Sunday 27 February 2011

Political hats.

In a blog earlier this year I told  how I was inspired by Vince Cable to buy a Fedora hat. I have truly loved that hat, but I don't feel confident wearing it. Vince Cable has the panache required wear a Fedora, but I'm afraid I don't. So browsing the much recommended Village Hat and Cap Company web site I decided to get head gear more in tune with my (admittedly distant) proletarian roots. A flat cap. Made from 100% pure wool it really is the business. The Fedora will appear from time to time (usually on dark evenings I imagine), but the cap of Lenin and countless working class heroes can be worn at any time. So in my political hat collection I have a Fedora (Lib Dem) and the flat cap (old Labour), but what about a Tory one? Any suggestions?

Friday 25 February 2011

Strange light.

Strange light...
I captured this unusual view from half way up (or down) Moel Famau. It was taken around midday, but it was like the gloaming. The poor light was accentuated by the dark heather. For a while this 'narrow' or letter box view appeared of the Vale of Clwyd, it is just possible to make out Ruthin. The vale itself was bathed in bright sunshine, while Moel Famau was shrouded in mist and darkness.

Thursday 24 February 2011

North Wales (half term heaven).

Prior to their Big Weekend last summer Radio One produced a parody of the Alicia Keys song calling it the Empire State of North Wales. As I drove to Bangor today the song was going through my head; there can have been fewer better February days than this! In Bangor B and I walked the length of the pier and had tea and prize winning scones in the cafe at the end. We are very lucky to live in this part of the world.

Me and my shadow on Bangor pier.

The following is an extract from the amusing Empire State of North Wales:
I'm going over to Anglesey, I fancy scampi for my tea
Take the A55 to Bangor City
Or to Prestatyn, Conwy, Rhyl or maybe Abergele
It's all accessible, as long as you have a car
Wave your hands in the air and say 'Bore Da, Bore Da'
I'm in north Wales
Picture postcard scenes on my doorstep
So much I've not seen yet
Yes, I'm in North Wales
This place will make you feel brand new
Fresh air will inspire you
Let's hear it for North Wales

Wednesday 23 February 2011

Last orders for the Fox, Ysceifiog.

Half term does not feel quite right without a pint in the Fox. I have been going to the Fox  on a weekly basis for the last 25 years, and now it is closed, probably forever. The Fox had been a public house since the 1730s. There was always a warm welcome (coal fires in each room), and each week a different beer to sample.

 The sad closure of the Fox. Will it open again?

Monday 21 February 2011

16th century vandalism.

On a cycling tour of the Vale of Clwyd V and I visited the medieval church of St Saeran at Llanynys. Inside the church are some truly stunning pre reformation wall paintings that have been preserved under layers of Henrician white wash. Sadly today the church door was locked; yet the door itself is fascinating as it has several pieces of 16th and 17th century 'vandalism'.  The photograph shows the church porch and the graffiti on the door:
The Roman numerals inside the porch say ANNO DMQXLIIII (1544).


Admittedly it is not clear, but you can make out 1602 and perhaps 1599.


I have not been able to find out anything about the graffiti, but it is safe to assume that in such a prominent place it was done for a purpose. The church yard also has a number of magnifient yew trees.

The  photograph shows the east side of the church and the renovated  bell tower.

Sunday 20 February 2011

Funny game.

Being an Everton fan is not always easy. Two weeks ago we had the roller coaster game with Blackpool; last week it was the dismal performance which resulted in a two nil defeat to Bolton. Today was the FA Cup 4th Round replay against Chelsea. I had been to the drawn game three weeks ago and I feared the blues had had their chance at Goodison. Today I could not really face the game. I predicted yet another heroic failure by the men in blue. I tried to find other things to do other than follow the game on the radio. Unlike the 'Likely Lads' in that famous episode whereTerry and Bob manage to avoid knowing the England result, I found it impossible and constantly looked at the up-dates on Facebook. In fact during the first part of the child labour lecture I am ashamed to say that I was seriously distracted by extra time and the penalty shoot out.

Forever Everton.

Saturday 19 February 2011

Brain, Skill, and Chance.

Late winter and early spring brings Brain Skill and Chance to Caerwys. For over thirty years teams have battled it out to win the coveted shield. Around thirty teams of six enter; they all take part in a qualifying round, then the best three in each heat make it to the grand final in April.

