Liverpool CityLife Magazine - Issue 1

7, 9, 11 & 15 Highgate Street,Liverpool L7 3ETA redevelopment opportunity comprising ablock of four vacant town houses, probablybuilt in the late 1960s, suitable for a numberof uses subject to necessary planningconsents

Guide Price £110,000+

143–145 Duke Street,Liverpool L1 4JRRare city centre Freehold opportunity withinthe heart of the Ropewalks area, suitable foroffice, retail and residential use (subject toplanning consents). The property comprisestwo, adjoining and inter-connecting, middleterrace buildings of four storeys, includinglower ground floor

Guide Price £375–410,000

MAJOR AUCTION SALE23 October 2008

at Marriott Hotel City Centre, One Queen Square,Liverpool – please note the earlier start time of 11am due

to the size of the catalogue99 lots lots including various development opportunities, commercial &

residential investments – with instructions from LPA Receivers, LiverpoolCity Council and Mortgagees in Possession to include the following:

September auction result 61% realising £3.82 million!

In 6 years we have held 43 auctions realising a total of£201 million. Average sale % over the 6 years: 76%

Biggest catalogues, best results!We sell more because we do more

SUTTON KERSH AD 8/10/08 10:35 Page 1

Sutton1.indd 1 8/10/08 11:41:25

To receive your special editioncatalogue celebrating 6 years ofsuccessful auctions please call

0151 207 6315or email [email protected]

[email protected] view online at www.suttonkersh.co.uk

117 Edinburgh Road,Kensington, LiverpoolL7 8REA residential investmentcomprising a three bedroomedmid terrace let to four studentsproducing a combined income of£11,220pa

Guide Price£60,000+(3 other similar properties available)

247 Kensington,Liverpool L7 2RGA 3 storey end of terrace propertyconsisting of a ground floor shopwith storage above on 2 floors.There is also a basement. Theproperty has recently beenrefurbished, with in excess of£45,000 spent as part of theKensington Regeneration Scheme

Guide Price£95,000+

3 Marlborough Road,Tuebrook, LiverpoolL13 8AUA three storey detached property,which has been converted toprovide three self-contained flats.The flats are vacant and requirerefurbishment


21 Sefton Park Road,Liverpool L8 3SLA substantial 3 storey plus cellarsemi-detached house in need ofrefurbishment, which has beenconverted into 3 self containedflats. The top floor flat is currentlylet by way of a regulated tenancyproducing £2,520pa, the propertywill be sold with vacant possession


Sandown Park SocialClub, 71 SandownRoad, Wavertree,Liverpool L15 4JAA former semi detached VictorianVilla plus side brick builtextension, to be sold with vacantpossession

Guide Price£165–185,000

39 Penny Lane,Liverpool L18 1EUA three bedroomed semidetached property benefitingfrom partial double-glazing andcentral heating. The propertyrequires repair and modernisation


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SUTTON KERSH AD 8/10/08 10:36 Page 2

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Liverpool CITYLIFE Magazine

6 What’s on ‘08Round-up of the City of Culture events

8 Editor’s WordLet us never take what we have for granted

10 SpiderLiverpool welcomes La Machine

16 May 1940A broadcast to the nation... ...

18 Music iPodiPods go head to head with the good old radio

20 GaySimply because he was gay

24 Bette DavisThe Queen of Hollywood

26 SportWeekly roundup of local sport

28 EducationThings to remember when going off to university

30 FashionRecycleRechic hits the catwalk

32 - 34 MaritimeStrategies, threats and future vision

35 Local HistoryA slice of real liverpool life

36 Three VCsThe Great War

39 MinersA time of struggle

41 LawAn insight into Conveyancing Law

42 The GunGuns and knives are destroying our society

2008 Issue 1

EditorKenneth T Webb

Editorial AssistantJoseph Pettersen

Creative LeadBen Bradshaw

CreativesJames O’ConnellBarry Myles

AdvertisingGareth D Boutell

PhotographyMatt FordBarry Myles

ContributorsLaura Cartledge, Richard Walters, Andrew Guest, Monique Bell,Mike Doran, Helena Mitchinson,Caroline Opacic, Martin Shannon,Donna McCourt,Les Wood, Mr. Terry Bates, Linda Ryan, Admiral Sir Jonathon Band RN,Kathleen Woodside MBE,Dr. Frank Carlyle.

Design & ProductionThis magazine is designed and published by Pier Publishing Limited, therefore the copyright rests with us.

The contents of this publication are fully protected. No content may be reproduced in part or whole without prior written permission of the publisher. It is not our intention to print any discriminating or offensive material.

The views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect those of the publishers or advertisers. Pier Publishing Limited accepts no responsibility for mistakes or errors within this publication.

LIVERPOOL

MAGAZINE

40’S GLAMOUR | FASHION | HISTORY | BEAUTY | MUSIC | MILITARY | LAWBETTE DAVISTHE 40’S RETRO EDITION FEATURING A TRIBUTE TO..

CITYLIFEISSUE 1

PAGE1(new).indd 1 2/10/08 10:02:17

October / November2008 Liverpool CITYLIFE Magazine

Pier Publishing Ltd Suites 1 & 3

4th FloorCity Buildings

21 Old Hall StreetLiverpool

L3 9BS

T: 0151 236 8896 www.liverpoolcitylife.co.ukPrinted by: Custom Print Limited

LIVERPOOL

MAGAZINECITYLIFE

If all theworld’s astage,thespotlight isonLiverpool.

LiverpoolBiennial20September –30NovemberVariousvenues

TheUK’s largest festival of visual art

LeCorbusier - TheArtofArchitecture2October – 18 January09TheCrypt,MetropolitanCathedral

Major exhibitionof thearchitect’swork

PowerPlant8–12OctoberCalderstonesPark

Anevening trail of soundand light installations

KingLear30October –29NovemberEverymanTheatre

StarringPetePostlethwaite

Homotopia1 –22NovemberVariousvenues

Annual festival of LGBTGarts and culture

MTVLiverpoolMusicWeek30October –6NovemberVariousvenuesUK’s biggest indoorwintermusic festival

Registertodayfortheverylatest2008newsat liverpool08.com

MTVEuropeMusicAwards6NovemberEchoArenaLiverpool

Liverpool hosts theworld renownedmusic awards ceremony

Portrait of aNationDecemberStGeorge’sHall

Thenation’s youngpeople come togetherin anexplorationofheritageand identity

LCCL_08_379 Autumn ad A4_v8:Layout 1 3/9/08 13:56 Page 1

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‘08Liverpool CITYLIFE Magazine Page 07

Liverpool’s tenure as European Capital of Culture 2008 is reaching a thrilling finale.

An amazing 8 million people have so far had a cultural experience in the city – with the promise that the best is still to come.

With headline-grabbing stars such as Beyonce heading for the MTV Europe Music awards and everyone talking about a monster spider, below the radar the city has been enjoying a record breaking year.

The city’s cultural venues are experiencing a box-office bonanza with Tate Liverpool and National Museums Liverpool recording their busiest summers ever - two million people passing through their doors from May to August alone.

Most Liverpool venues be it for theatre, music, art or museum are recording an average 30% rise on attendances last year - but the Walker Art Gallery has seen a phenomenal 119% rise on 2007!

In a recent survey it was also found that 60% of Liverpool people have attended a local museum or gallery in ‘08.

The city has been further bolstered by the news that it has been voted one of the favourite cities in the UK to visit - beating Cambridge, Durham and Manchester in a national league table of top city break destinations, compiled by Condé Nast Traveller readers.

Liverpool’s jump of four places to third has been directly linked to Capital of Culture celebrations. With a score of 86.78 out of a possible 100, it was narrowly beaten by London, with 90.22, and Edinburgh, which scored 88.15. Third is thought to be the city’s highest ever position in the table, which has been compiled yearly since 1998. In 2004 Liverpool was ranked 14th.

This meteoric rise is a trend matched by the Office of National Statistics which now ranks Liverpool as 4th most visited UK city by oversees visitors. In 2005 it was 16th.

If harder evidence was required of the ‘08 boom, in May the City’s hotel occupancy levels reached 81.1% - the highest in the UK.

Conde Nast Traveller’s editor-in-chief Sarah Miller said: “A lot of readers seem to have experienced Liverpool for the first time and thought ‘wow’. Liverpool’s very much in people’s minds. They are reading about it, seeing it on telly, they hear about it and want to know about it.”

Councillor Warren Bradley, Leader of Liverpool City Council, said: “This is what we set out to do: to make Liverpool one of the most attractive cities

to visit in the UK. Now we need to make sure we come in the top two. Our next aim has to be challenging Edinburgh.”

The city has also had a phenomenal summer programme from The Tall Ships’ Races, The Open at Royal Birkdale and from the Brouhaha to Mathew Street Festivals to name just a few highlights.

The public art projects Go Superlambananas and La Machine have also set the City buzzing.

Now autumn sees the onset of a feast of blockbusters.

Amid all the activity, “must see” events for the final phase of ’08 include:

The 5th Liverpool Biennial – MADE UP, • citywide, now until November 30 The first Chapter and Verse Literature • Festival - the Bluecoat - October 9 - 19Le Corbusier - The Art of Architecture, The • Crypt, Metropolitan Cathedral, until January 11 2009King Lear - featuring Pete Postlethwaite, • Liverpool Everyman, October 30 - November 29MTV Liverpool Music Week ’08 - various • venues, October 30 - November 6

Liverpool - Threshold to the Corners of • the World, Victoria Gallery & Museum, November 1 – March 30 2009 Homotopia - Annual LGBT Arts Festival - • various venues - November 1 - 22European Senior Boxing Championship, • Final - Echo Arena Liverpool, November 15Cornerstone Music Festival, The • Cornerstone, Hope at Everton, November 19 – December 6BBC Sports Personality of the Year, Echo • Arena Liverpool, December 14

Phil Redmond, Creative Director of Liverpool Culture Company, said: “Our ‘08 programme has something for everyone and with so many exciting events still to come no one has an excuse not to try something new.”

But as good as 2008 is, it’s important to realise the year is part of a journey for Liverpool. It is not an ending. The physical regeneration of the City and the new found economic confidence in the City will leave a lasting legacy.

Since 2001 the City has invested almost over £350million in cultural venues and facilities in preparation for this year, such as:

The new ECHO Arena and BT Conference • CentreRestoration of St George’s Hall• A new cruise liner terminal • Refurbishment of theatres, galleries, arts • centres i.e. Bluecoat etc.

