THE LONGEST RIDE (12A) SHOWCASE CINEMAS PETERBOROUGH, FROM TOMORROW.
Another Nicholas Sparks novel-turned-movie-adaptation gets churned out after the success of The Notebook, Dear John and Safe Haven – but hopes to improve on the box-office downturn of The Best of Me last time out.
After an automobile crash, the lives of a young couple – Tomorrowland’s Britt Robinson and Clint Eastwood’s son Scott – intertwine with a much older man in this romantic-drama.
MR HOLMES (PG) SHOWCASE CINEMAS PETERBOROUGH, FROM TOMORROW
Sir Ian McKellen (The Lord of the Rings) plays a long-retired version of the legendary detective in this mystery crime-drama.
Set in 1947, 93-year-old Sherlock now lives in a remote Sussex village with his loyal housekeeper, Mrs Munro (Oscar-nominee Laura Linney) and her rising detective son Roger (Milo Parker) – but he is haunted by a 50-year-old unsolved case involving a beautiful woman.
Broadband speeds across Lincolnshire are soaring thanks to the county council’s broadband partnership with BT.
The Onlincolnshire project is this week announcing that high-speed fibre broadband has now reached more than 100,000 homes and businesses. It’s also being revealed that RAF Scampton, home of the famous Red Arrows, is one of the areas to recently benefit from the countywide roll-out.
A new fibre broadband cabinet that serves the base has been installed and switched on, meaning military families and servicemen and women living there can now access download speeds of up to 80 megabits per second and uploads of up to 20Mbps.
Wing Commander Mike Harrop, Station Commander at RAF Scampton, said: “Essential investment like this in the county’s infrastructure has complemented recent on-station investment at Scampton and has undoubtedly improved the quality of life for the military families living in this part of the county.”
The Onlincolnshire project builds on the private sector’s roll-out of fibre broadband; BT’s commercial rollout has already made high-speed fibre broadband available to more than 228,000 homes and businesses in Lincolnshire.
Coun Richard Davies, executive member for IT at Lincolnshire County Council, said: “We’re seeing a real increase in the number of people signing up for superfast broadband, and with the improvements being rolled out, even more will be able to benefit.
“Improved broadband is not only vital for business growth, but for all residents accessing services, including the growing number of silver surfers, and for young people looking to download learning materials. The possibilities are endless. So check our website to find out whether you’re in a superfast area, and contact your internet service provider to upgrade your package.”
The arrival of faster fibre broadband at RAF Scampton follows months of careful planning by engineers from Openreach – BT’s local network business – due to the rural location of the new fibre broadband cabinet and its proximity to an active military base.
Steve Henderson, BT’s regional director of next generation access, said: “Across the county more than 328,000 homes and businesses now have access to high-speed fibre broadband thanks to Onlincolnshire and BT’s own commercial fibre broadband programme. We are now reaching into the heart of scores of communities across the region bringing them within reach of this vital technology and enabling them to fly the internet at superfast speeds.”
As part of the Onlincolnshire project, more than 450 new roadside fibre cabinets have already been installed and around 500kms of fibre cable laid as part of the rollout – enough to stretch along the main runway at RAF Scampton more than 180 times.
Because the work is being carried out by Openreach, residents and businesses wanting to upgrade have a wide choice of service providers, with more than 140 fibre broadband companies now operating in the UK.
Benefits of fibre broadband include faster download and upload speeds; the ability to access the internet via multiple devices without experiencing a slow connection, faster downloads of films and music, a better online gaming experience, improved file sharing for businesses, solutions based on Cloud computing and being able to work more flexibly.
For more information about the Onlincolnshire partnership between Lincolnshire County Council and BT please visit www.onlincolnshire.org
Students from a Spalding school are rockin’ all the way to the premier division next year.
Sir John Gleed School came third after winning eight awards of excellence for video performance, soundtrack, visual enhancement, set design and function, costuming character, entertainment, choreography and performance skill.
