Viva Lewes Issue #160 January 2020

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160

VIVALEWES

EDITORIAL

What does ‘Back to the drawing board’ conjure up for you? For me, it’s ideas

about a fresh start, clean slate – which January can feel like, especially under

its white wintry sky. (And, of course, those New Year’s resolutions. Or

hair shirts, as Eleanor Knight gently characterises them…)

But I also like the literal, tangible picture of those who work at

drawing boards. Our lovely sketchbook cover, drawn by Julian Bell,

sets the pace. As well as hearing from him about the endangered art of drawing, we also visit

historical illustrator Andy Gammon, with his meticulous, also hand-drawn, pictures. And talk to

architect and environmental activist, Duncan Baker-Brown, who shares his perspective on the

climate emergency – and a HOPEFUL plan for all our futures.

Meanwhile our ‘Inside left’ picture transports us back to Lewes 1954 – and a studio of SEEboard

planners. Priory School art teacher Bianca Faricy shares a few of her favourite things (aside

from the easel). And photographer David Stacey visits a few (other) local architects. We also get

a glimpse of a couple of new restoration projects: the gold-leafed weathervane on St Thomas

à Becket; while Carlotta Luke photographs the housing association development underway at

Shoreham Harbour.

So then, back to that future. How are we all faring now, post-election? (We’re dotting the i’s on

this issue the morning after…) Labour Councillor Rebecca Cooper is speaking on how politics

affects public health at the Headstrong Club this month. Oh dear.... Back to the drawing board?

THE TEAM

.....................

EDITOR: Charlotte Gann charlotte@vivamagazines.com

SUB-EDITOR: David Jarman

PRODUCTION EDITOR: Joe Fuller joe@vivamagazines.com

ACTING ART DIRECTOR: Rebecca Cunningham rebecca@vivamagazines.com

ADVERTISING: Sarah Hunnisett, Amanda Meynell advertising@vivamagazines.com

EDITORIAL / ADMIN ASSISTANT / HAND MODEL: Kelly Mechen admin@vivamagazines.com

DISTRIBUTION: David Pardue distribution@vivamagazines.com

CONTRIBUTORS: Jacqui Bealing, Julian Bell, Michael Blencowe, Hasia Curtis, Mark Greco, Anita Hall,

John Henty, Robin Houghton, Eleanor Knight, Dexter Lee, Alex Leith, Lizzie Lower, Carlotta Luke,

Nione Meakin, Anna Morgan and Galia Pike.

PUBLISHER: Becky Ramsden becky@vivamagazines.com

Viva Lewes is based at Lewes House, 32 High St, Lewes, BN7 2LX, all enquiries 01273 488882

seedy

saturday

lewes

Saturday 1st February 2020

Lewes Town Hall

10am - 3pm

Adults £1.00 Kids free

Seed swap Talks Children’s activities

Community growing projects

Tool sharpening Café

Usual and unusual seeds and plants

Kate Bradbury

Make your Garden a Wildlife Haven

Sarah Nelson and Penny Jones

No-Dig Gardening and Hugelkultur

Cherry Buckwell

Grow Trees from Seeds

E: seedysaturdaylewes@gmail.com

www.commoncause.org.uk/seedysaturday

THE ‘BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD’ ISSUE

CONTENTS

Photo by Carlotta Luke

Bits and bobs.

8-25. Julian Bell on the art of drawing;

Duncan Baker-Brown explores our

sustainable future; Photo of the month

on the Ouse; Five minutes with Priory

School art teacher Bianca Faricy; the

word flies far; St Thomas’s newly

glinting weathervane; an invitation to

sing Monteverdi; Meet Blackjack, and

Cats Protection; also Roma of Lewes;

two local books reviewed; Carlotta

Luke photographs Shoreham Harbour;

and Craig goes meta, and realises he’s

an illustration.

Columns.

27-31. David Jarman looks at puzzling

pictures; John Henty on walking

backwards; and Eleanor Knight on

cumulative gloom.

23

37

39

On this month.

33-44. Tom Reeves pictures Lewes in

Camera – who better to? Ruth Ware

explores the ultimate whodunit at

The Lewes Lit; 1927 Roots, quirky

animation; Joe Fuller waxes lyrical in awe

of Beethoven, and the Heath Quartet;

it’s Dick Whittington time at St Mary’s

Panto; Rebecca Cooper talks politics

and public health at the Headstrong;

and Dexter Lee gives us the Lewes film

lowdown.

Art.

46-53. Introducing Hastings

Contemporary. Plus, Art and about

including Chalk Gallery and Wildflowers

at the Castle Barbican.

Listings.

55-73. Diary dates; Gigs of the month;

Classical roundup with the Nicholas

Yonge Society, and others; Freetime

listings, and win tickets to Lewes Drama

Collective’s His Dark Materials part 2;

review of National Trust kids’ nature

almanac; Lewes Children’s Bookgroup

talk on inclusivity in children’s literature;

plus a profile of the director of the

Brighton Waldorf School.

Photo by Simon Way

5

THE ‘BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD’ ISSUE

Food.

75-79. Alex Leith dines out at the

Sussex Ox; lovely, spicy, winterwarmer

recipe from Hannah’s, at

Soulfit; and we also check out the

excellent Soul Soup café at the Unity

Centre.

80

The way we work.

80-83. Architects around the town –

photographed by David Stacey.

76

Photo by David Stacey

Photo by Rebecca Cunningham

Features.

85-94. Back to the drawing board at

East Sussex College; digital future

centre at the University of Sussex;

illustrator Andy Gammon on keeping

a record; Lewes FC’s Zoe Ness on

recovery time; Michael Blencowe

hides from a squirrel; plus, Lewes

business news.

Inside left.

106. SEEboard planners at their

drawing boards, 1954.

VIVA DEADLINES

We plan each magazine six weeks ahead, with a mid-month

advertising/copy deadline. Please send details of planned events

to admin@vivamagazines.com, and for any advertising queries:

advertising@vivamagazines.com, or call 01273 488882.

Remember 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 Magazines.

Viva retains copyright for any artwork we create.

Love me or recycle me. Illustration by Chloë King

6

THIS MONTH’S COVER ARTIST

Julian Bell, who among other

things teaches at the Royal

Drawing School, believes

in the craft of drawing. The

school was set up, he tells me,

in 2000 because there was a

fear that the practice of drawing

was being marginalised,

and it needed supporting. Last

autumn Thames and Hudson

published a book which

emerged from the school, and

was “compered” by Julian,

called Ways of Drawing.

Besides working as a painter,

Julian writes and lectures. But

the painting comes first. And

the drawing, for him, always

comes before the painting.

His most recent exhibition,

called When the City is Built,

“depicted London through

the eyes of four or five people

passing through the city. I

love stories,” he says, “though

it’s not important for viewers

to know precisely the story

I’m thinking of. I mocked up

metropolitan scenes – like the

interior of a tube carriage –

getting friends to pose in my

studio in the country.” His

method is to draw and redraw.

“I am a drawing-led artist,”

he says. “The seeds then blossom,

thinking about colour.

Choosing the colours, at that

point, is a piece of cake. And a

pleasure.”

So why London? “I haven’t

lived there for 40 years. On the

other hand, my whole life has

been spent going up and down.

And London is the big one.”

He says the capital feels

livelier than it was when he

and his wife Jenny lived there

in the 1970s, “when more of

the city’s life went on behind

closed doors. Now, more life

takes place on the streets. It’s

become a world city.”

The pictures exude warmth.

“Well, I’m no satirist, I’m

8

JULIAN BELL

no Hogarth. Contemporary

London may be a mess, but

when are things not a mess? I

like rather steadily observing

people and imagining things,

and trying to see things

broadly.” One painting is a

summer night scene. A tired

professional mother with her

unsleeping baby on her lap

sits before an open window,

Facetimeing – a glass of wine

waiting on her desk. “There’s

the city lights beyond the

window and someone in crisis

beyond the screen – there’s

care there, I hope”, says Julian.

His “largest adventure in

writing”, as he puts it, was an

earlier Thames and Hudson

book: Mirror of the World. “I

had been teaching international

students, and I thought

we needed an art history that

reflected all the traditions

behind them interweaving.”

Thames and Hudson gave

him an advance for this global

history, and with Jenny, he

travelled to research – “we got

as far as India.” Choosing the

book’s pictures was, he says,

“sheer joy. I had no insistent

theory”, he tells me, “as much

as to say this is all human –

wherever, whenever – someone

with a brush or a chisel

has made these.”

So how and why, for our

cover? “I wanted to draw

the act of drawing”, he says.

“Drawing like this is, for me,

rehearsing the landscape, in

my head – pulling out the way

it’s structured; pushing the

visual information – in this

case, especially, the conjunction

of road, river and railway…

Pushing my luck, too: I

almost tumbled down the cliff

making it. That fencing on

Chapel Hill has been sorely

neglected!” Charlotte Gann

sarahokane.co.uk / jbell.co.uk

9

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Photo by Charlotte Gann

MY LEWES: DUNCAN BAKER-BROWN

When did you move to Lewes, and why? In

1990. I’d been living in Nunhead, South London

and my girlfriend Kate (now wife) was living near

Tunbridge Wells. I’d been studying Architecture

part-time at what was then North London Poly,

and also working in a practice. I decided I wanted

to study full-time – and for various reasons ended

up at the University of Brighton. We moved to

Lewes by accident, because we couldn’t find a flat

in Brighton. We rented the black tile house in

Western Road (next to the loos) for six months.

I knew nothing of Lewes, to the extent that first

Bonfire night, I was working from home and saw

a faint shimmer at the curtain; drawing it back, I

found Vikings with burning crosses.

Today we live in the sustainable house we built

– SparrowHouse, on the Nevill. The idea was to

prove that green could be cheap – the build cost

£147,000. We didn’t use normal materials, and we

didn’t use many. All the insulation is sheep’s wool;

the timber frame, and sweet chestnut cladding

locally sourced; the white walls and ceilings, clay.

You run BBM Sustainable Design? I do, with

long-term partner Ian McKay; we met at uni.

Today the business is based in Cooksbridge

Station House. Ian and I got together to enter

RIBA’s House of the Future competition, which

we won, in 1993. Sustainability has always been

an uncool thing to be preoccupied with; we’ve

always been preoccupied with it. And together

we won six competitions from the mid-90s to the

noughties, including the Greenwich Millennium

Village. The best thing about that, in the long

run, was getting legendary Ralph Erskine – a

British architect who’d long decamped to

Sweden, and was then in his 80s – on board. His

masterplan included new wetlands for wildfowl

that today provide their wonderful microclimate.

How do you see the future? Three quarters

of people in the UK now live in local authority

areas that have declared a climate and ecological

emergency. All because of Greta! And nowhere

does this matter more than in the construction

industry. Construction uses half the harvested

raw materials, and accounts for half our carbon

emissions. It generates 60% of our total waste

annually. If we can sort out the way we procure,

inhabit and restore (not demolish) buildings, we’ll

have a real impact. It’s why we built the Waste

House in Brighton: Europe’s first building made

from over 90% material other people threw away.

We recently added tiles made from oyster shells

from English’s restaurant, which gets through

about 1,000 oyster shells a week.

For the last 25 years people have been writing

sustainability strategies and shelving them.

Now plans are actually being implemented;

sustainability is becoming economically attractive.

We are moving towards a circular economy:

designing things for perpetual use, not throwing

them away. I’m really sad about the things we’re

losing – watching the Amazon and Arctic burn,

watching Australia burn.... But I’m determinedly

rolling up my sleeves and doing something. We

have to. We’ve got kids. Charlotte Gann

bbm-architects.co.uk

11

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PHOTO OF THE MONTH

FLOATING WORLD

Maurício Vieira sent in a group of glorious

shots from a morning’s paddleboarding on the

Ouse. We chose this one because it looks so

exotic: it hardly looks like Lewes at all.

Maurício wrote: ‘Last Saturday Nov the

9th quite early (around 7am) on a stunning

morning me and a few friends from Kingston

went for a paddle from Southease Bridge

up the river. It was a cracking morning with

awesome pictures that I would love to share

with you guys!

Early 2020 we will go again: more to come

from this great place.’

We look forward to those too, Maurício. We

loved these photos.

Please send your pictures, taken in and around

Lewes, to photos@vivamagazines.com, or tweet

@VivaLewes. We’ll choose one, which wins

the photographer £20, to be picked up from

our office after publication. Unless previously

arranged, we reserve the right to use all pictures

in future issues of Viva magazines or online.

13

BITS AND BOBS

FIVE MINUTES WITH...

J M Furniture Ltd

TRADING IN LEWES SINCE SEPT 1999

Bianca Faricy has taught

Art & Photography at Priory

since (‘gulp’) 2001, and

been Curriculum Leader

of Visual & Performing

Arts for four years. She

studied Critical Fine Art

Practice at the University

of Brighton, and a PGCE at Goldsmiths. She

lives in Brighton.

WHAT MAKES YOU HAPPY? Being blown

away by a gig, exhibition or theatre production.

Finding innovative ways to reduce waste and

plastic. Making others happy, and a board game

in the pub once my ‘to do’ lists are all ticked.

WHAT IS YOUR TOP FILM / BOOK?

Argh! I have to narrow it down: The Favourite,

for being a surreal and visual feast; and, for top

book, Perfume by Patrick Süskind.

Bespoke custom made furniture and kitchens.

We welcome commissions of all sizes and budgets.

01273 472924 | sales@jmfurniture.co.uk

www.jmfurniture.co.uk

WHAT’S YOUR FAVOURITE TV SHOW/

VIDEO GAME/ PODCAST? Podcasts:

Reasons to be Cheerful, Adam Buxton and The

Moth. TV: Taskmaster and Would I Lie to You?

for light relief.

TOP PLACES TO EAT OUT OR DRINK,

IN LEWES? Depot and Café Du Jardin, The

Swan and Lewes Arms.

WHO ARE YOUR HEROES? My gran, for

maintaining an open mind and heart with

her huge, bonkers family. She was kindness

personified, and once gave shelter to a whole

family overnight who were stranded in the

rain. And my old Head of Department, John

Stratton aka Stratty, for being an inspirational

art teacher and leader through his kindness and

humour. To both I’ll be forever grateful.

14

TRIPS AND BOBS

SPREAD THE WORD

Viva Lewes has been far-flung this month!

John and Viv Bewick from Kingston sent in

this wonderful picture. John wrote: ‘you may be

interested in the magazine reaching the Tiger’s

Nest (Taktsang Palphug) Monastery at 3,200m as

well as many other places during our holiday in

Bhutan. Photo taken by our guide Nidup. It really

is a beautiful country.’

