BARNSLEY AND DISTRICT U3A
Internet: Barnsley U3A / Charity no. 1077654
Awarded to Send info. and photos to: [email protected] Barnsley u3a January 2021 1
Finally, we are reaching the light at the end of the tunnel and our outdoor activities are opening up and we are eagerly anticipating our indoor groups meeting as allowed by the Government’s ‘Route out of Lockdown’. It’s been a long and difficult 15 months for all u3as but Bu3a has remained open for business and we have constantly searched for ways to keep our members involved with us. I know from the many positive comments that you, our members, have appreciated our efforts. The best indicator of your appreciation comes in response to our membership renewal process. Around 96% of you have retained your membership of Bu3a which speaks volumes about your desire to remain as part of our brilliant organisation. Our Membership Secretary, John MacKinnon, has given a more detailed explanation on page 3 in this Buzz.
The membership renewal process leaves us with a positive outcome which compares against the u3a National Office expectation of a Covid related 20% reduction in membership across the UK. We are obviously doing something different in Barnsley and credit has to go to all those of you who have been involved in providing and supporting our online activities over the last year. These activities have added to our commitment to getting our supersized Buzz out to all members during the year, with the supplementary Interim Buzz becoming an important new fixed addition to our news updates. However, despite all the positive news, we have to accept that things won’t get back to exactly where we left off in March 2020. The passage of time has led to a small number of our groups being removed from our activity list. Lynn Maloney, our Development Officer, explains some of the changes on page 45 of this Buzz. As is always the case, our thinking in Bu3a is ‘as one thing becomes unavailable another comes to fill the gap’. We will always try to work to this principle as groups disappear or become full. The Group Calendars compiled by Hilary Newton are on the inside back pages 49-51 of this Buzz.
On Monday 7th June, it is our 25th Annual General Meeting, which will be held on Zoom again this time. The Agenda, Annual Report and Statement of Accounts are set out on pages 19-21 whilst the minutes of the 24th AGM are shown on page 20 of the Spring Buzz, which is available online if you haven’t kept your copy. Please try to attend this meeting, which will be followed by a presentation by Beth Rudkin, who will be asking the question “Who killed the Princes in the Tower?”
We are hoping to get this edition of the Buzz out to all our members prior to 2nd June, National u3a Day. The purpose of this day is to encourage all the UK’s 1000+ u3a’s to tell the world about who we are and what we do. Last year we had plans for many of our groups to be on show in the Alhambra, the Library and in and around town but Covid put paid to all that, of course! This year, we have a small team of members in Barnsley who have been helping us to prepare for this event within the present restrictions, which will limit us to sharing a small Council gazebo in the town centre. One of the highlights will be when the Mayor attends and cuts our 25th Anniversary Cake. This will be supported by us handing out our new tri-fold leaflet (right) in and around town. Also, local radio stations have been sent copies of The Buzz, the new leaflet and a covering letter from me; we are hoping to be given a radio spot or two to talk about the u3a and our Bu3a. I also must mention our Walking Cricket competition which Mac McKechnie has organised for u3a Day. At the time of writing there is an increasing number of other u3a teams taking part and because of this the event has had to be relocated to Doncaster where a greater number of pitches are available. Well done to Mac for continuing to manage the growth of Walking Cricket and keep Bu3a’s name high profile in the process on u3a Day. Please read the Walking Cricket article on pages 28-29.
On the subject of our 25th Anniversary, keep an eye out for the details of our ticketed evening celebration to be held on 6th October at the Holiday Inn, Dodworth; the first release of information is on page 3. It would be great to see our members turning out in force to enjoy this landmark achievement for Bu3a.
Anyway, that’s enough from me for the time being. I look forward to seeing you all getting involved in our activities once again.
Alan
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CHEERS EVERYONE!! A huge vote of thanks from me to all our members for demonstrating your loyalty to Barnsley u3a. 96% of you renewed your membership; an unparalleled success at any time, let alone in the middle of another lockdown. Thank you also for your many notes and good wishes which I always appreciate. Throughout this process I have been wonderfully well supported by my wife, Jacqui, and Hilary Newton, our Treasurer. Finally, a note of thanks to Jo, our lovely post lady, who has delivered nearly 500
cheques to me over the past few weeks.
Best wishes to all!
John MacKinnon, Membership Secretary.
CELEBRATING 25 GLORIOUS YEARS! The Social Committee’s advert BARNSLEY & DISTRICT U3A here says it all! Assuming that all Covid restrictions are well behind us (gone but never to be forgotten), we will meet in
JOIN US ON THE 6TH OCTOBER October to celebrate the At The Holiday Inn, Dodworth remarkable growth and For Dinner & Entertainment Tickets on sale from July present strength of Bu3a. Full details coming soon!
Vice-Chairman and Buzz Editor: Derek Bacon
Welcome to the Summer 2021 ‘Buzz’. I hope that you enjoy it.
It’s great to start this Buzz with three typically positive contributions by the Chairman, the Membership Secretary and the Social Committee.
It has not been quite so straightforward to produce this edition of The Buzz as I was unwell for much of April but the number of contributions just poured in and that helped me enormously; I am very grateful to you all. I feel guilty and apologise to those people who are always so supportive but whose contributions this time have had to be saved for the Autumn Buzz.
An absolutely massive ‘Thank You’ to Jo Kasparek who took over the role of reporting on our pretty amazing Presentation Hour and Monthly Meetings on Zoom. I wish that our Monday afternoon meetings on Zoom attracted more than the 120-150 or so members that they do because they have been so varied and interesting. The first pages of this Buzz are again reports of these meetings; I think that they fit in perfectly with the gentle ‘Learn’ and ‘Laugh’ sections of our u3a motto ‘Learn, Laugh, Live!’
It was a huge shock to hear that very soon after the publication of the Spring Buzz, the subject of one of its pages, Steve Smith MBE, passed away most unexpectedly. Our condolences go to his family and his Bu3a friends who contacted me.
I do hope that you read The Buzz at leisure and keep returning to it because so many Bu3a members have interesting tales to tell. In these 52 pages are 11 Zoom reports plus The Falklands War, Covid-19 research, big news on Walking Cricket, the first of a series of recommended walking routes for you to follow, Quizmasters questions (and answers!), Group reports and a whole lot more. It starts with a Sensible Page! 3
A SENSIBLE PAGE
A thief broke into my house last night. He started searching for money so I got up and searched with him. Life is like a helicopter. I don’t know how to operate a helicopter. A recent study has found women who carry a little extra weight live longer than men who mention it.
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PRESENTATION HOUR via ‘ZOOM’, Monday 8th February
‘A BALTIC TALE’ presented by SUE STOKES
This talk by Sue Stokes took us on a “whistle-stop” cruise that Sue went on with Beryl Topliss and Pat Goodall of Bu3a in 2018. All stops were for one day’s sightseeing apart from St Petersburg which was for two days.
First port of call after leaving Newcastle was Dundee, in Bonny Scotland, rather than Scandinavia, but with the opening of the magnificent new Victoria and Albert Museum (left) there in 2018 itself and with its history of the Three J’s, Jute, Journalism and Jam, it is undoubtedly now on everyone’s itinerary as a destination in itself.
Then off to ‘Wonderful, Wonderful Copenhagen’ where ‘The Little Mermaid’ of Hans Christian Anderson fame is a must-see, but it is surprisingly little! After visiting the royal palace and the compulsory church or two, she went to the world famous Tivoli Gardens (centre) and the stunning new Opera House. An amazing bonus was to see the city’s incinerator which doubles as a ski-slope.
Next stop was the pretty North German coastal resort of Warnemunde, “the best little town you’ve never heard of” which is obviously worth a visit in itself but also offers a two hour train journey to Berlin.
According to all the guide books, Tallinn (right), the capital of Estonia is mystical, mesmerising and addictive, and Sue would agree with this sentiment, I am sure. The Old Town became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997 and is full of fairy tales and mythology with its intense medieval atmosphere. Dating back to the 13th century, it is the best preserved medieval city in Northern Europe, and you can walk on top of the thick, ancient walls that surround it and enjoy its winding cobblestone streets. Visitors from all over the world come to admire the churches, Gothic spires, grandiose merchant houses and all-round enchanting architecture.
St Petersburg, Russia’s second city, is built on over 100 islands and has more canals than Venice. The biggest tourist attraction is The Hermitage (left), the second largest art museum in the world after the Louvre in Paris, attracting almost 5 million visitors per year! The city was the capital of the Russian Empire from 1713 to 1918. After the 1917 October Revolution, Lenin’s victorious Bolsheviks chose Moscow as the capital. During World War II, German forces besieged Leningrad in June 1941. The siege lasted 872 days, or almost two and a half years, from 8 September 1941 to 27 January 1944. The Siege of Leningrad was one of the longest, most destructive and most lethal sieges of a major city in modern history. It isolated the city from food supplies except for those provided through the ‘Road of Life’ across Lake Ladoga, which could not make it through until the lake literally froze. More than one million civilians died, mainly from starvation. Many others escaped or were evacuated, so the city
became largely depopulated.
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PRESENTATION HOUR via ‘ZOOM’, Monday 22nd February
‘THE BATTLE OF HASTINGS’ presented by ANDREW GREEN
Andrew started logically by saying how all of us know the date of the Battle of Hastings from our primary school education, but few of us could ever have realised at that early age that this date and this battle were the start of a massive upheaval of English society. Within a generation the Normans, a mix of Vikings and Norsemen and Frenchmen who had settled in Normandy had fundamentally transformed the organisation, government, language, laws, customs and architecture of England with a wave of castles built across the country to secure their hold on power; this was the very start of the Norman Conquest. The Battle of Hastings was fought on 14 October 1066 between the Norman- French army of William, the Duke of Normandy, and an English army under the Anglo-Saxon King Harold Godwinson (above, right). It took place on Senlac hill approximately 7 miles northwest of Hastings, close to the present-day town of Battle, East Sussex, and was a decisive Norman victory. The background to the battle was the death of the childless King Edward the Confessor in January 1066; this started a struggle between several claimants to the English throne. Harold was crowned king shortly after Edward's death, but faced invasions by William, his own exiled brother Tostig, and the Norwegian King Harald Hardrada. Hardrada and Tostig defeated a hastily gathered army of Englishmen at the Battle of Fulford, near York, on 20 September 1066, and were in turn defeated by Harold at the Battle of Stamford Bridge five days later. The deaths of Tostig and Hardrada at Stamford Bridge left William as Harold's only serious opponent. While Harold and his forces were recovering in the north of England, William landed his invasion forces in the south at Pevensey on 28 September 1066 and established a beachhead for his conquest of the kingdom. Harold was forced to march south swiftly, gathering forces as he went. The exact numbers present at the battle are unknown as even modern estimates vary considerably. The composition of the forces is clearer; the English army was composed almost entirely of infantry and had few archers, whereas only about half of the invading force was infantry, the rest split equally between cavalry and archers. Harold appears to have tried to surprise William, but scouts found his army and reported its arrival to William, who marched from Hastings to the battlefield to confront Harold. The battle lasted from about 9 am to dusk. Early efforts of the invaders to break the English battle lines had little effect; therefore, the Normans adopted the tactic of pretending to flee in panic and then turning on their pursuers. Harold's death, probably near the end of the battle, led to the retreat and defeat of most of his army. After further marching and some skirmishes, William was crowned king on Christmas Day 1066. There continued to be rebellions and resistance to William's rule, but Hastings effectively marked the culmination of William's conquest of England. Casualty figures are hard to come by, but some historians estimate that 2,000 invaders died along with about twice that number of Englishmen. William founded a monastery at the site of the battle, the high altar of the abbey church supposedly placed on the spot where Harold died.
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MONTHLY MEETING via ‘ZOOM’, Monday 1st March
‘MUSIC TO MY EARS’ presented by ROY GAMBLE
The preparation and the depth of study in this talk by expert trumpeter and conductor of our ‘Old Blowers’ brass band, was evident from the outset. This was not going to be a superficial 60 minutes on undemanding 2-minute pop songs but, rather, a serious, comprehensive look at music in all its guises. It took us a long way from the time when man invented basic instruments to the sophisticated music and recordings that we enjoy today.
Roy asked us to think about ‘sound’. We now take so much for granted as we flip from one piece of music to another on LP (obsolete), cassette tape (obsolete), CD (obsolete), Spotify, Apple or other ‘streaming’ services. Roy wanted to make us appreciate in much greater depth what is happening scientifically and physically when we listen to The Sex Pistols or Beethoven or Miles Davis or a Shakespeare play.
What is sound, Roy asked us. He explained a bit of the physics of what is happening; sound can be seen as a wave motion in air, sound stimulating the mechanism in our ears that results in our perception of sound.
He made us think about the way that humans have evolved with sounds in their lives: Pulse, Beat, Dynamics, Timbre, Rhythm, Melody, Duration, Structure, Pitch, Harmony, Tempo. All complex stuff!
In 60 minutes, we learned how musical instruments work and their sources of vibration and resonance, the four categories of strings, wind, keyboard and percussion.
He took us logically through the History and Origins of music, the Prehistoric period with its early influences from Persia, India, Egypt, Greece and more. The Middle Ages were dominated by music such as Gregorian Chant, minstrels and troubadours. In the Renaissance period from 1400 – 1600, we find greater complexity in musical structure and texture. Then in the Baroque period a huge leap forward, led, of course, by the greatest composer of all time Johann Sebastian Bach. His influence gave us the great Classical period with the greatest composers of all time, Mozart and Beethoven. Then, the Romantic period which gave us the greatest composers of all time, Brahms, Tchaikovsky and Mahler, followed by the 20th century which gave us the greatest composers of all time, Stravinsky, Richard Strauss and Shostakovich.
Life changed in the 1890’s with Edison and Marconi’s inventions of the phonograph and the radio; inventions that enabled millions to listen to music at home. A new Modern Era was born so we were taken through the 1920 Jazz Age and Broadway musicals, the 1930’s Big Bands, the 1950’s Rock and Roll with Elvis, Buddy Holly and Cliff Richard and the start of the total dominance of the guitar as the instrument for young people to learn and play.
Then the iconic 1960’s of The Beatles, Rolling Stones, Hollies, The Who, you simply pick your favourite groups. But Roy wasn’t done yet. We were reminded of Mo-town, Punk Rock, Woodstock, Glastonbury and more. I think we were actually left reeling by the distance we had travelled in just one hour. Thank you, Roy! 7
TRAVELLERS’ TALES via ‘ZOOM’, Saturday 27th February Jo Kasparek
JOHN COLLEY: THE CN TOWER, TORONTO The CN Tower was completed in 1976 on former railway land at a cost of 63 million Canadian dollars and CN refers to Canadian National. It is a 553 metres or 1815 feet tall concrete communications and observation tower and was the tallest free-standing tower in the world until 2007. Six glass faced elevators travel up to the observation deck and rotating restaurant where you get a panoramic 360o view across the city of Toronto and on a clear day a distance of up to 100 miles is visible. Part of the observation deck has a glass floor, but above this there is a pretty scary sky walk (left), open to the elements. John and Ingrid preferred to settle back in the restaurant for a cocktail before having a lovely meal whilst the sun went down.
