autumn 2013 - u3asites · letter from the chair christine hawkridge dear members this is my first...

Letter from the Chair Christine Hawkridge

Dear Members

This is my first letter from the Chair. I know it is customary on such occasions to pay tribute to one’s predecessor. In my case this is truly heartfelt. I am sure you will agree that Meryl Kempster has done an excellent job for the past three years and I want to take this opportunity to thank her for her sterling service to Edinburgh U3A. She is an inspiration and a hard act to follow. You may be asking yourself now what a Sassenach is doing in Edinburgh U3A Chair. It’s true my parents were English, but I was born in Palmerston Place during WWII (when my father was training recruits for the army), and went to primary school in Longniddry, so I hope to be accepted as an honorary Scot! This Autumn 2013 edition of The Clarion is bursting with fine examples of our members’ creative writing on the themes of ‘Collecting’ and ‘Ambitions to be Realised’. I hope you will enjoy them and that they will stimulate you to put pen to paper yourself for our next edition. We would also like more articles about what your group is up to. Don’t assume we all already know! Here in Edinburgh our membership is still increasing annually and we now have more than 1500 members. It’s a measure of our success, and as a result communications are a priority for the Committee. We aim to keep you better informed, and to that end will shortly be posting photographs of the current committee on the website and at our Open Meetings in St. Cuthbert’s, so you will be able to put names to faces. The Bulletin, our monthly newsletter, is issued electronically once a month to over a thousand of you online; we are concerned that the other third has easy access to U3A news. At the moment we rely on Group Leaders to download the Bulletin and make it available to their members. If you have ideas about how the system might be improved without vast expense on postage, please contact a committee member (details on your membership card). I’ve kept the best news until the end. From July 2013 there will be no charge for attendance at the monthly Open Meeting at St. Cuthbert’s. If that isn’t a good reason to attend, I don’t know what is! I look forward to seeing many of you there in the coming months, and hearing your opinions of this edition of The Clarion and any other matters on your mind.

Number 61/11

Autumn 2013

In this issue:

COMMITTEE NEWS

1 Letter from the Chair 2 Your Committee 2013-2014 3 Aberdeen U3A Neighbourhood Day 4 Edinburgh U3A AGM June 2013

FEATURE

Ambitions to Be Realised 4 Bang a Bing! 5 Unfulfilled Ambitions 6 Forty Years Late 7 Will the Opportunity Ever Knock? In Search of Charles Hodge Mackie

FEATURE

Collecting 8 Collecting Photographica 9 Collecting Fabrics 10 Going up in Smoke! 11 An Eggstraordinary Collection 12 The Jackdaw Bulldogs, Banjos, Gems and other

Sundry Staples 13 Blue and Blue-and-White China 14 Collecting – a Life Principle? Musical Instruments

GROUPS 17 Art, Crafts and Photography in

Edinburgh U3A 18 Réseau Français 19 Geology Group Trip to Eigg 20 Summer Visits – New Lanark Outing New Groups for 2013-2014 21 The Lunch Club

EVENT 22 Edinburgh Follies January 2013

ENDNOTES 23 Editor’s Note Not Getting the Monthly Bulletin?

Clarion online No 61/11 Autumn 2013


Aberdeen U3A Neighbourhood Day - 10 May 2013

ttracted by the Town and Gown theme for the day, and the chance to hear

about Marischal College, well remembered from Sunday afternoon orchestra practices, together with an interesting selection of group activities, I took an early train north, enjoying once more the Forth and Tay Bridges, the familiar land and seascapes, all enhanced by a sunny blue sky.

We were warmly greeted by Aberdeen U3A, who throughout the day lavished friendliness and hospitality on their Neighbours. It was fine to hear a body of Aberdeen accents again and a good mixture of others as well, reflecting the embracing nature of U3A. Pat McConnachie, Chairman, outlined the day’s arrangements and we settled down to listen to a very interesting and enthusiastic talk given by Chris Croly, Aberdeen Council’s Historian, about the site of Marischal College from its inception by Grey Friars to its present Council occupancy. It was reassuring to be told that the old museum, albeit soon to be rehoused, has survived many changes, but no doubt ghosts still lurk in ‘The Drain’ – who would want to work late in the offices once occupied by the anatomy labs, where unexplained creaks and footsteps had been heard ... ?

The Aberdeen groups had arranged collages on the walls representing what they do - one or two even had competitions with prizes. Most people could identify all the French pictures, except for the young pop singer, but at least one person had been keeping up, because the bottle of wine was won! After a group photograph we had a lovely lunch, prepared by the local members.

Pat’s bell indicated it was time for the Old Aberdeen Walkers to set off, followed by the Spanish Phillip strollers heading for the Art Gallery. The Crazy Patchworkers stayed in the hall, while the rest of us crossed Union Street to the Northern Arts Club where a Discussion Forum aimed to solve the world’s

problems in an hour and a Poetry Group hoped to reach parts which other activities do not. I had opted for the Scottish Heritage Group whose subject was The Sea, the herring and whaling industries in the North East in particular. As well as singing a couple of songs from the Singing the Fishing about the industries, and discussing the language and place names, we talked about the rise and fall of the industries, their impact on the people involved and some customs and superstitions held by fishing people.

We reassembled in the hall to welcome tea and wonderful home baking. After a farewell from the Chairman, we made our way home – myself armed with three little quiches thoughtfully wrapped in tinfoil by a lady in the kitchen to ‘keep me going’ on the train home, as if starvation were possible after the scones and lemon drizzle cake. Plenty to think about on the journey home, this time with a calm evening view of the sea, young families being tired-out on the coastal paths and cows and ewes with their lambs settling down for the night.

So, apart from meeting a variety of interesting people, and an absorbing programme, it was also interesting to see how another U3A organised itself. The structure was reassuringly the same. I liked their version of a couple of groups, e.g. Discussion Lunches, though they also have an International Lunch Group! The Scottish Heritage Group seemed to take a different slant than straight Scottish History, which could be worth exploring. And I liked their idea of a Christmas Party, Quiz and Tea – which might be an alternative to our own Carols and Stollen format. In return, a retired engineer expressed an interest in our Science Group, and I was asked how a large U3A managed to accommodate everybody. Yes, something for everyone! Did I hear another visiting group say they were considering a Neighbours Day? Hope so!

Sheila Smith

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Edinburgh U3A AGM June 201

t the Annual General Meeting in June 2013, our Chair, Meryl Kempster, stood

down after three years in the post. Edinburgh U3A is grateful to her for her dedication and outstanding contribution to the success of our organisation.

She is succeeded by Christine Hawkridge (elected unopposed as Chair). Liam McDowell now takes on the role of Vice Chair, in addition to his duties as Editor of the Clarion, and the committee welcomes Anne Hay, who becomes a Groups Coordinator. The remaining members of the committee continue in post for another year: Dianne Fraser (Treasurer), Sheila Smith (Secretary), Elisabeth Hutchings (Groups Coordinator), Evelyn McPake (Groups Coordinator), Ann Dewar (Groups Coordinator), Margaret Farish (Membership Secretary), Hilary Bruce (New Members Secretary), and Bruce Cowan (Technical Support Officer). Pictures of all the committee members can be found on Page 2. The minutes of the 2012 AGM, the Annual Report and the Treasurer’s Report were all accepted and, after many years work, the New Constitution was adopted.

