Alderney hosts the world’s first ever Wombles exhibition using the author’s personal collection

The Wombles come to Alderney; the small Channel Island of Alderney pays tribute to Wombles creator Elisabeth Beresford

Exhibition – ‘The Wombles; Elisabeth Beresford and her Alderney’

8^th May 2012 – Elisabeth Beresford’s wombles are going on display in the world’s first exhibition using the author’s personal collection. The small Channel Island of Alderney is to pay tribute to the Wombles creator and author Elisabeth Beresford by creating the special exhibition which will celebrate the Wombles, her many other works, life and her special connection to the island of Alderney.

The exhibition, ‘The Wombles; Elisabeth Beresford and her Alderney’, will feature the history and stories of the Wombles and the various characters. On display will be the main characters, such as Orinoco, Uncle Bulgaria and of course, Alderney as well as a selection of Womble memorablia including bestselling books, films and soft toys. The exhibition will also take a look at Elisabeth Beresford and her life in Alderney paying particular attention to the special relationship that she developed over a period of 50 years with the tiny Channel Island which she made her home

Elisabeth Beresford’s daughter Kate said “Mum’s love for Alderney ran very deep; she always loved it and found it the perfect place to inspire her writing. She even created a Womble in honour of the island who was aptly named ‘Alderney’. My brother Marcus and I are delighted that the exhibition is taking place and we have loaned many of her original books, photos and personal items such as mother’s typewriter and desk, for the exhibition.”

Exhibition organiser Donald Hughes said “This really is an exciting project to be involved in; Liza, as she was known locally, completely immersed herself into the community and was a much loved character. She really got involved with things and her life on the Island will be remembered through photographs and anecdotes illustrating her involvement in the locally made film ‘Rosebud’, the Alderney theatre group, the Alderney Railway Society and as a former member of the island’s Government.”

The exhibition will officially open on Saturday, 30^th June 2012 and will run throughout the summer until the end of September. For 2013, it is hoped that selected items from the exhibition will form part of a smaller but permanent display on the island.

Alderney, Channel Islands – ‘Rock Island’, a new event for 2012, took place over the weekend of the
21st - 22nd April. With one hundred entrants taking part the event was an overwhelming success.

Participants and spectators travelled from the neighbouring islands and from the UK, to the small
Channel Island of Alderney, just 1.5 miles by 3 miles, for a weekend of competitive trial biking.

The fifteen challenging sections included riding over varying terrains from small wooded areas, large
granite boulders, rock faces, German fortifications and on the only working railway line in the
Channel Islands. Bikers’ skills were also tested on rugged terrain near Fort Houmet, Fort Albert and
Tourgis, and were scored according to how many times they put their foot on the floor at each
section.

Jersey stole the limelight by winning all categories, with Graham Du Feu, who is also the chairman of
Jersey Modern and Classic Trials Club, coming first in the Expert Class. Jersey’s Ricky West took first
place in the Novice Class and 12 year old Kira Beardshall beat the boys and stole first place in the
Under 12s.

Other winners included Tony Pallot in the Modern Motorcycles Category and Neil Venton in the Twin
Shot Premier Category, with best Alderney rider going to Jake Hamon.

Event Organiser Alan Smart said “The event has resulted in the formation of the Alderney Rock
Island Trials Club, which is now officially affiliated to the Jersey Classic and Modern Trials Club. Also
as the trials has been so well received by all competitors I am planning on repeating it next year, only
this time I hope to attract entrants from France, Holland and Belgium.”He continued “The weekend has gone 100 per cent better than I expected and I’ve been overwhelmed with how well they’ve been received’, said Mr Smart. ‘The riders have told me they loved every section.

They have appreciated the incredible scenery they’ve been riding through and
being able to ride across the forts and in wooded sections. The thing that impressed me more than anything was the phenomenal atmosphere it has created among the islands and the rapport between Alderney, Guernsey and Jersey people.’

Sea Kayaking around Alderney appeared in the March edition of Ocean Paddler. 

The author, Derek Hairon from Jersey Kayak Adventures, visited Alderney in 2011 (courtesy of Visit Alderney) with his partner Trudie Trox who is also a journalist and visited to update the German guidebook of the Channel Islands "Merian live! Kanalinseln.

