Carols, art and sporting Santa

Tuesday was the annual Worcester News carol service. Thank you to the Deputy Mayor and Mayoress for attending on my behalf. I was at the Policy and Resources Committee at the same time and fortunate in that it finished in time for me to catch some of the guests in the Mayor’s Parlour afterwards.

This annual event, for me, is a reminder of the importance of local journalism. It is easy to take for granted every day local news, whether a traditional paper version or online copy or news alerts. Without our local journalists and editors I believe our local world would be a very empty space.

We don’t live globally, or nationally, or online (not physically at least). We live locally, in our communities. Let’s celebrate our local communities and support our local journalists and editors.

On Thursday afternoon I viewed the Worcester Society of Artists Exhibition (WSA) at Worcester City Art Gallery and Museum. There was a fantastic mix of styles and mediums. We clearly have some exceptionally talented artists in Worcester. After much deliberation I chose my favourite, Dark Flowers, by Marion Yeo (see below).

Thank you to the Chair of WSA, Chris Phillips, for taking me around the exhibition. It’s very worth a visit over the Christmas break  and perfect for a break from all the traditional festivities (please check the festive opening times). Chairs are available to sit and ponder, and quite a few of the paintings are for sale.

On Thursday I was able to join Father Christmas, Mrs Christmas and Elf with volunteers from the Worcester Lions Club charity outside Perdiswell Leisure Centre. Although it’s a super-busy time, we were able to join in with the spin class and Father Christmas and Elf achieved some pretty impressive bounces on the trampoline!

Merry Christmas everyone!