Sheila Smith

AMBITIONS TO BE REALISED

Bang a Bing!

agging Munros a distant memory? Fortunately, if you belong to the ‘If it

looks like a hill, and it feels like a hill, then it’s a hill’ school then there are numerous undemanding, and yet rewarding, summits within easy reach of Edinburgh.

Albyn Bing and Union Canal

West Lothian boasts over 19 bings and my ambition is to climb them all. Bings are post-industrial spoil heaps of burnt shale. In 1850 James ‘Paraffin’ Young invented the first-ever method of producing oil from rock and began the Lothian shale-oil industry. His process involved the retorting and distillation of naphtha, paraffin, oil, and wax. Petrochemical production peaked in 1913, but ceased in 1963 owing to competition from cheap oils from America and Saudi Arabia. Many of the then 27 bings (which contained more material than the pyramids of Egypt) have since disappeared, having been used for low-grade fill for the construction and road-building industries. Of the 19 pure shale bings remaining, three are scheduled monuments, some have been turned into extensive community woodlands, one (Drumshoreland South) is a golf course,

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Bang a Bing! (Continued) several contain recycling centres, and one (Niddry) has been excavated, its hollowed-out core destined to accommodate 3,500 new homes. The highest (Five Sisters) requires an ascent of 91m, the lowest (Addiewell) 9m. Both are well worth a visit. Deans is the largest, covering 74ha, but is not particularly pleasant. Mid-Breach is the smallest at 4ha. Nevertheless, I managed to get lost in its woodlands. Oakbank is regarded, by ecologists, as having been particularly sensitively landscaped, seeded and replanted. Others have been allowed to naturally regenerate ‒ their curious geological properties leading to varied and unusual developing plant communities. More than 350 plant species have been recorded, including locally and nationally rare flora.

Trial Bike Trails

Finding the true summit of the bings can often be more challenging than locating the top of a Munro. Many summits are extensive, gently undulating plateaus of grassland, devoid of cairns or markers.

Ascents can be quite challenging, with red screes sloping upwards at angles of 35o, best climbed by ‘kicking in’ and plodding on up.

Greendykes Bing

If you like extensive views then Greendykes (the Ayres Rock look-alike), with its fabulous 360o panorama of the Highlands, Fife, Berwick Law, The Pentlands and Campsie Fells, is a must. The summit of East Whitfield (a mixed coal/shale bing) boasts an unofficial dog cemetery. Seafield, which has never been reclaimed, and instead used by the local council for tipping household refuse and sewage sludge, is actually rather pleasant – and one of my favourites. As a final observation: if the bings sound attractive to you, then an excellent 40 page guide is Barbra Harvie’s study ‘Oil Shale Bings’ commissioned by West Lothian Council, available from their website at http://tinyurl.com/kuqxmvv

Roy Thompson

Unfulfilled Ambitions

etirement brings a change of pace, and, for those of us whose professional life

was governed by timetables, the opportunity to organise unlimited leisure time and convert erstwhile yearnings into achievable ambitions.

In 1998 the round of the Munros was an easy choice for me; it represented a testing but finite physical challenge which would take me to remote and beautiful places in my homeland. I started to tick them off: nearest hills on day trips first, then two- and three-day expeditions with several summits reached each time.

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Unfulfilled Ambitions (Continued) All was going well until Foot and Mouth Disease closed much of the Highlands to walkers and the momentum was lost. Different challenges replaced Munro-bagging, but at the time of writing I am back in the saddle, organising trips up north with friends or setting off on my own. I have 23 still to do.

Retirement also offers the opportunity to learn new skills; a foreign language, singing in a choir, learning how to play golf or bridge. I confess that none of the above is an ambition which I nurtured throughout my working life. There is one skill, however, which I have long admired in others and coveted ... one ability which would allow me to express exactly how I feel at certain times ... one little accomplishment which would make me very, very happy.

I would love to be able to yodel. Not the melancholic Swiss yodelling but the thigh-

slapping, cocky, melodious warbling of the Austrians and Bavarians – a cross between the greet-the-morning paeans of a blackbird and a donkey. I would love to be able to throw my head back and just go for it!

I hope that friendly weather this summer will enable me to advance to the tingling state of ‘one Munro to go’. I will plan the last trip and invite family and friends to climb the hill with me. A mild celebration will take place on the summit, and I will enjoy the rosy feeling of an ambition fulfilled.

The moment would be extra special if I could stand on the summit, look out over the rugged beauty of Scotland then cup my hands over my mouth and issue a long, melodic yodel of triumph.

Anyone know a good voice coach?

David Syme

Forty Years Late first came to Scotland in 1955, to university at St Andrews. It was my

intention to study mathematics and philosophy, but increasing interest in philosophy led to that being my only subject in my final year. From there I went on to Oxford, where I learned to draw but failed to complete my B. Phil. Degree.

In 1973, working at Edinburgh University, I did complete a Ph.D. thesis in Philosophy. It contended that the way in which we speak of mental events, like thoughts and sensations, is different from the way in which we speak of objects. We describe objects; but the way we speak of mental events is, instead, akin to quotation, where the quoted words have the same meaning as the original. Thus, when we speak of a thought, we do not describe the thought but repeat its meaning.

My thesis consisted of three chapters of what I planned as a book of some eight chapters. But I had missed my chance of a career in philosophy, and that book was never written.

After joining U3A, I took up philosophy again. I have led groups entitled ‘Philosophy and Science’, ‘Freethinkers’ and, for the last four years, ‘Thinkers’. In the first of those years, I included the 18th-century Scottish philosopher, Thomas Reid; and I realised that he had foreshadowed the ideas of my thesis with his notion of ‘natural signs’.

This has been helpful when, recently, I have been trying to produce an article developing the core ideas of my thesis. That is now quite well advanced, though I am having difficulty placing in order the many ramifications of my basic contention; for that has implications for many philosophical topics – not least, the question whether it makes any sense to speak of a mind.

Forty years on from the time I finished my thesis, it is now my ambition that I should have my article published. Once I have achieved a reasonable progression of ideas, I shall submit it to ‘Mind’, the leading British philosophical journal – a neat conjunction, as I am suggesting that there is no such thing!

Michael Hutchings

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Will The Opportunity Ever Knock?

s I grow ever older and older And I notice the passing of time

(I think) Is there some jump which I haven’t accomplished? Some mountain I haven’t yet climbed? Is there some lily still needing its gild? Some omission I’d like to address? Something that’s fun that I ought to have done? The answer, my friends, is YES! I’d love to be seen on the Telly I want to be viewed on the Box I got the idea that I’d like to appear When I saw Opportunity Knocks. So now what I have to decide is Which programme do I want to choose? Well Deal or No Deal simply doesn’t appeal And Big Brother I’d certainly lose. Millionaire, Mastermind, Eggheads – Perhaps I could try a quiz show? But I have to acknowledge the gaps in my knowledge Outweigh all the things that I know.

I don’t think I could be a Top Model; Dragon’s Den? – I’ve got nothing to sell. I can’t even claim an Embarrassing Ailment, And Looking Good Naked – er…well! I could enter for Britain’s Got Talent – Coming on to tumultuous applause; There is only one thing – I can’t dance and can’t sing But let’s face it – that’s par for the course. I wondered about Antiques Road Show, Trawled through all of my household debris. And I had to confess the one thing I possess That’s sufficiently antique is me! Well I’ll just have to settle for what I can get And what my situation allows, So buy in the Vim, come on Aggie and Kim Sign me up for How Clean is Your House?

