What has been happening at Harrold Odell Country Park?

On April 1^st 2001, Bedfordshire County Council and Bedfordshire River Valleys Service joined together to manage land owned by the County Council’s Access and Partnership section in the North of the County; this includes Harrold Odell Country Park. This exciting step will enable the Partnership to improve the service provided at Harrold Odell Country Park and on other countryside sites in North Bedfordshire.

One direct result of the Partnership is that we have now employed two Assistant Rangers who will be working at the Country Park at weekends and Bank holidays. For those of you who have not met them yet, they are Katharine Collyer and Richard Dowsett.

At the end of August the contract for the café came to an end, at this point Sue Jezzard who ran Truly Scrumptious decided that she was in need of a fresh challenge and has moved on to other things. We are now in the process of negotiating with new concessionaires to open a café in the New Year.

During September and October, Bedford Conservation Volunteers did several tasks at Harrold Odell Country Park. The tasks in September were to stabilize the South West Bank of Grebe Lake. This involved inserting willow stakes at 500mm intervals in the bottom of the lake, approx. 500mm from the bank and then weaving thin "binders" between the upright stakes, a process known as ‘spiralling’. The spiralling will stop the waves eroding the bank and the willow will grow to form a living barrier. The task in October was to lay a section of the hedge that forms the northern boundary to the Country Park.

If anyone is interested in joining the Volunteers at the Country Park please come and see me and I will give more details.

Events to look out for in the future:

I am hoping in the New Year to run different events and workshops here at Harrold Odell Country Park. Ideas so far range from basket weaving, bird box building, fedge-laying (yes that is correct!) and lots of family fun activities, so watch the local press and notice boards for more details.

Lastly a thank you to every one for being patient when we had to close the Country Park in February during the Foot and Mouth Crisis. I know it was a frustrating time for everyone who enjoys the countryside, but when we re-opened, lots of people told me how much more they appreciated the Park.

Birds to watch out for during December and January: - Red wing and Fieldfare, Pochard, Widgeon, Teal, Golden eye and with a bit of luck Smew and Goosander.                                                                

Golden Jubilee Celebrations and Odell Fete.

Plans are going ahead for Odell to celebrate the Queen’s Golden Jubilee in the period Monday 3^rd and Tuesday 4^th June 2002, which are to be public holidays, following the public ceremonies on the previous Saturday. The local celebrations are planned to include a Street Party in Horsefair Lane and an evening entertainment. Rob Lee (720730) is spearheading this, so please contact him with ideas and offers of help.

Its Pantomime Time!

here is nothing like Christmas for tradition and there is nothing more traditional than the annual pantomime…but at one time it was pantomime every night!

The roots of this Christmas extravaganza can be traced back to Ancient Greece in the form of dance and mime - a style of entertainment which, in its own time, was to bring about that formidable tradition the 'Greek Chorus". So popular, indeed, was this ancient Greek spectacle that it was later adopted by the Romans who took it with them across their empire.

By the Middle Ages it had taken on the form of the Mystery Play and included characters dressing in animal skins and feathers, together with the wearing of masks, all accompanied with a strong moral theme of good triumphing over evil. Shakespeare was the first person to introduce fairies and the wearing of animal heads to a story line - as in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. It was the Italian Harlequinade, however, that first created a recognisable form of pantomime. Harlequin was usually played by an experienced acrobat, to carry out the spectacular stunts, and the female lead, Columbine, would be a popular dancer of the age. Another well-loved member of the cast was known as Ponchinello, who brought comedy to the production. Ponchinello was the clown of the piece and was so popular that he had his own enthusiastic following and the character was to evolve into that extraordinary fellow Mr. Punch, of Punch and Judy fame.

By the l700s France was introducing a spectacular performance featuring dance, magic and acrobats whilst bringing to life the various story lines of the country’s favourite fairy tales, such as Babes in the Wood, Puss in Boots and The Sleeping Beauty. All the elements were now in place for pantomime to take the stage.