JO KASPAREK: THE FALKLAND ISLANDS In 2018, Jo and Andy Kasparek spent a day on the Falkland Islands as part of a cruise from Buenos Aires. The Falklands are made up of almost 800 islands with a total population of 4,000 people and many thousands of penguins. Docking at Port Stanley, they travelled across East Falkland in jeeps over rough terrain and spotted rusting items left over from the Falklands war. They visited a colony of Gentoo and Magellanic penguins as well as one lonely King penguin. There were lots of juveniles in this colony and Gentoo youngsters are very curious and will approach you and even peck at your shoes. Once back in Stanley, they took photos of the important buildings and the Liberation Memorial and Monument erected in 1982, which is dedicated to the memory of all British forces and supporting units serving in the Falklands war. Then a drink in an English pub to finish the trip.
ALAN SWANN: NEW YORK TO SAN FRANCISCO BY TRAIN In 2016, Alan and Anne took a Great Rail Journeys trip across the USA from New York to San Francisco, calling at Chicago, Denver, Durango, Flagstaff and Los Angeles. They travelled on Amtrak trains both new and old and soon found that the Amtrak timetable was not to be relied on! Most nights were in hotels but two were overnight, travelling in ‘bijou’ accommodation including bunk beds, with the horn blaring at each crossing. In New York they went sightseeing which included Ground Zero where the Twin Towers once stood. Alan showed us a wide range of photos taken on and off the train. Near Flagstaff, in Wild West country, masked riders hijacked the train and demanded money but the Sheriff came aboard, removed the bandits and told some of the history of the area. Other highlights included Monument Valley and The Grand Canyon. They even spent one night on the Queen Mary. A varied and memorable experience.
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ANDY KASPAREK: INDIA’S GOLDEN TRIANGLE Another Great Rail Journeys tour, this time starting in Delhi – and what chaos with coaches, cars, motorbikes, mopeds, bicycles, tuk-tuks and cows everywhere, horns continuously tooting but few accidents. From Delhi, Andy and Jo travelled to Agra by train and the carriages were marked for different classes, including Women Only and Other Abled – not Disabled. Highlights were visiting the Red Fort and, of course, the Taj Mahal (left) – you would be surprised how many different benches are the one that Princess Diana sat on! Next stop, Simla, which became the summer headquarters of the Indian Government, as a way to escape the heat. Originally, this transfer was done using pack animals before the narrow gauge railway (right) was built, taking you on a 5-hour bumpy and uncomfortable journey into the mountains. Then on to Jaipur – the Pink City where every building is painted pink and white. Here Andy ad Jo enjoyed an evening at the original Real Marigold Hotel as seen in the TV series. Back in Delhi and the last day of the trip coincided with the Holi festival where huge quantities of brightly coloured powder are thrown at everyone– well, our group just had to join in the fun (left)! Andy finished off his Saturday morning report by reading out part of an amusing, tongue-in-cheek Indian Highway code.
DAVID WAKE: HONG KONG David worked for some 20 years in Hong Kong as a teacher, so this was not a report of a holiday trip but of his great knowledge of and affection for the city. Hong Kong, situated on the southern coast of China, is made up of Hong Kong Island, Kowloon Peninsula and the New Territories. To get to Hong Kong Island, you would usually fly into the main airport on the larger, neighbouring island of Lantau. David’s presentation consisted of a short guide on how to get around Hong Kong and what to see in a limited time. Hong Kong is not just skyscrapers and crowded streets but also has wonderful beaches, mountains and hiking trails to explore. In fact, 70% of Hong Kong is country park. There are several ways to get around Hong Kong city. The Star Ferry gives wonderful views of the city skyscrapers or the cheapest option is the tram which takes two hours on a circular route. There are also buses, taxis and the Underground. One of the must-see buildings is the Peak Tower (left) which has a huge viewing platform and the Peak Tram can take you up there. Also worth a visit is Kowloon, where there are interesting temples and good markets, particularly at night, and lots of street food. In Stanley, on the south of the island, you can experience a side of Hong Kong that is dying out, such as lantern shops. An interesting and informative guide.
AUTUMN BUZZ SEPTEMBER DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSIONS: FRIDAY AUGUST 6TH 9
2021 BU3A PRESENTATION HOUR via ‘ZOOM’, Monday 8th March
‘THE SOUTH-WEST WAY’ presented by Neil Spencer CBE of Chilterns U3A
The South West Coast Path, (shown below) is perhaps the UK’s ultimate challenge for the long-distance hiker - a 630- mile / 1,000 kilometre adventure around the coastline of England’s south west peninsula. Starting at Minehead, in Somerset, it runs along the coastline of Exmoor, continues along the coast of North Devon into Cornwall, follows the entire coastline of Cornwall and goes across the mouth of the River Tamar into Devon. After running along the south coast of Devon it then follows the Dorset coastline before finally ending at Poole Harbour.
On average the Path takes 7 to 8 weeks to complete. There are of course people who will do it much quicker than this (the current record is just over 10 days!), and those who will take much longer. A very fit and fast walker could complete all 630 miles (not 500 as shown in the picture of Neil taken in Minehead at the start of his venture) in around 30 days or so.
Our inspiring guest speaker, Neil Spencer, originally from Otley, did the full walk in memory of his sister and raised £10,000 for MacMillan Nurses while doing it. He started his walking life when he joined the Scouts 72 years ago, and this life-long commitment to Scouting is part of the reason for his award of a CBE. He has completed all the major walks in the UK so has total understanding of personal challenges.
Having a four-week holiday, Neil committed to completing the full walk in 29 days and spoke of his punishing routine of 20 to 24 miles per day! The terrain of this coast is well known to most of us from holidays there, but the actual walk takes you up vertiginous cliffs such as Golden Cap, over huge sand dunes, massive boulders and stony stretches such as Chesil Beach. The photos that Neil showed us, such as the one on the left, demonstrate the constantly hilly nature of the walk; this is no stroll along the promenade at Scarborough! Neil summed up the walk as “a stinker” and his challenge was made all the harder due to the frequent torrential rain that saps one’s inner enthusiasm and motivation. The distance actually climbed during the walk is three times the height of Mount Everest! (27,000ft x 3 = 81,000ft)
Hartland Quay (right) to Bude section is generally regarded as the toughest part of the whole walk, although it richly rewards you with magnificent scenery. It is an area notorious for shipwrecks. Neil showed us his photo of the wreck of the cargo ship Demetrios (above) at Prawle Point, near Salcombe. It is a treacherous coastline for walkers and shipping; a hurricane put paid to this ship.
Huge thanks to Neil for a great talk! 10
th RED NOSE DAY PRESENTATION via ‘ZOOM’, Friday 19 March Jo Kasparek
The Barnsley u3a Red Nose Day event was hosted by our Chairman Alan Swann and Vice- Chairman Derek Bacon.
Red Nose Day is the flagship fund-raising project for Comic Relief, a British charity, founded in 1985 by the scriptwriter Richard Curtis and comedian Lenny Henry in response to the famine in Ethiopia. Comic Relief has a vision of a world free from poverty and aims to tackle the causes of injustice and poverty both here in the UK and around the world. Red Nose Day happens every 2 years in March and alternates with its sister project, Sport Relief.
To begin the frivolity, Alan and Derek gave us eleven Barnsley news items including An Ardsley grandfather has gone missing after eating four cans of baked beans, two cauliflowers and a jar of gherkins. His family have made an emotional appeal for him not to come home for at least a fortnight which made us all laugh.
Throughout the afternoon, Vanda showed us clips taken from TV shows – first came the scene from ‘Only Fools and Horses’ where Del Boy and Rodney are up ladders, holding a sheet to catch a huge chandelier. Meanwhile, Grandad is in the attic, unscrewing the fixing bolt – but of the wrong Chandelier. Priceless!
Then followed the ‘Name the Comedian’ quiz which we had all received via Beacon before the meeting. This featured only the eyes and nose of 17 comedians. Some of us felt the photos were weird and a bit scary. Naming the faces was not easy, Andy and I only scored 3, but several people got many correct. Only Alan, who set the quiz, got all 17 right!
Next came the video clip from The Vicar of Dibley where Geraldine is cavorting with her new man, jumping in puddles., until she disappears up to her chest in a water-filled hole.
Derek and Alan performed a sketch from Monty Python with very dodgy Yorkshire accents! Two elderly men are trying to outdo one another as to how poor and underprivileged they were in former days, for example “we had to get up before we went to bed”.
A quiz followed, based on TV Sitcoms. We were given a short time to write down the questions, then put into breakout rooms of about 6 people each to decide on a group answer. Andy and I were in Group 6 and were delighted to come joint top with 9 out of 10 correct. Well done to everyone who took part!
Part of a ‘Blackadder’ sketch followed. The Prince Regent is visited by Dr Samuel Johnson, who has just completed his volume of all the known words in the English language. This is until Blackadder mocks him and confounds him with made up words such as contrafibularities and pericombobulations.
‘Laughter is the best medicine’ is the title of a hilarious presentation that Alan has given to u3a groups over many years, showing amusing quotations, situations and signs that give out confusing or mixed messages such as these shown here. Alan explained the medical reasons why laughter is good for us; laughing produces endorphins which can reduce blood pressure, boost the immune system and reduce stress.
Our last TV clip returned to ‘Only Fools and Horses’; Del Boy and Trigger are in the pub, sizing up the female talent on offer. They don’t notice that the barman has lifted up the end section of the bar and Del Boy starts to lean on – nothing! Still funny after all this time, especially the look of amazement and confusion on Trigger’s face.
So, all in all, a particularly enjoyable 90 minutes. On behalf of all the attendees, thank you to Alan, Derek and Vanda for putting together such a good show at very short notice, entertaining us exceedingly well and proving that laughter is definitely the best medicine!
Donations to Comic Relief can be made on their website. £46 MILLION WAS RAISED ON MONDAY 19TH. 11
TRAVELLERS’ TALES via ‘ZOOM’, Saturday 27th March Jo Kasparek
JOHN COLLEY: MOSCOW - RED SQUARE AND THE KREMLIN In Red Square is the Mausoleum of Lenin, a leader still revered by Russians. Behind the mausoleum is the Kremlin Wall which features marble busts and plinths of all the previous leaders as well as some prominent Russians such as Yuri Gagarin. Tributes of red carnations are placed on these by visitors.
The Kremlin is actually a city within a city, and you have to go through rigorous security to enter. Once inside, there is the Tsar Bell, forged in 1737, but damaged in a fire and never rung. The Tsar cannon, forged in 1586, is highly decorated and probably only fired once. In Cathedral Square are several churches, in particular the Cathedral of St. Michael the Archangel, which was the burial place of the Tsars before Peter the Great moved the capital to St. Petersburg. Inside is the Iconostatis, a wall of icons and religious paintings that separates the congregation from the sanctuary. The pure white Faceted Palace is where the Tsar would receive foreign visitors – simple from the outside but intended to impress inside.
The Kremlin Armoury Museum houses a collection of arms and armour, costumes and regalia, alongside gold and silver gifts to the Tsar. It also has a collection of Fabergé eggs, all ornate and beautifully decorated. The one formed like a Russian doll was made so that the children of Tsar Nicolas II could each have a gift, but John’s favourite was the enamelled filigree egg decorated with diamonds. John signed off with ‘Da svidanya’, Russian for “au revoir”, “hasta la próxima”, “sithee”!
JO KASPAREK: ORKNEY Jo and Andy visited Orkney in 2009 and again in 2012. The main points of interest are the Neolithic sites which are 5000 years old. The ferry from Scotland arrives at South Ronaldsay and driving up to Kirkwall you cross the Churchill Barrier, constructed by Balfour Beatty to prevent enemy craft entering the Naval base at Scapa Flow. Italian prisoners of war worked on this huge project and also built the famous Italian Chapel (above) from 2 Nissen huts.
From Kirkwall they toured the mainland, visiting Maeshowe which is a mound housing a burial chamber, and Skara Brae, a settlement discovered in 1850. The Ness of Brodgar contains a recently discovered and ongoing archaeological site, the 19 feet high Watchstone and the Ring of Brodgar – an amazing true circle of 27 standing stones with a very calm and peaceful atmosphere and the highlight of her trip. The rest of Jo’s talk gave information about the Scapa Flow Visitor Centre and Museum and photos taken of Kirkwall.
ANDY KASPAREK: EASTER MEMORIES As we are close to Easter, Andy decided to go down memory lane with his recollections of Easter camping holidays from 1971 to 1987. Four lads in their late teens hired a van, filled it with a tent, straw bales (to sit on) and lots of food and set off to Hadrian’s Wall. This became a favourite location, as did the Lake District – plenty of good hikes, historical interest, and lots of pubs! From 1974, Andy always asked for permission to go off with his pals and Jo always said “yes, of 12 course, go”. Andy told us anecdotes of frozen underpants, lads streaking through campsites in the dark and generally having a good time. Weather conditions varied from sunny but chilly to downright horrible. On one occasion Andy decided to follow a mate back to the car but got lost and ended up miles away in the fog. He pitched up at a police station but his pals had gone to the pub and didn’t seem worried at all. Wonderful memories of long ago.
BRENDA JONES: SWITZERLAND – MY FAVOURITE COUNTRY From childhood, Brenda has been an active member of the Guide Movement and first visited the Guide World Centre of Switzerland with her troupe of Guides. This photo shows Brenda and 5 members of the Wednesday Walkers on a more recent trip. They stayed in Interlaken as this is central for seeing lakes, mountains and cities. The first day is always spent outside, exploring Lake Brienz or Lake Thun, before a walk, a picnic and a visit to the cake shop. On all her visits, Brenda travels up into the mountains but she thinks that somebody is changing the signposts as it now takes her longer than the time specified for a certain walk! Mounts Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau can be seen here on the right. On the top of Mount Schilthorn there is a revolving restaurant at the cable car station where a James Bond film was shot. Lastly, Brenda showed us her favourite picnic spot, above the tree level where the only sound is of cowbells. Beautiful photos, fabulous scenery and fascinating stories. Thank you, Brenda.
ALAN SWANN: OKINAWA, MAINLAND JAPAN AND SOUTH KOREA Five years ago, Alan and Anne took a holiday which included the wedding of their nephew, Robbie, to his South Korean fiancé Songi. At Okinawa airport, Robbie had booked a self-drive 7- seater minibus to get to the Okuma Beach Resort. Seven passengers but no room for any luggage! So everyone travelled the 90-minute journey with a suitcase on their knee.
