luther King, who said:
“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”
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It is a great privilege to follow the hon. Member for Bradford South (Judith Cummins)—a fine constituency and a fine city. I am sure that she will do an excellent job as the constituency’s new MP. I also pay tribute to my hon. Friend the Member for North Warwickshire (Craig Tracey), an outstanding individual who will, I am sure, do a great job for his constituents. I also pay tribute to his good lady wife for her service to Queen and country.
At a time of uncertainty abroad—be it in Greece, Russia or the middle east—the Chancellor delivered a Budget that prized economic stability at home. It was a one nation Budget that will provide security for working people in Weaver Vale, greater Cheshire and the north-west as a whole. Despite the chaos in the eurozone, Britain is still growing faster than any other major advanced economy in the world—faster than America and Germany. Our economy grew by 3% last year, a figure revised upwards from the 2.6% we expected in March. Our long-term economic plan is working. Indeed, before the election, the US President commented that the UK must be doing something right on its economy.
British businesses, backed by the Government through tax cuts and the removal of red tape, have created 2 million new jobs since 2010. I know that businesses across Weaver Vale welcomed the announcements made by the Chancellor yesterday about the extension of the employment allowance to £3,000 and the news that corporation tax will fall to 18% in 2020—from the 28% we inherited five years ago.
Earlier, the shadow Chancellor said that science and technology were not mentioned in the Budget, but the Chancellor has a fine record on such investment, including in Sci-Tech at Daresbury. The previous Labour Government took investment away from Daresbury, and when I became MP for the area in 2010 I was advised by the then Chairman of the Science and Technology Committee—he is no longer a Member, but he was a fine Chairman and I pay tribute to him—to watch like a hawk to ensure that the new Government did not take away investment from Daresbury as the previous Government had done. Instead, the Chancellor invested £150 million recently in big data, and I was proud that, just before the election, IBM signed a £130 million partnership with the Science and Technology Facilities Council that will secure high growth and high-tech, well-paid jobs for my constituents in the long term. That is good for my constituency and for the country, as we become an international hub for science and technology and big data.
The OBR has predicted that a further 1 million jobs will be created over the next five years, but we are the party of ambition and we want to go further. We are working towards a target of full employment—a job for everyone who wants one and a country that is open for business. In the past five years, Government-backed schemes such as the right to buy have helped 200,000 people on to the property ladder. That is vital, because home ownership is central to the aspirational country that we are building. Owning their own home means so much more to families. I was born in a council house, the youngest of four children. My family lived there for 20 years and, in 1972, Ted Heath’s Conservative Government offered us the opportunity to purchase the property, so my parents did so. My father died when I was a teenager and my mother had security in old age and retirement because they had invested in that house. The right to buy is central to the Conservative party’s philosophy that everyone should have a home of their own.
Yesterday, my right hon. Friend the Chancellor gave Britain a pay rise. Over the course of the Parliament, the introduction of the national living wage could be worth more than £5,000 to someone working full time for the minimum wage. I need not tell the House how much that extra income will mean to hard-working families trying to get on. Not only will working people earn more, they will keep more of what they earn. Typical taxpayers will pay £905 less tax than in 2010, thanks to the increases in the personal allowance over the last five years.
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I have to confess that I have not seen those figures, but the Government’s overall mantra is “A higher wage, lower tax, lower welfare economy”, which will benefit all of our constituents. That is in contrast to the Labour party, which had a high-tax, low-wage, high-benefit culture. That is the debate we are having today: the Conservatives want high wages and low benefits and I believe that the Budget will move Britain in that direction. That will be good for the country, for my children and for our country’s future. We are a beacon in Europe, as its second biggest economy, and if we continue down the same road, in 10 to 15 years we will become the biggest economy in Europe. The whole world is watching this great country, and we are the beacon for how things can be done in difficult economic circumstances.
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I am most grateful to the hon. Lady. I will indeed look into those figures. I hold surgeries every Friday, so I will see constituents about that. What I would say to her is that unemployment in Weaver Vale has dropped by 70% since 2010, and that is 80% full-time, good quality jobs.
I am not saying it is easy, but these difficult decisions have to be made. When Gordon Brown introduced working tax credits, he said the figure would be £2 billion. It is now £30 billion. The Labour party has to decide—I asked this question yesterday and did not get a reply—whether £30 billion is too much, too little or about right. We have to make these difficult decisions, but the hon. Lady makes an important point. I am not saying for a moment that it will be easy, but we are the party of aspiration. We are the party that always makes work pay, which is something that did not happen under 13 years of Labour.
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I extend my congratulations to the hon. Member for North Warwickshire (Craig Tracey) and my hon. Friend the Member for Bradford South (Judith Cummins) on their excellent maiden speeches today.
I am grateful to the people of St Helens South and Whiston for the faith they have placed in me to represent them here in this great Chamber. St Helens South and Whiston has a proud economic heritage and is at the heart of British industry and innovation. It is therefore only right that we continue to build on innovation and provide more and better jobs for our residents. This is a key element of my maiden speech.
First, I pay tribute to my immediate predecessor, Shaun Woodward, who had a distinguished ministerial and parliamentary career. I pay tribute in particular to his work in Northern Ireland and his support in securing the construction of the new St Helens South and Whiston hospital and the demise of the workhouse that was our hospital. I wish Shaun every happiness and success.
I would like to express my sincere appreciation for the genuine support given to new Members by the Commons staff. They are simply wonderful people and a credit to Westminster.
My constituency gave the world household names such as Pilkington and Beechams, as well as being home to the first railway trials, at Rainhill, when Stephenson’s Rocket became famous the world over. It is a constituency that quite literally enabled Britain to become the industrial powerhouse of the world. Britain would not be what it is today if it was not for the coalmines of Bold, Clock Face, Cronton and Sutton Manor. Over 30,000 people were once employed in my constituency in the great British industries of coal, manufacturing and pharmaceuticals, all of which revolutionised the world. Sadly, these jobs are gone, replaced too often by low-paid, short-term, part-time and insecure agency employment. I have seen nothing that the Government have done to help to eradicate that. We have 8,600 children in working families that are receiving either child tax credits or child and working tax credits. I am deeply concerned about the impact of yesterday’s Budget on those families.
However, today I want to talk about how my constituency can once again make Britain great and how it can be at the leading edge of innovation and creativity. Just last year, NGF Europe, based in my constituency, won the Queen’s award for innovation. Although I worked in the glass industry for 37 years, I will not pretend to know exactly what a small filament diameter glass cord actually does. But what I can say is how proud I am that they are made by skilled workers employed by NGF Europe, continuing our great glass-making tradition.
My constituency sits at the heart of the much talked about northern powerhouse—it was previously the northern way—as a generator of wealth and jobs. We aim to be a centre for logistics in St Helens and Whiston—a centre with connectivity and a place where industry and manufacturing can grow once again. The development of advanced manufacturing is our goal, leading to good, well paid jobs, high-level skills development, work experience and qualifications.
As hon. Members can tell, my constituency has always been at the heart of industrial change, and its heart has suffered from that change. Losing so many jobs from our economy crippled many families and tore not only the heart but the soul from their lives. My constituents literally lived through industrialisation and de-industrialisation. My hope is that they will live through further advanced manufacturing and industrialisation.
In 2008, the global financial crisis, caused by Lehman Brothers, had a devastating impact on my constituency. Quite simply, our plans were put off track. The Government of the day had to borrow to save our banks and, perhaps even more importantly, the savings of ordinary working-class people. But that was by the same Chancellor who paid off more debt than any previous Government on record. I am proud of that Chancellor.
The result of change has been the creation of a resilient people, often innovative in their own way and willing to try something new—proud people, with values underpinned by trade unionism; people who are warm and caring, with a great sense of humour. We have over 13,000 unpaid carers and over 400 recorded young carers—that is, children caring for their parents. It is estimated that there are 2,000 unrecorded young carers. As hon. Members will see, we are a strong community, compassionate and caring. We help each other. Above all else, my community has a strong heart—a resilient heart. That is why I want to see economic development that repairs the wounds of the past and gives each and every person an opportunity to shine—an opportunity to embrace new industries so that they can thrive.
In trying to grow our economy, we have great support. Our businesses are supported by a remarkable chamber of commerce—one of the largest in the country and twice awarded British chamber of the year. It is nationally recognised for its passionate approach to tackling the skills agenda for both employed and unemployed young people and for supporting business start-ups. We are also supported by a local enterprise partnership that is focused on business growth and ensuring fairness and equity in the jobs market. We connect industry, colleges and universities to nurture innovation and advanced manufacturing. My constituency shares its values with the rest of Liverpool city region, in that it is outward looking and strongly committed to helping our young people and graduates into work.
A strong economy goes hand in hand with a strong society, and we have an excellent voluntary sector. I pay tribute to the 93 voluntary organisations and the army of volunteers. We are proud of the many volunteers who support our Willowbrook hospice, awarded the Queen’s award for volunteering. We are proud of and thankful for all the support and volunteering given to our food banks to ensure that our families do not go hungry. We are very proud of St Helens and Whiston’s new state-of-the-art hospitals, a major NHS employer that provides the highest standards of medical care and just last month was recognised for providing the best patient experience in the UK.
We have St Helens—Saints—the internationally recognised rugby league team, twice former World Club champions and current Super League holders, now at Langtree Park, our world-class new stadium, and also providing good employment opportunities. Indeed, Russell Crowe, the star of “Gladiator” and “Les Misérables”, chose to come to Langtree Park rather than appearing at the Oscars this year.
We will continue to look forward to the economic challenges, building on the strength of our excellent manufacturing base. We will continue to champion skills, transport and business growth at every opportunity. We will continue to afford all the people of my constituency the dignity of work that is respected and rewarded with fair and just conditions and pay. My constituency already plays a leading role in manufacturing and in exporting goods to Europe and the rest of the world. We are willing and able to play an even bigger role in championing the growth of advanced manufacturing and exports of the future.
My constituents and I believe that Government should encourage and support such economic growth by investing in infrastructure and incentivising the private sector to invest to do what Britain is best at—innovating, producing, and exporting—thereby reducing the trade deficit and increasing revenues so that all people may benefit. This is my focus and my firm intent during this Parliament. I will not let my constituents be let down. I will ensure that my voice is heard and that my constituents get a fair, just hearing in this great Chamber.
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It is a great pleasure to follow the maiden speech by the hon. Member for St Helens South and Whiston (Marie Rimmer); I have a sneaking suspicion that she is going to be quite a formidable presence on the Opposition Benches during the next five years.
Britain has come a long way over the past five years. Tough decisions have been made to get the country’s deficit under control, to reform the welfare system, to make business more competitive, and to create new jobs. Unemployment in my constituency has fallen by more than 50% since 2010. In the black country, part of which I represent, there has been a significant manufacturing revival such that the region has been one of the fastest-growing of any in the United Kingdom over the past two years.
At the heart of this Budget is a recognition that we need to continue the work to rebalance the British economy away from London and the south-east, to make sure that we have a productive and balanced economy in the midlands, the west midlands and the north. Devolution of power, funding and decision making is absolutely fundamental if the regions of the United Kingdom, including the black country, are to reach their potential.
We need to encourage more jobs and investment in the black country, where we have a huge number of brownfield sites that can be used for development. One need only think of the industrial heritage of the black country to know that huge swathes of its land can be used for the development of industrial sites and for housing. I urge the black country’s local enterprise partnership and local authorities to identify appropriate brownfield sites for economic development to bring new jobs, taking advantage of the powers and responsibilities that the Government are offering to develop those sites. We should not go down the route of a recent idea by Dudley council to develop a huge industrial site on green-belt land just outside Halesowen. That is a very bad idea. I am the first to want to get jobs and investment into the black country, but the policy of Dudley’s LEP and local authority should be to focus first on brownfield in developing new jobs and opportunities.
At the heart of the plan to make Britain a more productive economy is further investment in skills to make sure that our young people are equipped to take advantage of the opportunities out there. That is why I welcome the Chancellor’s announcement in the Budget of a levy on larger companies to encourage further investment in quality apprenticeships. There have been 4,000 new apprenticeship starts in my constituency since 2010, but we need more and we need them to be better matched with the available opportunities in the local economy. That will build on the success of the Government’s city deal in the previous Parliament, which saw a significant level of investment, with about £1 million coming into the area for the development of a science and technology apprenticeship centre at Halesowen College.
Those are precisely the sorts of high-quality opportunities that we need in our local economy to encourage a greater focus on science and engineering—for example, to support the supply chain of Jaguar Land Rover. At the heart of this Budget, and absolutely fundamental to the future of the country and of the regions of Britain, is the continuation of the work that we started over the past five years to tackle the productivity problem by investing in high-quality skills so that people can take advantage of these opportunities.
While the Budget recognises the need to rebalance the economy and to make our businesses more competitive by cutting business taxes and creating more jobs, there is also—this has not been mentioned so far—the welcome commitment to further substantial real-terms increases in our national health service over the next five years. The Budget is clear in its commitment that this Government will support Sir Simon Stevens’s five-year plan for the NHS to continue the work of making it one of the best health services in the world. This Government, through this Budget, are committed to those real-terms increases over the next five years.
As the Financial Secretary to the Treasury is on the Front Bench, I want to make the case—which fits into the narrative of the new Government on one nation Conservatism, supporting people and making a more resilient and productive economy—that some of the new money being allocated to the NHS should be focused on improving mental health care. I was chairman of the all-party group on mental health in the previous Parliament. The argument is strong, given that mental health will become the most important health challenge that we face over the next 20 to 25 years. I am pleased that the Conservative party manifesto had specific pledges on mental health in the NHS, focusing on extending the range of availability of psychological therapies across the country, that are now being translated into action in government. The previous Labour Government introduced the IAPT—improving access to psychological therapies—programme, and the coalition Government invested £500 million in developing it. Now we need to take it further to give it to anybody who needs it.
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I thank the hon. Lady; she makes a very good point. The Conservative party manifesto had a commitment to extend the range and availability of psychological therapies. The Department for Work and Pensions has been running pilots on specific forms of back-to-work support for people suffering from mental health problems—for example, individual placement and support.
We need to invest further in child and adolescent mental health services because—this is why I raise the issue in the context of the Budget—it makes economic sense to do so. It fits into the thrust of the Budget, which is that we need to build a more resilient and productive economy. We have a commitment to invest in perinatal mental health. If we get the investment in mental health care right, it will lead to huge economic benefits for Britain, a more productive society, stronger families and more resilient individuals—people capable of stepping up to the plate and taking advantage of the opportunities out there.
I urge Ministers to be sympathetic to the cause of mental health in the national health service as they consider further investment in our public health system, and to continue the work of achieving the Conservative manifesto commitment to greater parity of esteem between mental and physical health in the NHS.
A more productive economy, a more competitive business environment with lower taxes and a focus on high-quality skills and further job creation in a highly competitive global economy, combined with investment in our health service and in meeting the key health challenges of the future, such as mental health care and building more individual resilience—all that is the true measure of a one nation Conservative Government. We are creating an economy that can generate millions more jobs, building on the jobs that we have already created in the last five years, and a more entrepreneurial society, in which people are prepared to take risks and invest for the future. We are building not only a more competitive economy, but a more compassionate society.
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Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker, for giving me the opportunity to make my maiden speech in this magnificent Chamber. The sense of history and occasion in here is tangible. It has long been a place of high emotion and drama, from the plotting of Guy Fawkes to the second world war, when it was bombed no fewer than 14 times. Those events should remind us of the fragility of liberty and democracy—something we must never forget.
We in the SNP are invested in an open, civic, inclusive and aspirational polity that seeks a better Scotland in a better world. We have made many friends in this place already, and I hope we will continue to do so.
I represent a constituency that is one of the most beautiful and diverse in these islands. Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk is vast and varied, stretching almost from one coast to the other. Its many towns and villages are proudly independent, and each has its own identity, traditions and history. As a native, I am delighted and proud to call the Scottish borders my home. I urge anyone to visit—all my colleagues seem to have done the same, but my constituency is the first one you come to as you cross the border—and to see the many and varied attractions, from Sir Walter Scott’s home at Abbotsford to the ruined abbeys across the region. You will find no warmer welcome anywhere, I promise.
Hon. Members should know, however, that borderers have fierce pride, huge family loyalty and, if roused, fire in their hearts. For centuries, political authority was loose in my constituency. Indeed, some parts were known as the debatable lands. Cattle were moved backward and forward over the border, clan feuds were common and arguments were often settled in brutal fashion. In this Chamber, convention has it that opposing Members are separated by two sword lengths. That has never been a propriety observed in my part of the world.
Close by in Northumberland lies Flodden, where in 1513 Scotland’s finest fell in a battle that is remembered across the borders in our common ridings in places such as Hawick, Coldstream and Selkirk. Every year, the Selkirk common riding honours the single Scottish warrior who crawled back holding an English banner. The Liberal Democrats must now understand what that feels like. [Laughter.]
I want to single out one Liberal Democrat in particular—my predecessor, Michael Moore. Michael was an immensely hard-working MP, who was rightly held in great affection in the constituency. I have always found him a warm, gracious and principled adversary, as well as a highly capable politician. One of his greatest achievements was his private Member’s Bill in the last Parliament, which legally bound our Governments to allocate 0.7% of GNP to overseas aid. That is a worthy testament to an honourable career. I am sure that all Members will join me in wishing him all the best for the future.
Our borders landscapes are not just varied and beautiful; they are a hugely important part of our economy, generating revenue and sustaining employment. We do, however, face real disadvantages. Rural Scotland, including my constituency, can feel like a forgotten land—a policy afterthought: take technology infrastructure and, in particular, mobile phone spectrum licensing, where the UK Government’s clamour for money leaves rural areas short-changed. If other countries can mandate 99% coverage and insist on rural areas being covered first, we can too.
Rural areas also suffer from poor transport links. As the argument rages over HS2, we would be happy just to get better conventional rail. Of course, our new Borders Railway opens in September. That is a welcome investment by the Scottish Government. Now, we must examine the feasibility of extending it to Hawick and Carlisle. I call on hon. Members on both sides of the Border and from all parts of the House to join me in advancing that important project.
We also need support for our Scottish farming communities. This is an area where the UK Government are wantonly failing to provide assistance. The EU’s common agricultural policy provides a lifeline for many farmers, but Scotland will end up bottom of the payments league on pillar 1 by 2019 and is already at the bottom on pillar 2. UK Ministers have cynically failed to pass on more than €220 million of convergence money that was intended for Scotland. On pillar 2, the EU’s newest member state, Croatia, already has a budget more than 20 times that awarded to Scotland. That is a remarkable abandonment. UK Ministers have been not so much sleeping on the job as comatose in the corner.
The Prime Minister promised to respect Scotland, but he and his Government continue to neglect our national interests. The Smith commission agreed that Scotland should lead on EU fisheries talks when appropriate. There was therefore an expectation that when the UK Minister was unable to attend talks some weeks ago, the Scottish Cabinet Secretary would do so. The UK Government blocked that, and instead sent an unelected Conservative peer with no involvement in fisheries. Such behaviour flies in the face of assertions by the Prime Minister and his colleagues that all parts of this United Kingdom are equal. Indeed, it presents a compelling argument for Scottish independence—and so does the behaviour we have seen from the Government in recent days. To reject every single SNP amendment to the Scotland Bill, while also suggesting that it should be amended in another place, is to laugh in the face of Scottish democracy.
Moreover, the crippling austerity Budget with which we were presented yesterday completely ignores the traditional Scottish—and, indeed, United Kingdom—values of fairness, protection of families, and decency. My hon. Friend the Member for Banff and Buchan (Dr Whiteford) made an excellent speech that gave a voice to some of the vulnerable groups the Budget targets.
But there is hope. There are times when the Government’s stubbornness can be broken by the will of this House, as we have seen today with the suspension of plans for English votes for English laws. Ministers have retreated in the face of parliamentary numbers, and we have sent them homewards to think again. I welcome that, and urge them to learn their lesson and do the same more often.
Despite the Government’s hostile actions, we have not come to this place to agitate for independence. We are here to protect and promote Scotland’s interests, and to stand with all those who will oppose austerity and work for freedom, human rights and social justice. We want to be constructive, and to fulfil our constitutional role in opposing this Tory Government—and, at times, opposing the official Opposition too. Our 56-strong SNP team were elected to this place in the most powerful affirmation of a people’s democratic will ever seen within the Union. The move towards a better, fairer, more democratic Scotland took a huge leap forward in May. This is our time. We come from an ancient nation, but we bring new thinking. I urge all Members to listen to what we have to say, for we have much to offer.
Let me end by asking Members to reflect on the words of the French philosopher Voltaire—[Hon. Members: “Ooh!”] I am sorry that it is not Robbie Burns. Voltaire famously remarked
“we look to Scotland for all our ideas of civilisation.”
We may be the elected representatives of a highly civilised nation, but my colleagues and I come here without conceit. We know that we will not always be right, but we want to listen, make friends and forge alliances. We seek fairness and a fair hearing, and we will always sit at the right hand of those who are at hame wi’ freedom. Like all in this place, regardless of politics or party, we want to do what we can to build a better world. Let that better world be the continuing and permanent vision and aspiration of each and every one of us, and, together, let us spare no toil in making it so. [Applause.]
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It is a pleasure to follow the hon. Member for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk (Calum Kerr). I wish him a long and distinguished career in the House. I hope that he and his colleagues will forgive me if I add that I hope to see his seat represented here for a long time. We are, of course, relieved to learn that the SNP is no longer agitating for independence from the House. As a Unionist, I am greatly reassured by that.
It is also a pleasure to follow the maiden speech of the hon. Member for St Helens South and Whiston (Marie Rimmer). Many people have asked what the boundaries of the northern powerhouse will be, but I can see that, in typical northern fashion, she will be boundless in pursuing the interests of her constituents. I pay tribute to her for making a characteristically warm speech. I also pay tribute to the hon. Member for Bradford South (Judith Cummins).
I warmly welcome the Budget as both a strong plan for the country’s finances and an important statement containing a considerable number of measures that will affect my constituency. As many Conservative Members have already noted, the continued strength of the recovery in the economy is impressive. Our growth is outstripping that of the rest of the G7, employment continues to rise, and unemployment continues to fall.
In my constituency, substantial progress has been made over the last five years under a Conservative-led coalition Government. Since 2010, there has been a fall in the number of people claiming jobseeker’s allowance, and an even more impressive fall of 58% in youth unemployment. Those may sound like the dry statistics that are pronounced all too regularly in the House, but they are much more than that. They reflect real people. The 49% fall in unemployment in my constituency represents 713 people: 713 people with greater prospects, greater financial security and greater peace of mind when it comes to providing for themselves and their families.
It is against that background that I want to speak briefly about two specific measures in yesterday’s Budget. My right hon. Friend the Chancellor’s announcement of a living wage of £9.00 an hour by 2020 is to be welcomed. Tackling low pay is part of our plan to move to a higher-wage, lower-tax, lower-welfare society, building a more productive Britain and giving families the security of well-paid work. This measure will benefit 6 million workers across the country, and will boost pay for those who are currently earning the minimum wage by £5,200 a year. To see just what that means to working families on low wages, one had only to look at the expression on the face of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, such was his obvious joy at the announcement.
Beyond the euphoria of that moment, however, it is worth considering the careful balance that has been struck between the new living wage for employees and what we must do to offset the resulting cost to employers. Small businesses can be reassured by the plans to extend the employment allowance to £3,000, cutting the jobs tax for firms, so that a business will be able to employ up to four people, full time, on the new national living wage and pay no national insurance at all. Larger companies will benefit from a reduction in corporation tax from 20% to 18% between now and 2020. As part of the Government’s plan to make work pay, the announcement of an increase in the personal allowance is also significant. A further 727 people in my constituency alone will pay no tax at all, and the total number of beneficiaries will be some 34,677. Again, those are seemingly dry statistics, but there is a real, positive story behind them.
While the Chancellor was able to pull the living wage rabbit out of the hat, the nettle that he had to grasp was that of tax credits. Members will, I hope, forgive me for reminding them that tax credit expenditure trebled in real terms between 1999 and 2010 to an estimated £30 billion—a far higher level than was expected by the “prudent” Labour Chancellor of the time. Some Chancellors can be accused of robbing Peter to pay Paul, or giving with one hand and taking with the other. However, the policy of tax credits itself, created by the last Labour Government, meant that the state would, in effect, tax with one hand and “give” benefits with the other, thus creating an inefficient cycle of tax and spend. The policy succeeded in greatly inflating the size of the welfare state and bloating the system that was required to administer it, but by taking money away from people in tax only to credit it back to them later, it did little to increase their net income and standards of living. My right hon. Friend the Chancellor is now faced with the unenviable task of unpicking that knotted system, built up under 13 years of Labour rule. It is no easy task, but the Budget makes some important headway.
As I have said, I welcome my right hon. Friend’s Budget. I believe that, by allowing people to earn more and, most importantly, to keep more of what they earn, it will raise the living standards, prosperity and wealth of the country as a whole and my constituents in Hazel Grove in particular, and I commend it to the House.
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Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker, for giving me an opportunity to contribute to the Budget debate.
As we heard from my hon. Friend the Member for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk (Calum Kerr), history is important. We can learn much by studying the social and economic conditions of the past, and my constituency holds many lessons that are relevant today, for I represent the part of Scotland that endured the clearances. Indeed, it would be remiss of me if I did not begin my speech by paying tribute to the remarkable families, and the crofters, who lost their livelihoods, their homes and their lives during that shameful period of history.
The clearances were perpetrated during the 18th and 19th centuries when highlanders were forced from land they had held for generations. The clearances shifted land use from farming to sheep raising because sheep were considered more valuable than people. In the process, a way of life was exterminated to further the financial ambitions of aristocratic landowners. The evictions that took place are remembered for their brutality and for the abruptness of the social change that they prompted. At the time this Parliament compounded the inequity by implementing legislation to prohibit the use of the Gaelic language, the playing of bagpipes and even the wearing of tartan. The cumulative effect devastated the cultural landscape of the counties that I represent and the resulting impact destroyed much of Scotland’s Gaelic culture.
This Parliament’s policy ultimately failed, although I suspect that the Chagos islanders would recognise this account. In those dark days the cries and pleas of innocent families were ignored. If they were lucky, those families were dragged screaming from their homes, evicted and left to face destitution. If they were unlucky, their homes were simply set alight as they sat within them. The clearances forced the migration of highlanders to the sea coast, the Scottish lowlands, and further afield to the new worlds of north America and Australasia. Today more descendants of highlanders are found in those diaspora nations than in Scotland itself. These dispossessed highlanders travelled the world and applied their creativity and resource in ways that have benefited all of humankind. The economic and social contribution of the ancestors of people from my constituency stand today as a shining example of why the free movement of people is something no Government should hesitate to encourage.
As we debate the Government’s Budget, it is unfortunate that the cries and pleas of many people in my constituency continue to be ignored. Whereas in history the people of the highlands were burned out of their homes so that others could profit from sheep, the beneficiary of this Budget will be the financial markets that continue to take precedence over people. The impact will be that vulnerable people will face impoverishment owing to lack of economic opportunity, low wages, Europe’s lowest pensions, further experimentation with the failed system that we know as universal credit, the erosion of working tax credits and, frankly, the stifling lack of imagination that is self-evident in the austerity these measures promote, and that has raised the UK to be the fourth most unequal society in the developed world in terms of wealth inequality. For many in my constituency, past and present, the hardship, misery and impoverishment that accompany this inequality are the only consequences of the Government’s long-term economic plan that has been over 300 years in the making.
While some here today speak of economic laws, I choose to highlight the fact that many of our fellows are starving. It is time we recognised that economic laws are made not by nature, but by human beings. These laws are chosen for implementation by human beings and their effect will be felt by human beings. A further £12 billion of cuts, accompanied by a punitive sanctions regime, will do nothing except ensure that the jeely piece, of which my hon. Friend the Member for Glasgow South (Stewart McDonald) spoke in his maiden speech, will remain a significant feature of childhood for far too many of our children.
Until 8 May my constituency was a Liberal stronghold. As long ago as 1918 the seat of Caithness and Sutherland was held by Sir Robert Leicester Harmsworth, Baronet of Moray Lodge in the Royal Borough of Kensington. I don’t think he was a local. Later the seat was held for many years by Robert Maclennan, who sits now as Baron Maclennan of Rogart just a short walk away, and more recently by the 3rd Viscount Thurso, John Archibald Sinclair, the fifth generation of the Sinclair family to represent Caithness in this Parliament. I pay tribute to Lord Thurso. In the past few weeks I have learned that he was a popular member of the establishment here at Westminster and I wish him well for the future.
I have lived in the highlands of Scotland for the greater part of my life and I can confirm that Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross is one of the very largest parliamentary constituencies by area and, despite what many of my colleagues will claim, it is easily the most beautiful—spectacularly so. It is a great honour for me to represent a highland seat in this Parliament. It seems clear that in my constituency at least, few ordinary people have had that privilege.
Beautiful as my constituency is, it is subject to great acts of vandalism. Cape Wrath is the only site in Europe where live 1,000 lb bombs are dropped. The bombing is enormously destructive to fragile wildlife and excludes communities from the proximity for up to 120 days each year. Similarly, Scotland’s oldest royal burgh, Tain, is tormented by fast jets flying as low as 150 feet to drop 1,000 lb concrete bombs just a few miles from housing estates and primary schools. It is instructive that while many of my constituents work tirelessly to protect our marine animals, our rivers, our wildlife and our environment, this Government consider it acceptable to bomb the land that we consider precious. I say instructive because this seems to be the manifestation of the one nation ideal that my hon. Friends and I are expected to be impressed by, but from which communities in my constituency derive only disadvantage.
I have spent much of my adult life in the voluntary sector, working with those cruelly challenged by the UK Government’s long-term economic plan. Like others, my family and I pay the punitive electricity charges and excessive carriage charges that this Government impose. We are exposed to the reform of rural fuel duties that has brought a new and vital meaning to the word “failure”. My communities prepare for the disastrous repercussions of the recent announcement of the closure of three Royal Bank of Scotland branches in our rural areas, and our businesses endure the iniquitous transmission charging regime maintained by this Government, which acts as the main obstacle to securing energy supplies and wealth for Scotland.
We are used to empty promises, but in the early days of this Parliament, Scotland has chosen to watch as the promises of something
“as close to a federal state as possible”,
where
“all the options of devolution are there and are possible,”
are publicly erased from the Scotland Bill. The Government know that for many, this Budget visits hardship on disadvantage.
Like my hon. Friend the Member for Inverclyde (Ronnie Cowan), I grew up fascinated and inspired not just by the technological achievements of Project Apollo, but by the social achievements of the civil rights movement. As a child I learned of the bravery of Rosa Parks and how she changed the world, and as an adult I learned of the personal challenges met and overcome by, and of the uncommon political imagination of, Franklin Delano Roosevelt. In those individuals I found examples not only of bravery but of imagination: the imagination to perceive the benefit of change in a world that aspires to achieve, not receive.
Many of those who supported me on 7 May did so in the belief that it is now time to achieve, and their uncommon political imagination sits around me today. Our aim is to achieve the right to build a fairer Scotland; we aim to establish a state of affairs where our old, our disadvantaged and our vulnerable are valued, and where our poor are protected not punished.
I made the decision to stand for election to this Parliament knowing, as Mrs Parks did, that
“I had the strength of my ancestors with me”,
and I know, as you do, Madam Deputy Speaker, that “all are equal”. Indeed, I stand here today knowing, as Mr Roosevelt did, that the
“test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundance of those who have much, it is whether we provide enough for those who have little”.
In that task we will not be found wanting for, like Roosevelt:
“We are going to make a country in which no one is left out.”
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It is an honour to speak after the hon. Member for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk (Calum Kerr), who spoke eloquently. I was particularly interested to hear how his constituency is similar to mine and faces many of the same issues—it is a rural constituency where rural broadband and transport are key issues. I was also interested and honoured to speak after the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross (Dr Monaghan) who made an equally passionate speech. I look forward to hearing many more speeches from him on similar subjects in the future.
This Conservative Budget is a Budget of core Conservative values—financial security, national security, and making work pay—and I wish to identify three different areas that I think should have cross-party support. The first is preparing our young people and getting them into work. It is about apprenticeships and the first step for our young adults to make their way in life. There can be little criticism of a scheme that helps to provide the foundations of the highly skilled workforce that we need for a competitive British economy. Through the apprenticeship levy, businesses are encouraged to take on and train our next generation, which will benefit from in-work training. We created 2 million apprenticeships in the last Parliament, and are committed to creating 3 million more—an ambition that surely must be welcomed.
The second point is about ensuring that for those in work, work pays, and that is achieved through the introduction of a national living wage. The concept of a living wage has had support from many quarters, including small and large businesses, parties across the political spectrum, and consumers across the country. The previous Government increased work opportunities across the country, and those in work must be paid fairly for the work they do, and be able to support themselves and their families from their own income. The new living wage starts to address that issue.
The living wage will also make headway in closing the gender pay gap. Historically, women have suffered more from low pay than men, and that has been a key factor in the gender pay gap. By increasing the minimum wage to a living wage, women stand to benefit and we take another step towards wage equality. Some have said that the amount the living wage is set at may not go far enough quickly enough. I note, however, that the right hon. Member for Doncaster North (Edward Miliband) called for an £8 minimum wage by 2020. The Chancellor has given us a £9 wage by the same date.
Thirdly, and critically, we must live within our means as a country. We cannot leave unnecessary debts to the next generation. In 2010 many said that it was not the right time to reduce the deficit. We had one of the highest deficits in the western world and we were coming out of recession with high unemployment. However, those who did not support the deficit reduction in 2010 must surely support it now. This year, the economy is predicted to grow by 2.4%, making us the fastest-growing western economy. We have the most competitive corporation tax in the G20. Our businesses have created 2 million more jobs since 2010, and the Office for Budget Responsibility forecasts that 1 million more will be created in the next five years. If now is the not the time to cut the deficit, when is?
The question must not be whether to cut the deficit to bring the country back to a surplus, but how. A Budget that makes efficiency savings, reduces tax avoidance and ensures we have a welfare system that rewards work must be, and is, the fairest way to achieve a stable recovery for all.
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The hon. and learned Lady and many others on the Government Benches have referred to the cut in corporation tax and the low and competitive rate of corporation tax in this country as an aid to economic development. I appreciate that we need to maintain competitiveness on corporation tax, but I put it to her that all that has happened in the past eight or nine years is that British companies have used that tax cut to build up something in the region of £550 billion of cash reserves that they are not investing. The weakness in the Budget yesterday is that it did nothing to encourage those companies to invest and raise productivity.
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I pay tribute to those who have made maiden speeches. The hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross (Dr Monaghan) spoke passionately about inequality and the disadvantaged. I think many of us will share those sentiments. I have been to his constituency and it is very beautiful. I am pleased that I can still go there on holiday without having to go abroad. The hon. Gentleman was generous to his predecessor. John Thurso chaired the Finance and Services Committee in this House and did an excellent job of putting the internal finances of this House into good shape. He should be congratulated on that. My hon. Friend the Member for Bradford South (Judith Cummins) mentioned her predecessor, Gerry Sutcliffe. I would have to say, with a bit of tongue-in-cheek, that Gerry has certainly left a big hole in the defence of the parliamentary football team, but I will move on.
The Budget has certainly received big headlines, but I will try to focus on one or two details that probably do not make quite such good reading for Government Members. The Chancellor is coming back in the autumn with his forecast for cuts to departmental spending. Local authorities in the previous Parliament had £10 billion of the £27 billion of Government grant cut—nearly 40%. That has disproportionately affected poorer authorities in the north. The forecast is for another £9.5 billion of cuts in this Parliament on top of that. Local authorities have done very well to be as efficient and effective as possible with the spending they are left with. They simply cannot carry on delivering the services that our constituents want from them if those £9.5 billion cuts follow on from the cuts in the previous Parliament. Why has local government been disproportionately singled out for cuts compared with other services? That is the question the Government have to answer.
There are two areas where I think there is a particular problem. I support the principle of the Government’s devolution proposals if they are not simply a mechanism for passing on more cuts for local authorities to deliver. We have to have some concerns about that. I would say, however, that, given that they are primarily about trying to rebalance the economy and with the talk of the northern powerhouse, we should look at what has happened to local authority spending on planning and economic activity. Local Government Association figures show a massive 55.4% cut in spending on planning and economic development in high-cut authorities in the last five years, and even in medium-cut authorities that figure is 47%. Those sorts of figures will not support the economic regeneration and development in the north that the Government and everybody else want, which is a matter of particular concern.
We have a real problem in social care. The NHS has had some protection, but 300,000 fewer elderly people are getting social care from local authorities now than in 2010, because authorities now offer it only to those in the greatest need. Age UK says that more than 1 million people needing care are not getting it, which puts pressure on the NHS and accident and emergency units and results in beds being occupied by people who should be in their own homes being properly looked after; and this year, there will be a further cut of more than £1 billion to those services.
We cannot carry on like this. If we are going to have proper joined-up health and social care, social care needs some protection as well. I raised this point with the Secretary of State. Social care has some of the lowest paid employees of any sector in local government or any other service. If the living wage is applied at £9 per hour to everyone in the social care sector, it will cost local authorities about £1.5 billion by 2020. Local authorities cannot find that money on top of the cuts they have to make anyway. They simply cannot do it. This is an added burden that the Treasury must bear by giving that money back to local authorities. Instead of showing in the Red Book, as it does, a £1.5 billion saving in the welfare budget, the Treasury has to give this money back to local authorities to compensate them—and that does not include the cost of paying other workers in a similar way.
I hoped the Budget would boost house building in this country, but let us look at the hidden effects. The cap on local authority borrowing has not been lifted, but the rents that housing associations and local authorities can charge have been reduced from the commitment by the previous Housing Minister, the hon. Member for Hertford and Stortford (Mr Prisk), who promised rent increases of CPI plus 1% over 10 years, to a 1% reduction per year. The Chancellor said yesterday that it would come from efficiency savings. No, it will not. Housing associations and local authorities cannot cover 4% a year less in rents through efficiency savings. The LGA has said that it will reduce the ability of local authorities and housing associations to invest in new homes and improve existing ones, while the National Housing Federation said today that, on a conservative estimate, it would reduce the amount of money available for development by £3.9 billion and mean 27,000 fewer social homes being built. That did not appear in any of the Budget headlines. I repeat, some 27,000 fewer social houses will be built because of the Budget and there will be a £50 million loss to the housing account in my own city of Sheffield. Those are figures that the Chancellor did not crow about yesterday, but they are there in the bottom lines of the Red Book.
There are additional problems, particularly for housing associations and local authorities, arising from the impact of welfare reforms, rising rent arrears, extra collection costs and the uncertainty of the right to buy scheme. These are all issues that will affect the ability of associations to borrow more money. They have already borrowed on the strength of the forecast rent increases, and now those increases have been taken away from them. No one can run a business like that, with the Government constantly chopping and changing the forecast revenue streams.
There is this idea of extra rents for higher-paid social housing tenants. Outside London, I think it is £30,000 a year. That is not particularly high pay for a family. Why should families who have been social housing tenants for years and have suddenly started earning £30,000 be penalised? It does not happen to owner-occupiers. What sort of system will be set up to do this? Will local authorities and housing associations have to means-test their tenants to identify those who earn more than £30,000 a year? Otherwise, how are we going to do it? When someone starts to earn £30,000, will their rent suddenly jump up overnight, or will there be a system of tapers? It is just another system where, as people earn more, the state takes more back. How does that make work pay? How is it consistent with the rest of the Budget? There are some questions that the Government simply have to answer.
Does the rent increase apply to supported housing with care? Housing association and local authority arrangements mean that wages form about 80% of the cost of those packages and it is not possible to get out of them. If the rent revenue to fund them suddenly drops, those care supported packages and that particular sort of specialist accommodation will no longer be viable. Have the Government thought that through or will they exempt rents in care and supported-package housing?
Finally, I want to address the issue of 18 to 21-year-olds not having an automatic entitlement to housing benefit. A lot of these people are very vulnerable indeed. The Albert Kennedy Trust told me the other day that 24% of people who go to Crisis and Centrepoint are from the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community. They are often very frightened and very worried. They have probably just come out to their parents and are frightened to go home because they are not welcome there. Are they now going to be excluded from entitlement to housing benefit? What will the exceptions be? How will the Government set them down, and will they consult on them so that they are actually meaningful?
A lot of the detail in the Budget did not come out in yesterday’s headlines. I am really worried about the effect of the impact of cuts on local authorities—will the Government fund the living wage?—and about the impact on the development of badly needed social housing, which will be drastically cut by the Budget.
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It is a delight to follow those who have already spoken, including the hon. Members for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross (Dr Monaghan) and for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk (Calum Kerr), who made their maiden speeches. It was interesting to hear the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross talk about the clearances in a dark period of history. That took me back to learning the history of my own church, where I was baptised and confirmed, in Plympton on the outskirts of Plymouth. It was desecrated by troops loyal to Cromwell in reprisal partly for its support of the royalist cause in the civil war. It is interesting to see the statute that stands outside it today. I enjoyed the speech of the hon. Member for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk. We have had the UK and US versions of “House of Cards”, and given the content of his speech, we know he could write the Holyrood version.
I welcome the Budget outlined by the Chancellor yesterday and the many steps it sets out. I am particularly interested in the investment plan for the south-west of England. The description that has been given of infrastructure in the southern part of Scotland reminded me of last night’s Adjournment debate on infrastructure in the south-west, for which there is a £7.2 billion investment plan. That is about not just the big ticket projects, such as the Stonehenge tunnel, which will open up the A303 into the south-west, but the smaller projects, such as creating the new station in Edginswell in my constituency; the south Devon link road, which will open at the end of this year after a nearly 60-year wait; and the investment towards opening the Whiterock business park, which will create new opportunities for high-skilled, high-paid jobs in an area that perhaps for too long has been reliant on more seasonal employment and lower-paid trades.
The living wage is also welcome. The work of many of the social care staff in the bay has been undervalued for too long. Obviously, there needs to be a discussion about what will happen with local government funding, but it is right that their work is being valued more than perhaps has been the case in the past.
On investing in productivity and the future of our economy, I am pleased about some of the investment that has already gone into my constituency, including the coastal communities fund, which is delivering improvements. Gooch & Housego has used the regional growth fund to expand its production facility in Torquay, and, as we speak, the coastal communities fund is being used to help bring more shops to our high street. There is also support for the future electronics and photonics innovation centre, which, although it will serve Torbay, is about 100 metres over the border in the constituency of my hon. Friend the Member for Totnes (Dr Wollaston). Its work with South Devon College will provide real opportunities for local companies and local students.
I also welcome the news about the increase in the tax allowance, which will take more of my constituents out of income tax altogether. This will combine with the impact of another year’s welcome freezing of the fuel duty so that people can see the real benefits stemming from the result of the general election on 7 May, as well as from the performance of the Government before that.
The debate on the living wage is interesting. Last year, I become the first Conservative candidate or MP in 102 years to attend a meeting of the Torbay TUC, when I was invited along to discuss its living wage campaign. Afterwards, it pointed out that I had just broken that particular record. I have certainly been pushing my local council—sadly, not a living wage employer—to look at picking this up, and I am pleased that compulsion will now apply from a national level.
It would be remiss of me not to reflect on the support offered to our NHS. Torbay has many attributes, and one is that we have an older than average population. One ward in my constituency has 9% of the entire population aged over 85 and it is soon to become 10%, which presents a range of challenges for managing chronic illnesses and care conditions, along with other elements that follow from that type of demographic. In Paignton, too, the number of over-60s is expected to be 30% above the average, so I welcome the continuing support for the NHS and hope that we can work closely at the local level to deliver an integrated care package for local people to ensure they get the best available services.
In reflecting on some of the proposed changes to benefits, it has been interesting to hear some of the protests over the last 24 hours. We should recall that back in October 2013, Labour’s spokesperson on this subject claimed that Labour would be “tougher on benefits” than the Tories. It is interesting to hear all the vitriol coming one way without hearing any proposals to clarify what Labour means. Yesterday, the acting leader of the Labour party, the right hon. and learned Member for Camberwell and Peckham (Ms Harman), mentioned that some benefit cuts would have been inevitable, so let us hear some of them outlined. We understand that other Labour Members oppose that and want to put up taxes instead, but it is somewhat hypocritical for them to come here and criticise every policy without putting up their own. The visionary aspect comes from the fact that we are outlining our policy today, knowing that it will be Labour’s policy tomorrow.
I very much welcome the continuance of the £90 million coastal communities fund. Comments have been made today by a couple of London colleagues about aviation infrastructure. My appeal would be to make the debate about aviation for the whole country and how best to service the whole country rather than how to provide an extra runway for the south-east. Many routes to key markets in the south-west inevitably pass through Heathrow, but we need a wider aviation debate, not just one—probably for the third time in this place—about whether there should be an extra runway at Heathrow or Gatwick. That debate becomes too narrow for me as an MP representing a constituency in the south-west of England.
It is a pleasure to welcome the Budget. As a practising Christian, it would be remiss of me not to say that I have some concerns about the proposals on Sunday trading. For me, Sunday—certainly at St Matthias in Torquay, which I currently attend—is a joyous and fun day. It is a day when people can come to church as a family, but its value is not attained only when people come to church—often people spend time with their families and enjoy a day that is different and special by comparison with the other six days of the week. There is nothing missing if there are 18 hours during which people cannot visit a large Tesco or Sainsbury. I respect the fact that other Members take a different view, but for me there is something special about Sunday, so any changes made must be appropriate. I am not sure how productive it would be to have a shop in Torbay opening until 5 pm while one in Teignbridge can open only until 4.30. I await with interest the detailed proposals that the Government will bring forward.
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I would not necessarily agree with the right hon. Gentleman. There were issues involving local licensing authorities, going back to before the reforms that were brought in a decade ago, which meant that some authorities would permit later closing than others. That had worked for some years. There might be a challenge for local planning authorities, however, in that if slightly later opening were permitted, there could be pressure for development on the edge of their area to get around restrictions in neighbouring communities. I understand the difference that the proposals would make for consumers. At the moment, we all know that large supermarkets tend to open between 10 o’clock and 4 o’clock on Sundays, although some of them exploit the ability to have browsing time beforehand.
This is a positive Budget. It is one that we can take pride in, and it will take the country forward. It is notable that it has been based on policies that were agreed and supported by the electorate. The policies were endorsed by 51 of the 55 MPs in the south-west, and I am pleased to be able to support them today.
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I should like to start by congratulating all those who have made their maiden speeches this afternoon. I pay particular tribute to the excellent speeches by my hon. Friends the Members for Bradford South (Judith Cummins) and for St Helens South and Whiston (Marie Rimmer).
It will be easy for me, as a Hull MP, to keep my remarks about the Budget fairly brief. That is because the words “Hull” and “Humber” did not appear once in the Chancellor’s speech, or in the Red Book, despite the northern powerhouse being a key policy for the Government and Hull being an important city in the north. As my right hon. Friend the Member for Newcastle upon Tyne East (Mr Brown) said, we all want to broaden, deepen and strengthen the economy in the north, but it looks as though the northern powerhouse has now become the northern power cut, particularly in regard to investment in rail improvements.
Just a few days ago, the Minister with responsibility for the northern powerhouse, the Under-Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, the hon. Member for Stockton South (James Wharton), appeared not to know where the north was, so I shall help him by saying that we are the ones who had our rail investment paused, unlike those in the south, where no such pause has taken place. But never mind—we have been offered a plastic Oyster card to make up for the cancellation of the electrification of the TransPennine Express route and the lack of any new rolling stock.
I also want to talk about renewables. The Humber area is working hard to be the UK’s renewable energy estuary, in the interests of energy security, of fighting fuel poverty and climate change and of growing this important area of our economy for the nation. It is therefore unhelpful to keep getting so much hostility to renewable energy from those on the Government Benches. The Budget introduces a change to the climate change levy, which will now also apply to companies that use renewable energy. That will effectively be a charge of £490 million for companies that have switched to renewable energy, and it will discourage firms from using renewable energy in the future. By 2020, the cut will amount to £910 million a year, which will discourage investment in renewable energy sources.
The Chancellor claims that this is a Budget for “working people”. The centrepiece is the pledge of a living wage of £9 an hour by 2020 for those over 25. Younger workers get no such pledge. That is not the living wage. Of course we welcome the increase in the minimum wage—we called for it in our manifesto—but what the Government have announced will not be a living wage because the rate will be too low by 2020. Outside London, the living wage needs to be over £10, not £9, to be worthy of the name. Also, the rate proposed for 2020 is lower than the current London living wage, which is £9.15.
Worse still, the proposals do not compensate for cuts in tax credits. This lunchtime, Paul Johnson of the Institute for Fiscal Studies has said that
“there is simply not enough money going into the new minimum wage to anywhere near compensate…people on tax credits”.
We should be cutting the need for tax credits rather than the tax credits themselves. It is a fact that 75% of children in Hull North live in households that depend on tax credits. They will be worse off overall, just as they were at the end of the 2010 Parliament. One of my constituents, Maureen Craven, will also be worse off even though she is doing the right thing. She told me:
“I have had my grandson living with me since he was four months old. He is now seven years old and I rely on my child tax credit to buy shoes and school uniform.”
Such families, who are doing the right thing, will be affected by this policy.
It is also difficult to take the Tories seriously on the living wage when they have failed to enforce the legal national minimum wage. There have been only two prosecutions for minimum wage non-payment since 2010, and the number of inspections for compliance is falling. Will the Government get tough with big businesses to enforce a living wage? Will they help small businesses that have genuine fears about being able to afford the living wage? Will lower-paid local government workers, who will have years more of 1% pay increases, be paid at the living wage level? Will councils be funded for the costs they have faced—in the light of the cuts—over the past five years? As my hon. Friend the Member for Sheffield South East (Mr Betts) said, there are already growing concerns about the care sector and how it will cope with an additional cut of £1.5 billion that will have to be borne by local authorities.
When it comes to motivating the richest to increase productivity, it means, in the Tories’ view, boosting their income, including unearned income. There is no austerity for them. That is because the Tories have always thought that all wealth creation comes from those at the top of the income scale. For the poorest workers, and everyone in the public services, it involves cutting real incomes and redefining child poverty to cover up the deed. Their welfare to work is really welfare to charity, as we will see, I am sure, at Hull’s food banks. It is the food banks that will need the longer Sunday opening hours, and not local shops, as the Chancellor announced in the Budget.
This was a Budget of selective austerity. It will leave people in a more complex poverty trap. They will have more debt and their work will not pay. After the millionaire tax cut, children of millionaires now get to inherit more unearned income to fund—in the Chancellor’s own words—“their lifestyles”. Meanwhile, aspiring youngsters from working families in Hull trying to get the qualifications for skilled jobs that we want in the city see student maintenance grants axed and turned into loans, and the cap for tuition fees removed.
Let me raise very quickly my concerns about limiting support to two children. It is a particularly ill-thought through policy and will lead to more and more children living in poverty. I am appalled—I use that word advisedly; I do not normally speak like this—by what the SNP spokesperson highlighted yesterday. She spoke about the proposal that a woman who had been raped and conceived a child would, if it was a third child, have to go to the DWP and provide evidence of the rape, and about the stigma that could be attached to the child. It is a disgraceful policy that the Government have brought forward.
As Jonathan Freedland stated today in the media, the rabbit that was pulled out of the hat was very thin. Under close scrutiny, things do not stand up. We will see falling incomes, especially in places like Hull and especially for lower paid women workers. The Chancellor talked about trying to improve wages for people in this country, but that will not be reflected in what this Budget actually delivers.
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I congratulate all those who have made their maiden speeches today, including the hon. Members for St Helens South and Whiston (Marie Rimmer), for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk (Calum Kerr), for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross (Dr Monaghan) and for Bradford South (Judith Cummins), as well as my hon. Friend the Member for North Warwickshire (Craig Tracey). They all made excellent speeches.
I welcome the Budget, as it ensures security for working people by putting the public finances in order, and sets out a plan for a more productive and balanced economy. I was particularly pleased to see a number of measures that will make a real difference to my constituents in Lewes. The first was the announcement on transport. The freezing of fuel duty for another year is to be welcomed. My constituency, like many, is rural—many residents are heavily reliant on cars, as the area has little or no public transport. Many businesses are reliant on farm vehicles and heavy goods vehicles.
Any increase in fuel duty would have had a significant impact on the amount of money in the local economy, so the freeze is very welcome, as is the announcement on ring-fencing vehicle excise duty and making the owners of more expensive cars pay more. The money raised will be ring-fenced for the English strategic road network. That is welcome news for my constituents, as more money will be used to repair existing roads and to pay for improvements to roads such as the A27, for which the right hon. Member for Doncaster North (Edward Miliband) pledged that he would cut funding if Labour was elected. The A27 in my constituency is a busy and congested road, and this year alone there have been a number of deaths from accidents. The investment in that road is very welcome.
In addition, investment in rail infrastructure is very welcome indeed. Yesterday, I spoke in a Westminster Hall debate on the issues we face locally in dealing with Southern rail. A number of MPs from Sussex, Surrey and London and from both sides of the House were there to raise issues about trains being consistently late, consistently cancelled and consistently overcrowded. I am sure that many hon. Members who came here by train today, the day of the tube strike, know exactly what I mean.
Our line from the Sussex coast up to London is at capacity. I was pleased to read in the Budget that the Government will extend the scope of the Lewes to Uckfield study, which is taking place this summer, to consider improving the line between London and the south coast and to re-examine the Department for Transport’s feasibility study of the Brighton main line, too. That is a real way to get a second rail main line from the Sussex coast to London. This work cannot come soon enough for the residents of Sussex.
As a nurse, I very much welcome the extra £8 billion to be invested in the NHS to provide a seven-day-a-week service. Owing to the changes made locally by hospital management, which I raised in Health questions this week, patients from areas of my constituency such as Seaford, Polegate and Alfriston now have to travel to Hastings for basic services. The extra £8 billion will go towards more local services and making services available at weekends and evenings, so that local people can obtain the care that they need every day of the week.
Housing is a huge issue in my constituency—not just the availability of housing, but its affordability for those who want to buy or rent. I am pleased that the rent-a-room relief will increase from £4,250 to £7,500 next April. I am also pleased that a level playing field between buy-to-let landlords and homeowners will be created by addressing mortgage tax relief for landlords. In my constituency, family homes are increasingly being bought for student lets and used as houses in multiple occupation. This change will free up family housing for local people in my constituency.
Finally, I welcome the welfare changes announced yesterday. As someone from a working-class background, I am only too aware how much of a struggle life can be on a low income. I am pleased that the Budget supports low-paid workers by increasing the tax threshold from £10,600 to £11,000 now and to £12,500 by 2020. I am also pleased about the announcement on the living wage. We have heard much debate about that this afternoon, but it is definitely welcome.
A report last year by the Scottish Public Health Observatory found that changes to tax and benefits could do more to impact on health inequalities than changes to health care itself. It found that the implementation of a living wage is among one of the most effective interventions to reduce inequality and improve health. According to Public Health England, there is currently a seven-year difference in life expectancy between those who receive benefits and those who do not. Anything we can do to get people off benefits and into work must surely be welcome, and the living wage is one way to do that. Introducing the living wage is a massive step forward.
I welcome the Budget, which moves Britain from being a low-wage, high-tax, high-welfare economy to being a high-wage, low-tax, low-welfare society, and I congratulate the Chancellor on it.
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On this issue, we are as one. We are working together in the west midlands to construct the midlands powerhouse and realise the full potential of the midlands. What was surprising yesterday was that the Chancellor waxed lyrical about the remarkable Greater Manchester, mentioned the northern powerhouse in considerable detail and referred to just about every other part of Britain, and at the end of his remarks made a throwaway reference to the midlands powerhouse. That has not gone down well in the midlands.
Crucially, at the next stages what the Chancellor cannot do is empower but impoverish. One of the great problems with this Government is that everything they do is characterised by a fundamental unfairness of approach. Some £700 million has been cut from the budget of Birmingham City Council—£2,000 for every household—yet in the Chancellor’s own constituency there has been an increase in spending power of 2.6%. Likewise, the West Midlands police have been treated unfairly. If they were treated fairly, they would be entitled to £43 million more—enough for 500 police officers back on the beat.
We will never be one nation while the Chancellor and the Government continue to demonise and divide, with their talk of shirkers or strivers, work or benefits. I was born in poverty—my father a navvy, my mother training to be a nurse; they worked hard to get on. I have always believed that those who can work should work, but I object to wicked caricatures of the sort we heard yesterday in relation to the young homeless—“they come out of school, they go on benefits, then they want to get a flat”.
Three years ago, I hosted in the House of Commons the Homeless Young People’s Parliament in Parliament—quintessentially middle England, middle Scotland, middle Wales young people, the best of Britain, who had ended up homeless, overwhelmingly through no fault of their own. Last Friday, I was at Orchard Village, which serves young homeless people in my constituency. It is substantially dependent on housing benefit for its income and now faces closure.
If we are to be one nation, the Chancellor cannot continue to play politics with the United Kingdom, posing one nation against the other. EVEL—if ever there was an accurate acronym, that is it.
As for the Tories being the party of working people, they introduced in the Budget a tax on aspiration, saying to working families in social housing, “If you get on, you have to pay much more or move out.” The party of working people? On Sunday trading, I agree with what was just said. One of Labour’s greatest achievements, the weekend, is now threatened by this Conservative Government, who would compel seven-day working, in reality forcing millions of retail workers, particularly women, to work on Sunday and putting at risk thousands of small stores all over the country.
The party of working people, with the so-called living wage? Yesterday, when the Chancellor spoke about this, he grinned like a Cheshire cat and the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions punched the air, as if England had scored the winning goal in the World cup. The living wage? Twelve years ago, I was a founder member of the drive for the living wage, working through the former Transport and General Workers Union, with the East London Citizens Organisation and London Citizens, to organise, for example, thousands of cleaners in Canary Wharf and the City of London and the first-ever strike in the history of the House of Commons to win the living wage. This is not the living wage or a “new contract” with the British people, as the Chancellor called it this morning; this is a con trick by a cunning Chancellor, who gives with one hand and takes away with the other.
In the west midlands, 56% of families are on tax credits and 300,000 children depend on tax credits. Yet a family with two children and one full-time earner on £20,000-plus now faces losing £2,000: for every £1 they get from a higher living wage, they will lose £2 in tax credits. What is the Government’s answer? They say, “Ah, the £9”. That is £9 in 2020, but they are cutting tax credits in the here and now.
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The hon. Gentleman and I both come from a trade union background. I feel for public servants such as the firefighters, the police officers, the nurses. All those who do excellent work for the communities we serve, who have already been squeezed for five years, now face a 1% increase for the next four years. Effectively, that means a substantial cut in the living standards of millions of public servants.
The Chancellor says that the £7.20 rate will start next April, but the real living wage—I repeat, the real living wage—is already £7.85, or £9.15 in London; that is not based on cutting tax credits. As for the Chancellor being the workers’ friend, I did not come down with the last rainfall, and neither did the country. It is not a living wage if people cannot live on it. As the reality dawns and millions feel the pain of what the Chancellor has done, the last 24 hours of triumphalism on the part of the Conservative party will give way to the grim reality as Government Members go back to their constituencies and explain why they are inflicting cuts in living standards on the hundreds or potentially thousands of families they represent. The IFS’s verdict today is absolutely damning: for 13 million families, the living wage will not compensate for the tax credit cuts, and the poorest will be hit much harder.
When it comes to the Tories as the party of working people, let us not forget that this was certainly not a Budget for young working people. The crucial test of any Government is how they treat the next generation. Young people need the basics in life to get on—a decent job or education, and a roof over their heads. The Budget fails on all those points. It locks young people out of the living wage, makes higher education increasingly a luxury and cuts housing benefit for thousands who would otherwise end up homeless.
At this defining moment for our country, we must ask ourselves about what kind of country, economy and society we want. For me, it is an economy with a real living wage, not a phoney one. Crucially, as I have argued throughout my trade union life, it is the high-pay, high-quality, high-productivity culture of the kind that can be seen in the Jaguar factory in my constituency. We need a serious long-term economic plan if we are to promote such a high-pay, high-quality, high-productivity culture throughout our country, but the Budget failed lamentably on the fundamentals of productivity, skills, homes, rail and road. Ultimately, this country will never succeed and working people will certainly never succeed if we proceed on the basis of a low-waged, low-productivity economy.
What kind of country do we want? It has to be one in which our citizens are safe where they live and work, their children are protected and we are protected from terrorism. It is therefore fundamental folly for the Government, having cut 17,000 police officers, to continue down the path of cutting 17,000 more police officers. What kind of society do we want? Before the Budget, the OECD was right to warn against measures that would slow recovery and harm the poor, but that is exactly what will now happen.
Rick was a lifelong Tory and an ex-sergeant-major in the British Army, but he has joined my local Labour party. He told me, “I was a lifelong Tory, but I have joined the Labour party because I believe in both aspiration and support for the vulnerable.” He is in sharp contrast to a cunning Chancellor who gives hubris a bad name and is ambitious not so much for the country as for himself. After the last 24 hours—and the last century—now and in the future, the simple reality is that the party for the working people always was and always will be the Labour party.
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It is a pleasure to follow the hon. Member for Birmingham, Erdington (Jack Dromey), and we have also heard five excellent maiden speeches this afternoon. Between them, they covered Walter Scott, the Brontës, George Eliot, Roosevelt and Voltaire. I do not want to sow any dissension within the ranks of the Scottish National party, but I will leave it to the hon. Members for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross (Dr Monaghan) and for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk (Calum Kerr) to sort out between themselves who has the more beautiful constituency, to which they both laid claim. All five maiden speakers exhibited the great passion with which I am sure they will defend their constituents in the future. I hope that they would all agree that in setting any budget—for a household, a company or a country—it is best to start with reality.
The reality that we face is a deficit of £90 billion a year and a national debt of 80% of GDP. That should have a sobering effect on all our considerations and, clearly, the former Chancellor Alistair Darling is well aware of it, given his remarks this morning. I hope that where he leads the official Opposition will follow. It is the easiest thing in the world to run up a deficit, and a Government can become very popular in doing so. As the House knows, it is very painful to get it back under control.
The Budget can be commended on many grounds, but its most important characteristic is that it means we can anticipate our national finances returning to surplus during the lifetime of this Parliament—and a healthy and growing surplus at that. To have eliminated a deficit of £150 billion is a historic achievement.
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I am delighted that the Chancellor set out a clear, smooth plan that will get us to a surplus of £10 billion—a larger surplus than was anticipated previously—by the end of this Parliament, and it will grow from there. I recognise the point the right hon. Gentleman makes, but I am proud of what the Chancellor has managed to achieve. I am sure the right hon. Gentleman would accept that the elimination of a deficit of £150 billion is no mean feat.
As we all know, the best way to eliminate a deficit is to achieve growth in the economy. The best news, which I am sure we would all endorse, is the forecast from the OBR of continuing growth in our economy. It is a solid basis on which to build. I especially welcome the extra 8% investment from business in 2014, and the fact that that is expected to grow this year and next will be an important part of our recovery programme. It is great that we are achieving that growth notwithstanding the external headwinds. The shadow Chancellor was a little ungenerous in criticising us for having fewer exports to the eurozone: we are growing as an economy, but the eurozone is in a sorry state and it is no wonder that our exporters are suffering at the moment.
All economic forecasts, however, including those of the wise men and women of the OBR, are of course vulnerable. We only need to look at China and Greece at the moment to realise that no one with any credibility would ever claim that we can abolish boom and bust. I therefore welcome the Chancellor’s publication of the new rules of the fiscal charter. This Government, once they have returned the country to surplus within this Parliament, will still be looking to the future. The fiscal charter will help this Parliament and, in particular, future Parliaments to hold the Government to account, to ensure that in normal times they continue to pay down our national debt and restore our national fortunes. Without sound and sustainable public finances, there is no economic security for working people. With sound and sustainable public finances, we will ensure that by the 2030s Britain is the most prosperous major economy in the world.
The whole House would recognise that that prosperity, while welcome, is not a goal in itself. It would be a hollow success if that prosperity was not widely shared among all our citizens. That is why I welcome the Chancellor’s creation of the national living wage and the raising of the basic tax threshold to £11,000. I am delighted that it is a one nation Conservative Government who are seeking to take the lowest paid out of income tax altogether. I went on record supporting the principle of a living wage during the election campaign. It seems to me a positive step in ensuring that work pays for all those who undertake it. The principle that we have a society in which everyone has access to work and is fairly paid for it is surely a good one. Higher wages and lower taxes must be a principle that surely Members on both sides of the House would endorse. The natural corollary of that is that in good times there will be lower welfare expenditure.
I welcome the progress on corporation tax, making the UK an enormously fiscally attractive place in which to operate a business. Combined with the employment allowance, this will ensure that the costs for business of meeting the new national living wage are offset. Similarly, I note what my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions said earlier about tax credits. The original system cost just over £1 billion but has risen to £30 billion, which is not sustainable. It needs to be addressed, and I note that we will still maintain expenditure on tax credits in real terms at around the level spent in the 2007-08 fiscal year, under the last Labour Government.
Lastly—I recognise that time is short, Madam Deputy Speaker—I welcome the Chancellor’s announcement on the road fund and the increased expenditure on the NHS to meet the NHS’s own five-year plan, as recognised earlier by my hon. Friend the Member for Halesowen and Rowley Regis (James Morris). My constituency of Horsham has had to accept significant additional house building. That is a concern for many residents. Those concerns will not be eradicated, but they can be mitigated if we all know that there will be enhanced infrastructure to meet the needs of an expanding population. That is especially the case with healthcare, and I look forward to taking up specific issues with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health. I welcome the additional expenditure on the NHS as a positive recognition that, while we cannot have increased NHS spending without a growing economy, a growing economy may also place increased and different demands on the NHS. I congratulate the Chancellor on an excellent Budget.
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First, may I congratulate all the Members who have made their maiden speeches today? It has been fascinating to hear what they had to say and about their constituencies, which are very different from my constituency of Luton North.
The Budget has given me a tax cut that I do not need, which has been paid for by young people, students, the poor and public sector workers. Social justice would require the opposite of that, so I do not buy the idea that the Chancellor has somehow inched towards the centre ground of politics. He is still a right winger, concerned primarily with helping and protecting the wealthy. As my hon. Friend the Member for Birmingham, Erdington (Jack Dromey) has recorded today, the IFS calculates that 13 million UK families will lose an average of £260 a year, while those with estates of £1 million will not have to pay any inheritance tax, so we know where the Chancellor’s heart really lies.
Much more interesting than the Budget, which is a typical Tory Budget really, is the OBR’s report “Economic and fiscal outlook”, published at the same time. There are indeed myths about the economy that have to be dispelled. Britain’s economy is not healthy; indeed, the opposite is the case. Britain is a low-wage, low-investment, low-productivity economy. Indeed, the productivity of Germany and France are 25% greater than Britain’s and we are sixth in the G7, with only the ailing Japan behind us—so there are problems, and the Budget will not make much difference to that fact.
Over several decades, Britain’s manufacturing sector has shrunk drastically, and it is now far too small to sustain what we need ourselves. As a result, our trade balance, especially with the rest of the EU, is in enormous and chronic deficit. In his Budget statement, the Chancellor made very little reference to the wider macroeconomic environment—which the hon. Member for Horsham (Jeremy Quin) touched on—and that is very worrying indeed.
The Government chant their mantras about the Government deficit and public finances while private debt is surging once again. An asset price bubble continues to grow that will inevitably burst, with drastic consequences for households and the economy as a whole. One million of our people are now dependent on food banks—a number that will be dwarfed when the crash comes. I use the word “crash” because that is what we face, with inept and misguided economic policies at home and global factors again driving us towards recession. China’s economy is decelerating and is now in a share price crisis; Japan’s economic weakness continues, with no end in sight; the eurozone is a basket case; and the USA has seen a false economic dawn, with another asset price bubble driven by corrupt share buy-back schemes, among other factors.
“Demand is slowing, share prices will be devastated, and recession is coming, with downturns that will be remembered in 100 years.” Those are not my predictions but the words of Crispin Odey, one of London’s leading hedge fund managers, who tends to get his predictions right, including on the 2008 crisis. My own conclusion is simply that globalisation—neo-liberalism—does not work and that leaving the financial markets and the global corporations free to do what they like, with no effective economic borders to constrain them, has caused one disaster and another is coming.
The Government’s claimed economic success since 2010 is a mirage. After 2010, they first tried savage cuts in public spending, in theory to reduce the public finance deficit, but by 2012 they realised that this was simply driving the country into recession, so they reduced their pressure on the economic brake and tried a bit of quantitative easing. Asset prices began to rise, notably in housing, and consumer spending edged upwards, producing a modest rise in economic growth. However, we still have low productivity—a chronic disease in Britain’s economy—and we still bump along, sustained only by low wages and income from asset sales to foreigners: another version of selling the family silver, as Harold Macmillan so famously put it.
The one advantage that Britain does have is its own currency, able to flex to appropriate parities with other currencies. After the 2008 crisis, sterling depreciated against the euro by 27% and against the dollar by 31%, offering a degree of protection against the worst ravages of the crisis. But even that example has been wasted, with sterling surging against the euro from €1.02 to €1.40, increasing our export prices and decreasing import prices by over a third, and driving Britain’s ongoing and gigantic trade deficit with the rest of the EU. That deficit—over £1 billion a week—is equivalent to exporting at least 1 million jobs to the continent. Page 71 of the OBR report shows a gigantic current account deficit of some 6% of GDP—about £100 billion, or £1,600 for every person in Britain.
There are sensible alternatives to all this economic nonsense, and with much more time I would have been pleased to spell them out. In the short term, however, we must not be fooled into believing that the Government and their predecessor coalition have got things right when all the elements are present for another economic crisis. The Government are doing nothing to protect our economy from the next crisis, and they must not be allowed to escape the blame when it comes.
Before I conclude, I must again emphasise my concern about the sterling exchange rate. Some Members may remember that I raised my concerns about sterling’s over-valuation with Gordon Brown during his time as Chancellor. He responded sotto voce that it was not Government policy to target the exchange rate. In more recent times, I have raised the same issue in this Chamber with the Prime Minister and this Chancellor, with similar measured, if negative, responses. In my very last oral question before Dissolution, I again asked the same question of the now-departed Business Secretary, Vince Cable. He responded, astonishingly, by suggesting that there was no evidence that the exchange rate was a significant factor in the economy’s performance. Only a few days later, it was reported that manufacturing was suffering from the high euro exchange rate and that the economy was being sustained only by domestic consumer demand, with the main risks coming from the eurozone.
Much has been made of Britain’s greatly improved automotive sector, which I applaud. It is true that we make excellent-quality vehicles, including the Vauxhall Vivaro, made in Luton, but it remains the case that we import twice as many cars from the rest of the EU as we export to it. Had I had an opportunity to do so, I would have reminded Vince Cable of the big depreciation after 2008; the rapid recovery from the 1992 exchange rate mechanism debacle, driven by a large exchange rate reduction; and even the 1931 departure from the gold standard, which laid the foundation for the economic recovery from the inter-war depression.
An appropriate exchange rate is not a sufficient condition for economic success, but it is a vital one. Had Britain been stuck in the euro, at a parity perhaps as high as €1.50 to the pound, the economy would have been utterly wrecked, with Britain almost certainly crashing out of the euro, probably bringing down the whole euro edifice in the process.
The Government are riding for a fall if nothing is done to bring down Britain’s bloated exchange rate, and soon. Writing recently in The Guardian, Larry Elliott said that the Government were sitting on an economic time bomb. That is surely the case, and the priority must be to bring down sterling’s exchange rate with the euro. The Budget must be seen in that wider context and the Chancellor’s mind should be focused on those wider international dangers, or we will all be in trouble.
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I congratulate all those who have made their maiden speeches today. I remember making mine only a few weeks ago. I was glad just to get it over with, to be frank.
What we heard in this place yesterday was one of the great set-piece Budgets—a resetting Budget—along the lines of Lord Howe’s in 1981, Lord Lawson’s in 1986 and, in a less positive way, Gordon Brown’s Budgets of the early 2000s, when he decided to do away with the careful fiscal management he inherited from my right hon. and learned Friend the Member for Rushcliffe (Mr Clarke) in favour of a massive expansion of the welfare state and the hyping up of supposed golden rules, which seemed to change according to his whim or to disguise unsupportable Government expenditure.
The Budget contained many measures that will be welcome in my constituency, in particular the extra money for the national health service. Solihull has an ageing population with particular health challenges, so that money will go a long way there. The higher personal allowance, which I will return to in detail, is a fantastic move for the population of Solihull, as it is a hard-working town. I am delighted to report that its unemployment rate is 1.6%. That is because it is the hard-working engine of the west midlands.
The Chancellor has effectively reset how the state interacts with the economy and the individual, subtly, cautiously and over time. In the Opposition debate on tax credits, I acknowledged the important role that tax credits play in many of my constituents’ finances. They help them to get over humps in the road in their lives and can be very helpful. I am pleased that the Chancellor recognised that, as I knew he would, and that the overwhelming majority of people who receive help through the tax credits system will continue to do so.
In the same debate, many of my hon. Friends made the point that tax credits were propping up low pay and effectively trapping many people in welfare dependency, and that many people on salaries far higher than the national average were receiving state help when, frankly, they should not be. Over the past decade or so, many of our fellow citizens have moved into a relationship with the state that, over the long term, is unhealthy for their career ambitions, business more widely and the nation’s finances.
The Chancellor has pressed the reset button on that situation. We will see a freeze in working-age benefits and a narrowing of the people who can claim tax credits. To ease the transition away from tax credits for some people, there is a raising of the personal allowances, which cuts out the middle man by letting people keep more of their own cash, rather than having to go through a complex tax credits system. There is an expansion of childcare provision; the introduction of the living wage, which will rise to £9 by 2020; and support for business, as part of this transfer, through lower corporation tax—something that was opposed by the Labour party in its manifesto—and the ongoing reduction in national insurance contributions for new employees.
The Government are moving from being a nanny who keeps individuals wedded and chained to a fiendishly complex system prone to substantial fraud and endemic overpayment to being a facilitator. Good Governments should be there to create the correct environment for individuals and businesses to flourish. If that is brought to fruition, it will mark the end of Brown economics, and not before time.
That is all big-picture stuff from the Chancellor, as we would expect, but I should like to say something about the smaller bits of the Budget, and the good news that we have received. I was delighted that he accepted Budget submissions from me and from my hon. Friend the Member for Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport (Oliver Colvile). We asked him to raise the rent-a-room scheme allowance, which had been languishing at just £4,250 a year since 1996. By raising it to £7,500, he has made up for nearly 20 years of inflation, and will help thousands of home owners who want to let a room to make ends meet, or even just to have some extra company at home. The measure should also increase the availability of rooms to rent in the private sector, which will be particularly helpful to young people who want to strike out on their own in the world.
Another welcome step was the decision to up the compensation for Equitable Life members by an estimated £80 million. There are many former members of Equitable Life in my constituency. It is a black mark on the Labour Government that they first allowed the development of a regulatory regime which effectively allowed the world’s oldest mutual to collapse, and then, when its administration was found wanting by the parliamentary ombudsman, wriggled like mad to avoid paying what was due to people who had seen their life savings largely disappear. When the country had the money with which to compensate the members of Equitable Life, the Labour party chose not to use it.
I believe that it is great credit to the Chancellor and to my hon. Friend the Economic Secretary to the Treasury that they have not forgotten about those wronged individuals, but—despite the global recession, and despite having inherited the worst public finances since the war—have sought to help. The compensation is not perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but the Government, like the coalition before them, are doing their best within the confines of the current fiscal position.
There are many other highlights in the Budget. The apprenticeship levy, for instance, will help to secure fairness in the apprenticeship system, and the best employers will be rewarded. Like my hon. Friend the Member for Torbay (Kevin Foster), I am no fan of trading on the Sabbath, but I welcome the Chancellor’s indication that it should be up to local mayors to set Sunday trading hours. Should we have an elected mayor in the “midlands engine”, I shall welcome the opportunity to lobby for a sensitive approach, along with my friends in local church groups. That is real devolution.
Finally, there will be a great deal of cheer over the freezing of fuel duty, which means that it is 18p lower than it would have been if Labour’s anti-motorist plans had been implemented.
That is what this Budget is all about. We are on the side of normal people who want to get their kids into work, keep more of their cash, and interact with the state in the right way. It is about a hand up, not a handout. The Budget sends a loud and clear message: we are the workers’ party now.
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I congratulate Members who have made their maiden speeches today. I will not list them all, as some of the Scottish constituencies in particular are quite lengthy, but they all spoke with great passion about the areas that they represent. I especially welcome my hon. Friend the Member for St Helens South and Whiston (Marie Rimmer), who has served in local government for a long time, and has been a great public servant. I am sure that she will repeat that role in the House.
I believe that in the Budget the Chancellor has put rhetoric above reality. He has talked about a northern powerhouse, but at the same time he has put key transport projects at risk. He has offered nothing positive to constituents such as mine, not least because he has been unable to establish whether my constituency is part of the northern powerhouse. As for the living wage, about which I shall say more shortly, it is nothing of the sort. Perhaps the clearest example of rhetoric over reality, however, was the Chancellor’s statement that this was a Budget for one nation. This is not a one nation Budget; it is divisive. It is a Budget that says, “If you lose your job, if you are sick, if you have what the Chancellor deems to be too many children, if you get disabled, if you’re young, if you’re disadvantaged—you’re on your own.” This is not a one nation Budget; it is a two generational Budget.
It is clear that the Government have taken a cynical decision to attack young people, presumably on the basis that they are less likely to vote. If there is anything that will motivate young people to vote, I believe it is this Budget. Let us look first at the so-called living wage. I see no reason to limit it to people over the age of 25. Are people not adults at 24, 23 or 22? Is their contribution any less deserving at that age? I am worried that employers will, in effect, be incentivised to sack people when they reach the age of 25. What a fantastic 25th birthday present that will be.
Many others, including the Living Wage Foundation, have commented that next year we will not see an above-average increase in the living wage: we will see an increase in the minimum wage, and that is what we should go on calling it. It is not only a rate far lower than that proposed by the independent Living Wage Foundation and already paid by living wage employers, but when we consider the tax credit cuts, it represents a huge reduction in income for the many who will receive it.
What about those good employers who already pay the living wage rate of £7.85 an hour? What message does the Budget send out to them? Whatever the headlines proclaim, the details tell a very different story. A single parent in my constituency on the minimum wage stands to lose around £1,500 a year under these proposals. A couple could lose around £2,000 a year. For both of them, it is about 10% of their annual income. I agree that subsidising low pay with tax credits is not the way ahead for this country, but for five years this Government and the Chancellor have made no attempt to tackle in-work poverty. The focus has been on the low-wage insecure economy that we still see today. They cannot take away tax credits without putting in place a proper system to replace them.
Rebranding the minimum wage is not a proper system to tackle low pay. This Budget is an attack on the family. Penalising the third-born and denying families access to tax credits is not a humane approach and will only increase child poverty. I have heard it said that the state should not support more than two children. Are the Government trying to prevent the third child from attending school or accessing the NHS or other public services? Of course not. That would be ridiculous, but the cost of a child’s education far outweighs the cost to the taxpayer in tax credits. That exposes this proposal as a cheap, cynical and calculated attempt at division.
A further attack on young people is the replacement of student maintenance grants with loans. I recall Government Minister after Government Minister speaking out in favour of the £9,000-a-year tuition fee system on the basis that the least well off would be supported by grants. That did not last very long, did it? How many will now decide that what they will have to repay is so prohibitive that they cannot even contemplate higher education? Starting a working life with debts of over £50,000 is surely a daunting prospect for anyone, and we already know that the loan system is unsustainable because of the low levels of repayment. The new system will increase debt and decrease opportunity.
One of the big challenges that we face is in relation to housing benefit costs. I note that the Budget proposes a modest reduction in social housing rents, but it seems completely to ignore the spiralling cost of private rents, which make up the bulk of the increase in the housing benefit bill. One serious consequence of the measures in the Budget is that the reduction in income for housing associations and council housing revenue accounts will reduce further the amount of social housing that is built. It has been estimated that around 27,000 homes a year will be lost as a result of these measures. That will put more pressure on the private housing market, increasing the housing benefit bill further. What we need is meaningful action to reduce private sector rent levels, but we have heard nothing from the Government about that.
Another worrying measure is the removal of housing benefit from those under 21. It means that if people are young, work hard, move out of the family home and are then unlucky enough to lose their job, they will lose their home as well. What kind of message does that send out to children who want to get on?
The proposal that households with higher incomes should pay more rent will penalise young people in work. Those who are living with their parents but are saving up for a home of their own will be penalised. Already a constituent in this situation has told me that the money they were putting aside for a deposit will now be used to pay the increased rent that their parents will have to pay. How is that going to create more homes for everyone?
As for the northern powerhouse, I could not get an answer yesterday, but I think we are getting closer to finding out where it is. I note that in the Red Book there is something called “Transport for the North” which will be established as a statutory body with statutory duties. That will help us to identify where the northern powerhouse is. I see that an interim partnership board already has representatives from Manchester, Liverpool, Sheffield, the north-east, Hull and Humberside, but there is no mention of Lancashire or Cheshire. About half the north-west does not appear to be in the northern powerhouse at all. There is nothing in the Budget for my constituency, and across the country there is nothing to tackle chronic insecurity in the workplace, or to encourage the transition from part-time to full-time work. There is nothing about job creation, improving public transport, or creating a sustainable and fair economy.
It can be no coincidence that the Budget projects personal borrowing to increase significantly over the next few years, because what we have is a conjuring trick of the Chancellor giving with one hand and taking back with both hands. He is taking more than he is giving, and people will discover that reality in the next few months once the headlines have faded. Members of the House will have to deal with the reality of a con trick.
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I congratulate all those who have made their wonderful maiden speeches today.
I received a tweet from a constituent that said: “I’m seriously scratching my head to that bit.” Members might ask, “What bit?”, because we were scratching our heads to quite a few bits of the Chancellor’s Budget speech. My constituent was referring to the bit about the minimum wage, or the “living wage” as the Chancellor likes to call it. I fully support the increase to £7.20 an hour, rising to £9 by 2020, but that is an increase in the minimum wage; it is not a living wage, however many times Government Members like to say it is. As I have said previously, “You can fool some of the people some of the time, but you can’t fool all the people all the time”, yet I fear that is what they are trying to do.
The Living Wage Foundation currently considers that to achieve a minimal acceptable standard of living someone must be paid £7.85 outside London, and £9.15 in inner London. That is the living wage. If the Chancellor needs some help, perhaps he could congratulate Brent council on its work in championing the £9.15 living wage, and on incentivising employers to pay it. The Opposition need to humanise the Government’s policies as they seem not to know many of the people whom their policies adversely affect. The living wage calculation is also based on tax credits that have helped to boost low wages, but if those are removed, the living wage would be £11.65 an hour—that is how much someone would need to be paid if tax credits are removed.
I want to support working people—we all do, and, I might add, more seriously on the Labour Benches. The Chancellor seems to feel that working people live a lavish lifestyle that he wants to curb. Before the election, Jenny Jones asked the Prime Minister to put to bed rumours that he planned to cut child tax credit and restrict child benefit. David Cameron replied: “Well thank you, Jenny. I don’t want to do that.” What has changed?
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Apologies, Madam Deputy Speaker. I think that at the time he was not the Prime Minister, but I apologise.
Brent has the above average number of 5,609 lone parents, which is 11% of all households. Some 64% of families in Brent Central are receiving tax credits. It is okay to have universal credit—I agree with that; I used to work in the employment service—but the Institute for Fiscal Studies has stated that 13 million families will be affected by the benefit cap, and that 3.4 million working families will lose £1,000 a year. There will be an increase in absolute child poverty.
Why is that happening? In Brent, we have large Muslim and Irish communities. Many families have more than three children per household. I would like to challenge the Chancellor to do a husband swap with some of my constituents. I am sure they would be able to give him advice on managing budgets and debt. Given that family breakdown costs the country an estimated £49 billion a year, this is a false economy. The OBR has forecast that household debt will rise even above the record levels seen prior to the crash in 2007-08. What does that mean for the future of our country? The root cause of welfare spending is low pay and high housing costs, so in one fell swoop the Chancellor could build more affordable and social housing, and more people would be in work and paying taxes. We should just stop playing politics and make it happen.
Millions of households are forecast to plunge into debt. We will see another increase in homelessness and children living in absolute and relative poverty. That is not scaremongering—this afternoon the IFS has said just that. Is this really the legacy that the Chancellor wants as he launches his bid to become the Prime Minister? He has lost weight, he has got longer trousers and he has styled his hair differently. All he needs now are some workable policies for working people. The Chancellor always mentions fixing the roof while the sun is shining, but he always forgets to mention the Thatcher legacy of £19 billion worth of household repairs that Labour had to make. Now, with these supposed fixes, the first Tory Budget in almost 20 years is taking the roof from over the heads of my constituents. He should be a little bit embarrassed about that.
The Chancellor spoke about apprenticeships. The reality is that the majority of apprenticeships in the previous Parliament were rebranded jobs. People were already working for companies and their jobs were rebranded as apprenticeships. We have actually seen a reduction in apprenticeships of almost a quarter, from 82.3% under the Labour Government to 63.2% under this Government.
As I said, I used to work in the employment service. I welcome the simplifying of the benefit system, but I am afraid the Chancellor needs to seek some advice from the Social Security Advisory Committee and examine any variations in his policy. Do not say that young people in university have a future and then burden them with about £53,000 of debt when they finish. It was estimated that 923,000 young people would take up maintenance grants in 2014-15. Do not tell me that that will not have an effect on my constituents and young people in Brent Central when they are choosing whether to go on to further and higher education.
This is a reminder of who the Budget is really for: the haves, not the have-nots. I see nothing in the Budget that aims to address the scandal of a 50% increase in long-term youth unemployment among black, Asian and minority ethnic—
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It is a privilege to be able to speak in the Budget debate. It would be remiss of me not to accept that a number of good points have been made today and I do not want to demean them. One point clearly relates to the Ulster Unionist party policy on the living wage, which the Conservatives have adopted. That will be extremely helpful, but I have concerns about how it will be implemented. There needs to be support for employers and businesses along the way, particularly small and medium-sized businesses. It may have the effect of SMEs employing fewer people to meet that living wage, so I hope the Government have a plan in place to bring forward definitive proposals to help those small and medium-sized businesses.
Secondly, I am extremely positive about the reduction in corporation tax. I come from Northern Ireland, to which the Government have helpfully promised to devolve corporation tax. The reduction here will make our 12.5% much more realistic and help make us competitive with our neighbours in the Irish Republic. We have a land border with another EU state, so I welcome the reduction set out in the Budget, which will make it much easier for us to implement our reduction. Thirdly, I also welcome the 2% year-on-year increase in the defence budget, which is helpful and will leave the UK right at the centre of world defence.
A lot of today’s debate has been taken up with tax credits. I note that 164,100 families in Northern Ireland are in receipt of tax credits and that almost 70% of them are working families. In recent months, one of the huge difficulties in our constituencies has concerned the HMRC helplines available to people making inquiries about their tax credits, and that is only going to get worse after the reduction. I therefore appeal to the Government to invest more resources to help constituents who are worried they might lose some or all of their tax credits. It is a worrying time for them. It is difficult even for us, their elected representatives, to get answers. HMRC needs to do a major job of work to provide that assistance and support mechanism. I feel that there is going to be a huge reduction in the tax credit element, which will create particular issues in areas such as Northern Ireland, where we have a lower wage base. These families, many of whom are working, cannot afford to spend up to 60 minutes on the phone waiting for answers to their tax credit queries, but that is what is happening.
I am also concerned about the effect on the Barnett formula and the Northern Ireland Executive budget. The Government will know of the difficulties around the welfare reform proposals in Northern Ireland. I noted in yesterday’s statement the reference to the Stormont House talks. I want to make it clear that there was no agreement around those talks, as we have now realised, because some parties are now reneging on the proposals. We want to ensure that the £90 million agreed for welfare reform, to be taken from other budgets, can be implemented, because it is important for those suffering in our communities, such as the most deprived and the severely disabled. It is important they have the help and support they require, so I am looking to hear from the Government how we can ensure that the people most in need can be assisted.
The Budget is a curate’s egg: there are some good parts, but there are also some difficult issues to deal with, particularly around tax credits.
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I have heard a lot of self-congratulation and hubris and I have even seen some fist-pumping from those on the Government Benches about the long-term economic plan, of which this Budget is part, but the people of Redcar and Teesside have seen what the last five years of the Tory’s economic plan have meant for them and will be forgiven some scepticism about what they heard yesterday.
In Redcar in the last five years, we have seen six food banks a week, where formerly there were none; we have seen nearly 2,000 people hit by the bedroom tax and forced from their family homes; we have seen people sanctioned for accidentally filling in a form wrong or for missing an appointment because a child has had to go to hospital; we have seen pay freezes and redundancies and half of all women on less than a living wage, many of whom will be reliant on tax credits. Nationally, we have seen 500,000 more children in absolute poverty since 2010; the biggest fall in wages since 1874; rampant job insecurity; escalating private debt; a ballooning trade deficit; a shocking productivity record; and stagnating business investment.
In fact, if the Chancellor had any decency or integrity, he would have left himself a note in May saying, “I’m afraid there is still no money”, because the past five years have seen a greater increase in debt than under 13 years of Labour, a total failure to eradicate the deficit as promised, the loss of our triple A rating, mass under- employment, terms and conditions being undercut, a huge increase in bogus self-employment and rampant low pay.
What about this Budget and how it should deal with those issues? As many of my colleagues have said, it is a Budget of smoke and mirrors. Its living wage is not actually a living wage: it is 65p per hour less than the living wage should be. Some 4,000 people in my constituency of Redcar will be worse off because of the impact on tax credits, and the one nation narrative is divisive. The Budget turns nation against nation, public sector workers against private sector workers, north against south, the inherited haves against the have-nots, the young against the old, and taxpayers against fellow citizens.
As for the northern powerhouse, it is nothing more than a slogan. The north-east was not even mentioned in the Budget speech. One in three children in the north-east is still in poverty. Our unemployment rate is still the highest in the country, and the trend in our region is going up, not down. We lost 60,000 public sector jobs and they were not magically replaced, as predicted, by private sector jobs. Those left now have the indignity of a pay rise of less than 1% for the next five years.
The plug has been pulled on infrastructure, and that includes the cancellation of the electrification of the railways. Spending on transport in the north-east is £5 per head compared with £2,600 per head in London. Local authority budgets have been cut by a third, despite higher levels of deprivation in our area. All we have got from this Chancellor is the change of name from the A1 to the M1, without any accompanying infrastructure investment.
In summary, I congratulate the Government on finally acknowledging that the past five years have been a disaster for wage levels, but their solutions provide nothing but smoke and mirrors and will leave my hard-working constituents, who are doing their best to feed their families and get through the month, worse off than ever.
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I shall keep my remarks brief, to allow time for other speakers.
I fully agree with what my hon. Friend the Member for Ellesmere Port and Neston (Justin Madders) said about the northern powerhouse.
The so-called living wage is a complete sham. Even the national minimum wage is not enforced in this country, with the TUC estimating that 350,000 workers are already paid below it, so what guarantees do we have that a living wage would be enforced?
I want to focus most of my attention on the changes to tax credits to limit them to two children. It is wrong to punish children by putting them into poverty for being born into families with one or more siblings. I would also like to stress that there are 3,000 children in this country waiting to be adopted. Since baby P, there has been a huge increase in the need for fostering and adoption places. Many of those placements are found in kinship care and often in families who already have children. If the Government insist on going ahead with capping tax credits at two children, will they provide some flexibility and exempt those who choose to adopt or foster one of the 3,000 children who are desperately seeking a home in this country?
This Budget is an attack on the younger generation. Cutting housing benefit for under-21s will particularly affect lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender youth, who are more likely to find themselves homeless. Student grants are now gone and have been turned into loans, thereby passing more debt on to some of the poorest students as they graduate and begin life. The fact that the so-called living wage does not apply until age 25 just goes to show that there is little understanding of the fact that someone aged 25 or under still needs a roof over their head and still needs to buy food. All that costs the same as it does for a consumer or renter over the age of 25.
Frankly, this Budget does not work for young people, the north or families. Worst of all, I left the Chamber after the Budget speech thinking that, although I personally will be better off, family members of mine who work in minimum wage jobs and who try to balance the demands of having young families are worse off, and that is wrong.
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I shall tackle three areas and be brief. First, student finance has clearly been a controversial issue for a number of Parliaments. The tripling of tuition fees in the last Parliament was obviously highly controversial, and we now know that it was also an unsustainable system, with almost half of current students unable to repay their loans and the Government building up a huge amount of debt.
What is curious is that by abolishing the maintenance grant, the Government seem to be repeating the mistake. The Chancellor boasted yesterday that students from poorer backgrounds had not been put off going to university, but as hon. Members have pointed out, that was partly because these maintenance grants existed. Taking them away is likely to make that less the case. We should not underestimate the numbers involved. I was surprised to find that at Anglia Ruskin University in my own city, 5,697 students were in receipt of maintenance grants, while at the University of Cambridge, there were 2,720. Almost 8,500 young people in my constituency will, I suggest, all be angry when they learn about this.
The problem is not solved either, because more debt is created for the next generation, and the Government’s cunning plan to solve all this is to sell off the student loan book and raise huge amounts of money from it. We know that is controversial, too. Warning bells should be ringing if people read the small print on page 59 of the Red Book, where the Government say they will “review the discount rate”. What that basically means is that students will pick up the tab. They will notice this—and they will be loud.
My second point is about the proposal to limit public sector pay rises to 1% for the next four years. I do not think anyone knows what the economic situation is going to be in four years’ time. Frankly, it is hard to predict for four weeks when it comes to interest rates, oil prices and all the rest. One thing I do know is that rents in a city like Cambridge are shooting up and up. What that means is that for public sector organisations such as our national health service, recruitment—already difficult—will become near impossible in the future. Some of the high-flying research scientists in Cambridge are, in fact, public servants, and they had been waiting to see a sign that things were going to improve. I fear that what the Chancellor has done is in effect to write their exit visa to other countries. Our brightest and best—the people we need if we are to be competitive in the future—are being told that they can expect 1% over the next four years. That is not sustainable.
Finally, let me deal with housing, which is the key issue in Cambridge. There was nothing in the Budget to deal with the things that really matter in a city like Cambridge—nothing on more affordable housing, nothing on the huge trend of people from foreign countries buying up housing off-plan before it is even built, and nothing on the dreadful insecurity faced by tenants in the private rented sector, who are a different group of people these days. Conservative Members stole quite a few things from Labour’s manifesto, but they could do with stealing some of our proposals on the private rented sector, which would really help. As for the extension of the right-to-buy process, I have to say that almost half of all council homes sold in Cambridge under right to buy since 1980 are now back in the private rented sector, building up the housing benefit bill, which has increased by 51% since 2010.
Let me conclude by making one or two general points about the assault on council housing, including the threat to lifetime security of tenancy. Many people have told me about the difference it made to them when they actually got a council home that really was a secure home for them. People cannot be treated as if they are simply pawns in a game that can be moved from place to place. We are talking about people’s homes; if they are not secure, it makes thing very different for them.
Conservative Members have no understanding of what council housing was intended to be. It used to be a public service, not a safety net. We need to remember that tenants pay rent, and some of these houses have been paid for time after time. Extraordinarily, if there is any cross-subsidy going on, all too often, thanks to the vagaries of housing finance, it is happening the other way round, so council tenants are subsidising the wider community. Who can forget the dreadful “daylight robbery” situation under the last Conservative Government when council tenants were in effect subsidising all those on housing benefit.
The housing situation is deeply complicated. I finish by saying that the great goal of British housing policy was mixed communities. Nye Bevan famously said that he wanted a situation in which
“the doctor, the grocer, the butcher, the farm-labourer all live in the same street”.
We can update that image. We know that mixed communities work best, but they are hard to achieve, and this “pay to stay” is exactly the wrong thing to be doing. We need people to stay in their communities, not to be driven out. What a ridiculous situation it is when people who have done well are faced with a false choice, as my hon. Friend the Member for Ellesmere Port and Neston (Justin Madders) suggested. An income of £30,000 in a city like Cambridge is not extraordinary. My friend Councillor Kevin Price, the executive member for housing in Cambridge, tells me that people will face a 45% rise in rent if this proposal goes through. For a lot of those people, the sensible thing to do would then be to work fewer hours or for one person in the household not to go to work at all, which is the exact opposite of what the Government are claiming to want.
There is a real danger that we could lose our mixed communities and create no-go areas and dumping grounds of despair, fomenting future discontent. That is not about building one nation; it is about a divided nation, at a time when we should be bringing people together. I genuinely urge Conservative Members to think hard about these dangers and to step back from these proposals. These might just be a few lines at the bottom of a page in the Red Book, but they could do serious damage to our communities. and I urge Conservative Members to dissociate themselves from them.
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Let me begin, as others have, by congratulating all those who have made their maiden speech during the debate: my hon. Friends the Members for St Helens South and Whiston (Marie Rimmer) and for Bradford South (Judith Cummins) and the hon. Members for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk (Calum Kerr), for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross (Dr Monaghan) and for North Warwickshire (Craig Tracey). The House enjoyed hearing from each of them today and we look forward to hearing from them again in the years to come.
Yesterday’s Budget contained a number of ideas that we support, not least because we campaigned for them at the election. For example, we argued that the pathway to a surplus that the Chancellor committed to in March would in fact lead to spending cuts so extreme that they would not be credible. We discovered yesterday that the Chancellor had caved in and accepted our argument. He has deferred the planned surplus for a further year, and I have to say that that was a sensible U-turn. He might have told us that that was what it was, but he did not. As a result of his U-turn, the scale of the cuts, though still substantial, will no longer be as extreme as he suggested in March.
We said that it was unreasonable to try to take £12 billion out of the social security budget in two years. The Chancellor has done a U-turn on that as well. He now plans to do it over four years. We also campaigned for Britain to have a pay rise, stating that an increase in the national minimum wage was key to reducing the cost of welfare. The Chancellor has accepted that argument. On the basis that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, we welcome his change of heart on that as well.
It is a great disappointment, however, that productivity growth is so low. My hon. Friend the Member for Luton North (Kelvin Hopkins) was right to draw the House’s attention to what the Office for Budget Responsibility had to say about that. It has stated that productivity growth has fallen short of expectations once again. It is a relief that this Budget speech at least mentioned productivity—there was no such mention in March—although it was accompanied by a very thin package. My right hon. Friend the Member for Newcastle upon Tyne East (Mr Brown) and my hon. Friend the Member for Kingston upon Hull North (Diana Johnson) pointed out that the cancellation of the electrification of the TransPennine line was a glaring failure if we are to bring about the infrastructure investment necessary to improve productivity across the country. It is a big disappointment that so little is being done.
It is a tragedy that the Chancellor is accompanying his welcome U-turns with such a swingeing attack on the incomes of working families. The analysis published today by the Institute for Fiscal Studies highlights the fact that the proposed tax credit cuts focus on working families. It is working families that are going to be hit. They have been badly let down by a party that had promised to be a party for working people. That promise seems to have been torn to shreds in everything other than the rhetoric. Vital support has been ripped away at a time when so many of those working families are already struggling to make ends meet.
In 2010, the Chancellor promised
“we will bring down the benefits bill”.
At the beginning of this year, the Institute for Fiscal Studies said:
“Real terms benefit spending…is forecast to be almost exactly the same in 2015–16 as it was in 2010–11.”
The benefits bill has not been brought down. The reason is that, in the previous Parliament, the Government failed to tackle low wages and rising private rents, which are the real drivers of welfare spending. As a result we saw 400,000 more people who are in work forced to rely on housing benefit to pay the rent, and 1.5 million more people paid less than a living wage at the end of the Parliament than was the case at the beginning. That led to a £25 billion overspend on welfare by the Secretary of State’s Department. With this Budget, working families are being told to pay for that failure—so much for being on the side of working people.
The Chancellor is cutting tax credits immediately, but taking five years to increase pay. As my hon. Friends have pointed out, the tax credits cuts hit immediately, full scale, from the beginning of the next financial year. The pay rises intended to compensate for them, which in fact do not compensate for them, are being phased in over five years. Working families are losing out in a very big way. This is not about making work pay, but about making working families pay, which is wrong.
Today, the IFS said:
“Unequivocally, tax credit recipients in work will be made worse off”.
That is the reality of what was announced in the Budget yesterday. The Chancellor’s decision to cut tax credits leaves 3 million families worse off. Working families who are doing the right thing are finding that the rug has been pulled out from under them. A couple with one person working full-time on average earnings will lose more than £2,000 in tax credits next year. A single parent trying to provide for her two children, working 16 hours a week, will lose £860 in tax credits next year. Those losses are nowhere made up for by the modest pay rise that that person is likely to receive.
I cannot help wondering what happened to the families test. The Prime Minister promised that
“every single domestic policy that government comes up with will be examined for its impact on the family.”
Well, here are working families being hammered. The measures clearly fail the families test, but they are being announced nevertheless. That is another broken promise from this Government when so many families are losing out.
The IFS says that the striking consequence of yesterday’s cuts is that the work incentive effects of universal credit—if we ever see universal credit; only 1% of benefit claimants have been switched on to it so far, and at that rate it will take 150 years or so to roll out fully—are being substantially reduced.
I have made it clear that we welcome the increase in the national minimum wage—indeed, we campaigned for it. However, as my hon. Friends have pointed out, just because the Chancellor calls it a living wage does not make it a living wage. My hon. Friends the Members for Birmingham, Erdington (Jack Dromey) and for Ellesmere Port and Neston (Justin Madders) emphasised that point in particular. The Living Wage Foundation, the custodian of the living wage, made the position clear last night. It said that
“this is effectively a higher National Minimum Wage and not a Living Wage.”
That is the reality. Simply calling it a living wage does not make it one. The Chancellor is trying to sell us a dud.
That was not the only dud in the Budget speech. I cannot resist the temptation of quoting what the Financial Times said about the Budget speech yesterday: “When you heard” the Chancellor
“say six times in his Budget speech that he had moved British towards a ‘lower tax society’, he made a small but important mistake. He really meant ‘higher tax’.”
Of course that is right. The living wage is based on the full take-up of benefits such as tax credits and housing benefit. With the cuts to tax credits, the current figure for the living wage will no longer be enough and will certainly have to be revised upwards. We are in favour of tax cuts for those on middle incomes and we support the increases in the personal allowance and the higher rate threshold, but cuts to tax credit mean yet again that the Chancellor is giving with one hand and taking away with the other.
What a missed opportunity the Budget was to promote a proper living wage by introducing Labour’s plan for tax breaks for firms that pay a proper living wage! My hon. Friend the Member for Brent Central (Dawn Butler) drew attention to the excellent initiative that Brent Council has introduced along those lines. It is clearly succeeding, and our make-work-pay contracts could have started to boost wages straight away.
My hon. Friend the Member for Lancaster and Fleetwood (Cat Smith) was right to point out that, once again, young people have been badly hit by the Budget, but where there are good reforms, we will support them. We support the Government’s plan for a youth obligation, which is strikingly similar to our manifesto pledge and the Institute for Public Policy Research proposal that underpins it. The principle of earn or learn is right. Of course, it is absolutely vital that the right exemptions to the withdrawal of housing support should be in place. My hon. Friend the Member for Sheffield South East (Mr Betts) underlined that absolutely rightly. Can the Minister confirm in winding up that young people leaving care, those who are at risk of abuse or homelessness and those who are the parents of young children will still be eligible for housing support under these proposals?
We will not support cuts for disabled people. We were told in the election campaign that the £12 billion package would protect the vulnerable and the disabled, but cutting employment support allowance will hit those who are assessed as not fit for work, which is the reason why they are not on jobseeker’s allowance. That includes people with cancer and people with Parkinson’s disease. Ministers said that they would protect sick people in these changes; instead, they are cutting their support, and that will hit some very vulnerable people very hard. It will also drive even more claimants into the ESA support group at even higher cost. In 2010, Ministers said that they would cut the cost of ESA. In fact, given their failure to manage assessments and the failure of the Work programme for ESA claimants, costs have rocketed. ESA will cost £4.5 billion more this year than they said it would in 2011, but that is no justification for punishing the sick.
There is nothing in the Budget to boost the number of homes being built. The cost of renting and buying is soaring out of reach, particularly in London and south-east. My hon. Friend the Member for Mitcham and Morden (Siobhain McDonagh) drew attention to that. Yet again, rather than tackling the housing shortage and bringing rents down, the Government have chosen to cut housing support.
We welcome the Chancellor’s U-turns from his election campaign, but this is not the Budget that working people need. It leaves working people worse off. Working people needed a Budget that supported them and their families, not one that cut the support that so many people rely on. We support reform that protects those who cannot work and that makes work pay. We will not support cuts that make working families pay.
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This has been a lively debate on a summer Budget that puts the country’s security first—economic security, national security and financial security for the record numbers of people in this country who are now working, including the 2 million who have joined the workforce since 2010. It is a Budget that continues to carry Britain toward a secure, prosperous future by backing the aspirations of working people at every stage of their lives.
For too long, we have been a low-wage, high-tax, high-welfare society—one that took money away from the poorest in taxes, then gave it back to them in the form of tax credits and welfare. In this Budget, we are changing that around. We are setting out to build a high-wage, low-tax, low-welfare economy: an economy in which work always pays and working more always pays more; an economy in which working households are supported through higher wages and lower taxes, not subsidised through a tax credits system that even Labour Members have described as simply not sustainable; an economy that gives 2.5 million people—those on the lowest pay today—a 10% direct pay rise and establishes a living wage that could, at this Parliament’s end, exceed £9 an hour.
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The IFS figures do not include, for example, the full impact of the increased offer of free childcare. According to the Treasury figures, eight out of 10 working households will be better off as a result of the changes, acting in combination, by 2017.
As a country, we have 1% of the world’s population, we produce 4% of global GDP, and we are responsible for 7% of the world’s welfare payments. That is not right, it is not sustainable and it needs to be reformed. In introducing the reforms, we have set out four principles. The first is protecting the most vulnerable—that is fundamental. It is why we will honour our commitments to uprate the state pension according to the triple lock; we will neither means-test nor tax disability benefits—in fact, all disability benefits are exempt from the four-year freeze of working-age benefits—and we will increase funding for domestic abuse victims and for women’s refuge centres.
The second principle is to expect those who can work to look for work and to take work when it is offered, because work is the best route out of poverty. The third principle is to place the entire welfare system on an affordable and sustainable footing, fulfilling our commitment to run a budget surplus, because that is the best route to long-term economic security.
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My hon. Friend makes an extremely good point. Even when we announce elements of policies they were campaigning on only weeks ago, Labour Members seem to be unable to bring themselves to welcome the measures.
The Budget is not just about making changes to welfare; it is about ensuring that those who are in work do not face more difficult choices than those on benefits. Full-time benefits should never pay more than full-time work. Those are the principles underlying the welfare reforms. Over the next two years, eight out of 10 working households will have benefited from the measures announced in this Budget, such as our introduction of the national living wage. By 2020, a full-time worker on the national living wage should be earning over £5,200 more in cash terms. The tough decisions we are taking now will lead us into a more prosperous and more secure future.
We enjoyed five maiden speeches. My hon. Friend the Member for North Warwickshire (Craig Tracey) has a remarkable distinction that may be in the record books. He succeeded a colleague with a majority of 54 and took the majority up to nearly 3,000, which is a remarkable achievement.
I enjoyed the maiden speeches of the hon. Members for Bradford South (Judith Cummins) and for St Helens South and Whiston (Marie Rimmer). I understand that there is already a bit of a rivalry between them—they support different rugby league teams—which will be followed closely during their time representing those areas in Parliament.
We heard from Members from two beautiful areas of Scotland. The hon. Member for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk (Calum Kerr) spoke eloquently about the Scottish border country, which we all know is exceptionally beautiful. He speaks for his party on agriculture and rural issues. He succeeded the former Secretary of State for Scotland, the Liberal Democrat Michael Moore, and spoke eloquently about his lasting contribution in the form of the 0.7% commitment that he achieved through his private Member’s Bill. That was no mean feat, as I discovered early on in this place. The hon. Gentleman also received something you may have frowned on, Madam Deputy Speaker—a round of applause for his excellent delivery. I will say no more on that because he might get into trouble.
We also heard from the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross (Dr Monaghan). I have yet to visit his part of Scotland, but it sounds absolutely wonderful. After he had taught us about the history of the highland clearances, I was sorry that he could not welcome with greater fervour the significant increase in wages for people working in his constituency, which currently enjoys the lowest unemployment in its history.
A range of other issues were raised, and I will briefly go through some of the questions asked. Several Members made the point that the national living wage was different from the living wage calculated by other organisations. I can clarify that the methodology that has been followed is based on the work of Sir George Bain, who wrote the paper “More than a Minimum” for the Resolution Foundation. Labour Members carped on endlessly about the methodology, but none of them welcomed the fact that this represents a 10% pay rise for the lowest-paid 2.5 million working people in the UK.
Several Members raised student finance, and representatives of university towns paid particularly close attention to such points. The former Labour Chief Whip, the right hon. Member for Newcastle upon Tyne East (Mr Brown), probably remembers that a Labour Government abolished maintenance grants completely back in 1998. He probably had to do some deals in 2004, when maintenance grants made their reappearance. He is chuckling in his place about his memories of that time, so I am sure he had to make many arguments about how wise the policy was when his Government implemented it. I want to emphasise that students from low-income households will not have to pay up front. Over the course of their lifetime, people who go to university will earn more—women who go to university will earn £250,000 more over their lifetime—and the cash they receive through their student loan will be more generous than it was before.
The hon. Member for Fermanagh and South Tyrone (Tom Elliott) and other Members asked about support for businesses. I can confirm that we will increase by 50% the amount that businesses can receive through the employment allowance. That will enable the small businesses that are the backbone of our economy to take on four people paid the national living wage. Effectively, it will be kept at the same level: employers will pay no national insurance for four people working full time on the national living wage. Employers will also benefit from my right hon. Friend the Chancellor’s announcement of a reduction in the corporation tax rate to 18% over this Parliament.
Several questions were asked about housing. I can reassure Opposition Members that there will be consultations on the housing changes, and a lot of exemptions in vulnerable cases.
In the brief time available, I conclude by saying that this is a Budget for the working people of Britain. It is a Budget that supports Britain’s working households not through state subsidies, but through lower taxes and higher wages.
Ordered, That the debate be now adjourned.—(Jackie Doyle-Price.)
Debate to be resumed on Monday 13 July.
| Institute for Fiscal Studies |
"What Japanese dish is described as ""beef and vegetables in soy sauce"" ?" | TCWN March 19 - 25, 2016 by TC Weekly News - issuu
THE NATIONAL NEWSPAPER OF THE TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS
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STOP SEX TRADE – PDM
The Government is failing to address reports of prostitution in the Turks and Caicos Islands, according to the PDM PAGE
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Tikera Elliot, 16, was found at her home on Swann Street, South Caicos, at about 4pm on Monday, March 14
TEENAGER FOUND DEAD
‘DISTRESS TO SUCCESS’ BUDGET DEBATE BEGINS PAGE 4
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DEBUT BOOK FOR YOUNG POET PAGE 5
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SPEED LASER AND RADAR FOR COPS PAGE 6
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TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
March 19 - 25, 2016
TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
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TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
Housing fund for David Smith’s wife
THE WIFE of con man David Smith will receive $20,000 from the Government to allow her to buy a home for herself and her four young children. Cabinet approved the payment which came as a result of a Supreme Court Order on December 22, last year. The money will come out of the National Forfeiture Fund (NFF) as a percentage of the proceeds from the sale of David Smith’s home which took place under a Confiscation Order in 2012. Cabinet approved a further payment of $34,500 to be made from the NFF to National Colony Realty. This is for professional services for marketing and selling the house to the satisfaction of the Crown under an agreement on March 27 last year. Governor Peter Beckingham chaired the eighth meeting of the Cabinet on Wednesday, March 9, at the Hilly Ewing Building in Providenciales. All ministers were present. During the meeting members agreed to the use of contingency funds for police to purchase a replacement patrol vehicle after one was written off in an incident during an operational deployment. The cost of the replacement vehicle has been covered by insurance. The draft Flag and Coat of Arms (Regulation) Bill 2016 was agreed as amended for forwarding to the House of Assembly for approval. The bill and subsequent legislation will prescribe and guide
March 19 - 25, 2016
‘Distress to success’ Budget debate begins THE $252 million 2016/2017 Budget debate commenced in the House of Assembly on Thursday (March 17) at the NJS Francis Building in Grand Turk. The budget will facilitate the capital and current expenditure in 2016/2017. Finance minister Washington Misick on delivering the Government’s fiscal plan said the budget is a continuation of the Government’s focus to move the Turks and Caicos Islands’ economy from “distress to success”. He also revealed that earnings for TCIG are forecast to be $256 million.
Misick said that based on this outlook, the country will generate a $4 million surplus in the upcoming fiscal year. The finance minister said the 2016/2017 Budget is a demonstration that the Government’s fiscal prudence strategy has paid off and the next step is to build fiscal resilience. This, he said, is the Government’s commitment to the people of the Turks and Caicos Islands. The Weekly News will provide a comprehensive report on the budget debate as it unfolds.
David Smith
the use of the national flag, the coat of arms and the national song as well as other national symbols. Cabinet agreed to the formulation of a TCI Climate Change Committee and approved draft terms of reference for the committee and the selection of committee members. Members noted the recommendations of the Procurement Board to award contracts in line with the Public Procurement Ordinance 2012 for a national skills audit consultancy and to design and build a green fitness park in Leeward, Providenciales. They advised the Governor to agree to renew a casino licence for a further ten years for BK Partners
Published by Turks & Caicos News Company Ltd. Cheshire House, Leeward Highway, Providenciales P.O. Box 52, Turks & Caicos Islands, BWI W. Blythe Duncanson - Publisher/Editor-in-Chief Daisy Handfield - Staff Reporter Faizool Deo - Sports Editor (At Large) Cord Garrido-Lowe - Graphics Consultant (At Large) Dilletha Lightbourne-Williams - Office Manager Email: (Advertising) [email protected], (News) [email protected] Tel. 649-946-4664 (office), 649-232-3508 (after hours) Website address: www.tcweeklynews.com Follow us on: Facebook: facebook.com/tcweeklynews Twitter: twitter.com/tcweeklynews1
Ltd based on the same terms and conditions as the original licence. Cabinet also advised the Governor to agree to the reappointment of several members to the Turks and Caicos Islands Tourist Board for a period of one year from April 1 to March 31, 2017, in accordance with the TCI Tourism Ordinance. The 2015/16 lobster (crawfish) season should be extended to March 31, according to Cabinet. They advised the Governor to agree to the appointments of the chair, secretary and several members to the Immigration Appeals Tribunal for the period April 1, 2016, to March 31, 2017. During the meeting attendees received an up-date on a construction in the Princess Alexandra National Park and noted that following the ministry’s discussions with the owners the structure has subsequently been removed. They advised the Governor to agree to the appointments of members to the zone one and zone two Work Permit Boards, and to agree to the appointments of Kirk Forbes, an immigration officer based in Grand Turk, as secretary of the zone one board and Deserika Glinton, an immigration officer based in Providenciales, as secretary of the zone two board. Cabinet advised the Governor to make amendments to the Customs (Government Transit Shed and Queen’s Warehouse Rent) Regulations to reduce customs warehouse rents and agreed that customs should undertake an exercise to clear existing goods in store by offering a maximum charge to the equivalent of 90 days storage fees under the new rates. The Governor was also advised to approve an amendment to the Customs Tariff to reduce the rate of import duty on green coffee beans from 15 percent to zero.
Tikera Elliot, 16, was found at her home on Swann Street, South Caicos, at about 4pm on Monday, March 14
Teenager found dead BY JOHN TONER SOUTH Caicos was plunged into mourning this week after the sudden death of a teenage girl. Tikera Elliot, 16, was found at her home on Swann Street, South Caicos, at about 4pm on Monday (March 14). The girl was discovered by her father who told the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force he last spoke to her at 8pm the previous night just before she went to bed. The father said he left for work at 7.30am the following morning, leaving his daughter sleeping, before returning home at 4pm to find her
unresponsive. Emergency medical crews arrived on the scene shortly afterwards but the girl was pronounced dead at 4.51pm. On Tuesday members of the House of Assembly expressed their shock and sadness at the news as well as offering condolences to the family. Several members also asked for people to be sensitive to the family and not speculate on social media as to what might have happened. A post mortem will be carried out in Providenciales to confirm the cause of death. RTCIPF enquiries into the incident are currently on going.
March 19 - 25, 2016
TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
NEWS
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Government failing to address prostitution, says PDM leader BY OLIVIA ROSE THE GOVERNMENT is failing to address reports of prostitution in the Turks and Caicos Islands. This is according to leader of the People’s Democratic Movement (PDM) Sharlene Cartwright Robinson who said there are increasing reports of women being brought into the TCI under false pretence. During an interview with People’s Television (PTV) she claimed that women are working as sex workers at local bars and other places which operate as covert brothels. Cartwright Robinson said that prostitution in the Turks and Caicos Islands is a sore issue which the Government is seemingly turning a blind eye to. “There are women who are being forced into it, and we want to pretend as if it’s not happening, but it is our responsibility to protect women, children and Turks and Caicos islanders.” She noted that a more proactive approach with increased surveillance is needed to crack down on bars and other places that uphold this illegal operation. The Opposition leader said this issue has grave implications for the country. She also said that human trafficking is seen as a direct link to prostitution in most cases in the TCI, since some victims find themselves in the prostitution ring after their travel documents are confiscated by perpetrators. “I met a lady whose passport was taken and she’s been forced to work in the nude. She wants to go back but she can’t because she doesn’t have her travel documents. “Persons who decide I’m going to live this life and buy into these services then go home and transfer an illness to their wife or to other persons and then we have another situation on our hands.” Cartwright Robinson pointed out that the issue of prostitution often has several negative spinoff effects which gnaw at the social fabric of a nation. “So you have the health aspect of it where diseases are being transferred
and then we have a situation where I understand that there are many young girls who are involved.” The Opposition leader called on the Government to do more to address this issue. In December 2015, the Royal Turks and Caicos Police Force received the green light to be more proactive in putting prostitution and human trafficking on the front burner. Coupled with this the Trafficking in Person’s Prevention Bill 2015 was passed in the House of Assembly on January 27. The bill will see penalties of unlimited fines being imposed or a term of imprisonment for a maximum of ten years being levied against those found guilty of offences under the bill. Minister of Border Control and Labour Ricardo Don Hue Gardiner noted that the bill will clamp down on prostitution in the TCI. He said it included “servitude, sexual explicit conduct, slavery, trafficked persons in particular, sexual exploitation which means compelling the participation of the person in prostitution. “The production of child pornography or other pornographic material or any other sexual activity as a result of them being subjected to threat, coercion and abduction as a result of narcotic drugs, force, and abuse of authority or fraud.” According to a US State Department 2015 Trafficking in Persons report, the Turks and Caicos Islands is a destination country for men, women, and children subjected to sex trafficking and forced labour. According to local experts, the large population of migrants in the TCI from Haiti, the Dominican Republic, and Jamaica are vulnerable to sex trafficking and forced labour, with stateless children and adolescents especially at risk. Local stakeholders, including law enforcement officials, have reported specific knowledge of sex trafficking occurring in bars and brothels and noted trafficking-related complicity by some local Government officials was a problem.
Debut book for young poet AN ASPIRING young spoken word poet is celebrating the publication of her debut works. Holly Missick, also known by her stage name Hollene of Troi, has officially released her first anthology ‘Spoken Words Unchained’. Missick has performed at spoken words events throughout Providenciales and is a member of the poetry group Towers of Babel. She said: “This book is me, it is who I am. Naked, unclothed, I am taking it all off and laying out my bare soul in this book. “It is a collection of some of my finest work and I wanted my readers to relate to all 136 pages. When they buy Spoken Words Unchained they are essentially buying a part of me. “I used a lot of my own life when I wrote this book. The poems cover a range of topics, such as love - without love there’s nothing - also, society and even my thoughts on life itself. “I may not have personally gone through every situation, but I certainly experienced every single emotion expressed. “Spoken word has become my passion and
THROUGH THE MIND: Missick feels that her debut collection of works is a representation of her life
I want to use that passion to take my readers on a journey through my mind. All they have to do is hold on for the ride.”
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NEWS
SPEED SQUAD: The men and woman of the RTCIPF who will be using hi-tech methods to keep on top of speeding
Speed laser and radar for cops SPEEDING drivers will now have radar and lasers to compete with when trying to evade the law. The Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force this week trained 19 officers to operate new certified speed measurement devices. The five day course was designed to improve the effectiveness of enforcing speeding ordinance through the use of moving radar and speed laser. Sergeant Mike Kanyan of the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office in Florida was on hand throughout the week instruct RTCIPF officers on how to use the equipment. He said: “Speed contributes to crashes which contributes to injuries, fatalities and property damages. “Officers are now trained to operate and to properly use the ‘Moving Radar’ which is as the name implies, when a police vehicle is in motion is able to track vehicles approaching and receding, both in front and behind the patrol vehicle and also able to track multiple targets at once.”
March 19 - 25, 2016
TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
SMOKING BAN
A LAW banning smoking in public places in the TCI will come into effect April 1 this year. The new law will aim to prevent tobacco use by minors, regulate tobacco use overall and enhance public awareness of the hazards of tobacco use. What are your thoughts?
A killer
Tobacco like alcohol can become addictive and kill you. Unlike alcohol the tobacco lobby has not been able to convince and/or bribe the legislators to avoid legislatively attacking the industry. Simple - so we get this legislation.
MAJOR LAZER: Speed measurement instructor Mike Kanyan has over 25 years of experience as a traffic cop
The RTCIPF officers who took part are now able to employ these methods to catch speeding criminals and are also trained in how to give court testimony in cases involving the use of the equipment. A police spokesman said: “There’s
no such thing as speeding safely. “Speed alone, regardless of any other factors, including how good a car you may be driving or how good of a driver you may be, increases both the likelihood and the severity of a crash.”
Simple
This is not rocket science or brain surgery and is expected by tourists. Most TCI mature folks don’t smoke; they can’t afford it. Those that seek the illegal stuff will continue to seek it out. This includes at least one of the Government’s top ministers who has been seen in public using the strong stuff.
About time
This law is 20 years late. Bring it on.
Boyce hires ex Jamaican minister to represent her at SIPT BY JOHN TONER FORMER health minister Lillian Boyce has appointed new defence counsel in the ongoing SIPT trial. Boyce fired her Canadian representative Gregory Lafontaine at the end of February after apparently losing faith in his ability to properly represent her. She has now hired former Jamaican foreign affairs minister AJ Nicholson QC to fight her corner in the controversial government corruption trial.
Former Health Minister Lillian Boyce
Nicholson was sworn in on Friday, March 11, as the first prosecution witness, exgovernment minister Karen Delancy, concluded her evidence. The Queen’s Counsel joins several other Jamaican legal professionals taking part in the trial including Earl Witter and Kayode Smith who represent former deputy premier Floyd Hall, Douglas Leys and Oliver Smith who represent Lisa Hall as well as Ian Robbins and John Perry who appear on behalf of Jeffrey Hall.
Less pollution
Good idea! A beautiful by nature
destination does not need cigarette butts in public places. It works well here in Canada and hopefully a good step in the direction of non-pollution!
Brilliant idea
This new law is welcomed. It’s long overdue so many people have lost their lives because of smoking. Cigarette smoking harms nearly every organ of the body, causes many diseases, and reduces the health of smokers in general. It’s time something is done to help the population in this regard. Brilliant idea!
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SIPT takes two week break BY JOHN TONER THE VAST and costly SIPT trial has been adjourned for more than two weeks over Easter. The government corruption trial involving more than 25 legal professionals, paid for by the TCI Government, will reconvene on March 30 after the Easter bank holiday weekend. Legal counsel agreed among themselves what would be convenient dates to both break and
reassemble and the schedule was agreed by judge Harrison. The SIPT prosecution team had just presented its first witness, former PNP minister Karen Delancy, prior to the break. When the trial resumes the prosecution will press on with wading through the 100 plus witnesses it intends to call in trying to prove the guilt of the nine accused. All defendants deny all the charges against them.
March 19 - 25, 2016
TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
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Opposition leader clears the air on passage of retirement bill BY OLIVIA ROSE LEADER of the Opposition Sharlene Cartwright Robinson has refuted all allegations made recently by sections of the public that she is a “liar” and has misled the people of the Turks and Caicos Islands. In a recent release the leader of the People’s Democratic Movement (PDM) cleared the air on misinformation placed in the public domain regarding her role and that of her party in the drafting, presentation and carriage of the Retiring Allowances (Legislative Service) (Special Provisions) Bill 2015 passed January 27 last year. Cartwright Robinson said that she is not in the habit of responding to attacks on her personal character and service to the people. However her party finds it necessary to do so in this instance since it goes to the root of the misconception where some members of the public might not be clear on the role of the Opposition and the powers available to it. She said: “I have never misled the people of this country and categorically deny all allegations that I am a liar and that I am compromised on any issue allowing myself to be limited and dishonest to obtain votes. “On the contrary, I have had to speak to many tough issues over the years that have offended many as my role does not allow me to dodge issues and fly beneath the radar. “I came to this office in 2012 with a pledge to serve my people fearlessly and selflessly.” Cartwright Robinson made it clear that the leader of the Opposition and all other backbenchers cannot bring money bills or money motions. “The fundamental issue at hand more importantly is the perceived
role of the Opposition versus reality and the powers available to us. “The money bill alleged to have been brought by myself could not be brought. “As I do not sit in Government and specifically in Cabinet. I am not allowed by the House rules called standing orders to bring any money bills or motions. “Non-Cabinet members cannot increase expenditure or make decisions on how the monies can be spent. “That rest with the members of Cabinet which is comprised of the Governor, as chair, the Premier, the ministers, the Attorney General and the Deputy Governor. “This is why we have had to craft the motion as we did as it relates to pensions and gratuities and the issues relating to those civil servants who left the service and have disputes of payments. “The wording in the old version of the standing orders and the new standing orders which governs who can bring money bills and money motions remain the same and was in place since the beginning of ministerial government.” She further clarified that except on the recommendation of the Governor signified by a member of the Executive Council the Legislative Council she shall not “proceed upon any bill (including any amendment to a bill) which, in the opinion of the person presiding in the council, makes provision for imposing or increasing any tax, for imposing or increasing any charge on the revenues or other funds of the Islands or for altering any such charge otherwise than by reducing it, or for compounding or remitting any debt due to the Islands. “Or proceed upon any motion (including any amendment to a
Lobster season closes on March 31 AFTER midnight Thursday, March 31, it will be illegal to fish lobster in the Turks and Caicos Islands. The Department of Environment and Maritime Affairs (DEMA) issued a notice to remind the public to refrain from catching, landing or selling lobster until the start of next season. Failure to comply with the closed season will result in prosecution in court under the Fisheries Protection Regulations.
During the closed season it is illegal for restaurants and hotels to serve lobsters. DEMA has urged all fishing interests to ensure that they have no lobsters in their possession at the end of the season. In the remaining days of the season berried lobsters (or lobsters with eggs) must be returned to the water. Any violations should be reported to DEMA on 338 4170 or [email protected].
Leader of the Opposition Sharlene Cartwright Robinson
motion) the effect of which in the opinion of the person presiding in the council is that provision would be made for any of the purposes aforesaid.” The Opposition leader told the Weekly News that no member of the PDM assisted in drafting this bill which was the sole work as usual of the AG’s Chambers when
bills are brought and especially for those brought by the AG herself who answers for the public and civil service in the House. Cartwright Robinson made it categorically clear that there were prior discussions which she raised with her party as to whether they would be opposed to the Minister of Finance being allowed to retire as a former chief minister. “This discussion included but expanded beyond the parliamentary members and no one expressed any objection to the allowance of the Minister of Finance (MOF) to retire as a former chief minister. “During one of our many preparliament meetings when the bill was then crafted and presented, I raised the matter with my team and the objection was to the back pay and not to having a former chief minister retire as a chief minister like the others. “Our objection which I voiced in the House of Assembly as the lead on the bill was to the back pay, how it was calculated and the justification for it. “There was a period where I was invited to bring a resolution to allow for the MOF to retire as a former chief minister but even on retirement the increase in expenditure that
Under the tree
would result barred me under the standing orders from assisting in this way. “We still believe that all former chief ministers should be allowed to retire at that level. “The AG stated orally and it was contained in the explanatory memorandum of the House that the matter was raised with and approved by the Integrity Commission and that other pension anomalies were raised. “Since February 9, 2015, we have requested information on the other pension anomalies, the calculations of the back pay and other queries from the debate. “These requests were made in writing by email again on April 1, 2015, and again as recent as last week March 6, 2016. “We invite the public to understand how Government works, to access public records for truth: copies of parliamentary agendas and the standing order of the House are all public documents and then of course, all meetings of the House of Assembly are aired publicly over radio, it is important to listen when you can.” The PDM leader said her party remains committed to serving the people honestly.
By Benneth Williams
TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force
March 19 - 25, 2016
Grand Turk
Speaker calls for a more proactive approach to curb crime in Grand Turk BY OLIVIA ROSE SPEAKER of the House of Assembly Robert Hall has urged the Governor and the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force to do more to curb the rising crime in Grand Turk. The speaker during an impromptu moment in the House of Assembly on Wednesday (March 16) said crime is increasing at an alarming rate in the country’s capital. He said: “Following on comments that many members made concerning crime here in Grand Turk, I was very disgusted this morning when I passed by the residence of Richard Been and saw an individual with his relatively new vehicle, his windshield smashed and the rear glass busted out.
Cop injured in gun incident AN OFFICER of the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force (RTCIPF) was injured during a firearms incident this week. Police were called to Kew Town, Providenciales, at 1.22am on Thursday (March 17) to reports of a disturbance. An officer was injured during the incident and was taken to the Cheshire Hall Medical Centre to receive treatment. The RTCIPF are currently investigating the matter.
Something really has to be done to address this situation. “A person should be able to enjoy his property without this sort of thing happening. I’m not one who likes to sound alarmed but it’s really, really disgusting.” He called on Governor Peter Beckingham and the Commissioner of Police to do more to address this issue in Grand Turk. He noted that: “Of course there are concerns throughout the Islands but we have seen a number of incidents here and immediate action needs to be taken. “I’m not like those who say the youngsters don’t have nothing to do, sometimes it’s just a low down, good for nothing attitude, and most of the
Speaker of the House of Assembly Robert Hall
times it’s not that they’re hungry, it’s just a lifestyle and attitudes.”
Gunman snared with backpack full of firearms A WANTED man has been caught by police carrying a mini-arsenal in his backpack. Lavern Smith, of the Bight, Providenciales, was seen acting suspiciously by the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force while out on routine patrol in October of last year. The 23-year-old, who was wanted in relation to another matter, began to run when officers from the tactical unit approached him. He was apprehended behind a nearby building and officers searched his backpack.
Inside they found one black Hi-Point 40 calibre pistol, nine rounds of 9mm ammunition, two rounds of 22mm ammunition, one black holster, two face masks, a black and white glove and a pair of scissors. When asked if he had a licence for firearms he said no and was arrested and later charged. On Wednesday, March 9, Smith pleaded guilty to carrying a firearm and three counts of carrying ammunition. He will be sentenced on Monday, March 21.
The Government in its 2016/2017 Budget proposal allotted funds to employ 20 additional police officers to help curb the spate of burglaries, vandalisms and break-ins in Grand Turk. Speaking at recent press conference Premier Rufus Ewing said that while national security and police are under the purview of the Governor, the Government has a responsibility to finance national security measures. The Premier made it clear that regulations and decisions as it relates to national security and policing are under the remit of the Governor. “What strategies are utilised and how the force is deployed, what strategic interventions are necessary, we are here to fund.” Speaking specifically to the transfer of officers from Grand Turk to Providenciales he said: “I have expressed my concern to the Commissioner of Police and the Governor about the reduction of the
number of police officers on Grand Turk. “I’ve done that privately and at the National Security Council meeting in preparing for our budget. “When you look at the upcoming budget you’ll see that this Government is committed to fighting crime and preventing crime in the community by the funding that we have put in the budget.” He further related that some of the new police officers may be recruits from the police training school. Premier Ewing revealed that funding has also been allotted for the procurement of two more vessels and in 2017 to enhance aerial surveillance with the use of drones to increase police presence. “Boots on the ground, eyes in the air and men in the water to protect our borders and to protect our country.” The Commissioner noted that there remains 38 police officers in Grand Turk.
Civil servants to elect association leader ELECTIONS for the positions of president and vice president of the Civil Service Association (CSA) are scheduled to take place on April 7. This week the CSA released the polling locations and the requirements for voting.
Only teachers will be permitted to vote at the schools, all other public officers will be required to vote at the designated locations. For details of the polling locations and hours of voting contact csinaction.gov.uk.
March 19 - 25, 2016
TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
NEWS
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Government organises clean-up campaign for zika virus prevention BY DAISY HANDFIELD A CLEAN-UP campaign was organised recently in an effort to decrease the chances of residents and visitors falling victim to mosquito borne diseases. According to the Director of the Environmental Health Department, Kenrick Neely, the clean-up campaign officially began in February in North Caicos. In an interview with the Weekly News, Neely said that $80,000 out of funds approved in Cabinet in February were for clean-up campaigns throughout the whole of the TCI. On Wednesday (March 16) the Environmental Health Department and the Ministry of Health oversaw a clean-up in Providenciales in the areas of Five Cays, Kew Town and Blue Hills. Abandoned vehicles were removed from these communities as part of the zika virus prevention action plan developed by the two Government entities. This initiative started at 8am and concluded at about 5pm that day. Neely said: “With this clean-up we will see a decrease in our mosquito population and other vectors, such as rats and roaches. “We will see cleaner communities and we will see less persons visiting our health facilities. “This is just a
small portion of what can happen. “We should see an increase in our economy with increased arrivals in tourism because once you have a cleaner community or a cleaner nation, we will have a healthier nation as well. “You will see increase in tourism products and we will see a decrease in diseases and other health related issues.” The clean-up is ongoing in North Caicos and South Caicos. The director said that an official clean-up is set for Providenciales on April 9 where all the constituencies will be targeted. It will then climax with Grand Turk that following Saturday. “I would love to see communities taking their initiative in organising clean-up campaigns, working with the Department and the Ministry of Health because that is the only way we are going to be successful in getting Turks and Caicos cleaner and beautiful by nature, not clean by choice,” Neely said. The TCI has seen cases of the zika virus, dengue fever and chikungunya; all mosquito related viruses. Zika virus is transmitted by aedes mosquitoes. People with zika virus usually have symptoms that can include mild fever, skin rashes, conjunctivitis, muscle and joint pain, malaise or headache.
Abandoned vehicle removed from a yard in Kew Town
Clothing donation for Joaquin victims in Bahamas TWENTY parcels of brand new clothes were presented to the National Emergency Management Association (NEMA) in Nassau in efforts to assist victims of Hurricane Joaquin in the Bahamas. This initiative was a joint effort between ONE Bahamas Association of the Turks and Caicos Islands and the Royal Turks
and Caicos Islands Police Force (RTCIPF). In an interview with O’Brien Forbes, public relations officer at ONE Bahamas Association, he said that he was more than pleased to have been able to assist the Bahamas in their time of need. He said: “We felt the urgency to assist them in the aftermath of what they experienced.
“The two countries have a long history of co-dependency and an unspoken pledge to excel through love and unity. “One Bahamas is grateful to the corporate and private citizens alike in Turks and Caicos and the Bahamas for making this possible.” Forbes flew to the Bahamas courtesy of Bahamas Air in order to make the donation.
Governor announces public private partnership PRIVATE companies will work with the public sector to share skills and increase efficiency as part of a new scheme. The initiative entitled ‘Publicprivate partnerships - Enhancing service delivery’ aims to encourage public sector departments to learn from the more streamlined policies adopted by private companies. Three senior business leaders in the Turks and Caicos Islands have agreed to take part; Ken Adams of Do It Centre, Gilly Williams at the Wine Cellar and Turks Head Brewery and Robert Brace from Graceway IGA, Smart and Gourmet. Governor Peter Beckingham said: “I am grateful to these three senior and successful businessman for giving up their time to discuss ways in which the public sector can learn from business. “Everyone in TCI will know how their business operate successfully and efficiently, and I am confident the advice they can offer will help public
servants look at their operations in new and different ways. “All government departments in the UK now automatically have on their boards senior members of the private sector, so we can learn from their example how our own public sector can benefit from business. “We are fortunate to have the free services of these three businessmen to support the departments. “I have been keen to get the public sector more engaged with business, and I am confident this is a great way of starting.” The enterprise gurus will attend government department meetings to hear what issues public servants face and advise them on how they can improve efficiency. Launching the scheme alongside the Governor, Deputy Governor Anya Williams added: “My focus over the next year is going to be unrelentingly on generating more efficiencies in our public service. “I know there are areas where we can improve delivery standards to
the public, and engaging three highly experienced businesspeople in this way is bound to help find ways of making improvements. “I look forward to working with all three businessmen and having them help us with our work.” The initial areas of focus for the scheme will be alternative energy, the work permit system, infrastructure implementation and road safety certification. Graceway’s Robert Brace is confident that the TCI public sector can learn important lessons from companies like IGA. He said: “From my time in business with some of Europe’s large companies I have seen how the public sector can benefit from closer working relations with companies. “It is very common in many European countries for these sorts of exchanges between the private and the public sector to take place. “I am pleased to see this sort of co-operation happening in the Turks and Caicos.
“I am sure that Gilly Williams, Ken Adams and I can, at least at the margin, help to bring some
efficiencies and a new way of looking at services offered by the public service.”
Victim airlifted after ‘brutal’ beating THE VICTIM of a savage beating has been flown to Nassau for emergency treatment. Police were called at 2.55am on Saturday, March 12, to the Members Only Club in Grand Turk after reports of a man lying on the floor covered in blood. On arrival officers discovered the victim propped up against a vehicle soaked in blood and suffering from multiple injuries. A statement issued by the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force (RTCIPF) described the man
as having been “brutally beaten”. He was taken to Cockburn Town Medical Centre for treatment and later flown to Nassau due to the serious nature of his injuries. The victim’s condition was later described as stable. The RTCIPF has launched an investigation into the incident and is urging anyone with information to contact Crime Stoppers on 1-800-8477 or by using the online reporting page at www.crimestoppers.tc.
10 NEWS
Chicken nuggets may contain plastic CONSUMERS are being warned to be on the lookout for Perdue chicken nuggets which may contain pieces of plastic. The Animal Health Service Division of the Department of Agriculture sent a public notice out this week recalling all chicken nuggets (Applegate Farms brand only) imported by Graceway Trading. The initial recall was issued by US company Perdue Foods LLC for about 4,530 pounds of chicken nugget products that may be contaminated with “extraneous plastic materials”. The United States Department of Agriculture reported that some of the recalled product was exported to the
Turks and Caicos Islands. According to a Government press release on Thursday (March 17): “If you have bought any of this product, please do not consume it but rather return it.”
The Agriculture Department has ensured that all remaining product is removed from the shelves. Further information is available at the Agriculture Department on 9465801.
MILLS MUSES
Can groups become toxic? ALL societies consist of groups representing different interests. Some groups have a different impact than others. But generally it is interesting to look more deeply at them and how they operate and influence their members for better or otherwise. Some groups bring people together to share, educate and promote friendship and togetherness, particularly where identical interests are concerned. There are professional groups that share the latest in research in their areas, civic groups, which assist society in various ways, and political groups that seek to strengthen support within their membership and attract additional supporters. And there are groups that have gender interests as their focus, for example, men’s groups and women’s groups. They have distinct functions but aim at the greater good. Such groups are healthy, promote moral practices and a sense of identity among their adherents. But there is a toxic side. Often members collude to select as leaders of these groups persons who are relatives, friends, share religious membership or those belonging to the same island. This causes a reduction in trust and dissatisfaction because other
March 19 - 25, 2016
TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
BY OLIVER MILLS
Oliver Mills is a former lecturer in education at the UWI Mona Campus. He holds a BA (Hons.) UWI, an M.Ed. Dalhousie Univ., an MA University of London, and a Postgraduate Diploma in HRM and Training, Leicester Univ.
members feel the group has strayed from its original goals. Sometimes assertive persons intimidate others into electing them to leadership positions within the group. This is where groups become toxic, meaning some members take sides or engage in practices which result in the group disbanding, since some members feel they are no longer a part of decision making. A feeling of entitlement also causes a group to be toxic. But there is another type of group which can become toxic over time. It fronts being religious but its practices are to the contrary. Groups like those formed by Jim Jones, another known as Heaven’s Gate and yet another, the Branch Davidians, engaged in toxic behaviour which harmed their members. These transformed into cults. In some Caribbean territories there are groups with religious sounding names which it is alleged
also engage in somewhat toxic behaviour. In one island a partner complained when the spouse said he had to go to perform some function for his group when his help was required at home. The needs of the group apparently came first. In other islands we hear of group activities being held at midnight, very early in the morning and at midday on particular days. This is in addition to activities held during some weeknights. Some say allegiance to these groups seems to have priority over home affairs. We need to tap into the divine knowledge given by our creator which protects us from being misled by those with supposed good intentions. Then we won’t need groups and the issue of them being toxic does not arise.
Repairs needed for Major Hill Dear Editor, I thank you for publishing this letter and those in the past. I was thinking the other day that our beloved friend the late Joshua Gardiner would be very pleased to know that I am writing again and not only him, but some as far as New York. I was and am not offended by the words of the PDM elected member for Blue Hills when he made reference to the road in the “city” of Major Hill as a “road that only wizards, crabs and iguanas” does use. His brother, our beloved Premier, corrected that statement for him. Thanks honourable Premier. Major Hill road always was a road that the governments of the past took long to repair and I always speak out for the much needed repair, even though I don’t live there or on that island. The then Governor Ric Todd was on Expression and I called in to the show and brought to his attention the horrible condition of Major Hill road and how the previous Government did that massive road upgrade from Sandy Point all the way to Lorimers in Middle Caicos including all streets and alleys and ignored Major
Hill road. He replied that he wasn’t aware of that road and invited me to share additional information on that road. I took him serious. I told him to make this repair or upgrade of Major Hill road one of his things-to-do before the next Government came into office. “Thank you for your email to the Governor. This reply confirms that the email has been received.” 08/13/2012. Since this Government came to power interest was expressed to them with regard to an investment in the Major Hill area worth over $30 million and that road will be the main road to that development. Major Hill road shouldn’t see an upgrade of only $300,000 but much more. Fixing that road that services the Government subdivision will cost more than the initial funds they budgeted for that road. I trust that this current Government will pave all the roads in and out of the “city” of Major Hill with the best material on the market before September of this year. Love and peace, Jonathan (Johnnie) Gardiner, Providenciales
Beautiful by nature, ugly by man Dear Editor, Who on earth thought that erecting 10 massive plastic banners on the site for the soon to be erected Ritz Carlton Hotel at Salt was a good idea? Some misguided person at the realtors we may presume? Such signs shoot the developers in the foot! They are
ugly in the extreme, thoughtless in concept and alienate the local populace. Hopefully someone will have the sense and good taste to have them removed pretty darn quickly or before. Brian Webster, Providenciales
We welcome letters from all members of the public on a variety of topics Please note that all submissions are subject to editing in keeping with defamation laws and newspaper style. Letters should be accompanied by the author’s full name, location and phone number. Names will be withheld if requested.
Send letters to [email protected]
TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
NEWS 11
National development through heritage preservation THE GREATEST resource of a country is its people. The fact that a national development plan comprises long range planning for the improvement of livelihoods for citizens, is indicative of the significance of the opening sentence. And while national development involves the provision of quality healthcare, access to education, improvement in transportation infrastructure, it also involves the development of policies to protect and empower its citizens against exploitation. Further, it also involves the development of programmes and projects with goals and objectives, some of which should be to instil national pride and evoke appreciation for heritage. Zooming in on the situation at home in our beautiful by nature country the Turks and Caicos Islands, we have managed to get a few things done along the line of the subject, but there is yet a long way to go. Whilst we have had countless opportunities to do it right the first time and even to begin again, we still seem to be off course. Collectively speaking, is it because there is no vision in ensuring that national pride and heritage preservation is embedded in our national development plan?
Better yet, is the national development plan well-articulated and understood by the citizens? It goes back to the fundamentals. Good governance, transparency and accountability. This can be achieved through unity. First of all, we must know who we are and what we have. We then must set the standards and maintain those standards. Hence, it is so important to identify and design programmes and projects through the national development process that would establish and solidify our identity and chart our destiny. It is only through having a strong sense of identity and an appreciation of our heritage, can we as a developing nation tenaciously embark on a course to govern our own destiny. One thing that has become common place in the Turks and Caicos is ‘lip service.’ And, unfortunately, the country leaders very much engaged in this practice. Nothing is ever achieved through lip service. When legislation and policies are developed, they must be enforced. This ensures ecological integrity which underpins the significance of protection and preservation of the natural and cultural heritage. Taking this a step further to
BY ETHLYN GIBBS-WILLIAMS
Ethlyn Gibbs-Williams is currently serving as executive director of the Turks and Caicos National Trust, a certified project manager and chartered director with over 20 years of experience in project, programme development and management and community empowerment.
ensure that citizens and residents, as well a potential developers are aware of legislation and policies can be achieved through education outreach programmes and projects. The power of education is awesome. And much can be achieved through a united front. Yes we have missed a lot of opportunities to get it right, but all is not lost. As a country we can begin right now to analyse our national development strategy and design solutions to strengthen weak areas such as national values and heritage preservation. Government ministries and departments, civil society organisations, quasi-government organisations, schools, advance education institutions, the private sector, all are stakeholders in the national development process, and therefore should participate in, and support heritage preservation
programmes and projects. Heritage preservation to a nation is like a birth certificate. Heritage is what makes you who you are. It’s your birth right. Therefore, the national development strategy should encompass heritage preservation. Should we as a people exchange our birth right like Esau for ‘a bowl of soup’- material possessions, sell or squander our inheritance? Surely if we were to go down that path we can’t expect to have negotiating powers anymore. It goes back to what was said earlier - we must know who we are and what we have. By our own actions, we can make others lord over our destiny and that of our children and children’s children. By our actions we can become perpetual borrowers - the borrower then becomes slave to the lender.
The ace is not in your hands anymore. Strangers determine your fate. They become masters over what was once your heritage, is that what we want for our destiny? I think not! Let us go back to the drawing board in unity. Scrutinise the national development plan, strengthen the weak areas, build on foundations that are already laid for heritage preservation programmes and projects such as the national heritage register published 2014, educational and ecotourism activities centred around heritage sites such as the Cheshire Hall Plantation ruins, Wade’s Green 18 century cotton plantation ruins in Kew, North Caicos, Little Water Cay Nature Reserve conservation tours and Bird Rock Point Heritage Fields programme, just to name a few. There are indeed benefits to be derived from heritage preservation such as jobs, educational improvement opportunities and support, business partnership, entrepreneurship possibilities, professional development opportunities, etc. As a country, as a people, our goal and objective through national development should be to ensure that Turks and Caicos Islanders are firstly, knowledgeable about their heritage, and secondly be engaged in and benefiting from heritage protection and preservation.
COMMENTARY
Drugs, booze and frustration A WOMAN friend of Yvette was killed in Florida recently. The woman’s son was critically injured. They were walking on a sidewalk when an automobile veered off the street striking them. The details are terrible. The young driver of the car was intoxicated at 9am in the morning. This is one more incident of intoxicants causing young people to lose control, wasting lives. Auto accidents caused by intoxicated drivers are only one horrible problem. If the addicted are not at the wheel of a car they are carrying knives or guns. Many robberies happen because of the need to fund addiction. Murders and stabbings result from frustration and drug wars.
BY DAVID TAPFER
David is a retired mobile hydraulic engineer and business executive. He has been married to Middle Caicos native Yvette Robinson Tapfer for 25 years and has lived in Conch Bar, Middle Caicos, since 2002. David formerly served as branch chairman of the PDM from 2008 to 2011
Politicians in the USA and the TCI don’t know how to reverse the problems. Gun control is the agenda of one US political party. The TCI has proven gun control does not work. We must look at the root cause of addition. We were taught, ‘Idle hands are the devils workshop’. What causes youthful hands to be idle? Youths always have high hopes but when rewarding employment is
not available frustration sets in. In the normal course of life when a child finishes school they expect emancipation. They seek employment to fund their independence. The TCI lacks trade schools and council persons to meet repeatedly with each and every high school student. What are the students’ interests? Why push an intelligent young man interested in auto mechanics into a
college preparation course? Is the lack of guidance and the lack of educational alternatives one of the root causes of frustration, school drop outs and idle hands becoming available to the devil? Then there are the bad examples set by those in high places. Drugs and booze and the promise of more of the same. I can tell from personal experience that a career of one’s choosing is rewarding. Not only in earning one’s living by performing a needed service or designing and/or building something needed. This does not include running casinos or peddling drugs or booze. Casinos prey on those addicted to gambling. Why promote the sale of booze? Instead, promote clinics to handle addictions! What about our young woman? They rarely take to guns and knives but when the population of young
men are preoccupied with booze, drugs and frustration we end up with unwed mothers and unemployed frustrated ‘baby fathers’. Where do we go from here? Instead of worrying on television over keeping schools open in North and Middle Caicos - that is a given - the Deputy Premier of three and a half years needs to consider why the population of the largest most promising islands has been disappearing. Where is her plan to start technical education and trade schools? We import teachers, nurses, doctors, auto mechanics, refrigeration servicemen and numerous other technical ‘experts’. Maybe with a proper educational plan we could predict less frustration, intoxication and crime.
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TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
March 19 - 25, 2016
TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
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TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
March 19 - 25, 2016
Deputy Governor congratulates HR manager on award THE OFFICE of the Deputy Governor has praised the TCIG human resources manager on obtaining an internationally recognised certification. Keisha Taylor has been successful in obtaining her Human Resources Management Certification from the Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM). The SHRM credentials are relevant worldwide and test behavioural competencies as well as the application of HR technical knowledge. Taylor said: “I was elated to receive the official results that I had successfully completed my SHRMCP certification exam. “I am also grateful for the opportunity granted through both the United Kingdom Jubilee Fund and the TCIG Public Service Professional Development Fund. “My effort and success on this
initiative is an ideal and critical demonstration of the commitment to my continuous professional development and my desire to effectively assist the team in the advancement of HR best practices in the TCIG public service.” The SHRM was founded in 1948 and is the world’s largest HR membership organisation devoted to human resource management representing more than 275,000 members in more than 160 countries. The body has more than 575 affiliated chapters within the United States and subsidiary offices in China, India and United Arab Emirates and aims to develop the HR profession globally. Deputy Governor Anya Williams said: “I am very proud of our human resource management team most especially Ms Taylor on the recent accomplishment of her Human
Resource Management Certification. “This certification will provide both her and the other HR officers with a specialist qualification that is up to date and is relevant to the work they do. “This will in turn help to provide a better service to the Government and to improve the overall performance of the human resource management directorate. “As a part of our intention to fully utilise the professional development fund to assist in professionalising all staff across Government, it is our intention to have all HR officers complete this certification program by April 2017. “I certainly wish all others much success in their upcoming studies and exams and encourage all other staff across government to pursue similar opportunities in their individual professions. “Once again, congratulations.”
CERTIFIED: Taylor has obtained an internationally recognised qualification in her field
Under the sea YOUNGSTERS will get the chance to learn more about the world under the waves next week as part of a new nature project. School pupils are being given the opportunity to attend a free snorkel clinic in Providenciales on Wednesday, March 23. The initiative, organised by the School for Field Studies in collaboration with Amanyara resort, the Edward C Gartland Youth Centre and the Department of Environmental and Maritime Affairs (DEMA), is aimed at getting children to learn more about natural resources. Heidi Hartler, centre director at the School for Field Studies, said: “On South Caicos, the School for Field Studies provides opportunities for young community members to discover and explore our natural resources through swimming lessons and the SFS Snorkel Club. “The School for Field Studies is excited to work in collaboration with Amanyara, the Edward C Gartland
Youth Centre, and DEMA to extend our community engagement efforts to Providenciales and introduce local youth to the underwater world. “Our students are excited to share what they have learned on South Caicos about coral reefs and their value, and hope to encourage greater stewardship and understanding of this very important natural resource.” Registered school students between the ages of eight and 15 with at least a moderate swimming ability will join the SFS college students for a one-on-one ‘learn to snorkel’ clinic. Participants will get to explore the underwater coral reefs of Providenciales while learning to use and care for their snorkel equipment. The morning will include an introduction to snorkelling, educational and fun marine conservation games and in-water snorkel training. More information is available at the Edward C Gartland Youth Centre on 331-9602.
Staff promoted at Digicel Sean Brathwaite of Scotiabank presents donation to TCIFA’s Olivia Graveley
Bank donates $2,000 to youth football YOUNG footballers in the TCI are set to benefit from the generosity of a corporate supporter Earlier this month Scotiabank donated $2,000 to the TCI Football Association for its youth development programme. Sean Brathwaite, managing director of Scotiabank, attended the TCIFA National Academy on
Monday, March 7, to make the presentation. It was received by Olivia Graveley, coaching development officer at the TCIFA, along with children and coaches involved the association’s Grassroots Football Development Programme. During his visit Brathwaite was able to see first-hand the
talents of the children in training and he reiterated Scotiabank’s dedication to continue supporting the programme. President of the TCIFA Sonia Bien-Aime said: “Scotiabank are dedicated supporters to our annual fundraisers and youth development programmes, and we’re very appreciative for their ongoing support.”
TWO hard working staff members have been rewarded with promotions at telecoms company Digicel. Monique Williams and Frankira Forbes have been promoted to retail store manager and store supervisor at Graceway House in Providenciales. According to a press release from the company on Wednesday (March 16), both employees have been outstanding, dedicated and hardworking since joining the team. CEO of Digicel TCI Sinead O’ Marcaigh said: “We continue to
be very proud of our employees. “Monique and Frankira have exemplified the essence of the Digicel way, where hard work, dedication and commitment to our customers is our number one goal. “These promotions are simply Digicel’s way of rewarding two outstanding employees. “Part of our goals is to ensure that we have the best trained, the best motivated and the most customer focused employees in the TCI; and to ensure that Turks and Caicos Islanders continue to have opportunities to advance.”
March 19 - 25, 2016
NEWS 15
TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
Bank staff learn about gender equality FEMALE employees from CIBC FirstCaribbean teamed up with the Department of Gender Affairs on March 8 and 10 to celebrate International Women’s Day. The staff members were treated to a presentation by the department’s deputy coordinator Barbara Handfield on the state of gender equality. Following this year’s theme for International Women’s Day ‘Pledge for Parity,’ Handfield’s interactive presentation focused on equality for all. She stressed that equality is not only about wages but it begins in social lives and homes. Handfield added that equality does not mean making women more powerful than men but rather the sexes working together to achieve harmony and justice. Bianca O’Neil, business support officer at CIBC FirstCaribbean, and organiser of the event said the presentations were well attended by staff. “Her talk was engaging, instructive and enlightening and we believe many women left feeling better-informed and empowered.” This is the second year that CIBC FirstCaribbean has celebrated International Women’s Day in the Turks and Caicos Islands. CIBC FirstCaribbean country
CIBC FirstCaribbean staff on International Women’s Day
head Larry Lawrence said that the bank is committed to the advancement of women year round. “Our commitment ensures that we attract and retain the best talent, drive strong performance, and generate new opportunities in the community.”
Local designer to host first fashion week BY DAISY HANDFIELD
Business licence holders warned to settle up BUSINESS licence holders must settle delinquent accounts on or before March 31, according to the Revenue Department. Failure to do so will result in the suspension and revocation of licences. A press release from the department read: “Business licence holders are reminded that a business licence is not transferrable and as such, the sale of a business or transfer of shares
must be immediately followed up with a cancellation notice to the Revenue Department. “The new owners are required to acquire a new business licence through the application process.” More information is available at the Revenue Department, Town Centre Mall, Providenciales or Hibiscus Square, Grand Turk, on 338-5234 or 338-2061 or via email at tcirevenuedepartment@ gov.tc.
Fundraising banquet for nursing education A GLAMOROUS evening event is set to take place next month to raise cash for nursing education. The Drs Albray and Rosita Butterfiled Foundation is hosting the fundraising banquet under the patronage of Premier Rufus Ewing and his wife on April 15 at 7pm. It will honour the much loved “nation builder” Rosita Butterfield MBE who passed away in January
2015. Dr Butterfield was a teacher, a nurse, a long standing member of parliament, a businesswoman, a preacher and a philanthropist. Born in Kew, North Caicos, she touched the lives of many before passing away aged 78. Tickets cost $100 and include food at the Tropicana Supper Club in Providenciales.
VISION and high aspirations for the country’s fashion industry are two qualities that local fashion designer Jeritt Williams has going on for him. Williams told the Weekly News that he is looking to host the first ever Turks and Caicos Islands Fashion Week sometime in October. He said he wants to reach out to the community for models, sponsors, team players and designers in advance in order for the event to be as successful as possible. The designer is looking for male models 5ft 10ins and up, female models 5ft 7ins and up, full figured models 5ft 10ins and up and children models. Williams said: “The event is mainly focused on attracting fashion lovers to the Turks and Caicos, promoting the local fashion designers and fashion boutiques. “There will also be invited designers who will be coming to showcase their designs and international models.” The young designer said that he initially decided to host Turks and Caicos Fashion Week because of his passion for fashion. “I do believe that the Turks and Caicos is ready for a new industry and I believe starting something like this as Turks
Local fashion designer, Jeritt Williams
and Caicos Fashion Week, that’s a great start to a not only give myself an opportunity, but also gives other emerging designers the opportunity to spread their wings internationally,” Williams said. The event will be held in Grace Bay, but a specific location has not been confirmed yet. Williams said that packages will be sold for the event and that attendees can expect a fulfilling weekend of fashion and networking. He said: “I do feel proud of myself, I do think that I have all of
the capabilities to host an event like this. “With my experience being a part of so many major events gives me the drive and knowledge to produce my own event.” The designer has participated in Harrisburg Fashion Week, a reality show in Kingston Jamaica called Mission Catwalk and Los Angeles Fashion Week. He has also created fabulous designs for a number of wellknown people in the TCI community.
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TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
GARDENING
March 19 - 25, 2016
HOW DOES YOUR GARDEN GROW
Shaving brush tree PSEUDOBOMBAX ellipticum, commonly known as the shaving brush tree, is one of my favourite blooming trees. It’s a stunning centrepiece addition to any tropical-esque succulent garden. A unique and stunning gem from the drier tropical forest regions of southern Mexico down into Central America. So it’s a perfect tree for the Turks and Caicos Islands. Generally it grows 20 to 40 feet. At this time of the year large cigarlike buds rapidly develop in response to warmer weather. The flowers are silky and two types colours. Some trees bloom neon hot pink flowers and some white flowers. While only lasting a couple of days each on average flowering will
BY DENIS BELANGER - NATURE SPLENDOR
Denis is a passionate landscape architect who enjoys the creative process and his clients’ joy when projects come to life. Contact Denis at Nature Splendor for your landscaping, installation or garden maintenance needs. For more information call 332-3381 or email [email protected].
continue for a few weeks before new leaves begin to flush and hide any late blooms. This is a tree that puts on quite a show while pushing fresh spring foliage. The wood is interesting as well, showing striping of greens, yellows, browns and white. For this reason people plant the tree in their garden and the attractive flowers are used to decorate their homes and churches. The shaving brush tree is also nice when it’s young, having a bulb-like
swollen stem that looks like a green rock melon. The tree is also used as firewood and wood for carving handicrafts. The fruits are collected manually from the tree before opening and drying to extract the seeds. The small seeds are manually separated from the fibres and stored under cool and dry conditions. Pseudobombax ellipticum is propagated by seeds and cuttings. Seeds require sunny locations for germination. The cuttings are easily rooted
when planted in bags of soil and watered daily or when planted directly in the field. Newest leaves open a rich blood red or maroon then slowly fade through orange-ish and bronze shades before changing to bright light apple green, and finally a nice deep green. During the summer the large, deep green palmate-type leaves create a
nice shade. Meanwhile, if present, fat oval shaped seed pods cycle through their development, once again decorating the tree. While quite drought tolerant shaving brush trees will grow faster and fuller when supplied extra summer water. In winter leaves will change to gold and brown before dropping.
butter in a frying pan over medium-high heat. • You could use the same pan that you fried the bacon in - just retain a tablespoon of the bacon dripping and don’t add the
butter or margarine. • On each tortilla, sprinkle two tablespoons of shredded cheese. Cover with a third of the scrambled eggs. • Top with one or two slices of
bacon. Fold the tortillas envelope-style or roll it up like a wrap. • Let them set for one minute so the cheese melts. Eat and enjoy!
Weekly Recipe
Breakfast tortilla wrap
INGREDIENTS • 1 tablespoon butter or margarine • 6 large eggs • 2 tablespoons milk • 6 tablespoons shredded Cheddar cheese or American cheese • 3 to 6 slices bacon • 3 large flour tortillas • Salt and pepper to taste METHOD • In a large pan over mediumhigh heat, fry the bacon until
BY ADELE VAN SCHOOR browned and completely cooked. • Transfer to stacked paper towels to remove any excess grease and to crisp as it sets. • In a mixing bowl, beat the eggs with the milk and a couple of pinches of salt and pepper. • Scramble the eggs in melted
March 19 - 25, 2016
TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
By Lynn Robinson
Lynn Robinson has lived in the Turks and Caicos Islands for 12 years and works at Big Blue Unlimited as a diving instructor, eco guide and boat captain. She is passionate about the environment and does regular beach clean ups while walking her three potcakes. Her other passion is running and can often be seen training for marathons and ultra-marathons.
Not so biodegradable DON’T be fooled by the biodegradable claims. They are not what they seem and have given people the false impression that it’s okay to continue to use plastic. Recent years have seen the explosion of biodegradable plastic on the scene in an attempt to help the environment and make people feel better about their impact on the ever increasing amount of trash that we produce as a species. Sadly so called ‘biodegradable plastics’ are still wreaking havoc on the planet as they need specific conditions like micro-organisms, temperature and humidity to biodegrade properly and long before they have broken down they have already impacted hundreds and thousands of vulnerable species, causing entanglement, suffocation, starvation and eventually death. Even when biodegradable plastics are dumped into landfills they can produce harmful greenhouse gases when broken down. There really is no excuse for single use and unless we all start to make changes it will be too late to reverse the damage that we have caused. Many cities, states and countries are banning plastic bags, single use coffee pods, straws, Styrofoam and other harmful plastics in a bid to stand up to the rising tide of ‘convenience’. Just recently Antigua announced a ban on plastic bags, the city of Hamberg in Germany has banned the popular coffee pods and Sweden is so efficient at waste management that only one percent of its waste ends up in landfills. The Turks and Caicos Islands have yet again been voted the number one islands in the world but isn’t it about time we made a real difference? How about if we strive to become the number one eco-friendly island in the world? Somewhere where residents can be proud to show the rest of the world what can be achieved with the right mind-set and values to make a difference and thereby influencing visitors to make a change in their own lifestyles. Hotels can encourage the use of reusable bottles and bags by installing water refilling stations and handing out grocery bags for guests to use while shopping. Bars and restaurants can stop handing out straws automatically with drinks and can also start using eco-friendly take out containers. More trash cans can be stationed around popular areas with regular garbage collections and businesses can take ‘ownership’ of road and beach areas nearby with a view to keeping them clean and trash free. “No one is an environmentalist by birth. It is only your path, your life, your travels that awaken you,” Yann Arthus-Bertrand.
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Caribbean countries urged to strengthen cyber security BY OLIVIA ROSE CARIBBEAN and Latin American countries are being urged to step up efforts on cyber security. This comes as a recent report titled ‘Are we ready in Latin America and the Caribbean?’ was released by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the Organisation of American States (OAS). Leaders of both organisations made the call after a new study was undertaken by the two institutions in collaboration with Oxford University. It shows the region is highly vulnerable to potentially devastating cyber-attacks. Cyber crimes are criminal offences committed via the internet or otherwise aided by various forms of computer technology, such as the use of online social networks to bully others or sending sexually explicit digital photos with a smart phone. The report which was released on Monday (March 14) demonstrates that four out of every five countries in the region do not have a cyber security strategy or plans for protecting critical infrastructure. The 2016 cyber security report also shows that two out of three countries do not have a command and control centre for cyber security. Additionally, the report outlined that a large majority of prosecutors lack the capacity to punish cybercrimes and face other problems as well. According to the OAS, the report analyses the state of preparedness of 32 countries, based on 49 indicators. It is the first significant examination of the level of preparedness in Latin America and the Caribbean against the growing threat of cybercrime. It said that while Uruguay, Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Chile, Colombia and Trinidad and Tobago
have achieved an “intermediate level of preparedness” they “remain far from advanced countries” like the United States, Israel, Estonia and the Republic of Korea. “This report is a call to action to protect our citizens and our critical infrastructure for the 21st century,” said IDB president Luis Alberto Moreno. “Our region arrived late to the industrial revolution. We cannot miss the opportunity that the digital revolution offers us. Because of that, cyber security must be a priority.” OAS assistant secretary general Nestor Mendez emphasised that cyberspace is increasingly becoming an integral part of the daily life of people in the Americas, including the Caribbean, and is indispensable to their total development. “That is why we have to regard cyber security like any other kind of security: an issue of the highest priority for our people, without which we expose ourselves to potentially catastrophic losses,” he said. “In this context, our motto of ‘More rights for more people’ signals our commitment to continue
Resort seeks graduate engineers BEACHES and Sandals are seeking to identify engineering and facilities management graduates from across the Caribbean for its management trainee programme. Ideal candidates must have a first degree in engineering and/ or facilities management or other related discipline, from a recognised tertiary institution. In addition, shortlisted candidates must be over 21-years-old, possess strong communication and organisational skills and have a clear interest for growth in the hospitality industry.
The successful candidates will experience an intensive, accelerated and practical two-year learning and development programme including exposure to all areas and departments of hotel operations with a targeted specialisation of engineering and facilities management. Submissions should be made by email to [email protected] no later than May 1, 2016. Following submissions, there will be an intense selection process including a series of extensive interviews to identify the most suitable candidates.
working to strengthen the capacity of our countries to protect our people, our economies and the critical infrastructure of our region,” he added. The OAS said the risks of abuse increase as Latin America and the Caribbean join the digital revolution. It said the region is the fourthlargest mobile market in the world, with half its population using the internet. The evaluation of the maturity of cyber security policies in the region includes 49 indicators in five areas: policy and strategy, culture and society education, legal framework and technology. The report includes technical data on each of the countries and analyses key elements such as the legal status and the capacity of each country to respond to incidents. The report notes 16 countries in the region have no coordinated capacity to respond to incidents. Only four rank above the intermediate level of maturity in this respect. Only six have a structured programme of education in cybersecurity, which includes budgetary stability as well as mechanisms for research and the transfer of knowledge, the report states.
Red Cross hosts annual tea party A TEA party to raise funds for the TCI Red Cross will be held at Waterloo in Grand Turk this April. ‘Lips, Clutches and Heels’ will take place on Saturday, April 9, from 3pm to 7pm will include live musicians and a silent auction Tickets can be bought for $20 at TCI Red Cross from Monday to Friday, 9am to 1pm, and from volunteers.
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TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
March 19 - 25, 2016
Haiti records nearly 100 cholera deaths in first two months of 2016 Haiti says it has recorded 96 deaths from cholera during the first two months of this year. The Ministry of Public Health and Population (MSPP) said there were also 7, 782 cases of the disease during the period January 1 to February 27. But it said that the trend is towards a decrease in the number of cases following the outbreak US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention described as the worst epidemic of cholera in recent history. Haitians have blamed UN peacekeeping troops from Nepal whom they said carried strains of the disease with them, contaminating a large portion of the country’s drinking water. The United Nations initially denied any role in the outbreak, and has refused to redress complaints, claiming immunity under a 1946 convention. In January, a US judge dismissed a lawsuit filed by human rights groups seeking compensation for Haitian victims. The MSPP said that the decline has been observed every week despite the recent rains, saying “this situation demonstrates of a better capacity to control the transmission in outbreak and at the same time the
The iconic Grand Lucayan Resort complex is being offered for sale. (PRNewsFoto/HVS Capital Corp.)
One of Bahamas’ biggest resorts up for sale Haiti’s Ministry of Public Health and Population (MSPP) said there were also 7,782 cases of the disease during the period January 1 to February 27.
need to enhance efforts to strengthen the management of cases. “The humanitarian community continues to support the Haitian government in its efforts not only to ensure a rapid and effective response to the cholera epidemic in improving access to drinking water services, sanitation and health, but also to reduce the vulnerability of populations living in the most at-risk cholera areas. “As part of the continuation of this commitment a humanitarian
response plan in which the response to the cholera outbreak is a priority is being developed,” the MSPP added. But it noted that the number of deaths during the first two months of this year is higher than the same period last year when 67 deaths were recorded. In addition, the Ministry of Health reports that 18 communities, including Cap-Haïtien, Limbé, Pilatte, Port Margot and even some sections of the capital, remain in a red alert. (CMC)
Judge to decide on sanity of woman who killed daughter in Cayman Islands ATTORNEYS made their closing arguments Monday in the case against Tamara Butler, accused of killing her 6-year-old daughter in October 2014. The question for the verdict in the judge-alone trial is not whether Butler killed her daughter, but if she knew what she was doing was wrong. Butler told psychologists after her arrest that God had told her to shave her head and then told her to kill her daughter Bethany. The question over the defendant’s state of mind will mean the difference between murder and manslaughter when Justice Alastair Malcolm delivers his verdict on Monday. “Following God’s command or not, did she know what she was doing was wrong?” said Crown prosecutor Cheryll Richards. The weeklong trial included testimony from police, several psychologists and Butler’s husband Lenford Butler, a sergeant in the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service. Mr. Butler told the court how his wife changed dramatically after she lost her job with the police service as a civilian employee working on the front desk. He told the court how, on the
night of the murder, his wife shaved her own hair and eyebrows before trying to shave their daughter’s. He stepped in to stop his wife, but later he had to go to work for a midnight to 7 a.m. shift. He testified that he was concerned enough – and his daughter was scared – that he locked the girl in the master bedroom and gave her his cellphone, putting 911 on speed dial. The Crown argued that Butler knew what she was doing was wrong. Ms. Richards acknowledged that the defendant was “substantially impaired.” But, she said, the crucial question is one of degree. The prosecutor pointed to who Butler responded to after police found her early on Oct. 27. 2014, and whether she was, as the defense and several doctors suggested, “in a catatonic state.” She did not respond to officers once she got to the hospital, but she did respond to a doctor and she got on an exam table when requested. “If she had been in a truly catatonic state, there would have been no selectivity over who she corresponded with,” Ms. Richards argued. In transcribed sessions with
psychiatrist Dr. Marc Lockhart, Ms. Richards said the doctor led the defendant to answer in certain ways to make her sound less stable. “She’s thinking about culpability in her mind very, very clearly,” she said. The defense, for its part, did not dispute that Butler killed her daughter. But, said defense attorney Trevor Burke, the question is why “an otherwise devoted and loving mother” would kill her own child. To see that his client was not in her right mind, Mr. Burke said, the judge can “rely on the simple facts of the case itself.” The attorney, citing testimony from psychologists, said his client believed that God told her that she would have to shave her hair and remove her fake fingernails before she could be admitted into heaven. The events that night leading up to the murder were a “very clear indication of significant psychosis,” he said. To say, as the Crown argued in part, that Butler shaved her head and killed her daughter to get revenge on her husband for suspected infidelity, Mr. Burke said, was “too trite, too simple, and barely scratches the surface.”
GRAND Lucayan Resort, the largest resort on Grand Bahama Island and the third largest in The Bahamas, is being sold in a sealed bid auction. The owner, Hutchison Lucaya Limited, has engaged HVS Capital Corp. to act as advisor in the sale. Bids for the 409-acre resort will be accepted until June 10. “There are a number of investment opportunities for an interested buyer, from purchasing the resort in its entirety or looking at individual components,” said Mike Sullivan of HVS Capital Corp. “Some of those options include expanding and/or relocating the casino, converting additional accommodations to an all-inclusive product or converting some accommodations to vacation or whole ownership.”
Stan Kozlowski of HVS Capital Corp added that there were favourable economic investment opportunities for Grand Lucayan, regardless of what options a potential buyer considers. Located 55 miles from the east coast of Florida, the Grand Lucayan Resort complex, totaling 1,271 guestrooms, includes four hotel elements: the 10-story 528room Breaker’s Cay tower; 198room Lighthouse Pointe, newly renovated as all-inclusive; and 23 Lanai Suites—all with 12 food and beverage outlets and three swimming pools; plus the 522-room Memories Beach Resort which is presently leased to a third-party operator. It also has a conference centre, casino, two golf courses and tennis courts. (Caribbean360)
Caribbean leadership council announced by Clinton campaign
Democrat Hillary Clinton will support Caribbean families if elected as US president.
In the run-up to Tuesday’s Florida Democratic presidential primary, the Hillary Clinton campaign announced its “Hillary for Florida” Caribbean Leadership Council – a diverse group of grassroots and community leaders in the Caribbean-American community committed to electing Hillary Clinton as president of the United States. According to State Representative Hazelle Rogers, President of the Florida Democratic Party Caribbean American Caucus, “As president,
Hillary Clinton will fight for Caribbean-American families. “Hillary has a strong record of standing up for women and children, from advocating to bolster early childhood education to expanding health care for millions of kids. She is the champion that our community deserves,” Rogers added. Mayor of Miramar Wayne Messam concurred, indicating that Mrs Clinton had a strong record of standing with the CaribbeanAmerican community.
March 19 - 25, 2016
TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
Lawsuit alleging murder-for-hire against Nygard ‘absolutely without merit’: Prober
Gordon “Butch” Stewart says The Gleaner’s defamatory report had caused significant damage, not only to his reputation but to the companies he represents. (Photo via atlantablackstar.com)
Prominent businessman suing Jamaica media company for billions over defamatory article HOTEL mogul Gordon ‘Butch’ Stewart is suing one of Jamaica’s biggest media companies for J$17.5 billion (US$143.8 million) over the publication of an article that he says was “false, malicious, and defamatory”. Stewart, the founder of the all-inclusive Sandals Resorts and chairman of the Appliance Traders Ltd (ATL) Group, said in a statement yesterday that the report published on The Gleaner Company’s website last Friday had caused “significant damage”, not only to his reputation but to the companies he represents. The report surrounded the non-payment of J$40 million (US$328,677) in costs, in a legal matter involving Opposition Senator and businessman Noel Sloley. “This publication was and is
factually incorrect,” Stewart said. “This publication has had significant negative impact on the Sandals brand, which is the Caribbean’s leading global brand, and also the ATL brand, resulting in significant losses. The publication was made without any reference to or consultation with Mr. Stewart or his representative(s) to verify the truthfulness or otherwise of the story.” In the circumstances, the businessman said he was “constrained to initiate legal action”. Stewart said he is seeking damages in the region of J$17.5 billion, but stressed that was only “a conservative estimate”. The Gleaner has not yet issued a public response to the legal action, but the article in question was removed from its website. (Caribbean360)
Bermuda Survey: majority of voters support Pathways to Status Bill MORE than half of registered voters support the Bermuda Government’s Pathways to Status Bill, with just over a quarter against, according to a poll commissioned by The Royal Gazette. The controversial legislation, which has been the subject of industrial activity since last Friday, was approved by 56 per cent of people, with 29 per cent against it, in the survey by Global Research this month. The remaining 15 per cent were unsure. Whites and One Bermuda Alliance supporters overwhelmingly gave their backing to the Bill, with opinions more evenly split among blacks and Progressive Labour Party
supporters. Among whites, support came from 90 per cent, with 4 per cent against and 6 per cent unsure. Among blacks, 38 per cent were in favour, 42 per cent opposed and 20 per cent said they don’t know. Similarly, 90 per cent of OBA voters said they were in favour of the Bill, with 4 per cent opposing and 5 per cent unsure. Of PLP voters, 25 per cent said they were in favour, 56 per cent opposed and 18 per cent were not sure. The telephone poll of 400 Bermuda voters was conducted between March 7 and March 14, and has a margin of error of plus or minus 5 per cent. (Royal Gazette)
WINNIPEG fashion mogul Peter Nygard is defending himself against accusations he masterminded a murder-for-hire plot aimed at opponents of a planned expansion of his luxurious property in the Bahamas. Bahamian Prime Minister Perry Christie has called on the police to investigate the claims, according to news reports in Bahamian media today. In a lawsuit filed in Bahamian court last week, five plaintiffs who are members of a non-governmental organisation called Save The Bays – including Nygard’s neighbour, American hedge fund manager Louis Bacon – allege Nygard paid two known criminals to threaten, intimidate and plan to kill them. The allegations are “a pack of lies,” and Nygard’s legal team is set to launch a counter claim, said Winnipeg-based lawyer Jay Prober, who spoke to the Free Press on Nygard’s behalf. The accusations against Nygard include secretly recorded video of Nygard meeting with two men described as known criminals, and sworn statements from them saying Nygard paid them large sums of money to organize anti-Save The Bays protests that portrayed Bacon as a racist and to commit arson and other
Peter Nygard and his legal team are set to file a counter claim to the allegations.
crimes against Nygard’s opponents. The men, Livingston “Toggie” Bullard and Wisler “Bobo” Davilma, allege Nygard had a hit list of people he wanted them to “deal with.” “Bahamians say ‘deal,’ mean take care of business, kill. That’s the way Bahamians talk,” Davilma said in his statement to private investigators. The court documents also allege corruption at top levels of the Bahamian government, suggesting the prime minister had promised Nygard he would be allowed to build on government property to expand his Nygard Cay resort and that Nygard had close ties to the deputy prime minister’s office. Christie denied these allegations during a House of Assembly session this week, according to the Nassau Guardian
newspaper, and said he has asked the police to investigate the claims. “The suggestion that I used the power of my office to extend special treatment to Peter Nygard is completely and utterly false,” the newspaper quoted Christie as saying. The plantiffs – Bacon, lawyer Fred Smith, Reverend C.B. Moss, Joseph Darville and Romauld Ferreira – said in a written statement provided to the Free Press that the Royal Bahamas Police Force “failed to adequately respond” despite an alleged 2.5-yearlong campaign of harassment, death threats, fire bombing and physical attacks against them. They say they were forced to launch their own private investigation, resulting in the lawsuit. Accusations in the lawsuit have not been proven in court.
Non-payment of taxes main weakness in region’s economies, says ECLAC THE United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) has called for measures to tackle nonpayment of taxes, cautioning in a just released report that tax evasion is one of the main weaknesses of the tax systems in the region’s economies, accounting for US$320 billion dollars in 2014. Tax revenues are the cornerstone of the basic financing of modern State, and it is therefore vital to prioritize the creation of a tax culture in which evaders are effectively punished, according to the ECLAC document, ‘Fiscal Panorama of Latin America and the Caribbean 2016’, which was launched earlier today. The ECLAC report states that fiscal non-compliance represents 2.2 points of gross domestic product (GDP) in terms of Value Added Tax (VAT) at the regional level, and 4.1 GDP points in terms of income tax. While ECLAC said it acknowledges the difficulties of bringing those numbers down against a backdrop of reduced economic buoyancy, it called for increased efforts to avoid a substantial loss of potential tax resources. According to the document, there
was an across-the-board decline in VAT evasion up to 2007-2008, although that favourable trend was reversed due to the financial crisis. The Commission describes the need for more in-depth reforms of the structure and administration of VAT. Similarly, with income tax evasion there has been no significant progress in recent years. The Fiscal Panorama 2016 states that, Latin America recorded a slight average reduction in fiscal accounts, and reached a fiscal deficit of three per cent of GDP and public borrowing of 34.7 per cent of GDP last year. Out of the 19 countries studied, 11 simultaneously increased their fiscal deficit and public debt as a proportion of GDP. According to the report, the slowdown in economic growth and the worsening terms of trade have had dramatic effects on the public finances in many of the region’s countries, with many having to carry out significant fiscal adjustments. ECLAC outlines an uneven future at the regional level, with most South American countries remaining saddled with uncertainty because of the slowdown in China and other
emerging nations in 2016, while Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean will benefit from positive growth rates, and from falling oil prices in the latter two sub-regions. In order to protect and boost public investment and growth, the United Nations Economic Commission highlights the need to strengthen counter-cyclical institutional arrangements to reduce harmful cycles of expansion and contraction of public spending. Fiscal adjustments should therefore aim to attract investment that leads to growth, according to ECLAC. The report affirms that 2015 was marked by a loss of income from non-renewable natural resources, although this was offset by higher tax revenues resulting from reform. On average, the region increased its tax burden by 0.2 per cent of GDP, mainly thanks to improved collection of income tax. The main conclusions of the Fiscal Panorama of Latin America and the Caribbean 2016 will be presented at the first session of the XXVIII Regional Seminar on Fiscal Policy, which will be opened tomorrow. (Caribbean360)
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March 19 - 25, 2016
World News
‘Wages and living standards to fall,’ warns UK think tank Wages and living standards are set to fall, an influential think tank has warned, after Chancellor George Osborne revised down his growth forecasts. The Institute for Fiscal Studies warned if the Budget forecasts were right “we should all be worried”. “This will lead to lower wages and living standards, not just lower tax revenues for the Treasury,” it said. Mr Osborne blamed global factors for the cut, but Labour said his credibility was “completely shot”. Labour also accused him of cutting taxes for the wealthy at the expense of the poor. The independent forecasting body, the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), revised the UK growth forecasts down for the next five years in Wednesday’s Budget, and Mr Osborne warned the outlook for the global economy was “markedly weaker” with the UK “not immune” to a slowdown. The IFS said lower UK productivity was largely to blame for the downgrade. Despite the lower-than-expected growth, Mr Osborne said he was still on track to get the UK back in the black by 2020, insisting on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme that he would clear the deficit. But he added the proviso that it would happen “in normal times
Mother Teresa won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979 for dedicating her life to helping the poor in India.
The prediction stems from Chancellor George Osborne revising his growth forecasts.
when the economy is growing”. However, the IFS warned Mr Osborne was “running out of wriggle room” and gave him just a 50% chance of hitting his target of a £10bn surplus on the public finances by 2020. It also warned that if growth deteriorated further then Mr Osborne would need fresh spending cuts or tax rises to meet his pledge. “If there was another downgrade in fiscal forecasts of a similar magnitude and the chancellor did wish to remain on course to deliver a budget surplus in 2019-20 then this would surely require more real policy change,” said IFS director Paul Johnson. Mr Johnson also said the chancellor had “managed to shift quite a lot money around” to try and
meet his target but he can only “get away with this once”. In the Budget, Mr Osborne said he would cut spending by a further £3.5bn in the last year of parliament, on top of the cuts announced in November, but did not specify where these would fall. Mr Osborne said he would also bring forward capital spending, previously due in 2019, and delay tax revenues for the same year to make sure he achieved his budget surplus target. “If we get another downgrade in prospects or prospects for tax receipts which is perfectly possible it’s almost a 50:50 chance that that will happen - if that happens again he won’t be able to get away with a similar set of actions next time.
Democracy is a joke, says China – just look at Trump WHEN there is upheaval within China’s own borders – riots, protests, vicious political power struggles – hardly a sniff of it will be found in the pages of the country’s heavilycontrolled press. When it happens elsewhere – and particularly when it underscores the perils and pitfalls of democracy – it becomes front-page news. Such is the case of Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump, who, for China’s authoritarian rulers, has become the latest example of how allowing the masses a say in choosing their leaders is a bad idea. “The rise of a racist in the US political area worries the whole world,” the party-controlled Global Times crowed this week ahead of Trump’s victory in the latest round of primaries. “He has even been called another Benito Mussolini or Adolf Hitler by some western media.” It added, darkly: “Mussolini and Hitler came to power through elections, a heavy lesson for western democracy.” Trump, or “Chuanpu” as they call him in China, has been a gift to Communist party spin doctors paid to convince the country’s 1.4
Donald Trump has threatened China with a trade war, but also praised leaders for their ‘strength’.
billion citizens that rule of the people is a sure path to chaos and destruction. “They are relishing this moment,” says Zhou Fengsuo, a US-based democracy activist who fled his native China following the deadly 1989 Tiananmen crackdown. “They are very happy. They are laughing over this. “To them [Trump] is a good character to show the deficiencies of the democratic system, that such a person could become president. It is just unbelievable. Beijing is
definitely gloating over this.” Nick Bisley, professor of international relations and executive director of La Trobe Asia, says the rise of such a divisive politician provided perfect ammunition for the rulers of one-party China to argue that democracy was bad not just for it but for the world. Follow live-wire coverage from the 2016 campaign as John Kerry announces Isis is committing genocide, a topic the presidential candidates may feel inclined to weigh in on
Mother Teresa to be declared a saint on September 4 MOTHER Teresa, a nun who dedicated her life to helping the poor in India, will be canonised as a saint September 4, Pope Francis announced Tuesday. The date falls on the eve of the anniversary of her death, which occurred on September 5, 1997. In December, Pope Francis announced that Mother Teresa would be declared a saint after recognising a second miracle attributed to her: the healing of a Brazilian man with multiple brain tumours after loved ones prayed to her, the Italian Catholic bishops’ association’s official newspaper Avvenire reported. That miracle occurred after her death. The nun was beatified in October 2003 by now deceased Pope John Paul II. He approved a first posthumous miracle. A 30-year-old woman in Kolkata
said she was cured of a stomach tumor after praying to Mother Teresa. A Vatican committee said it could find no scientific explanation for her healing and declared it a miracle. Mother Teresa was born in 1910 in Albania and baptised Gonxha Agnes, the Vatican said in her biography. At age 18, she joined an Irish convent, where she received the name Sister Mary Teresa. Months later, she left for India, landing in Kolkata, the city then known as Calcutta, in January 1929. She taught at St. Mary’s School for girls. There, she took her Final Profession of Vows and became Mother Teresa. Nearly 20 years later, during a train ride in India, she felt a calling from Jesus to care for the poor, her Vatican biography said. She established Missionaries of Charity to serve the poorest of all.
Norway mass killer Breivik compares himself to Mandela in court FAR-RIGHT terrorist Anders Behring Breivik compared himself to anti-apartheid leader Nelson Mandela as he gave testimony in his lawsuit against the Norwegian state Wednesday. Breivik, an ultranationalist who boasted of killing his victims to prevent the “Islamization” of his country, said the difference between himself and the revered South African statesman was that Mandela “ordered action,” while he had been the one to “carry out the action.” The 37-year-old, who killed 77 people in a shooting rampage and bombing attack in 2011, is suing Norway over his treatment behind bars, alleging that it is a “sadistic” attempt by Norwegian authorities to kill him, and that it is in breach of the European Convention on Human Rights. The mass killer’s complaint centres mainly on his isolation in jail. Since his arrest, he has been separated from other inmates, and virtually his only visits have been with professionals, who meet with him separated behind a glass screen.
Anders Breivik, who killed 77 people in a shooting rampage and bombing attack in 2011, is suing Norway over his treatment behind bars.
His incoming and outgoing mail is also censored to prevent him from building far-right networks and inciting sympathisers to violence. Breivik’s killing spree on July 22, 2011, was the deadliest attack in Norway since World War II. Eight people were killed when a bomb he planted detonated in Oslo, before he methodically shot to death 69 young people at a Labour Party youth camp, a party he blamed for the rise of multiculturalism in Norway. (CNN)
March 19 - 25, 2016
TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
World News
Brazil protests over Lula chief of staff appointment Drinks with total sugar content above five grams per 100 milliliters will be affected by the levy, with a higher rate for drinks with more than eight grams.
UK to charge soda tax on sugary drinks THE U.K. government announced a new tax on sugary drinks Wednesday, in an attempt to tackle childhood obesity. Drinks with total sugar content above five grams per 100 milliliters will be affected by the levy, with a higher rate for drinks with more than eight grams. The top rate will affect some of the world’s most popular sodas, including Coca-Cola (KO), Dr Pepper (DPS), Pepsi Cola (PEP), Mountain Dew, 7-UP and others. The government is hoping the tax will help cut down childhood obesity rates in the U.K., which are amongst the highest in developed world. One in five English children is obese by the time they leave primary school, the government said. Research quoted by the government suggest that sugar plays a major role in childhood obesity,
with sugary drinks being the single biggest source of dietary sugar for children and teenagers. “We understand that tax affects behavior. So let’s tax the things we want to reduce, not the things we want to encourage,” said George Osborne, the U.K. Chancellor of Exchequer. Anti-sugar campaigners welcomed the news. Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver called the step “a profound move that will ripple around the world.” He has been among those lobbying for the sugar tax for several years. “Our kids’ health comes first... bold, brave, logical and supported by all the right people,” Oliver said. The news resonates in the U.S. Former New York City mayor Michael Bloomber said the announcement “puts the U.K. at the forefront of the global fight to reduce obesity & diabetes.”
Ahead of Cuba visit, Obama makes sweeping trade and travel changes THE United States unveiled sweeping new measures this week to make it far easier for Americans to visit Cuba and for the island’s Communist government to conduct long-restricted international trade, as President Barack Obama prepared for a historic trip to Havana next week. Rolling out some of the biggest changes since Obama announced his opening to Cuba in December 2014, his administration loosened limits on the use of U.S. dollars in Cuba trade, removing a huge obstacle to Havana’s access to the global banking system. U.S. officials expressed hope that relaxation of travel and financial rules, which further chips away at decadesold sanctions against America’s former Cold War foe, will spur Cuban leaders to respond with economic reforms that have been slow to come. Obama’s critics have accused him of giving up too much in return for too little from Cuban President Raul Castro and of now taking a premature “victory lap” with his March 20-22
visit to the island, the first by a U.S. president in 88 years. The new rules will allow Americans to travel to Cuba independently for educational, cultural and other purposes by “self-certifying” that their travel is authorised, rather than having to go in organised group tours. That measure opens new cracks in a longstanding U.S. ban on general tourism to the island and comes just as U.S. airlines will be allowed to restore scheduled service to Cuba, which will greatly increase the ability of Americans to visit the once-forbidden island. With the opening to Cuba, U.S. travel to Cuba soared 77 percent to 161,000 visitors in 2015, according to Cuban government data, even though Americans going there must fit 12 officially authorized categories. U.S. officials say travel rose around 50 percent, a discrepancy explained by Americans illicitly traveling to Cuba as tourists through third countries.
Brazilians have protested in several cities against President Dilma Rousseff after she named her predecessor, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, chief of staff. In the capital Brasilia, riot police fired pepper spray at protesters outside the presidential palace. Lula is currently being investigated in a major corruption scandal. Hours after the move, the federal judge leading the probe against Lula released phone recordings suggesting Ms Rousseff appointed Lula to spare him arrest. Brazil’s leader, who is herself facing impeachment proceedings, defended the appointment. She said Lula was a “skilful political negotiator” and experienced leader who would help kick off economic recovery. She said the ex-president could also still be prosecuted by the Supreme Court. The release of the telephone recordings caused an uproar in Congress in Brasilia, with chaotic scenes as opposition leaders gathered around a microphone chanting “resign, resign”. There were also demonstrations in at least three other Brazilian cities. “Theft, corruption, that’s the coup... We’re not clowns. Brazil is better than all of this,” Reuters news
2,000 protesters gathered outside the Presidential Palace in Brasilia.
agency quoted one Brasilia protester as saying. Lula was briefly detained and questioned earlier this month over allegations of money laundering connected to Operation Car Wash, a massive investigation into corruption at the state oil giant, Petrobras. He denies the allegations, saying they are aimed at preventing him from running for president again in 2018. In the taped telephone conversation released by Judge Sergio Moro, who is overseeing the Petrobas probe, Ms Rousseff offered to send Lula a copy of his appointment “in case of necessity” - interpreted by some as meaning in case he needed it to avoid arrest.
Ms Rousseff has said she will refer Judge Moro to the Supreme Court for political interference. Lula and other ministers appointed by Ms Rouseff are expected to be sworn in at 10:00 (13:00 GMT) on Thursday. Under Brazilian law, cabinet members can only be tried by the Supreme Court. As chief of staff, Lula is expected to lead the fight against moves in Congress to impeach President Rousseff over allegations she manipulated Brazil’s account books to hide a growing deficit. The impeachment push is not directly related to the corruption scandal, but has run in tandem with it.
Islamic State ‘committed genocide’ says US The US says the Islamic State (IS) group has committed genocide against Yazidis, Christians and Shia Muslims. US Secretary of State John Kerry said IS was “genocidal by selfproclamation, by ideology and by actions”. He also said the group was responsible for crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing in areas it controls in Syria and Iraq. “Naming these crimes is important, but what is essential is to stop them,” Mr Kerry said. Mr Kerry admitted that a lack of access to IS areas meant the US did not have a “complete picture” of the atrocities that had been carried out. He said the “full facts” must be sought by an independent international investigation. The US, he went on, would “strongly support” efforts to collect evidence of IS atrocities and brings those responsible to account. “The fact is that Daesh kills Christians because they are Christians, Yazidis because they are Yazidis, Shia because they are Shia,” he said, using an Arabic acronym for the group. “This is the message it conveys to children under its control. Its entire
This is only the second time that the US administration has declared a genocide during a conflict. The previous time was in 2004 when then-Secretary of State Colin Powell used it to describe the killings in Darfur.
world view is based on eliminating those who do not subscribe to its perverse ideology.” Genocide is defined by the UN Convention as “acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial or religious group”. It is understood by most to be the gravest crime against humanity it is possible to commit. It is only the second time that the US administration has declared
a genocide during a conflict. The previous time was in 2004 when then-Secretary of State Colin Powell used it to describe the killings in Darfur. Mr Kerry had been given a congressional deadline of 17 March to announce whether IS’s actions in areas under its control constituted genocide. Earlier this week, the US House of Representatives voted 393-0 to designate the crimes as genocide.
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TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
March 19 - 25, 2016
Academy appoints ‘diverse voices’ THE Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which awards the Oscars, has added “diverse voices” to its board after a row about ethnic diversity. Three new governors have been appointed, including AfricanAmerican producer Reginald Hudlin and Korean-born director Jennifer Yuh Nelson. The move comes after several Hollywood figures boycotted this year’s Oscars. Academy president Cheryl Boone Isaacs said the board now had “much more of a diversity to it”. Spike Lee and Jada PinkettSmith were among those who objected to there being no nonwhite nominees in the acting categories and the row saw the hashtag #OscarsSoWhite trending for several days after the nominations were announced. The Academy has also appointed six new committee members, which include Mexican actor Gael Garcia Bernal and African-American producers Effie Brown and Stephanie Allain. Boone Isaacs said: “We set out, even a few years ago, to have more inclusion and certainly have stepped
Reginald Hudlin and Jennifer Yuh Nelson have been appointed as Academy governors.
it up. “We just want to keep this process going, and so were really happy that were able to announce these additions.” Other changes announced include limiting Oscar voting rights to those active in the movie business. The Academy also apologised after criticism from some Asian academy members who were offended by a skit during the Oscars show in February. Activists accused host Chris Rock of perpetuating racial stereotypes
when he introduced a group of accountants, who turned out to be three Asian children in suits. One of the children was also given a Jewish surname. Rock then said: “If anybody is upset about that joke, just tweet about it on your phone, which was also made by these kids.” Boone Isaacs said she was “very sorry” people had been offended, adding: “I can understand the feelings and we are setting up a meeting to discuss, because as you well know, no one sets out to be offensive.
Rap star Foxy Brown praises Trump MOVE over Stacey Dash. Reclusive rap star Foxy Brown said Tuesday that she is back in the studio, but her next release could be a tribute to Donald Trump. Brown, a lifelong Democrat, who said she loves Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders, said she is giving a big shout out to the billionaire presidential front-runner because she is impressed with his ability to get things done. “No matter how many people sabotage his campaign, it keeps growing and growing and growing,” Brown told the Daily News. “I know so many people won’t agree with me and will try to change my mind, but I’m a smart girl. I’m excited ... I haven’t been this excited in so long. “I know people say he’s a racist, but that’s just crazy.” Brown, 37, didn’t detail the extent of her support, but said she would be doing “a lot” for Trump in the coming months.
The song features (clockwise from top left): Janelle Monae, Kelly Rowland, Zendaya, Missy Elliot, Kelly Clarkson and Lea Michele.
Michelle Obama recruits Elliot, Clarkson and Zendaya for single ARTISTS including Missy Elliott, Kelly Clarkson and Kelly Rowland all feature on a charity single put together by US First Lady Michelle Obama. This Is For My Girls was written by Diane Warren - whose previous credits include I Don’t Want To Miss A Thing and UnBreak My Heart. She described the song - a strident, girl power anthem - as “We Are the World meets Lady Marmalade”. Obama released the single ahead of her keynote speech at the SXSW festival.
She spoke about her Let Girls Learn initiative, which is aimed at boosting education rates amongst adolescent girls around the world. This Is For My Girls combines jazzy horn stabs with a propulsive drum beat, giving the song a militaristic feel. The lyrics mostly comprise generic statements of empowerment - “Don’t take nothing from nobody”; “It’s all about respect”; “Stand strong forever” - which have been a standard component of femalefronted R&B since the turn of the millennium.
LL Cool J has had 14 albums on the Billboard 200 chart.
LL Cool J retires, then returns with new album announcement
Foxy Brown said she supports Donald Trump’s presidential bid.
AFTER going on a now-deleted Twitter rant,LL Cool J announced Monday that he is retiring from music -- only to then un-retire and announce a new album. “Today I officially retired from music,” he initially wrote. “Thank you for the love.” However, just before 8 p.m. ET, the rapper came back on Twitter and announced that he is “officially coming out of retirement” and is “starting a new album.” Given LL Cool J’s propensity to tweet and then
delete, it is unclear whether the rapper is actually heading to the studio to record an album, but if so, he promises to “massacre the rap game.” Earlier on Monday, LL took to Twitter for a Kanye-esque rant (which the rapper later deleted, also in Kanye fashion), writing, “I want fans vs haters to start making wagers on my next album... my day 1s should bet big. I got this,” and continued on for about 13 tweets before exclaiming that the whole thing was a joke.
March 19 - 25, 2016
TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
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TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
March 19 - 25, 2016
TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
Entertainment
Jackson is one of the highest-paid deceased celebrities, earning more than $1bn in pre-tax earnings since his death.
Sony buys out Michael Jackson music venture stake SONY is paying Michael Jackson’s estate $750m (£526m) for the late pop star’s share of a joint music publishing venture that it does not already own. Jackson held a 50% stake in Sony ATV Music Publishing as part of a business partnership that began in 1995.
The purchase will give Sony the rights to about three million songs, including works by the Beatles, Bob Dylan and Taylor Swift. However, the deal does not include Jackson’s master recordings. His estate will maintain its holdings in Mijac
Music, which owns all the songs written by Jackson, as well as EMI Music Publishing. The agreement will reportedly help reduce the Jackson estate’s remaining $250m debt and give the late musician’s three children more financial flexibility.
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TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
March 19 - 25, 2016
Science & Technology February smashes global temperature records by unprecedented amount Hot on the heels of record-breaking temperatures in January, global temperatures in February smashed previous monthly records by an unprecedented amount, according to NASA data, sparking warnings of a climate emergency. February was the third consecutive month to break the record, which is calculated by setting the temperature for a particular month against the average temperature from that month between 1951 and 1980. Last month was 2.43F (1.35C) above the norm, easily surpassing the 2.3F (1.14C) margin from January of this year, which also set a record. The margin was considerably wider in the Northern hemisphere (2.76C) and the Arctic, the latter of which clocked a massive 5.36C increase. The result was “a true shocker, and yet another reminder of the incessant long-term rise in global temperature resulting from human-produced greenhouse gases,” according to Jeff Masters and Bob Henson, writing in a blog on the Weather Underground, which analysed the recently released data. It confirms preliminary analysis from earlier in March, indicating the record-breaking temperatures. Although the temperatures have been spurred on by a very large El Nino in the Pacific Ocean, values smashed records set during the last
British company Oxitec has modified male Aedes aegypti mosquitoes so that their offspring die before they can reach adulthood and reproduce.
Genetically modified mosquitoes to fight Zika get FDA nod Last month was 2.43F (1.35C) above the norm, easily surpassing the 2.3F (1.14C) margin from January of this year, which also set a record.
large El Nino from 1998, which was at least as strong as the current one. Monthly global temperature findings date back to 1880, but never before have three consecutive months so far outpaced historical averages. Illustrating the significance of the February hike, Gavin Schmidt, a climate scientist who directs the Goddard Institute for Space Studies at NASA, wrote on Twitter that he rarely comments on individual findings but felt the need this month because it was a “special” case.
The unprecedented temperatures have led to unprecedented consequences, particularly in the Arctic where sea ice levels this winter have hit record lows. “We are in a kind of climate emergency now,” Stefan Rahmstorf, from Germany’s Potsdam Institute of Climate Impact Research and a visiting professorial fellow at the University of New South Wales, told Fairfax Media. “This is really quite stunning . . . it’s completely unprecedented,” he said.
THE United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) says genetically engineered mosquitoes being used in the fight against the spread of the Zika virus are environmentally safe – a decision that could pave the way for a trial in the US. British company Oxitec has modified male Aedes aegypti mosquitoes so that their offspring die before they can reach adulthood and reproduce. It has carried out trials in Brazil, Panama, and the Cayman Islands to battle the mosquito-borne dengue and says the Aedes aegypti population has been reduced by more than 90 per cent. The FDA said its investigations have determined that a proposed field trial of the insects in the
Florida Keys is unlikely to cause any harm to people, animals or the environment. “While we didn’t expect anything different, we’re pleased the FDA has now published their data. Now we want to get everybody comfortable with the decision,” Oxitec’s chief executive officer Hadyn Parry said. “If we do get permission from the FDA to go ahead, we are hoping that we will start running the programme sometime in 2016.” The public now has until April 13 to file comments on the issue with the FDA – one of the steps that must be taken before the agency gives its final nod. Parry said once the approval is given, it won’t be long before the mosquitoes can be released.
Scientists believe methane gas explosion Women with Alzheimer’s may keep linked to Bermuda Triangle mystery verbal skills longer than men SCIENTISTS may have solved an enduring mystery that has plagued us since records began in 1851. Scientists believe methane gas explosions may be linked to the mystery of the disappearance of as many as 8,127 people in the Bermuda Triangle. The mythical stretch of ocean, roughly encompassing Puerto Rico, the island of Bermuda, and Miami, has been called the Devil’s Triangle and, more commonly, the Bermuda Triangle. For the past 165 years, according to the International Business Times, numerous ships and airplanes have disappeared in the area, usually under mysterious circumstances, taking more than 8,000 lives. But new research from scientists at Arctic University in Norway suggests that multiple giant craters on the floor of the Barents Sea may help to explain what’s going on in the Bermuda Triangle. The craters surrounding the seabed on the coast of Norway mark areas where massive deposits of methane gas may have exploded.
The difference exists even though women and men have similar amounts of shrinkage in brain areas that show the earliest evidence of Alzheimer’s disease, according to the study involving hundreds of people. Scientists believe methane gas explosions may be linked to the mystery of the disappearance of as many as 8,127 people in the Bermuda Triangle.
The study of these craters, some of which are actually chasms 150-feet deep and a half-mile wide, suggests they could have been caused by gas leaking from oil and gas deposits buried deep in the sea floor. In the past two years, scientists have documented methane gas bubbling up from the sea floor off
the coasts of Washington state and Oregon, as well as off the east coast of the United States. And in the frozen stretches of Siberia last year, scientists discovered four new holes, bringing the number to seven craters that have formed after an eruption of methane gas, according to Digital Journal.
In the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease, women tend to remember words better than men do, which could delay diagnosis in women, new research suggests. The difference exists even though women and men have similar amounts of shrinkage in brain areas that show the earliest evidence of Alzheimer’s disease, according to the study involving hundreds of people. “One way to interpret the results
is that because women have better verbal memory skills than men throughout life, women have a buffer of protection against loss of verbal memory before the effects of Alzheimer’s disease kick in,” study author Erin Sundermann said in a news release from the American Academy of Neurology. Sundermann is a postdoctoral fellow in neurology at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City.
March 19 - 25, 2016
TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
Science & Technology ‘Good’ cholesterol not always good, study suggests
Quitting abruptly worked best for most of the participants.
‘Cold turkey’ best way to quit smoking, study shows People who want to quit smoking are more likely to succeed if they go “cold turkey” by stopping abruptly, a study in Annals of Internal Medicine shows. Volunteers who used this approach were 25% more likely to remain abstinent half a year from the date that they give up than smokers who tried to gradually wean themselves off instead. The NHS says that picking a convenient date to quit is important. Make a promise, set a date and stick to it, it advises. And sticking to the “not a drag” rule can really help too. “Whenever you find yourself in difficulty say to yourself, ‘I will not have even a single drag’ and stick with this until the cravings pass,” the service says. And it recommends seeing a GP to get professional support and advice to give up smoking. In the British Heart Foundationfunded study, nearly 700 UK
volunteers were randomly assigned to one of two groups - a gradual quit group or an immediate quit group. All of the participants were also offered advice and support and access to nicotine patches and replacement therapy, like nicotine gum or mouth spray - services which are available for free on the NHS. After six months, 15.5% of the participants in the gradual-cessation group were abstinent compared with 22% in the abrupt-cessation group. Lead researcher Dr Nicola LindsonHawley, from Oxford University, said: “The difference in quit attempts seemed to arise because people struggled to cut down. It provided them with an extra thing to do, which may have put them off quitting altogether.” Even though more people in the study said they preferred the idea of quitting gradually than abruptly, individuals were still more likely to stop for good in the abrupt group.
Scientists create a new type of stem cell with only half a human’s usual 46 chromosomes Schoolchildren learn in Biology 101 that most human cells have two sets of 23 chromosomes -- one from the mother and another from the father. The only exceptions are reproductive cells from sperm and eggs, which each have one set. That arrangement is the basis for how human inheritance works, but it poses serious limitations for medical research. Because there are two copies of each gene it makes it challenging for scientists to find defective and edit mutations that may be leading to disease. In an effort to solve this problem, a team of scientists from Israel and the United States have created a new type of cell that doesn’t exist in nature -- human stem cells with only half of our naturally occurring chromosomes. In a paper published in the journal Nature on Wednesday, they report that these are the first human cells that are capable of cell division with just one copy of a genome of a parent. Scientists have previously created
This undated image provided by the U.S. National Cancer Institute shows the 46 human chromosomes, where DNA resides and does its work. (National Cancer Institute)
so-called haploid embryonic stem cells for mice. This breakthrough has huge implications for progress in everything from gene editing to reproductive and regenerative medicine.
SOME people with high levels of supposedly “good” cholesterol are at much greater risk of heart disease, a study suggests. A bloodstream tussle takes place between “bad” cholesterol dumping fatty material in the arteries and good cholesterol taking it away. But a Cambridge University study in the journal Science showed more good cholesterol was not always better. It is thought the findings may help find new ways to protect the heart. Eating olive oil, fish and nuts raises levels of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) - which is more commonly known as good cholesterol. It is one of the things doctors test for when predicting your risk of a heart attack. However, repeated trials that raise HDL with drugs have flopped, leading doctors to think something else is going on. Some insight has come from studying rare mutations that leave people with high levels of good cholesterol. Trials showed people with a mutation in a gene called SCARB1, which affects one-in-1,700 people, had very high levels of good
Avocado - along with nuts, olive oil and fish raises levels of ‘good’ cholesterol.
cholesterol. But they also had an 80% increased risk of heart disease - that is roughly the same increased risk as for smoking. Further experiments showed the mutation was preventing HDL from dumping the fat it had collected in the liver for processing. Prof Adam Butterworth, one of the researchers from the University of Cambridge, told the BBC News website: “This is significant because we had always believed that good
cholesterol is associated with a lower risk of heart disease. “This is one of the first studies to show that some people that have high levels of ‘good’ cholesterol actually have a higher risk of heart disease so it challenges our conventional wisdom about whether ‘good’ cholesterol is protecting people from heart disease or not.” There have been huge efforts put into drugs to raise HDL in the hope they have the same impact as statins, which lower the bad cholesterol.
Brain stimulation could speed stroke recovery FOR people who’ve had a stroke, a treatment that involves applying an electric current to the brain may help boost recovery of their mobility, a small clinical trial found. Stroke is the most common cause of severe, long-term disability. Rehabilitation training, which helps patients re-learn how to use their bodies, can help some patients recover their ability to move. But it is often costly and timeconsuming. The new study looked at 24 patients; each had experienced a stroke that affected his or her ability move a hand and arm. Half of the participants were picked, at random, to receive nine days of rehab paired with a brainstimulation technique known as transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS). This method uses electrodes placed on the scalp to deliver constant, low electrical currents to specific areas of the brain. The other patients received a sham control treatment; they were fitted with electrodes but did not receive tDCS. Compared to the control
Patients who received brain stimulation and rehab were better able to use their hands and arms for movements such as lifting, reaching and grasping objects, the researchers found.
group, patients who received brain stimulation and rehab were better able to use their hands and arms for movements such as lifting, reaching and grasping objects, the researchers found. “It was hard work for the patients. They had to come into the lab every day for two weeks,” study co-lead researcher Heidi Johansen-Berg, a neuroscientist at the University of
Oxford in England, told Live Science. But the findings showed that “we can speed up stroke rehab with brain stimulation,” Johansen-Berg said. “If we could routinely add brain stimulation to rehabilitation, this could help ensure that each patient reaches their true potential for recovery.”
28
JOB LISTINGS SERVICES AUTO SALES REAL ESTATE
Classifieds TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
March 19 - 25, 2016
SEEKS
HEAVY EQUIPMENT MECHANIC
• A minimum of 5 years experience with the appropriate qualification is a must • Applicant must be very proficient, honest and reliable • Qualify person must be willing to work off island, overtime, weekends and holidays • Clean police record and a valid driver’s license is essential Wages starting at $10.00 per hour • Applicant must have a minimum of 3 years experience • Must be very proficient, honest and a reliable worker • Must be willing to work weekends and holidays • Clean police record is essential Salary $6.25 per hour Belongers only need apply
Deadline for applications is March 25, 2016. Interested persons should send applications via fax at (649) 941-8472 Only applicants selected will be contacted.
Contact: Keith Howell, General Manager Telephone: 649-941-5548 or 649-231-6399 or email: [email protected] 11257
11264
Main duties will be domestic duties. Must be able to speak English, Salary starts at $6.50 per hour Will have to work 6 days a week.
LABOURER
GRACEWAY IGA SUPERMARKET INVITES APPLICATIONS FROM SUITABLE QUALIFIED INDIVIDUALS TO FILL THE LISTED
VACANCIES IT ANALYST REQUIREMENTS/QUALIFICATIONS
• Must have at least a bachelors or higher degree in Computer or Information Systems • A minimum four years on the job experience as an information technology programmer/analyst (SQL language preferable) is required • Experience in data processing, computer information systems, data communications, networking, systems analysis, and computer programming is a must. • Ability to conduct training and informational sessions.
DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES INCLUDE:
• Supporting all hardware related issues and reviewing all new hardware capabilities as required, such as cash registers, scales, and database and POS systems. • Assist in resolving any software issues, review and upgrade of all new software packages. • Maintaining good documentation relating to all IT related work plans and schedules such as backups and flowcharts. • Overseeing the systems implementation and taking ownership of the systems work stream within the Process re-engineering project including any new systems for Graceway IGA Supermarket. • Assisting with updating and improving the current Graceway IGA website. • Providing reports generated from systems as requested by senior management – operational, financial or IT based. Pay will commensurate with experience and qualifications.
RETAIL STORE MANAGER
This position is responsible for the management of the supermarket’s retail operations. Main duties and requirements include: • Over 8+ years experience in Supermarket Retail with a minimum of five years in a managerial position to include management of individual departments. • Strong character reference from known individuals in the supermarket industry • Excellent people skills, including the ability to teach and train staff. • Must have computer knowledge in areas such
• • • • •
as Microsoft Excel and Inventory management programs. Proficient in the understanding of retail and wholesale accounting and good business practices related to documentation and record keeping. Skilled in ordering methods and practices for inventory control. Ability to utilize computer systems/information for improved operational results. Strong current product knowledge of the retail industry and knowledge of Supermarket facility management. Will be required to work nights, long hours, weekends, and holidays.
Pay will commensurate with experience and qualifications.
FINANCE ANALYST JOB REQUIREMENT & RESPONSIBILITIES:
• ACA/ACMA/CMA/CPA qualified with a minimum of 5 years post qualification experience in a financial analysis position • Management and development of pricing system and processes • Detailed gross margin analysis to identify and correct pricing anomalies • Support Pricing & Logistics Managers maintain the accuracy of company databases, recommend and implement controls to prevent database inaccuracies from occurring • Review and develop freight and duty allocation methodologies to ensure accurate cost allocation to individual products. • Extensive experience of querying databases using computer programming languages (eg SQL) • Detailed knowledge and practical experience of accounting software (eg SAGE) • Advanced Excel skills essential including the use of pivot tables, VLookup functions and embedded logic formulas • Act as the link between Finance and IT, representing the Finance team at IT Steering Committee meetings • Ad-hoc analysis to support operational decision making, including new product and vendor assessment • Strong written and verbal communication skills • Attention to detail and flexibility to manage multiple
tasks Salary for these positions will commensurate with qualifications and experience
FLOOR CARE SPECIALIST REQUIREMENTS / QUALIFICATIONS:
• Experience in floor care and maintenance. • Experience in waxing, wax removal, stripping, buffing and vacuuming large surface areas. • Experience in operating and maintaining heavy duty floor care machines. • Experience in using proper safeguards such as warning signs and safety cones to alert customers and employees to potential hazards such as wet or slippery floor surfaces; • Be knowledgeable cleaning programs and adhere to manufacturer’s label instructions for the safe and proper use of all chemical products
DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES INCLUDE:
• Monitor inventory of cleaning supplies and submit purchase orders or requests to store management; • Oversee cleaning and maintenance of the supermarket. • Responsible for the total store floor care on a daily basis. Salary Range: 6.50 - $7.00 per Hour
RETAIL FLOOR POSITIONS JOB REQUIREMENTS
All applicants must be able to read, speak and understand the English Language and will be expected to sit and pass an in-house Math and English Test.
• DELI / BAKERY ASSISTANT (1) • BAKER (1) • Warehouse Clerk / Stocker (1) Salary Range: $6.50 - $7.00 / Per Hour
DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION OF APPLICANTS IS APRIL 2ND 2016 SUBMIT TO: GRACEWAY IGA SUPERMARKET MAIN OFFICE COMPLEX OR EMAIL: [email protected]
11243
Must be able to speak English, French and Creole
CONTACT:
PROVO CHRISTIAN SCHOOL, P.O. BOX 305 PROVIDENCIALES, TURKS & CAICOS ISLANDS OR EMAIL: [email protected] DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS IS APRIL 8TH, 2016
11262
unitedmulticulturalinstitute @gmail.com or [email protected]
11252
• Be a committed born again Christian preferable of Baptist faith • Have a minimum qualification of a Bachelor’s Degree • Have degree (s) from a recognized college or university • Have a valid teacher’s certification or diploma in education Applications must be made in writing along with full curriculum vita, and names of at least three references to:
VACANCY
NOTICE
Is seeking suitable applicants to fill the following opening:
LABOURER Belongers only need apply Must be willing to work extended hours Salary $6.25 per hour
CONTACT: 344-3480 Application deadline March 1st, 2016
Negotiable in a range from $43,060 - $52,470 depending on education and qualifications.
Is looking to employ a
Is looking for a
LABOURER LABOURER To work 5 days per week salary $6.25 per hour
To work 6 days per week salary $6.25 per hour
CONTACT: CONTACT: 332-3337 941-4739 DELROY DELVIL WALKIN
FINBAR ALBER GRANT
TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
MAC MOTORS LTD.
To work 5 days per week salary $6.25 per hour
P.O. BOX 954 11240
DANZIEL GIBSON OF KEW TOWN
The Market Support Executive will also carry out research and prepare internal and external materials, including value propositions, which provide relevant information to attract investors to the country. Another key role will be to support the Vice President Small and Medium Enterprise in the operation of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise (MSME) Programme, to be operated by Invest Turks and Caicos. This role will include data and records collection and liaison and follow up with partner organizations.
ELECTRICIAN
EDUCATION AND QUALIFICATIONS:
To work 6 days per week salary $10.00 per hour
Graduate degree in a relevant discipline such as Business Management, Marketing, or Economics from a recognized institution or equivalent.
EXPERIENCE AND KNOWLEDGE:
DOMESTIC WORKER To work 5 days per
Is looking for a
To work 5 days per week salary $6.25 per hour
11255
11253
CONTACT: CONTACT: CONTACT: 332-0771 339-3841 343-1756
• At least three years’ experience in researching and writing various documents, including reports and pamphlets and web researching • At least three years’ experience in website management and other developing other communication channels in social media. • Experience in developing and administering government programs and policies and in developing policies and procedures. • Knowledge of the small business community in the TCI. • Financial management experience.
CHEKINA SHOP SEEKS
DESIRED:
1 STORE CLERK/CASHIER
• Experience in web development and maintenance and in using web tools such as SEO. • Experience in destination and/or investment marketing.
APPLICATION PROCEDURE
Interested persons should submit a resume, along with their contact information, cover letter, two letters of reference (one from a former employer), copies of educational certificates, a Police Certificate and a copy of the Passport photo page. To obtain a copy of the Market Support Executive job description please send an email to [email protected].
Must have some experience and able to speak English, Salary starts at $6.50 per hour and is based on experience. Will have to work 6 days a week.
11248
All applications must be received by 12 noon on Wednesday, March 30th, 2016 and should be emailed to [email protected]. Only persons considered for an interview will be contacted.
Is looking for a
Is looking for an
Deadline for applications is March 11, 2016. Interested persons should send applications via fax at (649) 941-4034 C/o Alliance Realty Ltd. Only applicants selected will be contacted.
March 19 - 25, 2016
TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
CLASSIFIEDS 31
JOB OPPORTUNITIES Gansevoort Turks + Caicos is a contemporary luxury full service boutique resort on Grace Bay Beach. We are looking for driven and energetic professionals with Five Star experience and who are committed to achieving excellence by ensuring Five Star standards and services are continuously delivered.
Assistant Spa Manager - The Assistant Spa Manager is responsible for assisting in the daily operations, management, and profitability of the spa, along with the highest level of customer service and quality work environment. • Must hold CIBTAC or related certification. Previous knowledge of SPASOFT/SALONIRIS and MBO software is preferred. • Must be a graduate from an accredited university with extensive experience of at least 3 years in a similar position with a reputed hotel. • Must have knowledge of spa therapies and ability to teach yoga and pilates that relate to the well being of all guests in a spa environment. • Must be able to perform therapies around the Pool and Beach area. (Excessive sun exposure) • Must have: good communication skills, flexibility to work hospitality shifts, PC skills, be a Team Player, self-motivated, punctual, professional and able to work under pressure. • Must speak and read English. Preferred with Asian/Gulf countries work experience. • Fluency in MS office; preferably Microsoft excel, outlook.
Spa Therapist • Must hold CIDESCO or CIBTAC certification. Previous knowledge of SPASOFT/SALONIRIS and MBO software is preferred. • Must be a graduate from an accredited university with extensive experience of at least 5 years with a reputed hotel/ chain or a luxury/Boutique Spa in massage, face therapy and nails. • Must have advanced knowledge of holistic therapy such as Reiki, Shiatsu, Thai Massage, lymphatic drainage, reflexology, bamboo therapy concepts that relate to the well being of all guests in a spa environment. • Must be certified esthetician and massage therapist. • Must have: good communication skills, flexibility to work hospitality shifts, PC skills, be a Team Player, self-motivated, punctual, professional. • Must speak and read English. Preferred with Asian/Gulf countries work experience. • Fluency in MS office specially Microsoft excel, outlook. Salary: Commission based
Housekeeping Supervisor
- Works with Room Attendants to ensure guest rooms and public areas are maintained to luxury standards. Assists in assigning staff daily tasks according to occupancy. Inspects work and coaches to develop consistent skills, assists in inventory and reporting. At least 2 years experience as luxury resort room attendant and supervisory experience preferred. PC skills required, Opera preferred, must have exceptional attention to detail and consistency in adhering to luxury standards. Servers - Provide guests with food and beverage service – restaurant, bar, room service, beach & pool. Able to work on feet all day, good math skill, experience in fine dining service an asset.
Steward - Clean, transport, store and generally maintain all kitchen cookware and restaurant service utensils. Clean floors, windows, walls, ceilings and equipment associated with Food & Beverage operation or as otherwise directed by supervisors.
Labourer - Must have experience in a resort, knowledge of cleaning process and attention to details. Transports, stores and generally maintain all of Food and Beverage areas.
Executive Sous Chef - Accountable for overall success of the daily kitchen operations. Exhibits culinary talents by personally performing tasks while leading the staff and managing all food related functions. Works to continually improve guest and employee satisfaction while maintaining the operating budget. Supervises all kitchen areas to ensure a consistent, high quality product is produced. Responsible for guiding and developing staff including direct reports. Must ensure sanitation and food standards are achieved.
Assistant Food and Beverage Director - Directs and supervises, under the direction of the Director of Food & Beverage, all aspects of the Food & Beverage operations for the resort, Stelle, The Beach Bar + Grill, Bar’s, In Room Dining and any private dining functions and events. Main responsibilities are to ensure proper training and supervision of team and to deliver prompt, courteous service in a manner that complies with
Gansevoort and Stelle standards. Supervises Middle Management, Servers, Server Assistants, Runners, Bartenders, Bar backs, Hostess and administrative personnel. The Assistant Director of Food and Beverage will be responsible for the effective administration, supervision and execution of programs consistent with the company standards and goals of providing excellent service while generating maximum revenue.
Resort Executive Chef - An executive chef will train and manage kitchen personnel and supervise/coordinate all related culinary activities; estimate food consumption and requisition or purchase food; select and develop recipes; standardize production recipes to ensure consistent quality; establish presentation technique and quality standards; plan and price menus; ensure proper equipment operation/maintenance; and ensure proper safety and sanitation in the kitchen. The Chef must have the ability to manage in a diverse environment with focus on client and customer service is essential to success in this role. Previous experience with control food and labor cost, demonstration cooking, menu development, and pricing and development of culinary team preferred. The ideal candidates will possess a bachelor’s degree or related culinary degree with eight or more years of industry and culinary management experience. Caribbean experience an asset.
HVAC Technician - Must be able to troubleshoot and repair different HVAC systems. Daikin system experience preferred. Troubleshoot and repair kitchen equipment. Troubleshoot and repair laundry equipment. Through proper data collection will create a preventive maintenance schedule for all electrical equipment, HVAC equipment and emergency generator. Must be able to work on electrical systems, reading and understanding blueprints. Troubleshoot and repair home appliances. Qualification: Must be a collage graduate with minimum 10 years experience in the HVAC field and hospitality field. Must be HVAC certified. Must be able to work with hand and power tools. Work on ladders and lift a minimum of 50 lbs. Must be able to work independently and have troubleshooting skills. To provide the guests and associates with a secure and comfortable environment by maintaining and ensuring that all mechanical systems are operating in accordance with the Gansevoort standards. Work in a safe and responsible manner to avoid accidents or injury.
Interested applicants can contact the Human Resources Department, Monday through Friday 9am to 5pm on (649)941-7555 ext. 6022/6016 or via email [email protected].
Is looking for a
MASON Salary $7.00 per hour send resume to P.O. Box 954
12115
SALES COMPUTER PERSON CLERK To work 6 days per week salary $6.25 per hour.
CONTACT: 649-332-0771 11229
To work 5 days per week salary $6.25 per hour
Is currently looking to employ a Labourer who will be responsible for the daily maintenance of the Building ,stocking of the shelves and any other duty that may be assigned. The individual must possess the following: • Adequate tools to perform his duties • Must be able work with little or no supervision • Must be computer literate • Must be able to work weekends • Must possess a valid driver’s License
ASSISTANT MANAGER: The Assistant Manager will aid in daily hotel and restaurant operations, and will be in charge of supervising other departments and divisions. They will ensure all hotel rules and policies are implemented. The Assistant manager will monitor the tasks of personnel and workers, set goals and plans to promote and improve the service of their departments. They will aid in recruitment of new employees, assist with training, coaching, and mentoring them, and have strong leadership skills. They will help to promote the business by using their strong sales and marketing skills. They will assist with all event planning and co-ordination. Accountable for monitoring company finances. • A Bachelor’s Degree in Management, Sales, Marketing, or comparable program is an asset. • Minimum of 5 years’ experience working in the hospitality industry (hotel, restaurant, etc.) • Must be fluent in English. A second language is an asset
Please email all application to [email protected]
REGISTERED LAND ORDINANCE, CAP 9.01
NOTICE LOST LAND CERTIFICATE
SECTION KEW RURAL
ISLAND NORTH CAICOS
Whereas, WELLINGTON STEVENSON ROBINSON of Providenciales, has declared that the Land Certificate for the above mentioned title number(s) issued in the name of LLEWELYN WELLINGTON ROBINSON was inadvertently mislaid and cannot be found. Take notice that I, Brandie Anderson, Registrar of Lands, shall issue a new land certificate for the said title six weeks of the date of the first publication of this Notice in a local newspaper and the Gazette. Dated this 25 day of February 2016 Signed ...........................................................................................
12093
Résumés can be submitted to [email protected] or in person to the Turks Head Inne, Duke St., Grand Turk. (Must be legally permitted to work in Turks and Caicos Islands)
11228
LABOURER
This job will require security clearance and a job-related background check • Must be available full-time for night watch • Must be trained or qualified in private security for hotel/restaurants • Must complete a job-related background check • Must be fluent in English. A second language is an asset
Also looking for: Servers, Food Runners, Kitchen Helpers, Bartenders, Cleaners, and Housekeepers
6 days per week salary $200.00 per week.
BAYVIEW MOTORS
The general purpose of a security guard is protection of the people and property of the organization where they work. Guards will routinely inspect the property for any suspicious activities. This is to deter would-be criminal or malicious activity, such as vandalism, arson, theft and harassment.
Will be responsible for planning and directing food preparation. This will involve ordering, menu design, food cost analysis, budgeting, waste management, staff scheduling, supervising kitchen staff and discipline.
3 HELPERS 1MustLABOURER be willing to work
THE LARGEST READERSHIP IN THE TURKS & CAICOS
SECURITY
To work 6 days per week salary $6.25 per hour
VALUE FOR YOUR MONEY!!
Is looking to fill the following positions:
Will be responsible for the daily operations of restaurant services at the hotel. Food and beverage supervisors oversee all of the issues pertaining to a patron’s dining experience, such as quality control, staff management, inventory, health and safety regulations and customer service. Supervisors are responsible for teaching, training, and mentoring new hires to build a strong service team that will create a memorable dining experience for all guests.
LABOURER
CONTACT: CONTACT: 331-3887 331-2525 CONTACT: 946-4445
THE TURKS HEAD INNE, GRAND TURK ISLAND
SUPERVISOR
TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
11225
Witnessed ..................................................................................... 12095
March 19 - 25, 2016
OWNER LIAISONS REPRESENTATIVE Professional Consultancy firm looking for an Owner Liaisons Representative to oversee all local and international marketing and sales efforts and act as a primary liaison with owners, tenants, existing vendors and brokers. Candidates must have 15+ years’ experience in true 5-star luxury resorts and have a Bachelor’s degree in hospitality management and tourism and a Master’s degree in leadership management. Candidates must have knowledge of the sales process, local laws related to real estate and business analysis. Additionally candidates must
have ability and proven record to meet sales goals, engage in negotiation, accommodate customer needs, build relationships and manage processes. Extensive knowledge of Microsoft Office programs is required. Must be fluent in English, German and French and knowledge of Scandinavian languages will be a benefit. Must be flexible with hours; on call 24 hours per day and works weekends as well as requires minimal supervision to work with good time management skills.
Please submit resumes/portfolios to PO Box 560, Regent House West, Regent Village, Grace Bay, Providenciales, TCI or send by fax to 946 4663 no later than 25 March 2016.
NEON HOLDINGS
COOK
JOB VACANCIES LIVE-IN HOUSEKEEPER
A LIVE IN FULL TIME housekeeper is required to work in a luxury villa. The successful candidate must possess the following qualities & experience: • Full of energy, reliable and trustworthy • Use their own initiative and be able multi-task • Experienced housekeeper with a high level of attention to detail. • Accustomed & willing to look after children • Be willing to work flexible hours including holidays, week-ends and evenings • Be willing to look after the household when owners are absent • Possess excellent command of English • Computer skills preferred. • Must be a non-smoker
SUMMARY OF DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
BLESSING GOD
• General housekeeping duties including laundry. • Running errands & grocery shopping • Cooking
Preference will be given to individuals with work experience in luxury villas or 5 star hotels and with a valid driver’s license. Salary dependent on experience. NOTE THIS IS A LIVEIN POSITION ONLY.
NEEDED Is looking for a
Is looking for a
To work 6 days per week salary $6.25 per hour
To work 5 days per week salary $8.00 per hour
HAIRDRESSER MECHANIC
6 days per, weekends and some holidays Salary $6.50 per hour
11258
CONTACT: CONTACT: CONTACT: 241-4070 342-6583 941-7923
HERZOG CARIBBEAN LTD.
CANDIDATE MUST ALSO:
EARTHWORKS / GRADING FOREMAN GENERAL
• Directly supervises grading crew. • Reports on work to Superintendent. • Experienced on all types of heavy equipment for dirt and site projects. • Knowledgeable in the areas of dirt work, including excavation, grade work, surveying and final excavating work. • Reads, understands, and interprets drawings and specifications. • Monitors crews for organizational structure, sizing, crew mix ratios, and wage compliance in conjunction with Superintendent. • Reports on time and materials. • Monitors the implementation of safety orientations, safety indoctrinations, provides coaching for improvement.
IS REQUIRED FOR A PRIVATE VILLA • A self-motivated, highly detail oriented individual is require to work in a luxury villa • The successful candidate must demonstrate the ability to use their own initiative and have a good command of the English language as well as excellent communication skills • He/she must be prepared to sometimes work long hours, weekends and holidays • Butler experience in a luxury or 5 star hotel or residence since attention to detail is essential • An awareness of cost control and energy saving • Ability to run errands, go shopping etc. • He/she may be required from time to time to assist private cook in the serving of meals so an F&B background would be beneficial • Preferences will therefore be given to individuals who are flexible and able to multitask • • • • •
Is seeking to employ a
Supervises field operations for an Earthwork/Roadway/Grading project. The Grading Foreman will directly supervise and coordinate activities of grading crew and may also engage in the trade work of the employees being supervised.
