newsletter: hartlepool & district u3a · they are and how they are getting on can help raise...

Hartlepool & District U3A. Registered Charity No 1153641. www.u3asites.org.uk/Hartlepool

Comments from the Chair

I hope this finds you all safe and well. Although the lockdown restrictions have now been eased there is still no indication when we are going to be able to restart our general meetings. Our AGM is due in June but that has had to be postponed until further notice. In the meantime we will continue to produce this Newsletter on a monthly basis so please keep your articles and poems flowing in. The Newsletter has been going from strength to strength recently and it was great to see such a wide variety of topics in the last edition. I never knew we had some many poets amongst us and it looks like that those of us in the Creative Writing Group are going to have to look to our laurels with all these brilliant poems coming in. Time to step up team!

Some of our members and interest groups have been using technology such as WhatsApp and Zoom to keep in touch with each other while others have been sending each other letters and chatting on the phone. Ringing up U3A members as well as family and friends to find out how they are and how they are getting on can help raise everybody's spirits and keep everyone in touch.

Take care and look after yourselves. Roger Say, Chair

U3A Members Making Scrubs for the NHS

During the Covid 19 epidemic a number of our lady

members have been involved in the making of safety

clothing for nursing staff at local hospitals.

These ladies are also members of Hartlepool Tangent

Club who have been coordinating the project. Tangent is

an organisation for women designed as the next step

from Ladies Circle. It is affiliated to the National

Association of Tangent Clubs, of which many have been

involved in similar projects.

The ladies have been collecting unwanted sheets,

pillowcases and suitable materials and turning them into scrubs, scrub bags and headbands on

which to attach the masks. Those benefited include North Tees, James Cook, Hartlepool and

District and the local Community Nursing Service. Some of the bags even went as far as Newcastle.

Our own active U3A member Norma Phillipson, whilst self-isolating with her husband John,

produced a total of 90 bags on her own. A wonderful feat I think you will agree.

Margaret Body

Newsletter: Hartlepool & District U3A Issue 37, June 2020


How to Make Bread with a Greenhouse!

Making bread during the lockdown has become a popular pastime.

The lack of flour in supermarkets is testament to that. However, Lesley Jones has a novel way of proving her bread.

Lesley said… “I don’t have an

airing cupboard so I thought I would try my

little greenhouse to prove my bread and it works!”

Full marks to Lesley for ingenuity and the final result looks delicious!

Garden Bear in Lockdown

Barry Liddle

writes….. “In

recent years my

neighbours Tom

and Linda have

been using their

topiary skills to

create a

wonderful’

bear’s head’ for

the enjoyment

of passers-by

and local

children. In

recent weeks

I’ve noticed that

the bear has

been observing the rules on social distancing and is now wearing a home-made face mask!”

Members Forum: Special Feature on Gardens and Green Spaces


For Spring Colour Try Growing Perennial Erysimums As part of my daily exercise during the ‘lockdown’ I have had plenty of opportunity to admire other people’s gardens and I have seen some stunning displays involving tulips. However, these displays are coming to an end and many gardens currently have very little colour. If you are in this position, can I suggest that in the future you

consider growing perennial Erysimums. Annual Erysimum’s (Wallflowers) used to be popular and were often grown with tulips as spring bedding and discarded for the summer plants. However, the perennial varieties have

the advantage of lasting for several years and flower for most of the spring and summer season. Like many perennials, the plants will eventually become woody and are then best replaced. New plants from cuttings are easy. Take several pieces of new growth, strip off the bottom leaves and put into a pot of

compost. After about six weeks new growth will appear and roots will be seen from the bottom of the pot. They are now ready to be moved to individual pots ready for planting in the garden in the autumn. The mauve variety of Erysimum is the most popular but numerous colours are available. I only ever buy one plant of each colour and take cuttings.

Geoff Law

Floral Display

Even if you are confined indoors, it is still possible to bring some of

the beauty of the garden and the great outdoors into your home.

Wendy Borthwick has used her mobile phone to take this this lovely

photograph of a “beautiful and cheerful” display in her lounge.


The Trees are Green.

Wendy Borthwick writes… During this lockdown I have been rediscovering Hartlepool on foot. One of my discoveries, Hartlepool North Cemetery, was not so long ago deemed a no-go area. But in recent years several improvements have been made in conjunction with the Friends of Hartlepool North Cemetery. The area has now become more accessible and a bit of a gem.

