Hereford Voice

Herefordshire crisp producers Sean Mason and Mark Green are championing another taste of Herefordshire with the launch this week of their new flavour, Herefordshire Sausage and Mustard. This time the Two Farmers duo has teamed up with well-known rare and wild meats producer, Tudges. The Tudge family has been rearing Berkshire pigs for over 20 years in Herefordshire and like other producer partnerships that two Farmers are working with they put low food miles, quality and sustainability at the heart of what they do. Sean comments The Tudge partnership fits well with the Two Farmers philosophy of being kind to the planet and managing the countryside in a sustainable way. Two Farmers is the UK's first sustainable crisp brand, pioneering the UK's first plastic-free and compostable crisp packet. The launch follows other good news as the brand has recently been nominated by leading grocery trade title, The Grocer, as Startup of The Year and this week the duo has reached the finals of the Great British Food Awards. For more information visit www.twofarmers.co.uk

A microbudget UK Horror Feature is being made in Herefordshire. It's called "Wyvern Hill" and on its way very soon. UK horror director Jonathan Zaurin is to tackle his first feature film later this summer and it already looks like it’s one to keep an eye on. Wyvern Hill is described as ‘the story of one woman’s struggle with reality’ as a series of gruesome killings is shaking the small county of Herefordshire, UK. It tells the tale of Beth, a woman in her sixties who starts to show signs of early Alzheimer’s. Her daughter and son in law move into an old house large enough to accommodate the three of them so that they can look after Beth during this difficult time, that house… Wyvern Hill. It isn’t long before Beth begins worsen but is it her Alzheimer or is there SOMETHING in the house. I recently had a little chat with Jonathan to find out more about Wyvern Hill, what we can expect, how he feels tackling his first feature and when we can expect to see this new UK horror. What can people expect from Wyvern Hill? I think people coming into Wyvern Hill can expect a twisted, violent tale with plenty of twists and turns along the way… but also hopefully a very moving drama about a set of characters that are very unusual for this type of horror films. We tried to create an atmospheric, brutal horror that will deliver on tension, suspense and visceral horror but also to create a true drama in which you will get to love and care for the characters who are thrown into a horrible situation. It’s two films in one in a sense, but that’s something that always interested me, the fluidity of genre, I don’t see it as stiff, I see it as a multitude of potential combinations of narrative conventions, plenty of which we haven’t seen yet! How are you feeling about your coming feature as a Director? How have you been preparing? To be honest, nervous is the first word that comes to mind haha! Look here’s the thing about Wyvern Hill, it’s a microbudget, we’re really not spending that much money (total budget around 5k) and we were prepared for it to be exactly that, a (hopefully) high production value microbudget film… but then it started growing (while the budget stayed the same) and now we have a tonne of amazing people involved! For example our main actress Pat Garett who has spent the first half of her career working with Jim Henson and Frank Oz on things like The Muppets Christmas Carol and The Little Shop of Horrors amongst other things. And so since we started the production the cast has grown to welcome some incredible, established and rising, actors! And the crew has grown to welcome some amazing talent which I can’t quite reveal yet ha! But also the usual suspects and collaborators, first of all my wife Sarah who always produces, Jérome Bardon who is a consistant figure at LBS films, having produced and written a number of films for us but also Mike Coombes who has been a longtime friend and collaborator and who was Georgie in Portrait(s) , Joe Nurse who played Baby Gerald in Santa Baby, Pete Bird with whom I worked on several shorts and Michael Sanchez, the genius from Belgium who is slowly becoming our official composer as he did the music for both The Pit an Santa Baby! the special effects are being As far as preparing, again it’s a microbudget film so the idea is to try and get as much as my knowledge and time allows me to get done, myself. So on this I am officiating as director, DoP and editor and currently we are in a phase where I swear a lot and try to do my shot by shot breakdown between the thousands of emails from cast and crew all day everyday! When are you due to start shooting? We are due to start shooting with a very limited Cast and crew end of August. These are the first wave of scenes which we are shooting before our main actress arrives to Hereford. Then things start seriously kicking off on 11th September. We’re having to do that also because we obviously want to protect our cast and crew from Covid which represents as you can imagine, quite a challenge on production. What are your plans for the film upon completion? When is your proposed release date? The plans are to tour the festivals and find a distributor! We are already having those conversations with some fairly interesting people… We are basically fairly confident with that though, part of our History at LBS Films is that we, over the last 4 years, have created a series of Award Winning shorts for ridiculously low amounts of money (from £80 to a maximum of £300), all of which ended up being actually VERY profitable both financially and artistically, despite the (almost) total lack of distribution opportunities for shorts! In that respect we were lucky to meet Tood Rodgers at Meridian Releasing who gave our films a huge platform, and now Todd is a producer on Wyvern Hill! So in a sense the feature is a logical continuation of what we’ve been doing but hopefully with the proper potential channels for distribution available to us! How did you come across the script? A few years back I did a BA (Hons) at Hereford College of Arts. My last year was spent making a film called Dirt and we had a course leader replacement halfway through. Long story short the new course leader was Keith Temple, a fairly well known and very talented TV writer who worked on basically every major UK show. We clicked immediately and we expressed the idea of working together at some point. I hired Keith to play a part in my then new short film The Pit and from there a conversation started. Keith had an idea for a horror film but he was a bit nervous about writing it as he had never written pure horror (although his Dr Who episode comes close). So I told him that if he wrote it… I’d get it made. Initially it was called Suburban Shadows, and a lot of work and a year and half later, there it is, ready to shoot: Wyvern Hill. Source

