116
VIVALEWES
EDITORIAL
Of course the Celts and other Ancient Britons would have had community celebrations, but
the term ‘festival’, inevitably, has its roots in Latin: the word ‘festivus’ (of or pertaining to a
feast). This changed to ‘festivalis’ in late Latin, and ‘festival’ in Old French, and hence, via the
Normans, to the English term, originally used only as an adjective, as in ‘festival day’.
Which is still a long way from how most people think of the word today. To some, I guess
‘festival’ will convey the Harvest Festival at church: to most however, there will be images of
wellies, and tents, and al fresco music, and mud. Woodstock and Glastonbury have a lot to
answer for.
May being May we have chosen ‘Festival’ as our theme. Of course you’ll be aware of the
month-long shenanigans going on in Brighton… the (best in the year?) month also sees the
Charleston Literary Festival, the start of the Glyndebourne Festival and (think a mini-
Glastonbury, in the woods, with kids) the Elderflower Fields festival, to which half of childrearing
Lewes seems to go.
A time to let your hair down, then, and indulge yourself in culture, and food, and drink,
and art, and friends. There’s a hell of a lot on out there: we’ve cherry-picked some of our
favourites in this and our sister publication Viva Brighton. Our advice? Even if you only do
one festivally thing in May, make sure you do it in style. Get the brochures; go for it. Enjoy
the month…
THE TEAM
.....................
EDITOR: Alex Leith alex@vivamagazines.com
SUB-EDITOR: David Jarman
STAFF WRITERS: Rebecca Cunningham rebecca@vivamagazines.com, Steve Ramsey steve@vivamagazines.com
ART DIRECTOR: Katie Moorman katie@vivamagazines.com
ADVERTISING: Sarah Hunnisett, Amanda Meynell advertising@vivalewes.com
EDITORIAL/ADMIN ASSISTANT: Isabella McCarthy Sommerville admin@vivamagazines.com
PUBLISHER: Lizzie Lower, lizzie@vivamagazines.com
DIRECTORS: Alex Leith, Lizzie Lower, Becky Ramsden, Nick Williams
CONTRIBUTORS: Jacky Adams, Michael Blencowe, Sarah Boughton, Mark Bridge, Emma Chaplin,
Moya Crockett, Mark Greco, Anita Hall, John Henty, Bethany Hobbs, Mat Homewood, Paul Austin Kelly,
Chloë King, Carlotta Luke, Marcus Taylor
Viva Lewes is based at Pipe Passage, 151b High Street, Lewes, BN7 1XU, 01273 488882. Accounts: 01273 480131
THE FESTIVAL ISSUE
CONTENTS
Bits and bobs.
8-23. Steam-rolling and screenprinting
this month’s cover, by Jonny
Hannah, local playwright Jonathan
Brown’s Lewes, and Carlotta Luke’s
festival snaps.
Columns.
25-29. Mark Bridge’s festivals are
better than our festivals, but Chloë
King has written the guide.
In Town This Month.
31-39. Festivals. A glimpse at this
month’s events, including Fairport
Convention, the Charleston
Centenary celebrations, a one-man
performance of The Encounter, a
screening of The Moon and the
Sledgehammer. Plus something to
look forward to: Caro Emerald at
Love Supreme jazz festival.
41-49. Art. What to see this month
in Lewes and beyond, including
landscapes, sculpture and graffiti.
51. Classical music. Paul Austin
8
72 21
Kelly rounds up the month’s classical
performances.
52-53. Film. Wild Tales and
Marshland: two great films, plenty of
subtitles.
55-59. Diary Dates. Bulbs, books and
beer, in and around Lewes.
61-63. Gig guide. Moya Crockett tells
Thompson Hall (detail), p.45
THE FESTIVAL ISSUE
69 72
90
us who’s playing what and when, kicking
off with Californian punker John Reis.
65-69. Free-time fun and festivals for
families, including Shlomo (above).
Food and drink.
71-79. It’s pick ‘n’ mix for lunch at the
Dorset, a deliciously unhealthy festival
recipe, cancelled out by a super-healthy
detox, and we seek out a cure for the
inevitable summer hangovers.
The Way we Work.
81-86. It’s double-Carlotta this month,
as she meets the keepers of Charleston
Farmhouse.
Features.
89-95. We try… badger watching, in
Loder Valley. John Henty, out and about
and loud and proud. If the hawthorn
is blooming, it’s definitely May. Bricks
and Mortar: the newly refurbished
Attenborough Arts Centre at Sussex
University.
Lewes in business.
97-100. What’s up in the Lewes
business world, and meet manicured
tree surgeon Patrick Geall.
Inside Left.
114. Lewes Drama Society get in the
festival spirit, 1920s-style.
VIVA DEADLINES
We plan each magazine six weeks ahead, with a midmonth
advertising/copy deadline.
Please send details of planned events to events@vivalewes.
com, and for any advertising queries:
advertising@vivalewes.com, or call 01273 434567.
Don’t forget to recycle your Viva.
Every care has been taken to ensure the accuracy of our content.
Viva Lewes magazine cannot be held responsible for any omissions,
errors or alterations. The views expressed by columnists do not
necessarily represent the view of Viva Lewes.
Love me or recycle me. Illustration by Chloë King
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THIS MONTH’S COVER ARTIST: JONNY HANNAH
Photos by Katie Moorman
It all started with an e-mail from the folk at Brighton
Festival, who wondered if we were interested in
a printing project that featured in their 2016 programme.
When we learnt that a 90-year-old steamroller
was involved, and that artist Jonny Hannah was
happy to get his hands inky for the cause, we were
sold. So on Easter Monday we made our way to
the Amberley Museum to watch the process, as the
steamroller in question, driven by owner Chris Hale,
rolled over the inked-up linocuts of our two covers
(one for Viva Lewes, and a companion piece for Viva
Brighton) in front of a small but enthusiastic crowd of
onlookers. These included the organisers Lucy and
Nathaniel from Ditchling Museum, and the artist Pea
Crabtree, who came up with the idea in the first place.
The process generated significantly more excitement
than you’d imagine, considering the vehicle was travelling
at 2mph.
Jonny had designed the two covers - back to front,
of course - by cutting into a sheet of lino, creating
a pair of Festival-enthused figures, a masked man
and woman, with his trademark odd extras, such as
a stripy-jumpered cat, a hand with a heart in it, an
old-fashioned wireless, and a dancing snake and eel.
The most heart-stopping moment was the first ‘big
reveal’, when he rolled the paper off the lino to see if
the process – which hadn’t been tried before in this
country – had worked. Once he’d checked it was OK,
he held the sheet of paper up to the assembled crowd.
A success! Hurrah!
“I’m a commercial artist, and I can only do a few
things for free,” he says, “so I make sure they are different
and exciting projects. This one really fitted in
with my current way of working. I’ve started finding
Photoshop too controlling as a medium – there’s very
little room for happenstance – so I’m moving more
and more to traditional methods. If you can call this
traditional!”
“I only finished the lino-cutting at 7.30 this morning,”
he added, “and I haven’t used lino for three years. I
realised the whole thing could have been a bit of a
car crash. I love the magic of peeling the paper back
to see if it has worked. Screen printing seems to me
like a kind of alchemy.” Digitally enhanced alchemy,
of course: Jonny later added the finishing touches of
colour on the computer in his studio.
Interview by Alex Leith
You can see the steamroller in action on 22nd May (12-
5pm) at the Level in Brighton, and 18th
June at the Ditchling Museum in the
Ditchling Fair. Jonny will be selling the
Viva Brighton and Viva Lewes cover
images as limited edition prints
at Atelier 51, Providence Place,
Brighton, during Artists’
Open
Houses.
And ‘Cardopolis’,
a new limitededition
poetry
book by Duane
Kahlhammer, illustrated
by Jonny, will
also be available to
buy from Atelier 51.
(Left and below) other works by Jonny Hannah
9
MARKET LEADERS
FOR SCOTTISH ART
Entries now invited
We off er free and confi dential
valuations with a view to selling in
our forthcoming auctions. For further
enquiries or to make an appointment
with a valuer in your area.
SAMUEL JOHN
PEPLOE RSA
(BRITISH, 1871-1935)
Daff odils in a Glass Bowl
Sold for £158,500 inc. premium
APPOINTMENTS
AND ENQUIRIES
01273 220000
hove@bonhams.com
bonhams.com/hove
Prices shown include buyer’s premium. Details can be found at bonhams.com
Photo by Alex Leith
MY LEWES: JONATHAN BROWN, ACTOR AND PLAYWRIGHT
Are you local? I was born and raised over the hill
in Woodingdean. Later I was living with my wife
and first child (of two) in Devon till 2008, but as I’m
a playwright and actor, and she’s a singer-songwriter,
there seemed less of a milieu for the shadowy
sides of those art forms in the Totnes area, so we
decided to come somewhere there seemed... more.
What do you like about Lewes? So many things,
particularly outdoors. The Downs, of course. Annika
and I both like that there is a street life in
the Cliffe, and that our buskers are allowed to
perform without anybody asking them to produce
a licence.
Is Lewes a good place for kids? It is. Lots of
green spaces. We’re home educators and there’s
a good home educating community around here,
meaning we can support one another.
As a playwright, how do you rate the Lewes
theatre scene? Lewes Little Theatre is a valuable
institution. I think there is however plenty of
room for more penetrative theatre and new writing
for adults in the town.
What’s your favourite pub in Lewes? I overused
pubs in my early 20s, and gave up drinking, so I
don’t go to them anymore. My favourite tipple
nowadays is Rooibos vanilla tea.
Where do you like eating out? The Hearth do
great pizzas with vegan cheese. And The Buttercup
Café occasionally sorts us out. Planet India in
Brighton is the place for treats, like their Bhel Puri.
Where do you do your shopping? Infinity Foods
in Brighton, topped up by visits to Waitrose.
How would you spend an ideal Sunday afternoon?
In the summer, on the beach with my family.
At Ovingdean there are sandy bits even at high
tide. Or walking in Friston or Ashdown Forest.
What did you have for breakfast this morning?
A pear. Normally I have a pear, banana, date and
cocoa smoothie, but I didn’t wake up feeling very
well this morning.
What’s your favourite landmark? We’re lucky to
have a view from the window of Firle Beacon and
Mt Caburn, and the cradle between them. On a
good night Orion tops it off incredibly.
Do you think the redevelopment of the Phoenix
area will make Lewes a less creative place?
I’ll miss Zu, which has put on many of my shows. I
think my stuff was sometimes a tad dark for them,
but it never stopped them from putting me on
again. Martin and Samira built a strong community
of people around a philosophy of shared-mindedness.
Then there’s Pop-up Studios, the Foundry,
the Community Kitchen, and all the other places.
If Lewes doesn’t have a place for that sort of offthe-wall
creative energy to be expressed then woe
betide the town! Interview by Alex Leith
Jonathan’s latest play, A Good Jew, is on at the All
Saints on June 4th and 5th, and also at Exeter Hall,
in Brighton, as part of Brighton Fringe, May 6th, 7th,
20th, 21st, 27th and 28th.
11
BITS AND BOBS
CHARITY BOX #2: GIG BUDDIES
What is Gig Buddies? Gig Buddies matches
music fans with a learning disability to a volunteer
who has similar interests to go to live music
events, that they both love, together. Everyone
deserves the enjoyment of going out and meeting
new people, so why should it be any different if
you have a disability?
Do you always go to gigs with the same person?
You are matched with one person, so that
you can build a trustworthy friendship.
How long have you been volunteering? I joined
at the launch party at Komedia three years ago.
Do you have to have any special training?
When you join, there is a really great training session
about safeguarding and what to expect. Extra
training is encouraged which is specific to your gig
buddy’s needs.
How many events have you been to? You agree
to attend one event a month, that way it gives you
enough time to plan things you both like.
What is your favourite event? We’ve been to see
The Wave Pictures a few times at The Green Door
Store, which George (my gig buddy) loves. It’s a
great feeling seeing him absorbed in the music and
dancing without a care.
What events do you attend? Gigs, discos, DJ
events and festivals. The world is our oyster!
How can people help? You can become a buddy
yourself. The information on how to do this can
be found at gigbuddies.org.uk.
Bethany Hobbs was talking to Sarah Walpole
PHOTO OF THE MONTH
BIG BROTHER
The eagle-eyed among you will realise that this
photo was taken a couple of months back, before
the imaginative goggle-eyed additions to Quora’s
mural in Friars Walk had been removed by
some muddle-headed idiot. The picture was sent
in by Terry Shearing who writes “Some wag had
attached eyes to the figures on the hoarding surrounding
the Premier Inn site, which prompted
me to take the picture. Sadly, someone has since
blinded the Big Brother.” His ‘big brother’
comment, of course, refers to the CCTV camera
warning on the sign the silhouetted monk is
observing with such an air of apprehension (all
the funnier as presumably the eye-adder was
filmed in the act of adding the eye). The mural
itself came about after a competition (advertised
in Viva) asking readers to design a site-specific
image. Architect Nick Wiseman came up with
the idea of silhouetted monks, which Quora then
turned into the mural, adding a ‘Where’s Wally’
hat onto one of the figures to bring a touch of
humour to proceedings. Whether or not you
agree with the construction of a 62-bed hotel in
the centre of town, we hope you appreciate, as
we do, the imaginative way of turning a builders’
screen into a work of art, which is becoming de
rigueur this season (think Lewes Depot Cinema,
think St Peter’s Church in Brighton).
Please send your pictures, taken in and around
Lewes, to photos@vivalewes.com, or tweet them
to @VivaLewes. We’ll choose our favourite, which
wins the photographer £20. Unless previously
arranged we reserve the right to use all pictures in
future issues of Viva magazines and online.
15
BITS AND BOBS
LEWES WORTHY
Lord Briggs of Lewes, who has died at
the age of 94, was famous in so many
different fields it’s difficult to do justice
to him in a short piece like this. Playing
a central role working at Bletchley
Park with Alan Turing, writing highly
regarded and immensely popular books
on all aspects of Victorian life, his seminal
role as vice-chancellor in the early
days of Sussex University… the list is
almost endless.
Once described as having a ‘schoolboyish
grin and seemingly impish
charm’, Asa Briggs was noted for his
unstuffiness, wide-ranging interests,
and what one obituary called his ‘omnivorous party-giving’. However, he also kept up such a high work
rate that there’s a story of him reviewing a book on a Brighton-to-London train, working in London,
then reviewing another book on the return journey. ‘His colleagues joked that if a unit of intellectual
energy were ever to be invented, then it should be called the ‘Asa’; and that half an ‘Asa’ would be enough
for most mortals,’ the Times noted. Even at the age of 90, he was still producing 1,000 words a day.
With thanks to Arnold Goldman
TOWN PLAQUES #14: ABINGER PLACE
Scarcely noticeable and within a few metres of
each other, two old stones set in a low wall reveal
the history of this short street, making further
metal plaques unnecessary.
One, close to a row of garages behind the Elephant
& Castle, reads “On this spot stood the
town gallows” and the local name for the northern
side of the street – Gallows Bank – is a grisly
reminder. Those sentenced to be executed were
brought here from Lewes Prison. The last public
hanging appears to have been in 1869.
