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HONITON
September 2020 Newsletter Issue 94
The New Normal !
Strollers at Escot
Hello and welcome to the September Newsletter.
I can't believe it is September already and we are no nearer to holding Monthly meetings at the Beehive or
Group meetings in our homes.
We are hoping to put on a Zoom meeting with a speaker in October or November for you all to enjoy, and
more in the future if this goes well.
I hope you are all keeping well and safe in these turbulent times. Enjoy reading this latest Newsletter and
thank you for all those who contributed to it.
A big thank you to Howard for producing another great edition.
Janet
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Welcome to the fourth special edition of the newsletter and many thanks to all who have submitted
contributions. Once again I have organised them into rather arbitrary sections and to help you find them I
have provided links to each, just click on the page numbers. I hope these work, but if they don’t, or if you
have a paper copy, the various items can still be found by reference to the pages.
It has been found that the external links work best if the newsletter is opened in an internet browser (e.g.
Explorer or Firefox) and not in Adobe Reader. Even then they may not work for some and the full link is
given where practical. If anyone can explain why, please let me know.
Contributions for the newsletter should be sent to the Editor.
Howard Lyne - Editor
CONTENTS
News from the Committee Page 3
News from the Groups Page 5
Group and contact details Page 9
The Danish Kings of England Page 10
My TV Highlights of the year so far Page 12
Bed Yoga Page 13
Devon Dialects (Part 2 'Me Handsom') Page 14
Recent weather Page 14
A poetic exercise in pronunciation Page 16
Sunflower challenge Page 16
Photography for Pleasure Page 17
Group photographs Page 19
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News from the Committee Group leaders' meeting A very successful group leaders' meeting was recently held on Zoom, with Janet Driscoll hosting the meeting on behalf of Peter Williams. Eleven group leaders attended with three others sending in their information via Val Frood and Peter Searl. Each group leader informed the meeting on what they are doing to keep in touch with their members, mostly through e-mails and phone calls. One is sending his group the programme they would have seen if there had been a group meeting. Several leaders are holding meetings in their gardens or in a member’s garden, with others hosting Zoom sessions* . Everyone agreed that the group leaders' meeting had been a useful exercise and would like to have another in October. Janet thanked Val Frood and June Brown for arranging and setting up the meeting and the group leaders who attended. *U3A group meetings should comply with the latest Covid-19 restrictions. These can be found on the government's website at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-outbreak-faqs-what-you- can-and-cant-do/coronavirus-outbreak-faqs-what-you-can-and-cant-do. These are complex, but paragraph 2.9 states You should only be socialising in groups of up to two households (including your support bubble) indoors and outdoors or up to six people from different households when outdoors. July's caption competition The winning reply was from Julian Foster with Keep death off the road, drive on the pavement. Well done Julian. www.u3asites.org.uk/honiton Page 3
Valerie Roberts (1930 – 2020) It is with great sadness I report the death of Val Roberts from cancer on the morning of 13 August 2020 at her Upottery home Byways. I have known and loved Val for just over six years. We met as members of the Honiton U3A History Group – we came together when I gave her a lift on the group’s excursion to the National Trust’s Killerton House. As those who knew us might expect, we chatted away and have not stopped since! In Stewart Raine’s words, “Val was one of my original ‘historians’ from when I started in 2011 and such an interesting person to talk to with a lifetime of experiences.” Val had a great zest for life, an exceptional conversationalist with a remarkable fund of stories about her rich life, and especially people she knew, often told in broad Devonian; on the other hand her niece Carol used to call her with affection “my posh auntie Val”. According to one of her U3A friends Val was caring and kind, making friends easily and “had an interest in everything”. Val’s membership of U3A interest groups reflects this: both play reading groups, the book group, the lunch group, art appreciation, music appreciation and the late Bill Tydeman’s performing arts group. More recently we both enjoyed membership of Rhona Hitchcock’s delightful hand bell ringing group. Val loved to travel and we had many enjoyable trips together in the last six years. According to her step grand-niece Izzy, “I will always think of Aunty Val ‘gallivanting around’ – Val would laugh. But she had such a zest for life.” Izzy also wrote: “She was kind and caring; and her cottage Byways was always a little place in my head where I felt sanctuary.” Peter Williams Return to contents page www.u3asites.org.uk/honiton Page 4