Thank you Martin, we may use Jesse's words too 🙂

The PM talking with hospital staff and nurses

Prime Minister Boris Johnson visited Hereford County Hospital this week, one of the twenty hospitals getting a major new upgrade thanks to a boost in NHS funding. In a letter to sent to our member Megilleland Jesse Norman said: Prime Minister Boris Johnson and local MP Jesse Norman The PM also pledged making sure A&Es are ready for winter with a £300m package. Mr Johnson was accompanied by local MP Jesse Norman, they also visited the new Station Medical Centre to witness how they are progressing with this project and to see some of the new facilities on site.

First photo is Whitecross Road (next to Tesco express) and second photo is Holmer street onto Whitecross Road Photo's courtesy of: First = Phil Bosley and 2nd = Heather Louise

With the sudden severe storm and rainfall last night we saw flash floods across the city and across the county. Asda junction, where the A465 meets the A49 Hinton road Photographs courtesy of Joe James

The Prime Minister arrived in Hereford early this morning at Hereford County Hospital and said he can see how extra funding is helping them build new wards and prepare for winter as the government pledges an additional funding of £300m for NHS England. The PM also gave his approval of Herefordshire Council temporary traffic scheme making the city safer for both pedestrians and cyclists and has made additional funding of up to £2 million available in order to support the scheme. Mr Johnson also supports a much needed bypass for the city.

Cycle lanes are currently being painted onto Commercial Road tonight in both directions as part of the temporary travel measures scheme. There will still be access for cars in both directions. Thoughts? #HerefordVoice #HerefordNews #Hereford

Photographs courtesy of Guesti

We rarely report on National News but sometimes there are exceptions and this huge fire in Birmingham tonight is one of them. Statement from West Midlands Fire Service: Tyseley fire Birmingham At 4.47pm this afternoon (Monday 10 August 2020) we started to receive multiple 999 calls to a severe fire on the Tyseley Industrial Estate, Birmingham. As of 9pm this evening, 100 firefighters were continuing to tackle the incident at a plastics site on Seeleys Road. Twenty fire engines were at the scene, together with hydraulic aerial platforms and a specialist high-volume water pumping unit.Assistant Chief Fire Officer Sarah Warnes, the Incident Commander, said: Our fire control received dozens of 999 calls from people for miles around who spotted the plume of thick, black smoke which rose from the fire. People who live or work nearby are asked to keep doors and windows closed for the duration of the incident, and the public are being urged to avoid the area while our operations at the scene continue. Crews are working extremely hard in very challenging conditions which meant that some firefighters had to be withdrawn from certain areas of the incident for safety and to minimise the risk of heat exhaustion. A plan has been put in place for the safety of crews and to ensure that they get adequate rest and hydration. We expect to be at the scene throughout the night.

No further cases in farm outbreak Herefordshire Council and Public Health England (PHE) Midlands have confirmed that all remaining workers have tested negative for COVID-19 at an outbreak on a farm in Mathon, Herefordshire. The majority of farm workers are now able to return to work and daily life- a few workers remain living in self-isolation as contacts of positive cases.Katie Spence, PHE Midlands Health Protection Director, said: Karen Wright, Public Health Director for Herefordshire Council said: A spokesperson for AS Green and Co said: " To prevent further outbreaks and to protect yourself and others, please continue to wash your hands regularly, keep your distance and use face coverings in public spaces, shops and on public transport. Anyone who has a fever, persistent dry cough, or loss or change in their sense of taste or smell should call 119 or go online to arrange a test.

Hereford & Worcester Fire and Rescue Service mobilised crews from Hereford Fire Station, Fownhope Fire Station and Peterchurch Fire Station following numerous calls reporting an agricultural building alight at Hampton Bishop during the early hours. Crews have been tackling the fire this morning, 3 x pumps from Hereford, 1 x Fownhope and the water carrier from Peterchurch attended a storage barn fire involving agricultural vehicles on the outskirts of Hereford. The fire was brought under control quickly with pumps from Ledbury and Ross in on reliefs to maintain control and dampen down the fire for the remainder of the morning. Thankfully there were no casualties. #HerefordVoice #HerefordNews #Hereford

The people who own this foodie are really nice and genuine, trouble with FB too many throw away comments

It was a faulty temperature gauge on the fryer Rob

See a megaphone 📣 think Hereford Voice 📢 We love 💖❤️ our city and county and we like to shout about it and promote everything positive. It's all too easy to moan but we are privileged to live in such a beautiful part of the World. We will continue to promote local business and encourage people to visit Hereford and Herefordshire. Join us and 'BE POSITIVE' about this fabulous city of ours. 👉 'Positive Hereford'