Brain Skill and Chance has become a Caerwys institution. The teams come from the surrounding villages and often have silly names. Tonight's heat was wone by the 'Piccadily B' team. There is no 'Piccadily A'!; 'Piccadily B' have been competing under that name almost from the start - they take it very seriously and have deservedly become BS and C legends.


I ran a game of 'Shuv ha'penny'.

The ten teams move around the Hall and play each game for ten minutes. Inventing new challenges becomes a real test, but often the same popular games are rolled out. The video or sound round is held upstairs in the council chamber; tonight Steve was in charge, but in this photograph of him looking out of the hatch he looks very pensive.

Children in Early Flintshire Industries.

Dr Ken Davies gave a lecture to the Flintshire Historical Society today entitled Children in Early Flintshire Industries. He examined the working lives of young children in between the period c1760 to 1850. By todays standards many of children of that time experienced tough, brutal lives. In Holywell alone there were over 500 apprentices in the cotton mills of the Greenfield Valley. Add to this the children employed in the lead mines and coal mines of the county and the proportion of children in employment was hugely significant.

Dr Davies went on to look at child labour in agriculture, which in numerical terms accounted for even more children than the mines and mills. He then reflected upon the moral position of employers who were prepared to 'turn a blind eye' to these practices. He correctly concluded that child labour had always been the norm and that we should not judge by the standards of the 21st century. Britain in the late 18th and early 19th century was a developing industrial nation, in much the same was as, for example, India is today.

Childhood, the lecture reminded me, is a relatively new concept.

Friday 18 February 2011

Caerwys in twenty objects...

This evening saw the second meeting of the Caerwys Historical Society. Paul Broadbent presented a two part lecture entitled 'Caerwys in twenty objects' followed by a 'Bookbinders View of History'. Paul brought a huge assortment of objects to illustrate History, many of which had links to Caerwys. During the tea break Paul allowed the members to hold and try out many of the objects. This definately did not apply to the two hundred year old gallstones he brought that once belonged to Thomas Jones of Denbigh; they were removed without any anaesthetic.

This was a gilded presentation made to Herbert Lewis and his new wife Ruth when they returned to Caerwys from their honeymoon in 1897.


In the second part of his talk Paul focused on the art of the bookbinder. He brought a number of books along, including an early 17th century Bible. He also told the story behind the production of the Great Omar book - which took nearly one hundred years to complete as the first copy went down on the Titanic and the second was destroyed in the Blitz.


Paul's approach to History is truly eclectic. He identified countless strands of people's private history, but recognised that there were many points where they were joined and interdependent. All in all an excellent evening.

Sunday 13 February 2011

Ask not what Wales can do for you: Wales and the Big Society.

In his inauguration speech John F Kennedy posed the by now famous question: ‘And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you - ask what you can do for your country’. Kennedy’s crusading message was influential in shaping the attitudes of a generation of Americans.

The Big Society idea is certainly Kennedyesque in its attempt to engage people to take part in their society. Yet the Big Society concept has been ridiculed and is likely to be one of the early casualties of the Coalition Government in Westminster. The criticism has largely been focused on the ‘free school’ policy. In this it was imagined that parents would wish to come forward and run their own school. Some did, but most had better things to do with their time.

David Cameron claims to have been talking about the Big Society concept for years, yet he has done a lamentable job in promoting the idea. Support for the idea within his own party was luke-warm, and many Tory candidates claimed it did not go down well with the voters. Therefore in the stormy seas that will face the Coalition Government in the years ahead it will not be surprising if the Big Society sinks without trace.

The Big Society concept surely deserves a better fate. The Welsh Government should seek to refloat the idea. Both Labour and Plaid can seize the Big Society plan from the Tories, remodel it and call it their own. They may even give it another name, but as long as the message of social responsibility, best articulated by Kennedy, remains at the core the label will not matter.

The voluntary sector already takes responsibility for a vast amount of what happens in our communities. In my small town in North East Wales volunteering is the norm not the exception. It will never replace the professional services, but it will continue to add an important dimension to every community in the country. I carried out a brief unscientific survey of volunteering from those living on my road. The results include: being a trustee taking responsibility for the running of the town hall, a town councillor, taking part in the spring clean-up, delivering the community paper, mowing the bowling green, and so on.

