Poet Laureate brings the ‘primitive magic’ of verse to Ripon festivalSimon Armitage summed up the power of poetry when he read a selection of his works to a packed audience in Ripon on Saturday.
The Poet Laureate, whose poems brought laughter and sadness to 200 people at Ripon Grammar School, said words on a page take on a different character when spoken.
Armitage, who was the star attraction at the fourth Ripon Poetry Festival, described verse as having ‘a kind of primitive magic”.
The West Yorkshire-born and bred poet told the Stray Ferret he was delighted to perform at the four-day festival, where he brought some of his own primitive magic and talked about his local connections.
He said:
“My auntie lives in Ripon and I have many memories of visiting here and going to the cathedral and seeing the hornblower.”
The festival anthology of poems (left) and programme.
Poetry boom
Talking about lockdown, he said:
“Sales of poetry books have done well during the pandemic, as people have had more time to reflect.
“Many recalibrated their lives and decided they were not going back to the way things were before.”
Lockdown also gave Armitage, who was appointed to the 10-year office of Poet Laureate in May 2019, the opportunity to focus on his work.
He said:
“It gave me the time to complete my translation of the long medieval poem The Owl and the Nightingale.”
Saturday evening’s audience was given a taste of the epic poem, which focuses on the quarrelsome conversation between the two birds, as they show their mutual dislike.
The newly-published work featured recently on BBC Radio 4’s hit podcast, The Poet Laureate Has Gone to His Shed.
There were also readings from Magnetic Field: The Marsden Poems, a collection that provides a guided tour in verse of the village where Armitage grew up.
Ripon festival success
His lines, which paint a picture of home-town life and experiences, were very much in keeping with the theme of the festival.
Andy Croft, who was one of the organisers of the four-day event, that included 17 sessions at venues across the city, said:
“We are pleased to report that we are now the biggest festival of its kind in Yorkshire.”
Testimony to the growing popularity of poetry was the fact that this year’s festival anthology, The Other Side of the Looking Glass, contains 92 poems covering a broad spectrum of styles and based on a wide range of subjects, including life in lockdown and the environment.
Mr Croft pointed out:
“It contains poems from people of all ages, who live locally and is the largest edition we have published.”
Star of Scotland shines bright in a Sharow churchyardWhere, in the Ripon area, can you find an internationally-famous astronomer buried in a grave marked with a small pyramid-shaped monument and why?
The answers can be found in the churchyard of St John’s Sharow, where Charles Piazzi Smyth was laid to rest following his death on 21 February 1900.
Smyth was born in Naples on 3 January 1819. At the age of 26 he became the youngest-ever Astronomer Royal for Scotland — a title given to the director of the Royal Observatory in Edinburgh.
Smyth, who held the position for more than 40 years, was also professor of astronomy at Edinburgh University.
He has the distinction of being the man behind the introduction of Edinburgh Castle’s one o’clock gun, which is fired six days a week as a guide to shipping.
In an era of unprecedented industrial growth, which saw polluted skies obscure the stars, Smyth literally took his career to new heights when he and his wife climbed the mountains of Tenerife and used a 7.5 inch refracting telescope to view the night sky at altitude.
His pioneering work demonstrated the need for observatories to be located on high ground to achieve best results and he set the standard for astronomers across the globe, which saw him named as the ‘father of mountain astronomy’.
St John’s Sharow, the last resting place of Charles Piazzi Smyth and his wife Jessie
Move to Ripon
Claims made in his 1864 book The Great Pyramid: Its Secrets and Mysteries Revealed, including a conclusion that its construction was ‘guided by the hand of God’ were criticised and rejected by many of the scientific community and 10 years later, he resigned from The Royal Society.
Following his retirement in 1888, Smyth and his wife left Scotland and moved to a house called Clova, in Clotherholme Road, Ripon, where they lived in relative obscurity, away from members of Edinburgh’s scientific elite, who had turned their backs on him.
Smyth, who was also an accomplished photographer, artist and meteorologist, shares his grave in Sharow with his wife, Jessie, who died four years earlier.
A snapshot of their remarkable time together is captured in the words of a weather-beaten epitaph on the pyramid.
It says that Jessie was:
“His faithful and sympathetic friend and companion, through 40 years of varied scientific experiences, by land and sea abroad as well as at home, at 12,000 feet up in the atmosphere, on the wind swept peak of Tenerife, as well as underneath and upon the Great Pyramid of Egypt.
