The Big Cook Challenge for Comic Relief, which was filmed at the Market House, in the school and at the Bridge House Hotel last November was broadcast last week on Teachers' TV. If like me you missed it, there is another chance to see the show on the Teachers' TV web site.

It is a half hour long programme which is entertaining and features quite a few local people.

Click here to go to the watch it again page of the Teachers' TV web site. It will open in a separate window.

I took these photos of the Moon and the planet, Saturn tonight, Tuesday, 20th March, having already virtually finished the final stages of prep for this week's issue of Wyenot News and have added them quickly at the last minute with virtually no processing.

They were taken from Symonds Yat East. The planet Saturn is currently relatively close to Earth and as a result, the rings can be seen with very modest optical equipment. Saturn is so bright at the moment that it is visible in the West before dark and tonight, along with the crescent Moon, made for a spectacular sight.

The effect of seeing the whole moon was not caused by an eclipse. Due to the moon being close to the sun, what you were seeing if you looked at the sky just after dark is known as the 'Gengenschein'. As during a full Moon, we on Earth can see by moonlight, on the moon it works just the same. During a full Earth, the Moon is lit brightly by Earthlight.

The photos below turned out to be very expensive to achieve. There's a bit of a story to go with them... Today has been extremely stressful for me from a getting everything done in time point of view as Tina and I had arranged to spend the evening socially with our friends, Nick and Angie Stephens at Symonds Yat.

We did get to see Nick and Angie and had a lovely evening, chatting and playing music on our guitars. In order to achieve this few hours of relaxation though, I had one Hell of a day!

In the morning, Bernice and I took Matt to Cheltenham to hear the result of his scan. I then gobbled a quick burger in Burger Star before knuckling down to final prep for the news. I had prepped as much as I could during the preceding days and Tina helped out by editing text sent in, during the morning whilst I was away but, as per usual, lots of news items arrived at the very last minute. I managed to prep all but the final indexing of pages when we went off to see our friends, thinking that I would spend just another hour to finish off after our evening out.

On the way to Symonds Yat, I noticed Saturn and the Moon and thought, 'I must photograph that!' It was a once in a lifetime opportunity to catch the two looking so pretty together. However, we were running late for our friends. Deciding to drop Tina off to explain what I was doing, I drove to Symonds Yat East and in my hurry to drop her and get back to a suitable location to photograph the phenomenon before the Moon set, in the total darkness I reversed my car hard into a stone wall. Nothing comes easy. The two photos below have probably cost me several hundred quid in car repairs to achieve.

Think of Easter, and you may think of daffodils and pretty spring flowers. This Easter, X-entricity's latest production brings a whole new breed of plant to Ross on Wye! Talented local theatre group X-entricity are joined for their latest spectacular production by a very special type of plant - an 'Audrey II'.

Discovered by down and out Skid Row florist's assistant Seymour Krelbourn, and named after the girl who is his secret love, Audrey II has a mysterious craving - for fresh blood! Seymour becomes an overnight sensation, as Audrey II grows into an ill-tempered, rhythm-and-blues singing carnivore, offering Seymour fame and fortune if he continues to feed its growing appetite. Seymour, his boss Mushnik, Audrey and her sadistic dentist boyfriend are caught up in the plant's evil plans as its true motives become clear . . .

This gleefully gruesome musical has a Motown inspired score, by composers Alan Menken and Howard Ashman, who also worked together on Walt Disney's Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid and Aladdin. Charming, tuneful and hilarious, X-entricity's Little Shop of Horrors promises an unmissable Easter treat for all the family.

A Singing Plant. A Daring Hero. A Sweet Girl. A Demented Dentist. Find them at the Larruperz Centre, Ross on Wye, on the 5th, 6th 7th and 12th, 13th and 14th April 2007. Tickets are available from the Centre - Tel 01989 565465

The Ross-on-Wye Lions Club held their annual Cheltenham Gold Cup Eve Race Night at the Chase Hotel and, including the Lions, over 100 turned up to enjoy an evening of exciting racing. After a slow start, while waiting for latecomers, the atmosphere began to rise. The excitement of the chase soon got the younger element, a group of young people from local firm PGL who came along to really let their hair down and also support a good cause, shouting. Another large group of punters was made up of Lions wives and their friends, not wanting to miss out on the fun and lend a hand in running the event. The usual Irish contingent was also in attendance, although not in such big numbers this year. There were only 23 of them but they were more than generous.

Continued . . .