Jersey  Kayak Adventures offer Sea Kayaking Tours to Alderney

http://www.jerseykayakadventures.co.uk/go/tours-courses/alderney-sea-kayak-weekend/

Full article here:

Rock Island kick-starts the season with a brand new motorbike trials event for 2012

Alderney, Channel Islands - Rock Island is a new event that will be taking place over the weekend of the 21^st - 22^nd April. One hundred and two entrants, eleven of whom are Alderney residents, will be mounting their bikes and kick-starting the first ever Alderney trials bike event - ‘Alderney Rock Island M/C Trials’.

Contestants and spectators will be travelling from the other Channel Islands to compete in the fifteen challenging sections which include riding over a wide choice of terrain of small woods, large granite boulders, rock faces, German fortifications and on the only working railway line in the Channel Islands. There will also be a fun section, which challenges the bikers to see who can go the furthest on a 2.5 inch railway line without footing (placing a foot on the ground). With over forty trophies up for grabs there is going to be a lot of competition.

Alan Smart said “Alderney lends itself extremely well to this sort of event with its rugged coastline, intricate rock formations and many off-road tracks and, with Alderney’s stunning beaches and picturesque Victorian forts set against a backdrop of clear waters, who could wish for a better location to compete.”

On the second day of the event all sections will be run in reverse order to maximise the course and increase the challenge for the riders. To cater for all ages there will be two laps of the course for the younger entrants and a rally has been organised for both novice and expert riders, who will ride the event on an eclectic collection of modern and older machines.

Alan Smart said “From conception it has only taken three months to organise and plans are already underway for next year’s event, which we hope to extend to France and the UK as we have already received interest. We are very optimistic and believe that the event could even go international.”

Please address all questions to Alan Smart, Rock Island Event Organiser, tel. 01481 822867, mobile. 07781 416 157 and email. ortacrock@gmail.com

The government of Alderney have recently changed their policy on allowing Campervans, Caravans and mobile homes onto the island. Previously, the States of Alderney did not allow such vehicles due to the size of the island. At only 1.5 miles by 3 miles Alderney is one of the smaller of the Channel Islands.

The change comes in conjunction with significant improvements / developments that are being made at the island’s only campsite ‘Saye Beach Campsite’ to improve the camping facilities. The local Government have agreed to invest circa £150,000 to provide new facilities, shower blocks and toilets for campsite users.

Roy Burke, Chief Executive of the States of Alderney said “We are very fortunate that our campsite is situated in a superb location behind the sand dunes of one of Alderney’s finest beaches ‘Saye Bay’
We are delighted that we have been able to make this change in policy and hope that it will encourage more people to visit Alderney and use the campsite.”

He continued “The new procedure is very straight forward and user-friendly; the vehicles should be no more that 6.9 metres, will need to book onto the campsite and apply for a permit from the States of Alderney.

The change in policy allows for the mobile homes to be used as accommodation at the Island’s popular campsite. However, due to the size of the island, the number of vehicles will be limited and will only be allowed to station themselves on the authorised campsite and can only be driven on the roads to and from the campsite.

A 4-page article about cycling in Alderney has been published in the magazine Cycle Active (article attached), the same journalist has also written a piece for the Yorkshire Post which was appeared in the newspaper on Monday, 30^th January 2012.

Please click on the following link to view the article:

http://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/lifestyle/outdoors/travel/channel_change_1_4188911

Freelance journalist Paul Kirkwood visited Alderney in August 2011, courtesy of Visit Alderney.  Not only did Mr Kirkwood write the two articles but he also created the cycle route that is now featured on the centre page map of the Alderney brochure and will soon feature on the Alderney Map.

Following on from the success of our previous online brochures, a new version of the publishing software now allows iPad users to also view our online brochure.  You can now also search the Alderney Online Brochure to find and bookmark your favourite hotel, guesthouse, campsite or event, as well as send that specific page on to family and friends.

And the happiest girl in Alderney at the moment has to be Holly Webster who was the clear winner of our annual front-cover competition. Holly's winning image was voted for by VisitAlderney’s Facebook fans and visitors to the island via an online survey,  and now features on the front page of the Alderney brochure; we bet she can't wait to get hold of the hard copy when it’s delivered.

Click the picture and link to the online version of the Alderney 2012 brochure:

Fans of VisitAlderney on Facebook and visitors to the island have chosen the photograph that will appear on the front cover of the 2012 Alderney brochure. The winning photograph competed for votes against ten other shortlisted images. Of the 396 people who voted, the winning image received 35% (140) of the public’s votes. The lucky winner, Holly Webster, entered her photograph of a scenic view of Fort Quesnard with a clear azure blue sea in the foreground. She will receive two return tickets to the UK courtesy of Aurigny Air Services, the official sponsors of the competition and will have her image displayed on the front cover of the 2012 Alderney Brochure.

