Back where they belong.

The photos above (click on any for a larger version) show the ongoing construction of the new apartment blocks and town houses on the site of the former Riverside Swimming Baths site, overlooking the Erith Riverside Gardens. The bottom of the three shows an artist's impression of what the development will look like when it is finally completed. The development is on behalf of the London and Quadrant Housing Association. I must admit that the apartment block does look somewhat taller than the artist's impression that was published back in February 2015. London and Quadrant have not advertised the new development yet, but I feel that the apartments and houses will sell very well when they are put on the market. The development has a lot going for it; amazing views of the Riverside Gardens and across the River Thames and into South Essex. It is in close proximity to Erith Railway Station, the main bus terminus, and of course Erith Riverside Shopping Centre. More on this as the development nears completion.

Radio Caroline started test transmissions on their new licenced frequency of 648 kHz in the Medium Wave band yesterday afternoon.  They will be broadcasting with an ERP of one thousand Watts to Suffolk and Norfolk, but with that much power and a clear channel, the signal can be recieved locally even on a relatively cheap portable radio. Early reception reports indicate the signal is getting into Northern France, Germany and parts of Poland; I expect it will not be long before the transmisisons are received in Scandinavia. If you would like to submit a reception report to the station's engineering team, then you can do so by clicking here. Personally I am glad to hear Radio Caroline back where she belongs on Medium Wave. If you want to see photos of my time on Radio Caroline out at sea on the radio ship Ross Revenge, back in 1989 and 1990, you can click here. Do feel free to leave a comment below, or Email me at hugh.neal@gmail.com.

I have recently watched the BBC 1 TV series "Gunpowder" - about the 1605 Gunpowder Plot. It was an enjoyable, if somewhat graphic account of the well - known story, and it featured American actress Liv Tyler in the role of Anne Vaux, who historically had close ties to the local area. Erith is thought by some historians from Bexley Local Studies and Archive Centre to have played a pivotal role in The Gunpowder Plot; they indicated that their research showed that in the summer of 1605, Erith Manor House, which was located on what is now Erith High Street, was rented under a pseudonym by Anne Vaux, the daughter of Lord William Vaux, the head of one of the wealthiest and most prominent Catholic families in the country at the time. Anne Vaux was known to arrange for safe houses to be made available for Catholic priests to hide up and hold underground church services – Catholics were widely persecuted in England at the time. Erith Manor House was considered an ideal location for Robert Catesby, Guy Fawkes and the other plotters against the King to hide up, as it had, according to Catesby “a secluded but convenient location” on the banks of the Thames, which had the added benefit of offering an easy escape route by boat, should the situation arise. What the plotters did not realise was that the intelligence service of the time was aware of them – spymaster Sir Anthony Standen, first assistant to Sir Francis Walsingham, who was then head of the English Secret Service, working directly for King James I, had broken up a plot (The Bye Plot – click here for more details) eighteen months before hand, and was now acutely aware that other Catholic activists had designs on the life of the Protestant monarch. Sir Anthony had informants all over the place, and soon became aware of the small group of men who were acting very suspiciously in and around Erith. Several of the plotters had also been seen in a number of taverns in Southwark, and it is possible that they were followed back to Erith, where their safe house was then discovered. When agents subsequently raided the house, the conspirators had already made their escape, and the place was deserted. Some of this is extrapolation from verified facts – it is certain that Anne Vaux did indeed rent Erith Manor House using the cover name Mrs Perkins, though it is not certain the Gunpowder Plotters did use it as their primary base of operations – there may well have been an underground church in the house, which in itself would have aroused suspicion. Unfortunately there is no opportunity for Erith Manor House to become a tourist attraction, as it was demolished in the 19th century after falling into a state of disrepair. Personally I find it very unlikely that the Gunpowder Plotters would have used Erith as a main base of operations; Nobility and the wealthy would stand out like a sore thumb in the Erith of 1605, which, much like now was inhabited by working people who back then were mainly involved in trade on the River Thames and fishing. If the plotters wanted to keep a low profile, expensively dressed strangers appearing in Erith would not be a very intelligent idea, as they would not have fitted in with the locals. Tying up a purebred, high quality horse outside an inn in Erith back then would have been the equivalent of parking a Ferrari outside of The Running Horses in Erith High Street nowadays - people would most definitely notice, and tongues would wag.

I had planned to publish the following piece last week, but due to space considerations, I have had to hold it over to this issue. Guest author Doreen Ives, the Chair of the Friends of Christ Church Erith writes:- "If you didn’t come to the Friends of Christ Church Quiz Night on 21st October you missed a treat.  Everyone who came along had a really enjoyable time.  The questions were very varied and certainly sufficiently diverse for most of us to be able to tackle many of them.  Jim Bennett came along with a team from St Augustine Slade Green to show continued solidarity with The Friends and he generously did a “Stand up Bingo” which generated £99. Erith and Thamesmead Member of Parliament Teresa Pearce, our Patron came along with her team intent on defending their place as current holders of the trophy but it was not to be and the Kids Club group together with Simon our Curate were the winners. They took home sweets and the grand trophy which they will have to take turns in displaying proudly at home.  The group who decided to “hold up the rest of the field”, won jam doughnuts which I sincerely hope they thoroughly enjoyed. Overall with the extended raffle, the evening resulted in £1,320 for the Friends of Christ Church funds which is a great start to our appeal to provide much needed toilet and kitchen facilities in our Church. We will of course make a donation to the Hall Committee for the use of the hall. A special “thank you” to our generous supporters both individuals and businesses who provided all the raffle prizes, to the quiz masters who gave their services completely free of charge, to those who organised and set up the event and all those who helped with clearing the hall at the end of the evening. We have now had some preliminary drawings of the facilities we are proposing to install in the West Porch which we will be sending to the Diocese to get their comments and we will keep you up to date with our progress. If you didn’t participate this time but would like to know more about Friends of Christ Church Erith or perhaps become a “Friend” then please pick up one of our leaflets in Church or visit our website here".

An interesting development has occurred in the fight against the illegal moped gangs; in the early hours of Tuesday morning, Police chased and intercepted a stolen moped with two un – helmeted youths on board. This happened in Eastern Way, Thamesmead. The pillion passenger on the moped ran away as soon as the Police car approached, and the rider then tried to make an escape. The Police then carried out a “tactical stop” on the moped and rider. The rider was injured during this operation, and the Police took him to hospital, where he is reported to be in a serious condition. As is customary in such a situation, the incident has been reported to The Independent Police Complaints Commission who have launched an independent investigation. The timing of the interception is very interesting; it is well known that some of the illegal bikers are heavily involved in the local drugs business – it is highly likely that the moped rider and passenger were on their way to, or returning from a drugs deal. What other reason would they have for being out at around 1.30 on a cold and wet Tuesday morning? They would normally be tucked up in bed with cannabis and their X-Box. What is very instructive about this incident is the feedback from members of the public on the News Shopper website. It is unsurprising that comments are unanimously in support of the Police, and anti the illegal bikers.  Typical reader comments include:- “Pity the police don't use this tactical stop more often. Might make the little feral rats think twice. No sympathy whatsoever”, “If you fail to stop when asked to by the police then you have only yourself to blame for any consequences”, “I was in Bexleyheath last night at 8 o'clock and 4 scallywags on 2 quads and 2 idiots on a bike without helmets were tearing up the pedestrianised area of the Broadway. See these all the time around North Heath but they are getting ridiculous now. I truly have no sympathy with this story and would have quite happily stood and laughed had they have fallen off last night and very badly injured themselves. May even have taken a selfie... They are obviously inbred toe rags and am sure this is just the tip of the antisocial behaviour scale that they undertake”, “Good that will teach them a lesson. I am fed up with these scumbags carrying out crime and causing a nuisance on South East London’s streets. If you have got nothing to hide and you are not wanted or doing something illegal, then why run?”. There are many other similar comments – you can read the entire thread by clicking here. I just hope this case does not discourage the Police from carrying out more tactical stops in the future; I am sure that I am far from alone in wishing they would do this kind of thing on a regular basis – that way A) the number of illegal bikers would be reduced by putting them in hospital or in the mortuary, and B) any youths thinking of becoming a moped criminal would be discouraged by the short and painful lifestyle the occupation had. What do you think? Leave a comment below, or send me an Email to hugh.neal@gmail.com.