A little nearer Trinity St John-sub-Castro
Church another stone reads “Adjoining this
spot stood the Manor Pound. The stocks were
on the opposite side of the road.” So stray animals were rounded up and impounded here, minor misdemeanours
dealt with across the road and occasionally executions were carried out. Without the plaques this
quiet residential street would give no clue to its former uses. Marcus Taylor
16
BITS AND BOBS
SPREAD THE WORD
We’ve got what Blue Peter would call a bumper bag of entries
for our ever-more popular Spread the Word column,
so many we’ll have to spread them over two issues. The first
to arrive, from Prof Paul Layzell, came from our namesake
city in the States. “Please find attached a picture of Pamela
Layzell, on Easter Sunday, holding a copy of March’s Viva in
front of a wayside sign in Lewes, Delaware, USA,” he writes.
The sign, it must be said, tells a sorry tale of the demise of the
settlement in the 17th century.
Next up came a political number from Sarah Earl, who took Viva to Gibraltar,
“where the PO is alive and flourishing.” Then she comes up with
a solution for Lewes’ PO woe: “How about putting the Post Office in a
church, which they have successfully done in West Hampstead?” Well, we
have plenty of those. Any takers out there?
We love getting your pictures: if you want to appear in this space, please
take Viva on your travels with you in the UK or abroad and send your images
to photos@vivalewes.com.
BEER FESTIVAL IN NUMBERS
The 20th CAMRA beer festival will be held
in Lewes Town Hall on June 17th and 18th.
This is actually its 21st anniversary, because
it could not be held in 1999 as insurers could
not be found while Rodin’s The Kiss was on
display in the Town Hall. 1,338 people attended
the 2015 beer festival, to sample the
86 different beers, 8 ciders, 3 perries and 1
cyder perry. 5,412 pints were consumed during
the 2 days, and around 40 volunteers
helped serve and set up. Sarah Boughton
Tickets are available from 9th May from Harveys
shop, Gardener’s Arms and Brewer’s Arms.
19
PHOTOGRAPHY
CARLOTTA LUKE
FESTIVAL VIBES
Carlotta Luke responded to our ‘Festival’
theme by trawling through the hundreds of
photos she took during that magical weekend
nearly three years ago when the Mumfords –
and a whole load of other visitors – came to
town for the Gentlemen of the Road Stopover.
She selected about 15 shots, and we in turn
narrowed those down to these five, showing
what we hope to be an overview of that
extraordinary event, featuring the main stage, a
couple of crowd shots, Edward Sharpe and the
Magic Zeros, and a random piano, enjoying its
unexpected rural break. carlottaluke.com
21
BITS AND BOBS
VOX POP: SUSSEX DOWNS STUDENTS FRAZER OSBORNE AND
SOPHIE HILLMAN ASK ‘WHAT’S YOUR FESTIVAL ESSENTIAL?’
“Suncream or wellies
depending on the weather
so you’re covered for all
bases.” Matt Marsland
“Something comfortable
to sit on.” Maureen Franks
“Babywipes, because you
need something quick
to hand when you get
filthy.” Fiona Rogers
GHOST PUBS #19: THE JOLLY ANGLERS, 22A, STATION STREET
Walking up traffic-filled Station Street, it is easy to miss the picturesque,
mock-Tudor building on your left, once a popular pub. Originally
called the Coach and Horses, it had become the Jolly Anglers by
the 1870s. Samuel Jeffery was the landlord in 1878 when James Dawson
was charged with ripping out the grate ‘because there was no fire’.
Dawson’s defence was that everyone was drunk, including the landlord,
and the prostitutes in the house too! William and Florence Hathaway
ran the Jolly Anglers for over 25 years. Florence had grown up in the
Rifleman, run by her father, and her grandfather before that. After their
marriage in 1915, she and William took over the Sussex Arms, and later
the Running Horse and the Thatched House, before settling at the
Jolly Anglers in 1930. William died in 1933, aged just 51, and Florence
continued to run the pub until its closure in December 1955. The
building you see now is a result of the plans for a new frontage in 1904.
The brickwork has since been painted white, but otherwise it is very similar to how it was 100 years ago.
This photograph shows the pub at the time William and Florence ran it. Special thanks to their grandson
David Hathaway, who has been kind enough to share it. Mat Homewood
23
OPEN AIR SHAKESPEARE IN THE SOUTH DOWNS
The Lord Chamberlain’s Men present an all-male
production of
Much Ado About Nothing
Sip wine, bring a picnic and enjoy a Sussex
summer experience at Charleston
14 June 7.30pm, 15 June 1pm & 7.30pm
CHARLESTON.ORG.UK
COLUMN
David Jarman
Brown paper packages tied up with string
The lead review in
the Times Literary
Supplement on 25th
March was written
by Geoffrey Hill.
It concerned a
new biography of
Charles Williams,
poet, novelist and
confrère of Tolkien
and CS Lewis. Hill
poked fun at the
Oxford University
Press, who published the book, for its fatuous
choice of subtitle, The Third Inkling. A few pages
further on in the paper there was an article
about the French writer, Charles Péguy. This
close proximity gave someone a happy inspiration
of reprinting the Times Literary Supplement’s
review of Geoffrey Hill’s long poem The Mystery
of the Charity of Charles Péguy. The review was
dated 27th January 1984. The reviewer was
Stephen Medcalf, late of the School of European
Studies, at the University of Sussex, and
61, New Road, Lewes. In the afterword to his
poem, Geoffrey Hill writes of Péguy’s bookshop
in the shadow of the Sorbonne, the ‘Boutique
des Cahiers’, and quotes John Middleton Murry
who affords in his autobiography ‘a glimpse…
through the windows of his little shop… of a
man with a pince-nez set awry on his nose, tying
up a parcel. That was Charles Péguy. I admired
him, and admire him still.’ Hill comments:
‘Murry’s final cadence is without reservation,
and I like him for such an expression of outright
admiration’. The final cadence of Stephen
Medcalf’s review is in a similarly positive vein: ‘I
am sure… that we are lucky to live when so good
a poem appears’.
That glimpse of Péguy ‘tying up a parcel’
brings back memories of the first book shop I
worked in. This
was Thornton’s
of Broad Street,
Oxford. Each
purchase, however
humble, had to be
wrapped in brown
paper and, if
necessary, secured
with string. This
procedure was
performed in the
packing department.
This was presided over by Frank Bekieleweski,
an elderly Pole of surpassing sweetness
of disposition who seemed to subsist on a diet
of cold Camp coffee and doughnuts, both of
which he recommended enthusiastically to me.
His colleague was Joe Lock, a retired postman
who cycled from college to college delivering
books. When he returned, he would, almost
invariably, ask me if we stocked a particular title
called ‘Work and how to dodge it’. A variant of
the pleasantry was “Ah, David. You’re working. I
love work. I could watch it all day”.
Quite by chance, Thornton’s was remembered
affectionately in the letters page of the same
Times Literary Supplement of 25th March. The
correspondent writes that the proprietor was
known as ‘Young Jack’. We, of course, knew him
as ‘young Mr Thornton’. He was in his early
seventies when he ‘interviewed’ me after I had
put my head round the door one day in April
1975 and asked if they had any vacancies. He
asked me to copy out a paragraph from that day’s
Oxford Mail. This I did. He laid it aside, without
comment. After a lengthy pause, he asked “Who
wrote Mansfield Park?” “Jane Austen,” I replied.
“Did she? Did she?” Another pause. “Well, I
suppose you had better start on Monday.”
Happy Days!
25
Saturday 14 May
to Sunday 11 September
Opening times
Until 29 May: Noon-7pm
From 30 May:10am-7pm
except Tuesdays Noon-7pm
Early morning from 30 May:
7am-9am
Adults £4
Junior & Concessions £2
/pellspoollewes
@pellspool
Pells Pool
Brook Street
Lewes
Infoline
01273 472334
www.pellspool.org.uk
COLUMN
Chloë King
Guide to festival euphemisms
Family-friendly
The true meaning of this phrase depends on your
own definition of the words ‘family’ and ‘friendly’.
If family is a label that can be applied to anyone
in a straw hat who rambles over to you clutching
a warm can of beer, and if friendliness towards
drunks in hats comes easily, congratulations: you
are at a family-friendly festival.
Long-drop
If you have visited the khazi at Glastonbury you
will know that long is not nearly long enough for a
venue that boasts such frequent use. You will also
know that long drop has a second meaning: to be
applied when the toilet you have been waiting for
is inhabited by a sleeping drunk.
Dressing up
You are an expensively paid up member of what
Harold Rosenberg called ‘the herd of independent
minds’. You will make all your sartorial decisions
by committee. The trustafarians on whose land
you will be dancing have chosen the theme Outer
Space; therefore you arrive in a heavy downpour
wearing the same glitter as your friends. The rain
soon washes off your glitter, and as one of your
friends is wearing a tiny costume woven from ribbons
of tin foil and upcycled flannels, you will feel
both over and under-dressed.
Chill out tent
You’re inside a tent and listening to Sigur Rós, so
why is it still freezing, and why are you so tense?
Glamping
You spy a field on yonder hill populated with
miniature houses not too unlike the calf pens your
vegan friends post pictures of on Facebook. You
could argue that glamping sounds worse than it is,
but it retains position here because once you have
forked out for tickets, adding the excruciating cost
of rent-a-tents will leave you potless. You spend
the weekend longing for a pen. Rumour has it they
have composting toilets.
Headliner
Headliner: a verb meaning to consume a decent
meal, plenty of water and a Dioralyte. A headliner
ensures you can wake up and attend to the kids
you mistakenly brought and/or do it all again the
following day without losing your dignity, sanity
and friends. It’s a shame they’re as rare and as hard
as Guns N’ Roses comeback tours… you say Guns
N’ Roses are doing a comeback tour?
Campfire
A campfire sustained by a single giant log is found
in one of two highly meaningful states. The
first: a nugget of lava boiling away ‘twixt a mass
of humans who intermittently fall in and burn
themselves, as in Dante. The second: a lonely yet
comforting place manned with constancy by a
solitary person who speaks few words.
The past
The only reason anyone ever goes to a festival is
because they want to feel 21. Even the 21-year-olds
want to feel 21. Considering your past at a festival
is a bit like looking into an infinity mirror: you
realise with bafflement that you do feel 21 again,
except feeling 21 isn’t making you constantly
happy, just as being 21 failed to do the first time
around. And so it goes on, all summer long…
Illustration by Chloë King
27
COLUMN
East of Earwig
Mark Bridge finds festivals on his doorstep
Photo by Mark Bridge
Writing on the subject of festivals from a Ringmer
perspective is a bit of a challenge. Well, I really
don’t want to embarrass any of you Lewesians
with the wealth of riches we have next door.
The Lewes Live music festival? I reckon that’s
almost entirely our side of the parish boundary.
Glyndebourne Festival? Definitely closer to
Ringmer than it is to Lewes. Love Supreme? Yup,
same again. And that’s before I start talking about
Ringmer’s scarecrow festival, the football festival,
the dance festival and the earwig festival. (Okay,
I made that last one up but I’m hoping for a sizeable
percentage of t-shirt sales if it ever happens.)
Curiously, we also manage to promote our events
without reverting to what’s become a ubiquitous
means of communication across Lewes. Whilst
we Ringmerites stay in touch by phone, Royal
Mail, newsletter, text message, Whatsapp, Snapchat
and semaphore, it seems the only way to get
your message across in Lewes is by printing it on
a piece of A4 paper, laminating it and fixing it to a
lamppost with cable ties or plastic ribbon. These
notices are often seen hanging in place long after
the relevant event has passed, with nothing but
acid rain and casual vandalism to help them degrade.
In the aftermath of the forthcoming robot
apocalypse, when automated microscopic vacuum
cleaners have tidied away the last remnants of
humanity and the only remaining lifeform on the
planet is a cockroach crossed with a Jack Russell
terrier, I reckon the bus stop outside Waitrose
will still be festooned with rainbow-coloured
printouts advertising a pop-up Shamanic yoga
weekend.
And then there’s the fashion. As far as I’m concerned,
wellington boots are practical – albeit
occasionally uncomfortable – footwear for especially
wet or muddy situations. You put them on
when the weather demands it… and you remove
them when they’re not needed. Wellingtons are
no more suitable for all-day wear than pyjamas
or mittens. How they’ve become some kind of
festival uniform escapes me. Yet switch on any
TV coverage of summer festivals and you’ll see
crowds of people wearing little more than beachwear
but accessorising it with rainbow-patterned
plastic boots and a crown of plastic flowers. Inexplicably,
there’s even a trend for getting married
in this sort of clothing. (Just search for ‘festival
wedding’ on your favourite tax-paying internet
search engine and you’ll see what I mean.) Personally,
I think it’s actually an excuse for scaring
elderly relatives away.
Still, enough of my ranting. Festivals are supposed
to be about celebration. I may not understand
your desire to carry a fluorescent pennant
on a five-metre bendy flagpole but I shall rejoice
in your decision regardless. Just as long as you’re
not standing in front of me. I’m the guy in the
dinner jacket, obviously.
29
A FESTIVAL
WITHIN
A FESTIVAL
BY ST PETER’S CHURCH, BRIGHTON
• 4 THEATRES
• FESTIVAL BAR & ROOFTOP BAR
• FOOD STALLS
• MARKET TOWN WITH LOCAL TRADERS
• CHILDREN’S AREA
5 MAY - 5 JUNE 2016
PICK UP A
BROCHURE
NOW!
www.otherplacebrighton.co.uk
IN TOWN THIS MONTH: MUSIC
Fairport Convention
‘We never became a tribute band to ourselves’
Fairport Convention
are called
Fairport Convention
because band
founder Simon
Nicol’s parents’
Muswell Hill house,
where the band
first rehearsed, was
called Fairport. This
was back in 1967.
“We’ve been going
nearly fifty years
now,” says Nicol (far left), down the phone, “and
interviewers tend to be more interested in the
beginning of our career than anything else. Our
longevity: it’s become our USP. It’s been like that
since the late seventies.”
The band replaced their drummer after their
first gig, and in the subsequent years, as their
reputation grew, they became famous for losing
established band members, and gaining new ones,
as performers of the calibre of Sandy Denny,
Richard Thompson and Dave Swarbrick came,
shone, and left. Nicol is the only constant.
“If you think of a small business, with four or five
desks, and wonder how many people will come
and go in that business over fifty years, it doesn’t
seem that odd,” he tells me. “The positive thing
was the way we reacted to members leaving the
band. We never tried to replace like with like, so
we constantly evolved.”
Perhaps the key personnel change to their
development was the arrival of Denny, as lead
singer, in place of Judy Dyble. Denny had grown
up singing old folk ballads, and the band took on
a much folkier sound (before then, they had been
thought of as a psychedelic band). I ask him if
Fairport, often accredited with the invention of
‘British folkrock’, have had more of an influence
on acoustic music, or electric music. “Definitely
acoustic,” he says. “People who were schooled in
ballad singing were
no longer afraid to
get together in bigger
groupings, and
make some noise.”
Liege and Lief, the
band’s third album
release of 1969 [!],
is perhaps their
most renowned
LP, though it only
reached number 17
in the album chart
that year. “Our popularity has never been the result
of mega sales,” he says. “We have no Rumours,
or Brothers in Arms, or Revolver. But once people
like Fairport Convention, they tend to stay liking
Fairport Convention.”
