So what have the tweeters of the Borough of Barnet been up to this week? We' ve been away so it has been interesting to catch up! Some nice tweets this week.
1. Do you know the interesting history of the park keepers shed in Montrose park?
Hendon Aerodrome WW1 Factory Railway. This was the locomotive shed in the brief lifetime of the railway. Then Montrose Park, Burnt Oak was created and the loco shed became the groundkeeper’s shed ever since. 2020, I notice that Barnet Council has recently refurbished it. pic.twitter.com/4uAVydJzmf
2. Strictly speaking, this was a couple of weeks ago, but I missed this tweet and it is really important that we help John get these stolen guitars back
Please share . Uncles shop . Tough time for small businesses as it is without people doing things like this . pic.twitter.com/hvDDJA1wo5
#OTD 1918, LCpl Thomas Kirk, Military Foot Police, died, aged 46. Buried Corbie Communal Cemetery Extension. Born Coleford. 2 Siblings. Served Boer War. 1905, married in Islington, 1 child. 1911, living High St North #Finchley. Worked as tramway motorman. On @StBsNL#WW1 memorial pic.twitter.com/QY5qVdGOWa
8. This looks good if you are interested in Irish music
Tix for our instrumental workshops at Ashford Place, Cricklewood on Sun 25 Oct as part of RtLT Festival are now available - no of tix for sale are very limited because of capacity monitoring/ social distancing. Listing and bookings here: https://t.co/88kXGJ2dLF#irishmusic#tunespic.twitter.com/gNpjJNk4HP
We've just got back from two weeks in Madeira with our friends. We had a week in Funchal and a week in Calheta. It was amazing. If you want a few suggestions, check out my Tripadvisor, I will be adding a few over the weekend.
— Roger Tichborne/RogT #CTID ๐ด☠️๐ฌ๐ง (@Barneteye) October 10, 2020
I only do reviews for places I think are worth going back to. I'm not into the dagger in the back reviews. But we arrived back in Mill Hill at ten to twelve. Four hours flight in a facemask, then held up for a while as the Police arrested an elderly man on the plane, telling his disabled wife to stay on the plane. I thought she was going to have a heart attack. I've no idea what he'd done, or why they wouldn't let his wife go with him. It seemed to be a cruel way to treat anyone. As BA unboarded the flight in strict row order, by the time she could get off she was in a complete state. I am sorry to say that to add to the horrible scene, a man started abusing her for holding him up. If by some remote chance, he's reading this, you are a disgrace. A bag of crisps, a biscuit and a small bottle of water for a four hour flight. Normally, I'd have called ahead to the Mill Hill Tandoori, which opens till twelve in normal times, and had a curry waiting. The new normal ruled that out. I had an egg on toast (all that was in the fridge) and a cup of tea. Welcome back to Great Britain. It felt like I'd arrived in a fascist state that had gone insane. I felt extremely depressed, far more than I've ever felt before on arrival from a good holiday. I couldn't sleep, I felt sickened by the whole thing.
But I did nod off. I was awoken with a nice cup of tea by my lovely missus. The radio was on. Strangely, Carrie and David Grant on BBC radio London asked what listeners did to stave off depression.
The best thing for mental health is playing a musical instrument. The concentration on playing and beauty of the sound produced transports you from your issues to a better place. I always feel reinvigorated after practice. If I feel down I will play a piece that is uplifting
It got me thinking. The first thing I thought was that I play guitar. I tweeted this, from our studio account, and they immediately read it out. It cheered me up. I thought what are the ten things I'm pleased to get back to Mill Hill for.
1. Decent tea.
Much as I love travel, you cannot get decent tea for love nor money. Only London has water that makes tea taste good.
2. BBC Radio London.
This is my station. I listen to it on holiday when I can, but we had a busy itinery, but again, it doesn't sound right. Hearing the Grants and then Robert Elms cheered me up no end.
3. Playing my guitars.
To my delight, in Funchal, there was a guitar in the apartment, so I could practice. But it wasn't my Strat. On holiday it got me thinking I need a songwriting retreat, on my own. I read two books. One by Viv Albertine and one by Patti Smith. It reminded me of being what an artist should be. But one of the first things I do is play my guitar and play it loud.
