A taste of Castell Dinas Bran - 13th century style

* Members of the Cwmwed Ial group battle it out. 

Medieval re-enactment group Cwmwd Iâl will be camped just below Castell Dinas Brân, on the area known locally as the Pancake, over the weekend of September 22 and 23.

Between 11am and 4pm each day the group will be living life as it was at around the time that Castell Dinas Brân was built.

Visitors can find out about the sort of things they ate, their clothes, healing and warfare as well as watch set piece battles on the hillside.

"It will really bring the Castle to life," said county archaeologist Fiona Gale.

"Castell Dinas Brân was built in the 13^thcentury by the local Welsh princes and was a very grand home as well as strong fortification. Cwmwd Iâl will fire up our imagination and gives us an idea of day to day life for the people of the castle."

Denbighshire Countryside staff will be on hand as well. 

A modern marquee will have fun children’s activities and information about the local area, part of the Clwydian Range and Dee Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and close to a World Heritage Site.

There will be walks up to the Castle from The Pancake throughout the day (12 noon, 2pm and 4pm) to find out about the history and biodiversity of the castle itself and to look at the work that has gone on to ensure the castle remains standing and easy to access….at least as easy as it can be on top of a steep hill!

The best way to see the re-enactors is to park in Llangollen and walk up from the town.

The way will have extra signage for the weekend to help you get there.

Or you could use the Llangollen Lift at 10 am and 1 pm from Parade Street in town.

Ros Stockdale, regional routes warden, said: "It will take you to the Eglwyseg side of the Castle, then you can walk around the castle, which is a pleasant walk of about three quarters of a mile through woodland - and best of all, relatively flat!"

For further information contact Denbighshire Countryside Staff on O1352 810614 or 01978 869615.

Don't miss Troupe's showcase gigs

* The Travelling Troupe are in action again this weekend. 

Fresh from their success at Barmouth Arts Festival last weekend, Llangollen Operatic Society’s Travelling Troupe are getting ready to wow a home audience at their two showcase evenings this Friday and Saturday.

The troupe, which tours the region staging gigs to raise cash for society funds, was in Barmouth to give an exclusive performance at the town’s Dragon Theatre as part of the local arts festival.

The festival organiser has just been in touch with society chairman Mike Jones to say: “Please convey to all concerned my thanks for a very good performance here in Barmouth.

“The feedback from the audience was all positive.

“Personally, I was impressed by the performance, the musicians who were excellent, and the sound man, who didn’t deafen everyone, and the total organisation of it all.”

The troupe’s two showcase evenings this Friday and Saturday, entitled “Lost in Music”, will take place at Llangollen Town Hall.

They will feature a myriad of medleys and numbers, ranging from opera to rock.

Tickets, which include a glass of wine and some cheese, are available from Llangollen Tourist Information Centre, or Jades Hair & Beauty at £8 and £5 concessions, or by e-mailing Troupe@llangollen-operatic.co.uk 

Campaign group cannot speak on Sainsbury's plan

* The Dobson & Crowther site off the A5. 

Members of a local campaign group opposing the building of a 20,000 square foot Sainsbury’s supermarket in Llangollen are furious after being told they will be unable to speak against the application when it comes before county planners next week.

Keep Llangollen Special has just heard from Denbighshire County Council that its request to address the planning committee came in after all the four available public slots at the meeting had been filled.

The group’s chairman says he will now be writing to council chief executive Dr Mohammed Mehmet making a plea for them to be able to put their views forward on an issue which “so fundamentally” affects the future of the town.

The question of whether the supermarket should be built on land currently occupied by the Dobson & Crowther envelope factory off the A5 has split the town, with rival groups being set up to argue for and against the scheme.

It will be considered by the planning committee next Wednesday (September 19) along with a related application to move the factory to a new site at nearby Cilmedw Farm.

It is council policy to allow just two speakers for and two against an application but Keep Llangollen Special was told its request to air its views was received after all the slots were allocated.

Speaking in favour of the supermarket plan will be a representative of consultants representing the developer, J Ross Ltd, and John Palmer, chair of Llangollen Chamber of Trade.

Arguing against the scheme will be a consultant representing the nearby Co-operative food store and an official of Friends of the Earth.

The Cilmedw application will see two representatives from agents for the developer speaking in favour of it and representative of the Co-op store and a private individual speaking against.

A planning official from the county council has written to Mike Edwards, chair of Keep Llangollen Special, to say: “Please note that we deal with requests to speak on a first come, first
served basis. That being the case, unfortunately your request was received after we had fulfilled our slots of two for and two against each of the Llangollen applications.

“We have kept your name and that of a couple of others in order of receipt and should anyone drop out, we will contact you.

“It is our policy to encourage those wishing to speak at Planning Committee to speak to each other in order to ensure that all issues are covered.”