Ann Inglis

In Search of Charles Hodge Mackie

n retirement, a whole vista of ambitions opened up, including one that I stumbled

on by fortuitous accident. It is linked to a beautiful oil painting which I look at now, as I type. It is a Venetian canal scene painted in 1910 by an Edinburgh-based artist called Charles Hodge Mackie (1862–1920) and used to belong to a very dear aunt who died in the 1970s. I did have to bid for it at Bonham's and it took every hard-earned teacher's penny, but it has stayed with me to remind me of all the times we looked at it together. With the novelty of time to read for pleasure, I decided to read up on Charles Mackie and discovered there was no biography, only references in art books and a scattered collection in public hands. Here lay my mission: to indulge in some genuine historical research and to rectify an artistic injustice, since he (and his art) deserve to be more widely known.

CH Mackie Watercolour

This was confirmed when everyone I met said how delighted they were that someone had the time to ‘work on Mackie’! Since then it has been a fascinating journey of discovery, disappointment and delight. I have trudged through fields near Kirkcudbright, ferretted through dusty

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In Search of Charles Hodge Mackie (Continued)archives, haunted gallery basements and investigated graveyards, as well as becoming an excellent customer of the NLS (and their excellent soup!). What has become clear is that many of his paintings have ‘disappeared’ into private hands and the collective memory has thus been lost. This is where I thought the members of the U3A might be able to help. Given the closeness of the Edinburgh community and the age profile of the U3A, I hope there are some worthy individuals who can assist me in my endeavour. Mackie lived in the Coltbridge Studio (the old Roseburn Primary School) from 1896 until his death in 1920; his widow, Anne, and son, Donald, stayed there till 1946 before moving to Blairgowrie. Many of his paintings were bought by Edinburgh denizens

and there was a wide, sociable artistic circle linked to Patrick Geddes, William Walls and other well-known names. Can you help? If you know anything about the Mackies or are lucky enough to own a Mackie, I would love to hear from you. Due acknowledgement will be given and confidence respected. I also have the blessing of Bill Mackie, in Australia, who is pleased that I am researching his ‘Uncle Charlie’. I live near the centre of Edinburgh and would be very willing to travel – to realise my ambition. I can be contacted though the editor by email: [email protected]

Pat Clark

COLLECTING

Collecting Photographica or many people, collecting is largely about nostalgia. I can trace my

fascination with cameras to my schooldays in Stirling, when my route to the High School took me past Boots the Chemist and The Steeple Pharmacy. In these shop windows there was always a display of cameras; the War had just ended, so the cameras were mainly simple box-type - but even these I could not afford to buy at that time. From the age of eleven I had wanted a camera I could take with me on my cycling trips around Stirling and the Trossachs; photography, particularly landscape photography, has been my principal hobby ever since, and at times more than a hobby. With my first month’s pay from my first job after leaving school in 1951, I was able to put down a deposit for a fifteen-guinea camera from Dixons of Edgeware; I like to boast that my hire-purchase agreement helped make the company the success it later became. Photography became very important in my life, so much so that I gave up my job to become a photographer in the RAF for five

years, and that experience led to a long and happy career in astronomy… per ardua ad astra! My collecting started one day in 1964 when my boss was throwing out old equipment from darkrooms that were being upgraded. I instinctively rescued from the bin a couple of old wood and brass cameras; it just seemed wrong that such things should be destroyed. I did some research some time later and found that a lens attached to one of the cameras was made in about 1870. As the years passed I began to appreciate how photography had been an important influence in my life, and I developed an interest in the history of photography, photographic history (its use in the recording of events), and photographic equipment. I began to frequent the many antique shops in Causewayside and other parts of Edinburgh, shops that no longer exist. One of my more expensive purchases was further afield, in the Portobello Road market in London: I’m sure the Cockney stall-holder saw me coming!

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Collecting Photographica (Continued)

Nowadays I am no longer actively collecting, as I have used up the space wisely allocated to the cause by my late wife, although I do manage to squeeze in the occasional gift from a friend. And there is a slight overflow into the loft that only I know about: collecting can get out of hand! My collection takes three forms: literature, cameras and associated equipment. The cameras make an interesting display, and I have used my collection on one occasion to

illustrate how cameras have evolved from the earliest days of the cumbersome tripod-based ones to the hand-held miniatures of to-day. I have recently added my first digital camera - although purists might object. I have many box cameras, including one of the earliest (1904) and last (1980) Box Brownies, but my favourites are the folding cameras of the 1920s and 1930s; the Art Deco Kodaks are particularly attractive, though perhaps their beauty is in the eye of the collector! Much of the pleasure I have had from collecting photographica has been in researching manufacturers. For example, I was given a heavy brass-bound lens carrying the name Gasc and Charconnet, Paris, and what appeared to be the reference number 31460: it was obviously a nineteenth-century lens, but it was hard to believe that over 31,000 had been made. The penny dropped when I wrote the number as 3,14,60 - the French way of writing a date consistent with the history of the company. Anyone interested in the history of photography should, if not already a member, consider joining the Photographic Collectors Club of Great Britain.

Alex McLachlan

Collecting Fabricss a child, I lived in the country. I collected feathers and birds’ eggs. I also

collected insects, arranging them in my deceased grandfather’s beautifully crafted entomological boxes, after killing them humanely in a cyanide jar. I grow hot and cold at the memory to this day. Later, I discovered it was more fun to collect for other people. Thus I have passed on numerous wrapped sugar cubes, match-boxes and match-books, bone or ivory fish counters, Goss china, miniature glass animals, the occasional rummer, pieces of treen, and bone spoons. Jelly-moulds were especially attractive, with their wonderful

sculptural qualities. Indeed, some items I could not part with, and they joined my accumulation – something subtly different from a collection, being less specialised. There was, however, one thing I did collect for myself: cotton fabrics. My mother and grandmother both made patchworks, and I made my first attempt as a five-year-old. The inspiration came not only from their work, but from the rag-bag treasure-trove in the spare bedroom chest of drawers. As well as the usual off-cuts squirrelled away over the years, there were dresses from the 20s and 30s too good to throw away, a length of Liberty print too good to use in those wartime

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Collecting Fabrics (Continued)years, Chinese robes and a five-inch pair of slippers for bound feet, brought back by a medical missionary great-great-uncle; watered silks, moiré ribbons, a sequinned skirt and lengths of gilt and bead embroidery from a friend who was a dresser at Covent Garden; there were two mob-caps and several pairs of lace mittens, one of them tea-stained. Traditionally you never bought patchwork material; you raided the rag-bag. Thus my favourite patchwork samples were my grandmother’s apron, aunts’ curtains, and shirt-tails and summer dresses from friends and family. But when I became a full-time patchworker, free sources were simply insufficient. I had to buy new material - and I discovered that holidays, especially abroad, provided an excellent opportunity to find new designs.

All my souvenirs were pieces of material, and memories of travels were now stored in the quilts. My search took me into all sorts of unlikely places, and led to wonderful conversations in languages I did not know, sometimes with other enthusiasts, sometimes trying to explain the logic of cutting the material into tiny pieces then sewing it together again. By the time my eyesight was no longer good enough, I had collected three blanket chests, two kit-bags and six assorted plastic bags of material. A local group took them over with enthusiasm, while I still have the pleasure of riffling through them, and my mother’s rag-bag drawer, in my mind. My accumulation, meanwhile, inevitably grows.