After a few days’ relaxation, the party travelled back to Mainland Japan, where they saw many Buddhist Temples and Shinto Shrines including the Golden Temple pictured here.
A highlight of the holiday was their ride on the bullet train – the Shinkansen – to Hiroshima, reaching speeds of up to 200 mph. Only one building still stands in the wasteland of Hiroshima, but there is a memorial and a museum. They found the Japanese people to be very friendly but also formal and respectful of each other.
Continuing on to South Korea and Seoul, where the taxis travel as close as possible to the vehicle in front to prevent anyone cutting in. A tourist friendly city with a pedestrian centre and most signs in English. Alan completed the holiday with the actual wedding ceremony, held outside, and then a short video of Robbie singing to his bride.
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2021 BU3A MONTHLY MEETING via ‘ZOOM’, Monday 5th April
‘’DNA FINGERPRINTING” by Chris & Diane Woolven, written by Jo Kasparek Chris Woolven and his wife, Diane, presented their DNA and Criminology lectures at our Spring Schools in 2018 and 2019. Today they brought us an understanding of what DNA is and how it can be used to solve crimes.
Diane told us that all living things are built up by the action of DNA. It works in
the same way in all life forms and is distributed throughout the body of every living thing. From a single strand virus to a blue whale, or a dinosaur, DNA forms their structure.
Over 99% of our DNA is the same as anyone else’s in the world. In fact, we share 98% of our DNA with apes, 92% with a mouse and a minimum of 18% with plant forms – it is as much as 60% with a banana! However not all this DNA is associated with genes. Every cell in our body has a nucleus which contains DNA, except for red blood cells. DNA appears as chromosomes which come in the 22 different forms shown in the diagram. The chromosomes are in pairs because one strand of DNA comes from the mother and the other from the father. X and Y chromosomes determine gender. All males have an X and a Y chromosome, females have two X chromosomes.
Genes are made up from a base pair of 4 molecules (shown as coloured blocks) which combines with many others to make a gene. These genes then twist together forming long strands, finally becoming a chromosome, which is stored in the cytoplasm which surrounds the nucleus to form a protein. This protein can then be sent out to a specific area of our body. The human genome contains around 30,000 genes but this is only 1.2% of our total DNA. This small percentage defines our skin, hair and eye colour. The rest is non-coding DNA and scientists are still learning the secrets of how this works.
Nuclear DNA is passed randomly down from all your ancestors. However, mitochondrial DNA is passed down the maternal line of every family. This is useful when it comes to identification and tracing family history. Diane has had her mitochondrial DNA scanned and found that her ancestors came from Denmark with the Vikings. When the body of Richard III was discovered in a car park in Leicester, the skeleton proved his authenticity as his mitochondrial DNA was found to match that of a direct descendant of his mother. Mitochondrial DNA can also help in criminology. It cannot convict anybody, but it can be used to eliminate suspects.
Chris took over the Presentation at this stage. An average gene is 236 base pairs. Between groups of genes there is a space. In the 1980s, Sir Alec Jeffries discovered a way to extract DNA samples from the space and devised a technique which led to the creation of DNA fingerprinting ( or profiling ). Around the same time, in the USA, Kary Mullis invented a PCR machine which copies tiny amounts of DNA to make a sample big enough to use in profiling. In criminal investigations, first you need to collect a sample, decide which parts you want, use a PCR to amplify the sample and then produce a DNA fingerprint. To get the required sample, they extract non-coding DNA by looking for repeated sequences of base pairs in a chromsome. These are STR - short tandem repeats - which are different in different people. By using a process called Gel Electrophoresis, you can compare the pattern that is formed to match a sample taken from a suspect to a sample taken at the crime scene. Nowadays, this pattern is converted into a number scale and only if all the numbers from two different samples are identical can you be sure of a match. The chances of anyone having an identical DNA Profile with someone in the UK population is 1 in 65 million.
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The first case to use Genetic Profiling was that of 15 year old Lynda Mann, (left), strangled and raped in 1983 and found on a lonely path in Narborough. Police managed to extract semen and blood group samples from the body but that only gave them a 1 in 10 chance of identifying the perpetrator of the crime. Three years later, again in Narborough, 15 year old Dawn Ashworth (right) was strangled and raped. A local 17 year old boy called Richard Buckland admitted to killing Dawn but denied having anything to do with Lynda’s murder. At this point, Alec Jeffries’ system of DNA fingerprinting was used on the semen samples taken from both girls’ bodies and from the suspect. The results proved that the same person had murdered both girls – but that person was not Richard Buckland! Following this, the Leicestershire Police contacted 5,000 males in the area to demand a DNA sample to eliminate them from the crime. After 6 months, none of the samples taken matched. The breakthrough happened when a woman in a pub overheard a conversation. Colin Pitchfork had submitted his sample in another man’s name as he had a police record. The woman reported the conversation, naming the men involved, to the Police. In August 1987, Colin Pitchfork’s case came to court where he pleaded guilty to the two murders and another charge of sexual assault. He was sentenced to life, but has served 34 years and he may be released very soon.
Another case concerned the rape and strangulation of 16 year old Collette Aram (left) in 1984. This was the very first murder case to appear on Crimewatch on TV. The Police received 400 phonecalls but couldn’t identify the criminal. The case was put on hold, but the DNA sample results taken from Collette’s body were added to the database. In 2008, John Paul Hutchinson was arrested for a motoring offence and when his DNA sample was scanned, it was found to be almost identical to that of the killer. John Paul was only 20, but his father’s DNA was taken and proved to be identical. His father, Paul, claimed that he was not the criminal but that he had a twin brother called Gerhardt who had recently died, so it must have been him. The hospital still had the blood tests taken from Gerhardt before he died and these proved that it wasn’t Gerhardt - but it was Paul. He was convicted in 2010 and sent to prison where 2 months later he was found dead in his cell, having taken an overdose. These cases show that it is not always a direct comparison.
Chris’s last casefile does not use Profiling, but does use DNA. Doctor Crippen was a famous homeopathic medical man who called himself a doctor. He was hanged in Pentonville Jail in 1910 for the murder of his wife, Cora. When his wife disappeared, he put it out that she had gone back to the USA. As he almost immediately moved his mistress, Ethel, into the family home, some of his wife’s friends reported their suspicions to the Police. An investigation began but Crippen and Ethel had already boarded the SS Montrose to Canada to avoid capture. Ethel was dressed as a man, but the Captain of the ship had seen the photographs of the pair in a newspaper report and sent the first ever wireless telegram used for this purpose to the British Authorities. The Investigating Officer caught a much faster ship and arrived in Canada before Crippen. He was therefore able to arrest Crippen on the arrival of the SS Montrose and bring him back for trial. Rumour has it that on his arrest, Crippen said “Thank God it’s all over”. The main piece of evidence consisted of a partial human torso found under the floorboards of Crippen’s house, which bore an abdominal scar consistent with Cora’s medical history. Crippen was hanged in 1910. However, in 2007 an American scientist managed to extract mitochondrial DNA from this scar. He traced Cora’s living relatives and found that there was no match so it could not have been Cora. Furthermore, using Nuclear DNA from the same scar, both X and Y chromosomes were found, so the torso actually belonged to a man.
Chris finished his fascinating presentation with these statistics: As of January 2020, at least 365 people in the USA have been exonerated through DNA. 21 of these had been sentenced to death, 25% had confessed, 11% had pleaded guilty. On average they had spent 14 years in prison with 10% serving 25 years or more.
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2021 BU3A PRESENTATION HOUR via ‘ZOOM’, Monday 12th April
‘THE BEA TRIDENT’ by Patrick Gilligan, written by Jo Kasparek
“Safety is no accident” and “An airline exists to carry passengers safely, regularly and comfortably”; these are quotes from Patrick as he introduced himself and his Technical Support partner, Peter Healy. Patrick and Peter are friends who live in the same Buckinghamshire village but are members of neighbouring u3a’s.
At the age of 7, Patrick had his very first flight at Heathrow; fifteen minutes in a De Havilland Rapide for the princely sum of 15 shillings! Patrick was hooked forever with the excitement of flying. He started building plastic Airfix models and later gliders from balsa wood – great fun to fly and crash. After school, he joined BEA as an Aircraft Engineering apprentice and worked on a variety of planes - Viscount, Vanguard, Comet and Trident. He took advantage of staff travel at 10% of the standard fare for a standby ticket and so travelled all over Europe. Several years and exams later, he became a Licensed Engineer with the Civil Airworthiness Authority.
In 1977, as Duty Engineer for Gulf Air at Heathrow, he went to New York to rescue an Airbus. Arriving at Heathrow, he found he was going on Concorde, landing in New York just 3½ hours later.
In the 60s and 70s, Tridents only had analogue computers, operated by internal relays and mechanical switches. Patrick described the difficulties of taking off and landing in thick fog. Every airport and type of plane has minimum visibility criteria in order for the plane to take off or land. Fog causes chaos, with planes diverted to other airports – passengers, plane and crew are then all in the wrong place – with disruption and high costs involved. To relieve the stress and workload on pilots, the Trident became the pioneer aircraft for Autoland, a system which, together with autopilot and auto throttle, can land a plane safely. The localiser – a radio beam – is captured 8 to 10 miles from touchdown, then the autopilot and Autoland will prepare the plane for landing until it reaches a height of 12 feet. At this point the Captain makes the final decision to land. The autopilot now keeps the plane on the centreline of the runway, even in cross winds. If there is thick fog, a ground vehicle with the illuminated sign ‘Follow Me”’ will escort the aircraft to its gate for unloading.
Patrick then showed us a short promotional video taken from the cockpit of a plane coming in to land in thickening fog. It included the air crew asking the passengers to extinguish their cigarettes! The video set out to show that with automated systems in the air and on the ground, Trident operated safely in all weather conditions and that British European Airways (BEA) continued to be the number one airline in Europe.
Patrick worked within the team that designed Autoland and once the system was fitted to an aircraft, it was operated by a specially trained crew. Finally, he reminded us that “The computers that enabled all-weather operations were analogue and, at that time, represented the cutting-edge of technology”.
Alan Swann asked Patrick “At what point does the Captain decide to land if there is fog or thick cloud?” The answer was that nowadays all commercial aeroplanes will have autopilot and Autoland fitted. Before any flight, whilst still on the ground, the flight crew will have programmed their route into the flight management computer. Once the aircraft has taken off, at around 400 feet the autopilot will be engaged. Alan then enquired about crosswinds. Patrick replied that the larger planes such as the 747 and Airbus are not really affected by crosswinds but that smaller aircraft have limits and will not land if the gusts are outside their tolerance parameters. If this is the case, then a device on the plane will tell the crew that it is not safe.
Indu Kumar enquired “Are there any changes as a result of 911, the attack on the Twin Towers?” Patrick told us that the major change, apart from the massive tightening of security measures before boarding, is that the cockpit door is now replaced by a steel door with an electronic lock so that pilots are locked into the cockpit and only emerge to use the loo or accept refreshments.
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2021 BU3A PRESENTATION HOUR via ‘ZOOM’, Monday 26th April
‘HERE COMES THE FAILED BANK MANAGER’ by Ian Gunn, written by Jo Kasparek
Ian worked in banking for 24 years before he was made redundant. So he decided to put his managerial skills to use in a very different sector – Her Majesty’s Prison Service. He has worked at several prisons in both England and Scotland and he now lives with his wife, Kathy, near Dunblane.
Ian began with a slide show; two slides that surprised me were that as of December 2020, there were 87,500 people in prison and 96% of these were men. In fact, 1 in 750 of the adult UK population is in prison. We also learnt prison slang; ‘John Wayne’ is toilet paper because it is ‘tough like a cowboy’!
Ian told us about our nearest prison at Wakefield. There has been a House of Correction on the site since 1594. In the 19th century there was a mulberry bush in the female prisoners’ exercise yard and it is thought that this is where the nursery rhyme ‘Here we go round the mulberry bush’ originated. Wakefield is now a high security jail and home to serial killers – Harold Shipman hanged himself there in 2004.
In 1994, Ian started his new career in Edinburgh. The first words shouted to him on his first shift were, “Here comes the failed Bank Manager” which made Ian laugh; it was his introduction to prisoners’ black humour. He quickly learned the routines and how to treat all prisoners with respect. Once, Ian was responsible for the prisoners’ food; the prisoners were reluctant to eat the food provided and a hunger strike was feared. The cause was that a recently- arrived chef, who had been allocated to work in the kitchen, had been found guilty of poisoning his restaurant customers! He also described the popularity of porridge among prisoners for sticking posters or photos on their cell walls. One memorable prisoner was Paul Agutter, a relation of Jenny Agutter, sentenced to 12 years for attempting to poison his wife with a doctored gin and tonic. Paul was very polite and well educated and had to be kept in the Segregation Unit to protect him from other prisoners. Whilst inside, Paul taught many inmates to read and write.
Ian was Governor-in-Charge first at HMP Aberdeen (left), then Peterhead, Cornton Vale and Shotts. He became Governor of HMP Aberdeen and achieved his ambition to be a Prison Governor before the age of 50. When his mother-in-law requested a tour of the prison, he showed her round the female unit on the condition that she did not touch a prisoner or ask why any of the girls were in prison. On entering the unit, she threw her arms around the first woman she saw, saying “Hello, dear, what are you in for?” It was then that Ian remembered that Janet had no idea of personal space and she never listened to him anyway. There was concern when a prisoner of unknown gender was due to arrive. The doctor decreed that if dangly bits were present then it was the Men’s block, if not, the Women’s block. The person involved had no dangly bits but was previously a rugby player who had changed gender to female, and was now a lawyer, convicted for fraud!
HMP Peterhead is now a museum and well worth a visit if you are travelling around that part of Scotland. At Cornton Vale, Ian had his first experience of an all-female prison and he describes his 2½ years there as the most challenging and enjoyable period of his career. He found that many of these women were victims as well as guilty of committing crimes. As the only women’s prison in Scotland, Cornton Vale was often in the spotlight. In 2008, the BBC made a documentary ‘Girls Behind Bars’ here, and Anne Widdicombe, a former Prisons Minister, visited the prison whilst filming a programme about young girls ‘going off the rails’.
Ian completed his quartet of Prison Governorships at HMP Shotts, and he told us how his niece thought it was hilarious that a man with the surname of Gunn should be working at a prison called Shotts!
For the last 10 years, Ian has enjoyed working as an Enrichment Speaker on Saga and Fred Olsen cruise ships. His talks on crime usually begin with the words “Here comes the failed Bank Manager”. 17
2021 BU3A MONTHLY MEETING via ‘ZOOM’, Monday 5th April
‘SOUTH AMERICAN ODYSSEY’ by Dave & Helen Webber, written by Jo Kasparek
South America is significant to Dave and Helen as two life-changing events happened there. In 1981 they went to Peru and fell in love with the people, culture and the spectacular landscape. A return trip was planned but the arrival of their daughter, Catherine, 8 months later, put all plans aside.