And Paul Smith sent the striking shot below. He

was, he wrote, ‘just about to board the legendary

Ghan train in South Australia bound for Alice

Springs, with a copy of Viva Lewes of course!’

Keep taking us with you and spreading the word.

Send your photos and a few words about you and

your trip to hello@vivamagazines.com.

15

BITS AND BOBS

SHINING OUT

St Thomas à Becket, in the Cliffe, is sporting a

splendidly restored weathervane. Its first, original

one, which dated from 1620, ended up on Harvey’s

Brewery, just down the road. This one dates

from 1756. Then churchwardens Arnold Tasker

and Thomas Baldy incorporated their own initials

into the design.

“Yes, it does seem rather cheeky,” smiles church

architect Andrew Goodwin, of Mackellar Schwerdt,

when I sit down in his offices in the Old

Library, Albion Street.

“The weathervane was made from copper, with a

lead tip, then covered in gold leaf. St Thomas’s is

a grade II* listed church. We were doing restoration

work anyway, on the tower, and putting the

scaffolding up alone is of course very expensive.

So, while up there, we thought now was a good

moment to restore the poor old weathervane,

which was looking very tired.

“I phoned around metal workers – first of all

blacksmiths, but then others – until we landed on

PMF Metalwork & Design in Newhaven, who

did an excellent job. We then called on a local

gilder signwriter – Brian Neal Carter Signs of

Seaford – who added the gold leaf finish.”

The picture above shows the new weathervane on

the day, and in the frame, it was delivered. “We

winched it up on a pulley”, says Andrew. “Three

of us had to climb up – it’s heavier than it looks –

and then Andrew Rainford (of Profurb Construction),

slotted it into place. I think it looks really

nice – now shining out across the rooftops of

Lewes...” Charlotte Gann

Photos by Andrew Goodwin

01273 317403

07879 573040

info@plumberlewes.co.uk

www.plumberlewes.co.uk

Bathroom renovation | Boiler installation,

service and repair | Small plumbing works

1 Valence Rd, Lewes

BITS AND SONGS

COME SING MONTEVERDI VESPERS

The Fletching Singers is a choir of about 50 regular

members which meets weekly, on Tuesday evenings, in

the village of Fletching, near Uckfield. Their rehearsals

culminate in three or four concerts a year, performed in

Sussex churches, and this January they’re throwing open

their doors to invite new members. “We’re a friendly and

informal group”, says committee member Catherine Older, “and you’d be so welcome!”

From this month, the choir, led by early music expert Michael Fields, will be preparing

Monteverdi’s Vespers of 1610, towards a performance on 28th March. “We’d like to invite any

singers interested in taking up the rare opportunity to sing this work to join us”, says Catherine.

Why not take a punt, and try something different? The choir is a mix of experienced music-reading

choral singers, and others who ‘enjoy singing in congenial company’, says the website.

‘The wide range of ability enables us to perform some of the great masterpieces of the choral

repertoire, such as Bach’s St John Passion or Mozart’s Requiem, as well as songs from the shows,

partsongs, madrigals and folk songs.’ Charlotte Gann

Rehearsals for Monteverdi Vespers will begin on 7th January, in Fletching Village Hall, 7.45-9.45pm.

Contact Alannah on 01825 760709 if you’d like to sing. fletchingsingers.co.uk

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BITS AND BOX

CHARITY BOX:

CATS PROTECTION

How did the charity

come about? It was

started in 1927 by animal

campaigner Jessey

Wade and a small group

of like-minded people.

Back then, cats were

seen very differently,

and we didn’t have the

relationship with them

that we have now. They

were viewed almost as

pests. Jessey wanted

to change that and to

improve the status of

cats. It started on a very

small scale in her back garden, and gradually

advanced to where we are now, with over 256

branches and 30 adoption centres throughout

the UK.

How about the Cat Centre in Chelwood

Gate? We are the largest centre in the Cats

Protection organisation, and the only one with

a veterinary centre on site. In fact, at the time

of build in 2004, we were the largest cattery in

Europe. We have 202 pens and seven different

wings – two are homing wings and the others

are for admissions, maternity and isolation. We

typically have around 200 cats and kittens at

any one time, with that number fluctuating as

cats leave and come in.

What does the charity do? We rehome cats

and kittens, provide information on their health

and needs, and campaign on issues such as

neutering and micro-chipping. At the time of

our 90th anniversary in 2017, Cats Protection

had rehomed over 1.5 million cats, and, here at

the Cat Centre, we found homes for 1,057 cats

and kittens in 2018.

Around 95 per cent

of the cats here come

from homes where

something has happened

so that they can

no longer keep the cat.

Someone might have

lost their job, become

ill or had to go into

care, or to move into

rented accommodation

where they aren’t

allowed pets. There can

be all sorts of different

reasons, and we are

here to help, not judge.

The remaining five per cent are strays. They are

often in a bad state of health and may not have

been socialised with other animals or people.

Our current Cat of the Month, Blackjack (pictured),

was a stray – you can see from his ears

that he’s had a hard time – and he’s the sweetest

boy. He just wants to stay inside and sleep!

How can people get involved? We don’t get

any funding, so we rely entirely on donations

and the support of volunteers. We run regular

fundraising events, and we welcome volunteers

here at the Centre. People can also donate

food, cat toys and towels, or sponsor a pen and

the cats that go through it. Or they can come

along to our shop and café, or enjoy our nature

trail. There’s plenty to do on site, even if you

don’t want to adopt a cat – and, if you do, it’s

much better to come to us than go to a private

breeder or dealer. The difference is that we’re

doing it for love, while they’re doing it for

money… Anita Hall interviewed Deputy Manager

Tania Marsh

ncac.cats.org.uk

18

BITS AND DOGS

PETS OF LEWES

Roma, 20 months, Romanian street dog.

Loves: damsons, Blenheim Palace, the pursuit of happiness.

Hates: magpies, persistent skin blemishes, coloured

grouting, Cubists.

Story: Roma came to England from Romania at four and

a half months after a traumatic (and completely legal) van

journey. She was kept by charity Asociatia Paws United

(paws-hope.com/asociatia-paws-united) for two weeks, to gain

weight prior to rehoming as she was very thin. Nowadays, she loves haring through flooded fields,

mousing and extending her pan-Asian cuisine repertoire.

Sadly, dogs are just as susceptible to PTSD and anxiety as humans. Your dog won’t get it because you

tapped his nose a little too zealously after he ate a whole roast chicken and grandpa’s moccasins, but

a serious accident, abandonment, the loss of an owner, or physical or emotional abuse could lead to

a range of behaviours from howling to soiling in the house. All is not lost, however. Desensitisation,

(where the aim is to get your dog to associate their anxiety trigger with treats, not trauma) and

positive reinforcement training can do wonders.

Words by @dogsoflewes

This painting is of Roma, by his owner Pat Thornton

my vet’s open

all night

Susan Hart, Lewes.

The Coastway Vets’ veterinary hospital

in central Brighton is open 24 hours a

day for emergency cases and provides

cover for most of the region’s vets every

evening, weekend and bank holiday.

For more details call:

01273 478100

coastwayvets.co.uk

BITS AND BOOKS

BOOK REVIEW: UNDERSTOOD BACKWARDS BY CAROLINE PYBUS

‘Life can only be understood backwards; but it

must be lived forwards.’ This quote, from Danish

philosopher Søren Kierkegaard, sets the pace

well for this lively, lucid and touching memoir

written by an author who has lived in Lewes

since 1973, but before that had a life which took

her across the globe. Writing with grace, she

reflects on the influences and experiences that

shaped her, and the life that then unfolded.

The book is intricately yet intimately written

in remarkably clean, clear prose which I found

compelling and very readable. Her childhood

was advantaged in some ways, while lacking in

others. We travel with Caroline and her sister

Penelope, (their father in the Colonial Service),

around various houses and schools at home,

and from East Africa to South East Asia to the

Caribbean. As a young adult, Caroline invites us

to Copenhagen before heading to South Africa

as a Bishop’s secretary. Throughout there’s

plenty of visual detail:

‘At work I was given a

good-quality manual

typewriter on a card

table in the Bishop’s

study…’ We share experiences

of living in a

religious community,

and of hospitalisation,

before arriving in

Lewes. Each chapter

is painted with transporting energy, and exceptional

recall and – although she’s set out her

stall as firmly retrospective – she’s also good at

speaking from the Caroline of each age.

Overall, it’s her frankness I find disarming,

coupled with a willingness to ponder both inner

and outer experience. The book grapples with

lack, loss and faith.

Charlotte Gann

BOOK REVIEW: REMEMBERING BLUE BY COLIN BELL

This first collection of poems also reflects on a

life lived. On the back cover, its author writes:

‘These poems were written during ten years

recovering from a life-threatening brain haemorrhage.’

Although not the main emphasis of

the book, the poems set in hospital are touching

and relatable: ‘I lie here, a stretchered case, /

intensively cared-for’; or ‘No-time later, a nurse

draws the curtains, / I think of nets in livingroom

windows.’

Some of the vulnerability captured round the

edges – or, as he says ‘tangentially’ – I also

found moving, in odd little crannies: ‘A cup

without a saucer is a lonely sight / – sadder than

a saucer without a cup’. In ‘Ten-Finger Exercise’,

he taps out words on his fingers, noticing

ones that add up to ten: ‘Frightened makes ten

and feels like a hug

– / it’s somewhere to

bury my head.’

The author is based

in Lewes, and there

are a few local treats

too: Lewes Castle

characterised as

sucking in its stomach,

and ‘crooning

oldie-world ballads

at teatime’. Or, in ‘Miss Prism’s Handbag’:

‘Corkscrews flex in Lewes. / Logs on the fire, / a

circle of sofas. / My familiar small town’s familiars

/ wait for me there, / cloistered in terraces

on silent streets.’

Charlotte Gann

21

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decontaminating the site and lifting it above the

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the area’s industrial and maritime past.

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COLUMN

David Jarman

My back pages

To Pallant House in Chichester with my friend

Barry O’Connell, to see, among other things, a

display of the work of Prunella Clough, marking

the centenary of the artist’s birth. It proves to

be a very rewarding show, marred only by one

work entitled something like ‘Sunrise in Mining

Town’ (I noted the title but can’t decipher my

handwriting) which Barry awarded his ‘worst

hung and lit picture in a public gallery in

2019’ prize. In a display cabinet there’s a copy

of a 1949 Picture Post, open at the page where

Prunella Clough, among others, is asked about

her approach to art. She begins: ‘Each painting

is an exploration in unknown country; or, as

Manet said, it is like throwing oneself into the

sea to learn to swim.’ I liked this remark, and it

reminded me of the last time I saw a Prunella

Clough show, and for a particular reason. It was

in 2016 at the Jerwood in Hastings – back in

those days when it was still the Jerwood. Then,

the artist was quoted: ‘It’s just paint in the end,

you push it round ’til it works – that’s all. You get

better at it over the years… you’ve just got to

keep on doing it.’ I quoted this in the July 2016

issue of Viva Lewes during my account of an

interview with Giglia Sprigge, before her show

at the, then, Hop Gallery. I thought Giglia’s

down-to-earth, no-nonsense approach to art

very similar to that of Prunella Clough. Shortly

before my visit to Chichester had come the sad,

though not unexpected news of Giglia’s death.

I didn’t know her very well, felt honoured to

be invited to twice yearly drinks parties at her

home. By all accounts she was a rather remarkable

person. She certainly came across that way

when I interviewed her.

My Chichester outing was also a few days

before the General Election. The main Pallant

exhibition, Radical Women: Jessica Dismorr and

her Contemporaries prompted some particularly

random remarks in the visitors’ book. ‘Radical

Women would have been against Brexit’ read

one. ‘Anyone who votes Tory after seeing this

exhibition should be ashamed’ read another.

My favourite exhibition in 2019 was that of the

Finnish artist, Helene Schjerfbeck at the Royal

Academy. A revelation. But I especially loved

the labels to the pictures, demonstrating the

sweetly baffled curatorial comments concerning

the apparent mismatch between some pictures’

titles and their subject matter. One painting, of a

girl looking rather like a clown, is entitled ‘The

Skier: English Girl.’ The curators’ comment: ‘it

is not known whether Mabel Ellis, the English

model for this unusual portrait was a skier although

her caked make-up may

have acted as sun protection, as

required when skiing.’ As the

picture dates from 1909, this

seems an unlikely explanation.

Another, of her nephew Mans

Schjerfbeck, is

entitled ‘The

Motorist’:

‘Here Mans, a

school teacher, is

cast as a dashing

motorist – whereas,

in reality he did not

own a car or even

have a driving

licence.’

Illustration by Charlotte Gann

27

COLUMN

Lewes Out Loud

Plenty more Henty

Much as I enjoy choosing

Christmas cards in Lewes

House each year and despite

the pleasurable time spent

opening the colourful replies

and hearing news from

friends, far and wide, there is

always the knowledge that six

days or so into the New Year,

they will all have to be taken

down and dispensed with.

We have reached that stage

in our house. There’s bits of

tinsel still in the carpet, the

Bart Simpson Santa has had

his batteries removed yet

again and everything is back to normal.

You know, if there is one word in the English

language that gets my back up, it’s the word

‘back’ with all its negative connotations. Dare I

say ‘backstop’ in 2020? See what I mean?

Oddly enough, my hero, Spike Milligan,

favoured the word. His parents lived in the

Australian Outback and he famously sang of

‘Walking Backwards for Christmas’. The Goons,

when recording their iconic radio show, would

frequently refer to ‘going round the back for

the old brandy’ where Harry Secombe would dispense

glasses of milk heavily laced with brandy.

As a football commentator way back, I was conversant

with the term ‘back to square one’ which

originated when early sports broadcasters would

describe a game for those at home. They used a

representation of the playing pitch divided into

squares and this was also available to the listener

who could therefore follow the action. Returning

the ball to square one was presumably a back pass

to the goalkeeper – not allowed

in the game today.

How coverage of football

has changed over the years

and it won’t be long before

someone discovers a way

of inserting a miniature

camera into the ball itself!

As for the New Year? For

me it’s back to the drawing

board. A blank page perhaps

similar to the one I

spotted in a pre-Christmas

television supplement. To

the left of ITV’s double

page advertisement, a

mock programme schedule urged people to ‘Find

the time to talk’. ‘Tonight’, it went on, ‘hit pause,

press mute’ and later ‘this evening, the TV can

wait, Talk, Listen, Catch up’.

