Editorial
When a train's late, it only gets later, as the guard mournfully observed as we sat queuing for a slot into Birmingham New Street, happy thoughts of connections, seats, welcoming relative etc. fading into distant memories. Yes, well, what applies to trains also applies to magazines, which is why this issue is not just late, but even later. Many apologies, all our readers!
Until very recently, the Crier could not be late (so therefore wasn't). This was because, on the last Thursday in the month, many kind volunteer villagers turned up at the Village Hall to collate and staple the magazine and although the Eds could always tell you exactly why it would be quite impossible to get the magazine out even remotely on time this month, it seems that when faced with the prospect of a horde of cross villagers, they thought better of this conclusion. May we take this opportunity to say THANK YOU VERY MUCH to all those helpers - it's the end of an era, since the Crier is now being automatically stapled at the Burwell Print Centre. But they will be sorely missed - especially the experts who manned the Crier stapler! Many tried, but few ended up with anything but bent staples, crumpled magazines, and a large debt to the **** Piggy Bank!
Village magazines send one another copies of their magazines and this month we reprint, with their kind permission, an article from the Bulbeck Beacon on the history of the Denny. Alastair Everitt, who spotted it, notes that "The Denny means a lot to footballers, cricketers, and especially hockey players and they will be interested in the early history of this idyllic village green - which might not have been if you-know-who had had his way!". Meanwhile, read all about the uncosted Ely Council Offices scandal-waiting-to-happen in Our Reporter - and yes, Crier readers would like pictures of serving councillors, see the brilliant snaps (many thanks, Mark Lewinski) from Playscheme 2004 and get practising for Village Variety 2004! See you Harvest Suppering....