Image above: Christian Eriksentakes a corner in the recent Brentford match against Tottenham Hotspur; photograph Liz Vercoe
Christian Eriksen has reportedly been hunting for schools in the Chiswick area, despite rumours of a return to Tottenham.
Sam Smith reported in the Express newspaper that the Danish footballer, who has been in spectacular form this season, providing the catalyst for a late-season run of success for Brentford, is looking for a school for his son Alfred in Chiswick.
The former Tottenham player has been rumoured to be returning to his old club, but Eriksen has apparently settled in west London with his girlfriend Sabrina Kvist and their two children since moving from Italy four months ago.
“School hunting in Chiswick suggests that Eriksen could be inclined to remain with Brentford, the club that offered him the chance to reprise his glittering football career. It does not entirely rule out a move to Spurs, though, with Enfield only an hour’s drive away” wrote the Express sports reporter.
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https://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Tottenham-Hotspur-v-Brentford-24-April-3.jpeg9601263Bridget Osbornehttps://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/TCC-white-on-white-1.pngBridget Osborne2022-04-30 12:45:122022-05-03 06:29:03Eriksen’s choice of schools sparks speculation that he will stay at Brentford
Spider-Man (2002) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Review by Andrea Carnevali
When bitten by a genetically modified spider, a nerdy, shy, and awkward high school student gains spider-like abilities that he eventually must use to fight evil as a superhero after tragedy befalls his family. On Netflix.
Spider-Man is 20 years old this week and yet the jokes, the action, the drama, the romance work just as they all did back then.
After the Box Office tsunami that was Spider-Man No-WayHome last Christmas and in a time saturated by superhero movies squeezing the life out of anything else in cinemas, it’s easy to forget just how ground-breaking this film was in 2002.
Back then superheroes movies were “just for geeks” and a spider-man movie was definitely not a sure bet.
Director Sam Raimi (yes, the same Raimi from The Evil Dead) made a film which was not only a lot of fun, full of action, great visuals and very respectful of the original comics, but one that made us care about the actual characters in it, a model which he then perfected with the sequel, probably still among the best superhero movie to date.
Yes, of course, some stuff still has to be perfected. The visual effects for example, though mostly impressive, still could not quite make those CGI Spidey moves right.
As for the soundtrack, Danny Elfman’s score lacked that recognisable theme that movies like these must have (think of Superman, or Indiana Jones… or basically John Williams), and famously the villain’s look left a lot to desire (so much so, that they ended up changing it on the latest No Way Home).
Even the pacing seems a little bit off in a few places. But aside from these minor details, the film does a lot right too: Tobey Maguire seemed born to play this part, bringing charisma, comic timing and that wonderful nerdiness, all in one.
The chemistry between him and Kirsten Dunst (which once again will reach perfection in the sequel) is truly palpable. JK Simmons is obviously such an inspired choice for JJ Jameson, that he was brought back in the latest sequels.
And there are some other great supporting characters too, from a very young James Franco, to Willem Dafoe. I even spotted a young (and pre-Oscar favourite) Olivia Spencer playing a receptionist for about 20 seconds!
Today we take a lot of it for granted, but back then, all the swinging about Manhattan was truly breath-taking. And how can we not mention the upside-down kiss? One of the most enduring images of any superhero movie.
For better or worse, blame it or praise it (and a good six years before Robert Downey Jr’s Iron Man) this is the film that started it all. Blockbusters would not be the same anymore.
Andrea Carnevali is a Bafta winning film maker who lives in Chiswick
Spider-Man (2002) is available to watch on Netflix.
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https://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Spiderman-2.jpg14771000Andrea Carnevalihttps://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/TCC-white-on-white-1.pngAndrea Carnevali2022-04-30 11:26:332022-05-04 09:36:00Andrea’s film review – Spider-Man (2002)
Heartstopper ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 1/2 Review by Andrea Carnevali
Teens Charlie and Nick discover their unlikely friendship might be something more as they navigate school and young love in this coming-of-age series. On Netflix.
If this British series doesn’t melt your heart, you should really have your pulse checked, just to make sure you are alive at all.
Heartstopper is the equivalent of a warm hug and one of the sweetest things I’ve seen in a while. A coming-of-age story aimed at mostly teenagers, which can certainly be enjoyed by everyone else. In fact, it should really be watched as a family whenever possible.
Based by the graphic novel of Oseman and directed by Euros Lyn, Heartstopper tells the story of two boys, Charlie and Nick, who may or may not fall for each other. It certainly doesn’t break any new ground in terms of originality. In fact it contains all the usual teen and LGBT tropes for this sort high school love: crushes, unrequited love, night texting, bullying, coming out and so on.
Nothing we haven’t seen before, but the warmth of the script, with its uplifting, sweet, honest and heartfelt depictions of young love, makes it soar above the clichés and sets it apart from anything else.
Nick and Charlie’s relationship and the various interactions with the whole ensemble cast of characters feel real and honest.
It may walk on the “edge of cheese” at times and it probably doesn’t have the edge of other (possibly more grownup) series, but you can hardly fault a show that handles subjects like bullying, bisexuality, inclusivity and coming out with such care and understanding. Also any show that features Olivia Coleman can do no wrong in my book. However small her role is, she makes the most of it and in the last episodes she shines as you would expect her to do.
The animations of leaves, hearts, sparks and birds surrounding the characters to enhance their feelings make it all feel even warmer and with enough emotional twists and turns throughout the short eight episodes, it’s impossible not to be swept up by its charm.
I can hardly think of a better series for teenagers to watch whether they’re gay, straight or whatever label they may think they have… or not have.
Andrea Carnevali is a Bafta winning film maker who lives in Chiswick
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https://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Heartstopper-3.jpg12501000Andrea Carnevalihttps://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/TCC-white-on-white-1.pngAndrea Carnevali2022-04-29 13:58:242022-05-03 14:00:37Andrea’s film review – Heartstopper
Image above: Marcele Detomaso with his ice cream tricycle
An ice cream salesman has again been granted a trading licence to sell his product outside of Strand on the Green school, despite fierce opposition from parents and school leadership.
Marcele Detomaso, who sells artisanal gelato from his tricycle, had applied to LB Hounslow to park his ‘No Solo Gelato’ stand outside Strand on the Green Infant and Junior Schools for another year, where he sells his product for six months over the summer.
A LB Hounslow Licensing Panel received representations against the licence from Vanessa Townsend and Ruth Woods, headteachers at Strand Infants and Junior schools. They argued the granting of the licence would be harmful to the health of children, undermining their anti-obesity policy and that it presented a risk of accidents by causing an obstruction.
The headteachers both cited a survey of parents, which found a majority of parents asked (57.3%) objected to the vendor selling his ice cream outside the school. Parents said it caused unnecessary bad feeling between them and their children when the children wanted ice cream and they said no.
Councillors reject objections
Addressing the Panel, Mr Detomaso said the road did not have much traffic at his trading times and he had been operating from the site for seven years without a single accident or reported near miss. His three children had attended the school.
Responding to the objection that his product may tend to cause obesity among the children, he reiterated his written representation that he sold only authentic artisan gelato which contained no preservatives or animal fat. He added that his product was no more fattening than the dessert options provided for meals at the school which include chocolate cookies, brownies and, ironically, ice cream.
The Panel found that there was no reason as to why the tricycle could not be positioned at the proposed location and accepted Mr Detomaso’s argument that Brooks Lane was not a particularly busy area. The Panel agreed that it was the responsibility of the individual parents to take care when their children came out of the school or when queuing to buy ice creams.
This is the second year in a row that the panel upheld Mr Detomaso’s licence despite objections from the school and parents. He will continue to operate there between March and late September.
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https://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/icecreamtrike.jpeg420630Matt Smithhttps://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/TCC-white-on-white-1.pngMatt Smith2022-04-28 19:34:422022-05-04 19:48:57Strand on the Green ice cream salesman’s trading licence renewed
Night Tube services will be restarting on the Jubilee Line in May, after being suspended two years ago due to the pandemic.
From Saturday 21 May, the Jubilee line will run throughout the night and early hours on weekends.
Central and Victoria line services are already running night services, though they are being disrupted by ongoing strike action. A night Overground service, between Highbury & Islington and New Cross Gate, is also running at weekends.
The reopening of the Night Tube on the Jubilee Line still leaves some pre-pandemic night tube operations to reopen. TfL have said the Northern and Piccadilly lines will join the others “later this summer”.
In the wake of the murder of Sarah Everard, there were calls for TfL to fully reintroduce Night Tube services across the network in October. TfL said limited resources and planned engineering meant a more piecemeal approach was necessary.
A TfL spokesperson said:
“The full introduction of night tube services has not been possible so far as training still needs to take place to address resourcing issues on the Northern and Piccadilly lines. The return of these lines also has to be planned around complex vital operational and engineering closures.
“This includes the ongoing closure of the Bank branch of the Northern line to allow completion of the upgrade at Bank tube station, as well as other major closures and bespoke timetables.”
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https://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/night-tube-home.jpg400600Matt Smithhttps://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/TCC-white-on-white-1.pngMatt Smith2022-04-28 16:36:522022-05-02 23:58:09Night service returning on the Jubilee line – but not yet to the Piccadilly line
A fresh round of Tube strikes could disrupt London’s transport network in June, if transport workers vote to start new industrial action in their ongoing dispute over pensions.
Members of the union Unite at Tfl and London Underground will vote in the coming weeks on whether to launch a fresh strike in mid-June.
It comes after a string of strikes earlier this year, and ongoing Night Tube strikes by Tube workers disputing rota changes. The overnight strikes by drivers are taking place on the Central and Victoria lines every Friday and Saturday until Sunday 19 June.
Unite’s members at TfL are spread across different parts of the organisation, including Dial-a Ride, London Underground and Croydon trams. The union said its members are also in dispute over pay and the threat of job losses.
‘Appalling way to treat a loyal workforce’, says Unite
The ballot will close on May 26. If members vote in favour of industrial action, strikes could begin by mid-June, although Unite said action is likely to be co-ordinated with other unions who also have members in TfL.
Unite regional officer Simon McCartney said:
“Our members are dedicated to keeping London moving. Now they are being told that they will be poorer in old age. This is an appalling way to treat a loyal and committed workforce.
“Workers are balloting for industrial action as a last resort. Despite repeated calls to management there have been no guarantees on pensions or job cuts.
“Strike action would inevitably cause severe disruption to public transport throughout London.”
Image above: a shuttered Tube station
TfL argues pension issue is “complex” and blames central government
A TfL spokesman said:
“A review of TfL pensions was a condition placed on TfL by government as required as a result of its funding agreement.
“We’ve now received the final report from the independent review into the TfL pension scheme, which has been facilitated by Sir Brendan Barber with the support of pensions expert Joanne Segars.
“The report rightly highlights the complexity of the issues related to pension reform and TfL will now take time to consider next steps.
“There are currently no proposals for changes to TfL’s pension arrangements. Any reform proposed in the future would be subject to consultation with all stakeholders, including staff and trade unions.”
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An action-filled epic from director Robert Eggers which that follows a young Viking prince on his quest to avenge his father’s murder. On at Chiswick Cinema.
The Northman is based on the 10th century Nordic legend which eventually became the inspiration for Shakespeare’s Hamlet. But don’t expect anyone mulling over a skull here. This is a pulpy, gory, violent revenge story, which shares more with Conan the Barbarian, Gladiator, Braveheart and Game of Thrones than anything the Bard might have written.
That should not surprise those who are familiar with director Robert Eggers’s previous films, from the fascinating (and rather gruesome) The Witch (2015) to that descent to madness that was The Lighthouse (2019), both of which were just as unsettling and intense as The Northman is.