And the developments won’t stop now.

In 2009 the Leeds-Liverpool canal sees the completion of its 2km extension to the Albert Dock and in 2010 the £60m new Museum of Liverpool Life will open.

Of course, the regeneration of people’s attitudes and confidence is just as vital to the wellbeing of any City. And as well as the record crowds enjoying this cultural feast, Liverpool is also basking in the glow of unprecedented media coverage.

By the end of August Liverpool’s Capital of Culture celebrations had enjoyed media coverage worth £75m, which includes 8,000 national and international newspaper articles.

The judges were quite clear why Liverpool won the ’08 accolade – it was not just because we had good cultural venues, creative industries, a great musical heritage – important though all these are.It was because they had seen that the whole of the city was united in backing the bid.

This has been achieved through the unique Creative Community programme. Since 2003 it’s involved:

over 100,000 people • 2,000 artists • more than 3,000 projects •

All participating and all creating across a variety of fields such as:

Education• Health• Sport • Environment • Heritage•

As a result people have made films to radio adverts, performed concerts and created CD’s addressing everyday social issues from bullying to demolition.

The power of control over your own creativity is not to be underestimated – the empowerment people feel. The feel good factor. It’s not surprising then to find that in a recent poll, 80% Liverpudlians have a more positive view of the City.

And their new Liverpool has certainly rediscovered its special x-factor.

Liverpool hosts the MTV Europe Music Awards

More

More

A city bouncing on culture boom

PAGE7(new).indd 1 9/10/08 15:35:30

EDITOR’SWORD

learned he’s doing the same in Iraq. Not many people are aware that our police are regarded with such prestige that the UN and the USA looks automatically to us as the best means of retraining a regime’s police service! I’m proud of that.

With Rhys’ case it is now for the courts to carry out the due process of the law; the work of the police is done in that respect. And we join with the Assistant Chief Constable of Merseyside in reminding us all that everyone is entitled to a fair trial, that all hearings shall be conducted with dignity and that the bedrock of the English Legal System is that which many countries still can’t quite get their heads round – that a man is innocent until he is proven guilty.

We are not a vengeful people; though God knows we do at times wish we could exact revenge upon those who cause us misery. But we have always risen above that. We must do so now.

And so we join with Rhys’ Mum and Dad Melanie and Stephen not only in extending to them our deepest sympathy, but also in upholding their own courageous stance and the practical work they do through the Trust they have set up, their determination to combat gun crime, and the magnanimity with which they extend to those who have robbed them of the greatest love of their lives.

We stand with Mr & Mrs Jones and with the Police in the determination of all of us to rid our city of rising gun crime. It is simply not to be tolerated. We do not need this culture. But we must do it through Parliament and not by taking the law into our own hands.


pier’s resurgence being reported only last month in The Times, it is a privilege to carry that name. Whilst we might still have the small disused pier down by Princes Half Dock, we also have the Nation’s greatest pier – Pier Head. For our pier is performing the task for which all piers were originally intended. As Tim Phillips, Chairman of the National Piers Society reports, ... ...the original function of piers [were] as landing stages for steamers bringing holidaymakers to the seaside. Liverpool’s pier is doing just that! It’s fully operational!

What a sight to once again see the great cruise liners and Ships of the Line moored up at Pier Head. What a delight to see at Wellington, Belmore and Albert Docks, the Tall Ships; what an incredible tingle down the back when a departing liner or Royal Navy Ship bids farewell to the City.

Of course, all of us this year have been coming to terms with the sudden economic downturn, the mergers and nationalisation which, at times increasingly looms towards recession.

When we, at Liverpool CityLife decided to do an article on Bette Davis, the 1940s Queen of Hollywood, it quickly became apparent that there were many aspects of that decade that ran parallel to today’s. Only this morning a letter arrived on the doormat from my Mum down south in which, as Mums have that means of doing so beautifully, summed up the mood of Liverpool thus: As you say, a lot of hard work but I’m sure it will pay off. You, all of Liverpool, seem to be a good working team. That is vital, all stick together. That’s how

we won the last war but not without heartbreak, but still must go forth.

I reckon there’s not a Mum in Merseyside of any generation who does not feel the same. That is why we are privileged to carry the images of the Late Queen Elizabeth when speaking to the wives and mothers in the Blitz, and that incredible newspaper image of the children in the trench watching the battle going on overhead. That is why we have carried an article about the momentous events of 10th May 1940, as important to these islands as 1066 Battle of Hastings and 1215 Magna Carta.

To our young readership, do some research on Google or Wikipedia and even within your own families. 1940 was a year that should by rights have seen us go down the pan. The fact that we didn’t is an incredible study in history but more importantly it’s why we have our freedom today.

With freedom comes the need for law and order, and we join with the people of Liverpool in extending our thanks to everyone in the Merseyside Police for the incredible work that has been done in upholding the rule of law in apprehending all those involved in taking the life of young Rhys Jones.

The Police do a very difficult job, and whilst we do give them a hard time, we would also soon know it if we didn’t have our police service which stands unique on the ancient office of Constable. Ten years ago my friend, a serving constable, became the local police commander in Bosnia for the purpose of retraining that country’s police force. Ten years on I’ve just

As I sit here in the early evening in Old Hall Street, the police horses clip-clopping on the street far below me seem to emphasise the success that we, the City and people of Liverpool are now enjoying. Without doubt we are bringing our unique status and approach to life, an added zest to the whole concept of Capital of Culture. For the doubters and cynics who say we will never be able to sustain it beyond 2008, I have only one request...look at our history and catch a glimpse of our future success.

I was asked the other day why I had decided on this company’s name – Pier Publishing Limited; a fair question. It all began eight years ago on a Virgin InterCity from Bristol where I worked, when I penned the first pages of what has become probably my most important work – a two volume novel, semi-autobiographical, and with the specific objective of confronting prejudice, hatred, racism, and disorder which at times seems to have us all by the throat.

I have always loved piers.

To me they are the very life and soul of the nation. Mariners will say with true conviction that it is heart-rending to watch a ship go down because that ship does have a soul and life; so too do our piers. They are the Nations’ health barometer.

The fact that the first page, the first scene of the story, is set on our own disused pier, just emphasised to me what had to be the work’s title.

So when we formed Pier Publishing Limited this year it was a momentous event for all of us. With the British

by Kenneth T Webb

PAGE8(new).indd 1 8/10/08 16:44:34


We stand too with Mr & Mrs Causer in the equally horrifying murder of their Son Michael.

We commend the City Council in its zero tolerance policing of our city, wards and districts.

We are delighted to include in this month’s Armed Forces Feature Warrant Officer Terry Bates’ report, and who retired earlier this year, as well as the Policy Statement from the First Sea Lord. When I was initially

is now going out of its way to adopt the spirit of openness. In Zimbabwe we have seen a begrudging return to some form of democracy and power sharing. Let us hope it prevails.

To all, take seriously your right to express your view through the ballot box. It has not been easily attained.

Finally, many thanks to everyone at the Liverpool City Council for all the hard work that goes on behind the scenes, the long council meetings and all the hassles of local politics that nevertheless give us this, our City, for which we are justly proud.

Whether it is government or opposition, all of us make an invaluable contribution from local, regional and national level right to the very top. Again for the cynics, I would say that what we take for granted others only dream of.

This came home to me with news of Radavan Karadzic’s arrest. In a short visit as a guest of the UN to Bcko in Bosnia in 1998 I saw at first hand what that man had perpetrated.

Let us never take what we have for granted.

It goes without saying that we are grateful for the many letters, e-mails and verbal praise. As every magazine in this city knows, it is quite a task to bring a publication to the streets, coffee houses, hotels and businesses – due entirely to the leg work into the night hours of dedicated teams of people, who smile whimsically at the term night owl!

Let us all acknowledge, as I have reported at Business Connect 08, that our City is enriched by all its magazines and we are a large enough community to allow every publication to sit side by side. I like that idea.

It’s what this country is all about – freedom and free enterprise. I confess I have some favourites but I do especially look forward to Sixty-Nine.

As we go to press we have seen three appalling international tragedies of human misery and suffering – Burma, China and Zimbabwe.

In Burma we have a totalitarian regime that is so motivated by suspicion and denial that a week after the cyclone there was only a trickle of aid from that amassed on the Thai-Burmese border. In China we have a totalitarian regime that

asked as to whether it was right to publish this, I took the view that we can on two counts – it is a matter of public record and we, as a maritime people, will have a natural interest in what the Royal Navy is about. When recently at a reception on board HMS Mersey the first officer made an extremely interesting observation. The public see the Army and RAF regularly, whether it be seeing the tank ranges on Salisbury Plain or the fighter jets that come roaring down the Mersey each week. But 99% of the Royal Navy’s work is done far out at sea. All we see is the arrival and departure of ships.

2008 is an extremely important date for the Royal Air Force – its 90th Anniversary and the 68th Anniversary of the Battle of Britain.

us“Let nevertakewhatwehaveforgranted

“

PAGE9(new).indd 1 8/10/08 16:20:59


A giant mechanical Spider brought Liverpool streets to a standstill in September as part of a major Capital

of Culture project. The giant arachnid, affectionately named La Princess could be seen roaming around Liverpool City Centre between Wednesday 5th and Sunday 7th September. It is estimated that more than 200,000 Merseyside residents and visitors turned out to catch a glimpse of the spectacle over the 5 day period.

An imaginative story was used to entice the crowds which suggested that a mysterious, giant spider had appeared on the side of the Concourse Tower near Lime Street Station before

a team of French scientists were called in to examine the creature. The project was conceived and developed by the French theatrical company La Machine led by engineer Francois Delaroziere and took a year to complete. The company has in fact been responsible for a number of high profile projects over the last 15 years including Sultan’s Elephant which attracted huge audiences in London in summer 2006.

Although there were a few technical glitches, La Machine proved very successful and crowds even braved torrential downpours to experience the magnificent creature in all its glory. Not only did the Spider move gracefully through the streets, but also provided a sensational show encompassing flames, smoke, wind, snow and light all set to a backdrop of exciting live music. Many people showed their support and admiration

for the £1.8 million project on the official website.

Richard from Birkenhead said, “I was one of the thousands of people gathered together in Derby Square for the ‘water ballet’, and what a show! Today was the first time I saw La Princess move and I was in absolute awe from start to finish.”