The reference to the Great Pyramid at Giza provides the reason for their unusual memorial.
In his epitaph, where key words are emphasised by capital letters, a posthumous message conveying the hurt feelings he took to his grave can be seen.
It says:
“As Bold in enterprise as he was Resolute in demanding a proper measure of public sympathy and support for Astronomy in Scotland, he was not less a living emblem of pious patience under Troubles and Afflictions and he has sunk to rest, laden with well-earned Scientific Honours, a Bright Star in the Firmament of Ardent Explorers of the Works of their Creator.”
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Ripon Operatic Society returns with Jesus Christ SuperstarRipon Amateur Operatic Society will stage its first major production since covid tomorrow when it performs Jesus Christ Superstar.
The award-winning musical will be performed at various days over the next two weeks in the newly-refurbished theatre at Ripon Arts Hub on Allhallowgate.
The 120-seater theatre underwent a major refurbishment when it was forced to shut last year.
It has a new ventilation system, new seating, improved sound and lighting and a modernised bar.
The newly-refurbished Ripon Arts Hub.
Shows will be held on selected days over two weeks — October 7 to 9 and October 14 to 16 — with evening performances at 7.30pm and additional 2.30pm matinee shows on Saturday 9 and Saturday 16 October.
The rock opera, which follows Jesus’ last two days through the eyes of Judas Iscariot, is set to music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Tim Rice.
It includes songs such as “I Don’t Know How to Love Him”, “Superstar” and “Heaven on Their Minds”.
Ripon Arts Hub re-opened in September after 18 months of fundraising by volunteers behind the scenes,
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The upgrade of the premises, which are owned by the society, was partly funded by a £54,339 grant from the government’s £1.57 billion Culture Recovery Fund, launched to help cultural organisations and heritage sites to recover from covid.
As well as being the setting for the society’s own productions and rehearsals, the re-vamped venue provides Ripon’s first community arts space.
Tickets are available at https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/riponoperatics
Dean’s banquet raises £16,000 for Ripon CathedralThe Dean of Ripon’s annual banquet has raised £16,000 for the city’s cathedral.
Last year’s event was cancelled due to covid but the 2021 evening of feast and fundraising was attended by 150 guests, including sponsors, local businesses, parishioners and members of the public.
The Very Rev John Dobson, said:
“What a pleasure it was to welcome the guests to the 2021 Dean’s banquet in the spectacular surroundings of Ripon Cathedral.
“For over 1,300 years people have gathered in this sacred space to celebrate life’s joys and blessings. I am extremely grateful for the remarkable levels of generosity that have been shown by the community, particularly over the last year.”
Dean John said thanks for the generosity shown.
The sparking evening was supported by business partners Raworths solicitors, in Harrogate, and wealth management firm Brewin Dolphin, Leeds.
A champagne reception welcomed guests back in to the cathedral once more and a four course dinner, provided by the Yorkshire Party Company, was followed by a live auction conducted by John Tennant and a silent auction.
A number of high value raffle prizes were donated, including dinner for two at Grantley Hall, two cases of wine and a family season pass to Newby Hall.
The prize draw proved popular, raising £1,170 on the night. The vouchers and prizes were donated by local businesses keen to support the cathedral as it recovers from the financial impact of the pandemic.
Guests were entertained by magician Rob Hutchinson and danced to a silent disco wearing headphones.
The date of next year’s banquet will be Friday 14 October to mark the end of the 1,350th anniversary of St Wilfrid celebrations, which will be taking place throughout 2022.
For further information about how to get involved or to pre-book places contact margarethammond@riponcathedral.org.uk.
Ripon playground remains closed due to ratsThree weeks after rat infestation closed a children’s play area in Ripon, the gates remain chained up.
Vermin control measures are in place at Quarry Moor playground, which is owned and operated by Ripon City Council.
To tackle the problem, the council has been clearing discarded food waste and put up signs asking visitors to the adjacent nature reserve to take their rubbish home with them.
Discarded food items attracted rats to the area.
The playground will remain closed until the rat problem, which poses a threat to public health, is eradicated.
Among those monitoring the situation and removing dead rats from the site is Trevor Welbourn, who regularly visits Quarry Moor park with his Labrador, Sparky.