4. Going for a Darlands walk with the doggies.
The dogs are currently yoguing me, asking for their walkies. When this is done, that will be the next task.
5. Watching Hadley FC play.
I will be at Brickfields stadium later, to watch some football in the rain. What could be better?
⚽️ MATCHDAY ๐ @EnfieldBoroFC ๐ FA Vase 2RQ ๐Brickfield Lane ๐ 3.00pm
After the footie, we will have a curry. This marks the official end of the holiday. I love the Tandoori. For me, it is the restaurant that I feel most at home in.
7. A pint at The Mill Hill Services Club.
I will have a pint of Hophead and hopefully a few friends will be in there.
8. A Sunday roast with a good cut of Beef from Boucherie Gerard.
You can't beat a lazy Sunday Roast. This will be after work. Tomorrow is my first day back at work.
9. Football on Thursday.
I've not played for three weeks, can't wait to get back to Powerleague this Thursday.
10. The Good Earth on Tuesday.
We will be celebrating my daughters birthday on Tuesday. The Good Earth is an exceptional restaurant. We are lucky that it's walking distance.
When you think about it, life isn't all bad, when you get back.
As we all know, this year of lockdown, shielding and self isolation has not been good for our mental health. I happened to be sitting out in the garden last week and my next door neighbour was having a long conversation with her cat. Rather unsurprisingly, the cat didn't have much to say. When I told my dog what she was doing, the dog laughed his head off!
The Barnet Eye likes to cover the issues that other blogs refuse to go near. Today, our subject is one of great importance to us all. We all know the feeling, a guest visits your house and when they depart, you find a surprise in the toilet, one you did not want.
We are taught many things at school, but it seems that there is little training in considerate use of the loo. Here is our guide to being a considerate loo user. We have formulated this code of conduct for our studios, where we have constant issues with blockages and bad toilet protocol. We also advise parents to ensure their children are versed in these matters, to ensure they will always be welcome visitors.
1. Only put bodily emissions and loo paper down the loo. Please don't put large items that block the drain down, especially wipes, nappies and sanitary towels. These block drains.
2. After you've used the toilet, flush the chain. Ensure that everything has been taken on its journey. There is nothing more yucky than going to the loo and finding that the previous user has not flushed their doings away.
3. The toilet seat is for sitting on. Please make sure it is spotless before you leave it for the next person. When people need the loo in a hurry, it is inconsiderate making them wipe it first.
4. If you leave smears on the side of the bowl, a brush is conveniently placed for you to remove these. If you have not been trained in such matters, this works best in conjunction with flushing. Make sure you lift the lid and seat before using the brush.
5. If you use and excessive amount of toilet paper, for instance, to line the seat, please put excess paper in the bin provided and not down the toilet as this blocks the loo.
6. If, for any reason, you have an issue using the toilet, please tell your hosts, rather than letting them have a surprise when they might be in a desperate hurry.
7. Follow the accepted lid protocol. Leave the seat and lid in the same position as you found it, unless the person before has not been versed in the good toilet protocol.
I can assure you that you will always be a far more welcome guest if you follow these simple rules.
Yesterday the Chancellor, Rishi Sunak was asked by ITV News about the struggles faced by musicians in the current Covid climate. His response was that they should consider retraining.
The chancellor has since stated that this was advice for people in all sectors facing problems, but having reviewed the clip, we think it is clear what his message was. We can only conclude that the Chancellor really doesn't understand the UK Music Industry and the benefits that this generates for the wider economy.
Faced with a backlash, he issued a 'clarification' and the story on the ITV website was updated.
The government needs to do more to ensure musicians and arts professionals are properly supported in these times.
Rishi Sunak suggesting people retrain, undermines the creative industries’ importance as an integral part of our economy and wider society.https://t.co/mZ4hMn1m9H
We urge the Chancellor to have a long, hard think about the music industry. The industry generates £4billion per annum for the economy (in normal times). It is one of the few areas where the UK still leads the world. The indirect benefit to the economy is many times larger. Tourism is driven by interest in our music venues, theatres, films and festivals. All of these rely on the UK music industry and UK musicians., not to forget the technicians and back office staff also involved.