The “Odyssey” began in February 2016 with a flight to Santiago in Chile. Santiago is the 5th largest city in South America and the seat of the Chilean Government. Its position in a bowl encircled by the Andean mountain ranges creates smog and in the 1980s it was the 8th most polluted city in the world. Like many large modern cities, there are skyscrapers as well as the baroque style cathedral and government buildings – but outside the centre, poverty is obvious.
A 1500-mile flight took them to Punto Arenas in Tierra del Fuego, almost at the tip of South America. The highlight of this town is the Cemetery (left), dating back to 1894, which contains a mix of gated chapels, intricately carved crypts, lavish mausoleums and simple gravestones. A statue of the explorer Ferdinand Magellan sits in the main plaza and on a boat trip to the Magellan Islands they saw colonies of Magellan penguins.
One of the main reasons for visiting Chile was to visit some National Parks. Unfortunately, on the 5-hour ride on a public bus through an area of Patagonia, their camera broke as the bus jolted over a giant pothole. They arrived at Puerto Natales - the gateway to Torres del Paine, or blue towers, and hired a car to explore this UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. The crowning glory of the park is the Paine Massif which comprises three pinnacles of rock which together form a stunning landscape. Dave and Helen enjoyed their passion for walking in the valleys and foothills.
Another ride on public transport brought the couple to El Calafate in Argentina. They took a boat ride across Lake Argentino to the Patagonian icefield - the 3rd largest icefield on the planet and now regarded as the new 8th wonder of the world. The Puerto Merino glacier is staggeringly large at 19 miles long and 3 miles wide. Unlike most glaciers in the world, Perito Marino accumulates mass at a similar rate to loss, making it relatively stable. Helen described the way that building-sized blocks of ice detached from the glacier with a huge cracking noise, followed by a whooshing sound, to form a calmly floating iceberg as the highlight of her trip. Glaciers can appear blue or white depending on the refraction of the light and the compactness of the ice.
Travelling on towards Buenos Aires, a surprise stop – a visit to a tin shack where Robert Le Roy Parker and Harry Longbabaugh (better known as Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid) lived before fleeing to Bolivia.
Eventually they arrived in Buenos Aires, a huge metropolis of 16 million people. Most of the tourist spots can be explored on foot or by using the Underground, such as the Floralis Generica, a giant sculptural flower that opens up in daylight, and Casa Rosada. This pink building houses the offices of the President and it is from these balconies that Juan and Eva Peron addressed their adoring crowds. A must for any tourist is to visit Recoleta Cemetery where Eva Peron was buried in the family Duarte grave in 1979. La Boca is a vibrant neighbourhood, home to the famous Boca Juniors football team where Diego Maradonna played and where it is said that the Argentinian Tango was born. Next stop was Iguazu Falls where an estimated 39,000 gallons of water descend every second over the 275 falls and Dave and Helen got very wet!
Their final destination was Rio de Janeiro where Helen’s father was born in 1897 – the second life changing event. Rio is the 2nd city of Brazil, famous for its carnival, beaches, samba and bossa nova. A local guide took them to a ‘favella’ or shanty town where enslaved Africans once lived, but the shacks are now occupied by rural people seeking a better life in the city. The most famous icon in Rio has to be the 98 feet tall, art deco statue of Christ the Redeemer which sits on the top of Corcovado mountain and can be seen from everywhere in Rio. Other highlights of Rio were Sugar Loaf Mountain, the Botanical Gardens and Ipanema beach, where sunset watching is a favourite pastime. The presentation concluded with the song “Girl from Ipanema” and our thanks go to Dave and Helen for their wonderful memories, stories and photographs.
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CARTOONS POSTED ON OUR FACEBOOK MEMBERS PAGE
There’s a new
pie shop
open
near me.
It’s open 22/7
POETRY Geoff Pike
A π-loving Greek girl called χ A Greek alphabet poem Caught the eye of a Welsh guy named Dai. from Geoff Pike They ended up clogging, (who else φloral dancing and snogging, could write this stuff?!) Since he φilched a pilchard pasty φrom a tiddly-eyed Thai.
BARNSLEY AND DISTRICT U3A AGM 25TH ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING 7TH JUNE 2021 ON ZOOM
Agenda 1. Chairman’s Welcome and Introduction to the meeting 2. Minutes of 24th AGM 5th October 2020 [as printed in Spring 2021 Buzz: see page 20] 3. Approval of Minutes and Matters Arising 4. Chairman’s Annual Report (as printed: see page 20) 5. Treasurer’s Report (2020/21 Accounts, as printed see page 21) 6. Business Secretary’s Report 7. Social Secretary’s Report 8. Travel Secretary’s Report 9. Development Officer’s Report 10. Nominations and Election to Executive Committee 11. Appointment of Independent Examiners of Accounts 12. Coordinators’ Updates 13. Any Other Business 14. Date of next [26th] AGM [6th June 2022]
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BARNSLEY AND DISTRICT U3A - ANNUAL REPORT TO 31ST MARCH 2021
As I write this report, Bu3a has just completed twelve months of lockdown caused by the ongoing Covid Pandemic. However, following the Government’s ‘Roadmap out of Lockdown’, we are now witnessing some of our outdoor groups meeting up again within the rules set out by Government and relevant sporting bodies and following the completion of our own local u3a risk assessments. We are also working towards dates when indoor activities might be able to start up once again and work may be needed in order to bring the expected compliance from the Bu3a perspective into line with the expectations of the owners of the premises which we hire.
Twelve months ago we had little idea what the longer term consequences of the pandemic would be and what impact it would have on our members. Our Executive Committee made a very early decision to keep Bu3a open for business and whilst it could never be ‘business as usual’ we have made every effort to keep our members informed and involved with us every step of the way. Whilst physical meetings have not been possible, we quickly discovered the benefits of Zoom and other video conferencing options. We started running our monthly meetings on Zoom in July and this has continued up to the present day. In September we increased the general monthly Zoom gatherings to three per month with Speakers being found from within either our own or other u3a groups. Additionally, our activity groups have been encouraged and supported to use the video conferencing option to the extent that we have been witnessing up to seventy such meetings per month. After receiving the go ahead from our National Office we ran our 2020 Annual General Meeting on Zoom in October with all members seeing all the relevant paperwork in our Buzz newsletter and then being given the opportunity to vote on matters by email or post. With over three hundred members voting, this turned out to be a greater percentage response for our AGM than would have been achieved in normal circumstances.
Despite the clear successes of our Zoom meetings, we are aware that many of our members do not have either the technical option available or do not have the desire to join in with such activities and this has been an ongoing issue for us to address. Our response has been to ensure that we have maintained regular contact with the whole membership. We have done this through the use of emails sent through the Beacon Membership System but our greatest success has been with the publication of our regular printed newsletter, The Buzz, which we have increased in size with up to 52 pages per edition. The Buzz is also supplemented with the online Interim version which is produced midway between the main newsletter publications. During the last twelve months we have arranged regular delivery of The Buzz to the home addresses of over 1000 of our members. Many of these deliveries have been made by members who have volunteered to act as postmen/women in order for us to keep delivery costs to a minimum. The Buzz remains the envy of many u3as and congratulations have to go to all those members involved in its production and delivery.
In recognition of the lack of normal u3a activities being available, we made the decision to reduce our membership renewal fee from £12 to £3. Such a move was designed to say a massive thanks to our loyal members and partly in recognition of 2021 being our 25th Anniversary year. At this stage it looks as though our efforts have paid dividends. At the end of our membership renewal period 96% of our members had renewed their membership subscriptions. We are already witnessing potential new members stepping forward to join Bu3a.
In the coming year our joint working with Age UK [Barnsley] to reduce loneliness and isolation amongst older people will continue to pay dividends as, in addition to our joint working on the Penistone and South Barnsley projects, there has now been a similar successful bid by Age UK to Barnsley Council for a further project in the Central Barnsley Area. The Chief Executive of Age UK [Barnsley] has explained that the latest bid submission benefitted significantly as a result of their working relationship with Bu3a.
The challenges that we have to face in the future include the need to ensure that our name is recognised and has a positive image in our area and that we maintain our desire of offering something that retired people in Barnsley value. To this end we have increased our external publicity drive which now sees a new external facing Facebook Page and a vibrant and regularly updated Website, giving a clearer picture of who we are and what we do in Bu3a.
Alan Swann Chairman Barnsley and District u3a.
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BARNSLEY AND DISTRICT U3A ACCOUNTS - YEAR ENDING 31/3/21
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BUZZ VACANCY We are still looking for a member or members to work with Derek with a view to taking over the production of The Buzz in June next year. Full training in person and on Zoom will be given over the next 12 months when you will have the chance to see how it all works. We have a full distribution system in place and proof readers involved in every edition. But we need a replacement Editor to allow Derek to step into the Chairman’s role in June 2022. This is a fantastic opportunity for anyone interested in developing their editorial skills and leading on the production of the best u3a newsletter around. Please give this some serious consideration. Alan
WALKING FOOTBALL
Be afraid! Be very afraid! The Walking Footballers are back in action! Alan Swann, (blue team, centre, of course!) our Chairman and maths supremo, picked the teams. Three very simple questions: answer all three correctly to receive a coveted Bu3a pen, which will be emailed to you by Alan himself!
1 Can Alan Swann do maths? 1 Who was the best player? 2 Who scored a hat-trick and took the ball home to keep on his mantelpiece? 3 Who scored a brilliant penalty? 3 Who scored the best goal?
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QUIZMASTERS April 1st 2021 Questions set by Roger Holmes
Round 1 What is the unit of measurement described in each question?
1 A big horse might be 16 of these. 2 The width of Edward the Second’s thumb fixed this. 3 A US one of these is about 0.83 of a UK one. 4 Noah’s Ark was 300 of these in length and 50 wide. 5 This is a depth of about 1.8 metres. 6 James Watt measured this with a Clydesdale. 7 A measure for a careful and conscientious apothecary that was equal to 20 grains. 8 A furlong times a chain. 9 An astronomically huge distance of about 6 trillion miles. 10 The weight in grams of 9000 metres of a thread, for example nylon.
Round 2 Birds
1 Who wrote about Jackson Lamb and his involvement with Slow Horses and Dead Lions? 2 What was the name given to racial segregation laws in the southern states of the US? 3 Jenny Lind was known as the Swedish ...... 4 What did Neil Armstrong say had landed on the moon? 5 What relied on three wheels for Independent Trading in New York, Paris and Peckham? 6 Which bird did Noah first send off from the Ark? 7 Who had designs on St Paul’s after 1666? 8 Paul McCartney recorded the nocturnal performance of which bird? 9 Ralph Vaughan Williams wrote this in 1914. 10 What purple bird is depicted on the national flag of Dominica?
ROUND 3 General Knowledge
1 In the shipping forecasts, which sea-area is south of Forties? 2 Where would a knight have worn his greaves? 3 Which former Barnsley PE teacher played Mr Sugden the PE teacher in the film Kes? 4 On a DAB radio, what does DAB stand for? 5 In what year did Barnsley FC join the English Football League? 6 The milk of which animal is used to make Churpi cheese? 7 “Barbarossa” was the code name used for the attack on which country in World War 2? 8 What is the total membership of the House of Lords? 9 Where are the Islets of Langerhan? 10 How did the newspapers generally refer to Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy?
Round 4 Places Around Barnsley
1 Holy man from the west of France. (4,7) 2 Aged settlement. (3,4) 3 Have studied Rupert’s poetry. (8) 4 Look hard at the end of your leg. (9) 5 Be a successful ornithologist. (8) 6 Perhaps a painting within a Yorkshire river. (6) 7 Barrister’s rock. (9) 8 Describes a tree covered in moss. (6,5) 9 What they often do at nightfall in these places, but not here. (5,4) 10 React to a surprise. (4)
The answers are on Page 48. Don’t cheat!
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ON DUTY IN NORTHERN IRELAND AND THE FALKLANDS Dave Hallas
This article came about via our Saturday 27th February Zoom meeting ‘Memories are made of this’ in which members speak for a few minutes while showing slides of memorable trips at home and abroad. Jo Kasparek spoke of a day on the Falkland Islands as part of a P&O cruise from Buenos Aires to Santiago de Chile. (see page 7). Dave Hallas (right) was in the Zoom audience and his memory was clearly pricked by his rather different experience of the Falklands as a British combatant in the Argentinian-British war in 1982. That was an article in the making for the Buzz editor! Dave agreed to talk and this is his story. ------
Dave was born in Barnsley, lived at Worsborough and attended White Cross Comprehensive School there. He was one of four boys and his dad was a miner. Aged 17, with his dad saying he could do anything except mining and the Armed Forces, he started an apprenticeship at Fox’s steel works in Stocksbridge. But his work mates there told him that he should “see the world” and due to that advice and for other reasons he decided to join the Army, specifically the Parachute Regiment, as the pay was higher (well, it would be, wouldn’t it?). On 18th September 1967, he became the youngest member of his platoon at Aldershot and the next 6 months were spent doing basic training in the Brecon Beacons; over the years these mountains were a regular place where he was trained and, as he progressed, taught new recruits. Over the next 15 years he was based often in the Mediterranean, with night ‘drops’ from Gibraltar into Libya for night exercises and extended desert training, as pre-Gadhafi Libya was a pro-British country. Postings to Malta, where he met his Bu3a member wife Jo, and parachute training in Cyprus and Greece were regular missions.
In 1969, the Army suddenly found itself embroiled in what became known as ‘The Troubles’ in Northern Ireland. Dave did many tours of duty there, amounting in total to 2½ years. It started as little more than mini riots of sticks, stones and bottle throwing after the pubs turned out, rather than the bombs that he later dealt with. He was part of the snatch squads that took out the main trouble makers in West Belfast, but by 1971 they were no longer dealing with drunken youths but with deadly improvised explosive devices (IEDs) placed as booby traps in roadside ditches and culverts. The Republicans had changed their modus operandi, and noisy street trouble became guerrilla warfare to maim and kill British troops. Dave was posted to Germany in between Northern Ireland tours, but freely admits to being scared and having adrenaline rushes when back in the province with countryside ambushes, IEDs and Molotov cocktail all upping the stakes. He lost friends in Northern Ireland, including fellow Para Mick Willets, who was one of the first soldiers killed there; he was awarded the George Cross for protecting children and adults when a suitcase bomb was thrown into a police station. Dave will be pleased if I quote briefly from his friend’s George Cross citation, which reads “Sergeant Willetts waited, placing his body as a screen to shelter them … his selflessness, his courage are beyond praise”.
