Coffee morning will support town's museum

 

Twenty Club goes 'on air' with its next play

* Twenty Club members rehearse for My Wife's Family.

Rehearsals are well under way for the Llangollen Twenty Club's Autumn production of "My Wife's Family".  

A break-away from their normal type of play, it is set in the 1940s in a recording studio where a play - set in the 1930s - for radio is being performed.  

The action follows the absurdities of a dysfunctional family, who come to stay at Jack Gay's country residence, much to his dismay as he detests his mother-in-law, Arabella Nagg who presents herself to be a force with which to be reckoned.  

The bunch of make-believe actors who play the various roles in the play all have their own idiosyncrasies and quirks and some of their actions are somewhat less than professional....

It is a little dip into middle class 1930s country life, but magnified and with some strange characters and lost babies and broken pianos, the pace is fast and quick-witted.

A club spokesperson said: "We are never afraid to tackle something new and this has certainly been just that.

"We are confident that you will have a very entertaining evening, so do book your tickets as soon as possible.!

My Wife's Family is aired at Llangollen Town Hall from Thursday November 2 to Saturday November 4 at 7.30pm with a matinee on the Saturday at 2.30pm.

* Tickets are £12/£10 from: ticketsource.co.uk/llangollentwentyclub or at Llangollen Courtyard Books or The Oggie Shop.

Roadworks alert for Regent Street

Latest local roadwoks alert from one.network is: 

Regent Street, Llangollen, Denbighshire 20 October - 21 October   Roadworks, Delays likely   Traffic management: Traffic control (multi-way signals)   Description: Hogans patching works – Night time 18:00 – 02:00hrs under 3 x way traffic lights   Works location: A5 Llangollen Jn with Chapel Street   Public facing description: one.network has automatically assigned a category of Unclassified works to this Works based on the information available. Please note: Works Descriptions are not published by NMWTRA/SWTRA.   Responsibility for works: NMWTRA/SWTRA   Current status: Planned work about to start   Works reference: PD50123284102518450

MG HS is best value SUV in its class by miles

MG HS drive by Steve Rogers

You want a spanking new family SUV with £25k to spend. What do you do?

Go to the nearest MG garage and have a serious look at the HS.

This is the best value five-up SUV on the market by a country mile. That does not make it the best, it is up against a car park full of big hitting rivals, and it has its flaws but most can be excused given what it offers.

The model range is short and sweet, SE or Trophy, one engine option, manual or seven speed automatic, and an eye catching opening price of £23,495. 

My advice is go for the SE because it loses so little to the Trophy. Heated front seats is the only luxury I would miss.

The extensive Pilot safety package is standard with emergency braking, lane assist, rear cross traffic alert and cruise control the standout features. Adaptive cruise control is only available on the automatic (£1500 extra) which is a shame.

Big news this year is the facelift. The downside for MG models, electric 4 aside, is they don’t have an identity. The HS, for example, looks like a Mazda CX-5 face on. Well that has changed with a completely restyled front. The grille, in particular, is very smartly designed, set lower to soften the boxy SUV look, and along with the wider bumper provides that identity.

It is when you step inside that you wonder what is going on here. Granted the test car was the Trophy model with its red/black leather trim and one piece front sports seats but how MG can pack so much in for relatively little money is a mystery. This sort of spec costs thousands more on the majority of rivals. If ever an interior punched above its weight this is it.

Look below the waistline and you will find cheaper, scratchy plastic and not so high quality carpets, but I defy anyone to complain for this money.

At just over 4.6 metres, HS is a good size and it shows in the cabin which is up there with the best for space. Rear legroom is close to limo proportions although it has been achieved at a cost. Boot space is adequate but down on the opposition and MG missed a trick by not putting the back seat on runners, that way you get the best of both worlds.

Up front the layout is pretty standard with a 10.1in free standing central touch screen and digital binnacle with plenty of information. If you want a bobby dazzling layout then look to Peugeot 3008 or Kia Sportage but the overriding impression is neat and tidy and reasonable quality.

HS is certainly dressed to impress with a lengthy equipment list even for the SE that includes the full safety suite, navigation, auto dipping LED headlights, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Trophy’s extras include powered, heated front seats and switchable drive modes along with a power boost button on the steering wheel although I did not notice a lot of difference in pick up.

MG has pitched the HS ride towards comfort so you will not get the fun factor of a Seat Ateca or Mazda CX-5 but does a good job absorbing bumps and potholes, and do we really want to tear around in an SUV?

