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Southend History
Wednesday
09:00 – HMS Leigh Make Do and Mend Opening – Mayor John Lamb
The opening of any event is an important moment for all concerned and we are honoured that Southend Mayor and Mayoress, Cllr John Lamb and Pat Lamb, have agreed to open HMS Leigh Make Do and Mend. Many thanks.
09:30 HMS Leigh Introduction Film
This is a short video introducing the HMS Leigh Make Do and Mend project made by the Project Team, under lockdown conditions, to try and explain the project to you and embodies the heart of the Make Do and Mend principle.
10:00 Southend Stories – My Lovely Dad Bob
Read the story of Bob Finch and his sister June who were evacuated from Southend like so many other children in June 1940. This page recall’s Bob’s memories of the time – which were far from idyllic.
10:30 VE-Day Celebration – Movietone News
To get a sense of the reaction of the country to Victory In Europe Day (VE-Day) in May 1945 this film from Movietone News shows how important the end of the war was to the whole of Britain.
11:00 - Bygone Years Films – Southend Pier 1930
Southend Pier in the 1930s was a very different place where dancing and concerts were the order of the day and this film from the Bygone Years DVD by local historian, Chris Taylor, was produced from old film recovered from film cans found in Victoria Avenue.
12:00 – An introduction to the Music Man Project
The Music Man Project is an award winning and record breaking accessible music service based in Southend and built up by David Stanley, which ‘creates inspirational opportunities for musicians with a learning disability’.
12:30 - Music Man activity video of Liberty bell for KS1 schools
Part of the Music Man Project has been making activities available to all that give those with any ability level to take part in making music.
13:00 – Remembrance – WW2 Veteran Bernard Maybe
Bernard Maybe served in the Royal Air Force during World War 2 and describes his experiences during his time with the RAF as a young man.
13:30 – Activities for EYFS aged children – Baker Ross Printable VE-Day Posters
Resources offered by the Baker Ross company and includes 2 VE-Day celebration images to freely download for colouring in.
14:00 - Southend At War – Image from Southend Museum - A Troop, 200 Battery RA, 68th Heavy Anti Aircraft Regiment RA
“This is a photograph of A Troop, 200 Battery RA, 68th Heavy Anti Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery at Southend during WW2 just before they were dispatched to fight in the North Africa campaign in Egypt, Tobruk and Malta. The 68th Regiment RA became 36th Regiment RA after the war and was the last artillery Regiment to be stationed in Shoeburyness before the barracks closed.” Image courtesy of the Royal Artillery Association Archives.
14:30 – Southend UK Jazz Archive - Interview with Digby Fairweather
The UK Jazz Centre is one of the unsung amazing resources of Southend. Tucked away in the basement of the Beecroft Art Gallery in Victoria Avenue, Digby Fairweather and his team of volunteers have gathered and catalogues a fantastic array of Jazz related memorabilia, artwork, records, CDs and videos that are a world class resource on our doorstep.
15:00 – Jazz Digby Fairweather & His Half Dozen "Runnin' Wild"
Digby Fairweather and his half dozen have performed in some of the most prestigious Jazz joints in the world and this recording of Dixieland Jazz shows just why we asked them to be a part of the HMS Leigh Make Do and Mend event on Southend Pier – hopefully now in May 2021.
15:30 – 30s Blues - Early Slide Blues by Dan Deacon
Music before the war came in many genres and something new to hit Britain at the time was Blues, and Rhythm and Blues, this is an example of 1930s Blues that is much simpler than the music it led to.
16:00 – Southend History Film – The History of Southend Pier, by Chris Taylor
A longer film by local historian, Chris Taylor, documenting the history of Southend Pier. From its humble beginnings in the 1830s to the roaring success of the 1950s, with all the trials and tribulations along the way.
16:30 – Southend Charities – Royal National Lifeboat Institute Southend Lifeboat
This video comes courtesy of the RNLI and is headcam footage of the Southend Lifeboat assisting an injured Kite Surfer who became tangled in his kite rig off Southend Pier, 2017.
17:00 – Postcards of a Pier – Horse Drawn Trams
This postcard (left) shows the Horse drawn Tram introduced on Southend Pier due to the amount of cargo that needed to be carried to the shore, and comes from a postcard issued much later, however the second image (right) from Southend Museum shows that it’s a crop of a larger photograph that shows the original grand entrance to the pier in the background.
17:30 – London Southend Airport Poppy Garden and Kingsdown Poppy Wall
Heritage and Remembrance are a very to us, and one wonderful projects in 2018 was to build an 8m Poppy Garden on the lawn of the airport terminal. On the inside, Artist Ali Ward was terribly busy constructing the Kingsdown Poppy Wall made of over 100 fabric poppies made by the children of Southend.
18:00 – WW2 Popular Songs Mr Dennis Evans
Thank you to Dennis Evans for his piano renditions of some of the popular songs of World War 2. All filmed and introduced by Mrs Evans.
Thank you all for joining us today, we hope to see you for tomorrows event
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