The Mansion House.....St Helens all purpose venue

Where in St Helens can you find a beautiful building in lovely grounds that has a multitude of uses and the money raised is solely for the charity Age UK Mid Mersey?  It has to be The Mansion House.....

Built in 1850 for local solicitor, John Andsell, this magnificent house has been at the centre of the St Helens community for well over 150 years. Set within its own grounds, in Victoria Park and within easy access off the A580. This exceptional venue has something special to offer everyone.

The Mansion House has had many personalities from private residence, to a museum but today it is owned and managed by Age UK, Mid Mersey. This one-off venue with its walled gardens, ornate fountains and beautiful Orangery (currently under renovation) is a hub for local people and businesses to use as a special place to celebrate, meet, and even attend lifestyle classes.



Their team are keen to welcome you and help you arrange your special event, they are licensed for civil weddings / partnership ceremonies, naming ceremonies, evening receptions, banquets, galas and special events, and excel at putting their clients and their guests at the centre of what they do.

Click here to view a gallery of photographs taken from around and inside The Mansion House.

One must to visit is the Victoria Bistro, housed in a converted barn which is part of The Mansion House estate. The Bistro is the perfect place to meet for drinks with friends during the week, maybe after a walk around the lovely Victoria Park or after a meeting or event.

They pride themselves on offering quality, homemade food, so why not try somewhere a bit different from the high-street coffee shop and grab your morning coffee and lunchtime snack from the Victoria Bistro.

Open from 10am to 4pm weekdays theVictoria Bistro is fully licensed and can be hired out for special functions.






When you’re picking the venue for your wedding there are so many things to consider; how many guests will be attending? What food and drinks to serve? Will we have exclusive use of our chosen venue? Can we have photos inside and out?

The Mansion House epitomises Victorian grandeur and this beautiful venue is licenced to hold civil weddings. Why not arrive in the historic courtyard where their team will meet and greet you and your guests and guide you all to the foot of the elegant staircase where you could be offered canapés and reception drinks and then move outside into the gardens to relax before your sumptuous wedding breakfast?

The versatility of the house means there is a choice of style and size of room to achieve the atmosphere you desire. Also the exclusive use of The Mansion House, its Victorian walled gardens and soon to be redeveloped Orangery are available to your guests throughout your special day.





Another aspect of The Mansion House isthat they pride themselves on being at the heart of the local community. This means whilst they can focus on the one off big events in the local community’s lives they also like to be there in a more everyday way. This is why they are keen to promote our range of holistic and hobby craft classes.

There is an ever changing range of courses & sessions available for all age groups and abilities. Each course / session is paid for on a week by week basis and you can do this at the main reception.

Courses have limited spaces and therefore prior enrolment is a good idea but they will try to re-run a course or class if it is particularly popular.

For more information about the courses currently running contact them on 01744 752 644 or pop into the main reception for an up-to-date list.

If it's business you have in mind then the four main rooms all boast the latest AV equipment, including PA systems, LCD projectors and screens, making their conference and room hire facilities an ideal alternative to the norm. They have a team of AV and lighting technicians who work on site and we can therefore tailor each space to meet your individual business requirements e.g. additional plasma screens or audio equipment.

Their experienced events and operations team have all the knowledge to ensure that any meeting or event is impeccably planned and runs like clockwork.

Finally if it's a social event you have in mind, whether it’s a Christmas party, a family function, a big birthday bash or wedding anniversary, The Mansion House is such a uniquely flexible and versatile venue that you will end up with exactly the kind of party you want.

They have created a variety of catering options for any function or party, ranging from cold buffets, to sit down meals. They also offer a variety of drinks packages all of which have been tailored to fit a range of budgets.

The professional hospitality team pay fantastic attention to detail and always ensure functions run smoothly. They are available to assist you with all elements of a special event, from the initial enquiry, right the way through to the day itself.

For music at an event they can provide a DJ or band or you can organise one of your choice. Their team also have a bank of other event professionals that they can call on for special room decoration, cake making, balloons and floristry.

Uniquely, as part of the facilities on offer at The Mansion House,The Victoria Bistro is open during weekdays 10am to 4pm and is fully licensed. This warm and friendly barn conversion can be used for weddings, other special occasions and funeral teas.

Let's not forget one of the most important aspects of The Mansion House as there is an additional benefit to spending your money there. This beautiful estate is solely run to raise funds for Age UK Mid Mersey to enable delivery of a range of vital services for older people in our community, for example:

• £1 raised will fund the cost of a vital call to an isolated older person at a time of crisis or during a major change in their life.

• £5 will support a volunteer in visiting a housebound older person to offer friendship and companionship, do small jobs and help them feel more safe and secure.

• £8 will fund the cost of an individual to attend specialist exercise classes to help maintain mobility and to help prevent falls.

