My spies in Sittingbourne at today's trial of Margate's Tory Mayor Ted Watt-Ruffell for causing a kitten unnecessary suffering tell me he's admitted two charges and is awaiting sentencing. More soon.
Update: According to the excellent yourfannitinnit he's been given 80 hours community service, banned from keeping animals for 18 months and ordered to pay £2,000 costs.
Click here to read more on yourfannitinnit website
Yikes! This was the view over our lovely Royal Harbour from the council's webcam a few minutes ago. Talk about blizzard conditions!
Click here for Ramsgate Harbour webcam
Kent County Council have hit the off button on their controversial internet TV service Kent TV.
Kent TV launched in 2007 for an initial investment of £1.4m and had annual running costs of £600,000. KCC's ruddy-faced Tory leader Paul Carter said the channel was no longer a priority in 'different and difficult economic times', adding 'Kent TV has proved itself to be a brave and bold innovation and we have learned a great deal from it. It has provided a source of practical, useful information for residents'.
The channel was run for KCC by Sir Bob Geldof's company Ten Alps, who will no doubt be, er, sad to be pushed away from their previously solid grasp on the public tit. Still, look on the bright side. The experience they've gained running this sorry soap at our £2m+ expense has no doubt done them no harm in their bid to run ITV's north east regional news, or their recent award of a two year contract to run a, um, internet TV channel for the North East Development Agency!
Click here to read about Kent TV on BBC News website
Click here to read about Ten Alps and the north east
Yesterday's thrilling announcement that LD Lines are starting a service out of our lovely port here in Ramsgate next month has got me thinking. It's a joint venture on the Oostende (Ostend in old money) route with existing operator TransEuropa Ferries.
Now as is common knowledge, TEF are having to retire some of their boats this year due to old age. So will the total number of services out of the port actually increase? Or is this just a way of maintaining the existing number of services once the TEF tubs are pensioned off to Greece? In other words, is this not much more than maintaining the status quo while blinding us with LD style smoke and mirrors? If anyone can shed any light on the subject, do post a comment.
Pardon my French, but bollocks! The old B&O hard drive failed to record tonight's thrilling episode of Inside Out on BBC1! And the prog's not available on iPlayer. Either the Beeb have bottled it, or they're being slightly slack on the upload front.
So I have no reliable way of knowing what revelations their rhinestone reporter Glenn Campbell came up with. Still, one thing's for certain. Our beloved council must have pulled out all the stops to get their alternative 'good news' story about LD Lines coming to Ramsgate into the public domain on the same day. Media maniuplation at its finest, I'd say!
Update: It's on iPlayer now. Click here to watch.
Hurrah! With the General Election not even announced yet, the Blue Rinsers have already installed my favourite yummy Tory as the South Thanet MP!
According to an article on the Conservativehome website today, lovely Laura Sandys is one of 51 candidates that 'have been selected for the seats where Conservative MPs are standing down, or where boundary changes have created new Conservative seats or converted existing ones into Conservative seats.' Here's the full SP:
Good to see my old TV chums Fiona Bruce and Esther MvVey, and Caroline Dinenage, daughter of my very old TV chum Fred, on the list to boot.
So, who needs to bother with a troublesome and expensive democratic process, when all you have to do is declare your candidate the winner!?!? Dr Ladyman, the sitting Labour MP, will now just have to pack up his 664 majority and bugger off back to wherever he came from! Hurrah for Laura!! Hurrah for David Cameron!!! Hurrah for Maggie!!! Hurrah for Ted Heath!!!!
Click here to go to Conservativehome
Tooling around the Millionaires' Playground in a semi-drunken stupor at 1am last night, I couldn't help noticing that the front by the Royal pub was caked out with coppers interviewing swarms of young people, all dressed in their Saturday night finery (crop tops, micro skirts and high heels).
Clearly some kind of fracas had taken place. And it could well have started outside the Sovereign in Harbour Street, as an eagle eyed reader spotted these missing hair extensions, presumably torn off some mahogany veneered Broadstairs builder's missus, lying in the street this morning:
Sovereign Ramsgate: hair of the dog?
As you can see from my News Nibbles on the right, the BBC News website is reporting a major fire at KFC in Westwood this morning. If anybody's got any eyewitness reports or photos, do email me at richardeastcliff@yahoo.co.uk or leave a comment below.
Update: Staff now say the fire was caused by squirrels. Click here for more.
More here, plus photo, on Kent Messenger website
I'm not usually up this early on a Saturday. But as I was snoozing under the Hungarian goose down doona, drifting in and out of consciousness to the tones of the Today programme on Radio 4, an item came on which caused the old shell-likes to prick up.
