THE HULME TUNE

Caribbean colour came to Hulme this afternoon. The Caribbean Carnival of Manchester 2008 graced the roads of Hulme, as the rain stayed off, to the delight of local residents, who viewed the parade from both sides and their balconies.

The Lord Mayor of Manchester, councillor Mavis Smitheman, started more than 20 troupes of costumed dancers and carnival queens, who danced and shook their booty to six steel bands and calypso music from the floats.

The carnival left Alexandra Park in Moss Side at around 1.00pm today, coming through Hulme around 2.10pm and then returned to the park via Aquarius Estate.

This gave our young people from Zion Arts Centre a chance to show off their costumes and their style of dancing.

The theme of this year’s carnival is ‘One World, One Carnival’.

The organisers of the carnival are also one of the winners of this years Nationwide Community and Heritage Awards run by the Nationwide Building Society in partnership with the Heritage Lottery Fund.

Winston Lemington - Hulme & Moss Side Filmmaker
captures mother and baby enjoying the costumes and music.

Every one of these pictures you can download and keep if you are featured in them, but only for private use or social networking sites. Any other use is subject to copyright law.

For more info visit

www.caribbeancarnivalofmanchester.com

Why are we the last ones to know about events in Hulme? There seems to be a famine of publicity when organisers stage events in the area. Last year it was the same. What’s wrong with using community websites, A4 posters and other means to tell local residents of the activities that go on in Hulme Park?

For the few that did see it though, MAGGs, Xcalibre and Manchester City Council blew up a row of bouncy castles type inflatables, had a fair-ground ride, music and a few portaloos. It was the first of 3 Family Fun Days with:

• Food and refreshments (missing today)
• Sport Activities (missing today)
• Face Painting (missing today)
• Martial Arts Workshop (missing today)
• Inflatables
• Music
• Children’s DJ & entertainer (goes with the music, still it makes it look like there’s a lot)
• Assault Course (the above inflatables)
• Raffles & Prizes (didn’t notice it)

5 out of 9 ain’t bad. However, it did have a rodeo rotating bull, exactly like the one at Manchester Mela in Platt Fields this weekend, not advertised on the flyer that I got to see.

I talked to a few of the parents who did enjoy it. One mum thought it was great, but wondered why there was no publicity. Another wanted more stalls offering information.

A few minutes later there came a gang of around 7-8 youths riding bicycles, the PCSO’s soon got to intercept them as I was leaving the park. Even as a reporter sometimes it’s best to stay out of the way and let the police get on with their job.

Manchester City Council really do reach out to communities and offer help and by putting on events like these they can reach people more effectively. But, I can’t help thinking that estates like Aquarius will miss out if the word doesn’t get around.

 The other 2 ‘Family Fun Days’

Wednesday 6 August from 12pm-5pm

The Manchester Academy School

Moss Lane East

Moss Side

Wednesday 13 August from 12pm-5pm

Richmond Park School

Cochrane Avenue

Longsight

There you go, the secret’s out.. now others can go and enjoy this free offering of entertainment for the kids! And.. it’s FREE - except the ice-cream.

Kaite with Henry Winkler, who played the Fonz in “Happy Days”.

TV legend Henry Winkler was at WHSmith in the Arndale today, Sunday 6 July. Many came to see him and he delighted children with his coin trick. He breaks a 25cent coin in his mouth and then it comes back as a full coin again. Henry was there for a couple of hours signing copies of his children’s book series about a boy called Hank Zipzer, ‘the worlds greatest underachiever’.

It started off a bit frustrating at first. First the Arndale security would not let us interview those that met him. Then the mic lead I borrowed from ALL FM crackled and popped. So, we decided to do the interview even if the mic lead wasn’t working. I know.. but what where we suppose to do? I wish I had my own equipment.

Finally, the mic lead worked and Kaite interviewed Henry for The Hulme Tune on Thursday 10 July. Kaite sat next to him and asked him about his dislexia and how much of the books’ character, Hank Zipzer, was based on himself. Henry talked about how much the books has been selling and what was special about 19th August 2008.

Afterwards, Henry gave her a kiss on the cheek and signed a copy of one of the books. Kaite was thrilled to have met him and couldn’t wait to tell all her family and friends across the world. WHSmith also took pictures, as well.

Tomorrow he’s off to a Stockport school to see the children. You can tell he really loves children. Henry is a real down-to-earth nice guy and WHSmith were hospitable, too - we appreciate that - thank you guys.

You can hear the interview on ALL FM on this Thursday’s show!

EMAIL THE SHOW

“Isn’t it small?” I remarked. “I know!” replied Kaite. What a grand day out in them there hills, we had.

BBC Radio Lancashire sits in a small showroom at the heart of Blackburn. Quietly ticking away the beat of entertainment, music and local news, pumping it out across the Lancashire hills to feed the brains of attentive listeners and any wandering sheep.

Their open day gave us an insight into the diversity of the ‘now’ BBC local radio & it’s multi-media platforms. Oh, let’s get techie. Creativity, opportunities, food & the Ladies @ Lunch went down a treat. Kaite enjoyed herself, as there were a few charity shops close by. Myself, I got to find out more info about News & Journalism courses held at UCLan.

