Anjaana

There was a stage with music at the Creative Earth Eco Fest at Cliffe Castle. I happened to be there when Anjaana were playing. They are a band formed in Bradford in the late 1970s, focusing on pure Punjabi folk and classic Bhangra rhythms. They were honoured with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2025 UK Bhangra Awards. Led by artist Paul Chand, the group has spent over 50 years performing traditional South Asian music across the UK and India.

The (mostly) traditional instruments they are playing are (from left to right): dohl drum, tabla drums, a vaja - a type of harmonium - and a keyboard. 

 I really enjoyed their music. 

Elsewhere in the park there was an elegant young lady teaching people some Bollywood dance moves, which are high energy and rhythmic. I loved watching her - though my own dancing skills are less than zero! 

 

Mass Wuthering

Why, you might ask, was there a steady stream of people dressed in red climbing to Penistone Hill, above the Brontë family home in Haworth? 

It was what is known as 'The Most Wuthering Heights Day Ever', held in July each year, which sees thousands of people across the world recreate the video to Kate Bush's 1978 song Wuthering Heights, inspired by Emily Brontë's novel. Dancers pay an entry fee, which raises money for charity. 

My daughter, son-in-law and younger granddaughter (all of whom simply LOVE 'dressing up') were participants so I and my older granddaughter (we don't love dressing up!) went along to watch.  

There were a few practice runs first. Though the 500 dancers were supposed to have learned the moves beforehand, the extent to which that had happened (or not) was abundantly clear!

Then - the dance. Given that it hasn't rained here for weeks, the fact that it was very windy, quite cold and very wet was ironic. They all got soaked to the skin. It was certainly 'wuthering' (definition: blustering, stormy, or roaring loudly like a heavy wind)! Remarkably, it didn't seem to dampen anyone's enthusiasm. 

There were quite a few men in frocks and dogs in frocks. The men were allowed to dance, the dogs weren't!

BBC and ITV News were there and there’s a video HERE.

The 'stream' home again was more literally that, very damp indeed. Aw. We went for a pub lunch to warm up and dry off. I'd like to say it was good fun...  

Rae Gala 2026

The first Sunday of July is always the annual Rae Gala, commemorating the gift of Northcliffe Park from the philanthropist Sir Norman Rae to the people of Shipley in 1920. It's quite a small event but a wholesome and community-focused celebration. This year it suffered by being on the same weekend as the Dragon Boat Racing, so there seemed to be fewer attendees. Those there had an enjoyable time and were entertained by our local Morris dance team, Rainbow Morris, and by the Shipley Hallroyd Brass Band. 

There was food and an ice cream van, plenty of stalls to browse, some children's races and a display of dancing by children from Stars Stage School. The most popular attraction seemed to be the miniature railway, based in the park, with members of Bradford Model Engineering Society providing rides on the two different circuits. As always, it was a good afternoon out - and, though it was a heavily overcast day, it stayed dry, which always helps. 

St Andrews - St Salvators

Fife holiday 2026 #13

The unexpected gem of my perambulation of St Andrews was the beautiful college chapel of St Salvator, dating back to 1450 but much changed since then (largely due to the Protestant Reformation when it was stripped of most of its iconography). What we see now owes much to the Gothic Revivalist style popular in Victorian times, and some sympathetic modern additions, but the chapel retains a dignity and serenity that I found most appealing. 

Behind it is a quadrangle of university buildings. I gather that the Prince and Princess of Wales resided in St Salvator's Hall during their first year at St Andrew's University (which is famously where they met) but the buildings behind the chapel are not the student halls of residence, which lie beyond. 

As I was nearing the Chapel, a large tour bus stopped outside to deposit its passengers. I upped my pace in order to get inside before they did! So I at least had a few peaceful moments to myself, and took all the interior shots with my phone in order to speed up the process. I am quite pleased with how they turned out.  

As I left the Chapel, I noted a man in a full Scottish kilt outfit entering. I then realised that there was about to be a wedding. Guests were gathering outside the main entrance on the street side of the Chapel and there was a bagpiper who began to play, so I was delighted to see that. It was an unexpected bonus, since if I'd arrived a few minutes later I would not have been able to go inside. Serendipity. 

All that jazz

We've had some unbelievably hot days recently - and it's barely summer yet. I had my younger granddaughter over for the day and we wandered down to Roberts Park for an ice cream. 'Guiseley Jazz' were playing in the bandstand, and a few folk got up to dance to the infectious rhythm. It was heartwarming to see the older couple teaching the younger girls some of the moves. It all felt very relaxed and lovely - and the ice creams were good too. We even found a place to sit in the shade and the slight breeze made it feel bearable. Neither of us are sun/hot weather lovers. 

We paid a visit to Baba Jaga's hut, and I found she knew the legend quite well. She's bright as a button and quick on the uptake about most things. 

Before long she was in her favourite habitat - up a tree! 

Any railings or low walls we pass also get clambered on. From here we got a grandstand view of the Canada geese taking their babies for a paddle on the weir. The river is currently very low, but it will soon fill again as we have rain forecast for next week. 

Brutalism, buskers and birds

Shipley Market Place was bathed in sunshine at the weekend. Its Festival of Britain-style concrete clock tower, built in 1960-61 above the indoor market, was recently denied listed building status. Historic England, the body that oversees listing, said it lacked 'the design quality' and 'use of high-quality materials' of comparable listed examples. It is a bit of a 'Marmite' thing.  (You either love it or hate it.) 

I was prepared to love the buskers playing as part of Busk BD 2026, a busking festival across the city. I thought they were quite good, though sadly their audience, in Shipley at least, was almost non-existent.  

The chap above was, I think, called the Bus Pass Busker, and he was followed by a young lad called Ryan Swift (below).

Also enjoying the sunshine, the many market place pigeons were being fed from a big bag of sunflower seeds by a gentleman rather conspicuous in a high-vis vest. (Not sure what that was about. Maybe he had a bike somewhere). I'm pretty certain feeding them isn't encouraged but at least it was seeds and not dry bread. 

A busy day in the park

There was something for everyone in the park last Sunday. 

It must nearly be summer as the bandstand concerts have started. The wonderful Hot Aire Concert Band was playing. They are very polished and have a great repertoire of mostly lively and well-known music. I really enjoy listening to them (despite my less than good hearing) and their sound is loud enough to fill the bandstand and carry really well. 

The cricket season has started, so there was a match going on...

and the once-a-month farmer's market was lining the promenade. 

For children, the land train has started running, doing regular circuits of the park (though I didn't manage to get a photograph of that this time).  It's all happening in Saltaire! If only the weather would warm up a bit... 

Kirkgate Bateria!

Kirkgate Bateria! are a relatively new, local, percussion group bringing 'high-energy Afro-Brazilian drumming' to our celebratory events. Here they are in Roberts Park, playing as part of the World Heritage Day festival. Seemed like they were having fun and it was certainly an infectious rhythm. I did video them but the clip turned out to be too big to upload. Boo. 

World Heritage Day

World Heritage Day brought a day of celebration to Roberts Park, marking the special milestone of 25 years since Saltaire’s inscription as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. There was music in the bandstand, a craft market along the promenade and a fun fair and street food stalls on the lower field. 

Conversations were going on at the Dog Show: 

and I spotted a small dog that must surely be called Yoda? 

There was a lady playing a rather lovely vintage hand organ ....

   ... and Sir Titus Salt leaping around on his alpaca. He often turns up at our festive events. 

Meanwhile the cricket season has begun and Saltaire Cricket Club weren't going to allow a festival to get in the way of their fixture list. Thankfully there's enough room on the bottom meadow for the funfair and the cricket.