This has led to an aging audience base, though
Nicol suggests that a lot of the people at their
gigs – and particularly at their annual Cropredy
Festival in Oxfordshire in August – are second
and third generation fans: “Children have been
ruinously exposed to us as innocent toddlers.”
One reason for this is that the band has never
stopped developing, and producing new material,
despite the current line-up being static for
18 years: “we never became a tribute band to
ourselves.”
John Peel was a big supporter and friend of the
band, and we end our conversation with Nicol
wondering what Peel would have made of the
modern music scene, with “the abandonment of
albums as a physical item”, and “the structure of
celebrity and stardom in relation to competent
performance and creativity.”
“God knows what he’d have thought of today’s
new music,” Nicol sighs. “But he was a great fan
of the imagination and enthusiasm of young musicians;
he would have found some kids creating
new sounds in their garage.” Alex Leith
All Saints Centre, 22nd May, £23.50
31
OUT OF TOWN THIS MONTH: LITERATURE
Olivia Laing
The loneliness of the trans -Atlantic writer
In your latest book The
Lonely City you posit that
cities can accentuate loneliness.
Is the countryside,
conversely, good company?
I don’t think it’s that simple.
Loneliness is accentuated
by environment, and there’s
undoubtedly rural loneliness,
just as there is urban loneliness.
They have very different
qualities, but you can feel displaced
and isolated anywhere.
As a young woman you
spent a whole spring ‘living
feral’ in rural Sussex. How
formative was this experience?
Pretty deeply - it made
me very self-reliant, and
I think it has informed all
the travelling I’ve done since. I’ve always been
very independent and I’ve liked to go my own
way - living on the land alone was a particularly
extreme example!
You have written extensively about the
Downsland countryside. Does this area hold
more power over you than other, equally
beautiful areas? It strongly informed my first
book, but since then I’ve been spending much
more time in America. New York is my favourite
place, and I’ve been falling in love with LA lately,
but the Sussex countryside does still have a deep
hold on me. My heart always leaps when I see the
South Downs.
I’ve read you citing the likes of Ravilious,
Duncan Grant, Virginia Woolf as being important
to your appreciation of this area. Do
you feel you are part of a geographical art/
literature tradition that’s inspired by Sussex?
Not so much now, but spending so long in
the area definitely informed my work, and I still
feel like my writing is very influenced by Woolf.
I’m always drawn to unconventional
communities, and I
think the Bloomsbury group
were really interestingly radical
in their work, their politics
and the way they arranged
their lives. I find that kind of
experimentation and resistance
to norms very inspiring.
You have in the past labelled
your work as being ‘biogeographical’
rather than
‘psychogeographical’. What’s
the difference? Did I? I don’t
know what I meant by that
now. I’m interested in biography
and place and psychology,
and I find the separation
of those things frustrating. I
write hybrid books because
they make more instinctive sense to me.
This isn’t your first visit to the Charleston
Festival. What’s the significance of the event?
Or is it just a big jolly? I love Charleston, it’s by
far my favourite festival. It feels like it’s a place
where conversations happen, and I find it very
exciting and nourishing at the same time.
Charleston apart, what does the word ‘festival’
mean to you? Mud!
Why did you choose New York as the setting
for your latest book? Why not London? Do
you think that urban America has more appeal
to readers/movie audiences etc than urban
Britain? I was living in New York, and The Lonely
City is about that experience, and the artists I
encountered during my time in the city. I think a
London book would have been very different in
terms of both feeling and cast.
When did you last swim in the Ouse? Too long
ago. Maybe I’ll get a swim in this May. Alex Leith
Olivia appears at the Charleston Festival on Friday
21st May. charleston.org.uk
33
The Pelham arms
HigH St • LeweS
A Great British pub, a warm welcome,
wonderful food & ambience
WE ARE SMOKING!
Come and try some of the amazing
new treats that we have been
producing from our newly installed
SMOKE HOUSE!
We are now producing our own
smoked salt beef, pork belly’s, turkey
breast, chicken wings plus lots more!
VINTAGE HOT SWING!
FIRST THuRSdAy OF THE MONTH
Come shake your pants to some
amazing Gypsy Swing!
OpENING HOuRS
Monday
Bar 4pm to 11pm
Tuesday to Saturday
Bar Noon to 11pm
Food Noon to 2.30pm & 6 to 9.30pm
Sunday
Bar Noon to 10.30pm
Food Noon to 8pm
GET IN TOucH!
T 01273 476149 E manager@thepelhamarms.co.uk
@PelhamArmsLewes pelhamarmslewes
Book online @ www.thepelhamarms.co.uk
The Soldier:
From Severn to Somme
Fri 13 May
Pianist Malcolm Martineau accompanies the
celebrated baritone Christopher Maltman in
an eclectic programme charting the soldiers’
experience of the Great War
Breaking the Rules
Fri 20 May
In this mesmerising fusion of drama and
music, The Marian Consort perform
intense and glorious Renaissance works
by Carlo Gesualdo to Clare Norburn’s
dramatic monologue
Philharmonia Orchestra
Sat 28 May
A special concert marrying classical music
traditions from East and West, featuring
some of the nation’s best-loved orchestral
works including Vaughan Williams’
The Lark Ascending
brightonfestival.org
01273 709709
Supported by
brightonfestival
brightfest #BF2016
OUT OF TOWN THIS MONTH: THEATRE
Photos by Robbie Jack (left) and Sarah Ainslie (right)
The Encounter
Bringing an Amazonian adventure to Falmer
The London-based Complicite touring theatre
company launched in 1983 and gained a
reputation for producing “the most imaginative
theatre to be found anywhere”, according
to David Lister of the Independent. This month
they’re bringing an already sold-out show called
The Encounter to the recently refurbished Attenborough
Centre for the Creative Arts, which
is on the University of Sussex campus at Falmer.
Now named after the work of Lord (Richard)
Attenborough and his family, the building was
previously known as the Gardner Arts Centre.
Kirsty Housley, who’s co-directing The Encounter,
thought she’d only be involved for a few
weeks of research when she joined the production
team in 2010. “That couple of weeks turned
into a few months… and then the project kind
of continued, really,” she tells me. It’s part of the
distinctive way Complicite operates. “Each time
a project is created, a company is built around
that project. There’s a genuine ‘not knowing’
at the beginning of the process. You relinquish
an element of control, which is quite scary.”
In addition, the work they do is never seen as
finished. “You never lock something down and
say ‘that’s it, keep it exactly as it is now, repeat
what you’re doing’. So there’s always a sense of
evolution in the performance as well.”
Performing in The Encounter is Complicite
co-founder Simon McBurney, who’s known
to many as the sinister MI6 man in last year’s
Mission: Impossible film and as the often unsympathetic
Archbishop Robert in TV sitcom Rev.
The story is adapted from a book called Amazon
Beaming, which tells the adventures of photojournalist
Loren McIntyre. In 1969, McIntyre
went looking for the elusive Mayoruna tribe in
South America. Also known as the Matsés, they
were popularly referred to as ‘cat people’ because
of their facial tattoos and the whisker-like
spines they wore in their noses. He found them
– but, as he followed a group into the rainforest,
he lost track of his original route. McIntyre’s
planned three-day trip turned into weeks spent
with people who shared no common language
with him. Yet much to the photographer’s surprise,
he seemed to develop a wordless way of
communicating with the tribe’s elderly leader.
Which helps to explain why The Encounter
doesn’t tell McIntyre’s story with conventional
imagery. Simon McBurney performs it as a
one-man show, assisted by binaural headsets
that blend his performance with sound effects
to put the audience in the heart of the jungle. “A
lot of the technology had to be custom-built”,
says Kirsty Housley. “We create the feeling of
being somewhere rather than trying to visually
represent what that place looks like. You don’t
see any creepers or any green leaves. Like all
theatre, it really takes place in your imagination
rather than on the stage.”
Mark Bridge
The Encounter runs from Wednesday 11th until
Sunday 15th. brightonfestival.org
35
COMPETITION
WIN LOVE SUPREME TICKETS
You and a friend could be joining the jazz, funk,
soul and sun* at Love Supreme Jazz Festival in
Glynde from 1st-3rd July. Just tweet us the name
of the act you’re most looking forward to seeing
- using the hashtag #VivaLoveSupreme - to be
entered into the draw to win. Alternatively, email
the same - with ‘Viva Love Supreme’ in the
subject line - to hello@vivamagazines.com. We’ll
draw the lucky winner from a (suitably jazzy)
trumpet on 1st June 2016.
lovesupremefestival.com @lovesupremefest
See the competitions page on our website
for T&Cs.
*sunshine not guaranteed.
you order
online and
Sussex we deliver
farm to your door
sourced:
Veg & fruit
Meat & charcuterie
Milk, cheese & yoghurt
Juices & cordials
Raw honey
Oils & vinegar
Sussex beer & wine
Locally packed small batch spices
See detailS on our webSite:
www.finandfarm.co.uk
LOVE SUPREME
Caro Emerald
‘English is the language of jazz’
How would you define your music? They are
jazz vocals, with a 40s or 50s influence, and the
nostalgic feel that that has. But it’s definitely not
old fashioned music, I want to be very clear about
that. We don’t just want to be a copy of anything.
We want to update the sound and make it something
else… it’s definitely modern music.
You’re Dutch, but you sing in English. Is that
hard? When it comes to my music, English is
my first language. In Holland, from the start,
all of the music we hear is English, so it’s pretty
normal. Plus, I’m schooled in jazz singing and
there aren’t many Dutch jazz songs. English is
the language of jazz.
Do you write any of your own songs? Yes, I do.
I’m a co-writer. We’re like a collective. There are
two producers and a Canadian songwriter, who’s
a genius, with a witty story-telling thing going
on. That’s the core of the team. My speciality is
the top lines. Sometimes the idea for a song starts
with me creating the melody, then we’ll create a
lyric on top of that.
Did Amy Winehouse pave the way for your career?
She was one of my biggest inspirations. She
created a place for jazz singers within commercial
music. I mean she played real music, and was a
real singer, and she’s unique because her lyrics are
great. Before her there was no place for jazz singers
in the charts, it was all about singing in little
jazz bars. Also vocally she was an inspiration. But
her music was way more retro than mine. Her
lyrics are very contemporary, but her music was
more old school.
What’s it like singing at a festival, rather than
in a more intimate jazz setting? An intimate
setting – let’s say of 200 people – is scary. It calls
for more intense facial expressions, because the
ones at the front can see every bead of sweat on
your forehead. Outside at a festival it’s important
to grab everyone’s attention. You can do a lot
with lighting and the choices of song – in a less
intimate setting I’d do all the big hits and miss
out the dark ballads. Keep the tempo high.
I hear you want to record the Bond theme…
It is a big ambition of mine. Ever since I started
making this sort of music, with these guys, when
we were discussing what music we should be
doing the word ‘Bond’ got repeated over and over
again – music that’s very atmospheric and filmic.
I think me doing a Bond song would be a match
made in heaven.
Who would you like to see as the next Bond?
[She hasn’t, it turns out, heard of Tom Hiddleston].
Sean Connery isn’t possible, I guess. How
about a Dutch Bond? There’s this guy called
Michiel Huisman, he’s in Game of Thrones. He’d
be great. The campaign starts here… AL
Caro is on the bill (with Grace Jones, Burt Bacharach
and a host of other top names) performing at
Love Supreme, Glynde Place, 1st-3rd July 2016
37
OUT OF TOWN THIS MONTH: FILM
The Moon and the Sledgehammer
Field of dreamers
“I was absolutely fascinated by them the moment
I got there,” says Philip Trevelyan, of the Page
family, the subject of his 1971 documentary The
Moon and the Sledgehammer, which is being given
a rare screening as part of the Brighton Festival.
Trevelyan, then a young ambitious film-maker
(he now makes artisan farm tools) was introduced
to the Pages by a friend. The family consisted of
patriarch ‘Oily’ Page and four of his grown-up
children, two men and two women, who lived together
in a field near Chiddingly in a ramshackle
house set amid a few acres of woodland.
“They were threshers by trade,” he continues,
“so they needed a lot of land for their machinery.”
They also ran a couple of steam engines,
which the two sons are constantly tinkering with
throughout the film, as if the twentieth century
has passed them by. Their father is building what
appears to be a submarine. For entertainment
they sing round an old piano. They eat rabbits
the father shoots in the woods.
The beauty of the film lies in the fact that the
family, while they appear on the surface to be
dysfunctional, also make the audience realise that
the modernisation they’ve avoided hasn’t necessarily
made ‘normal’ people’s life better.
“[Oily Page] realised that a lot of ordinary people
he saw [when he left his wood] didn’t have time
to enjoy things they once had; they didn’t have
enough time for the family. They would get on
the train to London, get a paper, go to the office,
leave the office, get another paper, and get on the
train again. The only time they’re with their family
was when they’re asleep, and it’s very sad.”
The Pages might have had more time together
than most families, but it wasn’t all harmonious.
The domineering character of the father comes
through more and more as the film progresses.
Despite the bickering he captures, Trevelyan
wasn’t aiming to portray a negative image of the
family. “I was looking for the riches within the
characters,” says Trevelyan. “For that reason I
didn’t try to make a fly-on-the-wall documentary.
I wanted the people I was filming to put forward
what they had to offer.”
What they do have to offer is a lot of home-spun
philosophy which makes you realise how far we
have moved on from the world they are so comfortable
in, which predates the oil age, let alone
the computer age. And what makes for uncomfortable
viewing is that even though you know
that their way of life is doomed, you can see that
in many ways it all makes sense. And that the
family are masters of their own universe, however
eccentric that universe might be.
It’s a beautifully made film, with no narration or
extraneous explanation to distract you from the
strange world that you become immersed in from
the moment you meet Oily Page, playing up to
the camera, reciting an old cockney rhyme, with a
shotgun in one hand, a rabbit in the other.
Alex Leith
Brighton Festival, Duke of York’s Picturehouse,
Sun 29th May, 4.30pm, followed by a Q&A with
Philip Trevelyan
39
Longleys
Studio
Barns
Open 11am–5pm
Sat 4 & Sun 5 June
Sat 11 & Sun 12 June
Refreshments
served in aid of
St Wilfred’s Hospice
Harebeating Lane
Hailsham BN27 1ER
01323 847474
longleysstudiobarns.com
vaneijkarts.com
LongleysStudioBarnsWT171.indd 1 06/04/2016 12:09
Farley Farm House & gallery
Home of the Surrealists
Experience the extraordinary atmosphere of the Sussex home of the
Surrealists Lee Miller and Roland Penrose whose friends and guests
included Picasso, Max Ernst, Man Ray and Miró. We open to visitors on
Sundays offering 50 minute guided tours, inspiring exhibitions in our
gallery and a sculpture garden to explore.
www.farleyfarmhouse.co.uk
Farley Farm House
Muddles Green, Chiddingly
East Sussex, BN8 6HW
Tel: 01825 872 856
Open to visitors every Sunday from April - October 2016 from 10. 00 am - 3.30 pm
ART: FOCUS ON
Leila Godden
New Horizons 321, 30x20cm, acrylic on board
Is this a representational painting? It’s semirepresentational.