On the right, no programme details, just a completely

blank page and I thought to myself, well

done ITV! That would have cost a sizeable sum

of advertising money and yet, would sadly be regarded

by others as counterproductive. Not me.

Talking to people is crucial and not just close

friends and family, of course, but strangers as

well. One of my resolutions for the New Year is

to carry on doing precisely that in the town, on

your behalf. The occasional smile helps as well so

this month I say thanks to cheery assistant Kirsty

in WH Smith, who sorted out my payment

problems on checkout in a very friendly way,

great smile! Finally, overheard on School Hill

“Lewes is full of a certain kind of person and I’m

beginning to think I’m one of them!”

Happy New Year! John Henty

29

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COLUMN

Eleanor Knight

Keyboard worrier

The voice of Satan is one you may not wish to

hear as the year’s hinges creak onto vistas new.

However, I fear I might be it, so I’m giving you

this chance to look away now. You have been

warned.

Congratulations! You have successfully completed

the gastronomic/emotional/logistical

assault course that is the festive season. You

have taken down the decorations, recycled the

Christmas tree, used up all the leftovers, posted

the winceyette nightdress that your maiden aunt

left behind back to Kilmarnock. You deserve a

medal. But what do you get instead? A hair shirt.

Why do we do it? Dry January, Veganuary,

Gym-January, Anything-but-enjoying-yourselfanuary

– take your pick. It’s as if we’re so eager

for the forthcoming deprivations of Lent we just

can’t wait to dive into self-denial mode. Pass me

my birch, I’ve almost finished in this nice cold

shower. Is that a recipe for a deliciously purgative

chia seed porridge? Do let me try. Want to

join me for press-ups in the park at 5am?

If you want to know why people are at their

lowest in February, look no further than the

cumulative gloom cast by wilfully self-imposed

post-festive hardships. We’re so hardwired

to the idea that pleasure must be followed by

punishment that, having eaten extensively of

the fruit of the tree of good and evil – by which

I mean got through the Quality Street in front

of a box set – we feel compelled to atone by

making the coldest month of the year a test of

endurance and one that is, more often than not,

doomed to failure. *

Well I’m not having it. January is a brilliant

month. The air is cold, the sky is clear, the sun

shines (it does, I promise), and if there is a whiff

of astringency about it’s because those lovely

Seville oranges are once more in the shops,

and there’s nothing like stirring a bubbling vat

of marmalade or seeing the sun shine through

those glistening amber jars to raise the spirits as

the year gets underway. Even if preserving’s not

your thing, then a month in pursuit of alternative

sensory pleasures can’t be bad: epicurism

and lust are both excellent ways of keeping the

central heating bill down.

By all means think of New Year as a reboot.

I can only imagine that over the holidays the

entire nation has, as one, and with grateful

thanks, gone slouching towards the socket board

and switched itself off and then – eventually – on

again. Whatever has happened out there in the

world, here we are again, just the same, but with

our synapses refreshed and ready for anything.

So why not start them off with a little treat?

Happy New Year!

* If you really

want to dwell

on the doctrine

of original sin

through the long

winter evenings

then Milton’s

Paradise Lost is as

good a place as

any to start,

though

you’ll

find

Adam’s a

bit wet.

Illustration by Hasia Curtis

31

ON THIS MONTH: PHOTOGRAPHY

The Edward Reeves archive

‘The Lewes family album’

In 1858, when commercial

photography was in its infancy,

Edward Reeves set up a photographic

studio at 159 High Street,

Lewes.

“He was apprenticed as a watchmaker,

but had been describing

himself as a Photographic Artist

since 1855,” says his great-grandson

Tom Reeves, still running the

studio from the same premises, as

his father and grandfather did before him.

Tom, of course, takes portraits and wedding

photography as well as commercial shoots,

meaning that the studio is almost certainly the

longest running of its kind in the world.

What makes the business even more remarkable

is that none of the original glass plates – or

subsequent film negatives – have ever been

thrown away, and each image has a written entry

in a record book, noting the subject and date of

the photo. So Tom – partnered in the business

by his wife Tania – is sitting on a unique archive

of local history, which keeps him extremely busy,

when he’s not behind the camera.

“There are over half a million images from

the pre-digital age,” he says, “and of the stuff I

didn’t take, I reckon I’ve only seen 10% of it.

There’s a lot of work to be done archiving it

and digitising the images and notes. There are

a lot of surprises in store. Some people call it

‘The Lewes family album’.”

In the last six years he’s been aided in the task

by Brigitte Lardinois, a Lewes resident who is

Senior Research Director of the University of

the Arts in London. She has helped curate the

acclaimed annual ‘Stories Seen through a Glass

Plate’ lightbox exhibition, in town

centre shop windows.

Tom regularly gives illustrated talks

on different aspects of the archive,

and in January is presenting around

100 images at the Lewes Little

Theatre. The aim of his Lewes in

Camera talk will be to present a

history of the business “looking at

how the different technology available

through the ages affected the

sort of pictures that were taken.”

“Great-grandfather Edward worked with wetplate

collodion negatives,” he explains, “which

had to be processed immediately, in a makeshift

darkroom; this made outside photography a

tricky process. His son Benjamin inherited a

thriving business in 1904, which was by then

using dry-plate negatives, which made cameras

more versatile. My father Edward took over in

1948, and his era saw the advent of roll film,

colour photography and electronic flash, among

other things.”

The big change in Tom’s tenure has been the

birth of digital photography. “Wedding photography

used to comprise a couple of group shots,

usually in the studio,” he says. “Now you shoot

and shoot and shoot.”

Ironically, the digital images are less easy to

store than the old glass plates. “With those, it

was just a case of putting them in a cupboard.

Now you have to store them digitally, and continually

back them up as technology progresses.

They are much more at risk than the Victorian

images.” Alex Leith

Lewes in Camera, Lewes Little Theatre, 5th Jan,

2.30pm

33

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ON THIS MONTH: TALK

Ruth Ware

Familiar haunts

Halfway though writing her

fifth psychological crime

thriller, best-selling novelist

Ruth Ware realised that she was

unconsciously treading a wellbeaten

track.

“I was interested in writing a

book about digital abuse,” she

explains, sipping a decaf cappuccino

in a Brighton café. “I

kept stumbling across more and

more cases in the news – typically

situations where one partner

sets up a complex hi-tech

home system, then when the relationship

breaks down, uses it

as a means of control. You can hack into a system

and manipulate the temperature, blast music out

in the middle of the night, activate a smart lock

making an escape exit into a locked door….”

She started working on a plot whereby a nanny

gets a new job looking after two kids in a remote

house in the Scottish Highlands, which is superequipped

with every smart device imaginable;

she becomes increasingly distressed as strange

things start happening around her.

“Then I thought: ‘nanny goes crazy with two

small kids to look after…’” smiles Ruth, “…that

sounds familiar.” She hadn’t read Henry James’

classic ghost story The Turn of the Screw, but she

knew all about it. “It’s a literary touchstone,” she

says, “and the inspiration for films like The Others.

I decided I had to read it: if I was treading

the same territory, I wanted it to be conscious,

not accidental.” The eventual title of the book –

The Turn of the Key – is “a nod to thank him for

doing it first… though the issues

he raised are perennial.”

As in James’ story, there’s a

framing device that kickstarts

the action. “One of the problems

in a psychological thriller

is that the crime almost

necessarily comes a long

way into the book, so, early

on, you have to signal to the

reader that stuff is eventually

going to hit the fan.” In this

case a flashback narrative is

related in the form of a letter

written by the nanny. She’s

been accused of the murder

of one of the children in her charge, and is trying

to persuade a lawyer to defend her. But to

what extent is she telling the truth?

“One of the defining characteristics of the genre

is the unreliable narrator,” explains Ruth. “The

reader stands in for the lawyer, assessing the

evidence, trying to work out what the nanny

might be hiding.”

Three of Ware’s previous novels are being

adapted for TV or film, and I wouldn’t be

surprised if The Turn of the Key ends up on our

screens, too. Does Ruth, I wonder, bear such

adaptations in mind, as she’s writing her novels?

“No,” she says. “It’s very flattering, and I think

long-form TV series are among the most interesting

cultural genres of our times… but if that

were my endgame, I’d have become a screenwriter,

not a novelist.” Alex Leith

The Lewes Lit, 21st Jan, 7.30pm

lewesliterarysociety.co.uk

Photo by Gemma Day

35

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1927 Roots

Animated stage show based on an index

From the tale of a man who shares his house with

Poverty to a cat that consumes everything it sees,

the folk stories that make up 1927’s latest animated

stage show Roots offer a glimpse into a world both

familiar and strange.

The company behind touring hits including Golem

and The Animals and Children Took to the Streets has

delved into The British Library’s Aarne Index – a

collection of thousands of traditional stories from

all over the world – to create a show that depicts a

weird, warped parade of cannibalistic parents and

tyrannical ogres. As ever, the multimedia company

draws on an eclectic range of styles and influences

to bring the stories to life, from the Surrealist

paintings of Max Ernst to the films of 1960s

French New Wave director Jean-Luc Godard.

The show also harks back to the company’s own

‘roots’, explains co-founder Paul Barritt, whose

distinctive style of animation runs through all their

work. “When we started out in 2005 our shows

were far more stripped-back, partly because they

were made with limited resources. They have got

bigger and bigger since and we wanted to take a

step back, to get back to our essence.” The 1927

aesthetic has frequently been compared to that of

“a weird fairytale”, he says, and the magical and

mythical has long informed work such as 2015

show Golem, inspired by a Jewish folk tale about a

man who fashions a creature out of clay to work

for him. “It made sense to make something that

was directly drawn from that context.” The stories

collected in the Aarne Index offered an interesting

starting point, in part due to their brevity: “The index

only gives a brief synopsis of each tale so Suze

[Andrade, co-founder, director and writer] just

used them as a springboard for her imagination.”

While the stories were collected at the turn of the

20th century there is a timeless quality to them,

Barritt goes on. “These sorts of tales have always

been a means of understanding the world and of

making sense of the challenges humans face. Some

of them are undoubtedly a product of their time

but there is a lot that still rings true today.”

While it’s a more pared-back show than their previous

appearances in Brighton, it still bears all the

1927 hallmarks, Barritt says, from the breathtaking

melding of animation, performance and film, to a

live musical score performed on instruments from

a berimbau – a Brazilian, single-string musical

bow made from a gourd – to a donkey’s jaw. Well,

actually, the donkey’s jaw has been dropped now,

Barritt explains. “It doesn’t really work in a touring

show. Places like Australia just won’t let you in with

something like that.” The pitfalls of navigating

customs with a few bones in your holdall; it’s not

a typical workplace problem, but perhaps not so

unusual in the rabbit-hole world of 1927.

Nione Meakin

Roots, The Old Market, Brighton, Jan 3rd-18th.

theoldmarket.com

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ON THIS MONTH: MUSIC

Heath Quartet

Extrovert Beethoven,

free for under 25s

Photo by Simon Way

A string quartet is a great first classical concert

for someone more accustomed to rock or pop

gigs. “It’s a much more personal and intimate

experience than an orchestra or a bigger group”

explains Christopher Murray, cellist in The

Heath Quartet. “Every performance will go

differently, due to the mood, the audience, the

venue. There are far fewer people on stage so

what each person is doing counts for a lot more.

Over a couple of pieces, you get to know these

people as musicians, individually.”

As someone raised on rock and pop music

myself, Brighton Dome and Strings Attached’s

Coffee Concert series has played a large part in

introducing me to the rich world of chamber

music. Beethoven’s string quartets can be breathtaking

when heard live, which might partly be

due to what Christopher calls “the physical

sense” of his music. “You really play with your

body: you have to really go for it.”

The first piece to be performed at ACCA will

be Beethoven’s String Quartet in D Major Op.18

No.3. “A very charming, very sunny, optimistic

piece. It’s got a wonderful spirit to it. A fantastic

fourth movement, really virtuosic. Beethoven

asked a lot of the musicians, for them to be

incredibly skilful in their ensemble playing. It’s

really exciting to hear.”

Brahms’ String Quartet in A Minor Op. 51 No.2

will come next, a piece Christopher describes as

“nostalgic and elegiac”. We’re both most excited

about Beethoven’s String Quartet in C major

Op.59 No.3 however, his favourite Beethoven to

perform. “It’s so much fun, and so generous. Extrovert,

and it has this real warmth to it. There

are moments where the cello is surprisingly

agile, which usually gets a bit of a surprised titter

from the audience.”

Christopher particularly enjoys playing the

pizzicato parts (plucked strings) in the second

movement of the Op.59. It’s a beautiful movement

that I recommend hearing at home before

the concert: a folk tune is explored through all

four instruments (two violins, viola and cello) in

mesmerising, melodious fashion.

The Heath Quartet have been performing at the

Coffee Concerts “for at least ten years. We’ve

got to know people in the audience quite well.

People often stay around afterwards and mingle

and chat.” The concerts are linked to the nationwide

Cavatina scheme, which offers free tickets

to anyone aged between eight and 25: interested

young people can collect tickets from Brighton

Dome or ACCA’s ticket offices.

“People often say there’s a crisis because audiences

are aging. I don’t really buy that. To go

to hear quartet music, which is often quite

complicated music, it can help to get to know

the stuff beforehand. But on the other hand it’s

a great experience for young people to hear it

fresh, without any preconceptions. So it’s open

for everyone.”

Joe Fuller

26th Jan, ACCA, 11am, brightondome.org

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ON THIS MONTH: PANTOMIME

Dick Whittington

St Mary’s Panto

And now for a little light

relief… in the shape of

the annual, legendary St

Mary’s Panto. This year

the family society is returning

to Dick Whittington,

the panto they last put

on six years ago. “That

year,” Lucy Newth – who’s

reprising her role as Dick

W, as well as co-directing – tells me, “I realised

I was pregnant a couple of days before Dress

Rehearsal. I had to keep it quiet, and pretend to

be drinking the port in the dressing room…”

Lucy is co-directing, as she did last year, with

Louise Hackett. They clearly enjoyed the

experience so much they’ve returned for more.

But that’s what St Mary’s Panto is all about. “It’s

such fun throughout,” Lucy says, “people always

come back for more, and to try the next thing.”

Lucy started out as a schoolchild in the chorus;

today she’s a mum playing ‘principal boy’, and

she loves it.