In the 18^th century England pantomime of a kind (if not by that name) formed a part of an evening out at the theatre. Theatre goers in London would arrive for a 6.00 p.m. start. There would be an amazing 4-5 hours of Shakespeare to be followed by a short, light-hearted comedy ... something of a cross between the Harlequinade and the French extravaganza. Even the characters were the same with the same names but this is where any similarity ended. In Europe it was a respected form of theatre but in London the performers faced a constant barracking from their audience. Slowly England began to introduce their own characters and to develop their own story line. In 1860 Cinderella was brought in from France but at that time there was absolutely no sign of Buttons - he was a much later introduction and wholly English. The public loved these shows, which were mainly burlesque in style, and consequently the performances grew in length until they eventually filled the entire evening. Covent Garden was originally built for the staging of pantomime and Drury Lane provided the main competition. Men now began to appear in skirts and the women to take on "breeches" parts.

Queen Victoria and Prince Albert loved the theatre and it was under their influence that much of Christmas as we know it today began to take shape. They also urged that pantomime should be concentrated on one particular time of the year - Christmas, - and that it should become strictly family viewing. These new productions started on Boxing Day and encouraged audience participation. Particular favourites were the transformation scenes, the speciality acts and that new introduction - slapstick. Expensive, elaborate sets with a huge cast was the order of the day.

Children soon began to take part in these grand set-pieces and much of the popular patter that we still love today began to put in an appearance. The familiar "Look behind you" and "Oh yes she will/won’t" routines were now firmly in place.

At this darkest time of the year all was now bright and lively, with extravagant sets, outrageous costumes with dancing, singing and magic, and everywhere plenty of glitter and sparkle. Pantomime was the most expensive show of the year to stage but the returns were enormous. It was the opportunity for a family outing and the Victorians took full advantage of the occasion. Charles Dickens was to describe pantomime as "A thousand, million delights".

Once again I thank everyone who during the year has handed to me all or any of the above items. I am very grateful to all who participated and also wish to thank the person who has collected and taken items to Bedford for me

All the above go to the Volunteer Services Bureau in Bedford who make use of what is sent to them. Many thanks to anyone wishing to continue to participate collecting the above items.

Dates and venues.

Here is a list of the dates and venues for December

5th Village Hall Parents’ and Friends’ Evening

7th 9th District Cycle Camp

12th Village Hall

19th Cub Hut

New Recruits

The Odell Scout Troop is always looking for young people aged from 10½ to 14 years old to join the Troop!

If, after reading this article, you are interested, please contact Scout Leader Martin Clark, telephone 01604 763890, or email: MartinOdell51@aol.com

Or you could come along to one of our meetings (7pm to 9pm, venues shown above)!

                                    Martin Clark, scout Leader, 51st Beds (Odell)

We were delighted to welcome several visitors to our meeting this month; they had come to hear Penny McKenzie talk on Christmas Decorations. She had a glowing display of needlework to show us, all on a Christmas theme. Hangings, tree decorations and cards were all displayed to us with clear instructions on how to achieve similar results ourselves. I’m sure it is not as easy as she modestly said it was but she has inspired us to try and produce something ourselves, if not this year then for next year. It was her last talk for the W.I. and we are fortunate to have had the pleasure of her company, a fitting start to the Christmas season.

December meeting

We continue our Christmas theme with our annual Christmas meal. It will be held at Rachel Halton’s home but a week earlier than our normal meeting. So alter your diaries and meet for 7.30pm on Tuesday 4th December.

January meeting

We return to the Village Hall on Tuesday January 8^th. The meeting will start at 7.30pm to listen to Margaret Linggood from Carlton give her talk on ‘Bacteria and You’. She comes well recommended from others who have heard her speak.

Hostesses and Competition

January’s hostesses are Kathy Dunn and Lynette Hall and the competition is : A picture or photograph of a Flower.

Changes at The Bell

Lee Lockett