The Ross Lions charity fund benefited to the sum of £1,400 on the night. This is no wonder when such generosity is shown in an effort to raise funds for local charities. A chocolate Easter Bunny was auctioned off for £40, the winning bid coming from a local Lion member. A hat, donated by local postman James Weatherhead, autographed by jockey Ruby Walsh, raised a further £40. The winner of this item must have been pleased when Ruby rode the winner of the Gold Cup Race the next day and its value would have risen considerably.

Thanks must go to the guests, most of all the 'Irish' visitors, for the racing, the Chase Hotel for allowing the Lions to hold their Race Night on the premises, Sponsors of the Race Card and sponsors of each race. The Lions also appreciate all the effort put in by Bill Sheldon from Birmingham who acts as projectionist, organizes the Tote and carries out the auctions. Bill has done this for many years. Members of the Lions Club won't be mentioned individually, but they all deserve a pat on the back for running this event year on year.

If you attended this years Ross Lions Race Nigh and enjoyed yourself then tell all your friends and bring them along next year.

The Phoenix Theatre won two prestigious awards at the Hereford County Drama Festival, the preliminary round of The All England Theatre festival.

Ian Pauley entered the third act of his play Resonant Frequency, which ran at The Phoenix last September.

The team won two awards; Robin Haig as Boffin took The Belmont Trophy for best actor while Ian Pauley took the Andrews Shield for best original play.

Denise Hall and Lawrence Kettle both drew praise for their performances as Host 1 and Host 2.

Ian is looking for more success later on this year when his next play, Poppy Appeal, gets its premiere in September. Before then there will be five productions, the first of which, London Suite, will run form the 14th to the 21st of April.

Full details are available The Phoenix Theatre website www.the-phoenix-theatre.org.uk.

Pictured from left to right at the back are Robin Haig, Denise Hall and Lawrence Kettle. Seated in front is Ian Pauley.

A small Welsh village in Monmouthshire will host one of rock’s biggest stars in June as part of an annual music festival which is attracting fans from around the world. Martin Turner, the definitive voice, creative force and founding member of British rock legends Wishbone Ash, will headline this year’s Raglan Music Festival, which in just two years has grown to become a recognized part of the Welsh music calendar. Launched in 2005 the popular three-day music event has won fans from as far a field as Scotland, England and even mainland Europe. Most concerts are free and all money raised is used to fund future festivals and music in the local community.

This year’s festival opens on 9th June and organizers have had to use their imaginations to find suitable venues in the quaint village for acts to perform. They include a pub, a church and even Raglan Castle. Other highlights include performances by BBC National Orchestra of Wales flutist Catherine Handley, ska giants 'The Big' who also play at this year’s Glastonbury Festival, and the rousing Blaenavon Male Voice Choir, who will become the first act to perform an open-air concert at Raglan Castle.

Some more interesting performances on the bill include traditional hand bell ringing and sultry Jazz on the Terrace. In total more than thirty bands, musicians and singers will perform at the annual community event, though the appearance of Wishbone Ash legend Martin Turner is a real coup for organizers.

Turner formed the band in the late 60s, and they went on to release a string of timeless rock classics including their groundbreaking self-entitled debut and follow-ups Pilgrimage and Argus. In 1969 they played their first gig at a hall in Dunstable – they were paid just £5. Twelve months later they signed to MCA Records, after being recommended by Deep Purple, for $250,000. They were quickly hailed as the Best New Band by influential music bible Melody Maker. More than 30 years on the band remains one of the most endearing rock forces of the 70s, and their albums remain strong sellers around the world, proving an inspiration for a generation of guitar players.

As well as being able to listen to a feast of music, festival-goers who fancy bringing along their own instruments can enjoy performing in one of the open jam sessions, while a series of music workshops will be staged for budding young musicians to hone their talents. Festival committee member Charles Fountain said: 'The festival is a wonderful community event for the people of Raglan and Monmouthshire to enjoy, though even to our own surprise we have had visitors from other parts of the UK and abroad too.

The festival itself is a not for profit, community event and is funded through a combination of ticket sales, sponsorship, grants and donations. Each evening climaxes with star-studded performances in the function room of the Beaufort Hotel.

We all believe this year’s event is the most exciting yet and look forward to seeing such a gifted mixture of established stars and local musicians and singers performing.'

You can now book seats for this year’s ticket-only concerts, including Martin Turner, at www.raglan-festival.org.

DO YOU HAVE A STORY FOR WYENOT NEWS?

If you have a local news item or story you can submit it here
or call Alan or Tina on 01989 763217

Wyenot News, 1, Hillview Road, Ross-on-Wye, Herefordshire. HR9 7EY

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