Musicians are amongst the most highly trained area of the work force. Many children start taking music grades at the age of six or seven. To get to a Grade 8 qualification will take a period of years and a significant cost in tuition. The time put in practicing is unprecedented in any area of work. The cost of professional quality instruments is another part of this investment. Many musicians already have second jobs to help meet the bills. Any rational policy for post covid rebuilding of the economy should have music and the creative industries at the heart of the plan. There is no evidence of this which should be a worry to us all.
The Save London Music Campaign was originally founded by a group of recording/rehearsal studios, grassroots venues, small festival organisers and working musicians. All of these have been massively impacted by the current situation. Around 30% of the studios who signed up to support the campaign have closed. The people who have run these studios for years and sometimes decades have simply no faith in the governments strategy. The musicians who have had no live work for over six months are now reaching tipping point. We know of musicians working for funeral directors, supermarkets and delivery firms to make ends meet. Whilst the campaign fully accepts that we all have to make sacrifices, if musicians are made destitute by these circumstances, they will be extremely cautious about resuming their careers when the situation improves.
Without a live music scene, our cities will lose much of their attraction for the night time economy. This won't only hurt musicians and those technicians and other people who support the shows. It will mean less people in restaurants, less people using public transport, less people in pubs for pre show drinks. Of course the Save London Music Campaign is primarily focussing on London's music scene, but every major UK city will face the same issues and we stand with them.
The Music Venues Trust has been doing a great job campaigning nationally on the subject of support for venues, but we need positive action NOW from the government to support the musicians that give the venues their reason for existence. It is our opinion that the Chancellor should view support for the professional and semi pro music sector as a national investment. Our suggestions for supporting musicians include.
1. A pay to practice grant.
The government should reimburse musicians all costs for rehearsals, and pay them 1.5 times the national minimum wage for any time spent in rehearsals. This would help studios and venues, as closed venues could rent out closed space for rehearsals. This would incentivise musicians to practice and maintain their skill levels.
2. A new music grant.
The government should be encouraging artists to be creative. There is a fantastic BBC Introducing site that allows artists to submit music. We would like the government to support this with payments for submissions. We would like to see musicians register and be able to submit up to four pieces a month and receive a minimum £200 payment per piece. This should be funded by the government and not via the BBC license. This would be a huge incentive for musicians to be creative. We would like to see all of this music being made available to the public. Musicians would also get a click through bonus. This could be supported by advertising revenue along the lines of Youtube etc.
3. Paid training schemes for music back up staff.
Back in the 1980's, the UK government set up the Training Opportunities Program, that provided training for people having difficulty getting jobs. Sound technicians, lighting technicians, etc should be offered training to brush up their skills. This would mean that when the situation abates, they would have better skills and the grant would support them through the difficult times. Musical Equipment manufacturers should be encouraged to set up training schemes to be supported by the Government.
4. Pay promoters for empty seats in socially distanced gigs.
The economics of putting on shows doesn't work with social distancing in most venues. The government should provide an empty seat payments to make up for these seats. The condition should be that the venue has a full complement of staff. It would be far cheaper and better for the government to pay people to work at venues running at a sixth capacity than it would to pay them to be on the benefits and see the venues lost.
UK Musicians are a resilient lot, but we need help at this time. This should be considered an investment in the future of the UK, not a handout.
Since last Monday, we've been on holiday in Madeira, chilling with friends. During this period, I've had a mini social media detox. Apart from the odd look in the hotel, where there is broadband, I've not really looked at Twitter or Facebook. I made an exception on Sunday, to post the Tweets of the week. This gave me a little chance to catch up on the local news. The TV here has CNN and BBC News, which is a bit dry and is really only watchable for 15 minutes. We found a bar in Calheta that shows the Premier League, so I was able to enjoy the weekend football, which went from the sublime to the ridiculous. The friends who we went with are Liverpool and Manchester United fans. They had the joy of sniggering at me, when Manchester City drew with Leeds on Saturday. Karma repaid the debt as their teams fell apart on Sunday. I resisted the chance to go on Facebook and post messages to all of my friends who shared their grief, I'd made a decision to avoid social media, so I think it was the good Lords way of making it a true penance.
