Winchester's MP - One of the Most Powerful Visits

Winchester's MP Steve Brine says a visit to Tower House Horses was "one of the most powerful" that he has ever made. Winchester Today Home Page >>>

During the visit to the equine assisted learning centre at Micheldever Station, Steve presented 13 year old Tia Yeates from West End with a certificate to mark the achievement of an NOCN (National Open College Network) Unit. 

Director of Tower House Horses, Susie Little, says Tia deserves to be very proud: "This is the third Unit she has completed using our herd as her teachers, and she has been a star learner.”

Steve agreed and says it was inspiring: "The results they achieve for clients speak for themselves. I am committed to ensure as wide an audience as possible hears about this facility and understands its potential.”

Equine assisted learning is proving beneficial for a broad range of user groups, from young people who find traditional education environments challenging, to adults with substance misuse issues, depression or anxiety.

Through guided activities they learn to recognise the impact of their behaviour on the horses, which drives changes in their own internal state. The result is greater calmness, improved confidence and the ability to better manage one’s emotions and behaviour.

Pictured from left to right: Susie Little, Steve Brine MP & Tia Yeates, with two members of the Tower House Horses herd.

Fiddler Plays My Tune

REVIEW: David Cradduck says Fiddler on the Roof at the Mayflower is simply a must-see. Tuesday 10th September, 2013. Winchester Today Home Page

There are some shows you go to see because you want to, there are some you feel you should see, a few you politely sit through but wish you were elsewhere and others you squirm through and regret wasting your time on.

Well, I have to say that Music&Lyric’s Fiddler on the Roof, at The Mayflower in Southampton and which will be touring the UK for the next few months, doesn't fit into any of these categories. 

It was absolutely stunning from start to finish and, although I wasn't sure it was going to be my cup of tea (musical shows of this kind are not normally top of my list of favourites) I was swept along by sheer professionalism, skill and entertainment at its best.

As one of Broadway’s longest running musicals, most people are familiar with many of the songs from Fiddler: 'If I were a Rich Man' has to be a catchy ditty that most people, even youngsters, will recognise. Topol made the song famous in the 1971 movie and he too became a legend. 

Likewise, those of a certain generation will remember the 70s TV cop drama series Starsky and Hutch, starring David Soul (who later became a crooning pop star) and Paul Michael Glaser. This dynamic duo, though tame by today's standards, were all American, slightly maverick, good guys who always got their man. 

Certainly not the kind of characters you would place in a Jewish settlement in a hostile Russia, you would think, but even before the cult TV series hit our screens, a then 27 year old Paul Michael Glaser had played the character of revolutionary Perchik in the same movie that Topol made his own. Not many people know that.

So what has all this to do with the present production of Fiddler, directed and choreographed by Strictly Come Dancing's Mr Bad Guy judge, Craig Revel Horwood? Well, that young Glaser, now in his late 60s, has come full circle and taken on the lead role of Tevye, the long suffering dairyman gradually coming to terms with a changing world which threatens to rob him of his daughters, his home and even his Jewish faith.

He has made the role his own, with the demeanour, singing voice and acting skills to totally convince us that he really is the man he is playing. Rarely offstage, he could make the show a one man band, he's that good (though on occasions his accent was so thick that I had trouble picking up a few words).

But to be honest, he doesn't need to. This is very much a team effort - and what a team! The cast of 19, often doubling parts, is truly amazing. Casting must have been a nightmare – where do you get such multi-talented performers? It is one thing to be able to act, sing and dance at the same time. But this is the first time I have seen a whole cast doing all three and providing all the orchestration into the bargain and on the move.

There were violins, viola, double bass, keyboards, percussion instruments galore, saxophones, trumpets, flute, guitars, clarinets and more but no sign of sheet music, conductor or other stuff you normally associate with unseen musicians in the orchestra pit. The cast sang, danced, played (sometimes swapping instruments) and acted their way through this moving, funny, poignant show without so much as a note out of place.

Occasionally the instruments looked slightly modern and incongruous and it's not everyday that you sit down to a family meal with one of the family sporting a viola - but somehow it didn't look out of place at all. All the musicians played beautifully but none more so than Jennifer Douglas as the Fiddler, whose ability to blend in with the background was matched by her amazing stage presence and almost ballet-like movements.

The lighting was superb. The sound balance was spot on (no mean feat with all those instruments playing live and moving around the stage rather than being in one spot). The set, with its centrepiece, a revolving Dickensian-looking topsy turvy house that opened up like a doll's house to reveal an equally intriguing quaint interior, was brilliant. It wouldn’t have looked out of place on the set of Oliver! – though it was instantly warm and friendly as well as being atmospheric and curious. How they pack that lot up and transport it from venue to venue I haven't a clue.