Christmas is almost upon us; the surest indicator of this is that plans are being finalised for this year’s Christmas Tree Festival in Christ Church Erith. This annual event brings in visitors from all over the region; last year there were people visiting from as far away as Milton Keynes! The event raises money for the Greenwich and Bexley Community Hospice and Christ Church. This year there will be some new additions to the festival, including seasonal food and drink, and some new exterior lighting to the Grade II* listed church building. Some faces that have become familiar to many locals over the last year will be making an appearance, and the event should be bigger and better than ever. The dates for the Christmas Tree Festival this year are as follows:- Friday 15th December - Open 12noon - 7pm. Saturday 16th December - Open 10am - 7pm Christmas Fair 10am - 2pm (in the church hall).  Musical Concert - Starting at 7pm.  Sunday 17th December. Open 12noon - 5pm. Carol Service by Christmas tree light - 6.30pm. You can find further details of the event, along with photos from previous years on the brand new Christ Church Erith Christmas Tree Festival website here.

Now for the weekly local safety and security updates from Bexley Borough Neighbourhood Watch Association.  Firstly a report from Barnehurst ward:- "After A busy Halloween, we had an extremely quiet firework period with absolutely no Anti Social Behaviour reported across the ward and very little across the Borough. We did unfortunately have a burglary reported in Northall Road, On Saturday 4th November at 2.56am suspects entered an address via the front UPVC door and stole car keys for a BMW X4 registration number YK16 FTN On entering the venue the alarm started to bleep alerting the occupiers who were asleep upstairs, they came downstairs to find the BMW being driven off their drive. Please make sure that any UPVC door is secured properly, it is only secure if double locked, Lift the handle and lock with a key. It will only takes a burglar a matter of seconds to open a door that is not locked securely. The burglary in Northall Road took less than 30 seconds from entering the venue to driving away with the car. Please see the Metropolitan police web page for relevant up to date crime prevention advice - https://www.met.police.uk/crime-prevention/residential-burglary/. Please join the a member of the team on Thursday 16th November at 1pm at Barnehurst Golf Course to discuss any local concerns that you may have. As always, please follow us on Twitter @MPSBarnehurst to find out what the team have been up to". Belvedere ward:- "The team held a crime prevention surgery at the Co-op, Nuxley Road on 01/11/2017. We opted to hold our surgery here due to the high footfall, while the venue also has suffered from shoplifting. We will be holding more surgeries at this venue in coming weeks to increase police presence and hopefully combat this issue. We have been working closely with the staff in the Co-op and they are now displaying images of wanted offenders in the store. We are hopeful that this approach will primarily lead to more successful prosecutions, however it may also have an effect on the criminals themselves as they may be more reluctant to attend these stores. We have been working later shifts than normal over recent weeks. This has been in part due to ‘Autumn Nights’, Halloween and Guy Fawkes, however we have also chosen other days so we can look at late night anti-social behaviour around the ward responding to recent reports such as street drinkers in Picardy Street. There were no groups acting in an anti-social manner on those days. On 04/11/2017 we held a street briefing with residents around Nuxley Road. We discussed their main concerns as nearby residents as well as what we were looking to do to combat such issues. The main concern was youths on bicycles using the area for tricks such as wheelies. While holding the street briefing youths were in the area riding and were pointed out to us as being those causing the issues. We spoke with the youths, some of whom we have had previous dealings, and we obtained their details. The parent of one youth was present during the meeting and was able to encourage the group to speak with the residents and police. This allowed all parties to speak with one another openly and truthfully. The team will be looking to conduct home visits and speak with parents around their children’s behaviour". Brampton ward:- "Unfortunately we have had 3 Burglaries on the ward Rydal Drive , suspects entered by an unknown place but were disturbed and left with nothing , Brampton Road rear window access cash and jewellery stolen this was in a cast iron safe but not bolted to the wall or floor, and Long Lane also suspects entered by rear window and cash taken Theft of a motor vehicle in Hudson Road a suspect has been named for this and investigation is ongoing. Theft from a motor vehicle in Pickford Lane, suspect has opened the passenger door and taken a bag of cash on the seat whilst the victim was in the driving seat. Theft from a person in Pickford lane victim had mobile phone stolen from hand by an unknown on a moped. Theft of a pedal cycle in Percy Road victim has left there cycle unattended whilst visiting the shops on return the cycle is missing , investigation ongoing. Criminal damage to a motor vehicle in Cannon Road side of vehicle damaged by unknown person. Please follow us on Twitter : @MPSBrampton Please continue to send me in your email addresses. Over the autumn nights we had very little ASB on the ward and Fireworks night went off without incident". Christchurch ward:- "We have sadly had 2 burglaries this week. 4/11/17 between 1600 – 1800 Hansol Road cash stolen and entry through conservatory by forcing doors; 4/11/17 between 1630 – 2230 Martin Rise nothing has been stolen entry through forced conservatory doors; 7/11/17 at approximately 1230 Attempted Burglary Woolwich Road use of card to try and force door open, entry not gained. If anyone has any information relating to these incidents please contact 101. 2/11/17 Criminal Damage to vehicle parked in the surface car park by Sainsbury’s Bexleyheath, paint sprayed over bonnet and down side of vehicle – if anyone has witnessed this or has information please contact 101; 4/11/17 Unfortunately there has been another purse theft from an elderly person on the Broadway, please ensure that purses are tucked away and if withdrawing cash from banks go straight home, and split money rather than having a large amount in one purse/bag. There has been anti - social behaviour in the area at the weekend with fireworks being let off inappropriately. A couple of these incidents happened on the Broadway after school hours on Friday and the incidents are being looked into using Body Worn Cameras by Officers and CCTV". Colyers ward:- "There were two reported burglaries on Colyers Ward between 26th October 2017 and 7th November 2017. There was also one reported theft of motor vehicle during the same period. On 31/10/17 at about 1900 hours the victim indicated that he was walking to the shops when saw four mopeds leaving an alleyway (‘Alleyway 35’) off Frinstead Road Erith. The riders all had dark clothing and their faces concealed. The four mopeds had no registration numbers. The victim then instinctively went to inspect his garage where he keeps his motor bike. He discovered that his garage door had been damaged. It appeared that thieves were trying break into his garage but were unsuccessful. The victim has very good locks on the garage door so the suspects tried to unhinge the door itself. The victim then went to look at his CCTV which is pointing directly at his garage. He saw the suspects all in dark clothing trying to break in but left having failed to open the garage door. The resident of a residential home in Selkirk Drive Erith Kent had their TV stolen. The informant is unsure of the exact date and the model of TV. A victim’s bike was parked on the drive outside the address on 30/10/17, a resident saw two males turn up on a black moped with no number plate displayed. Both slim build males, aged 15-20, one wearing all black and one wearing a khaki hoody. They have stolen the bike off the drive, the bike is a Daelim 125, and maroon in colour, registration number LF03 CFM. The suspects drove off in the direction of Eversley Avenue. About 5 minutes later they have both returned on the black moped and were paying interest to another bike parked on the same drive, a potential witness saw the suspects and the two males made off in the direction of Colyers Lane". Crayford ward:- "We are aware that bogus callers and distraction burglars are in the area in the last few weeks and appear to be targeting the elderly and vulnerable. They are using excuses such as water leaks in the property above, underground leaks. Descriptions of them vary, accents are described as local, Irish and "put on" posh. A bogus caller may be smartly dressed and claim to be from the council, the police, health organisations or water, gas or electricity companies. They can be convincing and persuasive. Please use door chains, check all ID very carefully. If there is any doubt about the caller, keep them out. A genuine caller will not mind being asked to wait while their details are verified. A black VW was stolen from outside 65 Ridgeway overnight on the 8/11/2017. There have been three theft from motor vehicles in the last week. On Monday 6/11/2017 at 15.12 a black bag was stolen from a vehicle parked at Bookers Cash and Carry in Thames Road, the vehicle window was smashed, the bag contained cash, a cheque book, bank statements and personal shopping. Number plates were stolen from a vehicle parked outside 50 Crayford Road overnight between 22.30 on 02/11/2017 and 07.00 on 03/11/2017. A rear number plate was stolen from a vehicle parked near McDonalds on Thursday 02/11/2017 between 13.00-14.00. A burglary took place on Saturday 04/11/2017 at 17.30 in Heath Road. A safe was stolen containing a significant amount of cash, jewellery, watches and passports. This has had a significant impact on the family as they were at home when it happened. On Wednesday 01/11/2017 between 19.15 and 19.33 there was a business burglary in Iron Mill Lane. The business is run from a home address and clothing valued at £10k was stolen. Again this had had a significant impact on the victim and their family". Lesnes Abbey ward:- "Good news - Following research by PC Telfer, a male was arrested for failing to surrender to a Crown Court in the Midlands for the offence of GBH. Burglaries - No residential or non residential burglaries. Motor vehicle crime - Between the hours of 07:00 pm on Monday 06/11/17 and 14:00 pm on Tuesday 07/11/17. Theft of Motor Vehicle occurred in Hallifield Drive". North End ward:- "We have had 6 Theft From Motor vehicles reported in the last week. They have happened in various locations across the during daytime and night time hours so there is no set pattern. Please please ensure that you remove all valuables from your vehicles when you park. Please ask family members and friends etc who are visiting to also remove their handbags, sat navs etc even if they are just popping round for a quick visit. We will let you know of our next vehicle crime prevention stall when we get the date and location. On Wednesday we discovered a pirate radio station set up on the top of Cobham House. The equipment was seized by us and will be disposed of accordingly. Late patrols were carried out last Friday and Saturday evening but we witnessed no real issues with any ASB relating to fireworks. On Sunday we assisted our Belvedere colleagues in policing the Sikh Guru Nanak parade through Belvedere and Erith. The event went smoothly with many attendees in bright colours with plenty of music, food and demonstrations by the Sikh community on their special celebration day". Northumberland Heath ward:- "It’s been another good week, as we have had a very low number of crimes reported in Northumberland Heath. On three days, we had no reported crimes at all. Unfortunately at this time of the year, the number of burglaries met wide usually increase and we have had two ourselves in the last week. One in Little Heath Road and one in Parsonage Manor Way. On both occasions the front door of the property has been forced open. The team have been out patrolling the ward and have been following up on reports of Anti Social Behaviour (ASB). We have also been dealing with the breach of a Criminal Behaviour Order (CBO) by a local youth and have been liaising with the Council and Erith school in relation to identifying youths seen causing ASB, for home visits to be completed in the upcoming week". Thamesmead East ward:- "One burglary to report this week, which occurred on the 29th October, between 3 and 6pm, Chadwick Way. Entry gained via forcing the front door, TV and computer games stolen. On Friday 4th November, the team arrested a male, who was wanted by Nottingham Crown Court for GBH. On Sunday 5th November, two males were arrested after being discovered to be in possession of suspected Class A drugs, enquiries on going. Later in the evening a male was arrested, Manor Way, for Possession with intent to supply Cannabis, again enquiries are on ongoing. (Great work)".