“I like playing the male. We’re very traditional,

and still have a woman play the principal boy. It’s

really good fun – plenty of thigh slapping.”

Of course, there’s always a Dame, too – Jon

Borthwick has played this for the last six pantos

– and has, Lucy says, “a great rapport with the

kids, which is what is needed”. The chorus – in

this story, the sailors and the rats – are played by

children of Y1 (so aged six ish) up. “And for the

first time this year, we have boys in the chorus:

three are joining us this year, which we’re

excited about.”

Everyone finds their place, whether on stage or

behind the scenes. “People are so loyal to the

panto,” says Lucy, “we all

want to stay onboard. So

our Props Master started

in the chorus, decided

performing wasn’t for her,

but has found the perfect

role. Our choreographer

Emily Hazle has been

involved since she was in

the chorus aged five.

So, who’s Louise playing this year, I ask? “The

Fairy,” says Lucy. “It works: we mainly direct the

sections of the piece the other’s leading in. And

Eleanor is playing my cat. She too started in the

chorus and has come through with us.”

Dick Whittington is a really good story, says

Lucy. “He travels to the city hoping to find

streets of gold. Of course, he’s disappointed. But

he does meet Alice…” After trials and tribulations

– unfair accusations, a shipwreck, and rat

epidemic, thankfully brought under control by

Dick Whittington’s cat, and to the gratitude of

the Sultan of Morocco – he returns triumphant

and (yes, thanks to magic), becomes the Mayor

of London.

So, are there any political jokes after the difficult

year we’ve all just lived through? “I think, if

anything, we’ve rather avoided politics: there’s

been so much of it. We’re offering escapism. But

there are local jokes – about Bonfire, etc.”

Maybe just what’s needed. And certainly, a date

in the diary for any households with young

children… Charlotte Gann

St Mary’s Social Centre from 11th-18th January.

11th, performances at 2pm and 7pm; 12th, 12pm

and 5pm; 14th-17th, 7pm; 18th, at 2pm and 7pm.

For tickets call 01273 477733; stmaryspanto.org

Photo by Lee Sylvester

41

Cooper & Son

Funeral Directors

Visiting our funeral home you will be greeted

by our Funeral Director, Damian Norman.

Together with his team, Damian plays a very

active role in the local Lewes community,

hosting regular coffee mornings and supporting

up and coming artists in the area by displaying

their works in our funeral home window.

42 High Street, Lewes | 01273 475 557

Also at Seaford, Uckfi eld & Heathfi eld www.cpjfi eld.co.uk

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rejuvenation

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undeniable results that relaxes the muscles of facial

expression, wrinkles are made less visible, resulting in

a more natural and rejuvenated look.

Steven Kell and Fay Jones have attended Professor

Bob Khanna's advanced course and are now bringing

his techniques to Lewes and Sussex. Fay also provides

Dermal Fillers.

It is very important to discuss your goals and

expectations before making a decision, and we want

you to be fully and properly prepared.

Our consultations are held at Lewes High Street

Dental Practice. Consultations are totally confidential,

and there is absolutely no obligation to proceed.

60 High Street Lewes East Sussex

01273 478240 | info@lewesdental.co.uk

ON THIS MONTH: TALK

How does politics affect our health?

Rebecca Cooper at The Headstrong Club

Rebecca Cooper is a public

health consultant, set to appear

at The Headstrong Club this

month to discuss how politics

can affect our health. She’s

also a Labour councillor in

Worthing West: I speak to her

on 4th December when she can

spare 20 minutes from her general

election chaos: “running

around, speaking to people,

doing hustings”. But what is

public health?

“It’s about all the things we can do for a population

to keep them healthy. It ranges from infectious

diseases to physical activity, healthy diet,

mental wellbeing. It tends to be where politics

meets medicine.”

The event will see Rebecca presenting evidence

and perspectives on the nature of inequality in

society, followed by a discussion. “I’m always

interested in the rights and wrongs of what we

do. The nanny state question always comes up: to

what extent should the government be intervening

to make people’s lives better? At what level

does that become acceptable or unacceptable,

given the inequalities in our society are quite

large, and the health inequalities marked.

“What I like about it is that people tend to have

opinions about these things, whether they realise

it or not. It tends to get people fired up, which is

great.” Rebecca emails me some examples of the

evidence she will be presenting, including the fact

that ‘people living in the poorest neighbourhoods

in England will on average die seven years earlier

than people living in the richest neighbourhoods’,

according to The Marmot Review

into health inequalities in

England, which resulted in the

Fair Society, Healthy Lives report

published in 2010.

The talk will also tackle the

question of how much difference

which political party is in power

makes to our public health. And

we touch on how our first-pastthe-post

voting system can lead

to voters feeling disempowered.

“For me, every vote should

count. You shouldn’t have a seat where it doesn’t

matter if you vote or not, because there’s such a

big majority. I do think the parliamentary system

is long overdue a reform. It’s not a simple thing to

do, but I think it’s something we should aspire to

as a functioning democracy.

“On a national level, by the time you publish this,

the general election will be over. The Conservatives

have been in power for the last ten years

and it’s no secret that they have made austerity

their raison d’être, in terms of what they think is

important for this country. As a Labour candidate

I disagree with what they’ve done.

“But on a local government level, it’s good to have

different voices. I was the first Labour councillor

in Worthing for 41 years: we now have a group

of ten. If you’ve just had one set of voices for a

long time, ideas get forgotten and you lose a bit

of your momentum and enthusiasm. Hopefully,

having more voices helps people to step up and

do better things.” Joe Fuller

The Elephant And Castle, 17th, 8pm,

headstrongclub.co.uk

43

ON THIS MONTH: FILM

Jojo Rabbit, Wendy and Lucy, Purple Rain

Film ’20

Dexter Lee’s cinema round-up

It’s that time of the year when potential Oscarwinning

movies are released, so prepare yourself

for some Hollywood heavyweights at Depot. The

week beginning Friday 3rd January sees the arrival

of Greta Gerwig’s Little Women and the brilliant-looking

Taika Waititi comedy Jojo Rabbit.

Sam Mendes’ 1917 and acclaimed Adam Sandler

vehicle Uncut Gems start on the 10th (Sandler

even made the front cover of Little White Lies).

The 17th sees the launch of the #MeToo movie

Bombshell, with Nicole Kidman, as well as Terrence

Malick’s latest A Hidden Life. From the

24th you can see Armando Iannucci’s comedy

The Personal History of David Copperfield, as well as

Seberg, starring Kristen Stewart as the American

New Wave-darling gamine Jean Seberg. Finally,

from the 31st, Robert Eggers psychological

drama The Lighthouse, starring Willem Dafoe and

Robert Pattinson, starts its run. You’ll be hearing

plenty about all those movies in the mass media,

once the tinsel’s back in the loft.

Onto Depot’s one-offs: there are three films left

in the BFI’s ‘musical’ series. Pakeezah (5th) is a

1972 Indian movie, painstakingly made over years

by director Kamal Amrohi as a swansong for his

wife Meena Kumari, who died shortly after its

release. West Side Story (12th) marks a welcome

return for the Sharks and the Jets, with a Q&A afterwards

with Glyndebourne art director Stephen

Langridge, who helped stage an opera version in

2016. Purple Rain (18th), featuring the late genius

Prince, is preceded by a VJ set and followed by

a DJ set from the experience enhancers We Are

Parable. There’s another musical of sorts on the

16th, the brilliant ‘mockumentary’ This is Spinal

Tap, Rob Reiner’s 1984 ground-breaker, introducing

a (fictitious, but a lot of people fell for it)

heavy rock band trying to break America.

The Voigt Club continues apace with the 1962

Sam Peckinpah film Ride the High Country (13th),

which was released in the States as the opener in

a double bill, then went on to win the Best Movie

award at Cannes. There’s also a six-session course

on Westerns run by Robert Senior, starting on

the 27th (films tba). As ever, you can watch the

movies without attending the course.

Finally, from Depot’s one-offs in January, there’s

a welcome screening for the dark, dark comedy

Life is Beautiful (26th), directed and co-written

by, and starring, Italian comic Roberto Benigni,

screened to mark Holocaust Awareness Week.

Lewes Film Club is showing three films at the

All Saints in January, starting with the brilliant

black and white Cannes Palme d’Or-winning

drama Cold War (10th), directed by Pawel

Pawlikowski, a behind the Iron Curtain love

story. Wendy and Lucy (24th) is a minimalist

independent 2008 movie by Kelly Reichardt,

about a penniless young woman embarking

on a job-hunting road trip to Alaska, with her

Alsatian. And finally All My Life’s Buried Here: the

Story of George Butterworth (28th) is a documentary

about the English composer killed at the

Somme in 1916.

44

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LEWES BUSINESS

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ART

Anne Ryan

Earthly Delites

I take my leave from Anne Ryan, a slight figure

in colourful trainers and a bouffant of grey hair,

in the main downstairs space of the Hastings

Contemporary art gallery, formerly known as The

Jerwood.

The walls are filled with large oil works by Victor

Willing, whose exhibition is showing till January

5th, before Anne takes up the space on the 18th.

She has a tape measure in her hands. She’s got a

lot of curating to do before her show is ready to

be seen.

She’s been telling me about her latest body of

sculptural paintings, akin to a body of work she’s

shown recently at a gallery in Rome, where she

spent three months preparing the material. “I was

going around the place drawing everything that

took my fancy. I’d run out of paper and had to use

the card on the back of the pad. That was the basis

for these pieces. They stand up, on the ground.

Some of them have three sides, some five. People

walk round them. They spend a bit of time with

Left: ‘Untitled#03, 2019’. Above: ‘Disco Legs, 2018’. By Anne Ryan

46

ART

them. For any painter, that’s great.”

The pieces for the new show are a mix of collage

and acrylic painting. The subject matter is

things that Anne has noticed, travelling round

her adopted home city of London (she originally

hails from Limerick, in the west of Ireland). You

can tell a lot about her from the subject matter.

“Everyday stuff,” she explains. “Lots of gigs, musicians,

clubs. People doing nothing, hanging out,

drinking and smoking. A bold young woman with

her belly on show. Sinking boats. Four people

doing gymnastics on the back of a horse.”

She shows me some images on her computer.

The figures are not always complete: some are

missing heads and limbs. It’s a jumble of colourful

body parts: very vital, implying a great deal of

movement. These pieces will be artfully arranged

around the floor space, at different levels, with

ceramic works on the walls.

Interestingly, all the pieces have holes cut out

of them. “The spaces are as important as the

figures,” she tells me. “When you’re faced with

holes, it gives you room to invent. The image

breaks down in front of your eyes, and something

else appears.”

Upstairs, she’s curating another show. “Eight

other artists. Some of them I’ve taught [at St

Martin’s, and Camberwell], others I just like.

I’m always in people’s studios. It’s very playful: a

contemporary take on surrealism.”

She’s as influenced, she tells me, by musicians

as she is by other artists. “Have you ever seen

Snapped Ankles?” she asks. “I’d never heard

them before the gig I went to recently. I love not

knowing what to expect. Then you can trust your

own judgement, by looking and seeing. That’s

important, for an artist.”

As I leave the gallery, I realise I still don’t know

what to expect, fully, from Anne Ryan’s exhibition.

This, I realise, is a good thing. Alex Leith

Earthly Delites, Hastings Contemporary Gallery,

Jan 18th-March 22nd, hastingscontemporary.org

‘Bend Over, 2019’ by Anne Ryan

47

Original Art

in the

Heart of Sussex

The Art

of

Temptation

Come and be tempted by a selection of paintings, fused

glass, ceramics, prints and cards at reduced prices

6th January

to

23rd February

2020

Gina Lelliott ‘Winter Solstice’

Chalk Gallery

4 North Street

Lewes BN7 2PA

01273 474477

Open everyday 10am to 5pm

chalkgallerylewes.co.uk

Artist-run gallery

ART

ART & ABOUT

In town this month

Nichola Campbell

The newly refurbished Chalk Gallery

opens after their Christmas break on 6th

January. Their first show of 2020 is The Art

of Temptation: a group exhibition including

pieces from all the Chalk artists. Choose

from a broad selection of original, affordable

artworks in a variety of media, all offered

at reduced prices for a limited period

only. The exhibition continues until 23rd

February. (chalkgallerylewes.co.uk)

Gabrielle Lord

In a Field of Flowers

– an exhibition of

Sussex Flora from

the extensive collections

of the Sussex

Archaeological

Society – continues

at Barbican House

Museum. Drawn

from six discrete

collections created

by eight, predominantly women, artists the

watercolour paintings depict the wild plants

and flowers of Sussex in the 19th and early

20th centuries. While the paintings do not follow

the strict conventions of scientific botanical

illustration, the location and nature of the

plants is recorded,

capturing a landscape

of familiar

species as well as

others that are

now under threat.

An exhibition for

horticulturalists,

historians and art

lovers alike. (Continues

until the end

of April.)

If one of your New Year’s resolutions is to

get creative, Louise Bell offers beginners

pottery workshops at the Blue Door Studio,

with courses in hand building techniques

and surface decoration. Up the road, at

the Star Pottery, Mohamed Hamid offers

taster sessions for would-be potters wanting

to work on the wheel. Down in the Cliffe,

DOLLY can get you making and mending

your own clothes, with one-off sessions,

ongoing courses and one-to-one sewing tuition.

There are

drawing, painting

and printing

courses all over:

maybe check out

Paddock Studios,

or the Paint

Club at Fuego

Lounge.

East Sussex College’s exhibition of its

entries for this year’s Royal Opera House

Design Challenge is open Thursday 16th

6-8pm, and Saturday 18th, 10am-2pm. See

posters, merchandise, wigs, make-up designs,

props, sets and costume designs – this

year all inspired by Puccini’s La Bohème.

DOLLY

49

“I’m incredibly impressed with how the

club leads through action, not words and

it is an honour to be joining the team.

My ambition is clear – for Lewes FC to be

the best club in the world, for everybody

to know about it, and for others to learn

from the example we are setting.”

Maggie Murphy, General Manager, Lewes FC

Lewes FC is the only football club in the world to

pay its women's team the same as its men's team.

Endorse us, support us and help us do more.

JOIN THE CLUB:

www.lewesfc.com/owners

ART

Out of town

200 Seasons, the expansive retrospective of work by British

sculptor David Nash continues at Towner. With only a

month left to run (the exhibition closes on 2nd February),

we highly recommend a visit to see the galleries filled with

Nash’s monumental wooden sculptures. Brink – an exhibition

of works from the Towner collection curated by Caroline

Lucas – continues alongside. Both Nash and Lucas are

strongly influenced by landscape and environment, creating a

dialogue between the two shows.