The Big Society is essentially a socialist plan. It chimes perfectly with Marxist teaching. No wonder many Tories hate the Big Society. Yet, the great failure of socialism has been to create a two way relationship with the governed. Too often the state is viewed as doing things to people, rather than for them (most especially, I think, in terms of education). Those who can contribute to society should do so; or at least they should be rewarded for doing so. Remember, as Marx himself wrote: ‘From each according to his ability, to each according to his need’. The Bible has similar teachings, for instance in Mathew 25:15 and the story of the Talents.

Just because David Cameron is championing the Big Society does not mean it is a bad idea. The concept should not mean the replacement of professionals with volunteers, or for that matter any public sector job with an unpaid worker. The Big Society concept is to do things that would not otherwise be done, or to do things better. Engaging more people with the work of the state is essential: or becoming stakeholders, as another recent Prime Minister might have termed it!

I am arguing here that public policy should be framed to secure the highest level of participation possible. The third sector must be harnessed and supported in Wales in order to end dependency culture and promote social mobility.

Some 40% of the Welsh population already regularly volunteer; the best employers, such as Airbus here in Flintshire, already provide support to employees who volunteer. The Welsh Assembly Government should build upon this and welcome the initiatives coming from Westminster and seek to make Wales the volunteering capital of the UK. There are countless areas of public life crying out for greater participation. Wales with its many strong communities is well placed to benefit; we should also continue to celebrate participation wherever possible.

Democracy is not just about voting in elections and referendums; it is about participating on a regular basis. The Welsh Assembly Government has a good record in engaging views of young people. The challenge now is to encourage the widespread participation of men and women across the land. David Cameron may have failed to sell the idea in England, but in Wales we should enthusiastically embrace the concept. Maybe we just need to call it something else.

Saturday 12 February 2011

Connah's Quay to Chester cycle path.

The cycle path from Connah's Quay to Chester is well worth riding. Today the conditions for cycling were just about perfect. There was a slight westerly breeze and bright sunshine. The conditions tempted countless other cyclists to turn the pedals perhaps for the first time this year.

Myself on the long straight stretch from Queensferry to Chester.
At Chester V and I had a coffee in Telford's Warehouse and then via the canal towpath to pick up the cycle path through Blacon to the road bridge crossing near RAF Sealand. These cycle routes are extremely popular and are valuable in reducing the cars travelling to and from Chester daily; they also allow families to exercise in safety.

I did today's ride on my fixed wheel bike. In fact of my three machines I use this the most. It has no gears. It also has no free wheel, so even on a relatively short ride I get some decent exercise. It won't do for hilly rides, but it is incredibly light and requires little in the way of maintenace. It has brakes, but they are rarely required as the bike is controlled by the pedals. I would recommend a fixed wheel bike.
What no gears? This type of bike is used on the indoor cycle tracks.

Sunday 6 February 2011

The end of the railway age: closing the Mold to Denbigh line (part 3).

From Caerwys the line followed the River Wheeler towards Bodfari. The sign at Bodfari was especially splendid.

Passengers embark for Denbigh and beyond.

The section of line from Bodfari from to Denbigh had been reduced to a single line in the 1950s. The next two images show the driver getting the all important 'token' - safety was ensured by the simple process of no train on the track unless they were in possession of the right token. At Denbigh the token was handed back to the station master.
Poor quality image, but the token is collected by the driver at Bodfari.

At Denbigh the Token is returned.
Denbigh Station was busy with trains arriving and departing to Ruthin and Rhyl, as well as Mold, and hence to Chester. Photographs of Denbigh Station give the impression of it being a place of note. The signal box had only just been modernised when the line was finally closed in 1962.

The brand new signal box does not suggest the closure was well planned.

The end of the line.

Brian Cowlishaw cannot have known at the time, but his film shows a mode of transport and a way of life that had not changed since the mid Victorian period. The stone bridges and railway embankments from Mold to Denbigh are still visible. They are a testament to importance of the railway age. However, one part of the film, not mentioned in this blog, tells of the railway sidings built to serve a quarry near Hendre, situated between Rhydymwyn and Nannerch. The quarry was booming in the 1950s as it had won the contract to supply limestone for the building of the M1 motorway. The triumph of the private motor car was at hand.

The end of the railway age: closing the Mold to Denbigh line (part 2).

From Rhydymwyn the railway climbs to the highest point on this route at Star Crossing; here too manned gates were closed across the road as the trains approached. This must have been a relatively onerous task as by the 1930s there were around 26 passenger trains a day in each direction, as well as regular freight traffic.
The railway house still remains at Star Crossing.

