Saint George’s Day

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It was very good to be present at some of the celebrations in Birmingham for England’s patron Saint, Saint George. The main events in Birmingham took place at various locations on Saturday the 24th of April.
This year, we were particularly taken with the Anglo-Saxon village in Chamberlain Square and the excellent Saint George’s day concert at Symphony Hall in the evening. I also visited the Saint George’s day event at Highfield Hall in Hall Green.
Of course the actual Saint’s day was Friday 23rd of April, which points up the fact that Saint George’s day is not an official national holiday - as in my view it should be in England.
The 23rd of April 2010 marks both the death of St George in 303 and the 446th birthday of Shakespeare. Saint George’s day was first celebrated in England in 1222. After 788 years we should make a holiday out of this! More information from the Birmingham St. George's Day Association website.
By the way, there will be more dragon-related activity - of a rather different kind - at this year’s Middle-earth Weekend to be held at Sarehole Mill, Hall Green, on the weekend of May the 15th and 16th. This unique family event celebrates Birmingham’s close connection with JRR Tolkien who had a passionate interest in English mythology and latest details of the weekend can be obtained via the Shire Productions website

Who Done It?

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Do you have what it takes to be an ace detective and solve a mysterious case of murder? Here is your opportunity to find out "who done it?"
The Lady Mayoress and I are hosting a Murder Mystery Night in aid of the Lord Mayor’s Charity Appeal. This one-off, very special event is taking place on Thursday 29th April at Highbury Hall, Birmingham.
This is an exceptional event, raising funds for charity whilst promising a thrilling evening for all. Tickets are priced at £20.00 per person which includes a 2 course meal and entertainment.
There is also a raffle on the night; the prizes include two tickets for an Inspector Morse tour of Oxford, a DVD of "Taggart" signed by all the cast and many more.
Tickets are limited. To book yours please contact the Lord Mayor’s Parlour on 0121 303 1999 or via email

Regimental Visit

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I recently returned from a visit to the 26th Regiment, Royal Artillery at their base at Mansergh Barracks near Gutersloh in Germany. The Regiment of course has the freedom of the City of Birmingham that I had the pleasure of conferring last summer as per the first photo.
The visit included extensive briefings on the Regiment as a whole and its component batteries. There were also opportunities to view the latest electronic close combat trainer and to meet socially and individually with many of the troops.
The Regiment (the Midlands Gunners) draws many recruits from Birmingham and the West Midlands and it was very good to meet them - they are doing a great job.
The Regiment will be on exercises shortly in the Czech Republic and later in the year in Canada, where the vast exercise area is larger than Luxembourg! This prior to a second deployment in Afghanistan next year.
The visit also included an outing to Mohnesee and the photo shows the dam (one of the targets of the Dam Busters) as it is today.

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