Peggy Reid

Going up in Smoke!ir Compton Mackenzie, author of ‘Sublime Tobacco’, was living in Cromer when he

smoked his first cigarette in July 1887, at the age of four and a half years. So precise are his recollections of that moment that it must have been a truly memorable experience. He smoked his first cigar at the age of twelve years, and mastered a pipe when he had attained the ripe age of fourteen years; whilst at Oxford he owned 40 pipes, and no doubt smoked them all. No-one in my family owned or smoked a pipe. Cigarettes were my first contact with the ‘sublime art’. I was persuaded to smoke my first cigarette at the age of eighteen years, and from that moment was thoroughly addicted. Occasionally my weekend trips to South Shields market, where I enjoyed browsing through the second-hand book stalls, brought me into contact with the odd discarded pipe. The day came when I picked one up and held it in my hand. It was a fine briar; it was much scorched around its rim, and had obviously been well loved.

I cradled it in my palm, and from that moment a love affair blossomed between myself and every kind of pipe and smoking memorabilia. I would spend my days searching antique shops and street markets for pipes. Soon I had a small collection tucked away in my bedroom bottom drawer. My mother, unfortunately, did not share my enthusiasm, and such was her disgust at ‘that filthy habit’ that on returning from my honeymoon and making my first trip home, I found she had disposed of the entire collection. ‘The dustbin was the best place for them’, she said. ‘Anyway, I didn’t wish your new husband to be embarrassed, as we have been, by having his friends see his wife puffing a pipe with a cigarette sticking out of its bowl’, she added. Yes, I could not dispute that fact. I had been forced into this rather eccentric habit while saving for my forthcoming wedding: as ‘rolling one’s own’ often resulted in cigarette papers bursting, I had turned to inserting them into the bowl of one of my favourite pipes. To me it had been absolutely ‘Perfick!’ - but my mother had not admired my spirit of invention.

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Going up in Smoke (Continued)The years passed and life brought us to Edinburgh. One day while browsing among the antique shops in the Stockbridge area I came upon a delightful meerschaum pipe carved as an 18th Century sailor. Mesmerised, I picked it up. ‘Just who had owned it in its lifetime?’ I wondered. I sniffed the bowl, and my senses reeled with the pungent odours that clung to it. I replaced it, reasoning that as I had been a non-smoker for most of my married life, it would seem a little unbalanced to begin collecting pipes once more. I reached the door - but with a

sigh, returned to the counter and was soon hurrying home with my first treasure.

Collecting pipes is a remarkably easy hobby. Finding them in these days when smoking is frowned on by all and sundry has not been easy, but once ferreted out and brought home, they take up little space and are not too hard on the pocket. Bill, my husband, is now equally enthusiastic and joins me in our hunts whenever we find ourselves in markets and antique areas. We have travelled widely during the 50 years of our marriage, and each time we bring home some form of smoking memorabilia as a trophy. We now own over 100 pipes and all kinds of pipe racks, smoking cabinets, cigarette holders, Vesta boxes, cigarette boxes, lighters, cigar cases and cutters, and pipes dating as far back as 1810.

Valerie Simpson

An Eggstraordinary Collection

didn't intend to collect egg cups. They happened to be economical presents from

our four kids as they passed through Scout and Guide jumble sales. After that, you might say, they egged me on. Further encouragement came from a friend whose passion was car boot sales. Once a week she would drive us to the venue, where we would part company for an hour to concentrate on buying. We returned to my house to examine the loot over a coffee or two. I would express admiration over her antiques, and she would say very little about my – um – egg cups. It was a happy arrangement; but it was leaving me with a problem – how do you display 400-500 egg cups?

This led to a new target at the car boot sales. I amassed old wooden cutlery holders: I found that, turned on one side and with two hooks attached, each holder could accommodate from 16 to 20 egg cups. These ultimately lined the four walls of the dining room.

I subscribed to a magazine, ‘Egg Cup World’, which tempted and teased with information about the history of different potteries and lists of current eye-watering prices for the pick of the crop. And, of course, I bought books. I remember the day when I found an egg cup at a jumble sale and discovered it was illustrated on the front cover of my latest paperback. Such triumph! Reality struck when the dining room had to be decorated. Washing and storing 500 egg cups became a chore. Suddenly I knew the bug had left me. I picked out 180 favourites and packed the rest in cardboard boxes to be stored in the home of all dead things - my garage. So why did I start to collect egg cups? I suppose they were going cheap – or should that be ‘cheep’!

Liz Casciani

STOP PRESS U3A in Scotland Philosophy Study Day - Wed 25th September 2013

his event, to be held in Perth, will be led by Marianne Talbot, Director of Studies in Philosophy at Oxford University. More details can be found in the news section of their website

http://www.u3ascotland.org.uk/ or contact E.D. Link at email: [email protected] tel: 01337 827637

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COLLECTING

The Jackdaw (A poem for Arthur on his 60th birthday)

Today we congratulate Arthur, a fine-feathered friend we admire, on reaching a notable milestone, although he’s no plans to retire. He’s living just now in ‘Auld Reekie’, where he blends with the natives ‘just fine’, culture-vulture of sub-species jackdaw, he’s a gourmet of fine cheese and wine. His nest-building skills are a mystery, for he first rents a temporary lair, to house his collection of collections, his crystal and Crown Derby ware. His programmes of concerts and operas, every diva and maestro he’s heard, and lists of each feathered friend spotted, from year dot, to last Tuesday’s new bird. And labels from old French wine bottles, and decanters and rare biscuit tins, and CDs and magazines in bundles, untouched since the day he moved in!

Aladdin would envy the treasures in his spare room, from ceiling to floor. And still he’s acquiring new samples from the bathrooms of hotels galore! Now Arthur’s approaching the moment, when a fellow’s supposed to retire, and retreat to the pipe and the slippers, and wait for his time to expire. So his friends wait with mounting excitement to see how the game will be played. Will he sell his collections on e-bay, or sit on the nest egg he’s laid? Will he finally unpack all the boxes, and free his spare room for a guest, or expand all his loot exponentially, and flit to a six-bedroomed nest? Whatever he does, we’ll be watching our kleptoman-i-acal friend. Like birds ensnared on a lime-twig, we’ll stick to you, Arthur, dear friend!

Christine Hawkridge

Bulldogs, Banjos, Gems and Sundry Other Staples

ver many years I have collected many things, and have become accustomed to

the reactions of those to whom I mention these items, all of which I cherish:- Postal history of Spain – ‘Oh, how very interesting!’ Chickens – ‘I do frogs, or owls, or cats, or … wombats, but I only have one!’ Gouda pottery – ‘Anything to do with cheese?’ Coffee cups – ‘I’ve got some of those.’ Blue and white china – ‘D’you mean that striped stuff?’ Herend figurines – ‘What on earth are they?’ Jelly moulds – ‘Never use them anymore.’ Japanese Kokeshi dolls – ‘Have you been there?’