• £15 helps fund our specialised information, advice and advocacy service. This service supports older people, their families, and their carers through a variety of issues including money and benefits advice, housing,and care in the community.

They genuinely can make a little go a really long way to changing someone’s life. When considering your loved ones you can rest assured that Age UK Mid Mersey will be there to support them.

Britain’s Best Office Dog

Ralph has been entered for Britain's best Office Dog

Britain’s Best Office Dog

Ralph's Life on Wordpress

The Fitzroy...how you can help

You know when you've watched a film and you say "I could have done that better".....well here's your chance.....or at least the chance to help fund an independently made film and have the chance to feature in the title sequence of the film!  The big question is.....what is the film?

The Fitzroy 

• Launched: Nov 8, 2012
• Funding ends: Dec 23, 2012
• Remind Me

What is The Fitzroy?

The Fitzroy is an independent, live action, feature film; a black comedy set in a post-apocalyptic 1950’s Margate. The world is covered in a poisonous gas and the Fitzroy Hotel (a beached submarine) is the last place for a traditional holiday.

The hotel is sent into chaos when one of the guests murders the hotel’s owner. It is left to Bernard, The Fitzroy’s hapless bellboy, to keep the hotel from falling apart as he struggles to hide the murders from the other guests and the ever-suspicious authorities.

Sci-Fi, post-apocalyptic, comedy, period setting… all in one film? Are you crazy? So what are you doing here?
We are trying to raise enough money to make The Fitzroy. To do this we need to raise £60,000.

So you are crazy! 
No, not at all. Well maybe a little. But we are all experienced, having worked in media for a long time, on commercials, music videos and short films. The film has been planned to the nth degree and we already have many of the key elements secured; location, heads of departments, music etc.

Who are you?

We are: Andrew Harmer (writer/director) and producing team James Heath and Liam Garvo (Dresden Pictures). There are some links at the bottom of the page to some of our previous work.

James Heath, Andrew Harmer and Liam Garvo

Is it going to be good?
We hope so. Film is our passion, and we’re working our hardest to make sure The Fitzroy is as good as it can be. Blood, sweat and tears. In fact, those are our nicknames.

Okay, fair enough. Where can I learn more about the project?
Please visit our website. There you can find a wealth of information, or for an ongoing look behind the scenes, check out our blog - its free, frank and... er... fabulous!? Or just ask us anything you want to know.

The Rewards

If I donate, what’s in it for me?
The feel-good factor of making dreams come true and supporting independent film. Also one of the awesome incentives to the right! But here's a bit more info on a few of them.

Animated Title Character: The films titles will be an animated cartoon and will explain how the world of The Fitzroy came to be.

Designed by Marko Anstice (he did the illustrations on our website), the titles will be populated by a cast of characters... and you can be one of them!

Simply send us a couple of photos of yourself (or a loved one, this would make a great gift) and we will turn you into a toon. You'll feature in the title sequence to the film and we'll send you a one-off illustrated print of your mini-me to frame and hang.

UPDATE: The animated character now includes 2x tickets to the premier AND the 'Funding Producer' reward, with a credit on IMDB.

Beach Survival Kit: Ever tried having a holiday in a post-apocalyptic world? It's not easy. Luckily the government have issued these 'Beach Survival Kits'. Each one is handmade by the director and personalised. If you are going on holiday, remember - stay safe!

Poster:  An exclusive series of posters just for Kickstarter. These will be strictly limited to the number of backers who request this reward. Heck if we want one we have to put the money in too! There will be five to choose from, all signed and numbered by the artist. We’ll email you at the end of the campaign and clarify which one you would like. Grab a piece of cinema history - they will be incredibly rare!

Poster A: 'Radiation Blues' by Marko Anstice (A1 size)

Poster B: ‘Margate’ by Gary Haslam (A2 size)

UPDATE: We've tweaked the pricing structure to make it more fair as we presume you won't want multiple downloads of the film and soundtrack!

One poster                 = £45

Two posters               = £80

Three posters            = £110

Four poster                = £135

or you can be the envy of your neighbours and get the whole set for £150!

International P&P is £5 if you buy one or all five.

*NB We can’t change the ‘reward’ box on the right of the page so please ignore where it says ‘simply double or triple’. The above are the correct prices!

The Soundtrack: The Fitzroy is going to rock! Unlike most films, we are taking a slightly different approach. We have teamed up with the awesomeGreen Rock River Band, who will not only be composing an original score, but starring in the film as ‘the band’ - a ragtag touring band holed up in one of The Fitzroy's rooms. Their music will literally echo through the submarine.

Described as ‘doom folk’, The Green Rock River Band is definitely going to bring a unique sound to The Fitzroy.

NEW REWARD!  Have GRRB play at your party.

Green Rock River Band will play at your next party, wedding, office shindig, Bar-Mitzvah, country fair, funeral… well maybe not the last one.

