Ilkeston & West Hallam - A Packed Weekend
w/e 22 July 2012
All this week's pictures were taken
with a Kodak DX6490
In a summer that has been dogged by wet weather causing
many planned events to be cancelled, a brief respite in what
became a weekend packed with things to do and places to go, the
14th and 15th July saw many organisations and charities rejoicing
as they were able to participate at last in outdoor activities.
Over the weekend we were able to visit just three of them locally
and I was undecided which to feature on this page. In the end
I opted for a selection of images from all three.
Our first port of call on Saturday afternoon was the Stanton
Road Cemetery where the Friends of the Cemetery were holding
a Summer Celebration about their recent restoration work. Near
the entrance to the cemetery , the Derby Serenaders were entertaining
the visitors with a selection of well known melodies and for
their jazzy medley that included a version of "Old MacDonald"
they donned some natty headgear.
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The cemetery is no longer in use as a burial ground but contains
the tombstones of many celebrated Ilkestonians, the most famous
of which is probably "The Ilkeston Giant" Samuel Taylor. A number of stalls had been
set up such as this one with a variety of plants and members
of the Friends group were on hand to discuss future plans for
further restoration work in the cemetery.
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Other stalls in the cemetery illustrated the work done by the
Groundwork organisation, the Ilkeston Local History Society and
another by Animal Magic, an organisation that cares for rescued
birds and hedgehogs. The cemetery acts as a small haven for wildlife
in the surrounding built up area and many bird boxes have been
attached to the trees in the cemetery.
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We moved on from the cemetery to Victoria Park where the Rotary
Club's Midsummer Happening was being held and here too among
the charity stalls was one dedicated to animal rescue. This one
was Parrotaid and Gizmo and his handler were attracting a lot
of attention.
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A large crowd gathered around the bandstand to watch the Dance
Divas, a local dance troupe for children between the ages of
three and sixteen, go through their paces performing to the latest
pop songs.
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Oblivious to the Happening and with their minds set on another
celebration, a wedding party was being photographed in the park
as passers-by looked on.
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I don't know how the wedding party arrived or left the park but
it was probably not in this old car "guarded" by figures
depicting Laurel and Hardy. This was just one of about twenty
classic vehicles that had been arranged around the central flower
beds in the park.
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 Leaving
the Happening and Victoria Park behind we set off for our third
event of the afternoon, the Well Dressing Festival at West Hallam
but such was the popularity of the event, parking was at a premium
with the streets in the village centre being closed to traffic.
On Sunday however the sun came out and another visit was more
fruitful. A band was playing in the old schoolyard and a crowd
of people gathered around (left) but it was much easier to inspect
the dressings, many of which had an Olympic theme. Collecting
boxes at each dressing were in aid of various charities and this
one was labelled "Support Dogs".
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Another theme of the well dressing was obviously the Queen's
Diamond Jubilee and this one also featured a Union Flag draped
corgi in the display.
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The Jubilee and the Olympics were also themes adopted by the
Scarecrow Trail which ran alongside and in conjunction with the
Well Dressing Festival. A unique portrayal of Usain Bolt made
full use of his surname but I'm not sure what the Queen would
have made of being asked to stand in someone's garden to frighten
the birds away. She may have been tempted to repeat a phrase
associated with another Queen and utter "Off with his head"
which unfortunately is what some vandals did to several of the
other scarecrows scattered around the village. Someone always
has to spoil things don't they?
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