Pop - Up Cinema.

The photos above show the pop - up cinema in The Carnegie Library in Walnut Tree Road, Erith. The events are being held by The Exchange, the organisation who have taken over the former library building and are converting it into a community arts and education centre for local people. Building and restoration work is still under way, and the library is not officially opening for public use until February, but in the meantime, some of the areas on the lower ground floor are now ready for use, and the first event was held on Thursday evening. There are a series of film showings happening between now and Christmas, as a way of "soft opening" the newly refurbished building, and creating awareness of what is going on with local people. This is the first cinema to operate in Erith for 22 years, since the Odeon Cinema closed in 1996 - actually this is a bit of a cheat, as for at least the last two decades the place was open, it was purely a bingo hall, but you get the idea. Below you will find a programme of film showings, along with links to securely book tickets via the trusted EventBrite web site. As a Trustee of The Exchange, you should see me at all of the events - do say hello. 

Graphic novels: Persepolis

Thursday, December 13, 2018

7:30 PM  10:00 PM

Based on the celebrated graphic novels of Marjane Satrapi, Persepolis tells the story of the Iranian revolution seen through the eyes of a rebellious heavy-metal loving tomboy teen Marji. This black and white animated film co-won the Jury Prize at the Cannes 2007 film festival, and put the power of graphic novels firmly in the spotlight.

Adults: £4

Under-16s: £2

To book tickets to see this film, please click here.

PLEASE NOTE: This film is certified as a 12 - we are unable to allow any children under this age to enter the screening. Tickets are refundable up until 7 days before the event.

Dime store stories: Pulp Fiction

Friday, December 14, 2018

7:30 PM  10:00 PM

Tarantino’s masterpiece weaves three trash novels into a breathtaking and pacy cinematic ride; one of the most influential films of the 90s. Incredible performances throughout from John Travolta, Uma Thurman, Samuel L. Jackson, Harvey Keitel, Bruce Willis and Christopher Walken. 

“A delirious postmodern mix of Neo-noir thrills, pitch-black humour and pop-culture touchstones” Rotten Tomatoes.

Adults: £4

To book tickets to see this film, please click here.

PLEASE NOTE: This film is certified as an 18 - we are unable to allow anyone under this age to enter the screening. Tickets are refundable up until 7 days before the event.

Classics: The Muppet Christmas Carol

Saturday, December 15, 2018

2:00 PM  3:30 PM

Part of a Dickens Double Bill, this 1992 musical puppet-led comedy features Michael Cain as Ebenezer Scrooge alongside Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy and Fozzy the Bear in a remaking of the classic novella The Christmas Carol. We are now officially in Christmas season!

We are also showing Scrooged, another reimagining of the tale. Reduced rates if you buy tickets for both films.

Adults: £4

Under-16s: £2

To book tickets to see this film, please click here.

PLEASE NOTE: This film is certified a U.

Classics: Scrooged

Saturday, December 15, 2018

7:00 PM  9:00 PM

A classic of 80s comedy with Bill Murray at his peak in a modern twist on the Victorian Dickens novella A Christmas Carol. No Christmas is complete without it. 

Adults: £4

Under-16s: £2

To book tickets to see this film, please click here.

PLEASE NOTE: This film is certified a PG.

Poetry: The Nightmare before Christmas

Thursday, December 20, 2018

7:30 PM  9:00 PM

A stunningly original stop-motion musical animation based on a poem by Tim Burton. Follow Jack the Pumpkin King as he gets to grips with the snowier land of Christmas Town and its king Sandy Claws.

Adults: £4

Under-16s: £2

To book tickets to see this film, please click here.

PLEASE NOTE: This film is certified a PG.

Short story: It's a Wonderful Life

Friday, December 21, 2018

7:00 PM  9:30 PM

The final film in the programme and an all-time Christmas classic is based on a short story The Greatest Gift by Philip Van Doren Stern. It’s a Wonderful Life, directed by Frank Capra and starring James Stewart and Donna Reed, is one of the most inspirational American films of all time, and encapsulates the wonderful spirit of the season. 

Adults: £4

Under-16: £2

To book tickets to see this film, please click here.

PLEASE NOTE: This film is certified a U.

One landmark that dominates the Eastern skyline in Erith, Slade Green and Crayford is the giant chimney the used to form part of the former Littlebrook Power Station in Dartford. As I have written in the past, much of the former power station has been demolished over the last year or so, but the huge chimney, which still has red warning lights against low flying aircraft, is due to come down soon - the date is yet to be set. The entire site is to be redeveloped for dual purpose uses; part of the site will become a new electricity substation to serve the national grid, and to distribute power to the local area; the rest of the site will become a major logistics and warehousing hub to serve London and the South East. The 114 acre site could support the potential development of around 1.7 million square feet of other logistics buildings in future. Whilst this would be very good for local employment, there are concerns about the subsequent increase in heavy goods vehicle traffic in the local area, and the ensuing increase in congestion and air pollution. It may also have a further impact on the often extreme levels of traffic using the Dartford River Crossing, which are already at crisis levels. It is good to hear that the industrial brown field site is being productively reused, but there are concerns about the potential environmental impact to the local area that have not been properly considered. 

After publishing the Maggot Sandwich last Sunday, I went for a stroll into town. I was taking a leisurely amble through Erith Riverside Shopping Centre when my left leg was suddenly struck from behind, causing me to lose balance and almost end up on my knees. As I staggered, trying to remain upright, a woman riding a mobility scooter drove by whilst talking on her mobile phone, completely oblivious to the fact she had just mown me down, rode past. Fortunately I was not badly injured, with just a small bruise on my calf to show for the encounter,. These mobility scooters are a menace – they may have several humorous alternative names such as the "Nanbretta" or the "Frinton Ferrari" (an offshoot of the old saying “Harwich for the continent, Frinton for the incontinent"). This hides a sad story that quite a large proportion of mobility scooters can travel at substantially more than normal walking pace; when this is combined with the lack of compulsory training or the need to have third party insurance it does leave a legal minefield for both the operator of such a vehicle and also the members of the public than encounter them. I firmly believe that mobility scooters are a good thing; they enable people who otherwise might find it difficult to get out and about, and stay in contact with general society. The old situation with people becoming housebound and isolated when their ability to move under their own steam became impaired has become far less common. I think it vital for elderly and mobility impaired people to retain their independence. The problem is that a small minority treat the scooters as some kind of fairground ride – the lady who collided with me being a case in point – she was whizzing along oblivious to her surroundings whilst yacking on her mobile phone. The reason I did not chase and challenge her after she hit me was that I was acutely aware of what the situation would look like to a passer by who had not seen what had happened – it would look like I was harassing an innocent old lady. I think that there should be some kind of compulsory formal training for mobility scooter owners, on a similar basis to the (voluntary) cycling proficiency test, along with a compulsory insurance policy covering third party liability. Some mobility scooters seem to be capable of travelling much faster than the fifteen miles per hour limit that is meant to be applicable to such vehicles; indeed I have seen a couple of elderly ladies on the pavement beside the Erith Construction HQ (the former Job Centre) in Queen’s Road who were racing each other – it reminded me of the Monty Python “Hell’s Grannies” sketch. On Wednesday of last week, my Mother was in Bexleyheath Broadway and saw what appeared to be a husband and wife on fast mobility scooters in a race along the pavement of the Broadway; she said there would have quite likely been a collision or other accident had the area not been extremely quiet and lacking in pedestrians mid morning; it might well have been a different situation had the schools have turned out and hundreds of pupils been milling around close to Bexleyheath Clock Tower. It is only a matter of time before a mobility scooter rider, or a pedestrian is seriously injured unless some action is taken. What do you think? Leave a comment below, or Email me at hugh.neal@gmail.com.

