Following the success of the 2009 Christmas Spectacular, Raymond Gubbay returns to the 02 with a a rousing night of carols, traditional tunes and number one hits.
The Classic FM Christmas Spectacular will feature Anthony Inglis conducting the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, alongside Rhydian Roberts, Ruthie Henshall, Wynne Evans, Alison Jiear, the Royal Choral Society and Capital Voices.
This year, the show will include even more spectacular music, lights and special effects and back by popular demand will be the dazzling indoor firework finale which proved such a hit with audiences in 2009.
You can book tickets and a three star hotel package for just £89 per person – more details here.
A quick look at Hexham, courtesy of Visit Northumberland. Named as England’s favourite market town by Country Life magazine, Hexham is an historic, bustling town in the heart of the Tyne Valley.
Enjoy Christmas tradition and elegance at the Royal Albert Hall. Reflecting the grace and charm of the 18th century this exquisite concert of festive carols and enchanting seasonal music, presented in an evocative candle-lit style setting, is the most stylish way to usher in Christmas.
The evening will feature the UK’s most elegant ensemble in full period costume performing carols and seasonal classics. There will also be readings from Charles Dickens ‘A Christmas Carol’ and The Birth of the Infant Jesus from the Scriptures by special guest Robert Powell.
Your package will include overnight accommodation at a four star hotel plus either top price stalls or upper circle tickets. Click here for booking details.
Discover Swindon through the eyes of Isambard Kingdom Brunel, utilising the newly created ‘Swindon Heritage Trails’. These brand new self-guided trails give participants the choice of a fascinating online tour or an actual walk around what has become one of the most outstanding industrial centres recognised around the world – the “Swindon Works”.
In 1841 Brunel, renowned engineer and one of the Greatest Britons of all time, joined with the Great Western Railway Company to create the industrial centre, known locally as “The Works” which employed over 14,000 people and produced over 60 locomotives a year during its heyday. It left behind a legacy of magnificent buildings with unique architectural features. Around 270 of the buildings remain today and many are preserved for future generations with listed building status.
These new trails have been created for visitors to explore online or download and follow, taking in 20 unique stopping points with information about the former uses and people who worked at the Great Western Railway (GWR).
Many of the buildings have been preserved and have alternative uses today including STEAM museum, The Designer Outlet Centre, National Monuments Record Centre, The Glue Pot pub and The GWR Barracks. All these are located in the centre of Swindon and within easy walking distance of each other. The buildings are generally recognised as one of the UK’s finest examples of Industrial Heritage.
Following the recent flooding in parts of Mid Cornwall, the county’s tourism industry is keen to spread the message that the majority of the county is open as usual.
Malcolm Bell, Head of VisitCornwall, the Cornwall Development Company tourism service for the county, comments: “VisitCornwall would like to wish those businesses affected a full and speedy recovery and to offer any support required.
“Whilst it is appreciated that the impact has been significant it should be stressed that the flooding was very localised and although small sections of Mid Cornwall are affected, the surrounding areas along with other parts of the county, remain unaffected and open for business as usual.”
Rail and road access into and through Cornwall is now fully recovered with the exception of the First Great Western rail service between Par and Newquay where a replacement bus service is operating due to a landslip at Luxulyan. Flights to and from Newquay Cornwall Airport continue as normal.
Loughborough council is starting a slightly unusual amnesty for the next two weeks, but this time instead of being for unlicensed guns or fake goods, this is a traffic cone amnesty.
65 new traffic cones were taken during Loughborough’s annual fair with the suspicion being that the majority were taken by revellers who’d perhaps had a little too much merriment and wondered why on earth they have a bright red traffic cone in the garden the next morning.
Now the council is asking for them back and will turn a blind eye to however they came into peoples possession, although going by every town I’ve visited, if they looked hard enough I’m sure they’d find most of the cones down side streets where they were dropped.
This does however conjure up some interesting images for anyone in Loughborough as the guy with the red hat might not be Santa, but could perhaps just be a student taking a traffic cone back to its rightful owner….unless of course Santa also had much merriment at the fare?
Sheffield is set to be positioned as “The City of The Peaks” in a new tourism partnership planned between Sheffield City Council and Visit Peak District & Derbyshire. The aim is to increase income from visitors by attracting more overseas tourists and attracting a greater share of domestic holidays.