Miss Emma Ringrose, who led the team, said: ”We now have to up our game even more.” Pictured are the prizewinners with their certificates. SG150615-103TW
FILM REVIEW: JURASSIC WORLD (12A) SHOWCASE CINEMAS PETERBOROUGH, OUT NOW
CAST: CHRIS PRATT, BRYCE DALLAS HOWARD, VINCENT D’ONOFRIO, TY SIMPKINS, NICK ROBINSON, BD WONG, JAKE JOHNSON, OMAR SY, JUDY GREER & IRRFAN KHAN
RUNNING TIME: 2 HRS 4 MINS
DIRECTOR: COLIN TREVORROW
I have such a soft spot for the 1993 film Jurassic Park. Both the story and the visuals blew me away.
It’s unsurprising when you think that 22 years ago, there was very little around like it. The movie was a game changer. Even today, I consider the T.rex/Jeep scene as one of the best action sequences ever made.
So, I walked into my screening of Jurassic World with high expectations. Did it deliver the goods?
Steven Spielberg returns for the fourth instalment of the Jurassic franchise – not as director, but as a heavily involved executive producer. Colin Trevorrow is now in the directing chair, introducing us to a world where John Hammond’s dream of a fully-functioning dinosaur park is a reality.
Jurassic World has been open to business for a while and people’s interest in the attraction is already deteriorating.
Claire Dearing (Bryce Dallas Howard) is in charge of overseeing the launch of an exciting new attraction, the Indominus rex – an enormous and terrifying hybrid dinosaur. You can probably guess what happens next.
The Indominus rex escapes its pen and runs wild around the park. It’s up to Claire and a velociraptor handler named Owen Grady (Chris Pratt) to stop the creature before it reaches the unsuspecting customers.
It’s Chris Pratt who makes this film what it is. It’s no surprise that he’s tipped to be the next Indiana Jones, as he provides just the right amount of muscle, charm and humour to his role as Owen.
Unlike Jurassic Park, this instalment offers no surprises, but it is everything you could want from a summer blockbuster. It’s action-packed, a lot of fun, and the characters are likeable – meaning you’ll actually care about their safety.
Considering Jurassic World has gobbled up the competition to score the biggest worldwide box office opening weekend ever (£329m) I think we’ll be seeing another instalment before we know it – and I already can’t wait to see it.
Rating: 4/5
Mikey Clarke
Lincolnshire Trading Standards is urging people to be aware of an international postcode lottery ‘scam’ circulating the area.
The Standard was contacted yesterday by a local resident who had received a letter purporting to be from the ‘EuroMillions People’s International Postcode Lottery’.
The letter, headed with the National Lottery’s Euro Millions logo, claims the recipient has won £720,000 and urges him to make a claim by calling a phone number.
“I have not long recovered from a stroke, and this has been worrying me all week,” said the man, who asked not to be named.
“I have never entered this lottery and I think it’s a scam. I want to warn other people not to fall for this either.”
The letter warns the recipient: “Please to help us proceed with your claims, this information must be kept away from public to avoid unwarranted abuse of the program or fraudulent acts from criminal minded and unauthorized person(s).”
The Standard showed the letter to Lincolnshire Trading Standards.
Andy Wright, principal trading standards officer, said: “This certainly looks like scam mail. Lotteries/ prize draws are common types of postal scams. You may receive a letter congratulating you on winning a cash prize. Usually you’ll be given a number to call, but if you do, you’ll be asked to pay a fee or buy goods before the prize is ‘released’. But you won’t receive any prize, and you may be asked to pay further increasing fees or to call a premium rate number.
“Our advice is do not respond to these letters. A genuine lottery won’t ever ask you to pay a fee to collect your winnings. If you have received one of these letters, or if you feel you have been conned, call Action Fraud immediately on 0300 1232040.”
Two men have been charged in connection with a firearms-related incident in Boston on Saturday.
Michal Jan Tkaczyk (32), and Adrian Stanislaw Zuchowski (25), both of Larkspur Croft, were charged with GBH and false imprisonment. Tkaczyk was also charged with possession of a firearm.
Both men appeared before Lincoln Magistrates today (Wednesday), where they were remanded in custody.
Chief Inspector Paul Timmins said: “Two suspects have been charged but we are still interested in hearing from anyone who may have witnessed anything in the Larkspur Croft area of Boston on Saturday, June 13.”
Anyone with information is asked to contact Lincolnshire Police on 101.
