THE LIGHTHOUSEThe Newsletter of the Eastbourne & South Downs Philatelic Society

Editor: John Wright, 12 Milchester House, Staveley Road, Meads, Eastbourne, BN20 7JX.

No. 33 August 2012

Views expressed in this Newsletter are not necessarily those of the Officers or Committee

* * * * * * * * *This issue, the first of the new season, very nearly didn't happen (and just how many, I ask

myself) would have cared had that been the case? The Newsletter is produced on a Brother LW-840ic Word Processor, this machine having given me excellent service, but (having typed and saved more than half of it on disc) a fault developed on Saturday 2nd July which meant that I was unable to see what was on the disc and that it could (almost certainly) not have been read on any other machine. A "panic" telephone call at 9:10 a.m. on the Monday morning to Carringtons of Three Oaks brought a visit from the owner at 10:55 a.m. the next day, and a repair. What service, and "panic", I hope, over.

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Graham Eccles - The Postman who delivers for25p (as told to Audrey ward)(Adapted from a longer article in The Times)

A few years ago, on an impulse, Graham bought a penny farthing for£103•11, and has now found a use for it! He delivers, for 25p a time (asaving of 35p on Royal Mail's new 1st class prices), letters and postcardsin his home town of Bude, Cornwall, and the surrounding areas. Theservice started on 1st April and he delivers up to 100 items a day,covering 10-20 miles, his clients including accountants and furniturecompanies. Graham's customers have told him the service will savethem a fortune, one woman (who sends about 40 Christmas cards a yearand not expecting to be able to do so this year) now feels she can

The bike has big chopper handlebars, a 36" diameter front wheeland the squeaky back wheel (from a pram) is 12". Coloured beadshave been added to the spokes for comedy effect, but there is no bell orbasket as people tended to play with them when the bike was parked. Apuncture repair kit is carried. A parcel service may one day be added.The first, black and yellow, stamp he called the "penny farthing black" andpostboxes, painted yellow, are being designed to go inside shops oroutside on private property if council permission can be obtained. Mail issorted on the kitchen table, and Graham splits Bude into east, west, north,south, his dream being to open a little post office with his girlfriend aspostmistress.

Getting soaked to the skin is a "a bit tedious" (April was a wet month)and the £25 a month won't make him rich but he feels letter-writing will dieout if people can't afford stamps, especially with the advance of new technology

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SHOPPING BAG POSTBOX IN A HEDGE (from a Daily Telegraph article)

Albert Kingdom, 87, who suffers from arthritis, was distraught when Royal Mail removed the box in Twitchen, Devon, which was fastened to a rotten post. With Royal Mail approval, the post-lady now collects his letters from a shopping bag on his hedge. Albert says that the removal of the postbox (there has been one in the village for 100 years) upset everyone in the village and that he is prepared to fix up a good solid post on which a new box can be hung. The old box, dating from the reign of King George V, was of a type known as the Hovis, its shape resembling that of a loaf of bread.

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POSTAL RATE APOLOGY

In The Lighthouse #32, I said that the minimum international rate was now £1•28 for 20g as there is now no 10g rate. This was based on information from my helpful (and usually very reliable) local postmaster, before the new postal rate leaflets were available. It is incorrect -there is still a 10g rate (the cost being 87p). Sorry about that, but not my fault I think!

jmw* * * * * * * * *

THE POSTMAN WHO WAS A SERIAL KILLER

(Adapted from an article in The British Postal Museum & Archive Newsletter of May 2012 by Jonathan Oates, author of an upcoming biography of John Reginald Halliday Christie).

The name of John Christie will, probably, be familiar to many readers: even more will recognise his address of 10 Rillington Place. Christie was enrolled as a temporary postman in Halifax on 10 January 1921 at £2•18•2d per week, and appeared at Halifax Magistrates Court 12 weeks later accused of the theft of postal orders and other items. He was sentenced to 3 months in prison at Manchester.