News from the groups Armchair Adventurers – Susan Unsworth We had our first face to face meeting on a sunny day during July in a garden with a cream tea. Lots of chat and a small amount of work! However we have been working hard on our online travels, completing our journey along the River Wear from the North Pennines to Sunderland. From a rural UNESCO Global Geopark to industrial Sunderland with it’s ship, steel and coal history. We passed Bronze Age Heathery Burn Cave with the wonderful finds and those of the Eastgate Hoard. Along the way we explored Frosterly Marble and fluorite crystals. The use of bell pits and hushes for lead and coal mining. The flora includes plants found nowhere else in Britain including six types of ladies mantle. Towns and villages steeped in history with ‘Bobby Shafto’ making an appearance at Brancepeth Castle. A wonderful medieval hall at Crook Hall plus Roam Vinovia and altar stones. Epic tales of Kyren and The Lambton Worm. Aukland Castle's splendid chapel and Durham’s many delights. Bridges galore, St Cuthbert and Godric, the Venerable Bede and an 8th Century pocket book. From an Anglo Saxon window to the modern Steel Men. Far too much to mention here. Please look at our link on the Honiton U3A web site to read about the whole of our journey. Images from our online travels can be found on page 19 Book Group – Gill Thomas This year we have read three books: The Children Act by Ian McEwan; Vinegar Girl by Anne Tyler; and A Wanted Man by Lee Child, and, following the easing of lockdown restrictions, planned a meeting outdoors before the weather interevened. For all of us, The Children Act was very enjoyable and thought provoking. Skilfully interwoven into the narrative, Fiona Maye, a high court judge, has to give judgement in three cases. First, the case of Siamese twins where only one twin is viable if separated; left conjoined, both will die. Should she find in favour of the parents who want let nature to take its course, or to agree to separation so one can live? In the next case, she has to decide between parents over the schooling of their daughters. Should she find in favour of the father, a member of an ultra-orthodox sect which mandates single-sex education and that the Torah is the only book to be read, or the mother who has left the sect, wants them to go to co-educational schools and have the opportunities denied to her by the religion? These two cases are supporting acts to the main dilemma of Adam, a Jehovah’s Witness, who is refusing a blood transfusion. The hospital is asking for permission to perform the life-saving procedure. As a 17 year-old, he cannot decide for himself, she must decide what is in his best interests. None of us had much to say about Vinegar Girl by Anne Tyler, which is a reworking of Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew. Maybe I was suffering from ennui caused by lockdown but I found her style tedious and didn’t get beyond the first few pages. I had heard of the fictional detective, Jack Reacher, but had not read any of the books by his creator, Lee Child. So when our August choice was A Wanted Man, I was curious to find out why he is such a popular thriller writer. The first half moves along nicely. Reacher is hitch-hiking in Nebraska. A murder is committed by two men who escape by car; the witness goes missing. Hitch-hiking in Nebraska, Reacher is picked up by two men and a woman. The men are liars, the woman, Karen Delfuenso, a waitress, communicates that she is a hostage; her daughter is kidnapped. FBI Agent, Julia Sorensen, is on the trail of the killers. Reacher manages to alert the cops. One of the two men tries to murder him. Karen’s car is found burnt out, a body inside. As in all good thrillers, nothing is as it seems. Sadly in the second half, the co- incidences are far-fetched, the situations as they develop less than credible and at the end there is no satisfactory explanation for any of the events. We currently have space for one more member. www.u3asites.org.uk/honiton Page 5
Bridge (Duplicate) – Doreen Lomax I'm pleased to see that all but two of our group have renewed their U3A membership for 2020, so there are currently 26 members. It's encouraging to know that 19 of us are continuing to play regularly online, either casually with friends or in an online bridge club. A few members have asked whether I can set up a virtual club for us to all meet online, but unfortunately this cannot be done affordably. I have, however offered to show interested players how to set up teams matches online if they want, which are free to play and offer a degree of competition. It's a shame that the nature of bridge means that the group cannot meet while the current regulations regarding social distancing and the sanitising of everything we touch remains in place. I wish I could say that we will reconvene soon, but in reality I think it will be some time before we are able to do so. Meanwhile, I hope you are all keeping well and positive. Handbell Ringing – Rhona Hitchcock Fine weather enabled us to hold a few very pleasurable meetings in my garden where social distancing was maintained and members were able to once again enjoy the joys of ringing and chatting! A photo of a socially distanced meeting is on page 19 History Group – Stewart Raine Although the Group is still unable to meet, the monthly topics continue to be emailed to members. The latest article on the Danish Kings of England can be found later in the Newsletter on page 10 Knitting– Hilary Lyne The Knitwise group are now meeting twice a month in members’ gardens, weather permitting, after keeping in touch during lockdown with emails. It is so enjoyable to meet up again, exchanging news and knitting ideas. We are rotating attendance at these sessions to comply with Covid guidelines. Hopefully we will get back to our technique sessions in the future. A photograph of one of our outdoor meetings is on page 20 Meteorology – Howard Lyne Unfortunately the group had only met once before lockdown led to the suspension of all further meetings. However, an important part of each meeting is a review of recent or forecast weather and as this has been particulalry interesting in the last few weeks I thought I'd include something in this newsletter. It can be found on page 14 Photography for Pleasure – John Driscoll Our group has been going out locally taking photos for the projects we discuss and decide upon at our Zoom meetings. We have had two of these Zoom meetings, which were enjoyed by five of our members. Val volunteered to take the second meeting and successfully put on screen our photos for all of us to see and comment on, and Val will