Booming out of the B&O was our very own Tory MP for Fannit Norf, Sir Roger Wind!
Roger, if you recall, recently made a successful claim to recoup more than £2K in expenses which he'd been told to repay by the Troughsniffer General, Sir Thomas Legg. The, er, 'idea' of the radio item was to gauge the mood of the angry mob in his constituency. Of course, once the reporter discovered that 68% of his constituency are over 90 and would vote for a small piece of cheese as long as it was blue, it was game over. Despite a plucky attempt by the lovely editor of the Gazunder to waft letters of complaint under our intrepid's nose, the vox pops said it all. 'Roger? Nah, he's a lovely bloke!' 'Expenses? Piss off back to that London, you pinko liberal twot!'
What never ceases to amaze me is that even Labour and Liberalites on the seedy north side of the island privately stick up for Roger on the basis that he's a 'good constituency MP'. When you ask why, if that's the case, his constituency has crumbled and burnt to the ground in the 27 years he's been presiding over it, they often mutter something about his passionate concern for animals (but not humans, as he wants to execute those), or the fact that their Auntie Gladys got a Christmas card from him once.
Perhaps the Today reporter could have opened her eyes, taken a look around, and asked the question why he's been claiming exes at all, seeing as Margate has gone to the dogs (Newfoundlands, of course) under his stewardship. But then Radio 4 and BBC reporting in general is just a shadow of what it was when Roger was producing the Today programme. Or that's what they say in Margate, anyway!
Here's this week's East of the Wantsum (click it to big it). A slightly premature ejoculation, as the results of the public inquiry into our beloved Thanet Council's sell-off of the Montefiore site was still ongoing as the Gazunder went to press.
In fact much more heat has been generated in today's paper concerning Ramsgate Town Council's decision to abandon the sinking ship that is Albion House and decamp to the newly-renovated Custom House on the harbour. The red brick edifice has recently been tarted up by Neath Properties, who, according to the Gazunder, are the same people who brought you the, er, 'redevelopment' of our Grade II listed Marina Restaurant. Not only that, but they got grant money from the Ramsgate Seafront Townscape Heritage Initiative Scheme for the Custom House scheme. And now they'll have a guaranteed rental from the public purse.
Don't get me wrong, they seem to have made a much better job of the Custom House than they did of the Marina Restaurant. But should they really be rewarded for their previous abysmal efforts with our taxpayers' sponds?
More plaudits for Eddie Gilbert's Ramsgate restaurant, this time from famous foodie bloggers the Dos Hermanos!
After yours truly left a mention of EG's on an item about their visit to Age & Sons last year, the Hermanos decided to hop on the high speed train to the Millionaires' Playground and were well impressed. Here's their take on the starter:
Eel Soldiers and Duck Egg is a deceptively simple dish but to get it spot-on requires technique and timing: the egg must have soft, soft yolk and a solid albumen and the fingers of Eel must be deep-fried in oil that is hot enough, then drained and served immediately. The kitchen aced it. They even managed to fashion an aesthetically pleasing crack in the eggshell. Damn they’re good, was all I could think as I crunched through crisp coating into the deeply smoky eel flesh inside.
Click here to read the entire review on Dos Hermanos
Meanwhile, our other top Eddie, the Gaddfather of Ale, appears to be making steady progress with upsizing his brewery. I've had my team of crack animators imagineering a superdupercomputer CGI conceptualisation of the finished fermentery, and here's the Avatar-like result! Is it me, or does one of the protagonists bear an uncanny resemblance to Ramsgate Firster Gerry O'Donnell?
Only in your super, soaraway Eastcliff Richard! Each week our animal loving expert Ted solves your pet-related health problems!
Dear Ted, while I was mopping the kitchen floor this morning my pet frog Freddie fell into the bucket of bleach. Despite giving him mouth to mouth, he does not seem anywhere near as lively or playful as he was before. I enclose a picture. Is there anything I can do to restore him back to health, or should I offer him to my friend who runs a French restaurant?
Hoping you can help. T.
Ted writes: Nah, he's a gonner. Chuck 'im outside.
Do you have a pet that's feeling poorly? Email your problem, preferably with a photograph, to Ted@richardeastcliff.co.uk
Just a quick reminder that today sees the start of the Montefiore tennis courts inquiry at Albion House, here in the Ms' P. Campaign group HOOT (Hands Off Our Tennis Courts) is hoping to overturn a decision by Thanet Council to flog the facility to developers by having the tennis courts designated a village green, one of four such applications currently under consideration around the isle. The poor HOOTers have had to prepare all their evidence themselves, whilst the council has gone to great lengths to ensure even more taxpayers' moolah is wasted by hiring a barrister.
