Walking wear to bags and and my favourite relish

I spent an hour the past Wednesday afternoon drinking tea and eating divine cake full of large chunks of crystallised ginger which filled the mouth after every bite with childhood memories of Tate & Lyle black treacle. Jo at the Local not Global Deli is a star. I took two slices home with me plus a bottle of Henderson Relish, about which there will be more later. I also did some writing. Stories are often prompted by location and cafés are great starting points.

If I had the time I would blog about no more than Beeston and what it has to offer. It keeps me happy. Oh it has its little frustrations, but everywhere does in my experience.

A year ago this month I had intended to visit a new shop about to open in the original Mish Mash Gallery shop, but tiredness was then beginning to creep over me and I had little energy for anything. I was close to becoming an invalid as I waited for open heart surgery to repair a faulty aortic heart valve I had lived with for 73 years. The operation took place on 27 February this year and was a complete success. Most days go by without me giving it a thought. I go to Chilwell Olympia twice a week to attend cardiac exercise classes, which I enjoy, then there's the shopping, the cooking and the garden (Susan and I share the chores). My family have become more attentive and I enjoy that. I have friends I don't see as often as I wish, stories I write, I want to write and to type up, then I want to walk more. So I could go on, suffice to say that my days are full and enjoyable, apart from the fact that it is now Susan's turn to have health problems. I simply cannot do everything I want to and I have to pace myself. My doctor has advised me 'to slow down' and, as Susan says, I listen to her, and she's right. Anyway, about a month ago I finally went into Base Camp on Chilwell Road to have a look around intending to post this piece within a couple of days, but I didn't! So apologies to Basecamp for being so late(reach their Facebook page vis the Mish Mash Gallery - I don't do Facebook).

The shop is a bit like a tardis, far more inside than you would think possible from the outside. It specialises in high end outdoor clothing, shoes and leisurewear, but there were some good offers the day I was there. Having bought a new lightweight down stormproof winter coat from Jack Wolfskin in the last month I thought Basecamp prices were comparable.

The owner of Basecamp was his travels the day I visited, but the person in charge told me that all the crockery and 'home extras' (my phrase) on display and for sale had been found by the owner on his travels. 

If you're looking for good quality outdoor gear then Basecamp is worth a visit. Even if you're in search of a bargain. Go and see for yourself, then drop into the Mish Mash Gallery and end up with a coffee and a waffle in Froths, which has re-branded itself The Froth Waffle House.

NOW THAT RELISH!

On one of the family visits recently we all went down to The Last Post for Sunday lunch. Six grown-ups and we got a table at 12.30pm (the rush began not long after). The service was good, so was the food. Weatherspoon's falls into the 'reliable' category. Its portions are good and usually come to the table hot. The chips are crisp and fluffy, which is good, but a little too salty for my taste, but 'over seasoning' is something all too many eateries and restaurants are guilty of. However, what got them 5 ✮✮✮✮✮s was this:

Henderson's Relish!

I grew up on Worcester Sauce in Wembley. It sat on the table every meal, put on toast, cheese, fish, soup you name it. Susan thought when she met me that I 'murdered' some of my meals with the stuff. Pop, my grandfather, was a great fan. In truth I limited myself to soups, Welsh Rarebit and Fish 'n' Chips.

Then in 1975 I moved to Mansfield to live with Susan and my boss at the time suggested that I base myself in the charity's Sheffield office. That is where I was quickly converted to Henderson's Relish — a more subtle taste than Worcester Sauce. So for a good few years we had both relishes (for that is what they are) in the house, but when the charity left me in 1983 my Sheffield days came to an end and eventually Henderson's Relish disappeared from our larder when my supply run out, occasionally replaced when my new job took to me Barnsley, as it did every few months.

Henderson's Relish came back into my life big time when the Local not Global Deli opened and I was an early user, years before we moved to Beeston, and, there, there, on a shelf for sale was, yes, Henderson's Relish! In the end it replaced its rival completely, which I now only use when out, although few places have Worcester Sauce. let alone Henderson's Relish. I particularly like it on Fish 'n' Chips and cheese on toast. I know I've said that already, but I like it so much it bears repeating.