Nannerch Station was the next stop. Here there was a small coal merchant's yard, but a rather grand station and adjoining house for the stationmaster.
'The next stop will be Nannerch'.

The train pulls away from Nannerch (without picking up any passengers).
Caerwys was the next halt and this was the most important station between Mold and Denbigh. There was a timber yard and other industrial concerns, such as paper making.
The train approaches Caerwys Station.

Next stop Caerwys.

The crane on the right was used to lift timber onto the trains at Caerwys.

The end of the railway age: closing the Mold to Denbigh line (part 1).

We are approaching the 50th anniversary of the closure of the Mold to Denbigh railway line. In the months before closure a  remarkable film was made of a journey from Mold to Denbigh which recorded life alongside the railway. The film was made by local rail enthusiast Brian Cowlishaw; it shows a railway that had worked without interruption since it opened in 1869.

The opening of the Mold to Denbigh line in that year was marked with celebrations in communities along the Wheeler Valley. In Afonwen a floral arch spanned the track and flags flew from the mill chimney; in fact Afonwen even changed its name to Caerwys Station to recognise the importance of the event. The speeches that followed the grand opening expressed the belief that the railway would bring both prosperity and opportunity to this corner of Wales. These celebrations were not in vain as the railway transformed Victorian Britain in much the same way as the internet is doing today.
Mold Station
The soot is still visible on the Chester Street bridge.

From Mold the railway headed west towards Rhydymwyn. The railway served the important Ministry of Defence site close to the village.

The traffic waits for the train to pass in Rhydymwyn.






































Saturday 5 February 2011

Everton 5 Blackpool 3

The scoreboard says it all!
 This Lancastrian encounter produced a classic British football match. The skies above Goodison Park were grey and the rain was incessant. The saturated pitch made for errors and excitement from the first whistle. The scoring sequence was 1-0, 1-1, 2-1, 2-2, 2-3, 3-3, 4-3, and finally 5-3. The hero of the afternoon was Louis Saha who scored four times; although the performance of   Marouane Fellaini was outstanding.

Goodison Park is an old fashioned stadium and falls well short of the standards expected in the 21st century. Yet when it is full, as it was today, with nearly 40,000 supporters there is nothing that can match the atmosphere. Before the game I went into St Luke's Church (which actually forms part of the ground) for tea and scones. The church hall is packed  before every home game, except, quite rightly, when the fixture takes place on a Sunday.
St Luke's Church and Goodison Park.
 All in all an excellent afternoon; when is the next game?

Friday 4 February 2011

Any Questions?

Tonight Radio 4's Any Questions came from St Giles Church Wrexham and I was there. The panel was Helen Mary Jones (deputy leader of Plaid Cymru in the Assembly), James Delingpole (right wing author), Peter Hain (Shadow Secretary of State for Wales), and Jesse Norman (Tory MP for Hereford).

It was a fascinating programme. Any Questions, as opposed to Question Time on TV, tends to promote freer discussion. James Delingpole was the most provocative, especially when he advocated the ending of the CRB checks on anyone applying to work with children. Helen Mary Jones spoke with passion and I imagine won the popular vote with the audience. Jesse Norman was a thoughtful Tory who had written extensively on the Big Society concept. However, Peter Hain appeared tired and said little beyond the predictable party mantra.

I was also interested to observe the skill of the programme makers to create a genuine 'live' event. The producer, Victoria Wakely, was totally in command. The presenter as ever was Jonathan Dimbleby; he was brilliant and made it look so easy, which it certainly is not. I have listened to Any Questions for decades and can see why the formula has worked for over 60 years.

Thursday 3 February 2011

Posh.

The previous two blogs have been about the posh. The word posh is used extensively for anything or anyone that appears to be wealthy or classy. Oddly, it is also used as a term of derision or mockery (Posh Spice is an example). Nobody would dare describe themselves as posh. It is surely an over used word; students seem to have few other ways of describing the prosperous or indeed their possessions.

Posh describes smug people, snobbish people, people with a certain accent or dialect, clothes people wear, holidays people take, cars people drive and so on. The list is endless. So there are posh people and posh objects.

I try to use the word as little as possible, with one exception. I (smugly) thought I knew the derivation of the word. I have told the anecdote to countless school classes whenever Britain's imperial past is under discussion that POSH comes from Port Out Starboard Home. This was the most expensive ticket to India that gave the posh passengers the most comfortable side of the ship (shelter from the sun) with the best views of the African coastline. I might even have said that POSH was stamped on their tickets. Great story, but sadly not an ounce of truth as I have discovered today.