On the engine front it is a petrol 1.6 litre turbo and does let the side down on running costs. Performance is okay, just under 10 seconds to 60mph, a bit noisy with foot to the floor, but it is not good news on economy. A week’s average returned 32mpg and even on a 150 mile round trip I only managed 37mpg so running costs will be higher and the engine emissions are pretty high as well so a hefty first car tax.

My only other complaints concern the brake pedal which has too long a travel before engaging, no height adjustment for the passenger seat, which is too high, and a noisy rear wiper all of which could be fixed in a flash.

The MG story since it was taken over by a Chinese consortium in 2006 is still a work in progress, but succeeding in the hottest sector of the car market with a steady rise in sales and very much mirrors the Kia footprint with the blockbuster seven year warranty incentive, and look what it did for the Korean company.

If they carry on like this you cannot help but think MG will become a much bigger player in the UK motoring scene.

Fast facts

HS Trophy 7spd auto

£25,995 (£26,540 tested)

1.6 litre GDI turbo; 160bhp

0-60mph 9.6secs; 118mph

36.6mpg combined

174g/km. 1st tax £1.040

Insurance group 22

Boot: 463-1454 litres

Towing capacity 1750kg

Latest traffic alerts from Denbighshire County Council

Latest traffic alerts from Denbighshire County Council are: 

OPPOSITE 3 HILL STREET HILL STREET 21/10/2022 21/10/2023 Gwaith ar Dwll Archwilio/ Man Hole Works MJ QUINN (DCC) LLANGOLLEN Ffordd ar Gau/Road Closure

A539 Ponsonby Arms, Mill Street, Llangollen MILL STREET 30/10/2023 31/10/2023 Goleuadau traffig i reoli traffig trwy man cul ar llwybr amgen / Traffic signals to control traffic through pinch point on diversion route NMWTRA (DCC) LLANGOLLEN Goleuadau Traffig Dros Dro/ Temp Traffic Lights

A539 O/S BUILDING KNOWN AS CYFLYMEN BROOK STREET 30/10/2023 01/11/2023 Gwaith Dwr / Water Works HAFREN DYFRDWY (DANIEL) LLANGOLLEN Ffordd ar Gau/Road Closure

A539 Castle St, Oak St, Bridge St and Chapel St, Llangollen CASTLE STREET 12/11/2023 12/11/2023 Sul y Cofio / Remembrance Sunday LLANGOLLEN TOWN COUN LLANGOLLEN Ffordd ar Gau/Road Closure

At 78 Judy completes 10-mile run in memory of Sandra Woodhall

             

                  * Judy Smith at the end of her successful Great South Run.

At the age of 78, Llangollen's Judy Smith successfully completed last Sunday's Great South Run in memory of her friend and fellow fundraiser, raising almost £460 for a charity close to her heart.

In aid of Cancer Research UK, she had originally planned to compete in last month's Great North Run as a fitting tribute to her late friend Sandra Woodhall with whom she founded and organised the famous Llangollen Round Challenge which has raised many thousands of pounds for Cancer Research UK since it began in 2012. 

But a broken wrist put paid to Judy's plan and instead she began training for the less demanding southern event of "only" ten miles rather than 13. 

Judy said: "Unfortunately, I managed to break my wrist falling over at the Erddig Parkrun a few months ago and had it in plaster, so the Great North Run would not have been a good idea. I therefore switched my entry to the Great South Run in Portsmouth.

“I did manage to complete the run on Sunday and in truth, it was quite good fun and I actually enjoyed myself.

“The atmosphere was fantastic, with 25,000 runners, lots of bands playing, and cheering people lining the streets make you feel good and keep you going - even if you can't quite manage four miles an hour. I wouldn't have wanted to do it again next day though.”

Judy added: “The aim of the Run for me was to raise funds for Cancer Research UK in memory of Sandra Woodhall, who in her lifetime raised more than half a million pounds for that charity. 

“I would like to thank all those who so generously supported me and my heartfelt thanks to you all.

“If anyone else would like to contribute my Cancer Research UK Just Giving site is still open at: https://fundraise.cancerresearchuk.org/page/judys-giving-page-109

County faces bankruptcy unless services cut, says story

A letter leaked to the media says that Denbighshire County Council faces bankruptcy unless it cuts services, according to a story in North Wales News.

* For the full story, see: Denbighshire facing bankruptcy says leaked letter unless services and jobs cut - North Wales Live (dailypost.co.uk)