be hosting our third Zoom meeting in September. Well done Val. Photographs from group members are on page 17 Poem Sharing – Peter Searl This exciting new group will spring to life on Thursday 17th September at 10.00. We are going to share poems and say why we have chosen them. And of course we will stray from the point, exchange news, and laugh too. It is not too late to join us, just contact the group leader. Anyone is welcome to attend the Zoom meeting as an observer. We will be pleased to read our chosen poems to whoever turns up, but even better if you bring a verse or two with you: Pam Ayres or Shakespeare? Ogden Nash or T S Eliot? Samuel Taylor Coleridge or John Betjeman? Or the wonderful Anon. As this is our first meeting you can help decide how the group will progress. Worried about your pronunciation when reading aloud? One to practice on can be found on page 16 www.u3asites.org.uk/honiton Page 6
Reading for Pleasure – Susanne Jones We were able have a Zoom session earlier this month to discuss the book we had been reading; A Spool of Blue Thread by Anne Tyler. We had very mixed reviews ranging from a scathing review from one member to another who loved it. The majority did think that some of the characters were more acceptable than others. Most of us would not read this author again. The book takes you through the years, following the generations in a family. You witness the events, secrets and unguarded moments that define who and what they are. Sewing – Sue Horswood We held our first meeting since lockdown started in July, and this is shown in the photo on page 20. We met in the garden under some shady trees at a good distance apart. We all enjoyed the chance to meet, talk, have a drink and even manage to do a bit of sewing! We have met again in August using the conservatory, opening all the windows and keeping socially distanced. It was a chance to feel a bit more normal again. Walking – Caroline Steggles and Helen Wale One of the great pleasures of the walking group is chatting to members as we go and the other is to share lunch together after the walk. Unfortunately present Covid conditions mean that we cannot freely enjoy either the talking or the lunch and there are no significant rule changes on the horizon. We feel therefore the best course is to cancel all walks for the remainder of the year. Let’s hope we will be able to begin 2021 without any restrictions to hamper us. All the volunteer leaders from April 2020 to year end will be transferred to 2021. Obviously some may wish to make a change but that can be organised nearer the time. We hope everyone in the group and their family and friends remain safe and well. We do at least have the benefit of being able to carry on walking as individuals or couples. Strollers – Rae Richard Due to the difficulties posed by social distancing, the Strollers group decided that the first stroll after lockdown should take place at a venue that had ample space to stay a healthy distance from others as well as each other. Escot was a natural choice as it offers several choices of walks of the width required for appropriate "distancing". We set out on Tuesday 14th July with the route being decided as we went along. A very enjoyable day was rounded off by having a picnic with each stroller supplying their own food plus takeaway coffee from the cafe. In August the weather forecast was so awful for the original date of Wednesday 12th August that a decision was made to have it on Tuesday 18th August. We had decided to go back to Escot not only because it is the best venue to keep socially distanced but because of the many variations to the route that are possible. As it transpired, the weather forecast was again unfavourable but notwithstanding this six brave ladies decided to chance it and were very lucky as the weather was kind to them. They had an excellent stroll and took the pictures which can be found on the front page and on page 21. Wine Tasting for Fun – Richard Spoerry Our August session was entitled “Don’t turn up your Nosé at Rosé”, where each member chose a bottle and commented on their choice. In some cases this involved a memory. We had fun remembering some of the rosés of our youth, such as Rosé D’Anjou and Mateus Rosé - the one with an interestingly shaped bottle that sometimes found itself a second career as a lamp! www.u3asites.org.uk/honiton Page 7
Our September session is entitled “Let’s try something different”, with a view to getting each member to do just that, perhaps choosing an unusual grape, an interesting blend, or a bottle from a lesser known wine producing country. We are still meeting “virtually”, but looking forward to the day when we can all get together in person, in order to be able to share our choices directly as a group, or do face to face tasting sessions of a series of bottles. We also hope that, in more normal times, we will be able to encourage other Honiton U3A members to join us. Meanwhile, new members attending “virtually” would be very welcome. It may be easier than you think! Just give me a call. (Contact details on next page ) Writing for Fun – Sue Horswood The photo on page 21 shows the second time that the group has met in a garden at the kind invitation of a member of the group. We have two members who have kindly provided us with a garden to meet in. Fortunately the sun has shone on us both times but on this occasion the meeting was ended quite quickly as the rain started. We all enjoyed getting together to share our writing for July and August and hope to continue while the weather is reasonable. Before this members’ writing was sent around to the group by email so we could stay in touch throughout the lockdown. Return to contents page www.u3asites.org.uk/honiton Page 8
Groups and contact details
Although it is unlikely that groups will be able to meet for several months, it was thought helpful to remind
members of what these are and their contact details.
