festive glamour

Transcription

festive glamour

ISSUE 61 u December 2012 / January 2013
FESTIVE
GLAMOUR
Gorgeous local ladies
showcase Harvey Nichols
MIMAR Architecture
Outstanding, inspiring design
Ross
Mackenzie
helps you find
your mojo
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Welcome!
Happy 10th Birthday
ISSUE 88
u
DEcEmbEr
ry 2013
2012 / JanUa
How time flies! I can’t believe that
Didsbury Magazine is ten years old.
E
MAGAZIN
RY 2011
/FEBRUA
FESTIVOEUR
GLAM
Karen
Flower
ies
local lad
ols
GorGeous
harvey Nich
showcase
e
Shropshir
Ed
takes the
d
DEcEmbEr
Since then we’ve launched Hale&Bowdon Magazine and Bonus Sapor Magazine; we
also have an annual charity Christmas Ball and raise thousands of pounds for Genesis.
RD
FESTIVE
GLAMOUR
E
MAGAZIN
u
ISSUE 61 u DEcEmbEr jiGsaw
the 2012 / JanUary 2013
a piece iN
house
at FraNcis
North roa
O
| KNUTSF
EY EDGE
ISSUE 25
When I started Didsbury Magazine I was expecting my
fifth child. So when the first issue was printed, I read
it from front to back (it was only 32 pages), checked it
for mistakes, smelt it (it’s a publisher thing), and sighed
with relief. Then started planning issue two.
ry 2013
2012 / JanUa
GorGeous local
ladies
showcase harvey
Nichols
MIMAR Architectu
SLOW
BURY | WILM
HALE | BO
WORSLEY
WDON |
outstaNdiNG,
SFORD
iNspiri
EDGE | KNUT
NG desiGN
EY
| A LDERL
re
But the last ten years wouldn’t have been possible without the support of our readers
and advertisers, many of whom are now close friends, so THANK YOU!
Ross
Mackenzie
helps you fiNd
your mojo
| PREST
| BRAMHALL
RY 2011
ARY/FEBRUA
UE 50 | JANU
Barry
Wood
‘appy’ days
FESTIVOEUR
GLAM
es
local ladi
GorGeous
ols
harvey Nich
showcase
WIN!
h aT damsoN
suNday luNc
aT rosso
The fiNesT
l for Two
pTuous mea
aNd a sum
ON THE COVER
You might recognise the lovely ladies on the front cover; they spent the day at Great
John Street Hotel in Manchester having their hair and make-up done and dressing up.
Don’t they look fantastic?
This is my absolute favourite time of the year. I don’t know why because I’m always
on the last minute. I have to get the magazine to print and the Ball over before I can
concentrate on my Christmas shopping, which gives me about 21 days to do everything.
However, I’m armed with lots of lists from the children, which will keep me and Santa
well and truly busy!
The team at Salutions wish you all a very merry Christmas and a happy and prosperous
2013; we’ll be back with you in the new year.
Julia Gibson, Jo Price,
Louise Roberts, Hannah Mahapatra
Carol Walton, Helen Featherstone. Michelle Bennett
11
UARY 20
Why not follow us on
or contact us via
and I’ll promise
we’ll get back to you. We’re always happy to hear your suggestions.
®
Margaret Brobbin, Jen Panton, Martyna Sovol
Photography Neil Matthews
www.facebook.com/NeilMatthewsImages
December 2012/January 2013
l
1
23
inside
37
15
86
71
64
46
2 l December 2012/January 2013
94
Celebrating 10 years at
Selfridges&Co
Trafford Centre Manchester
0161 629 1102
selfridges.com
inside
EVERY ISSUE...
01 Welcome
News from the editor
64 Tried&Tested
Football, food, fashion and beauty
at MCFC
06 Local news
What’s happening in and around the area 73/77/79 Education news
News from local schools
15 Fashion
Festive glamour from Harvey Nichols 86 What’s On
Shows for the festive season
23 Christmas Gift Guide
Your Christmas Hit List
92 Reviews
Music, books, DVDs and films
30 Beauty notebook
Look flirty, flawless and fabulous
94 Gadgets
The gift of the gadget for Christmas
34 The Nutritional Therapist
Reducing cholesterol for a healthy heart 96 Motoring News
A Toyota for the purist
37 Rawchi
Christmas retox/detox
42 Ask the experts
Chloe Thompson
Senior Colour Director at Sassoon
46 Travel Evian-les-bains
A delightful small town on the
Swiss/French border
48 Travel Bonn
The rejuvenated epitome of
German culture
Interiors
51 Little extra’s that make Christmas
extra special
55Elegant buys for the stylish home
53 GardenStyle
All present and correct
61 Food review
Steak & Lobster @ ALTO
62 Taj Mahal Cookery School recipe
Red Lentil Tarka Dhaal
62 Wine
Bubbles darling!
AND THE REST…
Local people
12 Beverley Uddin-Khandakar
The editor
28 Ed Shropshire
Aquarium Software
39 Seen Opticians | Manchester
41 Sarah Stemp | Personal Trainer
56 Rebecca Whitehead
JP & Brimelow Lettings
65 Barry Wood | theTeacherCloud
66 Ross Mackenzie | Trancendence
85 Karen Flower | Francis House
81 What will your life be like
in 5 years time?
Network Marketing
93 While you were out…
Things you may have missed
WIN * WIN * WIN
68 A comedy night for eight people and
tickets to The Mousetrap in
London’s West End
69 Meals at Damson and Rosso
GROUP Editorial director
Beverley Uddin-Khandakar
Group Managing Director
Salim Uddin-Khandakar
SALES
Rose Walters, [email protected]
0161 445 2883
Art Direction & Design
Stealth Advertising & Design
Editorial Support
Steve Jones
Contributors
Anne Britt, Catherine Reed, Celia Cooper,
Fay Wertheimer, John Waddington,
Oliver Chesher, Rebecca Slater, Todd Fitzgerald,
Dr. Jill Nash, Helen Hewitson, Philip Valentino
Photography
PR Shots, Bigstockphoto.com, Press Loft
Barry Wood
www.barrywood.co.uk
Neil Monks
www.naturalfocusphotography.co.uk
Natalie Woodall
@RockWoodFashion
Neil Matthews
www.facebook.com/NeilMatthewsImages
Distribution
Avanti
Find us on
®
This Magazine is published six times a year by Salutions
Limited. The contents may not be reprinted or reproduced
without prior written permission. The publishers are
not liable for statements made and opinions expressed.
While every care is taken, prices and details are subject to
change and the publisher can take no responsibility for
omissions and errors.
St James House, 676 Wilmslow Road,
Didsbury, Manchester M20 2DN.
Tel: 0161 445 2883
E: [email protected]
GROSVENOR G CASINO DIDSBURY
WHAT’S
ON
WHAT’S ON
IN DECEMBER
Comedy Floor - Starts 9pm
Saturday
1st - Abba
Tribute
with Re Abba
Sunday
7th
October
Featuring classic hits with brilliant choreography, costumes and stunning vocals
Sunday 4th November
Friday 7th - Ronan Keating Tribute with Paul Sutton
Winner
of ITV’s
‘Stars-inReservations
Their Eyes’ and No.1 tribute
in the
UK
Ladies
Night
from
6pm
Thursday
Saturday 8th
- Olly Murs18th
TributeOctober
with Kirk Johnstone
The UK’s No.1
Tribute
to
Olly
Murs,
set
to be a fantastic night
Thursday 15th November
Friday 14th - A Night with Ritchie Dews
Incredibly talented
guitaristShow
and awesome vocalist
Talent
Friday 19th October
Saturday 15th - After the Break
Prepare to be
blown away
by our
Soul & Motown band
Friday
26th
October
FINAL
9th
Friday
21st - Friday
Elton John
withNovember
Gary Setterfield
One of the UK’s most popular Elton John tribute acts
Open Mic Night - Starts 8pm
Saturday 22nd - Lionel Ritchie with Moni Tivoni
24th
Runner-upWednesday
of the BBC’s ‘The One
andOctober
Only’, Moni Tivony is a
Lionel
Ritchie
look-a-like
and
sound-a-like
Wednesday 28th November
Dinner &
Saturday 29th- Gladys Knight Tribute with Glad It’s Night
The
show-features
a tribute to Gladys
Knight6pm,
& The Pips
and alsostarts
Show
Reservations
from
show
the very best of Soul & Motown classic hits
9pm
Saturday 27th October
New Years Eve - Gala
Dinner Package
& Live
Entertainment - £50 per person
Saturday
24th
November
Celebrate in style this year with our 5 Course Gala Dinner package. Includes a glass of bubbly and a £5 gaming chip
Rocky Horror For
ShowReservations from 6pm, show starts 9.30pm
more information and to book please call 0161 669 7165
Wednesday
Grosvenor G Casino Didsbury, Parrswood
Entertainment31st
Centre,October
Wilmslow Road, Didsbury, Manchester M20 5PG
For more information or to book please call the casino on 0191 260 3303
Grosvenor G Casino Newcastle, 100 St. James Boulevard, Newcastle Upon Tyne NE1 4BN
stayincontrol.rank.com
Over 18s only. Photo ID is required.
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news
The if agency win award
third year running
The if agency is celebrating after being
named the Direct Response and Sales
Promotion Agency of the Year at the
Marketing Industry Network Awards 2012.
This is the third year the Altrincham-based
creative agency has been awarded the
accolade.
The prestigious and high-profile awards
ceremony, which took place recently at
The Mercure Hotel in Manchester, rewards
and celebrates those thriving across the UK
marketing industry outside London.
The if agency scooped the award based
on its performance in 2012. Over the past 12
months, it has secured several high-profile
new clients, including The Co-operative,
Paddy Power, Hewden and Knowsley Safari
Park. It also continues to work with a number
of other major national and international
companies, including Matalan and the Spirit
Pub Company.
Commenting on the win, Christian James,
Managing Director at The if agency, said:
“Winning the award is a great way to
celebrate all our achievements this year.
This is the third time in a row we’ve picked
it up so to say we’re pleased is a bit of an
understatement. Over the past few years,
we’ve built up a fantastic team, all of whom
have contributed massively to our successes,
and our focus is now on producing even better
work for our clients.”
City stars support Breast
Cancer Awareness fundraiser
When England international and City vicecaptain Micah Richards heard of I Love 2 Love’s
plans to raise funds for charity during 2012’s
Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the star
defender persuaded his teammates to sign up for
the charity appeal.
The special edition MCFC fundraising jacket
was donated, featuring stand-out metallic blue
and silver signatures from the Etihad stadium
stars – including City legends Carlos, Joe Hart
and Micah Richards, to name a few.
Around the World with Carrier Travel
Looking for inspiration for your next holiday? Look no further, join us
on the evening of Thursday 7th February 2013 and explore the world’s
continents under one roof.
From Australia to Africa, we have got the globe covered and can offer you
expert advice on choosing the perfect destination.
Register your interest by Thursday 17th January 2013
by phone 01625 583210; by email [email protected]
or online at www.carriertravelagent.co.uk
Baking up success
Hills’ Bakery celebrated their Centenary
year with a party held at the Assembly Rooms
in Hale. Almost 300 guests attended, including
The Worshipful the Mayor of the Borough of
Trafford and her Consort, and Gordon Burns,
formerly of North West Tonight.
Guests enjoyed samples of some of the
wonderful cakes, pastries and breads sold by
Hills’ Bakery. Musicians from Altrincham Grammar
School for Boys, who also celebrate their
centenary this year, provided wonderful
background music, which was very well
received.
Outside there was a display of farm
machinery from yesteryear - a threshing
machine, a stationery baler and a corn mill,
together with Allis Chalmers and Fordson
Major tractors. Visitors could see how the
grain to make bread was harvested and made
into flour many years ago. Three generations of the Hills family
attended the event. Sheila Hill said: “What
a splendid day – we really had a party
atmosphere. Both Geoff and I are very proud
of what the business has achieved across
the decades and the support our customers
continue to give to the bakery.”
Step up in style
Step up in style
Visit our impressive showroom today at 139 Heaton Moor Road, Stockport SK4 4HY
Open 6 days a week: Monday to Saturday 9.30am to 5pm. Late night Thursday 9.30am to 7pm
0161 432 8685 email: [email protected]
Stockists of:
Visit our impressive showroom today at 139 Heaton Moor Road, Stockport SK4 4HY
Open 6 days a week: Monday to Saturday 9.30am to 5pm. Late night Thursday 9.30am to 7pm
Bramley Aug_ST1.indd 3
08/08/2011 19:24
news
fashionista luxury organic womenswear
Didsbury designer Hannah Beaumont has
relaunched her luxury organic womenswear label,
Beaumont Organic.
The label mixes organic and ethical with luxury
fashion. Hannah, 27, completed university with
a first-class honours degree and has worked
at leading fashion companies. After working
in London, the challenge and excitement was
fading and new ambitions prevailed.
In 2008, her experiences, skills and knowledge
led her to launch Beaumont Organic, which has
successfully grown ever since.
In its first three seasons of trading, Beaumont
Organic won awards including ‘The Best Textile
Product’ at the Natural and Organic Awards.
The collection is minimalistic, offering
effortless timeless style with its gorgeous organic
fabrics. Hannah also donates 1% of her annual
profits to a school in Fiji.
Hannah said: “During the year leading up
to the launch of Beaumont Organic, I spent
time researching the effects that the growing
of cotton has on our environment. Being a
passionate fashionista and owning numerous
cotton tees, I began to explore the niche market
for beautiful clothes that are also environmentally
friendly and produced fairly.”
www.beaumontorganic.com
Chorlton family
business celebrates
35th anniversary
Chorlton kitchen, bedroom and bathroom
specialists Affordable & Stylish celebrated
35 years in business with a special gourmet
cookery event for customers, hosted by
charismatic Manchester chef Jason Palin of
Gourmet Gusto.
Networking in The City run networking
events across the UK focused at professionals
in business.
Join us for our next event in
South Manchester at Piccolinos, Hale
on the 22nd January 2013
Owners, Alan and Sue Forest, invited
customers old and new to enjoy dynamic live
cooking demonstrations from Jason, followed
by the opportunity to sample the delicious
gourmet finger buffet he cooked in their
kitchen showroom.
Affordable & Stylish opened its doors in
1977 as a local appliance repair centre then
simply called A&S Domestics. Since those
early days, the business has evolved into
a thriving kitchen, bedroom, bathroom and
appliance specialist with an in-house design
team and interiors offering for those clients
who want ‘everything’ taken care of.
Sue Forest said: “We’re a family business
built on the principles of excellent value, great
choice and fantastic customer service. We’ve
survived over three and half decades and two
recessions thanks to loyal customers who
return again and again, often with family and
friends.”
For more information on Affordable & Stylish,
visit www.affordableandstylish.co.uk
For details
Call Steve Kettle on
07884347548
[email protected]
www.networkinginthecity.co.uk
news
Well-known faces lay the cornerstones
of Francis House extension
Over the past months, Sir Alex Ferguson,
Jonny Evans, Camilla al-Fayed, Kirsty Howard,
Lord Lieutenant Warren Smith JP and Sarah
Storey have all laid cornerstones at the
£3.5million, seven-bedroom, Francis House
extension.
The extension, to be completed by 2013, will
double the size of the hospice, enabling an
increase in the amount of respite care it can
offer.
A cornerstone was also laid by Francis
House’s Sister Austin, in memory of the late
Sister Aloysius, who sadly died earlier this year
aged 85.
Sister Aloysius had worked with children
since she was appointed to the Catholic
Children’s Rescue Society in Didsbury
in the 1950s.
In 1990 she became the driving force for
Francis House due to the amount of children
the society was working with who had lifethreatening illnesses.
David Ireland, Chief Executive, said:
“Francis House is really fortunate to have so
many celebrities and people who support us
throughout the community. There are some
significant people who have helped us to raise
big amounts of money, Sir Alex is one, the
al-Fayed Foundation another. Having Sarah
back after her Paralympics success was
fantastic. It’s great for the young people to
meet these people, but also to see the way
the work is progressing. We also wanted to
commemorate the work of Sister Aloysius,
who drove this project when other people
were taking ten or so years to open a hospice.
She did it in two years.”
The celebrities were joined by a number of
children from the hospice – Nathan Sturgoen,
Kyle Wells, Tanya Ryan and Kate Snape.
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Keith Lemon visits the Trafford Centre
Keith Lemon visited Selfridges Trafford Centre
to sign copies of his new book, ‘Being Keith’,
for fans.
‘Being Keith’ offers his fans an insight into
his rollercoaster life over the last five years,
including meeting and sharing the stage with
Fearne Cotton and Holly Willoughby in the
famed television show Celebrity Juice, and
dirty dancing with Paddy McGuinness.
Wide range of colours and paint
finishes, natural stains
Totally bespoke product and
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Plantation Shutters Direct
See us on display at
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Call Matthew on 0845 164 5070
or 07504 188646 at any time.
[email protected]
www.plantationshuttersdirect.co.uk
l
9
news
Spinningfields
Ice Rink is back!
From 22 November to 6 January,
Spinningfields will once again be transformed
into a winter wonderland with the arrival of
the ice rink.
Returning to Spinningfields for its fifth
successive year, the ice rink in Hardman
Square will be bigger and better than ever
before. The only open-air rink in the city centre
will open seven days a week from 10am
until 9.30pm and will feature a large viewing
platform for those who would prefer to watch
rather than skate.
In addition to the rink, there will be food
and drink outlets, and the big screen will
feature Christmas films and music to get
people in the festive mood. The rink will be
able to host up to 200 skaters per hour.
James Murdoch, Events Manager at
Spinningfields, said: “We’ve brought a whole
host of new additions to the ice rink area this
year, and with the food and drink outlets and
the new viewing platform, there are even
more reasons to spend a whole afternoon
or evening down here. With our festive films
playing in the background, we’re confident
we’ll get everyone in the festive mood – even
those who can’t skate!”
Olympic Gold Medallist Robin Cousins will
operate the rink with his company, Cousins
Entertainment.
www.spinningfieldsonline.com
Peter raises
£3,500 for Genesis
Local talent one step away from The O2!
Local talent one step away from The O2!
Scarlett Quigley from Altrincham wowed the
crowd and judging panel at the Open Mic
UK Regional Showcase, and is now one step
away from performing at The O2 in London!
Thousands of acts entered Open Mic UK 2012
and the best unsigned singers from across
the country were chosen to perform at the
live Regional Final shows. Scarlett performed
in front of a live audience and professional
judging panel at the RNCM in November and
is now set to perform at the Area Final for the
chance to progress to the National Grand Final
at The O2 in London next year.
There’s over £50,000
in prizes up for grabs
this year and the
overall winner receives
significant investment.
They’ll also have the
opportunity to tour
across the UK.
The latter stages of the competition will also
provide acts with the opportunity to impress
many guests from record labels, agencies and
the entertainment industry.
www.openmicuk.co.uk
79-year-old male
breast cancer
survivor Peter
Fleming abseiled
down Manchester’s
Corn Exchange to
raise money for
Genesis Breast
Cancer prevention.
Manchester-native Peter is currently
undergoing treatment for his breast cancer
and was joined by 34 other locals, raising over
£3,500 for the charity.
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news
Karen Wise exhibits
in Hale
Charity begins at home
for Desser
Following her success in being selected
to exhibit her paintings at the prestigious
Stockport Art Guild, Prestbury-based artist
Karen Wise is delighted to have been
given the opportunity to show her work at
‘Gastronomy Delicatessen and Wine’ in Hale.
”2012 has been extremely eventful for
me, with galleries in London and Chicago
expressing interest in my work,” Karen
explained.
A qualified fashion designer, Karen
describes her work as “figurative, bordering
on the surreal, with a strong emphasis on
colour”.
Once short-listed for the Daily Mail’s ‘Not
The Turner Prize’ award, Karen has had a
previous solo showing at the Portico Gallery in
Manchester and her work has been credited
with inclusion in the Chester and Warrington
Open events.