The ending video this week is some excellent high definition drone footage taken during the recent Danson Park fireworks display, which was organised and run by Welling Round Table.

The 2016 Christmas Tree Festival.

The photos above were taken this weekend at the annual Christmas Tree Festival at Christ Church Erith. The event raises money for several good causes, including the Greenwich and Bexley Community Hospice. Hundreds of visitors turned up to the event, which is one of the most popular and well - attended in the local calendar. A very wide cross - section of the local community visited the church over the weekend - the event started on Friday lunchtime, and finished on Sunday evening, with many musical performances taking place whilst the visitors walked around the church, which was filled with decorated Christmas trees sponsored by local organisations and individual families. The event is free, though donations to the various good causes that the event supports are always very welcome. Thanks to the numerous Maggot Sandwich readers who came over to say "hello" during the festival; I was helping to sell copies of the Friends of Christ Church Erith calendar. 

I took the photo above recently of Moat House, in James Watt Way. The newly completed block of apartments for affordable rent has been abandoned and empty since the terrible fire that destroyed much of the roof and damaged the top floor of the building in early August. The residents are still in temporary accommodation whilst engineers and builders repair the extensive damage. It had originally been said that the residents would be able to move back into the block by the end of September, but that date as been and now long gone. At the current rate of progress, I doubt that the apartment block will be ready to take back residents before the Spring of next year. 

Local Councillor Alex Sawyer has most definitely been earning his keep in his role as member for Traffic and Transport over the past week. He has been questioned by Erith residents over the closure of the very busy pedestrian crossing on the railway bridge linking Fraser Road, Bexley Road and the Fish Roundabout. This is used by commuters to and from Erith railway station, students at Bexley College in Walnut Tree Road, and people visiting Christ Church Erith. It is the busiest pedestrian crossing in the town; the crossing was closed and out of use due to ongoing roadworks in Bexley Road. The trouble is, the roadworks seemed to have ground to a halt, with very little if any work actually being done in my experience. This caused a degree of frustration; one local resident who chooses to be anonymous wrote to Councillor Sawyer thus:- "Are you aware that the pedestrian crossing in Bexley Road, near the junction of Victoria Road, and opposite Christ Church Erith was suspended on Thursday of last week and was still suspended yesterday when I used Erith Station?   This must be one of the most important and most used pedestrian crossings in Erith, with traffic coming from all directions.  I did spot some commuters trying to dodge the traffic and cross Bexley Road, rather than walk up Bexley Road and cross over near Fraser Road – which is still dangerous. If this is a temporary measure, when on earth will the situation be rectified? What reason is there for the suspension please? These traffic lights are absolutely essential and must be replaced". The traffic lights were eventually restored to operation just before the end of the week - but not before being a severe inconvenience to commuters. No explanation was given for the lengthy outage, and to my knowledge my correspondent did not receive a response to her Email. What do you think? Have you encountered problems over the last week or so due to the suspension of the crossing? Leave a comment below, or Email me at hugh.neal@gmail.com. 

  

After the previous story, and the routine use of Email in communication, it may surprise you to learn that Email has actually been around for a pretty long time - certainly longer than many people will have realised. Email was invented before the Internet arrived, with early versions being used more than fifty years ago. Email has become one of the de facto ways of exchanging electronic messages today in the blink of an eye. Email is nowadays regarded as the most important and widely used communications medium on the internet, and it heralded the end of physically writing letters, especially to people or organisations based overseas. It also played a role in the downfall of the humble telex and then fax machine. Some feel that email was devised as an early messaging application for Arpanet, the precursor to the modern Internet. That is true to certain extend, but in reality electronic messaging was in existence long before the arrival of that network. For example, the AUTODIN (Automatic Digital Network) network in the United States became operational in 1962, and it provided a message service between 1,350 terminals for the United States Department of Defence, handling 30 million messages per month. Then in 1965 MIT created its CTSS MAIL System, which allowed users of MIT computers to leave messages at the university for other users, who would see the messages the next time they logged on to the computer. Just like leaving a note on someone’s desk. These old mailing systems were only typically able to send messages to various users of the same computer or network. But something had to change when computers began talking to each other across different works. Essentially, the electronic message needed to be inserted into a digital envelope, addressed to the right recipient, and then posted to them. Ray Tomlinson is widely regarded as the inventor of email. Tomlinson created the first inter-network messaging system in 1971 while working for Bolt Beranek and Newman (now Raytheon BBN Technologies), where he helped develop the Tops - TENEX operating system and Arpanet, the predecessor to the Internet. The US Department of Defence had in 1969 created Arpanet (Advanced Research Projects Agency Network), which was a network connecting numerous computers across the department for the purpose of communication. In October 1969 the first message was sent from one computer to computer on Arpanet. But Ray Tomlinson in 1971 invented and developed Arpanet’s networked email system, which was an email system as we know it today. His system proved very popular and by 1974 there were hundreds of military users of email. This is because Tomlinson’s system decided to use the ‘@’ symbol to allow users to send messages from one network to another. Tomlinson’s invention thus distinguished local recipients and addresses on other networks and this has remained standard ever since. Tomlinson died in March this year aged 74 following a reported heart attack, but before his death he did say that he doesn’t remember what was said in the world’s first ever email because the text was just “gibberish” written for the purposes of testing, or sections from the Gettysburg address. It should be noted that email continued to evolve over time. Larry Roberts for example invented some email folders for his boss so he could sort his mail. Then in 1975 John Vittal developed some software to organise email. Commercial email systems began to appear in the 1980s, with one of the best known being Eudora (circa 1988). Not long after Pegasus mail appeared. Email continued to evolve. One of the first email standards was SMTP (simple message transfer protocol). SMTP is simple and indeed is still in use today, but it does have its limitations. New email standards such as POP (Post Office Protocol) are also increasingly used. Email certainly changed how the world communicated, and it remains one of the principal communication mediums the world over.