The film starts with a rather long prologue, during which I struggled a bit to find my bearings. We are introduced to Amleth, a nine year-old boy, son of a Viking King (played by an unrecognisable Ethan Hawk). After witnessing his father being slaughtered by his uncle and barely escaping with his own life, Amleth makes a vow.
Fast forward a few years and the film finally gets going as we find Amleth, now grown into a bundle of muscles (courtesy of Alexander Skarsgård and his bulging abs), grunting and screaming as he and his tribes attack another Viking village somewhere in the North.
This is possibly one of the most impressive sequences in the whole film: a one-take wonder (clearly the preferred style of film making for Eggers), which seems to go on forever and immerses the audience in a middle of a violent spree across the village with extreme realism.
It’s an ambitious shot which, like the rest of the film wants to show the not just the chaos of the attack, but the uncompromising brutality of the Vikings too.
Interestingly the film is “only” rated 15, because whenever you actually look closely you rarely see the most gruesome details. There’s a lot of suggestive sound off-camera, silhouetted body shapes being knifed and slaughtered and people killed relentlessly left and right, but the camera rarely lingers on it.
It is possibly one of the most authentic depictions of the Viking world we’ve ever seen on screen. “I did try my damnedest to do everything as historically accurate as possible.” Eggers said in a recent interview. And his works clearly shows off.
Right next to all this stark realism, Eggers also fills the film with several hallucinatory scenes, either the result of psychedelic drugs taken by the Vikings during various ceremonies and rituals or feverish nightmares dreamt by the some of the characters.
This is where the film goes almost abstract, aided by sinister lighting and a nerve-racking soundtrack blasting through the speakers.
If I have to be honest, I didn’t think the mix between the two styles always worked for me and often I found those sequences took me away from the film. They did however give a little breathing space from the all the blood.
All realism and accuracy aside, the story itself is pretty simple and the characters are fairly sketchy and two-dimensional. The only two main women in the film, Anya Taylor-Joy (The Queen’s Gambit) and Nicole Kidman, do their best with the little they’re given. This is for better or worse (definitely worse) a world that belongs to men.
Kidman in particular felt a bit miscast here: her clean, glamorous and porcelain-like beauty felt a bit out of place among all the dirty, muddy grunginess), and yet despite this she commanded the screen every second she appeared. Watch out for her astonishing and revealing monologue in the third act, but also for a brief appearance by Bjork (she came out of her acting retirement just for this) and another short speech by Willem Dafoe as a jester… and later as a… erm… head.
To conclude, while on a technical level this is an impressive film, I found it a little bit empty. Also, for a story that is born out of a passionate declaration of revenge, The Northman isn’t actually very emotionally engaging.
I couldn’t help thinking back to Leonardo di Caprio in The Revenant and drawing parallels between his character and Skarsgård’s Amleth: two similar depictions, both pushing themselves to the limits and both looking for revenge. But the truth is that beyond his transformative appearance, all his grunts and roars, Skarsgård is really not that interesting to watch for the two hours and 17 minutes it takes.
Coming out of my local Chiswick cinema where I watched this, I heard somebody commenting to his friends: “Wow, what a f**ked up film”. While it might not be the most highbrow or complex review, I must confess I do share that feeling a little bit.
Andrea Carnevali is a Bafta winning film maker who lives in Chiswick
The Northman is on in cinemas, including Chsiwick Cinema.
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https://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/The-Northman-4.jpg20481382Andrea Carnevalihttps://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/TCC-white-on-white-1.pngAndrea Carnevali2022-04-28 12:42:282022-05-03 13:36:14Andrea’s film review – The Northman
Image above: Darren Burke – accused of spiking his lover’s drink with an an abortion drug
A woman who became pregnant during an affair with a senior civil servant has accused him of offering her a drink spiked with an abortion drug.
Darren Burke, a deputy director for the emergency services mobile communications programme at the Home Office, is accused of trying to cause Chiswick resident Laura Slade’s miscarriage.
On December 3, 2020, Ms Slade said she had “an instant gut feeling something was not right” when Mr Burke offered to buy her a drink from Starbucks, something which he usually did not do.
The following day, he arrived at her flat in Chiswick and was “very flustered” while offering her a drink again, returning from the kitchen with an orange juice.
She refused to drink the juice, which was allegedly laced with mifepristone – a medication used to induce an abortion, on 4 December 2020. Ms Slade had an unconnected miscarriage weeks later, Isleworth crown court was told.
Image above: a packet of Mifepristone – abortion pills
Accused ‘sent links to an abortion clinic and abortion pill’
Jurors heard Mr Burke encouraged her to terminate the pregnancy and sent her links to an abortion clinic and abortion pill, after she fell pregnant during the course of their five-year affair.
Giving evidence from behind a screen, Slade said: “It was never really an option for me but I knew I had to consider everyone else around me and the impact it would have on them.”
She said she was “very clear” that she did not want an abortion, adding: “I told him when the due date was and that I was keeping my child.”
Slade said she had told him she was suffering from morning sickness before he arrived at her flat in Chiswick on 4 December. “He was very flustered, walking between the front room and the kitchen and was offering me a drink again,” she said.
She told Isleworth Crown Court on Tuesday (26 April): “I just looked at it and looked at him and said: ‘Well I’m not drinking that. I’ve told you I’ve got morning sickness’.”
After saying he did not want to be on the birth certificate, Ms Slade he again asked her to drink the juice, to which she said “f*** no” and locked herself in the bathroom with the drink. The prosecution alleges that she found a white powder on the inside of the glass and she called the police the following day to report her suspicions.
Image above: Isleworth Crown Court (Photo: Google Maps)
Mr Burke denies charges
Burke, from Windsor, denies obtaining the drug with intent and attempting to administer it to procure a miscarriage.
David Spens QC, defending, suggested Burke was not “insisting” Slade drink the orange juice but had simply asked her twice because he was being “caring”.
The barrister asked Ms Slade:
“Did he explain that he had brought the abortion tablets with him and when it was obvious you were determined to keep the baby he then ground them up and flushed them down the sink?”
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Network Rail have rearranged their planned engineering works this weekend, to allow for full train services during the Army v Navy rugby match in Twickenham on Saturday (30 April).
Work to install over 10km of new cables and new signalling equipment on the Hounslow Loop line, which connects London Waterloo with Chiswick, Richmond, Twickenham, Hounslow and Brentford – will instead happen over the Bank Holiday weekend from Sunday (1 May) continuing until Wednesday (4 May).
Rail-replacement buses will be running along with usual buses throughout the working week and the main line via Twickenham is going to be open throughout the works.
The £375m Feltham and Wokingham re-signalling scheme covers more than 80 miles of railway and over 500 pieces of signalling equipment.
The programme, which will finish in 2024, is replacing 1970s signalling infrastructure with a modern equivalent that will be much more reliable.
The programme reached the halfway stage last weekend when new signalling kit was switched on in the Ascot and Virginia Water area, with new signalling technology on the Hounslow Loop set to go live in August next year 2023, before the final phase in Wokingham is switched on in 2024.
Image above: Twickenham Stadium
Network Rail boss “pleased” work was able to be moved to accomodate rugby fans
Network Rail’s managing director for Wessex route, Mark Killick, said:
“It’s fantastic to see the Army Navy match back on after so long and I’m pleased we’ve been able to move our work so fans can travel to and from the game by train. It does mean that we are going to be doing our engineering work well into the working week though, and it’s important that customers work out their routes to their workplaces…
“…This is part of a massive £375m scheme to improve the railway in the area and reduce the delays caused by signalling faults. Resignalling schemes like this one, and the track work that goes with it, are one of the best ways we have of improving the reliability of our network, so it’s really important we do the job and I’m grateful to our customers for their patience.”
Christian Neill, SWR’s Customer Experience Director, said:
“The work Network Rail is carrying out is set to significantly boost the reliability and performance of the railway, making it easier to get our customers to where they need to be.
“Closing the railway for four days is never a decision taken lightly, especially when two of those days are during the working week. Whilst it is important that to be able to keep leisure travellers and thousands of rugby fans moving on the Saturday, we’re urging anyone traveling from Sunday to Wednesday to check before they travel as a range of alternative transport options are available in the area.
“We’d also like to thank anyone impacted by these works for their patience and understanding as we work to enhance our network.”
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https://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Network-Rail-engineering_web.jpg7121122Matt Smithhttps://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/TCC-white-on-white-1.pngMatt Smith2022-04-27 17:34:202022-05-03 00:27:23Network Rail move engineering works for Army v Navy rugby match
April is Parkinson’s Awareness Month. ‘Awareness’ is important because it is the fastest growing neurological condition in the world, yet there is currently no test to diagnose it and no cure. Parkinson’s UK want more people to take part in their research. They are pushing to deliver a new treatment by the end of 2024, as there have been vital discoveries which have revolutionised the understanding of Parkinson’s and the brain.
Parkinson’s is diagnosed by the symptoms, but by the time the symptoms become obvious, it is usually well advanced.
How to tell if someone may have Parkinson’s
Interview with Domizia Conti, care manager for Home Instead, Chiswick
Domizia Conti, care manager for Home Instead in Chiswick, talked to The Chiswick Calendar about the signs to look out for, as they are so varied they are often missed or mistaken as signs of other illnesses.
People can have Parkinson’s in their thirties and forties, but the signs are often not visible enough to be diagnosed until they are older.
The disease affects the ability of the brain to produce dopamine, which the nervous system uses to send messages between nerve cells. The result is a progressive loss of coordination and movement problems.
Tremors
Parkinson, after whom the condition is named, was not some hapless sufferer who claimed the condition as his own, but the British doctor who first accurately described it in 1817. Before then it was known as the ‘Shaking palsy’, which described the most obvious symptom: tremors, or uncontrollable shaking.
Tremors, a sign of advanced Parkinson’s, make it difficult for people living with the condition to look after themselves, to do basic things such as putting clothes on and feeding themselves. It makes a simple task such as making a cup of tea dangerous.
“Tremors are the best known symptom but they are not the most common symptom” Domizia tells me. “They can be very extreme and can be very frustrating, but in my opinion they are not even the worst.”
Stiffness of the limbs and ‘freezing’
Stiffness of the limbs is what she considers the worst symptom. “It happens without warning, not even at times when you can prepare for it.”
The stiffness can be painful and it is a progressive symptom of the condition. “It means you will take a very long time to get out of a chair. You can find you are not able to stretch properly or not able to move at all.”
Then there is the sudden freezing of the muscles, which is something which comes and goes. One day you are able to walk fine, another you cannot get out of bed.
“You can control that with drugs, which are effective until the last stages of the condition, but Parkinson’s is something which often takes a long time to diagnose and once it is diagnosed it can take a long time to get the right combination and dosage of medication, by trial and error.”
For Domizia and her team at Home Instead this means the requirements of people they look after can change from minute to minute and they have to be flexible. While they operate a 24 hour cancellation policy, so cannot cancel carers at short notice if their clients find they do not need help, if people suddenly find they need more care than they anticipated, Home Instead will provide carers.
“If I can’t get someone else in at short notice, I will do it myself, but in ten years we have never said we can’t help.”
The importance of giving medication on time
The drugs available for Parkinson’s replace the dopamine the body is not making naturally. The dosage has to be timed precisely.
“They can have four lots of medicine during the day, and it has to be taken at the precise time. Twenty minutes makes a big difference. They will freeze and then it takes them a long time to unfreeze. If they are trying to manage their medication themselves, it’s difficult because they will take more medication to unfreeze themselves and are then unsure what dosage to take the next time, so medication management is very important.”