Her work will be on display at ‘Gastronomy’
in Hale over Christmas and into the new year.
Manchester-based conservatory furniture
supplier Desser is bringing comfort to the
patients and staff at The Christie.
The family-owned company has donated a
wide range of sofas, chairs, coffee and lamp
tables to the specialist cancer centre to
furnish its conservatory.
Mark Stewart, Sales Director at Desser,
officially opened the conservatory with The
Christie’s Chief Executive Officer, Caroline Shaw,
on Tuesday 6 November.
Mark said: “We were keen to offer our support
to The Christie and help ensure that patients
and their families are in the most comfortable
surroundings during their treatment.”
Natalie Pike, Corporate Development
Manager at The Christie charity, said: “Huge
thanks to Desser for their very generous
donation. The conservatory at The Christie
is an area where cancer patients and their
families can sit and relax quietly, and this new
furniture is a wonderful addition to the area.”
In addition, Oldham-based Platt & Hill, the
Don’ forget to enter
this month’s competitions
on page 68
Comp winners
Sumptuous meals at Damson and Rosso
A comedy night for eight people
Tickets to The Mousetrap in London’s West End
UK’s largest manufacturer of foam and fibre
fillings, has provided complimentary cushions.
Desser, which recently opened its factory
shop, is a leading supplier of rattan
conservatory furniture. Established in 1919 the
family-run firm provides top-quality and stylish
conservatory furniture for a range of retailers
nationwide. www.desser.co.uk
Competitions Terms and conditions
No purchase necessary. Employees of Salutions Limited and associated companies,
promotional partners, their agents and families are not eligible to enter. Entries will be
declared void if found mutilated, illegible, altered, reconstructed, forged or tampered with
in any way. In the event of there being more claims than prizes available in any category,
then prizes will be awarded to the earliest claimant. (Where applicable, as stated.) All
entries are subject to scrutiny. Salutions Limited reserves the right to stop the promotion/
competition at any time at its own discretion. Winners must accept that their names may
be announced on any Salutions-related media, including web and print, and may be used
for publicity purposes if required. Rules as published, when applicable to specific joint
offers, product discounts etc. All prizes unclaimed remain the property of Salutions Limited.
Persons under the age of 18 are not eligible to enter. The prize must be taken as offered
and is not transferable. No cash or credit alternatives will be given. Editor’s decision is final.
By entering a competition you agree to receive e-letters and mailshots from Salutions.
We do not sell our database to third parties and are compliant with the Data Protection
Act 1998. Should you wish NOT to receive such information, please state NO OFFERS. By
entering the competition you agree to the above terms and conditions.
www.cheesehamlet.co.uk
Your 1st stop for all Christmas fine food essentials
Luxury Hampers & Gifts delivered throughout the UK mainland.
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Christmas Puddings, Mince Pies, Pannetone, Handmade Patés & Pork Pies ,
Finest Blue Stilton, Handmade Speciality Chocolates &
Gift Vouchers Available
706 Wilmslow Rd, Didsbury, Manchester, M20 2DW
Tel. 0161 4344781
l
11
Meet your editor...
Beverley Uddin-Khandakar
taken on as an office junior. Now I’ve my
own office - though Salim complains my
seat’s too often left vacant! And I’ve five
children - three more than I’d planned.
Why publishing?
My father worked all his life in newspapers,
from the Daily Herald at 15 to ending
up as office manager of The People in what’s now The Printworks. Made
redundant by Robert Maxwell’s Mirror
Group at 51, he sadly passed away from
cancer at 61.
Dad showed me the compositors at his
works. Everything was dirty and smelled
strongly of oil and metal. I remember it
fondly, as if it were yesterday. From 20
till 41, I was in Manchester Evening News
sales and advertising, spending the last
year part-time in the Media Academy. My
affinity for the industry is self-explanatory
but publishing my own magazine’s
something else.
Balancing work and
family
Issue 1
T
iming her first Didsbury
Magazine for December 2002
left our eight-months pregnant
mum-of-four Beverley just eight
weeks to deliver both her fifth baby
and her next bimonthly magazine!
So, what makes this feisty Altrincham-born
mother of five tick?
How has ten years of magazine deadlines
and ill health changed this chatty, calm,
meticulous and ever-positive lady?
Fay Wertheimer caught up with ‘Wonder
Woman Beverley’ about her work, family
and life.
Childhood dreams
Learn to drive, work in an office and have
children! I wasn’t pushed academically but
managed good O levels despite nearly two
years off school after losing my voice at 14.
Are they fulfilled?
I had my first driving lesson on my 17th
birthday. After two job interviews, I was
After school, it’s non-stop ballet, tennis,
Brownies, street-dance, guitar and tutors
thankfully with Mum’s help! Magazine
deadlines keep me up till 2 or 3am. The
children hate me working when they’re off,
so this year we fitted deadlines round the
school holidays. Whenever they whinge:
“Why must you do the magazine? Why
not get a proper job?” I remind them of
the alternatives - breakfast and afterschool clubs, summer school and the end
of our great holidays. But sometimes I
feel guilty. I was a single mum when my
elder boys were young and they had to go
to a childminder for a while, mornings
and evenings.
Proudest moment
With five children, someone’s always
achieving something. This year, Andrew –
my eldest – graduated; three years later
than planned, but he got there!
Happiest moment
Marrying Salim with all five children present
at The Radisson Edwardian Manchester.
We were their first civil ceremony. The
children want to do it all again.
Worst moment
Becoming ill in 2008 and having a year’s
treatment at The Christie.
each other for it to work - mind you, Salim
can be a rottweiler at times!
What makes you happy?
Getting up at the weekend and not having
an agenda.
Any parenting advice?
Yes, children are individuals, so treat
them as individuals. What works for one,
might not work for another. Parenting is
the toughest job for which we receive the
least training.
Pet hate
My children leaving their homework all over
Has this changed your view the house!
on life?
Definitely. I’d like to say I live for today, but Favourite holiday
in reality you don’t. I don’t tolerate moaners destination
and people who think they are dying when
they only have a cold. And I have a real
need to be organised, but rarely am,
despite trying.
Greatest fears
Returning to The Christie for treatment.
Lapland, despite the minus 40 degrees
temperature. Going from the sauna to lying
in the snow, huskies and reindeer rides,
driving snowmobiles for miles, and Father
Christmas and his elves in the Christmas
village post office were magical. But
Turkey, Mauritius, Florida and Egypt are
wonderful too.
Advantages of working with
A community magazine’s
your husband
Knowing where he is and what he’s doing role
– joke! We visit fantastic places and meet
lovely people together.
Disadvantages
None. In the office, we’re not husband and
wife but part of a team. You must respect
To let people know what’s happening in
and around their areas - so if we’re not told
about it, we can’t print it. Newcomers say
we’ve helped them find places to go and
eat, buy houses, holiday, shop and find
new friends - take note advertisers!
Comments on your ten
years in publishing
We’re now well established. We attend
most regional launches and are also
included on London guest lists - so
accepting every invite would leave us no
family life at all. We appreciate the invites
and go to as many as we can.
Highlights
Salim’s highlight was being introduced, as
a Duke of Edinburgh Awards ambassador,
to Prince Philip in St. James Palace - while
I had to sit quietly in the background.
My thrill was having The Goring wedding
suite, where Kate Middleton stayed the
week before her wedding.
And the kids’ high spot was baking biscuits,
meeting the Easter bunny and hunting
Easter eggs - all at The Goring - while we
chilled in the lounge bar. They gathered
enough chocolate to last them a year!
The future
We move with the times. Salim has a couple
of projects up his sleeve - watch this space!
And I recently started a network marketing
business that I can do alongside the
magazine. Exciting times!
Advice on starting
magazines
Don’t. It’s damned hard work. Few people
understand the hours spent on just one
magazine. Without passion, you can’t do this.
Once that passion goes we’ll have to give up.
Salim and you are charity
minded - why?
Genesis approached us for support when
we set up. They needed millions before
applying for funds for their new Nightingale
Centre in Wythenshawe. Over ten years,
our events have raised them thousands,
and in recognition our names and that of
Didsbury Magazine appear in the centre’s
reception area. In 2002, we’d no inkling I’d
end up one of their patients too.
l
13
fashion&shopping
Santa’s
Pixie
Grotto
1
9
This year you can play Santa and make your
children’s Christmas wishes come true in one fun
shop! Pixie has transformed itself into a veritable
Santa’s grotto bringing you a choice of traditional
wooden toys and crafts, plush animals & party
outfits to satisfy even the most demanding little
elves! And not forgetting you mums with Pixie’s
Noa Noa Womenswear, scarves and Estella Bartlett
jewellery. Perfect for the party season and as gifts
8
FREE GIFT WRAPPING SERVICE
1. Djeco is one of Pixie’s favourite, offering wooden
toys, arts & crafts and games beautifully illustrated.
Djeco knights & Princess stamp & colour sets
£13.50 each
7
6
2. Little black dress ready for the party season;
Noa noa womens black leather dress £299.
1
3. Stocking fillers; Hunter baby welly size 4-6
£25 & kids welly size 7-5 £35 with
Union Jack & Leopard sock liners £19
4. Heirlooms of the future in these beautifully
crafted Moover wooden pram 12mths + £69
available in red & natural wood & wooden truck
12mths-5yr £49
5
5. Scotch & Soda Blazer £89 available
in ages 4-14yrs
6. White Rabbit England bone china Xmas tree
nightlight £75 from a range of nightlights for those
sleeping Pixies
7. Happy Hopper ‘dinosaur’ £29 from a range
of hoppers including a reindeer, cow, horse and
dog. These characters are perfect for a Christmas
present available from 12mths – Adult!
2
4
8. Party outfits; Champagne lace tutu available in
ages 0-Teen from £39 with a choice of
t shirts to match!
9. Chic yet playful jewellery from Estella Bartlett
encrusted with Swarovski crystals are proving
attractive to mums and daughters alike. Bracelets
from £8 & necklaces from £12 perfect for
Xmas presents
From a range at Pixie
3
Pixie, 3 Century House, Hale village. WA15 9SF
0161 927 9259
www.pixiechildrenswear.com
Photography: Neil Matthews
3
Festive
Glamour
Get ready for the festive season at Harvey Nichols Manchester.
Your one-stop-shop to the world’s most exclusive brands
Martyna wears Isabel Marant dress £630 Valentino clutch £1120
l
15
Carol wears Gucci blouse £775
Joseph trousers £155
Stella McCartney clutch £515
Jen wears Alexander McQueen dress £1,995
YSL clutch £450
Eddie Borgo bracelet £295
Helen wears Issa dress £435
Alexander Wang clutch £400
Roberto Cavalli bracelet £500
Michelle wears Suzannah dress £950
Iosselliani bracelet £185
l
17
Hannah wears Issa dress £595
Julia wears Amanda Wakeley dress £995
Margaret wears Amanda Wakeley dress £550
Kenneth Jay Lane cuff £140
Jo wears Joseph dress £495
YSL clutch £450
Kenneth Jay Lane bracelet £280
l
19
Louise wears Joseph dress £295
Styling Harvey Nichols Manchester
Clothing and accessories Harvey Nichols Manchester
Make up Bobbi Brown
Hair Mark Izzard and the team at Urban Retreat, Harvey Nichols Manchester
Photography Neil Matthews www.facebook.com/NeilMatthewsImages
With thanks to Great John Street Hotel, Manchester
Florabella by Sarah Ho
Florabella vermeil Bluebell collection
from £135.
www.greenandbenz.com
Styling Academy
Modelling Mayhem Birthday Parties
Includes glorious glitter make-up,
hair styled, nails painted, drinks and
cakes, a photo shoot and fashion
show for parents
Two-hour Birthday parties available
at £12.99 per child.
Minimum of 12 girls.
Includes group print each.
0161 660 2529
www.thestylingacademy.net
Skin Health Spa
Gift bags with a choice of
aromatherapy candle, and a facial,
transderm or microdermabrasion
treatment - plus discount vouchers.
Only £35! (normally £125)
0161 833 4224
www.skinhealthspa.com
Christmas means…
Corn Exchange
Destination shopping
and dining in the
heart of the city!
Tampopo
Fresh Eastern Cooking
Celebrate with
The Alternative Christmas Menu
The perfect antidote to the traditional
Christmas celebration.
Phone: 0161 839 6484
Salvi’s Mozzarella Bar-Deli
Fabulous imported Italian hampers
range from £35 - £100 with a choice
of food, wine or mixed. Come and try
our famous buffalo Mozzarella.
Salvismanchester.co.uk
Tel 0161 222 8021
CAFÉ BLEND
Warm up for winter
with a delicious liqueur
hot chocolate, a coffee
Martini, coffee cocktail
or a simple cup of tea
or coffee.
0161 839 3186 WithDilan
Flamboyage
Using special meche strips this revolutionary colour service
offers creative freedom.
For appointments call 07852 417 133
EAST
Bracelet £15
Sequin clutch £50
Organza stole £60
Sequin dress £160
2
1
3
4
Aspecto
1 Duke Men’s Jacket £199 2 Fleece Lined Hunter £32.99 3 International Polar Women’s Quilt £179
4 International Padded Men’s Jacket £159
All items available at
Corn Exchange, Exchange Square,
Manchester M4 3TR
Find us on Facebook and Twitter
www.cornexchangemanchester.co.uk
l
21
fashion&shopping
Love thy
Wardrobe
this Christmas
Daywear • Special Occasions • Shoes • Hats
Gifts and Accessories • Sizes 10–20
all your wardrobe ever needs...
59-61station road, Cheadle hulme, Cheshire sK8 7aa
t: 0161 485 3331 www.andreaclaire.co.uk
s
a
m
t
s
i
r
Ch list
htiretat for her...
A
One shoulder, metallic look dress £120 Vera Mont
M&S Autograph Bagnette Bracelet Watch £45
Cocoon Coat £199 Mint Velvet
NW3 by Hobbs Astra court shoe £99
Hobbs London Filey bag £249
Cable cardigan £215
www.beaumontorganic.com
Jackie bag handmade from the finest materials, with
luxurious leather detailing £149.00
Ladies Pink Label shirt. Classically tailored women’s
blouse creading a subtle silhouette whilst exuding
modern elegance £79.00
Hawes & Curtis, Trafford Centre
Quilted Biker Jacket
Hand crafted, premium New Zealand Lambs
Leather.
As seen on Frankie Sandford from the Saturdays.
£369 www.bodaskins.com
Light taupe pad bra £22.50
Brazilian knicker £12.50
lace wrap £39.50
Autograph at M&S
l
23
t
a
e
A tr
for ...
him
Bluebeard Deluxe Shaving Gift Set
£35 www.bluebeards-revenge.co.uk
Vintage Harrington Leather Jacket.
A must for Manchester City football fans
Signed by several Manchester City players. £175
www.il2l.com
Lumix TZ30 Digital Camera £299.99
www.panasonic.co.uk
The Yes/No game travel tin £8 House of Fraser
Fairisle Print Sweater £32 Next
Silk Rich Diamond Glitter Bow Tie £9.50 M&S
Gents JURA watch. Swiss made, automatic, leather
strap, 21 jewels within the movement, rose gold
plated case, skeleton dial, sapphire glass.
£425
www.rotarywatches.com
Marcel Wanders Leather Holdall £179 M&S
Elemis Jet Set Travel Collection
£48 John Lewis, Debenhams, Harvey Nichols
For
insta
luxu nt
ry...
Jo Malone Christmas Cracker
Pomegranate Noir - Body & Hand Wash 15ml
Lime Basil & Mandarin - Cologne 9ml
Orange Blossom - Body Crème 15ml
£28
www.jomalone.co.uk
Philosophy Winter Escape Kit
Shampoo, shower gel, bubble bath,
body lotion and high-gloss, high-flavour lip shine.
£22 www.philosophyskincare.co.uk
Aromatherapy Associates
Bath & Shower Oils
Turn a bath or shower into a
wonderful experience.
£30
www.aromatherapyassociates.com
Gadi 21 Mineral
Mineral Nail Kit
Available in three scents.
£30 House of Fraser
Biba leopard print Vanity Case £99
House of Fraser
Clarins Odyssey Face Palette
£35 John Lewis
LIP MAESTRO
A Giorgio Armani Revolution in Lip Colour
More radiant than a matte lipstick, more
sophisticated than a gloss. A luxurious, velvet
texture that glides onto lips for 4-dimensional
colour. £25
Aura by SWAROVSKI
Christmas Gift Set
Eau de Parfum, perfumed body cream and black,
elegant evening clutch bag.
£44 Stockists nationwide
Elemis
Pro-Collagen Advanced Eye Treatment £35
Pro-Intense Lift Effect £55
Available from most department stores
l
25
k
n
i
r
d
,
t
Ea be
andrry!
me
Champagne Flute Vase (set of 6) £22 Next
Food Hamper from a selection
at Debenhams
JAMES MARTIN
Slow Cooking
James shows how cooking slowly is the perfect
way to draw out flavours and textures to produce
mouth watering dishes, with minimum effort.
£15 Booths, Media City & Amazon
Buffalo Trace Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
£24.95 Harrods, Harvey Nichols
Bloom London Dry Gin
£28.99 Waitrose, Harvey
Nichols, Booths
BakerDays
Letterbox Cakes
Nando’s Bucket £22.50
Debenhams
Salvi’s Deli
Christmas Food Hamper
Includes pasta, chocolate & condiments
From £35 Corn Exchange, Manchester
SIGG New Active Top Bottle
Brand new drinking system
From £16.99 www.sigg.com
Treat someone special this Christmas with a
personalised BakerDays Letterbox Cake
Choose your recipe (double chocolate chip,
Madeira, fruit, carrot and gluten-free) and then
make it truly unique by uploading your shot and
message.
From £14.99 for a petite postable cake.
www.bakerdays.com
Gear 4 HouseParty Portable
Wireless app-enhanced home speaker
£129.99 www.gear4.com
Exci
ting
extra
s!
M&S Hedgehog House £19.50
Three 40 minute golf lessons
with Matthew Turnock PGA Pro
From £27.50 Call 07774 132 382 for info
Give the gift of life
SkyCig e-cigarettes are designed to simulate the
act of smoking tobacco without the 4,000 harmful
chemicals found in traditional cigarettes. A much
healthier alternative to smoking.
From £19.99 www.skycig.co.uk
All-In-One from
£12 M&S
J by Jasper Conran dress and hat £20-£22
Debenhams
Grey Colour
Block Shirt £14
Glitter boots from £18
Snowflake lights £9.50 M&S
Quarkie Headphones
Designer headphones with amazing sound
and great noise isolation.
£69 www.quarkie.com
Autograph
Shirt & Cord tie
from £12 M&S
l
27
people
Take the North Road
Shropshire moves
from Staffordshire
to Cheshire.
Micro computer and self taught BASIC
programming language skills, Ed had
probably already designed Version 1 of
Aquarium. Even though he didn’t realise
it yet.
National rowing champion
He passed his ‘O’ and ‘A’ Levels with flying
colours and even created a computer
training program to help monitor his
progress in his favourite past-time of
rowing. The ‘Eight’ was his chosen
Class, winning the national rowing
championships at 16 and again at 18. He
represented Great Britain at the World
Championships in Banyoles, Spain in 1991
and came pretty close to becoming a
competitive rower full-time. But that was
not to be, and Aquarium would ultimately
be the winner.
W
e caught up with local
businessman Edward (Ed)
Shropshire, Managing
Director of Hale based Aquarium
Software Limited. From humble
beginnings in 2006, Aquarium is now
taking the insurance and legal sector
by storm both at home and abroad,
so we thought we’d find out how a
Cheshire firm goes about becoming
a world leader, and discover a bit
about one of the key people behind
the company.
acre family farm. Ed knew from an early
age that wellies and tractors while good
fun to a point, were not really for him.
He wanted something more structured
and something less exposed to so many
random external forces. As he says: “You
put all of your effort into the business and
watch the English summer wash away all
your hard work.”