After Northern Ireland, Dave was based at Tidworth on Salisbury Plain, Britain’s largest Army training ground, and he had bought a house with Jo in Aldershot. He was now a Colour Sergeant in the Spearhead Battalion, the one that is the first to be deployed to any trouble spot. In 1982 he recalls Argentina placing their flag on South Georgia, and going to a presentation about this where there was talk of possible
24 escalation. Then home for the weekend, but almost immediately called back urgently to base. From there straight to the South Atlantic without having time to say goodbye to Jo.
From base straight to Southampton and on board the cruise liner ‘Canberra’, requisitioned by the government as a troop carrier. With no time to waste, the ship’s crew volunteered to stay on board and the ship sailed as though with cruise passengers, but actually full of soldiers. It was a most incongruous situation with soldiers being served luxurious meals rather than army style rations! A full English breakfast was followed by 4-course lunches and 5-course evening meals – not exactly a battle preparation menu! On arrival at Ascension Island, all the British ships had to zigzag around for two weeks in order to avoid any torpedo hit. The tension had heightened after the Argentinian cruiser ‘General Belgrano’ had been sunk on the 2nd May, and the world’s politicians were striving to find a peaceful solution. The troops all wondered if they would next be sailing north or south. Dave had one day on Ascension Island with army boots on for the first time in weeks. Then word came that they were going south. Dave recalls the “UNFORGETTABLE sight of ships all around as far as the eye could see”
Going south, the seas of the ‘Roaring 40s’ became rough, albatrosses flew alongside the ships day and night. Dave and 2,000 other men were transferred to HMS Intrepid which he compared as a “truckers’ caff” to the “5-star hotel” Canberra. Dave recalls with horror how an SAS helicopter that was transferring men to the Intrepid went down when it hit an albatross; 18 men died, 5 survived; one Barnsley man was a victim. Peace talks had failed and Dave landed on the Falklands and acted as a Mortar Control Officer, whose management role is to work out the bearings of elevation and direction of mortar fire as the target is out of sight. There was lots of Argentinian artillery fire returned and bullets whooshed overhead, but “it’s the mortar shells that are more frightening as you hear nothing before they land”. Fortunately, the Falkland terrain is very peaty and mortars landing in the soft ground exploded upward rather than sideways and “the killing area was smaller”. The Canberra was now in San Carlos Bay and Dave recalls digging trenches from which to attack the Argentinian fighter jets using missiles to attack British ships; who can ever forget those terrible days when HMS Sheffield and HMS Coventry went down?
Dave remembers how they had to transport weaponry across the difficult terrain and local crofters would lend them tractors, trailers and sledges to move ammunition. This was needed for the main battle for Mount Longden on 11–12 June. They sent out reconnaissance parties into the snowy, freezing, hailing, featureless landscape. The machine-gun battle came at night and “all hell was let loose!” With anti-personnel mines everywhere, many men lost their legs and 23 British soldiers died that night. Dave was torn between helping the 50 or so casualties or staying in position; the traces of gunfire lit up the sky as though it were day. The following day the Argentinian attack continued with many more deaths.
On 14 June, the commander of the Argentine garrison in Stanley finally surrendered. The surrender was contrary to the Argentine Army code, stating that a surrender should not happen unless more than 50% of the men were casualties and 75% of the ammunition was spent.
After clearing up the battle damage on the islands, the British forces returned home. Dave had a very different experience this time on the North Sea ferry, ‘Norland’, as far as Ascension Island and then a flight to Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, “coming home through the back door”. He had been away 4½ months.
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Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT)
Are you having trouble sleeping? Feeling stressed, anxious, worried or have low mood generally?
It’s important to look after your mental health as well as your physical health. However you’ve been affected by the pandemic, it’s OK not to be OK. We offer treatment face to face, on the phone, online, via interpreters and using British Sign Language. IAPT is still here with support for everyone aged 16+ registered with a Barnsley GP.
Visit www.barnsleyiapt.co.uk or call 01226 644900 26
COVID-19 SORTED (well almost) BY Bu3a STAR MEDIC The Editor
David Norcliffe
Rubbish golfer, Alan Swann, was getting some much-needed golf advice from David Norcliffe (left) on the first day back at Woolley Golf course for our golfers. Quickly realising that Alan was a hopeless case, they just had a casual chat instead. I like hearing about ‘casual chats’ and followed up on it after Alan told me about it. ------David failed his 11+ exam, went to South Grove Secondary School, Thomas Rotherham Sixth Form College, gained his first degree in Biomedical Sciences at Sheffield Polytechnic and his Master’s degree at Sheffield University! There’s a career in education for you! That’s the 11+ for you!
David was a Senior Biomedical Scientist for 43 years working in NHS hospitals’ Haematology laboratories in Barnsley, Leeds, Doncaster and more, working on blood analysis. In 1980, he was fortunate enough to be in the right place at the right time to be the first person in the UK to measure HbA1c, which is an indicator for diabetic diagnosis and control. That then led him to look at the viscosity changes which occur when blood flows and he did some work involving patients with various conditions but with a particular emphasis on pregnancy.
During the course of the work, he used some equipment made by a particular manufacturer and built up a good working relationship with them, which was vaguely maintained on a casual basis after he retired. When the pandemic started last year, the head of the company felt that the work he'd done some 30 years previously might possibly be applied to that and they discussed it. They approached a team at Addenbrooke’s hospital in Cambridge who were very receptive to the idea and together they progressed it, even though David never left home due to the Covid restrictions!
People with Covid 19 have a diverse severity of the more common symptoms, ranging from relatively mild to those who go on to develop very severe symptoms and require hospital admission. The decision to admit a patient to hospital is based on examination and various investigations including blood tests.
Blood plasma consists of numerous different proteins and when we have a viral infection such as Covid 19, some of them increase in concentration whilst others decrease. This makes the plasma thicker and more sticky by increasing its viscosity. Their study found that if the plasma viscosity was above 1.83 mPas (a millipascal-second), there was a 96% likelihood that those patients will require hospitalisation. It is generally thought that such early intervention can have a better outcome for the patient. Of course, it is only one of a series of tests and investigations needed when a patient has Covid 19 and is not the ‘silver bullet’ test on its own. The results were submitted to a medical science journal and have been accepted for publication.
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I may not be that funny or athletic or good looking or smart or talented. I forgot where I was going with this … When I was a kid I wanted to be older … this is not what I expected.
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WALKING CRICKET Coordinator: Mac McKechnie MANAGER OF YORKSHIRE WALKING CRICKET A lot has been written about Mac McKechnie in The Buzz over the past couple of years, because he has been single-handedly the man who, since late 2018, has invented the game and then led his town, county and probably the entire country towards total acceptance and recognition of its physical, mental and social rewards for older people.
Mac founded Barnsley u3a’s Walking Cricket - the first in Yorkshire - after being inspired by our own Walking Football. Now he has been given his highest honour yet - the invitation to manage a new Yorkshire side.
“To work through one good year and one bad year and then gain recognition from the English Cricket Board and have the rules drawn up and be approved, is a great honour”, says Mac.
The Yorkshire Cricket Foundation (YCF) recently announced the launch of the Yorkshire Walking Cricket Team. Walking Cricket was developed as a new concept in 2019, making cricket accessible to older men and women or individuals who are semi-retired or retired. Walking Cricket is an adaptation of the traditional game of Cricket to suit those with less mobility and it caters for different abilities.
Our very own Mac McKechnie has been appointed Manager for the newly formed Yorkshire team. Speaking on his appointment, Mac commented, “I have always considered it an honour to represent our County in any capacity, so I am honoured that, at the age of 70, I still have something to offer. I am really looking forward to working with the YCF to help roll-out Walking Cricket across our great County’.
Barnsley u3a adds to those who have already praised him for his appointment. His success can also be measured by the fact that our Walking Cricket Group has a pretty amazing 52 members, and 13 of these are female. Brilliant!
The first inter-u3a tournament should have taken place at Dodworth Miners Welfare Club on Wednesday June 2nd, u3a Day, but due to larger numbers than Dodworth can manage in the present Covid regulations, it has been moved to Doncaster.
Barnsley's former International Umpire Dickie Bird told us; “I have only recently found out about the fine work that the u3a is doing in partnership with Yorkshire Cricket Foundation, around Walking Cricket. What a marvellous idea! I shall be throwing my weight behind this new sport initiative, and will be attending and supporting them in any way I can”.
Mac recently wrote to Walking Cricket members:
You will remember David Timms, particularly from our Hoyland Leisure Centre days. Dave was unwell as most of you will know with cancer, and could only umpire as he was not well enough to play.
Sadly, David passed away last autumn and we have agreed on a memorial award in his name. Laraine Timms says, "I think that is a lovely idea. It's so nice to know he was held in such high regard. Thank you, everyone".
Laraine has agreed to be our guest of honour when we are able to have a get-together at the end of the season or at Christmas; she will personally present this annual award.
The award will be based on Sportsmanship, Friendliness, Courtesy and Commitment to the team rather than on the ‘highest scoring batsman’ or ‘bowler taking most wickets’ etc. as these things were far more important to David.
The trophy is not the usual shield but combines Walking Cricket and Barnsley u3a. An artist’s impression is shown here.
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DAVE TIMMS Laraine Timms
So, what to say about my David? He was a very special man with a zest for life. Although he could be quiet and a bit of a loner at times, he didn't suffer fools gladly, but if you made a friend of him you had a friend for life. He was quite opinionated and had a wicked sense of humour. He always liked to be busy and loved being out in the garden. He was an avid reader - psychological thrillers and biographies. He had a passion for food. Eating it, not cooking it. Whether it be fine dining or a dine in for two. He would eat anything except cheese and pizza which he always described as the devil's food. And he never gained an ounce ... or a gram if you're metric. He enjoyed a good
whisky - neat. The only thing you put in a good whisky is another dram!
He was brought up in Wheatley, Doncaster. He had two older siblings, Susan and John. All through his school years he was into anything sporty. Cricket, rugby and football were his passions. He always wanted to join the police force, but at the time of his application there were height restrictions and he didn't meet the criteria. So he started work at the Coal Board and trained in their Accounts department. Dave’s family are related to the Rothwells who had many fish and chip shops in Doncaster. So Dave decided it was time for a change and opened his own ‘chippy’ in Wheatley, which he ran successfully for many years. He then went to work for ICI which became Du Pont, and when they moved their base of operations out of the area he applied for the Prison Service where he worked until he retired at 55.
All through his life he was involved in sport. He loved to play cricket for his local team and he coached their junior side. He has two sons, Michael and Simon; both are very sporty and have inherited their dad's competitive spirit. His philosophy was (jokingly ... well, maybe not) “It's not about the taking part, it's about the winning!”
He was a keen walker. He successfully completed the ‘3 peaks’ and the ‘3 mountains’ challenge; an achievement he was particularly proud of.
In 2006, we moved to a beautiful little fishing village in Turkey called Akbuk. Here we set up a property management company. We were there for 3½ years. But once the tourists found our little piece of paradise, it was time to move on. So we went to Bulgaria to a small village called Bolyarsko. Being the only Brits in the village, we were a novelty but the locals took us to their hearts. They often called for Dave to go trekking up a mountain or to help out at the distillery ... illegal, of course, but every village had one. But there was definitely more drinking of rakia than there was of producing it. We decided to return to the UK in 2013 and settled in Barnsley. We joined Bu3a mainly to meet new people and get a social life. Dave particularly liked the Discussion group and Flix@6, but the Stories for Pleasure group was by far his favourite. He always said he had a novel in him but he didn't achieve that goal. When the Walking Cricket group started he was so excited to be involved. Sadly, by this time he wasn't fit enough to play but thoroughly enjoyed being the umpire, even when he was accused of being blind! He always said what an amazing group of people they were and he was so proud to be a part of it.
The last 2½ years of his life were tough, first being diagnosed with bowel cancer which then spread to his liver, lung and bones. But he was the bravest cancer warrior to the very end.
I know he would be extremely proud to have this Walking Cricket Memorial Trophy named after him. He had a lot of respect for Mac, held him in high esteem and was honoured to call him his friend.
AUTUMN BUZZ SEPTEMBER DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSIONS: FRIDAY AUGUST 6TH
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THE LAST ‘NORMAL’ YEAR Pat Wassell
When we reached the anniversary of ‘lockdown’ in March, Pat wanted to remember a ‘normal’ year and here she offers us the ‘round robin’ letter that she sent to family and friends at the end of 2019 (Ed)
We have had a busy 2019. We hope it has been a happy and healthy one for you too and hope it continues in 2020. At New Year we went to Pete’s Golf Club - a good opening for 2019. In January we enjoyed a Caribbean holiday. We decided to try a cruise - the ship was gorgeous, only 935 passengers, good cabins and food, lovely weather and places to visit; it lived up to all our expectations. It was Pete’s birthday at the start of the trip and we enjoyed an evening with new friends and Pete’s birthday cake and free ‘bubbly’! February was a month of normal activities and catching up with friends and family. In March we visited our longtime friends in Florida. It was good to see them all, relaxing in the sun, walking along the beach and going to concerts and plays. Pete played golf a few times. In April we saw our families, Pete resumed his golf days and we carried on with our group activities. In May we went to Amboise where we stayed in a former water mill. We wanted to see Leonardo da Vinci’s house (Clos Luce) where they are celebrating the 500th anniversary of his death. We had been before but vast improvements have been made in the house and the extensive gardens. We managed to see Anne- Marie, our good friend in Parentis. It was good to meet again and catch up with her family’s lives. Anne-Marie invited me to join her English language class so they could ask questions (in English) about England. We also had an interesting day out in Nantes visiting the Chateau. It was larger than we thought and full of exhibitions related to the area. Then back to Kippax, near Leeds, to stay with Pete’s brother and his wife for a few days. In June we had a day out at Blackpool with our sequence dancing group. We can do many dances now and enjoyed it very much. It was a normal month - walking, dancing, playing golf, teaching my Bu3a French Language group, dining out with friends. During the summer months we play lots of crown green bowls. Pete has been Captain for the last two years and has agreed to do it again in 2020. It is fun and occasionally we win, which is good. In July we went to our son’s house in France to look after our grandchildren, Jean-Jacques and Elodie plus dog (Poppy) while Gareth and Nicole went to Jersey. The children played with friends and we all walked the dog - very relaxing. August found us in the Isle of Wight with friends. We stayed in a good B&B on the cliffs. One day we visited Cowes to see the yacht racing. Unfortunately, the weather was really unkind. We travelled by public transport or by car. Thankfully I didn’t have to drive as some of the streets were very narrow and twisting. September was a calm month with our regular Bu3a activities, along with a ceilidh and an Italian night . October was a busy month with decorators refreshing a bedroom and the stairs, hall and landing. I didn’t realise that we had so much stuff in the bedroom until we started clearing it! We had new carpets, too. We’re pleased with the results. In November we embarked on one of our ‘adventures of a lifetime’; Japan! We booked a road trip including rides on the Bullet Train. The holiday was based around Tokyo. We enjoyed beautiful blue skies, travelled on the train three times, visited many temples and shrines whose gardens were alive with vibrant autumn colours. A memorable day was a demonstration of tea-making followed by a sampling. It was green tea which some people didn’t like. After drinking we had to make a loud slurping noise to show our appreciation! We saw Mount Fuji several times; it is most impressive and at the information centre we watched a film about the formation of the mountain. For my birthday, we went to a Japanese restaurant and cooked our own meals; delicious! Then to Hiroshima Peace Park to learn about the bombing and its aftermath. Our Japanese guide was born in Hiroshima. It was a place for thought and reflection. At Christmas we will be with the family and grandchildren. Family occasions are very special. We wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy and Healthy 2020. Lots of Love from Pat and Pete x
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OCCASIONS Coordinator: Eveline Mirfin
FREEDOM!!!!!!! The first post-lockdown 6-person walk reported to The Buzz was by this sextet from our Occasions group. Geoff Pike, Brian Summers, Lesley Whittle, Maria Steeples and Joy Nash decided that they needed to practise tea drinking at the pop-up café even before starting their walk. Eveline Mirfin decided, rather naughtily, to be camera-shy and take the photo rather than ask the café owner or a passer-by to take it so that we could see all six of them in it.