All credit must go to Craig Revel Horwood for his direction and choreography (I shall never scoff at his judgements on Strictly again, he does know what he’s talking about) who also made a brief appearance at the curtain call. Somebody should have handed him a tambourine, he was the only one not playing a musical instrument. His vision, coupled with Sarah Travis’s musical direction, ensures a very special evening out.

Fiddler on the Roof runs at The Mayflower until Saturday, when it packs up and moves on to Nottingham and a further twenty venues, finishing in April 2014. If you can get to see it, I suggest you do. More tour details at http://www.fiddlerontheroof.co.uk/#tour

Medieval skeletons give clues to origin of leprosy.

Medieval skeletons excavated by the University of Winchester are apparently giving clues to the origin of leprosy.

(Archive picture courtesy of the University of Winchester)

Archaeologists at the University have contributed to a new piece of research which gives unique insights into the genetic origins of leprosy.

 

The research, published by Science magazine, is a genome-wide comparison of medieval and modern Mycobacterium leprae, the bacterium that causes leprosy.

University archaeologists Dr Simon Roffey and Dr Katie Tucker helped author the research and supplied the UK medieval skeletons that underwent the DNA comparison techniques.

The skeletons were excavated from the hospital of St Mary Magdalen in Winchester, a site that the Department of Archaeology has been extensively researching since 2007.

“Our work at St Mary Magdalen has focused on the buildings, burials and artefacts with the aim of studying the history and development of the former medieval leprosy hospital,” says Dr Roffey. “Now our work is feeding into the scientific origins of leprosy and as a result we are finding out a lot more about the disease.”

Dr Roffey and Dr Tucker’s analysis indicates skeletal evidence of leprosy in over 85 per cent of the burials found at St Mary Magdalen, and this is the largest percentage recorded in Britain.

Dr Roffey says the location is key: “I believe St Mary Magdalen is home to one of Britain’s earliest known hospitals, founded in the mid to late 11th Century, and that it was a pioneering hospital created as a response to the sudden spread of leprosy in England.

“This idea is further supported by the genome research that has revealed that the disease spread during the time of the Crusades. I think it might also be linked to the increased popularity of pilgrimage, especially to the Holy Land, during this period.”

The archaeological work at the site is led by Dr Roffey and Dr Phil Marter, and the site is used as a training excavation for undergraduate and postgraduate archaeology students studying at the University.

Winchester Cathedral Alive With Flowers

A beautiful yet simple display has brought Winchester Cathedral alive with flowers.

The Creative Director Angela Turner told Winchester Today that she's tried to create 'Daisy Fever': "As soon as you walk into the Cathedral you'll see the hanging designs in a simple archway."


"Then you'll see the natural meadow area!"

Winchester Cathedral Alive With Flowers - Creative, yet Simple

Angela told us that she did not want to cram the Cathedral full of flowers, but enhance the whole building: "I wanted to be inspired by the English garden, and bring some of the outside inside.

"But it was very important not to cram the building. That was the main thing I wanted to do; not fill every window ledge, but be creative.

"In some flower festivals they seem to have flowers on every window ledge. We haven't done that. It's simple. That includes the nave; it's such an imposing building anyway, but we've looked at how we could do it properly, reflecting things like the vault."

Angela says she is particularly pleased with the colour scheme of yellow and white, as you can see above: "It's very refreshing."


Angela says she's also had the help from people belonging to local flower arranging groups through NAFAS, and didn't exactly have much difficulty in finding 300 volunteers from throughout the Wessex and Jersey area!

The Symphony of Flowers runs until 5pm Sunday 16 June.

More details

Hear Angela speak about her displays

University of Winchester Building Wins Major Award

The University of Winchester has won a Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) Award for the South region for its new St Alphege Learning and Teaching Building.

RIBA Awards are said to be the most rigorously judged awards for architectural excellence.

The St Alphege Learning and Teaching Building is a £6.5 million development on the King Alfred Campus to create a high quality dedicated teaching space to meet the needs of students. 

It includes eight state-of-the-art lecture rooms and a mezzanine floor with open access PCs and social learning areas.

St Alphege is a low energy building with innovative eco-friendly features including a ‘living’ roof, absence detection lighting, acoustic panelling, natural ventilation and thermal modelling.

There is a glass atrium linking St Alphege to the St Edburga building, which was extensively refurbished as part of the project.

Professor Elizabeth Stuart is Deputy Vice-Chancellor of the University of Winchester, and says the University believes that excellent students and dedicated staff deserve state of the art, beautiful facilities: “St Alphege embodies this commitment as well as our passion for the sustainability. We’re delighted to have won this award.”

The building was designed by Design Engine Architects Ltd in Winchester, who also created the University’s The Stripe, the University Centre and the Performing Arts Studios.