Well, It would seem that popular local coach hire company Ebdons Tours has been effectively closed down by the licensing authorities for serious breaches in regulations going back quite some time. Peter Lewis, who traded as Ebdons Tours with his wife Carole Lewis, was also disqualified indefinitely from working as a transport manager following a public inquiry. Mr Lewis was supposed to install exhaust filters costing between £3,500 and £7,000 to cut his vehicles’ emissions and ensure they met the standards of the London Low Emission Zone, avoiding the £200 charge for non-compliance. When his fleet of coaches was given a routine inspection by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency in the spring of this year, it was discovered that seven out of eight coaches did not have the required particulate filters installed, despite them having certificates saying that filters were indeed fitted. Investigations revealed test certificates had been issued on the same vehicle on more than one occasion, while declarations had been made relating to filters that were installed on multiple vehicles within the same calendar year. Security cameras in the emission zone revealed the vehicles had been used while exhaust filters were not fitted, and the DVSA officer also found discrepancies with vehicle safety standard paperwork. As a result the Deputy Traffic Commissioner has withdrawn the licence to operate for Ebdon’s Tours for three years, as well as disqualifying Peter Lewis from operating a transport organisation for life – in effect killing the business.

Another local business that has rather more quietly shut up shop recently is the independent double glazing supplier PJ Plastics in Northumberland Heath, which has recently ceased trading. The business had been trading for many years, and indeed Pewty Acres has windows and doors supplied by the company. Personally I found their service to be excellent, and the products they supplied to be first rate, but I hear that not all of their customers were as satisfied as I was by their work. The PJ Plastics website is now down, but their Twitter feed is still operational; if you scroll back, their tweets are all pretty standard - mainly showing work their fitters have carried out, then suddenly - seemingly out of the blue they announced on November the 18th that the company was urgently looking for a buyer - and that was the final message. I do understand that PJ Plastics carried out a lot of work for local authorities and housing associations - the recent budgetary cutbacks may well have impacted on their cash flow - if any reader has better insight into the failure of PJ Plastics, please get in contact with me with the details - in complete confidence if you so wish.

The London Borough of Bexley comes out top in a poll that it would rather not have won; Bexley has one of the highest smoking rates among expectant mothers in Greater London, according to new figures. Some 8.2 per cent of mums-to-be in the borough still smoke at the time of delivery - a figure that is only higher in Greenwich and Barking and Dagenham (both 8.6 per cent). In contrast, just 1.5 per cent of expectant mothers in Westminster smoke at the time of delivery - the lowest rate in London. The England-wide average is 10.6 per cent, with the highest rate (14.4 per cent) found in the north. Smoking while pregnant can lead to premature delivery and an increased risk of miscarriage, stillbirth or sudden infant death. The report does not investigate the reasons for the wide disparity in the statistical figures - I guess that is a matter for further investigation.

Brian Silk the man behind Bexley Invicta football club, and occasional Maggot Sandwich restaurant critic, has written the following review on the newly opened Riverside Fish and Steak restaurant in Erith Riverside Shopping Centre. "Having anticipated the opening of a restaurant in Erith that is open in the evening, I was keen to try out Fish and Steak soon after it opened. I went along early last week and chose a table close to the window. The restaurant is very nicely furnished and decorated - the sort of place you could go to for a special meal. I was impressed with the menu: plenty of choice and a range of prices, with nothing overpriced. The Starters were enticing, with one or two unusual options - such as Roasted Tomato, Basil and Cheshire Cheesecake - but I didn’t have the appetite for a three course meal (I’d already decided I wanted to try a Dessert). So I went straight for a Main, choosing a rib-eye steak with chilli butter, chips with parmesan, battered onion rings and asparagus. Everything on my plate was really tasty, but the steak was particularly good. It was succulent by itself, but the butter made it really juicy. The glass of red wine I ordered went well the the steak. Although I was already full, I decided to have a Dessert. For me, it was a difficult choice between the Creme brûlée and the Dark chocolate and salted caramel delice. I opted for the latter and asked for it to be served with coffee. The presentation of the delice was impressive and it was as good to eat as it looks, and the coffee was spot on. I should add that the service was excellent throughout and I left impressed and satisfied. I definitely intend to return to Fish and Steak". Brian took the photos pf his meal, which you can see above - click on either for a larger version. You can see a reproduction of the Riverside Fish and Steak menu below - again, click on either image for a larger version.

We seldom get anyone searching the River Thames foreshore at Erith for hidden treasure - it is far too muddy and dangerous, but other parts of the banks of the River Thames have been the source of much historical and archeological information. For many years there has been little regulation on shoreside treasure seeking - an activity better known as mudlarking.  The Port of London Authority, which owns the river bank along with the Crown Estate, has ordered a clampdown as treasure hunting has soared in popularity. Previously anyone could look for fragments of the past, ranging from Roman coins to Delftware pottery, provided they did not scrape or dig the surface to retrieve them. Under the clampdown, any form of searching for objects washed up by the tides is prohibited unless the mudlarks hold a permit, which costs £32 for a day or £75 for three years. But the move dismayed some mudlarks — the Victorian name for impoverished children and adults who scavenged the washed up debris for anything to sell. Ted Sandling, whose new book, London In Fragments, details his passion for amateur archaeology, said the new requirements “unfairly penalise casual mudlarkers. I started as a weekend mudlark, going down to the river  serendipitously when I saw the tide was out. I applied for a permit when I began to take it seriously, after around a decade of doing it once or twice a year.  My path is now being closed off to others.” Last month the London Evening Standard reported that one of the earliest Victoria Cross gallantry medals to be awarded was recovered from the mud on the banks of the Thames. The medal, presented for bravery during the Crimean War and worth at least £50,000, was found by a mudlark on the foreshore with a metal detector. Tobias Neto, 54, from Putney, said he only realised the medal was a Victoria Cross when he got home and saw the writing “For Valour” below the crown.

Notorious ultra right wing racist, bigot and internet troll Joshua Bonehill (photo above), who once wrote me a threatening and abusive Email, and whom I have featured to quite some extent in the past has been back in court this week. He's been before the bench in the Old Bailey on charges of racially aggravated harassment against Luciana Berger MP. He's already in prison (Wandsworth), serving a three year and four month sentence for inciting racial hatred, which was handed to him this time last year. Many long-time readers will know that I have a personal, libertarian philosophy of “if it works for you”. The premise of which is that I believe that people should be free to do whatever they like within the law, as long as it does not cause harm, inconvenience or distress to others. Joshua Bonehill is self-professed racist, homophobe, misogynist, xenophobic anti - Semite who hates anyone who is not white and British and shares the extraordinarily offensive extreme fascist views he has. Now the scumbag is languishing in prison – for an extra two years over and above the three years and four months he was originally sentenced for, after his current appearance before the court, where he was found guilty of all charges on Wednesday afternoon. “You are currently serving a sentence of 40 months imprisonment, imposed on 17th December 2015 for stirring up racial hatred against the Jewish community in Golders Green. That offence was committed whilst you were on bail for the present offence, which in turn was committed whilst you were on bail for other offences of sending malicious communications over the internet and harassment,” said the sentencing judge at the Old Bailey, Mr Justice Spencer. The judge also made the following order: "You must not possess devices capable of accessing the internet and making or storing digital information without notifying the police and making the equipment available for examination on request. You must not have more than two laptops, phones or other mobile devices capable of accessing the internet. You must provide the police with access to any encrypted material. You must not delete the internet history on any of the devices". One thing Bonehill repeatedly emphasises in his warped writing is how he (in his words) is being persecuted for exercising his right to free speech. This strikes me as supremely ironic – he wants the right to write and speak his racist, homophobic, misogynist and antiSemitic views, but then threatens anyone who also uses their right of free speech to challenge his warped and offensive opinions. It seems to me that Bonehill thinks that there should be one law for him, and one (his) law for everybody else. You can see a BBC TV interview with Luciana Berger MP about the case and how it affected her by clicking here.