Because the progress of the disease is so unpredictable, families find it hard to deal with.
“Sometimes they get impatient; they say ‘you could do it yesterday, so why can’t you do it today, you are just being lazy.”
Walk the walk but don’t talk the talk at the same time
“If you are caring for someone with Parkinson’s you shouldn’t ask them to do too many things at once” says Domizia. “They can either walk, or talk, but not both. If you are talking to them and expecting them to answer while they are walking, they will fall. We normally chit chat with clients, but we have to be mindful when to shut up.
“The brain has to decide where to send the dopamine – either to the face or to the legs.”
Falling over is a given. An early sign of Parkinson’s is that instead of swinging their arms when they walk, people with the condition will keep their arms down, as the brain is using the dopamine it has available to instruct the legs. It makes it more difficult to balance. Part of the NHS treatment of Parkinson’s is to send patients to a Falls team, to teach them how to fall without hurting themselves badly.
Another thing families can find hard is the lack of facial expression.
“The brain doesn’t send the instruction to the facial muscles, so it’s like having Botox.”
Night terrors
“One terrible symptom is night terrors” says Domizia. “They are extremely vivid. People are very confused when they wake up as to whether the situation they dreamed is real or not and they wake up in a pool of sweat. They are scared.”
She gave the example of one of her clients:
“A 92 year old whose brain was so sharp, she was one of the first women to qualify as an accountant in the UK and she had no dementia [a condition often associated with Parkinson’s].
“I got a phone call from the police at 5am because she had rung them to say she was stuck on the roof and she was terrified, literally scared for her life. It took two or three hours to calm her down and for her to realise it was her Parkinson’s making her think that.”
Tiny handwriting
Speech impairment is a common problem as the condition progresses, and the ability to find the right words, but another, less known and quite bizarre symptom is tiny handwriting.
“It’s associated with the tremors. Their handwriting gets so tiny it’s impossible to read it.”
Parkinson’s is such a complex problem, caring for someone with it can make families really frustrated, says Domizia. Home Instead provide trained carers for a minimum of four hours a week.
“If they come in for an hour in the morning and an hour in the evening that may be all they need for a couple of years, but then we will notice that their food has remained in the fridge because they haven’t been able to get it out, or they haven’t got to the toilet in time. You notice the condition is progressing and things can change pretty quickly.
“Sometimes families feel they have failed if they ask for help, but it is very different to manage Parkinson’s when you have other calls on your time and the most important thing we want people to know is that there is help available.”
Home Instead is the biggest provider of home care in the UK. Its Chiswick office covers Chiswick, Hammersmith, Acton, Shepherd’s Bush, West Kensington, Baron’s Court, part of Fulham and part of Ealing.
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https://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Parkinsons-awareness-feature-3.jpg8361254Bridget Osbornehttps://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/TCC-white-on-white-1.pngBridget Osborne2022-04-27 10:30:112022-04-28 10:34:35Night terrors and tiny handwriting – symptoms of Parkinson’s disease you may not be aware of
It really is a very busy time for us working in the mental health and psychological wellbeing field. Services for children and young people are particularly strained and we are finding it hard to find team members able to work with children and young people to join our practice.
Headlines such as this one: “The pandemic have driven an unprecedented surge in demand for mental health services for children and young people” and this one: “Children’s mental health: Huge rise in severe cases, BBC analysis reveals all” summarise some shocking statistics detailing the worsening wellbeing of our young and the pressure on services to provide support and treatment.
Often parents know better than anyone else in their child’s lives that something is not right and feel helpless as their attempts to try and talk about the situation and help are dismissed or rejected. Often confused and hurt both the parents and children find themselves feeling unheard and misunderstood.
But if you are a parent and are worried about your child or children or if you know parents who are struggling then there is help at hand. As we have been receiving a constant stream of enquiries from worried parents and guardians and as we understand what can prevent communication between parents and children at times of difficulty, we have started offering parenting consultations.
The pain of misunderstanding and disappointment can be huge for both parents and their children and yet these misunderstandings can be resolved. If you are a parent, then there are a whole range of ways the struggles of children and young people can impact you. Apart from the obvious agony that comes from thinking your child might be unhappy and fear around failing them as parent, typical experiences include:
Finding the role as a parent difficult, challenging, and stressful
Experiencing self-doubt and feeling not good enough a lot of the time
Feeling upset, overwhelmed, angry and lonely
Wondering what’s happened to your life, your identity and who you are now that you are a parent
Thinking you should feel happy and lucky, as everyone keeps saying, and yet you don’t. You often wonder if there is something wrong with you.
Finding the struggle impacting on your other relationships including partners, close family members and friendships.
Painful ruminations about family structure and a sense of responsibility that comes from contexts including having a mix of shared biological, step and adopted children, being same sex parents, single parent, or maybe joint custody or other voluntary of legal situations exist.
All these painful experiences do at least serve to draw the struggle to our attention and will continue until we find resolution.
The only thing all parents share is the fact that the arrival of a new baby, babies, child, or children is one of life’s greatest and most significant events and the experience of becoming a parent is always deeply personal and unique. It can be helpful to think about how all parents will experience being a parent somewhere on a continuum from a feeling of ease to unease. It is normal not to struggle and it is normal to find things difficult, it is also possible to find parenting feels different over time or with different children.
Parents sometimes feel that they are not allowed to express their real feelings but must be happy as everyone expects. Many mothers also feel like failures because they didn’t have the sort of birth they wanted, they find breastfeeding difficult, or they feel like failures as mothers because they’re not able to live up to their own very high expectations. Meanwhile partners and other family members can also struggle with feelings of failure as their attempts at helping and supporting do not seem to be working.
Many people feel like this throughout their parenting journey as their child moves through the different developmental stages of their life: babyhood, toddlerhood, young child, older child, pre-teen, adolescent. At every stage, the challenges and the goalposts move, and we all must adjust and learn how to manage our child’s brand-new developmental stage.
If you feel like this, you are not alone. Things can settle down and you can adjust and feel more in control of your life. That may last for a while until the next stage, but by then, especially, you’ll be more used to the challenges and more familiar with your own patterns and issues. You will also have learnt some helpful tools and techniques to raise your self-confidence.
If you are a struggling parent or know of any then please be assured that whilst it might be hard to find services to help your children, there are services available to help you help them.
Nicholas Rose
Psychotherapist, Counsellor, Couples Counsellor and Coach
https://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/NICHOLAS-ROSE-square.jpg586586Nicholas Rosehttps://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/TCC-white-on-white-1.pngNicholas Rose2022-04-26 10:13:222022-05-23 09:15:17Mind Matters – Looking after the mental health of children and young people
The video to promote Liza Pulman’s 2021 album The Heart of It has her skipping along a beach and sitting on the rocks in a ball gown – a great big bright pink confection that has no business on a beach. What the barnacles did to all that chiffon doesn’t bear thinking about.
She fished it out (“this old thing?”) when she needed to do some publicity and shot the video within walking distance of where she now lives in Cornwall. “I look like a toilet roll cover” she says.
She was meant to launch the album with a series of concerts at the Riverside Studios in Hammersmith. Covid put paid to that, so she is doing them now, Sunday 24 – Saturday 30 April, nightly at 7.30, which just happens also to be in the middle of a 63 day tour with the satirical comedy show Fascinating Aïda, which she does with Dilly Keane and Adèle Anderson.
Yes she’s busy, but she was brought up to the showbiz lifestyle. “I was born in a trunk” she says, and she attributes her career to her “quirky upbringing”.
‘Give ’em the old razzle dazzle’ was more or less the family motto in the Pulman household. Liza grew up in Hampstead where she and her sister were called upon to perform at her parents’ showbiz parties. Her mother Barbara Young (Agrippina in the landmark 1976 drama series I, Claudius, written by Liza’s father Jack Pulman) taught them to harmonise.
“My dad died when I was ten and we did our grieving by singing together”. On car journeys the sisters would sing and squabble, Liza complaining that her sister had pinched her harmony, to be told by their mother to “just find another one.”
She still loves the music her parents loved then – jazz ballads from the 1920s through to the 1950s – and has chosen “the most emotional, impactful, big songs” for her album The Heart of It and the live shows of the same name. Her mother, now 91, will be at her show on Thursday. “She’s hugely proud of what I do”.
Among the composers and performers whose music she has picked are Michel Legrand, Irving Berlin, Randy Newman and Judy Garland. She reimagines some timeless classics but also rediscovers some “lost gems”.
The show has some songs that the album doesn’t. The album is full of “gorgeous slow ballads full of heartbreak” but you need the odd cheerful number to pick the audience up in a live show.
An example of a lost gem? “My Favourite Year by Michele Brourman and Karen Gottlieb” she tells me, which is also one of the most recent (first released in 1988). The mainstays of the show are songs like Come In From The Rain by Melissa Manchester and I Never Meant To Hurt You, famously sung by Barbara Streisand.
There are a couple of Streisand songs in the show and Liza has previously done a whole show of her songs. She is “a big film buff” she says, and loves the songs of Hollywood, but also Streisand’s songs suit her voice.
“It’s the Jewish / Polish cheekbones my mother says”. Be that as it may, she has the ability to sing long lines without taking a breath and to hold a note for an infeasibly long time. Barbara Streisand turns 80 on Sunday, so no doubt Liza will pay her tribute.
She keeps Fascinating Aïda separate, choosing not to perform any of their songs in her one woman show. Sharp satire doesn’t sit well with heartbreak, but she demonstrates her wit in the stories she tells between songs. She has stories about Irving Berlin and Daniel Craig (she was at college with him) which she tells when she introduces Nobody Does It Better.
Liza is performing The Heart of It all week at the Riverside Studios. Tickets available from their website.
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https://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Liza-Pulman-6.jpg547400Bridget Osbornehttps://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/TCC-white-on-white-1.pngBridget Osborne2022-04-26 09:46:452022-04-26 11:20:25Liza Pulman in concert at the Riverside Studios
Image above: Chiswick School students in rehearsal for Oliver!
Oliver is played by Orla, a Year Seven girl who is petite and suitably waif-like to play the poor little rich kid, the orphaned boy led astray by the Artful Dodger in London’s desperate Victorian slums. Bill Sykes, the brutish gangster, is George, a Year 11 student with the physique to be sufficiently intimidating.
Such is the range director and head of performing arts Tommy Robinson had available to pick from in a school of more than 1200 pupils spanning the ages of 11 to 18 for the cast of Oliver!
Musicals are dodgy at the age when boys’ voices are breaking, but otherwise the choice of Oliver!, where you need a large cast of children, is perfect for a school. It’s perfect in other ways too. The music is infectious, all the songs are catchy and everyone knows the words.
The story is simple and poignant and the costumes are easy. “Go and scour the charity shops” was the instruction. Looks like it paid off.
Image above: Chiswick School students in rehearsal for Oliver!
The students at Chiswick School are in rehearsal for two shows next week – their eleventh production this year. They are staging the production of Lionel Bart’s famous musical in the round, in which the audience is part of the show and very much encouraged to participate. The 45 strong cast will perform in and around the audience.
The music will be handled by Zak Moxon, head of music, on the piano and Year 11 student James (students’ surnames are not allowed to be reported) on the violin, but the piano is also central to production, in the middle of things where various members of the cast take it over to play different songs.
The set will be hung from the ceiling in the school’s main hall (which only last year was partitioned off into cubicles for regular testing for Covid). The backdrop of Dickensian London has been sketched out on clear plastic and painted by the students. Such is the vision and energy of Mr Robinson, who is planning four more productions before the end of the summer term.