But there is one collection that causes very varied reactions, from laughter or total disbelief to a puzzled expression which conveys ‘Whatever for?’. This is the collection of specimens of an article which everyone uses regularly, probably without ever giving it a thought. It is the humble paper clip! I find these paper-attaching items to be of more interest than might be imagined. The collection begins with an 18th century pin, very similar to a modern pin but with a larger, much rounder head. Lawyers of that time also used ribbon and stitched their papers together with an awl. Perhaps some still do. The first paper clips as we know them to-day were first patented in America in1867 but did not appear on the market, as the ‘Fay’ (or

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Bulldogs, Banjos, Gems and Sundry other Staples (Continued)

‘Philadelphia’), along with many others, until the 1890s, when suitable steel wire became available at a reasonable price. Most of the early types are from the USA and include the ‘Gem’ (the one we all know best), the ‘Banjo’, the ‘Mogul’, the ‘Daisy’, the ‘Owl’ and many, many more. There were also clips made from sheet metal such as the ‘Eureka’ and the ‘Utility’. The ‘Bulldog’, so called possibly because of its very tight grip, is thought to have been invented in this country. Its trademark was first registered here in 1944, but some of those in my collection suggest it is much older than that, being rusty and not very attractive - besides which, some bear the number 1910, although this of course may not be a date. Over the years, methods of attaching papers have come in many forms, materials and colours. I have various metal, plastic and paper examples, even one covered in leather; and most of us probably remember the wood-based spike upon which the local grocer stuck one’s mother’s order.

Then, there is the ‘Treasury tag’, a combination of cord and metal or plastic making a loose connection which allows pages to be turned without removing the tag, sometimes with a rubber stopper to prevent pages from flapping. Some clips appear to have been used as a primitive filing system, being marked ‘Paid’ or ‘Memo’; and there were numerous advertising opportunities.

I have a handsome and heavy brass clip inscribed ‘Players Please’, a bakelite clip and measure for attachment to a knitting pattern from Copleys (a wool manufacturer), a large plastic example from The Times, and some small ones from local advertisers and societies. Recent acquisitions include metal hands, a striped plastic-coated ‘Gem’ (not surprisingly called the

‘Zebra’), a set of numbers from 0 to 9, and a red ‘Bulldog’. It looks as though this is collection will run and run, and at quite a clip!

Evelyn McPake

P.S. I used also to collect inkwells and ink bottles, fountain pens and pencils!

Blue and Blue-and-White China

n interest in blue and white patterned china began when I was a child, and we

had a set of blue china with white floral designs. My collection started when I inherited a pine dresser. Soon, its bare shelves displayed blue Italian Spode, with its classic landscape patterns; and then some treasured antique dishes found a home. These were followed by blue willow ware plates in the legendary design, with busy Pagoda gardens by a lake decorated with butterflies and a pair of turtle doves. Travels brought an azure blue bowl from Crete, and mugs from Germany, deep blue with white spots.

Back home in a famous Princes Street store I found a hard-to-resist blue fruit bowl, decorated with broad white circular stripes - and stamped on the bottom, ‘Made in Malawi’. On a visit to the Midlands once, a friend took me to the Burleigh Factory Shop, famous for blue-and-white earthenware patterns, called Calico and Asiatic Pheasant. Wooden dressers lined the walls, and long tables were loaded with mugs, jugs, bowls, cups, saucers and all manner of tableware. There have been some breakages: after buying two Spode dinner plates at a market stall in Yorkshire, I put them into daily use. A friend came to dinner soon afterwards and accidentally dropped them - so that was that!

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Blue and Blue-and-While China (Continued)

The day came when the collection had to be downsized. But one shelf in a kitchen cupboard is still full of decorated bowls and jugs, most of which are rarely used; and on seeing a blue and white porcelain Chinese tea caddy recently for 50 pence in a charity

shop, I had to bring it home with me! I could not explain the attraction to blue and blue-and-white china; my tastes have changed over 45 years. But it has given me pleasure, and still does.

Elspeth J.Anderson

Living with a Collector

t's not that I'm a collector; it's that I'm married to one. His enthusiasms are

trams, butterflies, maps (old and new), china plates (old and Chinese or Japanese), Imari animals, clocks, automata, motorbikes, any cats, vintage cars, steam engines, historic prints, newspapers and probably more. Where I come in the hierarchy is not clear. These enthusiasms are translated into associated collections. The tram collection includes many models, some electric, some static; old and new books of all shapes; and photographs. He's also in loco parentis to two full-size ones, but they don't live with us. The 'working' model tramway has been under construction for five years and takes up half the games room. He doesn't collect butterflies pinned in boxes, thank goodness, but has shelves of books about butterflies around the world. If we go anywhere abroad, he will usually say ‘Ah, I think I have a book about butterflies there’. Maps are awkward things. He likes to have a map of anywhere that appeals to him, so maps take up shelf space, and there are rolled-up specimens and others in boxes. They cause much muttering, along the lines of ‘But that's not right’, mostly about Spanish maps. They do sometimes come in useful on our travels The old china plates were collected many years ago, when he put a 10/- maximum price on each purchase. They have since gone up so much in price that the collecting has ceased, but the collection adorns our

walls and is admired by visitors. Collecting has ceased for old postcards, automata, vintage motorbikes and cars. A 1927 Austin 7, a 1934 Lagonda Rapier, an enormous Alvis, a 1927 Norton motorbike and a 1939 Speed Twin Triumph have all come and gone to various good homes. Postcards (mostly depicting trams) could be had for 1d each; now sometimes £4 or £5 is asked. The ‘automata collection’ consisted of one lovely musical box with eight tunes - these boxes soon became too expensive (the ‘Antiques Roadshow’ effect?), but the chase continued for years! The newspapers were on the scene before I was, but apparently consisted of the mastheads of newspapers from around the world. Moving to a small flat meant they had to go, free, to an enthusiastic new owner - who never wrote, paid the hefty postage fee or said ‘Thanks’. He still likes to lay hands on prints of Scotland by William Daniell from the 1820s, and Imari animals (does anyone have any?); and while there is still space on our walls and the window sills respectively, I'm happy with that. Otherwise the collecting urge has declined, in inverse ratio to his age; but he takes much pleasure in the things he has spent a lifetime collecting - and in the memories of things that have gone, for whatever reason. One cat is still with us – not an Imari, but an aged black and white moggy.

Marjorie Mackenzie

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Collecting – A Life Principle? lassically, collecting applies to things like stamps: my sister gave me her stamp

collection when I was 11 (I’ve never forgotten the number, 969), and I’ve rediscovered philately at intervals since. There must be 40,000 stamps now; I should give them to Oxfam, but they’re too much part of me. Working for a publisher, I gathered so many books from the staff discount shop that they overfill eight IKEA bookcases. (I’m always being nagged to give them away.) Every last screw, nail and fitment that passed my way got lovingly saved - until my wife made me give them all to charity. I collected folk music CDs for ages, and even traditional whistles, until my hearing got the better of me. When I was a boy I worked hard on a fine collection of Airfix models – which my mother later chucked out. It was the same with my Meccano, and my enormous, carefully-labelled rock collection: they all went into the dustbin. It seems that women always want to thwart my collecting instinct! However, the instinct to collect also applies to knowledge and experiences, not just to stuff which can be thrown away. It’s a memory thing: by collecting bird-watching notes, I can recall when (or whether!) I’ve seen redpolls before. Writing a diary is also a form of collecting: the day’s events, experiences on holiday (with a collection of photos, of course), or even just ‘collecting’ one’s thoughts about problems. Allied to all this is an equally deep fascination with classification. Spreadsheets let you classify things in limitless ways; possibly the most eccentric is an Excel catalogue of my

sand collection. Yes, I collect beach sand – there, I’ve said it!