Holly Webster (18 years) is currently on a gap year, but is still pursuing her interests in photography.  Holly said “I was so pleased to find out that I had won the competition. I have just finished an Art and Design course at Guernsey College of Further Education and am looking into going to University to study a degree in Photojournalism. Winning the competition was a great step forward for me and to have my photo on the cover for visitors to see is fantastic. I also have my own website and blog and this is great publicity for me and for getting my work out there.”

Joanna Parmentier, Marketing Manager for VisitAlderney said “Once again it has been a great competition and we are delighted with the results.  The standard of photos entered were very high and it would have been a tough decision to make, had it been left entirely to us.  We are extremely pleased with the number of entrants which were double those of last year, from 90 entries in 2010 to 173 this year”.

A panel of judges were selected; its members were made up from our website design agency, creative consultants and our brochure designer.  The entries were narrowed down to ten shortlisted images and these were taken to the public vote. An online survey was emailed to the Alderney brochure mailing list of in excess of 14,000 and the winning photo was selected.

Joanna Parmentier, Marketing Manager for VisitAlderney said “It is always a difficult task selecting the front cover photo for the brochure, so, what better way of choosing it than a competition. Not only does it allow our Facebook fans to show off their beautiful images of Alderney, but it also gets the island’s residents and visitors involved.  A big thank you to all who entered; there are some beautiful shots of our island and many thanks to those who took the time to vote.  The interest in the competition has been great and has exceeded our expectations.”

The British Air Racing Champion for 2011 was decided on the 24^th and 25^th September, when the last in a series of eight races staged around Britain, took place in Alderney.  The event, sponsored by Aurigny Air Services and the States of Alderney attracted pilots from Britain, Ireland, France and as far afield as Palma, Majorca, who took to the air for two handicap races in an attempt to become the British Air Racing Champion for 2011.

After two gripping days of racing the 2011 British Air Racing Champion title was awarded to a husband and wife duo Mr and Mrs Boot from the Isle of Man.  The pilot, Geoffrey Boot and his wife Suzie who was navigating stole the race in their Siai Machetti SF260 which reached speeds of 203 mph during the races.

Geoffrey Boot said, "We have been air racing for twenty years, and it is quite an accolade to win the British Air Racing Championship for the first time, especially with the season finishing in such a wonderful place as Alderney.  This is the 2^nd time winning the European Championship, the previous time being in 2000.  We are absolutely thrilled to have won it again and it was all down to the last race here.”

The flying couple also won five other awards and took home a selection of trophies, cups and plates. 

Both Alderney races involved six laps of a 100 mile circuit that follows the island’s south coast to Fort Raz, across to Fort Albert and the Breakwater, the island of Burhou, around the Les Casquets lighthouse and then due east back to the airport.

Ralph Burridge, Race Event Coordinator said “That really was a cracking weekend”. So said Peter Earp, the event co-ordinator of the Royal Aero Club Racing Team, a sentiment with which I whole-heartedly agree. The weather was ideal for racing, with light winds and good visibility. Apart from being the venue of the final race at which both the British and the European Championships are decided, by having the largest number of aircraft racing than at any other venue during the season, the racing community gave Alderney another ‘feather in its cap.”

Pete Cunningham of Aurigny Air Services said “Thank you all for coming, you always seem to bring great weather with you.  We look forward to seeing you next year, when Aurigny will continue to sponsor this event.”

The final part of the Channel Island Way Podcast series has now been released. Part 6 includes Alderney where we complete the circuit of the island before chatting with Joanna Parmentier about island life and some of the key moments it has played in history.

The Channel Island Way is a walking guide published in 2011 by Coast Media which links all the perimeter walks around the Channel Islands into one, 100 mile route. We were sponsored by visitguernsey.com to walk sections of the route and produce a series of podcasts about the walks, the islands and some of the people we met on route.

The 6 part audio series contains interviews with key people and we share our thoughts on terrain, equipment and accommodation. It was a lightweight backpacking trip for us and the book proved to be an invaluable guide.

All six Podcasts are available below at The Outdoors Station

The Alderney part on Part 6 begins at 14 minutes into the podcast.

The Channel Island Way - Pt6 Alderney

The complete series podcasts 1-6