The St Alphege Learning and Teaching Building was officially opened by HRH The Earl of Wessex KG GCVO earlier this year.

This is the University’s second South region RIBA Award; the University Centre won in October 2008.

Additionally the University won a National Civic Trust Award for design excellence and was a finalist in the British Construction Industry’s ‘Building Project of the Year (up to £3m)’ category for its Performing Arts Studios.

As part of RIBA’s Love Architecture Festival 2013, Design Engine Architects Ltd is providing a guided tour of the University’s buildings designed by the practice, including St Alphege.

The event takes place on 29 June; for more information email jamessalman@designengine.co.uk

Review: Two Gentlemen of Verona - Debut Nationwide Tour Triumph

Review: Two Gentlemen Of Verona – Shakespeare at the Tobacco Factory (Bristol) – Theatre Royal, Winchester 11 June 2013 (Opening Night) ****4/5

Two Gentlemen of Verona is widely regarded as being William Shakespeare’s first play. Perhaps it’s not his strongest, as he was laying the groundwork for other work - but that’s no reason not to produce it.

This was a good production too, with fine acting, singing, direction, expressions and moments of fun which only added to the story.

 

I particularly enjoyed the performances of Jack Bannell and Piers Wehner who play Valentine and Proteus (above - Pic: Farrows Creative) and of Dorothea Myer-Bennett, a delightful Julia.

As for the story – well it’s a tale that seems familiar of boy-meets-girl but who may actually be in love with someone else; of love found, lost then found again.

But it also has a dark side at the end; it’s also a tale of the extraordinary bond that exists between friends, although that bond may be stretched to its limit. How can a friend forgive and forget, no matter how bad the crime was going to be? 

The production was polished and the actors well-dressed; an elegant style of early 20th century costume.

The musicians were fine too and even drew enthusiastic applause as they played before the play had actually started and when the audience was still coming in.

There was a moment when I thought the entire company would be upstaged by the dog who features in much of the play. But I dare say that you’ll have to go a long way to meet an animal who is so well-behaved and seems to know the play off by heart, Well done Lollio.

This is the SATTF’s first nationwide tour, and it was a welcome visit to Winchester by a very talented company.

The Tobacco Factory has been urged to get out and tour; as the Bristol Old Vic’s Emma Stenning put it: “Given the paucity of such work at this scale on the touring circuit, it’s insane that it’s only Bristol audiences who get to see it.”

All credit to Artistic Director Andrew Hilton.

Let’s hope they come back with one of the ‘biggies’ once word gets round Winchester just how good they are.

Even Winchester's Flowerbeds Get In On The Cycling Act

People coming in to Winchester at Bar End can now see exactly how much cycling in the city is close  to our hearts.

Winchester City Council’s landscape team has planted a special bedding scheme on the roundabout at the main Bar End entrance to the city celebrating Winchester CycleFest 2013.

The Winchester Cycle Fair takes place on Sunday 23 June and the Winchester Criterium and Family Cycle Day on Sunday 11 August.  Together the events are known as Winchester CycleFest 2013.

Vicki Weston is one of those responsible for traffic and transport in the city and says the CycleFest is a great initiative: "It's a fantastic opportunity for residents to get involved in cycling across the city and also to explore the beautiful national cycling route. The flowerbeds are an imaginative way for us to market the events to people visiting the city.”

Race Organiser Chris Dawson is from the Criterium from Cycle Tours UK and says there's plenty to look forward to: “The Criterium is fun-filled and fast-paced. With cyclists roaring through the city centre streets at up to 30mph it will be a great event.”

The Cycle Fair will transform the Broadway into a hive of cycling activity and is a free event. Everything from roller-racing, mountain-bike demonstrations and a cycle treasure hunt will be on offer throughout the afternoon from 12 noon to 4pm.

The Winchester Criterium race preceded by a Family Cycle Day will take place on Sunday 11 August from 12noon to 9pm. 

The highlight will be the biggest all-inclusive Criterium cycle race in the region this year. Staged in the city centre from 4pm to 8pm, the event is classed as the cycling equivalent to Formula 1 as it is fast and furious with lots of thrills and spills. 

There will be eight races throughout the evening and many thousands of spectators are expected to line the route.

Both events will see a Bike Bus leading cyclists along the national cycling route, across the beautiful Hockley Viaduct to the South Park and Ride cycle track.

Photograph shows (left to right): Amanda Ford (Winchester City Council), Sarah Walker (Hampshire County Council), Marcus Swalwell (Rotary Winchester), Graham Dawson (Cycle Tours UK), Cllr Vicki Weston (Winchester City Council), Chris Peach (Winchester City Council) and Chris Dawson (Cycle Tours UK) at the CycleFest flowerbed.