He rejoined the Post Office on 21 May 1946 as a Grade 2 clerk at the Post Office Savings Bank, Blythe Road, Shepherds Bush, and in August 1947 was employed as a clerk at the Post Office Savings Bank, Kew. His job at the Post Office came to an end 29 years to the day after he had left previously. Christie was a key Crown witness at the trial in January 1950 of Timothy Evans (who lived at the same address) for the murder of Evans's infant daughter, a charge of the murder of Evans's wife being dropped: Evans was found guilty and hanged. 3 years later, Christie was found guilty of the murder of his own wife, and 5 other women, which led to considerable speculation about the guilt of Evans who was subsequently given a free pardon. The trial of Christie played an important part in altering legislation concerning the death penalty.

Additional information (which will also be in Jonathan Oates's book) from Chambers Biographical Dictionary.

jmw* * * * * * * * *

AND REVIEW

17th April Brian Stalker, Murray Figgins, Richard Robbins and John Wright were the 4 Society members to visit East Grinstead Stamp & Postcard Club. The visit seemed most successful.

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(As usual, the thanks of the Society are due to Martyn Fish for all the photographs here).

19th April Kent Postal History was the subject for Maurice Porter, and he started with material from the 1912 Philatelic Congress, held in Margate - 100 delegates, limited by the size of each Society. The Auction realised £45.6s and we saw a catalogue. Collectors referred to as "Esq.", but dealers as "Mr". Margate P.O. opened 1910 and we saw a number of triangular and other labels, and also a sheet of 16 for Margate Cottage Hospital. 3 envelopes from 1864 were of particular interest referring to a Derby sweep where the promoters (a baker and a rag & bone man) failed to pay up - the aggrieved winner tried to get his money at least 67 times, writing on the outside of the envelope "5th attempt", "12th", and "67th" in an effort to shame! There was an extremely rare letter card of 1898 showing Margate; also 2 Court cards; very many postcards of Margate views, including the PO; an envelope with 2 x bisected 1d; 1920 p/c posted unpaid, h/s "1d deficient, crossed out, and correct 2d PD applied; two large photo-montages of Margate postmen (one indoor staff, one outdoor); pairs and blocks (different colours) of Queen's Margate Hotel; PO Savings Stamp book with 3 x 1/- stamps showing; 1786 draft on Margate Bank for £228 and a later of Margate & Isle of Thanet Bank; advertising brochure for Dover & Ostend ferry and several of the many cards of this; and an OHMS telegraph to the Prince of Wales from Lord Carrington.

Among the many p/c was one of a one-armed postman who over 40 years walking between Snodland and Rochester travelled about 298,300 miles; a super card of a postman with dog and walking stick; 1908 motor vehicle broken down in snow; first motorised cycle; and a card showing a horse & cart driven by a woman postie in wartime. Then there was the PO circular (1910) saying Southborough was changing its telegraphic address (with before and after examples of the address). All of this display was very generously sprinkled with parcel post labels, the earliest from 1st August 1883. then early mail: a Corsini of 1574, Margate-London, reporting a lost cargo; 4 from 1642 (Civil War period); Cinque Ports posts (from Walmer, Dover, Deal); 1660 letter from Deal announcing safe arrival of a vessel; 1707 "Safe Conduct" letter signed by Secretary of State; 1707 The Post Man newspaper (free of postage if posted on day of issue); town h/stamps of Stonecrouch (1706 - earliest known); also a 1785 44 Stonecrouch; st line Maidstone (1721); curved Tunb Wells (1789), then curved Tunbridge Wells. Throughout the whole display there were maps, which enhanced this splendid show. Many thanks, Maurice - a pity we did not have a better attendance.

jmw

26th April The Egg Cup display was Ken Santer Entertains, and (as always) Ken did not disappoint, starting with single, double and squared circle cancels of Jamaica; the Parish cancels of Barbados; pmk HMPS, for penal settlement of British Guiana; 7 x blue El Salvador PS envelopes; 2 x USA fdc, empty, but censored; an Iceland PS card and stamps used in Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Grimsby, also 1940 British Forces in Iceland; 2 x Ireland entires of 1887 and 2 x 1922 opts carelessly faked on 1934 stamps; GB 1953 Coronation black prints and 1897, 1898 Prince of Wales Fund; Germany WWII propaganda forgeries; GB used in Cyprus, then faked opts and various colours of 1963 specimens, and 7 x Iraq stamps torn from PS envelopes. The first half concluded with Ken's real love - Jap occn of SE Asia, starting with 1939 Singapore passed by various censors; then 2 x Borneo passed censor and also Sarawak; Jap stamps used in Singapore, also some used Hong Kong which "might" be OK; a mixture of Malay States - brief description of 4 frames of very scarce Jap material.