Of course, Albion House itself is also in the process of being sold off by the jurassic junta, begging the question of where future inquiries into asset sales would be held once all the assets have been sold. Er... Anyway, the inquiry's public, so do feel free to pop along. Or if you're trundling past in the old jalopy, why not give a honk for HOOT??!!! Let's hope it's game, set and match to them!
Click here for HOOT website
Kent Restaurant Awards have now got their act together and sent me a press release, and it seems we have even more reasons to celebrate here in Ramsgate than I thought on Saturday!
The awards were held last Thursday, and in addition to Age & Sons winning Best Cafe as already reported, Eddie Gilbert's got a gong for Best Newcomer, Harvey's for Best Launch, while La Magnolia was voted Best Italian. Yet more evidence that the Millionaires' Playground if fast becoming foodie heaven too! Here's the full SP:
Best Café
Age & Sons Cafe-Bar - Ramsgate
Best Takeaway
Prince of India - Faversham
Best Oriental Restaurant
Thai Square - Sevenoaks
Best International
Buenos Aires - Maidstone
Best Indian Restaurant
Raja of Kent - Tenterden
Best Italian Restaurant
La Magnolia - Ramsgate
Best French Restaurant
Le Restaurant Fabrice - Teynham
Best English Restaurant
Richard Phillips at Chapel Down - Tenterden
Best Gastro Pub
George and Dragon - Ightham
Best Hotel Restaurant
Eastwell Manor - Ashford
Best Seafood Restaurant
Hythe Bay Seafood Restaurant - Hythe
Best Gourmet Restaurant
Thackeray’s - Tunbridge Wells
There were also three special awards for:
Best Newcomer
Eddie Gilbert's – Ramsgate
Best Wine Cellar
Montrose – Tunbridge Wells
Best Launch
Harvey’s - Ramsgate
Over 6500 members of the public nominated and voted for more than 300 establishments across the county. A panel of expert judges visited a shortlist of more than 70 venues, assessing the quality of the cooking, service and ambience, awarding additional marks for the use of local produce of sound provenance using sustainable farming practices.
'The evening was a tremendous success,' said OrderOnlineNow founder Andrew Frisbee, who added, 'We hope the Awards will help to raise culinary standard to a new level and put Kent on the gastro tourist map.'
Here's this week's East of the Wantsum. And before anyone moans, remember you get it for free. You don't even have to pay 60p to see it smudged all over this week's Isle of Thanet Gazunder! Er, they get it for free too.
Yep, this blog has been proudly unfunded since 2006. No products, services or political party to plug. No sponsors to please, no licence fee to cough up, no pesky ads to get in the way of your reading enjoyment. You don't deserve me!
While we're at it, congratulations to Ramsgate's very own Age & Sons for winning the Best Cafe category in the Kent Restaurant Awards on Thursday. And also to top Ramsgate butchers J C Rook, fantastic Ramsgate fishmongers Eddie Gilbert's, Minster's Chai Stop and bestest brewer Gadds' of Ramsgate for getting into the finals of the Taste of Kent Awards!
And, er, if any of you would care to sponsor this blog, do get in touch. I'm desperate.
Click here for finalists in Taste of Kent Awards
Don't bother clicking here for Kent Restaurant Awards as they haven't seen fit to publicise them on the internet.
As the eagle-eyed will know from the What's On in Thanet section in my sidebar on the right, Margate has played host for the last two days to a national conference on regeneration, and the launch of a new 'Coastal Handbook'. Oh the irony! Anyhow, fresh from the fray, one of my (Labour, you'll no doubt correctly surmise) spies has sent this report:
From someone who attended the Coastal Communities Alliance two-day event. You are free to use any of it if you wish, bearing in mind TDC tried to prevent Labour councillors from attending.
Wednesday commenced with two separate trips, one for the Margate regeneration/history and the other for commercial sites. When we went into Dreamland, who should be there to open the gates? Only the supposedly very ill Mayor of Margate [And alleged kitten killer - Ed] Ted Watt-Ruffell. He seemed fine as he strode to open two heavy security gates.
Also on Wednesday a very hot and flushed Latchford came rushing over to Ezekiel with the Yourthanet. Page 2 (the report of the ECR poll to find a new leader for Thanet Tories) has got him rattled. This was in the middle of the conference!
The conference was okay, but repeating everything we all know already. The book was £20 but free to delegates. Steve Ladyman had not been on the list to speak as they didn't really want Labour there, but as the Labour national spokesperson Gordon Marsden couldn’t get there they asked Steve to fill in. He was excellent. Roger Gale chaired the session and referred to Laura Sandys, his fellow Tory candidate for South Thanet, as ‘the lady over there’, as if he had never seen her before!