The only break from this happened on Wednesday when I was contacted by a local elderly resident of Mill Hill who wanted to discuss street lighting. I'd been helping her with a problem with the new lighting affecting her sleep. She called to say Barnet Council had been sorted. I felt it was important to share the information, just in case anyone else had been affected by similar issues. I don't really enjoy writing about the council or local news. It has always been a bit of a chore, but I love writing most of the other stuff, the review of Viv Albertines book, the Wednesday Poem, the lists, the dyslexia blog etc. The blogs I write about cancer I find very cathartic and have helped me focus my mind through a difficult period. This year has been unprecedented. The period of lockdown, which coincided with us having all of our grown up children back at home was a very strange period. We did a lot of walking dogs through Totteridge fields, a lot of sunbathing in the back garden. If you had asked me before the period started, I would have said I'd be very creative musically, but the lockdown killed any musical creativity. I ended up doing a lot of practicing on the guitar, learning songs and practicing scales. My playing improved, but there has been no outlet. I look at some of the blogs I wrote, April, in the middle of lockdown was one of my least productive months ever. Some of the blogs were a little odd, to say the least. Quite readable, but rather odd. In June, when the studio reopened, I became hellishly busy, preparing the studios, getting them covid compliant, manning the desk (the economics made more sense for me to do the work than bring the staff back from furlough). With about 5% of our normal customers coming when we first reopened, those that did for solo practice, it was a strange experience. The first couple of weeks, people were booking just to get out of the house. One guy came and drummed for 7 hours a day for two weeks.
By the end of September, we'd reached the point where I could take some time out. I am extremely lucky to be blessed with extraordinarily good friends. When we had the opportunity to join them in Madeira, it was an offer too good to refuse. We've been eating, drinking, walking and chilling. I've been reading books and taking pictures. My dyslexia means that I love images. I tend to think pictorially. Visualisation is a big part of how I deal with things. I'm not a linear thinker, I tend to think of problems as pictures. If something is not right, I try and look at the picture from a different angle.
Which brings me to the nub of this blog. It has been a difficult time, but in many ways, I realise it has been a time of spiritual renewal for me. This may sound strange, the churches have been shut. It is hard to see good in such global unhappiness. I try and see a reason for everything. I do however think many good things will come out of this period. I think we have become more aware of our surroundings. The hours exercise a day introduced many to walking and cycling. For me, it meant we got to talk to people we met on walks. This was nice and you realise that meeting nice people and passing the time of day with them is actually very pleasant. I spent a lot of time making Spotify play lists, digging out songs from the past I'd not listened to for a very long time. Why do we forget music we love? The reboot gave me a chance to revisit these. I also had the time and inclination to learn to really improve my cooking. My Sunday roasts are now infinitely better. I have found the secret of perfect roast potatoes. I have also found the perfect roast beef. You need the best quality beef and it is a bit painstaking, but it really is good. We don't really eat much meat at home, so when we do, it should be good.
But there is a deeper change. My experiences at school as a dyslexic scarred me. I have always had an aaversion to formal learning. When I was reading Viv Albertines book, something struck me. She talks about how she decided to become a film maker. She decided to do it properly and work hard. She enrolled in a film making course. I've made many small films for youtube, as well as collaborating with talented film makers such as Han Foo Qune, Charles Honderick and even calling on the services of my nephew, BAFTA winner Chris Tichborne, to make pop videos etc. The stuff I've done, I've always wanted it to look locally produced, to inspire other people, but I've realised that I've actually being doing people a disservice. I could make far better films. I have something to say. I am seriously considering enrolling in a course. I'm now 58, but I have something to say (I'm sure you have noticed). I want to say it properly. I did a songwriting course in 1984, it made me a million times better song writer. Why did I not apply this logic to my films? In truth, the reason is that I never took my film making seriously, but I noticed the Youtube film I made with Mark Amies of Edgware has now had almost 4,000 hits, all generated organically. Don't I owe it to the people who watch them to do it a bit better? I am proud of the film and think it is pretty good for an amatuer production, but I aspire to better.
I have no expectation of winning BAFTA's but I've always wanted to be proud of my work, which means investing in myself. So when I get back, this will be my mission. Get a better camera, do some online courses and see if it is something I really love. If I do, maybe take the next step. Viv Albertine talked about "the year of saying yes" where you say yes to anything which is positive rather than be cautious and prevaricate. That will be my resolution for 2021. If it works, then 2020 may well have actually been a very useful year.