Always one to make the best of whatever
is dealt him, Ed soon found a niche for
himself by helping his Dad set up internal
processes and systems to control and
Born in Wolverhampton when it was still manage everything - from ordering feed,
part of Staffordshire, Ed is the second of stock rotation, invoicing, staffing levels
four siblings who all grew up on the 500- and cattle locations - using his then BBC
Ed was offered a place at Nottingham
University, which at the time was the home
of British rowing, and began his studies
in earnest in the autumn of ’92, having
spent a year working for an engineering
firm in Germany, and commenced
his MEng in Electrical and Electronic
Engineering. It seemed a logical course,
given the balance of theoretical science
with practical application that the course
offered. As if an MEng wasn’t enough,
Ed threw in German too. This elongated
the course to four years and enabled Ed
to spend a sandwich year studying at
Ilmenau University of Technology in the
east of Germany.
Scary stuff
Ed’s technical grounding had served him
really well. He left University and took
a job as technical consultant initially
for Logica. His first project took him
straight back out to Germany. “It was the
obvious thing to do, said Ed. “I enjoyed
working with computers, I spoke and
wrote fluent German and their economy
people
was quite buoyant, so off I went. Ed
subsequently worked for Harness Software
in Manchester, then in 2006, Michael
Goldstone - the former owner of Harness
- contacted Ed to discuss a brand new
opportunity, and to try and get him to buy
into the vision that was Aquarium. Plucking
up the courage and strength that had made
Ed a pretty impressive international rower,
he jumped at the chance. With Michael’s
financial backing and full support, Ed took
on the role of IT and Operations Director at
the new company. It was tailor made for
him. There was no looking back as he threw
himself into what would be a marathon
rather than a sprint.
Courageous enterprise
“This was a really big risk to take, looking
back on it,” said Ed. “Moving from a steady,
safe job in a large organisation is a difficult
thing to do. Especially when there are no
guarantees and much of the success of
the future enterprise stands or falls by
your own contribution. That’s pretty scary
stuff.” However the opportunity to look
at how software is used by businesses
and to develop new and innovative ways
of improving the whole experience is not
something that comes along every day.
I was sick of seeing large organisations
selling ill-fitting expensive software that
never lived up to their hype – all sales talk
and no delivery. I really hate that approach
in all walks of life. I believed that software
could be done differently: smarter, better,
more intuitively – and all for less money.
This was my big chance to prove it.”
Ed’s mission for Aquarium was that rather
than bombarding the business user with
mountains of printed reports telling them
what had happened, he would just give
them a single page report telling them
what hadn’t occurred – this is called ‘
management by exception’. Ed thereby
proved once again to be an exceptional
individual, as he was about 20 years
ahead of his time with this concept when
he first thought of it. Now he could put it
into action. In 2008 Ed was promoted to
Managing Director. He doesn’t see himself
as a natural MD but these sentiments
are certainly not shared by his team and
clients. “Ed is a brilliant person to work
for; he brings humour, compassion and
professionalism combined with technical
insight to every business situation, which
is an extremely rare, if not unique blend of
talents and attributes in the modern era,”
said long-time friend and colleague, Mark
Colonnese, Aquarium’s Sales & Marketing
Director who also previously worked with
Ed at Logica.
Hale software business
success story gathers pace
Aquarium has gone from strength to
strength under the guidance of Ed, turning
over in excess of £2M per annum (and
rising) with a loyal, technical staff of
around 20. Aquarium has major clients in
diverse areas such as local government,
education, accountancy, legal, and the
insurance sectors. Ed is always pushing
the perceived boundaries into new
industries, and looking for opportunities
to develop Aquarium’s portfolio and client
offering. Anyone that needs to manage
a business process from enquiry through
to customer or client delivery can benefit
from Aquarium, and much is being done by
Ed and his team to help communicate that
message to a plethora of business types.
The future looks rosy for Aquarium with
business process software being flavour of
the day. “Every company in every industry
and profession needs to reduce cost,
improve efficiencies and monitor risk; this
is what Aquarium does day in day out for
all its clients,” says Ed.
So what does the future hold for Aquarium
and Ed? ”That would be telling”, he smiles,
wryly. “We have just come back from
visiting potential clients in Canada, and
the US, and are due to visit the UAE very
soon.” This doesn’t mean Aquarium will
lose sight of its core business here in the
UK. “On the contrary. We will always be
committed to the UK market and are now
experiencing tremendous growth in the
Insurance sector”, Ed adds.
Ed Shropshire is married to wife Amanda.
The couple live in Didsbury and they
recently celebrated their 10th anniversary.
They have two lovely children, Grace
(9) and Mackenzie (6) who attend
Beaver Road Primary in Didsbury.
“They are brilliant children, bright,
talented and always hugely entertaining,”
says Ed, but he admits to “always being
a little bit pleased to get back to the
office on Monday morning for a well
earned rest!”
[email protected]
0161 927 5620
Aquarium Software Limited
www.aquarium-software.com
l
29
health&beauty
F
EE O
THR BEST
THE
1
1> Dior 5 Couleurs Eyeshadow, £40, is their best-selling eye
palette containing long-wearing, rich, seductive colours that
are perfect for the party season.
3
2> Yves Saint Laurent Cream Eyeliner, £22, intensifies the
look and plays with colour reflections. Available in six shades.
3> Laura Mercier Corner Faux Eyelashes, £14.50, are a
must-have! These easy-to-use lashes are for the outer corner
of the eye creating the illusion of ‘cat eyes’. Purrrrfect!
2
beauty
notebook
MONTHLY
MUST-HAVE
s Benefit High Beam, £18.50, is the celebrity
make-up artist’s secret! This soft-focus sheen
creates a young, radiant, fresh complexion on all
skin tones and is great for cheekbones.
It’s that time of year again to look flirty, flawless and
fabulous, and there are some great products at John
Lewis that will add that little extra to your party look...
one
of my
Favourites
v Guerlain Midnight Secret Late Night Recovery
Treatment, £64.50, has been hailed as a wonder product
for years. Apply after a late-night out before bed and your
skin will appear radiant and rested the following morning
For beauty
advice cont
act:
Rebecca Slat
er, Beauty
Advisor at Jo
hn Lewis,
Cheadle. Em
ail:
beautyadviso
r_cheadle
@johnlewis
.co.uk
Prestigious hairdressers
Percy & Read have some
great volumising hair
products to choose from...
r Smoothed, Sealed & Sensational
Volumising No Oil for Fine Hair,
£14 nourishes and repairs hair giving
smooth, silky locks while adding
volume.
r Abundantly Bouncy Volumising
Mousse, £12, is great for those
looking for extreme
lasting hold without the stickiness. r
Superstar Supersized
Bodifying Cream,
£14, gives sexy, bouncy and
fun hair.
Love your legs again
with Spire Manchester Vein Centre
ClariVein® – a new treatment for varicose veins
Spire Manchester Hospital has
introduced a new, minimally invasive
treatment for varicose veins called
ClariVein®.
This new treatment is:
• safe and effective
• offers rapid return to normal activities
• involves minimal pain and discomfort*
*Pain level <1 during & post procedure, Dr Michel Reijnen, European Society
of Vascular Surgery, 2011
Local expert
An initial consultation
with our specialist Mr
Ferdinand SerracinoInglott, will include a
scan to pinpoint your
problem and costs £200.
“There was no pain either during or after the
procedure and no bruising.”
Fi, Manchester
Isn’t it time you loved your legs again?
For further information, or to book
a consultation, call
0161 232 2303 or email
[email protected]
After which you will be guided through your
treatment options. Our menu of prices is fixed,
with no hidden extras.
Spire Manchester Hospital, Russell Road, Whalley Range, Manchester, M16 8AJ
Spire Manchester Clinic Hale, 159 Ashley Road, Hale, WA15 9SF
www.spiremanchester.com
health&beauty
Festive
fun time
Beauty
specials
I’m Emma, Hale
resident and owner
of the fabulous
Perfection Hair
& Beauty.
This is my column in which I’ll be giving
hints and tips to ladies who lunch, yummy
mummies and girls about town who never
want to look anything less than a perfect 10!
The holidays are coming ladies, so I’ve
decided to deck my halls good and proper.
But remember, looking good is for life, not
just for Christmas! As such, I’ve given
Perfection HQ its biggest makeover to date,
just in time to give you lot some fab new
looks for the New Year.
Whatever your Yuletide needs, we have the
finest team of stylists and beauticians for all
your party preparations. From spray tans to
blow waves, to manicured fingers, we can
help you to match your Christmas party
dresses.
Full body massage £25
Half-leg wax £15.50
Bikini line £14
Brazilian wax £22
HD brows £35
Nails
Spray tan £17.50
Spa manicure £15
Spa pedicure £25
Shellac manicure
(with soak off) £27
Full set of acrylic £35
Come and see the new
Perfection Manicure & Nail Bar
Come in and check out our 12 new hair
stations and two new beauty rooms. Plus you’ll
love hanging out in Hale’s first-ever nail bar!
I’m loving our new look so much, I think
everyone deserves a revamp – new year,
new you and all that. So I’ve decided to treat
all our clients to a 50%-off voucher to spend
in January when visiting the salon throughout
December. Drop in and grab yours! Well, it is
Christmas after all!
As party season is approaching fast, noone wants to come down with the dreaded
lurgy! Well, one treatment that’s guaranteed
to boost your energy levels and immune
system is the much-hyped vitamin drip. I’ve
got myself booked in at re-enhance in Hale,
the only clinic in the north west that does
them!
Speaking of the party season, I recently
attended a launch party for the Ski Club –
Beauty
Manchester’s first VIP après ski. The new
venue opened recently, so I thought I’d
try my luck on the piste! I must admit,
the ambience wasn’t quite the Val D’isere
retreat I’d hoped for, but we still managed
to enjoy a cheeky cocktail. Definitely
worth checking out when you’re next in
Spinningfields.
Emma x
PS Once you’ve read me, pass me on to
your friends!
Follow me on twitter @perfectionhale
Perfection
Hair & Beauty
28 Park Road
Hale WA15 9NN
0161 928 0526
www.perfectionbeauty.co.uk
The experts in Eye Care
Optegra consultations now available at Wilmslow Health
Centre, Optegra Prospect Eye Clinic Altrincham and
Optegra Manchester Eye Hospital Didsbury.
Call us for details on 0161 240 0700 or 0808 163 8984
Vision experts
Medical experts
Cosmetic experts
Laser eye surgery
Cataracts, Dry eye
Hooded eyelids
Clarivu™
Macular degeneration
Eyelid lifts & Bags
Total Vision Correction
Glaucoma & Retinal
Blemish & Cyst removal
optegra.com
health&beauty
Healthy
joints
More than seven million
adults in the UK
(15% of the population)
have long-term health
problems due to arthritis
and related conditions.
In the absence of arthritis it is still
important to try and keep your joints
in good working order with regular
exercise and a healthy diet. Keeping
to an ideal weight can also help take
pressure off your joints.
There is a lot of debate about whether
what you eat affects symptoms of
arthritis. Some people feel that their
symptoms are improved by avoiding
certain food, such as the nightshade
family of vegetables (tomatoes,
aubergine, peppers), dairy or wheat.
However, you should never omit
important food groups without the advice
of a nutritional therapist or you may lack
important nutrients.
The Nutritional
Therapist
Celia Cooper
BSc Nutritional Medicine,
MBANT
There are also foods that could help
reduce pain and inflammation for
some people.
wOmega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids,
contained in oily fish, could ease the
symptoms of inflammatory arthritis.
Essential fatty acids are believed to
reduce the process of inflammation
and subsequent joint damage. You
should try to eat oily fish twice a week
or take a supplement. Flax seeds or
flax oil are good vegetarian sources.
wEating plenty of vegetables and
fruit will provide antioxidants; these
limit the action of free radicals, which
destroy healthy cells, exacerbating
damage at inflamed sites.
wInclude calcium, magnesium and
vitamin D to keep the bones strong.
Green leafy vegetables are a good
source in addition to low-fat dairy
sources.
wNatural spices such as curcumin
(found in turmeric) and ginger may be
effective in reducing inflammation and
pain. Bromelain from pineapples may
also help.
You should always consult your GP or a
nutritional therapist before making any
significant changes to your diet.
Fresh Ginger Tea
Ingredients
(makes 2 cups)
• 2 cups water
• ½ inch (2cm) piece of root
• ½ tsp grated nutmeg
• 2 tbsp orange juice
• Honey or agave nectar (optional)
Method
1. Thinly slice or grate the root and put in
a saucepan with the water and add the
nutmeg. Bring to the boil, simmer for 2-3
minutes then turn off the heat
2. Add the orange juice and let steep (sit)
for 5-10 minutes
3. Pour through a tea strainer and enjoy!
4. Add some honey or agave if you like
your tea a bit sweeter.
“Our
vision is
t
the care hat
the
elite sp
orts per
s
receive
s should on
be
availab
le to
you”
Need to see an
Orthopaedic specialist?
Check LiTsrtip
for Ski
Passport 
Tickets
ts 
Skis & Helme
Kids? 
mber 
Orth Team Nu
Shoulder
Elbow
Hand & Wrist
Hip
is a group of established dynamic
Orthopaedic Consultants from the Greater
Manchester area, who have teamed up to provide a
high quality of Orthopaedic care in Manchester.
Based out of BMI The Alexandra Hospital,
aim to
ensure that your injury or problem is dealt with expediently by
a super-specialist in that area of the body.
All our Consultant Surgeons are Fellowship trained in their
area of special interest.
Knee
Foot & Ankle
work regularly. Our commitment to education allows us to
present locally to GP’s and physiotherapists as well as invited
lectures around the UK, Europe and the United States.
Whist we treat many patients with common orthopaedic
problems, our group has developed a super-specialist
interest in treating elite sports injuries. As a group we provide
Orthopaedic advice and care to many of the countries
professional Football, Rugby and Cricket Teams, and also
to the English Institute of Sport Squads, including Olympic
athletes from a variety of sports.
At
we believe in providing a professional level
of patient care from the moment you make contact with us to
the day you are discharged
Injured abroad? Need help?
All our surgeons are experts in minimally invasive and
arthroscopic surgery. We undertake research and publish our
0800 328 2975
07732 247 247
Call the
on
(Emergencies only)
Goodbye glasses Hello Clarivu
Clarivu and Optegra are registered trademarks used with permission
™
The alternative to laser eye surgery for the over 50s
Clarivu is a proven and permanent lens replacement procedure that can
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call us free or visit our website
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Meet the experts at an open evening near you
World-class eye hospitals. Expert eye care.
Christmas
retox/detox
T
his festive season rather than
overindulging on an abundance
of rich food and drink that leaves
you feeling hungover, sluggish, bloated
and toxic, arm yourself with a few super
foods that will increase your health and
vitality. Begin 2013 with a spring in your
step and the same weight as before the
season began.
Raw Chi hangover cure
Baobab fruit powder
Alcohol strips our body of nutrients. By adding
a teaspoon of baobab powder to a glass of
water each day you can assist your body’s
recovery. The powder contains a wealth of
nutrients, such as calcium, potassium and
six times more vitamin C than an orange. It
also contains high levels of antioxidants. This
super food is my saviour if I ever overindulge.
Raw Chi stress-buster
Brazil nuts
Brazil nuts, a Christmas favourite, are high in
monosaturated fats, which help to lower LDL
(bad cholesterol) and increase HDL (good
cholesterol) – a vital support when
overindulging. Brazil nuts are the number one
source of selenium, which helps to maintain
your mood and prevent depression. Just four
brazil nuts a day give your recommended
daily intake of selenium, your very own
natural antidepressant. Selenium also helps
to prevent heart diseases, liver cirrhosis,
and cancers, and promotes increased brain
function.
Regulate your metabolism
Raw chocolate (cacao)
Switch to pure raw chocolate this Christmas
and note the difference to your health. With
neurotransmitters dopamine, serotonin and
PEA, Christmas cheer will be ever-resent.
Raw chocolate can reduce your stress levels
and regulate your metabolism, assisting
with natural weight loss. It is also one of
the highest sources of magnesium on the
planet, which is good for brain function, blood
pressure and bone health.
By being mindful of the foods you eat in
the run-up to Christmas, and increasing
your intake of super foods, you will notice a
difference for the better.
For super foods and raw chocolate-making
kit, go to www.shop.rawchifood.com
and exclusive to magazine readers enjoy a
seasonal discount of 10% (discount code
Salutions)
Photography by Jo Doran
l
37
health&beauty
The Private GP & Night Doctor Service
“Peace of mind for you and
your family, at all times”
• 24 hrs a day - 7 days a week
• Personal and conﬁdential
• Covering Hale, Wilmslow,
Dr Bruce Jobling
Didsbury and their surrounding areas
• Night and weekend home visits
• Early or late same day appointments
• Registration fee from £15 per month
plus consultation fees
• You can remain with your NHS GP
• Additional surgery in Hale opening soon
If this service is of interest
to you or your family,
please contact us to register.
READER
OFFER
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0161 980 2626
The Surgery, 96 Church Road, Gatley, Cheshire, SK8 4NQ
[email protected]
www.NightDoctor.co.uk
Manchester
ENT Clinic
Jo Pallan One of the UK’s leading specialists in eyebrow threading.
Nicky Clarke, The Avenue, Spinningfields, Manchester, M3 3FL
www.jopallan.com t @jopallan
“Caring for all your ear, nose
and throat needs”
T: 0800 656 9609
www.manchesterentclinic.co.uk
based at The Alexandra Hospital, Cheadle
health&beauty
It seems there is a
growing epidemic
out there in control
of people’s lives.
Why is it so difficult to
choose new glasses!
Every day an increasing number of
people walk through our door and
blurt out “I find it so difficult choosing
new glasses!” It’s understandable
too, because most people can’t see
without their spectacles on (well,
that’s obvious!). So trying a new
frame on and looking in the mirror is
a bit of a blur.
I liken this to when I go for a haircut. All the
while my stylist James is snipping away
and chatting; I can’t really tell what he’s
doing, because I don’t have my spectacles
on. It’s only once I’ve been brushed and
coiffed that I reach for my specs and see
the result of his work. Fortunately for me,
I’m always pleased with what he does. So
that got me thinking. I can’t be the only one
who has this problem at the hairdressers,
yet no one ever talks about it because
most people trust their hairdresser more
than they trust their doctor. Hair stylists
have long been trained to deal with this
trust by offering clear advice on style
and discussing the client’s individual hope in an oversized brand name on the
requirements before the first snip is made. side of a frame being enough to assure the
wearer they look great.
Yet with opticians and spectacles, people
find it so difficult to choose - and we Seen is all about finding superior and original
believe that’s because most opticians eyewear from around the globe and being
do not discuss style or individuality. the first to bring it to the North of England.
Therefore, style-conscious clients lack We work closely with leading eyewear
trust in their ability to style them, and – to designers from across the world, and these
our amusement – most opticians put their tend to be good independent brands.
Seen has been my choice
of opticians for the last
few years. They stock
a fantastic range of
designer brands and
make choosing frames
extremely easy.
BEVERLEY, DIDSBURY MAGAZINE
Every member of the Seen team is
passionate about what we do and we think
of ourselves as professionals and stylists.
Over seven years our client base has
grown because of the trust we’ve gained
from our clients, and the friends they refer
to us. We have become the place to go if
you want to look great in glasses - and we
don’t take that lightly. We work very hard to make sure that when
someone walks through our door and says
“I find it so hard choosing new glasses”
we can delight them with how easy it is to
find the perfect style of eyewear, so that
next time they walk in they say “Ok, what
should I go for this time?” Seen Opticians
6 St Ann’s Arcade, St Ann’s Square,
Manchester M2 7HN
Tel 0161 835 2324 www.seen.co.uk
l
39
If you have a Knee
problem, consult one
of the UK’s leading
Knee Specialists
Consultations now
available at The new
Spire Clinic in Hale
Skiing Injury? For quick effective treatment
contact the kneedoc.....it’s all you need to know.