Image above: Chiswick School students in rehearsal for Oliver!
Twice now the school has been shortlisted for the Outstanding Drama Department award in the national Music & Drama Education Awards, run by Music Teacher and Drama & Theatre magazines and sponsored by Classic FM and Casio Music. Mr Robinson himself has been shortlisted for Secondary School Teacher of the Year in the Pearson National Teaching awards. He will find out if he has won it in May.
It takes a huge amount of energy and commitment to run a drama production in a school – but 15 in the year after the school has coped with everything the pandemic threw at them?! Eat your heart out Summer Heights High!
Four of the Sixth formers in Oliver! are planning to study the performing arts at university next year.
Image above: Chiswick School students in rehearsal for Oliver!
Oliver! takes place on Thursday 5 and Friday 6 May at 7.30pm. All are welcome. Tickets £5 (under 11s go free). Reserve them by ringing or emailing the school: 0208 747 6645 / enquiries@chiswickschool.org and pay on the night. The school will open the security gates on Staveley Rd so the public can drive in and park.
I’m looking forward to seeing it. It sounds like an exciting production and who doesn’t love an Oliver! singalong?
Cast: Oliver – Orla (Year 7), Bill Sykes – George (Year 11), Nancy – Demi (Year 10), the Artful Dodger – Celia (Year 8), Fagin – Manny (Year 11)
For Orla, the performance will be carrying on a family tradition. She casually mentioned on her way out of rehearsal that her grandfather had been in the original 1968 film with Ron Moody and Oliver Reed. He was one of the boys in the workhouse.
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https://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Oliver-and-Bill-Sykes_crop.jpg970922Bridget Osbornehttps://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/TCC-white-on-white-1.pngBridget Osborne2022-04-26 07:27:382022-04-26 07:38:00Oliver! at Chiswick School
Image above: Phyllis Logan, second from right, in Downton Abbey sequel A New Era
Phyllis Logan is every bit as kind and accommodating as her character in Downton Abbey, the housekeeper Mrs Hughes / Carson. She spoke to me after a long day’s filming on her current film, No Way Up, ‘a high concept combination of disaster movie and survival thriller, as characters from very different backgrounds are thrown together when the plane they’re travelling on crashes into the Pacific Ocean’.
It sounds a lot less fun than Downton Abbey, (there are sharks), though she says she is working with “a lovely bunch of young actors”. Downton Abbey is now home after six TV series and two feature length films. The filming of Downton Abbey: A New Era was “another wonderful reunion” with her old mates Elizabeth McGovern (Cora Crawley), Lesley Nicol (Mrs Padmore) and Hugh Bonneville (Robert Crawley) and the rest of the crew. Those three are all west London dwellers, like Phyllis, so she has kept up with them in between filming as well.
“We spend more time in the castle [Highclere Castle in Hampshire] this time” she tells me. “Some of the characters go off to the South of France and some exciting things happen but most of the downstairs staff are left behind”.
The film picks up just a few months on from where the last one left off. “It couldn’t really be much later” she says “or the older characters would all be dead!”
Last time I talked to her, before the release of the first film, she couldn’t really see how they could string it out much longer, for that very reason, but they have managed it. The new era of the title is the late 1920s and early ’30s.
“We conveniently by-pass the General Strike” she says and Downton Abbey gets involved with a new craze – film making. They welcome “a lovely bunch of new people” to the cast, including Dominic West (The Wire, The Affair) – “very entertaining and amusing off set and wonderful on screen”, the “lovely” Laura Haddock (Guardians of the Galaxy) and the “gorgeous” Hugh Dancy (David Copperfield).
And what of her character, the longsuffering Mrs Carson, formerly Mrs Hughes?
“She gets a bit of excitement” she tells The Chiswick Calendar. “Something one would never have imagined, involving Mrs Padmore, Mr Carson and Daisy”.
She wouldn’t be drawn on who gets the chop, but fans will soon find out for themselves, as Downton Abbey: A New Era is in cinemas, including Chiswick Cinema, from Friday.
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https://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/MV5BOWY4MDZiNmYtNzNmYy00MWJjLWFlMzItMWVhNzAxYjJlZWU3XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTkxNjUyNQ@@..jpg15001012Bridget Osbornehttps://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/TCC-white-on-white-1.pngBridget Osborne2022-04-26 00:48:052022-04-26 00:48:05“Exciting developments” in Downton Abbey: A New Era, says Phyllis Logan
A group of London MPs, including the two who represent Chiswick, Rupa Huq and Ruth Cadbury, have written a letter to the new acting Met Police chief Sir Stephen House expressing their shock and concern at the vile comments shared by police officers which were revealed by police whistleblower Dave Eden.
The Mirror newspaper revealed earlier this month a message was shared by ex-officers from Wayne Couzens’ elite unit celebrated the 2020 US police killing of George Floyd. They also shared an image of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle with racist language and other explicitly racist, sexist and homophobic material.
Among the messages in the WhatsApp group which included ex-officers from the Parliamentary and Diplomatic Protection command, was one celebrating the killing of George Floyd by police in the US, which sparked the Black LIves Matter movement. An altered photograph with the caption “Pink Floyd” showed his dying moments as a Minneapolis officer knelt on his head.
A picture was posted of a mocked-up T-shirt with an image of British Black Lives Matter activist Sasha Johnson, who was shot last year, with a bullet hole in her head and the words “Black Lives Splatter”.
MPs questions for the acting commissioner
Now a group of 31 London Labour MPs have sent the acting commissioner a list of questions. They want to know:
Are any serving police officers in the whatsapp group exposed by Dave Eden?
If so, has any disciplinary action been taken against those officers?
What action are you taking to ensure officers in current employ do not hold such views?
Will you issue a clear statement that any serving officers who express such views will be sacked from the force for gross misconduct?
Their letter continues:
“All of us have an interest in the Metropolitan Police rebuilding trust with all of London’s communities, and revelations like these undermine the support for the vital work you do to try to keep our streets safe.
“When Dame Cressida Dick resigned she accepted that action needs to be taken to “root out those who don’t uphold our standards and don’t deserve to wear our uniform”. We fully agree with that sentiment. But these can no longer be seen as isolated cases, but an institutional problem that needs to be addressed seriously and relentlessly.We very much hope you accept that wanting to tackle these issues is not “politicising policing” but about removing bigotry from the force, for which there should be universal support.”
Their letter comes as the acting commissioner addressed members of the Parliamentary Home Affairs committee to say what he was planning to do about the misconduct of police officers. He outlined a plan to use “sophisticated” new technology, which will monitor the work phones and email addresses of police officers.
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https://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/5749059480_f180f147fd_b.jpeg6831024Bridget Osbornehttps://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/TCC-white-on-white-1.pngBridget Osborne2022-04-25 23:26:112022-04-26 00:49:32Rupa Huq and Ruth Cadbury among group of London MPs who want action over police officers sharing sick racist messages
Images above: Arthur from the Blacksmiths Shop welding the Dukes Meadows gates, trustees and project staff from Dukes Meadows Trust and Heritage of London Trust.
Restoration works have began on the ‘historic’ main gates leading into Dukes Meadows.
Dukes Meadows Trust said they were “delighted” that work has started to restore the art deco 1920s gates that had been in a state of disrepair. As a result, the main entrance into the park had been closed to the public.
Blacksmiths and stonemasons will be working on restoring the gates in the coming weeks. The total cost of the project is £60,000.
Paul Davis, Chair of the Duke’s Meadows Trust, said:
“We are delighted that after three years hard work by the Trust, the restoration is going ahead. We are grateful to the London Borough of Hounslow, Heritage of London Trust and the Ironmongers Company, who have generously given funds towards the restoration. Heritage of London Trust also offered valuable advice and the council, as owner of the gates, has acted as commissioner of the work. The Trust will be contributing £26,000 towards the cost from its own reserves, raised from the Sunday Food Market and artists’ studios.”
Image above: Allotments at Dukes Meadows; photograph Roz Wallis
A grand entrance to a terraced promenade for the workers of the 1920s
By the 1920s Chiswick had a growing working population who had moved to work in industries developing in the area. Three flourish today: Fullers’ Brewery, still in Chiswick and Cherry Blossom Boot Polish and Sanderson’s Wallpaper, no longer in Chiswick, but still trading.
Living in crowded conditions people needed open space and fresh air. In 1923 Chiswick District Council bought 200 acres of riverside land from the Duke of Devonshire as part of its plan to open up the southern tip of the parish. By 1925 a 2,000-ft long embankment and terraced promenade lined the loop of the river and sports grounds were under construction. To give the entrance a sense of grandeur and encourage civic pride, a set of iron gates were designed for Promenade Approach.
In the 1980s, the park went into decline. Many areas have already been regenerated by the Duke’s Meadows Trust, but the park’s historic gates and piers were at risk of being lost.
Heritage of London Trust advised on the conservation works as well as giving a grant of £10,000. Local schoolchildren will visit the conservation teams at work, as part of Heritage of London Trust’s Proud Places programme.
Images above: Sanderson employees staging a performance for the Bleak House Opera Society, Sanderson archive; Cherry Blossom boot polish advertisement
Instilling a pride in Dukes Meadows
The project will include works to the pintle and hinge bearing points, manufacturing new drop bolts and new jockey wheels, engineering new lock boxes, removing corrosion and repainting. The heavy gloss varnish applied in previous years to the brick piers will be removed and the bricks and stone capitals repaired. The Art Deco lettering will be restored.
The Duke’s Meadows Trust also hopes to also improve the surface of the Approach Road itself to create a much-needed safe pedestrian and cycle route into the park and to restore the area at the far end of the Approach Road, onto the Thames Path, which is still derelict. The gates are right beside Cavendish Primary School and used on a daily basis by people from the houses and flats adjoining Promenade Approach.
Dr Nicola Stacey, Director, Heritage of London Trust, said:
“The poor state of the gates has a depressing effect on the area and does not create a welcoming entrance. Our involvement is part of a huge effort to instill a sense of pride in Duke’s Meadows. The restoration will highlight the park’s 1920s origins and we’re looking forward to bringing local school pupils to visit the blacksmiths at work.”
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Image above: Acting Police Commissioner Sir Stephen House
The Metropolitan Police are hoping to be able to root out corrupt and prejudiced officers by using a “sophisticated” new technology, which will monitor the work phones and email addresses of police officers.
The software will watch for “alarming” words in a bid to rid the force of its culture of sexism and racism. It will also track the movements of officers while they are inside police stations, monitoring tasks like photocopying – as replicating large numbers of official documents could raise questions about corruption.
Acting commissioner Sir Stephen House told MPs “tens of millions” of pounds was being invested into the new technology to monitor officers. Sir Stephen said the force would also monitor factors like overtime and sickness leave to identify any problems early on.
A watchdog probe into Charing Cross Police Station revealed officers were exchanging explicit messages about rape, killing black children and homophobia. Others have been accused of swapping racist and sexist messages with Sarah Everard’s murderer Wayne Couzens.
Dame Cressida Dick resigned as commissioner earlier this year after deciding that the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, no longer had confidence in her.
Two weeks before that West London borough police commander Chief Superintendent Paul Martin was sacked for gross misconduct which included sexist bullying, misuse of police funds and failing to declare a conflict of interest. His colleague Chief Inspector Davinder Kandohla was also sacked for gross misconduct and a third officer who kept his job was also found to have breached Standards of Professional Behaviour, amounting to misconduct.
Both have denied the charges against them and are expected to return to Westminster Magistrates court for a two-day trial starting on 28 July.