Then to the 2nd half - French Somaliland; 1 st issue Palestine; centennial of Hebrew Press; Transjordan; Syria; Persia; 17 x Cape Triangulars (1 on cover) + crude forgeries; S Africa; block of 4 of SW Africa 10/-; Rhodesia covers charged PD after declaration of Independence; Tibet; India used Nepal; Nepal; Jap occnn of Burma (dangerous to collect as heavily faked); Pakistan; a page of Ceylon fiscals; Siam PS card to Hong Kong; a variety of plate blocks of Kenya & Uganda; colour die proofs of first Waterlow North Borneo issue and also imperf proofs of frames; 1953 salvaged mail from Comet crash near Calcutta; sheet of 2nd issue 3c Sarawak, also Perkins Bacon colour trials and 1932 plate proofs in pairs; and Hong Kong 1st issue and Spiro forgeries of this, also insured letter of 1925.

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One sheet (of 100) of the North Borneo Royal Cypher 1947 $2 exists with lh margin imperf, so 10 copies - we saw a vertical pair and a used on cover. Another splendid show by one of our elder statesmen - thank you, Ken.

jmw

3rd May Sussex and Cumbria Penny Posts might seem a strange combination, but Graham Booth explained that he lived in Worthing and had family in Cumbria. He then told us there were 5 main Post Roads in Elizabethan times, gradually filled in by Cross Posts. We saw a letter of 1791 from Penrith, with a rate of "2" deleted and "1" inserted. The first official Penny Post (PP) was of London, next being Manchester (1793), with the first official Rural PP in 1806. Roads in Cumbria were extremely poor, but there was a Post Road from Whitehaven in 1830 and 40 PP in Cumbria by 1840 (80 in Sussex). 1d was the charge from one Receiving House to the next, with nothing on the cover to show a charge was made. From 1812 - 1840, the General Post charge was 4d, charges being by the sheet. Graham told us that charges at this time were often very difficult to fathom, and nearly all of us agreed! We saw (among others) PP from Bowness, Preston, Fleetwood, Hawkshead, and Poulton where the PM cancelled everything here, including stampless,1d red, 1d black, 1d and 2d Mulready, with his own special mark.

Graham opened the second half by reminding us that PP were walk posts, some of the walks being extremely long. We saw PP from Battle (mail to Rye going via Lamberhurst), Littlehampton, Brighton (a number of letters), Chichester, Crawley (PP starting here and going to Lower Canada), Eastbourne (Seahouses and Southbourne PP), East Grinstead, Hartfield, Tunbridge Wells, Horam, Hastings, Burwash, Peasmarsh, Ticehurst, Winchelsea, Lewes to Ringmer (3 letters, not marked with figures but with the number of strokes), Shoreham, Findon, Portslade, Washington, Steyning, Henfield, Worthing, Goring and West Tarring. A lovely letter from Henfield to Norwich was prepaid 1d + 8d but found to have an enclosure, so marked 8d more to pay. Uckfield had the largest number of PP in the County (maybe the Country) with at least 9, including Receiving Houses at Retching, East Hoathly, Mayfield and Waldron. We were fortunate to see a vast amount of material, ranging from the scarce through to the very rare, which made Philip Kaye's mouth (and those of many others) water. Thank you, Graham.

jmw

10th May An extremely encouraging response to the Society's first One Page Competition, with 11 entries. Shirley Gordon won with Nigel Steer 2nd, the two each with 29 points but Shirley having more 1st-placed votes with her Olympic Full Circle, 1948-2012 (Nigel's page was Falkland Islands 1933). Evelyn Hutchins just shaded 3rd with Chinkiang Municipal Posts. The other entrants were Bill Hobbs (Croatia); Richard Tarrant (Coats of Arms in Perfins); Robin Beadle (GB 1991 Greetings); Graham Little (Grenada KGVI 2½d sheet); Martyn Fish (Methods of Mail Transportation); Geoff Gordon (Montserrat); Anne Fish (Orchids of Namibia); Jennie Little (Tristan 1961 Definitives). Details here are given in alphabetical order of subject.