RULE NUMBER 3 IN BU3A IS: SHYNESS IS NOT PERMITTED.
PLACES IN YORKSHIRE A Sue Stokes Quiz
1. On a rose stem This super 2. Put on some sugar photo of 3. Pigeons home ’ Swaledale 4. November bear might help 5. A make of knife you to work 6. A heavyweight dance 7. Crying dwellings out the 8. Tea party at the spring answers 9. Smooth the 25th letter which are on 10. Somewhere to rest page 48. 11. Mark a town area Don’t cheat! 12. Miss out the ocean
A TV reporter was interviewing an 80-year-old lady who had just married for the fourth time. The interviewer asked about her life, what it felt like to be marrying again at 80, and then about her new husband's occupation. "He's a funeral director," she answered. He then asked her to tell him a little about her first three husbands and what they did for a living. The old lady smiled and answered proudly. She first married a banker when she was in her 20's, then a circus ringmaster when in her 40's, and a vicar when in her 60's, and now - in her 80's - a funeral director. The interviewer looked at her, astonished, and asked why she had married four men with such diverse careers. She smiled and explained, "I married one for the money, two for the show, three to get ready, and four to go".
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HIGH STREET PROJECT A story with a difference Lynn Maloney
Come on all you writers out there – how would you continue the story?
Following the High Street Project Survey in September 2020, Bu3a now has over 400 photographs of high street shops and buildings that can now be used by our activity groups. The photographs will be stored in the file section of our members’ Facebook Group, but for those members not on Facebook we also have memory sticks available with them on. The memory sticks are being kept by Hannah Lucas (High Street Project Coordinator) and Lynn Maloney (Development Officer). You may wonder how you could use photographs such as these. Here are just a couple of ideas.
Here begins my story inspired by the photo taken of the Home Farm Bakery:
As I stood watching from across the street, my mind went way back in time to when I first worked in the little bakery. They were fond memories of serving customers and then at the end of the day of being able to take home a bag, full of delicious treats that the bakery had not sold during the day. I knew that in the window display there would be creamy custard slices, juicy apple squares and tasty chocolate brownies. Behind the counter, as always, would be fresh bread of all types; well-baked white loaves, wholemeal teacakes and crusty cobs adding to the wonderful aromas being wafted out into the street. The counter would be crammed with coffee and walnut cakes, lemon drizzle and, of course, chocolate fudge cake all on covered stands tempting people to buy. Customers came and went with smiles on their faces, leaving with white paper bags filled with their purchases. The weekend was always a busy time with people buying their sweet treats ready for Saturday tea-time or saved for Sunday afternoons.
Time went by as I reminisced about George and Brenda who had owned the bakery for more years than I had been alive. They were wonderful people who treated me with respect and affection, even when I was still a Saturday girl earning pocket money for make-up or cinema visits. Once I became a full-time employee, both my employers spent time teaching me how to make their wonderful baked goods. George made all the bread and Brenda the cakes and other sweet treats. Both were happy to share their skills and did so generously. It wasn’t what I had intended to do when I left school though. That would have been a couple of years studying for A Levels then moving on to University to study Languages. However, I became absorbed into the world of baking during the summer holidays between GCSEs and A Levels. My parents weren’t particularly happy about my decision not to continue with my education but eventually I convinced them that education doesn’t always take place in schools and colleges. Brenda did persuade me though to attend a catering college whilst still working at the bakery. I learned about portions and proportion; how ingredients reacted with each other; that the quality of ingredients was vital for a quality product and much, much more. My two-pronged approach to education was such a solid grounding for my future. I knew that I wanted to do this as a career, though at that time my final goal was not yet apparent.
The sign in the window which said ‘SOLD’ had another sign by its side saying that the shop would be closed the following Sunday and Monday for refurbishment. George and Brenda were finally going to take it easy and retire. I wondered what they would do with all that time on their hands. I would only find out once I plucked up courage and crossed the road to the shop. I waited until the road was clear and made my way to the shop. I followed more customers inside and browsed until they had been served. As I asked for a small well-baked loaf, I heard a squeal from the other end of the counter. George and Brenda had been busy in the back room and an employee had served me. “Amanda!” Brenda was positively beaming as she pointed me out to George, whose eyes were obviously not working as well as they used to. “Oh, my goodness! Look who just walked in!” They both came from behind the counter and hugged me tight. My smile must have matched theirs as I was so pleased to see them. “Penny,” Brenda spoke to the employee who had served me, “This is Amanda who went away after she won that baking programme on telly. Where did you go to work? She asked after turning to face me.
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LA BOULANGERIE - une petite leçon française. Gloria King
If this bakery were in France it would be called ‘Boulangerie’.
Read the information below and, with a partner, read the conversation, taking it in turns to be the customer.
Il y a beaucoup de supermarchés et hypermarchés en France, mais les Français font encore souvent les courses dans les petits magasins. La majorité des gens achètent du pain frais à la boulangerie tous les jours.
S’ensuit un bref dialogue entre un boulanger et une cliente anglaise: NB boulanger (m) boulangère (f) ------Boulanger: Bonjour madame. Ça va? Mme Hammond: Bonjour. Ça va bien, merci. Boulanger: Comment puis-je vous aider? Mme Hammond: Je voudrais deux baguettes, s’il vous plaît. (Le pain, tout juste sorti du four, crépite en refroidissant.) Mme Hammond: Ah! Je peux entendre le pain parler. Boulanger: Il vient juste de sortir du four et on dit qu’il chante! Mme Hammond: Ah oui ça chante certainement. Boulanger: Vous désirez autre chose? Mme Hammond: Non, c’est tout pour aujourd’hui, merci. Ça fait combien? Boulanger: €1.80, s’il vous plaît, Madame. Mme Hammond: Au revoir. À bientôt.
BARNSLEY’S BRILLIANT BALLS… Lynn Maloney
In 2022, Experience Barnsley will open a new exhibition based on the social history of the now closed Slazenger’s factory which once sprawled just off Doncaster Road. This was a busy factory full of camaraderie that once proudly made all the tennis balls for Wimbledon.
If you have any stories about the factory, or maybe even worked there, then the museum team would love to hear from you so that this important part of our industrial heritage can be recorded for the future. The exhibition will feature a new documentary film based on life at the factory and will also have loads of fun activities for all ages throughout the summer of 2022.
If you know anyone who worked at the factory, then please do pass on the message. For more information, please contact Steven Skelley, Community Heritage Curator, email [email protected] or tel: 07703 735 203. When the exhibition opens, we’ll throw a big party in celebration of Barnsley’s wonderful balls!
AUTUMN BUZZ SEPTEMBER DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSIONS: FRIDAY AUGUST 6TH
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BLOOD, SOUP ‘N OTHER STUFF A u3a ‘friend’ of the Editor
In April your very brave Editor was in Barnsley Hospital having a bit of a torrid time and one of his u3a mates wrote some emails to cheer him up; here’s a few bits of them. The medical bits aren’t correct but who cares? I don’t!
Hi there, Buzz man
I’ve just learned you’re in dock for the full undercarriage inspection and 72-mile oil change. I’m sorry to hear about your bothers and blood clot in the nether regions. Are you managing to eat again or yet? What’s scheduled to happen? Is there anything I can do to help besides writing this tripe?
Sorry you’ve had a torrid few days, (should that have been horrid - I get completely inappropriate vibes from the word ‘torrid’ - but each to their own) and as a feeble southerner you’re probably also surrounded in t’ward by tough, hostile, native aboriginals! And you say they won’t let you sample the true delights of Barnsley hospital food apart from their yellow split-pea soup (SOUP = Substance of Unknown Parts). On my too-frequent BDGH visits around lunchtime, I have often appreciated the delightful aromas emanating from the cafeteria - don’t suppose the inmates get that, though! Anyhow, BDGH yellow split-pea soup should quickly etch its way through anything, your blood clots, stomach walls, intestines, bowels etc. It’ll be a good purging agent, too!
So it’s taken over a week for them to go figure out what you’ve got – that’s not so encouraging. I’ve always been impressed with BDGH (Outpatients, at least, but I’ve yet to suffer the gentle ministrations of a ward-based treatment).
Telling you nothing about your illness is the ‘mystique’ side of hospital life - it’s what separates them and us. It’s because us patients remember what’s been said and ask inappropriate, unwanted questions like, “But last week you said it would be the left leg .....why am I missing the right one?” No one wants to waste time on these minor mishaps!
Your treatment seems to suggest they’re opting for the ‘Let’s hunt around and try different stuff ‘til he shows signs of improvement or dies’ approach to diagnosis. I speak as one on both sides of the NHS fence - for eight years I did their IT at a big hospital down south and I learnt and know well their cunning ways.
So they finally resorted to the CAT scan, then! Not for the fainthearted, Computerised Tomography - feeding one’s body parts into the maw of some huge magnet – it plays havoc with the dentist’s fillings! You’ve obviously been sniffed at by the dog, too! Far too much reliance on pet-based analysis, to my mind! LAB tests, CAT scans, PET scans - do they know these animals lick their own bottoms?
So they’ve shoved you over to Haemotology, then, but they need more than two days to actually visit you? You’re not that repulsive! I’ve actually met with the mythical Barnsley Haematology team - they do seem to shun the light somewhat and then unexpectedly pounce on you (usually when you’re fast asleep) - you wake to find some weirdo, with strange hair, crouched over you, vampire-like, salivating over a needle he’s just stuck in your arm. Perhaps we should keep a bulb of garlic or a crucifix in bed to scare them off!
Well I’ll leave you for now, digesting and contemplating the benefits of yellow split-pea soup. At least you’ve got the internet and can spend time doing the online ‘Teach thisen Barnsley’ course (left). I gather it takes Sussex softies like you about 45 years to get a Pass grade!
I’m glad you’re out of hospital – don’t forget, a greater proportion of people die in hospital than anywhere else. They’re not healthy places to be! I’ve said before that pain is the worst enemy with any illness - it saps the will. I’m glad that you’re now feeling a bit easier.
You say you’re thinking of putting this in t’Buzz! Well, I bow to your editorship and, of course, would not wish to offend any of the many great medics in our Bu3a ranks. I mean, they carry hypodermics and scalpels, don’t they! However, they do have a hardened self-preservation technique and know well what it is they do. As they say, editors meet their mistakes in readers’ letters, medical staff meet their mistakes at the funeral!
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TRANS PENNINE TRAIL, TYRES, TITS AND TREECREEPERS Jenny Sawyer
As I write this, Boris has just announced that we are free to roam further and meet real people! Hurrah! What better place to start, then, than on one of our own sections of the Trans Pennine Trail. During lockdown we have enjoyed various parts of it, but found the stretch from Strafford Business Park at Dodworth to Worsbrough Reservoir (the red line, top left to bottom right and back) particularly good, in every season – spring, summer, autumn and winter ----- we've walked through them all!
Park your car at the entrance to the Strafford Industrial estate (S75 3PA) and take the short narrow path left up to the TPT and turn right through the barrier. There has been much work by the Council to make an excellent flat broad track composed of recycled tyres and grit. This is a firm but soft surface, kind to walking feet, runners, cycles and pushchairs. The route is lined with pruned hedges on either side where birds flutter and twitter. We've seen robins, blackbirds, thrushes, tits, sparrows and chaffinches and if you are lucky you may catch sight of a hare in the adjoining fields.
At the end of this stretch of trail you cross Haverlands Lane and take the path directly opposite which takes you around the reservoir. Walk towards the long bridge over the dam and pause a while to see mallards, cormorants, great crested grebes, coots, moorhens, Muscovy ducks and maybe a KINGFISHER! We have admired him three times in five visits and have been very excited to see this beautiful bird. What a bonus!
Toilets (very clean) and refreshments are available at the Worsborough Mill buildings and it makes a super half-way break. You could take your own picnic and sit on one of the benches in front or behind the mill. Continue past the lower mill building and bear right at the top of the slight incline, keeping a lookout for treecreepers and nuthatches as well as other garden birds as you progress in a clockwise direction back to the TPT near Wigfield Farm.
The whole route is just under five miles but seems shorter as you chat, catch up and picnic in the great outdoors. ENJOY!
WINE APPRECIATION Sue Stokes
I really look forward to Saturday evenings – at least the first and third ones of the month. Since the Wine Appreciation Group started last November we’ve tasted quite a variety of wines: Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Grigio, Merlot, Chardonnay, Cotes du Rhone, Tempranillo Blanco, White Zinfandel, Chianti – even a vegan wine.
We’ve “travelled” to New Zealand, Australia, Chile, Italy, Spain, France and America. During the summer we will be meeting at 7pm just on the first Saturday of the month. You’re very welcome to join us and maybe challenge your palate with a new wine. Cheers!
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BIRDWATCHING Gillian Richardson
The 86th ‘TWITTER’ – a visit to OLD MOOR April 12th 2021 The Birdwatching group has over 20 members but some are unable to attend the outings to places such as Old Moor; they look forward enormously to receiving the ‘Twitter’ and ‘Buzz’ reports. Our advance guard of six fortuitously fulfilled the Old Moor/RSPB stipulation for no more than six in a party. It was almost six months to the day since our last authorised u3a bird watch to the same venue in October 2020! We signed the u3a Risk Assessment form and complied with the Contact Tracing requirements in a small tent-like structure to the side of the courtyard and then entered the Reserve there rather than through the shop which was open for the first time this year. There were one way systems here and around the site.