Bill O’Neill from Cambridge exclaimed, “We came from Cambridge, got very, very wet and cold but saw an amazing spectacle. The Scouse spider was FAB, Congratulations to the City of Liverpool and La Machine for giving us such pleasure and delight.”

AlongCameASpider

By Joe Pettersen

Wednesday morning: the 50 ft spider appeared clinging to the side of The Concourse Tower near Lime Street •station.

A Team of French scientists were brought in and after deciding the spider was about to enter a state of hibernation, •moved it to a research centre based at the Albert Dock.

On Friday, the creature awoke to live music and moved towards the Salthouse Dock for a bath. •

At the weekend, • La Princess explored the Centre of Liverpool, visiting various city landmarks whilst accompanied by live music and visual delights.

On Sunday the creature escaped via the Mersey tunnel much to the alarm of the scientists!•

Creeeepy Crawlings... ...

IMAGES: BARRY MYLES

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PAGE44(new).indd 1 8/10/08 17:32:15

Finals Tickets: Adult £15 Concession £10. On sale now at Echo Arena, Liverpool (Box Office 0844 8000 400)

Preliminary Tickets: Adults £10 & Concession £5. At Greenbank Sports Academy (0151 280 7757) & Everton Park Sports Centre (0151 207 1921)

Corporate Hospitality: For more infornation please call 0151 233 4364 or 07900 961 932

6 - 15 November 2008

Finals: 15 November, 2008

Echo Arena, Liverpool.Preliminary rounds:6 -13 November, 2008Greenbank Sports Academy

The Russians are coming...

and the French...

and the Swedish...

and the Hungarians...

and the Polish...

and the Germans...

www.liverpoolboxing.co.uk

IN PARTNERSHIP WITH

Boxing1.indd 1 7/10/08 13:18:56

Finals Tickets: Adult £15 Concession £10. On sale now at Echo Arena, Liverpool (Box Office 0844 8000 400)

Preliminary Tickets: Adults £10 & Concession £5. At Greenbank Sports Academy (0151 280 7757) & Everton Park Sports Centre (0151 207 1921)

Corporate Hospitality: For more infornation please call 0151 233 4364 or 07900 961 932

6 - 15 November 2008

Finals: 15 November, 2008

Echo Arena, Liverpool.Preliminary rounds:6 -13 November, 2008Greenbank Sports Academy

The Russians are coming...

and the French...

and the Swedish...

and the Hungarians...

and the Polish...

and the Germans...

www.liverpoolboxing.co.uk

IN PARTNERSHIP WITH

Boxing2.indd 1 7/10/08 13:19:30


MAY1940 LETTERFROMYESTER-YEAR

W.S. Churchill, Prime Minister:

The Battle of France is over… … I expect that the Battle of Britain is about to begin… …

A broadcast to the nation:

The Battle of France is over… … a long, long pause before those ominous words that heralded the reality of living in the Forties… …I expect that the Battle of Britain is about to begin… …

I am 55 and from my earliest days I would listen to my parents, (and my four grandparents who each lost sons shot down over Germany in 1943 and 1945) as they recounted the lives of these men – my heroes – and also what life was like in wartime Britain, a beleaguered island but a defiant people, that withstood, in my mind, the most evil tyrant that had ever walked across the pages of history...

And we won.

As one well known writer once put it, I was like a small boy ‘who burst his buttons with pride’. I remember the first time I ever heard one of Churchill’s rallying speeches to the Nation and to the Empire – I burst into tears.

Tears at the sheer fear of what would happen to us as I was vividly living in my mind those horrendous days of 1940, the terrible wartime newsreels, and that sombre day on May 10th 1940 that is most surely synonymous with 9/11. They were equally tears of pride, joy and victory that, regardless of what the rest of the world might think of us – the Empire and Commonwealth excepted – we had the guts to stand up to tyranny even when we didn’t have any army equipment. However, what we did have was men, women, ships and a very small air force – AND that indomitable spirit of the British People that stretches from the farthest isles of the outer Hebrides to the lonely and courageous Channel Islands.

And so this formed the launch pad of my continued interest in history and in particular Sir Winston Churchill’s own role and contribution.

Despite this bedrock of knowledge, I did find myself sometimes wondering whether our stand really was as fearful as my family had me think it was and as the more jingoistic publications openly stated.

In 2001 I worked in Folkestone. From my office on the 6th floor I gazed out onto the Channel; just below me was Folkestone Harbour. On most days I would merely look up from the file in the same way as one does when a colleague enters the room, and be gazing at the white cliffs of the French coast – often so clear that I felt I could touch them. Out of my other window to the left of me I looked along the line of our own White Cliffs and watched the ships forever entering and leaving the Port of Dover. In the evenings I would see the brake lights of courting couples in the French country lanes.

In fact, coincidence or not, on my first day in the office I heard the unmistakeable sound of a Merlin engine and, as the receptionist dashed in to tell me that it was a Spitfire, we both watched as it flew over Capel le Ferne above Folkestone cliffs behind us and did a perfect victory role. That sight and sound will never leave me.

Over the next few months I came to realise just how much an influence the revisionist historians had had on me. I had loved to read about the Battle of Britain, to listen to Churchill’s speeches and to continue my study of that period. But deep down I always found myself thinking, ‘well, it was hard, but we now know that an actual invasion would have been far harder to mount in so short a time.’

I was also falling into that trap that many people living inland do – namely, that we who don’t live on the coast, and the Kent coast in particular, actually don’t really fully appreciate just how close the French coast is and just how narrow that stretch of water is.

If a fleet of pleasure cruisers, river barges, and other craft can cross the Channel then the Channel Crossing would present (as well as the Mersey Ferry Royal Daffodil) no difficulty to a highly disciplined army within whose grasp lay the ultimate goal – London, the cradle of democracy, the guardian of liberty, the very bedrock of all the English Speaking Peoples, and the subjugation of an island people that had, so far as the enemy was concerned, for far too long had had it their own way!

PAGE16(new).indd 1 9/10/08 13:03:59


And whenever I looked up from my file that horrible picture that used to so frighten me as a boy and even a young man – the newsreel of a Reich Marshal pompously looking on at his Fuehrer gazing at our White Cliffs through those enormous binoculars mounted on a pedestal – would flash across my mind again; and again, whenever I watched a single or twin prop aircraft flying straight and level towards me from France at about just the speed that Luftwaffe pilots would have flown.

In talking to the people of Kent too I very quickly came to realise that they have a wholly different perception of those days – the same perception that Churchill had; that Liverpool had.

They were in the front line and their Prime Minister was one of them too, having set up his home at Chartwell in Kent. Even that point didn’t really strike home until one learns how Churchill takes his wife up to the veranda to give her the reason for his purchase of such a house that she had never really taken to! Before them lay the garden of England.

In 1941 the people and City of Liverpool themselves became the second most bombed city to London, a fact that required the late Lord Derby to compile a booklet Bombers over the Mersey in 1941 to bring to the Nation’s attention just what Liverpool had been through when the government had preferred scaling down the Liverpool Blitz for fear that national morale might falter. It was one of those moments when a government, whether in peace or war, fails to understand the will and resoluteness of the people.

We write this article not only because it is wise to recall difficulties we have been through, and particularly young people as they see their friends going off to Iraq and Afghanistan. But because it is a backdrop against which we can see The Forties Glamour when, regardless of rations and clothing coupons, painted on nylons and that famous 1941 Bette Davis walk in Now Voyager, the long sweep of the dress, the hourglass figure, the sheer beauty and curvature of the body, and a very blunt ‘up yours’ to the tyrants!

Opposite we see that spirit captured by the lens of a Queen and her People in their laughter and warmth – a characteristic of Her Majesty that caused Hitler to declare the Queen the most dangerous woman in the world.

The trench captures the bemused schoolchildren watching the Battle of Britain overhead, a photograph that did more than any other to cause American public opinion to swing away from isolationism.

We have here just a snippet of that 1940s glamour that defied tyranny and saw us into the 1950s..

KM The Pier Project 08

The Queen and her People

School in 1940

PAGE17(new).indd 1 9/10/08 13:04:56


MUSIC

When you get up in the morning, are you one of those people who turns on the radio straight away to listen to Wake up with Wogan? Or do you head straight for your laptop and put on iTunes? On the way to and from work, do you put on the Drivetime shows on the radio, plug your iPod into your car stereo, or listen to some of your favourite songs on your mobile?

As a radio student myself you’d think that as soon as I get up in the morning I’d head straight for my radio and listen to Chris Moyles taking the mick out of some unsuspecting celebrities, the latest news, and the most popular tunes of the week. In fact, this happens rarely. I, like a growing number of young people, head straight to my laptop instead, open up iTunes, search through my library and choose whatever I’m most in the mood for that morning.

89% of the population listens to radio at least once a week (GadgetsAndGizmo.org).Most young people listen to their iPod at least once a day. If you’re anything like me, you’ll take it everywhere and listen to it when you’re walking, driving, commuting, in bed, or play it through loud speakers at a party. You have an entire library of music with personally chosen playlists literally in your pocket.

But why are we so willing to abandon radio in favour of these new musical technologies? For me, it’s because I can have complete control over what I am listening to. If I am in the mood for some Arctic Monkeys then I can put them on. Or, if I want some cheese-tastic classics from the 1980’s, then I can choose that instead. The user has complete control over the music they can listen to, whereas on the radio you have to stick to what the playlist has on it and which songs the DJ feels like playing.

iPod fanatics will argue that iPods can do anything radio does. They can tell the time and date, they can play music, they can set alarms, and they can do a lot of extra

things like calculate sums and book appointments on a digital calendar… in other words, with an iPod, there’s practically no other gadget you need in life. But consider this: Can regular iPods give you

up-to-the-minute news? Can they provide you with travel information when you’re in your car? Can they make you laugh? Do they have a personality? iPods require effort. You

have to spend

by Caroline Opacic

iPODS VS. RADIO

time handpicking your playlists. You have the option of skipping a song after 30 seconds.You have every song you’ve ever listened to on your iPod, leaving you with far too much choice. Radio, on the other hand, is a

secondary medium. You can have it on in the

background and drift in and out of it at your leisure, whilst

you drop the kids off at school or do your housework. You don’t have to think about it at all. It’s just there, with music you’re likely to enjoy, and news, information and general banter that your iPod

won’t give you. iPods get lonely after a while. With radio, you feel

someone is there, chatting to you in your own living room.