What I learned at the first workshop was valuable, even if I never get to do a course like undergraduate.. or is it foundation? Anyways, I suddenly realised that what skills I gained here in Manchester is exactly what BBC local radio or BBC journalism is looking for. People that can work across different multi-media platforms, producing content for radio, TV and website.

The last time I went to a BBC open day was a few years back when BBC Manchester opened it’s doors for a day. That was not very good, too many people collecting free pens besides me. I just didn’t get anything out of it. BBC Radio Lancashire was more smaller and better, having quality workshops where I gained insight and got better understanding of todays 21st Century BBC background diversity drive.

There was a workshop on Media City, Salford Quays, and what it means to have a media city there for 2011. Did you know that there will be doctors and dentists there, too? All private, I guess! I know CBBC is not my ambition, but there are other opportunities in the UK (think national).

Some guys were surprised to find out that you can have a career in the BBC developing software. Yes, BBC iPlayer is an example. Then there’s web development and other areas, such as electricians. All them cables, someone has to change the fuse when they blow!

One day, you could be driving up the M61 / M6 and be listening to Paul Ridyard on BBC Radio Lancashire. Why not BBC RM, you may ask? They haven’t rang me yet. And I’m still waiting to hear about the 2 day journalism workshops put on by BBC Manchester. I won’t hold my breath, instead I’m going to find out more about BBC Lancashire & UCLan and look at the education opportunities and career prospects.. seeing that BBC are heading North, doesn’t seem to be much happening here at the mo.

Yes.. that is Tony Livesey on the wall and somewhere in the distance, where the banner is, is sex change soldier Jan Hamilton.

‘Paulasville’ is not about a house on a hill, but a city gone down it. This is Zion Young Actors Company’s debut performance and I think they’re gonna grow us.

This atmospheric gritty production starts off well, with good audience interaction and the visual effects from 3 projectors and smoke machine all adding to the effect. There’s an excellent performance from the Sanitary Department of the company that runs the city. Which makes you think that these guys are putting heart and soul into their parts and having fun.

Then it seemed to lose its momentum, towards the end, that captured me from scene 1. It looked as though the beginning was well worked on, with the end looking rushed. Some of the actors were quieter and, with people eating crisps, made me wonder what was going on. I would have liked to have seen total blackout in 1 or 2 scene changes and a rat in the rubbish. If the stage would have been larger then some of the props could have been left on stage in the shadows, so the pace could have kept increasing without interruption. Which, I think, was the idea behind Act II.

They need to work with masks more effectively to bring them alive. For the body language and head movements were more reminiscent of crash-test dummies. Instead of looking like police, I thought they were bank robbers.

Still, it was enjoyable to watch and I didn’t look at my watch once. The fact that I don’t wear one, has nothing to do with it. I wasn’t even yawning or scratching, which showed, that for a couch potato like me, it must have caught my interest throughout.

‘Paulasville’ is running every night at the Zion Arts Centre, Stretford Rd, Hulme, until Saturday night.

Royce Road, Hulme, was blocked off today for at least one hour between 5-6pm. Traffic was diverted by police as a few local Hulme residents demonstrated peacefully how they want to see Manchester City Council make the two halves of Hulme Park into one continuous stretch. Their argument is that children going from one side to the other could be in danger of traffic moving quickly along that part of Royce Road.

Parents are concerned about fast moving vehicles even though there are speed bumps and that these ramps won’t slow down boy racers. Yet, children should be accompanied by an adult if they are too young.

None of the demonstrators, however, was admitting as to who was in charge or who exactly organised the event.

Vanessa Hall, mother of a young son, tree surgeon and was elected Hulme Councillor 2003 -2008 for the Green Party, told The Hulme Tune, “As a parent myself, I don’t think its appropriate to have this road going through the park.” Vanessa, Chair of Manchester Green Party and their national spokesperson on women issues, went on to say that most parents think the road doesn’t need to be here.

Other Hulme residents, who live further along Royce Road towards City Road, argued that OAP’s who live local want the 263 bus to come back through St Wilfred’s estate. Last year, after money was spent on new bus shelters and raising kerb heights, the 263 was re-routed to go along Stretford Rd. This means that pensioners on the estate have to walk further while carrying heavy shopping across Stretford Rd at busy times.

Even though the Community Transport bus is available, local residents aren’t happy with the service. One woman, who doesn’t want to be named, told me, “People have to book the Community Transport bus the day before and not on demand as they wanted, then return at an exact time. Bringing back the 263 along Royce Road would benefit many. If Royce Road is blocked off then any hope of its return would be squashed.”

This is what Councillor Nigel Murphy had to say:

Royce Road Blockage - Cllr Nigel Murphy

You can listen to more of the interviews from this demonstration by listening to The Hulme Tune this Thursday 10-11am on ALL FM 96.9

Man Jumps off Double Decker Bus

A man jumped off a double decker bus in Manchester city centre in front of crowds today. The man in his 20’s wasn’t injured. The incident left him a little shaken, though. He said he was doing it for Jesus.