Cobban and Neville were attached to The Met’s West Area Command Unit and South West Command Unit respectively.
The Met suspended PCs Cobban and Neville from duty following the charges.
Image above: Metropolitan Police officers
It’s not “just a few bad apples”, says Acting Police Commissioner
During his committee appearance, Sir Stephen admitted it was not just “a few bad apples” that are ruining the Met’s reputation and its problems go far deeper.
“Language is really important in this and people have talked about “a few bad apples”,” he told MPs.
“Quite clearly that’s not the situation at all. It’s not a few bad apples.
“You can’t simply say that Wayne Couzens and a couple of other people have done something wrong.
“That’s been the spearhead of the problem, I would suggest. But there is a wider issue within the organisation which we acknowledge and we are dealing with.”
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https://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Screenshot-2022-04-25-at-16.46.09.jpg561861Matt Smithhttps://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/TCC-white-on-white-1.pngMatt Smith2022-04-25 21:50:382022-04-26 00:37:58Met Police to monitor officers’ phones and emails for ‘alarming’ language
Photograph of the day by Jennifer Griffiths – @jengriffiths49
Image above: Chiswick Mall; photograph Jennifer Griffiths
New rules governing the Chiswick Mall Controlled Parking Zone (CPZ) came into force on Monday (25 April).
On Tuesday (19 April), the London Borough of Hounslow made an Order under the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984, which will continue the extension of the Chiswick Mall CPZ to include the lay-by in front of numbers 30-80 Burlington Lane, as currently indicated by traffic signs.
In October 2021, a partial review was carried out by the council is to determine whether the CPZ should be retained permanently (with or without alterations) or removed. Similar to previous reviews, such as one carried out in 2017, the review sought the views of those who live within the specific section of Burlington Lane on the current effectiveness of the CPZ, or otherwise, and to assess whether changes are required if the CPZ is to be retained.
Image above: map of Chiswick Mall CPZ
According to Hounslow Council:
“The CPZ was originally intended to remove commuter and other all day non-residential parking, and the scheme has largely been successful in achieving this.”
The CPZ is operational Monday to Friday 9.00am – 5.00pm.
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https://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/2021-April-1-Jennifer-Griffiths-Blossom-on-Chiswick-Mall-2.jpg6671000Matt Smithhttps://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/TCC-white-on-white-1.pngMatt Smith2022-04-25 21:42:352022-04-25 22:07:16New parking rules at Chiswick Mall come into force
Images above: images released by the British Transport Police
Police have released new images relating to an incident at East Acton Underground station in February, when a couple with two young children in prams “violently robbed” a woman on the Tube.
At 3.30pm on Wednesday 9 February, a group including a man and a woman with two prams and young children were causing a disturbance on a westbound Central Line service.
As the train reached East Acton station, the man from the group grabbed the bag of another female passenger. She tried to get her belongings back from him, before the woman he was with proceeded to pull her off the train while shouting and hitting her in the face.
The victim was pushed on the floor of the platform and was repeatedly punched and kicked in the face by the woman. The man then took the victim’s phone from her pocket before the group left the station.
Officers believe the people in the CCTV images, released on Friday 22 April, may have information which could help their investigation. The police have not identified them as suspects. If you recognise them, or have any information, you can contact BTP by texting 61016 or calling 0800 40 50 40 quoting reference 349 of 09/02/22.
Alternatively, you can call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
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https://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/east-acton-appeal-1.png280286Matt Smithhttps://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/TCC-white-on-white-1.pngMatt Smith2022-04-25 21:28:572022-04-25 21:38:58Police hoping to identify people in relation to “violent robbery” on Tube
Cricket authors (and obsessives) Peter Oborne and Richard Heller launched a podcast early in 2020 to help deprived listeners endure a world without cricket. They’re no longer deprived of cricket, but still chat regularly about cricket topics with different guests each week – cricket writers, players, administrators and fans – hoping to keep a good line and length but with occasional wides into other subjects.
Year after year the obituary section of Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack is one of its most admired features. Its tributes to people who have contributed to cricket mean a great deal to their families, friends and followers. But they also form a tapestry of cricket itself. They capture its varied settings and moods: they reveal why millions of people in all walks of life across the world have been drawn to the game. Even the briefest typically contain the germ of a novel. Their long-serving compiler is Wisden’s international editor, Steven Lynch, who discusses the 2022 edition as the guest in the latest cricket-themed podcast by Peter Oborne and Richard Heller.
Steven explains how he and his team capture the great variety of cricketing lives in the section. Former first-class and Test cricketers are included automatically and are derived from Cricinfo and other websites, but others, especially those of cricket-lovers famous in other fields, are spotted from many other sources including social media or volunteered by families and friends.
Steven explains his own challenge in writing the obituary of Prince Philip (or Edinburgh, The Prince Philip, Duke of, KG, KT, OM, OBE, AC, QSO, PC, placed in the democracy of death between Mr Dutta of India and Mr Fernando of Sri Lanka). Assuming that readers would know who he was, Steven picked out his long service to cricket: “a useful off-spinner and attacking batsman” at school… recruiting famous players into his own special teams… two Presidencies of the MCC… his eloquent Wisden tribute to ‘The Pleasures of Cricket’ … frequent visits to Lord’s, once slipping in anonymously at the North Gate to avoid protocol and flummery… in great age opening the new Warner Stand with the proud boast “You are watching the world’s most experienced plaque unveiler.”
Conversely, Matthew Engel’s brilliant tribute to the great cricket writer, David Foot, had mentioned many non-cricketing aspects of his career, including ghosting the memoirs of a lavatory attendant in Bristol’s twilight zone.
Steven reviews the overall number of deaths, slightly reduced from last year, although the section itself, swelled by tributes to three great cricketers, Ted Dexter, Ray Illingworth and Alan Davidson, is longer. Six were attributed to Covid, compared to fifteen the previous year. Three died from violence, including a young Afghan cricketer in a bomb attack near Kabul airport, two from suicide, one, an umpire, in a shocking on-field accident. In line with obituaries elsewhere, Steven said that Wisden’s had become more forthcoming about personal problems in subject’s lives, citing especially the New Zealand all-rounder Bruce Taylor, which mentions gambling addiction, a jail sentence for embezzlement, divorce and estrangement from his children. After rebuilding his life, he lost a leg to gangrene.
Steven explains that the section continued to try to redress past neglect of women’s contributions to cricket. It therefore carried an obituary of Countess Baldwin, who died in 1945. Her husband Stanley, a future Prime Minister, fell in love watching her score a fifty. Years later, when he was coping with the General Strike, she organized a meeting of the celebrated women’s White Heather Club at 10 Downing Street. Other women in the section include Jim Laker’s widow, who died last year aged 102, an Austrian lady to whom cricket was often a mystery, Chandra, daughter of the great C K Nayudu and the first woman to commentate on Indian cricket, and Eileen Ash, who died aged 110 after playing Tests before the Second World War. Probably the only MI6 operative to have played top-flight cricket, Eileen’s obituary records a remarkable list of achievements after her hundredth birthday.
There are several male centenarians in the section, including the cricket-loving Captain Tom Moore, but also a number of cricketers who died tragically young with their promise unfulfilled. Steven explains how they came to the attention of his team, along with stalwarts of their local clubs and others lesser known, such as the late Mr Cassiem, who, starting at the age of 12 in apartheid conditions, had been a popular ice cream salesman at Newlands cricket club for 55 years.
Stephen discusses the obituaries of Ray Illingworth (by Richard Whitehead, former Times obituary editor) and Ted Dexter, by himself. Dexter wrote two autobiographies: Steven believes that the gap between them might be the longest in literary history. He was particularly proud of his achievements after retirement as a player and those outside cricket, as Dexter himself had confirmed as a guest of the podcast in one of his final interviews. https://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/episode-32-the-thrill-returns-of-ted-dexter-at-the-crease/
Illingworth’s achievements as England captain were highlighted by a striking statistic: he went longer without defeat than any other new appointee.
A particularly moving entry among former Test cricketers was that of Alan Igglesden, victim of a brain tumour, who raised hundreds of thousands of pounds for other victims.
This year’s obituary section appears to contain a higher number than before of writers, commentators and photographers: Steven says that this was not deliberate and that some years seem to produce a cluster of people in different categories. Apart from the penetrating tributes to John Woodcock (another by Richard Whitehead, who had known him well), Martin Johnson and David Foot, Steven noted Ken Lawrence (a newspaper man altogether too candid as PRO for the Test and County Cricket Board) and a much troubled life of Steve Whiting of The Sun.
Finally Steven explains the selection of those famous for reasons other than cricket, including Desmond Tutu, Jimmy Greaves, Charlie Watts, Bunny Wailer and A Q Khan. In former times, Wisden obituaries of such people used to concentrate on cricket and mention their main achievements as an afterthought (as for Samuel Beckett). Now, in line with obituaries elsewhere, they give a balanced summary while explaining the subjects’ connexion with cricket. Steven explains how difficult it was to stand up the story of Tutu being refused admission to Lord’s for not wearing a tie, and the grudging admission of his dog collar. More seriously, the tribute highlights his Spirit of Cricket lecture, the only one delivered by a non-cricketer until that of Stephen Fry last year.
Peter Oborne has been the chief political commentator for the Daily Telegraph and the Daily Mail, a maker of several documentaries and written and broadcast for many different media. He is the author of a biography of Basil D’Oliveira and of Wounded Tiger, a history of Pakistan cricket, both of which won major awards.
Richard Heller was a long-serving humorous columnist on The Mail on Sunday and more briefly, on The Times. He worked in the movie business in the United States and the UK, including a brief engagement on a motion picture called Cycle Sluts Versus The Zombie Ghouls. He is the author of two cricket-themed novels A Tale of Ten Wickets and The Network. He appeared in two Mastermind finals: in the first his special subject was the life of Sir Gary Sobers.
Oborne & Heller cricketing partnership
Jointly, he and Peter produced White On Green, celebrating the drama of Pakistan cricket, including the true story of the team which lost a first-class match by an innings and 851 runs.
Peter and Richard have played cricket with and against each other for a variety of social sides, including Parliament’s team, the Lords and Commons, and in over twenty countries including India, Pakistan, the United States, Ireland, Spain, Portugal, France, Greece, Australia, Zimbabwe, New Zealand and Morocco.
The Podcast is produced by Bridget Osborne and James Willcocks at The Chiswick Calendar.
The Chiswick Calendar CIC is a community resource. Please support us by buying us the equivalent of a monthly cup of coffee (or more, if you insist). Click here to support us.
We publish a weekly newsletter and update the website with local news and information daily. We are editorially independent.
https://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/TCC-white-on-white-1.png00Peter Oborne & Richard Hellerhttps://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/TCC-white-on-white-1.pngPeter Oborne & Richard Heller2022-04-25 21:04:392022-04-26 04:20:42Episode 87: Wisden’s obituary section, a tapestry of cricket, by their master weaver Steven Lynch
It is interesting to see how businesses develop as they find their market and begin to know what’s popular and what works. The Pink Elephant was started by Chiswick resident Ian Henderson as a passion project during lockdown and has developed into a bespoke event styling brand in London.
Ian, who was born and raised in Zimbabwe and educated in Australia, brings colour and flair to the business of creating luxury events. Developing on from his initial offer last year of platters and luxury food boxes, he says The Pink Elephant has now flourished into a thriving luxury event styling business and has built up a loyal clientele.
If you’re looking for chic decor and indulgent grazing platters, founder / owner Ian Henderson is your man. From tablescaping and bubbles on ice to flower bouquets and personal tasting boxes… he will make your event fabulous.
“It’s bright, it’s fabulous, it’s chic, it’s classy. It’s all about taking you on the journey of exploring different continents, cultures & cuisine”.
Image above: The Pink Elephant table design for a hen party
Event packages
The Pink Elephant offers three event packages:
Wild is Life (£30 per person),
The Shamwari Experience (£40 per person)
The Pink Pizzazz (£50 per person).
Each package has various party size options starting from small (20 people), to medium (30 people) and large (40 people). The Pink Elephant is thrilled to announce that they will be offering Club Card members a 10% discount on any event package that they choose.
The Pink Elephant is a member of The Chiswick Calendar’s Club Card scheme and offers Club Card members a 10% discount on any event package they choose. See details of the various packages here: thepinkelephant.co.uk
Image above: A table by The Pink Elephant
Working with local businesses
The growth of a new business is always good for its suppliers and as The Pink Elephant has developed, so Ian has been able to give work to other small businesses in the UK.
He uses quality suppliers for a range of Italian and Spanish meats, nuts, olives, homemade hummus dips and baked goods such as brownies, cupcakes, nougat and honeycomb.
“At present, The Pink Elephant proudly supports over 30 small enterprises in and around the UK” he tells The Chiswick Calendar, among them Nikki’s Bakery on Chiswick High Rd for the baked goods and Wheelers on Turnham Green Terrace for the flower arrangements.
Inspired by his African upbringing, he provides Cap Classique, South African Champagne and tablemats handmade in Kenya.
So if you have a special event to plan and you want it to look fabulous and support a few local businesses along the way, the The Pink Elephant might provide the answer.
The Chiswick Calendar CIC is a community resource. Please support us by buying us the equivalent of a monthly cup of coffee (or more, if you insist). Click here to support us.
We publish a weekly newsletter and update the website with local news and information daily. We are editorially independent.
Images above: Max Donnelly inside Emery Walker’s house
“How extraordinary to have objects made by craftspeople who knew the owner”
The Emery Walker House in Hammersmith Terrace houses a collection of Arts and Craft furniture and furnishings second to none. In the last in the current series of talks organised by Emery Walker’s House Trust, on Wednesday 27 April, Max Donnelly FSA, the Curator of Furniture and Woodwork 1800-1900 at the Victoria and Albert Museum, will be talking about the furniture at Emery Walker’s house.
Max, who is also a trustee of the house, talks here to Lucinda MacPherson for The Chiswick Calendar about the special provenance of this local Arts and Craft’s home’s furnishings and ways to help small house museums without paying tax.
What’s your favourite part of the house?
“I love all of it! It’s just such a perfect, immersive experience, and what makes it so appealing and unique is the provenance of the furniture and art works and the eclectic mix.”
Anything of special interest?
“I struggle to pin point things of particular interest, but regarding the furniture, we were so delighted to be able to get two key pieces that had left the house some time ago – the bed designed by Sidney Barnsley (pictured above) and mahogany etagere designed by Philip Webb and made by Morris & Company (pictured below).
“That was the first time I’d arranged an acceptance in lieu of tax, an incredibly complex business, but meant that we could get these two pieces for the house, because of the terms which included access. The Victoria & Albert Museum acquired them to then lend them on long term loan to the house.
“These two pieces of furniture mean a lot to me because of all the paperwork and because it was such a nice way of reuniting the objects back to where they belonged. Christopher (Wilk) was determined that they should be brought back. John Brandon-Jones was the architect and when his widow died the objects were left to Emery Walker’s House. It’s a great scheme that you can find out more at the Art Council website and it’s a great way for public institutions who would struggle to raise funds for them.”
Above: Everything is carefully thought through, every measurement and every proportion. The two lovely cabinets that sit either side of the fireplace.
Who are the main furniture designers in this house?
“The Philip Webb furniture has an amazing provenance, as Walker was the executor and chief beneficiary of his will, so there are many of his pieces in the house. Webb is the father of Arts and Crafts furniture. Morris provided the conditions and was a close friend of Philip Webb, but Morris himself only designed one or two pieces of furniture, so Webb is the King of Arts & Crafts furniture and is so influential. He is so subtle and functional, it’s quite hard to pin down his style but it’s the understated quality which you see in the plan chest.
“The hanging cupboard above the bed, it’s the detailing. It’s quite shallow and elegant and then you have the lovely way the brackets dip in. These objects are beautiful in their own right, but things like the original labels showing they came direct from Webb’s office, give them that extra glow and the fact that they have not been in anybody else’s house.”
Images above: A desk designed by Ernest Barnsley (right) is another favourite, it’s in a room with quite sombre colouring so the beautiful light-coloured walnut wood really jumps out at you.
“When people try and buy Arts and Crafts interiors they buy lots of arts and crafts material and that looks great. However, what is amazing and more authentic and surprising in the Emery Walker’s House interiors, and usually you only see this in vintage photographs, you see that people had arts and crafts objects mingled with things their Granny had left them.
“It’s lovely to see antiques that they bought for their aesthetic qualities, all these elements coming together creating an interior that’s almost completely gone now, except for a place like this. You can’t recreate it, which is what makes it so special.
“And what has a particular resonance is that the Arts and Crafts designers were drawn to antiques that have the same qualities they were looking for. They analysed old chests and chairs, for instance, and drew ideas from them, which is why everything here works together so well. It all has the same spirit and ideas of having tactile qualities, an appreciation of the past and craftsmanship.
A Night At Hammersmith Terrace
“The objects all relate to each other to some extent. How extraordinary to have objects made by craftspeople who knew the owner, still displayed alongside other Arts and Crafts items in their original setting. Something special is going on and when you enter these rooms you feel like you are walking in on a conversation. It puts me in mind of the film Night at the Museum, but in this case it’s more Night at HammersmithTerrace!”
Join the conversation about this unique collection of furniture at a live, interactive talk, Furniture and the Arts and Crafts home, given by Max Donnelly on 27 April at 6.00pm, the last in this series of monthly events via Zoom organised by Emery Walker’s House Trust. Entry is by donation. Please pre-book via Emerywalker.org.uk. The house’s unique Arts & Crafts interior is open for pre-booked guided tours.
All photographs by Lucinda MacPherson
You can find out more about gifting items in lieu of tax on the Arts Council website.
The Chiswick Calendar CIC is a community resource. Please support us by buying us the equivalent of a monthly cup of coffee (or more, if you insist). Click here to support us.
We publish a weekly newsletter and update the website with local news and information daily. We are editorially independent.
https://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Picture-1.jpg678692Lucinda MacPhersonhttps://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/TCC-white-on-white-1.pngLucinda MacPherson2022-04-25 16:56:562022-04-26 01:43:06Talking Furniture with Max Donnelly at Emery Walker’s house
People often ask me if there is any animal I dislike. “No, not really”, is my response. All creatures have a place in the world and deserve respect. However, I must confess to having a love/hate relationship with grey squirrels.
Cute and fluffy grey with those big eyes and a white bib, who could resist such an endearing creature? It is not that they are an invasive species that makes our relationship strained. After all, it is not the fault of the grey squirrel that they were shipped over from America in the late 1800s to decorate British Estates. That was our doing. Neither did they plan with menace to arrive on our shores carrying squirrel pox, which has sadly added to the decline of our native Eurasian reds.
Just to prove that I do not hate the fluffy tailed grey cuties, I have hand-reared orphaned youngsters in the past. Feeding these babies whilst they hold the feeding bottle and suck away contentedly is enough to melt even the hardest of hearts. Their little eyes (once opened) stare up at you and their little paws hold on tight and if you are lucky, they might have a little snooze on the towel you have on your knee.
To see them snuggle up together is a treat. It is fun to watch them master the technique of climbing on tree branches and other natural objects put into their cage to help with their development. It is rewarding to see them ween onto solids and gain weight. These lovely babies do have a habit of changing personalities almost overnight though. I refer to it as “teenage vampire”. One morning you will go to weigh them, and they have become a flurry of angry, petulant, and rather bitey grey devils. This is the stage (after bandaging your finger) you pack them up and return them to the Rescue Centre where you volunteer. They are ready to move into an outside environment and on to the next stage of their rehabilitation and release.
Image above: an orphaned baby squirrel, orphaned baby squirrels – by Jo Gilbert
Then again, this is the behaviour you want from a rescued wild animal. You do not want them to be happy around humans. When they reach the teenage vampire stage you can congratulate yourself on a job well done. My baby squirrel rearing days are now over. You are no longer allowed to rescue, rehabilitate, and release grey squirrels by law, due to their status as an invasive species.
Grey squirrels are feisty. I am told that the red squirrel is feistier, but I have only twice had the pleasure of meeting one in the wild, so I cannot make a comparison.
Many times, I have had a woodland walk and heard quite an animated chatter above my head and been hit by small twigs or beech nuts. When looking up there was a grey having a good old shout at me. Next time you hear a lot of chatter and think it is a bird, look up, it may well be squirrels having a bit of a shouting match at you or each other.
Image above: a grey squirrel by Jo Gilbert
So, what is my problem with them?
We have had the good fortune to own a property in Devon for several years. There is an area of land that is always a bit boggy and not much use, so I planted a mixture of willow and Alder on it. Twenty-six trees in all, about 3ft tall. Living on a hill just down from Exmoor means we get a wide range of weathers. I spent 4 years in wind and rain making sure these trees did not fall over. I put guards around the Alders to keep deer from eating them. After 4 years not one tree was lost, and they were flourishing. I felt my job was done. Imagine my horror one morning to find large pieces of Willow on the ground. I mean large pieces, at least 6 foot long, and lots of them. After reminding myself that there are no giraffes in Devon, I realised the culprits were grey squirrels.
I had a chat with a forester who told me that 4 years growth is about the time squirrels take a fancy to trees. Beech, Oak and Willow being a favourite (if only I had known!). They are viewed as a menace by anyone trying to grow woodland or forests costing the forestry commission over £37 million a year.
They tend to strip the bark off the trees meaning the tree either dies, becomes infested with fungi, or is deformed and more likely to break in bad weather.
No one is sure why squirrels strip bark from trees. There are several theories. One being they desire the energy from the sap to be found below the bark. Some researchers theorise that the females tend to strip bark more during pregnancy to gain extra energy. Other researchers believe it may be a distraction/anxiety behaviour and happens when squirrel population densities are high in a particular area.
Image above: eurasian red squirrel in Dumfriesshire: Photo credit – S. J. Bromilow.
Combine the tree damage and the threat of squirrel pox to the survival of our native reds, and some may have reason to cull the grey squirrel. A more recent solution has been to introduce contraception to grey squirrel populations. These choices have created lively debates about the ethical and moral standing of such decisions. A more natural option (in my opinion) is the work of organisations such as Vincent Wildlife Trust who are reintroducing Pine Martens into areas where greys are dominant. The martens are predators of squirrels and where the red is small enough to reach thin branches that will not hold the weight of a marten, the grey cannot. The grey tends to spend more time on the ground than the red, which makes them more likely to suffer at the jaws of a hungry marten.
Of course, there was a time when we use to cull our native red squirrels for stripping bark and damaging trees. It is estimated that 82 thousand were culled across Scotland between 1903 and 1933.
This is a bit ironic, bearing in mind the first reduction in the red squirrel population numbers in Britain was when humans cut down forests in the Scottish Highlands. Damage to forests on a large scale! Reintroductions of red squirrels were made from Scandinavia coinciding with the replanting of forested areas in Scotland. So, the grey squirrel alone has not been wholly responsible for the decline of our native species.
Why do Greys fare better than the Eurasian Red?
It is worth considering why the grey appears to survive and flourish better than the reds. Firstly, they are larger in size and tend to be more robust, not suffering from the diseases that affect the reds. They can also digest foods with a high tannin content. This means they can easily digest green acorns, whereas the red must wait for them to ripen. By the time that has happened, a large part of this food resource will already have been consumed by Mr Grey. Red squirrels tend to fare better in coniferous forests (they can be found in deciduous forests, but research shows they can have poorer body condition) and the grey appears to fare well in both coniferous and deciduous woods, forests, and parklands.
Image above: eurasian red squirrel in Dumfriesshire: Photo credit – S. J. Bromilow.
This means there is more habitat suitable for the grey than the red. Fragmentation of habitat is therefore more likely to affect the red than the grey. Finally, the grey has been proven to be smarter than the red. Research at Exeter University has shown that the grey squirrel is quickest to work out puzzles to access food. This means the grey could well have the upper hand when it comes to finding food resources and adapting to new environments. Although the photograph below shows that the reds are not exactly stupid when it comes to finding a tasty hazelnut to eat!
What of my Willows? They survived the onslaught. It is a tree that doesn’t mind a bit of coppicing. So, we have a truce. Mr Grey shouts and stamps his feet at me, and I do the same back. Will I ever be shouting at a squirrel Nutkin? I doubt it. Areas of Britain are seeing the return of red squirrels but only in carefully managed areas with new conifer or mixed plantations and “buffer zones” to keep out the grey. Maybe we should just try and love what we have.
The Chiswick Calendar CIC is a community resource. Please support us by buying us the equivalent of a monthly cup of coffee (or more, if you insist). Click here to support us.
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https://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Squirrel-Jo-Gilbert.jpg427693Guest Bloggerhttps://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/TCC-white-on-white-1.pngGuest Blogger2022-04-25 16:56:512022-04-25 16:56:51A twist in the tail: To love or hate a squirrel – whatever the colour.
Image above: Home and away: Eriksen takes a corner to Spurs’ fans applause
The Christian Eriksen saga continues. The Dane who has revolutionised Brentford’s midfield worked the magic he’s produced in every game since arriving in February amid a flurry of national publicity, this time to torpedo the ambitions of the team for which he memorably played so effectively during his previous professional engagement in England.
Spurs remember him well. So do the north London fans who welcomed him to the Community Stadium like a long-lost brother. As for his teammates and the Bees’ supporters, they are aware that without Eriksen’s massive contribution to the side, it is unlikely they would be sitting snugly in eleventh place in the Premier League as the season draws to a close.
Will he stay? Will a major club snaffle his talent once the season’s contract expires? That’s a conundrum to be addressed at a later date. In the meantime, let’s appreciate his skills – often accompanied by sharp intakes of our own breath – while we can.
Spurs arrived from Tottenham in search of three more points towards a total that will guarantee them Championship League football next season. Brentford set out to be as competitive as a makeshift side would allow.
Image above: The ball reader: only Ivan Toney, right, anticipates Spurs’ change of direction
No Nørgaard. No Pinnock, No Ajer? Injuries to key members of defence and midfield plus the similarly afflicted all-rounder Canós, left so many holes in the team-sheet that it was likely to resemble a colander when called into action.
But no, Brentford went off like a collective rocket. Bryan Mbeumo skewed a shot wide within minutes of the start and an Ivan Toney header rebounded from a post to the scrambling consternation of keeper Hugo Lloris. A resolute Tottenham defence and equally so Lloris dealt with further Bees’ chances, but the traffic was mostly one-way, with Toney roaming in the constant company of a centre-back.
Image above: The first airborne: Ivan Toney in defence
At the other end, David Raya was largely untroubled, a situation that persisted throughout despite the visiting strike pairing of Harry Kane and Son Heung-min being a lethal combination when it’s their day. But this wasn’t that day and the foraging of Toney and Mbeumo produced enough penetration to suggest they are the Bees’ knees in this department.
Having had the best of the first half, Brentford emerged after the interval to discover a reinvigorated opposition. What sage advice was delivered by coach Antonio Conte to supplement the slices of lemon we’ll never know, but it seemed to do the trick. Their passing was crisper and play overall more creative, although the front three – Dejan Kulusevski completed the trio, but was just as ineffective – still struggled to strike with anything more than the potency of a dead match.
Trying long distance pot shots was also unsuccessful, with several speculative attempts flying high, wide and far-from-handsomely into touch as intermittent sunshine painted the proceedings prettily.
Eriksen was still the best player on the park and unleashed an on-the-run shot that Lloris tipped away for a corner. And slowly Brentford, aided by the substitution of Yoane Wissa and Josh Dasilva for the wearying legs of Saman Ghoddos and Mathias Jensen, re-established their grip on the game.
Image above: Kneesy does it: Jansen recaptures the ball
Kane almost pulled the points out of the fire for the visitors with a spectacular overhead scissors-kick that Raya anxiously watched flash across the face of his goal, but the closest last-gasp match-clincher was left to Toney, who connected with another Eriksen gem of a flighted ball only to see his header bounce clear from an upright.
Thomas Frank’s obvious delight at the final whistle was understandable – in the circumstances, forcing a draw with the fifth team in the League table ranks up there with the recent dismissal of Chelsea and a definitive victory over West Ham.
Some game, some performance from all concerned, but a shame about the two points that went astray, I said to my mate Charlie.
‘Ah, but who gets all the glory?’ crowed a gleeful Charlie.
Image above: Over the wall: David Raya faces Son attack
Tottenham: Lloris; Romero, Dier, Davies; Emerson Royal (sub Lucas Moura 86), Bentancur, Højbjerg, R Sessegnon (sub D Sánchez 74); Kulusevski; Son Heung-Min, Kane.
Bill Hagerty is a contributing editor of the Bees United supporters’ group
Pictures by Liz Vercoe and Will Hagerty.
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Images above: Stayo Kew Gardens apartments, living area
The first of the new apartments around Brentford Community Stadium are now available for use. Stayo, who have been providing serviced apartments for a decade, have a range of apartments for rent on the third and fourth floors of two of the new buildings, available to rent for anything between one night and six months.
The last time I drove along Capital Interchange Way beside the Brentford Fountain leisure centre, enroute for the M4, there were just hoardings masking a massive building site. Now there are several buildings not only completed but already in use. Muaaz Rizvi, Operations Director for Stayo showed me round.
They are aiming for business people primarily, maybe working at Chiswick Business Park or in town for a few days, wanting easy access to Heathrow and the north and south circular as well as a quick commute into central London. They are also targeting football and rugby fans and have already had 100% occupancy on match days.
The stadium is actually in spitting distance, not that that kind of behaviour is tolerated at football matches these days. Away fans, especially those bringing the family, often like to make a weekend of it, exploring what is on offer in the vicinity of the ground. The riverside pubs have already benefited from the corresponding uptick in trade.
The River Thames and Kew Gardens are a short walk away. A bit further in the other direction and visitors will be able to sample the delights of Chiswick High Rd. Good for incoming business people and football fans but also handy for residents’ extended family and friends here for big occasions. Great also for Chiswick’s hospitality businesses.
Images above: Stayo Kew Gardens apartments, bedroom and kitchen / dining area
‘Stayo Kew Gardens’ has 42 apartments available to rent – a mix of one, two and three bedrooms. Studio apartments start from £100, with three bedroom apartments £500 – £600 per night. Rates are flexible according to the season and the length of stay.
They are surprisingly spacious. I had a tour of a one bedroom and a three bedroom and neither felt cramped or poky, as the rooms in other new developments I’ve seen in Brentford have been. Although the windows mostly look out onto a building site at the moment, that will soon change, and many of the apartments have private outside balconies, which add to the sense of space.
“When someone goes away, what we’re trying to offer them is an experience that’s better than a hotel” says Muaaz. “Nowhere is like home but we’ve made sure you have everything you need for a comfortable stay.”
The apartments are nicely furnished and well-equipped in neutral, inoffensive colours, with a few pictures dotted about and lift access from the lobby. The kitchens include crockery and cutlery, a microwave, kettle and toaster as well as cooker, fridge and washing machine. The nearest supermarket is a five-minute walk away at Kew Bridge.
Images above: Stayo Kew Gardens apartments, living room area and bedroom
Unlike a hotel you are expected to do your own cleaning. You will find a pile of freshly laundered towels on the bed, but they will not be whipped away and refreshed the next morning. There is a washing machine and you will also find a hoover for your convenience. (Longer term guests may reach a slightly different arrangement. These things are up for negotiation, says Muaaz).
Stayo also aims to be both welcoming and easy to access. You can pick up the phone and speak to a human being about the booking and there is a concierge available from 8am to 8pm, but equally you could book online and arrive in the middle of the night, punch in your code, access your keys and let yourself in without speaking to a living soul, and without any waiting around.
You may have difficulty finding it at first, as satnavs have yet to catch up with Thomas Layton Way, TW8 OSJ, but for anyone local, it’s on the bend of the cut through on the way to the motorway.
Stayo are offering Chiswick Calendar Club Card members a brilliant 20% off. Ring them on 0203 198 2384 or book online, quoting the promotional code Stayo20.
See the list of apartments available to rent here: stayo.com
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https://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Stayo-apartments-1_web.jpg10571410Bridget Osbornehttps://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/TCC-white-on-white-1.pngBridget Osborne2022-04-25 15:00:452022-04-25 20:11:48New serviced apartments beside Brentford Community Stadium available for rent
A 14-year-old girl from Twickenham who went missing last week has been found “safe and well”, the Met Police have said.
Clementine Reardon was reported as missing on Thursday 21 April and was last seen near Acton Central station at 3.00pm. She left home without her mobile or money.
A number of appeals for information were issued by her worried family and by police on social media, who were becoming increasingly concerned for her welfare.
Her father Graeme urged anyone with knowledge of her whereabouts to come forward, writing on Facebook: “We are very worried about her and need her home.”
He said: “We are eternally grateful for everyone’s help.”
Chiswick celebrities helped publicise the search, including friends of the family Georgia Tennant and singer Sophie Ellis-Bextor, who tweeted:
“This is a friend’s daughter so please let the police know if you see Clementine.”
Richmond Police thanked the public for spreading the word.
The Chiswick Calendar CIC is a community resource. Please support us by buying us the equivalent of a monthly cup of coffee (or more, if you insist). Click here to support us.
We publish a weekly newsletter and update the website with local news and information daily. We are editorially independent.
Featuring an all-star cast, this ‘gender-bending’ anthology series weaves together eight feminist tales which examine subjects such as gender roles, autonomy and identity. Available to watch on Apple +
Based on a book by the same name, this anthology series is a collection of eight short films (30 stories in the book), all about women, in what feels like a mixture between Aesop’s fables, The Twilight Zone and Black Mirror, merging horror, surrealism, social issues, dark comedy and probably more…
Each story is very different from the others and they should probably all be reviewed independently, but they all have things in common: they’re all modern fairy tales about female empowerment, beautifully filmed, with a great cast (Nicole Kidman among many) and to a degree they all have great premises, but they all fail to go beyond the simple one-line synopsis and do something really meaningful with it.
The Woman Who Disappeared is about Wanda (Issa Rae) an author who’s in LA for a movie deal on one of her books, but who soon realises what it’s like for a Black woman to be in an industry run by mostly white men: invisible. An interesting start, but just when you are becoming invested in the concept, it all just peters out.
In The Woman Who Ate Photographs Nicole Kidman in trying to grapple with her mother’s dementia, discovers that by eating her childhood photographs she can relive those memories. And that’s pretty much it. Nothing else happens. A bit of a disappointment and a waste of a great Nicole Kidman.