Also coming to an end this month, Post-Impressionist Living:

The Omega Workshops continues at Charleston until the

19th January. 100 years after the pioneering Workshops

closed their doors, the exhibition explores their philosophy

and beginnings and brings together a huge selection of

their decorative homewares, furniture and fabrics against a

fittingly Bloomsbury backdrop.

Teacup and saucer, designed by Roger Fry, made at the factory of Carter, Stabler & Adams for

the Omega Workshops, c 1914. © Victoria & Albert Museum

TOWNER Eastbourne

Alan Davie

and

David Hockney

Early Works

15 February to 31 May 2020

Devonshire Park, BN21 4JJ

@TownerGallery

#EastbourneALIVE

www.townereastbourne.org.uk

Towner Members can enjoy unlimited

free access to this ticketed show.

Join for as little as £35 per year.

David Hockney, Arizona, 1964, acrylic on canvas, 60 60 ins

© David Hockney, photo: Fabrice Gibert

ART

Out of town continued

Pottery Classes

for Beginners

Cthuluscene, an exhibition of work by David

Blandy and Claire Barrett, is at ONCA

Gallery in Brighton from 23rd January until

5th February. Bringing together three films

that address the climate crisis and humanity’s

collective future, the artists use voiceover,

folk tales and poetry to explore ‘the history

of scientific inquiry, the parallel evolution

of ideas, and what we do now that the paradigms

of the post-industrial world are breaking

down’. Join the artists for a free role-play

gaming workshop on 29th January, 6-9pm.

See onca.org.uk

Learn hand-building skills

and decorating techniques

in small groups at the Blue

Door Studio behind Union

Music Store in Lewes.

TUESDAYS:

10am – 12.30pm starts January 7th – 4 weeks

THURSDAYS:

6pm – 8.30pm starts January 9th – 4 weeks

SATURDAYS:

10am – 12.30pm starts January 11th – 4 weeks

4 week block - £180

(Includes all materials + firings)

OPEN CALL: Towner are inviting submissions

for Towner International, a major

new biennial exhibition of contemporary

art that will take place at Towner in 2020.

Submissions are welcome from professional

artists across the UK and internationally,

with at least one third of exhibiting

artists to be selected from the South East.

The deadline is 17th January. Visit

townereastbourne.org.uk

53

Jan listings

WEDNESDAY 1

Holly Hike. A guided hike around the lesserknown

parts of the estate. Hot drink included.

Sheffield Park, 1030am-12.30pm, £10, see

nationaltrust.org.uk/sheffield-park-and-garden.

SUNDAY 5

Christmas Tree Collection. The Rotary Club

of Lewes Barbican will be collecting trees in

the Houndean and Barons Down area, Malling,

Nevill, Southover, Kingston, Pells and Western

Road. From 10am, contact cindy.field@hotmail.

co.uk.

Sussex National Raceday. For details, see

plumptonracecourse.co.uk.

Lewes in Camera. Tom Reeves talks about the

early days of photography in Lewes, how the

nature of photography has changed over 160

years, illustrated with photographs from the extensive

archive. Lewes Little Theatre, 2.30pm,

£5, see page 33.

TUESDAY 7

Life Drawing. Drop-in session, bring your

own materials. Lewes Arms, 7.30pm, £5.

THURSDAY 9

Comedy at the Con. With Jimmy McGhie,

Patrick Spicer and Caroline Mabey (below).

Con Club, 7.30pm, £9-£12.

The Hostile Environment. Author Maya

Goodfellow and Naqeeb Saide discuss how migrants

became the scapegoats of contemporary

mainstream politics. Christ Church main hall,

Prince Edward’s Road, 7.30pm, free.

FRIDAY 10

Film: Cold War (15). All Saints, 8pm,

£5/£2.50.

Dick Whittington. Annual St Mary’s Panto.

See stmaryspanto.org, and page 41.

MONDAY 13

The History of St John sub Castro. Lewes

History Group talk with Stuart Billington,

telling the history of St John sub Castro in the

Pells, from its origins in Anglo-Saxon times;

through the coming of the Normans; the trauma

of the Reformation; the demolition of the

ancient church; the erection of the Victorian

edifice; and finally to its transformation into

the 21st century church which we know today.

King’s Church, 7pm for 7.30pm, £1/£3.

Still from Cold War © Filmcoopi

THURSDAY 16

The Sleeping Beauty. Royal Ballet screening.

Depot, 7.15pm, £17.50/£15.

FRIDAY 17

Romano-British Settlements in the Ouse

Valley. Lewes Archaeological Group talk by

Dr David Rudling, Lewes Town Hall Lecture

Room, 7.30pm, £4/£3, free entry for under 25s.

55

Sallie Sullivan & Ali Hahlo will offer

FREE CLASS 2-2.45pm

Plus TALK &YOGA FILM 3-4.30pm

At SOULFIT studio, LEWES

Book 01273 009509/ info@wearesoulfit.com

MON 17 – SAT 22 FEB 2020

www.eastbournetheatres.co.uk

01323 412000

Jan listings (cont.)

FRIDAY 17 (CONT.)

How Does Politics Affect Our Health?

Headstrong Club talk and discussion with

Rebecca Cooper, see page 43.

SATURDAY 18

Repair Café. Take along

damaged clothes, broken

electrical appliances,

bicycles, china, jewellery

and more. Tea, coffee and cake

will be available. Landport

Community Hub, BN7 2SU,

2pm-5pm, no charge is made but donations are

welcome, see lewesrepaircafe.org.uk.

Vegan Evening: Mind, Body & Spirit. Talk,

food tasting with Café12/31, spices from Seven

Sisters Spices, Q&A and recipes to take away.

Café12/31 TRINITY St John sub Castro, 7pm,

£10/£12.

National Iyengar

Yoga Day – an introduction

to yoga.

Free introductory

yoga class, suitable

for all ages and

abilities, plus yoga

demonstration, talk, film and refreshments.

Soulfit Studio, 47 Western Road, times tbc.

MONDAY 20

Lewes & District Soroptimist Club. Talk

with ESFRS’ Assistant Chief Fire Officer &

Director of Service Delivery, Mark Andrews

and some of the ESFRS crew. The focus will

be on women’s recruitment within the Fire &

Rescue Service – the challenges and solutions.

There will also be a Q&A session. ASK

restaurant, 7pm, contact lewes.soroptimistinternational@mail.com.

Lewes Camera Club talk. With Matt

Armstrong-Ford on ‘Safari’. St Mary’s Supporters

Club, Christie Road, 7.30pm, £5.

57

Lewes

Little

Theatre

By David and Robert Goodale

Directed by Rebecca Warnett

Saturday 21 March - Saturday

28 March 7:45pm excluding

Sunday. Matinee Saturday 28

March 2:45pm.

www.lewestheatre.org

Box Office: 01273 474826

£12/Members £8

Jeeves and

Wooster

in Perfect Nonsense


TUESDAY 21

Life Drawing. Drop-in

session, bring your own

materials. Lewes Arms,

7.30pm, £5.

The Lewes Lit talk.

With best-selling

author Ruth Ware. All

Saints, 8pm, £10, see

page 35.

WEDNESDAY 22

Brighton Before the Pavilion. Illustrated talk

with Dr Geoffrey Mead. The Keep, 5.30pm-

6.30pm, £5.

THURSDAY 23

The Group. Meet new friends in a welcoming

atmosphere. For those 50+ and unattached. A

pub in Lewes, 8pm, see thegroup.org.uk.

FRIDAY 24

Film: Wendy and

Lucy (15). All Saints,

8pm, £5/£2.50.

SATURDAY 25 –

MONDAY 27

Standing Together. A weekend of events

commemorating Holocaust Memorial Day, including

a writing workshop (25th, Depot, 2pm-

5pm, free, ticketed); concert, Coming Together

Through Music (25th, TRINITY St John sub

Castro, 7.30pm, free with retiring collection);

film, Life is Beautiful (26th, Depot, 2pm, ticketed);

music and poetry (26th, Depot Studio,

7pm, free); vigil (27th, 6pm, Cliffe Bridge).

TUESDAY 28

Film: All My Life’s Buried Here. The Story

of George Butterworth. All Saints, 8pm,

£5/£2.50.

Still from ‘Wendy and Lucy’

© Studio Produzent

59

DITCH THE

Detox

DECADES

LEWES TOWN HALL

TOP DJS. BAR. COCKTAILS

TICKETS £8 IN ADVANCE AVAILABLE FROM

UNION MUSIC STORE AND KINGS FRAMERS

£10 ON THE DOOR

@patinalewes

facebook/Patina

patinalewes.com

Tina Deubert,

Nutritional Therapist,

Teacher and Cook

www.foodworks4u.co.uk

tinadeubert@gmail.com

01273 483501

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TUESDAY 28 (CONT.)

Death Café. Hosted conversations about death

and dying, easing people’s fears and the notion

that death is taboo. The Dorset, 12.30pm-

2.30pm, free (small donations accepted).

WEDNESDAY 29

Inclusivity in Children’s

Books. Daniel

Hahn in conversation

with Candy Gourlay

and One Third

Stories, hosted by

Lewes Children’s Book

Group. See page 71. Council Chamber, Lewes

Town Hall, 7.30pm for 8pm, free.

La Bohème. Royal Opera House screening

of Puccini’s opera of young love in 19th-century

Paris. Depot, 7.45pm, £17.50-£20.

THURSDAY 30

Remembering

Blue. Lewes poet

Colin Bell launches

his poetry collection

Remembering Blue

with fellow poet

Paul Matthews,

reading from This

Naked Light. Hosted

by poet Lisa Dart.

Elephant & Castle,

7.30pm, free.

61

Join the 1,500 who already own a

share in Lewes Football Club.

www.lewesfc.com/owners

GIG GUIDE: JANUARY

GIG OF THE MONTH:

THE COPPER FAMILY

You can trace The Copper Family of Rottingdean

and their local roots all the way back

to 1784 (check out the family tree on their

website, along with some great archive photos).

One member even went to school in Lewes. For

centuries the family have been singing with a distinctive

style of vocal harmony. Their repertoire

of unusual songs have been lovingly passed down through the years. This folk dynasty is still going

strong, with the younger members seeming as enthusiastic about the old songs as the generations

before them. If you haven’t had the pleasure of watching this remarkable family perform, don’t miss

their visit to Lewes Saturday Folk Club this month.

Saturday 4th, Elephant & Castle, 8pm, £12

THURSDAY 2

Owen Ridley’s New Year Update. Comedy

with musical support from Joe King. Lamb,

8pm, free

FRIDAY 3

The Magnificent Kevens. Pop-up busking

troupe. Lamb, 8pm, free

SATURDAY 4

The Chain Gang, featuring Steve ‘Snips’

Parsons. Rock/soul. Lamb, 8pm, free

The Copper Family. Folk, Sussex trad, unaccompanied

vocal harmony. Elephant & Castle,

8pm, £12

Kit Trigg. Blues/rock. Lansdown, 8pm, free

SUNDAY 5

English dance tunes session – bring instruments.

Folk, English trad. The Volunteer,

12pm, free

MONDAY 6

Alan Barnes. Jazz. Snowdrop, 8pm, free

TUESDAY 7


Folk, English trad. John Harvey Tavern,

8pm, free

FRIDAY 10

The Boys. Punk. Con Club, 7.30pm, £16

The Long Haul. Five-piece country rock.

Lamb, 8pm, free

SATURDAY 11

Loose Caboose. DJ night. The Con Club,

7.30pm, £6

Photo of The Boys by Lothar Felkel

63

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GIG GUIDE: JANUARY

MONDAY 20

Jason Henson. Jazz. Snowdrop, 8pm, free

Wassailing ceremony

SATURDAY 11 (CONT.)

American Sector. Americana covers and Texas

swing. Lamb, 8pm, free

Wassail. With candles, fire, Wassail bowl,

Twelfth Cake. Folk, English trad, indoor wassailing

ceremony. Elephant & Castle, 8pm, £4

Wild Pansies. Blues/folk/country. Lansdown,

8pm, free

THURSDAY 23

Winter Beats. Soulful electronica and hip hop,

performed live by Crewdson, Alphabets Heaven

& friends. Lamb, 8pm, free

FRIDAY 24

The Stevie Watts Trio. Soul jazz. Lamb, 8pm,

free

SATURDAY 25

Dom Prag. Folk, mainly trad songs with guitar.

Elephant & Castle, 8pm, £6

Supernatural Things. Funk & Soul. Lamb,

8pm, free

SUNDAY 12

TJ Walker. Country/Americana. Promoting

new album The Long Game. Lamb, 8pm, free

SUNDAY 26

Pam & De Femmes. International cabaret.

Lamb, 8pm, free

MONDAY 13

Charlotte Glasson. Jazz. Snowdrop, 8pm, free

MONDAY 27

Lucy Pickering. Jazz. Snowdrop, 8pm, free

TUESDAY 14

Concertinas Anonymous practice session.

Folk & Misc. Elephant & Castle, 8pm, free

SATURDAY 18

Sussex All-Day Singaround. Folk, mainly

English trad. Royal Oak, Barcombe, 11am-

11pm, free

Sam Walker. Multi-instrumental singer/songwriter.

Lansdown, 8pm, free

TUESDAY 28

John Grant. Stripped-back live show with

support from Dog in the Snow. Attenborough

Centre, 8pm, £30

FRIDAY 31

Victory Through Sound. Indie rock. Lamb,

8pm, free

SUNDAY 19


Folk, English trad. Elephant & Castle,

12pm, free

Jaz Delorean. Solo show from front man of

Tankus the Henge. Lansdown, 8pm, free

Lewkulele. Singalong. Lamb, 8pm, free

Dom Prag at the Elephant & Castle

65

CLASSICAL ROUND-UP: JANUARY

FRI 24, 7.45PM

Nicholas Yonge Society. In a town bursting with

choirs, orchestras and festivals, the Nicholas Yonge

Society quietly goes about its business of presenting

fine chamber music, something it’s been doing for

over 50 years. In this month’s concert, the Carducci

String Quartet will be playing quartets by Beethoven

(the Serioso), Britten (No 1 in D major) and Mendelssohn

(No. 6 in F minor). But the Carduccis have

a reputation for championing contemporary repertoire, and for this concert they’ll be joined by

Kate Whitley to perform her new Piano Quintet. Thirty-year-old Kate writes music for ballets,

choirs and orchestras and her works have been performed on Radio 3 and at the BBC Proms.

