Monthly Blog

Our monthly blog is a news diary taken from topics on our Mapperley People Facebook Page. It is a summary of what has been happening in Mapperley. Enjoy.

March 2024

4th March

A supporter sent this image of Calverton Colliery before sunrise. The photograph was taken in the winter of its closure in 1993.

Calverton was the first colliery to be opened by the National Coal Board in 1952. Whilst a housing estate was built for the mine-workers, many took out mortgages in the 1960s and lived in the area around Mapperley.

More information on our mining history can be found at:

#calvertoncolliery #calverton #miningheritage #mininghistory #coalmining 

Calverton Colliery

6th March

Mapperley People was pleased to announce that “Nissi’s American Diner is up and running”

What a great addition to Mapperley Top. Here’s Beckie and the team ready to welcome you.

Nissi’s is on the Mapperley Precinct in the specially designed unit that was occupied by an Italian cafe Holy Cannoli until the pandemic. It was been out of use for a couple of years.

 #burgers #pancakes #salads #americandinerstyle #americandiner #mapperleytop @nissisamericandiner

9th March

We offered our congratulations to Becky and Ellie Downie who both received their MBEs this week. Raised in Mapperley, the sisters were recognised for their services to the sport of gymnastics. They received their honours at Windsor Castle.

Picture credit: 📸: Becky Downie MBE

Our article about them here: Mapperley’s World Famous Gymnasts

15th March

In our interest in promoting the various country walks and footpaths in the area, we shared this image taken from the path off Georges Lane leading through Fox Wood and towards Calverton. The view shows Mapperley Plains on the horizon, looking over Woodborough Park Farm.

22nd March

After lots of interest in the abandoned house on Spring Lane, we produced this article with what we know about it and who lived there. 332 Spring Lane

February 2024

Viewers of the popular television series Dragons Den will have seen Mapperley’s Issac Tambini seeking an investor for his company Pola Ice-Pops which operates in Sherwood. Isaac comes from a generation of Nottingham based Italian ice cream makers, the Tambini and Conti families.

‘We have reinvented the childhood treat the ‘ice pole’ or ‘ice pop’ through sourcing the highest quality ingredients, working with local farms and adding no nasty stuff to our products,’ said Isaac.

Since starting Pola Poles he has managed to scoop eight Great Taste Awards, including two stars for the Wild Elderflower and Mango and Lime flavours.

We were happy to share that Gedling Memorial Hall is celebrating its 100th anniversary on the weekend of 27th July. The hall was built in memory of the 54 men from Gedling killed during the Great War.The foundation stone was laid on 26th July 1924 by the Duke of Portland (Masonic Provincial Grand Master) and the hall was opened on 30th April 1925 by Lord Manvers.

Details were taken from the Imperial War Museum website

The organisers of the anniversary event are asking if anyone has photos, memories or anything they could use to put together a display, then contact: ellie.wilson2559@gmail.com

On the 12th February we posted a photograph of another old garden gate. This was part of a series of images taken in the area, mainly of gates with character.

This one attracted a lot of attention, in fact 60 thousand views.

Thanks to everyone’s contributions yesterday (especially Danielle for the drone image) we have written up an article about Mapperley’s Old Police Station.

On 23rd February, local artist Samantha Jacklin told us about a natural mandala she had created in Woodthorpe Park.

25 thousand views (and many complimentary comments) caused us to take a more close up photo to show more detail of how she created it.

Samantha told us:

I am in awe of how many of you are reacting and commenting on this. Thank you all so much ❤ I love doing these and how many people are curious by what I create, so if you spot me around the park; looking slightly feral and gathering sticks- do come over and say Hi and please don’t worry about children or companion animals coming along and altering a mandala. The joy is always in making them, and I never see alterations as a destruction, they are a perfect example of how each one evolves over time, be it by hands, paws, wind or rain- its all good ✌️ 😊

January 2024

January seemed a quiet month in a lot of ways. It always seems like a long month and money can be tight for most of us, meaning the bars, shops and restaurants always seem quiet. Many people choose to get away for some winter sun.