A change of theme for the second half saw Graham Little Flaws and Errors. Bahrain (extra bar on 5/- opt); Ceylon (dot under inscription on 35c); Cyprus (extra medal on 1½p Coronation; flaw on 1½p Victory; flag on bow of launch of Victory); Leeward (flat top to "S"); Jamaica (necklace on Queen); Malta (damage to 2nd "A" of "Malta); New Zealand (broken ribbon; feather in hat flaw on Health; rudder flaw); Pakistan (types I and II - totally different!); Pitcairn (spot under lh side of crown); South Africa (black-eyed Princess; tower on hill; whiskers on face of King; white curl in Margaret's hair); Southern Rhodesia (line under saddle bag); Swaziland (barbed wire); Great Britain 1937 Coronation (very many); Victory (broken wing on 3d); 1948 Olympics (extra berry; crown flaw; hooked 3; boil in ear); Silver Wedding (extra pearl in earring); UPU (dot over "P" of "Postal"); Channel Islands (broken wheel on cart; bleeding mouth). And then a number of full sheets of GB and GB Regionals with enlargements of the varieties. Many of the varieties and flaws are catalogued, and are relatively easy to see, but others are not. A really huge display to have been produced at little notice - many thanks (yet again) to our President.

jmw

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17th May The Members' Evening was opened by Bill Hobbs who showed modern Germany miniature sheets 1959 - 2001, and he was followed by Mike Wyatt with Grenadines (trains), German States (Hamburg, Hannover) and Isle of Sark shipping. Next, Evelyn Hutchins with Hong Kong Commemoratives, 1941 onwards; Richard Tarrant with Germany 1990 -1994 re-unification; and Robin Beadle with G B - a selection of commemorative issues in sets and miniature sheets, Henry VIII, Royal Houses of Lancaster and York, and Ice Age animals.

In the 2nd half we had Ken Santer with India earlies, entires (5), 1848 Scind (forgeries), a selection of stamps to 1948 + covers with early airmails. Bill France showed G and I American, Helicopters, Harriers and Hercules (all of which went to the Falklands), and War of Independence US issues. Sarah Griffin rounded off the evening with Holland, early to 1946.

sfg17th June When Ian Crane, FRPSL came to us on a previous occasion, he showed us An Evening of British Rubbish, a singularly inappropriate title as the material was anything but. This time we were treated to 1840 - 1940, A Worldwide Centenary, and this one did exactly what it said on the tin. Very brave of Ian to come, by train and unaccompanied, all the way from North London with a heavy bag, as he has recently left hospital after a spell of over a year and we appreciated an excellent show which began with a cover of 6th May 1840 paid by cash, not with the 1d black. Much other material included the easy-to-find 1933 Congress labels in sheets of 12, 7 colours, one of each colour being put in a special envelope and sold @ 1/- - it is the envelopes here which are scarce - rare! Predictably we saw much 1940 GB, on cover and also in cylinder blocks where Ian had every possible block except one. Our President was most envious. There were also sheets of the 1940 labels, sold in aid of the Lord Mayor's Red Cross and St. John's Fund. Moving to the rest of the world, we saw Argentina, Brazil, British Guiana, Burma, Bulgaria, Canadian cancellations, Cuba (these sheets were unpopular and appeared optd for years after for different purposes), Paraguay, a Penny Black Centennial Dinner menu from Toronto, Canadian 1d black real photos sold @ 10c, 8 examples of the GB "Ideal Stamp" in various colours, and 5 extremely attractive German postcards.