She also co-runs the Multi Storey Orchestra who perform in (you’ve guessed it) multi storey car

parks. Meanwhile the Guardian calls her music ‘unpretentious, appealingly vigorous and visceral’.

Take this opportunity to hear for yourself.

Cliffe Building, East Sussex College, Mountfield Road, £16, free for 8-25 year-olds, available from

Baldwins Travel, nyslewes.org.uk

PICK

OF THE

MONTH

Photo by Andy Holdsworth Photography

SATURDAY 18, 7.45PM

Musicians of All Saints. The start of the new

year seems to be a good month for new music,

as the Musicians of All Saints continue their

second Living British Composers season. Ric

Graebner directs the players in a programme

that includes the second performance of his own

Clarinet Concerto (solo clarinet Steve Dummer)

and the first performance of a version of Guy

Richardson’s Houriya (Freedom). Alongside this

will be Mendelssohn String Symphony No.6 in

E flat major and Schubert Rondo for Violin and

Strings D.438 with Chris Phipps on solo violin.

Peter Copley introduces the programme in a

pre-concert talk at 7.10pm.

Southover Church, £12 regular, £9 concession,

under 18s free, mas-lewes.co.uk

SUNDAY 26, 11AM

Heath Quartet in association with Strings

Attached. Since winning the Royal Philharmonic

Society’s Young Artists Award in 2013 the

Heath Quartet have been earning a reputation as

one of the most exciting British chamber groups

performing today. At the Attenborough Centre

this month they’ll be playing string quartets by

Beethoven and Brahms. See page 39.

Attenborough Centre for the Creative Arts,

£18.50, concessions £16, attenboroughcentre.com

SUNDAY 26, 4PM

Corelli Ensemble. A typically exuberant concert

from the Corelli Ensemble features Mozart

Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, Handel Concerto Grosso

Op 6 no. 2 and Beethoven Romance for Violin in

F with solo violinist Maeve Jenkinson. Also in

the mix is John Rutter’s Suite for Strings, based

on British folk tunes. A warming way to see out

what often feels like the darkest month in more

ways than one.

St Pancras Church, £12 in advance from the website

or Lewes TIC, £14 on the door. Children free.

corelliensemble.co.uk

Robin Houghton

67

www.iford-kingston.sch.uk

LEARN TOGETHER, PLAY TOGETHER, LIVE TOGETHER

Is your child due to start school in September 2020?

There is still time to visit our school before the 15th

January 2020 application deadline

We also have places available in other year

groups. Please contact us for further information

“Teaching is consistently strong across the school.

Pupils achieve well as a result.” Ofsted 2019

T: 01273 474973 E: office@iford-kingston.e-sussex.sch.uk

THE BROADWAY & WEST END HIT MUSICAL

NATURAL WOMAN • THE LOCOMOTION

YOU’VE GOT A FRIEND • ONE FINE DAY

WILL YOU LOVE ME TOMORROW

UP ON THE ROOF

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TUE 11 – SAT 15 FEB

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UNTIL SUNDAY 5

Christmas at Nymans. Family crafts, froggy

storytelling and lots of drop-in activities. See

nationaltrust.org.uk/nymans.

SATURDAY 18

Nellie’s Arctic Adventures. A trail around the

garden telling the story of Nellie Peel, one of

the first women to travel to the Arctic Circle,

in 1893. Her journey will be re-created using

Nellie’s own words from the book published

on her return. For more information visit

nationaltrust.org.uk/sheffield-park-and-garden.

WEDNESDAY 1

New Year’s Day Concert. Music from The

Ray Campbell Dance Band, mulled wine and

mince pies. Eastbourne Band Stand, 11am, free.

SUNDAY 5

Look Think Make. Drop-in family-friendly

activities, with support from DLWP staff and

volunteers. De La Warr Pavilion, 2pm, £1.

UNTIL SUNDAY 12

Jack & the Beanstalk. Expect live music,

colourful sets, amazing costumes, spectacular

special effects and plenty of comedy, fun

and laughter. Devonshire Park Theatre,

Eastbourne, see eastbournetheatres.co.uk.

Togi’s Team

– Food and

Feasting.

Investigate

ancient food

and drink

and find out

how and why people celebrated in the past.

Create an ancient feast to share using real

Roman recipes. Togi’s Team is a club for

budding young archaeologists aged 6+ years.

Fishbourne Roman Palace, 10am-12.30pm,

£15, see sussexpast.co.uk.

TUESDAY 28 & WEDNESDAY 29

Meet Me a Tree: A Very First Opera.

Exciting and interactive musical adventure for

babies, presented by Hurly Burly Theatre. Sing

with blackbirds, march through fallen leaves

and feel the wind in this multisensory journey

through a year in the life

of a tree. With gentle

classical music by

Schumann, Delibes and

Monteverdi alongside

familiar nursery rhymes

and original songs. Chichester

Festival Theatre, see cft.org.uk.

69

COMPETITION

His Dark Materials

with Lewes Drama Collective

êêêê

Lewes Drama Collective present part two of His Dark

Materials next month, a year on from their successful

production of the first instalment last January. Re-join

young heroine Lyra Belacqua (aka Lyra Silvertongue),

her trusty dæmon Pantalaimon and loyal friend Will

Parry as they continue their overwhelming quest to

stop the forces of evil, making the arduous journey

to the ‘republic of heaven’ through the dark and haunting land of the dead, where they encounter

some fantastical and frightening beings. Once again LDC have kindly offered us a family ticket (two

adults and two children) along with a show programme and interval refreshments to give to a lucky

reader. To get into the draw to win this prize (choose between performances on 1st, 2nd, 8th or 9th

of Feb) answer the following question: Who is Iorek Byrnison?

Please send your answers as well as your name, telephone number and address by Wednesday 22nd Jan

and check vivamagazines.com for Ts & Cs. Tickets otherwise cost £9.50/£7.50, performances 1st, 2nd,

8th and 9th February, 3.30pm at the All Saints Centre

BOOK REVIEW

2020 Nature Month-By-Month

by Anna Wilson and Elly Johnz

Kick off this new year with the National Trust’s 2020 Nature Month-By-

Month almanac. This handy guide for children is a whizz-bang tour of

nature and culture throughout the year.

January celebrates the pagan festival of wassailing, Lohri and Chinese

New Year and includes a recipe for Twelfth Night Cake. February (from

the Latin word februum, meaning purification, did you know?) helps

readers know their cumulonimbus from their nimbostratus. In March

readers learn to get handy with tools and make a nest box for the garden.

Each chapter is packed with information about constellations, the history

of colourful festivals and facts about wildlife.

A friendly and gentle narration make this book suitable for every curious

family, no matter how much or little they know about nature. The range

of subjects and the bite-sized chunks make it easy to dip in and out of too. Want to know the best

time in 2020 to spot meteors or see a murmuration of starlings? Dive into this wonderfully colourful,

inclusive and joyous exploration of our world. Anna, Bags of Books

Find it at Bags of Books with 20% off throughout January

êêêê

70

êêêê

Lewes Children’s

Book Group

Looking at inclusivity

What do books mean to you? Do you

consider yourself a life-long fan, or is your

reading limited to emails and the occasional

newspaper? If you fall into the former category,

the chances are you developed your

love of books at a young age.

It is this early introduction to reading

that is one of the main aims of the Lewes

Children’s Book Group, which is part of

the Federation of Children’s Book Groups,

and was founded 45 years ago by librarian

Diana Rogers.

Staffed and run entirely by volunteers,

LCBG hosts talks by visiting children’s authors

and illustrators, and runs book swaps

three times a year. It also donates children’s

books to local schools, charities, and GP

and dental surgeries, and is involved in the

Children’s Book Award each year.

Laura Brett is one of its committee members,

as well as a librarian who specialises in

children’s literature. “It’s all about bringing

children and stories together in an inclusive

way,” she says. “All our events are free, as

we want to make books as accessible as possible

to children of all ages.”

LCGB’s next event will be taking a deeper

look at the issue of inclusivity, as it is holding

a talk on how minorities of all kinds are

represented – or not – in children’s books.

It is a topic that is ripe for discussion, says

Laura, as research carried out in 2018 by

the Centre of Literacy in Primary Education

found the representation of ethnic minorities,

for instance, in children’s literature

to be just four per cent. By 2019 that had

increased to seven per cent – an upward

trend that Laura is keen to encourage.

“Children want to see themselves in books,”

she explains. “We have children’s author

Candy Gourlay speaking at the event, and

she is from the Philippines and grew up

there. She says that as a child she wondered

why she couldn’t see herself in the books

she read, and that she couldn’t identify with

worlds that included things like snow. It

was like science fiction! When she moved

to the UK, she began writing books to

address this – books that are about identity

and being happy as you are.”

Other guests joining the discussion include

Jonny Pryn of One Third Stories – a

subscription-based service that provides

bedtime stories which gradually introduce

children to foreign languages – and children’s

book translator Daniel Hahn.

“It’s going to be great,” says Laura, “and it’s

free and open to everyone, from adults to

teenagers and older children – the perfect

way to spend a January evening!” Anita Hall

Inclusivity in Children’s Books is on 29th January

at 7.30pm in the Council Chamber, Lewes

Town Hall. leweschildrensbookgroup.org.uk

71

Damian Mooncie

Director, Brighton Waldorf School

Until 2019, your school

was called the ‘Brighton

Steiner School’. Why the

name change? Dr Rudolf

Steiner founded the first

school 100 years ago, in a

factory in Stuttgart, the

‘Waldorf-Astoria’ from which

the schooling takes its name.

There are now over 1,150

schools, all over the world, and

everywhere apart from the

UK they are called ‘Waldorf

Schools’. We rebranded to

mark the anniversary, and to

connect with the worldwide

Waldorf family of schools.

We have recently added new

subject strands, of ecology, and

global citizenship.

What, in a nutshell, is a

‘Steiner’ (or ‘Waldorf’)

education? In a nutshell?

Creativity is encouraged, to

enable children to discover

themselves and develop their

individuality. The purpose

is for children to become

well-rounded individuals both

in their learning and their

emotions, so they can set forth

into adulthood with confidence

in their ability and a deep

understanding of themselves.

So it’s very different from

traditional schooling? In

mainstream school, children

are expected to park their

childhood at the school gate.

Waldorf Education ensures

that childhood is an intrinsic

element of schooling, and

that learning supports and

nourishes the individual at this

crucial development stage of

their life. We are, in effect, an

extension of home life. In the

morning children leave their

family home, and come to

their school home.

What about ‘the three Rs’?

Children are not taught formal

literacy and numeracy skills

until they are seven, which

72

EDUCATION

is the norm in continental

Europe. By age 11 our pupils

have comparable numeracy

and literacy levels as children

educated in mainstream

education: they have ‘caught

up’, if you like, having acquired

many more life skills, besides.

What about assessment

tests? There are no SATS and

no CATS. The emphasis isn’t

about learning how to pass

exams, it’s on learning towards

a better life. The children

don’t undergo any formal

exams until their GCSEs.

What is the age range of

children in the school? There

are parent and child groups,

with six-month-old infants.

Kindergarten (Early Years)

starts at two-and-a-half. The

oldest students are studying for

their GCSEs. Each year group

has a maximum of 25 children

in a class, and usually between

15 and 20.

It’s a private school, right?

We are an independent school,

and I wish it were government

funded! As such, parents have

to pay fees, but as a charity

there are no shareholders, our

school is more affordable than

most other private schools.

Fees on average are £2,200 a

term per child.

Do students usually go on to

do A Levels and university?

All the year 11 students take

a ‘portfolio’ of seven GCSEs,

which enables access to all

A Level options for College.

Our pupils go on to colleges

to do A Levels, some go

into apprenticeships in the

workplace, I was Steinereducated,

and started my

working life as a sculptor,

before becoming a teacher!

Interview by Alex Leith

Open Days January 23rd

& 24th. More info at

brightonwaldorfschool.org

73

enjoy a

complimentary

bottle of wine

- Choose from either -

Maison l`Aiglon Chardonnay

or

Chemin de Marquiére Merlot

To redeem, simply present this advert when dining

Côte Brasserie Lewes

82 HIGH STREET, BN7 1XW

01273 311 344 | www.cote.co.uk/lewes

Valid until 31/01/20 at Côte Lewes only. One

complimentary bottle of wine when 2 or more guests dine from our À La

Carte menu. Offer can only be used once and cannot be used in

conjunction with any other offer or Set Menu.

Lewes_VivaLewes_January2020.indd 1 12/12/2019 14:28:50

Pick up a Viva Brighton.

Cover art by Peter James Field.

Find a copy at Lewes House and

throughout Brighton.

vivamagazines.com

FOOD

The Sussex Ox

Very locally sourced steak

What a fine feeling, after a muddy three-anda-half

hour yomp along the South Downs Way

from Eastbourne, to descend into the hamlet of

Milton Street, and to see the pub sign notifying us

that we’ve reached our destination: ‘The Sussex

Ox’. We’ve definitely earned lunch, my wife and I.

I’ve been before, of course, which means I’ve

really been looking forward to returning. The Ox,

you see, is owned by a local farmer, and much of

what’s on the menu is grown or reared in a nearby

field, making ‘food yards’ a more appropriate

term than ‘food miles’.

They serve a decent range of keg and cask ales,

too. Having left my boots in the hallway, I scan

the options and decide that an Unbarred Brewery

‘Apricot Sour’ sounds suitably thirst-slaking. And

so it proves to be: it’s refreshingly tart.

We are shown to a table by the window overlooking

the garden, and the gently rising hill beyond,

a verdant shade of recently rained-upon green.

The room has been painted buttermilk yellow:

it’s all wooden beams and old photos of the prize

bulls. There’s ample choice on the menu, but I

suspect I know what’s going to happen next.

“I’ll have the haddock soup and the fillet steak,”

says Rowena, opting, when asked, for ‘medium

rare’. “I’ll have the haddock soup and the fillet

steak,” I say. “Medium rare.” We have very

similar tastes: she likes ordering first so as not to

seem to be copying me. We also get some bread

and oil, and anchovies, to temper our hunger

while we wait.

The menu puts an asterisk after every item that’s

grown in the parish, so the exact nature of what

we’ve chosen is: ‘smoked haddock leek and potato

soup, poached duck egg*, truffle oil £8’, and ‘Fillet

steak*, Parmenter potatoes*, honey roasted root

vegetables, spinach, thyme jus £24’. This being

a family-run business, there’s every chance, I

ponder, that the chef knew the name of the cow

we’re about to eat.

