Black cats are often overlooked for adoption, possibly due to superstition
Witches’ companions and bringers of good or bad luck – for centuries, black cats have played a major role in folklore, mythology and superstition. And, perhaps because of this, many cat re-homing charities find it’s these unfortunate moggies which often get left behind.
But today, October 27, Cats Protection, which has branches near to Sedgley, has launched its Black Cat Awareness Day campaign, which it hopes will redress the balance for these forgotten felines.
According to the charity, black cats are often overlooked by would-be adopters and many of them remain in its care for longer than others.
And, to really get people’s attention, the charity is running a social media campaign, but needs the support of others to make it a success.
A spokesperson for Cats Protection says: “We want to see a show of solidarity for these misunderstood felines, so are inviting supporters to share pictures of their black cats now!”
Anyone who wishes to lend support can upload an image of their black cat to the charity’s Facebook page or its Flickr group.
Twitter users can tweet mentioning @CatsProtection or use the hashtag #CPBlackCats
Celebrities who own black cats have also got behind the campaign, including comic and actor David Schneider, author and journalist Jilly Cooper OBE, fashion icon Twiggy Lawson and Simon Tofield, creator of the hilarious internet sensation, Simon’s Cat.
Black cats are often associated with witches and Halloween. Here is a selection of popular myths about them:
Black Cats as witches’ companions. It was largely in the Middle Ages that the black cat became affiliated with evil. Because cats are nocturnal and roam at night, they were believed to be supernatural servants of witches, or even witches themselves.
Folklore has it that if a witch becomes human, her black cat will no longer reside in her house.
Some believe that black cats are witches in disguise, or witches reborn.
Others believe black cats are witches familiars (beings that aid witches in performing their craft). Not all familiars were black cats though – some were cats of other colours and dogs, pigs, and other animals were also subject to superstition and suspicion.
Is this the ghost of Turls Hill bridleway? Image is copyrighted by Derarfni.
With the shadow of Halloween looming large, it’s time to delve into local history and uncover some ghostly tales and strange goings-on in Sedgley. And, fittingly for a village steeped in history, there is no shortage of spine-chilling stories and eye-witness accounts of apparitions….
The amazing photograph shown above seems to show a spectral figure emerging from the darkness on Turls Hill bridleway – a route which local historians believe dates back to before 1600 and has been the scene of several ghastly incidents.
Local photographer Mike, who posted this image on his Flickr page under his username, Derarfni, says: “It all started about 10 years ago, after hearing local stories and reading an article about the ‘Turls Hill Ghost’.
“We went down for a laugh, just with simple a ‘point and shoot’ digital camera and came back and noticed peculiar occurrences in the photos.
This became a bit of an obsession and we ended up spending many nights, taking photos – which amounted to many thousands, mostly pictures of nothing, but occasionally, say 1 in a 1,000, we had something unexplainable.”
Maybe it’s not so surprising Mike and his friends captured something unexplainable on camera. Turls Hill bridleway is said to be haunted by a veiled lady and her two suicidal sons, who shot themselves in the adjoining quarry on separate occasions. Also, a steelworks owner, who once lived in Turls Hill House, at the top of the lane which was also known as The Belgians (now demolished), apparently went bankrupt, building a wall around his estate and eventually shooting himself in the quarry.
Pubs are notorious sites for hauntings, so it comes as no surprise to discover that not all the spirits at Sedgley’s Beacon Hotel, home of the Sarah Hughes brewery, come in bottles.
Sedgley's Beacon Hotel has been the site of numerous strange happenings
Andrew, a former manager of the Beacon Hotel, tells this story:
“In the summer of 1994 when I was managing the Beacon I often used to stay overnight for security. I usually slept in the sitting room. In that room is a painting of Sarah Hughes in which the eyes seem to follow you around the room. I suppose you never sleep properly when you are on protection duty, and one night something awoke me.
“My alarm clock showed 3am. Opening my eyes, I took a quick glance around the room. In the corner by the door to the passage stood a figure. After a couple of seconds I realised they had not broken into the pub or the alarms would be shrieking.
“I don’t know how long I looked at the figure. It was a man in his 50s wearing Wellington boots, dark trousers and a grey or white shirt with an old-fashioned Grandad-style collar and a waistcoat. I have always thought that ghosts were transparent, but he looked quite solid. Suddenly grasping what I was seeing, my heart raced and I shut my eyes tight. When I looked again a few seconds later the figure had vanished. I told my father about the night visitor and described what he was wearing. He said it sounded like the father of the present owner who always liked to go about in old-fashioned clothes.”