As I have previously mentioned, the British Government is persisting on its' roll - out of digital utility smart meters, despite overwhelming evidence that they will cost more money than they will save - a lesson learned by the Germans last year, when they scrapped their country - wide smart meter deployment when they realised that it was in fact a white elephant. Whereas the British government has insisted it is effectively communicating the benefits of its controversial smart meter programme - despite MPs having identified a "lack of clarity" over the "problem" the scheme is trying to solve. In its response to the committee’s “Evidence Check” report on smart meters in September, the government said "it is clear about the long term national benefits that smart metering will bring.” More than 4.2 million smart and advanced meters are operating in homes and businesses. Some 53 million smart meters are due to be installed in residences and small businesses by the end of 2020 at an estimated cost of £11bn, with an estimated net "benefit" of £5.7bn by 2020. The Science and Technology committee’s report found that smart meters will benefit suppliers nearly twice as much as consumers in terms of cost savings. It noted that "although the scale and durability of such savings is contested ... it would appear that the rollout could alter consumption levels by 2–3 per cent.” The committee recommended that the government do more to "communicate the national benefits of smart metering alongside the potential cost savings and efficiencies" for consumers. It said this was a weakness of the government’s evidence check statement "and relates to a lack of clarity over the ‘problem’ that smart meters aim to address." Since its inception, the smart meter roll - out programme has been subject to heavy criticism. A leaked report by the Cabinet Office four years ago highlighted the vulnerability of smart meters to cyber-attacks, and flagged estimates that the scheme could leave the taxpayer out of pocket by £4.5bn rather than save consumers cash. To my mind, any project that is going to cost more money to deploy than it will save is already dead in the water.

Have you ever wondered whether it was quicker for those on foot to use the Woolwich pedestrian tunnel, or wait for the free ferry when crossing the River Thames at Woolwich? Well the team from the excellent Londonist website have taken this challenge, and produced the video you can watch below. Please feel free to leave a comment below, or Email me at hugh.neal@gmail.com.

Erith Christmas Tree Festival 2015.

This weekend marked the 2015 Christ Church Erith Christmas Tree Festival and Winter Fair. The idea behind the Christmas Tree Festival is simple, but very clever. Local companies, organisations and individuals sponsor a tree - this costs £30 per tree if you decorate and personalise it yourself, or £35 if the organisers decorate it for you. The money raised is split between the church and local charity, the Greenwich and Bexley Community Hospice. Up to eighty trees are on display in the church, and it makes an amazing spectacle. Entry is free, though donations are always welcomed. Visitors come from a long way to see the festival. and for many locals it is a sign that Christmas is really on the way.

It sadly looks like gang - related violence has hit Erith again; both the News Shopper and the London Evening Standard are reporting that there was a shooting in the early hours of last Friday morning at a house in Crusoe Road, Erith, where a A 47-year-old man was found suffering from a gunshot wound to his arm and was taken to hospital by ambulance. Detectives from the Trident and Area Crime Command are investigating - which makes it sound like it could well have been a gang related incident. Violent crime throughout Greater London has been on the decline for the last couple of years, but this attack, along with the recent murder in Slade Green of former soldier Terry Wiggins who was stabbed to death in Lincoln Close on the 17th November, really are showing that serious violence and death is not far away after all. 

Sir Robin Wales, the Mayor of Newham has been getting a lot of press recently; he believes a crossing – either a bridge or a tunnel – at Gallions Reach should be built sooner rather than later. In a recent interview with The Wharf newspaper, he warned the crossing needed to become a reality as quickly as possible to tackle the predicted increase in traffic in the area and help create thousands of jobs. His call comes after Transport for London (TfL) started a public consultation on the potential usage of a new crossing between Beckton and Thamesmead. It forms part of the Mayor of London’s idea for thirteen new Thames crossings between Imperial Wharf and Dartford. TfL has said the earliest a new crossing at Gallions Reach would be completed would be 2025 and it is planned to introduce a toll on any new crossing to help towards covering the cost of building it. But Sir Robin is unimpressed at how long this could take. He said: “Finally the Mayor of London has listened to our calls that a crossing at Gallions Reach is much needed by our residents and businesses and vital to the regeneration of East London. We have been fighting for years for a river crossing for different modes of transport to help tackle congestion and open up the economic growth in this part of London. It is bitterly disappointing that we could have to wait another decade before any crossing is finished. It is infuriating that our residents and businesses will be penalised for years of under investment in east London by having to pay to use any new crossing when those in west London are not charged. We will be pushing for fair reductions and concessions for local people.” There is a degree of polarisation of opinion regarding the necessity of extra river crossings; Latest estimates have London’s population growing by 1.5 million in the next 15 years, with South East London already taking on vast new housing developments - Erith alone has Erith Park, Tower Hill, the proposed redevelopment of the former Riverside Swimming Baths site, and the large development on Erith Quarry. Proponents of the scheme believe more road links linking the north and south banks should be built sooner rather than later to accommodate the extra traffic this would bring. There is also a discrepancy between crossings in the West and East of London – there are twenty six Thames crossings between London Bridge and Kew Bridge to the west, while there are only eleven from Tower Bridge to Dartford Crossing in the East. I have mentioned the proposals to build either a bridge or a tunnel that would link Lower Belvedere with Rainham in Essex on several occasions before. Both options have plusses and minuses. There are a number of factors to consider if building a bridge at Belvedere:- 1) It would be close to major working wharves and would therefore require a high and long span, which could increase the cost to be similar to the cost of a tunnel at Belvedere. 2) Pedestrian / cycle facilities could be accommodated, although users would be exposed to poor weather. 3) Being further from the London City Airport, there is more flexibility on the type of structure that can be built than at Gallions Reach. Conversely a tunnel would have its own issues:- 2) It could be a similar cost to a bridge. 2) It would have little or no impact on shipping. 3) It potentially has less of an impact than a bridge on local properties and the future development of the area, particularly after construction. 4) It would be less susceptible to poor weather than a bridge. 5) A pedestrian and cycle tunnel could be considered less attractive to users than a bridge. You may recall that I discussed the positives and negatives of a new river crossing between Lower Belvedere and Rainham in Essex back in April of last year. The tunnel I proposed is purely my own thought, and is not intended to reflect on any of the other “official” transport solutions which are currently being proposed. My suggestion, provisionally entitled “The Arthur Pewty Memorial Tunnel” would stretch between the Ferry Lane roundabout, South of Rainham town centre and the A2016 Bronze Age Way / Picardy Manor Way roundabout in Lower Belvedere. In effect, this would connect the A13 and Rainham in South Essex with the A2 and M25 via Bronze Age Way, and the South Circular via the A2016 Eastern Way towards Woolwich. This coincidentally is pretty much the same route that the the official crossing solutions (both tunnel and bridge) would take. It could also have the added bonus of connecting Rainham and Belvedere railway stations via a regular bus service through the tunnel. My vision would be of a structure very similar in size and scope to the existing Medway Tunnel which links Strood with Chatham in Kent. The Thames tunnel would use the same kind of immersed tube construction that the Medway Tunnel does – that is, sections of prefabricated tunnel sections are sunk into the river, joined together, then the water is pumped out. This relatively new method of construction is well suited to shallow and medium depths of water, and creates tunnels which are both very strong and relatively cheap to construct. Unlike the Medway Tunnel, I would hope that the Lower Thames tunnel would permit the use of bicycles via a raised cycle / walkway kept physically separate from the vehicular traffic. As previously indicated, by the time any tunnel of this nature had been constructed (which I understand normally needs an Act of Parliament) the level of harmful pollutants emitted by vehicles will be far lower than the levels now, and many of the cars may well be zero emission via either conventional batteries, Hydrogen fuel cells or possibly even LENR (Low Energy Nuclear Reaction) power, if one is somewhat on the optimistic side. This would not be the only new link needed across the Thames South of Tower Bridge; I suspect that the proposed Gallions Reach crossing will probably go ahead in some form or another, despite the traffic having to run through a housing estate and close by a large residential nursing home on the South side of the river. The Bexley Against Road Crossings campaign website do list some other alternatives, some of which are pretty clever and well thought out. Their only weakness is that they concentrate on using public transport to move people, but the act of moving large amounts of freight is not addressed. Whatever solution is eventually employed, the movement of bulk freight will have to also be taken into account. 