The food is delicious, from the first dip of the

brown bread into the bowl of oil, to the last forkful

of steak. The latter, of course, is the real star of

the show, and it’s perfectly cooked, ever so slightly

charred on the outside, and pink inside. Even

Rowena, a harsh judge of over-cooked steaks,

offers her approval.

The Sussex Ox is the sort of place where you

don’t rush yourself. Even so, when we finish the

coffee we’ve ordered to wash down the warm

treacle tart with clotted cream (£6.50) that

has turned this into a four-course meal, we’re

surprised to realise that we’ve been there for two

hours. If it were summer, of course, we’d make

our way back onto the hills. But it’ll get dark

soon, so, happily sated, if £100+ poorer, we get a

taxi to Seaford train station instead.

Alex Leith

thesussexox.co.uk

Photos by Rowena Easton

75

76

Photo by Rebecca Cunningham

RECIPE

Spiced lentil and squash soup

Hannah Pilfold of Hannah’s, at Soulfit

I am the Hannah of Hannah’s Van. For 15 years

I worked for Sussex Police, a job I loved as a

prosecution caseworker, but cuts were making

our jobs seem more and more threatened, and

one day as I drove to work (and at a point when

my own children were very young), I thought

why is no one selling coffee to the parents in

these playgrounds?

I took the plunge, jacking in the day job, got

my van, and threw myself into the new venture:

driving round town, serving coffee – which I’ve

always loved – on the go. People were so supportive

in Lewes, which is also where I’ve lived

for the last 12 years.

I made lots of allies, including Jamie of Bun +

Bean. He and I share the same ethos: we want

the food and drink we serve to be as environmentally

friendly and ethically sourced as

possible.

Jamie took on the catering for the Soulfit café to

start with – last year – and I helped. From this

month, though, it will become ‘Hannah’s’.

I’m really excited about this new chapter, and

have hung up my van keys to busy myself

[when we spoke, at the beginning of December]

installing a cooker and getting the café

ready. During the winter months, I’ll be serving

hot soup, mamoosh pittas filled with roasted

vegetables and hummus, vegan cakes, oh and

my old staple, flapjack. I’ll probably move on to

salads as summer comes.

So, here I’m sharing a recipe for my spicy soup. I

use spices from Seven Sisters Spices – the Ras El

Hanout is packed with spices. I’ve always loved

cooking, especially on the savoury side, and am

looking forward to sharing this, and other delicious,

nutritious dishes.

Recipe serves four.

Ingredients: 1 tbsp olive oil; 1 onion, chopped;

2 sticks of celery, chopped; 1 clove of garlic, finely

chopped; 1 squash, peeled, deseeded and cut

into chunks; 1 bay leaf; pinch of salt; 1 tsp Ras

El Hanout; 1/2tsp dried chilli flakes (optional);

100g red split lentils; 1 pint hot vegetable stock.

Method: Heat the olive oil in a big pan then

sweat the onion, celery and garlic in it for 10

minutes on a low heat. Stir in the Ras El Hanout

and chilli flakes. Turn up and heat and fry

for a couple of minutes until the spices release

their aroma.

Add the squash, vegetable stock, bay leaf, lentils

and a pinch of salt. Stir and bring to a simmer.

Cook on a gentle simmer for about 25 minutes,

or until the squash is soft. Add more boiling

water if needed.

Once cooked remove the bay leaf and blend

until smooth. Serve in a bowl with a swirl of

Mesto Extra Virgin Olive oil, a sprinkle of Seven

Sisters’ Spices Almond Dukkah and a warmed

Mamoosh Pitta.

I love to make this dish in the New Year as it’s

warming and comforting but also really nourishing.

This will be one of the soups I’ll be serving

in the café in January.

As told to Charlotte Gann

Hannah’s opens at Soulfit, Tuesday to Friday until

2pm, and Saturday mornings, from 7th January.

wearesoulfit.com/hannahs

77

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FOOD

Soul Soup

Café in the Unity Centre

What a lovely little

café Soul Soup is,

in The Unity Centre

(what was the

Turkish Baths, next

to The Library).

It was only around

noon, on a nondescript

November

Monday when

we went, but the

tables (four or so) quickly filled.

The café, as the website sets out clearly, is run

as ‘a social business serving affordable plantbased

food that’s good for you & the planet’.

The daily, vegan dishes are made, largely, from

‘rescued produce that would have otherwise

gone to landfill’. The menu changes daily. It’s

posted online and, of course, on the blackboard

in the café.

Pete ordered a bowl of ‘Carrot & Orange

Soup’ with bread on the side (£3.50), and I

went for the ‘Roast Pepper & Onion, Pesto

Omelette’ (£6.50) which – being vegan, as is

all the food in Soul Soup – is made without

egg. The generous filling, of pepper and

onion, beautifully soft, and streaked with peagreen

coloured pesto, was served in a wrap

made from chickpea flour, and surrounded by

spinach leaves beautifully dressed in balsamic

vinegar. Delicious.

Pete was equally enthusiastic about his soup

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comforting, but packed with flavour, including

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The food, presentation and service were all excellent.

There’s also a ‘Pay it Forward’ loyalty

card scheme that passes food on to homelessness

charities. Charlotte Gann

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79

THE WAY WE WORK

This month, we asked Fine Art photographer David Stacey to

capture local architects at work, asking each of them:

What’s your New Year’s resolution?

davidstaceyphoto.com

Bryan Perry at Waterside Architects

‘I don’t like New Year’s resolutions because I always break them! But I am trying to live by

Aristotle’s dictum: “Educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all.”’

THE WAY WE WORK

Harriet Browne and Ben Jones at Ben Jones Architects

Harriet: ‘To put down the mouse and do more hand-drawing for both work and pleasure.’

Ben: ‘To make the time to do some design work on my own house!’

THE WAY WE WORK

Phill Brady and Ashley Phillips at Spruce Architecture

Phill: ‘Being a new business in town, my resolution is to get more

involved with local people and other local businesses.’

THE WAY WE WORK

Nicola Furner at Nicola Furner Architects

‘To spend more time with the people that matter, and to enhance my own creativity, through

sculpture, painting, writing, woodworking... anything to get those inventive thoughts flowing.’

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FEATURE

Digital Media Design

With or without words

One way to go back to the drawing board is to

retrain, or to hone one’s skills through study. So

I head to East Sussex College’s Lewes campus to

speak to 27 year old Harry James Corke. Harry

initially completed a Digital Media Design FDA

course in 2009, and is now enrolled in ESC’s

Digital Media Design top-up option, to turn

his foundation degree into a full BA Honours

degree. He decided to come back to “re-educate

myself after doing a series of jobs that I wasn’t

particularly interested in, where there wasn’t

much upward mobility”.

The courses are practically focused, with future

careers in mind. Harry is currently working on

a pitch for the D&AD New Blood Awards, for

example: a prestigious design award open to

students worldwide. He tells me that the professional

briefs that students are given for their

projects “vary massively”. One might be aimed

at getting people over the age of 65 to understand

what Intel products are, while another sees

students investigating how to make Lego appeal

to 13 to 18 year olds.

The skills students learn on the course vary massively

too. “Some students make cartoons, some

are interested in video editing. I enjoy doing posters,

fonts and logo designs. I love simple designs,

like really drilling something down.

“I always think with digital media, most of it

is just about communicating in different ways.

Animation, poster design, fonts. It’s all just forms

of communication: selling something, passing on

knowledge of something, with words or without

words… it’s fascinating.”

I’ve read some of the course prospectus, and

Harry handily explains what some unfamiliar

terms mean. ‘Time-based media’, for example,

covers forms of media such as the digital, moving

posters one sees on the escalators in the London

Underground. Harry sees time-based media as a

growing field: “I think Instagram and miniature

ads, that you can scroll past quickly and still pick

up on are going to keep getting bigger.”

One element of working in design that is “hammered”

into students is the importance of keeping

sketchbooks, referred to as ‘authoring’. “If your

idea looks good but you don’t have a sketchbook

to support it, that doesn’t really matter. Anyone

can have a flash in the pan idea. You need to understand

why it is good. When pitching to clients

you take all of the stuff with you so they can flick

through it while you deliver your pitch.”

Students get the chance to exhibit their completed

work in a graduate show in Fabrica,

Brighton, in early June. Harry is clearly happy to

be studying and designing again: “I really enjoy

being around other creative people. And the

freedom that the course has. The tutors will be

there whenever you need them: they give you

feedback on your ideas, but they won’t force you

into anything.” Joe Fuller

escg.ac.uk

Illustration by student Abigail Smith

85

FEATURE

New year, new job?

Digital Futures at Work Research Centre

If you’ve been with the same

employer for a while and are

thinking of moving on or trying

something new, you may

be surprised by how tough it’s

become out there.

Large companies (and many

small companies) have lengthy

selection procedures, which can include filling out

complicated questionnaires and reacting to online

fictitious scenarios to test your reasoning skills.

You may even be interviewed on screen by a robot,

programmed not just to record your answers

but to analyse your facial expressions and the

speed with which you respond. Dither and you’ll

be graded as “indecisive”; rush in and you might

be seen as not thoughtful enough.

In fact, you may need to go some way along the

process before you meet an actual human being.

But is this really the best way to find the right fit

between employee and employer?

“There are various reasons why companies are

using these recruitment methods,” says Jacqueline

O’Reilly, Professor of Human Resources at the

University of Sussex. She is leading an £8 million

Digital Futures at Work Research Centre, funded

by the Economic and Social Research Council to

look at how digital technologies are transforming

our working lives.

“In some cases they are concerned about creating

equality and diversity in their workforce, or it

could be that they’re not getting the right quality

of applicants.”

However, computer algorithms that are used to

help select candidates aren’t necessarily free from

discrimination. “It depends on the information

used to predict the behaviour of certain groups,”

says Jacqueline. “Unless the

questions are changed to be

more inclusive, you can reinforce

bias.”

Jacqueline, who is based in the

University of Sussex Business

School, has specialised in

looking at fairness at work,

equality and diversity, and government employment

strategies from youth to retirement.

So, in this new digital age, what is her advice for

jobseekers?

“Get on LinkedIn, make connections, and if

you’re applying through job platforms such as

Indeed.co.uk, make sure your application is relevant,

targeted and well crafted,” she says. “These

jobs are being advertised very widely, so you need

to make your application stand out; don’t just

click on automatic send and hope for luck.

“A good covering letter that states why you want

to work for the company, and that shows you have

done your research, is useful. But make it concise.

If it’s too verbose and rambling, it’ll do you more

harm than good.

“And if you have a video interview, it’s important

to let your personality shine through. Employers

want to see that you have the right attitude.”

Curiously, while digital recruitment technologies

are being adopted widely across the globe,

the take-up among smaller companies, especially

in the UK, is much slower, and something that

needs to be investigated more carefully, she adds.

The good news is that, in a place such as Brighton

and Hove, with its predominance of small, independent

companies, the old-fashioned method of

presenting yourself in person, with a CV, might

still be just as effective. Jacqui Bealing

87

Photo by Charlotte Gann

Andy Gammon

Historical illustrator

Andy Gammon grew up, and then studied

Art, in Canterbury. “As a boy, I could see the

Cathedral from my bedroom window,” he

says. “I used to draw it. Maybe that’s where

my interest in Art first joined with History.”

He also used to play with toy soldiers, and

today he shows me warmly the Crimean

soldiers he made from scratch – with papier

mâché and wire – which to this day adorn

one of his many shelves.

Graphic designer Andy – who did the pictures

for the ‘interpretation panels’ around Lewes

Priory Park, the illustrated Town Map and

many other local projects, including the town’s

Cycle Map, which you can pick up at the

tourist information office – has built a niche

for himself which has given him an insight

into Lewes’ history. That said, his work is by

no means limited to local projects – he has recently,

for instance, completed reconstruction

illustrations for a chapel at Bishop Auckland,

Co. Durham.

The work he shows me scattered around

his studio is extraordinarily detailed, and

meticulously researched. He teams up often

with archaeologists. “Together we are creating

documents, but instead of writing, I am drawing.

The archaeologists appreciate this – it

helps them get their message across.”

Andy also designs books – Pre Georgian Lewes

and Georgian Lewes by Colin Brent are two

he mentions. Back in the day he worked

for Greenpeace: he designed their book on

dolphins and the Rainbow Warrior poster-

88

MY SPACE

Photos by Andy Gammon

magazine. And he’s also just finished work on a

panel – one of three – for St John sub Castro.

He’s painted how the site may have looked,

and been used, before the church was built –

and he’s right: a picture brings dry information

to life.

Of course, there are birds in this painting’s

sky. There nearly always are in Andy’s work.

Two lovely commissioned paintings – which

you can see on his website – sit in the House

of Lords’ offices today. Both also prominently

and characteristically feature birds in flight.

The one of Lewes Town Wharf – a beautifully

meticulous riverside portrait – has two swans

bursting across its foreground. The other, of

Westminster’s Great College Street, naturally

features London pigeons. “There are birds

everywhere,” says Andy simply. “In any scene

you’ll find them.”

Andy starts a project, after conducting any

necessary research, by drawing it in pencil.

The drawings volley back and forth between

him and client, until the accuracy of every last

detail is verified and agreed. Then he stands at

his lightbox and traces the drawing into cleaner

lines onto new paper. This he then paints. He

rarely uses the computer for drawing, though

does, he says, occasionally apply colours in

Photoshop. When done, he scans the originals,

and sends digital artwork to the client. “This is

my bread and butter”, he smiles. “In my spare

time, I do silkscreen prints…”

So what, I ask to close, does history mean to

him? “It’s about continuity,” he says. “I like

the idea I know where things have come from.

I love the look, for instance, of old radios” –

indicating the one on his shelf – “they’re a

statement from a period, and ethos, that’s now

gone. I like remembering. I don’t live in the

past – I do want to record it.”

Charlotte Gann

andygammon.net

89

FOOTBALL

Zoe Ness

Great Scot

“Are you squeamish?”,

asks Zoe Ness, when I

ask her about the knee

injury that’s side-lined

her from striker duties

for Lewes FC since

October 27th.

I tell her “not particularly”,

but I can’t help

shuddering when she

shows me a picture,

on her phone, of the moment of contact with a

London City Lionesses player that so damaged

her cruciate ligament that she’s unlikely to play

again till February. In the image her leg is bent

wildly, unnaturally, out of position.

“Ugh,” I say, involuntarily.