Some good news from the Police. After the closure of Belvedere Police Station some time ago, the presence of the Metropolitan Police has been much reduced in the local area; that is shortly about to change. As mentioned some months ago, the Met are moving their primary vehicle maintenance and repair facility from Vauxhall in central London to a brand new site in Crabtree Manorway North, on the location of the former NuFarm warehouse. Thanks to local source Flash22 for reminding me of the story. It will house workshops, storage, administration offices and fast charging facilities for new electrically powered Police patrol cars. What is also ironic is that Crabtree Manorway North has historically been one of the favoured locations for illegal meetings of Bike Life TV UK - the largest of the illegal biker gangs that are apparently behind much of the moped and bike crime in and around London. Now that the primary Police vehicle maintenance centre will be located in the road, I get the feeling the criminal bikers will have to look elsewhere to congregate. In a connected story (who says I don't plan these things?) A potentially serious issue has occurred only weeks after the Metropolitan Police were given the green light to ram scumbag moped and motorbike crooks off their bikes and arrest them. The tactic has already led to a marked decrease in the number of reported bike related crimes. However, something very worrying is being proposed following an incident where a Police vehicle intercepted a known criminal drug dealer and burglar from a notorious crime family in Eastern Way, Erith, at about 2:15 am on the 7th of November last year. The officer carried out the so-called tactical contact to stop the 17-year-old from riding dangerously. The boy, who was not wearing a helmet, was admitted to hospital with head injuries, but later discharged. A file of evidence gathered by the police watchdog is to be passed to prosecutors and Scotland Yard. If he is prosecuted, the officer could be charged with actual bodily harm or grievous bodily harm. The Met could also decide if there is a case to answer for misconduct, which could result in dismissal. The boy later pleaded guilty to five offences at the youth court, including theft, dangerous driving, and driving without a licence. It is my understanding that this was far from the first time the scumbag had been in serious trouble with the Police. I fail to see why a Police officer carrying out his duty should be penalised for doing exactly what they are supposed to do - in this case preventing a known criminal from carrying out a further criminal act. If the moped scrote had not been breaking the law, then he would not have ended up in hospital, and subsequently in court. Senior Police officers have defended the use of tactical contact, saying it was needed to stop dangerous chases and has helped reduce moped crime in London by more than a third. The manoeuvre has also recently been backed by Prime Minister Theresa May, who said a "robust" response was needed from police to what she described as a growing problem of people using mopeds to commit crimes such as bag and phone-snatching. The current official Police policy, called the Authorised Professional Practice (APP) states:- "It is in the public interest to protect life, prevent or detect crime, or to apprehend an offender. Staff must discontinue a pursuit as soon as the risk becomes disproportionate to the reasons for undertaking it. Motorcycle and quad bike pursuits clearly present higher risks for suspects than conventional vehicle pursuit. Where such vehicles are used to facilitate serious crime or used repeatedly as the mode of transport for organised crime groups then, to minimise risk to the public from criminality and to secure public confidence in policing, a pursuit may be justified." I know I am far from being alone in wanting to see robust and effective countermeasures being taken against these crooks, who until recently have seemed to act with impunity. One reader Emailed me to suggest an approach used by the Police in South Africa to deal with motorbike criminals who refuse to stop when challenged. The traffic cops are issued with pump action shotguns, but the cartridges fired by the guns are filled with rough rock salt crystals, rather than with shot pellets. When fired against criminals on the run (generally aimed at the back or legs) the blast of rock salt will penetrate clothing and cause painful but not life threatening injuries to the crooks. The salt makes the wounds agonising and temporarily debilitating, but the injuries heal within a few days. The reader said that the Police usually "aim at the crook's backside - then they can't sit down for a week". Cheap and apparently effective.

An announcement has been made by prominent local figure Doreen Ives, who writes:- "Are you a fan of that addictive game SCRABBLE?  If you are, then why not become a member of Erith Vet’s Club (£20 a year) and join Julia Baker and I for a game on a Friday afternoon 2.30pm -3.30 pm at the Vets’ Club Erith.  It should be a sociable afternoon helping to keep our grey matter working without too much physical activity. We will also have tea and biscuits and probably some animated conversation! Julia and I are planning to start the club after Christmas, probably the second Friday in January and thereafter on the second Friday of each month. If you are interested and would like further information please speak to one of us.  My telephone number is 01322 345406". Doreen Ives

It would seem that a London tourist favourite, and part of "brand London" may be about to get the axe. Transport for London wants to cancel the daytime “heritage” service on route 15, which uses the 60-year-old RouteMaster buses between Trafalgar Square and Tower Gateway. Under the plans, the buses would appear only at weekends during the summer and on bank holidays. “Stakeholders” were asked to comment, but there has been no public consultation. No details were published on TfL’s website. Enthusiasts are dismayed that transport bosses and Mayor Sadiq Khan is prepared to kill off a “London icon”. Andrew Morgan, chairman of The RouteMaster Association, accused TfL of acting in a “secretive” way in an article published by the London Evening Standard. He said: “We should be keeping them to attract tourists, but tourists don’t know about them. They are London’s biggest secret.” Mr Morgan said leaving the RouteMasters unused in a garage was the “worst thing you can do with an old vehicle. They will get them out at the last minute and they will break down. From an operator’s point of view, it’s going to cost more. They have not repainted them in the last few years and they are looking very unloved and shabby. It’s obvious they are driving them into the ground. They don’t advertise them — there is no publicity anywhere.” TfL recently spent £200,000 refurbishing four of the buses. Last year the Mayor said: “They promote London as a key tourist destination.” Two heritage routes, shortened versions of routes 9 and 15, were launched in 2005 when RouteMasters were phased out by Ken Livingstone after 50 years of service. The 9 heritage route was axed in 2014. TfL says the proposal to cut the 15 heritage service comes alongside the Mayor’s proposed cuts to 33 bus routes in central London, and will save £800,000 a year.