In the second half we saw Denmark, France (really dreadful portrait of Rowland Hill), Germany, Italy, Jugoslavia, Hungary, Mexico (very good), Morocco Agencies, Tangier, Netherlands, Netherland East Indies, Portugal (m/s of 8, very well printed), Turkey, Sweden, Bohemia & Moravia, Estonia, El Salvador, Guatemala, Liberia, USA. How many of us realised that the Centenary was marked by so many countries? The USA went overboard, with a huge amount of material produced including menus, m/s and labels. Ian publicly thanked Brian Stalker for transport to and from the station; for feeding him with excellent fish and chips, and for assistance in putting up and taking down his sheets. Very many thanks, Ian, for a truly remarkable show, and the Society wishes you a rapid return to complete good health.

jmw

4th May Despite a higher than usual number of "apologies" (at least one from someone probably watching Ireland losing to Spain), a good attendance. Graham Little (GL) opened by saying that the Fair at the excellent Victoria Baptist Church Hall had been a great success, so much so that there would be another on 26th October 2013 (make a diary note now!). Our "Fair & Valuation Day" on 26th May was, however, poorly supported by our own members - if we want events of this type we must attend them or the dealers won't come. The Dinner, organised by Richard Robbins (RR), was excellent. GL concluded, after saying that we are an aging Society and need to recruit more members, by thanking Jennie Little (JL), RR and the other members of the Committee for their support during the year. Secretary JL reported a diverse range of topics this season, thanks to Brian Stalker (BS) and John Griffin (JG) There had been 6 Committee Meetings and 3 visits to other Societies, all of whom had written to say how much these had been enjoyed - we needed to expand our list of members prepared to go on these visits. Treasurer RR took us through the accounts, explaining that the rent (unchanged for a number of years) may go up next year - a suggestion was made that we look for an alternative venue but it was thought unlikely we would find one at anything like what

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we presently pay, for the present advantages, the only disadvantage being the stairs. The surplus was very similar to that for the previous year and the accounts were adopted. Geoffrey Gordon (GG), Packet Secretary, reported another busy and encouraging year with about 50 Packets circulating at any time - 75 had been closed and 70 started. The gross sales amounted to £10,911 with commission (net) of £778. All Packets were delivered by hand. The accounts were adopted. Shirley Gordon (SG) as Competitions Officer, reported 5 events held, with John Wright (JMW) winning both the Elizabethan and Traditional, Angela Reilly the Thematic, JL the Rous Cup, and SG the new, very successful 1-sheet. The Egg Cup had been extremely close, with David Hague 3rd with 8•82, Ken Santer 2nd with 8•84, and Lionel Jones winner with 8•89. Librarian BS said 31 members borrowed 202 books, only 12 not being catalogues. There are now 20 single-country catalogues in the library, which has now been thinned by the removal of a lot of old auction catalogues ("specials" will still be kept). He thanked JG for assistance in obtaining new catalogues, appealed for members to replace books in the correct place, and said that most stuck to the laid down borrowing limit. It was agreed that in future "Stamps of the World" would now be bought every other year and RR said this would result in an annual saving of about £200. Old catalogues are sold in our Auctions.

JG reported membership the same as last year at 122, with most members playing some part in the activities of the Society; as Programme Secretary he said he was still short of members to give displays; and as Auctioneer that income was down due to the St. Wilfrid's Auction. He further said about 70% of lots sold, with an average price about £4, and that we still needed material for Auctions. Delegate to ASPS (GL) reported 2 meetings; that there would be no ASPS Auction this year as nobody to run it; and that ASPS now has an excellent website www.sussexphilately.org.uk and an email address of sussexphiiately@live.co.uk. Murray Figgins (MF) said there had been little take-up of the new leaflets - personal approach better. There is a greater need for publicity in the local press, but difficult to get co-operation. It was agreed to try to get the press to announce in advance our forthcoming speakers. Archivist LJ emphasised the need for all records to be sent to him so that they may be kept in a central place. The Wren Cup, awarded at the President's discretion, went to Martyn, Anne and Lindsey Fish for their work in many different ways for the Society during the year (believed to be the first time the award has not been made to a single person).

(Back) - Richard Tarrant (Vice President)(Front) - Richard Robbins (Treasurer) Graham Little (President) Jennie Little (Secretary)

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Elections and appointments President - GL; Vice President - Richard Tarrant; Secretary - JL; Treasurer - RR; Packet Secretary - GG; Committee - Brian Dancer, SG, Sarah Griffin, David Shanks, Bill France (BF). Auctioneer, Membership Secretary, Programme Secretary - JG; P.R.O. - JL; Competitions Officer - SG; Librarian - MF, Archivist - LJ; Delegate to ASPS - GL; Lighthouse Editor - JMW; Internal Examiner - Mike Farrant.

