DECEMBER 2013/JANUARY 2014
www.celtic-connection.com
Page 11
A POSTCARD FROM LONDON
London Christmas lights now burning brightly
Ding dong merrily the high- street cash till bells are ringing The shopping frenzy has begun and retailers are grinning Glooooooooooria, etc.
(OK it's not exactly Lennon and McCartney)
LONDON - Yes the London, Oxford Street, Christmas lights have been switched on by the pop star Jessie J, and the countdown to Christmas has begun.
Last year the theme for the decoration was Marmite - a bizarre choice - but this year the theme is snowdrops and the display is breathtakingly beautiful.
Giant, white glowing, sparkling, balls traverse the streets and thousands of tiny lights fill the small trees lining the pavements.
Lhe most beautiful Christmas display I have ever seen in London, and if one could ignore the double-decker buses, the stream of taxis and four million people, it would be a magical winter wonderland.
Lhe decorations are not the only thing that will be glowing this Christmas, because Charlie Harry Francis the Welsh food designer has produced the world's first glowing ice-cream.
Francis set up a company called "Lick me I'm delicious" to make sculptures using ice-cream and produce weird and wonderful flavours.
Lhe glow-in-the-dark ice-cream uses a luminescent protein which occurs naturally in jelly fish, and he explains that the protein is rendered inert when in the ice-cream and reacts with the tongue when licked. (I copied the last sentence from the Independent newspaper and have no idea what it means.)
Lhe jelly luminescence is imported from China and we are informed that it is four times the cost of gold.
I absolutely love eating ice-cream but this new exciting offering works out at £140 per scoop!! Lhis is too rich for my taste so I will stick to rum raisin, passion fruit and vanilla for the time being.
Last month it was high speed trains that was in the news; this month it is a high speed pussycat.
Helen Stephens was driving her van (truck) down the Ml motorway in Leicestershire. She drove 22 miles at speeds of up to 70 miles-per-hour, and from time to time noticed other motorists flashing their head lights at her.
Assuming there was a problem she eventually pulled over onto the hard shoulder and discovered a wide-eyed
POP star Jessie J was on hand to switch on the Oxford Street Christmas lights which underwent a £1.5 million transformation this year. The light show features three quarters of a million LED bulbs while the design is inspired by falling snowflakes.
black and white cat clinging on like grim death to the Ford Lransit's roof rack.
Stephens commented, "He must have climbed aboard when I stopped for petrol at the service station."
She took the feline hitchhiker to the nearest veterinary clinic where he was found to be uninjured and an appeal was put out to find the owner.
Fortunately the appeal was spotted by Elsie Pepper, mother of five-year-old Conner who is the proud owner of Kick Buttowski, the fastest cat in Britain. In case you are wondering, Kick Buttowski is a television daredevil cartoon character.
And continuing on an animal theme, Laura Muir, from Lelford is today enjoying the sweet smell of success as Jordi Alba, her pet one-year-old skunk, beat off the challenge of 19 other skunks to be crowned "Lhe Most Beautiful Skunk in Britain."
Lhe inaugural British skunk beauty contest was held in Birmingham and the contestants were judged on tail length, attitude and the cuteness of their nose.
Paddy, an overweight Irish skunk, won the Fancy Dress round, with his vicar costume.
Lalking of skunks. In one of the worst cases of fraud to emerge from the parliamentary expenses scandal, Margaret Moran was found guilty of 21 counts of fraud, cheating the taxpayer out of £53,000.
Lhe ex-member of parliament for Luton South claimed £22,000 to have dry rot treated at her seaside homes and £14,000 for repairs on boilers that did not exist.
She was not present at the hearing and the judge having been told that she was suffering from severe depression ruled that she was "not fit mentally to defend herself," consequently she will not be jailed, nor acquire a criminal record.
Moran's barrister, Jim Sturman Q.C, called for her to be spared any punishment, saying that she had suffered a "genuine total collapse of her mental state."
Although the severe depression prevented her from attending court, she does appear well enough to visit the holiday home she bought in Spain.
I am sure I speak for all taxpayers when I say that hopefully the holiday in her villa in the Sierra Nevadas, which has a swimming pool and spectacular views, will hasten her recovery, so that soon she can be back in parliament with all her friends.
So, with the spirit of Christmas oozing through my veins, I wish you all a very merry Christmas and a happy and prosperous New Year, and remember, if you are caught cheating and stealing, just be really depressed about it and call Jim Sturman Q.C. to defend you. All will be well, and you can even keep the money.
Nadolig Llawen a Blwyddyn Newydd Dda.
FORMER British MP Margaret Moran was deemed unfit to face expenses trial due to a total collapse of her mental state.
THOMAS BILLINGS
Missing British tourist search
VANCOUVER - Lhe military was called in to help search for missing British tourist, 22-year-old Thomas Billings.
Police say Billings was last seen in the 1400-block of East Broadway on the morning ofNovember25. He was supposed to return to England on December 7 but was reported missing after he failed to return from a hiking trip here in Vancouver.
Vancouver Police say they have received several credible tips. One was from someone who said they gave Billings directions to Lynn Headwaters in the back country.
Billings is described as white, 5'7" tall, 160 lbs., with blonde short hair and blue eyes. He was last seen wearing a black jacket and grey military style pants. Anyone with more information is asked to call Vancouver Police.
gj£^e MARY'S BRITISH HOME
Celebrating 32 years in Steveston
< Good Selection of British
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Telephone: (604) 274-2261
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Business, Culture, 'Education and government
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