Friends of Roundhay Park Newsletter December 2006 Friends of Roundhay Park, PO Box 129, Leeds LS8 1WY website: www.forp.co.uk Editorial We hope the gap between the last Newsletter and this one has not been too long. It may mean that what follows in these pages is more eagerly awaited than usual (!) There's hopefully something of interest for everyone, including two contributed features about Sport in the Park - do let us know if you have anything for the next edition. We encourage you to now use the new email address [deliberately not published on website] for submission of items/comments. One idea that commends itself relates to Children's Day in the Park. Lynda Kitching reports that The YEP have run a series of articles with a request for more to be sent to the newspaper. We're sure that some FoRP members have interesting memories stashed away. So if your submissions to John Thorpe, Features Dept. YEP, Wellington St, Leeds LS1 1RF haven't got into print, perhaps we should continue where the YEP stop. We also invite updates/thoughts regarding the future of St John's Church. Please note that some of the views expressed by ourselves and contributors in this Newsletter are not necessarily those of FoRP itself. Alan & Michle Jackson Sir Jim still to fix it at 80! Congratulations were the order of the day ahead of the trick and treating that took place on Halloween. Our former President, the man who has raised so many millions of pounds for charity, run countless marathons, and soon to reprise his popular TV show, Jim'll Fix It', warmly greeted representatives of FoRP at his flat on his 80th Birthday. On behalf of the membership, they were glad to present to him the fine picture of Roundhay Park that you can see in the photograph. Arguably the best view in Leeds, on the balcony of Sir Jimmy Savile's flat, overlooking Waterloo Lake With Jimmy L-R: one half of the Newsletter editorial team AJ, Secretary David Binns, Hilary Dyson, Peter Dyson and Treasurer Harry Hurst. Speaking exclusively to the Newsletter about what Roundhay Park means to him at 80, he recounted his first memories way back to 1928 when 'nobbut but a babe' he was taken to the Park perched on his mother's shoulders. "When I now look out of my window, I see in my mind's eye the wonders of Children's Day, visits to the old paddling pool, the wonderful waterfall above it. Memories of childhood games in the park and later teenage excursions that I'd better not dwell upon. So many glorious memories come flooding back to me". Bravo, we say, you've so earned the magnificent view of your Park! ~ ~ ~ THE PARK MULBERRY TREE The tree can be found between the Coach House and the banking overlooking the arena. Photo taken when the tree was in full fruit, the week before the Robbie Williams concert. EVENT REPORTS Robbie Williams In Concert - Friday 8th and Saturday 9th September 2006 (Please forgive this clipped lyrical rendition) 'Let me entertain you ...' well 90,000 or so on each night, profane language excepted. You have to hand it to the man though - what a performance captured by 20 TV cameras with fantastic overhead views of the venue, seen by a whole lot more fans in 26 countries around the world. 'And Through It All ...' the Council offered us protection. Love and affection - maybe not. Was it such a pain though walking down the one-way street that was Oakwood Lane? On balance, local residents just about survived the road restrictions, parking tickets and the 'unjust' media criticism of the school closures. Preparations well underway Fans assemble early on the day 'And down the waterfall ...' he wasn't taken. Some of the profits might have gone that way though judging by the Council's share, disclosed elsewhere as less than 200,000 (not far short of the amount someone hoped to get for auctioning Madonna's cast off hotpants at her Roundhay Park concert in 1987!) 'The places where we go ...' via the world's first live to air Hi-Definition Sky TV digital concert broadcast, no less. 'This could be the last time ...' The Rolling Stones might have sung those words on their visit to the Park in 1982 but other high profile concerts will follow now that Leeds is well and truly on the map for successfully hosting huge events at Roundhay Park. Others might say ... 'I'm loving angels instead ...' Bonfire & Fireworks - The 3rd of November For this item, we surfed into the blogsite of Danny V-Li Teok who is currently attending Leeds Metropolitan University and has recently graduated with a BA in Business Economics from the University of Saskatchewan. He has travelled widely and witnessed firework displays in many cities. His views of this year's display in Roundhay Park are therefore well worth reading. "Most of the countries that I've been to and lived in have a special day that their residents look forward to celebrating with a grand fireworks display -- most common being Independence Day. I was looking forward to such an occasion when I arrived in the UK only to realise there's no Independence Day here. Then I heard about Bonfire Night commemorating Guy Fawkes and was fascinated by the history and the reason for the celebration. As can be seen from these spectacular photos, Danny is an expert photographer - just a pity that our black and white reproductions cannot do justice to his originals in colour. See them, however, in their full glory at his