It took until 8th January for our first post of interest and it came from a teacher at Carlton Digby School who asked:

Does anyone have any old postcards (preferably written with an address and stamp) that I could use for a school project please? Even if it’s just a few to show as examples, I don’t need hundreds! Thank you so much in advance.

Here are a selection of the responses:

I have one from 1995 that a friend sent from Peru, but I would need it back please

There are loads in Hopkinson Antiques shop in town. There’s a whole section on the second floor. They are awesome.

It’s quite old fashioned isn’t it? Can’t imagine many children are familiar with postcards. When I was at school we sent them to school friends when we went on holiday.

The teacher got a selection of postcards to show her pupils how we used to keep in touch with friends and family. One of our followers supplied them with postcards from the 1940s which the pupils found very interesting.

One of the pupils named Tyler, even took the time to send a thank-you message, by postcard obviously.

On 14th January there was a community hedge planting event organised by the Friends of Breckhill Park🌳This park was created around 1980 after a section of the old clay quarry between Breck Hill Road and Woodthorpe Drive was filled in, levelled and grassed over creating a public park.

On 15th January, an eagle eyed resident spotted an unusual sight in the clear blue skies above Mapperley. The vapour trail or three jets flying completely in line, with the middle one slightly ahead of the others. Then one of them broke out of formation and veered away from the others.

Thanks to Peter James for the first photo of the planes (in line) above Mapperley and the editor for the second, showing one breaking off.

We posted:  

Did anyone else see these three aircraft flying in formation over Mapperley this afternoon?

Apparently they were RAF Typhoons flying back to RAF Coningsby in Lincolnshire. The post had over 80k views and hundreds of comments, including sightings from other parts of the country. Here’s a few helpful pieces of information 

Chris Booth told us:

There was 15 flights yesterday on various training exercises in different parts of UK, couple in Wales and few down south.

Sue Owen-Bailey had this information:

Cobra 11, 12 and 13 on their way back from the Mach loop after some low level training to Coningsby. Formation was a three ship until one decided to break off and do some acrobatics. Cobra 13 is last years’ display jet, Blackjack

Beki Barratt added:

Flightradar said they were Warlord 61, 62 and 63 Euro-fighter Typhoons, flying at 40,000 ft and one of them at 745 mph!

Nick Shearstone described his experience to us:

As soon as they cleared the City and were over Holme Pierrepont, they decided to have a play. The Flightleader (A Flight Instructor no doubt of No 29 Squadron OCU) just put his aircraft into a spiraling drive and his wing-man had to chase him down. It was right above my head at the time. Awesome and totally unexpected especially on ‘The Litchfield Corridor’ a straight military transit flight-path. One of The Typhoons was The Display Jet ‘Blackjack’, its Union Jack undercarriage catching the sunlight… Jesus I don’t think I’d wanna be on board that diving straight down from over 40,000ft…😮 Must have informed Air Traffic Control at East Mids they were gonna have a ‘Play’ on the way back to Coningsby…

After all this excitement, the rest of the month went back to being quiet.

DECEMBER 2023 – A Month Of Wild Weather

On the morning of the 3rd of December, we woke to a snow covered Mapperley.

On the 5th December, we were saddened to hear that one of Santa’s Elves had been injured in a road traffic collision on Porchester Road. The man had been helping the Gedling Round Table charity, as they brought their Santa through the area, bringing cheer to local families and raising funds for charity. 

The man suffered many broken bones and needed surgery. We hope that he make a full recovery and that the enthusiasm to continue this tradition will not be affected next year.

Mapperley Sunset

On 17th December, Rob Wilson sent us this superb 360° image of the sunset over Mapperley. 🌇

The 21st there was another storm, this one named Storm Pia brought problems all over the country. Mapperley was also affected.

Rainbow Clouds 

We were sent several images of the unusual cloud formation that appeared all over the region. Thanks to Rob Wilson for this image of yesterday’s Rainbow Cloud taken from Mapperley Plains.

This rare but natural phenomena is an iridescent cloud. Similar to a rainbow, the bright colours appear as sunlight is diffracted through tiny water droplets and ice crystals within a cloud.

rainbowcloud #skyphotography #mapperleynottingham

On the 23rd December we asked our community to help identify this snake that was found deceased at the top of Catfoot Lane. 

