Can you give Elvis (and some sheep) a new home?

* Elvis and the sheep are looking for a new forever home.

Elvis may have left the (outside of) the building on Abbey Road but he's still available for someone to take home with them.

A lifelike recreation of the King of Rock 'n' Roll starred as one of the Three Kings of nativity fame in the Christmas tableau at the gateway of Tan Y Ddol and attracted a huge following of fans.

It's creators, who come up with a similar ingenious display each festive season, have just taken down Elvis, along with a band of realistic-looking shepherds who had been been watching their flock by night, at the end of their smash-hit run.

But they're now hoping find the immaculately-attired Mr Presley and the six sheep - named EweAnn, Mary, Shaun, Ramsay, Baabara and EweJean -   some appreciative new homes in exchange for a contribution to a good cause.

A spokesperson for the Tan Y Dol team said: "We're stripping down the tableaux, and it occurred to me that we might be missing a trick.

"I thought it might be worth offering people the opportunity to have one of the figures in exchange for a donation to Tenovus. 

"Unfortunately we'd already stripped down all the others before the idea dawned on me - only Elvis and the sheep are left - but fortunately they're the ones I think people would be more likely to be interested in."

* If you're interested in adopting Elvis or the sheep just pop into the Tenovus charity shop in Castle Street, Llangollen and make a donation.

New Dot Cinema is back this month

* Brian and Charles is screened by New Dot Cinema on January 13.

New Dot cinema will return to Llangollen Town Hall next month, after taking a brief break at the end of 2022.

First up on screen, on Friday January 13, is Brian and Charles, a comedy shot in North Wales with some locations very close to home that the audience are sure to recognize.

Brian is a lonely inventor in rural Wales who spends his days building quirky, unconventional contraptions that seldom work. 

Undeterred by his lack of success, he soon attempts his biggest project yet. Using a washing machine and various spare parts, he invents Charles, an artificial intelligence robot that learns English from a dictionary and has an obsession with cabbages.

Tickets are £6 online in advance, or £8 on the door. You can buy yours here.

Doors and bar open at 6.30pm and the film begins at 7pm.

On Friday February 24, music fans will be thrilled to learn that Moonage Daydream will be hitting the town’s local screen. 

The film features never-before-seen footage and performances exploring David Bowie's creative, spiritual and musical journey. Look out for more details and tickets soon.

Hospices say, think of us for your new year challenge

Keep us in mind when you're thinking about a fresh challenge for the year ahead.

That's the message from the hospice community at Hope House and Tŷ Gobaith. 

From wing walking and sky diving to running, walking and cycling, baking and glamorous balls there is a wide range of events and activities already available for people to sign up for and support seriously ill local children and their families, they say. 

Alison Marsh, head of fundraising, said: "We have been blown away by the support we received from our supporters throughout 2022. From our amazing events such as Eat Cake Week, our Cycle Challenge, the Llangollen Canal Walk and our three Dark Runs to our raffles and Final Moments Matter campaign, the support we have had over the last year has been nothing short of incredible. 

"However come January 1st we start again from zero and we need our wonderful community to support as they have done in the past to help us raise the money we need to make sure can be here for those that need us the most." 

The hospices currently need £7.5 million every year to maintain the level of care they provide. 

"We have lots planned for 2023 and to kick start the year we have made some brilliant events online live for people to sign up to," said Alison. 

"Whether you are a daredevil who could take to the skies and wing walk or skydive, a runner looking for their next big challenge, a baker who could raise some money Eat Cake or if you’d like to take on our incredible Llangollen Canal Walk, there really is something for everyone to take part in and bookings are now open on our website.” 

If people are not in a position to sign up for an event but would still like to support the hospices, then they could consider making a regular monthly gift donation, or sign up to play the Hope House Lottery for as little as £1 a week, and they could win prizes of up to £1,000 a week. 