The Knee Doc Consultant:
Treatments available:
•UK and US trained, Consultant Orthopaedic Knee
•Arthroscopic (keyhole) surgery
•Ligament reconstruction (anterior cruciate ligament, ACL)
•Minimally Invasive Knee Replacement Surgery
and Sport Injury surgeon who has worked with
the NFL and NBA teams
•Honorary clinical lecturer at the University of Manchester
•International and national speaker on knee problems
and sports injuries
•Looks after elite and professional athletes
•Team Surgeon for GB Olympic Wrestling Team
•Sports Medicine Consultant for
- which can allow you to leave hospital rapidly,
often within 2-3 days
•State of the art Arthritis treatments available.
2002 commonwealth games
The Knee Doc... it’s all you need to know
Consultations available at:
Contact details:
For further information or to book a consultation:
• Alexandra Hospital, BMI
• Bridgewater Hospital
• Spire, Hale
• Ramsay, Oakland
• Spire Manchester
• Telephone: 0161 445 4988
• Web: www.thekneedoc.co.uk
• Email: [email protected]
Mr Sanjiv Jari,
Consultant Knee,
Lower Limb & Orthopaedic
Sports Medicine Surgeon
Let’s get
physical
people
I
quite liked the idea of a personal
trainer, with early-morning runs,
healthy eating plans and, of course,
a body to die for! So off I went to meet
Sarah Stemp…
Sarah is a part-time personal trainer and
director of leisure consultancy company,
Pro Leisure LLP. She wields a wealth of
health and fitness experience and is ready
to unleash it here in Manchester.
Leaving the glistening heights of the
BBC just over a year ago, Sarah took the
brave step into business independence,
setting up shop in the leafy suburbs of
Manchester, after a leisure and fitness
career spanning more than twenty years.
She is on a mission to bring fitness to
those in need of a change. Boy, did I need
a change. I’d start most days with a slice
of toast, a boiled egg and a cup of tea. I’m
not much of a mid-morning snacker, but
the nature of my job meant lunch could be
11.30am or 3.15pm, and usually involved a
drive-in of some description or a full-blown
three courses, and my evening meal could
be as late as 10pm – and no exercise.
“I treat every client as an individual and I
start from scratch with them, developing
a programme that is tailored to suit their
needs. I really try to understand what
people’s goals are to make sure I get the
best out of them,” says Sarah. “I’m really
passionate about active health, healthy
lifestyle and the impact it has on you.”
Getting the best out of people is what
Sarah does naturally. My first instructions
were to keep a diary of what I consumed
on a daily basis. This can be really scary
once you see what you actually put into
your body.
“Sometimes the target may just be for
the client to start to take control of their
wellbeing, which then leads to a sense
of achievement that may have been
missing for sometime,” Sarah says. “We
agree targets and use a variety of training
techniques to help you get there.”
So why go to Sarah? It could be anything
from simply wanting to get into better
shape, or to improve your health for longterm medical benefit. She’s happy to work
with clients from her base at Didsbury
Personal Training Company on Kingsway,
or in the privacy of your own home.
“Salim came to me with all kinds of
reasons to get fit, take control of his life,
and to spend time with his kids and feel
a sense of achievement,” explains Sarah.
She adds: “Sometimes it can be
something that has happened to a person
that has made them want to make a big
change in their life.
“It could also be health-related. It could be
that somebody wants to lose weight for a
special occasion, or they’re finding it hard
to maintain their weight as they get older.
“Well I can honestly say I’ve never felt
better. I’m working hard and I do have
Taking control of your
wellbeing, leads to a
sense of achievement
that may have been
missing for sometime
lapses, but as long as I get back on track,
that’s the main thing,” added Salim.
“Not everybody opens up straight away,
or tells me what I need to know, either
because they feel shy, or because they
don’t think it’s relevant,” Sarah says.
“I’m not there to pass judgment; I’m there
to try and put something together that will
really help you – it’s best to be as honest as
possible. I have no interest in getting people
to come to me if it’s not going to benefit
them – that would be a waste of their time
and money.”
Word Salim Uddin-Khandakar
e
For a faretio
n
consultrah on
call Sa
6257
07545 69
or email
pt.co.uk
@didsbury .uk
p
m
te
s
h
ra
sa
burypt.co
www.dids
l
41
Ask the experts
CHLOE THOMPSON
Senior Colour Director at Sassoon
VIRGIN ACTIVE
HEALTH CLUBS
Get you free day pass
Just call Andy Gleave
0161 249 5610
email [email protected]
My hair is bleached blonde
all over. I am worried about
the condition. Should I still
be having my hair coloured?
I would advise you to use
intensive treatments before
having your hair recoloured. My
personal favourites are Sassoon
Professional Illuminating Restore
and PhilIp Kingsley’s Elasticizer.
This will improve the condition
before your next colour. If your
hair is highly bleached and
starting to break off, then maybe
you should give your hair a rest
and seek a colourist’s advice
before recolouring. Until the hair
improves in condition, bleaching
again is not advisable. If the
condition has not improved
after a course of treatments,
you could then move on to a
high-lift tint; it is much kinder to
the hair and eventually your hair
will get stronger. Always make
sure your colourist tests the
hair again before recolouring
to ensure the strength and
condition is okay.
I have natural brown hair
and would like to have my
hair coloured for winter.
What would you suggest?
You have a few options: you
could go for an overall colour
created by a permanent
hair colour, Quasi Colour,
which gradually fades out in
approximately 24 shampoos.
Also, a good introduction to
colour that is low maintenance
would be a colour enhancer.
You can go darker and warmer.
This gives incredible shine
and condition but it’s not
permanent and washes out in
6-8 shampoos. Another option
would be different tones, which
would be created by either
weaved lowlights or slices
(which are slightly thicker)
through the hair. These are also
low maintenance and could last
up to three months.
I am a natural blonde but I
am starting to go slightly
grey. I would like to start to
colour my hair. What advice
would you give me?
Depending on the amount of
grey there are a few options.
If you would like to cover the
grey completely, then I would
advise a full head colour slightly
lighter than your natural shade.
When you start to go grey your
skin tone changes, so it is softer
if you go for a lighter shade.
Also, with the full head colour
you could break this up with
a few highlights in different
tones and shades. However, if
you only have a few grey hairs
and just want to blend them, I
would advise different tones of
highlights.
For a FREE colour
consultation please
pop into the
Sassoon Salon,
1 Marsden Street,
Manchester M2 1HW.
We would love to meet you.
Tel: 0161 827 7140
Need to see an Orthopaedic specialist?
Shoulder • Elbow • Hand & Wrist
Hip • Knee • Foot & Ankle
“Our vision is that the care we give to our elite sports teams
should be available to you.”
Consultant Surgeons
❍ Nick Phillips
Shoulder & Elbow
❍ Adam Hoad-Reddick
Hip & Knee
❍
❍
Len Funk
Shoulder & Elbow
Jon Borrill
Hip & Knee
❍
❍
Matt Ravenscroft
Shoulder & Elbow
Philip Turner
Knee
❍
❍
Mike Hayton
Hand, Wrist & Elbow
Sanjay Anand
Knee
❍
❍
❍
For all your Orthopaedic problems please call OrthTeam on:
Adam Watts
Elbow, Hand & Wrist
Tim Board
Hip & Knee
Tim Clough
Foot & Ankle
0800 328 2975 www.orthteam.com
The Alexandra Hospital, Mill Lane, Cheadle, Cheshire, SK8 2PX
Shockwave treatment
for erectile dysfunction
at Spire Manchester Hospital
ED1000 is a new treatment
which aims to bring
improvement in erectile
function.
Erectile dysfunction (ED) is a very
common problem. It is thought to
affect 30-45% of 40 -70 year old
men to some degree.
ED is often caused by reduced
blood flow in the penis. This new
treatment delivers low-intensity
shockwaves which stimulate the
growth of new micro blood vessels,
enabling the patient to achieve and
maintain erections.
For more information please call
0161 232 2303 or email
[email protected]
www.spiremanchester.com
Russell Road, Whalley Range, Manchester, M16 8AJ
travelEvian-les-Bains
Jill Nash tastes, swims and spas in Evian to
see if the health benefits are true...
Live young
in Evian
h
Dr Jill Nas sed
-b
e
ir a
is a Chesh el journalist
tr
nt av
independe r of guidebook
and owne pany ‘Luxury
com
publishing rs’. For more
ke
c
a
p
k
Bac
elling
her best-s
f
o
s
il
ta
de
it
is
v
s
guidebook ckers.com
urybackpa
www.lux
travelEvian-les-Bains
The clear, cold waters
at Evian are legendary
for their health and
beauty benefits. In the
centre of Evian lies the
world-famous ‘Source
Cachet’ a fountain of
fresh (and free) Evian,
which locals use to fill
up their bottles.
Explore
Evian-les-Bains is a delightful small town, lying
on the Swiss-French border, made famous for
its premium water brand, Evian. The châteaudotted surrounds, the fresh mountain air, and
its lakeside setting promote a genuine feeling
of wellbeing. In the days when Marcel Proust
came to enjoy the Belle Epoque grandeur,
Evian was the haunt of the very rich. Proust
modelled his ‘Balbec baths’ on Evian’s. Today,
the spa, with its promenade and elegant
casino, attracts a broader range of guests it’s not just for the rich any more.
The clear, cold waters at Evian are legendary
for their health and beauty benefits. In the
centre of Evian lies the world-famous ‘Source
Cachet’ a fountain of fresh (and free) Evian,
which locals use to fill up their bottles. No
one who lives in Evian pays for Evian. The
source was founded in 1790 by the Marquis
de Lessert, who suffered from kidney stones
and believed the properties found in the local
spring water helped aid his recovery. By
drinking this you automatically feel energised,
whether it’s due to its light, balanced
composition or the fact that it’s fresh virgin
water, I’m not sure.
For Evian aficionados you can bathe in it too.
At Les Thermes Evian, visitors can indulge in
a daylong thermale, which provides access
to the saunas, steam baths, massages, and
water from the Evian springs to swim in.
Depending on the programme you select, you
will spend anything between 45€ to 165€.
The most unusual treatment on the menu is a
massage, while lying under an Evian shower.
www.lesthermesevian.com
surroundings are much more contemporary,
yet still the service is something to be
expected from a Michelin starred restaurant.
www.evianroyalresort.com
Those keen on fresh mountain air won’t be
disappointed either. With an abundance
of outdoor activities on the doorstep of the
Evian resort, such as skiing, sledging and
hiking, there is something for everyone
(including those less experienced). The
Evian resort is also home to the official
Evian Masters course, a sublime 148 acres
of stunning wooded terrain, a training
centre and a putting and pitching green.
www.evianmastersexperience.com
Hotel Ermitage, one of the three properties at
the Evian resort, is friendly, warm and inviting.
The rooms - mostly lake views - have recently
been given a modern makeover using natural
elements, such as pebbles, slate, and wood
finishings in the bedroom and bathroom. The
in-house spa, aptly named ‘Le Spa Quatre
Terres’ is simply divine. It offers a vast
selection of expert treatments, such as body
salt scrubs and Peruvian volcano massages,
based upon clay, precious stones, crystals
and rich oils. Room rates are from 272€ per
room per night, inclusive of bed and breakfast.
www.evianroyalresort.com
Dine
Dining options at the Evian resort are plentiful.
Dine on beef tartare and wok cuisine at one
of Evian’s stunning restaurants La Suite,
located at the Royal Hotel, an outstanding
landmark palace. Its grand entrance and
antique furniture make you feel like you are
on the set of a romantic French film. You need
to dress up here, and prepare to be served
haute cuisine with a white glove service in an
unpretentious setting.
Stay
Getting there
easyjet and Lufthansa offer regular direct
flights from Manchester to Geneva from
£65 per person return. The Evian resort is a
50-minute transfer from Geneva airport.
La Table, located at the Ermitage, is an
intimate French affair, with dishes such as
fois gras and carpaccio on the menu. The
l
47
travelBonn
Bravo!
für Bonn
Bonn may have lost its capital status after
the fall of the Berlin Wall, but as Todd
Fitzgerald finds out, the city is better for it
and now finds itself the rejuvenated epitome
of German culture.
W
hen the Berlin Wall came
tumbling down in 1989, the
future of Bonn was uncertain.
However, German reunification would
prove pivotal for the city, which now
stands taller amid the cultural and
economic powers of Germany.
Home of iconic composer Ludwig van
Beethoven, Bonn celebrates the work of its
most famous son once a year – and by jove
do they get into the spirit!
The Beethovenfest is a ubiquitous force that
engulfs you the minute you arrive at Köln
Bonn Airport, and the city is awash with
tangerine orange flags and posters promoting
the four-week event.
The composer’s stern, masterful portrait is
emblazoned on just about every street corner,
and if you listen closely enough, you can
almost hear his symphony rhythm pulsate in
the heartbeat of the city walls.
Arriving at the Beethoven Hall, you cannot
help but be swept up in the drama of the
occasion. This is the highlight of the city’s
social calendar and to be among it breeds an
enormous sense of privilege.
As the powerful and impressive Esa-Pekka
Salonen conducts The London Philharmonic
Orchestra through the opening of Beethoven’s
Symphony Number 2, it’s a sound unparalleled
in any musical performance you’ve seen
before – it is quite simply breathtaking.
As each concerto movement resonates
around the spectacular hall, it’s easy to see
why his music grips this society, and why it is
celebrated so passionately.
The city itself is irrefutably beautiful – a
peaceful and charming place steeped in
history. A panoramic scene taking in the
Rhine River is a stand-out memory and is
undoubtedly the image most will take home.
The city sights easily turn hours into days and
just one visit to the quaint Brauhaus Bönnsch
beer house leaves you salivating for more.
travelBonn
Locally brewed beers abide by the
Reinheitsgebot standard, governing the purity
of German ales – and it shows. Our Deutsch
friends really do have us beaten when it
comes to a quality pint – or Maßkrug to be
more accurate – who says beer shouldn’t
come in litre servings?
Bonn’s Maritim Hotel encapsulates everything
that is great about Germany – friendly people,
sensational food and a fantastic place to
have a drink. Rooms are as lavish as they are
comfortable, and there isn’t a single mod con
unaccounted for – you will be hard pushed to
find a better stay elsewhere.
Breakfast here is when we ought to eat like
kings – and the hotel delivers this in absolute
abundance. Whether it’s a fresh pastry
and a coffee, or a full-on sausage and egg
extravaganza, the breakfast buffet won’t
leave you hungry. What sings loudest about
this typically German city is the ease with
which it blends old and new.
A must-see is Beethoven’s Bonn home – now
the most comprehensive museum of the
composer’s legacy in the world.
The modest building houses some of his
most priceless possessions, and provides a
fascinating insight into the life of one of the
world’s most celebrated classical composers.
With the giants of the corporate world –
DHL and T-Mobile – dominating the skyline,
it would be easy to mistake this place for a
cold, hard, business-led district.
It’s difficult to leave Bonn without feeling some
kind of new-found adoration for the city and
its most famous export. The Beethovenfest is
the highlight of the year and the culmination
of everything the city holds dear.
A walk into the city centre proves how wrong
that idea is, with traditional buildings sitting
effortlessly within a modern setting.
It may not be the obvious choice for a
getaway, but with its culture and splendid
history, Bonn rivals any city in the world.
Facts...
Maritim Hotels is one of Germany’s
leading hotel chains and operates 37
hotels across Germany.
Maritim Hotel Bonn features 410 rooms
and suites, two restaurants and a wellness
centre, including a swimming pool, sauna
and steam bath. Room only rates for 2012
start from just 200 euros in a double room.
For further information on Maritim Hotels
or to book a room, visit www.maritim.
com or call 0208 545 6910.
Beethovenfest 2013 will be held
from 6 September until 5 October. The
programme of Beethovenfest Bonn 2013
will be announced in March 2013. For
more information visit
http://en.beethovenfest.de/
Germanwings is one of the most
successful low-cost airline companies in
Europe, offering low-cost flights to more
than ninety destinations on the European
continent, Israel and North Africa from five
airports: Cologne/Bonn, Stuttgart, BerlinSchönefeld, Hannover and Dortmund.
The discount airline has a new fleet of 32
Airbus A319 jets. Flights from Manchester
to Cologne and London to Cologne with
Germanwings, lead in price from £29.99
www.germanwings.com/en.
l
49
home&garden
Foil snowflake
wine glass
£9.50 each M&S
Multi-coloured berry wreath
£15 M&S
Mistletoe ball £18 Next
Little extra’s that
make Christmas
extra special
Table-top tree £15
Debenhams
Santa’s laundry garland £12.50 Debenhams
‘Santa Stop Here’
chalk board £8.00 M&S
Twig candelabra £30 Next
Red Wooden advent house £30 Debenhams
6 metallic red luxury
Christmas crackers £15.00 M&S
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home&garden
BASEMENT CONVERSIONS
DRY BASEMENT STORAGE
Do you want dry basement
storage that won’t break
the bank? Why not try our
partial conversion package
that can be fully converted
at a later date.
Prices start from £1,500
Roy Nesbitt
Tel: 07921 710 563
www.bestcellarsnw.co.uk
Best Cellars North West • Unit 128 • 792 Wilmslow Rd • Didsbury • Manchester • M20 6UG
All present
and correct
home&garden
W
hat’s the worst Christmas
present you’ve ever received?”
A sea of eager hands shoot up in
the air: it’s obviously easy to get it wrong!
You see, gardeners are a very peculiar
breed – ask them to choose between
receiving a stainless steel trowel or a bottle
of scent and there’s no competition; the
trowel wins every time. But gardeners are
also very particular – we know what we
want, and what we don’t!
For years my husband used to buy me
gardening books from a remaindered book
shop – he figured that, as they were cheap,
he could buy me lots of them and I’d be
delighted – but how wrong he was. I would
open the festive wrapping only to find ‘The
Expert Mushroom Grower’ – which would
promptly find its way to the charity shop a
week later.
“I woke up on Christmas morning to find the
biggest box I’d ever seen!” remembered
Diane. “I was so excited I ripped off the
wrapping only to find it was filled with
hundreds of bulbs. My husband had gone
to the last day of the Christmas Markets
and got a job lot of bulbs at a knock down
price. Only trouble was, they were all on
the point of rotting. There was nothing
for it – I put the Christmas dinner in the
oven and had to spend the next two days
on my hands and knees digging the ruddy
things in!” Oh dear...
So the lesson is – ASK for what you want.
Novel ideas include the useful – a delivery
of a ton of well-rotted compost made
from Manchester Markets vegetable
waste (www.fairfieldcompost.co.uk).
Spread a layer around your plants and
it will gradually be taken down by the
worms, with no need to dig it in. Your
plants will love you for it.
Or even more useful – “What I really
need is a man” said Kath. “Yes, I’ll go
along with that!” said Peter perking up
considerably. What I think (and hope)
they both meant is that to have a “manwho- can” to help in the garden for a day
would be a wonderful present. Just think
of those difficult jobs that could be done
without moaning or mishap? - Ladder
work pruning climbers and trees, moving
big shrubs, digging over compacted soil
under trees etc. All you have to do is ask
around for a competent gardener and book
them for a day.
But enough of useful presents! I love a bit
of bling in the garden, especially in terms
of lighting solutions. So try solar powered
garlands of twinkling lights for stringing
through a pergola, or floating tea light
baubles to add a touch of magic to a water
feature. www.crocus.com and www.
livelaughlove.com have a good selection.
Or why not buy a beautiful oversized
terracotta pot as an unplanted focal point?
You know the sort, it looks like an oil jar
and would be stunning standing in the
border surrounded by low planting. Try
www.potsandpithoi.com for pots to drool
over. It might be an extravagance, but
you’re so worth it.
Anne Britt is a garden designer.