Basically, radio is a far more personal experience. Radio isn’t going to go down without a fight, either. Recently, radio stations have become more specialist, so that if you own a digital radio, you are pretty much guaranteed to find a genre of music that suits you amongst the 70+ channels on offer. DAB radio has allowed niche stations to gain an audience. If you wanted a radio station that played just country music from the 1990’s then you will probably be able to find it. If you can’t find what you’re looking for on a DAB, then you can always head on over to internet radio, where the choice of stations is endless.

Caroline Opacic

PAGE18(new).indd 1 7/10/08 12:19:51

by Joe Pettersen


GAYSCENE

by Martin Shannon

Simply Because

On the 25th July, an event took place in Liverpool which went

unnoticed by many. 18 year-old Michael Causer was attacked in a street in Huyton in what Merseyside Police stated was a “homophobic hate crime”.

Contrary to speculation, this was not a random attack as Michael was known by his attackers, but the crime is nonetheless shocking.

Michael was found by paramedics lying in a pool of blood with horrific head injuries. Tragically on 2nd August, one week after the attack, he lost his fight for life.

Michael’s death appeared to go completely unnoticed in the national media and whilst it did receive coverage in the local media, it was very limited. It is true that given the impending legal proceedings, the media is constrained in what it can say about the case. But it is alarming that this crime slipped completely under the radar.

many gay people have simply given to accepting verbal attacks as an unavoidable part of everyday life.

Michael Causer’s death is not an isolated incident. It is the tip of the iceberg. As a responsible people we need to address it. It is difficult to comprehend that in 21st Century Britain, someone can be attacked so brutally and left to die, simply because of their sexual orientation. It is more depressing still, that this has happened on the streets of our own City at a time when Liverpool is pushing for its rightful place amongst Europe’s leading cities.

As Europe’s Capital of Culture we surely need to examine our attitudes and influence on society.

We need education and better understanding to combat the backward attitudes which can otherwise lead, in their most extreme forms, to the type of violence which led to Michael’s death.

Despite the retraction of section 28, schools can sometimes be reluctant to tackle homophobia. It is worrying to read that in some schools there is a tendency to turn a blind eye, and not just by pupils. Teaching staff must do much more to tackle homophobic bullying and to challenge discriminatory attitudes amongst the young.

Michael’s death has served as a terrible reminder of what bigotry, hatred and prejudice can lead to. May it force people to take a step back, reflect upon themselves and their own attitudes, and consider the terrifying consequences of hatred and prejudice in any part of any society.

For the sake of Michael and his family and friends, let us hope that his tragic death is not in vain, but rather a turning point to a more positive path forwards, leading to greater acceptance and respect.

Equality legislation exists which is intended to protect people from all sorts of discrimination. However, the death of Michael Causer clearly shows that changes in the law have not necessarily gone hand in hand with changes in attitudes. This tragedy is an extreme and frightening example of the wider issue of homophobia, which still exists at practically every level of society today.

Prejudice on the basis of sexuality may not always find its release in such brutal ways. It is often expressed in more discreet, covert ways. But all forms of homophobia, even the smallest and most subtle forms, contribute to the climate in which it is possible for a young man to be set upon in the street and left lying in a pool of blood, simply because he was gay. Any right minded person would regard this as intolerable.

When compared to other major cities, Liverpool is still sadly very homophobic. The Stormbreak Report, commissioned by Liverpool City Council, revealed that 59% of gay and lesbian people in our City had experienced homophobic crime. This compares to 47% in London. These figures will shock the gay community and surprise the wider community. But to those closer to the problem they simply confirm what they already knew. Homophobic crime includes physical assault, violent threats, and damage to the victim’s property. Its most common form, however, is verbal assault, usually unreported as

He Was Gay

“If Michael’s death is not enough for people to take notice, then what else could it possibly take for us to treat the issue of homophobia seriously?”

PAGE20(new).indd 1 7/10/08 12:25:55

by Joe Pettersen


An Interview with...Merseyside Hate Crimes Units

The six Merseyside Hate Crimes Units (HCUs) have

been in operation since March 2007 and over the last 18 months have been working hard to increase awareness about hate crimes through the introduction of key initiatives in order to bring more offenders to justice. Liverpool CityLife held telephone interviews with Detective Constable Tracy O’Hara and Superintendent Karl Krueger who both work in the field of hate crime investigation, in order to understand exactly how the unit’s work and what they are doing to tackle homophobic crime.

The HCUs were initially established in order to review the way in which hate crimes, whether they be racist, sexist or homophobic, are dealt with by the police. SIGMA units are used within each policing area of Merseyside and contain a number of investigators and detectives who deal specifically with hate crimes. If the police begin to investigate an incident and it becomes apparent that there is an element of discrimination involved, the case will be passed immediately on to an HCU. This includes incidents which may not actually qualify as criminal offences but still need to be addressed by the police. In each SIGMA unit there is a coordinator who looks for patterns and hot-spots in order to identify areas that hate crimes may potentially occur.

Unlike other areas of policing, the HCUs perceive an increase in the

number of incidents reported as a positive thing. DC O’Hara says, “We actually want people to tell us about hate crimes as it certainly means we have a better chance of detecting them, solving them, and getting positive outcomes... We’ve seen a massive increase of people coming forward and they are telling us things they wouldn’t have said previously.”

The HCUs have established a number of ways in which people can get in touch either directly or indirectly with the police about crimes they have either experienced or witnessed. They are important because some people do not feel comfortable in entering police stations. As DC O’Hara explained, “We go out and proactively do drop-ins and surgeries and encourage people to tell us what’s happening. Of course, once that happens the number of reports

public in Merseyside. “I would say that attitudes are changing. What’s changing is people’s awareness of what is unacceptable and people are more prepared to tell us about it.” Supt Krueger adds that the Police Force themselves are also being educated to help them deal with homophobic and other hate crimes more effectively. “We have advance training for officers and staff in LGBT issues to help them understand the specific issues when dealing with that type of crime. The training is delivered jointly between police officers and members of the LGBT community... There’s also a heavy emphasis on diversity training for front line police officers as well as senior leaders.”

Since its inception, the HCUs have reported a detection rate increase of 25% and it is not difficult to see why. The units place far greater emphasis on educating people about hate crimes and make it far easier for people to report them.

Contact Stophate UK

0800 328 2244

Stop hate crime

automatically increases and we are able to arrest the offenders and achieve positive outcomes at court.”

A special hotline called Stophate UK has been introduced to provide key victim support. Supt Krueger: “Stophate UK is for people from lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) communities to report incidents in confidence so they don’t have to suffer in silence. It’s a bit like Crimestoppers in that that information can be given as intelligence or anonymously... Really, it’s about protecting the most vulnerable people in the community.”

One of the main problems associated with tackling homophobic crime in the past has been the lack of education surrounding what homophobia actually is. As DC O’Hara suggests, “we discuss the education surrounding what homophobia is on a daily basis. It’s not simply about not liking gay people; it’s about language and attitude. It’s not simply about a right or wrong; it’s about a whole education package which starts with schools and community centres right across the board.”

DC O’Hara is optimistic about the way homophobia is increasingly being viewed by members of the

PAGE21(new).indd 1 8/10/08 17:49:30

THE QUEEN OF HOLLYWOODby Kenneth T. Webb

A hundred years ago – Sunday 5th April 1908 – one of the greatest actresses of the 20th Century was born and who became the greatest Hollywood Silver Screen legend of that time – Bette Davis – a Lady formidablé – and for over twenty years the undisputed Queen of Hollywood.

When I grew up it seemed that Miss Davis was in every major film; and this didn’t stop with the silver screen either; but moved into colour with such epics as Death on the Nile and that masterpiece, The Whales of August.

For me though, the 1941 film Now Voyager will remain one of my favourites – a story so close to many of our hearts, the ugly caterpillar that becomes the beautiful butterfly, the Camille – and echoed in the camellias, her one link with her long lost love – to which she offers that classic understatement to her fiancée Elliott Livingstone that follows everyone down the ages to today in all our lives, whoever we are - “just a personal idiosyncrasy – we’re all entitled to them!”

There will always be a very special place for Bette Davis – a woman with an incredible capacity to give, to love and yet to be caught up in that terrible co-dependency that exists for countless people to this day who and up forming relationships or marriages with the very partners who epitomise the often cruel and abusive, even alcoholic parents, and worse.

Reading her biography, there is no doubt that Miss Davis was a lady formidablé and would challenge directors to “get it right”; to think things through, to ask themselves whether what they want the actors to do, would actually happen in real life. And this fierce independence led to an often stormy but almost lifelong association with Warner Brothers.

Ironically, time and again we see her take a wholly different attitude to young people – doing all she could to assist and encourage them, and as Paul Reid wrote in his biography of Miss Davis, showing an incredible patience and charm and motherly understanding, the very attributes we see reflected in Now Voyager – a far distant cry from the more controversial and even violent roles that Bette Davis became associated with in later years.

As with so many actors, her real life was full of tragedy and that scourge of co-dependency even carried on to the next generation; the backlash of what she suffered then coming out in her own daughter who came to resent her mother’s success to the extent that she went to extraordinary lengths to not only portray her mother in the poorest light to the media, but to even destroy her emotionally.

ALL IMAGES COURTOUSY OF WWW.BETTEDAVIS.ORG

BETTE DAVIS

all images courtesy of www.bettedavis.org

“Oh Jerry, dOn’t let’s ask fOr the mOOn; we have the stars.”


PAGE22(new).indd 1 7/10/08 12:35:01

We know of course that too often the characters we see on screen bear no resemblance to the actors in real life. But we cannot deny either that acting is the very stuff of life; it is at the centre of every community; it gives an ear and a voice and now an image to the people to express themselves.

To any young people who look to a future in the film industry, put aside time to read Bette Davis’ biography. It is one of those tomes that teach a lesson on every page.

In Liverpool we have a thriving arts and drama community - not many cities can boast six major theatres outside of London. We at Pier Publishing want to encourage young people to review films, whether from bygone eras or the films showing even this year, this month or this week. If you think you have the ability to be a film critic we would love to hear from you and encourage you.