BF congratulated the Officers and Committee on a very successful season, which statement was applauded by the meeting. The meeting then closed at 9:29 p.m.

jmw

21st June The Members' Evening 15 Favourite Pages was opened by Sarah Griffin who showed Aden, Aegean Islands, Afghanistan (early used); then Richard Tarrant had Czechoslovakia illustrating engravings, etc.; and Evelyn Hutchins with Malaya and Malaysia. These were followed by Shirley Gordon with covers of personal interest and then Jennie Little who had Seychelles and New Zealand (countries with wildlife interest) and Pitcairn Islands.

The second half opened with Sarah Griffin (again) with Afghanistan to Alwar (on 68 sheets) and the show was concluded by Graham Little Aden, Cyprus, Sudan, Dominica (sets he liked), Switzerland, Egypt. Alderney, Bohemia & Moravia, and finally Austria. Thank you, all.

sfg

28th June The first part of the evening was The Nancy Gee competition, our 16-sheet "Open" which received only two entries (but both really good and deserving to win). Secretary Jennie Little, with 16 votes, did with her New Zealand Greenpeace attracting 16 votes and just pipping Angela Reilly and London Landmarks which had 13.

"Exuberant" was the excellent description used by a member about the Fictional Detectives, second half "Egg Cup" display by Steve Cross, for whom perforations, paper and gum are a "turn-off". I, for one, had not realised how many detectives or their authors had appeared on stamps. Sherlock Holmes leads the way with his 4 long and 36 other stories (Conan Doyle had "killed" Holmes as he was getting fed up with him, but the public made him reappear!). Holmes eventually retired to keep bees in East Dean (and there is a plaque). The first to show Holmes with a pipe on stage was William Gilbert. The American detectives Sam Spade, Phillip Marlowe, and The Thin Man got a mention, as too did the 2nd World War twins Thompson & Thomson, who were not twins, Dick Tracey, Maigret, Father Brown, Lord Peter Wimsey, Roderick Alleyn, Clouseau (of Pink Panther fame), Kurt Wallender and many others. Also, Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple (a G.B. stamp booklet for her!). Many countries have issued stamps featuring detectives, most notable being Nicaragua and Dominica. A fascinating and most unusual show - thank you, Steve.

jmw

5th July Pig In The Post (the 118th showing of this display by Colin Mount, FRPSL, FBSAP) sounded as if it might have been unusual, and if anyone came expecting to see a lot of stamps with Pigs on, they would have been disappointed. But those who came, intrigued by the title, would have been thoroughly entertained by the show - Colin had 44 years in the Pig industry and knew the business (and his subject) from ring in the nose (to prevent grubbing-up of young shoots) to tip of the curly tail. The Pig is a symbol of wealth, and in the Chinese Year of The Pig children are given money. Wild in early years, the Pig slowly became domesticated and the story goes that a farmer, whose house burned down, had a Pig inside which sadly did not survive - the dead animal was picked up, the farmer licked his hands, and roast Pig resulted. (Colin then said that it took the farmer 6 years to realise it was necessary to burn down his house to produce the desired effect, but this might have been "porkies"). A Pig bagpipe-playing gargoyle is high up on Melrose Abbey; Pigs are used to snuff out truffles (and some liners use them to sniff out drugs; farmers used "the gentleman who pays the rent" to borrow money when on hard times in September, repaying when the animal was slaughtered in December; "Notgeld" paper money with a picture of a Pig was used in many German villages shortly after WWI; we saw two proofs of cheques printed by Perkins Bacon (ouch!); a 1d red

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was shown on cover with another 1d cut into the shape of a Pig in top corner; the Monks of Dunmow Abbey

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presented a flitch (side of bacon) to a married couple who claimed that in the last year and a day there had been no marital argument (Brewer says 8 successful claimants between 1244 and 1772!); pencil drawing by Patrick Oxenham of the Tamworth Pig which featured in the GB "Cattle" set.