At first my seascapes were more
representational, portraying the waves as I saw
them, but what I’m trying to capture now is more
the mood of the ocean. I’m from Scarborough in
Yorkshire, and I grew up by the sea. Nowadays I
spend hours and hours on the beach at Birling Gap
looking out to sea. In my paintings I’m expressing
the feeling and emotions that I get from being near
the sea. When people look at the paintings I want
their own feelings and experiences to surface.
Why ‘New Horizons’? For me looking out towards
the sea signifies looking out to the future.
That sense of space and freedom – there’s a wealth
of possibilities out there. The paintings represent
what the future might hold.
Do you paint en plein air? No, I go back to my
studio. I’m always working on a few at the same
time. It’s all about adding marks, and adding marks,
until I realise that I can’t add any more marks. Then
I know it’s finished. If I make a mistake I can paint
over, though acrylic being acrylic I can always rub a
mistake off with a cloth.
You use a very limited palette… Blue, brown
and white. I can create a huge range of effects from
those, from punchy to delicate… a full tonal range.
Tell us about your studio… It’s in my back garden
in Halland. It’s new and I’m very proud of it. I
usually work with Heart FM on in the background.
I can’t work without my apron, which is spattered
with paint, going back years. Though I do wash it
from time to time!
Have you any major influences? I love Turner,
and the Cornwall artist Kurt Jackson, and the Lewes
artist Marco Crivello. My desert island painting?
I’d take the painting by Marco I have in my house,
called Natural History III.
Take us to your favourite gallery. That’s not
hard, we’re sitting in it now! The Chalk Gallery is
a collective of 21 artists, all of whom have a huge
amount of enthusiasm for their part in running the
business. I’d also like to mention Bankside Gallery
next to Tate Modern in London, I’m really excited
that they’ll be exhibiting some of my paintings
from 26th April to 2nd May. Alex Leith
Leila is the featured artist at Chalk from 16th May
41
IN LEWES: ART
ART & ABOUT
In town this month
Carlina Oliver (detail)
Chalk Gallery features the local Sussex
landscapes by Carlina Oliver until 15th
May, including the prize-winning Under
Blackcap and other works reflecting her
great affection for the Downs and Weald.
Enjoy a glass of wine with the artist on
Saturday, April 30th from 12.30-2.30pm.
Leila Godden’s New Horizons (pg 41) follows
from the 16th with her abstract land
and seascape paintings that evoke feelings
of time and space, stillness and movement.
Christopher McHugh brings his solo
exhibition Arcadia to St Anne’s Gallery
weekends only from the 7th to 22nd.
His colourful but imagined ‘landscape’
paintings are inspired by Tom Stoppard’s
aphorism that ‘everything is true except
the words and the pictures’. [stannesgalleries.com]
Home and Away, recent work
by Jackie Hurwood and Janet Redden is
at the Hop Gallery until Sunday 8th May,
followed on the 14th by At the Still Point
of the Turning World by Gaylord Meech.
Until 26th May. [hopgallery.com]
The spring show
continues at
Keizer Frames
[pictureframinglewes.co.uk]
and Lansdown
Gallery have dramatic
seascapes, landscapes and vibrant floral
displays inspired by the beauty of the South
Downs coast and painted by resident artist
Sarah Burges. [sarahburges.co.uk]
A Walk in the Woods continues at Pelham
House until 26th with the woodland-inspired
works of Sue Barnes alongside the atmospheric
Brighton Skies and Beyond paintings
by Caroline Marsland. With the wonderful
post-industrial expanse of the Foundry
Gallery slated for closure in July, don’t miss
Displacement, a series of events curated by
Gary Campbell and Jeannine Inglis Hall
from 27th May to 4th June. Enjoy installations,
screenings, readings, workshops and
performances with all ages invited. [displacementblog.wordpress.com]
Sarah Burges (detail)
Artists United returns, for the last time at the Foundry Gallery. The show invites work from established
and emerging artists. Email submissions to charlie@lewesfc.com with ‘Artists United’, and ‘emerging’ or
‘established’, in the subject line, by 17th June. See facebook page Artists United Lewes for details.
43
Beautiful art, affordable prices
SDC
Print &
Design
photo prints business stationery
document copying laminating
finishing poster printing flyers
banner graphics ncr binding
Did you know?
The Reprographics team at Sussex Downs College in
Lewes can now offer you a high quality print and design
service at a highly competitive price.
Services available include:
• Colour and black and white copying
• Business stationery, NCR forms
• Flyers & leaflets
• Large format printing
• Binding & laminating
• Wedding invitations, order of service etc..
We can use your own artwork or create some for you to suit
your requirements (charges may apply).
New Horizons – by featured artist Leila Godden
A friendly
welcome awaits
you at the
Chalk Gallery
Chalk Gallery
4 North Street
Lewes, BN7 2PA
t: 01273 474477
w: chalkgallerylewes.co.uk
We offer no obligation quotes, please feel free to give us a
call or email us for further information.
030 300 38550
repro.lewes@sussexdowns.ac.uk
OUT OF TOWN: ART
Just down the road
Thompson Hall
Gary Stranger at work
Sculpture exhibition at Borde HiIl
There’s art of every stripe in Brighton &
Hove this month, with the 50th Brighton
Festival in full swing from the 7th and
Brighton Fringe taking up all available
space at the edges. The 8th HOUSE
contemporary visual arts festival features
new works commissioned on the theme
of ‘home’ by Gillian Wearing, Felicity
Hammond and Thompson Hall
[housefestival.org] and, on a more domestic
scale, over 200 venues join Artists’ Open
Houses 2016, every weekend until Sunday
29th [aoh.org.uk]. With houses grouped
into one of 14 trails in and around the city,
don’t miss the new Central Trail and outof-town
venues too, including the Upper
Clayhill open studio of Jessica Zoob (see
pg 49) and the creative spaces of Ditchling.
The village will host exhibitions in studios,
galleries, pubs and cafés and you’ll find it
hard to miss the extraordinary giant letters
of typographical wizard Gary Stranger.
From 1st May Borde Hill’s 17th annual
Sculpture Exhibition transforms the
historic garden into an outdoor gallery
alive with figurative and abstract works in
bronze, resin, stone, metalwork, stained
glass and ceramics. Works by established
and emerging artists including Ana Ruiz,
Further afield
Angela Conner, Anne Gingell, Caroline
Fithen, Diana Roles, Donald Foxley,
Harriet Francis, Jeremy Moulsdale,
Karen Edwards, Kay Singla, Linden
Hamilton, Lloyd Le Blanc, Mark Reed,
Mark Stonestreet and Will Spankie are
available for sale. Until 30th September.
[bordehill.co.uk]
Now the sun’s shining, enjoy the landscape
paintings of Michael Cruikshank and
abstract works of Emma Barnett at the
rural idyll of the Bradness Gallery on
Spithurst Road, Barcombe, every Friday,
Saturday and Sunday (and Bank Holiday
Monday) and have tea and homemade cakes
in the gorgeous gardens whilst you’re at it.
[bradnessgallery.com]
Emma Barnett (detail)
45
OUT OF TOWN: ART
Further afield
We’re always up for a trip to Towner, The De La Warr Pavilion and Jerwood Gallery and,
with summer almost here, why not cycle the 20-mile Coastal Culture Trail that joins all three?
[coastalculturetrail.com] Bikes are available to hire from opposite The De La Warr Pavilion and in
Eastbourne, and you can leave them at another stop on the trail. Towner presents the first major
exhibition of new and recent work by London-based photographer, video and installation artist
Melanie Manchot. People, Places, Propositions includes the premiere of Out of Bounds (2016), a cinematic
two-part installation shot in the alpine mountains of Engelberg in Switzerland. Until 10th July.
John Piper, preliminary design for Chichester Cathedral Tapestry 1965
Heading west? Visit the grounds
and galleries of Cass Sculpture
Foundation in Goodwood, West
Sussex and contemplate A Beautiful
Disorder; the first major exhibition
of newly commissioned outdoor
sculpture by contemporary Chinese
artists to be shown in the UK. The
sixteen monumental works on show
are a reflection on China’s past, present
and future relationship with the
world at large. Works in a variety
of ambitious sculptural techniques
across a range of materials including
bronze, stone, steel and wood. Join
curatorial tours on Wednesdays,
Saturdays and Sundays.
[sculpture.org.uk]
Whilst you’re over that way, John
Piper: The Fabric of Modernism continues
at Pallant House.
[pallant.org.uk]
Melanie Manchot (detail)
If you’re Londonbound
on the 7th to
8th May, you might
think about going
via Brighton. As part
of Ditchling’s Village
of Type programme,
some of the best letterpress
artists in the
country will be ‘artists
in residence’ walking
up and down Southern
Rail carriages on the
London to Brighton
line with a printing
press trolley, offering
passengers specially
designed letterpress
prints to take away
for free (normal train
fares apply, sadly).
[ditchlingmuseumartcraft.org.uk]
47
MY SPACE
Jessica Zoob
Works in progress
How long have you worked in this space? I’ve
been in my studio for almost a year and a half now.
Before it was built I had a much smaller studio in
the same place. It’s so peaceful and the views across
the farmland are always changing.
When did you become a full-time artist? I’ve
been painting full-time since 2000. Before that I
worked in theatre, designing sets and costumes, but
I had to stop after I became a mother because I was
travelling around constantly. I always have to work
– I can’t not work – so I did some corporate design,
interiors, fashion design, all sorts of jobs. Then, as
my millennium resolution, I decided that I had to
do something which would fulfil my soul, so that’s
when I started painting.
Did it take long for you to become established?
It was actually quite quick, I started painting and
within a couple of months I’d sold my first pieces
and I had my first exhibition in London. This is the
first year that I’m opening up my studio for people
to see brand new pieces and some of my earlier
work, as well as pieces that I’m still working on. It’s
a big deal for me, showing my work while it’s still
in progress.
Why is that? Painting is a very private process.
When I work I’m in a total bubble. I think it could
be really interesting though, because if people
come back next year, they will be able to see how
the works have been transformed. The paintings
change so much because there are so many layers –
often in the final work you’ll only be able to see five
or ten percent of the original layer.
How long would you typically spend on a piece?
About two years, but it can be much longer. Because
I work in oil it can take a really long time for each
layer to dry – sometimes nine months or even longer
– that’s what all of these racks on the walls are for.
I always work in groups of paintings as the process
is so time-consuming.
How do you know when a piece is finished? I
always know. It’s as if the painting keeps talking
to me – until it’s done, and then it’s quiet. It’s like
there’s noise while I’m working on a piece, and it’s
not calm until it’s complete, and then everything is
in harmony, in balance. I know exactly when I get
that feeling.
How are you going to display your pieces in the
space? It’ll be very much as it looks today. I’ll put
some pieces on easels, but I want it to be just like
walking into a working studio rather than trying
to transform this place into a gallery. Galleries can
feel a bit intimidating sometimes. I want this to feel
more real and intimate. Rebecca Cunningham
Jessica will be opening her studio for Brighton Artists’
Open Houses on 7th and 8th May. Unit 6, Banff
Farm, BN8 5RR. jessicazoob.com
Photos by Rebecca Cunningham
49
IN TOWN THIS MONTH: MUSIC
Classical Roundup
Bach, Bax and Boo
May’s music begins with Glorious Baroque Concerti
courtesy of Lewes’ Corelli Ensemble and opening
with Bach’s gorgeous Brandenburg Concerto No. 3.
Pay attention to the rather mysterious 2nd movement
– due to the various interpretations of its odd
structure, no two performances (or recordings)
are ever alike. Also on the bill are Albinoni’s Oboe
Concerto played by Owen Dennis, Telemann’s Concerto
for Two Violas and Bach’s Violin Concerto in E.
8th May, 4pm, St Pancras Church, £10- 12,
corelliensemble.co.uk
The Lewes Concert Orchestra’s spring concert will
feature Elgar’s Cello Concerto in E minor played by
Kieran Carter. At just 22, Mr Carter has already
played in the Royal College of Music’s String Orchestra,
their Philharmonic Orchestra and their
Symphony Orchestra, sometimes as leader. The
programme begins with the Overture to Yeomen of
the Guard by Arthur Sullivan, and also features Bax’s
symphonic poem Tintagel
and Four Cornish Dances,
by Malcolm Arnold. 20th
May, 7:30pm, Town Hall,
£10-12, info@lewesconcertorchestra.org
Finishing off the month with royal panache, New
Sussex Opera presents Purcell’s magical semi-opera,
King Arthur. The libretto by John Dryden bases
the story on Britons and Saxons, rather than on
the legends of Camelot. And a point of interest: in
a semi-opera the main characters are usually nonsinging
actors to whom the secondary characters
sing. John Hancorn conducts the NSO Baroque
Players and Chorus in a production by Boo Wild.
Listen out for the famous ‘Frost Scene’ in the 3rd
Act as it builds to its wonderful, musical climax, ‘Tis
love that has warmed us. 28th May, 7pm, Town Hall,
£16 & £12, nso.ticketsource.co.uk Paul Austin Kelly
51
FILM
Marshland
Post-Franco thriller
Lewes Film Club’s 29th season draws to a close
at the All Saints this month with two very different
Spanish-language films.
Marshland (Friday 6th, 8pm) is a superb detective
thriller which didn’t get the attention it deserved
when it was released in this country last September.
It’s set amongst the Guadalquivir wetlands
of Andalucia. Teenage sisters Estrella and Carmen
have disappeared from the small town of
Villafranco. Juan (played by Javier Gutiérrez)
and Pedro (Raúl Arévalo) are the detectives sent
from Madrid to investigate. It’s 1980, during La
Transición, that tense period between the death
of Franco in 1975 and the elections of 1982 that
helped establish democracy in Spain. Both Juan
and Pedro are out-of-favour, but for very different
reasons. Juan is a former member of Franco’s
special security forces, the Brigada Político-Social.
Pedro is being punished with a remote posting
for writing a letter to a newspaper criticising
a military general. When a reporter reveals more
of Juan’s murky past, Pedro has to decide whether
to allow such knowledge to compromise the
loyalty to colleagues that is essential for an effective
working relationship. To this extent his
dilemma becomes a microcosm of how Spain,
rightly or wrongly, decided to deal with its own
past. Throw in some stunning aerial photography,
an edge-of-your-seat car chase or two, and
you’re left with an utterly absorbing film which,
to my mind, never puts a foot wrong. DJ
52
FILM
Wild Tales
Revenge rollercoaster
Wild Tales (Friday 20th, 8pm, following AGM,
7.30pm) is rather less sure-footed. It’s an Argentinian
film, written and directed by Damián
Szifron. Six scenes, all unrelated except for their
common pre-occupation with revenge. The
problem with such ‘anthology’ films is, of course,
that it’s difficult to achieve consistency in either
tone or quality across the constituent parts. Wild
Tales succeeds better than most.
The Japanese film director, Hiroshi Teshigahara,
once said: ‘Humour lies somewhere in between
the boundaries of fear and laughter. I want to
portray an everyday story in which domestic
happenings and discord waver between comedy
and fear.’ I think this gets close to the prevailing
tone of black humour in Wild Tales.
