Latest news with #BBCRadioBerkshire
Yahoo
07-05-2025
- Yahoo
VE Day post box topper stolen, knitters say
A postbox topper created to celebrate the 80th anniversary of VE Day has been stolen, a group of knitters have said. Sarah Roy, from the group which meets at Caversham's Weller Centre, said it had taken members about a month to create the feature, which included a woollen Sir Winston Churchill. She told BBC Radio Berkshire it had been placed on the postbox outside Warings Bakery in Hemdean Road on Saturday but she noticed it had disappeared on Tuesday. Mrs Roy said had she reported the disappearance to police but had yet to receive a response. The topper also included a nurse, a factory worker and a sailor. "We got lots of thanks from the community on social media, lots of thank yous and lots of people who enjoyed looking at it and went especially into the village centre to look at the post box topper," Mrs Roy added. "If it's been taken and dumped somewhere, there's every chance that we can fix it. We are talented and we know how to do things." Thames Valley Police said the incident may have been reported but was yet to be logged in the system. You can follow BBC Berkshire on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram. Related Links
Yahoo
12-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Ian McKellen stars in young director's film debut
A 14-year-old boy is due to make his directorial debut with a film starring Sir Ian McKellen. Jacob, from Windsor, Berkshire, explores 1,000 years of gay history in his film, as well as what it is like to be part of the LGBTQ+ community today. Dragged Through Time, which draws on his experiences as an openly gay young person, will be screened for the first time at Windsor and Eton Pride on 26 July. Speaking to BBC Radio Berkshire, Jacob said Sir Ian was "very easy to work with". Jacob said he had been working with Windsor-based youth-led film project Notice Productions for about a year when he suggested to one of the coordinators, Brad Day, that they should make a film about gay issues. "He [Mr Day], as a joke, tells me that I have to have a synopsis ready by the next day - and I take him seriously," said the young director. "So I write this whole two-page thing, hand it in, it gets approved and I'm in utter shock." Exploring LGBTG+ history was "really important" to him, said Jacob, adding: "While we have great films and TV shows now that focus on the present, I really think it's an important thing to focus on the past." Dragged Through Time goes as far back as ancient Greece, he said. "It was quite an accepting place back then. "Most of the Greek gods, while they may be fictional, had male lovers." He described the genre of the film as "drama, in a way", explaining: "We have these dream sequences... that are different forms of theatre with drag queens played by me, which we had to make costumes for." Sir Ian plays the role of Great Uncle Peter, a semi-closeted older relative of the film's main protagonist. Jacob said they managed to secure the Hollywood star's involvement via Eton College's main film director Scott Handy. The actor described the project as "a really inspiring thing to look at", said Jacob, adding that Sir Ian was very easy to work with". Looking ahead to Windsor and Eton Pride, he said it would feel like "my community is moving closer to home". You can follow BBC Berkshire on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram. Ian McKellen has 'no plans' to retire from acting Father's 'film letters' inspired director daughter London 'inaccessible' to Gen Z, says film director London's 'first dedicated LGBTQ+ cinema' approved Notice Productions Windsor and Eton Pride
BBC News
12-04-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Young Windsor director's film debut to star Sir Ian McKellen
A 14-year-old boy is due to make his directorial debut with a film starring Sir Ian from Windsor, Berkshire, explores 1,000 years of gay history in his film, as well as what it is like to be part of the LGBTQ+ community Through Time, which draws on his experiences as an openly gay young person, will be screened for the first time at Windsor and Eton Pride on 26 to BBC Radio Berkshire, Jacob said Sir Ian was "very easy to work with". Jacob said he had been working with Windsor-based youth-led film project Notice Productions for about a year when he suggested to one of the coordinators, Brad Day, that they should make a film about gay issues."He [Mr Day], as a joke, tells me that I have to have a synopsis ready by the next day - and I take him seriously," said the young director."So I write this whole two-page thing, hand it in, it gets approved and I'm in utter shock."Exploring LGBTG+ history was "really important" to him, said Jacob, adding: "While we have great films and TV shows now that focus on the present, I really think it's an important thing to focus on the past."Dragged Through Time goes as far back as ancient Greece, he said. "It was quite an accepting place back then."Most of the Greek gods, while they may be fictional, had male lovers."He described the genre of the film as "drama, in a way", explaining: "We have these dream sequences... that are different forms of theatre with drag queens played by me, which we had to make costumes for."Sir Ian plays the role of Great Uncle Peter, a semi-closeted older relative of the film's main said they managed to secure the Hollywood star's involvement via Eton College's main film director Scott actor described the project as "a really inspiring thing to look at", said Jacob, adding that Sir Ian was very easy to work with".Looking ahead to Windsor and Eton Pride, he said it would feel like "my community is moving closer to home". You can follow BBC Berkshire on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
