ensuitepilgrim's Blog

Friday,18 th August, was spent as a guest of SPORTNATION?BET, one of the sponsors of the England Cricket team’s most famous group of supporters – The Barmy  Army. This came about at the invitation of a close friend of mine, whose son-in-law, is a leading light in that company. The programme for the day looked a little daunting, with hospitality taking place in the Tally Ho Banquting Centre, which is based in the police sports’ ground, five minutes from the stadium….beginning at 11 am! Bearing in mind that play,at  the test match, the second day of the first day-night test match to take place in England, did not commence until 2pm. The programme for the morning was as follows:-

This prestigious event will take place at the Tally Ho Conference and Banqueting Centre, just five minutes down the road from Edgbaston. Please bring a copy of this email with you on the day, as it will double up as an e-ticket. 

 The proposed running order for the morning is as follows:

11.00am Doors open at Tally Ho 

11.30am Comedian 

12.00pm Seated buffet brunch served 

12.30pm Awards ceremony 

1.15pm End of awards and warm up for matches

We’re really excited to welcome Monty Panesar to host this year’s awards, alongside Billy the Trumpeter. As we all know, Monty is a legend in his own right, and we’re looking forward to hearing his cricketing tales of old, and his hopes for a comeback to first class cricket. Pictured are my amigo, Mick and in his left, Warren, another director of SPORTNATION?BET. And, Monty Panesar, ex-England spinbowler, being interviewed by equally legendary , BarmyArmy member, Billy the Trumpeter.

 Your ticket will also give you access to the post-match entertainment back at the Tally Ho from 9pm, where we will have a live band The Everly Pregnant Brothers, an eight piece Ukulele band from Sheffield. Their previous hit ‘Chip Pan’ stormed up the charts last Christmas, and flung the boys into a new stardom. If you’d like to check them out visit their Facebook account @EverlyPregnantBrothers  

 The bar will close at midnight.

There was no possible way,that we would last the pace, till midnight, even though we were almost abstemious in the taking of refreshment! The Barmy Army’s members follow the England cricket team, all over the world; I last encountered them at Gracelands, Cape Town, when we went to watch England versus South Africa. Instantly recognisable, either by their T-shirts and/or singing . Our first taste of the singing , and there was to be a lot of it as the day went on, was prior to lunch, when we were asked to stand ( Thank Goodness , not God Save the Queen ) and sing ” Jerusalem,”as a form of Grace, accompanied by Billy the Trumpeter.

There was a raffle, a quiz and an interview with the aforesaid Mony Panesar, who also presented the “Awards”, which ranged from Joe Root, England captain,by video- link, that gives an idea of the Army’s standing, to best female cricketer of the year .

I got a close up of one of these prestigious awards, on our table, an uncanny resemblance to one of the seven dwarfs….?

After a very enjoyable lunch, we were given a brief taste of the highlight of the post- match entertainment – “The Everly Pregnant Brothers”- some of you may be of an age, where you recognise the ” play” on the ” Everly Brothers”, a wonderful duo of thecesrly sixties – the EPBs were far from wonderful, enthusiastic, yes, politically incorrect, yes, entertaining….no; that reinforced our avowed intention not to return for the evening bash!

Ominously, during the above, thankfully short Set, a thunderstorm rolled over the Tally Ho sports ground at about 12.36.

Years ago, this would have put the start of the match back by a couple of hours; not, today,though, the Warwickshire ground staff were well prepared and play began, promptly, with the majestic and imperturbable Alistaire  Cook looking for a double century and his greenhorn of a partner, Milan, looking for his first, international, half- century, both of which were achieved, quite comfortably against a somewhat tepid West Indian, fast bowling attack.

We were in Edgbaston’s famous Eric Hollies’ , Stand, Row E, with a great side -on   view of the wicket, surrounded by a good natured group of supporters, drinking beer in copious amounts, which only encouraged them to join in even more loudly, with Billy the Trumpeter, who was ( thanfully ), a few rows behind. The fancy dress was  a great part of the entertainment; the range was endless.

The weather forecast for the day had not beeen good, but play continued, without interruption until about 7.3o pm, under the flood lights, until heavy rain brought proceedings to a premature close. 
It had been a great day’ s sporting entertainment and although I had misgivings about the Barmy Army scenario, they were proved to be unfounded…their avowed intention is to support England, with song and cheer…was just that. Not for the faint hearted, possibly , and I won’t be joining any time soon, but an enjoyable experience, nevertheless.

This is the information about the walk, from SC Ramblers’ website

Walk Start TimePlease Note start time 08:30Walk directions2Drive to Lichfield and follow the ring road A51. At the roundabout take the A515 Ashbourne road. Drive through Ashbourne and continue north on the A515 Buxton road for 5 miles. Turn Left signposted to Millfield and Alstonefield and on reaching the valley bottom look out for the Right turn up the hill to Alstonefield. In the village the road turns Right and the car park is on the Left next to the toilets.Explorer Map OL24. Grid ref: 131 556

Walk The WalkA walk of about 9 miles from the pretty village of Alstonefield north of Ashbourne. From the car park we walk round the north side of Wetton Hill to Wetton Mill before heading up a pleasant valley past Sugar Loaf to Summer Hill Farm and so to the top of Ecton Hill with wonderful 360 degree views. We drop down to the Manifold Valley and traverse round the north side of Ecton before making our way east and south to Narrowdale and thence back to Alstonefield. With the earlier start we should be in time to drive back to the Garden Centre south of Ashbourne for a nice cup of tea and cake.