PREVIOUSLY...
Dan Lawlor has agreed a deal to join Spalding United.
The 20-year-old midfielder accepted terms on a move from Evo-Stik League Premier Division side Stamford.
Lawlor spent two seasons with the Daniels after spells at Boston United and Peterborough United.
Last term he made a total of 51 appearances as Stamford escaped relegation on the final day of the campaign.
Tulips boss Pat Rayment said: “He’s another local, young, hungry player.”
Rayment had not planned to bring in any more signings – despite having funds still available in his budget – but Lawlor fills a place in the squad after Lewis Webb opted to join Peterborough Sports last week.
Spalding assistant-boss Marcus Ebdon added: “Lewis has got a new job where his hours don’t really fit in with travelling around the country to play football on Saturdays.
“So he has decided to go down the route of playing more locally.
“We are always looking to improve our squad depending on who becomes available.
“Overall we are more than happy with what we have got in terms of all the quality coming in this summer.
“We’ve brought in a couple of midfielders in Sam Murphy and Adam Millson who are very comfortable on the ball.
“Hopefully the pitch at the Sir Halley Stewart Field is going to be better for us next season to play football on.
“We want to pass the ball but last term we had to go a bit more direct at home.
“We’ve got a lot of young players now and it’s going to be all about geting the best out of them.”
Arthur Edgley was a smallholder from his early 20s, but his heart has always been in the skies.
Being shot down in 1943 – which resulted in him being interrogated by the Gestapo, accused of being a spy, and then locked up in a camp for almost two years – left his love of flying undimmed.
Arthur doesn’t regret returning from war and taking on the Lutton Marsh smallholding, but he has taken every opportunity to fly over the years. In fact, the last time the 94-year-old took to the skies was just last year.
His interest in joining the RAF began as a boy when his family lived at Gedney Drove End close to the bombing range.
He was 19 when he finally joined up in 1940, and would have joined sooner had his farm work not been regarded as a reserved occupation.
On his fifth attempt Arthur was taken on and began training as a pilot. His first solo flight left him feeling “a big man” and soon after he and the other recruits sailed to Canada to train on Tiger Moths.
It was at that point it was decided there were too many pilots, and Arthur was switched to being a rear gunner.
He was acting as rear gunner in May 1943 when the Short Stirling he was in was shot over Germany. The 21-year-old pilot continued flying on two engines, eventually crashing or “gradually coming down from 12,000 feet” in a corn field in Holland.
Arthur says: “We hit the floor and smashed up and I never had a scratch.”
Two of them walked out, another bailed out and two of the crew were killed.
Thanks to his pilot training, Arthur was able to lead the survivors away from the crash site, navigating by the stars.
They were free for six weeks, during which time Dutch families helped them as they made their way on foot towards France.
Finally, they were betrayed and a train journey supposedly to Spain and from there to freedom ended up with them being captured by the Germans.
They were taken to one of the most notorious jails in the world, in Paris, and Arthur’s strongest memory of this time is one of hunger. However, it was while they were there that the men were interrogated by the Gestapo twice and told they would be shot as spies.
Arthur says when they were told they would go to a prison camp instead, it was “the best news I have heard in my life.”
Arthur spent the next 20 months in Stalag IV-B in Germany, before being liberated by the Russians in 1945.
Before he left the camp, Arthur managed to get his hands on his own prison record, just one of the fascinating historic artefacts from his time at war.
Businesses are being urged to fly the flag for Spalding by using the town’s new logo.
Town centre manager Dennis Hannant has been sending out a reminder to those not already using it.
The logo was designed by Graham Taylor, a former Spalding man who moved to New York 11 years ago and still has family in the town. It features a tulip graphic and describes the town as a Fenland Treasure.
When the logo was revealed in March, Mr Hannant described it as contemporary but still saying something about Spalding’s history. As well as being used on letterheads, there are also plans for it to go T-shirts and coffee mugs.
Mr Hannant said: “Some businesses are using the logo but we need more.
“Graham is coming over from New York to visit his family soon, so it would be nice to see it used all over town.
“I’m hoping to get some T-shirts printed too.”