The responses were varied:

This is so sad. People dumping their pets when they can’t be bothered to look after them anymore. Absolutely sickening abuse of animals.

Looks like it was a royal python 😞

It’s a python. I think likely been dumped

Shouldn’t be in this country in the first place. But it should have been secure once it was.

Christmas Day

We posted this little rhyme after an image of Del Boy (from the comedy show Only Fools And Horses) appeared on Mapperley Top on Christmas morning:

Has Banksy bitten off more than he could chew By defacing the window at Mapperley’s Mange Tout?

Del Boy had made his surprise appearance on a boarded up window of the former Mange Tout restaurant on Woodborough Road. Mange Tout of course was one of Del Boy’s many french phrases that he incorrectly used in conversation.

This prompted renewed interest in these disused business premises (a rare sight on Mapperley Top), with people asking what was being done to bring the premises back into use. The restaurant has been closed for about 30 years.

Plains Squash Club – Keeping The Memory Alive.

Many thanks to John Smith for this aerial photograph of the Plains Squash Club which was demolished in 2005.

John came forward after we posted an article about the Plains Squash Club that included our surprise that there were no photographs of it online. Until now that is.

November 2023

Relics of Old St Ann’s

BBC East Midlands interviewed Mapperley’s modern and accessible farmer after Storm Babet had exposed some landscaping methods from the 1960s. John Jones at Woodborough Park Farm spoke about the floods and the land that was washed away, revealing thousands of bricks underneath. These were placed there in the late 1960s as Nottingham’s Victoria Railway Station and the old terraced housing of St Anns were demolished and redeveloped.

We asked John at Woodborough Park Farm about this interesting piece of history. The location is off Georges Lane but NOT accessible to the public.

Apparently in the 1960s there used to be a very large gulley / valley that went between two fields. All the fields were in permanent grass at the time, and ‘leveling them’ made it possible for them to be used for arable crop production. The rubble from the demolition of the old St Anns and the Victoria Station allowed for the leveling, with soil placed on top. Apparently it took about 18 months before the infill was completed.

The Parrots Arrive In Mapperley. 

It’s fair to say that the UK’s only naturalised parrot, the ring-necked parakeet, have established themselves in Mapperley. We knew that these birds had been seen in Wollaton Park and Woodthorpe Park, but in early November several messages came in with sightings in the Porchester Gardens area. Initially on Pilkington Road and then moving along to Hickling Road.

Final Farewell To Raleigh Cycles

On the week that Nottingham said its final farewell to Raleigh Cycles, this 1966 Raleigh Runabout is a regular visitor to Mapperley Top.

1980s Nostalgia

A reader sent us this photo of Mapperley Top in the 1980s. For those that weren’t around then, they soon learnt that Sharpe’s Vauxhall Garage is now Sainsburys and Baileys Food Market grocers shop is now Icon Barbers. 

Apparently there used to be Roy and Patricia’s Bed and Breakfast along this stretch of Plains Road. Does anyone remember it?

July 2023

Mapperley Says Farewell To Langdale Lightweights

What happened to Langdale Lightweights? 

Emily Green replied:

Hello… Thankyou for asking. We could no longer continue due to online sales being more popular and due to the pandemic. Our business model just couldn’t adapt to the changing times. Thank-you to everyone who supported our family business and my husband since 1977. X

TSB Bank Building.

End Of An Era At Woodthorpe Park

June 2023

Remembering The Tragedy At Sandford Road.

Here’s the sad reminder of why the house was demolished. Remembering the Leighton family 31 years on. 

https://www.mapperleypeople.co.uk/deaths-on-sandford…/

Rare Visitor

Wow! 🦗

Stuart Green responded:

I’m a very rare species … a grasshopper expert(!). 👀👍It’s an almost adult Field Grasshopper (Chorthippus brunneus), but in the quite rare pink colour form. Because they are so brightly coloured, their chances of survival are lower. But one more moult and she’ll be an adult, and will then turn a red wine colour and be less conspicuous.

A New Building on Woodthorpe Drive

Fire Safety Message

There was a simple message after a fire destroyed a house on The Crescent in Woodthorpe.