The cemetery is no longer cluttered with damaged and broken headstones, which is a good thing, but it

is also a great shame that their removal has taken away so much history recorded on their inscriptions. In addition, the area is a designated Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery. I was surprised to see the large number of CWG Headstones all now clearly visible and I discovered a lovely memorial depicting the names of the fallen from the two world wars has been added and is situated on the higher ground to the right as you enter from the Jesmond Road entrance. But it was the trees, striking and noble and majestic with their leaves showing that early lighter spring green that really caught my eye, They occupying the higher ground to the south side of the cemetery and are absolutely superb, they really took my breath away – nature at her very best.

(Photographs: Wendy Borthwick)

N.B. There is a comprehensive web site detailing the restoration work and register of burials / inscriptions from the damaged headstones: www.northcemeteryhartlepool.co.uk

Trees in Ward Jackson Park

Photographs: Barry Liddle

http://www.northcemeteryhartlepool.co.uk/


Poetry Corner

For many weeks all churches and their Community

Centres – used by organisations such as our U3A,

have been closed.

The Church is Closed.

We arrive at the church on a weekday afternoon, keeping our distance to make the inspection. We test the sound system and listen to some music, who’d have thought it would come to this? Two of us rattle in this empty church as the clock ticks three-thirty, then you take the opportunity to think of God and pray for His mercy. Outside the traffic is silent just an itinerant voice, you meditate on the human condition but mostly you just listen for His voice. After a time we check all the toilets and inspect the empty rooms, we listen in silence to the voicemails and speak out loud with the details. We bail out the header tank that is slowly overflowing, and we hunt down a strange smell that is slowly overcoming. Now it’s five-thirty and time to go. Our maintenance is mostly complete, just time to set the alarm and hastily make sure our retreat.

Barry Liddle

All Change.

(With apologies to Lewis Carroll)

A man went for his permitted walk Through Seaton and along the shore But all had changed and all was strange And this is what he saw – He thought he saw a long queue at Seaton For chips, ice cream and rock He looked again and only saw A ghost town under lock He thought he saw a teashop Full of diners drinking tea He looked again and saw empty tables And empty plates where cakes should be He thought he saw a band of hikers Striding up the street He looked again and all he saw Were his own size eleven feet He thought he saw a group of cyclists Pedalling along the way He looked again and only saw A can in the gutter where it lay He thought he say a crowded bus With others waiting to get on He looked again and only saw A driver entirely alone He thought he saw a playground With children on the swings He looked again and sadly saw The emptiness a virus brings But then he saw walking along the prom Two dozen people or so He felt much happier then, and said “There's still some get up and go!”

Brenda Regan


Roger was asked to write an amusing poem by his folk club recently during a 'Zoom' session. Specifically, he was asked to make reference both to the virus and the Grim Reaper. This is his completed poem…

A Reaper's Tale

Been kept rather busier than usual in days of late Rushing back and forth through village and town Let me introduce myself: the Grim Reaper is my name A figure somewhat feared but also of some renown It must be said I've been given a very bad press Though I commit no actual bodily harm I just make folks aware of their fate In a voice somewhat stern but calm. Whenever I meet a new client on my list I take care to put them at their ease Some folk take it in their stride Others start knocking at the knees. It's all been a bit on the tiring side Though I'm not usually one to bleat This new corona virus is to blame Each day a new deadline to complete. I have to wear this grubby old cloak And hump around this great old scythe I could really do with a helper Hmm. Perhaps I should advertise? Some folk think I am there to judge them And send them to their fate Nothing could be further from the truth I'm just there to open the gate But at the end of the day we all must go forth Be it with a smile or be with it a curse Nothing I can do to delay things It's more than my job's worth.

Roger Say

Rambling in Early February

The forecast was for wind and rain, For floods and gales- But then again It had been wrong before. So, donning boots and haversack, I caught the bus, Food in my pack, Heading for the great outdoors. And there it was, all shades of green, Lifting my spirit Just to see New life springing from the earth and stream. Sybil Yeoman.

This poem was written for a former colleague’s 60th birthday.

Ode to a Sexagenarian

A birthday will not go away The years are all with you to stay

Fate deals you a bus pass Instead of a young lass

But lets you be grumpy all day The memory plays silly tricks That trying to think hard won’t fix

You stop feeling frisky But still enjoy whisky

A bottle slides down in two ticks So should you go bald or go grey? You’ve no choice as fate leads the way

Let life’s riches feed you Your grandkids still need you

And that’s how your part you still play

Phil Jefferies.