As many readers may already know, I don't send Christmas cards, for a number of reasons, mainly as I think them redundant now that the Western world is now online, and via social networking, Email, Twitter and a host of other services; people keep in contact all year round, not just via a once a year bit of printed card. Cards use a huge amount of natural resources, both in their production and transportation, and generally get shredded or dumped after the annual festivities. I think we really need to move on from them.  I know many regard me as a grumpy old curmudgeon when it comes to the Christmas festivities; and I suppose I am to an extent. I suppose having no children does mean that I don’t see the holiday from their perspective. For the most part it is a period for me to endure, rather than enjoy. I am not saying that the festival is a complete anathema, but it sometimes feels that way. One thing I really detest is the journey home from work on the couple of weeks before the Christmas break. One invariably encounters “amateur drinkers” who have been on a boozy Christmas lunch; not able to hold their drink (or to know when to stop before the effects impaired their actions) they generally make the lives of their fellow commuters insufferable, even if it is just by sitting close by and breathing alcohol fumes over their fellows; I have to say that when in the office, either in Canary Wharf or Watford, my habit is to start early and finish early. In doing this I avoid the worst excesses of those suffering from a Yuletide surfeit of Dizzyade. I feel sorry for fellow commuters that have to travel later in the evening – I have been there in years past, and it is not pretty!

Rumours have surfaced every so often about the future of Erith Morrison’s supermarket; last year a story did the rounds that the store was to be sold off to Aldi or Lidl, but when the claim was investigated, it came to nothing. I get the feeling that this story was prompted by the fate of Waitrose at Dartford, which closed with the loss of 120 jobs. It later became an Aldi outlet, and seems to be doing well now. On Monday the London Evening Standard published a worrying article in their City pages. They said that the “Big Four” (Tesco, Asda, Morrison’s and Sainsbury’s) supermarkets all continue to lose market share, with Morrison’s suffering the worst losses. A market analyst company called Exane BNP Paribas  has been looking into the situation, and has come to the conclusion that the solution for Morrison’s would be “better retailing and less space – this means that carve – ups and disposals / closures are more likely over time, and Morrison’s are the prime candidate”. The analyst thinks that with Aldi and Lidl eating into Morrison’s market share “something has to give”.  It thinks that a merger with Sainsbury’s would make some sense for Morrison’s, but thinks the supermarket chain is more likely to retreat from London and the South East, and return to its roots in the North of England. Last month Asda boss Andrew Clarke said that he expected some form of industry consolidation to cope with the rise of the German discounters, but Sainsbury’s boss Michael Coupe also said that he thought such an action as unlikely, as it would leave any resultant merged company with too many retail stores. Whatever the result, it does start to sound like the Morrison’s supermarket at Erith may be under some kind of threat – a real worry, bearing in mind I understand it employs around five hundred full and part time staff. The town needs a large sized supermarket, and indeed, the Erith Morrison’s store was one of the first the Bradford, West Yorkshire based company opened in the South, back in 1999. I recall being served by the then company Chairman, Sir Ken Morrison, on the day the Erith store opened. The supermarket definitely forms an integral part of the contemporary DNA of Erith, and any changes would have wide ranging implications. I really don’t want to set any hares running, especially on the basis of a single story in the Evening Standard, but it would seem that the supermarket sector is in real disarray at present; changes look like they are indeed happening, and Erith may not escape them. It is all early days, but I will be keeping tabs on this story in the months that come.

The junction of West Street, Walnut Tree Road and Erith High Street, shown in the embedded Google Street View above, has been the subject of much local controversy recently. Over the last couple of years there have been repeated collisions between road vehicles at the junction, and on the 10th November a motorcyclist was seriously injured when he was involved in a collision with a BMW car. The story was covered by the London Evening Standard here. It would seem that the double lines that designate give way at the end of West Street (to the centre left of the embedded image above) have become very worn, and drivers moving from West Street into Erith High Street are not giving way to traffic coming down the hill from Walnut Tree Road, and collisions are happening as a result. The News Shopper have reported the situation, which you can read here. In typical predictable News Shopper style, there is the obligatory photograph of the lady and her daughter posed with their arms folded - which is the News Shoppers' clumsy way of indicating the people are fed up. Not exactly likely to win the Pulitzer Prize I feel.  If you have an opinion on this issue, or have information not yet in the public domain, either leave a comment below, or email me at hugh.neal@gmail.com.

I have frequently bemoaned social networks like Facebook, and how some people seem to publish all sorts of intimate and what one would have thought were private details about themselves. If that were not bad enough, the professional social networking site LinkedIn is now the target for organised cyber criminals. LinkedIn, which has over 400 million users globally, is a prime target for scammers looking to connect with professionals across a variety of industries, including information security and oil and gas. Scammers copy information from real LinkedIn profiles to pose as recruiters and attract new connections. Security analyst Symantec have been investigating the situation. They found that most of these fake accounts followed a specific pattern. They bill themselves as recruiters for fake firms or are supposedly self-employed and primarily use photos of women pulled from stock image sites or of real professionals. The primary goal of these fake LinkedIn accounts is to map out the networks of business professionals.  Using these fake LinkedIn accounts, scammers are able to establish a sense of credibility among professionals in order to initiate further connections. In addition to mapping connections, scammers can also scrape contact information from their connections, including personal and professional email addresses as well as phone numbers. Symantec said LinkedIn users should be very sceptical of who they add to their network.  “If you’ve never met the person before, don’t just add them. We weren’t surprised to learn that these fake LinkedIn accounts received endorsements from real users”. I would add to this by recommending that if you are a LinkedIn user, and you receive a request from someone that you don’t know, do a Google search on the person to see what you can find out about them – and if they actually exist at all. As always, be careful; once something is online about you, it is impossible to remove it. Publishing anything online is very much a one – way process.

Time Out magazine recently published a feature on London's micro - breweries, amongst which was Erith's own Bexley Brewery. They will next be open for personal visits to purchase beer directly from the source on Friday 18th December 11am-3pm, then Saturday 19th December 11am-2pm (Bar open 12pm-2pm). You can get more details from their website here.

That bastion of never letting the truth get in the way of a good story, The Sun newspaper has been publishing a very old story using a very new spin. They published a story on Tuesday morning, stating that Isis terrorists could target the wartime wreck of the SS Richard Montgomery, which is located in the River Medway. In the Sun's rather breathless style, they write:- "Crack amphibious specialists are ready to defend the SS Richard Montgomery – which experts say would flood vast swathes of the South East if its dangerous cargo was exploded by jihadists. The American World War Two ship – dubbed the Doomsday Boat – contains 1,400 tonnes of unexploded munitions and lies in shallow waters off the Kent coast. Ministers have revealed round-the-clock radar and video surveillance is watching the wreck to provide an early warning system against a devastating attack. Suspicious signs trigger alerts to the Coastguard and Kent Police, who have a specially-trained marine force. They can also call in support from the South East Counter Terrorism Unit if required. A New Scientist report in 2004 warned the ship would create one of the largest non-nuclear blasts ever seen if it exploded, causing more than £1 billion of damage. It would devastate the nearby port of Sheerness and engulf the Isle of Sheppey which is home to almost 40,000 people Experts say it would also create a “tsunami-like wave” which would sweep up the River Medway, flooding thousands more homes and ruining towns and villages. Towns like Gravesend, Canvey Island and Southend could also be badly affected. A security source said: “Terrorists could create a lot of damage for very little effort if they blew this thing up. It is no surprise the ship has been branded a ‘disaster waiting to happen." Quite. The vessel is still to this day loaded with around 1,400 tons of rather unstable high explosives. According to a BBC news report in 1970, it was determined that if the wreck of the SS Richard Montgomery exploded, it would throw a 1,000-foot (300 m) wide column of water and debris nearly 10,000 feet (3,000 m) in the air and generate a wave 16 feet (5 m) high. Almost every window in Sheerness would be broken and buildings would be damaged by the blast. Back in the days when I was working for Radio Caroline, we would often make tender runs from Strood on the River Medway, out into the Southern North Sea, and the South Falls Head, where the Radio Caroline ship, the Ross Revenge was then moored, outside British territorial waters, and thus outside of the law. These trips were invariably made at the dead of night, navigating by radar and from navigational buoy to navigational buoy using good old fashioned charts and a compass. On one occasion I was at the wheel of the thirty foot fishing cruiser we were using as a covert supply vessel; we had to time our trips precisely; at that time, the Olau ferry company operated a couple of very large passenger ferries out of Sheerness. The skipper of the Olau Britannia was a great friend to Caroline, and would often go out of his way to help us. One way he gave us practical help was by allowing us to exit the Medway Estuary in the huge vessels’ radar shadow, thus hiding our activities from the authorities. I was concentrating on staying in formation with the giant car ferry, when I suddenly noticed a series of warning buoys dead ahead – I was steering the vessel straight into the wreck of the SS Richard Montgomery! Needless to say, I came around hard to Starboard, to the consternation of the skipper and the rest of the crew, who were thrown around by my sudden course changes, and we narrowly avoided a collision. I reckon if we had have hit the wreck, we would probably have been the first fishing cruiser in orbit!