🔥👨‍🚒🚒🧯👩‍🚒Fit and maintain smoke alarms and don’t leave electrical items on unnecessarily.

A fire service investigation has found the blaze was caused by the failure of a lithium-ion battery within a laptop left on charge overnight. Smoke alarms sounded meaning that the family of four had a chance to escape without injury.

January 2023

January 2023 was, like the weather, a mixed month. 

Despite a quiet month for businesses and with those that can having taken a holiday somewhere, the Mapperley People Facebook page kept on top of the issues in the area.

Car Key Burglars made a return to the area. A BMW in Woodthorpe was unsuccessfully targeted at 3am in the morning. The responses clearly helped as some other residents had seen activity near their cars. We reassured people as best we could that these criminal move to new areas and hopefully our area has seen the back of them. That said we reminded people on how to protect a keyless-entry car. Put your keys in a blocking pouch, turn off keyless entry on your fob. Using a steering wheel lock or alarm.

In the sporting world, Gedling boxer Leigh Wood announced that he will defend his World Title in February at the Motorpoint Arena Nottingham. It should be a great night and a sell out crowd too.

Mapperley All Stars football coaching also introduced an option for those of us who are over 40, with a weekly Walking Football at Burton Joyce. 

Gymnast Ellie Downie announced her ‘retirement’ from competitive gymnasts at the age of 23. A lot has happened since we published an article about them in 2018, including the tragic and sudden death of their brother Josh. Ellie’s decision is based on the pressures of elite level gymnastics and decided her overall health was more important.

Good luck for the future Ellie.

Well done to Laura, a local resident who has seen the need for a support group for Motherless Mums. This will help local mothers’ whose own mother’s are not around to support them for whatever reason. 

Our post managed to identify many young mothers who seem keen to join the group.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/1225002528050548/?ref=share_group_link

More positive connections were made when we posted about a former Mapperley resident trying to be re-connected with an old family friend. Like all these kinds of posts, we respect people’s wishes to not have their name publicly shared, so the post was deleted when it had achieved its objective.

Followers of Mapperley People will know Our Instagram page is used primarily for photographic images of the area. Some of these are old photographs which always prove popular.

This image of Oakdale Road from 1960 was a highlight, getting 60,000 views.

The Rio Cinema opened in 1939, lasting only 20 years. When The Rio closed in 1959, the final film shown was Norman Wisdom in “The Square Peg! It has been a bingo club and a snooker club. The Oak Dale pub opened in 1941 when the landlord was Harold Raines. It closed in 2009 and is now a Tesco Express. 

Finally, the awful condition of our road surfaces continues to be a real concern.  

We posted the official response about Westdale Lane after a request from a resident.

The location you have raised concerns with does not currently feature in our resurfacing programme. However, please be assured we have a very dedicated team of Highway Inspectors who carry out regular inspections in the area. Should conditions deteriorate, we will then arrange for works to take place and ensure that the road is kept in a safe condition.

It’s a wonder the poor bus drivers have any teeth left in their heads traveling up and down Westdale Lane so often, it’s dreadful.

December 2022

All in all a positive month in the Mapperley community. Lots of support for each other and helping to keep costs down in what are uncertain times. The energy price rises have clearly made people change their behaviour and look to reduce those bills.

We posted about ‘a homeless guy outside Sainsbury’s at Mapperley Shops on Friday night. Does anyone know if he has any support/shelter?’ There were many comments suggesting what to do,  including the charities that can offer support.

The Friends of Beck Hill Park told us:

Wow, wow, wow! What a day! Thank you to our amazing group of volunteers. We got the hedge planted, the orchard re-mulched and some native bulbs planted too. A huge thank you to Cllr. Michelle Welsh who funded the project and to Greenwood Community Forum for their direction on the day. Good work team Breck Hill!!!!! Gedling Borough Council Nottinghamshire County Council

Let’s hope that the recently formed  Friends of Valley Road Playing Grounds are able to get similar support next year.

Another resident shared this:

Please could you post a thank you to the lovely band of litter-pickers I see walking along Digby Avenue. When I’m working and look up from my laptop to see this happy industrious procession (who may be from Carlton Digby School?) go by, it always makes me smile. You are doing a fab job keeping our neighbourhood tidy. Thank you x

Rudolph of Mapperley returned again. The huge inflatable reindeer on Westdale Lane has become the official reminder that Christmas is near.