For classes and designs contact her at
[email protected]
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home&garden
Heirloom green ornate oval mirror from
Debenhams
Faux fur drum £65 Next
Elegant
Maiko armchair in mystic velvet raisin
£399 M&S
interior buys for the
stylish home
Antler chandelier £110 Next
Glass dining table £299
M&S
Knitted Stag Head £45 Next
M&S Elegant Leaf Rug
from £59
6ft pre-lit artificial
snow effect alpine
tree £165 M&S
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A day in
the life
Rebecca Whitehead
JP & Brimelow lettings
6.30am Alarm sounds – not actually the alarm but
the sound of Sienna singing to herself – a
five-minute warning that if I don’t provide
her with a bottle in two minutes, the
delightful singing will soon be screams!
6.45am
My favourite time of the day – the peace
of feeding Sienna her morning bottle,
the lovely goo goo gaa gaas and smiles
between mother and daughter – bliss!
7am
Let the dogs out, feed the cats and make
a cup of tea while changing Sienna and
packing her bag for childcare. Childcare!
Where is she today? With a childminder,
grandma’s or nana’s?
7.45am
Phew, not late! Leave the house: baby
check, baby bag check, laptop check,
diary check, breakfast check.
7.45–8am
Drive to the childminder’s singing the
wheels on the bus go round and round.
Phone beeps – always the dread, which
member of staff is it? I have now trained
myself not to even read this until I am in
a position to deal with the information!
Drop Sienna off at the childminder’s.
8.10am
Phone alarm reminding me of today’s
appointments. Fifty minutes until I’m
at the office. Love this time – morning
meeting with self! Mentally preparing and
running through my day.
8.50am
Just made it. Parking in Didsbury a delight
as always. Park as close as possible,
while avoiding a ticket. Check for baby
sick, dog hair and cat hair, wipe down
suit. Glide into the office as if there is no
stress in the world; think they call it a
swan – calm on the surface, underneath
legs kicking at 100 miles per hour.
Rebecca Whitehead - Lettings Director
JP & Brimelow Lettings, 721 Wilmslow Road, M20 6WF T. 0161 445 2300 E. [email protected]
9am
Sit in progress meeting with team to
discuss any issues of the week: tree
fallen through a roof, tenant is in major
arrears and won’t let us gain access
and has a rottweiler (nothing against
rottweilers as I have a five-year-old one
at home). What do we do next? A tenant
complains that we will not arrange for a
contractor to change their lightbulbs for
them - no, I am not joking!
Open my emails – 83 new messages!
Well, if I delete Amazon, Travelzoo and
junk mail, it’s down to 74, which sounds
better.
B&Q course this morning – hands-on
training in plumbing at B&Q, Trafford
Park. Amazing course – feel motivated
to pull my bathroom to pieces! I thought
the course would teach me how to
change a washer in a tap. What an
underestimation! I now know how to
change a whole sink/toilet/radiator. Not
that I ever intend to, but me and my team
in the maintenance side of the business
can now give basic advice to tenants and
landlords. Before year end - electrics and
plastering!
Quick run round the three lettings offices,
all on target for the month.
New instruction in one branch, highest
rental amount we have ever had.
Quick nip into Didsbury sales, saw Nick –
loving the Movember look!
iPad training – love the new iPad system
for inventories and property visits. Life
made so easy – how did we cope with
everything on paper!
Just been reminded its 4pm and I have
a daughter to collect and a piano lesson
in an hour!
4pm
Leave for the day.
Photograph: Barry Wood
PRO TASK
Proper ty Maintenance
& Building Services
Didsbury Village Farm Shop
Your local outlet for fine meats, fresh
fruit and veg, delicious ice cream, jams
and tasty chutneys.
Home refurbishment
Plumbing & central heating
Electrical work
Kitchen installation
Bathroom & ensuite fitting
Plastering, painting & decorating
Replacement windows & doors
Loft conversions & extensions
For
more
information,
call Michael Bray
on 0161 432 3087 or
07768 710 760
www.protaskproperty.com
Free advice on:
Permitted development rights
Architectural drawings
Planning application service
Building regulation compliance
Fantastic top quality cuts of local meat from
our own Cheshire herd, plus mouth-watering
hot rotisserie chicken and meats.
Christmas Range
Available Now –
Fresh Produce for
your Christmas
Feast; excellent
Foodie gifts,
Stocking and
Hamper fillers,
Artisan Biscuits
and Chocolate.
Winners of
11 BPEX Regional
Roadshows
2012-2013,
including 7 Pork
Product Excellence
Gold Awards for
our speciality
bacon, sausages and
pastries.
737 Wilmslow Road
Didsbury, M20 6WF
theartisanmeatcompany.co.uk
home&garden
EST. 1989
PRESS ON
I M P E C C A B L E H A N D I R O N I N G S E RV I C E
Delivering to:
Alderley Edge I Altrincham I Bowdon I Bramhall I Cheadle
Didsbury I Hale I Hale Barns I Wilmslow
10%
OstFOrdFer
Fir
Call: 0161 928 4213
For collection/delivery in
WA14 & WA15
Press On ‘DRIVE IN’ Service
1b Peel Avenue, Hale
Cheshire WA14 2UG
0161 980 8043
www.pressonhale.com
For collection/delivery in
M20 SK8 & SK9
0161 485 1852
The perfect
ingredients
for your ideal kitchen
• Oak, Walnut, Beech, Maple
• High gloss finishes
• Exotic veneers
• Hand painted furniture
sty Cl
les ass
i
all avai c &
bu lab glo
dg le t ss
et o s
s u
it
• Contemporary & Classic designs
• Care, advice, consideration
• Established over 30 years
Visit us now for your no obligation
consultation, design and quote!
40 Lapwing Lane
West Didsbury M20 2WR
T : 0161 448 0956
M : 0776 6633 779
www.tarlingandtarling.com
Est 1985
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59
food&drink
Damso n
An Award-Winning
Independent,
Neighbourhood Restaurant.
“Best Chef”
Shortlisted Manchester Food and Drink
Festival 2012.
“Chef to Watch”
Raymond Blanc.
“Unfailingly delicious food”
Good Food Guide 2012
“Restaurant of the Year 2012”
‘Best Restaurant’ 2011/12,
Manchester Food & Drink
Festival, Runner Up.
Lunch and dinner served daily.
Starting at £15.95 for 2 courses.
Now the only place in the North
of England to serve the exclusive
LesDeux Barriques wine.
Readers can try a glass of one
of the world’s finest wines
for just £10.
113 Heaton Moor Road
Heaton Moor | Stockport
Cheshire | SK4 4HY
Try our Pho Vietnamese noodle
soup or Yaki Udon only available
at Didsbury Noodles
Eat in or take away
Lunch meal with drink £4.50
113 Lapwing Lane | Didsbury | M20 6UR
Call 0161 445 5735
St
0161 432 4666
[email protected]
www.damsonrestaurant.co.uk
DIDSBURY
NOODLES
ud
di en
sc ts
ou 10
nt %
Cheshire Life Awards
Steak & Lobster
@ ALTO
food&drink
Located in the shell of the former
Free Trade Hall, one of
Manchester’s most iconic buildings,
the five-star Radisson Blu
Edwardian boasts two restaurants.
A
LTO is the more
informal dining option
and Steak and Lobster
@ ALTO is its latest
incarnation. Our guest
reviewer, Helen Hewitson,
ventured into the city
The concept is simple, as the
name suggests: no menu, just a
simple choice between the two
mains, and either option for £15.
We visited the Peter Street
hotel at 7.30pm on a cold,
damp Wednesday evening.
Once a premier concert
venue and home of the Hallé
orchestra, the building opened
as a hotel in 2004. Wonderfully
restored, it functions as a
contemporary, luxury hotel,
while still maintaining the
integrity of the building’s
heritage.
The welcome was warm and
we were seated immediately
in this relaxed, stylish
80-seater restaurant located
on the ground floor. My fivefoot guest, sitting opposite me,
could barely see over the top
of the table as she sank into
the low, plush chair. Please
take note ALTO – we’re not
all giants!
No need to peruse the menu: I
ordered the 10oz ribeye steak,
medium rare and served with
garlic and chive butter. My
dining companion opted for
the lobster, which is served
whole and offered grilled or
steamed. She chose the grilled.
Selecting the wine was more
of a challenge. What does
one drink to complement both
fish and meat? The waitress
suggested a glass each of red
and white, but we decided on
a bottle of Pinot Grigio, priced
at £24.75. Clean and crisp, it
was an excellent choice.
The food arrived promptly
accompanied by bowls of fries
and dishes of dressed salad.
My steak was tender and full
of flavour, exactly as I like it.
The lobster, plainly grilled, was
sweet and melted in the mouth.
We were offered more fries and
salad, but we declined, to leave
room for dessert.
The dessert menu is short and
sweet: only three choices all
priced at a very budget-friendly
£3.75. I chose the chocolate
fudge cake with vanilla cream,
while my guest went for the
knickerbocker glory, evoking
memories of her youth. Other
choices included Banoffee
Pie plus cheese and biscuits
at £6.85. My cake was huge
(plenty for sharing) but the
vanilla cream was a little lacking
on the vanilla front. However,
the knickerbocker glory was
pronounced memorable - sweet,
yet tangy with a delicious rich
strawberry cream.
VERDICT
Steak and Lobster @ ALTO
opened in September this
year and has yet to become
established as a prominent
Manchester eatery. However,
all in all, this was an impressive
dining experience: amazing value
for money and attentive service
without being intrusive. Where
else in Manchester could you
have lobster for 15 quid? And my
five-foot mother agreed!
Steak & Lobster @ ALTO
The Radisson Blu Edwardian Hotel
Peter Street | Manchester
M2 5GP
0161 835 8903
l
61
food&drink
Taj Mahal
Cookery
School
ed,
Parveen Ahm
and
Celebrity Chef er
h
Author shares
s
family recipe
Bubbles
darling!
RED LENTIL TARKA DHAAL
Bubbles! Everyone loves ‘em.
It’s that time of year where
we will plough through more
sparklers than Bonfire Night.
But with so many celebratory
occasions to imbibe them,
what do you choose?
Here’s my guide to a fizz for
two such occasions...
Ingredients
2 mugs of red lentils, washed and drained, plus 6 mugs of water
1 level tsp ground haldi
4 level tsp salt
4oz butter
2 level tsp red chilli powder
6 cloves of garlic
3 Green chillies
Fresh coriander
The Office Gift. you’ve pulled
your boss’s name out of the
dreaded Secret Santa hat. He
pretends to know more about
wine than he actually does
so it shouldn’t be that hard
to impress without spending
more than the twenty quid
you’re prepared to pay on
the ebeneezer. The Quartz
reef nV, central Otago,
new Zealand (www.martinbirdwines.com) is a traditionalmethod fizz (made using the
same process as champagne)
made from champagne’s very
own chardonnay and Pinot
noir. Fantastic value at £16.50,
this is full of zest, green apples
and racy bubbles, with a
gorgeous nutty finish. The boss
will think you paid a lot more!
Method
1. Place the lentils in a heavy pan with the water and the haldi,
salt and chilli powder. Stir and bring to a simmer; leave the lid
slightly ajar (see tip below). cook over a low heat for 25-30
minutes, stirring occasionally or until the lentils are tender. boil
for 5 minutes on full heat.
2. Heat the 4oz butter in a frying pan over a fairly high heat, add
the green chillies and garlic, and keep stirring. as soon as the
garlic cloves are golden brown - this takes just a few seconds –
add to the lentil pan.
3. Garnish with coriander.
4. Serve with boiled rice, pickle or chutney.
TIP When cooking split peas, leave the lid of the pan slightly ajar
to prevent the contents from spilling over. They create a lot of
thick froth as they cook and this blocks the normal escape route
for the steam, with the result that the pot boils over.
To enquire about Cookery Lessons or Christmas Gift
Vouchers please email [email protected]
great thing about your morning
palate is that it – and you –
are freshest so you can really
appreciate what’s tickling your
taste buds. a blanc de blancs
sparkler (100% chardonnay)
is a perfectly soft and elegant
bubble to start your festivities.
The ruinart blanc de blancs
nV (£55 majestic.co.uk)
is coming from the oldest
house in champagne and
is simply gorgeous. Subtle
peach and apricot give way
to a voluptuous and rounded
mouth, with bubbles that are
creamy and unobtrusive. It’s
perfect with smoked salmon
and poached duck egg or your
Frosties.
merry plonking!
Jake crimmin
The Christmas Breakfast.
breakfast bubbles really are the
height of decadence but you
must go the whole hog. The
Win a place for two on our Saturday
wine school. Register on the website
to enter www.cheshirewineschool.co.uk
Classes, courses and private tastings
available. Follow @cheshirewinesch
on Twitter.
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XX
food&drink
NEW YEAR’S EVE at
GREAT JOHN STREET
Back by popular demand
An exclusive invitation to an elegant house
party at Great John Street to celebrate
2012 and welcome 2013 in eclectic style.
M
aking use of the entire
townhouse hotel, choose to
celebrate from the rooftop
lounge and terrace along with the
oyster bar and lounge.
LIMITED
NUMBER
TS
OF TICKE E
L
AVAILAB
The party will feature live
entertainment – two DJs alongside a
live soul and Motown band throughout
the evening.
Enjoy it like it’s your own house party with
friends. All the fun without the stress!
7.30pm Arrive to a glass of bubbles
8.30-9.30pm Eclectic New Year’s Eve
barbecue
Tickets Prepaid upon booking and are
non-refundable/non-transferable.
Celebrate and dance until 3am.
LIMITED NUMBER OF TICKETS
AVAILABLE £70 per person
Dress code Think chic! Dress to impress!
Accommodation Available at an
additional cost. Subject to availability.
All vegetarian and special dietary
requirements to be stated when booking.
GREAT JOHN STREET HOTEL
Great John Street Manchester M3 4FD
0161 831 3211
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63
Tried & tested
If you would like to be featured in
this section of the magazine
Football, food, fashion and beauty
Manchester City Football
Club has revealed a stunning
overhaul to two of its prime
hospitality suites. The newly
named Connell Club has
replaced the club’s fine
dining Boardroom, while The
Mancunian has had a radical
upgrade.
entrance featuring highlights from
the club’s history.
Match-day hospitality includes
five-course fine dining, half
and full-time refreshments, an
exclusive wine list with expert
Sommelier advice, VIP seating
in the Directors Box, betting
facilities, a match-day programme
A new addition to the club is and a car parking pass.
a Harvey Nichols concept box,
decorated with the latest in The Connell Club can also be
fashion, food and beauty - for hired for exhibitions, conferences,
men and women.
product launches and training
sessions.
We visited the Etihad Stadium
to find out if their recent The Mancunian offers window
transformation is on par with tables overlooking the pitch and
their excellence on the pitch. fantastic luxury seating to enjoy
the game. Your hospitality will
The Connell Club is an include a four-course fusionexclusive fine dining suite style menu, half and full-time
named after the Connell family, refreshments, an executive
who founded the club in 1880. cash bar facility, executive
It seats up to 220 guests and luxury seating directly above the
has been created to offer the Directors Box, betting facilities, a
most luxurious of hospitality match-day programme and a car
settings. The suite has five parking pass.
Ambassador booths designed
to give a more intimate dining A recent addition to Manchester
experience, and a gallery City’s football ground is the Harvey
The Connell Club
Nichols Corporate Box. Kitted out
to create a lavish environment,
the room is decorated with
the latest in fashion, food and
beauty, with experts on hand
to guide you through the day.
Choose from a wine master
class, a personal shopper or even
pampering treatments to add an
unconventional element to your
football hospitality experience.
Not forgetting the unrivalled,
atmospheric match views from
your own personal balcony. The
Harvey Nichols corporate box is
the perfect venue for those who
love football and luxury.
The box holds ten guests and
each event includes food and
drink with half and full-time
refreshments from a specially
devised Harvey Nichols menu
from the award-winning
second-floor restaurant. There
is also a gift bag for both men
and women, a mixologist
serving a selection of cocktails,
and the room is decorated with
items from the Harvey Nichols
store. Betting facilities, a
match-day programme and car
parking for two cars are also
included.
For more information on
The Connell Club,
The Mancunian and Harvey
Nichols Corporate Box
Call 0161 444 1894 (option 1)
Or email: [email protected]
Harvet Nichols Corporate Box
people
‘Appy days
Thanks to a tech-savvy local dad, teachers
around the globe may be about to find what
they have always wanted – a mobile App set to
revolutionise lesson planning.
Barry Wood has a passion for education
and technology, In 1999 Barry, along
with his two brothers, co-founded a
cloud-based software business, building
software for education, which grew to
become one of the UK’s leading providers
of Learning Platforms and Virtual Learning
Environments (VLEs) with over 1.5 million
end-users and offices in London, Hong
Kong and Melbourne.
After 10 years working in the capital it
was time to move on and seek out fresh
challenges. Barry moved up north 6
years ago to marry his wife Louise. They
now have a 1yr-old son, Charlie, and are
expecting their second baby in January.
Barry’s new venture ‘theTeacherCloud’ is
an international online teacher community,
whose first product ‘Lesson Planning’ hit
the App Store in Sept 2012. “The plan is to
launch a suite of Apps aimed specifically
at the teacher community,” he says.
“The teaching process starts with a good
plan, so it made perfect sense that our
first App to become available in the App
Store should be Lesson Planning.”
Research has shown that good lesson
planning leads to good learning. Lesson
planning is a complex yet essential part of
the teaching process that changes over
time as teachers gain more classroom
experience. It’s fair to say that the hours
of endless, tiring work preparing lessons
is not one of the perks of the job.
how strong or weak they are across the
curriculum areas they teach,” says Barry.
The basic Lesson Planning App is free with
the option to upgrade and buy additional
features which allow you to share plans,
search for other members’ plans, rate and
download them, as well as adapt them for
your own needs. You can also email plans
to colleagues and export to Google Docs.
Simply put, the App as a whole not only
organises your own lessons, it breeds a
community, allowing teachers to benefit
from an ever growing network of people.
As well as applying his own experience in
the education sector, Barry put together
a panel of advisers including Teachers,
Curriculum Planners and e-Learning
Consultants covering the breadth and
depth of the National Curriculum to draw
on their experience, ensuring the Lesson
Planning App met their common needs.
“We don’t provide the content, the
community does – that’s what really drives
the App. The bigger the community, the
bigger the number of shared lesson plans
in theTeacherCloud.”
iPads, iPods and iPhones are increasingly
being used by the teacher community
at home and in the classroom.
theTeacherCloud’s Lesson Planning App
lets you build, organise and deliver lesson
plans anytime, anywhere using your
device. You can keep them all safe and
handy in one place and you can also tag
your plans to the National Curriculum. “One
of the most popular features is a report
that allows teachers to see at a glance
“It’s early days but we are growing every
day and I’m absolutely delighted.”
“So far feedback from teachers has been
really positive,” says Barry.
Words Todd Fitzgerald
To download the Lesson
Planning app, visit Apple’s
App Store, or scan the QR
code.
l
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Lost your
people
The human adventure is a wonderful thing
and each one of us has something to bring
to the world. However big or small, we can
leave a mark that lets the world know we
are playing our part and making a positive
contribution. So when I met up with
Ross Mackenzie on a wet Wednesday at
The Marriott Manchester Airport for a coffee
I was intrigued yet sceptical...
Transcend: to rise above
or go beyond the limits
of; to triumph over the
negative or restrictive
aspects of; to rise above
or extend notably beyond
ordinary limits.
Ross Mackenzie never thought he’d end
up as a plumber – of sorts.
“I’ve had an interesting and varied life:
I was a forces kid who attended nine
schools by the age of 15. I’ve been married
twice and have two beautiful girls, a fine
young stepson and a beautiful wife. I got
through a life-threatening illness. I’ve dug
holes in roads, worked in an abattoir, been
a professional golfer, musician, computer
programmer, IT salesman, sales manager,
trainer, company director, corporate
honcho with a billion dollar number, fed-up
exec and grumpy curmudgeon,” states
Ross, a mildly mannered yet assertive
Canadian.
Then it all changed.
Having left the corporate world, Ross
decided to take a risk and do something
he’d always dreamt of but was too
institutionalised and too set in his ways
to do.