It started off as free souvenirs of beaches I have visited, with interests in geography and geology, but then friends and relatives started giving me Bondi Beach, or Santorini, or even Deception Island; so it took off afresh, providing quirky souvenirs of people I have known. The principle of collecting runs very deep: it’s all to do with making sense of the complexities of the world. Collecting experiences in a diary is a way of comparing and valuing one thing against another, whether it’s mediaeval churches, exhibitions, plays, parties, artisan cheeses, Munros, DIY work, or even awkward family moments. Without the collecting principle, everything would be incomprehensible chaos, nothing relating to anything else. With it, I can cling on to the belief that life is not really running out of control after all.

Roger Pountain

Musical Instruments

suppose it was Tommy Steel who started it, but in my teen years, I wanted to play

the guitar! Now I do not know whether it was ignorance or guile (the latter was not his style) but my father bought me a nylon-strung classical guitar. I played this from being a total beginner, to around the age of 16. Around the time that Ewan McColl and Peggy

Seeger produced the ‘Radio Ballads‘, I also started to play 5-string banjo, and then some mandolin. Then I came up to Edinburgh University, and met the newly-founded Edinburgh University Folk Song Society (EUFSS is still in existence), and I suppose that is where the rot really set in.

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Musical Instruments (Continued)I have always been fascinated by the physics of music, the design and construction of musical instruments, and how they are played. About 40 years after I first joined EUFSS, and after many hours ferreting in shops, and a few trips to and beyond Eastern Europe, I have acquired a few musical instruments. Someone near and dear to me would suggest that a collection that numbers into three figures is more than a few (but she doesn't understand me)! I suppose I should mention that I do actually play music, on most of these instruments. I have played a lot of Scottish music over the years, and nowadays I tend to play bass in the larger ensembles; it seems to help the rhythm, keep the group together, and improve the sound balance (a bit of boom to balance all the scratch and peep). I have been playing ‘klezmer‘ (the music of the Yiddish-speaking Jews of Eastern Europe, mainly occurring at weddings). I can say with all honesty that I listened to this at my grandfather's knee - which is a little odd, as he was a Church of England vicar. I am also very interested in Greek music (paradosiako and rembetiko - loosely country and town, or folk and refugee, music) after many trips there, although I get little chance to play it nowadays. I also sometimes play a little baroque music, on mandolin or guitar. My rationale, linking what I collect and what I play, is that there are already quite a lot of folk who play one melody instrument (be it fiddle, whistle, clarinet or mandolin) quite well, and adding yet another melody player makes very little difference to the ensemble; but someone who can play chords,

Byelorussian Hammer Dulcimer

or bass, or percussion, at different times, adds something different and varies the sound of the group over an evening. So I have been known to describe myself as ‘all-purpose folk accompanist and bodger‘ (but I am usually restrained from adding ‘weddings and bar-mitzvahs a speciality ‘, although we have played some). For Scottish music I may play bass, usually on an EUB (electric upright bass - think double bass with a small heavy amplifier instead of a large fragile wooden body) - but I also have a 29" mini-bass that I may take to sessions. I might play percussion on snare drum (if it is a ‘military‘ style of tune) or ‘bodhran‘ (single- sided ‘Irish‘ drum played with a double-ended stick - a hand on the back of the skin damps the sound and changes the pitch). If chords are needed, I would probably play a ‘classical‘ guitar, or an ‘octave mandolin/irish bouzouki‘. On the rare occasions that I play melody it would be on a mandolin (I have five varied ‘Neapolitan‘ ones and one ‘Lombardic‘, and a banjolin) or tenor banjo, or the octave mandolin. For the last year I have been playing bass for the U3A jazz ensemble (thank you, Les Reid, for your patience and teaching, and to the others in the group for putting up with my sense of humour). Here I am playing a fretless bass guitar made for me by an old friend, Marshall Dow of Aberdeen; and just in case the ‘fretless‘ bit isn't difficult enough I have it tuned in fifths ( CGDA, an octave below the cello). Although modern ‘Klezmer‘ uses brass instruments, saxophones etc., my personal preference is for the traditional ensemble from the days when ‘loud‘ instruments were reserved for Gentile musicians. This may be seen in old paintings of ‘Jewish weddings‘ and - at its minimum - usually seemed to have a fidl (fiddle, of course, played in a very vocal and emotive style, with slides and sobs), a ‘bassetl‘ (small bass such as a violincello) and ‘tsimbl‘. The latter is a chromatic ‘hammer dulcimer‘ (a small trapezoidal box, strung with ‘courses‘ of


Musical Instruments (Continued) strings - 3,4 or 5 per note - interlacing across the box) played with small padded hammers. I most commonly use my Greek ‘santouri‘, which is similar, having about the same range of notes as a guitar. Traditionally it is hung round the neck and played walking in a promenade (which is way beyond me or the state of my neck). If I am playing with a bigger group, I might get out my acoustic double bass, or for maximum volume outdoors I would use ‘poyk mit tats‘ - bass drum with a cymbal on top (but if it is going to rain, a cheap snare drum with a plastic head is much less worry!). Just occasionally, my playing for Morris dancing past recurs, and the dust gets blown out of my concertina. For traditional Greek music, I might play the ‘santouri‘ again or for old-style my ‘outi‘ (Arab oud/lute); or its cheap rain-and-beer-proof cousin the ‘cumbus‘ (there should be cedillas on the c and s, giving it the Turkish pronunciation chumbush; think of a cross between a 12-string fretless guitar, a banjo, and an aluminium salad bowl - and you won't be far wrong). If it is more modern ‘rembetika‘, I will probably accompany on my ‘classical‘ guitar. For ‘Macedonian‘/northern Greek music the percussion would be either the Arab/Turkish ‘darbuk‘ (‘goblet‘ drum shaped like a waisted glass, of which I have several) or possible a ‘def‘ (overgrown tambourine). I nearly forgot my Cretan ‘laouto‘ - a very overgrown mandolin. On the rare occasions that I play traditional American music nowadays, I have my autoharp (look on the internet), five-string banjos, guitar, or mandolin. (And if - very infra

dig for U3A - I get persuaded to play skiffle, I have a washboard....) For very ‘old-time‘ music I have several ‘fretless‘ banjos. And I haven't mentioned my Galician bagpipes, nor the ‘kist o' whistles‘; nor the Indian sitar, sarod, sarangi, dilruba, or tables; nor the Egyptian kanun (in need of maintenance - can any U3A experts advise on this?). I will conclude with a list of some of the longer-necked instruments that I have accumulated over the years; A basic ‘John Grey‘ - 4-string tenor banjo (now retired up North, as I bought a new and better one). A ‘Windsor‘ 5-string banjo - fitted with a resonator and ‘Bill Keith‘ tuning pegs (which allow you to change the tuning, accurately, in a fraction of a second), used as my general ‘cooking‘ banjo for American folk. A Clifford Essex ‘Parago‘ 5-string - a model based on the American ‘Paramount‘ and one of the best ever made in the UK. A cheap Rumanian ‘bouzouki‘. A much better Fylde (UK maker) flatback ‘bouzouki‘ - an Irish/UK adaption of the Greek bouzouki to suit our folk music. An authentic pear-shaped body Greek bouzouki - bought in Thessaloniki in 1978, with the ‘modern‘ stringing of 8 strings in four courses of 2; as used in modern Greek popular music. A Turkish ‘baglama‘ saz - the ancestor of the Greek bouzouki.