I was able to capture his stunt on my mobile phone and now you can see it for yourselves. I decided to investigate further for mywebconnect.info.

It was all part of an array of performances put on by The Message Trust called the Eden Project, which uses 2 double decker buses to tour the North West with a message to transform young people’s lives.

The Eden Buses are two high-tech mobile youth centres wrapped in funky youth-themed vinyl graphics and armed with the latest in sound and visual technology. These amazing buses are designed to meet young people from all backgrounds who need someone to talk to.

This is an exciting way for both primary and secondary schools to deliver parts of their curriculum. The buses have excellent on-board presentation facilities, and are often called in when RE lessons need to have that extra dimension!

www.themessage.org.uk

 

The organisation started out in 1988 as Message to Schools then became the The World Wide Message Tribe, fronted by Andy Hawthorne, to impact young people with the Christian message of God’s love and forgiveness. This then went on to now what is called The Message and grew further to include the Eden Project.

We have been working in the city for 15 years and have developed a ‘knack’ for being able to get through to the hardest to reach young people. To enable this we operate a range of projects on the streets, in the community, in schools and in prisons, all with the aim of bringing hope, providing opportunities and releasing potential.

In brief, The Message…

• Runs 9 ‘Eden’ youth projects where over 100 volunteers live and work in tough urban contexts
• Delivers around 2000 hours of youth work every month through over 300 separate activities
• Is in contact with an average of 5,000 young people every month all over the city
• Provides a safe ‘off the street’ environment for 500 young people every week using 2 high-tech mobile youth centres
• Visits 20 high schools every year with inspirational pop group ‘Blush’
• Helps break the cycle of youth crime through innovative work in the region’s Young Offenders Institutions
• Operates a top-spec arts and music training centre in South Manchester

I am waiting to hear if they will come on my radio show.

The crowd were entertained by 4 gorgeous girls known as BLUSH, with more stunts from 3 guys known as Airborne.

Also, in the crowd, was a tea-time God TV youth presenter - but the God TV website doesn’t have the list of youth presenters or its programme. I said hello. Then she suddenly ran off chasing her son, before I could get her name, and disappeared in to the mixing tent.

Man Jumps off Stage

NEIGHBOURS DAY

24TH MAY 2008 10 am - 4 pm

Bronte Street, Hulme

Some friendly folk from the Aquarius estate in Hulme are organising an event for locals to come along and meet their neighbours, have something to eat and have fun.

Things to do on the day include:

cake competition
(I’ll volunteer to taste)

family sports day
(darts for me hopefully)

create your own hanging basket
(weaving, ducking and diving)

learn how to fix a leaky sink
(by not asking fashion models or me)

bounce on a bouncy castle
(volunteers needed to keep it blown up)

face painting
(no graffiti artists, please)

hand art & meet our local fireman
(only one.. where’s Pew, Barney, McGrew, Cuthbert, Dibble and Grub?)

You can taste food from different cultures
(yum, yum, in the presenter’s tum!)

And meet me in person!
(well worth coming out!)

This event will be broadcasted live on Allfm 96.9

The Generate Generations Project tell me that they are having an African Liberation Day event at the Afewe Community Pub on Royce Road, Hulme, Sunday 25th May from 2 pm until late. There will be activities indoors and outdoors…

During the day: 2pm to 8pm FREE (soft drinks only until 7pm), then for over 18s a night of reggae, roots, funk - live and djs, and much more will continue until late (approx 1pm).

The event is organised by the Generate Generations Project, which is funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund.

For more information on Generation Generations

www.generateproject.org

Also:

It was reported to me that 3 women, celebrating a birthday, were drunk and singing and shouting at the top of their voices, as they walked down Royce Road in the early hours of Saturday morning. A man shouted from a house on the road and began threats of violence towards them. He then came out of his house and a heated argument ensued. Fortunately for all of them, other members of the house came out and dragged him back in before the police arrived.

It’s quieter on weekend nights in Hulme when it rains! If you do attend remember to respect the community and keep noise down to a minimum when leaving late. Many thanks!

From foam fun to Britain’s Next Top Model Living in the Arndale.

- here are snaps I took this Saturday.

———–

FOAM FUN in EXCHANGE SQ.

Kids young & a bit older enjoying their own foam party

- looks like somebody has poured shampoo into the water display.

BRITAIN’S NEXT TOP MODEL in MANCHESTER

Manchester Arndale hosted this year’s Britain’s Next Top Model

competition - to see who will go into the finals from our region.

And the winner is..

…NATALIE from Manchester.

Now below is another very attractive model… Mmm, nice body!

Meanwhile, somewhere in the crowd…

..maybe dreaming of being the next top model herself.

Could this be Britain’s Next Top Model next year?

She certainly has my vote!!!

RAF in ALBERT SQ.

The RAF were in Albert Sq on a recruitment drive

- for a career that could take you to new heights.. solo!