Group Leader
Amateur Radio Steve Down
Armchair Adventurers Susan Unsworth
Art Appreciation Catherine Bech
Book Group Gill Thomas
Bridge (Duplicate) Doreen Lomax
Bridge (Rubber) Derek Ballard
Discussion Group June Brown
English Folk Dance Rhona & Raymond Hitchcock
Folk Dance Band Rhona Hitchcock
German Ingrid Gaches
Handbell Ringing Rhona Hitchcock
History Group 1 Stewart Raine
History Group 2 Stewart Raine
Knitting Hilary Lyne
Lunch Club Jane Barnes
Maths Peter Williams
Meteorology Howard Lyne
Music Appreciation Howard Lyne
Opera Derek Ballard
Photography John Driscoll
Play Reading Joan Roberts
Poem Sharing Peter Searl
Quiz Group Pam Faulkner
Reading for Pleasure Susanne Jones
Recorder Group Tricia Lewis
Scrabble Sue Hurst
Sewing Sue Horswood
Walking Caroline Steggles & Helen Wale
Walking (Strollers) Rae Richard
Wine Tasting for Fun Richard Spoerry
Writing For Fun Sue Horswood
Writing Group Pam Faulkner
Return to Contents page
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The Danish Kings of England – Stewart Raine I’ve been thinking about ‘accident in History’ (E.H.Carr called it the ‘Cleopatra’s Nose Theory’- think about that one!) and how much of our history is linked to the continent of Europe. So in the 11th century there was a very real possibility if fate had not intervened that England would become part of a Danish/Norse Empire formed by England, Denmark, Norway and parts of Sweden. Although that didn’t come about, there is an increasingly held view that the ‘Norman’ conquest of 1066 was in fact the last ‘Viking’ invasion since the Normans, as we’ve talked about before, were descended from Viking warriors and not the Franks. This year we’ve also seen how many powerful and influential women there were in History and this month is no exception. Emma of Normandy, the great-aunt of William the Conqueror, was one such person with, as we’ll, see strong links to Exeter. History is written by the victors usually and certainly in the medieval period almost exclusively by men about men’s deeds. Women hardly get a look in, only occasionally do we get a glimpse of how powerful they possibly were behind the scenes. The Norse had been raiding England since the 793AD when a Viking force attacked Lindisfarne and by the middle of the 9th century, Vikings controlled much of Eastern England – the ‘Danelaw’. The words ‘Norse’ and ‘Viking’ are often used as if they were interchangeable. ‘Norse’ refers to the language and the people whilst ‘Viking’ is more specific, referring to the part time farmers and warriors under the control of a strong noble leader. Aethelred ‘the Unready’ or ‘Reedless’, a word that means ill advised and ‘Aethelred’ actually means ‘well advised’ so contemporary chronicles were poking fun at his unsuitable name. Emma was Aethelred’s second wife, although his first was his ‘hand-fasted’ wife, meaning he had been married in a pagan and not a Christian sense. It was Aethelred who faced the renewed onslaught of the Norse in the shape of Sweyn ‘Forkbeard’, King of Norway. On 13th November 1002 Aethelred had ordered the slaughter of Danes in England, a bit of early ethnic cleansing that has gone down as the St Brice’s Day Massacre. Among the dead were Sweyn’s close relatives and so his invasion was in revenge partly for this event. He eventually overcame English resistance and on 25th December 1013 was declared King of England. Aethelred fled to Normandy to the court of his wife’s brother. But Sweyn died 3rd February 1014, passing his claim to the throne to his son Cnut (usually given as Canute). Aethelred returned from Normandy, Knut invaded in 1015 landing in Dorset and working eastwards. Aethelred died on 23rd April 1016 and Cnut and Aethelred’s son, Edmund, agreed to share England between them, a decision that ended with Edmund’s death on 30th November 1016. Knut was left as sole King of England and so the Scandinavian Empire of the early 11th century was born. Then guess what happened! Knut married the widow of Aethelred, Emma of Normandy! Why did she agree to the marriage or did she have no say in the matter? Historians usually accept it was probably to save the lives of her two remaining sons by her first husband. She had seen what had happened to Aethelred’s sons by his first marriage. Knut had sent them to Sweden to be murdered, determined to have no rivals to his throne from the old English royal family. Actually they somehow survived and lived in exile in Hungary. It is from one of these sons of Aethelred that the wife of Henry I, Edith (Matilda) descends giving our present Queen a direct ancestor in Alfred the Great. So Emma married Knut, but sent her sons to Normandy again for safety. So why didn’t Cnut’s empire continue? Well, we come to accident. Cnut died quite suddenly 10th November 1035 with rival claimants to his kingdom. Cnut’s son by his first wife, Harold I ‘Harefoot’, succeeded to the Kingdom of England because Harthacnut, Knut’s son by Emma, was out of the country securing his claim to succeed in Denmark/Norway. But Harold I died leaving no heir on 17th March 1040 and so Harthacnut succeeded to the Empire of his father. On 8th June 1042, Harthacnut was attending a wedding and drinking rather more than was good for him. We are told by his biographer that he ‘died as he stood at his drink, and he suddenly fell to the earth with an awful convulsion; and those who were close by took hold of him, and he spoke no word afterward, the likely cause of death a stroke brought about by an excessive intake of alcohol.’ www.u3asites.org.uk/honiton Page 10
