CROWNING GLORY

Erewash Museum will celebrate this jubilee year with a 1950s family fun day this week – a salute to the decade of the Queen’s coronation. The fabulous fifties party is on Saturday 25 June from 11am to 3pm, giving visitors the chance to rock ‘n’ roll the day away. There will be live music throughout the day with vintage entertainer Johnny Victory singing 50s tunes and local band, Cranberry Flick, performing a mixture of jazz, blues and rock ‘n’ roll. There will also be a chance to learn how to dance to the rhythm with jive demonstrations, while some classic cars from the decade will be parked outside the museum. Councillor Carol Hart, Leader of Erewash Borough Council, says:

“It was the decade of the jive, some fabulous fashions and the music definitely rocked. So we hope people of all ages will join us at our award winning museum and enjoy the music, activities and celebration of the decade that saw our Queen crowned.”

Erewash Museum is just a short stroll from Ilkeston Market Place. Admission is free. Contact 0115 907 1141, email museum@erewash.gov.uk  or visit facebook.com/erewashmuseum for more information. 

UFO

Residents in Long Eaton reported seeing a 'UFO' hovering in the sky on Thursday evening on June 9th. The UFO was caught on camera by Bill Pearce a Long Eaton resident. The footage which lasted 5 minutes shows an object hovering with flashing red and green lights. The sighting came around the same time as planes were said to have been unable to land at East Midlands airport.

Local aviation enthusiasts reporting that multiple planes had been prevented from landing at the nearby airport. Airport security believes that the object might have been a drone launched from the Download Festival, the UK's largest rock festival, which started on Friday.

SAWLEY PARISH CHURCH JUBILEE CELEBRATIONS

Pauline Smart organized the Jubilee event on Sunday 5th June. Long Eaton Silver Prize Band, the church choir and the local residents enjoyed an evening of music and hymns. Sawley Youth Club who had designed the front cover of the program were in attendance and gave out the programmes. The Mayor and Mayoress of Erewash Cllr John Sewell BEM and Maggie Throup the Erewash MP were in attendance.

STEAMPUNK EXRAVAGANZA

The show-stopping Steampunk Extravaganza returns to the award winning Erewash Museum this weekend. The  event will see non-stop steampunk activities and performances on Saturday 11th June, from 10am to 4pm in celebration of Steampunk – a  subgenre of science fiction inspired by 19th-century industrial steam-powered machinery. The popular event is free to attend and delivered by ‘Steampunks Always Welcome in

Lincoln’, in collaboration with Erewash Museum. 

 Everyone is welcome to explore the steampunk markets or try their luck in a charity raffle as well as a tea duelling competition in which participants can dunk a biscuit in a cuppa and see who can take a bite without it breaking. There will also be several shows throughout the day, with the Black Pig Border Morris group showcasing a traditional Morris dance and musical performance. There will be a demonstration from Fire breather St. John Le Fox, Lincoln ‘skiffle’ band Daisy Roots will play some toe-tapping tunes, and the event will be rounded off with the mystical T & V magic show. Councillor Carol Hart, Leader of Erewash Borough Council, says:

 “The steampunk community stretches far and wide – I’m thrilled for both local enthusiasts and those travelling to Erewash to see the wonderful event the Museum has plannedIt is set to be a wonderful day for both people already invested in steampunk and those completely new to the genre”

 Erewash Museum is just a short walk from Ilkeston’s Market Square. Admission is free. Contact 0115 907 1141, email museum@erewash.gov.uk  or visit the Facebook page facebook .com/erewashmuseum.

PLATINUM JUBILEE BEACON LIGHTING

Erewash Borough Council is holding special beacon lighting events to celebrate the Queen’s Jubilee. Queen Elizabeth celebrates 70 years on the throne this year, the first British Monarch to reach such a milestone. Erewash will celebrate on Thursday June 2 by taking part in the beacon lighting event with ceremonies in Ilkeston Market Place and the grounds of Long Eaton Town Hall. 

Both events will begin at 8.30pm with musical performances and the handing out of flags. At 9.30pm the Mayor of Erewash, Councillor John Sewell, will arrive at Long Eaton, and the Deputy Mayor of Erewash, Councillor Chris Corbett, will arrive at Ilkeston. At approximately 9.40pm, a piper will play ‘Diu Regnare’, a tune written specifically for the occasion by Piper Major Stuart Liddell. A bugler will then announce the lighting of the beacon with a specially written bugle called ‘Majesty’. The beacon will then be lit as the ‘Song of the Commonwealth’ plays and the National Anthem will finish the glorious evening.

Councillor Carol Hart, Leader of Erewash Borough Council, says: “The Queen has been leading us for 70 years now with great strength, honour and integrity. We are all so grateful for her lifelong service, her guidance through difficult times and her consistency in an inconsistent world. It is a joy to thank her and celebrate her Platinum Jubilee this Bank Holiday with the beacon lightings in Erewash.”

Beacon chains were historically used for communication but are now lit to celebrate major Royal events such as the Platinum Jubilee. The event begins with the lighting of the principle beacon in Buckingham Palace, after which over 1,500 beacons will follow suit including 54 in each Commonwealth City Capital. Residents are asked to bring their own chairs to the events as both venues have limited seating.