Paul, another former manager of the Beacon, claims he has seen Sarah Hughes herself. He says: “She was walking across the smoke room and through a wall where there is now a conservatory. Fifty years ago there was a door at this point.
“If you stand in the corridor near the main server and listen carefully, you might hear bumps and bangs from upstairs and the noise of someone standing on a loose floorboard, though those rooms are used only for storage. Many regular customers claim to have heard the noises.”
Paul’s story is backed up by the fact that one of the book’s authors, Andrew Homer, heard similar noises when researching. He explains: “At first I took no notice of the sounds, though they were quite loud. It sounded as though someone was moving heavy barrels about upstairs.
“Later the same evening, a casual remark to Aidan, the barman, revealed the story and confirmed there had definitely been no living person upstairs at the time.”
Ghost stories also feature prominently in Gornal’s history, including a particularly shocking incident for a caretaker’s assistant at Ellowes Hall School – now a sports college.
This excerpt from local community website, Yampy, explains further:
“About 12 years ago, Clive Brookes, the school caretaker, left his assistant Phil to lock up the school on the 6pm-10pm shift. Clive is pretty certain that it was a Thursday and there was nothing on at school that evening. Phil had already worked at the school for around six months and so was used to the procedure.
“Before going home, (the caretaker’s house is on-site), Clive had taken a floor ‘buffer’ to Phil and asked him to take it down a flight of stairs to the cupboard where it was kept. As Phil started to wheel the buffer down the stairs, something attracted his attention down the corridor, so he lifted the buffer back to the top of the stairs.
“He went to check everything out and walked through some glass double-doors, down to the end of the corridor. The staffroom door was locked. He went back to the floor buffer.
“As he started down the stairs again, he ended up dropping the buffer down the stairs as a “bloke in overalls walked straight through the double doors and straight through the staff room door.”
“Phil rushed to the caretaker’s bungalow, and Clive says that, although he was a big fellow, he was extremely scared. It was a long time before he locked up alone again! ”
And, over at Upper Gornal Conservative Club, there have been several reports of a monk in a gown, which has apparently been seen by several people in the bar and cellar.
Do you have a ghost story to tell? Get in touch with us – we’d love to hear from you.
One of Sedgley’s busiest roads was closed during rush hour yesterday evening, Tuesday, October 25, after a dramatic collision involving four vehicles.
The smash, which happened at around 5.45pm and involved three cars and a heavy-duty vehicle, took place near the junction to Turls Street.
According to the driver of the heavy-duty vehicle, a red car was pulling off the car park used by patrons of Cloud 9 day nursery and Chilli ‘n’ Creme restaurant, when a silver VW Golf coming down Tipton Street from Sedgley, crashed into its side.
The stretch of Tipton Street where the accident took place
The heavy-duty vehicle’s driver, who did not wish to be named, said: “I was coming up Tipton Street towards Sedgley and stopped to let the driver of the red car (believed to be a Vauxhall) off the car park. As the red car pulled into the road, the silver car, which I believe to have been speeding, lost control and crashed into the red car’s side. As a result of this collision, the red car spun round in the road and hit the vehicle I was driving. The silver car then hit another car, a gun metal grey Vauxhall. I believe the driver of the silver car was speeding because I saw the car’s air bags come out. I was led to believe that the driver of the red car had only just picked up his children from Cloud 9.”
Police and ambulance crews were soon on the scene and the road was shut, from the junction with Turls Street to the turning for Gate Street, until approximately 7.15pm. According to the driver of the heavy-duty vehicle, no-one was seriously injured, although each car was towed away and some drivers were taken to hospital.
The accident follows on from numerous traffic incidents on Tipton Street and Tipton Road in recent years, including the fatal collision this April which took the lives of Gornal men Daniel Eales and passenger Tim Morris.
Were you caught up in this latest serious accident? What should be done to improve road safety in this area of Sedgley? Get in touch with us and we’ll air your views.
Fireworks can be stressful for dogs, but thankfully, Dogs Trust is here to help
At this time of year, many families look forward to spectacular firework displays, crackling bonfires and sizzling sparklers as they celebrate Diwali and remember, remember the fifth of November.
However, the celebrations can often be a nightmare for pet owners as they struggle to keep their four-legged friends calm amid the booms, bangs and whizzes of fireworks being let off in their neighbourhoods.
Thankfully, canine welfare charity, Dogs Trust, has the answer, with a handy assortment of free resources available on a new website set up specifically for this time of year.
The site, http://www.dogsandfireworks.com/ , features a wide range of advice to help keep canines calm and ensure everyone has a restful night.