blogsite - http://braindumpster.blogspot.com Danny kindly gave us permission to publish the photos here. I eagerly hastened to Roundhay Park to enjoy the advertised fireworks and hoped for some photo-opportunities. It was a clear night and the fireworks more than lived up to my expectations. Being central to most residential areas, thus, convenient, I think it is a perfect venue", said Danny. About 50,000 were thought to have attended the display, described by YEP as a 'cracking night'. Comment - your editors were unable to attend the display this year and so value Danny's contribution. We had noted local Consumer Reporter Andrew Hutchinson's YEP article, that Fire chiefs were calling on people to attend professionally organised events such as those run at Roundhay Park (and elsewhere) by Leeds City Council and sponsored by Yorkshire Evening Post. Hopefully, next year the public event can be held on 5th November itself thereby reducing the temptation for families to hold their own displays in back gardens that don't comply with the safety distances needed for many of today's fireworks. Sadly this is likely to be on bland Soldiers' Field, rather than the more atmospheric Arena, for Health & Safety reasons, so we are told. Robbie Williams and others, please note! SPORT IN THE PARK (1) White Rose Canoe Club The Lakeside Boathouse Visitors to Roundhay Park, particularly those who walk around Waterloo Lake or frequent the Lakeside Caf, will have noticed the increased activities of White Rose Canoe Club over the past year or so. Club members have been out paddling the waters of the Lake in a range of kayaks and canoes, adding to the scene of varied recreational facilities that distinguish this locality. Pamela Taylor, Club Secretary, writes: "The position that the Club occupies today in Roundhay Park has its origins in plans first formulated three years ago for the Club to lease part of the building beneath Lakeside Caf as a storage area for boats. We then held a licence for paddling on the Lake on a very limited basis. It was extremely fortunate that around this time grant applications were invited for the Community Club Development Programme (CCDP), designed to invest in local club facilities and sports development strategies. This Programme was an innovative partnership between Sport England, the Department of Culture, Media and Sport, and the National Governing Bodies - in their case, the British Canoe Union (BCU). We duly applied for support to develop the building as a boathouse. The whole procedure took about 15 months but we were delighted to eventually be awarded 40,000 for the purpose of refurbishing the interior of the building and fitting it out as a boathouse. We now have wonderful premises and a full range of equipment and have been able to negotiate an amended licence for much more extensive use of the Lake. During this period we have had a great deal of help from Leeds City Council and the Roundhay Park Estate, who have been very supportive of our project. The Boathouse was officially opened in June 2005 by the Deputy Lord Mayor at a ceremony attended by representatives from Sport England, the BCU, Leeds City Council, Club members and members of the public. Since then, the Club has enjoyed to the full the opportunity to paddle in idyllic surroundings in such a convenient city location. Club membership has increased significantly over the past two years and currently is in excess of 130. New members are welcome - in 2004 White Rose received the accolade of Top Club from our National Governing Body, emphasising the ethical nature of the Club's activities in terms of equity and access. Our expanded use of Waterloo Lake will enable the Club to develop its activities in relation to increasing general interest in the sport of canoeing and promoting participation within the wider community. The Club holds a number of designated 'come & try' sessions throughout the year that are open to the public. In addition, use of the water for recreational, coaching and competitive purposes will enhance the range of activities open to Club members, including the disciplines of sprint, marathon, slalom and canoe polo. Ease of access and potential use of open and flat cockpit canoes, together with the placid nature of the water, will ensure that use of the lake is particularly suitable for participation by younger paddlers and those with disabilities. Waterloo Lake has proved to be an ideal venue for bringing canoeing to the attention of the public at large and providing a means for providing facilities for a diverse membership. The people of the City of Leeds thus benefit both from the financial investment via Sport England and from the time which our volunteers give to further the aspirations of White Rose Canoe Club. The Club intends to implement a full programme of open events, displays of the various disciplines and a joint Regatta with Leeds Rowing Club in the coming season. We hope to see you there and welcome both spectators and participants." Article contributed by Pamela Taylor, Secretary, White Rose Canoe Club www.whiterosecc.org.uk ~ ~ ~ SPORT? NEAR THE PARK ! John Roebuck: Roundhay Park's 'Bedding Artist' How lucky we are to have John Roebuck as Estate Officer at Roundhay Park. His enthusiasm for the job comes to the fore when talking to us about his 'artwork' that you will all have seen and