The end video this week is suitably festive; it shows a music video for the charity single "Christmas Spell" which has been released to raise money for the charity Crisis, which is the national charity for single homeless people. They are dedicated to ending homelessness by delivering life-changing services and campaigning for change. The track features Erith based bagpipe master, and occasional Maggot Sandwich guest writer Chic Mackie - look out for him near the end of the song. Chick will be writing a guest piece for publication in a future addition of the blog, so look out for it in due course. 

Now and then.

A reminder that this years' Christmas Tree Festival kicks off on Friday lunch time at Christ Church. The event is a bit of a local landmark, and definitely marks the start of the festive season. The festival raises money for local charities, including the Greenwich and Bexley Community Hospice. If you are in the local area, do give the event your support. You can see their website by clicking here.

The other piece of local community news this week, is that a new Neighbourhood Watch initiative is being launched. Hound Watch is designed to recruit people out walking their pet dogs. Dog walkers are often out and about at unusual times of the day and night, and may possibly be a witness to suspicious / criminal activity. The project aims to recruit dog walkers and get them to report anything out of the ordinary. Bexley Neighbourhood Watch Association made the following announcement:- "We together with Bexley Police are setting up “Hound Watch”. This is to recruit dog walkers and ask them to report anything suspicious they might see while walking their dog(s). We are inviting all dog owners to join our brand new scheme. Those joining at the launch will receive a membership pack and also a chance to win a painted portrait of your dog and other fantastic prizes. Come along on FRIDAY 13TH DECEMBER to Pets At Home, Tower Retail Park, Crayford Road, Crayford, DA1 4LD between 10am-2pm. For more information contact the Neighbourhood Watch office on 0208 284 5537 or email bexwatch-office@btconnect.com".

When I was photographing the repair work to the bridge across the railway at Bexley Road last week, I took a shot (see above - click for a larger view) which was taken in a very similar position to one which was taken back in the Autumn of 1973, almost exactly forty years ago; I thought that it might be instructive to post both shots for you to see the comparison. 

The most obvious difference in the photos is that back in 1973 the site now occupied by the hideous fish sculpture roundabout was then the location of the Wheatley Hotel - a Railway Hotel. A Railway Hotel was a combination of a pub downstairs, and a bed and breakfast upstairs; almost all railway stations at one stage or other had a railway hotel in close proximity - in this case, Erith Station was just across the road. In the time before the invention of the car, people travelling around the country would often need to break their train journey overnight. A room in a railway hotel was cheaper than a full hotel, as the features tended to be more basic, but they were convenient - they fulfilled the same function as  a modern Premier Inn - cheap and clean, at least in most cases. On top of this, local residents would use the pub located on the ground floor. I understand that the Wheatley Hotel was a pretty lively place on a Friday and Saturday night. One can also see the still working dock cranes in the background; they were located in the Erith Deep Water Wharf - what is now the site of Morrison's supermarket. The cranes were part of the pier, and were used to unload heavy cargo from moored vessels. Historically cargo which came on ships too large to make in to docklands or the Pool of London were unloaded at Erith. One of the regular cargoes landed at the Deep Water Wharf were the huge rolls of newsprint, which arrived from paper mills in Sweden. They were then taken by lorry to the Europa Industrial Estate in Fraser Road, where they were then stored before being taken by road to Fleet Street, where the national newspapers were primarily then still based.  To the left of the photo one can see Bosworth House - one of the high rise flats that had recently been built on the river front. If you click on the black and white image to enlarge it, you can make out the scaffolding still surrounding the then newly built block. Back then it was a council block; nowadays many of the flats in the tower are privately owned, and it is quite a desirable location, with amazing views across the River Thames. 

Talking of the area around the Bexley Road bridge, you may recall that I wrote extensively about the current repairs to the bridge, and the fact that Bexley Council were shortly going to replace the bridge with a new structure, which seemed like a waster of money and resources; well, I have had an Email from John Ferry, the Bexley Council Communications Manager. John writes"I am emailing to give you more information relevant to your recent post about the bridge works at the top of Bexley Road, which I read online yesterday. The plan to widen the road as it passes over the railway lines will involve adding a new bridge alongside the two separate bridges that currently carry the traffic. These two bridges sit next to one another: a brick arch bridge built in 1860 and a reinforced concrete structure added in 1927 when previous widening took place. The urgent refurbishment and strengthening work currently affects the reinforced concrete bridge. This bridge will be retained as part of the planned Queen’s Road Junction Improvement Scheme, so repairing it is both essential and an investment for the future. We are sorry that the works are causing delays and inconvenience to motorists, but it is essential to repair the cracks and weaknesses that have developed over the years. The Council has been proactive in seeking a solution to the problems at and around the roundabout by fighting for funds to improve the junction. We are currently consulting on a scheme and are discussing funding options with our partners. We would welcome your views and those of your readers. I hope this information helps to explain the current position and makes clear that we are doing our best to serve the interests of local residents". Many thanks John - your input has cleared up a lot of concerns. Readers - do feel free to chip in with your thoughts and suggestions. Please leave a comment below.

The News Shopper reported that earlier in the week, the Fire Brigade had to rescue a horse that was trapped in a water filled ditch on Ray Lamb Way.  This is a road that leads onto the Wallhouse Road Industrial Estate, on the Slade Green Marshes. Very few people are familiar with the Marshes – even though they are an area of outstanding natural beauty only fifteen minutes’ walk from Erith town centre. The marshes are home to Erith Yacht club, as I featured a little while ago, and also to a number of industries, including specialist vehicle maintenance shops and a couple of breakers yards. For the most part, the marsh is composed of reed beds and grassland, and is popular with dog walkers (and unfortunately, to a number of unlicenced and illegal off – road motorbikes).  Slade Green Marshes are protected, and cannot be built upon for the most part; they still have a number of wartime pill boxes and gun emplacements as relics of the preparations against invasion – though to be honest, tough as these structures look, they were very isolated and surrounded by open marshland – a German tank or bazooka squad would have made mincemeat of the occupants in short order. A good friend  of mine who is sadly no longer with us used to work as a civilian in Bexleyheath Police Station; he was also a keen mountain biker and fellow radio ham. He used to regularly cycle on and around Ray Lamb Way. One day  he was minding his own business, cycling along when he saw what looked like a pair of wellington boots sticking out from the very ditch that the horse was recently found in. Curiosity piqued, he dismounted his bike to investigate. What he found was what in emergency services slang they call a “deep purple” – a dead body that is not only deceased, but bloated and smelly. He phoned his boss at Bexleyheath nick, and the Police were on the scene in short order. This was all well over ten years ago, and I do recall that the deceased was known to the Police as being involved in the drugs trade; I don’t know if a killer was ever arrested and charged. The marshes still keep a few secrets. They are well worth a visit on a warm day – they are one of the best ways of seeing Erith’s “Big Sky” that I have recently written about.