Yes it did, with a further 9800 views.

We asked: What is your favourite local walk (without driving to a start point)? 🚶‍♂️🚶‍♀️

There were many responses that mentioned Lambley and in particular Lambley Dumbles. This reply though shows that we still have a long way to go, to make walking more accessible.

It’s a good point and let’s hope that the petition to Nottinghamshire County Council (about the lack of a footpath near Mellish Rugby Club) gets a positive result next year.

There was a real cold spell at Christmas, with freezing temperatures. This was born out by people asking for loans of portable heaters and recommendations where to get thermal clothing locally. Thanks to the local councils and churches for offering warm spaces for people to visit during the day. We were grateful that St Judes and St James for being part of this.  

Whenever people ask us to help promote charity collections, Mapperley people always step up with donations. On one occasion, we received this message of thanks:

Hi all. Wanted to say a massive thank you to everyone in this group for donating and collecting toys and presents for our Christmas Present morning at our Sneinton Primary school. 500+ presents were donated and every single one found a loving home today. Honestly so humbled and thankful for the kindness of so many of you!

Someone asked:

Anyone know where Langdale Cycles have moved to? 🚲

The answer is still not completely clear but it seems that the cycle shop and workshop on Westdale lane may have moved premises. If so then we wish them well in the future. Langdale Lightweights have been a feature in Mapperley since 1977.

It was great to see our wonderful Kanneh-Mason family on BBC1 with their Christmas Special. This talented family from Mapperley Park seem to go from strength to strength.

Someone asked:

I found bread pieces inside the bonnet of my car. Does anyone experience the same?

It was clear that even wild animals were seeking out new places to keep warm.

The year ended with the heartwarming story about the search for Simon, a pet ferret that went missing in Gedling Country Park.

Hi. Could you please update the post to say Simon (the ferret) has been found and happily reunited with Magda today. He ventured off on to one of the farms on the other side of Spring Lane and was captured on CCTV. Magda would like to thank all the lovely people who expressed interest and provided support.

September 2022

Pheasants and Funerals

September 2022 was a month of mixed emotions in Mapperley.

It started with celebrating our new community moving into at Alexandra Place on Mapperley Plains.

https://www.mapperleypeople.co.uk/help-to-buy-success-for-…/

We were then treated to some photographs from a Mapperley resident who discovered a Golden Pheasant in their back garden. After some publicity the owner (who lived nearby) told us all not to worry as his Golden Pheasant knows his way back home and never leaves his partner for long.

The Tour of Britain cycle race came through the area on Thursday 8^th 🚲 There were road closures from around midday in Lambley, Gedling, Mapperley Plains, Woodborough and Calverton.

Within a few hours of the cyclists passing, the country was put into mourning as news came through that the Queen had died. Like all deaths of people in old age, we may plan for when the day comes but that does not make the moment less sad.

There were many photographs and memories shared of when the Queen had visited the area over the 70 years of her reign.

Her funeral would be 11 days later and this meant that many events were cancelled to allow for a period of reflection. St Judes and St James Churches opened their doors for prayers or quiet reflection.

Holi Cannoli, the popular coffee shop on the precinct announced that it was closing for good on 24^th September and many of us expressed our best wishes to the staff.

On a positive note, a ‘Friends’ group has formed to improve the Valley Road Recreation Ground in Carlton. The importance of this park was emphasised when we were contacted by Angela Grant who shared some memories if from the 1950s. Angie was born in Mapperley and went to Carlton Cavendish School. At the age of fifteen she moved to Newmarket in Suffolk to be a stable-girl working with horses. She had fond memories of Valley Road ‘Rec’

https://www.mapperleypeople.co.uk/memories-of-post-war-map…/

The funeral of the Queen took place on Monday 19^th which was a Bank Holiday.

Rosie in Mapperley shared a photograph of her son, Luke Taylor of the Royal Welsh Fusiliers. He was born and raised in Mapperley and one of only twenty-five Royal Welsh Fusiliers picked to walk in the funeral procession. Well done Luke. A proud moment for the family.

