It was great to see the beach at Barry Island making an appearance on the Welsh News and in the press this week. Crowds of people have been flocking to the town enjoy the beaches and Porthkerry Park in this early summer sunshine.

This just goes to prove that the towns beaches are still an attraction despite all of the efforts to discourage tourism. When its hot people like to go to the beach and Barry has some fantastic open and accessible coastline that people evidently still want to visit.

The town needs to capitalise on its fantastic natural attractions. Butlins may have gone, the former guest houses have long been turned into flats so the opportunity to raise the profile and standard of tourist facilities is now upon us.

We can no longer rely on the fairground to bring in the crowds so to sustain visitor interest beyond weather dependant natural attractions, investment in high class, upmarket, welcoming facilities needs to be encouraged. To continue to build houses or other residential developments on Nells point and around the Knap will spoil the potential revival of tourism to the town.

We have great natural attractions that need to be cleaned, protected and marketed.

Paul Haley from ‘Pride in Barry’ has been running a serious campaign urging the Welsh Assembly Government to re-invest some of the proceeds from the land sale at Barry Waterfront back into the town.

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I am having difficulty persuading my son to vote today in the local council elections.

I believe it is the duty of every eligible citizen in a democracy to cast their vote and have their input on the way we are governed, after all people died to preserve our right to free and fair elections. I even heard today a women telling her daughter that ‘she needs to vote because years ago some women chained themselves to railings in order to enjoy equal voting rights as their male counterparts’.

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Well its now shut, closed we are told because of falling revenues, so much so that it is now uneconomic to remain open. So why is this . .

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Isn’t it about time we had our own crematorium in or near to Barry.

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I have just finished watching the first of the hit TV series ‘Gavin & Stacey’ from the BBC which features our town Barry as one of its locations. What great publicity for the town.

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The Knap Lake has now been drained revealing a shallow, slimy layer of mud littered with pebbles and lost dog toys. As well as the water disappearing the Swans are nowhere to be seen either.

Has a great conspiracy taken place?

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For those of you with a superstitious nature beware 2008.

Driving through Holton Road Sunday Night 6 January (the twelfth night of Christmas) I noticed that the Christmas lights were still switched all aglow on Kings Square. According to tradition all Christmas decorations are meant to be pulled down before the twelfth night.

“Christmas decorations should be removed so as not to bring bad luck upon the home. If decorations are not removed on this day, they should stay up all year.”

It all stems from the belief in the existence of mischievous ‘Tree Spirits’ who lived within Christmas Trees and other festive foliage who would cause havoc indoors until released.

Most homeowners in Barry have observed the tradition and removed all of their decorations - even the gaudy houses covered from top to toe in lights. Pity the council couldn’t organise a festive switch-off at the same time as the ’switch-on’

What does this mean for Barry in 2008, will the ‘tree spirits’ raise havoc in the town?

Despite the bitter easterly winds this week I was pleased to find that there is a very warm welcome in High Street this Christmas yet again. Continue Reading »

I was extremely lucky to be invited, along with fifteen hundred other guests and members of the international press, to preview Queen Victoria, Cunards brand new ocean liner, in Southampton for an exclusive preview and overnight stay.

Thankfully Cunard prefers travel agents and the travel press to promote its brand rather than the usual ‘hit’ parade of celebrities, however I did spot Sir Jimmy Saville enjoying a fat Havana in ‘Churchills’ cigar lounge.

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