There is one fairly long and steady ascent before lunch and another upward gradient toward the end of the walk.

Well, there was more than one ascent! But a good reintroduction into ” serious” walking after two months; this picturesque scenery in and around the Manifold Valley, is only an hour’s drive from Sutton Coldfield. Sparsely populated, for instance, the pretty village of Alstonefield has only about 300 inhabitants and it was there we began our circular walk.
Relieved that we walked around this hill , into the Manifold Valley.
Coffee was taken in a picnic area, very popular with families, as you can splash and paddle, hereabouts; I resisted the temptation.

One of the joys, for me, of our Ramblers’ walks, apart from the obvious pleasures of the countryside, is the amount of our industrial / archaeological history that can be found. The  notice boards, at this now disused Copper mine, were as informative as the site was fascinating , on Ecton Hill.
There are a variety of ways people  can enjoy the countryside ; this isn’t one of them, for me.
There were some interesting dwellings, en route ; This house was intriguing.
A complete contrast to an abandoned farmhouse, we came across, slightly further on. It was a sad setting and I found it quite “spooky”.
This walk was almost ten miles and I realised that I have some training to put in – midweek walks – to regain my fitness for the Portuguese Coastal Camino, beginning in September 1st. An excellent day.

“The seven wise men of Greece, so famous for their wisdom all the world over, acquired all that fame, each of them, by a single sentence consisting of two or three words. ” Robert SouthSo, this has to be a short Blog, if not a wise one.

It seems strange to be sitting at home , on the first morning after returning, without the familiar prospect of opening the motorhome door to strong sunlight and the constant nattering of crickets. This journey took us through seven countries; the destination, Greece, being the most memorable. First, the people, almost invariably welcoming and good humoured. The only other two  nations about which I could make a similar generalisation, are Portugal and Jordan. On a practical level, motorhoming needs good roads and signage. The roads and motorways are much improved; the signage is dire. There are so many other good reasons to explore Greece. The food, the wines, especially from Nemea and of course the ancient sites and beautiful bays.

It’s not bargain basement when it comes to costs – no such thing as a cheap holiday – dining out, for example, is not much cheaper than here, although the settings more than compensate for that . Coming back, it was necessary to take a ferry, leaving Igoumenitsa at 00.30. The port arrangements were not quite as chaotic as Bari, but came a close second. Only drivers can take their vehicles through the port gate; passengers have to go through the check – in lounge and reunite on the quayside.

Driving through almost the entire length of Italy, I was struck by the recklessness of some of the driving, where indicating is non- existent and the seriously expensive cost of camping. The prices were beyond anything seen before and that is such a pity, because the Italians are great to be with, on holiday. You are pretty much bound to use the motorways for long journeys and they are all toll roads. As you approach the Alps, by way of the outskirts of Turin, you can be mesmerised by the enormity of the peaks and baffled as to how you will get through them , to France. The answer was quite sobering – € 58.80 to traverse through the Frejus tunnel – 8 miles long.

I have to confess that I experienced feelings of relief on entering France, from a driver’s point of view – orderliness and etiquette-after 800 miles of Italian and Greek roads , it was most welcome. Pont d’Ain was the evening’s destination and a final BBQ , on a typical, semi rural site.

Passing Bourgeois en Bresse, by motorway, to South of Lyon, we took to the N Roads to cross towards Soissons, through the ” Côte d’Or “, with so many Burgundian ” village fleuries” to admire. The final night was spent in Peronne, for the first time, English voices and as ever, many Dutch campers. Had a meal at a local Brasserie -Rabbit Pate to die for! I wished there had been time to spend a day exploring the town, for its World War associations and industrial archaeology. But, Calais called and after a stop at a cheap , wine warehouse,  the 11.35 P & O ferry, to Dover.

If I returned to Greece, so much more to discover, I think I would fly/drive, because there are so many places where it would not be possible to explore in a motorhome, bearing in mind what a mountainous country it is, not forgetting 1400 islands!

A return to France is on the cards – for all the obvious reasons – not the least of which, is its accessibility .

So, what are the immediate demands? A wedding to attend on Saturday, at Birmingham Council House – a posh do – have to wear a monkey suit, something I loathe- what is this thing about aping your betters? Quite a contrast to vest and shorts. Still, I am sure it will be a great occasion. Then, on Sunday , down to Berkhamsted for a birthday – guess whose? And four days’ house sitting . It will be a while,yet, before I get round to the garden and the allotment .

Then, I have the small matter of a Camino, beginning in Porto, 1st September; have to get some fitness back before then.

Hope everyone is having a good Summer, wherever you are.