“I decided to change myself, my place
in the world and what I do for a living. I
now have a magical time helping people
discover for themselves what they really
want their lives to be like and how to get
there. Fast, easy, simple,” he adds. “One
of my clients christened me her ‘Cognitive
Plumber’ and it’s as good a description as
any about what I do, so that’s what it says
on my business cards!”
“I started at the beginning again.”
“I decided to see if I could dig up, with my
own hands, the stuff that would make a
difference to me and to the folks I work
with, to squeeze every molecule of fun and
richness out of life and work. I focused on
three things.
“I wanted to grow into a much more
effective business person, seller of ideas,
communicator, persuader, coach, dad,
husband, partner, chum and person. “I needed to learn how to get past the
point of being ‘stuck’ and slip easily into
new ways of working that give more
pleasure and deliver better results.
“I chose to get rid of old personal baggage
that had been hanging around for too long
and was just too heavy to carry any more.”
Taking two years, Ross invested in himself
by training and travelling extensively to
learn with people he targeted and chose
as mentors - the best in the fields of NLP,
hypnotherapy and influence. “It was a
blast – training with the best in the world
and realising I had found what I had been
searching for,” he remembers.
mojo?
“It’s great to be able to show people how
to deal with the fear and anxiety that can
sometimes eat away in the workplace and
at home. It doesn’t have to be that way
and it doesn’t need pills and potions to
change it. It’s really quite simple to take
life in your stride and get the best out of
every high and low that comes your way.”
It’s given Ross the confidence that he’s
able to share with others so they can go
on and do the same. I’ve been working with Ross for the past
18 months and have found it enjoyable,
rewarding and extremely effective.
Ross has assisted me in finding what we
call my ‘wise self’ and, through very gentle
suggestion and coaching, dealing with
some deep and long-ago buried personal
issues. These were acting as a significant
blockage to my personal and professional
development and progress.
I have benefited greatly from his oneon-one coaching techniques and I am
delighted with the progress that Ross has
enabled me to make.
The ability to change my outlook and
thoughts in relation to past, present and
future events is immensely helpful.
CRD, CEO, UK law firm
Human issues. Life issues.
In his corporate role Ross has worked
with senior business people, corporations,
law firms, sales teams and software
companies. These projects usually start
off with some clear-cut, highly focused,
financially driven objective. “But, do you know what? In virtually every
engagement the issues are not broken
processes or sales models. The issues
are with people. Personal things, work things,
family things, things from the past – things
that get in the way of creating and enjoying
the life you want for yourself,” Ross says.
Ross has assisted me
in finding what we
call my ‘wise self’
and, through very
gentle suggestion and
coaching, dealing with
some deep and long-ago
buried personal issues.
These were acting as
a significant blockage
to my personal and
professional development
and progress.
And today? Ross works with individuals.
People, perhaps like you, who want
to rediscover what it’s like to be themselves
again and learn a little bit about plumbing.
What people are saying. Working with Ross was an exceptional and
wonderful experience, the like of which
I have never had in my life. Speaking as a
psychologist, I felt so warmly held by this
provocative, witty man. I knew that he
believed in me completely, and I relied on
his certainty when I was tempted to waiver.
people
It was the safety he was able to create that
enabled him to get away with astonishing
challenges that inevitably resulted in me
successfully relaunching my business.
Ross has been critical in helping me to be one
of the most successful in my field. Perhaps
most importantly, as someone in a caring
profession who deals with people who often
feel very vulnerable and fragile, I was able,
with Ross’s expertise, to create marketing
materials and ways of courting new business
that are compelling and deeply congruent
with my professional integrity. Dr SG, PhD
So maybe that big bag of experiences you
carry around has become too heavy and
needs to be lightened by throwing the
old useless junk away. And maybe, come
to think of it, you’ve realised other people
have been filling your big bag with
their junk without you knowing it? Who
needs that?
After spending time watching Ross create
stories using sachets of sugar and doodling
maps of how we use our thoughts on
napkins, I’m no longer the skeptic but I’m still
intrigued. I’ve often pondered on this: what
do you do if you just know you have a heap
of something wonderful inside you to offer
but aren’t exactly sure what it is yet. All the
energy, passion and commitment is there but
– where do you point it? Where do you start?
Easy. Call a plumber.
Find out more. Call Ross on
07528 678379
or visit him at
www.trancendence.co.uk
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67
Competitions
Win a comedy night for 8 people
The comedy circuit that launched stars
such as Michael McIntyre and Jason
Manford is becoming a popular fixture
in Altrincham, as The Official Comedy
Club (www.thecomedyclub.co.uk)
continues its run of top-quality shows
at the BEST WESTERN Cresta Court
Hotel (www.cresta-court.co.uk).
To create a perfect night out for a group
of friends we have a prize for 8 people to
attend one of the comedy nights. you will
each be treated to a glass of champagne on
arrival, followed by a delicious ‘curry of the
Day’ meal accompanied by a glass of house
wine or a bottle of beer.
TO ENTER
Please answer this simple question:
Where is The Comedy Club?
A) Cresta Court Hotel
B) Crescent Hotel
C) Cress Hotel
email your answer with Comedy Club in the
subject field to [email protected] or
on a postcard with your name, address and
daytime phone number to Salutions Limited,
St James House, 676 Wilmslow road,
Didsbury, m20 2Dn.
closing date: 31 December 2012
choose to take your prize at our next event
on 22 February and you’ll laugh until your
ribs ache with a first class comedy line-up.
Terms and conditions
Prize is for eight adults and is valid at the 22 February 2013
comedy club night event. Includes one glass of house wine or a
bottle of beer, one glass of champagne per person and a ‘curry of
the Day’ meal per person with comedy tickets. Offer is valid until
22 February 2013. Offer and prize for persons over 18 years only
and subject to availability. The editor’s decision is final.
Tickets £9.50pp (comedy only) or £15pp to include a
‘Curry of the Day’ meal. Accommodation £30 per room
or £40BB per room.
Box Office: 0161 927 2612. Doors open 7.30pm, show
starts 9pm.
Agatha Christie’s
The Mousetrap in
London’s West End
TO ENTER
Win a champagne package to see The
Mousetrap in London’s West End.
now in its 60th incredible year – its Diamond
anniversary – this world-record-breaking
production continues to attract audiences
to the St martin’s Theatre from every
corner of the globe. In her own inimitable
style, Dame agatha christie has created an
atmosphere of shuddering suspense and a
brilliantly intricate plot where murder lurks
around every corner...
Having achieved many world records at The
ambassadors Theatre where it opened, it
moved to the St martin’s Theatre in march
1974 without missing a performance,
and in its new home it has achieved many
more world records. Only the clock on the
mantelpiece has survived – everything else
has been replaced.
agatha christie trying to explain the success
of The mousetrap: “It is the sort of play you
can take anyone to. It is not really frightening.
It is not really horrible. It is not really a farce,
but it has a little bit of all these things and
perhaps that satisfies a lot of different
people.
www.the-mousetrap.co.uk
Please answer this simple question:
How long has The Mousetrap been
attracting audiences?
A) 60 years B) 50 years C) 40 years
Prize only applicable monday to Thursday and
not on a bank holiday; there is a matinee on
Tuesday. To be used within three months.
email your answer, with Mousetrap in the
subject field to [email protected] or
on a postcard with your name, address and
daytime phone number to Salutions Limited,
St James House, 676 Wilmslow road,
Didsbury, m20 2Dn.
closing date: 31 December 2012.
Celebrate Christmas at Rosso
and win a luxury meal for two in January...
manchester’s most glamorous restaurant,
rio Ferdinand’s rosso, is offering the finest
christmas party option of the season this year
with a magnificent seasonal menu that starts
at just £25.95 for three courses!
enjoy the most memorable of christmas
parties in 2012 in rosso’s exquisite Grade II
listed establishment with an authentic Italianinspired festive feast.
Our readers can also enjoy a special offer open to
parties of six or more - the first bottle of wine for
each couple will be on rosso - so a party of six will
receive three complimentary bottles of wine!
So, to book your christmas party – whether
it’s a works function for 100 or just a catch-up
with the girls (or boys) email
[email protected]
or call 0161 832 1400.
TO ENTER
We’re offering two lucky winners the
chance to dine at rosso to beat the
January blues once all the fun is over.
There’s a fabulous prize of a meal for
two and a bottle of matched wine at
the restaurant, to be taken any time in
January - the perfect new year treat.
email your answer with ROSSO in the
subject field to [email protected]
or on a postcard with your name, address
and daytime phone number to Salutions
Limited, St James House, 676 Wilmslow
road, Didsbury, m20 2Dn.
closing date: 31 December 2012
To claim the free wine offer readers first visit www.rossorestaurants.com and print voucher as well as mentioning when booking. Offer open from 1st-30th Dec, Sun - Wed.
WIN the finest Sunday lunch
for 4 people at Damson!
One of our favourite award-winning
neighbourhood restaurants gives Sunday
lunch the gastro treatment.
can choose a specially matched bottle of wine
normally sold at £49.95 at a special magazine
price of £19.95.
Damson’s sophisticated Sunday lunch has got
to be the region’s most irresistible, especially
at the generous price, starting at £15.95 for
two courses.
To book your heavenly Sunday experience
please call Damson on 0161 432 4666, and
quote SaL1.
The usual fine ingredients and expertly crafted
menu that Damson diners know and love are
given the Sunday treatment with a twocourse lunch featuring 28-day-aged roast rib
of yorkshire-bred charolais beef served with
yorkshire pudding, duck-fat roasted potatoes,
seasonal vegetables and roasting juices.
also, for our lucky readers, Damson are taking
the Sunday treatment a step further. readers
TO ENTER
To celebrate Sundays at Damson we’ve got a Sunday lunch for four with a bottle of stunning
matched wine to give away!
To be in with a chance of winning this fabulous prize just answer the following question:
How much is Sunday lunch at Damson?
A) £14.95 B) £15.95 C) £16.95
email your answer, with Damson in the subject field to [email protected] or on a
postcard with your name, address and daytime phone number to Salutions Limited, St James
House, 676 Wilmslow road, Didsbury, m20 2Dn. closing date: 31 December 2012
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Charity Catwalk
educationnews
Fifty models, eight choreographers, lighting
and sound technicians and a 15-strong
organising committee put their heart
and soul into staging Withington Girls’
School’s most dazzling fashion show ever.
Months in the planning – work on
choreography, finance, sponsorship, the
clothing collection, publicity, construction
of the set and ticket sales began before
the summer holidays – the show, directed
entirely by pupils, raised more than £5,000
for Barnardo’s and diabetes charity JDRF.
The catwalk spectacular, entitled Sugar
Rush, featured the sweetest fashions of
the year, as the show’s three compères
combined with the school’s ‘Eco Warriors’
wore outfits made entirely of sweet
wrappers and packets collected in school.
The models, drawn from Withington’s
fourth to upper sixth forms, sashayed
their polished choreography in impressive
style and sported sumptuous clothes lent
by supportive retailers. The main sponsor
was Beaverbrooks and clothes were
generously loaned by Xpose, Someone
Else’s Wardrobe, Heavenly Way to Dye,
AX Paris, Forever Unique, JDRF, Bar Code,
Missguided, Internacionale, Urban Edge,
Boohoo.com, SOS and Vicky Martin.
Said Mrs Fabiola Cotton, Withington’s
Head of Design Technology: “It was
the best and most diverse collection of
clothes we have ever shown – from quite
expensive couture to second-hand and
recycled outfits. And the girls arranged
the show to fit it all together brilliantly.”
The show ended with an explosive finale
of pink and white confetti fired from eight
‘confetti cannons’!
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71
“All life is an experiment, the more
experiments you make the better”
Ralph Waldo Emerson
2013 ENTRANCE EXAMINATIONS
For Year 7 entry:
Monday 14th January 2013
For Years 3-6 entry:
Saturday 19th January 2013
For further information please call 0161 224 1077
Wellington Road, Fallowfield, Manchester M14 6BL
www.withington.manchester.sch.uk
Meanstested
bursaries
available
from
Year 7
Education News
Nick Robinson goes
back to school
Stockport
Grammar –
in a different
class
New state-of-the-art teaching facilities
awaited Stockport Grammar School pupils
when they returned to school at the start
of the autumn term.
The construction of the Woodsmoor
Building and its high-spec classrooms
for English, Drama, History, Classics,
Psychology, Business Studies and
Economics represents just the latest
stage in the school’s ongoing programme
to give children and staff the very best
resources for learning, sport and extracurricular activities.
Sir Bobby unveils mosaic
At a special ceremony at the Royal
Manchester Children’s Hospital recently,
England and Manchester United football
legend Sir Bobby Charlton launched a
magnificent collection of artwork created
by pupils at Withington Girls’ School.
The World Cup winner, who was
celebrating his 75th birthday, also
unveiled a plaque commemorating the
occasion, flanked by senior NHS officials,
local politicians and VIPs.
Sir Bobby and fellow World Cup hero
Sir Geoff Hurst attended last November’s
‘topping out’ of the hospital’s Ronald
McDonald House, which provides
accommodation for families of sick
children.
Expressing delight at being involved,
he said: “You can never do too much in
the community.”
Sir Bobby was introduced to the
school’s Head of Art Ruth Fildes and tenyear-old pupil Helena Mitson from Urmston,
who won the competition for the design of
a spectacular eight-foot-long mosaic, now
hanging in the stairwell of the hospital’s
Harrington Building. He was then presented
with a chocolate birthday cake made at
Withington Girls’ School.
In addition to the mosaic, which
depicts a rainbow, 25 landscapes created
by pupils in Year 9 were exhibited, with
the young artists on hand to explain
the background to each of their pieces.
The theme for the landscapes, now on
permanent display in the hospital, is the
Natural World.
Taking time out between reporting
on the Labour and Conservative Party
Conferences for the BBC, former Cheadle
Hulme School pupil Nick Robinson was
quizzed by students on his job.
An audience of over 100 students asked
Nick questions on his role as Political
Editor for the BBC, his journey into
broadcast journalism and the toughest
interviews with world leaders.
Nick, who left the school in 1982,
addressed a packed classroom of
aspiring politicians, journalists and critical
thinkers as part of the school’s Think Tank
society - a co-curricular club that aims
to stimulate independent thought and
debate by hosting a series of stimulating
guest speakers.
Nick said: “The debating clubs I took
part in at school gave me an excellent
standing for the tough interviews I
sometimes need to conduct. Added to
that, my experience on the CHS student
magazine was a great introduction to a
career in journalism.”
Drawing on anecdotes from his
forthcoming book, Live from Downing
Street, Nick spoke frankly about his
relationships with politicians, the battles
politicians have faced in modern times,
and what it means to be impartial.
Nick Axon, Head of Politics, said: “It was
inspirational for students to hear Nick
talk, knowing that he started out at CHS
just like them, and he has gone on to
achieve such considerable success.”
l
73
educationnews
Free Tast
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& School
Tours
Call 0161
432 0532
PLAY CENTRE
Focusing on Fun
Book a or
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Corner of King Street
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Stockport
SK3 0DY
0161 477 2225
Friendly relaxed café
Fantastic parties at incredible prices
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Join us for messy play on the last
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‘Tis the Season
For Smart Schooling
Affordable Independent Education
for Boys and Girls aged 3-11
Average Class Size - 14 Pupils or Less Individual Attention
Quality Teaching Term-time Care Available 8am-5.30pm
Full & Part-time Nursery with Nursery Grant Accepted
Find our more at our next Open Event -
Saturday 26th January
Or to request a prospectus call 0161 432 0532 email
[email protected] or visit
www.StellaMarisSchool.co.uk
STELLA MARIS SCHOOL
For a fabulous, fun filled outing
St John’s Road, Heaton Mersey, Stockport, SK4 3BR
Registered Charitable Trust Number 505848
www.zoomplaycentre.co.uk
e.co.uk | [email protected]
info@zoomplaycent
STOCKPORT
Bronte Law
Champion Golfer.
Scientist.
Waconian.
10am-12noon
FOUNDED IN 1487
GRAMMAR SCHOOL
An independent school for girls and boys from 3 to 18 years
Bursaries and music scholarships available at 11+ and 16+
“I’ve been at CHS since Reception and I’ll
hopefully carry on and do the full 14 years.
The teachers have worked with me to build
my confidence and have helped me to
develop into the person I am today
They’ve been really good at talking
just to you and not generalising to
the whole class. CHS has been such
an amazing experience for me.”
Hale &
Altrincham
school bus
now running
Inspire your child
Senior School Entrance Examination
Wednesday 16th January 2013
Junior School Open Morning
Saturday 11th May 2013, 9.30-11.30am
Intrigued? Find out more at
whatisawaconian.co.uk
Come and spend a day in the Senior School Year 5 Taster Days 21st May, 23rd May or 11th June
To book call 0161 419 2408
Regular school day visits available throughout the year
Call 0161 456 9000 to arrange a visit or request a prospectus
www.stockportgrammar.co.uk
A top performing
independent girls’
school in Cheshire
• For girls aged 2–18 years
• Located in a safe, secure environment
• Nursery, Junior School,
Senior School and Sixth Form
• Scholarships and bursaries available
Events 2012–2013
Yr 6 Taster Day
Tuesday 4 December
New
Prospectus
Out Now
Sixth Form Scholarship Day
(external candidates)
Friday 7 December
Academic, Music and Sport Scholarships available
11+ Entrance Examination
Friday 11 January
Academic, Art, Music and Sport Scholarships
available at 11+
13+ Scholarship Day (external candidates)
Friday 18 January
Academic and Music Scholarships available at 13+
Junior Scholarship Day for those entering Year 3
Monday 21 January
Nursery, Pre-School and Junior School Open Day
Saturday 16 March
10.00am–12.30pm
For more information: 01625 583028
[email protected] | www.aesg.co.uk
Wilmslow Road, Alderley Edge, Cheshire, SK9 7QE
Registered charity number 1006726
educationnews
An Olympic opening
Olympic gymnast Beth Tweddle MBE
visited Manchester High School for Girls to
open a new extension for its Preparatory
Department in front of a cheering crowd
of pupils, staff and guests.
The sporting heroine, who actively
works with schools to inspire the next
generation of Olympians, also spent time
talking to the girls about her career and
her amazing achievement at the London
2012 Games.
Britain’s Got Talent
Manchester group The Mend, finalists
of this year’s Britain’s Got Talent, put on
an exclusive show in front of over 300
rapturous pupils at Manchester High
School for Girls last month.
The band, managed by former Take That
boss Nigel Martin-Smith, played four songs
to the delight of the girls and stopped to
meet some of their biggest fans to sign
autographs.
She said: “I am delighted to open
this new extension. As someone who
attended an all-girls school myself, I
really understand the value of single-sex
education and the girls here are really
fortunate to have such fantastic facilities.”
The new extension was designed by
architects Walker Simpson and features
many high-specification technical
features, such as sensory-controlled
lighting, windows and heating system.
European Languages Day
The value and joy of learning languages
was the focus of a talk by Sonja
Bernhard, when she visited Cheadle
Hulme School as part of this year’s
European Languages Day celebrations.
Sonja, a Schools’ Outreach Officer
for the University of Manchester, visited
CHS to discuss the degrees and careers
which learning a second language offers
and answered questions from budding
linguists at the school.
Mr John Wilson, Head of Spanish
at CHS, said: “The Modern Foreign
Languages department is flourishing at
the school, with 80% of GCSE French
pupils achieving A and A* grades in their
exams this year and 63% achieving the
same result in Spanish. Our students
have a thirst for exploring new languages
and we couldn’t think of a better day
than European Languages Day to launch
our lunchtime talks. Whether inspiring
students to learn for pleasure or for work,
Sonja’s engaging and inspiring talk really
helped them to understand the wider
prospects that language skills open up for
young people.”
Alderley girls at The Royal Academy of Arts
Two young aspiring artists from
Alderley Edge School for Girls had their
paintings displayed at The Royal Academy
of Arts in London after winning an annual
painting competition run by development
organisation Sightsavers.