And quality? Here are two diametrically opposed
views. Come the third ‘tale’ my wife
walked out. It was a case of road rage revenge
that she described as ‘simultaneously gruesome
and boring’. Not a good combination, but a
minority view, I think. By contrast Viva’s editor,
Alex Leith, told me he’d been so impressed by
the film that he’d been to see it twice. A very rare
occurrence, I gather. He singled out for praise
the closing ‘tale’. A wedding that goes spectacularly
wrong, it’s obviously intended as a tour de
force, running at more than half the length again
of any of the preceding episodes. But the actual
‘revenge’ is confused. If it’s meant to be Buñuelesque,
as I half suspect, it fails. But taken as simple,
exhilarating entertainment, superbly acted
as is the whole film, it’s a triumphant success. DJ
L E W E S L I T T L E T H E AT R E
YES, PRIME MINISTER
Friday May 6th - Saturday May 14th
at 7.45pm except Sundays
Matinee Saturday 14th at 2.45pm
By Anthony Jay and Jonathan Lynn
Directed by Derek Watts
£10/Members £8
www.lewestheatre.org Theatre Box Office: 01273 474826
MAY listings
MON 2
Plant sale. Huge variety of plants from local
suppliers. Homemade soups, bread, tea and cake
available. Southease Village Green, 12-4.30pm.
Garland Day.
Procession
through town,
followed by
dancing at The
John Harvey
Tavern by the
Knots Of May (2.15pm) and Long Man Morris
at The Dorset with guests Blackpowder Morris
(1.15pm). Events across town between 9.45am-
2.30pm.
THU 5
FRI 6
Comedy at the Con! Chris
McCausland, Francis Foster
and Roger Monkhouse take
to the stage, with MC Neil
Masters. Con Club, 8pm,
£7.50-£11. Tickets from
Union, 07582408418 or wegottickets.com
Film. Marshland. (15) Two teenage sisters
mysteriously disappear under suspicious and
brutal circumstances (see pg 52). All Saints,
8pm, £5.50. lewes-filmclub.com
FRI 6- SAT 14
Theatre. Yes, Prime
Minister. From the writers
of the original TV series
comes this sharply satirical
stage version. Lewes Little
Theatre, 7.45pm every
night except Sunday, with
Sat 14th 2.45pm matinee,
£10/£8.
FRI 6-SAT 28
Theatre. A Good Jew. Sol and Hilda are in
love, but Hilda’s father is a Nazi Official, and
Sol is a Jew. New play set in WW2 Germany
(see pg 11). Exeter Hall, Brighton. Weekends
only: for a full list of show times and tickets:
somethingunderground.co.uk
SAT 7
Farmers’ Market. Fresh, local produce and lots
of interesting stalls. Cliffe Precinct, 9am-1pm.
Also on Sat 21st.
MON 9
Talk. James Lambert of Lewes: East Sussex’s
First Professional Artist.
John Farrant reveals
what Lambert can show
us of the local scene in
the later 18th-century.
King’s Church Building,
7.30pm, £3/£2. leweshistory.org.uk/meetings
Talk. Mayakovsky and
“The Dreaded Byt”. Poet
and Mayakovsky scholar Rosy Patience-Carrick
looks at the challenges of translation and
anti-Soviet hostility. Friends Meeting House,
7.15pm, £3.
Meeting. After The Floods: How can social
change stop climate change? Andrew Simms,
author of Cancel the Apocalypse: The New Path
to Prosperity, opens this discussion. Phoenix
Centre, 7.30pm, free. gill@leweslabour.org.uk
WED 11
Tour. Behind the scenes tour, including the
stores where documents are housed and the
conservation studio. The Keep, Falmer, 1pm,
free. Booking essential. thekeep.info/events or
01273 482349.
55
MAY listings (cont)
Talk. Early Illustrated Books of the Royal
Pavilion and other Royal Palaces. Talk by Dr
Alexandra Loske. The Keep, Falmer, 5.30pm,
£3. Booking essential. thekeep.info/events or
01273 482349.
WED 11 & THU 12
Country Lifestyle
Gift Fair. Fashion,
accessories, beauty
products, homeware,
vintage gifts, food
and drink. East Sussex
National Resort,
off A22, Uckfield, 10am-4pm, £4.
countrylifestylefairs.co.uk
FRI 13
Mini Writer’s Residency: Writing in Virginia
Woolf’s Garden. Enjoy some quiet time, explore
your creativity and be inspired by the garden.
Monk’s House, 10am-12noon, £10. Book a place
on 01273 474760.
Talk. Shepherds of the South Downs, with Ian
Everest. Anne of Cleves House, 7.30pm, £5.
annacrabtree1@hotmail.com
FRI 13-SUN 15
FRI 13 & SUN 15
Film. The Danish Girl.
(15) Lili and Gerda’s
marriage evolves as they
navigate Lili’s journey as
a transgender pioneer.
All Saints, Fri 13th, 8pm,
Sat 14th, 5pm, Sun 15th,
3pm, £5-£6.50.
filmatallsaints.com
Film. The Honourable Rebel. (PG) Dramadocumentary
about the eventful life of Elizabeth
Montagu, born in 1909 as the heiress to
the Beaulieu Estate. All Saints, Fri 5.45pm, Sun
5.15pm, £5-£6.50. filmatallsaints.com
SAT 14
Coffee Morning. Coffee, tea, homemade cakes
and South Street Bonfire Society merchandise.
Cliffe Church Hall, 10am-12pm, free. All welcome.
southstreetbonfiresociety.co.uk
Midnight Walk: A Night to Remember. Ladies
only four or ten-mile midnight walk along
Eastbourne’s streets and seafront. Organised by
children’s hospice Chestnut Tree House. More
details at chestnut-tree-house.org.uk
SAT 14 & SUN 15
Film. The Hateful
Eight. (18) In the dead
of a Wyoming winter, a
bounty hunter and his
prisoner find shelter in
a cabin currently inhabited
by a collection
of nefarious characters.
Tarantino’s latest won Best Original Score at the
2016 Oscars and BAFTAS. All Saints, 7.30pm,
£5-£6.50. filmatallsaints.com
MON 16
Talk. Spiritual Initiation: Milestones to Enlightenment.
International teacher and author
William Meader discusses the Ageless Wisdom
tradition. Friends Meeting House, 7pm, £10/£8.
carolduncan8hl@btinternet.com
WED 18
Talk. Simon Yates from the film Touching the
Void, gives an illustrated talk on his life as a
mountaineer. Lewes Little Theatre, 7.45pm,
£12.
FRI 20
Film. Wild Tales. (12A) Hilarious, but not for
the sensitive, this film features six stories linked
by common themes of vengeance and dealing
with the pressures of modern life (see pg 53). All
Saints, 8pm, £5.50. lewes-filmclub.com
56
The
Old Brewery
Lewes
COMING SOON!
A SELECTION OF 1 & 2 BEDROOM LUXURY APARTMENTS WITH PARKING IN THE HEART OF LEWES
PRESTIGIOUS PERIOD BUILDING WITH COMMUNAL GARDENS
PRICES FROM £275,000
FOR MORE DETAILS OR TO ARRANGE A VIEWING CALL 01273 487444 • EMAIL: DAVID@OAKLEYPROPERTY.COM
WWW.OAKLEYPROPERTY.COM
MAY listings (cont)
FRI 20-MON 30
Charleston Festival. Annual literary festival
with a great array of writers and performers.
Charleston, Firle (see pg 33). Full line up and
more details at charleston.org.uk
SAT 21
Dinner Dance. An event to celebrate HM
The Queen’s 90th birthday. Dinner, music and
cabaret. In aid of The Oyster Project, Landport
Youth Centre and St Peter and St James Hospice.
Town Hall, 7pm, £35pp. 01273 813048
SUN 22
Classic Car Show. Open to anyone who
considers their car a classic! Parade Ground,
Newhaven Fort, 10am-4pm. southernclassics.
org.uk
WED 25
AGM: Friends of Lewes Victoria Hospital.
Opportunity to learn about what is happening
at the hospital. Everyone welcome. White Hart,
7pm.
FRI 27 & SAT 28
Film. The Big Short. (15) Four men in the
world of high-finance predict the credit and
housing bubble collapse of the mid-2000s, and
decide to take on the big banks for their greed
and lack of foresight. All Saints, Fri 8pm, Sat
5pm, £5-£6.50. filmatallsaints.com
FRI 27, SAT 28 & SUN 29
Beer Festival. 15 real ales and ciders, food and
live music. The Cock, Wivelsfield, free. 01444
471668
FRI 27 & SUN 29
Film. Room. (15)
A young woman
and her son
struggle to adjust
to life after being
confined to a small
room for several
years. All Saints,
Fri 5.30pm, Sun 5.45pm, £5-£6.50. filmatallsaints.com
SAT 28
Produce & Plant Sale. Quality plants and
produce from local gardeners, sold in aid of
Lewes Group in Support of Refugees and Asylum
Seekers. Market Tower, 9.30-11.30am, free.
lgsraslewes@gmail.com
Food Fair. Delicious food and drink from local
suppliers and producers. Newick Village, 11am-
3pm, free entry and free parking. newickfestival.
org/contact
SAT 28 & SUN 29
Film. Life.
(15) Drama
documenting the
brief collaboration
between
Magnum photographer
Dennis
Stock and Hollywood star James Dean that
gave rise to several iconic images of the actor.
All Saints, Sat 7.45pm, Sun 8.15pm, £5-£6.50.
filmatallsaints.com
SUN 29
Film. Star Wars: Episode 7- The Force Awakens.
(12A) Three decades after the defeat of the
Galactic Empire, a new threat arises. All Saints,
3pm, £5-£6.50. filmatallsaints.com
59
GIG GUIDE
GIG OF THE MONTH
John Reis, otherwise known as Speedo, Slasher, and Swami
John Reis, is an intriguing character. Born and raised in San
Diego, he first got tangled up in California’s punk rock scene
in the early 1980s, as a founding member of post-hardcore
band Pitchfork. Since then, he’s flitted in and out of several
bands, experimenting with styles including post-punk, math
rock and early emo, as well as setting up his own record label
and running a bar in San Diego. As Swami John Reis, he
peddles surf-inspired, punky rock ‘n’ roll, with throaty horns
thrown in for good measure. Proper drink-in-hand dancing
music. Sun 1st May, Con Club, details at lewesconclub.com
MAY LISTINGS
SUN 1
English folk dance tunes session. Bring instruments.
Lamb, 12pm, free
Macua Tomawho. Acoustic set from our twin
town Waldshut-Tiengen. Con Club, 3pm, free
Swing Time. Swing dancing. Lamb, 5pm, free
MON 2
Andy Panayi, Alex Eberhard, Nigel Thomas &
Terry Seabrook. Jazz. Snowdrop, 8pm, free
TUE 3
English folk dance tunes session. Bring instruments.
John Harvey, 8pm, free
Ceilidh Crew session. Folk. Lamb, 8.30pm, free
WED 4
Seb King’s HiFi Soundsystem. Lansdown, 8pm,
free
THU 5
Vintage Hot Swing. Pelham Arms, 8.30pm, free
FRI 6
Happy Endings. Retro and modern covers. Con
Club, 8pm, free
Alice Phelps Band + Gentrifuge + Echo Trails.
Lamb, 8pm, free
SAT 7
Gill Sandell. Folk. Union Music Store in-store
set, 3pm, free
Mandy Murray. Irish traditional concertina.
Elephant & Castle, 8pm, £6
Supernatural Things. Funk/soul/blues. Lamb,
8.30pm, free
MON 9
Cale Tyson + Loud Mountains. Americana. Con
Club, 7.30pm, £10 (members £8)
Simon Robinson Trio. Jazz. Snowdrop, 8pm, free
TUE 10
Goodtimes Music open mic. All welcome.
Lamb, 8.30pm, free
WED 11
Old-time music session. American folk. Lamb,
8pm, free
FRI 13
Cajun Roosters. Authentic Cajun and Zydeco
music. Con Club, 7.30pm, £10
Red Haven. Contemporary folk/alt-swing. Lamb,
8.30pm, free
SAT 14
Foodstock 2016. Con Club, time and price tbc
The Big Pettos. Traditional English and American
folk. Elephant & Castle, 8pm, £6
Duncan Disorderly & the Scallywags. Fullpower
party music. Lamb, 8.30pm, free
>>>
61
MAY
MUSIC EVENINGS
@ The Con Club
1 SWAMI JOHN REIS
6 HAPPY ENDINGS
9 CALE TYSON
13 CAJUN ROOSTERS
14 FOODSTOCK 2016
Beer Festival Ads 2016.qxp_A5 28/01/2016 14:14 Page 1
15 MARTIN SIMPSON
AT THE COCK INN
North Common Road, Wivelsfield Green, East Sussex. RH17 7RH
20 BAD BOY BOOGIE
21 ELEVATORS BIG BAND
25 JOEL SAVOY JESSE LEGE CAJUN COUNTRY REVIVAL
SEE WEBSITE FOR DETAILS AND ENTRY
28TH, 29TH & 30TH MAY
LIVE MUSIC - FRIDAY and SATURDAY night
plus SATURDAY and SUNDAY afternoon.
FOOD AVAILABLE.
Over 15 real ales & ciders to sample!
For more info call 01444 471668 or go to www.cockinn-wivelsfield.co.uk
Drink responsibly. Don’t drink and drive.
GIG GUIDE (CONT)
SUN 15
Martin Simpson. Folk. Con Club, 7pm, £18
MON 16
Dave Quincy, Godfrey Sheppard, Malcolm
Mortimore & Terry Seabrook. Jazz. Snowdrop,
8pm, free
THU 19
Garance & the Mitochondries. Alternative folk.
Lamb, 8.30pm, free
FRI 20
Bad Boy Boogie. AC/DC tribute. Con Club,
8pm, £tba
The Dead Reds album launch. Blues rock.
Lamb, 8.30pm, free
SAT 21
Sarah McDougall. Americana. Union Music
Store, 3pm, free
The Elevators. Big band. Con Club, 8pm, £tba
Jeff Warner. Traditional American folk. Elephant
& Castle, 8pm, £7
Solana. Storming gypsy folk. Lamb, 8.30pm,
free
SUN 22
Folk in the Chapel. With acoustic music from
The Full Shanty, Derrick Hughes & Joy Lewis,
and Jack Hogsden & Tom Evans. Westgate Chapel,
2.30pm, £5
Fairport Convention. Folk. All Saints, 8.30pm, £27
MON 23
Gareth Lockrane, Paul Whitten, Milo Fell &
Terry Seabrook. Flute-driven jazz. Snowdrop Inn,
8pm, free
TUE 24
Goodtimes Music open mic. All welcome. Lamb,
8.30pm, free
WED 25
Joel Savoy, Jesse Lege & The Cajun Country
Revival. American Cajun supergroup. Con Club,
7.30pm, £10
FRI 27
AYU. Funk/soul. Lamb, 8.30pm, free
SAT 28
Come All Ye. Traditional English folk. Dorset,
8pm, £3
Lee Harvey Oswalds. Punk/new wave. Lamb,
8.30pm, free
SUN 29
Swing Time. Swing dancing. Lamb, 5pm, free
MON 30
Triversion. Jazz. Snowdrop, 8pm, free
TUE 31
Moulettes. (pictured) Poppy folk rock. “A cross
between Pentangle, Kate Bush & early Pink
Floyd”. Union Music Store, 8.30pm, free
63
Immerse yourself in
Wakehurst’s woodland
28 – 30 May
10am – 5pm
A weekend of wild woodland activities for all
the family including tree climbing, den building,
woodland crafts, storytelling and more.