Now for the weekly local safety and security updates from Bexley Borough Neighbourhood Watch Association:- Firstly a report from Barnehurst ward:- "There have been two burglaries on Barnehurst Ward in the past week. On both occasions the doors have not been double locked. As your local policing team we have stressed time and time again to double lock front doors, please assist us with getting this message out. In Heath Way on Friday 30th November in the very early hours at 00.30 the victims woke to find the front door open and items had been taken from the property including a set of car keys. No one was seen or heard however victims retrieved a phone that had been stolen from the property down a nearby footpath. The second burglary took place on Tuesday 04th December, again early hours between 03.35 – 03.37 in Fairford Avenue. Victims witnessed their car, a blue Audi LX I6ZZB Model Q3, being driven off the drive way heading towards Barnehurst Avenue. House keys and other items were also taken. Tool marks were left on the front door, possibly a small screw driver was used to pop the door open. As already mentioned both of the front doors were not double locked. When doors are not double locked it will take a burglar seconds to pop open a door. On a good note we welcome two residents to Neighbourhood Watch who have volunteered to act as Coordinators for Westfield Road. The team have been concentrating on hot spot areas with regular patrols being carried out throughout the shift. If you would like to discuss anything with your local policing team or would simply like to come along to say hello please join us for our last community contact session for 2018 at 11.00am on Thursday 20th December 2018 at Barnehurst Golf Club". Belvedere ward:- "We have been receiving more reports of another beggar at ASDA, Lower Road. This time it is a scruffy looking male, brown hair, brown beard, aged in his late twenties. He has not been aggressive but is a pest. If seen or approached by this male please do not encourage him by giving him money. Please contact us if you do see him. If we do not answer then please leave details of the time and date you were approached. The team assisted with a call in Erith to prevent a breach of the peace while an eviction was taking place. No issues, male left. We also assisted North End SNT with a drugs warrant in Rayleigh Close, Erith. More team working now. We dealt with a shoplifter in Erith Town Centre at Wilko. The male was banned from the shop and centre. He was also arrested for failing to appear at Bromley Magistrates court in November. There was a burglary in Elstree Gardens overnight Sunday 2nd into Monday 3rd. Appears that the burglar entered via the front room window by forcing it open. He proceeded to steal over £3000 worth of goods, which includes a car. It happened in Elstree Gardens. If anyone has any information, heard something odd that night or has noticed any suspicious people cars hanging around the area recently please get in touch. There was also a burglary on the night of Saturday 1st December at Norman Road. Nothing was taken but the occupant was slightly injured. Again, if anyone has any information please get in contact. We have now merged with Greenwich and Lewisham and so have a new sergeant supervising the team. PS Martin Lockwood has taken over from PS Rob Jobson. On Wednesday 21/11/2018 we helped out Erith SNT by responding to a call at Matalan, Riverside Shopping Centre for a detained shoplifter. The female had stolen £64 worth of clothing, which was recovered intact. She was given a Community Resolution for her troubles. On Monday 24/11/2018 the team attended the All Saints Church Christmas Fayre. We had a stall with crime prevention advice and leaflets in the church hall. It was a very popular event with many people attending. Many a bacon roll was devoured. On Tuesday 25/11/2018 the annual Sikh Guru Nanak parade was held around Belvedere. The day went well, a few miserable people that couldn't wait for 15 minutes for the parade to pass but overall a success. Good show by the people taking part." Bexleyheath ward:- "We have had two reports of burglary on the ward. One was reported along Rochester Drive Bexleyheath, a vehicle was taken. Entry was gained via the back door of the property. The other was reported along St Audrey Avenue Bexleyheath, entry was via the rear kitchen door window. Regular burglary patrols are conducted by the team. Weapons sweep search back of ASDAS Broadway open green by the skateboard ramp, kitchen knife found concealed by the wall, knife taken back to Bexleyheath Police Station to be disposed. Car parks on the Broadway patrolled for anti - social behaviour and drug activity. Also patrols are conducted in the car park areas and the Broadway to reduce anti-social behaviour including Martens Grove Park. Regular patrols are conducted by the team along Gravel Hill because of children running out on the road causing a danger, team is liaising with school officers on the borough".  Crayford ward - no reports received this week.  Erith ward:- "Weapon sweeps have been carried out across the ward over the last week, in areas including West Street, Compton Place and around the town centre. We went along to the pop up kitchen (see photo above). For more info on events in Erith please see greatererith.com. We had a walk-in surgery in the BlackBerry Patch office at 7pm last week. This went well - look out for more dates. We are looking into doing this once a month. Upcoming dates – Erith Costa coffee 12th December 2018 at 12pm - feel free to pop in and buy us a coffee. I mean speak to us about any issues you may be having or if you need advice. Shoplift <£200 Friday 30/11/2018 Wm Morrison Supermarkets Plc, James Watt Way – Made off with goods; Theft of cycle Thursday 29/11/2018 Parkspring Court, Erith High Street – bike stolen from community area; Shoplift <£200 Friday 30/11/2018 James Watt Way – made off with goods; Theft from MV Wednesday 28/11/2018 Lesney Park Road – car door forced open items stolen; Theft from MV Friday 30/11/2018 Erith High StreetMorrison Supermarkets – filled up with fuel drove off no attempt to pay; C/Dam Vehicle U500 Thursday 29/11/2018, St. Fidelis Road – damage to car; Shoplift <£200 Tuesday 04/12/2018 11:30:00 Wilkinson , Town Square – made off with good from the store; Burg Res Saturday 01/12/2018 St. Francis Road – tv, ps4, dvd player stolen from flat, entry through the front door; Theft mail Tuesday 04/12/2018 Riverdale Road – mail stolen; Theft from MV Tuesday 04/12/2018 Larner Road – items taken from inside the car".  Northumberland Heath ward - no reports this week.

Slade Green and Northend ward:- "Unfortunately there has been 4 motor vehicle related crimes on the ward this week. Overnight between Wed 28th / Thurs 29th November number plates were stolen from a vehicle parked on Wallhouse Road. Overnight between Thurs 29th / Fri 30th November a window to a vehicle was found smashed (nothing taken) on Betsham Road. Between Fri 30th November and the Mon 3rd December a vehicle was stolen from an industrial premises on Manor Road and finally overnight between Sun 2nd / Mon 3rd of December tools were stolen from vehicle parked on Willow Road. Please remember not to leave any valuables on display – in our experience this will dramatically reduce the chances of you being a victim of motor vehicle crime. In more positive news, there have been no burglaries on the ward over the past week. The team have been involved in some proactive work such as: executed two drugs warrants on the Frobisher Road Estate, we have recovered a knife near Erith Town Centre and we have ‘stop & searched' three individuals on the ward. Finally, PCSO Mark visited Slade Green Christmas Fair as Father Christmas!"  Thamesmead East ward:- "No Burglaries again this week. Criminal Damage - Wolvercote Road Thursday 29/11/18 between 11am-12pm Lock on rear garden gate broken by person/s unknown; Thamesbank Place Friday 2/12/18 9pm Paint thrown over victims car by person/s unknown; Theft from Motor vehicle - Hinksey Path Thursday 29/11/18 between 9:15 - 9:20am. Delivery driver left van secure with items on show. On his return the window was smashed all items removed by suspect; Baylis Avenue Friday 30/11/18 between 4pm – 8am by an unknown suspect stealing the exhaust from the victim's car while it was parked in the street overnight; Sidney Road Sunday 2/12/18 between 7:10 – 7: 24pm Nurse left work bag on rear seat. On her return the rear door was wide open with bag removed by suspect unknown; Carnouiste Close Monday 3/12/18 between 1pm – 4pm Catalytic converter stolen from the vehicle. Our next Community Contact Session is Tuesday 11th December at Lakeside Medical Centre 1-2pm. Please feel free to drop in". West Heath ward:- "Over this past week West Heath has suffered 5 burglaries 2 attempted burglaries and 2 vehicle crimes. The burglaries occurred in Priory Road on Wednesday 28/11/8 between 0900-0915hours where a window was smashed to gain entry. On the Friday 30th November there was a burglary in Bedonwell Road in the early evening between 1700-2000hours. Suspects gained entry by smashing the glass in the front door. There was an untidy search and cash and other items taken. There were 2 burglaries in First Avenue, one during the day of Friday 30/11/18. The glass in the rear door was smashed followed by an untidy search, it is not known at this stage if anything was taken. The second burglary in First Avenue happened the following day on the Saturday 1/12/18. The residents returned home at 1900hours to find a male in their house, the male subsequently ran off in the direction of Madison Crescent. Entry had been gained by smashing the glass in the door to the rear of the property and then using the keys that were in the back of the door to get in. An untidy search followed but nothing taken. Last but not least there was a burglary in Malvern Avenue overnight Thursday 29th November to 30th November between 2200 hours and midnight. A handbag, documents taken and the car stolen from the driveway. There was a possible attempted burglary in Woolwich Road in the early hours of Friday 30th November where 3 males were seen on the driveway and a second possible attempted burglary in Budleigh Crescent where people seen trying door handles on Saturday 1st December in the early evening. A car was stolen in Stapleton Road overnight Friday / Saturday 29th – 30th November and items were taken from a vehicle in Glenview Road the same evening".