A BUTLER
• Minimum 5 years earthworks/grading foreman experience • Clean Police Record • Valid Driver’s License
SKILLS
• Knowledge of the local customers, materials and specifications is strongly preferred. • Demonstrate strong communication and interpersonal skills. • Proven record of being a self-starter and able to work under limited supervision. • Able to recognize drainage issues. • Good physical strength. • Good physical stamina. • Good manual dexterity. • Great attention to detail. • Works well as team leader.
COMPENSATION
PLEASE SUBMIT APPLICATIONS TO MAIN OFFICE AT C 5-6 CARIBBEAN PLACE, LEEWARD HIGHWAY, PROVIDENCIALES TCI.
• • • • • •
Be willing to work flexible hours, weekends, holidays etc. Be able to work within a team, be reliable and trustworthy Be extremely well presented and have a good command of English Must possess a clean driver’s license in order to run errands Must be prepared to carry out other duties when guests are not in house, such as cleaning pools and performing some minor house maintenance issues if required. Unpacking and packing guests bags Doing the shopping Ironing clothing Supervising other villa staff Preference will also be given to individuals who have worked within a 5 star luxury environment Salary dependent on experience
A SOMMELIER
IS REQUIRED FOR A PRIVATE VILLA Since the successful candidate will work closely with the private villa chef he/she is expected to assist the chef with other duties and possess the following experience, qualities and qualifications: • Experience in Five Star F&B is essential. • Expansive wine knowledge in order to assist private chef with wine parings for dining. • Serving and bar tending experience is also essential since the sommelier will be expected to serve dinner and drinks. • Butler experience and or training would be an advantage • Assist private chef in maintaining the cleanliness and proper sanitation of the kitchen • He/she must be willing to work flexible and long hours (week-ends, & especially holidays) when the family and friends are in residence. • He/she must be able to work within a team and be willing to perform other duties to assist other staff as required. • He/she must be extremely well presented and have a good command of English. Since the family are native Spanish speakers knowledge of Spanish would be an advantage but not essential. • A clean driver’s license is also required as the Sommelier would be expected to assist the private chef with shopping. • Salary is dependent on experience.
Suitably qualified candidates should apply in writing to Villa Manager at P.O. Box 143 or email [email protected]
11255
Full-time cook to prepare • Meals for large family • Must be able to prepare Italian/ Spanish cuisine • Ability to communicate in Spanish
RESPONSIBILITIES
TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
34 CLASSIFIEDS
TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
March 19 - 25, 2016
TURKS AND CAICOS TOURIST BOARD
STAFF VACANCY DIRECTOR OF HUMAN RESOURCES Applications are invited from interested and suitably qualified individuals for the position of Director of Human Resources, FortisTCI, Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands.
DESCRIPTION
The Human Resource (HR) Director’s role is to provide expert leadership in the design, development and implementation of HR policies, programs and services including recruitment and staffing, performance management, benefits and compensation administration, organizational development, employee relation and training. The incumbent will direct the HR function and promote an employee-oriented organization culture enterprise wide that emphasizes continuous improvement, team- work, engagement, high performance and quality. The HR director will ensure that the company operates in accordance with HR policies, and government ordinances and regulations. As a member of the senior management team, the HR director will understand and successfully implement the organization’s vision, mission and values.
MAIN DUTIES
• Be familiar with all relevant labour/ immigration laws, ordinances and guidelines of relevant statutory bodies and ensure the company is in compliance with same. • Direct the design, development, implementation and revision of HR polices, practices and procedures and ensure that every aspect of human resource incorporate the vision, values and culture of the company. • Plays a leading role in the development of HR strategic objectives, departmental goals and systems. • Provide oversight and direction of HR department and activities; including HR staff development including training and coaching. • Responsible for the manpower planning and oversight of talent management program. • Oversee the payroll and benefit programmes ensuring that cost effective benefits are in place aimed at employee satisfaction and retention. • Oversee the Employee Assistance Programme, including the company’s wellness program. • Oversee the administration and maintenance of human resource information systems. • Leads the compensation program and conduct competitive market/salary survey to maintain compensation practices that help to recruit and retain top performing employees. • Responsible for the preparation of the annual HR budget, analyzing variances and initiating corrective measures. • Responsible for the recruitment process and ensures that the company’s recruitment and hiring practices and procedures are adequate to recruit and hire top performing employees.
• Ensure the resolution of disciplinary matters (inclusive of investigative support to departments) in accordance with company policies and procedures. • Provide oversight for enterprise wide training and development policies/programs and initiatives. • Responsible for the development of the HR’s business continuity plan and contribution to the related committees. • Oversee the implementation and maintenance of Investor In People accreditation. • Any other duties assigned by Vice President, Human Resource, Finance & CFO.
ACADEMIC/TECHNICAL/ MANAGEMENT: EXPERIENCE AND QUALIFICATIONS:
• Bachelor’s Degree in Human Resource Management/Development or other related discipline from an accredited university; Masters degree a desired plus. • Ten (10) or more years’ experience in Human Resource Management; minimum (7) seven years in senior management role/directing the HR function. • Experience in strategic planning and execution. • In-depth knowledge of applicable employment laws and regulations. • Strong understanding of human resource management principles, practices, and procedures.
ABILITIES AND SKILLS:
• Ability to build strong trust relationships and maintain positive relationships internally and externally • Ability to develop HR programs and policies based on business requirements • Ability to communicate clearly the work priorities and direction of the department • Ability to lead change processes, strong project management and time management skills • Ability to maintain confidentiality • Strong business acumen, diplomatic and negotiation skills • Excellent communication (verbal and written) and interpersonal skills • Tact and ability to deal with difficult situations • Solid numerical and budgeting skills • Excellent team player and team building skills • Ability to deliver to strict deadlines and to work under pressure • Must be goal oriented and self-motivated • Must possess strong, organisational, multitasking, analytical and problem solving skills • Must have an excellent working knowledge of MS Office software programs, including MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and various databases. Salary commensurate with experience and qualifications.
Deadline for submission of applications (inclusive of a cover letter, resume and a FortisTCI application form) is March 20th, 2016:
Ruth Forbes, Vice President of Human Resources, Finance and CFO FortisTCI Limited P. O. Box 132, Providenciales Email address: [email protected] or [email protected] Fax: 649-946-4532
PURPOSE:
CHANGE MANAGER
This consultative role is tasked with the implementation of the National Tourism Policy and Strategic Implementation Plan. The successful consultant will work along with the Ministry of Tourism, Environment, Culture and Heritage, the Turks and Caicos Tourist Board and all key stakeholders to manage and monitor the implementation of the Strategic Plan. This role will facilitate the change management process and build capacity for same within the Tourist Board. Reporting to the Director of Tourism, this position is based in Providenciales with a contract period of eighteen (18) months.
ESSENTIAL DUTIES
Implementation • Develop a clearly defined implementation plan regarding the five pillars of the Strategic Plan within the set time frame. • Build and maintain positive working relationships with tourism stakeholders, government agencies, and community groups; enhance Belonger participation and ownership of the Strategic Plan. • Work closely with all tourism stakeholders to facilitate the implementation, education and promotion of the Strategic Plan in the family islands. • Oversee the development of educational collateral, brochures, and advertising for the implementation of the Strategic Policy Plan. • Ensure communication and distribution of promotional, collateral and public information materials related to the strategic plan.
DELIVERABLES
• Develop a budget for the implementation and continuity of the Strategic Plan. • Develop an implementation timeline and process relative to the Strategic Plan. • Facilitate the change management process using the “Train the Trainer” approach. • Provide quarterly reports on the implementation progress and activities to the Director of Tourism, and keep the Director informed on matters of relevance. • Manage the day-to-day operations in relation to the execution of the strategic plan. • Manage the budget associated with the implementation/execution of the strategic plan. • Liaise with the Director of Tourism, government departments, nongovernmental organizations, the private sector and other relevant entities to execute/complete the strategic plan goals/activities. • Ensure the Tourist Board’ structure is aligned with the Caribbean Tourism Organization report of 2013. • Ensure that all stakeholders are consulted in the process. • To manage the implementation of the recommendations of the Strategic Policy and Implementation Plan. • Comply with the policies, procedures
and guidelines of the TCI Tourist Board; enforce and advise of any changes in laws and policies which may affect the Tourist Board • Perform other duties related to the implementation process as directed by the Director of Tourism. REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS, EXPERIENCE AND SKILLS • A Bachelor’s Degree in Tourism, Public Relations, Marketing, Business Management or a related field with a minimum of 5 years of experience or an equivalent combination of education and experience • Three or more years of tourism management experience. • Management skills including ability to work with all Tourist Board staff and a self-motivator. • Considerable knowledge of TCI’s Strategic Policy Plan, with the ability to administer all aspects of the plan. • Ability to develop and maintain effective relationships with the key stakeholders, the Director of Tourism, the Board of Directors and the Ministry. • Well-developed analytical and problem solving skills. • Proficiency in MS Office software, Word, Power Point, Publisher and Excel. • Excellent oral, written communication and presentation skills. • Excellent social and interpersonal skills. • Good health and high energy level. WORK ENVIRONMENT • A dynamic work environment. • Interface with relevant government ministries and departments and tourism private sector entities. • Goal accomplishment within an environment of change and flux. • Work hours may extend to evenings, weekends and holidays. • The job is performed in an office environment for part of the time and other times the job holder will be required to be out in the field. They will be exposed to a range of environments and temperatures. • The job holder will be expected to travel to locations for meetings, presenatations and activities and may need to stand for a long period of time. • Ability to travel locally, regionally or internationally. SALARY: Salary for this position is commensurate with qualifications and experience. For consideration please submit the following documents to chairman@ turksandcaicostourism.com or submit to The Chairman, Turks and Caicos Tourist Board, Stubbs Diamond Plaza, Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands: • Cover Letter • Current Resume • Three (3) reference letters • Current Police Record • Resident Status
Only persons shortlisted for an interview will be contacted in this regard. APPLICATION DEADLINE: March 21st 2016
March 19 - 25, 2016
TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
IMMEDIATE OPENINGS Fitness Instructor REQUIREMENTS:
• Prior experience as a fitness trainer in a high end environment with experience in both personal training and teaching classes. • Certification(s) in fitness instruction, personal training, pilates etc. • High level of personal fitness with ability to demonstrate proper usage of equipment and proper exercise techniques. • Very energetic person with commitment to ensuring high levels of guest satisfaction. DUTIES INCLUDE:
• Create and provide consistent professional fitness classes and personal training sessions in accordance with spa protocols and accepted certification practices. • Provide instruction on safe usage of fitness equipment. • Care for and maintain fitness equipment. • Actively promote the spa, treatments, services and retail as well as any promotions or discounts. • Assist in areas of the spa operation as requested by management. • Must be able and willing to work all days and shifts Starting salary $6.25 per hour not including service charge.
Spa Therapist/Technician REQUIREMENTS:
• Diploma in massage therapy or equivalent. • Prior experience in a 5-star luxury environment. • Extensive knowledge of Eastern style massage, wraps, facials and other treatments. • Proficiency in English. • Must be able and willing to work all days and shifts DUTIES INCLUDE:
• Providing spa treatments to resort guests and day spa guests. • Maximize the revenue of the department through massage and retail product sales. • In addition to performance of the essential functions, this position may be “required to perform a combination of support functions Starting salary $6.25 per hour not including service charge, commission and tips.
Sous Chef REQUIREMENTS:
• Minimum 6 years cooking experience in a luxury hotel environment. • Minimum 2 years experience as a Sous Chef in a luxury hotel environment. • Post secondary degree or equivalent qualification by experience • Must have strong knowledge of kitchen inventory and ordering process, staffing, expediting and ability to supervise the staff and kitchen operations under the direction of the Executive Chef • Excellent culinary technique and ability to work the line during all meal periods • Exceptional customer service orientation, complying with company service culture • Must be willing and able to work all days and shifts • Management skills DUTIES INCLUDE:
• Recruit and select qualified candidates, provide training and communication performance expectations • Coordinate the inventory, purchasing and disbursement of all supplies with the purchasing manager • Inspect and ensures the proper set up and readiness of each item on menus • Supervise daily food preparation for assigned areas. • Ensure that the level of quality, portion control, and plate presentation is adhered to consistently • Work closely with staff to exceed guest expectations • Maintain product consistency by conducting inspecting or seasonings, portion and appearance of food Starting salary $28,000.00 per annum, not including service charge.
Accountant REQUIREMENTS:
• Minimum two year’s experience at a property of similar size as an accountant • Post secondary degree or equivalent qualification by experience. • Resort and Strata Accounting experience • Sound training in all areas of accounting from A/P,
•
•
• • •
A/R, General Ledger, Credit. Collections, Audit. Inventory control, Payroll, Budgeting, Costing, P & L preparation and analysis, etc. Advanced knowledge and skills in computer systems, most specifically, Excel Spreadsheet Solutions Demonstrate understanding of interdepartmental relations and expectations in the luxury hotel market. Sound knowledge of American Accounting Plans Willingness to complete a variety of tasks as assigned by Financial Controller Must be able and willing to work all days and shifts
DUTIES:
• Preparing and posting of various General Ledger entries each month with appropriate backups as well as assist with preparation of monthly financial statements for final review by Financial Controller for Management Company and Strata Corporation. • Prepare monthly reconciliation of balance sheet accounts for Management Company and Strata Corporation. • Assist/Coordinate with Cost Controller and Department Managers on monthly reports submitted for month end; reviewing and ensuring accuracy on inventory counts, variances are investigated and resolved, all shop prepaid reports are accurate, invoice submissions are completed, etc. • Prepare of bi-weekly payroll entries for the resort from reports received from Payroll Master and make necessary accruals, if ending of payroll is different from ending of accounting period. • Prepare and balance NIB and NHIP reconciliation on time for monthly submissions. This includes coordinating with Human Resources, Payroll Master and NIB/NHIP on ensuring numbers are all correct and current in ADP and submission. • Ensure that cash reconciliation between PMS system and physical deposits is maintained by Income Auditor and verifying all variances are being followed up and resolved in a timely manner. • Ensuring that credit card reconciliation between PMS system, shift 4, and bank account is maintained and any variances are being followed up in a timely manner. Starting salary $45,000.00 per annum but commensurate with experience & education, not including service charge.
Interested applicants should apply to The Palms, Human Resources Department, Monday through Friday, and bring along an updated resume, or by emailing your resume to [email protected], no later than end of day Friday, April 1st, 2016.
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LABOURER To work 6 days per week salary $6.50 per hour
CONTACT: 941-5548
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• To work week days salary on commission basis • Must work weekends and holidays • Must have a minimum of 5 years lecture experience and must have an educational degree along with own transportation • Speak English and other language skills is a plus Send written resume to: [email protected]
SAILROCK DEVELOPMENT LIMITED Is seeking qualified candidates for an immediate opening of
STOREKEEPER/ WHAREHOUSEMAN
• MIXOLOGIST • GARDENER • DOMESTIC WORKER • WAITER • HOUSEKEEPER • COOK • BUTLER REQUIREMENTS:
• Minimum of 3 years in the specialized field • Excellent written and communication skills • Must be willing to work holidays and weekends Please drop your resume at the Windsong resort
Send application to the Publisher, Turks & Caicos News Co. Ltd., P.O. Box 52, Providenciales, Turks & Caicos Islands. Or email: tcweeklynews@gmail. com. Sorry, no phone calls.
PURCHASING
PERSON Salary $7.00 per hour
CLEANER $6.25 per hour
Is looking for a
WINDSONG RESORT Is seeking a suitable qualified applicant to fill the following positions:
The Weekly News is in need of a reporter. Applicant should have a good background in English and must be a clear and competent writer. Previous experience on a newspaper, magazine or broadcasting operation is essential. Ability to type well and use a camera a must. Successful person will be required to cover parliament the community, politics and the courts.
Is looking for the following
THE LARGEST READERSHIP IN THE TURKS & CAICOS
Applicant must have at least 10 years’ experience as a Storekeeper/Warehouseman on large scale developments, Duties include: Maintaining a complex storage system facilitating for machinery equipment and construction materials. Tracking materials using a computer package, in order to assist with placing and monitoring orders. Applicant must demonstrate knowledge in construction duties, ability to plan and prioritize work to achieve outcome of issuing materials, demonstrate keyboard/data entry/ word processing skills and experience in the use of Microsoft Software packages and other office equipment, e.g Word, Excel, Access, and have an excellent understanding of supply procedures, programming and logistics for timely delivery of materials. Applicant must be willing to establish permanent residency on South Caicos for duration of employment. Candidates must be able to work well independently and in a team environment, exhibit a positive attitude and an outgoing professional manner. Salary and benefits will be commensurate with experience.
Qualified candidates should email a CV to [email protected] on or before March 25, 2016. Inquires will receive a response within 48 hours.
NEWS REPORTER
SAILROCK DEVELOPMENT LIMITED Is iseeking qualified candidates for an immediate opening of
HEAVY EQUIPMENT
MECHANIC
Applicant must have at least 10 years of experience maintaining and repairing heavy equipment including, loader, excavator, bulldozer and crane. Applicant must have ability to independently troubleshoot, diagnose and repair diesel engines, hydraulic systems, brake systems, transmission/differential systems and other systems associated with heavy equipment. Duties include day-to-day maintenance, troubleshooting and repair of all heavy equipment owned by employer. Applicant must be willing to establish permanent residency on South Caicos for duration of employment. Candidates must be able to work well independently and in a team environment, exhibit a positive attitude and an outgoing professional manner. Salary and benefits will be commensurate with experience.
Qualified candidates should email a CV to [email protected] on or before March 25, 2016. Inquires will receive a response within 48 hours.
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TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
March 19 - 25, 2016
TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS
GOVERNMENT VACANCIES The following vacancies currently exist within the Turks and Caicos Islands Public Service:
Truancy Officer
– Providenciales (Deadline: April 1, 2016) Salary: $21,400.00 per annum The Truancy Officer is responsible for ensuring that all students between the ages of 4 – 16 attend school during school hours. He/she will also prevent mandatory school aged students from visiting night clubs, bars or any other place which prohibits the presence of minors.
Assistant Director of Law Enforcement
– Providenciales (Deadline: April 1, 2016) Salary: $40,200.00 per annum This senior management position supports the Director in terms of law enforcement of the Fisheries Protected Areas and Environment and will further assists in the strategic planning of the Department’s efforts towards the effective management of protected, environmental and fisheries areas.
Clinical Nurse
Registered Nurse/Midwife
– Salt Cay (Deadline: April 1, 2016) Salary: $40,200.00 per annum This is a professional position in the nursing service focused on promoting and restoring patients health through the utilization of the nursing process; collaborating with physicians and multidisciplinary team members; providing physical and psychological support to patients, friends and families; supervising assigned team members.
Porter
– Providenciales (Deadline: April 1, 2016) Salary: $487.50 bi-weekly The incumbent in this position will be responsible for performing a variety of cleaning and custodial maintenance tasks in addition to providing support to the Pathologists Assistant in the day to day operation of the morgue.
Emergency Medical Technician
– Grand Turk (Deadline: April 1, 2016) Salary: $26,000.00 per annum The incumbent in this position will have basic level responsibility for patient health care in the Primary Health Care clinics and the community at large.
– Grand Turk (Deadline: April 1, 2016) Salary: $26,000.00 per annum The incumbent in this position will respond will respond to emergencies in a safe manner and assist in the extrication, stabilization, care and transportation of the ill and injured as required.
Interpreter
Social Worker
– Grand Turk (Deadline: April 1, 2016) Salary: $16,300.00 per annum The incumbent in this position will be responsible for field/ community prevention and mobilization activities with emphasis on the Spanish/Creole population as it relates to the plans and programs of the National AIDS Program.
National Research Officer
– Grand Turk (Deadline: April 1, 2016) Salary: $40,200.00 per annum The incumbent will assist/support the Chief of Epidemiology and Research to plan, develop and implement epidemiologic and research programmes under the auspices of the National Epidemiology and Research Unit (NERU) to ensure collection, analysis, and interpretation of data about health effects and risks in TCI and disseminate this information locally, regionally and internationally as appropriate to be utilized in particular to promote evidence-informed decision making in health in TCI.
Grounds Maintenance Worker
– Providenciales (Deadline: April 1, 2016) Salary: $487.50 per bi-weekly This is a general support services position, to assist with cleaning and maintenance of assigned facilities and grounds so that they are clean and ready for use.
– Providenciales (Deadline: April 1, 2016) Salary: $32,600.00 per annum The incumbent in this position will be responsible for counseling clients and their families, interviewing and assessing foster families and collaborating with other departments and organizations to ensure that the needs of disadvantaged persons in the communities are met.
Social Worker (4 Years Temporary)
– North Caicos (Deadline: April 1, 2016) Salary: $32,600.00 per annum The incumbent in this position will be responsible for counseling clients and their families, interviewing and assessing foster families and collaborating with other departments and organizations to ensure that the needs of disadvantaged persons in the communities are met.
Deputy Chief Environmental Health Officer
– Grand Turk (Deadline: April 1, 2016) Salary: $49,900.00 per annum The Incumbent in this position will organizes plans, directs and manages public and environmental health programs that are specific to Turks and Caicos Islands; Ensures
that everyone in the department is following the Public and Environmental Health Ordinance and regulations; Provides support to the CEHO; Ensures that Public and Environmental Health and Sanitation Standards are adhered to in all areas, both public and private.
Street Cleaner
– South Caicos (Deadline: April 1, 2016) Salary: $487.50 bi-weekly The post holder is responsible for the cleaning of the streets, as assigned, of debris and any other waste and dispose of debris properly or as instructed. The incumbent in this position will be assigned to a particular area or street that he / she may be responsible for solely or as part of a small team and will be required to change areas or help with cleaning of additional areas as requested by the superior officers.
Quantity Surveyor
– Grand Turk (Deadline: April 1, 2016) Salary: $40,200.00 per annum o To manage all costs relating to building and civil engineering projects from the initial calculations to the final figures.
Drafter
– Grand Turk (Deadline: April 1, 2016) Salary: $26,000.00 per annum Responsible for the Drafting of all Maps, Plans, Charts and Sketches and the continuous updating, storage and maintenance of all Cadastral Block Plans under the direction of a supervisory officer.
Network and Wiring Specialist
– Providenciales (Deadline: April 1, 2016) Salary: $40,200.00 per annum This position will seek to address the need for permanent IT personnel presence and support on the island of Providenciales to service the IT needs of Government Offices on site and offices in the neighboring islands of North and Middle Caicos as needed. This position will also ensure an efficient response time to the locations mentioned, as well as ensuring proper connectivity to end users in the event remote assistance is to be provided by CITU staff located in Grand Turk.
Assistant Collector of Customs
– Grand Turk & Providenciales (Deadline: April 1, 2016) Salary: $40,200.00 per annum The Assistant Collector is a member of the Senior Leadership Team of the Customs Department. He/she has responsibility for operational units within the Customs Department and for administering leadership for a team of officers. The position is responsible for ensuring that the Customs Ordinance is adhered to.
Interested persons are asked to visit www.gov.tc/government-vacancies for job details and the application procedure. We thank all for their interest in joining our team but unfortunately only applicants selected for an interview will be contacted. Previous Applicants need NOT apply.
COMPLETE CONSTRUCTION
LABOURER/ GARDENER
GARDENER • • • •
Maintain landscaping beds around the marina Complete any additional ground work as directed by the Property Manager Daily cleaning of our dumpster area, sidewalks, driveways, parking lot Must be willing to work on holidays and off days if asked to
MAINTENANCE ASSISTANT • • • •
Must maintain the Ludington Family Memorial Garden Daily cleaning of all boat slips, cleaning all boats that are the marina’s guest Cleaning of the sewage tank area Must have the ability to maintain the marine’s irrigation system and other work as directed by the Manager • Maintain inventory of cleaning supplies Salary commensurate with experience
CONTACT: 941-3781
THE LARGEST READERSHIP IN THE TURKS & CAICOS
Is currently looking to employ a
LABOURER
Who will be responsible for the daily maintenance of the Building, stocking of the shelves and any other duty that may be assigned.
THE INDIVIDUAL MUST POSSESS THE FOLLOWING:
. Adequate tools to perform his duties . Must be able work with little or no supervision . Must be computer literate . Must be able to work weekends . Must possess a valid driver’s License Please email all application to [email protected]
LABOURER NEEDED
Bonded Warehouse facility requires a
LABOURER
GENERAL DUTIES: Cleaning & maintenance of warehouse and its environment, manual and mechanical movement of dry and chilled cargo. Salary: $6.25 per hour for 40 hour work-week.
DECCO (TCI) LTD
Executive Estimator
Please contact Cargo Express Services, in person, at 70 South Dock Road or email application to [email protected] Application deadline: March 25, 2016 12120
Decco (TCI) Ltd. has a requirement for an experienced Executive Estimator to join our construction team in The Turks and Caicos Islands. The Executive Estimator will be responsible and accountable for the estimating function of major construction projects throughout the Caribbean. Such responsibility and accountabilities will include: • Performing all cost estimating duties including reviewing project documentation, preparing complete and accurate budgets, feasibilities & estimates, value engineering, and communicating information to management and clients; • Researching & procuring of subcontract, labour, materials and equipment pricing; • Establishing and maintaining effective communication, coordination and professional relationships with clients, consultants, vendors, suppliers, contractors and external contacts; • Monitor and report on fluctuations throughout the Caribbean Region in respect of labour, plant & material cost, resource availability, outputs and taxation; • Risk and opportunity identification;
REQUIREMENTS:
The successful candidate will require a proven track record in cost estimating of major projects and a combination of knowledge, skills and experience, as follows:
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• Higher Education qualification in Cost Estimating, Quantity Surveying or Building Construction discipline, or extensive equivalent experience. • Minimum 20 years post-education experience in construction estimating, with extensive experience of leading the estimating function of high value (US$25M++) commercial, residential, resort, infrastructure, marine and energy projects in the Caribbean Region. • Minimum 15 years cost estimating experience at a senior management level within the construction industry. • Knowledge of regional, US and European forms of construction contract and project procurement proceedures. • Proficient understanding of cost controls, material requirements, building blueprints and construction requirements. • Strong IT skills, including good knowledge of all Microsoft Office and proprietary estimating software solutions. • Personal presentation and professionalism. Salary based on experience. Written applications with personal details and a full current resume showing education, qualifications and career experience to date should be sent by email to [email protected] and no later than March 31, 2016.
TURTLE COVE MARINA LTD.
TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
REGISTERED LAND ORDINANCE, CAP 9.01
NOTICE LOST LAND CERTIFICATE TITLE NUMBER 10301/93
SECTION CENTRAL
ISLAND GRAND TURK
Whereas, CYNTHIA ANTOINETTE BASDEN-STILES of 115-118-232 Street, Cambria Heights, New York 11411, United States of America has declared that the Land Certificate for the above mentioned title number(s) registered in his/her/their name was inadvertently mislaid and cannot be found. Take notice that I, Brandie Anderson, Registrar of Lands, shall issue a new land certificate for the said title six weeks of the date of the first publication of this Notice in a local newspaper and the Gazette. Dated this 3rd day of March 2016 Signed ................................................................................................ Registrar of Lands Witnessed .........................................................................................
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is looking for a
10893
• Must have a minimum 10 years knowledge of Neapolitan and Roman style pizza making • Must have preparation with short and long rising dough’s • Must have experience with a high temperature refractory ovens • Must be willing to work weekends, evenings and holidays • Must be available 6 nights per week • Must speak, read and write English • Must have clean police record Salary $450.00 per week [email protected] closing date March 31st, 2016
GRAPHIC ARTIST/ DESIGNER To work 5 days per week salary $6.25 per hour
• must have at least 4 years experience • Must be advanced in Corel Draw, Photo Shop, Flash, In-Design Email:[email protected]
YVANNE DORCIL
TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
MMK CONSULTANCY
Sports Interational
Former NBA guard says almost 80% of DOMESTIC players use marijuana FIRE DANCER To work 4 days WORKER per week salary Is looking for a
acting on behalf of our client: Queen of the Sea is looking for a
11229
CONTACT: 231-6991
STONE FABRICATOR
• the successful applicant must have five years experience • must be able to fabricate Caesarstone, marble and granite slab products according to specification and schedule • must be able to assist the foreman in charge at warehouse and on job site • must be able to read blueprints, layout jobs from blueprints, operate water cooled tools, match colors of materials, glue material, fill holes in materials, operate grinders, stone router and clean up after daily shifts, perform duties and direction from supervisor, • good knowledge of the English language an asset. Salary commensurate with qualifications
Please email resumes to [email protected] Deadline for applications is March 31, 2016
11230
TECHNICIAN – TURKS & CAICOS
POSITION DESCRIPTION:
Small Company seeks to employ a Full Time Technician to assist with installation and training for Point -Of –Sale equipment. The successful applicant should possess the following:
QUALIFICATIONS:
• • • •
Minimum of two (2) years experience in technical field OR A.A. Degree in Computer Science or related field Must be Computer Literate Sales experience would be an asset
MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS:
• • • • • • •
Ability to train and confidently communicate with customers Excellent interpersonal skills Must be a “go-getter” and team player Valid driver’s license Must be a Belonger Own vehicle would be an asset Must be honest and reliable Applicants should submit resumes to:
Attn: Human Resource Manager Email: [email protected] Deadline for receipt of resumes is March 18th, 2016
look I was addicted to it for five plus years so I know,” Williams tells FOXBusiness. com. “But when you say marijuana you get a reaction, ahhh, it’s a gateway drug.” Williams estimates that 75 to 80 percent of athletes use marijuana in the NBA. “You see pictures of guys in California going in and getting their medical marijuana cards. And I’m not just saying athletes, let’s talk about society. I know a lot of people that use it. It’s something that the whole world is becoming more progressive with. So it’s about time some of these entities do as well,” he adds. Currently, 23 states have legalised cannabis for
Jay Williams wants the NBA to become more progressive about marijuana.
medicinal purposes, but the NBA prohibits any type of pot use. According to the National Basketball Association, and its anti-drug agreement, players are subject to four random tests throughout the season, and are conducted by an independent, third-party entity without prior notice to the athlete. If a player tests positive for marijuana and is convicted of the violation, he will be required to enter the Marijuana Programme. A second offense
will result in a $25,000 fine and the third will be a fivegame suspension. “I know so many athletes that play on Percocet. Have you ever taken Percocet by the way? It makes you way more groggy than rubbing cannabis oil into your skin,” adds Williams. “It’s demonised in society too. Oh, he’s a pot head. No, I actually just use cannabis oil because it helps with inflammation and takes away some anxiety.”
MEDGINE SEJOUR SEEKS
1 LABORER Main duties will be domestic duties. Must be able to speak English, Salary starts at $6.50 per hour Will have to work 6 days a week
Deadline for applications is March 25, 2016. Interested persons should send applications via fax at (649) 941-8472 Only applicants selected will be contacted.
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To work 6 days per week salary $6.25 per hour
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commensurate with experience.
FORMER Chicago Bulls guard and three-time Duke All-American Jay Williams says it’s about time the NBA gets more progressive when it comes to marijuana. “It’s easy for doctors to prescribe you Oxycontin and
PUBLIC NOTICE BELONGER STATUS APPLICATION (Section 3 (6) of the Immigration Ordinance)
Take Notice that I, Peter Beckingham, Governor of Turks and Caicos in exercise of the powers conferred on me by section 3(6) of the Immigration Ordinance intend to grant a Certificate of Belonger Status to CERANO CORNIELUS JACKSON by virtue of marriage to a Belonger. PETER BECKINGHAM
March 19 - 25, 2016
TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
CLASSIFIEDS 41
INTRODUCTION OF BUSINESS LICENCE CHECKLIST The Revenue Department continues to strengthen Customer Service initiatives with the introduction of a Business Licence Application & Renewal Checklist.
will not be accepted. Please note that the Revenue Department reserves that right to request any further information as deemed necessary to process a Business Licence application.
The checklist is designed to indicate to applicants the licences, clearances and other supporting documents required for each business type and activity. A checklist must be attached to all applications and incomplete applications
The introduction of the checklist is intended to increase transparency and mitigate delays in processing. The Officers of the Revenue Department are available to address any concerns.
Revenue Department Town Centre Mall Providenciales Tel: 649-338-5234 Fax: 649-941-8649 Website: http://gov.tc/revenue Email: [email protected]
Hibiscus Square Grand Turk Tel: 649-338-2061 Fax: 649-946-2686
42
March 19 - 25, 2016
TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
FIFA wants the millions in bribe money that was paid to Warner, Webb and other officials WORLD football’s governing body FIFA has submitted documents to US authorities in an effort to reclaim tens of millions of dollars pocketed illegally by corrupt FIFA members and other football officials. Among those named are former FIFA vice-president and president of the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF) Jack Warner of Trinidad and Tobago and his successor Jeffrey Webb of the Cayman Islands. In its capacity as a “victimised institution”, FIFA this week submitted a Request for Restitution to the US Attorney’s Office and the US Probation Office for the Eastern District of New York, claiming damages from 41 former FIFA officials and other football organisations, including Warner, Webb and Chuck Blazer, who have been indicted in the ongoing investigation by the US Department of Justice. “The convicted defendants abused the positions of trust they held at FIFA and other international football organisations and caused serious and lasting damage to FIFA, its member associations and the football community,” said new FIFA President Gianni Infantino. “The monies they pocketed belonged to global football and
Wayde van Niekerk won the 400m title at the 2015 World Championships in Beijing.
South African creates sprinting history Jack Warner (left) is fighting his extradition to face corruption charges while Jeffrey Webb (right) has already pleaded guilty.
were meant for the development and promotion of the game. FIFA as the world governing body of football wants that money back and we are determined to get it no matter how long it takes.” FIFA estimates that at least tens of millions of dollars were diverted from the football community illegally through bribery, kickbacks and corrupt schemes carried out by the defendants. This amount is likely to increase as the investigation continues. The US government has already
announced forfeiture amounts that should cover FIFA’s claims for damages. FIFA is seeking restitution for the money the defendants pocketed to enrich themselves, but also for the salaries, benefits and bonuses that were paid to them during their tenure at FIFA and other football organisations. FIFA is also seeking money from the defendants for the damage their actions caused to FIFA’s brand and reputation, its intellectual property and its business relationships.
SOUTH Africa’s Wayde van Niekerk has become the first athlete to run under 10 seconds for the 100m, 20 seconds for the 200m and 44 seconds for 400m. Van Niekerk ran 100m in 9.98 seconds in Bloemfontein on Saturday to add to his 19.94 personal best over 200m and 400m world title-winning 43.48. The 23-year-old was helped by a legal 1.5m/sec tailwind and 1,300m altitude.
“Wow! Finally reaching my dream of sub 10,” Van Niekerk wrote on Instagram alongside a video of the race. Former world and Olympic 200m and 400m champion Michael Johnson wrote on Twitter: “Sub 10, sub 20, sub 44. That’s crazy. Great things could be ahead.” Van Niekerk will only run the 400m at the Olympics in Rio this summer. (BBC)
Gayle hits fastest World T20 century
Six Nations 2016: England’s Grand Slam history VICTORY against France on Saturday will hand England their first Six Nations Grand Slam since 2003. Eddie Jones’ men have already seen off Wales, Ireland, Scotland and Italy - can they wrap it up in Paris? Despite going into the game as favourites, history is not on their side. Since the five nations became six in 2000, England have had five chances to win the Grand Slam - but have only managed it once. BBC Sport looks back at where and how it was won and lost. 2000: HODGE HEROICS AT MUDDY MURRAYFIELD In the inaugural Six Nations tournament, an England team featuring Mike Tindall and Jonny Wilkinson looked like they had got the Grand Slam sewn up, with their final game being against winless Scotland - who had beaten them to the title the year before. But the Scots had other ideas. Driving rain had turned Murrayfield into a mud bath, and the English, determined to keep the ball in hand, failed to deal with the conditions. Duncan Hodge scored four penalties and a converted try to earn his side an unexpected 19-13 victory and deny England a clean sweep.
Jamaica and West Indies opener batsman Chris Gayle hit his century off 47 balls, three balls less than his previous record of 50 balls.
England have claimed only one Grand Slam victory since the Championship became the Six Nations in 2000.
The result also meant Scotland avoided the Wooden Spoon, which instead went to Championship debutants Italy. 2001: MOVE THE GAME, LOSE THE GAME The Six Nations... in October? It happened in 2001 and may have contributed to England falling at the final hurdle for a third consecutive year as they chased a Grand Slam - (the final year of the Five Nations being the start of the run).
Three of Ireland’s fixtures in the Championship had to be postponed after the foot and mouth disease outbreak in Britain, and were eventually re-arranged for the autumn. England travelled to Dublin unbeaten that year. Sir Clive Woodward’s team had a clean run through their first four Six Nations games in the winter, and had easily overcome USA and Canada in the summer Test series.
CHRIS Gayle hit the fastest century in World Twenty20 cricket as West Indies thumped England by six wickets in their Group One match on Wednesday. Gayle, who completed his century off 47 balls, remained unbeaten on 100 off 47 balls with five fours and 11 towering sixes to better his own record of a 50-ball hundred in the 2007 tournament in South Africa. Marlon Samuels set the tone by hitting eight fours in his 37 before Gayle’s brutal hitting took West Indies to 4-183 in 18.1 overs in reply to what earlier appeared to be a competitive England total of 6-182. England seamers found it difficult to control the wet ball because of dew at the Wankhede Stadium as Gayle completed his half century off
27 balls, smashing three fours and five sixes. “The dew played a part as well,” Gayle said. “After facing the first over, I took a while to get back on strike. But Marlon helped ease the pressure.” The left-hander required only another 20 deliveries to complete his century and smashed six more sixes and two boundaries that included three straight successive sixes off off-spinner Moeen Ali. “Before I went out, Sulieman Benn said ‘entertain me’,” Gayle said. “Pleased to finish the game and not leave it to anyone else. I was pumped today.” West Indies never stayed behind the asking run-rate of over nine an over and England bowlers had no answer to the barrage of runs off Gayle’s bat.
March 19 - 25, 2016
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TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
Champions League: Bayern knock out Juve in thriller Danny Drinkwater has been a key figure in Leicester’s rise to the top of the Premier League this season.
Leicester City midfielder Drinkwater gets England call LEICESTER midfielder Danny Drinkwater has been named in the England squad for the Euro 2016 warm-up games against Germany and the Netherlands. It is the 26-year-old’s first call-up to the senior national team. Roy Hodgson’s team travel to Berlin to face world champions Germany on Saturday, 26 March, then host the Dutch at Wembley on Tuesday, 29 March. Tottenham full-back Danny Rose and Liverpool striker Daniel Sturridge are also included in a 24-man squad. But Wayne Rooney is left out as he recovers from a knee injury. Drinkwater, a former Manchester United youth team player, has been an influential figure in the stunning rise of Leicester, who top the Premier League table with eight games to go. “What he’s done has been evident to everybody,” said Hodgson. “He’s had a fantastic season, but even last year we were aware of him.”
Hodgson added that the competition for a place in England’s midfield is “quite fierce” but said it was a good opportunity to see if Drinkwater “can reproduce the quality that he’s shown for Leicester”. Hodgson says he “deliberately ignored” Arsenal’s Kieran Gibbs and Everton full-back Leighton Baines in favour of Rose and Ryan Bertrand. Manchester United’s Michael Carrick, 34, was overlooked in favour of Drinkwater but Hodgson said he could still make the squad for the finals in France. Goalkeepers: Jack Butland (Stoke City), Fraser Forster (Southampton), Joe Hart (Manchester City). Defenders: Ryan Bertrand (Southampton), Gary Cahill (Chelsea), Nathaniel Clyne (Liverpool), Phil Jagielka (Everton), Danny Rose (Tottenham Hotspur), Chris Smalling (Manchester United), John Stones (Everton), Kyle Walker (Tottenham Hotspur).
MLB player retires after team says he can’t bring his son in the clubhouse ADAM LaRoche has hit 255 home runs over his dozen seasons in the MLB for the Atlanta Braves, Pittsburgh Pirates, Boston Red Sox, Arizona Diamondbacks, Washington Nationals and Chicago White Sox. But it seems like that career is coming to an abrupt end. News emerged Tuesday that LaRoche was suddenly retiring three weeks into spring training. Initial speculation was that his fall-off in numbers had something to do with it. Later reports indicated that a personal issue was the cause. But just a day later, we know the real situation at play. According to Fox Sports’ Ken Rosenthal, LaRoche retired when White Sox president Ken Williams told him that his son being in the clubhouse at all times was becoming problematic. He later added more context, including quotes from Williams, in a Facebook post.
Adam LaRoche walked away from $13M, due to his retirement.
LaRoche’s relationship with his son is unique, and one that has clearly created strong feelings from people in the organisation. It’s clear why some might be less than pleased with a teenager in the locker room at all times. At the same time, LaRoche maintaining such a close relationship with his son is admirable. The 36-year-old was quoted in 2013 as saying he valued his son being around his baseball team more than a classroom.
BAYERN Munich squeezed into the Champions League quarterfinal after coming from behind to beat Juventus 6-4 on aggregate in a thrilling tie. The Germans were trailing as the match entered injury time at the end of regulation time in the second leg only for Thomas Muller to head home a thumping equaliser. The five-time European champions pushed on in extra-time as goals from Thiago and Kingsley Coman -- on loan at Bayern from Italians Juve -- sealed a win that seemed improbable midway through the second half. After 73 minutes, visitors Juve -- who had trailed 2-0 in the first leg before battling back for a draw -led 4-2 on aggregate thanks to early goals from Paul Pogba and Juan Cuadrado. But Robert Lewandowski headed home from the influential Douglas Costa to give the home fans hope as Bayern, beaten once in their previous 15 games, started to prove their mettle. Coach Pep Guardiola’s tactical changes made the difference and the Spaniard has now reached at least the quarterfinal stage of the Champions League in all seven of his seasons as
Kingsley Coman and Thiago celebrate after the latter gives Bayern the lead in extra time—the first time they had been ahead all night.
a manager. Much attention will also focus on 19-year-old Coman, the Juventus loanee who came on for Bayern on the hourmark and who had already made a big impact before scoring the final goal to seal the dramatic win. Elsewhere, reigning champions Barcelona cruised into the quarterfinals of the Champions League for the ninth successive year after beating Arsenal 3-1 at home to register a 5-1 aggregate win. The much-vaunted front three of Neymar, Luis Suarez and Lionel
Messi -- nicknamed MSN -- lived up to their billing by all scoring for the home side. In-between, Egypt’s Mohamed Elneny netted his first goal as a spirited Arsenal briefly levelled yet they squandered too many presentable chances to make an impact. Suarez struck a stunning volley for his 43rd goal of the season before Messi chipped home in familiar style late on to register his ninth strike against Arsenal, the Champions League team he has punished the most.
Sharapova suspended by United Nations MARIA Sharapova’s failed drugs admission has prompted the United Nations to suspend the Russian from working with the organisation. Worth an estimated $195 million, Sharapova will be unable to continue her work as a goodwill ambassador with the U.N. Development Programme until the conclusion of the investigation into her admission that she tested positive for the banned substance meldonium at the Australian Open in January. “The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) remains grateful to Maria Sharapova for her support of our work, especially around the Chernobyl nuclear disaster recovery,” said a UNDP spokesperson. “However, in light of Ms. Sharapova’s recent announcement, we last week suspended her role as a Goodwill Ambassador and any planned activities while the investigation continues. We wish Ms. Sharapova the best.” The 28-year-old, who was paid a symbolic $1 salary in her role, said at the time that it was one of her “proudest contracts ever.” Sharapova has worked with the program which aims to eradicate poverty and inequality for nearly a decade, focusing mainly on helping
Maria Sharapova is suspended from her job as a goodwill ambassador with the U.N. Development Programme.
victims of the 1986 Chernobyl disaster. She made a $100,000 donation to young survivors caught up in the world’s worst nuclear accident upon her appointment in 2007. Sharapova’s family once lived 80 miles north of Chernobyl in the Belorussian city of Gomel and were forced to flee to Siberia because of fears over radiation after the accident. According to U.N. guidelines, goodwill ambassadors are “persons of integrity” who “possess the personality and dignity required for such highlevel representative capacity.” Sharapova appears to have
contravened article 28 of Guidelines for the designation of Goodwill Ambassadors and Messengers of Peace, which states that the arrangement will be re-examined if the ambassador “engages in any activity incompatible with his/her status or with the purposes and principles of the U.N., or if the termination is in the interest of the organization.” Ranked as the highest earning female athlete in the world for the 11th year running in 2015 by Forbes, Sharapova’s failed drug test admission has led to a number of companies reassessing their relationship with the Russian.
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TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
March 19 - 25, 2016
Garland cops silver in outdoor opener TCI’s 400M record holder Angelo Garland just missed a stadium and meet record last Saturday when he competed in the Islander Open in Texas. The 21-year-old finished second overall in a time of 47.75s, just off the previous meet record of 47.6s. For the Texas A&M University student, the meet proved extremely important, more so because he was side-lined for about a week recently with a minor hamstring injury. Recovering from the injury gave him a momentum shift, since his injury plagued 2015 season was always dominant in his mind.
Angelo Garland clocked 47.75s in his 400M outdoor season opener.
EARLY 400M This is the earliest in the outdoor season that the former Munro College student has competed in the 400M. Around this time last year he was running the 200M and the 4X100M relays. “My coach told me to just trust in him and I did... Usually I would run the 400M in April, so if I’m running it in March and I’m already running 47s my season looks bright.” Last month, Garland broke his 400M indoor record when he raced to 48.23s at the South Land Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships in Birmingham, Alabama.
Fedlor Sormera led the Kings with 19 points.
Reco Forbes returned to the PABA after a brief injury to score a night high 31 points and seven rebounds for the Spartans.
PABA NIGHT LEAGUE:
Kings and Stallions record big wins
The Sting Rays won the 2015-2016 PABA Development League.
Wesley Methodist Sting Rays win PABA Development League LED by a big double-double from Captain Shardanno Clarke, the Wesley Methodist Sting Rays got past the TCI Community College Admirals 49-45 in the final of the 2015-2016 PABA Development League last week. The game had many exciting lead changes and sensational plays, but it was the youth and athleticism of the Sting Rays that prevailed over the experience of
their opponents. Clarke scored 16 points to go with 19 big rebounds and two blocks. Also contributing was Rajun Valentine who scored 16 points and made three blocks. The Community College’s Randy Rigby, although injured in the early second period, still led all scorers with 21 points, seven rebounds, seven steals and three assists. The College’s captain, Dalevon
Hardware, added eight points, 15 rebounds and three steals. In the supporting game CHHS Seniors placed third after defeating the junior side 36-34. Hero of the recent Hugh Campbell Basketball Tournament in the Bahamas, powerforward Fedlor Sormera led the Seniors with 16 points and eight boards, while Marcus Ulysee led the Juniors with 15 points and 15 rebounds.
THE Nazarene Kings and defending champions, the Grand Turk Stallions recorded big wins to solidify their playoff spots when the Provo Amateur Basketball Association (PABA) Night League continued on Wednesday night at the Gus Lightbourne Sports Complex court. The Kings whipped the Sonics 82-55 with Fedlor Sormera and Randy Rigby leading the charge. The Clement Howell High School 17-year-old power forward Sormera scored 19 points, while Rigby had an all-round game. He scored 17 points, dished out five assists, pulled down five
rebounds and made four steals. Darly Francois led the Sonics with 16 points, seven boards and four steals, while scoring mate Galvin Hall Jr. added 14 points. In the other clash the Stallions galloped over the Spartans 10084. Clifton Jean led the winners with 26 points, eight boards and three steals, while the returning Tamaurri Lightbourne supported with 16 points, six assists and four rebounds. Reco Forbes returned from injury to score 31 points, seven rebounds and four steals for the Spartans, while Devon Williams added 17 points.
March 19 - 25, 2016
TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
Liam Thompson leading the Scotiabank Sailfish on their victory lap with the Mini Cup.
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The Gansevoort Gators were outstanding in the post season.
Sailfish and Gators win PHL titles
THE Scotiabank Sailfish and the Gansevoort Gators won the Mini and Bantam divisions of the Provo Hockey League when the curtains
came down on the tournament last Saturday afternoon at the Graceway Sports Centre. The Sailfish defeated the Grace
Bay Car Rental Islanders 2-1 after Maddox Jones and Charlie Missick found the back of the net. Jack Blain had placed the Islanders ahead
after three and a half minutes of play. In the other clash, the Gators led by two goals from Brooke Rivers and one each from Kurt Rivers and Noah Reid
Osetta Joly wins Primary School Athletics Championships OSETTA Joly romped to victory in this week’s Primary School Athletics Championships which was held at the National Stadium in Providenciales. The winning school tallied 362.5 points, while Enid Capron Primary finished with 321 and Ianthe Pratt Primary 309. The champions had three of the top age group winners, along with the overall champion boy Wiky Jeanty. The champion girl was Sayannah Escoe from Richmond Hill Preparatory. Ona Glinton Primary finished fourth with 244.5 points, while Iris Stubbs Primary finished fifth with 226.5 points.
CLASS WINNERS INCLUDED: Class 4 (7 and under Girls) –Krysann Williams from Oseta Jolly Primary Class 4 (7 and under Boys) –Sheen Augustine from Oseta Jolly Primary Class 3 (9 and under Girls) –Ashley Gardiner from Ianthe Pratt Primary Class 3 (9 and under Boys) –Jenaldo Joachim from Oseta Jolly Primary Class 2 (11 and under Girls) – Sayannah Escoe from Richmond Hill Preparatory Class 2 (11 and under Boys) –Hayder Williams from Wesley Methodist Class 1 (11 to 13 years Girls) –Queen Forbes from Iris Stubbs Primary Class 1 (11 to 13 years Boys) –Wiky Jeanty from Ona Glinton Primary
Oseta Joly won the competition with 362.5 points. Here they pose with TCI International superstar sprinter Delano Williams.
defeated the Saunders and Co Owls 4-2. Joe Canham scored the Owls’ goals and had placed them ahead 2-1 briefly, before the Gators took control.
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TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
March 19 - 25, 2016
LAND FOR SALE In beautiful Bottle Creek, North Caicos
.46 acres overlooking the creek, spanning King Road and Windsor Road
QUICK SALE
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Which Welsh town is near to the old Roman fort of Segontium ? | Segontium Roman Fort, Caernarfon, Gwynedd, Wales | The Journal Of Antiquities
The Journal Of Antiquities
Ancient Sites In Great Britain & Southern Ireland
Segontium Roman Fort, Caernarfon, Gwynedd, Wales
by sunbright57
Segontium Roman Fort(Barrack Blocks) by Alan Fryer (Wikipedia)
OS grid reference: SH 4854 6243. The fort of Segontium lies in a well-defended position at the tip of a ridge between the rivers Seiont and Cadnant, some 150 feet above sea-level, commanding wide views of the surrounding area. Today the remains of the Roman fort look down over Caernarfon Castle. The fort lies on the A4085 road to Beddgelert on the outskirts of Caernarfon. The name ‘Sego’ is Celtic for ‘strong’, while the Roman name Segontium means ‘forceful river’; the name may, therefore, have links with the names of the two rivers, Seiont and Cadnant. Segontium Roman fort was built in AD 77-78.
The fort has had an interesting 20th Century history. The site was saved from builders in 1913, excavated by (Sir) Mortimer Wheeler from 1920-23, purchased by a John Robert’s of Caernarfon who was responsible for erecting the museum, and in 1937 willed by him to the National Trust who in 1958 placed it in the guardianship of Ministry of Public Buildings and Works, who also bought the vicarage area of the site to the south – with a view to further excavation. The SE section was subsequently excavated during the year’s 1975 to 1979. Responsibility for the site now lies with CADW the Historic Environment Service of the Welsh Government. The Museum seems to be managed by a local trust Segontium Cyf. There are references on-line to visitors finding it closed. A Guidebook can be bought at other CADW sites including Caernarfon Castle.
Plan of Segontium Roman Fort (after Collingwood, 1930)
Segontium fort faces south-east. In shape it is an imperfect rectangle with rounded corners 550 ft by 470 ft with four gateways. The buildings within are of a standard pattern with some exceptions and closely packed though a clear space (intervallum) which runs around the foot of the rampart separating the buildings from the wall. The buildings are arranged in three lateral blocks with the administrative buildings in the centre. Like other forts of its date the defences were originally of earth and timber as would have been the buildings. Coins relating to the reign of Edward I show the fort was used as a quarry for the building of Caernarfon Castle. A Roman Road connected Segontium with the legionary fortress at Chester (Deva).
There are several elements to the visible remains: A wall with backing mound (the original rampart), counterforts on the interior face of the wall, corner turrets, and three gateways – the fourth at the SE having been lost during the laying of the A4085 which crosses the site. The wall dates from about AD 150 and is about 4’ thick at the base. The wall would originally have had a parapet standing in total about 18 feet high. Evidence of the original holes for scaffolding is still visible. The so-called ‘counter forts’ in base of the wall probably allowed access to the parapet via steps or ladders. Some of the turrets are, or would have been solid to carry the weight of a heavy ballista, a spring mechanism to discharge stone balls. The gateways would have been arched to carry the weight of the gatehouse. The gatehouses structure changed over the centuries as threats and needs varied.
The internal buildings are of various dates though none earlier than 150 AD. Most show a rebuilding phase in the 4th century AD.
Segontium Roman Fort (The Principia) by JThomas (Wikipedia)
Taking the middle section the Headquarters Building (Principia) succeeded an earlier timber structure. It includes an enclosed courtyard with porticoes and flagging, a roofed assembly hall later subdivided to provide additional office space, and a row of five rooms at the rear – the central room being the regimental chapel where the standard was kept. In the 3rd century an underground strong room was built into the chapel. Also in the 3rd century an apsidal room was added at the back of the building possibly to store fort records as it is the only part of the fort to have a hypocaust. The building seems to have suffered from damp much as some buildings do today. There is evidence that the builders tried to find ways of dealing with this!
Next to this and to the NW is the Commandants House (Praetorium). Again part of the standard plan. At Segontium the house consisted of rows of rooms opening off porticoes arranged around a small internal courtyard or garden. A room at the rear, which contains a plinth, may have been the base of a shrine. Again traces of the original timber building have been found. Adjoining this building was a large yard and workshop (Fabrica) with a long subdivided shed at the far side.
On the other side of the Headquarters Building lay two large granaries (Horrea) measuring 90ft by 19ft built to an unusual design without buttresses and the floor beams taking the entire weight of the grain above. The aim was to store a years worth of grain at each fort. The Roman Soldiers staple diet was bread and biscuits.
There were eight long buildings to the rear at either side of the street leading to the northwest gate. Of these buildings most seem to have been barrack blocks (Centurie). The buildings were much altered over the centuries. A similar building in the NE corner may have been an additional granary or store. It was rebuilt in the 4th century as living accommodation. The barrack blocks are of a common design (an L shape) with the officer accommodation at the end and the long section for the men. Wooden particians would have further divided the walled areas. The intention was to house a century of men (actually 80 men) in each block or two troops of 30 horsemen with their equipment.
Segontium (the Bath-House) by Wolfgang Sauber (Wikimedia)
Excavation of the SE corner revealed a surprise. The largest structure was revealed to be a large building with a courtyard, built about AD 140, with en-suite bathhouse. It has been speculated that this was the residence of the Procurator Metallorum who would have been responsible for the extraction of metal ore in the area. The building and bath-house were demolished in the 4th century and replaced by another bath-house complex. Internal bathhouses are a feature of 4th century rebuilding so this in itself was not a surpise. However, it does not seem to have been ever finished in that a hypocaust system was never installed.
Archaeological investigations have found a flourishing civil settlement (Vicus) outside the camp. An external bath-house has also been found. A walled enclosure built around 200 AD (230 foot by 165 foot) known as Hen Wallen (‘Old Walls’) may have had something to do with Segontium’s role as a port. The remains of this structure can be viewed 300 yards west of the fort along the A4085, turning left at Segontium Road South, then right at Hendre Street. 150 yards east of the fort near the church of St Peblig, a temple of Mithras was excavated in 1959. The building measured 48 foot by 21 foot, was partly dug into a slope, and had a slate roof. Again it dates from about AD 200. Mithras an Eastern Religion was popular amongst soldiers. It promoted the fight for good over evil and assured a life beyond the grave. There are no visible remains of the external bath-house, Temple of Mithras, or the Vicus.
Taking the historical context Governor Agricola finally defeated the Welsh tribes in Anglesey in an unexpected lightning strike using Auxiliarie Troops, who swam across the Menai Straights with equipment and horses in AD 78. Segontium housed auxiliary troops from about AD 78. The auxiliary troops complimented the legionary troops who were stationed at Chester and Caerleon. Auxiliary troops often retained the traditional fighting skills and arms of their homelands and were not normally Roman citizens – an honour given to them after 25 years service. Auxiliary troops could be infantry usually 500 to 1000 strong or cavalry up to 500 strong.
Segontium Museum Building by Eric Jones (Wikipedia)
The archaeological evidence suggests that at the very least Segontium was intended as a part mounted military cohort, both by its size, and the existence of what appears for some of the time to be an additional granary. In the early period of the occupation the auxiliaries at Segontium would have been detailed to keep the peace and to ensure continued mineral extraction. An inscription from the time of the Emperor Sepitimus Severus AD 193-211 indicates that, by the beginning of the 3rd century, Segontium was garrisoned by 500 men from the Cohors I Sunicorum, which would have originally been levied among the Sunici, who lived in the Rhine-Musse area, now Belguim. The size of the fort continued to reduce through the 3rd and 4th centuries. In the 4th century Segontium’s main role was probably the defence of the north Wales coast against Irish raiders. Coins found at Segontium show the fort was still occupied until at least 394 AD.
Finally we enter the world of legend covering the late 4th century. Segontium is generally considered to have been listed among the 28 cities of Britain in the History of the Britains traditionally ascribed to Nennius, a 9th century writer, either as Cair Segeint or Custoient – and who stated that an emperor’s inscribed tomb was still present in his day. This monument such as it existed is now ascribed to Constantine, a son of a St Elen, the patron of the Sarn Helen – a series of road networks across Wales. The story of Elen also features in the 12th century Mabinogion Tales featuring one Maximus – in Welsh Macsen Wledig (possibly a reference to the late 4th century Gallic Roman Emperor Magnus Maximus 383-388). According to legend, Macsen saw Elen or Helen in a dream while he slept in Rome or in Wales, then sent out messengers to find her. Some of them eventually reached Snowdonia. Recognising the mountains and valleys Macsen had seen in the dream, they or “he” found Helen.
Elen his future wife was the daughter of a Welsh chieftain called Eudaf Octavius. The tomb of her son Constantine (Cystennin) is said to have been moved by Edward I. The legend such as it is probably relates to whatever defences were available to the Romano-British peoples’ after the withdrawal of troops in 410 AD – under pressure from Saxon settlers from the east and Irish invaders from the west. A Celtic saint – St Peblig (Publicius) is said to have established a monastery and church at Llanbeblig – in the late 4th century? And St Peblig is recorded as being another son of Elen and Maximus. St Peblig’s remains the parish church for Llanbeblig. The building we see today is essentialy a 14th-century update of an earlier church built close to the Pagan Temple of Mithras and on a Roman graveyard. The tower was added in the 15th and 16th centuries. Other alterations were made in later centuries, including a major restoration in 1894.
Sources:
Segontium Roman Fort, G.C. Boon, Ministry of Public Buidings and Works, 1963
A Guide To The Roman Remains In Britain, Roger J. A. Wilson, Constable, 2002
| Caernarfon |
What is the world's highest capital city, at a height of 11,942 feet ? | segontium roman fort - Review of Segontium Roman Fort, Caernarfon, Wales - TripAdvisor
Review of Segontium Roman Fort
Segontium Llanbeblig Road | Caernarfon, Caernarfon LL55 2LN, Wales
+44 1286 675625
“segontium roman fort”
Reviewed October 2, 2015
A lot of stone was plundered from here to build the nearby castle , but lucky enough a fair bit remains .
A good place to kill XX minutes or so and really make you think how important north wales was to the romans .
I have given 4 stars just because it is free .
I think you can pay into a little museum if you want , but you dont have too.
Visited October 2015
Ask Peter e about Segontium Roman Fort
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
67 reviews from our community
Visitor rating
“Confusing!!!”
Reviewed August 22, 2015
Not really sure what to make of it. The site is surrounded by beautiful trees and the grounds are immaculate. Unfortunately there is no signage to tell you anything and no indication when the visitor centre is open. On the plus side, its free to enter, so nothing to lose only an hour.
Visited August 2015
Ask Craig P about Segontium Roman Fort
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
PinkTin
Reviewed August 11, 2015 via mobile
The fort is 10-20 mins away from the town centre depending on your pace. The approach from the town is via a steady incline. With hind sight we would have driven. The museum was not open, presumably re cutbacks but that did not matter. The grounds are split in 2 by the approach road, the first half (museum side) we were joined by 2 backpackers and a lady walking her dog, on the bath house side we were accompanied by three young girls playing football.
We used our time besides taking a look around the ruins to have a picnic under some very old established pine trees which donned some enormous pine cones.
We had bought a guide for £2 from the castle shop which helped us make sense of our surroundings. Check out google maps for the footprint.
Summary a pleasurable hour or so in relative solitude, great views of Anglesey, presumably why the fort was situated where it was.
Visited August 2015
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What is the Europe's highest capital city, at a height of 1,929 feet ? | Madrid, Spain : Image of the Day
News & Notes
download large image (2 MB, JPEG, 2500x2000)
The white, mottled area in the right-center of this image from NASA�s Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) is Madrid, the capital of Spain. Located on the Meseta Central, a vast plateau covering about 40 percent of the country, this city of 3 million is very near the exact geographic center of the Iberian Peninsula. The Meseta is rimmed by mountains and slopes gently to the west and to the series of rivers that form the boundary with Portugal. The plateau is mostly covered with dry grasslands, olive groves and forested hills.
Madrid is situated in the middle of the Meseta, at an elevation of 646 meters (2,119 feet). To the northwest of Madrid, and visible in the upper left of the image, is the Sistema Central mountain chain that forms the �dorsal spine� of the Meseta and divides it into northern and southern subregions. Rising to about 2,500 meters (8,200 feet), these mountains display some glacial features and are snow-capped for most of the year. Offering almost year-round winter sports, the mountains are also important to the climate of Madrid.
Three visualization methods were combined to produce this image: shading and color coding of topographic height and radar image intensity. The shade image was derived by computing topographic slope in the northwest-southeast direction. North-facing slopes appear bright and south-facing slopes appear dark. Color coding is directly related to topographic height, with green at the lower elevations, rising through yellow and brown to white at the highest elevations. The shade image was combined with the radar intensity image in the flat areas.
Size: 172 by 138 kilometers (107 by 86 miles)
Location: 40.43 degrees North latitude, 3.70 degrees West longitude
Orientation: North toward the top
Image Data: shaded and colored SRTM elevation model, with SRTM radar intensity added
Original Data Resolution: SRTM 1 arcsecond (about 30 meters or 98 feet)
Date Acquired: February 2000
| Madrid |
Tennis - How many Wimbledon singles titles did Billie Jean King win? | Madrid, Spain : Image of the Day
News & Notes
download large image (2 MB, JPEG, 2500x2000)
The white, mottled area in the right-center of this image from NASA�s Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) is Madrid, the capital of Spain. Located on the Meseta Central, a vast plateau covering about 40 percent of the country, this city of 3 million is very near the exact geographic center of the Iberian Peninsula. The Meseta is rimmed by mountains and slopes gently to the west and to the series of rivers that form the boundary with Portugal. The plateau is mostly covered with dry grasslands, olive groves and forested hills.
Madrid is situated in the middle of the Meseta, at an elevation of 646 meters (2,119 feet). To the northwest of Madrid, and visible in the upper left of the image, is the Sistema Central mountain chain that forms the �dorsal spine� of the Meseta and divides it into northern and southern subregions. Rising to about 2,500 meters (8,200 feet), these mountains display some glacial features and are snow-capped for most of the year. Offering almost year-round winter sports, the mountains are also important to the climate of Madrid.
Three visualization methods were combined to produce this image: shading and color coding of topographic height and radar image intensity. The shade image was derived by computing topographic slope in the northwest-southeast direction. North-facing slopes appear bright and south-facing slopes appear dark. Color coding is directly related to topographic height, with green at the lower elevations, rising through yellow and brown to white at the highest elevations. The shade image was combined with the radar intensity image in the flat areas.
Size: 172 by 138 kilometers (107 by 86 miles)
Location: 40.43 degrees North latitude, 3.70 degrees West longitude
Orientation: North toward the top
Image Data: shaded and colored SRTM elevation model, with SRTM radar intensity added
Original Data Resolution: SRTM 1 arcsecond (about 30 meters or 98 feet)
Date Acquired: February 2000
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"Which Roman poet's most famous work is known simply as ""ODES"" ?" | Tu ne quaesieris (Odes, Book 1, Poem 11) - Horace - Ancient Rome - Classical Literature
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�Tu ne quaesieris� (�Do not ask�) is the most famous of the odes of the Roman lyric poet Horace , published in 23 BCE as Poem 11 in the first book of Horace�s collected �Odes� or �Carmina�. The poem takes the form of a short rebuke to a woman, Leucono�, who is worrying about the future, and uses agricultural metaphors to urge us to embrace the pleasures available in everyday life rather than relying on remote aspirations for the future. The poem is often also known as �Carpe Diem� for the famous phrase in the final line, or sometimes as �Ad Leuconoem� for its initial dedication.
Synopsis
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The poet advises Leucono� not to question what fate the gods have in store for her, nor to rely on astrological predictions as the ancient Babylonians used to. Rather, she should just submit and make the best of whatever years are granted us, drinking wine and living life to the full with no thought for the future, because, even as she reads the poem, valuable time is passing.
Analysis
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Horace developed his �Odes� in conscious imitation of the short lyric poetry of Greek originals such as Pindar , Sappho and Alcaeus. His genius lay in applying these older forms, largely using the ancient Greek Sapphic and Alcaic metres, to the social life of Rome in the age of Augustus. The first three books of the �Odes�, including this one, were published in 23 BCE, with the earliest positively-dated poem in the collection ( �Nunc est bibendum� ) dating from around 30 BCE. We have no exact date for the writing of this particular poem.
It is addressed to Leucono�, an unknown younger female companion (probably not her real name, as it translates as something like �empty head�). It seems likely from hints in the poem that, at the time of its writing, Horace and Leucono� were together in a villa on the shores of the Bay of Naples (the �Tyrrhenian Sea�) on a wild winter�s day.
There is a definite music in the poem, especially when read aloud, and Horace manages to conjure vivid imagery in the sparest, most economical phrases. It closes with the famous line �carpe diem, quam minimum credula postero� (�seize the day, trusting tomorrow as little as possible�).
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"Which Italian composer who lived from 1678 to 1741 was nicknamed ""The Red Priest"" after taking holy orders in 1703 ?" | Horace - Crystalinks
Horace
Horace (right) Maecenas (center) Augustus (left)
Wall painting the palace of Augustus on the Palatine
Quintus Horatius Flaccus (8 December 65 BC - 27 November 8 BC), known in the English-speaking world as Horace, was the leading Roman lyric poet during the time of Augustus. The rhetorician Quintillian regarded his Odes as almost the only Latin lyrics worth reading, justifying his estimate with the words: "He can be lofty sometimes, yet he is also full of charm and grace, versatile in his figures, and felicitously daring in his choice of words."
Horace also crafted elegant hexameter verses (Sermones and Epistles) and scurrilous iambic poetry (Epodes). The hexameters are playful and yet serious works, leading the ancient satirist Persius to comment: "as his friend laughs, Horace slyly puts his finger on his every fault; once let in, he plays about the heartstrings". Some of his iambic poetry, however, can seem wantonly repulsive to modern audiences.
His career coincided with Rome's momentous change from Republic to Empire. An officer in the republican army that was crushed at the Battle of Philippi in 42 BC, he was befriended by Octavian's right-hand man in civil affairs, Maecenas, and became something of a spokesman for the new regime. For some commentators, his association with the regime was a delicate balance in which he maintained a strong measure of independence (he was "a master of the graceful sidestep") but for others he was, in John Dryden's phrase, "a well-mannered court slave".
His poetry became "the common currency of civilization", and he still retains a devoted following, despite some stigmatization after World War I (perhaps due to popular mistrust of old-fashioned patriotism and imperial glory, with which he was identified, fairly or unfairly). Horatian studies have become so diverse and intensive in recent years that it is probably no longer possible for any one scholar to command the whole range of arguments and issues.
Most of what we know about Horace comes from self-disclosures in his poetry, supplemented by a short biography probably written by Suetonius (Vita Horati). He has been considered the world's first autobiographer. Recent scholarship tends to frown on biographical interpretations of an author's works (critical analysis reveals only the author's mask or persona) but Horace not only invites our interest, he also mentions events that are verifiable, and thus it is valid to make some inferences about the individual behind the poems.
Horace's father was probably a Venusian taken captive by Romans in the Social War, or possibly he was descended from a Sabine captured in the Samnite Wars. Either way, he was a slave for at least part of his life. He was evidently a man of strong abilities however and managed to gain his freedom and improve his social position. Thus Horace claimed to be the free-born son of a prosperous 'coactor'. The term 'coactor' could denote various roles, such as tax collector, but its use by Horace (Satires 1.6.86) was explained by scholia as a reference to 'coactor argentareus' i.e. an auctioneer with some of the functions of a banker, paying the seller out of his own funds and later recovering the sum with interest from the buyer.
His father spent a small fortune on his son's education, eventually accompanying him to Rome to oversee his schooling and moral development. He never mentioned his mother in his verses and he might not have known much about her. Perhaps she also had been a slave.
Horace left Rome, possibly after his father's death, and continued his formal education in Athens, the Oxbridge or Harvard of the ancient world, where he arrived at nineteen years of age, enrolling in The Academy. Founded by Plato, The Academy was now dominated by Epicureans and Stoics, whose theories and practices made a deep impression on the young man from Venusia.
Meanwhile he mixed and lounged about with the elite of Roman youth, such as Marcus, the idle son of Cicero, and the Pompeius to whom he later addressed a poem (Odes 2.7). It was in Athens too that he probably acquired deep familiarity with the ancient tradition of Greek lyric poetry, at that time largely the preserve of grammarians and academic specialists (access to such material was easier in Athens than in Rome, where the public libraries had yet to be built by Asinius Pollio and Augustus).
Rome's troubles were soon to catch up with him in Athens. It was here that Marcus Junius Brutus turned, after the assassination of Julius Caesar, seeking support for a republican cause that was bereft of ideas, the much-vaunted ideal of liberty actually being irrelevant to a conflict that was essentially a struggle between elites.
The Athenians however had a tradition of honoring tyrannicides, as types of their own heroes Harmodius and Aristogeiton, beside whose statues Brutus and his colleague Cassius were, by a popular decree, scheduled to be immortalized in bronze. Brutus was f�ted around town in grand receptions and he made a point of attending academic lectures, all the while recruiting supporters among the impressionable young men studying there - Horace among them.
An educated young Roman could begin military service high in the ranks and Horace was made tribunus militum (one of six senior officers of a typical legion), a post usually reserved for men of senatorial or equestrian rank and which seems to have inspired jealousy among his well-born confederates (Satires 1.6.48).
He undoubtedly learned the basics of military life while on the march, particularly in the wilds of northern Greece, whose rugged scenery became a backdrop to some of his later poems. It was there in 42 BC that Octavian (later Augustus) and his associate Mark Antony crushed the republican forces at the Battle of Philippi. Horace later recorded it as a day of embarrassment for himself, when he fled without his shield (Odes 2.7.10), but allowance should be made for his self-deprecating humor and his self-identification with a tradition of poets who had long ago abandoned their shields in battle, notably his heroes Alcaeus and Archilochus (the latter did so in a part of Thrace near to Philippi, and was deeply involved in the Greek colonization of Thasos, where by coincidence the republican army finally surrendered).
Octavian offered an early amnesty to his opponents and the deflated ex-military tribune quickly accepted it. On returning to Italy, however, he was confronted with yet another loss: his father's estate in Venusia was one of many throughout Italy to be confiscated for the settlement of veterans (Virgil lost his estate in the north about the same time). Horace later claimed that he was reduced to poverty and this led him to try his hand at poetry (Epistles 2.2.51-2) yet there was no money to be had directly from versifying. At best, it offered future prospects through contacts with other poets and their patrons among the rich.
Meanwhile he somehow obtained the sinecure of scriba quaestorius, a civil service position at the aerarium or Treasury, profitable enough to be purchased even by members of the ordo equester and not very demanding in its work-load, since tasks could be delegated to scribae or permanent clerks. It was about this time that he began writing his Satires and Epodes.
As a Poet
Horace reading before Maecenas
The Epodes belong to the iambic genre of 'blame poetry', as practiced by Archilochus, and it seems that Horace wrote them like his literary hero in order to shame his fellow citizens into a proper sense of their social responsibilities. Social bonds in Rome had been decaying since the destruction of Carthage a little more than a hundred years earlier, under the alluring prospect of vast wealth attainable by plunder and corruption, and the troubles weren't over yet, with Octavian, Mark Antony and confederates like Sextus Pompey all jockeying for a bigger share of the spoils. One modern scholar has counted a dozen civil wars in the hundred years leading up to 31 BC, including the Spartacus rebellion, eight years before Horace's birth. As the heirs to Hellenistic culture, Horace and his fellow Romans were not equipped intellectually for collective answers to their most pressing problems.
Satire was a genre unique to Latin literature and Horace introduced to it a style and outlook suited to the social and ethical issues confronting Rome. Ironically, his approach radically changed its role from public, social engagement to private meditation.
Meanwhile, the poet was beginning to interest Octavian's supporters, a gradual process described by him in Satires 1.6. The way was opened for him by his friend, the poet Virgil, who had gained admission into the privileged circle around Maecenas, Octavian's lieutenant, following the success of his Eclogues. An introduction soon followed and, after a discreet interval, Horace too was accepted. He depicted the process as an honorable one, based on merit and mutual respect, eventually leading to true friendship, and there is reason to believe that his relationship was genuinely friendly, not just with Maecenas but afterwards with Augustus as well.
On the other hand, the poet has been unsympathetically described by one scholar as "a sharp and rising young man, with an eye to the main chance." There were advantages on both sides: Horace gained encouragement and material support, the politicians gained a hold on a potential dissident. His republican sympathies, and his role at Philippi, may have caused him some pangs of remorse over his new status. However most Romans considered the civil wars to be the result of contentio dignitatis, or rivalry between the foremost families of the city, and he too seems to have accepted the principate as Rome's last hope for much needed peace.
In 37 BC, Horace accompanied Maecenas on a journey to Brundisium, described in one of his poems (Satires 1.5) as a series of amusing incidents and charming encounters with other friends along the way, such as Virgil. In fact the journey was political in its motivation, with Maecenas en route to negotiatie the Treaty of Tarentum with Antony, a fact Horace artfully keeps from the reader (political issues are largely avoided in the first book of satires).
Horace was probably also with Maecenas on one of Octavian's naval expeditions against the piratical Sextus Pompeius, which ended in a disastrous storm off Palinurus in 36 BC, briefly alluded to by Horace in terms of near-drowning (Odes 3.4.28). There are also some indications in his verses that he was with Maecenas at the Battle of Actium in 31 BC, where Octavian put an end to Antony's hopes (Epodes 1 and 9). By then Horace had already received from Maecenas the famous gift of his Sabine farm, probably not long after the publication of the first book of Satires. The gift, which included income from five tenants, may have ended his career at the Treasury, or at least allowed him to give it less time and energy. It signaled his identification with the Octavian regime yet, in the second book of Satires that soon followed, he continued the apolitical stance of the first book. By this time, he had attained the status of eques Romanus (Satires 2.7.53), perhaps as a result of his work at the Treasury.
And Knight
Odes 1-3 were the next focus for his artistic creativity. He adapted their forms and themes from Greek lyric poetry of the seventh and sixth centuries. The fragmented nature of the Greek world had enabled his literary heroes to express themselves freely and maybe his semi-retirement from the Treasury in Rome to his own estate in the Sabine hills empowered him to some extent also. Thus even when his lyrics touched on public affairs they reinforced the importance of private life.
Nevertheless his work in the period 30-27 BC began to show his closeness to the regime and his sensitivity to its developing ideology. In Odes 1.2, for example, he eulogized Octavian in hyperboles that echo Hellenistic court poetry. The name Augustus, which Octavian assumed in January 27 BC, is first attested in Odes 3.3 and 3.5.
In the period 27-24 BC, political allusions in the Odes concentrated on foreign wars in Britain (1.35), Arabia (1.29) Spain (3.8) and Parthia (2.2). He greeted Augustus on his return from abroad in 24 BC as a beloved ruler whose recent illness had endangered his own happiness (3.14).
The public reception of Odes 1-3 disappointed him however. He attributed the lack of success to jealousy among imperial courtiers and to his isolation from literary cliques (Epistles 1.19.35-44). Perhaps it was disappointment that led him to put aside the genre in favor of verse letters. He addressed his first book of Epistles to a variety of friends and acquaintances in an urbane style reflecting his new social status as a knight.
In the opening poem, he professed a deeper interest in moral philosophy than poetry (Epistles 1.1.10) but, though the collection demonstrates a leaning towards stoic theory, it reveals no sustained thinking about ethics. Maecenas was still the dominant confidante but Horace had now begun to assert his own independence, suavely declining constant invitations to attend him (Epistles 1.7). In the final poem of the first book of Epistles, he revealed himself to be forty-four years old in the consulship of Lollius and Lepidus i.e. 21 BC, and "of small stature, fond of the sun, prematurely grey, quick-tempered but easily placated" (Epistles 1.20.24-5).
According to Suetonius, the second book of Epistles was prompted by Augustus, who desired a verse epistle to be addressed to himself. Augustus was in fact a prolific letter-writer and he once asked Horace to be his personal secretary. Horace refused the secretarial role but complied with the emperor's request for a verse letter.
The letter to Augustus however may have been slow in coming, being published possibly as late as 11 BC. It celebrated, among other things, the 15 BC military victories of his stepsons, Drusus and Tiberius, yet it and the following letter (Epistles 2.2) were largely devoted to literary theory and criticism. The literary theme was explored still further in Ars Poetica, published separately but written in the form of an epistle and sometimes referred to as Epistles 2.3 (possibly the last poem he ever wrote). He was also commissioned to write odes commemmorating the victories of Drusus and Tiberius (Odes 4.4 and 4.14) and one to be sung in a temple of Apollo for the Secular Games, a long abandoned festival that Augustus revived in accordance with his policy of recreating ancient customs (Carmen Saeculare).
Suetonius is also the source for gossip about Horace's sexual activities towards the end of his life, involving mirrors. The poet died at 56 years of age, not long after his friend Maecenas, near whose tomb he was laid to rest. Both men bequeathed their property to Augustus, an honor that the emperor expected of his friends.
Works
The dating of Horace's works isn't known precisely and scholars often debate the exact order in which they were first 'published'. There are good arguments for the following chronology:
Satires 1 (c. 35-34 BC)
Satires 2 (c. 30 BC)
Epodes (30 BC)
Odes 1-3 (c. 23 BC)
Epistles 1 (c. 21 BC) Carmen Saeculare (17 BC)
Epistles 2 (c. 11 BC)
Odes 4 (c. 11 BC)
Ars Poetica (c. 10-8 BC)
Historical Context
Latin poetry was a product of the Hellenistic period and thus it was self-consciously a literary artifact. Horace's works were written in Greek metres, ranging from the hexameters of the Satires and Epistles and iambs of the Epodes, which were relatively easy to adapt into Latin, to the more complex measures used in the Odes, such as alcaics and sapphics, which were sometimes a difficult fit for Latin structure and syntax. He incorporated literary theory and criticism in his poems throughout his career and he considered himself a partisan in the development of a new and sophisticated style, influenced by the Callimachian aesthetics of brevity, elegance and polish.
In modern literary theory, a distinction has often been made between immediate personal experience (Urerlebnis) and a mediated form of experience derived from cultural norms such as literature, philosophy and the visual arts (Bildungserlebnis). The distinction has little relevance for Horace however since his poetry is a complete blend of personal and literary experiences, such as Satires 1.5, which recounts in realistic details an actual trip Horace made with Virgil and some other literary friends and which is closely modeled on a Satire by Lucilius, his predecessor.
Unlike much Hellenistic-inspired literature, his poetry was not composed primarily for a small coterie of admirers and fellow poets, nor does it rely on abstruse allusions for many of its effects. It was elitist in its literary standards yet it was written for a wide readership, as a publicly accessible form of art. A similar kind of ambivalence characterizes his literary persona, since his presentation of himself as part of a small community of philosophically aware people, seeking true peace of mind and shunning vices like greed, was well suited to Augustus's ambitious plans to reform public morality, corrupted by greed. His plea for moderation was part of a grand message to the nation.
His general practise was to follow the examples of poets established as classics in different genres, such as Archilochus in Epodes, Lucilius in Satires and Alcaeus in the Odes, later broadening his scope for the sake of variation and because his models were ultimately unsuited to the realities confronting him in his own life. Archilochus was an aristocratic Greek whose iambic poetry had a social function that was immediately intelligible to an audience in the seventh century but which became a mere contrivance or literary motif when transposed to Rome, and Lucilius was a senator's son who could castigate his peers with impunity, whereas Horace was a mere freedman's son who had to tread carefully.
His craftsmanship, as a wordsmith, is evident even in his earliest attempts in any particular genre, but his handling of each genre tended to improve over time as he adapted it to his own needs. Thus for example it is generally agreed that his second book of Satires, where human folly identifies itself through dialogue between characters, is superior to the first, where human folly is pointed out in the poet's monologues (though the first book also includes some of his most popular poems).
Lucilius, his model in satire, was an aggressively Roman poet and a significant voice in Roman self-awareness, endearing himself to his countrymen by his blunt frankness and explicit politics, indicative of libertas. His style included 'metrical vandalism' and looseness of structure. Horace instead adopted an oblique and ironic style of satire, ridiculing stock characters and anonymous targets. His libertas was the private freedom of a philosophical outlook, not a political or social privilege. His use of meter in the Satires is relatively easy-going (relative to his later use of tight lyric meters in the Odes) but formal and highly controlled relative to the rough and ready Lucilius, whom he mocked for his sloppy standards (Satires 1.10.56-61)
Horace proudly claimed to introduce into Latin the spirit and iambic meter of Archilochus but (unlike Archilochus) without persecuting anyone (Epistles 1.19.23-5). It was no idle boast. His Epodes were modeled on the verses of the Greek poet in their meter and in some formal aspects of the iambic genre, as 'blame poetry', yet he avoided targeting real scapegoats. Whereas Archilochus presented himself as a serious and vigorous opponent of wrong-doers, Horace aimed for comic effects and adopted the persona of a weak and ineffectual critic of his times (as symbolized for example in his surrender to the witch Canidia in the final epode). He also claimed to be the first to introduce into Latin the lyrical methods of Alcaeus (Epistles 1.19.32-3) and he actually was the first Latin poet to make consistent use of Alcaeic meters and themes: love, politics and the symposium. He imitated many other Greek lyric poets as well, and many scholars believe he employed a 'motto' technique, beginning each ode with some reference to a Greek original and then diverging from it.
Reception
Appreciation of Horace's work varied markedly in his own lifetime. Odes 1-3 were not well received when first 'published' in Rome, yet Augustus later commissioned a ceremonial ode for the Centennial Games in 17 BC and encouraged the publication of Odes 4, after which Horace's reputation as Rome's premier lyricist was assured. His Odes were to become the best received of all his poems in ancient times, acquiring a classic status that discouraged imitation: no other poet produced a comparable body of lyrics in the four centuries that followed (though that may have had more to do with social causes, particularly the parasitism that Italy was sinking into).
In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, ode-writing became highly fashionable in England and a large number of aspiring poets imitated him both in English and in Latin. These preliminary comments touch on a small sample of developments in the reception of Horace's work. More developments are covered epoch by epoch in the following sections.
Antiquity
Horace's influence can be traced in the works of his younger contemporaries, Ovid and Propertius. The former rivaled him in creating a completely natural style of expression in hexameter verse, and the latter cheekily mimicked him in his third book of elegies. His Epistles provided them with a model for their own verse letters and also for Ovid's exile poetry.
His influence also seems to have had an ironically negative power. As mentioned above, the brilliance of his Odes may have discouraged imitation. Moreover publication of Odes 1-3 may have created a vogue for Pindar's lyrics, due to the fact that Horace had largely neglected that form (see Pindar#Influence and legacy).
His criticism of the unpolished style of his predecessor in satire, Lucilius, may have revived popular interest in him. For Persius, and later for Juvenal, both Horace and Lucilius offered valid models -thus Persius described his own satires as lacking Lucilian acerbity and Horace's gentler touch. Juvenal's caustic satire was influenced mainly by Lucilius but Horace by then was a school classic and echoes of his work could be identified by Juvenal in a round-about way as "themes worthy of the Venusine lamp". The iambic genre seems almost to have disappeared after publication of Horace's Epodes. Ovid's Ibis was a rare attempt at the form, inspired mainly by Callimachus, and there are some iambic elements in Martial but they owe more to Catullus than Horace.
Statius paid homage to Horace by composing one poem in Sapphic and one in Alcaic meter (the verse forms most often associated with Odes), which he included in his collection of occasional poems, Silvae. Ancient scholars wrote commentaries on the lyric meters of the Odes. Caesius Bassus was one such metrical theorist, as well as being a poet himself. By a process called derivatio, he varied established meters through the addition or omission of syllables, a technique that Seneca the Younger borrowed when adapting Horatian meters to the stage.
Horace's poems continued to be school texts into late antiquity. Works attributed to Helenius Acro and Pomponius Porphyrio are just the remnants of a much larger body of Horatian scholarship. Porphyrio arranged the poems in non-chronological order, beginning with the Odes, reflecting their general popularity and/or appeal to scholars (the Odes generally kept this privileged position in the medieval manuscript tradition and thus in modern editions also). Horace was often evoked by poets of the fourth century, such as Ausonius and Claudian.
Approaching the fifth century, Prudentius, presented himself in the role of a Christian Horace, adapting Horatian meters and giving Horatian motifs a Christian tone. St Jerome however modeled an uncompromising response to pagan literature, observing: "What harmony can there be between Christ and the Devil? What has Horace to do with the Psalter?"By the early 6th century, Horace and Prudentius were both part of a classical heritage that was struggling to survive the disorder of the times. Boethius, the last major author of classical Latin literature, could still take inspiration from Horace, sometimes mediated by Senecan tragedy. It can be argued that Horace's influence extended beyond poetry to dignify core themes and values, such as self-sufficiency, inner contentment and courage.
Middle Ages and Renaissance
The copying of classical texts virtually ceased in the period between the mid sixth century and the Middle Ages. Horace's work survived probably just in two or three books imported into northern Europe from Italy, these being the ancestors of six extant manuscripts dated to the ninth century. Two of the six manuscripts are French in origin, one was produced in Alsace, and the other three show Irish influence, probably written in continental monasteries (Lombardy for example).
By the last half of the ninth century, direct knowledge of Horace's poetry was not unusual. His influence on the Carolingian Renaissance can be found in the poems of Heiric of Auxerre and in some manuscripts marked with neumes, possibly intended as an aid to the memorization and discussion of his lyric meters. Ode 4.11 is even neumed with the melody of a hymn to John the Baptist, Ut queant laxis, both composed in Sapphic stanzas. The hymn became the basis of the solfege system -an association with western music quite appropriate for a lyric poet, though the language of the hymn is Prudentian rather than Horatian.
The German scholar, Ludwig Traube, once dubbed the tenth and eleventh centuries The age of Horace (aetas Horatiana), and placed it between the aetas Vergiliana of the eighth and ninth centuries, and the aetas Ovidiana of the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, a distinction supposed to reflect the dominant classical Latin influences of those times. It was over-schematized: Horace was a substantial influence in the ninth century as well, and it seems Traube had focused on Horace's Satires.
Medieval scholars also over-schematized: they associated Horace's different genres with the different ages of man. A twelfth century scholar encapsulated the theory: "... Horace wrote four different kinds of poems on account of the four ages, the Odes for boys, the Ars Poetica for young men, the Satires for mature men, the Epistles for old and complete men." It was even thought that Horace had composed his works in the order in which they had been placed by ancient scholars. Despite its naivety, the schematism involved an appreciation of Horace's works as a collection, the Ars Poetica, Satires and Epistles appearing to find as much favor as the Odes. Dante referred to him as Orazio satiro, an epithet perhaps reflecting the special status that the Satires and Epistles had attained by the later Middle Ages, and he awarded him a privileged position in the first circle of Hell, with Homer, Ovid and Lucan.
One measure of Horace's popularity is the large number of quotes from all his works found in almost every genre of medieval literature, and the number of imitators composing in ancient quantitative Latin meter . The most prolific imitator of his Odes was the Bavarian monk, Metellus of Tegernsee, who composed a large collection of poems dedicated to the patron saint of Tegernsee Abbey, St Quirinus, around the year 1170.
He imitated all Horace's lyrical meters then followed these up with imitations of other meters used by Prudentius and Boethius, indicating that variety, as first modeled by Horace, was considered a fundamental aspect of the genre. The content of his poems however was restricted to simple piety. Among the most successful imitators of Horace's hexameters was another Germanic author, calling himself Sextus Amarcius, around 1100, who composed four books, the first two exemplifying vices, the second pair mainly virtues, modeled on Horace's Satires and Epistles and exhibiting some of the stylistic differences between the two genres.
Petrarch is a key figure in the transition from imitations of Horace in quantitative Latin meter to imitations in accentual meters. His verse letters in Latin were modeled on the Epistles and he wrote a letter to Horace in the form of an ode. However he also borrowed from Horace when composing his Italian sonnets. One modern scholar has speculated that authors who imitated Horace in meters based on accentual rhythms (including stressed Latin and vernacular languages) may have considered their work a natural sequel to Horace's metrical variety.
In France, Horace and Pindar were the inspiration for a group of vernacular authors called the Pleiade, including for example Pierre de Ronsard and Joachim du Bellay. Montaigne made constant and inventive use of Horatian quotes. The vernacular languages were dominant in Spain and Portugal in the sixteenth century, where Horace's influence is notable in the works of such authors as Garcilaso de la Vega, Juan Boscan Sa de Miranda, Antonio Ferreira and Fray Luis de Le�n, the latter for example writing odes on the Horatian theme beatus ille (happy the man).
The sixteenth century in western Europe was also an age of translations (except in Germany, where Horace wasn't translated until well into the next century). The first English translator was Thomas Drant, who placed translations of Jeremiah and Horace side by side in Medicinable Morall, 1566, the same year that the Scot George Buchanan paraphrased the Psalms in a Horatian context. Ben Jonson put Horace on the stage in 1601 in Poetaster, along with other classical Latin authors, giving them all their own verses to speak in translation. Horace's part evinces the independent spirit, moral earnestness and critical insight that many readers look for in his poems
Age of Enlightenment
During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, or the Age of Enlightenment, neo-classical culture was pervasive and English literature in the middle of that period has been dubbed Augustan. It is not always easy to separate out Horace's influence during those centuries (the mixing of influences is shown for example in one poet's pseudonym, Horace Juvenal). However a measure of his influence can be found in the diversity of the people interested in his works, both among readers and authors.
New editions of his works were published almost yearly. There were three new editions in 1612 (two in Leiden, one in Frankfurt) and again in 1699 (Utrecht, Barcelona, Cambridge). Cheap editions were plentiful and fine editions were also produced, including one whose entire text was engraved by John Pine in copperplate. The poet James Thomson owned five editions of Horace's work and the physician James Douglas had five hundred books with Horace-related titles. Horace was often commended in periodicals such as The Spectator, as a hallmark of good judgement, moderation and manliness, a focus for moralizing.
His verses offered a fund of mottoes, such as simplex munditiis, splendide mendax, sapere aude, nunc est bibendum, carpe diem (the latter perhaps being the only one still in common use today), quoted even in works as prosaic as Edmund Quincy's A treatise of hemp-husbandry (1765). The fictional hero Tom Jones recited his verses with feeling. His works were also used to justify commonplace themes, such as patriotic obedience, as in James Parry's English lines from an Oxford University collection in 1736.
Horatian-style lyrics were increasingly typical of Oxford and Cambridge verse collections for this period, most of them in Latin but some like the previous ode in English. John Milton's Lycidas first appeared in such a collection. It has few Horatian echoes yet Milton's associations with Horace were lifelong. He composed a controversial version of Odes 1.5, and Paradise Lost includes references to Horace's 'Roman' Odes 3.1-6 (Book 7 for example begins with echoes of Odes 3.4).
Yet Horace's lyrics could offer inspiration to libertines as well as moralists, and neo-Latin sometimes served as a kind of discrete veil for the risqu�. Thus for example Benjamin Loveling authored a catalogue of Drury Lane and Covent Garden prostitutes, in Sapphic stanzas, and an encomium for a dying lady "of salacious memory". Some Latin imitations of Horace were politically subversive, such as a marriage ode by Anthony Alsop that included a rallying cry for the Jacobite cause.
On the other hand, Andrew Marvel took inspiration from Horace's Odes 1.37 to compose his English masterpiece Horatian Ode upon Cromwell's Return from Ireland, in which subtly nuanced reflections on the execution of Charles I echo Horace's ambiguous response to the death of Cleopatra (Marvel's ode was suppressed in spite of its subtlety and only began to be widely published in 1776). Samuel Johnson took particular pleasure in reading The Odes.
Alexander Pope wrote direct Imitations of Horace (published with the original Latin alongside) and also echoed him in Essays and The Rape of the Lock. He even emerged as "a quite Horatian Homer" in his translation of the Iliad. Horace appealed also to female poets, such as Anna Seward (Original sonnets on various subjects, and odes paraphrased from Horace, 1799) and Elizabeth Tollet, who composed a Latin ode in Sapphic meter to celebrate her brother's return from overseas, with tea and coffee substituted for the wine of Horace's sympotic settings.
Horace's Ars Poetica is second only to Aristotle's Poetics in its influence on literary theory and criticism. Milton recommended both works in his treatise of Education. Horace's Satires and Epistles however also had a huge impact, influencing theorists and critics such as John Dryden. There was considerable debate over the value of different lyrical forms for contemporary poets, as represented on one hand by the kind of four-line stanzas made familiar by Horace's Sapphic and Alcaic Odes and, on the other, the loosely structured Pindarics associated with the odes of Pindar.
Translations occasionally involved scholars in the dilemmas of censorship. Thus Christopher Smart entirely omitted Odes 4.10 and re-numbered the remaining odes. He also removed the ending of Odes 4.1. Thomas Creech printed Epodes 8 and 12 in the original Latin but left out their English translations. Philip Francis left out both the English and Latin for those same two epodes, a gap in the numbering the only indication that something was amiss. French editions of Horace were influential in England and these too were regularly bowdlerized.
Most European nations had their own 'Horaces': thus for example Friedrich von Hagedorn was called The German Horace and Maciej Kazimierz Sarbiewski The Polish Horace (the latter was much imitated by English poets such as Henry Vaughan and Abraham Cowley). Pope Urban VIII wrote voluminously in Horatian meters, including an ode on gout.
19th century ... on
Horace maintained a central role in the education of English-speaking elites right up until the 1960s. A pedantic emphasis on the formal aspects of language-learning at the expense of literary appreciation may have made him unpopular in some quarters yet it also confirmed his influence -a tension in his reception that underlies Byron's famous lines from Childe Harold (Canto iv, 77).
William Wordsworth's mature poetry, including the preface to Lyrical Ballads, reveals Horace's influence in its rejection of false ornament and he once expressed "a wish / to meet the shade of Horace...". John Keats echoed the opening of Horace's Epodes 14 in the opening lines of Ode to a Nightingale.
The Roman poet was presented in the nineteenth century as an honourary English gentleman. William Thackery produced a version of Odes 1.38 in which Horace's questionable 'boy' became 'Lucy', and Gerard Manley Hopkins translated the boy innocently as 'child'. Horace was translated by Sir Theodore Martin (biographer of Prince Albert) but minus some ungentlemanly verses, such as the erotic Odes 1.25 and Epodes 8 and 12. Lord Lytton produced a popular translation and William Gladstone also wrote translations during his last days as Prime Minister. Edward FitzGerald's Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam, though formally derived from the Persian ruba'i, nevertheless shows a strong Horatian influence, since, as one modern scholar has observed,"...the quatrains inevitably recall the stanzas of the 'Odes', as does the narrating first person of the world-weary, aging Epicurean Omar himself, mixing sympotic exhortation and 'carpe diem' with splendid moralising and 'memento mori' nihilism."
Matthew Arnold advised a friend in verse not to worry about politics, an echo of Odes 2.11, yet later became a critic of Horace's inadequacies relative to Greek poets, as role models of Victorian virtues, observing: "If human life were complete without faith, without enthusiasm, without energy, Horace...would be the perfect interpreter of human life."
Christina Rossetti composed a sonnet depicting a woman willing her own death steadily, drawing on Horace's depiction of 'Glycera' in Odes 1.19.5-6 and Cleopatra in Odes 1.37. A. E. Housman considered Odes 4.7, in Archilochian couplets, the most beautiful poem of antiquity and yet he generally shared Horace's penchant for quatrains, being readily adapted to his own elegiac and melancholy strain.
The most famous poem of Ernest Dowson took its title and its heroine's name from a line of Odes 4.1, Non sum qualis eram bonae sub regno Cynarae, as well as its motif of nostalgia for a former flame. Kipling wrote a famous parody of the Odes, satirising their stylistic idiosyncracies and especially the extraordinary syntax, but he also used Horace's Roman patriotism as a focus for British imperialism, as in the story Regulus in the school collection Stalky & Co., which he based on Odes 3.5. Wilfred Owen's famous poem, quoted above, incorporated Horatian text to question patriotism while ignoring the rules of Latin scansion. However there were few other echoes of Horace in the war period, possibly because war is not actually a major theme of Horace's work.
The American poet, Robert Frost, echoed Horace's Satires in the conversational and sententious idiom of some of his longer poems, such as The Lesson for Today (1941), and also in his gentle advocacy of life on the farm, as in Hyla Brook (1916), evoking Horace's fons Bandusiae in Ode 3.13. Now at the start of the third millennium, poets are still absorbing and re-configuring the Horatian influence, sometimes in translation (such as a 2002 English/American edition of the Odes by thirty-six poets) and sometimes as inspiration for their own work (such as a 2003 collection of odes by a New Zealand poet).
Horace's Epodes have largely been ignored in the modern era, excepting those with political associations of historical significance. The obscene qualities of some of the poems have repulsed even scholars yet more recently a better understanding of the nature of Iambic poetry has led to a re-evaluation of the whole collection. A re-appraisal of the Epodes also appears in creative adaptations by recent poets (such as a 2004 collection of poems that relocates the ancient context to a 1950s industrial town).
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"Which Italian composer who lived from 1792 to 1868 was nicknamed ""Monsieur Crescendo"" ? He was a gourmet and had a famous meat dish named after him." | TIMELINE OF WORLD HISTORY
TIMELINE OF WORLD HISTORY
Gioachino Rossini, photographed by �tienne Carjat, 1865
Gioachino Rossini, in full Gioachino Antonio Rossini (born February 29, 1792, Pesaro, Papal States [Italy]�died November 13, 1868, Passy, near Paris, France), Italian composer noted for his operas, particularly his comic operas, of which The Barber of Seville (1816), Cinderella (1817), and Semiramide (1823) are among the best known. Of his later, larger-scale dramatic operas, the most widely heard is William Tell (1829).
Gioachino Rossini, painted c. 1815 by Vincenzo Camuccini
Early years
Gioachino Rossini was the son of Giuseppe Rossini, an impoverished trumpeter who played in miscellaneous bands and orchestras, and Anna Guidarini, a singer of secondary roles. Thus, Rossini spent his entire childhood in the theatre. Though a lazy student, the young Rossini found it easy to learn to sing and play. At age 14 he entered Bologna�s Philharmonic School (now the G.B. Martini State Conservatory of Music) and composed his first opera seria�Demetrio e Polibio (1806; staged in 1812)�for the Mombelli, a family of singers. At 15 he had learned the violin, horn, and harpsichord and had often sung in public, even in the theatre, to earn some money.
When his voice broke and he was unable to continue singing, Rossini became an accompanist and then a conductor. He had already realized the importance of the German school of composition, perceiving the new elements by which Joseph Haydn and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart had enriched music. These influences can be found in the early cantata he wrote for the Philharmonic School, performed there in 1808. During the next 20 years (from 1808) this genial lazybones was to compose more than 40 operas.
Portrait of Gioachino Rossini in 1820
Italian period
By taste, and soon by obligation, Rossini threw himself into the genre then fashionable: opera buffa (comic opera). His first opera buffa, La cambiale di matrimonio (1810; The Bill of Marriage), was performed in Venice and had a certain success, although his unusual orchestration made the singers indignant. Back in Bologna again, he gave the cantata La morte di Didone (1811; The Death of Dido) in homage to the Mombelli family, who had helped him so much, and he scored a triumph with the two-act opera buffa L�equivoca stravagante (1811; The Extravagant Misunderstanding). The following year, two more of his comic operas were produced in Venice.
Rossini had already broken the traditional form of opera buffa: he embellished his melodies (he was the true creator of bel canto, a florid style of singing), animated his ensembles and finales, used unusual rhythms, restored to the orchestra its rightful place, and put the singer at the service of the music. In 1812 Rossini wrote the oratorio Ciro in Babilonia (Cyrus in Babylon) and La scala di seta (The Silken Ladder), another comic opera.
The same year, Marietta Marcolini, who had already sung in Rossini�s operas and who was interested in the young composer, recommended Rossini to the committee of La Scala opera house in Milan. It was under contract to them that he wrote La pietra del paragone (1812; The Touchstone), a touchstone of his budding genius. In its finale, Rossini�for the first time�made use of the crescendo effect that he was later to use and abuse indiscriminately.
By this time Rossini�s experience in writing seven operas and several cantatas and his intimate contact with the theatre had given him a profound knowledge of his profession. Singers no longer held terrors for him. He was now ready for his major works. Venice, the most-refined city in Italy, was to offer him his true glory. After the comic opera Il signor Bruschino (1813), written for the San Mois� Theatre, he next wrote�for La Fenice�his first serious opera, Tancredi (1813), in which he tried to reform opera seria (the formula-ridden, serious operas of the 18th century), and he composed an authentically dramatic score. This work, spirited and melodious, was an instant success. Tancredi�s famous song, �Di tanti palpiti,� was whistled all over town. The success of L�Italiana in Algeri (1813; The Italian Girl in Algiers) followed, showing further refinements in his reforms of opera buffa. These two successes opened wide the doors of La Scala. With Aureliano in Palmira (1814) the composer affirmed his authority over the singers; he decided to prescribe and write the ornaments for his arias, but the work was not a success. After L�Italiana he wrote Il Turco in Italia (1814; The Turk in Italy) for the Milanese and a cantata for Princess Belgioioso, �one of the most likeable of protectresses,� as the French novelist Stendhal referred to her. Rossini�s next work, Sigismundo (1814), was a failure.
Isabella Colbran
Rossini�s fame soon spread to Naples, where the reigning impresario was Domenico Barbaia, an ambitious former coffeehouse waiter who by gambling and running a gaming house had amassed a fortune and was now in charge of the two great Neapolitan theatres. Barbaia realized Rossini�s growing fame and went to Bologna to offer him a contract. Impressed by the terms of this contract�security, two operas a year�as well as by Barbaia, a millionaire rather than the customary fourth-rate impresario on the verge of bankruptcy, Rossini did not hesitate to accept. How could anyone refuse a tempting impresario whose favourite was none other than the imposing diva Isabella Colbran?
Colbran�s first Rossini opera, Elisabetta, regina d�Inghilterra (1815; Elizabeth, Queen of England), was a triumphant success. Rossini admired Colbran very much and soon fell in love with her. The brilliant success of Elisabetta prompted an invitation from Rome to spend the Carnival season of 1816. The first of Rossini�s Rome operas was unsuccessful. So was the second, Almaviva, soon to become Il barbiere di Siviglia (1816; The Barber of Seville). The Romans, who knew and loved Giovanni Paisiello�s version of Pierre-Augustin Caron de Beaumarchais�s play, took a dislike to this new setting, but when it was given elsewhere in Italy it was received with unbounded success. Written in less than three weeks, the work is a piece of inspired inventiveness that has delighted opera lovers ever since. There followed La cenerentola (1817; Cinderella). As with The Barber, this work uses a contralto for the heroine�s role (though both roles are often sung by sopranos); it proved no less successful. In between these two comedies came Otello (1816; Othello), a setting of William Shakespeare�s play that held the stage until superseded by Giuseppe Verdi�s greater opera of the same name. La gazza ladra (1817; The Thieving Magpie), a semi-serious work, was a triumph in Milan.
Armida, a grand opera requiring a trio of tenors and a dramatic soprano (Colbran), appeared in 1817. Rossini was now finding interpreters that suited his music. Colbran, the tenor Manuel del Popolo Garc�a, the bass Filippo Galli (�the most beautiful voice in Italy�), and the contralto Benedetta Pisaroni (whose art had no equal in depth) were his usual exponents and carried forward his art of bel canto.
La donna del lago (based on Sir Walter Scott�s poem �The Lady of the Lake�) failed at its premiere in 1819 but soon came into favour. After several more-or-less successful works, he left Naples for Vienna, along with Colbran (whom he had just married), anxious to meet Ludwig van Beethoven. Disappointed by the economic situation of the composer of Fidelio, he returned to Venice, where he attempted to crown his Italian career with Semiramide (1823). The old-fashioned Venetians, however, did not understand the astonishing work, his longest and most ambitious, and so he resolved not to write another note for his countrymen. Following his resolution, he decided to leave Italy.
Caricature by H. Mailly on the cover of Le Hanneton, July 4, 1867
Parisian period
Rich, married, unstable, and by nature an epicurean, Rossini wanted to travel. He arrived in Paris in November 1823 and was enthusiastically welcomed in the French capital. The Academy in Paris received him; all of the town fawned upon him. At the end of the year, he visited London, where he conducted and sang in concerts with his wife and met King George IV. Back in Paris, he embarrassed the old musicians. �Rossini,� wrote the Escudier brothers, Paris music publishers,
was then 31 years old and in his prime. His countenance revealed a lofty and congenial expression. His subtle, quick penetrating eye held one magnetically before him. His smile, benevolent and caustic at the same time, reflected his whole disposition. The clear line of his aquiline nose, his vast and prominent brow, which his prematurely receding hairline entirely revealed, the even oval of his face enclosed in jet-black sideburns, all formed a kind of virile and fascinating beauty. He has a marvelously shaped hand, which he displayed somewhat coquettishly through his cuff. He dressed in a simple manner, and, under his clothes, which were more proper than elegant, the appearance of a newly disembarked provincial into the capital.
If the old nicknamed him �Monsieur Crescendo,� the young very quickly paraded their admiration for him. Paris was then the centre of the world and Rossini knew it. After some of his works had been staged, he composed Il viaggio a Reims (�The Journey to Reims�), a cantata improvised for the coronation of Charles X.
For a long while Rossini hoped to modify his style: to replace the comparative artificiality and coldness of florid opera coloratura with declamatory and lofty singing�that is, with truth and intensity. In order to do that, he also had to reform the orchestra and give more importance to the chorus. Thus appeared Le Si�ge de Corinthe (The Siege of Corinth, 1826), a revision of the earlier Maometto II (1820), which was saluted by the prominent composer Hector Berlioz. Le Si�ge was followed by Mo�se (Moses, 1827) and Le Comte Ory (Count Ory, 1828), an adaptation of opera buffa style to French opera.
Rossini�s final opera, Guillaume Tell (William Tell), is on the noble themes of nationalism and liberty, and his music is worthy of the elevated subject. The Parisian public gave him an ovation, and, in a single work, he had responded to all the critics in the most elegant manner. Then he decided, at age 37, not to write again for the theatre. Tell was to have been the first of five operas for the Op�ra, but the new government following the Revolution of 1830 set aside Rossini�s contract.
Gioachino Rossini, photographed by F�lix Nadar, 1858
The reasons for his musical silence remain only suppositions. Some cite his legendary laziness as the cause, while others point to the Parisian hostility to his work and Rossini�s resulting sulkiness. Another cause might have been his jealousy over the Parisian success of the opera composer Giacomo Meyerbeer.
In 1845 Colbran died. In 1847 Rossini married Olympe P�lissier. During his retirement he had written, returning to his first love, some religious pieces: the Stabat Mater (1832) and Petite messe solennelle (1864). He also wrote a few songs and piano pieces but never agreed to their publication.
After a period in Italy, he returned to Paris in 1855, never again to leave it. His parents being deceased, his new wife less demanding than the preceding one, and he himself a wealthy man whose retirement was assured, Rossini gave way to the sweetness of life and to being a wise man who permitted himself to shine in society with a few clever expressions and witticisms. His bons mots, in fact, are legendary, as were his caustic wit and low humour. At his Paris home and later at his villa in Passy, Rossini gave superb gourmet dinners attended by many of the greats of the musical and literary world of the mid-19th century. In 1860 the renowned German composer Richard Wagner visited him, and their fascinating conversation was recorded by Wagner in his essay �Eine Erinnerung an Rossini� (�A Memory of Rossini�).
For years Rossini was known virtually only by the omnipresent Barber of Seville and an occasional revival of William Tell. From the 1950s more and more of his operas were revived, particularly at festivals, and nearly always with public and critical acclaim.
Jean-Louis Caussou
Rossini's final resting place, in the Basilica of Santa Croce, Florence
MAJOR WORKS
Operas.
Some 35 including La pietra del paragone (The Touchstone, first performed 1812); Tancredi (1813); L�Italiana in Algeri (The Italian Girl in Algiers, 1813); Il Turco in Italia (The Turk in Italy, 1814); Elisabetta, regina d�Inghilterra (Elizabeth, Queen of England, 1815); Il barbiere di Siviglia (The Barber of Seville, 1816); La cenerentola (Cinderella, 1817); Armida (1817); La gazza ladra (The Thieving Magpie, 1817); La donna del lago (The Lady of the Lake, 1819); Semiramide (1823); Le Si�ge de Corinthe (The Siege of Corinth, 1826); Mo�se (Moses, 1827); Guillaume Tell (William Tell, 1829).
Choral Music.
Il viaggio a Reims (cantata with ballets, completed 1825); Stabat Mater (1832, revised 1842); Petite messe solennelle (1864).
Chamber Music.
Various, among them Les Soir�es musicales (published 1835).
Piano.
P�ch�s de vieillesse (Sins of Old Age), about 180 pieces for piano or for various instruments, voice, and piano.
Encyclop�dia Britannica
Born in Pesaro in Italy, Rossini was the only child of the town trumpeter. His mother was a singer, providing a useful source of income when his father was imprisoned for insubordination - which happened more than once.
The family moved to Bologna when Rossini was 12, and the young boy contributed to the family finances by singing in churches until his voice broke, and then by playing the keyboard in the opera house. Even at this tender age Rossini could write down an aria after only two hearings, and in 1806 he went to study at the Bologna Academy. There he learned a great deal from studying scores by Mozart and Haydn, and wrote his first opera while still a student. Rossini was an amazingly prolific composer and had already composed nine operas before his reputation was established with performances in Venice in 1813 of Tancredi and L'Italiana in Algeri. The first is a setting of a play by Voltaire, and the second a comedy; both brimmed with spice and vitality, appealing enormously to the audience of the day.
In 1815 Rossini became music director of the opera house at Naples and there met his first wife, at that time the mistress of the impresario Domenico Barbaia. The terms of his employment required him to provide two operas a year; not a man to be daunted by a challenge, Rossini fulfilled his obligations, m some cases by borrowing material from his own earlier operas.
Now in full swing, in 1816 he composed music for Il barbiere di Siiviglia (The Barber of Seville), whose famous overture he had used twice before. The legend of the barber had already been successfully set by Paisiello, and Rossini's misgivings about repeating the feat appeared to be borne out when his own version met with a muted reception. Since then, however, the delightful comic plot and brilliantly fashioned music have won almost universal approval and made it one of the best loved of all operas. La Cenerentola from the following year is based on the Cinderella fairy tale and shares with Il barbiere the Rossini trademarks of a large-scale finale with elaborate build-up, and the use of "patter-songs" - in which words are sung very fast for comic effect.
In his later operas, such as Semiramide and Mose in Egitto, Rossini turned to more dramatic subjects and forms. Despite their huge success, he was only 37 when in 1829 he composed his last opera. Guillaume Tell (William Tell), the story of a Swiss hero who rebels against Austrian rule. After its premiere. Rossini worked at the Bologna Conservatoire before settling in Paris to indulge his second love in life, food; indeed he became famous for his gastro-nomical gifts, bequeathing to the world the fillet steak dish Tournedos Rossini.
Rossini was widowed in 1843 and married his long-standing mistress, Olympe Pehssier. His days of prolific composition for the theatre were over, but he did not entirely renounce music. In 1864 his Petite messe solennelle (Little Solemn Mass) was performed, followed by what would be his final work, Peches de vieillesse (Sins of Old Age), a collection of songs and piano pieces written over a period often years. He completed them in 1868, the year of his death, and the same year that saw confirmation of his greatness as an opera composer with the five-hundredth performance of Guillaume Tell.
The Best of Rossini Aberturas de �peras C�micas
1. Il Barbiere Di Siviglia
2. La Scalada Di Seta
3. L�Italiana In Algeri
4. Il Signor Bruschino
5. Il Turco In Italia
6. La Cenerentola
7. La Cambiale Di Matrimonio
8. La Pietra Del Paragone
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
L'italiana in Algeri (The Italian Girl in Algiers) - 1813 L'italiana in Algeri (The Italian Girl in Algiers) is an operatic dramma giocoso in two acts by Gioachino Rossini to an Italian libretto by Angelo Anelli, based on his earlier text set by Luigi Mosca. It premiered at the Teatro San Benedetto in Venice on 22 May 1813. The music is characteristic of Rossini's style, remarkable for its fusion of sustained, manic energy with elegant, pristine melodies.
Composition history
Rossini wrote L'italiana in Algeri when he was 21. The opera was composed in either 18 or 27 days, depending on which source one believes (Rossini, not surprisingly, pegged it at 18). Rossini entrusted the composition of the recitatives as well as the aria "Le femmine d'Italia" to an unknown collaborator. The opera is notable for Rossini's mixing of opera seria style with opera buffa. The overture is widely recorded and performed today, known for its distinct opening of slow, quiet pizzicato basses, leading to a sudden loud burst of sound from the full orchestra. This "surprise" reflects Rossini's early admiration for Joseph Haydn, whose Symphony No. 94 in G major, "The Surprise Symphony", is so named for the same shocking and semi-comic effect.
Performance history
The work was first performed at the Teatro San Benedetto, Venice on 22 May 1813. It was a notable success and Rossini made progressive changes to the work for later performances in Vicenza, Milan and Naples, during the following two years.
The opera was first presented in London at His Majesty's Theatre on 28 January 1819 and on 5 November 1832 in New York. Having fallen somewhat out of favour as the 19th Century progressed, notable performances of the opera were presented from the 1920s in "Turin (1825), Rome (1927) and London (1935)" [2] and it has been revived frequently after World War II with many successful productions. It is performed regularly in the 21st Century with 48 productions being presented in 43 cities since January 2009. One notable production was given at The Santa Fe Opera in 2002 with Stephanie Blythe as Isabella.
Synopsis
Act 1
The palace of the Bey of Algiers
Elvira accompanied by her slave Zulma regrets the loss of the love of her husband, the Turkish Bey Mustaf�. Left alone with Haly, Captain of the Corsairs, Mustaf� reveals his plan to marry Elvira off to Lindoro, his Italian slave. The Bey is bored with his submissive harem, desiring a new challenge to his virility: he wants an Italian girl, and Haly must find one! Lindoro enters alone and sings about Isabella, his true love, Languir per una bella. Mustaf� comes in to explain Lindoro's impending marriage. The enthusiastic Bey describes the attractions of the match, while Lindoro struggles to refuse.
The seashore
A ship has been wrecked in a storm. Its passengers include Isabella, in search of Lindoro, and Taddeo, her travelling companion and would-be lover. Isabella enters with a sorrowful cavatina Cruda sorte! Amor tiranno!, however she is not afraid and will master the situation. Haly and his men take them prisoner. She passes off Taddeo as her uncle. Haly is delighted to learn she is an Italian � exactly what the Bey wanted! Left to consider their fate, Isabella is irritated by Taddeo's jealousy of Lindoro, but they resolve to join forces.
The palace
Back in the palace, Lindoro and Elvira do not wish to marry, but Mustaf� offers Lindoro passage on a ship returning to Italy if he takes Elvira. Lindoro agrees, admitting a vague possibility of marrying her in Italy. Haly enters with news of the arrival of the Italian beauty. Mustaf� is elated, Gi� d'insolito ardore nel petto agitare.
Surrounded by eunuchs, Mustaf� receives Isabella in a grand hall. He is enchanted. At that moment, Lindoro, Elvira and Zulma arrive to say goodbye to Mustaf�. Lindoro and Isabella are astonished to come face to face. Recovering herself, Isabella asks about Elvira, learning she is Mustaf�'s ex-wife, to be remarried to Lindoro!
Act 2
In the palace
Elvira and Zulma (who have remained in Algiers after all) note Isabella's skill with men. Mustaf� reveals his strategy for seducing Isabella: he installs Lindoro as Isabella's servant and his informer, and Taddeo will also be induced to help. Elvira and Zulma must tell Isabella he is coming to take coffee with her.
Isabella and Lindoro are alone. He explains that he had no intention of marrying Elvira. They agree to escape together and Lindoro sings of his happiness: Ah come il cor di giubilo. Mustaf� enters with a reluctant Taddeo, acclaimed by the Turks as "Lord Kaimakan". He dislikes interceding with Isabella for the Bey, but is frightened to refuse.
In her apartment
Isabella is dressing in Turkish style. Zulma and Elvira deliver Mustaf�'s message: he is coming for coffee. Isabella orders three cups. Elvira should wait in a side room. As Mustaf� approaches, Isabella sings a romantic cavatina, Per lui che adoro. She will receive him. Mustaf� tells Taddeo to leave when he sneezes. Isabella greets Mustaf� warmly and he sneezes, but Taddeo ignores the signal. Isabella calls for coffee and then � to Mustaf�'s horror and amazement � invites Elvira to join them.
Elsewhere in the palace
Haly sings in praise of the women of Italy, Le femmine d'Italia. The Italians enter and Taddeo reveals to a surprised Lindoro that he is not her uncle but her lover, himself unaware of the other man's true identity. Lindoro tells Mustaf� that Isabella will declare him her adored pappataci (literally a "silent eater": a man unable to resist the opposite sex). This, as Lindoro explains, is an Italian custom and a great honour, as the pappataci enjoy an idyllic life dedicated to eating, drinking and sleeping. Zulma and Haly speculate about Isabella's real intentions and the quantity of alcohol ordered for the ceremony.
Isabella's apartment
She addresses the Italian slaves who will be pappataci in the ceremony. She will lead them to freedom: Pensa alla patria. The ceremony begins; Mustaf� is delighted with his new honour and changes into appropriate costume. Isabella explains his obligations. He must swear an oath of eating, drinking, and keeping silent, repeating the words after Taddeo. Following that his oath is tested, under provocation by Isabella and Lindoro.
A European ship lies alongside the palace: time to escape! Taddeo finally realizes who Lindoro is, but decides to go along with them anyway. Elvira, Zulma and Haly find the Bey still acting as a mad pappataci. Suddenly recovering his sanity, Mustaf� calls his troops but they are all drunk. The Italians bid farewell and Mustaf� begs Elvira's forgiveness. No more Italian girls for him!
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Gioacchino Rossini - L'italiana in Algeri - Overture - 1813 L'italiana in Algeri (The Italian Girl in Algiers) is an operatic dramma giocoso in two acts by Gioachino Rossini to an Italian libretto by Angelo Anelli, based on his earlier text set by Luigi Mosca. The music is characteristic of Rossini's style, remarkable for its fusion of sustained, manic energy with elegant, pristine melodies.
The work was first performed at the Teatro San Benedetto, Venice on May 22, 1813.
Gioachino Rossini - Il turco in Italia - Ouverture (Neville Marriner) - 1814
La gazza ladra - 1817 La gazza ladra (Italian pronunciation: [la ˈɡaddza ˈlaːdra], The Thieving Magpie) is a melodramma or opera semiseria in two acts by Gioachino Rossini, with a libretto by Giovanni Gherardini based on La pie voleuse by Jean-Marie-Theodor Badouin d'Aubigny and Louis-Charles Caigniez.
The composer Giaochino Rossini wrote quickly, and La gazza ladra was no exception. According to legend, before the first performance of the opera, the producer assured the composition of the overture by locking Rossini in a room, from the window of which the composer threw out the sheets of music to the copyists who then wrote the orchestral parts, to complete the composition of the opera. As such, The Thieving Magpie is best known for the overture, which is musically notable for its use of snare drums.
Performance history
The first performance of The Thieving Magpie was on 31 May 1817, at La Scala, Milan. In 1818, Rossini revised the opera for subsequent productions in Pesaro; and then in 1819 for the Teatro del Fondo, in Naples, in 1820 for the Teatro di San Carlo, Naples, and in 1866 revised the music for performance in Paris.
The first performance of The Thieving Magpie in England was at the King's Theatre, London, on 10 March 1820. As the French-language La pie voleuse, the opera's first performance in the United States was at the Th��tre d'Orl�ans, New Orleans, on 30 December 1828.
In 1941, Riccardo Zandonai composed a version of The Thieving Magpie for a revival of the opera in Pesaro. In 1979, Alberto Zedda edited Rossini's original composition of the opera for publication by the Fondazione Rossini. In 2013, the Bronx Opera of New York City performed an English-language version of La gazza ladra.
Synopsis
Act 1
At the house of Fabrizio Vingradito and his wife Lucia there is joy for the imminent return of their son Giannetto from the war. One of the servants, Ninetta, is in love with Giannetto and all want the two to marry, except Lucia, who blames Ninetta for the recent loss of a silver fork. Isacco, a local pedlar, enters and asks about Ninetta, but Pippo sends him away. Giannetto arrives and goes inside with Lucia while Ninetta prepares for the party. Once they have gone, Ninetta�s father, Fernando Villabella arrives, also from the war. However, he was sentenced to death after fighting with his captain and is now a deserter. He asks his daughter to sell two pieces of family silver to go towards his expenses while he is on the run. The Mayor enters, intent on seducing Ninetta, and she claims that her father is just some vagrant. The Mayor�s assistant delivers the arrest warrant for a deserter (Fernando), but as the Mayor has forgotten his reading glasses, Ninetta is asked to read the warrant, and makes up a description of someone totally unlike her father. The Mayor continues to force his attentions on Ninetta, at which Fernando almost reveals himself in anger. The three leave, and a magpie flies down and steals one of Lucia�s silver spoons.
Isacco passes by again, and Ninetta sells him the silver her father had entrusted to her. Giannetto and others return, and Lucia notices that a spoon is missing. The Mayor starts an immediate investigation, stating the draconian penalty for domestic theft: death. Lucia and the Mayor accuse Ninetta, who in her distress drops the money she had exchanged from Isacco. The pedlar is brought back and reports that he has already sold on the spoon, but he recalls the inscription "F.V.", initials shared by Fabrizio and Fernando. The stunned Ninetta, desperate to protect her father, is unable to refute the accusations, and the Mayor orders her to be arrested.
Act 2
Antonio, the prison warder, takes pity on Ninetta and says that he will get a message to Pippo and let Giannetto visit her. Ninetta convinces Giannetto that she is innocent. The Mayor now arrives and tells Ninetta that if she accepts his advances he will get her freed � she replies that she would rather die. The Mayor is called away, but Antonio has heard all and offers to help Ninetta any way he can. Ninetta asks Pippo to sell a gold cross and put some money for her father in an agreed hiding place � a chestnut tree. Ninetta is brought to trial, found guilty, and condemned to death. Fernando rushes to the court to save his daughter�s life, but is too late; he too is sent to prison.
Ernesto, a military friend of Fernando, bursts in looking for the Mayor and holding a royal pardon for Ninetta�s father. Pippo shows him the way and is given a silver coin for helping, but the magpie snatches it and flies up to the tower. Pippo and Antonio pursue the thief.
Ninetta is taken to the scaffold and makes her final speech to the crowd. From the tower, Pippo and Antonio cry out that they have found Lucia�s silver in the magpie�s nest and they ring the bells. The crowd hear their words and hope to save Ninetta, but shots ring out and they conclude that they are too late. However, Ninetta appears walking down the hill � the shots were mere rejoicing. Ninetta celebrates with her companions but is worried about her father. He then appears with Ernesto and all � except the Mayor � enjoy a happy ending.
Arias
The most famous aria in the opera is probably Ninetta's prayer "Deh, tu reggi in tal momento". The soprano cavatina "Di piacer mi balza il cor" and the tenor cavatina "Vieni fra queste braccia" (the cabaletta for the duet between Arturo and Elvira from Bellini's I Puritani starts with exactly the same words) are two examples of Rossini's brilliant vocal writing.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Gioacchino Rossini - La gazza ladra - Overture - 1817 La gazza ladra (The Thieving Magpie) is a melodramma or opera semiseria in two acts by Gioachino Rossini. The libretto was by Giovanni Gherardini after La pie voleuse by JMT Badouin d'Aubigny and Louis-Charles Caigniez.
It was first performed on 31 May 1817 at La Scala, Milan.
Il Barbiere di Siviglia - 1816 The Barber of Seville, or The Futile Precaution (Italian: Il barbiere di Siviglia, ossia L'inutile precauzione) is an opera buffa in two acts by Gioachino Rossini with an Italian libretto by Cesare Sterbini. The libretto was based on Pierre Beaumarchais's French comedy Le Barbier de S�ville (1775). The premi�re of Rossini's opera (under the title Almaviva, o sia L'inutile precauzione) took place on 20 February 1816 at the Teatro Argentina, Rome.
Rossini's Barber has proven to be one of the greatest masterpieces of comedy within music, and has been described as the opera buffa of all "opere buffe". Even after two hundred years, its popularity on the modern opera stage attests to that greatness.
Composition history
Rossini's opera recounts the first of the plays from the Figaro trilogy, by French playwright Pierre Beaumarchais, while Mozart's opera Le nozze di Figaro, composed 30 years earlier in 1786, is based on the second part of the Beaumarchais trilogy. The first Beaumarchais play was originally conceived as an op�ra comique, but was rejected as such by the Com�die-Italienne. The play as it is now known was premiered in 1775 by the Com�die-Fran�aise at the Th��tre des Tuileries in Paris.
Other operas based on the first play were composed by Giovanni Paisiello (Il barbiere di Siviglia (1782), by Nicolas Isouard (1796), and by Francesco Morlacchi (1816). Though the work of Paisiello triumphed for a time, only Rossini's version has stood the test of time and continues to be a mainstay of operatic repertoire. On 11 November 1868, two days before Rossini's death, the composer Costantino Dall'Argine (1842�1877) premiered an opera based on the same libretto as Rossini's work, bearing a dedication to Rossini. The premiere was not a failure, but critics condemned the "audacity" of the young composer and the work is now forgotten.
Rossini was well known for being remarkably productive, completing an average of two operas per year for 19 years, and in some years writing as many as four. Musicologists believe that, true to form, the music for Il Barbiere di Siviglia was composed in just under three weeks,[8] although the famous overture was actually recycled from two earlier Rossini operas, Aureliano in Palmira and Elisabetta, regina d'Inghilterra and thus contains none of the thematic material in Il Barbiere di Siviglia itself.
Performance history
The premiere of Rossini's opera was a disastrous failure: the audience hissed and jeered throughout, and several on-stage accidents occurred. However, many of the audience were supporters of one of Rossini's rivals, Giovanni Paisiello, who played on mob mentality to provoke the rest of the audience to dislike the opera. Paisiello had already composed The Barber of Seville and took Rossini's new version to be an affront to his version. In particular, Paisiello and his followers were opposed to the use of basso buffo, which is common in comic opera. The second performance met with quite a different fate, becoming a roaring success. The original French play, Le Barbier de S�ville, endured a similar story: poorly received at first, only to become a favorite within a week.
The opera was first performed in England on 10 March 1818 at the King's Theatre in London in Italian, soon followed on 13 October at the Covent Garden Theatre by an English version translated by John Fawcett and Daniel Terry. It was first performed in America on 3 May 1819 in English (probably the Covent Garden version) at the Park Theatre in New York. It was given in French at the Th��tre d'Orl�ans in New Orleans on 4 March 1823, and became the first opera ever to be performed in Italian in New York, when Manuel Garcia (who played Almaviva) and his Italian troupe opened their first season there with Il barbiere on 29 November 1825 at the Park Theatre. The cast of eight had three other members of his family, including the 17-year-old Maria-Felicia, later known as Maria Malibran.
The role of Rosina was originally written for a contralto. According to Richard Osborne, because of its popularity, singers have sometimes distorted Rossini's intentions. The most serious distortion has been transposition of the role to a higher pitch, "turning her from a lustrous alto into a pert soprano." In addition, the singing lesson in act 2 has often been turned into "a show-stopping cabaret." Adelina Patti was known to include Luigi Arditi's "Il bacio", the Bolero from Verdi's I vespri siciliani, the Shadow Song from Meyerbeer's Dinorah, and Henry Bishop's "Home! Sweet Home!". Nellie Melba followed suit, accompanying herself on the piano in the final song. Pauline Viardot began the practice of inserting Alabiev's "Nightingale". Maria Callas sang a cut-down version of Rossini's own "Contro un cor."
Once after Patti had sung a particularly florid rendition of the opera's legitimate aria, 'Una voce poco fa', Rossini is reported to have asked her: "Very nice, my dear, and who wrote the piece you have just performed?"
As a staple of the operatic repertoire, Barber appears as number nine on the Operabase list of the most-performed operas worldwide. Because of the increasing scarcity of good contraltos, the role of Rosina has most frequently been sung by a coloratura mezzo-soprano (with or without pitch alterations, depending on the singer), and has in the past, and occasionally in more recent times, been sung by coloratura sopranos such as Marcella Sembrich, Maria Callas, Roberta Peters, Gianna D'Angelo, Victoria de los �ngeles, Beverly Sills, Lily Pons, Diana Damrau, Kathleen Battle and Luciana Serra. Famous recent mezzo-soprano Rosinas include Marilyn Horne, Teresa Berganza, Lucia Valentini Terrani, Susanne Marsee, Cecilia Bartoli, Joyce DiDonato, Jennifer Larmore, Elīna Garanča, and Vesselina Kasarova. Famous contralto Rosinas include Ewa Podleś.
Synopsis
Act 1
The square in front of Bartolo's house
In a public square outside Bartolo's house a band of musicians and a poor student named Lindoro are serenading, to no avail, the window of Rosina ("Ecco, ridente in cielo"; "There, laughing in the sky"). Lindoro, who is really the young Count Almaviva in disguise, hopes to make the beautiful Rosina love him for himself�not his money. Almaviva pays off the musicians who then depart, leaving him to brood alone. Rosina is the young ward of the grumpy, elderly Bartolo and she is allowed very little freedom because Bartolo plans to marry her, and her not inconsiderable dowry, himself � once she is of age.
Figaro approaches singing (Aria: "Largo al factotum della citt�"; "Make way for the factotum of the city"). Since Figaro used to be a servant of the Count, the Count asks him for assistance in helping him meet Rosina, offering him money should he be successful in arranging this. (Duet: "All'idea di quel metallo"; "At the idea of that metal"). Figaro advises the Count to disguise himself as a drunken soldier, ordered to be billeted with Bartolo, so as to gain entrance to the house. For this suggestion, Figaro is richly rewarded.
A room in Bartolo's house with four doors
The scene begins with Rosina's cavatina, "Una voce poco fa" ("A voice a little while ago"). (This aria was originally written in the key of E major, but it is sometimes transposed a semitone up into F major for coloratura sopranos to perform, giving them the chance to sing extra, almost traditional, cadenzas, sometimes reaching high Ds or even Fs, as is the case of Diana Damrau's performances.)
Knowing the Count only as Lindoro, Rosina writes to him. As she is leaving the room, Bartolo and Basilio enter. Bartolo is suspicious of the Count, and Basilio advises that he be put out of the way by creating false rumours about him (this aria, "La calunnia � un venticello" � "Calumny is a little breeze" � is almost always sung a tone lower than the original D major).
When the two have gone, Rosina and Figaro enter. The latter asks Rosina to write a few encouraging words to Lindoro, which she has actually already written. (Duet: "Dunque io son...tu non m'inganni?"; "Then I'm the one...you're not fooling me?"). Although surprised by Bartolo, Rosina manages to fool him, but he remains suspicious. (Aria: "A un dottor della mia sorte"; "To a doctor of my class").
As Berta, the Bartolo housekeeper, attempts to leave the house, she is met by the Count disguised as an intoxicated soldier. In fear of the drunken man, she rushes to Bartolo for protection and he tries to remove the supposed soldier, but does not succeed. The Count manages to have a quick word with Rosina, whispering that he is Lindoro and passing her a letter. The watching Bartolo is suspicious and demands to know what is in the piece of paper in Rosina's hands, but she fools him by handing over her laundry list. Bartolo and the Count start arguing and, when Basilio, Figaro and Berta appear, the noise attracts the attention of the Officer of the Watch and his men. Bartolo believes that the Count has been arrested, but Almaviva only has to whisper his name to the officer and is released right away. Bartolo and Basilio are astounded, and Rosina makes sport of them. (Finale: "Fredda ed immobile, comme una statua"; "Cold and still, just like a statue").
Act 2
A room in Bartolo's house with a piano
Almaviva again appears at the doctor's house, this time disguised as a singing tutor and pretending to act as substitute for the supposedly ailing Basilio, Rosina's regular singing teacher. Initially, Bartolo is suspicious, but does allow Almaviva to enter when the Count gives him Rosina's letter. He describes his plan to discredit Lindoro whom he believes to be one of the Count's servants, intent on pursuing women for his master. Figaro arrives to shave Bartolo. Bartolo demurs, but Figaro makes such a scene he agrees, but in order not to leave the supposed music master alone with Rosina, the doctor has Figaro shave him right there in the music room. When Basilio suddenly appears, he is bribed by a full purse from Almaviva and persuaded to leave again, with much discussion of how ill he looks. (Quintet: "Don Basilio! � Cosa veggo!"; "Don Basilio! � What do I see?"). Figaro begins to shave Bartolo, but Bartolo overhears the lovers conspiring. He drives everybody away.
The scene returns to the location of act 1 with a grill looking out onto the square. Bartolo orders Basilio to have the notary ready to marry him to Rosina that evening. He also explains his plot to come between the lovers. Basilio leaves and Rosina arrives. Bartolo shows Rosina the letter she wrote to "Lindoro", and persuades her that this is evidence that Lindoro is merely a flunky of Almaviva. Rosina believes him and agrees to marry him.
The stage remains empty while the music creates a thunder storm to indicate the passage of time. The Count and Figaro climb up a ladder to the balcony and enter the room through a window. Rosina shows Almaviva the letter and expresses her feelings of betrayal and heartbreak. Almaviva reveals his identity and the two reconcile. While Almaviva and Rosina are enraptured by one another, Figaro keeps urging them to leave. Two people are heard approaching the front door, and attempting to leave by way of the ladder, they realize it has been removed. The two are Basilio and the notary and Basilio is given the choice of accepting a bribe and being a witness or receiving two bullets in the head (an easy choice, he says). He and Figaro witness the signatures to a marriage contract between the Count and Rosina. Bartolo barges in, but is too late. The befuddled Bartolo (who was the one who had removed the ladder) is pacified by being allowed to retain Rosina's dowry.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Rossini - Il Barbiere di Siviglia - 1816 Published on Nov 17, 2012
Il Barbiere di Siviglia
Gioachino Rossini - Il barbiere di Siviglia - "Largo al factotum della citta" (Alan Opie) (in English)
Largo al factotum - Leo Nucci (Il Barbiere di Siviglia-Rossini)
Placido Domingo - Largo al factotum (Il Barbiere di Siviglia-Rossini)
Luciano Pavarotti - Figaro - Largo al factotum (Il Barbiere di Siviglia-Rossini)
Gioachino Rossini - La donna del lago - "Vieni, o stella che lucida e bella" - 1819 To avoid any confusion, here is the list of singers and their respective roles:
Elena - Katia Ricciarelli,
Rodrigo di Dhu - Dano Raffanti,
Douglas d'Angus - Samuel Ramey,
Albina - Cecilia Valdenassi,
Serano - Oslavio Di Credico.
The Act One Finale is one of Rossini's most striking achievements. Not only is it one of his most beautiful pieces, it is also an incredibly dramatic scene which perfectly illustrates each change of the protagonists' situation. Most finales are built around the familiar "opening statement - suspension over time - final stretta as all leave the stage angry and confused" kind of structure. Rossini's piece isn't exactly breaking the tradition, as most critics say. It's still centered on the structure mentioned above, with "Crudele sospetto" being the suspension over time. That being said, let's see the structure of the piece:
1. 0:00 - 1:40. "Vieni, o stella". A celebratory chorus sings of Elena's beauty. It's a fairly typical opening to a finale. As a point of interest, here we get a melody taken directly from "Ricciardo" (from Agorante's cavatina).
2. 1:40 - 6:24. "Quanto a quest'alma amante", a terzettino for Elena, her father and Rodrigo. It details Rodrigo happiness of seeing his bride and yet he sees that his bride is unhappy which causes him distress. Douglas is, much like any oppressive father figure in these situations, is threatening his daughter while trying to keep fact in front of Rodrigo. Elena is, quite simply and quite rightly, unhappy of being married against love. All this is enveloped into a most wonderful piece with a very beautiful orchestral line. The piece starts as separate phrases of each character but soon they are connected together as all three lament the loss of their peace of mind. What's rather interesting is the fact that Rodrigo's main line here is taken directly from the central andante section of his aria where he also is thinking of Elena.
3. 6:24 - 7:52. "La mia spada, e la piu fida", the first musical bridge set to a musical theme to be repeated in the stretta. Malcolm appears on stage with a spectacular war song, while Douglas and Elena are consumed by very different feelings in the musical background: the former -- by rage at seeing the lover of his daughter, the latter -- by happiness.
4. 7:52 - to the end. "Questo amplesso a te fia pegno", another bridge. Rodrigo enthusiastically greats his compatriot. And after a bit of small talk, Malcolm is shocked to find out that the bride is his beloved Elena who quickly and quietly asks him to be prudent and not to offend the her groom or father, if not for her, then for his own sake.
Gioachino Rossini - La donna del lago - "Tanti affetti in tal momento" (Frederica von Stade) Elena - Frederica Von Stade,
Malcolm - Marilyn Horne,
Serano - Bruce Ford.
Gioachino Rossini - La donna del lago - "Crudele sospetto" (continuation of the Finale) To avoid any confusion, here is the list of singers and their respective roles:
Elena - Katia Ricciarelli,
Rodrigo di Dhu - Dano Raffanti,
Douglas d'Angus - Samuel Ramey,
Serano - Oslavio Di Credico.
We continue at the central part of the finale:
5. 0:00 - 2:04. "Crudele sospetto", the "suspension over time". An uncommonly short part and a martial one, rather than the usual lyric andante. Everyone is left to his/her suffering: Rodrigo in vain tries to understand the circumstances; Elena and Malcolm are lamenting their fate; Douglas is furious but still tries to keep himself in check; the chorus and the comprimario singers are voicing what we are all thinking: "Will this mystery finally unravel itself?"
6. 2:04 - 4:14. "Sul colle a Morve opposto", the third bridge. Serano enters announcing the attack of the King's forces. Rodrigo puts aside his suspicions and strikes the traditional shield announcing the battle.
7. 4:14 - 6:43. "Giа un raggio forier", the "prayer". A powerful chorus scene, ideally using several choral groups to represent the different clans and the women.
8. 6:43 - 7:12. "Allarmi o campioni!", the final bridge, leading straight into the stretta; a prolonged call to arms.
9. 7:12 - to the end. "Su... amici", the final section, a brilliant march for all the six soloists, three choruses, the orchestra and a stage band. A striking finale, especially considering that one expects a scene where Malcolm, Rodrigo and Douglas are preparing to fight each other at this moment. Rossini prolongs this moment to the terzet in the Second Act that has already been posted.
Gioachino Rossini : The Barber Of Seville - 1821 - Overture
"Cenerentola" - 1817 La Cenerentola, ossia La bont� in trionfo (Cinderella, or Goodness Triumphant) is an operatic dramma giocoso in two acts by Gioachino Rossini. The libretto was written by Jacopo Ferretti, based on the fairy tale Cendrillon by Charles Perrault. The opera was first performed in Rome's Teatro Valle on 25 January 1817.
Rossini composed La Cenerentola when he was 25 years old, following the success of The Barber of Seville the year before. La Cenerentola, which he completed in a period of three weeks, is considered to have some of his finest writing for solo voice and ensembles. Rossini saved some time by reusing an overture from La gazzetta and part of an aria from The Barber of Seville and by enlisting a collaborator, Luca Agolini, who wrote the secco recitatives and three numbers (Alidoro's "Vasto teatro � il mondo", Clorinda's "Sventurata!" and the chorus "Ah, della bella incognita"). The facsimile edition of the autograph has a different aria for Alidoro, "Fa' silenzio, odo un rumore"; this seems to have been added by an anonymous hand for an 1818 production. For an 1820 revival in Rome, Rossini wrote a bravura replacement, "La, del ciel nell'arcano profondo". The light, energetic overture has been in the standard repertoire since its premiere as La Cenerentola.
Performance history
19th century
At the first performance, the opera was received with some hostility, but it soon became popular throughout Italy and beyond; it reached Lisbon in 1819, London in 1820 and New York in 1826. Throughout most of the 19th century, its popularity rivalled that of Barber, but as the coloratura contralto, for which the role was originally written, became rare it fell slowly out of the repertoire.
20th century and beyond
However, from the 1960s onward, as Rossini enjoyed a renaissance, a new generation of Rossini mezzo-sopranos and contraltos ensured the renewed popularity of the work.
There are changes from the traditional fairy tale in La Cenerentola because Rossini opted for having a non-magical resolution to the story (unlike the original source), due to obvious limitations in the "special effects" available.
There are a number of recordings of the opera, and, as a staple of the standard operatic repertoire, it appears as number 28 on the Operabase list of the most-performed operas worldwide.
Synopsis
In this variation of the traditional Cinderella story, the wicked stepmother is replaced by a wicked stepfather, Don Magnifico. The Fairy Godmother is replaced by Alidoro, a philosopher and the Prince's tutor. Cinderella is identified not by her glass slipper but by her bracelet.
Time: Late 18th century � early 19th century
Place: Italy
Act 1
Angelina ("Cenerentola") is forced to work as the maid in the run-down house of her stepfather Don Magnifico. While his two mean, idle daughters, Clorinda and Tisbe, try on their gowns and jewelry, Cenerentola sings a ballad about a king who found his wife among common folk. A beggar comes calling. Clorinda and Tisbe want to send him away, but Cenerentola offers him bread and coffee. Courtiers arrive to announce that Prince Ramiro is looking for the most beautiful girl in the land to be his bride, and is on his way to pay them a visit. Prince Ramiro arrives, disguised as his own valet in order to observe the women without them knowing. He is immediately struck with admiration for Cenerentola and she for him. Cenerentola has to leave when her stepsisters call her. Don Magnifico enters and Ramiro tells him the Prince will arrive shortly. The "prince" is actually Dandini, Ramiro's valet in disguise. The stepsisters arrive and fawn gleefully over Dandini, who invites them to a ball at the Royal palace. Don Magnifico tells Cenerentola that she cannot accompany them to the ball, despite her pleading. Before leaving, Ramiro notices how badly Cenerentola is treated. His tutor, Alidoro, who had been at the house earlier disguised as the beggar, arrives still wearing his rags and asks for Don Magnifico's third daughter. Magnifico denies she is still alive, but when Alidoro is left alone with Cenerentola, he tells her that she will accompany him to the ball. He throws off his beggar's clothes and identifies himself as a member of Prince Ramiro's court, telling her that heaven will reward her pure heart.
The stepsisters and Don Magnifico arrive at Prince Ramiro's palace, with Dandini still posing as the Prince. Dandini offers Magnifico a tour of the wine cellar, hoping to get him drunk. He then disentangles himself from the family and tells Ramiro how stupid and obnoxious the two sisters are. Ramiro is confused since Alidoro had spoken well of one of Magnifico's daughters. Clorinda and Tisbe enter and impatiently pressure Dandini to declare his "princely" choice. Without committing himself, Dandini ponders the question "Whom will the rejected sister marry?" and suggests Ramiro as a possible husband. Believing him to be a mere valet, the two sisters reject Ramiro as a despicable choice and insult him to his face. Alidoro announces the arrival of an unknown, lavishly dressed yet veiled, lady (Cenerentola). All sense something familiar about her and feel they are in a dream but on the verge of being awakened with a shock.
Act 2
Don Magnifico, Clorinda, and Tisbe are in a room of Ramiro's palace. Magnifico frets over the unknown woman who threatens the chance for one of his daughters to marry Prince Ramiro. The three leave and Ramiro enters, smitten with the unknown woman who resembles the girl he had met that morning. He conceals himself as Dandini arrives with Cenerentola and tries to court her. She turns Dandini down politely, telling him that she is in love with his valet. Ramiro steps forth and declares his love for her. She then leaves giving him one of a pair of matching bracelets and saying that if he really cares for her, he will find her. Encouraged by Alidoro, Ramiro calls his men together to begin searching for her. Meanwhile, Dandini confesses to Don Magnifico that he is really Prince Ramiro's valet. Magnifico becomes highly indignant, and Dandini orders him out of the palace.
At Magnifico's house, Cenerentola, once again dressed in rags, is tending the fire and singing her ballad. Magnifico and his daughters return from the ball in a vile mood, and order Cenerentola to prepare their supper. A thunderstorm rages. Dandini suddenly appears at the door to say that Prince Ramiro's carriage has overturned outside and brings him into the house. Cenerentola fetches a chair for the prince and realizes he is Ramiro. He recognizes her bracelet and the couple are reunited. Don Magnifico, Clorinda and Tisbe are furious. Angered by their cruelty to Cenerentola, Ramiro threatens to punish them, but Cenerentola asks him to be merciful. As Cenerentola leaves with her prince, Alidoro thanks heaven for the happy outcome.
In the throne room of Ramiro's palace, Magnifico tries to curry favour with his stepdaughter, the new princess, but she only wants to be acknowledged as his daughter. Cenerentola asks the prince to forgive Magnifico and the two stepsisters. Her father and stepsisters embrace her as she declares that her days of toiling by the fire are over.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Rossini - La Cenerentola (1981) - Complete opera Angelina: Frederica Von Stade
Don Ramiro: Francisco Araiza
Don Magn�fico: Paolo Montarsolo
Dandini: Claudio Desderi
Gioachino Rossini, 'La cenerentola' - ouverture - 1817 Teatro La Fenice - New Year's Concert 2006 (estratto)
Gioachino Rossini, 'La cenerentola' - ouverture
Orchestra del Teatro La Fenice
Kazushi Ono, direttore
"Moses in Egypt" - 1818 Mos� in Egitto (Moses in Egypt) (pronounced [moˈzɛ in eˈdʒitto]) is a three-act opera written by Gioachino Rossini to an Italian libretto by Andrea Leone Tottola, which was based on a 1760 play by Francesco Ringhieri, L'Osiride. It premi�red on 5 March 1818 at the recently reconstructed Teatro San Carlo in Naples, Italy.
In 1827 Rossini revised the work with a new title: Mo�se et Pharaon, ou Le passage de la Mer Rouge (Moses and Pharaoh, or The Crossing of the Red Sea) (pronounced: [mɔiːz e faʁaɔ̃ u lə pasaːʒ də la mɛːʁ ʁuːʒ]). It was set to a four-act libretto written in French by Luigi Balocchi and Victor-Joseph �tienne de Jouy and the premi�re was given by the Paris Opera at the Salle Le Peletier on 26 March the same year.
Riccardo Muti and many scholars consider Mo�se et Pharaon, along with Guillaume Tell, to be among Rossini's greatest achievements:
I prefer it because Rossini himself preferred it. Don't get me wrong. Mos� in Egitto is a wonderful opera, but it remains very much a mere sketch for Mo�se et Pharaon. And it's not just me who says that, but the great Rossini himself.
Composition history
Mos� in Egitto, 1818
The opera was loosely based on the Exodus from Egypt of the Israelites, led by Moses, rendered agreeable to the opera stage by introducing a love theme, in which the Pharaoh's son Amenophis plans to prevent their departure, since he loves the Israelite Ana�s.
The 1818 opera opens as the plague of darkness is dispelled by Moses' prayer, and it ends with the spectacle of the parting of the Red Sea and the drowning of Pharaoh's host, which "elicited howls of derision" at the clumsy machinery of its staging at the premiere, though the opera surmounted its technical failings and was a hit. Billed in 1818 as an azione tragico-sacra, the sacred drama with some features of the oratorio circumvented proscriptions of secular dramatic performances during Lent.
Rossini slightly revised the opera in 1819, when he introduced Moses' prayer-aria "Dal tuo stellato soglio", which became one of the most popular opera pieces of the day and which inspired a set of variations for violin and piano by Niccol� Paganini. Both survive in concert performance.
Mo�se et Pharaon, 1827
The greatly enlarged work set to a French libretto was composed with so much additional music, including a substantial ballet, as to warrant a new title, Mo�se et Pharaon, ou Le passage de la Mer Rouge (Moses and Pharaoh, or The Crossing of the Red Sea) (pronounced: [mɔiːz e faʁaɔ̃ u lə pasaːʒ də la mɛːʁ ʁuːʒ]), and was seen to be a separate and new opera alongside its Naples progenitor.
Performance history
Paris audiences had already seen Mos� in Egitto � both in a performance by the Paris Op�ra at the Th��tre de l'Acad�mie Royale de Musique and at the Th��tre des Italiens � before Rossini revised it again, this time markedly, for the Paris Op�ra.
Now in French in four acts, with a ballet, it premiered on 26 March 1827 under the title Mo�se et Pharaon, ou Le Passage de la Mer Rouge. The first libretto from Naples was translated and augmented by Luigi Balocchi and Victor Joseph Etienne de Jouy, who would later co-write the libretto for Rossini's final opera Guillaume Tell. As is noted on Expatia, "this second version proved such a runaway box-office success that it was performed no less than 100 times between its premiere in 1827 and 1838".
20th century and beyond
The Rossini Opera Festival, in Rossini's home town of Pesaro, has presented the opera periodically since 1980, beginning with a 1983 production by Pier Luigi Pizzi and revived in 1985. It did not re-appear until 2011 when it was seen in a production by Graham Vick.
It has been suggested in the magazine, Opera, that Mos� had "remained virtually unheard in Britain since a concert in 1822", a production was staged by Welsh National Opera in the 1964/5 season in Cardiff, Llandudno and London. WNO staged it again in 2014 in Cardiff and on tour. Also, London's Royal Opera House gave it in May/June 1994.
In the US, Mos� in Egitto had not been heard in Chicago since 1865, but it was presented in that city by Chicago Opera Theater in 2010[10] and given by New York City Opera in April 2013. As part of its autumn 2014 season given in Cardiff and on tour, it was presented in October/November by Welsh National Opera.
As Moise et Pharaon it was given at La Scala in 2003, and again as part of the 2009 Salzburg Festival under Muti.
Instrumentation
The score calls for: 2 Flutes/2 Piccolos, 2 Oboes, 2 Clarinets, 2 Bassoons, 4 Horns, 2 trumpets, 3 Trombones, Serpent, Timpani, Bass Drum, cymbals, Triangle, Banda Turca, Harp, Strings.
Onstage: Band (Piccolo, Quartino, 4 Clarinets, 2 Horns, 4 Trumpets, 2 Trombones, Serpent, Bass Drum)
Act 1 set design of the original 1827 production
Time: Around 1230 B.C.
Act 1
Darkness envelopes Egypt. It has been brought about by God in order to punish the Pharaoh and his people because he has failed to allow the Hebrews to leave the country for the Promised Land across the Red Sea. Moses is brought in and the Pharaoh declares that, when the sun shines again, he will release the captives. Cautioned by his brother Aaron not to believe the Egyptian leader, nevertheless Moses pleads to God and light returns.
However, because the Pharaoh's son Osiride is in love with the Hebrew girl Elcia and does not want to see her leave with her people, he persuades the High Priest, Mambre, to help him. The Priest does not believe in Moses' powers and he agrees to find a way to prevent the exodus by encouraging the Egyptians to revolt against allowing the Hebrews to depart. The Pharaoh then withdraws his promise and warns Moses that any Hebrew who tries to escape will be killed. Amaltea, Pharaoh's wife, has secretly converted and she tries to intervene, but to no avail. Moses then threatens further punishment and is set upon by Osiride's soldiers, intent upon killing him, but Pharaoh arrives in time to prevent it. Moses then prays for fire to rain down upon the country.
Act 2
Pharaoh orders the Hebrews to leave at once, so as to avoid the curse placed on his people. Then, telling his son that he has negotiated a treaty whereby Osiride will be married to the Princess of Armenia, he does not understand why his son hears his announcement with little enthusiasm.
Shortly afterwards, Moses learns that Osiris has kidnapped Elcia, but Aaron knows where they are hiding. Amalthea is warned and accompanies him to find the lovers.
Together in the cave, Osiris tells Elcia of his father's plans for him and he suggests that they can live together in hiding in the countryside. The Queen with her guards and Aaron interrupt the two lovers, but they refuse to separate and Osiris declares that it intends to give up the throne.
Meanwhile, the Pharaoh once again reverses himself and states that he will not allow the captives to leave, fearing that the Hebrews will support Egypt's enemies. Outraged, Moses declares that the Crown Prince and all the firstborn males of the country will be hit by a divine lightning strike. Pharaoh orders Moses to be put in chains, and, to protect his son from the prophecy, declares Osiris to be his co-ruler and that he will be the one to proclaim the death sentence on Moses. Elcia then comes forward revealing her relationship with Osiris and begging him to free Moses and his people. She tries to persuade him to accept his destiny and marry the royal princess of Armenia. But Osiris remains adamant and immediately orders that Moses be killed. As he does so, he falls dead from being struck by a bolt of lightning.
Act 3 of the original 1827 production
Act 3
On the shores of the Red Sea
Having crossed the desert, the Hebrews arrive on the shores of the Red Sea, but find themselves unable to continue their journey to the Promised Land. Leading is people and telling them to wait for God's action, he prays. However, as the advancing Egyptians appear, the Hebrews are panicked, but Moses touches the waters with his staff and the Red Sea opens to provide a pathway to the opposite shore. Following closely behind, the Egyptians, led by Mamre and Pharaoh, enter the gap in the waters but they are swamped by the waves which close over them.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Mose' in Egitto - Rossini - Napoli - 1993 Mose................................Robe�rto Scandiuzzi
Faraone.................................�.Michele Pertusi
Ana�de - M�rta Szűcs
Maria - Ildik� Tas
Conductor / vez�nyel: Lamberto Gardelli
Hungarian State Opera House / Magyar �llami Operah�z
Gioachino Rossini - Mose in Egitto - "Involto in fiamma" (June Anderson, Ernesto Palacio, Zehava Gal & Salvatore Fisichella)
Gioacchino Rossini - Semiramide - Overture - 1824 Semiramide is an opera in two acts by Gioachino Rossini. The libretto by Gaetano Rossi is based on Voltaire's tragedy Semiramis, which in turn was based on the legend of Semiramis of Babylon.The opera was first performed at La Fenice in Venice on February 3, 1823.
"William Tell" - 1829 William Tell (French: Guillaume Tell, Italian: Guglielmo Tell) is an opera in four acts by Gioachino Rossini, with a French libretto by �tienne de Jouy and Hippolyte Bis based on Friedrich Schiller's play William Tell, which drew on the William Tell legend. This opera was Rossini's last, even though the composer lived for nearly forty more years. The overture, featuring a depiction of a storm and with its famous finale, "March Of The Swiss Soldiers," is a major part of the concert and recording repertoire.
Charles Malherbe, archivist at the Paris Op�ra, discovered the original orchestral score of the opera at a secondhand book seller's shop, resulting in its being acquired by the Paris Conservatoire.
Performance history
It was first performed by the Paris Op�ra at the Salle Le Peletier on 3 August 1829, but within three performances cuts were being made and after a year only three acts were performed. The opera's length, roughly four hours of music, and casting requirements, such as the high range required for the tenor part, have contributed to the difficulty of producing the work. When performed, the opera is often cut. Performances have been given in both French and Italian. Political concerns have also contributed to the varying fortunes of the work.
In Italy, because the work glorified a revolutionary figure against authority, the opera encountered difficulties with the Italian censors, and the number of productions in Italy was limited. The Teatro San Carlo produced the opera in 1833, but then did not give another production for around 50 years. The first Venice production, at the Teatro La Fenice, was not until 1856. By contrast, in Vienna, in spite of censorship problems there, the Vienna Court Opera gave 422 performances over the years 1830�1907. As Hofer, or the Tell of the Tyrol, the opera was first given in at Drury Lane in London on 1 May 1830 (in English), with a production in Italian following in 1839 at Her Majesty's, and in French at Covent Garden in 1845. In New York, William Tell was first presented on 19 September 1831. It was revived at the Metropolitan Opera in 1923 with Ponselle and Martinelli, and there were revivals during the 1930s in Milan, Rome, Paris, Berlin and Florence. When the opera was performed at Gran Teatre del Liceu (Barcelona) in 1893, an anarchist threw two Orsini bombs in the theatre.
In the later 20th century there were major productions in Florence (1972), Geneva (1979, 1991), La Scala (1988), Th��tre des Champs-�lys�es (1989), Covent Garden (1990), and then Op�ra Bastille (2003) as well as at the Sportspalace in Pesaro (lasting over 5 hours, 1995). In 2010 there was an important revival of the opera, when it opened the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia's season, under Antonio Pappano. This performance was of the French version, with some cuts to particularly the fourth act (which Pappano noted had been approved by Rossini himself). A live recording of this concert performance was released in 2011, and the production was transferred to The Proms in July of that year, with Michele Pertusi taking on the title role, Patricia Bardon as Hedwige, Nicolas Courjal as Gessler, and Mark Stone as Leuthold. The performance was very well reviewed, and marked the first full performance of the work in the history of the Proms. According to an anecdote, when an admirer told the composer that he had heard his opera the previous night, Rossini replied "What? The whole of it?". Another version of the story refers only to Act II. In 1864 Offenbach quoted the patriotic trio from Act 2 in La Belle H�l�ne
� Lorsque la Gr�ce est un champ de carnage�.
Overture
Today, the opera is remembered mostly for its famous overture. Its high-energy finale, "March Of The Swiss Soldiers," is particularly familiar through its use in the American radio and television shows of The Lone Ranger. Several portions of the overture were used prominently in the films A Clockwork Orange and The Eagle Shooting Heroes; in addition, Dmitri Shostakovich quotes the main theme of the finale in the first movement of his 15th symphony. The overture has four parts, each linked to the next:
The Prelude (Dawn) is written only for the cello section (including parts for five soloists), the double basses, and the timpani, in a slow tempo and in E major.
The Storm is a dynamic section played by the full orchestra, with backup from the trombones, in E minor.
The Ranz des Vaches, or call to the dairy cows, features the cor anglais (English horn) and the flute. It is in G major.
The Finale (March Of The Swiss Soldiers) is an ultra-dynamic "cavalry charge" galop heralded by horns and trumpets, and is played by the full orchestra in E major.
Instrumentation
The instrumentation is:
Woodwinds: a piccolo, a flute, 2 oboes (1st doubles cor anglais), 2 clarinets in A and 2 bassoons.
Brass: 4 horns (2 in G and 2 in E), 2 trumpets in E, 3 trombones.
Percussion: 2 timpani, triangle, bass drum and cymbals.
Strings: first violins, second violins, viola, violoncelli and double basses; harp
Synopsis
Act 1
By the shore of Lake Lucerne, at B�rglen in the canton of Uri
It is the day of the Shepherd Festival, in May, near Lake Lucerne. The action opens on an idyllic scene, with the local peasants busily preparing chalets for three newly wedded couples, singing as they work (Quel jour serein le ciel pr�sage � "What a serene day the sky foretells"). The fisherman, Ruodi, sings a gentle love song from his boat (to orchestral accompaniment from the harps and flutes). William Tell stands apart from the general merriment, however: he is consumed with ennui at Switzerland's continued oppression (Il chante, et l'Helv�tie pleure sa libert� � "He sings, and Helvetia mourns her liberty"). His wife and son add their own interpretation of Ruodi's song, presaging the coming nautical dramas.
The activities are interrupted by the ranz des vaches resounding from the hills (often performed by off-stage horns, and echoing in its theme the ranz de vaches in the opera's overture). The horns also signal the arrival of Melchthal, a respected elder of the canton. He is persuaded by Hedwige to bless the couples at the celebration. However, his son Arnold, though of marriageable age, is not participating and is evidently uncomfortable. The entire on-stage cast sings in celebration (C�lebrons tous en ce beau jour, le travail, l'hymen et l'amour � "Let all celebrate, on this glorious day, work, marriage and love"). Tell invites Melchthal into his chalet; before they move off, Melchthal chides his son for his failure to marry.
His father's rebuke provokes an outpouring of despair from Arnold: in his recitative we learn of his previous service in the forces of the Austrian rulers, his rescue of Mathilde from an avalanche, and the conflict between his love for her and his shame at serving the "perfidious power". Horn fanfares herald the approach of Gesler, the Austrian governor, whom the Swiss detest, and his entourage. Arnold moves off to greet their arrival, as Mathilde will accompany them, but is stopped by Tell. Inquiring as to where Arnold is going, Tell persuades him to consider joining the planned rebellion against the governor. The expressive duet in which this takes place again shows the tension Arnold feels between his love for Mathilde and the "fatherland" (Ah! Mathilde, idole de mon �me!...� ma patrie, mon c�ur te sacrifie... � "Ah, Mathilde, idol of my soul...O my fatherland, my heart sacrifices to you..."). By the end of the exchange, Arnold is prepared to confront Gesler the moment he arrives; Tell persuades him to at least let the festival pass in peace, but knows he has gained a convert to the cause of freedom.
The villagers then reassemble, and Melchthal blesses the couples. The blessing is followed by singing, dancing and an archery contest that Tell's young son Jemmy wins with his first shot � a result of his "paternal heritage". It is Jemmy who notices the hurried approach of the pale, trembling and wounded shepherd, Leuthold, who killed one of Gesler's soldiers to defend his daughter and is fleeing the governor's forces. He seeks to escape to the opposite shore, but the cowardly Ruodi refuses to take him in his boat, fearing that the current and the rocks make approaching the opposite bank impossible. Tell returns from searching for the departed Arnold just in time: even as the soldiers approach, calling for Leuthold's blood, Tell takes Leuthold into the boat and out onto the water. Gesler�s guards arrive, led by Rodolphe, who is further incensed by the villagers' prayers and their evident joy at the escape. Melchthal urges the villagers not to tell Rodolphe who it was who aided Leuthold, and is taken prisoner by the guards. As Rodolphe and the soldiers promise retribution (Que du ravage, que du pillage sur ce rivage p�se l'horreur!), Tell's family and friends take comfort in Tell's skills as an archer, which will surely save them.
Act 2
On the heights of R�tli, overlooking the Lake and the Cantons
A hunting party of ladies and gentlemen, accompanied by soldiers, hears the sound of the shepherds returning from the hills as night approaches. Hearing the Governor's horns, they too take their leave. Mathilde, however, lingers, believing she has glimpsed Arnold in the vicinity. She is, like Arnold, anguished by the love she feels for her rescuer, and contemplates it as she sings (Sombre for�t, d�sert triste et sauvage � "Somber forest, sad and savage wilderness"). Arnold appears, and each confesses to the other their desire for this meeting. In their duet (Oui, vous l'arrachez � mon �me � "Yes, you wring from my soul"), they recognise their mutual passion, but also the obstacles they face. Urging him to "return to the fields of glory", Mathilde assures him of the eventual acceptability of his suit, and leaves at the approach of Tell and Walter. They question Arnold as to why he loves Mathilde, a member of the oppressing Austrians. Arnold, offended by their spying, declares his intention to continue fighting for the Austrians, and thus gain glory, rather than liberty. However, when Walter tells him that Gesler has executed his father Melchthal, Arnold vows revenge (Qu'entends-je? � crime! � "What do I hear? O crime!").
As the three men affirm their dedication � "to independence or death" � they hear the sound of someone else approaching. It is the men of the canton of Unterwalden coming to join the fight, and describing their journey in a rather gentle refrain (Nous avons su braver). In quick succession, they are joined by the men of Schwyz (En ces temps de malheurs) and Uri (Guillaume, tu le vois). The gathering is complete, and the tone and tempo of the finale rises as the men of the three cantons affirm their willingness to fight or die for the freedom of Switzerland (Jurons, jurons par nos dangers � "Let us swear, let us swear by our dangers"). Plans are made to arm the cantons and to rise up when "the beacons of vengeance burn".
Act 3
Scene 1: A ruined/deserted chapel in the Altdorf palace grounds
Arnold has come to tell Mathilde that, instead of leaving for battle, he is staying to avenge his father, and thereby renouncing both glory and Mathilde. When he tells her that it was Gesler who had his father executed, she denounces his crime, and recognises the impossibility of their love (Pour notre amour, plus d'esp�rance � "All hope for our love has gone"). Hearing preparations for the coming festival in the palace grounds, they bid a fond farewell to each other (Sur la rive �trang�re � "Though upon a foreign shore").
Scene 2: The main square at Altdorf
The day is the hundredth anniversary of Austrian rule in Switzerland. Soldiers sing of the glories of Gesler and the Emperor. In commemoration, Gesler has had his hat placed on top of a pole and the Swiss are ordered and then forced to pay homage to the hat. Gesler commands that there should be dancing and singing to mark the century during which the empire has "deigned to sustain [Swiss] weakness", and a variety of dances and choruses follow. Soldiers have noticed Tell and his son in the crowd, refusing to pay homage to the hat, and drag him forward. Rodolphe recognises him as the man who assisted in Leuthold's escape, and Gesler orders his arrest. In a complex choir and quartet, the soldiers express their hesitation at arresting this famed archer (C'est l� cet archer redoutable � "It's that redoubtable archer"), Gesler forces them to act, and Tell urges Jemmy to flee, but he prefers to stay with his father.
Gesler notices the affection Tell has for his son, and has Jemmy seized. Inspired, he devises his test: Tell must shoot an arrow through an apple balanced on Jemmy's head � should he refuse, both of them will die. The assembled Swiss are horrified at this cruelty, but Jemmy urges his father to courage, and refuses to be tied up for the challenge. Resigned, Tell retrieves his bow from the soldiers, but takes two arrows from his quiver and hides one of them. He sings an anguished aria to Jemmy, instructing him (Sois immobile � "Stay completely still"), and the two separate. Finally, Tell draws his bow, shoots, and drives the arrow through the apple and into the stake. The people acclaim his victory, and Gesler is enraged. Noticing the second arrow, he demands to know what Tell intended for it. Tell confesses his desire to kill Gesler with the second arrow, and both he and Jemmy are seized for execution.
Mathilde enters and claims Jemmy in the name of the emperor, refusing to let a child die (Vous ne l'obtiendrez pas � "You will not have him"). Gesler announces his intention to take Tell across Lake Lucerne to the fort at Kusnac/K�ssnacht, and there to throw him to the reptiles in the lake. Rodolphe expresses concern at attempting a journey on the lake in the storm, but Gesler intends to force Tell, an expert boatman, to pilot the vessel. They leave, amid conflicting cries of "Anathema on Gesler" from the people, and "Long live Gesler" from the soldiers.
Act 4
Scene 1: Old Melchthal's house
Arnold, aware of Tell's arrest, is dispirited, but, set on revenge, draws strength from being in his father's former home and sings a moving lament (Ne m'abandonne point, espoir de la vengeance... Asile h�r�ditaire... � "Do not abandon me, hope of vengeance... Home of my forefathers"). Would-be "confederates" arrive, sharing and reinforcing his hope of vengeance. Revived, Arnold points them to the weapons cache that his father and Tell had prepared. Seeing the men armed, Arnold launches into the hugely demanding (Amis, amis, secondez ma vengeance � "Friends, friends, assist my vengeance"), replete with multiple and sustained top Cs. Resolved, they leave to storm Altdorf and free Tell.
Scene 2: The rocky shore of Lake Lucerne
Hedwige is wandering by the lake, distraught. She tells the other women she intends to beg Gesler for Tell's life. In the distance, she hears Jemmy calling. Her son enters, along with Mathilde, whom Hedwige entreats for assistance. In some versions, Mathilde, Jemmy and Hedwige sing a moving trio (Je rends a votre amour un fils digne de vous � "I return to your love a son worthy of you"). Jemmy tells his mother that Tell is no longer in Altdorf, but on the lake, at which point Hedwige begins precipitously to mourn (Sauve Guillaume! Il meurt victime de son amour pour son pays � "Save William! He died a victim of his love for his country"). Leuthold arrives, telling the assembled villagers that the boat carrying Tell, Gesler and the soldiers is being driven towards the rocks by a storm that has broken over the lake � Leuthold believes that the chains have been removed from Tell's hands, so that he might pilot the boat to safety.
The boat pulls into view, and Tell jumps ashore before pushing the boat back. He is amazed to see his house burning in the distance. Jemmy tells him that, for want of a beacon, he set fire to their home but, before doing so, he retrieved his father's bow and arrows. Gesler and the soldiers come into view, intent on recapturing Tell, who kills Gesler with a single shot and the cry, "Let Switzerland breathe!" Walter and a group of confederates arrive, having seen the burning house. Tell informs them of Gesler's death, but cautions that Altdorf still stands. Arnold and his band enter, and break the happy news: they have taken Altdorf. Arnold sees Mathilde, who declares herself "disabused of false grandeur" and ready to join the fight for liberty at his side.
The clouds break, and the sun shines on a pastoral scene of wild beauty. The gathered Swiss fighters and women sing a paean to the magnificence of nature and the return of freedom in a lyrical C major (Tout change et grandit en ces lieux... Libert�, redescends des cieux � "Everything is changing and growing grander in this place... Liberty, descend again from heaven") as the ranz des vaches motif returns once again and finally.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
ROSSINI: William Tell - Overture - 1829 William Tell Overture (1829)
London Philharmonic, Alfred Scholz
Gioachino Rossini - Matilde di Shabran - "Ah! Capisco! Non parlate" (Annick Massis, Juan Diego Florez, Bruno de Simone & Carlo Lepore)
"La cambiale di matrimonio" - 1810 La cambiale di matrimonio (The Bill of Marriage or The Marriage Contract) is a one-act operatic farsa comica by Gioachino Rossini to a libretto by Gaetano Rossi. The libretto was based on the play by Camillo Federici (1791) and a previous libretto by Giuseppe Checcherini for Carlo Coccia's 1807 opera, Il matrimonio per lettera di cambio. The opera debuted on 3 November 1810 at the Teatro San Mois� in Venice
Composed in a few days when he was 18 years old, La cambiale di matrimonio was Rossini's first professional opera. The overture, written when he was a student at the Liceo Musicale in Bologna, is an important part of the modern concert repertoire. As was to become typical of his later career, the duet "Dunque io son" was later reused, to greater effect, in act 1 of The Barber of Seville.
Synopsis
The opera opens on the servants Norton and Clarina discussing a letter which has arrived for their master, Tobias Mill, regarding an impending marriage contract from a Canadian businessman, Slook, who is due to arrive later that day. Mill enters, flustered from calculating the distance from the Americas to Europe, and orders the household to prepare for Slook's arrival, including the readying of his daughter, Fanny, whom he intends to marry off to the foreigner. Fanny arrives after everyone leaves with her lover, Eduardo Milfort; their love has been kept a secret from Mill due to Eduardo's poor financial status. Norton arrives to inform the lovers of the impending marriage contract but their conversation is interrupted by Mill's entrance as the carriage arrives bearing the Canadian.
Slook enters harassed by the servants who are trying to take his coat - he is clearly unaccustomed to European greetings. Mill encourages Slook to talk to Fanny and to get to know her - she remains quite hostile, trying to express her disinterest in marrying him with many "but's" but is soon joined by Eduardo and they both threaten to cut out Slook's eyes and puncture his veins. Slook departs to the safety of his room, Fanny and Eduardo to other quarters, as Clarina and Norton return. Clarina expresses her experiences with love in a short aria before Slook comes back and Norton informs him that the goods he is interested in acquiring are already mortgaged.
Slook, infuriated by this contractual double-crossing, refuses to buy Fanny and tells Mill this, but refuses to give a reason fearing retribution from the lovers. Mill then threatens Slook to a duel for refusing to carry through with the contract he has incurred - Slook prepares to leave having encountered three people who wish him dead within hours of his arrival in London. When he returns from packing his things, he sees Fanny and Eduardo embracing and catches them red-handed. They inform him of Mill's business-managerial sentiments toward marriage and of Eduardo's poor financial status; Slook responds by promising to make Eduardo his heir so that Fanny may be his.
Mill returns and prepares for his duel - though he fears that if he dies, it may reflect poorly upon his reputation in the market. Slook reveals himself and clandestinely replaces a peace pipe for a pistol which Mill grabs not realizing what it is. As they head to the field of battle (Slook armed with a pistol, Mill with a pipe), the ensemble rushes on and tries to convince Mill to give up the financial pretence. Finally Slook convinces Mill to let them marry and the opera concludes happily.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Rossini - La cambiale di matrimonio, Overture
""La Cambiale Di Matrimonio": Sinfonia"
by Bruno Pratic�, Alessandra Rossi, Maurizio Comencini, Bruno de Simone
Gioachino Rossini - Stabat Mater (1841) Stabat Mater (1841)
1. Introduzione - Stabat mater
2. Aria: Cujus animan (tenor) 9:01
3. Duetto: Quis est homo (soprano I&II) 14:41
4. Aria: Pro peccatis (bass) 20:43
5. Recitativo: Eja mater (bass & chorus) 24:49
6. Quartetto: Sancta mater (29:02)
7. Cavatina: Fac ut portem (soprano II) 35:03
8. Aria: Inflammatus et (soprano I & chorus) 39:51
9. Quartetto a cappella: Quando corpus (43:32)
10. Finale: In sempiterna saccula (chorus) 49:19
Cecilia Gasdia, soprano
Jos� Garcia, bass
The Ambrosian Singers and I Solisti Veneti conducted by Claudio Scimone
Stabat Mater is based on the traditional structure of the Stabat Mater for chorus and soloists. Initially he used his own librettos and compositions for a portion of the work and, eventually, the remainder by Giovanni Tadolini, who composed six additional movements. Rossini presented the completed work to Varela as his own. It was composed late in his career after retiring from the composition of opera. He began the work in 1831 but did not complete it until 1841.
In 1831 Rossini was traveling in Spain in the company of his friend the Spanish banker, Alexandre Aguado, owner of Ch�teau Margaux. In the course of the trip, Fern�ndez Varela, a state councillor, commissioned a setting of the traditional liturgical text, the Stabat Mater. Rossini managed to complete part of the setting of the sequence in 1832, but ill-health made it impossible for him to complete the commission. Having written only half the score (nos. 1 and 5-9), he asked his friend Giovanni Tadolini to compose six additional movements. Rossini presented the completed work to Varela as his own. It was premiered on Holy Saturday of 1833 in the Chapel of San Felipe el Real in Madrid, but this version was never again performed.
When Varela died, his heirs sold the work for 2,000 francs to a Parisian music publisher, Antoine Aulagnier, who printed it. Rossini protested, claiming that he had reserved publication rights for himself, and disowned Aulagnier's version, since it included the music by Tadolini. Although surprised by this, Aulangier went ahead and arranged for a public performance at the Salle Herz on October 31, 1841, at which only the six pieces by Rossini were performed. In fact, Rossini had already sold the publication rights for 6,000 francs to another Paris publisher, Eug�ne Troupenas. Lawsuits ensued, and Troupenas emerged the victor. Rossini finished the work, replacing the music by Tadolini, before the end of 1841. The brothers L�on and Marie Escudier, who had purchased the performing rights of Rossini's final version of the score from Troupenas for 8,000 francs, sold them to the director of the Th��tre-Italien for 20,000 francs, who began making preparations for its first performance.
Rossini's extensive operatic career had divided the public into admirers and critics. The announcement of the premiere of Rossini's Stabat Mater provided an occasion for a wide-ranging attack by Richard Wagner, who was in Paris at the time, not only on Rossini but more generally on the current European fashion for religious music and the money to be made from it. A week before the scheduled concert Robert Schumann's Neue Zeitschrift f�r Musik carried the pseudonymous essay, penned by Wagner under the name of "H. Valentino", in which he claimed to find Rossini's popularity incomprehensible:
"It is extraordinary! So long as this man lives, he'll always be the mode." Wagner concluded his polemic with the following observation: "That dreadful word: Copyright�growls through the scarce laid breezes. Action! Action! Once more, Action! And money is fetched out, to pay the best of lawyers, to get documents produced, to enter caveats.� � �O ye foolish people, have ye lost your hiking for your gold? I know somebody who for five francs will make you five waltzes, each of them better than that misery of the wealthy master's!"
At the time when Wagner wrote this, he was still in his late twenties and he had not yet had much success with the acceptance of his own music in the French capital
Publisher Info.:
Mainz: B. Schott fils, n.d.[1842]. Plate 6590.
Copyright:
| Gioachino Rossini |
The Co-operative acquired which building society in 2009 ? | TLW's 1790s (1790-1799) Historyscope
1790 1791 1792 1793 1794 1795 1796 1797 1798 1799
1790-1799 C.E.
The these French are so unpredictable, one moment they're kissing a woman's hand, the next they're chopping off her head Decade of the Guillotine and Balloon? The Reflections Decade in Britain? The applied science that brings the first parachute jump in Europe also brings the head-severing French Revolution and its power-mad product Napoleon? The fact that Enlightenment ideas fuel the French Revolution ends up killing it, causing Europe to almost throw out America's Beautiful Baby the Constitution with the bathwater, inaugurating the Age of Modernism, where religious faith and the Bible are chucked for godless secular rationalism to solve every problem, even human ones, culminating in the arrogant mass-murdering so-called scientific-atheist Soviet Union of 1917-89, which like the French Rev. considers people as problems to be eliminated, along with any inconvenient history? Meanwhile the arrogantly backward and religious Far East stiffs the West when technologically superior Lord Macartney and his mopheads try unsuccessfully to sell their barbarian rock act in tone-deaf China? The Franz Joseph Haydn Decade in Music. and the William Blake and Francisco de Goya Decade in Art?
Country
Apr. 7, 1789
July 29, 1808
1790 - The Alexander Hamilton Take A Piece First Census Coast Guard Year in the U.S.? The Maximilien Robespierre Year in France?
1790 The First (1st) U.S. Census (Aug. 1), run by U.S. secy. of state Thomas Jefferson reports the total pop. as 3,929,214, in a land area of 864,746 sq. mi., for a pop. density of 4.5 per sq. mi.; that's 3,277,000 white inhabitants (80.7%), 698K slaves, and 59K freed slaves; a total of 410,636 families, of which 47,664 own slaves; 40K are Irish-born, and 160K are of Irish descent; the pop. of New York City (which had been nearly deserted in 1776) is back up to a whopping 33K; Penn. is the most populous state with 434,373 pop.; the U.S. Jewish pop. is about 2K, mainly Sephardim, although Ashkenazim from C and E Europe are beginning to arrive; Mass. is the only state to record no slaves; only 5% of the pop. lives in cities; by 2000 the pop. of Puerto Rico alone is 3.9M. The U.S. dollar this year has the same purchasing power as $19.26 in the year 2002; the English pound has the same purchasing power as 70 pounds in 2002; a fine ounce of gold costs $19.50 or �4.25; the exchange rate is English �1 for U.S. $4.55 or 23.5 French livres. The Dual Rev. (economic and political) (ends 1848) begins in England and France, and leads to the 19th cent. becoming a powder keg of people on the make and on the take? On Jan. 8 (Fri.) Pres. George Washington rides a carriage driven by six horses from his house on Cherry St. to Federal Hall in New York City to give the first State of the Union speech, welcoming the new state of N.C. - something so gigantic only one man can pull it off? On Jan. 23 nine HMS Bounty mutineers along with six Tahitian men and 12 Tahitian women land on 1.75-sq.-mi. Pitcairn Island , halfway between Australia and South Am. (near the three uninhabited islands of Henderson, Duicie, and Oeno), and sink HMS Bounty, creating Bounty Bay; the 24-gun frigate HMS Pandora is sent to capture Fletcher Christian, but fails, even though it does catch some of the other mutineers; in 1800 only one of the original nine British sailors, Adams, is left on Pitcairn, and Britain annexes it in 1838-9. Early in the year after Ottoman cmdr. Batal Pasha landed on the Black Sea coast last fall to gather local highland tribesmen, 3.6K Russian forces under Saxony, Germany-born Gen. Johann Hermann von Fersen (IVan Ivanovich Herman von Versen) (-1801) defeat 18K Turks and 15K tribesmen on the Upper Kuban River, losing only 150 Russian casualties while capturing Batal Pasha, causing a military fort to be built there in 1804 named Batalpashinsk, which later becomes Cherkessk, Russia . On Feb. 1 the U.S. Supreme Court (chief justice and five associate justices) holds its first session, but it adjourns on Feb. 10 because it has no cases to hear; the first members are James Wilson (1742-98) of Penn. (#1) (Oct. 5, 1789 to Aug. 21, 1798), John Jay (1745-1820) of N.Y. (#2) (Oct. 19, 1789 to June 29, 1795), William Cushing (1732-1810) of Mass. (#3) (Feb. 2, 1790 to Sept. 13, 1810), John Blair (1731-1800) (#4) (Feb. 2, 1790 to Oct. 25, 1795), John Rutledge (1739-1800) of S.C. (#5) (Feb. 15, 1790 to Mar. 5, 1791), James Iredell (1751-99) of N.C. (#6) (May 12, 1790 to Oct. 20, 1799). On Feb. 20 Mozart-snubbing HRE Joseph II (b. 1741) dies, leaving a legacy of Josephinism (state control of the Church), and his brother Leopold II (1747-92) succeeds as king of Austria and HRE; Leopold's son Ferdinand III (1769-1824) succeeds him as grand duke of Tuscany. On Mar. 1 Congress authorizes the first U.S. Census. On Mar. 4 the French nat. assembly replaces the old system of provinces and provincial parlements by 83 departments , which grows to 96 depts. in France and five overseas depts. (French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Reunion, and Mayotte) by 1975; the depts. are subdivided into 342 arrondissements, which are divided into cantons. The Great American White-Is-Right Dream begins with the Father of the Country? On Mar. 26 Pres. Washington signs the U.S. Naturalization Act , barring anyone not a "free white person" from becoming a U.S. citizen; when Puerto Rico's citizens are allowed to become U.S. citizens in 1917, the govt. looks the other way and classifies them all as white. In Mar. Maximilien Fran�ois Marie Isidore Robespierre (1758-94) , member of the Estates-Gen. since 1789 becomes pres. of the Jacobin Club; meanwhile the more radical Cordeliers , led by Georges Jacques Danton (1759-94) , Jean-Paul Marat, and radical journalists Camille Desmoulins and Jacques Rene Hebert (1757-94) (AKA Pere Duchesne) take the extreme left, while the moderate Feuillants (pr. foo-ya) (Fr. "leaves"), incl. Marquis de Lafayette and Jean-Sylvain Bailly break from the Jacobins and take the right (of the left); Hebert lived in poverty in Paris from 1780-90, until he became ed. of Le Journal du Soir, followed by Le Pere Duchesne , which makes him famous for its violent imagine-what-it-tastes-like republican tirades; meanwhile in the spring Comte de Mirabeau begins secret negotiations with the king, who gives him 100 louis a month to pay his lousy debts, with another 300 livres for his copyist De Comps, causing Mirabeau to begin living extravagantly again; too bad, the king never trusts him because of his attacks on the Church and his advocacy of the civil constitution of the clergy, plus his health is failing. On Apr. 10 the first U.S. Patent Act is passed; the first patent is issued to Samuel Hopkins (1743-1818) of Vt. for an apparatus for making potash, and is signed by Washington and Jefferson? On Apr. 12 the U.S. House votes down the U.S. Assumption Bill , proposed by U.S. treasury secy. Alexander Hamilton (1757-1804) , then passes it by one vote on July 26, causing the U.S. govt. to assume the $25M war debt of the states (adding to its $54M nat. debt) while assuming a superior position to the states with regard to taxation, starting the unstoppable trend towards centralization of power in Washington, D.C. On Apr. 17 (a rainy spring) at 11 p.m. Benjamin Franklin (b. 1706) dies in his bed in Philly while drafting a memo to Jefferson about U.S.-Canadian relations; his funeral procession to Christ Church, led by all the clergymen of the city is watched by 20K mourners (the largest peacetime gathering in early U.S. history); despite a long life weasling about the propriety of slavery, "Dr. Doubleface" finally makes unambiguous antislavery remarks on Nov. 9, 1789, weeks before his death, and his position in history in a new country needing heroes is secure, although he never became U.S. pres. On May 13 the naval Battle of Reval (modern-day Talinn) in Estonia sees a 14-ship Russian fleet under Anglophile Adm. Vasily Yakovlevich Chichagov (1726-1809) defeat a 26-ship Swedish fleet under Prince Karl, Duke of Sodermanland , which retreats E of Hogland Island. On May 21 Thomas Warton Jr. (b. 1728) dies, and Henry James Pye (1745-1813) becomes poet laureate of England. On May 29 "Little Rhody", "Ocean State", "Littlest State" Rhode Island , the first colony to renounce allegiance to King George III becomes the last of the original 13 states to ratify the U.S. Constitution, and by the closest vote of all (34-32), and it is admitted as the 13th U.S. (free) state; the "beauteous dome" (Mass. Centinel) is complete. On June 3 the Lady Juliana (Julian) (departed 1789) arrives in Sydney, Australia with 220 convict women ages 18-25, followed by three more ships on June 21 with provisions, saving the dying colony; en route the women fathered eight babies by the crew and others, as the women turned the ship into a floating brothel in ports such as Santa Cruz and Tenerife; Mary Wade (1778-1859) spawns 300 descendants in five generations before her death. On June 3-4 the naval Battle of Kronstadt in the Gulf of Finland sees Swedish naval forces unsuccessfully engage the Russian Kronstadt Squadron in an attempt to open a sea route to Kronstadt and St. Petersburg. On June 22 8K Russian troops under Gen. Count Ivan Vasilyevich Gudovich (1741-1820) siege Anapa, Russia , annihilating the 15K-man garrison while losing 4K Russians, capturing Sheikh Mansour; too bad, Anapa is returned by the 1792 Treaty of Jassy. On July 9 the U.S. House approves the U.S. Residence Act , ending a nat. quarrel in the spring about the location of the U.S. nat. capital, with Alexander Hamilton backing New York City (branded by his enemies as Hamiltonopolis), others backing Philadelphia, and Southerners backing the Potomac River area; Philadelphia is designated as the temporary nat. capital while a 10-sq.-mi. site on the Potomac is designated as the permanent site; on July 16 the District of Columbia (Washington, D.C.) is founded as the U.S. capital; the site incl. an additional 30.75 sq. mi. on the Va. side of the Potomac River, which are returned to Va. in 1846. On July 12 the French Nat. Assembly approves the Civil Constitution of the Clergy , putting Roman Catholic bishops and priests as well as Church income under govt. control, and providing for the election of priests and bishops, pissing Pope Pius VI, who denounces it next year, while less than half of French priests declare loyalty to the govt.; on July 14 the king accepts the constitution, and the French clergy is disestablished, and all ecclesiastical orders dissolved, causing many to become beggars, and others to cross the Alps and take refuge in the Vatican. On July 17 Pres. Washington signs the First U.S. Copyright Law ; too bad, it only applies to works of U.S. citizens until 1891, retaining the country's status as a pirate haven for works of foreign authors - we are a beacon of light around the world, at least that's what we can be again, should be again? On July 26 an attempted French counter-rev is put down by the Nat. Guard in Lyons . On July 27 HRE Leopold II of Austria signs the Reichenbach Treaty in an attempt to be conciliatory toward Prussia regarding its gains (along with Russia) against the Ottoman Empire. In July the first settled portion of Illinois is organized into a county of the Ohio Territory; Pres. Washington appoints William Blount (1749-1800) of N.C. (member of the 1787 Constitutional Convention) as gov. of the "Territory of the United States South of the Ohio", and he soon founds the town of Knoxville in modern-day Tenn. On Aug. 4 the U.S. Coast Guard is established as the Revenue Cutter Service. On Aug. 9-10 the Columbia, captained by Robert Gray (1755-1806) returns to Boston Harbor after a 3-year voyage E via China (begun 1787), becoming the first ship to carry the U.S. flag around the world; he then begins a 2nd voyage to the NW Am. coast - wasn't that the name of the shuttle that went kaboom? In Aug. Rama Varma VIII dies, and his nephew Rama Varma IX (Skhakthan Thampuran) (1751-1805) becomes Perumal king of Cochin (until 1805), signing a pact with the British. On Sept. 4 French finance minister (since Oct. 1776) Jacques Necker resigns, and Comte de Mirabeau makes a last ditch attempt to save the monarchy with a limited constitutional role of having the right to declare peace and war along with a royal veto. On Dec. 6 Congress moves from New York to Philadelphia (until 1800). On Dec. 13 U.S. treasury secy. Alexander Hamilton jolts Congress with a call for an excise tax on liquor, followed on Dec. 14 by a call to charter America's first central bank. On Dec. 17 after Spanish viceroy Revillagigedo orders work done on the Plaza de Armas (modern-day Zocalo) in Mexico City's main square, the 12-ft.-diam., 24 metric ton Aztec Calendar Stone (Stone of the Fifth and Last Sun or Creation) is discovered , along with a statue of Aztec mother goddess Coatlicue (kwahTLEEkway); the calendar stone is embedded for viewing in the base of the city's main cathedral; the first four suns (creation of the world) were destroyed by jaguars, then wind, then fiery rain, and finally water; the 5th and last sun (of the Aztecs) was created in 1011 (13-Reed in the Aztec calendar), and would be destroyed on 4-Movement, which recurs every 52 years, but can be forstalled by sacrifices? On Dec. 20 the first cotton mill in the U.S. opens in Rhode Island. On Dec. 22 the Russians under Gen. Count Alexander Vasiliyevich Suvorov (1729-1800) sack the Turkish fort of Ismail in Bessaria, staging a bloody massacre that stinks Suvorov's name up enough to be placed in charge of an army to do ditto to the Poles and get a promotion to field marshal next year, staying in stinkin' Poland until 1795. The Spanish begin seizing British ships at Nootka Sound; under threat of war Spain backs down, and the Nootka Convention is negotiated. The Alsace Province of NE France since 1648 gains its independence; the women are known for their giant black bow hats. The Creeks, who supported the British during the Am. Rev. make a peace treaty with the U.S. Halemaumau , the pit of 14K-ft. Kilauea below Mauna Loa (home of Pele, daughter of Hina) emits a blast of ash so violent that it destroys a Hawaiian army. British PM William Pitt refuses to recognize Belgian independence as the Austrians suppress the Belgian rev. in Brussels. The British make an alliance with the Nizam of Hyderabad. After returning from France bringing a goose-handled waffle iron that starts a craze, U.S. secy. of state Thomas Jefferson recommends that Congress declare war on the Muslim Barbary pirates , but after John Adams convinces them that it's just the cost of doing business in the Mediterranean, they whimp out and decide to earmark $140K for ransom (jizya) payments; Jefferson, James Madison, and Alexander Hamilton make a deal to make Washington, D.C. the U.S. capital at Jefferson's house. Taking advantage of Russia's preoccupation with the Ottoman Empire, Sweden negotiates the Treaty of Varala with Russia. Cluj-Napoca (pr. kluz na poka) in NW Romania (equidistant approx. 275 mi. from Bucharest, Budapest, and Belgrade) becomes the capital of the Grand Principality of Transylvania (until 1848, then 1861-7). After living for generations in Morocco and building the cities of Meknes and Fez, a change in rulers causes the Jews to be expelled, and 60 jump to their deaths by fire rather than convert to Islam on the orders of Moulay Yazid. The U.S. Congress forbids "benefit of clergy", which had been recognized in Va. and the Carolina colonies. The Roman Catholic archiepiscopal see in Arles, France, which goes back to the late 1st or early 2nd cent. is suppressed. The Society of Friends (Quakers) petitions the U.S. Congress to abolish slavery. Late in the cent. several thousand persecuted mainly rich merchant Jews from Arab countries, incl. Iraq (esp. Baghdad), Syria, Yemen. and Persia begin immigrating to India , becoming known as the Yehudi or Baghdadi Jews, settling in commercial cities incl. Surat, Bombay, and Calcutta, as well as Rangoon, Burma, later adopting the English language and migrating to England by the end of the 19th cent. The Romantic Movement begins in this decade (ends 1840s), rejecting the cold mechanistic view that people are just cogs in a machine, and stressing individuals with all their passions and mood swings as the only real deal; take Napoleon for instance? James Monroe is elected to the U.S. Senate from Va. (until 1794), working for the Anti-Federalists against Washington's admin. Russian fur trader Alexander Baranov (1747-1819) explores Alaska, establishing trading posts in Kodiak Island and becoming dir. of the Russian Am. Co. in 1799. The British Vancouver expedition (ends 1793) led by English naval Capt. George Vancouver (1758-98) and 2nd Lt. Peter Puget (1762-1822) explores the NW Am. coast. John Paul Jones resigns from the Russian navy grumbling about not receiving proper credit for his Vs, and goes to Paris, where he awaits an appointment as U.S. consul to Algiers, which arrives after he dies in 1792. The Marquis de Lafayette gives Pres. George Washington the key to the Bastille. In this decade the French Rev. causes French hairstyles for men and women to go decidedly simple and unaristocratic - if you want to keep your head? The Hasty Pudding Social Club undergrad theatrical society is formed at Harvard U., named after the tasty dish they ate at their first meeting, becoming known for staging burlesque cross-dressing musicals beginning with "Bombastes Furioso" on Dec. 13, 1844; members incl. Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin D. Roosevelt, J.P. Morgan, Oliver Wendell Holmes, William Randolph Hearst, Alan Jay Lerner, and Jack Lemmon, and Harvard pres. (1849-53) Jared Sparks, who grants them their first club rooms at Stroughton Hall. Welsh Enlightenment philosopher David Williams (1738-1816) founds the Royal Literary Fund to help authors, distributing �1,738 to 105 authors in the next 12 years - every night is ladies' night? The soft red-pointed Phrygian Cap , worn by freed slaves in the ancient Roman Empire, and used during the Am. Rev. to top a Liberty Pole makes its appearance at Cafe Procope in Paris, becoming the symbol of the French Rev., and later of many freedom movements, ending up on the official seals of the U.S. Army and Senate, plus the coats of arms of Argentina, Cuba, Nicaragua, Colombia, Haiti, and other C and S Am. countries. In this decade English begins to replace Gaelic in Irish lit.; it takes a cent. for a Gaelic revival to take place. Wojciech Boguslawski (1757-1829) becomes dir. of the Royal Theater in Warsaw, and goes on to become the father of Polish theater. Annalen der Physik (Annals of Physics), later Albert Einstein's favorite periodical begins pub. in Germany. Dunderdale & Co. of Castleford, Yorkshire begins producing Castleford Ware , smooth white stoneware teapots with four concave or convex corner panels and blue enamel relief decoration (until 1821). Architecture: The land that later becomes the South Lawn of the White House is sold in this decade by planter Davy Burns - when do the Easter egg hunts begin? The Oxford-Birmingham Canal is begun. The Forth and Clyde Canal (begun 1768) is completed. In this decade a classic revival movement begins in Euro-Am. architecture, along with a Romantic literary-driven Gothic revival, which reaches it peak in the mid 19th cent.; France already has so many Gothic bldgs. that the Gothic revival is limited to restoring them. In this decade the Cabildo is built as the seat of govt. for Spanish New Orleans. Sports: The Turf Club in Ireland is formed to oversee Irish horseracing and run the Curragh Racecourse. Inventions: Pierre Jacquet-Droz (1721-90) and his able apprentice Jean Frederic Leschot (1746-1824) of Geneva make the first Wristwatch . Am. dentist Josiah Flagg (1763-1816) invents the Dental Chair . The first Ocean Wave Electrical Generator is invented by ?. The Blue Willow Pattern for China (river, pagoda, willows, etc., in blue on a white background) is invented in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England by Thomas Minton (1765-1836) - how many years to Bluetooth? William Nicholson (1753-1815) of England invents the Rotary Press . William Pollard receives the first U.S. patent for a cotton spinning and weaving machine. London cabinetmaker Thomas Saint is issued the first patent for a sewing machine, which uses an awl to create a hole through which a needle passes when stitching leather; modern attempts to replicate it fail to make it work? The Shoestring is invented in England to replace buckles by ?. Science: French chemist Antoine-Laurent Lavoisier (1743-94) becomes a member of a commission to establish a uniform system of weights and measures, coming up with the Metric System . French surgeon-chemist Nicolas Leblanc (1742-1806) develops a process for producing sodium carbonate (alkali) (used to make lye) from common table salt using sulfuric acid, carbon, and calcium carbonate, paving the way for industrial soap manufacture, but it takes until the end of the 19th cent. for manufactured soap to become popular and have a global market. Nonfiction:The Grimoire Decade? Anon., The Black Pullet (La Pule Noire); a grimoire (magician's handbook) written by a French officer in Napoleon's army who allegedly was taken by an old Turkish man into a pyramid and shown Ptolemy's ancient library. Anon., The Sixth and Seventh Books of Moses ; a grimoire probably written in this decade or earlier, which becomes popular in Germany after an 1849 printing. Alibek the Egyptian, Grimorium Verum (The True Grimoire) (Grimoire of Truth) (Grimorium Verum); claims to be written in Memphis in 1517. Anon., The Grand Grimoire ; another grimore claiming to be written in 1522 by "the Red Dragon"; both probably written in this decade or earlier. Johann Friedrich Blumenbach (1752-1840), Collectionis suae Craniorium Diversarum Gentium (1790-1828); his observations of skulls of different races: Caucasian, Mongolian, Malay, American, Ethiopian - soft on illegal aliens? James Bruce (1730-94), Travels to Discover the Sources of the Nile, 1768-1773 ; his credibility is questioned at the time, but later confirmed. Edmund Burke (1729-97), Reflections on the Revolution in France (Nov. 1); alt. title: Feudalism Rocks?; written in response to radical Protestant dissenter Richard Price and other French Rev. supporters, questioning it from a reactionary POV; when Charles James Fox becomes practically the only MP to support the French Rev., he loses Burke's friendship; British Romantic poets Blake, Byron, Coleridge, Keats, and Shelly support the French Rev.; "The age of chivalry is dead, that of sophisters, economists and calculators has succeeded, and the glory of Europe is extinguished forever." Jean-Antoine Chaptal (1756-1832), Elements of Chemistry (3 vols.) (Montpellier); coins the term "nitrogen". Andre Marie Chenier (1762-94), Avis au Peuple Francais (Aug. 24); Jeu de Paume ; moral ode addressed to Jacques David. Dobson's Encyclopedia (18 vols.); a U.S. ed. of the Encyclopedia Britannica. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832), Versuch, die Metamorphose der Pflanzen zu Erklaren ; develops ideas on comparative morphology and anticipates Darwinian evolution. Gustav von Hugo (1764-1844), Civilistisches Magazin (6 vols.) (1790-1837). Samuel Ireland (1744-1800), A Picturesque Tour through Holland, Brabant, and Part of France Made in the Autumn of 1789 (2 vols.). Immanuel Kant (1724-1804), Critique of Judgment (Kritik der Urteilskraft); founds modern aesthetics; divided into Critique of Aesthetic Judgment and Critique of Teleological Judgment. Nikolai Karamzin (1766-1826), Letters of a Russian Traveller (1790-2); pub. in the Moscow Journal; earns him a rep and gets him appointed as imperial historiographer in 1803. Antoine Lavoisier (1743-94), Table of 31 Chemical Elements ; founds modern chemistry with the first quantitive chemical experiments, rejecting the phlogiston theory after meticulously burning things and measuring all the byproducts and proving that matter is conserved, considering heat (caloric) and light to be elements and counting the role of oxygen and hydrogen, the components of water, naming both; "Nothing is lost, nothing is created, everything is transformed"; too bad, he pisses-off aspiring scientist Jean-Paul Marat, who later pays him back by circulating a denouncement that gets him a free French close shave. William Paley, Horae Paulinae ; why the New Testament isn't a fable because of its "undesigned coincidences". America and France go one way, Russia the other? Alexander Radishchev (Raditcheff) (1749-1802), Journey from St. Petersburg to Moscow ; the first book describing the horrors of serfdom and pleading for their emancipation; Catherine II the Great gets pissed, has him arrested and exiled to Siberia until 1801; upon release he commits suicide. David Ramsay (1749-1815), The History of the American Revolution (2 vols.). Thomas Taylor (1758-1835), The Eleusinian and Bacchic Mysteries . Music: Carl Michael Bellman (1740-95), Epistles of Fredman ; more Swedish hits. Vicente Martin y Soler (1754-1806), Melomania (opera) (St. Petersburg). Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-91), Cosi Fan Tutte (opera) (Vienna) (Jan. 2); 1st time since 1787 that he receives a commission? Art: Francesco Guardi (1712-93), Gondola on the Lagoon (Venice). Jean-Antoine Houdon (1741-1828), Louis XVI (sculpture). Sir Henry Raeburn (1756-1823), The Skating Minister (Rev. Robert Walker on Duddingston Loch) ; relatively unknown until 1949, when it becomes a Scottish icon. Edward Savage (1761-1817), Portrait of George Washington ; gift to Harvard U. Plays: Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832), Torquato Tasso (poetic drama); "The day of fortune is like a harvest day,/ We must be busy when the corn is ripe" (4.4.63); Fragment (work on Faust). August von Kotzebue (1761-1819), Menschenhass und Reue ; Die Indianer in England ; Doktor Bahrdt Mit der Eisernen Stim (satire); links to political opponents of J.G. Zimmermann to sexual perversions, backfiring on him and hurting his rep. Leandro Fernandez de Moratin (1760-1828), The Old Man and the Young Girl (El Viejo y la Nina) (comedy) (first play). Poetry: Robert Burns (1759-96), Tam O'Shanter ; a drunken farmer stumbles on a witches' sabbath in the kirkyard of Alloway, and is pursued by Cutty Sark to the Doon River; the name is adopted for a Scottish cap with a wide round flat top and center pompon. Mercy Otis Warren (1728-1814), Poems, Dramatic and Miscellaneous ; her first pub. with her name; incl. the plays "The Sack of Rome" an d "The Ladies of Castille". Novels: William Blake (1757-1827), The Marriage of Heaven and Hell (1790-3); disses Emanuel Swedenborg's 1759 "Heaven and Hell", arguing that the material world and sexual desire are equally part of the divine order; "If the doors of perception were cleansed, everything would appear to man as it is, infinite." Ann Radcliffe (1764-1823), A Sicilian Romance . Charlotte Ramsay Lennox (1729-1804), Euphemia . Births: Irish archeologist George Petrie (d. 1866) on Jan. 1 in Dublin; son of James Petrie. English paleontologist Gideon Algernon Mantell (d. 1852) on Feb. 3 in Lewes, Sussex. English physician-physiologist ("Father of Modern Neurology") Marshall Hall (d. 1857) on Feb. 18 in Basford (near Nottingham); educated at Edinburgh U. English chemist-physicist John Frederic Daniell (d. 1845) on Mar. 12 in London; educated at King's College, London. Am. philanthropist William Johnson Walker (d. 1865) on Mar. 15 in Charlestown, Mass. U.S. Dem. pres. #10 (1841-5) and vice-pres. #10 (1841) ("His Accidency") John Tyler IV (d. 1862) on Mar. 29 in Greenway, Charles City County, Va.; of English descent; educated at William and Mary College; first pres. born after the adoption of the U.S. Constitution, and first to not be elected - Tyler too? French surgeon Jacques Lisfranc de St. Martin (d. 1847) on Apr. 2; the Lisfranc joint in the foot is named after him. French sculptor James (Jean-Jacques) Pradier (d. 1852) on May 23 in Geneva, Switzerland. French naval officer and explorer (1820 discoverer of the Venus de Milo) Jules Sebastien Cesar Dumont d'Urville (d. 1842) on May 23 in Conde-sur-Noireau, Normandy. U.S. Sen. (D-Ark.) (1844-8) (co-founder of Rose Law Firm) Chester Ashley (d. 1848) on June 1 in Amherst, Mass.; educated at Williams College; namesake of Ashley County, Ark. Venezuelan rev. leader Gen. Jose Antonio Paez (Pa�z) (d. 1873) on June 13 in Curpa. Welsh sculptor John Gibson (d. 1866) on June 19 near Conwy; student of Antonio Canova. Breakin' my back just to know your name? British (Welsh) surveyor-gen. of India (1830-43) Col. Sir George Everest (d. 1866) on July 4 in Crickhowell, Wales; first Euro to discover (not climb) Mt. Everest. Am. "Young America", "Marco Bozzaris" Knickerbocker Group poet (gay?) ("the American Byron") Fitz-Greene Halleck (d. 1867) on July 8 in Guilford, Conn. Hungarian "Himnusz" poet Ferenc (Francis) Kolcsey (K�lcsey) (d. 1838) on Aug. 8 in Szodemeter (Sauca, Romania). English atty.-economist (utilitarian) Nassau William Senior (d. 1864) on Sept. 26 in Compton, Berkshire; educated at Eton School, and Magdalene College, Oxford U. English "Combination" novelist Charlotte Elizabeth Tonna (d. 1846) on Oct. 1. Am. Cherokee chief (1828-66) Coowescoowe (Kooweskoowe) (Guwisguwi) ("the Heron") (John Ross) (d. 1866) on Oct. 3 in Turkeytown, Ala.; part-Cherokee father, Scottish mother. French Romantic "Le Lac" writer-poet-politician Alphonse Marie Louise de Prat de Lamartine (d. 1869) on Oct. 21 in Macon, Burgundy; first French Romantic poet. Scottish Stirling Engine engineer Rev. Robert Stirling (d. 1878) on Oct. 25 in Cloag Farm, Perthshire - the real Scotty? Paraguayan pres. (1844-62) Carlos Antonio Lopez (d. 1862) on Nov. 4 in Asuncion. U.S. First Lady (1841-2) Letitia Christian Tyler (d. 1842) on Nov. 12 in Tidewater Va.; ballsy Pres. Tyler's first of two fecund wives. German mathematician August Ferdinand Mobius (d. 1868) in Saxony on Nov. 17. English freethinker-reformer Richard Carlile (d. 1843) on Dec. 9 in Ashburton, Devonshire. Corsican adventurer Giuseppe Marco Fieschi (d. 1836) on Dec. 13 in Bocognano. English Artic explorer rear Adm. Sir William Edward Parry (d. 1855) on Dec. 19 in Bath; knighted in 1829. Belgian king #1 (1831-65) Leopold I (Georges Chretien Frederic) (d. 1865) (Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg) on Dec. 16 in Coburg; father of Leopold II (1835-1909). French polyglot philologist (Rosetta Stone decipherer) Jean-Francois Champollion (d. 1832) on Dec. 23 in Figeac, Lot. Uruguayan poet Francisco Acuna (Acu�a) de Figueroa (d. 1862) in Montevideo. Am. Sioux Indian chief Lone (One) Horn (d. 1875) on Nov. 16 in S.D.; son of Black Buffalo, whom he commemorates by wearing a single shell (horn) around his neck; father of Big Foot (1824-90) and Touch the Clouds (1836-1905); uncle of Crazy Horse (1842-77). English merchant John Owens (d. 1846) in Manchester. Deaths: Am. demigod Benjamin Franklin (b. 1706) on Apr. 17 in Philadelphia, Penn.: "One today is worth two tomorrows"; "We get old too soon and wise too late"; "Nothing is certain except death and taxes"; "My face is now almost as well known as that of the Moon"; "They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety"; "There never was a good war or a bad peace"; "Whoever would overthrow the liberty of a nation must begin by subduing the freeness of speech"; "He that is of the opinion money will do everything may well be suspected of doing everything for money"; "If you would not be forgotten, as soon as you are dead and rotten, either write things worth reading, or do things worth the writing"; "Life is a kind of chess". French adm. Luc Urbain de Bouexic, comte de Guichen (b. 1712) on Jan. 13 in Morlaix. French artist Charles-Nicolas Cochin the Younger (b. 1715) on Apr. 29 in Paris. Spanish sign language inventor Giacobbo Rodriguez Pereire (b. 1715) on Sept. 1 in Paris. Austrian field marshal Baron Ernst Gideon von Laudon (b. 1717) on July 14 in Novy Jicin, Czech. Am. Rev. War. Gen. Israel "Old Put" Putnam (b. 1718) on May 29 in Brooklyn, Conn. Am. Congregationalist minister Joseph Bellamy (b. 1719) on Mar. 6 in Bethlehem, Conn. German pedagogue J.B. Basedow (b. 1723). Scottish "Wealth of Nations" political economist Adam Smith (b. 1723) on July 17 in Edinburgh. Am. statesman William Livingston (b. 1723) on July 25 in Elizabeth, N.J. Am. Rev. leader (DOI signer) Lyman Hall (b. 1724) on Oct. 19 in Ga. Am. politician James Bowdoin II (b. 1726) on Nov. 6 in Boston, Mass. (TB); namesake of Bowdoin College. German deaf educator Samuel Heinicke (b. 1727) on Apr. 30 in Leipzig. English poet laureate Thomas Warton Jr. (1728) on May 21. Austrian HRE Joseph II (b. 1741) on Feb. 20 in Vienna. Am. jurist Robert Hanson Harrison (b. 1745) on Apr. 2 in Charles County, Md.
1791- The U.S. Bill of Rights Report on Manufactures Magic Flute Year? Dream of better lives, the kind we never had? The future's open wide? I'll stop the world and melt with you? The Bill of Rights causes Freedom Fever to spread throughout Europe, while Alexander Hamilton launches the U.S. on a path to catch up and pass it? Too bad for France, black slaves in Haiti catch it too?
1791 On Feb. 13 Pomare II (1782-1821) is installed as king #2 of Tahiti by his father Pomare I, and rules under regents until 1803. On Feb. 25 the First Bank of the U.S. , proposed by U.S. treasury secy. Alexander Hamilton is chartered for 20 years by the U.S. Congress, becoming the first central bank of the U.S. (until 1811); it is housed in Carpenter's Hall in New York City until 1795, when a new $110K neo-classical bldg. is built to house it at Third St. between Chestnut and Walnut Sts. (finished 1797), becoming the first bldg. in the U.S. with a classical facade; Hamilton is a secret agent of German Jewish banker Mayer Amschel Rothschild (1744-1812) ? Tres Amigos? In Feb.-Mar. in England Thomas 'Tom' Paine (1737-1809) pub. the hit book The Rights of Man, Pt. 1 , a refutation of Edmund Burke's 1790 Reflections on the Revolution in France , defending the French Rev. and opposing monarchy, selling 1.5M copies and getting him into trouble with the govt., which assesses heavy penalties; British dramatist Thomas Holcroft (1745-1809) assists Paine, and ends up indicted for high treason in fall 1794, then is discharged without trial in Dec. 1794, with his rep as an "acquitted felon" ruining his career - heads will roll? On Feb. 28 Marquis de Lafayette stops a riot and plot against the royal family. On Mar. 4 9.25K-sq.-mi. "Green Mountain State" Vermont (Vt.) is admitted as the 14th U.S. state (free). On Apr. 2 Comte de Mirabeau (b. 1749) dies of pericarditis after being elected pres. of the French nat. assembly, declaring "I carry with me the ruin of the monarchy; after my death factions will dispute about the fragments", and the moderate republican Girondist party takes power in France (until 1793), eager for war. On May 3 Poland proclaims the U.S.-style Third of May Constitution , pissing off greedy Russia, Austria, and Prussia, who declare war on it and kick its butt by 1793. On June 14 the Le Chapelier Law outlaws all worker assocs. incl. cooperatives in an attempt to destroy the last remnants of the guild system and demonstrate the govt.'s commitment to recognize only one type of property, land; on July 20 it is extended to agricultural workers and servants. On June 20 after a year and a half of living without her fairy tale Petit Trianon world, Marie Antoinette finally quits being a bubble-headed blonde, gets smart, and plans and executes the secret Flight to Varennes , with her beau Count Hans Axel von Fersen the Younger (1755-1810) as driver, but since the king and queen are unable to get over the royal protocol bit and insist on traveling in a fancy new carriage which sticks out like a sore cake (and Louis' face is on the money?) on June 20 they are spotted and stopped at Varennes, 40 mi. from Austrian troops on the NE frontier waiting to protect them and lead an invasion to quash the rev., and turned back to Paris, driven slowly through angry crowds, who spit on "the most hated woman in France" Marie Antoinette while crying "we love you alone" to cypher-brained peasant-faced Louis, arriving on June 25; after this caper, their heads are as good as in the basket? On July 4 the First Bank of the United States puts its stock up for sale, and all $2M of it sells out within a few hours. On July 16 the king is suspended from office until he agrees to ratify the constitution (Sept. 14). On July 17 Marquis de Lafayette, cmdr. of the French Nat. Guard makes his last effort to control the sacred right of insurrection on the Champ de Mars in Paris, where a crowd attempts to draft a petition demanding the removal of Louis XVI, but after they fire on his soldiers, they fire back, causing the Massacre of the Champ de Mars , which discombobulates Europe; French astronomer (mayor since 1789) Jean-Sylvain Bailly (1736-93) , who ordered it, becomes unpopular and retires to Nantes, and ends up getting guillotined 1793 after trying to visit his scientific colleague Pierre Simon Laplace at Melun and getting arrested - like a Three Stooges moron? In July Irish sympathy for the French Rev. results in 6K in Belfast voting a congratulatory message to the French nation; meanwhile in Oct. Dublin-born ("Father of Irish Republicans") Theobald Wolfe Tone (1763-98) and James Napper Tandy (1740-1803) found the Society of the United Irishmen . In July the unpopular 28% federal excise tax on whiskey and domestic spirits takes effect, becoming the first federal excise tax on a U.S. product; it doubles the fun by imposing a higher rate on small producers, most of whom are in the west, and is doubled again by Alexander Hamilton's explanation that the tax is needed to pay off the nat. debt, which the western victims of the tax believe is due to wealthy easterners?; soon federal collectors are shunned, tarred, feathered, blindfolded and whipped as popular sentiment equates them with the hated former British tax collectors of the Stamp Act era, and mock guillotines are set up, stirring fears of a French-style rev. on Am. soil?; Washington decides to set a precedent by using a federalized militia against them, while Hamilton sees it as his big chance, supervising the mobilization and serves as chief of staff? On Aug. 22-23 Black August in N Haiti (the French colony of Santo Domingo) (home of large-scale Indian genocide and African slavery) sees 400K-500K African slaves stage an emeute (�meute) (uprising) against 30K white French slavemasters over the brutal conditions that have killed nearly 25K each year for the past cent., which later turns into the Haitian Rev. (ends 1804) becoming the first successful slave rebellion in history; before they start the uprising they dance a Voodoo Dance in Bwa Kayiman (Cayman) (Caiman Forest) , led by Haitian priestess Cecile Fatiman , who channels the spirit of warrior-love goddess black madonna with child Ezili Danto , and crowns the African warrior Boukman with her royal red Petwo scepter to declare war, after which those present drink the blood of a black pig and swear that they will drive out the white French slavemasters or die trying, causing Euros to claim they made a pact with the Devil and that therefore Haiti is forever cursed by God. On Aug. 27 the Declaration of Pillnitz is signed by Frederick William II of Prussia and HRE Leopold II of Austria, promising to intervene in French affairs to restore Louis XVI, but only with the unanimous consent of the other powers incl. Britain; instead of stopping the French Rev., it helps trigger it a few weeks after Leopold II's death? In Aug. after running off together from the frontier town of Memphis, Tenn., aspiring politician Andrew Jackson (b. 1767) marries Mrs. Rachel Donelson Robards (1767-1828) despite legal uncertainties about the status of her divorce to jealous hubby Capt. Lewis Robards of Ky., who obtains the first divorce in the history of Tenn. after suing the legislature for the right on the grounds of adultery; too bad, their marriage is later declared invalid because the divorce was not yet final, and they remarry on Jan. 17, 1794, becoming plagued with allegations of adultery forever, causing Andy to fight 13 duels, killing one; they have no children, but adopt her nephew and name him Andrew Jackson Jr.; when he runs for pres. in 1828, the press digs it up and causes her to freak and die of a heart attack, embittering him. Let's get started now, 1-800-1791-ZAPEM? On Sept. 3 the first-ever French Constitution of 1791 is promulgated in France, and ratified by the king on Sept. 13, followed by swearing an oath of alliegiance to the assembly while being made to wear a Red Cap of Liberty (Phrygian Cap) and drink to its health; the king retains only the right to delay legislative measures through a veto; only males are given citizenship, and must be born in France or of French parents, and are considered passive (nonvoting) until they take a civic oath, reach 25 years of age, be non-Jewish (waved on Sept. 27, although Jewish synagogues are closed, and Hebrew is prohibited), be on the rolls of the Nat. Guard, and pay a tax equivalent to three days' wages; after all that they get to choose electors who elect reps for a 2-year term in the legislature and are eligible to become officers of the depts., while as active citizens they can become municipal officers and judges; all ecclesiastical orders except those having to do with care of the sick or education are abolished, and clerics are once again required to take a civic oath; incorruptible humanitarian atty. Maximilien Robespierre, who gets every member of the Jacobin Club to take a theatrical oath to defend his life, opposes the death penalty when it is brought up in the Nat. Assembly, and is crowned with chaplets (along with Petion) is carried home in triumph by the mob at the close of the Nat. Assembly on Sept. 30 after it votes that none of its members are eligible for election to the next assembly then dissolves itself, and on Oct. 1 the 745-member Nat. Legislative Assembly (Parlementeront) convenes (ends Sept. 21, 1791) as the mobs threaten to get out of control; leftist-dominated from the get-go, the right steadily slides to zero, leaving three main parties on the left, the Plain Party (moderate republicans and monarchists), Girondists (Guadet, Vergniaud, Brissot et al., who advocate a U.S.-style federal repub.), and the Mountain Party , composed of Jacobins and Cordeliers, and led by Robespierre; as the legislature meets, the Mountain and Girondists begin a split as Robespierre (elected as first deputy for Paris) joins Danton and Marat in urging the king's execution. In the fall there is a poor harvest in France, causing rising grain prices, which, compounded by the war, abolition of religious orders and elimination of the church tithe causes problems in administering relief to the poor, sparking unrest and riots in Paris. On Dec. 5 U.S. treasury secy. #1 (1789-95) Alexander Hamilton (1755-1804) presents his magnum opus Report on the Subject of Manufactures to Congress, proposing that the U.S. govt. vigorously encourage the growth of manufacturing in order to end all dependence on the Continent, incl. promotion of science, technology, and agriculture, along with immigration and moderate tariffs to subsidize manufacturing; U.S. Sen. Henry Clay (1777-1852) uses it to found the American (Nat.) System , consisting of high tarrifs, govt. investment in infrastructure, and a nat. bank that promotes productive enterprises rather than speculation. On Dec. 15 while godless revolutionists grab unlimited power in France, the really revolutionary power-limiting U.S. Bill of Rights (Amendments 1-10) (proposed and sent to the states by the first session of the First Congress in Federal Hall in New York City) is ratified after Va. becomes the 11th state to approve it; in 1941 Dec. 15 is declared U.S. nat. Bill of Rights Day; by the year 2000 it is amended an average of once every 12 years; 1: freedom of religion, speech, press, assembly and petition; 2: right to bear arms; 3: quartering of soldiers limited; 4: searches and seizures; 5: due process; 6: right to an atty.; 7: right to trial by jury; 8: unfair punishment forbidden; 9: reservation of rights by citizens; 10: reservations of rights to states or people; 11: rules for lawsuits against states (1795); 12: new way of selecting pres. and vice-pres. (1804); 13: slavery abolished (1865); 14: equal protection under law (1868); 15: black voting rights (1870); 16: federal income tax (1913); 17: U.S. senators directly elected (1913); 18: sale of alcohol banned (1919); 19: voting rights for women (1920); 20: date of pres. and congressional terms set (1933); 21: 18th amendment repealed 1933); 22: pres. limited to two terms (1951); 23: people in D.C. given right to vote for pres. (1961); 24: no poll taxes in federal elections (1964); 25: pres. succession and disability (1967); 26: voting age lowered to 18 (1971); 27: congressional salaries regulated (1992). On Dec. 17 the first one-way street in the U.S. opens in New York City - a good test for the Bill of Rights? The Catholic Relief Act finally permits Mass, travel, and schools for Roman Catholics in England - check my vital signs now? The Constitutional (Clergy Endowments) (Canada) Act is passed by the British Parliament, helping loyalists fleeing unloyal America to feel at home; Canada is divided into two provinces, Upper and Lower; Quebec City is the capital of Lower Canada; meanwhile Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn (1767-1820) becomes the first member of the British royal family to live in North Am. for any length of time (until 1800), and in 1794 the first prince to enter the U.S. when he travels by foot from Lower Canada to Boston, Mass.; on June 27, 1792 in an attempt to quell a riot at a polling station in Charlesbourg, Lower, Canada he becomes the first to use the term "Canadian" to mean both French and English settlers in Upper and Lower Canada, becoming known as "Father of the Canadian Crown"; in May 1799 he is appointed CIC of British forces in North Am. (until 1802), then gov. of gibraltar on Mar. 23, 1802. Avignon is ceded by the Vatican to France. The first gen. workers' strike is held in Hamburg, Germany. After being put up to it by his evangelical minister Johann Christof Wollner, Frederick William II of Prussia sets up an Inquisition-like commission in Berlin to watch over Protestant appointments and weed out "enlighteners" (modernists). Antonie-Laurent Lavoisier becomes commissary of the French treasury, and attempts to reform the monetary and taxation system as well as farming methods. Odessa, Russia (modern pop. 750K) is founded on the shores of the Black Sea by a bunch of mostly Jews from Italy (Genoa, Naples, Venice, Palermo) - wearing the perfect shade of lipstick? Johnstown, Penn. on the Conemaugh River at its confluence with Stony Creek 75 mi. SE of Pittsburgh is founded by Swiss settler Joseph Johns (Jahns) , and becomes a coal and iron ore mining center for Tunkers (Germ. "tunken" = to dip). Watkins Glen in N.Y. at the S end of Seneca Lake 20 mi. N of Elmira is settled, originally called Salubria for its springs, incorporated in 1842, then renamed in 1852 in honor of resident Dr. Samuel Watkins . The Methodist Episcopal New York Hospital (planned since 1769) opens, becoming the first public hospital in Brooklyn, N.Y. (40 years after Philly), and the first Methodist hospital. French engineer (Valley Forge veteran) Maj. Pierre Charles L'Enfant (1754-1825) draws up the original plan for the District of Columbia (Washington, D.C.); a gridwork of parallel streets are overlaid with diagonal "grand avenues" which radiate from Jenkins' Hill (Capitol Hill) (site of the U.S. Capitol) and the Executive Mansion, which face each other along Pennsylvania Ave.; a third focus is planned for the Supreme Court, but it ends up being put in the basement of the Capitol instead - the Satanic hexagram design is an Illuminati symbol in disguise? Alexandria, Va. becomes part of the District of Columbia (until 1846), making big money trading slaves. Aaron Burr defeats Alexander Hamilton's father-in-law for N.Y. Sen.; Thomas Jefferson later utters the soundbyte "I never indeed thought him an honest, frank-dealing man, but considered him as a crooked gun, or other perverted machine, whose aim or stroke you could never be sure of." After leaving his native Brittany to join the French army in Navarre as a 2nd lt. and rise to the rank of capt., visiting Paris in 1788 and meeting French writers Andre Chenier, Jean-Francois de La Harpe, Louis-Marcelin de Fontanes et al., then initially backing the French Rev. only to have its violence turn him against it, future founder of French Romanticism Francois-Rene de Chateaubriand (Fran�ois-Ren� de Chateaubriand) (1768-1848) travels to the U.S. Deep South, claiming to visit the Natchez Indians of La. and meet George Washington, returning in 1792 and joining an army of royalist emigres in Coblenz under the Prince of Conde, after which he is wounded during the siege of Thionville and flees to exile in England, abandoning his wife Celeste and spending the rest of his life in poverty in London studying Milton et al. and cheating on his wife, reconverting to Roman Catholicism in 1798. Dmitry Bocharov (Becharof) explores the NW shore of the Alaska Peninsula, disvovering 37-mi.-long Becharof Lake , 2nd largest lake in Alaska after Iliamna Lake. An English court case blames a cat for stealing a baby's breath and killing it. The U.S. issues a pre-Mint Washington Cent . Comte de Rochambeau is appointed gov. of Picardy and Artois and made a marshal. The first Irish prisoners, often country folk given life sentences by the British for political crimes arrive in Botany Bay after a 6-mo. slave ship horror voyage. Goethe becomes dir. of the ducal theater in Weimar (until 1813), which keeps him in the burg that still sticks to lame Sturm und Drang and doesn't appreciate his classical mind? The Albany Inst. of History and Art is founded in Albany, N.Y. Wilhelm von Goethe is named dir. of the Weimar Court Theater (until 1817). The Observer begins pub. in London. Benares College is founded in Benares, India, becoming a center of Sanskrit study. The U. of Vt. is founded in Burlington, Vt. by Ira Allen (1751-1814) , brother of Ethan Allen and the Marquis de Lafayette, who visits it in 1825, becoming its main claim to fame. The Royal Veterinary College in London is founded. Architecture: The Brandenburg Gate (Brandenburger Tor)in Berlin (begun 1788) is finished - lots of fun to goose-step under?Inventions: Wolfgang Ritter von Kempelen (1734-1804) pub a book detailing the design for a human voice speaking machine capable of reproducing short phrases. Science:The horrors of future wars are seen in a twitching frog leg in Italy? Italian scientist Luigi Galvani (1737-98) accidentally discovers that electric current makes a frog's leg muscles twitch, and that twitching can be produced by connecting a nerve ending and the end of the leg with a metal strip, calling it "animal electricity", believing that only living tissues can generate it; he also discovers that electricity and magnetism are linked, and develops an experimental electrical motor. Am. dentist John Greenwood invents a foot drill, along with a method for mounting natural or artificial (prosthetic) teeth, and about this time constructs two partial and three full dentures for Pres. Washington; about this time silversmith Paul Revere sidelines as a dentist. Rev. William Gregor (1761-1817) of Cornwall, England discovers titanium (Ti) (#22) in ilmenite (FeTiO3); in 1795 Martin Klaproth of Germany rediscovers it in rutile from Hungary, and names it for the Greek Titans. Nonfiction: William Bartram (1739-1823), Travels through North and South Carolina . Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832), Panopticon ; his new design for a circular prison where the guards can watch everybody without being seen. Johann Friedrich Blumenbach (1752-1840), Uber den Bildungstrieb und das Zeugungsgeschaft . James Boswell (1740-95), Life of Samuel Johnson [1709-84] ; the ultimate masterpiece of biography? Jacques Pierre Brissot (1754-93), Theorie des Lois Criminelles ; the philosophy of criminal law. Isaac Disraeli (1766-1848), Curiosities of Literature (6 vols.) (1791-1834). Rev. William Gilpin (1724-1804), Remarks on Forest Scenery and Other Woodland Views . Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832), Beitrage zur Optiks (1791-2). Olympe de Gouges, (1748-93) Declaration of the Rights of Women and the Female Citizen ; "Male and female citizens, being equal in the eyes of the law, must be equally admitted to all honors, positions, and public employment according to their capacity and without other distinctions besides those of their virtues and talents" - laugh this one off, Laffy? Johann von Herder (1744-1803), Ideen zur Philosophie der Geschichte der Menschheit . August von Kotzebue (1761-1819), Meine Flucht nach Paris im Winter 1790 (autobio.). Philippe Pinel (1745-1826), Traite Medico-Philosophique sur l'Alienation Mentale . William Robertson (1721-93), An Historical Disquisition Concerning the Knowledge Which the Ancients Had of India . Christian Friedrich Daniel Schubart (1739-91), Schubart's Life and Thought (autobio.) (2 vols.) (1791-3). Thomas Sheraton (1751-1806), The Cabinet Maker's and Upholsterer's Drawing Books (4 vols.); his designs are widely copied although he never actually builds any furniture of his own? John Sinclair, The Statistical Account of Scotland . Count de Volney (1757-1820), Les Ruines, ou Meditations sur les Revolutions des Empires (The Ruins, or Meditations on the Revolutions of Empires); questions the historicity of Jesus Christ. John Walker (1732-1807), Critical Pronouncing Dictionary and Expositor of the English Language . James Weatherby, The General Stud Book ; pub. in England, with 387 mares tracing to one of the three foundation Arabian horses, becoming the official registry for the English Thoroughbred. Juan Yuan (1764-1849), Verse of Astronomer Zhang Hang (-78 to 139) ; claims that all Western science originated in China. Art: Angelica Kauffmann (1741-1807), Self-Portrait Hesitating Between the Arts of Music and Painting . George Morland (1763-1804), Inside of a Stable . Augustin Pajou (1730-1809), Psyche Abandoned (sculpture). Music: Carl Michael Bellman (1740-95), Songs of Fredman ; more hits. Luigi Cherubini (1760-1842), Lodoiska (Lodo�ska) (opera) (July 18) (Theatre Feydeau, Paris); libretto by Claude-Francois Fillette-Loraux, from the novel "Les Amours du Chevalier de Faublas" by Jean-Baptiste Louvet de Couvrai, about the Princess of Altanno and Count Floreski; his first big hit (200 perf.), praised for realistic heroism, although later it is mistaken as an early Romantic opera. Nicholas Dalayrac, Camille (opera); introduces the innovation of bells - who cares if they're unwieldy they're crowd-pleasers?Franz Joseph Haydn (1732-1809), The Surprise Symphony ; "This will make the ladies jump" (a sudden loud symbol crash). Vicente Martin y Soler and Vasili Pashkevich, Fedul and His Children (opera) (St. Petersburg). Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-91), La Clemenza di Tito (opera) (Sept.); The Magic Flute (Die Zauberflote) (about Sarastro) (Vienna) (Sept. 30); (he conducts the debut 10 weeks before his death); German libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder; the #1 Zauberopera; filled with Masonic symbolism, incl. 3-part harmony, three raps on the door, etc.; Quintet for the Glass Armonica ; Requiem Aeternam (unfinished); composed on his deathbed after being commissioned by Count Franz von Walsegg (1763-1827) , an amateur musician living in Stuppach Castle near Gloggnitz, who likes to pass off others' works as his own; to get the rest of the money Mozart's wife Constanze arranges for his pupil Franz Xaver Sussmayr (1766-1803) to complete it; Clarinet Concerto in A major (K.622) ; written for fellow Freemason clarinetist friend Anton Stadler. Plays: Marie-Joseph Blaise de Chenier (1764-1811), Henry VIII (Palais Royal, Paris); inaugurates the theater; his best work?; Jean Calas, ou l'Ecole des Juges (Jean Calas, or The Judges' School)(Paris); both star Francois Joseph Talma. Rhyijnvis Feith (1753-1824), Lady Jane Grey (tragedy). Poetry: William Blake (1757-1827), The French Revolution ; calls for the destruction of the Bastille in the name of freedom. Andre Marie Chenier (1762-94), Jeu de Paume . Births: Austrian "The Golden Fleece" #1 dramatist Franz Seraphicus Grillparzer (d. 1872) on Jan. 15 in Vienna; educated at the U. of Vienna. Italian "The Kiss" Romantic painter Francesco Hayez (d. 1882) on Feb. 10 Venice; French descent Father, Italian mother. Am. industrialist-politician (designer of the Tom Thumb locomotive and inventor of Jell-O) Peter Cooper (d. 1883) on Feb. 12 in New York City; of Dutch descent; father of Edward Cooper (1824-1905). Austrian pianist-composer Karl (Carl) Czerny (d. 1857) on Feb. 21 in Vienna; pupil of Beethoven; teacher of Liszt. Spanish Romantic dramatist-poet Angel de Saavedra, Duke of Rivas (d. 1865) on Mar. 19 in Cordoba. Am. journalist-politician (member of Pres. Andrew Jackson's Kitchen Cabinet, and co-founder of the Repub. Party) Francis Preston Blair (d. 1876) on Apr. 21 in Abingdon, Va.; educated at Transylvania U. U.S. Doughface Dem. pres. #15 (1857-61) and U.S. secy. of state #17 (1845-9) James Buchanan Jr. (d. 1868) on Apr. 23 in Mercersburg (Cove Gap) (Lancaster County), Penn.; 3rd U.S. pres. born in a log cabin, although his daddy is a well-to-do storekeeper-farmer?; first pres. from Penn. (until ?); first lifelong bachelor pres. (until ?); educated at Dickinson College. Am. "The Dying Hercules" artist and electric telegraph inventor ("the American Leonardo") Samuel Finley Breese Morse (d. 1872) on Apr. 27 in Charlestown, Mass.; educated at Yale U.; studies painting in England under Washington Allston (1779-1843); co-inventor of the electric telegraph with Alfred Lewis Vail (1807-59). English Worcestershire sauce king John Wheeley Lea (d. 1874) on May 8 in Feckenham, Worcestershire; partner of William Henry Perrins (1793-1867). Swedish poet-writer Adolf Ivar Arwidsson (d. 1858) on Aug. 7 in Padasjoki, Finland. German operatic composer (Jewish) Giacomo Meyerbeer (Jakob Liebmann Beer) (d. 1864) on Sept. 5 near Berlin; rich parents; brother of Wilhelm Beer (1797-1850) and Michael Beer. German philologist Franz Bopp (d. 1867) on Sept. 14 in Mainz. Hungarian statesman-writer Count Istvan Szechenyi (Istv�n Sz�chenyi) (d. 1860) on Sept. 21 in Vienna. English physicist (strict evangelical Protestant who parts his hair in the middle) Michael Faraday (d. 1867) on Sept. 22 in Newington Butts, South London; son of a failed Sandermanian blacksmith; apprentices to a London bookbinder, attends public lectures on science, switches to asst. demonstrator at London's Royal Inst., and begins a climb to the top, never seeking financial gain? - gets a physical unit named after him, oh boy? German poet-soldier Carl Theodor Korner (K�rner) (d. 1813) on Sept. 23 in Dresden. French Romantic "The Raft of the Medusa", "Decapitated Heads" painter-lithographer Jean-Louis Andre Theodore Gericault (Jean-Louis Andr� Th�odore G�ricault) (d. 1824) on Sept. 26 in Rouen, Normandy. French Dulong and Petit Law physicist Alexis Therese (Th�r�se) Petit (d. 1820) on Oct. 2 in Vesoul, Haute-Saone. Am. brewer Peter Ballantine (d. 1883) on Nov. 16 in Dundee, Scotland; emigrates to the U.S. in 1820. Scottish engineer George Rennie (d. 1866) on Dec. 3 in London; son of John Rennie the Elder (1761-1821); brother of John Rennie the Younger (1794-1874). Austrian archduchess and French empress (1810-4) Marie Louise (d. 1847) on Dec. 12 in Vienna; daughter of HRE Francis (Franz) II (Emperor Francis I of Austria); 2nd wife of Napoleon I, and empress of France (1810-15). French "Night of the National Guard" well-made play (piece bien faite) dramatist-librettist Augustine Eugene (Eug�ne) Scribe (d. 1861) on Dec. 24 in Paris. English mathematician-philosopher (inventor of the programmable computer) Charles Babbage (d. 1871) on Dec. 26 in London; educated at Trinity College and Peterhouse College, Cambridge U. French technocrat (disciple of Comte de Saint-Simon) Saint-Amand Bazard (d. 1832) . Omani sultan (1806-56) Sa'id ibn Sultan (d. 1856) . Danish dramatist Johan Ludvig Heiberg (d. 1860) in Copenhagen; educated at the U. of Copenhagen. Deaths: English divine (Methodist Church founder) John Wesley (b. 1703) on Mar. 2: "Cleanliness is next to godliness" (Sermons, no. 93, "On Dress"). French sculptor Etienne Maurice Falconet (b. 1716). Welsh hymn writer William Panycelyn (b. 1717). French Adm. Count Toussaint-Gillaume Picquet de la Motte (b. 1720) on June 10 in Brest. Am. printer William Bradford (Jr.) (b. 1722); official printer of the Continental Congress. Welsh Congregationalist minister Richard Price (b. 1723). Am. statesman Benjamin Harrison V (b. 1726) on Apr. 24 in Charles County, Va. English writer Hester Chapone (b. 1727). English historian Catharine Macaulay (b. 1731) on June 22 in Binfield. Am. Rev. leader and poet-jurist (DOI signer) Francis Hopkinson (b. 1737). British lt. col. Archibald Campbell (b. 1739) on Mar. 31 in London; buried in Westminster Abbey. Russian field marshal Prince Grigori Potemkin (b. 1739) on Oct. 16 (Oct. 5 Old Style) between Nikolayev and Jassy; dies after eating a whole goose while in a high fever - talk about the English Stud Book? German poet-musician Christian Schubart (b. 1739) on Oct. 10. English explorer Samuel Hearne (b. 1745) in Nov. French Rev. statesman Comte de Mirabeau (b. 1749) on Apr. 2 in Paris (pericarditis); last word (written): "dormir" (sleep); the Paris Pantheon is created for him, until his secret double-dealings with the king are revealed in 1792, causing his remains to be removed in 1794. Spanish poet Tomas de Iriarte y Oropesa (b. 1750) on Sept. 17 in Madrid (gout). Austrian classical master wunderkind composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (b. 1756) on Dec. 5 in Vienna (typhoid fever) (caused by lack of sunshine and Vitamin D?); dies at the tender age of 35, leaving his "Requiem" unfinished, along with 625 other works, incl. 22 operas, 10 string quartets, 'and 27 piano concertos (most ever for a classical composer), the first at age 11 (the best are a series of 12 written in 1784-6?); he was hot in Prague but only lukewarm in Salzburg; funeral services are held at St. Stephen's Cathedral (Stephansdom) only 1 block away from where he lived, and few attend; he is buried in an unmarked mass grave.