Wakehurst is on the B2028 just south of Turners Hill
and north of Ardingly (6 miles from Haywards Heath)
www.kew.org/wildwood
UNDER 16
êêêê
FREETIME
What’s on
MON 2
Lewes Garland Day. Children’s garland competition,
Castle Gun Garden, 10am, £1 per child.
Followed by procession down the High Street
and dancing at various venues across the town.
Individual and group prizes.
FRI 6
Five-a-side Football. Fun tournament for years
5 and 6 children. Fundraiser for Moving On
Parade 2016. Dripping Pan, 4.30-7.30pm, £3 per
player, £4 adult, other kids free.
patinalewes@gmail.com
Blackpowder Morris by Roz Bassford-South
life by groups covering all eras, from Napoleonic
to World War 2. Newhaven Fort. More
details at newhavenfort.org.uk
Wild Wood. Explore magical coppices and the
folklore and legend at the heart of the woods.
Woodland activities for all the family including
tree climbing and the new Treetrunk Trek play
space. Wakehurst Place, full details at kew.org/
wakehurst
SAT 7
Nearly New Sale. Good quality children’s
clothes (age 4+), toys, books, bikes etc. Sellers
please register first. Ringmer Primary School,
10.30am-12pm, £1 per family.
rachel@willats11.plus.com
SAT 21
May Fayre. Games, including Roll the Swede,
Cross Bows, Coconut Shy, Skittles, Coin Dip,
Wet Socks and more. The Vikings, Swords of
Albion and the 1595 Martial Arts Team will
battle in the arena. Dancing from Blackpowder
Morris and music from Kalamus and Cool Hand
Ukes. Delicious food and refreshments. Priory
Ruins, 10.30am-4pm.
SAT 28-MON 30
History Festival: A Fort Full of History. Annual
living history festival. See the Fort brought to
TUE 31
Craft Afternoon. Have a go at spinning, sewing
and making prints using leaves and flowers
from the garden. Anne of Cleves House,
1-4pm, price included in admission.
BOOK NOW:
Kaleidoscope Theatre Summer Schools. More
info and book places at kaleidoscopedrama.uk
School Open Days
5 & 6 May, St Andrews Prep
14 May, Lancing College Prep
14 May, Michael Hall
20 May, Lewes New School
65
êêêê
UNDER 16
SHOES ON NOW: Festivals
Years ago if anyone mentioned the word ‘festival’ an image of mudcovered
twenty year olds at Glastonbury came to mind. Nowadays,
however, festivals have become more family friendly and manage to
combine outdoor camping, music and lots of activities to keep the
children amused. Last year we were festival virgins, unsure how our
children would cope without the presence of WiFi and how myself
and my husband would entertain them from sunup to sundown.
With much trepidation and a shed load of excitement too, we tried
our first festival at Elderflower. All of us were surprised by how
much fun we had. The key, I think, is to accept it will take you ages
to pack up all the gear you need to take with you but that once you get there time seems to be suspended.
The boys stayed up much later than usual sitting around the campfire as we all toasted marshmallows,
and strict schedules and ‘to do’ lists faded from our psyches. What we all appreciated, apart from
the fabulous music, food tents and flushing toilets, was the opportunity to spend time together as a family
without the distractions of daily life. Going to a festival allowed us to press ‘pause’ and we are keen to
repeat the experience this year. And we are certainly spoiled for choice in this part of the country with
many nearby festivals happening over the next few months; as well as this year’s Elderflower we’re looking
forward to the Joy Festival in Lewes in June and Love Supreme in Glynde in July. Jacky Adams
YOUNG PHOTO OF THE MONTH
This month’s winner
is 14-year-old Joe
Puxley, who stayed
up till the witching
hour to take this shot
in his Easter holiday.
“I visited Brighton
to take this photo of
the Pier at midnight
under the stars,” he
tells us. “I hope you
like it.” Indeed we do.
Every year the West
Pier loses another section in a storm, and it won’t be with us for long. This picture shows it at its shimmery
best, in a millpond of a low tide made even smoother, presumably, by the long exposure on which
we reckon Joe took the shot. He wins a £10 book token, kindly donated by Bags of Books in Cliffe. Under
16? Please e-mail your photos to photos@vivalewes.com with a sentence about where, when and why you
took the picture.
67
“In Kindergarten, children make excellent progress in their learning and
development in relation to their individual starting points.
They are very well prepared for the next stage in their education.
In Kindergarten the provision for the children’s personal and emotional
development is outstanding.
Kindergarten children are extremely well supported to acquire the skills
and capacity to develop and learn effectively.
Staff have high expectations of the children as well as their ability to
enthuse, engage and motivate the children.
The contribution of the provision to the children’s well-being is
outstanding.” Ofsted (SIS)
Find out for yourself...
Early Years Open Morning
Saturday 14th May 09:30 - 12:00
Or call to organise a Personal Tour
www.michaelhall.co.uk
Kidbrooke Park, Priory Road, Forest Row. East Sussex, RH18 5JA
Tel: 01342 822275 - Registered Charity Number 307006
䘀 甀 渀 椀 渀 䄀 挀 琀 椀 漀 渀 昀 漀 爀 䌀 栀 椀 氀 搀 爀 攀 渀
Fun in Action
圀 攀 漀 昀 昀 攀 爀 愀 戀 攀 昀 爀 椀 攀 渀 搀 椀 渀 最 猀 攀 爀 瘀 椀 挀 攀 琀 漀
挀 栀 椀 氀 搀 爀 攀 渀 昀 爀 漀 洀 搀 椀 猀 愀 搀 瘀 愀 渀 琀 愀 最 攀 搀 昀 愀 洀 椀 氀 椀 攀 猀
椀 渀 渀 攀 攀 搀 漀 昀 愀 搀 搀 椀 琀 椀 漀 渀 愀 氀 猀 甀 瀀 瀀 漀 爀 琀 愀 渀 搀
挀 愀 爀 椀 渀 最 愀 琀 琀 攀 渀 琀 椀 漀 渀 ⸀
䄀 琀 琀 栀 攀 洀 漀 洀 攀 渀 琀 眀 攀 栀 愀 瘀 攀 㤀 㠀
挀 栀 椀 氀 搀 爀 攀 渀 漀 渀 漀 甀 爀 眀 愀 椀 琀 椀 渀 最 氀 椀 猀 琀 愀 渀 搀
甀 爀 最 攀 渀 琀 氀 礀 渀 攀 攀 搀 渀 攀 眀 瘀 漀 氀 甀 渀 琀 攀 攀 爀 猀 ⸀
圀 攀 愀 爀 攀 瘀 攀 爀 礀 欀 攀 攀 渀 琀 漀 栀 攀 愀 爀 昀 爀 漀 洀
琀 爀 甀 猀 琀 眀 漀 爀 琀 栀 礀 愀 渀 搀 爀 攀 氀 椀 愀 戀 氀 攀 愀 搀 甀 氀 琀 猀
眀 栀 漀 挀 愀 渀 猀 瀀 攀 渀 搀 アパートⴀ 㐀 栀 漀 甀 爀 猀 愀
眀 攀 攀 欀 眀 椀 琀 栀 愀 挀 栀 椀 氀 搀 漀 瘀 攀 爀 愀 渀
攀 砀 琀 攀 渀 搀 攀 搀 瀀 攀 爀 椀 漀 搀 ⸀
吀 爀 愀 椀 渀 椀 渀 最 椀 猀 最 椀 瘀 攀 渀 愀 渀 搀
攀 砀 瀀 攀 渀 猀 攀 猀 瀀 愀 椀 搀 ⸀
刀 攀 最 ⸀ 搀 䌀 栀 愀 爀 椀 琀 礀 㨀 㜀 㜀 㔀 㤀 㐀
眀 眀 眀 ⸀ 昀 甀 渀 椀 渀 愀 挀 琀 椀 漀 渀 ⸀ 漀 爀 最 ⸀ 甀 欀
䌀 愀 氀 氀 甀 猀 昀 漀 爀 愀 挀 栀 愀 琀 漀 渀 㨀
㈀ 㜀 アパート 㔀 㔀 㤀 㜀 㤀 㐀
êêêê
Photo by Ben Hopper
SHLOMO
AT THE ELDERFLOWER FIELDS FESTIVAL
When did you start beatboxing? I started
learning when I was eight and I first did it on
stage when I was about 18. I was obsessed with
beatboxing and the culture around it, and in 2002
I entered my first competition, King of the Jam.
It was in the park and the winner got a jar of jam
(Bonne Maman, the good stuff) and I won the jam!
I was quite chuffed. It snowballed quite quickly
from there.
You’ve said that using anything other than
your voice on stage felt like cheating. I’ve now
learnt that if it feels like cheating, it’s probably
what you should be doing. The creative restriction
of using only my voice pushed me to get really
good at making lots of different sounds, but then I
reached a point where I was using it as a safety net.
Eventually you need to break the rules and create
new restrictions for yourself.
What else do you use? I’ve just finished creating
my own machine… A traditional machine can only
do whatever the manufacturer has programmed it
to do, but with this I can programme the buttons
to do whatever I want: I can loop and manipulate
my voice in loads of different ways, I can record the
audience and use that sound like an instrument.
Are you still discovering new sounds that you
can make? Not as much as when I was younger.
For me it’s become less about finding new sounds
I can make and more about putting together a
complete piece of music. I spend less time touring
and travelling than I used to and a lot more time
composing – every day I’m writing music.
Have your performances changed as a result?
They take people on a bit more of a journey; my
family show is this purely joyous celebration of
music where kids and adults are expected to take
part, maybe come on stage, and I create this big
imaginary world. My grown-up shows go to a bit
more of a dark place with the music and stories.
Can you beatbox to any genre of music? I’m yet
to come across any style of music that doesn’t work
with beatboxing because, really, it’s just another instrument.
It’s like saying ‘is there a genre of music
that doesn’t work with piano?’ It depends how you
play it. Interview by Rebecca Cunningham
Shlomo is performing at Elderflower Fields on 27th
and at two Brighton Fringe shows on 2nd June.
shlomobeatbox.co.uk
69
FOOD
The Dorset Arms
Pick ‘n’ mix lunch
At 7.06am, aware
that I can’t really
review lunch at
the Dorset if I
go on my own,
I text my friend
Caroline, who
has over the years
become something
of a diningcompanion-inan-emergency
go-to, and who
understands she
won’t necessarily get an easy ride in the writeup.
Ten years ago I had her ‘plodding through
a pie,’ which she has never forgiven me for. A
few months ago I named and shamed her for
choosing the most expensive cut of steak in the
Limetree. At 11.01, a reply. ‘Yes please.’
I mean to ask her why she took four hours to
decide, but she arrives in such a fetching green
coat, I completely forget. I’m five minutes late,
but she’s even later, so I’ve chosen one of the
high tables next to the door, and the radiator.
It’s a filthy day outside, a brief mid-April return
to winter, so the warmth is welcome.
Caroline tells me about an interesting visit she’s
recently made to Lush, and hums and haws over
which starter to choose, as we sip fizzy water,
served with lime, ice and a bendy straw. I tell
her what ‘arancini’ means, so she opts for them.
Me too. One of the things I find it very difficult
to look past on a menu is calves’ liver, and this
is the case here; they promise to be ‘sautéed
with shallots, bacon, basil and butter’ (£13.50).
Caroline goes for a cut of chicken supreme
‘with a tomato and corn salsa’ (£11.50).
They have a ‘Pick ‘n’ Mix’ system whereby
Photo by Alex Leith
you can choose
a main, then a
choice of five potato
dishes, then
a choice of five
vegetables, which
is quite fun. I go
for mash, and
cannelloni beans.
Caroline plumps
for chips and
peas.
The arancini
(£6.25) are really
lush, nothing like any I’ve had in Sicily, but
delicious nonetheless, creamy and set off nicely
by the saffron and parmesan mixed in with the
rice, and the splodges of pesto, tapenade and
salsa rossa on the plate. So far, so good.
The mains arrive with a flourish, with the meat
on one (green) plate, and the sides in separate
dishes on a wooden board. My calves’ liver is
good, though cut slightly too thin for my liking
(the thicker bits are more tender). The crunch
of the bacon bits and the soft chewiness of the
liver, with all the flavours involved, definitely
constitute the best moment of my day so far.
The cannelloni beans, in a creamy sauce, are
about as guilty a pleasure as veg can get.
Caroline leaves her chicken skin, so I scarf that
up, too: it’s got that great grilled taste you get
from charred lines. Also, slightly oddly, she
leaves a single chip, which is a pretty good chip,
soft on the inside. We finish with a coffee and
then head into the drizzle, each to their own
Friday afternoon. At 14.29 I get a text from
Caroline. ‘Thank you for an enjoyable lunch.’
But not, as ever, an entirely free one. Alex Leith
22 Malling Street, 01273 474823
71
72
Photo by Rebecca Cunningham
FOOD
Italian-style pork and beef burger
Cheryl and Richard Groves are the team behind mobile catering company The Pig
and Jacket, specialising in ‘all things pig’, from hog roasts to pork-based street food
Pork and beef together make a really good
burger; pork is a very wet meat and beef is
quite dry, so when you put them both together
it makes the perfect texture. We buy
our meat at May’s Farm Cart in Riverside,
because it comes from a family-run farm,
who hand-rear all of their own pigs and all
of their cows are grass-fed. They used to sell
from their small farm shop. Their pork is so
tasty – that was what led us down the pork
route originally. Our plan when we started
the company was to do hog roasts for events
and wedding parties but we wanted to get the
great flavour of the meat out to the public
too, so we started thinking up our own street
food recipes. Pulled pork is really popular at
the moment, and our pork burgers out-sell
our beef burgers every time. The street food
side of the business is exciting, but it takes a
lot of prep the day before.
You’ll need a fifty-fifty pork and beef mixture.
Chuck is the best cut to use if you want to
mince it yourself, because the fat to meat ratio
is just right, but I would go to your local
butcher and ask them to do it for you – they
can mince the two together. To make four
burgers, you’ll need 500g of mince, so 250g
of pork and 250g of beef. Add a bit of seasoning,
a quarter of a red onion – chopped as
finely as you can – about a teaspoon of fennel
seeds and a sprinkling of dried oregano.
Lightly mix it together with your hands and
divide the mixture as evenly as you can into
four patties. Everyone’s different with their
burgers – I like mine quite thin so they cook
more quickly.
Place the patties into a hot frying pan – I don’t
use any oil, there’s enough fat in the burgers
already – and sear them on each side to keep
the flavour and the fat in. Cook the burgers
to your liking – but remember there’s pork
in there too so you want to cook them fairly
well. On top of each, put a slice of mozzarella,
then lightly fry eight slices of pepperoni in
the pan and place two on each burger. Putting
a lid over the frying pan will help the cheese
to melt more quickly.
We’ve served this one with a winter slaw –
made using white cabbage, red cabbage, red
onion and carrot, all finely sliced and mixed
with seasoning, a little splash of red wine vinegar
and mayonnaise – and a handful of our
bacon rind pork scratchings. You can make
these by cutting the rind off some bacon rashers,
seasoning and putting them straight into
a hot oven. There are lots of different flavours
you can try by adding different seasonings,
but the one that’s always the most popular
for us is the traditional recipe, seasoned with
Aromat.