I put them straight on all the Government has been doing for Thanet… Surestart, Building Schools for the Future, doctors' surgeries, better hospital and promised poly clinics. As it was the Tories in Lincolnshire who suggested to the Tories in Thanet that they should run the event, the last thing some of them wanted was a good news Labour story.
I have been to much better conferences and fortunately some of the people there knew how Thanet has gone down under the Tories. The good news items were done in our time.
I had complaints about Smith Court Hotel from 4 people. The rooms were freezing and apparently the radiators that were working were on timers, and this was the recommended hotel for delegates!!
It's late, but I wanted to be the first to bring you this drivel without breaking the embargo. Actually I've only just got back from the pub, otherwise I would have added it earlier as I don't give a stuff about embargoes. Needless to say, I will be putting even more resources into my campaign to unseat the dolt at the forthcoming General Election!
From: LADYMAN, Steve
Sent: Thu, 28 Jan 2010 18:26
Subject: Embargoed press release: Not to be published before 00:01 hrs 29.1.2010
3 out of 4 people in Thanet back Airport Development says survey.
A survey into Thanet attitudes, carried out by local MP Stephen Ladyman and the Labour Party, has shown 3 out of 4 people support the development of Manston Airport.
'This is an overwhelming majority in support of Airport development. Even in the areas of Ramsgate closest to the Airport, including the Nethercourt Estate, Southwood and Central Ramsgate, 60% backed the growth of the Airport' said Dr Ladyman.
The survey was carried out over twelve months and received 1501 replies. There were over 600 replies from people living in Ramsgate on the flight path and close to the Airport.
'The average newspaper opinion poll quizzes fewer than 1100 people so our survey of 1501 replies is certainly enough to give us a clear idea of local feeling.'
There was, however, a warning for Thanet Council and the Airport owners in the figures. The survey included 728 replies to a questionnaire that included questions about airport noise. Those replies showed that 50% of people are worried by aircraft noise and night flying and, among people living close to the airport, about 62% are worried. The Council and the Airport owners are currently in discussion about night flying policy.
'Many of these people are currently backing the Airport but clearly their support could easily shift if night flying grows or noise becomes more intrusive. If the Council allows too much flexibility and fails to protect the quality of local life then support for the Airport will quickly turn into opposition' concluded Dr.Ladyman.
Note to editors:
The survey included general questionnaires delivered in Ramsgate, Broadstairs, Cliftonville and Margate. 641 replies were received.
3000 detailed questionnaires were delivered in areas of Ramsgate on the flight path and near the airport and 728 people replied.
132 people completed an on-line survey
Total respondents were 1501, of which 626 replies were from people close to the airport.
This year I'll be running my brand new Kent of the Year Awards, culminating in December in a star-spangled festival of glamour and glitz at Ramsgate's very own sleb hotspot, the Granville Theatre and Cinem!
And the first nomination is already in! Step forward Sir Terry Farrell!
Internationally renowned architect Sir Tel has joined forces with Kent County Council's Ruddy-Faced Man, geographically challenged Tory leader Paul Carter, to produce this steaming pile of crap which was published today:
One of its chief 'highlights' is the expansion of Manston landing strip into a 'major regional airport' with its own railway station by 2030, whilst promising to transform the area between Margate, Canterbury and Folkestone into a 'cultural triangle'.
Now we all know that Paul Carter doesn't know his Ramsgate from his Margate when it comes to this part of his fiefdom. He thinks planes from Manston fly 'straight out to sea'. Here's the page where he drones on about the Kent Coast:
Notice anything? Yes, that's right. He gives it a 'Dover', ooh and a bit of 'Canterbury' and 'Folkestone', topped off with a splash of 'Herne Bay, Whitstable and Margate'. No mention of Ramsgate though. Except the photo illustrating the Kent Coast 'coming back to life' is of our Royal Harbour here in Ramsgate, the jewel in the crown that he wants to fly knackered old 747s over every five minutes. And yet he hasn't got the balls to attend a meeting of Ramsgate residents concerned about the airport.
It would be too easy, though, to nominate Carter for my Kent of the Year Awards. He makes a stupid Kent out of himself every time he opens his mouth. His report bangs on about the county being the 'UK's front door'. Well, I'd personally be more than happy, if he ever shows his face in this neck of the woods, to insert this cods in his, er, back door.
More surprising is that Sir Terry Farrell, who coincidentally specialises in airports and railway stations, has appended his name to this bollocks. After all, he is none other than the Patron of the Ramsgate Society. A worthy candidate, then, for 'Kent of the Year'!