* Visit www.hopehouse.org.uk/events to see all fundraising events and ways to support the hospices or alternatively call the fundraising office on 01691 671671 or email fundraising@hopehouse.org.uk to ask about how you can be part of something amazing.   

Vitara - still a car with plenty of vitality

Suzuki Vitara drive by Steve Rogers

If you were to put your last quid on buying a reliable car what would you go for?

To be fair there are no longer any bad cars, the days of Lada, FSO and Yugo a distant memory, so may be look to the premium brands, they are bound to be a safe bet. Generally they are but they do not always fair well in customer satisfaction surveys.

My money would be on Korean or Japanese brands, in particular Suzuki. I know, not the most glamourous and a bit of a left field choice, but the company is always near the top of the satisfaction and reliability surveys and here’s one of the reasons why.

Vitara has been Suzuki’s best seller for what seems like an age although it has been nudged off poll position by Swift (another gem of a car) but I would put money on Vitara bouncing back soon.

It’s not even the company’s halo car any more, a restructuring has seen the mantle passed to S Cross, very similar, yet customers still prefer Vitara.

So what makes Vitara so special? Basically it is a bit of an enigma. It has had plenty of updates so is technically sound; it is a full hybrid and a competent off roader for bargain money. But sit it next to a new Kia Sportage for instance and it is starting to look dated.

The last facelift brought in full hybrid with a 140V supply mated to a 1.5 litre petrol engine. The result is lower emissions and remarkably good economy, all but 48mpg over 560 miles and 51mpg on a hilly 300 mile round trip to Pembrokeshire. Impressive for an all wheel drive SUV.

Suzuki has built an enviable reputation as a 4x4 specialist and Vitara proves it with a four mode selection. A limited slip differential is unusual for a £29k off roader but can help you get out of some tricky situations like snow, braking a spinning wheel and sending torque to those with grip.

A bit of performance has been lost to the mild hybrid model and the six speed automatic gearbox suffers a slight lull between changes which is irritating when overtaking.

Inside Vitara looks to have a neat and tidy layout but again is a bit dated. While rivals have computer generated displays the driver is faced with old fashioned dials.  Silver numbers on a silver background with 20mph increments are not easy to read. Fortunately you will find a digital speedometer by scrolling through a central multi function display.

Vitara is not a big car, the longer Grand model dropped a while ago, but the cabin proportions are generous enough and can cope with a family of five. Build quality is up to standard but hard plastic trim does little for the car’s image.

The ride is firm but not uncomfortable although you feel suspension thump over potholes and there is quite a bit of road noise

On the plus side there is bags of equipment even on entry SZ-T with navigation, rear camera, keyless entry, digital air conditioning, smartphone connection and LED headlights. SZ5 gets a panoramic sunroof and front and rear parking sensors along with the option of all wheel drive.

The safety package includes my favourite cross traffic alert, blind spot monitor and adaptive cruise control.

In spite of its flaws Vitara is still a cracking family SUV with an inexpensive, impressive four wheel drive system. I could happily live with this car and was sad to see it go.

Fast Facts

Vitara SZ5 Allgrip 6sp auto

£29,299 (range starts £23,749)

1.5 litre petrol; 115bhp

0-62mph 12.7secs; 111mph

53mpg combined

132g/km. 1st tax £165

Insurance group 16

Boot: 289 litres

Advice on how to dispose of your Christmas tree

Now the festivities are over and the baubles and tinsel are put back into their box, do you know how to properly dispose of your tree?

Denbighshire County Council are asking people to properly dispose of their tree this year, be it real or fake.

If you opt for a real tree, you can recycle it in your green wheelie bin or green sacks. It is advised that it is cut up first to ensure it fits properly in your bin. 

If you cannot fit it into your bin, real trees can be taken to your local Recycling and Waste Park for proper disposal.

If you choose an artificial tree, it is recommended that this is reused year after year to help reduce waste. When you do decide to dispose of your artificial tree, it is advised that it is also taken to your local Recycling and Waste Park.