They’ll come play for you – which is a hell of a deal! Travel covered anywhere inside the M25, outside of that you will have to add transportation costs in.

To give you a taste, here is what went down when they played at our Fitzroy shindig.

Dates are flexible but give us a shout to see if they can do the night you want. Oh and you also get the 'Funding Producer' reward! 

NEW REWARD! The Call Action reward.

Ever wanted to feel the power of an egomaniac? Well now you can. Come down to set, a real Russian submarine! Be treated like a king, call action on the very first shot of The Fitzroy and have your day filmed so you can share your experience with your friends and family (if you want).

You also get your very own personalised directors chair signed by the entire cast. AND the ‘Premier Tickets’ package with Funding Producers credit on IMDB.

What more could you want?

You have to get yourself to the shoot, this will be around in April but we will give you as much warning to the exact date as possible.

What if I want more than one reward?
Awesome! Simply add the totals together (plus p&p) and we will email you at the end of the campaign to clarify which rewards you require.

What if I don’t want the incentive, I just want to support?
You are wonderful! Not a problem. Once you hit ‘Back this Project’ there is a button you can select if you don’t want a reward.

Other Important Questions

What happens if you don’t reach your target?
Kickstarter is an all or nothing model! If we don’t reach our target no-one gets charged and we don’t make the film. That’s why we need you… and your family and friends! So please, even if you can’t donate, help us by spreading the word on Twitter, Facebook or word of mouth.

Can you exceed the goal?
YES! This would truly be amazing. Exceeding our goal would allow us to make a better movie. Kickstarter allows projects to go over their targets. If we do go over our target, every penny will still go into making the project as good as possible.

Is my pledge amount publicly displayed?
Nope. Only you and the project creator will be able to see your pledge amount.

Can I increase my pledge once it’s been made?
YES! Once you donate to our campaign, you may want to change your reward to a different one, or increase your pledge amount. To do so, go to Kickstarter and sign in. If you go to our campaign page, the green “Back This Project” button has been replaced with a blue “Manage Your Donation” button. Click it and you can enter a new amount, or choose a new incentive.

Can I gift a Reward?
YES! Definitely. In fact we tried hard to create rewards that would make brilliant gifts. Christmas is coming up! Donate through all the normal processes of making a donation in your name. For billing purposes, this action must be in your name. After our deadline, we will send you a message. We will request things like your address from you at that time. Please reply with all the recipient’s information and let us know it’s a gift (we might throw in a little something extra!).

A few more shots of the 'Black Widow' submarine we would love to shoot on.

What is the money going to be used for? It's not just development money?
No not at all. If we raise our target we can shoot and deliver the completed film (with a little held over to enter the film into festivals).

You’re not going take all the money and fly away to Hawaii are you?
Every penny (minus the fees for Kickstarter’s involvement) will go directly into The Fitzroy’s budget - i.e. your money goes directly to the funding of this film. And trust me, we are making every penny stretch as far as we can. And no, we won’t skip off to Hawaii: 1) All we have ever wanted to do is make films and 2) We burn very easily.

I'm not in the UK. Can I still pledge?
Yes. You can pledge from anywhere in the world. All you need is a debit or credit card. It’s dead easy.

How do we contact you?
Through hello@thefitzroy.com or in the Kickstarter comments, or via our Twitter and Facebook pages.

If you have any questions or suggestions for rewards that you would like, please just leave us a comment.

Links

• The Fitzroy website
• Directors blog
• Twitter
• Facebook
• The Green Rock River Band
• Andrew Harmer's website
• Dresden Pictures

RISKS AND CHALLENGESLearn about accountability on Kickstarter

As with anything in life, there is a risk and making films is no different.

Our biggest challenge will be in turning the film around by September. Although we feel it is a realistic date, quite often schedules change due to weather, crew/cast not being available for certain dates. So even though we are aiming for a September completion, this date might slip by a month or two.

Similarly, depending on demand, delivery times for rewards may be affected. For example, if the title character animation is very popular, it will take Marko our illustrator a while to create them all. We will obviously deliver every reward as quickly as we can and will keep you up to date with any changes in delivery. Your patience will be very much appreciated.

FAQ

Have a question? If the info above doesn't help, you can ask the project creator directly.

Ask a question

Report this project to Kickstarter

One-Pot Mexican Chilli Beef.....

This delicious one-pot Spicy Mexican braised beef recipe is a real crowd pleaser.  Not only is it easy to make, delicious, spicy and filling.....it's stress free!  This recipe is enough to feed 14 - 15 so it's perfect for a party or to feed the family and freeze the rest or needless to say just reduce the amounts by half. 