It's great to see Hereford City centre really busy with shoppers today! We took this photo within just before 1pm, the shops including the Hereford Butter Market are all busy which is great to see, we also had no problem parking, plenty of people walking and enjoying this fabulous weather. Good to see all parts of the city centre busy today, we walked along Eign Gate, people everywhere and majority of people adhering to social distancing. It's nice to be able to promote positive news Have a wonderful weekend 🌞 😎

Horse dies as a result of eating grass cuttings. Thursday 30th July, in the Hampton Bishop area we have had a report that someone put grass cuttings into a horse’s field. Unfortunately this has resulted in the Horse loosing is life on the 2nd August. But why? The grass cuttings begin fermenting almost as soon as they are cut and the horses will gorge on them as they are so palatable, causing a build-up of gas in the Horses stomach. As horses have a one-way stomach valve, they are unable to vomit or even burp to relieve the pressure. The gases given off by the fermenting cuttings can expand to the point where they rupture the stomach, causing an agonising death. Choking hazard As the grass cuttings have been finely chopped up, horses won’t need to chew as much or at all before swallowing the grass. This results in the horse gorging on the pile of cuttings and therefore eating large amounts very quickly. The cuttings can compact and become lodged in the horse’s throat, causing them to choke. Poisonous Plants There are many plants that are poisonous to horses. These could be mowed up along with the grass cuttings which may cause the horse additional harm. Depending on the plant, the range of problems include severe diarrhea, liver damage, collapse or even death. Although feeding horses may seem harmless, your kindness may kill! https://www.bhs.org.uk/…/horse-health-and-si…/grass-cuttings

The Leader of Herefordshire Council has welcomed a multi-million pound investment into the county, announced by Government and allocated by the Marches LEP. More than 700 new jobs and 300 homes are to be created across the Marches region as part of the Government’s Getting Building Fund (GBF), and three of the six projects that will benefit are in Herefordshire. Planning applications for housing and employment sites in the north of Herefordshire are being delayed because of the elevated level of phosphates in the River Lugg catchment area. As part of the Integrated Constructed Wetlands project, up to 8 wetland sites can be built adjacent to sewage treatment works in the River Lugg catchment area to lower the phosphate levels, creating up to 500 jobs by unlocking development potential for 1,385 homes whilst also delivering strong environmental benefits through these rich bio diversity habitats. The money from the Marches LEP will add a further £1m to this project to add to the funds already earmarked by the Council. The council’s refurbishment of the historic centre of Hereford will also benefit from a £3m investment in the streetscape with high quality materials as part of a masterplan to ensure Hereford is vibrant and supports businesses creating new opportunities for visitors and retailers. Again this will add to the funds already earmarked for this project by the Council. Accelerated funding will also speed up the Skylon Park Campus Development, which is a pivotal component of NMiTE, and will create 26 jobs, 100 construction jobs and 200 new learning opportunities.Cllr David Hitchiner, Leader of Herefordshire Council, said:

UPDATE 17:30 The fire is out and fire crews are still damping down, residents in the apartments above were evacuated and all accounted for. Union Street remains closed. The guy's at the restaurant put the following message on their Facebook page this evening;

Polska Street Food in Union Street currently has a fire and crews from Hereford Fire Station are on scene. Union Street is closed to traffic 📷 Kelly Crumpton

The council have now made some modifications and opened up disabled parking bays and also addition parking both sides of Broad St as well as clearly marking out the Taxi rank. To be fair these temporary measures are fluid and the council are reacting to feedback.

The Earl heard about the council’s response to flooding and Covid-19 Herefordshire Council was delighted to be joined by His Royal Highness The Earl of Wessex for his first ever virtual Royal Visit on Wednesday 22 July. The visit was hosted by Her Majesty's Lord Lieutenant of Herefordshire, The Dowager Countess of Darnley. The Earl was keen to hear about the experiences of children, adults and communities and hard work of schools, services and Herefordshire Council staff, partners and volunteers who have provided support during the Covid-19 pandemic and local flooding events. There have been many unexpected changes to teaching and delivering services over the first half of the year. The Earl learned about the impact of these changes on children, young people and adults, and staff. The Earl also heard about the strong and resilient relationships between the council, schools, partners and volunteers. The Earl met with staff who have supported vulnerable children and young people through the pandemic, two head teachers shared how their schools have adapted. He met with children from Weobley School and listened to poems they had written about their lockdown experiences. Mariam Njeri, a young person with care experience, read her poignant poem about life under lockdown. Chris Baird, Director of Children and Families said: The Earl was then introduced to the adults and communities services and heard about Talk Community which has provided support to the most vulnerable during lockdown. Wendy Carter shared her experiences of volunteering as a ‘shield buddy’ during lockdown, which provided extra support for clinically vulnerable people . He then met partners from HVOSS, Vennture and other community leaders who have worked with the council to provide ongoing support to vulnerable people. Stephen Vickers, Director of Adults and Communities said: