October 2023

Thoughts from Sandie

I’d like to start by thanking the committee of Stone Festival and Carnival who have generously agreed to fund our 17th Birthday Party in full out of the profits from this year’s Festival.

I’m also really pleased that Stone Town Mayor and Mayoress, Councillors Jim and Lin Davies have accepted my invitation to the party, and I’ve been told that they are delighted to be joining us all.

The nights are drawing in and for me that indicates one thing, Christmas is not far away (my favourite time of year).

We’ve already started planning for the Club’s Christmas Party on 14th December.

Thoughts from the 80's, what a decade.

Shoulder pads, Cold War, Thatcherism, the Falklands War, Privatisation, and Hip Hop.  These things are just some of what has defined the 1980s, but there are many more.  From a wedding to a final straw, the 1980s were a tumultuous time for Britain.

• 1980 – British Steel Workers Strike. Workers demanded a 20% pay increase, management offered a mere 6%, the union initiated its first strike in 50 years.  Lasting fourteen weeks, the workers were successful in getting a 15.5% pay rise.
• 1981 - Wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer. Watching on television, the wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer would have seemed like a fairytale to most. The events that took place before, during, and after, continue to shape the monarchy to this day.
• 1982 – Falklands War. The defining military conflict for Britain in the 1980s, the Falklands War began when Argentina occupied the British dependent territories of the Falkland Islands. Hostilities lasted only ten weeks before Argentina’s surrender.
• 1983 – Thatcher Wins Landslide. Another outcome of the Falklands War for was the boost in popularity that Margaret Thatcher received for the successful outcome.  Favourable opinion polls for the Conservative Party, gaining 58 seats in the next election.
• 1984 – Miners’ Strike. Beginning March 6, the Miners’ Strike was a walkout in protest of coalmine closures in by Thatcher’s Conservative government. The National Union of Mineworkers held out for a year until many returned to work after union pay ran out. 

So much happened in the 80’s that we will have to continue the story next month.