1792 - The Take A Pain, Any Pain Ride the Steel Marseillaise Year? Three hundred years after Columbus, and my how the shoe's on the other foot? The original cure to nasal congestion in France is the First Republic, but when France attempts to give everybody in Europe the cure, they respond with the First Coalition, because they prefer the disease to the cure?
1792 On Jan. 15 after they don't fare any better than before the Am. Rev., 1,193 freed blacks leave Halifax, N.S., Canada for Sierra Leone; the Book of Negroes of escaped Am. slaves that fought for the British in the Am. Rev. War and were resettled in Novia Scotia contains the names of 1,336 men, 914 women, and 750 children; meanwhile the U.S. Congress excludes blacks from military service, allowing only "free able-bodied white male citizens". In Jan. Requiem Aeternam , the last composition of the late Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-91) (whose portrait bears a striking resemblance to English actor Tim Roth (1961-) ?), completed by his pupil Franz Xaver Sussmayr (S�ssmayr) (1766-1803) debuts, attended by respectful colleague Antonio Salieri (1750-1825) to benefit his ne'er-do-well family - what to do if your squeeze is way better looking than you are? On Feb. 7 Frederick William II of Prussia and HRE Leopold II sign an alliance against the French repub. govt. in favor of Louis XVI; too bad, Leopold dies within 1 mo., and Frederick William II is more interested in stealing Poland than helping bolster monarchism in France, so he does a half-job, which ultimately boomerangs at the 1806 Battle of Jena? On Feb. 20 Pres. Washington signs an act creating the U.S. Post Office - in the good old days before automatic weapons? On Feb. 23 Sir Joshua Reynolds (b. 1723) dies, and U.S. immigrant Benjamin West becomes pres. #2 of the Royal Academy of Arts in London; George III makes Sir Thomas Lawrence (1769-1830) (knighted in 1815) his royal portraitist, joining Thomas Gainsborough and Sir Joshua Reynolds as the big three in English portrait painting. On Mar. 1 Leopold II (b. 1747) dies, and his son Francis II (1768-1835) becomes the last Holy Roman emperor (HRE) (until 1806), becoming known for his diplomatic and admin. abilities. On Mar. 8 a large Chinese army reaches Lhasa to help Tibet fight landlocked Nepal (home of Mt. Everest), and the combined army invades Nepal; after a flood of the Betrawoti River washes away many of the Chinese troops, on Oct. 5 the Treaty of Betrawoti ends the war; Nepal signs a commercial treaty with Britain. On Mar. 9 British Christian evangelical abolitionist naval officer Lt. John Clarkson (1764-1828) arrives in Sierra Leone with 1.2K unwelcome freed Am. black slaves from the Am. Rev. War from Nova Scotia in 15 ships led by Thomas Peters (Potter) (1738-92) , who found the utopian settlement of Freetown , with Clarkson as gov. #1 (until Dec. 1792); Big Peter gets into a political struggle with Clarkson then dies of malaria in Freetown during the rainy season, leaving descendants who become the Krio (Creole) people of Sierra Leone; too bad, these whitened-up Africans end up creating a race-based class society that keeps the indigenous African pop. down, causing resentment and hostility. On Mar. 16 Gustavus (Gustav) (Gustaf) III of Sweden is shot at a masquerade party at the Stockholm Opera House by Jacob Johan Anckarstrom (Anckarstr�m) (b. 1762) , one of his nobles (former member of his regiment) (executed Apr. 27), with the soundbyte "Bonjour, beau masque" (Good day, fine mask), and dies on Mar. 29 from infection, his last words being "I feel sleepy, a few moments rest will do me good"; famous medium Ulrica Anna Arfvidsson (1734-1801) , who predicted his assassination in 1786 is questioned by the police; his 14-y.-o. son Gustavus (Gustav) (Gustaf) IV Adolf (1778-1837) succeeds him (until 1809). On Mar. 16 Denmark becomes the first country to abolish the slave trade (takes effect in 1803). Welcome to the next round? A classic case of what goes around comes around? The pen is mightiless against the sword? On Mar. 20-25 the Legislative Assembly in Paris sticks its neck out and approves the use of the centuries-old "painless" Guillotine , named after physician Joseph-Ignace Guillotin (1738-1814) , who recommends it as a humane form of execution, as well as a way of eliminating the class distinction of hanging commoners while beheading nobles, who are expected to go to their deaths without displaying emotions unless they're women; on Apr. 4 the first guillotine is installed in the Place de Greve in Paris; on Apr. 25 highwayman Jacques Nicolas Pelletier becomes the first person executed by the new "feminine" form of execution; in Aug. a giant guillotine is erected in the Place de Carrousel in the center of Paris, whose blade makes a noise like thunder when it falls, designed by German harpsichord maker Tobias Schmidt , Metz-born surgeon Antoine Louis (1723-92) (secy. of the surgical academy), and main executioner (since 1754) Charles Henri Sanson (1739-1806) (4th hereditary executioner in the family since 1688); Schmidt turns the blade o a 45-deg. angle and changes it from round to you know what, and it is weighted by a pulley system as it travels down two 14-ft. upright greased wooden planks, all of which are reached by a 24-step platform; in 1890 asst. executioner Leon Burger adds refinements; the machine is set up also at the Place de la Revolution, Place St. Antoine, and Barriere (Barri�re) Ranverse; it is originally called "La Veuve" (window), and after Louis XVI's execution "La Louison", then after Marie Antoinett'e execution "La Louisette", and not called guillotine until after 1800; 15K heads roll by 1799, out of 40K total killed during the Terror, 70%-80% of them commoners; tricoteuses sometimes sit near the base of the scaffold knitting stockings for soldiers - well, shiver me carotids? On Apr. 2 the first U.S. Mint in Philly is established by the U.S. Mint (Coinage) Act , which specifies coinage of silver and gold in the ratio of 15:1; dir. #1 is Penn.-born self-taught scientist David Rittenhouse (1732-96) (until 1795). On Apr. 5 the first U.S. pres. veto is cast as Pres. Washington rejects a congressional measure for apportioning reps among the states. On Apr. 18 the Nat. Guard orders Louis XVI, Marie Antoinette and their family to not leave Paris; Maximilien Robespierre is appointed public accuser. On Apr. 20 after getting pissed by the 1791 Declaration of Pillnitz and issuing ultimatums against HRE Leopold II and Francis II, France declares war on the HRE (Austria), which lasts 23 years (until 1815) and results in 1.5M French killed; the First Coalition against France is formed. On Apr. 25 French army officer (capt. of engineers at Strasbourg) Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle (1760-1836) composes the French nat. anthem La Marseillaise (Song of Marseille) (originally "War Song of the Army of the Rhine") (dedicated to Bavarian-born French marshal Nicolas Luckner), which is sung at a patriotic meeting in Marseille by Francois Mireur (1770-98) and catches on, being sung in the streets of Paris upon arrival by volunteers from Marseille, then spreading to the rest of the French army; it is adopted as the French nat. anthem on July 14, 1795; after they occupy the town of Carmagnola in Piedmont, Italy, French revolutionaries begin wearing their costume, the Carmagnole , a short jacket with wide lapels, worn with black trousers instead of knee breeches, earning them the name "sans-culottes", meaning without breeches, along with a red cap and tricolored girdle; "La Marseillaise" is first sung on July 30 in Paris. On May 11 New England ship capt. Robert Gray (1755-1806) enters the estuary of the Columbia River (which he names after his ship) in NW Am., which event is later cited by the U.S. when claiming the region. Back it up, hook it up, and don't look back? Don't just stand there, say something? Breathtaking? On May 17 the Buttonwood Agreement creates the precursor of the New York Stock Exchange (1817) after a meeting by 24 traders under a buttonwood tree at 68 Wall Street. In May the U.S. tax rates on whiskey are lowered to no avail, and the Whiskey Rebellion ferments to nearly 200 proof? In May Alexander Mackenzie leaves with nine companions and 1.5 tons of supplies in a 25-ft. birch bark canoe to find a westerly route to the Pacific Ocean from Peace River near Lake Athabasca in Alberta, Canada; they reach the Continental Divide on June 12 after deciding to take the Parsnip River south rather than the Finlay River north at Willaston Lake. In May an aide-de-camp to col. Marquis de Toulengeon deserts, and his daddy the Marquis de Sade, who was elected to the Nat. Convention in 1790 representing the far left, where he wrote a pamphlet calling for the direct vote is forced to disavow him to save his neck; next year he writes a eulogy of Jean-Paul Marat to save his job, but is accused of moderatism, forced to resign, and imprisoned, after which he is released after the July 28, 1794 execution of Maximilian Robespierre, and becomes a penniless bum, selling his ruined castle in Lacoste in 1796, which in the 1990s is purchased by French fashion designer Pierre Cardin for theater festivals. In May English 5'7 160 lb. Jew Daniel Mendoza (1764-1836) , the first scientific boxer, who defeated his mentor "gentleman boxer" Richard Humphreys in three bouts in 1790-1 (the 3rd bout being the 1st time that spectators are charged to see a sporting event) and became the first boxer to win the patronage of the prince of Wales and the first Jew to speak to George III becomes world heavyweight boxing champ (until 1795) after Ben Brain retires and he defeats Bill Warr in 23 rounds; too bad, on Apr. 15, 1795 he takes on "Gentleman" John Jackson (1769-1845) for the championship in Essex, and Jackson wins after holding Mendoza's long hair with one hand while bitch-slapping him with the other for 10 min., causing boxers to begin wearing their hair short; Jackson sets up a saloon at 13 Bond St. where he gives instruction to Lord Byron et al. On June 1 "Bluegrass State" Kentucky (Ky.) ("Land of Tomorrow") ("Meadow Lands") ("Cane and Turkey Lands") is separated from Virginia and admitted as the 15th U.S. state (slave), becoming the 4th commonwealth in the Union (Va., Penn., Mass.), with Isaac Shelby (1750-1826) (ancestor of historian Shelby Foote) as first gov. (until 1796); not too fond of U.S. whiskey taxes, the state slogan is "Spirits Unbridled" - the future of bourbon is secure? In July France declares war on Sardinia. In July Comte de Rochambeau, cmdr. of the French Rev. Northern Army freaks at the excesses and retires in disgust, and ends up imprisoned during the Reign of Terror, escaping the guillotine by the fall of Robespierre in 1794, being released and restored by Napoleon to his rank and estates. On Aug. 6 former Md. gov. Thomas Johnson Jr. (1732-1819) becomes U.S. Supreme court justice #7 (until Jan. 16, 1793), becoming the first member to author a written opinion; he later becomes a member of the commission which lays out the city of Washington, D.C. Beyond the Yellow Brick Road? On Aug. 10 popular demonstrations lead to the storming of the Tuileries , and the royal Swiss Guard (created 1616) shows their loyalty by defending it, losing 800 members; all functions of the monarchy are suspended, and not only is the king's veto power quashed, but the Nat. Legislature votes to enact all legislation he previously vetoed, and calls for a convention elected by universal male suffrage to enact a new constitution; the poor royal family is confined to the gloomy Square du Temple (old Knights Templar house) in Paris; La Carmagnole , a song written after the storming of the Tuileries, consisting of 13 2-line stanzas ridiculing the king and queen becomes popular until the end of the Terror in 1794; "Dansons la carmagnole,/ Vive le son, vive le son;/ Dansons la carmagnole,/ Vive le son du canon". On Aug. 11 as the allies score big V's against the French revolutionaries, the 9 (later 12) man Jacobin Provisional Executive Council (Committee of Public Safety) under Danton, Robespierre, Saint-Just, et al., and the male suffrage-based Paris Commune under Jacques Hebert, Pierre Gaspard Chaumette (1763-94) and Jean Baptiste du Val-de-Grace, Baron de Cloots (1755-94) (AKA Anacharsis Cloots) seize power. On Aug. 20 the Battle of Verdun is a V for the Prussians over French Rev. forces, after which the 12 Virgins of Verdun carry a basket of sugared almonds to the Prussian king's tent (they are later guillotined); on Sept. 2-7 news of it causes the September Massacres to take place in Paris, in which suspects taken from prisons are tried in improvised tribunals and then executed; the riots spread to Versailles, Lyons, Rheims, Meaux, and Orleans, and anarchy threatens, while cries for the king's head increase. On Sept. 9-16 free trade on grain is suspended in France, with army and civil authorities empowered to requisition it; amnesty is granted to people arrested for agitation over grain. On Sept. 20 a French Repub. army under Gen. ? Kellermann finally defeats the Prussians at the Battle of Valmy in N France, giving them their first V; Louis Philippe Joseph, Duc de Chartres (Valois) (1773-1850) (later Duc de Orleans), who joined the Jacobins in 1790 fights at Valmy as a lt. gen. , and later at Jemappes. On Sept. 20 the Nat. Legislature orders the state to take over the recording of marriages, births and deaths from the Church, and legalizes divorce. On Sept. 21 the Nat. Convention convenes (until Aug. 22, 1795), elected by universal male suffrage and composed of 749 members (486 new), with the Plain Party in the majority, the Girondists on the right, and the Mountain Party (Danton, Robespierre et al.) on the left; it immediately votes to abolish the monarchy (making the king and queen ordinary citizens) and suspend the legislative assembly; the hated gabelle (salt tax) (begun 1341) is abolished (until 1804); nobles kiss their titles goodbye, and become "ci-devant" (heretofore) nobles. On Sept. 22 the First French Repub. is declared, with the calendar reset to Year 1 (ends 1804); on Sept. 25 the repub. is declared "one and indivisible". On Oct. 2 the Committee of Gen. Security is formed, with undefined police powers - Halloween 1-999 music here? On Oct. 12 the U.S. celebrates its first Columbus Day to commemorate the 300th anniv. of the big landing; on Oct. 13 the cornerstone of the White House , the U.S. executive mansion is laid during a ceremony in the District of Columbia; Irish-Am. architect James Hoban (1762-1831) models it after Leinster House , home of the duke of Leinster in Ireland (later seat of the Irish parliament); African-Am. slaves are used in the construction, along with Scottish immigrants; the British torch it in 1814, causing it to need whitewashing and end up with the name you know what. On Nov. 6 45K French under Gen. Charles Francois du Perier Dumouriez (1739-1823) defeat 13K Austrians in their winter HQ in the Battle of Jemappes in SW Belgium, causing them to retreat, after which the French capture Brussels. On Nov. 19 the Decree of Fraternity offers French aid to people wishing to overthrow their govts., causing the English govt. to get antsy, while Irish nationalists take a look around and take them up on their offer. On Dec. 4 the French Nat. Convention declares the death penalty for advocating monarchy; on Dec. 8 it repeals its suspension on free trade in grain but outlaws exports; in the Beauce region prices are fixed, causing peasant demonstrations. On Dec. 5 the 1792 U.S. pres. election sees George Washington and John Adams are reelected unanimously; too bad, the unanimous stuff ends as Thomas Jefferson founds the Democratic Republican Party (later the Democratic Party) as a congressional caucus to fight against the Federalist Party , also formed this year. On Dec. 10 Louis XVI goes before the Nat. Convention to face neckable charges of treason, and on Dec. 11 is presented with incriminating letters from his iron cupboard, claiming to have never seen them and denying his own signature, causing the Jacobins to decide he's guilty; on Dec. 27 the Girondists (moderate republicans) propose a referendum of the people to decide - the original American Idol? On Dec. 11 British Capt. Arthur Phillip, first gov. of New South Wales, Australia (since 1788) resigns and leaves for England in the ship Atlantic, bringing plant and animal specimens, leaving a colony of pop. 4,221 pop., of which 3,099 are convicts. On Dec. 16 the Nat. Convention makes threatening the unity and integrity of the republic punishable by death - what are ya gonna do about it, cut off my head? In the winter Francisco de Goya (1746-1828) visits S Spain and contracts a serious disease that leaves him temporarily blind, permanently deaf, and partially paralyzed (caused by lead, mercury and cadmium poisoning from his paints?), after which he suddenly does an artistic left turn toward ferocious social satire and horrific, pornographic visions from Hell, raising him from mediocrity and ensuring his artistic immortality; liking to paint at night, he devises a big hat with candles - the original Mad Hatter? Ineffectual Spanish king Charles IV virtually surrenders his govt. to his chief minister Manuel de Godoy (1767-1851) (until 1808). Portuguese Queen Maria I (d. 1816) becomes insane, and her son Joao VI (1767-1826) begins to rule in her name, being officially declared regent in 1799 until her death - nothing takes care of you like state farm? In Dec. after touring France and Switzerland by foot the previous year, nature-lover William Wordsworth (b. 1770) hooks up with Marie Ann "Annette" Vallon of Orleans; she bears him a daughter. After French officers train a navy, the forces of Nguyen Anh destroy the Tay Son fleet at Qui Nhon, then begin sieging the fortress (until 1799). Marquis de Lafayette is given command of the French Rev. Army of the Center, becomes disgusted by the excesses of the Fr. Rev. and bolts for Belgium, where he is captured by the Austrians and imprisoned for five years. The (which number?) Sixth Russo-Turkish War (begun in 1787) ends with the Treaty of Jassy , confirming Russia's annexation of the Crimea; the success against their masters gives the Serbs ideas. The Third Anglo-Mysore War (begun 1789) ends with the Treaty of Srirangapatnam , wich Mysore ceding half its territory. The new French govt. seizes Hospitaller property in France. PM Pitt the Younger recalls old Gen. Amherst to his post of CIC of the British army (until 1795). The first U.S. legislation establishing consular posts is enacted. Pierre Samuel du Pont de Nemours is imprisoned for his royalist views, and narrowly escapes the guillotine. The British Parliament passes the Libel Act - the original stick it where it hurts well patch, making it easy to be a touchhole and win in court? The Sorbonne in Paris is suppressed and its property confiscated (until 1808). The Hope Diamond , owned by Louis XVI vanishes during the turmoil in Paris, and doesn't resurface for almost 40 years - who had to die? French military surgeon Dominique Jean Larrey (1766-1842) joins the Army of the Rhine, inventing Flying Ambulances after seeing French Flying Artillery, and combining them with the first MASH units complete with triage; after becoming a favorite of Napoleon and becoming a baron in 1809, he leads the surgical team that performs a mastectomy on English writer Frances "Fanny" Burney in Paris on Sept. 30, 1811; in 1810 he becomes one of the first surgeons to operate on the pericardial sac. The British Vancouver expedition explores 100-mi.-long Puget Sound , names 14,408-ft. Mt. Rainier after British Adm. Peter Rainier (1741-1808) , circumnavigates Vancouver Island , then heads for Hawaii, discovering the yummy Chatham Islands (10 islands 800 km E of New Zealand) (later the first inhabited land on Earth to greet the first dawn of each year) along the way. French navigator Antoine Raymond Joseph de Bruni d'Entrecasteaux (1739-)93 of France begins a rescue expedition for La Perouse (disappeared 1788), visiting many Pacific islands and exploring New Caledonia (until 1793); he discovers the D'Entrecasteaux Islands SE of New Guinea, incl. Ferguson, Goodenough and Normanby, inhabited by Papuans. London literati throw a dinner party honoring both Am. hero Thomas Paine and celebrated French transsexual/hermaphrodite/cross-dresser Chevalier D'Eon, who volunteers to lead a brigade against outside enemies of rev. France, but he/she is too in debt to be allowed to leave England, and is forced to auction off a huge 6K-vol. library of feminist lit. (largest private collection) through Christie's - could she have become the next Joan of Arc, and prevented the rise of Napoleon? The Baptist Missionary Society is founded in London. Federalist Alexander Hamilton almost gets into a duel with Anti-Federalist James Monroe (1758-1831), but Aaron Burr intervenes and stops it? Gouverneur Morris, who has been in Paris since 1789 and kept a Diary of the French Rev., 1789-93 becomes U.S. minister to France (until 1794). The world's first chemical society is founded in Philadelphia, Penn. Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP is founded in New York City, becoming the oldest continuously-operated U.S. law firm to survive to modern times (until ?). 22-y.-o. Ludwig van Beethoven (b. 1770) becomes Haydn's pupil in Vienna as the latter finishes his 100th symphony. Whadya-say Joanna Southcott (1750-1814) starts a Millennium Feverist sect which claims that her unborn son will be the Shiloh of Gen. 49:10; when she dies and isn't really pregnant, like she had convinced several physicians, her followers continue to await a spiritual son? The Petticoat Duel sees Lady Almeria Braddock take on Mrs. Elphistone after the latter questions her age, using pistols followed with swords, after which Elphistone writes a letter of apology. N.H. waives taxes on brewing property to stimulate construction. Architecture: The Old State House in Dover, Del. on the E side of Dover Green (begun 1787) is completed in May, becoming the 2nd oldest state house in the U.S to survive to modern times. Inventions: Claude Chappe (1763-1805) of France invents the mechanical semaphore, the first practical telecomm system? - the guillotine turned into a signalling device? William Murdock (1754-1839) demonstrates coal gas lighting in England on July 29, causing candlemakers to quake in their boots. Science: French mathematician Gaspard de Prony (1755-1839) begins calculating log and trig tables to 14-29 decimal place accuracy - why didn't he invent the computer first?Nonfiction: Joel Barlow (1854-1912), Advice to the Privileged Orders ; banned by the British govt., but it gets him made a citizen of France. J.B. Cloots, La Republique Universelle . Morgan Edwards (1722-95), Materials Towards a History of the Baptists in New Jersey . Johann Gottlieb Fichte (1762-1814), Versuch einter Kritic aller Offenbarung . Gustav von Hugo (1764-1844), Lehrbuch Eines Civilistischen Cursus (7 vols.) (1792-1821); separates the Roman from the German elements of the law, founding the German Historical School of Jurisprudence , which regards law as springing from the Volksgeist (popular consciousness), and which splits into the Romanists (von Hugo, Friedrich Carl von Savigny) and the Germanists (Karl Friedrich Eichhorn, Jakob Grimm, Georg Beseler, Otto von Gierke). Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley (1759-97), A Vindication of the Rights of Womon (Jan.); the first feminist treatise, arguing for a woman's right to education et al.; "It is time to effect a revolution in female manners... and make them, as a part of the human species" - she had to spoil it all by giving birth to Frankenstein's mother? Thomas Paine (1737-1809), The Rights of Man, Pt. 2 . Thomas Taylor (1758-1835), A Vindication of the Rights of Brutes ; satire in response to Thomas Paine's "Rights of Man" and Mary Wollstonecraft's "A Vindication of the Rights of Woman". Robert Bailey Thomas (1766-1846), The (Old) Farmer's Almanac (fall); first (1793) ed.; by the late 1860s circ. zooms from 3K to 200K. Arthur Young, Travels in France . Music: Domenico Cimarosa (1749-1801), Il Matrimonio Segreto (comic opera) (Venice). Vicente Martin y Soler (1754-1806), Didon Abandonee (ballet). Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle (1760-1836), La Marseillaise . Art: Jean Duplessi-Bertaux, The Taking of the Tuileries . Antonio Canova (1757-1822), Self-Portrait ; Pope Clement XIII (sculpture). Leon-Maxine Faivre, Corpse of the Princess de Lamballe . Anne-Louis Girodet (1767-1824), Hippocrates Refusing the Gifts of Artaxerxes ; the incorruptible Greek philosopher tells the rich Persian king to stuff his bling; very PC in Paris at this time - seriously, what's up with the money suit?Plays: Joseph-Marie Blaise Chenier, Caius Gracchus . Thomas Holcroft (1745-1809), The Road to Ruin ; his biggest hit. Poetry: Andre Marie Chenier (1762-94), Hymne sur les Suisses . Leandro Fernandez de Moratin (1760-1820), The New Comedy (La Neva Comedia); attack the extravagant plots of other playwrights. Rhyijnvis Feith (1753-1824), The Grave Novels: Thomas Holcroft (1745-1809), Anna St. Ives ; first British Jacobin novel. Hannah More (1745-1833), Village Politics, by Will Chip ; disses Tom Paine and the godless French Rev.; a big hit, causing her to begin producing 30-40 Cheap Repository Tracts along with her sisters for the next three years, teaching reverence for religion, the British constitution and the gentry, and hatred for the French, with 2M copies circulated in 1 year, the most famous being The Shepherd of Salisbury Plain ; the farmers get pissed-off at her for trying to teach their laborers to read? Ann Radcliffe (1764-1823), The Romance of the Forest . Marquis de Sade (1740-1814), Justine; or, The Misfortunes of Virtue ; pub. anon.; Therese tells her story to Madame de Lorsagne before being executed. Christoph Martin Wieland (1733-1813), Geheime Geschichte des Philosophen Peregrinus Proteus . Births: Am. hymnodist Lowell Mason (d. 1872) on Jan. 8 in Medfield, Mass. German (Prussian-Estonian) biologist (founder of Embryology) Karl Ernst von Baer (d. 1876) on Feb. 17 in Piep, Estonia. Italian "The Barber of Seville", "William Tell", "La Cenerentola" composer ("the Italian Mozart") Gioacchino Antonio Rossini (d. 1868) on Feb. 29 in Pesaro; covers himself with blankets when composing. English astronomer-chemist-physicist Sir John Frederick William Herschel (1738-1822), 1st Baronet (d. 1871) on Mar. 7 in Slough, Buckinghamshire (Berkshire); son of Sir William Herschel (1738-1822); educated at Eton College, and St. John's College, Cambridge U.; coiner of the term "photography", and inventor of blueprints. U.S. Rep. (R-Penn.) (1859-68) (Radical Repub. leader) ("Father of Reconstruction") Thaddeus Stevens (d. 1868) on Apr. 4 in Danville, Vt.; common law husband of Lydia Hamilton Smith (1815-84). English Whig statesman and Canadian gov.-gen. #1 (1838-47) John George "Radical Jack" Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham (d. 1840) on Apr. 12 in London. Salvadoran rebel leader Anastasio Martir Aquino (d. 1833) on Apr. 15 in Santiago Nonualco. English Anglican clergyman and poet founder of the Oxford Movement (1833-45) John Keble (d. 1866) on Apr. 25 in Fairford, Gloucestershire; educated at Corpus Christi College, Oxford U. Am. brewer-philanthropist (founder of Vassar College) Matthew Vassar (d. 1868) on Apr. 29 in East Dereham, Norfolk, England; emigrates to the U.S. in 1796 Italian pope (1846-78) (longest-reigning) Pius IX (Giovanni Maria Mastai-Ferretti) (d. 1878) on May 13 in Senigallia. English celeb Anne Isabella "Annabella" Noel Byron, 11th Baroness Wentworth and Baroness Byron (nee Milbanke) (d. 1860) on May 17 in Elmore Hall, County Durham; wife (1815-16) of George Gordon, Lord Byron (1788-1824); mother of Augusta Ada King, countess of Lovelace (1815-52). French physicist (discoverer of the Coriolis Effect in 1935) Gustave Gaspard de Coriolis (d. 1843) on May 21 in Paris; first to coin the term "work" for force times distance, along with the equation 1/2 * m * v^2 for kinetic energy (1829). German theologian Ferdinand Christian Baur (d. 1860) on June 21 in Schmiden (near Cannstadd); educated at the U. of Tubingen. Scots-Irish "Stories from Waterloo", "O'Hara" novelist William Hamilton Maxwell (d. 1850) on June 30 in Newry, County Down, Ireland; educated at Trinity College, Dublin. U.S. Dem. vice-pres. #11 (1845-9) George Mifflin Dallas (d. 1864) on July 10 in Philadelphia, Penn.; son of Alexander James Dallas (1759-1817); educated at the College of N.J. (Princeton U.). English "Mr. Midshipman Easy" novelist Capt. Frederick Marryat (d. 1848) on July 10 in Westminster, London. Scottish Presbyterian minister Edward Irving (d. 1834) on Aug. 4 in Annan, Dumfriesshire; forerunner of the Pentecostal and Charismatic movements. English "Ozymandias", "To a Skylark" ("Hail to thee, blithe spirit") poet Percy Bysshe Shelley (d. 1822) on Aug. 4 in Field Place (near Horsham), Sussex, England; husband (1811-6) of Harriet Westbrook (1795-1816), and (1816-22) Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin (1797-1851). English Whig-Liberal "Reform Act of 1832" PM (1846-52, 1865-66) John "Languid Johnny" Russell, 1st Earl Russell of Kingston Russell (d. 1878) on Aug. 18 in London; a son of the 6th duke of Bedford who does not inherit his vast estates; educated at Westminster School, and Edinburgh U.; grandfather of philosopher Bertrand Russell (1872-1970). Irish clergyman-archeologist Edward Hincks (d. 1866) on Aug. 19 in Cork; educated at Trinity College, Dublin. Am. Presbyterian abolitionist anti-Mason revivalist ("America's foremost revivalist") Charles Grandison Finney (d. 1875) on Aug. 29 in Warren, Conn. German "Conversations with Goethe" poet-writer Johann Peter Eckermann (d. 1854) on Sept. 21 in Winsen, Hanover; educated at the U. of Gottingen; buddy of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe from 1822, becoming his lit. asst. and posth. editor of writings. Am. businessman William Backhouse Astor Sr. (d. 1875) on Sept. 19 in New York City; 2nd son of John Jacob Astor (1763-1848) and Sarah Todd Astor; husband (1818-) of Margaret Rebecca Armstrong (1800-72); father of John Jacob Astor III (1822-90) and William Backhouse Astor Jr. (1829-92); educated at Gottingen U., and Heidelberg U.; becomes richest man in the U.S. in 1848. English "Oliver Twist" illustrator-caricaturist George Cruikshank (d. 1878) on Sept. 27 in London; son of caricaturist Isaac Cruikshank (1756-1811); brother of caricaturist Isaac Robert Cruikshank (1789-1865). Kashmiri prince (maharaja) #1 (1846-57) Gulab Singh (d. 1857) on Oct. 18. British field marshal Sir Colin Campbell, 1st Baron Clyde (d. 1863) on Oct. 20 in Glasgow; son of carpenter Colin Macliver; nephew of Col. John Campbell, whom the Duke of York mistakes for him, causing him to assume the name; created baron in 1858. Czech playwright Vaclav Kliment Klicpera (d. 1859) on Nov. 23 in Chlumec nad Cidlinou, Bohemia. Am. abolitionist-suffragist Sarah Moore Grimke (Grimk�) (d. 1873) on Nov. 26 in Charleston, S.C.; daughter of a plantation owner; sister of Angelina Grimke (1805-79). French eclectic philosopher Victor Cousin (d. 1867) on Nov. 28 in Paris. U.S. postmaster-gen. #10 (1841) Francis Granger (d. 1868) on Dec. 1 in Suffield, Conn.; son of Gideon Granger (1767-1822); educated at Yale U. Russian mathematician (co-founder of Non-Euclidean Geometry) Nikolai Ivanovich Lobachevsky (Lobachevski) (d. 1856) on Dec. 1 (Nov. 20 Old Style) in Nizhnii Novgorod (Gorki); Polish parents; educated at the U. of Kazan. Dutch king #2 and grand duke of Luxembourg (1840-9) William II (d. 1849) on Dec. 6 in The Hague; son of William I (1772-1843) and Wilhelmine of Prussia (1774-1837). Austrian "Silent Night" lyricist-composer and priest Josef Mohr (d. 1848) on Dec. 11 in Salzburg. Greek rev. leader Alexander Ypsilanti (Ypsilantis) (d. 1828) on Dec. 12 in Istanbul; son of Constantine Ypsilanti (-1816); brother of Demetrios Ypsilanti (1793-1832). Am. politician-statesman-businessman Abbott Lawrence (d. 1855) on Dec. 16 in Groton, Mass.; founds the city of Lawrence, Mass. English clergyman-writer Samuel Roffey Maitland (d. 1866) . Deaths: Arab Muslim leader Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab (b. 1703). German theologian Bishop August Gottlieb Spangenberg (b. 1704) on Sept. 18 in Berthelsdorf. British Adm. Sir George Pocock (b. 1706) on Apr. 3; buried in Westminster Abbey. French adm. Comte d'Orvilliers (b. 1708). French dramatist Charles Simon Favart (b. 1710). British statesman John Stuart, 3rd Earl of Bute (b. 1713). French novelist Marie-Jeanne Riccoboni (b. 1714) on Dec. 7 in Paris; dies in poverty. British lord of the admiralty John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich (b. 1718) on Apr. 30 - rolled up in a sliced loaf of whole wheat and rye bagels, what a pita? British Adm. George Rodney (b. 1718) on May 24 in Hanover Square, London. British dramatist-gen. John Burgoyne (b. 1722). English painter Sir Joshua Reynolds (b. 1723) on Feb. 23. English civil engineer John Smeaton (b. 1724) on Oct. 28 in Austhorpe, Leeds. Am. statesman George Mason (b. 1725) on Oct. 7 in Guston Hall, Va. Scottish architect Robert Adam (b. 1728) on Mar. 3 in London. German piano maker Johann Andreas Stein (b. 1728) on Feb. 29 in Augsburg. French economist Nicolas Baudeau (b. 1730) in Paris. English type designer Joseph Jackson (b. 1733). British U.S.-losing PM (1770-82) Frederick North, 2nd earl of Guilford (b. 1732) on Aug. 5 in Grosvenor Square, London. Am. naval hero John Paul Jones (b. 1747) on July 18 in Paris; buried in St. Louis Cemetery, Paris; his remains are moved to the U.S. in 1905 and buried in 1913 in the U.S. Naval Academy. Austrian HRE (1790-2) Leopold II (b. 1747) on Mar. 1 in Vienna. German writer Jakob Michael Reinhold Lenz (b. 1751) on June 4 in Moscow, Russia; found dead in the street. Persian Shiite Usuli scholar Vahid Bihbahani (b. ?) ; defined the Usuli Shiite School of Law , which defeated the Akhbari School and established the authority of mujtahids for Shiites into modern times.
1793 - Stop this game, deal me out, I know too well what it's all about? I have to wear it my whole life, thank you? Find your verb, your stylus verb, as your head flies in the Jacobin Reign of Terror? A bad year for American black slaves?
1793 On Jan. 9 Jean Pierre Blanchard makes the first balloon flight in the U.S. (his 45th), from Philadelphia, Penn. to Woodbury, Gloucester County, N.J. in 45 min. On Jan. 14 the French Nat. Convention decides against a referendum and finds Louis XVI guilty of treason, then on Jan. 20 sentences him to death by a margin of one, with the leading Girondists voting against the death penalty, pissing off the Jacobins; on Jan. 21 (Mon.) (10:30 a.m.) French king (May 10, 1774 - Sept. 4, 1791) Louis XVI (b. 1754) is guillotined; an unknown man allegedly leaps onto the scaffold, dips his hand in the king's blood, flings it over the crowd, and cries "Jacques de Molay, thou art avenged", referring to the Mar. 18, 1314 Templar Curse on French kings pronounced by Knights Templar grandmaster Jacques de Molay (1244-1314) ; Thomas "Tom" Paine (1737-1809) , now a deputy to the Nat. Convention from Pas-de-Calais, who votes with the Girondists is imprisoned in 1794 for 11 mo. for opposing the execution; he went to France after giving up on getting citizens of Philly to fund an iron bridge over the Schuykill River ; the king is dragged from the Temple on a tumbril with his feet tied to face his execution, while reciting the Third Psalm ("exaltus caput meum"); his wife Marie Antoinette, and children, dauphin Louis Charles (Louis XVII) (1785-95) and Marie-Therese Charlotte (1778-1851) are imprisoned in the Tower in Paris, and 5 mo. later the dauphin is separated from his mommy, kept in the dark like a wild beast, and mistreated while she is forced to listen; 1 mo. after that she is taken to the Conciergerie (part of the Palais de Justice) on Ile de la Cite on the Seine River (home of previous prisoners Georges Dandon, Camille Desmoulins, Chretien Malesherbes, Madame Roland, and Maximilien Robespierre) and put in a small squalid cell, which after her death is changed into a chapel - no more cakey? On Feb. 1 repub. rev. France declares war on Britain, Holland, and Spain, causing them to form an alliance against it; France annexes Belgium, causing the emigres to proclaim Louis XVI's imprisoned son as king Louis XVII (d. 1795), the 6th and last Bourbon king (nominal ruler only); France and Britain keep at it for the next 22 years, presenting the U.S. with a problem, since the Treaty of 1778 makes it the perpetual ally of France, obligated to defend its possessions in the West Indies, while it wants no part of this war. On Feb. 3 sections of Paris demonstrate against price increases, followed by more consumer protests on Feb. 24-27, and off on and in Mar.-Apr. On Feb. 12 the Second U.S. Congress passes the U.S. Fugitive Slave Act , permitting slave owners to send their agents across state lines to recapture escaped slaves ("fugitives from justice") - poor Liza? On Feb. 18 the U.S. Supreme Court rules 4-1 in Chisholm v. Georgia that federal courts have power to hear disputes between private citizens and states, becoming the first significant case they decide. On Feb. 25 the dept. heads of the U.S. govt. meet with Pres. Washington at his home in the first cabinet meeting on record. On Mar. 4 U.S. pres. #1 George Washington is inaugurated for his 2nd term in the 2nd U.S. Pres. Inauguration , with John Adams continuing as the 1st vice-pres.; Washington's Second Inaugural Speech is only 30-sec. long due to his bad teeth? On Mar. 1 the French prohibit trade with Britain, causing foreign trade to slump. On Mar. 11 William Paterson (1745-1806) of N.J. becomes U.S. Supreme Court justice #8 (until Sept. 9, 1806). On Mar. 18 the Austrians under Prince Frederick of Saxe-Coburg defeat 40K French under Gen. Charles Francois Dumouriez at the Second Battle of Neerwinden (first in 1693) in Belgium, after which Dumouriez is accused of treason and defects to the Allies on Apr. 4, along with Gen. Louis Philippe (later Louise-Philippe I), ending up in exile in Switzerland; Louis' father Louis Philippe Joseph, duc d'Orleans (b. 1474) is executed by the Rev. Tribunal, causing the new duc d'Orleans to become the central figure for the monarchist Orleanist party, staying out of France until 1814, traveling in Scandinavia, the U.S. (four years in Philly), England and Sicily. On Mar. 19 the French Nat. Convention passes a law of public assistance providing work for the able-bodied, and home relief for other needy persons; on June 28 they pass another one giving aid to children, aged, unmarried mothers (1st time in French history), and free state hospitals for abandoned children until age 12, after which they are to be apprenticed out. On Mar. 29 freedom of the press in France is restricted. The Rape of France, starring itself? In Mar. the War in La Vendee (Vend�e) sees the Vendee region of W France stage a royalist revolt (ends 1796), capturing several towns, followed by defeats on Aug. 14 at the Battle of Lucon , on Oct. 17 at the Battle of Cholet , and on Dec. 12-13 at the Battle of Le Mans ; federalist moderates in Lyons (Lyon) overthrow the municipal govt., then execute Jacobin ex-mayor Chalier on July 17, causing Kellerman to siege it on Aug. 9-Oct. 9, and sentence the current (since 1790) mayor Barthelemy Regis Dervieu du Villars (1750-1837) to five death sentences; Committee of Public Safety member Georges Auguste Couthon (1755-94) is sent to punish the rebels at Lyons, but refuses to follow orders to destroy it, letting Villars go free, causing them to send Jean Marie Collot d'Herbois (1749-96) and Fouche, who do it with zeal, crushing them by next year; French Rev. Gen. Armand Louis de Gontaut Lauzun, Duc de Biron (b. 1747) , who fought on the winning side in the Am. Rev. War, and has impeccable credentials to lead the French Rev. forces (since his great-uncle Charles de Gontaut tried to overthrow the king in 1602) is sacked and guillotined on Dec. 31 after being accused of being too lenient toward the counterrevolutionists; other atrocities are perpetrated by Tallien at Bordeaux and Lebon in Arras, with the blue ribbon going to priest-hating Jean Baptiste Carrier (1756-94) (of Cantal) in Nantes, whose tribunal orders 16K shot or drowned in a single month, the drownings done by the boatload in the Loire River using a trapdoor in the boat, causing the word "noyade" (mass drowning) to be coined (the model for modern common carriers?); meanwhile Robespierre the Younger spares the E and S, and Lakanal spares the SW. On Apr. 1 Mount Asama in Japan erupts, killing 53K. On Apr. 7 Toulouse lawyer Bertrand Barere (Bar�re) de Vieuzac (1755-1841) is appointed to the Committee of Public Safety, joining the Jacobin Club and becoming known as a mediator between the Mountain et al., once calling Robespierre "a pygmy who should not be set on a pedestal"; too bad, after siding with the winning side on Louis XVI's execution, and beginning to preach the "religion of the fatherland" (substituting the state for the church), he is imprisoned in 1795 for being part of the Reign of Terror, then escapes after two years, becoming a secret agent for Napoleon until the restoration of the Bourbons, who get him exiled for life as a regicide. The Citizen Genet Affair, starring Charles Boyer? On Apr. 8 "Citizen" Edmond Charles Edouard Genet (1763-1834) , the first minister to the U.S. from the new French Repub. (appointed 1792) (son of an old friend of John Adams) arrives in Charleston, S.C. to the acclaim of enthusiastic crowds sympathetic to the French Rev.; after organizing a Jacobin Club, he journeys triumphantly to Philly, meeting with Pres. Washington on May 18; too bad, his raising of troops for military operations against Spanish possession in Am., and his arming and commissioning of privateers to attack British ships in U.S. waters finally gets him in trouble with U.S. notions of sovereignty, and when he threatens to trump Washington by appealing over his head to the Americain peuple, Big W in Aug. demands his recall; meanwhile the Girondist govt. falls to the radical Jacobins, who send their own minister, Citizen Jean Antoine Joseph Fauchet (1761-1834) with a warrant for Genet's arrest, who presents his credentials next Feb. 22, causing Genet to seek asylum and Washington to refuse his extradition; no problemo, he settles on Long Island, N.Y., marries the daughter of N.Y. Gov. George Clinton, and spends his remaining 40 years as a farmer in Dutchess County in the Hudson River Valley, giving apple cuttings to Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826), who passes them to Va. nurseryman M. Caleb Ralls , who creates the late-blooming Ralls Genet (Rawls Jennet) Apple (AKA Neverfail, Rock Rimmon, Rockremain), which becomes a favorite in the Ohio River Valley. On Apr. 14-July 23 the Prussians siege and recover Mainz from the French, who had set up the Repub. of Mainz in Mar.; French Gen. Alexandre Francois Marie de Beauharnais, Vicomte de Beauharnais (1760-94) is blamed for the D, and arrested next Mar. 2. On Apr. 22 Pres. George Washington signs the U.S. Neutrality Proclamation , announcing America's official neutrality in the Franco-British war, without even using the word "neutrality"; the U.S., it declares, is "friendly and impartial toward the belligerent powers", and any American citizens "aiding or abetting hostilities" are threatened with prosecution; at the same time Washington accepts Jefferson's advice and recognizes the new French govt. (the first country to do so). In Apr. the first 9-member Committee of Public Safety , a permanent cabinet of the French Rev. is decreed by the Nat. Convention; Robespierre is elected on July 27 - we have miles and miles of unused neck in Paris? In Apr.-July 10 the overly-cautious Austrians under Gen. Francois of Saxony-Coburg-Saalfeld take Conde (their first V in France), followed on July 28 by Valenciennes in NE France near the Belgian border, allowing the French to regroup from their spring disasters. On May 4 a grain price ceiling is established in frightened France. On May 18 shah (since 1773) Timur Shah Durrani (b. 1748) dies, and his 5th son Zaman Shah Durrani (1770-1844) becomes shah of Afghanistan (until 1800) with the help of the chief of the Barakzay tribe. On June 13-July 28 the army of Prince Josias of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, commanded by George III's 2nd son Frederick, Duke of York and Albany (1763-1827) sieges successfully Valenciennes, France . On June 24 the Constitution of 1793 (Montagnard Constitution) , which incl. universal male suffrage is passed by the French Nat. Convention, and is sent to the primary assemblies for ratification but never put into effect. In June the Jacobins get Jacques Pierre Brissot and 30 other prominent Girondists arrested; on Oct. 31 he and 20 of them are guillotined. Have a very corday? On July 13 (Bastille Day minus one?) "L'Ami du Peuple" ed. Jean-Paul Marat (b. 1743) is stabbed to death (in the back) in his bath by convent-educated Girondist sympathizer Marie-Anne Charlotte Corday d'Armont (b. 1768) as he tries to soak the hideous boils covering his gross bod; at her execution on July 17, Corday utters the immortal soundbyte: "I killed one man to save one hundred thousand" - is this like Prince's Purple Rain, or the female stars of School for Scandals?Insert William Wallace Erin Go Bragh Joke Here? On July 22 Alexander Mackenzie (1764-1820) of Scotland becomes the first white Euro to cross the North Am. continent from coast to coast and find a pass through the Rocky Mts. as he and nine companions paddle in two canoes provided by friendly Indians into Dean Channel N of Vancouver Island (they had left in May, 1792); he leaves a memorial on a rock using vermilion pigment mixed with grease, which survives to modern times; he then returns , reaching Ft. Chipewyan on Aug. 24 (33 days) with no fatalities. On July 28 English novelist Frances "Fanny" Burney (1752-1840) marries French royalist refugee Gen. Alexandre d'Arblay (-1818) . In July dept. admins. in France are authorized to purchase grain forcibly; on Aug. 9 the death penalty is enacted for grain hoarders; on Aug. 19 public granaries are established, and depts. authorized to set prices for coal and firewood. In July Robert Gray arrives in Boston after his second round-the-world trip in the Columbia. On Aug. 14 French engineer Lazare Carnot (1753-1823) is elected to the Committee of Public Safety, going on to become a war minister and invent the idea of levee en masse, the recruitment of untrained soldiers who are placed under experienced soldiers; he starts out favoring a fortress-based defensive strategy, but later switches to an offensive strategy, splitting the army into smaller units that quickly move around the enemy and flank it. On Aug. 23 the "levee en mass" mobilizes the entire male pop. capable of bearing arms in France, and 14 armies are hastily organized and put in the field; Caen, Bordeaux and Marseille are conquered. On Aug. 28 after the Prussians force him to evacuate Frankfurt, recross the Rhine River and fall back to Landau, and he is saved from treason charges by Robespierre and sent back, then idles while the Austrians take Conde, French Gen. Adam Philippe, Comte de Custine (b. 1740) is guillotined for negligence, and his son is guillotined for trying to defend him. On Aug. 29 British-Spanish forces under British rear Adm. Samuel Hood, assisted by Capt. Horatio Nelson (1758-1805) occupy the key port of Toulon in S France, and the rev. French are driven back on virtually every front, causing revolts in the interior inspired by the Girondists, while the Committee of Public Safety attempts to counter them; the royalists turn Toulon to the British, and the rev. French lose their Mediterranean fleet; while visiting Naples to convoy British troops to Toulon, frisky Horatio Nelson meets Lady Emma Hamilton, wife of the British ambassador there, and hooks up with her, her advice and help aiding his career - be one with the dance, that's how I roll? In Aug. French physician Philippe Pinel (1745-1826) was appointed physician in charge of Bicetre Hospital in S Paris, ordering chains removed from mental patients, and founding the Moral Treatment (Mgt.) Theory of Psychiatry . That's why they call me bad company? On Sept. 5 the Jacobins seize on the Marat incident to begin the Reign of Terror (La Terreur) (ends July 28, 1794), un by the 12-man Committee of Public Safety, whose leader is up-and-coming basket case Robespierreand his able left wingnut Saint-Just, resulting in 16,594 executions across France by the Nat. Razor (guillotine) (incl. 2,639 in Paris), plus another 25K summary executions across France. On Sept. 5 the Reign of Terror begins in France, r On Sept. 6-8 the Battle of Hondschoote in Nord, France is a French V for Gen. Jean Nicolas Houchard and Gen. Jean-Baptiste Jourdan against Anglo-Hanoverian troops under Marshal Heinrich Wilhelm von Freytag (1720-98) . On Sept. 18 the U.S. Capitol bldg., designed by William Thornton (1759-1828) is begun, with Pres. Washington laying the cornerstone while wearing a Masonic apron embroidered for him by French nuns, saying that Freemasonry is "the cement that binds us together" - don't believe everything you read on the Internet? On Sept. 18-Dec. 18 the Siege of Toulon is the first V for young 5'6" (5'2" in pieds de roi, the old French measurement system) Corsican artillery capt. Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821) , (connected to the Jacobins and Robespierre), (who suffers from neurodermatitis, i.e., chronic nervous itching, hence the hand tucking) who reclaims the French fleet lost to the English and rises to the rank of brig. gen. On Sept. 29 price lids are established in France for wages and commodities, effective next Feb. 26. In the fall Gen. "Mad Anthony" Wayne, picked by Washington, leads an expedition into the Northwest Territory with 2.6K men, and builds Ft. Greenville 100 mi. SW of Lake Erie in Ohio. I've been waiting all my life for somebody to throw me a surprise party, or, Stop this game, it's ruining me?, or, Decollate me in a decollete dress please? On Oct. 14 royal French cake head ("the most hated woman in France") Marie Antoinette (b. 1755) is put on trial in a kangaroo court for treason for passing documents to her brother HRE Leopold II, which fails to produce evidence that she is guilty of treason (although later letters are found detailing French troop dispositions), and her son Louis XVII is forced into a false confession that his mommy "whore" had incest with him, and she is framed on all the political porno that had been circulating for years showing her having sex with everybody and everything except Jesus, then on Oct. 15 found guilty at 4 a.m. and guillotined at noon, acting with dignity and not whimpering, although she accidentally steps on the executioner's foot and asks his pardon; her last words are "Farewell, my children, I go to rejoin your father"; she is then buried in an unmarked grave - her head falls into a big cake box? On Oct. 30 all political societies and women's clubs in France are closed. On Oct. 31 Girondists begin to be executed at the rate of 60 per mo., incl. Paris mayor Jean-Sylvain Bailly (b. 1736) and French Rev. supporter Duke Louis Philippe II Joseph of Orleans (AKA Philippe Egalite) (b. 1747), while others prefer hari kari; on Nov. 8 on the way to the slicer, Madame Marie-Jeanne Roland de la Platiere (b. 1754) utters the immortal soundbyte "Liberty, Liberty, what crimes are committed in thy name!" On Nov. 6 Britain informs the U.S. govt. that they intend to occupy their northwest Am. posts indefinitely, and decrees that their ships will intercept neutral vessels hauling produce to or from the French West Indies; the British fleet then captures 250 U.S. merchant ships, impounding over half of them as war prizes; it also boards U.S. vessels at sea and drags away sailors who they claim are British deserters; war looms as the U.S. public is polarized, torn between Republicans sympathetic to liberty, reason, and France, and Federalists wanting order, faith, and Britain; Boston, home of the Am. Rev. goes Federalist because of its profits from the British trade; Southern planters join New England protests gainst British seizures of their ships, and go Federalist when they see Jacobin radicals dispossessing French aristocrats; meanwhile, Jefferson leads the died-in-the-wool Francophiles. On Nov. 8 the Louvre in Paris (the new French nat. art gallery) opens to the head-wearing public. On Nov. 24 the French Rev. Calendar , passed by the Convention on Oct. 5 is forced, er, introduced to a confused, er, grateful public (until 1805), backdated to Sept. 22, 1792, the first day of the French Repub. (first day of Year 1); there are 12 mo. of 30 days, divided into three 10-day decades, with the last day of each decade set aside as a day of rest kills it right there?); Sept. 17-21 (Gregorian) are designated as nat. holidays to celebrate Virtue, Genius, Labgor, Opinion, and Rewards; the months, named by poet Philippe Francois Nazaire Fabre d'Eglantine (1750-94) are Germinal ("budding"), Floreal ("flowers"), Prairial ("meadows"), Messidor ("reaping"), Thermidor ("heat"), Fructidor ("fruit), Vendemiaire ("vintage"), Brumaire ("fog"), Frimaire ("frost"), Nivose ("snowy"), Pluviose ("rainy"), Ventose ("windy") - was that Luchidor or Nacho Libre? On Dec. 19 the Bouquier Law establishes mandatory free public primary schooling in France, teaching reading, writing, arithmetic, and rev. civics. On Dec. 31 Jefferson resigns as secy. of state and withdraws to Monticello. In Dec. Georges Couthon becomes pres. of the French Nat. Convention, and forms a triumvirate with Robespierre and Saint-Just which carries on the Terror against the Dantonists and the Hebertists, who become so radical that they become known as "les enrages" (the madmen), causing the Nat. Convention to have Hebert arrested, only to have the loud people cause his release. In Dec. after Gen. Louis Lazare Hoche (1768-97) is placed in command of the French Rev. Army of the Rhine, the Allies begin retreating across the Rhine River as rev. troops pursue them shouting French epithets - bomb bomb bomb, bomb bomb Iran? On Nov. 10 the French assembly establishes the atheistic Cult of Reason and bans Roman Catholicism, causing the Holy Roman Empire to declare war on France. The Flanders (Low Countries) Campaign is launched by the First Coalition (ends 1795), trying to invade France but getting stopped at the French border and being forced to withdraw. Japanese shogun Iyenari (b. 1773) assumes personal rule, sinking into lush living while military discipline begins to break down. Saarbrucken is ceded from the counts of Nassau-Saarbrucken to France (until 1815). The Ottoman sultan responds to Serb entreaties by removing the hated Janissaries from Serbia and allowing taxes to be collected by local Serbian knights (knezes), and granting more freedom of religion (until 1799). After work by Arthur Young in demonstrating new farm mgt. methods in Norfolk (who becomes its first secy.), Britain establishes a Board of Agriculture , which evolves into the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, surveying the country and diffusing knowledge of modern methods - to inspect heads of cabbage for human eyes? There is an influenza epidemic in Vt., Va., and Penn.; America's first local health department with a permanent board of health is formed in Baltimore; a yellow fever epidemic in Philadelphia in Aug.-Nov. kills 5K of 50K and nearly destroys the city after 20K flee by Sept., causing Philly surgeon Philip Syng Physick (1768-1837) to step up, coming up with new surgical methods and tools, becoming known as the "Father of Am. Surgery". The first wave of state-sponsored German immigrants from the Bohemian Forest arrives in the U.S. (ends 1817). Catherine II the Great's envoy, Finnish-Swedish military officer Lt. Adam Kirillovich Laxman (1776-1806) arrives in Hakodate, Japan. but fails to establish friendly relations - did his insurance company give him the runaround? The name of Ft. Rouille (Rouill�) (modern-day Toronto) in Ontario (founded 1750) is changed to Ft. York by British loyalists. Siam and Burma end their long conflict; Siam and Annam split a large part of Cambodian territory. In 1793 King George III of Britain sends the Macartney Embassy (Mission) to China , led by first-ever British envoy Paul, er, George Macartney, 1st Earl Macartney (1737-1806) of Ireland on a 64-gun man-of-war to negotiate a more open trading system and a permanent British embassy, but he is treated with such disdain by Emperor (1736-96) Qin Qian Long (Ch'ien Lung) (1711-99) that it hardens the British to them; imagine, making him kowtow (Chin. "head knock"), and then handing him a worthless rock (jade) as a gift?; on Oct. 7 he leaves after French Jesuit missionary in Peking (since 1750) Jean Joseph Marie Amiot (1718-93) sends him two letters, one of which contains the soundbyte: "This world is the reverse of our own", after which he dies on Oct. 9 - as hard as a Beetle? Don't you know we're more popular than Christ? The Second Partition of Poland (first in 1772) ends the existence of Poland as an independent state, with Russia grabbing the E provinces from Livonia to Moldavia, and Prussia grabbing Great Poland, Kujavia, Torun, and Danzig (Gdansk), reducing Poland by two-thirds; Austria is ignored in the land grab. Upper Canada abolishes slavery. France introduces compulsory public education from age six; meanwhile the hos of Paris wear red, white, and blue bonnets and offer a special price to top members of the Nat. Assembly? The French begin to stir up Indian natives against the British, who had gained more and more control of India from the west since 1784. Capt. George Vancouver's expedition reaches Hawaii and becomes embroiled in islander politics; he brings several head of longhorn cattle as a gift to Kamehameha the Great as a change from the local goat and boar, and the king likes them so much that he orders death to anyone who harms them, causing wild cattle to run rampant trampling and terrorizing within a few years; the king lifts the decree after 10 years, causing a Wild West-style cattle roundup? The Kermadec Islands NE of New Zealand are discovered. Bourbon Island is renamed Reunion (R�union) to commemorate the union of the Paris Nat. Guard with revolutionaries from Marseille. The fortified swamp-surrounded town of Ekaterinodar (modern-day Krasnodar) (named after Catherine II the Great) in N Caucasia, Russia on the right bank of the Kuban River at its confluence with the Karasun River 960 mi. S of Moscow and 160 mii. S of Rostov on the Don is founded by Dnieper Cossacks. Norfolk County in Mass. splits off from Suffolk County. The U.S. Mint begins issuing the large clunky Large Cent (until 1857) - would you bend down to pick one up? The South Place Religious Society in London, England is founded to promote Thomas Paine-style Freethought, becoming the oldest Freethought org. to survive to modern times; in 1864-85 Falmouth, Va.-born Unitarian minister Moncure Daniel Conway (Gael. "holy river") (1832-1907) becomes the leader; in 1888 it becomes the South Place Ethical Society under U.S.-born leader Stanton George Coit; in 1969 it becomes the South Place Humanist Society; in Nov. 2012 it becomes the Conway Hall Ethical Society. Genoa, Italy-born violinist Nicolo Paganini (1782-1840) makes his debut as a violin virtuoso in Genoa at age 11. Trinity College in Dublin begins admitting Roman Catholic students, incl. Robert Emmet, Thomas Moore et al. The U. of Douai is confiscated by the French revolutionaries, who turn the Church of St. Genevieve in Paris into the Pantheon (Panth�on) (Gr. "Temple of All the Gods"), enshrining busts of famous Frenchmen. Williams College is founded by a bequest by Ephraim Williams Jr. (1715-55) (who is mentioned in "Yankee Doodle" with the line "Brother Ephraim sold his cow") in Williamstown, W Mass. in the foothills of the Berkshire Mts. at the foot of Mt. Greylock, becoming the traditional rival of Amherst College (founded 1821) and Wesleyan U. (founded 1831), "the Little Three"; its mascot is a Purple Cow. Philly o n the Delaware River becomes the top producer of beer among U.S. seaports. Inventions: Abraham Louis Breguet (1747-1823) of France invents La Pendule Sympathique to wind and synchronize watches. "Founder of the Am. Industrial Rev." Samuel Slater (1768-1835) builds a cotton yarn mill in Pawtucket, R.I. using Arkwright machinery, becoming the first true factory in the U.S. While visiting from New Haven, Conn., Am. nailmaker Eli Whitney (1765-1825) invents the little ole Cotton Gin (which combs out them pesky seeds) at Nathaniel Greene's Mulberry Cove Plantation near Savannah, Ga., applies for a patent on June 20, and is granted one on Mar. 14, 1794, but it is so easily pirated that he never gets paid much; 800K+ black slaves are imported to the cotton-producing regions in the U.S. South between this year and 1860, and cotton becomes the South's leading crop, with Savannah the chief cotton port. Science: After it is discovered in 1790 by physician Adair Crawford (1748-95) and surgeon-chemist William Cruickshank (-1811) in the village of Strontian, Scotland, Scottish physician-chemist Thomas Charles Hope (1766-1844) names the highly reactive alkaline earth metallic element Strontium (Sr) (#38), calling it Strontites, after which on June 30, 1808 Sir Humphry Davy isolates it from strontium chloride and renames it. Thomas Young describes visual astigmatism. Nonfiction: William Blake (1757-1827), Prophetic Books (1793-1804); a series of books describing a new system of Christianity revealed to him in visions), starting with Visions of the Daughters of Albion ; America: A Prophecy ; Urizen is the force of reason, Los is the force of imagination, and Orc is the spirit of rebellion, and the Am. Rev. is the uprising of the spirit of Orc? - shouldn't that be Porc? Fanny Burney (1752-1840), Brief Reflections Relative to the Emigrant French Clergy ; calls for financial support for the French rev. cause in the name of tolerance and compassion. Mathew Carey (1760-1839), A Short Account of the Malignant Fever, Lately Prevalent in Philadelphia . J.B. "Anacharsis" Cloots, Base Contitutionelle de la Republique du Genre Humain . Marie-Jean Condorcet (1743-94), Equisse d'Un Tableau Historique des Progres de l'Esprit Humain . John Dalton (1766-1844), Meteorological Observations and Essays (first work); based on his habit of M.O., which goes on from 1787-1844. William Godwin (1756-1836), Enquiry Concerning the Principles of Political Justice, and Its Influence on General Virtue and Happiness ; anarchist treatise which becomes a bestseller (4K copies), claiming the perfectibility of humanity, helping to found the English Romantic movement; political justice is defined as "the adoption of any principle of morality and truth into the practice of a community"; "Speaking of property, he stated that the rights of every one 'to every substance capable of contributing to the benefit of a human being' must be regulated by justice alone: the substance must go 'to him who most wants it'. His conclusion was communism." (Peter Kropotkin) Rev. Samuel Hopkins (1721-1803), System of Doctrines Contained in Divine Revelation, Explained and Defended ; how sin is bad but serves God's purpose of promoting greater ultimate good? Immanuel Kant (1724-1804), Religion Within the Limits of Mere Reason (Religion innerhalb der Grenzen der blossen Vernunft). John Moore (1729-1802), Journal During a Residence in France ; Scottish physician accompanies Lord Lauderdale to Paris and witnesses the French Rev.; becomes a hit with Thomas Carlyle et al. Hey now, you're an all-star, get your game on? Thomas Paine (1737-1809), The Age of Reason, Pt. 1 ; written just before being thrown into prison in France, pub. with the help of his friend Joel Barlow; a rabble-rousing Rationalist Deist attacks the divine origin of the Bible, becoming the Infidel's Bible, setting the 19th cent. up for secularism and belief in scientific progress as a replacement religion for Christianity, with pithy soundbytes incl.: "Belief in a cruel God makes a cruel man"; "One good schoolmaster is of more use than a hundred priests"; "I do not believe in the creed professed... by any church that I know of. My own mind is my own church"; "The story of the whale swallowing Jonah... borders greatly on the marvelous, but it would have approached nearer to the idea of a miracle if Jonah had swallowed the whale"; "It is wrong to say that God made rich and poor; he made only male and female, and gave them the whole earth for their inheritance"; he gets widely accused of being an atheist, when actually he attacks atheism in the book and supports Deism, but the bigoted religious reaction (which incl. most of his old Am. friends, incl. Washington) causes his place in the pantheon of Am. Founding Fathers to get tainted, and later the infidels strike back by attempting to paint all the U.S. Founding Fathers (incl. Bible-thumping Washington) as Deists and overdo separation of church and state? - was Paine their "rabbit", writing what they all believed but couldn't openly express, or was he just out on a limb, too extreme but holding onto the Founding Father main trunk for support? Nicolas-Edme Restif (1734-1806), Anti-Justine ; reply to his bitter enemy the Marquis de Sade's "Justine". John Woolman (1720-72), A Word of Remembrance and Caution to the Rich (posth.). Music: Francois-Adrien Boieldieu (1775-1834), La Fille Coupable (comic opera) (Rouen). Vicente Martin y Soler (1754-1806), Amour et Psyche (ballet); based on the play "Psyche" by Moliere et al. Daniel Steibelt (1765-1823), Romeo et Juliette (opera) (Theatre Feydeau). Art: Jose de Alcibar (of Mexico), Portrait of Sor M. Maria Ana Josefa de San Ignacio ; a Frida Kahlo self-portrait before its time? Antonio Canova (1757-1822), Cupid and Psyche (sculpture); his masterpiece? Jacques-Louis David (1748-1825), The Death (Murder) of Marat . Plays: Marie-Joseph Blaise de Chenier (1764-1811), Fenelon . Poetry: Carl Bellmann (1740-95), Fredmans Sanger (S�nger) . William Blake (1757-1827), Visions of the Daughters of Albion ; Oothon, the "soft soul of America, who lusts for chaste Theotormon (Gr. "theos" + "tormentum" = God + torment) (based on John Stedman?) until she is raped by Bromonion (Gr. "roarer"), causing no man to want her, after which the Daughters of Albon look to America for an end to all forms of discrimination incl. racial and sexual. Rhyijnvis Feith (1753-1824), Inez de Castro . Vincenzo Monti (1754-1828), La Basvilliana ; contra the French Rev. William Wordsworth (1770-1850), An Evening Walk ; Descriptive Sketches in Verse . Novels: Aagje Deken (1741-1804) and Betje Wolff (1738-1804), Cornelie Wildschut (1793-6). Jean Paul (1763-1825), The Invisible Lodge (Die Unsichtbare Loge); Life of the Cheerful Schoolmaster Maria Wuz . Marquis de Sade (1740-1814), La Philosophie dans le Boudoir . Heinrich Daniel Zschokke (1771-1848), Aballino (Ab�llino), der Grosse Bandit ; modeled on Schiller's "Die Rauber". Births: Am. Quaker abolitionist, pacifist and women's rights advocate Lucretia Coffin Mott (d. 1880) on Jan. 3 in Nantucket, Mass.; wife of James Mott (1788-1868); sheriff of Carleton County (1832-). Am. politician (atty. in the Amistad Case) Roger Sherman Baldwin (d. 1863) on Jan. 4 in New Haven, Conn.; educated at Yale U.; son of Simeon Baldwin (1761-1851); grandson of Roger Sherman (1721-93); father of Simeon Eben Baldwin (1840-1937); grandfather of Edward Baldwin Whitney (1857-1911); great-grandfather of Hassler Whitney (1907-89). German Nazarene painter Philipp Veit (d. 1877) on Feb. 13 in Berlin; son of Simon Veit and Dorothea Mendelssohn, daughter of Moses Mendelssohn; revives the last art of fresco painting. Austrian Biedermeir painter Ferdinand Georg Waldmuller (d. 1865) on Jan. 15 in Vienna. Am. Mormon Church co-founder Sidney Rigdon (d. 1876) on Feb. 19 in St. Clair, Alleghenty County, Penn.; starts out as a Campbellite-Baptist minister, then sees the light in 1830 and becomes #2 after Joseph Smith. Am. soldier-politician (founder and pres. #1 of the Repub. of Texas, 1841-4), Tenn. gov. #7 (1827-9), and Tex. gov. #7 (1859-61) (only person to become gov. of two states, Tenn. and Tex.) Samuel "Sam" Houston (d. 1863) on Mar. 2 in Rockbridge County, Va. near Lexington; born in a log cabin; son of Maj. Sam and Elizabeth Paxton Houston (5th of 9 children); in 1806 his father dies, and his family moves to a 419-acre farm in Blount County, Tenn. (with a view of Chilhowee Mt); at age 15 he runs away to avoid working as a clerk in a trader's store, living with the Cherokees of E Tenn. for 3 years. English stage actor William Charles Macready (d. 1873) on Mar. 3 in London; educated at Rugby School. Am. geographer-geologist-ethnologist Henry Rowe Schoolcraft (d. 1864) on Mar. 28 in Guilderland (near Albany), N.Y.; educated at Union College, and Middlebury College. French "Messiniennes" poet-playwright Jean Francois Casimir Delavigne (d. 1843) on Apr. 4 in Le Havre. Austrian emperor (1835-48) (epilepsy) Ferdinand I (d. 1875) on Apr. 10 in Vienna; eldest son of Francis II and Maria Theresa; husband of Maria Anna of Savoy, daughter of Victor Emmanuel I. Am. Dem. politician-diplomat William Cabell Rives (d. 1868) on May 4 in Amherst County, Va.; educated at the College of William and Mary. Am. judge (co-founder of Baylor U.) Robet Emmett Bledsoe Baylor (d. 1874) on May 5 in Ky. Scottish "Abide with Me" Anglican minister-hymnodist-poet Henry Francis Lyte (d. 1847) on June 1 in Ednam (near Kelso); educated at Trinity College, Dublin. German Bohemian ship propeller inventor Joseph Ludwig Franz (Josef Ludvik Frantisek) Ressel (d. 1857) on June 29 in Chudrim. German Biblical scholar Friedrich Bleek (d. 1859) on July 4 in Ahrensbok (ner Lubeck), Holstein; prof. of theology at the U. of Bonn from 1829-59. Irish poet-journalist William Maginn (d. 1842) on July 10 in Cork. Slovak scholar-poet Jan Kollar (Koll�r) (d. 1852) on July 29 in Mosovce (Mossoc), Hungary; founder of Slovak as a lit. language. French Adm. Abel Aubert Dupetit Thouars (d. 1864) on Aug. 3 near Saumur; nephew of Aristide Aubert Du Petit Thouars (1760-98). English poet Mrs. Felicia Dorothea Browne Hemans (d. 1835) on Sept. 25 in Liverpool. Am. riflemaker Eliphalet Remington Jr. (d. 1861) on Oct. 28 in Suffield, Conn.; father Eliphalet Remington Sr. (-1828) emigrated from Suffolk, England; father of Philo Remington (1816-89). Am. soldier-politician ("Father of Texas") Stephen Fuller Austin (d. 1836) on Nov. 3 in Wythe County, Va.; 2nd child of Moses Austin (1761-1821) and Mary Brown Austin (1768-1824); grows up in Potosi, Mo. Englsh "Christ Lamenting Over Jerusalem" painter Sir Charles Lock Eastlake (d. 1865) on Nov. 17 in Plymouth, Devon; knighted in 1850; not to be confused with English architect Charles Locke Eastlake (1836-1906). Am. Am. School economist (adviser to Pres. Abraham Lincoln) Henry Charles Carey (d. 1879) on Dec. 15 in Philadelphia, Penn.; son of Mathew Carey (17600-1839). Afghani emir (1836-) Dost Mohammad (Mohammed) Khan (d. 1863) on Dec. 23. Malagasy king #1 (1810-28) Radama I (the Great) (d. 1828) in Ambohimanga, Madagascar; son of Andrianampoinimerina. Greek rev. leader Demetrios Ypsilanti (d. 1832) ; brother of Alexander Ypsilanti (1792-1828). Canadian sheriff John Francis Wentworth Winslow (d. 1859) in New Brunswick; son of a loyalist; named after Nova Scotia gov. John Wentworth and his wife Frances. Am. Black Hawk War army maj. Isaiah Stillman (d. 1861) in Mass. Swedish writer Karl Jonas Ludvig Almqvist (d. 1866) in Stockholm; educated at the U. of Uppsala. Greek Adm. Constantine Kanaris (Canaris) (d. 1877) on Psara Island. Deaths: Scottish-born British chief justice Lord Mansfield (b. 1705) on Mar. 20. Italian dramatist Carlo Goldoni (b. 1707) on Feb. 6; dies in poverty in Versailles after his royal pension is cancelled by the French Rev.: "He who talks much cannot always talk well." Italian painter Francesco Guardi (b. 1712) on Jan. 1 in Venice. Polish Jewish scholar rabbi Yechezkel ben Yehuda Landau (b. 1713) on Apr. 29; leaves Nodah bi-Yehuda (Heb. "Known in Judah") , a bunch of decisions on Jewish law, incl. the limiting of autopsy to cases which prevent a clear and present danger in other known people, causing him to become known by the name Nodah Biyehuda. German banker Johann Philipp Bethmann (b. 1715) on Nov. 27 in Frankfurt am Main. French Oriental scholar Jean Joseph Marie Amiot (b. 1718) on Oct. 9 in Peking. Swiss entomologist Charles Bonnet (b. 1720) on May 20. Scottish historian William Robertson (b. 1721) on June 11. Am. Rev. leader (DOI signer) Roger Sherman (b. 1721) on July 23. Am. indigo planter Eliza Lucas Pinckney (b. 1722) in S.C. French statesman Clement Charles Francois de Laverdy (b. 1723) (guillotined). English geologist John Michell (b. 1724) on Apr. 29 in Dewsbury. Am. Rev. War loyalist jurist William Smith (b. 1728) on Nov. 3 in Quebec, Canada. Scottish-born British #1 surgeon John Hunter (b. 1728) on Oct. 16 in London. French publisher Pierre Francois Didot (b. 1732). French astronomer-politician Jean-Sylvain Bailly (b. 1736) on Nov. 12 in Paris (guillotined); "He met his death with patient dignity; having, indeed, disastrously shared the enthusiasms of his age, but taken no share in its crimes" (Encyclopedia Britannica). Am. statesman (DOI signer) John Hancock (b. 1737) on Oct. 8. English mathematician John Wilson (b. 1741) on Oct. 18. French Louis XV's mistress Comtess du Barry (b. 1743) on Dec. 8 in Place de la Concorde, Paris; beheaded after she returns to France from England like a dumb comtesse and is accused of aiding French emigres, acting like a whimp at the execution and uttering the famous last words: "Encore un moment, monsieur le bourreau, un petit moment" ("One moment more, mister executioner, one little moment"). Swiss-born French rev. leader Jean-Paul Marat (b. 1743) on July 13 in Paris (murdered by Charlotte Corday while bathing). French Gen. Armand Louis de Gontaut, duc de Biron (b. 1747) on Dec. 31 in Paris (guillotined); his Memoirs are pub. in 1822 (fake?). French duke Louis Philippe II Joseph (Philippe Egalite), duke of Orleans (b. 1747) on Nov. 6 in Paris (guillotined). Afghani shah (1773-93) Timur Shah Durrani (b. 1748) on May 18. French journalist Olympe de Gouges (b. 1748) on Nov. 3 in Paris (guillotined). French journalist Jacques Pierre Brissot (b. 1754) on Oct. 31 in Paris (guillotined with 20 Girondist colleagues). French king (1774-93) Louis XVI (b. 1754) on Jan. 27 in Paris (guillotined). French queen (1774-93) Marie Antoinette (b. 1755) on Oct. 16 in Paris (guillotined). English Mutiny on the Bounty leader Fletcher Christian (b. 1764) on Sept. 20 in Pitcairn Island. French assassin Charlotte Corday (b. 1768) on July 17 in Paris (guillotined).
1794 - The Reign of Terror Year? French Revolutionaries lose their heads over a short-lived religion of Atheism, and what kind of heads prevail below the balloons?
1794 On Jan. 3 James Madison (1751-1836), backed by Thomas Jefferson introduces seven congressional resolutions calling for commercial reprisals against Britain for its unfair dominance of transatlantic shipping and its banning of American boats from the British West Indies; it also calls for expanded trade relations with France; the Hamiltonians work to ridicule and defeat the resolutions; America fortifies its ports for a possible British invasion; at the suggestion of Oliver Ellsworth, Washington appoints John Jay, the first U.S. Supreme Court chief justice as a special envoy to England, and after Senate approval he sails for England on May 12 from New York as a thousand New Yorkers cheer from the docks; his position of chief justice is thrown up for grabs, and guess who's jockeying for it? On Jan. 13 Pres. Washington approves a measure of Congress to add two stars and two stripes to the U.S. flag in recognition of Vermont and Kentucky; by 1818 the additional stripes cause the flag to become unwieldy, and they go back to the original lucky 13. In Jan. Charles-Maurice de Talleyrand is informed that he has five days to leave England or face deportation, and he emigrates to Philadelphia in Apr., staying in the U.S. for two years. On Feb. 5 the French Nat. Convention decrees freedom for all slaves in French colonies; on Feb. 22 it passes a law providing free primary education to children ages 6-13; on Nov. 17 it declares that primary schooling is not compulsory, requires teaching to be done in French, and incl. manual labor teaching; too bad it's not widely implemented. On Feb. 25 Kamehameha and the other chiefs place the island of Hawaii under the protection of the British Crown. On Mar. 5 the XI (11th) amendment to the U.S. Constitution is sent by the Third Congress to the states for ratification (ratified 1795). On Mar. 7 poet Andre Marie Chenier (b. 1762) , whose famous playwright brother Joseph-Marie is a member of the Convention is arrested at the house of Mme. Piscatory in Passy on suspicion of being some fleeing marquise, then imprisoned for 140 days in Saint-Lazare, where he writes the poem Jeune Captive, has his portrait painted by Joseph-Benoit Suvee, then is guillotined on July 25 three days before the end of the Reign of Terror after his father makes a pest of himself. I want you to want me, I need you to need me? On Mar. 24 Tadeusz Kosciuszko (1752-1817) , hero of the Am. Rev. begins a copycat rev. in what's left of Poland. On Mar. 24 Paris Commune leaders Hebert, Chaumette and Cloots are guillotined after a summary trial, and Robespierre consolidates his power; Danton and his associates (school chum) Camille Desmoulins, Herault de Sechelles et al. are guillotined on Apr. 5, and Robespierre reigns as supreme head for the next 3 mo. On Mar. 27 after Repubs. oppose the Federalist suggestion for a U.S. Navy, James Madison even suggesting that the U.S. hire the Portuguese navy instead, the need to build up naval strength in case of a war with Britain causes the U.S. Navy to be established, with six new frigates ordered built "adequate for the protection of the commerce of the United States against Algerian corsairs", with Pres. Washington signing a bill authorizing $688,888.82 for the purpose, incl. the "Old Ironsides" USS Constitution , whose armor plates are furnished by silversmith Paul Revere. In Mar. 15-y.-o. Elizabeth Marsh is executed in England for murdering her grandfather in bed. On Apr. 19 the Subsidy Treaty , negotiated by Prussian minister Count Christian von Haugwitz (1752-1832) is signed in The Hague between Britain and Prussia, and Britain and Holland; too bad, Prussia's failure to use the money fighting Napoleon causes PM Pitt to denounce the treaty in Oct., breaking the last tie between Prussia and the Coalition. On Apr. 21 Josephine de Beauharnais (1763-1814) is arrested after her hubby Gen. Alexandre, Vicomte de Beauharnais (b. 1760) who is guillotined on July 23 for his poor defense of Mainz in 1793; she lucks out and survives until Robespierre's death and is freed on July 28; meanwhile fellow prisoner Madame Marie (Anne-Marie) Tussaud (nee Grosholtz) (1761-1850) , who lived in Versailles since 1780 teaching art to Louis XVI's sister and was arrested for royalist sympathies and has her head shaved talks her way out of the guillotine by offering to make wax death masks of guillotine victims, going on to do Robespierre, Marie Antionette and Jean-Paul Marat, then lucks out again when her Swiss-born teacher Dr. Philippe Curtius (1737-94) courteously dies and leaves her his waxworks, then next year marries Francois Tussaud, and ends up in England in 1802, traveling with her collection throughout the British Isles, finally settling down and setting up Madame Tussauds in London in 1835, followed by New York City in 2000, and Washington, D.C. in 2007. On May 1 (May Day) the Federal Society of Journeymen Cordwainers is founded in Philadelphia, Penn., becoming the first U.S. labor union. I know I'll never be this way again, but I just keep holding on? On May 7 Robespierre declares a new religion for the state, and on June 8 the Festival of the Supreme Being (Reason) is held in St. Eustache Church in Paris, with Robespierre as high priest, attempting to replace the Church with the atheistic Cult of the Supreme Being , adding a sense of humor to the senseless slaughter and awful smell? On May 8 big brain chemist Antoine Lavoisier (b. 1743) goes to the guillotine in Paris after being arrested and tried by the Rev. tribunal as one of the farmers-general - did he rinse with Lavoris first? On May 10 Louis XVI's sister Elizabeth is beheaded - wanna pick up where she left off? On May 17-18 the Battle of Tourcoing N of Lille in NE France is a V for 70K French under Gen. Joseph Souham (1760-1837) and Gen. Jean Victor Moreau (1763-1813) against a combined army of 74K allied troops, the British under the Duke of York, and the Austrians under the prince of Saxe-Coburg, with 3K French vs. 4K Allied casualties, after which Gen. Jean-Baptiste, Comte Jourdan (1762-1833) is given command of the Army of the Ardennes. You know you make me want to what? On June 10 the Law of 22 Prairial (Law of the Great Terror) frees the Rev. Tribunal from the convention with the power to convict at will, after which executions increase to 354 per mo., although Robespierre at first intended it all to end after his personal enemies Tallien, Fouche, Vadier et al. were offed? On June 19 the married couple guarding jailed 9-y.-o. French dauphin Louis Charles quits, and when in July Gen. Paul Barras (future dictator of France) visits him and confirms that he is gravely ill, a new jailer is hired, and claims that the sick boy is an imposter, causing a nationwide search to be launched; later the woman jailer claims that she and her husband had switched another boy for him; he dies on June 8, 1795, and when prominent banker Petitval denounces the death certificate as a forgery he and his whole family are murdered within a year; in 1846 an examination of the boy's bones reveals a boy aged 15-18; 27 men later claim to be the real dauphin after Napoleon's fall in 1815. On June 26 after a difficult crossing of the Sambre River, 80K French under Gen. Jean-Baptiste, Comte Jourdan defeat 80K Austrians under Prince Frederick (Friedrich) Josias of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (Gotha) (1737-1815) in the decisive Battle of Fleurus (flew 'oer us?), causing the evacuation of Belgium and the breakdown of allied resistance to France with the spread of rev. laws to adjacent territories to the Rhine; Jean Marie Joseph Coutelle (1748-1835) makes two 4-hour observation ascents in the French Army balloon l'Entreprenant at the Battle of Fleurus in order to damage the enemy's morale, becoming the first military use of a balloon. Never forget that what goes around comes around, or, Didn't I didn't I didn't I see ya crying? By July the blood in France is running in rivers, and executions in Paris at the Place de la Concorde reach a peak of 1,300 rolling heads in one mo. (two an hour); the refugees flood to the "French Noah's Ark" of Philadelphia so fast that soon one in every 10 Philadelphians are French. Blow it out your ass, or, If you really love me won't you tell me? On July 26 (8 Thermidor) after the govt. tanks and Saint-Just demands a dictatorship in the person of his hero Robespierre, speak of the devil appears after a month's absence and complains that he is being unjustly accused of crimes; on July 27 Robespierre and Saint-Just are drowned out as some unknown deputy named Louchet proposes RP's arrest, and he is barred from the Nat. Convention, where he flees to the Common Hall, whereupon the Convention declares him an outlaw, and he is hunted by special troops sent to capture him, along with his brother and Saint-Just, while the Nat. Guard under Gen. Barras protects the Convention; they are released by friends, and surprised at the Hotel de Ville; Robespierre tries to avoid arrest by shooting himself (is shot by a gendarme named Merda?), but only shatters his jaw; on July 28 he is brought back to the Convention, laid on a table, and his smashed jaw bound with a crude bandage while the convention debates his fate for 6 hours; later that same day he is sent to the guillotine, crying in pain as the executioner rips the bandage off, and is guillotined along with 21 of his associates, incl. triumvirate members Saint-Just and Couthon, and the next day 81 of his followers are executed; within five days 478 political prisoners are released, the Paris Commune is abolished, and the Reign of Terror bleeds itself out; common carrier pioneer Jean Baptiste Carrier (b. 1756) gets the Big Razor Blade. It's just a recreational beverage, or, America's first sin tax? In Aug. whiskey tax protesters in W Penn. terrorize Ft. Fayette Capt. William Faulkner after he rents his house to whiskey-tax inspector Capt. John Neville ; on Aug. 1 6K whiskey rebels converge on Braddock's field army fort outside Pittsburgh, and their leader Bradford touts Robespierre as an ideal model to follow, causing the crowd to erect guillotines for tax inspectors; Washington (the only Am. Founding Father to commercially operate a whiskey distillery) orders the rebels to disband by Sept. 1; after they fail to do so, in Sept. Washington (a whiskey distiller himself, becoming the biggest in the country in 1798, at 11K gal./year) leads a federalized militia army into Penn. to suppress the Whiskey (Whisky) Rebellion (Insurrection) , arriving on Oct. 4 at Carlisle, Penn., home of Molly Pitcher and DOI signers George Ross, James Smith, and James Wilson, and setting up HQ with an army of 3K men that grows to 13K; the rebellion then fizzles, and at the end of Oct. Washington returns to Philly, leaving Alexander Hamilton in charge of the army, which under maj. Gen. (since 1793) Daniel Morgan mops up the resistance and arrests a dozen leaders; two are convicted of treason, but Washington pardons them, and Jefferson pledges to repeal the tax, calling the whole affair "Hamilton's insurrection"; the tradition of moonshiners making untaxed whiskey and foiling revenuers in the backwoods U.S.A. begins; some distillers move to Bourbon County, Ky. , where they begin making Bourbon (corn whiskey). On Aug. 4-20 Gen. Anthony Wayne defeats a force of Wyandot, Delaware, Shawnee, and other Indians backed by Canadian militia at the Battle of Fallen Timbers in the Northwest Territory on the Maumee River off Lake Erie 50 mi. below Detroit, then lays their fields and villages waste until they are crying uncle and want to smoke the peace pipe. On Sept. 3 radical Socialist (the first Communist?) Francois-Noel Babeuf (1760-97) , who had just beaten a phony fraud charge, and now calls himself "Gracchus" begins pub. Le Tribun du Peuple (People's Tribune) (originally "Journal de la Liberte de la Presse"), defending the leaders of the Terror, attacking the leaders of the Thermidorian Reaction, and preaching Socialism, getting him imprisoned in Arras in Oct., which only fuels his engine, so that issue #33 calls for his big idea of restoration of the 1793 constitution. On Sept. 14 after being introduced by Aaron Burr, 5'4" 100 lb. James Madison (b. 1751) marries attractive 17-years-younger Quaker widow Mrs. Dorothy "Dolley" Payne Todd (1768-1849) (married in 1790 to Quaker atty. John Todd, who died of yellow fever in 1793, leaving one son, John Payne); they have no children. On Oct. 10 6.2K Poles under Tadeusz Kosciuszko are defeated at the Battle of Maciejowice while trying to prevent the 12K-man Russian army of Iwan Jewstafiejewicz Fersen (1739-99) and the 12.5K-man army of Gen. Alexander Suvorov after the 4K-man Polish army of never-loses field marshal Count Adam Poninski (1758-1816) arrives too late; Kosciuszko is wounded and taken POW by the Russians, and Poland's rev. is crushed. In Oct. French Gen. Lazare Hoche, accused of treason is released from prison and reinstated to lead an army against the royalists in La Vendee. On Nov. 12 the moderates in the Nat. Convention get the Jacobin Club in Paris closed, and on Dec. 8 the remaining Girondists are readmitted. On Nov. 19 Jay's Treaty (Treaty of Amity, Commerce, and Navigation Between His Britannic Majesty and the United States of America , negotiated by John Jay averts war between the U.S. and Britain, even though it grants British imports most-favored nation status, and is resented by Jeffersonians as a capitulation to British hegemony and a betrayal of their precious France. On Dec. 24 the French wage-price controls are repealed, and new currency is issued, increasing inflation. In Dec. William Wentworth FitzWilliam, 2nd Earl FitzWilliam, who joined William Pitt the Younger's cabinet this year along with the Duke of Portland, William Wyndham Grenville and other "Old Whigs", is sent to Ireland as British viceroy, but after he sides with Roman Catholics against Protestants, he is unceremoniously recalled next Mar., causing a simmering feud until he and Pitt kiss and make up in 1798, although he is never sent back to Ireland. By the end of Dec. the French capture the Rhineland, incl. Dusseldorf and Cologne, kicking out Cologne archbishop (since 1784) Maximilian Franz, making the archbishopric a French thang. In the winter Archibald Menzies (1754-1842) , a surgeon in the Vancouver expedition, along with Lt. Joseph Baker (1767-1817) and two others make the first recorded ascent of 13,679-ft. Mauna Loa in Hawaii. Turco-Persian eunuch Agha Mohammad Khan Qajar (1742-97) has Lutf Ali Khan (b. 1769) the last Zand ruler of W Persia executed, ending the Zand Dynasty (founded 1751), and founding the Qajar (Ghajar) (Kadjar) Dynasty (ends 1925); in 1796 he is formally crowned as shah; since he is a eunuch, his reign is called the Era of Castration. Edmund Randolph succeeds Thomas Jefferson as U.S. secy. of state, but a series of dispatches he sent to France via French minister Joseph Fauchet are intercepted by a British man-of-war and given to Pres. Washington, causing him to accuse Randolph of seeking money from the French govt. to be used in influencing his cabinet and Congress against Britain, causing Randolph to resign, although he later gets Fauchet to help clear him. The U.S. Congress passes the first federal excise tax on tobacco products, an 8-cent tax on snuff. The Ga. legislature authorizes the Yazoo Land Fraud , the sale of 35M acres around the Yazoo River in modern-day Ala. and Miss. to four land cos. in which some of the legislators are involved at the low low price of 1.5 cents an acre, causing outcries of corruption, but it goes through next year, after which in 1796 Ga. passes the Rescinding Act to take it back, which is ruled unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1810; too bad, by then Ga. already sold the land to the federal govt., which keeps it - running down a dream, ooh ooh, ooh ooh, ooh ooh? The Habeas Corpus Act is suspended in Britain (until 1804). Edward Burke retires from Parliament with great ceremony and is rewarded by the govt. with pensions of several thousand pounds. Scottish poet Robert Burns (1759-96), who had alienated his public with his support of the French Rev. suddenly cools it and joins the Dumsfriesshire Volunteers, despite his deteriorating health, and kicks off within two years. To get even for Spanish intrigues with them and other Indian tribes, Tennesseans from around Nashville attack the Cherokees, burning and leveling their villages - another episode of Daniel Boone? Napoleon drives the allies from Toulon, after which the British navy under Adm. Samuel Hood captures the towns of Bastia and Calvi in Corsica; Horatio Nelson is wounded in the right eye at Calvi, losing his sight; the English fleet attacks the Mortello in Corsica (a circular fort of masonry guarding the coast), causing the Italian word mortella (tower) to be changed to mortello (hammer) when applied to such forts. After gaining fame for a series of articles supporting Washington's decision to keep the U.S. of the growing hostilities surrounding the French Revolution, Washington appoints John Quincy Adams (1767-1848) , son of Pres. John Adams as U.S. minister to the Netherlands; on his way he delivers a set of documents to John Jay, who is negotiating the Jay Treaty, and after spending some time with him, he writes home to his father in support of the treaty, claiming that the U.S. should stay out of Euro affairs, which is read by Washington, who uses parts of it in his Farewell Address; meanwhile Gouverneur Morris resigns as U.S. minister to France after his royalist sympathies piss-off the French repub. govt., and James Monroe of Va. is appointed as the new minister (until 1796) despite his anti-Washington politics because of his pro-France stance and Washington's desire to balance the appointment of Federalist John Jay as U.S. minister to England; too bad Monroe can't keep his mouth shut about his disapproval of Jay's treaty with England, getting him recalled. The Trappistines (Orders of Cistercian Nuns of the Strict Observance) are founded by Dom Augustin de Lestrange , their first convent being La Sainte Volonte de Dieu near Fribourg, Switzerland. The (Boston) Federal Street Theater in Boston, Mass., designed by Charles Bulfinch (1763-1844) is built, becoming the first theater in New England - the Puritans finally give up? Goethe befriends dramatist Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller (1759-1805), reviving his interest in producing lit., writing articles for Schiller's periodical Die Horen . 17-y.-o. Johann Carl Friedrich Gauss (1777-1855) , a language student at Caroline College in Brunswick, Germany gets interested in math and takes up the classical problem of constructing regular n-gons, proving that it can't be done when n is a prime number except for 17, 65, 257 and 65,537, causing him to switch next year to the U. of Gottingen, submitting a doctoral thesis in 1798 proving the Fundamental Theorem of Algebra (every possible algebraic equation has a solution), and going on to become the Princeps Mathematicorum, the #1 mathematician in da whole wide world - I can win that race? The Ecole Normale Superieure is founded by the French Nat. Convention led by Robespierre as the core of the French nat. education system; the Ecole Polytechnique (world's first technical college) is founded in Paris by French mathematician Gaspard Monge (1746-1818) , minister of the marine; in the U.S. the term "normal school" arrives in fractured form later. Freed slave Richard Allen (1760-1831) founds the Mother Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church for blacks in Philadelphia, Penn. (now at 419 Richard Allen Ave.) as its first bishop, becoming the oldest African Methodist Episcopal church in the U.S. English scientific giant Joseph Priestley (1733-1804) moves to Northumberland, Penn. - now U.S. science is cooking? English poet Robert Southey (1774-1843) meets fellow poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772-1834) , and together with poet Robert Lovell (1771-96) they formulate the Pantisocracy Plan to marry three sisters and move to the banks of the Susquehanna River in the NE US. to start a socialist experiment; the marriages go off, incl. Southey's to Edith Fricker in 1795 in Bristol, but Southey gets cold feet and changes the location to Wales, which they can't agree on, causing the plan to be abandoned, after which Southey's chickens come home to roost and he takes off to Lisbon instead to visit an uncle; Bowdoin College (pr. BOH-din) in Brunswick, Maine on the shores of Casco Bay and the Androscoggin River 12 mi. N of Freeport is founded, named after rich Mass. gov. (1785-7) James Bowdoin II (1726-90) ; his rich son James Bowdoin III (1752-1811) donates $5.5K and 6K acres to get it started; students are first enrolled in 1802; later made famous by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Franklin Pierce, and Joshua Chamberlain. The grave of William Shakespeare in Holy Trinity Church in Stratford-upon-Avon, England is looted ?; first pub. in The Argosy mag. in 1879. Inventions: Robert Fulton of the U.S. obtains an English patent for an inclined plane to replace canal locks. Henry Maudslay of England invents the slide rest for the metal lathe, making accurate machining of parts possible. Josiah Spode Sr. (1733-97) of Stoke-on-Trent, England introduces the hybrid-paste bone china formula to porcelain manufacture, and it soon becomes the most popular type of English porcelain. Philip Vaughan invents ball bearings. The first telegraph (semaphore) is set up between Paris and Lille. Science: English weather watcher John Dalton (1766-1844) presents a paper on color blindness, which he suffers from, to the Manchester Literary and Philosophical Society, causing it to become known as Daltonism. Nonfiction: Joseph Bellamy (1719-90) and Jonathan Edwards Jr. (1745-1801), The Millennium, or the Thousand Years of Prosperity ; timed to promote Millennium Fever. Erasmus Darwin (1731-1802), Zoonomia, or the Laws of Organic Life ; anticipates Lamarck but not his grandson Charles. Johann Gottlieb Fichte (1762-1814), Grundlagen der Gesamten Wissenschaftslehre . Johann Gottfried von Herder (1744-1803), Christian Writings (5 vols.) (1794-8). John Hunter (1728-93), A Treatise on Blood, Inflammation and Gun-Shot Wounds (posth.); disproves the belief that gunpowder is poisonous, and questions the need to surgically enlarge gunshot wounds. Sir William Jones (1746-94) (tr.), The Ordinances of Manu . Adrien-Marie Legendre (1752-1833), Elements de Geometrie ; becomes a std. textbook for the next 100 years. Madame Merigot, La Cuisiniere Republicaine (La Cuisini�re R�publicaine) , (The Female Republican Cook) (1794/5) (French Republican Year III); describes ways to prepare and preserve potatoes, becoming the first potato cookbook, bragging about omitting "patisseries and ragouts recherches" (pastries and exquisite ragouts) (aristocratic cuisine) - you have to know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em? William Paley (1743-1805), A View of the Evidences of Christianity ; required reading at Cambridge U. until the 20th cent. Nicolas-Edme Restif (1734-1806), Monsieur Nicolas (autobio.) (16 vols.) (1794-7); a tell-all incl. his sexual awakening in 1738; the last two vols. stand alone? Antonio Scarpa (1752-1832), Tabulae Neurologicae ; first work with an accurate description of the cardiac nerves and to state that the inner ear is filled with fluid (endolymph). Music: Robert Burns (1759-96), Select Collection of Original Scottish Airs ; he receives five lousy pounds, a painting and a shawl for his work, causing him to get bitter and never again accept payment for his works; incl. Auld Lang Syne (Old Long Since) (Times of Long Ago) (pr. syne not zyne) (written in 1781, based on an old Scottish tune) ("Should auld acquaintance be forgot/ And never brought to mind"), Comin' thro' the Rye , Scots Wha Hae , A Red, Red Rose , The Banks o' Doon , It Was Our Richtu' King , John Anderson, My Jo . Luigi Cherubini (1760-1842), Eliza (Elisa), or The Journey to the Glaciers of Mt. St. Bernard (opera) (Dec. 13) (Theatre Feydeau, Paris); set in the Swiss Alps; follows Nicholas Dalayrac by featuring bells; features a Ranz des Vaches (Kuhreihen) played by Swiss herdsmen; Carl Maria von Weber becomes a fan. James Hewitt (1770-1827), Tammany, or The Indian Chief ; one of the earliest Am. operas (New York). Art: William Blake (1757-1827), The Ancient of Days . Francisco de Goya (1746-1828), Procession of the Flagellants . Sir Thomas Lawrence (1769-1830), Pinkie ; 11-y.-o. Sarah Goodin Barrett Moulton (1783-95), who dies next year of TB; the last painting purchased by Henry E. Huntington (1850-1927), who has it displayed facing Thomas Gainsborough's "The Blue Boy". John Trumbull (1756-1843), The Signing of the Declaration of Independence ; hangs in the U.S. Capitol. Plays: Marie-Joseph Blaise de Chenier (1764-1811), Timoleon (opera); music by Etienne Mehul; shut down like all his others by Montagnard deputy Albitte; after the Reign of Terror its portrayal of Timoleon is used to accuse him of murdering his brother Andre, causing him to be called Abel. William Dunlap (1766-1839), Leicester . Jean Paul (1763-1825), Hesperus . Richard Brinsley Sheridan (1751-1816), The Glorious First of June (July 2). Robert Southey (1774-1843), The Fall of Robespierre ; a 3-act poem-play. Poetry: William Blake (1757-1827), The (First) Book of Urizen ; a parody of the Book of Genesis; how Urizen, the "primaeval priest", who represents alienated reason as he source of oppression became separated from the Eternals to create his enslaving realm of religious dogma, after which Los and Enitharmon create a new world and give birth to their son Orc, the spirit of revolution and freedom; Urizon's sons are Thiriel (Air), Utha (Water), Grodna (Earth), and Fuzon (Fire); Europe, A Prophecy ; the coming of Christ and the French Rev. are part of the same manifestation of the spirit of Orc?; incl. the etching Ancient of Days . Andre Marie Chenier (1762-94), Ode a Versailles ; Jeune Captive (pub. 1795) (written in prison); La Jeune Tarentine (pub. 1801). William Gifford (1756-1826), The Baviad ; satire of the Della Cruscan School of English poets. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832), Reinecke Fuchs (Reynard the Fox). Johann Kaspar Lavater (1741-1801), Joseph of Arimathea (epic). Novels: William Godwin (1756-1836), Things as They Are; or, The Adventures of Caleb Williams (3 vols.); based on "Political Justice" (1793); the first thriller and mystery novel; a servant finds out the secret of his master Falkland and is forced to flee, and gets run over by the criminal justice system; first novel to develop the plot backwards, making fans of Charles Dickens and Edgar Allan Poe. Thomas Holcroft (1745-1809), The Adventures of Hugh Trevor (1794-7). Xavier De Maistre (1763-1852), Voyage Autour de ma Chambre (Journey Around My Room); written in Turin while under arrest for a duel. Ann Radcliffe (1764-1823), The Mysteries of Udolpho (Gothic romance). Births: Am. Va. planter and Confed. soldier Edmund Ruffin (d. 1865) on Jan. 5 in Prince George County, Va.; descendant of William Randolph (1650-1711); discovers that marl can save soil exhausted by excessive tobacco planting; known for his long white hair; fires the first shell on Ft. Sumter. German chemist Eilhard Mitscherlich (d. 1863) on Jan. 7 in Neuende (near Jever), Oldenburg. British (Cornish) scientist-inventor Sir Goldsworthy Gurney (d. 1875) on Feb. 14 in Treater (near Padstow), Cornwall; knighted in 1863. Mexican pres. (1833-55) (Alamo winner) Gen. Antonio de Padua Maria Severino Lopez de Santa Anna y Perez de Lebron (Antonio de Padua Mar�a Severino L�pez de Santa Anna y P�rez de Lebr�n) (d. 1876) on Feb. 21 in Xalapa, Veracruz. Spanish countess Maria Manuela Kirkpatrick, Countess of Montijo (d. 1879) on Feb. 24 in Malaga; Scottish-born father, Flemish mother; mother of French empress Eugenie de Montijo (1826-1920). Am. maj. Gen. (Quaker) William Jenkins Worth (d. 1849) on Mar. 1 in Hudson, N.Y.; namesake of Ft. Worth, Tex. Polish Gen. ("Hero of Two Countries") Jozef Zachariasz Bem (d. 1850) on Mar. 14 in Tarnow, Galicia. German Nazarene painter Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld (d. 1872) on Mar. 26 in Leipzig. Am. Unitarian clergyman-orator-diplomat-politician (U.S. Whig rep., 1825-35) (Mass. gov. #15, 1836-40) Edward Everett (d. 1865) on Apr. 11 in Dorchester, Mass.; educated at Harvard U.; father of William Everett (1839-1910); teacher of Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-82) and Charles Francis Adams Sr. (1807-86). U.S. Navy commodore Matthew Calbraith Perry (d. 1858) on Apr. 10 in Newport (South Kingstown), R.I.; brother of Oliver Hazard Perry (1785-1819). French physiologist (discoverer of the anesthetic properties of chloroform and founder of experimental brain science) Jean Pierre Marie Flourens (d. 1867) on Apr. 15 in Maureilhan (near Beziers), Herault; father of Gustave Flourens (1838-71). Swiss statesman-journalist James (Jean Jacques) Fazy (d. 1878) on May 12 in Geneva; educated at the U. of Paris. Am. railroad-steamship tycoon ("Founding Father of Am. Business") "Commodore" Cornelius Vanderbilt (d. 1877) on May 27 in Port Richmond (Staten Island), N.Y.; descended from Dutch farmers from De Bilt village, Utrecht; starts by setting up the Staten Island Ferry at age 17, goes into railroads, and ends up richer than Bill Gates (net wealth 3x as great). French chemist Antoine Alexandre Brutus Bussy (d. 1882) on May 29 in Marseille. Am. New England temperance minister (vegetarian) Sylvester Graham (d. 1851) on July 5 in Suffield, Conn.; educated at Amerst College; inventor of the Graham cracker (1829). Czech pianist-composer Josef Proksch (d. 1864) on Aug. 4 in Reichenberg; of German descent; becomes blind at age 13; pupil of Jan Antonin Kozeluh. French zoologist Achille Valenciennes (d. 1865) on Aug. 9 in Paris; pupil of Georges Cuvier. French Neoclassical and Romantic painter Leon Cogniet (d. 1880) on Aug. 29 in Paris. U.S. Brig. Gen. Stephen Watts Kearny (Kearney) (d. 1948) on Aug. 30 in Newark, N.J.; husband of Mary Radford, stepdaughter of William Clark of Lewis and Clark fame. Scottish London Bridge engineer Sir John Rennie the Younger (d. 1874) on Aug. 30 in London; son of John Rennie the Elder (1761-1821); brother of George Rennie (1791-1866); knighted in 1831, becoming the first engineer to be knighted since Hugh Myddleton in 1622. Am. "Thanatopsis" Nature poet, journalist and New York Evening Post ed. (1828-78) ("Father of American Poetry") William Cullen (Gael. "handsome") Bryant (d. 1878) on Nov. 3 in Cummington, Mass.; grows up on a farm with Puritan parents; attends Williams College for two years; leaves the law for journalism. English "History of Greece" historian George Grote (d. 1871) on Nov. 17 in Clay Hill (near Beckenham), Kent; educated at Charterhouse School. U.S. Civil War Union Brig. Gen. James Wolfe Riple8y (d. 1870) on Dec. 10 in Windham County, Md.; uncle of Roswell Sabine Ripley (1823-87). Am. Dem. mayor of Albany, N.Y. (1834-7) (founder of the New York Central Railroad) Erastus Corning Sr. (d. 1872) on Dec. 14 in Norwich, Conn.; grows up in Troy, N.Y.; grandfather of Parker Corning (1874-1943) and Edwin Corning (1883-1934); great-grandfather of Erastus Corning 2nd (1909-83). German historical painter Karl (Carl Joseph) Begas (the Elder) (d. 1854) in Heinsberg (near Aix-la-Chapelle); father of Reinhold Begas (1831-1911). British-Am. actor-mgr. James William Wallack (d. 1864) in London; father of John Lester Wallack (1820-88). English surgeon Walter Cooper Dendy (d. 1871) in Horsham, Sussex. Russian sour cream gourmet Gen. Count Sergei Grigorievich Stroganoff (d. 1882) ; his chef invents beef stroganoff for him in his Baroque Stroganoff Palace (1738-43) on Nevsky Prospect in St. Petersburg. Deaths: Scottish poet Alison Cockburn (b. 1712) on Nov. 22 in Edinburgh. English lord Charles Pratt, Earl of Camden (b. 1714). French explorer Francois de la Verendrye (b. 1715) on July 31 in Montreal, Canada. Scottish scurvy-busting physician James Lind (b. 1716) in Gosport. French road engineer P.M.J. Tresaguet (b. 1716). Swedish statesman-gen. Count Fredrik Axel von Fersen the Elder (b. 1719) on Apr. 24. German jurist Justus Moser (b. 120) on Jan. 8 in Osnabruck. Scottish-born Am. Rev. leader (DOI signer) Rev. John Witherspoon (b. 1723). Am. Rev. leader (DOI signer) Abraham Clark (b. 1725) on Sept. 15. Am. Rev. Tory leader Capt. John Butler (d. 1728) in Canada. Scottish explorer James Bruce (b. 1730) on Apr. 27. German-born Am. Rev. War Gen. Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben (b. 1730) on Nov. 28 near Utica, N.Y.; dies where he was given 16K acres and a $2.5K yearly pension in 1790 for his services. Am. Rev. leader (DOI signer) William Whipple (b. 1730) in Portsmouth, N.H. Spanish dramatist Ramon de la Cruz (b. 1731) on Mar. 5. Italian Jesuit writer Girolamo Tiraboschi (b. 1731) on June 3. English playwright-mgr. George Colman the Elder (b. 1732) on Aug. 14 in London. Am. statesman (DOI signer) Richard Henry Lee (b. 1732) on June 19 in Westmoreland County, Va.: "To preserve liberty, it is essential that the whole body of the people always possess arms, and be taught alike, especially when young, how to use them." German "Wolffian body" embryologist Caspar Friedrich Wolff (b. 1733). English lord Henry Herbert, 10th earl of Pembroke (b. 1734). English #1 historian Edward Gibbon (b. 1737) on Jan. 16: "History is little more than the register of the crimes, follies, and misfortunes of mankind"; "So natural to man is the practice of violence that our indulgence allows the slightest provocation, the most disputable right, as a sufficient ground of national hostility"; "The voice of history is often little more than the organ of hatred or flattery." French hostess Madame Necker (b. 1737) on May 6 in Vaud, Switzerland: "People do not care to play chess on the edge of a precipice." German writer Rudolf Erich Raspe (b. 1737). English civil engineer Elias Durnford (b. 1739) on June 21 in Tobago (yellow fever). French encyclopedist Marie Condorcet (b. 1743) on Mar. 29 (poisoned during the French Rev.); close friend of Benjamin Franklin. French scientist and gunpowder mill supt. Antoine Lavoisier (b. 1743) on May 8 in Paris (guillotined). English Orientalist Sir William Jones (b. 1746) on Apr. 27. German poet Gottfried August Burger (b. 1748) on June 8 in Gottingen (TB). French Rev. poet Fabre d'Eglantine (b. 1750) on Apr. 5 in Paris (guillotined). English politician Lord George Gordon (b. 1751) on Nov. 12 in Newgate Prison, London (typhoid). Scottish-born U.S. marshal Robert Forsyth (b. 1754) on Jan. 11 in augusta, Ga. (KIA); first U.S. marshal killed in the line of duty. French Rev. leader Georges Couthon (b. 1755) in June in Paris (guillotined). French Rev. leader Jean Baptiste du Valde-Grace, Baron de Cloots (b. 1755) on Mar. 24 in Paris (guillotined). French Rev. leader Jean Baptiste Carrier (b. 1756) on Nov. 16 in Paris (guillotined). French Rev. leader Jacques Rene Hebert (b. 1757) on Mar. 24 in Paris (guillotined). French Rev. leader and WMD (weapons of mass decapitation) terrorist Maximilien Robespierre (b. 1758) on July 28 in Paris (guillotined). French Rev. leader Georges-Jacques Danton (b. 1759) on Apr. 5 in Paris (guillotined). French Rev. leader Marie Jean Herault de Sechelles (b. 1759) on Apr. 5 in Paris (guillotined). French Gen. Alexandre Francois Marie de Beauharnais, vicomte de Beauharnais (b. 1760) on July 23 in Paris (guillotined). French rev. leader Camille Desmoulins (b. 1760) on Apr. 5 in Paris (guillotined after comparing his age to Christ's and tearing up his clothes). French #1 poet Andre Marie Chenier (b. 1762) on July 25 in Paris (guillotined 3 days before the end of the Reign of Terror). French rev. leader Pierre Gaspard Chaumette (b. 1763) on Apr. 13 in Paris (guillotined). French rev. leader Lucile Duplessis (b. 1770) on Apr. 13 in Paris (guillotined); arrested after running in the street and shouting "Vive le roy", then getting accused of trying to free her hubby Camille Desmoulins, who had been executed almost 2 weeks earlier.
1795 - The Too Capable Whiff of Grapeshot Year? The Reign of Terror is over in France, giving the moderates their chance, who promptly screw up, causing France to look for a savior on a white horse?
1795 In Jan. intellectual giant Alexander Hamilton resigns as U.S. treasury secy., and submits a report to the House on Jan. 19 laying out a plan for extinguishing the federal debt within 30 years; he leaves Philly in mid-Feb. and returns to his home in Albany, N.Y.; on Feb. 3 Oliver Wolcott Jr. (1760-1833) becomes U.S. treasury secy. #2 (until Dec. 31, 1800); George Washington asks him to get the customs collector for Portsmouth, N.H. to ship a runaway slave woman back to Mount Vernon, but when he can't do it without publicity she is allowed to remain. On Feb. 7 the Eleventh (11th) (XI) Amendment to the U.S. Constitution is ratified, blocking the judicial power of the U.S. from extending to suits against a state or a foreign state. On Feb. 13 the U. of N.C. in Chapel Hill becomes the first state univ. in the U.S., admitting its first student Hinton James, who is the only student on campus for two weeks - how's it going, good, good? On Feb. 18 George III promotes his 2nd son Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany to field marshal, followed on Apr. 3 by CIC of the British army (until Mar. 25, 1809), succeeding Lord Amherst, going on to carry out a massive reform, doing "more for the army than any one man has done for it in the whole of its history" (Sir John Fortescue). On Feb. 25 France passes a law providing secondary education for boys, providing scholarships for the poor. On Feb. 25, 1795 Union College is founded in Schenectady, N.Y., becoming the first higher ed. institution chartered by the New York Board of Regents; on Nov. 26, 1825 the social fraternal org. Kappa Alpha is founded there, followed by Sigma Phi (Mar. 4, 1827), and Delta Phi (Nov. 17, 1827), known as the Union Triad, followed by Psi Upsilon (Nov. 24, 1833), Chi Psi (May 20, 1841), and Theta Delta Chi (Oct. 31, 1847), causing Union College to become known as the Mother of Fraternies . On Mar. 7 the official version of John Jay's Treaty arrives in Philly, and the Senate takes until June 24 to approve it because it makes so many concessions to the Brits, who want to continue their lucrative Northwest fur trade while banning the U.S. from exporting goods to the West Indies; Article XII, a provision legalizing trade with the British West Indies but choked with restrictions is stricken; it is not publicized until July 1, and the public outcry is "like an electric velocity" (Madison), with John Jay burned in effigy in cities across America on the Fourth of July; on July 14 the citizens of Charleston celebrate Bastille Day by dragging the Union Jack through the streets and setting it on fire in front of the British consulate; the U.S. is on the verge of another rev., with the public calling for war with Britain in alliance with France; Washington holds off signing the treaty until Alexander Hamilton lobbies him into it, causing the Jeffersonians to totally split with them, causing Washingto to utter the soundbyte that "the voice of malignancy" is attemping "to wound my character and deceive the people"; on July 18 5K people meet across from the New York City Hall to protest the treaty, with Hamilton speaking for it to a hissing crowd, who stone him; the following week there are more protest rallies in major cities; Washington finally signs it in mid-Aug., and when the U.S. economy booms from British trade while French trade drops, opposition slowly dies out, and the move to mollify them allows the U.S. to build its resources in time to defeat the British in 1812. On Apr. 1 bread riots in Paris are accompanied by monarchist agitation and the arrival of some emigres. On Apr. 5 the first of Three Treaties of Basel between France and Prussia, negotiated by Count von Haugwitz is followed by similar treaties on July 22 between France and Spain and on Aug. 28 between France and Hasse-Cassel, causing Prussia, Saxony, Hanover, and Hesse-Cassel to bug out of the war, pissing-off the other monarchies of Europe and causing Prussia to become morally isolated while marking Rev. France's emergence as a major Euro power; the British army is evacuated through Bremen in Apr.; Prussia recognizes French control of the W bank of the Rhine River, while France returns all captured lands E of the Rhine River; Spain cedes the E two-thirds of Hispaniola Island to France; Prussia now tries to save the provinces on the left bank of the Rhine River from being lost to the HRE despite no language in the treaty by establishing the armed neutrality of N Germany and seeking its recognition by France; too bad, Nappy's Vs in S Germany kill the plan. On Apr. 7 Big Bad Revolutionary France adopts the Metric System , developed by 12 scientists from the French Academy of Sciences appointed by the French Nat. Assembly; a meter (from Greek metron=measure) is one-forty-millionth of the circumference of the Earth through the poles; a 10-day week is also introduced, but Napoleon later abolishes it. Every single one of us is the Devil inside? On Apr. 8 after his daddy George III offers to cover his debts, the Princely Slob of Wales (AKA Prinny) marries German 1st cousin Caroline of Brunswick-Luneburg (Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel) (1768-1821) ; not being able to stand each other (he calls her "the vilest wretch this this world was ever cursed with"), in 1796 after the birth of a daughter they live apart as much as possible, each with their own lovers; in 1814 she moves to Italy until returning to England in 1820 to become queen, getting a big surprise? On May 1 Congress votes to redesign the U.S. flag to have 15 stars and stripes (the first redesign since 1777), which now incl. Vermont and Kentucky; there are no more changes in 23 years as the U.S. marches into the new cent. with 15 states, 15 stars and 15 stripes. On May 20 the White Terror in France causes the Mountain Party to be exterminated. On May 23 women in France are forbidden to attend political assemblies. In May Kamehameha I (1758-1819) defeats Kalanikupule at the cliffhanger Battle of Nu'uanu Pali (Hawaiian "Kaleleka'anae" = leaping mullet) in S Oahu, and unites Hawaii, becoming its king #1. On June 8 the death of mistreated prisoner (dauphin) Louis XVII (b. 1785) is announced after he is declared to be seriously ill in May; he is buried at the Church of St. Marguerite on June 10, but over the next 40 years several pretenders come forward. On July 1 DOI signer Edward Rutledge's brother John Rutledge (1739-1800) of S.C. (#5 justice from 1790-1) takes office as U.S. chief justice #2 (until Dec. 15, 1795) as a recess appointee (first ever by a U.S. pres., and it's George Washington?), but later in the year the Senate rejects his appointment, and he only serves one term; Pres. Eisenhower later makes three recess appointments: Earl Warren (1953), William Brennan (1956), and Potter Stewart (1958). On Aug. 3 after Gen. Anthony Wayne's big 1794 V at the Battle of Fallen Timbers, the Treaty of Greenville , signed at Fort Greenville in Ohio opens all of Ohio and Indiana to white settlers after the U.S. buys from 12 Indian tribes the rights to the SE quarter of the Northwest Territory for an annual fee of $10K, incl. areas around Vincennes (on the Wabash River), Detroit (on Lake Erie), and Chicago (on Lake Michigan). On Aug. 9 the Mass. state church (Congregational) in Middletown passes a law that any member renouncing infant baptism and joining the Baptist faith shall be disfellowshiped. On Aug. 22 the Constitution of 1795 (Year III) is ratified by the French Nat. Convention, providing for universal male suffrage (age 21 and up), freedom of the press and worship, and a bicameral legislature (Council of Five Hundred and Council of the Ancients), with deputies serving 3-year terms, and a 5-member Directory (exec. branch) (ends 1799) chosen by the legislature, which can restrict freedom of the press for a year; two-thirds of the next legislature is to be drawn from the convention's ranks; on Aug. 23 political clubs, collective petitioning, and popular socities are suppressed; the Directory supersedes the Nat. Convention on Oct. 27. On Sept. 16 British forces capture Capetown, South Africa . The original Orange Crush? On Sept. 21 the Battle of the Diamond between the Roman Catholic Defenders and the Protestants in Northern Ireland leads to the formation of the Orange Order (Loyal Orange Inst.) (Orangemen), named after William III, Prince of Orange to support Protestantism. In the fall the French harvest is poor after a bad winter, causing famine in many parts. On Oct. 5 (Vendemiaire 13) (Mon.) the Day of the Sections sees a royalist uprising in Paris stopped by an army unit led by Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821) and his "whiff of grapeshot", a cannonade from the Church of St. Roch, which kills 200; the Convention votes that relatives of emigres are barred from holding office and then dissolves. On Oct. 27 after rhe Spanish want to make peace with the French and switch sides in the European war, U.S. minister to Britain (1792-5) Thomas Pinckney (1750-1828) parleys with the Spanish govt., and on Oct. 27 the U.S. and Spain sign the Treaty of San Lorenzo (Pinckney's Treaty) , lowering the U.S. border to the 31st parallel, giving the U.S. free navigation of the Mississippi River, a promise to refrain from inciting Indian attacks, and other goodies, all in favor of the U.S, making Pinckney a big man with the Federalist Party. On Nov. 9 Russian field marshal Alexander Suvorov captures Warsaw , then really stinks himself up by massacring 20K Poles, after which the city is ceded to Prussia (until 1806). On Nov. 22 Polish king (since 1765) Stanislaus II Augustus Poniatowski (1732-98) abdicates, and Poland is partitioned for a 3rd time on Oct. 24 in a secret treaty between Russia, Prussia, and Austria in the "vast national crime" of Poland's extinction; Poland is wiped from the map for more than a cent. until the Peace of Versailles after WWI; Vilnyus (Vilnius), Lithuania is taken by Russia; duke (since 1769) Peter von Biron (1724-1800) , last duke of the Grand Duchy of Courland (founded in 1561) in Latvia on the Baltic Sea bordering Polish Livonia and the W Dvina River to the E and Lithuania to the S cedes his duchy to Russia, giving them the rest of the Gulf of Riga, and making for an interesting situation since most of the landowners are Germans, which gives Sweden ideas. On Nov. 22 William Henry Harrison (b. 1773) marries Anna Tuthill Symmes (1775-1864) ; they have 6 sons and 4 daughters, incl. John Scott Harrison (1804-78) , father of U.S. pres. Benjamin Harrison. In Nov.-Dec. Parisian workers, esp. in the printing trades strike. Britain captures Ceylon from the Dutch, plants clove trees in Panang, and occupies the Cape of Good Hope. The British take Malacca to hold for the Dutch while they are under French domination (until 1802). The Persians under Mohammad Khan Qajar ravage Georgia, reduce Tbilisi to ashes, and capture Khorasan, torturing Shah Rukh to death to get him to reveal where his grandfather Nadir Shah's legendary treasures are. The British Speenhamland Act (named for the Pelican Inn in Speenhamland, Berkshire) for poor relief is passed, supplementing wages with a public dole. A branch of Daniel Boone's Wilderness Road (Trail) terminating at Harrodsburg is extended to Louisville and Frankfort, and widened to accommodate wagons, becoming a principal avenue of western migration until 1840. Warren Hastings is acquitted of high treason. Timothy Pickering (1745-1829) , U.S. postmaster gen. since 1791 becomes U.S. secy. of war (until ?), supervising the conversion of the army post of West Point into a military academy; he also serves as U.S. secy. of state (until 1800) after Patrick Henry turns it down. Karachi, Pakistan comes under the rule of the Iranian-speaking Balochi Talpur tribe in Balochistan. Dutch East India Co. official Isaac Titsingh (1745-1812) (a surgeon and merchant trader) is received with great propriety at the court of Chinese emperor Qin Qian Long just before the celebration of his 60th year of reign, showing up mophead Paul, er, George Macartney of England - tits singing jokes here? Spanish attempts to settle Vancouver Island and Cape Flattery are abandoned. The French seize Arnhem on the Rhine River (until 1813). The Persians invade and devastate the E Georgian kingdom of Kakheti and Kartli. Irish-born Don Ambrosio Bernardo O'Higgins, 1st Marquis of Osorno (1720-1801) , founder of the cities of San Ambrosio and Osorno, Peru and the highway from Santiago to Valparaiso is appointed viceroy of Peru (until 1801), becoming the only working class man to make it to that rank; his son is Bernardo O'Higgins (1778-1842) , who goes on to become the liberator of Chile - what's up, dog, where your ship at, my ship's over here? Thomas Paine is released from prison in France after 11 mo., and restored to his seat in the Nat. Convention, but is now disgusted with French politics and mainly studies finance (until 1802). Paul Revere and Sam Adams bury a time capsule in the cornerstone of the Mass. State House in Boston; it is unearthed on Dec. 11, 2014. The U.S. Mint begins minting $5 Half Eagle coins (until 1929); up to 1807 they carry no indication of their denomination; only 8,707 1795 $5 U.S. Half Eagle coins are minted, making it a coin collector's holy grail; in 1941 an 1822 Half Eagle sells for $11,575, the highest price for a U.S. coin to that time. Empress Catherine II the Great founds the Imperial Library in St. Petersburg on Nevsky Prospekt, becoming Russia's first public library; currently the Nat. Library of Russia, its name changes 7x in two cents. (State Saltykov-Shchedrin Public Library, etc.). The Paris Conservatoire de Musique is founded. The Institut National is founded in Paris to replace the abolished academies. The borough of Braddock in Allegheny County, Penn. on the Monongahela River E of Pittsburg is settled on the site of Edward Braddock's 1755 ambush, becoming the site of the Carnegie steel mills, the first Bessemer steel process, and the first Carnegie free public library. Williamsport, Penn. is founded, becoming an incorporated borough on Mar. 1, 1806 and a city on Jan. 15, 1866, then hosting Little League Baseball in 1939. Milk, er, Milwaukee, Wisc. is settled by French-Canadian fur trader Jacques Vieau (Vieaux) (1757-1852) . Edmonton (modern pop. 600K) in Alberta, Canada on the North Saskatechewan River is founded as a Hudson Bay trading post. Arak in WC Iran is founded by pro-Iranian Georgian warlord Yusef Khan Gorji , who was given refuge by Agha Mohammad Khan after a territorial dispute with Catherine II the Great. The Money Pit? A 13-ft.-wide circular pit is found by 16-y.-o. Daniel McGinnis from the Nova Scotian town of Chester on uninhabited Oak Island , and he gets help from John Smith and Anthony Vaughn and they begin digging, uncovering oak platforms every 10 ft., but finally give up in 1804, when wealthy Simeon Lynds expends his fortune in a fruitless effort to find fabled treasure only to see the pit flood, but in 1849 the original diggers, backed by a syndicate in Truro, N.S. resume their dig, discovering a tunnel to nearby Smith's Cove at 111 ft; after it is blocked in 1893, another tunnel at 150 ft. is discovered, and they give up after spending $1.5M and recovering only a 3-link gold chain, a scrap of parchment with the letters V and I, and a cipher stone with undecipherable symbols, which true believers claim says "10 feet below $10 million are buried". British explorer Capt. William Robert Broughton (1762-1821) visits Hokkaido, Japan ("circuit of the northern seas") and partially charts the Japanese coast. The French livre is abolished and replaced by the 5-gram silver franc, comprising 100 centimes. Union College in Schenectady, N.Y. is founded, becoming the 2nd college in N.Y. after Columbia U., and going to graduate U.S. pres. Chester A. Arthur and a ton of U.S. govt. bigwigs, and become the "mother of fraternies", spawning the first three Greek letter societies in the U.S., Kappa Alpha (1825), Sigma Phi (1827), and Delta Phi (1827). Am. Rev. War army chaplain and Greenfield, Conn. Congregationalist minister Timothy Dwight IV (1752-1817) (grandson of the elder Jonathan Edwards) succeeds Ezra Stiles, becoming pres. #8 of Yale College (until 1817). Cambridge U. divinity student Charles Jerram wins a prize for his thesis that the Bible prophesies the restoration of the Jews to the Holy Land. Franz Josef Haydn returns from his 2nd tour of London, well aware that he's the #1 Euro composer now. The first "sharp-built" (V-shaped hull) Baltimore Clipper is built in Fells Point shipyards in Baltimore, Md., going on to gain a rep for speed and ability to outrun British naval vessels; they become obsolete after 1815. Architecture: Sir John Soane (1753-1837) begins building the Bank of England in London (finished 1827). Mass. engineer Loammi Baldwin (1744-1807) (who fought in the 1775 Battle of Lexington-Concord and crossed the Delaware River on Xmas 1776 with George Washington) begins construction of the 27-mi. Middlesex Canal in Mass. (finished 1803) connecting the port of Boston with the Merrimack River for barge traffic, opening the interior of New England to commerce and bankrupting the Merrimack River port of Newburyport, Mass.; the canal is used until 1851. English architect James Wyatt builds eccentric throwback Broadway Tower in Worcestershire. Inventions: The first horse-drawn railroad is built in England. In order to win a prize offered by Napoleon, French chef Nicolas (Francois) Appert invents food canning , using glass jars sealed with pitch. Joseph Bramah invents the hydraulic press. After the war with England curtails the supply of English plumbago, French balloonist and army officer Nicolas-Jacques Conte (Cont�) (1755-1805) of Paris invents a process for making lead for pencils by mixing powdered black lead (graphite) with clay and water, squeezing it into strips, then cutting and baking in a kiln, producing different shades by varying the composition ratio. Lord George Murray invents a signaling system using shuttered apertures that links London with Deal, Plymouth, Portsmouth, and Yarmouth. Science:Nonfiction: Anon., Muye Dobo Tongji (Korean "Comprehensive Illustrated Manual of Martial Arts") (4 vols.); earliest Korean martial arts (Tae Kwon do) manual, commissioned by King Jeongjo. Charles Francois Dupuis (1742-1809), Origine de Tous les Cultes, ou la Religion Universelle (The Origin of All Religious Worship, or the Universal Religion) (12 vols.); questions the historicity of Jesus. Maria Edgeworth (1767-1849), Letters for Literary Ladies . Samuel Hearne (1745-92), A Journey from Prince of Wales's Fort in Hudson Bay to the Northern Ocean (posth.). James Hutton (1726-97), Theory of the Earth, with Proofs and Illustrations ; enlarged ed. of his 1785 paper. William Henry Ireland (1775-1835), Newly Discovered Documents by William Shakespeare ; pub. by his daddy Samuel Ireland (1744-1800); soon exposed as forgeries, causing the supposedly new Shakespeare play "Vortigern and Rowena" to flop next Apr. 2, after which he comes clean in Authentic Account (1796), causing his daddy to be accused of being in with it, causing him to pub. A Vindication of His Conduct (Nov. 1796). Immanuel Kant (1724-1804), Zum Ewigen Frieden (Perpetual Peace); advocates the abolition of nation-states in favor of an internat. govt. Gaspard Monge (1746-1818), Une Application d'Analyse a la Geometrie . Thomas Paine (1737-1809), The Age of Reason, Part 2 . Friedrich von Schelling (1775-1854), On the Possibility of any Form of Philosophy - too intelligent to be categorized? Alexander Suvorov (1729-1800), The Science of Victory (1795-6); his military aphorisms, incl. "The bullet is a fool, the bayonet is a good chap." Friedrich August Wolf (1759-1824), Prolegomena ad Homerum ; suggests that Homer's "Iliad" and "Odyssey" are really the work of several authors, starting a big debate for much of the 19th cent. - time to regift?Music: Anon., Tom the Piper's Son (London). Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827), Rondo a Capriccio (Rondo alla Ingharese quasi un Capriccio) ("Rage over a Lost Penny"), Op. 129 (left incomplete, finished and titled by Anton Diabelli, and pub. posth.); Three Piano Concertos, Op. 1: No. 1 in E flat major, No. 1 in G major, No. 2 in C minor ; his first public appearance in Vienna; he wrote his first piano concerto in E-flat (unpub.) at age 14 - the original Doowahdiddydiddydumdiddydoo one hit wonder not? Francois-Adrien Boieldieu (1775-1834), Rosalie et Myrza (comic opera) (Rouen). Franz Josef Haydn (1732-1809), Twelve London Symphonies ; the last is No. 104 in D major ("The London Symphony) , his last symphony. Vicente Martin y Soler (1754-1806), La Capricciosa Corretta (opera); libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte, based on Shakespeare's "Taming of the Shrew". Art: A.J. Carstens, Night with Her Children . John Hoppner (1758-1810), Portrait of the Frankland Sisters . Rembrandt Peale (1778-1860), Portrait of George Washington ; son of Charles Willson Peale carries on daddy's work. Jean-Baptiste Regnault, La Liberte ou la Mort ; the red Phyrigian cap again. Poetry: William Blake (1757-1827), The Book of Los ; incl. The Book of Ahania . William Dunlap (1766-1839), Fontainville Abbey . William Gifford (1756-1826), Maeviad ; satire on contemporary English drama. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832), Romische Elegien . Robert Southey (1774-1843), Poems . Johann Heinrich Voss (1751-1826), Luise (epic idyll). Novels: William Blake (1757-1827), Continental Prophecies (1793-5); incl. America: A Prophecy , The Song of Los . Richard Cumberland (1732-1811), Henry . Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832), Wilhelm Meister's Apprenticeship (Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahre) (1795-6); a Bildungsroman (educational novel) which becomes the model for German fiction for 30 years; Wilhelm attempts to escape bourgeous life, tries the theater, then joins the mysterious Tower Society. Rudolf Erich Raspe (1737-94), Baron Munchausen's Narrative of His Marvellous Travels and Campaigns in Russia (posth.); by a friend of Baron von Munchausen (1720-97) , the Andy Warhol of the 18th cent.? Jean Paul (1763-1825), Hesperus; or Forty-Five Dog-Post Days ; a big hit, making him an instant German star. Marquis de Sade (1740-1814), Philosophy in the Bedroom ; two chars. argue about adopting the philosophy of libertinism. Births: Russian "The Woes of Wit" dramatist-composer-diplomat Alexander Sergeyevich Griboedov (d. 1829) on Jan. 15 in Moscow; educated at Moscow U. Dutch queen (1840-9) Anna Pavlovna of Russia (d. 1865) on Jan. 18 in St. Petersburg; 8th child (6th daughter) of Paul I (1754-1801) and Maria Feodorovna (Sophia Dorothea of Wurtemberg) (1759-1828); sister of Alexander I (1777-1825). South Am. liberator and pres. #1 of Bolivia (1825-8), and pres. #4 of Peru (1823) Antonio Jose de Sucre (d. 1830) on Feb. 3 in Cumana; Jewish (Zucker) descent? German chemist (coiner of the word "caffeine") Friedrich (Friedlieb) Ferdinand Runge (d. 1867) on Feb. 8 near Hamburg. Canadian political leader William Lyon Mackenzie (d. 1861) on Mar. 12 in Dundee, Scotland; emigrates to Canada in 1820. English Gen. Sir ("Hero of the Sepoy Mutiny") Henry Havelock (d. 1857) on Apr. 5 in Bishop-Wearmouth, Sunderland, Durham; father of Sir Henry Havelock-Allan (1830-97). Spanish composer-pianist Pedro Albeniz (Alb�niz) y Basanta (d. 1855) on Apr. 14 in Logrono. English explorer Capt. Charles Napier Sturt (d. 1869) on Apr. 28 in India; great-great granduncle of Rod Taylor (1930-). French atty.-statesman (Jewish) Adolph Cremieux (Cr�mieux) (Isaac Moise) (d. 1880) on Apr. 30 in Nimes. English Addison's Disease physician Thomas Addison (d. 1860) in Apr. in Longbenton, Northumberland; educated at the U. of Edinburgh. French historian Jacques Nicolas Augustin Thierry (d. 1856) on May 10 in Blois; brother of Amedee Thierry (1797-1873). Czech historian-philologist-poet Pavel Josef (Pavol Jozef) Safarik (�af�rik) (d. 1861) on May 13 in Kobeliarovo. Am. financier-philanthropist Johns Hopkins (d. 1873) on May 19 in Anne Arundel County, Md. English Houses of Parliament architect Sir Charles Barry (d. 1860) on May 23 in London. English clergyman-educator (headmaster of Rugby School, 1828-41) Thomas Arnold (d. 1842) on June 13 in West Cowes, Isle of Wight; father of Matthew Arnold (1822-88) and Thomas Arnold II (1823-1900); educated at Corpus Christi College, Oxford U.; inspires Baron Coubertin to found the modern Olympics. Scottish surgeon ("Father of Modern Hypnosis") (coiner of the term "hypnosis") James Braid (d. 1860) on June 19 in Portmoak, Kinross. English surgeon (The Lancer co-founder0 Thomas Wakley (d. 1862) on July 11 in Membury, Devon. French mathematician Gabriel Lame (Lam�) (d. 1870) on July 22 in Tours. German "Der Vampyr", "Hans Heiling" Romantic opera composer Heinrich August Marschner (d. 1861) on Aug. 16 in Zittau; one of the big #3 along with Carl Maria von Weber (1786-1826) and Richard Wagner (1813-83). U.S. naval commodore Robert Field Stockton (d. 1866) on Aug. 20 in Princeton, N.J.; grandson of DOI signer Richard Stockton (1730-81). Peruvian pres. (1833-6) marshal Luis Jose Orbegoso y Moncada Galindo (d. 1847) on Aug. 25 in Chuquisongo, Huamachuco. English "Endymion" Romantic poet John Keats (d. 1821) on Oct. 31 in Moorgate, London; son of a stable-keeper; teen apprentice to a surgeon-apothecary; gets his license in 1816, then gets turned on by Spenser's "Faerie Queene" and turns to poetry, going on to almost become the 2nd Shakespeare, if not for nasty TB, which also killed his mother and brother. Am. journalist (founder of the New York Herald) James Gordon Bennett Sr. (d. 1872) on Sept. 1 in Newmill, Banffshire, Scotland; educated for the Roman Catholic priesthood; emigrates to Halifax, N.S. in 1819, then Boston, then New York City in 1826; father of James Gordon Bennett Jr. (1841-1918). Am. women's rights activist (freethinker) (abolitionist) Frances "Fanny" Wright (d. 1852) on Sept. 6 in Dundee, Scotland; emigrates to the U.S. in 1818. French politician and field marshal Louis-Achille Baraguey d'Hilliers, 1st Comte Baraguey d'Hilliers (d. 1878) on Sept. 6 in Paris; son of Louis Baraguey d'Hilliers (1764-1813). Am. celeb (black) Alexander Lucius Twilight (d. 1857) on Sept. 26 in Corinth, Vt.; first African-Am. to earn a bachelor's degree from a U.S. college or univ. Am. abolitionist statesman Joshua Reed Giddings (d. 1864) on Oct. 7 in Tioga Point (Athens), Penn.; uses the alias Pacificus. Prussian king (1840-61) Frederick William IV (d. 1861) on Oct. 15 in Berlin; eldest son of Frederick William III (1770-1840) and Louise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (1776-1810). Am. politician-novelist John Pendleton Kennedy (d. 1870) on Oct. 25 in Baltimore, Md.; educated at Harvard U.; writes chap. 4, vol. 2 of William Makepeace Thackeray's "The Virginians". U.S. pres. #11 (1845-9) James Knox Polk (d. 1849) on Nov. 2 in Mecklenburg County, N.C.; grandson of Am. Rev. War Gen. Henry Knox (1750-1806); 2d U.S. pres. born in a log cabin (#1=Jackson); reared in Maury County, Tenn. from 1806; his Presbyterian mother Jane Polk is a great grand-niece of John Knox; his Scots-Irish Deist father Samuel Polk refuses to let him be baptized. English reformer (penny postage inventor) Sir Rowland Hill (d. 1879) on Dec. 3 in Kidderminster, Worcestershire; son of Thomas Wright Hill (1763-1851); knighted in 1860. Scottish "Sartor Resartus" essayist-historian (Calvinist-turned-agnostic) Thomas Carlyle (d. 1881) on Dec. 5 in Ecclefechan, Dumfries and Galloway; educated at the U. of Edinburgh, where he loses his Christian faith and develops a chronic stomach ailment, which his critics attribute to his loss of faith; coiner of the term "the dismal science". U.S. atty. Gen. #12 (1833-7) Benjamin Franklin Butler (d. 1858) on Dec. 17 in Kinderhook Landing, N.Y. German historian Leopold von Ranke (d. 1886) on Dec. 21 in Wiehe (near Merseburg), Thuringia, Saxony; educated at the U. of Leipzig; student of Johann Gottfried Jakob Hermann (1772-1848); knighted in 1865. Irish "The Convict of Clonmala" poet Jeremiah Joseph Callanan (d. 1829) in County Cork; educated at Trinity College, Dublin. English economist William Forster Lloyd (d. 1852) ;educated at Westminster School, and Christ Church, Oxford U. Welsh poet Jeuan Glan Geirionydd (d. 1855) . British military surgeon (female?) (transexual?) James Miranda Stuart Barry (Margaret Ann Bulkley) (d. 1865) in Ireland; son of Jeremiah and Mary-Ann Bulkley, sister of James Barry (1741-1806); educated at the U. of Edinburgh; cross-dresses to pass as a man? Am. mesmerist John Bovee Dods (d. 1872) in New York City. Spanish hero Don Diego de la Vega ("Zorro") (b. ?) in Alta, Calif.; his father is Spanish Capt. Alejandro de la Vega, and his half-American Indian mother is Regina, nee Toypurnia, who was captured after leading a united tribe army on the San Gabriel mission wearing a wolf getup, and is sent to a Spanish colonial leader's home to learn how to act like a proper European lady while her hubby-to-be fathers "milk brother" Bernardo :) Deaths: German-born English composer John Christopher Smith (b. 1712) in Bath. French writer Jean-Jacques Barthelemy (b. 1716) on Apr. 30. Spanish naval officer Antonio de Ulloa (b. 1716) on July 3 in Leon Island. Am. Rev. War maj. Gen. John Armstrong Sr. (b. 1717) on Mar. 9 in Carlisle, Penn. Am. educator Dr. John Phillips (b. 1719). Welsh-born Am. Baptist minister Morgan Edwards (b. 1722) on Jan. 28 in Pencador, Del. English stock breeder Robert Bakewell (b. 1725). French chess player-composer Francois-Andre Danican Philidor (b. 1726) on Aug. 31. Am. scholar (pres. of Yale) Ezra Stiles (b. 1727) on May 12. British navigator Samuel Wallis (b. 1728) on Jan. 21; namesake of Wallis and Futuna. English pottery maker Josiah Wedgwood (b. 1730) in Stoke-on-Trent. British Ranger Maj. Robert Rogers (b. 1731) in London. German composer Johann Christoph Friedrich Bach (b. 1732) on Jan. 26; much of his work is lost in WWII when the Staatliches Institut fur Musikforschung in Berlin is destroyed. Am. Rev. War Gen. ("the Swamp Fox") Francis Marion (b. 1732) on Feb. 27 in Georgetown, S.C. Japanese painter Maruyama Okyo (b. 1733). Spanish painter Francisco Bayeu y Subias (b. 1734) on Aug. 4 in Madrid. British Gen. Sir Henry Clinton (b. 1738) on Dec. 23 in Cornwall. Am. diplomat William Lee (b. 1739). Swedish poet Carl Michael Bellmann (b. 1740) on Feb. 11. Scottish diarist and biographer James Boswell (b. 1740) on May 19; leaves the Auchinleck (pr. like Affleck) family state in Ayrshire. Scottish encyclopedist William Smellie (b. 1740) on June 24 in Edinburgh. Am. Rev. War Gen. and jurist John Sullivan (b. 1740). Italian adventurer Cagliostro (b. 1743) in prison; Napoleon has a drinking cup made from his skull - one bean salad for table 11? French dauphin Louis Charles (Louis XVII) (b. 1785) on June 8.
1796 - The Take It, Bitch Year? Ladybirds and Gentlebugs, Napoleon starts the machine, turning Europe into an unchained melody of plots and wars? The Walrus Is Paul Year in Russia?
1796 Early in the year after the fall of Robespierre in France lightens things up in that-wasn't-funny England, the slavery abolition bill long pushed by MP William Wilberforce seems to finally be about to pass, but the 3rd reading of the bill takes place on the night that a comic opera debuts in London, causing four supporters to skip the vote to see it - it was that funny? A Triple Alliance is formed by Britain, Austria, and Russia against France (different from the ones in 1668 and 1717), while Spain and France sign an alliance against England; France conquers Mannheim and Belgium; Luxembourg capitulates to France; after the Army of the Rhine under Gen. Lazare Hoche kicks their butts, Austria signs an armistice with France, and the Netherlands passes under French domination with a French army backed by returning Patriots, and on Jan. 19 the Batavian Repub. is proclaimed (until June 5, 1906), wih Louis I as king. On Jan. 27 Philly physician (Scots-Irish immigrant in 1771, who signed the Constitution) James McHenry (1753-1816) becomes U.S. war secy. #3 (until May 13, 1800), going on to build Ft. McHenry to defend the port of Baltimore, Md. On Feb. 4 Samuel Chase (1741-1811) of Md. becomes U.S. Supreme Court justice #9 (until June 19, 1811) to replace John Blair (1789-96); on Mar. 8 Oliver Ellsworth (1745-1807) of Conn., who coined the term "United States" becomes chief justice #3 and the 10th justice (until Dec. 15, 1800). On Feb. 9 Emperor (since 1736) Qin Qian Long (Ch'ien Lung) (b. 1711) retires, and his son Yongyan (Kia-King) becomes Qing (Manchu) emperor #5 of China Qin Jia Qing (Qing Ren Zong) (1760-1820) , issuing the Edict of Peking , forbidding import of opium into China and making opium smoking a capital offense. On Feb. 20 the French govt. cancels the planned end of the distribution of meat and bread at nominal prices in Paris after a near revolt, which gives agitator Francois-Noel "Gracchus" Babeuf (1760-97) his cue, and he forms the Society of Equals (Societe des Egaux), which meets at the Pantheon until it is closed on Feb. 27, after which he pick up more steam and begins calling for the annihilation of the govt. On Feb. 16 the official observance of George Washington's birthday in the U.S. begins. One is the loneliest number? On Mar. 9 27-y.-o. up-and-coming Gen. Napoleon Bonaparte marries 33-y.-o. Martinique-born Josephine de Beauharnais (the Creole) (1763-1814) , widow of guillotined Martinique-born French army Gen. Alexandre, Vicomte de Beauharnais (until 1809); she likes to bring her pet orangutan to dinner parties. On Mar. 18 the French govt. attempts to stabilize currency by replacing assignats with mandats territoriaux, but they depreciate overnight, causing the govt. to withdraw them and attempt to get a forced loan from the rich in vain, causing near bankruptcy; on Apr. 4 the govt. finds that 500K Parisians need relief; meanwhile pesky rabble-rouser Francois-Noel Babeuf recruits tons of new followers, and beginning on Apr. 11 Paris is placarded with his soundbyte "Nature has given to every man the right to the enjoyment of an equal share in all property", while cafe goers sing his song "Mourant de Faim, Mourant de Froid" (Dying of Hunger, Dying of Cold, tra-la); after finding out about an armed uprising planned for May 11, the authorities arrest Babeuf and his assocs. on May 10, and his "Tribune du peuple" is shut down - look at that steak, isn't it gorgeous? In Mar. Gen. Louis Lazare Hoche ends the revolt in French Vendee (begun 1793). In Mar. James Madison breaks with his old ally Pres. Washington by supporting a congressional demand that he turn over his private instructions given to John Jay to guide his negotiations with Britain; Washington, backed by Hamilton, spurns the request, creating a precedent for Executive Privilege ; Washington never takes Madison back into the fold. On Apr. 13 the first known elephant arrives in the U.S. Rape me, rape me my friend? On Apr. 13 after his honeymoon and being appointed CIC of Italy and sent on a campaign against the Austrians in N Italy, Napoleon defeats the Austrians at the Battle of Millesimo , followed on Apr. 21 by the Piedmontese (Sardinians) at the Battle of Mondovi (Montenotte) , causing Victor Amadeus to conclude a separate peace with France; on May 10 Nappy defeats the Austrians at the Battle of Lodi (Nappy falls into the Adda River as the French are storming the bridge, but is pulled out before he can drown), and again on May 11 at the Battle of Arcol ; he then occupies Milan and Venice on May 12, and decides to form two new repubs., one to the N of the Po River (Transpadane), and the other to the S of the Po River (Cispadane). On Apr. 14 the Battle of Millesimo (Millefimo) (Dego) is a D for 4K Austrians and Savoyards and a V for the 10K-man French army of Napoleon, causing the first of five Napoleonic Medals to be awarded. On June 1 "Volunteer State" Tennessee (Tenn.) (named after Tanasi, the Cherokee villages on the Little Tennessee River) is admitted as the 16th U.S. state (slave), becoming the first U.S. state to (eventually) border eight other states; there are now 7 free and 9 slave states, with N.J. practically in the free camp (since it's not economically important), and the balance see-saws, being roughly preserved for the next 50 years as new states are added; William Blount is elected as U.S. Sen. from Tenn. On July 6 crotchety Lord Amherst (b. 1717) receives a field marshal's baton 11 mo. before his death - anus in baton jokes here?Reverse the charges? In June French Gens. Jean Victor Moreau and Jean Baptiste Jourdan separately invade S Germany, creating a German Front ; Moreau forces Baden, Wurttemberg and Bavaria to conclude truces in Aug.; Jourdan is defeated by epileptic but Austrian troops led by archduke Charles of Teschen (1771-1847) (brother of HRE Francis I) at Amberg on Aug. 24 and Wurzburg on Sept. 3, preventing the two French armies from linking up on German soil; Jourdan resigns his command, and Moreau retreats across the Rhine, but the Germans don't follow up conclusively. On July 8 the U.S. State Dept. issues its first U.S. passport . On July 12 French Rev. troops under Gen. Jean Baptiste Kleber siege Frankfurt am Main , which is garrisoned with Austrian troops; on July 13-14 (night) they shell the Jewish ghetto (Judengasse), destroying one-third of the houses, causing its de facto abolishment. On July 21 after leaving Portsmouth, England last May 22 on the Endeavor, and reaching the Gambia River on June 21, disembarking on Dec. 2 to explore the interior with two native guides, getting captured and imprisoned by a Moorish chief for 4 mo. and escaping on July 1 with only a horse and pocket compass, Scottish surgeon-explorer Mungo Park (1771-1806) becomes the first European to discover the Niger River near Segou in modern-day Mali, following the river 300 mi. to Bamako and returning to Scotland via Antigua on Dec. 22, causing a sensation with the big news. On July 22 Cleveland, Ohio is founded by land surveyor Moses Cleaveland (OE "hilly area") (1754-1806) - Levon calls his child Jesus? On Aug. 5 Napoleon Bonaparte and his 26K French troops win a V against 16K Ahnulds, er, Austrians under Field Marshal Dagobert Sigmund von Wurmser (1724-97) at the Second Battle of Castiglione (Solferino) , opening their way to Mantua - I think you're crazy, yes I do? On Aug. 19 the secret Second Treaty of Ildefonso (first 1777, next 1800) between Spain and France allies them against the British. On Aug. 27-28 (night) Francois-Noel Babeuf and his assocs. are secretly removed from Paris to Vendome for trial, but his followers find out and attempt to break him out via a riot, which doesn't materialize; on Sept. 7 500-600 of his followers attempt to incite a military revolt in Grenelle, again in vain. On Sept. 6 the First Battle of Bassano in Venetia, Italy sees Austrian troops under Field Marshal Count Dagobert Sigmund von Wurmser defeated by French troops under Napoleon. On Sept. 19 Pres. Washington's Farewell Address (dated Sept. 17) is pub. in the Philadelphia Daily American Advertiser (never delivered); it is based on a draft prepared by Madison four years earlier; in it he declines to accept a 3rd term, and disses the spirit of sectionalism as well as the spirit of party and partisan excess; his speech contains the following oft-quoted advice: "Observe good faith and justice toward all nations. Cultivate peace and harmony with all... The Nation which indulges toward another an habitual hatred or an habitual fondness is in some degree a slave. It is a slave to its animosity or to its affection, either of which is sufficient to lead it astray from its duty and its interest... Tis our true policy to steer clear of permanent alliances with any portion of the foreign world"; the phrase "entangling alliances" is first used by Jefferson in his first inaug. address; the 2-term precedent wows all succeeding presidents, who observe it out of respect for him until cocky FDR. Washington out of the way, the U.S. descends from Mount Olympus with its first partisan election for president? The Federalists choose John Adams as their candidate for pres., and Thomas Pinckney of S.C. for vice-pres.; Adams utters the soundbyte "I dread... a division of the republic into two great parties"; the Repubs. choose Thomas Jefferson for pres. and Aaron Burr of New York for vice-pres.; Federalist leader Alexander Hamilton tries to rig the election against his hated foe Adams by encouraging electors to vote for Pinckney while refraining from voting for Adams, thus making Pinckney pres.; too bad, it backfires, and results in Adams on Nov. 2 receiving 71 electoral votes, Jefferson 68, Pinckney 59, and Burr 30; Adams becomes pres. and Jefferson vice-pres., a dreaded mixed marriage. On Oct. 14 Sardinian king (since 1773) Victor Amadeus III (b. 1726) dies, and his son Charles Emmanuel IV (1751-1819) becomes king of Sardinia-Piedmont (until 1802); by 1798 he loses Piedmont to France. On Oct. 16 the Modena Congress , attended by reps from the provinces of Modena, Bologna, Ferrara and Reggio Emilia, and organized by Napoleon proclaims the Cispadane Repub. in N Italy (ends July 9, 1797), and invites other Italian provinces to join, forming an army of mounted hunters with artillery; next Jan. 7 in Reggio Emilia the congress picks a flag consisting of the Italian tricolor (red, white, green), with a quiver, accolade and four arrows, crowned with bay leaves. In Oct. Jean Jacques Regis (R�gis) de Cambaceres (Cambac�r�s) (1753-1824) , former member of the Nat. Convention (who favored leniency toward the king) is elected pres. of the Council of Five Hundred, and formulates the Projet de Code Civil , the basis of the Code Napoleon . On Nov. 6 the Austrians under Field Marshal Baron Joseph (Jozsef) Alvinczi von Borberek (1735-1810) defeat Napoleon at the Second Battle of Bassano , and again on Nov. 12 at the Battle of Caldiero ; on Nov. 15-17 Napoleon defeats the Austrians at the Battle of the Bridge of Arcole (Arcola) , using a bold maneuver to outflank the Austrian army underand cut its line of retreat, foiling the 3rd Austrian attempt to lift the Siege of Mantua, beginning Napoleon's meteoric rise; after withdrawing toward Vicenza, the Austrians gamely reoccupy the field of battle on Nov. 22, then after some troops under Lt. Paul Davidovich begin their own retreat, Alvinczi admits defeat and falls back to Bassano. On Nov. 17 (Nov. 5 Old Style) horse-loving tsar (since 1762) Catherine II the Great (b. 1729) dies on a straw mat three days after suffering a stroke on her way to the water closet, leaving the Diary of Catherine the Great and a huge art collection housed in the Hermitage next to the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg on the Neva River; she dropped her big plans to break up the Ottoman Empire and partition the Balkans with Austria after the outbreak of the French Rev.; despite declaring on Nov. 5 that he's unfit, and that she prefers her other son Alexander, her son (the Walrus is Paul?) Paul I Petrovich Romanov (1754-1801) becomes Russian tsar (until Mar. 23, 1801), proceeding to undo all her work, starting by firing massacre-loving field marshal Alexander Suvorov, limiting the work of serfs, and undermining the nobility, all leading to his murder in a matter of a few years; meanwhile Suvorov retires in style in his Konchauskoy Estate near Moscow, waiting in the wings, while Savoyard Xavier de Maistre (1763-1852) , who joined Suvorov after the annexation of Savoy to France in 1792 flees to St. Petersburg, getting his ultra-conservative brother Joseph-Marie, Comte de Maistre (1753-1821) a job as Sardinian ambassador to Russia in 1803 (until 1817) - hello, welcome to reactionary dot com, how can I hurt you? Sawai Madhavrao commits suicide, leaving no heir, and Baji Rao II (1775-1851) becomes the last peshwa of the Maratha Confederacy (until 1818), going on to become a cruel bum who squanders his wealth and turns the pop. against him. The royalist revolt in Vendee, France (begun 1793) is quashed. Agha Mohammad Khan (d. 1797) executes Shahrukh Shah, Afshar ruler of Khurasan in N Persia, consolidating control of Persia, then crowns himself shah, founding the Qajar Dynasty in Persia (Iran), with Tehran as his capital instead of Sari, unifying the country for the first time since the Safavids. Ang Eng dies, and Pok becomes regent of Cambodia (until 1806). Pres. Washington recommends to Congress the establishment of a U.S. Dept. of Agriculture ; Congress doesn't get around to it until 1862 - to keep up with the Brits? The U.S. Public Land Act of 1796 doubles the price of newly-opened lands to $2 per acre, and generally prices it out of the market because of Federalist fears of losing political influence for the E states, as well as the need for govt. revenue; by 1800 only 50K acres have been sold, and there is a clamor for a reduction in prices; a declaration that Indians now live within U.S. borders causes Seneca chief Red Jacket (1750-1830) to give him a piece of his mind: "You are a cunning People without Sincerity, and not to be trusted... for we had thought our Lands were our own, not within your Boundaries, but joining the British, and between you and them." 38-y.-o. Horatio Nelson is promoted to commodore - who did Lady Hamilton do? James Monroe becomes gov. of Va. (until 1802). N.Y. Federalist U.S. Sen. (from 1789) Rufus King (originally from Mass.) is appointed U.S. minister to England (until 1803); meanwhile Pres. Washington appoints John Quincy Adams as minister to Portugal, soon getting promoted to the Berlin Legation, deciding to devote his life to public service after Washington calls him "the most valuable of America's officials abroad"; meanwhile France appoints new foreign minister Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Perigord (1754-1838) , and the U.S appoints Charles Cotesworth Pinckney (1746-1825) of S.C. (brother of Thomas Pinckney, sons of famous indigo planter Eliza Lucas Pinckney, who died in 1793) as minister to France; as the French-British war of 1793 continues, both sides seize netural ships that allegedly violate their blockades; despite the pro-French stance of the Jeffersonian Repubs., France regards the U.S. as a virtual ally of Britain as a result of Jay's Treaty (1794), and refuses to receive Pinckney, causing him to retire to Amsterdam, and Pres. Adams to send two other negotiators, John Marshall and Elbridge Gerry to join him; meanwhile Talleryrand ("a pile of shit in a silk stocking" - Napoleon) delays their reception by the Directory for many weeks in an attempt to embarrass the Federalist admin. to the advantage of the pro-French Jeffersonian Repubs. A new Ga. legislature rescinds the 1794 Yazoo land grant, causing Fletcher, one of the purchasers, to sue Peck, one of the sellers for breach of warranty of title; he wins and the case starts its way up to the U.S. Supreme Court (1810) to victory and ultimate fat cat heaven. The British occupy Able-Was-I-Ere-I-Saw Elba, and drive the Dutch out of Sri Lanka ; Britain gains control of all Dutch East Indian possessions except Java. His over-ardent pro-French Rev. sympathies and criticism of John Jay get James Monroe recalled as U.S. minister to France, ending his diplomatic career for years. Uninhabited Wake Island , a 3-sq.-mi. atoll about halfway between Midway and Guam comprising the three islets of Wilkes, Peale, and Wake is discovered by the British. Zane's Trace is built by Ebenezer Zane (1747-1811) from Wheeling, Va. to Maysville, Ky., becoming the only major road in Ohio until the War of 1812. The Boston Dispensary in Mass. becomes the first organized medical care service in New England. There is a devastating fire in cotton port Savannah, Ga. The French Opera House in New Orleans, La. opens, becoming the first in the U.S. The word "ideology" is coined by Destutt du Tracy of France. 26-y.-o. Ludwig van Beethoven's progressive hearing loss begins this year. George Washington loses his last tooth, after which his dentist John Greenwood wraps it in wire and puts it on Washington's watch chain. Am. playwright William Dunlap (b. 1766) becomes a mgr. of the John Street Theatre in New York City, followed in 1798 by dir. of the New Park Theatre there; too bad he goes bankrupt in 1805, and in 1816 goes back to painting, finding better bucks in religious subjects. Students are first divided into classes (Freshman, Junior and Senior). Daniel Webster enters Phillips Exeter Academy in N.H.; the debate team is later named after him. English immigrant John Boston (-1804) founds the first brewery in Australia in Sydney, manufacturing beer from malted maize flavored with Cape gooseberry (Lycopersicum). Dr. Cornelius Cunningham and James Greenleaf open Washington Brewery at 21st, 22nd, and B Sts. in Washington, D.C.; the federal govt. doesn't convene in the city until 1800. The York Retreat in Lamel Hill, York for the mentally ill is founded by Quakers, becoming known for humane treatment and serving as a model. The silver Lady Liberty Dollar begins to be minted by the U.S. Mint, with 15 stars around her head; in 1932 George Washington's head begins appearing instead; by 2000 a 1796 original is worth $3M. The U. of Strathcylde (originally Royal Technical College) in Glasgow, Scotland is founded. James Watt wins his patent battle in court, establishing the principle that improvements on an existing patent can be patented. Comedic actor and playwright August Wilhelm Iffland (1759-1814) becomes dir. of the Berlin Nat. Theater. Austrian brewer Franz Anton Dreher Jr. (1736-1820) , son of innkeeper Franz Anton Dreher (1689-1743) founds Dreher (Schwechat) Brewery in Klein Schwechat near Viennam becoming a success producing lager beer; in 1841 his son Anton Dreher (1810-63) , friend of Gabriel Sedlmayer Jr. of Spaten Brewery introduces Schwechater Lagerbier, pioneering Pale Lager , which combines the crispness of lager with the pale hues of English ale, becoming known as Vienna Style Beer, causing him to become known as "the King of Brewers". In 1854 Kobanya Brewery is founded in Kobanya, Budapest, Hungary, producing brands incl Arany Aszok and Dreher Bak; in 1862 Dreher acquires it; the combined co. becomes independent in 1907 until the Communist takeover in 1949, which nationalizes it; in 1993 it joins the South African Breweries (SAB), which in May 2002 merges with the Miller Brewing Co. to create SABMiller. Architecture: English sculptor John Bacon Sr. (1740-99) designs the Dr. Samuel Johnson Memorial in St. Paul's Cathedral in London. Inventions: On May 14 English physician Edward Jenner (1749-1823) introduces smallpox vaccination to a needy world, inoculating 8-y.-o. James Phipps (1788-1853) with material from a cowpox pustule from the hands of milkmaid Sarah Nelmes, who caught cowpox from the cow Blossom, whose hide is preserved at the St. George Medical School; Jenner goes on to save more people than Jesus? Lithography , a technique of printing based on the fact that oil and water do not mix is invented by German playwright Alois (Aloys) Senefelder (1771-1834) in Prague; the age of colored printing and colorful magazines is around the corner. Science: German mathematician Carl Friedrich Gauss pub. the first proof of the Quadratic Reciprocity Theorem (Golden Theorem of Arithmetic) , which allows the solvability of a quadratic equation in modular arithmetic to be determined without giving a method for finding it. French brain man Pierre-Simon Laplace (1749-1827) pub. his Nebular Hypothesis . Pierre-Simon Laplace (1749-1827), Mecanique Celeste ( M�canique C�leste) (5 vols.) (1799-1825); incl. his Nebular Process. Johann Tobias Lowitz (1757-1804) of Germany prepares pure (absolute) ethyl alcohol using charcoal filtering - how dry I am?Nonfiction: Louis Gabriel Ambroise, Vicomte de Bonald (1754-1840), Theorie du Pouvoir Politique et Religieux (3 vols.); a counter-rev. work by a French emigrant to Heidelberg, which causes him to be viewed with suspicion when he returns. Robert Fulton (1765-1815), Treatise on the Improvement of Canal Navigation . Albert Gallatin (1761-1849), Sketch of the Finances of the United States . Elizabeth Hamilton (1756-1816), Essays on the Human Mind . Christoph Wilhelm Hufeland (1762-1836), Macrobiotics, or The Art to Prolong One's Life ; coins the term "macrobiotic". William Henry Ireland (1775-1835), An Authentic Account of the Shakesperean Manuscripts ; comes clean, but it backfires when critics don't want to admit they were fooled and claim he couldn't be capable of such magnificent forgeries? Samuel Ireland, A Vindication of His Conduct (Nov.); claims innocence, and attacks the character of Edmond Malone with help from Thomas Caldecott. Joseph de Maistre (1753-1821), Considerations sur la France . Edmond Malone (1741-1812), An Inquiry into the Authenticity of Certain Miscellaneous Papers and Legal Instruments (Mar. 31); proves by close reasoning that the Vortigern play et al. are forgeries. Pierre Samuel du Pont de Nemours (1739-1817), Philosophie de l'Univers . Amelia Simmons, American Cookery ; first cookbook written in the U.S.; advises using pearl ash for leavening cakes. Rev. Richard Watson (1737-1816), An Apology for the Bible, in a Series of Letters Addressed to Thomas Paine - Tom Paine is his royal pain? Friedrich von Schelling (1775-1854), Letters on Dogmatism and Criticism (1796-8). Brockhaus Konversations Lexikon (first ed.) (Leipzig). Music: Francois-Adrien Boieldieu (1775-1834), Les Deux Lettres (comic opera) (Paris). Benjamin Carr (1740-99), The Archers of Switzerland (opera) (New York); about William Tell. Art: Antoine-Jean Gros (1771-1835), Napoleon at Arcola (1796-7). Edward Savage (1761-1817), George Washington and His Family (The Washington Family) ; 7' x 9'4"; shows the head of the nation in military uniform to make him look more like Cincinnatus, with a plan of Washington, D.C. on the table, and the Potomac River in the background; Martha Washington is pointing wth her fan to the "grand avenue" (Nat. Mall). Gilbert Stuart (1755-1828), The Athenaeum (Portrait of George Washington) ; 8'x5'; part of a larger unfinished painting; used on U.S. $1 bills; GW wears a black velvet suit and a shirt with a white ruffed collar; new false teeth give Washington a bulge around his mouth; he ends up making 75 versions of the Athenaeum Portrait, and a total of 100 Washington portraits - fold one in half lengthwise and you can see George's limp ding dong hanging out of his lacy white unmentionables?Plays: George Colman the Younger (1762-1836), The Iron Chest ; based on William Godwin's 1794 "Adventures of Caleb Williams". Hannah Cowley (1743-1809), The Town Before You (last play). Jean-Francois Ducis (1733-1816), Abufas, ou la Famille Arabe ; vivid picture of desert life. Louis-Jean Nepomucene Lemercier (1771-1840), Agamemnon (Paris); "the last great antique tragedy in French literature" (Charles Lafitte). Thomas Morton (1764-1838), The Way to Get Married (comedy). Jean Paul (1763-1825), Siebenkas . William Shakespeare not, Vortigern and Rowena (Apr. 2) (Drury Theatre, London); despite doubts raised by actor John Philip Kemble, Richard Brinsley Sheridan pays 300 pounds for this forgery, which flops on the first night after Kemble repeats the line "and when this solemn mockery is o'er" with emphasis in Act 4, causing the followers of critic Edmond Malone to begin catcalls, killing it. William Wordsworth (1770-1850), The Borderers (tragedy); first pub. 1842. Heinrich Daniel Zschokke (1771-1848), Julius von Sassen (tragedy). Poetry: Joel Barlow (1854-1912), The Hasty Pudding ; his love for New England corn meal mush. Willem Bilderdijk (1756-1831), Gebed . Rhyijnvis Feith (1753-1824), Odes and Miscellaneous Poems (5 vols.) (1796-1814). Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle, Essais en Verse et en Prose - no catchy tunes here? Robert Southey (1774-1843), Joan of Arc . (2 vols.); repub. in 1798 with additions by Samuel Taylor Coleridge. Novels: Fanny Burney (1752-1840), Camilla, or A Picture of Youth . Denis Diderot (1713-84), Jacques le Fataliste et Son Maitre (Jacques the Fatalist and His Master) (posth.); Le Religieuse (The Nun) (posth.); only lesbian novel of the 18th cent. Elizabeth Hamilton (1756-1816), Letters of a Hindoo Rajah ; anti-Jacobin novel. Wilhelm Heinse (1749-1803), Hildegard von Hohenthal . Matthew Gregory Lewis, Ambrosio, or the Monk (Gothic romance). Jean Paul (1763-1825), Biographical Recreations under the Brainpan of a Giantess ; Life of Quintus Fixlein . Ludwig Tieck (1773-1853), William Lowell (Weltschmerz novel). Births: German chemist-naturalist Karl Ernst Claus (Carl Ernst Klaus) (d. 1864) on Jan 23 in Dorpat (Tartu), Livonia. Am. guitar maker Christian Frederick Martin Sr. (d. 1873) on Jan. 31 in Markneukirchen, Germany. English botanist-geologist John Stevens Henslow (d. 1861) on Feb. 6 in Rochester, Kent; educated at St. John's College, Cambridge U.; teacher of Charles Darwin, who introduces him to Capt. Fitzroy of HMS Beagle. French technocrat (disciple of Comte de Saint-Simon) Barthelemy (Barth�lemy) Prosper Enfantin (d. 1864) on Feb. 8 in Paris; educated at the Ecole Polytechnique. Belgian statistician-astronomer-sociologist Lambert Adolphe Jacques Quetelet (d. 1874) on Feb. 22 in Ghent. Swiss mathematician Jakob Steiner (d. 1897) on Mar. 18. German religious historian Johann Adam Mohler (M�hler) (d. 1838) on Apr. 6 in Igersheim (Wurtemberg). Am. frontiersman-soldier Col. James "Jim" Bowie (d. 1836) on Apr. 10 in Logan County, Ky.; known with his brother Rezin P. Bowie for their 9 to 16-in. long Bowie knives. Am. soldier-explorer Benjamin Louis Eulalie de Bonneville (d. 1878) on Apr. 14 in Paris; emigrates to the U.S. in 1803 (passage paid by Thomas Paine (1737-1809), who leaves his estate to his mother Marguerite for the education of her sons Benjamin and Thomas). German poet-dramatist Karl Leberecht Immermann (d. 1840) on Apr. 24 in Magdeburg; educated at the U. of Halle. Am. actor Junius Brutus Booth (d. 1852) on May 1 in St. Pancras, London, England; descended through his mother from English statesman John Wilkes (1727-97); father of actors Junius Brutus Booth Jr. (1821-83), Edwin Thomas Booth (1833-93), and John Wilkes Booth (1838-65). Am. educational reformer and U.S. Rep. (R-Mass.) (1848-53) Horace Mann (d. 1859) on May 4 in Franklin, Mass.; educated at Brown U.; brother-in-law of Nathaniel Hawthorne. Am. Hispanist historian (blind) (first scientific historian in the U.S.) William Hickling Prescott (d. 1859) on May 4 in Salem, Mass; educated at Harvard U. Russian Romanov tsar #15 (1824-55) Nicholas I (Nikolai Pavlovich) (d. 1855) on May 25; 3rd son of Paul I (1754-1801); brother of Alexander I (1777-1825); father of Alexander II (1818-81). French physicist Nicolas Leonard Sadi Carnot (d. 1832) on June 1 in Paris; son of Lazare Carnot (1753-1823); educated at the Ecole Polytechnique. Am. Presbyterian Bible scholar George Bush (d. 1859) on June 12 in Norwich, Vt.; ancestor of U.S. pres. George H.W. Bush and U.S. pres. George W. Bush; educated at Dartmouth College, and Princeton U. French statesman Gen. Charles Guillaume Marie appollinaire Antoine Cousin Montauban, Comte de Palikao (d. 1878) on June 24 in Paris. Am. "Age of Fable" mythologist Thomas Bulfinch (d. 1867) on July 15 in Newton, Mass.; son of Charles Bulfinch (1761-1844); educated at Boston Latin School, Phillips Exeter Academy, and Harvard U. French landscape painter Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot (d. 1875) on July 17 in Paris; educated at the Rouen Lycee; pupil of Victor Bertin; known for his generosity to less fortunate artists ("le pere Corot"). Am. Western painter-writer-explorer George Catlin (d. 1872) on July 26 in Wilkes-Barre, Penn.; explores South and Central Am. and Europe in 1852-7. Am. inventor Walter Hunt (d. 1859) on July 29 in Martinsburg, N.Y.; eldest of 13 children. Irish "Father Connell" novelist Michael Banim (d. 1874) on Aug. 5 in Kilkenny; brother of John Banim (1798-1842). Am. "Kindred Spirits" painter-engraver Asher Brown Durand (d. 1886) on Aug. 21 in Maplewood, N.J.; co-founder with Thomas Cole of the Hudson River School of Painting. Am. philanthropist (founder of Smith College) Sophie Smith (d. 1870) on Aug. 27 in Hatfield, Mass. Am. anti-slavery activist (black) David Walker (d. 1830) on Sept. 28 in Wilmington, N.C.; slave father, free mother; born free. German novelist Karl Spindler (d. 1855) on Oct. 16 in Breslau. German "Polenlieder" poet-dramatist (bi?) Count August von Platen (Platen-Hallermunde) (d. 1835) on Oct. 24 in Ansbach. German composer-conductor-singer ("the Schubert of North Germany") Johann Carl (Karl) Gottfried Loewe (d. 1869) on Nov. 30 in Lobejun; known for his long narrative musical poems. English poet John Hamilton Reynolds (d. 1852) ; friend of John Keats. Irish Chartist leader (Protestant) Feargus O'Connor (d. 1855) . English Radical politician (Chartist supporter) ("Radical Dandy") Thomas Slingsby "Honest Tom" Dunscombe (d. 1861) in Yorkshire; educated at Harrow School. Russian naval officer-explorer Baron Ferdinand Petrovich von Wrangell (d. 1870) . Deaths: Scottish "common sense" philosopher Thomas Reid (b. 1710); Hume's most famous critic. English divine George Campbell (b. 1719) on Apr. 6. English MP (1768-90) and brewer Samuel Whitbread (b. 1720) on June 11 in London; leaves a �1M estate. Swedish-born Scottish Somerset House architect Sir William Chambers (b. 1723) on Feb. 17 in London. British adm. Sir Hugh Palliser (b. 1723) on Mar. 19 in Chalfont St. Giles, Buckinghamshire. Scottish physicist John Anderson (b. 1726) on Jan. 13. Russian empress (1762-96) Catherine II the Great (b. 1729) on Nov. 6 in St. Petersburg. Am. Episcopal loyalist minister Samuel Seabury (b. 1729) on Feb. 25. German mathematician Johann Daniel Titius (b. 1729). U.S. pres. #1 (under the Articles of Confederation (DOI signer) Samuel Huntington (b. 1731) on Jan. 5 in Norwich, Conn. Am. astronomer David Rittenhouse (b. 1732) on June 26. Swedish scientist Johan Wilcke (b. 1732). English explorer Capt. Philip Carteret (b. 1733) on July 21. French scientist Alexandre-Theophile Vandermonde (b. 1735) on Jan. 1. Scottish "Ossian" poet James Macpherson (b. 1736) on Feb. 17. Bavarian-born French gen. Henri Christian Michel de Stengel (b. 1744) on Apr. 28 in Carcassone (KIA). Am. Rev. Gen. Anthony Wayne (b. 1745). Scottish poet Robert "Robbie" Burns (b. 1759) on July 21; buried in St. Michael's churchyard; on July 21 his wife Jean Armour (b. 1830) bears their 9th "wee bairn" (child), Maxwell; "The best laid plans of mice and men/ Gang aft agley"; "But mark the Rustic, haggis-fed/ The trembling earth resounds his tread/ Clap in his walie nieve [big fist] a blade/ He'll make it whissle/ An legs an' arms and heads will sned" - the good gang agley young? German writer Baron Adolph Knigge (b. 1752) on May 6. German philosopher Johann Philipp Siebenkees (b. 1759) (stroke). English poet Robert Lovell (b. 1771) in Italy (disappears without a trace).
1797 - Take Your Pick? Napoleon's France sews the seeds of French-style republics all over da place? A top hat year for England with big Vs at Cape St. Vincent and Camperdown, but a bad XYZ year for the fledgling U.S., which deeply divides over the coulda-been-cool French Revolution?
1797 On Jan. 14 Napoleon's 22K-man army defeats a 28K-man Austrian force led by Archduke Charles at the Battle of Rivoli , earning him the name "Little Corporal" - his fly was open? On Jan. 15 the first top hat is worn in London by John Etherington, causing him to be arrested for disturbing the peace. It's only a manly man who could? I want a perfect body I want a perfect soul? On Feb. 3 Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821) takes Mantua after a seige, and founds the short-lived Lombard (Cispadane) Repub. , then advances toward Rome until Pope Pius VI concludes the Treaty of Tolentino with him on Feb. 19; he then crosses the Alps, marches through the Austrian Tirol (Tyrol), and comes within 80 mi. of Vienna, forcing Austria to open negotiations. On Feb. 7 Napoleon occupies the seaport of Ancona in the Marches of C Italy; after seeing that the Jews are forced to wear yellow bonnets and arm bands with the Star of David, Mr. Liberty-Equality-Fraternity gets pissed-off, and orders the practice stopped and the ghetto to be closed, after which he forms a plan to make Jews full citizens of France so that they will flock in and bring their zippety-doo-dah big bucks with them?; on Nov. 19 the Repub. of Ancona is proclaimed with French help (until Mar. 7, 1798). On Feb. 10 yesterday's news Francois-Noel Babeuf is put on trial in Vendome, and on Apr. 26 he is convicted along with some of his followers, and executed on Apr. 27 (Prairial 8). On Feb. 14 a British fleet under Adm. John Jervis, 1st Earl of St. Vincent (1735-1823) and Commodore Horatio Nelson defeats a larger Spanish fleet under vice-adm. Jose de Cordoba y Ramos de Garay (1732-1815) in the naval Battle of Cape St. Vincent in Portugal. In Feb. an earthquake in Quito, Ecuador levels the city (founded in 1530), killing 41K. On Mar. 4 Mass.-born John Adams (1735-1826) , AKA "the Duke of Braintree", "His Rotundity", "the Atlas of Independence", "the Colossus of Debate", "the Father of the Navy", "Bonny Johnny", "Old Sink or Swim" (from a speech he gave), "Your Superfluous Excellency" (what Ben Franklin called him when vice-pres.) becomes the 2nd U.S. pres. (until 1801) (first 1-term pres.) (first to never own slaves , the next being his son John Quincy Adams) in the 3rd U.S. Pres. Inauguration ; Thomas Jefferson becomes the 2nd U.S. vice-pres., first of a string of Repub. veeps (Burr, Clinton, Gerry, Tompkins) ending with John C. Calhoun, who resigns in 1832; Adams keeps the Washington cabinet intact, unaware that three of its members look for their instructions to Federalist leader Alexander Hamilton; First Lady Abigail Smith Adams (1744-1818) likes to be called "Mrs. President"; Adams, unlike Washington doesn't keep his temper private, and throws his wig at his cabinet? On Mar. 5 the Philadelphia Aurora comments: "If ever there was a period for rejoicing, this is the moment. Every heart, in unison with freedom and happiness of the people, ought to beat high with exultation that the name of Washington ceases from this day to give currency to political iniquity and to legalize corruption." On Mar. 6 the nondenominational London Missionary Society arrives in Tahiti on the ship Duff and establishes a major station which sends missionaries to Tonga and the Marquesas. On Mar. 8 Danish-Icelandic sculptor (Albert) Bertel Thorvaldsen (1770-1844) arrives in Rome, and settles there, celebrating the date as his "Roman birthday", going on to sculpt busts of Copernicus and Gutenberg, and a Statue of the Risen Christ that the Mormons later really dig. On Apr. 13 an informer onboard HMS Sovereign at Portsmouth, England informs an officer that a mutiny over appalling working conditions is imminent, and the signal is flashed 70 mi. to London in 3 min. by George Murray's new signaling system; the Royal Navy mutinies at Spithead , and again at the Nore from May 12 to June 13. On Apr. 17 the Preliminary Peace (Treaty) of Leoben is signed in Leoben, Austria, in which Austria takes over Venetia, proclaiming the Venetian Constitution , while on June 29 Napoleon merges the Transpadane and Cispadane Repubs. with the province of Novara to form the Cisalpine Repub. (ends 1802) in Lombardy (NW Italy) (capital Milan) (with a green-white-red Italian flag, but of square shape like the Cispadane flag); on June 14 he creates the Ligurian Repub. (until 1805) in NW Italy based on the defunct Repub. of Genoa (ending the dogeship, begun 1339), with the same red cross on white background Genoese flag; Pope Pius VI is forced to surrender papal territories to the Cisalpine Repub., and when he drags his feet, the French prepare to march on Rome again; in May Napoleon abolishes the Repub. of Venice., turning Venice into a museum-like backwater. In May at her hubby's urging Abigail Adams leaves the farm for Philly to be the brains of his admin.? On June 7 after suffering for years and sending negotiators, the U.S. Senate approves the Treaty of Tripoli , negotiated by Freethinking U.S. envoy (friend of Thomas Paine) Joel Barlow (1754-1812) , whose English trans. contains nonexistent Article 11: "As the government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion; as it has in itself no character of enmity against the laws, religion, or tranquility of Musselmen; and, as the said States never entered into any war, or act of hostility against any Mahometan nation, it is declared by the parties, that no pretext arising from religion opinions shall ever produce an interruption of the harmony existing between the two countries"; the first example of Islam history ignoramus Americans bowing to Islamic Sharia, disavowing knowledge of their own Christian foundations to appease madass Muslims?; in his June 4, 2009 speech in Cairo, Pres. Obama cites it to justify calling the U.S. a nation of Muslims, not realizing that the Barbary pirates demanded and got a giant jizya bribe to stop, their emissary quoting the Quran that all nations not acknowledging Sharia were sinners and that it was their right and duty to make war upon them and make slaves of all Yankee infidel prisoners they took, and that George Washington uttered the soundbyte "Would to Heaven we have a navy to reform those enemies to mankind or crush them into nonexistence"; too bad, they consider the bribes an ongoing thing and keep demanding more until the refusal of a $225K bribe causes them to declare war on the U.S. in May 1801. On June 17 after eunuch Agha Mohammad Khan (b. 1742) is assassinated in Shusha by his servants for threatening to behead them for eating a slice of melon, his oversexed nephew Baba Khan (known for having 700 wives) becomes Persian Qajar shah #2 Fath (Fat'h) Ali Shah Qajar (1771-1834) (until Oct. 23, 1834), going on to preside over a resurgence of Persian arts while sporting a cool black beard, reading the entire 18-vol. 3rd ed. of the Encyclopaedia Britannica and titling himself "Most Formidable Lord and Master of the Encyclopaedia Britannica"; he assigns his son Abbas Mirza to fight the pesky Russians for the next 30 years, which proves a losing effort. In the spring the merchant ship Rajah , out of Salem, Mass. returns to New York with a cargo of "wrinkled blackberries" (peppercorns) from Sumatra, pepping-up the Salem-based spice trade (until 1856). On July 8 William Blount (1749-1800) of Tenn., founder of Knoxville becomes the first U.S. senator impeached by the House after he is caught in Blount's Conspiracy with Britain to wrest New Orleans and the Floridas from Spain without informing his own govt., and charged with a "high misdemeanor entirely inconsistent with his public trust and duty"; after he is expelled from the Senate, his trial is postponed until 1798, and charges dismissed in 1799 because he is no longer a member, and because many argue that the Constitution doesn't allow impeachment of members of Congress, only expulsion, and he becomes the last (until ?); he becomes a state sen. in Tenn. and rides it out until his sudden death. On July 17 Ferdinand von Hompesch zu Bolheim (1744-1805) becomes Knights of Malta grandmaster #71 until July 6, 1799 (first German); he bestows the title of Citta Beland (his mother's surname) on the town of Zejtun (Arab. "olive") in S Malta; too bad, he disregards warnings and fails to take action against an invasion prior to the French invasion next June 6. On July 22-25 British Adm. Horatio Nelson leads a brash attack on Spanish-held Santa Cruz de Tenerife in the Canary Islands, and on July 24 loses his right arm to go with his lost right eye. Living la vida loca? French gets embarrassed? On Sept. 4 the Coup of 18 Fructidor , led by Paul Francois Jean Nicolas, Vicomte de Barras (1755-1829) ousts the more conservative members from the French Directory, and begins the Directorial Terror (ends 1798), with Paris run by the Triumvirs (Barras, La-Revelliere-Lepeaux, Reubell); Carnot and Barthelemy are deported; press freedom is squelched, right-wing newspapers closed on Sept. 30, and a stamp tax on the press instituted on Oct. 4. On Sept. 18 the British occupy Trinidad , changing the name of the main city to Port of Spain . On Sept. 20 the U.S.S. Constitution , a wooden square-rigger, nicknamed "Old Ironsides" is launched in Boston, Mass., becoming one of the first fighting ships built for the new U.S. Navy as ordered by Pres. Adams; it is retired in 1830. On Sept. 30 the Bankruptcy of the Two-Thirds (Consolidated Third) suspends two-thirds of the French nat. debt. - voila? In Sept. exiled Swiss leaders urge the Directory to liberate Switzerland from the aristocratic canton govt. In Sept. Napoleon frees the Marquis de Lafayette from Austrian confinement at Olmutz, Moravia . On Oct. 11 a British fleet under Scottish-born Adm. Adam Duncan, Viscount Duncan of Camperdown (1731-1804) defeats a Dutch fleet under Adm. Jan Willem De Winter (1750-1812) in the service of France off the sandy hillocks of Camperdown in N Holland (N of Haarlem). Napoleon reorganizes Germany in order to control it, backfiring as Germany arises all the stronger and more unified when he falls? On Oct. 18 Count Johann Ludwig Joseph von Cobenzl (1753-1809) of Austria and Gen. Napoleon Bonaparte of France sign the Treaty of Campoformio in the village of Campoformio (Campoformido) in N Italy, giving the duchy of Milan in Lombardy and the Austrian Netherlands (Belgium) to France, in return giving Austria most of the territories of the defunct Repub. of Venice incl. the city of Venice, Venetian Istia, and Dalmatia (which becomes a crownland) (until 1805); it also secretly cedes the left bank of the Rhine River from Basel to Andernach to France, thus advancing its boundary to the Rhine and wiping out 112 German states lying W of it; the larger German states (Prussia, Bavaria, etc.) which lose territories are compensated by cessions of land in other parts of Germany, being encouraged at the same time to absorb the 1.5K "knights of the empire" (petty principalities averaging less than 3 sq. mi. each) within their borders; the 250 petty ecclesiastical states, many less than 12 sq. mi. in area are absorbed and disappear, and the number of states which survive is reduced to about 50; the political geography of Germany is simplified, and German nat. feeling begins to rise; Napoleon returns to Paris and is appointed to command forces invading England. The first human parachute jump? On Oct. 22 after experimenting with animals, Andre (Andr�) Jacques Garnerin (1769-1823) parachutes from 3.2K ft. over Monceau Park in Paris in a 23-ft. diam. parachute made of white canvas with 36 ribs in an umbrella configuration, and a basket at the bottom; in 1799 his wife Jeanne Genevieve Garnerin becomes the first woman to try a parachute jump. On Nov. 16 Prussian king (since 1786) Frederick William II (b. 1744) dies, leaving the country bankrupt, and his semi-enlightened son Frederick William III (1770-1840) (whose portrait bears a striking resemblance to Hollywood actor Vincent Price (1911-93) ?) becomes king of Prussia (until June 7, 1840), while his wet-dream wife becomes Queen Louise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (1776-1810) ; the new king goes on to reform the abuses his father, cut expenses, and steer a neutrality policy in the Napoleonic Wars until 1806. In Nov. Big Man Napoleon returns to France, and begins planning a bold attack to dismantle Britain's colonial empire starting with Egypt - so he can find the Lost Ark and gain its power?Franco-American relations tank this year over a pile of shit in a silk stocking and the XYZ Affair? Talleyrand sends three French agents to Charles Cotesworth Pinckney to demand a bribe and a loan to France as conditions for meeting the Directory, who will only deal with Gerry (a Republican), causing the other two to return to the U.S. and spill the beans, masking the real names and releasing the XYZ orrespondence , sparking outrage; the slogan, "Millions for defense but not one cent for tribute", a toast in honor of John Marshall offered by S.C. Rep. Robert Goodloe Harper (1765-1825) becomes popular, and Marshall rides the popularity into the U.S. House of Reps. in 1799; Federalist majorities are elected to Congress, eager for an undeclared naval war with France; meanwhile John Adams grimly struggles to keep the U.S. out of war with big bad Napoleon, while his supposed friend Jefferson plays party politics and refuses to compromise, hoping to bring down both him and his Federalist Party. King (since 1789) Agonglo dies, and his son Adandozan (-1818) becomes king of Dahomey in W Africa (until 1818), with a regent ruling until 1804, going power-mad and throwing subjects to pet hyenas and slitting women's wombs and other nasty jazz. Denmark begins a policy of armed neutrality to protect its convoys from privateers, pissing-off Britain and France. The Ionian Islands are taken over from Venice by the French (until 1809). York (later Toronto), Ontario succeeds Niagara-on-the-Lake as capital of Upper Canada. Starting this year U.S. ships begin trading with Japan on behalf of the Dutch (until 1809). Andreas Hofer (1767-1810) , an innkeeper near Meran becomes the leader of the peasant resistance in the Austrian Tyrol against Napoleon. French historian-politician Constantin Francois Chasseboeuf, Comte de Volney (1757-1820) , famous for questioning the historicity of Jesus visits the U.S., and is accused by the Adams admin. of being a French spy trying to get La. reoccupied by France, forcing him to return to France next year. Italian hyperpolyglot priest Giuseppe Caspar Mezzofanti (1774-1849) is appointed prof. of Arabic at the U. of Bologna, but is fired after refusing to take an oath of allegiance to the Cisalpine Repub. The city of Baltimore, Md. (founded 1729) (modern pop. 1M) on Chesapeake Bay is incorporated. Urbana, Ohio , 45 mi. W of Columbus is first settled. The bronze horses that once adorned the trimphal arch of Nero at Rome are carried by Napoleon from Venice to Paris; they are returned in 1815. John Quincy Adams (b. 1767) marries Louisa Catherine Johnson (1775-1852) ; they have 3 sons and 1 daughter. German adventurer Friedrich Konrad Hornemann (1772-1801) explores the caravan routes of the Sahara. England begins to export iron. The first copper pennies are minted in England, and the first 1-pound notes issued. The manufacture of window glass begins in Pittsburgh, Penn., spurring industrial growth. The Reynolds Affair sees Alexander Hamilton accused by James Monroe et al. of bribing James Reynolds to coverup financial misconduct during his tenure as U.S. treasury secy., causing Hamilton to admit that he paid blackmail payments over Reynolds' wife Maria; a duel between Monroe and Hamilton is stopped by Aaron Burr - save him for me, Jim? Retired pres. George Washington establishes one of the largest whiskey distilleries in the U.S., producing 11K gal. a year. William Gifford (1756-1826) and George Canning (under-secy. for foreign affairs) found the weekly Anti-Jacobin , supporting William Pitt the Younger's govt. English poet William Wordsworth and his sister Dorothy Wordsworth move from Racedown, Dorsetshire to Alfoxden, Somersetshire to be near poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge in Nether Stowey. Child prodigy artist Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres (1780-1867) goes to Paris to study at the Academy with Jacques-Louis David. German Romantic poet August Wilhelm von Schlegel (1767-1845) begins translating Shakespeare into German - like translating a silk purse into a sow's ear? John MacArthur (1767-1834) introduces Merino sheep from Spain to Australia, where they go on to pass the Spanish breed in the quality of their wool - for those long lonely nights? Thomas Jefferson gives a scientific lecture on a "sloth" which later turns out to be a feline; sloths are cold-blooded, see... Napoleon orders a lavish meal at the Krone Inn in Soleure, Switzerland, then drinks a glass of water and skips out, later receiving a bill for 1,417 Swiss francs. Inventions: On Mar. 8 Nathaniel Briggs of N.H. patents the first clothes washing machine, a washboard - named George? Janet Keiller of Dundee, Scotland invents orange marmalade after a Spanish ship carrying Seville oranges takes refuge in the harbor and they get a little unfresh and have to be unloaded quick, causing Dundee to become known as the city of jute, jam and journalism. Henry Maudslay (1771-1831) , an apprentice of Joseph Braham of England invents the carriage lathe, going on to become the father of machine tool technology. Charles Newbold of Burlington, N.J. patents the cast-iron plow. Etienne-Gaspard Robert of France invents the Phantasmagoria (Gr. "fantasma" + "agora" = ghost + public meeting place), a machine for projecting moving images; too bad, after he begins showing victims of the Reign of Terror, the police shut him down. Science: German astronomer Heinrich Wilhelm Matthaus Olbers (1758-1840) pub. his method for calculating comet orbits. French chemist Louis Nicolas Vauquelin (1763-1829) discovers the metallic element chromium (Cr) (#24), named after the colorful flames made by its compounds. The duck-billed platypus is discovered near Sydney, Australia. Nonfiction: Thomas Bewick (1753-1828), British Birds (1797-1804). George Chalmers (1742-1825), Apology for the Believers in the Shakespearean Papers ; Supplemental Apology ; vain attempt to rescue Samuel Ireland's rep. Francois Rene de Chateaubriand (1768-1848), Essai Historique, Politique, et Moral sur les Revolutions ; his analysis of the causes of the French Rev.; a dud. Johann Gottlieb Fichte (1762-1814), Foundations of Natural Right (Grundlagen des Naturrechts nach Prinzipien der Wissenschaftslehre); argues that self-consciousness is a social phenomenon, requiring the existence of other rational subjects, who summon the self out of its unconsciousness into an awareness of itself as a free individual, creating a "relation of right", meaning that each conscious agent should retain their own "sphere of freedom" in which they are free from outside forces. Arnold Heeren (1760-1842), Geschichte des Studiums der Klassizschen Litteratur seit dem Wideraufleben der Wissenschaften (2 vols.) (1797, 1802). Samuel Ireland, A Picturesque Tour on the Wye ; flops because of his notoriety over the Vortigern affair. Immanuel Kant (1724-1804), The Metaphysics of Morals (Die Metaphysik der Sitten); divided into the Doctrine (Science) of Right (Metaphysical Elements of Justice) and the Doctrine of Virtue, promoting classical republicanism in political philosophy. Joseph-Louis Lagrange (1736-1813), Theorie des Fonctions Analytiques . John Robison (1739-1805), Proofs of a Conspiracy Against All the Religions and Governments of Europe, Carried On in the Secret Meetings of Free Masons, Illuminati, and Reading Societies, Collected from Good Authorities ; prof. of natural philosophy at Edinburgh U. blames the French Rev. on the secret Masonic cell known as the Illuminati, run by Adam Weishaupt, which infiltrated the Freemasons; an internat. bestseller ramping up Illuminati conspiracy theorists till modern times. Asher Benjamin (1773-1845), The Country Builder's Assistant ; detailed plans for builders, used throughout the NE U.S., seducing Am. taste from Federal style to Greek Revival, with graceful proportions, fluted pilasters, fanlights over doorways, and decorative fretwork and guilloches. Nicolas de Saussure (1767-1845), Recherches Chimiques sur la Vegetation ; shows that the increase in weight of a plant as it grows is due to water as well as CO2 uptake. Friedrich von Schelling (1775-1854), Ideen zu einer Philosophie der Natur ; The World Soul (1797-99). Robert Southey (1774-1843), Letters Written During a Short Residence in Spain and Portugal . Wilhelm Heinrich Wackenroder (1773-98), Outpourings of a Monk (Herzensergiessungen eines Kunstliebenden Klosterbruders) - the original Run, Girl? William Wilberforce (1759-1833), Practical View of the Religious System . Juan Yuan, Dictionary of Old Literature . Music: Francois-Adrien Boieldieu (1775-1834), La Famille Suisse (comic opera) (Paris). Luigi Cherubini (1760-1842), Medea (M�d�e) (opera comique) (Mar. 13) (Theatre Feydeau, Paris); libretto by Francois-Benoit Hoffmann (Nicolas Etienne Framery); based on Euripides' tragedy, and Pierre Corneille's play; his masterpiece, although it gets a lukewarm reception until it is revived in Florence in 1953 by Maria Callas. Franz Joseph Haydn (1732-1809), The Emperor Quartet . Art: Francisco de Goya (1746-1828), The Caprices (Los Caprichos) (1797-9); mock the social mores and superstitions of his day. J.M.W. Turner (1775-1851), Millbank, Moon Light . Plays: Ugo Foscolo (1778-1827), Tieste (tragedy). August von Kotzebue (1761-1819), Complete Plays (28 vols.) (1797-1823); 98 of his 200+ plays; 2nd ed. (44 vols.), 1827-9; 3rd ed. (10 vols.), 1868. Poetry: William Blake (1757-1827), Vala, or The Four Zoas (unfinished). Robert Burns (1759-97), Collected Poems (posth.); pub. by Scottish physician James Currie (1756-1805) to benefit his widow and children, but he zings Robbie by painting him as a drunken reprobate? Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772-1834), Kubla Khan (pub. in 1816); The Rime of the Ancient Mariner ; "He prayeth best who loveth best all things great and small"; "For all averred, I had killed the bird that made the breeze to blow". George Colman the Younger (1762-1836), My Night Gown and Slippers ; repub. as "Broad Grins" in 1802. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832), Hermann und Dorothea (pastoral). Friedrich Holderlin (H�lderlin) (1770-1843), Hyperion (2 vols.) (1797-9). William Smyth (1765-1849), English Lyrics ; goes through 5 eds. despite Thomas Moore accusing him of plagiarism. Robert Southey (1774-1843), English Ecologues ; Poems (1797-9). Novels: Jean Paul (1763-1825), Flower, Fruit and Thorn Pieces; or, the Married Life, Death and Wedding of Siebenkas, Poor Man's Lawyer ; The Valley of Campan (Das Kampaner Tal). Ann Radcliffe (1764-1823), Marquis de Sade (1740-1814), Juliette ; pub. anon.; Justine's nympho murderer sister. The Italian, or the Confessional of the Black Penitents . Robert Southey (1774-1843), Icelandic Poetry; or The Edda of Saemund . Ludwig Tieck (1773-1853), Volksmarchen von Peter Lebrecht (3 vols.). Births: Am. atty. (Rose Law firm co-founder) Robert Crittenden (d. 1834) on Jan. 1 in Versailles, Ky. Austrian Romantic composer Franz Seraph Peter Schubert (d. 1828) on Jan. 31 in the House of the Red Crab (Crayfish) in Vienna; descended from Moravian peasantry; 12th of 14 children of parish schoolmaster Franz Theodor Florian and Elisabet Katherina Vietz, only five of which live beyond infancy. French mathematician Jean-Marie Constant Duhamel (d. 1872) on Feb. 5 in Saint-Malo. Irish "Handy Andy" artist-novelist-song writer Samuel Lover (d. 1868) on Feb. 24 in Dublin. Am. educator Mary Mason Lyon (d. 1849) on Feb. 28 in Buckland, Mass.; founder (1837) of Mount Holyoke College. French mathematician Joseph Alphonse Adhemar (Adh�mar) (d. 1862) on Feb. ? in Paris. Am. abolitionist-politician-philanthropist Gerrit Smith (d. 1874) on Mar. 6 in Utica, N.Y.; son of Peter Smith, partner of John Jacob Astor and founder of Petersboro, N.Y.; grandson of John Livingston. German Prussian king (1861-88) and emperor (kaiser) #1 (1871-88) Wilhelm (William) I (the Great) (Wilhelm Friedrich Ludwig) (d. 1888) on Mar. 22 in Berlin; 2nd son of Frederick William III (1770-1840) and Louise Auguste Wilhelmine Amalie of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (1776-1810); father of Frederick III (1831-88); grandfather of Wilhelm II (1859-1941); given a poor education since he wasn't expected to be king. Irish Graves' Disease physician Robert James Graves (d. 1853) on Mar. 27 in Dublin; educated at the U. of Dublin. French "Cinq-Mars" Romantic poet-dramatist-novelist ("Founder of the French Historical Novel") Alfred Victor, Comte de Vigny (d. 1863) on Mar. 27 in Loches. French statesman-historian and pres. (1871-3) Louis Adolphe Thiers (d. 1877) on Apr. 16 in Marseille; only French pres. born in the 18th cent. Am. locksmith Linus Yale Sr. (d. 1858) on Apr. 27 in Middletown, Conn.; father of Linus Yale Jr. (1821-68). French painter Hippolyte "Paul" Delaroche (d. 1856) on July 17 in Paris; studies with Baron Antoine Gros, and ends up half-classic and half-Romantic? French journalist-historian Amedee Simon Dominique Thierry (d. 1873) on Aug. 2 in Blois; brother of Augustin Thierry (1795-1856). French mathematician Adhemar (Adh�mar) Jean Claude Barre (Barr�) de Saint-Venant (d. 1886) on Aug. 23 in Villiers-en-Biere, Siene-et-Marne. Peruvian pres. (1844, 1845-51, 1855-62, 1863) Ramon Castilla y Marquesado (d. 1867) on Aug. 31 in Tarapaca. English "Frankenstein" writer Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley (nee Godwin) (d. 1851) on Aug. 30 in London; daughter of Mary Wollstonecraft (1759-97) and William Godwin (1756-1836); mother dies on Sept. 10 from puerperal fever. Swedish chemist Carl Gustav Mosander (d. 1858) on Sept. 10 in Kalmar. Italian Tuscan grand duke (last) (1824-59) Leopold II (d. 1870) on Oct. 3 in Florence; son of Ferdinand II; father of Ferdinand IV (1835-1908). Swiss novelist Jeremias Gotthelf (Albert Bitzius) (d. 1854) on Oct. 4 in Murten; educated at the U. of Gottingen. Am. Whale Ship Essex seaman-writer Owen Chase (d. 1869) on Oct. 7 in Nantucket, Mass.; inspiration for Herman Melville's "Moby Dick". German poet-writer Wilhelm Mueller (M�ller) (d. 1827) on Oct. 7 in Dessau; educated at the U. of Berlin; father of Max Mueller (1823-1900); grandfather of Wilhelm Max Mueller (1862-1919); Franz Schubert makes him famous by setting his poetry to music. Scottish poet-antiquary-journalist William Motherwell (d. 1835) on Oct. 13 in Glasgow. English lt. Gen. (namesake of the Cardigan sweater) James Thomas Brudenell, 7th Earl of Cardigan (d. 1868) on Oct. 16 in Hambleden, Buckinghamshire; educated at Harrow School, and Christ Church, Oxford U.; leader of the Charge of the Light Brigade in 1854. Italian #1 soprano Giuditta Angiola Maria Constanza Pasta (nee Negri) (d. 1865) on Oct. 26 in Saronno. Scottish uniformitarian (anti-catastrophist) geologist Sir Charles Lyell, 1st Baronet (d. 1875) on Nov. 14 in Kinnordy, Forfarshire; educated at Exeter College, Oxford U. Am. political boss Thurlow Tweed (d. 1882) on Nov. 15 in Cairo, N.Y. - Boss Weed? English banker mayor of London (1855) (first Jew) David Salomons, 1st Baronet 9d. 1873) on Nov. 22 in London; Leyden-born mother; co-founder of the London and Westminster Bank. Italian "Lucia di Lammermoor" composer Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti (d. 1848) on Nov. 29 in Bergamo, Lombardy; student of Simon Mary. German handsome (cool hair, eyebrows, mustache and goatee) Romantic-turned-Young-Germany "Du Bust Wie Eine Blume", Die Zwei Grenadier", "Die Lorelei" poet-critic-essayist (Jewish) Christian Johann Heinrich "Harry" Heine (d. 1856) on Dec. 13 in Dusseldorf; nephew of Hamburg banker Solomon Heine; educated at the U. of Bonn and U. of Gottingen; his whole life is a losing struggle to reconcile a Jewish background with a desire to be German? Am. physicist-inventor ("the Benjamin Franklin of the 19th Cent.) Joseph Henry (d. 1878) on Dec. 17 in Albany, N.Y; educated at the Albany Academy; first dir. of the Smithsonian Inst. (1846). Spanish "La Gaviota" novelist (female) Fernan (Fern�n) Caballero (Cecilia Francisco Joseia Bohl von Faber) (d. 1877) on Dec. 24 in Morges, Switzerland; educated in Germany; founder of the modern Spanish novel. Welsh poet John Blackwell (AKA Alun) (d. 1840) near Yr Wyddgrug, Flintshire. German "The Spiritual Year", "The Jew's Beech" novelist-poet Annette von Droste-Hulshoff (Droste-H�lshoff) (d. 1848) in Hulshoff (near Munster). Japanese woodblock color print (ukiyo-e) artist Ando (Ichiyusai) Hiroshige (d. 1858) in Edo. English scientist Capt. Henry Piddington (d. 1858) ; coiner of the term "cyclone". Russian Northern Caucausus Islamist leader Imam Shamil (Shamyl) (Shameel) (Schamil) (Schamyl) (d. 1871) in Gimry, Dagestan. Am. abolitionist preacher (black) Sojourner Truth (Isabella Bonfry or Baumfree) (d. 1883) Swartekill, Ulster County, N.Y.; born a slave; ends up with a Dutch accent. Deaths: British field marshal Baron Jeffrey Amherst (b. 1717) on Aug. 3 in Sevenoaks, Kent. English statesman-writer Horace Walpole (b. 1717) on Mar. 2 in Berkeley Square, London; leaves a giant pile of Letters , mainly to Mann, which Lord Byron (1788-1824) calls incomparable, and Croker claims are a "perfect encyclopedia of information from the very best sources": "The whole secret of life is to be interested in one thing profoundly and in a thousand things well." French dramatist Michel-Jean Sedaine (b. 1719) on May 17. German self-inflating anecdotist Baron von Munchausen (b. 1720). Austrian field marshal Dagobert Sigmund von Wurmser (b. 1724) on Aug. 22 in Vienna. English radical political reformer John Wilkes (b. 1725) on Dec. 26. Scottish uniformitarian geologist James Hutton (b. 1726) on Mar. 26. Am. Rev. War brig. gen. (DOI signer) Oliver Wolcott (b. 1726) on Dec. 1 in Conn. Canadian-born French gen. Charles Deschamps de Boishebert et de Raffetot (b. 1727) on Jan. 9 in Raffetot. Russian educator Ivan Shuvalov (b. 1727) on Nov. 14 in St. Petersburg. Swiss physician Samuel Auguste Tissot (b. 1728). Irish-born British statesman-writer Edmund Burke (b. 1729) on July 9 in Beaconsfield: "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing"; "Nothing is so fatal to religion as indifference, which is, at least, half infidelity"; "A very great part of the mischiefs that vex this world arises from words"; "When bad men combine, the good must associate; else they will fall one by one, an unpitied sacrifice in a contemptible struggle." Am. Rev. leader and judge James Duane (b. 1733) on Feb. 1 in Schenectady, N.Y. English bone china inventor Josiah Spode Sr. (b. 1733). Am. statesman (DOI signer) Francis Lightfoot Lee (b. 1734) on Jan. 11 in Richmond County, Va. French explorer Adm. Yves Joseph de Kerguelen-Tremarec (b. 1734) on Mar. 3 in Brest. English painter Joseph Wright (b. 1734) on Aug. 29 in Derby. Am. Rev. patriot (DOI signer) Carter Braxton (b. 1736) on Oct. 10 in Richmond, Va.; namesake of Braxton County, W. Va. Prussian king (1786-97) Frederick William II (b. 1744) on Nov. 16 in Potsdam. Spanish explorer Juan Manuel de Ayala (b. 1745) on Dec. 30. Nigerian-born British anti-slavery activist Olaudah Equiano (b. 1745) on Mar. 31 in London. English "Hannibal Crossing the Alps" painter John Robert Cozens (b. 1752) on Dec. 14. English author Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin (b. 1759) on Sept. 10 (puerperal fever). French socialist rev. leader Francois-Noel Babeuf (b. 1760) on Apr. 27 in Vendome (executed). French Gen. (Army of the Rhine cmdr.) Lazare Hoche (b. 1768) on Sept. 19 near the Rhine River (TB).
1798 - The Naked Maya Lyrical Ballads Tintern Abbey Rime of the Ancient Mariner Year? The I'm the captain, I'm the first mate, we're on a treasure hunt year? An eerie modernized replay of the Crusades occurs when the new Antichrist Napoleon goes into Egypt looking for Indiana Jones and the Last Ark, and finds the Rosetta Stone? Meanwhile there's an eruption of that's-not-nice gas in Ireland?
1798 On Jan. 11 king (since 1744) Erekle II (b. 1720) dies, and on Jan. 12 his son George (Georgi) XII (1746-1800) becomes the last Bagrationi king of moribund Kakheti and Kartli in E Georgia, trying in vain to get protection from Persia by appealing to Russia, who wants to gobble it up too. In Jan. France invades Switzerland, and on Mar. 28 proclaims the Helvetic (Helvetian) Repub. (ends 1803) in Bern, followed by the Lemanic Repub. (ends 1803) in Geneva (Vaud) - standing on the rooftops, everybody scream your heart out? On Feb. 10 French troops under Gen. Louis Alexandre Berthier (1753-1815) occupy the Vatican State, and on Feb. 15 declare the Roman (Tiberina) Repub. (until 1800) (with the blue strip in the French flag replaced by a black one), demanding that Pope Pius VI renounce his temporal sovereigny, but he says stuff it and flees, is captured and taken to Siena in Tuscany, and later to Valence, France, pissing off fellow Italian King Ferdinand IV of Naples (Sicily) (1751-1825) , who declares war on France. In Jan. Park Theatre (originally New Theatre) at 21-25 Park Row in Manhattan, N.Y. opens, becoming the #1 theater in New York City; it is demolished on Dec. 16, 1848 after a fire. The not so soft goodbye in Fireland? On Feb. 19 the unsuccessful 1798 Irish (United Irishmen) Ruction (Rebellion) (excuse me?), led by the Society of United Irishmen and modeled on the French Rev. starts in Leinster, then spreads, with a rising of poorly-armed peasants in Wexford; British redcoats aided by Hessian mercentaries defeat them on June 21 in the Battle of Vinegar Hill ; meanwhile on Aug. 23 a French force of 1.1K under United Irishmen leader Gen. ? Humbert lands in Killala Bay too late to help them, and it is quashed by Sept. 24; the gaseous nature of the revolt causes the word "ruction" to be coined; British secy. for Ireland (since 1797) Robert Stewart, Viscount Castlereagh (1769-1822) (an Ulster Protestant) offers clemency to commoners supporing the ruction, and focuses on punishing the leaders; after the English stop an attempt to seize Dublin, all of Ireland becomes an Englishgarrison run from Dublin Castle , while the Irish pop. is at the mercy of a debauched landlord class with the power of judge, jury, and executioner or transporter of the "tenants", sending hundreds, incl. Presbyterian ministers and professionals without trial or charges to life imprisonment in Australia, where the "rebels of 1798" face inhuman conditions and vicious flogging, all the more because of their intelligence?; the lucky ones begin emigrating to Canada; Irish PM (since 1782) (a liberal Protestant with Catholic sympathies) John Philpot Curran (1750-1817) vigorously defends Society of United Irishmen founder Archibald Hamilton Rowan (1751-1834) and other ruction leaders, gaining a good rep., ending with the defense of Napper Tandy in 1800; meanwhile British PM Pitt sees the ruction as proof of the need for a union of the two countries - some sneak to New Orleans to drink Hand Grenades? On Mar. 17 (St. Patrick's Day) a failed slave uprising on Montserrat results in the Caribbean island becoming the only country other than Ireland to celebrate St. Patrick's Day after slavery is abolished in 1834. On May 11 the bloodless Coup (Law) of 22 Floreal in France challenges the returns of several elections and excludes approx. 25% of the candidates. On May 18 Richard Colley Wesley, 1st Marquis Wellesley (1760-1842) (brother of the Duke of Wellington) becomes gov.-gen. of India (until July 30, 1805). On May 19-20 the French Invasion of Egypt (ends 1801), Napoleon's most romantic adventure begins after he reconnoiters a British force under Commodore Horatio Nelson that was scattered by a storm, and his dismasted flagship HMS Vanguard secretly sails for Egypt from Toulon with 38K men, incl. a boatload of 167 savants (scientists and mathematicians) (Monge, Berthollet, Fourier), incl. Orientalists from his new Institut d'Egypt (which settles in Cairo) in a fleet of 300 transport ships, 13 ships of the line and seven frigates (28K men), with vague grandiose plans of conquering all of the East like Alexander the Great, starting with the Ottoman Empire, cutting off British access to India; on June 6 they arrive at Malta , and after being refused entrance of more than two ships at a time and enjoying inside help from the Maltese, take it by June 12, expelling the 322 Knights of Malta (St. John) (Hospitallers) (whose French members wouldn't fight French troops) still defending it under grandmaster Ferdinand von Hompesch, who leaves for Trieste on June 18, and resigns next July 6; Nappy frees 2K Muslim slaves, and abolishes all religious orders on the island, and writes to the Bey of Tunis to boast of his favor to Islam, then reforms their govt. and steals their library and treasures (pissing-off Tsar Paul I, who is also a grandmaster, and was trying to finagle the first Russian warm water port there); on July 1 after slipping by Nelson's clueless fleet on the night of June 22-23, Nappy lands 5K troops in Alexandria, Egypt , capturing it by July 2, then landing the rest of his troops, giving a speech to the Egyptian crowd with the soundbyte "We are the true Muslims", trying to sell them on his being a fan of Muhammad, and hinting he might convert to Islam along with his troops in order to win the clerics of Al-Azhar seminary over, which they don't buy; after kicking the butts of Murad Bey and his best cavalry on July 13 in the Battle of Shubrakhit , Nappy's troops march through the grueling desert and defeat Murad Bey's Mamluks at the Battle of the Pyramids on July 21, capturing Cairo after losing only 30 killed and 300 wounded vs. 3K Mamluk casualties; back in Britain they finally learn of Nappy's invasion from French newspapers on July 12; meanwhile Nelson's British fleet reaches Alexandria on June 29, then goes W instead of E, and swings back, sailing along the S coast of Crete and back to Syracuse on July 19, never finding Nappy; on July 25 Napoleon defeats 10K Turks supported by the British at the Battle of Aboukir (Abu Qir) (Abukir) Bay (14.5 mi. NE of Alexandria), making him master pharaoh of Egypt; Murad Bey retreats to Upper Egypt, and Ibrahim Bey to Palestine; never fear, after heading for Greece, and receiving news of the French position on July 29, on Aug. 1-2 the British navy under Nelson finally arrives back in Alexandria to save the day, and sinks most of the French fleet (emptied of troops) in Aboukir Bay in the Battle of the Nile (only two of 13 French ships of the line escape, while no British ships are lost), cutting Napoleon off from France, which ends his threat of conquering India and the East, but only pisses him off into invading Palestine and Syria?; the 98-gun line-of-battle ship Fighting Temeraire is captured by the British, later gaining fame in the 1805 Battle of Trafalgar; the USS Constellation , commanded by Commodore Truxton captures the French frigate L'Insurgente ; French capt. Aristide Aubert Du Petit Thouars (1760-98) of the Tonnant forces HMS Bellerophon to lower its flag, forces HMS Majestic to break off combat, then dies in a bucket filled with wheat with both of his legs and one arm blown off, commanding to the end, his last order being to nail the flag of his ship to the mizzen-mast and never give up the ship, which is later captured; meanwhile in July the suddenly-the-old-world-changes Rosetta Stone is found in Qayitbey Castle in the small Egyptian village of Raschid (Rosette) by French capt. Pierre-Francois Blouchard, who reports it to French Gen. Jacques-Francois de Menou, Baron de Boussay (1750-1810) , who, on Nappy's orders to be friendly with the natives feigned conversion to Islam under the name 'Aly Napoleon Bonaparte, and married Egyptian woman Sitta Zoubeida, daughter of a bathhouse keeper whom he mistakenly believed is of the Egyptian aristocracy because she claims to be a descendant of Prophet Muhammad; a 36-in. piece of black basalt containing a decree of the Egyptian priests of Ptolemy V Epiphanes (-205 to -181) in parallel hieroglyphics, demotic and Greek characters, it proves the key to the lost art of reading hieroglyphics after the Egyptian Inst. is founded in Cairo on Aug. 22. On July 4 George Washington is commissioned lt. gen. and CIC of the new U.S. Army . The U.S. gets pissed-off at France for being too Republican, and the Federalists turn the govt. into a Republican-bashing machine back home? On July 7 (in a particularly hot summer in Philly) the U.S. abrogates its first (1778) treaties with France, suspends commercial relations, and begins an undeclared naval Quasi-War (ends 1800) with its former ally, establishing a Navy Dept. and authorizing an expanded navy, then, over Pres. Adams' objections, also a 10K-man army, to be commanded nominally by Geprge Washington but mainly by Alexander Hamilton; an unprecedented federal tax on land, bldgs., and slaves to pay for it all leads to Fries's Rebellion in 1799; on July 6 and July 14 (in Adams' big mistake in office?), the Federalist-controlled Congress passes the U.S. Alien and Sedition Acts , incl. the Naturalization Act, the Alien Friends Act (expires 1801), the Alien Enemies Act, and the Sedition Act (expires 1800), ostensibly aimed at post-rev. France and French immigrants, but really aimed at Jefferson's Dem.-Repub. Party, giving Adams new powers over recent immigrants, who tend to be Dem.-Repubs., and causing the arrest and conviction of 25 Repubs., incl. Scottish-born James Thompson Callendar (1758-1803) (whom Adams caught Jefferson paying to slander him publicly, causing a 10-year rift between them), and English-born big brain Thomas Cooper (1759-1839) , a friend of Jefferson, who later goes to S.C. and whips up secessionist sentiment; the acts are allowed to expire within a couple of years, and by 1802 all of the convictions are repealed or expire, while the Alien Enemies Act remains in effect until ? (as 50 USC 21-24); on Dec. 3 and Dec. 24 the Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions of Thomas Jefferson and James Madison invoke the rights of the states against federal encroachment against individual liberties, which soon becomes the "sword wielded by sectionalism", as various sections of the country feel free to threaten secession when they disagree with federal policies - the Brits look on grinning? On July 11 the U.S. Marine Corps is formally reestablished by Congress, and the U.S. Marine Band is created to play for the U.S. pres., with 32 members, which eventually grows to 160; the usual line-up is drum major in front, then 6 rows of 6 players, with the two 4-valve euphoniums in the middle and four slide trombones at the ends of row 1, 6 clarinets in row 2, 3 17-ft. French horns and 3 clarinets in row 3, 6 3-valve trumpets in row 4, 3 saxophones, 2 piccolos and 1 trumpet in row 5, and 2 sousaphones (on the end), 2 snare drums, 1 cymbals and 1 bass drum in row 6; the drum major wears a tall furry bearskin hat, a sash across his chest with the band's crest, and a staff with a figure of the U.S. Capitol dome on top. On July 16 the U.S. Marine Hospital Service is established for sick and disabled seamen; it will become the Public Health Service in 1912 - they didn't have a word for socialism yet? On Sept. 5 the Jourdan Law introduces conscription for all able-bodied French males ages 20 and up, causing 200K conscriptions. On Sept. 9 the Ottomans declare war on France, forming one army in Damascus to advance through Syria and Palestine toward the Sinai, and another on Rhodes to land near the Nile under British protection; meanwhile a large force of Egyptian troops under Murad Bey control Upper Egypt, disrupting the grain supply to Lower Egypt, and by spring of 1800 the French give up trying to dislodge them. On Sept. 28 Nappy's troops find a 5.2-mi.-long 1K-ft.-wide ridge exposed over the Red Sea and cross it dry-shod like Moses and his Jewish nation, although Nappy is almost drowned as the tide begins to rise? On Oct. 24 George Washington writes a letter containing the soundbyte: "It was not my intention to doubt that, the Doctrines of the Illuminati, and principles of Jacobinism had not spread in the United States. On the contrary, no one is more truly satisfied of this fact than I am. The idea that I meant to convey, was, that I did not believe that the Lodges of Free Masons in this Country had, as Societies, endeavoured to propagate the diabolical tenets of the first, or pernicious principles of the latter (if they are susceptible of seperation) [sic]. That Individuals of them may... actually had a seperation [sic] of the People from their Government in view, is too evident to be questioned." In Oct. an Egyptian revolt in Cairo is suppressed after two days, with 3K Egyptians and 300 French killed. In early Dec. a Neapolitan army, commanded by Austrian Gen. Karl Mack von Leiberich (1752-1828) attempts to drive the French out of the Papal States and enters Rome; on Dec. 15 the French under Gen. Jean Etienne Championnet (Vachier) (1762-1800) recapture Rome, and he is named CIC of the "army of Rome", which has only 8K soldiers with 15 cartridges each, which doesn't stop him from going after the pesky kingdom of Naples. On Dec. 7 1.5K French troops under Gen. Louis Andre Bon (1758-99) capture Suez, Egypt. On Dec. 9 Duke Charles Emmanuel IV of Sardinia is forced to flee Turin for Sardinia, first having the Shroud of Christ trotted out for veneration by his royal family. On Dec. 24 Russia and Britain form an alliance. Quaker Richard Nixon, er, U.S. Sen. (Dem.-Rep. from Penn.) George Logan (1753-1821) (grandson of William Penn's secy. James Logan) travels to France to seek an end to the quasi-war with the U.S.; although he returns with an agreement, he is condemned by the Congress for stepping on their turf, causing them to pass the U.S. Logan Act , preventing any direct intervention of private citizens in foreign affairs; it remains famous for never being prosecuted, except in Bruce Willis movies? - the reason that only Nixon can go to China? 36-y.-o. peachfuzz cheeks Bushrod Washington (1762-1829) of Va. (nephew of George Washington) (one of the first members of Phi Beta Kappa at the College of William and Mary, who inherits Mt. Vernon in 1799 to boot) is appointed on Feb. 4 as the 10th U.S. Supreme Court justice (until Nov. 26, 1829) to replace James Wilson (1789-98). Britain passes a 10% income tax on all incomes over �200 as a wartime measure. Benjamin Stoddert (1751-1813) becomes the first U.S. Navy secy. Roustam (Rustam) (Roustan) Raza , an Armenian-born Mamluk, who was kidnapped as a child and sold as a slave in Cairo is presented to Napoleon, who makes him his bodyguard (until 1814); meanwhile as Napoleon casts his eye on India, the Marquis of Wellesley, elder brother of the Duke of Wellington becomes gov.-gen. of British India (ends 1805), and embarks on a vast extension of British territory in India, starting in the S with Hyderabad, signing the Treaty of Hyderabad with the Nizam. The Fourth Anglo-Mysore War begins (ends 1799). William Henry Harrison becomes U.S. secy. of the Northwest Territory. The British occupy the Dutch-held island of Curacao (Cura�ao) off the coast of Venezuela. English explorer Capt. John Fearn discovers 8 sq. mi. Nauru in Micronesia, which becomes the 3rd smallest country on Earth after Vatican City and Monaco. Charles James Fox, who quit Parliament the year before gives a toast at a Whig dinner to "Our Sovereign, the People", which pisses off the king and causes him to be removed from the Privy Council. George Gordon (b. 1788) inherits the title of Baron Byron from his great-uncle. The U.S. Congress grants Indians belonging to the Moravian sect a tract of land in Ohio, causing missionary David Zeisberger to set up a mission there (until 1808). British Adm. Lord St. Vincent coins the term "sick berth", which becomes sick bay after round bows are introduced in 1811, changing the contour of the bulkhead. The Boston State House (Mass.) on Beacon St., designed by Charles Bulfinch features a golden dome, and is situated high on Beacon Hill overlooking Boston Common on land originally owned by John Hancock. British explorer George Bass circumnavigates Tasmania. Kingman Reef , about 1K mi. S of Hawaii is discovered by U.S. Navy Capt. E. Fanning . Baron Johann Friedrich Cotta (1764-1832) begins pub. Allgemeine Zeitung on Jan. 1 in Tubingen, later moving to Stuttgart, Ulm, Augsburg and Munich after the authorities get on his case. William and Dorothy Wordsworth accompany Samuel Taylor Coleridge to Germany (until 1798), where William writes several "Lucy" poems and begins "The Prelude" (finished 1805). August von Kotzebue (1761-1819), who was in the Russian civil service from 1781-90 becomes court dramatist in Vienna (until 1800). Castratos are banned, and women are allowed to appear on the operatic stage in Rome for the 1st time in 200 years by the new Roman Republic. Numerous mss. are taken from the Vatican Library to France, depleting it; by the 21st cent. it contains 60K mss., 7K incunabula, 100K engravings and maps, and 900K books. Sports: The Western India Turf Club is founded on Jan. 10 in Bombay (Mumbai) by the British to conduct horse races; in 1935 George V bestows the title of Royal on it. Inventions: Nicholas Robert of France invents the first paper manufacturing machine. Eli Whitney pioneers the process of mass production and obtains a contract from the U.S. govt. to manufacture 10K rifles, but takes eight years to deliver. Science: English scientist Henry Cavendish (1731-1810) pub. the density of the Earth (5.45) (from which the gravitational constant can be derived), based on the Cavendish Experiment , suggested by English scientist John Michell (1724-93) using a suspended rod with lead balls at its ends. Heytesbury, Wiltshire-born English antiquarian William Cunnington (1754-1810) begins pioneering the science of archeological excavation at Stonehenge, coining a number of terms to categorize and describe Neolthic and Bronze Age barrows; in 1808 he makes the first reference to a trowel in a letter to his antiquarian patron Sir Richard Colt Hoare, 2nd Baronet (1758-1838) . French mathematician Adrien-Marie Legendre (1752-1833) conjectures the Prime Number Theorem , which isn't proved by Jacques Hadamard and Charles Jean de la Vallee-Poussin until 1896. Louis Nicolas Vauquelin of France discovers the brittle metallic element beryllium (Be) (#4), sometimes called glucinium (Gl) (Gr. "glykys" = sweet) because its compounds have a sweet taste; when combined in small amounts (2%) with cobalt (0.3%) in copper, it forms an alloy with a tensile strength comparable to steel. Nonfiction: Georges Cuvier (1769-1832), Tableau �l�mentaire de l'histoire naturelle des animaux ; the first attempt at systematic classification of the animal kingdom, founding modern Zoology (Comparative Anatomy), stressing how the parts of an organism are correlated to the functioning whole. William Eaton, Survey of the Turkish Empire . William Godwin (1756-1836), Memoirs of the Author of A Vindiction of the Rights of Women ; bio. of his late wife Mary Wollstonecraft (1759-97), digging up dirt about her two suicide attempts and a premarital affair with Gilbert Imlay that resulted in the birth of Fanny Imlay, causing the conservative press to lampoon him. Immanuel Kant (1724-1804), Anthropology from a Pragmatic Point of View ; based on lectures delivered in 1772-96, trying to define anthropology as a branch of philosophy, rdividing it into a physiological category ("what nature makes of the human being") and a pragmatic category (what things a human "can and should make of himself"). Bernard Germain de Lacepede (1756-1825), Histoire Naturelle des Poissons (5 vols.) (1798-1803). Thomas Robert Malthus (1766-1834), An Essay on the Principles of Population (June); pub. under the alias Joseph Johnson; 2nd ed. 1803; 6th ed. 1826; a response to William Godwin's view of the "perfectibility of society" in "Political Justice" (1793); claims that the pop. can double in 25 years, causing the food supply to run out in two generations; proposes Malthus' Iron Law of Pop. (Wages) , that "Food is necessary to the existence of man", "The passion between the sexes is necessary and will remain nearly in its present stage", thus the "power of population is infinitely greater than the power in the Earth to produce subsistence for man"; "The mighty law of self-preservation expels all the softer and more exalted emotions of the soul... In so short a period as withing fifty years, violence, oppression, falsehood, misery, every hateful vice, and every form of distress, which degrade and sadden the present state of society, seem to have been generated by the most imperious circumstances, by laws inherent in the nature of man, and absolutely independent of its human regulations"; as a corollary, a rising pop. causes a rising labor supply, leading to lower wages, causing passage of the British Census Act of 1800; despite its uncorked exponential scientific assumptions, it gets used to justify war as a way to keep the non-white (or less-white) pop. down for the common good of whites (or more-whites) everywhere. Motoori Norinaga (1730-1801), Kojiki Den ; commentary on the "Kojiki" (Record of Ancient Things); landmark in Shinto lit. Benjamin Thompson, Count Rumford (1753-1814), An Enquiry Concerning the Source of Heat which is Excited by Friction ; shows that in the boring of brass cannon there is a direct connection between the heat generated and the mechanical work done, proving that heat is not a material substance; too bad, he calculates a value for the mechanical equivalent of heat that is too high. Music: ?, Hail Columbia! is composed, becoming the first U.S. nat. anthem. Henri Montan Berton (1767-1844), Montano et Stephanie (opera). Franz Josef Haydn (1732-1809), Lord Nelson Mass . Vicente Martin y Soler (1754-1806), La Festa del Villaggio (opera). Daniel Steibelt, Concerto No. 3 in E flat ; the Storm Rondo is a hit. Art: Francisco de Goya (1746-1828), Frescos in the Church of San Antonio de la Florida, Madrid ; Francisco de Goya (1746-1828), Charles IV and His Family ; "It looks as if the corner baker and his wife after they have on the lottery" (Theophile Gautier). Plays: August Wilhelm Iffland (1759-1814), Dramatischen Werke (Dramatic Works) (16 vols.) (1798-1802). August von Kotzebue (1761-1819), The Stranger (Drury Lane, London); adaptation of his 1789 play "Menschenhass und Reue"; big hit, causing theatrical melodrama to become fashionable until the 1870s. Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller (1759-1805), Wallenstein's Camp (trilogy) (Mannheim). Poetry: Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832), Hermann und Dorothea (epic idyll); young girl flees the French Rev. and finds a beau. Robert Southey (1774-1843), St. Patrick's Purgatory ; After Blenheim ; an anti-war poem based on the 1704 Battle of Blenheim, with small children asking questions of old man Kaspar about an old skull they found, causing him to tell them about the horrors of war while calling it "a famous victory". William Wordsworth (1770-1850) and Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772-1834), Lyrical Ballads, with a Few Other Poems ; marks a change in style and spirit for English poetry, launching the Romantic movement in England, even though critics at first aren't impressed; incl. Wordy's poem Lines Composed a Few Miles Above Tintern Abbey [in Wales] (July 13) (about pure communion with Nature in childhood), and Coleridge's Rime of the Ancient Mariner ; "How a Ship having passed the Line was driven by storms to the cold Country towards the South Pole; and how from thence she made her course to the tropical Latitude of the Great Pacific Ocean; and of the strange things that befell; and in what manner the Ancyent Marinere came back to his own Country"; "It is an ancient Mariner/ And he stoppeth one of three/ 'By thy long beard and glittering eye,/ Now wherefore stopp'st thou me?" (opening line); "He went like one that hath been stunned,/ And is of sense forlorn:/ A sadder and a wiser man,/ He rose the morrow morn." Novels: Charles Brockden Brown (1771-1810), Wieland, or the Transformation ; a man goes insane and murders his family; makes him the first major U.S. novelist, influencing James Fenimore Cooper, Edgar Allan Poe, and Nathaniel Hawthorne - no need to equal Goethe in this backwoods country? Ugo Foscolo (1778-1827), The Last Letters of Jacopo Ortis (Le Ultime Lettere di Jacopo Ortis); a patriot commits suicide over Napoleon's giving of Venice to Austria in 1797; patterned after Goethe's "Sorrows of Werther". Jean Paul (1763-1825), The Parson in Jubilee (Der Jubelsenior). Johann Friedrich Rochlitz (1769-1842), Amaliens Freuden und Leiden . Wilhelm Heinrich Wackenroder (1773-98), Herzensergiessungen . Wilhelm Heinrich Wackenroder (1773-98) and Ludwig Tieck (1773-1853), Franz Sternbalds Wanderungen (2 vols.). Births: Dutch Calvinist poet-theologian Isaak da Costa (d. 1860) on Jan. 14 in Amsterdam; disciple of Willem Bilderdijk and his Reveil Movement. French positivist philosopher-sociologist (coiner of the terms "sociology" and "altruism") Auguste Comte (Isidore Marie Auguste Francois Xavier) (d. 1857) on Jan. 17 in Montpellier; secy. of Comte de Saint-Simon; educated at the U. of Montpellier, and the Ecole Polytechnique - positive, now that's a value you can count on? German empirical philosopher Friedrich Eduard Beneke (d. 1854) on Feb. 17 in Berlin; educated at the U. of Halle, and U. of Berlin. German engineer-mathematician Adolf Ferdinand Wenceslaus Brix (d. 1870) on Feb. 20 in Wesel. U.S. First Lady (1850-3) Abigail Powers Fillmore (d. 1853) on Mar. 13 in Stillwater, Saratoga County, N.Y.; wife (1826-) of Millard Fillmore (1800-74); last U.S. First Lady born in the 18th cent. German "Das Lied der Deutschen" Young German poet August Heinrich Hoffmann von Fallersleben (Hoffmann von Fallersleben) (d. 1874) on Apr. 2 in Fallersleben (Wolfsburg), Brunwick-Luneburg. Irish "Tales of the O'Hara Family" novelist-poet-playwright ("the Sir Walter Scott of Ireland") John Banim (d. 1842) on Apr. 3 in Kilkenny; brother of Michael Banim (1796-1874). U.S. naval capt. and Antarctic explorer Charles Wilkes (d. 1877) on Apr. 3 in New York City; great-nephew of John Wilkes (1725-97); educated at Columbia U. Am. mountain man (black) James Pierson Beckwourth (Beckwith) (d. 1866) on Apr. 6 in Frederick County, Va.; son of wealthy planter (Am. Rev. War officer) Sir Jennings Beckwith and a mulatto slave; his swarthy complexion allows him to pass as an Indian or Mexican. French #1 Romantic "Liberty Leading the People" painter Ferdinand Victor Eugene (Eug�ne) Delacroix (d. 1863) on Apr. 26 in Charenton-St.-Maurice, Ile-de-France (near Paris); pupil of Baron Pierre Narcisse Guerin; known for lithographs of William Shakespeare, Sir Walter Scott, and Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. Bohemian #1 historian ("Father of Bohemia") ("Father of the Czech Nation") Frantisek Palacky (Francis Pallacky) (d. 1876) on June 14 in Hodslavice, Moravia; his parents belong to the Bohemian Brotherhood, and he becomes a secret Protestant. German Young Germany "Der Roland von Berlin" historical novelist Willibald Alexis (Georg Wilhelm Heinrich Haring) (H�ring) (d. 1871) on June 29 in Breslau, Silesua; educated at the U. of Berlin, and U. of Breslau. Italian #1 lyrical poet-writer-philosopher Count Giacomo Taldegardo Francesco di Sales Saverio Pietro Leopardi (d. 1837) on June 29 in Recanati; suffers from a spinal problem, causing him to stay at home and become a classical scholar. German "Walladmor" historical novelist Willibald Alexis (Georg Wilhelm Heinrich Haring) (H�ring) (d. 1871) on June 29 in Breslau; French immigrant father (Hareng); starts out with the alias Walter Scott. Am. statesman and Civil War Union maj. Gen. John Adams Dix (d. 1879) on July 24 in Boscawen, N.H.; educated at Brown U. German Romantic landscape painter Karl (Carl) Blechen (d. 1840) on July 29 in Cottbus. Am. dietary writer (physician) William Alexander Alcott (OE "old cottage") (d. 1856) on Aug. 6 in Wolcott, Conn.; cousin of Amos Bronson Alcott (1799-1888); educated at Yale U. French #1 "Histoire de France" historian Jules Michelet (d. 1874) on Aug. 21 in Paris; Huguenot parents; coiner of the term "Renaissance". German mathematician-physicist Franz Ernst Neumann (d. 1895) on Sept. 11 in Joachimsthal; educated at the U. of Konigsberg. Sardinian king (1831-49) Charles Albert (the Hesitant) (d. 1849) on Oct. 2 in Turin. Brazilian king (1822-31) and Pedro I (d. 1834) on Oct. 12 in Qeluz Palace, Lisbon; son of Joao VI (1767-1826) and Charlotte of Spain (1775-1830). Italian statesman-novelist-painter Massimo Taparelli, Marquis d'Azeglio (d. 1866) on Oct. 24 in Turin. U.S. Rep. (D-Va.) (1837-9) and Sen. (D-Va.) (1847-61) James Murray Mason (d. 1871) on Nov. 3 in Anacostine (Theodore Roosevelt) Island, D.C.; grandson of George Mason (1725-92); educated at the U. of Penn., and College of William and Mary; Confed. rep. to Britian and France, 1861-5. French economist Jerome Adolphe Blanqui (d. 1854) on Nov. 21 in Nice; brother of Louise Auguste Blanqui (1805-81); disciple of Jean-Baptiste Say. Am. "resolute Unionist" judge Hamilton Rowan Gamble (d. 1864) on Nov. 26 in Winchester, Va.; chief justice of the Mo. Supreme Court, who issues a dissenting opinion in the Dred Scott case, then becomes acting gov. of Mo. during the U.S. Civil War. South African Boer leader Andries Pretorius (d. 1853) on Nov. 27 in Graaf-Reinet, Cape Colony; father of Marthinus Pretorius (1819-1901). Polish "Pan Tadeusz" #1 Romantic poet Adam Bernard Mickiewicz (d. 1855) (pr. mits-kievits) on Dec. 24 in Zaosie (near Novogrodek), Lithuania. Am. soldier-statesman Mirabeau Buonaparte Lamar (d. 1859) in Warren County, Ga.; pres. #2 of the Repub. of Texas (1838-41). Am. businessman (in South Am.) William Wheelwright (d. 1873) in Newburyport, Mass. Am. philosophical anarchist Josiah Warren (d. 1874) near Boston, Mass. Am. "The Hope of Liberty" poet (black) George Moses Horton (d. 1880) in Northampton County, N.C.; starts out a slave, then emancipated late during the U.S. Civil War, becoming the first prof. poet in N.C. Japanese Tenrikyo sect founder (female) Nakayama Miki (Maegawa) (d. 1887) in Nara. Am. Shoshone chief (Protestant) Washakie (d. 1900) (b. 1810?). Deaths: Georgian king (1744-98) Erekle II (b. 1720) on Jan. 11. German marshal Wilhelm von Freytag (b. 1720) on Jan. 2 in Hannover. Italian ready-freddy Jacques Casanova (b. 1725) on June 4 in Dux, Bohemia (urinary tract infection); he ate raw oysters for breakfast every day to maintain his virility?; last words: "I have lived as a philosopher and die as a Christian": "Though I do not repent of my amorous exploits, I am far from wishing that my example should serve for the perversion of the fair sex, who have so many claims on my homage" - did he have a pot to piss in? Polish last king (1764-95) Stanislas II August Pontiatowski (b. 1732) on Feb. 12 in St. Petersburg, Russia - Tuesday afternoon, it just doesn't matter to me? Am. Rev. leader (DOI signer) George Read (b. 1733) on Sept. 21 in Del. English mathematician Edward Waring (b. 1736) on Aug. 15. Italian scientist Luigi Galvani (b. 1737) on Dec. 4. Scottish-born U.S. supreme court justice (1789-98) James Wilson (b. 1742) on Aug. 21 in Edenton, N.C. (stroke); dies broke after losing his shirt in the Panic of 1796-7 and doing time in a debtors prison in Burlington, N.J. Am. steamboat inventor John Fitch (b. 1743). Am. New England Morgan horse breeder Justin Morgan (b. 1747). French naval capt. Aristide Aubert Du Petit Thouars (b. 1760) on Aug. 2 in Aboukir, Egypt (KIA in the Battle of the Nile); loses both legs and an arm and commands from a bucket until he croaks. Irish repub. rebel Wolfe Tone (b. 1763) on Nov. 19 in Dublin; dies in Provost's Prison of a wound after being sentenced to death for his role in the Irish Rebellion of 1798. German Romantic writer Wilhelm Heinrich Wackenroder (b. 1773) on Feb. 13 in Dresden; dies while living with Romanticist Johann Ludwig Tieck - the good die young?