Poems for Disengaged Teenagers

In the early 70`s my first teaching practice placement was in Toxteth and I was hit by a double whammy when told on my preliminary visit that no-one wanted to do German (my main subject) so I could teach poetry to the low ability class.

I soon realised that Byron and Shelley would hold little or no interest to the class of 14 year olds and as the choice of alternatives was left to my discretion (“as long as you keep them in their seats”) I opted for the lyrics of a Beatles number and RogerMcGough reading the narrative poem Timothy Winters in his Liverpool accent.

Unfortunately this was way before YouTube so only recordings could be used and the printed lyrics. Homework initially greeted with a range of groans and complaints but over 50% of the pupils opted to

complete drawings of what they found most evocative and then paste key lines/verses onto their pictures. I was later told by the regular class teacher (rather grudgingly) that it was unusual for so much homework to be handed in enthusiastically!

Eleanor Rigby https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5eMM2yjg98

Timothy Winters https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xNahlu02yIg

If you follow the links above you will see (particularly with the Timothy Winters video) how I tried to persuade the pupils that there is poetry in everyday life.

Joan Nicholson

Advice for Online Security We need to be aware that fraud and scams are on the increase with criminals trying to take advantage of the situation caused by coronavirus. The most common frauds to look out for are:

· Coronavirus tax refunds: · WHO (World Health Organisation) impersonations; · Fake cures; · TV licences.

Be extra careful if you receive phone calls, texts or emails from anyone claiming to be a bank, or other trusted organisation. A genuine bank or organisation will never contact you out of the blue to ask for your PIN, full password, card reader codes, passcodes or to move money to another account. Personal information is yours. Don't give it away.

Never click on a link received in an email or text that takes you to a website requesting personal information or login details. Always go via a search engine or direct to the company website.

Never allow remote access to your computer by any third party. Scammers will often ask you to download an app or will send you an email with a link such as 'Team Viewer'.

Watch out for poor grammar or spelling on emails/printed materials/letters.

Stop and think about what you are being asked to do. If concerned, stop and talk to your family or friend.

Remember that your bank or the police will never ask you to move money to a safe account.

We also need to be aware of befriending scams. Some scammers will knock on your door and offer to do your shopping for you. They take your shopping list and money and disappear. If you need help with shopping contact Age UK Teesside (01642 805500) or your local council.

Please report scams to your bank and the police. 53% of victims of fraud and scams are over 55 and only 5 % of these crimes are reported. You can check your own bank's information regarding scams on their websites.

You can also contact friendsagainstscams.org.uk which aims to protect and prevent people from becoming victims of scams. Scams can also be reported via Action Fraud on 0300 1232040 or online at actionfraud.org.uk

Roger Say

The information for this article was gathered from an online conference I attended organised by the U3A and run by NatWest on May 13th

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5eMM2yjg98

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xNahlu02yIg


The Rising of the Northern Earls

Hartlepool’s role in an attempt to restore Catholicism to England

Throughout its long existence, our town has played many a

‘walk- on’ part in English History. One example occurred

when Hartlepool became part of the ‘Rising of the Northern

Earls’ in 1569, when the Earls of Northumberland and

Westmoreland met at Brancepeth Castle with their own

army of retainers, with the ambition of restoring Catholicism

in England. This also involved placing Mary Queen of Scots

(she being held in Tutbury Castle in Staffordshire) on the

English throne thereby deposing Elizabeth I.

Marching to Durham City they attacked the

Cathedral and celebrated Mass before setting off to the face

Elizabeth’s troops at York. Sooner than besiege York the

rebels retreated to Barnard Castle and from there they sent an armed group to capture

successfully, the port of Hartlepool. They had done this in anticipation of the King of Spain

sending troops from the Low Countries (the Netherlands then being part of the Spanish

Empire), but this did not materialise and the rebels eventually departed. The only ships seen

were from Elizabeth’s navy sailing from Hull to Newcastle who took the opportunity to

bombard the rebels in the town whilst passing!

The Rebellion petered out but the aftermath for many people, especially the

“meaner” sort was dreadful. John Bowes from Barnard Castle, Elizabeth’s man in the area

imposed martial law. Hangings for supporters of the Rising were carried out at Stranton,

Hart, Greatham, Elwick even Monk Heselden. Those with wealth escaped with their lives but

forfeited their lands, one such was Robert Lambert from Owton Manor who lost his farm

but saved his neck.