Weatherspoon's Beeston Last Post is the first place I have ever found outside South Yorkshire, on the table or available, Henderson's Relish, so I will be going there for more meals (Worcester Sauce is something you always have to ask for and, sometimes, the kitchen will let you use their bottle, standing over you as you do. This act tells you that Worcester Sauce is more treasured than truffles because the latter they allow you to eat alone).

If anyone from The Lost Post reads this, I beg you to make sure Henderson's Relish is always, always, available.

IQUAZU BAGS FINALLY GET THEIR MOMENT

Another shop I like is Iguazu. When I can't get to Five Leave Bookshop in town (as I think of Nottingham City Cente — a hangover from my Wembley days which ended 51 years ago) I usually buy blank cards from them for letter writing.

In the window there was this notice (see below), but it wasn't until last week I finally went into see what was new for myself.

I left with some goodies, three presents for family and friends. The bags at £6 I thought a good buy. I've been using a similar bag from the Eden Project in Cornwall for well over then years, so I know how well they last. The socks are made from Bamboo. Until I saw them I didn't know that Bamboo was used to make clothing. My feet are size 12–13 and had Iguazu had them in my size I would have a few pairs for myself. They felt lovely and have beneficial properties which makes bamboo better than cotton. My daughter is going to be the lucky recipient of the socks in the photo.

Oh I could write about recent visits to Beeston shops, but there will be other mornings to blog I am sure. 

The week ahead has already filled up, so invites I intended to make or accept are on hold until I have 'a window' free. What was the doctor said about 'slowing down'? No doubt the nurse will remind me next week when I go for my half-year 'oldies' check-up.

Mish Mash brings a touch of Alice to Chilwell – and maybe Mary Poppins too!

Yesterday I visited the new look Mish Mash Gallery at the junction of Cator Lane and Chilwell High Road.

Through the entrance and I was immediately taken Alice-like into a long corridor full of ceramics, paintings, prints, photographs, hand-made crafts and jewellery artfully displayed to draw you into the gallery.

To the right are a number of small workshops, all bar one already occupied by Cyrilyn Silver, Prisma Clothing, Gary Thomas photography and crafts, and Pretty Splitty, who specialise in 'camper van commissions'. The workshops are rented out by Mish Mash and there is a good chance visitors will be lucky enough to see the occupants hard at work.  

Mish Mash is best described as a contemporary gallery and this has to be its great strength. 

Some may look at the work of local artist Dan Cullen and catch a whiff of nostalgia, Edward Hopper's 'Nighthawks' from 1942 for example, whereas I would describe his work as ethereal, rooted in a reality easy to see once you know where it is. There are number of Beeston related limited edition prints by Dan for sale in Mish Mash.

Below is a cropped image from Dan Cullen's print 'Acacia Walk', offering viewers a different take on Beeston High Road. The edition is limited to 40 copies, costing £70 unframed, £120 framed.

I could have lingered far longer in Mish Mash, but the smell of coffee was pulling me towards the far end of the display corridor and then I saw it, the Froth coffee shop and eatery. Tuesday afternoon and a few tables occupied by mums with buggies and young children, otherwise quieter than usual.

Froth (which I have called 'Frothy' on some of my Beeston maps by mistake) opened in January 2016 and followed in the footsteps of Fusion. It is the creation of James Thomas (left) and James Kellett (right), who began doing drinks, cake and toasties, but now do a wide range of snacks for the hungry visitor, including ice-cream. I have been visiting (not nearly enough) since they opened and like the quiet ambience of Froth, even more attractive as a Beeston coffee destination now that Mish Mash is up and running again.

On the wall in Froth is the guitar pictured below. It reminded me of Fusion and the guitar classes it ran for a while. James (the Kellett one) told me he got it from AJ, who used to run Fusion, and is trying to play the guitar. I suspect he is being modest, for I found out during our chat that he is a singer-songwriter and that the other James plays guitar.

Some reading this post may have visited Froth recently when it was a Beeston Oxjam venue. Perhaps next year James and James will do their own thing in Froth as part of Beeston Oxjam 2017? I hope so. 

Another item on a Froth wall is this rather ancient bicycle. Shades of Mary Poppins. I see a story here for all the kids who come to Froth. I would tell them it is her actual bike. She came on a flying visit and left pushing a buggy, and those in the know say Mary Poppins still calls in from time to time, looks up at her old bicycle and, for a moment, wonders about flying away, but she always leaves with a buggy instead because she likes Beeston and Chilwell that much!