Click here to read more on the Gazunder website
Click here for 21st Century Kent on KCC website
Click here for the Ramsgate Society website
A break now, methinks, from the rough and tumble of Thanet politics. And what better way to refresh the jaded old brain cells than with a bit of music?
Not that a massed band consisting of bagpipes, middle eastern percussion and hurdy gurdies is going to do much to sooth the troubled spirit, but anyhow, that's what's on offer here in the Millionaires' Playground on 20 March. Fittingly called 'Ramsgate Buzz', the day's being organised by the isle's very own, internationally renowned hurdy gurdyist Claire Dugué. There'll be workshops in the morning and afternoon, culminating in a concert at the Sailors' Church kicking off at 7pm.
And what better way to celebrate the news than with this clip of the late, great, lovely Donovan [He's still alive you twerp - Ed] singing his psychedelic 1968 hit Hurdy Gurdy Man? Although I'm pretty sure it's a sitar, not a hurdy gurdy, that features on the track. Ah, those were the days! When everyone was pin-thin from heroin, dressed in weird clothes, jazz cigarettes hanging from their gobs, and had sex with anyone they met. Not unlike some of the more demotic parts of today's Ramsgate, when you come to think of it!
Click here for details of Ramsgate Buzz
Click here for Claire Dugué's website
Yes, dear reader. That's what I've been called by Cllr Wells in today's yourfannitinnit, in a comment on my recent Tory leadership poll. All the other Cons seem to have taken it in the spirit it was meant (apart from Cllr Wise who describes it as 'mischievous in the extreme', but that's probably just sour grapes as he came last).
That's the thanks you get from Thanet's Tories. And there I was, ever ready to praise Cllr Beardy as one of the few Duffers who seem to have integrity, particularly after his intervention to save Revolution Skate Park back in 2006. What a short memory he must have.
Although... hang on... perhaps it's a case of protesting too much? Maybe there's even the possibility of some sexual tension between us? He's probably seen my photo and, like most red-blooded chaps, has got the urge. And without the face fuzz, he's probably quite good looking too! Yes, that's almost certainly it! Chris, you know the poll wasn't my idea, don't you? Do forgive me, it was all Bertie Biggles' fault!
Click here to read more in yourfannitinnit
Hats off to today's yourfannitinnit for breaking the story of clandestine collusion between Kent County Council leader Paul Carter, our very own Sandy Beach and Manston boss Matt Clarke!
If you recall, the Tories' ruddy-faced man failed to tip up to a 150 strong meeting of the Kent International Airport Consultative Commitee (KIACC) in June last year (the day after he'd voted himself an 8% expenses increase) to discuss flight blights, citing other commitments. But now, thanks to a FOI application by regular ECR contributor Malcolm Kirkaldie, it transpires he did have time to chinwag on the phone with chief Tory duffer Beach, and the outgoing airport manager. At which point he presumably learnt that the mood of the meeting would be more 'Get Carter' than 'Carter the Unstoppable Sex Machine'.
The snub led to a vote to report geographically challenged Carter, who thinks planes from Manston fly 'straight out to sea' and that it has 'one of the longest runways in Europe' (it's the 14th longest in the UK), to the Standards Committee.
Here's the full text of the FOI:
Thank you for your request for information.
Kent County Council's Leader, Mr Paul Carter, spoke with Sandy Ezekiel, Leader of Thanet District Council and Matt Clarke, Chief Executive of Kent International Airport prior to withdrawing from the KIACC meeting on Friday 26th June 2009. These were telephone conversations which took place in Mr Carter's car whilst travelling between meetings, and therefore there are no notes recorded from these conversations.
Mr Carter was also due to have a pre-meeting with a KCC officer from the Regeneration and Economy department prior to his attendance at KIACC. However, this pre-meeting did not take place in light of the fact that Mr Carter was no longer able to attend the meeting that this pre-meeting was intended to brief him for.
I have also attached a copy of the email sent to you by Paul Carter's PA on 30th September which included a statement issued by the Leader regarding his non-attendance.
I can confirm that Mr Geoff Wild, KCC's Director of Law and Governance and Monitoring Officer has seen your request and has approved this response.
Carter's happy to plug Chas 'n' Dave Margate International as an alternative to Boris Island, but when the proverbial looks like hitting the fan, and he's faced with the prospect of meeting the real people whose lives he wants to blight, he runs like a chicken with its bum on fire. Yet more proof, if you ask me, that he doesn't care much about Kent beyond his Maidstone manor!
Click here to read this week's yourfannitinnit
Get Carter! in ECR last June
Posts
All Comments
.jpg)