I don't read a too many books. Being frantically busy, being dyslexic and writing this blog make it difficult. But when I go on holiday, I always take time out to read. As someone who writes, it is something I should do a bit more of. In truth, most of the books I read I find a bit uninspiring and dull, that's why this review is almost unique. That doesn't mean I don't enjoy them, but most books, especially biographies and autobiographies, I can almost taste the things that are left out. It is human nature to put a nice spin on ourselves, to leave out the bits that are interesting and give a true insight into the character of the author. I've given up reading biographies that are not autobiographies. The last one of these I read was Mick Rock's book about Lou Reed. I realised I have no interest in a chronological list of events, through the eyes of someone else.
I've read all manner of autobiographies. Until I read this book, I'd say the best were the ones by John Lydon and footballer Paul McGrath. Lydons fascinated me, as he was raised in North London and the early chapters have many echoes of the lives of myself and my friends. Like Lydon, I was raised in a North London Catholic family and attended schools run by nuns. Although there were not that many parallels in some ways, I got the sense of alienation and being an outsider. Lydon's life was changed by meningitis, mine blighted by dyslexia. I felt a kinship with Lydon, even though I'd never met him. I sort of thought that it would be hard to feel the same about another artists autobiography.
A while back, I was listening to the Jo Good show on BBC Radio London. Viv Albertine, former guitarist of punk band, The Slits was on. I can't remember what she was talking about, but Jo happened to mention that her autobiography was brilliant. I mentioned to Clare that I'd quite like to read it. She bought it for my birthday back in August. It went onto the shelf awaiting a holiday. We finally made it away to Madeira last week. I finally had time on my hands. I brought two books, Patti Smith and Viv Albertine. I decided to read Viv's first. In all honesty, Patti Smith was perhaps a character I was far more interested in. I saw the Slits a few times back in the day. I loved the attitude, but didn't quite get their music. It was a bit too out there for me. I wanted my punk to sound like The Damned, The Pistols and The Ramones. I liked what the Slits did, but they were simply one of many bands I found interesting, without being really into it. I felt what Smith, The Slits and Poly Styrene did was massively important. They were female artists who weren't trading on selling phoney sexuality. The punk era was perhaps the only era where female artists could truly express themselves. I was proud that I was part of a movement where Poly Styrene could release a single such as 'Oh Bondage Up Yours'.
When I first heard 'grapevine' by The Slits I was a bit bemused. I couldn't really understand why they'd done a cover. I liked the song, but it just felt a bit wrong. As a 16 year old punk, I was hellishly judgemental and it just felt like totally alien to me. Over the intervening 40 years, I've softened my views and I came to realise how good their material was and how interesting Grapevine was. Given Jo Good's comments about the biography, I thought it would be a fun read. I thought that there would be some good stories about the early days of punk. I thought it might be a bit lighter than the Patti Smith book, so a better start to the holiday. What I got, I was not expecting at all. The first chapter is entitled "Masturbation". The first two sentences are "Never did it. Never wanted to". That got my attention. The book didn't lose my attention until the last sentence "I still believe in love".
The early recollections of life in Muswell Hill were interesting. I love recollections of London in the 1960's and '70's through the eyes of people who lived it. I couldn't really associate with many of the tales of family life, my upbringing was a bit different, but the tales of school, youth clubs etc was a poignant reminder of a very different world. Viv talks of two scallies turning up at her Catholic primary school and how they were paraded on stage at assembly. The Catholic sense of inverse superiority "We'll take anyone!" It reminded me of St Vincents, who would take anyone and do their best to make their lives as miserable as possible. The discovery of music through records listened to at friends homes was another theme that I got. I'm younger than Viv, but her discovery of the Beatles reminded me of my own sister taking me around to her friend Linda Finlays, to listen to the world premier of Penny Lane on the Radio. I can remember the debate was to whether it was up to scratch. I seem to recall my sister being disappointed that it wasn't a love song and was a bit strange. A couple of years later she discovered the joys of smoking pot and changed her mind. It all came back.