And, and if children look very carefully as they walk along Chilwell High Road, Chilwell Road and Beeston High Road, they may just see Mary Poppins pushing her buggy. I know this story is true, because I have seen her and, if you look hard enough, you will see her too!

Finally, keep an eye open for more changes in the pipeline, which you should be able to see from Chilwell High Road as you pass by. Even better, call in and have a look around. Mish Mash and Froth welcome visitors. There is limited car parking (entrance off Cator Lane).

The Tram stops three minutes walk away (I've timed it) at 'High Road-Central College' (off the tram you walk away from Beeston). Even better Nottingham City Transport bus route 36 stops stops outside (towards Chilwell) on Cator Lane, together with Trent-Barton bus route 18. Trent-Barton's Indigo bus route on stops outside on Chilwell High Road, as does Your Bus route Y5. 

Another year, another day, so we begin again

Several folk have commented on my decision to pull the plug on Beeston Week and yesterday, after Susan and I spent the morning on a long wander around Beeston, I decided to continue, but without the pressure of feeling the need to do weekly posts. From now on they will come as the mood takes me.

Mish Mash will morph into One Off in a few months time. In readiness for the change, the gallery front has had a makeover. More nearer the time. For now, just enjoy how the gallery sparkles at night. Still the best place in Beeston to buy that special card you are looking for. RH.

Yesterday we walked from our home off Wollaton Road to the Local Not Global Deli on Chilwell Road (opposite its junction with Imperial Road), where we had long slow coffees with some of Jo's delicious chocolate cake, then onto Fabric Place, which was closed, but never mind we were going to the Mish Mash Gallery anyway, where we chatted with Gary and two other folk, who followed us down from Jo's.

Then it was back towards Beeston and a visit to ArtWorks, opposite the Local Not Global Deli, where we bought some more bits and pieces, then a visit to a very empty main post office with a parcel. I have never been in there before and seen staff sitting at their counters waiting for customers. Hallams had queues longer than Christmas, yet we walked into an empty Barnsdale Butchers and came out with a fine shoulder of pork for today's lunch, when we are being joined by old neighbours and close friends from Lenton.

A final call at Out of this World on Villa Street, then back up the Wollaton Road and home. Four hours in all.

We dined on lettuce sandwiches after eating cheese from Jo's every day for nearly a week. The best cheese in Beeston. Her secret is to stock not too much, but what she does is good, very good. It's the same with her pale ales. On any other Thursday, I would have come home with a thermos full of her pork goulash, but we had a chunky homemade golden vegetable soup waiting to be finished.

In all this you have a clue what Beeston Week is morphing into — the 'topical' has gone from my strap line. Contemporary affairs will be left to others. OK, there may be the odd foray and there will be buses, always a topical subject to some, but for me they are a lifelong source of joy and pleasure, nerd that I am.

For me, 2016 is going to be a year of writing and starting a memoir using personal photographs as prompts and I suspect that these will find their way onto my Wembley Memories blog, which has been dormant for over two years.

A PS.

The Nottingham Daily Photo blog has Beeston connections and by chance he has chosen a bus photograph he took as his 'Photograph of the Year'.



You can read more and see Christopher Frost's many other excellent photographs by clicking on the link above the photograph.

Beeston Artways – by bus tram & train

I hope the diagrammatic map which follows speaks for itself. I have been prompted by favourable comments to have ten copies printed off A3 size which can be bought only from Mish Mash Gallery on Chilwell High Road or the White Lion pub at the junction of Station Road and Middle Street. They each have five copies for sale and I have described it as a 'limited edition map'. I will print updated copies as and when the first ten have been sold.

Simply click on the map to enlarge.

Here are two sections of the map close-up:

The map has been created to publicise Beeston's easy accessibility to a range of art venues by public transport and the fact that it has its own 'Creative Corner' and White Lion, pub both selling original works of art by local artists and crafts people. Both deserve our support.

Table 8 to Marvellous Furniture via Beeston Lock and Mish-Mash

Yesterday was my kind of day. Good food, an amble, a touch of serendipity, and inspiration.