Mr Welbourn told the Stray Ferret:
“Before the pest control measures were put in place, I was here one morning and there must have been at least 20 rats in the car park, eating discarded food.
“I come most days. I’ve removed 16 in the past week.”
Helping to rid the area of rodents — Trevor Welbourn and Rocky.
A statement by the city council when the park closed on September 15 said:
“The rat problem is worse than ever this year and we have unfortunately had to take the decision to close the playground on the grounds of public health.
“We will work with our partners at Harrogate Borough Council to address the pest problem and will explore all options available, including the use of poison, with both HBC and Natural England.
“We will make changes to the way rubbish is death with on site, all bins will be removed and we encourage all visitors to take their waste home with them.
“The volume of waste collected on site is huge. We usually collect a minimum of eight bags of rubbish per day, which is a constant food supply for the ever growing rat population.
“We will trial a metal trade waste bin in the car park in the short term but ask everyone to take their rubbish home.”
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The city council announced a refurbishment of the park this year, funded by council taxpayers through their parish precept.
The park, just off the A61 on the southern approach to Ripon, was donated to the city in 1945 by Alderman Thomas Fowler Spence.
Ripon’s delayed leisure scheme more than £3m over budgetThe Stray Ferret can reveal that Ripon’s new swimming pool and leisure centre is more than £3 million pounds over budget.
The running total for the scheme is now in excess of £13.5 million and that figure is likely to increase.
Details of the spending so far and monies allocated for payment, were obtained by Ripon resident and chartered civil engineer Stanley Mackintosh, following Freedom of Information (FOI) requests to Harrogate Borough Council (HBC).
In its FOI response to Mr Mackintosh HBC said that:
- Money already paid for construction and associated works is £12,936,235.55.
- A further £619,427.06, is allocated for payment.
This means that at £13,555,662, the cost for delivery of the high-profile project is more than £3.3 million over budget.
The original 17-month contract signed with construction company and principal contractor Willmott Dixon was for £10.2 million, with a completion date of May this year – but a delay until November was announced last autumn and last week HBC said the new pool will open ‘towards the end of the year.’
There has been growing concern over the project after Mr Mackintosh along with leading geologist Dr Alan Thompson, an expert on Ripon’s gypsum deposit and sinkhole issues, voiced concerns about the suitability of the site and the costs of works to make it safe. A year ago a ‘void’ was discovered while digging foundations at the entrance of the leisure centre.
Councillor Pat Marsh, the lib-dem leader on HBC, has called for a safety investigation which was supported by independent cllr Sid Hawke, who was one of eight councillors on HBC’s planning committee that approved an application two years ago.
Stanley Mackintosh says his concerns about the swimming pool development ‘fell on deaf ears’
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An insight into the extent of ground stabilisation activity (known as grouting) already carried out on the site, was given in July when HBC reported:
“A total of 441 grouting sites received 3,043 tonnes of grout which, along with the casting of a reinforced concrete slab, provides the foundation for the new swimming pool building.”
Mr Mackintosh has endeavoured to find out the finished cost of the project from the council. However it is not revealing details of additional costs it is budgeting for its completion.
HBC said:
“Disclosure of allowances for works not yet agreed would likely put the Council in a commercial disadvantage in its ability to negotiate efficiently in the future.”
Mr Mackintosh told the Stray Ferret:
“I am totally in favour of a new swimming pool and leisure centre for Ripon, but along with others, including councillors and Dr Thompson, I have argued over many years that the Camp Close site, with its known history of ground instability, was not the right place for it.”
Mr Mackintosh, pointed out:
“I made my case as soon as Camp Close was identified as the location for the new pool and also before the planning meeting in June 2019 when it was approved and afterwards, but my words fell on deaf ears.”
Meanwhile, the council, which gave itself planning permission to proceed with the multi-million pound scheme, maintains that keeping the final costs under wraps, ‘outweighs the public interest in disclosing it.’
HBC said in its response to Mr Mackintosh:
“There is significant public interest in not prejudicing the commercial interests of the Council in ensuring that we can operate efficiently in our role by relying on the services of the businesses we have a relationship with.”
Bitter battle over former Kirkby Malzeard pub enters new phaseThe bitter battle between a community campaign group and the owner of a now-derelict pub in Kirkby Malzeard rages on.