Then there was the story of Viv trying to get a band together. The Flowers of Romance with Sid Vicious. It brought back the early days of the False Dots. My empathy with Viv started to get stronger at this point. I realised that in many ways, her relationship with Sid was like the one I had with the co founder of the Dots, Pete Conway. The dynamic was similar. Out there characters, who we'd never have started anything without, but who disappeared before anything really happened, Mercurial figures who leave carnage wherever they went, but out of the ashes the Phoenix grew. The recollection of early band meetings, discussions about the band name. Then there was the relationship with other bands. The Slits were getting it together as bands like The Clash and The Pistols were getting deals. These bands were their friends, so there was a great mutual support network. Anyone who has been in a band, where there is a scene will recognise this.
For the Slits, the fact that they were a female band was both a blessing and a curse. I had imagined that they'd been far less likely to be on the receiving end of violence in the skirmishes between Teds and Punks (whatever happened to the Teds?). Viv put that misconception to bed. Ari Up was stabbed twice. Who stabs a 15 year old girl for her tribal affiliations. I'd actually forgotten how bad things were. Was there something in the water then that made us all violent psycho's? Of course we have gangs and drugs and guns, far worse than then, but the concept of getting stabbed for wearing the wrong dress? Any trip into the centre of town was running a gauntlet of fear. Get on the tube and you'd suddenly find a gang of skinheads getting on at the next stop and you'd get a good kicking. I suppressed those memories. I always figured that it was the price for living at the centre of the musical multiverse. Viv alluded to that as well.
Then there is the sex. Viv talks about how naรฏve we all were. Fumbling, snogging, cheating, betrayal. She talks about how Steve Jones and Joe Strummer tried it on with her, even though she was Mick Jones girlfriend. I'd forgotten how loose morals were a central part of the punk ethos. Doorways in Soho and telephone boxes were the places where liaisons took place. There and the loos at seedy clubs. It was almost imperative that you had your wicked way with the girlfriends of your rival bands members. This was something that seemed important. That and 'not wanting to be in a relationship'. Viv talks about how challenging it was when she realised she was in a relationship with someone she loved.
The chapters on the collapse of the band are also fascinating. The way that in a few months the gang can fall apart and fragment. You end up hating each other, whereas six months earlier you'd been inseparable. Then the feeling of emptiness when its over and you realise that it ain't coming back.
The second volume of the book is perhaps even more interesting. Usually the early years in Rock biogs is the good bit, then it gets dull. But Viv's battle with cancer, her challenges with motherhood and the suppression of her art is something that rings true. The need to compromise in a relationship where there are kids. Also the bitter alienation of being in a relationship with someone who doesn't really get why you need to do the things you do. I guess I am a bit luckier than Viv in that respect, but I find it challenging that people do not understand what you are doing.
The insights Viv gives as a human being are brutally honest and insightful. I've been working on my own autobiography and Viv's book has made me realise I need to reassess certain aspects and be a bit more honest. The hardest bits in Viv's book are the bits that make it compelling. The observations such as "One day, when a friend asks who I would like to be able to sing like and I answer 'Karen Carpenter,' husband guffaws with derision, spraying a mouthful of coffee across the table", you feel the pain.
These observations are insights not just into Viv's life but into the human condition. A relationship where one party doesn't realise the hurt that such a comment could inflict. The dismissal of ones complete identity.
If you don't know The Slits music, have a listen. If you want a great read, buy the book.
2. A nice series of flood related pictures of Mill Hill and Edgware here from one of our favourite accounts
(2/5)Taken on the same day, from Station Rd, we see the conservatory-like building, which was in the left of the last image. I believe this was a florists, and would now be under the M1! You can see the old railway signal box on top of the bridge.
5. Nice pic of a Sedge Warbler in the Totteridge Valley from one of our fave local tweeters
Wasn't expecting this Sedge Warbler to be in the Totteridge Valley today! A real local scarcity. Bringing my patch year list up to 98. Perhaps my latest ever & only my third on patch. The 100 hundred mark might just be reachable! Only got there once before with 102 in 2018 pic.twitter.com/keStfIzFBO
6. I knew several Mike's in NW7 who were punks, but suspect the picture photographed was not the Mike in question. I was more intrigued by the CHAOS tag. Chaos were a band from St Albans that featured minor punk legend Abo. The False Dots were also called Chaos, until we realised that there were about 20 other bands with the same name.