At mid-day Susan and I walked down Wollaton Road to have lunch at Table 8 and were there for a good two hours. I will let the food speak for itself. It was wonderful and, despite the temptation of grilled haddock with mussels, I went for black pudding on the basis that I cook fish and mussels at home, but never black pudding, despite the fact that I love it. I am not sure how I will get pass black pudding if it is on the lunch-time menu the next time we go to Table 8. Truly, truly delicious.

We both had the same pudding, despite my love of creme caramel and anything with custard. It took me thirty minutes to eat as I placed little spoonfuls in my mouth one at a time and let them desolve. A Tom Jones of a pud.

The coffee came with yet more chocolate. If you haven't been, don't delay. All this cost just £34 — great value and the service was friendly and welcoming. At the end we felt ready for our walk to Beeston Lock.

Down by Beeston Canal it was quiet and the air was still and warm. The water still like a pond.

By chance we came across a Canal & River Trust table inviting passers-by to join, so we did. Siobhan here took our money and now we are registered supporters — something we have meant to do since the Trust came into existence. 

I took this view of Beeston Lock and the keeper's old cottage. It looks a picture and I suspect gets photographed thousands of times a year.

The reason for the lock and Beeston Canal is the weir just to the south of the canal. In the old days, there was an arm of the canal which linked to Trent not far to the left-hand side of this picture, but that closed a long time ago. On the day of our visit the water was flowing very fast and the roar was close to deafening.

Between the weir and the lock is a collection of boarded up cottages. I took this pic from the footbridge across the long abandoned arm I mentioned above. These cottages and this whole area will be transformed over the next few years into the Canalside Heritage Centre. The local volunteers behind the project have just been awarded a large grant by the Heritage Lottery Fund to turn the site into a museum, exhibition space, education resource, café and a centre of canal related activity and events.

From now on I will go back every few months and picture what is happening from the footbridge.It should look very different a few years from now.

A little further along the Trent past the lock, as you walk towards Attenborough and Sawley, we came across this. Someone with a sense of humour.

We had intended to have tea and cake at Fusion and buy a replacement piece of glass from Created by Hand, but they had none made, so we have a good excuse to return soon. In the end we didn't have tea or cake. We were still feeling full after our lunch at Table 8.

Across the road from Chilwell's Creative Corner is the above fine looking parade of shops and the place we wanted to visit was Marvellous Furniture. Here is part of the above pic showing the right-hand side larger.

We were not sure what to expect and inside we found a shop selling good quality old furniture at reasonable prices in a stylish manner, arranging items in a way which ensured there was plenty of space to view every item. A real joy of a shop.

The Mish Mash Gallery, which is part of Chilwell's Creative Corner, is a great place to buy cards and small limited edition prints, as well as original works of art, and whilst there I fell for a photograph measuring 22" wide x 5" high, titled 'Whitby Panorama' by Tony Brodrick. You get some sense of its size in this photograph above, which shows my personal pinboard with the panorama resting along the bottom until I find it a permanent home.

What attracted me was the detail and the depth. The above close-up of part of the panorama shows clearly what I mean. It looks more like a model than a photograph. The reason I bought it was because it fitted in well with some ideas I have in my head for taking my Beeston map to its next stage by trying to include hand-drawn streetscapes of sections of Beeston High Road and other town centre shopping streets. I have some examples from hand-drawn streetscapes of London and other cities. Whatever I do will be completely new to me, but I want to have a go anyway.

Those of you living in the area will know all these places, but I am writing as much for would-be visitors as locals. Beeston and Chilwell have a great deal to offer and I would argue that you could easily come to Beeston for a week's holiday and never go near Nottingham or ride on a bus , except for a few stops.

As I said right the start, yesterday was my kind of day.

See Creative Corner and you have arrived

The view a good many of us  have of the Mish Mash Gallery is from a Indigo or Y5 bus, or a car, and that is as close as we get, yet if we are coming to towards Beeston this is the marker we are likely to use to tell us that we have, for all intents and purposes, arrived in Beeston. My first Pubs and Cafés map from 2013 never quite got this far, but I knew of it and thought it was further out of Beeston than it actually is. It was not until last Friday that I realised it was on the corner of the High Road with Cator Lane.