Harthacnut left no heirs. His only sister, Gunhilda, had predeceased him in 1038. She had married the Holy Roman Emperor, Henry III, but their only child, a daughter, had become a nun. So Cnut’s line failed. Magnus of Norway, descended from an illegitimate line of Norwegian kings, claimed and won the thrones of Denmark and Norway, later agreeing to share his lands with Harald Hardrada who became King of Norway – the same Harald who invaded England in 1066 only to be killed at the Battle of Stamford Bridge which generations of schoolchildren have assumed to be in west London rather than York! Had Cnut’s line not failed or his sister had left male heirs, then there would have been a very strong possibility that England would have remained part of a northern European empire. In the event, Aethelred’s son by Emma, known as Edward the Confessor, returned from exile in Normandy and became King. When he too died without heirs in January 1066, the stage was set for the invasion not only of William of Normandy but as we’ve seen Harald of Norway as well. The death of Hardrada in battle and a chance arrow at Hastings – well, as they say, the rest in history! Which brings us to the ‘waves’ and Cnut’s journey to Rome. The story appears in Henry of Huntingdon’s 12th century chronicle (Henry was a monk). It is told in the chronicle to illustrate Cnut’s humility. Let all men know how empty and worthless is the power of kings, for there is none worthy of the name, but He whom heaven, earth, and sea obey by eternal laws.'" He then hung his gold crown on a crucifix, and never wore it again "to the honour of God the almighty King". Whether there is any truth in the story is unknown, but it is a story told about many important Celtic persons in other writings. At Easter 1027, Cnut undertook a journey to Rome for the coronation of the Holy Roman Emperor Conrad II. That he was regarded as an equal by other European sovereigns and princes in Rome illustrates how importantly he was viewed by those fellow rulers. He saw it as a pilgrimage for a Christian king, but also a chance to sort out grievances with the Duke of Burgundy. He wrote an open letter back to his subjects in which he said: ‘I spoke with the Emperor himself and the Lord Pope and the princes there about the needs of all people of my entire realm, both English and Danes, that a juster law and securer peace might be granted to them on the road to Rome and that they should not be straitened by so many barriers along the road, and harassed by unjust tolls; and the Emperor agreed and likewise Duke Rudolph who governs most of these same toll gates. And all the magnates confirmed by edict that my people, both merchants, and the others who travel to make their devotions, might go to Rome and return without being afflicted by barriers and toll collectors, in firm peace and secure in a just law’. Cnut’s journey was overland and he would not have travelled without a substantial number of people so one can imagine the long and arduous journey this must have been to arrive in Rome in time for the coronation on March 26th 1027 and the subsequent seven days of celebration. The ‘Encomium Emmae Reginae’ is an 11th century manuscript probably written by a monk in St Omer in France. An ‘encomium’ is a book that praises its subject and until recently it was thought that only one copy of the work had survived. But a second fuller version was found in the Devon Record Office by chance amongst the papers of the Earls of Devon. Queen Emma, the wife of Aethelred and of Cnut died 6th March 1052 at the age of about 68 and the manuscript has been dated to ten years prior to her death and probably after the accession of Edward the Confessor. It is written from Emma’s standpoint – it was commissioned by her! – to explain to Edward her actions and the history of England during his childhood and young adulthood. Even if it is biased, it does show a woman of influence especially in Cnut’s reign and so for the first time historians have a female voice on the past, the first consort to stand out in that way. After all that we need some light relief! Denmark had its own waltz king in the shape of a musician called Hans Christian Lumbye (1810 – 1874) who was musical director at the Tivoli Gardens in Copenhagen. Check out his Champagne Gallop on YouTube: it will brighten a dull day! www.u3asites.org.uk/honiton Page 11