On top of all this, there were lots of lost dog, cats and children’s toys reunited with their owners.

AUGUST 2022

Golfers, Bakers, Podcasters, Tour Guides

Despite it being the holiday season and the weather being so good, our Facebook page reached 310k people. Fantastic figures for a community page representing just three postcode areas.

It was also a busy month, despite many people taking a well-earned and long planned holiday.

We started by sharing a case from a Nottinghamshire based true-crime podcast. It featured a historic case that occurred near Ravenshead in 1817. Bessie Sheppard lived a hard life in perilous times. That life was snatched from her after 17 years, by a vagrant ex-soldier called Charles Rotherham. Psycho-Killer.co told the story. Check them out.

Then came another local history story, thanks to Gedling resident Angie Miles. She reminded us of a book published in 2002 about the old St Ann’s area. Inner-City Voices was a compilation of memories written by people who lived and worked in St Ann’s before the demolition of the homes in the 1970s. Angie Miles (nee Cundy) wrote about her memories in an exclusive feature for Mapperley People.

Pets always feature and missing animals are always a concern for their devoted owners. Most animals are reunited but there were two sad cases this month. One cat was found deceased in the owners garden off Spring Lane. We then learned that a missing cat named Kiki was also found deceased on the road near to the new Alexandra Place development on Mapperley Plains.

On a happier note, our dog search and rescue charity Drone to Home got involved with Lola who was missing from the Breck Hill Road area. Lola was soon found and back home.

Despite the heatwave and the drought conditions, there was a question asked about local firewood suppliers. We are all preparing for the winter and the risk of many of us ending up in ‘Fuel Poverty’, due to the crisis over the price cap being lifted.

The City Council produced a high quality video that featured the health benefits of cycling, and they chose Mapperley as the location to film it. Sure the hills are a challenge, but the views make it worth the effort.

On the subject of health and getting outdoors, Mapperley Golf Club held their ‘Women on Par’ event. This was a fun and social way for women to gain confidence on the golf course.

Local tour guide Martin Kerry treated a group of people to a tour of the Commonwealth War Graves in Carlton Cemetery. He told us about the remarkable men and women who faced extraordinary times during the world wars and gave their lives for their communities.

It was National Allotments Week and as usual the historic St Ann’s Allotments ran a series of events.

We were contacted by Kate Holmes (nee Melbourne) who sent us a photograph from 1967 taken in the back garden of her home at 33 Plains Road, Mapperley. The garden is now part of Bonington Road car park! Kate told us that 33 Plains Road operated as Barclays Bank from 1956 to 1963. Kate’s father worked for Barclays. The bank moved to what had been the Co-Op on the corner of Gretton Road and the Co-Op moved to where the Tea Rooms were, where it is now! 33 Plains Road is now Charles Lea Opticians.

It may be the summer holidays but Studio 3 Mapperley Dance and Fitness Centre were busy. They took a group of their young dancers to perform in Paris and then returned for a performance at the Valley Road Play Ground Summer Fair on Valley Road in Carlton.

The war in Ukraine was still in our minds and we reminded readers of the Facebook group CityHubUkraine. They have a donation point nearby at the City Hospital Minster Building

Two more artisan bakers have set up in Mapperley. Pose’s Pantry and Coosh Micro Bakery are now established and we wish them every success, providing us with high quality and freshly baked bread and cakes.

We were pleased to say that the replacement parts for the Community Defibrillator were installed, despite a nationwide supply issue. Thanks to the following businesses for making this happen.

The Heath Food Shop – Holy Cannoli – Ladbrokes – Tipsy T – Plains Fish Bar – Card Gallery – Job Lot Trophies – The Old Flower Shop – The Fruit Bowl

There was good news for the residents on Digby Avenue after a petition regarding road safety. The County Council have agreed in principle to install a crossing.

Now that households are settled in at the Alexandra Place development on Mapperley Plains, we have asked the County Council for an update on the petition to create and maintain a footpath from Mellish RUFC. Our MP Tom Randall is also aware and we have also asked GBC to consider using money from the Community Infrastructure Levy (raised from the Davidson Homes development at Alexandra Place). The obvious point is that some of the money raised would fit perfectly with the improved infrastructure that our petition is asking for.