The end video this week features the Bexleyheath model railway show from last weekend. The event was organised by Selkent Model Railway Group, and held at Bexleyheath Academy in Graham Road. Please feel free to leave a comment below, alternatively you can Email me at hugh.neal@gmail.com.

Porch piracy.

The photos above (click on either for a larger version) show the pop - up - cinema event held last night in Erith Riverside Gardens. As I mentioned last week, the event had not received very much advanced publicity, and unfortunately attendance figures reflected this; about forty hardy parents with children turned up to brave the winter evening to watch the movies Home Alone, followed by Gremlins on a big screen. The promised food and traders did not appear, and no facility was made for toilets either - the nearest being those in Morrison's supermarket about seven minutes walk away. Having said that, the organisers were very enthusiastic and friendly - although all but one admitted to never having visited Erith before, and knew nothing of the town or its inhabitants. The lady from Bexley Council was very helpful and chatty, and it turns out that she was a Maggot Sandwich reader - they seem to pop up from everywhere, much to my surprise. It was fortunate that it was not raining and the wind was still - something very unusual on the riverfront at this time of year - normally it comes screaming in over the Thames, seemingly direct from Siberia. I was very pleased to see a social event of this nature being organised locally, but it was evident that there was a lack of knowledge of the local area and possible weather conditions - had there been even the slightest of winds, the cinema screen would have been blown flat in moments. I am hopeful that a second event will be organised for next year, but in a space heated marquee tent with provision for portaloos and maybe a BBQ and hot drinks for sale. I would have thought that local BBQ specialist Steve's Kitchen could provide just such a service. What do you think? Did you go along, or like many I have talked to, did you not know about the event? Leave a comment below, or Email me at hugh.neal@gmail.com.

The Bexley Times reported recently about an abandoned cob pony that was found on Sidcup Golf Course. The animal was severely neglected and close to death when it was found by RSPCA inspectors. The cob pony has been given treatment and is now expected to survive; inquiries are under way to discover who left the horse in such a terrible state. In an interview with the paper, Ellen Thomas, an RSPCA inspector said “This poor horse was so emaciated and still we thought he was dead at first. Then as I approached him, he weakly lifted his head, so I knew we had a chance to save him. It seems he was dying of thirst. There was no water at all in the field and there were reports that he may have been lying there for two days. He also had very overgrown hooves and had clearly been neglected. It seems likely he had been just dumped there and left to die in this very secluded spot, and we urge anyone with any information about who may have done this to call us. Gradually, we did manage to get him to sit up, and then bumble on down to the horse box so we could take him to the vet to be cared for and treated. It took him a long time to get there because he was so weak - and we have now named him Bumble as a result. He’s in a critical condition but doing as well as he can do - and we have everything crossed that he will make a good recovery.” This is something that is becoming increasingly common, as is the phenomenon of “fly grazing” that has become such a concern in the local area – Thamesmead, Abbey Wood, Lower Belvedere and Slade Green have been especially hit by persons unknown leaving scruffy and under cared for horses on public land for them to illegally graze on. The practice of “fly-grazing” has become increasingly common both in the local area, and also around the country. Thousands of horses and ponies are being abandoned by their erstwhile owners as irresponsible breeding, spiralling bills and sale prices which have reached rock bottom take their toll. A pony can fetch as little as £5 at auction – if it sells at all, whilst stable costs, feed and vets bills can amount to around £100 per week per animal. The six main horse welfare charities have come together to compile a report on the situation; it would also appear that the European appetite for horse meat may be fuelling the situation – a £5 pony can turn into a £230 carcass on the European meat market. It may be that ponies are actually being farmed for live export to France, Belgium and Italy. The RSPCA have called for legislation that will enable them to more quickly identify owners and punish them with fines and the seizure of animals for fly-grazing. They also want a review of agreements allowing the free movement of horses not intended for slaughter between Britain, Ireland and France. The British horse population is thought to be just under one million animals in size. The vast majority are owned privately for leisure – a sector which, unlike the horse racing industry, has not historically been tightly regulated.  A new bill was brought into law last year which hopefully may go far to changing this situation. The Control of Horses Act 2015 makes changes to the law to deter people from illegally grazing or simply abandoning horses on public and private land, which is known as ‘fly-grazing’. As many as 3,000 horses are thought to be illegally fly-grazing across the country. The changes mean horse owners who fly-graze their animals without permission can now be dealt with more quickly and effectively. These changes to the law will give rural communities greater powers to deal with thousands of horses that are left to graze illegally without the land owners’ permission. Horses that are left to fly-graze can now be rehomed much more quickly and effectively, improving the welfare of these animals and preventing disruption to communities. By allowing abandoned horses to be rehomed much more quickly, this act will encourage owners to pay proper attention to their animals’ welfare and ensure communities are no longer blighted by the illegal practice of fly-grazing. Under the previous Animals Act 1971 an abandoned horse could only be disposed of after 14 days through sale at market or public auction. The new Act means fly-grazing horses have to be reported to police within 24 hours, and owners now have four days to claim their animals. Previously, an abandoned horse could only be disposed of through sale at market or public auction. The new law extends the options for dealing with abandoned horses, which now include private sale, gifting and rehoming. Hopefully this will go some way into resolving the long standing problem.