All this talk of elites encouraged me to do a little research into the meaning of the word. The African sun has nothing to do with it; in fact the word was not in common usage until the 1930s. Where did it originate? It might have been a simple typo...P.G.Wodehouse used the word 'push' but it was typed posh in one of his novels to describe a mode of dress. Yet the most likely derivation for posh comes from the Romany language where 'pash' meant 'half' and was linked with 'half a crown', then a substantial amount of money.

Alas, one of my favourite anecodotes bites the dust.

Wednesday 2 February 2011

Head boy (part 2)

I don't think that political elites are unique to Britain; in fact, they maybe a feature of all societies. Nevertheless gaining access into the British political elite for those outside the golden circle has always been a life shaping struggle. I can think of just three prime ministers since 1900 that have managed to enter the elite from humble origins.

In the honoured fashion I will do them in reverse order of humbleness (if that is a word). In third place comes Lloyd George; he is often termed the first cottage bred prime minister. A visit to the Lloyd George museum in Llanystumdwy, near Criccieth shows the humble cottage where he was brought up. Lloyd George himself recognised the difficulties he, or anyone else from his background faced, when he made a speech in 1904 in which he claimed that the elites 'so manipulated parliament that it is in the hands of one class...It does not matter up to the present which party is in power, you have practically the same people governing the country'. Andrew Neil might have used the quote to show how little has changed by 2011.
Lloyd George taxed the rich to pay for pensions; this Punch cartoon suggests it was highway robbery.
The second humblest prime minister is Ramsey Macdonald. Born as an illegimate child in Scotland he knew real poverty. His schooling was basic and he eventually arrived in London with virtually no money. Political activity and some lucky breaks saw him become the leading figure in the newly formed Labour Party around the time of the Great War. His opposition to the war did not prevent him serving two terms as a Labour prime minister and then a further one as head of a National Government. It is usually asserted that Macdonald was seduced by the elites, which led him to break away from Labour at the depth of the economic depression in the early 1930s.
From a desperately poor background; was eventually seduced by cucumber sandwiches.

The award, in my humble opinion, to the humblest prime minister since 1900 goes to John Major. Both Lloyd George and Ramsey Macdonald came from backgrounds where educational achievement was sought and valued. John Major did not; rather he made his way to the elite through much under used channel of local government (the place political advisers often fear to tread). John Major did not have the supportive family backgrounds enjoyed by numbers two and three. In an election broadcast he famously went back to his roots; he did not enjoy a privileged upbringing in any sense.
Like Lloyd George, Major was often ridiculed by the satirists; this is the Spitting Image puppet.

Therefore at least three prime ministers have emerged from outside the golden circle. It is likely that others will do the same as I am sure there will be a reaction against the narrow social groupings that form the political elites in the Coalition Government of today.

Tuesday 1 February 2011

Head boy.

If the hat fits: Andrew Neil in the Eton boys' outfitter.
Last week the BBC screened an excellent programme entitled 'Posh and Posher' hosted by Andrew Neil. It had a subtitle: 'Why do public school boys run Britain?'. Neil (a grammar school boy) unearthed jaw dropping facts about the stranglehold certain public schools have in the production of future national leaders. No less than nineteen prime ministers were educated at Eton.

Neil's entertaining programme focused on the question, but offered few answers. It did not fully answer the key issue as to why public schools are so much better at providing senior politicians than state schools. In fact Neil did not even ask the question as to why most public schools are equally unsuccessful as the state sector. There are a just a handful of public schools that seem to have the right channels to power.

The added point made in the programme was the dominance of Oxbridge, and especially the course Politics, Philosophy and Economics. Public schools are much more successful in getting their students into the top universities.

I do not believe that the Eton boys are inherently more intelligent than bright boys and girls from 'bog standard' state schools.  So how can the corridors of power be opened up to all the men and women of this country, rather than the select few?

I don't have an easy answer, but the programme provided some pointers. First, Eton gave the boys great (almost outrageous) confidence by encouraging them to run their own clubs and societies. Second, their teachers are all highly qualified (and confident) role models.

Neil seemed nostalgic for the grammar school era, but countless selective public schools around the country don't seem to do much better than the comprehensive schools. A return to the 1950s is not an option, but a root and branch look at the future of state education is overdue.