GB issued booklets with Pigs on; the Cumberland sausage is longer than any other as it was hung horizontally to smoke rather than vertically to keep it out of reach of dogs; we saw Swine Duty stamps from Queensland; Wiltshire is the biggest county for bacon; saw various pictures of the Harris family at Calne (huge producers); Pig Fairs and Shows; the Pig in Art; a number of cards featuring the animal; one of the Boer (now, Colin, that really was cheating); a card with unflattering portrait of Hitler; and a superb Dutch sheet showing 4 pictures of a Pig which, when carefully, folded, showed Hitler; a sheetlet from Lesotho with red hot pokers on (the spelling giving red hot porkers). Stamps, meter marks, postcards, general ephemera, anecdotes, often dreadful puns, all on view in a totally unique evening - if you saw this one, you will remember it, and if you didn't you missed a treat. Many thanks, Colin, and hope you had a safe journey back to Ringwood.

jmw* * * * * * * * *

. . . . AND PREVIEWAugust 2 - (1) Switzerland - Frank Parsons

(2) Revenus & Mourning Covers - Mrs. Pam ParsonsAugust 8 - South Downs Postcard Club - Inland Eastbourne - Dawn JohnsonAugust 9 - Used - MembersAugust 12 - Uckfield Stamp Fair - Ridgewood Village Hall, New Rd, Ridgewood Village, 10-4August 16 - Hungary - Mike Clark - EGG CUPAugust 23 - Silent Displays - MembersAugust 30 - Morth, south, east and west - MembersSeptember 6 - Tristan da Cunha from 1811 Laurie Holland - Egg CupSeptember 12 - South Downs Postcard Club - Diamond Jubilee - MembersSeptember 13 - Aspects of swiss Philately - Fred Hoadley, Egg CupSeptember 20 - Informal Evening and Auction ViewingSeptember 27 - AUCTIONSeptember 30 - Closing date for receipt of entries for A.S.P.S. Competition (see Jennie

Little for details and entry forms)October 4 - 1940 - A Thematic Presentatiom - Jim Etherington - Egg CupOctober 10 - South Downs Postcard Club - Flight of Fancy - Mike WyattOctober 11 - Painting the Town Red - Angela Reilly - Egg Cup

October 13 - SOUTH OF ENGLAND STAMP AND POSTCARD FAIR AND SUSSEX CONVENTION - SOUTH OF ENGLAND SHOWGROUND - ARDINGLY - 10a.m. - 4:30 p.m.

October 18 - Chile - John BushellOctober 25 - (1) - Classic Cup

(2) - South of the Border - Peter Burridge - Egg Cup(3) Closing Date for Receipt of lots for 22nd November Auction

November 1 - J, K, L - Members* * * * * * * * *

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Inside the red phone box graveyard(Adapted from an article by Sarah Rainey in The Daily Telegraph)

Near Newark, Notts, inside a draughty warehouse, the floor littered with broken glass, scraps of metal and chipped red paint, stand rows of decommissioned BT telephone boxes. Run by payphone specialists X2 Connect are more than 150 boxes, damaged beyond repair -over 150 of them, from a rare 85-year-old to state-of-the-art three-cornered machines. A flurry of workers are welding and hammering piles of scrap metal and wood to transform them into shiny kiosks ready to go back on the street. Since BT announced it would sell off 60 of its classic red boxes, X2 has been busier than ever, private buyers having the first chance in 25 years to own a K6 box, designed by architect Sir Giles Gilbert Scott (who was also responsible for rebuilding the Houses of Parliament after WWII) for the Silver Jubilee of King George V. Over 600 people have made contact for boxes (starting price £1,950) with 30 already allocated and 500 are on the waiting list for the next batch. Earlier this year, BT announced plans to splash "Post Office Red" paint on 400 boxes in London and Weymouth ahead of the Olympic Games, as well as restoring 1,300 of its modem grey boxes in preparation for the flood of tourists. Usually repainted every 10 years, the boxes are to be refurbished continuously until the end of the Paralympics in September - a busy few months for BT's contractors. The red K6 is considered as much a part of Britain as a post box or Big Ben.

8 employees work at Newark on the boxes which can be saved (many can't and are scrapped), the first stage being to remove the doors and all the internal fittings. When all the glass is chipped out of the windows, the boxes are sent to a neighbouring farm to be shot-blasted and repainted. Strangely, Sir Giles didn't choose red, wanting silver outside with blue and green inside , and dove-grey in rural areas.

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