We get another chance to show our support for our WBA World Featherweight Champion, Leigh Wood. He will defend his title at the Motorpoint Arena on 24th September.

Thanks for reading

MARCH 2022

War In Ukraine And Farewell To Peter Bowles And Elias ‘Jack’ Nuqul

The Russian invasion of Ukraine dominated things. There were a number of collections and appeals that sprung in to action, as the horrors of war in Europe became all too clear.

Haywood Road Community Centre became a drop-off point for a collection organised at the Queens Medical Centre. The following items were requested: First-aid items, blankets, confectionery, dry food, toiletries and children’s toys.

Victoria, a local resident set up a shoe-box type collection for the children that had fled Ukraine. This was entitled Parcels for Hope, and was featured in a local BBC News report.

Mapperley was also the first area in the East Midlands to take in a family from Ukraine. Colin and Anzhelika Booth who have businesses in Mapperley, welcomed relatives who had fled the country.

On 9^th March Mapperley said farewell to popular shopkeeper Elias Nuqul. Elias passed away after a short illness, at the age of 55. Elias was the proprietor of Jack’s Discount Store on Mapperley Top. He had previously managed a local public house. The family held a wake for him at The Grey Friars Club on Gordon Road.

We also learnt of another Mapperley man who had sadly died. The actor Peter Bowles was famous for his roles in a number of situation comedy shows.  Local historian Brian Binns told us about Peter’s Mapperley roots.

‘Sad to hear of the death of actor Peter Bowles, most famous for his role in the TV comedy series To the Manor Born. Peter’s family moved to Nottingham when he was six years old. He attended Mapperley Plains School and then High Pavement Grammar School, where he was introduced to literature and drama by English master Stanley Middleton (our Booker Prize winning novelist). Although 7 years before my time at High Pavement, I know from “The High Pavement Society” that he was very proud of his Nottingham education.’

Mapperley Says Farewell To Actor Peter Bowles

On the 21^st March, the Gedling Access Road was finally opened. This road has always divided opinion. Whilst it alleviates the traffic through Gedling Village, it also opens up the land for more housing developments to be created. What didn’t divide opinion was the official name of the new road. Colliery Way was chosen in recognition of Gedling Colliery that closed in 1999.

A resident writes:

After a few years in the making, the new Gedling Access Road was open to pedestrians today. First time we’ve seen the water works and there’s a new bat house to look out for. A huge thank you to Mick and to Emma who gave us a run around in the Rosie May Foundation TukTuk.

February 2022

February was eventful for a number of reasons. We have trawled through the posts on Mapperley People’s Facebook Page. The posts reached over 140,000 people and one of them was a BBC news reporter who picked up on the story of our ‘Good Samaritan’. See our article which explains how someone returned to their car to find a penalty notice together with a £20 note!

The end of the month was all about the end of COVID19 restrictions, and sadly, the outbreak of war in Europe. This followed a series of storms that caused major problems, including fallen trees on Mapperley Plains, Lees Road and Woodthorpe Park. 

The month started with the recurring issues of potholes and fly tipping. I suppose the fact that we are still concerned about it and keep reporting problems, means we still care about it.

On a celebrity front, we were pleased to report that Mapperley’s Masterchef Laurence Henry will be opening his long awaited restaurant in the spring. This will be at The Island Quarter development off London Road in the city centre.

Then we had a flying visit from TV presenters Kirstie and Phil. They have a program called Location Location and were filming at Gedling Country Park. They also stopped off on Mapperley Top for some essentials.

We also managed to solve the mystery of Richard Beckinsale’s connections to the area. This never forgotten comedy actor did have links to Carlton after all.

On the crime front, it was still cycles that seem to be the thief’s item of choice, Boardman cycles in particular. We managed to find a good news story from it. One follower told us about her grandson having his cycle stolen and within a few hours of reporting it, someone kindly gifted him a replacement.

Finally, the traffic problems around Mapperley Plains continue to frustrate us all. Much of it has been down to the works on the Gedling Access Road but also other housing developments have added to it. There’s still a few more months of this to come.  

Thanks to all of the Mapperley People for contributing to the page

Alan

Editor