1799 - You chickens, I'll do it? Is the world ready for the 19th century? Where are the Millennium Feverists now that we need them? The Second Coalition Year? Schlegels, Schleiermachers, and Schillers dominate the bestseller lists? Robot soldiers of vast states now ply the seas in armadas of mechanized war fleets, only needing gasolina to be really bad?
1799 The Time of the End begins this year, according to Jehovah's Witnesses founder Charles Taze Russell (1852-1916) , followed in 1874 by the invisible return of Christ, and the End of the World in 1914. On Jan. 23 the French army of Jean Etienne Championnet takes the kingdom of Naples from a numerically superior (10x greater) Austrian army under Gen. Baron Karl Mack von Leiberich and occupies Florence, forcing King Ferdinand IV of Naples and his wife Marie Caroline (Maria Carolina) to flee along with Tuscan grand duke Ferdinand III and British Adm. Sir John Acton, 6th Baronet (1736-1811) ; the French then set up up the Parthenopean Repub. in the Piedmont (Naples), marking the emergence of the Camorra secret crime syndicate; Leiberich surrenders to the French on the promise of a safe return, but Napoleon reneges and has him sent as a POW to France, after which he escapes from Paris in diguise in 1801; meanwhile the Second Coalition against France is joined by Austria, Russia, Turkey, the Vatican, Naples, and Portugal, going after France on N and S fronts. On Jan. 30 the Turkish sultan reneges on his promises and allows the hated Janissaries to return to Serbia, fomenting revolt; too bad, the Janissaries beat them to it. On Feb. 6 Napoleon and 13K French troops begin a march E from Egypt to Palestine and Syria, and capture Al-Arish after an 11-day siege. On Feb. 22 George Washington's nephew (son of his sister Betty) Lawrence Lewis (1767-1839) of Fredericksburg marries his adopted daughter (Martha Washington's granddaughter) Eleanor (Nelly) Parke Custis (1779-1852) , and after the death of Martha Washington in 1802 they move into Woodlawn Plantation , a house designed by U.S. Capitol architect Dr. William Thornton on 2K acres set aside by Washington from his Mount Vernon, Va. estate, which is finished in 1805. On Mar. 3-7 Napoleon captures former Crusader port Jaffa , then stinks himself up by executing all 3K of the garrison, pissing off the whole Ottoman army to resist to the last man; on Mar. 18 Nappy sieges the seaport of Acre (St. John d'Acre), defended by Ottomans assisted by the British navy under Adm. Sir William Sydney Smith (1764-1840) , and gives up after nine assaults, then hears of the 25K-man Damascus army approaching, sending 2K men under Gen. Kleber to scout them, who on Apr. 16 get into the Battle of Mt. Tabor , holding them off until Nappy catches up and decisively defeats them, after which he goes back to the siege of tough acorn Acre, where Lebanese emir #6 (1788-1840) Bashir Chehab (Shihab) II (1767-1850) refuses to assist him even though he and his family converted from Sunni Muslim to Marionite Christianity. Take your doughnut and get your ass outta here? On Mar. 25 after Austria declares war on France, Archduke Charles, commanding 60K Austrian and Russian troops defeats the 40K-man French army of the upper Rhine under Gen. Jourdan at the First Battle of Stockach , driving them back to the Rhine River, then again on Apr. 5 at the Battle of Magnano , causing Jourdan to retreat to France and resign his command, being replaced by Gen. Andre Massena (1758-1817) , who goes on to become Napoleon's #1 marshal ("the Great Massena"). On Mar. 28 New York State abolishes slavery, joining R.I., Penn., Mass., N.H., and Conn. In Mar. a large French fleet under Adm. Bruix breaks the British blockade of Brest, cruises around without any significant engagement, then returns; too bad, Nappy's orders from the Directorate (to return to France), which Bruix was delivering are captured by the Brits. On Apr. 21 4'5" (shortest) Alfred Moore (1755-1810) of N.C. is appointed as the 11th U.S. Supreme Court justice (until Jan. 26, 1804) to replace James Iredell (1790-99) (who died in office), becoming the 2nd justice from N.C. (until ?); too bad, he suffers from poor health and doesn't do much except render an opinion that France is an enemy of the U.S. On Apr. 25-27 an Austrian-Russian army under reactivated Russian field marshal Count Alexander Suvorov crosses into N Italy and defeats the French at the Battle of Cassano d'Adda , ending the Cisalpine Repub., and the allies enter Milan while Russian troops enter Turin. On May 4 after a traitor in his ranks betray him, the British kill Tipu Sultan (b. 1750) (ruler since 1782) as he defends the walls of the capital of Srirangapatnam, and conquer the state of Mysore in S India, ending the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War (begun 1798), then divide it between themselves and Hyderabad; clever Tipu Sultan used mass rocket attacks on the pesky Brits, which inspires Sir William Congreve (1772-1828) to invent Congreve Rockets in 1804 - was it an eyesore and they had to hide it under the bed? On May 4 Napoleon's artillery finally breaches the walls of Acre, and on May 7 the Ottoman army from Cyprus arrives by sea, causing Nappy to step up efforts on Acre, only to give up on May 20 after two failed assaults on May 8 and 10; meanwhile the French convert the old Carmelite monastery on Mt. Carmel to a hospital, which is destroyed by the Arabs after they withdraw, and later rebuilt; after uttering the immortal soundbyte (about Sir William Sydney Smith) "That man made me miss my destiny", Nappy is forced to return to Egypt, where he hopes to get back into the action; a proclamation dated Apr. 20 making Palestine an independent Jewish state, which Napoleon had hoped to proclaim from Jerusalem after capturing Acre is trash-canned - proving a Zionist conspiracy behind Napoleon, and how for it to prevail the pesky Brits had to be be subverted first, enter Disraeli? In May royalist forces under Cardinal Fabrizio Ruffo (1744-1827) , with the help of a British fleet commanded by Commodore Horatio Nelson recapture Naples and reinstate Ferdinand IV; the rebels are promised leniency by Ruffo, but Nelson massacres them and kills their leader Francesco Caracciolo (1752-99) ; the king returns and rules with an iron hand under the guidance of his wife, who proposes a "cleansing" action against French republican sympathizers. On June 4-7 Archduke Charles defeats the French under Gen. Massena at the First Battle of Zurich , causing him to retreat beyond the Limmat River N of Lake Zurich and regroup; the Helvetian Repub. totters, and is propped-up by the French. On June 18-19 Russian hero field marshal Alexander Suvorov defeats Gen. MacDonald at the Battle of the Trebbia River (not to be confused by the V by Hannibal in 218 B.C.E.), foiling his efforts to unite his army with French forces in Italy, then with Gen. Melas defeats the French under Gen. Joubert on Aug. 15 at the Battle of Novi as they advance from Genoa, driving the French from the region; France loses control of the Italian peninsula, and Suvorov gains the surname "Italiski", going on to lead his armies into Switzerland in an effort to join with Russian forces there, but is forced by the French to retreat to Vorarlberg, Austria , pissing off Tsar Paul I, who dismisses him next year, causing him to soon die (of grief?). On June 22 Britain becomes the last nation to join the Second Coalition. In June Jean Jacques Regis, duc de Cambaceres becomes French minister of justice. On July 14 a combined British, Turkish, and Russian fleet under British adm. Sir William Sydney Smith with 15K Turkish troops lands in Aboukir Bay and captures the remaining French fort at the W end under Gen. Marmont, who sends news to Napoleon in Cairo, causing him to head for Alexandria with 10K infantry and 1K cavalry, and defeat the Turks under Mustapha Pasha on July 25 at the First Battle of Aboukir , with 4K-6K Turks killed, and Mustapha Pasha captured, becoming Nappy's last V in Egypt; on Aug. 24 after Sir William Sydney Smith allows Nappy's orders from the Directorate to return to France to get through, and Nappy hears about the unpopularity of the Directory, and also that the Second Coalition has almost reconquered N Italy, he secretly leaves Cairo for France, leaving his troops behind under the command of Gen. Jean Baptiste Kleber (1753-1800) , slipping through the British fleet in Adm. Ganteaume's flagship Le Muiron and landing in France on Oct. 8-9 at Frejus (Fr�jus) , home of his friend and Directory member Abbe Sieyes; in Sept. after giving up on a new Suez Canal, Kleber begins negotiations with the Ottomans to evacuate Egypt. On July 20 Joseph Fouch� (Fouche) (1763-1820) is appointed French minister of police (Until July 7, 1815), going on to become the "architect of the police state"; Jean Baptiste Say (1767-1832) , ed. of the Decade Philosophique Literaire et Politique since 1794 is called to the tribunate by Napoleon and assigned to the Committee of Finance - help me get away from myself? On Aug. 29 Pope (since 1775) Pius VI (b. 1717) dies a prisoner of the French in Valence, France. In Aug. Prussian scientist Alexander von Humboldt (1768-1859) decides to end cents. of Spanish and Portuguese inaction and begins a scientific expedition to South Am., landing in Caracas, then traveling into the interior and exploring the Orinoco River region; later he proceeds to Cuba, back to Colombia, then S into the Andes, finally leaving Guayaquil and arriving in Acapulco, Mexico in Mar. 1803. On Sept. 25-26 after unlucky Russian Gen. Alexander Korsakov (1753-1840) replaces Archduke Charles, and Russian Gen. Alexander Suvorov crosses the Alps to support him but is forced back by the French, the Second Battle of Zurich is a V for 75K French under Gen. Andre Massena over 60K Russians and Austrians under Alexander Korsakov and Friedrich von Hotze, undoing all of Suvarov's Vs and causing the Russkies to withdraw from the Second Coalition after their retreat through the snowy Alps turns into a disaster; meanwhile the French take Constance and threaten Archduke Charles' flank as he prepares to invade France from the Rhine; at least the expedition isn't a total bust, since on his way back to Russia Korsakov brings the 1478-80 Madonna and Child with Flowers (Benois Madonna) , Leonardo da Vinci's first work painted independently of his master Verrochio, and it ends up with the Benois family in 1880, who keep it secret until 1909, by which time everyone loves everyone. In Sept. Rome is recaptured by French Bourbon troops. On Oct. 18 after the British and Russians fail to take the Netherlands, the British surrender all POWs taken in return for an unobstructed evacuation. On Oct. 22 the Russians drop out of the Second Coalition. Hurry, this offer ends soon? On Nov. 9 the Coup of 18 Brumaire sees Napoleon overthrow the Directory (founded 1795), getting Sieyes, Roger-Ducos, and Barras to resign, and using his younger brother Lucien Bonaparte (1775-1840) (pres. of the Council of Five Hundred) to bribe its remaining two members to help him put the 3-member French Consulate in power, consisting of Nappy (first member, on Dec. 24), Sieyes, and Roger-Ducos, and convincing the councils to establish a commission to draft a new constitution; the French Rev. ends after 10 years, 7 mo., 11 days; Napoleon enjoys absolute power until Apr. 13, 1814. On Nov. 13 the French Law of Hostages is repealed, and Napoleon goes personally to the Temple to receive them. On Dec. 14 ever-pious sermon-collecting church-going Providence-relying Anglican (Episcopal) (Mason but not a Deist) (daily Bible reading and spoken prayers on his knees from 4-5 a.m. and 9-10 p.m.) father of his country and austere model of virtue George Washington (b. 1732) gets caught in a snowstorm while marking trees to cut for a new gravel path and fish pond, resulting in an acute throat inflammation, then goes to bed; after being drained of two quarts of blood by three eminent doctors he dies in a few hours; as he is about to croak, he crosses his hands neatly over his chest, then says, "Tis well", according to his personal secy. (since 1784) Tobias Lear (1762-1816) ; later somebody adds "Father, into thy mercy I commend my soul"; on Dec. 26 Henry "Light-Horse Harry" Lee (1756-1818) (future father of Gen. Robert E. Lee) gives the Funeral Oration before both houses of Congress, containing the soundbyte "First in war, first in peace, first in the hearts of his countrymen". U.S. Pres. Adams ignores his Hamiltonian-influenced cabinet and sends a new mission to France, outraging his fellow Federalists (who want French blood) and insuring his defeat in the election next year. On Dec. 25 the Constitution of Year VIII goes into effect in France before the results of a popular vote are announced, and when they are, the 3,011,107 vs. 1,562 count causes suspicions; there is no bill of rights, except for individual liberty and inviolability of homes; Napoleon becomes First Consul with a 10-year term, and then appoints two other consuls with only consultative powers, moving into the Tuileries (royal palace) and appointing Talleyrand as foreign minister. On Dec. 29 the Ottomans seize the Egyptian border post of Al-Arish from the French, causing the Frogs to get antsy, forcing Gen. Kleber to step-up negotiations. On Dec. 30 Christians in France are permitted to worship on Sundays. U.S. chief justice Oliver Ellsworth resigns after Pres. Adams apponts him U.S. commissioner to France to negotiate with Napoleon. Penn. auctioneer (Am. Rev. War vet) John Fries (1750-1818) arouses resistance among E Penn. Germans to the direct property tax passed the previous year by Congress to finance the war with France, beginning Fries' Rebellion among the Germans of Montgomery, Bucks, Lehigh and Berks Counties, causing Pres. Adams to call out the Penn. militia; Fries is captured, taken to Philly, and convicted of treason and sentenced to death but pardoned next year along with his followers by Pres. Adams, and he becomes a tinware seller - a long time since the days of the Romans and Goths? The Grisons are forced by the French to join the Helvetic Repub. Joao VI is officially recognized as regent of Portugal for his insane mom Maria I. The Abbey of Monte Cassino, famous as the 6th cent. home of St. Benedict of Benedictine Rule fame is sacked by the French. Nguyen Anh's forces finally capture the Tay Son fortress of Qui Nohn; meanwhile French Catholic priest Pigneau de Behaine (b. 1741) dies, and is buried in Saigon with full military honors as a hero, complete with a royal bodyguard of 12K men and 40K mourners; too bad, Anh's son Canh, whom he had tried to convert to Roman Catholicism never buys it, and dies before his daddy, even though the priest had permitted him to c ontinue with ancestor worship the good ole Catholic way, calling it a civil ceremony as long as he becomes a Catholic monarch? In 1799 the 14K Xhosa (Khoi) soldiers in British service on the frontier of the South African Eastern Cape, assigned to control the Bantu farmers rebel, and that great idea goes down the tubes, beginning the nine Xhosa Wars (ends 1879). French Gen. Thomas-Alexandre Dumas (1762-1806) (later father of novelist Alexandre Dumas pere) opens his big mouth and calls Napoleon's Egyptian campaign stupid and incompetent, causing Big N to utter the soundbyte: "Your five feet ten inches could not save you from being shot by a firing squad now if I ordered it", after which he resigns from the army; too bad, on his way home he is captured in Taranto and imprisoned by the Sicilians for two years, where his health is broken by attempts at arsenic poisoning; after returning to France, he manages to father you know who in 1802 before croaking in 1806. James Monroe becomes gov. of Va. (ends 1802). Baron Jean Baptiste Antoine Marcellin de Marbot (1782-1854) , "Bonaparte's Blessed Fool" joins Napoleon's army. U.S. treasury sec. (1795-1800) Oliver Wolcott Jr. designs the U.S. Customs Service Flag . Rocky Mountain House in WC Alberta, Canada is founded by the Hudson's Bay Co. as a fur trading post; meanwhile the rival North West Co. establishes the nearby Acton House; they merge in 1821. The Alaska-Russian Am. Co. is established by the Russian govt., with a monopoly to exploit Alaskan resources. The Dutch East India Co. goes bankrupt. The U.S. Congress buys West Point, N.Y. for $11,085. France becomes the second country to adopt a decimal currency. The name "Pilgrims" are first applied to the Puritan Separatists of Plymouth Colony way back in the 1620s, and sticks. The Church Missionary Society is founded in London to send hundreds of Christian missionaries to other countries. A 17 lb. gold nugget is discovered in Charlotte, N.C. , the first found in the U.S., making it the gold capital of the U.S. until the 1840s Calif. Gold Rush. Daniel Boone settles near St. Louis, Mo. until his death in 1820; the region is controlled by Spain until the 1803 Louisiana Purchase. William and Dorothy Wordsworth move to Dove Cottage in Grasmere in the English Lake District, close to poets Samuel Taylor Coleridge and Robert Southey, where they become known as the Lake Poets . The U. of Cologne and U. of Mainz are closed. Henry Cavendish, Benjamin Thompson, Count Rumford et al. found the Royal Institution of Great Britain , sponsoring science lectures. Zurich-born English-Swiss painter Henry Fuseli (1741-1825) begins exhibiting a series of 47 paintings based on topics from John Milton's works, hoping to found a Milton Gallery; too bad, it closes next year. This year marks "the beginning of the time of the end" (of the rule of gentile nations), according to Jehovah's Witnesses leader J.F. Rutherford. Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi (1746-1827) opens a school in Burgdorf, Switzerland. Pierre Samuel du Pont de Nemours emigrates to the U.S. with his sons, hoping to establish a colony in Va., which never happens. Architecture: Gracie Mansion in N.Y. is built, becoming the residence of the N.Y. gov. While Napoleon is off in Egypt, his wife Josephine purchases the rundown mansion of Chateau de Malmaison in Rueil, 7 mi. W of Paris (dating back to the 9th cent.), which comes with 150 acres of woods and meadows, all for an exorbitant 300K francs, which pisses him off until she turns it into a showplace with a heated orangery, greenhouse, rose garden, and zoo, where she remains after her divorce until her 1814 death; Nappy stays there after his 1815 defeat at Waterloo before they ship him off to St. Helena. Inventions: Italian physicist-chemist Alessandro Giuseppe Antonio Anastasio Volta (1745-1827) makes the shocking discovery of the Voltaic Pile , reporting it to the British Royal Society next year; the first one is made of zinc and copper metal plates and wet cardboard soaked in salt solution, and he later substitutes silver for copper and cloth for cardboard to build bigger piles from which he can draw sparks and shocks, amazing the world and causing a sensation; in May W. Nicholson and A. Carlile use a voltaic pile to decompose water, observing oxygen appearing at one pile and hydrogen at the other, adding to the sensationalism with the idea that atoms are held together by electricity - and hence immortality is just around the corner?Science: English scientist Humphry Davy (1778-1829) proves that two pieces of ice rubbed together will melt without the addition of any heat, disproving the Caloric Theory of Heat; on Dec. 26 he becomes the first to describe the mental effects of Laughing Gas (nitrous oxide); "I existed in a world of new-connected and newly modified ideas." French naturalist Etienne Geoffrey St. Hilaire (1772-1844) describes and makes a color plate of a liger, the offspring of a male lion and female tiger, the largest existing feline. A preserved woolly mammoth is discovered in Siberia . U.S. agriculturists first describe sweet corn grown by the Iroquois; it takes awhile, but by 1980 it is the #1 canned vegetable in the U.S. Nonfiction: Hannah Adams (1755-1831), History of New England . William Lisle Bowles (1762-1850), The Battle of the Nile . Karl Ditters von Dittersdorf (1739-99), Autobiography ; completed two days before his Oct. 24 death. Anselm von Feuerbach (1775-1833), Revision der Grundsatze und Grundbegriffe des Positven Peinlichen Rechts (2 vols.) (1799-1800); opposes vindictive punishment, claiming that law is independent of morality. Johann Gottlieb Fichte (1762-1814), System der Sittenlehre . Arnold Heeren (1760-1842), Geschichte der Staaten des Altertums ; begins the new approach of looking at the ancient world via economics and financial systems. Johann von Herder (1744-1803), Metakritik ; contra Kant and Fichte. August von Kotzebue (1761-1819), Uber Meinen Aufenthalt in Wien (autobio.). Pierre-Simon de Laplace (1749-1827), Traite de Mecanique Celeste (Trait� de M�canique C�leste) (Treatise on Celestical Mechanics) (1799-1825); all the developments in gravitational astronomy since ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh Newton. Gaspard Monge (1746-1818), Geometrie Descriptive ; incl. a gen. theory of curvature that is used by Carl Friedrich Gauss, making him the inventor of descriptive geometry (used in technical drawing). Hannah More (1745-1833), Strictures on Female Education . Mungo Park (1771-1806), Travels in the Interior Districts of Africa: Performed under the Direction and Patronage of the African Association in the Years 1795, 1796, and 1797 ; announces his big discovery of the Niger River, becoming a big hit and increasing interest in Africa, inspiring other explorers; "Whatever difference there is between the negro and European, in the conformation of the nose, and the colour of the skin, there is none in the genuine sympathies and characteristic feelings of our common nature"; "They [Mandinkas] were all very inquisitive, but they viewed me at first with looks of horror, and repeatedly asked if my countrymen were cannibals. They were very desirous to know what became of the slaves after they had crossed the salt water. I told them that they were employed in cultivating the land; but they would not believe me... A deeply-rooted idea that the whites purchase negroes for the purpose of devouring them, or of selling them to others that they may be devoured hereafter, naturally makes the slaves contemplate a journey towards the coast with great terror, insomuch that the slatees are forced to keep them constantly in irons, and watch them very closely, to prevent their escape." Mary Anne Radcliffe, The Female Advocate . J.F. Saint-Lambert, Principe des Moeurs chez Toutes les Nations, ou Catechisme Universal . Antonio Scarpa (1752-1832), Commentarius de Penitiori Ossium Structura ; cellular structure and diseases of bone. Friedrich von Schlegel (1772-1829), Geschichte der Poesie der Grichen und Romer . Friedrich Schleiermacher (1768-1834), Reden Uber die Religion - Romantic dreams not yet all gone? Juan Yuan (1764-1849), Biographies of Astronomers and Mathematicians ; adds the study of science and math to the classical Chinese curriculum. Music: Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827), Symphony No. 1 in C major, Op. 21 (1799-1800); incl. Adagio Molto , Andante Cantabili con Moto , Menuetto , Finale . Franz Joseph Haydn (1732-1809), The Creation (oratorio) (Vienna). Vicente Martin y Soler (1754-1806), Tancrede (ballet); Le Retour de Poliorcete (ballet) (St. Petersburg). Art: William Blake (1757-1827), The Angel Gabriel Appearing to Zacharias (1799-1800). Jacques-Louis David (1748-1825), The Intervention of the Sabine Women ; to save Rome from destruction in 753 B.C.E. for their rape. Henry Fuseli (1741-1825), Silence (1799-1801). Francisco de Goya (1746-1828), Los Caprichos (Capricos) (etching series). Johann Zoffany (1733-1810), Dido and Lady Elizabeth Murray ; lily-white lady and her chocolate brown slave woman, showing the latter with uncommon dignity and equality. Plays: Louis-Jean Nepomucene Lemercier (1771-1840), Les Quatre Metamorphoses ; written to prove that indecent subjects can be treated without offense? Novalis (1772-1801), Heinrich von Otterdingen . Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller (1759-1805), The Piccolomini (Mannheim). August von Schlegel (1767-1845), Lucinde . Richard Brinsley Sheridan (1751-1816), Pizarro (May 24). Ludwick Tieck (1773-1853), Prinz Zerbino (satire). Poetry: Thomas Campbell (1777-1844), The Pleasure of Hope . Thomas Moore (1779-1852), Poetical Works of the Late Thomas Little . Novalis (1772-1801), Geistliche Lieder (Sacred Songs). Ludwick Tieck (1773-1853), Romantische Dichtungen (2 vols.) (1799-1800). Novels: Charles Brockden Brown (1771-1810), Edgar Huntly ; a forest full of hostile Indians; Arthur Mervyn ; Ormond ; a woman stabs to death a wealthy scoundrel trying to rape her. William Godwin (1756-1836), St. Leon ; Gothic novel about "earthly immortality"; inspires his daughter Mary Shelley's novel "Frankenstein"? Johann Friedrich Rochlitz, Charaktere Interessanter Menschen (Characters of Interesting Men). Robert Southey (1774-1843), The Old Man's Comforts and How He Gained Them ; The Devil's Thoughts ; rev. ed. pub. in 1827 as "The Devil's Walk". Wilhelm Heinrich Wackenroder and Johann Ludwick Tieck (1773-1853), Phantasien uber die Kunst ; the Romantic movement in Germany gets off to a fantastic start? Births: Portuguese Romantic poet-dramatist-novelist and Liberal politician Joao Baptista da Silva Leitao, 1st Viscount de Almeida Garrett (d. 1854) on Feb. 4 in Oporto; educated at the U. of Coimbra; founder of the Portuguese Romantic lit. movement. German chemist (colorblind) Ferdinand Reich (d. 1882) on Feb. 19 in Bernburg; collaborator of Theodor Richter (1824-98). German theologian (Roman Catholic) Johann Joseph Ignaz von Doellinger (D�llinger) (d. 1890) on Feb. 28 in Bamberg, Vavaria; educated at the U. of Wurzburg; rejects the dogma of papal infallibility. Czech "The Hundred-Petaled Rose" poet Frantisek Ladislav Celakovsky (AKA Marcian Hromotluk) (d. 1852) on Mar. 7 in Strakonice. Am. Repub. politician and U.S. war secy. #26 (1861-2) Simon Cameron (d. 1889) on Mar. 8 in Maytown, Penn.; first "state boss" in the U.S., controlling the Penn. Repub. Party from 1857-77, then passing control to his son James Donald Cameron. German Basedow Disease physician Karl Adolph von Basedow (d. 1854) on Mar. 28 in Dessau; educated at the U. of Halle. English PM (1852, 1858-9, 1866-8) Edward George Geoffrey Smith-Stanley, 14th Earl of Derby (d. 1869) on Mar. 29; educated at Eton School, and Christ Church, Oxford U.; starts out a Whig then breaks with them and forms the Derby Dilly in 1834. Am. Dem. diplomat-politician, U.S. atty. gen. #19 (1845-6) John Young Mason (d. 1859) on Apr. 18 in Greensville County, Va. French "La Comedie Humaine" realist novelist-dramatist Honore (Honor�) de Balzac (d. 1850) on May 20 in Tours, Indre-et-Loire; drinks up to 50 cups of coffee a day for inspiration. English #1 fossil hunter Mary Anning (d. 1847) on May 21 in Lyme Regis, Dorset. English "The Bridge of Sighs" humorist poet Thomas Hood (d. 1845) on May 23 in London; father of Tom Hood (1835-74). French "La Juive" composer (Jewish) Jacques Francois Fromental Elias Halevy (Hal�vy) (d. 1862) on May 27 in Paris; born on the French Rev. day of Fromental; son of Elie Halevy (1760-1826); brother of Leon Halevy (1802-83); father-in-law of Georges Bizet; studies in the Paris Conservatoire with Luigi Cherubini (1760-1842). Russian "Eugene Onegin", "Boris Godunov" #1 Romantic poet-playwright-novelist ("Founder of Modern Russian Literature") ("the Russian Shakespeare") Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin (d. 1837) (AKA Ivan Belkin) on June 6 (May 26 Old Style) in Moscow; aristocrat parents; great-great-grandson of black Russian Gen. Abram Petrovich Gannibal (1695-1781); educated at Tsarskoe Selo; enters govt. service in 1817, but proves too liberal for Moscow and is transferred to Bessarabia, then ends up as Russian historiographer until his untimely death. English astronomer William Lassell (d. 1880) on June 18 in Bolton. French Meniere's Disease physician Prosper Meniere (M�ni�re) (d. 1862) on June 18 in Angers. Scottish botanist (in the U.S.) David Douglas (d. 1834) on June 25 in Scone (near Perth); educated at the U. of Glasgow; namesake of the Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga taxifolia) of W North Am. Swedish-Norwegian king (1844-59) Oscar I (Joseph Francois Oscar Bernadotte) (d. 1859) on July 4 in Paris; only son of Marshal Bernadotte (Charles XIV) (1763-1844) and Queen Desideria Clary (1777-1860); father of Oscar II (1829-1907); godson of Napoleon I, who names him, causing the name Oscar (Ansgar) (Norse "God's spear") (Gael. "deer friend") to spread throughout Scandinavia and Germany. Scottish inventor James Bowman Lindsay (d. 1862) on Sept. 8 in Carmylle (near Arbroath), Angus; educated at St. Andrews U. Am. Texian Army co-CIC (1835-6) Francis White "Frank" Johnson (d. 1884) on Oct. 3 in Leesburg, Va. Japanese inventor ("the Thomas Edison of Japan") Tanaka Hisashige (d. 1881) on Oct.16 in Kurume, Fukuoka; son of a tortoise shell craftsman; founder of Toshiba (1875). Honduran statesman Francisco Morazan (Moraz�n) (d. 1842) on Oct. 3 in Tegucigalpa. German hydrotherapy inventor Vincenz Priessnitz (d. 1851) on Oct. 4 in Freiwaldau am Grafenberg, Silesia. German-Swiss fuel cell chemist (discoverer of guncotton and ozone) Christian Friedrich Schonbein (Sch�nbein) (d. 1868) on Oct. 18 in Metzingen, Wurttemberg, Swabia. Am. abolitionist Transcendentalist philosopher and educational reformer (vegan) Amos Bronson Alcott (d. 1888) on Nov. 29 in Wolcott, Conn.; father of writer Louisa May Alcott (1832-88). English inventor Walter Hancock (d. 1852) on June 16 in Marlborough; brother of Thomas Hancock (1786-1865). Am. mountain man and U.S. Indian agent (1854-) Thomas "Tom" "Broken Hand" "White Hair" Fitzpatrick (d. 1854) in Ireland; emigrates to the U.S. at age 17; a rifle explodes in his left hand, and his hair turns white during a harrowing escape from Indians. English sculptor Richard Westmacott III (the Younger) (d. 1872) in London; son of Richard Westmacott Jr. (1775-1856). English store owner Charles Henry Harrod (d. 1885) in Lexdon, Essex; father of Charles Digby Harrod (1841-1905). Deaths: Chinese Manchu emperor #4 (1735-96) Qin Qian Long (b. 1711) on Feb. 7 in Beijing. Italian mathematician-philosopher ("the witch of Agnesi") Maria Agnesi (b. 1718). Italian dancer Barberina Campanini (b. 1721). Bavarian-Palatine elector Karl Theodor (b. 1724) on Feb. 16. French mathematics historian Jean Etienne Montucla (b. 1725). British Adm. Richard Howe (b. 1726) on Aug. 5. Scottish chemist Joseph Black (b. 1728) on Dec. 6 in Edinburgh. French architect Etienne-Louis Boullee (b. 1728) on Feb. 4. Italian scientist Lazzaro Spallanzani (b. 1729) on Feb. 12 in Pavia (bladder cancer). Dutch biologist-physiologist Jan Ingenhousz (b. 1730) on Sept. 7 in Caine, Wiltshire, England. French dramatist Pierre-Augustin Caron de Beaumarchais (b. 1732). U.S. pres. #1 (1789-97) "His Excellency" George Washington (b. 1732) on Dec. 14 in Mount Vernon, Va. (age 67); last words: "'Tis well"; the first of nine U.S. presidents to own slaves, and the first and only U.S. Founding Father to free his slaves in his will: "My creed is not words but deeds"; "Liberty, when it begins to take root, is a plant of rapid growth"; "It would be impossible to rule the world without God and the Ten Commandments"; "If the freedom of speech is taken away, then dumb and silent we may be led, like sheep to the slaughter"; "It should be the highest ambition of every American to... bear in mind that his conduct will not only affect himself, his country, and his immediate posterity; but that its influence may be co-extensive with the world, and stamp political happiness or misery on ages yet unborn" - goes out owning the century? French scientist Jean-Charles de Borda (b. 1733) on Feb. 19 in Paris. Am. "one life to give for my country" Rev. War orator Patrick Henry (b. 1736) on June 6 in Red Hill (near Brookneal), Va. (stomach cancer); the Red Hill Patrick Henry Nat. Monument is created by Congress on May 13, 1986: "For my part, whatever anguish of spirit it may cost, I am willing to know the whole truth, to know the worst, and to provide for it." Italian composer Vincenzo Manfredini (b. 1737) on Aug. 5 (Aug. 16?) in St. Petersburg, Russia. Austrian composer Karl Ditters von Dittersdorf (b. 1739) on Oct. 24. English sculptor John Bacon Sr. (b. 1749) on Aug. 4. Am. Rev. leader (DOI signer) William Paca (b. 1740) on Oct. 23 in Md. Swiss Alpine traveller Horace-Benedict de Saussure (b. 1740) on Jan. 22 in Geneva. French Roman Catholic priest Pigneau de Behain (b. 1741) in Vietnam. German scientist Georg Christoph Lichtenberg (b. 1742) on Feb. 24. French "Black Mozart" conductor Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges (b. 1745) on June 10 in Paris. French pioneer balloonist Jacques Etienne Montgolfier (b. 1745). Indian sultan (of Mysore) (1782-99) Tippu Sultan (b. 1750) on May 4 in Srirangapattana (KIA). French Gen. Louis Andre Bon (b. 1758) on May 19 in Acre (KIA).
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Tennis - How many Wimbledon singles titles did Steffi Graf win? | Ranking the Greatest Champions in Wimbledon History | Bleacher Report
Ranking the Greatest Champions in Wimbledon History
By Jake Curtis , Featured Columnist
Jul 1, 2015
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Bjorn Borg, Pete Sampras, Roger Federer, Rod Laver
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Roger Federer is shooting for his eighth Wimbledon title this year. Serena Williams is going for her sixth. With those credentials, they belong in the discussion regarding the greatest Wimbledon champions. But does either rank at the very top?
In our ranking of the greatest champions in Wimbledon history, we considered only players who won Wimbledon titles in the Open Era (since 1968). However, we included two players who won Wimbledon titles in both the pre-Open Era and the Open Era.
This excludes pre-Open Era stars such as Helen Wills (eight Wimbledon singles titles), Suzanne Lenglen (who never lost a completed Wimbledon singles match) and Bill Tilden (who won his last Wimbledon title at age 37).
The rankings are based primarily on the number of Wimbledon singles titles won, although consideration also was given to the quality of the opposition, the dominance the player demonstrated at Wimbledon and the player's overall fame as measured by the Tennis Channel's 2012 rankings of the 100 greatest players of all time. In some cases, factors that made a player's accomplishment special were included in the evaluation.
We pared the candidates down to a dozen then ranked the 12 greatest champions in Wimbledon history.
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Wimbledon titles: Three (1974, 1976, 1981)
Chris Evert was almost unbeatable on clay during her prime years, but she had the misfortune of playing in an era occupied by perhaps the best women's grass-court player in history, Martina Navratilova. Evert reached the Wimbledon final 10 times but won only three titles, losing to Navratilova all five times the two met in the tournament's climax.
However, Evert did beat Navratilova in the 1976 semifinals before taking out Evonne Goolagong Cawley in the final for her second Wimbledon crown. Evert was only 21 at the time, but she would win Wimbledon on just one more occasion.
Evert's run through the 1981 tournament was by far her most impressive. She did not lose a set during the tournament and lost no more than four games in any of her final four matches. She took apart Hana Mandlikova 6-2, 6-2 in the final. Mandlikova had already done Evert a favor by beating Navratilova in the semifinals.
Although grass was Evert's least favorite surface, she was able to challenge for the title virtually every year, and she was clearly among tennis' all-time greats. She was placed No. 9 on the Tennis Channel's rankings of the top 100 players in history.
DAVE CAULKIN/Associated Press
Wimbledon titles: Three (1985, 1986, 1989)
Boris Becker won two Wimbledon titles before he reached his 19th birthday, suggesting he might rule the All England Club like nobody in history. His powerful serve, excellent volley and ability to dive and bounce around the grass court made it appear he would dominate Wimbledon for years to come.
He won his third Wimbledon title in 1989, still at the tender age of 21, but never won it again.
Becker's most dramatic Wimbledon title was his first, when, at age 17, he became the youngest male to win Wimbledon and the first unseeded player to do it. He did it with a flamboyant style that made him a spectator's delight.
His second and third Wimbledon titles were more impressive from a tennis standpoint. Becker knocked off No. 1-seeded Ivan Lendl in straight sets in the 1986 final and defeated No. 1-seeded Lendl and No. 2-seeded Stefan Edberg in his final two matches in 1989, the latter in straight sets.
Becker's flair was nearly as important as his results in earning him a spot on this list.
Adam Stoltman/Associated Press
Wimbledon titles: Three (1981, 1983, 1984)
Considering the way John McEnroe dominated the 1984 Wimbledon tournament at the age of 25, it's hard to believe he never won the event again. In fact, McEnroe never won any Grand Slam tournament after the age of 25 even though he had one of the most dominating seasons in men's tennis history in 1984.
McEnroe's epic five-set loss to Bjorn Borg in the 1980 final simply set the stage for his victory over Borg in the 1981 final at the age of 22.
After losing to Jimmy Connors in the 1982 Wimbledon final, McEnroe responded with magnificent performances the next two years. He lost only one set in his run through the 1983 Wimbledon, beating overmatched Chris Lewis in the final 6-2, 6-2, 6-2. The next year he again lost only one set on his way to the title, thrashing Connors 6-1, 6-1, 6-2 in the final in perhaps the most impressive exhibition of grass-court tennis in history.
''That's the best I've ever played,'' said McEnroe after that match, according to the New York Times.
McEnroe would win the U.S. Open later that year, giving him two titles and a runner-up finish in the three majors he played during that season. But he would never win another Grand Slam singles title, getting to the final of only one more, the 1987 U.S. Open.
Clive Brunskill/Getty Images
Wimbledon titles: Five (2000, 2001, 2005, 2007, 2008)
Venus Williams' five Wimbledon women's singles titles are tied for the third most in the Open Era, behind only Martina Navratilova and Steffi Graf.
Williams made a habit of playing her best tennis at the All England Club. She was not the top seed in any of her five Wimbledon title runs and was among the top four seeds in only one.
Williams knocked off the Nos. 1 and 2 players in the world en route to her first title, beating Martina Hingis and Lindsay Davenport in 2000. However, Williams' championship mettle was best displayed while winning her third and fourth Wimbledon crowns.
She had lost in the fourth round of the Australian Open and the third round of the French Open when she entered the 2005 Wimbledon event ranked No. 16 and seeded 14th. Williams proceeded to roll through Wimbledon, beating No. 2-ranked Maria Sharapova in the semifinals and No. 1 Davenport in the final.
In 2007, after two-injury plagued seasons, Williams came into Wimbledon ranked 31st and seeded No. 23. She struggled in the tournament's first week against little-known opponents. But she dominated in the second week, winning her final four matches in straight sets—three of which were against players ranked in the top six. Williams became the lowest seeded player to win a Wimbledon title.
Five of Williams' seven Grand Slam titles were achieved at Wimbledon. Although she was not as proficient as sister Serena on all surfaces, Venus Williams was and is capable of beating anyone on the grass at Wimbledon.
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Wimbledon titles: Four (1961, 1962, 1968, 1969)
There is no telling how many Wimbledons Rod Laver would have won if pros had been allowed to play the tournament in the mid-1960s.
Laver won four consecutive Wimbledons in which he participated. He won the event during his final two years as an amateur then captured the first two Wimbledons in the Open Era, in 1968 and 1969. His best years, between 1963 and 1967, were spent dominating the pro circuit, a period that covered five Wimbledons he was excluded from playing.
His 1968 title run was historically important because it was the first Open Wimbledon, as Laver knocked off Arthur Ashe and Tony Roche in the final two matches without the loss of a set.
His 1962 and 1969 Wimbledon crowns were particularly significant because they were part of his Grand Slam years. He is still the only person to sweep all four major tournaments in the same calendar year twice. In 1969, Laver had to get past Stan Smith, Cliff Drysdale, Ashe and John Newcombe to claim his final Wimbledon title at the age of 30.
By virtually any measure, Laver ranks as one of tennis' all-time greats. He is No. 2 in the Tennis Channel's 2012 rankings of the top 100 players in history.
Associated Press
Wimbledon singles titles: Five (1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980)
Bjorn Borg won five straight Wimbledon titles, a men's record for consecutive crowns at the All England Club, later matched by Roger Federer. (The record does not include consecutive titles won before 1923, when the defending champion had to win only one match to claim the title.)
Borg was a mediocre grass-court player when he first played Wimbledon but developed his game to excel on the fast surface. At a time when serve-and-volley players ruled on grass, Borg proved you could win at Wimbledon with outstanding groundstrokes and a serviceable serve and volley.
He had already won two French Opens by the time he won his first Wimbledon title in 1976, a month past his 20th birthday. Interestingly, that first Wimbledon crown came just a few weeks after his most disappointing French Open performance, when he lost in the quarterfinals.
Borg won his first Wimbledon title in 1976 without the loss of a set, and no man has done that since. The next year he had to win three five-set matches to take the title, including a marathon victory over Jimmy Connors in the final.
However, his most memorable Wimbledon title was his last one, in 1980. His riveting 1-6, 7-5, 6-3, 6-7, 8-6 victory over John McEnroe was remarkable not only for the level of play, but for Borg's ability to rebound from the epic 18-16 tiebreaker loss in the fourth set to capture the deciding set.
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Wimbledon titles: Six (1966, 1967, 1968, 1972, 1973, 1975)
Two of Billie Jean King's six Wimbledon titles came in the pre-Open Era. However, that is less of a factor in women's tennis because there was no pro circuit for women before 1968. All the best women's players were amateurs before tennis became open to the pros.
King played her best tennis on the grass at Wimbledon. Half of her Grand Slam singles titles were achieved at Wimbledon, and 11 of her 12 major crowns were captured on grass. King's serve-and-volley game was perfectly suited to the fast grass surface.
King was 22 when she defeated Margaret Court (then Margaret Smith) and Maria Bueno in consecutive matches to win her first Wimbledon title in 1966, and she lost only one set while capturing the Wimbledon crown the next two years as well.
King beat Chris Evert and Evonne Goolagong Cawley in succession to win the 1972 title and beat the same two in consecutive matches to win Wimbledon the next year.
However, her defining Wimbledon was in 1975, when King was 31 years old. She trailed Evert 3-0, 40-15 on Evert's serve in the third set before rallying to win that semifinal match, then she dominated Goolagong 6-0, 6-1 in the most lopsided Wimbledon final ever.
King had proclaimed earlier that the 1975 Wimbledon would be her last major singles tournament, and she did not play singles in any of the next eight majors. However, she would play Wimbledon singles six more times after that, getting as far as the semifinals in her last appearance in 1983 at the age of 39.
Clive Brunskill/Getty Images
Wimbledon titles: Five (2002, 2003, 2009, 2010, 2012)
The final chapter of Serena Williams' story has yet to be written, and she could rise several spots in the ranking of Wimbledon champions before she is through.
Her five Wimbledon titles over a span of 10 years speak to her longevity and her ability to maintain a high level of play over an extended period. She won her first Wimbledon crown at the age of 20 and her fifth at the age of 30. At age 33, she came into this year's Wimbledon as the favorite to win her sixth Wimbledon crown. If Williams wins it, she would become the oldest woman to win a Grand Slam singles title, being several days older than Martina Navratilova was when she won the 1990 Wimbledon crown.
A Wimbledon victory would give Williams the first three legs of a calendar-year Grand Slam that she could complete with a win at the U.S. Open. Winning Wimbledon would also give Williams her 21st Grand Slam singles title, leaving her one behind Steffi Graf (the Open Era record-holder) and three behind Margaret Court (who owns the all-time mark).
Williams has been particularly effective in Grand Slam finals, owning a 20-4 record in title matches, including 5-2 at Wimbledon.
Williams has given no hints that a decline is imminent. She is still ranked No. 1 by a wide margin, and there is reason to believe she will be the Wimbledon favorite in 2016 and 2017 if she chooses to continue playing.
DAVE CAULKIN/Associated Press
Wimbledon titles: Seven (1988, 1989, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1995, 1996)
Steffi Graf's seven Wimbledon singles championships are the second most among women in the Open Era (behind Martina Navratilova's nine) and the third most overall (also behind Helen Wills' eight).
Graf's first Wimbledon title, achieved three weeks after her 19th birthday, was the most significant because it was part of Graf's calendar-year Grand Slam in 1988. No one has won all four majors in the same year since.
In 1988 and 1989, Graf had to beat Martina Navratilova, perhaps the best grass-court player of all time, in the final to claim the titles.
Graf's most impressive performance came at the 1992 Wimbledon, when she beat No. 3-ranked Gabriela Sabatini 6-3, 6-3 in the semifinals and dominated No. 1-ranked Monica Seles 6-2, 6-1 in the final. Seles had won the first two majors of 1992 but was no match for Graf at the All England Club that day.
"I think I am playing here the best tennis of my career," Graf said after the match, according to the New York Times.
Her Wimbledon victories in 1995 and 1996 came during years she won all three Grand Slam events in which she participated. (She forfeited opportunities to complete Grand Slams those years by not playing in the first major of the year, the Australian Open.)
Graf played in the Wimbledon final nine times, winning all but two. She lost in her first Wimbledon final to Navratilova when Graf was 18 years old, and a 30-year-old Graf was beaten by Lindsay Davenport in the final of her last appearance in a Grand Slam singles event in 1999.
JYTTE NIELSEN/Associated Press
Wimbledon titles: Seven (1993, 1994, 1995, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000)
Pete Sampras was not the all-court player that Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal are today. Sampras never made it to the final of the French Open. However, his big serve-and-volley game was effective on hard courts and perfect for grass.
Pete Sampras won seven Wimbledon titles in a span of eight years, his only failure in that stretch being a quarterfinal loss to Richard Krajicek in 1996.
Sampras won his first Wimbledon title in 1993 by beating Andre Agassi, Boris Becker and Jim Courier in succession. All three victims were ranked No. 1 at one time, and each won at least four Grand Slam singles titles.
That led Sampras on a streak of 25 consecutive match wins at the All England Club that ended with the loss to Krajicek. Sampras then won 32 straight Wimbledon matches before he lost to Roger Federer in the round of 16 in 2001.
Between his 1992 semifinal loss to Goran Ivanisevic and his fourth-round loss to Federer in 2001, Sampras won 56 of 57 matches at Wimbledon. Perhaps more indicative of Sampras' championship quality is the fact that he never lost a Wimbledon final, going 7-0 in title-deciding matches.
ANJA NIEDRINGHAUS/Associated Press
Wimbledon titles: Seven (2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012)
Roger Federer's seven men's Wimbledon singles titles are tied for the most in history, and he was named the greatest player ever in the Tennis Channel's 2012 rankings of the greatest players in history. Those two facts alone earn him a place at or near the top of our rankings of the greatest Wimbledon champions.
Federer virtually owned the All England Club through the 2000s, winning five straight Wimbledon crowns from 2003 through 2007, tying a men's record for consecutive titles set by Bjorn Borg.
His five-year run began after an embarrassing loss, as the No. 7-seeded Federer was beaten in straight sets in the first round of the 2002 Wimbledon by qualifier Mario Ancic, who was ranked No. 154 in the world.
However, Federer did not lose at the All England Club again until Rafael Nadal defeated him in their epic, five-set 2008 final. That 6-4, 6-4, 6-7, 6-7, 9-7 loss ended Federer's 40-match winning streak at Wimbledon and his 65-match winning streak on grass.
Federer's all-court skills—which combined powerful groundstrokes off both wings with excellent net play, a consistent serve and deft touch—made him almost unbeatable on grass for nearly a decade.
His Wimbledon dominance began in 2003, when he ran through his final four opponents without the loss of a set. Federer knocked off Andy Roddick in the final the next two years, and the only set Federer lost in the 2006 Wimbledon was a third-set tiebreaker against Nadal in the final.
Federer beat Nadal again in the 2007 final before Nadal turned the tables in 2008, ending the streak.
Federer's most impressive Wimbledon performance may have been the one that produced his most recent Wimbledon title, as Federer beat Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray in the final two rounds to win the 2012 tournament.
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Wimbledon singles titles: Nine (1978, 1979, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1990)
Martina Navratilova won more Wimbledon singles crowns than any person in history, Open Era or pre-Open Era, men or women. To put Navratilova's accomplishment in perspective, she claimed as many Wimbledon singles titles as John McEnroe, Rafael Nadal, Jimmy Connors and Novak Djokovic combined.
Navratilova won her first Wimbledon singles title as a 21-year-old Czech and her last one as a 33-year-old American. In between, her groundbreaking announcement in 1981 in which she came out as lesbian became a factor in social change.
She won 18 Grand Slam singles titles but no more than four at any major other than Wimbledon, where she was close to unbeatable for more than a decade.
Navratilova was raised on slow clay courts in Czechoslovakia yet became perhaps the best women's grass-court player ever. She dominated during a period that featured some of the best women's players in history, winning six Wimbledon titles in a row from 1982 through 1987.
She beat Chris Evert, Tracy Austin and Evonne Goolagong to win her first Wimbledon title and defeated both Austin and Evert to win her second. Navratilova did not lose more than four games in any of her final four Wimbledon matches in 1983 and breezed to the 1984 and 1986 titles without the loss of a set.
Navratilova beat Evert and Steffi Graf in succession to capture the 1987 crown, and her closest match on her way to the 1990 title was a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Gabriela Sabatini in the semifinals.
To add some icing on her Wimbledon championship cake, Navratilova won seven women's doubles titles and four mixed doubles crowns at the All England Club.
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"Which Roman poet's famous work is known simply as ""SATIRES"" ?" | Steffi Graf - Biography - IMDb
Steffi Graf
Jump to: Overview (4) | Mini Bio (1) | Spouse (1) | Trivia (31) | Personal Quotes (1)
Overview (4)
5' 9¼" (1.76 m)
Mini Bio (1)
Steffi Graf started playing tennis at age 3, coached by her father. Under the local tennis program, as the best girl player, she was matched up against the worst boy player -- who was usually Boris Becker . After winning the German Juniors and the European Juniors, she turned pro on October 18, 1982. The next day, she lost to Tracy Austin , who was less-than impressed with the 13 year old, telling reporters there were "hundreds of girls" like Graf back in the States. Peter kept a tight rein on Steffi's schedule to ensure that she wouldn't "burn out" as she climbed up the rankings. She finally won her first title on April 13, 1986, defeating Chris Evert at the Family Circle Cup. In total, Graf won 107 singles titles (third all-time behind Martina Navratilova and Evert), including 22 majors (second all-time).
She found herself at the center of a near-tragedy on April 30, 1993. As arch rival Monica Seles was resting during a changeover at the Hamburg Open, a man made his way through the stands, and plunged a knife into her back. At first, it was thought the attack was prompted by the conflict in Seles's native Yugoslavia. But it turned out Guenter Parche was a Graf fan, and reasoned that if he took Seles out, Graf would regain the #1 ranking. The attack reverberated across sports. It also changed the course of tennis history. Seles was off the court for 27 months. Although she won the 1996 Australian Open and was a finalist at the 1996 US Open and the 1998 French Open, Seles never regained her dominating form. Graf visited Seles in the hospital, but didn't comment publicly about the incident until 2004.
Graf retired on August 13, 1999 after beating Martina Hingis in the French Open, then losing to Lindsay Davenport at Wimbledon. By this time, she was dating Andre Agassi , whom also won the French Open, but was a finalist at Wimbledon that year. With only their mothers as witnesses, they were married on October 22, 2001 at his Las Vegas home four days before the birth of their son, Jaden. Daughter Jaz was born on October 3, 2003.
Famous for her killer instinct and business-like approach, at times she displayed a sense of humor. During a tight 1995 Wimbledon match against Kimiko Date , she was serving when a man yelled out "Steffi!" Everyone, including Steffi, laughed. Composing herself, she readied to serve when the man shouted "Steffi! Will you marry me?" The fans burst into peals of laughter, and play was delayed for a couple of minutes. Steffi readied to serve, tossed the ball, caught it, turned, and yelled to the man "How much money do you have?" Graf lost the set, but won the match to face (and defeat) Arantxa Sánchez Vicario for the title.
- IMDb Mini Biography By: ldavis-2
Spouse (1)
( 22 October 2001 - present) (2 children)
Trivia (31)
First tennis player to win a calendar-year Grand Slam and an Olympic gold medal (1988).
Posed for the 1997 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue in an effort to "feminize" her image.
Only player to win all four majors singles twice in two different decades.
Only player to win all four majors singles at least four times.
Only player to win all four majors on four different surfaces (carpet, clay, grass, hard court).
First player to beat the top three seeds in a major.
Was the #1 singles player for 186 straight weeks, broken by Roger Federer in August 2007. Her stay at #1 for a record 377 weeks total still stands.
At the age 13, became the second-youngest player ever to earn an international ranking.
German Sportswoman of the Year for four consecutive times from 1986 to 1989 and in 1999.
Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year 1989
Heads the non-profit foundation Children for Tomorrow, supporting and initiating projects that provide assistance to children and families who have become the victims of war, persecution and violence.
Born at 4:40 AM CET (Central Europe Time)
Career Prize Money: $20,130,835.00
Daughter of Peter Graf and Heidi Graf . Sister of Michael Graf . Peter spent nearly two years in jail after being convicted in 1997 of evading $7 million in taxes on her earnings.
Won a legal battle against Microsoft Germany about fake nude photos of her that were posted on a Web site run by the company. The photos were replaced in June at Graf's request, but the company declined to sign a formal agreement that they wouldn't use them again, so Graf sued. The state appeals court in Cologne upheld a ruling last October by a lower court, which had ruled that Microsoft Germany was responsible for the content of the site and must ensure that such pictures don't appear there (27 May 2002).
Gave birth to Jaden Gil Agassi, 3 weeks prematurely, on 26 October 2001 at 3:30 AM at Valley Hospital in Las Vegas, weighing 5 pounds, 14 ounces. While it was thought the baby's name originated from the Hebrew, meaning "God has listened," in a February 2002 interview, Graf disclosed that Jaden is a masculine form of jade, a word she had always liked, and Gil was in honor of Agassi's trainer, Gil Reyes .
Gave birth to her daughter Jaz Elle on 3 October 2003.
Inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame on 11 July 2004.
Ranked #3 in a survey by German network ZDF searching the 100 best German sportsmen of all time (19 November 2004).
Upon the birth of Christian Sampras, son of Pete Sampras and Bridgette Wilson-Sampras , London bookmakers gave the baby a 2,000-1 shot to beat Jaden Gil Agassi in a Wimbledon final.
She and Andre Agassi are the first two players to win all four majors singles titles and an Olympic gold medal.
Won the Australian Open (1988-1990, 1994), French Open (1987, 1988, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1999), Wimbledon (1988, 1989, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1995, 1996), US Open (1988, 1989, 1993, 1995, 1996).
Was chosen "most admirable German woman" by the readers of "Amica" magazine (September 2005).
When they both won the singles' event at Wimbledon in 1992, she showed no interest in her later husband Andre Agassi at all. The officials didn't allow him to dance with her at the tournament's banquet, although he had been secretly pining for her as far back as 1990.
Resides with her family in Las Vegas.
Subject of "I'm in Love with Steffi Graf" by Hugh Laurie on A Bit of Fry and Laurie (1987).
Niece of Christel Ginepri , who acts as her spokesperson.
Two months after he resigned as Agassi's business manager in October 2008, Perry Rogers sued Graf for $50,000 in management fees.
| i don't know |
Which unusually named bird fits the following description ? Found in Africa, this bird is 5 foot high, coloured grey and black with a distinctive crest above the head. It is long-legged and runs on the ground catching snakes and small mammals. | Full text of "Kenya birds"
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m - & 8/£D Volume 4, Number I ISSN 1023-3679 August 1995 Department of Ornithology, National Museums of Kenya and BiidLife Kenya. Editors: Leon Bennun, Joseph Oyugi and John Fanshawe Department of Ornithology, National Museums of Kenya, P O Box 40658, Nairobi Editorial Yes, it's World Birdwatch time again! Once more, on the weekend of 7-8 October 1995, BirdLife International is organising a global celebration of birds. This time the focus is on the habitats they live in, many of which are under severe threat. In Kenya we hope that birders will use the weekend as an excuse to dust off their binoculars and field guides, get out into the field and enjoy themselves — while at the same time collecting useful data on where our birds are and what they are doing. There's something for everyone in World Birdwatch '95: • Join in the National Birdmap. Whether you feel birding should be a solitary activity or a social event, whether you are a beginner or an expert, all you need is three spare hours on Saturday or Sunday (or both), somewhere to go birding and a set of instructions from the Ornithology Department. The idea is to collect data this weekend from as many places as possible for our computerised bird distribution database. You don't have to visit an exotic location, though — all records will be valuable. To take part, just send off the enclosed form and we will forward the details and a checklist. 8 Join the Sunday Special Birdwalk in Nairobi, Kisumu or Mombasa. We will be finding out how many birds we can see in one morning in each of our major towns. Meet at 08:30 sharp on Sunday 8 October at the National Museum, Nairobi; Sunset Hotel, Kisumu; or Bamburi Nature Trail, Mombasa. The Kisumu walk will be led by Jeam Agutu, the Mombasa one by Marlene Reid and Lorna Depew. We'll do our best to provide transport for those who need it — if you have a vehicle and can help, that would be much appreciated. All are welcome for what should be a great morning out. • Join us on Saturday 7 October at the Louis Leakey Memorial Hall, National Museums of Kenya for a day of bird videos, a special guest lecture with slides, and other activities. Videos will start at 11 a.m.; the guest lecture will be at 3 p.m. (speaker to be announced). See you in October. In the meantime, good birding! Subscription rates, Volume 4 Kenya Abroad (airmail) Sponsor KSh 500 UK £10.00 EANHS member KSh 120 UK £6.00 Non-member KSh 200 UK £7.50 Special (student/exchange/library) please write please write Please make cheques payable to 'BirdLife Kenya'. Subscribers outside Kenya may pay in any convertible currency. Back issues are available at KSh 100/= each. Please address all correspondence to: The Editors, Kenya Birds, Department of Ornithology, National Museums of Kenya, P O Box 40658 Nairobi, Kenya. Front cover illustration: Grey-capped Social Weavers Pseudonigrita arnaudi by Edwin Selempo. Typesetting and layout by BirdLife Kenya; printed by Omnia Printers, Nairobi. Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 News from Kenya and abroad Department of Ornithology Grassland birds prefer grass The Department's study of two montane grassland species with restricted ranges, Sharpens Longclaw Macronyx sharpei and Jackson's Widowbird Euplectes jacksoni (see Kenya Birds 3(2)), is ongoing. Fieldwork on the Kinangop Plateau, supported by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, has now produced some preliminary results. Following a brief survey made on 31 October 1994, we have made four two- day field trips. During the first of these (29-30 March 1995), fifty-eight 4 ha plots were selected along a 60 km-long transect that runs from Kirima via North Kinangop town towards Njabini and back to the so-called 'fly-over'. They cover various types of montane grassland (41 plots), ranging from heavily grazed areas to less disturbed patches along small stream valleys, as well as shambas (9 plots) and woodlots (8 plots). By covering all the habitat types that are present, we hope to be able to produce a rough population estimate for the whole Kinangop Plateau by the end of the survey. During the next three trips, at the end of April, May and June, each plot was censused by three people walking in straight lines about 50 m apart. A total of 29 plots, all in grassland, produced Sharpe's Longclaw, totalling 44 to 75 individuals on each trip. Despite being very preliminary, the data reveal that this species tends to be unevenly distributed over different types of grassland: it is less frequent in short, heavily grazed grassland (present in 5 of 10 plots); more often found in short grassland with tussocks (10 of 16 plots); and most frequent in medium to long grassland (14 of 14 plots). Apart from the type of grassland, the quality of the surrounding habitat also seems to have a significant effect on whether the species is present. For Jackson's Widowbirds we have less data — they were only observed in 7 out of 58 plots, so it is too early to see any pattern. So that we can produce a computerised map of the study area, the latitude- longitude co-ordinates of each plot have been determined with use of a Global Positioning System. This will help us interpret the spatial distribution of both species, and their movements within the study area. In parallel with the field study, the Department of Ornithology is gathering records of both species from around the country for its computerised database. Thanks to all those who have already sent their records to the Department. I would like to encourage other readers to do the same. — Luc Lens, P O Box 40658, Nairobi. Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994- Mount Ololokwe surveyed From 15-18 June 1995, a team of biologists from the National Museums of Kenya and the Peregrine Fund visited Mount Ololokwe, an impressive isolated massif north of Isiolo, Samburu District, to undertake a preliminary survey of its plants, reptiles and birds. The site is particularly well known for its variety of breeding raptors, including RiippelTs Vultures, Verreaux's Eagle, Martial Eagle and Peregrine Falcon (all seen by the survey) — and the Taita Falcon is also reputed to breed there. Indeed, over 60 species of raptor alone have been recorded at this site. The top of the mountain is still covered by Cedar forest, despite frequent burning by local farmers for cattle grazing, and we found some interesting birds living in these woods, such as Gambaga Flycatcher, Grey-headed Batis and Stripe-breasted Seed-eater. If funding applied for from the Belgian government is forthcoming, further fieldwork, including mist-netting of birds, may take place. — Luc Lens, P.O. Box 40658, Nairobi. Anyone for cormorants? Brooks Childress, our newest (and, by some stretch, also our oldest) student Research Associate, is under way with his study of the comparative ecology and status of the Great and Long-tailed Cormorants at Lakes Naivasha and Oloidien, a two-year project he is doing for his PhD at Leicester University. The primary aims of his study are better to understand recent population changes and breeding patterns of these top predators and to assess their potential as indicator species for the overall health of the lake ecosystem. The Long-tailed species, for example, suffered a 64% population decline from January 1993 to January 1995 and there are currently less than 100 individuals on both lakes Combined. Just as puzzling, the breeding pattern of the Great Cormorant of Lake Naivasha has been quite erratic, with fairly large breeding colonies in some years of high lake levels and very little breeding in other years. During his initial study period Brooks has spent most of his time documenting the daily behaviour patterns of the two species, with the help of a boat and engine kindly provided by Joan Root and Elsamere Conservation Centre, respectively. Next, he plans to study the foraging and breeding behaviour of these two species. The current scarcity of the Long-tailed Cormorant on the lake may indicate that it is breeding somewhere in the vicinity. If any of our readers is aware of Long-tailed or Great Cormorant breeding activity, past or present, in the Central or Rift Valley Provinces around Lakes Naivasha and Oloidien, Brooks would appreciate hearing from you at Box 1497, Naivasha. Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 Call of the Yellowneck: A gamebird project update A typical morning in the Acacia scrublands on the group ranches in Loitokitok Division, Kajiado begins with the last howl of hyaenas, angry perhaps that the approaching day has denied them an opportunity to snatch a calf from the Maasai bomas. The Yellow-necked Spurfowl, the most abundant gamebird here, usually shuffles around in what resembles a clumsy waltz, tries a few wing beats and, maybe a little surprised that it is still alive after all, belts out a self-congratulatory 'krooo....waak\ Which you would too, if most living forms you encounter on your daily schedule have only one idea on their minds — turning you into a meal. Gamebirds. A term that means different things to different people: families Phasianidae and Numididae to ornithologists, but under the present law four other families are included, the Anatidae, Scolopacidae, Pteroclidae and Columbidae — 78 species in total. The difference would not matter if it did not reflect the challenge there is for developing a monitoring system for these birds, the goal of the gamebird project at the Department of Ornithology. In the last Kenya Birds issue, I reported on progress made on establishing a monitoring system on Mbirikani group ranch. This is an update. The period from November to date (June) has been closed to gamebird hunting in the southern part of the country. Efforts have therefore been directed at consolidating training for the field assistants employed by the ranch and initiating a similar system for Elangata Wuas, Kilonito and Torosei group ranches in the Central Division of Kajiado. The training has been in two main fields. First, to determine gamebird densities using line transects, point counts and the flush-and-count method. The last unfamiliar? It means just that — after a paper by Mentis and Bigalke, 1985. The field assistants have also been trained to monitor breeding condition by recording observations and timing of pairing. The reproductive organs of birds significantly increase in size when in breeding condition. The field assistants have thus been trained so that they can dissect a regular number of gamebird samples, obtained from hunters, and measuring the size of the gonads. This of course assumes the hunters will give up their birds for this purpose. A little public relations would help, and if that does not work, I explain, try another fine. Just say you will only take one tiny internal organ and give back the rest. The next phase involves expanding the same methods to five other group ranches in Loitokitok Division, in order to be able to compare them scientifically. The questions from the locals are similar everywhere — the most common one, "Don't you have anything to do, young man, following birds at early hours of the morning?" Of course I do have something to do, and that is to develop simple methods for monitoring gamebird populations and their breeding cycles. This will allow sustainable offtake limits to be set for hunting and rearing, I patiently try to Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 explain at the village baraza or to the class 8 science class at the local primary school. "Might you know the equivalent of 'sustainable' in Maa?", the interpreter whispers to me. "I am counting them!", I declare, not sounding particularly convincing, but that is not the crucial issue. The crucial issue is that gamebird populations in the country are conserved, with benefits from the variety of ways they may be used going as far as possible to the communities that maintain them. These methods have worked well on Mbirikani, with minor modifications to be made; but they may not be applicable to all the areas where sport hunting and a relatively new use, gamebird rearing, is carried out. Discussions have been held with the KWS on possibilities of collaboration with the Department of Ornithology, particularly in identifying the data needs for all gamebird populations. The data would be collected by trained field assistants, supervised by KWS Community Service personnel in the respective areas. A concept paper on this is currently being developed. The African Wildlife Foundation continues to support this work financially and I am extremely grateful to them. Meanwhile, dusk on the group ranches is a bit of an anticlimax, another less triumphant 'kroo...waak' from the 'yellownecks' marks the end of a day, the beginning of another, maybe more fruitful one for the hyaenas. — Alfred Simiyu, P O Box 40658, Nairobi. Are sandgrouse shooting seasons wrong? From November 1994 to April 1994 I have been collating and analysing data from hunter John Sutton's diaries. Mr John Sutton, a tour operator and conservationist, has been keeping records on the size of gonads of sandgrouses he and his clients have shot over eleven years dating back to 1970. The size of gonads in birds is a good indicator of their breeding condition. The data cover two species of sandgrouse, the Black-faced Pterocles decoratus and Chestnut-bellied P. exustus. They are limited by the fact that, obviously, they were collected only during the open shooting seasons of the time. The proportions of birds breeding during particular periods of the year were compared for the current open and closed periods for hunting. This was done for three regions corresponding to the districts of Samburu, Kajiado and Isiolo. The effect of rainfall on the breeding seasons of these birds was also investigated. The results showed that the two species have two peak breeding seasons in a year, January to March and July to October. These correspond to the main dry periods. However, within the periods for which there are data, there was no obvious correlation between the proportions of birds breeding during any particular month and rainfall (measured in various ways). To tell whether the Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 same sub-population of sandgrouse breeds twice a year, or whether there are different sub-populations breeding successively, requires a detailed study with intensive marking of different sub-populations. The results indicate that the set -shooting season for the Kajiado region, presently 1 July to 31 October, is totally mis-timed, since it coincides with a peak in sandgrouse breeding. This needs reviewing urgently. Further research to monitor the yearly variations of breeding populations is also needed. — Peter Njoroge, P O Box 40658, Nairobi. Bee-eaters spurn researchers Brent Burt, a doctoral student from the University of Arizona, USA, came to Kenya in May for a short collaborative research project with the Dept. of Ornithology. He is working on the evolution of cooperative breeding in the bee- eaters, using a phylogenetic approach. Little is known about the breeding habits of around a third of the world's 24 bee-eater species, hence the need for information from the field to complete the phylogeny. Several of these little- known species — the Carmine, Little, Cinnamon-chested, Somali, Blue-headed and Madagascar — breed in Kenya. Brent was joined for the study by Edward Waiyaki and Peter Njoroge both from Ornithology Dept., along with two undergraduate student volunteers from University of Arizona. On 20 May 95, the group left for Kakamega Forest in pursuit of the scarce and little-known Blue-headed Bee-eater. At Isecheno forest station, forest guide Titus Gutwa joined the team. The group struck lucky the next day, spotting a pair of the bee-eaters right behind the guest house. Over the course of the next few days two more pairs were sighted, but intensive searches failed to turn up more. Further efforts to search for the bee-eaters at Lukhusi, in the north- east, and in the Yala and Buyangu forest reserves (where they have been located in the past), were also unsuccessful. Continuous observations of the Isicheno birds failed to reveal their breeding or roosting sites. The group decided to collect general behavioural data on two pairs, focusing on foraging, habitat preference and activity time budget. Preliminary analysis suggested that the birds have a preference for dead and/or leafless trees in open and edge areas. They also had a tendency to forage from the canopy edge. The most intriguing behaviour we saw was one bird feeding another one five times on wasps, each time after beating the insect soundly against a branch. An unexpected finding was that the birds always seemed to be in pairs,, rather than the larger groups that would be expected if they were cooperative breeders. However, records of more than three birds have been reported and at approximately the same time of year. 6 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 Having failed to unravel the breeding habits of the Blue-headed Bee-eater the group switched to the Cinnamon-chested Bee-eater in Nairobi. These birds were much easier to locate, but they had already bred and groups were busy feeding fledglings. Better luck next time, perhaps... — Peter Njoroge, P O Box 40658, Nairobi. Welcome to new staff — goodbye to old The Department warmly welcomes Jane Wanjiku and Titus Gutwa, who have joined us as a Secretary and Curatorial Assistant, respectively. Meanwhile, Cecilia Gichuki, our Curator of Birds for over a decade and familiar to many Kenya Birds readers, has moved to the Museums' Wetland Programme in the Centre for Biodiversity. Fortunately Cecilia is not going far — the Wetlands Programme is housed in the same building — and we hope to be able to draw on her expertise in the future. Note of thanks Many thanks to Joan Root for her very generous donation of Volumes I and II of Birds of Eastern and North Eastern Africa by Mackworth-Praed and Grant and a copy of The Breeding Seasons of East African Birds by Brown and Britton. These books will be a great help in our field and laboratory work. Any old chairs? After years of extreme overcrowding, the Department finally has an extra office (at the base of the stairs 4n the new Natural Sciences building) that will help to reduce the congestion. Departmental Research Scientists have breathed a sigh of relief — but the drawback is that we don't have any furniture. If any of our readers have office furniture — desks, chairs, shelves or filing cabinets — that they are no longer using, please consider donating them to a good home. BirdLife Kenya Bird Day '95 On 9 June 1995, BirdLife Kenya and the Ornithology Department, National Museums of Kenya organised a day of bird events at the National Museum, Nairobi. More than 200 people of all ages turned up to take part in birdwalks, try out origami (Japanese paper-folding), watch bird videos and listen to a range of invited speakers. Lecturers included Nathan Gichuki on conservation science and action, Don Turner on the history of ornithology in Kenya-, Simon Thomsett (complete with live eagle) on birds of prey, and Dave Richards on where to watch birds in Kenya. Bird sculptures, paintings and crafts were on display. The day, Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 intended as a celebration of Kenya's 1,076 bird species, aimed to raise public awareness of our diverse birdlife and the threats that it faces. Many thanks to all who helped organise this event. A helping hand for heronries BirdLife Kenya has provided start-up funds for two projects focusing on colonial waterbird breeding sites near Lake Victoria. The first aims to create a community sanctuary for the Pink-backed Pelicans at Rakewa (see article, this issue). The second will set up a monitoring scheme for the Ahero-Buoye-Orongo heronries near Kisumu, with involvement of local people and students from Maseno University. These sites are extremely important for breeding waterbirds but are under increasing threat from human pressures. The work will be carried out as a collaboration between the Department of Ornithology, NMK, the Lake Victoria Wetlands Team, and Maseno School. Arabuko-Sokoke trophies Arabuko-Sokoke Forest is among the most important sites in Kenya for bird (and biodiversity) conservation. The forest has been much in the news this year — and for all the wrong reasons. A proposal in March 1995 from the District Development Committee to degazette a substantial chunk of Brachystegia woodland and mixed forest met opposition from many quarters. The East Africa Natural History Society and East African Wildlife Society publicised the conservation issues involved, and took part in a delegation to the forest to talk to local leaders. The threat of degazettement appears to have lifted — for the time being. However, many serious and potentially explosive problems remain unresolved, including issues connected with human-animal conflicts, access to water resources and land rights. These are big problems; but there is nothing to be lost by starting small. At the suggestion of the Arabuko-Sokoke Forest Management Team, a coordinating body for the management of the forest, BirdLife Kenya, the EANHS and other NGOs have donated a number of Arabuko-Sokoke trophies for schools. These will be given out at an open day for the forest to be held at Gede Forest Station on 30 September. Meanwhile the EANHS has set up a special committee to monitor Arabuko-Sokoke issues, and will be working through its Kipepeo Project to start public awareness and eco-tourism initiatives. Anyone interested in donating a schools trophy for the forest, please contact the Secretary, BirdLife Kenya, P O Box 44486, Nairobi. No let-up in forest degazettement Away from Arabuko-Sokoke, forest degazettement continues to be a worrying issue. In recent months, important tracts of indigenous forest have been excised in 8 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 South-west Mau, Kamiti, Kiambu and Kinari Forests. A recent study by IUCN shows that over the past five years the area added to the forest estate actually outweighs excisions. However, the additions have mostly been of small forests, or areas of low forest and thicket without substantial biodiversity. The excisions have mainly been of moist forests in areas of high potential for agriculture, which are among the nation's richest reservoirs of biodiversity. Kenya's indigenous forest estate is already so small and fragmented that its continued disappearance is a serious conservation problem. The shortage of agricultural land cannot be solved in the long-term by converting our forests to farms — indeed, by disrupting environmental cycles this will make problems worse. The IUCN report identifies the existing Forests Act as a major factor behind the rampant excisions going on at the moment. In contrast to the Wildlife Conservation and Management Act, which gives Parliament the responsibility of deciding whether to degazette a National Park, the Forests Act leaves the decision in the hands of one person — the Minister for Environment and Natural Resources. Although 28 days notice must be given of the intention to degazette, there is no mechanism for objections to be registered, and in practice this is a mere formality. Kenya's forests deserve better protection than the whim of a politician. Owls are a hit Many people who are not birdwatchers strongly dislike owls — in most traditions they are seen as at best mysterious, at worst harmful and evil creatures. So it was with mixed feelings that Jeam Agutu, BirdLife Kenya Associate Member, accepted an invitation to speak on 'Living with owls and other birds' at Maseno University. Members of the Zoology Department had been intrigued by Team's observations on Verreaux's Eagle Owls on the campus (see Kenya Birds 2(2): 34, January 1994). In the end more than 100 University staff and postgraduate students attended the seminar, and discussions continued at a reception afterwards. Completely converted to owls, the Department has asked for more lectures, and for Jeam to set up a birdwatching group for students. Important Bird Areas for Africa The Important Bird Areas programme is now officially under way in Kenya, with support from the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds in UK. Fieldwork started in January with surveys of a number of wetlands (see elsewhere in this issue). At the moment, preliminary lists of IB As are being put together. BirdLife International's IBA programme began ten years ago in Europe. The resulting publication, Important Bird Areas in Europe, has had a major impact on conservation planning across the continent — many of its recommendations have Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 9 been adopted under national and European Union legislation. An IB A programme for the Middle East was completed in 1984 and is already proving to be as influential. Now it is Africa's turn. The overall result will be a detailed book giving an account of all the Globally Important Bird Areas identified on the continent. This is a huge task, given that 56 countries are involved and many cases little is known about their avifauna. Kenya is among a group of pioneer countries for the IBA programme in Africa — others include Tanzania, Uganda and South Africa. As elsewhere, the process is being coordinated by the national partner organisation — the East Africa Natural History Society, through its sub-committee BirdLife Kenya. Much of the technical work will be undertaken by the National Museums' Department of Ornithology. Identifying and describing Kenya's IB As is one part of the process — in many ways the easiest. At the same time, the programme is designed to build the capacity of the EANHS and the Department, for both bird conservation and bird research. There is no point in publishing a directory of IB As as a purely academic exercise, so the crucial third strand is translating the findings into action. The IBA programme in fact provides a neat complement to conservation planning that is already going on, such as the National Environment Action Plan. An Advisory Council, with representatives from key government bodies, is being set up to advise BirdLife Kenya on the project, particularly on how the results can most helpful. So what are IBAs, anyway? BirdLife's IBA Steering Committee for Africa has deliberated at length on the criteria that should be used to identify them. These have now been agreed, and there are four main categories of site. First, sites that are important for globally threatened species (such as the Sokoke Scops Owl). Second, sites that hold a suite of species with very small ranges (for example, the birds endemic to the central Kenyan highlands, such as Sharpe's Longclaw and Aberdares Cisticola). Third, sites with a representative set of species that are characteristic of a particular, distinct biome — for instance the dry bush country of north-east Kenya. Fourth, sites with particularly large concentrations of birds — flamingos at Lake Nakuru, for example. Within each of these categories, there are set thresholds (for instance, the number of restricted-range species, or the number of congregatory birds) for the selection of Globally Important Bird Areas. The Department of Ornithology is presently working with colleagues from Uganda and Tanzania on the challenging task of setting appropriate thresholds for Regionally Important Bird Areas. These will not appear in the continental directory, but we feel it is important to pin-point them nonetheless. IBAs, GIBAs, RIBAs — the acronyms may multiply confusingly, but the point is that having well-defined, agreed and objective 10 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 criteria at the different levels makes the whole exercise much more useful, and much more credible to decision-makers. In Kenya, the Department of Ornithology is presently reviewing the literature and putting together lists of sites using the different categories and criteria. These draft lists will be circulated for comment, and gaps in our knowledge identified. The next steps are additional, targeted field surveys, setting up an DBA database, and finally producing a book summarising the results. All going well, this should be published by March 1997. Parallel with all this, BirdLife Kenya will be working with the Advisory Council to incorporate the findings into national planning processes, and taking action on particular sites where appropriate. Many people will be involved in the IB A process, and anyone with interesting information on particular sites, or records of rare species, can contribute by making these available. Kenya Birds will be publishing regular updates to keep everyone informed of progress. We look forward to everyone's help with this exciting and important project — Leon Bennun, P O Box 40658, Nairobi. Kenya Wetlands Working Group Waterbird counts and surveys, January-March 1995: a summary The annual waterbird counts in January and July are organised by the Ornithology Department in collaboration with the Kenya Wetlands Working Group and the Kenya Wildlife Service. They form part of an Africa-wide waterbird census coordinated by the International Waterfowl and Wetlands Research Bureau (IWRB). These counts are presently funded by the Ramsar Convention Bureau an<£ involve training of volunteers to monitor wetlands. This year, the counts were expanded and surveys were made of several new sites, thanks to funding from the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) received through BirdLife Kenya to support the Important Bird Areas (IBA) programme (see other articles, this issue). One of the criteria for Globally Important Bird Areas (GIBAs) is closely based on the Ramsar convention criteria for waterbirds: a site qualifies if it regularly supports more than 20,000 waterbirds or more than 1% of a species' biogeographic population. The early-year counts in 1995 (during the Northern winter) were quite extensive, covering more wetland sites than before. The counts stretched over a period of three months in total, from the beginning of January to the end of March. Counts and training of volunteers took place at the main Rift Valley lakes, and around wetlands in Amboseli National Park, Nairobi and Lake Victoria. Over 120 volunteer birdwatchers took part overall. Meanwhile, a major effort was made in February to collect survey data on coastal sites — beaches, reefs, creeks, estuaries and salt works — from the border Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 1 1 with Tanzania north to the Sabaki River mouth. The coastal survey was again a collaborative effort, involving six Ornithology Department staff, four staff of the Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute (KMFRI) and two researchers from Pavia University, Italy. Counts were made on foot along beaches and reefs, while creeks were surveyed by boat at high tide to count concentrations of roosting waders. During March, five large dams along the upper Tana River were surveyed. Surprisingly, the waterbirds of these big man-made wetlands seem never to have been counted before. This time the institutions involved were the Department of Ornithology, Kenya Wildlife Service and the Fisheries Department. Logistical support was also provided by the Kenya Power and Lighting Company (KP&LC), the Tana and Athi River Development Authority (TARDA) and Mwea Trust. The survey was carried out by boat, involving three Ornithology Department staff and a coxswain from the Fisheries Department stationed at Masinga Dam. Additional data were received from volunteers who undertook waterbird counts on their own, either near their areas of residence or on personal safaris. We encourage interested birders to contribute waterbird count records, ideally for the months of January or July. Sites surveyed this year include the Rift Valley lakes: Bogoria, Nakuru, Naivasha (with Sonachi and Oloidien), Magadi and Elmentaita; wetlands around Nairobi: Dandora Sewage Works, Kayole Sewage, Manguo Floodplain, Nairobi Dam, Limuru Pond and Tigoni Dam; wetlands in Amboseli National Park: Lake Ol Tukai, Enkongo Narok Swamp and Longinye Swamp; sites around Lake Victoria: Rota, Tako River, Dunga, Kano Plains, Sondu-Miriu River mouth, Aneko, Pengle and Lake Simbi; and upper Tana River dams: Masinga, Kamburu, Gitaru, Kindaruma and Kiambere. Along the Kenyan Coast, the team counted creeks at Vanga, Funzi, Tudor, Port Reitz and Mida; beach stretches around Shimoni, Msambweni, Gazi, Funzi, Mtwapa, Tiwi, Kilifi, Watamu, Malindi and the Sabaki River mouth; and the Kensalt Works. Sites counted by individual volunteers include Nicoll, Oasis and Soy dams. Waterbird numbers The number of waterbirds counted in the entire survey total 903,311 — 787,857 of these being flamingos. Almost all the flamingos were counted on the Rift Valley lakes, the majority (about 413,000) at Lake Nakuru. Waterbird numbers on the five upper Tana dams totalled 34,080, with the lion's share on Masinga (with 27,869 birds). Other sites with waterbird numbers exceeding ten thousand include Bogoria (262,875), Elmenteita (124,403), Nakuru (413,968), Naivasha (11,549), Magadi (25,486), Amboseli (10,135 in all wetlands combined). The coastal survey covered 80% of the beach stretches from Vanga to the Sabaki River 12 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 mouth. The total number of birds counted in these sites including the creeks and the Kensalt works totaled 33,629 of 70 species. Terns made up the most numerous single group. — Oliver Nasirwa, P O Box 40658, Nairobi. Waterbird counts at Lake Victoria Surveys of waterbirds in some key wetlands around Lake Victoria were organised by the Lake Victoria Wetlands Team (LVWT). The surveys were conducted on 11-12 and 25-26 February 1995, with assistance from the Ornithology Department and other volunteers (see article above). The first survey covered Dunga Beach, Kano plains, Tako River and Sondu- Miriu. A team of nine counters took part. Notable observations included a male Pygmy Goose at Sondu-Miriu, and (less happily) the uncontrolled sewage flow and wastes at Dunga Beach. The second survey involved seven counters. The area covered included Simbi, Pengle, Aneko the breeding site for Pink-backed Pelican at Rakewa. Two fully fledged young of pelicans and four of Black-headed Heron were observed, and sixteen nests of sticks and twigs counted. — Joseph Oyugi, P O Box 40658, Nairobi. Waterbird counts at the Kenya coast Waterbirds along the Kenya coast were surveyed from 2-25 February 1995. Six Ornithology Department staff, four staff members from Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute (KMFRI) and two researchers from Pavia University, Italy were involved in the survey. The aim was to cover as much of the Kenya coastline as possible from Vanga in the south, north to the Sabaki River mouth, surveying all wetland bird species. For practical reasons two methods were used: (1) 'beach counts' on the beaches and reefs at low tide while birds were feeding, and (2) counts of roosting birds in the creeks at high tide from a boat. It was impractical to cover the whole c. 220 km section of coast in just three weeks, but as much as possible was sampled. Despite the lack of prior reconnaissance to find access routes for certain sections of coastline, over 80% was covered. The overall impression was of good numbers of birds along much of the coastline. Some areas, though, held fewer birds than expected, particularly the southern beaches. The total counted was 33,629 of 70 species, the bulk of which were terns. Highlights included a flock of 200+ Crab Plovers with several hundred other waders and terns in a roost site just north of the Tanzanian border at Vanga; concentrations of Turnstone along the rocky beaches south of Kilifi; roosts of several hundred Sooty Gulls and terns just north of Watamu; and 150+ Caspian Keny a Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 13 Terns on the salt works north of Malindi at Gongoni. At the Sabaki River we recorded up to 20 wintering Broad-billed Sandpipers, a male Caspian Plover in full breeding plumage, an Arctic Skua Stercorarius parasiticus (only the fourth record for Kenya) and a new species for East Africa, none other than a Northern Lapwing Vanellus vanellusl — Oliver Nasirwa, Colin Jackson, Luc Lens, Joseph Oyugi, Edward Waiyaki, P O Box 40658, Nairobi; Jan Seys, P O Box 81651, Mombasa. Waterbirds on the Upper Tana River dams Waterbirds on the five large dams on the upper Tana River (Masinga, Kiambere, Kamburu, Kindaruma and Gitaru) were surveyed from 16-27 March 1995, following an earlier reconnaisance trip. A boat, without which the survey would have been impossible, was kindly lent free of charge by the Kenya Wildlife Service, and a coxswain joined us from the Fisheries Dept. base on Kenya's largest dam, Masinga. Numbers of birds were much higher than we had expected. Of particular interest were around 300 African Darters, a species that is seriously threatened in Kenya by gill-net fishing. Indeed we found three Darters tangled and trapped in fishing net or string that had been discarded in the dams. Large numbers of cormorants were present on most dams including three breeding colonies. Herons were very abundant, in particular Great White Egrets and Green-backed Herons. Apart from Greenshank and Common Sandpiper, waders were only present in any numbers on Masinga Dam. The same was true of duck (both species of Whistling Ducks on Masinga). We saw very few Palaearctic duck, presumably due to the late date of the survey (we recorded only six Garganey). (Unfortunately, vehicle problems had delayed the start of the survey by almost two weeks.). Other records of interest were two to three Ospreys on each of the larger dams and Pied Kingfishers in almost every corner — hundreds in all. — Oliver Nasirwa, Colin Jackson & Patrick Gichuki, P O Box 40658, Nairobi. Lake Naivasha — Kenya's second Ramsar site Kenya acceded to the Ramsar Convention in 1990 and designated Lake Nakuru as its first Wetland of International Importance. Nakuru is often host to more than a million Lesser Flamingos as well as providing habitats for many other wetland birds and large mammals. Lake Nakuru is within a National Park which is famous for the diversity of its wildlife — its visitors exceed 100,000 each year. The Kenya Wildlife Service manages the Ramsar site, both because it is the organisation responsible for National Parks and because it is the custodian of the Ramsar Convention in Kenya. 14 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 Lake Naivasha is a freshwater lake in Kenya's Rift Valley, less than 50 km from Lake Nakuru. It is unique in being fresh — where other lakes on the floor of the Rift Valley become saline — and in having a great diversity of wetland plants and animals, especially waterbirds. Unlike Nakuru, it has no protected status and is surrounded by private land where most inhabitants are farmers, many of them growing flowers for export while using lake waters for irrigation. Lake Naivasha qualifies for listing as a Wetland of International Importance under most of the Ramsar criteria relating to ecosystems and under two of those relating to waterbirds: it regularly has more than 20,000 waterbirds (75 species have been consistently recorded) and is host to more than one percent of the world population of the Maccoa Duck. Its wetland plants are legion and include the tallest stand of papyrus for such an altitude (almost 2,000 m a.s.l.) where culms exceed five metres in height. Between (and on) the farms there are many species of large mammals associated with wetlands — including hippos and waterbuck — and the lake provides drinking water for a great variety of wildlife and livestock from its dry hinterland. It has a commercial fishery, a tourist industry, a geothermal power plant nearby and the town of Naivasha at its edge. Naivasha has a unique grouping of its landowners who have been charged under law with the management of the riparian land associated with the lake. The Lake Naivasha Riparian Owners Association (LNROA) was formed to allow agriculture to continue and develop while simultaneously ensuring the provision of fish and other wetland products to those who needed them. In short, a process to ensure Wise Wetland Use! The LNROA together with the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) and with backup from the IUCN Wetlands Programme, decided that the designation of the lake and associated wetlands as a Ramsar site would fulfil their needs while ensuring water and biodiversity for posterity. At a full meeting of the Association early in 1995, this idea was supported unanimously and the process of designation began in earnest. The site has been delineated (approximately 30,000 ha, including some adjacent sodic wetlands, a floodplain and delta as well as many farms and houses) and described and the designation has been supported by the Government of Kenya through KWS. On 10 April the site was added to the Ramsar list of Wetlands of International Importance. But the process does not end there as there is need for a management arrangement and a management plan. Both of these are being developed by a steering committee which is hosted by LNROA and includes KWS, IUCN and other key players in the utilisation and conservation of the lake. A draft management plan for sustainable utilisation has been produced and should be approved by the stakeholders and government authorities in the near future. The Ramsar site is likely to be managed by the LNROA together with appropriate government institutions and representatives of Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 15 wetland users. This will then make Naivasha the first Ramsar site in Africa to be sited within private land and to be managed by its inhabitants! — Geoffrey Howard, P O Box 68200, Nairobi. [Adapted from the IUCN Wetlands Programme newsletter, no. 11, June 1995. J International For waterbirds, c'est Bonn European, African and Middle Eastern nations have reached a historic agreement on the conservation of the migratory waterbirds that they share. Representatives from over 60 countries signed the African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds Agreement in Den Haag, Netherlands, on Friday 16 June. The Agreement, created under the Bonn Convention on Migratory Species, aims to ensure that coordinated measures are taken to maintain and restore populations of birds such as storks, swans, geese and ducks. The signatories agreed to cooperate in giving legal protection to the birds, identifying and protecting the sites and habitats they use, and combating threats to them. The treaty does allow hunting, however, except of those species at extreme risk because of factors such as low numbers, declines or habitat threats. Even a few of these high-risk birds, such as Red-crested Pochard, Greenland White- fronted Goose and Goldeneye, may be hunted for traditional reasons in parts of Europe, and Glossy Ibis, African Spoonbill and White-backed Duck in parts of Africa. Johanna Winkelman of BirdLife International said: 'This agreement is the first of its kind, and will help to protect migratory birds, from the Arctic to southern Africa. However, BirdLife is worried that the agreement allows some hunting of birds which have an unfavourable or uncertain conservation status." Most controversially, the hunting of some species will be permitted while they are breeding. According to BirdLife International, this is a backward step. "Some birds were added to the list of huntable species with inadequate justification," said Winkelman. "Nonetheless, the agreement offers a real prospect of a brighter future for our migratory birds". BirdLife hopes that the agreement will come into force before the end of the century. In the meantime, states can begin to implement the agreement by drawing up species action plans (one of the main provisions of the agreement) and working towards the phasing out of toxic lead shot, still widely used by hunters. 16 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 Spix's fixed — lone male macaw gets mate Conservationists who have been 'match-making' between two parrots, in an attempt to save the world's rarest bird from extinction, are delighted to find that their couple seem to have fallen for each other! Until earlier this year, just a single Spix's Macaw - a male - remained in the wild, in forest in Brazil. The lone male was pursing a sad, inevitably fruitless relationship with a female Green- winged Macaw, a closely related but completely separate species. Around 30 Spix's Macaws exist in captivity. In March, after extensive research to ensure the two would be well-suited, a female was released to join the male, in the hope that they would pair-up and breed. Although it has taken a while, the two now seem to have fallen for each other, and are almost inseparable. The rejected Green- winged Macaw generally joins the couple during the day, but leaves them in the evening, so they can spend the night alone together. While it is still early days, the hope is that the couple will reproduce successfully in the breeding season later this year. They are currently being observed by biologists around the clock to monitor their behaviour and guard them from poachers. The match-making is part of a programme to save Spix's Macaw, the world's rarest bird, from extinction, being run by an International Committee led by the Brazilian wildlife authorities, IBAMA. Spix's Macaw once occurred in gallery riverine forest in north-east Brazil. Loss of its forest habitat together with capture for the wild bird trade has- reduced the species to a single individual in the wild. The sex of the remaining wild bird was confirmed by DNA sequencing of a feather, performed by Dr Richard Griffiths at Oxford University. Birding at... Olorgesailie Prehistoric Site Leon Bennun P O Box 40658, Nairobi If you are unlucky enough to live in Nairobi, the cold months in the middle of the year can often seem particularly dreary. Day after day of grey skies, dull drizzle and dismal temperatures, enough to lower any birder's spirits. The few feathered objects that are hardy enough to be out and about can scarcely be glimpsed through the gloom. What better time to head south to warmer surroundings? Olorgesailie Prehistoric Site is only an hour and a bit away but it feels like a different world; a landscape of dust, heat, thorn and the Rift Valley's wild fractured beauty. Indisputably a change from the Arboretum on a murky July morning. Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 17 Red and Yellow Barbets — Edwin Selempo Landscapes The trip to Olorgesailie takes you down the shoulder of the rift, on what must be one of the finest short drives anywhere. Magadi Road rolls south through the bustling sprawl of Ongata Rongai and Kiserian before breaking out into green open country on the slopes of the Ngong Hills. Then it sweeps round the edge of the hills and the Rift Valley appears with breathtaking grandeur. Ancient volcanoes litter the landscape: Suswa off in the distance, 01 Doinyo Esakut immediately below — the road can be seen looping ever downwards across its flanks — and away to the south, the impressive eroded bulk of Mt Olorgesailie itself, brooding over the valley floor. 18 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1 994 Olorgesailie Prehistoric Site and environs — Map by Dennis Milewa The descent is rapid and ecological zones succeed one another alarmingly fast. Dwarf Acacia drepanolobium shrubland gives way to taller woodland, then to dense thickets of the wait-a-bit thorn, Acacia mellifera. The road plunges down a last rocky ridge and suddenly flattens out on the floor of the valley. At just 1,000 m, the temperature here is perceptibly warmer. This area around the little town of Oltepesi (also known as Tinga) was originally wooded grassland. Heavy grazing and felling of trees have turned it into a dusty plain scattered with a few Acacia tortilis. Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 19 The road crosses the seasonal Engeju Esiteti river over a fine modern bridge (which has eliminated the often hair-raising fordings of earlier years), then climbs a little ridge to the Olorgesailie turn-off on the left. The site is reached down an appallingly dusty stretch of track, but it is a distance of only 2 km. Walks around the site Olorgesailie protects an excavation of the Acheulian stone tool culture, perhaps half a million years old. If you happen to be a devotee of hand axes and other prehistoric artefacts, there is a great deal to see in the tidy small Museum and the site displays. As a birder, however, you are better advised to look elsewhere. If you have managed to arrive early in the day, you might start by walking down towards the seasonal Engeju Esiteti River. A footpath leading down from the Museum skirts the main excavations, drops down the ridge and eventually circles round past the lower level exhibits and back to the main site. This is an easy and worthwhile walk, and will produce open- country species such as Fawn-coloured Lark (look for the big white supercilium) and Ashy Cisticola (listen for the loud warbling song). Rufous-crowned or Lilac- breasted Rollers are often in evidence. To reach the river itself, continue straight across country when the path turns to your left. The thick bush on the river banks can be difficult to walk through, but sit under one of the big, shady Acacia tortilis and look and listen for birds. Spotted-flanked Barbets, White-bellied Go-away Birds and the pretty little Emerald-spotted Wood Dove are all common here, and Green Wood Hoopoe and the beautiful White-throated Bee-eater are often seen. The wooded plain across the river is a good area to see Pale Chanting Goshawk, Blue-naped Mousebird, Heuglin's Courser, Banded Parisoma, Red-fronted Warbler and Yellow-bellied Eremomela. A little further along to the north, the rocky ridge just beyond the lower-level excavation is home to Cinnamon-breasted Rock Bunting, Slate-coloured Boubou, Red-fronted Barbet, Namaqua Dove and many others. Taking it easy More sedentary birders, or those overcome by the heat, need not worry. Most of Olorgesailie's birds can be seen at the main site itself, often without stirring from the welcome shade of one of the verandas. Bird baths outside the main Museum and the picnic banda attract a steady stream of visitors, especially in the depths of the dry season. The variety of small seed-eating birds is particularly impressive: species you are likely to see include Blue-capped Cordon-bleu, Purple Grenadier, Black-cheeked Waxbill, Green-winged Pytilia, Grosbeak and White-bellied Canaries, Cut-throat, Grey-headed Silverbill, Chestnut Sparrow and Yellow- spotted Petronia. Violet-backed, Beautiful and Scarlet-chested Sunbirds flit about, the males flashing their dazzling metallic colours in the sunlight. The Scarlet- 20 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 chested have often nested in the site buildings. Red-and- Yellow Barbets, looking quite unbelievably garish, hop confidingly up to one's chair and wait for handouts. Grey-capped Social Weavers, tame and charming little birds, are also abundant and obvious (see the article elsewhere in this issue). Around the picnic site look out for the Spotted Morning Thrush, stepping shyly from the surrounding thickets. It has a marvellous rich song at dawn. Keep an eye open along the fence-line for its smaller and less musical relative, the White-browed Scrub Robin. A loud, sudden click and whistle is likely to be a pair of Slate-coloured Boubous, skulking in the depths of an acacia thicket. This species has an amazing repertoire of sounds, ranging from harsh grating rasps to melodious gong-like notes. The hot middle hours of the day are a sleepy time for both birdwatchers and birds. Mourning Doves coo lugubriously from the big trees, where White-bellied Lilac-breasted Rollers — Bryan Hanlon Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 21 Go-away Birds sway and doze. Evening brings the Grey-capped Social Weavers noisily back to their nests; they call and preen outside before slipping in quietly to roost as the light fades, accompanied by a brief, thrilling burst of song from the Spotted Morning Thrush. As dusk thickens, Slender-tailed Nightjars start up all around, pop-pop-popping like distant generators, perhaps accompanied by the sad, eerie whistle of a Two-banded Courser. There are no electric lights at or around Olorgesailie, and with or without a moon the nights are magical. Hyenas whoop in the distance, and lions are often around; their roars, resounding from the ridges, can seem to be right inside one's tent. In the moonlit early hours sleepers in the bandas may be awakened by an odd and particular noise: the clicking knee- joints of a big male eland, approaching to browse on the Desert Roses outside the window. After the rains... The face of Olorgesailie changes dramatically from season to season. Once the rains begin, usually in late March or early April, the site is buzzing with life and vibrant with bird-song. The first showers set off a frenzy of nest-building among the weavers. Masked Weavers gather in big noisy colonies to build their fine-grass nests, each with a characteristic little spout at the base. The round nests of the Vitelline Masked Weavers are more scattered, in groups of three or four, and built out of broad green grass blades. In years of good rain, Cardinal Queleas build their neatly woven litde nests in patches of long, dense grass. Most large trees contain a cluster of the untidy straw nests of the Grey-capped Social Weavers, used year-round but renovated each wet season. As the breeding season progresses, the weavers* colonies attract unwelcome visitors: the Didric Cuckoo, persistent and crafty, intent on stealing an egg and substituting its own; the Boomslang, which systematically makes its murderous rounds from tree to tree; and the Gabar Goshawk and Grey Hornbill, both specialists in robbery with violence. Around and about If you have a little more time to spend, exploring the surrounding area can be rewarding. The rocky scarps north-west of the site are home to Lanners and Kestrels. White-throated Bee-eaters are known to breed in the diatomite cliffs to the west, and in the dry season the permanent pools of water in the Olkeju Ngiro river gorge are magnets not only for livestock but for doves, sandgrouse and other birds. Less than an hour's drive to the south is Lake Magadi, with extraordinary scenery and spectacular waterbirds. For the really adventurous, Mt Olorgesailie makes an exciting climb. 22 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 How to get there Olorgesailie is easily accessible by private or public means; a four-wheel drive vehicle is not necessary. If you are driving: from the city centre take the Langata Road past the KWS headquarters, then turn left on Magadi Road at the corner of the National Park. Alternatively, take Ngong Road as far as Ngong Town, then turn left and you will join the Magadi Road at Kiserian. If you are continuing to Magadi, remember that fuel is not always available there. The Akamba Bus Company runs a twice-daily service from Nairobi to Magadi, and back. If you leave the bus at the Olorgesailie turn-off it is an easy walk to the site. Where to stay There are four thatched bandas at the site, providing comfortable but basic accommodation. Beds and mattresses are provided; you need to bring your own bedding and food. Charges are presently KSh 400/= per night, per banda; book through the Director's office, National Museums of Kenya. Paraffin lamps can be rented for a small extra fee. There is also a pleasant campsite, with fireplace, under a group of big Acacia tortilia trees. Water is often available but to be on the safe side bring your own, at least enough for drinking — the supply cannot be guaranteed. EANHS members are admitted to the site free, on production of a valid membership card; others will need to pay an entrance fee. This applies even if you are not visiting the excavations. Records and Notes Records compiled by Joseph Oyugi This section exists for the rapid publication of interesting observations, and contributions are welcomed. If you are sending in records for Kenya Birds, please consider the following guidelines. For breeding records, send in cases of confirmed breeding, i.e. birds incubating eggs or feeding nestlings/fledglings. Records for confirmed breeding are useful for ALL species, even the most common ones; records of nest-building, courtship etc. are only needed for rare species or ones where there are few breeding records. Please try to fill in a nest-record card at the same time. Much more detail can be recorded on a card, and if your record can be added to the card collection and our computer database then it is of permanent value. Cards can be obtained free of charge from the EANHS Nest Record Scheme Organiser (see back page). A report listing records submitted to the scheme is published every second year in the Annual Bird Report of Scopus. Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 23 For other records of Afrotropical/oceanic and Palaearctic birds, please send in any sightings and notes that you think are of interest. The Editors will select records for publication according to the space available. For all records, including breeding records, please be precise as possible about dates and locations. If you have sightings from places not easily found on the map, please take the trouble to give the latitude and longitude of the site to as much precision as you can (preferably the nearest second of arc or better). This will allow us to use these records in the Ornithology Department's computerised database. Supporting details are always welcome for unusual records and will improve the chances of publication. Records of certain species are requested for inclusion in the Scopus Annual Bird Report (the third issue of Scopus each year). These should be sent to Don Turner (P O Box 48019, Nairobi), who can also supply information on which records are required. For particularly unusual sightings supporting details (i.e. field notes, photographs etc.) will be needed for scrutiny by the OS-c Rarities Committee. Key to records New atlas square records are indicated in square, brackets. Codes are: pres, present (first record); post pres, present (first post- 1970 record); prob, probably breeding; conf, confirmed breeding; post conf, confirmed breeding (first since 1970); for example, [pres, conf 25B] indicates that the species is present and confirmed as breeding in square 25B. Where scientific names are not stated here (and elsewhere in Kenya Birds) the English names follow Britton (ed.) 1980, Birds of East Africa. Breeding records Little Grebe: One juv, Kayole sewage pond 4/1/95 KN. Pink-backed Pelican: Two fully fledged young sitting in a nest, Rakewa, Oyugis 26/2/95 CO, JOO, JOl, WOl & PO; more than one hundred nests, some adults feeding young in nest and others incubating, Rakewa, Oyugis 9/7/95 JOO. Greater Cormorant: Many fully grown juvs and nestlings being fed by adults, off Lake Naivasha Hotel Jetty, Lake Naivasha 18/1/92 ON, JH, FN, WO & AD; (conf 49A): Two young fed by adult, Soy Village, Eldoret 10/ 3/95 BC. Darter (conf 63D): Several nests and young, Upper Tana 8/3/95 CJ & ON. Black-headed Heron (conf 60D): Two fully fledged young sitting in nests and one standing on a branch, Rakewa, Oyugis 26/2/95 CO, JOO, JOl, WOl & PO; (conf 62D): Seventeen individuals sitting in nests, Murungaru, North Kinangop 29/3/95 JOO, LL, MM & CJ; (conf 61A): Adult feeding frog to half-grown young, Chagaik Dam, Kericho 1/2/94 AJB. Cattle Egret: 212 birds in nests, Murungaru, North Kinangop 29/3/95 LL, JOO, MM & CJ. Abdim's Stork: One fledgling in a nest, Maseno 24/2-1/4/93 JA. Hadada: Adult feeding nestling, Impala Sanctuary, Kisumu 20/4/95 MM. White-faced Whistling Duck: Pairs with 20, 10 and 5 ducklings, single bird with 10 ducklings, Dandora sewage treatment ponds 4/1/95 WMBw; pair with two ducklings diving, dam, Nairobi National Park 8/3/95 DB. Egyptian Goose: Six goslings, Dandora sewage treatment pond 4/1/95 KN et al.; adult with ten goslings, Lake Oloiden, Naivasha 28/1/ 95 JOO & BC; adult with ten goslings, Yacht Club, Lake Naivasha 29/1/95 JOO; adult 24 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1 994 with seven goslings, Lake Oloiden 28/6/95 CB. Yellow-billed Duck: An adult with about twelve ducklings, off New Fisheries Jetty, Lake Naivasha 29/1/95 FN, JW & EM; four ducklings, Loldia farm, Naivasha 22/2/95 JW. African White-backed Vulture: Young in the nest, two adults sitting by, Athi River, Hopcraft Ranch 15/2/95 PN. Great Sparrowhawk: Two fledglings in a nest, Kiambere Road, Nairobi 6/11-29/12/94 FN; juv begging from adult, Nairobi, Arboretum 21/5/95 CJ. Tawny Eagle: Adult sitting in nest, Nairobi National Park 5/7/95 WMBw. Verreaux's Eagle: One young, Soysambu Ranch 16/3/95 ES & WO. Long-crested Eagle (post prob 63C): A pair mating, Wajee Camp, Mihuti 24/6/95 DM; adult incubating, L. Nakuru National Park 23/2/95 JW. Fish Eagle: Adult incubating, Ndere Island, Kisumu 24/4/95 MM; juv with two adults, Shimoni 15/2/95 JS & JW1. Crested Francolin (conf 75D): Three adults with one chick, Kajiado 5/5/95 NS. Helmeted Guineafowl: Five chicks and three adults, Kajiado 16/4/95 NS; five chicks with two adults, Oltepesi, Kajiado 15/6/95 AS. Kenya Crested Guineafowl: Five chicks on the road, Arabuko-Sokoke Forest 20/5/95 LD; seven chicks with three adults, Arabuko-Sokoke Forest 29/5/95; six chicks with five adults, Arabuko-Sokoke Forest 20/5/95 LD. Crowned Crane: A pair with two half-grown young, Chelimo Estate, Kericho 15/12/94 AJB et al.; a pair with two very small chicks, Nairobi National Park 13/2/95 KLW; one young, half adult size, near the adults, Loresho Ridge, Nairobi 19/4/95 FN; one young feeding with two adults, Nairobi National Park 11/2-8/3/95 DB. Purple Gallinule: One fully-fledged young on floating leaf, and another with adult returning to nest, Splash, Nairobi 31/1/95 DR. Red- knobbed Coot: Five young swimming with two adults, Soy, Eldoret 14/5/95 DB. Kori Bustard: Two eggs in a nest, Singiraini, Magadi 8/3/95 NS. Kittlitz's Sandplover: One young probably 3-5 days out of nest, Lake Nakuru 17/7/94 CJ; two downy young, Soysambu Ranch 30/3/95 KN. Blacksmith Plover: Incubating four eggs, Lake Nakuru 17/7/94 CJ. Crowned Plover: Two juvs, Soysambu Ranch 16/3/95 KN; two juvs feeding, Loldia farm, Naivasha 4/3/95 JW; incubating two eggs, Loldia farm, Naivasha 23/2/95 JW. Black- winged Plover (post conf 62D): Adult incubating three eggs, South Kinangop 27/6/95 CJ. Wattled Plover (conf 74C): Adult incubating (photographed), Musiara Road, Masai Mara 25/12/88 ND & LD (see article, this issue). Spur-winged Plover: Downy young sitting in a depression on the ground, Dandora sewage ponds, Nairobi 4//1/95 ON. Senegal Plover: Adult with juv, Shimba Hills 29/5/95 LL & JS. Spotted Thicknee: Incubating two eggs, Nairobi National Park 16/3/95 FN. Speckled Pigeon: Incubating, Lake Nakuru National Park 23/2/95 JW. Red-eyed Dove: Nest with two eggs, preyed on by Gabar Goshawk, Naivasha 29/31/1/95 CR. Ring-necked Dove: Two fledglings leaving nest, Sinya Omelok, Kajiado 15/6/95 AS & CB. Laughing Dove: Incubating two eggs, later two young in nest, Loldia Farm, Naivasha 11/2-1/3/95 JW; nest with two eggs, Naivasha 3-5/2/95 CR. Levaillant's Cuckoo (conf 62C): Laid in nest of Olive Thrush;, juv successfully fledged, South Lake Road, Naivasha, early 9/94-8/10/94 AV. Black Cuckoo: Juv being fed by Tropical Boubou, Naivasha 21/1-26/2/95 CR. Didric Cuckoo: Juv being fed by Black-headed Weaver, Voi Safari Lodge 14/5/95 JS. Barn Owl: Two owlets begging after dusk, Lamu Museum roof, late March and early April 1995 MJ. Spotted Eagle Owl: One juv with two adults, Hell's Gate National Park 22/2/95 MV. Verreaux's Eagle Owl: Two juvs, Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 25 Loldia Farm, Naivasha 5/3/95 JW. Sokoke Scops Owl: Two immature birds with two adults, Arabuko-Sokoke Forest 29/1/95, DN & JS. Montane Nightjar (conf 62A): Adult female incubating, later both adults feeding young at night, Soysambu 26/3 & 19/ 4/95 KN & JMN. Dusky Nightjar: Nest with two chicks, Soysambu, Elmenteita 6/5/95 MACC. Speckled Mousebird: Nest with two chicks, both fledged, Naivasha 21/2/95 CR; one juv, National Museums of Kenya, Nairobi 21/6/95 CJ; three juvs fed by adults, Loldia Farn, Naivasha 10/5/95 JW. Blue-naped Mousebird: Two juvs, Loldia Farm, Naivasha 24/2/95 JW. Malachite Kingfisher: Adult carrying food near nest, Elsamere, Naivasha 29/6/95 CB. Cinnamon-chested Bee-eater: Two juvs, Lake Nakuru National Park 1/3/95 JW. Green Wood Hoopoe: One juv, Loldia farm, Naivasha 1/3/95 JW; one juv fed by adults, Naivasha 2 & 5/3/95 CR. Grey Hornbill: One juv, Loldia Farm, Naivasha 22/2/95 JW; adult carrying food near nest, Loldia farm, Naivasha 24/2/95 JW. Ground Hornbill: Hole nest in large branching tree, Kwanza, Kitale 8/6/95 MACC. Red-fronted Barbet: Nest hole in trunk of large tree, Laikipia 21/5/95 SS. White- headed Barbet (conf 48D): Hole nest in a Nandi Flame tree, later two white eggs found broken after the tree was cut down, Maseno 20/12/92-3/1/93 JA. Eastern Honeyguide: One juv near pair of Montane White-eyes, Wasaa Conservation Centre, Nairobi 24/5/95 FN. Uganda Spotted Woodpecker (pres, prob 61A): Male and female visiting nesting hole regularly, hissing noises within the hole, Chagaik estate 1/1/95 AJB et al. Fischer's Sparrow Lark (post conf 75D): Two nestlings, Kajiado 27/4/95 NS. Striped Swallow: Hail stones tore the bottom out of the nest, three eggs shattered on the windowsill and roof below, Chagaik Estate, Kericho 14/5/94 AJB; adult entering nest, Highridge, Nairobi 20/5/95 CB. Angola Swallow (post conf 62D): Adult feeding two juvs, South Kinangop 28/6/95 CJ. Wire-tailed Swallow (post conf 63C): Adult carrying food near nest, Mukurweini, Muhuti 2/7/95 DM. African Rock Martin: Nest with three eggs, Langata, Nairobi 9/3/95 DB. Sand Martin: Two juvs, Loldia Farm, Naivasha 26/2/95 JW. Black-headed Oriole: Building nest, Loldia farm, Naivasha 1-5/6/95 JW. Red- throated Tit (conf 75D): Three juvs, Olelepos 25/6/95 CJ. Arrow-marked Babbler: Two juvs, Soysambu Ranch 15/6/95 KN. Placid Greenbul: One juv wing- shivering, Arboretum, Nairobi 5/4/95 FN. Common Bulbul: One fledgling fed by adult, Kiambere road, Nairobi Hill 15/12/94 FN; one young, Soysambu Ranch 30/4/95 KN; one young, Loldia Farm, Naivasha 5/3/95 JW. RuppelTs Robin Chat: Adult feeding juv, later juv feeding alone, Kiambere Road, Nairobi Hill 3/12/94 FN. White-starred Forest Robin: Juv feeding independently, Nairobi, Arboretum 21/5/95 CJ. Northern Olive Thrush: One juv, Kiambere Road, Nairobi Hill late 12/94 FN. Lesser Swamp Warbler: Nest with five chicks, Elsamere, Naivasha 28/6/95 CB. Black-collared Apalis: Juv fed by adult, Langata Bird Sanctuary, Nairobi 4/6/95 WMBw. White-eyed Slaty Flycatcher: One juv, Soysambu Ranch 18/4/95 KN; one juv, Wanje Camp, Mihuti 8/5/95 DM. Dusky Flycatcher: Two eggs in a nest in a potted plant, Kiambere Road, Nairobi Hill 1/6/94 FN & JH; two eggs in a nest in a potted plant, later two fledglings fed by parents, Kiambere Road, Nairobi Hill Oct-Nov 1994 FN & AH. Chin- spot Batis: Male carrying moth to female sitting in nest, Langata, Nairobi 25/1/95 WMBw. Paradise Flycatcher: Juv near Ikuywa stream, Kakamega Forest 6/1/94 CJ; three nestlings ringed and later observed being fed by adult out of the nest, National 26 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 Museum ground, Nairobi 20-25/95 CJ. Plain-backed Pipit: Nest with three young, later fledged, Kima Hill, Machakos 18-19 & 26/5/94 CJ. Richard's Pipit: Adult incubating, North Kinangop 27/6/95 CJ. Sharpens Longclaw: Incubating two eggs, North Kinangop 27/6/95 CJ; adult carrying food, Njabini, South Kinangop 28/6/95 CJ. African Pied Wagtail: Nest with two chicks/Loldia farm, Naivasha 15/7/95 JW; three juvs fed by adult, Sailing Club, Nairobi Dam 28/12/94 FN; adult carrying insect into nest, Elsamere Conservation Centre, Naivasha 29/1/95 BK. Mountain Wagtail (conf 61A): Pair feeding four juvs with insects, Chagaik Estate, Kericho 18/1/94 AJB. Black- backed Puffback: Juv begging, Nairobi Arboretum 5/4/95 WMBw; one juv, Kiambere Road, Nairobi 12/3/95 FN. Tropical Boubou: Nest with two eggs, later one nestling, Naivasha 30/3-20/4/95 CR. Grey-headed Bush Shrike: Juvs fed by parents, Naivasha 29/1/95 CR. Fiscal: Two recently ftedged juvs, Loresho Ridge, Nairobi 19/4/95 WMBw; adult brooding, Eldoret 2//4(95 MM; juv begging from adult, Arboretum, Nairobi 21/6/95 WMBw. Grey-backed Fiscal: Two juvs, Loldia Farm, Naivasha 1/3/95 JW. Red- winged Starling: Nest with one chick, Naivasha 12-29/3/95 CR. Superb Starling: Juv fed by adult, Naivasha 4/2/95 CR; Nest with two young, later fledged, Soysambu Ranch 20/3/-1 5/4/95 KN. Bronze Sunbird: Nest with one egg, chick later fledged, Maseno 21/11/92 JA; juv flpd by male, Loresho Ridge, Nairobi 19/4/95 WMBw. Mariqua Sunbird: Nest w^th two chicks, Siaya 22/12/92 JA. Variable Sunbird: Incubating one egg, Elangata Wuas, Kajiado 16/3/95 AS. Montane White- eye: Adults built nest, laid eggs, later deserted, National Museums, Nairobi 11-25/1/95 CJ; juvs being fed, Gatamaiyu Forest 23/4/95 FN. Grosbeak Weaver: Two juvs, Splash, Nairobi 31/1/95 DR. Red-headed Weaver: Adult visiting nest regularly, hissing calls from the nest, Lake Bogoria Game Reserve 8/1/95 JOO et al.; adult male nest-building, Soysambu Ranch 18/3/95 KN. Baglafecht Weaver: Juv fed by adult male, Wajee Camp, Muhuti 23/5/95 DM; female feeding juvs, Wajee Camp, Mihuti 18/ 2/95 DM; nest with two chicks, Njabini, N. Kinangop 17/5/95 SMK. Holub's Golden Weaver: One juv fed by "adult, Ridgeway Estate, Nairobi 7/12/94 FN. Rufous Sparrow: One juv leaving nest, Elangata Wuas 1/5/95 NS; nest with two chicks, Soysambu Ranch 27/5/95 KN; one juv, Loldia Farm, Naivasha 7/3/95 JW. Speckled- fronted Weaver: Adult carrying food near nest, Elangata Wuas, Kajiado 16/3/95 JSK. Bronze Mannikin: Five juvs in a flock of adults, Arboretum, Nairobi 21/6/95 WMBw; juvs fed by adult, Carnivore, Nairobi 5/7/95 WMBw. Streaky Seed-eater: One juv fed by adult, Upper Hill, Nairobi 1/5/95 FN. Other records: Afrotropical species White Pelican (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 10-13/6/94 NW. Darter (pres 101A): Burn Dam, Taita Hills 24-26/9/92 NW. Grey Heron (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 10-13/6/94 NW. Squacco Heron (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 11/9/94 NW. Hamerkop (pres 88D): Bonham's Camp, Chyulu Hills 31/7-3/8/92 NW. Yellow-billed Stork (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 10-13/6/94 NW. Woolly-necked Stork (100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW. Saddle- billed Stork (pres 100B): Ziwani camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW. Sacred Ibis (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 11/9/94 NW. African Spoonbill (pres 100B): Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 27 Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 11/9/94 NW. Sacred Ibis (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 1 1/9/94 NW. Lesser Flamingo (pres 75D): Forty flying high over, Elangata Wuas 15/6795 CB. Egyptian Goose (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 10-13/6/94 NW. Southern Pochard (pres 101A): Bura Dam, Taita Hills 24-26/9/92 NW. African Pygmy Goose: A female swimming off New Fisheries Jetty, Lake Naivasha 29/1/95 JOO, BC & RD; one, Sondu-Miriu River mouth 12/2/95 WO, ON, JO, CA, PO, FN, DB, DO, NO & JA. Spur-winged Goose (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 11/9/ 94 NW. White-backed Duck (pres 101A): Bura Dam, Taita Hills 24-26/5/9/92 NW. Hooded Vulture (pres 103A): Sabaki River 28/1/95 JS. African Marsh Harrier (pres 61A): AHP, Kericho 18-21/11/93 NW. Harrier Hawk (pres 75D): Three individuals, Elangata Wuas 15/6/95 CB. Bateleur (pres 28D): Ndovu 1987 FA. African Hawk Eagle (pres 75D): One or two daily, Elangata Wuas 7-17/6/95 CB. Pale Chanting Goshawk (pres 28D): Ndovu 1987 FA. Little Sparrowhawk: Main car park, National Museums of Kenya, 10/6/95 LAB & OM. Martial Eagle (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW. Pygmy Falcon (pres 28D): Ndovu 13/2/88 FA. Yellow- necked Spurfowl (pres 28D): Ndovu 13/2/88 FA. Vulturine Guineafowl (post pres-, 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW. Button Quail (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 10-13/6/94 NW. Crowned Crane (post pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 10-13/6/94 NW. Lesser Moorhen (pres 89D): Foraging in small pool, Tsavo East National Park 4/6/95 LL. Black Crake (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 10-13/6/94 NW. African Finfoot (pres 62B): Wooded stream, Prettejohns', Mweiga 10-11/10/94 NW. Hartlaub's Bustard (pres 75D): Common, Elangata Wuas 7-17/6/95 CB. Black-bellied Bustard (pres 102D): One female, Kilifi 3M8/-9/9/93 NW; (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West NW, TD, MS. Jacana (pres 1(K)B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 10-13/6/94 NW. Kittlitz's Sandplover (pres 75D): At a dam, Elangata Wuas 7-17/6/95 CB. Blacksmith Plover (pres 51D): Lewa Downs, 24/1/92 NW; (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 10-13/6/94 NW. Crowned Plover (pres 28D): Ndovu 1987 FA. Black-winged Stilt (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW, TD & MS. Water Thicknee (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 11/9/94 NW. Temminck's Courser (pres 89C): Tsavo West 16-18/4/92 NW. Heuglin's Courser (post pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW, TD & MS. Chestnut-bellied Sandgrouse (pres 28D): Ndovu 13/2/88 FA. Mourning Dove (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW, TD & MS; (pres 28D): Ndovu 13/2/88 FA. Hartlaub's Turaco (post pres 50D): Segara, Nanyuki 6-7/2/93 NW. Red-chested Cuckoo (pres 102D): Seen and heard, Kilifi 8-16/4/93 NW. Barn Owl (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW, TD & MS. Pearl-Spotted Owlet (pres 75D): Regularly seen or heard, Elangata Wuas 7-17/6/95 CB. Donaldson-Smith's Nightjar (post pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West NW, TD, MS. Dusky Nightjar (pres 75D): Regular at night, Elangata Wuas V-17/6/95 CB. Pied Kingfisher (pres 75D): Dam, Elangata Wuas 13/6/95 CB. Half-collared Kingfisher (pres 89D): Kanderi Swamp, Tsavo National Park 4/6/95 LL (record to be submitted to EANHS OS-c Rarities Committee). Chestnut-bellied Kingfisher (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW, TD & MS. Somali Bee-eater (pres 28D): Ndovu 1987 FA. White-headed Wood Hoopoe (pres 62C): Two adults, 28 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1 994 Lake Sonachi, Naivasha 6/94 AV. Scimitarbill (pres 51B): Foraging in trees, Shaba National Park 22-23/1/92, 27-30/4/93 NW. Green Wood Hoopoe (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 11/9/94 NW. Trumpeter Hornbill (pres 101A): Taita Hills 24-26/ 9/92 NW. Yellow-billed Hornbill (pres 75D): Elangata Wuas 27/5/95 CB. Spotted- flanked Barbet (pres 50D): Segara, Nanyuki 6-7/2/93 NW. d'Arnauds Barbet (pres 74C): Cottars Camp, Mara 1-3/4/93 NW. Red and Yellow Barbet (post pres 100B): Ziwani camp, Tsavo West 10-13/6/94 NW. Rufous-naped Lark (pres 88D): Bonham's camp, Chyulu Hills 31/7-3/8/92 NW. Fawn-coloured Lark (pres 101A): Taita Hills 24-26/9/92 NW. Flappet Lark (pres 75D): Common, Elangata Wuas 7-17/6/95 CB. Wire-tailed Swallow (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW, TD & MS; (pres 75D): Elangata Wuas 28/5/95 CB. Mosque Swallow (pres 75D): Elangata Wuas 7-17/6/95 CB. Pied Crow (pres 88D): Bonham's Camp, Chyulu Hills 31/7-3/8/ 92 NW. Brown-necked Raven (pres 28D): Ndovu 1987 FA. Grey Tit (pres 51C): Lewa Downs 12-27/10/92 NW. African Penduline Tit (pres 61B): Elburgon, 9-11/1/ 92 NW; (pres 89C): Tsavo West 15-18/4/92 NW. Black-lored Babbler (pres 51D): Lewa Downs 24/1/92 NW; (pres 74C): Cottars Camp, Mara 1-3/4/93 NW; (pres 75D): Elangata Wuas 27/5/95 CB. Hinde's Babbler (post pres 77A): Four, Nzambani, Kitui 29/11/95 DM. White-browed Robin Chat (post pres 101B): Russels Camp, Tsavo East 2-5A1/92 NW. Capped Wheatear (post pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW, TD & MS. African Reed Warbler (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW, TD & MS. Grey Wren Warbler (pres 51C): Lewa Downs 12-27/10/92 NW; (pres 74C): Sekanani Camp, Mara 2-4/12/92 NW. Winding Cisticola (pres 74C): Sekanani Camp, Mara 2-4/12/92 NW; (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW, TD & MS. Croaking Cisticola (post pres 75D): Elangata Wuas 26/5/95 CB. Northern Crombec (pres 88D): Bonham's Camp, Chyulu Hills 31/7-3/8/92 NW; (pres 101 A): Taita Hills 24-26/9/92 NW. Grey Flycatcher (pres 62B): Oserian Farm, Ngobit 8/2/93 NW. Little Tawny Pipit: Northern Mara River, Masai Mara Game Reserve 6/11/94 TP. Rosy-breasted Longclaw (pres 51C): Lomarik Farm, Timau 6/5/95 RC. Yellow-throated Longclaw (pres 52C): Leopard Rock, Mem National Park 21/1/92 NW. Grey-headed Bush Shrike (post pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW, TD & MS. Somali Fiscal (pres 28D): Ndovu 13/2/88 FA. Grey-crested Helmet Shrike (pres 62B): Seven individuals feeding in low bushes, Prettejohns', Mweiga 10-11/10/94 NW. Yellow-billed Oxpecker (pres 51C): Many occasions, Lewa Downs 12-27/10/92 NW. Wattled Starling (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW, TD, MS. Red- winged Starling (pres 74C): Cottars Camp, Mara 1-3/4/93 NW. White-crowned Starling (pres 28D): Ndovu 13/2/88 FA. Eastern Violet-backed Sunbird (post pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 10-13/6/94 NW. Red-chested Sunbird (pres 61A): A male, AHP, Kericho 18-21/11/93 NW. Hunter's Sunbird (pres 51C): Many occasions, Lewa Downs 12-27/10/92 NW. Scarlet-tufted Malachite Sunbird (post pres 62A): Male adult, Gilgil 29/10/94 SG. Beautiful Sunbird (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW, TD & MS. Variable Sunbird (pres 28D): Ndovu 1987 FA. Fan-tailed Widowbird (pres 88C): 01 Tukai Lake, Amboseli N. Park 22/1/ 95 FN. Fire-fronted Bishop (pres 51B): Samburu 27-30/4/93 NW. Spectacled Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 29 Weaver (pres 75D): Elangata Wuas 17/6/95 CB. White-headed Buffalo Weaver (pres 28D): Ndovu 13/2/88 FA. Chestnut Sparrow (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 10-13/6/94 NW. Yellow-spotted Petronia (post pres 62C): Eserian Farm, Ngobit 21- 23/1/94 NW. Abyssinian Crimson-wing (pres 62A): Two adults, Gilgil 12/3/95 SG. Yellow-bellied Waxbill (pres 74C): Sekanani Camp, Mara 2^/12/92 NW. Crimson- rumped Waxbill (pres 61B): Elburgon 9-11/1/92 NW. African Firefinch (pres 75D): Elangata Wuas 7-17/6/95 CB. Quailfinch (pres 51C): Timau 6/5/95 RC. Black and White Mannikin (pres 75D): Elangata Wuas 7-17/6/95 CB. African Citril (pres 74C): Cottars Camp, Mara 1-3/4/93 NW. Other records: Palaearctic species White Stork: 800+ flying over, Enkongo Narok Swamp, Amboseli National Park 22/1/ 95 LL, JW1, AS, FN, NK, JO, AO, AOa, KN & VL; 210+, Menengai plains, Nakuru 7/ 1/95 JOO, ON & FN; (post pres 76C): 300+, West Ulu 2/2/95 FN; 150+, Athi Plains 2/ 2/95 LL, a, JOO, MF & LB; one, Naivasha 19/3/95 LL; one, Nairobi 17/3/95 LL; twelve, Tigoni 29/1/95 LL. Black Stork: One overhead, National Museums of Kenya, Nairobi 20/12/95 LL; three overhead, Lake Bogoria 7/1/95 LL; three soaring, Amboseli National Park 1/3/95 LL; Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW. Pallid Harrier (post pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW. Long-legged Buzzard: One overhead, Oldonyo Sabuk 2/4/95 LL. Booted Eagle: One overhead, Nairobi N. Park 25/3/95 LL. Osprey (pres 101B): Russel's Camp, Tsavo East 2-5/1/92 NW. Northern Lapwing Vanellus vanellus (pres 103A): One at Sabaki River mouth 8/2/95 CJ, GM, JS, JOO, KD, LB, LL & PB (the first record for East Africa; details to be submitted to EANHS OS-c Rarities Committe). Caspian Plover: One in breeding plumage, Sabaki River mouth 6/2/95 CJ, GM, JOO, LL & PB; five in breeding plumage, Tiwi River mouth 10/2/95 CJ, GM, JOO, LB, LL & PB. Wood Sandpiper (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW, TD, MS. Common Snipe (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW, TD & MS. Great Snipe: One flushed, Lake Elmenteita 14/1/95 LL. Temminck's Stint: One foraging, Lake Nakuru 15/1/95 LL. Arctic Skua: One at Sabaki River mouth 8/2/95 CJ, GM, JS, JOO, KD, LB, LL & PB; Wasini Island, 23/11/85 CR. White-winged Black Tern (pres 63D): Upper Tana 7/3/95 CJ & ON. Eurasian Bee-eater: Arroket Estate, Sotik 5/4/95 IF & PF. Isabelline Wheatear: One female, North Aberdares 26/2/95 PLP & YMC; (pres 28D): Ndovu 13/2/88 FA. Great Reed Warbler (pres 63D): Upper Tana 7/3/95 CJ & ON. Reed Warbler: One ringed at the Nairobi Museum 31/1/95 NbiRG. Blackcap (pres 74C): Sekanani Camp, Mara 2-4/12/92 NW. Red-throated Pipit: Two in garden,Tigoni 31/12/95 LL. Grey Wagtail (pres 62D): One adult, Northern Mathioya River 26/12/94 PLP & YMC. Yellow Wagtail: Arroket Estate, Sotik 31/3/95 IF & PF. Red-tailed Shrike: One in garden, Tigoni 31/12/95 LL. Contributors AD, Ann Davies; AH, Amrik Heyer; AJB, Kimbo Beakbane; AO, Alice Oluoch; AOa, Anne Oakenfall; AS, Alfred Simiyu; AV, Anne Vaughan; BC, Brooks Childress; BK, Benard Kibara; CA, Cecil Agutu; CB, Colin Beale; CJ, Colin Jackson; CO, Caleb 30 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1 994 Oguai; CR, Charles Rugara; DB, Dorothea Brass; DI, Dorothea Irvine; DM, David Mutinda; DM, David Mutinda; DN, David Ngala; DO, Duncan Otieno; DR, Dee Raymer; EM, Evans Mukala; ES, Edwin Selempo; FA, Fiona Alexander; FK, Fidel Kyalo; GI, Geoffrey Irvine; GM, Gladys Moragua; HG, Hilary Garland; IF, Ian Francombe; JA, Jeam Agutu; JA, Jeam Agutu; JH, Jasdev Heyer; JMN, James Makau Nzioka; JO, Jennifer Oduori; JOl, Joab Omondi; JOO, Joseph Oyugi; JS, Jan Seys; JSK, Joseph S. Katitia; JW1, James Wachira; JW, James Wainaina; KD, Kun Devos; KLW, Keith L. Wood; KN, Kuria Ndung'u; LAB, Leon Bennun; LB, Luca Biddau; LD, Linda Davidson; LD, Lorna Depew; LL, Luc Lens; MAAC, M.A.A. Coverdale; MJ, Martin Johnson; MM, Muchai Muchane; MS, M. Seth-Smith; MV, Munir Virani; NbiRG, Nairobi Ringing Group; ND, Neil Davidson, NS, Nixon Sailepu; NK, Njeri Kimani; NO, Naphtah Otieno; NW, Neil Willsher; OM, Ogeto Mwebi; ON, Oliver Nasirwa; PB, Priscilla Boera; PF, Pamela Francombe; PLP, Peter Le Pelley; PN, Peter Njoroge; PO, Paul Onyango; RC, Rose Caldwell; RD, Roger Diamond; SG, Sue Gould; SMK, Stephen Mwihia Kiragu; SS, Sue Silvester; TD, T. Detrie; TP, Tony Potterton; VL, Veerle Lens; WMBw, Wednesday Morning Birdwalk; WO, Willis Okech; WOl, Wilson Omullo; YMC, Yvonne Malcolm-Coe. Heron and ibis 'tread on each others' toes' On the 20th February 1995 at Enkongo Lake, Amboseli, I observed through field glasses: a Black Heron and a Glossy Ibis fishing next to each other in shallow water. Now and then, when getting too close, they would both rear up and take defensive action. From under its spreading wings, the Black Heron would poke its head out and stab its beak at the ibis. They soon resumed feeding, no doubt taking advantage of the other disturbing fish and invertebrates. — Frans Hartmann, P O Box 30181, Nairobi Ulugulu Violet-backed Sunbirds Anthreptes neglectus at Sable Valley Wildlife Sanctuary, Shimba Hills The Sable Valley Wildlife Sanctuary lies in an area of woodland/grassland mosaic, interspersed with indigenous forest stands, lying within 200 m of the dense riverine forest belt of the Mkurumuji valley on the south-eastern boundary of the Shimba Hills National Reserve. At 06:30 on 27 September 1994 I was on the open upper viewing platform of my house, which is just next to a dense forest patch. A pair of sunbirds appeared in a Crossopteryx febrifuga, a medium-sized woodland tree about 20 m away. After a moment or two they flew into an Afzelia quanzensis, a substantial forest tree no further from the house. I had excellent views in 10 x 40 Leitz binoculars. My field notes read as follows: Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 31 "Male — forehead, upper mantle, tail: iridescent blue with a violet tinge: head, neck and wings seemingly black: black continues under chin and throat, but no metallic noted there. On wing shoulder an obvious cobalt blue/green flash or squarish panel. Beneath greyish white. Female as per books, but I did not see yellow." This relates to the fact that the female was identical to the male in wearing metallic blue above, only lacking the black chin/throat. I did not see any eye-stripe. I am familiar with the Eastern Violet-backed Sunbird, Anthreptes orientalis, and with its much drabber female, which I commonly came across on my foot safaris in northern Kenya. On this occasion the birds gave a thin, sibilant sunbird-like warble, but I could not say this amounted to a "loud persistent squeak" as described by Mackworth- Praed and Grant {Birds of Eastern and North-eastern Africa, 2nd edn, 1960). The birds perched on both trees on the topmost twigs, and were thus very prominent for several minutes, in good early sunlight. I have not found the species again despite energetic searching, particularly down in the forest, and assume they must have been passing from one favoured area to another. — Fiona Alexander, P O Box 890, Ukunda [Editors' note: This scarce species of coastal forests has recently been recorded in Mkongani Forest (Shimba Hills), the Tana River forests and Buda Forest Reserve. Further records are requested. See recent issues of Kenya Birds.] Active anting in Collared Sunbirds On 13 October 1994 1 was able to observe three Collared Sunbirds indulge in that aspect of feather maintenance termed anting. In the past I have only witnessed this in members of the thrush family and, on one occasion, a Hoopoe. My available literature does not mention anting in the Nectariniidae. The scene of the activity was a small shrub Heeria reticulata which stands 3 m from the forest edge, and 8 m. from my observation point on the open upper viewing platform of my house (see 'Uluguru Violet-backed Sunbirds', above). I observed the sunbirds through Leitz Trinovid 10 x 40 binoculars, although I was so close that magnification was merely a luxury! From 07:10 until 07:25 I watched a pair of Collared Sunbirds, which then were joined by a second female. Their unusually 'busy' activity drew my particular attention, and I then noted that the stems of the Heeria were literally crawling with hundreds of small black ants. The following comments from my field notebook may be of interest: "An incredible flurry of activity as they both frenziedly pick tiny ants off the stems and shove them under their 'armpits', shivering out their wings. They seem almost in ecstasy. After about ten minutes of 32 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1 994 this they fly up into the nearby shrubbery, knock the dewdrops off the leaves onto their wings and mantle, then billing away at the ants, they ruffle and shake the moisture through their plumage. Then off on a joyous chase through the bushes. A second female goes through the same act after them." On 26 October 1994 a single female again anted in the same shrub at 07:00. My notes: "Again she darts among the dew-laden foliage to create a shower-bath afterwards." This is the first occasion I have witnessed 'active anting', my other sightings relating to 'passive anting' when the bird lay on the ground among the ants. At risk of being charged with anthropomorphism, I would say that the sunbirds appeared to derive an almost ecstatic enjoyment from the activity. — Fiona Alexander, P O Box 890, Ukunda Is the Sokoke Scops Owl in the Shimba Hills? Sable Valley Wildlife Sanctuary lies immediately adjacent to the Shimba Hills National Reserve, at its south-eastern extremity. The substrate of the region is variously described as Magarini sands. Mazeras sandstone, or Shimba grit, and it appears that these slightly differing soil types are fairly randomly distributed throughout the area. The altitude of the Sanctuary is generally about 240 m above sea level. Among the area's indigenous forest trees are Cynometra webberri, Manilkara sansibarensis, M. sulcata, and Brachystegia spiciformis. Apart from the slightly higher altitude, the habitat thus has many common features with that inhabited by the Sokoke Scops Owl Otus ireneae in Arabuko- Sokoke forest . Since taking up residence here in November 1992, 1 have monitored the owl calls hopefully. To begin with, I was inspired with some excitement, as were the team from the Ornithology Department of the Museums in nearby Maluganji Forest {Kenya Birds. 1(2): 26). For some months I was convinced that I had Sokoke Scops Owls commonly around the house. The only descriptions I could obtain of its call were the invariable, "It sounds like the Golden-rumped Tinkerbird". However, at last I found a detailed and exact description of the various calls of the Barred Owlet Glaucidium capense in the splendid volume The Owls of Southern Africa (by A. Kemp & S. Calburn), and it became evident that these are what I had been hearing. Having now become extremely familiar with the differing calls of the Barred Owlet at all seasons, I heard a quite different call during the night of 1 1 October 1994. My note reads: " 'Plonk, plonk, plonk' x 6 or 8 times, monotonously, on and on. Even when Barred Owlet is doing a single-note theme, each note consists of a Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 33 'fruitier', more musical tone than this. The description 'similar to Golden-rumped Tinkerbird' fits". There were none of the purring, trilling, mellow attributes of the Barred Owlet's calls. I have not heard a similar call since, and I therefore make no attempt to establish this as a record, but describe it merely to add further fuel to the possibility that the Sokoke Scops Owl may well be present in the Shimba Hills area. — Fiona Alexander, P O Box 890, Ukunda. Great White Pelicans in the Shimba Hills On 16 October 1994 I beheld in 10 x 40 binoculars a flock of ten Great White Pelicans sitting in the top of a large forest tree, half-way up the eastern slope of the hills opposite my house. My observation point was on the open upper view in platform of my house (see 'Uluguru Violet-backed Sunbirds', above). Beyond the valley basin of forest, the hills slope upwards fairly steeply, dissected here and there by densely forested stream gorges. At 07:00, I was scanning the opposite slope for sable when I noted what initially appeared to be giant white blossoms covering the crown of ah isolated indigenous tree approximately half-way up the green grassed slope, about 2 km from me. After some minutes' scrutiny, various individuals stretched their wings and altered position slightly, and it then became obvious that they were pelicans. I was at first loath to believe my eyes, as I could not conceive of these huge aquatic birds in a less likely situation, but pelicans they indubitably were. For two hours I kept my glasses firmly glued to them, and at 09:00 they all arose and took to the air, when the obvious black primaries marked them as Great Whites. They spiralled slowly in a thermal, drifting in a northerly direction on the south-easterly breeze. After about 10 min, when they had gained sufficient altitude, they struck off north-westerly across the summit of the range in a ragged V-shape and were lost to sight. Great White Pelicans do not seem to have been recorded from this region (atlas square 114A), and I have no knowledge of any large body of water containing fish in this neighbourhood where they have been sighted. The nearby coastline likewise boasts no record as far as I am aware. The track they were flying, if they maintained it, could have taken them to Aruba Dam, 125 kms away. From which direction they came I do not know, but it is unlikely they would come from say, Lake Jipe, in order to fly to Aruba, which would be a relatively short flight in a straight line. It is more likely that they arrived from some point south, in Tanzania or beyond. — Fiona Alexander, Box 890, Ukunda. 34 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1 994 Shoebill Balaeniceps rex at Amboseli National Park, Kenya On the 13 December 1994 I made a short day trip to Amboseli National Park with Brian Finch, Leonard Maina and Karinga Kariuki. There had been an abundance of rain in Kenya over the last month and Amboseli had shared in this. As our time was short, we concentrated on the now abundant wet areas. These included a freshwater spring, Maji ya Kioko or Lake Conch — a well-known birding spot — and the Sinet Canal which flows south- east from it. On the Kitirua Circuit Track bordering the Sinet Canal, at 11:15, we saw a Shoebill Balaeniceps rex, almost certainly the same bird that had earlier provided Kenya's first official sighting in the Masai Mara, at Musiara Springs. Where the bird was standing the canal had around 5-8 cm depth of water, and grass around 15 cm high. The sun was behind us and we watched the bird for about 40 minutes, after approaching carefully to a distance of about 150 m. The bird stood, apparently resting, and gave no sign of concern. During our watch it shook itself and fluffed its feathers twice, and appeared to be extremely healthy. Towards the end of our watch, the bird lifted itself up and flew a distance of about 5 m; we did not see any sign of missing feathers. The bird was of a strong deep grey, identical to an adult bird that I had earlier seen near Murchison Falls in Uganda. However, there was a very slight brown wash on the secondary coverts. The bill was modeled grey and pink with pink predominating, and the legs were pale. The bird I saw in Uganda was easily visible in grass about 25 cm tall in a swampy area by the Nile. The Amboseli bird was in somewhat similar habitat, but there were no large stands of papyrus nearby. Behind the spring and to the East were some higher stands of swamp grass. It would be interesting to compare this sighting with the others which have been recently recorded. It is also to be hoped that observations will continue on this bird as long as it stays in Amboseli, since this is such an easily accessible area in a well- visited park. — Jorie Butler Kent, Box 59749, Nairobi. Shoebill Safari Stories of the sudden appearance of the Shoebill in Kenya prompted us to travel to Amboseli and become fully fledged 'twitchers'. We had heard that a single bird had been seen in the swamps by the Ol Tukai bandas, and can confirm its presence there on the weekends of 18/19 and J5/26 February. On the first occasion our party was somewhat sceptical as the swamps were of reeds and grass and afforded nothing of the cover of their supposed preferred habitat, papyrus. At the end of the Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1 994 35 track, however, a quick scan with binoculars was sufficient to single it out: its size and unusual blue-grey colouring made it distinctive and it was later easily relocated with the naked eye, even when at some distance. Initially 100 m away, the bird showed no shyness and not only flew to within half that distance but also plated itself conveniently in front of a group of grazing elephants. At this range its primaries exhibited a glossy sheen and its extraordinary bill showed a hint of pink. On several occasions it spread its wings flat out on the ground as if drying them, and was also alert to movements in the water, once catching a brownish-black fish larger than its own head; the tail fin remained outside its bill and after a few moments it appeared to give up and deposit its catch back in the water. We had by this time settled down comfortably and were visited by several tourist vehicles, their occupants assuming we were admiring the elephants. We heard no comment regarding this curious bird which seemed to remain unnoticed by all. Indeed its presence was not known at the gate, nor at the bandas nor at any of the lodges we visited. Which prompts me to ask what monitoring of this amazing bird is being done in its present extralimital location? Is the Museum relying on individual reports such as this one to keep informed? [Yes. — Editors.] And do these sightings now lend more credence to previous 'records' in Shombole and Thika, as quoted in the Bird Atlas of Kenya? The second of our sightings, incidently, was a week after the first and the bird was within 200 metres of its first location and was still easily visible. It occurred to us on both occasions that we were enjoying a most peaceful bit of twitching — and for no ordinary LB J! Were we in Europe there would doubtless have been a gaggle of twitchers all armed to the gills with optical accessories and roped off accordingly. Shoebill T-shirts would be on sale nearby and a new Shoebill- flavoured ice-cream would have been introduced at the local cafe. Yes, Kenya really is a magical place for birdwatching! — Neil and Linda Davidson, Wendy Rutter, Mike Webb, P O Box 24722, Nairobi. Wattled Plover breeding in Masai Mara We were surprised to note in the Atlas that the Wattled Plover has no breeding record in Kenya. We have a photograph taken on Christmas Day 1988 [copy deposited in the Ornithology Department — Editors.] that shows this species on its nest on the main Governors Camp road, just 500 m from the Musiara Gate of the Masai Mara Game Reserve. Indeed, the wardens had protected the bird from passing vehicles by placing three sticks around her. We were surprised that such a record in such a prominent place had gone unreported, and were amused to note a similar observation on the front cover of Swara, January 1995. Needless to say, 36 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 Jonathan Scott's picture was somewhat better than ours, bearing out the hint in his article that one should attempt to get at eye-level with the subject. — Neil and Linda Davidson, P O Box 24722, Nairobi. [Have any other readers seen this species breeding, in the Mara or elsewhere? — Editors.] Violet-backed repels Black-bellied Sunbird On the mid-morning of 26 March 1995 we sat on the bed rocks of the seasonal Olkeju Ngiro River, near Olorgesailie Prehistoric site, watching a pair of Black- faced Sandgrouse. Our attention was distracted by the loud squabbling of two sunbirds in a nearby bush parasitised by a blooming Loranthus plant. A male Eastern Violet-backed Sunbird was chasing a male of the Smaller Black-bellied Sunbird from the bush. After that the Violet-backed returned to feed from the red flowers. As he fed, he fanned out his tail and flicked his wings simultaneously in rapid succession. He then perched on a small branch to groom himself. The Smaller Black-bellied Sunbird, this time accompanied by a female, returned to feed in the same bush. No sooner had they begun than the Violet- backed lashed out at them so vigorously that they scrambled for safety. The Violet-backed then fed for a short time and resumed its grooming. The Smaller Black-bellied Sunbirds made several more attempts to feed on the flowers but were repelled by the Eastern Violet-backed each time. When we left two hours later to pursue other birdlife, the bird was still defending its bush. — Onesmas Kahindi and Joyce Kageci, P O Box 74901, Nairobi. Possible breeding record for Black-throated Wattle-eye at Galu Beach On 22 November 1994 a pair of adult Black-throated Wattle-eyes visited our birdbath at Galu (Bird Atlas of Kenya QSD 1 14B). They were accompanied by an immature male, the plumage of which was closely observed in good light. This was as described by Mackworth-Praed and Grant, {Birds of Eastern and North- eastern Africa, Vol 2, pp. 210-211): brownish grey above, rather than glossy black, with a conspicuous but small eye wattle. Although this species is seen only infrequently at our birdbath, we assume they are resident in the adjacent strip of coastal forest. It seems likely that the presence of an immature bird in company with an adult pair suggests breeding in QSD 1 14B.— Ken and Betty Bock, P O Box 641, Ukunda. Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 37 Immature Silvery-cheeked Hornbills at Galu Beach On 20 February 1995 three Silvery-cheeked Hornbills were seen in the large fig tree near our house at Galu Beach (immediately south of Diani). One was an adult female; two were immatures, evidenced by their size (about half to three-quarters that of the adult) and by their small bills (one without a casque, the other with the mere beginnings of one). The plumage of the immatures was rather tatty, especially their tails, the general impression being that they were not long out of their nest. All three indulged in mutual preening. This is our first record of such very young birds in five years of birdwatching at Diani and Galu. This species is present here (and vocally so) throughout the year, though the size of flocks fluctuates greatly. There is a tendency for small flocks of two Or three birds between May and October, while large aggregations of up to 19 birds (not always associated with fruiting trees) occur during the hot, dry season. — Ken and Betty Bock, P O Box 641, Ukunda. [Remarkably, there still are scarcely any satisfactory breeding records of this species in Kenya — Editors.] Half-collared Kingfisher Alcedo semitorquata at Kanderi Swamp, Tsavo East National Park On 4 June 1995, at around 11:50 h, I was scanning some mudflats and shallow pools adjacent to the Voi River on the Kanderi Swamp Circuit, Tsavo East National Park. I saw a 'blue' kingfisher perched on a small bush hanging over the river, about 150 m away. I immediately noted a striking resemblance to the Common Kingfisher Alee do atthis, a species with which I am familiar since it is a common breeding bird in Belgium. The bird in question was very similar in jizz to Alcedo atthis, and was definitely much larger than the Malachite Kingfisher Alcedo cristata, a species which I have often observed while birdwatching throughout Kenya and South Africa and which I have handled during ringing work at the National Museums of Kenya. Looking more closely, the most obvious features were the large black bill, whitish neck patch and buffy underparts. After observing the bird for about one minute through my binoculars, it shifted position and showed its blue breast-patch. I then took my telescope, fixed it to the open roof of my Landrover and observed the bird'for another five minutes in bright sunshine, after which it flew off and did not turn up again. The telescope observations confirmed that this was indeed the Half-collared Kingfisher Alcedo semitorquata. The overall impression was of a relatively large 'blue' kingfisher 38 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 Woodland Kingfisher — Bryan Hanlon with heavy black bill, distinguished from Alcedo cristata by its much larger size, lack of turquoise crest, lighter back and buffy (not reddish) underparts. I could not see the colour of the legs. I returned to the same spot about two hours later, but could not relocate the bird. — Luc Lens, P O Box 40658, Nairobi. [This is a scarce species in Kenya, with a scattering of records from the area around Mt Kilimanjaro. This is the first record for atlas square 89D — Editors.] Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 39 Bird survey of Malu Farm On 8 and 9 July 1995, a team of twelve people — most of them bird enthusiasts from various institutions, such as the National Museums of Kenya — visited Malu Farm in the Rift Valley near Naivasha. The short visit aimed to list birds, mammals and plants which can be seen at the site, which includes a stretch of attractive riverine forest along the Malewa River. The survey was carried out by invitation from the managers, who want to convert the place to a private camp that will attract ecotourists and trout fishers. A total of 117 bird species was recorded, most of them in the riverine forest and adjacent scrubland. Among many others, noteworthy species included Crowned Eagle, White-headed Wood Hoopoe and Fine-banded Woodpecker. As this site also appears to have potential for migrant birds from Europe and Asia, a second visit is planned for January, in the middle of the northern winter. Malu Farm, situated halfway between Lake Naivasha and the Kinangop Plateau, is ideal for those wanting a quiet break, or can be a comfortable base for those wishing to explore nearby sites, such as Lake Naivasha and the Aberdares National Park. The site will be open to visitors in the very near future. — Luc Lens, P O Box 40658, Nairobi. Rakewa: Breeding site for Pink-backed Pelicans On 25 February, 14 and 16 April 1995, survey visits were made to the nesting site of the Pink-backed Pelicans at Rakewa near Oyugis township, Homa Bay District. In the February team were Dickson Ogwai, Joab Omondi, Joseph Oyugi, Paul Onyango and Wilson Omullo; Oyugi, Omondi and Omullo returned in April. Pink-backed Pelicans occur seasonally on almost any water body where fish are readily caught, including coastal creeks and estuaries. The breeding colonies are sometimes near their aquatic feeding grounds, but more often unaccountably far away, frequently shared with storks, ibises and herons. They often breed in populated areas close to man, in towns and villages, and can tolerate a good deal of human disturbance. Known breeding colonies are widely scattered in East Africa, mainly in Uganda and Kenya, and most consist of less than 100 pairs. Not all sites are in regular use. However, the Rakewa site has been used by up to 250 pairs for over 200 years, and is protected by the area's Luo people. The pelicans prefer to nest on tall trees (such as boababs, large Ficus species, Bombax and Qhlorophora). In western Kenya and Uganda they start nesting between August and November, with a peak in the late rains of August to October. The young fledge by the dry season in January to February. 40 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 The birds often resort to their traditional site annually, perhaps for centuries. Their continual re-occupation of the same site may eventually kill the nesting trees and force them to move, but they seldom shift far. During our first visit we made brief observations. On one fig tree were two fully-fledged young pelicans and two juvenile Black-headed Herons, sitting in nests of twigs and sticks. Another pair of juvenile herons flew from the ground and perched on a branch. We counted sixteen stick nests altogether. During the second visit, twenty-seven adult pelicans and three Black-headed Herons were observed on an evening roost. We also conducted an interview, focusing on people whose land borders the breeding site. Five land owners were interviewed. The survey revealed that in recent years, there has been increasing human pressure on the site, causing habitat degradation. The valley bottom has been reclaimed for sugar cane and bananas, whereas the smallholdings surrounding the site have extended closer to the nesting trees, or even below them. This has resulted in many trees losing their branches or being cut down altogether. Part of the community claims that the birds' droppings destroy their crops, and the birds are therefore chased off the trees, or the branches cut down to control their numbers. It i§ evident that humans continue to interfere with the large trees used by the birds for nesting and roosting. When we visited the site there were seven fig trees remaining, of which just three were large, mature trees. If this trend continues, the remaining few trees might all be destroyed, and the pelicans would then be forced to abandon the site. There is an urgent need to stop the destruction and plant more trees to replace the ones already cut down. This will involve a community-based conservation and awareness programme. — Joseph Oyugi, P O Box 40658, Nairobi. 'Request for cormorant breeding information I am currently studying the comparative ecology and breeding biology of the Great and Long-tailed Cormorants at Lake Naivasha. Any information you may have regarding past or present breeding activity by either of these species in the vicinity of Lake Naivasha would be greatly appreciated. I am particularly interested in knowing when breeding* occurred (month and year), where (including a brief description of the breeding site), approximately how many nests were noticed and whether there were any other species breeding at the same time in the same location. Please send any information Jo me at P O Box 1497, Naivasha. All letters will be acknowledged. Many thanks. Brooks Childress. Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 41 Letter to the Editors Dear Sirs, My wife and I have returned to Kenya after 20 years in Britain, Tanzania and (most recently) Rwanda. We have welcomed the opportunity to renew our association with friends and colleagues in Kenya and to witness the many exciting and promising developments in wildlife research. Your publication Kenya Birds is most welcome and the range of topics covered makes it very readable. However, I am surprised to note that few articles provide any supporting references or suggested further reading. As a result it is not easy to locate the original source of observation or to pursue a subject further. Thus, for example, Simon Thomsetts excellent article on quelea control (Vol 3 No. 1) contains many interesting data but it is tantalising not to know where to go for more information. Could the authors be encouraged to give references or a 'recommended reading' list where appropriate? In a similar vein, it occurs to me that some of your contributors and readers may be unaware of work carried out in the past, especially where this was published in relatively inaccessible or specialist journals. For example, a number of papers on the care of raptor casualties, on pesticides and on deaths in flamingos on Lake Nakuru appeared in veterinary and allied publications in the 1970s. I can provide details to any reader who is interested. Perhaps a comprehensive bibliography of publications on Kenyan avifauna is required, which could be produced periodically, in parts, in Kenya Birds. This would not only provide a useful record of past contributions to the subject but also serve as an easily accessible resource for current workers, whether well established in the country or carrying out short-term projects. Yours faithfully, John Cooper Current address: Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology, University of Kent at Canterbury, Kent CT2 7NX, UK. [Editors 'note: Our policy so far has been to keep things simple and avoid lengthy citations. What do readers think? Maybe a list of further reading? A similar bibliography to the one that Prof. Cooper suggests is published as a supplement to the Bulletin of the African Bird Club, 2(1), March 1995 — this deals with all papers and notes on African birds in 1994.1 42 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 The Augur Buzzard project The Augur Buzzard Project ( ABP) is a two-yeal\ study focusing on the ecology of the Augur Buzzard in two main nesting habitat types (cliffs and trees) within the Lake Naivasha area. The project is funded by the Peregrine Fund Inc. (USA), the Aga Khan Foundation (Switzerland) and Earthwatch (USA). Collaborating institutions include the National Museums of Kenya, University of Leicester (UK) and the Elsamere Conservation Centre (Kenya). The ABP aims to understand more about the species' distribution, abundance and ecological requirements (primarily with respect to habitat) so that an ideal Augur Buzzard habitat model can be constructed. This model will then be used in other parts of the country to predict whether habitat is responsible for lower Augur Buzzard populations. Why Augur Buzzards? The Augur Buzzard is one of East Africa's most frequently seen birds of prey. It is common in the East African highlands where it inhabits open moorland country, mountains, forest glades, inland cliffs, cultivation and baobab country. In Kenya it ranges from the shores of Lake Victoria, across the eastern Rift Valley into the Tsavo plains and south into Tanzania. The bird is rarely found along the coast. Despite the fact that it is widespread and conspicuous, very little is known about the biology and ecology of the Augur Buzzard. The late Leslie Brown described the Augur Buzzard as one of his favourite birds and had hoped to make a fuller study of it. The bird has been unjustly neglected, perhaps because it seemed abundant at the time. The Augur Buzzard has often been described as widespread and locally abundant. It has also been portrayed as a species that is well adapted to cultivated land and dense human habitation. A typical example is the super-abundant Augur Buzzard population which occurs around Lake Naivasha, a region where intensive horticulture is practised. While the Augur Buzzard is today still relatively conspicuous and abundant, its numbers are depressed compared to the recent past. Between 1968 and 1972, road transects conducted along the Nairobi-Naivasha road by G. Cunningham- van Someren yielded Augur Buzzard numbers which were well into double figures. Present (1993-1994) road counts conducted along the same road have yielded only two or three individuals. In the years between 1965 and 1967, Leslie Brown found marked differences in the numbers of Augur Buzzards between areas of plains/thornbush (one Augur Buzzard every 13 miles) and areas of cultivated/inhabited lands (one Augur Buzzard every 23 miles). These findings need to be re-evaluated to determine the birds' present status in different parts of the country. Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 43 In some areas today, e.g. the central highlands, only around one Augur Buzzard remains for every 24 present in the recent past; in other areas, such as Lukenya and Ami River, the ratio is 1:3. The Eagle Hill area in Embu has over the years also shown a marked decline in the number of Augur Buzzards. Leslie Brown attributed this decline to human population pressure. According to Sorley and Anderson, who conducted a recent study on raptor diversity in areas of different land-use in south-central Kenya, three main factors affect raptor density and diversity as a result of changes in land-use. These are: (1) Overgrazing by domestic livestock alters the original vegetative cover. This potentially affects the abundance and distribution of prey; (2) Cultivation replaces the original vegetation completely and may involve the use of chemicals that are toxic to raptors and their prey; (3) Human hunting pressure reduces prey populations. The impact of habitat alteration on raptors varies according to their ecological requirements. My study focuses on Augur Buzzards for the following reasons: (1) Although they are locally abundant, very little is known about the behaviour and ecology of the Kenyan population. The species has only ever been studied in the Matopos Hills, in Zimbabwe. There the focus was on the bird's breeding biology, its interspecific relationships and population density. (2) Their numbers are declining in areas of intensive land-use. (3) They are highly conspicuous raptors that can be censused easily. They are also aesthetically beautiful and charismatic, representing our natural world, and have always been associated with farmers — hence the name 'farmer's bird'; (4) Individuals can easily be told apart. How can you help? You can help the study by making some simple observations about Augur Buzzards and their habitat. If you know of any Augur Buzzard nest(s) around the country, please let me know by filling out and returning the simple questionnaire enclosed in this issue. Also let me know if you think the number of Augur Buzzards in your home area has changed over the years. It is worth recollecting that birds of prey comprise about 10% of all bird species, but include nearly 20% of all the threatened ones. Do your bit for conservation — help us to help the Augur Buzzard! — Munir Virani, Augur Buzzard Project, Elsamere Conservation Centre, P O Box 1497, Naivasha. Tel (0311) 21055. Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 The social life of the Social Weaver Leon Bennun P O Box 40658, Nairobi Note: This is a version of an article that first appeared in Kenya Past and Present, vol. 24, 1992. The Editors thank the Kenya Museum Society for permission to reproduce it. The National Museums' Olorgesailie Prehistoric Site, which protects an excavation of fossils and Acheulian artefacts (see article, this issue), lies some 70 km south of Nairobi. Not a great distance, but it could as well be another world. The road from the capital plunges over the edge of the Rift Valley and descends the flank of Ol Doinyo Esakut by a series of steep steps, before levelling out on the valley floor near the village of Oltepesi. The country here is hot and harsh. Every tree and bush seems hostile, studded with spines that lash and tear. During the brief rainy seasons the thorns are concealed by a deceptively delicate flush of greenery, and the air is heavy with the^buzz of insects. More typically the branches are spiky and bare, a stinging wind whips dust from the ground, and the only sound is the remote tinkling of bells, from goats and cattle moving indistinctly through a haze of heat. There is a sense of timelessness at Olorgesailie. This is especially marked in the evening when the sun finally dips behind the escarpments to the West, the baked landscape is bathed in molten light; and it is not difficult to picture a group of Homo erectus winding their way up from the shore of the ancient lake, evidenced now only by a serried series of diatomaceous cliffs. The site is at its best at this time of day. Unfortunately most visitors arrive in the blazing middle hours, when only an unusually intense interest in stone tools can save the circular tour of the excavations from being something of an ordeal. But even the most heat-dazed tourist, collapsed on the verandah of one of the site's thatched huts, is likely to be struck by the tame little birds, pinkish-grey with a pale cap, that hop up inquisitively right to one's feet, and by the bulky bundles of dried grass adorning all the larger trees. These are the Grey-capped Social Weavers and their nests. A thatched residence Grey-capped Social Weavers (Pseudonigrita arnaudi), are small birds (an individual weighs around 20 g) in the family Ploceidae -r- the sparrows, weaver- birds and allies. Like their relations the sparrow-weavers, they do not really weave their nests but thatch them out of dry grass. The result is a strong, bulky, Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 45 rather untidy structure constructed near the end of a thorny acacia twig. Each nest has two entrances facing downwards. This is presumably a protective device; if an unwelcome visitor arrives through one hole, the bird can make a rapid exit through the other. But this architecture is less than ideal during the breeding season, for there is nowhere for the eggs to sit without rolling out of one of the holes. The birds solve this problem by sealing one hole with a plug of dry grass, creating a secure rounded chamber. The nests rely on inaccessibility rather than inconspicuousness for protection. However, they are not proof against birds such as the Gabar Goshawk or Grey Hornbill, which will spike a hole in the wall or rip the roof off to reach the eggs or helpless chicks. Large snakes such as the Boomslang also make heavy inroads. Of the trees around Olorgesailie, Social Weavers nest for preference in the big, flat-topped Acacia tortilis. Nests are also often found in large specimens of Acacia mellifera, one of the 'wait-a-bit thorn' species and, with its evil little recurved spines, a nightmare for the field ornithologist. On the lava ridge in front of the site, the birds build on top of the high, whip-like emergent branches of Acacia Senegal This must offer them a good deal of protection, but one feels for the sitting birds when the branches are lashed wildly back and forth in the short but violent gusts that herald the onset of a rainstorm. I studied Grey-capped Social weavers at Olorgesailie from March 1985 to August 1987. They interested me because I wanted to understand their social way of life. In particular, I was investigating a behaviour known as communal, or cooperative, breeding. Surrogate parents Communal breeding is not quite as licentious as it sounds. The term refers to a social system where more than two birds cooperate in rearing young: thus some birds, called 'helpers', assist in caring for offspring that are not their own. There is a wide variety of communal breeding systems, and it is dangerous to generalise, but helpers are most often non-breeding birds that seem to be waiting for a chance to reproduce. The behaviour is known to occur in more than 200 bird species, mainly in jthe tropics, and has generated considerable interest among biologists. This is because it presents an evolutionary paradox. According to the theory of natural si election, animals should behave so as to maximise their own reproductive success. Why then should an individual invest time and energy in someone else's children. Hidden benefits If we assume that the behaviour has evolved through natural selection, then the paradox must be resolved by showing that helping is in fact adaptive. There are 46 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 two broad ways in which this could be so. First, the helpers may be gaining some hidden, 'direct' benefit, which will in fact increase their own reproductive success over their lifetime. For instance, the young birds they assist to rear may assist them in turn when the helpers begin breeding. Or the helper may be hoping to take over a neighbouring territory by force, using the young birds as extra muscle- power. Feeding chicks could give helpers valuable experience which will improve their own performance later on; they might be hoping to mate with one of the breeders the following season; or, despite appearances, some of the young birds in the nest could actually be their own offspring. In all these cases, the behaviour directly benefits the helper itself. Alternatively, helpers may be propagating their own genes in an 'indirect' fashion. This idea is sometimes called 'kin selection'; the point is that an individual's genes occur not only in its own offspring, but also in the offspring of its relatives. In genetic terms, a brother or sister is worth as much as a son or a daughter, since each on average shares half one's genes. Thus, under certain circumstances, selection could favour individuals that aid their relatives rather than rearing their own young. The circumstances under which this should occur are given by 'Hamilton's rule'. Simply put, this states that helping will be favoured when the benefit, weighted by the appropriate degree of relatedness, is greater than the cost. The significance of kin selection in explaining helping behaviour has been hotly debated. If kin selection is important, then helpers should assist close relatives in preference to more distant ones, and their action should increase the reproductive success of the birds they help. It has been difficult to prove conclusively that these requirements are met. The majority of communal breeders live in all-purpose territories that are defended by a family group. In these cases, the helpers are offspring from previous breeding seasons that have stayed at home. These helpers do indeed assist close relatives, but only, one could argue, because there is nobody else around. Most studies have found that the breeders' reproductive success does indeed increase with the number of helpers present. However, this effect could be caused by many other factors that are related to group size, such as territory quality or the age and experience of the breeders, and the relationships are almost impossible to disentangle. Even experiments to remove the helpers and see what happens are not conclusive. If breeding success drops, this could simply be because the group is socially disrupted, not because the breeders are no longer receiving help. These problems are much less severe in colonial species. Because no territories are defended, helpers could potentially assist any of a large number of other birds. Furthermore, many of the confounding factors associated with territoriality are absent, so reproductive success can be more directly related to Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 47 what the helpers do. Unfortunately, only a very few species of communally breeding bird nest in colonies. The Grey-capped Social Weaver is one of them, and this is why I was interested in looking at its social system in detail. I wanted to find out whether kin selection had been important in the evolution of communal breeding in this species. Fools rush in... As a naive graduate student, I did not realise just how much I was taking on. In common with most bird species in tropical Africa, there was very little known about the ecology of Social Weavers, beyond the fact that they were reported to have helpers at the nest. Before I could say anything sensible about the evolutionary aspects, it would be necessary to fill in enormous blank areas abqut such basic features as dispersal, movements, mortality, sex ratios, social structure, clutch size, &gg characteristics, breeding success, nest predators, provisioning behaviour, chick growth and seasonality — just to name a few. Neither were the birds and the climate particularly predictable. The most crucial data were on reproductive success, which could obviously only be collected during the breeding season. Supposedly this was twice a year, during the long and the short rains. However, things were not so simple in practice. Either the rains failed; or the birds refused to breed; or they began to breed at completely the wrong time while I was away analysing data. In fact, by the end of the study I came to the unconventional conclusion, supported by statistical tests, that the main factor influencing the onset of breeding was the absence of the researcher. Eventually I managed to obtain data on breeding during three long rainy seasons. My study methods were straightforward and required a minimum of equipment, the most expensive item being in aluminium ladder. The aim was to build up a population of birds that could be identified individually by the combination of coloured bands on their legs. Since the plastic colour-bands had an annoying tendency to fall off through the combined effect of intense sunshine and abuse by the birds, each individual was also banded with a numbered aluminium ring that provided a permanent identity, so long as it could be captured again. Birds were caught mainly with the aid of a baited drop-trap, a wooden square covered with netting that could be lowered suddenly on top of a group of feeding birds. Once caught, twice shy This worked well at first, but the Social Weavers were anything but stupid and quickly learned that the trap plus my presence meant danger. This necessitated more and more elaborate subterfuges as the study progressed. We also carried out a lot of trapping with mist-nets away from the site to try and detect the birds' 48 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 movements. I monitored the state of growth or decay of nests on the site, and made intensive behavioural observations of building, roosting, incubation and provisioning. These essentially involved sitting for long hours under an acacia tree with a pair of binoculars and a notebook. During the breeding season, I kept track of the contents of each accessible nest on the site. This was hard work, since many of the nests were very high. With the ladder, a table and a tall pole for pulling down the branch I could reach most of them, but removing the fragile eggs or young, while teetering high on a wobbly ladder in the less than tender embrace of a tangle of acacia branches, was often a nerve-wracking experience. The fact that one never knew whether some other less amenable creature had temporarily taken up residence in the nest also added to the excitement. I managed to avoid fingering any snakes, but the day that a bushy- tailed dormouse leaped out onto my head, and I fell off the ladder, will certainly live in my memory. Babies need nappies Removing the nest contents posed other problems, too. It was impossible to reach a hand in through the open entrance, so the eggs or chicks had to be taken out from the other side, which meant pulling out the grass plug. This did the plug no good whatsoever, and after one or two removals is usually all but disintegrated. To bolster the seal I devised the idea of a 'nest nappy', a small, square piece of white cloth that would tie on under the plug and keep it comfortably in place. This method worked very well; the birds quickly became used to it, and it seemed to have no effect on their breeding success. It did, however, produce no end of mystification for visitors, who were often overheard asking the site staff how the birds managed to build such odd-looking nests. During nest checks I measured the young to assess their growth, and also photographed each clutch of eggs. Social Weaver eggs vary greatly in colour and pattern, but each female lays a consistent type. Through this means I could demonstrate that no more than one female ever laid in a nest: in other words, the helpers were not additional breeding females. Sexing the birds proved an enormous problem. Male and female Grey-capped Social Weavers look identical and behave very similarly, though there did seem to be some subtle differences in, for instance, the level of aggression or frequency of display. I was able to confirm some of these intuitions from tracking egg patterns, in cases where birds had changed mates. Unfortunately, though, there was no alternative at the end of the study but to sacrifice a few birds. Each of these also gave me information on the sexes of others. Reassuringly, these data confirmed my intuitions based on behaviour. Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 49 Social Weavers turned out to live in family groups. Each group had a cluster of nests in a tree or set of trees; the family generally cooperated to build and maintain nests, and roosted together in the evenings. One tree might contain several families of various sizes, from simple pairs to large extended clans. The birds foraged widely in flocks and did not defend territories. However, they did chase away unfamiliar Social Weavers that ventured near their nests. For reasons that I do not yet understand, trees were quite often suddenly abandoned completely, the different groups often moving together to a new site some distance away. The number of apparently suitable, unoccupied trees, and trees with abandoned nests, suggested there was no shortage at all of good quality nest sites. Sometimes family members would split off and move away to distant trees, but they still maintained a connection with their relatives and were often seen visiting them (and sometimes helping). Generally, the birds' society seemed bound together by a network of kinship and familiarity at many different levels. Flighty females Adult Social Weavers had a high survival rate, of around 81% per year, but only about 20% of young birds still remained on the site a year later — the rest had died or dispersed. From tracking these disappearances, it appeared that females left home shortly before the start of their first breeding season, while yearling males remained behind. Practically all of these young males became helpers, along with a few second-year and older birds, but they worked only at the nests of relatives. If there were a choice among relatives, they chose to assist parents rather than a brother. Between a quarter and a third of all breeding pairs had help. Interestingly, more than half of these yearlings bred at the same time as they helped, a most unusual phenomenon. They continued feeding at their parents' nest while building and men incubating at their own, but stopped helping once their own chicks hatched. Most of these young males were paired with young females from outside the study site, who appeared after the breeding season had begun. In the adult population there were slightly more males than females (a ratio of 11:10), and each year some yearling males failed to find mates. What effect did the helpers have? In analysing the data, I compared the reproductive success of pairs that did or did not have helpers. I also included two other factors in the analysis: the age of the breeders (yearling or older) and their residence status (whether they were residents of the site, or had migrated in since the last breeding season). I used these factors because I suspected they affected reproductive success, and because older, resident birds were much more likely to have helpers than were younger birds or immigrants. The results showed that in each year helped pairs produced more young than unhelped pairs. This was the case even when the effects of age and residence were 50 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 accounted for. Pairs where the female was an immigrant did less well than others, and the reason for this seemed to be that they started breeding later in the season and hence had less chance to replace a clutch if anything went wrong. Pairs with helpers were more successful for a variety of reasons. In one year they laid larger clutches, and in all years their eggs and young survived better. Helped pairs were more likely to raise at least one chick than unhelped pairs. At successful nests that were not attacked by predators, helped pairs produced more fledglings than unhelped pairs in two out of three years. Overall, helped pairs did between 35% and 355% better than unhelped ones over the three years. The worse the season in terms of weather conditions and overall breeding success, the more dramatic the effect of help (although with only three years to go by, one cannot say too much about such trends). I could not detect any effect of helpers on the survival of the parents or the young birds after they had left the nest; however, helped pairs were more likely to nest again once they had already raised a brood successfully — probably because the helpers took over the demanding job of caring for the fledglings. This 'help effect* could have occurred because the helped birds were simply better parents anyway; in other words, because they always produced more young than others, and hence were more likely to have helpers. However, detailed analysis showed that this was not the case. Yet another potential problem had to be examined, too. Helpers usually assisted both parents. Suppose that when birds changed mates, their reproductive success dropped as a result. The 'help effect' could be an incidental result of this, since the new pair would also be less likely to have help. The analysis showed, though, that mate change alone had no effect on nesting success, so this difficulty could be discounted. Extra rations From the analysis of overall breeding success it looked as though helpers assisted both in repelling predators and in preventing starvation. I looked more closely at the results from feeding watches, to see if helpers actually increased the amount of food supplied to the chicks. This was tricky, since the food supply turned out to depend heavily on the number and age of the chicks. Also, the size of the food items, not just how often they were fed, had to be taken into account. After correcting for all these factors, it turned out that helpers did significantly increase the amount of food that the chicks received. Helpers did not help all the time, but were more likely to appear in the later part of the nesting cycle when the chicks' demands were greatest. Young birds grow slowly at first, then faster, then slow down again. The presence of helpers meant nestlings went from 10% to 90% of their maximum weight quicker than other chicks. The difference was between half a day and one Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 51 day. Growing faster could increase the chance of escaping nest predators late in the nestling stage. Large chicks will jump from the nest when attacked, rather than cowering inside like their smaller siblings, and this behaviour has definite survival value. So the overall results showed quite clearly that helpers did help, and also how this help might work. Clearly the helpers were gaining big 'indirect' benefits through the extra production of closely-related young. On the other-hand, the direct benefits they received were, at best, small. So kin selection appears to have been important in the evolution of communal breeding in Social Weavers. Family solidarity Helpers appeared to be behaving in accordance with Hamilton's rule to maximise the indirect benefits they obtained, and niinimise the cost. For instance, birds only helped when they were closely related to the recipients (otherwise their indirect fitness benefits would have been negligible). Of their relatives, they preferentially helped the most closely related. They helped most when their efforts would have the most impact, i.e. when nestlings most needed extra food. Breeding birds, for whom helping is presumably more costly, helped less often than non-breeders. In fact, only yearling breeders regularly helped: and they stopped helping as soon as their chicks hatched and needed their full attention. Older birds usually start breeding earlier than yearlings, and this may be one reason that parents rarely help their sons — their breeding attempts are already well advanced by the time their sons' young hatch. This cost-benefit approach highlights some features of Grey-capped Social Weaver biology that seem to be important for the communal breeding system - and perhaps explain why communal breeding is so rare in related colonial species. These features include stable family groups, male philopatry (young males staying with the colony), high adult survival, a biased sex-ratio and an asynchrony of breeding between yearlings and older birds. Stable family groups arise because the species is monogamous (one male mating with one female) and relatively sedentary, and young males stay at home. This means that related birds can recognise each other and give each other preferential assistance: in other words, practise nepotism. This would be impossible in other species, such as many Ploceus weavers, where immature birds form into large wandering flocks and may never see their parents, or their birth-place, again. In many of these other species polygamy (one male mating with many females) also makes the formation of kin-groups difficult. Why Social Weavers should be monogamous and sedentary is not known, but it probably has a lot to do with their very generalist diet — which enables them to live permanently in one fairly small area — and their year-round use of a big, bulky nest that is built by both members of the pair. 52 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 High adult survival increases the chance that close kin will be around next year to receive assistance. Female dispersal — the reverse coin of male philopatry — probably increases the proportion of young females that die. In turn this causes a shortage of mates for young males, and hence a pool of non-breeders who are available to help. Because of its timing, female dispersal also causes yearling males to start breeding later than their parents. This lag gives them an opportunity to help for a while at relatively little cost to themselves. (The causes of female dispersal and male philopatry, which are usual in birds, are still a controversial matter; in Social Weavers the system may possibly have arisen to avoid inbreeding). The social life of the Social Weaver has turned out to be surprisingly complicated and the story is far from complete. With a human history stretching back half a million years, let us hope that Olorgesailie and its Social Weavers will still be in good shape for the next student of their behaviour — indeed, for the next half-million years. "'.'■'■ The Leslie Brown Memorial Grant In memory of one of the most inspired and productive raptor biologists of recent decades, the Raptor Research Foundation announces the availability of this grant, for up to $1,000, to provide financial assistance to promote research and/or the dissemination of information on birds of prey. Applicants must send a resume\ specific study objectives, an account of how funds wil] be spent, and a statement indicating how the proposed work would relate to other work by the applicant and to other sources of funds. Proposals concerning African raptors receive priority, all else being equal. Complete applications must be received by 15 September 1995. Send to: Dr Jeff Lincer, Chairperson, Raptor Research Foundation, c/o Sweetwater Environmental Biologists, Inc., 3838 Camino del Rio North, Suite 270, San Diego, California 92108, USA. Fax: 000 1 619 624 2301. Sincere thanks to the following Sponsor subscribers to Kenya Birds for their support of the publication: African Wildlife Foundation • Kimbo Beakbane • Mrs R. Caldwell • Brooks Childress • Mrs I. K. Coldwell • Peter Davey • Dr Michael G. Davies • Art Davis • Mrs Susan Deverell • Heather Elkins • Tom Evans • A. R. Gregory • Jean Hartley • Philip Hechle • Jennifer F. M. Home • Mr and Mrs J. A. Hutson • Carol Kruger • S. Leparsalaach • Peter and Moira Lincoln-Gordon • Dr Imre J. P. Loefler • Annemarie Lohding • Aitong Primary School, Endoinyo Enrika Primary School, Lamek Primary School, Mara Riata Primary School, Ngosuani Primary School, Nkoilale Primary School, Nkorrkori Primary School, Sekenani Primary School and Talek Primary School, through Kimbo Beakbane • Tony Potterton • Mrs Joan Root • M. & K Sinclair • Terry Stevenson • Dr R. E. Sutherland • Simon Thomsett • R. G. Timmis • Janet Wood • M. W. Woodlock. Events and Announcements Wednesday Morning Bird Walks led by Fleur Ng'weno and Damaris Rotich continue weekly. Meet at 8:45 am at the National Museums entrance for a walk in the Nairobi area. These walks are for EANHS members: non-members are welcome but requested to join the Society (see below). World Birdwatch '95. Saturday 7 and Sunday 8 October 1995. Birdwalks, events and national bird mapping — see Editorial and enclosures in this issue. East Africa Natural History Society. The Society offers lectures, excursions and publications with a strong bird focus. The EANHS also organises ringing and nest record schemes in Eastern Africa. For membership details: tel. 749957, or write to the Hon. Secretary, EANHS, P O Box 44486 Nairobi. The office at the National Museums of Kenya is open each weekday (closed Wednesday morning). For sale in the EANHS office: new BirdLife T-shirts in a stunning design featuring the Society's emblem, a Long-crested Eagle; Kakamega Forest: the Official Guide (newly published); also bird notelets, books and postcards. Scopus, the lively regional journal of ornithology, is published three times a year by the EANHS Ornithological Sub-committee. Contact Don Turner, P.O. Box 48019, Nairobi, Kenya (tel. Nairobi 48133). Annual subscription KSh 600 (KSh 650 up-country); write for overseas rates. Records are welcomed from the East African Bird Report which forms the third issue of Scopus each year. African Bird Club. To join this society, which produces an excellent colour Bulletin and aims to 'provide a worldwide focus for African ornithology', write to: African Bird Club, c/o BirdLife International, Wellbrook Court, Girton Rd., Cambridge CB3 ON A, UK. Membership presently costs UK £12 per year. Ninth Pan- African Ornithological Congress, 1-8 December 1996, Accra, Ghana. For further information write to the Congress Chairman, Yaa Ntiamoa- Baidu, Ghana Wildlife Society, P O Box 13252, Accra, Ghana. EANHS Nest Record Card Scheme. For information and cards, contact the Nest Record Scheme Organiser, Joseph Oyugi, at the Department of Ornithology, National Museums of Kenya (address below). Bird crafts for sale. On Bird Day, 10 June, the Mikono Centre displayed a wide range of attractive crafts for sale, all inspired by birds and made by refugees living in the Nairobi area. These and many other handicrafts can be viewed at the Mikono Centre at the corner of Kilimani Road and Menelik Rd., Nairobi (off Ngong Rd. near Adams Arcade). Tel. 566133, ext. 5. Contacts: For Kenya Birds, write to the Department of Ornithology, National Museums of Kenya, P O Box 40658, Nairobi, or telephone 742131/61, extension 243. For BirdLife Kenya, telephone Nairobi 749957; fax 741049. 3 9088 00997 2985 Kenya Birds, Volume 4, NumteF Is August 1995 Editorial , ......„* o......................... ...i News from Kenya and abroad 1 Birding at...OIorgesaiIie Prehistoric Site 16 Records and Notes 22 Request for cormorant breeding information .......40 Letter to the Editors .'.......... 41 The Augur Buzzard Project ....!l5fe...™..™ .42 The social life of the Social Weaver .^.:.. ......<,..:,..„. ,. ......................44 Leslie Brown Memorial Grant..... 52 Sponsor subscribers 52 Events and Announcements iii Martial Eagle — Martin Woodcock
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m - & 8/£D Volume 4, Number I ISSN 1023-3679 August 1995 Department of Ornithology, National Museums of Kenya and BiidLife Kenya. Editors: Leon Bennun, Joseph Oyugi and John Fanshawe Department of Ornithology, National Museums of Kenya, P O Box 40658, Nairobi Editorial Yes, it's World Birdwatch time again! Once more, on the weekend of 7-8 October 1995, BirdLife International is organising a global celebration of birds. This time the focus is on the habitats they live in, many of which are under severe threat. In Kenya we hope that birders will use the weekend as an excuse to dust off their binoculars and field guides, get out into the field and enjoy themselves — while at the same time collecting useful data on where our birds are and what they are doing. There's something for everyone in World Birdwatch '95: • Join in the National Birdmap. Whether you feel birding should be a solitary activity or a social event, whether you are a beginner or an expert, all you need is three spare hours on Saturday or Sunday (or both), somewhere to go birding and a set of instructions from the Ornithology Department. The idea is to collect data this weekend from as many places as possible for our computerised bird distribution database. You don't have to visit an exotic location, though — all records will be valuable. To take part, just send off the enclosed form and we will forward the details and a checklist. 8 Join the Sunday Special Birdwalk in Nairobi, Kisumu or Mombasa. We will be finding out how many birds we can see in one morning in each of our major towns. Meet at 08:30 sharp on Sunday 8 October at the National Museum, Nairobi; Sunset Hotel, Kisumu; or Bamburi Nature Trail, Mombasa. The Kisumu walk will be led by Jeam Agutu, the Mombasa one by Marlene Reid and Lorna Depew. We'll do our best to provide transport for those who need it — if you have a vehicle and can help, that would be much appreciated. All are welcome for what should be a great morning out. • Join us on Saturday 7 October at the Louis Leakey Memorial Hall, National Museums of Kenya for a day of bird videos, a special guest lecture with slides, and other activities. Videos will start at 11 a.m.; the guest lecture will be at 3 p.m. (speaker to be announced). See you in October. In the meantime, good birding! Subscription rates, Volume 4 Kenya Abroad (airmail) Sponsor KSh 500 UK £10.00 EANHS member KSh 120 UK £6.00 Non-member KSh 200 UK £7.50 Special (student/exchange/library) please write please write Please make cheques payable to 'BirdLife Kenya'. Subscribers outside Kenya may pay in any convertible currency. Back issues are available at KSh 100/= each. Please address all correspondence to: The Editors, Kenya Birds, Department of Ornithology, National Museums of Kenya, P O Box 40658 Nairobi, Kenya. Front cover illustration: Grey-capped Social Weavers Pseudonigrita arnaudi by Edwin Selempo. Typesetting and layout by BirdLife Kenya; printed by Omnia Printers, Nairobi. Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 News from Kenya and abroad Department of Ornithology Grassland birds prefer grass The Department's study of two montane grassland species with restricted ranges, Sharpens Longclaw Macronyx sharpei and Jackson's Widowbird Euplectes jacksoni (see Kenya Birds 3(2)), is ongoing. Fieldwork on the Kinangop Plateau, supported by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, has now produced some preliminary results. Following a brief survey made on 31 October 1994, we have made four two- day field trips. During the first of these (29-30 March 1995), fifty-eight 4 ha plots were selected along a 60 km-long transect that runs from Kirima via North Kinangop town towards Njabini and back to the so-called 'fly-over'. They cover various types of montane grassland (41 plots), ranging from heavily grazed areas to less disturbed patches along small stream valleys, as well as shambas (9 plots) and woodlots (8 plots). By covering all the habitat types that are present, we hope to be able to produce a rough population estimate for the whole Kinangop Plateau by the end of the survey. During the next three trips, at the end of April, May and June, each plot was censused by three people walking in straight lines about 50 m apart. A total of 29 plots, all in grassland, produced Sharpe's Longclaw, totalling 44 to 75 individuals on each trip. Despite being very preliminary, the data reveal that this species tends to be unevenly distributed over different types of grassland: it is less frequent in short, heavily grazed grassland (present in 5 of 10 plots); more often found in short grassland with tussocks (10 of 16 plots); and most frequent in medium to long grassland (14 of 14 plots). Apart from the type of grassland, the quality of the surrounding habitat also seems to have a significant effect on whether the species is present. For Jackson's Widowbirds we have less data — they were only observed in 7 out of 58 plots, so it is too early to see any pattern. So that we can produce a computerised map of the study area, the latitude- longitude co-ordinates of each plot have been determined with use of a Global Positioning System. This will help us interpret the spatial distribution of both species, and their movements within the study area. In parallel with the field study, the Department of Ornithology is gathering records of both species from around the country for its computerised database. Thanks to all those who have already sent their records to the Department. I would like to encourage other readers to do the same. — Luc Lens, P O Box 40658, Nairobi. Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994- Mount Ololokwe surveyed From 15-18 June 1995, a team of biologists from the National Museums of Kenya and the Peregrine Fund visited Mount Ololokwe, an impressive isolated massif north of Isiolo, Samburu District, to undertake a preliminary survey of its plants, reptiles and birds. The site is particularly well known for its variety of breeding raptors, including RiippelTs Vultures, Verreaux's Eagle, Martial Eagle and Peregrine Falcon (all seen by the survey) — and the Taita Falcon is also reputed to breed there. Indeed, over 60 species of raptor alone have been recorded at this site. The top of the mountain is still covered by Cedar forest, despite frequent burning by local farmers for cattle grazing, and we found some interesting birds living in these woods, such as Gambaga Flycatcher, Grey-headed Batis and Stripe-breasted Seed-eater. If funding applied for from the Belgian government is forthcoming, further fieldwork, including mist-netting of birds, may take place. — Luc Lens, P.O. Box 40658, Nairobi. Anyone for cormorants? Brooks Childress, our newest (and, by some stretch, also our oldest) student Research Associate, is under way with his study of the comparative ecology and status of the Great and Long-tailed Cormorants at Lakes Naivasha and Oloidien, a two-year project he is doing for his PhD at Leicester University. The primary aims of his study are better to understand recent population changes and breeding patterns of these top predators and to assess their potential as indicator species for the overall health of the lake ecosystem. The Long-tailed species, for example, suffered a 64% population decline from January 1993 to January 1995 and there are currently less than 100 individuals on both lakes Combined. Just as puzzling, the breeding pattern of the Great Cormorant of Lake Naivasha has been quite erratic, with fairly large breeding colonies in some years of high lake levels and very little breeding in other years. During his initial study period Brooks has spent most of his time documenting the daily behaviour patterns of the two species, with the help of a boat and engine kindly provided by Joan Root and Elsamere Conservation Centre, respectively. Next, he plans to study the foraging and breeding behaviour of these two species. The current scarcity of the Long-tailed Cormorant on the lake may indicate that it is breeding somewhere in the vicinity. If any of our readers is aware of Long-tailed or Great Cormorant breeding activity, past or present, in the Central or Rift Valley Provinces around Lakes Naivasha and Oloidien, Brooks would appreciate hearing from you at Box 1497, Naivasha. Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 Call of the Yellowneck: A gamebird project update A typical morning in the Acacia scrublands on the group ranches in Loitokitok Division, Kajiado begins with the last howl of hyaenas, angry perhaps that the approaching day has denied them an opportunity to snatch a calf from the Maasai bomas. The Yellow-necked Spurfowl, the most abundant gamebird here, usually shuffles around in what resembles a clumsy waltz, tries a few wing beats and, maybe a little surprised that it is still alive after all, belts out a self-congratulatory 'krooo....waak\ Which you would too, if most living forms you encounter on your daily schedule have only one idea on their minds — turning you into a meal. Gamebirds. A term that means different things to different people: families Phasianidae and Numididae to ornithologists, but under the present law four other families are included, the Anatidae, Scolopacidae, Pteroclidae and Columbidae — 78 species in total. The difference would not matter if it did not reflect the challenge there is for developing a monitoring system for these birds, the goal of the gamebird project at the Department of Ornithology. In the last Kenya Birds issue, I reported on progress made on establishing a monitoring system on Mbirikani group ranch. This is an update. The period from November to date (June) has been closed to gamebird hunting in the southern part of the country. Efforts have therefore been directed at consolidating training for the field assistants employed by the ranch and initiating a similar system for Elangata Wuas, Kilonito and Torosei group ranches in the Central Division of Kajiado. The training has been in two main fields. First, to determine gamebird densities using line transects, point counts and the flush-and-count method. The last unfamiliar? It means just that — after a paper by Mentis and Bigalke, 1985. The field assistants have also been trained to monitor breeding condition by recording observations and timing of pairing. The reproductive organs of birds significantly increase in size when in breeding condition. The field assistants have thus been trained so that they can dissect a regular number of gamebird samples, obtained from hunters, and measuring the size of the gonads. This of course assumes the hunters will give up their birds for this purpose. A little public relations would help, and if that does not work, I explain, try another fine. Just say you will only take one tiny internal organ and give back the rest. The next phase involves expanding the same methods to five other group ranches in Loitokitok Division, in order to be able to compare them scientifically. The questions from the locals are similar everywhere — the most common one, "Don't you have anything to do, young man, following birds at early hours of the morning?" Of course I do have something to do, and that is to develop simple methods for monitoring gamebird populations and their breeding cycles. This will allow sustainable offtake limits to be set for hunting and rearing, I patiently try to Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 explain at the village baraza or to the class 8 science class at the local primary school. "Might you know the equivalent of 'sustainable' in Maa?", the interpreter whispers to me. "I am counting them!", I declare, not sounding particularly convincing, but that is not the crucial issue. The crucial issue is that gamebird populations in the country are conserved, with benefits from the variety of ways they may be used going as far as possible to the communities that maintain them. These methods have worked well on Mbirikani, with minor modifications to be made; but they may not be applicable to all the areas where sport hunting and a relatively new use, gamebird rearing, is carried out. Discussions have been held with the KWS on possibilities of collaboration with the Department of Ornithology, particularly in identifying the data needs for all gamebird populations. The data would be collected by trained field assistants, supervised by KWS Community Service personnel in the respective areas. A concept paper on this is currently being developed. The African Wildlife Foundation continues to support this work financially and I am extremely grateful to them. Meanwhile, dusk on the group ranches is a bit of an anticlimax, another less triumphant 'kroo...waak' from the 'yellownecks' marks the end of a day, the beginning of another, maybe more fruitful one for the hyaenas. — Alfred Simiyu, P O Box 40658, Nairobi. Are sandgrouse shooting seasons wrong? From November 1994 to April 1994 I have been collating and analysing data from hunter John Sutton's diaries. Mr John Sutton, a tour operator and conservationist, has been keeping records on the size of gonads of sandgrouses he and his clients have shot over eleven years dating back to 1970. The size of gonads in birds is a good indicator of their breeding condition. The data cover two species of sandgrouse, the Black-faced Pterocles decoratus and Chestnut-bellied P. exustus. They are limited by the fact that, obviously, they were collected only during the open shooting seasons of the time. The proportions of birds breeding during particular periods of the year were compared for the current open and closed periods for hunting. This was done for three regions corresponding to the districts of Samburu, Kajiado and Isiolo. The effect of rainfall on the breeding seasons of these birds was also investigated. The results showed that the two species have two peak breeding seasons in a year, January to March and July to October. These correspond to the main dry periods. However, within the periods for which there are data, there was no obvious correlation between the proportions of birds breeding during any particular month and rainfall (measured in various ways). To tell whether the Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 same sub-population of sandgrouse breeds twice a year, or whether there are different sub-populations breeding successively, requires a detailed study with intensive marking of different sub-populations. The results indicate that the set -shooting season for the Kajiado region, presently 1 July to 31 October, is totally mis-timed, since it coincides with a peak in sandgrouse breeding. This needs reviewing urgently. Further research to monitor the yearly variations of breeding populations is also needed. — Peter Njoroge, P O Box 40658, Nairobi. Bee-eaters spurn researchers Brent Burt, a doctoral student from the University of Arizona, USA, came to Kenya in May for a short collaborative research project with the Dept. of Ornithology. He is working on the evolution of cooperative breeding in the bee- eaters, using a phylogenetic approach. Little is known about the breeding habits of around a third of the world's 24 bee-eater species, hence the need for information from the field to complete the phylogeny. Several of these little- known species — the Carmine, Little, Cinnamon-chested, Somali, Blue-headed and Madagascar — breed in Kenya. Brent was joined for the study by Edward Waiyaki and Peter Njoroge both from Ornithology Dept., along with two undergraduate student volunteers from University of Arizona. On 20 May 95, the group left for Kakamega Forest in pursuit of the scarce and little-known Blue-headed Bee-eater. At Isecheno forest station, forest guide Titus Gutwa joined the team. The group struck lucky the next day, spotting a pair of the bee-eaters right behind the guest house. Over the course of the next few days two more pairs were sighted, but intensive searches failed to turn up more. Further efforts to search for the bee-eaters at Lukhusi, in the north- east, and in the Yala and Buyangu forest reserves (where they have been located in the past), were also unsuccessful. Continuous observations of the Isicheno birds failed to reveal their breeding or roosting sites. The group decided to collect general behavioural data on two pairs, focusing on foraging, habitat preference and activity time budget. Preliminary analysis suggested that the birds have a preference for dead and/or leafless trees in open and edge areas. They also had a tendency to forage from the canopy edge. The most intriguing behaviour we saw was one bird feeding another one five times on wasps, each time after beating the insect soundly against a branch. An unexpected finding was that the birds always seemed to be in pairs,, rather than the larger groups that would be expected if they were cooperative breeders. However, records of more than three birds have been reported and at approximately the same time of year. 6 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 Having failed to unravel the breeding habits of the Blue-headed Bee-eater the group switched to the Cinnamon-chested Bee-eater in Nairobi. These birds were much easier to locate, but they had already bred and groups were busy feeding fledglings. Better luck next time, perhaps... — Peter Njoroge, P O Box 40658, Nairobi. Welcome to new staff — goodbye to old The Department warmly welcomes Jane Wanjiku and Titus Gutwa, who have joined us as a Secretary and Curatorial Assistant, respectively. Meanwhile, Cecilia Gichuki, our Curator of Birds for over a decade and familiar to many Kenya Birds readers, has moved to the Museums' Wetland Programme in the Centre for Biodiversity. Fortunately Cecilia is not going far — the Wetlands Programme is housed in the same building — and we hope to be able to draw on her expertise in the future. Note of thanks Many thanks to Joan Root for her very generous donation of Volumes I and II of Birds of Eastern and North Eastern Africa by Mackworth-Praed and Grant and a copy of The Breeding Seasons of East African Birds by Brown and Britton. These books will be a great help in our field and laboratory work. Any old chairs? After years of extreme overcrowding, the Department finally has an extra office (at the base of the stairs 4n the new Natural Sciences building) that will help to reduce the congestion. Departmental Research Scientists have breathed a sigh of relief — but the drawback is that we don't have any furniture. If any of our readers have office furniture — desks, chairs, shelves or filing cabinets — that they are no longer using, please consider donating them to a good home. BirdLife Kenya Bird Day '95 On 9 June 1995, BirdLife Kenya and the Ornithology Department, National Museums of Kenya organised a day of bird events at the National Museum, Nairobi. More than 200 people of all ages turned up to take part in birdwalks, try out origami (Japanese paper-folding), watch bird videos and listen to a range of invited speakers. Lecturers included Nathan Gichuki on conservation science and action, Don Turner on the history of ornithology in Kenya-, Simon Thomsett (complete with live eagle) on birds of prey, and Dave Richards on where to watch birds in Kenya. Bird sculptures, paintings and crafts were on display. The day, Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 intended as a celebration of Kenya's 1,076 bird species, aimed to raise public awareness of our diverse birdlife and the threats that it faces. Many thanks to all who helped organise this event. A helping hand for heronries BirdLife Kenya has provided start-up funds for two projects focusing on colonial waterbird breeding sites near Lake Victoria. The first aims to create a community sanctuary for the Pink-backed Pelicans at Rakewa (see article, this issue). The second will set up a monitoring scheme for the Ahero-Buoye-Orongo heronries near Kisumu, with involvement of local people and students from Maseno University. These sites are extremely important for breeding waterbirds but are under increasing threat from human pressures. The work will be carried out as a collaboration between the Department of Ornithology, NMK, the Lake Victoria Wetlands Team, and Maseno School. Arabuko-Sokoke trophies Arabuko-Sokoke Forest is among the most important sites in Kenya for bird (and biodiversity) conservation. The forest has been much in the news this year — and for all the wrong reasons. A proposal in March 1995 from the District Development Committee to degazette a substantial chunk of Brachystegia woodland and mixed forest met opposition from many quarters. The East Africa Natural History Society and East African Wildlife Society publicised the conservation issues involved, and took part in a delegation to the forest to talk to local leaders. The threat of degazettement appears to have lifted — for the time being. However, many serious and potentially explosive problems remain unresolved, including issues connected with human-animal conflicts, access to water resources and land rights. These are big problems; but there is nothing to be lost by starting small. At the suggestion of the Arabuko-Sokoke Forest Management Team, a coordinating body for the management of the forest, BirdLife Kenya, the EANHS and other NGOs have donated a number of Arabuko-Sokoke trophies for schools. These will be given out at an open day for the forest to be held at Gede Forest Station on 30 September. Meanwhile the EANHS has set up a special committee to monitor Arabuko-Sokoke issues, and will be working through its Kipepeo Project to start public awareness and eco-tourism initiatives. Anyone interested in donating a schools trophy for the forest, please contact the Secretary, BirdLife Kenya, P O Box 44486, Nairobi. No let-up in forest degazettement Away from Arabuko-Sokoke, forest degazettement continues to be a worrying issue. In recent months, important tracts of indigenous forest have been excised in 8 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 South-west Mau, Kamiti, Kiambu and Kinari Forests. A recent study by IUCN shows that over the past five years the area added to the forest estate actually outweighs excisions. However, the additions have mostly been of small forests, or areas of low forest and thicket without substantial biodiversity. The excisions have mainly been of moist forests in areas of high potential for agriculture, which are among the nation's richest reservoirs of biodiversity. Kenya's indigenous forest estate is already so small and fragmented that its continued disappearance is a serious conservation problem. The shortage of agricultural land cannot be solved in the long-term by converting our forests to farms — indeed, by disrupting environmental cycles this will make problems worse. The IUCN report identifies the existing Forests Act as a major factor behind the rampant excisions going on at the moment. In contrast to the Wildlife Conservation and Management Act, which gives Parliament the responsibility of deciding whether to degazette a National Park, the Forests Act leaves the decision in the hands of one person — the Minister for Environment and Natural Resources. Although 28 days notice must be given of the intention to degazette, there is no mechanism for objections to be registered, and in practice this is a mere formality. Kenya's forests deserve better protection than the whim of a politician. Owls are a hit Many people who are not birdwatchers strongly dislike owls — in most traditions they are seen as at best mysterious, at worst harmful and evil creatures. So it was with mixed feelings that Jeam Agutu, BirdLife Kenya Associate Member, accepted an invitation to speak on 'Living with owls and other birds' at Maseno University. Members of the Zoology Department had been intrigued by Team's observations on Verreaux's Eagle Owls on the campus (see Kenya Birds 2(2): 34, January 1994). In the end more than 100 University staff and postgraduate students attended the seminar, and discussions continued at a reception afterwards. Completely converted to owls, the Department has asked for more lectures, and for Jeam to set up a birdwatching group for students. Important Bird Areas for Africa The Important Bird Areas programme is now officially under way in Kenya, with support from the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds in UK. Fieldwork started in January with surveys of a number of wetlands (see elsewhere in this issue). At the moment, preliminary lists of IB As are being put together. BirdLife International's IBA programme began ten years ago in Europe. The resulting publication, Important Bird Areas in Europe, has had a major impact on conservation planning across the continent — many of its recommendations have Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 9 been adopted under national and European Union legislation. An IB A programme for the Middle East was completed in 1984 and is already proving to be as influential. Now it is Africa's turn. The overall result will be a detailed book giving an account of all the Globally Important Bird Areas identified on the continent. This is a huge task, given that 56 countries are involved and many cases little is known about their avifauna. Kenya is among a group of pioneer countries for the IBA programme in Africa — others include Tanzania, Uganda and South Africa. As elsewhere, the process is being coordinated by the national partner organisation — the East Africa Natural History Society, through its sub-committee BirdLife Kenya. Much of the technical work will be undertaken by the National Museums' Department of Ornithology. Identifying and describing Kenya's IB As is one part of the process — in many ways the easiest. At the same time, the programme is designed to build the capacity of the EANHS and the Department, for both bird conservation and bird research. There is no point in publishing a directory of IB As as a purely academic exercise, so the crucial third strand is translating the findings into action. The IBA programme in fact provides a neat complement to conservation planning that is already going on, such as the National Environment Action Plan. An Advisory Council, with representatives from key government bodies, is being set up to advise BirdLife Kenya on the project, particularly on how the results can most helpful. So what are IBAs, anyway? BirdLife's IBA Steering Committee for Africa has deliberated at length on the criteria that should be used to identify them. These have now been agreed, and there are four main categories of site. First, sites that are important for globally threatened species (such as the Sokoke Scops Owl). Second, sites that hold a suite of species with very small ranges (for example, the birds endemic to the central Kenyan highlands, such as Sharpe's Longclaw and Aberdares Cisticola). Third, sites with a representative set of species that are characteristic of a particular, distinct biome — for instance the dry bush country of north-east Kenya. Fourth, sites with particularly large concentrations of birds — flamingos at Lake Nakuru, for example. Within each of these categories, there are set thresholds (for instance, the number of restricted-range species, or the number of congregatory birds) for the selection of Globally Important Bird Areas. The Department of Ornithology is presently working with colleagues from Uganda and Tanzania on the challenging task of setting appropriate thresholds for Regionally Important Bird Areas. These will not appear in the continental directory, but we feel it is important to pin-point them nonetheless. IBAs, GIBAs, RIBAs — the acronyms may multiply confusingly, but the point is that having well-defined, agreed and objective 10 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 criteria at the different levels makes the whole exercise much more useful, and much more credible to decision-makers. In Kenya, the Department of Ornithology is presently reviewing the literature and putting together lists of sites using the different categories and criteria. These draft lists will be circulated for comment, and gaps in our knowledge identified. The next steps are additional, targeted field surveys, setting up an DBA database, and finally producing a book summarising the results. All going well, this should be published by March 1997. Parallel with all this, BirdLife Kenya will be working with the Advisory Council to incorporate the findings into national planning processes, and taking action on particular sites where appropriate. Many people will be involved in the IB A process, and anyone with interesting information on particular sites, or records of rare species, can contribute by making these available. Kenya Birds will be publishing regular updates to keep everyone informed of progress. We look forward to everyone's help with this exciting and important project — Leon Bennun, P O Box 40658, Nairobi. Kenya Wetlands Working Group Waterbird counts and surveys, January-March 1995: a summary The annual waterbird counts in January and July are organised by the Ornithology Department in collaboration with the Kenya Wetlands Working Group and the Kenya Wildlife Service. They form part of an Africa-wide waterbird census coordinated by the International Waterfowl and Wetlands Research Bureau (IWRB). These counts are presently funded by the Ramsar Convention Bureau an<£ involve training of volunteers to monitor wetlands. This year, the counts were expanded and surveys were made of several new sites, thanks to funding from the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) received through BirdLife Kenya to support the Important Bird Areas (IBA) programme (see other articles, this issue). One of the criteria for Globally Important Bird Areas (GIBAs) is closely based on the Ramsar convention criteria for waterbirds: a site qualifies if it regularly supports more than 20,000 waterbirds or more than 1% of a species' biogeographic population. The early-year counts in 1995 (during the Northern winter) were quite extensive, covering more wetland sites than before. The counts stretched over a period of three months in total, from the beginning of January to the end of March. Counts and training of volunteers took place at the main Rift Valley lakes, and around wetlands in Amboseli National Park, Nairobi and Lake Victoria. Over 120 volunteer birdwatchers took part overall. Meanwhile, a major effort was made in February to collect survey data on coastal sites — beaches, reefs, creeks, estuaries and salt works — from the border Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 1 1 with Tanzania north to the Sabaki River mouth. The coastal survey was again a collaborative effort, involving six Ornithology Department staff, four staff of the Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute (KMFRI) and two researchers from Pavia University, Italy. Counts were made on foot along beaches and reefs, while creeks were surveyed by boat at high tide to count concentrations of roosting waders. During March, five large dams along the upper Tana River were surveyed. Surprisingly, the waterbirds of these big man-made wetlands seem never to have been counted before. This time the institutions involved were the Department of Ornithology, Kenya Wildlife Service and the Fisheries Department. Logistical support was also provided by the Kenya Power and Lighting Company (KP&LC), the Tana and Athi River Development Authority (TARDA) and Mwea Trust. The survey was carried out by boat, involving three Ornithology Department staff and a coxswain from the Fisheries Department stationed at Masinga Dam. Additional data were received from volunteers who undertook waterbird counts on their own, either near their areas of residence or on personal safaris. We encourage interested birders to contribute waterbird count records, ideally for the months of January or July. Sites surveyed this year include the Rift Valley lakes: Bogoria, Nakuru, Naivasha (with Sonachi and Oloidien), Magadi and Elmentaita; wetlands around Nairobi: Dandora Sewage Works, Kayole Sewage, Manguo Floodplain, Nairobi Dam, Limuru Pond and Tigoni Dam; wetlands in Amboseli National Park: Lake Ol Tukai, Enkongo Narok Swamp and Longinye Swamp; sites around Lake Victoria: Rota, Tako River, Dunga, Kano Plains, Sondu-Miriu River mouth, Aneko, Pengle and Lake Simbi; and upper Tana River dams: Masinga, Kamburu, Gitaru, Kindaruma and Kiambere. Along the Kenyan Coast, the team counted creeks at Vanga, Funzi, Tudor, Port Reitz and Mida; beach stretches around Shimoni, Msambweni, Gazi, Funzi, Mtwapa, Tiwi, Kilifi, Watamu, Malindi and the Sabaki River mouth; and the Kensalt Works. Sites counted by individual volunteers include Nicoll, Oasis and Soy dams. Waterbird numbers The number of waterbirds counted in the entire survey total 903,311 — 787,857 of these being flamingos. Almost all the flamingos were counted on the Rift Valley lakes, the majority (about 413,000) at Lake Nakuru. Waterbird numbers on the five upper Tana dams totalled 34,080, with the lion's share on Masinga (with 27,869 birds). Other sites with waterbird numbers exceeding ten thousand include Bogoria (262,875), Elmenteita (124,403), Nakuru (413,968), Naivasha (11,549), Magadi (25,486), Amboseli (10,135 in all wetlands combined). The coastal survey covered 80% of the beach stretches from Vanga to the Sabaki River 12 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 mouth. The total number of birds counted in these sites including the creeks and the Kensalt works totaled 33,629 of 70 species. Terns made up the most numerous single group. — Oliver Nasirwa, P O Box 40658, Nairobi. Waterbird counts at Lake Victoria Surveys of waterbirds in some key wetlands around Lake Victoria were organised by the Lake Victoria Wetlands Team (LVWT). The surveys were conducted on 11-12 and 25-26 February 1995, with assistance from the Ornithology Department and other volunteers (see article above). The first survey covered Dunga Beach, Kano plains, Tako River and Sondu- Miriu. A team of nine counters took part. Notable observations included a male Pygmy Goose at Sondu-Miriu, and (less happily) the uncontrolled sewage flow and wastes at Dunga Beach. The second survey involved seven counters. The area covered included Simbi, Pengle, Aneko the breeding site for Pink-backed Pelican at Rakewa. Two fully fledged young of pelicans and four of Black-headed Heron were observed, and sixteen nests of sticks and twigs counted. — Joseph Oyugi, P O Box 40658, Nairobi. Waterbird counts at the Kenya coast Waterbirds along the Kenya coast were surveyed from 2-25 February 1995. Six Ornithology Department staff, four staff members from Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute (KMFRI) and two researchers from Pavia University, Italy were involved in the survey. The aim was to cover as much of the Kenya coastline as possible from Vanga in the south, north to the Sabaki River mouth, surveying all wetland bird species. For practical reasons two methods were used: (1) 'beach counts' on the beaches and reefs at low tide while birds were feeding, and (2) counts of roosting birds in the creeks at high tide from a boat. It was impractical to cover the whole c. 220 km section of coast in just three weeks, but as much as possible was sampled. Despite the lack of prior reconnaissance to find access routes for certain sections of coastline, over 80% was covered. The overall impression was of good numbers of birds along much of the coastline. Some areas, though, held fewer birds than expected, particularly the southern beaches. The total counted was 33,629 of 70 species, the bulk of which were terns. Highlights included a flock of 200+ Crab Plovers with several hundred other waders and terns in a roost site just north of the Tanzanian border at Vanga; concentrations of Turnstone along the rocky beaches south of Kilifi; roosts of several hundred Sooty Gulls and terns just north of Watamu; and 150+ Caspian Keny a Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 13 Terns on the salt works north of Malindi at Gongoni. At the Sabaki River we recorded up to 20 wintering Broad-billed Sandpipers, a male Caspian Plover in full breeding plumage, an Arctic Skua Stercorarius parasiticus (only the fourth record for Kenya) and a new species for East Africa, none other than a Northern Lapwing Vanellus vanellusl — Oliver Nasirwa, Colin Jackson, Luc Lens, Joseph Oyugi, Edward Waiyaki, P O Box 40658, Nairobi; Jan Seys, P O Box 81651, Mombasa. Waterbirds on the Upper Tana River dams Waterbirds on the five large dams on the upper Tana River (Masinga, Kiambere, Kamburu, Kindaruma and Gitaru) were surveyed from 16-27 March 1995, following an earlier reconnaisance trip. A boat, without which the survey would have been impossible, was kindly lent free of charge by the Kenya Wildlife Service, and a coxswain joined us from the Fisheries Dept. base on Kenya's largest dam, Masinga. Numbers of birds were much higher than we had expected. Of particular interest were around 300 African Darters, a species that is seriously threatened in Kenya by gill-net fishing. Indeed we found three Darters tangled and trapped in fishing net or string that had been discarded in the dams. Large numbers of cormorants were present on most dams including three breeding colonies. Herons were very abundant, in particular Great White Egrets and Green-backed Herons. Apart from Greenshank and Common Sandpiper, waders were only present in any numbers on Masinga Dam. The same was true of duck (both species of Whistling Ducks on Masinga). We saw very few Palaearctic duck, presumably due to the late date of the survey (we recorded only six Garganey). (Unfortunately, vehicle problems had delayed the start of the survey by almost two weeks.). Other records of interest were two to three Ospreys on each of the larger dams and Pied Kingfishers in almost every corner — hundreds in all. — Oliver Nasirwa, Colin Jackson & Patrick Gichuki, P O Box 40658, Nairobi. Lake Naivasha — Kenya's second Ramsar site Kenya acceded to the Ramsar Convention in 1990 and designated Lake Nakuru as its first Wetland of International Importance. Nakuru is often host to more than a million Lesser Flamingos as well as providing habitats for many other wetland birds and large mammals. Lake Nakuru is within a National Park which is famous for the diversity of its wildlife — its visitors exceed 100,000 each year. The Kenya Wildlife Service manages the Ramsar site, both because it is the organisation responsible for National Parks and because it is the custodian of the Ramsar Convention in Kenya. 14 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 Lake Naivasha is a freshwater lake in Kenya's Rift Valley, less than 50 km from Lake Nakuru. It is unique in being fresh — where other lakes on the floor of the Rift Valley become saline — and in having a great diversity of wetland plants and animals, especially waterbirds. Unlike Nakuru, it has no protected status and is surrounded by private land where most inhabitants are farmers, many of them growing flowers for export while using lake waters for irrigation. Lake Naivasha qualifies for listing as a Wetland of International Importance under most of the Ramsar criteria relating to ecosystems and under two of those relating to waterbirds: it regularly has more than 20,000 waterbirds (75 species have been consistently recorded) and is host to more than one percent of the world population of the Maccoa Duck. Its wetland plants are legion and include the tallest stand of papyrus for such an altitude (almost 2,000 m a.s.l.) where culms exceed five metres in height. Between (and on) the farms there are many species of large mammals associated with wetlands — including hippos and waterbuck — and the lake provides drinking water for a great variety of wildlife and livestock from its dry hinterland. It has a commercial fishery, a tourist industry, a geothermal power plant nearby and the town of Naivasha at its edge. Naivasha has a unique grouping of its landowners who have been charged under law with the management of the riparian land associated with the lake. The Lake Naivasha Riparian Owners Association (LNROA) was formed to allow agriculture to continue and develop while simultaneously ensuring the provision of fish and other wetland products to those who needed them. In short, a process to ensure Wise Wetland Use! The LNROA together with the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) and with backup from the IUCN Wetlands Programme, decided that the designation of the lake and associated wetlands as a Ramsar site would fulfil their needs while ensuring water and biodiversity for posterity. At a full meeting of the Association early in 1995, this idea was supported unanimously and the process of designation began in earnest. The site has been delineated (approximately 30,000 ha, including some adjacent sodic wetlands, a floodplain and delta as well as many farms and houses) and described and the designation has been supported by the Government of Kenya through KWS. On 10 April the site was added to the Ramsar list of Wetlands of International Importance. But the process does not end there as there is need for a management arrangement and a management plan. Both of these are being developed by a steering committee which is hosted by LNROA and includes KWS, IUCN and other key players in the utilisation and conservation of the lake. A draft management plan for sustainable utilisation has been produced and should be approved by the stakeholders and government authorities in the near future. The Ramsar site is likely to be managed by the LNROA together with appropriate government institutions and representatives of Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 15 wetland users. This will then make Naivasha the first Ramsar site in Africa to be sited within private land and to be managed by its inhabitants! — Geoffrey Howard, P O Box 68200, Nairobi. [Adapted from the IUCN Wetlands Programme newsletter, no. 11, June 1995. J International For waterbirds, c'est Bonn European, African and Middle Eastern nations have reached a historic agreement on the conservation of the migratory waterbirds that they share. Representatives from over 60 countries signed the African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds Agreement in Den Haag, Netherlands, on Friday 16 June. The Agreement, created under the Bonn Convention on Migratory Species, aims to ensure that coordinated measures are taken to maintain and restore populations of birds such as storks, swans, geese and ducks. The signatories agreed to cooperate in giving legal protection to the birds, identifying and protecting the sites and habitats they use, and combating threats to them. The treaty does allow hunting, however, except of those species at extreme risk because of factors such as low numbers, declines or habitat threats. Even a few of these high-risk birds, such as Red-crested Pochard, Greenland White- fronted Goose and Goldeneye, may be hunted for traditional reasons in parts of Europe, and Glossy Ibis, African Spoonbill and White-backed Duck in parts of Africa. Johanna Winkelman of BirdLife International said: 'This agreement is the first of its kind, and will help to protect migratory birds, from the Arctic to southern Africa. However, BirdLife is worried that the agreement allows some hunting of birds which have an unfavourable or uncertain conservation status." Most controversially, the hunting of some species will be permitted while they are breeding. According to BirdLife International, this is a backward step. "Some birds were added to the list of huntable species with inadequate justification," said Winkelman. "Nonetheless, the agreement offers a real prospect of a brighter future for our migratory birds". BirdLife hopes that the agreement will come into force before the end of the century. In the meantime, states can begin to implement the agreement by drawing up species action plans (one of the main provisions of the agreement) and working towards the phasing out of toxic lead shot, still widely used by hunters. 16 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 Spix's fixed — lone male macaw gets mate Conservationists who have been 'match-making' between two parrots, in an attempt to save the world's rarest bird from extinction, are delighted to find that their couple seem to have fallen for each other! Until earlier this year, just a single Spix's Macaw - a male - remained in the wild, in forest in Brazil. The lone male was pursing a sad, inevitably fruitless relationship with a female Green- winged Macaw, a closely related but completely separate species. Around 30 Spix's Macaws exist in captivity. In March, after extensive research to ensure the two would be well-suited, a female was released to join the male, in the hope that they would pair-up and breed. Although it has taken a while, the two now seem to have fallen for each other, and are almost inseparable. The rejected Green- winged Macaw generally joins the couple during the day, but leaves them in the evening, so they can spend the night alone together. While it is still early days, the hope is that the couple will reproduce successfully in the breeding season later this year. They are currently being observed by biologists around the clock to monitor their behaviour and guard them from poachers. The match-making is part of a programme to save Spix's Macaw, the world's rarest bird, from extinction, being run by an International Committee led by the Brazilian wildlife authorities, IBAMA. Spix's Macaw once occurred in gallery riverine forest in north-east Brazil. Loss of its forest habitat together with capture for the wild bird trade has- reduced the species to a single individual in the wild. The sex of the remaining wild bird was confirmed by DNA sequencing of a feather, performed by Dr Richard Griffiths at Oxford University. Birding at... Olorgesailie Prehistoric Site Leon Bennun P O Box 40658, Nairobi If you are unlucky enough to live in Nairobi, the cold months in the middle of the year can often seem particularly dreary. Day after day of grey skies, dull drizzle and dismal temperatures, enough to lower any birder's spirits. The few feathered objects that are hardy enough to be out and about can scarcely be glimpsed through the gloom. What better time to head south to warmer surroundings? Olorgesailie Prehistoric Site is only an hour and a bit away but it feels like a different world; a landscape of dust, heat, thorn and the Rift Valley's wild fractured beauty. Indisputably a change from the Arboretum on a murky July morning. Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 17 Red and Yellow Barbets — Edwin Selempo Landscapes The trip to Olorgesailie takes you down the shoulder of the rift, on what must be one of the finest short drives anywhere. Magadi Road rolls south through the bustling sprawl of Ongata Rongai and Kiserian before breaking out into green open country on the slopes of the Ngong Hills. Then it sweeps round the edge of the hills and the Rift Valley appears with breathtaking grandeur. Ancient volcanoes litter the landscape: Suswa off in the distance, 01 Doinyo Esakut immediately below — the road can be seen looping ever downwards across its flanks — and away to the south, the impressive eroded bulk of Mt Olorgesailie itself, brooding over the valley floor. 18 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1 994 Olorgesailie Prehistoric Site and environs — Map by Dennis Milewa The descent is rapid and ecological zones succeed one another alarmingly fast. Dwarf Acacia drepanolobium shrubland gives way to taller woodland, then to dense thickets of the wait-a-bit thorn, Acacia mellifera. The road plunges down a last rocky ridge and suddenly flattens out on the floor of the valley. At just 1,000 m, the temperature here is perceptibly warmer. This area around the little town of Oltepesi (also known as Tinga) was originally wooded grassland. Heavy grazing and felling of trees have turned it into a dusty plain scattered with a few Acacia tortilis. Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 19 The road crosses the seasonal Engeju Esiteti river over a fine modern bridge (which has eliminated the often hair-raising fordings of earlier years), then climbs a little ridge to the Olorgesailie turn-off on the left. The site is reached down an appallingly dusty stretch of track, but it is a distance of only 2 km. Walks around the site Olorgesailie protects an excavation of the Acheulian stone tool culture, perhaps half a million years old. If you happen to be a devotee of hand axes and other prehistoric artefacts, there is a great deal to see in the tidy small Museum and the site displays. As a birder, however, you are better advised to look elsewhere. If you have managed to arrive early in the day, you might start by walking down towards the seasonal Engeju Esiteti River. A footpath leading down from the Museum skirts the main excavations, drops down the ridge and eventually circles round past the lower level exhibits and back to the main site. This is an easy and worthwhile walk, and will produce open- country species such as Fawn-coloured Lark (look for the big white supercilium) and Ashy Cisticola (listen for the loud warbling song). Rufous-crowned or Lilac- breasted Rollers are often in evidence. To reach the river itself, continue straight across country when the path turns to your left. The thick bush on the river banks can be difficult to walk through, but sit under one of the big, shady Acacia tortilis and look and listen for birds. Spotted-flanked Barbets, White-bellied Go-away Birds and the pretty little Emerald-spotted Wood Dove are all common here, and Green Wood Hoopoe and the beautiful White-throated Bee-eater are often seen. The wooded plain across the river is a good area to see Pale Chanting Goshawk, Blue-naped Mousebird, Heuglin's Courser, Banded Parisoma, Red-fronted Warbler and Yellow-bellied Eremomela. A little further along to the north, the rocky ridge just beyond the lower-level excavation is home to Cinnamon-breasted Rock Bunting, Slate-coloured Boubou, Red-fronted Barbet, Namaqua Dove and many others. Taking it easy More sedentary birders, or those overcome by the heat, need not worry. Most of Olorgesailie's birds can be seen at the main site itself, often without stirring from the welcome shade of one of the verandas. Bird baths outside the main Museum and the picnic banda attract a steady stream of visitors, especially in the depths of the dry season. The variety of small seed-eating birds is particularly impressive: species you are likely to see include Blue-capped Cordon-bleu, Purple Grenadier, Black-cheeked Waxbill, Green-winged Pytilia, Grosbeak and White-bellied Canaries, Cut-throat, Grey-headed Silverbill, Chestnut Sparrow and Yellow- spotted Petronia. Violet-backed, Beautiful and Scarlet-chested Sunbirds flit about, the males flashing their dazzling metallic colours in the sunlight. The Scarlet- 20 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 chested have often nested in the site buildings. Red-and- Yellow Barbets, looking quite unbelievably garish, hop confidingly up to one's chair and wait for handouts. Grey-capped Social Weavers, tame and charming little birds, are also abundant and obvious (see the article elsewhere in this issue). Around the picnic site look out for the Spotted Morning Thrush, stepping shyly from the surrounding thickets. It has a marvellous rich song at dawn. Keep an eye open along the fence-line for its smaller and less musical relative, the White-browed Scrub Robin. A loud, sudden click and whistle is likely to be a pair of Slate-coloured Boubous, skulking in the depths of an acacia thicket. This species has an amazing repertoire of sounds, ranging from harsh grating rasps to melodious gong-like notes. The hot middle hours of the day are a sleepy time for both birdwatchers and birds. Mourning Doves coo lugubriously from the big trees, where White-bellied Lilac-breasted Rollers — Bryan Hanlon Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 21 Go-away Birds sway and doze. Evening brings the Grey-capped Social Weavers noisily back to their nests; they call and preen outside before slipping in quietly to roost as the light fades, accompanied by a brief, thrilling burst of song from the Spotted Morning Thrush. As dusk thickens, Slender-tailed Nightjars start up all around, pop-pop-popping like distant generators, perhaps accompanied by the sad, eerie whistle of a Two-banded Courser. There are no electric lights at or around Olorgesailie, and with or without a moon the nights are magical. Hyenas whoop in the distance, and lions are often around; their roars, resounding from the ridges, can seem to be right inside one's tent. In the moonlit early hours sleepers in the bandas may be awakened by an odd and particular noise: the clicking knee- joints of a big male eland, approaching to browse on the Desert Roses outside the window. After the rains... The face of Olorgesailie changes dramatically from season to season. Once the rains begin, usually in late March or early April, the site is buzzing with life and vibrant with bird-song. The first showers set off a frenzy of nest-building among the weavers. Masked Weavers gather in big noisy colonies to build their fine-grass nests, each with a characteristic little spout at the base. The round nests of the Vitelline Masked Weavers are more scattered, in groups of three or four, and built out of broad green grass blades. In years of good rain, Cardinal Queleas build their neatly woven litde nests in patches of long, dense grass. Most large trees contain a cluster of the untidy straw nests of the Grey-capped Social Weavers, used year-round but renovated each wet season. As the breeding season progresses, the weavers* colonies attract unwelcome visitors: the Didric Cuckoo, persistent and crafty, intent on stealing an egg and substituting its own; the Boomslang, which systematically makes its murderous rounds from tree to tree; and the Gabar Goshawk and Grey Hornbill, both specialists in robbery with violence. Around and about If you have a little more time to spend, exploring the surrounding area can be rewarding. The rocky scarps north-west of the site are home to Lanners and Kestrels. White-throated Bee-eaters are known to breed in the diatomite cliffs to the west, and in the dry season the permanent pools of water in the Olkeju Ngiro river gorge are magnets not only for livestock but for doves, sandgrouse and other birds. Less than an hour's drive to the south is Lake Magadi, with extraordinary scenery and spectacular waterbirds. For the really adventurous, Mt Olorgesailie makes an exciting climb. 22 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 How to get there Olorgesailie is easily accessible by private or public means; a four-wheel drive vehicle is not necessary. If you are driving: from the city centre take the Langata Road past the KWS headquarters, then turn left on Magadi Road at the corner of the National Park. Alternatively, take Ngong Road as far as Ngong Town, then turn left and you will join the Magadi Road at Kiserian. If you are continuing to Magadi, remember that fuel is not always available there. The Akamba Bus Company runs a twice-daily service from Nairobi to Magadi, and back. If you leave the bus at the Olorgesailie turn-off it is an easy walk to the site. Where to stay There are four thatched bandas at the site, providing comfortable but basic accommodation. Beds and mattresses are provided; you need to bring your own bedding and food. Charges are presently KSh 400/= per night, per banda; book through the Director's office, National Museums of Kenya. Paraffin lamps can be rented for a small extra fee. There is also a pleasant campsite, with fireplace, under a group of big Acacia tortilia trees. Water is often available but to be on the safe side bring your own, at least enough for drinking — the supply cannot be guaranteed. EANHS members are admitted to the site free, on production of a valid membership card; others will need to pay an entrance fee. This applies even if you are not visiting the excavations. Records and Notes Records compiled by Joseph Oyugi This section exists for the rapid publication of interesting observations, and contributions are welcomed. If you are sending in records for Kenya Birds, please consider the following guidelines. For breeding records, send in cases of confirmed breeding, i.e. birds incubating eggs or feeding nestlings/fledglings. Records for confirmed breeding are useful for ALL species, even the most common ones; records of nest-building, courtship etc. are only needed for rare species or ones where there are few breeding records. Please try to fill in a nest-record card at the same time. Much more detail can be recorded on a card, and if your record can be added to the card collection and our computer database then it is of permanent value. Cards can be obtained free of charge from the EANHS Nest Record Scheme Organiser (see back page). A report listing records submitted to the scheme is published every second year in the Annual Bird Report of Scopus. Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 23 For other records of Afrotropical/oceanic and Palaearctic birds, please send in any sightings and notes that you think are of interest. The Editors will select records for publication according to the space available. For all records, including breeding records, please be precise as possible about dates and locations. If you have sightings from places not easily found on the map, please take the trouble to give the latitude and longitude of the site to as much precision as you can (preferably the nearest second of arc or better). This will allow us to use these records in the Ornithology Department's computerised database. Supporting details are always welcome for unusual records and will improve the chances of publication. Records of certain species are requested for inclusion in the Scopus Annual Bird Report (the third issue of Scopus each year). These should be sent to Don Turner (P O Box 48019, Nairobi), who can also supply information on which records are required. For particularly unusual sightings supporting details (i.e. field notes, photographs etc.) will be needed for scrutiny by the OS-c Rarities Committee. Key to records New atlas square records are indicated in square, brackets. Codes are: pres, present (first record); post pres, present (first post- 1970 record); prob, probably breeding; conf, confirmed breeding; post conf, confirmed breeding (first since 1970); for example, [pres, conf 25B] indicates that the species is present and confirmed as breeding in square 25B. Where scientific names are not stated here (and elsewhere in Kenya Birds) the English names follow Britton (ed.) 1980, Birds of East Africa. Breeding records Little Grebe: One juv, Kayole sewage pond 4/1/95 KN. Pink-backed Pelican: Two fully fledged young sitting in a nest, Rakewa, Oyugis 26/2/95 CO, JOO, JOl, WOl & PO; more than one hundred nests, some adults feeding young in nest and others incubating, Rakewa, Oyugis 9/7/95 JOO. Greater Cormorant: Many fully grown juvs and nestlings being fed by adults, off Lake Naivasha Hotel Jetty, Lake Naivasha 18/1/92 ON, JH, FN, WO & AD; (conf 49A): Two young fed by adult, Soy Village, Eldoret 10/ 3/95 BC. Darter (conf 63D): Several nests and young, Upper Tana 8/3/95 CJ & ON. Black-headed Heron (conf 60D): Two fully fledged young sitting in nests and one standing on a branch, Rakewa, Oyugis 26/2/95 CO, JOO, JOl, WOl & PO; (conf 62D): Seventeen individuals sitting in nests, Murungaru, North Kinangop 29/3/95 JOO, LL, MM & CJ; (conf 61A): Adult feeding frog to half-grown young, Chagaik Dam, Kericho 1/2/94 AJB. Cattle Egret: 212 birds in nests, Murungaru, North Kinangop 29/3/95 LL, JOO, MM & CJ. Abdim's Stork: One fledgling in a nest, Maseno 24/2-1/4/93 JA. Hadada: Adult feeding nestling, Impala Sanctuary, Kisumu 20/4/95 MM. White-faced Whistling Duck: Pairs with 20, 10 and 5 ducklings, single bird with 10 ducklings, Dandora sewage treatment ponds 4/1/95 WMBw; pair with two ducklings diving, dam, Nairobi National Park 8/3/95 DB. Egyptian Goose: Six goslings, Dandora sewage treatment pond 4/1/95 KN et al.; adult with ten goslings, Lake Oloiden, Naivasha 28/1/ 95 JOO & BC; adult with ten goslings, Yacht Club, Lake Naivasha 29/1/95 JOO; adult 24 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1 994 with seven goslings, Lake Oloiden 28/6/95 CB. Yellow-billed Duck: An adult with about twelve ducklings, off New Fisheries Jetty, Lake Naivasha 29/1/95 FN, JW & EM; four ducklings, Loldia farm, Naivasha 22/2/95 JW. African White-backed Vulture: Young in the nest, two adults sitting by, Athi River, Hopcraft Ranch 15/2/95 PN. Great Sparrowhawk: Two fledglings in a nest, Kiambere Road, Nairobi 6/11-29/12/94 FN; juv begging from adult, Nairobi, Arboretum 21/5/95 CJ. Tawny Eagle: Adult sitting in nest, Nairobi National Park 5/7/95 WMBw. Verreaux's Eagle: One young, Soysambu Ranch 16/3/95 ES & WO. Long-crested Eagle (post prob 63C): A pair mating, Wajee Camp, Mihuti 24/6/95 DM; adult incubating, L. Nakuru National Park 23/2/95 JW. Fish Eagle: Adult incubating, Ndere Island, Kisumu 24/4/95 MM; juv with two adults, Shimoni 15/2/95 JS & JW1. Crested Francolin (conf 75D): Three adults with one chick, Kajiado 5/5/95 NS. Helmeted Guineafowl: Five chicks and three adults, Kajiado 16/4/95 NS; five chicks with two adults, Oltepesi, Kajiado 15/6/95 AS. Kenya Crested Guineafowl: Five chicks on the road, Arabuko-Sokoke Forest 20/5/95 LD; seven chicks with three adults, Arabuko-Sokoke Forest 29/5/95; six chicks with five adults, Arabuko-Sokoke Forest 20/5/95 LD. Crowned Crane: A pair with two half-grown young, Chelimo Estate, Kericho 15/12/94 AJB et al.; a pair with two very small chicks, Nairobi National Park 13/2/95 KLW; one young, half adult size, near the adults, Loresho Ridge, Nairobi 19/4/95 FN; one young feeding with two adults, Nairobi National Park 11/2-8/3/95 DB. Purple Gallinule: One fully-fledged young on floating leaf, and another with adult returning to nest, Splash, Nairobi 31/1/95 DR. Red- knobbed Coot: Five young swimming with two adults, Soy, Eldoret 14/5/95 DB. Kori Bustard: Two eggs in a nest, Singiraini, Magadi 8/3/95 NS. Kittlitz's Sandplover: One young probably 3-5 days out of nest, Lake Nakuru 17/7/94 CJ; two downy young, Soysambu Ranch 30/3/95 KN. Blacksmith Plover: Incubating four eggs, Lake Nakuru 17/7/94 CJ. Crowned Plover: Two juvs, Soysambu Ranch 16/3/95 KN; two juvs feeding, Loldia farm, Naivasha 4/3/95 JW; incubating two eggs, Loldia farm, Naivasha 23/2/95 JW. Black- winged Plover (post conf 62D): Adult incubating three eggs, South Kinangop 27/6/95 CJ. Wattled Plover (conf 74C): Adult incubating (photographed), Musiara Road, Masai Mara 25/12/88 ND & LD (see article, this issue). Spur-winged Plover: Downy young sitting in a depression on the ground, Dandora sewage ponds, Nairobi 4//1/95 ON. Senegal Plover: Adult with juv, Shimba Hills 29/5/95 LL & JS. Spotted Thicknee: Incubating two eggs, Nairobi National Park 16/3/95 FN. Speckled Pigeon: Incubating, Lake Nakuru National Park 23/2/95 JW. Red-eyed Dove: Nest with two eggs, preyed on by Gabar Goshawk, Naivasha 29/31/1/95 CR. Ring-necked Dove: Two fledglings leaving nest, Sinya Omelok, Kajiado 15/6/95 AS & CB. Laughing Dove: Incubating two eggs, later two young in nest, Loldia Farm, Naivasha 11/2-1/3/95 JW; nest with two eggs, Naivasha 3-5/2/95 CR. Levaillant's Cuckoo (conf 62C): Laid in nest of Olive Thrush;, juv successfully fledged, South Lake Road, Naivasha, early 9/94-8/10/94 AV. Black Cuckoo: Juv being fed by Tropical Boubou, Naivasha 21/1-26/2/95 CR. Didric Cuckoo: Juv being fed by Black-headed Weaver, Voi Safari Lodge 14/5/95 JS. Barn Owl: Two owlets begging after dusk, Lamu Museum roof, late March and early April 1995 MJ. Spotted Eagle Owl: One juv with two adults, Hell's Gate National Park 22/2/95 MV. Verreaux's Eagle Owl: Two juvs, Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 25 Loldia Farm, Naivasha 5/3/95 JW. Sokoke Scops Owl: Two immature birds with two adults, Arabuko-Sokoke Forest 29/1/95, DN & JS. Montane Nightjar (conf 62A): Adult female incubating, later both adults feeding young at night, Soysambu 26/3 & 19/ 4/95 KN & JMN. Dusky Nightjar: Nest with two chicks, Soysambu, Elmenteita 6/5/95 MACC. Speckled Mousebird: Nest with two chicks, both fledged, Naivasha 21/2/95 CR; one juv, National Museums of Kenya, Nairobi 21/6/95 CJ; three juvs fed by adults, Loldia Farn, Naivasha 10/5/95 JW. Blue-naped Mousebird: Two juvs, Loldia Farm, Naivasha 24/2/95 JW. Malachite Kingfisher: Adult carrying food near nest, Elsamere, Naivasha 29/6/95 CB. Cinnamon-chested Bee-eater: Two juvs, Lake Nakuru National Park 1/3/95 JW. Green Wood Hoopoe: One juv, Loldia farm, Naivasha 1/3/95 JW; one juv fed by adults, Naivasha 2 & 5/3/95 CR. Grey Hornbill: One juv, Loldia Farm, Naivasha 22/2/95 JW; adult carrying food near nest, Loldia farm, Naivasha 24/2/95 JW. Ground Hornbill: Hole nest in large branching tree, Kwanza, Kitale 8/6/95 MACC. Red-fronted Barbet: Nest hole in trunk of large tree, Laikipia 21/5/95 SS. White- headed Barbet (conf 48D): Hole nest in a Nandi Flame tree, later two white eggs found broken after the tree was cut down, Maseno 20/12/92-3/1/93 JA. Eastern Honeyguide: One juv near pair of Montane White-eyes, Wasaa Conservation Centre, Nairobi 24/5/95 FN. Uganda Spotted Woodpecker (pres, prob 61A): Male and female visiting nesting hole regularly, hissing noises within the hole, Chagaik estate 1/1/95 AJB et al. Fischer's Sparrow Lark (post conf 75D): Two nestlings, Kajiado 27/4/95 NS. Striped Swallow: Hail stones tore the bottom out of the nest, three eggs shattered on the windowsill and roof below, Chagaik Estate, Kericho 14/5/94 AJB; adult entering nest, Highridge, Nairobi 20/5/95 CB. Angola Swallow (post conf 62D): Adult feeding two juvs, South Kinangop 28/6/95 CJ. Wire-tailed Swallow (post conf 63C): Adult carrying food near nest, Mukurweini, Muhuti 2/7/95 DM. African Rock Martin: Nest with three eggs, Langata, Nairobi 9/3/95 DB. Sand Martin: Two juvs, Loldia Farm, Naivasha 26/2/95 JW. Black-headed Oriole: Building nest, Loldia farm, Naivasha 1-5/6/95 JW. Red- throated Tit (conf 75D): Three juvs, Olelepos 25/6/95 CJ. Arrow-marked Babbler: Two juvs, Soysambu Ranch 15/6/95 KN. Placid Greenbul: One juv wing- shivering, Arboretum, Nairobi 5/4/95 FN. Common Bulbul: One fledgling fed by adult, Kiambere road, Nairobi Hill 15/12/94 FN; one young, Soysambu Ranch 30/4/95 KN; one young, Loldia Farm, Naivasha 5/3/95 JW. RuppelTs Robin Chat: Adult feeding juv, later juv feeding alone, Kiambere Road, Nairobi Hill 3/12/94 FN. White-starred Forest Robin: Juv feeding independently, Nairobi, Arboretum 21/5/95 CJ. Northern Olive Thrush: One juv, Kiambere Road, Nairobi Hill late 12/94 FN. Lesser Swamp Warbler: Nest with five chicks, Elsamere, Naivasha 28/6/95 CB. Black-collared Apalis: Juv fed by adult, Langata Bird Sanctuary, Nairobi 4/6/95 WMBw. White-eyed Slaty Flycatcher: One juv, Soysambu Ranch 18/4/95 KN; one juv, Wanje Camp, Mihuti 8/5/95 DM. Dusky Flycatcher: Two eggs in a nest in a potted plant, Kiambere Road, Nairobi Hill 1/6/94 FN & JH; two eggs in a nest in a potted plant, later two fledglings fed by parents, Kiambere Road, Nairobi Hill Oct-Nov 1994 FN & AH. Chin- spot Batis: Male carrying moth to female sitting in nest, Langata, Nairobi 25/1/95 WMBw. Paradise Flycatcher: Juv near Ikuywa stream, Kakamega Forest 6/1/94 CJ; three nestlings ringed and later observed being fed by adult out of the nest, National 26 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 Museum ground, Nairobi 20-25/95 CJ. Plain-backed Pipit: Nest with three young, later fledged, Kima Hill, Machakos 18-19 & 26/5/94 CJ. Richard's Pipit: Adult incubating, North Kinangop 27/6/95 CJ. Sharpens Longclaw: Incubating two eggs, North Kinangop 27/6/95 CJ; adult carrying food, Njabini, South Kinangop 28/6/95 CJ. African Pied Wagtail: Nest with two chicks/Loldia farm, Naivasha 15/7/95 JW; three juvs fed by adult, Sailing Club, Nairobi Dam 28/12/94 FN; adult carrying insect into nest, Elsamere Conservation Centre, Naivasha 29/1/95 BK. Mountain Wagtail (conf 61A): Pair feeding four juvs with insects, Chagaik Estate, Kericho 18/1/94 AJB. Black- backed Puffback: Juv begging, Nairobi Arboretum 5/4/95 WMBw; one juv, Kiambere Road, Nairobi 12/3/95 FN. Tropical Boubou: Nest with two eggs, later one nestling, Naivasha 30/3-20/4/95 CR. Grey-headed Bush Shrike: Juvs fed by parents, Naivasha 29/1/95 CR. Fiscal: Two recently ftedged juvs, Loresho Ridge, Nairobi 19/4/95 WMBw; adult brooding, Eldoret 2//4(95 MM; juv begging from adult, Arboretum, Nairobi 21/6/95 WMBw. Grey-backed Fiscal: Two juvs, Loldia Farm, Naivasha 1/3/95 JW. Red- winged Starling: Nest with one chick, Naivasha 12-29/3/95 CR. Superb Starling: Juv fed by adult, Naivasha 4/2/95 CR; Nest with two young, later fledged, Soysambu Ranch 20/3/-1 5/4/95 KN. Bronze Sunbird: Nest with one egg, chick later fledged, Maseno 21/11/92 JA; juv flpd by male, Loresho Ridge, Nairobi 19/4/95 WMBw. Mariqua Sunbird: Nest w^th two chicks, Siaya 22/12/92 JA. Variable Sunbird: Incubating one egg, Elangata Wuas, Kajiado 16/3/95 AS. Montane White- eye: Adults built nest, laid eggs, later deserted, National Museums, Nairobi 11-25/1/95 CJ; juvs being fed, Gatamaiyu Forest 23/4/95 FN. Grosbeak Weaver: Two juvs, Splash, Nairobi 31/1/95 DR. Red-headed Weaver: Adult visiting nest regularly, hissing calls from the nest, Lake Bogoria Game Reserve 8/1/95 JOO et al.; adult male nest-building, Soysambu Ranch 18/3/95 KN. Baglafecht Weaver: Juv fed by adult male, Wajee Camp, Muhuti 23/5/95 DM; female feeding juvs, Wajee Camp, Mihuti 18/ 2/95 DM; nest with two chicks, Njabini, N. Kinangop 17/5/95 SMK. Holub's Golden Weaver: One juv fed by "adult, Ridgeway Estate, Nairobi 7/12/94 FN. Rufous Sparrow: One juv leaving nest, Elangata Wuas 1/5/95 NS; nest with two chicks, Soysambu Ranch 27/5/95 KN; one juv, Loldia Farm, Naivasha 7/3/95 JW. Speckled- fronted Weaver: Adult carrying food near nest, Elangata Wuas, Kajiado 16/3/95 JSK. Bronze Mannikin: Five juvs in a flock of adults, Arboretum, Nairobi 21/6/95 WMBw; juvs fed by adult, Carnivore, Nairobi 5/7/95 WMBw. Streaky Seed-eater: One juv fed by adult, Upper Hill, Nairobi 1/5/95 FN. Other records: Afrotropical species White Pelican (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 10-13/6/94 NW. Darter (pres 101A): Burn Dam, Taita Hills 24-26/9/92 NW. Grey Heron (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 10-13/6/94 NW. Squacco Heron (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 11/9/94 NW. Hamerkop (pres 88D): Bonham's Camp, Chyulu Hills 31/7-3/8/92 NW. Yellow-billed Stork (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 10-13/6/94 NW. Woolly-necked Stork (100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW. Saddle- billed Stork (pres 100B): Ziwani camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW. Sacred Ibis (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 11/9/94 NW. African Spoonbill (pres 100B): Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 27 Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 11/9/94 NW. Sacred Ibis (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 1 1/9/94 NW. Lesser Flamingo (pres 75D): Forty flying high over, Elangata Wuas 15/6795 CB. Egyptian Goose (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 10-13/6/94 NW. Southern Pochard (pres 101A): Bura Dam, Taita Hills 24-26/9/92 NW. African Pygmy Goose: A female swimming off New Fisheries Jetty, Lake Naivasha 29/1/95 JOO, BC & RD; one, Sondu-Miriu River mouth 12/2/95 WO, ON, JO, CA, PO, FN, DB, DO, NO & JA. Spur-winged Goose (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 11/9/ 94 NW. White-backed Duck (pres 101A): Bura Dam, Taita Hills 24-26/5/9/92 NW. Hooded Vulture (pres 103A): Sabaki River 28/1/95 JS. African Marsh Harrier (pres 61A): AHP, Kericho 18-21/11/93 NW. Harrier Hawk (pres 75D): Three individuals, Elangata Wuas 15/6/95 CB. Bateleur (pres 28D): Ndovu 1987 FA. African Hawk Eagle (pres 75D): One or two daily, Elangata Wuas 7-17/6/95 CB. Pale Chanting Goshawk (pres 28D): Ndovu 1987 FA. Little Sparrowhawk: Main car park, National Museums of Kenya, 10/6/95 LAB & OM. Martial Eagle (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW. Pygmy Falcon (pres 28D): Ndovu 13/2/88 FA. Yellow- necked Spurfowl (pres 28D): Ndovu 13/2/88 FA. Vulturine Guineafowl (post pres-, 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW. Button Quail (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 10-13/6/94 NW. Crowned Crane (post pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 10-13/6/94 NW. Lesser Moorhen (pres 89D): Foraging in small pool, Tsavo East National Park 4/6/95 LL. Black Crake (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 10-13/6/94 NW. African Finfoot (pres 62B): Wooded stream, Prettejohns', Mweiga 10-11/10/94 NW. Hartlaub's Bustard (pres 75D): Common, Elangata Wuas 7-17/6/95 CB. Black-bellied Bustard (pres 102D): One female, Kilifi 3M8/-9/9/93 NW; (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West NW, TD, MS. Jacana (pres 1(K)B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 10-13/6/94 NW. Kittlitz's Sandplover (pres 75D): At a dam, Elangata Wuas 7-17/6/95 CB. Blacksmith Plover (pres 51D): Lewa Downs, 24/1/92 NW; (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 10-13/6/94 NW. Crowned Plover (pres 28D): Ndovu 1987 FA. Black-winged Stilt (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW, TD & MS. Water Thicknee (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 11/9/94 NW. Temminck's Courser (pres 89C): Tsavo West 16-18/4/92 NW. Heuglin's Courser (post pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW, TD & MS. Chestnut-bellied Sandgrouse (pres 28D): Ndovu 13/2/88 FA. Mourning Dove (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW, TD & MS; (pres 28D): Ndovu 13/2/88 FA. Hartlaub's Turaco (post pres 50D): Segara, Nanyuki 6-7/2/93 NW. Red-chested Cuckoo (pres 102D): Seen and heard, Kilifi 8-16/4/93 NW. Barn Owl (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW, TD & MS. Pearl-Spotted Owlet (pres 75D): Regularly seen or heard, Elangata Wuas 7-17/6/95 CB. Donaldson-Smith's Nightjar (post pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West NW, TD, MS. Dusky Nightjar (pres 75D): Regular at night, Elangata Wuas V-17/6/95 CB. Pied Kingfisher (pres 75D): Dam, Elangata Wuas 13/6/95 CB. Half-collared Kingfisher (pres 89D): Kanderi Swamp, Tsavo National Park 4/6/95 LL (record to be submitted to EANHS OS-c Rarities Committee). Chestnut-bellied Kingfisher (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW, TD & MS. Somali Bee-eater (pres 28D): Ndovu 1987 FA. White-headed Wood Hoopoe (pres 62C): Two adults, 28 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1 994 Lake Sonachi, Naivasha 6/94 AV. Scimitarbill (pres 51B): Foraging in trees, Shaba National Park 22-23/1/92, 27-30/4/93 NW. Green Wood Hoopoe (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 11/9/94 NW. Trumpeter Hornbill (pres 101A): Taita Hills 24-26/ 9/92 NW. Yellow-billed Hornbill (pres 75D): Elangata Wuas 27/5/95 CB. Spotted- flanked Barbet (pres 50D): Segara, Nanyuki 6-7/2/93 NW. d'Arnauds Barbet (pres 74C): Cottars Camp, Mara 1-3/4/93 NW. Red and Yellow Barbet (post pres 100B): Ziwani camp, Tsavo West 10-13/6/94 NW. Rufous-naped Lark (pres 88D): Bonham's camp, Chyulu Hills 31/7-3/8/92 NW. Fawn-coloured Lark (pres 101A): Taita Hills 24-26/9/92 NW. Flappet Lark (pres 75D): Common, Elangata Wuas 7-17/6/95 CB. Wire-tailed Swallow (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW, TD & MS; (pres 75D): Elangata Wuas 28/5/95 CB. Mosque Swallow (pres 75D): Elangata Wuas 7-17/6/95 CB. Pied Crow (pres 88D): Bonham's Camp, Chyulu Hills 31/7-3/8/ 92 NW. Brown-necked Raven (pres 28D): Ndovu 1987 FA. Grey Tit (pres 51C): Lewa Downs 12-27/10/92 NW. African Penduline Tit (pres 61B): Elburgon, 9-11/1/ 92 NW; (pres 89C): Tsavo West 15-18/4/92 NW. Black-lored Babbler (pres 51D): Lewa Downs 24/1/92 NW; (pres 74C): Cottars Camp, Mara 1-3/4/93 NW; (pres 75D): Elangata Wuas 27/5/95 CB. Hinde's Babbler (post pres 77A): Four, Nzambani, Kitui 29/11/95 DM. White-browed Robin Chat (post pres 101B): Russels Camp, Tsavo East 2-5A1/92 NW. Capped Wheatear (post pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW, TD & MS. African Reed Warbler (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW, TD & MS. Grey Wren Warbler (pres 51C): Lewa Downs 12-27/10/92 NW; (pres 74C): Sekanani Camp, Mara 2-4/12/92 NW. Winding Cisticola (pres 74C): Sekanani Camp, Mara 2-4/12/92 NW; (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW, TD & MS. Croaking Cisticola (post pres 75D): Elangata Wuas 26/5/95 CB. Northern Crombec (pres 88D): Bonham's Camp, Chyulu Hills 31/7-3/8/92 NW; (pres 101 A): Taita Hills 24-26/9/92 NW. Grey Flycatcher (pres 62B): Oserian Farm, Ngobit 8/2/93 NW. Little Tawny Pipit: Northern Mara River, Masai Mara Game Reserve 6/11/94 TP. Rosy-breasted Longclaw (pres 51C): Lomarik Farm, Timau 6/5/95 RC. Yellow-throated Longclaw (pres 52C): Leopard Rock, Mem National Park 21/1/92 NW. Grey-headed Bush Shrike (post pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW, TD & MS. Somali Fiscal (pres 28D): Ndovu 13/2/88 FA. Grey-crested Helmet Shrike (pres 62B): Seven individuals feeding in low bushes, Prettejohns', Mweiga 10-11/10/94 NW. Yellow-billed Oxpecker (pres 51C): Many occasions, Lewa Downs 12-27/10/92 NW. Wattled Starling (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW, TD, MS. Red- winged Starling (pres 74C): Cottars Camp, Mara 1-3/4/93 NW. White-crowned Starling (pres 28D): Ndovu 13/2/88 FA. Eastern Violet-backed Sunbird (post pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 10-13/6/94 NW. Red-chested Sunbird (pres 61A): A male, AHP, Kericho 18-21/11/93 NW. Hunter's Sunbird (pres 51C): Many occasions, Lewa Downs 12-27/10/92 NW. Scarlet-tufted Malachite Sunbird (post pres 62A): Male adult, Gilgil 29/10/94 SG. Beautiful Sunbird (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW, TD & MS. Variable Sunbird (pres 28D): Ndovu 1987 FA. Fan-tailed Widowbird (pres 88C): 01 Tukai Lake, Amboseli N. Park 22/1/ 95 FN. Fire-fronted Bishop (pres 51B): Samburu 27-30/4/93 NW. Spectacled Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 29 Weaver (pres 75D): Elangata Wuas 17/6/95 CB. White-headed Buffalo Weaver (pres 28D): Ndovu 13/2/88 FA. Chestnut Sparrow (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 10-13/6/94 NW. Yellow-spotted Petronia (post pres 62C): Eserian Farm, Ngobit 21- 23/1/94 NW. Abyssinian Crimson-wing (pres 62A): Two adults, Gilgil 12/3/95 SG. Yellow-bellied Waxbill (pres 74C): Sekanani Camp, Mara 2^/12/92 NW. Crimson- rumped Waxbill (pres 61B): Elburgon 9-11/1/92 NW. African Firefinch (pres 75D): Elangata Wuas 7-17/6/95 CB. Quailfinch (pres 51C): Timau 6/5/95 RC. Black and White Mannikin (pres 75D): Elangata Wuas 7-17/6/95 CB. African Citril (pres 74C): Cottars Camp, Mara 1-3/4/93 NW. Other records: Palaearctic species White Stork: 800+ flying over, Enkongo Narok Swamp, Amboseli National Park 22/1/ 95 LL, JW1, AS, FN, NK, JO, AO, AOa, KN & VL; 210+, Menengai plains, Nakuru 7/ 1/95 JOO, ON & FN; (post pres 76C): 300+, West Ulu 2/2/95 FN; 150+, Athi Plains 2/ 2/95 LL, a, JOO, MF & LB; one, Naivasha 19/3/95 LL; one, Nairobi 17/3/95 LL; twelve, Tigoni 29/1/95 LL. Black Stork: One overhead, National Museums of Kenya, Nairobi 20/12/95 LL; three overhead, Lake Bogoria 7/1/95 LL; three soaring, Amboseli National Park 1/3/95 LL; Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW. Pallid Harrier (post pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW. Long-legged Buzzard: One overhead, Oldonyo Sabuk 2/4/95 LL. Booted Eagle: One overhead, Nairobi N. Park 25/3/95 LL. Osprey (pres 101B): Russel's Camp, Tsavo East 2-5/1/92 NW. Northern Lapwing Vanellus vanellus (pres 103A): One at Sabaki River mouth 8/2/95 CJ, GM, JS, JOO, KD, LB, LL & PB (the first record for East Africa; details to be submitted to EANHS OS-c Rarities Committe). Caspian Plover: One in breeding plumage, Sabaki River mouth 6/2/95 CJ, GM, JOO, LL & PB; five in breeding plumage, Tiwi River mouth 10/2/95 CJ, GM, JOO, LB, LL & PB. Wood Sandpiper (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW, TD, MS. Common Snipe (pres 100B): Ziwani Camp, Tsavo West 18-21/10/94 NW, TD & MS. Great Snipe: One flushed, Lake Elmenteita 14/1/95 LL. Temminck's Stint: One foraging, Lake Nakuru 15/1/95 LL. Arctic Skua: One at Sabaki River mouth 8/2/95 CJ, GM, JS, JOO, KD, LB, LL & PB; Wasini Island, 23/11/85 CR. White-winged Black Tern (pres 63D): Upper Tana 7/3/95 CJ & ON. Eurasian Bee-eater: Arroket Estate, Sotik 5/4/95 IF & PF. Isabelline Wheatear: One female, North Aberdares 26/2/95 PLP & YMC; (pres 28D): Ndovu 13/2/88 FA. Great Reed Warbler (pres 63D): Upper Tana 7/3/95 CJ & ON. Reed Warbler: One ringed at the Nairobi Museum 31/1/95 NbiRG. Blackcap (pres 74C): Sekanani Camp, Mara 2-4/12/92 NW. Red-throated Pipit: Two in garden,Tigoni 31/12/95 LL. Grey Wagtail (pres 62D): One adult, Northern Mathioya River 26/12/94 PLP & YMC. Yellow Wagtail: Arroket Estate, Sotik 31/3/95 IF & PF. Red-tailed Shrike: One in garden, Tigoni 31/12/95 LL. Contributors AD, Ann Davies; AH, Amrik Heyer; AJB, Kimbo Beakbane; AO, Alice Oluoch; AOa, Anne Oakenfall; AS, Alfred Simiyu; AV, Anne Vaughan; BC, Brooks Childress; BK, Benard Kibara; CA, Cecil Agutu; CB, Colin Beale; CJ, Colin Jackson; CO, Caleb 30 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1 994 Oguai; CR, Charles Rugara; DB, Dorothea Brass; DI, Dorothea Irvine; DM, David Mutinda; DM, David Mutinda; DN, David Ngala; DO, Duncan Otieno; DR, Dee Raymer; EM, Evans Mukala; ES, Edwin Selempo; FA, Fiona Alexander; FK, Fidel Kyalo; GI, Geoffrey Irvine; GM, Gladys Moragua; HG, Hilary Garland; IF, Ian Francombe; JA, Jeam Agutu; JA, Jeam Agutu; JH, Jasdev Heyer; JMN, James Makau Nzioka; JO, Jennifer Oduori; JOl, Joab Omondi; JOO, Joseph Oyugi; JS, Jan Seys; JSK, Joseph S. Katitia; JW1, James Wachira; JW, James Wainaina; KD, Kun Devos; KLW, Keith L. Wood; KN, Kuria Ndung'u; LAB, Leon Bennun; LB, Luca Biddau; LD, Linda Davidson; LD, Lorna Depew; LL, Luc Lens; MAAC, M.A.A. Coverdale; MJ, Martin Johnson; MM, Muchai Muchane; MS, M. Seth-Smith; MV, Munir Virani; NbiRG, Nairobi Ringing Group; ND, Neil Davidson, NS, Nixon Sailepu; NK, Njeri Kimani; NO, Naphtah Otieno; NW, Neil Willsher; OM, Ogeto Mwebi; ON, Oliver Nasirwa; PB, Priscilla Boera; PF, Pamela Francombe; PLP, Peter Le Pelley; PN, Peter Njoroge; PO, Paul Onyango; RC, Rose Caldwell; RD, Roger Diamond; SG, Sue Gould; SMK, Stephen Mwihia Kiragu; SS, Sue Silvester; TD, T. Detrie; TP, Tony Potterton; VL, Veerle Lens; WMBw, Wednesday Morning Birdwalk; WO, Willis Okech; WOl, Wilson Omullo; YMC, Yvonne Malcolm-Coe. Heron and ibis 'tread on each others' toes' On the 20th February 1995 at Enkongo Lake, Amboseli, I observed through field glasses: a Black Heron and a Glossy Ibis fishing next to each other in shallow water. Now and then, when getting too close, they would both rear up and take defensive action. From under its spreading wings, the Black Heron would poke its head out and stab its beak at the ibis. They soon resumed feeding, no doubt taking advantage of the other disturbing fish and invertebrates. — Frans Hartmann, P O Box 30181, Nairobi Ulugulu Violet-backed Sunbirds Anthreptes neglectus at Sable Valley Wildlife Sanctuary, Shimba Hills The Sable Valley Wildlife Sanctuary lies in an area of woodland/grassland mosaic, interspersed with indigenous forest stands, lying within 200 m of the dense riverine forest belt of the Mkurumuji valley on the south-eastern boundary of the Shimba Hills National Reserve. At 06:30 on 27 September 1994 I was on the open upper viewing platform of my house, which is just next to a dense forest patch. A pair of sunbirds appeared in a Crossopteryx febrifuga, a medium-sized woodland tree about 20 m away. After a moment or two they flew into an Afzelia quanzensis, a substantial forest tree no further from the house. I had excellent views in 10 x 40 Leitz binoculars. My field notes read as follows: Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 31 "Male — forehead, upper mantle, tail: iridescent blue with a violet tinge: head, neck and wings seemingly black: black continues under chin and throat, but no metallic noted there. On wing shoulder an obvious cobalt blue/green flash or squarish panel. Beneath greyish white. Female as per books, but I did not see yellow." This relates to the fact that the female was identical to the male in wearing metallic blue above, only lacking the black chin/throat. I did not see any eye-stripe. I am familiar with the Eastern Violet-backed Sunbird, Anthreptes orientalis, and with its much drabber female, which I commonly came across on my foot safaris in northern Kenya. On this occasion the birds gave a thin, sibilant sunbird-like warble, but I could not say this amounted to a "loud persistent squeak" as described by Mackworth- Praed and Grant {Birds of Eastern and North-eastern Africa, 2nd edn, 1960). The birds perched on both trees on the topmost twigs, and were thus very prominent for several minutes, in good early sunlight. I have not found the species again despite energetic searching, particularly down in the forest, and assume they must have been passing from one favoured area to another. — Fiona Alexander, P O Box 890, Ukunda [Editors' note: This scarce species of coastal forests has recently been recorded in Mkongani Forest (Shimba Hills), the Tana River forests and Buda Forest Reserve. Further records are requested. See recent issues of Kenya Birds.] Active anting in Collared Sunbirds On 13 October 1994 1 was able to observe three Collared Sunbirds indulge in that aspect of feather maintenance termed anting. In the past I have only witnessed this in members of the thrush family and, on one occasion, a Hoopoe. My available literature does not mention anting in the Nectariniidae. The scene of the activity was a small shrub Heeria reticulata which stands 3 m from the forest edge, and 8 m. from my observation point on the open upper viewing platform of my house (see 'Uluguru Violet-backed Sunbirds', above). I observed the sunbirds through Leitz Trinovid 10 x 40 binoculars, although I was so close that magnification was merely a luxury! From 07:10 until 07:25 I watched a pair of Collared Sunbirds, which then were joined by a second female. Their unusually 'busy' activity drew my particular attention, and I then noted that the stems of the Heeria were literally crawling with hundreds of small black ants. The following comments from my field notebook may be of interest: "An incredible flurry of activity as they both frenziedly pick tiny ants off the stems and shove them under their 'armpits', shivering out their wings. They seem almost in ecstasy. After about ten minutes of 32 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1 994 this they fly up into the nearby shrubbery, knock the dewdrops off the leaves onto their wings and mantle, then billing away at the ants, they ruffle and shake the moisture through their plumage. Then off on a joyous chase through the bushes. A second female goes through the same act after them." On 26 October 1994 a single female again anted in the same shrub at 07:00. My notes: "Again she darts among the dew-laden foliage to create a shower-bath afterwards." This is the first occasion I have witnessed 'active anting', my other sightings relating to 'passive anting' when the bird lay on the ground among the ants. At risk of being charged with anthropomorphism, I would say that the sunbirds appeared to derive an almost ecstatic enjoyment from the activity. — Fiona Alexander, P O Box 890, Ukunda Is the Sokoke Scops Owl in the Shimba Hills? Sable Valley Wildlife Sanctuary lies immediately adjacent to the Shimba Hills National Reserve, at its south-eastern extremity. The substrate of the region is variously described as Magarini sands. Mazeras sandstone, or Shimba grit, and it appears that these slightly differing soil types are fairly randomly distributed throughout the area. The altitude of the Sanctuary is generally about 240 m above sea level. Among the area's indigenous forest trees are Cynometra webberri, Manilkara sansibarensis, M. sulcata, and Brachystegia spiciformis. Apart from the slightly higher altitude, the habitat thus has many common features with that inhabited by the Sokoke Scops Owl Otus ireneae in Arabuko- Sokoke forest . Since taking up residence here in November 1992, 1 have monitored the owl calls hopefully. To begin with, I was inspired with some excitement, as were the team from the Ornithology Department of the Museums in nearby Maluganji Forest {Kenya Birds. 1(2): 26). For some months I was convinced that I had Sokoke Scops Owls commonly around the house. The only descriptions I could obtain of its call were the invariable, "It sounds like the Golden-rumped Tinkerbird". However, at last I found a detailed and exact description of the various calls of the Barred Owlet Glaucidium capense in the splendid volume The Owls of Southern Africa (by A. Kemp & S. Calburn), and it became evident that these are what I had been hearing. Having now become extremely familiar with the differing calls of the Barred Owlet at all seasons, I heard a quite different call during the night of 1 1 October 1994. My note reads: " 'Plonk, plonk, plonk' x 6 or 8 times, monotonously, on and on. Even when Barred Owlet is doing a single-note theme, each note consists of a Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 33 'fruitier', more musical tone than this. The description 'similar to Golden-rumped Tinkerbird' fits". There were none of the purring, trilling, mellow attributes of the Barred Owlet's calls. I have not heard a similar call since, and I therefore make no attempt to establish this as a record, but describe it merely to add further fuel to the possibility that the Sokoke Scops Owl may well be present in the Shimba Hills area. — Fiona Alexander, P O Box 890, Ukunda. Great White Pelicans in the Shimba Hills On 16 October 1994 I beheld in 10 x 40 binoculars a flock of ten Great White Pelicans sitting in the top of a large forest tree, half-way up the eastern slope of the hills opposite my house. My observation point was on the open upper view in platform of my house (see 'Uluguru Violet-backed Sunbirds', above). Beyond the valley basin of forest, the hills slope upwards fairly steeply, dissected here and there by densely forested stream gorges. At 07:00, I was scanning the opposite slope for sable when I noted what initially appeared to be giant white blossoms covering the crown of ah isolated indigenous tree approximately half-way up the green grassed slope, about 2 km from me. After some minutes' scrutiny, various individuals stretched their wings and altered position slightly, and it then became obvious that they were pelicans. I was at first loath to believe my eyes, as I could not conceive of these huge aquatic birds in a less likely situation, but pelicans they indubitably were. For two hours I kept my glasses firmly glued to them, and at 09:00 they all arose and took to the air, when the obvious black primaries marked them as Great Whites. They spiralled slowly in a thermal, drifting in a northerly direction on the south-easterly breeze. After about 10 min, when they had gained sufficient altitude, they struck off north-westerly across the summit of the range in a ragged V-shape and were lost to sight. Great White Pelicans do not seem to have been recorded from this region (atlas square 114A), and I have no knowledge of any large body of water containing fish in this neighbourhood where they have been sighted. The nearby coastline likewise boasts no record as far as I am aware. The track they were flying, if they maintained it, could have taken them to Aruba Dam, 125 kms away. From which direction they came I do not know, but it is unlikely they would come from say, Lake Jipe, in order to fly to Aruba, which would be a relatively short flight in a straight line. It is more likely that they arrived from some point south, in Tanzania or beyond. — Fiona Alexander, Box 890, Ukunda. 34 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1 994 Shoebill Balaeniceps rex at Amboseli National Park, Kenya On the 13 December 1994 I made a short day trip to Amboseli National Park with Brian Finch, Leonard Maina and Karinga Kariuki. There had been an abundance of rain in Kenya over the last month and Amboseli had shared in this. As our time was short, we concentrated on the now abundant wet areas. These included a freshwater spring, Maji ya Kioko or Lake Conch — a well-known birding spot — and the Sinet Canal which flows south- east from it. On the Kitirua Circuit Track bordering the Sinet Canal, at 11:15, we saw a Shoebill Balaeniceps rex, almost certainly the same bird that had earlier provided Kenya's first official sighting in the Masai Mara, at Musiara Springs. Where the bird was standing the canal had around 5-8 cm depth of water, and grass around 15 cm high. The sun was behind us and we watched the bird for about 40 minutes, after approaching carefully to a distance of about 150 m. The bird stood, apparently resting, and gave no sign of concern. During our watch it shook itself and fluffed its feathers twice, and appeared to be extremely healthy. Towards the end of our watch, the bird lifted itself up and flew a distance of about 5 m; we did not see any sign of missing feathers. The bird was of a strong deep grey, identical to an adult bird that I had earlier seen near Murchison Falls in Uganda. However, there was a very slight brown wash on the secondary coverts. The bill was modeled grey and pink with pink predominating, and the legs were pale. The bird I saw in Uganda was easily visible in grass about 25 cm tall in a swampy area by the Nile. The Amboseli bird was in somewhat similar habitat, but there were no large stands of papyrus nearby. Behind the spring and to the East were some higher stands of swamp grass. It would be interesting to compare this sighting with the others which have been recently recorded. It is also to be hoped that observations will continue on this bird as long as it stays in Amboseli, since this is such an easily accessible area in a well- visited park. — Jorie Butler Kent, Box 59749, Nairobi. Shoebill Safari Stories of the sudden appearance of the Shoebill in Kenya prompted us to travel to Amboseli and become fully fledged 'twitchers'. We had heard that a single bird had been seen in the swamps by the Ol Tukai bandas, and can confirm its presence there on the weekends of 18/19 and J5/26 February. On the first occasion our party was somewhat sceptical as the swamps were of reeds and grass and afforded nothing of the cover of their supposed preferred habitat, papyrus. At the end of the Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1 994 35 track, however, a quick scan with binoculars was sufficient to single it out: its size and unusual blue-grey colouring made it distinctive and it was later easily relocated with the naked eye, even when at some distance. Initially 100 m away, the bird showed no shyness and not only flew to within half that distance but also plated itself conveniently in front of a group of grazing elephants. At this range its primaries exhibited a glossy sheen and its extraordinary bill showed a hint of pink. On several occasions it spread its wings flat out on the ground as if drying them, and was also alert to movements in the water, once catching a brownish-black fish larger than its own head; the tail fin remained outside its bill and after a few moments it appeared to give up and deposit its catch back in the water. We had by this time settled down comfortably and were visited by several tourist vehicles, their occupants assuming we were admiring the elephants. We heard no comment regarding this curious bird which seemed to remain unnoticed by all. Indeed its presence was not known at the gate, nor at the bandas nor at any of the lodges we visited. Which prompts me to ask what monitoring of this amazing bird is being done in its present extralimital location? Is the Museum relying on individual reports such as this one to keep informed? [Yes. — Editors.] And do these sightings now lend more credence to previous 'records' in Shombole and Thika, as quoted in the Bird Atlas of Kenya? The second of our sightings, incidently, was a week after the first and the bird was within 200 metres of its first location and was still easily visible. It occurred to us on both occasions that we were enjoying a most peaceful bit of twitching — and for no ordinary LB J! Were we in Europe there would doubtless have been a gaggle of twitchers all armed to the gills with optical accessories and roped off accordingly. Shoebill T-shirts would be on sale nearby and a new Shoebill- flavoured ice-cream would have been introduced at the local cafe. Yes, Kenya really is a magical place for birdwatching! — Neil and Linda Davidson, Wendy Rutter, Mike Webb, P O Box 24722, Nairobi. Wattled Plover breeding in Masai Mara We were surprised to note in the Atlas that the Wattled Plover has no breeding record in Kenya. We have a photograph taken on Christmas Day 1988 [copy deposited in the Ornithology Department — Editors.] that shows this species on its nest on the main Governors Camp road, just 500 m from the Musiara Gate of the Masai Mara Game Reserve. Indeed, the wardens had protected the bird from passing vehicles by placing three sticks around her. We were surprised that such a record in such a prominent place had gone unreported, and were amused to note a similar observation on the front cover of Swara, January 1995. Needless to say, 36 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 Jonathan Scott's picture was somewhat better than ours, bearing out the hint in his article that one should attempt to get at eye-level with the subject. — Neil and Linda Davidson, P O Box 24722, Nairobi. [Have any other readers seen this species breeding, in the Mara or elsewhere? — Editors.] Violet-backed repels Black-bellied Sunbird On the mid-morning of 26 March 1995 we sat on the bed rocks of the seasonal Olkeju Ngiro River, near Olorgesailie Prehistoric site, watching a pair of Black- faced Sandgrouse. Our attention was distracted by the loud squabbling of two sunbirds in a nearby bush parasitised by a blooming Loranthus plant. A male Eastern Violet-backed Sunbird was chasing a male of the Smaller Black-bellied Sunbird from the bush. After that the Violet-backed returned to feed from the red flowers. As he fed, he fanned out his tail and flicked his wings simultaneously in rapid succession. He then perched on a small branch to groom himself. The Smaller Black-bellied Sunbird, this time accompanied by a female, returned to feed in the same bush. No sooner had they begun than the Violet- backed lashed out at them so vigorously that they scrambled for safety. The Violet-backed then fed for a short time and resumed its grooming. The Smaller Black-bellied Sunbirds made several more attempts to feed on the flowers but were repelled by the Eastern Violet-backed each time. When we left two hours later to pursue other birdlife, the bird was still defending its bush. — Onesmas Kahindi and Joyce Kageci, P O Box 74901, Nairobi. Possible breeding record for Black-throated Wattle-eye at Galu Beach On 22 November 1994 a pair of adult Black-throated Wattle-eyes visited our birdbath at Galu (Bird Atlas of Kenya QSD 1 14B). They were accompanied by an immature male, the plumage of which was closely observed in good light. This was as described by Mackworth-Praed and Grant, {Birds of Eastern and North- eastern Africa, Vol 2, pp. 210-211): brownish grey above, rather than glossy black, with a conspicuous but small eye wattle. Although this species is seen only infrequently at our birdbath, we assume they are resident in the adjacent strip of coastal forest. It seems likely that the presence of an immature bird in company with an adult pair suggests breeding in QSD 1 14B.— Ken and Betty Bock, P O Box 641, Ukunda. Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 37 Immature Silvery-cheeked Hornbills at Galu Beach On 20 February 1995 three Silvery-cheeked Hornbills were seen in the large fig tree near our house at Galu Beach (immediately south of Diani). One was an adult female; two were immatures, evidenced by their size (about half to three-quarters that of the adult) and by their small bills (one without a casque, the other with the mere beginnings of one). The plumage of the immatures was rather tatty, especially their tails, the general impression being that they were not long out of their nest. All three indulged in mutual preening. This is our first record of such very young birds in five years of birdwatching at Diani and Galu. This species is present here (and vocally so) throughout the year, though the size of flocks fluctuates greatly. There is a tendency for small flocks of two Or three birds between May and October, while large aggregations of up to 19 birds (not always associated with fruiting trees) occur during the hot, dry season. — Ken and Betty Bock, P O Box 641, Ukunda. [Remarkably, there still are scarcely any satisfactory breeding records of this species in Kenya — Editors.] Half-collared Kingfisher Alcedo semitorquata at Kanderi Swamp, Tsavo East National Park On 4 June 1995, at around 11:50 h, I was scanning some mudflats and shallow pools adjacent to the Voi River on the Kanderi Swamp Circuit, Tsavo East National Park. I saw a 'blue' kingfisher perched on a small bush hanging over the river, about 150 m away. I immediately noted a striking resemblance to the Common Kingfisher Alee do atthis, a species with which I am familiar since it is a common breeding bird in Belgium. The bird in question was very similar in jizz to Alcedo atthis, and was definitely much larger than the Malachite Kingfisher Alcedo cristata, a species which I have often observed while birdwatching throughout Kenya and South Africa and which I have handled during ringing work at the National Museums of Kenya. Looking more closely, the most obvious features were the large black bill, whitish neck patch and buffy underparts. After observing the bird for about one minute through my binoculars, it shifted position and showed its blue breast-patch. I then took my telescope, fixed it to the open roof of my Landrover and observed the bird'for another five minutes in bright sunshine, after which it flew off and did not turn up again. The telescope observations confirmed that this was indeed the Half-collared Kingfisher Alcedo semitorquata. The overall impression was of a relatively large 'blue' kingfisher 38 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 Woodland Kingfisher — Bryan Hanlon with heavy black bill, distinguished from Alcedo cristata by its much larger size, lack of turquoise crest, lighter back and buffy (not reddish) underparts. I could not see the colour of the legs. I returned to the same spot about two hours later, but could not relocate the bird. — Luc Lens, P O Box 40658, Nairobi. [This is a scarce species in Kenya, with a scattering of records from the area around Mt Kilimanjaro. This is the first record for atlas square 89D — Editors.] Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 39 Bird survey of Malu Farm On 8 and 9 July 1995, a team of twelve people — most of them bird enthusiasts from various institutions, such as the National Museums of Kenya — visited Malu Farm in the Rift Valley near Naivasha. The short visit aimed to list birds, mammals and plants which can be seen at the site, which includes a stretch of attractive riverine forest along the Malewa River. The survey was carried out by invitation from the managers, who want to convert the place to a private camp that will attract ecotourists and trout fishers. A total of 117 bird species was recorded, most of them in the riverine forest and adjacent scrubland. Among many others, noteworthy species included Crowned Eagle, White-headed Wood Hoopoe and Fine-banded Woodpecker. As this site also appears to have potential for migrant birds from Europe and Asia, a second visit is planned for January, in the middle of the northern winter. Malu Farm, situated halfway between Lake Naivasha and the Kinangop Plateau, is ideal for those wanting a quiet break, or can be a comfortable base for those wishing to explore nearby sites, such as Lake Naivasha and the Aberdares National Park. The site will be open to visitors in the very near future. — Luc Lens, P O Box 40658, Nairobi. Rakewa: Breeding site for Pink-backed Pelicans On 25 February, 14 and 16 April 1995, survey visits were made to the nesting site of the Pink-backed Pelicans at Rakewa near Oyugis township, Homa Bay District. In the February team were Dickson Ogwai, Joab Omondi, Joseph Oyugi, Paul Onyango and Wilson Omullo; Oyugi, Omondi and Omullo returned in April. Pink-backed Pelicans occur seasonally on almost any water body where fish are readily caught, including coastal creeks and estuaries. The breeding colonies are sometimes near their aquatic feeding grounds, but more often unaccountably far away, frequently shared with storks, ibises and herons. They often breed in populated areas close to man, in towns and villages, and can tolerate a good deal of human disturbance. Known breeding colonies are widely scattered in East Africa, mainly in Uganda and Kenya, and most consist of less than 100 pairs. Not all sites are in regular use. However, the Rakewa site has been used by up to 250 pairs for over 200 years, and is protected by the area's Luo people. The pelicans prefer to nest on tall trees (such as boababs, large Ficus species, Bombax and Qhlorophora). In western Kenya and Uganda they start nesting between August and November, with a peak in the late rains of August to October. The young fledge by the dry season in January to February. 40 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 The birds often resort to their traditional site annually, perhaps for centuries. Their continual re-occupation of the same site may eventually kill the nesting trees and force them to move, but they seldom shift far. During our first visit we made brief observations. On one fig tree were two fully-fledged young pelicans and two juvenile Black-headed Herons, sitting in nests of twigs and sticks. Another pair of juvenile herons flew from the ground and perched on a branch. We counted sixteen stick nests altogether. During the second visit, twenty-seven adult pelicans and three Black-headed Herons were observed on an evening roost. We also conducted an interview, focusing on people whose land borders the breeding site. Five land owners were interviewed. The survey revealed that in recent years, there has been increasing human pressure on the site, causing habitat degradation. The valley bottom has been reclaimed for sugar cane and bananas, whereas the smallholdings surrounding the site have extended closer to the nesting trees, or even below them. This has resulted in many trees losing their branches or being cut down altogether. Part of the community claims that the birds' droppings destroy their crops, and the birds are therefore chased off the trees, or the branches cut down to control their numbers. It i§ evident that humans continue to interfere with the large trees used by the birds for nesting and roosting. When we visited the site there were seven fig trees remaining, of which just three were large, mature trees. If this trend continues, the remaining few trees might all be destroyed, and the pelicans would then be forced to abandon the site. There is an urgent need to stop the destruction and plant more trees to replace the ones already cut down. This will involve a community-based conservation and awareness programme. — Joseph Oyugi, P O Box 40658, Nairobi. 'Request for cormorant breeding information I am currently studying the comparative ecology and breeding biology of the Great and Long-tailed Cormorants at Lake Naivasha. Any information you may have regarding past or present breeding activity by either of these species in the vicinity of Lake Naivasha would be greatly appreciated. I am particularly interested in knowing when breeding* occurred (month and year), where (including a brief description of the breeding site), approximately how many nests were noticed and whether there were any other species breeding at the same time in the same location. Please send any information Jo me at P O Box 1497, Naivasha. All letters will be acknowledged. Many thanks. Brooks Childress. Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 41 Letter to the Editors Dear Sirs, My wife and I have returned to Kenya after 20 years in Britain, Tanzania and (most recently) Rwanda. We have welcomed the opportunity to renew our association with friends and colleagues in Kenya and to witness the many exciting and promising developments in wildlife research. Your publication Kenya Birds is most welcome and the range of topics covered makes it very readable. However, I am surprised to note that few articles provide any supporting references or suggested further reading. As a result it is not easy to locate the original source of observation or to pursue a subject further. Thus, for example, Simon Thomsetts excellent article on quelea control (Vol 3 No. 1) contains many interesting data but it is tantalising not to know where to go for more information. Could the authors be encouraged to give references or a 'recommended reading' list where appropriate? In a similar vein, it occurs to me that some of your contributors and readers may be unaware of work carried out in the past, especially where this was published in relatively inaccessible or specialist journals. For example, a number of papers on the care of raptor casualties, on pesticides and on deaths in flamingos on Lake Nakuru appeared in veterinary and allied publications in the 1970s. I can provide details to any reader who is interested. Perhaps a comprehensive bibliography of publications on Kenyan avifauna is required, which could be produced periodically, in parts, in Kenya Birds. This would not only provide a useful record of past contributions to the subject but also serve as an easily accessible resource for current workers, whether well established in the country or carrying out short-term projects. Yours faithfully, John Cooper Current address: Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology, University of Kent at Canterbury, Kent CT2 7NX, UK. [Editors 'note: Our policy so far has been to keep things simple and avoid lengthy citations. What do readers think? Maybe a list of further reading? A similar bibliography to the one that Prof. Cooper suggests is published as a supplement to the Bulletin of the African Bird Club, 2(1), March 1995 — this deals with all papers and notes on African birds in 1994.1 42 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 The Augur Buzzard project The Augur Buzzard Project ( ABP) is a two-yeal\ study focusing on the ecology of the Augur Buzzard in two main nesting habitat types (cliffs and trees) within the Lake Naivasha area. The project is funded by the Peregrine Fund Inc. (USA), the Aga Khan Foundation (Switzerland) and Earthwatch (USA). Collaborating institutions include the National Museums of Kenya, University of Leicester (UK) and the Elsamere Conservation Centre (Kenya). The ABP aims to understand more about the species' distribution, abundance and ecological requirements (primarily with respect to habitat) so that an ideal Augur Buzzard habitat model can be constructed. This model will then be used in other parts of the country to predict whether habitat is responsible for lower Augur Buzzard populations. Why Augur Buzzards? The Augur Buzzard is one of East Africa's most frequently seen birds of prey. It is common in the East African highlands where it inhabits open moorland country, mountains, forest glades, inland cliffs, cultivation and baobab country. In Kenya it ranges from the shores of Lake Victoria, across the eastern Rift Valley into the Tsavo plains and south into Tanzania. The bird is rarely found along the coast. Despite the fact that it is widespread and conspicuous, very little is known about the biology and ecology of the Augur Buzzard. The late Leslie Brown described the Augur Buzzard as one of his favourite birds and had hoped to make a fuller study of it. The bird has been unjustly neglected, perhaps because it seemed abundant at the time. The Augur Buzzard has often been described as widespread and locally abundant. It has also been portrayed as a species that is well adapted to cultivated land and dense human habitation. A typical example is the super-abundant Augur Buzzard population which occurs around Lake Naivasha, a region where intensive horticulture is practised. While the Augur Buzzard is today still relatively conspicuous and abundant, its numbers are depressed compared to the recent past. Between 1968 and 1972, road transects conducted along the Nairobi-Naivasha road by G. Cunningham- van Someren yielded Augur Buzzard numbers which were well into double figures. Present (1993-1994) road counts conducted along the same road have yielded only two or three individuals. In the years between 1965 and 1967, Leslie Brown found marked differences in the numbers of Augur Buzzards between areas of plains/thornbush (one Augur Buzzard every 13 miles) and areas of cultivated/inhabited lands (one Augur Buzzard every 23 miles). These findings need to be re-evaluated to determine the birds' present status in different parts of the country. Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 43 In some areas today, e.g. the central highlands, only around one Augur Buzzard remains for every 24 present in the recent past; in other areas, such as Lukenya and Ami River, the ratio is 1:3. The Eagle Hill area in Embu has over the years also shown a marked decline in the number of Augur Buzzards. Leslie Brown attributed this decline to human population pressure. According to Sorley and Anderson, who conducted a recent study on raptor diversity in areas of different land-use in south-central Kenya, three main factors affect raptor density and diversity as a result of changes in land-use. These are: (1) Overgrazing by domestic livestock alters the original vegetative cover. This potentially affects the abundance and distribution of prey; (2) Cultivation replaces the original vegetation completely and may involve the use of chemicals that are toxic to raptors and their prey; (3) Human hunting pressure reduces prey populations. The impact of habitat alteration on raptors varies according to their ecological requirements. My study focuses on Augur Buzzards for the following reasons: (1) Although they are locally abundant, very little is known about the behaviour and ecology of the Kenyan population. The species has only ever been studied in the Matopos Hills, in Zimbabwe. There the focus was on the bird's breeding biology, its interspecific relationships and population density. (2) Their numbers are declining in areas of intensive land-use. (3) They are highly conspicuous raptors that can be censused easily. They are also aesthetically beautiful and charismatic, representing our natural world, and have always been associated with farmers — hence the name 'farmer's bird'; (4) Individuals can easily be told apart. How can you help? You can help the study by making some simple observations about Augur Buzzards and their habitat. If you know of any Augur Buzzard nest(s) around the country, please let me know by filling out and returning the simple questionnaire enclosed in this issue. Also let me know if you think the number of Augur Buzzards in your home area has changed over the years. It is worth recollecting that birds of prey comprise about 10% of all bird species, but include nearly 20% of all the threatened ones. Do your bit for conservation — help us to help the Augur Buzzard! — Munir Virani, Augur Buzzard Project, Elsamere Conservation Centre, P O Box 1497, Naivasha. Tel (0311) 21055. Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 The social life of the Social Weaver Leon Bennun P O Box 40658, Nairobi Note: This is a version of an article that first appeared in Kenya Past and Present, vol. 24, 1992. The Editors thank the Kenya Museum Society for permission to reproduce it. The National Museums' Olorgesailie Prehistoric Site, which protects an excavation of fossils and Acheulian artefacts (see article, this issue), lies some 70 km south of Nairobi. Not a great distance, but it could as well be another world. The road from the capital plunges over the edge of the Rift Valley and descends the flank of Ol Doinyo Esakut by a series of steep steps, before levelling out on the valley floor near the village of Oltepesi. The country here is hot and harsh. Every tree and bush seems hostile, studded with spines that lash and tear. During the brief rainy seasons the thorns are concealed by a deceptively delicate flush of greenery, and the air is heavy with the^buzz of insects. More typically the branches are spiky and bare, a stinging wind whips dust from the ground, and the only sound is the remote tinkling of bells, from goats and cattle moving indistinctly through a haze of heat. There is a sense of timelessness at Olorgesailie. This is especially marked in the evening when the sun finally dips behind the escarpments to the West, the baked landscape is bathed in molten light; and it is not difficult to picture a group of Homo erectus winding their way up from the shore of the ancient lake, evidenced now only by a serried series of diatomaceous cliffs. The site is at its best at this time of day. Unfortunately most visitors arrive in the blazing middle hours, when only an unusually intense interest in stone tools can save the circular tour of the excavations from being something of an ordeal. But even the most heat-dazed tourist, collapsed on the verandah of one of the site's thatched huts, is likely to be struck by the tame little birds, pinkish-grey with a pale cap, that hop up inquisitively right to one's feet, and by the bulky bundles of dried grass adorning all the larger trees. These are the Grey-capped Social Weavers and their nests. A thatched residence Grey-capped Social Weavers (Pseudonigrita arnaudi), are small birds (an individual weighs around 20 g) in the family Ploceidae -r- the sparrows, weaver- birds and allies. Like their relations the sparrow-weavers, they do not really weave their nests but thatch them out of dry grass. The result is a strong, bulky, Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 45 rather untidy structure constructed near the end of a thorny acacia twig. Each nest has two entrances facing downwards. This is presumably a protective device; if an unwelcome visitor arrives through one hole, the bird can make a rapid exit through the other. But this architecture is less than ideal during the breeding season, for there is nowhere for the eggs to sit without rolling out of one of the holes. The birds solve this problem by sealing one hole with a plug of dry grass, creating a secure rounded chamber. The nests rely on inaccessibility rather than inconspicuousness for protection. However, they are not proof against birds such as the Gabar Goshawk or Grey Hornbill, which will spike a hole in the wall or rip the roof off to reach the eggs or helpless chicks. Large snakes such as the Boomslang also make heavy inroads. Of the trees around Olorgesailie, Social Weavers nest for preference in the big, flat-topped Acacia tortilis. Nests are also often found in large specimens of Acacia mellifera, one of the 'wait-a-bit thorn' species and, with its evil little recurved spines, a nightmare for the field ornithologist. On the lava ridge in front of the site, the birds build on top of the high, whip-like emergent branches of Acacia Senegal This must offer them a good deal of protection, but one feels for the sitting birds when the branches are lashed wildly back and forth in the short but violent gusts that herald the onset of a rainstorm. I studied Grey-capped Social weavers at Olorgesailie from March 1985 to August 1987. They interested me because I wanted to understand their social way of life. In particular, I was investigating a behaviour known as communal, or cooperative, breeding. Surrogate parents Communal breeding is not quite as licentious as it sounds. The term refers to a social system where more than two birds cooperate in rearing young: thus some birds, called 'helpers', assist in caring for offspring that are not their own. There is a wide variety of communal breeding systems, and it is dangerous to generalise, but helpers are most often non-breeding birds that seem to be waiting for a chance to reproduce. The behaviour is known to occur in more than 200 bird species, mainly in jthe tropics, and has generated considerable interest among biologists. This is because it presents an evolutionary paradox. According to the theory of natural si election, animals should behave so as to maximise their own reproductive success. Why then should an individual invest time and energy in someone else's children. Hidden benefits If we assume that the behaviour has evolved through natural selection, then the paradox must be resolved by showing that helping is in fact adaptive. There are 46 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 two broad ways in which this could be so. First, the helpers may be gaining some hidden, 'direct' benefit, which will in fact increase their own reproductive success over their lifetime. For instance, the young birds they assist to rear may assist them in turn when the helpers begin breeding. Or the helper may be hoping to take over a neighbouring territory by force, using the young birds as extra muscle- power. Feeding chicks could give helpers valuable experience which will improve their own performance later on; they might be hoping to mate with one of the breeders the following season; or, despite appearances, some of the young birds in the nest could actually be their own offspring. In all these cases, the behaviour directly benefits the helper itself. Alternatively, helpers may be propagating their own genes in an 'indirect' fashion. This idea is sometimes called 'kin selection'; the point is that an individual's genes occur not only in its own offspring, but also in the offspring of its relatives. In genetic terms, a brother or sister is worth as much as a son or a daughter, since each on average shares half one's genes. Thus, under certain circumstances, selection could favour individuals that aid their relatives rather than rearing their own young. The circumstances under which this should occur are given by 'Hamilton's rule'. Simply put, this states that helping will be favoured when the benefit, weighted by the appropriate degree of relatedness, is greater than the cost. The significance of kin selection in explaining helping behaviour has been hotly debated. If kin selection is important, then helpers should assist close relatives in preference to more distant ones, and their action should increase the reproductive success of the birds they help. It has been difficult to prove conclusively that these requirements are met. The majority of communal breeders live in all-purpose territories that are defended by a family group. In these cases, the helpers are offspring from previous breeding seasons that have stayed at home. These helpers do indeed assist close relatives, but only, one could argue, because there is nobody else around. Most studies have found that the breeders' reproductive success does indeed increase with the number of helpers present. However, this effect could be caused by many other factors that are related to group size, such as territory quality or the age and experience of the breeders, and the relationships are almost impossible to disentangle. Even experiments to remove the helpers and see what happens are not conclusive. If breeding success drops, this could simply be because the group is socially disrupted, not because the breeders are no longer receiving help. These problems are much less severe in colonial species. Because no territories are defended, helpers could potentially assist any of a large number of other birds. Furthermore, many of the confounding factors associated with territoriality are absent, so reproductive success can be more directly related to Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 47 what the helpers do. Unfortunately, only a very few species of communally breeding bird nest in colonies. The Grey-capped Social Weaver is one of them, and this is why I was interested in looking at its social system in detail. I wanted to find out whether kin selection had been important in the evolution of communal breeding in this species. Fools rush in... As a naive graduate student, I did not realise just how much I was taking on. In common with most bird species in tropical Africa, there was very little known about the ecology of Social Weavers, beyond the fact that they were reported to have helpers at the nest. Before I could say anything sensible about the evolutionary aspects, it would be necessary to fill in enormous blank areas abqut such basic features as dispersal, movements, mortality, sex ratios, social structure, clutch size, &gg characteristics, breeding success, nest predators, provisioning behaviour, chick growth and seasonality — just to name a few. Neither were the birds and the climate particularly predictable. The most crucial data were on reproductive success, which could obviously only be collected during the breeding season. Supposedly this was twice a year, during the long and the short rains. However, things were not so simple in practice. Either the rains failed; or the birds refused to breed; or they began to breed at completely the wrong time while I was away analysing data. In fact, by the end of the study I came to the unconventional conclusion, supported by statistical tests, that the main factor influencing the onset of breeding was the absence of the researcher. Eventually I managed to obtain data on breeding during three long rainy seasons. My study methods were straightforward and required a minimum of equipment, the most expensive item being in aluminium ladder. The aim was to build up a population of birds that could be identified individually by the combination of coloured bands on their legs. Since the plastic colour-bands had an annoying tendency to fall off through the combined effect of intense sunshine and abuse by the birds, each individual was also banded with a numbered aluminium ring that provided a permanent identity, so long as it could be captured again. Birds were caught mainly with the aid of a baited drop-trap, a wooden square covered with netting that could be lowered suddenly on top of a group of feeding birds. Once caught, twice shy This worked well at first, but the Social Weavers were anything but stupid and quickly learned that the trap plus my presence meant danger. This necessitated more and more elaborate subterfuges as the study progressed. We also carried out a lot of trapping with mist-nets away from the site to try and detect the birds' 48 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 movements. I monitored the state of growth or decay of nests on the site, and made intensive behavioural observations of building, roosting, incubation and provisioning. These essentially involved sitting for long hours under an acacia tree with a pair of binoculars and a notebook. During the breeding season, I kept track of the contents of each accessible nest on the site. This was hard work, since many of the nests were very high. With the ladder, a table and a tall pole for pulling down the branch I could reach most of them, but removing the fragile eggs or young, while teetering high on a wobbly ladder in the less than tender embrace of a tangle of acacia branches, was often a nerve-wracking experience. The fact that one never knew whether some other less amenable creature had temporarily taken up residence in the nest also added to the excitement. I managed to avoid fingering any snakes, but the day that a bushy- tailed dormouse leaped out onto my head, and I fell off the ladder, will certainly live in my memory. Babies need nappies Removing the nest contents posed other problems, too. It was impossible to reach a hand in through the open entrance, so the eggs or chicks had to be taken out from the other side, which meant pulling out the grass plug. This did the plug no good whatsoever, and after one or two removals is usually all but disintegrated. To bolster the seal I devised the idea of a 'nest nappy', a small, square piece of white cloth that would tie on under the plug and keep it comfortably in place. This method worked very well; the birds quickly became used to it, and it seemed to have no effect on their breeding success. It did, however, produce no end of mystification for visitors, who were often overheard asking the site staff how the birds managed to build such odd-looking nests. During nest checks I measured the young to assess their growth, and also photographed each clutch of eggs. Social Weaver eggs vary greatly in colour and pattern, but each female lays a consistent type. Through this means I could demonstrate that no more than one female ever laid in a nest: in other words, the helpers were not additional breeding females. Sexing the birds proved an enormous problem. Male and female Grey-capped Social Weavers look identical and behave very similarly, though there did seem to be some subtle differences in, for instance, the level of aggression or frequency of display. I was able to confirm some of these intuitions from tracking egg patterns, in cases where birds had changed mates. Unfortunately, though, there was no alternative at the end of the study but to sacrifice a few birds. Each of these also gave me information on the sexes of others. Reassuringly, these data confirmed my intuitions based on behaviour. Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 49 Social Weavers turned out to live in family groups. Each group had a cluster of nests in a tree or set of trees; the family generally cooperated to build and maintain nests, and roosted together in the evenings. One tree might contain several families of various sizes, from simple pairs to large extended clans. The birds foraged widely in flocks and did not defend territories. However, they did chase away unfamiliar Social Weavers that ventured near their nests. For reasons that I do not yet understand, trees were quite often suddenly abandoned completely, the different groups often moving together to a new site some distance away. The number of apparently suitable, unoccupied trees, and trees with abandoned nests, suggested there was no shortage at all of good quality nest sites. Sometimes family members would split off and move away to distant trees, but they still maintained a connection with their relatives and were often seen visiting them (and sometimes helping). Generally, the birds' society seemed bound together by a network of kinship and familiarity at many different levels. Flighty females Adult Social Weavers had a high survival rate, of around 81% per year, but only about 20% of young birds still remained on the site a year later — the rest had died or dispersed. From tracking these disappearances, it appeared that females left home shortly before the start of their first breeding season, while yearling males remained behind. Practically all of these young males became helpers, along with a few second-year and older birds, but they worked only at the nests of relatives. If there were a choice among relatives, they chose to assist parents rather than a brother. Between a quarter and a third of all breeding pairs had help. Interestingly, more than half of these yearlings bred at the same time as they helped, a most unusual phenomenon. They continued feeding at their parents' nest while building and men incubating at their own, but stopped helping once their own chicks hatched. Most of these young males were paired with young females from outside the study site, who appeared after the breeding season had begun. In the adult population there were slightly more males than females (a ratio of 11:10), and each year some yearling males failed to find mates. What effect did the helpers have? In analysing the data, I compared the reproductive success of pairs that did or did not have helpers. I also included two other factors in the analysis: the age of the breeders (yearling or older) and their residence status (whether they were residents of the site, or had migrated in since the last breeding season). I used these factors because I suspected they affected reproductive success, and because older, resident birds were much more likely to have helpers than were younger birds or immigrants. The results showed that in each year helped pairs produced more young than unhelped pairs. This was the case even when the effects of age and residence were 50 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 accounted for. Pairs where the female was an immigrant did less well than others, and the reason for this seemed to be that they started breeding later in the season and hence had less chance to replace a clutch if anything went wrong. Pairs with helpers were more successful for a variety of reasons. In one year they laid larger clutches, and in all years their eggs and young survived better. Helped pairs were more likely to raise at least one chick than unhelped pairs. At successful nests that were not attacked by predators, helped pairs produced more fledglings than unhelped pairs in two out of three years. Overall, helped pairs did between 35% and 355% better than unhelped ones over the three years. The worse the season in terms of weather conditions and overall breeding success, the more dramatic the effect of help (although with only three years to go by, one cannot say too much about such trends). I could not detect any effect of helpers on the survival of the parents or the young birds after they had left the nest; however, helped pairs were more likely to nest again once they had already raised a brood successfully — probably because the helpers took over the demanding job of caring for the fledglings. This 'help effect* could have occurred because the helped birds were simply better parents anyway; in other words, because they always produced more young than others, and hence were more likely to have helpers. However, detailed analysis showed that this was not the case. Yet another potential problem had to be examined, too. Helpers usually assisted both parents. Suppose that when birds changed mates, their reproductive success dropped as a result. The 'help effect' could be an incidental result of this, since the new pair would also be less likely to have help. The analysis showed, though, that mate change alone had no effect on nesting success, so this difficulty could be discounted. Extra rations From the analysis of overall breeding success it looked as though helpers assisted both in repelling predators and in preventing starvation. I looked more closely at the results from feeding watches, to see if helpers actually increased the amount of food supplied to the chicks. This was tricky, since the food supply turned out to depend heavily on the number and age of the chicks. Also, the size of the food items, not just how often they were fed, had to be taken into account. After correcting for all these factors, it turned out that helpers did significantly increase the amount of food that the chicks received. Helpers did not help all the time, but were more likely to appear in the later part of the nesting cycle when the chicks' demands were greatest. Young birds grow slowly at first, then faster, then slow down again. The presence of helpers meant nestlings went from 10% to 90% of their maximum weight quicker than other chicks. The difference was between half a day and one Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1 , August 1994 51 day. Growing faster could increase the chance of escaping nest predators late in the nestling stage. Large chicks will jump from the nest when attacked, rather than cowering inside like their smaller siblings, and this behaviour has definite survival value. So the overall results showed quite clearly that helpers did help, and also how this help might work. Clearly the helpers were gaining big 'indirect' benefits through the extra production of closely-related young. On the other-hand, the direct benefits they received were, at best, small. So kin selection appears to have been important in the evolution of communal breeding in Social Weavers. Family solidarity Helpers appeared to be behaving in accordance with Hamilton's rule to maximise the indirect benefits they obtained, and niinimise the cost. For instance, birds only helped when they were closely related to the recipients (otherwise their indirect fitness benefits would have been negligible). Of their relatives, they preferentially helped the most closely related. They helped most when their efforts would have the most impact, i.e. when nestlings most needed extra food. Breeding birds, for whom helping is presumably more costly, helped less often than non-breeders. In fact, only yearling breeders regularly helped: and they stopped helping as soon as their chicks hatched and needed their full attention. Older birds usually start breeding earlier than yearlings, and this may be one reason that parents rarely help their sons — their breeding attempts are already well advanced by the time their sons' young hatch. This cost-benefit approach highlights some features of Grey-capped Social Weaver biology that seem to be important for the communal breeding system - and perhaps explain why communal breeding is so rare in related colonial species. These features include stable family groups, male philopatry (young males staying with the colony), high adult survival, a biased sex-ratio and an asynchrony of breeding between yearlings and older birds. Stable family groups arise because the species is monogamous (one male mating with one female) and relatively sedentary, and young males stay at home. This means that related birds can recognise each other and give each other preferential assistance: in other words, practise nepotism. This would be impossible in other species, such as many Ploceus weavers, where immature birds form into large wandering flocks and may never see their parents, or their birth-place, again. In many of these other species polygamy (one male mating with many females) also makes the formation of kin-groups difficult. Why Social Weavers should be monogamous and sedentary is not known, but it probably has a lot to do with their very generalist diet — which enables them to live permanently in one fairly small area — and their year-round use of a big, bulky nest that is built by both members of the pair. 52 Kenya Birds Volume 4, Number 1, August 1994 High adult survival increases the chance that close kin will be around next year to receive assistance. Female dispersal — the reverse coin of male philopatry — probably increases the proportion of young females that die. In turn this causes a shortage of mates for young males, and hence a pool of non-breeders who are available to help. Because of its timing, female dispersal also causes yearling males to start breeding later than their parents. This lag gives them an opportunity to help for a while at relatively little cost to themselves. (The causes of female dispersal and male philopatry, which are usual in birds, are still a controversial matter; in Social Weavers the system may possibly have arisen to avoid inbreeding). The social life of the Social Weaver has turned out to be surprisingly complicated and the story is far from complete. With a human history stretching back half a million years, let us hope that Olorgesailie and its Social Weavers will still be in good shape for the next student of their behaviour — indeed, for the next half-million years. "'.'■'■ The Leslie Brown Memorial Grant In memory of one of the most inspired and productive raptor biologists of recent decades, the Raptor Research Foundation announces the availability of this grant, for up to $1,000, to provide financial assistance to promote research and/or the dissemination of information on birds of prey. Applicants must send a resume\ specific study objectives, an account of how funds wil] be spent, and a statement indicating how the proposed work would relate to other work by the applicant and to other sources of funds. Proposals concerning African raptors receive priority, all else being equal. Complete applications must be received by 15 September 1995. Send to: Dr Jeff Lincer, Chairperson, Raptor Research Foundation, c/o Sweetwater Environmental Biologists, Inc., 3838 Camino del Rio North, Suite 270, San Diego, California 92108, USA. Fax: 000 1 619 624 2301. Sincere thanks to the following Sponsor subscribers to Kenya Birds for their support of the publication: African Wildlife Foundation • Kimbo Beakbane • Mrs R. Caldwell • Brooks Childress • Mrs I. K. Coldwell • Peter Davey • Dr Michael G. Davies • Art Davis • Mrs Susan Deverell • Heather Elkins • Tom Evans • A. R. Gregory • Jean Hartley • Philip Hechle • Jennifer F. M. Home • Mr and Mrs J. A. Hutson • Carol Kruger • S. Leparsalaach • Peter and Moira Lincoln-Gordon • Dr Imre J. P. Loefler • Annemarie Lohding • Aitong Primary School, Endoinyo Enrika Primary School, Lamek Primary School, Mara Riata Primary School, Ngosuani Primary School, Nkoilale Primary School, Nkorrkori Primary School, Sekenani Primary School and Talek Primary School, through Kimbo Beakbane • Tony Potterton • Mrs Joan Root • M. & K Sinclair • Terry Stevenson • Dr R. E. Sutherland • Simon Thomsett • R. G. Timmis • Janet Wood • M. W. Woodlock. Events and Announcements Wednesday Morning Bird Walks led by Fleur Ng'weno and Damaris Rotich continue weekly. Meet at 8:45 am at the National Museums entrance for a walk in the Nairobi area. These walks are for EANHS members: non-members are welcome but requested to join the Society (see below). World Birdwatch '95. Saturday 7 and Sunday 8 October 1995. Birdwalks, events and national bird mapping — see Editorial and enclosures in this issue. East Africa Natural History Society. The Society offers lectures, excursions and publications with a strong bird focus. The EANHS also organises ringing and nest record schemes in Eastern Africa. For membership details: tel. 749957, or write to the Hon. Secretary, EANHS, P O Box 44486 Nairobi. The office at the National Museums of Kenya is open each weekday (closed Wednesday morning). For sale in the EANHS office: new BirdLife T-shirts in a stunning design featuring the Society's emblem, a Long-crested Eagle; Kakamega Forest: the Official Guide (newly published); also bird notelets, books and postcards. Scopus, the lively regional journal of ornithology, is published three times a year by the EANHS Ornithological Sub-committee. Contact Don Turner, P.O. Box 48019, Nairobi, Kenya (tel. Nairobi 48133). Annual subscription KSh 600 (KSh 650 up-country); write for overseas rates. Records are welcomed from the East African Bird Report which forms the third issue of Scopus each year. African Bird Club. To join this society, which produces an excellent colour Bulletin and aims to 'provide a worldwide focus for African ornithology', write to: African Bird Club, c/o BirdLife International, Wellbrook Court, Girton Rd., Cambridge CB3 ON A, UK. Membership presently costs UK £12 per year. Ninth Pan- African Ornithological Congress, 1-8 December 1996, Accra, Ghana. For further information write to the Congress Chairman, Yaa Ntiamoa- Baidu, Ghana Wildlife Society, P O Box 13252, Accra, Ghana. EANHS Nest Record Card Scheme. For information and cards, contact the Nest Record Scheme Organiser, Joseph Oyugi, at the Department of Ornithology, National Museums of Kenya (address below). Bird crafts for sale. On Bird Day, 10 June, the Mikono Centre displayed a wide range of attractive crafts for sale, all inspired by birds and made by refugees living in the Nairobi area. These and many other handicrafts can be viewed at the Mikono Centre at the corner of Kilimani Road and Menelik Rd., Nairobi (off Ngong Rd. near Adams Arcade). Tel. 566133, ext. 5. Contacts: For Kenya Birds, write to the Department of Ornithology, National Museums of Kenya, P O Box 40658, Nairobi, or telephone 742131/61, extension 243. For BirdLife Kenya, telephone Nairobi 749957; fax 741049. 3 9088 00997 2985 Kenya Birds, Volume 4, NumteF Is August 1995 Editorial , ......„* o......................... ...i News from Kenya and abroad 1 Birding at...OIorgesaiIie Prehistoric Site 16 Records and Notes 22 Request for cormorant breeding information .......40 Letter to the Editors .'.......... 41 The Augur Buzzard Project ....!l5fe...™..™ .42 The social life of the Social Weaver .^.:.. ......<,..:,..„. ,. ......................44 Leslie Brown Memorial Grant..... 52 Sponsor subscribers 52 Events and Announcements iii Martial Eagle — Martin Woodcock
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Who wrote tyhe Barchester novels ? | Anthony Trollope - Biography and Works. Search Texts, Read Online. Discuss.
Anthony Trollope
Biography of Anthony Trollope
Anthony Trollope (1815-1882) post office official and prolific English novelist from the Victorian Era, penned The Barset Chronicles series.
Anthony Trollope was born on 24 April, 1815 at 6 Keppel Street, Bloomsbury, London, the fourth son of Thomas Anthony Trollope (1774-1835) and Frances (n�e Milton) (1779-1863). His father, who suffered from bouts of depression, was an unsuccessful lawyer and farmer. The family's humiliating state of poverty formed a lasting impression on Trollope, who was a tall, lanky, poorly dressed unhappy lad amongst the aristocratic youth of the famous schools he attended. In 1827, while Trollope attended his father's old school, Winchester, his mother left for America to assist in the set up of an English goods bazaar in Cincinnati. It was an architectural monstrosity and a total failure, pushing the Trollope family to the last stages of financial ruin. The family moved to Bruges, Belgium in 1834, where Frances supported the family with her writing which she was quite successful at. Her Domestic Manners of the Americans (1832) was well received in England. Trollope's father Thomas died in Bruges in 1835. His older brother Henry and his younger sister Emily died in Bruges too the following year.
Trollope started work as a clerk with the post office when he was nineteen years old and in 1841 went on to become the postal surveyor for Banagher, Ireland, which finally gave him some financial freedom and self-confidence and whereupon he picked up the sport of fox-hunting. This career of his was to provide much fodder for his future literary works, which he wrote in his spare time, such as The West Indies and the Spanish Main (1859). He travelled to Egypt, Scotland and the West Indies in 1858 and 1859 and the United States in 1861 on postal missions. In 1859 Trollope moved to Waltham Cross, just outside of London, to be surveyor general to the Post Office for �800 a year. Trollope is credited with the introduction of "pillar boxes", the now ubiquitous red British postal mail boxes.
In 1844 Trollope married Rose Heseltine and they had two sons, Henry (b.1846) and Frederick (b.1847). Trollope's study into Irish discontent, The MacDermots of Ballycloran (1847) was his first book, however, while in England he wrote The Warden (1855) the first of his famous Barchester Chronicles series, based on English upper middle-class Victorian life, which was his first acknowledged success. Barchester Towers (1857), Doctor Thorne (1858), Framley Parsonage (1861), The Small House at Allington (1864), and The Last Chronicle of Barset (1867) completed the series, readers especially enjoying his intense study of everyday social life, ecclesiastical politics and character developments in the imaginary cathedral city (modeled on Winchester) and the surrounding county of Barchester (modeled on Somerset). Trollope had finally come into his m�tier. He was successful and prosperous, much sought after by publishers and became friends with many literary figures including W. E. Forster and George Eliot . He was involved in some business dealings concerning various magazines and gazettes and even tried his hand at editorship for St. Paul's Magazine in 1867.
Trollope's Palliser series: Can You Forgive Her? (1864), Phineas Finn (1869), The Eustace Diamonds (1873), Phineas Redux (1876), The Prime Minister (1876) and The Duke's Children (1880) were well-received, and he also produced insightful novels on political and social issues of the day during this time. In 1867 Trollope resigned from the post office and unsuccessfully ran an election campaign as a Liberal parliamentary candidate. In 1871 to 1872 he gave up his Waltham house and traveled to visit his son in Australia, tirelessly writing along the way. In 1872 he moved back to London, following his strict regime of writing for many hours before breakfast, whether he was travelling to Ceylon and Australia in 1875, South Africa in 1877 or Iceland in 1878, or writing at home. He was also working on his Autobiography (1883) between October 1875 and April 1876 (published posthumously). His diligent, business-like approach to writing, as was revealed in his Autobiography offended many and he fell out of favour with some of his admirers after his death.
Trollope moved again in 1880 for want of better air, with hints of asthma and angina pectoris. He produced a few more novels the next year, one of them being The Plumber (1881). In May of 1882 he was staying at Garland's Hotel on Suffolk Street, Pall Mall, London. On the 3rd of November, 1883, whilst laughing during a family reading of F. Anstey's Vice Versa, he suffered a paralytic stroke. He died about a month later, on 6 December, 1883. He is buried in the Kensal Green Cemetery of London, England.
Hawthorne once wrote of Trollope's work: "Have you ever read the novels of Anthony Trollope? They precisely suit my taste; solid, substantial, written on strength of beef and through inspiration of ale, and just as real as if some giant had hewn a great lump out of the earth and put it under a glass case, with all its inhabitants going about their daily business, and not suspecting that they were made a show of."
Biography written by C.D. Merriman for Jalic Inc. Copyright Jalic Inc 2005. All Rights Reserved.
The above biography is copyrighted. Do not republish it without permission.
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Which playwright was born on this day on 1564 and died also on this day, on his 52nd birthday, in 1616 ? | Barchester Towers | Folio Illustrated Book
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Barchester Towers
Till we can become divine, we must be content to be human, lest in our hurry for a change we sink to something lower
When the kindly old bishop of Barchester dies, he does it at a most inconvenient time. The political ministry has changed, and instead of the mitre being offered to his son, the stern Dr Grantly, it goes to the ineffectual Proudie and his insufferable wife. In their wake comes the vile, power-hungry Obadiah Slope, determined to win himself a wealthy wife and to interfere in every aspect of church life. Barchester will never be the same again.
Production Details
9¾" x 6"
The story of Barsetshire continues
Barchester Towers continues the story of Eleanor and her father Septimus Harding from The Warden, but it introduces a host of other characters, delightfully comic and appalling by turns. The manipulative Signora Madeline Vesey Neroni, who reclines on a sofa all day, but ensnares plenty of hearts; the anxious Mrs Quiverful with her 14 children to maintain; Miss Thorne, obsessed with reviving the art of jousting… The inhabitants of Barchester are irresistible, and never more so than when they are locked in furious struggle.
No one dissects 19th-century English society and the machinations of Church politics with more subtlety and humour than Trollope. In this, one of his finest works, he exposes the absurdities and vanities of both parties. Yet while his pen is razor-sharp, his heart is gentle – Trollope always shows the reader the kinder values that should prevail, as they do in the happy ending he offers to his best-loved characters.
‘One of the most acute and humane chroniclers of public and private life in the High Victorian period’
KATHRYN HUGHES
Click here to read a blog post by the illustrator, Bill Bragg.
The Case of the Moving Cathedral: Mapping Trollope’s Barsetshire
‘I almost fear’, wrote Anthony Trollope in Framley Parsonage, ‘that it will become necessary, before this history be completed, to provide a map of Barsetshire for the due explanation of all these localities.’ In his Autobiography, Trollope reveals that he began work on such a map during the writing of Framley Parsonage (1860). Yet Trollope’s sketch did not come to light until 1927, when it was reproduced in Michael Sadleir’s Trollope: A Commentary. Before 1927, Trollope scholars had puzzled over the inconsistencies within the Barsetshire novels, in which the wealth of geographical detail is sometimes vague or contradictory: the eagleeyed reader will notice a moving cathedral, a shrinking distance between two villages and a railway with an implausible detour built into its tracks.
Ronald Knox, who continued Trollope’s Barsetshire narrative in his own novel Barsetshire Pilgrimage (1935), first mapped the fictional county in 1922. American enthusiast Spencer van Bokkelen Nichols published his critical essay ‘The Significance of Anthony Trollope’ in 1925, featuring a map based on his research into the texts and painted by George F. Muendel. When Trollope’s sketch was published, various differences between this and earlier maps were immediately clear, most noticeably the placing of Greshamsbury, which Nichols and Knox located in west Barsetshire, but which Trollope drew in the east. The map reproduced as endpapers to the Folio edition is based on Trollope’s sketch and was drawn by Lynton Lamb, an English author, lithographer and illustrator who designed book covers, postage stamps and posters, and exhibited at the 1951 Festival of Britain.
The jewel in the Trollopian crown
‘In the writing of Barchester Towers I took great delight,’ recalled Anthony Trollope in his Autobiography and, indeed, you can feel that pleasure bubbling up in every line of the book. Barchester Towers is not a cruel or satirical cackle so much as a gentle pondering of the absurdities of life, whether or not you happen to wear a clerical collar or know someone who does. Who can forget the great comic creations of Mrs Proudie, the interfering bishop’s wife, or Obadiah Slope, her appalling chaplain who oozes clamminess and spiritual pride? And then there are all those other Barchestonians, associated with the Church by community and familial ties, who are struggling to come to terms with the blistering pace of social and institutional change. Some characters, like Francis Arabin, will accommodate themselves to the new order without compromising themselves, others, like Miss Thorne, the squire’s sister, will find themselves forever bewildered and left behind. Trollope charts their journeys with a blend of perception and empathy that gives a sense of wholeness to the book. For many devoted readers Barchester Towers is quite simply the jewel in the Trollopian crown.
An extract from Kathryn Hughes's introduction
Inside the book
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Which 73 year old King of Munster was killed at the Battleof Clontarf, near Dublin, on this day in 1014 ? | Battle Of Clontarf | Clontarf.ie
Battle of Clontarf
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Background
The events that took place at the Battle of Clontarf on Good Friday, April 23rd, 1014 were the culmination of two centuries of strife, treachery, failed alliances and treaties between the Irish Celtic chieftains themselves on the one hand and their relationships with the invading Norsemen who had taken a foothold in Ireland.
The first Norsemen or Vikings had arrived in Ireland some two centuries before, initially plundering the gold, chalices, crosses and manuscripts of the monasteries and the corn harvests of the settled communities. Gradually they established Viking settlements around Ireland and engaged in trade and commerce.
There was, however, significant opposition to their presence in Ireland, not least in Munster where King Brian Boru had defeated their armies on several occasions. Brian’s aim was to unite all the warring Celtic kingdoms under one rule and one High King.
Prelude to Battle
In 1013, Mael Mordha, the king of Leinster went into revolt after inter-marriage alliances with Brian had broken down, and joined forces with the Vikings. Together, they initially attacked the kingdom of Mael Sechlainn of Meath who summoned the help of King Brian.
Brian set off towards Dublin with 4,900 troops made up 2,000 Munster men, 1,400 Dalcassians (also Munster men), and 1,500 Connacht clansmen. Opposing them were Mael Mordha’s army of 4,000 Leinster men allied to 3,000 Viking warriors.
The Battle Ground
Although but a small segment of the battle was fought close to the seafront at Clontarf, the historic encounter of Good Friday 1014 entered the annals as the Battle of Clontarf. This was largely because some 2,000 Vikings had by sunrise on that morning of April 23rd, landed in longboats at Clontarf.
As the two opposing armies faced one another that day the Vikings and the Leinster men were lined across the sloping plains bounded by the sea and the River Tolka, while King Brian’s army occupied the rising ground near Tomar’s Wood in Phibsboro.
The most ferocious part of the battle was fought at ‘the Battle of the Fishing Weir’, which approximates to the site of the former D.W.D. Whiskey Distillery on Richmond Road. Historic accounts of the battle also refer to the ‘savage encounters’ fought on the ‘Bloody Fields of Marino’ and what is today Phibsboro and Cross Guns.
Battle Victory for Brian
The result of the bloodiest day in ancient Ireland was a rout for King Brian, although some 4,000 of his troops lay dead on the battlefield. In contrast some 6,000 Leinster men and Vikings were slaughtered including every single Viking leader. King Brian’s army drove the fleeing Vikings back towards the sea at Clontarf, an account of which is descriptively told in a translation from the Gaelic manuscript by J.H. Todd in ‘The Wars of the Gaedhil with the Gaill’, (London, 1867).
“It was at the full tide the foreigners came out to fight the battle in the morning, and the tide had come to the same place again at the end of the day when the foreigners were defeated; and the tide had carried away their ships from them, so they had not at last any place to fly to, but into the sea; after the mail-coated foreigners had all been killed by the Dal Cais….and the foreigners were drowned in great numbers by the sea, and they lay in heaps and in hundreds.”
A French historical account written at that time tells us that: “The victory was won over the strangers and the Leinster people by the force of war, superior exertion and indomitable bravery”.
Death of King Brian & Outcome
Although Brian had won the greatest victory of his long career, he did not live long to enjoy it. As he knelt praying in his tent near Cross Guns, the Isle of Man Viking Leader, Brodir, who was hiding in the adjacent woods, ran into his tent slaying the 84-year-old Brian with his axe. Brodir was later captured and slaughtered by Wolf the Quarrelsome, the younger brother of King Brian.
The Battle of Clontarf was the watershed of all the hatred, division and rivalries that had consumed Ireland for centuries. A period of relative peace followed where the Celtic chieftains and the Vikings lived together in a spirit of harmony with the emphasis on greater integration, co-operation and commerce.
This podcast tells the story of Brian Boru and his part in the Battle of Clontarf in 1014, in much greater detail and anyone interested in learning more about it should listen to it and read the accompanying article. Click here to listen
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On this day in 1993, in a UN backed referendum, Eritreans voted overwhelmingly in favour of independence from which country ? | Battle of Clontarf | Familypedia | Fandom powered by Wikia
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Background
Brian Boru (Brian mac Cennétig (Kennedy)) had ruled most of Ireland since 1002, but the island was still highly fractious and the title of "High King" had been largely ceremonial. Brian looked to change this, and unite the island, which he set about doing over a period of years.
In 997, Brian Boru and Máel Sechnaill mac Domnaill had met in Clonfert and reached an agreement where they recognized each other's reign over their respective halves of the country. Brian attacked Máel Sechnaill's territory constantly, which forced Máel Sechnaill to resign his land to Brian.
In 1012, the King of Leinster, Máel Mórda mac Murchada, rose in revolt. His attempts were quickly thwarted when Brian arranged a series of cross-marriages, giving his daughter to Sigtrygg Silkbeard, leader of the Dublin Vikings, and himself marrying Sigtrygg's mother and Máel Mórda's sister, Gormflaith ingen Murchada. However this alliance was destined not to last, and in 1013 Máel Mórda again went to Sigtrygg for help after being admonished by Gormlaith for accepting Brian's rule. This time Sigtrygg was ready to fight, and various Irish clans who were envious of Brian quickly joined him.
Brian immediately imprisoned Gormlaith, and went on a series of raids around Dublin in order to tie down any Irish who would attempt to join the Viking forces. Meanwhile Gormlaith contacted Sigurd Lodvesson , the Viking earl of the Orkney Isles, to come to her aid. He not only agreed, but in turn contacted Brodir of the Isle of Man to join the fight. Sigurd and Brodir both planned on killing the other after the battle to take the seat of High King for themselves, while Sigtrygg was busy trying to form alliances with everyone involved in an attempt to at least retain his own seat in Dublin.
In 1014, Brian's army had mustered and set off towards Dublin. As they approached, the Irishmen of Meath, commanded by ex-high king Máel Sechnaill mac Domnaill, refused to take part in the battle. This left him with 4,500 men, outnumbering the 1,000 or so under Sigtrygg, but considerably worse equipped in comparison. They arrived outside the walls of Dublin and set up camp.
That night Brian received news that the Viking forces had boarded their longships and headed out to sea, deserting Sigtrygg. This was in fact a ruse. After nightfall they turned around and landed on the beaches of Clontarf, just over a mile to the north of Dublin, in order to surprise Brian's army the next day. At the time Dublin was only on the south shore of the River Liffey, connected to the north bank, and Clontarf, only by a single bridge. This allowed the Vikings time to disembark and prepare in relative safety.
Battle
The Viking army formed up into five divisions on the field, while Sigtrygg and 1,000 of his men remained in town. Sigtrygg's son commanded the extreme left of the line with 1,000 of the men from Dublin who decided to fight in the open. Máel Mórda added another 3,000 men from Leinster in two divisions. Although numerous, they too were poorly armed in comparison to the Vikings on either side. Sigurd's Orkney Vikings manned the center with 1,000 men, and Brodir's Vikings added another 1,000 or more on the right, on the beaches.
Brian's forces were arranged in a similar fashion. On the right (the Viking left) were 1,000 foreign mercenaries and Manx Vikings. Next to them, 1,500 clansmen of Connacht were gathered under their kings, while more than 2,000 Munster warriors under Brian's son Murchad continued the front, flanked by 1,400 Dál gCais on the extreme left led by Murchad's 15-year-old son, Tordhelbach, and Brian's brother, Cuduiligh. Off to the right and several hundred yards to the rear stood Máel Sechnaill's 1,000 men who simply watched.
The battle opened with several personal taunts between men in either line, often ending with the two men marching out into the middle of the field to enter personal battle, while the forces on either side cheered. While this went on the two groups slowly edged towards each other. They engaged early in the morning.
At first the battle went the Vikings' way, with their heavier weapons prevailing over their opponents as everyone had expected. This advantage also served Brian, whose Viking mercenaries on his right slowly pushed back the forces facing them. On the left, Brodir himself led the charge and gained ground, until he met the warrior Wolf the Quarrelsome , brother of King Brian. Although Wolf was unable to break Brodir's armor, he knocked him to the ground and Brodir fled to hide. This left the now leaderless Viking force facing Murchad's forces, who considered themselves the "king's own" (containing many of Brian's more distant relatives) and by the afternoon Brodir's forces were fleeing to their ships.
In the center things were going more the Vikings' way. Both Sigurd's and Máel Mórda's forces were hammering into the Munster forces. However Sigurd, according to legend, carried a "magical" standard into battle which drew the Irish warriors to it, eventually forcing their way in and killing the bearer. Although the standard was supposed to guarantee a victory for the bearer's forces, it also guaranteed the bearer's death. No one would pick it up due to its reputation, so Sigurd did and was quickly killed.
By the end of the day, after several mutual pauses for rest, the Vikings found themselves with both flanks failing, Sigurd dead, and everyone exhausted. The beaches in front of the ships were already lost, and many men took to trying to swim to the ships further offshore, drowning in the process. The battle was now clearly going Brian's way, and the Dublin Vikings decided to flee to the town. At this point Máel Sechnaill decided to re-enter the battle, and cut them off from the bridge. The result was a rout, with every "invading" Viking leader being killed in the battle.
Meanwhile Brodir, hiding in the woods near Dublin, noticed Brian praying in his tent. Gathering several followers they ran into the tent and killed him and his retainers. Then they retreated, with Brodir yelling, Now let man tell man that Brodir felled Brian. According to Viking accounts, he was eventually tracked, captured and gruesomely killed by Wolf the Quarrelsome with whom he had clashed earlier on the battlefield.
Of the 6,500 to 7,000 Vikings and allied forces, an estimated 6,000, including almost all the leaders, were killed. Irish losses were at least 4,000, including their king and most of his sons. There were in fact some sons of Brian Boru left after the battle of Clontarf. Two of his sons, Donnogh and Teige both were heirs of Brian and after their father's death in 1014, were at debate against each other which started with mild quarrelsome and ended with both brothers coming together in 1008 and killing Donell McDuff Davereann. The two sons of Brian did not inherit the throne right after their father was slain. It was Moyleseachlin - from whom Brian once took power in the heated moment before the Battle of Clontarf - who regained power once again in Ireland.
Aftermath
With the Irish now leaderless, and the power of the Dublin Vikings as a political force broken, Ireland soon returned to a series of bloody factional fighting. However things had changed as a result of the battle, with Viking and Gaelic culture no longer contesting power. After a number of years this led to a lasting peace.
There were also domestic battles before the 1014 battle, and after the Vikings were supposedly expelled from Ireland, no more written sources state that there were any other fighting between just the Vikings or Norsemen and the Irish. From the Annals of Clonmacnoise, “Moyleseachlin, after king Bryan was thus slaine, succeeded againe king of Ireland and reigned 8 years, dureing which time hee fought 25 battles both great and small against his enemies.” His enemies were not the Norsemen, but his fellow Irishmen from other kingdoms. If the Vikings were expelled from Ireland in 1014, or at least the looting and raiding stopped after that, then whoever the Irish were fighting had to be either another race of people coming into Ireland, just as the Vikings did, or the Irish were having yet another domestic or civil battle. The Battle of Clontarf could have been a domestic battle between kingdoms, and the Vikings were living in and helping out Dublin. The battle could have had other major incentives, but expelling the Vikings might have just given the Irish Munster king (Boru) extra motivation to beat the Leinster king. In the source of Clonmacnoise, McMoylenamo is not only the king of Ireland, Wales, and protector of the honor Leah Coynn, but also the “[king of the] Danes of Dublin.” After the battle in 1014, Irish high kings actually ruled over the Danes of Ireland's five separate kingdoms.
Sigtrygg, who had watched the battle with Gormlaith from Dublin, on the south bank of the River Liffey, and with the Irish army melting away the next day, ended up as the only "winner" of the contest, continuing his rule in Dublin until his death in 1042. The Kingdom of Meath also benefitted from the fact that its warriors suffered few casualties, and managed to come from the battlefield in a much stronger position, with most of its neighbours, including the Dublin Vikings, all incapable of launching further advances. However the series of wars had resulted in a fragmented political landscape, which could not unite under the old High King.
Deaths
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How old is former Mid-Ulster MP Bernadette Devlin today ? Is she 60, 62 or 66 ? | Project MUSE - Irish America, Race, and Bernadette Devlin’s 1969 American Tour
Irish America, Race, and Bernadette Devlin’s 1969 American Tour
Matthew J. O’Brien
Throughout the 140-year-long history of Irish nationalist tours of the United States, few episodes can match the energy and emotion generated by Bernadette Devlin’s transatlantic visit in 1969. Moments after her arrival at John F. Kennedy Airport in New York City on August 22, Devlin plunged into a hastily arranged press conference, demonstrating the confidence and charisma that had inspired one senior republican commentator to label her “the greatest envoy Ireland ever sent to America.” 1 From there, she was whisked off on a whirlwind tour of New York City, greeted by adoring crowds “everywhere she goes—whether it’s Gaelic Park, the various Irish ballrooms or at meetings in church or fraternal halls.” 2 This popular appeal soon extended far beyond Devlin’s ethnic base, leading to private meetings with Mayor John Lindsay and United Nations Secretary-General U Thant, along with appearances on national television programs from Meet the Press to Johnny Carson’s Tonight Show. 3
By the end of Devlin’s two-week visit, a number of developments had drained her seemingly inexhaustible spirit. Contending with her relentless schedule of appearances, constant sniping from conservative Irish Americans, and the duplicity of her erstwhile sponsors had sapped Devlin’s spirit and direction, and that of the once-impressive transatlantic campaign. Donning a makeshift disguise, Devlin slipped out of a private event in New Jersey and abandoned plans for further appearances in Boston and Washington, DC to return to Northern Ireland. Given the exhausting and bewildering nature of her tour, Devlin was understandably relieved to return home—even if home was a place that the American media presented as innately chaotic and violent. 4 [End Page 84]
According to most subsequent accounts, this dramatic reversal was caused by the racial prejudice displayed by Devlin’s ethnic hosts. Contemporary commentators contrast the Irish leader’s irrepressible support for the American civil rights movement with the reticence, or outright hostility, to the cause among many older ethnics. Early in her tour Devlin weathered reproachful glares and angry departures when she impetuously jumped onstage for a duet version of “We Shall Overcome” with an African-American singer at a Philadelphia rally. In California, she received a clerical admonition to stop talking about controversial matters like socialism and racial equality. Each instance only strengthened Devlin’s will, and by the time that she made it to the Midwestern “Rust Belt,” on the way back from the West Coast, Devlin had become more outspoken, and even confrontational, on racial matters. When the sponsors of a rally in Detroit would not allow young African Americans to enter Ford Hall, Devlin refused to take the stage. In Chicago, she refused to pay tribute to the ruling Daley political machine (which she had criticized in the wake of the violence outside the 1968 Democratic National Convention), and instead visited Jesse Jackson’s controversial Operation Breadbasket program.
The last decade has brought renewed attention to the disillusioning episode of Devlin’s tour. Those scholars who focus on Irish-American racial prejudice speak with increased certainty that race was the primary, if not exclusive, source of the Devlin tour’s problems. This recent work has drawn from two major interpretive developments that emerged during the early 1990s: the “ethnic fade” thesis and the rise of Whiteness Studies, each of which sought to revise the anodyne narrative of Irish America that emerged during the mid-twentieth century. Building on Herbert Gans’s earlier scholarship on symbolic ethnicity during the late 1970s and 1980s, Mary Waters’s Ethnic Options: Choosing Identities in America (1990) offered a sociological deconstruction of European ethnicity in the United States. Focusing largely on Irish America, with more than one hundred references to Irish ethnicity, the primary thrust of this seminal work was Waters’s characterization of European ethnicity as a facile construct, based more on situational convenience rather than historical continuity. 5 By the end of the decade, anthropologist Reginald Byron revisited this theme of attenuated transatlantic ties, looking at the way in which twentieth-century American experiences reshaped Irish-American identity among later-generation ethnics. 6
While Waters referred to racial prejudice among her ethnic subjects in a somewhat tangential sense, the historian David Roediger argued that racism [End Page 85] played a determinant role in the development of an Irish-American identity. Roediger’s work, The Wages of Whiteness (1991) quickly acquired canonical status within the ensuing Whiteness Studies movement, with its allegation that the commemoration of heritage among nineteenth-century ethnics was rooted in a self-conscious attempt to reinforce racial differences between assimilated, or “white,” European immigrants and African Americans. 7 Several years later, Noel Ignatiev tightened the focus further in his widely discussed book How the Irish Became White (1995), identifying the decades as the Civil War as the moment when Irish Americans allegedly sacrificed their authentic heritage in order to secure a racially privileged status. 8
The combined effects of the ethnic fade and Whiteness Studies analyses has been a two-part indictment of contemporary Irish-American ethnicity as not only inauthentic, but intrinsically racist. In part, these charges are not entirely new; they have much in common with the characterization of the “new ethnicity” movement by Howard Stein and Robert F. Hill in the mid-1970s. 9 Considering the recent upswing in Irish-American ethnic identification, however, this reductionist view has gained new footing during the last decade. In her introduction to the collection The Irish in Us (2006), editor Diane Negra refers to Irish whiteness in relation to Ghassan Hage’s notion of “the psychopathology of white decline,” which Negra defines as “the terror that whiteness in America is losing its social purchase.” 10 Matthew Frye Jacobson’s Roots, Too (2006) joins in this critique, separating contemporary Irish-American identification (along with other national variants of the new ethnicity) from any historical background to identify it solely as a white backlash against the advances of the civil rights movement. 11
The rediscovered significance of the Devlin tour, therefore, stems largely from a shift in perspective that would identify it as the opening salvo of an ethnic attack on civil rights that would eventually escalate during the infamous Boston busing crisis of the mid-1970s. In fact, the now-standard juxtaposition between the Devlin tour and the busing crisis led Gregory M. Maney to conflate [End Page 86] the two events, with the allegation that Boston crowds showered Devlin with racist taunts during her visit—despite the fact that she never actually visited that city during her 1969 tour. 12 In an insightful and provocative contribution to The Irish in Us, Catherine Eagan allows that “the Irish American Democrats of the era” may have supported the civil rights movement, but casts “the Irish American establishment” in a more ominous light. The “cool reception” offered to Devlin by ethnic activists amounted to a “generally hostile [reaction] to the suggestion that Irish Americans and African Americans had anything in common . . . [bringing to mind] the Boston busing riots as evidence of that perspective.” 13
A closer look at the newspaper that was the foremost institutional voice of Irish America at the time, however, not only contradicts the characterization of white ethnics as reactionary, but also complicates Eagan’s assertion that the Irish-American establishment was bereft of sympathy for African Americans. By the late 1960s, the New York-based Irish Echo newspaper had sound cause to claim the title of “The Voice of Ireland in America.” As the preeminent Irish- American weekly newspaper, the Echo boasted a circulation of nearly 30,000 copies and a readership conservatively estimated at 50,000. 14 Although many of the advertisements came from New York-based businesses, the Echo also distinguished itself from its more provincial competitors through its national profile. Mail subscriptions, which made up about half of its circulation, reached throughout the continental United States and even as far as Alaska. 15 The paper’s correspondents in cities like Boston, Chicago, and as far afield as San Francisco also provided regular updates, and the Echo’s weekly report from Dublin stood out at a time when larger media outlets such as the Associated Press relied on London-based reporters for coverage of events in Ireland. 16
The Irish Echo’s coverage, through reporting, columns, and editorials, discloses several historical influences on the Devlin tour that have been omitted by the conventional account of ethnic racism and reaction. The first of these issues stems from the longstanding pattern, when visiting Irish nationalist dignitaries came to the United States, of encountering exalted advance hopes and on-the-ground bickering among the groups that greet them. Despite her relative youth [End Page 87] and political inexperience, Bernadette Devlin’s ethnic hosts saddled her with impossible expectations, notwithstanding the examples of how perennially fractious relations among Irish groups in North America had doomed previous visits by Eamon de Valéra and Frank Aiken. 17 Furthermore, to attribute Irish-American ethnicity to racial animosity is to ignore the Echo’s continued commitment to postwar liberalism among Irish Americans during the late 1960s and early 1970s. It would certainly be naive to presume that the Irish Echo acted as the supreme arbiter of Irish-American political opinion, or even that the paper’s reporters and commentators uniformly adhered to a pro-civil rights stance. Nevertheless, the often-overlooked nuances of the Echo’s coverage reveal an ethnic leadership that generally attempted tomaintain its postwar commitment to racial equality, even—and perhaps, especially—when faced with a new generation of increasingly strident activists during the late 1960s. 18
By the time that Bernadette Devlin embarked on her hastily arranged visit to the United States in August 1969, she was already nearing folk-hero status within Irish-American circles. Her election to the British House of Commons as one of the youngest MPs in history attracted international attention in the Spring of that year, while her spirited defense of a Catholic community in the “Battle of the Bogside” in July gave her street credibility in the eyes of transatlantic [End Page 88] activists. Having lost her father at age seven, and her mother at nineteen, Bernadette Devlin’s personal story of perseverance also resonated among many of the middle-aged Irish Americans who had survived the “Hunger Years” in the United States during the 1930s. Furthermore, her achievement as a first-generation university student appealed to those Irish-American parents who were sending their children to college during the late 1960s. But the most profound dimension of Devlin’s appeal came on a communal level. Although her charismatic defiance of the Northern Irish government invited many comparisons with Joan of Arc, Devlin’s transatlantic image was closer to the mythical nationalist figure Cathleen ni Houlihan, who shed an elderly appearance to reveal a regenerative beauty that inspired a young generation of nationalists.
At the time of Devlin’s arrival, the Irish-born population in the United States had slipped into its twilight years, with an average age that had climbed to nearly sixty-two during the 1960s. 19 Several generations removed from the massive postfamine influx, Irish America had largely passed from an immigrant community to an ethnic group, largely reliant on the stale depictions of the “old country” offered by the Irish tourist industry. Devlin’s persona unsettled these tired stereotypes. Popular commentators remained fixated on Devlin’s stylish wardrobe—leading to countless descriptions of her as a “miniskirted revolutionary”—but ethnic accounts focused on her youthful charisma. The editorial board of the Irish Echo hailed Devlin“a young whirlwind,” and later described her as “pungent,” presumably referring to her ability to reawaken the long-dormant spirit of Irish-American nationalism. 20 Sean Maxwell, a senior columnist for the Echo and a former republican internee during World War II, succinctly described Devlin’s importance for Irish Americans when he wrote, “Bernadette Devlin is not a folk heroine of long ago, enduring years of suffering, not [performing] noble deeds of a heroic nature.” For Maxwell, as with many other expatriate nationalists, the immediacy of Devlin’s appeal was crucial; he wrote that she “does not belong to the ancient past, not even the recent past. She belongs to the present and a majority will agree that her coming is timely.” 21
This fresh spirit was not without its problems, however—especially within the larger context of the yawing “generation gap” between American college students and their elders. Devlin’s brash confidence made for a triumphant entrance onto the American scene within minutes of her arrival in New York, as the diminutive newcomer took command of a hastily arranged press conference. Energized by the collection of fellow students and activists who representing her sponsors, the National Association for Irish Justice (NAIJ), Devlin [End Page 89] charmed the media. When an American reporter asked whether she intended to devote her energies to raising money, building contacts, or meeting people, Devlin responded in the affirmative to all three objectives, displaying a combination of self-assuredness and youthful enthusiasm that announced the dawning of a new age in Irish-American nationalism.
But the honeymoon did not last long. By the next evening, Devlin found herself entangled in an increasingly bitter fight between the NAIJ and its adversaries on the right. 22 Devlin’s outspoken support for the American civil rights movement and socialist affinities immediately brought her into conflict with James Heaney, the right-wing founder of the largest nationalist group, the American Congress of Irish Freedom (ACIF). Heaney’s nationalist credentials were unimpeachable, having spent several years of energetic service in the fight against Partition. But even deeper than this was his Manichean Cold War perspective—derived from a disastrous combination of Anglophobia and hysterical anticommunism that had brought down the once-venerable Gaelic American newspaper in the early 1950s. 23
Ideological crossfire continued to plague Devlin’s campaign throughout her American tour. After several older activists stormed out of an appearance in Philadelphia, Devlin left the enclaves of the Northeast for a few appearances in California. But her largest rally in Los Angeles started on a sour note due to an ill-conceived agitprop skit about the beating of a man for refusing to sing the American national anthem. Before Devlin could take the stage, disgruntled conservatives had already begun to heckle the presenters and discourage donations from fellow attendees. After a short stop for radical theater in San Francisco, Devlin ventured into potentially hostile territory with stops in Detroit and Chicago, where she contended with threats of a boycott by traditional Irish-American organizations and open hostility from supporters of Mayor Richard Daley of Chicago. 24
At the same time, Devlin’s relationship with the left-leaning NAIJ also grew strained. Although her support for socialism seemed to make for a natural alliance with the group, Devlin grew suspicious of the intentions of the leader of the NAIJ, Brian Heron. Although he professed to eschew “the politics of personality,” Heron’s inflexibility mirrored that of his ideological adversary, James Heaney, and he made several open statements that openly undermined Devlin’s campaign, offered with thinly veiled jealousy. Confidential memos from the Irish foreign service describe an “intense argument with Miss Devlin during [End Page 90] which they complained she was not supporting their objectives in this country,” and Devlin’s later account spoke of his attempt to pressure her into diverting relief funds into the purchase of weaponry. 25 Devlin’s opposition from Heaney and the right were more political in origin than was her trouble with Heron, but in both cases domestic American interests trumped Irish intentions.
Historians have generally marginalized the NAIJ as an exception to their characterization of an innately right-wing Irish America. There was, in fact, a much larger body of moderate opinion within Irish America that continued to identify with the liberal patriotism of the early postwar era. These middle-class ethnics were ready to accede to Heaney’s nationalist goal, though their carefully reasoned arguments attracted less attention than his bombastic pronouncements; and their commitment to racial integration and other liberal tenets stood in direct contrast to Heaney’s reactionary domestic politics. In fact, within a few years both the ACIF and the NAIJ had collapsed due to the dictatorial leadership styles of their respective leaders. On the other hand, the results of surveys of Irish-American opinions conducted by the National Opinion Research Center in the 1970s found sustained support for liberal tenets like religious tolerance and racial equality. 26 This “silent majority” within Irish America defied the “angry ethnic” label, continuing to demonstrate support for the integration and pluralism that had facilitated their postwar rise to prominence. 27
The ACIF is generally considered the largest Irish nationalist organization in the United States during the late 1960s, but Heaney’s claim that most Irish Americans shared his lack of interest in civil rights was a rather dubious one. With an estimated size of three thousand members at its peak, the size of the ACIF was dwarfed by the circulation of several Irish-American weeklies, which often contained an unapologetically liberal stance on such domestic matters as the civil rights movement. The masthead of the Irish Advocate, which proudly asserted the paper’s “non-sectarian, pro-labor, and pro-liberal” perspective, boasted of a circulation estimated at more than 25,000 copies in 1973, and the Irish Echo’s estimated readership was more than fifteen times as large as the membership of Heaney’s group. 28 [End Page 91]
The emergence of the civil rights campaign in 1968 infused the Irish Echo with new energy. The news from Ireland had grown tepid; the Echo was reduced to devoting front-page headlines to such mundane events as Taoiseach Seán Lemass’s state visit to Japan. But the Echo remained resolutely liberal in orientation, in sharp contrast to its predecessor the Gaelic American, whose reactionary combination of anticommunism and shrill Anglophobia brought the paper’s fifty-year run to a crashing halt in the years following World War II. Instead, the Echo presented the resurgent spirit of Irish-American nationalism within a larger context, with a celebration of the inclusive themes of American ethnic and religious pluralism. When the popular television host Alan Burke featured a discussion on Northern Ireland in his 1968 talk show, for example, columnist Sean Maxwell took pains to note that “two of our most staunch supporters . . . belonged to the Jewish race.” 29 Columnist Frank O’Connor also proudly offered a long list of Protestant and Jewish leaders in Ireland to support his boast that “the Irish people are the most liberal-minded you will meet on the face of the globe.” 30 Later, Maxwell’s endorsement of Paul O’Dwyer for the Democratic senate primary noted the electoral solidarity of other ethnic groups with obvious approval: “Those of Greek origin are elated and rightly so, by the nomination of Spiro Agnew as Nixon’s running mate. Polish Americans are already singing the praise, and rightly so, of Edmund Muskie. Jacob Javits has never been forgotten by the Jewish people.” 31
Nor did the advertisers in the Irish Echo shrink from an explicit identification with liberalism. One political advertisement taken out by Joseph Y. Resnick during a Democratic primary for an upcoming Senate race in 1968 proudly identified the candidate’s image as a “Fighting Liberal,” based on his “fighting record for better education, for the right of equal opportunity regardless of creed or color,” and other liberal tenets. 32 For Resnick’s campaign, these shared liberal ideals merited the cost of the advertisement, even in lieu of any direct ethnic appeal to the paper’s readers.
The Echo’s liberalism extended beyond pluralism. The passage of new conservationist legislation in Maine deserved praise from “everyone who wants to see the human race continue.” 33 When violent clashes broke out between the [End Page 92] Chicago police and protestors outside the Democratic national convention in 1968, the paper defied the notion that Irish Americans were reflexively devoted to “law and order,” as opposed to civil liberties, with an editorial that criticized the police for overreacting:
Certainly the Chicago police were viciously provoked by some of the demonstrators. But in the face of this some of the police lost their professional standing. They clubbed demonstrators, bystanders, and newsmen indiscriminately. It was not a pretty sight and the fact that some of the demonstrators used foul language does not make it right. 34
This position elicited a strongly worded rebuke from an indignant reader who declared that the paper had chosen “to align yourselves with the New York Times, Daily Worker, CBS and the [Black] Panthers,” but the Echo showed no signs of backing down. 35 A year later, when Justice Earl Warren retired, an editorial praised the man who had become a bête noir for American conservatives. His leadership, the Echo declared, led to “several of the Court’s decisions [that] were among the most important in the history of this Republic,” such as the “school desegregation cases of the 1950’s and the ‘one man, one vote’ ruling of 1963 [that] were giant steps toward the realization of freedom for all men in this land.” 36 This tribute was joined by other expressions of support for the civil rights movement in the pages of the Irish Echo. The following week’s editorial, titled “Independence Day,” warned that “there are people who still seek to deny some of our citizens their rights,” declaring that such prejudice was alien to the philosophy of the Founding Fathers, as well as “Lincoln, Roosevelt, Eisenhower, or Kennedy.” 37 For the editors, and presumably for many of the readers of the Irish Echo, these liberal ideals provided the core of American patriotism, and required vigilant rhetorical defense during the tumultuous late 1960s.
The Echo was equally resolute in its support for the cause of civil rights. Sean Maxwell’s eulogy for Robert Kennedy praised his commitment to “equal rights and equal opportunities to all our citizens,” as “the gospel of all great men, and surely . . . the voice of the Divine and Christian message.” 38 After repeating a comparison between loyalist reactions in Northern Ireland and the Ku Klux Klan, the Echo editorialized that “the forces of change, the forces of justice, and [End Page 93] tolerance are at work and they will not be denied.” 39 Frank O’Connor also objected indignantly to an assertion in the Irish Sunday Press that opined that “Irish-Americans are generally against civil rights,” albeit with a reference to “crime control,” a phrase that often implicitly conveyed racially based anxieties. 40 Apart from this qualification, however, the Echo’s general support for the American civil rights movement was clear, prompting a proud front-page headline when the NAACP issued a declaration of sympathy with the Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association. 41
Despite these numerous expressions of support for racial equality and the American civil rights movement, the Echo steadily resisted any direct comparisons between the American and Irish civil rights movement. Given the influence that the American campaign had on Irish activists, and given Bernadette Devlin’s particular references to the African-American fight for equality, it is worth asking whether the Echo’s support for racial equality was an empty platitude, rather than a sincere commitment.
The explanation has more to do with the political strategy of Irish-American nationalists than with their moral convictions. The editors and columnists of the Echo had great praise for the Irish civil rights activists, but these writers shared the general consensus among Irish-American nationalists that the “puppet government” of Northern Ireland was fundamentally flawed, and could not be saved through reforms. For Sean Maxwell—the foremost authority on nationalist matters at the Echo—as for so many other Irish Americans, the cause of Irish political independence crowded out any other issues within the diasporic imagination. Separated from the everyday knowledge of economic conditions, social relations, and cultural issues by three thousand miles, several generations of Irish-American ethnics had reduced the situation in Northern Ireland to one that could be clearly, if somewhat superficially, understood and explained in the context of American political independence. Without the end of Partition, this group believed, the otherwise laudable cause of civil rights would ultimately be a distraction rather than a solution. When internal tensions threatened to derail the NICRA in Spring 1969, Maxwell saw the dissension as a result of straying from the primary objective:
The whirlwind of the civil rights movement carried many away and obviously got lost in the sound and the fury. . . . From the platform of civil rights there is one plank missing, one plank removed and that was the plank of nationalism—the plank on which they could stand firmly. [End Page 94]
His response in April 1969 to the reformist message of the nationalist MP Austin Currie, then on tour in the United States, was similar: “Re-unification is paramount to all social evils and to leave it in the background is putting the cart before the horse.” 42
Maxwell and his fellow columnists also offered the same programmatic objections to the socialist goals within the NICRA. At the same time, they refused to yield to reflexive red-baiting. Although Joe Murphy worried about the pronouncements of left-wing leaders, which left the movement “open to charges of being contaminated by Marxism and other extreme political philosophies,” his fellow columnists did not share these Cold War concerns. 43 Instead, Maxwell and the rest of the Echo staff repeatedly defended the legitimacy of Devlin’s socialism with regular references to James Connolly. Maxwell became more outspoken with the emergence of Bernadette Devlin in the Spring of 1969, telling readers about “Miss Devlin, who is not a Communist, but . . . a follower of socialistic principles of James Connolly,” and continuing on to explain that “Connolly was a Nationalist and a Republican with socialist ideas for the uplifting of the oppressed and persecuted.” 44 Nor, in fact, did Maxwell shy away offering his own critique of international capitalism after meeting with Cathal Goulding—then the Marxist leader of Sinn Féin—when he described a free Ireland as “for the people, and not foreign industrialists.” 45
At the same time, Maxwell also refused to yield to a reflexive conflation of communism and socialism. In February 1969 he answered red-baiting insinuations against the civil rights leader by defending her “socialist ideals [which] are well known to all with no ulterior motives save the emancipation of the under-privileged.” 46 When visiting Unionist politicians sent to the United States during Devlin’s tour made broad-brush allegations about communist influence in the NICRA, Maxwell denounced the “immaturity of such thought.” And after a debate between Devlin and the visiting Unionists, the Echo was proud to emphasize Devlin’s remark “if there was anything she disliked more than unionism, it was communism.” 47
According to Maxwell and most other writers in the Echo, the goal of socioeconomic reform needed to remain subordinate to the anti-Partition movement, or else it would become a distraction and perhaps give way to concessions [End Page 95] like those that had compromised Irish independence in 1921. Maxwell immediately followed an expression of support for the civil rights movement in the fall of 1968 with a reminder that “the issue is ‘Partition’” and “the other problems are but its by-products and its evils.” 48 On the other hand, the columnist had much higher hopes for Devlin, celebrating her leadership with a commission that concluded, “Let us hope . . . that the eventual slogan will be ‘On to the Republic,’ for there can be no turning back now, no concessions, no compromise. Over to you, Bernadette!” 49
Nevertheless, tensions between Irish and Irish-American nationalists occasionally broke the surface in a couple of minor jibes. Two weeks before Devlin’s visit, Maxwell admonished his younger counterparts with his impression that “I feel that the civil rights people are inclined to forget that James Connolly was something more than a socialist and a reformer,” reminding his readers that Connolly was also “a nationalist, a separatist, and a soldier of national freedom.” 50 Later, when internal tensions threatened to split the movement, Maxwell called for the Irish counterparts to “tackle [the injustice] from a national point of view,” rather than looking “to Paris, Berlin, Prague, Moscow, New York or Alabama.” 51 Finally, in his postmortem for the Devlin tour, the Echo’s veteran columnist cited her emphasis on civil rights as the “one great mistake.” Although he was careful to absolve Devlin for any of the “very badly managed” tour, he asserted that the primary problem was a lack of focus on Partition: “Let us not evade the issue. The ultimate objective is not to make our oppressed brethren in northeast Ireland more comfortable British subjects. . . . It is a national struggle and it’s idle and absurd to close our eyes to [the issue that] the final solution is not social demands and reforms but a unified nation.” 52 In the end, it was this difference between transatlantic nationalists and Irish civil rights activists that would create the major rift that would emerge in the spring of 1970.
Although the Devlin campaign wound down on a disappointing note, the Echo remained enthusiastically supportive of “our Bernadette” through her two-week trip in the United States. Even Pat Hennessy, the Echo’s Chicago correspondent, refrained from any negative commentary in his description of Devlin visit to Mayor Daley’s city, noting that a crowd of two hundred supporters turned out for her arrival at O’Hare airport even though her flight was [End Page 96] three hours late. 53 Despite the political missteps of the tour and the divisiveness that it engendered in the Irish-American community, the Echo continued its enthusiastic support for Devlin for several months after she had returned to Ireland. After her rather abrupt return home, the Echo continued to celebrate her honors and defend her leadership with front-page features, supportive editorials, and laudatory columns.
In October 1969, Dublin correspondent John Kelly greeted the observation that “even some Irish Americans are beginning to doubt the real intention of such leaders as Bernadette Devlin” with a denunciation of the “immaturity of such thought” and a reminder that “many a good Irishman was killed in 1916 for those self-same [Connollyite] principles.” 54 In January 1970, when Spanish and Irish newspapers honored Devlin as the outstanding personality of 1969, the Echo celebrated with two affectionate front-page articles. 55 Maxwell also resumed his praise for Devlin in the new year, comparing her to Indira Gandhi and Golda Meir as she was sentenced for her role in the Bogside riots that immediately preceded her transatlantic trip. Deriding the alleged hypocrisy of her critics, who were “merely . . . our Conservative Irish in this country” Maxwell warned that “the current debate over ‘isms’ left and right is by no means helping the cause of freedom.” 56
Ironically, the fateful incident that effectively severed the tie between the Irish leader and the largest Irish-American newspaper of the time did not take place until March of 1970. Bernadette Devlin fell from the good graces of Irish America due to an act of political showmanship in which she was only indirectly involved. As internal tensions grew in the NICRA between the left-leaning members of the People’s Democracy movement and their more conservative counterparts, some activists questioned Devlin’s decision to retain the various civic gifts bestowed on her during the American tour. Eventually, Devlin’s friend and associate within the People’s Democracy, Eamon McCann, prevailed upon her to relinquish the honorary keys to New York City that she had received from Mayor John Lindsay the previous September. (McCann had previously caught the attention of the Echo for his sharp criticism of Senator Ted Kennedy in July 1969. 57 ) Upon his arrival in New York in March 1970, McCann presented Devlin’s keys to [End Page 97] a member of the Black Panthers, which he described as “a gesture of solidarity with the Black liberation and revolutionary socialist movement in America.” In case anyone underestimated the provocative nature of such a gesture, McCann then specifically castigated Irish Americans as “hypocrites.” 58
The initial reaction from the Echo was surprise, and marked by confusion rather than outrage. In an editorial titled, “How Foolish Can You Get?” the Echo responded that McCann’s allegations were “not just rash, but foolish,” adopting a wounded tone as it declared, “The American Irish can no longer be caricatured as you so crudely attempted. Perhaps you don’t know what America is about.” McCann’s offense, according to the editorial, was attempting “to judge the diverse group of people who make up the American Irish community after two days here,” noting that “even junketing politicians take three or four weeks, [and] some thoughtful people even admit that it takes several years.” Abstaining from a broad-brush reaction, the Echo countered that “Mr. McCann apparently knows little of the black community in America.” The paper listed a litany of such moderate civil rights groups as the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and the NAACP, as well as individual leaders like Roy Wilkins, Whitney Young, Senator Edward Brooke, and Justice Thurgood Marshall. 59 Although the editorial briefly indulged in stereotyping the protestors, asking if McCann “expect[s] us to be lined up in our blue jeans shouting socialist slogans,” the paper derided their actions as “knee-jerk nonsense” rather than seriously threatening. In its conclusion, the paper answered McCann’s gesture with wounded pride rather than vitriol, protesting the way that his statement depicted Irish Americans “as Neanderthal men insensitive to human suffering.” 60
The tone of the Echo toward Devlin and McCann mellowed further in the weeks after McCann’s gesture. The paper’s Dublin correspondent noted that “many of the Irish in America have been bitterly disappointed” by the gesture, but Devlin was still “wee Bernie” to the columnist and his readers; her main mistake, he believed, was her impolitic nature rather than serious apostasy. In the end, the columnist attributed leftist agitation in Ireland to government neglect of pressing economic issues, and reassured readers that the communist party in Ireland was still quite small. 61 Other Irish-American groups responded similarly; for instance, the United Irish Counties Association of New York passed a resolution that alluded to McCann—without naming him—as part of a group of [End Page 98] “certain irresponsible individuals.” 62 By early May, the paper celebrated a meeting between Devlin and the Swedish premier, followed by an account of Devlin’s visit to Denmark the following week. Ironically, the paper accompanied an announcement of the latter occasion by rerunning an earlier cheerful picture of Devlin with Mayor Lindsay from happier times at the start of the American tour.
The restrained, almost patronizing, tone of the Irish Echo toward McCann was consistent with its general attitude toward the increasingly disorderly protestors of the late 1960s and early 1970s. With an eye toward middle-class respectability, the Echo was clearly preoccupied with protecting the postwar liberalism that had helped to redefine Irish-American identity since 1945. Throughout the late summer and fall of 1969, the Irish Echo had attempted to stake out the middle ground in a polarized situation. In an issue that came out during the same week as Bernadette Devlin arrived in the United States an editorial on the upcoming academic year appeared directly below a prescient call for nationalist consensus. The editorial titled “Unity Now,” warned about divisions within the Irish-American nationalist cause posed by “the injunction of ideological issues from both the left and the right.” Just below it, an editorial titled “Campus Moderates” fretted about the “rash of anarchy [that] hit our universities as the New Left adopted totalitarian methods,” and simultaneously called on students to stay on guard against “some ultra-right groups who plan to confront them.” 63
When the paper targeted student radicals, it specifically used terms that harkened back to the postwar revision of Irish-American identity. University education had provided a crucial boost to Irish-American upward mobility after World War II; thus, the unspoken social stakes were high when the Echo railed against the “the continued disruption of America’s college campuses by a radical minority of perhaps one percent,” and “the destruction of our educational institutions.” 64 The answer was not meeting force with force, as the Echo worried about “some ultra-right groups [who] plan to confront them.” Instead, the paper lauded the approach of “Campus Moderates,” who gave their name to the editorial that commended “the efforts of those people who seek to overcome the fascist tactics of a radical few who seek only to destroy and not to build.” 65 Although the Echo would turn to strong words in its critique of radicalized groups like the Students for a Democratic Society, it eschewed the anti-intellectualism of earlier weeklies like the Gaelic American. Instead, the paper adopted a protective attitude toward colleges and universities, undoubtedly mindful of the role that higher learning had played in facilitating Irish-American upward mobility in the recent past. [End Page 99]
These fears of radicalizing elements extended to the paper’s assessment of agitation in Northern Ireland. When a civil rights demonstration turned violent in January 1969, the Echo concluded that “infiltrators” were to blame, “masquerading as civil rights marchers.” 66 The answer, according to the paper, was to “work diligently to keep their organization democratic and to keep it working for the purpose it was founded.” Similar events later that Spring spurred further worries, as a front-page story repeated claims that “certain members are taking decisions and carrying on activities tantamount to the policies being expressed in France, Germany, Peking, and Moscow.” 67
In the end, the Echo’s reaction to McCann’s gesture was surprisingly mild—especially given the overheated rhetoric about “red fascists” and “fifth columnists” that had regularly appeared in the leading Irish-American newspapers just twenty years before. Twenty years of upward mobility and acculturation had helped to temper the tone of the Irish-American ethnic press, which was now focused on maintaining the postwar consensus rather than settling ethnic scores.
Although the Whiteness Studies school has broken new ground with its challenge to the consensus school of Irish-American history, the characterization of contemporary Irish-American ethnicity as inherently racist and reactionary represents more of a pendulum swing rather than a comprehensive analysis. In order to understand the significance of the tumultuous late 1960s for Irish America, it is necessary to readmit socioeconomic class for our consideration. For the Echo and its largely middle-class readership, McCann’s gesture, like much of the political theater of the time, provoked more confusion rather than outright hostility. Clinging to a pluralist belief in the politics of accommodation and reform, and refusing to acknowledge any connection between the more strident younger generation of activists and their nonviolent elders, the paper’s main problem with McCann’s allies was their ideology rather than their cause. For some middle-class Irish Americans, the perceived failure of this approach would lead to a rightward turn to neo-conservatism. But for many other Americans of Irish descent, the violence that erupted merely reinforced their liberal aversion to such “extremist” displays, on the right as well as one the left.
It was this conscious, if somewhat patronizing, dedication to moderation that suggests that the comparison between the Devlin tour and the Boston busing crisis might yield some insights after all. It is worth remembering that the battle over busing was not a straight-line conflict between Yankee liberals and [End Page 100] working-class ethnics, but a three-cornered fight in which middle-class Irish-American liberals advocated bold steps to address the racial disparities within the Boston public school system. Along with the architect of the busing program, Judge W. Arthur Garrity, other “respectable” Irish-American supporters of the plan included iconic Irish-American figures like Thomas P. “Tip” O’Neill and Senator Ted Kennedy (who was literally chased by an anti-busing mob). If the controversy surrounding the Devlin tour tells us anything about the explosive events of the following years, it reflects the increasingly tense relations between the working-class ethnic enclaves of “shanty Irish” of South Boston and their middle-class “two-toilet” counterparts in neighborhoods like Brookline and Chestnut Hill.
At the same time, challenging the representativeness of ethnic archetypes like Archie Bunker, the putatively de-ethnicized but unmistakably Irish protagonist of the 1970s sitcom All in the Family, should not be construed as dismissing the relevance of urban ethnics in contemporary Irish America, however. The Whiteness Studies movement has raised substantial challenges to the nearly exclusive focus on Irish-American achievement as promoted by the postwar consensus school. The bigotry that surfaced during the Boston busing crisis was not quite as exceptional as Irish Americans might wish to believe, especially in light of episodes like the group’s support for Father Charles Coughlin in the 1930s, Joe McCarthy in the 1950s, or even George Wallace in the late 1960s. However distasteful the manifestations might have been, the frustration and begrudgery that drove many marginalized Irish Americans to those demagogues was real, as was their growing alienation from their upwardly mobile ethnic counterparts in the suburbs.
If we are to be honest in our pursuit of an integrative, comprehensive Irish diaspora, our analysis must go deeper than the elliptical treatment of race among consensus historians, as well as moving beyond the psychoanalytic superstructure of the Whiteness Studies movement. In the end, we need to listen to the voices of places like South Boston, however coarse they might sound. In powerful accounts of writers like Michael Patrick MacDonald’s All Souls: A Family Story from Southie (1999), we are reminded of the seductive appeal of racism, as well as its destructive consequences—a haunting admonition that extends to even the most comfortable, seemingly best-insulated sections of the Irish diaspora. 68 [End Page 101]
Matthew J. O’Brien
| sixty six |
What was the name of the son of Ethelred the Unready who was crowned King of England on this day in 1016, but died in November the same year, shortly after being defeated in battle by hios successor, Canute ? | Project MUSE - Maintaining the Cause in the Land of the Free: Ulster Unionists and US Involvement in the Northern Ireland Conflict, 1968-72
Maintaining the Cause in the Land of the Free:
Ulster Unionists and US Involvement in the Northern Ireland Conflict, 1968-72
Andrew Wilson (bio)
From the beginning of the Northern Ireland "Troubles," Irish nationalists have received vital support from America. 1 In the mid-1970s John Hume helped to create the congressional Friends of Ireland, a powerful political network which pressured the British government and worked for a constitutional-nationalist agenda on Capitol Hill. In addition, millions of dollars and substantial supplies of US weapons were channeled to the IRA and played a key role in sustaining its campaign of violence. While this Irish-American connection has been the focus of extensive media and scholarly analysis, there has been virtually nothing written about the small, but fiercely determined, unionist support network in the US. 2 The following article aims to shed light on this previously neglected dimension of Ulster unionism by outlining the various initiatives that unionists took to counteract Irish-American nationalism in the early 1970s. It examines the major challenges faced by unionists in presenting their perspective in the US and assesses the degree to which their objectives were achieved. [End Page 212]
Ulster Unionists and America, 1945–68
Unlike Irish nationalists, unionists have little constituency from which they can draw support in the US. Although over 250,000 Ulster Protestants migrated to America in the eighteenth century, and though most of the 44 million who claimed Irish ancestry in the 1990 census were Protestant, the vast majority are assimilated and have little or no interest in the politics of their ancestral homeland. 3 Nevertheless, there was a small network of Ulster Protestant/unionist organizations active in the US after World War II which provided the leadership and membership of new groups that emerged in response to the outbreak of violence in Northern Ireland in the late 1960s.
The Orange Order is the oldest surviving fraternal organization in America which has been overwhelmingly shaped by Ulster Protestants and their descendants. The first lodges were formed in eastern cities in the early nineteenth century and became closely associated with the Anglo-American nativist reaction against the growing numbers of Irish Catholic immigrants. As in Ireland, the annual "Twelfth" commemorations of King William of Orange's victory at the Battle of the Boyne in 1690 were often occasions for conflict. The 1831 parade in Philadelphia, for example, ignited pitched battles between Orangemen and Catholic protesters. The worst violence occurred at the New York parades in 1870 and 1871, during which seventy people died and over one hundred were injured. 4
In 1870 the Loyal Orange Institution of the United States of America (LOI) was formed to administer the network of lodges which had emerged throughout the country. Within a few decades the LOI claimed over one hundred lodges in twenty-one states and nearly 70,000 members. The LOI's vibrancy was reflected in its ability to host the annual convention of the Imperial Grand Orange Council of the World in New York in 1900. 5 [End Page 213]
By the first decades of the twentieth century, however, American Orangeism experienced a steady decline in activism and membership. In the 1920s a bitter internal feud led to the emergence of two rival bodies, each claiming to be the Supreme Grand Lodge. Although this schism was eventually healed, one historian concludes that the "injuries sustained" made the "institution in America incapable of recovering its original vitality and strength." 6 Other analysts make the obvious point that "the scope for an organization devoted to maintenance of British constitutional and cultural forms was severely limited in the American republic." 7 Leaders of the LOI were also perplexed by the inability of brethren to pass enthusiasm for Orangeism to their children—a point later encapsulated in a statement by New York Orangeman Derek Mills, who, when asked to comment about the health of his organization, lamented, "When we get together now, if we get together . . . , we're like a bunch of old ladies, sitting around chatting. We get together to see who's died since the last meeting." 8
Yet, despite all the challenges and difficulties, the Orange Order continued to survive. In the early 1990s it claimed 31 lodges and 600 members, of whom about 40 percent were from Northern Ireland. 9 Until recently, a focus of their social calendar was the annual Labor Day "Twelfth" celebration held at the Orange Order's retirement home in Hatboro', Pennsylvania. The event usually culminated in a parade around the grounds by Orangemen sporting sashes and lodge banners, and with a pipe or flute band playing the usual selection of loyalist tunes. 10 [End Page 214]
While the American Orange Institution's official position was not to "involve itself in any type of politics with sister jurisdictions," it nevertheless provided an important source of support for the various strands of Ulster unionism. From the late 1960s many of the unionist activists in America were prominent figures in the Orange Order. Visiting unionist politicians also frequently used the US lodges to hold meetings and to appeal for support. The Reverend Martin Smyth, MP, for example, made numerous trips to America in his capacity as Imperial Grand Master of the Orange Order. During these visits he took every opportunity to present the unionist perspective and to keep the stateside brethren informed of the latest political developments in Northern Ireland. 11 Not surprisingly, The Sash, the LOI's quarterly newspaper, was fervently unionist, regularly launching scathing attacks on the IRA and its Irish-American support network.
Unionists also attracted some support from Americans who were interested in their ancestral roots. In 1889 the Scotch-Irish Society of America was founded to promote the history and culture of the eighteenth-century immigrants from Ulster. A central element in the agenda of the organization was to emphasize the difference between these earlier Protestant immigrants and the Catholic Irish who came in large numbers during and after the Great Famine. 12 But while the first annual conventions of the society attracted thousands of delegates, and while affiliates were established in eight states, interest in the organization fell dramatically by the end of the nineteenth century. 13 The Pennsylvania Scotch-Irish Society was the only group that survived into the twentieth century. By 1961, despite many years of difficulties, its activities expanded nationwide, and it became the Scotch-Irish Society of the United States. 14 [End Page 215]
Although primarily interested in promoting history and culture, the Scotch-Irish Society maintained a traditional association with Ulster unionism. In the early twentieth century its leaders strongly opposed Home Rule and made Sir Edward Carson and James Craig honorary members. During World War I the society sent donations to help wounded members of the Ulster Volunteer Force and later maintained close contact with Basil Brooke and other leaders of the Stormont government. Additionally, there were always members for whom the initial interest in their Scotch-Irish heritage became a catalyst for supporting the unionist cause in America. Thus, when the "Troubles" erupted in Northern Ireland, leaders of the Scotch-Irish Society were among the first to defend the Stormont government with a campaign of local media appearances and letters to newspapers. 15
The Ulster-Irish Society (UIS) was the only other unionist organization active in the decades after World War II. Founded in 1927 by Ulster Protestants in New York City, the UIS developed into a vibrant social and cultural network, helping Northern Ireland immigrants to find work and adjust to life in the Big Apple. Although total membership never reached more than a few hundred, the Ulster Club in Kearney, New Jersey, was a very active affiliate, and branches formed in Illinois, California, and Michigan. 16
The society tried to support the unionist cause whenever possible. It organized protests against the Irish-American anti-partition campaigns in the early 1950s, taking every opportunity to remind Americans about Éire's neutrality during World War II and about Eamon de Valera's message of condolence at the German Embassy in Dublin after Hitler's death, and emphasizing the important role that Northern Ireland had played in the Allied victory. UIS activists also kept in close communication with Stormont leaders and organized receptions, media contacts, and logistical support whenever they came to New York. 17 [End Page 216]
There was considerable cooperation and cross-membership between the three "Ulster" organizations. Bill Best, for example, a Belfast native who owned a travel agency in New York, was president of the Ulster-Irish Society and became grand master of the LOI. All three groups also suffered from similar problems. The challenges presented by Scotch-Irish assimilation were compounded by tougher immigration laws that drastically reduced the number of Irish natives entering the United States throughout most of the twentieth century. The vast majority of those who were able to gain admission came from the Irish Republic or were Catholics from Northern Ireland, driven into exile by the lack of opportunities for the nationalist minority under the Stormont regime. Most Ulster Protestants who migrated to North America tended to settle in Canada. 18
For the small number of Ulster Protestants who did come to the US, the Irish cultural environment they found was generally a "cold house" for anyone with unionist sensitivities. Many aspects of what one unionist commentator describes as the "faux Irishness" in America, from bars to St. Patrick's Day parades, were decidedly nationalist in tone. 19 It was easier for most in this environment to suppress their unionism and to get on with life. Thus, when journalist Wendy Martin interviewed Ulster Protestant immigrants in the early 1970s, it was hardly surprising that she found that most were hesitant to even talk about the "Troubles" and simply wanted to be left in peace. 20
Unionists and the Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association, 1969–70
In the decades after World War II political developments in Northern Ireland were rarely covered in the American media. The formation of the Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association (NICRA) in [End Page 217] 1967, however, and its campaign to end anti-Catholic discrimination led to an unprecedented focus on communal divisions in the province. In an effort to make the Irish situation more comprehensible to Americans, media reports constantly tried to explain the NICRA in the context of the African-American civil-rights campaign. Catholics were described as "White Negroes," the attitudes of Protestant extremists were portrayed as similar to the racism of poor whites in the Deep South, and the Orange Order was often compared to the Ku Klux Klan. 21 Given such a negative framework of analysis, editorial opinion and commentaries generally displayed little sympathy for unionism or the Northern Ireland government.
Anger among unionists at their negative portrayal in the US media was compounded by the activities of NICRA support groups. The American Congress for Irish Freedom (ACIF), in particular, had launched an extensive publicity campaign against the Special Powers Act, the Royal Ulster Constabulary, and the Northern Ireland government's civil-rights record. Unionist leaders were especially infuriated by the ACIF's attempts to discourage American firms from investing in Ulster because of what they alleged was "systematic anti-Catholic discrimination in the workplace." Prime Minister Terence O'Neill had attracted a considerable number of US companies to the province, and there was growing alarm that this success might be undermined. In early April 1969, Robert Porter, the Northern Ireland minister for home affairs, issued a scathing attack against the ACIF, accusing it of grossly distorting and misrepresenting the facts in an attempt to "vilify and denigrate the government." 22 Shortly afterward Terence O'Neill embarked on an impromptu trip to the US, trying to defend his government's record and to repair whatever damage the ACIF campaign was having on investment and the tourist industry in Northern Ireland. 23 [End Page 218]
O'Neill had been a frequent visitor to the US during his term in office, and at a meeting with Lyndon Johnson in 1964 he became the first Ulster premier to be officially received at the White House. Unionists failed to capitalize on this meeting, however, and never developed a significant network of contacts or friends in Washington. 24 Nevertheless, in July 1969, James Chichester-Clark, the new prime minister of Northern Ireland, announced that he would lead a major unionist offensive against Irish-American groups and try to influence US political leaders. 25 At a lavish news conference in Belfast the Ulster Unionist Party launched a financial appeal to support a sustained campaign to "counter adverse propaganda and tell the world the truth about Ulster." 26
Although the deepening political crisis in Northern Ireland prevented Chicester-Clark from leaving the province, the need for unionist action was made imperative when Bernadette Devlin, the most internationally recognizable and dynamic figure in the civil- rights movement, launched a publicity and fund-raising tour of the US in August 1969. Ever since her election to the British parliament at the age of twenty-one, the American media had continually portrayed her as an "Irish Joan of Arc"—a feisty, mini-skirted heroine, courageously battling injustice. 27 When Devlin arrived in the US on 21 August, one analyst described how journalists "lunged at her with undisguised passion, falling on her every word." 28 Press reports in Ireland described the warm reception that she had received at the United Nations and from New York Mayor John Lindsay, the large crowds attending her rallies, and the hundreds of thousands of dollars rolling into her campaign treasury.
Stormont officials were deeply alarmed at the reports from America. Even though deep divisions within the Unionist Party had complicated plans for a publicity drive, Minister of Commerce Roy [End Page 219] Bradford announced that a "truth squad" would soon be dispatched across the Atlantic to take on Devlin and to present the government's case. 29 On 29 August, after hastily coordinating an itinerary with the Ulster-Irish Society and the Orange Order, Robin Bailie, a member of the Stormont parliament, and William Stratton Mills, a member of the British House of Commons, arrived in New York to spearhead the Unionist Party's first coordinated US publicity offensive of the "Troubles." 30
The two unionist leaders attracted plenty of media attention. The New York Times ran daily reports on their activities, and both made frequent appearances on metropolitan TV and radio programs, usually fielding called-in questions and debating Irish-American activists. 31 Bailie and Stratton Mills also spoke at gatherings of the Ulster-Irish Society and held a rally with hundreds of Orangemen at the Hatboro' Home in Pennsylvania. 32 The climax of the campaign came with a nationally televised debate between Stratton Mills and Devlin—a program that was subsequently rebroadcast in Ireland. The encounter was marked by heated exchanges between the two politicians and by vain attempts by the moderator to maintain order. There were scuffles and jeering in the audience, equally composed of Devlin supporters seated beneath an Irish Tricolor and members of the Ulster-Irish Society clustered around a Union Jack. 33 While both sides claimed victory, neutral observers were left with an understandable sense of bewilderment. Irish Times television critic Ken Gray, for example, felt that the debate "consisted of long-winded accusation and counter-accusation on relatively minor points"; he lamented that "for American audiences it can only have been confirmation of traditional suspicions that all the Irish, north [End Page 220] and south, Catholic and Protestant, are more than a little round the bend." 34
Although Bailie and Stratton Mills tried to publicize Stormont's recent civil-rights reforms, their principal objective was to destroy Bernadette Devlin's image in America. The strategy they employed, while far from subtle and often loose with the facts, had some success in tapping into American anticommunist sentiment. At all of their press conferences and meetings the "truth squad" leaders emphasized Devlin's left-wing politics, repeatedly describing her as "Fidel Castro in a mini-skirt." They also tried to convince the American media and US audiences that People's Democracy was "a weird mélange of Communists, Trotskyites, Socialists, Maoists, Castroites, assorted leftists, and revolutionaries." 35 To reinforce the point, they distributed a glossy brochure entitled Ulster: The Facts, featuring a front-page photo of Devlin breaking paving stones for ammunition during riots in Derry. 36
By the end of her tour some major metropolitan newspapers had reassessed their "saintly" view of Devlin and denounced her "radical politics." The Detroit News described her as a "rabble rouser" and "mini-skirted Danny the Red," while the Chicago Tribune condemned her association with the "barefoot bluejean brigade" and suggested that her actions would only help "communists and other subversives who regard the religious conflict as a pretext for turning all of Ireland into Britain's Cuba." 37 While much of this criticism stemmed from Devlin's highly publicized confrontations with conservative Irish Americans, unionists were quick to give credit to the "truth squad's" efforts. A Belfast News Letter editorial writer gloated:
When people are on a winning wicket, it is prudent to make the most of it. That she has not done so would seem to indicate hopes disappointed. This is hardly surprising. Miss Devlin's brand of propaganda, like Hitler's, runs its course until its falsity is exposed and it is [End Page 221] seen for what it is worth. It is this point at which the M.P. for Mid-Ulster stands today. Her stock has slumped, and even Irish-Americans, traditionally so generous to the cause of the 'oul sod,' have on this occasion tightened their purse-strings. By doing so, they have passed a silent vote of no confidence in her campaign. 38
Like "establishment" unionists in the Stormont government, Ian Paisley, the central figure in the loyalist reaction to the civil-rights movement, was incensed by reports of Devlin's trip to the US. But when he heard that Bailie and Stratton Mills were also attacking him as a "troublemaker" and a "divisive influence in the unionist community," the firebrand preacher determined to counter the "lying slanders" against him by launching his own publicity and fund-raising campaign. Never one for understatement, Paisley, at a Belfast news conference on 23 August, announced that he was heading to America to conduct "one of the most important missions for Ulster ever undertaken." 39
From the early 1960s Paisley's fervent preaching had won him numerous admirers among American fundamentalists. One of the most prominent was the Reverend Carl McIntire, head of the ultra-conservative International Council of Christian Churches (ICCC) in New Jersey, and a fierce opponent of the ecumenical movement. By the mid-1960s McIntire's blend of fundamentalist Christianity and right-wing politics had attracted a large popular following. Donations from his supporters helped to create a multimillion-dollar ministry based on a publishing house and radio broadcasts which aired daily on over six hundred stations throughout the US. 40
Paisley's influence made McIntire a fiery supporter of the loyalist cause. As a guest speaker at militant rallies in Belfast's Ulster Hall, he castigated the reformism of the O'Neill administration and denounced the NICRA as similar to the "black revolutionaries in the US who burned American cities." 41 When Bernadette Devlin arrived in New York, McIntire used his radio broadcasts to condemn [End Page 222] her as a "mini-skirted Marxist" who was "using the religious tension in Northern Ireland to help bring about a communist revolution." He also kept Paisley closely informed of her activities and statements, encouraging him to come over immediately and "set the record straight." 42
Paisley was hoping for a face-to-face media confrontation with either Devlin or the "truth squad," but by the time that he arrived in Philadelphia on 6 September, both his adversaries had returned to Northern Ireland. Undeterred, at an airport press reception, accompanied by McIntire and a group of about one hundred and fifty supporters waving Ulster flags and anti-Devlin placards, Paisley announced that his publicity campaign would continue. 43 The next day he held forth on a phone-in program on one of McIntire's radio affiliates, delivering his customary savaging of political opponents and raising $5,000 for "Protestants who had suffered financial setbacks as a result of the violence in Northern Ireland." 44
Paisley also held a rally and fund-raiser at Bob Jones University in Greenville, South Carolina. Its president, Bob Jones, Jr., was in many ways the archetypical "Bible Belt" fundamentalist. Politically ultra-conservative and prone to fierce theological conflicts with evangelicals whom he felt were too liberal, Jones led a college infamous for its refusal to accept African-American students and then, when federal legislation made this illegal, for maintaining a ban on interracial dating. At the same time, however, Jones was a noted connoisseur of art and spent years acquiring a superb collection of Italian baroque paintings for BJU's gallery. He was also a gifted Shakespearean actor, once turning down a contract with Warner Brothers Studios, and he developed a renowned program of theatrical and operatic productions on campus. 45
Jones first met Ian Paisley in 1962 at an anti-ecumenical protest in Amsterdam. He was immediately impressed by the Ulsterman's "commitment to the gospel" and soon regarded him as "one of the [End Page 223] greatest living preachers." 46 The Amsterdam meeting was the beginning of a lifelong friendship. Paisley became a frequent speaker at Bob Jones University, eventually joined its board of trustees, and, from this position, established contacts with influential southern politicians, such as Senators Strom Thurmond and Jesse Helms. Jones was also a regular visitor to Northern Ireland. In 1966 he traveled to Belfast to confer an honorary doctorate on Paisley. During the trip his distaste for popery was reinforced when he was pelted with stones by a hostile Catholic crowd during an evangelical crusade in Armagh city. 47 The following year Jones delivered the keynote speech at the dedication ceremony for Paisley's Martyrs' Memorial Church, for which $48,000 had been raised in the US. 48
Like Carl McIntire, Jones fully embraced Paisley's politico-religious vision. He condemned the mainstream Irish Protestant churches as "full of apostasy" and believed that the Northern Ireland conflict was "due to satanic hatred of the gospel and of God's people." 49 In one of his most colorful outbursts, delivered after "pressure from a Fenian Irish priest" led the State Department to cancel Paisley's US visa in 1982, Jones described Alexander Haig as "a monster in human flesh and a demon-possessed instrument to destroy America." He then asked his students to pray that "the Lord will smite him, hip and thigh, bone and marrow, heart and lungs, and all there is to him, and He shall destroy him quickly and utterly." 50
Support from Jones, McIntire, and other fundamentalists could not prevent the drop in media interest in Paisley's US tour when the prospect of a showdown with Bernadette Devlin failed to materialize. The few reports that appeared were mostly negative, focusing on Mayor Lindsay's refusal to meet with Paisley and on the vociferous Irish-American protests at some of his appearances. The "Big [End Page 224] Man's" fund-raising, which he claimed had netted $20,000, also fell short of initial projections. 51
Yet in spite of the mixed results of this trip, Paisley continued to make regular visits to the US to promote his theological and political beliefs. His zealous Protestantism always attracted a network of born-again Christian admirers, some of whom formed the congregations for several branches of his Free Presbyterian Church in America. 52 And there has always been a small but devoted cadre of supporters who, like Jones and McIntire, were initially attracted by his fire-and-brimstone fundamentalism and then endorsed his brand of unionist politics. 53
Unionists and America, 1970–72
The early 1970s saw a major increase in Irish-American involvement in Northern Ireland. The Irish Northern Aid Committee (Noraid), formed in April 1970, became an important source of financial support for the Irish republican movement. Noraid also launched anti-unionist and anti-British publicity campaigns that increased in effectiveness as the nationalist community was perceived to be the target of state repression, particularly with the introduction of internment (9 August 1971) and the events of Bloody Sunday (30 January 1972). In addition, clandestine Irish-American gun-running cells began sending supplies of weapons which significantly increased the IRA's military capabilities. 54
Unionists reserved particular scorn for Noraid activists. They were constantly vilified for supporting "a campaign of murder [End Page 225] against the Protestant community from the safety of their homes across the Atlantic." Irish-American politicians were also castigated as ignorant of the political realities in Ulster and primarily motivated by cynical opportunism aimed at securing electoral support. In October 1971, for example, when Senator Edward Kennedy introduced a congressional resolution calling for the removal of British troops and Irish unification, the enraged unionist response set the standard for over two decades of reaction to Irish-American political involvement. Prime Minister Brian Faulkner condemned Kennedy for swallowing "the hoary old propaganda of the IRA" and accused him of playing "American politics with Ulster people's lives." 55 There were also plenty of references to Chappaquiddick and suggestions that the senator would be better employed in sorting out his own problems than in initiating his "unwanted interference in the internal affairs of the UK." 56 A front-page editorial in the Belfast News Letter captured the essence of unionist opinion by proclaiming that the Scotch-Irish had "carved out a nation years before the departure of the Kennedys and the Famine Irish from the shores of County Wexford," and then concluding,
Of all Senator Edward Kennedy's indiscretions—and they are too well remembered to recall here—his dabbling in the affairs of the United Kingdom is most mischievous and dangerous. His lack of knowledge of the situation in Ulster might be excused, but to presume to advise, indeed to direct, from that position is to display again the foolish arrogance for which he has established a reputation and the facility to misjudge which was characteristic of his father. . . . Kennedy has succeeded only in exposing to the world his ignorance, his vanity, and, worst of all, his prejudice. 57 [End Page 226]
While Unionist Party officials continually issued statements attacking Irish-American involvement, a few were convinced that nurturing a grassroots-support network in the US could be an effective way to get their views across. Although, as noted earlier, the prospects for such a network were extremely limited, there were a few individuals willing to stand up and challenge Irish America. The Reverend Charles Reynolds in New York, from a fiercely unionist background in Belfast, was the most active and outspoken. Reynolds, who married an American missionary whom he met while serving with the Royal Air Force Regiment in India during World War II, first came to the US in the late 1940s. In 1957, after returning from five years of missionary work in India, he became associate pastor of a Methodist church in Manchester, Connecticut. The congregation had a sizeable contingent of textile workers from Northern Ireland who had been brought over by the local Cheney Silk Mills. They helped to maintain an active British Legion Club, an Orange Hall, and an Ulster Pipe Band which led the town's annual celebration of "the Twelfth." 58 Reynolds, a fervent Orangeman, was initiated into the Royal Black Preceptory in Manchester before moving to Attleboro, Massachusetts, to become pastor of the Methodist congregation there. After six years of service he was transferred to New York to administer the headquarters of Ludhiana Christian Medical College. 59
In New York, Reynolds became active in the Ulster-Irish Society and eventually rose to prominence as a vocal critic of Irish-American support for the NICRA. Officials at Unionist Party headquarters in Belfast, who sent him information on the latest political developments, tried to support his efforts whenever possible. Reynolds also made frequent trips to Northern Ireland, met with politicians and Stormont ministers, and encouraged them to bring the unionist case to the US. In August 1971, for example, he helped to arrange for John Taylor, minister for home affairs, to come to New York to participate [End Page 227] in a number of television debates with Irish-American nationalist leaders. 60 In September he hosted the Reverend Martin Smyth and the Reverend Ernest Long, joining them in a confrontation with Noraid supporters outside the court where deportation proceedings were being held against the noted IRA commander Joe Cahill. 61
The weakness of the Ulster-Irish Society, combined with his deep alarm at the rising levels of Irish-American activism, spurred Reynolds to establish the Northern Ireland Service Council (NISC) in October 1971. The principal objectives of this group were to support and encourage more unionist publicity trips to the US, to coordinate activities between "societies in the US with Ulster/Scottish-Irish ethnic origin," to raise and disburse funds, and to serve as a relief agency "for emergency situations in Northern Ireland." 62 At its peak the NISC listed over one hundred members. Most were originally from, or had ancestral links to, Northern Ireland and had been involved with the UIS and the Orange Order. There were a few, however, whose surnames—such as De Angelis, Jacono, and Singerman—reflected New York's cosmopolitanism. 63
Reynolds encouraged activists in the NISC to campaign against what he saw as a "nationalist bias" in the US media. In addition to making appearances on local television and radio, he coordinated a relentless pro-unionist letter-writing campaign to media executives, newspaper editors, and political commentators on Irish affairs. It was often the case that much of this correspondence was ignored and had little impact, but there were occasional successes. On 11 October 1971, for example, the New York Times printed one of Reynolds's letters warning Americans to ignore appeals for financial contributions from Noraid because donations would be used to support the "senseless slaughter and carnage being perpetrated by the IRA." 64 [End Page 228]
The NISC had a limited budget to pay for general administration, rooms for meetings, visits by unionists to New York, and its yearly banquet. Most of the financial resources of the group came from membership dues and donations from supporters in various parts of the US, as well as through occasional mail solicitations to members of the Orange Order. 65 While the NISC rarely had more than a few hundred dollars in its treasury, it sometimes bought advertising space in Northern Ireland newspapers to support the Unionist Party at election time. 66 Reynolds also established a Protestant Relief Fund to send money to the Grand Orange Lodge in Belfast for distribution to "victims of republican violence." Collections were taken at the Orange Home's "Twelfth" celebrations, and some individual lodges and activists sent donations to the appeal. 67 This financial drive was quickly ended, however, when Reynolds became concerned that some funds might end up in the hands of loyalist paramilitaries. 68
Reynolds tried to coordinate activities with, and encourage the formation of, other unionist groups in the US. One of his few successes was with Harry Bennison and the Ulster American Loyalists (UAL) in California. Bennison, who left Belfast in 1967 to work as a ship's designer in New York, had moved to Los Angeles in the early 1970s to take a job with a firm of naval architects. He began socializing with a group of Ulster Protestant exiles who, like himself, had been recruited by shipping companies or were employed in the West Coast aerospace industry. 69 Many in the group were frustrated at the lack of unionist voices in the local media and were alarmed by Noraid activities in Los Angeles and San Francisco. In an effort to challenge what they saw as the "pervasive nationalist influence in [End Page 229] California," they formed the Ulster American Loyalists (UAL) in early 1972. 70
The UAL held monthly meetings at Bennison's home, usually attracting between fifty and seventy activists. They mixed strategy sessions and political seminars on Northern Ireland with barbecues and socializing. 71 There was so much initial interest that Bill Irwin, a friend of Bennison and fellow Ulster exile, formed a second chapter in San Francisco. The organization also began publishing a small paper, the UAL Newsletter, which contained updates on activities, news from Northern Ireland, articles on Scotch-Irish history, and fierce editorial attacks on the IRA and Noraid. 72
The UAL's activities were basically similar to those of the NISC. Bennison opposed Irish-American nationalists on local television and radio; directed letter-writing campaigns to the Los Angeles Times and San Francisco Chronicle; senta constant stream of telegrams to political leaders in Washington, London, and Belfast; and occasionally organized counterdemonstrations against Noraid events. 73 The UAL's political stance, however, tended to be more militant than that of the NISC. In a 1972 letter to the Los Angeles Times, for example, Bennison maintained that the UDA was formed "to protect the lives and heritage of the vast majority of Northern Ireland people against left-wing IRA terrorism." He then made the following comment on two bomb attacks in Dublin that were linked to loyalist paramilitaries: "After hundreds of explosions in Northern Ireland, if it took just two to make the government of the Republic take action against the IRA, then so be it. For four years the IRA has mounted its murderous attacks against Northern Ireland and then returned to the sanctuary of the Republic!" 74
In the months after its formation the UAL forged links with the Orange Order, loyalist groups in Canada, and some members of the Northern Ireland Association—a small political and social group in Burbank, California, composed of both Protestant and Catholic [End Page 230] immigrants. 75 Bennison, who knew Charles Reynolds when he was in New York, also began coordinating activities with the NISC. Both men then made connections with the Ulster Protestant Association (UPA) in Philadelphia, a group composed of about one hundred members, many of whom were Paisleyites. Sam Calderwood, the leading figure in the UPA, came from the staunchly loyalist Lower Shankill area of Belfast and had personal connections with some prominent paramilitary leaders. 76
The first opportunity for these new unionist support groups to work together came in late February 1972 when congressional hearings were held on Senator Edward Kennedy's Northern Ireland resolutions. Charles Reynolds felt that it was essential for unionists to be heard in Washington and helped to arrange for a delegation from Belfast to appear before the committee. Bill Henderson, a member of the Unionist Party's executive committee and publisher of the Belfast News Letter, led a group which included Patrick Macrory, chairman of a committee which had recently proposed sweeping reforms of local government in Northern Ireland, and David Smyth, a director of the party's research department. Reynolds returned from India to help arrange media appearances for the group in New York and to organize submissions from the American unionists. 77 Under Reynolds's direction each member of the unionist delegation tried to refute the nationalist presentations. Bill Henderson focused on the human consequences of IRA violence and tried to link it to international Marxist revolution. Reynolds defended the Stormont government, blaming Catholics for "sowing the seeds of division in the Ulster community" because they "sulked in sullen silence and suspicion" instead of fully participating in Northern Ireland's institutions. Patrick Macrory emphasized that the government was committed to making sweeping reforms which would effectively address Catholic grievances, while Harry Bennison defended internment as "an unfortunate but necessary" response to IRA violence and justified [End Page 231] it by reference to the US government's internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II. 78
The members of the unionist delegation, in public statements at least, were convinced that they had effectively countered the nationalist testimony. Bill Henderson later asserted, "I am satisfied that we got Ulster's case put firmly across and, from the public comment they made, influential members of the sub-committee were obviously impressed." 79 Brian Faulkner lavished praise on the American unionist groups and later expressed his gratitude in the following telegram to Charles Reynolds:
At a time when Northern Ireland is undergoing one of the gravest crises in its history, it is of immense encouragement to me and my colleagues in government . . . to know there are representatives like you and Bill Best and organizations such as the Northern Ireland Service Council and Ulster-Irish Society prepared to do so much to defend our constitution against the many-faced enemies seeking to destroy the fabric of democracy. . . . May I say with deep sincerity how much I personally appreciate your dedication and unselfishness in leaving your work in India to return specially to the US to help so successfully in rebutting the anti-Ulster testimony at the Washington hearings. Reports reaching me indicate that the mission, although small numerically, lacked nothing in cogency and effectiveness and, overall, did a splendid job in counter-balancing the record. We are most fortunate to have men of the character, caliber, and ability of you and Bill and your organizations projecting the authoritative side of Northern Ireland's case so many thousands of miles away. 80
Despite Faulkner's glowing assessment, press reports suggest more modest results from the unionist presentation. The Times of London, for example, claimed that the unionist submissions had limited impact, as they were given on the last day of the proceedings, following two days of nationalist testimony, and that many neutral observers had already left Capitol Hill. In addition, Bill Henderson [End Page 232] was criticized for engaging in "fruitless and occasionally acrimonious exchanges" with committee members that delayed the other unionist presentations until late in the afternoon. 81
American unionists had barely time to assess their impact in Washington when the British government, in the midst of the most violent year in the "Troubles," prorogued Stormont and imposed direct rule from Westminster. As in Northern Ireland, most members of the US unionist network were embittered by what they saw as Edward Heath's betrayal of their prime minister. Charles Reynolds and his associates immediately offered their support to Faulkner and persuaded him to come to America in late June to defend his administration and to explain the unionist case to the media.
Faulkner, who presided over the introduction of internment and Bloody Sunday, was a hated figure among Irish-American nationalists. To avoid as many protests as possible, Reynolds, who directed Faulkner's agenda, had to take a series of "security precautions." When the former prime minister departed from London, it was leaked to the press that he would fly directly to New York. But to avoid demonstrators who were waiting at JFK airport, Faulkner flew to Los Angeles, where Harry Bennison and the UAL organized media appearances and receptions with local dignitaries. After Faulkner had spent a few days on the West Coast, it was announced that he would be flying straight to New York. But again, to avoid protesters, a short stopover was organized in Philadelphia, where members of the UPA greeted him at the airport and arranged a press conference. While these tactics helped to confuse Irish-American demonstrators, US agents who were providing security for Faulkner were livid with Reynolds for deliberately misleading them about the flight itinerary. 82
Faulkner's eventual arrival in New York generated extensive media coverage. He gave a succession of press interviews, spoke with the editorial boards of the city's major newspapers, and appeared on the nationwide breakfast talk-show "Good Morning [End Page 233] America." During one interview with an evening radio call-in show in Philadelphia, Reynolds alerted Sam Calderwood and got members of the UPA to block the lines to the station with their questions, thus ensuring that Faulkner had time to fully explain his views and to receive supportive responses. Although Faulkner managed to sidestep Noraid demonstrators with several Indiana Jones-like escapes through freight elevators, underground garages, and back exits, the protests significantly disrupted his public appearances. An important news conference at the New York Press Club had to be canceled following a bomb threat, and an Irish Catholic waitress disrupted a business luncheon by shouting obscenities while Lucy Faulkner was addressing the invited guests.
In this atmosphere of continuing protests and bomb threats, Reynolds concluded Faulkner's trip with a gala banquet on 1 July 1972 at the Biltmore Hotel. Over one hundred members of the NISC, the Ulster-Irish Society, and the Orange Order attended an event which culminated in a rousing call by Faulkner for continued unionist activism in America, followed by a piper playing a lament to commemorate the anniversary of the sacrifice of the 36th Ulster Division at the Battle of the Somme in July 1916, an event with enormous significance in unionist historical memory.
Conclusion
The lament at the Biltmore might just as well have been for unionist efforts to put their case across in America, for Faulkner's visit marked the pinnacle of transatlantic publicity initiatives in this period and would not be matched for over a decade. Throughout most of the 1970s and 1980s, while they were always quick to issue scathing condemnations of Irish-American involvement, unionists did virtually nothing to present an alternative perspective on Northern Ireland affairs in the US. Within the Official Unionist Party only the Reverend Martin Smyth and deputy leader Harold McCusker tried to bring their message to America, but their trips were sporadic and given virtually no support from Glengall Street. Even Ian Paisley usually focused on his pastoral duties while in the US and rarely engaged in exclusively political initiatives. The few campaigns that unionists did organize were mostly spontaneous responses to [End Page 234] fears that American public opinion was rising in support of Irish republicanism. A classic example of this was the joint OUP-DUP "Operation USA" tour in 1982, launched in an attempt to counteract the sympathy generated for Bobby Sands and other hunger strikers who had died in the Maze Prison. 83
There are many reasons, aside from the lack of a constituency, why there was no developed strategy to sell unionism in the US. Both the OUP and DUP operated on modest budgets, and there was little available cash to sustain ongoing transatlantic publicity campaigns. Leaders of both parties usually felt that their limited resources were better spent on electoral campaigns at home. They also believed that if unionist perspectives had to be presented outside Northern Ireland, it was vastly more important to target British officials in London rather than political leaders in Washington. In addition, many unionists felt that trying to engage Irish Americans at the grassroots was a waste of time because of their "implacable hostility and pervasive nationalism." Appearing at a public forum in any city with a large Irish activist community would have been a daunting prospect for even the most fearless unionist.
It was also the case that, while there were plenty of policy issues over which they disagreed with British ministers, unionists felt that the British government was looking after most of their concerns in America. The British Embassy in Washington and the British Information Service in New York used their considerable resources to counteract the political influence of Irish America. The Anglo-American "special relationship" generally ensured that the US government kept out of Northern Ireland affairs, while federal law-enforcement agencies vigorously pursued Irish-American gun-runners and helped to apprehend IRA fugitives.
With little encouragement from the political parties in Northern Ireland, and with few unionists coming over, membership of the support groups in America quickly declined. By the mid-1970s the unionist "network" had been reduced to a few individuals mostly operating in isolation. The effectiveness of American unionism was further reduced as political divisions between activists mirrored the splits between unionists in Northern Ireland. Within the NISC, [End Page 235] for example, some members strongly disagreed with Charles Reynolds's continued support for Brian Faulkner, particularly after his acceptance of power-sharing in the Sunningdale Agreement of December 1973. In addition, Reynolds's distaste for Ian Paisley (he compared him to Hitler and blamed him for destroying unionist unity) blocked what slim potential there might have been for joint action with Bob Jones and company.
Faced with the disintegration of the groups that they had created, the leaders of American unionism struggled to maintain their activities. Harry Bennison continued to appear in local media for a few years but increasingly devoted his energies to promoting the Orange Order in California. In 1998 he was instrumental in establishing Ulster-Scots LOL 1690 in Los Angeles, the first new American lodge to be instituted in over twenty years. 84
When the UPA fell apart in the mid-1970s, Sam Calderwood joined with Harold Alexander, a fellow Belfast native and resident of Philadelphia, in promoting political independence as a solution to Northern Ireland's problems. In 1979 they helped to organize a US tour by loyalist paramilitary leaders to explain details of this plan and to secure help from Irish-American lawyers in drafting a constitution and bill of rights for the proposed new state. When this effort attracted little interest, Calderwood faded from prominence and subsequently focused on activities linked to Philadelphia's British Legion Club. 85
Of all the early leaders of American unionist groups, Charles Reynolds remained the most active politically. Despite the steady decline in NISC membership, his commentary and letter-writing [End Page 236] campaigns never diminished. In the mid-1970s he also began bringing small groups of Americans on tours of Northern Ireland, partly to expose participants to unionism and "undermine negative Irish-American propaganda." In addition, Reynolds preserved close personal ties with leaders of the Ulster Unionist Party and played an important role in encouraging them to break out of their traditional isolationism and to launch an engagement with the Clinton administration that would become the high-water mark of all unionist efforts in America.
The UUP's American initiatives were driven by the Clinton administration's increasing involvement after 1992 in the Northern Ireland "peace process." Most unionists believed that the initial US policies, particularly the granting of a visa to Gerry Adams, came in response to powerful Irish-American lobbyists who were sympathetic to Sinn Féin. While some unionists, mostly in the DUP, reacted in the expected way, condemning Clinton, in one memorable instance, as a "draft-dodging, IRA-loving pest," a progressive faction within the UUP concluded that unionism had no alternative but to try to counter the Irish-American lobby and to provide Washington with a more "balanced" political perspective.
Clinton officials strongly encouraged the UUP progressives to come to America, make their case, and see for themselves that the White House had no hidden nationalist agenda. Nancy Soderberg, responsible for Irish affairs on the National Security Council, was concerned that the unfavorable unionist perception of the administration would ultimately weaken Clinton's ability to advance a comprehensive peace deal. There was also an assumption that regular unionist visits could help to erode provincialism and expose them to "American opinions on compromise and talking to one's enemies." 86
David Trimble, after becoming UUP leader in 1995, led a continuous stream of unionist delegations to Washington, where they were given an extraordinary level of access to Clinton and other top officials in the White House. Eventually, with the financial support of Ulster businessman Tony Cully-Foster, the UUP established a permanent office in the capitol to coordinate their trips, lobby Congress, [End Page 237] and present unionist viewpoints to the media. Trimble and his supporters even tried to bring their message to Irish-American audiences through a campaign of attending previously taboo social gatherings and appearing at public debates in New York, Boston, and Chicago.
Even though these UUP initiatives were conducted at an unprecedented level of intensity, the results were mixed. Unionist delegations failed to make a noticeable impact on lawmakers in Congress, and editorial opinion in major US newspapers generally remained critical of unionist positions, although David Trimble was given considerable praise for his role in the making of the Good Friday Agreement of April 1998. 87 More positively, the UUP's access to the White House allowed unionist concerns to be brought directly to the Clinton administration and perhaps contributed to a more nuanced approach to Northern Ireland. Additionally, in explaining their views at grassroots Irish-American forums, UUP leaders forced some nationalist listeners to reassess traditional assumptions about the fragility of unionist culture. Although some of these gatherings generated fiercely hostile exchanges, and though there were few conversions, the intensity of unionist presentations debunked the misconception of some Irish Americans that "unionists are a transplanted political flower which will whither once the English gardener has gone." 88
The Bush administration, while maintaining a special envoy and paying lip service to supporting the "peace process," relegated Northern Ireland well down its list of priorities. Consequently, the UUP, seeing less need for missions to Washington, drastically reduced its transatlantic campaign—a process further accelerated by the deep internal struggles within the party over the implementation [End Page 238] of the Good Friday Agreement. In the past few years UUP leaders have reverted to the traditional approach of reacting to Irish-American involvement from afar. As a result, those in the US interested in Northern Ireland affairs, and who retain the potential to have a significant influence on the province, are not hearing unionist views directly, and the American political arena has been left open almost exclusively to Sinn Féin.
| i don't know |
On this day in 1968, the first two decimal coins were introduced in the UK. Name either of them. | Decimal Coins of the UK - The Change to Decimal Coinage
The Change to Decimal Coinage
Pictures of Decimal Coins
Decimalisation Day
D-Day was February 15th 1971. On that day the United Kingdom changed from the centuries old tradition of using 12 pence to the shilling and 20 shillings to the pound to a new decimal 100 new pence to the pound.
Options considered
There had been much debate as to the best way of implementing the switch.
Australia used a dollar valued at ten old shillings, making the new cent equal to 1.2 old pence, a small change in value.
An alternative was to go to a pound-mil system, with a mil equal to 0.24 old pence, a latter-day successor to the farthing.
Another was to keep the penny and have a new unit at 100 pence (eight shillings and fourpence).
However, in the UK the pound was considered to be particularly important because of the UK's international trading status. In addition, having a new penny worth 2.4 old pence was less of a problem as inflation had made its purchasing power insignificant. As a temporary measure a half new penny was introduced, but as will be seen this had a short life. There was even a pattern quarter penny made in aluminium, but this was not proceeded with.
It was realised at the time that the decision was made that the life of the halfpenny would be very short, but it was felt necessary despite the considerable extra cost of having to mint the coin. Banks never accepted transactions involving an odd halfpenny.
The Timetable for the Change
The change was made gradually over three years, in a number of stages.
In 1968 new shillings and florins were issued as 5 new pence and 10 new pence coins. The older shillings and florins continued to circulate long after decimalisation until the size of the coins was reduced. Theoretically silver coins from 1816 could still have been found in change, but the active withdrawal of silver in the years following the change in 1947, followed by the combination of a dramatic rise in the price of silver with devaluation in 1967 meant that silver coins rapidly vanished from circulation.
Blue plastic wallets containing the new 5p and 10p coins dated 1968, along with 1/2p, 1p and 2p coins dated 1971 were put on sale. These wallets are still very common.
In October 1969 the 50 new pence piece replaced the 10 shilling note, which ceased to be legal tender on 22nd November 1970.
The old halfpenny was demonetised on 1st August 1969.
The half-crown was demonetised on 1st January 1970.
The remaining decimal coins became legal tender on 15th February 1971. Maundy coins (and silver threepenny pieces of Maundy design, i.e. with a crowned three on the reverse) were revalued as being in new pence at the same time.
The changeover was so rapid that the old penny and nickel brass threepence pieces had been removed from circulation by the end of 1971, although I know of one shop in the Yorkshire Dales which continued to use the old currency for a long time on the basis that 'this new-fangled stuff will never catch on'.
The old penny and threepence coins ceased to be legal tender on 31st August 1971, just over six months after D-day. It is no longer possible to exchange them for current coins at a bank.
Later Developments
The sixpence , which was allowed to continue circulating at 2½ new pence, was eventually withdrawn at the end of June 1980. I am indebted to Brian Dominic for the following quote from John Glover's book "London's Underground": "The adoption of decimal currency on 15 February 1971 posed a few problems for London Transport, which had favoured the £ Sterling being halved in value and divided into 100 pence - what today might be termed a '50p pound'. With their extensive use of coin operated machines, the Board took strong exception to the proposed introduction of ½p coins, the lack of any coin between 2p and 5p, and the lack of a close relationship of old values and coins with the new. It was all too difficult for them, and it was indeed at London Transport's behest that the 2½p (sixpence) was retained in the coinage for the time being."
The term 'New Penny' was dropped in 1982 on the grounds that after ten years it was no longer 'new'. In that year a new denomination, the 20p coin was introduced. It has proved very popular, and is one of the most frequently encountered coins in change.
The pound coin was first issued in 1983. Again, there was a little resistance to the change from note to coin, but cessation of production of the pound note rapidly overcame the objections and the coin is now very well established. The notes were demonetised on 11th March 1988.
The half penny coin was last minted for circulation in 1983. In 1984 the denomination was only issued in Mint and Proof Sets and in December 1984 the coin was demonetised, as inflation had rendered it an anachronism.
In 1985 a new portrait came into use, designed by Raphael David Maklouf, although the portrait on the Maundy coins was unchanged.
Commemorative two pound coins were first issued in 1986, but although legal tender they rarely circulated (some are appearing in change now that the bimetallic circulating coin has been introduced, but as they are about twice the weight of circulating coins, banks have difficulty handling them).
Crown sized commemorative coins valued at 25 pence continued to be minted, but after the Royal Wedding issue of 1981 later 'crowns' were valued at five pounds . This is a source of confusion, but the way to be sure is to know that if they are five pound coins they have the value on them.
It was intended that a new two pound coin of the same diameter but thinner than the commemorative versions be introduced in November 1997, but due to technical problems (vending machines rejected them), the introduction was delayed until 1998. This new coin is bimetallic, being the first such coin to be issued in the UK since the tin farthings and halfpennies of the late 17th century. It is the subject of an urban legend, in that a rumour is going the rounds that those coins where the queen is wearing a necklace are rare. This is most definitely untrue, but hoarding of these coins means they not often found in change.
In 1998 a further new obverse portrait was introduced, designed by Ian Rank-Broadley, which is still in use nearly ten years later.
In 2008 a new set of reverse designs has been revealed, which, in the words of the Royal Mint, 'are a contemporary take on traditional heraldry reflecting the nation's rich history'. These designs apply only to the denominations from 1 penny to 1 pound, and I have been told that both the old and the new reverse designs will be put into circulation dated 2008.
Metal Change
In 1992 the metal used for the one penny and two penny coins was changed from bronze to copper coated steel. The use of a pure copper coating means that the colour of mint coins is slightly different. Also, as the density of steel is less than bronze and the weight was unchanged, the newer coins are noticeably thicker than the older ones.
The versions of these coins issued in the 1992 Mint and Proof sets are said to be bronze - only the circulation issue coins of that date were steel.
In 1998 the 2p (and possibly the 1p) temporarily reverted to bronze because of technical problems at the Royal Mint.
In 2011 the 5p and 10p coins will change to being made of plated steel as the lower denominations. Perhaps the 20p and 50p will follow, but the sharper corners of these seven-sided coins may mitigate against this.
Shrinkage
As a result of inflation the coins based on the old system, the five pence and ten pence , were increasingly seen as oversized for their value.
In 1990 a new smaller version of the 5p coin was introduced, and the old large ones along with the shillings that were still to be found were demonetised at the end of that year.
The same technique was used for the 10p coin in 1992, with the old size 10p and florin being demonetised at the end of June 1993. Frustratingly, the new 10p is similar in size to the old large 5p, and very occasionally you get fooled!
The next was the 50p coin , which was reduced in size in 1997. This also reduced the enormous stock of the larger coins held in banks due to a reduction in demand after the introduction of the pound coin. A similar problem with the pound coin now that the circulating two pound coin has come into use did occur only to the extent that new one pound coins were not issued for circulation dated 1998 and 1999.
A new series of 'normal' non-commemorative designs were released in 2008 for all except the two pound coin. As these were not announced until well into the year, coins up to one pound dated 2008 come in both the original 1968/1971 designs and the new 2008 design. The 2008 50p with Britannia reverse had a very low mintage - I have only seen one in circulation.
Starting in 2009, an enormous variety of coins of various denominations are being issued in connection with the 2012 Olympics in London.
The Future
The penny and twopence coins have become ever more insignificant in value in everyday transactions. However, these two denominations comprise the largest bulk of new coins minted at the Royal Mint, no less than 71% in 1998-99. The reason for this is simple - they are hoarded because of their low value, with pockets and purses being emptied of these relatively heavy coins each day.
Australia and New Zealand have both abandoned the 1 and 2 cent coins, with no significant effect on either trade or inflation. Cash transactions are rounded to the nearest 5 cents, while credit card transactions and cheques can still be written for odd cents. How soon will the UK bow to the inevitable and demonetise the 'coppers'?
Legal Tender
The following applies to England and Wales:
20p and 50p coins are legal tender up to a total value of 10 pounds.
5p and 10p coins are legal tender up to a total value of 5 pounds.
1p and 2p coins are legal tender up to a total of 20 pence.
Therefore you cannot insist on paying your Income Tax (or other unpopular bill) in 1p coins!
While five pound coins and old monometallic thick two pound coins are technically legal tender, banks do not accept them. As a result you might find it difficult to find traders willing to accept them.
I gather that Scotland does not have any legal restriction, other than that payment should be presented in a reasonable manner. Tendering a large sum in pennies might not be considered 'reasonable', but the boundary between reasonable and unreasonable is not defined!
Acknowledgements
See my Coins Index page for acknowledgements
CSV File of Values
Download a CSV file of the values of decimal coins.
Links
| 5p and 10p |
On this day in 1941 the reigning monarch, King George II and his government left which European country as German troops invaded ? | British Money - British Culture, Customs and Traditions
British Culture, British Customs and British Traditions
British Money
With dictionary look up. Double click on any word for its definition.
This section is in advanced English and is only intended to be a guide, not to be taken too seriously!
Money, money, money
Pound sterling, strictly speaking refers to basic currency unit of sterling, now the pound , which is the currency of the United Kingdom (UK).
The sign for the pound is £ (or rarely just "L"). Both symbols derive from libra , the Latin word for " pound ". The standard ISO 4217 currency code is GBP = Great Britain Pound.
The pound sterling is one of the worlds most widely traded currencies along with the United States dollar, the Japanese yen and the euro.
In the UK, in order to distinguish the unit of currency from the unit of weight, and perhaps from other units of currency that have the same name, a pound is sometimes referred to more formally as a pound sterling or sometimes simply sterling . The slang term quid is also substituted in informal conversation for "pound(s) sterling". The sterling was originally a name for a silver penny of 1/240 pound. In modern times the pound has replaced the penny as the basic unit of currency as inflation has steadily eroded the value of the currency. Originally a silver penny had the purchasing power of slightly less than a modern pound.
History of British Money
As a unit of currency, the term pound originates from the value of a troy pound of high purity silver known as sterling silver . An Act in 1266 set the weight of the silver penny, so one pound of sterling silver would yield 240 silver pennies. However, although the Pound was subsequently used in accounting (to complement and eventually replace the Mark, valued at 160 silver pennies), no pound coin was issued until 1489.
The penny was originally one '"pennyweight"' of silver. A pennyweight is a unit of mass which is the same as 1.555 grams, or 1⁄240 of a troy pound. So, a penny was literally, as well as monetarily, 1⁄240 of a troy pound of sterling silver.
Sterling (with a basic currency unit of the Tealby penny , rather than the pound) was introduced as the English currency by King Henry II in 1158 , though the name sterling wasn't acquired until later.
Pound sterling was established in 1560 – 61 by Elizabeth I and her advisors, foremost among them Sir Thomas Gresham , brought order to the financial chaos of Tudor England that had been occasioned by the "Great Debasement" of the coinage, which brought on a debilitating inflation during the years 1543 – 51 . By 1551, according to Fernand Braudel (Braudel 1984, pp 356ff), the silver content of a penny had dropped to one part in three. The coinage had become mere fiduciary currency (as modern coins are), and the exchange rate in Antwerp where English cloth was marketed to Europe, had deteriorated. All the coin in circulation was called in for reminting at the higher standard, and paid for at discounted rates.
Pound sterling maintained its intrinsic value — "a fetish in public opinion" Braudel called it — uniquely among European currencies, even after the United Kingdom officially adopted the gold standard, until after World War I, weathering financial crises in 1621 , in 1694 – 96 , when John Locke pamphleteered for the pound sterling as "an invariable fundamental unit" and again in 1774 and 1797 . Not even the violent disorders of the Civil War devalued the pound sterling in European money markets. Braudel attributes to the fixed currency, which was never devalued over the centuries, England's easy credit, security of contracts and rise to financial superiority during the 18th century . The pound sterling has been the money of account of the Bank of England from its inception in 1694 .
The Guinea was a coin until 1797, it was the first British machine-struck gold coin, and was originally worth one pound. However, the name continued in use to reflect a sum of 21/- (one pound and a shilling) well into the 20th century. In fact the term guinea survives in some circles, notably horse racing, to mean an amount of one pound and five pence in decimalised currency.
By 1945, the money in circulation was as follows. The most commonly used nicknames are given in brackets.
Farthing = copper coin value 1/4 penny
Ha'penny = copper coin value 1/2 penny
Penny = copper coin, one of the basic units = 1d
Thrupenny bit = brass coloured twelve sided coin value three pennies = 3d (thrupence)
Sixpence (tanner) = silver coin value six pennies = 6d
Shilling (bob) = silver coin second basic unit, value 12 pennies =1/-
Florin (two bob) = silver coin value two shillings = 2/-
Half-crown (half a dollar) = silver coin value two shillings and six pence = 2/6d
Ten shillings (ten bob) = banknote value 10 shillings = 10/-
Pound (quid) = third basic unit, banknote value 20 shillings or 240 pennies = £1
Five pounds (fiver) = banknote value five pounds = £5
'Copper' and 'silver' coins were, by this time, made from alloys and were named for their colour, rather than the actual metal used. There were 20 shillings to the pound and 12 pence to the shilling.
Farthings were not produced after 1956 and were withdrawn in 1960, because of inflation. In preparation for decimalisation, the ha'penny was withdrawn in 1969, with the half-crown being withdrawn the year after. From 1968, 5p and 10p coins, identical in size, weight and value to the shilling and florin respectively, were introduced.
The symbol, £, for the pound is derived from the first letter of the Latin word for pound, the librum.
The old abbreviation for the penny, d, was derived from the Roman denarius.
The old abbreviation for the shilling, s, was derived from the Roman solidus.
Decimalisation
Prior to decimalisation in 1971, each pound was divided into 240 pence — although it was usually expressed as being divided into twenty shillings , with each shilling equal to twelve pence. The symbol for the shilling was "/" or "s" — not from the first letter of the word, but rather from the Latin word solidus . The symbol for the penny was "d", from the Latin word denarius . (The solidus and denarius were Roman coins.)
After Decimal Day, the value of one penny was therefore different from its pre-decimalisation value. For the first few years after 1971, the new type of penny was commonly referred to as a "new penny". Coins for denominations of ½p, 1p, 2p, 5p, 10p and 50p all bore the name NEW PENCE until 1982, when the inscription changed to ONE PENNY, TWO PENCE, FIVE PENCE and so on.
Denominations
One pound is divided into 100 pence, the singular of which is "penny". The symbol for the penny is "p"; hence coins are often pronounced "pee" rather than "penny" or "pence".
Coins come in the following denominations: One pence (a penny) or (one pee)· Two pence (two pee) · Five pence (five pee) · Ten pence (ten pee) · Twenty pence (twenty pee) · Fifty pence (fifty pee) · One pound (a quid) · Two pounds (two quid)
Notes come in the following denominations: £5 note . £10 note . £20 note . £50 note.
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Born on this day in 1775, what was the first name of the painter JMW Turner? | Joseph Mallord William Turner 1775-1851 (J.M.W. Turner: Sketchbooks, Drawings and Watercolours) | Tate
Self-Portrait c.1799
Tate N00458
Joseph Mallord William Turner was born, it is thought, on 23 April 1775 at 21 Maiden Lane, Covent Garden, London, the son of William Turner (1745–1829), a barber and wig-maker, and his wife Mary, née Marshall (1739–1804). His father, born in South Molton, Devon, had moved to London around 1770 to follow his own father’s trade. His mother came from a line of prosperous London butchers and shopkeepers. Joseph Mallord William Turner was baptised at the local church, St Paul’s in Covent Garden, on 14 May. A sister, Mary Anne, was born in 1778 but died in 1783, just before her fifth birthday. In 1796 the family moved to 26 Hand Court, on the other side of Maiden Lane (fig.2). Turner remained a Londoner and kept a Cockney accent all his life, avoiding the veneer of social polish acquired by many artists of the time as they climbed the professional ladder.
John Wykeham Archer
J.M.W. Turner's birthplace in Maiden Lane, Covent Garden 1852
© The Trustees of the British Museum
Perhaps because his mother was already showing signs of the mental disturbance for which she was admitted first to St Luke’s Hospital for Lunaticks in Old Street in 1799 and then Bethlem Hospital in 1800, Turner was sent to stay with uncles at Brentford in 1785 and Sunningwell in 1789, and to Margate in 1786 where he also attended school. At home his father encouraged his artistic talent and showed off his drawings in his shop. In December 1789, after a term’s probation, Turner entered the Royal Academy Schools, where he progressed from the Plaister Academy, drawing from casts of ancient sculpture, to the life class in 1792. He augmented his studies with other work experience, with architects and architectural draughtsman including Thomas Malton whom he later described as ‘my real master’, 1 and painting scenery for the London stage – the origin, presumably, of a lifelong love of music and opera. By 1794, with his friend Thomas Girtin, he attended the evening ‘academy’ hosted by Dr Thomas Monro at his house in the Adelphi, copying works by other artists. A specialist in mental illness, Monro would later be responsible for his mother’s care at Bethlem.
Joseph Mallord William Turner 1775–1851
View in the Avon Gorge 1791
Pen and ink and watercolour on paper
support: 233 x 294 mm
Tate D00114
View in the Avon Gorge 1791
Tate D00114
Turner’s varied activities indicate wide interests as well as a need to fund his Academy education. The flourishing market for landscape and antiquarian topography, whether watercolours for exhibition and sale or reproduction in prints and books, provided his first real income. Early trips outside London, including a visit to friends of his father’s at Bristol in 1791, alerted him to the value of sketching on the spot as the basis of studio and commercial work; he seems to have thought of having his views of the Avon Gorge – which won him the nickname ‘Prince of the Rocks’ – published as prints (fig.3). From the mid-1790s he settled on the routine he maintained for much of his life: touring in summer and working in the studio in the winter months, for the following year’s exhibitions, on commissions or for the engraver. The first engravings after his topographical drawings appeared in the Copper-Plate Magazine (1794–8) and the Pocket Magazine (1795–6). Post-revolutionary wars in Europe confined his first tours to home ground; the Midlands in 1794, the North in 1797 and Wales on several occasions up to 1799. In 1801 he visited Scotland.
Turner exhibited at the Royal Academy from 1790, showing watercolours until 1796 when he sent his first oil, Fishermen at Sea (Tate T01585 , fig.4), its marine subject signalling wider ambitions as a painter and his refusal to be typecast as a topographer. In the following years his exhibited works diversified into history, literature and myth, challenged the styles of the Old Masters and made rapid advances in technique. While some of his first important commissions were for architectural and topographical watercolours such as views of Salisbury and its cathedral and his country estate, Stourhead, ordered by Richard Colt Hoare in 1795, prominent patrons soon supported his wider endeavours. William Beckford commissioned views of his new Gothic palace, Fonthill, but also bought Turner’s first history painting The Fifth Plague of Egypt (Indianapolis Museum of Art), an essay in the manner of the French painter Nicolas Poussin, in 1800. The same year, the Duke of Bridgewater commissioned Dutch Boats in a Gale (private collection) as a companion for his Rising Gale by Willem van de Velde the younger (Toledo Museum of Art, Ohio). In 1802, during the Peace of Amiens, a consortium of noblemen sponsored a visit to Paris, enabling Turner to study the Old Masters in the Louvre, and a tour of the Swiss Alps. Newbey Lowson, a gentleman from County Durham, travelled with Turner as paymaster, providing a French-speaking guide and a small coach (fig.5).
Joseph Mallord William Turner 1775–1851
Fishermen at Sea exhibited 1796
Oil paint on canvas
Petworth, Sussex, the Seat of the Earl of Egremont: Dewy Morning exhibited 1810
Tate T03880
Elected Associate of the Royal Academy in 1799 and Academician in 1802, Turner was recognised as a prodigy who promised to be the outstanding painter of his generation. About this time he painted his self-portrait (Tate N00458 ), rather flattering his looks and attire to signal that he had arrived. Already prosperous in 1800, he moved to a smarter address at 64 Harley Street, sharing a studio with the marine painter J.T. Serres, some years his senior. He took over the garden and outbuildings in 1802 and the sole tenancy in 1803, and in 1804 opened a gallery on the corner of Harley Street and Queen Anne Street (from 1810, his address was 47 Queen Anne Street West). Turner’s Gallery could accommodate up to about thirty works in more sympathetic conditions than in the crowded Academy. Among early exhibits were spectacular watercolours based on drawings made during his tour in 1802. One enthusiastic buyer of these, Walter Fawkes, became an avid collector of Turner’s work. Also seen at the gallery were English landscapes, smaller and more intimate than the pictures Turner sent to the Academy. These attracted another collector, the 3rd Earl of Egremont. Fawkes and (mainly in later years) Egremont became friends as well as patrons, their seats at Farnley, Yorkshire and Petworth, Sussex becoming homes from home for Turner. He stayed at Farnley almost annually from 1808 and the following year visited Petworth and Egremont’s Cumbrian seat, Cockermouth Castle, to paint them (fig.6). His watercolours of shoots on the moors around Farnley and the sparkling but bohemian gatherings at Petworth vividly recall country house life and the higher social milieus in which he sometimes moved. The more formal country house ‘portrait’, presenting a mansion in its parkland, became a staple of his work, treated with exceptional freedom and atmosphere.
Joseph Mallord William Turner 1775–1851
Tabley, Cheshire, the Seat of Sir J.F. Leicester, Bart.: Calm Morning exhibited 1809
Oil paint on canvas
Tabley, Cheshire, the Seat of Sir J.F. Leicester, Bart.: Calm Morning exhibited 1809
Tate T03878
Fawkes, Egremont and Sir John Leicester who was forming a gallery of modern British art split between his Cheshire seat at Tabley where Turner also stayed in 1808 (fig.7) and his London house, were staunch admirers. Turner’s dominance did not go unchallenged, however. At the Royal Academy he could be bumptious, pushy or rude, at times trading insults with colleagues. A senior Academician, Joseph Farington, who had supported Turner’s election summarised him in 1803 as ‘confident, presumptuous – with talent’ 2 but came gradually to regard him with ‘puzzled incomprehension’. 3 The Academy’s President, Benjamin West, another early advocate, denounced Thames views exhibited in Turner’s Gallery in as ‘crude blotches’ 4 while Turner and other artists associated with him were dubbed ‘white painters’ because of their use of luminous, sometimes pale tones. Sir George Beaumont, a fashionable arbiter of taste, was particularly hostile. As aesthetically conservative as he was progressive in literary matters (avidly promoting Wordsworth’s poetry), Beaumont thought Turner debased Old Masters like the seventeenth-century landscape painter Claude Lorrain while Turner resented Beaumont’s enthusiasm for the young Scottish painter David Wilkie. In 1811 Turner was upset when the Prince Regent did not buy a picture that he had apparently praised at an Academy dinner, thereby putting off other buyers who felt obliged to defer to royal interest. Running through the notes and drafts of verse that Turner was now confiding to his sketchbooks, there is a vein of bitterness at the vagaries of critics and patrons verging, uncharacteristically, on self-pity.
Joseph Mallord William Turner 1775–1851
Lecture Diagram 26: Interior of the Great Room at Somerset House, London circa 1810
Graphite and watercolour on paper
support: 669 x 1000 mm
Tate D17040
Lecture Diagram 26: Interior of the Great Room at Somerset House, London circa 1810
Tate D17040
Although their attacks did not go away, Turner’s critics made little lasting impact, and he grew used to and even courted controversy. Wary of the British Institution founded in 1804 which held rival exhibitions and in which Beaumont and his friends were leading figures, he exhibited there only rarely and, in 1814, in a manner evidently designed to undermine its ethos and governance. Despite earlier frictions he was fiercely loyal to the Academy, once referring to it as the ‘mother’ of artists. In 1808 he was appointed as its Professor of Perspective, having proposed himself when the post proved hard to fill. He was proud of the title, sometimes adding ‘P.P.’ to ‘R.A.’ after his signature. He began lecturing in 1811 after prolonged research and preparation. His poor delivery drew mixed reviews but his catholic approach to his brief, ranging widely over history and theory, and the illustrations he prepared for his lectures, including one depicting the Great Room at the Academy where they were delivered (fig.8), were praised. He retained the post until 1837 although he had not lectured for ten years. He might have preferred to be Professor of Landscape, a post he first suggested to the Academy in 1811. From 1806, encouraged by an artist friend, William Wells, he classified the history and practice of landscape art from mountainous to marine, natural to ideal, and his own dominance of all these aspects in a series of original prints, the Liber Studiorum (Book of Studies). The title echoed Claude’s graphic record of his work, the Liber Veritatis, and perhaps also a Liber Nauticus 1805–6 by his former house-mate, Serres.
The lectures and the Liber showed Turner at his most didactic, and with his gallery and other exhibited works demonstrated his extraordinary energy and determination to command the public sphere. All this excluded much in the way of a private life and such as he had was closely tied to his work, although it revealed a contrary need for seclusion which, in later years, mutated into secrecy or deliberate mystification. From Thames-side lodgings at Sion (Syon) Ferry House, Isleworth, 1805–6 (fig.9) and Upper Mall, Hammersmith, 1806–11, he explored the river and pursued his favourite hobby, fishing – characteristically, a solitary one. Sketches of the Thames in watercolour and oil exemplify the naturalism then emerging in British painting. Others transform it into an antique land, inspired by Claude’s classical seaports and the Greek and Roman literature that Turner’s friend Henry Scott Trimmer, a clergyman and classicist, was trying to teach him to read. Acutely conscious of the cultural history of the Thames riverside, the former home of poets and painters, Turner was disgusted at the demolition by a philistine baroness in 1807 of Alexander Pope’s famous villa at Twickenham – the subject of a picture and anguished outpourings of verse. In 1807 Turner bought his own plot at Twickenham where he designed and built a villa, Sandycombe (sometimes ‘Solus’) Lodge (fig.10). In retreat there he was looked after by his devoted father, who cooked and gardened. His mother had died in 1804, probably at Bethlem, and he had not married, once remarking in a sketchbook that ‘Woman is doubtful love’. For a few years he had been close to Sarah Danby, the widow of a well-known musician but, inevitably, they were often apart. She bore two daughters, Evelina and Georgiana, who have been widely recognised as Turner’s, although a recent theory suggests that they were his father’s, and thus his half-sisters. Hannah Danby, niece of Sarah’s late husband, was Turner’s housekeeper at Queen Anne Street until his death.
Joseph Mallord William Turner 1775–1851
Sion Ferry House, Isleworth: Sunset 1805
Graphite and watercolour on paper
support: 260 x 369 mm
Tate D05952
Crossing the Brook exhibited 1815
Tate N00497
In 1813 Turner visited Devon, in glorious summer weather, and, encouraged by friends, sketched in oil outdoors. A resulting picture, Crossing the Brook (Tate N00497 , fig.11), exhibited in 1815, weaves together the strands of private and public, natural and classical in his life and art at this period. The Tamar Valley and distant Dartmoor are cast in Italianate, Claudean terms but in Turner’s distinctive colouring that his detractor Beaumont called ‘peagreen insipidity’. 5 Two girls at the riverside might be Evelina and Georgiana. With tours including visits to Sussex and Kent in 1810 and another to the West Country in 1811, the 1813 trip supplied material for Picturesque Views on the Southern Coast of England. Produced 1814–26 by the engravers George and William Bernard Cooke and the publishers John Murray and John and Arthur Arch, this was the first substantial series of topographical subjects based on Turner’s watercolours. It was followed by surveys of rivers, ports and harbours and the magisterial (but unfinished) Picturesque Views in England Wales for Charles Heath(published 1827–38). Although the last had to be abandoned as a commercial failure, for many years these projects made significant contributions to his income and brought his work to a wider public. As rich in memory and association as in depictions of contemporary life, industry and leisure, the prints reflected the nation to it itself and ensured that even today, early nineteenth-century Britain is seen though Turner’s eyes.
Joseph Mallord William Turner 1775–1851
The Field of Waterloo exhibited 1818
Oil paint on canvas
The Field of Waterloo exhibited 1818
Tate N00500
In 1817 Turner visited Holland and Belgium, to see the battlefield of Waterloo, and the Rhineland. His picture The Field of Waterloo exhibited in 1818 (Tate N00500 , fig.12) was modern, humane in its mingling of the dead of all sides, and accompanied by an epigraph from the famous ‘Waterloo Stanzas’ in Byron’s recently-published poem Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage. As a reflection of recent events it stood in total contrast to pictures of the rise and fall of ancient Carthage – his greatest Claudean works, exhibited in 1815 and 1817 – that allegorised the collapse of Napoleon in historical terms (fig.13). A set of fifty Rhine views in watercolour and gouache was bought by Fawkes, who in 1819 and 1820 exhibited his collection, now numbering some seventy Turners, at his London house. Also in 1819, Sir John Leicester opened his town house to the public, with other important Turners on the walls. These shows, where Turner mingled in the crowd of visitors, and others of his watercolours held by publishers and engravers in succeeding decades placed him at the heart of the diversifying exhibition culture of the time. They complemented his exhibits at the Academy and Turner’s Gallery, where distinguished visitors included, in 1815, the Italian sculptor Antonio Canova who pronounced Turner a great genius. 6 Following a period of closure for improvements, the gallery reopened in 1822, thereafter evolving from a showcase of new work into a museum (fig.14), housing a representative collection from which the artist was reluctant to part or to which he added, when possible, by buying back pictures – for example at the sale of Lord de Tabley (the former Sir John Leicester) in 1827. Turner’s plans for his legacy, including a gallery of his pictures at the new National Gallery or attached to almshouses on his land at Twickenham, became a preoccupation in later years.
Joseph Mallord William Turner 1775–1851
The Decline of the Carthaginian Empire ... exhibited 1817
Oil paint on canvas
Samuel Rogers at his Breakfast Table, engraved by Charles Mottram c.1823
Tate T04907
In 1819 and 1828, Turner visited Italy. The first time he travelled to Venice, Rome and Naples but on his second visit based himself in Rome, where he painted and exhibited new works; his bright colouring and impromptu handling bemused German artists, who expected more finish. In the intervening years Turner continued his routine of touring, painting and working for publishers at home and on the continent. On successive visits to France he explored the Loire in 1826 and Seine from 1821–32. A larger plan to portray the great rivers of Europe was never realised, but three volumes of prints were published by Heath with letterpress by Leitch Ritchie as Wandering by the Loire and Seine (1833–5). Marketed as ‘Turner’s Annual Tour’ and later combined as Rivers of France,they were pitched at new middle class readers who might expect to follow in the artist’s footsteps. Meanwhile, in 1818 Turner had opened a seam of overtly literary topography, visiting Scotland to illustrate Walter Scott’s Picturesque Antiquities. Illustrations to Scott’s poetry, novels and Life of Napoleon, Byron, the banker-poet Samuel Rogers, Thomas Campbell and Thomas Moore as well as John Milton and the Bible, often designed as vignettes – a form Turner made very much his own – followed in the coming years. Among living poets, Turner was fondest of Byron’s writing, borrowing more passages from Childe Harold as themes for pictures, but he knew Rogers and Scott best. With other luminaries of literary and artistic London, he was pictured among the guests who frequented Rogers’s celebrated breakfast-parties in St James’s (fig.15). He visited Scott at Abbotsford, and Scott’s role as stage-manager of George IV’s visit to Edinburgh in 1822 was a factor in his attempt at a set of paintings recording the royal progress. These were left unfinished but in 1823 Turner finally obtained a longed-for royal commission, an immense picture of the Battle of Trafalgar (National Maritime Museum, Greenwich).
In 1825 Fawkes died. Turner never revisited Farnley but, in the decade until Egremont’s death in 1837, he had the run of Petworth where he used the Old Library as a studio. From contemporary accounts and on the evidence of Turner’s many drawings (figs.16 and 17) it was a special place, its treasures and varied company at his behest. Egremont’s unconventional household of rival mistresses, swarms of children and visiting artists would in due course arouse Victorian censure but gave Turner a grand extended family, the more welcome after his father died in September 1829.
Joseph Mallord William Turner 1775–1851
The Artist and his Admirers 1827
Watercolour and bodycolour on paper
support: 138 x 190 mm
Tate D22764
Petworth: the White Library, looking down the Enfilade from the Alcove, 1827 1827
Tate D22678
The loss was followed by that of Thomas Lawrence, West’s successor as President of the Royal Academy, in January 1830. Lawrence had judged Turner ‘indisputably the first landscape painter in Europe’ 7 and not long before the President’s death, in his first will made in 1829, Turner had endowed a chair and gold medal for landscape painting at the Academy. In Lawrence’s memory, Turner exhibited a watercolour of his funeral at St Paul’s Cathedral (Tate D25467 ). Later, in 1842, he commemorated, from imagination, the burial of Wilkie (to whom he had long been reconciled) at sea off Gibraltar (Tate N00528 ). By such gestures Turner assumed the mantle of a leader of his profession, acting on behalf of his colleagues. In 1832, he joined a committee to investigate the provision of space for the Academy alongside the National Gallery, and in 1836 proposed a farewell dinner in its old premises in Somerset House. One reason for extensive European tours in 1833 and 1835 may have been to investigate newly-built cultural institutions such as those designed by Karl Friedrich Schinkel in Berlin (figs.18 and 19).
Joseph Mallord William Turner 1775–1851
Berlin: The Internal Courtyard of the Schloss 1835
Graphite on paper
Turner on Varnishing Day 1846
Museums Sheffield
Turner’s public status was reflected, too, in his choice of subjects and in his exhibited work. While he continued to show historical and classical subjects that, save for their dazzling atmospherics, were old-fashioned by the 1830s, he was also highly responsive to contemporary subjects, especially those that marked a transition from the past. In 1834 he grasped at once the pictorial power and national symbolism of the burning of the old Houses of Parliament, happening as it did just two years after the Reform Bill of 1832 changed the political landscape. He watched the blaze from a boat on the Thames, made a series of colour studies and the following spring sent a picture each to the Royal Academy and British Institution. Surely sensing a warning from history for his native London, more than any other painter he caught the post-Romantic allure of Venice, transforming itself from decaying trading metropolis to modern tourist-trap, that Byron had expressed in verse; from 1833 Venetian subjects were among his most sought-after pictures. In 1839 he turned a sighting of the old warship Temeraire towed by a steam tug up the Thames to the breaker’s yard into an elegy for the passing age of sail, a picture William Thackeray (writing under his pseudonym of Michael Angelo Titmarsh) described as a ‘magnificent national ode or a piece of music’. 8 No other artist was attempting such definitive renderings of the emergent modern world, its moral preoccupations of slavery or machine labour, and inventions of steamships and railways, nor doing so with such panache and sense of theatre. In famous performances at the Academy Varnishing Days he took mysterious sketches into the rooms and brought order from chaos in front of his colleagues (fig.20). Looking at the many watercolour studies and trials (as well as studio oils) from these years, there can be little doubt that such staged, public displays were fuelled by a compulsive private exploration of the power and potential of paint.
Turner's Snuff Box 1838
Presented to J M W Turner R.A. in 1838 by Louis-Philippe of France.
Photo © The Trustees of the British Museum
Turner could no more escape controversy in this later period than when he first came to prominence. In 1836 a virulent review in Blackwood’s Magazine by the Revd. John Eagles moved John Ruskin – then only seventeen – tospring to Turner’s defence. At first wary of his enthusiasm, Turner advised Ruskin not to publish it. Following correspondence, they met in 1840 at the house of Turner’s agent Thomas Griffith, and in 1843 Ruskin published the first volume of his book Modern Painters – placing Turner at their head. While critics accused Turner of extravagance and exaggeration, outdoing each other with comparisons of his pictures to lobster salad, soapsuds and whitewash, beetroot or mustard, Ruskin rooted his analysis (at least at first) in Turner’s truth to nature. He became the standard-bearer of a new generation of Turner admirers, now usually professional, middle class or newly rich, who embraced his work for its modernity. Their enthusiasm for watercolours as well as oils brought an upsurge of work in the medium in the last decade of Turner’s working life, increasingly directed towards independent subjects and watercolour ‘pictures’ rather than the demands of engravers and publishers. From 1842 Griffith was tasked to offer sample studies to clients, to attract commissions. Reflecting the cosmopolitan, European character of Turner’s mature art as well as its most advanced techniques, the subjects were mainly Swiss, arising from summer tours since 1841. Turner made his last visit to Switzerland in 1844. His health was failing and in 1845 he could only manage two short trips to France. On the second he dined with King Louis-Philippe, whom he had known when the future king was in exile at Twickenham, and who had since presented him with a gold snuff-box (fig.21). The previous autumn, he had watched the King arrive at Portsmouth for a state visit to Queen Victoria.
Joseph Mallord William Turner 1775–1851
The Dogano, San Giorgio, Citella, from the Steps of the Europa exhibited 1842
Oil paint on canvas
The Dogano, San Giorgio, Citella, from the Steps of the Europa exhibited 1842
Tate N00372
In 1845 Turner sent The Opening of the Wallhalla (Tate N00533 ), first shown in London in 1843, to the Congress of European Art in Munich as a tribute to the Wittelsbach rulers of Bavaria who had promoted cultural regeneration after the Napoleonic War. It was misunderstood, poorly received and returned damaged, reducing Turner to the state of ‘a hen in a fury’. 9 However, the same year the American painter C.R. Leslie advised an initially sceptical New Yorker, James Lenox, to buy Staffa, Fingal’s Cave (Yale Center for British Art, New Haven, Connecticut). Unsold since its exhibition in 1832 it was the first Turner to go to America. The transaction was something of a coup as Turner was now reluctant to sell pictures. That February he was appointed Acting President of the Royal Academy during the illness of the incumbent, Martin Archer Shee. He held the post until the end of 1846, when illness forced his own resignation. In 1847 The Dogano, San Giorgio, Citella, from the Steps of the Europa (Tate N00372 , fig.22) became the first of his pictures to be hung at the National Gallery, bequeathed by Robert Vernon. In 1848, for the first time since 1824, Turner showed nothing at the Academy. His last exhibits were in 1849 and 1850. In 1849 he turned down an offer of a retrospective from the Society of Arts and his appearances in public (now noticeably shabbily-dressed) became rare, although he was glimpsed at Academy events as late as spring 1851. Since the early 1830s he had cultivated his private side and was now reclusive, especially during stays at Margate where he was looked after by his landlady and companion, Mrs Booth, whose husband John died in 1833. Often compared to a retired sailor he took to calling himself ‘Admiral Booth’. In London cabs were asked to drop him some distance from his home so as not to discover his identity or address.
John Wykeham Archer
House of J.M.W.Turner, 6 Davis Place, Chelsea 1852
© The Trustees of the British Museum
In 1846 Turner moved with Mrs Booth and John Pound, her son by her first husband, to 6 Davis Place, on Cremorne New Road overlooking the Thames at Chelsea (fig.23). The house and gallery at Queen Anne Street, which had become squalid and neglected, were left in the care of Hannah Danby (fig.24). While Turner’s own eccentricities were doubtless exaggerated by Victorian sentiment, the hag-like Hannah, old and ill herself, and the Manx cats that infested the premises only added to the myth. Appearances were deceptive as Turner had long been rich, both from his art and shrewd investments in shares and property. In 1848 he took fresh grip of his legacy, adding a codicil to his will referring to a ‘Bequest’ and proposing biennial rehangs of finished pictures; and employing a studio assistant, Francis Sherrell. No specific provision was made for the many thousands of works on paper that eventually became part of the Turner Bequest. In the winter of 1849 Turner’s health was waning fast and declined further in the next two years. He had been terrified of cholera during an epidemic in 1831–2, needlessly as it turned out, but seems to have succumbed to a severe bout in 185l. By October he was bed-bound, looked after by a surgeon, Mr Bartlett, and Dr David Price from Margate. He died ‘without a groan’ and lit by a sudden gleam of sunshine, at ten in the morning on 19 December. 10 First, the body was taken to rest in his gallery at Queen Anne Street, where the lying-in-state was painted by his friend George Jones (fig.25). On 30 December, Turner’s remains were interred in the crypt of St Paul’s Cathedral, close to Reynolds and Lawrence, according to his wish ‘to be buried among my Brothers in Art’.
47 Queen Anne Street West, photographed in the 1880s
Fig.24
| Joseph |
Based in Swindon, which is thge largest building society in the world ? | Impressionism - Biography of William TURNER
William TURNER, 1835-37
British National Museum, London
He became well known and highly considered in his country and abroad by publishing his watercolor works, starting from 1826 in "The Keepsake" (one of these yearbooks combining literary and artistic matters, then very much appreciated by English society), and starting from 1831 in "The Turner's Annual Tour", a collection of steel or copper engravings.
However, the new style of his oil works, so extraordinarily modern for his time, was not understood by his contemporaries who would judge it "delirious". Nevertheless he kept unconditionnal admirers, John Ruskin being the first of them.
The life and work of Joseph Mallord William
JMW TURNER, PRECOCIOUS AND RECOGNIZED PAINTER
Dolbarden Castle
Tate Gallery, London
William Turner was born in London in 1775 from a modest family which he will always keep in his heart. His father, a barber and wig maker, shalll remain, until he died in 1829, his son's most faithful companion, while his mother gradually went insane and died in a mental hospital in 1804.
From 1789 to 1793, Turner attended the courses of the Royal Academy, where he will study with landscapist Thomas Malton. At that time, Turner made numerous copies for wealthy art lovers, and met English landscape and watercolor painters such as Thomas Girtin.
In 1792, he will start his studying journeys throughout England, Wales and Scotland, sketching or watercoloring landscapes and seascapes. Since he was 14, Turner got into the habit of wandering around countryside, with his sketch book, frequently walking over 40 kilometers a day .
From 1796 on, Turner will regularly exhibit oil paintings at the annual exhibition of the Royal Academy, mostly historical subjects represented in fantastic and sublimated landscapes, in a way similar to that of 17th and 18th centuries' painters.
Very early Turner became successful and wealthy as a painter, and soon became recognized by artistical being elected as full academician at only the age of 27. Although he shall not refuse the duties of his academician statute, he will limit them, seeking from time to time for secret retreats, until his definitive withdrawal at the end of his life, when he totally disappeared under a false identity in Chelsea, a London suburbs on the Thames River.
Turner was described by Constable and Delacroix as slovenly in dress, with uncought manners, silent even taciturn, but with a wonderful range of mind. Entirely devoted to his art, Turner did not found a family. Whereas it is known that he has had several female companions throughout his life, especially Sarah Danby around 1798, whom he supported along with her children, and with whom he probably had his first natural child, his private life is not well known.
TURNER, EUROPEAN TRAVELLER
The 1802 "Treaty of Amiens", which temporarily put an end to the Napoleonic war between France and England, allows Turner to go for the first time on the Continent to visit France, where he stays in Calais, Paris - where he studies the Old Masters at the Louvre Museum -, and in Savoy area. Then he moves to Switzerland in Piedmont area.
In 1804, Turner founds his own gallery to exhibit his works.
In 1807, he paints his first views on the Thames River, taken from his own boat. The same year he gives perspective lessons at the Royal Academy School, and publishes the first part of his "Liber Studiorum" (1807-1819), including series of pen and wash drawings where he combines exact observation of nature with literary and mythological evocation.
In parallel , during the 1807-1810 years, he gets interested in genre painting.
(the Rise of Carthaginian Empire)
1815
National Gallery, London
Turner will always assiduously practice literature and poetry, which formed an important part of his inspiration, and will frequently quote Byron or Milton in the titles of his works.
JOURNEY IN THE LOIRE VALLEY, BEGINNINGS OF THE "TURNER ANNUAL TOUR"
In 1826, Turner went for a long journey in the Loire Valley, going upstream the Loire River from Nantes to Orléans.
He executed a great series of sketches and watercolors on more than forty towns and sites (an exhibition "Turner, the journey on the Loire River " took place in 1997-98, at both the Tate Gallery, Blois and Nantes). Twenty one of his views will be included in the 1831 first edition of his "Turner Annual Tour".
Turner stilll remains the most important painter of the Loire landscapes, which will be celebrated at the same time by many French romantic writers such as Vigny, Balzac, Flaubert... He remarkably used the transparency of watercolors to suggest the delicacy of the light of the Loire Valley.
