Lady Mayoress Crashes Flying Boat!

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Yes it’s true – well, sort of! We recently visited Limerick County at the invitation of the Chairman of the Council. We’d already got to know each other well and of course Birmingham has a thriving Irish community from several counties, amongst which Limerick is well represented. I addressed a meeting of the Limerick County Council and met most of the members to discuss current issues – especially economic ones.
Our hosts were most attentive, and one of the visits we made was to the superb Flying Boat Museum at Foynes, County Limerick. It is unique and exhibits include a full scale replica of a Boeing 314 Clipper.

If you could afford it, this way to travel in the flying boat heyday in the late 1930’s was the way to go in style and comfort.
While at the museum the Lady Mayoress took a turn on the simulator (just visible in my dark mobile phone photo). While she made a good take-off the landing was abrupt and unintentional! Still, it was her first attempt and I used the excuse that I would have been a snug fit in the simulator!
The Museum is great and there is much besides by way of castles and historic cottage villages for tourists to see in Limerick. Highly recommended.

Special Guests in the Parlour

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We invite supporters and volunteers of the Lord Mayor’s Charity Appeal to the Lord Mayor’s Suite in the Council House to thank them for their support and commitment to our charitable causes.
Among our recent guests were Perry Beeches School who held a Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Week raising £1000 for the charity. A competition was held to design a logo.

The winner was Liyah Robinson-Ash with her key design. Head Teacher Liam Nolan, Deputy Head Jackie Powell, the winner and the two runners ups; Mohammed Rahman and Amadou Sarr, attended on behalf of the school.
Another Birmingham school took part in the Lord Mayor’s logo competition; Aaron Young from Castle Vale School impressed the judges with his Engineering Scholarships logo design. Head Teacher Barry Williams, his colleague Garry Flatres and Aaron represented the school.
Birmingham City Council team, Forward for Work hosted an auction at their awards evening which raised £450 for the charity. Team Manager Kathryn Davis, colleague Yvonne Keates, trainees Shreen Griffith and Ian Moore presented the cheque to the Lord Mayor and Lady Mayoress.
Throughout the year we hold several charity events in aid of the Charity Appeal. We rely on the continued support from the volunteers who make these events possible. Irene Jones and Thelma Sharpe are two of our stalwart volunteers who support the Lord Mayor’s Charities every year and we are delighted to recognise their contribution.
To date the Lord Mayor’s Charity Appeal has raised over £40,000 for the chosen charities; St Basil’s, WAITS, Birmingham’s Pancreatic Cancer Research and Engineering Scholarships.

Birmingham Royal Ballet 20th Anniversary

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The Birmingham Royal Ballet first opened in 1990 after moving from London, a move the press at the time described as 'the arts coup of the decade'.
2010 marks Birmingham Royal Ballet 20th anniversary, to celebrate this special occasion a Gala event was held on Wednesday 10 March at Birmingham Hippodrome.
The event consisted of selections from the Ballet's memorable repertoire such as The Nutcracker, Romeo and Juliet, Carmina Burana. There were multimedia presentations celebrating and highlighting the company's local, national and international achievements over the last two decades.
This exceptional event was attended by HRH the Prince of Wales, who is President of Birmingham Royal Ballet. The Lady Mayoress and I attended as special guests to commemorate their achievements of the past twenty years, and taking a look towards the future.
Birmingham Royal Ballet brings delight to all who watch and take part in it, and brings exquisite performance art to Birmingham.

The College and the Cottage Industry

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We recently had an excellent visit to University College Birmingham (UCB - which was formerly known as the College of Food, Tourism and Creative Studies) which does outstanding work in both Higher and Further Education. The quality of the courses is very high and the UCB is well found in material respects and has an exciting vision for the future.
During our visit, the Lady Mayoress and I were very interested today to learn of the revival of the Birmingham Close Notched Cottage Loaf!
The loaf, which was very popular in the late 19th and the first half of the 20th Century has been re-launched by UCB. This is a great service to the people of the city! We can vouch for this personally as we took a loaf back to the Lord Mayor’s Parlour and the staff greatly enjoyed the fresh baked Brummie bread!
The recipe was re-discovered by one of the College’s Bakery lecturers when they were looking to expand the range of breads the students make. There are other regional loves (for example the Evesham ‘Bomber’) but our focus here is the Birmingham loaf. It has more ‘notches’ which give a far nicer crust and a nicer shape as it is more stable in the oven. The inside is light and delicious.
Cottage loaves originated with farming families and were made from two lumps of dough to save space in small ovens. The dough would be made using locally sourced flour, perhaps from Sarehole Mill in Hall Green or Berkswell Windmill or even Avoncroft near Bromsgrove. Birmingham flour was renowned for its taste and flavour.
You can buy the loaves in the shop at UCB in the city centre and we are hoping to have a stall at the Lord Mayor’s Show at the end of May. I can send you the recipe if you would like to have a go at making one. Just email me as Lord.Mayor@birmingham.gov.uk

Recent News on the Staffordshire Hoard

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A display of the Anglo Saxon warrior gold returns to Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery on Saturday March 13th. Included in the display in Gallery 20 will be items not previously seen. The items on display will be there for at least five weeks but in all probability for the foreseeable future.
The fundraising is going well with £1.2m raised as of a few days ago of which some £500,000 is from public donations with the remainder from the Arts Fund, the two city councils and a couple of trusts. A substantial further sum is pending and the deadline is April 17th although an extension is probable should this be needed.
The latest intention is to establish a Mercian Trail including Birmingham, Stoke, Lichfield and Tamworth as well as the discovery site off Watling Street (the A5) near Brownhills. The intention is that the principal displays will be in Birmingham and Stoke with loaned displays at Tamworth Castle and Lichfield.
A number of TV programmes are in preparation including one on Channel Four over the Easter Weekend. National Geographic are producing three programmes: a one hour documentary on the finding of the Hoard (this is the one to be shown on Channel 4), a two hour programme on the study of the Hoard (this will not be seen for two years) and a one hour programme in three years time bringing it all together. A substantial, well illustrated book by Kevin Leahy is due out in October.
Tentative agreement on the division of the items between Birmingham and Stoke appears to have been reached and Stoke will retain agreed elements so not all the items previously on display in Birmingham will return on March 13th. However there will be new ones and it is intended to show a partially reconstructed helmet (displayed flat at this stage). Experts take the view that the 1800 pieces contain two helmets, the assembly of which will be an exciting prospect in the months and years ahead.