Dogs Trust experts, Karen, Muriel and Debbie, have designed the guide using the best advice and tips available to make sure that fireworks become non-threatening, fear of fireworks becomes avoidable and best of all, fireworks become an enjoyable part of everyone’s lives.
The site features a free MP3 of fireworks noise, which dog owners can use to train their pet to associate fireworks noise with fun. It can be played directly from a computer, exported to an MP3 player or burned onto a CD.
Alternatively, pet owners can play the website’s video to help familiarise their dog with the sights and sounds of fireworks.
Although these resources are free, Dogs Trust asks for a small donation if possible to help them continue their vital work.
The Beacon Hotel is calling time on dog owners who take their canine companions to the pub
For years, this historic Sedgley pub has been a popular place for local dog owners to relax with their four-legged friends while enjoying a pint of real ale brewed on the premises.
However, that might all be about to change after John Hughes, owner of the Beacon Hotel and the Sarah Hughes brewery, announced a complete ban on any canine companions from the end of October – a move which has angered many dog owners.
One regular and dog owner, Julie Caswell, from Coseley, says: “I’m gutted that they’ve decided to ban dogs from the pub – it’s more custom for the Stump (Mount Pleasant) then. How very short-sighted Mr Hughes!”
The Beacon Hotel, Sedgley
According to staff at the Beacon, the ban is due to concerns about furniture getting damaged and the safety of other customers and their children. It follows on from an incident last year, when a regular and his dog, Toby, were barred after damage was allegedly caused to plants in the Victorian pub’s conservatory.
As part of the ban, dogs will not be allowed inside the pub or outside in the beer garden – something which many people feel could result in the pub losing a great deal of trade.
“It’s no more Surprise for us sadly,” adds Julie, lamenting the fact she and her partner will no longer be able to enjoy the pub’s popular ales, which include Pale Amber, Surprise bitter and the famous Dark Ruby Mild. “It’s just a shame responsible dog owners have to suffer because of a minority who can’t control their dogs.”
Are you a local dog owner and regular of the Beacon Hotel? What do you think of the ban?
Get in touch and share your views with us here at Sedgleyscene.
Go For Guide Dogs needs public support to continue its vital work
Local dog owners and their four-legged friends can put their best feet – or paws – forward at the end of this month to raise money for a guide dog charity.
The Go Walkies event, organised by the Bentley Bridge branch of Just For Pets, takes place on October 30 at Baggeridge Country Park, Sedgley, at 2pm.
During the walk, which lasts approximately an hour and a half, participants can get to meet other dog owners and have a great day out while raising funds for charity Go For Guide Dogs.
Previous events have been a great success, with many people choosing to walk the route in fancy dress and have fun while raising money for a worthwhile cause.
Families are welcome and shorter walks are also available on the day. Participants who don’t have a pooch are also encouraged to take part and can even add to the fun by dressing up as a canine companion.
A leisurely walk is something many people take for granted, but, for a blind or partially sighted person, it can be a huge challenge. By choosing to Go Walkies for Guide Dogs, people will be helping Go For Guide Dogs reach out to those people. The charity aims to get the whole country taking part and, during the first year of these events, at least 3,000 people took part nationwide.
Every penny raised is vital in helping Guide Dogs keep its lifetime promise to provide each owner with a guide dog for as long as they need one. It’s a big promise but it’s one that is only possible with public support. For example, the total lifetime cost of a guide dog is more than £40,000 and each person can have up to eight dogs during their life.
The charity aims to increase the number of guide dog partnerships by a third by 2020. However, as Go For Guide Dogs receives no government funding, it depends upon the kindness of supporters to raise the necessary funding.
Visit the charity’s website or pop into the Bentley Bridge branch of Just For Pets for more information.
Some of the region’s best artists, including a world-renowned photographer and film-maker from Sedgley and a talented dancer and singer from Wordsley, will be showcasing their work alongside that of pupils from schools across the Black Country at a popular local media centre this weekend.
The Cutting Wren, a film by Sedgley-born Teddy Powell – whose clients include, BBC, Apple, Disney and VH1 – will be shown as part of the Moment arts festival taking place this Saturday, October 8, at Wolverhampton’s Light House Media Centre.
Moment, which is the brainchild of Wordsley-born singer, professional dancer and creative director of Imprint Dance Company, Susanna Westwood, is the culmination of a series of workshops led by professional artists in secondary schools across Wolverhampton and Walsall.
She says: “Moment will showcase the best that the arts has to offer, all in one place. Working with young people and the local community makes this event a unique experience, bringing a whole new audience to the arts.”
And for Susanna, who studied a dance degree in London before going to New York to work with the highly acclaimed Hip Hop Dance Conservatory, there’s no place like home when it comes to working with like-minded, talented people.
Having now moved to Wolverhampton, she says: “Big cities such as London and New York are very exciting, but it’s so nice to come back to the Black Country and collaborate with local artists – there’s a real sense of coming home. After all, I’ve known some of these people for years – Teddy, for example, used to play saxophone in a band and we met during gigs we were both performing at.”
Also appearing at Moment will be best-selling Stourbridge author Miranda Dickenson, who is also something of a musical talent. She’ll be performing songs from her debut album and EP, which is being released in November to coincide with her new book.
There will also be works on show from renowned Dudley-based painter Oliver Pengilly.
Tickets for Moment cost £4 and are available to book from www.moment.eventbrite.com, or can be purchased on the door for £6.
The event, which runs from 7.30pm until 10.30pm, has received support from the Arts Council West Midlands.
One of the friendly horses in the fields which run either side of Turls Hill Bridleway
Walking down this tranquil country lane, pausing to look at the horses in the rolling fields which lie either side, it’s hard to believe this bridleway is only a short distance from the stream of traffic on Tipton Road.
The Turls Hill bridleway, which local historians believe dates back to before 1600, was restored to its former glory in spring 2009, after The Woodsetton Charitable Trust secured more than £90,000 in grants for land drainage, surface reinstatement, fencing and hedge cultivation.
It runs along the boundary between the old villages of Woodsetton and Ettingshall.
Last winter, local photographer Lisa Wilkes captured this historic route in a series of impressive shots which show the landscape in all its frozen beauty.
She says: “The restoration of this bridleway is superb and the cold conditions last winter made for some great sunsets. I’m looking forward to getting down there again soon to capture all the wonderful colours of autumn.”
As well as Turls Hill bridleway, Sedgley-based Lisa has also captured come of the area’s other historic sites, including Himley Hall and Dudley Castle, taken while she attended one of the town’s famous ghost tours.
Are you a keen local photographer? Send your pics to us at Sedgleyscene@gmail.com and we’ll feature them on the site.
Sandyfield herd - a stunning photograph showing the local landscape at its best.
When looking at this stunning image, many viewers could be forgiven for thinking it was taken on the plains of Arizona or some equally distant, romantic location.
Yet, this glorious picture was, in fact, taken in Sedgley and demonstrates the perfect panorama and wonders of nature available to local residents.
Lee Seabridge has lived in Sedgley for more than 20 years, but is constantly amazed by the stunning landscapes and nature on his doorstep.
He says: ” Being able to walk out of my front door and take a few snaps on a sunny evening or a frosty morning makes me feel privileged to live in such a fabulous area. We have everything an amateur photographer could wish for – distant vistas, a huge variety of wildlife and historic sites. I hope people enjoy looking at my photographs as much as I enjoyed taking them!”
And, after looking at these highly impressive photographs, readers of Sedgleyscene are sure to agree that local residents really are surrounded by stunning scenery which it’s sometimes easy to take for granted.
In the near future, Lee hopes to find suitable premises locally for a gallery in which to show his work and feature other pieces by local artists.
“There are so many creative people living in an around Sedgley,” he adds. “Having somewhere to show all our work would be a real boost to the town and make more people aware of the wonderful sights and sounds we’re lucky enough to be surrounded by.”
The levels of sugar in this year's grape harvest are the highest since 1983
Local wine lovers are in for a treat this year, as the owner of one vineyard near Sedgley has reported the highest levels of sugar in the grape harvest since his business began.
Martin Vickers, owner of Halfpenny Green Vineyard, near Bobbington, South Staffordshire, says an early winter followed by an early spring, a mainly dry summer and the current Indian summer has had a “cumulative” influence on the crop.
And, as a result, the award-winning vineyard could soon be producing full-bodied wines with an alcohol level as high as 15 per cent, meaning local grape gurus could soon be enjoying a red wine comparable with some of the best European varieties.
Martin, who has owned Halfpenny Green Vineyard since 1983, explains: “At 15 per cent, we hope we have the intensity and colour of a full-bodied red wine which seemed beyond us in other seasons.”
English wine has come a long way from its previously questionable reputation and is now becoming increasingly popular, especially after winning international competitions against its French rivals.
Martin also feels increased demand for local produce has also been a strong factor in the continued success of his wines, which include dry whites such as Tom Hill and Long Acre, the medium dry white Penny Black and its darker counterpart, Penny Red, along with Black Country Gold and a refreshing Red Sparkling.
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