Synopsis (from book cover):

When Covid-19 hit the UK and lockdown was declared, Mike Matthews wondered how his historic four-star hotel would survive. Then Shrewsbury Council called. The British government had launched a programme called ‘Everyone In’ and 33 rough sleepers needed beds. The Prince Rupert would end up taking in more than 100 homeless people for over a year – many of whom had spent decades on the streets.

This is the astonishing account of how the hotel owner, manager and accountant and their unlikely new guests spent months locked in together and wound up transforming each other’s lives.

Review:

As we get to know the homeless people who were temporary guests at the Prince Rupert Hotel, I found the book is heartwarming, uplifting and sad in equal measures

Many of the homeless were traumatised, addicts or suffered with mental illness. We learn of their struggles and how some were able to lift themselves up to a better life whilst others were unable to break from their addictions.

The compassion, and sometimes frustration of the three hosts to the homeless shines through as does the generosity of the local people and businesses.

I thoroughly recommend this book, it gives an insight to how these ‘rough sleepers’ ended up sleeping on the streets and why some of them even when given opportunities are unable (or choose not to) to change their situation.

Artist, Bruce Sherratt depicts the Covid-19 Pandemic in what he refers to as ‘Tropical Surrealism’.

PANDEMIC 202 is Bruce’s response to the COVID-19 global pandemic, expressed through his engagement with the emotions raised by the crisis. The colourful kaleidoscopic palette used in the painting suggests a dream-like, hallucinogenic narrative that combines with symbolic, mythological and surrealistic forms to intrigue and unsettle the viewer in equal measure. *

* From nformation next to the painting

Mr C surprised me with an impromptu visit to Hodnet Hall Gardens, a place I planned to visit (alone) the previous week but having tested positive for Covid I chose to stop at home to keep my bugs to myself.

We had lunch before walking round the gardens and grounds on one of the last open days for this season. The weather wasn’t entirely kind to us with a lone black cloud deciding to shed its watery load at just the wrong moment. The randomness of that cloud added to the enjoyment of our visit.

Thank You Mr C

*On Angel Wings is due to descend on 14th October [2020] *

On Angel Wings is an installation that came into being following discussion on how we could offer the community a space to commemorate those who had been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

As we slowly reopen following a turbulent 2020 and start to 2021, we realised people had been affected by this in more ways than we ever could have originally anticipated. What we wanted, was to provide people with the opportunity to be awed and provoke thought as well as allowing people an outlet; somewhere to palpably show their appreciation and respect.

Inspired by the installation in 2020 by our friends at Ripon Cathedral ‘On a Wing and a Prayer’, angels seemed like the perfect way to honour those who had served relentlessly throughout, those who had lost their lives, those whose lives had been disrupted and those who had fought to get through one of the toughest times they had known. An idea was devised to hang origami angels, each with dedications to loved ones, in the Abbey; therefore each angel representing someone or a group of people precious and cared about by someone else.

We contacted the Verger at Ripon Cathedral to help with the logistics of how we could go about hanging multiple thousands of origami angels in a 1,300 year old building, which had not had ease of access to the rafters built into planning and design! After much deliberation and consultation of architects, conservation engineers, rigging teams and planning committees, we realised this was a real possibility and the plan was put into action!

The resulting project is ‘On Angel Wings’; 4,500 origami angels, made by local schools, volunteers, Abbey staff and members of the public, suspended 45ft high in the Chancel of the Abbey. The angels stretch right to the High Altar from the start of the Old Choir Stalls and are lit from the sides. The angels are high enough that dedications can’t be read from the ground; keeping those memories and thoughts private but still present; much like a prayer.

I visited the Abbey in September 2021. I was blown away by the visual impact of the installation.

I started my graffiti walk at Leegomery Centre, walking along the Silkin Way. The first graffiti that I noticed was on the pathway just beyond the plunge pool.

I will only share some of the graffiti because I don’t wish to promote the conspiracy theory/political message that the graffiti artist was promoting. Some of the graffiti had been erased since my last walk, but sadly the offensive messages still remain.

As I approached Tee Lake the graffiti trail petered out. I noticed that the winter mud had disappeared allowing me explore new areas by the lake and walk around most of the lake. I had the perfect window of opportunity soon that pathway will be overgrown and inaccessible again.

I set off in the afternoon sunshine for short walk. It turned out to my least enjoyable walk of 2021.

I chose what is normally a quiet route and found it to be busier than usual. I was OK with that until I came to a narrow part of the pathway where a young man plowed on rather than waiting to one side so that we didn’t pass by each other on the narrow part of the pathway.

He was half wearing a face mask, I turned my head away so as not to breath on him as he passed by. As he reached me he coughed in my face and I was surrounded by what looked like smoke from a cigarette. That would be disgusting at the best of times, but especially now.

If it was just unfortunate timing, there was no apology.

I didn’t really enjoy the rest of my circular walk back home.