Bexley Council are making a change in policy which I can pretty much guarantee will give them cause for regret. They are moving all reporting of street light faults to a purely online form. You will no longer be able to phone up the Highways Department, instead residents will have to complete a form on the council website. The move is expected to cut administrative costs, with all reports being automatically sent to the council’s maintenance contractor. This might all sound fine, but have you ever tried navigating the Bexley Council website? It is an awful unnavigable mess, and even finding the page you want is a real challenge, as the search functionality does not work as intended, and the site layout could have been designed by M.C Escher. I find that when one eventually stumbles across the content you were actually looking for, it is prudent to bookmark the page for later reference, as your chance of finding the page again are pretty slim. If this was not enough, as Malcolm Knight of Bexley is Bonkers has discovered, that just because you report something to the Council, it does not mean that they then do anything about it. He reported a couple of incidences of fly tipping, complete with still photographs and video of the offences being committed. After a month he has still not had a response from the Environmental Crimes Unit of Bexley Council. I have worked with the unit in the past, and found them to be dedicated and efficient; in the intervening couple of years, the person I usually contacted has retired, and it would seem that much of the role has been outsourced to a private contractor.

London and Quadrant, the developers of the Erith Quarry housing development published the following press release this week:- "L and Q and The Anderson Group, developers behind the new homes at The Quarry in Erith, are looking for a local artist to help them celebrate the history of the land. The developers want to showcase the story of The Quarry’s past, present and future using photos and anecdotes from local people. These will then act as inspiration for artwork displayed on the hoardings surrounding the site, as well as featuring at a special exhibition in the town. Erith historian Kenneth Chamberlain and local history enthusiast Martin Barnes remember The Quarry from their teenage years and have already provided a number of photographs for potential inclusion. The pictures date from the 1930s onwards and show everything from ‘Loomers’ at the quarry face, to the locomotive which used to transport the loads from the quarry and the quarry after the landfill was nearly complete. L and Q and The Anderson Group are now encouraging more locals to come forward and share their memories. Set to launch its first homes for sale in spring 2017, The Quarry will comprise of an exceptional collection of around 470 family houses for sale, 130 unique apartments for private rent and a state-of-the-art three form-entry primary school. With sustainability at its heart, this new eco-development will be surrounded by woodland and feature a conservation area the size of around three football pitches, not to mention cycle routes, play corridors and a village green. Christine Shea, Regional Sales Director at L and Q, said: “We’re really excited to hear back from local artists who can help us create a wonderful tribute to the area. The Quarry has played such an important part in the lives of local people for so many years and we hope to bring its history back to life and to celebrate the exciting future that lays ahead. We have already received some wonderful photographs from Kenneth and Martin and we hope more people will get in touch with their experiences.” If you’re an artist who would like to get involved or if you have photos or stories to share, please contact the team at landq@grayling.com. A grant will be made available to the selected artist. Prospective homebuyers interested in finding out more about The Quarry can register their interest at thequarryerith.co.uk and follow developments on Facebook and Twitter".

The photo above shows the view looking Eastwards towards Erith Town Centre along West Street. From the vehicles in the shot, and the state of construction of the tower block on the horizon, I would hazard a guess that the photo was taken in around 1970.

Once again Bexley Council has been accused of selling off the family silver for short term gain; last week the council agreed to the sale of four areas of formerly public land in the borough, two of which are in Erith. It does seem to me that not only do Bexley Council offer some of the poorest levels of service of any Greater London borough, but they are selling off anything that they can lay their hands on in order to try and raise more cash. I do question their efficiency and business acumen, as they seem to be able to do very little with large amounts of cash – I feel that a commercial business would be far more efficient in the operation of the borough. Many of the council senior executives have never had a job in the “real world” – a problem which is also common with the current crop of Westminster politicians. Locally we are fortunate that MP for Erith and Thamesmead Teresa Pearce spent many years working as an accountant prior to entering politics – a relatively rare instance of someone in public service who has actually had a real world job before changing career to enter politics.

Word reached me courtesy of regular Maggot Sandwich reader Alison. It would appear that "hit and run" incidents are not limited to the roads in and around Erith. There has been a collision between a vessel and the Erith Wooden Jetty, which is adjacent to Erith Riverside Gardens and Erith Rowing Club / Kort Propulsion marine engineers, based in the former River Police HQ in Erith High Street. Alison writes:- " I wasn't sure if you were aware of the broken jetty by the old police station at Erith (photo above taken by Michael Lucas)? The Port of London Authority (PLA) first contacted Erith Rowing Club on Thursday afternoon about it. The PLA believes the damage occurred as a result of a 'hit and run' incident late at night and would welcome any information about it. The contact at the PLA is Michael Russell, tel 01474 562415 or 07711 640082 email: michael.russell@pla.co.uk.  The latest update is that the PLA has removed the loose and damaged parts of the causeway and is intending to carry out a survey for the timber for repairs on Monday (28th November). At the moment it is unclear when the repairs will take place, but it is likely to be a few weeks." If anyone saw anything suspicious regarding a collision between a ship and the jetty, please let Michael Russell know - at present the jetty is completely out of use for the immediate future.

As we head towards Christmas, a relatively new form of crime is becoming increasingly common. It is called Porch Piracy – criminals targeting people’s porches and apartment entrance halls to steal parcels delivered by courier services. As more and more people buy online from web based retailers such as Amazon, the theft of goods in transit has become a major concern. Whilst some customers fill in the “special instructions” section of the delivery details online with details of a neighbour who a parcel can be left with in the event of them not being home to answer the door themselves, many do not. Delivery personnel may in such cases leave parcels in porches, in bin cabinets, or even propped up against the front door. Personally I have seen Amazon parcels left unattended on many occasions – and these definitely attract both opportunistic and dedicated thieves. Ways to counter “Porch Pirates” include:- 1. Lock boxes: You can build or purchase a rugged lock box for your porch.  Bolt it down to a permanent surface, concrete or asphalt work well. Install a simple combination lock on the box and then share that combination when you purchase something online.  Nearly every delivery service has a “special instructions” section during online checkout. Delivery personnel can then key in the combination and deliver your package to a secure box. To add even more security, change the combination frequently or when you feel you've given it out too many times.  2. Security Services: The emergence of Porch Piracy has created an entire industry determined to prevent these thefts. Amazon, the world’s largest online retailer, has a service called Amazon Locker. Instead of a package being delivered to your porch, the packages arrive at a nearby Amazon Locker location, where they’re placed in a secure compartment. You can collect your package with a code and without waiting in line or talking to anyone. There is a general delivery locker system in Morrison’s in Erith, which has recently been installed. 3. Timely Package Collection:  Pick up your package as soon as it's delivered or have a neighbour collect it. Courier services such as UPS, FedEx and Amazon all have tracking services. This allows you to monitor the progress of a shipment very closely by tracking it online and even by receiving email or text alerts.  You can be notified the moment your package is delivered and then make arrangements to have the package collected. Porch Piracy is a crime of opportunity. If the package doesn't sit on your porch for long the opportunity to steal it is vastly decreased. 4. Security Cameras: Security cameras are a tried and true deterrent for all manner of criminal behaviour. Thieves are very aware of cameras and often look for them before attempting a theft.  Also, if you do ever have a package stolen, you have video evidence to pass along to police and online stores. Camera packages can be purchased relatively inexpensively from places such as Maplin, and come with a wide range of options, including wireless capabilities which make them easy to install.  Some systems have the ability to remotely monitor your home from mobile devices like tablets and cell phones which adds an extra layer of security and better peace of mind. 5. Security Signs: If all of the previous options seem too expensive or too much hassle consider posting a sign in your front window informing the would be Porch Pirate that your home is under video surveillance or has security alarms.  Many criminals are not going to take the time or the chance to call your bluff and proceed with their theft. Again, this is a crime of opportunity, and thieves may not see your package as a great opportunity if they think there is a chance they might be recorded - even if they can't immediately see the security cameras. Personally I have CCTV front and back at Pewty Acres, and have a designated neighbour to take parcels if I am not available. I find that this greatly reduces the risk of parcel theft. This is a problem which is only going to grow in severity unless steps are taken to prevent it.