Did anyone know Mike of the N.W.7. Punks in the early 80s?
7. I rarely cover serious news stories in this section, but this one does warrent it
In 2013 @BorisJohnson identified Colindale as an "area of opportunity" for regeneration in his "2020 Vision" for London.
Fast forward to 2020 and Colindale has more than 2000 worthless and unsellable homes. This mess is his mayoral legacy. We ask him to #EndOurCladdingScandal
— Hendon Cladding Collective (@CladdingHendon) October 2, 2020
9. I saw Star Wars here. This tweet made me all nostalgic. Does anyone remember the rumour that Toyah Wilcox was going to buy it and turn it into a boutique horror theatre?
I saw The Spy Who Loved Me AND it's predecessor The Man with the Golden Gun as a double bill on an afternoon back in 1977 at the Odeon Hendon. I was 11 and it cost 45p. pic.twitter.com/iZzaqmvCxi
10. If you do nothing else musical this week, check these guys out. This fella can sing!
Check out these guys, who filmed this on a phone in studio 2. He may have the best voice we’ve heard since Amy was in. We don’t say that lightly, deffo a bit of Stevie Wonder in therehttps://t.co/nLvicA8PEu
Writing a blog requires a hell of a lot of research. Often I will go to the library, look through the reference section, looking for inspiration for the pieces I write. I bumped into an elderly friend last Thursday as I was entering. He seemed rather upset. The chap is an Irishman in his late 80's, I've known him for a very long time. I suggested we go for a cup of tea at one of the nearby cafes. He told a tale of woe. He told me that with the lockdown, he lost several friends, hadn't seen most for ages, many are self isolating. He hasn't been able to work and so is skint. He can't even go to mass as that requires online booking and he can't use a computer. I asked him what he was doing in the library, and he said that he was trying to borrow a book on how to commit suicide. I was really worried. I asked what happened. He told me that they couldn't lend it to him, because the last bloke hadn't brought it back.
I was horrified, but then he said "actually I was caught short on my morning walk and I had to use the loo". He was rather cheered up that I'd fallen for his rather alarming gag. Having reassured me that he wasn't actually suicidal, I made my way. I gave him a bell later to check he was ok and was more reassured when he told me another rather bad joke. There are lots of people in a similar position, living alone, cut off from social networks. If I hadn't bumped into him, I'd not have even thought about it. Take a minute to check up on elderly friends and relatives. Meet them and have a coffee if they are lonely. My friend told me that if goes on like this much longer, it he really might be borrowing that book. I'm not entirely sure he was joking.
Barnet Council is currently upgrading its street lighting to use LED lights. This will result in a massive saving in both energy, maintenance and costs to the taxpayer.
The council are stating that it will save £750,000 per annum.
The new LED lighting will provide a better and brighter source of white light for pedestrians and motorists. Colours will appear more distinguishable so that objects look sharper and clearer at night, making the night time environment more attractive, and making it easier to drive safely.
The new LED lighting will be more directional, concentrating light into the road and footway so that less light pollution reaches residents’ homes and gardens. They will also make it easier for CCTV cameras to pick up clear images of people’s faces after dark, improving the security of the borough.
The council will cut over 3,500 kilowatts per hour from its energy consumption after the new street lighting has been installed – a significant reduction to its carbon footprint.
In addition, the new LED lanterns will have smart controls with functions that include an alert system to provide advanced notification when a streetlight is not functioning properly.
The major phase of the conversion programme will begin in mid-November, though a small number of LED lanterns have already been installed in the High Barnet area. The remainder will be installed on a ward-by-ward basis across the borough’s 26,000 streetlights, with work expected to be finished by the end of October 2020.
We've seen some ill informed comments about "Barnet Council wasting money". Although we are often critical of Barnet, we are fully supportive of this initiative.
There are some issues that have been identified. One elderly Mill Hill resident contacted the Barnet Eye and explained that the new lights were disturbing her sleep. I am pleased to report that after a couple of emails to Barnet Council, curtains have been fitted and the output lowered, so she can now get a good nights sleep (many thanks to Paul in the street light department).