We always use brioche buns – you can get
some delicious ones from Flint Owl or Flour
Pot bakery in Brighton. We get ours from our
new neighbour the Mamoosh Bakery. Toast
them so that they’re nice and warm and soft,
lay a bit of salad underneath the burger, and
they’re ready to enjoy!
As told (by Cheryl) to Rebecca Cunningham
The Pig and Jacket will have a stand at the
Food Rocks event on Sunday 15th May at Cliffe
Precinct. foodrockssouth.co.uk
73
FOOD
Life’s a picnic
A kick-start to health
I’ve signed up for a Health Body Boost, a gluten-free,
dairy-free healthy eating plan provided by Susie
Perry Debice at Life’s a Picnic. The HBB includes
a cold-pressed juice, breakfast pot, superfood salad,
afternoon snack and ‘one pot wonder’ evening meal
each day, all freshly prepared and delivered to your home or office.
“The plan is whatever you want it to be,” she explains. “Some people do it as a total detox, others use it
as a way to get more fruit and vegetables into their diet. But it’s designed to fit around your work and
your social life.”
My favourite meals are the ‘boost’ salad box, containing smoky roasted chick peas, braised fennel,
roasted butternut squash and kale, topped with toasted cashews, and the warmly spiced coconut laksa
with sweet potato ‘noodles’. Some days I stick to the plan, and other days I veer off it a little... but
the biggest change I notice is that when I do, I’m not craving sweet things like I normally would, but
instead I find myself reaching for high-protein snacks.
Susie runs the HBB once a month, and at £140 for five days it doesn’t come cheap. But if, like me, you
need a bit of a kick-start to get you back on the healthy-eating wagon, it’s a convenient (and tasty) way
to get yourself motivated. The next HBB begins on the 23rd and delivery is offered in Lewes and surrounding
Sussex towns. Rebecca Cunningham
01825 724151, lifes-a-picnic.co.uk
75
SATURDAY 25 JUNE
from 11am - 8PM
&
sunday 26 JUNE
from 11aM - 5PM
STADE OPEN SPACE, OLD TOWN, HASTINGS
FREE EVENT
Kick off your summer with tasty fish, food and drink!
The whole family can enjoy the treats on offer with non-stop
live music from the best local talent, demonstrations
by chefs and fishermen and craft activities.
www.hastingsfestivals.com
Except
assist
FOOD
Edible Updates
I had the pleasure of trying Silly Moo Cider the other day - a
limited run of 1,000 bottles were made on Trenchmore Farm in
Cowfold from apples collected by Sussex growers last autumn. It
got me in the mood for eating outdoors and slurping drinks in
the sun. Lucky, then, that we have Food Rocks to look forward
to in Cliffe on 15th May, and the May Fayre in Priory Park on
21st May, with fab food guaranteed from Olly’s Fish Shack. In
the meantime I may grab myself a fresh salad from Laporte’s
new deli counter and head to the Grange.
Always exciting to see new ventures blossoming in Lewes Food Land. Notably, The Hearth and
renowned archaeobotanist John Letts are setting up a new Community Interest Company Bread For
Life. Michael and John grew a field of heritage wheat last year in order to make great bread, but also to
help preserve genetic diversity and create a Lewes landrace, or naturally adapted species. This year they
are doubling their acreage and donating a percentage of proceeds from flour sales to refugee charities.
All power to them.
In other news, Ouse Valley Foods have teamed up with Harveys to create a delicious-sounding Orange
Marmalade with Ginger and Wild Hop Beer. Bonne Bouche has a new owner taking over this month;
Bon Ami has a new coffee shop at the back; and Pizza Oven are now trading outside the Phoenix Centre
on Thursday evenings, top fodder for watching the sun set over the Ouse. Chloë King
Illustration by Chloë King
77
HEALTH
Hangover Cures
The morning after...
We’ve all experienced
it. The pounding
headache, birdcage
mouth, and churning
stomach that follow
a night of overdoing
it. But help is at
hand. While the only
real way to avoid a
hangover is to lay
off the alcohol, there
are natural remedies
than can lessen your
morning-after misery.
While experts are
divided over the cause
of the common hangover,
they all agree
that dehydration plays
a role, so topping up
fluid levels is an easy way to hasten your recovery.
Sports drinks, coconut water and non-acidic
fruit juices are all helpful, as they replenish lost
vitamins and minerals. If you have time for a postbinge
lie-in, set your alarm for 7am, then swallow
a couple of ibuprofen and as much water as you
can, before going back to sleep. When you wake
up again, you should feel a lot better.
Once you’ve made it out of bed, don’t make the
mistake of missing breakfast. While the jury is out
on the benefits of downing a full English (with
some believing fried food can help to replace
fatty acids and break down alcohol), a plain slice
of wholemeal bread is a safer option for sensitive
stomachs and is thought to buffer gastric acid,
quelling nausea. Toast and cereal are other good
choices.
If solids don’t appeal, opt for a potassium-boosting
smoothie instead, blending a banana with
almond milk and a handful of berries. You could
also brew a stomach-calming cuppa. Ginger is
renowned for combatting nausea, while peppermint
tea soothes
stomach acid, reducing
inflammation. Another
alternative is turmeric,
which acts on the
liver to speed alcohol
elimination. Try mixing
a teaspoon of the
powdered spice with a
slice of fresh ginger, a
dash of lemon juice and
a pinch of cayenne pepper.
Stir the ingredients
together in hot water,
then drink to relieve
nausea and stomach
discomfort. Or sip
hot water with honey,
lemon and ginger for a
gentle blood sugar lift.
If you can’t face food or drink, you could always
pop a pill. Milk thistle is known for its livercleansing
properties, speeding up the metabolism
of alcohol - and thus your recovery. It comes in
both tablet and tincture form for easy ingestion.
Another traditional remedy is activated charcoal.
Available as tablets or powder, it tackles gas, nausea,
acid indigestion and heartburn, and aids the
removal of toxins from the body.
The classic homeopathic hangover cure is nux
vomica, which is used to treat headaches, sensitivity
to light or smell, nausea and vomiting. Or you
could take a hands-on approach and try some DIY
acupressure. Pressing the webbing between the
thumb and forefinger firmly between the other
thumb and forefinger for a couple of minutes
helps ease a queasy stomach, while pinching the
indentations on either side of the bridge of the
nose relieves a headache.
And if you’re still feeling worse for wear, you
could always head back to bed. The best remedy
of all is sleeping it off… Anita Hall
79
THE WAY WE WORK
This month we asked Lewes photographer Carlotta Luke to take a daytrip to
Charleston Farmhouse, and capture portraits of the colourful staff who work
there. And she asked them: “what’s your favourite book?”
www.carlottaluke.com
Jo Gardiner, Retail Assistant
“A Crisis of Brilliance by David Haycock.
SO well researched yet reads like a novel.”
THE WAY WE WORK
Janet Anthony, Catering and Hospitality Manager
“The Bloomsbury Cookbook - Recipes for Life, Love and Art by Jans Ondaatje Rolls.
A book of social history through recipes, pictures and lists.”
THE WAY WE WORK
Mark Divall, Head Gardener
“The Complete Nonsense of Edward Lear, edited by Holbrook Jackson.
It completely encapsulates what it means to be English.”
DECLUTTER NOW!
With
07442 650863
decluttersussex@gmail.com
Find us on Facebook
"Less is more..."
THE WAY WE WORK
Philippa Bougeard and Emily Hill, Curatorial Interns
(Philippa) “Wise Children by Angela Carter.
It paints a picture of a long-gone theatrical West End world, which I love.”
(Emily) “Ask the Dust by John Fante.
Bandini’s electricity and way of living moment by moment.”
IMAGINATION
It’s what sets us apart from the
merely good.
It’s what makes the ultimate
difference to a construction project.
It’s what turns a great job into an
excellent one.
It’s what our clients expect.
It’s what we deliver.
If you have a building requiring
renovation, restoration or
reinvigoration, and you want the
end result to look stunning -
call Nutshell on 01903 217900
info@nutshellconstruction.com
www.nutshellconstruction.com
THE WAY WE WORK
Anthea Green, Tour Guide
“I’m currently reading Vanessa and Her Sister by Priya Parmar.
I’m totally absorbed in it and it really captures the two sisters.”
WE TRY...
Photo by Steven Robinson
Badger Watching
If you go down to the woods tonight...
Writing anything about wildlife in the same magazine
as Michael Blencowe feels, frankly, foolhardy,
but when I get an invitation to go badger watching
in the woods of the Loder Valley Nature Reserve,
part of the 465 acres that make up Wakehurst, I can’t
resist the challenge.
We meet Steven Robinson, the Head Warden, just
before 7pm on a golden April evening, opposite the
Gardener’s Arms near Ardingly, before making our
way through the bluebell woods to our destination.
Every Tuesday evening from April to September,
whatever the weather, Steven leads a group down to
a viewing hide, half submerged into a bank which is
home to a whole cast of compelling characters.
Having sprinkled some peanuts in front of the
badger’s-eye-view window, we settle in. Steven has
been watching this sett for the 25 years he’s worked
at Wakehurst and has no doubt that the badgers
have been living here a great deal longer than that;
but it’s the first evening viewing of the season and
he isn’t sure what we’ll see. As a general rule, the
badgers first appear at the hide well before nightfall
but the first character to emerge this evening, from
under a fallen tree, is a beautiful vixen. Unperturbed
by our presence, she stretches, sniffs the air, lazes on
the bank and then heads off in search of food. The
next act are the clowns - a trio of pheasants - squabbling
over the peanuts and bobbing about the bank.
They’re incredibly beautiful up close and highly
comical to watch.
As twilight descends, birdsong gives way to the
hooting of owls but there’s still no sign of a badger.
It’s true that quiet and patience are essential
prerequisites but it’s surprisingly gripping all the
same. Then suddenly - out of the gloaming - the
distinctive striped face of a badger pops up. It looks
straight at us - no doubt smelling our presence with
its incredible nose - then it turns tail and heads off
into the woods on badger business. A few minutes
later it’s back to investigate the peanut situation no
more than a metre from our viewing window. Steven
has stashed some under a pheasant-proof rock
and, as the badger tucks in, another head pops up
and a bigger brock ambles down the bank, hopping
up onto an upturned log. Both sit there for a good
long while, daintily nibbling the nuts one at a time,
looking up at every creak and rustle, until something
sends them back up the bank and off to do whatever
badgers do.
It’s difficult to leave and I’m already planning my return
for the next instalment but it’s getting too dark
to see by 9pm and so we make our way back through
the moonlit woods under a starry sky. Lizzie Lower
Every Tuesday until 6th September Adults £12/Children
£6. Start time 7pm April + September, 7.30pm
May to August. Money goes towards helping fund
habitat management work in the reserve. Booking is
essential kew.org
89
COLUMN
Lewes Out Loud
Plenty more Henty
Was it only three years
ago that the Massed
Mumfords hit town with
their ‘Gentlemen of the
Road’ mega-gig in the
Convent Field? At the
beginning of last month,
the selfsame Mumford
and Sons were scheduled
to appear in a David
Bowie tribute concert at
Radio City Music Hall
in New York. Quite a
contrast from our own
festive fun in 2013.
Festivals as such are not
really my scene. I’ve had
some good times under
canvas (no detail here John please – Ed) but in
the main I associate them with temporary toilets
and not so temporary tinnitus. Having said that
though, I would certainly welcome back another
Mumford initiative and I’m sure I’m not alone in
this. What are the chances I wonder?
My objections to festivals are not age related by
the way – even though I note in Lizzie Lower’s
review of The De La Warr Pavilion café last
month that I am the same age as the ‘iconic
modernist octogenarian’ building. It has been
renovated recently. Sadly, I have not.
However, my birthday in March was fine and
thanks to Ana of The Cultured Kitchen in the
Friday market who offered me a tub of her own
curry slaw on the day. An unusual present you’ll
agree. Other recent encounters in Lewes Out
Loud? Part-time receptionist, Faye, in the Town
Hall for a discussion on the meaning of ‘booths’,
Viva readers Christopher and Jill who suffered
the inconvenience of a bus replacement service
with me in March and
Hilda, Tisha and their rescue
dog, Seamus, for their
cheerfulness on a dreary
day in St. Nicholas Lane.
Also in March I was sad to
hear on the Radio 4 news
of the death in Lewes of
Lord Asa Briggs at the
age of 94. As the Daily
Telegraph noted, he was a
man who had a remarkable
influence in so many
fields, but for me it was his
delight in the throw-away
ephemera of everyday
life that inspired. I was a
member of the Ephemera
Society of which he was President.
On many occasions, at the foot of Keere Street
where he lived with his wife Susan in The
Caprons, I would notice a light on in a groundfloor
window and the man himself at work,
surrounded by books and fascinating objects. On
the evening of the radio announcement, I chose
to stand outside the house quietly for a moment.
The light was on but the room was empty.
Finally, congratulations to Leslie, the chirpy lady
whose portraits of the famous and, in my case,
infamous have been seen recently, along with
her, in the Cancer Research window, opposite
Boots. Leslie, who donates all her profits to
either the Royal National Lifeboats Institution
or to Cancer Research, has been invited to attend
a royal garden party at Buckingham Palace mid-
May. Her stunning portrait of the late Ronnie
Corbett (pictured) was appreciated by a lot of his
fans in the town, including me.
John Henty
91
FEATURE: WILDLIFE
Hawthorn
Going nuts in May
Illustration by Mark Greco
You could set your calendar by it. Around the first
day of May our ancestors would step outside to
find foamy white clouds erupting across the Sussex
countryside; the hawthorn was blooming, spring
was turning to summer. The sight was so visually
stunning and so linked with the arrival of May
that hawthorn became the only British plant to be
named after the month in which it blooms. Well,
the name hawthorn is derived from the Anglo-
Saxon ‘hagathorn’ (‘haga’ meaning hedge). I’m
referring to that other name for hawthorn; May.
Unlike the impetuous blackthorn which flowers
in March before it’s even bothered to grow leaves,
the hawthorn is more dignified. It waits until it has
clothed itself in undergarments of lobed leaves before
it dons a resplendent gown of exquisite white
flowers. This stunning costume and perfect timing
meant hawthorn took centre stage at May Day celebrations
and it partied with Green Men, Morris
Dancers, Maypoles and May Queens. ‘Gathering
nuts in May’ actually refers to ‘gathering knots of
May’ to make May Day garlands and decorations.
Then, in the middle of the eighteenth century,
tragedy struck. I don’t know about you but I get
thrown into disarray twice a year when the clocks
change. My life would have gone into meltdown
in 1752 as our whole calendar changed from Julian
to Gregorian and we lost an entire 11 days. In this
new timeline hawthorn now found itself late for
the party, blooming around May 12th.
It wasn’t the first time hawthorn had been cast
aside. Superstitions dictated that bringing hawthorn
indoors led to misfortune – even death. This
could stem from the fact that hawthorn blooms
release trimethylamine which gives the flowers that
unpleasant smell of cat’s wee and attracts pollinating
insects. It’s also a chemical formed in decaying
tissue and thus reminded people of the smell of
Black Death – and nobody wanted to be reminded
of that.
Hawthorn folklore still continues. I remember at
primary school being taught ‘Ne’re cast a clout ‘til
May is out’. I translated this gibberish into the fact
that you should keep your warm clothes on until
the end of May. I’ve only just discovered that ‘May
is out’ refers to hawthorn blooming. My clouts
could have been casted weeks earlier.