It would seem that the proposed Thames river crossing between Rainham in Essex and Lower Belvedere (see the map above - click on it for a larger view) has been kicked into the long grass; no mention was made of it during Mayor of London Sadiq Khan’s recent speech on London’s future transport infrastructure. It would seem that the cross river link has been dropped from favour in preference for some of the other cross – river options. My suggestion for a tunnel under the river, of a similar design to that already in place at Strood on the River Medway seems to have fallen by the wayside. This has not been lost on Gravesham MP Adam Holloway, who opposes another proposed crossing of the River Thames potentially located to the East of Gravesend; he was interviewed in the News Shopper, saying:- "The reality is that this is a looming disaster that is going to become a scandal when the public realise that the £5 billion opportunity to fix the M25 is about to be wasted – and when we all realise that it is too late to stop a plan that is going to result in another 40 years of misery on the M25. Unfortunately, ministers who are not experts on roads must listen to Highways England - a quango that changes the numbers in support of whichever option they have favoured over time. By the time the ministers hear the voices of the public, it will be too late.” The fact remains that we have very few river crossings East of Tower Bridge, and the further East on the River Thames you travel, the wider the river becomes, and thus the more expensive any form of river crossing becomes.

You may have recently come across the web page above, or something very similar, which seems to show Sir Richard Branson promoting a particular product - as you may already have guessed, the story is very far from what it appears. The web site begins with this:- "Branson is sending shockwaves throughout all of Britain by revealing his secret formula that the average British worker is using to make fast money from home. Branson says, “It’s even dangerous to talk about it, because the powerful elite does not want the average British worker to have this much wealth. Because the wealthier the population is, the less power they themselves have. They hate me for sharing this!” After a hearty introduction about how top secret the whole opportunity apparently is, readers are then told to click another link which, just like the first link, redirected across several domains before landing on a landing page - The Brit Method. If it wasn’t clear already, this has nothing to do with Richard Branson. Despite the sales pitch on the previous website and the Facebook post many innocent web surfers stumbled across, this isn’t something he “accidentally” shared. The inclusion of Branson’s name is simply a flat out lie. The Brit Method is a site that promotes Binary Options trading, but does so using an unrealistic and dramatically hyped sales pitch. Essentially, that sales pitch describes Binary Options as a shortcut to financial wealth and a guarantee to quick wealth. It is neither. Binary Options is actually a form of trading where the trader predicts whether a particular stock will rise or fall in a short period of time, where traditional trading involves the purchase of stock. If the trader predicts the stock rises or falls correctly, they get a fixed return on the amount they invested. If they don’t, they lose the investment. The Brit Method goes under other guises, including The Aussie Method and The Irish Method. Binary Options trading is akin to gambling. Despite claims made by various websites like The Brit Method, it isn’t a get-rich-quick system. There is no way to ‘game’ or cheat at Binary Options trading. There are no “killer systems” or “proven formulas”. It is gambling, and most of those who embark upon it are unlikely to make any significant return on their investment, and of course risk losing all the money they invest on it. Sites like The Brit Method and the people behind the fraudulent Richard Branson themed Facebook post / dodgy faked website don’t care, because they get paid a commission for luring visitors to Binary Option websites. Using hyped, misleading and plain deceptive sales pitches means more people they trick into signing up. In my opinion, the outcome of this fraudulent con is:- 1. Facebook doesn’t really care what sort of websites sign up to their sponsored advert platform. 2. Get-rich-quick schemes are always ever-present on the Internet. 3. Don’t get involved with Binary Options trading.

Millions of British people have no idea what their home telephone number is, according to new research. Sixty per cent of the nation only have a landline because they need it for their broadband connection. If the phone does ring, a third of people assume it’s an automated or sales call, and 22 per cent never answer it . Only one in five knows their landline number, according to a recent survey of 2,000 UK adults. Almost four in ten use their home phone once a month or less, with six in 10 admitting they only pay for a landline just to access the internet. Six in 10 say they wish they could de-clutter their homes by getting rid of their landline completely, a 20 per cent increase from a study conducted in 2014. A fifth of survey respondents reckoned their home will be landline-free within two years, if not sooner. Due to the rise of social media and mobile phones, over half of the nation consider the landline a ‘redundant’ piece of technology, rising to seven in 10 among 18-24 year olds. Incredibly, of the respondents who had children aged 16 and under, 14 per cent reported that they had children that have no idea what a landline is. A third of respondents said that they use their landline for keeping in touch with grandparents or older relatives. Almost half say they give out their home number to sales people and companies, to stop them getting their mobile details. Thirty-six percent of Brits only use their home phone once a month or less often, and one in ten homes has already made the jump to going landline-free. The report also says that a fifth of British households have at least one old landline handset sitting unused in the back of a cupboard. Personally I buck this trend; I detest mobile phones and a landline works just fine for me. I am all for freedom of choice - whatever works best for you, in my opinion.

Abbey Wood’s new station is beginning to take shape with the timber structure of the distinctive roof now complete. The Austrian timber construction firm, Wiehag has installed the impressive glulam (glued manufactured timber) wooden panels which form the iconic shape of the station’s roof structure. The roof has been constructed using a combination of 31 tonnes of steel beams and girders to support the loads of the beams. The main timber beams are each 45m long, which is the equivalent of four London buses end to end. Below is a time lapse photography recording of some of the recent construction work. Give it a watch and leave a comment below, or Email me at hugh.neal@gmail.com.

Proper Top Gear.

The photos above (thanks Ian) were taken last night at The Mick Jagger Centre in Dartford. They show Genesis tribute band Los Endos performing the whole of the Genesis "A Trick of the Tail" concert set from the 1976 world tour, to commemorate its 40th anniversary this year. The gig was a sell - out, and The Mick Jagger Centre was packed. The venue has had a refurbishment since my last visit, and it is much improved - the toilets especially have been greatly enlarged - so no queues when going for a leak in the interval. If you have not visited the local performing arts centre, I can highly recommend it. There are events to satisfy all musical and theatrical tastes, and it is also conveniently nearby.