The Peak District National Park is one of the most visited national parks in the UK and Sheffield is the only English city with a national park within its boundary. This contributes towards the city’s immense green space, making it one of the greenest cities in the country – an undeniable asset.
This is an interesting question posed by the BBC following the addition of art galleries in St. Ives, Margate and now Hastings but can art galleries really rejuvenate the fortunes of the seaside resort?
St. Ives in Cornwall now has a Tate Modern extension gallery which borrows art works from the Tate Modern in London and seems to have been quite successful at least in getting the arty types in. Margate we reported on earlier this year with the proposed addition of the Turner Contemporary gallery which is due to open in 2011 and has also received a lot of praise, at least from the council.
So can the same happen for Hastings? Traditionally the town has been associated with the Battle of Hastings nearly 1000 years ago, but its fortunes as a seaside resort are in desperate need of a boost which is where a new art gallery comes in. The idea has received mixed views from the locals, many of whom seem worried that the gallery will simply increase the number of affluent Londoners moving in but not actually help the local economy. According to others however, the town simply needs to change and this might bring Hastings into the 21st Century and secure its future.
Time will tell which side was right, but one does suspect that it might take slightly more than an art gallery in every seaside town to fix the declining fortunes of these once thriving resorts.
Iconic British holiday park brand Pontins, which was placed into administration last month, looks like it might well ride again with the administrators announcing over 40 companies are seriously interested in buying it.
Originally started by Fred Pontin at Brean Sands in 1946, the Pontins brand became an icon of the British holiday parks along with Butlins, but all the holiday park brands suffered with the advent of the package holiday. It seemed that Pontins was succeeding more than most, but after Ocean Parcs took it over there seems to have been a serious lack of investment.
Butlins have seen a significant revival in recent years with a complete re-branding and re-modelling of their business and offerings appealing to families, especially during the so called Staycaution period. So there is no reason to believe that Pontins can not do the same, as long as the new owners are willing to invest.
According to Administrators KPMG, all of the parks remain open and there has only been one cancellation up to Christmas since the news was announced, with all previous and future holidays being honoured. It appears that the British haven’t fallen out of love with Pontins, which is good news for any prospective buyers.
The Taste of Edinburgh festival is an upmarket food and drink festival set in the beautiful outdoor surroundings of The Meadows, running from 28th – 31st May 2010. A celebration of Scottish food and drink, Taste of Edinburgh gives food lovers the chance to enjoy the best that Scottish restaurants, chefs, and food and drink producers have to offer. Festival-goers can sample dishes from Edinburgh’s top restaurants and enjoy food from the rising star chefs in Scotland, as well as the established Michelin-starred gurus. Learn all the little tricks of the trade at the Chef’s Theatre, and find out more about picking a great complementary wine at the Wine Experience. You’ll also find unrivalled opportunities to get up close and personal with the chefs, and to enjoy plentiful tastings and demonstrations.
Following the success of the 2009 Christmas Spectacular, Raymond Gubbay returns to the 02 with a a rousing night of carols, traditional tunes and number one hits.
Enjoy Christmas tradition and elegance at the 
Discover Swindon through the eyes of Isambard Kingdom Brunel, utilising the newly created ‘Swindon Heritage Trails’. These brand new self-guided trails give participants the choice of a fascinating online tour or an actual walk around what has become one of the most outstanding industrial centres recognised around the world – the “Swindon Works”.
Following the recent flooding in parts of Mid Cornwall, the county’s tourism industry is keen to spread the message that the majority of the county is open as usual.
Loughborough council is starting a slightly unusual amnesty for the next two weeks, but this time instead of being for unlicensed guns or fake goods, this is a traffic cone amnesty.
Sheffield is set to be positioned as “The City of The Peaks” in a new tourism partnership planned between 
This is an interesting question posed by the BBC following the addition of art galleries in St. Ives, Margate and now Hastings but can art galleries really rejuvenate the fortunes of the seaside resort?
Iconic British holiday park brand Pontins, which was placed into administration last month, looks like it might well ride again with the administrators announcing over 40 companies are seriously interested in buying it.