But the world has changed since I was a nipper
– we’re warming up. For a temperature sensitive
plant like hawthorn the blooming times they are a-
changin’. Hawthorn is responding by flowering up
to two weeks earlier than it was three decades ago.
It has crept back to bloom around May Day and
is now more commonly seen flowering at the end
of April. So this May Day get yer clout off, get out
into the great outdoors and welcome the return of
the real May Queen.
Michael Blencowe, Sussex Wildlife Trust
Illustration by Mark Greco
sussexwildlifetrust.org.uk
93
䰀 攀 眀 攀 猀
BRICKS AND MORTAR
Attenborough Centre
Back in business
This was the decision
Sussex University
faced around eight
years ago: The
campus’ Gardner Arts
Centre, which was
respected as a venue
that would take risks
and put on innovative
arts programmes, had
lost its funding and
closed. The trust that
had been running the venue handed it back to
the University. The University had known that
it had been getting run down, but they hadn’t
realised the full extent of the problem. They
discovered that it would need £7.2m of work, if it
were to reopen again.
They could have left it lying empty, but that
would have still led to ‘a substantial cost’ in
basic maintenance. Knocking it down was never
seriously considered, and wouldn’t have got
past English Heritage, given its Grade II* listed
status. Or they could take the risk, and try to
reopen it.
Around the time of the Gardner’s closure,
Sussex got a new Vice Chancellor, Michael
Farthing. “People were saying to him, ‘Michael,
please don’t let this happen, we need a cultural
hub on campus’,” recalls Matt Knight, the Attenborough
Centre’s Operations and Resources
Manager. Luckily, Farthing is “an actor, in his
spare time, so he’s very much got a passion for
the performing arts… He was really the leader,
to get this up and running again.”
Though built slightly later than the original
campus buildings, the Centre had the same
architect, Basil Spence, who worked in collaboration
with the theatre designer Sean Kenny.
It’s like a big brick drum surrounded by turrets,
with windows in the ceilings. Knight calls it
Photo by Jim Stephenson
“brutalist but beautiful”.
Its curved walls
were a problem,
acoustically, “because
they didn’t
focus sound, they
just bounced sound
everywhere,”
Knight says. Kenny
would surely have
forewarned Spence
about this; if so, Spence must have decided that
the look of the building was more important.
The acoustics have now been improved, as part
of this wide-ranging refurbishment. The whole
process took longer than originally expected;
the delay was mostly due to listed buildingrelated
complications. But, this month, finally,
the renamed Attenborough Centre is hosting its
first public-facing performances as part of the
Brighton Festival’s 50th anniversary programme
(see pg35).
Knight accepts that it’s a risk. He already knows
that the place is “never going to make huge
amounts of money. But we’re never going to be
measured purely on financial terms.”
Instead, the goals are more to do with “contributing
to the student experience”, providing a
“cultural flagship” and “a way for the university
to reach out into the community”. While the
Gardner was focused on bringing in touring
companies, the new centre will endeavour to
accommodate students’ needs more than the
Gardner ever did.
“Students and university, community use, and
touring work. We’ll be doing those three things,
but quite what percentage of each, we’ll be working
on over the next year or two.”
Steve Ramsey
sussex.ac.uk/acca
95
TRADE SECRETS
Patrick Geall
Tree surgeon
Photo by Emma Chaplin
How long have you been a tree surgeon?
Sixteen years. I tried it after leaving school, then
got another job. I was made redundant in 1998 and
decided to retrain at Plumpton College, coming top
of the year in forestry and arboriculture in 2001.
Geall is an interesting name. Old Sussex name
I’ve been told. I was born and bred in Lewes. A
lot of skills that I now use in my work I learned in
the 1st Lewes Scouts. I first chopped a tree down
in Piddinghoe with them, they taught me knots
and how to tend ropes.
What should people look for in a tree surgeon?
Qualifications, insurance. And look at
their previous work. You can see trees and hedges
I’ve worked on all over Lewes.
What qualities do you need? A good eye for
details, thorough, organised. Very safety conscious.
Adaptable, able to work on your own and
be self-motivated.
Not afraid of heights? That doesn’t come into
it as much as you might think. It’s the eight feet
space you occupy when you’re working that really
matters.
Do you and your customers ever disagree
about what needs to be done? Sometimes,
but in the case of nesting birds, for example, we
just agree that I come back at a different time.
If there’s ever any question mark over chopping
down a tree, I call the Tree and Landscape Officer
at Lewes District Council to check.
Tell us about a typical day. I haven’t got one.
As well as trees, I do a lot of hedges and some
garden clearing. Mostly alone, but for bigger
jobs I might work with another tree surgeon or a
labourer.
What safety equipment do you use? Chainsaw
trousers, gloves, helmet, ropes, climbing
equipment. It’s highly regulated work and there’s
legislation too, relating to care of wildlife, health
and safety plus disposal of waste. Mine goes to be
composted at Isfield.
Have you ever fallen out of a tree? Yes. Most
people have at some point. I didn’t break anything.
Do you have much kit? Yes. Ladders, ropes
and harness, various axes and saws, chainsaw. I
sharpen my own tools.
What do you most enjoy about your work?
The variety. I do a lot of different things in
gardens, sometimes getting immediate results,
others are more long term projects.
What makes you stand out from other tree
surgeons? You’d have to ask my customers.
What’s your biggest bugbear? Sawdust. It gets
everywhere. It’s why I wear this jumpsuit.
What’s your favourite time of year and why?
Summer, so I can go to the beach when I’m
finished.
Tell us something we don’t know about you.
My favourite nail varnish is Rimmel. I’m currently
wearing purple, which was a present from
one of my customers. Interview by Emma Chaplin
01273 483961, 07709 066556
97
BUSINESS NEWS
Welcome to Lewes, Cordelia James. The
womenswear boutique, with established stores
in Hawkhurst and Rye, has opened on School
Hill. They stock a signature cashmere line and
clothes by Barbara Lang, Pazuki, Pret pour
Partir and more, accessories by Alex Monroe
and Ruby & Ed and lovely things for the home.
[cordeliajames.com]
Victoria Turner, the ceramicist who creates
beautiful objects in porcelain, is relocating her
Needlemakers studio and shop From Victoria.
You’ll not have to go too far to find her though,
she’s moving her ceramics and carefully curated
selection of homewares and gifts from the
downstairs shop to new premises upstairs.
Bonne Bouche, the tucked-away bijou Lewes
shop that has been keeping us in delicious
handmade chocolates for 29 years, has a new
proprietor – Gilda Frost. Welcome Gilda and
enjoy your well-earned retirement, Elizabeth.
Raise a glass and raise some cash for charity
whilst you’re at it. Harveys are holding a charity
evening on May 13th with a raffle to raise funds
for Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without
Borders. Enjoy a blind wine tasting and a delicious
tapas supper before flexing your general
knowledge in the quiz. [harveys.org.uk]
Forget the airport queues this summer, you’ll be
wanting to take your holidays nearer to home.
Old Mill Park is a luxurious development of
uber-stylish modular homes (pictured) in the
Sussex countryside near Golden Cross. Built
offsite before being carefully placed to make the
most of their location, you can forget everything
you thought you knew about prefabricated
buildings… these are sleek, modern and look
like they belong at a design expo. See for yourself
at the open day on 28th May or book in for a
viewing. [boutiqueparks.co.uk]
Finally, it’s the last call
for entries for the 2016
Lewes District Business
Awards. You’ve only
got a couple of days left
before the closing date
on 4th May. Take your
pick from one of the 12
categories, visit lewesdistrictbusinessawards.
co.uk for more details
and get cracking!
Send your Lewes-and-environs business news to
hello@vivamagazines.com
THIS SPACE NOW AVAILABLE TO RENT IN CENTRAL LEWES
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99
Directory Spotlight:
Bo Cook and Ness Simon - Alitura Garden Design
100
We offer a professional
garden design service with
projects ranging from small
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rural gardens. All gardens
deserve a design.
We have undertaken rigorous
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and cut our teeth in some
renowned design studios whilst setting up Alitura.
We have a good understanding of spatial design,
working with complex levels, the right plant for
the right place and how to structure a border
aesthetically and for year-round interest. We love
to specify local materials that fit the vernacular
style of the buildings and source plants from local
nurseries and growers.
Garden design sounds like it’s going to be expensive
but it can be done on a budget. Discussions
usually start with a ballpark figure around
5-10% of your house value, then
we can work back from there!
We’ve worked with budgets from
£5,000 to £100,000.
Investing in a designer can
actually save money as detailed
drawings equal accurate quotes
from trusted landscapers, and
your budget can be focused on
the right area in the garden.
Working closely with clients makes for a successful
design. That way we walk away knowing
they are inspired and fully connected with their
garden and the quality of their lives has been
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Garden design is a process and to do it justice
needs time. We don’t recommend you wake up
one day in April and want a garden for June but
any time is a good time to make a start.
alitura.co.uk / 01273 401581 / 07900 416679
DIRECTORY
Please note that though we aim to only take advertising from reputable businesses, we cannot guarantee
the quality of any work undertaken, and accept no responsibility or liability for any issues arising.
To advertise in Viva Lewes please call 01273 488882 or email advertising@vivalewes.com
HOME
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HOME
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CP Viva Lewes Ad (Qtr Pg)_62 x 94mm 18/02/2011
Colin Poulter
Plastering
Professional Plasterer
Over 25 years experience
All types of plastering work
and finishes undertaken
FREE estimates
Telephone 01273 472 836
Mobile 07974 752 491
Email cdpoulter@btinternet.com
HOME
105
HOME
roject1/NEWSIZE_Layout 1 18/01/2012 14:59 Page 1
Jack Plane Carpenter
Nice work, fair price,
totally reliable.
www.jackplanecarpentry.co.uk
01273 483339 / 07887 993396
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䔀 砀 瀀 攀 爀 椀 攀 渀 挀 攀 搀 䌀 甀 爀 琀 愀 椀 渀 䴀 愀 欀 攀 爀
䘀 爀 漀 洀 猀 挀 爀 愀 琀 挀 栀 ⴀ 愀 氀 琀 攀 爀 愀 琀 椀 漀 渀 猀 ⴀ 挀 甀 猀 栀 椀 漀 渀 猀 ☀ 猀 漀 昀 琀 昀 甀 爀 渀 椀 猀 栀 椀 渀 最 猀
㜀 㜀 㘀 㜀 ㈀ 㐀 㜀 ㈀ 㐀 㠀 簀 洀 愀 琀 攀 爀 椀 愀 氀 洀 愀 最 椀 挀 戀 礀 猀 甀 猀 愀 渀 䀀 礀 愀 栀 漀 漀 ⸀ 挀 漀 ⸀ 甀 欀
HOME & GARDENS
Global
Gardens
Design,
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Mobile 07941 057337
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12 Priory Street, Lewes, BN7 1HH
info@ globalgardens.co.uk
www.globalgardens.co.uk
䨀 䰀 刀 䔀 䰀 䔀 䌀 吀 刀 䤀 䌀 匀 愀 渀 搀 倀 䰀 䄀 匀 吀 䔀 刀 䤀 一 䜀
䰀 攀 眀 攀 猀 ⴀ 戀 愀 猀 攀 搀 䘀 攀 洀 愀 氀 攀 猀 瀀 攀 挀 椀 愀 氀 椀 猀 琀 椀 渀
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倀 氀 攀 愀 猀 攀 挀 愀 氀 氀 䨀 愀 礀 漀 渀 㜀 㤀 㜀 㠀 㔀 㔀 㔀 アパート 㠀
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107
GARDEN
HEALTH & WELL-BEING
come & see us at
the farmers’
market
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River Clinic
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email: info@lewesosteopathy.com
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LESSONS AND COURSES
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猀 瀀 椀 渀 挀 礀 挀 氀 攀 簀 瀀 椀 氀 愀 琀 攀 猀 簀 瀀 攀 爀 猀 漀 渀 愀 氀 琀 爀 愀 椀 渀 椀 渀 最
猀 瀀 漀 爀 琀 猀 琀 栀 攀 爀 愀 瀀 礀 簀 漀 甀 琀 搀 漀 漀 爀 挀 椀 爀 挀 甀 椀 琀 眀 漀 爀 欀 漀 甀 琀
匀 挀 漀 甀 琀 䠀 甀 琀 Ⰰ 䠀 愀 洀 䰀 愀 渀 攀 䰀 攀 眀 攀 猀
䘀 漀 爀 戀 漀 漀 欀 椀 渀 最 猀 愀 渀 搀 昀 甀 氀 氀 挀 氀 愀 猀 猀 椀 渀 昀 漀
瘀 椀 猀 椀 琀 戀 爀 椀 搀 最 攀 琀 琀 攀 氀 攀 攀 昀 椀 琀 渀 攀 猀 猀 ⸀ 挀 漀 洀
漀 爀 挀 愀 氀 氀 㜀 㜀 ㈀ 㔀 㠀 アパートアパート
LESSONS AND COURSES
Singing Lessons
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CARS
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Andrew Wells_Viva Lewes_AW.indd 1 25/06/2012 09:05
INSIDE LEFT
BARD IN THE PARK
To fit in with our ‘Festival’ theme, we asked Tom and Tania Reeves to find us an old picture showing an
outdoor event in Lewes, and they came up with a number of options, including the Empire Day celebrations
at the Dripping Pan in 1909, a deadly serious-looking Sussex Archaeological Society open-air
talk in 1922, and a mock swordfight during the Coombe Place Fête in 1931, any of which would have
graced this space. But when we saw this photo, one of two in a series showing ‘Lewes Drama Society, As
You Like it, 1921’ we realised that we had our picture. A serious bit of research time went into finding
out more information… to little avail. It is clear that the picture was taken in front of the entrance to
the reredorter building (the 12th century extension to the monks’ dormitory) during high summer, but
beyond that… not much. The internet yielded nothing about the society or the production. A trip to the
Barbican Library ascertained that the Priory was then in private hands, and tickets could be bought for
4d from the Post Office on Southover High Street, but little else. A visit to the Keep revealed that the
Sussex Express of that year carried no report of the play taking place. John Bleach of the Priory Research
Group knew nothing about it, but promised to bring the matter up in their next bi-annual meeting.
No matter, the photographs are proof that in 1921 all of Priory Ruins was a stage, and that Arden Forest
had come to Lewes, and that this was quite a major performance, with over 30, and perhaps up to 50
actors in the cast. We chose this picture, presumably featuring the court of Frederick, because of the way
that the court fool, Touchstone, draws the eye… and because of the marvellous hats the court ladies are
wearing. Duke Frederick looks extremely dour, but maybe that’s because of the miserable state of his
throne. The lines in front of the cast suggest that the Priory was used for tennis at the time. If anyone
(including the Priory Research Group) can cast any more light on this picture we’ll post it, along with
the companion shot, in a future issue. Thanks as ever to Reeves (159 High St, 01273 473274) for searching
through their archives, and for their kind use of the copyright image.
114
Bespoke Handmade Kitchens
Designed in Sussex
Made in Sussex
For inspiration and advice, call our
designers on 01273 471269 or visit us
at 1 Malling Street, Lewes BN7 2RA
or alistairflemingdesign.co.uk
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