Jurassic Coast walk and other media moments.

Radio 2 DJs Mark Radcliffe and Stuart McConie are to walk the Jurassic Coast path this coming week, possibly with a little artistic license. Good for them, hope they enjoy it. Guests include Dorste's adopted son Billy Bragg in Lyme Regis on Monday evening and Topsham's own Show of Hands in Beer on Tuesday.
The week's other shows are from Sidmouth on Wednesday and Exmouth on Thurs.

Wednesday's guests include Squeeze, who were obviously not put off by their first visit to the west country in 1979, when they performed a storming set in Barnstaple despite having been made unwell by the fare on offer at a cafe owned by a local councillor.

The recordings are unfortunately not open to the public, but we hope the spies will bump into them at times that are not necessarily stage managed, to greet them and in order to verify their efforts. And with all due respect to the very talented artists, some local, that they feature, to tell them that if they looked harder they might be able to feature someone who hasn't reached his or her fiftieth birthday!

By strange coincidence this weekend the Guardian magazine carries features on Budleigh (Lets Move To...) and on the Fish Shack at Dart's Farm. It seems the liberal intelligentsia are moving down here almost as fast as McCarthy and Stone.

ECA ideas

Who really needs to be wasting money on private sector consultants?

Exmouth Community Assn have published it's views on enhancement to the seafront, selected extracts are published in the Journal. There's a lot of common sense, perhaps it doesn't go far enough. Though I must emphasise to date I've only seen the Journal extracts. 

Their main thrusts are to join up the seafront with the town centre , to maintain the seafront views and to improve the pedestrian/cycle/mobility scooter experience.

Piazzas on the seafront and a footbridge over Carlton slipway are great ideas. The present promenade is too narrow even out of season and a seafront walk often spoilt by the aggressive brinkmanship of some pedestrians determined to take possession of the cycle path. Perhaps ECA's plans don't go far enough with this. How much vehicle access do we need between Alexandra Terrace and the new lifeboat station? 

Reducing access along to Orcombe Point is also suggested, but how much could be taken without limiting or spoiling the pleasure of sitting in the car eating fish and chips whatever the weather? A cafe at Orcombe Point is a must, though not on the beach(dog loo). There was one and it never should have been taken away. A replacement has to walk the line between being a magnet, white elephant and vandalism target.

Perhaps it should be simple to create a pleasurable Strand to Orcombe Point experience without too much expense or difficulty. Bath Road would have to be made more inviting and the two brash pubs en route would need strictly enforced guidelines on broken glass outside their premises. In fact the whole issue of glass in the town /seafront areas needs to be addressed.

No further intrusion on the view is a no brainer. But so it was before the bowling alley was allowed to ruin the Salterton Road/Carlton Hill vista and the developers were allowed to do their worst with the entrance to the docks. I was talking to a consultant engineer from Manchester recently, who told me that up there if a building exceeds its height it has to be lowered. No such backbone or attention to duty here. 

Sorry this is so Exmouth centred so far. I just don't get out enough. And every time I think of Seaton seafront my blood boils. Plenty of buildings there wouldn't have been put up without a backhander, would never be seen in Sidmouth. Especially the one that looks like a seventies CD tower.

We Plan Anywhere ii

Didn't we just have a planning consultation for the Strand 'improvements' in Exmouth? And is it my imagination or did they start chopping trees down before anyone realised the consultation was over  ?

 The trees may well have been diseased, as we were told subsequently, although the tree surgeons apparently contradicted this to some concerned residents I met. If the diseased trees really were the stimulus, then why haven't they done anything about the very obviously diseased ones at the council offices at Sidmouth?

And how was it that by the time the tree work was done the cheap and inappropriate slabs had been ordered and which didn't match the artist's impression? The latter is a frequent issue with developments in Exmouth, although it's usually the size that is not accurately conveyed.

And why was allegedly 20k spent on that ugly and badly sited bus shelter which doesn't match the existing modern street furniture?

Seriously though, was there any announcement that the decision had been made and that work was due to commence? How do they expect us to participate when they apparently never follow the process through fully and openly?

Wet Blanket Showcase

Just heard that the Wet Robot Showcase scheduled for the Manor Gardens stage was a no show.

I tried to get the day off for this but glad I didn't. Two people I recommended it to went at different times, no puzzled teenagers, no cancellation signs and I can't find anything on line.

It's a shame because there are a few good young local bands who are worthy of a wider audience. The people who put these events on are an enthusiastic bunch headed by an Elvis Costello lookalike who is very well thought of, but they haven't yet got their heads around the need to communicate and provide information to the audience outside their own social group.

I'm sure it must have been cancelled or postponed for good reason and I guess there's a fair chance it will be rescheduled, but it will be an even bigger shame if this happens without good publicity.

WE PLAN ANYWHERE !

Credit to those at EDDC who want the local young people to get interested and involved. But how much planning did this take? Three thousand hits already but apparently no comments on the ldf site. And really it is crap.

Two obvious questions.

1. Was this video free to produce as implied on the youtube link or did it cost the 600 quid stated by Express and Echo?

2. Will the consultation carry any weight, or is it a fig leaf?

Certainly the links don't lead to an inviting space. Three clicks and you come to Coun Randall Johnson's welcoming smile, introducing you to a dry and opaque consultation document. Surprise, surprise no comments yet.

This is the same lady council leader who spent six figures of our money protecting us from a scenario where we might have had democratic options in East Devon by means of a unitary authority in combination with either Exeter or the rest of Devon despite, as Private Eye stated, the fact that she had a conflict of interest. This is based on her employment as a PR person with Flybe, and East Devon being the regulatory authority for Exeter Airport. The Journal even printed a poem from her on the subject.

She positions herself as fighting to uphold local democracy but in fact she is protecting an administration that is so entrenched that we are not just governed by one party, but by a clique within the local party. That is why Sidmouth and West Hill are always well looked after but Exmouth and Seaton (the town solld to Tesco) are always dumped on.

Show of Hands Indian Summer

Topsham rugby club on sunday to finally get to see this highly recommended act.