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EXTINCTION REBELLION, BRISTOL: THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM
31 August 2020
As part of their continued warnings of the current climate emergency facing the planet, Extinction Rebellion, Bristol laid on an artistic demonstration on Prince Street this weekend.
Encouraging passers by to talk to them about 'The Elephant in the Room' that is climate change, The Southernist duly took up Arlan on that offer and you can watch our discussion below.
EAT:FESTIVAL, PORTISHEAD: FIRST FOOD FESTIVAL OF THE SUMMER PROVES A SOCIALLY DISTANCED SCORCHER
9 August 2020 Portishead Marina, Bristol
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Portishead was alive with “the buzz” of normal life on Saturday (8th August), as thousands flocked to the marina to take in the enticing sites, sounds and smells of the first eat:Festival of the summer.
Aided by clear sky and scorching hot temperatures, an estimated 10,000 people attended across the day, helping provide local independent traders with a much-needed boost to their businesses in the process.
“We are so blessed that today is the most wonderful weather. This is showing Portishead at its best” said Sarah.
“Portishead is heaving” added Beverley, “but in very socially distanced sort of way.”
An important return for local businesses
The importance of being able to hold such an event and return to something like ‘normal’ life was clear to see from the facial expressions behind the face coverings of traders and those attending
And whilst there were plentiful stories from stall holders of undergoing a difficult period of uncertainty and having to adapt their business models to survive a tricky period, a determined spirit and sense of their business being stronger having faced adversity was prevalent throughout.
But ultimately show piece events, such as the eat:Festival are crucial to these locally run enterprises and the surrounding economies they support, as Beverley explained;
“The opportunity to sell face to face is the bread and butter for most of our producers, the vast majority of them rely on markets and smaller festivals like ours.
“Throughout lockdown quite a lot of them have developed their wholesale business, but they all love selling at markets, they all love getting that feedback.
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Festival organisers, Beverley and Sarah Milner-Simonds. |
One of the many stallholders we spoke to that echoed this sentiment was Mark Davey, Co-Director of Epic Beers Ltd (Trading as Pitchfork Ales).
“It’s affected us greatly” said Mark, referencing the nationwide lockdown period, “obviously our normal trade went overnight.”
Thankfully the incorporation of a successful click and collect service run from their Weston-Super-Mare base and online sales have been able to support the business through that interim period, but Mark nevertheless described the return of events such as the eat:Festival as “vital” to his business.
Another striking a reassuring positive note was Anna Blake, owner and baker of the family run supplier of sweet treats, Cake Bar.
"It’s our first festival back and we’ve had an awesome
day" enthused Anna, who was equally looking forward to eat:Festival returning to her home town of Minehead later in the month.
"It's so important [on the return of the festival], it’s been a very, very empty few months not
doing these."
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The COVID-19 inspired 'Isolated Pale Ale' appropriately named "Can't Touch This" which was on display at the Epic Beers Pitch |
Socialising safely
A further notable aspect of the eat:Festival on the day was how well it was organised.
With plenty of hand sanitising stations positioned around the expansive festival area and floor markings providing a constant reminder of social distancing, the event felt a safe environment for people to enjoy their day out in the sun.
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The only notion of "high steaks" on the day was the serious steak sandwiches been served by William Price and his team |
And these were sentiments echoed by people in attendance, from a safe distance of course.
This included Katie and Kevin who we spotted wearing eye-catching face masks.
“We think it’s been brilliant, they’ve really looked after us," said Katie.
“It’s been spread out really well so we don’t feel bottle necked. Yeah, just feels a really safe environment, it’s fantastic!”
Another social bubble that we briefly disturbed was that of Portishead locals Elaine, Mark, Tony, Carol, Sue, Edna, Paco and Mabel as they enjoyed a relaxing drink by the river.
“It’s incredible to be honest, we haven’t been out much since March, so to come to something like this it’s just really nice” said Elaine, with the rest of her party nodding in agreement.
“It feels really safe, people are wearing masks around all the stalls and there’s music playing, it’s really good fun.”
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Kevin and Katie who praised the organisation of the festival said they felt "really looked after" |
"It works for the traders, it works for the peoples; it's a lovely day out."
That the eat:Festival received such a warm welcome from the people of Portishead on its return will be of no surprise to those who have attended previous years events.
Having initially been setup as a single event in their home town 8 years ago, the award winning festival's ever growing popularity has seen it expand to becoming an eagerly anticipated fixture in towns all across Somerset.
For stallholder, Simon Bowden representing his business the Bath Soft Cheese Company, the reasons why the festival has grown to what it has was both numerous and obvious as he praised the work of the events organisers.
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Simon Bowden of the Bath Soft Cheese Company |
"It works for the traders, it works for the people; it’s a lovely day out.
"You’ve got so many of the good traders and good producers of the areas in one place and you know, people love it, people like to get food from the people who produce it. It’s fantastic."
But whilst the festival will not always enjoy days of cloudless sky and warm sun - a hint to how different the conditions were for last years edition - the ethos behind this social enterprise is something that will always remain a constant, as Beverley explained;
"They’re always free to attend, always locally focused and always like this one, in the heart of the community, giving a chance for people to come together, shop in the open air and have a great day out,"
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Harry Calvert, the creative talent behind Ginger Beard Preserves who was also exhibiting at the eat:Festival |
The next eat:Festival's to be held are in Minehead (Saturday 22nd August) and Wellington (Saturday 5th September) with further events planned up to October, before Christmas editions begin in late November.
For full details of these events or to find out more about the eat:Festival, head to www.eatfestivals.org
TEESSIDE'S INDEPENDENT RESTAURANTS DELIVERING THIS MOTHER'S DAY
22 March 2020 Teesside, UK
You and your loved ones may be stuck in this weekend, but the remarkable adaptability from these loved Teesside restaurants means you can still treat your one and only mum, this Mother's Day.
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