If your usual bus is a 18/20 or a 36, this is the view you will see of Chiwell's Creative Corner:

Inside Mish Mash is stylish and welcoming. This is just one view. During my visit two artists came in with folios and I bought a lovely little hare brooch. Altogether I spent an enjoyable fifteen minutes browsing before a rumbling tummy started pulling me the direction of the Fusion Café next door.

From the quick view I had, I thought it was going to be small, but once through the door there is a surprise in store, it opens out to the right behind the Mish Mash Gallery Tardis like. I was welcomed by the delicious smell of black coffee and a food cabinet full of treats, where a quiche caught my eye.

I was waiting at the counter, my black Americano being made, when a man burst in through the café's front door, took one look at me, and said 'Are you the map man' and before I could reply added 'I've emailed you this morning. I've seen your map'.

Now it was my turn. 'I know' I said 'It doesn't include the Creative Corner or the Fusion Café, but by Monday it will I promise' (and for once, I was as good as my word. I am afraid that all too often my enthusiasm runs away with me).

The man then introduced himself as 'A-J' and we ended up chatting for nearly two hours and were joined for a while by Garry Thomas, who founded Mish Mash and the Creative Corner with his wife Gail. At the end of our chat, we were setting up a Creative Corner writers group and A-J was creating a logo as we talked. His enthusiasm was infectious and I enjoyed his bubbly company.

And here I caught A-J in the act, with Garry beside him. It was all so unexpected and I eventually left in no doubt that this is how they are with everyone. As for Ceative Corner Writers? See the end of this post.

I left Fusion with another piece of knowledge: coffee is grown in Thailand and tastes even better than it smells. Undoubtedly the best coffee I have ever had in Beeston and A-J even does real tea in a pot. The quiche was yummy like creamy custard and came with a small salad on the side.

I didn't take any interior photographs because a few minutes after I arrived some mums with toddlers and babies arrived, all clearly at home — always a good sign — and one corner was full of guitars. A-J told me he runs guitar and drum classes. A older couple came in and the man could not resist picking up one of the guitars and began to play, telling A-J he had played a guitar for forty years. Hearing about the guitar classes he asked for details and said he would go along. 

I said my goodbyes and made my way next door to Created By Hand, selling craft goods and ceramics, plus cards and jewellery. I was welcomed by a lady who introduced herself as Hazel, the wife of the gallery's proprietor, David Humphreys, who works with glass.

  This is just one view of inside Created By Hand — I don't want to take away the fun of discovering more for yourselves. Now there is a good chance that if you are a local reading this blog post none of what I have been enthusing about will come as news, but if Beeston is normally off your radar, then this is a good example of what you are missing.

Chilwell's Creative Corner is also home to the Greenfingers Florist, who relocated from the shops opposite, after being closed for a few months because of the loss of passing customers when tram construction work began.

There is also a small gallery called Attik, which was closed at the time of my visit, and above Mish Mash is Tranquility, offering 'holistic therapies'.

The sad thing is that despite how tram construction work has impacted on Creative Corner and the shops opposite, they are outside the 'Beeston BID' area (BID stands for 'Business Improvement District). Make no mistake, this is where my Beeston now begins or ends depending on which way I am travelling and the good news is that my Beeston Pubs and Cafes Map now includes A-J's Fusion Café and Creative Corner.

There can be few better days out than a perambulation from here to the east end of Beeston High Road where it ends at Humber Road. Good cafés, galleries and craft shops, waiting to be enjoyed and explored. The buses may not have brought visitors to Beeston in droves, but The Tram should. I am forever telling friends and other folk that buses come out of Nottingham as well as into it and it was Matt Goold, he of The Beestonian free magazine and blog, who I first heard talk about pulling Nottingham University's main campus into Beeston. This inspired me to extend a version of my map to include the campus and QMC. I also added Rylands and Beeston Marina (you can find the latest version under Pages in the column to the right and Matt has kindly re-produced it in the latest issue of The Beestonian).

I will end with a plus for the Creative Corner Writers Group, which will have its first get together in March. In the meantime, if you would like to know more or to help in any way, just contact me.

Beeston's 'Flying Dutchman Bus' and embracing the Creative Corner

Before I begin the journey I made on Friday, a footnote of sorts to last week's post. My new driving licence arrived on Thursday, so I went into Broxtowe Borough Council offices during my travels to prove that I am me. Hopefully, I will get a letter soon confirming that I now am a registered voter.