More than 10 years after the last pint was pulled at the Henry Jenkins Inn, the fight has entered a new phase.
Campaigners want to refurbish and resurrect the centuries-old inn and see it return as a community-owned and run pub, restaurant and coffee shop.
To support their case, they have launched a petition calling on Harrogate Borough Council to restore Asset of Community Value listing, so it covers all of the building in Main Street.
They hope that the petition will contain 500 or more signatures when it is presented at the full council meeting next Wednesday.
Also preparing an approach to the council is David Fielder, owner of the western portion of the building, which was the original pub before an eastern annex was added.
He told the Stray Ferret:
“I am going to apply for a change of use from public house to residential.”
Flashback to how The Henry Jenkins Inn looked before it closed
Fielder Holdings, Mr Fielder’s pub company, sold the eastern part of the building to his business associate Justin Claybourn, who subsequently applied for a change of use to allow conversion to a single dwelling.
The council’s decision to refuse the application was overturned at a planning appeal in December.
At the online hearing, planning inspector Helen Hockenhull said:
“I am not persuaded that the loss of the annex would make the remaining pub unviable for an alternative community use.
“The scheme would therefore not result in the unnecessary loss of a community facility reducing the community’s ability to meet its day to day needs.”
‘No prospect of reopening’
In making her decision, Ms Hockenhull took into account the fact that Kirkby Malzeard already has a pub – The Queen’s Head, as well as Kirkby Malzeard Mechanics Institute, which is also licensed to sell alcohol.
In a hammer blow to campaigners, she concluded:
“There is no reasonable prospect of the public house reopening.”
However, the campaign group thinks differently, though its ambitions are reliant upon securing the purchase of the whole site from its two owners.
In May, they offered £200,001 for the entire Henry Jenkins building, saying it would use £237,000 of pledges made by supporters to fund the deal.
Richard Sadler, press spokesman for the Henry Jenkins Community Pub group, said:
“It’s vitally important that this pub is recognised for what it is: The Henry Jenkins has been an essential part of the fabric of this village for hundreds of years, the overwhelming majority of villagers want it back as a pub and community facility – and they’ve put their money where their mouth is.”
But Mr Fielder said:
“Both my part of the former pub and Mr Claybourn’s eastern annex remain for sale. For the whole site any purchaser would need around £500,000 to secure a deal.
“We’ve always been willing to speak with the campaigners, but there is a significant difference between their valuation and our own.”
Possible £250,000 support
If the campaigners, who have the support of Kirkby Malzeard Parish Council, district ward councillor Nigel Simms and former MP and now pub campaigner Greg Mulholland, are successful in their application to obtain ACV listing for all of the Henry Jenkins, Mr Sadler, claimed:
“The group would be well placed to qualify for up to £250,000 under the government’s new Community Ownership Fund.”
He does, however, admit:
“If the whole of the pub is not recognised as an ACV, that could sink our chances.”
“That’s why we’re calling on the council to do the right thing. It never made sense to delist half a pub just because it has changed hands – the council should be helping local communities rather than private developers.”
Talks planned in battle to save Ripon’s Spa BathsCouncillors in Ripon are hoping to meet soon with Harrogate Borough Council’s preferred bidder for the city’s Spa Baths.
The future of the Grade II listed building has been uncertain since owner Harrogate Borough Council put it on the market in February, saying it would be surplus to requirements when Ripon’s new multi-million swimming pool opens.
This sparked fears the 116-year-old baths could be sold for housing.
The campaign to retain it for community use, led by Ripon City Council and Ripon Civic Society, received a boost this month when the building was designated an asset of community value.
This gives communities a right to bid to buy the building before it is sold on the open market.
The identity of Harrogate Borough Council’s preferred bidder is being kept under wraps due to commercial confidentiality but city council leader Andrew Williams said he was looking forward to constructive discussions.
Replacing Spa Baths: Ripon’s new swimming pool, which will open this year.
He told the Stray Ferret:
“We met with the borough council last week following our successful application to have the baths listed as an asset of community value.”
“At that meeting, we were told that the preferred bidder intends to include an element of community use as part of wider redevelopment of the site.
“We are keen to find out what that community use would be and if there is a way forward that is acceptable to all involved.”