On a lovely “blackthorn winter’s” day the newly revealed garden area is a revelation, although the Screen had usually allowed us to get a good list of birds. Mind you, a pair of Mallards ignored us and waddled to the feeders, hoping for spills to mop up. After 15 minutes our patience was rewarded as we spotted the Blackcap, whose song is a delight from this summer visitor of the warbler family. We walked and circuited the area beyond the garden making our way to the paths leading to the Bittern Hide (left) and the Bus Stop. Few birds were about; just one coot on a small pond. We noted the facilities being created for children here and elsewhere; for example, the kids are encouraged to make their own nests in a small copse set aside for the purpose. There were many families pond dipping. And the site has been planted with cowslips. Less attractive was a double-decker nest box, from the lower one a rodent was peeping out, and, on reflection, given the distance, a rat, rather than a mouse. At the Bus Stop, a couple who sure enough were the experts that I deduced from their gear – you know, a telescope big enough to shoot down enemy aircraft - had spotted a Marsh harrier (right) no longer flying but barely discernible in the far distance, perching on a small tree by the Reed bed hide. This attracted quite a crowd of onlookers and the only time we were in danger of failing to distance from each other. Retracing our route, we approached the Bittern Hide where you could view the water from either side and there was an immature Swan and other water birds. And the ever present sound of Black Headed Gulls which will only get louder as the breeding season begins in earnest. Next was the new Family Hide and we looked through the stable door to spot Gadwall, two Oyster Catchers on an island and two Moorhens. But as we approached this Hide and indeed as we walked away we had three bursts from a Cetti’s Warbler (left) - unmistakable!! Our last destination was the Tree Sparrow Farm with a pair of bullfinches on the feeders, dunnock, a male Reed Bunting and Blackbird, both sexes, Wood Pigeon, of course, a Cock Pheasant and Greenfinch with a Cormorant flying overhead as we left. And we had Robins everywhere we walked! What a delight it was to be out! We finished the visit with a takeaway coffee in the Courtyard.
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MY GUIDING LIFE Brenda Jones "They have Brownies at our school" said a friend, "Let's go and join". I imagined brown people but got there to find little girls dressed in brown. Obviously, I was 6 years old because I was told to return after my 7th birthday. I did, joined 7th Barnsley St George's, and have never left.
An early memory is of Brown Owl asking the girls what good turn they had done that week. Now, I was brought up in a small terraced house off Racecommon Road and so was very impressed to hear two girls say they had helped set the table in the dining room. I thought they must be really posh to have a dining room but later found out they lived at Ashley House, the children's home on Princess Street.
I was in Brownies for four years, eventually becoming ‘Sixer of the Fairies’ (stop sniggering at the back!) I then moved up to Guides. What I liked about Guiding was the variety of the programme — knots, flags, outdoor cooking, map-reading and other skills which have been useful in life. I never camped as a Guide but we used to go fire lighting and cooking at Keresforth Hall when it was privately owned by the Woods family of ‘Woods Glassworks’.
I was lucky enough to be a Guide in 1957 at the time of Baden Powell's centenary. We went on a day visit to Sutton Coldfield to the International Scout Jamboree and I remember seeing scouts from all over the world. In Barnsley in 1957, I had probably not even seen a ‘foreigner’ before. I was made patrol leader of the Nightingales (don't ask me to sing!). At about 15, I moved up to Rangers and finally had my chance to camp. I also started helping at Brownies and was Leader at the age of 18 for a few months before I went away to college.
Returning to Barnsley, I again became Brownie Leader and later Guide Leader at St. George's. The highlight of the year was always camp, at first locally then we branched out to Scarborough, Caernarvon, Malvern. We were in Malvern when Charles and Diana married in 1981 and watched the occasion on a small television running from a car battery.
It was my Guides who first persuaded me to take them to Switzerland in 1979 and I adore the country. We went every 3 years; at first, we camped but then started going to self-catering chalets which was easier as we did not need to take things with us. My adult Guiding friends were jealous and somehow talked me in to organising adult trips to Switzerland, which tended to be at Easter every 2 years. Again, we used self-catering chalets and loaded a coach with people and provisions. Coaches gradually improved and had toilets and drinks machines so we no longer had to brave French loos! I often say I walked to Switzerland serving drinks and snacks along the journey.
I became District and then Division Commissioner for Barnsley Central Guides. In this role, I was invited to the Metrodome when it was officially opened by the Queen and Prince Philip. My half of the room was visited by the Prince. I had left a holiday on the Leeds- Liverpool canal to attend the opening. Returning to the boat, I spent the rest of the week asserting "The hand that shook the Duke’s hand does not do lavatory duties!"
In 1987, I went with other guide leaders to India to visit the Guide House in Pune; a wonderful experience as we met so many people and were invited into private homes — the sort of things you don’t do on the tourist trail. We visited schools with children in immaculate uniforms and with wonderful smiles. In class, the children sat on the floor with a desk across their legs. Then to Bombay and Delhi from where we visited the Taj Mahal and Jaipur. We flew up to Kashmir to Srinagar where we stayed on Lake Nagin on luxury houseboats.
I was also Camp and Outdoor Activities Adviser for South Yorkshire Guides. In this role I led a party to an International Scout and Guide camp — Vienna 90. The camp, for 4,500 campers, was in a huge park outside Vienna. The ‘Iron Curtain’ had just come down so we met scouts from communist countries, where scouting was banned but had continued as an underground movement, and they still wore Baden Powell style uniforms. We met scouts from Bratislava, about 40 miles from Vienna. The previous year they would not have even been allowed across the border; yet we thought nothing of travelling all the way from Yorkshire by coach. We were taken into Vienna and given suggested itineraries such as ‘Imperial Vienna’ and ‘Ecclesiastical Vienna’. I’m embarrassed to say that the staff chose "Cake shop Vienna" (well, the famous sachertorte at the Hotel Sacher) and the girls chose ‘McDonalds' Vienna’! In Nuremburg, on our return, there were young refugees from East Germany and we gave them spare fruit and crisps that we had. I gave up active Guiding many years ago but ‘Once a Guide always a Guide’. I am still involved with the Trefoil Guild in Barnsley. 37
BRIDGE Mervyn Middlemiss
You may be surprised to read that the Bridge group started playing way back on February 16th. Nine people showed some interest but only four decided to take the plunge and actually play. The Tuesday evening session has continued without a break since then.
As there was still little interest from other Bu3a members, I looked for a way to vary the evening for the players. Being a member of the Stocksbridge Bridge group, which originated from the u3a there, I offered a team challenge to them. Their organiser agreed and we played a friendly match, our team held them for 13 boards but put up a good display.
Another challenge was accepted and the Bu3a team achieved a narrow victory. The team of Peter Wootten, Jennifer Ryan, Chris and Roger Holmes should be congratulated. The Stocksbridge teams have been playing together since before Christmas and are experienced players.
It is great to be able to report another success for the Barnsley u3a.
FACEBOOK u3a MEMBERS PAGE Coordinator: Nerina Tatchell
I just want to say a huge Thank You to Beth Rudkin who persuaded me to be Coordinator of this, the largest Bu3a group. I was very, very reluctant because I wasn’t into Facebook or social media. However, without the group over these dreadful months, I think that I would have been in a very bad place indeed. The variety of posts, the photos, the banter, then private messages to me on Messenger, the new friendships I have made on the site and how we share things without them going beyond ourselves (we hope and believe). It is brilliant. I know that many of the 350 members just enjoy reading items but don't take part. That’s fine. But my thanks to all of you who are involved and take part. To those who are still hesitant, why not give it a go? All you have to do is contact me so that I can check that you are a Bu3a member and then you can watch, read, like, love, pop in an emoji or a photo, write something that’s on your mind (no politics or religion allowed). It’s simple when you try and trust it.
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BU3A MEMBERS’ PAGE PHOTOS Joe Fox
The largest Bu3a group with 350 members is the private Facebook Members Page. I noticed in March that Joe Fox was posting a few of his wildlife photos there. High-quality stuff, I thought, so I rang him to see if I could put in a few of his photos in the Buzz for everyone to see. He happily agreed and offered a few words about his hobby. (Ed.)
My passion for photography started when I retired from work. I decided from the outset that my best plan would be to get a decent camera and join a local Photography Club. After a few sessions there, it soon became clear to me that my real passion was Macro-photography. This field of close-up photography is challenging but it allows you to see into a parallel world in the smallest and tiniest of detail which you could never see with the naked eye. For it, you need a special Macro lens and to be able to get very close to your subject; any movement, even a few millimetres, can destroy the focus, so shooting on a breezy day, for example, is out of the question. You soon learn the most important thing you will need is PATIENCE, but when it’s successful, it is most rewarding. Nothing is more frustrating than reaching over a prickly bush, getting your position correct, only for the subject to fly away. You also do get very strange looks as people pass and see you reaching into a bush with your camera poised, wondering exactly what you are doing! Some of the things I look for to make the picture interesting are shapes, structures, colours and markings which make it pleasing to the eye. I hope that you like the eight pictures here, just eight of thousands I have taken.
Norman Creighton
Norman has had many of his photos in ‘The Buzz’; these are from a wander around Barnsley and contrast well, I think, with Joe’s close-ups.
I don’t always go the extra mile, but when I do it’s because I missed my exit.
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QUIZMASTERS March 4th 2021 Questions set by Ian Lodge and Kate Mason
Round 1 General Knowledge
1. Which 2 countries contested the Winter War in 1939? 2. ‘Lola’ by the Kinks was banned by the BBC. Why? 3. What name is given to the point in the orbit of a planet at which it is closest to the sun? 4. ‘Survived, beheaded, died. Survived, beheaded, survived’. To which group of people does this relate? 5. We heard of SAGE and NICE during the pandemic. What do they stand for? 6. What is the S.I. unit for weight? 7. Which two cities feature in the phonetic alphabet? 8. Which English city was once known as “Duroliponte”? 9. Which bone in the body is not attached to another? 10. Which US State became an independent republic for 10 years during the 19thC?
Round 2 Sport
1. The longest men’s singles tennis tie was at Wimbledon in 2010. How many games (to nearest 10)? 2. In which ice sport did the GB women’s team win gold at the 2002 Winter Olympics? 3. In 2007/8 Liverpool and Chelsea reached the semi-final of the Champions League. Which team knocked both of them out of the FA cup that year? 4. In 1909, Sir Thomas Lipton organised the ‘First World Cup’ in Italy. Four club teams from Europe contested the trophy. Name the English team that won. 5. On 31/12/1967 two teams contested the American Football ‘Ice Bowl’, so named because of the extreme, cold conditions. In which state was it played? 6. The highest individual cricket innings is 501. Who scored it? 7. Which country did F1 legend Ayrton Senna come from? 8. Jessica Ennis-Hill competed for Great Britain in which athletics discipline? 9. What is Usain Bolt’s blistering 100m world record time (to 1 decimal)? 10. Jade Jones won gold for GB in the 2012 and 2016 Olympics. Which sport does she compete in?
Round 3 General Knowledge
1. What was the name of the person who bankrupted Berings bank? 2. How many degrees in longitude is equivalent to one hour? 3. What is Hansen’s disease better known as? 4. What is or are the Upanishads? 5. Is 12pm midnight or noon? 6. What character does Tim Allen voice in the ‘Toy Story’ films? 7. 1,1,2,3,5,8,13? What is the name for this run of figures? 8. What is the ‘Birkenhead Drill’? 9. From which patriotic song did Steinbeck get the title of ‘Grapes of Wrath’? 10. Where is the Prado museum?
Round 4 TV and Radio Nostalgia
1. In ‘Round the Horne’, what was the name of the itinerant folk singer played by Kenneth Williams? 2. In ‘Keeping up Appearances’, what is the FULL name of Hyacinth’s neighbour Elizabeth? 3. What is the name of Rene’s wife in ‘Allo ‘Allo? 4. ‘The Goon Show’ had a famous cast of Harry Secombe, Peter Sellers and Spike Milligan. Who was the presenter of and sometime participant in the show? 5. ‘The World of Wooster’ aired on BBC TV from 1965-67. Who played Bertie Wooster? 6. Eric Sykes and Hattie Jacques starred in ‘Sykes’. Who played the nosy neighbour, Charles Fulbright-Brown? 7. What comedy show was set in the offices of ‘Globelink News’? 8. In ‘Hugh and I’, Hugh Lloyd was Hugh. Who was ‘I’? 9. Who lived at 23, Railway Cuttings, East Cheam? 10. Which famous illegal immigrant lived at 32 Windsor Gardens, Notting Hill?
The answers are on Page 48. Don’t cheat! 40
THURSDAY WALKS Coordinator: Jean Potter
Date Leader Meeting place Walk area Distance (miles)
April 15th Pat / Jean Bolsterstone Windhill Crags 5.5 April 29th Denise and Mick CPnear Loxley Golf course Loxley valley 6 May 6th Andy A Holme village Ramsden reservoir 6 May 20th Jean P Thaal Darfield Manvers Lake 6 Old Moor June 3rd Ann N Ewden Dam Ewden 6 June 17th Jean P Scout Dike res. 3 reservoirs 6
July 1st Denise / Mick Equestrian centre Wharncliffe 5/6 Wortley Crags/Chase July 15th John Sands Winscar north CP Snailsden Edge 6 Off Holmfirth Rd Snailsden reservoir SE155300 July 29th Brian Roadside parking near Emley and 8.5 Extra walk Emley Cross Grange Moor GR 243 131
Honeydew House
COLWYN BAY
Holiday Let
Sleeps 4 –
double room & twin room Cot available
2 minutes walk from beach and
water sports facility
10 minutes drive from Colwyn Bay, Zoo, Llandudno and Conway
Virtual tour available on
www.northwalesholidaycottages.co.uk
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TUESDAY WALKS Coordinators: Helen and Syd Swift
All walks will meet at 09:45 am for a 10 am start and will be approximately 5 to 6 miles long. We estimate that they will be completed by 1:00 pm. The walks vary in severity so please do check with the leader if you have any concerns about suitability. There is usually a nearby refreshment venue if members wish to socialise after the walk. Unfortunately, we have reached full capacity and are unable to take new members at this present time.
Date Meeting Place Walking Area Leader(s) The Red Lion Country Inn Park Rd, Worsborough, Worsborough 1st Barnsley S70 5LJ Alan and Pat June Refreshments: Red Lion Car Park opposite St John’s Church, Church Street, Carlton to Rabbit Ings 15th Carlton S71 3FJ June Refreshments: Sitting at Picnic Tables and then Kim opportunity to purchase food back at Carlton.
29th Rabbit Ings Car Park Rabbit Ings Note this is a different route to June Royston S71 4BB Lynda and Dave Refreshments: Felkirk Church Kim’s previous walk.