Illy, who has directed Coronation Street is, as we have reported elsewhere in this edition, doing vitally important work in bringing these opportunities to young people by bringing to the schools another ‘silver screen’. With the screen plays that now feature at FACT off Bold Street, we see the very legacy that Miss Davis gave to the film industry, namely her patience and insistence to give an opportunity to young people; characteristics that too often she was unable to display to peers and employers.

There is also another side that so befits the 1940’s glamour. With the World at War, Bette Davis took her role very seriously. Unlike many actors, she was known for her generosity and ability to be able to spend time visiting the American troops.

There will always be harsh critics of Bette Davis but that is the lot of every film star. For most, she succeeded in bringing glamour to an austere world, those incredibly beautiful and bewitching eyes and the famous fulsome red lips and high heels.

Liverpool CityLife is very proud indeed to publish this tribute to Miss Davis and, as many of our older readers will remember, that most beautiful final line in Now Voyager:

“Oh Jerry, don’t let’s ask for the moon; we have the stars.”

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What EvEr happEnEd to BaBy JanE? (1962)

PAGE23(new).indd 1 7/10/08 12:36:59


SPORT

Away from football, the mantle of ‘capital of culture’ has undoubtedly attracted world class sport to the region. For instance, this summer, Merseyside hosted the most famous event in world golf, the British Open, held at the prestigious venue of Royal Birkdale. With some saying Liverpool is the true capital of Ireland, it was in some ways fitting that Padraig Harrington delighted many of Liverpool’s Irish inhabitants by retaining the trophy in a classy display that enthralled the 70,000 spectators at the four day event.

Hot off the heels of Team GB’s Olympic cycling success in Beijing, Liverpool hosted the climax of one of Cycling’s top events, the Tour of Britain. Just seven days after La Princess trundled through the city centre at a top speed of 5 km/h, Le Peloton charged along The Strand, this time at speeds approaching 60km/h! Once again, crowds crammed the city and race organisers plotted a thrilling finale which included six laps of the city centre, past familiar landmarks like the Three Graces, the Town Hall and the Walker Art Gallery. Route Director Graham Jones had promised another visual feast for fans and he didn’t disappoint as Italy’s Alessandro Petacchi was first over the line, taking his third stage win of the week in an exciting climax. The Overall winner of the tour however was Frenchman Geoffroy Lequarte, who held off the Wirral’s Steve Cummings to clinch first place.

FOOTBALL

Liverpool - A City Of Sport

GOLF

CYCLING

Mention the name ‘Liverpool’ to almost anyone, anywhere in the world, and unless they’re a Beatles enthusiast or have been living in a cave for the last forty years, then their instant reaction will usually be ‘football’. So taking that concept forward, it’s been an interesting summer for the city’s football clubs.

Liverpool FC have had an interesting time of late. They’ve spent the best part of £20 million on Tottenham Hotspur’s Republic of Ireland international striker, Robbie Keane. Keane has been described as the “missing piece of the jigsaw”, a cliché used by the ‘experts’ meaning that the Irishman will be the key player in helping end Liverpool’s eighteen year wait for that elusive premier-league title. However, Mr Keane will be hoping that the supposed jinx that his number 7 shirt carries will not affect him too much and

that he won’t follow the long line of jigsaw ‘pieces’ that didn’t fit such as Harry Kewell, Vladimir Smicer and Øyvind Leonhardsen (who?). On the pitch however, it’s been a positive start for the men in red, remaining unbeaten since the start of the season and beating their most hated, sorry, heated rivals, Manchester Utd 2-1 at Anfield, with the young Dutch superstar in waiting, Ryan Babel, with the winner.

With regards to the team across Stanley Park, Everton, it’s also been an intriguing summer for the tricky blues. Chairman Bill Kenwright CBE., formerly of Coronation Street, has been serving up more drama with his desire to not only move the club away from Goodison Park to a ‘superstore’, sorry, ‘super-stadium’ in Kirkby, but also Bill has reiterated his wishes to sell the club to a Roman Abramovich

styled Billionaire to take the club to the next level. Thus far, the toffee-men are still waiting for their sugar daddy.

However, these delusions of grandeur must have inspired Bill to splash out on Belgium’s newest sensation, Marouane Fellaini. Fellaini, who impressed for the Belgian side Standard Liege against Liverpool in the UEFA Champions League, cost the Toffees £15 million. Time will tell if Fellaini will prove to be a sweet buy or if he will become unstuck at Goodison Park. On the field, it’s been a stuttering start for the Blues premier league campaign, with home defeats against Blackburn and Portsmouth. However, recent form has improved and manager David Moyes will be hoping that they can recapture last season’s form which saw them finish fifth in the Premier League.

by Andrew Guest

PAGE24B(new).indd 1 7/10/08 12:39:37

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SWIMMING RUGBY OLYMPICS

OTHER

Many of Liverpool’s women were happy this summer, as the World Fire-fighter Games came to the city. The Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service beat off strong competition from around the world to win the right to host the biennial games. Yet again, like so many of the world-class events held in the city in 2008, it provided a huge boost to Liverpool’s Capital of Culture celebrations with thousands of fire-fighters and their families from around the globe gathering for a host of sporting events. The Games featured more than 5,000 athletes and included all the main Olympic events although the Blue Riband was the main event and established ‘the toughest fire-fighter alive’. Regrettably, Fireman Sam couldn’t compete, so the award was therefore given to Jonas Gårder of Sweden in the male 18-29 category and in the respective female category, a German prevailed, with Sandra Wiedenbein taking the title.

In Rugby League, St Helens have continued their amazing form by clinching the Super League Leaders shield for a fourth year in a row. They’ve also capped an amazing summer by winning the Challenge Cup defeating Hull FC 28-16 at Wembley and have gained a place in the Super League Grand Final, after defeating Leeds Rhinos. Departing Saints coach Daniel Anderson will hope to sign off on a positive note after announcing that he’ll leave the club once the season ends. The current Catalans Dragons coach Mick Potter has signed a two year deal to take over from Anderson from 2009 season onwards.

So, taking in all the above, I believe It is safe to say that Liverpool has been a focal point of the summer’s sporting activity and I have no doubt that in the days, weeks and months to come, the City and indeed Region will continue to be. To all the sports men and women across the Region: Good luck! I’m sure like many others, I’ll be watching with interest.

And finally, last but certainly not least, a very special mention to the region’s fantastic Olympians who undoubtedly made the city proud this summer. Boxer David Price, from West Derby, was unlucky not to come away with the gold, but still achieved a fantastic Bronze medal in the super-heavyweight division. In addition to that, Gymnast Beth Tweddle was disappointed not to come

out of the games with a medal. Tweddle competed in the uneven bars and floor at the Olympics, and qualified for the bars event final finishing in a highly credible fourth place. However, the gold and bronze medallists in the bars event are under IOC investigation, as some sources report them as being too young for international competition. If the IOC disqualifies them, Tweddle will be promoted to the silver-medal position. From a Liverpudlian point of view, we all have our fingers crossed. I’m sure, being the amazing gymnast that she is, Beth has everything else crossed. Other notable local Olympians include Michael Rock and Fran Halsall who both competed credibly for Team GB.

Yes, and that means cancelling your Friday night plans with Rob and Laura, drinking bottles of Corona and head-bashing away to Indie music in your local ‘Stue-Dee’ Gaff.

So on the whole, I wish I’d known about the huge responsibility it takes becoming a ‘Stue-Dee.’ It’s not all loans, scruffy clothes, partying for days. It is actually quite scary and if you want to make it to the Cap and Gown Finale you have to knuckle down and know your limits.

That includes

planning ahead• becoming organised• listening• working hard•

It’s a challenge, but we can all make it if we try- and then the real partying begins!

Publisher’s Note

Monique graduated in July in Drama and Theatre Studies combined with Film Studies, and we extend to Monique our heartiest congratulations. We are delighted that Monique will be a regular contributor in Liverpool CityLife Magazine.


EDUCATION

Before going to University I wish I’d known that I was being thrown in at the deep end. It was like the day I was being taught to swim all over again. Every time my Father pulled me out into the middle of the water I would frantically struggle to the edge of the pool, barely keeping my head above the surface. This is the same at University.

You’re so used to being spoon-fed information at school that by the time you arrive at university the only safety net you carry is the brand new pair of Converse on your feet, the ones you went out and bought to become an official ‘Stu-Dee’. Then the fun begins.

You run around trying to find what room you’re in and there are no teachers in the corridors waiting to usher you around.

No friendly mentors who want to guide you.

It’s just you, all alone, in a giant building with thousands of other students.

Worse still, they all seem to know where they are going and you don’t! By the time you arrive at your first ever University Seminar you’re gushing with sweat, your face is as red as a tomato and your University handbook is falling apart due to the clamminess of your hands.

Glamorous first impression – I think not.. So much for the brand new Converse, stonewashed jeans and typical grey hoody you forked out loads on to get that perfect ‘Stu-Dee’ look. You walk behind all the other new students who all appear to look better than you; and the girls, typically, stare at you as if you have just crash landed out of a flying silver disc and have tentacles and a face with a giant eyeball sticking out! And then you seem to clamber over everyone and eventually sit down amongst what

feels like this enormous crowd.

I wish I’d known that the tutors don’t really push you as much as they might, because it is during these three years at University that you, the ‘Stue-Dee’ learn how to be independent and self- disciplined.

No teacher, no parents standing there shouting, until they’re blue in the face that you need to get your work done. Suddenly they all seem to be in absentia.

Oh no, it is up to you to:

find out when your work is due • insieve through your Module • Handbook and look at the dates and start planning ahead about when you are going to start.

THINGS I WISH I HAD KNOWN BEFORE GOING TO UNIVERSITY

by Monique Giselle Bell BA(Hons)

The University of Liverpool Victoria Building

PAGE28(new).indd 1 8/10/08 10:51:02

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FASHION by Donna McCourt

RECYCLERECHIC

Design team 1:Helen Brown, Browns Boutique

Helen Brown is Liverpool’s newest designer. With a boutique opening in Southport in the Autumn, the designer has never been in more demand. Helen says “My designs are unique as I bring a personal touch to each and every piece...this is such a perfect event for me and I had so much fun making the outfits”. Helen’s new venture, Browns Boutique will host new Liverpool designers and include womenswear, menswear and accessories to offer the complete and most exclusive service.

For more information on Helen Brown or Brown’s Boutique please contact Entourage on 07824 629 214 or [email protected]

Design team 2:Sara Li-Chou Han

Sara’s team consisted of an excellent mix of creative talents from the Liverpool fashion scene.