Zero subtlety for chapter 3, The Woman Who Was Kept on a Shelf in which a model whose only life purpose seems to have been competing in beauty pageants, is kept by her husband on a shelf as a trophy. A rather cheap premise, which is so on the nose that it’s just embarrassing, but once again a great central performance Betty Gilpin.
In The Woman Who Found Bite Marks on Her Skin a woman struggling to balance her job and her life as a mother and wife, discovers strange bite marks all over her body (they are clearly a metaphor for the guilt she feels in neglecting her family).
Chapter 5 is The Woman Who Was Fed by a Duck in which Merrit Weves begins to date… a talking duck! Yes you heard me right… And believe it or not, there’s even a sex scene with it. Enough said.
The Woman Who Solved Her Own Murder stars Alison Brie as a ghost who unhappy about how the local detectives are handling the case of her murder, begins to investigate herself. A pretty obvious one, but rather fun.
The Woman Who Returned Her Husband tackles the realities of Indian women in arranged marriages. Meera Syal plays Anu, a woman who after many years of marriage decides to return her husband to a store and try some new ones. This was probably one of the best ones: sweet and funny and with rather predictable ending, but an ending nonetheless.
The final story, The Girl Who Loved Horses is a classic western tale of revenge, though with a woman at the centre of it. By this time I was just so bored I couldn’t wait for it to finish.
All of these stories are pretty clumsy, they lack subtleties and hit you over the head with their “not-so-well-hidden” meanings. In the end they pretty much all fail to really get under the skin of the issues they are trying to raise, instead they just trivialise them and simplify them too much making a mockery of the ultimate message they want to deliver. And just when they’re about to get interesting, they end… Just like this review.
Andrea Carnevali is a Bafta winning film maker who lives in Chiswick
The Chiswick Calendar CIC is a community resource. Please support us by buying us the equivalent of a monthly cup of coffee (or more, if you insist). Click here to support us.
We publish a weekly newsletter and update the website with local news and information daily. We are editorially independent.
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https://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Roar-4.jpg18751250Andrea Carnevalihttps://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/TCC-white-on-white-1.pngAndrea Carnevali2022-04-25 09:04:232022-05-03 13:23:09Andrea’s film review – Roar
The son of Zeus and Hera is stripped of his immortality as an infant and must become a true hero in order to reclaim it. On Disney+
Hercules (which celebrate 25 years this year) has all the trademarks and characteristics of classic Disney animation from the ‘90s: the classic fairy-tale, the songs, the fast-paced irreverent jokes, the funny anachronisms, the usual stock characters (Baddy? Check. Cute animal? Check. Side character/comic relief played by a famous actor? Check Check Check).
There’s nothing really wrong with it per se, in fact it’s perfectly watchable and my son seemed to have enjoyed it, but watching it last night, I couldn’t help feeling it is a bit of a side-show to better ‘90s Disney products, like Aladdin. It definitely plays it a bit too safe. It’s not irreverent enough, nor does it push any boundaries in terms of storytelling or animation.
They tried to do something a bit different with some of the songs, adding a Gospel twist, but most of them are pretty standard. Go the Distance by Michael Bolton is the only redeeming song in the whole film, though even that one doesn’t sound too dissimilar from many others before (Pocahontas’s Just around the riverbend for example).
Today very few talk about this one in the ever-expanding Disney catalogue. This is possibly because of the lack of any memorable scene and especially of any inspiring or interesting characters. Let’s face it, Hercules himself is a bit dull: Tate Donovan’s voice is perfectly serviceable, but hardly memorable (interesting bit of trivia: Ricky Martin provided the voice for the Spanish-language edition).
The little winged horse Pegasus doesn’t really do much and has zero relevance to anything that’s happening on the screen. Even Danny DeVito, while fitting the character perfectly in its appearance, is just about enough funny to get away with it, but to be honest I’ve only watched the film last night and I can hardly remember a single joke (though I do remember the slightly misogynist approach to women he seems to have, which definitely dates the film!)
James Wood tries to add some verve to his fast-talking Hades, who flares red whenever he becomes enraged, but he never really comes across as threatening as some of the best baddies in the Disney canon. The fact he was based on a Hollywood agent or a car salesman type probably explains why.
At the time the film was famously dismissed by the Greek media as “another case of foreigners distorting history and culture just to suit their commercial interests”, but interestingly a live-action remake (of course) is apparently being developed by Walt Disney Pictures.
Hopefully they’ll be able to give it a little bit more character and weight.
There’s a lot worse you can do with your kids and this is a pretty innocent and harmless film, but don’t expect a classic.
Andrea Carnevali is a Bafta winning film maker who lives in Chiswick
The Chiswick Calendar CIC is a community resource. Please support us by buying us the equivalent of a monthly cup of coffee (or more, if you insist). Click here to support us.
We publish a weekly newsletter and update the website with local news and information daily. We are editorially independent.
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https://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Hercules-3.jpg11242000Andrea Carnevalihttps://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/TCC-white-on-white-1.pngAndrea Carnevali2022-04-25 08:42:522022-04-25 08:42:52Andrea’s film review – Hercules
Follows the man who survived an assassination attempt by poisoning with a lethal nerve agent in August 2020. During his months-long recovery he makes shocking discoveries about the attempt on his life and decides to return home. Navalny is showing at the Curzon and it’s available for streaming on its website, as well as free on BBC iplayer: Navalny
I’ve been making documentaries for about 28 years, but if somebody asked me what kind of films I’d like to make, I would probably answer “one like Navalny”. Which might give you an idea of how much I liked it.
It doesn’t even feel like fly-on-the-wall documentary, it’s constructed, edited and scored more like a real edge-of-your-seat thriller. In the cinema where I watched it the audience gasped, laughed, held its breath and was gripped, as we followed Alexei Navalny, the Russian opposition leader, recovering in Germany after an attempt on his life, putting the pieces together as he tried to find out who tried to poison him (and almost succeeded) and finally getting ready for his return home… whatever the consequences.
Right at the start of the film Navalny is asked by director Daniel Roher what kind of message he wants to send his Russian people if he gets killed. Navalny stops him straight away “Oh, come on, Daniel! No, no way. It’s like you’re making movie for the case of my death! This is a thriller!” And boy, it really is!
There’s a sequence half way through in which he’s trying to catch a possible murderer red-handed, with a phone call, which is so tense that I must have held my breath as if I was underwater for minutes for fear of making any noise.
One of the (many) striking things about this film is the incredible access they managed to get (though we will find out right at the end, that some was concealed from them too). You really feel privileged to be so up-close and personal with this Navalny.
The picture that comes out is one of a confident man, with great charisma (he’s very good in front of a camera), a wonderful sense of humour and one who is exceptionally brave.
Of course we also watch this with a little bit of hindsight. 18 months after his interview for the film Navalny is still in a Russian prison with little hope of coming out anytime soon. All of which makes the documentary even more poignant. At the same time everything that’s going on in Ukraine right now, adds an extra layer of urgency to the whole thing.
It is obvious that Roher has an agenda and his anti-Putin sentiments are very apparent throughout the film, but that doesn’t stop him asking Navalny some uncomfortable questions about his nationalist past. At some point Roher even leaves his camera running and films some revealing behind the scenes with his man, showing how much he’s aware of being in front of camera (“your eyes are too harsh” he’s whispered at some point by an assistant. “Smile a bit”) as well as some of his insecurities (“My English is not good enough”). They are small moments, perfectly calibrated and intentionally well-placed in the film, which make Navalny even more human and likeable than he already is.
Whether it’s actually Roher directing or Navalny himself pulling the strings behind the scenes is not 100% clear, but that doesn’t make this film any less gripping, entertaining and infuriating at the same time.
Navalny won both the documentary audience award and the festival favourite award at the Sundance Festival and it’s not hard to see why.
It is a timely, important, daring and inspiring piece of work, as well as a terrifying and depressing testament to the power that the current Russian leader still holds over his country (and the rest of the world).
On a side note, it’s interesting to notice how this film has glorious reviews everywhere (rightly so) and yet it mysteriously scores only 5.6 (out of 10) on the IMDB website. Spooky.
One thing you can do is go and watch it and tell your friends too!
Andrea Carnevali is a Bafta winning film maker who lives in Chiswick
Navalny is showing at the Curzon and it’s available for streaming on its website: homecinema.curzon.com
The Chiswick Calendar CIC is a community resource. Please support us by buying us the equivalent of a monthly cup of coffee (or more, if you insist). Click here to support us.
We publish a weekly newsletter and update the website with local news and information daily. We are editorially independent.
To subscribe to the weekly newsletter, go here nbsp;
https://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Navalny-1.jpg9001600Andrea Carnevalihttps://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/TCC-white-on-white-1.pngAndrea Carnevali2022-04-25 08:30:422022-04-26 15:32:58Andrea’s film review – Navalny
An American Werewolf in London ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ Review by Andrea Carnevali
Two American college students on a walking tour of Britain are attacked by a werewolf that none of the locals will admit exists. Available to stream on StarzPlay for free, or you can find it on most of the major streaming platforms.
What better excuse to re-visit this classic than its 40th anniversary?
I would have loved to have been able to see people’s reactions at the time, watching this unusual mix of horror, gore and comedy. It was certainly a first! And you know what? 40 years later, this film works just as well.
The comedy feels just as funny and fresh (“Mom, a naked man has stolen my balloon!”) and the horror is still damn scary. The whole atmosphere director John Landis creates in the woods at the start the film, or the scene in the Tube station. This film still contains one of the biggest jump-scare I can ever remember in any film (the nightmare within a nightmare).
But the real novelty here was actually to see both genres working at the same time within the same scenes as you keep finding yourself laughing and covering your eyes at the same time: the sequence in the X-rated cinema juxtaposing what’s happening on the screen with what’s happening in the auditorium is a prime example how skilfully handled that mix is. And of course the final mayhem in Piccadilly Circus, so masterfully choreographed and edited, still works beautifully.
The choice of music was also very inspired, from the old classics Blue Moon (and its wacky rendition over the end credits), to Moondance by Van Morrison, another example of a counter-intuitive choice that actually works brilliantly.
And then of course the special effects, which were revolutionary at the time and still very effective 40 years later.
It may have lost some of its edge and yes it does have some flaws (the abrupt ending always bugged me a little bit), but this is still one of my favourite horror movies of all time, with unique moments which have hardly been done better since.
A little trivia for my residents in Chiswick, some of the interiors (David’s room and the office in which Dr Hirsch is questioned by the police) were actually filmed at Chiswick Maternity Hospital in Netheravon Road South, London SW4, which was closed in 1975 (and eventually demolished) and served as location for several other BBC productions.
Andrea Carnevali is a Bafta winning film maker who lives in Chiswick
An American Werewolf in London is available to stream on StarzPlay for free, or you can find it on most of the major streaming platforms.
The Chiswick Calendar CIC is a community resource. Please support us by buying us the equivalent of a monthly cup of coffee (or more, if you insist). Click here to support us.
We publish a weekly newsletter and update the website with local news and information daily. We are editorially independent.
To subscribe to the weekly newsletter, go here nbsp;
https://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/An-American-Werewolf-in-London-3.jpg18241164Andrea Carnevalihttps://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/TCC-white-on-white-1.pngAndrea Carnevali2022-04-24 08:01:072022-04-25 08:08:54Andrea’s film review – An American Werewolf in London
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Domizia Conti, care manager for Home Instead in Chiswick, talked to The Chiswick Calendar about the signs to look out for, as they are so varied they are often missed or mistaken as signs of other illnesses.
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