I have asked the Borough's Electoral Office for information about registered voters in the four Beeston wards by streets and the number of households, together with the same data for 2011. This will enable me to compare voter nos. by Beeston streets. I will tell you my findings in a few weeks, assuming I am given the data I have requested.

Now back to Friday, when I took myself off on a bus journey around Beeston, Toton, Stapleford and Sandiacre before reaching Long Eaton. The bus in question was a no.17 and not a single person I have asked knows about it and I have asked a good few over the past few weeks, so what am I talking about?

Well, it's this old fella…

This is the 17 arriving at my bus stop on Wollaton Road on Friday morning just after 10.20am — right on time, having started its journey in Beeston Fields (Dennis Avenue).

It was empty as my photograph shows apart from me and the driver and this is how it stayed all the way to Chilwell Retail Park, where to two other oldies joined me. The bus stopped just twelve times whilst seven other passengers got on and off between Toton and Sandiacre. For the run into Long Eaton I again had the bus to myself. I picked up a timetable on the bus:

This map is inside it (to enlarge, just click on the map):

At my bus-stop on Wollaton Road towards Beeston there was a timetable, but the route no.17 does not appear on the bus-stop itself, and this is the case for most of the route. At a good few stops no timetable is displayed. Taken together all these explain why this little red bus has been winging its way around Beeston empty most of the time like a Flying Dutchman Bus, although I have seen a few passengers on board coming up the hill out of Beeston towards Dennis Avenue, 

The 17 is a commercial bus route operated since 2 December 2014 by Nottingham Coaches, but their website contains no easy to access information about the service — which operates from 9.20am–2.20pm Monday–Friday hourly (start times from Dennis Avenue and Long Eaton Asda). The timetable leaflet says that 'When the new tram routes start running in 2015, our buses will pull into the new tra stop park & ride site to provide (passengers) with fast access to Nottingham City Centre'.

Premiere Buses, who folded a year or so ago, operated a no.17 bus route along part of the same route, so I suspect that the fact that Nottingham Coach chose to number their route '17' is no coincidence.

Given how little publicity there has been and the restricted service I just hope the 17 is still running come mid-summer when The Tram is due to start. The bus was old, noisy and rattled. Given the high quality buses of the local rival bus companies, they will have to up their game if their 17 bus route is to survive. I wish them well. I also suspect that Trent-Barton will be introducing their own Tram feeder bus routes when The Tram finally starts running.

Having said all this, it was an interesting journey 'around the houses' so to speak. Most of the other passengers knew one another and it had all the makings of a route like Nottingham City Council's Linkbus service L10, which I have become a regular user of after years of travelling of the 36, Y36 and Indigo.

The L10 really is a friendly bus and also goes 'around the houses' and I love the little section from Beeston along Derby Road, when it is heading to towards the Victoria Centre in the direction of Derby! I grew up in Wembley using bus routes like this (namely the 16, 46 and 55) and wrote about the 28 in Birmingham back in the early-1970s (the 28 used to head south out of Birmingham City Centre before turning east, then heading north to Kingstanding on the northern edge of the city).

I photographed this L10 in Beeston Bus Station at the beginning of its journey to the Victoria Centre. The bus has seen better days and will, I believe, be replaced by new electric buses before too long, when Nottingham City Council start operating the service instead of Nottingham City Transport (hence the signs about EasyRider tickets no longer being valid on Linkbus routes from 1 March 2015).

My fascination with buses began as a child and as a local historian of sorts I have long been interested in the role buses (and trams) have played in the development of our towns and cities over the last one hundred years and more.

As often is the case, I digress, so it's back to my Friday day out. When I got off the 17 at Long Eaton I caught a Indigo back towards Chilwell with a view to visiting the Mish Mash Gallery. I had a vague idea of where it was, having passed it many times over recent years, but on my many walks around Beeston I never got further than Park Road to visit friends.

Seeing the time, an account of my eventful visit will have to wait until Wednesday, so please come back and learn more about Chilwell's 'Creative Corner'. I have done one thing already: updated my Beeston Pubs & Cafes Map to include its location. See the Pages section in the column to the right of this post.

Much more than it looks… a Tardis of the Arts.

To learn more return Thursday…