Heading up the team was Sara, a freelance stylist and designer with her own avant-garde women’s wear label, Sara Li-Chou Han, which is sold at Landbaby at The Bluecoat. Katy Rees of Unity Designs on Smithdown Road provided her own unique customisations with Swarovski crystals, graphic stencilling and airbrushing. Katy worked on the sportswear and couture outfits to add some bling to the evening. Recent JMU Graduate, Sarah McGranaghan has been an integral part of the team, creating a sportswear textile and couture bag. While JMU students Mat Hughes and Sharon Fernandez helped with the hand sewing and styling.

For more information contact Sara on. 07964 072 879, Email. [email protected], Web. www.saralichouhan.com

Design team 3:Naomi Williams

Liverpool born Naomi was a finalist in a competition which showcased her work at a catwalk and is to be published in a book on contemporary illustration. Naomi “I loved being involved in this particular show as I specialise in printed textiles and fashion illustration and it allowed me to be seen by my home town. I also use modelling and draping techniques within my work and like to create unique, visually exciting pieces; my couture outfit was inspired by Galliano for Dior as he is one of my favourite designers”. Naomi will be launching a menswear line early next year.

For more information on Naomi Williams please contact Entourage on 07824 629 214 or [email protected]

Design team 4:Liverpool John Moore Students

The Liverpool John Moore’s team contained some of the best work the university has to offer. Amie Price studies fashion and has enjoyed work experience in the design studio in Warehouse in London. She has had one of her fashion styling photographs printed in Graduate Fashion Week’s Daily Gossip Magazine. Amie says “My proudest achievement was winning the fashion category in the Northern Design Competition for one of my dresses, which earned £1000 prize money and my dress is being exhibited in Aqua Couture in Leeds with a view to selling my collection in the same boutique. I firmly believe that Liverpool has so much creative talent and I am grateful to this show and its organisers to finally let us be heard!” Amie has also drafted in High school friend and fellow fashion student Laura Mees-Harris.

You can contactAmie at [email protected] or Laura at [email protected]

The Metquarter hosted a very fabulous and very green event last month. The Recycle Rechic Fashion show, presented by Entourage with support from The Delivery Practice made us all think twice about recycling our empties as well as our wardrobes. Donna McCourt from Entourage PR explains the idea behind Recycle Rechic “we wanted to give Liverpool’s most innovative designers the opportunity to showcase their skills and creativity and nothing is recycled more than fashion. Each of the 5 design teams were given clothes and materials donated by the general public and we challenged them to create 4 outfits each to form part of the fashion show. The outfits were categorised into a Male Suit, Designers Choice, Sportswear and Couture Inspired Gown. The teams had three and a half weeks to design and make these outfits and were assigned one male and one female model to exhibit their designs”. The Metquarter retailers also showcased their new Autumn/Winter collections and of course no fashion show would be complete without the shoes, so kindly provided by Kate Kuba, these really finished the Recycled outfits in the most fabulous way.

Recycle Rechic Fashion Show...the hottest and greenest fashion show in Liverpool!

Charlotte Denton from Britain’s next top modelIMAGE: MATT FORD

PAGE30B(new).indd 1 8/10/08 15:31:09


The Judges:

The most prominent and important people of the evening were of course the judges...experts in their field, Gordon Webber, head buyer at Drome Couture, Katy O’Grady from Project Catwalk and Gary Millar fashionista, from Parr St Studios. Gordon “AllyMac’s designs were outstanding and through tough competition she was the deserved winner”.

Neil is wearing Recycled two piece by Helen Brown

Katy “I was so excited to be on the other end of the judging, I know how difficult it is to work under extreme pressure and in difficult circumstances with limited materials. What the designers produced was simply extraordinary”.

Gary “This was a fabulous idea to get the general public thinking so positively about recycling, it’s such an important issue and we all have our part to play”.

The night was enjoyed by all and even editor Ken Webb had his part to play, as well as winning the tailored shirt by Gieves & Hawks in the raffle (honestly it wasn’t a fix!) Ken was delighted to see some of his clothes which he kindly donated, Recycled and Rechic’d on the catwalk!

Design team 5:AllyMac

Representing the Wirral and indeed the winners of the competition we have AllyMac along with Neil Paul Cooper. AllyMac has clients who come over from France to get their outfits designed and made just the way they want them.

Ally said:

“This was a fantastic opportunity for us to work together and create something totally unique and inspiring. Recycling old into new is what the fashion industry has been doing for years and it’s about time we followed suit! We were thrilled to be a part of this, the hottest recycling show this year and to win the competition was truly amazing”.

For more information, www.fashionbyallymac.co.uk and call Ally Mac on 07734 202 249 or Neil Paul Cooper on 0151 639 4888.

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MILITARY by Admiral Sir Jonathon Band

MARITIME

The Future Navy

Britain is pre-eminently a maritime nation whose people will continue to rely on the unhindered use of the sea for their security, prosperity and well-being. The world faces an uncertain, rapidly changing and competitive global environment in the early decades of the 21st century.

My vision envisages a Royal Navy that in supporting the UK’s Defence Aim will contribute vitally and decisively to the security of the UK, to the preservation of international order at sea and to the promotion of our national values and interests in the wider world.

Strategic Context

We have already entered an era shaped by the rapid globalization of every aspect of human activity, by accelerated technological development and by the prospect of geo-strategic changes of unprecedented scale and complexity. Current trends suggest that terrorism, climate change, demographic shifts, religious tensions and increased competition for resources of all kinds will lead to crisis, confrontation and conflict.

These threaten global, regional and national prosperity, stability and security and may strengthen the hand of those who oppose the liberal trading values of the international order on which we depend. Accordingly nations like ours will have to manage the consequences of crises and shocks, both natural and man-made, in a geo-political landscape characterised by volatility, complexity and surprise.

We in the UK, while wishing to maintain a leading role, will continue to work with our established NATO allies, our European partners and our friends in the wider world to contain crises and mitigate risk. Accordingly, the sea, as the indispensable medium for trade and access to areas of strategic interest, remains crucial to our economic vitality and our ability to protect our country and our friends. Early in crisis in particular,

when host nation support and basing or over-flight permission cannot be guaranteed, maritime forces will be the principal means by which political and diplomatic influence and, if necessary, decisive force can be applied - and at acceptable levels of risk and without the need for long term commitment or an extended engagement.

Strategic Vision

In our inter-connected world, the UK, with its global interests and diverse security concerns, will continue to need expeditionary military forces as a powerful expression of national power and influence. Our ability to exploit the lawful use of the sea means thatmaritime forces, uniquely, are able to intervene at a time and place of political choice andto project power both at sea and against the land. I envisage that our Navy will face a variety of challenges, both familiar and unfamiliar.

We will continue to deploy the national Strategic Deterrent in our ballistic missile submarines to deter potential aggressors and to dissuade those who might threaten us with weapons of mass destruction. The possibility of inter-state conflict, although reduced, still exists and more extensive conventional, regular threats may re-emerge as the years go by.

To that end, we should retain sufficient depth, resilience and expertise in our conventional capabilities to deal with these challenges. I am determined that our distinctive ethos, preparedness for war-fighting and broadly balanced, world class conventional combat capability should remain the distinguishing characteristic of the Royal Navy. These benchmark qualities will enable us to maintain our standing in the world, to defeat threats decisively at any level and to prevail in the most demanding situations.

However, we will also need to deal effectively with the threats posed by the proliferation of irregular activities undertaken by terrorists, criminals or insurgents - some armed with sophisticated systems and weapons.

We must also meet the challenges associated with failed states and unlawful activities at sea, mostly associated with illicit trade, migration, trafficking and piracy, since these too threaten the stability on which world trade depends. Most important of all will be to identify and prevent emerging crisis or conflict. These tasks, in particular, will increasingly demand flexibility and adaptability in our people, platforms and skills if we are to prove effective in support of the UK’s and the international community’s global security and stability needs. Finally, at all times we must be ready to provide humanitarian and disaster relief. All of us - Royal Navy, Royal Marines, Royal Fleet Auxiliary, Reserves and the civilians who directly support us - will need to understand the nature of the challenges that we face and can expect to be trained and empowered to deal with these complex situations.

Future Navy VisionOperational Context

I anticipate that our operational context over the coming years will feature:

Continued Strategic Deterrence•

Progressively integrated Joint • operations at national and multinational levels

Increased cooperation with other • instruments of international and national power

Strategic partnership and • interoperability with the US

PAGE32(new).indd 1 8/10/08 17:10:25


Continued leadership within NATO •and Europe

Contributions to UN mandated •forces

More operations in coalitions of •the willing and with less familiar partners in the wider world

Maintenance of global treaties, •agreements and commitments.

Future Navy Capability

Our future capability will be structured to deliver:

Maritime Force Projection – the •deliberate employment of military powerorinfluenceatseaandagainst the land

in support of the realisation of a •range of effects and outcomes in Joint, Combined and Inter-Agency situations

Maritime Security - the level of •presence, assurance and capability that is required to defend the UK homeland and sovereign territories, at range where necessary;

to preserve the free, safe and •lawful use of the high seas;

and to protect Joint, Allied and •coalition forces in oceanic and littoral areas

Both of these strategic outputs will be enabled by Maritime Manoeuvre - which represents our ability to use the unique access provided by the sea to apply force,presenceorinfluenceatatimeorplace of political choice.

A broadly balanced Fleet represents the most effective means of delivering this capability, both at home and abroad, as well as providing a reasonable assurance against the unexpected. This means that we will project and sustain Amphibious and Carrier Strike Task Groups simultaneously, configured forthe most likely Medium and Small Scale operations, but with the surge capacity for more demanding, but less frequent Large Scale operations.

Equally,ourFleetshouldhavesufficientflexibility and size to deploy singleships and submarines on sustained, independent tasks on a routine basis, with the potential and capacity to switch quickly to combat and group operations. I wish to see us further improve our

Special Forces missions - together with more sophisticated mine-warfare, and environmental support. In order to heighten the initiative in these areas, we must be more active in exploring the boundaries of what is achievable by rigorous experimentation and applied research.

Our people remain our most potent and flexibleasset.

Taut manning, the demands of expeditionary operations and the operation of complex systems are all very demanding of our people. Therefore, in the face of what is still a challenging life at sea, we will only attract and retain high quality personnel if we provide a sense of vocation, interesting employment and attractive prospects.