“That’s the noise everyone makes,” she responds.

2019, it must be said, wasn’t a great year for the

forward, who was left out of the Scottish World

Cup squad in June, having played in the qualifiers.

It says a lot about her character that she went

to France anyway, to support her team-mates. “If

you can’t help on the field, it’s worth remembering

that it’s possible to help off it,” she says.

She’s drawing on the same vein of resilience

during her rehab period, living in a new town,

a long way from home. Ness, whose parents

are both Scottish, was born and brought up in

Durham, 300 miles north of Lewes. She moved

here in the summer after transferring from her

home-town team.

It so happens that Lewes are scheduled to play

Durham two days after we meet, and she’s taking

the opportunity to travel back home to catch up

with friends and family, and to watch the match.

“It’ll be very strange,” she says, of returning to

New Ferens Park,

where she had two

spells, separated by

a two-season stint in

Sweden. “I used to live

three minutes’ walk

from the ground. I

won’t be torn, though.”

“Some people have

compared me to Harry

Kane, or Teddy Sheringham,”

she tells me, when I ask her to describe

her playing style. “I’m not the quickest, but I am

good at being the focus of the attack, holding

the ball up, and bringing others into play.” It’s

also worth mentioning that she’s a cool-headed

goalscorer, adept at making intelligent runs to

confound defences. And that the team, which (as

I write) hasn’t picked up a point since her injury,

is desperately missing her.

“As a player I would always try to lead by example,”

she continues. “And to take games by the

scruff of the neck, when things were going wrong.

It feels a bit hopeless, being injured, but I’m determined

to learn from the experience, and make

myself useful, giving advice when it’s needed.”

Is she worried, I wonder, that Lewes might end

the season being relegated from the Women’s

Championship? “There are plenty of games

left,” she says. “We’re not playing badly, so I’m

sure we’ll turn it round. If we’re in the same

position in March… that’s when we’ll have to

start scrapping.”

By that time, it’s worth saying, Lewes should

have their Scotland international back in the

line-up, which will help their prospects no end.

Alex Leith

Photo by James Boyes

91

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WILDLIFE

Grey Squirrel

A tough nut to crack

Illustration by Mark Greco

I’m crouching behind my sofa hiding from a

squirrel. While I’m here peering angrily out of

the patio window it has given me time to reflect

on the emotional journey that has led me to

this place.

There was a time I was nuts about squirrels. As

soon as I could walk I was out shrieking through

the autumn leaves trying to grab a squirrel’s

bushy tail as it nimbly skedaddled up the nearest

sycamore. Looking back now I’m not sure what

I planned to do with a squirrel had I ever caught

one. Once caught it’s actually illegal to release a

Grey Squirrel because, despite their cute appearance,

squirrels are extremely destructive. Grey

Squirrels outcompete other animals for food and

resources, destroy trees and harbour diseases.

The main problem is that they shouldn’t really

be in Britain, they are a North American species.

We can blame Herbrand Russell, 11th Duke of

Bedford for their invite. Herbrand’s harebrained

plan was to import squirrels to embellish his

estate at the start of the last century. Distributing

squirrels as gifts he and his landowner chums

assisted their spread across England. Our wildlife

and landscape just wasn’t designed to accommodate

this brash new American. Our native Red

Squirrel, already in decline, was particularly hard

hit. Attempts have been made over the years to

control Britain’s Grey Squirrel population, but

these animals seem indestructible.

In the last few weeks the battle has arrived in my

back garden. I recently purchased a bird feeding

station, an elaborate chandelier draped in peanut

feeders, fat balls and coconut shells. Yet the

nuthatches, tits and finches are being usurped by

a Grey Squirrel. I’m paying pounds and getting

peanuts and it’s the squirrel who is packing his

cheek pouches. It feels like I have laid on a buffet

for my friends only to find some American bloke

(who I don’t particularly like) has turned up to

scoff the whole lot. For weeks we have been

locked in an ongoing arms race. I don’t want to

kill him – I just want him off my new bird feeder.

I’ve deployed Vaseline, peppers and counterbalances

but each time I’ve been outfoxed. He is agile,

acrobatic and very clever. Today I cracked. I

purchased a squirrel proof baffle (£15.99), a large

Perspex dome 100% guaranteed to make my

peanut feeder impregnable. I installed it as the

squirrel watched curiously, and with a confident

laugh I returned to my front room…to find the

squirrel was already back on the peanut feeder. I

have no idea how he’s doing it and he’s too smart

to climb there if he’s being watched. So here I

am, behind the sofa trying to find out his secret.

Whether trying to beat them nationally or just

in our back gardens it really isn’t reassuring to

know we’re being outsmarted by a rodent.

Michael Blencowe, Senior Learning & Engagement

Officer, Sussex Wildlife Trust

93

BUSINESS NEWS

The Hong Kong-owned brewery giants Greene

King have put the freehold of The Lamb Inn

up for sale: it’s on the market for £385,000 plus

VAT. This, we are informed by the pub’s current

management team, will not affect its short-term

incarnation as a live music venue, putting on

shows Thursday through Sunday. They are

sitting tenants, and will continue, they say, to

operate until the new owners – whoever they

may be – take over the place. Let’s hope it stays

as a pub.

We were pleased to pay a visit before Christmas

to the latest new addition to Lewes’ independent

shopping scene, Along Came She (pictured

right), in the corner unit of the Needlemakers,

looking onto Market Lane. The unit was vacated

by nørd, who, as you’ll have noticed, have moved

to Cliffe High Street. ACS is a clothes shop run

by a young mum for young mums: fashion and

print designer Emma makes ‘fun, stylish, colourful

and comfortable’ clothing. The very best of

luck to her!

We’d also like to welcome a new business to

Market Street, just around the corner. Hair for

Men is no more; the place has been taken over

by another barber, HJ Gentlemen, opening

their third branch. They set up in 2012 in East

Grinstead and have another premises in Forest

Row. They offer a wide range of styles, and can

give you a flat top or a hair tattoo, if that’s the

sort of thing you’re after. They also offer beard

trims and ear, nose and eyebrow waxing. It’ll be

hipster heaven in there.

Up on the High Street, next to the Castle sandwich

shop and opposite the Brewers, you might

have noticed Edwards and Todd trading, as a

pop-up, before Christmas. After a reboot early

in January, they’ll be opening permanently. They

sell what they describe as ‘contemporary gifts’:

Gary Edwards is a potter, so expect his sculptured

vessels, as well as all sorts of goods related

to British print-making, plus candles and soaps

and suchlike. You might have seen their goods on

sale at Art Fairs all around the South-East; some

of you will remember the E&T store in Museum

Street in Bloomsbury, which they ran for 20

years before moving to Sussex.

Plenty of congratulations are in order for local

businesses that have won 2019 awards recently.

Here’s to Lewes Depot (Sussex Business

Award for Corporate Social Responsibility

Excellence) and Body Happy (Sussex Business

Women in Excellence Award for Wellness

Business of the Year).

Finally, a very happy birthday to our friends

at The Print Room, on Station Street, who

will have been operating, in their very cheerful,

highly efficient and pleasingly quirky manner, for

ten years come January. Alex Leith

Send any news to alex@vivamagazines.com

94

DIRECTORY

Please note that though we aim only to take advertising from reputable businesses, we cannot guarantee the

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To advertise in Viva Lewes please call 01273 488882 or email advertising@vivamagazines.com

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Lucie Simon - 07594 760 471

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LESSONS & COURSES, & OTHER SERVICES

HEALTH

Spanish

GCSE • Beginners • Conversation

Experienced and qualified teacher, central Lewes

Contact Sara on 07598 784579

Doctor P. Bermingham

Retired Consultant Psychiatrist.

Assoc. Medical Psychotherapy. Formerly SAP.

Psychotherapy for the psychological core of depression.

Suicidal ideation. Relapse. Supervision of therapists.

SoBS Ad 1/16 drpbermingham@gmail.com

Viva.qxp 15/10/2019 11:02 Page 1

WE OFFER SUPPORT TO ADULTS

BEREAVED OR AFFECTED BY SUICIDE

Phone Peter: 07902 084 397

Email: sobs.southdown@gmail.com

SURVIVORS OF BEREAVEMENT BY SUICIDE

Charity Number 1098815

www.andrewwells.co.uk

We can work it out

REFLEXOLOGY

THAI YOGA MASSAGE

INDIAN HEAD MASSAGE

Rachael 07917 842771

rachaeladarimassagetherapist.co.uk

• BUSINESS ACCOUNTS AND TAX

• MEDIA AND THE ARTS

• CONTRACTORS AND CONSULTANTS

• FRIENDLY AND FLEXIBLE

T: 01273 961334

E: aw@andrewwells.co.uk

FREE

initial

consultation

Andrew M Wells Accountancy

99 Western Road Lewes BN7 1RS

Andrew Wells_Viva Lewes_AW.indd 1 25/06/2012 09:05

HEALTH

Acupuncture, Alexander Technique, Bowen

Technique, Children’s Clinic, Counselling,

Psychotherapy, Family Therapy,

Herbal Medicine, Massage,

Nutritional Therapy, Life Coaching,

Physiotherapy, Pilates, Shiatsu,

Podiatry/Chiropody

VALENCE ROAD OSTEOPATHS

neck or back pain?

Lin Peters - OSTEOPATH

for the treatment of:

neck or low back pain • sports injuries • rheumatic

arthritic symptoms • pulled muscles • joint pain

stiffness • sciatica - trapped nerves • slipped discs

tension • frozen shoulders • cranial osteopathy

pre and post natal

www.lewesosteopath.co.uk

20 Valence Road Lewes 01273 476371

Sacha Allistone MBACP

‘A burden once lifted is lighter than air.’

— Ioannis Georgiadis

sachaallistone.com | 07909986812

Instrinsic Health Viva Advert 12.19 AW.qxp_6 06/12/2019

HEALTH

The Cliffe

Osteopathy &

Complementary

Health Clinic

Ruth Wharton

BA (Hons) BSc (Hons) Ost Med DO ND MSc Paediatric Ost

Biodynamic Cranial Osteopath

Sally Galloway

BA (Hons) Dip Nat Nut CNM MBANT MNNA CNCH reg

Nutritional Therapist

Art Therapy • Massage

Psychotherapy & Counselling

Meditation • Reflexology

Yoga for Autism • Supervision

32 Cliffe High Street • Lewes BN7 2AN

Anthea Barbary

LicAc MBAcC Dip I Hyp GQHP

Holistic Treatments

Swedish Body Massage

Indian Head Massage

Reflexology

Angelica 07401 131153

www.angelsaromahealing.com

LOW COST RATES AVAILABLE

Intrinsic Health, 32, Cliffe High Street, Lewes, BN7 2AN

Gift vouchers available to purchase

New Body

New Mind

Support to overcome obstacles

& move forwards in 2020

Hypnotherapy, NLP & Coaching appointments

at The Cliffe Clinic & via Skype

LYNNE RUSSELL BSc FSDSHom MARH MBIH(FR)

www.chantryhealth.com 07970 245118

OSTEOPATHY

Mandy Fischer BSc (Hons) Ost, DO, PG cert (canine)

Caroline Jack BOst, PG cert (canine)

Cameron Dowset MOst

HERBAL MEDICINE & REFLEXOLOGY

Julie Padgham-Undrell BSc (Hons) MCPP

PSYCHOTHERAPY

Julia Rivas BA (Hons), MA Psychotherapy

Tom Lockyer BA (Hons), Dip Cound MBACP

ACUPUNCTURE & HYPNOTHERAPY

Anthea Barbary LicAc MBAcC Dip I Hyp GQHP

HOMEOPATHY, COACHING, NLP

& HYPNOTHERAPY

Lynne Russell BSc FSDSHom MARH MBIH(FR)

01273 480900

23 Cliffe High Street, Lewes, East Sussex, BN7 2AH

www.lewesosteopath.com

Open Monday to Friday and Saturday mornings

INSIDE LEFT

LET THERE BE LIGHT

It’s 1954 and the country is just about getting

back on its feet after the war. Winston Churchill

– aged 80 – is in his second spell as Prime Minister,

and food rationing has just come to an end.

Wolverhampton Wanderers are Football League

Champions, Roger Bannister has run the first

under-four-minute mile, and many of Britain’s

major industries are under state control.

This includes the electricity industry, nationalised

in 1947, and divided into seven regional sectors.

The South-Eastern sector was named SEEboard

(South Eastern Electricity) and the Lewes

District HQ, including a plush showroom, was

at 80-81 High Street, where Balm and Mortgage

Matters now stand, and the building behind, on

St Swithun’s Lane.

SEEboard was a big local employer, often advertising

jobs in the Situations Vacant section of

the Sussex Express, looking for shorthand typists,

commercial assistants, installation inspectors,

‘demonstrators’ and, of course, electricians.

They were also a big advertiser, publicising their

wares (the showroom stocked refrigerators,

toasters, vacuum cleaners, electric irons and kettles)

as well as their services. If you wanted your

house rewired, SEEboard were a good option;

they could install electric water heaters, available

on hire-purchase (aka ‘the never-never’)

offering ‘no dust, no fumes – just gloriously hot

water the instant you want it’.

These SEEboard employees are hard at work,

under the watchful eye of, I assume, Lewes District

Manager GR Lincoln, in the office behind

the showroom, overlooking St Swithun’s Lane.

The fellow on the right is poring over a map,

the other three making plans at their drawing

boards.

The office, as you might imagine, is extremely

well lit. Look up at the ceiling, and you’ll see

the four state-of-the-art fluorescent light strips.

Once you notice these, you can’t unsee them:

the photographer – Edward Reeves, Tom’s

father – has given them some prominence,

perhaps to emphasise just how modern the

company is. Alex Leith

Thanks to Tom and Tania at Edward Reeves, 159

High Street (01273 473274) who sell old photos

from their archives as cards and prints.

106

“INSPIRATIONAL

TEACHING”

THE SUNDAY TIMES

“ONE WORD:

EXCEPTIONAL”

TATLER

“SUCH A FUN

PLACE TO BE”

GOOD SCHOOLS GUIDE

BRIGHTON COLLEGE

A MAGICAL JOURNEY

NURSERY, PRE-PREP & PREP SCHOOL

OPEN MORNING SATURDAY 1 FEBRUARY

England’s Independent School of the Year 2019

THE SUNDAY TIMES

BOOK YOUR PLACE 01273 704343 | BRIGHTONCOLLEGE.ORG.UK

Viva Lewes Issue #160 January 2020

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