Alexandria McLelland in Reception
and Liberty MacLeod in Year 5 were
picked as regional winners in the infants
and juniors categories for their paintings
using this year’s theme i:dream. A judging
panel chose both girls’ paintings from
over 2,000 for their use of colour, texture,
expression and imagination.
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MOOR ALLERTON
PREPARATORY SCHOOL
Fortiter Laborare, Fortiter Ludite
Independent, co-educational school for children
from 3-11 years old
Excellent provision for Early Years Foundation Stage
Safe, nurturing & stimulating environment
Curriculum for Early Years includes PE, drama,
dance & music
OPEN DAY
ES
PLAC
BLE IN
A
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I
A
AV
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U
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OUR SSES
CLA
Wednesday 30 January 2013
9am to 3pm
To book an appointment with the Head teacher
or for more information please call 0161 445 4521
e: [email protected] or visit www.moorallertonschool.com
131 Barlow Moor Road | Didsbury | Manchester | M20 2PW
Teacher turns author
Cheadle Hulme schoolteacher, charity
organiser and junior school librarian, Mrs
Kate Sargent is now a published author.
Mrs Sargent’s debut novel Escape from
Versailles, which follows the lives of two
young people during the turbulent years of
the French Revolution, is now available to
buy and is already gaining five-star reviews.
Dubbed as ‘historical fiction for all
ages’, the book brings together Mrs
Sargent’s passion for history, books and
learning.
educationnews
She said: “I decided to write the book
three years ago for a new challenge. I
really enjoyed carrying out the research for
the book, especially travelling to Paris to
check out the venues and I found writing it
really rewarding as the plot and characters
developed. If enough people like it, I might
even be tempted to write another!”
Escape from Versailles is primarily
aimed at children in years 5 to 8 and
is available from Amazon and local
bookshops.
Early Years children are shining
As the year draws to an end, thoughts
of new beginnings are fast approaching.
What better time to plan a new adventure
for your two or three-year-old! Moor
Allerton offers a warm and structured
approach to education for your very
special treasure!
In May 2012 we were given an
‘Excellent’ accreditation from our
Independent Inspectorate for our Early
Years Foundation Stage:
“The overall effectiveness of the EYFS
is excellent, successfully achieving its
aim to provide a stimulating, challenging,
positive and enjoyable atmosphere.
“In the EYFS, the outcomes for the
children are excellent. By the end of
their Reception year, most children can
write independently showing a good
understanding of word sounds, and can
recognise and order numbers to 20.
“Pupils’ behaviour is excellent and
they clearly enjoy learning. The excellent
relationship they have with each other
and with their teachers has a highly
positive impact on their achievement.
“The quality of the provision for the EYFS
is excellent and includes the required six
areas of learning. Planning is of a high
quality and adults give children activities
that are closely matched to the needs of
the individual. Such planning ensures that
every child is suitably challenged by the
learning experience provided.
“In the EYFS, adults provide first-rate
targeted support for the children, allowing
all to make good and, on occasions,
excellent progress. Good questioning
encourages creativity and critical thinking
skills in adult-led activities. High-quality
planning ensures that every child is
suitably challenged by the learning
experience provided.
“Planned activities are based on
thorough and accurate observations
and assessments matched to the full
range of children’s needs. Staff have
high expectations of pupils’ work and
behaviour.”
We have places available for children
turning three years old in the term they
enter (subject to a successful assessment
and readiness). If you would like to find
out more or would like to visit the school
and see what opportunities we have to
offer your child, please call us on
0161 445 4521, email office@mas.
gemsedu.co.uk or visit
www.moorallertonschool.com.
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79
Lunchtime peace of mind…
We’ve helped more than 350 people since launching our popular
Family Legal Advice Clinic three years ago - and we are now extending
our free advice sessions to include every weekday lunchtime.
The clinic takes place at our offices on Oxford Road, Hale and
provides advice on a full range of family law issues. Stowe Family Law
has 30 years’ of experience and can advise on everything from divorce
to cohabitation, and grandparents’ rights to contact and residence
arrangements for children.
Free half-hour sessions at the Family Legal Advice Clinic
are available every weekday between 12 and 2pm,
and on Monday evenings between 5 and 7pm.
Book a session by contacting Morna Rose on 0161 926 1410,
or emailing [email protected]
The Camellia Building, 38 Oxford Road,
Hale, Altrincham, Cheshire WA14 2EB
www.stowefamilylaw.co.uk
5 years time
What will your life look like in
if you carry on doing what you do today?
A
client that I’d known for ten
years introduced me to network
marketing; she was very excited
about a business that she had started
in the Skincare, Health & Wellness
industry and she thought that it would
be a good fit for me.
I went along for a coffee, open-minded, and
that night I couldn’t sleep. I knew it was
something that I could do, but how could I
do it and run my already full time business?
The following week I went along to another
meeting and realised that the people
doing this business are professionals
and the majority already have their own
business. This is an internet driven,
learnable, business within a business with
a proven business strategy and a generous
compensation plan. It can even be willed to
your family at certain management levels.
Network Marketing, also known, as MultiLevel Marketing is a legitimate business
model that uses direct selling as a
method of selling a company’s products or
services. Independent Consultants act like
a franchisee to the parent company and are
paid a commission based on the volume of
product or services that are sold as a result
of their own efforts.
The ultimate goal of any business is to make
sales and increase its customer base. In a
traditional retail company the product goes
from the manufacturer, to the wholesaler,
to the warehouse, to the advertiser, to the
retailer, ending up with the customer.
At each stage there are associated costs,
making it more expensive for the customer.
Network marketing companies bypass the
middleman, selling direct to the customer.
They use recommendations and a word-ofmouth approach to develop their customer
base as opposed to a large advertising
budget, which means the money that
would normally go to the middleman
and advertising, can now reward the
Independent Consultant a commission for
helping the company to make a sale.
The beauty of the direct selling business
opportunity is that it’s all done for you; there
isn’t any real startup time. You don’t have to
create a business plan. You don’t have to
create a product. The only thing you need to
do is find a reputable company - one that you
can trust - that offers a product or service that
you believe in and can get passionate about.
Network Marketing is a growing sector of
the economy and is predicted to become
even more mainstream in the next decade.
We all know that times are tough, but did
you also know that these are probably the
best times for starting your own business?
The world economy has moved on and
none of us know if it will return. This is
the business of the 21st century, nobody
wants to work 9-5, and jobs for life don’t
exist anymore.
Ask yourself these questions
What will your life look like in 5 years time if
you carry on doing what you are doing today?
Are you interested in building a residual Income
to secure your future?
Would you like to be your own boss and work
the hours you choose?
Earn a White Mercedez Benz?
Words Beverley Uddin-Khandakar
If you would like to discover
more about my Arbonne network
marketing business please call
07800 910 353
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As an employer can I use CCTV
to monitor my employees?
Employment lawyer
Paul Whitfield answers
questions...
I want to put CCTV cameras in the
office to watch staff. Do I need to tell
them?
ccTV is covered by the Data Protection
act and as a result you need to tell your
employees unless there are ‘exceptional
circumstances’. This means only where
there are grounds for suspecting criminal
activity or equivalently serious misconduct.
It should be targeted and stopped once that
investigation is completed.
I just want to use it to make sure people
are working hard.
Then you would need to give the employees
clear notification that you were going to
do it and why. you should consider if the
adverse impact would justify the benefits.
The Information commissioner has produced
guidance (Deciding whether to use ccTV or
continue using ccTV) at http://www.ico.
gov.uk/. you should refer to that or take legal
advice.
dismissal was held to be unfair. The tribunal
did not say that the video evidence could
not be used but said it was not enough on
its own to justify a dismissal. a lay person’s
interpretation of the film was not enough
evidence to dismiss the employee. a proper
investigation and fair hearing would still be
required, but the video could be part of that.
Paul Whitfield
can be contacted on
0161 283 1276 or
[email protected]
Can I dismiss an employee if I have a
video recording of them walking and
carrying shopping when they are off
sick with a bad back?
In a recent case employers did this and the
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l
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How to get paid
– five top tips
Blackstone
Solicitors is a
Hale-based firm
specialising in
Commercial
Litigation
and Property
Litigation.
In the current financial climate many of
your invoices probably remain unpaid. You
therefore need to put your business in the
best possible position to optimise your
opportunity of receiving payment from your
customers. Here are Emma Nawaz’s five
top tips for getting paid:
1
Terms and Conditions
Make sure you have clear and
concise terms and conditions,
which set out clearly when and how you
are paid and your rights for late payment. It
is worth instructing a solicitor to draft your
terms and conditions. We see so many
cases that end up in expensive litigation
that could have been avoided had the
businesses agreed to a set of terms and
conditions.
2
Know your customer
Check that your customer can
afford to pay you. There are
various websites you can subscribe to
for a relatively small fee. These provide
you with immediate access to the creditworthiness of a potential customer. If you
are still unsure, but do not want to lose the
potential business, ask the director for a
personal guarantee or ask for money to be
paid up front.
3
Invoice
Issue your invoices promptly and
regularly and do not permit unpaid
invoices to remain outstanding while
carrying out further services for the same
customer. Make sure you have the correct
address details on the invoice and follow
up your invoice immediately to check it has
been received by the correct department.
4
Overdue invoices
On the first day the invoice is
overdue contact your client to
recheck they have received the invoice and
that payment is being made immediately. If
payment is still not received, it is imperative
to keep good communications with your
client to find out what the issue is and a
date they will pay. It may be necessary
to inform your client that if payment isn’t
forthcoming, you will reluctantly pass the
file to your solicitors.
5
Recovery of your legal
costs
You are usually only entitled to
recover your legal costs if you issue court
proceedings and win, and unless your
claim is for more than £5,000, you will be
limited to a nominal amount of fixed fees.
Therefore, it is important that your terms
and conditions permit you to recover all
your reasonable legal costs in the event of
non-payment of an invoice.
We have advised on cases worth a few
hundred pounds to over £5million. No case
is too big or too small. We provide you with
reassuring, specialist advise on resolving
your business disputes.
For a free no-obligation discussion
please call Emma Nawaz on
0161 929 0121 or email her at
[email protected]
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A festive treat for all the family
Starring (in alphabetical order)
Fri 30 November 2012 − Sat 5 January 2013
Book today on 0843 208 6007
www.thelowry.com/whitechristmas
A piece in
the jigsaw
L
iaising with the press is not
always the simplest of jobs.
So imagine doing so while
dealing with the realities of working
in a children’s hospice. Karen Flower,
45, took the plunge into charity PR
recently after a 23-year career in
broadcast production – and she’s
loving it.
From Sir Alex Ferguson to Sarah Storey,
Francis House is not short of celebrity
friends. It’s fair to say Karen has her work
cut out keeping up with the hectic hospice
diary.
She became Public Relations Officer earlier
this year after a successful career behind
the camera. Karen cut her teeth as a
programme producer and director in the
south west for ITV and Channel 4, to name
a few. A committed vegetarian and animal
lover, charity work was always something
she had a passion for.
So when Karen decided it was time to
make a change, altruism led her to pursue
a career in charity PR - and she hasn’t
looked back.
“I wasn’t as motivated in my job as I used
to be. I decided I wanted a fresh start and
I’ve always been interested in charity,”
she says. “I was invited to apply for the PR
job at Francis House because they were a
former client – I’d worked on their previous
two fundraising videos. In preparation, I
spent a week in Sussex on work experience
with the media team at Cats Protection. It
was life changing - I knew I could really
get into the role. I was lucky enough to be
selected for an interview at Francis House
a few months later and I got the job.”
people
“To go from a career
I knew inside out,
to something completely
new was daunting,
but it’s the best thing
I’ve ever done,”
So with little experience, Karen found
herself thrown in the deep end, tackling the
day-to-day hustle and bustle of promoting
the hospice and its cause across the
north west, and in charge of writing press
releases, getting to know the local press
and being involved in hospice events.
“I’ve been gradually finding out how
the hospice works and getting to know
everybody - it’s as much a learning curve
for them as it is for me,” she says.
“The people who work there are amazing
- the support they give to the families who
come for respite just a few weeks a year
is incredible. There are sad moments,
but there’s a very lively atmosphere. For
families, it really is a home from home.”
Karen’s focus has been the hospice’s new
seven-bedroom extension, which has seen
visits from many a famous face while under
construction. She has also flourished as
Francis House’s adopted chief snapper.
“We’ve been very lucky to have some great
support from celebrities like Sir Alex, Sarah
Storey, Camilla Al Fayed and, of course,
the Kirsty Howard Club,” says Karen.
“I studied photography when I was
younger, but put the camera down to
become a director. It’s bizarre - now 20
odd years later, I’ve picked it up again!”
Altrincham-born Karen insists her career
change has transformed her life and is now
settled back up North with husband Mike.
“To go from a career I knew inside out, to
something completely new was daunting,
but it’s the best thing I’ve ever done,” she
says. “It’s an incredibly rewarding job – I’m
feeling more and more like I’m making it
my own.”
The heartbeat of the hospice, Karen
maintains, is the public’s extraordinary
support, which has kept Francis House alive
for so long. “People’s generosity amazes
me – the things they do are incredible,”
she says. “Most of the time it’s people who
don’t even know anyone who comes to the
hospice, but they still go to unbelievable
lengths to raise money.”
Words Tom Fitzgerald
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Show time...
Words Catherine Reed
The festive
season is upon
us! Amid all
the preparation
Peter Pan
Bolton Octagon
don’t forget
Until 12 January
to book your
tickets for one of the terrific shows
or concerts in town this Christmas.
There are also some stunning
January events to tempt you out
again in the New Year. Enjoy!
Aladdin
Stockport Plaza
7 December – 6 January
Musicals
White Christmas The Musical
The Lowry – Until 5 January
This is one of the most iconic Christmas shows ever,
with fabulous songs, including the most well-known of
them all, White Christmas, brilliant sets and gorgeous
costumes. In 2009 it sold out, so don’t leave it too
late before you buy your tickets. Claire Sweeney,
Steven Houghton and Wendi Peters star alongside Ken
Kercheval, who is currently on our TV screens reviving
his role of Cliff Barnes in Dallas.
Priscilla Queen of the DeserT
Opera House – 9–23 February
This fabulous glitzy musical starring Jason Donovan tells
the story of three friends who board a battered bus in
search of love and friendship. It features a soundtrack of
dance floor favourites such as Girls Just Wanna Have
Fun and I Will Survive.
Hairspray
The Lowry – 11–23 February
The ultimate feel-good musical with big hair and a
big heart is back in town and it’s the perfect show to
brighten up those winter evenings. It stars Mark Benton,
X Factor’s Marcus Collins, Eastenders’ Lucy Benjamin,
and newcomer Freya Sutton as Tracy – the girl who sets
out to follow her dreams, inspire her mum and win the
heart of the boy she loves.
Book early
War Horse
The Lowry
20 November 2013 – 18 January 2014
This acclaimed theatrical experience is coming to
The Lowry at the end of 2013.
Drama
Rats’ Tales
Royal Exchange Theatre
A dark and magical telling of folk stories from around
the world packed with thrills, laughs and even a little
magic.
One Man Two Guvnors
The Lowry – 8 – 12 January
There couldn’t be a better show to get you through
the post-Christmas slump than this one. Rufus Hound
stars as the hapless Francis Henshall, a man with one
job too many, along with Jodie Prenger who excels
as Francis’ love interest. It’s a real laugh-out-loud joy
of a show, which has received five stars from almost
every reviewer on the planet!
Accrington Pals
Royal Exchange Theatre
17 January – 16 February
On the eve of the First World War the young men of
Accrington hear Kitchener’s call for a New Army and
become the smallest town in England to raise a Pals
Volunteer Brigade.
Goodnight Mr Tom
Opera House
29 January – 5 February
A brand-new production of David Wood’s play
marking the 30th anniversary of Michelle Magorian’s
wonderful novel. This is a truly inspirational and
moving tale of a young boy’s remarkable friendship
with an elderly recluse when he is evacuated during
the Second World War.
Dance
Les Ballets Trockadero
de Monte Carlo
The Lowry – 29 – 30 January
The marvellous Trocks are back with bags of diva
attitude, lashings of comedy and a wonderful new
programme, which includes Les Sylphides and La
Viviandiere.
Brendan Cole
The Lowry – 31 January
Strictly Come Dancing star Brendan Cole
brings his brand-new Licence To Thrill show to
The Lowry accompanied by a cast of 20
musicians, singers and dancers.
Strictly Come Dancing Live
Manchester Arena – 31 January – 1 February
Craig Revel Horwood, Len Goodman and Bruno
Tonioli preside over the stars of the 2012 TV
series. This is your chance to experience all the
razzmatazz and glamour for yourself and to enjoy
their performances live as well as joining in the
voting to decide the winner on the night.
BRB Aladdin
The Lowry – 27 February – 2 March
Aladdin is the perfect ballet for the whole family,
with stunning choreography, beautiful costumes,
wonderful sets and even a magic carpet all
weaved around a well-loved story.
Family
Peter Pan
Bolton Octagon – Until 12 January
With original music performed live by a cast of
talented actor-musicians, a cast of local young
performers and just a sprinkling of fairy dust, the
Octagon will take you on the festive adventure of
a lifetime in this brand-new version of JM Barrie’s
classic tale.
Arabian Nights
Library Theatre – Until 12 January
Magical stories of excitement, danger and romance
from a faraway land.
Lion King
Palace Theatre – Until 31 March
The long-awaited Lion King finally arrives in town.
This fabulous show uses breathtaking theatrical
magic to tell the story of Simba and his efforts to
reclaim his kingdom. It will take the audience on a
journey filled with glorious colour, great music and
stunning stage effects.
Music
Exhibitions
K ey 103 J ingle Ball
Peter Blake and Pop Music
Manchester Arena – 5 December
The Lowry – Ends 24 February
This major exhibition, which celebrates the 80th
birthday of the Godfather of Pop Art, features
pieces from Peter Blake’s long and prolific career,
including works designed for Oasis, The Beatles
and Eric Clapton.
Mumford & Sons
Manchester Arena – 10 December
R ufus W ainwright
O2 Apollo – 11 December
P aloma F aith
O2 Apollo – 23/24 January
Saving Lives
Donny and Marie Osmond
IWMN – until October 2013
Saving Lives: Frontline Medicine in a Century of
Conflict examines war and medicine since the
First World War highlighting dramatic personal
experiences and exploring the efforts made to
save lives amid the destruction of war.
Manchester Arena – 27 January
P lan B
Manchester Arena – 2 February
L ittle M ix
O2 Apollo – 6 February
Moscow State Circus
The Lowry – 24–27 January
Aladdin
Stockport Plaza
The Plaza’s traditional panto is always great fun, with
lots of interactive fun and very competitive ticket
prices.
Lion King
Palace Theatre – Until 31 March
Peter Pan
Knick Knack and Doo Dad
The Lowry – 27 December – 5 January
Opera House – 8 December – 13 January
David Hasselhoff stars in Peter Pan, a swashbuckling
adventure for all the family.
The Tear Thief
Royal Exchange Studio – 11–29 December
Carol Ann Duffy’s enchanting book is brought to life
by the magical puppetry of Little Angel Theatre with
live music. Suitable for ages 3+.
Knick Knack and Doo Dad
The Lowry – 27 December – 5 January
A fun, interactive show for all the family with lots
of imaginative and fun ideas on how to recycle at
Christmas, told with songs, humour and games.
One Man Two Guvnors
The Lowry - 8 – 12 January
Moscow State Circus
The Lowry – 24–27 January
Russia’s greatest and most talented circus artistes
combine contemporary circus to present an amazing
spectacle that includes clowning, aerial acts,
acrobatics, gymnastics and balancing.
X Factor Live
Manchester Arena – 27 January
The winner of this year’s live shows plus the finalists
and some other memorable acts live on stage.