And if you want something to laugh at (well, I think it’s funny!) look no further than Borge Rosenbaum, (1909-2000) better known as Victor Borge, a Danish-American comedian who was also a fabulous musician. Lots of YouTube extracts which make me laugh. Return to contents page My TV highlights of the year so far – Martin Long One question I am constantly asked, is what has been my standout moment on television this year. It seems like everyone from seasoned TV critics to Z-list celebrities has offered their opinion at some point. So it might as well be my turn, if only to point out two things. Firstly, what sustained us during this time has been unique to each of us. And second, that it is a myth that we have all been permanently glued to our TV sets, at a time when the schedules had a permanent “subject to change” notice attached. So what stood out? Well, was it just me, or was the new version of Parliament fascinating? OK just me then. But it was remarkable to see MPs having the same problems we had, adapting to conducting our lives online. There were MPs who found they had electronically voted AYE when they meant to vote NO. And there was the Speaker bobbing up and down to announce the next member to appear on the TV screens above MPs’ heads, like the presenter of some legislative game show: Rishi Sunak, come on down. The price is definitely not right. A totally unexpected hit was Bob Ross and his legendary art show The Joy of Painting. Sadly, my Freeview tuner could not fit the full title on screen, so for the first few days it appeared the BBC was broadcasting something called The Joy of Pain, which would have been quite a different programme. Ross quickly became a cult figure, as he created, in a voice reminiscent of his namesake Whispering Bob Harris, canvases that always seemed to end up consisting of mountains, tall, happy trees and log cabins. It was a great example of slow TV, oddly calming at the end of another stressful day. I continue to enjoy the comic detective series Shakespeare and Hathaway. It features the adventures of two ill-matched private investigators, solving cases against the backdrop of Stratford Upon Avon. Each episode abounds with references to the Bard, whether in characters’ names, pieces of dialogue borrowed from his plays and even sly references hidden in the background of scenes. One example is an episode called Ill Met By Moonlight. The title is a line from A Midsummer Night’s Dream, which is a motif that runs right through the story. For instance, the stolen jewel the detectives are trying to recover is called Love in Idleness, which is a flower used as a love potion in Shakespeare’s play. Saving the best until last, my TV moment of the year so far simply has to be The Great British Sewing Bee. It was a delight from beginning to end. Gentle humour, friendly competition, palpable enjoyment among presenter, judges and competitors alike. And above all, everyone was so charmingly pleasant to one another. It was like something from a different age. The moment that clinched it, however, was the montage of images at the end of the final, when we caught up with what the competitors had been doing since they took part in the show. And we saw the winner, Dr. Clare Bradley, in full PPE, working back at her day job as a lung surgeon for the NHS. The audience was suddenly brought up short, as the joy of the series was if anything enriched and deepened, by the momentary and extremely moving reminder that it was taking place against the background of an unfolding crisis. In the mist of tragedy, there was love, hope and creativity. It was a distinctly reassuring message, but one that the makers of a TV sewing competition probably never thought it would fall to them to deliver. This is a shortened version of an article that first appeared in the South West Independent Return to contents page www.u3asites.org.uk/honiton Page 12
Bed Yoga – Kay Edge I thought members might be interested to hear about – or even try out for themselves – something I call ‘Bed Yoga’. Yes, you can take exercise and feel a lot better for it without getting out of bed, and it only takes about 10 minutes! I have been going to yoga classes for nearly 30 years and feel the main benefits yoga has given me are a calmer approach to life’s problems, mostly due to yoga breathing, and a still-flexible (albeit elderly!) body courtesy of the yoga poses. Obviously since the pandemic hit us exercise classes aren’t an option, and a couple of times a week I do a full workout in the living room. On other days it’s a quick burst of Bed Yoga, which helps ease joints and stretch and tone the whole body. It also gives you a wonderfully positive feeling of well-being as you start your day! REPEAT EACH EXERCISE UP TO FIVE TIMES, BUT DO ALL THE EXERCISES GENTLY UNTIL YOU FEEL CONFIDENT. Breathing Begin by sitting up straight, well propped by pillows or cushions, with your legs stretched out in front of you. Breathe deeply in for a count of four, hold for two, breathe out for four. Repeat up to five times. Deep, slow breathing is known to lower blood pressure as well as making you feel calmer. Feet, legs, knees, hips and