Businesses already using the logo on pamphlets and in brochures are Gibbs Shoe Shop in Hall Place and Masons Models in New Road. Tulip Radio is also using it on its website.
It will also feature on next year’s Visit Spalding guide.
The end-of-season awards were handed over during Spalding Sunday League’s annual meeting on Tuesday at the Tulips Social Club.
The winners were: club secretary – Dave Endersbee (Brennans); assistant referee – J Smith (Swineshead); fair play – Mulberry; referee – Scott Lea; top scorer – Josh Ford (Pinchbeck).
Pictured back from left, Jonathan Amess (referees secretary), Dave Endersbee (club secretary of the year), Josh Ford (top scorer), Scott Lea (referee of the year), Carlos Moss (Mulberry – fair play); front, John Meadows (vice-president), Peter Maltby (chairman), Peter Semmence (secretary). Photo (TIM WILSON): SG160615-318TW
When Arthur Edgley finally made it back to England – their sense of adventure obviously awakened by their exploits, a group of newly released prisoners decided to give their liberators the slip, and made their own way home – he was cleaned up, given a new suit and rank (from sergeant to warrant officer), and enough money to get home.
He returned to parents who, on hearing in May that Arthur had been shot down and was missing, assumed he was dead. The news of his survival and capture didn’t reach them until September.
During his six weeks’ leave, Arthur married Joan Lawson. The couple went on to have two daughters, Carol and Diane, and have grandchildren and great grandchildren.
Civvy life meant a return to farming for Arthur, contracting and then moving with Joan on to their 40-acre farm at Lutton Marsh.
Over the years, Arthur has attended air shows, and made contacts in the world of civilian flying. It was one of these friends who gave Arthur the chance to fly a Piper Warrior III last year. Arthur says: “I hadn’t forgotten a thing. It just felt lovely.”
Children’s play areas across the district have been spruced up in time for summer as part of the successful Pride in South Holland campaign
Play equipment at nine sites has been given a fresh coat of paint to ensure that come the summer holidays, it is looking in top condition.
The newly-painted play areas in Spalding include Goodfellows playing field, Park Close playing field, Thames Road and Fern Park.
Other play areas to be given a new-look include Pennyfields in Pinchbeck, Kingfisher Drive in Surfleet, Casswell Drive in Quadring, Chalk Lane playing field in Sutton Bridge and Railway Lane in Sutton Bridge.
A spokesperson for South Holland District Council said: “The Pride in South Holland campaign has gone from strength to strength since we launched it last summer.
“The play areas are now looking a lot better and we’re sure everyone using them this summer will notice the difference.”
The Pride in South Holland campaign was launched in October last year to clean up eyesore sites across the district.
Already the derelict former Bull and Monkie pub in Spalding has been cleaned-up as was a privately-built play area in Crocus Walk, Spalding, which had been badly damaged by vandals.
Other highlights include the clearing of over 200 tonnes of rubbish and fly-tipped items across the district.
News had reached Holbeach that Pte Arthur Allen, 1st Cambridgeshire Regiment, had been killed in action in France in 1915.
Arthur was formerly an assistant in Mr Curtis’s shop, and was a nephew of Mr and Mrs William Holland of Holbeach.
In the same newspaper it was reported that another Deeping St James soldier, Pte F Adcock, of the Northamptonshire Regiment, had died.
Lance-corporal George Smith, of Kirton, had been awarded the DCM for conspicuous conduct at Neuve Chapelle.
Readers of these newspapers had a first-hand account of life in the trenches for the Spalding Territorials in 1915.
Sgt William Quinton, of Little London, Spalding – one of five brothers serving King and country – was home on special leave when he described life for ‘our Terriers’ as they were affectionately known.
The trenches were described as “quiet” for the first two days – apart from the “shells and bullets constantly flying about”.
Sgt Quinton’s and Sgt Bates’ platoons were holding an advanced line of trenches, only 25 yards away from the enemy.
As a result, little could be done in the day time, except lying low and keeping quiet.
One of the Lincoln Company, tiring of the German bullets splitting open the sand bags and splashing mud around in the lads’ food, “tried to get a smack back at the Germans”.
Sgt Quinton said: “He fired three shots at the opposing trench, and almost immediately a big portion of his head was blown away by a piece of shrapnel.”