enjoyed. Artwork it is, not just neat and orderly rows of plants that characterise many municipal gardens; they have their place but John is very conscious of the fact that the Park attracts families and he wants to capture the attention of children by designing beds that appeal to them as well as to adults. First he creates a drawing on paper and, when satisfied, uses it as a template for him and his team when it comes to planting. He has to choose plants that not only that match his design concept in terms of colour but also provide longevity throughout the display season. Who could forget the angel fish, the clocks, this year's frog and spider creations? The pictures here will act as a reminder though once again we regret not having the medium of colour in this Newsletter. As for next year, we'd have liked to tell you what John is planning but understandably he was reluctant to let the cat out of the bag. Perhaps he's still mulling over some ideas, in which case we've just given him another! Working Party Report The Annual Festival of Bulb Planting has taken place with John Roebuck contributing 2,500 bulbs. He continues to give the working parties enthusiastic support. Since the completion of the Friends' Garden the numbers turning up at the working parties has fallen slightly. Jon Vogler emphasises the pleasure derived from these enjoyable Saturday mornings - eg the pleasantly muddy time spent restoring the footpath through the ravine! - and invites everyone to come along. The path is now walkable - from the new bridge over the waterfall, descend via the new serpentine path towards the lower new bridge. Before you reach it turn sharply right and descend carefully; we have made the steps safer but want to do a bit more and to provide a dry path over what is currently a rather boggy area. When you get to the ford over the stream, cross it, then turn sharply right and you will see the newly revealed path reported in the last Newsletter. You can walk right along it till you emerge at the end of Waterloo Lake. The plan for the December working party is to tidy up the Himalayan balsam and undergrowth ready to sow grass seed so that the start of the original Nicholson path is at the edge of the parkland grass where it was originally, providing a delightful alternative route between the two lakes. Extra help is also welcome on the planning committee, to assist himself, Don Player, Judith Rothenberg and David Binns. They are in particular need of drainage and footpath experts. All the plants in the Ravine area are flourishing, both those FoRP have planted and those we are trying to eliminate. A lot of work needs to be done removing brambles and unwanted plants from the waterfall area. Jon praises the work of the Friends' Garden Management Group, the ladies who meet on occasional Tuesday mornings at 10.00am to weed and tidy the Friends' Garden. If you are not on the current monthly working party e-mail list, but would like to be involved in future exciting projects, please contact jon@vogler.demon.co.uk and he will add you to his mailing list. Working Parties are held on the third Saturday of each month, generally from 10.00am to 1.00pm. FoRP is collaborating with Leeds Geology Society to create a high-quality trail through the important geological sites on the banks of Waterloo Lake and the Gorge. A guide to the trail is being prepared, which will be available from the forthcoming Visitors' Centre. "We have tidied up one of the ten points of interest: Scout's Quarry, which is now marked with an engraved stone to indicate that it is point number 8. We have applied for grants for the rest of the work, have already been promised 500 from Leeds City Council and hope to start work on points numbers 7 and 10 in January," reports Jon. ~ ~ ~ It's not only FoRP that have been working hard. The Parks Department (or whoever?) have repaired this wall alongside the tennis courts Vandalism had resulted in the scene below but graffiti artists have still had their say. Have you taken a Park photo that you'd like others to see in a future edition of the Newsletter? Roundhay Park 'Up and Coming' Event List 2006 15th-22rd December Totally Tropical Christmas* 20th December Leeds Schools Christmas Holidays begin 20th December Meet the Keeper, Tropical World 27th December Meet the Keeper, Tropical World * The event is pre-bookable this year - booking phone number - 0113 2695800 2007 3rd January Leeds Schools Christmas Holidays end 9th - 19th February Leeds Schools Spring Mid Term 14th February Meet the Keeper, Tropical World 30th March -16th April Leeds Schools Easter Holidays 4th April Meet the Keeper, Tropical World 11th April Meet the Keeper, Tropical World 4th - 8th May Leeds School May Bank Holiday 9th May Race for Life 25th May - 4th June Leeds Schools Summer Mid Term That about wraps things up for this edition though you can pass on the form overleaf to someone else or use it to increase your own subscription(!) - postal charges are increasing and we can't deliver all newsletters by hand. We welcome comments/suggestions and items for publication in future editions - perhaps your own memories of the Park in former days, anecdotes or just something you've spotted which will be of interest to other Friends. And you'll recall from Page One that we've also requested items on St John's Church. Alan & Michle Jackson December 2006