Peter Verity

Art, Craft and Photography in Edinburgh U3A

am indebted to all our leaders of Art, Craft and Photography for their lively and

informative descriptions of their groups’ activities. Reading each one has made me want to join them all – would there were more time!

Rhoda Mackenzie, leader of the Art Appreciation Group, describes animated and sometimes amusing discussions of art and artists as well as trips made by the group to art galleries and to lunchtime talks at the National Gallery.

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Art, Craft and Photography in Edinburgh U3A (Continued)

The Art Group, of which I am a member, is led by Leonora Harding and meets weekly on Tuesday mornings. As the first U3A group I joined, it has a special place in my heart. The members are very welcoming and friendly – chat over coffee and biscuits is guaranteed as well as painting sessions, talks, gallery visits and friendship – what’s not to like! Deborah Hathorn leads a group who study the art of Japanese flower arrangement known as Ikebana. I am fascinated to learn of this ancient art form which, for members of the group, involves not only learning (through demonstration) the rules of this craft but, in doing so, learning so much about Japanese culture and tradition. Moira Peter runs two craft groups which mainly make ‘greetings cards’ using different

crafting techniques such as ‘teabag folding’ or ‘3D decoupage’. Many of the crafts require ‘equipment’ and the latest trend is to use a die cutting and embossing machine, an advance on paper punches and a light box. You can see a selection of her members’ cards on the U3A website under ‘Craft Groups’. Moira would like to thank the U3A members who buy cards at the Open Meetings - all monies go to different charities. Photography 1 and 2 are led by Sonia Duffy. Monthly meetings for the two parallel groups are held on Wednesdays and Thursdays where, clearly, the emphasis is on peer group discussion/talks and on mutual support. Members choose a topic each month and their focus of interest is on composition. Members give each other constructive feedback when their photographs are displayed on computers. Throughout the year there are opportunities to take pictures in an outdoor setting. David Heydon, leader of Photography 3, describes a similarly active and interesting group which began in September 2012. Members are provided with support on many technical aspects of photography and the group is destined to flourish.

Rosie Dodgson

Réseau Français - Dates for September 2013 to January 2014

nyone with an interest in French language and culture is welcome in the

French Network. We have regular coffee mornings (French spoken) and other activities as arranged by members. No need to book in advance – just come along. Friday coffee mornings at the Filmhouse Café, Lothian Road: 10.30 am, 4th Friday in the month.

Dates for Autumn/Winter 2013-14: Fri: 27th Sept, 25th Oct, 22nd Nov, 24th Jan

Coffee mornings at the Café Rouge, Frederick Street: 10.30 am, 2nd Thursday and 4th Monday each month. Rachel Frith: [email protected] or 668 3937 has further details. Dates for Autumn/Winter 2013-14: Thur: 10th Oct, 14th Nov, 12th Dec, 9th Jan Mon: 23rd Sept, 28th Oct, 25th Nov, 27th Jan

Dorothy Buglass [email protected] Mary McKemmie [email protected]

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Fourteen go to Treasure Island

Geology Group Trip to Eigg - April/May 2013

eonora declared loudly ‘I’m a man! I’m a man!’. Well, when fourteen people are

together in close company for five days, secrets will come out, character will be revealed. We had been thoroughly soaked on that last full day of wind and downpour. But we didn’t mind a bit as the three previous days had been spectacular in weather, treasures of geology and views. On those good-weather days we had crawled into the cave where 395 islanders hid but were discovered and were killed during a clan war in 1577. We had seen singing sands below the sandstone cliffs in the north of the island, and the dykes where lava had pushed up through faults in the sandstone. There too were amazing concretions - spherical boulders a yard or more in diameter lying on the beach and hanging out of the cliffs.

These are the same as New Zealand’s famous Moeraki Boulders, so Visit Scotland needs to hype them up a bit! No doubt the inhabitants of long ago had a legend to explain them - Giants’ gobstoppers perhaps? The highlight was, of course, the Sgurr of Eigg which makes the island so easily

Picnic under the Sgurr

identifiable from all around. Its cliffs are made up of hexagonal columns of pitchstone (a form of basalt) running in two directions. The story is that there was a valley in a basalt landscape eroded by water over millions of years. Another eruption occurred, probably on Skye or Rum, and filled the valley with new lava which cooled and contracted such that the columns were formed. Then the rest of the landscape was eroded away, leaving the Scurr. The scramble to the top gave us views to Mull, the Outer Hebrides, Rum, Ardnamurchan, Skye and Knoydart. Time is all in geology. The rocks of the Outer Hebrides on the horizon are nearly 3000 million years old; the underlying Jurassic sandstones of Eigg, 160 million; the lava covering the sandstone, 60 million. More importantly, breakfast is at 8.00am and dinner at 7.00pm. The really excellent food in the hostel was provided by two ladies calling their catering business ‘Eiggy Bread’. On that last evening, as our waterproofs dripped and our boots steamed in the drying room, we were entertained by local characters, Donna the Piper and her dog Pibroch. When a ferry is arriving or departing, Donna breaks off from her main job as the island’s bin lady to nip down to the pier to

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Geology Group Trip to Eigg (Contunued) busk with her Highland pipes and dog. It is unlikely that anyone else in the world wears day-glo orange work trousers to play the pipes! She not only played the small pipes for us that evening, she also danced a highland fling to relive her earlier years as a champion dancer, and was able to give us some very interesting insights into island life. In an impromptu sing-song, we excavated the

undisturbed depths of our memories for words, and managed a few verses of ‘Mairi’s Wedding’, ‘Westering Home’ and the ‘Mingulay Boat Song’. We danced along to Donna’s playing too. Gender imbalance was leading to confusion and major danger of the Strip the Willow becoming derailed half-way down the set. And that’s why Leonora was exclaiming ‘I’m a Man! I’m a Man!’.

Bruce Cowan

SUMMER VISITS - New Lanark Outing, May 7th 2013)

n a sparkling sunny day in May we set off through lovely green countryside to

New Lanark, the model mill village set on the Clyde about a mile south of the town of Lanark. I have been there before but this time I was on the first Edinburgh U3A Summer ‘Visit’ of 2013 and was keen to remind myself of its history and to see what was new since I was last there. The cotton spinning mill, powered by the Clyde, and village were started by David Dale in the 18th century. The factory manager and social reformer Robert Owen came to see it, married Caroline Dale and took over the running of the mill. He reduced the workers’ hours, built a school for younger children and a nursery, set up a decent shop for the village run on what we now recognise as cooperative lines and provided places for entertainment and health care for his workers. He was ahead of his time and was unpopular with other mill managers and owners. In later life he set up a model village in America, came back to Britain and was involved at the beginning of the trade union movement.

The whole place has been restored and some of the village houses are private residences. There is a hotel and a large café and a beautiful roof garden and of course a gift shop - but it’s quite tasteful! A day’s visit is hardly long enough to do justice to the place. There is much to see including a chair ride called the Annie McLeod experience, the mill floor where the spinning machines are in action, a visit to the school, old shop, worker’s house and Robert Owen’s house. The setting on the Falls of Clyde is spectacular and a walk up to Cora Linn and Bonnington Linn through flowery woodland really added enjoyment to the visit. We were very fortunate to see peregrine falcons nesting on a ledge along the gorge courtesy of the Scottish Wildlife Trust who had set up telescopes on the path for the general public to use. It was difficult to leave at four o’clock but the scenic journey home by the Pentlands, still in sunshine, completed a super day out.