On the third day, two Spalding boys – Privates Ashlin and Barlow – were among the casualties when there was an accident among the rifle grenade party.
They were trying to convert hand grenades into rifle grenades, but didn’t know how to do it.
They had put the first hand grenade into the rifle attachment when an officer came up and said he would fire it. Immediately he attempted to do so, it exploded.
Luckily, the Spalding boys were only slightly hurt and were due to return to duty within days.
Spalding’s Territorial Major, Major Barrell, had taken command of the Lincolnshire Territorial Battalion following the death of Colonel Jessop. He was highly regarded for his care of the men.
Three men have appeared in court accused of sex trafficking children in Holbeach St Marks and Holbeach.
The men, all from the London area, appeared at Boston Magistrates’ Court yesterday (Wednesday), and were sent on bail to appear at Lincoln Crown Court on July 1.
Bilal Amin (31), of Lea Bridge Road, north east London, Sheraz Hussain (31), of Orchid Close, Newham, and Jonpal Sambi (27), of Gorse Close, Hatfield, entered no pleas yesterday.
They are charged with intentionally arranging or facilitating the travel of a young girl with a view to her sexual exploitation at Holbeach St Marks on May 4 2013 and a similar offence – involving a different young girl – at Holbeach on May 6 this year.
Amin is further charged with engaging in sexual activity with a girl of 14 in London between June 14 2012 and December 31 2012 and engaging in a sex act with a girl of 15 at Stratford on May 4 2013.
• Although the case has been sent to Lincoln Crown Court, magistrates heard lawyers for the men are entitled to seek transfer of the cases to a London area crown court.
Four local libraries are getting ready to encourage young readers to explore some of the astonishing real-life achievements and world records as featured in the Guinness World Records Books as part of this year’s Summer Reading Challenge.
Organised by The Reading Agency charity and the public library network, the annual challenge, aimed at four to 11-year-olds and their families is simple and fun.
It is being run in Bourne, Long Sutton, the Deepings and Spalding, as well as Boston and other Lincolnshire libraries.
Children are encouraged to read six or more library books of their choice during the summer holidays with collectable incentives and rewards, plus a certificate for every child who completes the challenge.
Children can sign up at their local library at the start of the summer holidays – it’s absolutely free – and pre-schoolers can take part in the mini-challenge.
The official launch date is Saturday , July 11.
Every year there is a new theme and this year the challenge has teamed up with Guinness World Records to establish a “Record Breakers” themed challenge.
Record Breakers brings together fact and fiction, challenging young readers to explore astonishing real-life achievements and world records.
Coun Nick Worth, executive member of libraries, said: “The Challenge is a lot of fun for both children and their parents or carers.
“It helps keep kids entertained and maintains their literacy skills during the school break, and it gives adults a great opportunity to share time with their young ones through storytelling.”
More than 600 million Samsung mobile devices are vulnerable to a bug within the built-in keyboard, according to a security firm.
The SwiftKey keyboard built into some of Samsung’s recent mobile phones allows an attacker to remotely execute code, according to NowSecure, which uncovered and reported the bug.
“The attack vector for this vulnerability requires an attacker capable of modifying upstream traffic,” NowSecure said in a blog post.
“The vulnerability is triggered automatically (no human interaction) on reboot as well as randomly when the application decides to update.”
The flaw was revealed by NowSecure security expert Ryan Welton at a conference in London in late 2014.
A spokesman for Samsung said they were aware of the issue and would roll out security updates in the next few days.
Spalding High School hosted the annual Year 10 district rounders tournament.
Taking part were Sir John Gleed, University Academy Holbeach, Deepings, Bourne Grammar, Peele, Spalding High and Bourne Academy (two teams).
After narrowly losing their first game to University Academy Holbeach 3½-3, the High School girls needed to win their next two matches to stand any chance of topping their league and reaching the final.
They beat Sir John Gleed School (7½-1½) and Bourne Academy 1 (8½-0) which meant the league was decided on the number of rounders scored and conceded.
The High School girls’ superior advantage ensured a final against the other league winners, Bourne Grammar School.