The reasonable expectations of work/life balancewill only be satisfiedby strongleadership at all levels, responsive management and appropriate training and education, all linked to flexiblecareer structures and opportunities, and underpinned by appropriate conditions of service, remuneration and care for families. Above all, in line with its unique heritage, the Royal Navy will continue, when necessary, to go in harm’s way to deter and defeat both the regular and irregular threats to our and other nations’ security and well-being. In this technologically enabled and fast-changing world, only our people can make this happen.

Implementing the Vision

This vision will be articulated in greater detail and implemented through:

The Naval Strategic Plan which will guide the decisions of senior Commanders and Maritime Headquarters staffs.

The Future Maritime Operational Concept - which will describe how the Royal Navy will operate with other Joint capabilities, Allies and partners within the Maritime Environment.

Admiral Sir Jonathon Band KCB ADC First Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Staff.

capacity for Joint, expeditionary and maritime security operations.

Our aircraft carriers, deep-strike aircraft, specialist amphibious shipping and landing forces must be complemented by increasingly versatile surface combatants, submarines and rotary wing assets. Our reach and sustainable presence, both in the deep ocean and the littoral, will continue to be enabled by specialist replenishment and support ships.

When configured as a Joint sea base,which will reduce the logistics footprint ashore and provide a measure of force protection, these will increasingly be able to support Joint and Allied formations.

To take best advantage of new technologies and techniques as they become available and be better able to adapt to changing circumstances we should build versatility, capacity and agility into our platforms and systems. We must similarly invest appropriate skills and flexibility in our people bymeans of realistic through-life training and continuous education. Moreover, we will need to continue to harness the benefits of networked and automatedsystems and seek to employ innovative, pragmatic solutions, consistent with affordability, the demands of the environment and optimal through-life capability management.

Progressively, we must exploit robotics, unmanned vehicles and loitering systems - to assist with command and control and to support intelligence, surveillance, precision attack and

PAGE33(new).indd 1 8/10/08 17:15:17


Future Navy Vision Within the context of the Future Navy, the Royal Navy Strategic Communications Plan has been agreed and, in the interests of presenting an informed and unified message, all Royal Navy personnel should be familiar with the following Strategic Communications Themes:

“RN Strategic Communications Themes” Modern and Relevant Capable and Resilient Top Class Employer of Top Class People These are supported by a range of statements in the Royal Navy Strategic Communication Plan, which reflect the Royal Navy’s ethos and capabilities, including:

The Royal Navy has always had strong links with Merseyside. Our Ships visit the port of Liverpool regularly throughout the year. Our aim in the ‘Capital of Culture’year is to support as many events as possible. We regard all Maritime events as priority for Royal Navy visibility and the aim will be to support the ‘Clipper Race finale’ and ‘Tall Ships/Maritime festival’ (18-21 July) with RN Ships, assets and personnel. We also aim to be a part of the World Firefighter Games, as within the Royal Navy all personnel from all professions are trained to fight fires.

From the Regional Headquarters at HMS Eaglet and the Royal Navy Careers Office in James Street we offer opportunities to local schools and colleges including

A professional and innovative • Service that seeks todevelop individual potential

A responsible organisation, sensitive • to social and environmental issues

Managed with a firm sense of • direction, seeking efficiency yet responsive to change.

AFCO (Royal Navy)Victoria House15 James StreetLIVERPOOLL2 7NX

Telephone:0151 236 1566

Mobile:07970 727 559

Fax: 0151 236 4613

Email:[email protected]

The Royal Navy supportsLiverpool ‘08

A safeguard for the UK’s interests • world-wide

A unique combination of land, air • and sea capabilities merged into a single, flexible and dynamic force

A modern and capable force which • can operate across the full spectrum of defence activity, and with constantly improving equipment

Operates in harmony with the other two • Armed Services, other Government Departments and other nations.

Manned by resilient, well-trained • and adaptable people, offering a wide range of employment opportunities

teambuilding and leadership activities to assist youth development.

We also offer support to local area Sea Cadets, Air and Army Cadets whose volunteers need all the assistance they can get. As an ex Sea Cadet in TS Seahawk (Bebington) and Indefatigable (Anglesey), I can recommend the life and opportunities on offer.

Now working from the Office that recruited me in 1974 the Royal Navy has given me a full and varied career with valuable worldwide experience.

Warrant Officer 1 Terry BatesArea Recruiting Manager (Royal Navy) North West England

ROYAL NAVAL LINKSby Warrant Officer Terry Bates

PAGE34(new).indd 1 8/10/08 17:23:29


It has always been our view that everyone has a wonderful story to tell, of successes, failures, love and war, social changes and that most incredible phenomenon, namely that come what may, the human spirit will always in the end triumph and overcome seemingly impossible odds. These individual accounts are the sum total of a nation’s history, a civilisation’s perseverance and our desire above all to make the world a better place in which to live.

A nation that forgets its history is a nation that is on course for, what Churchill called, brute oppression, tyranny and fear. And so we invite all our readers to send in their own accounts, and we are not just looking at the older generation.

We want young people to tell us of all the things that they have overcome too; for they are our future and it is right, good and proper that their voices should be heard as well.

So we start with this quite remarkable account of a Liverpool family by Linda Ryan and which is indeed moving and with which many will identify. And we will often transcribe the text exactly as we receive it, for the editor’s red pen can so easily erase the vibrancy and depth of soul of the writer’s thoughts. We prefer to imagine one of those notes or letters we see lying on the kitchen table as we walk by, we cannot help to glance again and say, What’s this about? What’s Mum writing of? Well I never knew that!

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Send your History articles to:[email protected]

LocalHistory

A slice of real Liverpool Life by Kenneth T Webb

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final_ad02.pdf 26/9/08 11:14:05

by Linda Ryan


HISTORY by Dr Frank Carlyle

THREEV.C.s

Noel ChavasseNoel Chavasse was the only double V.C holder of the First World War, a remarkable accolade by any standards. He was a 1908 Olympian, an Oxford Blue and graduated with a First in Medicine.

At the outbreak of World War One Noel Chavasse was a surgeon at Liverpool’s Royal Southern Hospital and without any hesitation he enlisted in the Liverpool Scottish Regiment as a surgeon.

Dr. Chavasse and his Regiment were sent to France. In 1915 he won a Military Cross for outstanding bravery and was promoted to Captain.

On the 30th July 1916 Noel Chavasse, at the village of Guillemont, was to

earn his first V.C. Having attended the wounded all day, upon hearing a young man crying out in no-man’s-land, he went out under heavy fire and brought him back a full 500 yards to safety. He then went back, still under heavy fire, with stretcher-bearers and brought back a further 19 men, buried two dead officers and took time to take the dog-tags off dead soldiers so that the lads could be identified back home. Altogether saved the lives of twenty men!

His second V.C was won almost a year later on the 2nd August 1917 at Wielje, near Ypres. Noel went to an old German dugout to care for badly wounded soldiers who had been held up. He comforted the wounded through death so that they could die with a little dignity. He became their mothers, wives, sweethearts, fathers, brothers and sisters as they clung on to Noel for what little time they had left.

A stray German shell came through the dugout killing the already wounded, and wounding the other soldiers including Chavasse. He dragged himself with a gaping stomach wound to the clearing station, where he was immediately operated on. He seemed to be on the mend and just wanted to get back to his men. However, he was very weak and problems began to set in. Captain Noel Godfrey Chavasse never fully recovered from his shrapnel wounds. He later died peacefully and was buried at Brandhoek New Cemetery Belgium on 7th August 1917. Cpt Chavasse was a most remarkable and courageous man who sacrificed his own life in order to save others.

Christopher BushellChristopher Bushell was born in Neston Wirral. When war broke out he was commissioned into the Royal West Surrey Regiment and went to France with the British Expeditionary

Force. He was severely wounded at Mons on 14th September 1914. In November 1915 he returned to France to continue his duty fighting at the front.

In June 1916 he was promoted to Captain prior to the Battle of the Somme, which commenced on the 1st July 1916.

On the 23rd of March 1918, Bushell, while acting as Temporary Lieutenant Colonel in command of the 7th Battalion The Queen’s Royal West Surrey Regiment, was to earn a V.C for leading his men in a counter attack against heavy German fire. His Battalion was cooperating with an Allied regiment close to St. Quentin Canal that had seen some of the most fierce fighting of the war. He was severely wounded in the head,

The horrors of war are well documented, but the extraordinary heroics of Captain Noel Chavasse, Captain Christopher Bushell and Private Richard George Masters and other local lads are sadly not! Much has been said about other heroics during the Great War and so they should! However, we on Merseyside seem to be reticent to demonstrate the exceptional bravery of our own lads. Here is a small collection of our own Local Heroes.

Merseyside has a lot to be proud of, especially individual heroism under extreme pressure of warfare. Take for example an individual in a life and death situation where his own life is secondary and he is willing to sacrifice his own in order to save others. I have chosen by random three individuals who merit such a mention and whose experiences in life and death situations who deservedly won the Victoria Cross for Valour.

Cpt. N Chavasse MC., VC.,VC

Lt.Col C Bushell DSO., VC

PAGE36C(new).indd 1 8/10/08 15:36:54

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Allied in the face of heavy Machine gun and rifle fire. He inspired and encouraged his men to remain where they were and fight the enemy.

Despite his wounds, the gallant officer refused to go to the rear in face of heavy enemy fire, he kept encouraging his men to stand firm and fight. Eventually he had to be removed to a clearing station in an exhausted and fainting condition after successfully defending his line for his magnificent spirit and courage

he was awarded the Victoria Cross and the D.S.O on the 13th May 1918. He returned to the front line on 22nd May.

It was at the Somme, South of Morlencourt on the 8th August 1918 that this very brave man lost his life leading his men against a strong enemy line. Captain (Temp. Lt. Col.) Christopher Bushell was well respected by his fellow Officers and his men alike; he is buried at Querrieu British Cemetery France.

Lt. Col. Bushell was married and he and Mrs. Bushell had one daughter.

Richard George MastersRichard George Masters, a chauffeur, was born in 1877 at Birkdale and later lived in Southport where he married and had three children.

When war broke out, 37-year-old Richard enlisted immediately. Being a chauffeur by profession and a little older he was posted to the 141st Field Ambulance Unit as an ambulance driver. Ambulance drivers knew the dangers of their tasks, being constant targets for enemy fire.