Pauline Cowan

New Groups for 2013-14

ou will have received your new Groups Booklets along with this edition of The

Clarion and your 2013-14 membership card. Why not take a look at some of the more interesting new groups. Collectors’ Corner arrange visits to view displays of members’ collections in their own homes. The Cycling group have day rides at

gentle pace, on quiet roads or cycle paths in and around Edinburgh and the Lothians. Heritage World Sites is a ‘Book Club Format’ group where members choose a site for discussion from the UNESCO website. The Meditation group hopes to calm and settle the mind - members will not be expected to sit cross-legged on the floor!

Liam McDowell

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The Lunch Club

Venues for Autumn/Winter 2013-14

elcome to the Lunch Club. There is no fixed membership and everyone is welcome. Please chat to everyone around you. Here are the guidelines.

The time is 12-15 for 12-30pm.

You should pay for your drinks as you get them.

Payment for the meals varies – the money may be taken at the table (if it is a fixed price

menu) or individually at the till. Keep a note of the cost of your meal. It is your choice to give a

tip.

Book the next meal at the previous lunch, at an Open Meeting or by telephone to Pat Thomas

(0131 667 8992).

Remember to cancel – even on the morning of the lunch. The answer phone will always be

checked (0131 667 8992).

Recommendations for venues are appreciated. These should be easy to reach and able to

accommodate 20-25 people.

The lunch is always in the first week of the month which includes Tuesday, Wednesday,

Thursday, and the following Thursday.

Please do NOT telephone the restaurant to book or to cancel.

September Tues 3rd Wed 4th Thurs 5th Thurs 12th Chez Jules 106 Hanover Street October Tues 1st Wed 2nd Thurs 3rd Thurs 10th Thai Lemon Grass 40-41 Bruntsfield Place November Tues 5th Wed 6th Thurs 7th Thurs 14th Howies 29 Waterloo Place December Tues 3rd Wed 4th Thurs 5th Thurs 12th Loon Fung 2 Warriston Place February Tues 4th Wed 5th Thurs 6th Thurs 13th Indigo Yard 7 Charlotte Lane Look at the Monthly Bulletin for more details about the menu and buses

Thanks are due to the committee members who organise the lunches. They are - Pat Thomas (convener), Ann Pippet, Jimmy Scott, Jenny Di Rollo, Arthur Bourne, Margaret Edwards, Judy Mitchelson, Constance McArthur, Moira Burns and Caroline Cruickshank.

Legal Help Line - There is a help line open to all U3A

members providing initial advice on any legal problem and contact details for further (possibly paid)

information. In first instance you should contact 01455 251500 quoting Third Age Trust Code 70494.

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Did You Know?

tel:01455%20251500


Edinburgh Follies - Wednesday 30 January 2013

n this braw, bricht January day we eagerly made our way to South Leith

Parish halls with an air of optimistic expectation. After many weeks of planning, rehearsal, team management, attention to the tiniest detail our organisers Christine Hawkridge, Sheila Smith and Joyce Wood had ensured a full house and a varied programme to enjoy. Curtain up, lights out at 2.30 pm sharp, and we were away!

Part One started with an able demonstration from our Line Dancing Group who gently and rhythmically opened the show and relaxed us for more rumbustious acts to follow. The Singers entertained us with a Medley of Songs, showcasing their talent and tunefulness. ‘The Pirates’ went down particularly well.

‘Wouldn’t it be Luverly’, cleverly mimed and danced by Rose Mackenzie, was altogether luverly, delicately reminding us of Audrey Hepburn in both song and dance. The Recorder Group 1 made a most promising start, showing confidence and talent. A great achievement! Ann Inglis’ ‘A Little Recitation ‘- even better the second time round when mikes were correctly stabilised - showed great ingenuity, humour and wit, especially in her reference to HM The Queen and Facebook! We loved it! ‘We’re a Couple of Swells‘ which followed was cleverly written and expertly performed with poise and delicious humour, thanks to a wonderful team effort by Joyce Wood, Christine Hawkridge, Ann Inglis and Anne Treloar. What fun and style, we hope to see it performed again at Edinburgh Council’s Tram Jamboree in advance of 2014!

Part Two opened suitably noisily with the Jazz Group, led by Les Reid. We thoroughly

enjoyed a spirited performance from such talented instrumentalists, including their singer. They would enliven most Jazz bars into the wee small hours! Lovers of Francie and Josie had great fun listening to ‘The Arbroath Tale‘, performed by Delma Dewar and Jimmy Scott whose well-studied humour and delivery made an amazing likeness to the ‘Originals‘. They certainly made us laugh and brought back fond memories!

A change of mood was quickly brought about by Marianne Ferguson’s beautifully read, timeless words by T S Eliot - a valuable contribution to the show. Recorders 2 were a wonderful eye opener/ear bender! Such a talented group of more mature years got up there and performed the Monty Python theme music expertly on a wide range of interesting instruments – pure joy!

‘Thoroughly Modern Millie‘, performed by Rose Mackenzie, gave us another change of tempo and a visual treat, before we moved to the final part of the programme - The Singalong, an opportunity for audience participation with The Singers. We all had a great time enjoying the strains of the ‘Skye Boat Song’, ‘Grandfather’s Clock’ and other favourites. It was a fitting finale!

Edinburgh U3A who gave us The Follies did us proud! It showcased so much talent, real ability to put on a good show, and left us feeling full of admiration for all who took part, whether as performers or backstage. We left with a smile on our face and a spring in our step, so well done, everyone - and special thanks to our experts in lighting, sound, photography, stage management and to our Master of Ceremonies - please come back soon!

Hilary Bruce

Remember that the Monthly Open Meeting takes place on the 3rd Wednesday of each month at 2:30pm in

St.Cuthbert’s Church on Lothian Road. It is a great opportunity to listen to an interesting 45 minute talk

followed by a chance to socialise with other members over a cup of tea or coffee. You will find details of the

programme of talks on your membership card. Please note there is no admission charge for 2013-2014.

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am most grateful to the editorial team: Rosie Dodgson, Ann Inglis, Elisabeth Hutchings and Barbara Clarke for their ideas and support in putting this edition of The Clarion together. I would

also like to thank all those members who contributed articles and photographs. The Autumn 2013 edition of Clarion online will be available to read and download as a PDF from mid-August on our website at www.edinburghu3a.org.uk

The Edinburgh U3A Monthly Bulletin is sent directly to all members who have provided their email address to Margaret Farish, our Membership Secretary. It is important we have your current email address. If you do change it during the year please remember to inform Margaret [email protected] of your new email address as soon as possible.

Clarion online is published by The Edinburgh University of the Third Age

Scottish Charity Number SC020301

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Please note that the Spring 2014 issue of the Clarion will be available in February 2014. Deadline for copy is Saturday 30th November 2013. Contributions should preferably be sent by email or typed and sent by post:

Liam McDowell,

45 Allan Park,

Kirkliston

West Lothian

EH29 9BP

Telephone: 0131 333 2143

Email: [email protected]

With any contribution, please include your name, phone number and address…..…and also keep a copy.

http://www.edinburghu3a.org.uk/



autumn 2013 - u3asites · letter from the chair christine hawkridge dear members this is my first...

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