I rarely comment on items in the national press; the main reason for this is that they will have already been covered in detail by "proper" journalists, leaving very little for me to bring to the table. I am making a notable exception this week. As regular readers may recall, I refused to watch the Chris Evans and Matt Le Blanc relaunched version of Top Gear earlier this year. I am of the opinion that almost any television programme is far greater than the sum of its parts, and that presenters can come and go - if the show is sufficiently strong, it can survive all sorts of changes in cast, crew, director and producer - a couple of prime examples of this are Coronation Street and Doctor Who. There is one exception to this rule, which the BBC have now found out to their great cost. Top Gear was Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May. The BBC somehow got the erroneous impression that Top Gear was a car show with presenters who could be replaced at will. In fact it was a show about the three presenters acting like eight year old boys, larking about, bickering and falling over. The car element was entirely incidental. Now the trinity of presenters have moved to Amazon Prime and an (ostensibly) new show called The Grand Tour - which is basically Top Gear touring the world on an astronomical budget. The Producer is still Andy Wilman, and the technical crew are largely defectors from the BBC who worked on the original show. The Chris Evans / Matt LeBlanc BBC version has already catastrophically crashed and burned, with microscopic viewing figures - to the point where Chris Evans left the show after one series. After the launch this week of the rival The Grand Tour, I would imagine that BBC executives are wondering whether to throw good money after bad - The Grand Tour (already termed "Proper Top Gear") is so much better that is is in an entirely different league. Critical reception of The Grand Tour has been almost universally positive, only the BBC review being somewhat cool - but sour grapes are to be expected, I suppose. The BBC Top Gear reboot has been likened to the Director's cut of "Star Wars - The Phantom Menace" with extra scenes of Jar Jar Binks - whereas The Grand Tour has been likened to "Star Wars - The Force Awakens". Make of that what you will. I took out an Amazon Prime membership purely to watch The Grand Tour - all of the other benefits are welcome, but entirely incidental. Off the soap box now, and normal service is resumed. 

Last week I opened the debate about the right of the public to buy and use for private use. Since 2003, under 18’s have been prohibited from buying or using fireworks. The measures come under the Fireworks Act 2003, which also bars any member of the public from possessing high-powered "category four" fireworks of the kind used in professional displays. Now many activists, animal lovers and others have been campaigning for a further strengthening of the law, and as a result Police have been getting tougher with people using fireworks illegally. The clampdown is intended to tackle the problem of anti-social behaviour involving fireworks, Further hard line enforcement is due to come into force next year, including curfews on the setting off of fireworks, recognised training for display operators and the introduction of a tougher licensing system for suppliers. Since the article I wrote last week about the problem use of fireworks, which runs from mid-October until mid-January nowadays, I have had a considerable amount of feedback, almost all of it supporting the concept of a complete ban on members of the public buying or using fireworks at all. I have since discovered that Canada, South Africa and Australia have limitations or bans on private firework displays and the UK needs to seriously consider if it needs to follow suit. I was also made aware by a reader that an organised campaign to get heavy restrictions on the sale and use of fireworks is already under way.  A UK Government petition has been started, which describes itself thus:- “Ban the sale of fireworks to the public and only approve organised displays. Every year 1000's of people are hurt, burnt, maimed and even lose their lives through accidents involving fireworks.  Every year people are terrorised by the misuse of fireworks. Every year animals are hurt and traumatised by fireworks.  Ban them please”. You can see the petition by clicking here. 

It would seem that the waste incinerator in Lower Belvedere (see the photo above - click for a larger view) is going have its input ramped up by a very significant degree in the near future. Reports in the local press – both the Bexley Times and the News Shopper are featuring the story – say that the number of lorries carrying waste from other London boroughs to be incinerated at the Cory plant in Lower Belvedere. The owners of the Norman Road plant are already bringing in 660,000 tonnes of waste per year by river but want to boost its share by road up to 195,000 tonnes - a 129 percent increase. It was discussed recently at a council meeting that the energy waste company, Cory, which oversees the operators Riverside Resource Recovery Limited (RRRL), wants an additional 56 trucks - or an average of 4 vehicle trips an hour - brought to North Bexley’s roads. The motion was put forward chiefly to mitigate the possible loss of its contract at Northumberland Wharf in Tower Hamlets. Cory currently processes 100,000 tonnes of waste per annum onto the river via Northumberland Wharf. It is worried that it may lose access to its Northumberland site if its owners, the council of Tower Hamlets, decides to operate its own waste contract.  The News Shopper reported that Bexley Councillor David Leaf said "I have some quite grave reservations about this application. The contingency was for emergency only in terms of being able to use the road network. What concerns me is in relation to issue about the Northumberland Wharf being out, now clearly if you are a big business making a huge investment, we’re talking hundreds of millions of pounds, you would do your risk analysis and you would calculate what would happen if one of our main wharfs go out? Clearly there hasn’t been any contingency planning and Bexley residents are going to end up feeling the brunt of that. I’m very concerned and apprehensive about that.” What do you think? Leave a comment below, or Email me at hugh.neal@gmail.com.

Another new block of flats is planned close to the site of Abbey Wood Station – and the news has not pleased many local people. The new block (if the planning application is approved – and I suspect that it will be) will be 29 storeys high, and will contain 208 apartments and a 90 bed hotel. The scheme has been drawn up by developers HUB in partnership with Bridges Ventures. Pending planning approval the developers aim to start work on the site in the summer of 2017. I already have the feeling that these apartments will be mainly bought up by absentee owners, many from abroad who will look to "land bank" them as investments. They are certainly not the kind of properties that many local residents will be able to afford, more is the shame. 

I am somewhat surprised at Bexley Council’s recent announcement of a pre – Christmas pop – up cinema to be held on the Erith Riverside Gardens on Saturday the 26th November from 4.30pm. The announcement on the Bexley Council website says:- “Riverside Gardens is hosting a fantastic, free pop-up cinema screening for the community. The fun starts with Home Alone (PG) at 4.30pm followed by Gremlins (12A) at 6:30pm, with a short break in between. Bring along chairs and blankets to keep warm and comfortable. Hot food and drink will be available to buy from local chefs and businesses.” Admission to the event is free. As I mentioned last week, I had hoped that the event would be held in a large marquee or other temporary structure on the site; the wording of the council piece does not fill me with confidence in this respect. The venue is ideal in many ways, but it is very exposed, and is one of, if not the coldest place in the whole of the town, with the wind coming straight off the River Thames. I am also concerned that it is now only a week before the event, and very little if any publicity has been noticeable – I would have expected far more advertising and promotion of what could be an excellent community event. I do have some suspicions that once again Erith is being “set up to fail” – as happened with the recent unsuccessful relaunch of Erith Market. On that occasion, the relaunch of the market was done with a little bit of publicity (some of which came from me) but the market was only held on Wednesdays, not on Saturdays, something that a regular reader pointed out:- “I hear are giving Erith Market a trial go. When they know it will fail before they start. They only seem to be catering for the unemployed and the elderly. Because they are the only one that can go to the market. The market should have been bigger and on Wednesdays and Saturdays like it used to be. Saturdays for the people that go to work all week”. My anonymous reader’s comments turned out to be prophetic; the first week there were eight stall holders on the piece of land adjacent to Morrison’s car park; the next week six, and it petered out until no stalls appeared by the end of the first month. As I have previously written, plans are afoot to relaunch the market on a far more ambitious scale, although it will be some time in the new year before this comes to pass. I get the feeling that the pop – up cinema is similarly being set up to fail – with only a week to go, very few local residents – especially those with children – appear to be aware of the existence of the event. I can only hope that the council pull out the stops at the last minute – otherwise the pop – up cinema could show to a handful of hardy people only. It would certainly enable to council to not carry out any further community events in Erith, citing a lack of interest from local people. I really want the event to be a great success, but the track record of Bexley Council in regard of public events in and around Erith does not inspire me with confidence. What do you think? Leave a comment below, or Email hugh.neal@gmail.com.