spine In the same sitting posture as above, stretch the feet up and down five times. Bend your left leg up, holding the knee, with your left foot flat on the bed and your right leg stretched out and then release the left leg back down. Repeat up to five times. My husband did these two exercises as part of physiotherapy after a total knee replacement. ‘Cradle’ the left leg, resting it across the other leg, then gently ‘crank’ your ankle up and down and backward and forward, and then circle your foot several times in both directions. Rock the leg gently as though you are rocking a baby – this exercises the hip joints. Repeat everything for the right leg. Put the soles of your feet together and gently try to lower your bent legs. Again, this helps hip joints. If you feel flexible enough, bend forward over your bent legs – this helps the spine. In due course you can try straightening your legs and doing a seated ‘forward bend’ – if you can touch your knees that’s great, and in time you might loosen and lengthen the spine enough to touch your ankles or even your toes. Breathe regularly while holding poses like this! Arms, hands, shoulders, neck and spine Sitting up straight, legs straight out in front of you, touch your shoulders and raise your arms, up to five times. Then touch your shoulders and stretch your arms out sideways. Roll your shoulders back several times to release any tension. Hold your arms straight out in front of you and flex your hands up and down (as you did with your feet at the beginning). Circle the wrists in both directions and then ‘throw’ your fingers and thumbs forward. If you suffer from arthritis in your hands it can help to do other hand exercises, like folding each digit in towards the palm and holding for a few seconds, or laying your hand flat on the bed and lifting each digit up, one at a time (this one I find hard!). To help your neck and upper spine, gently move your head, first forward on to your upper chest, then back (but not too far), then ear to shoulder on both sides, and finally (gently, gently!) swivel the head so you are looking over your shoulder, and repeat on the other side. Don’t ever force this. Roll your shoulders back again several times. Eyes Sit in a comfortable upright position (I sit cross legged, but straight legs are fine – whatever feels right. Move your eyes, not your head! 1. Look up and then down five times. 2. Look side to side five times. www.u3asites.org.uk/honiton Page 13
3. Look up to your left and down to your right; repeat five times. Then up to your right and down to your left, and repeat. 4. Move your eyes in a circle one way and then the other, and repeat. 5. Hold your index finger at arm’s length in front of you and focus on it for five seconds. Then focus on something across the room and hold for five seconds. Repeat up to ten times. 6. Rub your palms together until they feel hot, and then hold the palms over your eyes, blocking out the light. I guarantee the world looks brighter when you remove your hands! These exercises are supposed to help focusing and some people even claim they can make you see better. I wouldn’t go that far, but every bit of you benefits from exercise! Breathing Repeat the breathing sequence you did at the beginning, a deep breath in for a count of four, hold for two and breathe out. Repeat five times, but on the final outbreath open your mouth and ‘blow’ the air out. NOW GO AND MAKE YOURSELF A CUP OF TEA! Return to contents page Devon Dialects (Part 2 ‘Me Handsom‘!) – June Brown (proud Torquinian) As a fellow Devonian, I really enjoyed Miriam’s article (& the translation ! ) in our last newsletter. As she said, dialects within Devon can be very different. Each local area seem to have their own words for actions, characteristics or day to day objects. I am sure this is true for every area in the U.K. I was born in Torquay, one of the English Riviera holiday towns. We seemed to have our own words for things (possibly ‘refined’ by my own family !) So just for a bit of fun I thought I would include some of them to see if members already know them, or would like to guess their meaning ? 1) CAKEY 2) CLIDGEY 3) CROOKEY DOWN 4) DIMPSIE 5) GROCKLE 6) MAZED AS A BRISH 7) NIDDICK 8) NUBBIES 9) ORTS 10) SMITCHY 11) ZIMZOY Answers can be found on page 22 Return to contents page Recent weather – Howard Lyne The beginning of August saw a spell of fine weather with hot sunny weather widespread across England and Wales peaking on Friday the 7th August with a temperature of 36.4º C recorded at Heathrow Airport and Kew Gardens. As is common in this country, thunderstorms then developed and warnings were in place throughout the following week for much of England and Wales. It is often heard that showers are carried along by the wind and for most people this rule of thumb means the surface wind. This is a particular favourite for commentators on TMS or Test Match Special who indulge in a bit of amateur weather forecasting when rain threatens to stop play. They are also often right, particularly