No bomb at Bombetta

Fears that a bomb had been planted at Bombetta led to six police rushing to the Snaresbrook restaurant. It turned out to be loaf of freshly delivered artisanal bread, wrapped in paper with the abbreviated “Bomb” written on the side.

This is a story best told in tweets.

https://twitter.com/bombettaLondon/status/1006455629437980673

Fringe activities

This is your year to get involved in the Wanstead Fringe.

The event, the sixth, will be taking place between 8 -15 September, and will feature many of the favourite events such as the Jumble Trail, Kinema, comedy, live music and talks. There will also be some never-seen-before events to make it the biggest and best Fringe yet.

The Fringe is put together by a group of Wanstead residents who have the single goal of encouraging and supporting cultural activities in Wanstead. It’s a not-for-profit organisation, generously sponsored this year by a noble triumvirate of Petty Son and Prestwich, Edwards Duthie solicitors and THP accountants.

But it only happens because people get involved in staging their own events – and now is the time for you to organise one. That talk you’ve always wanted to give, or that workshop, or play, show or gig. Whatever it is, Fringe organisers can help with venues, advice, and certainly with publicity. With something like this, it’s the more the merrier.

Get in touch through the Wanstead Fringe site , follow it on Facebook or Twitter, or sign up to become a patron of the Fringe at the Patreon crowdfunding site.  As ever, full details of the Fringe will be published here on Wansteadium.

But now is the time to get organising and get in touch. info@wansteadfringe.org.

 

Uncertain future for St Mary’s

St Mary’s, photographed by Geoff Wilkinson

St Mary’s church in Overton Drive, probably the most admired building in Wanstead, faces an uncertain future as the church community which worships there considers how the building should be looked after.

The Grade 1 listed church, which is part of the Parish of Wanstead, faces high maintenance costs – estimated at £150,000 – and so is discussing three options for its future. One is to hand the building over to a charitable trust; a second is to sell the building to another Christian denomination; and a third is to hand the building over to a churches’ conservation charity. All three options would mean the end of weekly Anglican worship at the site which has been going on for more than 800 years, though services could be held a number of times each year.

An additional problem has been caused by changes to the way the Heritage Lottery Fund gives grants to places to worship, which have made it harder to get backing.

An estimated 30 people worship at the church each Sunday, with a further 200 meeting at Christ Church on the High Street.

The consultation is, however, open to other ideas for the building’s future. And naturally anyone with a passion for the building who has deep pockets would be welcome to come forward. The church can be contacted at wansteadparishadmin@uwclub.net.

Bonfire of the box trees

Wanstead is currently overrun with nasty little caterpillars which have devastated hundreds of gardeners’ box trees. And the forecast isn’t good.

Wansteadium has been warning since 2016 about the rise of the box caterpillar, and sadly it’s now come true with long-established and cultivated plants being stripped of their leaves. The pest was first detected in the UK in 2011 and has been gradually spreading north. It arrived in Wanstead in 2015/6.

There is little gardeners can do to tackle the pest, apart from picking the caterpillars off by hand and using powerful pesticides, which many people won’t want to do. Anecdotal evidence suggests Bayer’s Provado Ultimate Bug Killer (available at Heads n Tails) can have some effect, but some gardeners will conclude that pulling up the boxes is a better solution.

The new campaign group Wild Wanstead, which is encouraging people to make the most of their gardens, has this list of suggested alternatives to box.