This journey that Turner started in Calais will also be at the origin of several major oil paintings, such as "Pas-de-Calais", which he showed at the Royal Academy's annual exhibition of 1827. Because Turner has got into the habit of using more and more brilliant colors in his paintings, critics will then make fun of his excessive use of "yellow".
Philadelphia Museum of Art
From 1829 until 1837, Turner's oil painting will change even more radically towards lesser interest in figurative description and always more focus and research on light effects representation. ("The Burning of the Houses of Parliament" - 1835).
Thus, forty years before Monet, Turner invents a different way of painting which gets rid of all pictorial conventions to get its main interest in rendering atmospheres through colors.
In 1833, Turner leaves for his second stay in Venice. He will return for the third and last time to Venice in 1840. Venice has inspired him many major paintings such as "The Grand Canal, Venice" - 1835 or "The Dogana, San Giorgio, Citella, from the Steps of the Europa" - 1842.
In 1837, he publishes "The Rivers of France", where his views of the Seine and Loire rivers have been brought together.
TURNER DEFENDED BY RUSKIN
In June of 1840, Turner met the young and rich John Ruskin (art critics and sociologist, 1819 - 1900), who became his most faithful and passionate defenser, as well a great collector of his works.
In 1843, Ruskin will make a name for himself with his first volume of his Modern Painters where he eulogizes Turner's work.
In 1844, Turner exhibits "Rain, Steam, and Speed, The Great Western Railway" at the Royal Academy, a painting whose modernity and construction will later draw interest from Impressionist painters.
In 1845, he travels to France for the last time.
TURNER'S RETREAT IN CHELSEA
In 1846, Turner left his house in Queen Anne Street, built in 1812, ceased any contact with his relationships, changed his name and moved into a poor lodgment in Chelsea, on the other side of Westminster. There he will spend the last years of his life, in a complete loneliness, unreachable, not even recognized by his hostess.
In 1847, within Robert Vernon's bequest of contemporary paintings to the National Gallery, a first oil work of Turner enters English national collection.
In 1850, Turner exhibits at the Royal Academy 4 of his last paintings in the manner of Claude Lorrain.
National Gallery, London
Turner died on december 19, 1851 at Chelsea, soon after he had been retrieved, and will be buried in Saint-Paul's Cathedral. He bequeathed his paintings collection to his country as well as a 200 000 livres sterling rent for building a house for poor artists.
In 1857, an exhibition "The Art Treasures" will show 24 oil paintings and 83 watercolors by Turner.
In 1857-58, Ruskin was allowed to select in Turner's bequest watercolors and drawings for a public exhibition at Marlborough House, where 400 of them will be framed.
In 1861, only ten years after his death, a gallery in the West wing of the National Gallery will be entirely devoted to Turner's works.
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What was the name of the cinema, situated next to the Seven Stars in Lampit Street which closed for business in 1956 ? | Theatres and Halls in Birkenhead, Wirral, Merseyside
Also known as - The Argyle Theatre Of Varieties / The Prince of Wales Theatre
Above - The Argyle Theatre, Birkenhead - From a 1930s Postcard.
The Argyle Theatre, Birkenhead, was built for Dennis Grannell and opened on Monday the 21st of December 1868 with a Music Hall Bill including the Cedas Troupe, John Barnum, Miss M. Astropp, the McGregor Simpson Sisters, M. Bevani, Richardson & Graham, the Hondra Brothers, and Fothergill and Summerson.
Right - A Poster for the Argyle Theatre of Varieties for Monday January the 21st 1907 .
The ERA reported on the new Theatre in their 27th of December 1868 edition saying:- 'Argyle Music Hall - (Proprietors, Messrs George Arundale and Co.) - This new and elegant place of amusement was opened for the first time on Monday, the 21st inst. The Hall is seventy feet in length by forty-five feet wide, the height being forty feet, with two galleries capable of seating 500 people, the body of the Hall accommodating a similar number.
In connection with the Hall there are eight American bowling alleys, seventy feet long, a large public billiard-room, tables, and a select room. The whole has been built under the superintendence of Mr Davis, architect, Liverpool , at a cost of upwards of £10,000.
The opening performance on Monday was in every respect a great success, the company at present under engagement comprising Ceda's troupe of minstrels, Miss M. Astrop (Bravura vocalist), Mr J. Barnum (comic), the Sisters M'Gregor Simpson (operatic and Scottish vocalists), Mr Richardson and Miss Graham (dramatic sketches), Hondra Brothers (gymnasts), and Messrs Fothergill and Summation (comic Irish sketches).
Mr F. Springthorpe is a corteous and efficient Manager. The orchestra includes Messrs C. W. Mackey (leader), J. Fish (pianist), Alfred Cornish (cornet), Lawton (flute), and Ball (basso), and gives great satisfaction to the audience.'
The above text in quotes was first published in the ERA , 27th of December 1868 .
The Theatre had a change of name in 1876 to The Prince Of Wales Theatre, opening with the pantomime 'Prince Bowbell', or the 'Illustrious Stranger' and was then generally used for more conventional fair such as plays. A new proscenium was erected at this time and the stage enlarged, along with various other improvements to the building.
However, the name reverted back to the Argyle Theatre in 1890 when it was used as a Music Hall and Variety Theatre again. Dennis Grannell's nephew, Dennis J. Clarke, ran the Argyle Theatre for 45 years from 1890 to 1935 and it became one of the most well known Theatres in the country.
Sir Harry Lauder began his career at the Argyle, and all the names of the day performed there including Dan Leno , George Robey, Vesta Tilley, Stan Laurel, Bud Flanagan, and Charlie Chaplin.
Arthur Lloyd is known to have performed in Birkenhead in 1867 and 1890.
Left - A Poster for the Argyle Theatre of Varieties for Monday the 1st of February 1892 .
The Argyle Theatre was the first Theatre to host radio broadcasts, which were sent out all over the commonwealth on short-wave radio, and the Argyle was also the only Theatre at the time to broadcast to the USA.
The Theatre was a leader in the showing of Vitagraph Pictures, Thomas Edison's early cinema, outside of London and even showed footage, in 1910 , of King Edward VII's funeral.
The Argyle Theatre continued to show films and newsreels throughout its career but its main program was always live Theatre, Variety , Pantomime , and Music Hall .
On the 21st of September 1940, an air raid during the Battle of Britain resulted in the Argyle being destroyed by fire and the Theatre's illustrious career had come to an end.
There is a list of productions and performances which took place at the Argyle Theatre from 1885 to 1921 on the website of the Sheffield University as part of their National Fairgrounds Archive which you can download in a Word Document here .
The 1909 Illustrated Anniversary Souvenir of The Argyle Theatre, Birkenhead with a brief synopsis of its history chronicled by W. H. Donovan
Above - The Argyle Theatre, Birkenhead - From a sketch in the 41st Anniversary Souvenir Programme for the Theatre in 1909 - Kindly donated by Maureen Shakeshaft.
The primary object of the Management in presenting this little Souvenir to their patrons is to chronicle the fact that the Argyle Theatre is this year celebrating the Forty-First Anniversary of the date of its opening, which interesting event took place on the 2lst of December, 1868 .
It also affords an opportunity of indulging in a few reminiscences in connection with the history of the Theatre that may possibly be as interesting to its numerous patrons and habitues of to-day as the revival of old time names and memories will be to those who remember and frequented this popular place of amusement in its earlier days.
There is always a peculiar charm and pleasure to the enthusiastic playgoer in recalling the theatrical recollections of youth, and there are few of us who do not cherish some happy memory of the footlight favourites who delighted us in the evenings of the days gone bye.
The remarkable progress that the Variety Theatre has made and the daily increasing popularity it enjoys among all classes of the amusement-seeking and play-going public of today, is in marked contrast to the prejudice and antipathy displayed towards the Music Hall of nearly half-a-century ago.
Left - A sketch of J. Keating, acting manager, beside the Box Office of the Argyle Theatre, Birkenhead.
Right - An Argyle Theatre Variety Poster with Bella & Bijou topping the Bill in February 1910 - Courtesy Peter Cannon, Great Grandson of Bella and Bijou .
The time was when a visit to a Music Hall had to be made surreptitiously, from fear of offending Mrs. Grundy. The censorship of the songs and jokes of the artistes was seldom exercised, and the vigilance of stage managers in suppressing vulgarity deplorably lax.
To-day there is scarcely a town in the United Kingdom that does not delight in the lavish architecture of its modern Variety Theatre. The artistes are petted and patronized by Royalty, and society receives them with open arms. From a glance at the occupants of the stalls and boxes of a London Music Hall to-day, it would not be inapropos to describe it as a "House of Peers."
We accept this as a happy and healthy sign of the times, and in doing so, we desire to credit the present management of the Argyle Theatre with that full measure of praise for the aims and efforts it has displayed in assisting to bring about this welcome revolution.
Above - The New Entrance and Waiting Room of the Argyle Theatre, Birkenhead in 1909
It was in the year 1867 that the late Mr. Dennis Grannell, (Shown Right) proprietor of the Rotunda Music Hall, Liverpool , secured the site for the erection the building known to us as the Argyle Theatre.
With admirable foresight he saw the possibility the future would develop, notwithstanding that the district adjacent and to the westward was waste land and fields, from Grange Road, to Holt Hill, and from the Haymarket to the Park. His farseeing enterprise is manifest today in the crowds that besiege the Theatre nightly.
Right - Dennis Grannell, founder and first proprietor of the Argyle Theatre, Birkenhead.
Left - An Argyle Theatre Variety Poster with Bella & Bijou topping the Bill in November 1905 - Courtesy Peter Cannon, Great Grandson of Bella and Bijou .
The Theatre was constructed and fitted with all the modern improvements in lighting and seating, at an enormous cost. In the architectural design of the building, evidence of Mr. Grannell's perspicuity and business acumen is not wanting. From the cellars and bowling alleys in the basement, to the luxurious billiard saloons and residential portion of the establishment, there is scarcely a yard of space that is not utilized.
The management was placed in the hands of Mr. George Arundale, and the opening performance took place on 21st December, 1868 . From a pen and ink copy of the first bill issued (Shown Below) it will be seen how easily satisfied and simple the tastes of the patrons were in those days when compared with the colossal combinations of stars and expensive programmes provided for the present generation.
Above - Portraits of Bella & Bijou who are featured in two of the Argyle Theatre Posters on this page - Courtesy Peter Cannon, Great Grandson of Bella & Bijou who were also the original owners of Walter Lambert's Popularity Painting for whom it is thought it was originally painted.
It is also a curious fact that the prices of admission to nearly all parts of the house were the same then as they are to-day. The £200 per week artiste had not arrived, and it is probable that that £30 often covered the salary list of artistes, orchestra, and other liabilities.
In the present year of grace, 1909 , the "top of the bill" rarely signs a contract for less than £100 per week and the remaining artistes on the programme take another £150.
Left - A Pen and Ink sketch of the first Bill issued from the Argyle Theatre, Birkenhead - From the Theatre's 41st Anniversary Souvenir Programme.
It is also interesting to recall the names of some of the stars of greater or lesser magnitude who entertained and brightened the lives of Argyle patrons in the early days. Mr. Harry Linn was the "one and only" Scotch Comedian, and the predecessor of our Harry Lauder, minus his ability, and popularity. Mrs. F. R. Phillips was admittedly the "Queen of Serio Comics." Hyram Travers revelled in Cockney delineations. Nish and Martin, Craven and Conway, Pierce and Monaghan, represented the profession as negro comedians, the "brilliant Black Brothers of Burlesque," a type of humorist that has almost become extinct.
The Brothers Wilkinson, Barney Hopkins, Pat Feeney, Alexander Staunton, were among the popular stage Irishmen. The Sisters Pedley, Sisters Mario, Sisters Grosvenor, Will. Townley, the "Lancashire Vocalist," W.. J. Collins, the "Black Storm," Ned Cunningham (father of. Minnie), N. C. Bostock, Cheevers and Kennedy, Frank Mordauut and Lieutenant Cole, ventriloquists, are a few of the names of old favourites who's names are chronicled in a portfolio of star celebrities.
Right - Harry Kilburn, music hall comic, singer, dancer, and actor from 1879 to about 1910 . He married Ruth Grosvenor of the stage act the Grosvenor Sisters, who are mentioned above, in 1889 - Courtesy Harry's Great Nephew Steve Kilburn.
In 1876 the familiar name of "The Argyle" was removed from the bills, and the title of the establishment changed to The Prince of Wales Theatre. It was opened for the season with the pantomime of Prince Bowbell, or the Illustrious Stranger. Mr. and Mrs. Will Marchant, who were the reigning favourites of Birkenhead at this period, scoring a great success, which was shared by Mr. J. S. Foote, a clever comedian, Mr. Fred Charles, and the Sisters Pedley.
Above - The Stage of the Argyle Theatre, Birkenhead in 1909
In the same year the stage was enlarged, a new proscenium erected, and many other improvements made. Mr. Charles Wood, the new manager, inaugurated a dramatic season with a remarkably able and well-staged production of Uncle Tom's Cabin; Mr. Tom Potter made a marked hit in the character of Uncle Tom, a part he had won some distinction in, and Miss Kissie Wood (now Mrs. H. C. Arnold, of the Lyric, Liverpool ), making a striking success as Topsy.
Following upon this came a splendid and ambitious revival of Hamlet, in which a clever young Liverpool actor, Mr. Walter Speakman, made a remarkable success as the melancholy Dane. The local press described this as the finest representation of Shakespeare's tragedy ever seen in the town. The dramatic season which ran for several weeks was not altogether a financial success, and the Variety programmes were again reverted to.
Right - A sketch of the Argyle Theatre's conductor, E. Denney.
In 1877 Messrs. Fineberg & Lees, of the Liverpool "Star," instituted the Saturday and Monday Concerts, during the summer months, under the direction of Mr. Dan Saunders. There being no Mersey Railway at this period, the transmigration of the artistes from one Hall to the other was carried on with great difficulty.
It will not be out of place to note that in this year, 1877 , the incorporation of the town took place, and Mr. Dennis Grannell, as one of the Conservative candidates for Cleveland Ward, was elected by a large majority, and remained a member of the Town Council for many years.
Above - The Auditorium of the Argyle Theatre, Birkenhead in 1909
The year 1888 is memorable in the annals of the Theatre as recording the first appearance of Mr. D. J. Clarke (Shown Right) as Associate Manager with the late Mr. John Riley. The now, almost general, system of two houses a night was initiated, but, strange to say, was not a success, and after a nine weeks trial was abandoned in favour of the old system.
Three years later Mr. Clarke took up the sole responsible management of the Theatre, and the success that he has since achieved is now a matter of history. There were innumerable wise-acres at the time, who were kind enough to prophesy that the placing of such responsibility on juvenile shoulders would end in failure and disaster, but here the acumen and judgment displayed of his uncle, Mr. Dennis Grannell, was again verified.
Right - D. J. Clarke, sole proprietor and manager of the Argyle Theatre, Birkenhead from 1888 .
One of Mr. Clarke's first achievements was to break all previous records in the receipts. He also inaugurated his prosperous regime by restoring to the Theatre its original and most familiar title of "The Argyle." On the 2nd February, 1903 , the system of two houses a night was again introduced, but not without some fear and trepidation. The success of the innovation has been remarkable since its inception, and the two houses a night are now practically universal throughout the country. The multitude or friends and patrons who have watched the progress of the Theatre, rejoiced in its prosperity, and observed its ever-increasing popularity, will unite with us in paying a tribute of admiration to the energy, judgment and enterprise displayed in its management. Managers, agents, and artistes throughout the profession, endorse and verify the good opinion the Birkenhead public have expressed as to Mr. Clarke's ability.
Above - A sketch of D. J. Clarke signing contracts from the morning's post at the Argyle Theatre, Birkenhead
The recent structural alterations that have been carried out, and which have added so much to the comfort and convenience of its patrons, and enriched the internal and external appearance of the building merit sincere, praise. By clever architectural manipulation the entrance and access to the stalls and boxes have been made equal in construction and decoration to many of the leading Variety Halls in London or the provinces . Short of entire reconstruction of the building
the transformation effected by Mr. T. T. Rees, the architect, is, in a sense, wonderful, and is the result of many months of anxious thought and careful study on the part of the management.
Right - A sketch portraying D. J. Clarke's 'Ideal Bill' for the Argyle Theatre, Birkenhead.
That the improvement is fully appreciated is evident in the crowded houses to be witnessed. There is scarcely an artiste of note or repute in the variety world who has not appeared, or is engaged to appear. Many artistes who have attained eminence in the profession, look upon the Argyle as their "mascot." In this connection we may mention the names of Mr. Harry Lauder and Mr. Wilkie Bard, two of the highest salaried and most popular comedians in the profession.
Agents are employed in all parts of the-universe, and have commissions to engage the best possible class of entertainers available, and to secure any star artiste or novelty that may appear in the variety firmament.
It is not given to every Manager to attain that measure of success that Mr. Clarke has won. He has been cradled in the Variety business, and his whole mind and soul is wrapped up in it. It is a business, the intricacies of which can only be mastered by years of experience.
He displays a wisdom and knowledge of its details in the value of artistes, and the compiling of programmes that surprises, not only his brother Managers, but also the general public. He has his finger on the pulse of his patrons, and his one intent is only for their delight.
Left - H. O Neill, Secretary of the Argyle Theatre, Birkenhead.
It is Mr. Clarke's impression that his patrons visit his Theatre to be amused and entertained, and it is his avowed object to provide the best entertainment it is possible to procure. He believes in placing before the playgoing public a clean and healthy bill of fare, and every effort it is possible to make, is strenuously exercised in this direction.
His fellow townsmen have still further shown their appreciation of his business abilities by electing him a member of the Town Council as a representative of Egerton Ward.
May the sun of prosperity long continue to shine upon him will be the sincere wish of thousands of his patrons who have the privilege and pleasure of his friendship. W. H. D.
Right - W. Thompson, a familiar personage "in front."
The above text and accompanying images are from the 41st Anniversary Souvenir Programme for the Argyle Theatre, Birkenhead in 1909 - The Programme was Very Kindly donated by Mrs Maureen Shakeshaft who says:
'As a matter of interest I was brought up in Birkenhead and can just about remember the building that had been the Argyle Theatre but by that time it was ready for demolition. My father was a great fan of the music hall and theatre and in his youth he lived very near Argyle St, I have often wondered if he patronised the 'Argyle' I feel sure he would have done.' Maureen Shakeshaft.
Above - The back cover of the 41st Anniversary Souvenir Programme for the Argyle Theatre, Birkenhead
The Argyle Theatre for Youth by Geoff Unwin
A visitor to this site, Geoff Unwin, who performed for the Argyle Theatre For Youth and was also the composer of the title song score for the feature film 'On the Buses,' has sent in some information and images of the Argyle Theatre, he writes:
'Dennis Clarke, who ran the Theatre in the first half of the 20th Century, had three sons, two of which - Tom and Gerrard - ran the Argyle Theatre for Youth from the dressing room complex of the Theatre that survived the blitz.
It was a traveling fit-up theatre which I joined in 1957 for a production of Alice in Wonderland, touring schools all over the British Isles. (I played the white rabbit and Judy Vague - a great niece of Hollywood's Vera Vague - played Alice.)
Right - A Poster for the Theatre For Youth production of 'Alice in Wonderland' (from the Argyle Theatre, Birkenhead) in 1957. - Courtesy Geoff Unwin, who played the white rabbit, with his future wife Judy Vague, who played Alice.
Uncle Tom, as we called him often told us stories of his childhood in the Theatre. He remembered the first movies being shown there on a huge white linen sheet which was suspended from the ceiling in the centre of the Theatre. Firemen sprayed water on it in order for those on both sides of the screen to view the hazy images. No-one complained about the water running down the isles apparently!
Left - Poster for the Theatre For Youth production of 'David Copperfield' in 1957 - Courtesy Geoff Unwin, who appeared as David Copperfield, playing opposite Judy Vague who doubled as Emily and Mrs McCawber.
In 1949 Tom Clarke bought a job-lot of costumes from Tom Arnold and these were used in his touring productions as well as being hired out to other companies. I remember 'uncle Tom' opening a locked door in the rabbit warren of dressing rooms to let us look out into the ruin of the Theatre. It was open to the sky and still contained huge mounds of bricks which had been left there since the war.
This was in 1957, I don't think it would be allowed today.
Right - The auditorium of the Argyle Theatre in ruins after being hit by a bomb in 1940. - From the Liverpool Echo. - Courtesy Geoff Unwin.
The Theatre for Youth continued into the 1970's. In the early 1980's the Argyle pub (shown below), attached to the Theatre, was condemned as 'unsafe' and in danger of collapse and was finally demolished along with the remains of the Theatre.
Today there is no sign of there ever having been such a wonderful Theatre with its own adjoining pub ever having existed on the barren space which is now a car park.' - Text courtesy Geoff Unwin.
Paul O'Grady on the Argyle Theatre
I grew up in Birkenhead and Fred, our next door neighbour, used to be the stage doorman at The Argyle before it was bombed. Even though I was very young I can remember him showing me the signing in books filled with the signatures of a variety of stars who had played there, everyone from Chaplin to Morecambe and Wise. I've no idea what happened to it as Fred died over 50 years ago but I'd love to have a proper look at it now I'm of an age to appreciate its history.
I vividly remember standing with my Ma at the bus stop outside the post office opposite the Argyle on the day they finally demolished it to make way for that beautiful car park. The workmen had found a song sheet and were holding it up, one of them with a piece of wood pointing out the lyrics as everyone standing at the bus stop joined them in a chorus of 'You mustn't miss the last bus home', although being a callous teenager at the time I was mortified at the sight of my mother 'making a show of herself'.
The Argyle pub was like stepping back in time with a fire burning in the grate and unchanged since the photo on this site was taken (shown right). Each time my Uncle Al was on shore leave from the merchant navy he drank in there with his cronies and I knew that he'd always sling you a couple of bob if I went in to say 'hello' on my way home from school. I don't recall ever seeing any women in there, just men drinking pints of mild and smoking Woodbines as they studied the racing pages.
Right - A Postcard of the Argyle Pub circa 1939. The pub was part of the Argyle Theatre building and remained standing and open for business after the Theatre's Auditorium took a direct hit in 1940. In the 1980's The Argyle pub was condemned as 'unsafe' and in danger of collapse and was subsequently demolished - Courtesy Geoff Unwin.
I was doing some research for a documentary I was making about Gypsy Rose Lee and discovered that Burlesque actually originated in Birkenhead and at The Theatre Royal . In 1868 Lydia Thompson took 'Ixion', the play they'd performed on opening night at The Royal, to Broadway and caused a sensation, touring the country for years. She'd married Alexander Henderson and together with a bevy of beefy chorines she cleverly promoted the troupe as 'Lydia Thompson and her British Blondes'.
She died in London in 1908 leaving a daughter Zeffie Tilbury (now there's a name) who became a legit Hollywood actress. Lydia and her girls are frequently credited as being responsible for the birth of what is known as The Great American ArtForm, Burlesque but it's interesting to think that the residents of Birkenhead got to see it first.
The above text was kindly sent in by Paul O'Grady in November 2015.
A 1928 Variety Programme for the Argyle Theatre, Birkenhead
Above - The Cover and Bill from an Argyle Theatre Variety Programme for April 30th 1928
A 1940 Variety Programme for the Argyle Theatre, Birkenhead
Above - An Argyle Theatre Variety Programme for July the 22nd 1940 - Very Kindly donated by Mrs Maureen Shakeshaft.
The Hippodrome, Grange Road, Birkenhead
Formerly - Ohmys Grand Circus / The Gaiety Music Hall / The Metropole Theatre
Above - The Hippodrome, Birkenhead from a period postcard - Courtesy Maurice Friedman, British Music hall Society.
The Hippodrome Theatre on Grange Road, Birkenhead opened on the 7th December of 1908 and was the final incarnation of a series of entertainment buildings on this site since 1888 .
Originally on the site was a building called Ohmys Grand Circus. Joseph Ohmy had previously run a wooden Circus building on Conway Street since the 1880s but this new building on Grange Road, paid for by Ohmy and others, was also used as a Theatre.
The license for the new building was granted on December 20th 1888 and the Theatre / Circus subsequently opened to the public.
Ohmy's plans for the building however, were not a success and by 1890 he had left and Eric Brammell had taken over, renaming the building the Gaiety Music Hall.
Although this was more successful, by 1898 yet another new owner had moved into the building, W. W. Kelly, who changed the name to the Metropole Theatre and used it for touring productions of plays and melodramas.
Ten years later the building was bought by the De Frece Circuit in 1908 and substantial alterations were carried out.
The Theatre reopened as the Hippodrome on the 7th of December 1908 with a larger stage, electric lighting, and a fully refurbished auditorium and front of house areas.
Right - A close up view of the postcard of Grange Road shown below, the white building at centre shows the Birkenhead Hippodrome - Courtesy Maurice Friedman, British Music hall Society.
Above - An advertisement for Francis Laidler's Superlative Revue 'Glad Eyes' at the Hippodrome Theatre, Birkenhead - From a programme for the Argyle Theatre , Birkenhead in April 1928.
In 1916 the Hippodrome Theatre was taken over by the then owner of the Argyle Theatre , Dennis J Clarke.
Above - Grange Road, Birkenhead, the Hippodrome can just be seen to the far left, (see close up above right) - Courtesy Maurice Friedman, British Music hall Society
In 1932 the Theatre was converted for Cine Variety use with a large screen using a back projection system. The Hippodrome reopened on the 31st of October with non stop Cine Variety shows starting at 2.30 in the afternoon and running until 10.30 in the evening. The first night consisted of a showing of 'Murders in the Rue Morgue' and a Variety show on stage with the Lupessu Sisters, The 2 Arthurs, Billy Barr, Tom Fagan, the Rigoletto Trio, and Wensley and Dale.
Sadly, even this was not to last and on the 5th of March 1934 the Theatre began its last week of live shows, aptly titled 'Evening Follies' (see programme below).
Above - A programme for 'Evening Follies' at the Birkenhead Hippodrome for the week of the 5th of March 1934 - Courtesy Robin Lucas. This was the last show at the Hippodrome before it was demolished.
On the 10th of March 1934 the Birkenhead Hippodrome closed its doors for the last time and the Theatre was then demolished and the site was used for a department store by the Birkenhead and District Co-operative Society.
Some of the above information was gleaned from the Wirral History website here where you will also find some nice archive images for the Theatre.
If you have any more information or images for this Theatre that you are willing to share please Contact Me.
The Theatre Royal, Argyle Street and Conway Street, Birkenhead
Later - The Scala Theatre
The Theatre Royal on Argyle Street and Conway Street, Birkenhead was designed by the architect Mr. L. Hornblower, of Liverpool and Birkenhead, and opened on Monday the 31st of October 1864 with a production of the one act comedy 'The Handsome Husband', the burlesque 'Ixion, or the Man at the Wheel' with Lydia Thompson, and the farce 'Turn Him Out'. The Theatre was run on its opening by Mr. Henderson, who was also the lessee of the Prince of Wales Theatre, Liverpool at the time, now the Liverpool Empire .
The main frontage of the Theatre Royal was on Conway Street, where the box and pit entrances were, and the auditorium, which was decorated by the local firm J. and W. Jeffery, was built on three levels, Stalls and Pit, Dress Circle, Gallery, and boxes, and had a capacity stated at the time of being anywhere from 1,600 to 1,850 people, even '2,300 at a crush.'
The Theatre Royal, later known as the Scala, was demolished to make way for a new Cinema in 1937.
Arthur Lloyd is known to have performed at the Theatre Royal, Birkenhead in 1890 and 1891 .
The Daily News reported the opening of the Theatre Royal, Birkenhead, in their November the 1st 1864 edition saying:
'The new theatre erected by a joint stock company at Birkenhead was opened last night, when Miss Lydia Thompson and a powerful company appeared in Mr. Burnand's burlesque,Ixion, and other entertainments. The building is sufficiently large to accommodate about 1,600 persons, and the seats are large and comfortable. The front of the theatre faces Conway-street, one of the principal thoroughfares of the town, and the approach to the pit and boxes is through a handsome corridor.
The stage, which is of amply convenient size, is fitted with extensive mechanical apparatus, and furnished with a liberal stock of excellent scenery . Mr. Dalby, who is locally celebrated as a scenic artist, has painted a charming act-drop. The decorations of the proscenium, the dress and gallery circles, and the ceiling are light, chaste, and artistic, gold mouldings on delicate tintings forming the prominent feature of ornamentation. The anterooms for refreshments and promenade are numerous and roomy, and every device which care for the convenience of the public could suggest has been applied in the construction of the building.
Mr. Henderson, the lessee of the Prince of Wales Theatre, Liverpool, has taken the house for the first six months, and announces a series of performances of high-class character and interest. Ixion, Mr. Burnand's popular burlesque, has been produced, Miss Lydia Thompson sustaining the principal character. Mr. E. A. Sothern will perform during the week; Mr. J. L. Warner, the Australian tragedian, is engaged for a series of representations; and other "stars" are in reserve. A local pantomime , by Mr. Charles Milward, will be produced at Christmas.
The management of the Prince of Wales Theatre gives grounds for high expectations as to that of the Birkenhead Theatre; and it is confidently believed that the large population of the borough and adjoining townships will practically appreciate the first effort made on an extended scale to give them entertainments of a high order.'
Above text from the Daily News, November 1st 1864.
The Liverpool Mercury also reported on the opening of the Theatre Royal, Birkenhead, in their 1st of November 1864 edition saying:
'The inauguration of this beautiful theatre, which as been erected in Argyle-street, Birkenhead, took place last evening under most favourable circumstances. Birkenhead has now become a large and prosperous place, with a busy population of upwards of 40,000 ; and if we take the surrounding districts, the inhabitants will number about 40,000. The want of a first-class theatre was long felt in the locality, there being no regular place of amusement to which the residents could resort without crossing the river to Liverpool . All this involved great loss of time, to say nothing of the inconvenience and discomfort experienced during the winter season and in foggy weather. The result was that a large class, especially ladies and delicate persons, remained at home, and were thus debarred from participating in those innocent and instructive entertainments afforded to their neighbours on the Liverpool side. It was not to be expected that a town like Birkenhead - a town which has grown from a mere village to be one of the most important places in the kingdom within the memory even of young men - should long remain without its theatre. Birkenhead was one of the first towns in the country to adopt the Free Libraries Act, and the handsome structure which was opened last year in Hamilton-street reflects credit upon the enterprise of its inhabitants. With the incentive given to the study of literature by the opening of the Free Library, it was only natural, then, that there should also be erected in the township a suitable building in which the Plays of Shakspeare and other illustrious authors might be performed.
The subject had long engaged the attention of some of the leading gentlemen of the place. At last a company was organised, of which Dr. J. M. Craig was appointed chairman, and the land in Argyle-street was purchased. .Mr. L. Hornblower, of Liverpool and Birkenhead, was engaged as architect, and it is only fair to that gentleman to state that he has produced as handsome and pretty a theatre as there is to be found in the country.
In giving a brief description of the building, we may state that it is capable of seating comfortably 1,850 people, and in a crush about 2,300. The theatre proper is thrown to the rear of the land abutting in Henry-street. Every attention has been given to secure ready ingress and egress. The box and pit entrances are in the centre of the Argyle-street facade, and are 12 feet each in width, the box-office being placed at the end of the corridors and dividing the two entrances.
Messrs. J. and W. Jeffery, of Compton House, in this town, have supplied the whole of the decorations, which are exceedingly handsome. The scenery has been painted by Mr. Dalby, a well-known artist, and the greater portion of it is splendidly executed. The proscenium is remarkably elegant, the work of decoration being carried out in excellent taste.
In accepting Mr. A. Henderson, of the Prince of Wales Theatre in this town (Liverpool M.L.), as the lessee of the new theatre, the company evinced sound judgment. Mr. Henderson, by his spirited and able management of the Prince of Wales Theatre, has earned for himself a high reputation in the theatrical world, and no doubt his management of the Theatre Royal, Birkenhead, will be equally as successful as it has been on this side of the Mersey.
But we must now come to the opening of the new theatre. Long before seven o'clock there was a great crush of people eager to obtain admittance, and a long line of carriages, filled with the principal gentry of the township and neighbourhood, was drawn up in front of the principal entrance in Argyle-street. The house was brilliantly lighted, and the large number of ladies in the dress circle and boxes added greatly to the splendour of the scene. The building was crowded. Amongst the company were Mr. John Laird, M.P., and party ; Mr. W. Jackson, M.P., and party ; Mr. Charles Mosley, mayor of Liverpool ; Mr. B. Mozley, Mr. L. B. Mozley, Mr. Gaskill, Dr. Craig, Mr. R. B. Moore, Mr. Councillor Melia-dew, Mr. J. Enthoven, Mr. Hancock. Mr. T. E. Hignett, Captain Hookey, Major Hornblower, Captain Campbell, Captain Horner, Mr. Capel Cmwood, &c.
Messrs. Hime and Son, of the music warehouse, Argyle-street, have the direction of the letting of the seats in the dress circle and boxes; and the refreshment department, of which there is ample provision, is under the management of Mr. James Griffiths, so well known for his excellent catering at the refreshment rooms at the Prince of Wales Theatre .
An overture having been capitally played by a good band, under the direction of Mr. Connolly, from the Queen's Theatre, Dublin , the curtain rose, and the whole of the company appeared upon the stage in evening dress. The members of it joined in singing the National Anthem as solo, quartet, and chorus, the audience rising en masse as the band commenced the well-known strains.
On the termination of the anthem Miss Sidney Cowell sang the song "God bless the Prince of Wales" very prettily, and received the approving plaudits of the audience. Mr. Henderson, the lessee, then stepped forward and delivered an appropriate address, written for the occasion by Mr. William Brough. The lessee met with a genial reception, was repeatedly cheered during the delivery of his address, and called before the curtain at the close. Owing to the crowded state of the house the address will again be spoken tonight; we therefore do not publish it in this day's impression. As Mr. Henderson retired the green curtain was drawn up, and there was then displayed to the view of the audience an act drop, one of the moat charming specimens of the scene painter's art ever seen within the walls of a theatre. It is a landscape, and for loveliness of design, delicacy of execution, and artistic finish could not be well surpassed.
The performances commenced with the amusing little comedy, in one act, called " The Handsome Husband." Mr. E. Price, a favourite with the frequenters of the Prince of Wales Theatre , an excellent actor, and Mr. Alfred Nelson, the stage manager, played the characters of Mr. Wyndham and Henry Eitzlierbert spiritedly, and Miss Agnes Ryder ably enacted the part of Mr. Wyndham. Miss Lewis's Mrs. Twisden did her credit, and Miss Nellie Nesbitt represented the Hon. Mrs. Metford gracefully.
The audience were so much gratified with the efforts of the ladies and gentlemen taking part in the comedy that they were called for on the fall of the curtain. The most prominent feature of the evening's entertainment was Mr. Burnand's celebrated burlesque "Ixion, or the Man at the Wheel." For this representation Mr. Dalby has furnished some magnificent scenery . Some of the "sets" are on an elaborate scale, and are highly effective. The costumes are also appropriate and of the richest and most picturesque description. The cast includes the whole of the stock company, with that remarkably popular burlesque actress Miss Lydia Thompson as Ixion. The reception accorded her was perfectly enthusiastic. The moment she made her appearance in the first scene there was an outburst of applause from all parts of the house, and it was again and again repeated. The lady plays the character assigned to her with singular vivacity, and dances to perfection. Miss Mary Huddart makes up admirably as Jupiter, and her acting and tuneful singing entitle her to a few words of praise. Mr. Searle endeavours to throw as much humour as possible into his personation of Minerva, and Mr. A. Nelson to make as much as he can of Ganyrnede. Miss Cowell is a charming Cupid, and Miss C. Elton shows considerable ability as Juno. The delivery of the speech in the scene where Jupiter holds court was decidedly commendable. Miss Ada Coates (Apollo) and Miss Nellie Nesbit (Venus) appear to advantage in their respective parts. There is a very pretty ballet, in which the accomplished and graceful French danseuse Mad'lle Ida Idalie appears. The incidental music is well sung, and the dances generally are given with enlivening effect.
The programme concluded with the mirth-inspiring farce called "Turn Him Out,' the characters in which were sustained in a manner that left little to be desired. The greater part of the audience remained until the close, all appeared to enjoy the amusement provided for them, and the directors and the lessee may justly be congratulated upon the success attending the first performance in the Theatre Royal, Birkenhead.'
Above text from the Liverpool Mercury, 1st of November 1864.
The Theatre Royal, later known as the Scala, was demolished to make way for a new Cinema in 1937.
Arthur Lloyd is known to have performed at the Theatre Royal, Birkenhead in 1890 and 1891 .
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The Claughton Music Hall, Claughton Road and Atherton Street, Birkenhead
Later - Claughton Picture House / Astor Cinema / Astor Tombola Club
The Claughton Music Hall was situated on the corner of Claughton Road and Atherton Street in Birkenhead. The building was designed by the architect Walter Scott, of Liverpool and Birkenhead, and constructed by John Hogarth of Rock Ferry at a cost of £4,000. The Claughton Music Hall opened on the 15th of January 1862 and is said to have been able to seat 600 people.
The Liverpool Mercury reported on the Claughton's opening in their 16th of January 1862 edition saying:- 'The opening of the splendid new Music Hall erected at the corner of Claughton-road and Atherton-street, Birkenhead, took place last evening, under most auspicious circumstances. The event was celebrated by a ball, the proceeds of which, through the liberality and laudable spirit of the directors, were appropriated to the funds of the Birkenhead Hospital.
The new Music Hall has a frontage to Claughton road of 52 feet, and to Atherton-street of 112 feet, and, from its elevated and commanding situation, has a very imposing appearance. There are four principal entrances - two to Claughton-road, one to Atherton street, and one for the musicians, officials, &c., - communicating with the different parts of the building.
A covered porch, approached by a bold flight of steps, leads to a vestibule on either side communicating with the entrance hall and grand staircase, the latter consisting of a double flight, moat elaborately got up, the banisters being of iron, of a beautiful pattern, with the monogram B.M.H." Interlaced in the foliage. These lead to the upper hall or ante-room leading to the great hall, which is approached by two magnificent doors, of a great height, richly worked.
The great hall, which is decorated in an exceedingly chaste and elegant manner, and is lighted by three sun burners of 63 lights each, is 75 feet long (exclusive of the orchestra) 48 feet wide, and 40 feet in height. The orchestra is raised, and will accommodate 50 of a chorus and 35 musicians, in addition to the pianist and principal singers in front.
Midway in the entrance hall is a lofty and wide corridor leading to the supper room, which is 48 feet by 30 feet, and of proportionate height. On either side of the corridor are cloakrooms, each supplied with lavatories, &c. There are four rooms for the accommodation of performers, each being fitted up with every convenience.
The exterior of the building is bold, and richly interspersed with carvings in medallions and on the keystones. One appropriate feature is that the medallions, &c., are cut with busts of some of the moat eminent musical composers - Handel, Mozart, Mendelssohn, Beethoven, and Donizetti being amongst the number.
The building is warmed by an apparatus on Dr. Arnott's principle, supplied by Mr. Gibbs, of Lime-street, and the decorations are the work of Mr. Dawson, of this town. The furnishings and upholstery, which are all of a very superior description, were supplied by Messrs. George Woods and Co of Bold-street.
We may state that the design of the new building was selected out of 16 competitors, and that the architect was restricted to the sum of £4000, which included the lighting and heating, the decorations, &c. Mr. Walter Scott, of Liverpool and Birkenhead, was the architect, and Mr. John Hogarth, of Rock Ferry, the builder, both of whom deserve the highest credit for producing such an exceedingly handsome structure. The company, also, cannot be too highly praised for their public spirit and enterprise in providing what has been long wanted in Birkenhead - a commodious and elegant music hall.
The ball last night was a complete success. The company numbered about 400, and included the elite of Birkenhead and neighbourhood. The lady patronesses were Mrs. Septimus Ledward, Mrs, P. Callender, Mrs. Horner, Mrs. V. A. King, Mrs. Parsons, and Mrs. Sim. The company included Mr. Thomas Brassey, jun., the late Liberal candidate for the new borough, Lieutenant-Colonel and Mrs. King, Mr. and Mrs. John Ravenscroft, Mr. and Mrs. George Harrison, Mr. and Mrs. H. K. Aspinall, Captain William Laird, Captain H. H. Laird, &c.
Streather's band occupied the orchestra. Danoing commenced at eight o'clock, and was kept up in a spirited manner until an early hour this morning. The refreshments, which were of the most recherche description, were provided by Mr. Moorish, of the Merchants' Dining Rooms in this town, whose catering gave the greatest satisfaction.'
The above text in quotes was first published in the Liverpool Mercury, 16th of January 1862 .
The Claughton Music Hall opened on the 15th of January 1862 and ran as such until it was eventually converted for Cinema use in 1912 . An organ was installed in the Music Hall by William & Frank Hall of Rock Ferry in 1882 , and Oscar Wilde is said to have given a lecture there in 1883 .
On its conversion for Cinema use in 1912 the Cinema News and Property Gazette of August 1912 said that the new Claughton Picture House Company Ltd was registered with a capital of £1,000 in £1 shares. The Directors of this enterprise were A. Levy, Managing Director, J. Auerbach, and H. G. Auerbach, whose registered office was 3, Mitchell Place, Liverpool .
Cinema then ran in the building under the Claughton Picture House name from 1912 , with seating for 800 people, until it was taken over by Woodhill Entertainment in 1952 and renamed the Astor Cinema. In 1956 the Cinema was redecorated and reopened as a Continental Cinema, but this venture was not a success and the Cinema was soon closed. The building was then bought by Harry Rogers who reopened it in 1957 as the Astor Tombola Club, which would be Birkenheads first Bingo Hall. Bingo then ran there until it was closed in 1981. The building was subsequently demolished the following year in 1982.
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Other Theatres and Cinemas in Birkenhead
Other Theatres and Cinemas in Birkenhead over the years were The King's Theatre, which was built in 1908 but now long gone; and the Ritz Cinema, of which an archive film of the Royal Film Performance there in 1949 can be viewed here .
You may also be interested in this page on the Wirral History website.
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Archive newspaper reports on this page were collated and kindly sent in for inclusion by B.F .
| Empire (disambiguation) |
In the UK a public limited company uses the initials plc after its name. According to the Companies Act (2006), which three letters can be used by similar firms in Wales ? | Llandudno Theatres
Llandudno Theatres
Formerly - The North Wales Theatre
Above - A Photograph of Venue Cymru, Llandudno, in 2013 - Courtesy George Richmond
The 1,505 seat North Wales Theatre opened with a production of Jesus Christ Superstar on the 28th June 1994; the cast for the production was drawn from three local amateur companies. The building was officially opened by the Prince of Wales during a Royal Gala concert on the 3rd of July 1994.
Situated next to a conference centre, built in 1981, which in turn was next door to the old Arcadia , the North Wales Theatre is considered to be one of the finest Theatres in Wales, with a proscenium 50ft wide and 26ft high. The available stage depth is 45 ft., and there are 58 counter weight line sets.
Right - The North Wales Theatre, Llandudno as originally built - Courtesy Llandudno Library.
The stage was built to house the Welsh National Opera Company and is the 7th largest outside of London and can accommodate any West End Show. The orchestra pit has a spiral column lift that can move to the full height of the stage, a half level, and fully down. The pit can accommodate up to 100 musicians. Sophisticated lighting and sound equipment is installed and a translation booth is available for live captioning and audio description.
Above - A Schematic of how the Theatre Works - Courtesy Venue Cymru
The auditorium consists of stalls and circle. The circle is set well back and rises quite steeply, in effect incorporating a circle and upper circle into one. Slips on each side bring the front rows in this location to a more usual distance of a circle from the stage. The auditorium is austere, careful lighting focusing preshow audiences attention onto the F.O.H. tabs and the seats, the walls and roof remaining in shadow. The acoustics and sightlines are excellent with the exception of the front row of the centre circle which has a safety rail that limits the view for members of the audience of less than average height.
Left - The North Wales Theatre, Llandudno under construction in 1981 - Courtesy Llandudno Library.
Front of house is amply provided with bar areas, alcoholic and non alcoholic. A spacious restaurant was also provided in the second stage of the development of the site (2004) when further facilities were added to the right of the building and the 1981 conference building extended over the site of the Arcadia . At this time the entire building was renamed Venue Cymru.
Above - The Venue Cymru Auditorium in 2013 - Courtesy George Richmond
The exterior design of the building was controversial throughout all the planning stages from 1981 onwards, some critics complaining that the design should have reflected the towns Victorian heritage. This was not to be. The architecture reflects each decade in which it was built.
Right - The Stage House of Venue Cymru in 2013 - Courtesy George Richmond.
The Theatre portion of the complex contains, on each corner, a tower, housing staircases, each with a six sided cap echoing the original Arcadia Theatre's façade. The principal entrance foyer of the Theatre displays a selection of photographs, playbills etc., paying tribute to the building that was from 1915 Will Catlins Arcadia Theatre .
The present complex is the third and only proposal for the site to be carried through to completion. Frank Matcham was engaged to draw up plans for the replacement of Rivieres Victoria Palace , later the Arcadia, but this came to nothing. In 1919 a grandiose plan for a seven story structure with corner towers and a centre tower was proposed but this again came to nothing.
Above - The 1919 Proposed Development of the Site, the Arcadia Theatre is to the left - Courtesy Llandudno Library
Whatever individual opinion of the present building's architecture may be in relation to its elegant Victorian neighbours, Venue Cymru serves Llandudno and North Wales very well in many ways, bringing audiences, delegates, and trade to the town from far afield.
The above article on Venue Cymru was written for this site by George Richmond in October 2014 and was Compiled with the help of material supplied Courtesy Venue Cymru and Llandudno Library.
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The Grand Theatre, Mostyn Broadway Llandudno.
Architect - G. A. Humphreys - Consultant Edwin Sachs
Above - The Grand Theatre, Llandudno in 2014 - Courtesy George Richmond.
A notice in The Era , 6th October 1900 , announced the fact that Mr Milton Bodes New Grand Theatre, currently being erected, will be one of the most comfortable houses in the country. Electric lighting will be installed throughout, the auditorium will be beautifully furnished, and every modern improvement for the comfort of the public and artistes will be supplied by the enterprising management. The opening date is fixed for July 28th 1901 .
This was the first purpose built Theatre to be erected in the town and the lease of the land to Mr Milton Bode and his backers, from the Mostyn Commissioners, was conditional on the understanding, that under no circumstances was the building to be used for the presentation of Music Hall .
Above - The Grand Theatre, Llandudno whilst under construction in 1901 - With Kind Permission Llandudno Library.
The opening was only five days late, the Theatre in fact opened on August the 5th 1901 , a Bank Holiday. A report in the Llandudno Advertiser dated Friday July 26th 1901 gives a comprehensive report on the building and the intended bill of fare as follows in the box below:-
The new Grand Theatre, which is situated in Mostyn Street Extention, immediately at the rear of Rivieres Hall , will be opened on Bank Holiday night under the directorship of Mr Milton Bode, one of the best-known managers in the theatrical world who has taken this latest and most modern Temple of Thespis upon a long lease. Occasionally we hear pessimistic grumblers declaring that Llandudno has reached the zenith of its fame, but whilst we have gentlemen willing to embark on enterprises of this character and magnitude we need not fear that the Queen of Welsh Watering Places will decline in popular favour, but on the contrary will have no difficulty in maintaining its position as the premier health and holiday resort of the West. Perhaps it will be urged that the Theatre is too large for the town but was not the same argument used when the Pier and the Pavilion were constructed, and now we find that undertaking the most prosperous in the British Isles. That a Theatre of this character was wanted is generally recognised, and all honour to the promoters and shareholders who had sufficient faith in the future of Llandudno to assist the enterprise with practical support.
Forthcoming Events
That Mr Milton Bode, who is the lessee of several Theatres in different parts of the country, will give Llandudno audiences the latest and best plays from the London Theatres is evidenced by the published list for the present year. On the opening night the celebrated Compton Comedy Company will appear with the ever popular Davy Garrick, and during the week She Stoops to Conquer, The Rivals and School for Scandal will be staged. These will be followed by A Message from Mars, from the Avenue Theatre , London; Mr George Edwards San Toy, from Dalys Theatre ; Hall Cains celebrated play, The Christians; The Geisha; The Greek Slave; Mr Auguste Van Biene in the Broken Melody, that latest success; The Night of the Party, Mr George Edwards own company in The Messenger Boy, and the great Drury Lane drama, The Price of Peace. The local Manager is Mr Stanley Rogers, who will be pleased to give every information.
Description of the Theatre
The Theatre has evoked the greatest admiration from every expert who has seen it. It is located on a most suitable site, there being land all round, thus ensuring isolation. The building has been designed with a view to complying with the very stringent regulations of the London County Council. It is divided into two primary zones in case of fire, namely, the stage and auditorium, the proscenium opening being fitted with a fire proof curtain of steel and asbestos, with automatic apparatus for closing.
Right - A Painting depicting the Proscenium, Stage, and Boxes of the Grand Theatre, Llandudno by, and courtesy of, George Richmond 2014.
The doors off stage are solid, sheathed with metal and fixed to iron frames. The dressing rooms are situated at each side of the stage, divided from the stage by thick walls and roofed quite separately from the stage roof. Each part of the house has two entrances and exits, and staircases are likewise in duplicate. The two exits to each part of the house are as far apart as possible and placed in corresponding positions on plan. The same has been done with the duplicating of staircases, and this system greatly simplifies the understanding of the building by the audience and tends to give immediate confidence. Further, all staircases throughout the building have been constructed in situ, also all the floors- which are finished in granolithic- including the dress circle, gallery, lounges, refreshment saloons and dressing rooms, the only exception being the floor of the pit. The dress circle and gallery tiers are framed in steel on the cantilever principle, without any piers to obstruct the view. The risers and treads are of solid concrete, finished off in granolithic. The ceilings to both tiers consists of iron lathing-bars resting on hangers from the main steel framing of the tiers and giving air space between the ceiling and steel construction, the bars carrying the expanded metal lathing and granite plaster ceilings and soffits. The ceiling to the auditorium is constructed in a similar way, namely with iron framing (instead of the usual timber), and the fibrous plaster is attached to the iron bars with strong non-corroding wire. The fronts of the dress circle and gallery are also framed with wrought iron bars connected to vertical castings. All the iron is filled in solid with coke breeze concrete, covered on the outside with fibrous plaster and the inside finished smooth in Portland cement. It is evident that the architect has taken special interest in making the building as fireproof as possible with the result that there is much novelty in the construction.
The building is lighted with electricity, the current (220 volts) being taken from the town mains. This electrical work is under the special care of Messrs Crews & Handleford, Manchester , consulting engineers and every effort has been made to ensure a thoroughly modern installation. Gas is also laid on for auxiliary purposes, there being gas lights to each staircase and exit, in addition to the electric lights. There are two gas meters, thus making the lighting to the auditorium quite distinct from the stage portion of the building.
Left - An undated Playbill announcing the closure of the Grand Theatre, Llandudno for in the installation of new stage lighting - With Kind Permission the Llandudno Library.
The warming is by hot water on the low pressure system with radiators in the auditorium, lounges and refreshment rooms and piping to dressing rooms. On the stage is a very large coil of pipes, in addition to the radiators with a view to keeping the stage as near as possible the same temperature as the auditorium, not only for the comfort of the actors, but to prevent the disagreeable draughts that usually occur when the curtain rises.
Complete hydrants are placed about the building with ample hose and fire buckets, etc., and the necessary firemans fittings and wet blankets on the stage. Boyles system of ventilation has been adopted, and the roof air pump vents arranged to cause the air to travel away from the stage with a view to assisting the acoustic properties of the building. In the centre of the auditorium ceiling there is a powerful sun-burner which is connected by a metal shaft to one of the extract vents on the roof. The stage has been laid by Mr E Glacken, clerk of works, who has had extensive experience with modern stage work. The covering itself is of maple, and makes a very fine finish.
Fibrous plaster has been extensively used in the interior decorations, and has been specially modelled from the architects designs, whose aim has been to give an effective architectural result, pure in design and simple in treatment, as distinct from the too often over-elaboration of ornament which gives no rest to eye or mind. The decorations have also been similarly studied, the colouring kept quiet and the tout ensemble pleasing and restful. Special care has been taken with the sighting, and a bad seat cannot be found in the auditorium. The tip up chairs in the orchestra stalls and dress circle are covered with silk plush, and the pit stalls and amphitheatre seats with railway-rep. All the principle parts of the house are handsomely carpeted, and the remaining floors, including dressing rooms are laid with cork carpet.
Dimensions
The principal dimensions of the building are as follows: - Stage 57 feet wide, 35 feet deep; stage to grid, 51 feet; proscenium opening 28 feet; auditorium wall to wall 49 feet 6 inches; curtain to back of pit,57 feet; ditto to dress circle front,33 feet; ditto to gallery front, 36 feet 6 inches; ditto to back of gallery, 70 feet. The building will seat 1,200 persons.
Right - The side elevation of the Grand Theatre, Llandudno in 2014 - Courtesy George Richmond.
The work has been carried out by the following contractors: - Foundations Mr R L Roberts, Llandudno; general building work, Mr Evan Hughes; waterproofing cellar Callender and co., London; steel construction, Wood & Co Ocean Works Salford ; concrete construction, Hindley & Co., Manchester ; granite plastering, Walter White & Co., Manchester; sanitary plumbing, Mr Hawarth,Llandudno; roof plumbing, D and R T Owen, Llandudno; fibrous plaster and decorations, A R Dean, Ltd. Birmingham ; seating, Messrs Walter MacFarlane and Co., Glasgow ; and Messrs A R Dean, Ltd., Birmingham. The latter firm also supplied the fittings for the refreshment rooms; glazing, Mr Griffiths Roberts, Llandudno; lettering, Mr Ed Hughes, Llandudno; ventilation, Robert Boyle and Co., London; heating and gas, hydrants, fire proof curtain and other work, E Oldroyd and Co.,; verandah, Messrs McDowell, Steven & Co. Glasgow; The clerk of works is Mr E Glacken; Quantity Surveyors Messrs Hurrell and Taylor, Manchester. Mr Edwin O Sachs, of London, acted as consultant architect.
The architect of the Theatre is Mr G A Humphreys, M.S.A., Mostyn Estate Office, Llandudno, under whose superintendence the work has been carried out. - The Llandudno Advertiser July 6th 1901 .
A general information leaflet giving additional information to the above but prepared some years after the second world war, possibly to give an over view of the building to potential touring companies, states that the chief civil engineer to the British Broadcasting Corporation proclaimed the Grand Theatre to be the best constructed and designed building of its type that he had ever seen. (The BBC Light programme together with the BBC Theatre organ was evacuated to Llandudno and worked in the Theatre during most of the war years). The report goes on to say, after giving the dimensions of the stage:-
General Information
Adjacent to the rear wall of the stage is a full size paint frame and bridge, the frame is operated by winch on the prompt side of the fly floor. The fire curtain (asbestos on a steel frame) is raised by winch from the prompt side of the fly floor, the release is at stage level and the final decent is arrested by an air break.
Right and Below - Stage Machinery at the Grand Theatre, Llandudno - With Kind Permission the Llandudno Library.
The counter balanced house tabs are operated from stage level. Four winches for light battens are situated on the fly floor prompt side. Stage deck planked by best quality maple and secured by secret fastenings, Equipped with star traps and bridges, operated from a full sized cellar. (Note: - The original under stage equipment remains in place to the present day).
Stage House and Lighting
Controlled from a Strand Electric switch board situated in the prompt corner and fitted with dimmers and master dimmer to control four light battens and footlights each with four colour circuits, also seven dips. House lights are also in control from the same board and in duplicate.
Dressing Rooms, office and property room.
Ground floor east side two rooms and Stage door keepers office. First floor east side two dressing rooms. Second floor east side two dressing rooms. Third floor two dressing rooms. Fourth floor east one dressing room. West side three dressing rooms property room and scene dock.
Heating and Fire Services.
Heating by twin low pressure hot water boilers and distributed to radiators by four inch diameter pipes. Eight fire hydrants served by four inch water main. Ventilation via wall and ceiling shafts. The stage and auditorium and all rooms in this building are available to daylight.
The building was fitted with projection and sound equipment in 1932, a projection room being built at the back of the gallery, filling the space behind the edge of the formal ceiling and the back wall. This was never intended to be a major feature of the Grand and was used primarily, when required, during the winter months, live productions would remain its forte until the end.
Right - An undated advertisement for 'Charley's Aunt' at the Grand Theatre, Llandudno - With Kind Permission Llandudno Library.
The auditorium though now hidden from view by the interior of the nightclub (now closed) is very elegant and undamaged, the applique proscenium valance remains in place as indeed do some of the box drapes. The stage above the false ceiling is undisturbed and the raised safety curtain in place. A condition of the lease to the nightclub company required that the interior should not be damaged in order that the building may revert to its original use should the need arise.
Seating 1,000 with two well curved cantilevered balconies and well raked stalls. The dress circle terminates with two boxes at each side of the proscenium with one above that nearest to the stage at upper circle level. The boxes are divided by slim colonetts painted lapis blue with white plaster decoration, the predominant colours throughout being blue, white crème and gold. An arch with lattice decoration rises in front of and above the square proscenium terminating at the decorative caps over the upper boxes. Above this is an elaborate cartouche displaying a red Welsh Dragon.
The saucer dome covers the majority of the roof of the auditorium including most of the upper circle, the last 12 feet to the back wall of the gallery being covered by an elegant plastered barrel vault.
Left - A Painting depicting the Saucer Dome at the Grand Theatre, Llandudno by, and courtesy of, George Richmond 2014.
The centre of the dome is fitted with a sun burner surrounded by a garland and a bursting star. The circumference is finely modelled with sea scrolls and cartouches containing the face of a classical goddess. The main ground being painted to resemble a blue sky with white clouds. An unusual feature is the hand painted foliage springing from the principle mouldings around the circumference.
There is some evidence that this painted foliage was to be seen in the spandrels at the ceilings corners and in the panels above the proscenium but this decoration has been painted out at a later date. It is likely that the dome shows the original decoration, it being considerably discoloured by nicotine and the passage of time. There are many images of the hidden Theatre here .
Right - A Painting depicting a detail from the Saucer Dome at the Grand Theatre, Llandudno by, and courtesy of, George Richmond 2014.
The Theatre was in continuous use as a live theatre until 1980 when it closed and remained dark for 6 years, reopening as a nightclub in 1987. However, as previously stated, the lease required the new tenants to cause as little damage as possible to the interior fabric of the building, thus enabling the building to be returned to theatre use should the tenancy be given up. The quality of the building was attested to in 2006, when the Grade II Listed Theatre: was classified, when a group of architects and historians who specialise in theatres, gave the venue the highest rating possible -three stars- the same as some of the famous venues in the West End of London - (North Wales News).
The nightclub has now gone out of business (2013) and the building is dark once again and up for sale. However the Llandudno Seaside Building Preservation Trust is exploring ways of preserving and restoring the Grand Theatre to its former glory and theatrical use.
Right - A look inside the Grand Theatre Llandudno today.
The above article on the Grand Theatre was written for this site by George Richmond in February 2014. Archive material used for this article is courtesy of The Llandudno Library.
If you have any more information or images for this Theatre that you are willing to share please Contact me .
The Palladium Theatre, Gloddaeth Street, Llandudno
Architect - Arthur Hewitt
Above - An early photograph of Gloddaeth Street, Llandudno showing the Palladium Theatre - With Kind Permission of The Llandudno Library.
A new Theatre scheme for the town was announced in the Llandudno Advertiser in early 1919 saying: "Several prominent local tradesmen have combined to purchase from the Llandudno Market Hall Company, the public market and site with a frontage on Gloddaeth Street, and extending in the rear to Market Street. A meeting of the shareholders has been held and the requisite sanction obtained. We understand it was proposed to erect a large high-class music hall and picture theatre as soon as conditions permit. The property is leasehold, the lease having been extended from the Mostyn Estate to 999 years, some years ago when certain improvements were made to the property. - The Llandudno Advertiser early 1919 .
Another report from the same paper in 1920, and transcribed in the box below, gives further news of the new Theatre:
The New Palladium is now rapidly nearing completion, and the management hope to open for August Bank Holiday with Varieties and pictures, having booked first class artistes and films for that date. The principal frontage of the Theatre is to Gloddaeth Street, and the building will have a massive and imposing façade when complete. It comprises an Edwardian Baroque façade with a rusticated pediment above the principal entrance supported on ionic pilasters, below this is a large oriel window. Square towers at each end of the façade are decorated with ionic pilasters and topped with octagonal domes surmounted by a sea bird. Flanking the principal entrance are four shops, modern in design featuring curved glass windows, and in keeping with the remainder of the building, effectually cut off from the Theatre proper with fireproof walls and ceilings.
Right - A Poster for 'Love Let loose' at the Palladium Theatre, Llandudno - Courtesy George Richmond.
The main entrance leads into a circular central foyer 25ft wide with classical columns, and a domed ceiling in the Georgian style. From each side broad flights of stairs lead to the crush room lounge and the dress circle also public facilities. The operating box is to be placed at the rear of the dress circle, with the object of getting a perfect plane for the picture and absolute steadiness.
Left - A Poster for 'The Wreck of the Mary Deare' and 'Two Way Stretch' with Peter Sellers and Wilfred Hyde White at the Palladium Theatre, Llandudno - Courtesy George Richmond.
The interior decoration, in fibrous plaster, is excellent in effect and is in the French style. A feature of the house and one that adds greatly to the effect is the number of boxes, eleven in all; three at the back of the dress circle and four at each side of the proscenium arch in banks of two. Above the crush room and approached by two flanking staircases is an open lounge, which will make a delightfully cool rendezvous in hot weather. The ventilation has been subject of especial attention, and extraction fans will change the air four or five times an hour. The stage, 32ft.deep by 55ft. wide, will be fitted with the most modern stage equipment and ample dressing room accommodations have been provided. The staircases, circle, gallery, and crush room floors are all in reinforced concrete and of fireproof construction. The seating accommodation is for 1,350 persons, tip up chairs throughout the house, handsome carpets curtains and décor, will make this, it is confidently expected, the most luxuriously appointed house in North Wales. The whole of the work is being carried out from the designs and under the superintendence of Mr Arthur Hewitt, architect, Llandudno. Mr Mark Lorne, the manager, has completed his arrangements for the opening season. High class variety acts, musical comedies, etc., have been engaged. Mr Amos Parker, of the Holborn Empire London has been appointed conductor of the orchestra. It is the intention of the directors to make the theatre the finest in North Wales. - The Llandudno Advertiser early 1919 .
The report above from The Llandudno Advertiser and written prior to the opening on August Bank Holiday 1920 contains a discrepancy regarding the original location of the projection equipment. Careful examination of a black and white photo made soon after the opening and taken from the stage shows the entire auditorium and reveals the absence of any projection room. The placement of the cine equipment suggested in the 1920 report prior to the building being completed shows three private boxes in the suggested location. The upper circle and rear of the stalls is also devoid of such equipment. An accurate painting of this photo, shown below, clarifies this.
Above - A Painting depicting the auditorium of the Palladium Theatre, Llandudno - Courtesy George Richmond.
That the Theatre was fitted with projection equipment from the opening is not questioned. The block containing the dressing rooms, and other offices, built behind the back wall of the stage but integral with the rest of the building would provide an ideal location for a projection room, well shielded from the stage by a masonry wall, and giving excellent sound proofing from mechanical clatter and fire protection. Back projection was popular at this time.
It has been thought that the decorative set back in the middle of the circle rail was a design feature made to accommodate the beam from a projector placed at the back of the circle from fouling the circle rail. Reference to the painting once more shows this feature raised above the height of the rest of the circle rail with a plaster capping and as originally designed was purely decorative.
Another black and white photo taken some years later and taken from the circle shows the decorative setback to have been lowered and covered in fabric to match the rest of the circle rail. This alteration is likely to have been made to accommodate the projector beam from the operating room now located where the three boxes were previously located.
The relocation of the projection room to the back of the circle in the space created by the removal of the three boxes was definitely made, perhaps when the building was converted to sound and the first three strip Technicolor features such as Becky Sharp were being produced, but the exact date is uncertain. The alteration to the indent can be seen in the foreground of the painting below made from an old photograph, showing the stage and boxes from the circle.
Above - A Painting depicting the auditorium and stage of the Palladium Theatre, Llandudno - Courtesy George Richmond.
The Theatre was successful, continuing to show both live and film shows well into the late 1960s after which the building was closed and altered to become, with the addition of a false ceiling and other partitions, a bingo hall in the former stalls, and a cinema at circle level, the upper circle being closed off. Although running at a loss during the winter months the owners, Apollo Leisure, would keep the building open for ever declining business during the summer until final closure at the end of the 1999 season.
Above - The Palladium Theatre, Llandudno today in use as a branch of Wetherspoon's - Courtesy George Richmond.
The building was taken over by the Weatherspoon Company in 2000, a condition of the planning permission being that the interior be restored as far as possible to its original theatrical condition. The interior above the former stalls level looks very much as it did in 1920, even the decorative indent in the middle of the circle rail has been restored to its former hight.
Right - The auditorium ceiling of The Palladium Theatre, Llandudno today - Courtesy George Richmond.
The decorative plasterwork at this level around the circle was lost, it has been restored but simplified using the pattern copied from the original unmolested upper circle design. The boxes at the lower level have retained the original plasterwork design which originally ran around the front of the circle. The proscenium arch has lost its inner mask with the curved upper corners but otherwise has been restored to the original design, minus the velvet valance.
The stage remains at its original height but the space has been incorporated into the restaurant and all evidence of the former stage fittings are gone or concealed.
Above - The former stage of the Palladium Theatre, Llandudno today in use as restaurant - Courtesy George Richmond.
A staircase leads from upstage left to an upper mezzanine level that gives a fine overall view of the auditorium. The back wall of the stage has been broken through at this level to make doorways giving access to lavatories contained in what must have been very spacious dressing rooms.
Right - The Entrance Porch of the Palladium Theatre, Llandudno today - Courtesy George Richmond.
Above - The Foyer Dome of the Palladium Theatre, Llandudno today - Courtesy George Richmond.
Front of house remains intact, the shops have been incorporated into the area but do not detract from the overall ambiance. The two staircases still lead from the foyer and still give access to the circle (doors locked) but the original lavatories remain and are in use!
Above - The rear elevation of the Palladium Theatre, Llandudno today - Courtesy George Richmond.
Weatherspoons undertook a thorough restoration of the exterior of the building during 2012/2013 and the façade now looks as it must have done in 1920 complete with the seabirds on top of the domes. It would be very unlikely that the building would ever be restored to theatrical use, but as it stands today, it is a wonderful place for lovers of old Theatres to have a cup of coffee and dream.
The above article on the Palladium Theatre was written for this site by George Richmond in March 2014. Old newspaper reports are courtesy of Llandudno Library.
If you have any more information or images for this Theatre that you are willing to share please Contact me .
The Arcadia Theatre, Promenade, Llandudno
Formerly - The Victoria Palace / Rivieres Concert Hall / Llandudno Opera House / Hippodrome
Original Architect G. A. Humphries - Arcadia Theatre Architect Arthur Hewitt
Above - The Arcadia Theatre in its Heyday - Courtesy Llandudno Library
Building work on the Concert Hall started in late 1892 and it was opened in July 1894 ; the building was designed by G. A. Humphries for the Victoria Palace Company as a temporary building, and initially called the Victoria Palace. The new venue would house the celebrated Conductor, Mr Jules Riviere and his Orchestra after his quarrel with the Llandudno Pier Company and the termination of his contract with that company. It was Riviere and his backers, the Victoria Palace Company's, intention to replace the building on the same site with a very grand concert hall to the designs of the celebrated architect Mr Frank Matcham . The designs were submitted but never put into effect and another fine building was lost to the town. However, the temporary building soldiered on for nearly a hundred years and has an interesting history.
Right - A programme for Riviere's Concert Hall in September 1895 - Courtesy Llandudno Library.
Located just under a mile along the Promenade from the Pier Pavilion it was intended to face what was to have been a second pier, though this was never built. The concert hall had a very rustic façade, the main feature being two stub towers with hexagonal conical roofs on either side of the central gable of the building, the gable being enhanced by a bay window with a three sided conical half roof complimenting the towers. Two further pitched roofs of the same dimensions but with canted slated gables covered the body of the concert hall. Inside, added support for the roof trusses was provided for by four cast iron columns forming the corners of a square around the centre of the auditorium. The inner roof structure at this time was open to view with no attempt to create an ornamental ceiling for acoustic or aesthetic reasons.
The orchestra platform was at the back of the auditorium facing the front foyer, with rooms to the right and left of this for visiting artistes and the conductor. The orchestra had a room built on to the back of the building. The auditorium was flat with no balconies and was lit by glazing along the pitched roof of the centre section and windows along each side, artificial lighting initially provided by gas.
Left - A programme for Riviere's Concert Hall featuring Clara Novello Davies - Courtesy Llandudno Library.
At the front of the building was the foyer with box office, a bar, a small cafe, and the usual offices being provided for the public, occupying the full width of the front of the hall. During Mr Rivieres tenure the halls name would be changed first to Rivieres Concert Hall, and then Llandudno Opera House, rather a grand name for such a building, but light opera companies did bring concert versions of productions to the venue. After Rivieres departure to the Victoria Pier, newly opened in Colwyn Bay in 1900 , the building was renamed the Hippodrome (see image below).
The backers presumably having bought Mr Rivieres interest out put in a manager in his place. Subsequent managers ran the business on similar lines during the season and used the building as a roller skating rink, (very popular at the time) and as a ballroom in the winter season thus keeping the building open and retaining the resident orchestra all year round. The problem of the four iron columns around the centre of the auditorium was overcome during these activities by covering the lower sections with thickly padded material!
Above - The Hippodrome Skating Rink - Courtesy Llandudno Library.
Over the years prior to the First World War the hall continued to function thus, quite successfully, until the owners decided to sell the building. Theatrical impresario Mr Will Catlin purchased the hall during 1915 for a reported £7,500. He then undertook a conversion of the building under the guidance of the architect Mr Arthur Hewitt. The original façade was changed very little. Doorways were modified and the decorative elements made grander with a shallow classical style pediment over the main entrance and pilasters with Corinthian capitals beneath.
Above - The Arcadia Theatre's modified facade - Courtesy Llandudno Library.
It was the interior that was given the major makeover. The glass was removed from the roof and a substantial ceiling added to the auditorium with decorative plaster mouldings. The side windows were removed and the walls plastered internally and embellished with a wreath and garland plaster frieze. Electric wall lights below this punctuated the walls at intervals and electroliers suspended from the decorative plasterwork in the ceiling. A proscenium arch was created in the back wall and a stage house built where the band room had stood. This was equipped with 20 hemp lines and a safety curtain. The get in was on the back wall stage left. The depth of the stage, from setting line to back wall, was shallow at around 15ft., but this was extended by a permanent apron stage of a similar depth covering the area of the former concert platform. The orchestra was situated in front of this but without benefit of a pit. The stage height from the flat stalls floor was about 5ft., thus keeping the orchestra, except from the conductor relatively out of the audiences sightline. Two dressing rooms were accessed from a door stage right, with a dancers room above these and further overflow dressing room accommodation provided below the stage. It was not possible to get from one side of the stage to the other without crossing the stage causing problems when a full depth set was required. A room was made over the foyer bar at the back centre of the auditorium with the observation windows at the level of the wreath and garland plaster moulding . This originally housed the limes and later projection equipment. Follow spots were then operated from the body of the auditorium as and when required. Seating was by plush tip up seats reducing the capacity to around 1,126. The back 14 rows were steeply raked and comprised one block of 9 abreast, then two blocks of 12 abreast and a further block of 9 abreast. The remaining seats in front of the stage were on the flat floor in two blocks of 11 rows 13 abreast. Two further blocks of seats of 7 rows 9 abreast on each side of the stage faced directly across the auditorium and as a result had very poor sight lines.
An early colour scheme had the auditorium in cream, light blue and white. The interior of the building would be little changed over the years. It would be re seated but the layout would remain the same though colours would change. At one time dark red would predominate, at another dark green. The exterior would lose the stub towers with the conical roofs, they were purely decorative and no doubt considered old fashioned. The façade became much more streamlined losing the ornate capitals from the pilasters but oddly retaining the Victorian bargeboard on the central gable and the bay window, now louvered. The Theatre would remain thus until it closed on the 22nd June 1994.
Right - A Daily Post photograph showing the Arcadia Theatre's stage and auditorium after the Theatre's Last Night - Courtesy Llandudno Library.
Above - The last days of the Arcadia, Llandudno shortly before its demolition in 2004 - Courtesy Roy Cross
The writing had been on the wall for some time. The building was in constant need of repair and the brand new purpose built North Wales Theatre next door opened for business the following month. The building remained closed and increasingly derelict for several years until it was finally demolished in June 2004 to make way for a new conference centre to be built as an integral part of the North Wales Theatre .
Under the guidance of Mr Will Catlin whose Catlin Productions also provided summer shows for his Theatres in Scarborough , Colwyn Bay and Great Yarmouth , the theatre had been a great success. He was a man astute enough to keep ahead of tastes and guide entertainment trends. After his death in 1953 family members ran the Theatre with continued success. Ultimately the Catlin interest was sold in 1968. The theatres fortunes under the new managements, whilst better than most, inevitably declined in line with changing tastes in holiday destinations until in 1992 the then Borough Council took over the building and after an unsuccessful season, it would be rented out for the remainder of its life.
Left - Demolition of the Arcadia Theatre - Courtesy Llandudno Library.
The above article on the Arcadia Theatre was written for this site by George Richmond in January 2014. Some information used courtesy of Llandudno Library and Terry Davies.
If you have any more information or images for this Theatre that you are willing to share please Contact me .
The St. Georges Hall, 74 Mostyn Street Llandudno
Later - The Princes Theatre / New Princes Cine/Theatre
St. Georges Hall built by Thomas Owen, 1863 , Architect Humphreys & Bradley
Princes Theatre 1899 - New Princes Cine / Theatre 1920
Above - A Google StreetView Image of the former St. Georges Hall / Princes Theatre, Llandudno - Click to Interact.
The building first known as St. Georges Hall and located at No. 74 Mostyn Street was erected in 1863 , the first purpose built place of entertainment in Llandudno. Built and run by Mr Thomas Owen, the building had a handsome stone facade of three bays. The centre bay of four lights, at first floor level, was set back from the two outer bays, these containing large round headed doorways. The centre bay at ground level was fitted with a shop front.
Right - A drawing of the original exterior of the St. Georges Hall, Llandudno - Courtesy George Richmond.
The concert hall, for this was the primary purpose of the building, was at first floor level. This was reached through the side doorways by way of passages and staircases to the auditorium. The concert hall was in fact double height at first floor level and the platform was situated in the original configuration at the front of the building, backing on to the windows, facing the street. As originally built, the hall had no balcony, but at some point, as the entertainment presented became more diverse, one was built to increase capacity and at the same time repositioning the stage to the opposite end of the auditorium.
Above - A drawing of the original interior of the St. Georges Hall, Llandudno - Courtesy George Richmond.
Above - An early photograph of a crowd outside the main entrance to the Princes Theatre, Llandudno - Courtesy Roy Cross
In 1899 the building's name was changed to the Princes Theatre when further alterations were made.
Right - A drawing of the exterior of the Princes Theatre, Llandudno - Courtesy George Richmond.
The Building News and Engineering Journal reported briefly on these changes in their 12th of August 1898 edition saying:- 'Mr. R. Clay, the purchaser of St. George's Hall, Llandudno, has decided to erect a modern-planned theatre on the site of the present hall, to accommodate about 1,000 persons, and has instructed Mr. Frank Matcham , Holborn, W.C., to prepare plans forthwith.' - The Building News and Engineering Journal, 12th of August 1898.
The principal changes included the provision of electric lighting and a solid and decorative proscenium arch to separate the stage from the auditorium. Other improvements related to much more comprehensive fire precautions of the premises. The entrance doors were made wider at this time. The inner stone door casings, along with the inset decorative columns were removed thus allowing two separate entrance doors to be placed within the new opening, one to gain admittance to the Orchestra Stalls the other to give access to the rather grandly named Dress Circle. The matching doorway on the right of the building would provide access to the Pit and emergency exits from the balcony and orchestra stalls. A painted sign under the moulding above the doors declared the building to be the Princes Theatre and also a sign at the centre of the building above the shop and extending over the pavement also declaring the name of the Theatre.
There is evidence on the exterior at the rear of the building of an extension attached to the back wall, and dating from this time to accommodate extra dressing rooms. It is likely that the rear of the shop premises was partitioned off and used to provide space for an orchestra pit, band, and dressing rooms prior to the 1899 alterations.
Left - The rear of the former St. Georges Hall / Princes Theatre, Llandudno today - Courtesy George Richmond.
An old drawing shows the auditorium, before these alterations were carried out, viewed from the balcony, with a door at each side next to the balcony rail giving on to the passages and staircases at each side of the building. Four boxes, at balcony level, two at each side of the stage and two at stalls level, these with open fronts, positioned flat along the side walls, gave the auditorium the appearance, at that time, similar to that of a Georgian Theatre. The boxes were supported on twenty four cast iron columns in pairs, one behind the other, with the balusters and rails in open work. The barrel vault roof was decorated with plain plaster ribs at this time .The solid proscenium arch is not in evidence in the drawing.
A recent visit to this space reveals foliate plaster ribs in the same barrel vault. The fine dome above the area on the Mostyn St. end of the building possibly dates from the 1920 restructuring though this is not certain. It is possible that the plasterwork on the roof was retained from the previous interior and simply added to.
Right - Surviving plasterwork in the former St. Georges Hall / Princes Theatre, Llandudno in 2013 - Courtesy George Richmond.
Above - Surviving dome in the former St. Georges Hall / Princes Theatre, Llandudno in 2013 - Courtesy George Richmond.
Under the ownership of two brothers C. and F. Burton the building would undergo another major remodelling after which it would become a full time cinema. The rebuilding of 1920 would take the auditorium down to ground floor level, relocating the shops to the two outer bays, creating a foyer, pay box and access to all parts of the house from the centre bay. On the inside, the stage was much reduced in depth to increase the seating capacity and a new balcony repositioned to accommodate a projection box.
Above - The Upper Facade of the former St. Georges Hall / Princes Theatre, Llandudno in 2013 - Courtesy George Richmond.
In this format, with minor modifications to accommodate the advent of sound and advances in cinema equipment, the building would continue to serve the public of Llandudno until 1957 when it closed. The building was sold to a grocery chain in 1959 when the first floor was reinstated and the space that was once St. Georges Hall would become storerooms; a situation that remains to the present day with its current owners being H M V. Only the plaster barrel ceiling and dome remains, this is now Listed.
Arthur Lloyd is known to have performed in Llandudno in 1879 .
The above article on the St. Georges Hall / Princes Theatre was written for this site by George Richmond in January 2014. Some background information for the above is courtesy Terry Davies and his book Loves Lost in Llandudno.
If you have any more information or images for this Theatre that you are willing to share please Contact me .
The Savoy Cinema Theatre, 35 Mostyn Street, Llandudno
Formerly - The New Cinema Theatre
Architect - Arthur Hewitt
Above - The New Cinema Theatre, Llandudno - Courtesy Roy Cross
Originally called The New Cinema Theatre and built for a new company called Llandudno Cinema Company Ltd., the Savoy was located at number 35 Mostyn Street and built on the site of a former hotel. It was open for business in August 1914 and was the third place of entertainment to be located on the principal shopping street in the town, the other two being the Princes Theatre 1876 and the Grand Theatre 1901 . A local newspaper gave a detailed description of the building shortly before it was opened for business (See box below).
The Llandudno Advertiser August 1st 1914
This new Theatre now nearing completion is to be opened next week at Llandudno and we append a description of the same.
The front elevation is boldly conceived, a recessed balcony on the upper floor being flanked by turrets with semi-circular headed windows ornamented with enriched keystones, shields and floral swags, and the front of the projecting balcony is filled in with ornamental wrought iron railings, deep recesses on either side of the turrets providing emergency exits from the circle, the same being protected by parapet walls filled in with moulded balusters. An ornamental iron verandah runs along the whole front, with large semi-circular openings to the main entrance filled in with ornamental glass; glazed frieze also extends along the front and the roof of the verandah is glazed.
Flanking the main entrance on either side is a lockup shop with bent glass plate windows, mahogany front with massive cornices and marble base, an iron spiral staircase leads from shops to store room and lavatory above.
The wide arched central entrance leads by an easy flight of stone steps to the entrance hall with the pay box in the centre and ornamental kiosks on either side. The hall has a tiled dado of neat design and the floor is of marble terrazzo, the ceiling being enriched by a panel; on either side are arched openings leading to broad staircases ascending to the floors above. Passing these we come to the main entrance in which an inner and outer door has been fitted to ensure freedom from draughts and give quietude to the patrons. We now enter the auditorium designed to seat 900 people, the stalls accommodates 700, and has a main central isle and one on either side whilst a sloping floor gives each seat a perfect view of the stage or screen. Standing at the centre of the auditorium one is at once struck by the perfectness of the appointments from the thick cork lino floors to better improve acoustics, the beautifully upholstered tip up chairs throughout, the dark wood dado and the enriched and panelled walls. The proscenium arch and circle front are delightfully ornamented in fibrous plaster. The colour scheme of the whole is in the most subdued style and serves to enhance the tout ensemble. When in use for cinematic performances the screen is placed at the back of the stage the projection equipment being securely housed behind the back wall of the stalls, an arrangement that will cause no strain to the eyes of the occupants of seats in any part of the house. The tableau curtain and valance, and side curtains decorating the stage when the screen is in use are all in velvet and appliqued to great effect adding to the overall luxurious effect of the auditorium.
Underneath the stage are situated the dressing rooms, heating chamber and artistes lavatories. Flanking the proscenium on either side are wide exit doors to the back road.
Going back again to the main entrance hall we ascend one of the spacious fireproof and richly carpeted staircases and find on an intermediate landing, a delightful lounge and tea room, with a sliding roof light, and big double doors leading out onto the balcony. From this landing we reach the circle, from whence we see the proportions of the house, and the beautifully curved and enriched ceiling. The circle carpeted and fitted throughout with tip up velvet chairs is indeed the last thing in luxury, the patron would indeed be a grumbler who complained of the style or accommodation here. The circle is constructed of reinforced concrete its safety from collapse or fire thus being ensured.
The building is beautifully lighted electrically with eye-rest ceiling lights throughout and an emergency gas service for use in emergencies. The cinematograph operators box is placed at the back of the auditorium underneath the circle enabling the picture to be thrown on the screen in perfect alignment. Underneath the box is the generator and winding rooms, and also the fan room where air is drawn by a powerful motor, the fresh air which by means of air ducts is driven to every part of the building, thus enabling the air to be cooled in summer and warmed in winter and to be changed throughout the building every quarter of an hour. Provision for the extinction of fire has been carefully made, fire hydrants at suitable points fully controlling the whole of the building. The building is also fully equipped with heating radiators distributed so that perfect comfort is ensured throughout. The means of Exit are ample as in addition to the entrances referred to six spacious emergency exits are provided, which will enable all parts of the house to be emptied in a remarkably short time.
The whole work has been carried out from the designs and under the personal supervision of Mr Arthur Hewitt, Architect of Llandudno, the general contractor being Messrs Evan Hughes and Son, Llandudno. Electric Light, Messrs Whitley and Co. Llandudno; the electric fittings from the General Electric Co., the seating and furnishing throughout from Messrs Beck and Windibank Birmingham ; ventilating engineers, Messrs H Hargreaves and Son, Bury ; heating engineers, Messrs Ashworth and Son Bury; ornamental fibrous plaster, Messrs T Hodkinson and Son Preston . Leaded lights by Messrs A Seward and Co. Lancaster, and verandah, Messrs Allan and Son Glasgow , and the wrought iron balcony railing by Messrs John Roberts and Son, Llandudno.
The above text in quotes was first published in the Llandudno Advertiser, August 1st 1914 .
Above - An early photograph of the Savoy Cinema Theatre, Llandudno - With kind permission Llandudno Library
The stringent fire prevention measures described in the newspaper report of 1914 proved to be of no avail, a quite serious fire broke out in 1942 and this kept the building closed for the duration of the war, due to wartime building restrictions, after which it was renovated.
Another much more damaging fire in 1956 resulted in the building having to be rebuilt, this time without its balcony and any stage facilities and now seating 600 on one level.
The building soldiered on as a cinema until the inevitable closure and eventual demolition in 1987. Shops now occupy the site but the rebuilt façade at first floor level is intended to echo the former cinema's façade.
Above - The site of the former Savoy Cinema Theatre in January 2014 - Courtesy George Richmond
The above article on the Savoy Cinema Theatre, Llandudno was written for this site by George Richmond in March 2014. The 1914 newspaper article and background material are courtesy of Llandudno Library..
If you have any more information or images for this Theatre that you are willing to share please Contact me .
Architect Mr B Nelson. Owners the Llandudno Pier Company
Above - An early postcard of the Pier Pavilion, Llandudno - Courtesy Llandudno Library.
Work started on the Pavilion in 1881 , this entailed considerable earth moving as the building was set at the base of the great rocky promontory known as the Great Orme. It was expected to be open for business in the spring of 1884 .
Right - The rear of the Llandudno Pier Pavilion whilst under construction in 1883 - Courtesy Llandudno Library.
In January 1884 a very severe storm damaged a major section of the glass roof. An article in the Liverpool Mercury of Monday the 28th of January 1884 reported on the storm saying:- The disastrous effects of the heavy gale in North Wales were conspicuously manifest at Llandudno on Saturday afternoon the 26th January at the Pier Pavilion, nearly completed. At about three o clock in the afternoon, a large portion of the immense glass roof fell in with a loud crash and the great glass squares subsequently flew about at intervals in all directions, breaking some of the windows in the Baths Hotel close by. By seven o clock all the roof was in ruin. Two men employed at the Pavilion had fortunately left work just before the first crash occurred. The loss to the shareholders will be heavy. In the evening a meeting of the directors was held to discuss the situation the damage has been estimated at £4,000.
The North Wales Chronicle reported on 3rd May 1884 :- It is surprising what progress the contractors are making in placing a new roof on the Pier Pavilion. There is every probability that the structure will be ready for the public by June; and it is noteworthy that every precaution is being taken to make the building perfectly safe for the accommodation of a large concourse of people. The new roof although not ornamental, will be substantial, and the possibility of a repetition of past misfortunes is very remote.
The original roof was of a semi-circular design above the principal centre section, with the side sections pitched, the whole fabricated in cast iron and fully glazed. The new roof would be of more conventional pitched design overall and covered in lead, with upright windows below this, surrounding the upper structure. Below these an element of the original design remained, this being an extension of the roof, fabricated in cast iron and curved and glazed to meet the eternal masonry walls.
This work would delay the opening for a relatively short time, advertisements in the local press indicated an opening date of 12th June 1884 but the building was used on Saturday 7th June for a programme to raise funds for the Llandudno Sanatorium and Cottage Hospital, an excellent public relations exercise. The problem with the roof did not deter the public from patronising the venue, in August 1884 J. L.Toole played to packed houses, a situation that would continue through the years.
The Pavilion was designed primarily as a concert hall, (although a secondary attraction was a salt water swimming pool in the basement, though this would prove to be short lived). The building had two main entrances, one from the pier leading to the ground floor level and a second at the rear of the building, from the road leading around the great Orme, this giving direct access to the balcony running around three sides of the auditorium.
Left - The rear of the Llandudno Pier Pavilion prior to opening, showing the entrance to the balcony - Courtesy Llandudno Library.
The building was 204 ft., long with a variable width from 84ft to 104 ft., at the centre block, this being 60ft., wide front to back. The left hand side of the building, from the front elevation, housed the Egyptian Hall, given over to exhibitions and miscellaneous uses. The right hand side, including the centre block, housed the concert hall proper, the stage being located at the far right.
Above - The original interior of the Llandudno Pier Pavilion showing the painted canvas ceiling - Courtesy Llandudno Library.
Further modifications to the exterior of the building were made in 1900 / 1901 when a cast iron veranda, with a balcony above, was added to the principal front and the left hand side of the building.
Right - A Cast Iron Staircase - All That Remains of the Llandudno Pier Pavilion today - Courtesy George Richmond.
The curved glass roof at the balcony level was also replaced at this time with a lead roof of a conventional design and upright windows with doors at intervals giving access to the balcony. The concert hall could accommodate up to 2,000 patrons when the balcony seats were in use. Seating at this time was on upright chairs. An interesting feature of the hall was a painted canvas ceiling stretched over the auditorium intended no doubt to improve the acoustic properties of the hall and at the same time conceal the cast iron inner roof structure. Another unusual feature was the decorative and structural cast iron frame around the proscenium.
Above - The large Llandudno Pier Pavilion Orchestra - Courtesy Llandudno Library.
For the first 40 years, orchestra recitals and concerts were the main bill of fare. The first resident conductor was Jules Riviere, who would go on to build his own concert hall in the town. He would be followed by many famous names from the music world, including Malcom Sargent and Henry Wood.
Right - An advertisement for Grand Concerts by the Pier Company's Orchestra at the Pier Pavilion, Llandudno - Courtesy Llandudno Library. John Bridge, who is credited as leader & Solo Violinist of the orchestra on this programme was the brother of Harry Bridge who was musical director of the Theatre Royal, Bury (Lancs) from about 1908 to 1932.
In 1936, due to changing tastes, the Pavilion would feature the main Variety shows and musicals. The building was not ideally suited to Theatre presentations. There was no fly tower but the stage was relatively deep at 29ft. and the proscenium was very high and so could be masked down to provide flying height. The auditorium was less than ideal being long, narrow and flat and the balcony seats, fine for orchestra concerts, could not be used comfortably. The auditorium was re seated with conventional tip up Theatre seats reducing the total capacity to 1,242 - 306 of these being raised on platforms at the rear of the auditorium and designated Circle seats (see seating plan below).
The stalls were not raked. However, in spite of the buildings shortcomings, it would remain open as a theatrical venue until the end of the 1984 season.
The many famous names to appear at the Pavilion over the Variety years are too numerous to mention, but a few headliners from the various decades were Richard Tauber, Anna Pavlova, Paul Robeson, Vera Lynn ,Tommy Trinder, Max Jaffa and The Spinners.
Above - A post 1936 Llandudno Pier Pavilion Seating Plan - Courtesy Llandudno Library.
Above - A Programme and cast photo for the last show of the season at the Pier Pavilion, Llandudno in 1983 - Courtesy Keith Hopkins who says that it was a Parnell Production and that the photograph is from the Ziegfeld Scena.
After the closure in 1984 various changes in ownership and ventures did not succeed and the building became very run down.
Left - A postcard showing an aerial view of the Llandudno Pier - Courtesy Llandudno Library.
In 1993 plans were being drawn up to restore the building and turn it into a Covent Garden type development that would include an element of Theatre along with shops, restaurants and exhibition and conference space.
However, the Pier Pavilion, which was a Grade II Listed building, became the victim of an arson attack in February 1994 which destroyed the building.
Right - The Pier Pavilion in flames in February 1994 - Courtesy Llandudno Library.
Nothing has replaced the Pavilion and only remnants of the cast iron supports and a staircase to the now lost exterior balcony remain.
The above article on the Pier Pavilion, Llandudno was written for this site by George Richmond in January 2014. With thanks to Llandudno Library & Terry Davies for background material, and B.F. for some archive newspaper reports.
If you have any more information or images for this Theatre that you are willing to share please Contact me .
The Winter Gardens Theatre, Gloddaeth Street, Llandudno
Later - The Odeon Cinema / The Astra
Architect - Mr Arthur Hewitt
Above - The Winter Gardens Cine Theatre in 1934 - With kind Permission Llandudno Library
An article in the Llandudno Advertiser in the summer of 1933 commented on the ongoing work of the towns forthcoming Cine / Theatre:- The new Theatre, architect Mr Hewitt, C.C., which by next summer will have replaced Messers Brierley Bros. garage on the corner of Gloddaeth and Deganwy Avenues with their new venture. Preliminary work is now well advanced, and as near as can be anticipated, the opening date of this new palace of entertainment will be at the end of June 1934. Accommodation will be provided in the Winter Gardens for the headquarters office of the Brierley Bros. Creams Coach Company, whose business has been conducted from this site for a number of years. The graceful art-deco style structure is to contain a cinema/theatre on the first floor with seating accommodation for 2,000 persons. Councillor Brierley is in preliminary negotiation for the booking of first rate films and the engagement of many personalities in the theatre world to appear in the variety entertainments , which will be featured during next summer. The latest type of cinema organ is to be built in front of the stage. Both this and the orchestra platform will be built so that they can disappear from sight when the stage is required. The ballroom, on the ground floor, which is to have a balanced and super-sprung dance surface, will be the biggest of its type in North Wales. It will be surrounded by cafes and lounges - Llandudno Advertiser, summer 1933.
Right - The opening Bill for the Winter Gardens Theatre, Llandudno in 1934 - With kind Permission Llandudno Library.
The organ referred to above was a Christie, three manual eight ranks, built by William Hill & Son, the pipe chambers being located behind decorative grills located on each side of the proscenium. The visual elements of the instrument were art deco in style, with many of the panels on the consul, translucent and lit from behind.
The Brierley brothers were originally from Rochdale and this connection was used to persuade Gracie Fields, perhaps the biggest British variety and film star at the time and also a native of Rochdale, to broadcast a message of congratulations, live to the opening night audience via a telephone link from her London Theatre dressing room. How Ella Shields, who was top of the bill on the opening night, really felt about being upstaged, is not recorded.
Left - An early advertisement for the Llandudno Winter Gardens Theatre mentioning Ambrose and his Orchestra, Nova Pilbeam and Sir Cedric Hardwicke, John Mills and Leslie Perrins - With kind Permission Llandudno Library.
The Theatre / Cinema lost money and the Brierley brothers sold the building after a short time to Oscar Deutsch to become part of the Odeon group of Cinemas, with the Ballroom being sold off to a third party. The Theatre would retain its original name for several years until being renamed Odeon in the late 1940s.
The seating was reduced during the 1950s to increase the size of the orchestra pit to better accommodate the Welsh National opera orchestra and the orchestras of companies such as The Sadlers Wells Ballet, the Carla Rosa Opera Company and The Doyle Carte Opera Company, all of which played the Theatre during the 50s and 60s. The alterations reduced the seating in the stalls to 1,079. The size of the stage was not ideal for these companies, some of the sets requiring the full depth and thus causing problems for cast members getting from one side of the stage to the other. However due to the design of the building, and its location on the first floor of the complex, this problem could not be remedied and the stage retained the original dimensions, proscenium 40ft. wide and stage depth 30ft. None of the 14 dressing rooms contained a shower and lavatories were in short supply. A further drawback for the large touring companies was the lack of a dedicated orchestra room.
Above - The Winter Gardens Theatre having been renamed Astra in the 1970s - With kind Permission Llandudno Library
In the 1970s the Theatre once again changed hands becoming part of the Hutchinson Leisure Group of Burnley , being renamed at this time Astra. When the owner of the Hutchinson Leisure Group died in 1984 his assets were sold off and the building was purchased by the Apollo leisure group.
From the 1970s attendances like that of the other Theatres in the town continued to decline for both film and live shows, only the W.N.O and similar companies could be guaranteed a good house, until in 1986, after a final visit to the Theatre by the Welsh National Opera, and in November of that year, a one night appearance of Billy Connelly, followed in the same month by the Vienna Festival Ballet, the owners closed the building and sold it to a local developer who in spite of a great deal of opposition from the townspeople subsequently built a block of flats on the site.
Above - The Winter Gardens Theatre being demolished in the late 1980s - With kind Permission Llandudno Library
Above - The site of the Winter Gardens Theatre, Llandudno, in 2014 - Courtesy George Richmond
The above article on the Winter Garden Theatre, Llandudno was written for this site by George Richmond in July 2014. Archive and source material is Courtesy The Llandudno Library. A comprehensive account of this and other Llandudno Theatres is to be found in Loves Lost in Llandudno by Terry Davis.
The Happy Valley Open Air Variety Theatre, Llandudno 1887- 1987
Above - The Happy Valley Theatre in the early 20th Century - With Kind Permission Llandudno Library
Opened in 1887 (some sources suggest 1890 ) on land leased from the Lord Mostyn Estates by Mr Joseph Perry of Perry & Allens Minstrels, a company unusual at the time for performing white face. Churchills Minstrels on the other hand, a company formed by a member of the Perry and Allen group after the death of Joseph Perry in 1904 , performed in the more usual black face. Churchills Company performed well into the 20th century. The minstrel companies would be later replaced by Charles Wades Concord Follies (Shown Right), and Roy Cowls Queeries (Shown Below), among others, up to the Second World War. Regular Sunday concerts were given throughout this time by Llandudnos Town Band.
Above - Roy Cowl's Queeries at the Happy Valley Theatre in 1930 - With Kind Permission Llandudno Library
Above - A Postcard showing the Happy Valley Theatre in the 1930s - With Kind Permission Llandudno Library
After the war, in the early 1950s, Waldini and his Gypsy Orchestra featured until being succeeded by Alex Munro, an actor, comedian, theatrical manager and R.A.F veteran, who took over the running of Happy Valley on behalf of the County Council and ran the open air Theatre for the next 30 years until shortly before his death.
Right - A Newspaper advertisement for 'The Waldini Show' at the Happy Valley, Llandudno - With Kind Permission Llandudno Library.
The land provided by Lord Mostyn for the new venue was sloping and curved with a relatively flat area at the base of the curve creating a natural amphitheatre. It was also a relatively short walk from the town centre, access being achieved by an unnamed road leading to the tollgate for Marine Drive, a road around the lower slopes of the Great Orme, stretching for a distance of 6 miles.
The original dressing rooms and backing were of canvas with a platform raised no more than 6 inches from the ground at the front rising towards the rear to take in the contour of the land. This was soon replaced by a permanent wooden structure providing backing, a raised platform in front and a veranda of three bays over, retaining the apron platform in front. At each end of the structure was dressing room accommodation, both topped by a decorative six sided mini tower. This would later be replaced by an art deco building after the original burned down in 1932, the new construction covering approximately the same area as the original.
Above - A Postcard showing the Llandudno Pier from an aeroplane. The Happy Valley Theatre can also be seen in this image (See red arrows) - With Kind Permission Llandudno Library.
During Alex Munros tenure the building would be modified to resemble the bridge of a ship, still with the apron stage. Seating was restricted to the area directly in front of the platform called the enclosure, later, deckchairs could be hired for use in the surrounding area but the majority would sit on the grass or stand, weather permitting. With the vagary of the British weather it was not unusual for shows to be transferred to Llandudno Town Hall.
Happy Valley went dark after the death of Alex Munro in January 1986. Arsonists set fire to the stage house during 1987 and this was never rebuilt, spelling the end of the Happy Valley. In 2014 the unnamed road leading to the former Happy Valley site was named Alex Munro Way. Throughout the years the venue had been a huge success. The new name for the road, honouring the last and very popular actor manager of the venue, will ensure that the talented managers and performers who kept the place alive for nearly 100 years will not be forgotten.
The above article on the Happy Valley Theatre, Llandudno was written for this site by George Richmond in August 2014, and was researched at Llandudno Library. Thanks to P. Richmond for her memories of the place in the early 1950s, also Terry Davis for the chronological order and dates, and Roy Cross for the Alex Munro Road renaming information.
The Llandudno Pier Companies' New Theatre (Unbuilt)
Above - A photograph of the proposed location for the New Grand Theatre, Llandudno - Courtesy George Richmond.
On the 28th. July 1901 Mr Milton Bodes Grand theatre was due to be opened; this would be the first purpose built Theatre in the town. It would seem that the Llandudno Pier Company was keen to enter into competition with Mr Bode. The Era of 11th July 1891 announced:- "New Theatre for Llandudno. A general meeting of shareholders and directors of the pier company Llandudno, held at their offices, Dr James Nicol, JP. In the chair it was unanimously resolved to meet the wants of the visitors to this popular seaside resort by building a new Theatre. Plans and designs have been prepared by Mr Daniel Arkle, architect, Birmingham , and all the work is intended to be pushed forward at all possible speed, so as to have the Theatre ready for the next season. The site for the new building is at the entrance to the pier, on the angular piece of land in front of the Pavilion . The main fronts will face the pier entrance gates and the sea. The principal approach is by a grand central entrance lobby, from whence a handsome stone staircase leads to the stalls, dress circle and upper boxes. The central entrance will be domed over, and will be handsomely decorated and will form a special feature of the building, surmounted by a group of figures representing Music, Art, and the Drama. The style of the structure is an adaptation of the Romanesque, with a Byzantine treatment of ornament which has a very pleasing effect, and gives an oriental appearance to the building. The elevations will be faced in brick with stone dressings. Groups of statuary will be placed near the main entrance, with panels of figured subjects at the sides. The building will hold about 2,000 persons, and will comprise pit, dress circle,upper boxes and gallery, with two stage boxes, two private boxes, and one Royal box. The whole building will be built fireproof, as far as modern science can make it. Great consideration has been given to provide plenty of access and egress in case of panic. The pit is formed in the basement, the dress circle being at the level of the pier promenade, and all the floors are provided with refreshment rooms and retiring rooms for ladies and gentlemen, also smoke rooms. The office for the manager is centrally placed. It is intended to adopt electric light for the interior gas being provided as well in case of necessity. All the latest improvements will be adopted for the effective working of stage pieces. The roof of the garden will be flat and laid out as an ornamental garden, and can be used as an outdoor promenade for the Pavilion . The whole of the ornamental decoration of the interior will be raised carton pierre or plaster work. In front of the building will be gardens laid out with flower beds &c., and this will add very considerably to the attractions of the pier as a public rendezvous." - The Era 11th July 1891.
The design of the new theatre was in complete sympathy with its surroundings, special attention being given to keep the overall height of the building to a minimum and integrating fully with the existing buildings and landscaping. However, as was often the case with proposed Theatre building at this period, the intended new amenity for the town and its visitors fell foul of Llandudnos 20 Town Commissioners who were intent on keeping the morals of said people as pure as possible, however, common sense prevailed. The Era of the 5th of December 1891 reports:- "The New Theatre at Llandudno. The Question of the power of local authority over theatre plans came before the Court of Queens Bench, on Monday, in reference to the Llandudno Pier Company. It appeared that under section 138 of the public health act, 1873 , the Town Commissioners of Llandudno have the power to disapprove of plans for public buildings, such as theatres, and the Pier Company, being desirous of erecting a theatre contagious to their pier, had sent their plans to the commissioners architect, who had made certain requisitions which had been complied with. The committee of the commissioners however, when the plans so amended came before them, remitted them to a general meeting of the commissioners at which they were rejected, not it was said, on any defects or demerits of the plans themselves, but on the general objection of "moral grounds" to the building proposed to be erected as a theatre.
Right - A Street Plane showing the location of the propose new Theatre - Courtesy Llandudno Library.
Mr Marshal moved on the part of the Pier Company for a mandamus to the commissioners to hear and determine the application on its merits and approve or disapprove of the plans. (Mr Justice Mathew - They have not, you say an absolute discretion?) No; it is a discretion limited by law, and which must be exercised upon legal grounds. (Lord Colerige observed that in the correspondence some reference was made to the contiguity of the building to the highway.) That would not of itself be a ground of objection in the absence of any bye-law; and no violation of a bye-law is imputed. The commissioners cannot reject the proposed plans upon vague moral grounds merely because they do not like theatres.
The Court granted a rule nisi for a mandamus. - The Era , 5th of December 1891 .
In spite of the Pier Company winning the case, what would have been a wonderful theatre was not built. This could have been due to a lack of funds. At this time 1901 the Pier Company had demolished its old Baths Hotel next door to the Pier Pavilion using the rubble to fill in the white elephant swimming pool under the Pavilion thus creating a proper basement. On the site of the old hotel the company erected what was the largest hotel in North Wales in 1901, the Grand Hotel. At this time some major alterations where made to the Pavilion , part of the lower roof was replaced and remodelled to better accommodate the new cast iron veranda and balcony built around the front and side of the building. The real facts of the case are lost to us, as was an innovative Theatre. The location of the Theatre is shown on the street plan of the area at that time (shown above right).
The above article on the proposed New Theatre, Llandudno was written for this site by George Richmond in January 2014.
If you have any more information or images for this Theatre that you are willing to share please Contact me .
| i don't know |
When Corporation Tax was first introduced in 1965, what was the basic rate? Was it 20%, 30% or 40% ? | Income Tax
Income Tax
Income Tax
What is Income Tax?
Income Tax is the principal form of direct personal taxation in the UK. It takes the form of a proportion of a person's earnings, which is collected by HM Revenue & Customs and passed to the Treasury. Income Tax was previously collected by the Inland Revenue, but in April 2005, Inland Revenue merged with HM Customs and Excise Departments to form the present HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC).
The main forms of income that are liable to Income Tax are earnings from employment and self-employment, retirement pensions, profits from business, income from property, interest on savings and dividends from investments. It is also payable on Jobseeker's Allowance and tips and bonuses.
Deductions for Income Tax are usually made "at source": that is, they are deducted by the paying authority (the employer) and passed to HMRC without ever reaching the individual. Self-employed people, however, must assess their own tax liabilities and make any necessary payments to the taxation authorities themselves.
The types of income exempt from Income Tax are most means-tested benefits, employer or employee pension contributions, student grants, loans or scholarships, and earnings from certain types of saving products, such as National Savings Certificates and Individual Savings Accounts.
UK residents are allowed to earn or receive a certain amount of taxable income each year tax-free. This is known as a 'Personal Allowance'. A Blind Person's Allowance may also be added to the Personal Allowance for those registered blind.
For people under 65, the Income Tax personal allowance (the amount you can earn before you pay tax) increased to £9,440 in April 2013.
For people over 65, related allowances froze in April 2013.
From 2014-15, taxpayers will receive a new Personal Tax Statement, telling them how much Income Tax and National Insurance they have paid and what their money is being spent on.
Background
Income Tax was the first tax in British history to be levied directly on people's earnings. It was introduced in 1799 by the then Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger, as a temporary measure to cover the cost of the Napoleonic Wars.
Today, it remains a temporary tax, which expires on April 5 each year, and has to be renewed as a provision in the annual Finance Bill. The Provisional Collection of Taxes Act 1913 permits the Government to continue to collect Income Tax for up to four months after the expiry of the measure, until the Finance Bill becomes law.
Deduction at source was introduced in 1803 by Henry Addington. At this time, the amount charged was reduced from the original rate of 10 per cent on incomes in excess of £60 per annum, but the earnings threshold was widened to double the size of the liable population.
Income Tax was formally repealed in 1816, a year after the Battle of Waterloo, but it was reintroduced in 1842 by Sir Robert Peel to deal with a massive public deficit. At this time, it was levied only on the very rich, and it remained so for many years. In 1874, it contributed only £6 million of Government revenues of £77 million.
Income Tax rose dramatically in the early 20th Century. A new range of taxes and rates was introduced in 1907 by Herbert Asquith. In 1909, an alternative to Income Tax for high levels of earnings, called the "Surtax" or "Super Tax" was introduced. Super Tax survived until 1973, when it was replaced with the Higher Rate of Income Tax.
By 1918, the standard rate rose to 30 per cent, which brought in £257 million per annum, on top of £36 million from Super Tax. Moreover, by 1930, 10 million Britons were liable for Income Tax.
Income Tax was extended to a larger proportion of the population and its rates increased again in 1945, to pay for the Second World War effort. The current Pay As You Earn (PAYE) system for deducting tax at source was introduced in 1944, replacing the previous system of annual or six-monthly collection. The "tax code", telling employers the proportion of income to be deducted, and the P45 form was introduced alongside PAYE.
Throughout the postwar period, the trend in rates of Income Tax was upwards, as the state increased its range of responsibilities. This was reversed under Margaret Thatcher. During her period as Prime Minister, the Basic Rate of Income Tax was reduced from 33 per cent to 25 per cent, and the Higher Rate from 83 per cent to 40 per cent, as part of her drive to reduce the "size" of government and free up private incomes.
Following the 1997 election the new Labour government promised not to increase the Basic Rate of Income Tax, and it remained at 22 per cent until 2007, when the Chancellor, Gordon Brown, reduced it to 20 per cent with effect from April 2008.
The present Coalition government announced that it would increase the Personal Allowance by £1000 in 2011-12 bringing it up to £7,475. This they claimed would take 880,000 people out of income tax altogether. The Government also pledged to gradually increase the Personal Allowance to £10,000 over the longer term.
Controversies
Throughout its 19th Century history, no one expected Income Tax to become a permanent feature of British life. However, as it became accepted (particularly after the World Wars) that the state should do more to provide services for citizens, the long-lived tax evolved into the principal means of public funding.
Today, few criticise the concept of Income Tax itself, and controversy focuses on the rate and those elements of earnings that are liable. Income Tax is one of the most high-profile of all taxes (not least because of its simplicity and transparency) and as such fluctuations in the regime are frequently headline news.
In the 1980s, the Thatcher Governments argued that heavy rates of marginal taxation on high earners were a disincentive to entrepreneurship and hard work. This remained the political orthodoxy for Labour and the Conservatives, although the Liberal Democrats proposed a new higher rate for incomes in excess of £150,000 per annum.
In 1997 and 2001, Labour undertook not to increase the Basic Rate of Income Tax. The motives for this were both political (the unpopularity attendant on Income Tax rises, illustrated by Labour's performance in the 1992 general election, and the desire to avoid the cycle of taxes being cut before elections only to rise afterwards), and economy ( in order to increase financial certainty and stability).
While it did not increase Income Tax, critics of the Government pointed to increases in other taxes and the introduction of new taxes, claiming that the tax burden continued to rise in spite of the Government's eschewal of this primary lever. The Conservatives dubbed these measures "stealth taxes", claiming that the Government was continuing to take more money from the public, but through opaque and diffuse measures rather than the transparent (and therefore politically difficult) means of Income Tax.
The types of income liable to Income Tax are also a source of controversy. The taxation of pensions and the savings of those on otherwise low incomes has attracted criticism. It has been argued that the majority of pensioners do not have large pensions, and that the system punishes those who have made provision for their retirements by accumulating modest levels of savings.
The abolition of the Married Couple's Allowance (an increased exempt personal allowance) in April 2000 was widely criticised by social conservatives for discouraging marriage. The Government argued that the system had been replaced by Child Tax Credit in April 2001, but the change of emphasis from marriage to children did not satisfy critics, who continued to call for its reinstatement.
The Married Couple's Allowance was abolished for all except those in marriages and civil partnerships where one person was born before April 1935, in which case an allowance may still be claimed.
In the run-up to the last General Election the Conservative Party outlined plans to give tax breaks to married couples and those living in civil partnerships. The plans were roundly criticised by Labour who claimed that child benefits would be cut to fund the scheme. There were also concerns that single parent families would lose out. The Liberal Democrats were also critical of the proposals.
Since the election the Prime Minister, David Cameron, has indicated he still wishes to support marriage, or 'commitment' as in civil partnerships, via some kind of transferable tax allowance. This appears to be one area on which the two Coalition partners still disagree; however, provision is made in the Coalition agreement for the Liberal Democrats to abstain on any such budget resolution.
The previous Labour government disputed claims that the tax burden had risen, but most commentators accepted that the tax system had become considerably more complex and therefore less comprehensible to the layman in recent years.
The Coalition stated in its 'Programme for government' that it believed the tax system needed to be reformed in order to make it "more competitive, simpler, greener and fairer"; and the new Government said action would be taken to ensure that "the tax framework better reflects the values of this Government."
Coalition chancellor George Osborne later decided to cut the top rate of income tax from 50p to 45p, in a move which was widely seen to have damaged his claim that "we are all in this together" when it came to deficit reduction. The Treasury claimed the tax cut would bring in more revenue, but some tax experts said the one year lifespan of the top rate meant it was impossible to really evaluate how well it functioned.
Statistics
Under 65: £8,105 Age 65-74: £10,500 Age 75+: £10,660
Personal allowance 2013-14
Under 65: £9,440 Age 65-74: £10,500 Age 75+: £10,660
Married Couple's Allowance:
Allowance: Age 75+ 2011-12: £7,295 2012-13: £7,705 2013-14 £7,915
Minimum amount: 2011-12: £2,800 2012-13: £2,960 2013-14 £3,040
Income Tax bands:
Start savings rate: 10%: 2011-12: £0 - £2,560 2012-13: £0 - £2,710 2013-14: £0 - £2,790
Basic rate: 20%: 2011-12: £0 - £35,000 2012-13: £0 - £34,370 2013-14: £0 - £32,010
Higher rate: 40%: 2011-12: £35,001 - £150,000 2012-13: £34,371 - £150,000 2013-14: £32,011- £150,000
Additional rate: 50%: 2011-12: Over £150,000 2012-13: £Over £150,000 2013-14 N/A
In April 2013, the top rate of Income Tax was reduced from 50 per cent to 45 per cent.
Income Tax reliefs that are not already capped will be capped at £50,000 or 25 per cent of income, whichever is higher.
The main rate of Corporation Tax will reduce by an additional 1 per cent to 24 per cent from April 2012.
Source: Gov.uk, 2012, 2013; HMRC.gov.uk, 2013
Quotes
"My goal is a tax system where the lowest paid are lifted out of tax altogether, while the tax revenues we get from the richest increases."
Chancellor George Osborne, Budget statement - March 2012.
| forty |
What was the surname of the German chemist who, in 1867, established the chemical works in Cefn Mawr, which later became part of Monsanto and then Flexsys ? | Income Tax
Income Tax
Income Tax
What is Income Tax?
Income Tax is the principal form of direct personal taxation in the UK. It takes the form of a proportion of a person's earnings, which is collected by HM Revenue & Customs and passed to the Treasury. Income Tax was previously collected by the Inland Revenue, but in April 2005, Inland Revenue merged with HM Customs and Excise Departments to form the present HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC).
The main forms of income that are liable to Income Tax are earnings from employment and self-employment, retirement pensions, profits from business, income from property, interest on savings and dividends from investments. It is also payable on Jobseeker's Allowance and tips and bonuses.
Deductions for Income Tax are usually made "at source": that is, they are deducted by the paying authority (the employer) and passed to HMRC without ever reaching the individual. Self-employed people, however, must assess their own tax liabilities and make any necessary payments to the taxation authorities themselves.
The types of income exempt from Income Tax are most means-tested benefits, employer or employee pension contributions, student grants, loans or scholarships, and earnings from certain types of saving products, such as National Savings Certificates and Individual Savings Accounts.
UK residents are allowed to earn or receive a certain amount of taxable income each year tax-free. This is known as a 'Personal Allowance'. A Blind Person's Allowance may also be added to the Personal Allowance for those registered blind.
For people under 65, the Income Tax personal allowance (the amount you can earn before you pay tax) increased to £9,440 in April 2013.
For people over 65, related allowances froze in April 2013.
From 2014-15, taxpayers will receive a new Personal Tax Statement, telling them how much Income Tax and National Insurance they have paid and what their money is being spent on.
Background
Income Tax was the first tax in British history to be levied directly on people's earnings. It was introduced in 1799 by the then Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger, as a temporary measure to cover the cost of the Napoleonic Wars.
Today, it remains a temporary tax, which expires on April 5 each year, and has to be renewed as a provision in the annual Finance Bill. The Provisional Collection of Taxes Act 1913 permits the Government to continue to collect Income Tax for up to four months after the expiry of the measure, until the Finance Bill becomes law.
Deduction at source was introduced in 1803 by Henry Addington. At this time, the amount charged was reduced from the original rate of 10 per cent on incomes in excess of £60 per annum, but the earnings threshold was widened to double the size of the liable population.
Income Tax was formally repealed in 1816, a year after the Battle of Waterloo, but it was reintroduced in 1842 by Sir Robert Peel to deal with a massive public deficit. At this time, it was levied only on the very rich, and it remained so for many years. In 1874, it contributed only £6 million of Government revenues of £77 million.
Income Tax rose dramatically in the early 20th Century. A new range of taxes and rates was introduced in 1907 by Herbert Asquith. In 1909, an alternative to Income Tax for high levels of earnings, called the "Surtax" or "Super Tax" was introduced. Super Tax survived until 1973, when it was replaced with the Higher Rate of Income Tax.
By 1918, the standard rate rose to 30 per cent, which brought in £257 million per annum, on top of £36 million from Super Tax. Moreover, by 1930, 10 million Britons were liable for Income Tax.
Income Tax was extended to a larger proportion of the population and its rates increased again in 1945, to pay for the Second World War effort. The current Pay As You Earn (PAYE) system for deducting tax at source was introduced in 1944, replacing the previous system of annual or six-monthly collection. The "tax code", telling employers the proportion of income to be deducted, and the P45 form was introduced alongside PAYE.
Throughout the postwar period, the trend in rates of Income Tax was upwards, as the state increased its range of responsibilities. This was reversed under Margaret Thatcher. During her period as Prime Minister, the Basic Rate of Income Tax was reduced from 33 per cent to 25 per cent, and the Higher Rate from 83 per cent to 40 per cent, as part of her drive to reduce the "size" of government and free up private incomes.
Following the 1997 election the new Labour government promised not to increase the Basic Rate of Income Tax, and it remained at 22 per cent until 2007, when the Chancellor, Gordon Brown, reduced it to 20 per cent with effect from April 2008.
The present Coalition government announced that it would increase the Personal Allowance by £1000 in 2011-12 bringing it up to £7,475. This they claimed would take 880,000 people out of income tax altogether. The Government also pledged to gradually increase the Personal Allowance to £10,000 over the longer term.
Controversies
Throughout its 19th Century history, no one expected Income Tax to become a permanent feature of British life. However, as it became accepted (particularly after the World Wars) that the state should do more to provide services for citizens, the long-lived tax evolved into the principal means of public funding.
Today, few criticise the concept of Income Tax itself, and controversy focuses on the rate and those elements of earnings that are liable. Income Tax is one of the most high-profile of all taxes (not least because of its simplicity and transparency) and as such fluctuations in the regime are frequently headline news.
In the 1980s, the Thatcher Governments argued that heavy rates of marginal taxation on high earners were a disincentive to entrepreneurship and hard work. This remained the political orthodoxy for Labour and the Conservatives, although the Liberal Democrats proposed a new higher rate for incomes in excess of £150,000 per annum.
In 1997 and 2001, Labour undertook not to increase the Basic Rate of Income Tax. The motives for this were both political (the unpopularity attendant on Income Tax rises, illustrated by Labour's performance in the 1992 general election, and the desire to avoid the cycle of taxes being cut before elections only to rise afterwards), and economy ( in order to increase financial certainty and stability).
While it did not increase Income Tax, critics of the Government pointed to increases in other taxes and the introduction of new taxes, claiming that the tax burden continued to rise in spite of the Government's eschewal of this primary lever. The Conservatives dubbed these measures "stealth taxes", claiming that the Government was continuing to take more money from the public, but through opaque and diffuse measures rather than the transparent (and therefore politically difficult) means of Income Tax.
The types of income liable to Income Tax are also a source of controversy. The taxation of pensions and the savings of those on otherwise low incomes has attracted criticism. It has been argued that the majority of pensioners do not have large pensions, and that the system punishes those who have made provision for their retirements by accumulating modest levels of savings.
The abolition of the Married Couple's Allowance (an increased exempt personal allowance) in April 2000 was widely criticised by social conservatives for discouraging marriage. The Government argued that the system had been replaced by Child Tax Credit in April 2001, but the change of emphasis from marriage to children did not satisfy critics, who continued to call for its reinstatement.
The Married Couple's Allowance was abolished for all except those in marriages and civil partnerships where one person was born before April 1935, in which case an allowance may still be claimed.
In the run-up to the last General Election the Conservative Party outlined plans to give tax breaks to married couples and those living in civil partnerships. The plans were roundly criticised by Labour who claimed that child benefits would be cut to fund the scheme. There were also concerns that single parent families would lose out. The Liberal Democrats were also critical of the proposals.
Since the election the Prime Minister, David Cameron, has indicated he still wishes to support marriage, or 'commitment' as in civil partnerships, via some kind of transferable tax allowance. This appears to be one area on which the two Coalition partners still disagree; however, provision is made in the Coalition agreement for the Liberal Democrats to abstain on any such budget resolution.
The previous Labour government disputed claims that the tax burden had risen, but most commentators accepted that the tax system had become considerably more complex and therefore less comprehensible to the layman in recent years.
The Coalition stated in its 'Programme for government' that it believed the tax system needed to be reformed in order to make it "more competitive, simpler, greener and fairer"; and the new Government said action would be taken to ensure that "the tax framework better reflects the values of this Government."
Coalition chancellor George Osborne later decided to cut the top rate of income tax from 50p to 45p, in a move which was widely seen to have damaged his claim that "we are all in this together" when it came to deficit reduction. The Treasury claimed the tax cut would bring in more revenue, but some tax experts said the one year lifespan of the top rate meant it was impossible to really evaluate how well it functioned.
Statistics
Under 65: £8,105 Age 65-74: £10,500 Age 75+: £10,660
Personal allowance 2013-14
Under 65: £9,440 Age 65-74: £10,500 Age 75+: £10,660
Married Couple's Allowance:
Allowance: Age 75+ 2011-12: £7,295 2012-13: £7,705 2013-14 £7,915
Minimum amount: 2011-12: £2,800 2012-13: £2,960 2013-14 £3,040
Income Tax bands:
Start savings rate: 10%: 2011-12: £0 - £2,560 2012-13: £0 - £2,710 2013-14: £0 - £2,790
Basic rate: 20%: 2011-12: £0 - £35,000 2012-13: £0 - £34,370 2013-14: £0 - £32,010
Higher rate: 40%: 2011-12: £35,001 - £150,000 2012-13: £34,371 - £150,000 2013-14: £32,011- £150,000
Additional rate: 50%: 2011-12: Over £150,000 2012-13: £Over £150,000 2013-14 N/A
In April 2013, the top rate of Income Tax was reduced from 50 per cent to 45 per cent.
Income Tax reliefs that are not already capped will be capped at £50,000 or 25 per cent of income, whichever is higher.
The main rate of Corporation Tax will reduce by an additional 1 per cent to 24 per cent from April 2012.
Source: Gov.uk, 2012, 2013; HMRC.gov.uk, 2013
Quotes
"My goal is a tax system where the lowest paid are lifted out of tax altogether, while the tax revenues we get from the richest increases."
Chancellor George Osborne, Budget statement - March 2012.
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Iconic brands of the 20th and 21st centuries
University of Washington
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The 20th century witnessed the phenomenon of brand building on a global scale. Although multiple elements of marketing were used to build and develop brands, the major instrument of the 20th century was the advertising campaign, initially in print but later in broadcast media. Towards the end of the 20th century, however, we see the phenomenon of brands being built to global scale and recognition whose primary instrument of brand building is the internet and its multi media applications.
This gives a selection of some of the more iconic brands of the 20th and early 21st century. It is a representative selection rather than an exhaustive or definitive selection. Understanding the development of these brands, and the campaigns that enabled their development will assist in an understanding of modern marketing and its application. The selection is presented below in various categories:
Automotive and Petroleum Industry
Throughout the 20th century, the automotive industry has been in the vanguard of global brand building. The industry has also been one of the higher spenders on advertising, which has resulted in many memorable brand development and advertising campaigns.
Here are a few successful car brands:
BMW
Http://www.bmw.com/
BMW—Bayerische Motoren Werke—is a fine example of a powerful brand whose core value is the driving performance of its range of vehicles. Its enduring brand slogan is aligned, and in tune, with its core value of high performance engineering.
The company that led to the creation of BMW was established as an aircraft engine manufacturer in October 1913 by Karl Rapp in Munich and known as ‘Rapp Motoren Werke’. In 1916, it merged with Gustav Otto's nearby company to form Bayerische Flugzeug-Werke or BFW (Bavarian Aircraft Works). In March 1916 it was then changed to Bayerische Motoren Werke and was taken over by Popp with chief engineer Max Friz. The first engines were used in biplanes and sold to the German government in the last year of the First World War. After the war, with the prohibition on military aircraft as part of the Versailles Treaty, BMW turned to other types of transport engine: tractors, trucks, boats, cars, motorbikes. By the 1930s BMW was established as a car manufacturer. Under Hitler, BMW resumed making aircraft engines, both for civilian and military use. During the Second World War, BMW stepped up its manufacture of fighter aircraft engines for the Luftwaffe and also produced military motorcycles for the Wehrmacht. During the war the company started to manufacture jet engines and rockets for military use. By the end of the war, however, the majority of BMW factories had either been bombed into ruins or dismantled by the Allies and a three-year ban on all military engine production was imposed. BMW in the post-war period was confined to motorcycles, in which it became a world leader. In 1951 the company resumed car production; by 1956, it was manufacturing sports cars in West Germany. The new director, Paul G Hahnemann introduced a marketing strategy to segment the market for BMW products and started to restructure the company around market niches both within Germany and internationally. Under his leadership, BMW undertook a systematic expansion into markets outside Germany—increasing the range of car and motorbike models throughout the 1960s and '70s. BMW gradually started to dominate the market for luxury high performance cars. To reinforce their image, BMW also became a major sponsor of Formula 1 and started to compete which deepened their knowledge of high performance engine design. In the 1980s BMW started to make Formula 1 engines and to sponsor leading racing teams. In 1994, it bought out the Rover group and increased the number of brands under its management, notably the Mini.
Campaign
BMW's iconic campaign from which its famous strapline emerged started in 1975:
The Ultimate Driving Machine, 1975 (Puris and Ammirati)
Http://www.adglitz.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/bmw-the-ultimate-driving-machine.jpg
The campaign not only helped to define the essence of the BMW brand, but also symbolized an era of conspicuous consumption, particularly in the 1980s. BMW came to be seen as the car brand favoured by thrusting, ambitious, successful young men. The focus was on BMW's engine and handling performance and was unashamedly elitist. The ads targeted the affluent and successful professionals who responded to advertising that tapped into their sense of superiority.
The campaign and slogan that started in the 1970s spanned three decades and lasted until 2010.
Rolls-Royce
The Rolls-Royce car brand (the company also made aircraft engines) is among the most prestigious in the history of the automotive industry. Since 1907, the name of Rolls-Royce has been synonymous with refined and distinctive motor cars that have made it one of the world's most celebrated marques. The famous Rolls-Royce badge has two interlocking letter R's and these simple initials of the founders, Sir Henry Royce and the Hon. Charles Rolls, have acquired significance as an immediately recognized symbol of quality, evoking ideals of precision, integrity, and attention to fine detail. The Spirit of Ecstasy mascot, which has adorned the motor cars since 1911, likewise identifies characteristics of Rolls-Royce with a romantic representation of elegance and craftsmanship.
Engineer Royce had focused his unquenchable enthusiasm to improve the mechanical aspects of automobiles. He had firm views on the need for quality and a Victorian fancy for expressing his aims in stirring phrases. ‘Small things make perfection, but perfection is no small thing,’ declared Mr Royce. ‘Whatever is rightly done, however humble, is noble,’ he added. And one of his memorable observations was: ‘The quality remains long after the price is forgotten.’ Those seeking to emphasize value over price in their marketing often use this phrase.
Campaign
As well as numerous appearances in the movies throughout the century, one landmark campaign helped reinforce the luxury marque of Rolls-Royce:
‘At 60 miles an hour the loudest noise…comes from the electric clock’ 1958
Http://www.pleasecopyme.se/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/rolls_royce_stor.png
Written by David Ogilvie, it epitomized many of Ogilvie's tenets of good advertising copy:
Specificity: Ogilvy's copy gives an actual speed of the car.
Quotation marks: The quotation marks around the Rolls-Royce headline indicate to the reader that this was a remark made by someone authoritative, such as the engineer.
Believability: the image of driving in a car in which the electric clock is actually louder than the engine is believable—it is ‘the loudest noise’—whereas the mind rejects the idea of a moving car making absolutely no noise except for that of the clock.
Emotional: noise is unwanted—but that the loudest noise in the car comes from a ticking electric clock invites the driver to experience a near silent engine and an interior which removes outside noise.
Substantiation: the full copy includes engineering and expert testimonials or quotes and provides 12 bullet points of factual copy—facts proving the extreme quality, engineering, and attention to detail that goes into making a Rolls-Royce and states the actual price of the car. This slogan saw sales of Rolls-Royce cars jump by 50% in the following year.
Volkswagen
The development of the Volkswagen brand is intertwined with the history of the 20th century. It is one of the greatest automotive brand successes in history.
The Volkswagen Company was originally operated by the German Labour Front (Deutsche Arbeitsfront), a Nazi organization specifically charged with the organization of the German workforce without trade unions. The legendary German car designer, Ferdinand Porsche, designed the original ‘People's Car’ during Hitler's tenure of power. Nazi propaganda heavily promoted the Volkswagen as a symbol of German technological progress and social community. World War II interrupted production of the Volkswagen and its production was shifted to armaments. Slave labourers, captured from all over Europe, were forced to work at the plant. By 1945, both the Volkswagen factory and its home city of Wolfsburg were in ruins. Volkswagen was seen through its association with the Nazi regime as having a tainted brand and, for some, an unsaleable brand. A series of famously missed opportunities occurred. The British, who administered the northern zone of Germany in the post-war period, refused to transfer the plant to the UK on the grounds it could not be successful again! The British, however, did start up production again at the Volkswagen Werks. The French tried to get the British to sell the equipment to France, but that did not happen. The machinery was also taken as payment in kind for war reparations. The British occupiers looked for a car company to manage the Wolfsburg plant. The Ford Motor Company was contacted, and Henry Ford II assessed the plant. Their opinion was that the Volkswagen was not worth their investment.
Eventually, and despairingly, the plant was turned over to German management under Heinz Nordoff. The Volkswagen Corporation that we know today was born. Exports to most parts of the world grew in strength. In 1955 the company had produced its one millionth car. However, the vast and profitable market of the US remained elusive until the 1950s. The Volkswagen car's unusual rounded appearance, its engine in the rear, together with its historical connections with Nazi Germany, originally proved a disincentive in the US, particularly in the key market of New York.
This changed in 1959, when the New York advertising agency, Doyle Dane Bernbach, began a landmark advertising campaign, dubbing the car ‘the Beetle’ because of its shape and pointing to its small size as an advantage to the consumer. This campaign, which used minimalist techniques (‘Think Small’) against all the accepted wisdom of the time to glamorize, was very successful, and for some years following, the Beetle became the leading automobile import sold in the United States. Its apex was reached when the Beetle became the ‘hero’ of the popular Disney ‘Love Bug’ movie series.
Although the German government had founded the company, in 1960 the state denationalized Volkswagen by selling 60% of its stock to the public. Volkswagen acquired the Audi auto company in 1965. In 1972 Volkswagen broke the world car production record with 15,007,034 units assembled: more Beetle models had been produced than that of the previous record holder—the Ford Motor Company's Model T Ford, between 1908 and 1927.
Volkswagen and its affiliates operated plants throughout most of the world. In addition to cars, the company produced vans and minibuses, automotive parts, and industrial engines. Volkswagen owns several other auto companies, including Audi in Germany and SEAT (Sociedad Espanola de Automoviles de Turismo) in Spain, and it also makes and markets cars with Fiat of Italy and Skoda of the Czech Republic. The Volkswagen hardly changed from its original design: by 1974 it had fallen out of fashion and, with increasing competition from other compact foreign cars, Volkswagen came near to bankruptcy. This spurred the company to develop newer, sportier car models. After a period of absence from production, in 2000 the legendary Beetle design was revived with a new engine, with great international success. Billboards in New York for the new Beetle cleverly read ‘The World's Cup Is Half Full Again’.
In 1998 Volkswagen was taken over by another iconic brand—Porsche—whose founder had, ironically, been the original designer of the People's Car.
Car Petroleum
Notable campaign
‘Put a Tiger in Your Tank’
Exxon started to use a tiger in various images from the 1950s. Esso first used the tiger in the early days of branded petrol that followed the end of rationing after World War II. The tiger image has adapted over time, to meet the changing times.
In the 1960s, the tiger assumed the aura of a cartoon, contrasting humorously with the fashion at the time for baffling scientific improvements to the performance of petrol. ‘Put a tiger in your tank’ became one of the most famous campaigns in advertising history, complete with merchandised ‘comical’ tiger tail to fix around the petrol cap along with the bumper-sticker proclaiming ‘I've got a tiger in my tank’: 2,500,000 tails were sold.
Esso, the UK brand for Exxon, started to use tiger images in the 1950s, but it was only in the 1960s that it became a craze. A cartoon tiger was used and a whole range of merchandise using the tiger was given away at filling stations. The campaign was also taken to France (‘Mettez un tigre dans votre moteur’) and to Germany (‘Pack den Tiger in den Tank’). In the UK, the campaign then gave way to a real and beautiful tiger, carrying a subtler environmental message.
Cigarette Industry
The discovery of the link between lung cancer and smoking was made in the 1950s. However, it was not until half a century later that the advertising of tobacco-based products was banned in the West. During the 20th century however, the advertising of cigarettes (much of which now seems both risible, and dangerous to public health) was expansive and, given the rising public clamour against the tobacco industry, increasingly creative in its indirect advertising and brand development.
Philip Morris
The Marlboro Country campaign
Come to where the flavour is. Come to Marlboro Country, 1950s
Http://www.google.co.uk/images?hl=en&source=imghp&q=marlboro+man+ads&gbv=2&aq=0&aqi=g1&aql=&oq=marlboro+man+a&gs_rfai=
The ‘Marlboro Country’ adverts are among the most successful (and most controversial) sustained ad campaigns of all time. Created by the advertising agency Leo Burnett in 1954, they were originally intended to reposition Marlboro's filter cigarettes as a male cigarette by associating it with rugged, individual cowboys alone in the great American outdoors—as filtered cigarettes were viewed as a woman's cigarette. The ‘Marlboro Man’ and the ‘Marlboro Country’ campaigns ran through four decades and, despite the public outcry against tobacco and the banning of cigarette advertising in the West, sales increased year after year and Marlboro remains in the top ten of most valued brands into the 21st century.
In a sadly macabre counterpoint to this commercially successful advertising campaign, the three men who appeared in Marlboro advertisements—Wayne McLaren, David McLean, and Dick Hammer—all died of lung cancer.
Richard J Reynolds
I'd walk a mile for a Camel 1944–69
Http://www.euro-cig.com/gal_images/20060405111252.jpg
Http://www.adslogans.co.uk/site/media/.gallery/main8372.jpg
The Richard J Reynolds company created Camel cigarettes in 1913. The cigarette pack was simple. The front panel showed one single-humped, riderless camel on a desert landscape with two pyramids and three palm trees. The brand's name in silvered blue Arabic style letters appeared across the sky. The name of the camel that modelled for the pack was ‘Old Joe’.
Camel advertisements of the 1920s spoke of the quality and mildness of its tobacco. They showed smokers of good taste and breeding in evening attire, at dinner parties, on ocean liners, and at tennis or polo matches. All were urged to ‘Have a Camel’. In the 1930s the company used advertisements that implied that Camel cigarettes relieved stress and tension. It became a popular belief that cigarettes were ‘good for your nerves’. The RJ Reynolds Tobacco Company began to make health claims in their advertisements. They even employed practising doctors to endorse cigarette smoking! Endorsements by athletes stated, ‘They [Camels] Don't Get Your Wind’. The advertisement implied that cigarettes were harmless by stating, ‘So mild…You can smoke all you want’.
In 1942, The RJ Reynolds Tobacco Company put up a billboard in New York's Times Square. It became famous overnight. It was two storeys high. The brand name was in giant letters. The slogan read ‘I'd Walk a Mile for a Camel’. The sign remained for twenty-five years and served as the prototype for smaller versions around the country. By 1988, when Camels celebrated their seventy-fifth birthday, and the world was very different and actively hostile to cigarette advertising, the company initiated the company's most effective, and infamous, advertising campaign. The RJ Reynolds Tobacco Company turned ‘Old Joe’ (formerly used for French advertising) into a ‘smooth character’. ‘Joe Camel’ was suave, confident, independent, wealthy, and appealing to women. He became the quintessential party animal, in a tuxedo and sunglasses, with a cigarette dangling from his lips, surrounded by women. The company budgeted about $75 m a year to advertise and promote ‘Joe Camel’. They put up a huge illuminated billboard in Times Square a block away from where the first Camel sign was. The company also promoted ‘Joe Camel's’ likeness in a line of merchandise. Anti-smoking advocates saw ‘Joe Camel’ as proof of the tobacco industry's desire to target children. The RJ Reynolds Tobacco Company denied the allegations, claiming the campaign was directed at persuading young adults to switch from other brands. In any event, the RJ Reynolds Tobacco company succeeded in gaining younger customers, mainly from the leading Marlboro brand. By 1993 Camels' market share in the 24-and-under sector had risen to 7.9% from 4.4% in 1988. However, the brand's total market share had risen only 1% to just over 4. In 1988, 67.2% of Camel smokers were under 50. By 1992 78.3% were under 50. In 1991 Camel's market share among underage smokers increased from less than 1% to 32.8%. However, its share of the adult market barely budged. In 1989 only 8.1% of adolescents preferred Camels. By 1993 this figure was up to 13.3%.
On May 28, 1997 the Federal Trade Commission charged the RJ Reynolds Tobacco Company with illegally targeting minors with its ‘Joe Camel’ advertising campaign. The company denied that it focused on under-age smokers. Despite their reluctance to drop the campaign, RJ Reynolds backed down in the face of overwhelming public dismay and accusations that they were encouraging children to smoke. In 1997, ‘Joe Camel’ died at the age of 23. ‘We must put tobacco ads like ‘Joe Camel’ out of our children's reach forever,’ said President Bill Clinton.
Clothing
Clothes are more difficult to market as individual items—therefore, clothes brands have tended to take prominence in specific campaigns.
United Colours of Benetton campaign, 1980s
Striking print advertising:
Http://webdesign.yorgonestoridis.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/colors1.jpg
Http://www.aber.ac.uk/media/Modules/MC31120/images/benetton_007.jpg
The photographic poster ads depicting the ‘United Colours’ of Benetton by Oliviero Toscani became increasingly shocking as they portrayed Aids victims, the clothes of dead soldiers, new babies soaked in blood from the womb, and black stallions mounting white mares. It is an excellent example of an advertising campaign that builds an image without actually mentioning the core product, which is a range of expensively priced clothing. As it generates controversy, usually through demands to ban the public display of the photographic images, then more people are drawn to the campaign, which then becomes fuelled by word of mouth and unpaid media attention.
Luciano Benetton summarized his views: ‘The purpose of advertising is not to sell more. It's to do with institutional publicity, whose aim is to communicate the company's values.…We need to convey a single strong image, which can be shared anywhere in the world.’ Oliviero Toscani the photographer who created the startling images said: ‘I am not here to sell pullovers, but to promote an image…’ Benetton's advertising draws public attention to universal themes like racial integration, the protection of the environment, and the devastating effect of Aids.
Equipment for the Masses
Mass consumer electronic goods became the symbol of rising affluence in society and economic development for countries in the 20th century. The creation of a mass market for sophisticated electronic products, previously only used by scientific experts, for people of all levels across the world (the majority of whom did not understand, or care, about the underlying technology behind the devices) became one of the more advanced disciplines in brand building and marketing.
Here are some examples of companies who excelled at bringing sophisticated equipment to mass consumers throughout the 20th and 21st centuries:
Apple
Apple, created in 1976 in his family garage by Steve Jobs with Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne (who sold his share for $800 only 3 months after its inception), is now an iconic, global consumer electronics brand. It has, over the course of its commercial existence, brought intuition and style to product design, which, when combined with its innovative marketing, created a worldwide following of consumer advocates. Apple is a leading example of how a company can also generate an emotional response to what is at its core a sophisticated technical product.
Apple was an early leader in the PC revolution of the early 1980s, and in the early 21st century the company has enjoyed major success with the innovative iPod (combined with the iTunes service), then the multimedia iPhone and, more recently, the iPad. Not only was this a popular product, it also provided a new dynamic of change in the music and mobile phone industries. The ‘i’ range (Mac, pod, tunes, phone, pad) not only enhanced Apple's brand as an innovator in consumer products, it also revolutionized the media distribution and its business model.
Apple's iPod, however, did not begin well: for the first 3 years of its existence the iPod was unsuccessful. The iPod was launched in October 2001, and between 2001 and 2004 iPod sales were between 100–200 thousand units per quarter (today 10–20 million units per quarter are sold). Then, in June–August 2004 something happened, and iPod sales began to grow strongly, quarter after quarter. It was content that made the difference. Apple launched its iTunes store in 2003, offering legal music downloads for 99 cents per song. (iTunes software had already debuted in 2001 as a music storage and organization system for Apple computers.) Apple's entry into digital music sales changed the industry. The iTunes store was significantly easier to use than its competitors' services, with a vastly greater library: in its first week, iTunes sold 1 million songs; within a year, it sold more than 50 million. The iPod + iTunes, the launch pad for Apple's recent success, was a business idea that was not conceived inside Apple but proposed to Apple by an outside source, a music lover and engineer named Tony Fadell.
In June 2007 the iPhone was released to tremendous popular acclaim and in 2010 the iPad.
Historic campaign
‘1984’ (Chiat/Day)
Http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OYecfV3ubP8
A landmark television ad heralding the high point of the first wave of the PC market, and directed by Ridley Scott, this ad cost $1.6 m to make and was inspired by George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four (1948). The ad, where a young lady silences Big Brother with the aid of a hammer, was only ever shown once, during the US Super Bowl in January 1984, to announce the launch of the Apple Macintosh on 24th January 1984, promising 1984 would not be like 1984. Despite only being shown once, the ad had one of the highest audience recall figures in America.
This ad is often seen to be the beginning of advertising as a major event rather than just a campaign. The ad launched the Apple Macintosh without even showing the product.
The memorable line, ‘Why 1984 won't be like 1984’, was written for an Apple II newspaper ad, then rejected, then recycled by copywriter Steve Hayden and art director Brent Thomas in 1983.
The main purpose of the campaign was to stop customers from buying the IBM PC until there were sufficient quantities of the Apple Macintosh on the shelves. The ad was almost not shown. When Apple initially dragged its feet on approving a 60-second version of ‘1984’ at a pre-screening for their board of directors, one board member called for the agency to be fired. Shortly before the Super Bowl, the company decided to sell off its airtime. However, the valuable time could not be unloaded, and the spot ran. Nearly 20 years later, clients spend millions to advertise during the Super Bowl.
The 1984 advert reappeared nearly 25 years after its original outing as a political parody used by Barack Obama supporters during the primary campaign against Hillary Clinton (‘2008 won't be like 1984’).
Eastman Kodak
With the slogan ‘you press the button, we do the rest’, George Eastman put the first simple camera into the hands of a world of non-specialized consumers in 1888. In so doing, he made a cumbersome and complicated process easy to use and accessible to nearly everyone, opening the door for photography for the masses. Eastman's goal was to make photography ‘as convenient as the pencil’. The name ‘Kodak’ itself has no meaning. It was Eastman himself who created the brand name and he explained it thus: ‘First. It is short. Second. It is not capable of mispronunciation. Third. It does not resemble anything in the art and cannot be associated with anything in the art except the Kodak.’ Eastman built his Kodak business on four basic principles:
• mass production at low cost;
• international distribution;
• extensive advertising;
• a focus on the customer.
He saw all four as being closely related. Mass production could not be justified without wide distribution. Distribution, in turn, needed the support of strong advertising. From the beginning, Eastman had a strong conviction that fulfilling customer needs and desires was the only road to corporate success.
Advertising became a major factor in George Eastman's success, making Kodak a household word around the world. Eastman created an advertising department as early as 1892. A well-known icon, the Kodak Girl, began to appear in magazine and poster advertising in 1893. By the end of the 19th century, the company was spending $750,000 annually on promotion, which was an enormous sum for the time. The company carefully positioned its magazine advertising, placing it in quality titles with high circulation. Eastman Kodak commissioned noted artists to illustrate many of its magazine ads, especially from 1900 to about 1915. Snapshot-like photos of families, holidays, get-togethers, and travel became mainstay illustrations in Kodak advertising throughout the century.
Since that time, the Eastman Kodak Company has led the way with an abundance of new products and processes to make photography simpler, more useful, and more enjoyable. In fact, today's Kodak is known not only for photography, but also for images used in a variety of leisure, commercial, entertainment, and scientific applications.
The Kodak logo is probably the most recognized in the world. This is how it developed:
Early 1900s: Kodak is the first company to integrate its name and look into a symbol.
1930s: Focus moved to the Kodak name and the red and yellow ‘trade dress’ colour.
1960s: The corner curl was introduced.
1970s: The mark retained the red and yellow colours and the Kodak name, but a box and graphic ‘K’ element were added.
1980s: A more contemporary type font streamlined the Kodak name within the existing logo.
Today: The box is gone, simplifying the logo. The rounded type font and distinctive ‘a’ give the name a more contemporary look.
Historic Campaign
You press the button—we do the rest early 1900s
Http://www.kodak.com/US/en/corp/researchDevelopment/whatWeDo/development/designUsability/brownieAd.shtml
Http://www.pushclicktouch.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2006/08/kodak1890ad.jpg
A phrase that ushered in the age of popular mass photography, led by the Kodak ‘Brownie’ camera. People for a while started to call all cameras Kodaks.
Hoover Vacuum Cleaners
Hoover beats as it sweeps as it cleans 1920s
Http://homepage.ntlworld.com/paul.linnell/sso/hoover/hoover541ad.jpg
Hoover in the UK became the eponymous word for a vacuum cleaner. It even became an active verb (‘hoovering the carpet’). In 1926, Hoover introduced the famous ‘beats-as-it-sweeps-as-it-cleans’ feature which cleverly incorporated the three established but separate methods of cleaning carpets: beating, sweeping, and suction cleaning. This innovation set the standard for the rest of the market to follow and was a feature of Hoover cleaners until the 1980s.
Although Hoover's vacuum cleaners were very expensive, they carried the royal warrant and were used on the prestigious ocean liners of the late 1930s, they were also cleverly marketed under such headlines as ‘No millionaire can buy better’ (1947) and ‘All women are equal in this’ (1933), implying that if you had scrimped and saved for the ‘Hoover’ you were at least equal in this respect to royalty and the well-to-do. In 1935, Hoover's success was guaranteed by the launching of a British-built, compact, upright cleaner that retained the features and quality of their larger model, but at half the price. The subsequent success of the ‘Junior’ model (a version of which was still selling in the mid-1980s) was indicated by a biasing of the British cleaner market towards the upright format, in contrast to the rest of Europe.
In the mid-1930s Hoover USA pioneered the use of professional industrial design in vacuum cleaners by employing Henry Dreyfuss, one of the first industrial designers, to consider the design, manufacture and ease of use of their vacuum cleaner as a whole. The result was a new generation of cleaners, starting with the model 150 (1936), and the 160 (1938), which used fewer components, new light alloys, and plastics and had more benefits for the user. This development indicated the fact that by the late 1930s, at least in America, the electric vacuum cleaner was a common-enough product and required a ‘design overhaul’ to stimulate the next generation of sales. The basic component layout and manufacturing approach of these new models continued until the first ‘clean-fan’ plastic uprights in the mid-1960s.
Intel Corp
Intel Inside 1990s
A brilliant advertising technique for making the invisible memorable and valuable. It was targeted at the end consumer, who knew little of microchips, rather than the manufacturer, who had been the target up to that point. In a relatively short time, Intel Inside® has grown to be one of the world's largest, most successful cooperative brand marketing programmes in history.
Before this campaign, companies such as Intel were selling their semiconductor products directly to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), with their primary customers being the computer design engineers responsible for building computers.
With Intel's new 1386™ microprocessor, Intel had developed a product far superior to everything in the industry. Despite the benefits of the improved product, many OEMs shunned using the new technology in their mass-produced computers, fearing that their customers (primarily corporate information technology managers who purchased large numbers of computers) would not react well to higher prices. Intel realized it needed a way to break through the barrier and reach the OEM's customer directly—the IT manager—to help them understand the value of the i386 chip.
To solve this problem, a team at Intel proposed a revolutionary advertising campaign, designed to stimulate the IT manager's demand for the advanced technology. In the ads the i386 processor was touted as a better investment for the future. The campaign was successful, and it taught Intel that communicating technical information to end-consumers was not only possible, but also highly desirable. It was the first time that Intel had directed the ad campaign at PC consumers rather than at just PC makers.
The response was exactly what Intel wanted, but over time it proved to increase awareness and sales for new technology among computer companies across the board, not just for Intel. It became a new approach to advertising even the driest aspects of technology. Intel needed to build long-term awareness for their brand, creating a mindset of quality, innovation, and reliability.
Rather than just market the technology, they would market Intel technology, influencing consumers to pay attention to the Intel ingredient inside the computer. With this new thinking, Intel developed a cooperative advertising program in which OEMs would add a small Intel Inside® logo to their print ads. By attaching the logo, OEMs would add strength to their own brands by being identified with the strength of the Intel® brand.
Officially started July 1, 1991, Intel Inside has issued thousands of worldwide licences to use the Intel Inside logo, as well as TV spots, computer logos, and an e-commerce programme. Since the programme started, more than $7 bn in Intel Inside brand advertising has been generated. The Intel Inside programme manufactures more than 150 million Intel Inside logo system stickers each year for multiple Intel brands, colours, sizes, systems, and product packaging. Advertising with the Intel Inside logo runs in more than 130 countries.
Nokia
Founded in 1860, Nokia Corporation, headquartered in Helsinki, became the world's leading supplier of mobile communications devices and related services. Nokia accounts for almost a quarter of Finland's exports, and 2% of its GDP.
Nokia is an outstanding example of re-invention of the core business of a company and how brand positioning can be used in the process of re-invention. Nokia's journey also marks a transition from a 19th-century approach to ‘vertical integration’ in a traditional industry, to the multi-sourcing and marketing approaches of the 21st century.
In 1865 the Finnish mining engineer Fredrik Idestam established a wood-pulp mill in Southern Finland and began manufacturing paper. The company, named after the River Nokia where its lumber mills were sited, started off in forestry, and later moved into making paper, rubber, and electrical cables. The Finnish Rubber Works, initially opened in 1898, established a factory on the River Nokia after its executives passed through the area and recognized the value of the hydroelectricity available there. In the 1920s, the Finnish Rubber Works started to use Nokia as their brand name. In addition to footwear and tyres, the company later went on to manufacture rubber bands, galoshes, industrial parts, raincoats, and other rubber products. The company that later became known as the Finnish Cable Works opened in 1912 in Helsinki. The increasing need for power transmission and telegraph and telephone networks meant that the company grew quickly. After World War II, the Finnish Rubber Works bought the majority of the Finnish Cable Works' shares, and gradually the ownership of these companies consolidated. Finally, in 1967 the companies were merged to form the Nokia Group. The company evolved dramatically, growing first into a conglomerate encompassing diverse industries. However, by the 1980s it was an unfocused conglomerate that made everything from galoshes to TVs. Nokia's operations had rapidly expanded into too many business sectors, countries, and products. The strategy was to expand relentlessly on all fronts. In 1988, Nokia was Europe's third-largest television manufacturer and the largest information technology company in the Nordic countries. During the deep recession in Finland at the beginning of the 1990s, the telecommunications and mobile phone divisions were the supporting pillars of the company. During the depth of the recession, Jorma Ollila was appointed to head the entire Nokia Group. He made the major strategic decision to divest its non-core operations and focus on the rapidly expanding market for mobile telecommunications devices.
The groundwork for the shift to mobile communications had been laid in the 1960s, when Nokia's electronics department was researching radio transmission. Nokia started to make mobile phones for the military, which took off after the establishment of a multinational cellular network by a consortium of Scandinavian state operators. This network gave the Scandinavians an advantage when it came to setting up Europe-wide networks, based on the digital GSM standard in the early 1990s.
Nokia took a major gamble and it paid off. Under Ollila's leadership, Nokia became focused on being a mobile phone and services company with a global brand. Nokia has led the mobile industry by emphasizing its brand and its design—mobile phones are fashion statements—with easy-to-use software. The company has also positioned itself to take advantage of the coming convergence between mobile phones, multimedia, and the Internet.
Xerox
Chester Carlson, a patent attorney and part-time inventor, made the first xerographic image in his laboratory in Astoria, Queens, in New York City, on October 22, 1938. He spent years trying to sell his invention without success. Business executives could not be persuaded that there was a market for a copier; typed carbon copies, although labour intensive, were viewed to work well. The prototype for a facsimile copier was unwieldy and messy. There was no interest from the leading companies of the time, including IBM and General Electric.
In 1944, the Battelle Memorial Institute in Columbus, Ohio, contracted with Carlson to refine his new process, which Carlson called ‘electrophotography’. Three years later, the Haloid Company, a maker of photographic paper in Rochester, NY, approached Battelle and obtained a licence to develop and market a copying machine based on Carlson's technology. Haloid later obtained all rights to Carlson's invention. Carlson and Haloid agreed the word ‘electrophotography’ was too cumbersome. A professor of classical languages at Ohio State University suggested ‘xerography’, derived from the Greek words for ‘dry’ and ‘writing’.
Haloid coined the word ‘Xerox’ for the new copiers. In 1948, the word Xerox was trademarked. In 1958 it became Haloid Xerox Inc. The company became Xerox Corporation in 1961 after wide acceptance of the Xerox 914, the first automatic office copier to use ordinary paper. September 1999 marked the 40th anniversary of the Xerox 914, aptly named for the size of paper it used: 9×14 inches. More than 200,000 units were made around the world between 1959 and 1976, the year the company stopped production of the 914. Xerox adopted ‘The Document Company—Xerox’ as their corporate signature logo in 1994 to better reflect what has always been the company's core business: document management. At the same time, Xerox launched the ‘digital X’ as its marketing symbol/logo. The symbol's upper right quadrant depicts the pixels of digital imaging and the movement of documents between the paper and electronic worlds. In 2008 Xerox changed its logo again to move perception of their brand away from photocopiers and physical documents—the new logo removed ‘The Document Company’ as the descriptor in favour of a sphere sketched with lines, called ‘connectors’, that link to form an ‘X’, representing the company's connections to its customers, employees, partners, industry, and innovation.
Food and Drink
American companies have led the way in globalizing food and drink through vast commercial empires which, over time, have created a homogenous taste for certain food and drinks.
Coca-Cola
In the history of consumer brand building, Coca-Cola stands at the apex—demonstrating how dedication, discipline, investment, and creativity have resulted in global brand power which has endured across the tastes and events of three different centuries.
In May, 1886, Coca-Cola was invented by Doctor John Pemberton a pharmacist from Atlanta, Georgia. The name Coca-Cola was a suggestion given by John Pemberton's bookkeeper Frank Robinson—who also provided the flowing signature that remains part of the brand logo. Dr Pemberton's original formula was intended to be a nerve tonic, a stimulant, and a headache remedy. Thus Coca-Cola began its long life as the world's most famous drinks brand as a ‘valuable tonic and nerve stimulant with properties of the coca plant and cola nuts’, and also as a ‘temperance drink’—to encourage it as an alternative to alcohol. It was first sold to the public for 5 cents a glass at the soda fountain in Jacob's Pharmacy in Atlanta on May 8, 1886. Coca-Cola was incorporated as Coca-Cola Co. in 1888 with Coca-Cola as its trademark. Pemberton's successors realized the power of the product and began to build it up into a global icon. By the 1890s, under the ownership of Asa Candler, who gained the entire company for $2300, Coca-Cola was already America's favourite fountain drink. At the turn of the century it was being actively advertised, with ‘delicious and refreshing’ as the main advertising headline. It was also distributed by means of selling the syrup to independent bottling companies who were licensed to sell Coca-Cola. This was also complemented with promotional merchandising and incentives to retailers, such as soda fountain owners.
Patented in 1893, the recipe and formula for Coca-Cola (internally code-named Merchandise 7 X) became a famous trade secret kept in a high security bank vault in Atlanta and known only to a few employees. In 1903 the final traces of cocaine were removed from the drink formula.
In 1915 the Coca-Cola bottle with the swirling lines was created. Improvements in bottling techniques, and nationwide distribution, meant that, by the 1920s, bottled Coca-Cola was the dominant means of merchandising the drink. It was packaged in six bottle cartons, which came to be known as the six packs. In 1933 automatic drinks dispensers were invented—which gave the drink another direct distribution arm. Radio advertising of Coca-Cola started in the 1930s. During the war, Coca-Cola was provided free to the armed services. By the end of the Second World War Coca-Cola was available in 44 countries and had become one of the first global brands. In the 1950s television advertising of Coca-Cola started. In 1960 the first disposable tin can was introduced to complement the glass bottle—and in 1978 the plastic bottle was introduced.
In 1985, the Coca-Cola Company created Diet Coke but also made a controversial change to the original formula. The decision to change the original formula and withdraw the original drink from the market came about because taste tests with consumers showed a distinct preference for the new formula. Also Coca-Cola's share of the market had been reducing as a result of Pepsi's ‘Taste Challenge’ campaign—which indicated that in blind tests, consumers preferred Pepsi Cola. Faced with mass protest by consumers against the new formulation of the original, Coca-Cola conducted a masterful recovery campaign and reintroduced the original drink to popular acclaim, but rebranded as ‘Classic Coke’ and it was a commercial triumph which reversed its losses of market share.
Coca-Cola is sold in 145 countries, marketed in 80 different languages and advertised in 500 TV channels across the world and on the Internet and a billion people drink a Coke each day. It is perhaps the most heavily and most successfully advertised product in history. Its first recorded advertising budget in 1890 was $11,000. It has had many legendary campaigns, including the invention of the modern Santa Claus, with his Falstaffian appearance and red and white (the colours of Coca-Cola) robes for a Macy's store campaign in the 1930s.
Some major historic campaigns were:
Thirst knows no Season 1922
The pause that refreshes 1929–40s
Http://img.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2007/11_03/ColaSantaL_600x800.jpg
Http://popsop.com/wp-content/uploads/0902_coca_cola_express.jpg
Pepsi
As with Coca-Cola, Pepsi began with a pharmacy in the American south in the I9th century. In 1893, Caleb Bradham, a pharmacist from New Bern, North Carolina, created a drink called ‘Brad's drink’ in 1893. This was later renamed Pepsi Cola after the pepsin and cola nuts used in the recipe.
The name Pepsi Cola was trademarked on June 16th, 1903. Bradham's neighbour, an artist, designed the first Pepsi logo. The Pepsi Cola company was created in 1902 and its first newspaper ads were created. Its first advertising strapline was: ‘Exhilarating, Invigorating, Aids Digestion.’
In 1906, Pepsi changed its logo for the third time. The modified script logo was created with the slogan, ‘The Original Pure Food Drink’.
In 1909 Pepsi used celebrity endorsement for the first time: Automobile race pioneer Barney Oldfield endorsed Pepsi Cola in newspaper ads as ‘A bully drink…refreshing, invigorating, a fine bracer before a race’.
In 1920, Pepsi changed its slogan again to ‘Drink Pepsi Cola, it will satisfy you’. Despite the rise of Pepsi Cola, Caleb Bradham went bankrupt, a victim of speculation during the First World War. In the 1920s Roy C Megargel, a Wall Street broker, bought the Pepsi trademark and business from Craven Holding Corporation for $35,000, and formed the Pepsi Cola Corporation. By 1931 the company was again bankrupt. It was bought by the Lofty Candy Company who reformulated the drink. Pepsi was offered for sale to Coca-Cola, who refused it.
Only in the mid-30s did sales of Pepsi start to pick up—based on its 12 ounce drink for 5 cents. Walter S. Mack, Jr, became CEO Pepsi Cola Company. Mack, who considered advertising the keystone of the soft drink business, turned Pepsi into a modern marketing company. In 1939 came the famous ‘Twice as much for a nickel’ theme. The jingle that accompanied this, and was played an estimated 6 million times on radio, was ‘Nickel Nickel’, an advertisement for Pepsi Cola that referred to the price of Pepsi and the quantity for that price. ‘Nickel Nickel’ became a hit record and was recorded into fifty-five languages.
During the Second World War, in a gesture of patriotism, Pepsi changed their corporate colours to red, white, and blue. In wartime, Pepsi again changed its slogan to: ‘Bigger Drink, Better Taste.’ And then changed its logo again.
In the late 1950s Pepsi was introduced to the USSR and eventually opened there in the 1970s. In the 1980s it entered China.
In the early ‘50s Pepsi made yet another logo change and began the ‘Pepsi Generation’ ad campaign. In 1964 Diet Pepsi was introduced and in 1965 the can of Pepsi made a commercial debut (having been previously used by the military). In 1970 Pepsi introduced the 2-litre plastic bottle and then 12 pack cans. In the 1990s it introduced 24 can packs.
In the 1980s Pepsi started its ‘Pepsi Challenge’ campaign against Coca-Cola, which caused Coke to change its flavour. Pepsi's new advertising slogan became ‘the choice of a New Generation’. Then in the 1990s Pepsi became ‘A Generation Ahead’, and used leading singers in its advertising. In 1996 Pepsi launched itself upon the World Wide Web. Pepsi World eventually surpassed all expectations, and became one of the most landed, and copied, sites in this new media,
Key campaigns:
Twice as much for a nickel…1930s–40s
You've got a lot to live, Pepsi's got a lot to give 1960s
This had clear implications for the generation of Americans living through the trauma of the Vietnam War.
Come alive…the Pepsi Generation 1964
This slogan had problems in Germany and China where it had connotations of bringing back the dead.
Pepsi ‘Evolution’ commercial
Http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mpo_fy3yRy0
Over all Pepsi, Coca-Cola's great rival, is drunk in as many countries as Coca-Cola, but without the huge advertising budgets. Pepsi also relies heavily on celebrity endorsements and frequently uses comparative advertising under the guise of consumer tests (‘The Pepsi Challenge’: Taste the Difference). The latter led Coke to change the flavour, prompting massive protest, which Coca-Cola turned brilliantly to its advantage.
McDonald's
The McDonald's story is one of globalization of a brand, then the gradual decline of its brand in the face of public criticism and attack, then its overall reinvention in order to adapt to new tastes, lifestyles, and values.
Established in California during the 1940s by two brothers, the McDonald's restaurant became a popular with teenagers. In 1955, entrepreneur Ray Kroc bought the right to franchise the McDonald's System. The company became the McDonald's Corporation in 1960.
From the inception, Kroc focused the McDonald's brand on the family and children, spending heavily on television advertising and using the clown character ‘Ronald McDonald’. The McDonald's franchise was extended to 30,000 well-located restaurants globally and a clientele of over 50 million people in more than 100 countries,
Between 1969 and 2002 McDonald's brand and marketing strategy were celebrated. It was a quintessentially global brand, epitomized by its instantly recognizable golden arches logo, with its clear and simple values and its well-understood food products. It had conquered the world by using a repeatable formula of selecting good locations and franchising them with strict marketing controls.
In the new century, the strengths that had made McDonald's a successful global brand, began to be weaknesses. Repeated public criticism and attacks combined with changing consumer lifestyle and attitudes contributed to a decline of McDonald's reputation and franchise. For a while McDonald's seemed caught in a time warp at best, and innately dangerous at worst. It was criticized for its quality and treatment of staff, for the despoliation of the environment (land purchase for grazing cattle in the Amazonian rainforests, use of Styrofoam packing contributing to CFCs), for cruelty to animals, for contributing to a burgeoning problem of obesity, and for its insidious manipulation of children from an early age. Less tangibly, it was seen as a flag bearer of globalization, of American values and lifestyle, which themselves were becoming increasingly attacked in the new century. The phrase ‘McJobs’, clearly focused on McDonald's workers, came to mean low-paid, low-prospect, menial work.
Between 1998 and 2002, McDonald's, whose growth had been hitherto inexorable, started to experience decline: its actual share of the fast-food market fell more than three per cent. Sales were stagnant since 2000 and plummeted 2.8% in 2002, representing the first ever decline in the corporation's history. In Europe too, competition from other fast food chains and anti-McDonald's sentiments began to affect the company profitability. McDonald's stock lost about 70% of its value. The World Health Organization's (WHO) made public warnings about an impending obesity crisis; this led to attacks on fast food outlets in general and on McDonald's in particular.
For example, in 2001, investigative journalist Eric Schlosser made a sustained attack on the fast food industry with his book Fast Food Nation. In this book, Schlosser attacked McDonald's for supplying unhealthy food and for its contribution to making America the most obese nation on earth. He also decried the globalization of a homogenized culture to the entire world. He highlighted the conditions under which unskilled immigrants worked in McDonald's restaurants and the anti-union practices of McDonald's. A few years after Schlosser's Fast Food Nation, McDonald's reputation suffered another blow with Super Size Me, a documentary by Morgan Spurlock meant to highlight the dangerous health effects of eating an excess of McDonald's food. Spurlock used himself as a guinea pig as he set out on a 30-day experiment in which he ate nothing but McDonald's food. The audience watched as he gained weight and doctors observed his health decline.
In the face of its relative decline, McDonald's set about revitalizing its brand for a changing world, and in responding directly to the public criticisms it faced. The brand revitalization had to be more than cosmetic (although there was a new tag line and modified logo). The changes had to go deeply into its core supply, in store operations, staff operations, food production, and its corporate social responsibility.
McDonald's first of all set about correcting the environmental charges (its packaging contributed to CFC emissions) by establishing a $16 m national recycling programme for its packaging and became a major purchaser of recycled materials. In 1990, McDonald's outlined a 40-point plan to reduce its waste by 80%. Foam packaging (the main contributor to CFCs) was eliminated from its 8,500 US outlets and paper wrappings were brought back.
The company contributed heavily to charitable causes—particularly those involving children and families. It began a programme of animal welfare. For example, McDonald's meat suppliers must ensure humane methods for handling livestock—such as phasing out the previous practice of removing chickens' beaks. It also forbids suppliers from using growth hormones on livestock. In 2007, McDonald's announced that it would buy coffee only from growers who are certified by the Rainforest Alliance.
McDonald's restaurants were given a facelift—staff were given new uniforms and there was a modernization of décor. Menus were updated to include healthier foods, such as salads. Modifications were made to accommodate local tastes (for example in India which does not eat beef). The new target market was teenagers rather than children. Their first ad in their teenage magazine featured pop star Justin Timberlake singing its new ‘I'm Lovin’ It' strapline.
The Great Recession of 2007–09 also helped McDonald's as many hard-strapped people returned to the fast food world and its original core value proposition—low cost food—became a necessity rather than a lifestyle choice.
In recent brand valuation surveys, McDonald's brand is once again back in the top 20.
Kellogg's
Kellogg changed the eating habits of the western world at breakfast time. Although there are a huge variety of breakfast cereals around the world, Kellogg's, the ‘original’ creator of the cereal, remains the most well-known brand. Their brand proposition is the concept of ‘healthy eating’—their marketing mix is mainly continuous product development and innovative product packaging and promotions.
Will Keith (WK) Kellogg (1860–1951), along with his brother, Dr John Harvey Kellogg, was the co-inventor of flaked corn based cereal. In 1906, WK Kellogg had entered the cereal business, using only the corn grit as the basis of the food. To help consumers distinguish Kellogg's Corn Flakes® cereal from other cereal companies, WK put his signature on each package, saying that his Corn Flakes were ‘The Original’. The ready-to-eat cereal market grew with the advent of pasteurized milk.
In 1914, Kellogg Company created Waxtite® wrappers, a new concept in packaging technology. They distributed free samples of Corn Flakes, and then followed up with advertising in magazines and on billboards. Kellogg's® Bran Flakes and All Bran® cereals were introduced in 1915 and 1916. Kellogg's® Rice Krispies® were introduced in 1927. After having success in the US market, Kellogg expanded internationally—with Corn Flakes reaching the UK and Australia in the 1920s. Also in the 1920s Kellogg started to use the cereal box for marketing promotions, particularly focusing on children, who were encouraged to fill in and return coupons from the boxes in order to win competitions and various gifts—which was an incentive to continuous purchase. Kellogg also sponsored radio shows for children. During the Second World War Kellogg's provided Corn Flakes as rations to US service personnel. In 1942 it extended its product line into whole-wheat cereal such as Raisin Bran®.
Throughout the 1950s the company extended its cereals product line and started to create more powerful and enduring brands such as: Kellogg's® Corn Pops®, Kellogg's Frosted Flakes®, Kellogg's® Honey Smacks™, Kellogg's® Cocoa Krispies™ and Kellogg's® Special K®, (which was the first high-protein breakfast cereal ever offered to consumers). Sales of Kellogg's Frosted Flakes were boosted by the introduction of its ‘spokesperson’ Tony the Tiger® who made his first appearance in the 1950s. In the 1960s Kelloggs strengthened its position with the introduction of even more new consumer products: Froot Loops®, Kellogg's Apple Jacks®, Kellogg's Frosted Mini-Wheats®, Kellogg's Bran Buds®, Kellogg's Product 19®, Kellogg's Pop-Tarts®, and Kellogg's® Croutettes™ croutons.
Kellogg became a global brand, expanding in South America, Canada, Scandinavia, Europe, and Asia. The apex of their product placement in the 1960s was when the crew of Apollo 11 had Kellogg cereal for breakfast during their lunar landing mission in 1969.
Throughout the 1970s and 1980s Kellogg continued to develop new cereal products, particularly in response to the rising demand for healthy eating in the western world. Various scientific reports affirmed the importance of fibre and grain in the regular diet, which was a major fillip to Kellogg's product marketing efforts.
In the 1990s Kellogg satisfied a generation needing fast convenience foods with snack bars such as Kellogg's® Rice Krispies Treats® squares, and Kellogg's® Nutri-Grain® bars. By the turn of the century, cereal, the company's original product, was only half its product line: following acquisition, it also produced convenience snacks and grain based foods.
Notable Advertising Campaign
Snap! Crackle! Pop! 1940s
Http://danthemantrivia.files.wordpress.com/2009/07/snap-crackle-and-pop.jpg
Coined in the US in the late 1920s, this simple and enduring slogan was accompanied by a hummable ditty. The advent of commercial television in the late 1940 and 1950s gave this slogan and campaign a vast audience and enduring brand recognition for this Kellogg's cereal over the years. While the look and appearance of the characters has changed over the years, the slogan is etched in the mass memory of consumers. It is a fine example of ‘humanizing’ an otherwise humdrum foodstuff.
Maxwell House
Http://usa-ebiz.com/web-marketing/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/maxwell.jpg
Maxwell House Coffee is actually named after a hotel, the Maxwell House, in Nashville, Tennessee. Completed after the US Civil War, the Maxwell House became one of the best-known hotels in the United States for 100 years. Presidents who stayed there included Rutherford B Hayes, William Henry Harrison, Grover Cleveland, William McKinley, Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and Woodrow Wilson.
While staying at the Maxwell House Hotel, President Theodore Roosevelt enjoyed the ‘house blend’ of coffee so much that he raved about it being ‘good to the last drop’. The Check-Neal Company, which supplied the hotel's coffee, wisely saw a good marketing opportunity. They began packaging and selling the hotel's house blend as Maxwell House Coffee, using President Roosevelt's remark in its advertising. Both the coffee and the slogan caught on with the American public.
The hotel was destroyed by fire in 1961, but its name lives on in the Regal Maxwell House Hotel at a different location in Nashville. And, of course, the name lives on in Maxwell House Coffee, which is still advertised as ‘Good to the Last Drop’.
Schlitz Beer
Milwaukee is actually famous for brewing and is known in America as the ‘beer capital of the world’. Cheap, abundant ice from Lake Michigan favoured brewing before the advent of artificial refrigeration. Ice also stimulated long-distance shipping of beer, since rail cars needed to be packed with enormous quantities of ice to prevent spoilage of the beer en route. Compared to other major brewing cities, such as Chicago, Milwaukee's population (and that of its outlying regions) was relatively small. Milwaukee brewers were forced to turn to outside markets to expand sales. This unique problem ultimately transformed Milwaukee's breweries into export-minded organizations. The strategy of long-distance distribution did not cease for Milwaukee's brewers until they had covered the American market.
The large beer-consuming population of Chicago and the easy and inexpensive lake transportation acted as an early stimulant to Milwaukee's brewing industry. The Great Chicago Fire of 1871 boosted sales of Milwaukee breweries enormously. Schlitz's frequent shipments of beer to the devastated city earned it the slogan, ‘The Beer that Made Milwaukee Famous’. And Schlitz enjoyed a 100% jump in sales.
Grateful Chicago was instantly bonded with Schlitz and before local breweries could rebuild, Schlitz captured the city's beer market. Within a year the company adopted the slogan, ‘The Beer that Made Milwaukee Famous’ for all aspects of its enduring brand marketing.
Notable Iconic Advertising Campaign
The Beer that Made Milwaukee Famous 1895 onwards
Http://www.old-time.com/commercials/1950%27s/Schlitz%2030s.jpg
Guinness
The Guinness stout is a distinctive black drink with its equally distinctive Irish harp logo, which first appeared on Guinness in 1862. The innate distinctiveness of the drink itself has been raised to new levels by a century of outstanding quality advertising campaigns around some memorable straplines. Since its first advert in 1928, Guinness has been handled by five agencies—SH Benson, J Walter Thompson, Allen Brady, Marsh, Ogilvy & Mather, and currently Abbott Mead Vickers.
Guinness's advertising agency (SH Benson) did some market research during the 1920s to find our what people liked about Guinness. People responded that they felt good when they had their pint and the slogan ‘Guinness Is Good For You’ was born. The slogan is still used in some countries (Africa) that do not regulate advertising claims. Some advertising even features athletes implying that their athleticism can be attributed to Guinness. In the UK, post-operative patients used to be given Guinness, as were blood donors. In Ireland, Guinness is still made available to blood donors and stomach and intestinal post-operative patients. Guinness is known to be high in iron content.
Guinness used the talented artist John Gilroy to craft a memorable and enduring set of images to develop the idea that Guinness was good for you. Gilroy's first known Guinness poster was produced in 1930. Working with copywriters like Ronald Barton and Robert Bevan, Gilroy produced more than 100 press advertisements and nearly 50 poster designs for Guinness over 35 years. He is perhaps best remembered for his posters featuring the girder carrier and the wood cutter from the Guinness for Strength campaigns of the early 1930s and for the Guinness animals. The animals, including a lion, toucan, gnu, and kangaroo, appeared, with their long-suffering zookeeper, on posters, press advertisements, show cards, and waiter trays from the 1930s to the 1960s. Gilroy continued to produce Guinness advertisements well into the 1960s even though he left Benson's employment as an in-house artist in the 1940s to pursue freelance work.
Guinness today is more focused on the psychological than upon the physical, particularly in relation to men.
Iconic Advertising Campaigns
Guinness Is Good for You 1929–63
Http://punchbowlgolf.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/guinness-for-strength-posters.jpg
‘Good things come to those who wait’ 1998–
‘Surfer’
Http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EZbMSCuGl3k
HJ Heinz
Henry John Heinze, son of Lorenz Heinze of Bavaria who emigrated to the US, was born in 1844. He began the company selling horseradish from the family vegetable patch to his neighbours. Later, they started putting ground horseradish into bottles.
In 1869 he took a partner and founded the firm of Heinz (dropping the ‘e’) and Noble that sold bricks and horseradish. The company flourished and two years later Heinz opened a food-processing factory where bottled horseradish and bottled pickles were made. After a promising start, the firm was bankrupted in the depression that marked the post-Civil War period and the early 1870s. Heinz borrowed $3,000 from his brother John and his cousin Frederick to relaunch as F & J Heinz. The new firm introduced tomato ketchup, pepper sauce, vinegar, apple butter, fruit jellies, and mincemeat to the US market. In 1886 he visited London and persuaded the famous firm of Fortnum & Mason to sell his goods in the UK, still at that stage the world's richest market.
In 1888 Henry bought out his brother's interests, re-named the firm HJ Heinz & Company and then bought a new site and started planning to build a new factory.
It was in 1896 that he originated the famous ‘57 Varieties’ slogan which became one of the more famous brand signatures in the world of fast-moving consumer goods. Corporate folklore at Heinz has it that, in 1896, Henry John Heinz noticed an advertisement for ‘21 styles of shoes’. He decided that his own products were not styles, but varieties. Although there were many more than 57 foods in production at the time, because the numbers 5 and 7 held a special significance for him and his wife, he adopted the slogan ‘57 Varieties’. So, in fact the number 57 isn't related to the number of products offered by Heinz.
In 1928, it was decided to produce a canned food that became the flagship of the Heinz company, baked beans in tomato sauce. The introduction of baked beans was so successful that it was followed by spaghetti and a variety of soups. During the Second World War the Heinz factory produced food for the armed forces. Heinz became a listed public company in 1946 and continued its global expansion.
HJ Heinz & Company today is an enterprise involving more than 45,800 people in over 200 major locations worldwide, with leading brands on three continents, offering a lot more than 57 varieties—actually more like 5,700 different products in total. It is the world's largest tomato producer.
Iconic Campaign
Luxury Goods
De Beers
The marketing of diamonds is one of the more instructive cases of the 20th century: the power of a sustained marketing campaign and how it shaped the public perception of diamonds as a desirable gift is most revealing.
The market for diamonds has never been characterized by free, dynamic, and open competition. Everything about the diamond industry is manipulated: supply, pricing, processing, marketing, and retailing. The leader of the diamond industry is De Beers, a company that produces half of the world's high-quality diamonds.
De Beer's ‘A Diamond is Forever’ advertising campaign, which started in the 1940s, was to become one of the most effective and far reaching of the 20th century. It enabled De Beers to manipulate demand as well as supply of diamonds. With the help of their advertising agency, they created a mindset, which later swept the world, in which diamonds came to be perceived, not simply as precious gems that could be traded according to volatile market prices, but as an inseparable part of our emotional life. Most specifically, diamonds became a significant love token, marking the engagement that could lead to married life. It is now difficult for courting couples to contemplate engagement without, at some stage, discussing the purchase of a diamond solitaire ring. Anything less would appear to devalue the courtship, and be a less than permanent token. The size of the diamond, or its number of carats, was somehow perceived to signify the grandeur of the affection. It was a potent place to occupy in the mass consciousness.
Although the first record of a diamond engagement ring dates back to 1477, before the 1940s, diamonds were generally not held in such high esteem and did not hold such a cherished place in the minds of women. The idea of a long historical tradition of giving a diamond ring for an engagement was a post-war invention. The giving of diamonds to mark an engagement had been around since the 19th century, but it was a low key, optional activity. In Germany, Austria, Italy, and Spain, the notion of giving diamond rings to commemorate an engagement was not even entertained. On the eve of the Second World War, Germany saw diamonds as important for industrial and military purposes, given that it is the world's hardest substance. In the UK and France, before the war, diamonds were perceived as a jewel for the upper classes. In America, the gift was usually confined to a lower quality, inexpensive diamond. Diamond sales had actually been declining in America since the early 1920s, both in quantity and value.
The man who decided to change the pattern of demand for diamonds was Harry Oppenheimer of De Beers. Oppenheimer was at the time concerned by the post-depression collapse of diamond prices, despite the best efforts of the DeBeers cartel to manipulate prices by control of supply. He selected the NW Ayer advertising agency in New York to achieve this extraordinary piece of marketing manipulation.
NW Ayer, following extensive research came up with a plan to change the attitude of the American public towards diamonds. It was a long-term strategy—to change a mind set and behaviour pattern—rather than an attempt to drive short-term sales of diamonds. Therefore, marketing of diamonds was essentially an appeal to emotions, rather than a focus on the gemstone itself. Through multiple messages and images the world would begin to perceive diamonds as the jewel of romance, esteem, and enduring love.
As a result of the sustained marketing campaign, the diamond market started to develop a curious pattern: although the diamond is for female decoration, the market is mainly composed of men as buyers—90% of all diamonds are bought by men for women. The wearers are almost always women; women rarely buy diamonds either for themselves or for others. Moreover, women are rarely involved in the selection or purchase of the diamond. The reaction of the woman, rather than the object itself, is the primary driver in the male purchasing decision. The element of surprise following the presentation of the diamond ring to the woman, and the gushing delight as it is received is an abiding mental image, portrayed in many films and television shows.
The result of the first 40 years of marketing was that Ayer helped De Beers expand its sales of diamonds in the United States from $23 m in 1939 to over $2 bn by 1980. In the same period, expenditure on diamond advertising for De Beers in North America increased from $200,000 a year to $10 m.
How did they do it? Celebrity endorsements, primarily. Ayer sought out the glamorous role models who were able to influence the purchasing habits of Middle America. In the 1940s, movie stars had a huge bearing on American society. The agency began negotiations with Hollywood to use diamonds in the titles of their movies. Movie scripts started to include the leading men using diamonds to make marriage proposals. News stories and society photographs were planted that emphasized the link between diamonds and romance. In 1946, the agency began a weekly service called Hollywood Personalities, which published stories in 125 leading newspapers with descriptions of the diamonds worn by major movie stars. In 1947, the agency produced portraits of socialites showing off their diamond rings for recent engagements. Nationwide lecture tours were organized to introduce high school girls to different ranges of diamonds and to start to plant the idea in the minds of the young. Fashion designers were encouraged to use diamonds in their new creations. The British royal family was even used to enhance the status of diamonds: for example, Oppenheimer presented Queen Elizabeth II with prize diamonds during her trip to South Africa.
The De Beers advertising campaign continued unabated during the Second World War: Ayers promoted the message that diamonds were contributing to the war effort and, consequently, buying diamonds was equated with patriotism. By 1941, the campaign was starting to show results: the sale of diamonds had increased by 55% in the United States. After the war, the Ayer agency focused upon the millions of American servicemen returning from the war.
The American market for diamonds was around 70 million people in the immediate post-war period. The agency, on behalf of De Beers, sought to influence men to buy more, and bigger, diamonds in the name of an invented ‘tradition’ that was linked emotionally to romance. In 1948 an Ayer copywriter came up with the legendary and enduring slogan: ‘A Diamond Is Forever.’ Within a year, it became the official signature of De Beers. In the 1950s, the era of conspicuous consumption in America, NW Ayer used the new medium of television to influence American public opinion. Famous actresses and other celebrities displayed diamonds to the television audience. A diamond not only became a way of legitimising a romance, of finding and keeping a man, it also became a status symbol in a status-hungry culture. The more the carats, the deeper the love, the more enduring the relationship, the greater the prestige. A famous song of the time stated, ‘diamonds are a girl's best friend’.
During all this time the agency also promoted the idea that De Beers diamonds were authentic and that they were made from the rarest stones. This enabled them to fend off the challenge of synthetic diamonds (such as the process developed by GE in the 1950s). In the 1960s the agency proposed the global expansion of the idea that they had so successfully nurtured over a 20-year period in the United States. They proposed the invention of the same ‘tradition’ in other countries where it did not previously exist. Japan, Germany, and Brazil were targeted. Within ten years, De Beers succeeded even beyond its most optimistic expectations in creating a billion-dollar-a-year diamond tradition in Japan. Many Japanese believe that giving diamonds as a love token is part of an ancient Japanese tradition. Once the international market had provided expanded sales, the agency promoted the idea of buying a second diamond ring as a symbol of ‘renewal’ of marriage and of long-term love. These became known as ‘later in life’ diamonds. This came at a time as diamond production expanded and there was a risk of flooding the market.
With the production of diamonds of smaller caratage in the Soviet Union (which De Beers distributed), the company now had to make small diamonds respectable. The average size of a diamond, which was one carat in 1939, fell to one-quarter carat by the late 1970s. The consequence of this was to diminish the market for large diamonds, which came to be seen by the American consumers, who had become gradually accustomed to the idea of buying smaller diamonds, as gaudy and brash. Conversely, the demand for smaller diamonds started to outstrip supply.
Today, the diamond market is a low growth market, and in recent times the diamond mining industry has come under greater scrutiny for its abuse of diamond mine workers, its unethical political practices, and its manipulation of supply. De Beers has taken the decision to re-invent itself as a luxury goods company.
Iconic Campaign
A Diamond Is Forever NW Ayer, 1940s
Http://www.absurdintellectual.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/DIAMOND.jpg
Http://lh5.ggpht.com/_n7wvHC-Fuk8/SvOQ9o3X6iI/AAAAAAAABTY/o4EyUHrMVAo/start-a-fire.jpg
Http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bow0IXZe0Dg&feature=player_embedded
The campaign that effectively invented the diamond solitaire as the engagement ring of choice and established it as a symbol of eternal love. Prior to this campaign, love had been symbolized by all different manner of tokens and gemstones, few of which were as expensive as a diamond.
Steinway Pianos
Ray Rubican developed the famous slogan under contract to NW Ayer & Son. He noticed that almost all the greatest pianists and most of the great composers since Wagner had used Steinway pianos. Steinway had not exploited these excellent references: in fact most of Steinway's ads up to 1919 consisted of photographs of ladies sitting at pianos in lovely drawing rooms. The phrase ‘The Instrument of Immortals’ was developed. Steinway were initially sceptical. However, they agreed to run it once. The ad brought an immediate response. Although Steinway initially considered commercial slogans to be vulgar, they reconsidered and Steinway sales went up almost 70%. ‘The Instrument of Immortals’ remained the Steinway hallmark for decades.
Steinway has since this time been regarded by practitioners and the public as the world's greatest piano maker.
Notable Campaign
The Instrument of the Immortals 1919
Montblanc
Http://www.montblanc-pens.com/history.html
One of the best examples of high-quality, branded, luxury-goods companies is Montblanc.
Founded by the stationer Claus-Johannes Voss, the banker Alfred Nehemias, and the engineer August Eberstein in 1906, the company began as the Simplo Filler Pen company producing upmarket pens in the Schanzen district of Hamburg.
Their first model was the Rouge et Noir in 1909 followed in 1910 by the pen that was later to give the company its new name, the Mont Blanc. The fountain pen known today as the Meisterstück or Masterpiece was produced in 1925. Today the Montblanc brand is on other goods besides pens: watches, leather goods, and personal accessories.
The company was acquired by Dunhill in 1977, following which lower price pens were dropped and the brand was used on a wide range of luxury goods other than pens. Today Montblanc forms part of the Richemont group. Its sister companies include luxury brands Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels, Chloé, and Baume et Mercier. Since 2000, Montblanc has manufactured all the components for Montegrappa and Cartier branded pens.
A trademark identified with Montblanc is the white stylized six-pointed star with rounded edges, representative of the Mont Blanc snowcap from above, the symbol being adopted in 1913. The number ‘4810’, the mountain's height in metres, is also a commonly recurring theme.
Recently, it has been suggested that the logo be updated—by removing the name and using the star only. The star is also referred to as an edelweiss, an indigenous perennial that grows in the alpine forests and mountains of Europe.
Political and National Government Campaigns
Arguably, marketing has always been part of the political process in both the East and the West; whether through the use of state-controlled propaganda, party-funded advertising or, more recently, political-message management; marketing techniques are now an integral part of politics and political power.
Here is a range of important political campaigns that used the major media of their day to advance their party and candidates:
Republican Party Presidential campaign for Dwight Eisenhower
I Like Ike 1952
Eisenhower, the Supreme Allied Commander during the latter stages of World War II, captured the White House at a time when the USA had become the undisputed richest and most powerful nation on earth and had become hysterical about the threat of the USSR and was rabidly anti-communist.
This slogan appeared on millions of election campaign buttons and posters and in songs. With its alliteration, it was simplistic, but devastatingly effective.
British Conservative Party campaign poster
Labour Isn't Working Saatchi and Saatchi, 1978
A campaign that introduced the power of advertising into the world of British politics, seen to have been a decisive contributor to the downfall of the Labour government and the beginning of 18 years in power for the Conservatives under Margaret Thatcher, who became Britain's first woman prime minister. The campaign actually began before the general election of 1979, and was given greater poignancy when Labour called the election during the chaos of the infamous ‘winter of discontent’.
The irony is that the supposed dole queue featured in the ad was, in fact, a group of Young Conservatives from Hendon, who were asked to participate in the shoot. Only about 20 of them turned up, and Saatchi & Saatchi, which became the ad agency of choice for the Conservatives for the next 9 years, had to reproduce images of the same people to create the impression of a snaking queue.
The campaign cost only around £100,000, but gained huge media attention, particularly amplified by the reaction of outraged Labour cabinet ministers.
After the election of 1979, Lord Thorneycroft, Tory party treasurer at the time, claimed that the poster had ‘won the election for the Conservatives’.
Barack Obama Presidential campaign2008
Just as John F Kennedy had used the emerging power of television to defeat the untelegenic Richard Nixon in the 1960 US presidential campaign, Barack Obama and his election team used the new power of the Internet as a political medium to triumph against John McCain in the 2008 presidential election.
The Obama campaign built a groundswell of political support and donations using the Web and social media. He continued to use ‘old media’ such as campaign rallies, broadcasts, and television advertising—but these were subordinated to the main Internet campaign, which became a national movement of volunteers, supporters, and donors.
Text messages were used over mobile phones to provide regular messages and to make requests. Facebook (Obama's Facebook page had 2.6 million ‘friends’ and 161,000 active users), YouTube (14.5 million hours spent watching official Barack Obama campaign videos), Twitter (123,00 ‘followers’), and the official website (3.2 million made donations via the campaign website) were the main web instruments used in the campaign—usage and engagement of which could be measured directly by the Obama team, unlike more traditional advertising. Obama was mentioned in 500 million blog postings (compared to McCain's 150 million) for the duration of the electoral campaign. It was also far less costly than the traditional ‘pay for TV advertising’ which had become the mainstay of American political campaigns since Kennedy–Nixon. Unlike Kennedy, Obama controlled the medium and therefore the message; unlike Kennedy in 1960, Obama achieved a landslide win.
National Government War campaigns
UK Army recruitment poster WWI
Your Country Needs You 1914
Http://rlv.zcache.com/your_country_needs_you_poster-p228334512527836453tdcp_400.jpg
The resolute face of Kitchener pointing at potential recruits had a massive effect on the British psyche, sending thousands of young volunteers to the slaughter of the trenches. Kitchener drowned, and conscription was introduced in 1916, the volunteer force having been largely wiped out since the beginning of hostilities. The poster campaign remains one of the enduring icons of the 20th century.
US War Department poster WWII
Loose Lips Sink Ships 1941–45
Http://robinrile.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/loose-lips-sink-ships-posters.jpg
With German and Japanese submarines patrolling American waters after 1942, there was huge concern over security and the need for secrecy to protect shipping. German U-boats had made a devastating raid on American fleets in the Atlantic and, of course, there was also Pearl Harbour.
This poster was part of a campaign to discourage loose or careless talk about all military matters, both in the public and in the private domain.
UK recruitment poster WWI
Daddy, what did you do in the Great War? Savile Lumey 1916
Http://www.vandaprints.com/lowres/39/main/3/67680.jpg
A poster commissioned by the British Parliamentary Recruiting Committee in 1915. By 1915 the mood had changed from naïve patriotism to a sense of duty and dark resolution. This ad focused on creating a guilty conscience in those who shirked the call to arms. The little girl has apparently put her father on the spot: was he a ‘shirker’ during the war, or did he enlist and ‘do his bit’? The look on his face suggests he was one of the men who may have elected not to serve his king and country.
A contemporary response quoted by Eric Partridge in his Catch Phrases was ‘Shut up, you little bastard. Get the Bluebell and go and clean my medals’.
UK Ministry of Agriculture poster WWII
Dig For Victory 1940–45
Http://www.homesweethomefront.co.uk/images/gif/hshf_img_dig.gif
An outstanding example of a public information campaign resulting in positive action. At a time of endangered food supply, the UK started the war with 850,000 allotments and ended with 1.4 million and became almost self-sustaining in food.
Places
One of the dominant forms of marketing has become the marketing of specific places—cities, regions, countries. Initially the main reason was to attract tourists and foreign currency; additionally the new target is the international, or ‘inward’, investor to bring direct investment and, potentially, employment to the area.
New York State Department of Commerce
I Love New York 1977
The most famous campaign in repositioning a city started when New York was in severe decline in the 1970s, facing bankruptcy, and bedevilled by high crime rates. New York, from the 1980s onwards, rebuilt its reputation as one of the world's most dynamic cities.
Host Cities and the Olympic Games
One of the principal marketing instruments in the 21st century for an individual city is to win the right to host the summer Olympic Games. As well as being seen to embrace the ideals of the Olympic movement, a city, usually backed by the national government, uses the Olympics to stimulate awareness of their city in the world, to encourage investment in local facilities and infrastructure, to create jobs, and to stimulate economic growth, either through tourism or inward investment. Increasingly, the Olympic games are awarded to host cities in recognition of their rising economic power.
The bidding process run by the Olympic Committee for the award of the Olympic Games is itself a major marketing activity involving the world's media and thousands of local, state, regional, and national government officials and huge expenses. Juan Antonio Samaranch, former IOC president, and the architect behind making the Olympic Games more open to commercial marketing opportunities, suggested in 1993, ‘Marketing has become an increasingly important issue for all of us in the Olympic Movement. The revenue derived from television sponsorship and fundraising help to provide the movement with its financial independence.’
The spiralling costs of hosting an Olympics have led to an economic case that the Olympics have to result in more than a short-term injection of media attention, the patriotic gratification of having staged a successful games, and tourism, and the emphasis is now placed on the ‘Olympic legacy’—the benefit derived once the visitors have departed and the benefits to the city of the new sports facilities, the infrastructure, and the long-range impact on tourism and inward investment.
The most successfully hosted Olympics of modern times—the Beijing Olympics of 2008—announced the dramatic re-entrance of China on to the world stage as a major power. It clearly helped in ‘marketing’ China, and Beijing in particular, to a world largely unfamiliar with it.
Given the Olympics is the most heavily viewed sporting event on earth, the awareness of the host city is always significantly increased, but awareness (a quantitative measure) must be distinguished from image enhancement (a qualitative measure) because image can be both positive and negative. Some cities do not always enhance their image as a result of hosting the Summer and Winter Olympics: examples include heavy financial loss (Montreal, 1976); building delays (Athens, 2004); terrorism or bomb detonations (Munich, 1972; Atlanta 1996); country or government boycotts (Montreal, 1976; Moscow, 1980; Los Angeles, 1984; Seoul, 1988); ambush marketing (Atlanta, 1996); weather problems (Calgary, 1988; Nagano, 1998); and suggestions of financial or bidding process impropriety (Sydney, 2000; Salt Lake City, 2002). The LA Olympics of 1984—and the Winter Olympics of Salt Lake City and Lillehammer—are so far the only games known to have made a profit, as opposed to losses, or simply to break even (Sydney).
Professional Services
Services are an increasingly large portion of the GDP of advanced economies and rising each year. Professional services are among the most profitable of these services. The marketing of professional services presents a paradox: professional services are among the oldest forms of organized business activity in history, and marketing is among one of the least established business disciplines—yet the marketing of professional services is one of the most under-developed and elusive business activities to which marketing discipline is applied.
Professional services firms, with a heavy emphasis on individual relationships, small-scale client entertainment, and discrete sponsorship have not recorded many iconic campaigns as have existed in mass consumer product and services organizations. However, the marketing ethos is starting slowly to take hold in even the most old-fashioned professional services firms.
Accenture
Accenture, a brand that was born on the first day of 2001, has already established global recognition in a relatively short time period. Accenture is the pioneer in professional services brand and image building, having adapted the techniques of consumer marketing in the 1990s to differentiate it from its accounting parent Arthur Andersen.
The antecedents of Accenture's brand building were unique: it was formerly the consulting practice of the accounting firm Arthur Andersen and was separated to form an independent business unit. In a bold and unprecedented step the firm began, in 1989, to market itself as an organization that helped companies apply technology to create business advantage. It became a top quality consultancy brand by the end of the 1990s. In a decade it had achieved the extremely difficult task of positioning itself in the information technology professional services market space. It had, simultaneously, created a separate identity from its accounting roots with Arthur Andersen.
In order to build this new identity, the firm had taken the pioneering step of using consumer marketing techniques to develop and build a professional services brand. It was the professional services industry's first large-scale advertising campaign used to promote name, market positioning, and brand image. Before this, the professional services category had formal rules that prevented advertising, and was known for its outmoded and archaic approaches. Most professional services firms chose not to advertise, feeling it was inappropriate, or even unprofessional.
Between 1990 and 2000, as the market for technology, systems integration, and management consultancy boomed, so the firm grew from an accounting firm's offshoot into the world's largest management and technology consulting organization.
On August 7, 2000, Accenture was notified of the successful outcome of arbitration against Andersen Worldwide and Arthur Andersen. As part of the final award that released Accenture from all further obligations to Arthur Andersen and Andersen Worldwide, Accenture was required to cease using the Andersen Consulting name by December 31, 2000.
This confronted the 11-year-old firm with a branding challenge on a gargantuan scale. After spending an estimated $7 bn building their brand over a decade, the company now had to find, implement, and introduce to the world a new name in a matter of months. Never before had a rebranding of such scope been implemented over so short a timeframe.
The rebranding as Accenture—the largest rebranding initiative ever undertaken by a professional services firm—was successfully implemented across 47 countries in just 147 days. Accenture launched worldwide on January 1, 2001. The name Accenture was invented by an employee following an internal competition, and is a fusion of ‘accent’ and ‘future’. Accenture planned a two-phased marketing strategy for introducing itself to its global audience. The aim of both phases was to surround the company's target audience—including its 40,000 clients and prospects, 70,000 employees, 1.5 million potential recruits, as well as worldwide press and media—with messages informing them about the new name and new positioning. As well as rebranding, the objectives included a desire to reposition the company in its target markets, focusing on its ability to deliver innovative solutions to its clients across its breadth of services in Consulting, Technology, and Outsourcing. Another objective was to transfer brand equity to Accenture (which was important because the company became a public corporation later in 2001) and to eliminate residual confusion with Arthur Andersen. Ironically, in the same period, its former parent, Andersen, which had opposed the separation, collapsed in a welter of financial scandals triggered by that of Enron. The Accenture rebranding was not only highly successful; in retrospect, it was an act of extraordinary business prescience.
Personal Care Products
‘Often a bridesmaid, never a bride’ Milton Feasley, of Lambert and Feasley, 1925
Http://www.nzgirl.co.nz/images/articles/story/listerinead_uncut.jpg
This famous ad campaign appeared in magazines such as Ladies' Home Journal.
The now famous slogan, ‘Often a bridesmaid but never a bride’, quickly became an adage, still in use today. Many people believe that it is an old saying.
‘Edna's case was really a pathetic one. Like every woman, her primary ambition was to marry. Most of the girls of her set were married—or about to be. Yet not one possessed more grace or charm or loveliness than she. And as her birthdays crept gradually toward that tragic thirty-mark, marriage seemed farther from her life than ever.
She was often a bridesmaid but never a bride.
That's the insidious thing about halitosis (bad breath). You, yourself, rarely know when you have it …'
(Ad caption from the 1925 ad for Listerine that introduced the American public to halitosis.)
Hair colourant (Clairol)
Notable Campaign
Does she…or doesn't she? Shirley Polykoff, 1956
A tantalizing question during the early days of the sexual revolution. Sex became a major part of advertising after this campaign.
The first Miss Clairol ads were originally written, ‘Does she…or doesn't she? Hair colour so natural only her mother knows for sure!’ However, Clairol was concerned about alienating the older generation that the word was changed to ‘hairdresser’. The final ad read, ‘Does she…or doesn't she? Hair colour so natural only her hairdresser knows for sure!’ Polykoff insisted the models in the Miss Clairol ads resemble the ‘girl next door’ rather than the high-glamour women typically portrayed in 1950s ads. The idea was to make hair colouring respectable and mainstream. The print ads typically included a child to undercut the sexual undertones, making it clear that respectable women coloured their hair, not just women of easy virtue as was believed at the time. Also, showing the mother's hair next to the child's hair emphasized the precise colour match by comparison.
Clairol's sales increased by an amazing 413% in just six years. More than 50% of adult US women began using hair colour, up from 7% prior to Polykoff's Miss Clairol campaign. Through her ads, Shirley Polykoff helped transform Clairol from a small business (a tiny division of Bristol-Myers) to a huge international brand by assisting in the creation of a hair-colouring industry.
Pears Soap
‘Cleanliness is next to Godliness’ 1880
Http://www.historyworld.co.uk/advert.php?id=92&offset=275&sort=0&l1=Household&l2
This was the brainchild of Thomas Barratt, the son-in-law of Andrew Pears, inventor of the famous soap. Barratt was an early advertising genius. He persuaded prominent skin specialists, doctors, and chemists to give glowing testimonials to Pears Soap. Such endorsements were boldly displayed in magazines and newspapers, handbills, and on posters. Lillie Langtry, a highly popular actress of the day, cheerfully gave Barratt a commendation for Pears Soap. Barratt entered the lucrative American market by persuading the enormously influential religious leader Henry Ward Beecher to equate cleanliness, and Pears Soap in particular, with Godliness. Barratt promptly bought up the whole of the front page of the New York Herald to display the glowing testimonial.
Retail
IKEA
Founded in Sweden by Ingvar Kamprad, IKEA, a home furnishing retailer, has grown from the most unlikely local circumstances to become both a global brand and a retailing phenomenon. IKEA is headquartered in Amhult (known locally as IKEA town) in a forest in southern Sweden. Kamprad started his first furniture catalogue in 1951 and was an early user of flat packing, which was devised in the 1950s. Since it opened its first store outside Sweden in 1963, IKEA has grown to have 170 stores in 22 countries, employs 70,000 people, and uses 2000 different suppliers around the world. Their famous catalogue, which has 7000 photographs in each edition, runs to 110 million copies annually, making it one of the world's most widely circulated publications. It consumes around 50% of IKEA's total marketing budget. It does not target any particular market segment and is distributed randomly. Such a lack of classic segmentation has not impeded IKEA: their worldwide customer base is estimated at 260 million.
IKEA has capitalized on the post-war market trends of demand for home living design, wide range of choice, and customer self-service and self-help. Its global brand is built around a combination of their design skill, their products, their stores and the marketing of all of these via their catalogue. The IKEA success formula is based on simplicity in the design of its furniture and then packing the furniture into flat packs (first done in 1956) for its retail outlets that enable the consumers to transport it and assemble it themselves. (Also since the 1950s onwards the majority of consumers have cars that can carry IKEA flat packs back to their homes.) Flat packing also enables IKEA to make major cost savings, both in terms of storage and delivery, which are passed on to customers in terms of lower prices. IKEA's giant stores are usually based near large urban centres where there is a high demand for home furnishings. This gives IKEA huge cost advantages and appeals to the consumers' home design needs. Also, IKEA's retail stores are very innovative: they give consumers ideas for home design and decoration; they display entire room concepts rather than just the individual furniture components. IKEA also provides wide choice with an average of 10,000 lines available in each store, of which 20% are changed each year. However, IKEA only employs around 15 permanent designers supplemented by 80 freelance designers around the world. The designers are constantly employed in thinking through innovative ideas—from furniture design to new ways of flat packing that are based on what customers need for convenience and quality.
Sports Equipment and Apparel Brands
Adidas
The Adidas brand logo
-->The ‘Trefoil’ was adopted as the corporate logo in 1972. In 1996, it was decided that the Trefoil would only be used on heritage products such as the classic running shoes. The Adidas Equipment line was launched in 1991. In January 1996, the Three-Stripes brand mark became the worldwide Adidas corporate logo. This logo is used in all advertising, printed collateral and corporate signage.
Beginning as a cobbler in Herzogenaurach, Germany, Adidas founder Adolph Dassler, built one of the world's most popular and well-known brands of sports shoes and apparel. Growing up in poverty-stricken post-World War I Germany, Adolph (nicknamed Adi) joined his family in making and selling homemade house slippers. Dassler began producing training shoes in 1920 when he was only 20 years old. He later began to manufacture soccer, tennis, and running shoes. To ensure that each shoe would be both safe and performance-enhancing, Dassler used his own athletic experience and the input of doctors, trainers, coaches, and other athletes to guide the design of his shoes. Dassler's athletic shoes were first worn in Olympic competition in 1928. Henceforth, Adidas shoes and equipment were used by Olympic athletes and national soccer teams. Jesse Owens wore Adidas track shoes during his spectacular Olympic performance in Berlin in 1936, where he earned four gold medals. Armin Hary was the first athlete to run the 100m sprint in 10 seconds, also wearing Adidas shoes. In 1949, Dassler created the first soccer shoe with moulded rubber studs and, for the first time, adopted the trademark three stripes. The German National team won in the 1954 World Cup final wearing Adidas soccer boots with screw-in studs, which enabled the game to be played under vastly different conditions without slipping.
One of Dassler's goals in producing athletic shoes was to design them according to each sport's specific demands, a goal that resulted in more than 700 patents among which were nylon soles and running spikes. Today Dassler is known as the founder of the modern sporting goods industry.
Nike
Nike revolutionized sports marketing in the 20th century, although its underlying business is sports apparel, footwear, and equipment.
The name Nike derives from a goddess of Greek mythology who sat beside Zeus and who was a winged emissary who represented him to commemorate victory in battles. The famous ‘swoosh’ logo was created by a student Caroline Davidson in 1971 and it represents the wing of the Goddess Nike. She was paid $35 for her work by Phil Knight who had commissioned her to design it. The logo first appeared on a sports shoe in 1972.
Phil Knight had been an athlete himself, and, together with Bill Bowerman, an athletics coach at the University of Oregon who needed lighter, better quality running shoes for his runners, they started the business (originally called Blue Ribbon Sports), as a small-scale operation in Oregon, selling imported running shoes from the back of cars. The running shoes were manufactured in Japan (ironically called ‘Tigers’) and only branded with the Nike ‘swoosh’ after 1972 for US distribution.
Knight benefited from the changing attitudes to sport and exercise. Mass participation in gyms, jogging, and sports generally, which began in the 1970s and which flourished in the 1980s and 1990s created worldwide demand for low cost, high quality sportswear. By the mid-90s Nike had revenues of nearly $7 bn and was regarded as an iconic global brand.
Part of the success of Nike was their advertising campaigns as well their sponsorship of individual sportspeople (for example Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, Venus Williams) and teams (the Brazil football team).
Example Campaign
Just do it 1988
Http://dianhasan.files.wordpress.com/2009/12/nike-just-do-it.jpg
One of the more successful advertising campaigns of the later 20th century. It appealed to the mood of the times for action, particularly sporting action, to achieve some purpose in life without hesitation and deliberation. The slogan, combined with the Nike ‘swoosh’ logo, became a global icon.
Travel
Virgin Atlantic
Virgin Atlantic was born in the 1980s. Richard Branson, the British entrepreneur, had already created a successful brand with the Virgin Group, particularly in the music business. He had founded the group when he was 20 as a mail-order record company and shortly after opened a music shop in London's main shopping thoroughfare, Oxford Street. The original brand slogan of these stores was ‘Cheap and nasty’. A music studio was built in Oxfordshire in 1972, where one Mike Oldfield recorded his massively successful album Tubular Bells for the Virgin Records label. This album sold 5 million copies and was the catalyst for Virgin Records, which signed a range of successful artists, including The Rolling Stones, Culture Club, Janet Jackson, Peter Gabriel, Simple Minds, and The Human League.
Virgin was to become one of the six biggest record companies in the world. By the early ’80s the Virgin Group was well established. Branson developed the idea of operating a Jumbo Jet passenger service between London and New York in 1984. Freddie Laker had already tried to create a low-cost transatlantic airline to rival the incumbents, but this ultimately failed.
An aircraft was found, staff were recruited, licences obtained and, thanks in a great part to Richard's infectious enthusiasm, the airline took off on deadline. On the 22 June 1984 a plane packed with friends, celebrities, and the media set off for Newark, New York. Since then, Virgin Atlantic has become the second largest British long-haul international airline, operating services out of London's Heathrow and Gatwick to 18 different destinations all over the world, from Shanghai to the Caribbean. Virgin Atlantic has won numerous awards for its customer service.
In 1992, Branson consolidated and, selling Virgin Music for $1 bn to Thorn EMI, he invested the profits back into Virgin Atlantic. In December 1999 Branson signed an agreement to sell a 49% stake of Virgin Atlantic to Singapore Airlines to form a unique global partnership. The deal valued Virgin Atlantic at a minimum of £1.225 bn. In 1999, the combined sales of the different Virgin holding companies were around £3 billion.