when the showers are light, but it is no reliable guide when heavy showers and thunderstorms are around. On the 10th August at the start of the thundery spell the surface winds over the southern half of England and Wales were predominantly north-easterly as shown in the accompanying image for 10 o’clock in the morning. Thunderstorms were developing over Devon and Cornwall but are shown to be moving north in the two radar pictures for 09.30 and 10.00 am. These pictures also show how quickly such storms can gather strength in both area and intensity. (For those unfamiliar with radar pictures of rainfall the brighter the colours, the more intense the rainfall). The reason for this direction of travel is that the storms extend www.u3asites.org.uk/honiton Page 14
through a large depth of the atmosphere and travel with the average speed of the upper winds. In this instance the winds backed with height, and observations from the upper air radiosonde (weather balloon) station at Camborne showed them to be mostly south or south-south-easterly through the greater depth of the atmosphere. Such wind shear can play a vital role in the development and decay of severe thunderstorms.* Surface winds for 10.00 Rainfall at 09.30 Rainfall at 10.00 Another feature worth noting is the onshore direction of winds over the north coasts of both Cornwall and west Devon. These winds brought low-level murky conditions with high humidity so, when much of the country was basking in sunshine (or affected by thunderstorms!), holiday-makers who had chosen the north coast as their destination suffered from periods of fog, mist or low cloud. They did, of course, have the option of travelling to the south coast. The pictures shown are taken from screenshots of radar images from the Met Office website and the surface wind vectors from a site called xcweather. The relevant links are: www.metoffice.gov.uk/public/weather/observation/map (choose the ‘Rainfall’ option from the pop-up ‘Show’ menu) https://www.xcweather.co.uk *Some of you, especially mariners and yachtsmen, may be familiar with the idea of looking at upper clouds like cirrus to determine which way they are moving and therefore the wind direction at higher levels. If this suggests a veering with height, then that is an indication of an approaching warm front where warm air is riding over cold air. The converse of winds backing with height indicates cold air is encroaching at upper levels making the atmosphere more unstable (cold air is denser than warm air) helping the development of thunderstorms. Return to contents page www.u3asites.org.uk/honiton Page 15
A poetic exercise in pronunciation – Peter Searl
Our Strange Lingo
When the English tongue we speak. And think of goose and yet with choose
Why is break not rhymed with freak? Think of comb, tomb and bomb,
Will you tell me why it's true Doll and roll or home and some.
We say sew but likewise few? Since pay is rhymed with say
And the maker of the verse, Why not paid with said I pray?
Cannot rhyme his horse with worse? Think of blood, food and good.
Beard is not the same as heard Mould is not pronounced like could.
Cord is different from word. Wherefore done, but gone and lone -
Cow is cow but low is low Is there any reason known?
Shoe is never rhymed with foe. To sum up all, it seems to me
Think of hose, dose,and lose Sound and letters don't agree.
Sunflower Challenge – June Brown
We had a sunflower growing competition in the family
during lockdown & the height of our entry was 343 cm.
Can anyone beat that ?
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www.u3asites.org.uk/honiton Page 16PHOTOGRAPHY FOR PLEASURE
Crab spider on cornflower – Eddie Coombes Bee visiting iris – Janet Powell
Gull in flight – David Unsworth Abstract in colour – Jenny Roberts
Leading lines I.O.W. - John Driscoll
www.u3asites.org.uk/honiton Page 17Framed – St Nicholas Church Dunkeswell
Val Frood
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www.u3asites.org.uk/honiton Page 18GROUP PHOTOGRAPHS
Handbell Ringing Group
Online travels with the Armchair Adventurers
High Force waterfall
Sunderland
The Lambton Worm
Steel Men of Wearside
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www.u3asites.org.uk/honiton Page 19Sewing Group
Knitting Group (Knitwise)
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www.u3asites.org.uk/honiton Page 20Strollers
Writing for Fun
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www.u3asites.org.uk/honiton Page 21Answers to Dialect quiz (see page ) 1) CAKEY GULLIBLE/ SOFT 2) CLIDGEY MOIST (used to describe cakes ) 3) CROOKY DOWN CROUCHING DOWN 4) DIMPSIE TWILIGHT 5) GROCKLE AN OUTSIDER / HOLIDAY-MAKER 6) MAZED AS A BRISH ACTING DAFT OR CRAZY 7) NIDDICK NAPE OF THE NECK 8) NUBBIES CAKES 9) ORTS LEFT OVER FOOD 10) SMITCHY SMOKE COMING OUT INTO THE ROOM FROM A FIRE IN THE GRATE 11) ZIMZOY WISHY WASHY/ INDECISIVE How many did you know (or guess)? Return to Devon Dialects www.u3asites.org.uk/honiton Page 22
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