The News Shopper have been running an opinion piece on a subject that much vexes me. They are asking for readers’ opinions on self service checkouts in supermarkets and other stores. This old chestnut comes up around once per year, and I have made my own views on the subject clear in the past – I am vehemently opposed to self service for a number of reasons; firstly it has been demonstrated that the average time to complete a supermarket self service transaction is up to three times as long as one carried out by a staffed till – and that is without allowing for system errors. Secondly, why would you have a dog and bark yourself? Quite often the checkout person adds to the whole retail experience, and can problem solve on the go. Elderly people, or customers with small children can also find self service stressful. On top of this, the supermarkets only introduce self service as they think it will reduce their staffing overheads. This has proved to be a false economy, as although  the number of checkout staff is reduced, the number of supervisors and security operatives has to increase – who tend to be paid a higher rate than the checkout staff. This particular matter has caused Wilkinson’s to remove them, as they discovered that the self service tills actually cost more by the time all the overhead costs were factored in; they were also finding the incidence of thefts and under age purchasing were on the rise. If you are comfortable using self service checkouts, fine – as always my philosophy is “if it works for you”. Personally I will steer clear of them, as they serve the shop, not the shopper.

I have a question to pose, and I would be grateful if you could help by providing an answer. The Maggot Sandwich has been updated every Sunday afternoon for well over seven years – a total of 460 entries averaging three thousand words per entry (that’s roughly 1,380,000 words, and no, I am not going through it all to get a precise count; in this case near enough is good enough).  The Maggot Sandwich has become a bit of a brand now, but one very loyal reader has suggested to me that the name is holding the blog back – that the rather surreal and silly name does not represent the content. He suggests that the name should be changed to something more representative of what the blog is nowadays. I am not sure – it is the first comment of this nature I have received. Are the readers just being polite and putting up with the title, or do they find it part of the charm? Many may not be aware that the name originates from a radio show I used to have on South East London / North Kent station Radio Lumberjack back in the late 1980’s; when I started the blog, I thought I could re – use the old name for my Saturday night radio show. I do recall back in 2010 when I was a delegate at the London Bloggers conference at the OFCOM headquarters on the South Bank that ”Arthur Pewty’s Maggot Sandwich” was informally voted as the most unusual and memorable blog title of the attendees. What do you think? Do you like the name, or is it due for a change? If you think it is overdue for a revamp what would you like to see it called in future? You can Email me at hugh.neal@gmail.com or leave a comment below.

The photo I published last Sunday of William Gilder on a shrimp fishing boat on the River Thames has sparked considerable interest. Gilder ran a successful fishmongers shop on the river front at Erith, directly opposite the wooden jetty that is still there today. The shop was in business for many years between the wars, and was only demolished in 1937. Maggot Sandwich reader and local historian Ken Chamberlain sent me the photo of Gilder’s Fishmongers which you can see above. He tells me that the Gilder family were heavily involved in trade in and around Erith for many years, and indeed several members of the family still live locally. I had commented on how William Gilder looked considerably younger in the photo that Ken had sent, to which he responded that although there was a distinct family resemblance, it was possible that the figure in the doorway was not the same person as pictured in the fishing boat last week. Either way it is a real slice of Erith’s long and varied history. The more I consider the state of pollution of the River Thames before WWII, the more I am amazed not only that a successful fishing business could generate income from the murky waters, but that people were apparently not routinely poisoned. In addition to the aforementioned sewage outfall from Crossness, back before the war Erith Pier was frequented by heavy cargo freighters and ships that were judged as too large to navigate further upriver to the docks, or the Pool of London. The output sewage and waste oil into the river, along with leaving traces of chemicals from their anti fouling paint (which used to contain large amounts of poisonous tin or copper compounds to inhibit weed and barnacle growth on the hulls of ships). It is a wonder that anything managed to live in the Thames off Erith at all. The water nowadays is far cleaner than it has been for years – the reason it looks brown and murky is mainly due to the large levels of silt that is suspended in the water, rather than to high pollution levels.

Some very professional and nasty scammers have been targeting local residents recently; one of my best local informants had encountered an issue reported by a retired chap who had been the unwitting victim of a fraud. I am going to recount the story, but leave out all of the personal details, for obvious reasons. The scam works like this; The victim will get a phone call out of the blue; the person on the other end will say that they are calling from Microsoft (or sometimes from MacAfee or Norton antivirus). They say that the victim’s PC is either infected with a very serious computer virus, or that their software licence has expired and that it needs to be revalidated and registered. They tell the victim that they can do this if they can obtain remote access to the PC in question “to save you the bother of doing it yourself”. Whilst this may sound obvious, and that only a mug would fall for it, the scammers are highly professional and plausible. The victim can hear that the scammer is working in a call centre from the background sounds, and all does appear to be genuine. Once the scammers gain control of the victims’ computer, they often install Cryptolocker ransom ware – software that sits on the PC like a time bomb, until a certain date, or predetermined set of actions are carried out by the victim, upon which it encrypts the victims files and stored data, and then demands a payment – usually of around five hundred Euros for the files to be decrypted – and there is no guarantee that they will be decrypted. On top of this, the scammers will siphon off passwords and user names for online bank accounts and other things like Email accounts – which they then sell on to other criminals for use in identity theft. Victims of this scam also get added to a “white list” by the bad guys; this is a very valuable list of people who are judged to be vulnerable to being conned. This information is also posted online to be purchased by other criminals. Basically if you are hit once, you are likely to be hit again, time after time – a scammer crew called “Windows PC Care” have been operating locally – on top of the malware they infect on your computer, they demand £195 to remove the fictional “infection” that they initially warned the victim about. These scammers are not single people; they form part of organised gangs known as “crews”. If you, or a friend or relative gets a phone call from an organisation purporting to be a huge software or services company, just put the phone down. Don’t bother arguing or remonstrating with them – they are not interested,; they will just move on to the next target – to them it is all about money. The scams are run just like a company – albeit one employing illegal methods.  The chances of catching the perpetrators is vanishingly small; the usually operate out of countries in Eastern Europe and South Asia; they employ hundreds of people in what are called “boiler rooms” – call centres for illegal activities. The large IT companies such as Apple, Microsoft and Google do investigate them, on the grounds that not only do they cause damage to reputation, but they are also compromising  their products. To be honest, the scamming has turned into a major industry. The chances of getting caught and prosecuted are small at most – the scammer bosses often have the local police and government in their pocket. In the unlikely event of a prosecution, the sentences are small – a fine and probation in most cases. Why risk getting murdered by a rival, or spending the rest of your life in a rat infested jail after being caught smuggling drugs, when you can sit in an air conditioned office and make just as much money by ripping off people's computers? So, what can you do to avoid these criminal scumbags? Firstly, and most obviously, as previously mentioned, just put the phone down – the big IT companies do not make personal calls – ever. If you get a call, a pound to a bent penny it is a scammer trying to take you for a ride. As far as your computer is concerned, make sure that whatever operating system you use, that it is up to date with all security patches and that the firewall is switched on. If you want to test the security of your computer to external attacks, I can recommend a website that benignly simulates a hacker port scanning your computer, looking for a vulnerability. The harmless scan takes a minute or so, and will give you an accurate idea as to how well locked down (or otherwise) your computer is. Shields Up! Is a great resource. You can see the results of an in - depth Shields Up! Port scan on the computer network at Pewty Acres in the screen shot below - the network does not exist as far as hackers are concerned. I take my security very seriously. Do run the same check on your systems and see what results you come up with. You may notice that I have intentionally blurred most of my I.P address. I did this using Apple's Aperture image manipulation software. Just in case some clever dick thinks that they can import the image below into Aperture and reverse the blurring function to get the rest of the address, I would not waste your time. The image is actually a screen capture of the original blurred picture - this removes all the image metadata, and make un - blurring impossible. Me - paranoid? No, just very careful.

In years past I would have advised against using Microsoft Windows if you wanted a secure computing experience; I have to say that Microsoft have taken security very seriously indeed over the last few years, and both Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 are now actually pretty damn good. Not for me personally, but as always, if it works for you. So far the remote access scams have been targeted mainly at Windows PC’s, but it is only a matter of time before OS X, iOS and Android also get targeted. Whilst Apple Macs are less common than Windows PC’s, Apple users tend to have higher disposable incomes, and thus make attractive targets. For the ultra paranoid computer user, I would recommend the free and open source OpenBSD version of Unix; it is designed from the ground up for security and robustness against malicious attack. It has lots of software ported onto it, and if you have an old computer sitting round, you can give the operating system a try for free – details by clicking here. OpenBSD is used in many areas where reliability and uptime are paramount – and I can guarantee that a remote scammer would be utterly defeated if they tried to take over an OpenBSD box.

The ending video this week is a new festive short film from Simon's Cat. As always, it is excellent - well observed, cleverly animated and very funny - give it a watch and leave a comment below.