Skelmanthorpe Junior FC Car Park, Smithy Lane Skelmanthorpe 13th Skelmanthorpe HD8 9DE (Second half of Helen and Syd July (in the middle of the village look for the football club sign on the left Skelmanthorpe Circular and turn up Smithy Lane) walk) Refreshments: Dobbies Garden Centre 27th Elsecar Heritage Centre, Wath Road, Elsecar S74 8HJ Elsecar Ann and John Parr July Refreshments: Elsecar The Station Inn Silkstone 10th 1 Knabbs Ln, Silkstone Common Pauline and Robert August S75 4RB park on side of road Refreshments: To be notified
24th Washfield Lane outside Treeton Sports Grounds, S60 Treeton Dyke, Rotherham August 5PU Map: Explorer 278 Grid Ref: SK43287 Longer Walk: 7.5 miles but Robina Refreshments: Bring food for picnic picnic half way round Pugney’s Country Park Leaving Pugney’s,crossing 7th Off Denby Dale Road, Wakefield WF2 7EQ Denby Dale Road, walking in Anne and Margaret September Refreshments: Local the vicinity of the ‘Swan and Note: Parking charges Cygnet’ and ‘Red Kite’
Delightful Holiday Cottage in rural retreat ASTRA COTTAGE, NORHAM, nr BERWICK-ON-TWEED
Excellent 2-bed semi bungalow in picturesque Norham with its excellent amenities and two public houses. Spacious living rooms, kitchen with variety of appliances, walk-in shower, central heating, double-glazing, Internet, enclosed rear garden with lawn, patio furniture, barbeque. Off-road parking.
Further details from Bu3a member on 0797 027 6312 / 01226 781802
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THURSDAYS CHALLENGING WALKS Coordinator: Bri Smyth (Subject to change for Covid-19 restrictions in place). Unless shown differently all walks start at 10:00. For more details, contact the Walk Leader. Any changes to walks are circulated via email.
Date Leader Meeting Place Walking Area Miles
10th June John Sands Dunford Bridge (TPT) car park Three Trigs from 10 Grid Ref. 158 024 Dunford Bridge ‘w3w’///sharpen.brush.rationing
8th July Dave Hallas Low Bradfield car park Bradfield circular 9 Grid Ref. 263 920 ‘w3w’-///moral.exist.trash
12th Aug John Sands Cutthroat Bridge Three Edges - Bamford 11 9:45 Grid Ref. 216 874 Stanage & Derwent START ‘w3w///menu.cunning.alongside (Life on the edge) 9th Sept. Mick Mosforth Ladybower lay-by Win Hill Pike & 9 Grid Ref. 202 855 Crookhills ‘w3w’///trend.incisions.weedy
THURSDAYS LONGER WALKS (Subject to change for Covid-19 restictions in place) Unless shown differently all walks start at 10:00. For more details, contact the Walk Leader. Any changes to walks are circulated via Email.
Date Leader Meeting Place Walking Area Miles
24th June Jean Potter/ Hathersage car park Hathersage, 9 Chris Milnes Grid Ref. 231 813 Stanage Edge ‘w3w’///tadpoles.lifestyle.thing circular
22nd July David Skelmanthorpe Community Centre car park, Skelmanthorpe, 10 Leadbeater signpost on main street opposite Shoe Box Scissett, Grid Ref.232 106 Bagden Hall ‘w3w’///essay.connected.stocked grounds
26th Aug. Andy Langsett Barn car park Langsett circular 9 Atkinson Grid Ref.212 004
‘w3w’///warp.steams.professes
23rd Sept. Brian Smyth Calton Lees car park Chatsworth & 9.5 Grid Ref. 258 684 Rowsley circular
‘w3w’///grapevine.overruns.resolves
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HAPPY GOLDEN WEDDING ANNIVERSARY, MIKE AND PAT PEASE!
Barnsley u3a would like to congratulate Mike and Pat on their 50th wedding anniversary on 15th May 2021. Mike and Pat met in 1964 while working in the same branch of Yorkshire Bank in Leeds, started dating in May 1965 and married in May 1971, moving to Barnsley in 1978 where they have continued to live. They have two wonderful daughters, Kathryn and Nicola, and two wonderful grand-children, Henry and Archer, who they love to spend time with.
Many of you will know Mike and Pat from their involvement with Crown green bowling, Family history, Canasta and Sequence dancing and also as Bu3a Compliance Officer. Congratulations to you both!
SEQUENCE DANCING Coordinator: Lynda Gensavage JOHN AND ANN PARR CELEBRATING THEIR GOLDEN WEDDING.
At Sequence Dancing, we like to remember special times in our members’ lives. Normally, a cake would have been presented to them but the couple requested a trifle! Everyone gets the cake or goodie of their choice.
CYCLING Coordinator: Les Roberts
After suspension of rides last year, we were able to keep in touch via the Cycling Group Facebook page, with photos & chat about our lockdown rides. Members continued to meet up in small groups when possible within lockdown rules. So we weren’t out of the saddle for long. From May 17th we intend to get ‘Risk Assessed & dual jabbed’ and are looking forward to the full Group meeting again. We have even recruited new members during lockdown! Provisional programme of rides for 2021
May 25 Old Moor Cusworth June 8 Anglers Country Park Normanton (circular route) June 22 Brayton (near Selby) York/Cycle Heaven July 6 Stanley Ferry Temple Newsam July 20 Rother Valley Country Park Chesterfield Aug 3 Cusworth Country Park Sykehouse/Moss Aug 17 Anglers Country Park Castleford Aug 31 Brayton (near Selby) Sykehouse/Moss Sept 14 Torside Broadbottom Sept 28 Stanley Ferry Temple Newsam Oct 12 Brayton (near Selby) Howden Oct 26 Anglers Country Park Stanley Ferry/Crofton Nov 9 Kendall Green Elsecar
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GROUP CHANGES Lynn Maloney (Development Officer) I hope that by June 21st we can begin to get indoor groups up and running again. This, of course, will take time as we need to have risk assessments in place and any routines for sanitising surfaces, hands etc required by the government.
During the past 15 months or so we have had some activity group casualties. For a variety of reasons, we have lost some of our groups and there are changes to others. The groups no longer running are: YOGA AND MEDITATION, HULA HOOP, HAPPY FEET, VINTAGE SOCIAL and MOTO. If anyone would like to consider running any of these groups so that we can continue with them, please contact me and we can have a chat.
The groups which will see changes include NATURE QUEST. It is hoped that a new Coordinator can be found for this group. MUSIC FOR PLEASURE and CLASSICAL MUSIC & OPERA will be changing but that is still under discussion. Members of all these groups should now be aware of the changes.
A big ‘Thank You’ to all the Coordinators of the above groups for their hard work over the months and years.
For Bu3a to continue to thrive and grow we need members to step up and lead groups. Responsibilities within groups differ but we can always find a solution to ensure that Coordinators never feel overwhelmed and that roles within a group are shared. ******************************** NEW GROUPS Development Officer: Lynn Maloney
Now we are nearing the time when we can all start seeing each other again, we need to think about setting up possible new Zoom and non-Zoom groups, not only to draw in new members but also to offer something new to our existing members. We need a healthy mix of indoor and outdoor activities so that there is something for everyone. I have been keeping an eye on the u3a ‘Keeping in Touch’ (KIT) Face Book group and have ‘borrowed’ an idea or two from there. Other ideas have come from Bu3a members. The intention is not to start new groups straight away but to allow our existing groups to get back to meeting again and try to develop new ideas to begin early next year.
The first is a ‘Stalking Statue’ activity. This is not actually stalking but a chance to find out more about the 3D artwork around us. We have a wealth of resources with Yorkshire Sculpture Park (YSP) nearby and the Hepworth Wakefield, but we also have some interesting artwork on our own doorstep; the Town Hall ‘Nit Comb’ comes to mind.
There has been a suggestion that a group could be called ‘I would like to…’. This could be a ‘Weekenders’ ad hoc group, open to any member and could consist of anything from seeing the latest film to clay pigeon shooting.
One idea for the dramatic among us could be Performance Poetry. A mixture of serious and fun poems or other writings can be fun and satisfy anyone’s creativity. There has been lots of poetry in past Buzzes.
We have History and Geology groups so perhaps a Physical and/or Social Geography group focusing on countries/maps/flags etc might be welcome.
Fishing. I know this tends to be a solitary sport, but post fishing doesn’t have to be. A quiet morning’s fishing could be followed by refreshments at a nearby establishment where catches, existent or non-existent, can be compared.
I am sure there are many activities that members might enjoy, so please get in touch.
THE WEBSITE Since the last Buzz, the Bu3a website has been updated and streamlined in a major piece of work by webmasters Robin Northcut and Mike Booth. We are most grateful to them. The website is a treasure trove of information. The number of ‘tabs’ along the top has been reduced hugely down to eleven in number: Home, Welcome, Join Us, Groups, Penistone, The Buzz (where years of past editions of The Buzz and Interim Buzz are available to dip into), Documents, Vacancies, Links, Sitemap and Social Media.
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COOKERY CORNER Christine Palmer
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THE CHOIR’S PUGNACIOUS TENORS AND BASSES Sue Rowley
I was in the car with my granddaughter, Charlotte, yesterday. I told her that Tony Jermy from the choir would be calling over later to pick up some music. She asked me if I still go to choir and I told her that I didn’t at the moment but would be when the lockdown is over. Then she asked me what songs we sang, so I sang her the first couple of lines from ‘Les Miserables’, ‘Do you hear the people sing, singing a song of angry men?’ She went a bit quiet and then said, “Are there men in your choir?” When I answered that there were, her next question was “Are they all angry?” I think she was rather relieved when I told her that they weren’t.
MY POSH FRIEND Phyllis Hawkes
She wears expensive pearls around her neck and earrings to match She’d never think to darn a hole or even wear a patch For every colour frock she’s got, she’s got a pair of shoes She’s gorrrem in every colour She’s got reds and greens and blues One day she asked me to go shopping wier, so we went to Leeds for t’day I met her darn at t’bus stop and thought aye up she’s here Faye Wray She warral dolled up in her Sunday best looking so Lardy da Am sure she tries to kid hersen that she’s a well known star Well she took mi round all t’shops in Leeds an at last she bought a frock Now to get some shoes to match she said but I said hang on a minute owd cock, I’m tired and hungry and thirsty and my legs are worn to t’knees so she took me in a posh restaurant but she wouldn’t let me have mushy peas She was sat theer looking so demure in all her finest cloures, dunt mind me tellin thee ah said but thars gorra bogy on thi noorse
WORD/EXCEL COURSES Coordinator: David Andrews Barnsley u3a has been running courses on Zoom called Get more from Word and Excel. This has now run with 3 small groups including members from other u3a’s. Most people use Microsoft Word after taking a basic course, maybe online, and then learning further by trial and error. But basic courses do not cover the many quick ways of doing things, nor exactly how some functions work, nor some of the many other useful functions available. This group revises basics, but looks how to get more out of these packages and answer issues that users may be finding difficult. It is a ten-week course. This is an example of a document prepared by one of the of Ilkley u3a members who had only basic Word ability, but following attendance at this course found this easy. She was delighted by what she achieved on the course. Groups start on both 2nd or 3rd June – some places are still available. Email [email protected] for details.
Win a coveted Bu3a pen, emailed by Alan himself! AUTUMN BUZZ SEPTEMBER How many words are in this edition of The Buzz? DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSIONS: A 16 FRIDAY AUGUST 6TH B 24,225
C 198,864,734
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BOOK FORUM 2 Coordinator: Gloria King
As published in the last Buzz, our current books are: June, The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes. July, The Sixteen Trees of the Somme by Lors Mytting. August, Home Stretch by Graham Norton.
Remember you can listen to books for free on your phone or tablet using your current Library Card and a code number from your local library. At present we meet on ‘Zoom’ the first Tuesday morning of every month except for August and hope to meet again at Birdwell possibly in the autumn. Please contact me if you would like to read the books and tell the group what you think of them without joining us on Zoom. New members (using Zoom or not) are always welcome.
September 7th The Beekeeper of Aleppo by Christy Lefteri. The story follows the beekeeper Nuri and his wife on their dangerous journey through several countries before reaching safety in Britain.
October 5th This Tender Land by William Kent Kreuger. This is a beautiful, moving and wonderful book which is set during the Great Depression in Minnesota, America. It is the kind of book that will be with you forever. Happy Reading!
COOKERY CORNER Christine Palmer Banana and choc chip muffins
3 ripe bananas (mashed) 125 ml vegetable oil 2 eggs 250 grams self -raising flour 100 grams sugar 1/2 teaspoon bi-carbonate of soda 1 teaspoon baking powder Chocolate chips to taste
*********************************
Pre-heat oven to 200° C/gas mark 6 and line a 12 bun tin with muffin cases. Mix eggs and oil together in a separate jug. Put flour, sugar, bi-carb and baking powder in a large bowl, add oil and eggs, followed by mashed bananas, mix well together. Fold in choc chips and scoop into prepared bun cases. Bake in oven for 20 minutes.
This mixture can also be made into a cake. Also nice as a pudding with custard.
Quiz answers
Places in Yorkshire: Thorne Doncaster Lofthouse Pudsey Stanley Skipton Blubberhouses Boston Spa Filey Settle Scarborough Skipsea
QUIZMASTERS P23 Hands Inch Gallon Cubit Fathom Horse Power Scruple Acre Light Year Denier Heron Crow Nightingale Eagle Robin Raven Wren Blackbird Lark Parrot Dogger Shin Brian Glover Digital Audio Broadcasting 1898 Yak Russia/Soviet Union 801 Pancreas Mad cow disease Monk Bretton Old Town Redbrook Stairfoot Birdwell Darton Silkstone Barugh Green Locke Park Jump
QUIZMASTERS P40 Finland and Russia, they mentioned the name Coca Cola in the lyrics of the original, the Perihelion, Henry VIII’s wives, the Newton, Lima and Quebec, Cambridge, the hyoid, Texas. 183, curling, Barnsley, West Auckland, Wisconsin, Brian Lara, Brazil, heptathlon, 9.58, taekwondo. Nick Leeson, 15, leprosy, Hindu religious texts, noon, Buzz Lightyear, Fibonacci, “Women and children first”, Battle Hymn of the Republic, Madrid. Rambling Syd Rumpo, Elizabeth Warden, Edith, Wallace Greenslade, Ian Carmichael, Richard Wattis, Drop the Dead Donkey, Terry Scott, Tony Hancock, Paddington Bear.
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BARNSLEY U3A IS A CHARITY
WE ARE NOW RECEIVING FUNDS FROM MANY Bu3a MEMBERS WHO ARE SIGNED UP TO THESE TWO ORGANISATIONS:
EASYFUNDRAISING and AMAZONSMILE
If you shop at Amazon, Ebay, Tesco, Marks and Spencer or any other of the thousands of companies signed up to these two Charity schemes, you can help to keep Barnsley u3a’s funds healthy and support our 130 groups
Just google Easyfundraising and Amazonsmile and start supporting us
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