Goodnight Mr Tom
Opera House – 29 January – 5 February
l
87
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NEW YEAR’S
EVE GALA
AT THE BRIDGEWATER HALL
Join Manchester Camerata, soprano
Rebecca Nelsen and St George’s Singers
for an evening of opera favourites and
heartwarming orchestral melodies. Arrive
early to enjoy foyer entertainment from
circus performers and close harmony
vocal group Barbieshop.
Entertainment from 6.30pm
Concert finish time approx 10.30pm
Tickets £32 | £42 | £52
0844 907 9000
bridgewater-hall.co.uk
The importance of
reading and writing
Acclaimed poet Mike Garry
broke off from performing
in front of thousands with
punk poet John Cooper
Clarke on his national
tour, to talk to pupils at
Stockport Grammar School.
‘Expect something enchanting, cheeky
and a little bit dark’
The Guardian
Mike, a regular at the school,
spoke to pupils about his
background and sources of
inspiration, and entertained his
audience by reciting some of
his poems – including works
commissioned by Manchester
United.
The importance of reading
and writing for pleasure was
another theme of his visit,
29 Nov 2012 - 12 Jan 2013
Box Office 0161 833 9833
royalexchange.co.uk/rats
and he left children and staff
feeling inspired, motivated and
entertained by his words.
The Royal Exchange Theatre Company is a registered charity (255424).
SJM CONCERTS PRESENT
SJM CONCERTS BY ARRANGEMENT WITH SOLO AND PROPER ARTIST MANAGEMENT PRESENTS...
Kings of Leon
PLUS SPECIAL GUESTS
TUESDAY 16 APRIL 2013
MANCHESTER
ARENA
SATURDAY 14 DECEMBER 2013
MANCHESTER ARENA
0844 847 8000
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0844 811 0051 & 0844 826 2826
NEW ALBUM ‘EVOLUTION’ OUT NOW, INCLUDES THE SINGLE ‘HOTTEST GIRL IN THE WORLD’ OUT NOW
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VIP PACKAGES INCLUDING MEET & GREETS AVAILABLE
AT WWW.LIVENATIONEXPERIENCE.CO.UK OR PHONE 08 444 999 999
KATHERINE JENKINS APPEARS BY ARRANGEMENT WITH
THE AGENCY GROUP & 247 WORLDWIDE MANAGEMENT
MONDAY 24 & TUESDAY 25 JUNE
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0844 847 8000 • 0844 811 0051
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ILDIVO.COM
KATHERINEJENKINS.CO.UK
AN SJM PRESENTATION IN ASSOCIATION
WITH WME ENTERTAINMENT
SJM Concerts by arrangement with The Agency Group and Neil Ferris present
Sat 23 March 2013
Manchester
Arena
0844 847 8000
gigsandtours.com / ticketmaster.co.uk
0844 811 0051 / 0844 826 2826
For VIP tickets:
gigsandtours.com/AlfieBoeVIPpackages
Brand new album ‘STORYTELLER’ out now
www.alfie-boe.com
www.alfieboeuk.com
ALFIE BOE
PROUD TO FLY
SJM Concerts by arrangement with Coda presents
Friday 01 March
Manchester
Arena
2013 ARENA TOUR
plus special guests
MONDAY 25 MARCH
MANCHESTER ARENA
0844 847 8000
0844 847 8000
gigsandtours.com | ticketmaster.co.uk
0844 811 0051 | 0844 826 2826
gigsandtours.com / ticketmaster.co.uk
New album “THE EVOLUTION OF MAN” out now
featuring the singles “SAY NOTHING”
and “CLOSE ENEMIES”
/leadingbyexample
@example
trythisforexample.com
THE ALBUM ‘OPPOSITES’ PRE-ORDER NOW AT BIFFYCLYRO.COM
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what’son
The most wonderful time of the year is back
and it’s bigger and better than ever.
Manchester Christmas Markets
17 November – 23 December
Spinningfields Ice Rink
22 November – 6 January
Manchester Arndale Christmas Grotto
22 November – 24 December
Join the conversation #MCRChristmas or
for more information and booking details
visit manchester.gov.uk/christmas
Follow us on t witter
#didsburymagazin
Reviews
Words John Waddington
DVDs
Ted
Family Guy creator Seth
MacFarlane brings his
boundary-pushing brand of
humour to the big screen for
the first time as writer, director
and voice star of Ted. In the live action/CG-animated
comedy, he tells the story of John Bennett, a grown
man who must deal with the cherished teddy bear
that came to life as the result of a childhood wish,
and has refused to leave his side ever since.
What to Expect
When You’re
Expecting
Inspired by the perennial
bestseller, What to Expect
When You’re Expecting is a
hilarious and heartfelt comedy about five couples
whose intertwined lives are turned upside down by
the challenges of impending parenthood. Definitely
one to watch if you’re a newly minted parent – it’s
funny because it’s true.
Cockneys vs
Zombies
As contractors to an East
London building site unlock
a 350-year-old vault full of
seriously hungry zombies, the East End has suddenly
gone to hell and the cockney way of life is under
threat. Equipped with all the guns and ammo they can
carry, a group of bank robbers are London’s only hope
of saving East London from a zombie Armageddon.
Kind of like a less good Shaun of the Dead.
Music
Books
Psychedelic Pill
The Twelve
Neil Young
Neil Young is an artist who
has remained incredibly prolific
throughout his career, and
generally he has kept the quality
of his recorded output very high.
Sure, his classic albums from the 1970s may never be
bettered, but Young keeps stretching himself, doing his
own thing and keeping things interesting. For that he
should be saluted. He really nails his flag to the mast
with this record though - its opener is 27 minutes long.
Yes please.
Koi No Yokan
Deftones
Deftones return with another
hard-rockin’ album of anthemic
heartfelt rock, with just the
right amount of heavy for all the
misunderstood teenagers in
bedrooms across the country. Strong tunes such as
new single Tempest and sparkling production mean
that fans of the band shouldn’t find much to complain
about, but obvious and pedestrian lyrics let the album
down somewhat.
Bish Bosch
Scott Walker
Scott Walker is up to his old
tricks again, sampling clanging
machetes on his new album.
Six years after his last record,
The Drift, this new offering
shows much of the same maverick, experimental spirit
that has catagorised his later work. Often ridiculed
for his rather eccentric studio techniques, Walker is
nevertheless a gifted singer and songwriter, even if he
is something of an acquired taste.
Justin Cronin
At the end of Cronin’s previous book, The
Passage, the great viral plague had left a small
group of survivors clinging to life amid a world
transformed into a nightmare. In the second
volume of this epic trilogy, this same group of
survivors, led by the mysterious, charismatic
Amy, go on the attack, leading an insurrection
against the virals. If a bit of sci-fi mystery is your
cup of tea, this is the book for you.
The Black Box
Michael Connelly
Set in Los Angeles 1992 against the backdrop of
the Rodney King riots, this is a gripping policebased thriller. With their lives at threat, homicide
detectives like Harry Bosch are still stubbornly
trying to do their job while law and order break
down. With no effective police presence on the
streets, murder just got a whole lot easier - and
investigating got a whole lot harder.
A Week in Winter
Maeve Binchy
A Week in Winter is full of Maeve’s trademark
warmth, humour and characters you want to
spend time with. Henry and Nicola are burdened
with a terrible secret, while cheerful nurse Winnie
finds herself on the holiday from hell. John has
arrived on an impulse after he missed a flight at
Shannon; eccentric Freda claims to be a psychic
- and a part-time hairdresser. Then there’s Nora,
a silent watchful older woman who seems ready
to disapprove at any moment.
FILMS
Gambit
Director: Michael Hoffman
In crime comedy Gambit, Colin Firth plays an art expert
who hatches a plan to fool a billionaire collector into
buying a newly discovered Monet painting that went
missing during World War Two.
Recruiting a brash Texas rodeo queen to help convince
his mark that the fake painting has a credible heritage,
his elaborate con becomes a work of art in its own right.
Silver Linings Playbook
Director: David O. Russell
Even though Pat Solitano has lost his house, his job and
his wife, he’s determined to get his life back on track.
Comedy drama Silver Linings Playbook follows his
attempts to rebuild his world helped by his parents, the
Philadelphia Eagles football team, and a strange girl who
might just hold the key to his happiness.
End Of Watch
Director: David Ayer
In action thriller End of Watch, two young LA cops fall
foul of a ruthless drugs cartel after arresting one of its
members. Stumbling upon a secret that could end the
gang’s activities once and for all, they are sentenced
to death by the crime boss and forced to take drastic
measures to survive. This thriller has just enough grit to
keep it interesting.
FILMS
Gambit
End of Watch
Silver Linings Playbook
While you were out
and busy living your life...
H
ave you ever wondered about
the things you may have
missed? Or not seen, or heard,
or read, or even tasted? Do people
constantly talk about something - a
book, a film, a record, a place or an
event, a taste of something that’s
completely passed you by, and do you
wish you had experienced it?
Or do you feel there’s a great piece of
cultural art that only you seem to know
about? Want to let the rest of us know
what we’re missing? Well, here’s your
chance; we want you to tell us, in around
450 words, about a piece of popular culture
you love and yet, for reasons inexplicably
unknown, no body else seems to know
about. It could be a book, a record, a film,
a TV programme, a play, fashion, a person
– absolutely anything (Salim would like
somebody to eulogise Toffos!). The only
proviso is that your nominated artefact
must still be readily available to buy or
view. After all, we want to experience
the undoubted joys of your good taste,
especially now you’ve told us about it.
STATIONTOSTATION,
David Bowie, 1976
David Bowie’s StationtoStation is a dazzling
gem, an album that would be the crowning
point of any artist’s career, had they only had
the wit to produce it. However, because this
record sits among so many other glittering
splendours in the Bowie canon it has, sadly,
been overlooked and diminished. From a
personal point of view it’s my favourite Bowie
album but I also believe it to be among his
very best and most influential work. Its
stunning simplicity, three songs apiece for
each side of vinyl, confounded critics and
listeners, who felt they were somehow being
short-changed, yet it says everything it has
to say within those six songs.
Coming hard on the heels of Young
Americans, with its soft focus plastic
soul; StationtoStation was a complete
departure point from its predecessor. From
the cover art (a still from Bowie’s recently
completed film debut, The Man Who Fell
To Earth) to the sounds contained within,
everything about it was new. Bowie looked
strange and alien and he’d produced
a corresponding sound to accompany
this sense of alienation. Cold, clinical,
mechanical and yet, paradoxically, at the
same time warm and optimistic it sounded
like nothing else before it and even today
it doesn’t really compare readily with any
other artist’s output.
Unique standalone music
Considering Bowie followed this record
with the ultra-futuristic Low, which was
the blueprint for all the good (even more
Kraftwerk!), the bad (Gary Numan) and the
ugly (Howard Jones, Kajagoogoo... need I
go on?) of synthesiser-dominated 80s pop,
StationtoStation still sounds as though
it was produced in isolation. It has no
obvious connection to his past
and provides no
predecessors or its successors, but this
was Bowie’s remarkable achievement with
this record in 1976.
Listen to the song Golden Years as
evidence for my assertion. Try to imagine
how that would have sounded in 1976, in
a chart filled with Abba, Rod Stewart and
Boney M. Now compare it to what can be
found in today’s charts. Has it dated? Does
it sound like a song from the mid-70s?
Where did that sound come from?
Bowie is an undoubted great in the history
of popular music and for many people
his music has been the accompanying
soundtrack to their lives. Hunky Dory,
Ziggy, Heroes and most of the other albums
from the 70s are well-known and rightly
acclaimed, but I think StationtoStation is
the great lost work of an artist at the very
height of his powers. Give it a spin; you
won’t be disappointed.
Words Mark Kureishy
straightforward
clues about his
future output.
The
Beatles,
Dylan, and The
Rolling Stones
have all produced
great works that
are recognisably
part of a sequence
or development in
their artistry. They
haven’t produced unique
standalone music that
bears no relationship to its
l
93
gifts&gadgets
Why not treat the
one you love this
Christmas, and
bestow upon them
the gift of the gadget?
Here are our festive
favourites...
Words John Waddington
Bang & Olufsen BeoPlay
Premium audio specialist Bang &
Olufsen has introduced the latest
member of its BeoPlay family
in the shape of the A9 speaker
system, which will stream audio
from an iPhone, iPad or Android
device over Wi-Fi, DLNA and
Apple AirPlay.
The B&O BeoPlay A9 aims to
become the focal point of the
living room whether it’s on the floor or on the wall, and with its distinctive looks
that mission should be accomplished. £1,699 Bang & Olufsen
Sony PS3 Super Slim
The third console in the PS3 cycle, the
Super Slim has a look inspired by the
original, but packs many of the same
features as current models, so is it
really worth trading up from the Sony
PS3 Slim? The build feels cheaper and
while it might be slightly smaller and
lighter, it’s much the same in terms of
performance and features, while the
durability is somewhat iffy. There’s a
12GB SSD storage option that could
appeal to some, as it promises quicker
loading and game download times,
but all in all, this feels like a stop-gap
console. £250 Sony
Amazon Kindle Paperwhite
Turn on the Amazon Kindle Paperwhite
and you’ll wonder how you ever coped
with yesterday’s eReaders. The light
is cool and clear, the new fonts are
much easier on the eye, and the reading
features are simply seamless. The
Paperwhite is just a shade larger, thicker
and heavier than previous models,
such as the Kindle 4, and remains very
manageable for one-handed reading. But
it’s far from perfect: it would be nice to
have a non-touch version, the browser
is rubbish and the home screen is very
busy. £109 Amazon
Sony KD-84X9005
Here’s a nice TV if you’ve got a few
spare pennies rattling around in your
back pocket. At only £25,000 the new
Sony KD-84X9005 is a steal. You’ll have
to ask your chauffeur to run you down
to Harrods though because they are
the only UK retailer selling them. It’s
net-connected, offering access to the
usual broad selection of streaming TV
services, including catch-up and movie
rentals, and it’s also the first Sony LED
to support Passive 3D. £25,000 Sony
Loewe Air Speaker
The Loewe Air Speaker is a compact,
premium-level stereo aimed at the styleconscious and it’s equipped with Apple’s
AirPlay technology, which means it can
stream music directly from iTunes using
a WiFi connection. Yes, it’s very pricey,
more expensive than all its chief rivals,
but if you have the money to burn it’s
hard to think of an AirPlay system that
manages to deliver this level of audio
quality in something so small and so
elegant. £650 Loewe
Wacom Bamboo
It’s easy to see how this Wacom
device could do away with the ageold computer mouse controller on a
permanent basis. Fast, responsive and
beautifully simplistic the Pen & Touch is
a joy to use, and with a stunning finish
is top of its game. Angular buttons,
green accents and a gloss black finish
give the Bamboo a distinguished,
artistic feel that will surely
appeal to its intended
users.
£80 Wacom
Local services
To advertise in the next issue call 0161 445 2883
EXCELLENT FUNCTION
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Tel: 0161 445 3712
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Contact
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• Individual Psychotherapy for adults in accordance with
UKCP guidelines.
Iyengar Yoga Manchester offers general and
specialist classes for men, women and children
of all ages, fitness levels and abilities.
TRY A ‘TA
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• Personal support for families affected by Special
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home modelling strategies and approaches.
Jayne Life Therapy Limited (Company No. 8122537)
J_Life_Advert_1012.indd 1
iYoga Centre, Winsor House, Battersea Road, Heaton Mersey, Stockport SK4 3EA
02/11/2012 10:00
Housekeepers/ Cooks/ Carers/ Nannies/ Chauffeurs/
Couples/ Security Staff
• Complete staffing solution for your household
• Supplying EU, British & Filipino staff
• Personal, professional, caring service
• All applicants interviewed, reference checked & vetted
• Nationwide coverage
www.housekeepercompany.co.uk
12, Delahays Road, Hale, Cheshire WA15 8DY
Tel: 0161 980 0996 or 0845 601 3945
Tel: 07763 346332 Email: [email protected] www.iyoga.org.uk
Private GP
& Night Doctor
Dr Bruce Jobling
0161 980 2626
24 Hours | 7 Days
“Peace of mind for you and
your family, at all times”
PGA Professional
Golf Tuition
All ability levels catered for
at De Vere Mottram Hall
5 lessons for just £25
(this offer based on a group class format call for next course details)
Matthew Turnock
Call: 07774 132 382
New modern friendly salon.
Avantagarde techniques.
Highly trained barbers.
Both with 15 years local
experience.
Didsbury | 0161 434 4488
56 School Lane, East Didsbury, Manchester
Opening times
Mon – Thurs 9-7pm | Fri 9-6pm | Sat 9-5.30pm
www.thebarbershopdidsbury.co.uk
[email protected]
l
95
motoringnews
Words Oliver Chesher
A Toyota
for the purist
A
nyone who’s picked up a car
magazine in the past six months
can’t fail to notice that the launch of
one new sports car has created quite
a stir this year.
This isn’t some six-figure supercar from
Italy though, nor is it some kind of futuristic
all-carbon-fibre track day monster that
rewrites the laws of physics.
The GT86 from Toyota is an exercise in
purity: a sports coupé that starts at only
25 grand, and ticks three crucial boxes.
First, it’s a rear-wheel drive so it’s perfectly
balanced and gives a truly engaging and
fun driving experience. Second, it’s not
turbocharged or particularly overpowered,
so scallywags that just want to launch
away from the traffic lights will get far
more power and straight-line speed from
a cheap and cheerful hot hatchback. And
finally, it has ordinary tyres, not road-roller
thick, super-grippy racing wheels, which
means it gives better driver feedback, less
rolling resistance for better fuel economy,
and best of all, is just the right amount of
tail-happy in the corners. In other words, it
flatters the driver, making them feel like a
real racing hero when chucking it through which is widely regarded as the first truly
the turns.
collectable Japanese sports coupé. These
both had that same front-engine/rear-drive
On paper, the numbers might put off some layout and small, free-revving engines,
buyers, but this car is aimed at the sports yet were spoken of with the same awed
car purists. A four-cylinder engine with 200 reverence as performance cars from
horsepower and a 0-60 time of over eight far more expensive marques, including
seconds doesn’t make it a match for the Porsche and Jaguar.
aforementioned hot hatches in numbers terms
– but the driving experience is key here.
Motoring journalists far more
knowledgeable than this one have given
The seating position is perfect – the car this Toyota full marks in road test reviews
feels like everything’s revolving around this year. In other words, it’s reminded the
you. It’s light and agile, not to mention how world that - among so many other things good it looks.
the manufacturing giant can still make an
unbeatable driver’s car.
From a manufacturer whose sports car
heritage includes the world-beating
MR2, Celica and Supra, you’d expect the
designers to have plenty of inspiration to
For more information about the Toyota
draw upon. No doubt, the new GT86 is
GT86 or to arrange a test drive please
worthy of these ancestors, but it really
contact RRG Group on
derives its fundamental philosophy (as
0161 745 7766 or
hinted at by some of its styling cues) from
some of its earlier predecessors.
For the latest RRG news please visit
www.rrg-group.com or connect on
The name suggests the AE86 from the
facebook http://www.facebook.com/
80s, while the rear windows look just like
rrggroup or Twitter @RRG_Group
those from the 2000GT from the late 60s,
W O R L D C L A S S T R AV E L L E R S
David Beckham. A global icon who insists on perfection. Precision and
style. A legend forged by accomplishments. On his wrist is the Breitling
Transocean Chronograph Unitime, the ultimate traveller’s watch.
Manufacture Breitling Calibre B05, officially chronometer-certified by
selfwinding chronograph. Universal time function enabling permanent
readings of the time in all 24 timezones thanks to a patented mechanism
and a supremely user-friendly crown-operated correction system.
Comfort and elegance for first-class travellers. Signed Breitling.
SELFRIDGES EXCHANGE SQUARE, MANCHESTER
SELFRIDGES WONDER ROOM, OXFORD STREET, LONDON
£8460*
*RRP. Subject to change without notice.
the COSC, endorsed by a 5-year Breitling warranty. High-performance

festive glamour

Transcription

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