Avis
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• • • Email SHAREBAR Soft drinks are very popular among all drinks. Almost all of us like soft drinks. Different brand of soft drink is popular in different countries. But today we will show you the Top 10 Listconsisting soft drink brands which are famous all over the world. Here is the Top 10 List of Soft Drinks Brands in The World. 1. Coca-Cola: This brand is the most popular soft drink brand all over the world. It is produced by The Coca-Cola Company headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. Since 1944 this company’s trademark is registered in US. Coca-Cola was first invented as a medicine by John Pemberton in late 19th century. This brand is dominating the soft drink market throughout the 20th century. This company is in the first position in the Top 10 List of Soft Drinks Brands in The World. 2. Dr Pepper: This drink of unique flavor was invented by Charles Alderton in 1880s. It was marketed in 1885. In 1904, Dr Piper was first internationally marketed in United States. Now it is exported in Asia, Europe, Australia, South America, Mexico and Canada. This company is in the second position in the Top 10 List of Soft Drinks Brands in The World. 3. Canada Dry: This Canadian soft drink brand. This brand is owned by Dr Piper Snapple Group since 2008. For over 100 years, it is popular for its ginger ale. It also manufactures some other soft drinks and mixers. At present this drink is produced and marketed around the globe. This company is in the third position in the Top 10 List of Soft Drinks Brands in The World. 4. Barq’s: Its full name is “Barq’s Famous Olde Tyme Root Beer”. This American company manufactures root beer without any caffeine. This brand was first introduced in 1898. It is very popular from the beginning of the 20th century. It is now under The Coca-Cola Company. This company is in the fourth position in the Top 10 List of Soft Drinks Brands in The World. 5. IBC Root Beer: IBC (Independent Breweries Company) was founded by in 1919 in St. Louis, Missouri. It was formed by joining of four Breweries Companies. In 1930 this company was sold to National Bottling Company which is owned by Shucart family. This company is under Dr Pepper Snapple Group from 2008. This company is in the fifth position in the Top 10 List of Soft Drinks Brands in The World. 6. Sprite: This brand is very popular all over the world. It is transparent, caffeine free, lemonlime flavored soft drink. It is manufactured by The Coca-Cola Company. It was first introduced in US in 1961. Coca-Cola made this drink to compete with 7up. It is now the leader of lemon soda category. This company is in the sixth position in e from Mark Stevens. Sunkist is now the leading position among the orange flavored drinks. This company is in the seventh position in the Top 10 List of Soft Drinks Brands in The World. 8. A&W Root Beer: This root beer brand was primarily aable in Canada and United States. It was started by Roy Allen in 1919. Later they foun A&W brand and inspired a restaurant chain. Except Canada, this brand is owned by Dr Pepper Snapple Group. A&W is in the eighth position in the Top 10 List of Soft Drinks Brands in The World. 9. Squirt: It is a carbonated, caffeine-free, citrus-flavored soft drink. It was first created in 1938 by Herb Bishop. He made this drink after experimenting on a similar drink Citrus Club. His drink required less sugar and less fruit juice. It is a very popular brand. This company is in the ninth position in the Top 10 List of Soft Drinks Brands in The World. 10. 7 Up: This brand of drink is caffeine free, lemon-lime flavored soft drink. It was first introduced in 1929. It is under the Dr Pepper Snapple Group only in United popular drink among the lemon drink in the world. This company is in the tenth position in the Top 10 List of Soft Drinks Brands in The World. [ [edit]Nutrition Comparing Sprite Zero to other popular lemon-lime sodas. Soft drink Calories Fat Sodium Carbohydrates Sugars Aspartame Acesulfame-Potassium Sprite 140 0g 70 mg 38g 38g 0g 0g Sprite Zero 0 0g 65 mg 0g 0g 75 mg/355ml 50 mg/355ml 7up 140 0g 40 mg 39g 38g 0g 0g Diet 7up 0 0g 65 mg 0g 0g 124mg/355ml 32mg/355ml Sprite (soft drink) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Sprite sprite Type Lemon-lime Manufacturer The Coca-Cola Company Country of origin Germany Introduced 1929 (as Lithiated Lemon) 1961 (as Sprite) Color transparent Related products 7 Up Sprite is a transparent, lemon-lime flavored, caffeine free soft drink, produced by the Coca-Cola Company. It was introduced in the United States in 1961. This was Coke's response to the popularity of 7 Up. The product was introduced as "Lithiated Lemon" in 1929, being renamed to "Sprite" in 1961. It comes in a primarily silver, green, and blue can or a green transparent bottle with a primarily green and blue label. [edit]History Sprite was introduced in the United States in 1961 to compete against 7 Up. In the 1980s, many years after Sprite's introduction, Coke pressured its large bottlers which distributed 7 Up to replace the competitor with the Coca-Cola rival. In large part due to the greater strength of the Coca-Cola network of bottlers, Sprite finally became the market leader position in the lemon-lime soda category in 1978.[citation needed] [edit]Marketing Over the years, Sprite advertising has used the portmanteau word "lymon," combining the words "lemon" and "lime," to describe the flavor of the drink. Sprite's slogans in the 60s and 70s ranged from "Taste Its Tingling Tartness," "Naturally Tart," and "It's a Natural!" A melon ball is referenced in the Freezepop song "secret Bonus Song" that appears at the end of their "Fashion Impression Function" EP. The song is otherwise known as "Sprite" or "Melonball Bounce" and was originally composed by Raymond Scott for a Sprite radio commercial around 1963, that references the "ice-tart taste" of Sprite. Sprite started its most memorable campaign in the early 1980s with the word "Great Lymon Taste makes it Sprite" which remained on the logo for many years. However, this was never the actual Sprite slogan and was advertised by Jim Varney as Ernest P. Worrell. By the 1980's Sprite had begun to have a large following among teenagers; marketing ads for the product were changed to cater to this demographic in 1987. "I Like the Sprite in You" was their first long running slogan. Many versions of the jingle were made during that time to fit various genres. The slogan was used until 1994. In 1994 Sprite created a newer logo that stood out from their previous logos. The main coloring of the product's new logo was blue blending into green with silver "splashes," and subtle small white bubbles were on the background of the logo. The word 'Sprite' had a blue backdrop shadow on the logo, and the words "Great Lymon Taste!" were removed from the packaging. This was the official American logo until 2007. During 1994, the slogan was also changed to "Obey Your Thirst" and was set to the urban crowd with a hip-hop theme song. One of the first lyrics for the new slogan were, "Never forget yourself 'cause first things first, grab a cold, cold can, and Obey your thirst." Toward the late 1990s most of Sprite's advertisements featured amateur and famous basketball players. The tagline for most of these ads was, "Image is nothing. Thirst is everything. Obey your thirst." In 1998, one commercial poked fun at products with cartoon mascots. In the commercial, a mother serves up two glasses of a fictitious product called "Sun Fizz" for her kids. The kids are thrilled, saying that it's their favorite. Then the product's mascot, a sun character with blue eyes, a red bow tie, and a highpitched Mickey Mouse-like voice, pops out saying that "there's a delicious ray of sunshine in every drop." The mother and her kids scream in horror and run while the sun character chases them around the house asking why they're running from him. After the mom trips and tells her kids to keep running, the viewer is left to wonder what will happen to her. Finally, the commercial's message is given: "Trust your gut, not some cartoon character."[1] In the 1990s, one of Sprite's longest-running ad campaigns was "Grant Hill Drinks Sprite" (overlapping its "Obey Your Thirst" campaign), in which the well-liked basketball player's abilities, and Sprite's importance in giving him his abilities, were humorously exaggerated.[2][3] Also in the 1990s, Sprite launched the short-lived but memorable "Jooky" ad campaign. The 30-second television spots poked fun at other soft drinks' perceived lack of authenticity, ridiculous loyalty programs and, in particular, the grandiose, bandwagon-driven style of advertising popular among other soft drink manufacturers, notably Pepsi. The tagline for these spots was "Image is nothing. Thirst is everything. Obey your thirst."[4][5] In 2000, Sprite commissioned graffiti artist Temper to design a limited edition can which saw the design on 100 million cans across Europe. In 2004, Coke created Miles Thirst, a vinyl doll voiced by Reno Wilson, used in advertising to exploit the hip-hop market for soft drinks.[6] In 2007, a new Sprite logo, consisting of two yellow and green "halves" forming an "S" lemon/lime design, began to make its debut on Sprite bottles and cans. The slogan was changed from its long running "Obey Your Thirst" to just "Obey". The advertisement themes received their first major change for this decade as well. Sprite's adverts at the time featured several fast subliminal scenes and messages that can be pointed out when played back in slow motion. As with most modern commercials, many of these videos can be seen online. The "Sublymonal" campaign was also used as part of the alternate reality game The Lost Experience.[7] This also resurrected the "lymon" word. Sprite redesigned their label in 2009, removing the aforementioned "S" logo after just two years. The new design, which features yet another new revision of the main Sprite logo, bears much resemblance to the 1994 revamp. In the UK, it is recognized by its slogan "Get the Right Sprite", based on ads containing an alternate sprite, a green sickly goblin that causes irritation and trouble to those who acquire it by accident. Coca-Cola From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia This article is about the beverage. For its manufacturer, see The Coca-Cola Company. "Coca-Cola Classic" redirects here. For the NCAA football game, see Coca-Cola Classic (college football). Coca-Cola Type Soft drink Manufactur er The Coca-Cola Company Country of origin United States Introduced 1886 Color Caramel E-150d Flavor Cola, Cola Cherry, Cola Vanilla, Cola Green Tea, Cola Lemon, Cola Lemon Lime, Cola Lime, Cola Orange and Cola Raspberry. Variants See Brand portfolio section below Related products Pepsi RC Cola Cola Turka Zam Zam Cola Mecca-Cola Virgin Cola Parsi Cola Qibla Cola Evoca Cola Corsica Cola Breizh Cola Afri Cola Website www.coca-cola.com The Las Vegas Strip World of Coca-Colamuseum in 2003 Coca-Cola is a carbonated soft drink sold in stores, restaurants, and vending machines in more than 200 countries.[1] It is produced by The Coca-Cola Company of Atlanta, Georgia, and is often referred to simply as Coke (a registered trademark of The Coca-Cola Company in the United States since March 27, 1944). Originally intended as a patent medicine when it was invented in the late 19th century by John Pemberton, Coca-Cola was bought out by businessman Asa Griggs Candler, whose marketing tactics led Coke to its dominance of the world soft-drink market throughout the 20th century. The company produces concentrate, which is then sold to licensed Coca-Cola bottlers throughout the world. The bottlers, who hold territorially exclusive contracts with the company, produce finished product in cans and bottles from the concentrate in combination with filtered water and sweeteners. The bottlers then sell, distribute and merchandise Coca-Cola to retail stores and vending machines. Such bottlers include Coca-Cola Enterprises, which is the largest single Coca-Cola bottler in North America and western Europe. The Coca-Cola Company also sells concentrate for soda fountains to major restaurants and food servicedistributors. The Coca-Cola Company has, on occasion, introduced other cola drinks under the Coke brand name. The most common of these is Diet Coke, with others including Caffeine-Free Coca-Cola, Diet Coke CaffeineFree, Coca-Cola Cherry, Coca-Cola Zero,Coca-Cola Vanilla, and special versions with lemon, lime or coffee. Based on Interbrand's best global brand 2011, Coca-Cola was the world's most valuable brand.[2] History Old German Coca-Cola bottle opener Believed to be the first coupon ever, this ticket for a free glass of Coca-Cola was first distributed in 1888 to help promote the drink. By 1913, the company had redeemed 8.5 million tickets.[3] This Coca-Cola advertisement from 1943 is still displayed in the small city of Minden,Louisiana. The prototype Coca-Cola recipe was formulated at the Eagle Drug and Chemical Company, a drugstore in Columbus, Georgia, by John Pemberton, originally as a coca wine called Pemberton's French Wine Coca.[4][5][6] He may have been inspired by the formidable success of Vin Mariani, a European coca wine. [7] In 1886, when Atlanta and Fulton County passed prohibition legislation, Pemberton responded by developing Coca-Cola, essentially a non-alcoholic version of French Wine Coca.[8] The first sales were at Jacob's Pharmacy in Atlanta, Georgia, on May 8, 1886.[9] It was initially sold as a patent medicine for five cents[10] a glass at soda fountains, which were popular in the United States at the time due to the belief that carbonated water was good for the health.[11]Pemberton claimed Coca-Cola cured many diseases, including morphine addiction, dyspepsia,neurasthenia, headache, and impotence. Pemberton ran the first advertisement for the beverage on May 29 of the same year in the Atlanta Journal.[12] By 1888, three versions of Coca-Cola — sold by three separate businesses — were on the market. Asa Griggs Candler acquired a stake in Pemberton's company in 1887 and incorporated it as the Coca Cola Company in 1888.[13] The same year, Pemberton sold the rights a second time to four more businessmen: J.C. Mayfield, A.O. Murphey, C.O. Mullahy and E.H. Bloodworth. Meanwhile, Pemberton's sonCharley Pemberton began selling his own version of the product.[14] John Pemberton declared that the name "Coca-Cola" belonged to Charley, but the other two manufacturers could continue to use the formula. So, in the summer of 1888, Candler sold his beverage under the names Yum Yum and Koke. After both failed to catch on, Candler set out to establish a legal claim to Coca-Cola in late 1888, in order to force his two competitors out of the business. Candler purchased exclusive rightsto the formula from John Pemberton, Margaret Dozier and Woolfolk Walker. However, in 1914, Dozier came forward to claim her signature on the bill of sale had been forged, and subsequent analysis has indicated John Pemberton's signature was most likely a forgery as well.[15] In 1892 Candler incorporated a second company, The Coca-Cola Company (the current corporation), and in 1910 Candler had the earliest records of the company burned, further obscuring its legal origins. By the time of its 50th anniversary, the drink had reached the status of a national icon in the USA. In 1935, it was certified kosher by Rabbi Tobias Geffen, after the company made minor changes in the sourcing of some ingredients.[16] Coca-Cola was sold in bottles for the first time on March 12, 1894. The first outdoor wall advertisement was painted in the same year as well inCartersville, Georgia.[17] Cans of Coke first appeared in 1955.[18] The first bottling of Coca-Cola occurred in Vicksburg, Mississippi, at the Biedenharn Candy Company in 1891. Its proprietor was Joseph A. Biedenharn. The original bottles were Biedenharn bottles, very different from the much later hobble-skirt design that is now so familiar. Asa Candler was tentative about bottling the drink, but two entrepreneurs from Chattanooga, Tennessee, Benjamin F. Thomas and Joseph B. Whitehead, proposed the idea and were so persuasive that Candler signed a contract giving them control of the procedure for only one dollar. Candler never collected his dollar, but in 1899 Chattanooga became the site of the first Coca-Cola bottling company. [19] The loosely termed contract proved to be problematic for the company for decades to come. Legal matters were not helped by the decision of the bottlers to subcontract to other companies, effectively becoming parent bottlers. [20] Coke concentrate, or Coke syrup, was and is sold separately at pharmacies in small quantities, as an overthe-counter remedy for nausea or mildly upset stomach. 21st century On July 5, 2005, it was revealed that Coca-Cola would resume operations in Iraq for the first time since the Arab League boycotted the company in 1968.[21] In April 2007, in Canada, the name "Coca-Cola Classic" was changed back to "Coca-Cola." The word "Classic" was truncated because "New Coke" was no longer in production, eliminating the need to differentiate between the two.[22] The formula remained unchanged. In January 2009, Coca-Cola stopped printing the word "Classic" on the labels of 16-US-fluid-ounce (470 ml) bottles sold in parts of thesoutheastern United States.[23] The change is part of a larger strategy to rejuvenate the product's image. [23] The word "Classic" was removed from all Coca-Cola products by 2011. In November 2009, due to a dispute over wholesale prices of Coca-Cola products, Costco stopped restocking its shelves with Coke and Diet Coke. However, some Costco locations (like the ones in Tucson, Arizona), sell imported Coca Cola from Mexico.[24] Coca-Cola introduced the 7.5-ounce mini-can in 2009, and on September 22, 2011, the company announced price reductions, asking retailers to sell eight-packs for $2.99. That same day, Coca-Cola announced the 12.5-ounce bottle, to sell for 89 cents. A 16-ounce bottle has sold well at 99 cents since being introduced, but the price was going up to $1.19. [25] Use of stimulants in formula When launched, Coca-Cola's two key ingredients were cocaine and caffeine. The cocaine was derived from the coca leaf and the caffeine from kola nut, leading to the name Coca-Cola (the "K" in Kola was replaced with a "C" for marketing purposes).[26][27] Coca — cocaine Pemberton called for five ounces of coca leaf per gallon of syrup, a significant dose; in 1891, Candler claimed his formula (altered extensively from Pemberton's original) contained only a tenth of this amount. Coca-Cola once contained an estimated nine milligrams of cocaine per glass. In 1903 it was removed. [28] After 1904, instead of using fresh leaves, Coca-Cola started using "spent" leaves — the leftovers of the cocaine-extraction process with trace levels of cocaine.[29] Coca-Cola now uses a cocaine-free coca leaf extract prepared at a Stepan Company plant in Maywood, New Jersey. In the United States, the Stepan Company is the only manufacturing plant authorized by the Federal Government to import and process the coca plant,[30] which it obtains mainly fromPeru and, to a lesser extent, Bolivia. Besides producing the coca flavoring agent for Coca-Cola, the Stepan Company extracts cocaine from the coca leaves, which it sells toMallinckrodt, a St. Louis, Missouri pharmaceutical manufacturer that is the only company in the United States licensed to purify cocaine for medicinal use.[31] Kola nuts — caffeine Kola nuts act as a flavoring and the source of caffeine in Coca-Cola. In Britain, for example, the ingredient label states "Flavourings (Including Caffeine)."[32] Kola nuts contain about 2 percent to 3.5 percent caffeine, are of bitter flavor and are commonly used in cola soft drinks. In 1911, the U.S. government initiated United States v. Forty Barrels and Twenty Kegs of Coca-Cola, hoping to force Coca-Cola to remove caffeine from its formula. The case was decided in favor of Coca-Cola. Subsequently, in 1912 the U.S. Pure Food and Drug Act was amended, adding caffeine to the list of "habit-forming" and "deleterious" substances which must be listed on a product's label. Coca-Cola contains 34 mg of caffeine per 12 fluid ounces (9.8 mg per 100 ml).[33] Production Coca-Cola 375 mL cans - 24 pack (AU) Ingredients Carbonated water Sugar (sucrose or high-fructose corn syrup depending on country of origin) Caffeine Phosphoric acid Caramel color (E150d) Natural flavorings[34] A can of Coke (12 fl ounces/355 ml) has 39 grams of carbohydrates (all from sugar, approximately 10 teaspoons),[35] 50 mg of sodium, 0 grams fat, 0 grams potassium, and 140 calories.[36] The caramel coloring found in Coca-Cola is produced using sulfites and ammonia, which can lead to a distinct sulfuric taste at times. Formula of natural flavorings Main article: Coca-Cola formula The exact formula of Coca-Cola's natural flavorings (but not its other ingredients which are listed on the side of the bottle or can) is a trade secret. The original copy of the formula is held in SunTrust Bank's main vault in Atlanta. Its predecessor, the Trust Company, was theunderwriter for the Coca-Cola Company's initial public offering in 1919. A popular myth states that only two executives have access to the formula, with each executive having only half the formula.[37] The truth is that while Coca-Cola does have a rule restricting access to only two executives, each knows the entire formula and others, in addition to the prescribed duo, have known the formulation process.[38] On February 11, 2011, Ira Glass revealed on his PRI radio show, This American Life, that the secret formula to Coca-Cola had been uncovered in a 1979 newspaper. The formula found basically matched the formula found in Pemberton's diary.[39][40][41][42] On December 8, 2011, the original secret formula to Coca-Cola has been removed from the vault at SunTrust Banks to a new vault containing the formula which will be on display for visitors to its World of Coca-Cola museum in downtown Atlanta. The formula had been held in the vault at SunTrust Banks for 86 years.[43] Franchised production model The actual production and distribution of Coca-Cola follows a franchising model. The Coca-Cola Company only produces a syrup concentrate, which it sells to bottlers throughout the world, who hold Coca-Cola franchises for one or more geographical areas. The bottlers produce the final drink by mixing the syrup with filtered water and sweeteners, and then carbonate it before putting it in cans and bottles, which the bottlers then sell and distribute to retail stores, vending machines, restaurants and food service distributors.[44] The Coca-Cola Company owns minority shares in some of its largest franchises, like Coca-Cola Enterprises, Coca-Cola Amatil, Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company (CCHBC) andCoca-Cola FEMSA, but fully independent bottlers produce almost half of the volume sold in the world. Independent bottlers are allowed to sweeten the drink according to local tastes. [45] The bottling plant in Skopje, Macedonia, received the 2009 award for "Best Bottling Company". [46] Brand portfolio This is a list of variants of Coca-Cola introduced around the world. In addition to the caffeine free version of the original, additional fruit flavors have been included over the years. Name Launch Discontin ed ued Notes Picture Coca-Cola 1886 The original version of Coca-Cola. Diet Coke/Coca -Cola Light 1982 The diet version of Coca-Cola. CaffeineFree Coca-Cola 1983 The caffeine free version of Coca-Cola. Coca-Cola Cherry 1985 Was available in Canada starting in 1996. Called "Cherry Coca-Cola (Cherry Coke)" in North America until 2006. New Coke/"Coc a-Cola II" 1985 2002 Still available in Yap and American Samoa Available in: Australia, American Samoa, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, China, Denmark, Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Coca-Cola with Lemon 2001 2005 Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Iceland, Korea, Luxembourg, Macau, Malaysia, Mongolia, Netherlands, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Norway, Réunion, Singapore, Spain, Switzerland, Taiwan, Tunisia, United Kingdom, United States, and West Bank-Gaza Coca-Cola Vanilla 2002; 2007 2005 Available in: Austria, Australia, China, Finland, Germany, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Malaysia, Sweden, United Kingdom and United States. It was reintroduced in June 2007 by popular demand. Coca-Cola C2 2004 2007 Was available in Japan, the United States, and Canada. Coca-Cola with Lime 2005 Available in Belgium, Netherlands, Singapore, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Coca-Cola Raspberry June 2005 End of 2005 Was only available in New Zealand. Currently available in the United States in Coca-Cola Freestyle fountain since 2009. Coca-Cola Zero 2005 A no calorie, no sugar version of Coca-Cola. Coca-Cola Black Cherry Vanilla 2006 Middle of Was replaced by Vanilla Coke in June 2007 2007 Coca-Cola Blāk 2006 Only available in the United States, France, Beginning Canada, Czech Republic, Bosnia and of 2008 Herzegovina, Bulgaria and Lithuania Coca-Cola Citra 2006 Only available in Bosnia and Herzegovina, New Zealand and Japan. Coca-Cola Light Sango 2006 A blood orange flavor. Available in France. Coca-Cola Orange 2007 Was available in the United Kingdom and Gibraltar for a limited time. In Germany, Austria and Switzerland it's sold under the label Mezzo Mix. Currently available in CocaCola Freestyle fountain outlets in the United States since 2009. Logo design Detail on Elmira Coca-Cola Bottling Plant, Elmira, New York The famous Coca-Cola logo was created by John Pemberton's bookkeeper, Frank Mason Robinson, in 1885.[47] Robinson came up with the name and chose the logo's distinctive cursive script. The typeface used, known as Spencerian script, was developed in the mid 19th century and was the dominant form of formal handwriting in the United States during that period. Robinson also played a significant role in early Coca-Cola advertising. His promotional suggestions to Pemberton included giving away thousands of free drink coupons and plastering the city of Atlanta with publicity banners and streetcar signs.[48] Contour bottle design Earl R. Dean's original 1915 concept drawing of the contour Coca-Cola bottle. The prototype never made it to production since its middle diameter was larger than its base, making it unstable on conveyor belts. Designer label for 2 litre Coca-Cola bottle The equally famous Coca-Cola bottle, called the "contour bottle" within the company, but known to some as the "hobble skirt" bottle, was created by bottle designer Earl R. Dean. In 1915, the Coca-Cola Company launched a competition among its bottle suppliers to create a new bottle for their beverage that would distinguish it from other beverage bottles, "a bottle which a person could recognize even if they felt it in the dark, and so shaped that, even if broken, a person could tell at a glance what it was."[49] Chapman J. Root, president of the Root Glass Company of Terre Haute, Indiana, turned the project over to members of his supervisory staff, including company auditor T. Clyde Edwards, plant superintendent Alexander Samuelsson, andEarl R. Dean, bottle designer and supervisor of the bottle molding room. Root and his subordinates decided to base the bottle's design on one of the soda's two ingredients, the coca leaf or the kola nut, but were unaware of what either ingredient looked like. Dean and Edwards went to the Emeline Fairbanks Memorial Library and were unable to find any information about coca or kola. Instead, Dean was inspired by a picture of the gourd-shaped cocoa pod in theEncyclopædia Britannica. Dean made a rough sketch of the pod and returned to the plant to show Root. He explained to Root how he could transform the shape of the pod into a bottle. Root gave Dean his approval.[49] Faced with the upcoming scheduled maintenance of the mold-making machinery, over the next 24 hours Dean sketched out a concept drawing which was approved by Root the next morning. Dean then proceeded to create a bottle mold and produced a small number of bottles before the glass-molding machinery was turned off.[50] Chapman Root approved the prototype bottle and a design patent was issued on the bottle in November, 1915. The prototype never made it to production since its middle diameter was larger than its base, making it unstable on conveyor belts. Dean resolved this issue by decreasing the bottle's middle diameter. During the 1916 bottler's convention, Dean's contour bottle was chosen over other entries and was on the market the same year. By 1920, the contour bottle became the standard for the Coca-Cola Company. Today, the contour Coca-Cola bottle is one of the most recognized packages on the planet..."even in the dark!".[51] As a reward for his efforts, Dean was offered a choice between a $500 bonus or a lifetime job at the Root Glass Company. He chose the lifetime job and kept it until the Owens-Illinois Glass Company bought out the Root Glass Company in the mid-1930s. Dean went on to work in other Midwestern glass factories. One alternative depiction has Raymond Loewy as the inventor of the unique design, but, while Loewy did serve as a designer of Coke cans and bottles in later years, he was in the French Army the year the bottle was invented and did not emigrate to the United States until 1919. Others have attributed inspiration for the design not to the cocoa pod, but to a Victorian hooped dress.[52] In 1944, Associate Justice Roger J. Traynor of the Supreme Court of California took advantage of a case involving a waitress injured by an exploding Coca-Cola bottle to articulate the doctrine of strict liability for defective products. Traynor's concurring opinion in Escola v. Coca-Cola Bottling Co. is widely recognized as a landmark case in U.S. law today.[53] In 1997, Coca-Cola introduced a "contour can," similar in shape to its famous bottle, on a few test markets, including Terre Haute, Indiana.[54] The can has never been widely released. A new slim and tall can began to appear in Australia on December 20, 2006; it cost AU$1.95. The cans have a resemblance to energy drink cans. The cans were commissioned by Domino's Pizza and are available exclusively at their restaurants. In January 2007, Coca-Cola Canada changed "Coca-Cola Classic" labeling, removing the "Classic" designation, leaving only "Coca-Cola." Coca-Cola stated this is merely a name change and the product remains the same. The cans still bear the "Classic" logo in the United States. In 2007, Coca-Cola introduced an aluminum can designed to look like the original glass Coca-Cola bottles. In 2007, the company's logo on cans and bottles changed. The cans and bottles retained the red color and familiar typeface, but the design was simplified, leaving only the logo and a plain white swirl (the "dynamic ribbon"). In 2008, in some parts of the world, the plastic bottles for all Coke varieties (including the larger 1.5- and 2liter bottles) were changed to include a new plastic screw cap and a slightly taller contoured bottle shape, designed to evoke the old glass bottles.[55] 200 mL "stubby" bottle available throughout China Designer bottles Karl Lagerfeld is the latest designer to have created a collection of aluminum bottles for Coca-Cola. Lagerfeld is not the first fashion designer to create a special version of the famous Coca-Cola Contour bottle. A number of other limited edition bottles by fashion designers for Coca Cola Light soda have been created in the last few years. In 2009, in Italy, Coca-Cola Light had a Tribute to Fashion to celebrate 100 years of the recognizable contour bottle. Well known Italian designers Alberta Ferretti, Blumarine, Etro, Fendi, Marni, Missoni, Moschino, and Versace each designed limited edition bottles.[56] Competitors Pepsi, the flagship product of PepsiCo, The Coca-Cola Company's main rival in the soft drink industry, is usually second to Coke in sales, and outsells Coca-Cola in some markets. RC Cola, now owned by the Dr Pepper Snapple Group, the third largest soft drink manufacturer, is also widely available. Around the world, many local brands compete with Coke. In South and Central America Kola Real, known as Big Cola in Mexico, is a growing competitor to Coca-Cola.[57] On the French island of Corsica, Corsica Cola, made by brewers of the local Pietra beer, is a growing competitor to Coca-Cola. In the French region of Brittany, Breizh Cola is available. In Peru, Inca Kola outsells Coca-Cola, which led The Coca-Cola Company to purchase the brand in 1999. In Sweden, Julmust outsells Coca-Cola during the Christmas season.[58] In Scotland, the locally produced Irn-Bru was more popular than Coca-Cola until 2005, when Coca-Cola and Diet Coke began to outpace its sales. [59] In India, Coca-Cola ranked third behind the leader, Pepsi-Cola, and local drink Thums Up. The Coca-Cola Company purchased Thums Up in 1993.[60] As of 2004, Coca-Cola held a 60.9% market-share in India.[61] Tropicola, a domestic drink, is served in Cuba instead of Coca-Cola, due to a United States embargo. French brand Mecca Cola and British brand Qibla Cola are competitors to Coca-Cola in the Middle East. In Turkey, Cola Turka, in Iran and the Middle East, Zam Zam Cola and Parsi Cola, in some parts of China, China Cola, in Slovenia, Cockta and the inexpensive Mercator Cola, sold only in the country's biggest supermarket chain,Mercator, are some of the brand's competitors. Classiko Cola, made by Tiko Group, the largest manufacturing company in Madagascar, is a serious competitor to Coca-Cola in many regions. Laranjada is the top-selling soft drink on Madeira. Advertising See also: Coca-Cola slogans Coca-Cola's advertising has significantly affected American culture, and it is frequently credited with inventing the modern image of Santa Claus as an old man in a red-and-white suit. Although the company did start using the red-and-white Santa image in the 1930s, with its winter advertising campaigns illustrated by Haddon Sundblom, the motif was already common.[62][63] Coca-Cola was not even the first soft drink company to use the modern image of Santa Claus in its advertising: White Rock Beverages used Santa in advertisements for its ginger ale in 1923, after first using him to sell mineral water in 1915.[64][65] Before Santa Claus, Coca-Cola relied on images of smartly dressed young women to sell its beverages. CocaCola's first such advertisement appeared in 1895, featuring the young Bostonian actress Hilda Clark as its spokeswoman. An 1890s advertisement showing model Hilda Clark in formal 19th century attire. The ad is titled Drink Coca-Cola 5¢. (US) 1941 saw the first use of the nickname "Coke" as an official trademark for the product, with a series of advertisements informing consumers that "Coke means Coca-Cola".[66] In 1971 a song from a Coca-Cola commercial called "I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing", produced by Billy Davis, became a hit single. Coca-Cola sales booth on the Cape Verde island of Fogo in 2004. Coke's advertising is pervasive, as one of Woodruff's stated goals was to ensure that everyone on Earth drank Coca-Cola as their preferred beverage. This is especially true in southern areas of the United States, such as Atlanta, where Coke was born. Coca-Cola signboard in Lahore, Pakistan. Some Coca-Cola television commercials between 1960 through 1986 were written and produced by former Atlanta radio veteran Don Naylor (WGST1936–1950, WAGA 1951–1959) during his career as a producer for the McCann Erickson advertising agency. Many of these early television commercials for Coca-Cola featured movie stars, sports heroes and popular singers. Coca-Cola ghost sign in Fort Dodge, Iowa. Older Coca-Cola ghosts behind Borax and telephone ads. During the 1980s, Pepsi-Cola ran a series of television advertisements showing people participating in taste tests demonstrating that, according to the commercials, "fifty percent of the participants who said they preferred Coke actually chose the Pepsi." Statisticians pointed out the problematic nature of a 50/50 result: most likely, the taste tests showed that in blind tests, most people cannot tell the difference between Pepsi and Coke. Coca-Cola ran ads to combat Pepsi's ads in an incident sometimes referred to as the cola wars; one of Coke's ads compared the so-called Pepsi challenge to twochimpanzees deciding which tennis ball was furrier. Thereafter, Coca-Cola regained its leadership in the market. Selena was a spokesperson for Coca-Cola from 1989 till the time of her death. She filmed three commercials for the company. In 1994, to commemorate her five years with the company, Coca-Cola issued special Selena coke bottles.[67] The Coca-Cola Company purchased Columbia Pictures in 1982, and began inserting Coke-product images into many of its films. After a few early successes during Coca-Cola's ownership, Columbia began to underperform, and the studio was sold to Sony in 1989. Coca-Cola has gone through a number of different advertising slogans in its long history, including "The pause that refreshes," "I'd like to buy the world a Coke," and "Coke is it" (see Coca-Cola slogans). In 2006, Coca-Cola introduced My Coke Rewards, a customer loyalty campaign where consumers earn points by entering codes from specially marked packages of Coca-Cola products into a website. These points can be redeemed for various prizes or sweepstakes entries.[68] In Australia in 2011, Coca-Cola beg an the "share a Coke" campaign, where the Coca-Cola logo was replaced on the bottles and replaced with first names. Coca-Cola used the 150 most popular names in Australia to print on the bottles.[69][70][71] The campaign was paired with a website page, Facebook page and an online "share a virtual Coke". Holiday campaigns Coca-Cola Christmas truck inDresden, Germany. The "Holidays are coming!" advertisement features a train of red delivery trucks, emblazoned with the Coca-Cola name and decorated withChristmas lights, driving through a snowy landscape and causing everything that they pass to light up and people to watch as they pass through.[72] The advertisement fell into disuse in 2001, as the Coca-Cola company restructured its advertising campaigns so that advertising around the world was produced locally in each country, rather than centrally in the company's headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia.[73] In 2007, the company brought back the campaign after, according to the company, many consumers telephoned its information center saying that they considered it to mark the beginning of Christmas.[72] The advertisement was created by U.S. advertising agency Doner, and has been part of the company's global advertising campaign for many years.[74] Keith Law, a producer and writer of commercials for Belfast CityBeat, was not convinced by Coca-Cola's reintroduction of the advertisement in 2007, saying that "I don't think there's anything Christmassy about HGVs and the commercial is too generic."[75] In 2001, singer Melanie Thornton recorded the campaign's advertising jingle as a single, Wonderful Dream (Holidays are Coming), which entered the pop-music charts in Germany at no. 9.[76][77] In 2005, Coca-Cola expanded the advertising campaign to radio, employing several variations of the jingle.[78] In 2011, Coca-Cola launched a campaign for the Indian holiday Diwali. The campaign included commercials, a song and an integration with Shah Rukh Khan’s film Ra.One.[79][80][81] Introduced March 1, 2010, in Canada, to celebrate the 2010 Winter Olympics, Coca Cola will sell gold colored cans in packs of 12 355 mL each, in select stores.[85] Health effects Since studies indicate "soda and sweetened drinks are the main source of calories in [the] American diet", [98] most nutritionists advise that Coca-Cola and other soft drinks can be harmful if consumed excessively, particularly to young children whose soft drink consumption competes with, rather than complements, a balanced diet. Studies have shown that regular soft drink users have a lower intake of calcium, magnesium, ascorbic acid, riboflavin, and vitamin A.[99] The drink has also aroused criticism for its use of caffeine, which can causephysical dependence.[100] A link has been shown between long-term regular cola intake and osteoporosis in older women (but not men).[101] This was thought to be due to the presence of phosphoric acid, and the risk was found to be same for caffeinated and noncaffeinated colas, as well as the same for diet and sugared colas. A common criticism of Coke based on its allegedly toxic acidity levels has been found to be baseless by researchers; lawsuits based on these notions have been dismissed by several American courts for this reason. Although numerous court cases have been filed against The Coca-Cola Company since the 1920s, alleging that the acidity of the drink is dangerous, no evidence corroborating this claim has been found. Under normal conditions, scientific evidence indicates Coca-Cola's acidity causes no immediate harm.[102] Since 1980 in the U.S., Coke has been made with high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) as an ingredient. Originally it was used in combination with more expensive cane-sugar, but by late 1984 the formulation was sweetened entirely with HFCS. Some nutritionists caution against consumption of HFCS because it may aggravate obesity and type-2 diabetes more than cane sugar.[103] In India, there is a controversy whether there are pesticides and other harmful chemicals in bottled products, including Coca-Cola. In 2003 the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), a nongovernmental organization in New Delhi, said aerated waters produced by soft drinks manufacturers in India, including multinational giants PepsiCo and Coca-Cola, contained toxins including lindane, DDT, malathion and chlorpyrifos — pesticides that can contribute to cancer and a breakdown of the immune system. CSE found that the Indian-produced Pepsi's soft drink products had 36 times the level of pesticide residues permitted under European Union regulations; Coca-Cola's soft drink was found to have 30 times the permitted amount. CSE said it had tested the same products sold in the U.S. and found no such residues.[104] After the pesticide allegations were made in 2003, Coca-Cola sales in India declined by 15 percent. In 2004 an Indian parliamentary committee backed up CSE's findings and a government-appointed committee was tasked with developing the world's first pesticide standards for soft drinks. The Coca-Cola Company has responded that its plants filter water to remove potential contaminants and that its products are tested for pesticides and must meet minimum health standards before they are distributed.[105] In the Indian state of Kerala sale and production of Coca-Cola, along with other soft drinks, was initially banned after the allegations, until the High Court in Kerala overturned ruled that only the federal government can ban food products. Coca-Cola has also been accused of excessive water usage in India.[106] The 2008 Ig Nobel Prize (a parody of the Nobel Prizes) in Chemistry was awarded to Sheree Umpierre, Joseph Hill, and Deborah Anderson, for discovering that Coca-Cola is an effectivespermicide,[107] and to C.Y. Hong, C.C. Shieh, P. Wu, and B.N. Chiang for proving it is not.[108][109] Criticism Main article: Criticism of Coca-Cola Coca-Cola has been criticized for alleged adverse health effects, its aggressive marketing to children, exploitative labor practices, high levels of pesticides in its products, building plants in Nazi Germany which employed slave labor, environmental destruction, monopolistic business practices, and hiring paramilitary units to murder trade union leaders. In October 2009, in an effort to improve their image, Coca-Cola partnered with the American Academy of Family Physicians, providing a $500,000 grant to help promote healthy-lifestyle education; the partnership spawned sharp criticism of both Coca-Cola and the AAFP by physicians and nutritionists.[110] Fanta From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Fanta Type Soft drink Manufacturer The Coca-Cola Company Country of origin Germany Introduced 1940 Variants See International availability Related products Sunkist, Crush, Slice,Mirinda Fanta (pronounced [faːnta]) is a global brand of fruit-flavored carbonated soft drinks from the Coca-Cola Company. There are over 100 flavors worldwide. The drink debuted in Germany in 1941 and originally sold only in Europe.[1] Contents [hide] • • o o • • • • • 1 History 2 Marketing 2.1 USA 2.2 India 3 International availability 4 International popularity 5 Controversy 6 References 7 External links [edit]History Fanta originated when it became illegal to import Coca-Cola into Nazi Germany during World War II due to a trade embargo.[2] To circumvent this, Max Keith, the man in charge of Coca-Cola Deutschland during the Second World War, decided to create a new product for the German market, using only ingredients available in Germany at the time, [2] including whey and pomace – the "leftovers of leftovers", as Keith later recalled.[3] The name was the result of a brief brainstorming session, which started with Keith exhorting his team to "use their imagination" ("Fantasie" in German), to which one of his salesmen, Joe Knipp, immediately retorted "Fanta!"[3] [edit]Controversy A 2005 British television advert for Fanta Z showed a couple enjoying a picnic on a beach and drinking from their cans of Fanta Light, but then calmly spitting the drink out. Others were also shown spitting the drink out in similar ways. The viewers complained that the ad condoned spitting and that children were reported to have copied the ad. A head teacher said that a number of children in the playground had also mimicked the commercial. The majority of complainants to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) said the images were disgusting and thought it was inappropriate because spitting posed a health risk. The ad became restricted to the post-9pm broadcasts. The ASA agreed that viewers would not want children to see something that is perceived as anti-social, however it did not consider that the images showing people spitting would cause widespread offense or pose a significant health risk.[7] [edit]Pemberton recipe This recipe is attributed to a diary owned by Coca-Cola inventor, John S. Pemberton, just before his death in 1888. (U.S. measures).[17][18] Ingredients: 1 oz (28 g) caffeine citrate 3 oz (85 g) citric acid 1 US fl oz (30 ml) vanilla extract 1 US qt (946 ml; 33 imp fl oz) lime juice 2.5 oz (71 g) "flavoring," i.e., "Merchandise 7X" 30 lb (14 kg) sugar 4 US fl oz (118.3 ml) powder extract of cocaine (decocainized flavor essence of the coca leaf). 2.5 US gal (9.5 l; 2.1 imp gal) water caramel sufficient "Mix caffeine acid and lime juice in 1 quart boiling water add vanilla and flavoring when cool." Flavoring (Merchandise 7X): 1 qrt alcohol 80 oil orange 40 oil cinnamon 120 oil lemon 20 oil coriander 40 oil nutmeg 40 oil neroli "Let stand 24 hours." This recipe does not specify when or how the ingredients are mixed, or the flavoring oil quantity units of measure (though it implies that the "Merchandise 7X" was mixed first). This was common in recipes at the time, as it was assumed that preparers knew the method. [edit]Reed recipe This recipe is attributed to pharmacist John Reed.[19][20] 30 lb (14 kg) sugar 2 US gal (7.6 l; 1.7 imp gal) water 1 US qt (950 ml; 33 imp fl oz) lime juice 4 oz (110 g) citrate of caffeine 2 oz (57 g) citric acid 1 US fl oz (30 ml) extract of vanilla 3/4 US fl oz (22.18 ml) fluid extract of kola nut 3/4 US fl oz (22.18 ml) fluid extract of coca Caffeine: 1 oz Sugar: 30 lbs Water: 2.5 gal Lime juice: 2 pints (1 quart) Vanilla: 1 oz Caramel: 1.5 oz or more for color The secret 7X flavor (use 2 oz of flavor to 5 gals syrup): Alcohol: 8 oz Orange oil: 20 drops Cinnamon oil: 10 drops Lemon oil: 30 drops Coriander oil: 5 drops Nutmeg oil: 10 drops Neroli oil: 10 drops http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sprite_(soft_drink) . Acids, colours, preservatives and other additives Introduction The commercial success of a soft drink formulation depends upon a number of factors. A strong, well placed advertising campaign will bring the consumer to purchase the new product but, thereafter, the level of repeat sales will reflect the degree of enthusiasm with which the new drink has been received. Taste panelling and market trials are also preliminaries to a successful launch, yet continuity of sales will ultimately depend upon the product itself, primarily its appearance and taste, as assessed by the consumer, and then, perhaps, the reproducibility of quality in both manufacture and storage these latter being the major concerns of the producer and soft drinks retailer, who must maintain a regular turnover to survive. It is hardly surprising that the development of a new drink product can take many months, while all aspects of its appearance, organoleptic properties and stability are tuned to requirements. In the final analysis, organoleptic properties are paramount, and the aroma, taste and mouth feel must be complementary in their contribution to the resulting drink. However, the immediacy of colour and its importance to the success of the product cannot be underestimated. In recent years, the use of synthesised ingredients has frequently been under attack by the media and, as a result, market forces in many countries have initiated a rapid move in the direction of natural ingredients. We have seen an influx of various natural colour extracts to the food industry which, being largely pH dependent and light sensitive, have found limited use in soft drinks. A few have found acceptance, but even so are still open to scrutiny in terms of adverse metabolic effects. Many have no reco mmended ADI (Acceptable Daily Intake in mg/kg body weight) values, while others have values allocated which are not far removed from those of the synthetic colours they have replaced. Preservatives also show signs of being phased out, as improved methods of pasteurisation and aseptic filling are devised. The ability of carbon dioxide to act as a preservative places carbonated drinks in a strong position for future develop ment. A typical carbonated soft drink comprises carbonated water, sugar, citric acid, flavouring, acidity regulators (e.g. sodium citrate), colouring, preservative and artificial sweeteners, if used. The flavour component is presented against a finely tuned backcloth of the other ingredients, providing the right degree of sweetness, bitterness, sourness, and acidity (pH) to enhance drink palatability. Acids Following water and sugar, the acid component is third in terms of concentration. Its presence tends to be taken for granted, yet, without its contribution, the other formula components are left lacking in character. Because of the general tartness or sourness in taste, acidity is useful in modifying the sweetness of sugar. It will increase the thirst quenching effect of the drink by stimulating the flow of saliva in the mouth and also, because of a reduction in pH level, tends to act as a mild preservative. While the majority of soft drinks contain acids, it is the carbonated drinks that have the additional effect of dissolved carbon dioxide. Not officially recognised as an acid addition, the presence of carbon dioxide under pressure certainly provide that extra sparkle to mouth feel, flavour and sharpness (or bite) to the drink, so it has been included here under the identity given to its soluble form. 1. Carbonic Acid The solution of carbon dioxide in water exploits weakly acidic properties. Neither liquefied nor dry gaseous carbon dioxide affects dry blue litmus indicator paper, but if the paper is moistened it will provide an acid reaction in contact with the gas. There is little doubt that in solution some of the gas forms carbonic acid by combination with water. Potassium and sodium carbonates can be used in the production of dry carbonated drink mixes, where a blend of sugars, fruit acid crystals, spray dried flavourings and other additives such as stabilisers is formulated to produce a drink which, when dissolved in water, has a carbonation level of about 1 1½ volumes carbon dioxide. In its more regular role, during the production of carbonated drinks, carbon dioxide is introduced as part of the bottling sequence, being dissolved under pressure before or after dilution of the bottling syrup with water. Measured in volumes of dissolved gas per unit volume of water at a specified temperature and pressure (usually Volumes Bunsen at 0°C and 1 atm), the average level employed is in the region of three volumes although extremes of perhaps one volume and six volumes are sometimes encountered where highly specialised flavoured products are required. 2. Citric acid This is by far the most widely used acid in fruit flavoured beverages. It has a light fruity character that blends well with most fruits and, in fact, is found as a major constituent in many of them, e.g. unripe lemons contain 5 8% of the acid. It is also the chief acid constituent of currants, cranberries, etc., and is associated with malic acid in apples, apricots, blueberries, cherries, gooseberries, loganberries, peaches, plums, pears, strawberries and raspberries, with isocitric acid in blackberries and with tartaric acid in grapes. It was originally obtained commercially from lemons, limes or bergamots by pressing the fruit, concentrating the expressed juice and precipitating citric acid as its calcium salt by running in, with constant stirring, a slurry of chalk and water. The crude calcium citrate was then filtered off, filter pressed and washed prior to treatment with sulphuric acid to yield the free citric acid, which was then filtered from the precipitated calcium sulphate, and finally isolated by concentration of its solution by boiling, from which crystals of the monohydrate formed. It was noted at the time of Dr Martins Treatise on Industrial and Manufacturing Chemistry that a known organism existed Mucor Piriformis (C. Wehmer, German Patent 72,957) that could ferment sugar directly into citric acid. Owing to the low market prices of Sicilian lemon juice, no wide technical application of this early enzyme process had been made. However, citric acid is now produced by the action of specific enzymes upon glucose and other sugars. Citric acid is a white crystalline solid and can be purchased in its powdered form or as the monohydrate. This latter state is more convenient in terms of storage, as it does not have a tendency to absorb moisture, as does the anhydrous form. 3. Tartaric acid This acid occurs naturally in grapes as the acid potassium salt and, during fermentation of grape juice, will be seen to deposit from solution as its solubility decreases with increasing alcoholic content of the wine. The acid can be obtained in four forms: dextro, laevo, meso tartaric and the mixed isomer equilibrium, or racemic acid. Commercially it is usually available as the dextro tartaric acid. The acid possesses a sharper flavour than citric and, as such, may be used at a slightly lower rate to give an equivalent palate acidity. (Note that palate acidity is a purely subjective measurement and it is generally agreed that a number of acids may be used at a concen tration different to that indicated by their chemical acid equivalent). Tartaric acid may be isolated from the crude deposit of tartrates obtained from the wine fermentation process in a similar manner to that originally used for citric acid by leaching the deposit with boiling HCl solution, filtering clear and re precipita tion of the tartrates as the calcium salt. Further treatment with sulphuric acid is used to liberate the acid, which can then be purified by crystallisation. Tartaric acid (dextro form) exists as a white crystalline solid mp 171 174°C. If used in beverage production, the acid must be perfectly pure and guaranteed for food use. It has disadvantages in that its salts are of a lower solubility than those of citric, particularly the salts of calcium and magnesium. When using hard water, it is therefore advisable to use citric acid to avoid unsightly deposition of insoluble tartrates. 4. Phosphoric acid The acid is derived from mineral and not vegetable sources although occurring naturally in some fruits, e.g. limes, grapes, in the form of phosphates. It is used in some beverages as a substitute for, or in addition to, citric and tartaric acids, having a sharper and drier flavour than either of the above acids. Its taste is of flat sourness, in contrast with the sharp fruitiness of citric acid, and it seems to blend better with most non fruit drinks. In the UK, it is not allowed in drinks claiming the presence of fruit juices and comminuted fruits. Its main use is in cola flavoured beverages, where its special type of acidity complements the dry, sometimes balsamic, character of the cola drinks. Pure phosphoric acid is a colourless crystalline solid (mp 42.35 °C) but is usually used in solution as a strong, syrupy liquid, miscible in water in all proportions. It is commercially available in concentrations of 75,80 and 90%. The syrupy character is the result of hydrogen bonding, which occurs at concentrations greater than 50%, between the phosphate molecules. It is corrosive to most construction materials and rubber lined steel or food grade stainless steel are recommended for holding vessels. 5. Lactic acid Sometimes used for the acidification of beverages, lactic acid possesses a smoother flavour than any of the foregoing acids. It is supplied commercially as an odourless and colourless viscous liquid and is obtained from the fermentation of sugars by lactic acid bacillus. 6. Acetic acid As in the case with phosphoric acid, under UK legislation this acid is limited to use in non fruit juice drinks and really only qualifies where its vinegary character can contribute to a suitable flavour balance. Pure glacial acetic acid is a colourless, crystalline solid of mp 16 °C and is one of the strongest of the organic acids in terms of its dissociation constant and displacing carbonic acid from its carbonates. 7. Malic acid This is the natural acid found in apples and other fruits. A crystalline white solid (mp 100°C), it is highly soluble in water. Being less hygroscopic than citric acid it possesses improved storage and shelf life properties. Malic acid is slightly stronger than citric in terms of perceived palate acidity and imparts a fuller, smoother, fruity flavour. It is of course, first choice for apple flavoured drinks. Unlike tartaric, its calcium and magnesium salts are highly soluble and the acid presents no problems in hard water areas. 8. Fumaric acid Not permitted under UK soft drinks legislation, fumaric acid is widely used in other countries as an acidulant, notably in the US market. In terms of equivalent palate acidity it can be used at a lower rate than citric acid and typical replacement can be employed at two parts fumaric per three parts citric in water, sugar water and carbonated sugar water. Its main drawback is a reduced solubility compared with the citric acid and special methods need to be employed in getting it into solution. 9. Ascorbic acid This acid (known as Vitamin C) is not only used as a contributory acidulant but rather as a stabiliser within the soft drinks system and its anti oxidant properties improve the shelf life stability of the flavour component in many cases. Many of the ingredients used in flavourings are susceptible to oxidation, particularly the aldehydes, ketones and keto esters. Ascorbic acid shields these from attack by itself becoming preferentially oxidised and lost, leaving the flavour component unaffected. It should be noted, however, that while a browning inhibitor in unprocessed fruit juices, the effect can later be reversed should the juice be subsequently heat treated (pasteu rised) when the ascorbic acid present can itself initiate a chemical browning reaction. Another disadvantage of ascorbic acid is its effect upon some colours in the presence of light. Colours The sensory perception of colour will influence the tasters reception of the drink. It has been generally demonstrated that the colour can far outweigh the flavour in the impression made upon the consumer. Both quality and quantity of colour are of importance and certain colours provoke, or perhaps complement, a particular taste. Reds will favour the fruitiness of soft drinks, e.g. blackcurrant, raspberry, strawberry, etc. Orange and yellow tend towards the citrus flavours. Greens and blues reflect the character of peppermints, spearmint and cool flavours, some times herb like and balsamic and the browns align with the heavier flavours, e.g. colas, shandies, dandelion and burdock. There is little doubt that in the early years many questionable practices were involved in beverage production and there is an interesting reference in Skuses Complete Confectioner A Practical Guide to the Art of Sugar Boiling in all its Branches. This book, published c. 1890, contained information on cordials and other beverages and, under its section on flavours and colours, the author felt it necessary to point out the dangers of using certain colours such as sulphate of arsenic, iodide of lead, sulphate of mercury, carbonate or sulphate of copper and seriously admonished the used of chrome yellow (lead chromate) by certain confectioners who were partial to using a little chrome yellow for stripes in sweets. Such colours were officially banned from food use in 1925. Today, the use of food colouring is carefully controlled under various legislations, with an ongoing programme of toxico logical studies where there is suspicion of harmful or allergic effects. Both the EEC (European Economic Community) and the FDA (Food and Drug Administration of the USA) have published permitted lists that are under regular review. Most concern has been expressed over the azo colours as certain people can demonstrate an allergic reaction to some of them. Toxicological and allergic reactions have been reported most frequently with Sunset Yellow (E 110) and Tartrazine (yellow) E 162. It has been found by experience that a number of food colours give a broadly satisfactory performance in soft drinks and carbonated beverages. The colour properties can be affected by a number of soft drink ingredients and good storage stability is required in the presence of acids, flavouring compounds and, where necessary, the preservative. The colour component must also be stable in the presence of light. It is well known that the combination of ascorbic acid and light has a detrimental effect on many colours. While it can be said that the colours permitted for soft drinks have a reasonably good all round performance, there is no substitute for storage trials in new product development to ascertain the real behaviour in the finished beverage. The colours most commonly encountered in the soft drinks industry are Tartrazine, Sunset Yellow FCF, Carmoisine, Green S, Chocolate Brown HT, the caramels and the nature identical carotenes. Amaranth, previously widely used, has lost ground since its exclusion from the US permitted list by the FDA of America in January 1976. Although Amaranth (El23) is still permitted in Europe, there has been a tendency towards the use of Carmoisine instead. Tartrazine and Sunset Yellow are being replaced more frequently by Quinoline Yellow, the slight differences in colour tone being compensated for in terms of intensity by altering dosage rates. The consumer, also being remarkably tolerant, tends to demonstrate the fact that, unless one can make immediate comparisons and batches of beverages using different colour types are not presented side by side then the changeover to a new colour will have little effect on sales. In recent years there, has also been an increase in the usage of natural colour extracts within the regulatory lists. Curcumin, carotenoids, (caramel) flavenoids, anthocyanins and chlorophyll have all been produced where necessary in water soluble forms (emulsions, salts, etc.) with varying success. During the eighteenth century there was little need for rigid laws controlling additives in food or drinks. Until the Industrial Revolution, food had been produced in Britain for the immediate needs of the local communities, and trade was restricted likewise to the immediate area. Producer and consumer were often neighbours with a high level of trust between them. However, the result of the new industrialisation changed all that. Between 1834 and 1856 it was discovered that aniline, produced from coal tar (a by product of coal gas manufacture), could, in conjunction with other agents, provide a wide range of vivid and fast colours. The patent taken out by a young chemist, William Henry Perkin, for a mauve colour produced from aniline, opened the door to a succession of new dye stuffs from coal tar products. These transformed the textile industry which had hitherto relied upon natural colouring extracts. Low cost and bright hues ousted the use of natural colours and had a marked effect upon world trade. In 1868, alizarin, the colouring principal of the madder root (Rhubia tinctoria), was prepared synthetically and, during the same period, natural indigo was also being displaced in commerce by the artificial version. Textile manufacture was not the only use to which the new products were directed and a selection of them soon became available for food use. often with dire results to the consumer. In 1925 the compounds of arsenic, antimony, cadmium, etc. (referred to earlier), were finally officially banned from use as legislation began to take hold. Even so, it appears that little was done until the early 1950s to regulate the use of food colours other than to ban from use those colours that had become obviously unsuitable for consumption, usually at the behest of interested parties following the outbreak of poisoning owing to excessive use of a particular additive. In 1954, a list of acceptable food colours was drawn up (hitherto only negative lists had been available) and subsequently, in 1957 and 1973, the list as we know it today was drawn up of both natural and synthetic colours. In line with greater concern over the food we consume, there is a greater regard to the toxicological effects of food additives in general and accordingly, not only do we consider the suitability but also the Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI). This is expressed in milligrams per kilograms of body weight as the amount of food additive that can be taken daily in the diet, without risk. Within the EEC, the allocation of ADI values is the responsibility of JECFA (the Joint Expert Committee on Food Additives), which comprises experts representing the World Health Organisation (Geneva) and the Food and Agricultural Organisation of the United Nations, (often referred to as WHO/FAO). Control of food additives in the USA comes under the auspices of the FDA. who have devised a permitted list of additives. The EEC and FDA lists, while subjected to a similar degree of toxicological testing, may differ in content. For instance, Amaranth, permitted by the EEC list, was de listed by the FDA in 1976. The subject is controversial and it is often difficult to identify the actual number of persons showing the allergic reaction, as the offending substance may only show adverse effects when in combination with a food or beverage to which the person is also allergic. The major deterrent is the list of ingredients on the label, which enables those who are allergic to identify the substance and avoid intake. High intensity sweeteners Introduction The low calorie/sugar free soft drinks market and therefore, the use of intense sweeteners has grown dramatically in many world markets over the last five years. The major reasons for growth are: (1) Sweetener development: that is, improvement in the taste quality of high intensity sweeteners permitted for use in soft drinks and consequently more acceptable low calorie/sugar free products. (2) An increase in consumer awareness of nutrition and healthy eating, making the reduction of sugar intake in the diet desirable for the majority of developed societies. Saccharin was the first high intensity sweetener to be marketed, and its usage increased during the First World War owing to a:sugar scarcity. Cyclamate entered the UK market during the 1960s and was later controversially banned in many countries as a potential carcinogen. The 1970 cyclamate ban brought to an end the use of saccharin cyclamate blends in many soft drinks markets. Soft drinks sweetened only with saccharin did not deliver the sweetness taste quality of the blend and this highlighted the need for alternative high intensity sweeteners. It was a further 11 years before other high intensity sweeteners (aspartame, acesulfame K and thaumatin) gained approval for use in foods in major world markets. Use of intense sweeteners Use of sweeteners in soft drinks is not restricted to low calorie or dietetic products. In some countries, particularly where sugar prices are comparatively high, intense sweeteners are used in combination with sugar or glucose syrups to give more cost effective formulations. Intense sweeteners provide sweetness, the amount supplied i.e. the relative sweetness of all intense sweeteners will depend on application. The values quoted in this chapter are only a guide and demonstrate the wide range of values obtainable under different conditions. Intense sweeteners do not supply the mouth feel of sugar and, in some cases, they may supply undesirable side tastes or prove to be incompatible with some flavours. For these reasons, use of intense sweeteners in soft drinks is rarely a case of direct substitution of sucrose in the regular product formulation: more often than not, total reformulation is necessary. It may be necessary to adjust the acidity and use buffers to assist stability of some sweeteners. Some adjustment of the flavour system used is commonly required and the use of gums or small amounts of sugars can improve mouth feel and control fobbing during filling. Use of ingredients that mask undesirable side tastes may also be required. Increasing the carbonation of low calorie products may also help mask undesirable side tastes and give the illusion of better mouth feel. Sweetness synergy occurs with many combinations of intense land bulk sweeteners. The effects can be twofold: a higher perceived sweetness than would be expected from the theoretical sum of the relative sweetness values of the individual sweeteners used and, in some cases, a marked improvement in taste quality of sweeteners that have undesirable side tastes. The optimum sweetener system will vary depending on the product and will not necessarily be a sweetener blend. However, if a sweetener blend is to be used, a useful starting point often quoted for blends of two intense sweeteners is that sweeteners are used in an inverse ratio to their relative sweetness (to each other), so that each sweetener contributes 50% of the total sweetness. For example, if sweetener A is half as sweet as sweetener B. the sweetener blend would contain twice the amount of sweetener A than sweetener B. Optimum sweetener blends for three or more sweeteners are not predictable and should be determined by sensory evaluation. Several intense sweeteners are now approved for use in soft drinks. Four compounds acesulfame K, aspartame, cyclamate and saccharin have major importance in the soft drinks market. This chapter will give a brief review of these, together with three other compounds (stevioside, thaumatin and neohesperidin dihydrochalcone) that have limited world wide approval for use in soft drinks and two other new intense sweeteners alitame and sucralose currently seeking approval. Current sweeteners 1. Acesulfame K Acesulfame K is the generic name for the potassium salt of 6 methyl l,2,3 oxathiazine 4(3H) one 2,2,dioxide it is a derivative of acetoacetic acid and was discovered by the German company Hoechst AG in 1967. Acesulfame K is a white, non hygroscopic crystalline substance at room tempera ture solubility is good (270 g/l) in water, poor in organic solvents, but increases in solvent water mixtures. Application in soft drinks, (a) Sensory: As with all intense sweeteners, sweetness potency of acesulfame K. relative to sucrose decreases with increasing concentration and varies with the medium in which the sweetener is being tested and the method used for quantifying sweetness. Values for acesulfame K vary from 110 to 200 at 10% and 3% sucrose equivalence, respectively. The taste profile of acesulfame K is generally considered to be superior to saccharin. It has a rapid onset time but the sweetness quality is marred by a bitter astringent aftertaste that is particularly noticeable at higher concentrations. Sweetness quality can be greatly improved by combining with other intense and bulk sweeteners. High levels of synergism (30% and above) reportedly occur with aspartame and, to a lesser extent, with cyclamate, glucose, fructose and sucrose. Very little synergy is reported to occur with saccharin, possibly because they compete for the same sweet receptor site. The aftertaste of acesulfame K can be masked in some cases by the addition of sugar alcohols, maltol and ethyl maltol. In soft drinks as a sole sweetener, levels of 600 800 and 550 750 mg/1 for cola and citrus flavoured drinks, respectively, are appropriate. Blending with other sweeteners, in particular aspartame, gives a much more acceptable product. In 50:50 combinations with aspartame, taking into account synergy, levels of 160 170 and 140 150mg/1, respectively, for cola and citrus flavoured beverages would be appropriate. (b) Stability: Stability of acesulfame K is very good and concentrated stock solutions can be stored and used. In solution, no detectable decomposition occurs at pH 3 at room temperature. Very limited decomposition occurs below pH 3 over extended storage periods. Heat stability is also good. No detectable decomposition occurs during pasteurisation or UHT treatments. In general, acesulfame K appears to be non reactive with other soft drinks ingredients. However, inclusion of acesulfame K adds potassium ions to the beverage and this should be taken into account when selecting clouding agents and stabilisers. (c) Analysis: Qualitative analysis may be performed using thin layer chromatography. HPLC is the main method available for quantitative analysis owing to the low volatility of acesulfame K, detection being in the UV range. Methods using isotachophoretic techniques can be used to determine acesulfame K, saccharin and cyclamate simultaneously. Metabolism. Acesulfame K is not metabolised and is excreted unchanged from the body primarily in the urine. It, therefore, has a caloric value of zero. Very few micro organisms have been found to metabolise acesulfame K, indicating that it is also non cariogenic. Regulation. A large number of toxicological studies were submitted to the regulatory authorities in order to gain approval for acesulfame K. The toxicity of acetoacetamide (the decompo sition product of acesulfame K formed under certain conditions) was also studied and they indicated that both products were non toxic. The ADI (Acceptable Daily Intake) assigned by JECFA (Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives) and the FDA (Food & Drug Administration) are 0 9 and 0 15 mg/kg body weight, respectively. The UK was the first country to approve use of acesulfame K in food and drink with Group A classification in I983. The FDA gave approval for use in dry mix beverages in 1988. It is approved for use in soft drinks in over 15 countries, with several petitions pending. Marketing. Acesulfame K is marketed under the brand name Sunett. Legislative constraints, limited production capacity and competition from aspartame, which has better taste qualities, have hindered the development of acesulfame K in the soft drinks market. With capacity problems now overcome and more approvals in different world markets, use of acesulfame K should increase, particularly in areas where aspartame cannot be used. Combination with other sweeteners will take advantage of the improved taste quality and apparent synergism and also assist in keeping within the ADI. 2. Aspartame Aspartame is the generic name for N alpha aspartyl L phenylalanine methyl ester. It was discovered as a potential high intensity sweetener in 1965 by J. Schlatter in the G.D. Searle laboratories. Aspartame is a white crystalline powder. Solubility in water is 1.0 g/l at 20 °C and this is adequate for most food applications. Solubility increases in acid conditions and with increasing temperatures allowing stock solutions to be made up however, these solutions should be freshly prepared each day. Aspartame is sparingly soluble in solvents and insoluble in oil. Application in soft drinks (a) Sensory: Of all the intense sweeteners currently available for use, aspartame has a very similar taste profile to sucrose and this has been the overriding factor contributing to its success in the market place. Relative sweetness values quoted at 4 5% sucrose equiva lence in water are in the range 120 215. A relative sweetness value of 180 at 10% sucrose equivalence is often used in soft drink formulations. Taste quality of aspartame is a clean sweet taste without the bitter metallic or licorice aftertaste often asso ciated with intense sweeteners some individuals do, however, notice a slight lingering of the sweet taste. It is synergistic with several other intense sweeteners including saccharin, cyclamates, stevioside, acesulfame K1 and sugars. Flavour enhancement, particularly with fruit flavours, occurs most notably with natural flavours. As the sole sweetener, use levels of approximately 500 600 and 400 600 mg/l are appropriate for cola and lemonade beverages, respectively. (b) Stability: As would be expected from a compound essentially made up of two amino acids, aspartame undergoes degradation in solution. Hydrolysis of the ester bond gives the dipeptide aspartyl L phenylalanine with the elimination of methanol. At pH 5 and above, the main degradation product is formed by cyclisation to the diketopiperazine (DKP) with the elimination of methanol. DKP may then hydrolyse to the dipeptide which may in turn, hydrolyse to its constituent amino acids, aspartic acid and phenylalanine. The critical factors that dictate the rate of aspartame degradation in soft drinks are pH, temperature, moisture and time. Fortunately, for the soft drinks manufacturer, the optimum pH range for aspartame stability is pH 3 to 5 with maximum stability at pH 4.3. The effect of UHT aseptic processes on soft drinks containing aspartame is minimal. Typical aspartame losses would be in the range 0.5 5% for most standard treatments. Therefore, the effect of temperature on stability of aspartame in soft drinks is likely to be a function of storage and distribution temperature. Stability of aspartame in concentrates and post mix/fountain syrups is generally lower than in the corresponding ready to drink product due to the lower pH of concentrates. There is no direct relationship between the acceptability of an aspartame sweetened product, its perceived sweetness and the actual loss of aspartame. As the concentration of aspartame decreases, the relative sweetness increases, thereby partially compensating for the degradation of the sweetener. Sensory evaluation has indicated up to 40% loss of aspartame before the soft drink is judged unacceptable. In dry form, when stored correctly, aspartame is stable for several years, making it an ideal sweetener for powdered soft drinks. The improved stability of aspartame has been the subject of several patents most of which involve co drying with various acidulants and or bulking agents or encapsulation, and are not applicable to liquid systems. However, combinations of aspartame with caramel have been reported to give improved stability and are the subject of one patent application. (c) Analysis: Qualitative and quantitative spectrophotometric analyses can be performed by traditional amino acid detection methods based on the reaction with ninhydrin. Quantitative analysis may also be effected by HPLC. Some chromatographic methods allow for the simultaneous analysis of other soft drinks constituents. A non chromatographic method based on a non aqueous perchloric acid titration may also be used. Metabolism. Unlike many other intense sweeteners, aspartame is metabolised by the body. It is hydrolysed into the two constituent amino acids and methanol in the gut. These breakdown products are metabolised in the same way as aspartic acid, phenylalanine and methanol from other foods. The aspartame molecule adds nothing new to the food chain. People with the rare human genetic disease Phenylketonuria have a deficiency in their ability to metabolise phenylalanine and their intake of this essential amino acid must be very strictly controlled from birth to adulthood. Therefore, they must include the phenylalanine content of aspartame in their dietary calculations. Aspartame is non cariogenic and has a calorific value of approximately 4 cal/g. Regulation. The PDA issued approval for the limited use of aspartame in foods and beverages on 24 July 1974. G.D. Searle voluntarily withdrew it from the market shortly afterwards when questions were raised about the validity of some of the toxicological data used to establish its safety. A stay of effective ness of the aspartame regulation was published in the Federal Register of December 1975. Further toxicological studies and re evaluation of the original toxicology data satisfied the PDA that aspartame was a completely safe food ingredient, and in 1981 it gave approval for use in limited food applications. JECFA gave aspartame a comparatively high ADI of 40 mg/kg body weights. The FDA ADI is 50 mg/kg body weights. http://www.niir.org/books/book/complete-technology-book-on-alcoholic-nonalcoholic-beverages-fruit-juices-whisky-beer-rum-wine-npcs-board-consultantsengineers/isbn-978817833112
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Which instrument did Larry Mullen Jr play in the band U2 ? | Larry Mullen, Jr.: Biography from @U2
Born: October 31, 1961
Instrument: Drums
Lawrence Joseph Mullen was born and raised in Artane, located the north side of Dublin, at 60 Rosemount Avenue.
He had to add the "Junior" to the end of his name to distinguish himself from his father, Larry Mullen, Sr. As Larry's career blossomed, so did his tax bills and his father was the unlucky recipient of them in the early 1980s. Before U2, Larry's previous gigs included playing drums for the Post Office Workers Union Band, and, for three weeks, the Artane Boys Band. Some of his earliest gigs included the St. Patrick's Day Parade on O'Connell Street, the bandstand on St. Stephen's Green, and the pier in Dun Laoghaire.
Larry's music career started when he began taking piano lessons when he was 8 years old. He did not fancy the notion of studying the piano scales or learning music theory, so he gave up the piano and began drumming in 1971. He started taking classes with Ireland's best-known drummer, Joe Bonnie. When Bonnie died a year later, his daughter Monica continued teaching Larry. However, Larry has said that his drumming style is "unteachable" and that spirit and instinct are what guides his technique. He has said that he just wanted to "physically hit the thing," in regard to the drums, so lessons where he couldn't just play were not his cup of tea, so to speak. Larry did return to the piano when he played keyboards on "Yahweh" during the Vertigo tour.
His sister, Cecilia, bought him his first drum-kit in 1973 for £17. He placed a notice at the infamous Mount Temple Comprehensive School in the fall of 1976, and on September 25, 1976, the band auditions began in his kitchen in Artane. Although everyone knows the band as U2, Larry claims that the band's name is really "The Larry Mullen Band."
Growing up, Larry considered his life to be "pretty normal for a while." However, Larry's oldest sister, Mary, died in 1973. Five years later, his mother, Maureen, died in a road traffic accident in November 1978. He says in U2 by U2, "In some ways, both events defined the kind of person I've become. My mother's death certainly catapulted me in the band's direction."
Larry left school in 1978 after passing his Intermediate Certificate exams. Larry said he was offered an opportunity to complete his Leaving Certificate exams, but chose not to as the economy was not doing very well at the time and jobs were difficult to find. While the band was still trying to score a record deal in 1978, Larry worked at Seiscom Delta in the purchasing department for a year. Had he stayed at Seiscom, his career path would have been computer programming for Seiscom's geology department.
In the early days of U2, Larry had to miss some gigs and photo shoots because of the job at Seiscom. For the photo sessions he could not make, friend-of-the-band Derek "Guggi" Rowen stepped in as he resembled Larry to a degree. For the gigs, Larry arranged a stand-in named Eugene from a north Dublin rock band called Stryder. When Larry became injured on the job, running over his toe with his motorbike, Eric Briggs filled in for him on the drums. Bono says in U2 by U2 that there was a period of time where the other three band members almost kicked Larry out of the band because they were not sure how serious he was. Ironically, during the band's first recording session, a CBS record executive suggested that Larry needed to be fired because of his inability to keep tempo.
Also during the early days, Bono spoke to Larry about a local Christian-based fellowship group. Prior to that, Larry grew up with a traditional Catholic background, even serving as an altar boy in church. Larry, Bono and Edge attended the Bible studies with some of their friends from Lypton Village and became friendly with members of the Shalom Christian group. When Larry, Bono, and Edge were told that they should give up rock-and-roll a few years later, they chose to leave the Christian group, instead. Larry said about Shalom in U2 by U2, "The idea was to create a Christian community, where people would live and work under strict Christian standards, When you're young and impressionable it all sounds ideal. But there was something terribly wrong with the concept. It was a bit like the bigger the commitment you made, the closer you were to heaven. It was a really screwed-up view of the world and nothing to do with what I now understand a Christian faith to be. There was huge pressure to follow that path and what made it even stranger was that rather than it coming from the church leaders, it was coming from our friends. I learned a lot though and I also gained a faith I didn't have before, and that's still with me."
He has been with his partner, Ann Acheson, for almost 30 years. They met during Larry's first year at Mount Temple. Together they have two sons and one daughter: Aaron Elvis (born October 4, 1995), Ava (born December 23, 1998) and Ezra (born in February 2001). He has also been a dog owner, thanking his Labradors (JJ and Missy) on past albums. Larry rarely speaks about his personal life, and has been relatively successful in keeping his family life private.
Although he has been plagued with a battle with tendonitis it has been curbed by specially designed drumsticks from ProMark. During the Elevation and Vertigo tours, he wore compression bandages and wraps to help control the condition.
Larry has had back pain over the years, as well, as a result of an injury in 1987 while on The Joshua Tree tour. Bill Flanagan says in his book, Until the End of the World: "Bono says Larry tried different doctors without success until he went to a German who brought in a holistic healer who started giving Larry shots of bull's blood. That did the trick! Larry's Irish doctor refuses to accept it - he looks at X-rays of Larry's crooked spine and says it's impossible, but Larry feels fine. He flies to Germany for shots of bull's blood regularly." Three weeks after his first son's birth in 1995, Larry required back surgery to sort the injury out. Larry returned to the studio three weeks after surgery for the Pop recording sessions, thus complicating the healing process.
His award-winning career includes 22 Grammy Awards, the Rory Gallagher Musician of the Year Award from Hot Press magazine, eight Brit Awards, a Golden Globe award as well as many others from a variety of music magazines, trade publications and music television networks. He was nominated with band mates for an Oscar® in 2003 for "The Hands That Built America," the same song that won the Golden Globe that year. He has also served as a judge for the Shortlist Music Prize. In 2000 he accepted the Freedom of Dublin award, and in doing so is allowed to let his sheep graze on College Green or St. Stephen's Green. He is also exempted from serving as the city coroner or city bailiff, among other benefits.
Besides U2, Larry has done some side projects with artists like Nanci Griffith, Daniel Lanois, Emmylou Harris, Robbie Robertson, Paul Brady and B.B. King among others. In honor of the Irish National Football team's bid for the World Cup in 1990, Larry co-wrote and co-produced the anthem "Put 'Em Under Pressure." He also worked with fellow band mate Adam Clayton on the theme to Mission: Impossible for the film's release in 1996. Larry and Adam also teamed up with Mike Mills and Michael Stipe to form the group "Automatic Baby" for Bill Clinton's Presidential Inauguration in 1993 at MTV's Inaugural Ball.
Known for his love of Harley Davidson motorcycles, he has driven his Harley from gig to gig in the past, clocking over 10,000 miles on the Zoo TV tour alone. He is also recognized for his fandom for Elvis Presley, following the Irish National Football team, playing pranks on people, as well as stealing the spotlight with a karaoke machine.
NOTE: Much of the information contained in this biography came from Larry's comments in U2 by U2, as well as research from Life magazine, www.u2faqs.com , and Modern Drummer magazine.
Related stories:
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Loreen, singing Euphoria, won the 2012 Europvision Song Contest for which country ? | U2 - Larry Mullen Jr.
Larry Mullen Jr.
Lawrence Mullen Junior was born on October 31, 1961 in Dublin to Maureen and Larry Senior. His older sister Cecelia was born in 1957 and another sister, Mary, was born in 64, but she died in 1973. They lived in Artane.
Larry was another kid like Adam who bounced around from school to school. He attended regular public school, Scoil Colmcille (everything taught in Irish), School of Music (Chatham Row) and finally Mount Temple. He loved playing music, tried piano, then switched over to drums. This was another one who didn't like the rules - when it applied to music. Didn't like listeneing to the music teacher's boring exercises etc.. Larry played a brief stint in the Artane Boys Band until they told him to cut his hair - short. He then went to the Post Office Boys band. He had alot of fun there, but I guess it just wasn't good enough for the young Mr. Mullen.
His sister Cecelia bought him a drum kit and that's when he got the idea he wanted to be in a band. Once at Mount Temple, Larry posted a note * blathering about wasting money on a drum kit and did anyone do the same thing with guitars. Sure enough, some did. Out of all the guys in the band, Larry was the only one who could really play.
With the band, Larry is the other half of the rhythm section with Adam , although Edge does quite a bit of playing off Larry in sessions, too. In early albums, you can hear the military influences with the snare drums and such. Larry's prowess with the drum sticks has won him several RS awards as top Drummer. I guess U2 will have to hold on for a little while before "getting a Ringo"! Larry's also regarded as the level headed, conservative guy "who has never changed his hair" and he maintains a foot in the doorway of reality when it comes to U2.
Oh yeah, the uh, Lardence title. Well, there have been several occassions where the band members are talking about him and/or how to spell his name and Lardence just comes out instead of Laurence. I don't understand it either, I think it's a band "private joke".
I don't know about Larry and any illegal narcotics, so don't ask.
Love life wise, there's Ann Acheson. Ann is Larry's longtime girlfriend from high school and for whatever reason, they never married - something about having way too complicated lives for a marriage to survive. My theories are he was:
1. afraid of comitting;
2. didn't like the restrictions of no divorce in Ireland;
3. wasn't ready.
I really don't know, but now that divorce is legal, we'll have to watch what they do. But anyway, to break the only daughter motif, Larry and Ann had a baby boy on October 4, 1995 and they named him Aaron Elvis. Yeah, that's right Elvis. Larry's always had this thing for Elvis because "he wasn't just a car salesman, he was a car salesman who loved to play guitar and I really related to that". You have to see the Rattle And Hum video, when he sits on the bike. You just have to.
In most recent news, Larry along with Adam has rewrote the them for Mission Impossible-The Movie . He's sporting the clean shaven look and looking a tad on the thin side. A Tour will have him looking better.
Last Updated: May 30, 1997.
*Última Actualização: 30 de Maio de 1997.
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"""No more carefree laughter, Silence ever after"" are the opening lines of which Abba Number One hit ?" | Knowing Me Knowing You Lyrics And Chords
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| Knowing Me, Knowing You |
Released last month, People, Hell and Angels is a posthumous album made up of songs recorded by which artist in 1969 ? | top 20 saddest songs of all time - Blackfolks
Blackfolks
speedychi
20 The Everly Brothers: "So Sad (To Watch Good Love Go Bad)," from It's Everly Time (Warner Brothers, 1960) A descending scale begins a classic of sad restraint: "We used to have good times together but now I feel them slip away/It makes me cry to see love die: so sad to watch good love go bad..." Sparse backing and note-perfect harmony compliment one of Don’s greatest lyrics. The inspiration for many a tender hearted ne’r-do-well, from John Lennon to Brian Wilson and beyond.
19 The Band: "It Makes No Difference," from Northern Lights - Southern Cross (Capitol, 1975) The most artless--and most piningly desolate--love song Robbie Robertson ever wrote, sung with hopeless tenderness by Rick Danko, The Band's most artless singer. "I love you so much, and it's all I can do/Just to keep myself from telling you/That I never felt so alone before..."
18 Randy Crawford: "One Day I'll Fly Away," single (Warner Brothers, 1980) "When will love be through with me?" MOR slush to some ears, this Crusaders/Will Jennings-constructed jazz-funk-lite ballad remains irresistibly sad to many others--especially when Crawford trails off on "away" and the swelling chord drops down beneath her. Tremulous and dreamily lovely.
17 Soft Cell: "Say Hello, Wave Goodbye," single (Some Bizzare, 1982) The genius of this synthpop classic is the way it starts out as a bitchfest--Marc Almond coming on like Dusty Springfield's petulant little sister--and then suddenly flips into a deep, engulfing sadness. Even as Almond demands that his lover take her hands off him and claims that "You never knew me/I never knew you", Dave Ball's oceanic keyboard chords say the opposite--that Marc is all tetchy bravado and that this parting is bursting his heart.
16 Billie Holiday: "Don't Worry 'Bout Me," from Lady In Autumn (Verve, 1959) Billie is being so damn reasonable: "Why not call it a day the sensible way, and still be friends," she sings. And do we believe her? We do not. Her apparent acceptance that "our little show is over" cuts no ice when delivered with such cracked desperation. Truly heart-rending late Lady Day.
15 Love: "Alone Again Or," from Forever Changes (Elektra, 1967) Love’s most famous recording: written, ironically, not by leader Arthur Lee but by po' little rich boy Bryan Maclean. "I heard a funny thing, somebody said to me/‘You know that I could be in love with almost everyone/I think people are the greatest fun’. And I will be alone again tonight, my dear..." The bastard son of the Byrds meets Ennio Morricone--all West Coast harmonies, 12-string guitars and Tijuana brass--this ode to loneliness seemed to come out of nowhere in late ‘67.
14 The Pretenders: "I Go To Sleep," from Pretenders II (WEA, 1981) What a concept: a song about missing an ex-partner sung by your future ex-partner. Written by Ray Davies and sung by Chrissie Hynde, this gives a peek into the--one assumes--charred lansdscape of the Davies/Hynde relationship. A perfect marriage of arrangement (including a beautiful French horn riff), lovelorn vocals and passionate lyrics: "I was wrong, I will cry, I will love you ‘til the day I die/You alone, you alone and no-one else/You were meant for me..."
13 Dusty Springfield: "I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself," single (Phonogram, 1964) Springfield here performs a rare feat: outperforming Dionne Warwick's own version of a Bacharach and David classic. Moving from forlorn whimper to gutsy roar, she lives the song to the full. "Going to the movies only makes me sad; parties make me feel as bad/When I'm not with you, I just don't know what to do." Decimating.
12 Little Feat: "Long Distance Love," from The Last Record Album (Warner Brothers, 1975) "Does she know she hurt me so?" How did a sad ballad get so funky and stay so sad? Lowell George was never more soulfully vulnerable than on this late-flowering gem from an otherwise indifferent Feat platter.
11 Smokey Robinson & the Miracles: "The Tracks Of My Tears," from Going To A Go-Go (Motown, 1965) Bob Dylan called Smokey "America’s greatest living poet" with good reason. The guy was able to take the most everyday images and imbue them with a real emotional strength, allowing even the flyest guy to wear his heart on his sleeve: "People say I’m the life of the party ‘cos I tell a joke or two/My smile is the make-up I wear since my break up with you..." Couple that with Marv Tarplin's peerless, aching melody and you've got the ultimate Motown heartbreaker.
10 Bonnie Raitt: "I Can't Make You Love Me," from The Luck Of The Draw (Capitol, 1991) "I'll feel the power, but you won't..." It's all very "tasty" and L.A.-musoid, this smokey ballad of resignation to loss, but it also rings hauntingly true as an articulation of honesty in the midst of misery--which makes it as much a song of healing as anything else.
9 Lorraine Ellison: "Stay With Me," single (Warner Brothers, 1966) "No, no! I can't believe!! You're leaving me!!!" The epic Bert Berns-Jerry Ragovoy ballad style taken to the outer limit, thanks in part to a borrowed Frank Sinatra orchestra. Building slowly to volcanic peaks, and laceratingly intense to the point of hoarseness, this is soul emotion at the edge of utter despair.
8 Abba: "Knowing Me, Knowing You," single (Epic, 1977) "No more carefree laughter/Silence ever after..." Not the opening lines of a Radiohead, Big Star or Jeff Buckley song, but one by those fab four Swedish moppets so beloved of the young karaoke crowd. You see, the jolly, upbeat big-hair-and-shiny-suits story of Abba hid the sadness of two failing marriages, a sadness that bubbles to the fore here. As with the Everly Brothers or Carpenters, their arrangements may be flawless and their harmonies pitch-perfect, but there’s true heartache in them there grooves.
7 Otis Redding: "I've Been Loving You Too Long," single (Volt, 1965) "You're tired, and your love is growing cold..." Good God Almighty! The prototype deep-soul howl of pitiful, nay, wretched lovesickness, sung by a big Georgia farmboy who's literally ravaged by need for his woman.
6 Sinead O'Connor: "Nothing Compares 2 U," single (Chrysalis, 1990) Forget the famous video: it's all already here in Sinead's bruised rendition--simultaneously dazed and defiant--of Prince's perfect ballad. "I could put my arms around every boy I meet..." But you know she won't.
5 The Righteous Brothers: "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'," single (Philles, 1964) "You never close your eyes anymore when I kiss your lips": it's got to be the second greatest opening line of any breakup song ever. (The greatest is surely from Raspberries’ ballad "Starting Over": "I used to be so f***ing optimistic til you said goodbye".) In theory it shouldn’t have worked, combining what was then almost a comedy act with Phil Spector, a man renowned for producing girl groups. Yet somehow it all came together in one of the most remarkable vocal performances of all time, with Bill Medley and Bobby Hatfield madly swapping pleas like James Brown’s Siamese twins. "Baby, baby, I’d get down on my knees for you ... If you would only love me like you used to do." Sublime.
4 Kate and Anna McGarrigle:
"Heart Like A Wheel," from Kate and Anna McGarrigle (Warner Brothers, 1975) "It's only love/That can wreck a human being and turn him inside out..." Forget Linda Ronstadt's limp cover: the sisters' original from their startling debut album simply wees all over it. Imagine Les Voix des Bulgares transplanted to Acadia, with Kate and Anna's eerie, pellucid voices blending in a meditation on love and loss that's all about a kind of mystical bewilderment. Almost supernaturally moving.
3 Frank Sinatra: "I'm A Fool To Want You," from Where Are You? (Capitol, 1957) "But then would come the time that I would neeeeeed you..." A second stab at one of the very few songs Sinatra had a hand in writing--a song born of his debilitating pain over Ava Gardner--"I'm A Fool" is the desperate sound of a Man Who Loves Too Much, who keeps going back, masochistically, to the woman who's destroyed him. One of Frank's all-time peaks.
2 Roy Orbison: "It's Over," single (Monument, 1964) "Your baby doesn't love you anymore…" (Hey, why don't you spell it out for us, Roy?) Over a rat-a-tat, execution-squad bolero beat, the Big O gives unearthly voice to what one only call terminality. Still terrifying after all these years.
1 George Jones:
"He Stopped Loving Her Today," single (Epic, 1981) "He said I'll love you 'til I die..." Curly Putnam and Bobby Braddock wrote the shamelessly weepy lyric and melody; producer Billy Sherrill coated the track in sumptuous Nashville surround-sound; and then the greatest country singer of all gave the performance of a lifetime--a vocal imbued with deep, knee-quaking compassion for the poor schmuck who never got over the love of his life... until now, when he's "all dressed up to go away". I don't care how hard-bitten you may be, I defy you not to get a lump in the throat from this 20-year-old classic of cornball liebestod. It's utterly transcendental--the most heartbreaking record ever made.
| i don't know |
A cover of which Buddy Holly song gave glam rock band Mud their third and final UK Number One in 1975 ? | Rock 'n' Roll History For May 3
Rock 'n' Roll History for
May 3
1958 - ClassicBands.com
May 3
Alan Freed has trouble on his hands when a brawl breaks out following a Big Beat Show at the Boston Arena. Several of the estimated 5,000 teens in attendance are injured and Freed will later be charged with incitement of a riot and destruction of property.
1964 - ClassicBands.com
May 3
Gerry And The Pacemakers make their US television debut on the Ed Sullivan Show a full month before their first appearance on the Billboard chart with "Don't Let The Sun Catch You Crying".
1965 - ClassicBands.com
May 3
The Beatles were kept busy filming scenes for their forthcoming film Help! on Salisbury Plain with the British Army's Third Tank Division.
1968 - ClassicBands.com
May 3
The Beach Boys begin a 17 date tour of the US with a show in New York. The second half of the concert featured the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, who lectured the audience on "spiritual regeneration." The reaction was so negative, more than half of the remaining tour dates were canceled.
1969 - ClassicBands.com
May 3
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police arrest Jimi Hendrix at Toronto's International Airport for possession of narcotics. He was released on $10,000 bail until his acquittal the following December.
1971 - ClassicBands.com
May 3
Grand Funk Railroad "consent" to meet with members of the press, who have never treated the group with respect, despite their string of Gold records. 150 reporters were invited to New York's Gotham Hotel. Only 6 showed up.
1972 - ClassicBands.com
May 3
Guitarist Les Harvey of the Scottish / English soul band Stone the Crows, was electrocuted by a shorted microphone wire during a concert attended by 12-thousand people in Swansea, Wales. He died in a local hospital three hours later.
1975 - ClassicBands.com
May 3
Tony Orlando And Dawn scored their third and final US #1 hit with "He Don't Love You (Like I Love You)". The tune was written as "He Will Break Your Heart" by three R&B heavyweights, Jerry Butler, Clarence Carter and Curtis Mayfield and reached #7 in 1960 for Butler.
May 3
The English Glam-Rock band Mud attain their third and final UK number one with a cover of Buddy Holly's 1957 hit, "Oh Boy".
1976 - ClassicBands.com
May 3
Paul McCartney makes his first concert appearance in America in almost ten years as Wings commence their Wings over America tour in Fort Worth, Texas.
1978 - ClassicBands.com
May 3
FM, a film about the struggles of a radio station, debuts in Los Angeles. The soundtrack features Steely Dan, Steve Miller, The Eagles, Neil Young, Billy Joel and Warren Zevon. More people would buy the soundtrack than bothered to see the film.
1980 - ClassicBands.com
May 3
Bob Seger And The Silver Bullet Band started a six week run at #1 on the US album chart with "Against The Wind".
1986 - ClassicBands.com
May 3
Robert Palmer's "Addicted To Love" tops the Billboard singles chart on its way to becoming a world-wide million seller. Originally recorded as a duet with Chaka Khan, her record company wouldn't grant her a release to work on Palmer's label, Island Records, and her voice was removed.
1997 - ClassicBands.com
May 3
Michael Jackson topped the UK singles chart for the 7th time with "Blood On The Dance Floor". The song peaked at #42 on the US charts.
2012 - ClassicBands.com
May 3
Paul McCartney and his wife Nancy Shavell narrowly avoided a potential deadly helicopter crash when their pilot became disoriented during a flight in bad weather and missed some trees by just two feet. Flying home to their estate in East Sussex, England after a day in London, the McCartney's were not aware of how close they came to crashing at the time. The UK's Department of Transport launched an investigation into the incident the following November.
| Oh Boy |
Which British pop star was born Jessica Ellen Cornish on March 27th 1988? | 70s Rock | glamrockstar
glamrockstar
Posted in Entertainment , Glam Metal Rock Music , Glam Rock , Metal Rock , Poison , RATT , Scorpions , The Sweet , The Who with tags 70s Rock , 80s Rock , Entertainment , Glam Metal , Glam Rock , Listen to Music , Music , Music Alt , Radio Music , Radio Station , Radio Stations , Rock You Like A Hurricane , Shame Shame Shame on June 8, 2014 by glamrock4ever
Hey all you Glamour Rock Podcast loyal fans! Here it is! Another absolutely incredible selection of some of the best HIGH VOLTAGE Glam Metal Rock songs that will have you on an unreal journey in the space between your ears! YEAH! TURN IT UP okay? This music sounds best LOUD!
You will hear in this extravagant podcast:
RATT “Tell the World” “Shame Shame Shame” “Heads I Win Tails You Lose”
SCORPIONS “Rock You Like A Hurricane” “Big City Nights” “Can’t Explain” (Cover of The Who Classic)
POISON Original version of “We’re An American Band” by Grand Funk Railroad and cover of same by Poison. Original version of “Little Willy” by The Sweet and cover of same by Poison.
“Love On the Rocks”
ROCK ON! Thanks for listening, Glam Rock Headbanging Crowd. Yours DJ Steph
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Posted in Entertainment , Glam Metal Rock Music , Glam Rock , Heavy Metal Music , Metal Rock , Music , Rock Music with tags 70s Rock , Alice Cooper , Glam Metal , Glam Rock Music , Heavy Metal , Heavy Metal Music , Rock Music , Shock Rock , Welcome Nightmare on October 2, 2012 by glamrock4ever
Alice Cooper was born Vincent Damon Furnier in 1948; he is an American rock singer whose career spans more than four decades. Alice Cooper was the inventor of the genre of rock music known as “Shock Rock”, which he achieved by incorporating a mixture of horror and vaudeville with garage band punk lyrics into his act. According to Wikipedia, Alice Cooper used “guillotines, electric chains, fake blood, boa constrictors, and plastic baby dolls” in his act. Although Alice Cooper’s brand of music is more in the distinction of conceptual rock or hard experimental rock, when you view the video from the 1970s UK performance by Alice Cooper(from the then-popular TV Show “Top of the Pops”), you will see there are also origins in Alice Cooper’s music trending towards Glamour Rock and Glitter Rock. And in the spirit of Election Year politics, the song is “Elected” -timeless classic from Alice seeking YOUR VOTE FOR PRESIDENT! Well, not really but listen to this: Alice Cooper was so innovative in this style of music that he was often compared to another ground-breaking Glam Rock innovator of the 70s, David Bowie.
Alice Cooper’s roots are in Detroit, Michigan; the band broke into the mainstream of rock music with the 1971 hit “I’m Eighteen” and 1972’s hit “School’s Out”. The commercial peak of the Alice Cooper band’s success was with 1973’s album Billion Dollar Babies. (For this and the following information , see Wikipedia.) In the year 1975, Alice Cooper came out with one of the most conceptual albums of the time, called Welcome to my Nightmare. Ask any rock fan from the 70s era, and most likely they have a copy of that album. In 2011, Alice Cooper released Welcome to My Nightmare 2, and in 2011, the original Alice Cooper band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The original Alice Cooper band members are Alice Cooper (Vincent Furnier) on vocals and harmonica, Glen Buxton on lead guitar, Michael Bruce on rhythm guitar, Dennis Dunaway on bass guitar, and Neal Smith on drums. This original band’s roots can be traced back to 1964 when Vincent Furnier at age 16 was eager to enter the annual high school talent show and gathered up some of his classmates to form a group for the show. They called themselves The Earwigs, obtained some used instruments from a local pawn shop in the Detroit area, and mimed their way through some Beatles’ songs, dressing up as the Beatles. The group won the talent show, and loved the experience of being onstage, so they formed a more permanent rock group while still in high school and called themselves The Spiders. Alice Cooper has said that the band’s musical roots include not just the Beatles, but also The Rolling Stones, The Who, The Kinks, The Doors, and The Yardbirds.
In 1966, the Spiders graduated from High School and the band scored a #1 hit on the radio
with “Don’t Blow Your Mind.” By 1967 the band was making regular trips to L.A. to play gigs. They renamed themselves Nazz and relocated to Los Angeles by the end of the year. In 1968, the band called Nazz had to change their name when they came across the fact that Todd Rundgren already had a band with that name. Furnier thought that the band needed a gimmick to succeed, and chose the name Alice Cooper, because it sounded innocent, in contrast to the band’s look and sound. Later, Cooper nee Furnier said that the name change was one of the most exigent career moves that the band made. To grab more headlines and generate more controversy, the Alilce Cooper band decided to push the concept of a male villain dressed as a murderess in tattered women’s clothing and makeup. Alice Cooper in his 2007 book Alice Cooper, Golf Monster said that his look was inspired by film, such as Bette Davis in “What Ever Happened to Baby Jane”, where Bette wears caked makeup and smeared eyeliner. (Alice Cooper at one time had difficulty with alcoholism and to become sober took up the game of golf, thereby “trading one addiction for another” hence the self-imposed title “golf monster.”
After an unsuccessful gig in California, the Alice Cooper band was approached by music impresario Shep Gordon, who arranged an audition with bizarro rock star, Frank Zappa, who was looking to add another act to his record label. Zappa told the band to come to his house at “7 o’clock” for the audition; the band mistakenly thought he meant 7am. Being awakened at 7 in the morning for the Alice Cooper band’s unique hard-rocking sound impressed Frank Z. enough to sign the band to a three record deal. Afterwards, Alice Cooper’s brand of “Shock Rock” happened by accident due to an onstage antic with a stray chicken. Alice Cooper later developed this concept of “Shock Rock” to the hilt, such as the 1971 tour which featured gothic torture models, and a staged execution by electric chair. Taken in its entirety, along with the band’s tight, sequined outfits, and Glam Rock style costumes (designed by rock fashion icon Cindy Dunaway) persuaded Warner Brothers to offer Alice Cooper a multi-recording contract.
The Alice Cooper band’s first hit was “I’m Eighteen” on the third album Love It to Death. The next album Killer featured hit songs “Under My Wheels” and “Be My Lover.” More hits followed; however, the biggest hit of all, and one that anyone who was a teenager in the 70s recalls precisely, was “Schools Out”, which reached #2 on the charts, and sold over 1 million copies. The next album was Billion Dollar Babies, featuring the hit of the same name, as well as “Elected” and “No More Mr. Nice Guy.” Around this time, the British parliament sought to ban Alice Cooper from performing! due to the stage show where Alice sported a boa constrictor snake, accompanied by the murderous axing of bloodied baby dolls.
The original Alice Cooper band’s last studio album was 1973’s Muscle of Love with A.C.’s last hit single “Teenage Lament ’74”. In 1975, Alice Cooper released his first solo album Welcome to My Nightmare. To avoid legal complications, Vincent Furnier adopted “Alice Cooper” as his legal name. What followed was a successful solo career with subsequent albums such as Alice Cooper Goes to Hell (1976), Lace and Whiskey (1977). The albums in the 1980s were not as successful, and these included Flush the Fashion (1980), Special Forces (1981), and Zipper Catches Skin (1982). Alice Cooper’s alcohol consumption began to cause considerable problems on tour, affecting Cooper’s onstage performances. During the Welcome to My Nightmare tour in Vancouver, A.C. tripped over a foot light and plunged several hundred feet onto the concrete floor amidst fans, who thought it was all part of the act. However, Welcome to My Nightmare also preceded another ground-breaking event in rock history, which was a prime-time television special called The Nightmare, starring A.C. and Vincent Price, which aired in 1975, and garnered a Grammy nomination.
The latest update on Alice Cooper, which can be viewed on http://www.alicecooper.com: After finishing up his tour with heavy metal artists Iron Maiden, and continuing to tour around the world this fall, Alice opened up a dedicated maze at Universal Studio Hollywood’s based on A.C.’s album Alice Cooper Goes to Hell. Earlier in the year, A.C. joined on allstar Glam Metal jam with Queens’ Brian May, Deep Purple’s Ian Paice, Whitesnake former guitarist Micky Moody, Led Zeppelin’s John Paul Jones, and Iron Maiden’s Bruce Dickinson.
Posted in Entertainment , Glam Metal Rock Music , Glam Rock , Rock Music , Rock Stars with tags 70s Rock , British Rock Music , Fleetwood Mac , Glam Rock , Glitter Rock , Mud , Rock Music , Silverhead , Tiger Feet on May 21, 2012 by glamrock4ever
Silverhead were a British band led by singer Michael Des Barres, with Robbie Blunt on guitar, Rod Davies on guitar, percussion, and vocals, Nigel Harrison on bass guitar, and Pete Thompson on drums, keyboards, and vocals. (For this and the following information, see Wikipedia). Silverhead were part of the Glam Rock scene in Britain in the 1970s before the group disbanded in 1974. They recorded two albums: Silverhead (1972) and 16 and Savaged (1973). In April 2012, the band reunited in Tokyo, Japan for a set of concert dates much to the delight of their die-hard Glitter Rock fans. The global story of Silverhead is a bit of a mystery for true Glam Rock followers who have wondered, “what the heck happened?”- that this fantastic band simply disappeared off of the map in the mid-70s when they were headed for Glitter fame and fortune? The answer has finally come about this many decades later, as documented in classicrockmagazine.com: “Silverhead were regarded at the start of the 70s as the British band that would follow T-Rex and David Bowie into the stratosphere of Glam Rockers who had it all.” The truly fascinating story follows and may indeed have you on the edge of your seat, as it did this rock blogger! Silverhead fans will definitely want to read the full-version on http://www.classicrockmagazine.com . According to that website, drummer Pete Thompson, who now lives in Texas, said, “We had it all. The glam, the rock ‘n’roll, the sex appeal, the nastiness…Everything was going our way. And if you saw us live, then you’ll know we really could deliver.” Again, read the full story by Malcolm Dome on the website, but what happened next is astonishing! Silverhead were set to tour the states on a six-week tour with Fleetwood Mac; only, it wasn’t the real Fleetwood Mac but a bogus group using the F.Mac name! The group Silverhead was sent to Los Angeles once this was discovered while their management company figured out what to do next. (Obviously Silverhead did not tour with the F. Mac imposters.) So get this: when the band returned to Britain, they walked into their manager’s office at the record label, about to embark on a tour of Japan, when they were told that they were all out of a job, and that they could no longer use the Silverhead name or record! What?! How bizarre! From Malcolm Dome’s report, it took “Thompson a few years to recover” and drummer Thompson is quoted as saying, “I was so angry I didn’t play drums for a long time.”
The other short-lived Glam flash-in-the-pan rock group to be discussed here is Mud. Mud were an English Glitter rock band formed in 1968, best-known for their single “Tiger Feet.” According to Wikipedia, Mud had 14 top 20 hits in the U.K. between 1973-1976. The band members of Mud were Les Gray (lead vocals), Rob Davis (lead guitarist), Ray Stiles (bass guitarist), and Dave Mount (drummer). They signed to Mickie Most’s RAK records and had their first hit with “Crazy.” (For this and the following band history, see Wikipedia.) The other hits by Mud include “Tiger Feet” (1974), “Lonely This Christmas” (1974), “Oh Boy” cover of Buddy Holly hit (1975), and “Shake It Down” (1976). The final performance of the group Mud with original band members was in 1990 for Dave Mount’s wedding. Les Gray also toured with “Les Gray’s Mud” from 1980-1985. Ray Stiles joined the Hollies; Rob Davis went on to write several dance hits. Dave Mount went into the insurance business. He also appeared in an episode of BBC TV’s Never Mind the Buzzcocks in November 2005 which type-cast Mount as a washed-up, has-been rock star. On 12.2.06, Mud drummer Dave Mount committed suicide.
Although both these Glam Rock bands had a short history, they are still worth listening to, this many years later. Just ask any Silverhead or Mud fan. They’ll tell you.
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Henry Charles Albert David are the christian names of which famous 28 year old ? | Queen Elizabeth II - Biography - IMDb
Queen Elizabeth II
Biography
Showing all 76 items
Jump to: Overview (4) | Mini Bio (1) | Spouse (1) | Trade Mark (2) | Trivia (50) | Personal Quotes (18)
Overview (4)
Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor (Her Royal Highness Princess Elizabeth Alexandra Mary of York)
Nicknames
5' 4" (1.63 m)
Mini Bio (1)
Princess Elizabeth Alexandra Mary was born on April 21, 1926, in London England to the second son of George V -- Albert, Duke of York and the Duchess of York, the former Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon. Her sister Princess Margaret was born 4 years later. In 1936, when she was 10, her uncle, King Edward VIII (aka Duke of Windsor ), caused a stir by abdicating the throne to marry a twice-divorced American named Wallis Warfield Simpson. His brother Albert was next in line to the throne, and he became George VI in honor of his father. She therefore became the Heiress Presumptive, meaning she would become Queen only if her parents did not have a son -- who would be king before her. At the age of 13, she met 18-year-old Prince Philip , her distant cousin. As her grandmother Queen Mary put it with more detail, they were third cousins through their descent from Queen Victoria (they are both great-great grandchildren of hers) second cousins once removed through their descent from King Christian IX of Denmark (her great-grandmother was Christian's daughter, his father was a descendant of his) and fourth cousins through their descent from George III (both of them being descendants of Queen Victoria -- she was his granddaughter). They fell in love and wanted to get married, but her father wanted to make sure it was real and not just because this was the first person she loved. Before they got married, he renounced his royal title as a Prince of Greece and Denmark, became a British subject, and adopted the surname of his uncle Louis Mountbatten . He was named Duke of Edinburgh shortly before they got married but was not made a Prince of the United Kingdom until 1957. They got married on November 20, 1947. One year later, they had a son, Charles Philip Arthur George. In 1950, they had Anne Elizabeth Alice; in 1960, Prince Andrew; and in 1964, Prince Edward.
When they were in Kenya in 1952, they found out that her father had died of lung cancer so they returned as Queen and Consort. It was a busy time and got even busier. They worked at public engagements and, starting in the late 1970s, became grandparents. Anne had a son name Peter in 1977 and then a daughter named Zara in 1981 with her husband Captain Mark Phillips. Charles had William in 1982 and Henry in 1984 with his wife Diana. Andrew had Beatrice in 1988 and Eugenie in 1990 with his wife Sarah Ferguson. On November 20, 1997, they celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary with their family and also celebrated the fact that Windsor Castle was reconstructed after a fire in 1992.
- IMDb Mini Biography By: Anonymous
Spouse (1)
( 20 November 1947 - present) (4 children)
Trade Mark (2)
Dress suit, big hat, boxy handbag
Corgi dogs
Trivia (50)
Ascended British and Commonwealth thrones on February 6th, 1952.
Was crowned in Westminster Abbey in London on June 2, 1953. This coronation became the first major international television broadcast.
Son, Prince Charles Philip Arthur George, born Nov. 14, 1948.
Son, Prince Andrew Albert Christian Edward, born Feb. 19, 1960.
Son, Prince Edward Antony Richard Louis, (aka Edward Wessex ) born March 10, 1964.
Daughter, Princess Anne Elizabeth Alice Louise, born Aug. 15, 1950.
Daughter of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother and King George VI .
Owns one of the world's largest private collections of postage stamps.
She formally approves all government legislation, though she does this on the advice of the Prime Minister. It would create a massive crisis if she did not approve a piece of legislation.
She enjoys watching horse-racing, "Doctor Who" and the British comedy Last of the Summer Wine (1973) .
She has owned over 30 corgis over the years, and her four current dogs are named Pharos, Swift, Emma, and Linnet (as of February 2002).
First cousin of the Duke of Gloucester .
Earned her nickname "Lillibet" as a child, when she could not pronounce her name.
Great-granddaughter of King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra .
Not including the United Kingdom, she is Queen of over a dozen countries, including Canada, New Zealand and Australia. Since she does not live in those countries, though she visits often, much of her duties are performed by a Governor General who she appoints on the advice of the Prime Minister of the country in question. It is important to note that neither the sovereign nor the Governors General, have had any hand in governing these countries since the 1930s, and their roles are purely ceremonial.
She owns the world's finest Pink Diamond, It forms the Centre of a flower brooch and weights 54.50 carats.
Although most of the "Crown Jewels" are owned by the state, the British Royal Family do own one of the most valuable collection of jewels in the world, containing some of the worlds largest diamonds, Emeralds, Sapphires, and Rubies.
Time Magazine's "Man (or Person) of the Year" (1953)
Learnt to drive in 1945 when she joined the Army.
Is fluent in French.
Has sat for 139 official portraits to date.
Has visited the sets of Britain's most popular soap operas Coronation Street (1960), EastEnders (1985) and Emmerdale (1972).
Has received over 3 million items of correspondence during her reign.
Has never held a drivers license, despite driving an ambulance in WWII. She does, however, drive on her lands.
The 2009 Sunday Times List estimated her net worth at $442 million.
Her Majesty became Queen in a tree house. At the time of her father's death she was staying at the Treetops Hotel. It is literally built into the tops of the trees of the Aberdares National Park as a tree house, offering the guests a close view of the local wildlife in complete safety. It was there that, uniquely, she "went up a Princess and came down a Queen". She was the first British monarch since the Act of Union in 1801 to be outside the country at the moment of succession, and also the first in modern times not to know the exact time of her accession (because her father, George VI, had died in his sleep at an unknown time); it fell to Prince Philip to tell her. The night of the King's death, Sir Horace Hearne, then Chief Justice of Kenya, escorted The Princess Elizabeth, as she then was, to a state dinner at the Treetops Hotel. Upon finding out that she was now Queen, she returned immediately to Britain.
Has 8 grandchildren:Prince William Arthur Philip Louis (b. 21 June 1982), and Prince Henry Charles Albert David (b. 15 September 1984, Prince Charles' sons), Peter Mark Andrew Phillips (b. 15 November 1977) and Zara Anne Elizabeth Phillips (b. 15 May 1981, Princess Anne's children), Princess Beatrice Elizabeth Mary (b. 8 August 1988) and Princess Eugenie Victoria Helena (b. 23 March 1990, Prince Andrew's daughters), Lady Louise Alice Elizabeth Mary (b. 8 November 2003) and James Alexander Philip Theo, Viscount Severn (b. 17 December 2007, Prince Edward's children).
Cousin of Lady Elizabeth Anson .
Her favourite Royal residence is Windsor Castle.
Likes tea, with milk and no sugar every morning.
Harry's graduation was the first time in 15 years she presented the ceremony.
Ascended the throne when she was 25.
May 4-8. Her Majesty stayed in Jamestown, Virginia to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the colonizing of Jamestown. [May 2007]
On the 9th of September 2007 there was much news coverage of Queen Elizabeth II attending the Opening of the Welsh Assembly. Unfortunately, unintentional humor resulted when some broadcasters used the common abbreviation of the word Assembly.
Her Coronation in 1953 was watched by a 13-year old David Jason ; she later knighted him during her birthday honors on December 1st, 2005. According to Jason, she never tells anyone to 'arise' once they've been knighted - it's an urban myth and not part of the ceremony. Later, she told Jason he had been in the business a long time, and he asked if he had ever done anything to offend her. She laughed and said no.
She is one of the six surviving people mentioned by name in the 1989 Billy Joel song "We Didn't Start the Fire". The other five are Doris Day , Brigitte Bardot , Chubby Checker , Bob Dylan and Bernard Goetz .
On September 9, 2015, she surpassed her great-great-grandmother Queen Victoria as the longest-reigning monarch in British history.
During her long illustrious reign, the Queen has met all but one of the last twelve US Presidents, Lyndon Johnson being the exception. In chronological order she has met, Harry S. Truman (Canadian Embassy Washington 1951), Dwight D. Eisenhower (St. Lawrence Seaway opening 1959), John F. Kennedy (London 1961), Richard Nixon (UK 1970), Gerald Ford (White House 1976), Jimmy Carter (Buckingham Palace 1977), Ronald Reagan (UK 1982), George Bush (Washington 1991), Bill Clinton (Buckingham Palace 2000), George W. Bush (White House 2007), Barack Obama (London 2016). She also met former US President Herbert Hoover more than 20 years after he left office (New York City 1957).
| Prince Harry |
Cheers actress Rhea Perlman has been married to which Hollywood actor and comedian for over 30 years ? | Name of the Week - British Baby Names
British Baby Names
An old-fashioned, quintessentially English name,
given a modern twist by a wizard, a prince and a popstar.
Origin:
Though Harry is generally considered to be a diminutive of Henry, it was originally Henry's standard English vernacular form.
The name originally started out as the Old High German name Heimerich, composed of the elements heim "home" and rīhhi "ruler". It was Latinised as Henricus, from which came the French Henri. The Normans brought Henri with them to Britain where it was pronounced "Harry" or "Herry" in Middle English.
By the 19th century, Harry and Henry had distinct pronunciations, and Harry was being used as a diminutive of both Henry and Harold. There are, however, still parts of Britain today where the local dialect turns Henry into "Herry" or "Harry."
Usage:
As Harry was the standard English vernacular form of Henri/Henry, it is rarely found in written documents. The great number of surnames derived from it however, such as Harris, Harrison and Parry, attest to its usage. Henry's medieval petform Hal, and its diminutive Halkin, also preserves Harry's 'a'.
For Harry's popularity then, we need to look at Henry. Redmond's popularity ranking, puts Henry at #6 in England from 1377-81 and Smith Bannister's popularity rankings have it consistently ranking between #6 and #11 from 1538 to 1700. [For more information see the Name of the Week post on Henry ].
By the 16th and 17th century, Harry has more of a presence in written documents, and was beginning to see more use in its own right — most likely as Henry began to develop a seperate pronunciation — though the two were still closely linked.
Data from the Surname Atlas (click to enlarge)
Harry's popularity was very consistent in the 19th century. It sat happily in the top 20 in England and Wales, ranked #16 in 1870 , #18 in 1880 , and #15 both 1890 and 1900 .
It also ranked #38 in Scotland in 1900.
Data from the 1881 census (right) shows that, although Harry was in good use in Scotland and Wales, most of its usage was in England.
Its popularity per 100,000 people shows that it was also very evenly distributed across England.
It is fair to say that, as it was so extremely popularly there, Harry became a quintessentially English name. No wonder Harry was listed alongside Tom and Dick in the well known phrase meaning 'men in general'.
The fate of both Harry and Henry were very similar in the 20th century.
In 1904, Harry was #18 in England and Wales, while Henry was just above at #17. Both saw a steep decline, and by 1954 Henry was #84 and Harry was clinging on to #100. After that, both names fell out of the top 100.
In Scotland, Harry ranked #68 in 1950, but had also fallen out of their top 100 by 1975.
This is not very surprising. By the 1960s Harry had moved into the "old man name" category. In 1958, for example, rock and roll star Harry Webb changed his common old-fashioned name for the much more edgy "Cliff Richard". The men born in Harry and Henry's turn-of-the-century height were, by that time, the First World War veterans, and quite literally the "grandfathers" of the young generation.
From not ranking at all in the top 100 at all in 1984, Harry had miraculously leaped to #30 in 1994. The reason almost certainly lies with the birth of the Prince and Princess of Wales' second son, Prince Henry Charles Albert David "Harry" in 1984.
Harry has been steadily rising in England and Wales since the 1990s, finally making it to the number one spot on both 2011 and 2012.
In 1996, Harry ranked #17 with 4434 births. By 2001, 5662 boys were given the name (#6) and 6143 by 2009 (#3).
In 2012, 7168 boys were given the name, ranking at #1.
That year also saw an increase in the number of boys who were given Harry as a hyphenated name
(see image right).
The most popular of these was Harry-James (17 births), followed by Harry-Lee (11), Harry-Jack (6), Harry-Jay (5), Harry-George (3) and Harry-John (3).
In Scotland, Harry has also been on the rise. It ranked #58 in 2005, #43 in 2007, #30 in 2009, #9 in 2011, #8 in 2012 and #10 in 2013 with 299 births.
Famous Bearers:
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In which city was London Mayor, Boris Johnson born ? Was it New York, Calcutta or Warsaw ? | City Mayors: Boris Johnson - Mayor of London
Mayor of London
By Andrew Stevens
3 September 2012: London’s resolutely ‘young fogey’ mayor has confounded expectations on his aptitude to govern since his May 2008 election victory. Having gone from a controversy-seeking journalist to national politician in less than a decade, Boris Johnson was always a surprise choice as Conservative candidate for the Labour-leaning British capital’s top job. His record in office has divided commentators however, some applauding his personal brand and humour underlying a solid vision, others accusing him of breath-taking complacency and attention-seeking. Johnson was re-elected for a second term in May 2012 ahead of London’s successful staging of the Summer Olympics, leading many to ponder a return to national politics and higher office for the seasoned performer mayor.
Born 1964 in New York to English parents Stanley Johnson (a former Conservative Member of the European Parliament) and his first wife, the painter Charlotte Wahl, Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson moved to England at an early age. He then attended England’s most elite educational institution Eton College, before going up to Oxford’s Balliol College to read Classics. At Oxford he became president of the world famous Oxford Union debating society and a member of the notorious Bullingdon Club dining society, where he met fellow Etonian and future Conservative Party leader David Cameron. Arguably he was set for a career in politics from an early age.
Upon graduation from Oxford in 1986, Johnson embarked on a career in management consultancy, but quit after only one week due to lack of interest. He was then accepted on a traineeship at The Times but dismissed after less than a year for falsifying a quote to spice up a dull story. He was quickly rescued from provincial obscurity on a local evening newspaper by joining the conservative Daily Telegraph as a feature writer in 1987, becoming its Brussels correspondent not long after. Flourishing in his role observing the European Union during the Maastricht Treaty era, he became the paper’s chief political correspondent and was rewarded with a column on the august right-wing weekly The Spectator. He stepped into the magazine’s editor’s chair in 1999 and began to cultivate the media persona which would ultimately lead to election to Parliament, though his first attempt in 1997 for the Labour-held Clywd West seat did not prove successful.
In 1998 Johnson began his longstanding association with the BBC current affairs quiz Have I Got News For You (which would be comparable to The Daily Show in the US), eventually becoming a household name (unusually for a minor Conservative figure) and securing the greatest number of appearances (alongside, ironically, Ken Livingstone ). He finally secured election to Parliament as a Conservative MP in 2001, when he replaced Michael Heseltine in Oxfordshire’s Henley-on-Thames seat on the former Deputy Prime Minister’s retirement. Once in Parliament he retained a prolific output and high profile on the right as a broadcaster and journalist, remaining a Telegraph columnist and editor of The Spectator in 2005. Johnson’s first job in opposition was as Shadow Arts Minister in 2004, during which time he also wrote a comic novel. However, he was soon forced to resign from the post that year following tabloid revelations of an extra-marital affair with a fellow Spectator journalist. Equally his tendency towards gaffe-prone behaviour, having offended many with his journalistic outbursts and frequent apologies for doing so, led some to speculate that his dizzying potential had been eroded early in his political career.
Johnson bounced back however, not least once Oxford contemporary David Cameron was elected leader of the Conservative Party late in 2005. Cameron appointed Johnson as the party’s Shadow Higher Education Minister, arguably a minor role considering his high public profile but one probably suited to his expansive portfolio of activities outside of Parliament. Johnson survived a further marital indiscretion with a journalist and only relinquished his party role in 2007 when the contest for the Conservative ticket for the 2008 London mayoral elections commenced. The party had initially delayed its contest when no ‘big hitters’ came forward to take on Labour’s Ken Livingstone, who then looked assured of a third term as mayor. Johnson was drafted in by the party leadership at the last hour, at the suggestion of the London Evening Standard (which later acted as his cheerleader against Livingstone throughout), forcing his three obscure party rivals to go through the motions and make up the numbers in the contest, in which Johnson emerged with 75 per cent of votes cast by Conservatives.
In the event, Johnson began to campaign as something of a slow-burner, with Conservative activists questioning his commitment to the candidacy on account of his various continuing media interests. The Conservative Party played something of an ace card in hiring the combative Australian election strategist Lynton Crosby, whose winning streak of victories for Prime Minister John Howard was played out in London, where he concentrated resources in Conservative-leaning outlying suburbs (the so-called ‘doughnut strategy’). This had the effect of seeing Johnson overtake Livingstone, who was likened to a tired two-term mayor of questionable judgement over appointments and use of resources by both the Conservatives and parts of the media, and secure election as the second ever directly elected Mayor of London on May 1 2008 (with 1,168,738 votes as against Livingstone's 1,028,966). He subsequently resigned as an MP to devote himself to the mayoralty (while previously representing an Oxfordshire seat in Parliament he had also remained a resident of London).
Immediately after his election, Johnson sought to enhance his stature (having been accused of inexperience in an executive role) through a partnership agreement signed with New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg , who promised to mentor the new mayor. Throughout the campaign Johnson had made an issue of the alleged lack of financial scrutiny and transparent governance under Livingstone. He reciprocated as mayor in establishing a ‘forensic audit panel’ to examine financial controls and identify cost savings, such as the international office network put in place by Livingstone. He also established a deputy mayor appointment system to place his advisers on a publicly accountable footing after accusations that the former mayor had hired cronies to key posts in which they abused their power over staffing and expenditure. However, many including the London Assembly have criticised the confusion stemming from this arrangement, where staff deputy mayors rank alongside the statutory Deputy Mayor of London (a member of the assembly appointed by Johnson by law). The early months of the mayoralty were beset by resignations by his advisers over controversial remarks, the fabrication of previous employment record and a personality clash with the mayor.
Following his election to a second term and successful staging of the Olympic Games secured by his predecessor, Johnson would probably point to the Paris-style cycle hire scheme (the so-called ‘Boris bikes’) as his signature achievement in office thus far, as well as reforms to the police which seen reductions in some types of crime. If anything, as mayor Johnson has been preoccupied with the public realm, perhaps paying less attention to economic development than his predecessor (aside from defending the City from ‘banker bashing’, which he believes damages London’s economy). Other high profile actions of the mayor include a crackdown on drinking alcohol on public transport (the introduction of which was greeted with a near-riot) and cancelling an anti-racist festival, much to the annoyance of trade unions. Johnson’s mayoralty has also been notable for the recessionary cancellation of many transport projects set in place by his predecessor, ostensibly denying many poorer areas of the capital much needed investment. However, he did dismantle the capital’s ill-fated PPP scheme of part-privatisation of the London Underground.
Inevitably during the summer week of riots in August 2011 contrasts were made with his predecessor’s steady handling of the 2005 London bombings, whereas Johnson was ostensibly caught napping while refusing to cut short his holidays to return to the burning capital. Local residents affected by the looting and chaos initially heckled the mayor as he attempted a walkabout in the city. The mayor’s demands for the Conservative-led coalition government to abandon its plans to cut police numbers in the capital in response to the riots were accused of stage-managed bluster by opponents, pointing to the dispensation given by his party colleagues in UK government who are aware of the mayor’s electoral strategy to distance himself from their actions.
The mayor’s public persona is well-honed and his speeches can be electrifying, even for sceptics. But it was Boris’ deft stewardship of the 2012 Games which saw his star ascend to hitherto unseen levels, justifying the claim of ‘Boris mania’ as even mishaps on zip-wires saw his brand propelled. Unusually for a politician, certainly in the UK, Boris passes both the ‘Madonna test’ (no surname necessary) and the 'Simpsons test’ (recognisable in silhouette alone) and has attained a rockstar-like level of public support, evidenced by crowds chanting his name during the Olympics celebrations. Even at a time when the Conservative brand has regressed back to its unenviable taint of cuts and economic hardship, Boris’ mayoral star and lustre shows little sign of waning. Whether the fleeting euphoria of Games time and the mayor’s popular media stunts can assume their own momentum for a post-mayoral career in national high office remains to be seen however. The mayor himself has certainly sought to pour cold water on the idea through continuous denials that a “prat on a wire” could ever be seen as statesman material. The media however, have their own ideas.
Mayor Johnson is married to Marina Wheeler, a barrister and daughter of the journalist Sir Charles Wheeler, and they have four children, Theodore Apollo, Milo Arthur, Lara Lettice and Cassia Peaches. Johnson was previously married to the socialite Allegra Mostyn-Owen, whom he met at university. Johnson is the author of one novel, Seventy-Two Virgins, an account of his 2001 election campaign Friends, Voters, Countrymen, and three collections of journalism, Johnson's Column, Lend Me Your Ears and Have I Got Views For You. The mayor has been the subject of some criticism for his failure to give up his many media commitments, including his £250,000 a year newspaper column, despite holding public office.
| New York |
Which 73 year old world peace campaigner is to be the President of the 2013 Llangollen International Music Eisteddfod ? | Former New York City Mayor Bloomberg to endorse Hillary Clinton: NYT - AOL News
Former New York City Mayor Bloomberg to endorse Hillary Clinton: NYT
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WASHINGTON, July 24 (Reuters) - Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg plans to endorse Hillary Clinton in a prime time address at the Democratic convention, the New York Times reported on Sunday.
Citing Bloomberg's adviser Howard Wolfson, the newspaper said that he plans to make the case for Clinton from the "perspective of a business leader and an independent."
Bloomberg, who was previously elected as a Republican and later became an independent, has been sharply critical of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump .
See more of Bloomberg through the years:
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Michael Bloomberg through the years
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Michael Bloomberg through the years
Former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg speaks during the C40 cities awards ceremony, in Paris, Thursday, Dec. 3, 2015. The C40 cities awards recognize cities for their leadership in tackling climate change across key sectors. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)
344913 02: Bloomberg L.P. founder and CEO Michael Bloomberg poses for a portrait November 2, 1998 in the training room at his offices in New York City. (Photo by Chris Casaburi/Getty Images)
UNITED STATES - CIRCA 2000: Republican mayoral candidate Michael Bloomberg samples a slice of life at Francesco's Pizzeria on Third Ave. in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. (Photo by Linda Rosier/NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images)
UNITED STATES - CIRCA 2000: Republican mayoral candidate Michael Bloomberg talks to passersby while campaigning at Broadway and W. 225th St. (Photo by David Handschuh/NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images)
UNITED STATES - CIRCA 2001: Republican mayoral candidate Michael Bloomberg exchanges high-fives with 7-year-old Matthew DePoalo while campaigning on Ditmars Blvd. in Astoria. (Photo by Andrew Savulich/NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images)
388464 18: Michael Bloomberg of Bloomberg News Service hosts a party before attending the annual White House Correspondents Dinner, April 28, 2001 in Washington DC. (Photo by Mark Wilson/Newsmakers)
NEW YORK, UNITED STATES: Michael Bloomberg, Republican candidate for New York mayor, speaks to the press in Brooklyn, New York, 26 September 2001. Bloomberg handsomely won the 25 September New York mayoral primary election to be the official Republican party candidate to replace New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani on January 1 next year, according to exit polls. AFP PHOTO Doug KANTER (Photo credit should read DOUG KANTER/AFP/Getty Images)
UNITED STATES - OCTOBER 26: Republican mayoral candidate Michael Bloomberg meets with the Daily News editorial board. (Photo by Pat Carroll/NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images)
Mayoral candidate Michael Bloomberg leaves the polling booth at PS 6 in Manhattan, NY. (Photo by Jennifer S. Altman/WireImage)
399131 02: Michael Bloomberg, the108th Mayor of the City of New York, gives his inaugural address January 1, 2002 at City Hall in New York City. (Photo by Getty Images)
UNITED STATES - CIRCA 2002: Mayor Michael Bloomberg chats with diners at the International House of Pancakes at 135th St. and Adam Clayton Powell Blvd. in Harlem, where he picked up the endorsement of the Rev. Calvin Butts. (Photo by Craig Warga/NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images)
NEW YORK, UNITED STATES: New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg (C), and former New York Stock Exchange President William Johnston (R) listens to New York Stock Exchange Chairman Richard Grasso (R) on the bell podium before Bloomberg rang the opening bell to begin trading 02 January, 2002. AFP PHOTO Henny Ray ABRAMS (Photo credit should read HENNY RAY ABRAMS/AFP/Getty Images)
399944 03: New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg speaks at the swearing in of over 300 probationary firefighters January 22, 2002 at the Fire Academy on Randalls Island in New York City. The new class is the second to enter the academy since the World Trade Center attack, when the department lost 343 firefighters. The probationary firefighters will begin physical training and classroom instruction before being sent out to firehouses around the city., (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
UNITED STATES - JANUARY 30: Mayor Michael Bloomberg makes his first State of the City address in the City Council chamber at City Hall. (Photo by Linda Rosier/NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images)
Mayor Michael Bloomberg cuts the ribbon to begin the opening of fall's Fashion Week in Bryant Park in Manhattan, NY. (Photo by Jennifer S. Altman/WireImage)
UNITED STATES - FEBRUARY 09: Mayor Michael Bloomberg stands amidst fire officials during funeral of Fire Lt. Kevin Pfeifer at St. Margaret's Church in Middle Village, Queens. Pfeifer, 42, who worked with Engine Co. 33 in lower Manhattan, was killed in the Sept. 11 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center. Bloomberg, attending his first firefighter funeral since taking office last month, eulogized the fallen hero and praised the bravery of all the firefighters who responded to the attacks. (Photo by Mike Albans/NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images)
401921 01: New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg speaks at the unveiling of a fifty-foot high stainless steel tree by artist Roxy Paine March 5, 2002 in New York City's Central Park. The tree is one of five public artworks on display in Central Park sponsored by the Whitney Museum of American Art. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, UNITED STATES: New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg(L) and Attorney General John Ashcroft (R) look at memorial banners and posters in front of St. Paul's Chapel 09 April 2002 in New York City, before visiting ground zero at the site of the World Trade Center attacks. AFP PHOTO/POOL/Kathy WILLENS (Photo credit should read KATHY WILLENS/AFP/Getty Images)
403191 02: New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg (C) and Fire Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta (R) look on as a U.S. flag that once flew over Ground Zero is raised during a ceremony at City Hall Plaza April 1, 2002 in New York City. The flag was immortalized in a photograph by Thomas Franklin of three firefighters raising it amid the rubble of the World Trade Center after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack on New York City. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)
UNITED STATES - MAY 28: Mayor Michael Bloomberg addresses the Republican State Convention at the Sheraton New York Hotel on Seventh Ave. (Photo by Andrew Savulich/NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images)
NEW YORK - JUNE 14: National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) astronauts Dominic Gorie (L) and Frank Culbertson (R) present an American flag to New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg (C) in honor of Flag Day June 14, 2002 in New York City. The flag was found at Ground Zero, the location of the World Trade Center in New York, and was flown into space in December 2001 aboard the NASA Space Shuttle Endeavor. Culbertson was onboard the International Space Station September 11, 2001 when the terrorist attacks occurred in the U.S. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)
NEW YORK - JULY 4: New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg gets a Nathan's Famous hot dog after Takeru Kobayashi won Nathan's Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island July 4, 2002 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. Kobayashi, who won last year, set a new world record by eating 50 1/2 hot dogs in twelve minutes. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg adjusts his tie as girlfriend Diana Taylor, right, laughs while on the observation deck of the Empire State building, Monday, Nov. 7, 2005. The latest polls show the incumbent Republican mayor leading his Democratic challenger Fernando Ferrer by 38 points. (AP Photo/Stephen Chernin)
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg greets supporters during a party for his election to a second term in New York, Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2005. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg holds aloft "Alaska" the American Bald Eagle during the unveiling of Ireland's National Monument to the New York National Guard's 69th Infantry Regiment "the Fighting 69th" who fought with the Union forces in the American Civil War, and it's leader, Brigadier Michael Corcoran, in Ballymote, Ireland, Tuesday, Aug. 22, 2006. (AP Photo/Peter Morrison)
Police Chief Ray Kelly, forth from left, listens in as New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, center, speaks to reporters after a meeting with community leaders about a weekend shooting involving police. Police fired an estimated 50 rounds at Sean Bell, 23, and two other unarmed men in a car early Saturday, hours before he was to have married the mother of his two children. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens)
New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, left, is surrounded by press as he visits the 311 call center in New York, Wednesday, June 20, 2007. A day after quitting the Republican Party and registering as unaffiliated, Bloomberg continued to send mixed signals about his intentions, discussing both his mayoral term and vowing to address the major issues facing the country. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)
Abdus Salam, center, watch as British leader David Cameron, left, and New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg eat hotdogs from his stand during Cameron's visit to the city during his first U.S. trip, Wednesday July 21, 2010, in New York. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)
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New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, left, and French President Nicolas Sarkozy converse in front of the Statue of Liberty before taking part in a ceremony in anticipation of the 125th anniversary of the monument on Liberty Island, Thursday, Sept. 22, 2011 in New York. (AP Photo/Jason DeCrow)
NEW YORK, NY - MAY 10: New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg (2nd R) speaks with an aide while announcing a new emergency notification system at a news conference overlooking Ground Zero on May 10, 2011 in New York City. Bloomberg, who was joined by politicians, federal officials and the heads of mobile phone companies, spoke of the system that will alert what to do in case of emergency to anyone with an 'enabled' mobile device within range of a cell phone tower. Part of a law passed by Congress five years ago, the service is scheduled to be available in New York City and Washington, D.C. by the end of the year and is expected in the rest of the country by mid-2012. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 07: New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg (R) speaks at a press conference as construction continues at the World Trade Center site on September 7, 2011 in New York City. The National September 11 Memorial & Museum will feature two reflecting pools on the footprints of the twin towers. The memorial is scheduled to be dedicated on September 11, 2011, the tenth anniversary of the World Trade Center terrorist attacks. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, left, holds the Halas Trophy, while New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, center, holds the Vince Lombardi Trophy as New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning, right, waves to the crowd during a ticker-tape parade celebrating the team's NFL football Super Bowl XLVI championship, Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2012, in New York. The Giants beat the New England Patriots 21-17 on Sunday, Feb. 5, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
Mayor Michael Bloomberg surveys the damage to a passenger ferry after it crashed on Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2013 in New York. At least 57 people were injured, two critically, when a commuter ferry struck a dock in New York City's financial district, ripping open a right-side front corner. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)
WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 02: (L-R) Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel participate in a forum about education in big cities at the Katzen Arts Center on the campus of American University March 2, 2012 in Washington, DC. Calling their municipalities 'city-states,' the mayors suppored the idea of individual school districts being able to compete with states for the $4.35 billion 'Race to the Top' grant program created by President Barack Obama. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg speaks at a gun violence summit at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore, Monday, Jan. 14, 2013, where he outlined his proposals for federal gun control reforms. Bloomberg urged President Barack Obama and Congress to increase background check requirements for firearms purchases, and also said the federal government needs to get tougher on gun trafficking. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
NEW YORK, NY - OCTOBER 31: New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg (C) rings the opening bell of the New York Stock Exchange on the first day of opening since Hurricane Sandy October 31, 2012 in New York City. The storm has claimed several dozen lives in the United States and has caused massive flooding across much of the Atlantic seaboard. U.S. President Barack Obama has declared the situation a 'major disaster' for large areas of the U.S. east coast, including New York City, with widespread power outages and significant flooding in parts of lower Manhattan and elsewhere. (Photo by Allison Joyce/Getty Images)
Mayor Michael Bloomberg, right, and artist Ugo Rondinone are framed in the in the rock sculpture "Human Nature," as they react during a press conference on Monday, April 22, 2013 in New York. Rondinone, a Swiss-born and New York based artist, created a public art installation of nine colossal human-shaped figures made of rough bluestone, that will transform New York's Rockefeller Plaza for seven weeks. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)
NEW YORK, NY - MARCH 12: New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg holds a large cup as he speaks to the media about the health impacts of sugar at Lucky's restaurant, which voluntarily adopted the large sugary drink ban, March 12, 2013 in New York City. A state judge on Monday blocked Bloomberg's ban on oversized sugary drinks but the Mayor plans to appeal the decision. (Photo by Allison Joyce/Getty Images)
New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, left, and Democratic mayoral hopeful Bill de Blasio attend a 9/11 Memorial ceremony Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2013, marking the 12th anniversary of the 2001 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York. (AP Photo/Adrees Latif, Pool)
NEW YORK, NY - NOVEMBER 06: New York City Mayor-elect Bill de Blasio speaks with outgoing Mayor Michael Bloomberg at City Hall on November 6, 2013 in New York City. It was the first meeting between the two since de Blasio's election victory the day before. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)
CORRECTS LEFT TO RIGHT From right, Florence Mayor Matteo Renzi, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, London Mayor Boris Johnson, and Warsaw Mayor Hanna Gronkiewicz-Waltz, during the Mayors Challenge competition, at City Hall in London, Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2013. New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg is offering European cities millions of dollars to be government groundbreakers, tapping his personal fortune to extend his cities-as-civic-laboratories campaign overseas as the end of his own tenure nears. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham)
New York City Mayor-elect Bill de Blasio, left, join Mayor Michael Bloomberg for a meeting in the "Bull Pen," the mayor's main City Hall office, on Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2013, in New York. De Blasio, the public advocate, was trouncing Republican rival Joe Lhota 73 to 24 percent in incomplete, unofficial returns that were on pace to post one of the largest routs in the history of the nation's largest city. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)
NEW YORK, NY - AUGUST 19: New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg speaks at a press conference with United States Secretary for Housing and Urban Development Shaun Donovan (not seen), unveiling a Hurricane Sandy Recovery Report on August 19, 2013 in the Greenpoint neighborhood of the Brooklyn Borough of New York City. The report calls for strengthening the region's electrical grid, reinforcing coastline and protecting gas supplies. (Photo by Andrew Burton/Getty Images)
FILE - In this Jan. 27, 2016 file photo, former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg talks with diplomats at U.N. headquarters. By wide margins, Americans of all ideologies say they have no interest in voting Bloomberg into the White House, suggesting that the billionaire media mogul would have significant headwinds should he mount a third-party bid for president. Just 7 percent of registered voters say theyâd definitely vote for him, while 29 percent say theyâd consider it, according to a new Associated Press-GfK poll. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)
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What is the first name of the mother of Jemima Khan and widow of Sir James Goldsmith, after whom one of London's most exclusive night clubs was named? | Devastated Ben Goldsmith blasts wife on Twitter for affair with rapper that ended his marriage to the Rothschild heiress | Daily Mail Online
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All seems good with the world in this picture of a happy-looking Ben Goldsmith as he enjoys a spot of hunting with the American musician Jay Electronica.
But the image of the smiling pair, which is believed to have been taken seven months ago, may come to haunt the millionaire after his wife Kate had an alleged affair with the rapper.
The tinted instagram picture emerged today and shows Mr Goldsmith and Electronica standing shoulder to shoulder - Mr Goldsmith seemingly oblivious to any issues in his relationship.
Close: This instagram photo taken around seven months ago shows Ben Goldsmith's close relationship with rapper Jay Electronica
Mr Goldsmith's spat with his wife over the alleged fling took an even uglier turn yesterday as he took to Twitter to publicly accuse her of fretting more about her image than their ‘devastated children’.
He took to Twitter to broadcast his anguish about the end of their nine-year marriage amid reports the heiress has been having an affair with a US rapper.
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Mr Goldsmith ridiculed the 29-year-old for hiring a PR firm to ‘fix her reputation’. He told his 6,000 followers: ‘A bit late surely? How about focusing on her devastated children?’
Heiress Kate, 29, a scion of the Rothschild banking dynasty, has three young children with Mr Goldsmith, son of the late billionaire Sir James Goldsmith.
Enjoying the high life: Kate Goldsmith takes to the sky in a helicopter to travel between a Jay Z and Kanye West concert
Ben and Kate Goldsmith pictured in December 2010. The couple are apparently set to divorce after she embarked on a passionate love affair with an American rap star
'Unique': Kate and Ben Goldsmith's former family home in Kensington, West London, has now gone on the market with a staggering £20million asking price
Mr Goldsmith's comments came as pictures emerged of the opulent interior of their family home in Kensington, West London, which went on the market for £20million just before the couple had their final separation.
The 'unique' detached property, built in 1860, has more than 5,600sg/ft of living space across four floors, complete with solid oak flooring, a summer house and spacious garden in one of the capital's most desirable districts.
Fury: A retweet of Ben Goldsmith's angry tweets directed at wife Kate over her affair
Mr Goldsmith is said to have confronted his wife after discovering explicit text and email messages from hip hop star Jay Electronica.
Matters came to a head last Wednesday in a fierce bust-up at the couple’s home, in which he is said to have slapped Kate and kicked a child’s toy at her in fury.
His wife called police who arrested Mr Goldsmith, 31, on suspicion of actual bodily harm. He later accepted a police caution.
The Eton-educated financier also posted a Tweet yesterday which said: ‘Ps, in case you missed it’, and pointed his followers to an article in the Daily Mail about his wife’s alleged infidelity.
However, by late afternoon it appeared Mr Goldsmith had had a change of heart about airing his marriage troubles in public.
Both the Tweet about the Mail article, and the earlier one about his wife hiring a PR company, were deleted without explanation.
Sumptuous: The Goldsmith home has more than 5,600sq/ft of living space spread over four floors
Historic: Built in 1860, the grand house boasts solid wood flooring throughout
Rows: Ben Goldsmith is said to have confronted his wife in the family home after discovering messages between her and Jay Electronica
Happy home? Ben Goldsmith is said to have become increasingly annoyed at his wife's nocturnal lifestyle
The PR company Mrs Goldsmith retained is Project Associates Ltd, a Mayfair-based reputation and crisis management firm.
A spokesman at the firm said Mrs Goldsmith was concerned that ‘inaccurate information’ was being given to the media designed to ‘deflect from the gravity of last week’s incident involving the police’.
He added: ‘Kate is devastated, she has had a very frightening time since she and her husband initially split five months ago, and this is just another sad development.
‘Her main concern now is for her children who will remain with her at the family home.
‘Kate has no further comment at this time. In the meantime she is seeking legal advice on a number of matters.
'Her family wish to add that they are completely supportive and they remain very much on speaking terms.’
Gold trim: The house is such as befits the descendants of two wealthy dynasties
Family: The Goldsmiths lived there with their three children
Inner city oasis: As well as the main building, the property also has a summer house
Vast: The garden is huge for an area with such high land values
Mr Goldsmith has moved out of the family home and is staying in Italy with his mother Lady Annabel, and will now file for divorce.
At the weekend he told the Mail on Sunday: ‘I’m pretty shell-shocked by everything. All I am thinking about now is my children.’
The couple are from two of the country’s wealthiest families. Mr Goldsmith inherited an estimated £300million after the death of his father, who built up a £1.2billion fortune.
Kate inherited an £18million fortune after the suicide of her banker father Amschel Rothschild, and is related to the Guinness brewery family on her mother’s side.
The couple have known each other since they were teenagers and were regulars in society publications such as Tatler before marrying young in September 2003 at a wedding attended by 600 guests.
Rap star: Jay Electronica is signed to Jay Z's label
In 2010 Mrs Goldsmith set up a record company called Roundtable Records, which led to her spending time at gigs and clubs in London as well as travelling to Los Angeles.
She got to know the 35-year-old rapper - real name Timothy Elpadaro Thedford - last autumn.
Yesterday Jay Electronica posted a bizarre message on his Twitter page which read simply: ‘#LoveIsOnTheWay’.
Last week, the union between the son of the late financier Sir James Goldsmith and his wife, a scion of the Rothschild banking dynasty, collapsed in the most spectacular fashion.
Mr Goldsmith apparently confronted his 29-year-old wife last Wednesday after discovering explicit texts and emails between the pair.
After initially denying the affair, Kate admitted it when her husband told her he had read the text messages.
There was a fierce row, during which Mr Goldsmith is said to have slapped Kate and kicked a child’s toy at her.
Ben then took their children to school, and by the time he had returned his wife had called the police and officers were at the house to arrest him.
The Metropolitan Police confirmed that a 31-year-old man from Kensington, West London, was arrested on suspicion of causing actual bodily harm and taken to a police station, where he accepted a caution.
Mr Goldsmith is away on a pre-planned holiday with the couple’s three young children. But he has said he plans to sue for divorce on the grounds of adultery.
While friends of Ben’s say his wife is still ‘obsessed’ with Electronica, last night a friend of Kate’s claimed the affair happened during a five-month break from Ben, and ended after three months.
Whatever the precise truth, it is still a startling end to the marriage that marked the union of two hugely powerful dynasties.
That Kate Goldsmith has been carrying on with a rapper known for his sexually explicit lyrics is undoubtedly a scandal, even for a family that is no stranger to colourful goings-on.
Last night, one friend told the Mail that the Goldsmith family are incredibly angry and that the divorce will be nasty.
‘Ben is going to start proceedings at the earliest opportunity,’ says the friend. ‘It will be a fight. They will fight over the kettle and the teapot!
‘There is a lot of anger. Lady Annabel (Ben’s formidable mother) is especially incensed and upset.’
Both Ben and his 29-year-old wife are wealthy in their own right, and unravelling their fortunes to reach a divorce settlement will be complicated.
Sir James left his family a £1.2 billion fortune when he died in 1997, much of which is tied up in trust.
Kate and her family were left £18 million — considerably less, but hardly a pittance — when her father died. Amschel Rothschild, a banker, was found hanged in the Hotel Bristol in Paris in 1996, aged just 41.
Bitter divorce: Last night a friend of Kate and Ben Goldsmith confirmed that the divorce would be 'nasty'
Feelings are running high at the moment, and another complication is the fact that Kate’s sister, Alice Rothschild, is going out with Ben’s elder brother, Zac.
Zac’s own ten-year marriage to Sheherazade Ventura-Bentley collapsed in 2009 after he began an affair with Alice, and they now live together in a house on the Goldsmiths’ family estate in Richmond, South-West London.
Zac’s divorce is still not finalised, as lawyers continue to work out a financial settlement between him and Sheherazade.
According to one friend, Alice now finds herself in a tricky situation. ‘Alice is well-liked in the family, but the Goldsmiths are asking, how much did she know about Kate and this rapper? Alice and Kate are close. It’s very awkward.’
Indeed. So how did Kate Goldsmith come to fall for a rapper? How did the affair begin, and what will happen between them now that her husband intends to divorce her?
Kate Rothschild and Ben Goldsmith were just 21 and 23 respectively when they married in 2003. They were young — perhaps too young.
When they married, Ben was the more confident of the two, and the ‘dominant’ one in the marriage. Kate, say those who know her well, has a more vulnerable air.
‘People often say she’s rather like Princess Diana,’ says a friend. ‘Her father’s suicide had a profound effect on her, and she has this way of making people protective of her.’
But as the marriage wore on, Kate grew in confidence and, say friends, became tired of ‘being told what to do all the time’ by her husband. They began to grow apart.
And then Kate met Electronic.
The singer’s background could not have been more different from the Rothschild girl, who was educated at Bryanston School in Dorset.
Starting out: Ben and Kate Goldsmith at their 2003 wedding in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk
Electronica was born and raised in the Magnolia Projects in New Orleans, Louisiana, an area known for poverty and violent crime.
He rose to prominence in 2007 when a track entitled Act I: Eternal Sunshine (The Pledge) became popular on MySpace, the social networking site.
Three years later, Jay-Z, one of the world’s biggest selling rap artists, signed him to his Roc Nation stable of musicians.
Kate has her own record label, Round Table. Thirty-five-year-old Electronica has been based in London for the past couple of years. Presumably the pair met through their links with the music industry.
According to reports, but denied by Kate’s friends, the affair is believed to have begun about a year ago, with Kate besotted by the singer, whom she calls Jay Jay.
Both her family — her mother, Anita, is the daughter of merchant banker James Guinness — and the Goldsmiths are said to be aghast at the affair.
‘Ben is heartbroken, devastated and thoroughly miserable,’ a friend of the couple reportedly said.
While Kate’s friends claim the affair is over, his friends have a different view.
‘He suspected Kate was cheating on him because she has been behaving increasingly erratically for some time,’ says one.
‘She is obsessed with this chap, who is one of her clients. She is always on the phone to him, and out with him until four or five in the morning most nights. Sometimes she even stays with him.
A Family Affair: Ben Goldsmith's brother Zac with his lover, Kate's sister Alice
‘Ben was paranoid about their friendship months ago, but when he confronted her about an affair earlier this year she denied it.
‘Then, last week, he found a series of texts and email messages. They were very intense messages planning sexual liaisons.’
On the face of it, it is a classic tale of a posh girl falling for a bad boy. But according to another source, it is not quite like that.
‘He has this “street” persona, but Jay Electronica is not really like that — he’s much gentler, a vegetarian and Buddhist,’ says another friend. ‘He and Kate feel they have a spiritual connection, and Kate tells friends he is the first person to really understand her.
‘And although he comes from a poor area, he has been successful, he has money, and he pays for Kate when he takes her out.’
The affair has uncanny echoes of a previous scandal involving Kate’s great aunt, born Pannonica Rothschild, who went on to become Baroness de Koenigswater.
It is a strange story. In 1948, Nica, as she was known, became bewitched by an unknown black jazz pianist, Thelonious Monk, after hearing a recording he had made of Round Midnight.
At a time when mixed-race relationships were frowned upon, she abandoned her husband and five children, moved into a hotel suite and set about finding him. She finally tracked him down in 1954 and devoted the next 28 years to him until his death.
Nica’s family disowned her. Kate can expect to be similarly shunned by the Goldsmith clan.
Friends say that the situation is difficult, too, for Jemima Khan — Ben’s older sister, who was on good terms with Kate, but will now be expected to cast her adrift.
‘It’s hard, but Lady Annabel will expect all of them to rally behind Ben,’ says the friend.
So what of the future? Electronica returned to the U.S. last week to attend his grandmother’s funeral, but is expected back in Britain soon. No one knows what will happen next between him and Kate.
As early as this week, the lawyers will get involved.
This week, Kate was still at the Kensington house, which was put up for sale two months ago. When the Mail knocked on the door yesterday, a young blonde woman came to a side door and said: ‘We don’t want to talk to you.’
But a friend told the Mail: ‘Kate is devastated. She has had a very frightening time since she and her husband initially split five months ago, and this is just another sad development. Her main concern now is for her children, who will remain with her at the family home.’
Lady Annabel, the Goldsmith family matriarch, is on holiday in Sicily and could not be contacted. But she was well aware that it was her husband Sir Jimmy’s wish that one of his children would one day marry a Rothschild.
He would never have imagined that such a union would end like this. But then no one did, least of all Kate’s husband Ben.
| Annabel |
Cristina Kirchner is currently the President of which South American country? | Print Page - The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on October 30, 2011, 09:48:07 am
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2055225/KATIE-NICHOLL-The-cost-loving--divorce-leaves-300m-Zac-Goldsmith-strapped-cash.html
Is there any truth in the rumour that Zac is Diana's half brother? The photo in this article took my breath away :- He looks so like Diana, it's uncanny :oooh:
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: True Brit on October 30, 2011, 11:40:49 am
It is known that Frances Shand Kydd had an affair with James Goldsmith (Zac & Jemima's father) before Diana was born. Frances was very unhappily married (as we all know) but there have been attempts to say she was too needy/nervy and not Jimmy Goldsmith's type. However - most women were Jimmy Goldsmith's type.
Then there were attempts to rubbish it all saying the affair was over before Frances became pregnant with Diana. Who knows except I agree with you the resemblance between Zac (and Jemima) is stunning.
Let's not also forget the bitter divorce between Frances and the Earl Spencer and her own mother took sides with the Earl and gave evidence that she was not fit to be a mother. Shame on them all.
BTW the story of the affair was in a biography and I can't recall who wrote it but I am sure someone more knowledgeable than me will be able to fill in the gaps.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Alexandrine on October 30, 2011, 08:23:54 pm
:- First time I read about this.
He does look like Diana but would her father accepted her if she wasn't his kid?
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on October 30, 2011, 11:24:42 pm
I suppose the fact that Diana was a girl wasn't so much of a problem for Earl Spencer, if she had been a boy then it would have been an issue because of inheriting Althorp and the title. Adultery, as far as I can make out, was a fact of life among the upper class so it wasn't something to make too much of a fuss over. The resemblence between Diana (and William, particularly in his younger pretty boy days) and the Goldsmith children is too astounding to ignore. I wondered whether it had been proven, or there was any other compelling evidence. I've always thought Diana was different to the other Spencer children, not just looks but her whole charismatic persona...and by all accounts, Sir James was quite a character.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Black Queen on October 30, 2011, 11:27:21 pm
http://www.henrymakow.com/are_the_future_king.html
Quote
Other intriguing bits of "evidence" and speculation have been cited in the London Daily Mail, which quotes sources that claim that Diana was conceived during her mother's affair with the Jewish banker tycoon Sir James Goldsmith (originally Goldschmidt and no apparent relationship to Carole Goldsmith). The report says that Frances was estranged from her husband, Earl Spencer (Viscount Althorp), and had an affair with Sir James Goldsmith just at the time that Diana was conceived. Strengthening the case, a report points to striking resemblances between Princess Diana and Sir James Goldsmith's other three children, Zak, Ben and Jemima Goldsmith.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Alexandrine on October 31, 2011, 02:22:01 pm
But they could have used that to make Frances even worse during the divorce.
And the red haired gen? Did it came from the Windsors? Or the Goldsmiths are also red haired?
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Lieblich on October 31, 2011, 02:42:14 pm
Red hair is a Spencer trait, but I don't know if the Goldsmiths also have it.
I don't think the Earl Spencer was so nice of a man to have doted on a child whose paternity was suspect.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Alexandrine on October 31, 2011, 02:43:59 pm
Yes, that's what I think too. But he may have accepted her if he considered that he would look worse if it was known that her wife had a kid with another man. :dontknow:
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Lieblich on October 31, 2011, 03:01:34 pm
Accepted, sure. But by all accounts he doted on Diana. :dontknow:
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: True Brit on October 31, 2011, 03:21:21 pm
I beleive aristocracy have a much easier relationship with "cuckoos in the nest" than the rest of us. It was a common event and the artistos and Royals would just gather any such child into the family to avoid a scandal or complications.
Although, thinking about it, this was also something that many families did in the UK before the war. I went to school with a girl whose "Aunty" was really her mother. Her grandparents passed themselves off as her parents to avoid the stigma of being illigitimate.
This is most interesting and it reminds me it was Tina Brown who wrote the book which revealed that James Goldsmith was allegedly Diana's father. What is certainly true is that he and Frances DID have an affair.
http://aangirfan.blogspot.com/2011/04/royal-wedding-goldsmiths.html
There's a fascinating little story in the comments (if you like conspiracies) and it does make you start to think a bit. The Goldsmith connection.
Quote
Anonymous said...
Reading nothing I didn't know about 50 years ago.
Both the boys and girls of the top families are given lists of suitable marriage-partners, in order of preference. Their inheritances depended on where on the list they wound-up. Problems arose when the same girl had the same guy at the top of their list - claws out!!! - or the guy with the best inheritance chances was gay. The girls, even if they were lesbian and some probably were, of course, at least preferred a guy who was a good f##k. They would wail in despair "Can I borrow yours sometime!? You lucky girl, he's GREAT! Can I?" They cared less about love, per se, as it was the norm for such people to fill-in the gaps with toyboys/mistresses, other people's wives/husbands etc.
I know this as I sat there, listening to the cackle as the young teen girls working at the Palace looking after Chas and Hoss proffered lists all over the place.
They were NOT allowed to marry outside of - I'll use the phrase, THE CLAN - I dated a couple of girls a few times, that was ok, but they told me not to get too involved, I had no chance.
You are beginning to uncover what I've told various people of, and been laughed at to my face.
I did wonder about the lovely bride. As people I wish them all the best, they do seem to be a good match and genuinely in love (want bets on Harry going for Gold with Pippa? He seemed smitten. Me too!!!). It didn't equate with what I know, how could Wills marry a simple 'normal' girl? It doesn't happen.
And, thank you aangs, I now know my gut-feeling was right, and he HASN'T. Kate is a Goldsmith, one of the cream of Nobility, a 'hidden spare'. One of the Palace girls I dated was of the Goldsmith/Mendosa clan (same as actor Peter Sellers, also one of their 'spares').
The clans are seemingly sharpening their swords ...again. The thing is, who gets their head lopped-off this time?
Look past the Jewish issue, look past the names, think CLANS.
By the way, Camilla was one of those girls. Forget the blurb they first met age 20 or so, lies all of it, they've always known each other.
And, though she wasn't on his list HE was number One on HERS.
I simply can't work-out the mechanics of the wheeling-and-dealing behind the scenes here, but believe me THE CLANS ARE ARISING!
A sudden guess: Do 'they' think the Royals will be weakened when Charles takes the Crown, Wills being given the job, an unfortunate helicopter accident leaving her Queen? Is that possible?
If so, a contact of mine maybe was right. I consider him to have genuine access to good intel. Though the Jewish bit raises an eyebrow. He definitely was Jewish. He told me there have been 4 attempts to take the Crown, beginning with Mountbatten, but the war got in the way. the 2nd was something around the Profumo/Ward thing, then possibly the apparent 2 attempts to take over Parliament in '68 and '74 (the Harold Wilson stuff).
The last attempt was Diana.
He said there were indications a 5th attempt was under planning, why he and friends were investigating.
Is Kate the 5th attempt?
The best soap-opera in the world, mate, Simon Cowell couldn't do it better!
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Alexandrine on October 31, 2011, 06:16:07 pm
Are the goldsmiths the miners? Or is that from the maternal side of Carole?
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Are the goldsmiths the miners? Or is that from the maternal side of Carole?
We're talking about a wholly different group of Goldsmith's here.
Anyway, didn't Diana bear a striking resemblance to her paternal grandmother, Countess Cynthia Spencer?
http://photos.mlive.com/grandrapidspress/2010/11/g1107dianacelebration03.html
The resemblance to the Goldsmith children is far more striking IMO. I think the Windsors have red hair in their ancestry too, Queen Alexandra and Queen Mary (who Harry strongly resembles) had red hair.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: berlin on October 31, 2011, 10:59:40 pm
Well I think Diana looks very much like her mother who herself looked like a Goldsmith. I think Diana is a blood Spencer.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on October 31, 2011, 11:10:08 pm
,
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Alexandrine on October 31, 2011, 11:12:19 pm
^^ You need to use a image converter to upload the image from your pc (I think it was your pc so I edited your post :KEZZA:)
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on October 31, 2011, 11:14:05 pm
^ Oops, sorry, removed it (before I read your post) because it wasn't working.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Alexandrine on October 31, 2011, 11:16:11 pm
Don't worry, maybe you can try finding the pic in google and link it here.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on October 31, 2011, 11:47:39 pm
(http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2009/10/25/article-1222921-06F63B34000005DC-217_634x355.jpg)
(http://www.dumage.com/img/fun/royal-look-alikes/royal-look-alikes08.jpg)
The Windsors (not just the Spencers) also have a red hair gene, so red hair in Harry and Wills is not solely attributed to the Spencers for example: - Harry and a young Queen Mary - showing their similar facial features and red hair.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on November 01, 2011, 12:00:09 am
PS also Diana's mother Frances Roche has Irish ancestry, which is well known for red hair. So I think there is enough to safely rule out the fact that red hair comes solely from the Spencer line and could have passed down to William and Harry without the Spencer input. Diana and William's similarity to Zac is astonishing and if I find more pics I'll post them.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on November 01, 2011, 12:07:19 am
(http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_NE-72ZXux-g/SxVAWA1IlxI/AAAAAAAAL6A/2QJQRq3NQf4/s320/diana.jpg)(http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_NE-72ZXux-g/SxVCL8VxpwI/AAAAAAAAL6w/l7gTt68hDcY/s320/thumb-zacg.jpeg)
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Gwendolyn on November 01, 2011, 12:07:44 am
It's the glimmer in Zac Goldsmith's eyes that gets me. Diana had the same glimmer, that same captivating something in her eyes. I sincerely do not wish to underestimate her connection to Lord Spencer though. I know from experience that blood is only so thick when another man has raised you; it counts for virtually nothing compared to the love and acceptance of a true father figure. For that reason, and due to the passing of the principal players, I almost find speculation on the matter to be inappropriate.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on November 01, 2011, 12:20:07 am
Oh, of course Gwendolyn, I mean no disrespect at all to Diana or Frances and Earl Spencer. It is all speculation and whatever the truth behind her parentage, nothing would ever dim the magic of Diana.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Gwendolyn on November 01, 2011, 12:28:23 am
I agree wholeheartedly with regard to Diana - some lights never go out - and I hope I didn't offend you, Mooster. :flower:
Honestly, this is the first I've ever heard of the Goldsmiths, but it really does appear Diana might have been one. I think it'd be cool if the princes had some Jewish ancestry.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: berlin on November 01, 2011, 12:28:52 am
I can't stand to look at Zac especially with the way he has treated Scheherazade. He looks quite sinister to me. I don't get good vibes off him.
I think Diana got most of her mom's looks. Besides, Diana's nieces look very similar to her and their dad most certainly is a Spencer.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Gwendolyn on November 01, 2011, 12:38:29 am
That's very interesting, Berlin. What has Zac done to Sheherezade? She is gorgeous, by the way.
About the pictures posted above... Sorry to go off topic, but time is treating Harry very, very well. Yowza! lol
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: berlin on November 01, 2011, 04:16:15 am
He left her and their four kids for Alice de Rothschild, who doesn't hold a candle to Scheherazade. Here's a most recent article:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2055225/Zac-Goldsmith-divorce-Sheherazade-leaves-strapped-cash.html
You can search the DM for the whole saga.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on November 01, 2011, 06:17:55 am
I don't know what it is with these well off-toffs, none of them can seem to keep it in their pants :dontknow: They're always looking for new fields to furrow :thumbsdown:
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Liza on November 04, 2011, 10:53:51 pm
Diana appeared to have a different and darker complexion than her siblings. Diana's nose also more closely resembles Zac and Jehima's than Sarah or Charles, but Jane appears to have a larger nose like Diana's.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Liza on November 05, 2011, 01:45:19 am
How are Carole Goldsmith's ancestors of miners closely related to Sir James Goldsmith or the Rothschild family? That relationship would be too distant wouldn't it, if there is one? Have been mislead about Carole's family tree to believe they are all laborers when they are not. In fact I do remember a recent comment in one of the newspapers stating that someone should check more closely into Carole's ancestors, who they claim are laborers when in fact they are not. Remember when the Midds or the media, or someone claimed Uncle Gary was a plumber?
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on November 05, 2011, 07:55:54 am
^ No, Carole's not related to James Goldsmith, who was actually born in Paris.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Acornia on November 05, 2011, 12:43:54 pm
I think Goldsmith is a common Jewish name, so chances of them being related are probably slim.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Liza on November 12, 2011, 01:49:49 am
Diana's looks much more like Zac than her sister, Jane. If Diana is Goldsmith's daughter, that dose that mean that William does not have the Stewart lineage?
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: berlin on November 12, 2011, 06:41:22 am
Everytime I see pictures of Zac my stomach turns. I don't know why.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Acornia on November 12, 2011, 04:20:52 pm
^ Because he cheated on his beautiful wife with a plain Rothschild? :dontknow:
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: berlin on November 12, 2011, 06:57:55 pm
No. I can look at pictures of Charles and other cheaters and not get that feeling. There's something else.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Dahlia on November 13, 2011, 02:42:34 pm
^I´m with you berlin. He looks evil :ick:
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Alexandrine on November 22, 2011, 09:33:44 pm
Green envoy Zac Goldsmith 'sacked' for defying government over EU vote
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2063788/Green-envoy-Zac-Goldsmith-sacked-defying-government-EU-vote.html
Post by: Mooster on November 27, 2011, 04:50:42 pm
http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2011/11/26/article-2066533-00CC050F00000190-947_468x930.jpg
Jemima Khan looks so like Diana in this photo - if she had Di's/Zac's blue eyes, and fair skin, she'd be her double :flirt:
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Tatiana on November 27, 2011, 06:28:08 pm
nope .. He is definately Annabel's son
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1382583/ROYAL-WEDDING-Will-Lady-Annabel-Goldsmith-revenge-snub-Camilla.html
Post by: Tatiana on November 27, 2011, 06:40:35 pm
sorry for the double post ...
Diana looks a lot like Cynthia .. her paternal grandmother ... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cynthia_Spencer,_Countess_Spencer
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on November 27, 2011, 06:48:35 pm
^ ooh, yes she does...particularly when Diana was young and had a similar hairstyle - I'm thinking of the photos in her late teens when the press were chasing her when an engagement was imminent, that said it's a drawing, has it been modified to look like Diana? However, still not convinced that she is not Jimmy's daughter though - I've watched video clips of him talking and when she spoke she used to pull her mouth in a certain way and other expressions were similar.
He also had very long legs like her :sigh: http://www.sirjamesgoldsmith.com/pages/outsider5/outsider5image1.jpg
He also has her luminous blue eyes and fair complexion
http://www.sirjamesgoldsmith.com/pages/home.png
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Tatiana on November 27, 2011, 07:11:53 pm
I see where u are coming from .. but Harry has the same red hair as his cousin George.. who got his from his Grandad Earl Spencer.. the former Lady Sarah Spencer has it too.. and Diana had reddish blonde hair as a teenager... and the former Lady Jane Spencer sounds a lot like Diana when she speaks.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on November 27, 2011, 09:56:14 pm
Yes, of course...it's all speculation anyway, the only thing that would prove it, is a DNA test and even if they wanted it, the those three people are dead now - so, we'll never know. I love Diana, she's such an enigma, she was so beautiful, charismatic and magical that she generates such interest even now kisss
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on November 27, 2011, 11:51:03 pm
(http://www.sirjamesgoldsmith.com/pages/tyc7/tyc7main1.jpg)
Post by: Mooster on November 28, 2011, 12:03:12 am
^ Whoops, forgot to state that the above pic is of Sir James Goldsmith
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on December 12, 2011, 10:05:40 am
Just been looking through Lauracrazygirl's photobucket album and pictures of the young Diana such as this one: http://s28.photobucket.com/albums/c209/lauracrazygirl/?action=view¤t=oldwillandkate.jpg#!oZZ92QQcurrentZZhttp%3A%2F%2Fs28.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fc209%2Flauracrazygirl%2F%3Faction%3Dview%26current%3Dc149.jpg
http://s28.photobucket.com/albums/c209/lauracrazygirl/?action=view¤t=oldwillandkate.jpg#!oZZ83QQcurrentZZhttp%3A%2F%2Fs28.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fc209%2Flauracrazygirl%2F%3Faction%3Dview%26current%3Dc9d8.jpg
http://s28.photobucket.com/albums/c209/lauracrazygirl/?action=view¤t=oldwillandkate.jpg#!oZZ87QQcurrentZZhttp%3A%2F%2Fs28.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fc209%2Flauracrazygirl%2F%3Faction%3Dview%26current%3D9daf.jpg
http://s28.photobucket.com/albums/c209/lauracrazygirl/?action=view¤t=oldwillandkate.jpg#!oZZ91QQcurrentZZhttp%3A%2F%2Fs28.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fc209%2Flauracrazygirl%2F%3Faction%3Dview%26current%3Dce46.jpg
Also looking through the images of a young James Goldsmith, such as this one: http://www.sirjamesgoldsmith.com/#outsider/3
and this one: http://www.sirjamesgoldsmith.com/#tycoon/0
Diana also has the same shaped long legs as Sir James (he was also very tall, 6 feet 4 inches):
http://s28.photobucket.com/albums/c209/lauracrazygirl/?action=view¤t=oldwillandkate.jpg#!oZZ63QQcurrentZZhttp%3A%2F%2Fs28.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fc209%2Flauracrazygirl%2F%3Faction%3Dview%26current%3D8b_39.jpg
http://www.sirjamesgoldsmith.com/#outsider/5
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on December 12, 2011, 10:40:26 am
Umm...for some reason the copy and pasted links are just directing you to the same pic of Will and Kate :-X
However if you follow the link to lauracrazygirls album http://s28.photobucket.com/albums/c209/lauracrazygirl/?action=view¤t=oldwillandkate.jpg#!oZZ63QQcurrentZZhttp%3A%2F%2Fs28.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fc209%2Flauracrazygirl%2F%3Faction%3Dview%26current%3D8b_39.jpg the photos that I suggested of a young Diana were numbered: 105, 93, 92, 91, 87 and 83
The example of her long legs and their similarity to Sir James ( http://www.sirjamesgoldsmith.com/#outsider/5 ) is number 63
I also find it interesting that Sir James photo album was labelled 'The Outsider', something Diana considered herself to be for her whole life.
I know I seem obsessed about Diana's supposed links to the Goldsmiths but it intrigues me greatly, and also adds to the mystery around the alluring and enigmatic Diana. I often wonder whether Lady Annabel Goldsmith knew that Diana was Jimmy's daughter and that was why she and her daughter Jemima embraced and welcomed Diana into the family fold...Lady Annabel was often referred to as Diana's surrogate mother. In place of her estranged mother, she turned to Lucia Flecha de Lima, wife of the Brazilian ambasador, and Lady Annabel Goldsmith. http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/article-1944744-mothers-abuse-over-muslim-boyfriends.do
Jemima, to this day, still vigorously fights Diana's corner, remember the barbed comment regarding Camilla taking the place of Diana at the register signing.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Annabel on December 14, 2011, 02:44:02 am
Interesting thread! I had never heard of these rumors before to be frank. But I must admit that Zac and Jemima always reminded me of "someone". I think there's indeed a resemblance, especially to Zac, and what strikes me quite a bit is Diana's nose. Her nose looks quite similar to Zac's and Jemima's. I'm not an expert when it comes to such things, but I think there's a slight chance that Harry's red hair could indeed have come through Queen Mary or Queen Alexandra.
However, I think that Diana resembles the Spencers, too. Or maybe it's just that I'm used to the idea that Diana was the Earl's daughter. Puzzling, but really interesting. As far as I know Diana was always very close to Lady Annabel and it's true, Jemima is still very sensitive when it comes to Diana (which of course she could also just be because they were close friends). Boy, the Goldsmiths seemed really pissed that they weren't invited to the wedding...
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on January 18, 2012, 01:38:41 am
(http://profile.ak.fbcdn.net/hprofile-ak-snc4/186447_1454800678_1543618561_n.jpg)(http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_NE-72ZXux-g/SxVAWui5KvI/AAAAAAAAL6Q/-xMBYzGm97U/s320/Zac+Goldsmith.bmp)
Princess Diana and Zac Goldsmith
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Tatiana on January 18, 2012, 07:18:32 am
Here is a photo of The Late Earl Spencer's mother.
Diana takes after her in looks. No way is she from another father. I wish people would stop this sillyness.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Tatiana on January 18, 2012, 07:26:44 am
Diana adored her father, and would have not had any dealings with a family who had hurt her father.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on January 18, 2012, 08:45:37 am
^ Diana would hardly have any say in it at conception. Don't be so rude describing other people's thoughts and opinions as silly. If you don't want different opinions and speculations then don't come on this thread, there are plenty of others to keep you occupied. PS on reflection, Diana has completely different features to that sketch of Cynthia, however, I can see her sister Sarah in Cynthia.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mimi on January 18, 2012, 12:19:10 pm
A child cannot be born with red hair unless both parents have the genes for red hair. So if one parent has it and the other does not the child will not have red hair but only inherit the gene. So both of Harry's parents had to have come from families where red hair was present. I don't think the Goldsmith rumor is true.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on January 18, 2012, 12:41:28 pm
How interesting Mimi :thumbsup:
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on January 18, 2012, 12:59:13 pm
...and Jemima too http://www.google.com/imgres?q=jemima+khan&hl=en&biw=1280&bih=587&gbv=2&tbm=isch&tbnid=mopmZ9smr9qJEM:&imgrefurl=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/mandrake/7786576/Jemima-Khan-admits-her-children-would-fail-Lord-Tebbits-cricket-test.html&docid=HPHgeUg_cRrErM&imgurl=http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/01647/Jemima-Khan_1647104c.jpg&w=460&h=288&ei=sMEWT_2wHMzRswadu518&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=953&vpy=229&dur=1800&hovh=178&hovw=284&tx=210&ty=143&sig=108856099652427632425&page=3&tbnh=122&tbnw=167&start=65&ndsp=34&ved=1t:429,r:7,s:65
sorry about double post but modify function timed out :bye:
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mimi on January 18, 2012, 01:04:52 pm
I am not seeing any red, but it might be my computer screen.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on January 18, 2012, 01:13:37 pm
mmm, could be...try this one
http://www.google.com/imgres?q=jemima+khan&start=439&hl=en&biw=1280&bih=587&gbv=2&tbm=isch&tbnid=fOGQv6rkgl_F5M:&imgrefurl=http://www.vogue.co.uk/news/2011/01/14/jemima-khan-advertises-the-independent-i-on-television&docid=TA4XmbVWu1hUmM&imgurl=http://cdni.condenast.co.uk/320x480/g_j/JKhan_V_14Jan2011_-PR_320x480.jpg&w=320&h=480&ei=IMUWT6DzK8fZsgbq0blD&zoom=1&chk=sbg&iact=hc&vpx=657&vpy=24&dur=3931&hovh=275&hovw=183&tx=94&ty=159&sig=108856099652427632425&page=15&tbnh=135&tbnw=90&ndsp=30&ved=1t:429,r:4,s:439
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Alexandrine on January 18, 2012, 04:27:17 pm
They look so similar that there could be something true in the rumour :dontknow:
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on January 18, 2012, 05:27:01 pm
BTW the story of the affair was in a biography and I can't recall who wrote it but I am sure someone more knowledgeable than me will be able to fill in the gaps.
I think the book you're referring to, True Brit, is the one by Kitty Kelley.
Alexandrine, it's been, apparently, an open secret among the aristocracy for years. I'm compiling some photos on Picasa, if anyone's interested:
https://picasaweb.google.com/111399223239173244896/January182012#
Quote from: Mooster on January 18, 2012, 08:45:37 am
^ Diana would hardly have any say in it at conception. Don't be so rude describing other people's thoughts and opinions as silly. If you don't want different opinions and speculations then don't come on this thread, there are plenty of others to keep you occupied. PS on reflection, Diana has completely different features to that sketch of Cynthia, however, I can see her sister Sarah in Cynthia.
Ah Kitty Kelley .. it must be true then ..
How about this then .. http://www.reptilianagenda.com/research/r112299b.shtml
I am standing up for a kinswoman, who can no longer speak for herself.. and kindly dont be so bossy.
I didnt call people or their opinions silly .. I said the topic and the very idea was silly.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on January 20, 2012, 08:52:39 am
No, it was Tina Brown not Kitty Kelley. The topic is not silly. This forum is called Royal Gossip, and it's a valid line of discussion seeing as it involves our future King. See also Richard Ingram's piece in the Independent:
http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/columnists/richard-ingrams/richard-ingrams-week-we-cant-go-on-blaming-the-system-for-drug-problems-899001.html
Diana IMO looks nothing like Cynthia Spencer
http://www.google.com/imgres?q=cynthia+spencer&hl=en&biw=1259&bih=610&gbv=2&tbm=isch&tbnid=qgepLk3vdBU70M:&imgrefurl=http://royaldish.com/index.php%3Ftopic%3D6497.450&docid=QKZgMaaFJZeihM&imgurl=http://i1220.photobucket.com/albums/dd448/Neslisah/Britain01/CynthiaSpencerneHamiltonCountessSpencer.jpg&w=370&h=500&ei=ViwZT5DmBoyq8APrpNizCw&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=579&vpy=234&dur=2485&hovh=261&hovw=193&tx=127&ty=176&sig=114822162673464454564&page=2&tbnh=132&tbnw=98&start=21&ndsp=27&ved=1t:429,r:10,s:21
http://www.google.com/imgres?q=cynthia+spencer&hl=en&biw=1259&bih=610&gbv=2&tbm=isch&tbnid=sooPWDUaK6SibM:&imgrefurl=http://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/portrait/mw165819/Cynthia-Spencer-ne-Hamilton-Countess-Spencer&docid=z1oc1lPJp7Im9M&imgurl=http://images.npg.org.uk/264_325/1/9/mw165819.jpg&w=240&h=325&ei=ViwZT5DmBoyq8APrpNizCw&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=540&vpy=114&dur=97&hovh=260&hovw=192&tx=101&ty=150&sig=114822162673464454564&page=1&tbnh=134&tbnw=115&start=0&ndsp=21&ved=1t:429,r:3,s:0
Removed part of post because it was getting personal! A
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Tatiana on January 20, 2012, 05:29:47 pm
Constructive thing to say ... mmm The RF wanted Diana, with her Spencer genes, that go back to Kings of both England and Scotland... if this "rumour" has any truth to it at all.. Diana would have been backheeled before she even got in the running.
They wanted a future King to have very British genes.. Gosh look how upset they were when Diana was "dating" a Moslem, who hailed from Egypt.
Gossip away then.. it's your dime, as they say in the USA.
Deleted some comments - Alex
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: YooperModerator on January 20, 2012, 09:31:37 pm
A rumour is a rumour: sometimes it's a silly idea or a piece of PR gossip and sometimes it turns out to be true.
In this case the facts say that Diana was a Spencer, whether in blood or only in name doesn't matter to me!
We will never be able to prove it true or false because all of them are dead.
Ergo
Don't get wound up because of a rumour ppl and don't start :catfight: because of it! Play nice or I'll close the topic.
PS we edited some comments that were off-topic and getting personal!
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Tatiana on January 21, 2012, 02:00:17 am
Thank You Akasha :thankyou:
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on January 21, 2012, 02:21:40 am
'Was Sir James Goldsmith the father of Princess Diana? I was familiar with the rumour but recently what we journalists call a normally reliable source told me that it was a distinct possibility. Goldsmith had certainly been intimate with Mrs Shand Kydd and the dates all fitted. So why not?...if they might have a bearing on the future of the Royal Family, then perhaps there should be a proper inquiry and possibly even DNA testing.'
Extract from an article in The Independent, Saturday 16 August 2008
Very interesting piece from an intelligent and IMO respected journalist, Richard Ingrams
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Tatiana on January 21, 2012, 02:32:59 am
Rumours about someone like Diana will continue to swirl for years.
It would seem Diana has a Facebook account.. and is apparently living in Cincinnati, Ohio
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Diana-Princess-of-Wales/304104213697
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on January 21, 2012, 02:42:16 am
That facebook account is a tribute to her, not that they think she is alive...in their info box, they state 'Diana, Princess of Wales. Gone but she will never be forgotten!' They are just keeping her memory alive.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: YooperModerator on January 21, 2012, 03:21:15 am
Even Elvis (the other King) has a FB page!
oh and BTW god, jesus, satan and buddah have FB as well, there must be one heck of a asl connection going upwards! :tehe:
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Tatiana on January 21, 2012, 03:39:38 am
Heck I even have a FB account :there:
I did notice that Moooster.. thank you. ;)
Bless FaceBook for we shall not go unknown into that great goodnight .. :dance:
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: YooperModerator on January 21, 2012, 04:35:12 am
True a there are some gost FB accounts going around the ppl are dead but the account was not deleted,
One of my colleagues has one of those, he died last year of cancer but his fb is run by his wife in his name :thumbsup:
They say you are only truly dead when nobody remembers you, so fb offers you immortality in a way!
Back on topic:
Even after all that time Diana and her actions are still in ppls memories, compare it to for instance queen mum who lived a lot longer and is already nearly forgotten by many!
but diana is still being talked about fifteen years later whether it's positive or negative doesn't matter that much.
To me she is immortal in a mostly positive way and that's something few ppl can say! :thumbsup:
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on January 21, 2012, 04:43:47 am
I love Diana, there'll never be another in the RF like her :bye: I'll never forget the day she died, it was my daughter's birthday and we spent all day watching the news and blubbing :sob:
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Tatiana on January 21, 2012, 10:35:10 pm
I was in Vancouver that day, watching a canadian football game with friends, when a news announcement broke in to say Dodi was dead and she had a broken arm.
Then a while later another news report said she was dead... we were in all shock... many of us cried... the party broke up and many left.
I felt so very sad for her boys and for a woman who was making a difference to this world.. she would have gotten a Nobel Peace Prize if she hadnt died.
I watched her funeral, as I had watched her wedding, I shall never forget that time.
She was unique, she was human and yes she made mistakes, and admitted to them, she had a rare gift for reaching out to people, the world is a sadder place without her.
I love her too Mooster, and yes Akasha she is immortal .. which must annoy the hell out of her idiot ex husband.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Tatiana on January 21, 2012, 11:14:16 pm
I just found this .. as to why Diana cannot be James' daughter.. sorry to double post ..
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-315244/Were-Diana-Jemima-sisters.html
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on January 21, 2012, 11:45:14 pm
There do seem to be conflicting articles about the amount of time that Frances spent in London i.e the Ingrams article. There's no doubt that their marriage was in trouble after the birth of their son that died shortly after being born. She definitely kept taking trips to London after Diana was born, taking tea in the Ritz etc like lots of bored, desperate, aristocratic housewives of that time and mixing with the Mayfair set that Goldsmith was part of, indeed, that's how she met Shand Kydd.
I'm still trying to read stuff and find out more about her before Diana was born, the impression I'm getting so far is that she was quite a good looking, sexy woman that men noticed...and not the nervy, wallflower type that some articles portray. If she was unhappy in her marriage it would not be beyond the realms of fantasy that she got 'affection' elsewhere to make her feel valued...and from what I've read about Jimmy Goldsmith he would have been more than willing to supply the said 'affection'.
Again, nothing can be proved, and it's all purely speculation - but for me, there's no smoke without fire, and I cannot ignore my gut feeling about this. There's some pics of Diana with her family, as a child, and she just seems so different from the rest of them, not just her looks, it's just that whole vibe. Goldsmith was a risk taker and unconventional and I get that same vibe from Diana. I love and respect Diana, the person, I couldn't care less where she comes from.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on January 22, 2012, 04:59:45 pm
Sir James Goldsmith speaking: http://sirjamesgoldsmith.com/#thinker/3
Princess Diana: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=endscreen&v=_AbiPCqi24A&NR=1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=isWhXKHqfkw&feature=related
Sir James and Diana even have the same measured speaking voice, mannerisms and facial expressions. He also has that upward look, like her, when he speaks.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Alexandrine on January 22, 2012, 05:05:32 pm
But wouldn't be very "dangerous" for Frances to have an affair with Goldsmith and moreover a children with him before giving a heir to her husband? The aristo rule is for women to have an affair always after giving a heir not before. If Diana had not been a girl she would have been the next count spencer.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on January 22, 2012, 05:31:55 pm
Sir James Goldsmith speaking (I don't think my link on the other post worked) http://www.sirjamesgoldsmith.com/#thinker/3
Princess Diana: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=endscreen&v=_AbiPCqi24A&NR=1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=isWhXKHqfkw&feature=related
Sir James and Diana even have the same measured speaking voice, mannerisms and facial expressions. He also has that upward look, like her, when he speaks.
^ Yes, Alexandrine, it would have been 'dangerous' but Frances was very miserable and unhappy and probably wasn't thinking at all rationally. She was terribly distraught and unhappy at the loss of her son, and the need to get away from her husband must have been overwhelming. Apparently even before Diana's birth she was bored with provincial life and wanted to get to town more, she had frequent rows with her husband about her London trips. Also, crucially Frances had income of her own apart from her husband, Viscount Spencer, who had very little money actually until he inherited the title of Earl from his father. Goldsmith was definitely still in London at this time, hanging around with Aspinall and Shand Kydd, and its not too far of a stretch to imagine that their paths crossed e.g. in Claridges or somewhere like that.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Dahlia on January 22, 2012, 05:55:56 pm
The thing is now if Diana was not a Spencer would that change now anything for William and Harry? Is there a law that forbids the throne for children of illegitimates?
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on January 22, 2012, 06:00:51 pm
I don't think it would affect William and Harry because THEY are legitimate. However, it does raise a valid line of enquiry as to the bloodline of our future King. It would be a valid line of interest/enquiry of any other royal, living or dead, past or present, so why not Diana, William or Harry? After all, there has been plenty of discussion and speculation about Prince Andrew.
I concede that OFFICIALLY Diana is Earl Spencer's daughter BUT there is no greater proof to back that up than there is with Goldsmith. However, plenty of men have raised other men's children knowingly or unknowingly.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: HC on January 22, 2012, 06:26:38 pm
I don't think Diana is a Goldsmith, but as her brother and sisters all deserted her to care for their own interests, I would hope for Diana that she was a Goldsmith. The pain over her sisters and her brother would then have been easier to live with.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on January 22, 2012, 06:33:20 pm
The Goldsmiths were a surrogate family to Diana...as an adult she spent more time in their company than she did with her own family, Lady Annabel was substitute mother and confidante . They were fiercely protective of her, and Jemima still is to this day.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Alexandrine on January 22, 2012, 07:52:28 pm
Please try to keep the calm. I cannot understand why this is bringing the worst of anyone here.
Just remember that one way or another this doesn't change anything and that every opinion is valid. :thankyou: :thankyou: kisss
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Dahlia on March 28, 2012, 11:51:19 pm
Do you also see a resemblance between Lady Goldsmith and Carole?
LG
If Diana wasn't a Spencer Harry sure is LOL.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Jane23 on March 29, 2012, 07:08:58 pm
William edition just look at the two cousins for God sake :
http://lauriekendrick.files.wordpress.com/2010/11/prince-william-1.jpg
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Gwendolyn on March 29, 2012, 08:19:08 pm
I love how two people can look at the exact same photographs and see two entirely different things. I respect you and your opinion, Jane23, but every link you've posted has only convinced me further that Diana had not Spencer, but Goldsmith blood.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Dahlia on March 29, 2012, 09:12:48 pm
Well I don´t see any resemblance between James and Diana
http://i.imgur.com/aALPv.jpg
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on March 29, 2012, 11:07:26 pm
^ Sorry, I can see the resemblence between Diana and James (particularly, a young James Goldsmith) moreso than Johnny Spencer and Diana. They also have the same speech patterns and mannerisms. Also, Harry has red hair through the Windsors - also Jemima and Ben Goldsmith have red tones in their hair. There is absolutely no denying that Diana is a dead ringer for Jemima and most particularly Zac. If you're going to go purely by looks and mannerisms then Diana is more like the Goldsmiths. Diana also had James renegade streak. Zac looks more like Diana's brother than her own brother does. William looks more like Zac than Charles Spencer. Where's the undeniable proof that Diana is a Spencer?
I know the possibility may disappoint a lot of people but I don't know why people are getting so worked up that Diana maybe a Goldsmith - it's discussed elsewhere - the aristocracy are not immune from illegitimacy!!!
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on March 29, 2012, 11:37:14 pm
https://picasaweb.google.com/111399223239173244896/DianaGoldsmiths?authkey=Gv1sRgCJCLg_WwzLmtpwE#5725451449066556018
https://picasaweb.google.com/111399223239173244896/DianaGoldsmiths?authkey=Gv1sRgCJCLg_WwzLmtpwE#5725451449066556018
:thumbsup:
Sorry about the multiple posts Mods, but it's difficult not to in this thread because it times out when you've found some more info that you want to add :shy: :sorry:
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Dahlia on March 31, 2012, 12:27:47 am
Don´t see it, he looks like a toad. And if she was, it woudn´t disappoint me, but Zac looks so evil. Charles is a douche, but I don´t feel uncomfortable seeing him like when I see Zac.
(http://i.imgur.com/8Ftsj.jpg)
Lady Sarahs daughter Emily McCorquodale and William
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on March 31, 2012, 12:36:50 am
^ Any resemblence that you see in the above may come about through Frances - high cheek bones and nose shape. IMO Emily has not got the Spencer look, neither has Diana. Nothing anyone has posted has convinced me that Diana is not James Goldsmith's daughter. She has the look and mannerisms of the Goldsmiths, particulary Zac. Nothing but a DNA test would convince me otherwise, and the likelihood of that happening is very slim. Until then, based on what I've seen and read, Diana is in all probability a Goldsmith.
Emily looks a lot like her Pa, Neil McCorquodale:
http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/54/1980517ns6da.jpg/img
Post by: Dahlia on March 31, 2012, 11:20:11 pm
Could you tell something about James? :thankyou:
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on March 31, 2012, 11:38:01 pm
^ Sure :thumbsup:
Post by: Dahlia on April 01, 2012, 12:38:53 am
Thanks you very much. Now off to read all links :thumbsup:
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on April 01, 2012, 04:05:00 pm
^ another good read :tehe: Love him or loathe him, he was an extraordinary man.
'He [James Goldsmith] is a tall man (six feet four) who walks with a slight stoop, who has a commanding presence along with a disarming diffidence, who projects great confidence but rubs a piece of amber for reassurance'
“I feel strongly about issues,” says Goldsmith. “Maybe that shows a lack of humility, but I can’t comment.” To accuse Goldsmith of having an ego “is easy,” says his brother, Teddy, with a laugh, “because he likes doing things on his own initiative. He should have been a general. He likes living in a permanent state of siege. He likes taking on things.”
'He [James Goldsmith]had his father’s charm and graciousness, along with his mother’s high emotions, irascibility, and considerable energy
This reminds of a certain Princess :sigh:
http://www.vanityfair.com/magazine/archive/1997/05/goldsmith199705
Intriguingly, Sir James Goldsmith was dyslexic as is Prince Harry.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Alexandrine on April 01, 2012, 04:47:33 pm
But isn't Beatrice also dyslexic?
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on April 01, 2012, 04:52:19 pm
^ Yes, I think she is. Thanks for merging my posts - I'm just adding little snippets to the thread as I read about them :thankyou:
Interestingly, as well as Ben and Jemima having russet hair so did Sir James oldest daughter, Isabel - so ginger runs in Sir James Goldsmith's family too. Photo of Ben:
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1030922/asp/atleisure/story_2388614.html
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Alexandrine on April 01, 2012, 05:23:44 pm
Yes, I know that the limit for modifying posts is a bit short, try to avoid double posting but don't worry about it too much.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Alexandrine on April 15, 2012, 09:33:17 pm
I cannot understand why people deal with the DM
I am ashamed of my own Chancellor's tax on giving: A devastating broadside from one of George Osborne's star backbenchers
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-2129838/Zac-Goldsmith-I-ashamed-George-Osbornes-tax-giving.html#ixzz1s8wQdz7w
Post by: rogue on April 15, 2012, 09:41:37 pm
Desperation ?
Post by: YooperModerator on April 15, 2012, 10:34:04 pm
I'm not sure if I understand this right :think:
He is annoyed because the tax relief the 'big gun's' get out of donations to charity is going to be less?
He fears that without this lucrative tax refund there will be less donors with big money?
And that in the end the only ones who will suffer from this decision will be the charities and the ones they wanna help cause the rich will just donate less.
Hmm he could have a point.
Yooper can you help me out here, is this gov decision a good or a bad one?
I still don't get it ???
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on May 20, 2012, 09:34:22 pm
Monday, 21 May BBC2 from 11:20pm to 12:20am
The Lost World of the Seventies
Michael Cockerell uses archive interviews he conducted combined with new footage to present the inside stories of four colourful public figures in the 1970s. Including profiles of James Goldsmith, the billionaire financier with the complex business and love life, as well as former Metropolitan Police commissioner Robert Mark, who was on a mission to root out corruption from Scotland Yard. Also featured are Lord Longford, whose anti-pornography campaign earned him the nickname `Lord Porn', and General Walter Walker, who set up a private anti-Marxist army
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Yooper on May 21, 2012, 01:11:04 am
^^I have no real concept of who this guy is, but he's absolutely spot on about what a disaster this is for not only charities but the financial structure of the government. It's extremely simple. There is no incentive to donate and those involved in fundraising will be left with a terrible time of it.
If you knew that if you donated $1000 to, let's say, The Prince's Trust, for example, but knew you could only deduct half of that, you'd be stupid not to donate $500 instead because you could invest that other $500 in a tax-free investment for yourself. This is one of the most damaging things any such law can do to impact charitable giving. It's a disaster for those in need who depend upon the uber-wealthy for the majority of their support.
Their only other option is to move their money to an off-shore account (which many already do) and declare even less to the gov't. Either way, the government loses because these people didn't get this wealthy without knowing how to beat the system and the charities lose as well. How stupid can you get?
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Alexandrine on May 27, 2012, 11:09:12 pm
Quote
According to Wealth-X, the richest person in the Commons is Zac Goldsmith, whose £284 million fortune is described as an “inheritance from financier father”.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/9290520/Exclusive-Cabinet-is-worth-70million.html
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on May 28, 2012, 12:12:37 am
Where's Pippa? Zac's not remarried yet :tehe: She picked the wrong Goldsmith brother (Ben, he's married to Kate Rothschild) to hook up with.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Yooper on May 28, 2012, 12:22:07 am
Let me know if I am lost at sea here, but could this guy be the money stream for the Middletons?
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on May 28, 2012, 12:34:20 am
^ No, no way, I really don't think so. The Goldsmiths (Zac and Ben) are far too sharp to get seriously involved with the Middleton tramps. What I imagined happened is that Ben porked Pippa because she is an easy lay then binned her almost straight away. Ben and his wife were more or less laughing about his 'supposed' dalliances on Twitter - in other words, they publicly mocked her.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Yooper on May 28, 2012, 12:37:21 am
^Ok, good to know. So, there wouldn't be any possibility of the Middletons having any tapes, pictures, etc that they could use as leverage???
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on May 28, 2012, 12:41:22 am
Nope, IMO they would seriously deal with her if she tried any of that cr@p with them...they would eat her alive :nervous:
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: rogue on May 28, 2012, 04:54:49 pm
They are Goldsmiths and they would never ever cheat on a Rothschild.I don't believe the rumors.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: serene grace on May 28, 2012, 07:34:05 pm
The Goldsmiths and Rothschilds marry on a certain level, the Middleton sisters are not made of the proper stuff.
If anything Ben had a light flirtation with Pippa, I doubt it was more than a chat at a party.
These are very powerful families, the Middleton's wouldn't even get past their receptionist if they came calling.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Alexandrine on May 28, 2012, 07:35:58 pm
@Mooster would you mind if I change the title to "The Goldsmiths"? I think it fits the thread more.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Mooster on May 28, 2012, 09:39:01 pm
^ Fine by me :thumbsup: the only thing is, posters might think we mean the Goldsmith side of the Middleton family
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Alexandrine on May 28, 2012, 10:51:41 pm
^^True. Any other suggestion?
Post by: Anne-Elliot on June 03, 2012, 02:18:13 pm
Not sure if this has been posted already:
Quote
Rothschild heiress's marriage to Goldsmith scion is over... after she falls for a rapper called Jay Electronica
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2153789/Rothschild-heiresss-marriage-Goldsmith-scion--falls-rapper-called-Jay-Electronica.html#ixzz1wjgOHSDM
Post by: Mooster on June 03, 2012, 02:23:11 pm
:o OMG, where is Pippa...he's loaded, and free now???
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: Anne-Elliot on June 03, 2012, 03:18:11 pm
Yeah, I'm sure Piss-arse will be the first to comfort him, she's such a caring soul!
She'd have to get past Annabel Goldsmith first though!! :catfight:
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
:o OMG, where is Pippa...he's loaded, and free now???
yup but Pippa expects marriage, not happening...
very young when they got married...best of luck to them though...
Title: Rothschild & Goldsmith Divorce
Post by: D.I.R. on June 03, 2012, 09:20:54 pm
Jay Electronica At The Center Of A Divorce In The UK
http://hiphopwired.com/2012/06/03/jay-electronica-at-the-center-of-a-divorce-in-the-uk/
Title: Re: Rothschild & Goldsmith Divorce
Post by: Mooster on June 03, 2012, 09:22:41 pm
....errr, why is this in the 'various Royal Families' section of the board?
Title: Re: Rothschild & Goldsmith Divorce
Post by: YooperModerator on June 04, 2012, 12:05:18 am
??? :dontknow:
Title: Re: Rothschild & Goldsmith Divorce
Post by: serene grace on June 04, 2012, 12:42:55 am
That's the Goldsmith that was rumoured to be "good friends" with Pippa.
Title: Re: Rothschild & Goldsmith Divorce
Post by: YooperModerator on June 04, 2012, 12:50:15 am
Riiight I see..
Are they related on ma midd's side or is he one of 'Diana's goldsmiths' (you know what I mean right?)
That same name thing is kinda confusing ya know
Title: Re: Rothschild & Goldsmith Divorce
Post by: serene grace on June 04, 2012, 12:54:35 am
Pippa was rumour to be having an AFFAIR with this Goldsmith. These are the illustrious WEALTHY, WELL CONNECTED OLD MONEYED Goldsmiths, no relation to the cave dweller's Carole came from. Carole would LOVE IT, if Pippa could pull this guy.
Evidently he caught his wife in an affiar and now they are divorcing. A lot of climber's and goldigger's in the UK will be eyeing him, for sure, but I think he likes to marry's old money , old illustrious family women, himself.
Title: Re: Rothschild & Goldsmith Divorce
Post by: berlin on June 04, 2012, 01:47:42 am
Oh boy. More hope for Pippa. Perhaps she go for the pregnancy, quicky divorce route.
P.S. Perhaps this should be moved to another thread?
Title: Re: Rothschild & Goldsmith Divorce
Post by: Mooster on June 04, 2012, 01:57:14 am
Akasha or Alexandrine...stick the contents of this thread onto the Zac Goldsmith thread (on the Diana forum). Another suggestion could be to change the name of the Zac Goldsmith thread to The Goldsmiths (Zac, Ben etc strictly no relation to Carole Middleton nee Goldsmith)
Title: Re: Rothschild & Goldsmith Divorce
Post by: berlin on June 04, 2012, 02:00:47 am
Quote
‘They had a trial separation earlier this year. They both went off and did their own things. I think Ben saw a couple of girls, but there was nothing serious. Kate convinced Ben to give it another go, which he did.
Oh Pippa will totally be knocking on Ben's door again.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Quote from: Alexandrine on May 28, 2012, 07:35:58 pm
@Mooster would you mind if I change the title to "The Goldsmiths"? I think it fits the thread more.
Alexandrine or Akasha (whichever mod is online) how about changing the name of the thread to The Goldsmiths (Zac, Ben etc strictly no relation to Carole Middleton nee Goldsmith)
Title: Re: Rothschild & Goldsmith Divorce
Post by: Kuei Fei on June 04, 2012, 02:44:22 am
If Pippa messes around with this man, people will put two and two together and this will end up having serious repercussions. The Rothschilds are practically royalty and are so international it's unreal. Pippa would be an idiot to mess with Goldsmith and if she was porking a married man, then it would certainly end up causing repercussions against the RF. I wish the Middletons would stop messing with powerful families and to be frank, the Windsors are nothing compared to the Rothschilds. If Pippa thinks that a marriage to him would be a peacful one, she is stark raving mad.
Title: Re: Zac Goldsmith
Post by: berlin on June 04, 2012, 03:14:01 am
Or Goldsmith-Rothschild
Title: Re: Rothschild & Goldsmith Divorce
Post by: D.I.R. on June 04, 2012, 03:15:32 am
^ Yup KF that's some real royalty also one of most powerful people/families in the world that is publicly known... for people who know what & or who knows the correct info with what families are the real deal powerful "royals", not the seat warmer monarchies that are there right now. So yes Roth's are royalty & so are the Gold's. so worries Akash & Alex I put it in the right place.
Title: Re: Rothschild & Goldsmith Divorce
Post by: YooperModerator on June 04, 2012, 04:32:10 am
hmm I'll move this to Diana's board then ok gal's
I'll make a big sticky 'goldsmith' topic from this and the other one 'kay?
Title: Re: Rothschild & Goldsmith Divorce
Post by: Mooster on June 04, 2012, 04:55:25 am
Quote from: D.I.R. on June 04, 2012, 03:15:32 am
^ Yup KF that's some real royalty also one of most powerful people/families in the world that is publicly known... for people who know what & or who knows the correct info with what families are the real deal powerful "royals", not the seat warmer monarchies that are there right now. So yes Roth's are royalty & so are the Gold's. so worries Akash & Alex I put it in the right place.
:thumbsup: The Goldsmiths and Rothschilds are certain fascinating...I'll admit, they intrigue and mesmerize me.
Title: Re: Rothschild & Goldsmith Divorce
Post by: Kuei Fei on June 04, 2012, 04:10:47 pm
Quote from: serene grace on June 04, 2012, 12:54:35 am
Pippa was rumour to be having an AFFAIR with this Goldsmith. These are the illustrious WEALTHY, WELL CONNECTED OLD MONEYED Goldsmiths, no relation to the cave dweller's Carole came from. Carole would LOVE IT, if Pippa could pull this guy.
Evidently he caught his wife in an affiar and now they are divorcing. A lot of climber's and goldigger's in the UK will be eyeing him, for sure, but I think he likes to marry's old money , old illustrious family women, himself.
He'll go after someone with status, he won't let just ANYONE into his life and raise his daughters. His entire family would FREAK if his daughters were to be raised by Pippa and at the same time, I think people are naive to think that there won't be ladies from prominent families who will pretty much be interested in considering it's his wife having the affair, I am sure that he will need 'comforting' and that women will be more than happy to provide it.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Alexandrine on June 04, 2012, 06:35:03 pm
sorry Mooster I wasn't online until now :sorry:
Title: Re: Rothschild & Goldsmith Divorce
Post by: serene grace on June 04, 2012, 07:37:45 pm
Quote from: serene grace on June 04, 2012, 12:54:35 am
Pippa was rumour to be having an AFFAIR with this Goldsmith. These are the illustrious WEALTHY, WELL CONNECTED OLD MONEYED Goldsmiths, no relation to the cave dweller's Carole came from. Carole would LOVE IT, if Pippa could pull this guy.
Evidently he caught his wife in an affiar and now they are divorcing. A lot of climber's and goldigger's in the UK will be eyeing him, for sure, but I think he likes to marry's old money , old illustrious family women, himself.
He'll go after someone with status, he won't let just ANYONE into his life and raise his daughters. His entire family would FREAK if his daughters were to be raised by Pippa and at the same time, I think people are naive to think that there won't be ladies from prominent families who will pretty much be interested in considering it's his wife having the affair, I am sure that he will need 'comforting' and that women will be more than happy to provide it.
I agree both of these families usually only marry within a certain circle of other old-money-connected and/or titled families.
Rumours were last winter Pippa may have had a fling with him, but it was denied by him on Twitter and both he and his wife joked about it....but I wondered then if there was more to it. I don't believe for a second that Goldsmith ever took Pippa seriously, she was "perhaps" nothing more than a light flirtation to tell his pals about, but I do believe that Carole and Pippa would put their heads together to figure out a way "in" to his life if they at all thought it possible. Problem for Pippa is the Middleton's family offspring is not what either of these two powerful families look for in wives. She could flirt with him until the cows come home, I don't see her as a viable choice for him. She may have been a fun flirtation a few months ago, but it would never go past that. IMO
Quote
In 2003 the couple celebrated their engagement at Annabel’s in Mayfair, the club named after Ben’s mother, and were married that September. Ben was 23 and Kate 21.
They followed a family tradition of marrying young. Ben’s father eloped with his first wife, Bolivian tin heiress Isabel Patino, when he was 21, and Ben’s older sister Jemima surprised society when she married Pakistan cricketer Imran Khan at the same age.
Kate’s father was 25 when he married her mother, heiress Anita Guinness, who was 23.
The Rothschild and Goldsmith families, blood relations who can trace their heritage to the Jewish ghettos of 18th Century Frankfurt, are powerful and influential in the worlds of finance and politics.
Sir Jimmy amassed his £1.2 billion fortune through pharmaceutical and banking interests.
Through his marriage to Lady Annabel, a close friend of the Prince of Wales, he was also Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2153789/Rothschild-heiresss-marriage-Goldsmith-scion--falls-rapper-called-Jay-Electronica.html#ixzz1wqnugKSw
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Alexandrine on June 04, 2012, 07:39:47 pm
I think they had had a crisis before with the wife having another affair or am I inventing this? ???
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: serene grace on June 04, 2012, 07:55:04 pm
:thumbsup: There has been rumours of his wife having an affair with a friend of his.
Quote
:judge: The marriage took a knock two years ago when Kate became close to a friend of Ben’s, but the couple agreed to try to make things work.
Last summer they were reported to have suffered another rocky patch over Kate’s busy work schedule. Mr Goldsmith put the family home on the market in April.
The couple claimed they needed to downsize, but the truth was that the problems in their relationship were becoming more evident.
ead more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2153789/Rothschild-heiresss-marriage-Goldsmith-scion--falls-rapper-called-Jay-Electronica.html#ixzz1wqtbSLUP
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Alexandrine on June 04, 2012, 07:55:49 pm
:thankyou:
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Acornia on June 05, 2012, 02:11:00 am
With the Goldsmiths' track record with affairs and marriage I was really surprised that it was Kate who had the affair this time.
Now that he's single, I don't think he'd look in Pippa's direction. His mother strikes me as a snob and would probably look down on Pippa's bloodline. I don't think she the type who would fawn over her now that her sister married into the RF (btw the Goldsmiths weren't invited in the wedding)
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: serene grace on June 05, 2012, 04:04:33 am
Not sure what went on between them but Camilla supposedly made sure Annabelle G. did NOT make the list.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: rogue on June 05, 2012, 11:20:33 am
Annabelle was in Diana's corner.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Acornia on June 05, 2012, 01:19:14 pm
If I recall correctly they weren't invited rogue and Jemima Khan took it out on Twitter :tehe: Allegedly it was because of their friendship with Diana. And like sg said something happened between Annabel and Camilla.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: serene grace on June 05, 2012, 05:37:44 pm
Jemima got in trouble the day after the engagement was announced by saying on twitter "Those AREN'T childbearing hips." I don't think she meant it as an insult, she just meant Kate was thin, like herself, but it came out all wrong. The press said it was an insult and maybe it was in a sly way, either way Jemima was not invited.
Camilla was jealous of Annabel's still closeness to Pr.Charles he confided in her about things still and it was driving Camilla crazy, so she saw this as an opportunity to work her magic and get her cut out of the wedding, it had nothing to do with Diana, but EVERYTHING to do with Annabels closeness to Charles. Camilla was thought to be jealous of Charle's need to confide in Lady Annabel from time to time.
Title: Re: Rothschild & Goldsmith Divorce
Post by: June on June 05, 2012, 05:55:57 pm
Quote from: serene grace on June 04, 2012, 12:54:35 am
Pippa was rumour to be having an AFFAIR with this Goldsmith. These are the illustrious WEALTHY, WELL CONNECTED OLD MONEYED Goldsmiths, no relation to the cave dweller's Carole came from. Carole would LOVE IT, if Pippa could pull this guy.
Evidently he caught his wife in an affiar and now they are divorcing. A lot of climber's and goldigger's in the UK will be eyeing him, for sure, but I think he likes to marry's old money , old illustrious family women, himself.
:tehe: :laugh: :tehe: Cave dwellers!!! I really need to be in bed, so sleep deprived over this Jubilee, but the laughs are worth it. :laugh:
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: serene grace on June 05, 2012, 06:56:38 pm
Cave dwellers was the first thing I thought of seeing Carole and her family on the flotilla, poking their heads out. :Middleton:
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: berlin on June 06, 2012, 12:47:17 am
serene grace are annabel and charles still close?
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: serene grace on June 06, 2012, 01:11:21 am
There were rumours around the engagement(PW and Kate's) that Camilla was trying to vanquish Annabelle out of his life, but she's too entrenched in Prince Charles world to get rid of her completely.
Quote
DAILY MAIL:
...many of Lady Annabel’s friends suspect, she was excluded from the biggest royal event for decades on the instructions of her one-time friend, the Duchess of Cornwall,
Once good friends, the Royal Wedding has opened up a split between Lady Annabel Goldsmith (left) and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall
‘Annabel is a formidable woman and this whole sorry business could open up a rift between two families,’ says one of her oldest friends.
‘She is very well connected and, crucially, popular. Camilla, beyond her own immediate circle, is not.’No one can truly say what happened when the guest list was being drawn up. What is certain is that Lady Annabel, the 75-year-old widow of the billionaire tycoon Sir James Goldsmith, had every reason to expect to be invited. Friends go further: They say she knew she would receive an invitation.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1382583/ROYAL-WEDDING-Will-Lady-Annabel-Goldsmith-revenge-snub-Camilla.html#ixzz1wxzsDSUI
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: June on June 06, 2012, 05:15:08 am
Quote from: serene grace on June 05, 2012, 06:56:38 pm
Cave dwellers was the first thing I thought of seeing Carole and her family on the flotilla, poking their heads out. :Middleton:
That's a brilliant description, SG! :tehe: That's exactly what I think of now when I picture them in my mind's eye on that boat or whatever it's called. :laugh: Peeping through, checking out all the action ...
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on June 06, 2012, 12:24:56 pm
Quote from: Acornia on June 05, 2012, 01:19:14 pm
If I recall correctly they weren't invited rogue and Jemima Khan took it out on Twitter :tehe: Allegedly it was because of their friendship with Diana. And like sg said something happened between Annabel and Camilla.
I thought William (and Kate) was told by the Queen to tear up the original guest list and start again, inviting those he wanted. I find it quite disgusting that he left out his Aunt Jemima etc because they were such dear, close friends of his mother. William made such a big thing about wanting to include his mother in the ceremony but I think she would have been hurt at him excluding her dear friends and Camilla signing the register.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Alexandrine on June 06, 2012, 05:36:49 pm
Diana at the wedding was like Rebecca no one wanted to talk about her but she was still the more important presence.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: serene grace on June 06, 2012, 05:44:26 pm
Quote from: Acornia on June 05, 2012, 01:19:14 pm
If I recall correctly they weren't invited rogue and Jemima Khan took it out on Twitter :tehe: Allegedly it was because of their friendship with Diana. And like sg said something happened between Annabel and Camilla.
I thought William (and Kate) was told by the Queen to tear up the original guest list and start again, inviting those he wanted. I find it quite disgusting that he left out his Aunt Jemima etc because they were such dear, close friends of his mother. William made such a big thing about wanting to include his mother in the ceremony but I think she would have been hurt at him excluding her dear friends and Camilla signing the register.
I was appalled when I heard the story of PW tearing up the guest list. I believe the Queen simply takes the road of less headaches with Pr.William and let's him have his way on issues. He's very stubborn about having his way.
It was awful that he left out many people who should have been invited. He does not see that many of the people he keeps "insulting" by putting his own desires first, were around his family for generations and are dear cherished friends to his Grandmother, mother and father .
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Anne-Elliot on June 07, 2012, 11:52:26 am
Quote
Ben Goldsmith brands wife Kate "appalling"
Ben Goldsmith, the son of billionaire financier Sir James Goldsmith, yesterday branded his estranged wife’s decision to call the police to the family home “appalling” as he prepared for a lengthy divorce battle with the Rothschild heiress.
Oh dear, this is going to be one nasty divorce. Those poor kids.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/9315074/Ben-Goldsmith-brands-wife-Kate-appalling.html
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: rogue on June 07, 2012, 02:33:43 pm
I don't see the point of playing this out in public.Tacky :thumbsdown:
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on June 07, 2012, 03:25:16 pm
^ another trait the Goldsmith's have in common with Diana :June:
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: serene grace on June 07, 2012, 06:19:13 pm
:laugh: That's funny mooster.
Yes this is going to be a messy, public divorce. It's not just making British press but also the HIPHop and Music press, because the man Kate is having affair with is in the music industry.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Alexandrine on June 07, 2012, 09:18:49 pm
Pictured: Unsuspecting multi-millionaire Ben Goldsmith smiles alongside the US rapper who 'had an affair with his Rothschild heiress wife'
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2154255/Devastated-Ben-Goldsmith-blasts-wife-Twitter-affair-rapper-ended-marriage-Rothschild-heiress.html
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Kuei Fei on June 07, 2012, 09:40:48 pm
Quote
Ben Goldsmith brands wife Kate "appalling"
Ben Goldsmith, the son of billionaire financier Sir James Goldsmith, yesterday branded his estranged wife’s decision to call the police to the family home “appalling” as he prepared for a lengthy divorce battle with the Rothschild heiress.
Oh dear, this is going to be one nasty divorce. Those poor kids.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/9315074/Ben-Goldsmith-brands-wife-Kate-appalling.html
I'm sure the kids will be sheltered from a lot of it, but there's nothing like an aristocratic/royal divorce to end up amusing the people and enriching the press.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: berlin on June 07, 2012, 09:53:34 pm
Quote from: Acornia on June 05, 2012, 01:19:14 pm
If I recall correctly they weren't invited rogue and Jemima Khan took it out on Twitter :tehe: Allegedly it was because of their friendship with Diana. And like sg said something happened between Annabel and Camilla.
I thought William (and Kate) was told by the Queen to tear up the original guest list and start again, inviting those he wanted. I find it quite disgusting that he left out his Aunt Jemima etc because they were such dear, close friends of his mother. William made such a big thing about wanting to include his mother in the ceremony but I think she would have been hurt at him excluding her dear friends and Camilla signing the register.
Ah, no worries. He'll get it right the second time around.
I was appalled when I heard the story of PW tearing up the guest list. I believe the Queen simply takes the road of less headaches with Pr.William and let's him have his way on issues. He's very stubborn about having his way.
It was awful that he left out many people who should have been invited. He does not see that many of the people he keeps "insulting" by putting his own desires first, were around his family for generations and are dear cherished friends to his Grandmother, mother and father .
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Leila on June 09, 2012, 09:44:45 am
Marjorie Orr's prediction http://royalgossip.forumprofi.de/index.php/topic,3818.msg115981.html#msg115981 :flower:
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on June 09, 2012, 09:50:11 am
http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2012/06/07/article-2155640-137EAA85000005DC-876_634x330.jpg
For those of you that don't think ginger hair runs in the Goldsmith family, only the Spencer, look at the above photo of Ben Goldsmith's son. He has ginger hair just like Harry.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: rogue on June 09, 2012, 04:55:36 pm
The Rothschilds and the Goldsmiths always seem to be some sort of allies but with a G&R divorcing i wonder if this will put a strain on their familyfriendship.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: tequiero on June 09, 2012, 06:29:55 pm
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2156691/Feuding-Goldsmiths-finally-end-bitter-Twitter-war-Rothschild-heiress-rapper-lover-posts-photo-Twitter.html
Quote
The Goldsmiths finally called a Twitter truce yesterday to their increasingly bitter marital row.
After a week spent publicly trading insults on the social networking site, multi-millionaire Ben Goldsmith and his wife Kate decided their ugly break-up should become private.
However, their apparent truce was immediately put to the test, after it emerged that the Rothschild heiress's alleged lover, US rapper Jay Electronica, posted a photo of her on his Twitter page.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Acornia on June 10, 2012, 10:54:17 am
^
Quote
In response to a Twitter user who wrote: 'Imagine if you'd been cheated on', she replied: 'I have, several times.' By yesterday morning all the messages had been deleted.
:- But we have no way of knowing if she was cheated on by her ex-bfs or Ben.
--
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Alexandrine on June 12, 2012, 10:42:51 pm
Who is Janet?
Ok this is getting very messy...
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on June 12, 2012, 11:17:45 pm
^ Janet Street-Porter
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Alexandrine on June 12, 2012, 11:20:58 pm
Thank you.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Anne-Elliot on June 22, 2012, 10:41:42 pm
Quote
Jay Electronica: I'll 'come see' you, threatens Ben Goldsmith’s rap star love rival
The American rapper blamed for the breakdown of Ben Goldsmith’s marriage to a Rothschild heiress has made an extraordinary online attack on him.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/celebritynews/9350262/Jay-Electronica-Ill-come-see-you-threatens-Ben-Goldsmiths-rap-star-love-rival.html
Oh, put a sock in it people - there are children involved who will read/hear all about this.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: serene grace on June 23, 2012, 06:15:22 am
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2163350/Bitter-Twitter-war-Ben-Goldsmith-wifes-rapper-lover-breaks-Jay-Electronica-tells-multi-millionaire-stop-acting-like-b--h.html
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on June 30, 2012, 09:17:54 pm
deleted :flower:
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: serene grace on August 04, 2012, 01:36:38 am
Quote
Kate Goldsmith blames split from husband on young age at which they married
Kate Goldsmith's "connection" with rapper Jay Electronica was not the reason why her marriage to husband Ben ended, she has insisted.
By Rosa Silverman
6:41PM BST 03 Aug 2012
The high-society marriage of Kate and Ben Goldsmith ended because they wedded so young, the heiress has revealed.
The couple were just “children” when they got together, she said, and when she met her new beau, Jay Electronica, they instantly connected.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/active/9450620/Kate-Goldsmith-blames-split-from-husband-on-young-age-at-which-they-married.html
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Albany on August 04, 2012, 06:25:51 pm
@Jemima_Khan Oh that article made me SO angry. What bullshit.
Quote
Kate Rothschild @KateRoundtable
@skstanding me too- & re. her condemnation of 'taking' to twitter to air grievances as i did- she publishes her views & opinions ad nauseam
:tehe:
I agree wholeheartedly. It's tacky and smacks of over-inflated egos. Why do these people think any of us give a flying flip what's going on in their lives.......(she says as she enthusiastically laps up every last word of it.... :cookie:)
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: benign on August 04, 2012, 06:55:57 pm
Quote
Kate Goldsmith blames split from husband on young age at which they married
Kate Goldsmith's "connection" with rapper Jay Electronica was not the reason why her marriage to husband Ben ended, she has insisted.
By Rosa Silverman
6:41PM BST 03 Aug 2012
The high-society marriage of Kate and Ben Goldsmith ended because they wedded so young, the heiress has revealed.
The couple were just “children” when they got together, she said, and when she met her new beau, Jay Electronica, they instantly connected.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/active/9450620/Kate-Goldsmith-blames-split-from-husband-on-young-age-at-which-they-married.html
- finally she said something that makes sense that they both were very young...good luck to them and hope they find what they are looking for...
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on August 25, 2012, 02:31:49 pm
Have you ever wondered where Diana and William get that little triangle/V-shaped smile that they sometimes have in pics? Trying to see who either of them inherited it from :dontknow:
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on August 25, 2012, 03:32:47 pm
I think Diana and William have a very similar smile to this lady:
(https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-HPxHxCCguAs/UDjbfvZWuFI/AAAAAAAAAf0/LZ5NVe4AfHg/s214/william%2520like%2520james%2520mum1.jpg) (https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-INebBLAvoUk/UDjPwN0tizI/AAAAAAAAAeY/Jzz35aq5_3w/s214/jamesgoldsmith%2520young.jpg) (https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-vitGyIXhOzs/UDjRPdYd_TI/AAAAAAAAAfI/sv4wFm63-3c/s214/diana%2520like%2520james%2520mum.jpg)
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Jane23 on August 27, 2012, 08:22:31 pm
Oh my...those Mega Rich Titled men never fathered their own children they left the "job" to other men...
(http://media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m5xecrlDvV1qf0g25.gif)
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on September 04, 2012, 03:07:54 pm
Below are Zac Goldsmith's comments on his father, Sir James Goldsmith, IMO could also be applied to Princess Diana - just swap the pronoun 'he' for 'she' and 'man' for 'woman':
'...He was the most interesting man I have ever come across, by far. He was magnificent. He inspired huge loyalty, as well as fear in some people. When it came to his politics, people were frightened by him because he was outlandish. He was bigger than life, and for some that was unsettling. I think there were people who imagined him becoming a dictator figure.'
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/moslive/article-1210961/David-Camerons-300m-signing-Can-Zac-Goldsmith-turn-Tories-green.html#ixzz25VeWme30
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Jane23 on September 04, 2012, 08:02:34 pm
^ Seems like a typical son talking about his father to me :dontknow:.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on September 04, 2012, 08:08:41 pm
^ Yes, but Sir James character sounds very much like Diana's - that was the point I was trying to make.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Freya on September 05, 2012, 03:06:40 pm
Quote from: Mooster on September 04, 2012, 03:07:54 pm
Below are Zac Goldsmith's comments on his father, Sir James Goldsmith, IMO could also be applied to Princess Diana - just swap the pronoun 'he' for 'she' and 'man' for 'woman':
'...He was the most interesting man I have ever come across, by far. He was magnificent. He inspired huge loyalty, as well as fear in some people. When it came to his politics, people were frightened by him because he was outlandish. He was bigger than life, and for some that was unsettling. I think there were people who imagined him becoming a dictator figure.'
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/moslive/article-1210961/David-Camerons-300m-signing-Can-Zac-Goldsmith-turn-Tories-green.html#ixzz25VeWme30
Mooster,
I find this idea that Diana may be James Goldsmith's daughter fascinating. She certainly looks like the Goldsmith children.
Diana had a charm which was unlike any of the RF or her own family. I often feel that when the RF are involved in charity that they attend these events as if they are doing the charity a big favour. Diana was genuinely altruistic and she does seem to have shared a number of personal traits with James and Zak.
Has anything been written about the actual affair with Frances and James? This would have happened before his affair and marriage to Annabelle.
Diana was very friendly with the Goldsmiths and visited Annabelle with William and Harry. From memory I remember Annabelle having a spat with Camilla. I will really have to read up on this.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: True Brit on September 05, 2012, 03:13:48 pm
I am sure it was Tina Brown in the Diana Chronicles who raised the issue of the affair between Frances and Jimmy Goldsmith.
I have a copy of it and I'll see what it says.
I too think the likenesses and the closeness of Diana and the Goldsmiths is just remarkable not just in looks but in personalities.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on September 05, 2012, 03:35:48 pm
The similarity in looks is just too coincidental, she is like the whole Goldsmith family to look at. Look at my signature pics...Diana is a dead ringer for Sir James throughout various stages in their lives...even the pic when they were children. Diana looked like Zac in drag...he has the most beautiful cornflower blue eyes (as had Jimmy), his lips are the same shape and he even purses them in the same way as Diana did when she grinned, he has the shy Di look where he tilts his head and looks upwards...Diana and William even have the same inverted triangle-shaped smile as Sir James mother had (look at my post a few posts up).
Then there is the maverick, stubborn, dynamic, charismatic, bold character of both Diana and James...I find this fascinating, I find unusual, and some say flawed, people fascinating. The quote about James, by Zac, is fascinating - just before Diana died, she was becoming powerful in her own right and had the potential to shape things politically on an international scale...the establishment were scared and angry; in other words: 'He (She) was bigger than life, and for some that was unsettling. I think there were people who imagined him (her) becoming a dictator figure.'
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Freya on September 05, 2012, 03:36:46 pm
Does seem odd that Annabelle was not invited to the Royal Wedding and that Jemina tweeted William about Camilla signing the register. They must have felt very strongly about Camilla taking Diana's place in the ceremony.
I am surprised at how William is so acceptable of Camilla. There is no way that I would have a woman who caused my mother so much pain take a key part at my wedding. He was the one who said that he wanted to remember his mother at the wedding.
IMO William and Harry have used their acceptance of Camilla to manipulate their father.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: True Brit on September 05, 2012, 03:53:50 pm
Had a quick look through my copy of the book but I can't see anything but this blog from Aangirfan (who is generally reliable) raises the whole issue and it was written about by Irish journalist Declan Lynch in the Irish Indpendent newspaper. It's Lynch who says Tina Brown was convinced of the affair but not that it was included in the Diana Chronicles:
http://www.independent.ie/unsorted/features/a-murky-question-after-a-decade-of-mushy-ps-and-qsthe-mind-can-truly-be-disturbed-by-tragedy-writes-a-convinced-declan-lynch-1069975.html
Quote
Sources have long maintained that Goldsmith was conducting an affair with Frances around the time that Diana was conceived.
Nobody denies that the affair took place, "at a time when Frances was deeply unhappy in her marriage to the Earl, who was 'drinking heavily' and 'being beastly towards her'".
Tina Brown, author of The Diana Chronicle, suggests it was a long-running affair.
In Brown's version, there is strong support for the idea of Goldsmith being the father of Lady Diana, though she can't prove it.
The usual reason for this issue being raised is the speculation of the Jewish heritage of both W&K. If you read the thread below:
http://aangirfan.blogspot.co.uk/2009/12/prince-william-is-jewish.html
There has been speculation over Carole Middleton's fmily being Jewish with the name Goldsmith and yet it can be an old English name and their family tree shows churchgoing for at least marriages for five generations. However a leading Hebrew cleric is convinced that both of CM's parents were Jewish.
I also suspect this as CM's maternal line came from the NE where many Jewish emigres arrived in the 19th century from Eastern Europe. They started to assimilate with the British very quickly and adopted their ways and names even attending church.
I looked at a family tree for "Lady Dorothy" as CM's mother was known and sure enough there were Esthers and Elizabeths in there with a surname of Temple so my own guess is they were of Jewish extract though there is no proof - but adds extra spice to the mix.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on September 05, 2012, 04:08:21 pm
The 'old money Goldsmiths' were quick to defend Diana and offer her support...Zac even took to twitter recently to defend Harry's right to privacy in the media. I think they probably know but these things are kept close to respective chests in these circles. They would gain nothing from revealing any secrets and going against the unwritten high society code that involves illegitimacy.
The Jewish dimension certainly adds extra spice :thumbsup: Interestingly, it says that although Diana may have had Jewish blood, unless it comes from her mother she is not technically, nor William, Jewish.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Freya on September 05, 2012, 04:27:15 pm
Thanks True Brit and Mooster for your replies. I am going to read more on this topic.
It's very interesting how they seem protective towards William and Harry. More so than "Uncle Spencer" who after his piece of rhetoric at Diana's funeral has not had much influence in the bringing up of Diana's boys.
Charles Spencer seemed more interested in opening up Althorp for the public than anything else.
I read somewhere that Diana visited Annabel quite often and took William and Harry. She seemed to spend more time with Annabel that with her own family.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on September 08, 2012, 01:32:15 am
Just came across this article from The London Evening Standard; it seems Zac Goldsmith is aware of the rumours about him being Diana's brother but interestingly, although he says they are strange, he doesn't deny them:
Goldsmith is surprisingly sanguine about the coverage of his personal life: “I’d have been very upset five or six years ago about some of the things said about me but nowadays I’m pretty much immune. If you look online, there’s some very strange stuff — every conceivable Jewish conspiracy and even stories about me being [Princess] Diana’s brother … you name it.”
http://www.standard.co.uk/lifestyle/london-life/zac-goldsmith-on-camerons-judgment-over-hunt-and-seedy-coulson-and-his-runway-betrayal-7865675.html
PS like him or loathe him, Zac is such a pretty boy :flirt:
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Alexandrine on September 08, 2012, 10:06:34 pm
All the Goldsmith are very handsome, Jemima is even prettier than Diana.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Spice on September 08, 2012, 10:23:10 pm
It's interesting that the interviewer didn't ask him if he thought the rumours were true (or if they did, they didn't publish it). Denying the rumours would be the only option, because in any way confirming them is tantamount to saying Diana is not a Spencer, nor are PW and PH, which onlookers like us can say till kingdom come, but no one in or near the families could. I believe they are Goldsmiths purely because they look (exactly) like them (particularly Diana) and it was strongly rumoured that James and Frances were having an affair around the time of Diana's conception. It's enough for me to speculate that it's true. I don't think we'll ever get more information than we have now, unless someone raids private records or something.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Freya on September 10, 2012, 01:44:15 pm
I have been thinking about this recently especially that Zac has been in the news about Heathrow. I guess that if he does give up his seat for Boris then he will get another seat in the next election.
I remember reading about Frances Shand Kydd after Diana's death in her apartment at KP shredding letters and drinking wine. What could have been in those letter? I thought it may have been letters from Diana's lovers but would her mother be so interested in destroying them? She did not get on with Diana much. Maybe it was correspondence from the Goldsmiths and she did not want the letters to fall into the public domain.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on September 10, 2012, 02:15:41 pm
^ that's an intriguing theory about Frances and the shredding of Diana's letters and I have read that she did write letters to Lady Goldsmith :thumbsup:
If there is one thing about the Goldsmiths, it is that they are very clannish. Sir James had eight children altogether (not including Diana) by four different women. Lady Annabel (and Zac, Ben and Jemima) embraces all of Sir James children by the women that were in his life and encourages friendships between all of them regardless of their different mothers; for example Isabel (Sir James oldest daughter by his first wife) attended Ben's wedding; they are all on each other's facebook pages etc. The point I'm making is that Annabel also welcomed Diana into the family fold and was a surrogate mother to her - Diana took William and Harry to her home where they mixed with her own children. IMO, it is as close as they can go to admitting she was one of theirs - it would be breaking the aristocratic code to publically admit it (think of the consequences, they would be enormous). Zac (and Jemima and Ben) has been a staunch defender of Harry on twitter regarding the Vegas mess and they took it very personally that they were not invited to William's wedding.
Again, I find it interesting that Zac did not clearly deny he was Diana's brother when he had the chance at the time he was being interviewed for a newspaper article - he in fact drew attention to the rumour and now people who were not aware of the rumour certainly are now.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Freya on September 10, 2012, 02:41:45 pm
It will be interesting if Zak does well in politics. He may if Boris became PM. It would be really interesting if Zak became PM when Charles is King. Zak would make a very charismatic PM.
I must have read about Frances shredding those letters somewhere and I don't think that was ever in doubt but what was in the letters is pure conjecture.
I always thought that Frances was a strange woman and her two other daughters look much like her. Diana did not. Charles Spencer looked like his father.
I will watch Zak's political progress with interest. He must be quite highly thought of to have a safe seat. I wish he was my MP.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: True Brit on September 10, 2012, 03:06:02 pm
This is one scandalous story I too believe - that Diana was JG's daughter. It's not just the physical resemblance but a ballsy spiritedness that Diana shared with the Goldsmiths.
Is there a good book about Frances anyone can recommend? She is painted by the biographers who try and play this story down as "mouse-like", "Needy", "neurotic" - that's just a few but she seems to be anything but.
Tina Brown tells of how she told a friend she was sick of opening village fetes when she lived in Sandringham and she used to go off for weekends in London with the smart set leaving Jane and Sarah with nannies. She could be seen dining at Claridges and dancing at Les Ambassadors (then the top London nightclub) all the places that James Goldsmith went.
And anyone who followed the Lord Lucan mystery will know that James Goldsmith and his good friend Bill Shand Kydd (half brother to Peter who Frances later married) were supposedly the ones who smuggled him out of the country.
Frances was also married off at 18 to Johnnie Spencer and knowing what we know know about her mother Ruth Fermoy I suspect she never stood a chance either.
In later years she seemed to jealous of her own daughter telling some photographer that she too had lovely long legs - not the sort of comment a mouse would make but definitely a woman who had been very attractive onceand knew her physical powers had waned.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on September 10, 2012, 03:47:43 pm
Yes, I agree...Frances was not the wallflower she was made out to be :thumbsup:
I have found a photo of James Goldsmith's other son Jethro Goldsmith, but my goodness, his eyes are like Zac's (and Prince William's too)
(https://fbcdn-profile-a.akamaihd.net/hprofile-ak-snc6/273217_506339512_2073820962_n.jpg)
Also Isabel Goldsmith, James first born, she has ginger/tawny hair (like Bens and Jemimas) - which would account for Harry's too:
(https://fbcdn-profile-a.akamaihd.net/hprofile-ak-snc6/275533_100001247289835_3160996_n.jpg)
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Freya on September 10, 2012, 03:59:14 pm
Jethro looks like Zak and PW. Zak and PW have got exactly the same shaped chin. There must have been strong genes in the Goldsmith family.
I will be watching Zak's progress with interest. Sooner or later his path may cross with Charles as Charles is always interfering in politics.
I wonder why they were not invited to Williams wedding?
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: rosielinks on September 10, 2012, 04:54:03 pm
I think because Lady Annabel had a spat with Camilla.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Spice on September 11, 2012, 05:39:15 am
Jethro looks so much like PW, IMO.
I don't think Zak or any of them will be so bold as admitting what they know about Diana's parentage. I agree the non denial added weight to the theory. He tried to make it sound ridiculous but of course he would do that.
There is so much "circumstantial" evidence to lead us to this conclusion. Also, Johnnie and Frances Spencer's marriage was terrible... I have read that he was a drinker and was physically and emotionally abusive to her. His personality seems a lot like his son's. Not good.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on September 12, 2012, 01:12:44 pm
From The Mirror, June 2, 1997:
Referendum Party leader Sir James Goldsmith is fighting a secret battle against cancer, his pals revealed yesterday.
The 64-year-old billionaire is seriously ill in a Paris hospital with pancreatic cancer. The disease first appeared in 1993 and has returned.
A pal said yesterday: "His family are taking stock of the situation and are helping him battle it." The tycoon only told close relatives and a few friends about his illness which forced him to make contingency plans during the general election in case he fell sick.
Diabetic Sir James collapsed after canvassing in Folkestone.
He went on to lose his deposit in Tory David Mellor's Putney seat as Labour stormed to victory.
Sir James' daughter Jemima, married to cricket ace Imran Khan is believed to have visited him in hospital on her way home to Pakistan.
Her pal Princess Diana and Prince Charles are said to have been kept informed of her father's progress.
Sir James' pal newspaper columnist Taki, who broke the news, said: "Jimmy is fighting his illness with all the fortitude and tenacity typical of him. He does not know how to spell fear or self pity."
A friend's concern, or something more?
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Alexandrine on September 16, 2012, 04:59:01 pm
Is hip-hop Jay Electronica about to hop it with stunning Cara Delvingne?
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2203933/Kate-Goldsmith-unimpressed-Jay-Electronicas-friendship-Cara-Delvingne.html
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on September 21, 2012, 05:55:20 pm
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Cressida on September 21, 2012, 06:28:34 pm
I remember that wedding - Victoria's dress was so ugly and I could never understand how she was a model, I always thought she looked rather like a monkey. Sorry I know that sounds bitchy...
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Alexandrine on September 21, 2012, 06:35:40 pm
I've always liked the dress, but I don't think she knew how to carry it. Harry was such a cutie! :flirt:
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on September 21, 2012, 07:15:15 pm
Quote from: Cressida on September 21, 2012, 06:28:34 pm
I remember that wedding - Victoria's dress was so ugly and I could never understand how she was a model, I always thought she looked rather like a monkey. Sorry I know that sounds bitchy...
No, I think you're right...I've always thought she was very peculiar looking, I don't know how she managed to snag Charles - he wasn't too bad back in the day before he got his womanising, wife dropping rep.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Cressida on September 21, 2012, 07:28:16 pm
Definately - he looks very debauched these days, heavy and pompous.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: berlin on September 21, 2012, 07:34:47 pm
I think Earl's new wife will manage to hang on to him.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on September 22, 2012, 06:23:28 pm
http://static10.imagecollect.com/preview/560/8f4de1a124a1aab
Even Diana's sister Jane had red hair; another feature that marks her out from the Spencers, she was the only one not to have red hair....mmmm :sly:
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Alexandrine on September 23, 2012, 09:56:02 pm
Goldsmiths end feud as Ben finds love again with 25-year-old PR girl after wife's relationship with US rapper
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2207264/Goldsmiths-end-feud-Ben-finds-love-25-year-old-PR-girl-wifes-relationship-US-rapper.html
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on September 24, 2012, 12:18:37 am
^ She is so pretty...good luck with her Ben Ben kisss
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: berlin on September 24, 2012, 01:02:31 am
Go girl and get those billions.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Freya on September 24, 2012, 07:43:28 am
Question for Mooster please.
Was the Spencer estate set up like Downton whereby if there was no male heir it passed to another male relative? I wondered if that was why the late Earl Spencer was so obsessed with producing a son. Thanks.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Freya on September 24, 2012, 01:12:41 pm
^
Just a further thought about the Spencers. I do find the theory that Diana could be a Goldsmith interesting and she certainly looks like a Goldsmith.
The one sticking point for me is that at the time when Frances allegedly had an affair with James Goldsmith an heir to Althorpe had not been produced. Why would she have had an affair at this stage? The only reason I could think of was that she was that depressed after her miscarriage that the affair with James Goldsmith offered her some comfort.
She may have felt really desperate and thought that as long as she had a male child it did not really matter whose it was.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on September 24, 2012, 07:38:40 pm
Freya, I don't know about any entailment on the Spencer estate...interesting, I wonder whether there is any info to research this, I wouldn't know where to start.
Yep, I agree Diana is a dead ringer for the whole Goldsmith family - if you look at my signature pics, along the bottom row, there are pics of Diana and James Goldsmith at various ages in their lives and she looks like him completely - as a child, teen and adult.
Also, what do you think of the pics below? The lady in the middle is Marcelle Goldsmith, Sir James Goldsmith's French mother - I think Diana and William look like her, the expression and especially around the shape of the mouth and that V shaped smile... they have similar eyes too.
(https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-HPxHxCCguAs/UDjbfvZWuFI/AAAAAAAAAf0/LZ5NVe4AfHg/s214/william%2520like%2520james%2520mum1.jpg) (https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-INebBLAvoUk/UDjPwN0tizI/AAAAAAAAAeY/Jzz35aq5_3w/s214/jamesgoldsmith%2520young.jpg) (https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-vitGyIXhOzs/UDjRPdYd_TI/AAAAAAAAAfI/sv4wFm63-3c/s214/diana%2520like%2520james%2520mum.jpg)
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Alexandrine on September 24, 2012, 08:43:02 pm
Entailment was abolished by statute in 1925 so the state shouldn't be entailed. This is where I got the info from http://www.jasna.org/persuasions/printed/number11/redmond.htm#38 I would put the statute also but it's like hieroglyphics.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Freya on September 24, 2012, 11:34:23 pm
Mooster,
Thanks for your reply. Diana and William do look Marcelle Goldsmith particularly around the mouth. Diana looks more like Marcelle than Frances.
Alexandrine,
Thanks for your comments about entailment. The Spencers would have kept the estate but there would be no Earl Spencer if there had been no male heir. I assume that the eldest girl would inherit.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Acornia on September 25, 2012, 12:15:23 pm
This thread has become very interesting since the last time I checked it!
Goldsmiths end feud as Ben finds love again with 25-year-old PR girl after wife's relationship with US rapper
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2207264/Goldsmiths-end-feud-Ben-finds-love-25-year-old-PR-girl-wifes-relationship-US-rapper.html
Oh hello there, rebound girl! I think Kate is prettier.
IMO the problem with Ben and Kate's relationship is that they both married young, although I'm impressed that their marriage lasted almost 10 years. I think people should 'live a little' before settling down... I'm not surprised that Kate went for someone like Jay Electronica.
Ben and Kate look good together and the hopeless romantic in me hopes that they would get back together. :tehe:
Who has custody of the children? We've never heard of an arrangement.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Freya on September 25, 2012, 04:21:21 pm
http://www.spencerhouse.co.uk/history.shtml
How weird that the Rothchild family owns the Spencers London Property.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Anne-Elliot on September 25, 2012, 06:57:45 pm
Bet Piss-arse is not happy about that!
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Alexandrine on September 25, 2012, 07:41:51 pm
Quote from: Acornia on September 25, 2012, 12:15:23 pm
Who has custody of the children? We've never heard of an arrangement.
In the article it says that she is still living with the children in the same house but as there is no divorce maybe this will change?
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Alexandrine on September 27, 2012, 05:27:44 pm
Ben Goldsmith steps out with his new girlfriend... as bitter feud with estranged wife Kate Rothschild draws to a close
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2209187/Ben-Goldsmith-steps-new-girlfriend-bitter-feud-estranged-wife-Kate-Rothschild-ends.html
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on September 28, 2012, 02:57:47 pm
^ @ Alexandrine...handsome fellows, those Goldsmith men :hot:
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on September 28, 2012, 04:22:41 pm
^ No, I haven't...but I'd certainly like to :thumbsup:
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Freya on September 28, 2012, 04:39:59 pm
^
I haven't either but came across it when having a search around. Didn't Tina Brown say that Frances went to Claridges and similar when she was in London?
Found this photo of her at Diana's christening. She looks smart and attractive.
http://www.princess-diana-remembered.com/uploads/5/3/3/5/5335384/9840353.jpg?467
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on September 28, 2012, 05:41:32 pm
What a lovely photo of Frances...she was very pretty :flirt: Yes, she did go to Claridges which was often populated with bored aristocratic wives looking for the 'offer of a diverting afternoon' (The Diana Chronicles)... and I bet the likes of Jimmy Goldsmith were willing to give it to them as well :tehe:
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Freya on September 28, 2012, 06:02:36 pm
^
One of the reasons given that Frances did not have an affair with James Goldsmith was that she was not his type. That photo of her at Diana's christening knocks that argument out of the water.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: True Brit on September 28, 2012, 06:15:55 pm
^ Yes I took that statement at face value when I first heard/read it but I read Tina Brown's conclusions re Frances and JG (which she admitted she couldn't prove) and her summing up pointing to an affair all made perfect sense.
In any event I had also heard from another source that it was a badly kept secret amongst the aristo class at the time.
Apparently after Jane and Sarah were born she got stir crazy at Sandringham and would spend periods in London dancing at Les Ambassadeurs and dining at Claridges where JG and all the rich well connected and royal set hung out. Les Ambassadeurs is where Prince Phillip danced the night away with Patricia Kirkwood the actress and started all the stories about them having an affair.
It was also said she wasn't JG's sort because she was "neurotic and needy" - well she may have been but she was also absolutely stunning, unhappy and bored out of her skull with Johnny Spencer and he might not have be prepared to run off with her but no reason why they didn't have an affair.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: True Brit on September 28, 2012, 06:49:50 pm
A history of Les Ambassadors from its present day web site.
Quote
Les Ambassadeurs Club gained a reputation as one of London's most exclusive and distinguished dining clubs with a membership drawn from aristocracy, diplomats, heads of state, chiefs of commerce and celebrities from the world of entertainment.
It also hosted one of London's first gaming clubs Le Cercle which opened in 1961 and was soooo upmarket it was reported on in The Times.
http://www.lesambassadeurs.com/index.html?page=history
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on September 28, 2012, 07:18:21 pm
Interesting link True Brit :thankyou:
...and crucially Frances had her own money, from a family inheritance, to do as she pleased - and after Sarah and Jane were born she was 'more self assured, more conversationally amusing and more open for adventure. She wanted a taste of swinging London and there were plenty of prospects.' (The Diana Chronicles) She was definitely not the little wallflower that has been depicted :sigh:
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on September 28, 2012, 07:34:04 pm
Sorry about the double post, but timed out :shy:
I'm reading Annabel Goldsmith's memoirs and what strikes me is how she acknowledges all of James Goldsmith children and has good relations with them all - she has nothing but good things to say about James first and second wives - she also mothered Princess Diana and had a very close relationship with her, surely she must have noticed the looks, personality and mannerisms that Diana and James had in common? A small but intriguing thing (to me anyway lol) in her book, Annabel writes that James had a vulnerable quality and a certain cosiness about him...his favourite evening in was watching TV in bed with her, eating scrambled egg and bacon followed by yoghurt and pureed apple - this also reminded me of Diana, she loved nothing more than to cuddle up in bed with her boys and watching TV while eating a simple supper from a tray.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Freya on September 29, 2012, 10:55:49 am
http://www.flickr.com/photos/fawbs/7493406728/?q=frances roche
http://i49.tinypic.com/2afmpg9.jpg
I don't see much of Frances in Diana. William and Harry don't really resemble their Spencer grandparents. Jane and Sarah look a bit like their mother and Charles looks like Johnny.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Alexandrine on September 30, 2012, 07:35:56 pm
'Meet my wife': Ben Goldsmith tells new love Jemima Jones
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2210663/Ben-Goldsmith-tells-new-love-Jemima-Jones-Meet-wife.html
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on October 03, 2012, 09:25:51 pm
^ I still think he carries a torch for Kate Goldsmith - I wonder if they'll get back together eventually?
They ended their bitter feud last month, and financier Ben Goldsmith and his estranged wife Kate Rothschild looked to have put the past firmly behind them as they embraced at a memorial service today.
The pair stood side by side and briefly chatted to each other before entering the service for the Marquess of Londonderry, Goldsmith's uncle, who died in June.
Kate, who was dressed in a brown and black polka dot top with black trousers, supported her former partner as he greeted guests including Princess Michael of Kent and TV presenter Kirstie Allsopp.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2212412/The-war-Ben-Goldsmith-Kate-Rothschild-share-embrace-reunite-memorial-service-Marquess-Londonderry-ending-bitter-feud.html#ixzz28GmY4hE5
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on October 11, 2012, 01:12:08 pm
I've also posted this in the Will and Kate at Loulou's thread)
'others also at the party included Jemima Khan and her brother - MP Zach Goldsmith'...'Ben Goldsmith and his girlfriend were also at the event with Kate and William'
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2216030/Kate-Middleton-Prince-William-reunite-evening-Loulous-club-Mayfair.html#ixzz28zXaQizH
Nice to see William enjoying a night out with his Uncles Zac and Ben Goldsmith and Aunt Jemima :June:
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: serene grace on October 11, 2012, 04:15:41 pm
Mooster :bat: you are being very naughty. :tehe:
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Acornia on October 12, 2012, 03:03:48 am
Does anyone else find it strange that Zac Goldsmith still isn't seen out in public with Alice Rothschild? When they go out they're usually not with each other or they're with other dates. Is it too soon to flaunt their affair turned relationship in public?
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: rogue on October 12, 2012, 11:54:36 am
^His ex-partner has moved on and has been seen with her boyfriend so i don't see why he wouldn't.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on October 12, 2012, 02:14:06 pm
Maybe he likes to keep this relationship low profile because he's an MP - family break ups not good for image.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: berlin on October 21, 2012, 06:05:11 pm
How Ben Goldsmith staged the craziest stag stunt ever! Held in a dawn swoop, a terrified bridegroom is close to tears as LA police tell him he'll be in jail on his wedding day. Then his friends burst in...
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2220866/How-Ben-Goldsmith-staged-craziest-stag-stunt-Held-dawn-swoop-terrified-bridegroom-close-tears-LA-police-tell-hell-jail-wedding-day-Then-friends-burst-.html#ixzz29xDqDmPb
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Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: serene grace on October 21, 2012, 08:57:34 pm
did anyone see that tweet the other day, where Zac was taking up for Pippa, I think it was about her book? I found it odd,why would he care what pippa does?
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Alexandrine on October 21, 2012, 09:01:25 pm
^
Zac Goldsmith @ZacGoldsmith
Today's Times attacks Pippa M for not doing any interviews for her book. No doubt the bullying would have been worse if she had. Nice.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: serene grace on October 21, 2012, 09:40:53 pm
Thank you, that's the tweet. I didn't understand why he's so concerned about Pippa? :sly:
Question , did Kate(during the 07 break with William) or Pippa ever go out with Alex Tulloch,the friend Ben Goldsmith mentioned in the article above?
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Jane23 on October 22, 2012, 12:20:50 pm
^ He has to play nice to WILLY it has nothing to do with Pipps :laundry:...
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: serene grace on October 22, 2012, 12:34:13 pm
Why would he want to give Pippa publicity on his tweet to satisfy William, who hates attention of any kind?
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Jane23 on October 22, 2012, 01:31:49 pm
^ Who says he hates "attention" of any kind? He loves being worshiped and the press going hard against his father and bother and he being the only '' good one" of the three 8)...he hates the attention when his wife gets naked near a street there's a difference...this Zac guy dropped the two sisters like garbage in 2007 I am sure but now he is nice to Pipps...and we all know why :June:...
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: serene grace on October 22, 2012, 01:38:39 pm
well, you have a good point there. :cookie:
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Alexandrine on December 31, 2012, 11:18:19 am
How Zac Goldsmith's rock for fiancee Alice Rothschild rolled away at Stones gig
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2255139/RICHARD-KAY-How-Zac-Goldsmiths-rock-fiance-Alice-Rothschild-rolled-away-Stones-gig.html
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Alexandrine on January 27, 2013, 03:06:03 pm
Zac and Alice expecting a baby as their big day looms
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2268837/MoS-Diary-Zac-Alice-expecting-baby-big-day-looms.html
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: serene grace on January 27, 2013, 03:21:26 pm
:o
Two interesting ( wealthy) and sometimes scandalous family's (joining in marriage.) I hope this one sticks for Zac.
http://takimag.com/article/billionaires_bimbos_and_the_black_brady_bunch_bruce_cochran/print#axzz2JBo3gQ5v
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Acornia on January 30, 2013, 12:24:28 pm
^ I hope so too.
He divorced his beautiful wife for a - let's be honest here! - quite average-looking woman, although one with a bottomless bank account. But perhaps I'm selling Alice short and aside from money, she may have something that attracted Zac to her.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: tequiero on March 17, 2013, 08:43:03 pm
Quote
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: serene grace on June 07, 2013, 12:47:48 pm
Yes they have similarities in their faces.
Also in the photos Freya posted, Charlotte does remind me a bit of young Diana.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Freya on June 07, 2013, 01:06:57 pm
Charlotte Goldsmith get married tomorrow (8th June). It will be interesting to see who gives her away.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: serene grace on June 07, 2013, 01:28:43 pm
Some good wedding watching tommorrow. :thumbsup:
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Jane23 on June 07, 2013, 02:50:08 pm
Can someone explain to me where all the gossip about Di's paternity comes form? Did her mother really sleep around? Not that I give any credit to that mess...but just curious where does it all come from? I know Di was very close to this family but that means nothing...
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Cressida on June 07, 2013, 08:45:11 pm
Diana's mother had an affair with Jimmy Goldsmith before Diana was born. Hence the rumours.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on June 07, 2013, 08:48:28 pm
It was an open secret in aristocratic circles for years about Diana being Jimmy's daughter.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Jane23 on June 09, 2013, 09:02:49 am
But that is what confuses me is the "affair" confirmed like a sure thing or just a ridiculous RUMOR like I suspect it is? :June:
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: True Brit on June 09, 2013, 11:02:04 am
No it isn't a rumour the story has appeared in one of the Diana biogs and I have read it myself. I think it was Sarah Bradford but it's more than njust a rumour as Frances was unhappy with the Earl and used to spend her weekends away in London at Les Ambassadeurs where she mixed with Goldsmith and Aspinall amongst others.
If I can recall which book it was in I'll copy it in but I know the story has appeared in more than one book.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on June 09, 2013, 12:13:36 pm
^ Frances was also a very sensual woman...aware of her good looks...I'm sure she had lots of admirers and knowing Jimmy Goldsmith's reputation...he'd be there like a rat up a drainpipe lol xx
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Jane23 on June 09, 2013, 05:56:33 pm
Quote from: True Brit on June 09, 2013, 11:02:04 am
No it isn't a rumour the story has appeared in one of the Diana biogs and I have read it myself. I think it was Sarah Bradford but it's more than njust a rumour as Frances was unhappy with the Earl and used to spend her weekends away in London at Les Ambassadeurs where she mixed with Goldsmith and Aspinall amongst others.
If I can recall which book it was in I'll copy it in but I know the story has appeared in more than one book.
So just rumors nothing official ...what amazes me about those paternity rumors regarding Harry and so on is...how did those women have the guts to sit down and tell their (very powerful) husbands they were pregnant ? Or were they THAT nasty they did TWO men at the same time? Just wondering...
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on June 09, 2013, 06:52:00 pm
William also looks like a Goldsmith...if you scroll back Jane you'll see lots of info. William looks particularly like Jimmy's mother...that same triangle shaped mouth...there's pics there if you scroll back. Obviously, there is no proof it's all circumstantial...but the timings of Jimmy's and Frances visits to London, mixing in the same circles, plus the dramatic likeness of Diana and William to the Goldsmiths...well, it's up to each of us to draw our own conclusions.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on June 10, 2013, 01:19:13 pm
Quote from: Mooster on September 24, 2012, 07:38:40 pm
Freya, I don't know about any entailment on the Spencer estate...interesting, I wonder whether there is any info to research this, I wouldn't know where to start.
Yep, I agree Diana is a dead ringer for the whole Goldsmith family - if you look at my signature pics, along the bottom row, there are pics of Diana and James Goldsmith at various ages in their lives and she looks like him completely - as a child, teen and adult.
Also, what do you think of the pics below? The lady in the middle is Marcelle Goldsmith, Sir James Goldsmith's French mother - I think Diana and William look like her, the expression and especially around the shape of the mouth and that V shaped smile... they have similar eyes too.
(https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-HPxHxCCguAs/UDjbfvZWuFI/AAAAAAAAAf0/LZ5NVe4AfHg/s214/william%2520like%2520james%2520mum1.jpg) (https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-INebBLAvoUk/UDjPwN0tizI/AAAAAAAAAeY/Jzz35aq5_3w/s214/jamesgoldsmith%2520young.jpg) (https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-vitGyIXhOzs/UDjRPdYd_TI/AAAAAAAAAfI/sv4wFm63-3c/s214/diana%2520like%2520james%2520mum.jpg)
Jane, this is the pic of Sir James Goldsmith's French mother - her resemblance to William (and Diana) is striking...IMO of course
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: CathyJane on June 11, 2013, 05:03:53 am
I can't see Frances having an affair before she had the 'all important' heir for the Spencer family. I just don't think she would take the chance of having another mans child on the chance it might be a boy and I don't know if she would have had the nerve to pass off her bastard son as the Spencer heir given that there were many rumors that Johnnie beat Frances. jmo. :dontknow:
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on June 11, 2013, 08:05:14 am
^ I hear what you're saying and it's a good point. Although having been a victim of domestic abuse myself, believe me...all rational thought flies out the window, you end up doing all sorts of stuff that you never would normally.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Snokitty on June 11, 2013, 12:24:15 pm
Quote from: Mooster on September 24, 2012, 07:38:40 pm
Freya, I don't know about any entailment on the Spencer estate...interesting, I wonder whether there is any info to research this, I wouldn't know where to start.
Yep, I agree Diana is a dead ringer for the whole Goldsmith family - if you look at my signature pics, along the bottom row, there are pics of Diana and James Goldsmith at various ages in their lives and she looks like him completely - as a child, teen and adult.
Also, what do you think of the pics below? The lady in the middle is Marcelle Goldsmith, Sir James Goldsmith's French mother - I think Diana and William look like her, the expression and especially around the shape of the mouth and that V shaped smile... they have similar eyes too.
(https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-HPxHxCCguAs/UDjbfvZWuFI/AAAAAAAAAf0/LZ5NVe4AfHg/s214/william%2520like%2520james%2520mum1.jpg) (https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-INebBLAvoUk/UDjPwN0tizI/AAAAAAAAAeY/Jzz35aq5_3w/s214/jamesgoldsmith%2520young.jpg) (https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-vitGyIXhOzs/UDjRPdYd_TI/AAAAAAAAAfI/sv4wFm63-3c/s214/diana%2520like%2520james%2520mum.jpg)
Jane, this is the pic of Sir James Goldsmith's French mother - her resemblance to William (and Diana) is striking...IMO of course
All three of the smiles look the same. Interesting comparison to say the least.
If a husband is a wife abuser then the wife took comfort in another mans bed there is no way that she would tell her abuser that the child belongs to someone else. He would try to beat her to death and/or force a miscarriage.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Freya on June 11, 2013, 12:49:17 pm
Perhaps Frances just did not know who the father was so kept quite. She would not be the first.
Interesting that Charles and Diana were kept informed when Jimmy was ill. Also Zak leapt to Harry's defence during the Vegas scandal. I don't remember many coming out and defending Kate during the balcony scandal in France.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Alexandrine on June 11, 2013, 10:03:29 pm
Isabel Goldsmith http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-393668/I-better-mistress-wife.html
Alix Goldsmith http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=laqq7iNBvsk&feature=youtu.be
I cannot find an image of Manes Goldsmith :snob:
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: CathyJane on June 13, 2013, 10:34:43 pm
Quote
If a husband is a wife abuser then the wife took comfort in another mans bed there is no way that she would tell her abuser that the child belongs to someone else. He would try to beat her to death and/or force a miscarriage.
Sorry I didn't get back sooner, my computer crashed, I'm using my sisters and we have had bad storms for the past few days and knocked out the internet.
Anyway, I agree an abused wife wouldn't tell her husband the baby wasn't his but if said baby came out looking far different from the other children the sh*t would hit the fan. And there is always that chance. I honestly don't think Frances would have the nerve to have an affair before giving birth to the Spencer heir, or at the least unprotected sex with a man she wasn't married to.
I kind of wonder why Frances and Peter Shand Kydd didn't have a child.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Snokitty on June 13, 2013, 11:44:11 pm
^ Not necessarily. The child could look like an ancestor rather than either parent.
Beatrice is a good example of this. She looks like Queen Victoria did at that age.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: dianab on June 14, 2013, 02:37:49 am
This picture of Sir James Goldsmith's French mother remembers me a lot the pix of Frances Shand Kydd as an young woman when she married Johnnie.
This pictures of young James Goldsmith rembembers me alot the young man Johnnie Spencer.
@CathyJane
imo Frances wasnt into having affairs for sake of just having affairs & have facade, imo she was type when fall in love for someone else would left her husband and goes after an divorce for be/have a normal/offical relationship/life with the person she fall in love. What was exactly her actions.
IMO Diana is an cross between Cynthia Spencer & Frances. Many biographers talk about her resemblance to her paternal grandmother.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: mysha on June 14, 2013, 09:19:50 pm
This picture of Sir James Goldsmith's French mother remembers me a lot the pix of Frances Shand Kydd as an young woman when she married Johnnie.
This pictures of young James Goldsmith rembembers me alot the young man Johnnie Spencer.
@CathyJane
imo Frances wasnt into having affairs for sake of just having affairs & have facade, imo she was type when fall in love for someone else would left her husband and goes after an divorce for be/have a normal/offical relationship/life with the person she fall in love. What was exactly her actions.
IMO Diana is an cross between Cynthia Spencer & Frances. Many biographers talk about her resemblance
to her paternal grandmother.
:goodpost: Diana is a cross between Cynthia and Frances, but more like her grandmother. James might be but all are dead, so rather moot point. Now on news they have Williams DNA that is Indian. I would love them to get hold of Harry's
Title: Princess Diana's half sister?
Post by: CrystalEve on July 18, 2013, 01:47:40 pm
Princess Diana's half sister
Instead of Earl Spencer, Diana's real father was apparently Sir James Goldsmith.
According to Tina Brown (http://www.helpfreetheearth.com/news305_wedding.html (http://www.helpfreetheearth.com/news305_wedding.html)) and others, "Jemima Goldsmith was Princess Diana's very best friend and confidante. Jemima is genetically related to the Rothschilds and is now a Rothschild sister-in-law (Daily Mail Online, 10 May 2010).
"The Women's weekly magazine New Idea Australia, created a furore in Britain when it published a story about Jemima and Diana being sisters. The magazine quoted an unnamed source who claims to have known the “sister secret” for 40 YEARS. Rumours of the true sister relationship are rife among the British aristocracy.
"News reports that both Diana and Jemima were fathered by swashbuckling tycoon Sir James Goldsmith ignited bushfires all over Australia and Britain. The facts show that during Diana's unhappy marriage to Charles, she did not seek solace in - nor was she offered solace by the Spencers. She sought solace from her surrogate family - the Goldsmiths.
"Jemima Goldsmith converted to Islam when she married retired Pakistani cricketer Imam Khan in 1995. Jemima is said to be the one who inspired Diana to pursue liaisons with Muslim men."
Title: Re: Princess Diana's half sister?
Post by: Freya on July 18, 2013, 02:41:23 pm
^
Crystal,
Mooster has posted quite a lot of information on this under the thread "Old Money Goldsmiths". There is also a daughter of Jimmy Goldsmith from another relationship that looks a bit like Diana. There is a picture of James Goldsmith's French Mother who bears an interesting resemblance to William. It's fascinating stuff.
http://www.literaryfilmfestival.com/_/rsrc/1320810922700/The-Man-With-The-Stolen-Heart-a-film-by-Charlotte-Boulay-Goldsmith/Charlotte-Boulay-Goldsmith-filmmaker.jpg?height=320&width=212
Charlotte Goldsmith looks like a young Diana in the above picture.
Title: Re: Princess Diana's half sister?
Post by: sandy on July 18, 2013, 03:51:51 pm
Princess Diana's half sister
Instead of Earl Spencer, Diana's real father was apparently Sir James Goldsmith.
According to Tina Brown (http://www.helpfreetheearth.com/news305_wedding.html (http://www.helpfreetheearth.com/news305_wedding.html)) and others, "Jemima Goldsmith was Princess Diana's very best friend and confidante. Jemima is genetically related to the Rothschilds and is now a Rothschild sister-in-law (Daily Mail Online, 10 May 2010).
"The Women's weekly magazine New Idea Australia, created a furore in Britain when it published a story about Jemima and Diana being sisters. The magazine quoted an unnamed source who claims to have known the “sister secret” for 40 YEARS. Rumours of the true sister relationship are rife among the British aristocracy.
"News reports that both Diana and Jemima were fathered by swashbuckling tycoon Sir James Goldsmith ignited bushfires all over Australia and Britain. The facts show that during Diana's unhappy marriage to Charles, she did not seek solace in - nor was she offered solace by the Spencers. She sought solace from her surrogate family - the Goldsmiths.
"Jemima Goldsmith converted to Islam when she married retired Pakistani cricketer Imam Khan in 1995. Jemima is said to be the one who inspired Diana to pursue liaisons with Muslim men."
Diana is the spitting image of her late PATERNAL Grandmother Lady Cynthia Spencer. This is just more rumors. Tina Brown is not a reliable source.
Title: Re: Princess Diana's half sister?
Post by: CrystalEve on July 18, 2013, 05:11:01 pm
^
Crystal,
Mooster has posted quite a lot of information on this under the thread "Old Money Goldsmiths". There is also a daughter of Jimmy Goldsmith from another relationship that looks a bit like Diana. There is a picture of James Goldsmith's French Mother who bears an interesting resemblance to William. It's fascinating stuff.
http://www.literaryfilmfestival.com/_/rsrc/1320810922700/The-Man-With-The-Stolen-Heart-a-film-by-Charlotte-Boulay-Goldsmith/Charlotte-Boulay-Goldsmith-filmmaker.jpg?height=320&width=212
Charlotte Goldsmith looks like a young Diana in the above picture.
Thanks Freya, I did not know that there were other threads on this. I expect the moderators will merge them if they deem it necessary?
Charlotte Goldsmith does look a lot like Diana in the picture you refer to.
Title: Re: Princess Diana's half sister?
Post by: sandy on July 18, 2013, 05:58:30 pm
http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bd/Cynthiaspencer1892.jpg/220px-Cynthiaspencer1892.jpg&imgrefurl=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cynthia_Spencer,_Countess_Spencer&h=352&w=220&sz=22&tbnid=zzBEFEfIpUdoqM:&tbnh=90&tbnw=56&zoom=1&usg=__f4zP11aELpdSyvNNIGmXIrNJc-c=&docid=J-dMGaksFkDVkM&sa=X&ei=pB7oUb_KBvb64APb7oCoBg&sqi=2&ved=0CDsQ9QEwAg&dur=165
https://www.google.com/search?q=lady+cynthia+spencer&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=2h7oUbDsJe3F4APj04CYBQ&sqi=2&ved=0CDkQsAQ&biw=1024&bih=594#facrc=_&imgdii=rTZaQ8nxLAoTjM%3A%3BPTMXijphzz7e5M%3BrTZaQ8nxLAoTjM%3A&imgrc=rTZaQ8nxLAoTjM%3A%3BMThWWIGAtpdRdM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.prints-online.com%252Fimage%252Fthe_countess_spencer_4553682.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.prints-online.com%252Flow.php%253Fxp%253Dmedia%2526xm%253D4553682%3B354%3B450
Lady Cynthia Spencer
Title: Re: Princess Diana's half sister?
Post by: CrystalEve on July 19, 2013, 01:44:21 am
I can see no likeness to Lady Cynthia Spencer, but I can however see Diana's likeness here.
http://www.wickedladycollectables.co.uk/blog2010/marina11.jpg (http://www.wickedladycollectables.co.uk/blog2010/marina11.jpg)
Title: Re: Princess Diana's half sister?
Post by: Snokitty on July 19, 2013, 01:53:49 am
^ Which one of the two is Diana supposed to look like?
Title: Re: Princess Diana's half sister?
Post by: lothwen on July 19, 2013, 02:05:35 am
^ :laugh:
IMO, Diana looks more like Lady Spencer.
Title: Re: Princess Diana's half sister?
Post by: CathyJane on July 19, 2013, 05:02:09 am
I think Diana looked like a combination of Frances and Cynthia, Countess Spencer.
Title: Re: Princess Diana's half sister?
Post by: CrystalEve on July 19, 2013, 12:39:40 pm
^ Which one of the two is Diana supposed to look like?
Both Diana and her mother look like the Duchess of Kent.
Title: Re: Princess Diana's half sister?
Post by: Snokitty on July 19, 2013, 02:25:03 pm
Well if Diana's Mother looks like the Duchess of Kent then Diana would look like her Mother. I see no resemblance in the photo you provided.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: CrystalEve on July 19, 2013, 03:56:44 pm
Diana's mother, Frances Shand-Kydd (Roche):
http://farm9.static.flickr.com/8424/7493406612_8ab380f97a.jpg (http://farm9.static.flickr.com/8424/7493406612_8ab380f97a.jpg)
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Snokitty on July 19, 2013, 07:02:43 pm
I still see no resemblance.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: sandy on July 19, 2013, 08:23:52 pm
Marina looks nothing like Diana. She was a brunette and had a rather endearing crooked smile that her daughter Alexandra inherited.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Royal Lowness on August 23, 2013, 12:46:39 am
^
They certainly look very much alike.
If Diana's father really was Sir James Goldsmith, then it is very sad that they both dies within weeks of each other.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Royal Lowness on August 23, 2013, 12:48:54 am
^
Besides, if Diana really was his daughter, then he had to go before she was murdered. Can you imagine the stink he would have created for them otherwise?
(One of the longest affairs that Sir James had was with Frances Roche.)
:angry:
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: india on August 23, 2013, 07:14:33 am
Diana is the spitting image of Goldsmith and his children with Annabelle. He certainly had a type.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Freya on August 23, 2013, 08:00:35 am
http://www.smartredirect.de/ad/clickGate.php?u=Fo6Pr2As&m=1&p=0oAj48ggLw&s=&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.literaryfilmfestival.com%2F_%2Frsrc%2F1320810922700%2FThe-Man-With-The-Stolen-Heart-a-film-by-Charlotte-Boulay-Goldsmith%2FCharlotte-Boulay-Goldsmith-filmmaker.jpg%3Fheight%3D320%26width%3D212
I also think that Charlotte Boulay-Goldmith looks like a young Diana before she had short hair. She is the daughter of James Goldsmith and half sister to Annabel's children.
The Goldsmith genes must be strong because all his children seem to resemble each other. If you look at James Goldsmith's French mother she has the same smile as William.
^
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: sandy on August 26, 2013, 02:23:00 am
William would not look a lot like his Uncle Charles if Diana were a Goldsmtih. He has the Spencer chin. Harry closely resembles Diana's sister Sarah's sons.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Mooster on August 26, 2013, 11:38:09 pm
Diana's a Goldsmith through and through, like a stick of Blackpool Rock. Sir James was a force to be reckoned with and his genes are stamped on all of his children, Diana included.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: sandy on August 27, 2013, 02:42:23 am
Diana's a Spencer who closely resembles her paternal grandfather. No way would Frances have bedhopped with Goldsmith while trying to give birth to the Spencer heir (Diana's other brother John of course died shortly after he was born).
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Countess of Holland on August 31, 2013, 06:31:13 pm
I reac the book by Lady Antonia Fraser about Georgiana Duchess of Devonshire. When the book was published in The Netherlands, there was an interview with Lady Antonia about the peerage and their affairs.
She said that there was an unwritten rule that women were free to do as they pleased but only after providing an heir and a spare for their husband.
considering that Frances had not even provided an heir in 1959 when she was having the alledged affair with Goldsmith, I very much doubt that the affair happened at all. No way Spencer would have stood for it. She could have become pregnant with a son who would the be his legal heir...he would have divorced her then and there.
And both Prince William and Prince Harry have resemblances to the Spencer-family as well.
As for resemblances with the Goldsmith children, their mother is an aristocrat and all these peers are intermarried in so many ways it is getting incestuous. And these traits can go a long way back. Just look at Princess Beatrice who shares the eyes of her ancestor Queen Victoria.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Venus De Milo on September 01, 2013, 01:27:52 am
Quote
I reac the book by Lady Antonia Fraser about Georgiana Duchess of Devonshire. When the book was published in The Netherlands, there was an interview with Lady Antonia about the peerage and their affairs.
She said that there was an unwritten rule that women were free to do as they pleased but only after providing an heir and a spare for their husband.
You must be mistaken. The famous book Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire was written by Amanda Foreman.
Antonia Fraser has never written a book about her. Else, I totally agree with your post.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Freya on September 01, 2013, 07:06:51 am
^
I think that Antonia has reviewed this book so perhaps that's where the confusion is.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Freya on September 01, 2013, 07:12:02 am
When James Goldsmith was very ill Diana was kept informed. Diana was also very friendly with Annabelle more so than her own mother.
I personally think that the likeness between the Goldsmith siblings and half sibling and Diana is striking.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Countess of Holland on September 01, 2013, 01:55:16 pm
^^ Indeed, it was a review by Lady Antonia. I was confused since Lady Fraser has written so many biographies herself.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: sandy on September 01, 2013, 04:05:18 pm
When James Goldsmith was very ill Diana was kept informed. Diana was also very friendly with Annabelle more so than her own mother.
I personally think that the likeness between the Goldsmith siblings and half sibling and Diana is striking.
Diana was also friendly with Elsa Bowker an older woman. It was not that she was related to Annabelle but that Diana had sort of surrogate mothers since her relationship with her mother Frances was not always amicable to put it mildly. William particularly has the Spencer chin that John Spencer and Charles Spencer have. The resemblance is striking. Harry closely resembles his cousins (through Sarah Spencer). And Lady Cynthia Spencer looks a lot like Diana and Diana referred to her as guarding her from heaven. If Diana thought she was not her "real" grandmother I think she would not have talked about inheriting her dedication to charity from Cynthia Spencer.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: gingerboy24 on September 01, 2013, 04:06:15 pm
When James Goldsmith was very ill Diana was kept informed. Diana was also very friendly with Annabelle more so than her own mother.
I personally think that the likeness between the Goldsmith siblings and half sibling and Diana is striking.
Agree, the resemblance is indeed very striking, if you did not know anything of Diana you would be forgiven for thinking she was part of that family.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: sandy on September 01, 2013, 04:45:10 pm
There is no proof that Diana is a Goldsmith. I think it would have come out had it been true. Frances was expected to produce a male heir at the time and if she introduced someone else's child to John, she would have been ousted right away and the marriage annulled. When she took4 up with Shand Kydd after she produced the boy in 1964.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Royal Lowness on September 05, 2013, 11:09:37 pm
^
It's completely obvious and clear that Diana's father was Sir James Goldsmith. And that he had to be murdered before her, since he would have blown the lid off sooooo much.
:cookie:
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: sandy on September 06, 2013, 03:22:01 pm
Not obvious to everybody. Read the authorized bio of Diana's mother and the conditions of her marriage. If she fell madly in love with Goldsmith do you honestly think she would have stayed with John? She didn't hesitate to bolt for Shand Kydd. I think if there were anything to this rumor, she'd have married Goldsmith, had kids with him and Diana and her sisters would be primarily with John Spencer and he would have remarried to have the male heir.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Snokitty on September 06, 2013, 04:49:30 pm
The Aristos have been marrying into each others families for so many centuries that if one has similar features to a person who is not in their immediate family it doesn't necessarily mean that they must be siblings.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Countess of Holland on September 06, 2013, 07:51:20 pm
Quote from: Royal Lowness on September 05, 2013, 11:09:37 pm
^
It's completely obvious and clear that Diana's father was Sir James Goldsmith. And that he had to be murdered before her, since he would have blown the lid off sooooo much.
:cookie:
Are there people in your world who actually die of natural causes? James Goldsmith was not murdered, his illness, pancreatic cancer, was well-documented and he won't be the first to suffer a heart-attack because of intense treatments against his pancreatic cancer (which is one of the most lethal cancers anyway with a very low survival rate).
And I don't see any likeness between Sir James Goldsmith and Princess Diana. Diana had a long-shaped face while Jimmy Goldsmith had a round face. The shape of their eyes and chin is different as well.
Any likeness between the Goldsmits children (the ones he had with Lady Annabel) and Princess Diana is more like to be through the aristocratic gene-pool that Princess Diana and Lady Annabel shared.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: gingerboy24 on September 06, 2013, 09:57:35 pm
Quote from: Royal Lowness on September 05, 2013, 11:09:37 pm
^
It's completely obvious and clear that Diana's father was Sir James Goldsmith. And that he had to be murdered before her, since he would have blown the lid off sooooo much.
:cookie:
Yes, I think so too. She looks so much like all of JG´s children. Who knowss what these families get up to. As Diana was not a boy and would not inherit Allthorpe probably not a major problem to Johnny Spencer - probably no saint himself. They do lead busy and complicated lives don´t they. How on earth do they work out their family trees..!
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Countess of Holland on September 06, 2013, 10:11:48 pm
But he didn't know that Diana would have been a girl when his wife got pregnant with her third child.
Nowadays with DNA a peer can denounce a child, but back in the 1960's he could not have prevented a child from inheriting the peerage if Diana would have been a boy and his heir. And seeing that the British peerage is well-known for their anti-semitism, I doubt Johnny Spencer would have stood for the possibility that a child of James Goldsmith would inherit Althorpe, the peerage etc.
Now if John Spencer and his wife would have had a few boys prior to Diana, I would have given this some credibility, but not while Frances still had to give birth to an heir.
And like I said, I don't see any resemblances between James Goldsmith and Diana. Only a slight resemblance between Diana and the children of Lady Annabel. But then again when looking at pictures of Annabel in her 20's I see a resemblance between her and Diana. Or are you telling us that Annabel is Diana's mother?
Just because someone is noble, doesn't mean that they were the result of some illicit affair.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: Countess of Holland on September 06, 2013, 10:17:33 pm
Sorry for doubleposting, I found this interesting article on-line about Frances and James Goldsmith:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-315244/Were-Diana-Jemima-sisters.html
'During that year, 1960, Frances barely left Norfolk,' one of her close friends told me. 'She was depressed, wrapped up in herself, constantly worried that she had let her husband down, desperate to become pregnant once more.'
Compare this picture of rural gloom with James Goldsmith's sunsplashed life.
He was already the father of two children (Isabel, by his first wife, the Bolivian heiress Isabel Patino who died in childbirth, and Manes, his son by his secretary and mistress Ginette Lery), and he was leading a peripatetic, glamorous life between Paris, London and the Cote d'Azur.
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: serene grace on November 02, 2013, 12:21:56 am
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2482452/Newly-single-Jemima-Khan-attends-Halloween-ball-alongside-ex-Hugh-Grant.html
Title: Re: The 'oldmoney' Goldsmiths
Post by: sandy on November 02, 2013, 01:43:48 am
With John Spencer constantly at her to have the male heir and the visits to the doctors, Frances was probably too exhausted to have an affair.
| i don't know |
Which celebrity chef is the owner of the three Michelin-starred restaurant, The Fat Duck, in Bray, Berkshire, which has been voted the Best Restaurant in the UK for the past six yearsby The Good Food Guide ? | Raymond Blanc Archives - Guide Girl
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Category Archives: Raymond Blanc
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This week Michel Roux’s three-Michelin-starred Waterside Inn restaurant in Bray, Berkshire, hosted a charity dinner welcoming four of the UK’s top chefs.
Brian Turner, Anton Edelmann, John Williams and Raymond Blanc cooked alongside chef patron Alain Roux in aid of the Academy of Culinary Arts’ Chefs Adopt a School Trust and DEBRA , the charity supporting those affected by Epidermolysis Bullosa (EB).
The five-course menu kicked off with Brian Turner’s Severn & Wye smoked eel and apple charlotte with celeriac remoulade; followed by Gressingham duck tortellini with caramelised onion purée cooked by Anton Edelmann, and braised turbot with Champagne sauce, morels and baby leeks from John Williams.
Alain Roux cooked roasted loin of venison in a pastry crust with wild mushrooms, broccoli and Hermitage wine sauce with black currant vinegar, which was followed by Raymond Blanc’s dessert of homemade croustade pastry with oven baked apples, honey and ginger ice cream.
Guests included Her Royal Highness the Countess of Wessex, as well as Michael Portillo, president of DEBRA, and Sara Jayne Stanes, CEO of the Academy of Culinary Arts.
Stanes spoke about the Chefs Adopt a School initiative, concluding with the words of a seven-year-old pupil from an adopted school in Scotland, who thanked Albert Roux in a letter saying his life ‘has changed forever’ as a result of the chef’s visit to his school.
Meanwhile auctioneer Chris Mills helped to raise more than £18,000 in an auction, which included prizes such as a tasting menu at Heston Blumenthal’s Fat Duck, an exclusive dinner party for 15 hosted by Roy Ackermann and Brian Turner, and a two-night stay in the Belgravia suite at the Goring Hotel in London. The proceeds will be split equally between the Academy and DEBRA.
See a picture gallery of the event on Table Talk, Caterer and Hotelkeeper’s social networking forum.
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The AA has announced the shortlist for the 2012 Chefs’ Chef of the Year award, with 15 of the UK’s most celebrated chefs up for the title.
The prestigious accolade is voted for by all UK establishments holding AA Rosettes and this year’s shortlist includes industry heavyweights such as Michel Roux Jnr, Sat Bains and Claude Bosi.
Other chefs nominated for the award are former Catey Chef of the Year winners Angela Hartnett, David Everitt-Matthias and Pierre Koffmann, as well as Michelin-starred chefs Jason Atherton, Daniel Clifford, Simon Rogan and Tom Kitchin. Tom Aikens, Richard Corrigan, Nigel Haworth, Michael Wignall and Jeff Bland complete this year’s shortlist.
“For the AA Chefs’ Chef Award a shortlist is drawn up annually of AA Rosette chefs who have made a strong impact and have positively influenced other chefs, both in the eyes of our inspectors and based on feedback we have received from the industry,” said Giovanna Grossi, AA hotel services group area manager.
“They will have shown continued commitment to their profession and be worthy of recognition for their performance over the past year.”
While establishments are able to add nominees to the shortlist, previous winners are of the award are excluded. Former winners include Michel Roux, Heston Blumenthal, Marco Pierre White, Gordon Ramsay, Raymond Blanc, Marcus Wareing and Andrew Fairlie.
The AA’s Chefs’ Chef Award will be presented at the AA Hospitality Awards on 24 September at the London Hilton Park Lane.
Gordon Ramsay’s latest restaurant, Bread Street Kitchen , is the kind of place only its mother could really love, according to Jay Rayner .
The Observer’s food critic says that while the restaurant at the One New Change development in the City of London may be big, brash and bold, the penthouse pricing, dysfunctional service and pedestrian cooking are a letdown.
Meanwhile Giles Coren , writing in the Times, says Lussmann’s Fish & Grill in St Alban is everything a modern restaurant should be, serving great food and having a serious commitment to sustainability.
The interior but definitely not the food at Busaba Eathai in Bicester Village , Oxfordshire, dazzles Zoe Williams of the Sunday Telegraph, who says the Thai menu simply isn’t good enough.
The Sunday Times’ AA Gill leaves Hedone in Chiswick with a rounded sense of satisfaction and replete wellbeing, scoring Mikael Jonsson’s cooking a perfect five, while the Independent’s John Walsh utterly, utterly, utterly, utterly loves the old-fashioned virtue of Rules in London.
Fay Maschler of the London Evening Standard doesn’t enjoy her lunch at Assemblage in Shoreditch but applauds James Knight-Pacheco , a former TV star from the Restaurant with Raymond Blanc, for opening up on his own.
Finally, Time Out’s Guy Dimond enjoys the tapas at Copita in Soho, the second outlet from the team behind Barrica , so much, he eats his way through the entire menu.
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Brett Graham’s two-Michelin-starred restaurant the Ledbury in London has won yet another award after being named the top restaurant in the UK in the Sunday Times Food List.
The award comes after the Ledbury recently topped both the Zagat and Harden’s surveys for best food in London and after Graham earlier this year won the prestigious Chef of the Year Catey.
The Sunday Times Food List is based on food quality alone, chosen by 8,000 restaurant goers from across the UK and compiled by Harden’s Restaurant Guide in conjunction with Rémy Martin.
Graham commented: “It’s a huge honour to top the list, especially as it comes from such a broad base of customers. This is a testament to everyone in the extremely talented and energetic young team here at the Ledbury.”
Raymond Blanc’s Le Manoir aux Quat’ Saisons in Great Milton, Oxfordshire, came second in the Food List while last year’s winner, Gidleigh Park , placed third.
Gidleigh Park also won the Rémy Martin X.O. Excellence Award for Best All Round Restaurant, while Marcus Wareing at the Berkeley picked up the Coeur de Cognac Award for Best Dessert, and Heston Blumenthal’s Dinner at the Mandarin Oriental received the Rémy Martin V.S.O.P Best Newcomer Award.
Other findings from the Sunday Times Food List, which will publish the top 100 restaurants in Britain in full on Sunday (30 October), include that half of the top 100 restaurants are outside London (up from 40% last year); while Asian restaurants have fallen by half; and there are 31 new entries.
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The 20 countries competing in next year’s World Pastry Cup have been revealed, with a team representing the UK taking part for the first time in eight years.
The prestigious biennial competition, which is known as La Coupe du Monde de la Pâtisserie, will take place in Lyon on 23 and 24 January . It will see 20 countries from around the world compete for the title, each comprising a pastry chef, a chocolate specialist and an ice cream maker.
Each team will have 10 hours to prepare and present a buffet which must include three chocolate desserts; three frozen fruit desserts; an ice sculpture; a chocolate sculpture; a sculpture made from drawn sugar and a dessert on a plate.
Benoit Blin, executive pastry chef at Raymond Blanc’s two-Michelin-starred Le Manoir aux Quat’ Saisons in Oxfordshire, has been selected as the president of the British team. He will be joined by Javier Mercado and Chris Loder, pastry lecturers at Westminster Kingsway College , and Johannes Bonin, pastry chef at the Connaught Hotel .
It is the first time that a UK team is taking part in the World Pastry Cup since 2003 and only the third time the country is represented since its inception in 1989.
“The 2011 Pastry World Cup in Lyon is an exciting and huge opportunity for the UK hospitality industry to demonstrate that the UK pastry and dessert skill is a force to be reckoned with,” said Blin.
“The UK pastry team must and will inspire a new generation of young chefs in the country, so let’s give them all our support during their preparations.”
The 20 competing countries are:
Belgium
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Celebrity chefs continue to dominate the UK’s dining scene, according to the latest edition of The Good Food Guide, which lists Heston Blumenthal , Gordon Ramsay and Raymond Blanc’s restaurants as the top three in the country.
The Good Food Guide, which this year celebrates its 60th anniversary, has named Blumenthal’s three-Michelin-starred Fat Duck in Bray, Berkshire, the top UK restaurant for the third year running awarding it the top score of 10/10.
Ramsay’s three-Michelin-starred flagship restaurant in London came in second place scoring 9/10, with Blanc’s Le Manoir aux Quat’ Saisons in Oxfordshire in third place with a score of 8/10.
The remainder of the Top 10 UK restaurants is dominated by establishments outside of the capital including Simon Rogan’s L’Enclume in Cartmel, Cumbria; Restaurant Nathan Outlaw in Rock, Cornwall; and Restaurant Sat Bains in Nottingham.
“Heston Blumenthal and Gordon Ramsay continue to delight us with their stuff of genius, world class style and truly memorable dining experiences,” comments Elizabeth Carter, consultant editor at The Good Food Guide.
“But we’ve seen significant changes in the UK restaurant scene over the last year. A crop of talent has sprung up all over the country, pushing London restaurants out of the top spots with their culinary delights.”
The Good Food Guide 2011 will be published on 8 September priced £16.99.
UPDATE: The Good Food Guide today released its Top 10 restaurants but industry blogger Chef Hermes got his hands on the list of all 60 restaurants. See list below.
The Good Food Guide 2011 Top 60 restaurants (thanks to Chef Hermes ):
1. The Fat Duck, Bray, Berkshire (10)
2. Gordon Ramsay, Royal Hospital Road, London (9)
3. Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons,Great Milton, Oxfordshire (8)
4. L’Enclume, Cartmel, Cumbria (8)
5. Restaurant Nathan Outlaw,Rock, Cornwall (8)
6. Restaurant Sat Bains, Nottingham, Nottinghamshire (8)
7. Marcus Wareing at the Berkeley, London (8)
8. Le Champignon Sauvage, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire (8)
9. Pied-à-Terre, London (8)
10. The Square, London (8)
11. Hibiscus, London (8)
12. Alain Ducasse at the Dorchester, London (8)
13. Adam Simmonds at Danesfield House, Marlow, Buckinghamshire (8)
14. Whatley Manor, Easton Grey, Wiltshire (8)
15. Le Gavroche, London (8)
16. Tom Aikens, London (8)
17. Restaurant Martin Wishart, Edinburgh, Scotland (8)
18. The Waterside Inn, Bray,Berkshire (7)
19. Bohemia, St Helier, Jersey (7)
20. Fraiche, Oxton, Merseyside (7)
21. L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon, London (7)
22. Murano, London (7)
23. Anthony’s Restaurant, Leeds, Yorkshire (7)
24. Fischer’s Baslow Hall, Baslow, Derbyshire (7)
25. Gidleigh Park, Chagford, Devon (7)
26. Robert Thompson at the Hambrough, Ventnor, Isle of Wight (7)
27. Midsummer House, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire (7)
28. Tyddyn Llan, Llandrillo, Wales (7)
29. The Ledbury, London (7)
30. The Crown at Whitebrook, Whitebrook, Wales (7)
31. The Pass, Lower Beeding, West Sussex (7)
32. Mr Underhill’s, Ludlow, Shropshire (7)
33. Michael Wignall at the Latymer, Bagshot, Surrey (7)
34. Hambleton Hall, Hambleton, Leicestershire & Rutland (7)
35. Andrew Fairlie at Gleneagles, Auchterarder, Scotland (7)
36. Simon Radley at the Chester Grosvenor, Chester, Cheshire (7)
37. The Creel, St Margaret’s Hope, Scotland (7)
38. Harry’s Place, Great Gonerby, Lincolnshire (7)
39. The Old Vicarage, Ridgeway, Derbyshire (7)
40. The Greenhouse, London (6)
41. The Kitchin, Edinburgh, Scotland (6)
42. Purnell’s, Birmingham, West Midlands (6)
43. Artichoke, Amersham, Buckinghamshire (6)
44. The Sportsman, Whitstable, Kent (6)
45. Club Gascon, London (6)
46. Ramsons, Ramsbottom, Greater Manchester (6)
47. The Yorke Arms, Ramsgill, Yorkshire (6)
48. La Bécasse, Ludlow, Shropshire (6)
49. The Hand & Flowers, Marlow, Buckinghamshire (6)
50. Galvin at Windows, London (6)
51. Chez Bruce, London (6)
52. Northcote, Langho, Lancashire (6)
53. Read’s, Faversham, Kent (6)
54. The Cellar, Anstruther, Scotland (6)
55. Arbutus, London (6)
57. The Peat Inn, Peat Inn, Scotland (6)
58. The Capital, London (6)
59. Seven Park Place, London (6)
60. Alimentum, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire (6)
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St Patrick’s Day clearly doesn’t just signify the luck of the Irish and it’s been a blessed day for one of our favourite French friends too – Raymond Blanc .
After breaking his leg and ankle in six places following a fall down the stairs at his Oxfordshire home earlier this month, Blanc was forced to have two operations to set the broken bones.
But after more than two weeks, he is finally leaving the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford today.
The chef patron of the two-Michelin-starred Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons said while he had been looked after exceptionally well at the hospital, he was thrilled to see the back of it.
“I’m thrilled to announce that I will be leaving the John Radcliffe today which coincides with the 26th Anniversary of Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons,” he said.
“I shall recuperate at Le Manoir as I have to stay off my feet for another 12 weeks. However, this means that I can work with my team – lead by Philip Newman-Hall director general manager and my two brilliant generals – executive chef Gary Jones and chef pattisier Benoit Blin.”
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Everybody loves Raymond Blanc but his latest tirade has left even one of his biggest fans (moi) slightly bewildered.
To grab a few headlines and promote his latest cookery show, Raymond Blanc’s Kitchen Secrets which kicked off on the BBC last night, the French chef has lashed out at the TV industry for sensationalising food.
The two-Michelin-starred chef patron of Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons in Oxfordshire said he had refused offers to appear on reality TV shows including ITV’s Hell’s Kitchen and the BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing .
“I did a lot of shows in the 1980s, but I chose to stop because TV started sensationalising food,” he told the TV Times .
“I don’t want to be remembered as a prima ballerina; nor do I want to beat people around the head. That’s not cuisine – it’s sensationalism!”
Raymond clearly has a point here but has he forgotten his very own TV show The Restaurant which gives people with absolutely no hospitality training or experience the chance to run their own restaurant?
Isn’t that just a tiny bit of sensationalism too?
Raymond Blanc last night named JJ Goodman and James Hopkins as the winning couple in the third series of The Restaurant .
But while the pair, who ran the Summer House restaurant during the show, were over the moon, the public reaction to their win has been less than kind.
JJ and James, whose restaurant concept is food paired with cocktails, beat Christopher Hackett and Nathan Gooding to the title of The Restaurant . During the series’ final both couples were asked to serve a banquet for Lord and Lady Arran and their guests at their stately home in Devonshire.
While Chris’s menu went down well with the Arrans’ guests, JJ’s lack of experience in the kitchen proved a disaster, with his risotto tasting like “wallpaper paste” according to judge Sarah Willingham, and his unset sorbet being turned into a Champagne cocktail.
However, Blanc praised the pair for their consistency. “One of you has got something, something which kept you consistently in the competition,” he said announcing they were the winners.
“It is the idea which truly excites you. And even in the final, concept saved you.”
The public reaction to JJ and James winning The Restaurant has been anything but supportive, with the Twitter brigade having a real moan about the results.
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David Moore, owner of the Michelin-starred Pied à Terre and L’Autre Pied restaurants in London, is looking to expand.
While it’s still early days and nothing’s been finalised Moore has confirmed he is on the look out for new sites.
“We’re looking for opportunities in the current market but it’s too early to say more than that,” he says.
He has appointed property agents Restaurant Property to assist him in his search.
Earlier this year, Moore backed a new venture in Harrogate , north Yorkshire from Tom van Zeller , a former chef at the two Michelin-starred Pied à Terre.
He has also been the resident front-of-house expert on Raymond Blanc’s BBC2 series The Restaurant , which will return to our screens next month.
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Which Swedish actress has been married twice - to Peter Sellers in 1964 and to Slim Jim Phantom in 1984 ? | Euro Weekly News - Costa de Almeria 24 - 30 September 2015 Issue 1577 by Euro Weekly News Media S.A. - issuu
YOUR PAPER, YOUR VOICE, YOUR OPINION
Man dies in Technology Park
Photo by Juan Diego / YouTube SC
- 30- September 2015 ISSUENN . 1555 //24 23 29 APRIL 2015 ISSUE O.O1577
WWW.EUROWEEKLYNEWS.COM
Military anniversary Government representatives honour Spanish Legion MINISTER of Defence Pedro Morenes attended the 95th anniversary of the Alvarez de Sotomayor Spanish Legion base in Viator, along with 3,000 others. See Page 2
Red Cross closer to Brits Pilot scheme to be launched in Alicante BRITONS living in Spain will have easier access to the services of the Red
Cross following an agreement signed by the British Embassy. See Page 4
Water transfer Much-needed supply to arrive shortly
EXPLOSION probably caused by a build-up of gases in fuel tank By Linda Hall A welder was killed by an explosion while soldering at Almeria City’s Technology Park (PITA). Two others suffered burns affecting 60 and 80 per cent their bodies. The two initial blasts were followed by minor explosions and a fire which the emergency services extinguished within an hour. The area was cordoned off but only adjoin-
ing buildings were evacuated. The men, working for a subcontractor, were soldering the principal fuel tank at the Hintes Oil Europa recycling plant. This was empty and the explosion was probably caused by a build-up of gases, witnesses told police investigators and the Junta’s Health and Safety inspectors. The worst-affected of the three men died at the scene. His two fellow workers, aged 32 and 35, were taken to Torrecardenas
Hospital’s Intensive Care Unit but later flown by air ambulance to the Burns Unit at Virgen del Rocio Hospital in Sevilla. Others of the 10 people present at the time received first aid at the scene. Two were treated for smoke inhalation at the La Cañada health centre but did not need further attention, sources from the 112 emergency services revealed. National Police are heading the enquiry into the incident.
A 10-CUBIC-hectometre water transfer has been approved by the Spanish Government and via the Tajo-Segura pipeline to areas in Almeria, Murcia and Alicante. See Page 6
Respecting fish Fish farm must respect and protect wildlife A FISH farm is to be installed 3.2 kilometres off San Juan de los Terreros (Pulip)
to raise an annual 3,000 tons of gilthead bream and sea bass. See Page 14
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LOCAL NEWS
US gives food a healthy boost AMERICAN medical journal Neurology has given Almeria produce another boost. An article confirmed
that lycopene in tomatoes and red peppers can cut the risk of a stroke by up to 60 per cent.
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NEWS
Minister attends legion celebrations GENERAL honoured for his outstanding work
Blue note stone MACAEL-BASED marble company Cosentino is launching its Silestone quartz work surfacing in a new colour, Acqua Fraccaroli. The limited edition turquoise tone represents nature, health, happiness and wellbeing, the company has said.
Defendant dismisses defence three times IF at first you don’t succeed, try, try and try again! A Viator car salesman, who is accused of defrauding 40 clients of €1 mil-
lion has dismissed his defence for the third time. His trial has been postp o n e d w h ile an o th er lawyer is assigned to him.
FIGHTING MEN: Soldiers of the Spanish Legion based in Viator. By Linda Hall THE Spanish Legion celebrated its 95th anniversary at the Alvarez de Sotomayor base in Viator.
A military parade was presided over by Spain’s Defence Minister Pedro Morenes and attended by more than 3,000 people. The event brought home how well the legion is loved by Spanish society, Morenes
declared. “That is an enormous reward for our dedication and work,” he said. The minister also presented Lt Gen Agustin-Muñoz Grandes with the prestigious Spanish Legion Prize.
NEWS
24 - 30 September 2015 / Costa de Almería
EWN
SPAIN marks the day when Christopher Columbus set foot in the Americas
Alexander Tihonov shutterstock Alfonso de Tomas shutterstock
El Dia de la Hispanidad celebrates favourite son
A MOTORIST drove 19 kilometres in the wrong direction on the A-7 before he was stopped by the Guardia Civil. The Roquetas resident was four times over the limit when breath-tested.
Fiesta time Formally announced H U E R C A L - O V E R A’ S annual fiestas in October will be formally announced by Dr Alejandro Bonetti Munnigh. Head of Digestive Medicine at the Inmaculada Hospital he is also honorary consul to his birthplace, the Dominican Republic
Statue muse Inspired creations ALMERIA-BORN designer Daniel Cerdan will be showing during London Fashion Week for the third time. His creations are inspired by Our Lady of Solitude’s robes in Almeria’s Santiago church, he said.
Clean-up sea Divers wanted
King at match TRIBUTE: Colomares Castle Benalmadena, Malaga, is dedicated to Christopher Columbus.
By John Smith OCTOBER 12 is said to be the day that Christopher Columbus first set foot in the Americas and the Day of the Hispanics is a public holiday which celebrates his fantastic achievement. A special parade is held in La Plaza de Colon in Madrid, led by the Spanish military attended by the King and Royal Family. Foreign diplomats and the presidents of the autonomous governments are invited to attend. The King watches the raising of the Spanish national flag in the cen-
500 million is the estimated number of Spanish speakers throughout the world. Whilst the majority are in Latin America, there is also a sizeable population in the USA and the Philippines as well as a small number in Equatorial Guinea.
tre of Madrid and he and the prime minister plus the other invited guests view a march-past of military units and vehicles. The air force performs aerobatics above the route and displays yellow and red smoke to represent the Spanish flag. All of this is covered nationally on TV and through the internet. Different versions of the event with different names take place all over Latin America and the second Monday in October is Columbus Day, a national holiday in the USA. In Spain, it is also the feast day of Our Lady of the Pillar, the patroness of Spain’s Guardia Civil.
Basketball triumph The King, wearing a Spanish scarf, travelled to France to watch the Spanish king of basketball Pau Gasol score 25 points as Spain won the gold medal at EuroBasket on September 20 automatically qualifying them for the 2016 Olympics.
Quote of the Week We don’t need an apprentice in the White House, we have one already.” Republican presidential candidate Scott Walker on Donald Trump
this year. This will then be exported through Almeria and Carboneras. The mining rights have now been transferred to Minas de Alquife, announced Jose Sanchez Maldonado who heads
the regional government’s Employment, Business and Commerce department. He recently met company representatives and the mayors from towns in the area, confirming the mine could reopen.
The process was “complicated” Sanchez Maldonado admitted, and included negotiating with Spain’s rail track operator Adif to reopen a disused branch line for transporting the ore. If Minas de Alquife’s predic-
Some friend Credit card fraud A GARRUCHA woman was arrested for credit card fraud after spending €1,091 on internet purchases. She is accused of stealing a friend’s details which she discovered while visiting her last March.
Poverty risk
Iron mine provides golden opportunity A GRANADA Province mine could mean jobs for Almeria. Four years after plans to reopen Alquife mine in Granada’s Marquesado del Zenete area were first discussed, iron ore could be extracted by the end of
THE Promar and Adraventura associations in Adra are looking for 30 altruistic divers who will help to clear the seabed of rubbish swept along by the September 7 flash flood.
tions are correct, the mines will produce 4 million tons of ore a year, creating direct employment for 350 people and 700 indirect jobs after investing around €250 million in the area.
Above national average ALMOST 29 per cent of Almeria City residents are at risk from poverty according to the National Statistics Office (INE), com par ed t o t he 22.2 per cent national average.
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Motoring 83 - 84
Sport 86 - 88
BRITONS living in Spain will have easier access to the services and support of the Red Cross. A nationwide agreement was recently signed by the British Ambassador, Simon Manley, and the National Vice-president of the Spanish Red Cross, Javier Gimeno. This aims to improve the quality of life for the most vulnerable expatriates and facilitate their access to Red Cross services.
It also seeks to encourage people in the British community to volunteer for Red Cross activities and promote collaboration with other British community associations. The partnership, signed on Monday September 21 at the headquarters of the Red Cross, will be piloted in Alicante Province, which has a large British community. The aim is then to extend it nationwide, enabling British communities across Spain to access Red Cross services and become involved in their projects.
Simon Manley said: “People in the British communities have a wealth of experience and skills, and I really hope that this new partnership with the Red Cross will encourage more people to volunteer their talents and support for the benefit of others.” Pamela Twissel-Cross, Welfare Officer for the Royal British Legion who attended the signing, commented: “I’m looking forward to working more closely with the Red Cross as it will give me a chance to help British nationals get additional support.”
NEWS
24 - 30 September 2015 / Costa de Almería
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Safety comes first plan for next summer Photo by Rafa Garzon
WARNING flags and Twitter info advise on sea conditions By Linda Hall THE season is over but Nijar is making plans for summer 2016. Nijar’s mayor Esperanza Perez and the regional gove r n m e n t ’s d e l e g a t e t o Almeria Province Sonia Ferrer are studying how best to ensure safety for swimmers. Four of the eight people who drowned while swimming in Almeria this summer were on beaches in the Cabo de Gata-Nijar national park. N i j a r To w n H a l l b e g a n using warning flags to advise of sea conditions on seven principal non-urban beaches and coves at the end of August. “We know that our surroundings and beaches are a unique asset,
GENOVESES: Beauty spot but has strong currents. which is why we must find ways of offering excellent services,” Perez said. “ We a r e a l s o p r o v i d i n g daily information via Twitter on the state of the sea at @ P l a y a N i j a r a n d @ Tu r i smoNijar.” The area’s wild or virgin beaches in the Cabo de Gata-Nijar national park are prized because they are untouched by development
Church property, sign here, please! THE municipally-owned Los Molinos community centre in Almeria City is listed as Church property. The anomaly was pointed out last year by former councillor Deborah Seron. Los Molinos was built as a school by the Madrid Press Association in 1891 after disastrous flooding and acquired by the municipal corporation two years later. It was registered by the Church in the 1990s, thanks to a soon-to-be amended law allowing the ecclesiastical authorities to acquire properties of uncertain ownership with nothing more than a bishop’s signature. The confusion arose because the Church has other properties nearby, city hall explained last year. Although still registered as belonging to Almeria diocese, the matter is in hand, said City Planning councillor Ramon Fernandez-Pacheco. There would be no problem in reclaiming it as municipal property, he insisted.
and are less crowded than urban beaches and Playa de Los Genoveses was recently voted Spain’s best beach. But they are also less safe because they do not have onsite lifeguards and can also be dangerous because of treacherous currents and undertow when the fierce Poniente and Levante winds blow.
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Almeria’s nurses in great demand UNIVERSITY unable to take any more applicants
HEALTH STUDIES: Almeria’s amongst the best
TRANSFER: Government approves request despite objections
Water on its way PIPELINE is lifeline By Linda Hall ALMERIA UNIVERSITY’S Health Studies department has had to hang up a ‘No Vacancies’ sign. The 130 places for Nursing and 65 for Physiotherapy were snapped up between June and July, making this the most sought-
after faculty on the campus. There are still 672 applicants on the waiting list for Nursing and 488 for Physiotherapy. Each year the department also receives requests from hospitals around Europe asking to be put in touch with newly-qualified graduates. “The training offered here is very good,” said Carmen
Gonzalez Canalejo, Dean of the Health Studies faculty. Not only are there more than five times more applicants than places, but the cut-off mark for admission is extremely high with 9.28 out of 10 needed for Nursing last year and a 10 for Physiotherapy. “This year will be the same,” Gonzalez Canalejo said.
THE central government has authorised a 10-cubic hectometre water transfer from the Tajo-Segura pipeline for Almeria, Murcia and Alicante. The much-needed transfer will bring water to their 2.5 million inhabitants and cover the needs of Castilla-La Mancha, the Environment ministry announced.
The inland autonomous region has opposed the transfer, claiming that if this amount of water were to be released from the Entrepeñas and Buendia reservoirs in Guadalajara and Cuenca its own needs would not be covered. It threatened this summer to challenge the transfer and it appeared that another “water war”
like those of the 1990s was brewing. Undeterred, the government has gone ahead, citing earlier agreements that transfers could go ahead while as the Entrepeñas and Buendia reserves did not fall below 304 cubic hectometres. At present they contain 351.57 hectometres, prompting Madrid to give the go ahead.
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Bone-marrow donors doubled VOLUNTEERS helped to increase the figures By Linda Hall ALMERIA Province is having a record year for potential bone-marrow donors. A total of 385 people came forward in 2014 but between January and midSeptember 924 have already allowed their blood type to be forward to Spain’s Bone Marrow Donors Registry (REDMO). This linked to other international clearing centres where donor’s blood-
types are matched to patients in need of transplants. Volunteers from the Spanish Legion (Brileg) based in Viator helped to increase this year’s figures when they answered a call from a fellow soldier whose nephew was dying from leukaemia. The public is also now more aware of the need for donors, said Arif Laarej, the head of Almeria Province’s Blood Transfusion Centre.
NEWS
Fire damage repaired THE Junta de Almeria announced a €150,000 reforestation programme for the fire-damaged Sierra de Gador. Cristobal Rodriguez, mayor of Alhama de Almeria was “delighted” to hear this, he said, as the Sierra de Gador was of great tourist importance to Alhama de Almeria. The area suffered badly in March last year, when 2,300 hectares of land were ravaged by fire and Alhama de Almeria was particularly affected. The woodland had an incalculable value with pines more than 80 years old, Rodriguez said. The Junta plans to replant 34.5 hectares of pinewoods east of the town which would help to restore the area, Rodriguez predicted.
All dressed up and somewhere to go as filming gears up in Almeria SOME extras engaged for the Game of Thrones sequences shot in Almeria have already been called for costume fittings. This was several days earlier than anticipated, as they had been told to be ready for September 24 after auditioning last July. More than 10,000 people turned up at Alme-
ria City’s Moises Ruiz sports complex, hoping to be one of the 1,400 men and women needed for the sixth series of the HBO hit. As it was, the production company took on 1,800 men and 800 women - 300 more than originally announced. Location shooting is due to start on October 10 and is due to last two weeks.
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Youths sentenced for animal cruelty BOYS wanted to attack and kill donkey during school break By Linda Hall TWO underage boys were found guilty of trying to beat a donkey to death last year. An Almeria juvenile court ordered the boys, aged 16 and 17, to attend a re-education day centre for 12 months after their parents and the Public Prosecutor reached agreement before the hearing. The donkey was kept near
the Los Almendros school where the boys discussed attacking and killing it with other pupils. Despite knowing that the donkey was weak and had an injured hoof, they began kicking and hitting it during a break, the Public Prosecutor said. A teacher saw them and contacted the local Animal Protection Association, who then informed the Guardia Civil.
The badly-injured donkey, now given the name Capitan, was taken to the Aznalcollar (Sevilla) animal sanctuary where it has now recovered. Meanwhile the Guardia Civil traced the two boys as well as the father of one of them who was also the donkey’s owner. The investigation remains open while the authorities determine the adult’s part in ill-treating the animal.
Adra asks for assistance ADRA council put politics aside and voted to request official help following this month’s floods. All parties supported, without debate or criticism, the motion put forward at an emergency plenary meeting that called on the Junta de Andalucia and the national government for assistance.
Both will be asked to make funds available for all residents affected in the September 7 flash flood. “Our proposal includes help that will cover damage to personal belongings, industrial equipment as well as stocks and supplies in businesses, shops and agricultural installations,” municipal sources said.
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EURO WOMEN PAGE
Strong, confident, fair and just Our Euro Women series is featuring women who have made a success of their lives in Spain. These outstanding ladies have been shattering glass ceilings whether in business, charity work or sports. Patti Senker makes a lasting impression on everyone she meets. IT’S not very often in our lives that we are privileged enough to meet somebody that makes a lasting impression on us, a person whose genuine, delightfully modest character shines through, to make you reassess what life is all about. Patti Senker is one such person. Patti came to live in Spain with her husband Michael some 11 years ago. Originally from Berkshire in England, she and Michael had travelled extensively and ran their own business before falling in love with Mijas Costa, near Malaga, and the Spanish way of life. “I love many things Spain has to offer: the food, the climate, people, but not least the Spanish bureaucracy; that’s a constant source of entertainment,” she said with a knowing smile. Patti has a wonderful downto-earth sense of humour. She is amused by the little things in life that make her laugh, and her Libran values of justice and balance in her day-to-day life ensure that she, and everyone around her, enjoy theirs. That’s not to say by any stretch of the imagination that this lady’s days are full of nonsensical merrymaking, far from it. Patti has devoted the latter half of her life to easing the suffering and making the lives of those around her, and the less fortunate, better. Her work with the Rhys Daniels Trust in the UK has taken up a good deal of her time for the past 15 years. The trust provides accommodation for parents of seriously-ill children all over the country. “We
DEVOTED: Patti Senker works to ease suffering and making the lives of those around her, and the less fortunate, better.
Helping others less fortunate By Steve Walsh
I just want to be the best person I can be and I admire strong people”
Fact file Age: Over 21 Profession: Jack of all trades, Master of none Married to: Michael Children: Daughter Sarah, 27 Nature or nurture: Nurture
Talk Radio Europe (RTE) once a year as well. I asked Patti what drives her to devote so much to time helping other people. She replied: “I just want to be the best person I can be. The difference between good and exceptional is going that extra mile. I admire strong people. I learned from an experience
The difference between good and exceptional is going that extra mile”
Where from originally: Berkshire work with six major specialist hospitals in the UK that treat babies and children suffering from cancer, bone marrow transplants, major operations and the like.” Her fundraising helps to pay for the parents’ accommodation needs when the hospital is far from a child’s home, and ensures that families stay close. When she has a spare moment - not that she has a spare moment - Patti also volunteers for the animal charity PAD locally, taking care of and sourcing homes for, abandoned or abused animals.
Lives now: La Cala hills, Mijas, for 11 years Pets: ‘What-what’ the Dog Languages: English and Spanish Book or TV: Book Favourite title: To Kill a Mockingbird
Her own dog ‘What-what’ can attest to her having an exceptionally big heart, as he is a rescued dog
himself. As if that wasn’t enough, she even squeezes in enough time to help manage a Live Charity Telethon on
years ago when I allowed myself to be forced out of a job I liked that you have to fight for what is right.” Being strong, confident, fair and just, as well as kind, gentle, with the ability to listen to differing points of view with a great deal of patience are typical Libran traits, something that Patti has in abundance. However, even with all her superpowers and wonderful personality, she does have her weaknesses: “Chocolate! I can’t resist Chocolate,” she said with a smile.
Do you know a Euro Woman? If you do please drop us a line at [email protected] giving full contact details and why you feel they deserve to be honoured. As well as being featured in the EWN a book is being produced for Christmas with all profits going to charitable organisations.
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Richard Crossley
Fish farm must respect and protect wildlife IMPORTANT area for storm petrels and shearwaters By Linda Hall A FISH farm is to be installed 3.2 kilometres off San Juan de los Terreros (Pulpi). An annual 3,000 tons of gilthead bream and sea bass will be raised in the 11 3 - h e c t a r e i n st a lla tio n an d proces se d a t p l a n t s in P u lp i an d Aguilas (Murcia). The Junta stipulated that the installation should not be put in place between April and October, given the im-
p o rta n ce o f this prote c te d a re a to shearwaters and storm petrels during this period. Once built, maintenance and the presence of boats and crews mu s t b e k e p t to a minimum during these months. Special attention must also be paid to marine wildlife liable to become entangled in the netting of the 23 cages. Should this happen, operatives must advise the regional government and the Threatened Species Recovery Centre at Almohallas. Illumination should
be kept to a minimum at night owing to its negative impact on wildlife. The regional government has also banned the ‘pinger’ alarms that would have a negative impact on the population of bottlenose dolphins. Any interaction between fish farm personnel and the dolphins inevitably drawn to the area is to be avoided, the Junta stressed. They should also ensure that their boats do not collide with the pilot whales sometimes found in the area.
NEWS
STORM PETREL: Found off Terreros.
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New grapes bring back old custom Jeffrey Keeton
VILLAGE celebrates the wine harvest
CUSTOM: Treading the grapes in the traditional way. By Linda Hall WINE-PRODUCING areas are bringing in their grapes, ready for pressing. Some, like Alboloduy (population 642), have revived the tradition of organising a fiesta where the first grapes of the season are trodden in the old way. They were brought into town accompanied by the fies-
tas queen and her attendants as well as the children and young people who would later tread the grapes, symbolising a continuing tradition handed down from their elders. The small town is celebrating the wine harvest for the fifth year running in an initiative backed by the Almeria Diputacion. “The vendimia wine harvest festival is one of the
province’s most important traditions,” said Carmen Belen Lopez, who heads the provincial assembly’s department of Communities, Consortiums and Civil Defence. This revival is particularly important for small municipalities that would not otherwise find it easy to promote themselves and make their towns and villages known, Lopez said.
EWN
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SANTIAGO WAY: Pilgrims near Astorga.
Santiago Way case solved BANK worker’s suspicions trapped killer By Linda Hall AN employee of the Almeria-based Cajamar bank clinched the case against the killer of Denise Thiem. The worker at the bank’s Astorga (Leon) branch became suspicious after Miguel Angel Muñoz came in to change $1,200 last April. The disappearance of the 41-year-old from Arizona from the Santiago Way near Astorga
was fresh in everyone’s mind and she decided to photocopy some of the notes. Muñoz was questioned and subsequently released by the police although they kept him under surveillance. Months later when the US embassy in Madrid and the FBI became involved they re-examined the evidence against him. They found that the photocopied dollar bills’ serial numbers matched those that Thiem withdrew from her bank in the US.
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Didn’t see trouble PRIEST ignored demands for money Christian Schettelker www.manoftaste.de
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CRYSTAL BALL: Not always a reliable source. By Linda Hall A PROFESSIONAL fortuneteller received a nine-month prison sentence for attempted blackmail. The clairvoyant from Gerona (Catalunya) called the parish priest in Tijola and said she would release compromising photos of him with a churchgoer unless he
paid her €18,000. She rang several times, always with the same threat. “You know how this works,” she told him. “You’re asked for money and you pay up.” Unless he transferred the €18,000 she would call the bishop, she said. Knowing the photos did not exist, the priest contacted police. During the Almeria City hearing,
the woman had contradicted herself on several points, the judge said in her summing up. In contrast the priest’s story was “much more solid” and coherent, especially as he had nothing to gain from reporting the fortune-teller to the police. “On the contrary it caused significant harm to his honour and way of life,” she pointed out.
Press Release
Exhibition of photographs by Almería artist Juan Lores in Mojácar centre SUNDAY September 13 saw the opening of the photography exhibition of Almeria artist Juan Lores and visitors will be able to appreciate the appeal of his works at the Mojácar Art Centre (Centro de Arte) until October 15. Juan Lores was born in the city of Almeria in 1975 and from the age of 20 he has had a great passion for photography. He gained a Higher Technical Degree in Audiovisual Media and for the last 25 years has learned and practised all types of photographic techniques, from developing rolls of film to digital photography. The technique used in his photographs is to capture the precise moments of time in the surroundings without digitally manipulating the image. He works in a variety of areas including: landscapes, portraits, still life, ar-
chitecture, underwater photography, wildlife, etc. All his images are framed in a personal working style with harmonic compositions and visual balance. The landscapes shown in the exhibition are of the most beautiful parts of the province of Almeria. We see its splendour in the original, unaltered photographs. Among the highlights of the exhibition are his landscapes of Cabo de Gata. The Mojácar Art Centre is situated overlooking the Mojácar Fuente and can be visited from Tuesday to Friday from 9:00 to 14:00 and Saturdays and Sundays from 10:00 to 14:00. In 2012, the Picasso library in Almería City was one of the places that hosted an exhibition of this Almeria photographer which turned out to be a resounding success.
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NEWS
Gay couple question judge’s attitude NUDISM not exhibitionism claim
INCIDENT: Torregarcia beach without the summer crowds. By Linda Hall RICARDO and Luis de Frutos complained about the “homophobic attitude” of the judge investigating their case.
The married couple have been charged with exhibitionism and causing bodily harm after an incident on Almeria City’s Torregarcia beach last year. “The lady judge’s posi-
tion is entrenched and clearly homophobic and we’re not afraid to say so,” they declared before entering the Almeria court. “It’s intolerable that this should drag on for more than a year,” Ricardo de Frutos said. The couple were preparing to swim in the nude in the summer of 2014 when they claim they were insulted and attacked by a man and his son of 25. Luis’s eyebrow later needed four stitches and Ricardo, whose ribs were covered in bruises and grazes, passed out.
The younger man is also accused of causing bodily harm but the couple’s defence lawyers claim that the charges against his clients are discriminatory. Nudism is not an offence and does not constitute exhibitionism although the judge has stated that nudism is not authorised on the Torregarcia beach. Meanwhile the case drags on and the couple admitted that this year they had been incapable of returning to the beach. “Every time we think about it, we just cannot overcome our anxiety,” they said.
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Torturous start to university day BUSES too crowded, students complain Photo by Neru
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ALMERIA UNIVERSITY: Twenty-five buses cover the routes during peak periods. By Linda Hall LUIS ROGELION RODRIGUEZCOMENDEDOR, Almeria City’s mayor, apparently forgot that early rising is bad for the young. The 2015-2016 academic year began with the complaints of overcrowded buses from students heading for Almeria University. The mayor countered by asking that students
arrive early, despite the findings of Oxford University researchers who claim that starting work before 9am is ‘torture’ for the under-55s and that the school day should begin at 10 or 11am. “Twenty-five buses cover the university routes during peak periods and we could prevent rush- hour crowds if students set out sooner,’ the mayor said. Transport Councillor Maria Vazquez agreed with Rodriguez-Comendedor.
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NEWS
Dog dumped in park A 36-YEAR-OLD El Ejido man has been arrested and charged with abandoning a domestic animal. The Guardia Civil were notified after he was seen in Santa Maria del Aguila-El Ejido carrying a small dog which he left in the park before running back to his car. “The dog tried desperately to return to the vehicle but was finally abandoned,” Guardia Civil sources said. The dog was taken to the Pechina Animal Shelter and although it was not microchipped the Guardia Civil succeeded in tracing the owner. The case has been referred to the courts.
ROAD UP: Diversions will be in place.
Road improvements in Cuevas under way LONG-AWAITED project will take five months By Linda Hall WORK has started in Cuevas del Almanzora on improving the town’s streets. The work, partly financed by the Almeria Diputacion, has begun in the Villaricos neighbourhood and will continue as far as the town cen-
tre over a period of five months. Mayor of Cuevas, Antonio Fernandez Liria, and the Councillor for Public Works, Jose Maria Bascuñana, expressed satisfaction when they visited the newly-begun roadworks. Residents had been re-
questing this for a long time, they said. Existing infrastructure will be improved, including street lighting, the drainage system and the electricity and water supplies. Roads will also be resurfaced in the course of the €420,000 project.
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NEWS EXTRA
Card sharp THREE-QUARTERS of the province’s 71,142 pensioners use the regional government’s Sesentaycinco card. This entitles them to rapid access to discounts as well as social benefits and programmes.
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NEWS
No more paddling through San Isidro LOW-LYING and vulnerable to flooding
Bus mishap THREE passengers were injured in Adra when their bus overtook a digger turning left. Two were taken to the health centre, but a woman of 87 was admitted to Hospital de Poniente.
NIJAR: Esperanza Perez (r) and Tonibel Sanchez (l) with council operatives. By Linda Hall OPENINGS to storm drains are being enlarged and added to prevent flooding in Nijar’s San Isidro district. This neighbourhood is one of the town’s lowest-lying areas and is especially vulnerable during periods of torrential rain. The runoff from surrounding areas collects there and water accumulates at the point where the Avenida de la Constitucion meets Calle Brazil and Ronda
de San Isidro. “The drainage issue was not taken into account when the boulevard was designed and built,” said Town Planning councillor Tonibel Sanchez. She and Nijar’s mayor Esperanza Perez recently inspected €6,275 modifications that will allow rain to drain away more quickly to the drain system. “We knew from past experience that it was necessary to take urgent action after observing how easily the area can become flooded,” Sanchez said.
Beach accident CARBONERAS police and Proteccion Civil volunteers rescued a 65-year-old woman who broke her leg at Playa de Los Muertos. She was stretchered to a waiting ambulance and admitted to El Toyo Hospital.
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LOCAL TRADE: Sampling the wares.
NEWS
INAUGURATION: Cookery workshop for budding cooks.
Old market starts new life ENCOURAGING start-ups and commerce with municipal aid programme By Linda Hall HUERCAL-OVERA’S old covered market no longer lies
empty. Unused after a €1.5 million makeover by the previous corporation, it has been renamed Comercial Kilometro 0
with a grand opening attended by approximately 1,000 people. The renovated market building houses 37 businesses paying a minimal €75 rent for stalls. Twenty six are new businesses in a town hall initiative aimed at assisting start-ups and boosting local businesses. The market’s ground floor is occupied by food stalls with the upstairs area covering everything from clothes and photographic equipment to musical instruments and a canine boutique.
“This follows the same line we have taken in encouraging local trade and setting up a municipal aid programme that makes €2,500 available for start-ups,” said Trade and Employment councillor Monica Navarro. Twelve of the new stallholders had applied for this funding which has already benefited 120 local businesses, the councillor revealed. “We pioneered this type of initiative which has since been copied by other towns in the province.”
NEWS
24 - 30 September 2015 / Costa de Almería
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A great governor HAS helped to stabilise her country’s economy
ELVIRA NABIULLINA: Named top Central Bank governor.
RUSSIAN’S Elvira Nabiullina has been named top Central Bank governor by Euromoney magazine for helping stabilise her country’s economy at a time of collapsing oil prices and Western sanctions.
Hoax call TWO Russian TV hosts have admitted they made a hoax call to singer Sir Elton John, tricking him into thinking President Vladimir Putin had called him to discuss gay rights.
Lower rent THE rental prices for Moscow apartments have dropped 8 per cent this year. Last year, the average cost of renting a one-room place was between 32,500 rubles and 33,000 rubles (€435 and €445), now it is nearer the equivalent of €400 a month.
Increased crime RUSSIA looks set to see an annual rise in the crime rate for the first time in several years, after reported crimes rose sharply by 6.7 per cent in the first eight months of the
A CAR SHARING scheme has launched in Moscow this week as part of efforts by the City Hall to ease the capital’s infamous traffic jams. The new system, called Delimobil aims to be the biggest car sharing system.
Warehouse sales RUSSIA is experiencing a rise in the sale of warehouse properties thanks to falling prices and increasing demand from discount retailers looking to develop their businesses during the crisis.
HIV drugs RUSSIA’S HIV patients have criticised news that foreign HIV medication will be replaced with domestic alternatives saying these are ineffective and there is a large shortage of drugs available.
Car sharing
APARTMENTS: Rental prices have dropped.
year, with almost 1.5 million crimes committed so far.
Syrian hub RUSSIAN helicopters have been spotted at a Syrian airfield. The USA said this suggests preparations to establish an air operations hub in Syria, where an Americanled coalition is carrying out air strikes against Islamic State militants.
Hacker’s guilt A RUSSIAN man has pleaded guilty for his involvement in what is being called the largest computer hacking scheme ever prosecuted in the USA, for compromising more than 160 million credit card numbers.
Shorter hours RUSSIAN companies say they are not cutting jobs but instead, to survive the crisis, are shortening worker’s hours or reducing salaries.
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World’s largest clothing retailer keeps growing with 94 new stores 6,777
By John Smith ON September 16, Inditex which owns Zara announced that both sales and profits have increased once again, in part thanks to its expansion into Asia. Now recognised as the world’s biggest apparel retailer it has grown phenomenally from its founding as re-
NORTHERN ROCK: Had to be nationalised in 2007.
Customers queued to withdraw money THE Spanish bank Sabadell, which purchased TSB for £1.7 billion (€2.3 billion) earlier this year, is now reported to be looking to take over a £13 billion (€17.8 billion) portfolio of former Northern Rock mortgages from the taxpayer. Currently, a specially created organisation UK Asset Resolution has been managing these and Bradford and Bing-
cently as 1975 by Amancio Ortega and Rosalia Mera and it announced net sales of €9.4 billion with profits up by more than 25 per cent at €1.17 billion to September 2015. Inditex opened 94 new stores worldwide, including 25 branches of its Zara Home house-
The investors and the companies consider that independence is unrealisable and undesirable’ Luis de Guindos Spanish minister on why investment in Cataluña has increased
Dominic Alves
Quote of the Week
the number of stores worldwide which Inditex operates, including Zara Home stores
ley debts but was instructed by Chancellor George Osborne to reduce the business considerably. For various reasons, the sale which is expected to be by ‘auction’ is unlikely to raise more than a few hundred million pounds, but will go a long way to disposing of the bulk of Northern Rock which had to be nationalised in 2007.
BUSINESS EXTRA
Suzuki buys back shares JAPANESE car maker Suzuki has bought back an almost 20 per cent stake held by Volkswagen for 460 billion yen (€3.3 billion). Last month, an international arbitration court ordered the German car maker to sell its holding due to a falling out between the two manufacturers.
No charges BANKIA, Euro 600 and Sabadell banks have come to an agreement whereby they will not charge their customers or those of the other banks to use their ATM machines. Between them, they have a network of 17,730 cash machines within Spain.
Oil price static THE chief executive of oil giant Shell, Ben van Beurden has told BBC Radio 4 that a recovery in the price of oil is hard to foresee.
New €2 coin announced THE Fábrica Nacional de Moneda y Timbre (Spanish Mint) has announced that it will release in March 2016 a new circulating €2 coin depicting the Segovia Aqueduct as part of a Unesco World Heritage site collection which started in 2010.
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Spain’s third quarter growth this year was close to 3.5 per cent according to a statement made by the Minister for Economy and Competitiveness.
STAT OF WEEK
business & legal
EWN
Although legal tender, a large number of these coins will be snapped up by dealers and collectors in Europe as collecting €2 base metal coins from the 19 Eurozone members is relatively cheap and interesting. Three other countries, Monaco, San Marino and Vatican City also issue €2 coins.
wares shop which took its total number of stores to 6,777 and with 141,192 employees, the company has increased its staffing levels by 10,000. Zara has just launched online sales in Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan so that the current number of markets in which the Group sells online is 28.
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New jobs near Cadiz ALTRAN Spain, a subsidiary of a French company has entered into an agreement with the government of Andalucia whereby it will set up an aerospace centre near to Cadiz. At a ceremony attended by Minister José Sánchez Maldonado, Altran’s president announcedhe expects the centre to create more than 150 jobs over the next few years.
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PRICE(P) CHANGE(P) COMPANY 3i Group 474.40 7.60 Aberdeen Asset Management 326.40 -4.80 Admiral Group 1,539.00 20.00 Anglo American 716.40 -3.60 Antofagasta 577.75 -1.75 ARM Holdings 957.00 -3.50 Ashtead Group 975.50 -5.50 Associated British Foods 3,187.50 48.50 AstraZeneca 4,418.75 48.75 Aviva 459.80 7.10 Babcock International Group 924.75 13.25 BAE Systems 440.95 0.55 Barclays 255.55 2.30 Barratt Developments 661.25 9.25 Berkeley Group Holdings 3,434.00 39.00 BG Group 995.75 10.35 BHP Billiton 1,097.25 -0.75 BP 335.25 1.80 British American Tobacco 3,591.00 20.00 British Land Co 815.50 3.00 BT Group 415.88 0.88 Bunzl 1,753.50 14.50 Burberry Group 1,380.00 2.00 Capita Group (The) 1,201.50 8.50 Carnival 3,484.50 24.50 Centrica 231.45 3.05 Coca-Cola HBC 1,396.00 22.00 Compass Group 1,035.50 3.50 CRH 1,883.00 10.00 Diageo 1,791.25 26.75 Direct Line Insurance Group 368.10 4.10 Dixons Carphone 424.80 2.20 easyJet 1,746.00 3.00 Experian 1,069.50 14.50 Fresnillo 615.75 5.75 G4S 239.20 2.10 GKN 271.90 -1.90 GlaxoSmithKline 1,301.75 16.75 Glencore 121.95 -4.05 Hammerson 608.75 0.75 Hargreaves Lansdown 1,224.00 23.00 Hikma Pharmaceuticals 2,486.50 41.50 HSBC Holdings 498.58 7.93 Imperial Tobacco Group 3,345.00 20.00 Inmarsat 1,013.00 24.50 InterContinental Hotels Grp 2,352.50 4.50 International Consolidated Air 596.75 -3.75 Intertek Group 2,466.00 25.00 Intu Properties 317.80 0.80 ITV 249.45 2.75
% CHG. 1.63 -1.45 1.32 -0.50 -0.30 -0.36 -0.56 1.55 1.12 1.57 1.45 0.12 0.91 1.42 1.15 1.05 -0.07 0.54 0.56 0.37 0.21 0.83 0.15 0.71 0.71 1.34 1.60 0.34 0.53 1.52 1.13 0.52 0.17 1.37 0.94 0.89 -0.69 1.30 -3.21 0.12 1.92 1.70 1.62 0.60 2.48 0.19 -0.62 1.02 0.25 1.11
NET VOL 4,539.45 4,389.14 4,239.65 10,093.22 5,713.04 13,520.02 4,937.80 24,850.65 55,221.14 18,315.10 4,595.75 13,934.25 42,478.62 6,490.35 4,639.51 33,653.27 23,190.55 60,970.80 66,570.03 8,293.04 34,601.03 5,826.99 6,129.80 7,922.66 7,478.91 11,361.83 5,006.76 17,135.70 15,382.95 44,368.21 5,460.00 4,866.08 6,923.34 10,427.90 4,495.05 3,678.83 4,512.38 62,530.77 18,378.61 4,768.61 5,696.57 4,862.62 95,741.59 31,823.27 4,444.05 5,544.03 12,246.20 3,938.84 4,194.29 9,930.68
COMPANY PRICE(P) CHANGE(P) Johnson Matthey 2,540.00 -6.00 Kingfisher 349.40 -1.70 Land Securities Group 1,239.50 2.50 Legal & General Group 247.70 2.30 Lloyds Banking Group ORD 73.93 1.22 London Stock Exchange Grp 2,452.00 60.00 Marks & Spencer Group 497.15 6.05 Meggitt 479.35 1.55 Merlin Entertainments 377.35 1.85 Mondi 1,404.00 24.00 Morrison (Wm) Supermarkets 159.45 2.85 National Grid 860.55 9.35 Next 7,617.50 57.50 Old Mutual 193.75 0.95 Pearson 1,136.00 13.00 Persimmon 2,098.00 21.00 Prudential 1,387.00 18.00 Randgold Resources 3,902.00 39.00 Reckitt Benckiser Group 5,891.00 95.00 RELX 1,079.50 14.50 Rio Tinto 2,315.50 16.00 Rolls-Royce Group 695.75 3.75 Royal Bank of Scotland Group 323.10 4.20 Royal Dutch Shell 1,593.50 11.50 Royal Dutch Shell 1,608.50 9.50 Royal Mail 464.10 4.40 RSA Insurance Group 405.65 -103.85 SABMiller 3,599.00 -1.00 Sage Group (The) 514.25 1.25 Sainsbury (J) 230.80 2.50 Schroders 2,893.00 32.00 Severn Trent 2,124.50 26.50 Shire 4,865.00 120.00 Sky 1,028.50 5.50 Smith & Nephew 1,162.50 18.50 Smiths Group 1,069.50 7.50 Sports Direct International 759.75 -0.25 SSE 1,456.50 28.50 St James's Place 885.50 13.00 Standard Chartered 698.40 -24.30 Standard Life 399.75 -0.15 Taylor Wimpey 202.35 3.45 Tesco 177.90 3.25 Travis Perkins 2,050.50 19.50 TUI AG 1,231.50 6.50 Unilever 2,649.50 33.50 United Utilities Group 892.50 9.50 Vodafone Group 218.43 1.68 Whitbread 4,640.00 -18.00 Wolseley 4,248.00 112.00 WPP Group 1,370.50 15.50
% CHG. -0.24 -0.48 0.20 0.94 1.68 2.51 1.23 0.32 0.49 1.74 1.82 1.10 0.76 0.49 1.16 1.01 1.31 1.01 1.64 1.36 0.70 0.54 1.32 0.73 0.59 0.96 -20.38 -0.03 0.24 1.10 1.12 1.26 2.53 0.54 1.62 0.71 -0.03 2.00 1.49 -3.36 -0.04 1.73 1.86 0.96 0.53 1.28 1.08 0.78 -0.39 2.71 1.14
NET VOL 5,217.21 8,185.16 9,779.02 14,583.12 51,895.84 8,306.95 8,094.62 3,763.19 3,806.62 6,700.64 3,656.75 31,845.22 11,557.24 9,497.63 9,211.84 6,366.88 35,196.80 3,597.61 41,398.31 11,967.80 32,347.69 12,723.07 20,524.58 61,612.33 39,022.17 4,597.00 5,180.38 58,189.72 5,527.05 4,385.47 6,466.50 4,990.29 28,073.88 17,585.55 10,231.84 4,192.54 4,548.33 14,180.98 4,559.68 18,399.63 7,874.78 6,471.14 14,210.40 5,053.78 7,185.89 33,575.30 6,021.08 57,466.28 8,465.41 10,755.95 17,685.93
0.72596
US dollar ....................................................................1.12685 Japan yen................................................................135.805 Switzerland franc .................................................1.09104 Denmark kroner .....................................................7.46131 Norway kroner ......................................................9.22691
currenciesdirect.com/mojacar • Tel: +34 950 478 914
DOW JONES C LOSING P RICES S EPTEMBER 21
COMPANY MMM 3M AXP American Express AAPL Apple BA Boeing CAT Caterpillar CVX Chevron CSCO Cisco KO Coca-Cola DIS Disney DD E I du Pont de Nemours and Co XOM Exxon Mobil GE General Electric GS Goldman Sachs HD Home Depot IBM IBM INTC Intel JNJ Johnson & Johnson JPM JPMorgan Chase MCD McDonald's MRK Merck MSFT Microsoft NKE Nike PFE Pfizer PG Procter & Gamble TRV Travelers Companies Inc UTX United Technologies UNH UnitedHealth VZ Verizon V Visa WMT Wal-Mart
PRICE CHANGE %CHANGE VOLUME 139.62 -3.33 -2.33% 6.5M 75.95 -1.11 -1.44% 12.4M 113.45 -0.47 -0.41% 74.3M 136.09 -1.36 -0.99% 7.3M 71.86 -2.20 -2.97% 9.3M 77.74 -1.67 -2.10% 18.6M 25.54 -0.34 -1.31% 40.0M 38.98 -0.40 -1.02% 27.5M 102.84 -1.36 -1.31% 13.6M 47.53 -0.55 -1.14% 9.8M 72.68 -1.78 -2.39% 23.2M 24.80 -0.55 -2.17% 77.9M 180.94 -5.51 -2.96% 6.5M 115.12 -2.79 -2.37% 11.4M 144.51 -3.63 -2.45% 8.0M 29.02 -0.69 -2.32% 60.7M 93.39 -1.45 -1.53% 14.2M 60.94 -1.71 -2.73% 31.0M 97.05 -0.79 -0.81% 10.5M 52.13 -1.83 -3.39% 29.0M 43.48 -0.77 -1.74% 63.1M 115.05 -0.22 -0.19% 9.3M 32.85 -0.63 -1.88% 36.8M 69.94 -0.30 -0.43% 18.2M 99.66 -2.00 -1.97% 5.0M 91.07 -2.24 -2.40% 10.5M 122.47 -0.79 -0.64% 7.5M 44.57 -0.66 -1.46% 26.9M 69.79 -1.17 -1.65% 14.5M 63.34 -1.13 -1.75% 12.9M
NASDAQ C LOSING P RICES S EPTEMBER 21
COMPANY
PRICE
CHANGE NET / %
Most Advanced Lilis Energy, Inc. TRACON Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Qumu Corporation Vascular Biogenics Ltd. Daily 2X VIX ST ETN Velocityshares MACROCURE LTD. Versartis, Inc. Tetraphase Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Daily 2X VIX Med-Term ETN Velocityshares Apigee Corporation Vital Therapies, Inc.
$ 3.15 $ 15.96 $ 5.20 $ 6.85 $ 11.57 $ 4.18 $ 13.14 $ 12.54 $ 18.60 $ 10.24 $ 4.04
2.53 ▲ 408.06% 4.23 ▲ 36.06% 1.22 ▲ 30.65% 1.49 ▲ 27.80% 2.29 ▲ 24.68% 0.70 ▲ 20.11% 2.16 ▲ 19.67% 1.75 ▲ 16.22% 2.58 ▲ 16.10% 1.36 ▲ 15.32% 0.51 ▲ 14.45%
$ 7.56 $ 5.38 $ 9.44 $ 12.11 $ 10.89 $ 10.33 $ 20.19 $ 2.90 $ 4.27 $ 6.25 $ 3.34
1.77 ▼ 18.97% 1.09 ▼ 16.85% 1.67 ▼ 15.03% 2.11 ▼ 14.84% 1.79 ▼ 14.12% 1.62 ▼ 13.56% 3.01 ▼ 12.97% 0.43 ▼ 12.91% 0.63 ▼ 12.86% 0.87 ▼ 12.22% 0.46 ▼ 12.11%
Most Declined vTv Therapeutics Inc. Lantheus Holdings, Inc. Catabasis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Invuity, Inc. Hanwha Q CELLS Co., Ltd. Unico American Corporation Sientra, Inc. Axcelis Technologies, Inc. Pershing Gold Corporation Eastern Virginia Bankshares, Inc. Vestin Realty Mortgage II, Inc.
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E W N 24 - 30 September 2015 / Costa de Almería
www.euroweeklynews.com
FINANCE, BUSINESS & LEGAL
Many angry pensioners could be damaging to government election Peter Scholz shutterstock
By John Smith SPANIARDS who have worked overseas and returned to Spain to enjoy the fruits of their labour are furious about the ongoing demand for additional tax on pensions received from abroad.
2008 when the financial crisis began, prior to then it was simple, but then the government tried to increase income from taxes Before the financial crisis of 2008, the situation was quite simple but the problem has arisen as the government has tried to increase income from taxes.
Welcoming Whopper Wine BURGER King is celebrating 40 years in Spain by launching its own Whopper Wine which is aged in flame grilled barrels! It’s not April 1, but this innovative promotion requires customers to submit their favourite Burger King story or photo and the 40 winners will each receive a bottle of this exclusive cuvee.
Roaming charge MOBILE phone operators in Spain including Movistar, Orange, Vodafone and Yoigo plan to increase their roaming fees which are currently 20 cents per call to 22 cents. One bit of good news is that on June 15, 2017 under EU regulations, all roaming fees within the EU will be abolished.
PENSION PROTESTS: It is estimated that as many as 800,000 people may be affected.
Spanish pensioners are required to pay tax on annual income above €22,000 provided they have only one source for the revenue. The recent twist is that the tax office now considers a basic pension and any additional pension, even if they are paid from the same country, as quite separate incomes which results in a lowering of the tax threshold. The Spanish Federation of Returned Emigrants (FAER) estimates that as many as 800,000 people may be affected and they are often required to pay back-tax at very short notice with one man having to take a bank loan to cover a demand for several thousand euros which had to be paid within two weeks. With an election looming, the current government must be aware that this number of angry pensioners could be very damaging to their hopes.
A healthy work-life balance is key Loose change Jane Plunkett A look at finance for females
HAVING work is a good thing. It gives you financial independence and of course takes away the anxiety of wondering where the money will come from to pay rent or the bills. But that said - it’s also important to have a healthy work-life balance and have the opportunity to do things you enjoy and spend time with family and friends. If your job dominates your life, it’s not a positive thing - no matter what you earn - because the whole point of work is to earn money so that you can have a life. Nowadays, however, many workers are spending too much time in front of a screen, jumping from meeting to meeting, eating lunch on the run, or just grabbing a coffee to keep energy levels up, and then, worrying about work at night when they arrive home. Such behaviour can be detrimental, so here are a few ideas to stay healthy at work.
CYCLE TO WORK: A little bit of exercise will do wonders for you.
On your bike: Try to introduce a little bit of extra exercise into your working day by cycling to work. Or, pack your office shoes in a backpack and put on your trainers and take a brisk walk to work each morning. The mixture of exercise and fresh air will do wonders for your overall wellbeing. Tune out: Many workplaces nowadays have somehow managed to convince their staff that being on call outside office hours is a normal state of affairs. However, the fact that you are only getting paid for 40 hours though probably working 50 never seems to enter the equation! Remember you’re an employee not a volunteer, so work as hard as you can during working hours and then step out of the office and turn off your work mobile and leave checking work emails until the following day. Give your eyes a break: Many jobs are computer dependent so employees spend hours on end glaring at computer screens. This is really bad for our eyes and induces tiredness. So remember to regularly look away from the screen and look into the distance to give your eyes a well-deserved rest.
FINANCE, BUSINESS & LEGAL
24 - 30 September 2015 / Costa de Almería
www.euroweeklynews.com
39
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OPINION & COMMENT
24 - 30 September 2015 / Costa de Almería
EWN
Is a new Trotskyite giant emerging? JEREMY CORBYN cops out of Commons confrontation LEAPY LEE SAYS IT
OTHERS THINK IT OMG. If the Labour party thought they were up the proverbial creek with Ed Miliband, they are now most certainly right up the tsunami with Jeremy Corbyn. I don’t think I’ve ever looked forward to PMQ quite as eagerly as I did last week. At last the opportunity to see the new champion of lefty politics standing up and facing the opposition he has vilified so frequently in the past. Would we see a new Trotskyite giant emerge in full media glare, calling on the right wingers to explain their folly and mishandling of, well, just about everything, accompanied by the cheers and roars of his adoring benches? Ha! What we did see was a pathetic, wizened old ‘student lecturer’, neck poking up through the wrong size collar of an obviously new shirt (one of a number I may add!) looking for all the world like the last turkey in the shop, tremulously reading emails, selected apparently from over 40,000 received over the last few
GREAT RED HOPE?: Comrade Jeremy Corbyn.
weeks. What a waste of party funds, time and money that exercise alone must have cost! And it was of course a complete cop-out. Under the guise of trying to instigate ‘a new approach’ to Commons debate, he managed to avoid just about everything that an almost condescending David Cameron could have actually thrown at him. I couldn’t help but muse on the reaction of Comrade Corbyn should he find himself an elected PM attending a debate of world leaders: “Mr Corbyn, what are your views on sending in the troops to prevent us all being annihilated?” Corbyn: “Well, I do have a letter from Ada Pothwaite of Little Twittering, who would like me to ask you all when are you going to dismantle all your weapons, shake hands and live in peace with each other?” No, I’m sorry, comrade. Refusing to sing the National Anthem, electing an IRA sympathiser as a side kick, sticking prime egotist Diane Abbott beside you on the front bench and chorusing the Red Flag down the local pub? Frankly, I think I’ve got more chance of being elected PM than you. I give him a year. Keep the Faith Love Leapy. [email protected]
41
E W N 24 - 30 September 2015 / Costa de Almería
www.euroweeklynews.com
Are the good times really over?
OUR VIEW DIFD
48
AN unrestrained and deceitful US has increased its worldwide military bases to 1,050 Mike Walsh Mike, based in Mediterranean Spain, is an international journalist, author and professional writer.
IN 1981 country singer, Merle Haggard recorded the hit ‘Are the Good Times Really Over?’ A mournful lament, the lyrics grieved over a lost America. The Korean War was history and the scars of the Vietnam War were healing. On July 12, 1987 US President Reagan at the Berlin Wall challenged Soviet leader, Mikhail Gorbachev: “If you seek peace, if you seek prosperity for the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, come here to the gate, Mr Gorbachev, open this gate, and tear down this wall.” The USSR did open the gate and we believed we had ushered in an era of peace and stability. No longer were we living in the shadow of mutually destructive annihilation (MDA). Our optimism was ill-judged. And now, apparently an unrestrained and deceitful US increased its worldwide military bases to 1,050. These now circle and threaten Russia, Iran, and Middle East: US General Wesley
US BASES: Now circle and threaten Russia, Iran and Middle East.
Clark; “We are going to take out seven countries in five years, starting with Iraq and then Syria, Lebanon, Libya and Somalia, Sudan and finishing off Iran.” On Monday September 6 the US told Greece and Bulgaria to deny airspace to Russian aircraft bringing aid, medical supplies, shelter and clothing to assist in the refugee crisis. Iran opened up their air space. Americans celebrate their July 4, 1776 tribute to US independence. A pity they don’t respect the independence of other nations. Since that date the US has invaded about 70 countries, 50 of them since 1945. Of the 248 conflicts worldwide since the end of WW2 the US has started 201 of them. The historian who chronicles US Empire, William Blum, issued his 130th Anti-Empire Report. The US is seen by the people of the world as “the greatest threat to peace in the world today.” Only 2 per cent see Russia and 6 per cent China as a threat. Yes, it seems the good times really are over thanks to the US and EU prostituted political leadership. I don’t regret the collapse of the USSR but bitterly resent the horrors since visited upon humanity by this apparent unrestrained expansionist United States.
The end is nigh (yet again) WHENEVER an official body denies something, then we had better watch out! Colin Bird A weekly look Each week, Colin brings his slightly off-thewall view of the world to the pages of EWN in his own irreverent style.
I AM finding it very difficult to sleep of late. Some unidentified expert or other, has predicted that the Earth could cease to exist sometime soon - between September 22 and 28 to be more precise because a massive asteroid is heading our way. NASA has reassured us that this is a load of horlicks, but this is worrying in itself. Whenever an official body goes out of its way to deny anything, then we had better watch out. Still, we all remember the ancient Mayan prediction of doom and gloom, stating categorically that the world would come to an end on December 21, 2012. Well the day came and went and here we still are. But it’s an ill wind, because churches saw an upturn in business, beer and spirit sales went through the roof and I had a particularly good single malt
MAYAN PREDICTION: Was one of doom and gloom.
Syrian children in Lebanon.
A drop in the ocean WE make no apologies for writing again about the refugees from Syria and their plight but this week will look at it from a different angle. Every day there are problems between Hungary and its neighbours with regards to the ‘hoards’ of refugees trying to move into the centre and west of Europe and the 120,000 required to be accepted by 23 member states. Let’s face it, this is a trickle compared to the number already accepted by other areas. According to the UNHCR - the UN Refugees Agency there are 2.1 million Syrians registered as refugees in Egypt, Iraq, Jordan and Lebanon and there are a further 1.9 million in Turkey, which makes over 4 million Syrian refugees over whom 56 per cent are under 18. Lebanon which has a population of just 4.8 million is trying to find the money to give a decent education to 400,000 refugee children. According to the government of Saudi Arabia it has 2.5 million Syrians within its border and the UAE has just accepted 100,000 to add to the 140,000 already resident. There are bound to be plenty of economic migrants wanting to find a better life in Europe rather than the Middle East with its own restrictions and prejudices but unless we take notice of where the bulk of refugees have ended up there is the frightening thought of further upheaval and civil war.
whisky on my cornflakes that morning. But to be honest I did not take the prophecy seriously, because those Mayans were a strange lot who spent their time star gazing but never got around to inventing the wheel. It would appear that as a body, they just upped and left their great cities one Wednesday morning. A note was left on the door of a stepped pyramid saying ‘Gone to Lunch’ and they simply never came back, and although there are traces of them still in Central America and Basingstoke, to all intents and purposes their civilisation disappeared. And it was obviously on foot, because rumour has it that a massive fleet of wagons was found intact in the temple car park, propped up on bricks just waiting for someone to invent something circular to go in each corner. Reassuringly we are told, astronomers have the means to spot the approach of an asteroid well in advance. Now we We have powerful radio telescopes and want to we have Hubble - although on the down hear your views. side, we no longer have Patrick Moore. YOUR PAPER - YOUR VOICE Nevertheless I shall play safe - YOUR OPINION and have that bottle of single malt www.euroweeklynews.com standing at the ready.
OPINION & COMMENT
24 - 30 September 2015 / Costa de Almería
EWN
49
Famed matadors appear right on your doorstep - in Vera! Ric Polansky Ric Polansky moved to Mojacar in 1969 as a pioneer developer. He reads extensively and has travelled in South America panning gold and looking for El Dorado.
YOU might have heard of Juan Belmonte or Manolete? They were toreros that were so esteemed they created their own epoch. The years of their most activity were named after them. Well, in Vera on the 25th just so, one of those personages is to appear. Without a doubt within 20 years from now someone will ask you did you ever see the great Enrique Ponce and here is your chance to affirm so with a visit to the Plaza de Toros in Vera at 5:30pm. The ranch of bulls is special too, Luis Algarra. Serious toros and can do damage in an instant. Also listed to torear is Sebastian Castella, who announces himself as a French man, showy, very good with a cape and prefers to be seen in mostly the big plazas facing difficult bulls and a new young matador, Javier Jimenez is coming to Vera
Oddly in the taurine world the torero considered No: 1 is the personage that has participated in the most corridas. Until Enrique Ponce reached his full prime as a full matador in 1992 only a handful of men had performed the miraculous hard work of joining the
100 club, that is 100 corridas de toros. Enrique worked his way up the ladder of performances and accomplished the impossible of completing 100 corridas in a single year! He was what the public wanted to see. But then he did it the next year and for eight consecutive years. A record all experts believe will never be broken. He is winding down his efforts to just 50-60 corridas this year but see them you must. Last week’s ABC read that his technical dominance of the bulls in France’s top plaza, Nimes, the old Roman coliseum, even made the walls tremble as the adoring crowd shouted his praises. He was injured badly but still killed the bull perfectly. I am worried he might not SERIOUS TOROS: Can do damage.
ENRIQUE PONCE: Worked his way up. appear in Vera, being a third class ring but then again, he is a TORERO and that’s what they do best - carry on in pain and discomfort to bring the ritual sacrifice to a proper end. Sunday the 27th also is a novel event with Almeria’s own torero Jesus Almeria performing. Jesus visits the club taurine de Mojacar often and has many friends therein. Also the son of the legendary El Cordobes who always puts on a show will be there. The Spanish season is winding down and these events are on our doorstep. Come on in. You might be surprised.
50
E W N 17 - 23 September / Costa de AlmerĂa
www.euroweeklynews.com
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7:00pm 7:30pm 8:00pm
Couples Come Dine with Me Couples Come Dine with Me Location, Location, Location Celebrity Benchmark Snow White and the Huntsman Van Helsing Alan Carr: Chatty Man
8:35pm
St. Trinian's 2: The Legend of Fritton's Gold A Place in the Sun: Winter Sun Channel 4 News Time Crashers First Humans: The Cave Discovery This is England '90 Gogglebox This is 40 Four in a Bed Come Dine with Me The Simpsons Hollyoaks Channel 4 News Jamie's Super Food Food Unwrapped The Catch Sex Diaries: Webcam Couples 24 Hours in A and E
9:00pm 10:00pm 11:00pm 11:55pm 12:50am
9:00pm 9:55pm 10:00pm 11:30pm
1:15am
1:55pm 2:55pm 5:50pm 8:00pm 9:55pm 10:00pm 11:55pm 1:45am
Home and Away 5 News Tonight Underground Britain Dogs Make You Laugh Out Loud 5 News Tonight Celebrity Big Brother Celebrity Big Brother's Bit on the Side Super Casino
6:00pm 7:00pm 7:30pm 8:30pm 11:00pm 11:30pm 12:00am
Home and Away 5 News Tonight World's Biggest Beasts World's Biggest Beasts NCIS: New Orleans NCIS NCIS: Los Angeles True Crimes: The First 72 Hours
5:00pm 6:00pm 6:30pm 6:45pm 7:00pm
Funniest Fails, Falls and Flops Now That's Funny! 5 News Football League Tonight Stevie Wonder: An All-Star Grammy Salute The Gadget Show
1:00pm 3:45pm
Police Interceptors 2012 Planet of the Apes The Forbidden Kingdom 5 News Just Go with it Welcome to the Jungle Tattoo Disasters: UK
8:00pm 11:15pm 12:15am
4:00pm 6:00pm 9:00pm 11:00pm 12:30am 12:00pm 2:00pm 4:30pm 7:30pm 8:25pm 10:30pm
3:20am 7:00pm 7:30pm 8:00pm 9:00pm 10:00pm
11:00pm 1:55am
Home and Away 5 News The Gadget Show Police Interceptors Autopsy: The Last Hours of Amy Winehouse Most Shocking Moments in Pop Super Casino
2:30pm 3:30pm 4:30pm 5:30pm 6:00pm 7:00pm 8:00pm 12:00am
Posh Pawn Four in a Bed Come Dine with Me The Simpsons Hollyoaks Channel 4 News Obsessive Compulsive Cleaners Educating Cardiff The Changing Room Bodyshockers
6:00pm 6:30pm 7:00pm 7:30pm 8:00pm 9:00pm 10:00pm 11:00pm
Four in a Bed Come Dine with Me The Simpsons Hollyoaks Channel 4 News Location, Location, Location Grand Designs Forced Marriage Cops Sex Diaries: Webcam Couples
6:30pm 7:00pm 7:30pm 8:00pm
12:55am
9:00pm 10:00pm 11:00pm 12:55am
5 News Neighbours Home and Away 5 News Police Interceptors The Yorkshire Vet Body Donors CSI: Crime Scene Investigation CSI: Crime Scene Investigation Neighbours Home and Away 5 News Nevada Triangle: The Missing Evidence The Nightmare Neighbour Next Door Can't Pay? We'll Take it Away! Wentworth Prison Law and Order: Special Victims Unit
6:30pm 7:00pm 8:00pm 10:00pm
11:00pm 1:00am
3:30pm 4:00pm 6:00pm 7:00pm 8:00pm 8:15pm 8:30pm 11:00pm 12:00am
Capital One Cup Highlights Soccer A.M. - The Best Bits Capital One Cup FL72 Soccer A.M. - The Best Bits NFL: Dwight Freeney Interview NFL Pre-Game Show Capital One Cup Game Changers Football Gold Football Gold The Fantasy Football Club Football The F1 Show Barclays Premier League Review Football Super League Highlights Championship Rugby League Ford Saturday Night Football SNF: Game of the Day SNF: Match Choice SNF: Match Choice Goals on Sunday Football Ford Super Sunday FL72 Goals Football Football's Greatest A look at the career of Liverpool and England midfielder Steven Gerrard Ford Football Special Goals on Sunday NFL Highlights NFL Highlights Fantasy Football Club Highlights Soccer A.M. - The Best Bits FL72 Goals Ford Monday Night Football FL72 Goals MLS Round-Up Show Barclays Premier League Review Boxing Sky Sports Originals - Luke Campbell-the Golden Boy Boxing Barclays Premier League Review La Liga World 2015 The Premier League Years Football Gold Boots 'n' All Legends of Darts Speedway Gold Elite League Speedway Boots 'n' All Elite League Speedway
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E W N 24 - 30 September 2015 / Costa de Almería
www.euroweeklynews.com
OPINION & COMMENT
Advertising feature
Home swapping for holidays is safer, cheaper and more popular than ever David Deverson GLOBELINK INTERNATIONAL Insurance correspondent [email protected]
THIS might seem like a strange thing for a travel insurance consultant to say... but have you thought of holidaying at home this year? I don’t mean staying home; where would be the fun in that? I mean swapping your humble (or not-sohumble) abode for someone else’s wildly exotic one. And vice versa. Home swapping has been around for decades, but in recent years, agencies have multiplied, along with the choice. Last year, homeexchange.com registered 75,000 swaps in 150 countries, with offers ranging from modest flats to designer lofts and luxury condos. What was once seen as ‘alternative’ has become a mainstream travel concept that even appeals to riskaverse people like you or me. This year, the take-up could be higher than ever, as people look for ways of fulfilling their holiday dreams without blowing the budget. At Globelink, we’ll be there to cover them on their travels.
HOME EXCHANGE: Globelink can arrange the necessary insurance cover, giving you complete peace of mind. Certainly, the economies of home swapping are an incentive. While some agencies charge a modest sign-up fee, others are free until a deal is sealed. You pay for your travel but the rest is up to you, minus hotel bills, and even car hire if you decide to to swap car keys.
The popularity of home swapping is part of a wider trend towards more authentic, ‘insider’ travel experiences. Shopping for fruit and veg in a Paris market, catching the ferry to Vancouver Island, admiring the sunset from ‘your’ pad in Brooklyn Heights, you get to live as a local,
not a tourist, at least for a fortnight or two. That said, it isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. If the thought of someone else settling down in your favourite armchair makes you shudder, home swapping probably isn’t for you. But for wouldbe first-timers, the good news is that the majority of home swaps pass off happily. They stand an even better chance of running smoothly if exchange partners take the time to get to more about know each other and their expectations. As that suggests, home swaps involve a good deal more preparation than a book-and-fly deal. That includes taking obvious precautions, such as checking with your house insurer that you’re covered for the exchange, and complying with any extra conditions. Should you decide to swap cars, arranging guest driver car insurance is an absolute must. Decent travel insurance should, of course, be right at the top of any checklist. From lost or stolen passports to accidents or illness, things can and do go wrong. For an instant quote and to arrange cover securely online visit www.globelink.co.uk, the leading travel insurer for people living in EU countries. Or you can telephone Globelink on 0044 1353 699082 or their Spanish links line on 966 265 000 or 951 242 434.
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E W N 24 - 30 September 2015 / Costa de Almería
LETTERS
OPINION & COMMENT
YOUR PAPER - YOUR VOICE - YOUR OPINION
Letters for Your Say should be emailed to [email protected] or make your comments straight on our website: www.euroweeklynews.com
Hospital staff so insensitive at a time of great sadness I WOULD like to bring my recent experience to all the expatriates who live on the Costa del Sol. My husband was a patient at Hospital Clinio Malaga. On August 31, he sadly passed away. Within seconds of this happening I was approached by a member of staff asking if he had death insurance. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. That was bad enough but then I was taken into a side room by a member of staff from Interfunerarias Malaga who wanted to know if I wanted my husband cremated or buried. I was in a state of shock and did not realise what was going on. Within about 20 minutes forms were filled in and the funeral was arranged. How insensitive can someone be? I wanted to warn others of what happened as it was obvious that one of the hospital staff was tipping off the funeral service. It shouldn’t be allowed. MT, Torrequebrada, Malaga
Car advice SO sad for the elderly victim of the runaway car in Calle Neptuno, Torrox, Malaga last week. This incident could so easily have been avoided by turning the steering wheel to full lock, with the front wheels pointing into the kerb. This simple manoeuvre works whether facing up or downhill no matter which side of the road you park on. If the handbrake lets go, the car cannot roll very far. It can still cause hurt or damage but much less severe. Even on a slight slope the kinetic energy of a ton or so of metal can rapidly build up to devastating proportions. It can also help to leave the car in gear when parking but it’s not foolproof, if the handbrake let’s go the torsion can pop the gear out of mesh, particularly in older vehicles. Keith Hallam (By email)
Photographs for possible publication should be sent by email with a full caption to: [email protected]
It was interesting to note today that the threat of further Russian intervention in Syria has given the Western imperialists pause for thought. Kerry wants to open negotiations which would leave Assad in control. The role for the UN would be to insert their presence into the region once factions agree to a cease-fire and to abide by the terms mutually agreed upon. More violence, which you seem to continually encourage, does absolutely nothing but cause more destruction and death. Is that really what you want to see? Jonathan, (Via website) .
Teach them
Concorde flying again I DOUBT this will ever happen. Virgin wanted to take on Concordes to continue with the service but my guess is British Airways made sure the authorities would not let them so I would doubt they would get an airworthiness certificate. Mike (By email) Comment on website: www.euroweeklynews.com/3.0.15/news/on-euro-weekly-news/uknews/133267-like-the-phoenix-concorde-may-fly-again
EU chaos IN RESPONSE to Nora Johnson’s column in last week’s Euro Weekly News, Germany turned off the tap when it became obvious that only a relatively limited number of the surge were Syrians fleeing war while huge numbers were just Afghans, Pakistanis, Bangladeshis and other economic migrants. As for the UK, there’s already a housing crisis and a lack of wellpaid jobs that provide enough to live on. Homeless on the streets
with mental health problems plus the elderly are hardly treated as they should be. Robotics and automation in the coming years will mean many jobs will disappear overnight. So how can the UK can possibly cope with a large influx of economic migrants/refugees that want to stay there? The answer is that it can’t. The problems in Syria, etc, must be sorted at the root cause. Back to you, Mr Juncker! Chris, (Via website)
Take action I HAVE a message for Mike Walsh: why don’t you get off your **** and lead a posse to wipe out the ‘terrorists’ in every country of the world? For your information, the mandate of the UN is to try to bring peace to areas in conflict, not form armies to go out and ADD to the problem. Unlike you, they are not sitting on their *****, they are in fact in many countries already, trying to hold the opposing groups apart.
EVERY day we wake up to a new case of the so-called gender-based violence. In reality, this is just plain old violence against women, and children, as they are often used as weapons to threaten and keep women trapped in their nightmare relationships. This is not an issue unique to Spain, but I find that the frequency of the cases reported and the way in which they are dealt with by the authorities is in all honesty appalling. It is not about punishing after the damage is done. The difference has to be made before, through education, when men are boys who can be saved from the awful power of violent masculinity. Janet Majors, Fuengirola, Malaga (By email)
WHEN YOU WRITE All letters, whether by email or post, should carry the writer’s postal address, NIE and contact number though only the name and town will be published. Letters may also be edited. Readers who have missed earlier correspondence can see all letters posted on:
www.euroweeklynews.com
The views expressed and opinions given in Letters are not necessarily those of the EWN publishers. They accept no responsibility for accuracy of information, errors, omissions or statements, and reject claims arising out of any action that a company or individual may take on the basis of information contained therein.
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E W N 24 - 30 September 2015 / Costa de Almería
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EURO WEEKLY’S SPACE FOR YOU TO TAKE A BREA
Word Ladder WIPE
ROQUETAS
ADRA
SAGITTARIUS (November 23 - December 21) Getting a creative project started has opened your eyes to many things. Perhaps you question why you did not do it before. The fact is that it doesn’t matter. You are where you are right here and not because that was where you were heading. Enjoy the feeling,
CAPRICORN (December 22 - January 20) Just imagine for one day that you have achieved everything your heart has desired. When you wake up in the morning believe it is so. Feel how your spirits lift and your heart sings. Carry that feeling through the week and beyond. If you believe that you are a success you can be. Why stop when it feels so good? AQUARIUS (January 21 - February 19) Yours is a big ship. You are able to take a lot on board but you don’t have to. In this special week, when you see things so clearly, be selective. Allow into your life only that which is valuable and worthwhile. This is not selfishness, it is providing a source of inspiration for the present and the future.
Nonagram
TARGET: Average: 10 Good: 13 Very good: 19 Excellent: 23
How many English words of four letters or more can you make from the nine letters in our Nonagram puzzle? Each letter may be used only once (unless the letter appears twice). Each word MUST CONTAIN THE CENTRE LETTER (in this case P) and there must be AT LEAST ONE NINE LETTER WORD. Plurals, vulgarities or proper nouns are not allowed.
LAST WEEK’S SOLUTION aced, ache, acid, acne, cane, cedi, chad, chid, chin, cued, dace, dice, duce, each, iced, inch, nice, ached, caned, canid, chain, chide, china, chine, dance, dunce, nicad, niche, canine, canned, inched, induce, nuance, chained, chinned, echidna, enchain, nuanced, unchain UNCHAINED
Madrid
27 17 C 27 17 S 27 17 C
Mon - 26 17 S Tues - 26 16 S Wed - 26 16 Sh
Almeria TODAY: Fri Sat Sun -
Mon - 24 19 C Tues - 24 18 S Wed - 24 18 S
MAX MIN
24 18 S 24 18 S 24 18 S
Mon - 24 18 C Tues - 24 17 Cl Wed - 23 17 Cl
LEO (July 24 - August 23) Are you looking for guidance? Maybe you are thinking that a recent acquaintance will be able to provide it. You ran something by a few friends and they are not so sure. That is because this is a situation where you need an expert, not a well-wisher. Best not to waste your time and jangle your nerves. Get that expert even if it costs a few pennies.
26 20 Cl 27 20 S 26 19 Cl
Mon - 25 19 S Tues - 25 19 S Wed - 24 19 Sh
S Sun,
Sh Showers,
10-Star Quiz
Fill the grid so that every row, every column and every 3X3 box contains the digits 1-9. There’s no maths involved. You solve the puzzle with reasoning and logic.
UK NATIONAL LOTTERY
MAX MIN
MAX MIN
CANCER (June 22 - July 23) A way opens up before you that can bring wealth. Branching off from that is a path to certain happiness. Which will you take? If having that money means changing your nature (or trying to) is that going to make you happy? On the other hand, if you sidestep the money can you still be happy? Keep things simple. You know where you are.
TAURUS (April 21 - May 21) Sometimes, when we are making a journey, it is not the usual route that is best. Something has changed in your sphere and there is a need to adjust to it. There are other options that will bring the same result and maybe even a more convenient one. You will need to do two things. The first is to open your mind to the possibilities. .
PISCES (February 20 - March 20) Your old shoes are comfortable and
Alicante TODAY:
MAX MIN
ARIES (March 21 - April 20) That little bit of extra cash has made you realise something. Not everything is as simple as you would wish it to be, and throwing money at a problem will not make it go away entirely. There are some things that you need to come to terms with. It is much easier to incorporate the uneasy into your life if you take a more relaxed attitude.
LAST WEEK’S SOLUTION
SCORPIO (October 24 - November 22) You’ve been working hard, maybe in the dark some of the time. This week someone shines a torch on your situation and you see exactly where you are. Are you surprised? You shouldn’t be.
still have a lot of wear in them but someone is suggesting that you should buy some new shoes and throw the old ones away. They are no longer shiny. They are no longer fashionable. They do, however, provide all that you need.
the praise and the satisfaction.
LOTTERY
LIBRA (September 24 - October 23) There’s a lot of buzzing going on in your head. No, it isn’t tinnitus, it’s something quite different. You know it’s a great time to get ideas and act on them. However, trying to act on too many at once is causing some confusion. Maybe there’s too much going on.
(August 24 - September 23)
28 17 C 29 17 S 28 17 C
Mon - 28 17 S Tues - 28 17 C Wed - 27 17 C
C Cloudy, Th Thunder
WHAT’S COOKING? 1. What name connects a former English rugby union tight head prop who was a member of England’s World Cup winning squad in 2003 and a TV chef who is married to television presenter Fern Britton? 2. Which celebrity chef, born in Renfrewshire in 1966, had a trial with Rangers, the club he supported as a boy, in 1984? 3. Which celebrity chef and former barrister, who died in March 2014, had the middle names: Theresa, Philomena, Aileen, Mary, Josephine, Agnes, Elsie, Trilby, Louise, Esmeralda? 4. Which celebrity chef has four children, named Poppy, Daisy, Petal and Buddy Bear? 5. Which celebrity chef opened the world-famous, Michelin-starred restaurant The Fat Duck in Bray, Berkshire in 1995? 6. Which comedy performer starred as the choleric chef Gareth Blackstock in the 1990s television comedy series Chef!? 7. Which English chef and entertainer is best known for presenting cooking shows such as Can’t Cook, Won’t Cook (1995 to 200) and Ready Steady Cook (2000 to 2010)? 8. Which family-oriented comedy-variety television series features the Swedish Chef, who wears a toque blanche and has bushy eyebrows that completely obscure his eyes? 9. Which famous chef had friends to help him out whenever he was cooking called Suzie and Percy? 10. Which seafood chef was awarded the OBE in the 2003 New Year Honours list for services to tourism in Cornwall’? Not a lot of people know that… 60 per cent of British meals are eaten in front of the television.
36
REINTEGRO
1
1. PHIL VICKERY, 2. GORDON RAMSAY, 3. CLARISSA DICKSON-WRIGHT, 4. JAMIE OLIVER, 5. HESTON BLUMENTHAL, 6. LENNY HENRY, 7. AINSLEY HARRIOTT, 8. THE MUPPET SHOW, 9. AINSLEY HARRIOTT, 10. RICK STEIN
YOUR STARS
GEMINI (May 22 - June 21) Someone needs to learn to stand on their own two feet. It isn’t you, but it’s close. Finding a balance between helping and idly standing by while mistakes are made is necessary. It’s not easy but it has to be done. You may break into a sweat this week and it won’t suit your nerves, but you’ll get through.
It appears at times that you are in the middle of a play. The lights are on you, the mike’s wired, your audience awaits, then nothing. Not that you are lost for words. You know exactly what to say and do. What you are wondering is why you are there in the first place. Maybe where you are was not intended.
VIRGO
24 - 30 September 2015 / Costa de Almería
www.euroweeklynews.com
AK, BE INFORMED AND ENJOY A CHALLENGE
Enjoy filling in the following puzzles and check the answers in next week’s edition
Quick Across 1 Casual footwear (7) 5 Combine into one (5) 8 Additional (7) 9 Thoughts (5) 10 Place where some action occurs (5) 11 More irate (7) 12 Undergo (6) 14 Twist together into a confused mass (6) 17 Educator (7) 19 Enclosed armoured military vehicles (5) 22 Large gregarious predatory felines (5) 23 Disperse (7) 24 Wait on (5) 25 Meet the requirements or expectations of (7) Down 1 Chairs, benches, saddles etc (5) 2 Nobody (2-3) 3 Gain with effort (7) 4 Disperse widely (6) 5 Fetch (5) 6 Night time (7) 7 Be entitled to by merit (7) 12 Agrees on (7) 13 Taste (7)
57
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Crossword
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Code Breaker Each number in the Code Breaker grid represents a different letter of the alphabet. In this week’s puzzle, 3 represents W and 23 represents L, so fill in W every time the figure 3 appears and L every time the figure 23 appears. Now, using your knowledge of the English language, work out which letters should go in the missing squares. As you discover the letters, fill in other squares with the same number in the main grid and the control grid.
LAST WEEK’S SOLUTIONS CRYPTIC Across: 1 Recast, 4 Hovels, 9 Tendril, 10 Seine, 11 Abode, 12 Nothing, 13 Prospecting, 18 Transit, 20 Clear, 22 Taint, 23 Nearest, 24 Enters, 25 Batter.
Down: 1 Ritual, 2 Congo, 3 Sorbets, 5 Onset, 6 Edition, 7 Sleigh, 8 Clandestine, 14 Realist, 15 Toccata, 16 Statue, 17 Crater, 19 Sitar, 21 Event.
QUICK Across:
15 Cause to approach be means of unseen forces (7) 16 Rubs out (6)
English - Spanish
18 Urgency calling for speed (5) 20 Brief written records (5) 21 Wander away (5)
Down: 1 Pipes, 2 Examine, 3 Spent, 4 Resist, 6 Argue, 7 Pirates, 8 Beggar, 13 Chooses, 14 Errors, 16 Corners, 17 Seldom, 19 Stern, 20 Fifth, 21 Tasks.
The clues are mixed, some clues are in Spanish and some are in English.
Across 1 Stools (seats) (9) 7 Silver (metal) (5) 8 Queen (5) 9 Lago (4) 10 Hormigas (4) 13 Beret (5) 14 Aeroplane (5) 16 Diamonds (9)
ENGLISH-SPANISH Across:
LAST WEEK’S SOLUTION
1 Chess, 3 Casas, 5/15 Red Sea, 7 Chapter, 9 Once, 10 Pais, 14 Surname, 16 Talla, 17 Small.
Down: 1 Carro, 2 Sick, 3 Coal, 4 Ser, 6 Decir, 8 Toads, 11 Snail, 12 Raza, 13 Pegs, 14 Sit.
Down 1 Grifo (de agua) (3) 2 Mirlo (9) 3 Leer (4) 4 Neumático (4) 5 Científico (9) 6 Cangrejos (de mar) (5) 9 Etiqueta (5) 11 Race (racial origin) (4) 12 Face (part of body) (4) 15 Us (direct/indirect object) (3)
Hexagram
1 Pleasure, 5 Damp, 9 Prayers, 10 Eager, 11 Shift, 12 Suggest, 13 Clever, 15 Prices, 18 Observe, 20 First, 22 Swear, 23 Differs, 24 Send, 25 Emphasis.
Cryptic The purpose of the Hexagram puzzle is to place the 19 six-letter words into the 19 cells. The letters at the edges of interlocking cells MUST BE THE SAME. The letters in the words must be written CLOCKWISE. The word in cell 10 (EMBALM) and one letter in four other cells are given as clues.
AGREED
UMPIRE
FECUND
LAST WEEK’S SOLUTION 1 Desire 2 Olimen 3 Eureka 4 Dreary 5 Sacral 6 Huddle 7 Agleam 8 Cockle 9 Threat 10 Groove 11 Cached 12 Baleen 13 Smooch 14 Bereft 15 Devour 16 Ascent 17 Tendon 18 Trauma 19 Oracle
Across 1 Honest American didn’t hide (6) 3 Infuriates French city (6) 8 Declare man to be turned off (7) 10 Power of Government head in control (5) 11 Standing up before court (5) 12 Specific recipes in a mess (7) 13 Providing some collateral afterwards (5) 15 I sped in confusion when caught sight of (5) 20 Originate from an Eastern team now disbanded (7) 22 Roam with a stove (5) 24 Crackpot, going back, is getting capital in Africa (5) 25 Keep demonstrating reticence (7) 26 Tent or building is very bad (6) 27 Not here, as bent out of shape (6) Down 1 Small house appears in such a letter (6) 2 Nice embracing an oriental relative (5) 4 Never change will (5)
5 Not entirely bothered if I certify large building (7) 6 The vocalist is awful, resign (6) 7 Girl with gym to remodel (5) 9 Bird chasing the man for rent (5) 14 Anti-anti-gas-explosion? (7) 16 Harbours sweet wines (5) 17 He ate rack of lamb, including a
stove (6) 18 Looks intently at aristocrats (5) 19 Throw away badly written Crete journal (6) 21 A lie’s made up on the way to the altar (5) 23 This language is from either the Amazon or Senegal (5)
58
E W N Costa de Almeria
24 - 30 September 2015
VISIT OUR WEBSITE WWW.EWNLIFESTYLE.COM
Do antidepressants make you violent? IT is feared that antidepressants could make people violent. A study by Oxford University found that men and women in their late teens and early 20’s were almost 50 per cent more likely to be convicted of violent offences such as assault when taking drugs such as Prozac, Seroxat, Lustral, Cipralex and Ciprimil, known collectively as SSRIs. One in eight Britons take these commonly prescribed antidepressants, with the number of prescriptions doubling in the last decade. According to the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, in the USA; around 11 per cent of people aged 12 and over take
antidepressants. The tablets already carry a warning that the drugs are linked to suicidal thoughts in young people and it was suspected they were also linked to violence, but researchers have now carried out more studies in this area and have found links between the drugs and violent crime. The scientists said youngsters are particularly at risk as the adolescent brain may be particularly sensitive to pharmacological interference. The young people studied were more likely to get drunk when on antidepressants and it could be the alcohol that drove them to violence. Scientists say more research is needed.
TO READ MORE
HEALTH BEAUTY
&
Try yoga to help ease your arthritis OSTEOARTHRITIS is caused by wear and tear of cartilage, making joints painful By Gemma Quinn YOGA can ease symptoms of arthritis. Studies have shown that regular yoga sessions; around twice a week, lessened pain suffered by those with osteoarthritis
20 per cent improvement in pain, energy, mood and physical function
and rheumatoid arthritis as well as boosting energy levels and making it easier to carry out everyday tasks. Osteoarthritis is caused by wear and tear of cartilage, making joints painful
Health Food Shop & Community Centre Are you looking for inspiration? You’ll be surprised at the range of natural & organic products available to inspire you.
In the Community Centre Kids Karate, kids Gymnastics Art classes, Pilates, Yoga, Tai-Chi, Salsa-size Spanish lessons and health screening
C/Malaga s/n, Albox, Almeria, Tel: 639 089 170 Mon-Fri 10am-6pm Sat 10am-2pm email: [email protected]
and causing difficulties for sufferers to bend, lift and grip. Rheumatoid arthritis is linked to the immune system attacking the joints making them painful and swollen. There are no cures for either. In the study, US researchers said all participants had osteoarthritis or rheumatoid arthritis. Half did two yoga classes a week, plus a practice at home, the others went about life as usual. After two months, those who had done the yoga reported around a 20 per cent improvement in pain, energy levels, mood and physical function. For arthritis sufferers looking to take up yoga it is always advisable to check with your doctor first, find a reputable yoga teacher and start with gentle classes.
HEALTH & BEAUTY
24 - 30 September 2015 / Costa de Almeria
Anti-bacterial soaps no better than normal
LOWER BACK: Exercises will help to relieve lower back pain.
Is it safe to exercise through pregnancy? FitFoxy
Looking Good, Staying Trim
I’VE just received the exciting news that one of my clients is 13 weeks pregnant, so it seemed relevant for this week’s Fitness Topic. My priority for pre-natal clients is that they get safe and relevant exercises they can cope with working towards and beyond their third Trimester. First trimester is the first 12 weeks of pregnancy and providing your doctor has examined you and confirmed everything is fine, you can pretty much continue with the exercises you have been doing. Even running will do you no harm at this stage providing again
you have been running prior to pregnancy. Second trimester is 13-27 weeks. Now you may feel more comfortable to move to low impact choices of cardio exercise such as the bicycle, cross trainer or low impact aerobic style classes. She is able to use the cross trainer and the rower as long as I watch her technique and it is not uncomfortable for her. We did a class yesterday using light weights with low impact cardio. Third Trimester 28 weeks to birth. Your body will tell you how much it can cope with at this stage, I would not recommend that you train on your own especially with weights, as it is important you are able to adapt to the moves correctly and comfortably, and that you avoid flat lying exercises. No over stretching, however certain lower back exercises will help to relieve lower back pain.
LOSE WEIGHT & BE HEALTHIER… WITHOUT DIETING!!! SLIMMING CLUB Weds, 10am, Casa Pepa, Turre Thurs, 1pm, Hostal Meson (Kubatin), Arboleas Fri, 11.30am, Bar Genesis, Villaricos
• Weekly Healthy Eating & Weight Loss Classes • Pilates Classes: Tuesday & Thursday • Aerobics: Tuesday, Thursday & Friday
Contact Vicki: 650 764 623 or [email protected]
ANTI-BACTERIAL soaps are no more effective than plain soap at killing bacteria. Whilst many people choose anti-bacterial soap products expecting to be better protected from germs, a study has found them to be no more effective. The Korean scientists said there was “no significant difference” between the effects of plain soap and its anti-bacterial counterparts under normal ‘real-life’ conditions. They examined the effect of triclosan, the active antiseptic ingredient commonly used and tested 20 strains on how well it killed bacteria. They found triclosan had killed significantly more bacteria after nine hours or more, but not during the short time required for hand washing. Then, they compared the ability of antibacterial and nonantibacterial soap to remove bacteria from human hands using 16 healthy adult volunteers and found “no significant difference” between the two.
EWN
E W N 24 - 30 September 2015 / Costa de Almería
I’m upgrading to a lion as a pet! Mike Senker
In my opinion Views of a Grumpy Old Man I LOVE DOGS. In fact, I like most animals but my preference for a household pet is a dog, but after today I might upgrade to a lion. I have this problem - you see my dog gets walked three times a day. He is a mutt, a soppy adorable mutt who wants to eat, sleep, have his belly rubbed (partial to that myself) and a nice walk. So why do people decide that it’s OK to let their, and I’ll use today as an example, dogs run about off the lead? Admittedly, if it’s a tiddly little thing or a soppy sausage like mine it’s usually manageable, but if it’s a pit bull, or like today a Rottweiler and a Doberman that are by nature hunting or attack dogs it’s a problem. I live up in the hills but it’s highly populated and lots of people walk their dogs.
It’s not some remote place where you don’t think you are going to run into people. Anyway I’m coming home and my neighbour is out walking his dog and I see this young Spanish lady let both her dogs off the lead. The Rottweiler does not do much but the Doberman flies across the road and starts going for his dog. She manages to get it under control and this is where the fun starts. The dog owner tells her what he thinks. Then I tell her that dogs of certain size and breed have to be muzzled and on the lead and she goes potty telling us that her dog wouldn’t hurt anyone. I’ve heard this from so many people that insist their ‘pets’ wouldn’t hurt anyone. She was not interested and didn’t even offer any kind of apology; she put her dogs on the lead and went off muttering. Owners - your dogs are not the problem - you are! If you own a dog that by law is classed as dangerous keep it on a lead or at least put a muzzle on it. Or I'm upgrading to a lion and they can sort it out themselves.
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OPINION & COMMENT
LEGALLY SPEAKING
Kamikaze software AS part of a new series, we answer some common driving questions, kindly provided by members of the Guardia Civil based in Torrevieja, Costa Blanca, who set up the N332 website and Facebook page to help break down barriers.
POLICE CHECKS: On the wearing of seatbelts and child restraints in cars. NEW software has been created by Bosch which aims to alert so called ‘kamikaze’ drivers, who either intentionally or accidentally drive the wrong way down the road. This software will be available through smart phones or integrated into the vehicle’s technology such as GPS systems. Once an alert has been activated to say the driver is going the wrong way and the driver fails to respond to the warning, the equipment is capable of forcing the vehicle to stop within a few seconds, simultaneously sending an alert to approaching vehicles of the potential hazard ahead. Bosch aims to put the technology into production in 2016, although the ability to actually stop the vehicle will only be available in those cars which have computerised assistance built in.
Police checks All drivers in Spain should be aware that the Guardia Civil traffic department will be carrying out intensified checks on the wearing of seatbelts and child restraints in cars. The use of a seatbelt is mandatory for all occupants of a vehicle in both front and rear seats. There must be no more passengers in a vehicle than the number of seatbelts. Children less than 1.5m in height must use the appropriate restraints for their height and, in some cases, weight and children under the age of 12 cannot travel in the front seat, unless using a properly fitted and approved restraints. The only exception is if the child is tall than 135cm, in which case they can use the normal seatbelt. According to the DGT, 70 per cent of children are not properly protected with the correct form of restraint.
For more news and articles visit www.n332.es or search N332 on Facebook.
Can Spain charge extra tax on property? Have you heard of an extra tax on purchasing a house in Spain if the government thinks the house is more valuable than the price you actually paid for it? My brother has just purchased an apartment and his soliciYes, it is legal. Your solicitor has done well to warn you about the upcoming extra tax bill. The Spanish Tax Agency has tables of value, based on the official rateable value of properties, which is the ‘valor catastral’ used to determine the annual property tax, ie rates. These tables give the minimum value
tor has told him he may have to pay a few thousand euros more in taxes because he got the property at a low price. Is this legal in Spain?
David Searl You and the Law in Spain
For many years the official value was lower than market value.
R.R. (Costa Blanca) that can be declared for a property. For many years this official value was lower than the real market value. However, in today’s depressed market, the official value is often higher than the price actually paid. This means the Tax Agency must apply the transfer tax to this value. It has happened to many purchasers.
Send your questions for David Searl through lawyers Ubeda-Retana & Associates in Fuengirola at [email protected], or call 952 667 090.
OPINION & COMMENT
24 - 30 September 2015 / Costa de Almería
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You’re Hired! Jack Dee to replace Dara Ó Briain on The Apprentice sister show Richard Shanley
Dishing the Dirt OF EUROPA DIGITAL
JACK DEE has signed up to host the new series of The Apprentice: You’re Fired. The comedian has replaced Dara Ó Briain on the BBC Two companion show, which airs directly after the main episode and features business experts and celebrities discussing the week’s events with the eliminated candidate. Dee - who has experience in the show after appearing on Comic Relief Does The Apprentice in 2009 said: “I’m very much looking forward to hosting You’re Fired and hope that the luckless candidates will see me as the friendly face at the end of a difficult time in their lives.” Meanwhile, friend of the show Romesh Ranganathan has had an upgrade and will be a regular panel-
JACK DEE: To host The Apprentice: You’re Fired. I love You’re Fired and am looking forward to putting all the questions to the candidates.
list this autumn. “As a massive fan of The Apprentice this is very exciting for me,” he said. “I love You’re Fired and am looking forward to putting all the questions to the candidates that people at home want to see asked. “I also have a number of business proposals of my own that I think
Lord Sugar will be pretty interested in…” The news follows the announcement that terrifying businessman Claude Littner - who regularly put the fear of God into the candidates during the interview stage - has replaced Nick Hewer as one of Lord Sugar’s advisers on the programme. The Apprentice and The Apprentice: You’re Fired will return later this year. Ant & Dec are returning to present the Brit Awards for a second year running in 2016. The pair hosted this year’s event, which was memorably dominated by Madonna’s stage fall. “We’re really excited to be invited back to host the Brit Awards 2016,” Ant & Dec said. “In all honesty we only intended to do it for one year but had such a good time we are thrilled to be doing it again. Both of us are looking forward to what will be an incredible night, and we can’t wait to celebrate the achievements of British music once again.”
The Brit Awards will air on ITV live from The O2 on Wednesday, February 24, 2016. Sam Smith, Ed Sheeran and Taylor Swift were among the major winners at the 35th Brit Awards earlier this year. If you would like me to answer any questions you may have on satellite TV or to expand on anything I have written about please call me on 678 332 815 or email [email protected]. I look forward to your comments and questions. Don’t forget to listen to my radio show every weekday from 10am on Spectrum 96.1 & 106.8FM, now covering almost 3000sq kms of Costa Almeria and Calida or listen online at costaalmeria.spectrumfm.net for the latest news and views from the world of satellite television. Richard Shanley Tel No : 950 61 51 42 Mob No : 678 33 28 15 Twitter : SpectrumAlmeria www.costaalmeria.spectrumfm.net
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Hispano-British Integration Day in Huercal-Overa MEMBERS from British and Spanish groups and clubs will attend the event By Linda Hall THIS coming Saturday Huercal-Overa is organising its third Hispano-British Integration Day. “After the resounding success of the two previous editions, we are repeating these celebrations to emphasise that British residents are part of our community,” said Social Services councillor Monica Sanchez. “This is a celebration where both nationalities can get to know each other better,” she said. The town’s approximately 1,500 British residents make up almost 10 per cent of the local population. “They love Huercal-Overa as much as we do,” said the councillor as she invited all residents in the area to attend. Members from 16 British and Spanish groups and clubs will attend the event at the municipal sports complex. It opens
INTEGRATION: Visitors at last year’s event. at 11am with an official welcome from the mayor and councillors at noon. There will be country and folk danc-
ing displays from British and Spanish groups plus zumba, line dancing and kickboxing as well as music.
“This is a town with room for all nationalities, we are above race or social condition,” Monica Sanchez said.
OCIAL CENE
It’s charity coffee time EVERY year Macmillan holds a charitable worldwide coffee morning to raise money for the cause. The event is to take place on Saturday, September 26. It will be a great chance to get together, drink coffee, and eat cakes, lovingly supplied by caring and selfless bakers. All proceeds from donations go to the Macmillan fund. The association is looking for kind hearted people to sell items to serve a good cause. The Spacious garden at Calle Barranco 10 in Turre is being lovingly prepared, however, participants are being kindly requested to bring a chair. All locals and visitors are welcomed: the more the merrier! Those interested in baking or selling items please call Loli at 637 229 464 or Maggi at 690 088 739.
SOCIAL SCENE
24 - 30 September 2015 / Costa de Almería
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Bernarda Alba in Vera with proceeds going to PAWS THERE is a chance below to win two free tickets for the show By Steve Walsh NOT only an English-language translation and adaptation of a Lorca melodrama, but a competition too! The Indalo Players present The House of Bernarda Alba on October 15, 16 and 17 at Cine Teatro Municipal Regio, Calle Radio Nacional in Vera. Curtain up at 8pm. There are two free tickets for correctly answering “How many daughters does Bernarda Alba have?” Email [email protected] with the answer. The play centres on widowed Bernarda Alba and her daughters Angustias, Magdalena, Amelia, Martirio and Adela. Angustias, the eldest is to marry handsome Pepe el Romano but the youngest, Adela, becomes pregnant with his child. Bernarda decides to kill Pepe el Romana, an action that brings a devastating climax which will change The House of Bernarda Alba forever. Proceeds from the performance will go to Asprodalba and PAWS. Tickets
INDALO PLAYERS: Rehearsing Lorca play. cost €8 each and are available from PC Playa in Mojacar and Connexions in Turre. Please enquire about transport from Mojacar, Turre and Los Gallardos when purchasing tickets. Directions to
the venue will be on the reverse of the ticket. For further information contact Chrissie Cremore on 634 349 638 or [email protected].
Ibex supports the Sierra Leone Ebola orphans appeal ANNIVERSARY: Remembering the Battle of Britain 1940.
Anglican Church Mojacar A SERVICE was held on Sunday September 13 to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Britain with appropriate hymns and prayers being included.
IBEX director Philip Langley is all set to participate in his fourth Sierra Leone marathon. The race will take place in Makeni, Sierra Leone on October 24. Phil is once again raising money for the UK charity Street Child and, specifically this year, for their Ebola Orphan Appeal. In the days before the race Phil will visit several Street Child projects across the country to see for himself how the money raised is spent and to meet the beneficiaries. Phil is meeting all his own expenses for the trip so that every penny raised goes to the charity. The ongoing Ebola outbreak has claimed more than 4,000 lives in Sierra Leone, leaving more than 12,000 orphans without at least one primary caregiver. More than 3,000 children have lost both parents.
MARATHON: Philip Langley receives his race shirt. They have an average age of just nine years. Without help these orphans face a bleak future as they also face the stigma of being an Ebola orphan and are frequently shunned by the wider community who themselves fear infection. The common practice of Africans welcoming orphans into their family has often not applied in the case of Ebola or-
phans. Many are left facing a life of physical and sexual abuse on the streets and no prospect of returning to school. Street Child is changing that and has supported more than 10,000 orphans, giving them food, finding them safe shelter, providing school uniforms and getting them back to school. Donations can be made at www.virginmoneygiving.com/p hiliplangley.
EWN
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SOCIAL SCENE
Keeping fit in Mojacar GYM course is aimed at male and female seniors who are keen to improve fitness By Steve Walsh M O J A C A R Tow n H a ll is a ga in offe ring a ‘G e rontogimnasia’ gym course. This w ill be the e ighth c ons e c utive ye a r of the c ours e , w hic h c ombine s physical and mental fitness with gentle gym routines. The classes are aimed at ma le a nd fe ma le s e niors w ho a re ke e n to improve their physical fitness, inc luding thos e w ith s ome type of health or mobility issue. The classes are also designed to promote positive
SENIORS: Gentle gym routines. thinking in later life and to help generate a more optimistic attitude in counter-
act i ng t he pr obl em s and constraints associated with getting older.
Thi s year ’s cour se has now commenced after the summer break. Classes are held on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 10am to 11am in t he Sal on de l a Ter cer a Edad on the lower floor of the Centro de Usos Multiples, next to the English Library. Readers wishing to join can enrol in person at the town hall’s Sports departm ent ( Concej al i a de Deportes). It is necessary to be registered on the Mojacar Padron and be at least 55.
Jazz cycle in Carboneras FESTIVAL ends on October 10 with 30’s inspired songs
JAZZ FESTIVAL: There is still time to catch some ‘swing.’
THE ninth Jazzbegote Festival in Carboneras is now under way and continues until October 10. The festival began last Saturday with the ClasiJazz Big Band Swing and Funky but there is still time to catch the Marco Mezquida Trio at the Teatro Casa de Musica this Saturday (September 26) at 8pm, tickets €5. Supersax perform on October 3 at the same time and venue tickets are €5. The festival comes to an end with O’Sister - inspired by the 30’s songs of the Boswell Sisters - on October 10 at 8.30pm, again at the Casa de Musica, tickets €5.
ALBOX & SURROUNDING AREAS
Starting the new year in a great condition
24 - 30 September 2015 / Costa de Almería
EWN
Less water worries for Albox families in need
NEW rooms, painting and gardening have been undertaken
WATER BILLS: Council has reached agreement with the water company.
WELCOME BACK: The children will see a difference with new classrooms. By Maria José Fernandez NEW rooms, painting works and gardening are some of the improvements carried out in Zurgena schools to welcome the children in pristine conditions. The town council explained the most important works were
carried out in the nursery school Chicos, where children between 0 and three years old will be able to enjoy a brand new classroom, with new furniture and toys. “For us, it is very important that children feel at home at their school, so their first contact with education is as enriching as pos-
sible,” said Lola Garcia, Education councillor. At La Alfoqua public school, the council has carried out comprehensive improvement works in hallways and toilets. Cleaning and disinfection works on the drinking water has taken place at Juan Andres Toledo school.
Former mayor injured in fall
TRACTOR ACCIDENT: The vehicle overturned trapping the man’s leg under it. THE former mayor of Albanchez, Francisco Martinez was injured after being involved in an accident when driving a tractor in the area of Rambla de Los Gomares. According to Spanish daily La Comarca Noticias, the ex-mayor was carrying out farming works when, for reasons still unknown, the vehicle overturned and trapped Mr Martinez’s leg under it.
The mayor was able to call his wife himself who requested an ambulance and he was taken by helicopter to the Torrecardenas Hospital, where he still remained hospitalised at the time of going to press. According to the same sources, Mr Martinez did not sustain injuries to his head or chest, but his ankle was in a very bad condition and he underwent surgery to reconstruct it.
FAMILIES in need and entrepreneurs are in luck in Albox as the council has reached an agreement with local water company Gestagua to reduce their water bills. Negotiations between Gestagua, local Mayor Rogelio Mena, Treasury councillor Francisco Carrillo and Social Services councillor Ana Belen Trinidad have resulted in the company promising to provide a €12,000 per year fund to be used to reduce water bills for new businesses and needy families.
Companies using 1,000 cubic metres of water per year that generate employment and families going through hard times will be the recipients of the discounts, the mayor explained. The town hall’s Social Services department will study individual cases of possible social exclusion and vulnerability, and families that qualify for the discounts and use less than 10 cubic metres of water per month will benefit from discounts of up to 100 per cent, Trinidad said.
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ALBOX & SURROUNDING AREAS
A bird breeding project TWENTY disabled people from the Francisco Perez Miras and El Saliente day centres for the disabled in Albox will be taking part in a new gardening, agricultural and bird breeding project funded by Bankia. The project, Cultivating Integration, was chosen by staff from Bankia’s Almeria Business Centre and will be receiving €4,443 in funds for the forst six months, centre director Jose Luis Martinex explained after a visit to the El Saliente headquarters to find out more about the association’s work.
ALBOX & SURROUNDING AREAS
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ALBOX & SURROUNDING AREAS
Local talent wows on TV JUANJO Garcia Guillen, a 15-year-old boy from Albox, has wowed the coaches on Spanish TV competition La Voz Kids, pulling the audience to their feet with his performance last week.
Juanjo chose one of coach Manuel Carrasco’s songs, No Dejes de Soñar (Don’t Stop Dreaming), for his initial appearance on Telecinco channels’ talent competition as he is a big fan of the singer.
Carrasco was thrilled and spun round almost immediately to invite the talented young man to join his team for the competition, and although fellow judges Almeria-born David Bisbal and Rosario Flores knew he would want to join Carrasco’s team they also turned to congratulate Juanjo on his performance. As parents Avelin and Juanjo and brother David watched on, during what they later said was one of the happiest days of their lives, Juanjo agreed to join Carrasco’s team for the competition and gave him a bracelet as a gift. Those who know him say the young man has always loved music and sings to himself all day long, both at home and at school where he takes an active role in all the cultural activities. He is currently learning to play piano and guitar, and has managed through the competition to fulfil his lifelong dream of performing before a large audience.
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GARDENS
Advertising feature
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QUALITY: A range of mattresses and pillows are available.
HOMES & GARDENS
24 - 30 September 2015 / Costa de Almería
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Raised beds are an ideal solution FILL raised beds with a mix of good topsoil and compost Dick Handscombe
Gardening Corner By Spain’s best known expatriate gardening author living in Spain for 25 years.
FROM 2000 to 2007, Spain apparently built some 35 per cent of all the residential properties built in the entire European Union. So it is no wonder that many owners of those properties have found that they have only a shallow depth of soil and that the soil is of poor quality. If you are in this situation, it is futile to expect to develop a long-term sustainable garden by planting directly in the garden soil. It would be far better to build areas of raised beds with 30 to 50 centimetres of a rich water retentive soil mix from day one and cover the areas between with stone slab, tile or stone chipping terraces and paths.
BLOOMING GOOD: Since you will be starting off with fertile soil there will be little need for fertilizers.
The benefits will be eightfold: 1. Fewer plants will die within a few weeks, months or years. 2. Raised beds can be used for hedges, flowering plants, shrubs and trees, culinary and medicinal herb beds, a rockery,
succulent or bulb collections, rose collections, vegetables and fruit plants, bushes and trees, an asparagus bed, etc, etc. 3. You can work them without walking on them and do so standing up or sitting on a seat or stool. 4. Since you don’t need to
walk on the soil you can work raised beds immediately after heavy rains. 5. Watering needs will be less. 6. Easy to work if you fill with a good soil mix. 7. Provided the raised beds are on a good draining base or
have low water draining holes they will not become waterlogged even after heavy rains. 8. Less continuing frustration. Walls of raised beds can be brick, stone, aggregate blocks, wood, old doors, railway sleepers, welded or bolted sheet metal, and peat blocks, etc. They are easily built by a handyman or local odd-job man. Make the width no more than a metre. We suggest that you fill the raised beds with a mix of good top soil, homemade or purchased inexpensive natural compost from a local composting yard or eco-park, and well composted horse, sheep, goat or poultry manure. If you use all the topsoil from the areas that you are going to cover with chippings you may have sufficient soil. Since you will be starting off with fertile soil there will be little need to use additional fertil-
izers in the first year even if growing vegetables. In subsequent years top up the surface of the soil with five to 10 centimetres of good compost and well rotted manures. To use the raised beds most productively plant trailing plants around the sides to hang down the walls as well as maximising the top of the beds. For watering we suggest you install a drip irrigation system on the raised beds controlled by a simple battery operated timer or install a water tank above the raised beds and water by gravity. If you are bothered by a neighbour’s pet cats or feral cats cover the top of vegetable beds especially at sowing and planting times with a removable wire mesh tunnel. This can be covered with clear plastic sheeting to protect overwintering and early spring crops.
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Training part 3: Dog forums place to meet ARENA Creative shutterstock
DOG HARNESS: Originally designed for working dogs.
David THE Dogman Listen to David on TRE every Saturday 10am to 11am Costa del Sol (Gibraltar/Sotogrande) 98.7fm (San Roque to Calahonda) 91.9fm (Calahonda to Motril) 88.9, Costa Calida 92.7fm Costa Blanca (Torrevieja to Elche) 105.1fm (Elche to Calpe) 88.2fm, (Calpe to Gandia & Ibiza) 104.6fm, (Denia to Valencia) 95.3fm Mallorca 103.9fm
MANY years ago dog forums were the place to meet on the internet. I met many wonderful trainers from around the world including Grant Teebone over 30 years a police dog handler and instructor from Australia and Dick Russell running Dog Training in Baton Rouge, LA who trained dogs professionally for over 50 years. It was his craft and his life. For more than 30 of his last years, Dick helped Baton Rouge Metro Area dog owners turn their
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Be careful at this time with parasites!
I MET many wonderful trainers from around the world on the internet
animals into the pets they dreamed of. Dick was aware through my writings that I did not believe in anything other than teaching dogs to walk to heel, sit and stay and most important to come back when called. I was also letting dogs off leash to sniff and play and go on walks. Dick bless him used to call me the ‘Mad Dog Man’ until he received a video from me showing him my free socialisation. From that moment on he changed his complete approach and was ‘then’ the first dog trainer in the western hemisphere to offer Large Field Socialisation. Dick came on my radio shows and always claimed I changed his life. Unfortunately Dick died a few years ago and I lost a great friend I had never met. Any form of aggression used towards aggressive animal results in a negative causing so many problems. Now another new approach is the Tedlington Touch known as the TTouch. Sarah Fisher a
PETS PAGE
friend and expert in all sectors of the Canine and Horse world uses this and can be seen on the Internet and certainly gives excellent results. In conclusion lately a term being used in the USA, UK and Spain is ‘Force Free Training.’ This literally means passive training which a number of trainers have been using for over 30 years. Over the past few years harnesses in all shapes and colours have been appearing. Harnesses were designed for working dogs, tracking, the blind and handicapped air sea rescue etc. In my opinion the harness needs to be fitted by an expert and then shown how to use it but of course owners do not go down this street! I prefer that a dog is trained on a half check collar available in the Kumfi range www.kumfi.co.uk and then once trained to walk to heel after which there is no problem to use a harness.
THIS is the time of year that sees the greatest numbers of little insects that can potentially put our pets at risk if they become infested. Parasites such as fleas and ticks are usually found in green areas, grass, bushes and trees and apart from their bites, their main dangers are the number of illnesses and problems they can bring with them. The EWN asked local veterinarians for their opinion on what can be done to protect animals from these pests, they s a i d “ F l e a s h o s t o rg a n isms such as Dipylidium caninum (flea tapeworms) which can lead to pets becoming infected, and also tend to produce dermatitis and skin problems as many dogs are all e rg i c t o f l e a s ’ s a l i v a . This can lead to scabs and alopecia due to continual scratching. “In the case of fleas, the microorganisms they carry inside them can become lodged in pets’ blood destroying cells and causing extreme cases of anaemia, suppressing immune systems, causing blood clotting issues and affecting vital o rg a n s s u c h a s t h e k i d neys and liver and can even cause paralysis.” Another parasite we
m u s t n ’t f o rg e t i s o n e transmitted by mosquitoes which cause an illness known as canine leishmaniasis. This is a very serious illness which gradually weakens pets. The first symptom is usually hair loss around the eyes, ears and nose. More serious symptoms including apathy, lack of appetite, skin and joint problems and bleeding. To avoid all these parasite-related problems there are various effective methods which stop the insects affecting out animals. The people at Mascota Express tell us that there is a wide range of liquids, collars, sprays and tablets available that can be used to get rid of parasites and protect your pets from all sorts of insects in a simple, convenient and effective way for a set amount of time. Depending on the type of prevention chosen, the effect can last from one month (liquids) to eight to nine months (collars).
Their veterinary department is always happy to answer any queries on 952 501 452 or visit http://www.mascota express.com/
PETS
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Brief history of the canary 3-legged and the different types dog rescued from shed THE domestic canary is a domesticated form of the wild canary, a small songbird of the finch family originating from the Azores, Madeira and Canary Islands. Canaries were first bred in captivity in the 17th century as they were brought over by Spanish sailors to Europe. The bird became an expensive and fashionable addition to the courts of various kings and monks started breeding
them, selling only the males which sing. Canaries are generally divided into three main groups: Colourbred canaries which are bred for different colours, Type canaries which are bred for their shape, Song canaries bred for their songs. In Spain, the Raza Española which is considered a good shape and the relatively recently developed Spanish
Timbrado developed for its song are possibly the best known canaries. Even though the habit of keeping such birds in small cages is becoming less common, it is still possible to hear their songs from balconies around Spain.
POOR dog was so scared, that she simply wouldn’t budge
Loyal four-legged friend stands guard over her companion who was stuck THE strength of a dogs love has proved a humbling experience A HEARTWARMING story was doing the rounds last week of two missing dogs found safe in America after one stood guard for a week over the other, which had got stuck in a water cistern. The Setter, Tillie, stayed with her Basset Hound friend Phoebe after she became
trapped in a ravine in the state of Washington. Vashon Island Pet Protectors volunteer group, which had been searching for the dogs for a week, reported: “For nearly a week Tillie stayed by her side apart from a few minutes each day when she went to look for help.”
The pair were found when a nearby resident reported a dog had been visiting their property every day then rushing back in the direction of the ravine. After a search, Phoebe was found perched on rubble inside the cistern, which had concrete walls that were a lit-
tle too high for her to be able to jump out of. As both dogs recover from their ordeal, their story has been shared more than 3,000 times from VIPP’s Facebook page, where it has been classed by the group as a humbling example of the power of love.
A REPORT has just come in concerning Annie a three-legged dog from Floral City, Florida who escaped her owner, dug a hole under a shed and then promptly got stuck! Her owner called for assistance and local firefighters arrived with heavy machinery including the aptly named but somewhat intimidating ‘jaws of life’ with which they hoped to rescue Annie. Apparently, the poor dog was so scared that no matter how hard they tried to get her out, or how much the owner tried to
encourage her, she simply w o u l d n ’t o r c o u l d n ’t budge from under the shed. The firefighters had a ‘light bulb moment’ and after re-equipping themselves returned with some bacon. Although the report doesn’t record whether it was smoked or unsmoked, cooked or raw, it seemed to do the trick as Annie, having sniffed at it, managed to wriggle out of the hole, ate the bacon and jumped into her owner ’s arms none the worse for the experience.
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The excellent service speaks for itself A LEADING estate agent business that now boasts 11 staff and a full rental team, along with family members SPANISH PROPERTY CHOICE first began operating 10 years ago in Almeria when husband and wife team, Sharon and Stephen Garner saw a business opportunity to help people find their dream home in Spain. A decade later the company has evolved into a leading real estate business that thrived during the recession. Spanish Property Choice now boasts 11 staff and a full rental team, along with family members which gives that added loyalty between staff and their clients. Because Sharon, Stephen and their family business have delivered an excellent service to their clients, they receive an overwhelming amount of glowing testimonials from many of them. Here are just two of them. Matt, Emma, Sharon, Stephen and Shaun
I used SPC to purchase a property in Mojacar Playa in June 2015, and could not have wished for a more professional, friendly and attentive service. At no time did I feel pressurised. I felt that nothing was too much trouble for them. From the moment I contacted them they offered advice as to the best way to reach Mojacar from Torrevieja, providing me with public transport routes and times. It is truly a family run business, over the course of the four days that I spent finding and purchasing a property, I met nearly every member of the family except one who was busy looking after a recent, new addition to the family. I felt they spent time listening to my requirements and selected properties that were both suitable and within my budget, they were at my disposal to visit my preferred property as many times as I needed. Being a newbie to overseas property purchas-
ing and fairly nervous (having read numerous online horror stories) they explained the whole process to me clearly and patiently, answering any questions I threw at them. They introduced me to an excellent, English speaking, conveyance solicitor and foreign currency exchange provider. I had done some online research and gleaned that it was not advisable to use a solicitor recommended by an estate agent, but my dealings with SPC gave me the confidence to trust their recommendations. They handled the price negotiations fairly and provided me with instant updates. SPC offered to provide after-sales advice and guidance on many things. I can honestly say that they provided an excellent service and would have no hesitation in recommending them, from my experience. It is hard to imagine a better service¨ Best wishes Simon Grant, Mojacar.
Dear Tamara Coralie,
and
David and I just had to let you know how much we have appreciated your time, help and pointing us in the right direction. We thanked the day we walked into Spanish Property Choice. I would highly recommend Spanish Property Choice, be it rentals or sales. What we can say is that if you want a professional service, a friendly welcome and go the extra mile then this is the company for you. 10 out of 10. Warmest Regards Joyce and David Bradley.
www.spanishpropertychoice.com [email protected]
Telephone: 0034 950 615 388 UK cheap rate call line: 0843 313 3639
Barcelona property market A RECENT analysis undertaken by the Forcadell group reports an increased demand for Barcelona flats and apartments from both Spanish and foreign investors. It is also apparent that developers are beginning to show interest in buildable land in Barcelona, indicating that they see the possibility of profitability due to increased demand and rising prices.
PROPERTY SPECIAL
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FEATURE
Advertising feature
Having trouble understanding the legalities when applying for residency? ASSSA, your private health insurer, has all the answers for you... DID you know that you need proof that you are covered for healthcare in Spain when applying for the residence certificate? In 2012 the Spanish Government changed the legislation regarding the healthcare system and you will find the requirements when applying to be very detailed and rigorous. ASSSA now issue health insurance policies specifically designed for residencia purposes. We supply all the policy documents and certificates necessary to meet the health cover required for residencia in Spain. So whatever your problem, if ASSSA can help –we will! Our personal service is unique. Our friendly, multilingual employees are happy to inform you about our policies without any obligation to purchase. Our philosophy is to answer all clients’ queries fully and with complete honesty. Many of our clients join us on recommendation from existing ones. At ASSSA you will be allocated a personal advisor who speaks your language and assists with any questions
SERVING YOU: Medical professionals who speak your language. you may have. This high level of service is provided in all of our customer service offices along the coast. Doctors and Hospitals Our policies offer an extensive medical directory of private clinics, GPs and specialists working in some of the best private hospitals in
Spain. We have many English-speaking medical professionals under contract with ASSSA. Quality Insurance We provide flexible levels of HEALTH INSURANCE – which meet the needs and requirements of all clients. There are flexible plans which range from top-up insurance (start-
ing at 47€ per month) to comprehensive cover (starting from 88€ per month). During the current economic crisis we are offering lifetime discounts up to 30% for adults and 50% for accompanying children up to 16 years. We also have an amazing 25% lifetime discount on our FUNERAL INSURANCE premiums – and we are also offering discounts on our popular DENTAL INSURANCE. Insure your health! ASSSA offers a variety of unique, written and contractual guarantees: premiums do not increase as you age, in addition ASSSA provides protection against policy cancellation from the first day of insurance. Contracts with ASSSA are of course in your own language as transparency is very important to us. Visit us for an informal chat and see how we can help you. Customer Service Office: VERA: María Dolores Castaño - Tel: 950 392 487 [email protected] – www.asssa.es
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WANTED - Franchisee for installing long life exterior villa painting products, Almeria area is up & running with an order book. Established in Spain 20 years with other franchises in Costa Blanca, Costa del Sol & Algarve. Investment required, details on request, for more details please email contact@noneed topaint.com or Freephone 0044 8005 088102. (228871)
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ART CLASSES ART CLASSES. New term starting September. Tuesday Puerto Rey 10.30am - 1pm, Wednesday Albox 10.00am 12pm. Call Denise 663 341 904 (239108)
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FOR SALE DELIVERIES BUILDERS ANDALUCIAN BUILDING COMPANY, see our advert on page 28. (238971)
BUSINESS OPP. SELLING businesses in Spain for 15 years. Free valuation. [email protected] m. Tel: 902 906 016 (231182)
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2 x gas heaters - 1 €35, 1 €30; 2 x silver gas bottles €10 each; 4 x red gas bottles €10 each. Buyer collects. Tel 634 320 052 (237822)
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FITNESS & DANCE
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WE ARE currently the market leader in our country in the sale of direct car, motorbike, home and company fleet insurance. Since we started out in 1995, our philosophy has always been to offer an excellent service with the best prices in the market. For the most competitive quotes in English, call Linea Directa on 902 123 309. (200726)
PETS PET-COURIERS.COM – If you love your pet try us first – we are the best. Door to door service throughout Europe. Specialised vehicles – bespoke service. Full legal service including documentation if required for further information call or e-mail us: Tel: (0034) 651 033 670 or (0034) 637 066 227. Email: [email protected] or www.pet-couriers.com (231443)
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PLUMBING SERVICES
PROPERTY WANTED 2 BEDROOM PROPERTY WANTED for long term rent in Las Buganvillas. We have rented in the area for over 10 years, a married couple on a fixed income. No Pets. Please Telephone: 0034 634 373 788 (237227)
KNOWLES PLUMBING. No 1 for plumbing! Central heating, solar hot water and water deposits. Tel: 950 137 197or 606 807 797 (238827)
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POOLS CERTIFIED Pool Cleaner/Handyman/Gardener/House Sitter, cheap rates. Phone Neil 642 764 741, email [email protected] (228569)
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Motoring shorts
Recall of Toyota RAV4 RAV4 models, 423,500 of them, from 2009-2012 have been recalled in the USA due to a fault with their windscreen wipers. According to Toyota, water can corrode the link between the wiper and the motor crank arm over time which could cause the two parts to separate, meaning the wipers would stop. There have been no reports of injuries.
New electric speedsters AS the concept of electric performance cars becomes more acceptable, the Frankfurt Motor Show, on until September 27, has seen announcements of quality developments from Audi with their e-ton Quattro and Porsche with Mission E which promises speed, distance and quick recharging.
Speed queen EVA Håkansson is the world’s fastest female motorcycl e r i d e r h a v i n g reached a speed 241.9mph driving a n e l e c t r i c b i k e she designed herself. Her target is to reach 300mph and she is participating in a speed trial in the US in October.
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Clarkson Quote of theWeek
The air conditioning in a Lambo used to be an asthmatic sitting in the dashboard blowing at you through a straw.
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HIGH hopes for this new car inspired by the F-Type which has the DNA of a sports car JAGUAR’s exciting new F-Pace has been billed as the company’s first family sports car and has already set tongues wagging at the Frankfurt Motor Show, where it would appear the theme for this year’s event can be summed up in one word: Crossover! Jaguar has set the tone early and has high hopes for the new car inspired by the F-Type: The new Jaguar F-Pace is a performance Sports Utility Vehicle that has the DNA of a sports car. It looks like the F-Pace breaks with convention and drives the Jaguar brand in an entirely new direction. This exciting sports crossover concept vehicle extends Jaguar’s portfolio by entering the fastest growing segment in the global automotive market. Based on Jaguar’s all-new aluminium monocoque architecture, the F-Pace adds to the existing Jaguar range and provides a vision of potential, technical innovation, and progressive design. Jaguar tell us that the F-Pace combines the refinement and dynamics of saloon car-like handling with superb all-weather, all-road, performance thanks to all-wheel drive and increased ground clearance. The range of engines on offer will include the 3.0 litre V6 380 PS Super-
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The exciting new F-Pace, billed as Jaguar’s first family sports car By Steve Walsh
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charged Petrol, and the new 2.0 litre four cylinder 180PS Turbocharged Diesel Ingenium engine, which can achieve 4.9l/100km and CO2 emissions as low as 129g/km. As Jaguar say themselves on their website: The F-Pace keeps you safe, connected and entertained. It has the capability for every road and the capacity for every day. The F-Pace is a Jaguar for you, a Jaguar for your family. For more information, go to: www.jaguar.com/jaguar-range/fpace/index.html
F-PACE: Combines the refinement and dynamics of saloon car-like handling.
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Maserati lines up latest model range in Europe
MASERATI: At Frankfurt Motor Show.
IN the run-up to the launch of the Levante SUV scheduled for 2016, Maserati lined up its complete Model Year 16 (MY16) product range at the Frankfurt Motor Show.
With this range, Maserati upgrades all current engines to the Euro 6 standard and with other improvements the Maserati sedans, Quattroporte and Ghibli will be able to meet customer’s demands.
RE-PLATE MATE Don’t take a chance! Don’t break the law! Take the hassle out of re-registering your vehicle onto Spanish plates We endeavour to better any genuine quotation 490 Euro + Road Tax + CO2 emission tax if applicable
Alan 662 249 159 www.replatematecostablanca.com
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SPORTS
Springboks stunned, tennis glory for Murray, City ‘hammered’ ANDY MURRAY and brother Jamie help GB beat Australia in Davis Cup Tony Matthews International Sports A former football player and the world’s most prolific author of football books (more than 100 published), Tony is also the sports reporter for Spectrum Radio and lives in the Cabrera mountains. Costa de Almeria
RUGBY WORLD CUP England got off to a ‘decent’ start on home soil, beating Fiji 35 points to 11 in their opening game, Mike Brown scoring two tries. But 24 hours later we had the biggest shock ever in World Cup history when Japan beat South Africa 34-32. The pick of the other first group matches were: France 32 Italy 10, Ireland 70 Canada 7, New Zealand 26 Argentina 16, Samoa 25 USA 16 and Wales 54 Uruguay 9 before a record 89,000 crowd. England play Wales on Saturday (9pm) followed by Australia-Uruguay, Scotland-USA and Ireland-Romania on Sunday. Twenty countries are playing 48 games in the tournament which ends on 31 October. MOTOR SPORT - Sebastian Vettel won last Sunday’s eventful Singapore F1 Grand
DYNAMIC DUO: Jamie and Andy Murray set up victory for GB to reach the Davis Cup final. Prix; Daniel Ricciardo was second with Kimi Raikonnen third. Unfortunately Lewis Hamilton’s brakes failed but he still leads the driver’s championship by 41 points from Nico Rosberg with Vettel eights worse off. The cars, drivers and crews stay in Asia for this Sunday’s
Japanese Grand Prix while the riders on two wheels will participate in the Spanish MotoGP at Aragon. FOOTBALL - Last weekend, a record Etihad Stadium crowd of 53,545 saw West Ham surprisingly beat Manchester City 2-1 - the latter’s second home defeat in four
days. Chelsea, aided by the niggling and arrogant Diego Costa, beat nine-man Arsenal 2-0 (also the Gunners’ second defeat in a row); Manchester United (with two goals from teenage sensation Anthony Martial) won 3-2 at Southampton and WBA edged Aston Villa 1-0 in the Midlands derby.
There were also PL wins for Bournemouth (v Sunderland), Spurs (with a ‘Sun’ goal v Crystal Palace) and Watford (at Newcastle). Brighton (Championship), Burton Albion (FL1), Leyton Orient (FL2), Aberdeen (SPL), Rangers (SCL) and Barcelona (La Liga) lead their respective Divisions. Lionel Messi missed his 15th penalty out of 65 in Barca’s latest 4-1 win over Levante. Earlier this week, 16 third round League Cup-ties included Arsenal v Tottenham, Aston Villa v Birmingham, Leicester v West Ham, Liverpool v Carlisle, Manchester United v Ipswich, Norwich v WBA, Sunderland v Manchester City and Walsall v Chelsea. And this weekend the top PL games are Leicester-Arsenal, Manchester United-Sunderland, NewcastleChelsea and Spurs-Manchester City, while two founder members of the Football League, Preston and Wolves, meet in the Championship. * Former PNE, Aston Villa and England forward Tommy Thompson has died, aged 85 TENNIS - At The Emirates Arena, Glasgow, Great Britain beat Australia to reach the Davis Cup final for the first time since 1978. Andy and Jamie Murray set up victory with a memorable and thrilling doubles triumph over Lleyton Hewitt and Sam Groth before
Andy went out on Sunday to sew things up with victory over Bernard Tomic. GB will now play Belgium, away, in the final in November.... and the last time GB won the trophy was back in 1936 when Fred Perry was at his best. CRICKET - Jade Dernbach’s hat-trick for Surrey was all in vain as Gloucestershire won the Royal London Cup final at Lords by six runs (220/214). And Worcestershire have been relegated form Division One of the County Championship. GOLF - Europe blew an 84 points lead in the Solheim Cup allowing the USA to regain the trophy with a narrow 14½ to 13½ victory in Germany. Jason Day has now gone top of the world rankings but Tiger Woods has dropped down to 283rd after another back operation. He will not play any more golf this year. His last major win was back in 2008. TRIATHLON - In the World Championships in Chicago, the GB duo of Non Stanford and Vicky Holland finished second and third in the women’s event and so qualified for the 2016 Olympics in Rio, but in the men’s event, Jonny Brownlee could only manage 12th place and is not guaranteed a place in Rio, yet!
DID YOU KNOW? FIFTY years ago, in December 1965, Norman Hunter (Leeds United) became the first substitute to be used by England in a full international when he replaced Joe Baker in a 2-0 win over Spain in Madrid.
QUIZ - Tomorrow afternoon, I have a charity quiz at Bar La Montana on the Bedar/ Lubrin Road (2.30pm). From 12 noon there is a special menu available for those who want to have an early lunch.
24 - 30 September 2015 / Costa de Almeria
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19th Hole Golf A message Society Cucador from Badgers LORCA GOLF Resort hosted a Traffic Lights Stableford competition on Friday September 18. With perfect weather conditions and greens in beautiful condition high scores were expected. Nigel Greenwood’s manic 48 points easily secured first place in the Men’s Division, while an ever improving Geoff Smith, secured second place on a card countback with 44 points from Mike Espisito. Nekana Galindez took the honours in the Ladies Division with 34 points. Stephen Puddephut had a cash winning day taking two Nearest the Pins and a Two. Best shot of the day was from Steve Tucker on the 14th, his second shot bounced left of the green landing in his opponent’s buggie and settling nicely in
the water bottle holder The full results were as follows: In the Mens Division: First, Nigel Greenwood, 48 points (16). Second, Geoff Smith, 44 points (28). Third, Mike Esposito, 44 points (13). In the Ladies Division: First, Nekana Galindez, 34 points (26). The 19th Hole G/S arranges weekly games at various courses in the area, their home course, which they play fortnightly, is Aguilon. If you are interested in joining or playing with the 19th Hole, give the secretary a ring on 610 340 653 or email [email protected].
Hola Everyone. Well it is now getting close to our annual Presentation Dinner & Dance and there are a lot of you who have not yet put your names down or indeed selected your menu choices. See attached list for confirmations. The cut off point for acceptance is September 30 so you all need to get your asses into gear and get your names down and make your menu choices. The night will again be full of festivities and fun so you do not want to miss out! Isabel at Bella Vista is expecting a large crowd and is looking forward to presenting you all with some wonderful food from the kitchen. Steve King will once again be supplying the music for the night. The presentation will be followed with a raffle with all proceeds going to a good cause. So, be there or be square! Please get in contact with me at the earliest convenience. Regards, Andy M 634 333 481 • [email protected]
Thank you, readers, for your support CAMPBELL LAMONT expresses his appreciation on behalf of the whole team Getting in the swing with Campbell Lamont
By Tony Myles THOUSANDS of EWN readers have played a major role in helping Campbell reach his market leading position and on behalf of his whole team, he wants to convey his sincere appreciation for that support. The business has grown beyond all expectations. Here are a few highlights and comparisons. Just a few years ago, Campbell was operating from a single office suite with limited space for product displays. The main thrust of
SUCCESS STORY: Campbell’s business has surpassed expectations. the business was based on securing discounted green fees for his clients. This was an extremely difficult task as, at that time, the mindset of the clubs was that green fees should not be discount-
ed but should be retained at an ever increasing high level. How times have changed! Today there are no popular courses that do not undertake to provide Campbell with the very
lowest possible rates, which he passes on to a burgeoning client base. This year, you will book more than 40,000 green fees with him. The process will be handled efficiently and smoothly. Move to the mall This single office was replaced by one of the largest Golf Stores in Spain based alongside the busy shopping mall in Ondara * Here Campbell has 650 square metres of space and incorporates a driving range and a putting green. *You will also find all the major brands on display and available for you to try before you buy. * The clothing part of the business has also grown significantly from a few caps just a few years ago to a full range of all the latest fashions for men and women. With this amazing success to build on, Campbell has now undertaken to supply six additional
stores in the North Costa Blanca where you will have access to the full range of goods and services offered by the company. Leagues One of the biggest successes for the Campbell Lamont team has been the meteoric rise in the number of players in the International Campbell Lamont Golf Leagues. From a handful of society members, who were early participants, this now attracts over 10,000 competitors and with expansion into other countries this will quickly become the European number one amateur golf competition. There are so many other success stories but space is limited and so we confirm our gratitude to those who have made this possible and our commitment to continue offering the very best prices for everything you need in order to enjoy the very best sport in the world.
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Sebastian Vettel was victorious in the Singapore Grand Prix but still trails Lewis Hamilton by 49 points in the driver’s championship.
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Who holds the record for the most Ladies Singles titles at Wimbledon, winning nine times between 1978 and 1990 ? | Top 10 Grand Slam Champions Women's Singles; Grand Slam Winners
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Current World No. 1 Serena Willians is at No 2 with 22 Grand Slams Titles in Top 10 Grand Slam Champions Women’s Singles list.
Margaret Court is at Top with 24 Titles while Steffi Graf is at No 2 with 22 Grand Slams titles.
Top 10 Grand Slam Champions Women’s Singles is a list of those great ladies who won the Major title the most. The Grand Slam journey consists of the Australian Open in mid-January, the French Open in May/June. Wimbledon in June/July, and the US Open in August/September. The Australian and US Opens are played on hard courts, the French on clay, and Wimbledon on grass. Wimbledon is the oldest, founded in 1877, followed by the US in 1881, the French in 1891, and the Australian in 1905. Here is the complete list of Grand Slam Champions:
#1 Margaret Court
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Margaret Court is a former World No. 1 professional tennis player. She is best known for her sporting career, in which she accumulated more Major titles than any other player in history. With 24 Grand Slam titles she is at top position in Top 10 Grand Slam Champions Women’s Singles.
In 1970, Court became the first woman during the open era to win the singles Grand Slam. Court won a record 24 of those titles during her career. She also won 19 women’s doubles and 21 mixed doubles titles, giving her a record 64 Major titles overall. She is the only woman to win the mixed doubles Grand Slam, and she did it twice. Court is the only one in all of tennis history to complete a multiple slam set in all three disciplines, Singles, Doubles and Mixed.
#2 Serena Williams
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American professional tennis player, Serena Williams is currently ranked No. 1 in women’s singles tennis. Williams holds the most Major singles, doubles, and mixed doubles titles combined amongst active players, male or female. Her record of 38 Major titles puts her seventh on the all-time list: 22 in singles, 14 in women’s doubles, and 2 in mixed doubles. She is the most recent player, male or female, to have held all four Grand Slam singles titles simultaneously and only the fifth woman ever to do so. Williams has won four Olympic gold medals, one in women’s singles and three in women’s doubles, an all-time record shared with her sister Venus. Indeed she is the one of the most dominant female athlete of the modern era .
#3 Steffi Graf
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Steffi Graf is a former World No. 1 German tennis player. She is at no 2 in the list of Top 10 Grand Slam Champions Women’s Singles. She won 22 Grand Slam singles titles, second among male and female players only to Margaret Court’s 24. Her 22 singles titles mark the record for most Major wins by a tennis player since the introduction of the Open Era in 1968. She is the only player to win at least 4 singles titles at each Grand Slam. In 1988, she became the first and only tennis player to achieve the Calendar Year Golden Slam by winning all four Grand Slam singles titles and the Olympic gold medal in the same calendar year.Graf is regarded by many to be the greatest female tennis player of all time. She was ranked World No. 1 by the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) for a record 377 total weeks—the longest period for which any player, male or female.
#4 Helen Wills Moody
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Helen Wills Moody was an American tennis player. She has been described as “the first American born woman to achieve international celebrity as an athlete”. Wills won 31 Grand Slam tournament titles (singles, women’s doubles, and mixed doubles) during her career, including seven singles titles at the U.S. Championships, eight singles titles at Wimbledon, and four singles titles at the French Championships. She never played at the Australian Championships. From 1919 through 1938, she collected a 398–35 match record, including a winning streak of at least 158 matches, during which she did not lose a set. She also won two Olympic gold medals in Paris in 1924. With 19 Major titles in women’s singles she is at no 3 in Top 10 Grand Slam Champions.
#5 Chris Evert
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Martina Navratilova is one of the greatest tennis players of all time and Grand Slam Champions. She won 18 Grand Slam singles titles including Wimbledon a record nine times, including a run of six consecutive titles, 3 Australian open, 2 French open and 4 US open. She also won 31 major women’s doubles titles, and 10 major mixed doubles titles. She and King each won 20 Wimbledon titles, an all-time record Navratilova was World No. 1 for a total of 332 weeks in singles, and a record 237 weeks in doubles, making her the only player in history to have held the top spot in both singles and doubles for over 200 weeks. Navratilova also holds the records for most singles titles (167) and for most doubles titles (177) in the open era.
#7 Billie Jean King
| Martina Navratilova |
Who trained a record 50th Cheltenham Festival winner last month, when his Bob's Worth won the Gold Cup ? | Tennis / Useful Notes - TV Tropes
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Current ATP Players
Bob and Mike Bryan (USA) 1995-present: Twin brothers who were the No. 1 men's doubles team for practically the whole period from 2005 to early 2016, and hold virtually every record in the book for men's doubles teams. Their most notable team records are Grand Slam titles (16), tournaments won (109), most weeks at No. 1 (nearing 440), and most year-end No. 1 rankings (10). Named by ATP fans as their favorite team in each year since that award was created in 2006. They have a career Golden Slam in doubles after winning Olympic gold in London in 2012, and their win at Wimbledon in 2013 made them the first men's doubles team in the Open era to hold all four Grand Slam titles at once. Finally, they are the only men's doubles team in history to win every major title in the sport�all four Grand Slam events, Olympic gold, every Masters 1000 event,note There have been 10 Masters 1000 events, but only nine in any given season. The former Hamburg event moved to Shanghai in 2009; the Bryans won in Hamburg in 2007 and Shanghai in 2014. the YEC, and Davis Cup.
Marin Čilić (Croatia) 2005-present: Won the 2014 US Open in his first-ever Grand Slam final, taking down Federer along the way. While long a solidly competitive player, he had previously made it to the semifinals in only one Slam and the quarterfinals in three more. It remains to be seen whether his first Slam win is the start of bigger things.
Novak Djokovic (Serbia) 2003-present: Has held No. 1 for 223 weeks and won 12 Grand Slams and an Olympic bronze medal in singles. Was constantly overshadowed by Federer and Nadal early on in his career despite being World No. 3 , until he went on a spectacular 43-0 game winning streak in 2011. Is also known as " Djoker " for his sense of humor and impersonations of other players. In 2016, he became the first men's singles tennis player since Rod Laver in 1969 to win four consecutive Slams, also earning the career Slam in the process.
Roger Federer (Switzerland) 1998-present: Has held No. 1 for 302 weeks (longer than any other ATP player) and won an Open Era ATP record of 17 Grand Slams including a record-tying 7 Wimbledon, 5 US Open and 4 Australian Open titles (and 1 French Open, but that's not a record). Also has an Olympic gold medal in men's doubles with Stan Wawrinka (below) and a silver in singles. Is often cited as the greatest tennis player of all time. If one were to look up ATP tennis records on the Other Wiki , one would find his name on 90% .note Unless we're talking doubles records, in which case one would find the Bryans' names on about 99.9%. During his 2012 Wimbledon run he broke a record in every match he played after the second round.
Andy Murray (UK) 2005-present: Current No. 1, beginning in November 2016. Has won 3 Grand Slams. In his earlier years, he was constantly known as "the best tennis player to never win a Grand Slam" because he did well enough in Slams to reach four finals yet wasn't able to win any of them. He broke a 76-year national hoodoo in 2012 by becoming the first male Brit to win a major — the US Open — since Fred Perry in 1936. He then broke a similar national drought the very next year by becoming the first male Brit to win Wimbledon since — you guessed it — Fred Perry in 1936, and then won it the second time in 2016. He's won not only one Olympic silver medal in mixed doubles, but two back-to-back gold medals in singles, making him the first tennis player to win two singles gold medals in a row. He also led Great Britain to a Davis Cup title in 2015, breaking a 79-year drought in that event. Guess who was Britain's leading player back then...
Rafael Nadal (Spain) 2001-present: Has held No. 1 for 141 weeks, and also holds the record for the most weeks at No. 2 . He has won 14 Grand Slams. One of only four people to achieve a singles Career Golden Slam, which entails winning all four Grand Slam championships and the Olympic gold medal. Known as the "King of Clay", he has won a record nine French Open championships and lost only one match there from 2005 to 2014. He also has an Olympic gold medal in men's doubles with Marc Lopez.
Juan Martín del Potro (Argentina) 2005-present: Has won 1 Grand Slam and two Olympic medals — bronze and silver — in singles. The only active player outside of the Big Fournote Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, and Andy Murray to have won a Grand Slam from the 2005 French Open through the 2013 US Open. Following his breakthrough Slam victory at the 2009 US Open, he spent most of the next year out with a wrist injury and has been working his way back to Slam-threatening form ever since. He has been nicknamed the "Tower of Tandil" because of his 6'6'' frame and is also known as the " Gentle Giant " of the tour for his soft-spoken disposition too.
Stanislas "Stan" Wawrinka (Switzerland) 2002-present: Has won 3 Grand Slams, and teamed up with Federer to win Olympic gold in doubles in 2008. Was considered to be a mid-tier player for most of his career until he unexpectedly took Djokovic to 5 sets in the fourth round of the 2013 Australian Open and used that match as a launching pad to top 10 and Slam contender status. He's also the first non-Big 4 male player to win multiple Slams since Hewitt in 2001-02.
Current WTA Players
Victoria Azarenka (Belarus) 2003-present: Has held No. 1 for 51 weeks. Has won 2 singles Grand Slams and 2 mixed doubles. She won the first Olympic gold medal awarded for mixed doubles (at London 2012), also picking up a bronze medal in the singles. As well as her achievements, she is known for her distinctive "wail" on court. She began her maternity leave in 2016 for her first child, intending to come back in 2017.
Martina Hingis (Switzerland) 1994-2003, 2005, 2006-2007, 2013-present: Has held No. 1 for 209 weeks. Has won 5 singles Grand Slams, 10 doubles and 3 mixed doubles, and an Olympic silver medal in doubles with Timea Bacsinszky. The Swiss Miss note (though born in what is now Slovakia; she arrived in Switzerland when she was 7, after her mother fled the then-Czechoslovakia with her) is the youngest Grand Slam champion ever, winning her first doubles title at just 15 years old . She is also the youngest singles champion of the Open Era, winning the her maiden Slam the next year at 16. In 1998 she achieved the Calendar Year Grand Slam in doubles. She was plagued by injuries at a young age, causing repeated retirement-return tangos. Her most recent retirement was in 2007, shortly after she received a 2-year ban for testing positive for cocaine . Since then she has been a regular player in World Team Tennis and in July 2013, she returned to the WTA tour in doubles and won her first Slam since 2002 with Leander Paes at the 2015 Australian Open.
Angelique Kerber (Germany) 2003-present: Current No. 1, beginning in September 2016. Has won 2 singles Grand Slams and an Olympic silver medal in singles. She made her first breakthrough as a 2011 US Open semi-finalist at a mere world ranking of 92; however her biggest achievements came rolling in 2016, starting with a surprise appearance and victory over Serena Williams in the Australian Open final. Later her US Open win made her the first woman to win multiple singles grand slams in the same year other than Serena since Justine Henin in 2007. A southpaw tennis player (but is otherwise right-handed), she's known for her aggressive counterpunching.
Petra Kvitová (Czech Republic) 2006-present: Has won 2 Grand Slams, both of them at Wimbledon, and an Olympic bronze medal in singles. A shy southpaw who can hit the ball with bruising power and - much like Li Na - is unstoppable on her best day but beatable by anyone on her worst. She's also affectionately called " P3tra " by some fans for her penchant for getting into 3-setters regardless of her opponents' ranking.
Maria Sharapova (Russia) 2001-present: Has held No. 1 for 21 weeks. Has won 5 Grand Slams to achieve a Career Grand Slam and an Olympic silver medal in singles. She shot to fame by winning her maiden Slam at Wimbledon when she was just 17; ever since then, she's recovered from shoulder injuries and her "cow on ice" issues on clay to become one of the steeliest (and loudest ) competitors in tennis and an unexpected clay court master too. Unfortunately, her career hit a major snag in 2016 when she tested positive for the recently-banned PED meldonium and was banned from the tour for 2 years.
Serena Williams (USA) 1995-present: Held No. 1 for 309 weeks. Has won 22 singles Grand Slams, 13 doubles and 2 mixed doubles. She has achieved the Career Golden Slam in both singles and doubles (her doubles partner being her sister Venus), winning the Olympic gold in doubles 3 times. Is also the only female tennis player to earn over $40 million, the oldest female No. 1 tennis player, and the oldest tennis player overall to win a singles Slam. On top of that, while Serena is yet to win a calendar-year Grand Slam, she has held all four Grand Slam singles trophies at the same time twice.
Venus Williams (USA) 1994-present: Has held No. 1 for 11 weeks. Has won 7 singles Grand Slams, 13 doubles and 2 mixed. She has also won an Olympic gold medal in singles, a silver medal in mixed doubles and and 3 gold medals in women's doubles, completing the Career Golden Slam with her younger sister Serena. In singles, she and Serena have been pitted against each other eight times in Grand Slam finals . In addition to their remarkable achievements, they are also distinctive for being the most successful Black players of any nationality, for either sex.
Retired ATP Players
Andre Agassi (USA) 1986-2006: Held No. 1 for 101 weeks. Won 8 Grand Slams. One of four people to achieve the singles Career Golden Slam. Played until 36, holding the record for the oldest player ranked No. 1 (at 33). Known earlier in his career for his wild power off the ground, which gradually changed to a more measured, steady baseline attack in his later years. Also known earlier for his wacky outfits and long blonde wig and later for his Bald of Awesome . Married to Steffi Graf.
Arthur Ashe (USA) 1969-1980: Won 3 Grand Slams. His highest career ranking under the official ATP rankings was No. 2, but he was accepted as the unofficial year-end No. 1 in 1975 by many non-computerized experts. He became the first African-American man to win a Grand Slam, his most memorable Slam victory being his stunning defeat of Jimmy Connors in the 1975 Wimbledon final through tactical play. In addition to his tennis achievements, he was well-known for his humanitarian and civil rights work in the United States and Africa. A humanitarian award and the main stadium at the US Open were named after him in his honor.
Boris Becker (West Germany/Germany) 1984-1999: Held No.1 for 12 weeks. Won 6 Grand Slams and an Olympic doubles gold medal. Shot to fame as a 17-year-old in 1985 when he became the then-youngest male Grand Slam singles champion with his Wimbledon victory. This was also notable as he was unseeded and a surprise winner. He was known for his eccentric displays of emotion and for frequently diving and throwing himself across the court.
Björn Borg (Sweden) 1973-1983, 1991-1993: Held No. 1 for 109 weeks. Won 11 Grand Slams. Arch-rival of John McEnroe, he was nicknamed the Iceman because of his steely and cool demeanour on court, while his looks gained him a reputation as the first 'rockstar tennis player'. Borg won 6 titles at Roland Garros, surpassed only by Nadal, and his tireless baseline game was the model for clay-courters in the years to come. He was also noted for 5 consecutive Wimbledon titles, a record he watched Federer equal in spite of previously saying he never wanted it touched .
Michael Chang (USA) 1988-2003: Won 1 Grand Slam. Known for being the first Asian male to win a major title (the 1989 French Open) at the age of 17, as the youngest ever male Grand Slam champion. Chang was renowned for his frightening foot speed and retrieval ability, and was the first American to win a major in his generation, before being followed by Jim Courier, Pete Sampras, and Andre Agassi.
Jimmy Connors (USA) 1972-1996: Held No. 1 for 268 weeks. Won 8 Grand Slam singles titles and 2 doubles. The first of the notable players to emerge at the advent of the Open Era, Jimmy Connors was a ferocious power baseliner whose heart and will were only matched by his pugnacious attitude towards others. Widely regarded as a tremendous asshole on court, Connors nevertheless is one of the game's greats, having played in three decades, with one of his most memorable moments being his run to the 1991 US Open semifinals at the age of 39. Over his long career he won a record 109 ATP singles titles.
Rod Laver (Australia) 1962-1979: Started playing before the advent of the Open Era and a reliable ranking system, but subjective rankings have him as the year-end No. 1 for 7 straight years from 1964 to 1970. Won 11 Grand Slams in singles, 6 in doubles and 3 in mixed, and a record total of 200 titles overall. Is the only player to complete the Calendar Year Grand Slam twice, the first one as a pre-Open Era amateur in 1962 and the second one as an Open Era professional in 1969. Needless to say, he's often included on the short list of the greatest tennis players ever. The arena that serves as center court for the Australian Open is named in his honor.
Lleyton Hewitt (Australia) 1998-2016: Was the youngest-ever world No. 1, which he held for 80 weeks, and won 2 singles Grand Slams and 1 doubles. After an explosive start to his career in which he set a number of "youngest ever" records, he was unable to keep up with his peers' rapid improvement. Throw in a number of injury-related lay-offs and a run in with Father Time, and old Rusty never regained his position at the top of the game after 2003, but his raw enthusiasm and never say die attitude kept him firmly in a crowd favourite spot until his retirement.
Ivan Lendl (Czechoslovakia/USA) 1978-1994: Held No. 1 for 270 weeks. Won 8 Grand Slams. Probably better regarded now then he was during his prime, Lendl took Connors's game plan and refined it, turning baseline tennis into a brutal slugfest and ushering in the era of the power-baseliner. Was not popular due to the politics of the time; at the heart of the Cold War , the robotic and seemingly emotionless Lendl was easy to root against, as Connors and McEnroe can attest to. Known for his power off the ground and his tendency to drill the ball straight at volleyers instead of attempting a passing shot. Being Andy Murray's coach, they are the only two players in ATP history to lose their first four Slam finals.
John McEnroe (USA) 1978-1992: Held No. 1 for 170 weeks. Won 7 Grand Slam singles titles and 10 doubles. He was a devastating serve and volleyer, but is best remembered for his notorious temper , frequent misconduct and especially the Catch Phrase "You cannot be serious!"note You can't be serious, man. You canNOT BE SERIOUS. That ball was ON THE LINE. CHALK FLEW UP. It was CLEARLY IN. How can you POSSIBLY CALL THAT OUT? He's walking over, EVERYONE knows it's in, in the WHOLE STADIUM and YOU CALL IT OUT? You guys are the absolute PITS of the world. . He is the only player in the Open Era to be disqualified from a Grand Slam for Unsportsmanlike Conduct; the 1980 Australian Open, where one of his offences was staring at a line judge . Naturally he was quite a divisive figure, but is now more widely loved for his personality and continued passion for the sport. Regularly commentates on Grand Slam tournaments and is known to be creepily accurate in his predictions.
Andy Roddick (USA) 2000-2012: Held No. 1 for 13 weeks. Won 1 Grand Slam. Formerly held the record for the fastest serve, at 155 mph (250 km/h) before it was broken by Ivo Karlovic, who fired a 157 mph (251 km/h) serve in Davis Cup. Known for his friendly rivalry with Roger Federer (it became a running joke that Roddick could not get through a press conference or interview without Federer being mentioned). Also famed for his snark-filled press conferences and occasional but impressive racquet smashes.
Pete Sampras (USA) 1988-2002: Held No. 1 for 286 weeks. Won 14 Grand Slams. These were both records until Roger Federer stole his thunder. However, he still has the record for being ranked World No. 1 for the most years in a row, with six under his belt. Widely regarded as one of the greatest grass-courters of all time, holding a joint record seven Wimbledon titles ( with Federer ) and losing only one match there from 1993 to 2000.
Retired WTA Players
Maureen Connolly Brinker (USA) 1951-1954: Pre-ranking career. Won 9 Grand Slam singles titles and 3 doubles. Also known as Little Mo, she was the first woman and only the second person to complete the Calendar Year Grand Slam in 1953. She lost only one set in these four tournaments. Her tennis career was cut short at the age of 19 by a traffic accident that crushed her right leg.
Jennifer Capriati (USA) 1990-2004: Held No. 1 for 17 weeks. Won 3 Grand Slams. Her fame comes from the rollercoaster nature of her career that began with her rocketing to stardom when she reached the French Open semifinals at just 14 years old and won the Olympic gold medal two years later, plunged with her struggles with depression and drugs, and ascended again with her inspiring tennis comeback at a more mature age until injuries forced her out of play. Her well-publicized troubles as a burnt-out teen prodigy also caused the Women's Tennis Association to pass the "Capriati Rule" limiting the number of tournaments players below the age of 18 could enter to prevent similar burnouts in the future.
Kim Clijsters (Belgium) 1997-2007, 2009-2012: Held No. 1 for 20 weeks. Has won 4 singles Grand Slams, 3 of them interestingly coming after her brief retirement. The first of them, the 2009 US Open, was just her third tournament since unretiring and made her the first US Open champion as a wildcard as well as the first mother to win a slam in the Open era since Evonne Goolagong Cawley in 1980. Was affectionately known as Aussie Kim by Australians due to her temporary engagement to Lleyton Hewitt (and she declared she finally earned the nickname after winning the Australian Open), and is universally liked for her warm personality.
Margaret Court (Australia) 1960-1977: Won a record 24 Grand Slam singles titles, 19 Grand Slam women's doubles titles and a record 21 Grand Slam mixed doubles titles. She achieved the Calendar Year Grand Slam once in singles and twice in mixed doubles, the Career Boxed Setnote completing the Career Grand Slam in all three disciplines twice over and the Triple Crownnote winning in the singles, doubles and mixed doubles at the same Grand Slam event on five occasions. She also holds the record for the most Grand Slam titles as a mother.
Chris Evert (USA) 1972-1989: Held No. 1 for 260 weeks. Won 18 Grand Slams, including a record 7 at the French Open and a record 6 at the U.S. Open. Also won 2 doubles Grand Slams. She was the year-ending World No. 1 singles player in 1975, 1976, 1977, 1980, and 1981. Her career win-loss record in singles matches of 1,309-146 (.900) is the best of any professional player in tennis history. Known for her calm, steely demeanor on court, she was nicknamed the "Ice Maiden" of tennis.
Stefanie Marie "Steffi" Graf (West Germany/Germany) 1982-1999: Held No. 1 for a record 377 weeks. Mr. Agassi's lovely wife, she won an Open Era record of 22 Grand Slams and achieved a Calendar Year Golden Slam in 1988; i.e., doing the Career Golden Slam in a single year. Is also the only player, male or female, to win every Slam at least four times. Nicknamed "Fräulein Forehand" by fans due to the power and accuracy of her signature shot.
Justine Henin (Belgium) 1999-2008, 2010-2011: Held No. 1 for 117 weeks. Won 7 Grand Slams and an Olympic gold medal in singles. She abruptly retired in mid-2008 when she was still ranked No. 1, only to unretire after her countrywoman Kim Clijsters made a successful comeback in 2009 until injuries and a lack of success caused her to retire again a year later. Is renowned for her clay-court prowess and vicious one-handed backhand, and is generally regarded as one of the few players who could challenge Serena Williams in her prime.
Billie Jean King (USA) 1968-1983: Won 12 Grand Slam singles titles, 16 Grand Slam women's doubles titles, and 11 Grand Slam mixed doubles titles. She completed the Triple Crown three times. In 1973, she won the second (and possibly most famous) "Battle of the Sexes", a three-set promotional match against former Wimbledon men's singles champion Bobby Riggs. Long an advocate for women's equality in sport and society, she was the founder of the Women's Tennis Association, the Women's Sports Foundation, and owner of World Team Tennis, which was founded by her former husband, Larry King and three others. The complex that hosts the US Open is named after her.
Li Na (China) 1999-2014: Won 2 Grand Slams. Became the first player from an Asian country (male or female) to win a Slam when she won the 2011 French Open, and also won the 2014 Australian Open. Had a reputation for being able to hit anyone off the court on a good day and herself off the same court on a bad day, and also for giving some of the funniest interviews on tour. Retired in September 2014 due to persistent knee problems.
Martina Navratilova (Czech Republic/USA) 1974-1994, 1999-2006: Held No. 1 for 332 weeks. Won 18 Grand Slam singles titles, 31 Grand Slam women's doubles titles (an all-time record), and 10 Grand Slam mixed doubles titles. Completed the Career Boxed Set and achieved the Triple Crown once. She is the only man or woman to have won 8 different tournaments at least 7 times and won a record 9 Wimbledon titles. She also had an extraordinarily long-lived career, finishing in the top 10 singles rankings for 20 straight years and winning her last Grand Slam title (mixed doubles at the 2006 US Open) at 49 years of age. Originally from Czechoslovakia, she asked for political asylum in the US in 1975, was stripped of her Czech citizenship (later restored by the Czech Republic), and became a US citizen in 1981. She also came out as a lesbian in 1981 and has been an activist for gay rights, filing a lawsuit in 1992 against Amendment 2 (a Colorado ballot proposition designed to deny legal protections to gays and lesbians that was later overturned in Romer v. Evans).
Monica Seles (Yugoslavia/USA) 1988-1993, 1995-2003: Held No. 1 for 178 weeks. Won 9 Grand Slam singles titles. An incredible young woman who made the semifinals of her first Grand Slam tournament at the age of 14, before winning her first Slam two years later at Roland Garros. She won 7 Slams between 1990 and 1993, including an undefeated run at the Australian Open. Her career was tragically cut short in 1993 when she was stabbed in the back by a crazed Graf fan in Hamburg. She made a comeback in 1995 and went on to win the Australian Open the next year; however, she never regained her incredible form before the attack.note Years later, she acknowledged bouts with depression and food addiction in the wake of the stabbing. Also, not long after she came back, her father (and longtime coach) was diagnosed with cancer, and died in 1998.
Tropes
Artifact Title : A big topic in men's tennis is whether the term "Big Four era" is even accurate, and the "No" side can argue that it fits this trope with some justification, given that Stan Wawrinka has as many Grand Slam wins as Murray and is closer to a Career Grand Slam than he is, has beaten Novak Djokovic twice, on different surfaces, and is, as of 2016, ranked higher than both Nadal and Federer, who have both had a rough season. While they're still great players, the larger questions asked have more to do with what comes after them, with players like Wawrinka and Kei Nishikori rising to fill the space they once dominated.
Big Game : The increasing emphasis on athleticism , endurance and long rallies in modern tennis has caused matches to become steadily longer and more physically grueling and records for "longest tennis X ever" to be broken with semi-regularity now: the 2012 Australian Open final between Djokovic and Nadal surpassed the former longest Grand Slam final ever by nearly an hour and left the world's two most athletic players so exhausted that chairs had to be brought in for them before the trophy presentation . In the Olympic Games later that year, the "longest 3 set match" record was broken twice in two days by Tsonga vs. Raonic and then Federer vs. del Potro.
Bookends : Pete Sampras's first (1990) and last (2002) Grand Slams were U.S. Open victories over Andre Agassi.
Broken Streak : Statistics are almost as extensive and detailed in tennis as they are in baseball; as such, when someone's streak is broken, you know about it.
Perhaps the most memetic instance of this is Vitas Gerulaitis breaking a streak of 16 straight losses to Jimmy Connors at the 1980 Masters. After the match, he famously declared, "Nobody beats Vitas Gerulaitis 17 times in a row."
Martina Navratilova had the longest-ever winning streak in the Open Era, racking up 74 consecutive wins in 1984 and winning 3 Grand Slams in a row. Helena Suková ended it in the Australian Open semifinalsnote the Australian Open was held in December instead of January at that time.
Roger Federer had a remarkable streak of 23 consecutive Grand Slam semifinal appearances dating back to the 2004 Wimbledon Championships that was finally broken by Robin Söderling in their 2010 French Open quarterfinal. His similar record streak of 35 Slam quarterfinals stretched from Wimbledon 2004 - French Open 2013, before it was broken in the second round of Wimbledon by Sergiy Stakhovsky.
Novak Djokovic went 43 matches in a row without being defeated over 2010-11 — this was broken by Federer in their French Open semifinal. He also went undefeated for 30 grand slam matches over 2015-16 — this was broken by Sam Querrey in Round 3 of Wimbledon.
Rafael Nadal's insane 46-match winning streak (and 8 consecutive titles won) at the Monte Carlo Masters was broken in the 2013 final by Djokovic.
Brother-Sister Team : Marat Safin and Dinara Safina are the only brother and sister to both reach the No. 1 ranking in singles. They also physically teamed up for the mixed doubles at the 2009 Hopman Cup, achieving a runner-up finish.
Cool vs. Awesome : Setting aside any match by the Big Four, there's also the 5-set Sampras-Federer match from the 2001 Wimbledon. It was an epic match between two men who have defined entire eras of the game's history, and it was the only time they ever faced each other in a Slam.
Crack Defeat :
Wimbledon 2013 was infamous for the number of losses, injury retirements and withdrawals that occurred during the first week. Amongst the biggest shocks were:
World No. 5 and French Open champion Rafael Nadal losing to World No. 135 Steve Darcis in the 1st round. Darcis has won a total of 2 matches at Wimbledon in his 10 year career.
World No. 3 and defending champion Roger Federer losing to World No. 116 Sergiy Stakhozsky in the 2nd round, snapping his record breaking QF streak and marking his first loss to a player outside the top 100 in 8 years.
World No. 3 Maria Sharapova losing to World No. 131 Michelle Larcher de Brito in the 2nd round. Larcher de Brito had only appeared in the main draw twice before.
World No. 1, US, French and defending champion Serena Williams losing to Sabine Lisicki in the 4th round. This was the 4th consecutive time that Lisicki had knocked the French Open champion out of Wimbledon.
An earlier example is Richard Krajicek's 1996 victory at Wimbledon, winning decisive three-set victories in the quarterfinals, semifinals, and finals. It was the only time between 1993 and 2000 that the tournament was not won by Peter Sampras, who was trounced in the quarterfinals.
The men's tournament from Wimbledon 2002 was also infamous. Excluding No. 1 seed Lleyton Hewitt and No. 4 seed Tim Henman, all the players in the top 17 were eliminated prior to the fourth round! Moreover, Hewitt and Henman were on the same side of the draw, so only one of them could make it past the semifinals. Among others, 7-time champion Pete Sampras lost on the dreaded Court No. 2, the "Graveyard of Champions", in the second round. World No. 2 Andre Agassi and No. 3 Marat Safin also lost in the second round. This really opened up the draw for other players to reach the final. However, in the end it was Lleyton Hewitt who won the tournament by beating David Nalbandian.
The main storyline of the 2015 US Open was Serena Williams's quest for the calendar-year Grand Slam. She made it to the semifinals and with her last two opponents being No. 43 Roberta Vinci, whom she had beaten in every one of their previous matches (always in straight sets), and No. 26 Flavia Pennetta waiting in the final, her making history looked all but set in stone. However, Vinci had other ideas against a visibly tense Serena in the semifinals and pulled off one of the biggest upsets ever in sports history to create one of the unlikeliest Grand Slam finals of all time.
The 2016 Rio Olympics lost many seeds early on - noteworthy is that all of the No. 1 seeds bowed out early, majority in the first round.
In Round 1, Novak Djokovic (men's singles), having finally won all four Grand Slams and on a quest to complete his Career Golden Slam, lost to Juan Martín del Potro, No. 141 at the time. While his prowess as a former top 10 player was no surprise, Del Potro trailed 3-11 in his rivalry with Djokovic and had only come back from a wrist injury earlier that year, making his fitness a concern. This made it the second time he's stopped Djokovic from getting an Olympic medal.
In Round 1, Nicolas Mahut and Pierre-Hugues Herbert (men's doubles), fresh off a Wimbledon win amongst other titles, lost to Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah, both ranked 29 in doubles.
In Round 1, Serena and Venus Williams, recent Wimbledon winners and having previously won three gold medals for the women's doubles, lost to Lucie Safarova and Barbora Strycova, 20 and 39 in doubles rankings respectively.
Serena Williams, defending gold medallist for women's singles and having recently won her 22nd grand slam at Wimbledon, lost to Elina Svitolina in Round 3. Svitolina, ranked No. 20, had only won one set against her in their previous three meetings.
Crowd Chant : This generally happens between points and games, as quiet is required whilst the ball is in play. You are least likely to hear it at Wimbledon (sometimes known as the Cathedral of Tennis, it's so quiet) where tradition overrides raw enthusiasm - unless there's a home favourite or an Aussie in the later stages.
Dark Horse Victory :
From the 2005 French Open through the 2013 US Open, there was only one (men's) Grand Slam title won by someone who isn't Federer, Nadal, Djokovic or Murray�Juan Martín del Potro's 2009 US Open win. However, the 2014 Slams may have signaled a changing of the guard, with Stan Wawrinka winning the Aussie Open and Marin Čilić winning the US Open.
Djokovic's 2008 Australian Open win occurred in the midst of the Federer-Nadal era and his opponent was the just-as-unexpected finalist Tsonga, essentially setting up a Dark Horse Match that was the first Grand Slam final since 2005 that didn't have Federer or Nadal playing in it.
In the women's 2011 US Open final, the two opponents were Serena Williams, who had won 13 Grand Slams and the US Open 3 times and had breezed through the earlier rounds without dropping a single set, and Samantha Stosur who had never won a Slam before and had a reputation for choking under pressure. Guess who won.
In the 2013 Wimbledon Championships, defending champion and World No. 1 Serena Williams was considered to be such an overwhelming favorite that virtually everyone was coronating her before the tournament had even started. Everyone also agreed that if Serena did lose for some reason, either No. 2 Victoria Azarenka or No. 3 Maria Sharapova, her two closest rivals, would be the one lifting the trophy instead. The actual women's champion? Marion Bartoli, who entered the tournament as an all-but-invisible 15th seed and ended up winning the whole thing without dropping a set.
The 2014 US Open men's semifinals had World No. 1 Djokovic facing Kei Nishikori, an injury-prone player who had battled through two consecutive five-setters just to make it to his first-ever Slam semifinal, and World No. 2 Federer facing Čilić, a player he had never lost to in five prior meetings and who had a reputation for folding against the top players. Needless to say, everyone was penciling in another Djokovic-Federer Slam final...but since this entry is under "Dark Horse Victory", you can probably guess what happened in these two semis instead.
Almost like the previous example, the 2015 US Open women's semifinal had World No. 1 Serena Williams facing Roberta Vinci and World No. 2 Simona Halep facing Flavia Pennetta. Both of the underdogs made it to the final. While the defeat of Simona Halep maybe wasn't even that shocking (since Halep never won a Grand Slam before and Pennetta was a seeded player), the defeat of Williams certainly was. She won the previous 4 Grand Slam tournaments in a row (the 'Serena-Slam') and was pursuing a Calender Year Grand Slam. No player was able to consistently challenge her, and when Serena Williams has her mind set to something special, more often than not, she will win it. So everybody was expecting Williams to complete the Grand Slam. Everybody, except for Roberta Vinci... See also Crack Defeat .
Another example involving Serena: at the 2016 Australian Open, everybody expected either her or Victoria Azarenka (a former No. 1 who seemed to be rounding back into form) to win it. No one saw Angelique Kerber, who had never made a major final before and couldn't make it past the third round at any of her majors the previous year, winning it instead with an inspired performance. It was also the first time Serena had lost a major final since 2011.'
The expected gold medallist for women's singles in the 2016 Rio Olympics? Serena Williams, if not then any of the other top 5 seeds such as the World No.2 and Australian Open champion Angelique Kerber. Actual gold medallist? The unseeded World No. 34 Mónica Puig, who took down French Open champion Garbiñe Muguruza, Petra Kvitová and Kerber to do so - this made her the first ever athlete from Puerto Rico to win the Olympic gold.
Defeating the Undefeatable : Prior to the 2009 French Open, Robin Söderling had never made it past the third round of a Slam, and his fourth-round opponent in this particular Slam happened to be Rafael "King of Clay" Nadal who 1) was riding a record undefeated streak of 31 wins at the French Open, 2) had broken Roger Federer's own record streak of 237 weeks as World No. 1 just last year, and 3) had soundly beaten Söderling in all of their previous encounters. What ensued from their match was the tennis equivalent of Buster Douglas upsetting Mike Tyson (although Söderling would go on to prove that his victory wasn't quite the fluke that Douglas's had been by snapping Federer's record of 23 consecutive Slam semifinals the very next year).
Dented Iron : Pro tennis is a punishing sport, and top-level players have, at most and if they're lucky, ten peak years before the accumulated physical wear and tear takes its toll.
Down to the Last Play : If a match goes to a final set (3rd or 5th depending on the tournament) the players are essentially starting from scratch; whoever takes the set takes the match.
This is even more apparent in tournaments that employ the final set tie-break. A single point on the opponent's serve will win you match that will have lasted hours.
The race between Marat Safin and Gustavo Kuerten in 2000 for the year-end No. 1 ranking. Safin lost in the semifinals of the year-end championships, but had enough of a lead over Kuerten that Guga needed to win the championships to overtake him for No. 1 - and he had to beat both Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi to do it. No one had ever beaten both Sampras and Agassi in the same tournament before, but Kuerten amazingly managed to pull it off and snatch the No. 1 spot from under Safin's nose. It's the first of two times in the Open Era that the final No. 1 ranking was decided by the very last match of the year.
The second time the year-end No. 1 ranking was decided by the very last match of the year was the 2016 World Tour Finals between Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic. Murray had just recently overtaken Djokovic as the World No. 1, with not many points between the two which meant it was possible for Djokovic to get the ranking back if he did better than Murray. Fittingly enough, the two met in the final with the same number of matches won under their belts - and it was Murray who won and secured his No. 1 position.
If you want last play, try the Isner - Mahut match at the 2010 Wimbledon
: it took them three days to finish their match. It technically took them 11 hours of total game time, and 8 of those hours were trying to win the last set (Isner won). They killed the scoreboard during the second day.
Every Year They Fizzle Out : In tennis, mental strength is just as important to winning as physical strength and skill are and what most often causes losses by obviously talented players is choking under pressure, leading to accusations of this.
Gabriela Sabatini won only one Grand Slam in spite of reaching the semifinals or better at eighteen Slams, partly due to Graf and Seles hogging the majors during her career and partly due to her tendency to fall apart in big matches; she infamously lost the 1991 Wimbledon final to Graf in spite of coming within two points from victory and serving for the match twice.
Marat Safin was seen as a huge talent with real potential, but he only managed two Grand Slams, and in their early careers both Ivan Lendl and Roger Federer were subject to speculation that they were talents who couldn't pull off the big wins.
As recently as mid-2010, Novak Djokovic was saddled with a reputation of mentally cracking under pressure after he followed up his maiden Grand Slam title in 2008 with a string of disappointing performances and numerous claims of being too fatigued to play well. Many people called him "Choke-ovic" and thought he was destined to go down in history as just a one-slam wonder who failed to live up to his promise of challenging the Federer-Nadal duopoly. Not quite as Hilarious in Hindsight as Federer's case, but pretty close.
More recently, Andy Murray only shook this image by winning his first major title in 2012 - something his predecessor Tim Henman could never manage, earning him the status of Trope Codifier in Britain.
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga is one of the very few people outside of the Big Four who has the raw talent to beat them, but he's just as likely to flame out against an inferior player as he is to pull off a Miracle Rally against one of the best players in the world, with his stunning upsets of Nadal at the 2008 Australian Open semifinals and Federer at the 2011 Wimbledon quarterfinals being followed by him quietly fading away from the world scene until his next sudden flash of brilliance.
In the same vein as Tsonga, Stan Wawrinka had a lot of raw talent, but a lack of self-confidence combined with an aggressive high-risk high-reward playing style meant that he often went out in the early rounds of big tournaments. However, hiring Magnus Norman as a coach in 2013 has appeared to rectify most of the problems with the mental aspect of his game, leading to a late-career renaissance - although his playing style ensures that he is still more mercurial than his contemporaries in the Big Four, he has since won three Grand Slams (the same number as Murray).
Caroline Wozniacki became World No. 1 on the women's side in 2010 and 2011 by winning a lot of tournaments... but not the Grand Slams. She didn't even make a single Grand Slam final during these two years, her sole career Slam final being a loss at the 2009 US Open. 2012 didn't help matters with her following up a massive upset of Serena Williams in Miami with first-round losses to unseeded players in both Wimbledon and the US Open.
Sabine Lisicki is a perennial quarterfinalist or better at Wimbledon and you can always count on her to take out a favourite or twonote Serena Williams, Sharapova, Radwanska, Li before losing to someone who should on paper pose far less of a challengenote Kerber, Bartoli.
Friendly Rival : Whilst the close nature of the pro tour means that all players have to be able to put up with each other on a day to day basis, there have only been a few genuinely close friendships between rivals.
Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova were the faces of women's tennis for much of the 1980s and formed a strong friendship in spite of meeting each other in over 60 finals, with the two often having lunch together in the locker room and even traveling together to tournaments.
As mentioned below, John McEnroe to this day enjoys a strong friendship with Björn Borg, made all the more remarkable by how many players he alienated and had problems with on court.
Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal have experienced a much publicised bromance for the best part of a decade. They have reached the point of couple nicknames ( Fedal
) and Fan Fiction . The pair often inadvertently encourage such things in interviews and charity matches .
Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray have known each other since the age of twelve and have grown up on the junior tour together. In spite of experiencing some of the hardest fought Grand Slam matches against each other, they still find time to have dinner.
Fun with Acronyms : The year-end championships for the men are currently titled the World Tour Finals. Many a tennis fan has had fun using its unfortunate acronym while talking about its oddities. There's also the frequent debate about which tennis player is the Greatest Of All Time.
Game-Breaking Injury : The rigors and physical demands of a packed year-long tennis schedule can cause this for unlucky players.
Rafael Nadal has been forced out of play for a significant amount of time several times in his career by knee injuries, including a severe case of tendonitis that caused him to miss the entire second half of 2012. This did not stop him from winning two Slams and regaining the No. 1 ranking in the very next year. And then he suffered from a back injury, a wrist injury, AND appendicitis in the year after that.
Juan Martín del Potro, after winning the 2009 US Open title, was widely heralded as a player who would go on to win multiple Grand Slams and become the next new World No. 1. Sadly, he fell victim to a severe wrist injury soon after and missed almost all of the 2010 season as a result and while he managed to recover from that injury it feels like every time he finally seems on the cusp of breaking back into the top 4 rankings or champion's circle, he gets derailed by yet another wrist injury.
Gotta Catch Them All : With the hundreds of different tournaments each year come billions of different combinations of winning. Some of these combinations are significant enough to have names. These include:
The Grand Slam (Career or Calendar Year edition): Winning each of the four Slams at least once (in a career or season, respectively). All victories must come in the same category: singles, doubles or mixed doubles. Some people also count the two-year Grand Slam (i.e. winning four consecutive Slams over a span of two years so that you hold all of them at one point), which is typically named after the player(s) such as the "Serena Slam" for Serena Williams in 2002�03 and 2014�15, the "Bryan Slam" for Bob and Mike Bryan in 2012�13, and the "Nole Slam" for Novak Djokovic in 2015-2016.
The Golden Slam (Career or Calendar Year edition): Winning each of the four Slams plus an Olympic gold medal at least once. All victories must come in the same category.
The Super Slam: Winning each of the four Slams, plus an Olympic gold medal, plus the Year End Championships at least once. All victories must come in the same category. Has only been achieved in Career edition.
The Triple Crown: Winning the title in singles, doubles and mixed doubles at the same Slam in the same year.
The Boxed Set: Winning the title in singles, doubles and mixed doubles at each of the four Slams at least once. Has only been achieved in Career edition, and by just three players.note Doris Hart, Margaret Court, and Martina Navratilova.
The Dinner Set: Winning the title and finishing as runner-up at each of the four Slams at least oncenote i.e. winning all four cups and plates. All victories must come in the same category. Can only be achieved in Career edition.
Graceful Loser : This has become a trademark of the top tennis players, especially with regard to Federer and Nadal .
Grand Finale : The 2002 U.S. Open. Pete Sampras won one last Slam against his rival Andre Agassi, bringing the era of tennis in The '90s to a close. After that tournament, Lleyton Hewitt, Andy Roddick, and Roger Federer dominated the game.
Hero Killer : Young and/or players ranked outside the top 30, who score a signature win over a top 10-er or two are often dubbed "Giant Killers". Robin Söderling gained this reputation and became the Designated Villain of the ATP tour (at least until he fell victim to mononucleosis) after he handed Rafael Nadal his first-ever defeat at the French Open in 2009 and then broke Roger Federer's streak of 23 consecutive Grand Slam semifinal appearances at the following year's French Open.
International Showdown by Proxy : It is rare to have a single country represented in the final, though in times gone by the USA had their fair share, so this comes through naturally, as well as in the events (Olympics, Davis Cup, Fed Cup, Hopman Cup) where the players actually represent their countries.
Manly Tears : Very likely to be seen at a Grand Slam final, due to the mental and emotional exhaustion players experience after such intensity. The tears actually are more likely to come from the winners as it is considered bad form to cry over a loss because it dampens the celebrations for the champion.
Miracle Rally : In general, any time a player comes back from a two sets-to-love (or one set-to-love and a break down in the second set, depending on the type of tournament) deficit to win. Bonus points if they also have to fight off match points to do it.
1989 French Open: Ivan Lendl, the World No. 1 and one of the heavy favorites to win the event, had breezed through the competition so far and quickly built up a two-set lead against his fourth-round opponent, the 17-year-old Michael Chang. Chang, however, broke Lendl right back in the third set and proceeded to moonballnote hit the ball really high in the air to slow down the points his way to victory in the final three sets, in spite of suffering severe leg cramps from the fourth set onward. At one key time in the match, Chang went so far as to serve underhand, which threw Lendl off enough for him to win the point. He went on to win the whole event.
2011 Wimbledon: Roger Federer looked set to steamroll over Jo-Wilfried Tsonga after winning the first two sets in their quarterfinal, only for Tsonga to break Federer in the next three sets and pull off the ultimate upset of the tournament. This was the first time Federer had ever lost from 2-0 up.
Novak Djokovic seems to have a knack for this: not only did he pull off a similarly massive upset against Federer in the 2010 US Open semifinals when he was still an unknown compared to Federer and Nadal and down two match points in the fifth set, but he did it again against Federer in the 2011 US Open semifinals where he had to dig himself out of a 2-set hole in the third and fourth sets and then another two-match-points deficit in the fifth set. There's also the more recent 2012 Shanghai Masters final, where he managed to save five match points against 3-time champion Andy Murray and go on to win the deciding set.
Andy Murray came back from a set down and saved FIVE match points against Tommy Robredo in an ATP 2014 final. Twice.
In his very intense 2016 Wimbledon quarter-final match, Federer lost the first two sets and had to save three match points in the fourth set tiebreak to beat Cilic in the fifth set, making it one of his most thrilling comebacks ever.
One-Hit Wonder : There are several players who have won only one Grand Slam, referred to as "one-Slam wonders". These range from well known and highly ranked players, such as Juan Martín del Potro and Andy Roddick, to true one-hit wonders like Gastón Gaudio who made it past the fourth round of a Slam only once in his career.
Ordered to Cheat : Occasionally the subject of match fixing has been brought up, such as at the 2008 Australian Open, but there has never been a proven case in major tournaments.
Overshadowed by Awesome :
Throughout history, two or three champions have risen way above the competition in each generation, such as Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova in the 1980s, Steffi Graf in the late 1980s and early 1990s, Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi in the 1990s, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal in the 2000s, and Serena Williams any time she plays.
The men's game has most recently become dominated by a group of four players (Federer, Nadal, Djokovic, and Murray) that consistently finished in the top four ranking spots for 5 consecutive years. This "Big Four" hasn't had quite as much of a stranglehold on the men's tour in recent years as they did in 2007-2013, but they're still extraordinarily tough Threshold Guardians for any ATP player out there.
On the doubles side, the Bryan brothers and the Williams sisters so thoroughly dominate the field that they're the only doubles teams 99% of all tennis fans are even aware of.
From 1998 till 2013, participating in the women's wheelchair tournaments wasn't funny for everybody not named Esther Vergeer. She retired in 2013 at the age of 31 after remaining undefeated for 470 (!!!) consecutive single matches. Her last defeat was 10 years prior. This means that in this period she won every tournament she participated in, among others the Paralympic Games and the Grand Slam tournaments (and it's not like she was not winning before that defeat). Also in doubles she was very successful. Eventually, she posted a staggering record of 700 - 25 in singles and 448 - 35 in doubles. She gained the respect of among others Roger Federer
and Johan Cruyff. She is arguably one of the most dominant forces in the history of sports.
Product Placement :
The top tennis players are paid by clothing brands to wear outfits specially tailored by the companies for them at their matches, which means that Nike headbands and Adidas sneakers are ubiquitous at any major tennis competition. This even extends to watch brands; Andy Murray's first act after finally winning his first Slam was a frantic search for his Rado watch to wear during the trophy ceremony.
Tournaments themselves are also subject to this, with all official match clocks sponsored by Rolex and the speed guns by IBM. Also the 2012 Madrid Masters 1000 tournament controversially changed the colour of its clay courts to blue, apparently to match the sponsor.
Pyrrhic Victory : Almost every match that's so long that the winner is still exhausted when he/she has to play the next match. The most notable example is the Isner-Mahut match. After John Isner won this 11-hour match, he had to already play the next day. He was visibly exhausted and required treatment. It still didn't help and he was quickly defeated. So eventually he played the longest match and the shortest match (at that point) in the Wimbledon 2010 men's tournament. In his commentary after that match, John McEnroe speculated that Isner and Mahut may have shaved six months off of their career because of how grueling that match was, making a point that, while it was spectacular tennis, if one of them had surrendered the match earlier, it likely would spare them both recurring injuries later on from lack of wear and tear.
Recursive Adaptation : Modern tennis was invented in the 1870s in England as lawn tennis, an outdoor summer game meant to be played on (really short) grass, based on an indoor game played on wooden floors that developed beginning in late medieval France. It spread very quickly and gained great popularity, which lead many players to want to keep playing in the winter. So they would up playing indoors on wooden gymnasium floors. This even lead to the short-lived World Covered Court Championships
, intended as a third major to go with the World Grass Court Championships (i.e., Wimbledon) and the World Clay Court Championships (which merged with the French national championships). To this day, many pro tournaments, including both the men's and women's year end championships, are played indoors. Bare wood isn't used anymore (it was deemed too fast); carpet coverings, which evolved into textured rubber mats, were used for many years, before they were replaced by portable floors surfaced with the same type of acrylics used for hard courts that, ironically, are usually wood panels underneath.
The Rival : Due to the solo nature of the game and how the higher ranked players are engineered to meet in the big matches, tennis lends itself to this trope. There are usually 2 or 3 players in a generation that often meet in finals and Slams. Some of the more notable pairs include:
Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova: the cool-headed hard-court baseliner vs the emotional grass-court serve-and-volleyer. They met in a whopping 80 matches, 22 of them in Grand Slams, and have the longest-lasting tennis rivalry in history with their encounters occurring over a span of 15 years from 1973 to 1988. Evert had a headstart on Navratilova with her winning 27 of their first 40 matches, but Navratilova dominated their rivalry in later years with the final tally being 43-37 in Navratilova's favor. Fittingly, the two ended their careers with the exact same number of Slams at 18 each.
John McEnroe and Björn Borg: the Hot-Blooded American vs the heart-throb , Scandinavian Iceman . Between 1978-81 they played 14 matches, winning 7 each. It was the shortest lived rivalry of McEnroe, but the most well-known. McEnroe has also stated that of all his rivals, Borg was the only one he never had a problem with .
John McEnroe and Ivan Lendl: the Hot-Blooded American vs the emotionless commie robot . This was McEnroe's second best known and bitterest rivalry and he's openly less than besties with Lendl to this day. It just might have something to do with the fact that of the 36 matches they played, Lendl won 21 .
Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras: the charismatic, extroverted baseliner vs the quiet, introverted serve and volleyer. Sampras won 20 of their 34 matches and ended up with more Grand Slams, but Agassi was arguably the crowd favourite . In the US Open 2001 quarter-final neither player broke the other's serve , with every set decided by a tie-break.
Boris Becker and Stefan Edberg: the wildly passionate prima-donna vs the deliberately bland Swede. Becker won 25 of their 35 meetings, but their rivalry was made famous by meetings in three consecutive Wimbledon finals. Here Edberg won twice.
Steffi Graf and Monica Seles: the stern-faced German with the massive forehand vs the bubbly Hungariannote Although she represented Yugoslavia before her stabbing, Seles is ethnically Hungarian. The region of modern-day Serbia where she was born has a significant Hungarian minority. youth with the fearsome backhand. Their rivalry is most notorious for inducing a crazed Graf fan to stab Seles after she dethroned Graf as the World No. 1. They met in 15 matches overall, with Graf winning 10 of them.
Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal: the graceful, traditional , right-handed grass-courter vs the raw power of the lefty clay-courter . So far they have played 34 times with Nadal winning 23, he is the only player ever to have a winning record over Federer with a difference of more than 3. Enjoying a close friendship off the court, their 2008 Wimbledon final (which broke Federer's almost record streak of 40 straight match wins there and ensured that he lost the no.1 ranking for the first time) is widely cited as the greatest match of the Open Era.
Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic: Unlike the above rivalries, the main appeal of their rivalry lies not in how different they are in their playing styles but in how similar they are in competitive fierceness and baseline rallying and defense . So far, they have met an ATP Open Era record of 46 times with Djokovic leading him 24-23 after a long period of Nadal constantly being one step ahead of Djokovic in their rivalry.
Also from the Big Four era, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic. Their rivalry is the least friendly of the Big Four's rivalries ( although that's not saying much ) and their most memorable matches have come in Slam semifinals with Federer breaking Djokovic's 41-match winning streak in the 2011 French Open semis and Djokovic coming back from double match point down against Federer in both the 2010 and 2011 US Open semis. As of this time of typing, they've actually met more times than Federer and Nadal have (45 times) with Djokovic leading Federer 23-22.
Stan Wawrinka is emerging as another rival to Djokovic, with commentators calling him the biggest single-match threat to the World No. 1 (though he's not considered a real threat to Novak's title due to his inconsistency). He's now beaten Novak in two four-set Grand Slam finals, the 2015 French Open and the 2016 US Open. It is worth mentioning that Djokovic has been dealing with injuries for much of the 2016 season and required treatment on his neck, elbow, and both shoulders during prior matches of the US Open, as well as a foot injury in the third set of the final.
Screaming Warrior : A controversial subject in tennis; there are currently no rules against a player 'grunting' when they hit the ball, but many people are calling for it to be penalised. As well as the obvious advantages of distraction and intimidation, players will try to hear the way a ball is hit to predict how it will bounce; a tricky thing to do if your opponent is shouting over the top of it. Notable grunters include Monica Seles, Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova (who has been recorded at 101 decibels), Victoria Azarenka, Jimmy Connors, Andre Agassi and Novak Djokovic.
Sibling Rivalry :
Venus and Serena Williams (born just 15 months apart) have experienced a storied rivalry since 1998, their dominance has lead to them contesting no fewer than eight Grand Slam finals and one YEC final. Serenanote the younger sister leads their head to head by 14-10 and 6-2 in GS finals.
Manuela, Katerina and Magdalena Maleeva all spent time inside the top 10 in the late 80s-90s and played each other a combined total of 15 times. The elder sister won in every match except onenote courtesy of a retirement by Manuela and there was speculation about match fixing as all of Manuela's victories over Magdalena came via retirements.
Sibling Team : Sisters Serena and Venus Williams have achieved the Career Golden Slam in doubles, winning 13 Grand Slam tournaments and 3 Olympic golds. Brothers John and Patrick McEnroe avert this slightly, they played doubles together, but their success came with other partners. And then there's the Bryan brothers, twins who have annihilated every record possible in men's doubles.
Spiritual Successor :
Gaël Monfils and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga to Yannick Noah.note If you're an NBA fan and the name sounds vaguely familiar... yes, that's Joakim Noah's dad. Both are charismatic, flamboyant and extremely popular players of Afro-French descent and enormous raw talent expected to carry French tennis back to its Four Musketeers heyday of the '20s and '30s, just like Noah. Despite Noah's one Grand Slam singles title, he couldn't achieve it, because of injuries and bad luck. The same fate has generally befallen Monfils and Tsonga, neither yet able to break through to a Slam title.
At the beginning of his career, Roger Federer was considered this to Pete Sampras. He cited Sampras as one of his idols, sported a similar serve-and-volley gamestyle , and, due to sponsorship, their racquets and kits often looked identical. Also, in 2001 he became the only person ever to beat Sampras over 5 sets at Wimbledon , doing so on his centre court debut, which was seen as a Passing the Torch moment.note Though Sampras went on to win the 2002 US Open and Federer didn't win his first major until Wimbledon 2003. Federer has spent the rest of his career eclipsing most of the records and milestones set by Sampras.
In turn there has been speculation of which player deserves the moniker "Baby Fed", a title held briefly by frenchman Richard Gasquet before being passed on to young, Bulgarian player, Grigor Dimitrov. He uses the same racquet as Federer did for most of his career, they both wear Nike constantly, and Federer was Dimitrov's childhood hero to the point that he essentially based his entire game around the Swiss player. Whether he will actually live up to Federer's achievements has yet to be seen.
Spotlight-Stealing Squad :
Djokovic stole the spotlight from Federer and Nadal during the end of 2010 and all during 2011 when he had an incredible run. He won over 40 matches without losing, and won most of the Grand Slams, only losing once to Roger Federer during the French Open.
Speaking of Federer, try watching an ATP match between two other players in a tournament he's in and take a shot every time the commentators mention him. Or a tournament he's been knocked out of. Hell, even a tournament he never entered in the first place. Or women's tournaments. Or wheelchair tennis. Or any article on men's tennis written in the past nine years. You will die.
Stage Mum : Tennis is notorious for this, although it's usually the dads rather than the mums who are the problem.
Tactical Rock-Paper-Scissors : The post-2008 shufflings of the pecking order of men's tennis almost read like a video game designer tweaking his game to be fairer among the top competition. At first, there's just Roger Federer who nobody can beat . Enter Rafael Nadal, the player with the raw strength and force to overpower Federer . Then just when Nadal is starting to look like a Game Breaker in his own right, Novak Djokovic, an extremely agile but fatigue-prone player , gains the toughness needed to withstand Nadal's might while retaining the agility to outmaneuver him . Then, just to make things even more interesting, Andy Murray upgrades from a good player who's not quite as good as the top three to a player capable of going toe-to-toe against any of them ... and Stan Wawrinka, perhaps even more physically powerful than Nadal but far more erratic than the "Big Four", upgrades his mental game and turns into a threat to take down any of the others on his day.
Tough Act to Follow :
Poor Andy Roddick, always labelled the underachiever. The American star player of the 2000s, his highly successful career included 32 titles, 1 Grand Slam and 13 weeks at World No. 1. Unfortunately, the American star players of the 1990s were Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi, with 124 titles, 22 Slams and 387 weeks at No. 1 between them, and Roddick had the additional misfortune to be playing in the same era as Roger Federer .
John McEnroe had one of the best-ever seasons in Open Era history in 1984, going undefeated for 42 matches until his loss to Ivan Lendl in the French Open final and racking up two Grand Slam wins and a record winning percentage of 96.47%, winning 82 out of 85 matches. He would never again win a Slam after that phenomenal year, or even reach a Slam final after 1985. Similarly, Mats Wilander became just the third man in the Open Era to win three Slams in a single season in 1988, upsetting then-No. 1 Ivan Lendl along the way to do it, but the intense pressure of that year caused him to become so burnt out that he couldn't recapture the motivation that had propelled him in 1988 and failed to even reach another Slam final for the rest of his career.
Michael Chang and Lleyton Hewitt both peaked early on in their careers, with Chang becoming the youngest-ever Slam champion at 17 years old and Hewitt becoming the youngest-ever No. 1 at 20. Their later careers weren't exactly failures with them continuing to be Slam contenders for years, but Chang ultimately couldn't shake off his "one-Slam wonder" label in spite of reaching 3 more Slam finals and Hewitt was ultimately overshadowed by Federer and never reached the No. 1 position again after losing it in 2003.
Richard Gasquet is in the very strange position of struggling to live up to the act of his nine-year-old self. To make a long story short, he was hyped up hugely by his countrymen as "baby Federer" and had his face featured on the cover of a French tennis magazine when he was just nine years old. His stint as the junior World No. 1, however, turned out to be the apex of his career as the crushing national expectations and pressure proved too much for him to live up to as an adult and he has made it past the fourth round of a Slam only three times (and never past the semifinals) so far.
On the women's side, Ana Ivanović looked set to become the next dominant WTA champion when she won her maiden Slam at the 2008 French Open and ascended to the No. 1 ranking spot at the tender age of 20. Fast forward 6 years later, and Ivanović has yet to make it to another Slam semifinal since that French Open and has only reached a total of two Slam quarterfinals in that span of time. Even in 2014, the year when she got back into the top 10 rankings for the first time in five years, she ended up losing in the third round or earlier at three of her four Slams in that year.
Trying Not to Cry : Often happens to runners up in Grand Slam finals as they struggle to pay their respects to the winner, who has just trampled on their dreams in front of a global audience. Finals are the only matches where the loser is interviewed.
Roger Federer: You're like: 'All right, I'll handle this.' And you walk out and 15,000 people feel bad for you. Next thing you know it's a bit awkward .
Underdogs Never Lose :
In 1985 an unknown, unseeded 17-year-old became the then-youngest male Grand Slam champion ever, claiming the Wimbledon title. His name? Boris 'Boom Boom' Becker. He was a turning point in the way the game was played, paving the way for the power game.
Wimbledon 2012: Jonathan Marray and Frederik Nielsen had only played 3 matches together when they gained a wildcard entry into the doubles. On their way to victory they defeated pairs ranked 9, 8, 5 and 2 in the world including the defending champions, the three-time finalists and the most decorated pairing in tennis history. Marray was the first Brit to win the title since 1936 and Nielsen the second Dane to win any Wimbledon title, the first was his grandfather . This marked only the second time that a Wimbledon title was claimed by a wildcard; the first was in 2001 when over-the-hill former top player and three-time finalist Goran Ivani�ević returned from injury and completed a run in which he beat seeds 6, 4 and 3, and was just two points from being knocked out in the semi-final.
In a similar vein, Kim Clijsters captured the Women's Singles title at the 2009 US Open, having entered as a wildcard just three weeks after returning to tennis from extended maternity leave. She was the first mother to win a Grand Slam since 1980.
At the 2013 Viña del Mar tournament, Rafael Nadal was widely expected to win in spite of it being his first tournament after a seven-month layoff because it was on clay and packed with low-level players. He looked on track to do just that, making it to the final without dropping a set and his opponent in the final being Horacio Zeballos who was ranked outside the top 50 and had yet to win an ATP title. Much to the shock of everyone, however, Zeballos played the match of his life and won his first-ever career title against the "King of Clay", becoming the only player other than Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic to beat Nadal in a clay tournament final.
The entire 2013 Wimbledon. You had Maria Sharapova, Serena Williams, Victoria Azarenka, Rafael Nadal, and Roger Federer fail to make it to the quarterfinals. Nadal was eliminated in the first round and Federer and Sharapova were eliminated in the second. The underdogs couldn't continue their streaks through the men's tournaments, as the final ended up a largely status quo affair between the top 2 seeds Murray and Djokovic. The women's side however suffered such a complete collapse that the final was between the 15th and 23rd seeds Marion Bartoli and Sabine Lisicki who had one previous Grand Slam final appearance between them.
A promotional video
for the 2012 ATP year-end championships had shades of this; the players introduced themselves and said how many times they had qualified for the tournament. They all said it was their 2nd-5th time, until "Hello, I'm Roger Federer and this is my 11th appearance at the World Tour Finals." Translation: he has been in the top 8 longer than most of them have been playing professional tennis.
It was noted in 2013 Wimbledon that 42-year-old Kimiko Date-Krumm, the oldest player in the top 100, started playing in 1989, before many current tennis players were even born.
Who Needs Overtime : In general, any match that has the final possible set end with a score of 7-5, the closest score a set can have without a tiebreaker.
Wonder Twin Powers : The most successful men's doubles team ever is made up of twin brothers Bob and Mike Bryan. They have 16 Grand Slams and an Olympic gold medal.
Worthy Opponent :
"Roger, I know exactly how you feel. Just remember you're a great champion and you're one of the best in history..." Nadal, after beating Federer at the 2009 Australian Open.
"One day, you will win Roland Garros. You deserve it." Wawrinka to Djokovic, after defeating him at the 2015 French Open and denying him a career Grand Slam in the process. Wawrinka turned out to be right; Djokovic won Roland Garros the next year.
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