Another byway of our complicity in the rebellion lies with one of the main leaders,

Marmaduke Norton. He was from a rebel family, some of whom were executed at Tyburn,

but he somehow escaped from the Tower of London to fetch up at Seaton Carew a free

man. There he married a widow and died in his bed and is buried in Stranton Churchyard. As

to the Earls, Northumberland was executed and Westmoreland died in exile. Elizabeth then

took this opportunity to break the power of these magnates whose families had been

prominent for centuries.

The aftermath of the Rising does tend to show, that if you want to study Stalinism, study the

Tudors!

History of Hartlepool A Regular Column by Chris McLoughlin

Photograph Barry Liddle


Hartlepool Station – The Second Transport Trust Red Wheel

The second Red Wheel was awarded in recognition of Hartlepool's unique place in Britain's First World War transport heritage and commemorates the shelling of West Hartlepool (now Hartlepool) railway station. West Hartlepool is the only railway station in Britain to have suffered a direct hit from a naval shell attack during wartime. This occurred on 16th December 1914 during the Bombardment of the Hartlepools by battlecruisers of the Imperial German Navy. This dawn raid saw the shelling of Hartlepool, West Hartlepool, Whitby and Scarborough with the Hartlepools being most heavily hit. During a frantic 40 minutes, more than 1,250 high explosive shells rained down on the Hartlepools killing at least 114 civilians, nine soldiers and seven sailors, and wounding over 500 people.

Miraculously, no-one was killed at West Hartlepool station. The local newspaper reported that with a total disregard for the danger, railway staff stuck to their posts giving the two passenger trains in the station at that time their full attention and providing first aid to wounded civilians in the nearby streets. The packed 8.27 a.m. express train to Liverpool escaped almost certain destruction only by a whisker. The last carriage was barely clear of the station when, with shells bursting on all sides of the line, the station suffered a direct hit. More than 100 years later, the shell damage caused

to the station that day is still visible. The scar where a shell smashed through the wall and exploded on the track may still be seen at the east end of the opposite platform. Later repaired, this rare, visible reminder helps us to imagine the alarm and shock of war that descended upon the station that day. To accompany these Red Wheels two interpretation boards designed by the Friends of Hartlepool Station and Hartlepool Museums are displayed next to the extant North Eastern Railway Tile Map on the station concourse. Photographs supplied by Martin Green

Hartlepool Railway The second in a series of articles by Martin Green

This 1914 picture courtesy of Hartlepool

Museums. Copywrite Hartlepool Borough Council


The Photography for Fun Group continues to operate remotely and one of our recent challenges was to take a photograph of an unusual object or objects in our home.

Photography for fun Group

Ray Elliston selected a trio of musical instruments. The blue item is called a POLY-OC tuned in D ALTO. The second item is a Jews Harp and the third item is played to attract birds.

Sheilah Walsh’s object is a bowl made

from a coconut, carved and polished.

Sheilah describes the bowl as only a

tourist piece but she finds it useful for

all sorts of things. “A friend brought it

back from the Caribbean many years

ago.”

Martin Green writes… I am confident this object will be unique (certainly in Hartlepool) but unlike Sheilah's bowl or Barry's doves neither useful nor decorative. It is the destination blind from a 1950s East Yorkshire Motor Services bus. Something everyone should have!!!!

Barry Liddle writes..”This sculpture of a

pair of 'doves' was presented to me by

the local authority in Valladolid, when I

visited for work sometime in the 1990s”


Barry Liddle reflects on some interesting modes of transport.

Down U3A Memory Lane Each month we revisit memorable moments in the history of our U3A

On a History Group field trip to Hexham in 2015, I came across ‘Claude the Car’ complete with claws & lobster tail advertising a local Fish & Grill restaurant.

I spotted this delightful looking ‘Lickety Split Creamery’ van on a ‘Photography for Fun group’ visit to Seaham in 2016

I remember visiting the railway museum at Shildon several years ago with the History group and Martin Green knew more about the exhibits than the official guide! But this photo was taken at a later Photography Group visit in 2018.