The High School girls gave another commanding performance, winning the tournament thanks to a 8½-4½ victory.
They will now go on to represent the district at the Sainsbury’s Schools Games finals on July 8.
Windy conditions made low scoring difficult for the Club Championship and Tester competition at Spalding with only 30 of the 150 golfers scoring below the standard scratch, and many players not returning a score.
The Tester Salver, for lowest gross over 36 holes, was won by first-team captain Andy Grimwood with 153.
The square, for best nett 0-17 handicaps, was won by Hugo Kedzlie with a superb nett 68.
For the higher (18-28) handicappers, Paul Hollely took the plaque with a gross 89 and Lester Pybus took the circle with a nett 73.
The eight best gross scores over 36 holes will battle it out to be club champion later in the season.
Club captains Ray Harrison and Chris Vickers took their mixed team to Belton Park and were disappointed to come away with a 6-2 defeat.
The only winning pair for Spalding was Howard Greaves and Elaine Harrison with Calum Walker and Jane Woolard, and Glen Woolard and Jackie Bailey-Scott halving their matches.
They also lost 7½-3½ away to King’s Lynn, winning pairs being Roger Brown and Di West and Rod Filby and Paula Brown, with Neil West and Lesley Williams halving their match.
Vice-captain David Tasker was at the helm for the first time with a social match at Boston and, although many matches were close, they came away with a 4½-1½
defeat.
Mark Jones and Walker were the only winners with Steve Camm and Wayne Flowers grabbing a consolation half late on.
There were better fortunes for Stu Parker and Andy Rafferty’s third team, however, who completed a 6-0 whitewash over Sandilands – avenging the same scoreline in last year’s match and completing a double for the Spalding team.
Third-team captain Stuart Parker is holding his annual ‘Rabbits open day’ at Spalding on Sunday, August 2, and there are still a few places left for anyone wishing to enter.
The event is open to both members and non members with an active playing handicap of 16-28.
There are two separate Stableford competitions, 18 holes in the morning and 13 in the afternoon, with some terrific prizes to be won.
The cost per player is £29 for members, £39 for non members and includes coffee and bacon roll on arrival, ploughmans lunch between rounds, and a two-course meal and coffee afterwards.
Anyone wishing to enter should call the club on 01775 680386 or email golfmanager@spaldinggolfclub.co.uk
A total of 38 lady members entered the Coronation Cup, an 18-hole Stableford competition.
The winner was Di Platt with 38 points ahead of Anita Cross (37) and third on countback was Paula Brown (35).
TYDD ST GILES
South Lincolnshire Scratch League: Blankney 6 Tydd St Giles A 0 – Lenk Gostic & Malcolm Stead lost 7&6, Anthony Murphy & Paul Elsey lost 6&5, Paul Chaplain-Barton & Rod Drew lost 5&4, Kevin Goude & Adam Thomas lost 5&4, Luke Rowell & Adey Bills lost 3&2, Tim Hines & Ian Edrupt lost 3&1.
Tydd St Giles B 4½ Gedney Hill GC 1½ – Jimmy Woods & Gary Fitzjohn won 5&4, Neil John & Dan Newell halved, Wayne Alder & Tom Carniham lost 2&1, Mark Whittaker & Terry Pease won 5&3, John Nobbs & Clive Barber won 3&2, Andy Jackson & Ady Rowell won 1 up.
Seniors individual open competition: Home – 1 ocb Thomas Carnihan 39 points, 2 Henry Fiford 39, 3 Colin Page 38; away – 1 Ken White (RAF Marham) 38, 2 Brian Venters (Ely City) 37, 3 Robert Lee (Sleaford) 35.
Seniors Stableford vouchers competition: Division One – 1 Baz Smith 42 points, 2 Steve Skoulding 36, 3 Dennis Savory 35. Division Two – 1 ocb Denis Wilson 38, 2 ocb Brian Gifford 38, 3Gary Brown 38. Division Three – 1 Tony Illsey 39, 2 Alec Harding 34, 3 Brian Gough 32.
Men’s Stableford pairs: 1 Peter Brazil & Andy Gaff 41 points, 2 ocb Julian Davey & Steve Hotson 40, 3 Mick Vassall & Dave Worrall 40.