Yahoo
07-04-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Farmers pray for rain as dry spell affects crops
Many people will have been enjoying the sun over recent days but farmers have said the dry weather is affecting their crops. The lack of recent rainfall has meant some crops are not sprouting in drier ground and there is no forecasted rain in some areas for several days. For Colin Rayner, from Stubbings Farm in Maidenhead, spring barley planted weeks ago has "hardly germinated", which has left him hoping for rain at the weekend. An expert from the University of Reading said the seasonal weather patterns on which farmers rely "have clearly changed a lot" over recent years. "We had a very wet winter," Mr Rayner told BBC Radio Berkshire. "I think we had 90 days of rain virtually from November to the end of February. "At the end of February, it decided to stop raining. "The ground's dried out very quickly. We have had cold temperatures but then very hot lunchtimes." He added: "In the morning, I've got two jumpers on and by lunchtime I've got my shorts and a T-shirt on. By 15:00 I've got my jumper back on again." "I'm now 67. I have been farming since I was 17 and I can tell you, the weather has changed dramatically in that time. "We seem to get periods of extreme wet and we seem to get periods of extreme hot and dry." The current dry spell is an unwelcome contrast to last autumn, when Berkshire farmers were unable to plant crops because of heavy rain waterlogging some fields. George Brown said he has faced similar issues, with the main concern being spring barley on his farm in Newbury. "A lot of the crops, which were planted early, most of it's coming through. "But we've got large chunks – especially on top of the hills – where it's absolutely barren still, waiting in rows to germinate." Dr Paola Tosi, from the University of Reading, said: "Agriculture really depends on seasonal weather patterns and those have clearly changed a lot so it's very difficult for farmers to decide what to drill, where to plant their crops. "At the same time, the mid-range forecast is getting better so farmers can adjust." You can follow BBC Berkshire on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram. Farmer protests with ploughed message in field Protesting tractor convoy causes travel disruption 'Exceptional rainfall means we can't plant crops'
Yahoo
07-04-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Farmers pray for rain as dry spell affects crops
Many people will have been enjoying the sun over recent days but farmers have said the dry weather is affecting their crops. The lack of recent rainfall has meant some crops are not sprouting in drier ground and there is no forecasted rain in some areas for several days. For Colin Rayner, from Stubbings Farm in Maidenhead, spring barley planted weeks ago has "hardly germinated", which has left him hoping for rain at the weekend. An expert from the University of Reading said the seasonal weather patterns on which farmers rely "have clearly changed a lot" over recent years. "We had a very wet winter," Mr Rayner told BBC Radio Berkshire. "I think we had 90 days of rain virtually from November to the end of February. "At the end of February, it decided to stop raining. "The ground's dried out very quickly. We have had cold temperatures but then very hot lunchtimes." He added: "In the morning, I've got two jumpers on and by lunchtime I've got my shorts and a T-shirt on. By 15:00 I've got my jumper back on again." "I'm now 67. I have been farming since I was 17 and I can tell you, the weather has changed dramatically in that time. "We seem to get periods of extreme wet and we seem to get periods of extreme hot and dry." The current dry spell is an unwelcome contrast to last autumn, when Berkshire farmers were unable to plant crops because of heavy rain waterlogging some fields. George Brown said he has faced similar issues, with the main concern being spring barley on his farm in Newbury. "A lot of the crops, which were planted early, most of it's coming through. "But we've got large chunks – especially on top of the hills – where it's absolutely barren still, waiting in rows to germinate." Dr Paola Tosi, from the University of Reading, said: "Agriculture really depends on seasonal weather patterns and those have clearly changed a lot so it's very difficult for farmers to decide what to drill, where to plant their crops. "At the same time, the mid-range forecast is getting better so farmers can adjust." You can follow BBC Berkshire on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram. Farmer protests with ploughed message in field Protesting tractor convoy causes travel disruption 'Exceptional rainfall means we can't plant crops'