It was unusual to say the least to see an American ‘gas- guzzler’ over at the Headland during a ‘Photography for Fun Group’ visit in 2018

Hartlepool Lifeboat. This was the first photograph I took at the first meeting of the Photography Group around 2014/15

A local day fishing boat in the lock, waiting to enter the Marina. The

photograph was taken in 2019 during a Photography Group visit.


Reading for Everyone.

Somewhere, someone puts into words what is in his or her imagination or recollection. These words may be written, typed or sent over the internet and eventually printed as books. And so the reader enters into the mind of the writer. This is what happens when we read a book.... We are transported from our own world into another. It could be for entertainment, education or escapism.

Reading fulfils a need felt by people to experience, second hand , the lives and conditions of others and this leads to a greater

understanding of the culture and diversity of others. There are so many genres to choose from...science fiction, romance, history, crime

and biography...Everyone has a favourite but it is sometimes interesting to try out something less familiar. You might surprise yourself.

It might seem a solitary occupation but it need not be. If you join a group or have a like-minded friend you have an opportunity to discuss what you have enjoyed or hated. A new author might be suggested and off you go on a new adventure!

At this particular time books can be an escape from current worries. Find yourself a comfortable chair and settle down with an interesting book and a cup of tea or a glass of wine, then enjoy a voyage to another world!

Irene Williams

Book Recommendation: Pillars of the Earth – by Ken Follett I was never interested in Ken Follett`s work until I discovered his historical novels when I had moved jobs and the children had gone off to university.

The Pillars of the Earth (1989) is set in the twelfth century and charts the building of a cathedral in the fictional town of Kingsbridge. It follows the fortunes of Tom who became a master builder at a time when Gothic architecture was unknown in England and who was intent on using his knowledge of proportion and symbolism to construct the tallest of cathedrals. It is set against the backdrop of the sinking of the White Ship, which left Henry 1 without an heir and the Anarchy (civil war) that ensued.

The interwoven fates of the main characters and the tumultuous period of history in which they lived make you wonder that a burning ambition could be sustained to construct such a magnificent edifice.

There are three more books in this series World Without End (2007), Column of Fire (2017) and then The Evening and the Morning (2020) which is the prequel to Pillars of the Earth, the first two of which follow the fortunes of subsequent generations.

Joan Nicholson

Literary Review

Photograph Irene Williams


Memories of VE Day I was a child during the VE celebrations. The only memories I have of that day, are of the street parties. There were long trestle tables laid out from one end of the street to the other. I think the food was provided by each respective householder. One of my childhood memories is of children and teenagers unwinding and throwing rolls of silver foil at each other during the party. I recently texted my son-in-law Bob, who has done a lot of research into WW2. Bob say’s that what I am recalling are thin strips of aluminium foil, that was thrown from a plane to confuse the German radar. (It was called “Window” later called “Chaff”) en.wikipedia.org/wiki//Chaff-(countermeasure)

Joan Hannon.

Directory

Committee Members Chair – Roger Say Vice Chairs – Wendy Borthwick and Jessica Scott Secretary – Chris McLoughlin Treasurer – Phil Jefferies Membership Secretary – Wendy Borthwick Group Co-ordinator – Edwina Atkinson Speaker Organiser – Jessica Scott Minutes Secretary – Linda Sargent I.T. Support (Website and Beacon) - Phil Jefferies Committee – Keith Alder, Anne Tarbitt

Interest Group Leaders Archaeology/History Group. Chris McLoughlin.

Board Games. Irene Williams.

Bowls: Ray Elliston.

Bridge: Phil Jefferies.

Chess Group. Roger Say.

Craft & Arts Group. Anne Tarbitt.

Creative Writing Group. Roger Say.

Dog Walking Group Jessica Scott & Ann Managhan.

Family History: Ray Elliston.

Film Group. Contact Phil Jefferies.

Fun with Fabrics. Ann Say

Gardens and Gardening Group: Vacant

Luncheon Group. Stella and Robin Nicholson.

Music Appreciation Group. Barry Liddle.

Photography for Fun Group. Ray Elliston.

Quiz Team John Campbell.

Reading Group Irene Williams

Singing for Fun Group Edwina Atkinson.

Spanish Group. Sheila Harper.

‘View to Vue’. Roger Say.

Walking Group Jen Whalley.

Wine Appreciation Group Contact Margaret Boddy

Contributions to the next Newsletter are most welcome.

Copy deadline for the next issue is 21 June 2020

Barry Liddle, Newsletter Editor

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