Mr Edwards said: “I intend to write to the chief executive and make a plea for us to be able to put our views forward before the committee take a decision of this nature which fundamentally affects the future of Llangollen.”

He revealed that if his group had been given a chance to speak at the meeting it intended to warn that the planned new store would hit small shops in Llangollen, leading to a “spiral of decline and decay” which would eventually affect the whole region, including tourism in the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and the World Heritage site around Pontcysyllte Aqueduct.

 

 

Open Doors weekend hailed a success

Llangollen Civic Society, which organised the special event, has thanked all those who took part in Open Doors 2012 last weekend.

The aim was to throw the spotlight on the area’s hidden historic gems, including the Chain Bridge, Valle Crucis Abbey, Plas Newydd, Y Capel, Castell Dinas Bran and local churches.

* An 1835 architect’s drawing of the Old Lock Up.

Members of the public were invited to view and be briefed on the history of these locations over Saturday and Sunday.

A spokesman for the Civic Society said: “We would like to thank all those who took part, from those who opened their doors to the public, those who helped man the buildings and exhibitions and those who led walks and gave talks. 

“This year was another successful year, in some cases attendances were disappointingly lower than last year, but some newer exhibits were very popular.”

One exhibit which was attracted a lot of visitors was the Old Lock Up, or Armoury, on Victoria Square. 

Since being acquired by Sue Hargreaves the old building has been transformed to more like it would have been when it was first built in 1835. 

She also mounted a display showing the history of the building, from its original architect’s drawings, subsequent changes and uses. 

She was ably assisted by an “old lag” in the cell, convincingly played by Mike Law. 

For those of you who missed the event Sue will be opening the building for Hanes on Monday 25^th of September – minus a prisoner in the cell.

The exhibitions in the Town Hall included a display on the history of the Chain Bridge, and the status of the restoration project.  

Lorna Jenner is anxious for local people to contribute their memories of the bridge and any information they can give about its history. 

For those of you who missed it the exhibition will be at the Chain Bridge Hotel until 3^rd October, where there is also an exhibition by the Institute of Civil Engineers, called “Web of Iron” which celebrates the history of suspension bridges, and features our own Chain Bridge.    

 

·         The Web of Iron Exhibition.

llanblogger questions future of Oakleigh House

* The future of Oakleigh House is still unclear.

Llanblogger recently lodged a Freedom of Information request with the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board (BCUHB) seeking clarification of its future intentions for Oakleigh House, the now-empty former mental health resource centre in Abbey Road.

We did this because the property has frequently been mentioned in connection with proposals for a general health shake-up in the area. 

Unfortunately, the very guarded responses to our eight questions, do not shed much light on what the board’s intentions are. 

Here is the basis of the reply from BCUHB:   

Q1: Is Oakleigh House, the now-empty former mental health resource centre situated on Abbey Road, Llangollen, currently in the ownership of the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board (BCUHB) or any other public organisation and precisely how long has it been empty? 

A: Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board (BCUHB) owns Oakleigh House and vacated the building in September 2010.  

Q2: If in the ownership of the BCUHB, does the BCUHB have any plans for its future use for a health-related purpose?  

A: No.  

Q3: If not, is the BCHUB actively seeking to dispose of the property by either sale, lease or rent?  

A: The Health Board is in the process of marketing the property for disposal and are seeking initial advice from our Agent. 

Q4: If the property is already up for sale, lease or rent, what progress has been made to date in this process?  

A: Please see response to question 3.  

Q5. If the property is being offered for sale what is the current asking price?  

A: Please see response to question 3.  

Q6. Have any offers so far been made by any party to buy or lease the property?  

A: Some interest has been expressed. 

Q7. If so, what has been the result of any offers for the property?  

A: Interested parties have been advised of the Boards processes in the identification of surplus sites and given assurance that they will be notified when the property is to be offered for sale.  

Q8. While the property remains in public ownership, what is the annual cost of

maintenance and security to the BCUHB?  

A: £500 per annum.

WI enjoys glass painting display

Guest Alison Cutler laid on a fascinating display of painting on glass for 29 members of Llangollen Women's Institute at the Welfare Hall on Thursday night of last week.

Using a projector, she provided them with a demonstration of how she creates her intricate and colourful patterns and then invited some of the members to try their hand at the art-form.

* Alison Cutler talks to WI members.

* Alison demonstates her art using a projector.

* Members discuss what they have learned.

 

Who do you think you are?

Family History for Beginners, a free talk on the do’s and don’ts of researching your family tree, will be held at at Denbighshire Archives in Ruthin on Friday, September 21, from 6-7.30pm

The event includes advice and demonstrations using local resources and websites such as Ancestry.com and Findmypast.co.uk.

It is bookings only as places are limited and the event will be presented in English only.

To book, call 01824 708250, or e-mail: archives@denbighshire.gov.uk