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The 116-year-old building was converted from a spa to a public swimming pool in 1936 and has the distinction of being the only English spa to be opened by a member of the royal family.
A civic society plaque near the entrance records the fact that Princess Henry of Battenburg performed the opening ceremony in 1905.
Curzon Ripon is back with a Bond blockbuster
The finishing touches are being put in place ahead of Thursday’s reopening of Ripon’s Curzon Cinema.
More than 18 months after the two-screen cinema closed its doors because of the coronavirus crisis, filmgoers will be able to take their seats for the much-anticipated James Bond blockbuster, No Time to Die.
Daniel Craig’s fifth and final appearance as 007 looks sure to attract large audiences.
The 8.30pm screening on Thursday is already sold out, but tickets are still available for the 5pm and 7pm showings of the film.
Ripon Curzon is set to reopen on Thursday.
Screening times, membership and bookings details for the Ripon venue are now available online.
With two screens, the premises on North Street are the smallest of Curzon’s 14 UK locations.
Initial plans to reopen on 4 June were put on hold due to social distancing issues caused by the venue’s size.
When announcing the reopening, Becky Tobin, regional manager for cinema chain, said the team was “very excited” to finally be back:
She told the Stray Ferret:
“We are thrilled that our customers will also be seeing some familiar faces as a lot of the team decided to return and are looking forward to seeing our regulars and members again.
“The returning team, along with the new recruits, have been getting into the swing of things with some onsite training of our revamped food and drink menu.”
The venue will welcome back its patrons with James Bond-inspired martinis.
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The cinema, which opened in Ripon in November 2013, is part of a BAFTA award-winning company that allows members to view films at home through its streaming service, as well as in Curzon venues across the UK.
As the covid lockdown restrictions on cinemas and live theatre were progressively eased by the government this year, the Curzon remained closed in Ripon, sparking fears the city’s only cinema would not reopen.
New Ripon pool may not be ready to open in NovemberRipon’s new multi-million pound leisure development may not be ready to open in November, as previously indicated.
The scheme, for which known costs were in excess of £10.2 million before a six-month delay was announced last year, was originally scheduled to open this summer.
Last autumn, a press release by Harrogate Borough Council said the development at Camp Close, off Dallamires Lane, would open in November.
But in an update issued by the council a spokesperson, said:
“We can confirm the new swimming pool in Ripon is due to open towards the end of the year.
“An official opening date will be confirmed in the coming weeks once the facility has been handed-over by Willmott Dixon, our appointed contractor carrying out the works.”
An ‘opening in summer 2021’ sign was later replaced by one saying ‘opening in autumn 2021’.
The statement, added:
“Following this handover, we will carry out the necessary staff training and rigorous testing to prepare the new facility for opening.
“The addition of the new swimming pool is a major development for Ripon and the surrounding area and we’re delighted to announce that it will be officially opened later this autumn.”
£10.2m contract
A £10.2 million contract was awarded to Willmott Dixon before work started on site in November 2019.
The 17-month contact was for delivery of a six-lane pool, along with refurbishment of the existing Ripon Leisure Centre.
This specified a completion date of 21 May this year, but this was later amended to November.
Councillor Stanley Lumley, the council’s cabinet member for culture, tourism and sport said, at the time, that the project had been ‘slightly delayed’ by covid.
In the release dated 13 November, he added:
“Ground work, known as grouting, is nearing completion.”
Ground stability issues
Cllr Lumley’s statement came two months after a ‘void’ was discovered near the entrance to the existing leisure centre building, which was constructed in the mid 1990s.
A previous sinkhole that opened up in February 2018 caused the closure of the leisure centre car park and despite concerns raised about the suitability of the Camp Close site for addition of a swimming pool, the scheme was granted approval at a council planning meeting in June 2019.
Following discovery of the second ‘void’ Stantec, an international engineering, design and consultancy practice, carried out an initial inspection and in a report, seen by the Stray Ferret, raised concerns about the load-bearing capacity of existing piles under the leisure centre, which would have been used to support the connection between it and the new pool.
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What will the final cost be?
The Stray Ferret has submitted two Freedom of Information requests to the council in an attempt to establish what additional costs have been incurred, on top of the original £10.2 million contract for the scheme.
In its response to the first request, the council said that the information it held was ‘confidential’. In its response to the second request, it said ‘the final costs are not yet known.’