Ingredients:

• 
  
• up to 6 tbsp sunflower oil
• 4kg stewing beef
• 4 white onions , sliced
• 4 tbsp chipotle paste
• 8 garlic cloves , crushed
• 50g ginger , grated
• 1 tbsp ground cumin
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tbsp plain flour
• 2l beef stock
• 3 x 400g cans chopped tomatoes
• 1 tbsp dried oregano
• 5 x 400g cans pinto or kidney beans , drained
• 
  
• 
  

Method:

Heat a small drizzle of the oil in an extra-large flameproof dish. Brown the meat in batches, adding a drop more oil, remove from the dish and set aside. Add 1 tbsp oil to the dish, then the onions, and cook for 7-10 mins or until caramelised.

Stir the chipotle paste, garlic, ginger, cumin, cinnamon and flour in with the onions and cook for a couple of mins. Gradually add the stock, stirring all the time, so it's fully mixed in with the other ingredients. Add the tomatoes and oregano, season and simmer for 10 mins.

Now tip in the beef, cover and simmer very gently for about 1 hr 45 mins until tender, removing the lid and adding the beans for the final 15 mins. If the sauce is thin, let it boil down for a further 5-10 mins with the lid off. Before serving, adjust the seasoning. Serve with the garlic bread and salsa.

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Bradford One Community Group...fighting for the future of The Bradford Odeon

Bradford One Community Group

Posted on November 27, 2012 by ralphslife

Here’s some background on Bradford One Community Group…..

WHAT IS BRADFORD ONE?

A newly launched community interest group seeking to take the Save the Odeon campaign on to the next level by organising and overseeing the redevelopment of this much loved building at the heart of Bradford.

They aim to do this by engaging and involving the people of Bradford throughout the process.

Ultimately the aim is an economically viable venue with an assured future. They are ordinary Bradfordians with no vested interests other than that they care about the building, about Bradford and its future.

They’ve chosen a community benefit vehicle, similar to a co-operative, which will include an asset lock on the site so that it will remain in the ownership of the people of Bradford.

WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS?

The Bradford Odeon is clearly important to local people as the long running campaign to save it has demonstrated. Alongside organisations such as the Bradford Odeon Rescue Group BORG (who I’ll be featuring soon), the voice of the community has played a massive role in ensuring that the initial plans for demolition and re-development as New Victoria Place were rejected.

The Bradford One group includes campaigners who met through the fight to save the building, via online and offline activities. Their aim is to now transform this campaign into a constructive way of securing a solution with as much input from the people of Bradford as possible.

They believe that a redeveloped Odeon that retains the essential characteristics of the building will have far reaching benefits for Bradford city centre and the wider district, drawing people back into Bradford and helping to show what Bradford and its people really have to offer. It will complement perfectly the area around Centenary Square with the Alhambra, Media Museum and City Park.

WHAT ARE YOUR PLANS?

To create a multi-purpose cultural venue and a home for creative entrepreneurs.

It will include a modern, well-equipped auditorium for mid-scale touring live acts and events surrounded by managed workspace, learning facilities and co-working spaces to encourage collaboration and innovation.

Incorporating restaurants, café-bars and independent retail outlets will help to make Bradford One a sustainable proposition in the heart of Bradford city centre.

WHAT CAN PEOPLE DO TO GET INVOLVED?

Initially, They plan to engage with the community in two ways:

A consultation exercise to let the people of Bradford decide what happens to the building
A community share issue to let the people of Bradford take ownership of the building – shares will be available at a very low cost and will give you voting rights

This will very much be a community led process at each stage, with the ultimate aim being a renovated building everyone can enjoy.

The public needs to demonstrate their support as this will strengthen the campaign.

You can register your interest now on the website www.bradfordone.com

HOW WILL YOU FUND THIS?

A mixture of sources, including:

• public funding through issuing shares to the public
• grants, gifts and donations and community funding
• investor funding and loans

ARE THEY MEMBERS OF BORG?

No, they are a separate group to BORG, although they have shared a common aim with them in their campaigns to save the building.

WHO DO YOU PLAN TO WORK WITH?

All interested parties.

Nothing is ruled out at this stage and they’re exploring all possible options as to funding, developers, tenants and use of the spaces around the main auditorium.

They want to engage the people of Bradford throughout the whole process – as a community led group they want to listen to and reflect the wishes of the community.

One of Bradford’s best resources is its people and they believe that giving the people a voice and a choice is the best way forward to work towards the renovation of the building and the regeneration of Bradford city centre.

WHAT’S THE NEXT STEP?

Now the group has been formed they can start to explore the various funding opportunities available at different stages.

First of all they will formally examine the viability of the scheme and put together a business planTheyWe also plan to pursue funding for a feasibility study.

They will continue to liaise closely with Bradford Council and the Homes and Communities Agency (who currently own the building) and look forward to the completion of the structural survey Bradford Council have agreed to provide for all interested parties.

This will be an open process, and they encourage and welcome the involvement of the people of Bradford.

Love Bradford…Love The Odeon