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OCTOBER 2017 THEBEDFORDCLANGER.COM THE BEDFORD YOUR CULTURAL GUIDE TO CLANGERTHE BEST OF BEDFORD Inside: BEDPOP FUN PALACES BEDFORD BEER FESTIVAL 40TH ANNIVERSARY MR X STITCH MAGAZINE LAUNCH EXTRAVAGANZA MOULIN ROUGE SCREENING Letter from Team Clanger Woo hoo! Autumn is here and we’re back from our summer break. There’s lots to look forward to this month, from amazing theatre and live music to BedPop Fun Palaces and Bromham Apple Day. Why not raise a glass and help celebrate the 40th anniversary of Bedford Beer Festival at the Corn Exchange on 4th – 7th October? If you’re 40 during the festival, you can claim a free pint! We’ve also got the lowdown on The Frog (the newest addition to Riverside Square) and Gareth Barber’s Best of Bedford. Finally, we can’t sign off without saying a very fond farewell to The Pad nightclub. A stalwart of Lurke Street for 15 years, the building is now under new management, but our memories will live on. Team Clanger THE CLANGER NEWS IN BRIEF Team Clanger Pomaceous, dude! Editor: Erica Roffe @bedfordclanger 15 October 10:30 am - 4:00 pm [email protected] The ever-popular Apple Day returns to Bromham Commercial Manager: Julia Crofts @clangerads Mill on Sunday 15th October 2017. Visitors can expect [email protected] a range of fun and traditional activities to celebrate Design: Adam Boreham @reactionvm all things pomaceous.* On-site there will be a wide reactionvisual.media selection of food and drink (including cider) and lots Photography: Cat Lane @catlanephoto of fun-filled activities for the whole family to enjoy. Music: Lloyd Lugsden @lloydlug Bromham Mill, Bridge End, Bromham, Theatre: Paula Walker @pauliwauli2 Bedford MK43 8LP tel: 01234 824330 Food & Drink: Stephen Bywater @authorbywater [*cannot get enough of my new favourite word. Website: Alec East @ Narrative Industries Twice in one article!] QYouth launches in Bedford A new LGBTQ+ support and social group for 13-19 year olds health, to understanding gender and sexuality and is being launched in Bedford by the charity Q:alliance. LGBTQ+ specific family support. Thanks to a seed funding grant from the Harpur The charity has been successfully running a QYouth Trust, QYouth Bedford will run weekly from October group in Milton Keynes since 1998. 2017 providing LGBTQ+ teenagers with support and a Overseen by Q:alliance’s Bedford Trustee Rosie safe space to socialise. Young LGBTQ+ people are at Middleton, QYouth Bedford will be run by a qualified significantly increased risk of social isolation, bullying youth worker and a small team of volunteers from a and mental health problems*. They are often unable central Bedford location. The location and time of the to talk to friends and family about what they are going group will not be advertised for safety reasons, but will through due to a lack of understanding around the issues. be available through contact with our team. Sessions will be both social (music, film, and games Q:alliance are currently recruiting a youth worker. nights), and educational, providing information and For more information please visit: www.qalliance. support on a range of issues from mental and sexual org.uk or email: [email protected] the puddin club RIVERSIDE TENNIS CLUB Goldington Road. Bedford Puddings • Cakes • Breakfast • Cheeseboard Great Coffee • Prosecco • Wine • Beer • Cider Take your game to the next level Ice Cream • Milkshakes • Afternoon Tea (booking required) Gin Night - October 19th A selection of large specialist gins at £25 per person Sharing Antipasto boards can be pre-ordered at £5 Booking essential get your just desserts 07773 943586 Facebook: thepuddinclub Autumn Programme 2017 now available at 120a Castle Road, Bedford, MK40 3RG www.riversidetennisbedford.co.uk 2 The Bedford Clanger • October 2017 New public THE CLANGER art in Bedford UNIQUE BEDFORD Last month, Bedford’s newest piece of public art was unveiled in Riverside Square. Entitled The Frog, and commissioned in association with Bedford Creative Arts, the artwork by William Rounce was installed as part of the on-going development of Riverside Square. Taking its inspiration from Bedford’s brick-making past, the panels depict repeated images of the ‘frog’ or top of a brick and were commissioned by the developers of Riverside Bedford specifically to conceal an electricity substation that is situated on the square. William has also created an art trail for visitors to explore the inspiration for the piece. It includes the ‘Somewhere in England’ gallery at the Higgins Bedford, where William researched the Stewartby brickworks and saw the brick mould that ultimately formed the basis for the panels’ design. The Frog isn’t the only element of Riverside Bedford to have taken inspiration from the brickworks. Both Zizzi’s and Gourmet Burger Kitchen have referenced the town’s industrial heritage in their interior design, with exposed brickwork in evidence in both restaurants. As with most things in Bedford, the artwork has divided opinion, particularly among the many figurative art connoisseurs and critics. ‘But it’s not a frog’ and ‘When’s the hoarding being taken down?’ are typical of the ‘below the line’ comments on social media. We’re looking forward to seeing how the Frog blends into the publics’ consciousness over time; as visitors experience it up-close, understand it’s relevance to our social history and enjoy the visual trickery of the concave and convex ‘frog’ patterns. Once all of the Riverside Bedford building work is complete, all the units are filled and the square’s trees have matured, the Frog will no doubt become part of the furniture and something that everyone - even the figurative art fans - can grow to love. “Delightfully freaky" THE TELEGRAPH THE TWINS MACABRE: PLAYTIME Thursday 26 Oct, 7.00pm Maurice and Ivy Macabre are 10-year- Ticket price old psychic siblings who have a £12.50 penchant for finger painting and (£10.50 concessions) murder. Having run away from the Age suitability circus, (which mysteriously burnt down 14+ causing their parents to perish…) the Running time pair conjure the souls of the damned 60 mins through twisted sketches and songs. Box office 01234 362337 quarrytheatre.org.uk The Quarry Theatre at St Luke’s is part of Bedford School, which is part of The Harpur Trust The Bedford Clanger • October 2017 3 CLANGERTHE LATEST NEWS 7th -8th October – The Higgins, Bedford Central Library, the Quarry Theatre at St Luke’s, Panacea Musuem, John Bunyan Museum, Basement @ Bunyan, St Cutherbert’s Hall, Rogan’s Books and Slide Record Shop. On October 7th and 8th, nine BedPop Fun make fabulous leaf crowns, surrounded Palaces will be popping up in Bedford, and inspired by the wonderful artwork in bringing FREE arts, culture and science the Wixamtrees gallery at the Higgins.” events to the town centre as part of the Bedford Creative Arts and artist Maria international Fun Palaces weekend. Anastassiou will be running drop-in Bedford will be one of over 250 towns workshops to contribute to a huge ‘living and cities taking part all over the world. mural’ that will be projected onto the This year, BedPop has teamed up with wall of the William Harpur Gallery at Autism Bedfordshire to offer a number the Higgins over the whole weekend. of autism-friendly events. There will be Maria recently ran the same workshop specific sessions with artist Anne-Marie at the Whitney NYC. Slide Records will Stijelia and also Bloodhound rocket cars, be running DJ masterclasses on Sunday plus supported sessions with engineers and science students from Goldington from Network Rail and artists from Academy and Kimberley College in Bedford Creative Arts. More information Wootton will be running hands-on and booking details can be found at science demonstrations and experiments bedpop.co.uk. in the foyer of the Higgins all day on “This year’s programme of events is Saturday. Castle Newnham School will really exciting and is taking place in lots be running singing, music and drama of different locations, including museums, workshops throughout the weekend. the Quarry Theatre and Slide Records in “Thanks to generous funding from the Arcade,” said Erica Roffe of BedPop. “We’re collaborating with world-class, the Harpur Trust, we have been able to locally-based artists, school children and bring Bilimnakhwe Arts’ multi-cultural local businesses to offer dozens of free production of the Tempest to the Quarry events for visitors to take part in. We’re Theatre,” said Erica. “Not only will be thrilled to have added some autism- have a free professional performance friendly events to the programme too.” of the show, but we are also offering For the first time, BedPop is partnering theatre workshops too.” with the Forest of Marston Vale – a BedPop Fun Palaces is generously superb local visitor attraction. “Taking our supported by sponsors including inspiration from the Higgins’ exhibition ‘A Woodfines solicitors, Slide Records, You Celebration of Trees in British Art’, we will Can Book Me and in collaboration with be running leaf identification walks in the Bedford Borough Council. grounds of the museum with volunteers The full Fun Palaces programme can from the Forest,” said Erica. “Artist Lisa be downloaded from bedpop.co.uk with Tilley will then work with the children to details of all bookable events. 4 The Bedford Clanger • October 2017 Sunday 15th October 2017 11am - 4pm at Bromham Mill & Gallery M MIL HA L M O R B Bromham Mill Bridge End, Bromham MK43 8LP Tickets: £5 Adults, £3 Concessions Phone: 01234 718616 Email: [email protected] THE CLANGER X Stitch LATEST NEWS This year, Clanger fave and local legend, Jamie – Mr X Stitch – Chalmers launched his very own magazine; a modern take on the art of embroidery.