On March the 7th 1917 after a heavy bombing raid on the Somme, Richard volunteered to bring back trapped wounded men from an advanced dressing station. Under constant heavy enemy artillery fire, he made a staggering four trips, successfully

bringing back the wounded men. Richard, for his

outstanding courage was awarded the Croix de Guerre by the French.

Almost a year later on the 9th April 1918 Richard again volunteered for a most dangerous mission near the town of Bethune. Wounded British soldiers were cut off and the

road was reported to be impassable, however, Richard was determined to get through.

The greatest difficulty for him was the bomb craters and debris scattered over the road. Richard did have difficulty clearing the debris, dodging craters while at the same time being under constant heavy machine gun fire. He was also attacked and bombed by an enemy aeroplane.

Finally he achieved his prime objective where, evacuating some 200 wounded men under heavy bombardment. It had taken him all afternoon from 1pm to 5pm none stop. Whilst removing the wounded from the cellar of a bombed house with a gas leak, Richard put the safety of the wounded above his own despite being gassed himself.

Private Masters deservedly won the V.C to go with his Croix de Guerre. He survived the war after serving in France for over four years for his Country.

There were a lot of great local heroes during the terrible conflict of the 1914-1918 Great War. It is impossible to name them all and write about them here, but just like these random three, they will always be remembered.


but despite this he carried on encouraging and organising his troops. He refused to have his wound tended until he knew that his men were in a safe position to form a defensive flank against the enemy.

When Lt.Col Bushell went to Headquarters, he reported the situation and finally had his wound dressed. He then immediately returned to his men who had moved back a short distance. He visited every position of the line, both English and

Pt RG Masters CoteG., VC

PAGE37(new).indd 1 7/10/08 13:05:14

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Today I picked up my pen and remembered the past

Of colliers and pitmen,

And pits that couldn’t last.

Thousands of jobs that just came and went

Politicians not blinking at the livings just spent

People working, living and struggling together

Bringing up families at the end of their tether

But even with setbacks and shortage of money

They just kept on going like bees at their honey

Pay day comes round, smiles all about

The children had toffee and the pitmen their stout

This life wasn’t easy, we remember the losses

They forfeited their lives as they toiled for their bosses

One thing that they gained during really bad years

Was respect for each other, even sharing their tears

Some of these men were rough and ready and bad as enemies

But would lend you a shilling when they only had pennies

Their wives must have been clever, making small wages

last from Thursday to Thursday and not looking past,

if a neighbour was ill, they were first at the door

Get the kids off to school and do any chore

The shutting of pits just wasn’t economical

It destroyed ways of living and should be called diabolical

We buy coal from abroad as financially sound

And leave what we’ve got, miles underground

Politicians talk about money in terms of what matters

But paying for wars, they can get it on platters

Lets get people off the dole is their famous shout

After shutting our pits and locking good workmen out

Look back at the pits and see what went on

When politics took over and common sense was gone

But one thing millionaires with their money can’t do

Look a miner in the eye and say “I’ve been there too.”

by Les Woods Sutton, St Helens

struggleA TIME OF

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LEGAL

Buying is both an exciting and stressful time in your life. For the majority of people buying a house represents the largest item of borrowing and expenditure they have ever had to incur. The prospect of a new home can seem daunting and a buyer will be told at an early stage that they need to engage a solicitor as soon as their offer on a property is accepted. It is often a good policy to try and find someone who comes recommended, as your solicitor will have a considerable influence on the smoothness of the purchase.

Whilst it is true that costs can vary substantially you should try to find out what is included in any initial quotation as some solicitors may not detail costs of the searches and other items such as a Land Registry fee. You should also choose a solicitor you believe you can work with, and communicate with you, in the way you would prefer.

Whilst factory or call centre type conveyancing may suit some buyers, others prefer to have direct contact with one person who can liaise with them directly for the duration of their house purchase. Nowadays many solicitors will also communicate by email.

One of the initial questions asked by a buyer is how long? Timescales are always notoriously difficult to predict at the outset because they are dependant upon so many variables. For example, there may just be a short chain for some matters whereas with others there may be a long chain of people and any ultimate agreed completion date has to be synchronised with all parties in the chain. Likewise most, if not all, people within the chain will require a mortgage and the delay on the part of any of the lenders in issuing a Mortgage Offer can seriously affect the timescale within the chain.

The solicitor will be in charge of:investigating the legal title to • the propertyapproving and possibly • amending the sellers contractsubmitting Local Authority and • other searches unless these are contained within a Home Information Packdealing with exchange of • Contracts

completion of the transaction • paying the Stamp Duty Land • Taxcompleting the relevant Tax • Returnregistering the title after • completiondealing with any • miscellaneous matters that arise.

In many instances a solicitor also represents the Mortgage Lender.

Solicitors investigate legal title to the property in accordance with long established legal principles together with a list of requirements contained within the Council of Mortgage Lenders Handbook.

From a buyer’s point of view it may seem on occasion that their solicitor may be unnecessarily pedantic but this is often simply because all the requirements of the lender have to be addressed fully and to the solicitor’s satisfaction. A buyer must remember that ultimately it is the solicitor who bears the liability of certifying that title to the property is good and marketable and asking the lender to release the mortgage advance funds. It is therefore an onerous and responsible task and should be appreciated by both the buyer and all Estate Agents within the relevant chain.

Exchange of Contracts

By way of guidance for a buyer, it is fair to say that the average transaction completes within 6 to 12 weeks during which time your solicitor will liaise with the various parties in the chain and the Estate Agents on the buyer’s behalf. In an ideal world Contracts are exchanged so that the transactions within the chain are legally binding, some time prior to completion.

Completion

Completion involves sending the purchase monies to your seller’s solicitors on completion day so that you can collect your keys and move into the property. There are times however when exchange of Contracts is simply not possible for a variety of reasons and exchange and completion occur simultaneously, although this is not ideal and leaves an element of

the client is registered as the new owner, any mortgage is registered against the property and the solicitor has ultimately reported to both the client and lender. This takes some time after the buyer has moved.

Wills

Finally, whilst it is probably the last thing on a buyer’s mind after completion of a purchase, each property owner should consider making a Will or updating any existing Will. The majority of buyers will have taken out Life Assurance so that in the event of their death the mortgage will be repaid and the buyer’s estate will own an asset. It is therefore prudent to make a Will appointing Executors and naming those whom a buyer would wish to benefit in the event of their death.

uncertainty within the chain right up until the last minute.

Completion Statement

Before the day agreed for completion your solicitor will prepare a statement detailing the purchase price and other disbursements to be incurred (search fees etc). The statement will then reflect any money you have already paid your solicitor and request a balance of money due from the buyer before completion.

Post Completion

Following completion the solicitor will deal with payment of Stamp Duty Land Tax and registration of the buyer’s ownership at the Land Registry. The solicitor’s work is not completed until such time as

by Helena Mitchinson

CONVEYANCINGLAW

Helena Mitchinson-Partner, Gregory Abrams Davidson Solicitors

“A buyer must remember that

ultimately it is the solicitor

who bears the liability...”

PAGE14(new).indd 1 7/10/08 12:15:04


LOCAL

Liverpool CityLife Magazine takes a very robust view when considering that British society is becoming increasingly lawless. In short, it won’t happen. We have an excellent police force and a government and opposition that, between them, will disprove the doubters in society. But we cannot become complacent either.

For whilst we do not have lawlessness, no one would disagree that the streets of Britain are far more dangerous today than they were even 30 years ago.

As with all responsible communities, individuals fight back; in doing so, tragically, innocent people lose their lives or suffer terrible injuries either at the hand of a gun or the slash and plunge of a knife. So the message to all of us here is –

But do call the police. They are the only people who can deal with crime. Members of the public must refrain from intervention, for we now have a society where criminals want intervention.

Gun crime is increasing and the age of those carrying guns is getting younger and younger. But there are ways of getting the message across; namely, by educating young people and giving them the opportunity to avoid or escape violence and gang culture.

We are delighted to review the forthcoming production of The Gun by Illy (who has directed Coronation Street). Illy’s work with schools is paramount. Young people can sometimes feel abandoned by teachers because of lawlessness in the classroom. They become disillusioned, angry and so demoralised that they seek only to disrupt the institution that may not have provided them with opportunities for any number of reasons.

Illy’s philosophy is to give these young people the first chance to prove their abilities, and whilst they might initially scoff at the idea, they do eventually turn up at each day’s production and make positive contributions. Many are dyslexic, severely to the point that because they cannot read their lines, they must rely upon memorising, coaxing, good direction and well-timed cues. Illy of course is a master of all of this and possesses the incredible ability to put even the most nervous at ease with a lovely twinkle in the eye and the hint of a smile that says “I’m about to beam!” The nation is enriched by many examples of his work including Coronation Street, Brookside and Casualty to name but three.

The Project’s 20 minute screenplay, filmed on and around the Stanley Dock on Waterloo Road, is sad, frightening and a true reminder of the problem we face and with which this column opened – the ease with which young people can now acquire guns!

There is much work to be done if we are to move our city forward and not be ankle-locked into the “Gangs of Liverpool” phenomenon. All of us have a duty and a responsibility to help here.

The Gun is a gritty piece of social realism which focuses on a dispute between two Liverpudlian gangs; ‘The Dockers’ and ‘The QCG’. When ‘The Dockers’ are attacked by the ‘QCG’ they experience a bitter desire for revenge. ‘The Dockers’ then discover a handgun in a stolen car which they realise puts them in an advantageous position. Intertwined with this is a tragic Romeo and Juliet-esque love story which concerns the relationship between a couple each affiliated with the separate gangs. The acting is very impressive considering the teenagers involved are from deprived backgrounds with little or no formal training.

The Gun is simple but effective in its portrayal of teenage gang culture in Liverpool with a clear, hard-hitting moral message. My only criticism concerns the soundtrack which might have included music from local urban artists instead of the generic US hip hop it is laden with.

The film has been screened through UFO Productions at FACT along with several other productions prepared by schools with whom Illy works closely.

As much as we might want to pitch in, don’t!

GUNS AND KNIVES HAVE NO PLACE IN BRITAIN

by Kenneth T. Webb +The Gun - A shor t f i lm

PAGE15(new).indd 1 7/10/08 12:16:19

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Liverpool CityLife Magazine - Issue 1

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Transcript of Liverpool CityLife Magazine - Issue 1