Councillor Barry Mellor, Lead Member for Environment and Transport, said: “Christmas trees are the centrepiece of the home during the festive period. It is wonderful to see how creative people can get when decorating them.

"That being said, it is important that when we want to get rid of them, they are disposed of properly. It is essential that you dispose of your tree through your home recycling in green bins or sacks, or in a local Recycling and Waste Park."

* For more information go to the recycling a-z webpage.

County council's roadworks alert

Latest local roadworks alert from Denbighshire County Council is:

JUNCTION A539 LLANGOLLEN ROAD, SEWAGE DISPOSAL WORKS ACCESS ROAD SEWAGE DISPOSAL WORKS ACCESS ROAD 06/01/2023 10/01/2023 Gwaith Dwr / Water Works MJ QUINN (CALUM) LLANGOLLEN

OPPOSITE JUNCTION BISHOP'S WALK, TO JUNCTION OF BRYN HOWEL ROAD FROM A A539 LLANGOLLEN ROAD 06/01/2023 10/01/2023 Gwaith BT/ BT Works MJ QUINN (CALUM) LLANGOLLEN

A542 JUNCTION A539 LLANGOLLEN ROAD, SUN BANK SUN BANK 06/01/2023 10/01/2023 Gwaith BT/ BT Works MJ QUINN (CALUM) LLANGOLLEN AOO/OOH

Nr HILL STREET HILL STREET 28/12/2022 04/01/2023 Gwaith Nwy / Gas Works WALES & WEST UTILITIES (D LLANGOLLEN Ffordd ar Gau/Road Closure

OPPOSITE JUNCTION WHARF HILL, TO OPPOSITE JUNCTION BISHOP'S WALK, , MI MILL STREET 03/01/2023 04/01/2023 Gwaith BT/ BT Works MJ QUINN (CALUM) LLANGOLLEN

A539 Stryd y Castell CASTLE STREET 05/01/2023 05/01/2023 Gwaith ar Gyrbau / Kerbing Works DCC STREETSCENE LLANGOLLEN Goleuadau Traffig Dros Dro/ Temp Traffic Lights.

Health board declares critical incident alert

The Betsi Cadwaladr Health Board issued the following statement this morning (Monday).

"This morning we have declared an internal critical incident as we are struggling to cope with prolonged, unprecedented demand across the health and social care system. 

"We are currently seeing a very high volume of patients presenting at our hospitals with flu, COVID and other respiratory viruses, as well as an increase in the most seriously injured or unwell patients requiring emergency care. 

"This, together with a lack of available beds in our hospitals and significant staffing shortages, is leading to extremely long waits for patients to be seen – particularly at our hospital Emergency Departments. Similar pressures are being experienced in other Health Boards and English Trusts.

"We are continuing to work closely with Local Authority colleagues to support medically fit patients to be discharged from hospital and we are making use of all available staffing.

"This is an exceptionally challenging time for colleagues across our health services and we are hugely grateful for the continued efforts being made in such difficult circumstances.

"We are urging members of the public who need help to visit the NHS Wales 111 Website in the first instance to be advised about the most appropriate service, which might be self-care at home, a visit to the pharmacy, a GP appointment, a Minor Injuries Unit, or, in life threatening circumstances, the hospital Emergency Department. As always, our Emergency Departments will remain open and will see patients in order of clinical priority. However, we regret that those who do attend will face extremely long waits to be seen while staff on duty do all they can to keep patients safe. 

"Advice for those with planned procedures or appointments tomorrow (Tuesday 3rd January):

"We have postponed all but the most urgent procedures and appointments in our hospitals for tomorrow (Tuesday 3rd January). We sincerely apologise to all those affected, who will be contacted directly today and rescheduled as soon as possible.

"Those who are due to receive a planned procedure or appointment from Wednesday 4th January onwards should assume that this is still going ahead, unless they are contacted directly by the Health Board."