Protect against Influenza

As winter draws nearer, Age Concern Birmingham have launched a timely campaign aimed at reducing avoidable and potentially serious illness in the coming months. Up till early November they will be working to promote the anti-flu jab to:

Anyone aged over 65

Anyone who lives in a residential or nursing home

Anyone who cares for or works with older or disabled persons

All pregnant women

Anyone with a long term health problem [including babies aged 6 months or over]

This winter’s jab protects against the same three strains of influenza as last year’s vaccines. These include the H1N1 strain of the virus. H1N1 is the same strain of flu that caused the 2009 swine flu pandemic.

It is worrying that less than seven out of ten of those aged 65 and over in some parts of the city got the jab last year. Age Concern Birmingham’s campaign team aims to increase this figure during this year's influenza season, particularly amongst those people with long term health problems - and anyone who cares for or works with older or disabled persons.

So if you are in one of the target groups please get your anti-flu jab. And if you are talking to friends or relatives who meet the criteria, please also encourage them to get the jab before the winter arrives.

Tolkien and the Peril of War

Birmingham is proud of its very close connections with world renowned author JRR Tolkien. The Birmingham Tolkien Group has as one of its members RS Blackham who has written a number of illustrated books on Tolkien. Bob has recently published his latest book 'Tolkien and the Peril of War'.

I have read this excellent work and there is much new and interesting material therein. Bob is also giving an illustrated talk under the auspices of the Kings Heath Local History Society entitled 'JRR Tolkien: The War Years 1914 - 1918'. The talk is on Wednesday October 19th at 7-30 at Kings Heath Community Centre, Heathfield Road. The admission charge to non-members is £1. Well worth hearing.

Sarehole Mill Volunteers

The Mill Volunteers are meeting on Saturday the 22nd of October at 10.30am at Sarehole Mill Museum, Cole Bank Road, Hall Green.

Willing help is needed to move several (small but sturdy) millstones at Sarehole Mill round to the Fernery at the rear.

There will also be a general end of season tidying up for those less inclined to move the millstones! Using a strong axle to roll the stones is one suggestion. Other ideas are welcome!

If you are able to make the volunteer morning, please contact Viv Wilkes via email as VWi8327963@aol.com

Thank you.

New £50 note next month

The Bank of England has finally announced that the new-style £50 note will go into circulation on November 2nd. This will hopefully reinforce such efforts as are being made to 'rebalance' the economy towards manufacturing and returning the country to where its strength once lay.

The design of the new note was unveiled in Birmingham in May 2009 at the opening of the Matthew Boulton Bicentenary exhibition.
The £50 note features the industrialist Matthew Boulton (at left on the note) and the engineer James Watt, who pioneered the commercial use of efficient steam engines in manufacturing industry. It will be the first time that two portraits will appear together on the reverse of one its banknotes.

There are 210 million £50 notes currently in circulation to a total value of £10.5bn and the Bank has said that the note will have a range of enhanced security features. As ATM users will all too readily confirm, the most common Bank of England note is the £20, with 1.55 billion notes in circulation worth £31bn. While the BoE prints sufficient fivers, it is our friends in the commercial banks that do not like them.

The new Boulton and Watt note will initially be circulated concurrently with the existing £50 note featuring Sir John Houblon, the first governor of the Bank of England. The Houblon note will eventually be withdrawn at a date to be announced by the Bank in due course. The design was rarely changed since it was first introduced in 1725. In fact, a white £50 note was in use for more than 200 years until 1943.

For previous entries on the £50 note on this blog see May 2009 (Matthew Boulton Exhibition) and March 2011 (When will the new £50 note be issued?)