The recent road resurfacing works in and around Erith Town Centre caused considerable confusion and disruption to motorists; in an email to members of Erith Town Forum. Local councillors Joe Ferreira, Abena Oppong – Asare and Edward Boateng wrote “There was much disruption last week with road works taking place at Queens Road Roundabout. These works had started at 7pm and ended each night at 2am. Disruption included long tail backs, drivers driving the wrong way up and down the one-way Erith High Street and drivers cutting through Erith Town Centre car park as a shortcut only to then go against the flow of the diversion route. Each night we raised these matters with the relevant officers overseeing the work, and although the disruption continued, some of the issues improved with additional signage put out including No Through Road signs to the car parks and the congestion clearing quicker. Thankfully the works have since completed”. I must admit that I did not realise just how much disruption that the roadworks caused. I don’t live in the town centre, but on the outskirts – it does sound like the resurfacing could have been planned with more care and less disruption.

I came across the advert above in an old map of Erith that I have had for absolutely ages. It was old when I was given it. Hedley Mitchell was the largest and by far the most important shop in the old Victorian Erith town centre. It was the towns' department store, and as large and grand as Hides in Bexleyheath. Many older local residents recall Hedley Mitchell with great affection. The store had a very high reputation for formal service. It was the first building to be demolished when work began to create the new (and subsequently much hated) brutalist concrete shopping centre in 1966. In fact the first act of demolition was carried out by the then Deputy Mayor, Councillor Mrs M Barron, ceremoniously smashed the window of Hedley Mitchell's store to mark the commencement of the demolition of Erith Town Centre to make way for redevelopment. As a consequence, all the existing Victorian buildings were lost. With hindsight, this was a terrible mistake - the existing town centre should have been sympathetically restored. I gather that this was considered, but would have cost too much money; instead they built a relatively cheap but undeniably ugly replacement out of bare concrete. I don't know anyone who had a good word to say about it. Consequently a lot of businesses upped sticks and moved to Bexleyheath or Northumberland Heath, and it is only now, nearly fifty years later that much of the social and economic damage is being put right. The current Erith Riverside Shopping Centre is actually a very clever redesign of the much hated sixties structure, rather than a ground up new build, but it has been done with taste and sensitivity - something entirely missing in the original, which was a smelly and soulless concrete monstrosity, detested by all.

Interestingly, in the same message to members of the Erith Town Forum, the councillors state that the old Carnegie Library building in Walnut Tree Road is under consideration for a change of use:-  “The Council are looking to find a suitable operator for the Carnegie Building to bring it back into use as a high quality skills and training centre, and are actively pursuing potential operators. More will obviously follow on this as we get it. In addition, some works to maintain the building’s fabric and general upkeep will be carried out between November 2016 and January 2017”. It is not clear at present what Wetherspoon’s are planning – when I spoke to them a couple of months ago, they were very cagey – which is understandable, as they are a commercial operation where advance information of their intentions could be potentially damaging to their business. I made a few educated guesses as to potential locations for a Wetherspoon’s outlet in Erith – after all, the one thing that they did confess to me was that they were indeed looking at the town as a potential site for a new pub. My guesses settled on the Carnegie Library and The Running Horses in Erith High Street, overlooking the Riverside Gardens. As far as I am aware, no decision has been made at this point, though I will be asking more questions of them in the future. 

One of the once common features of Erith has largely disappeared - mostly for the better. Up until June of 2014 mobile scrap collecting vans were one of the commonest sights on the roads of the town. I mentioned this to a friend, and he commented on how the once very familiar scrap collecting vans had all but disappeared, almost overnight. He was entirely correct; before the start of June 2014, the roads of Erith were flooded with “Scrappies” – small vans, usually based on a Ford Transit chassis that were crewed by a wide variety of people – but always men. I have never seen a female scrap van driver. If you walked down Manor Road at around 7am on a weekday morning, you would see whole convoys of these vehicles as they left their depot on the Wallhouse Industrial Estate on the Slade Green Marshes. The biggest local scrap company by far was City Scrap; I would have said that prior to June 2014, around eighty five percent of scrap vehicles in the area were theirs. As you may recall I wrote at the time, Police and Revenue and Customs officials raided the offices and yard of City Scrap after finding strong evidence of a series of frauds and tax evasion, including an insurance fraud worth around £30,000. On top of the list of forty five offences the owners were charged with were making a false statement to obtain insurance, perverting the course of justice, and making a false statement to obtain  a scrap metal licence. I also understand that many of the scrap lorry driver / operators were claiming benefits whilst working, as well as other offences. All in all the closure of City Scrap was a necessity; they were operating well outside of the law. What surprises me in the two and a half years since City Scrap were officially wound up as a company, no other scrap dealer has emerged to occupy the void left by the once dominant, if corrupt firm. OK, scrap recycling giant Scrapco have moved into a depot in Landau Way, in the Darent Business Park, but they seem to mainly be involved in commercial and industrial scrap from large organisations - they don't get involved with domestic scrap collection, s they are not a direct replacement for the defunct City Scrap. Metal recycling is a vital part both of the local economy, and it also has great environmental benefits, so a new company taking over the business makes sense in a number of ways. Before June 2014, if you left a scrap of metal anywhere in Erith it would disappear in moments. I recall that back in 2009 I had a new central heating boiler installed. Part of the process involved flushing the existing radiators of accumulated sludge and treating them with a rust inhibitor; a special pump had to be fitted to the lowest point in the heating circuit – in my case, one of the radiators in the living room. This was carefully removed and taken outside by the heating engineers. Despite the radiator being laid on a tarpaulin and two heating company vans being parked outside, in the space of the two hour flushing period I had a total of seven scrappies trying to take the radiator, even though it was obvious it had only been temporarily removed whilst work was carried out. One even accused me of taking food from his children’s mouths when I caught him trying to steal the radiator. He soon shut up and ran off when I told him that he was being recorded on CCTV! Nowadays it has all changed – a friend had a dead fridge freezer and left it in their front garden for four days before a scrap dealer removed it. The local scrap market seems to have dried up - which is not good news for those wishing to recycle old appliances and the like, and is not good for the environment.

The end video this week features the 2016 Erith Model Railway Society exhibition. Another event that you might possible like to add to your calendar is the forthcoming Bexley Model Railway Show, which will be held at Bexleyheath Academy, Graham Road Entrance, Bexleyheath, Kent, DA6 7EG on Sunday the 11th December between 10am and 4pm. There will be a number of layouts and traders at the exhibition. Refreshments, free parking and disabled access are available. Admission: £6 (£4.95 pre booked) £5 (£3.95 pre booked) and Family £15 (£12 pre booked). Contact telephone number is:- 020 8694 1888.