Conmen claiming to be council workers are calling unsuspecting victims, according to a new warning from Lincolnshire Trading Standards.

People are being urged to stay vigilant after reports of bogus calls from fraudsters posing as staff working for Lincolnshire County Council.

A number of people have contacted Trading Standards to say they have been targeted by someone claiming to be calling from various councils, using real telephone numbers, including Lincolnshire County Council.

Kirsty Toyne, principal trading standards officer at Lincolnshire Trading Standards, said: “If you receive a phone call like this one, please just hang up as Lincolnshire County Council will never contact you in this way.

“It is not clear what the fraudsters will do with any information gained so please do not give out any of your personal information to them.

“Just put the phone down because it is a bogus call.”

If you have been affected by the scam, please call Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 or visit www.actionfraud.police.uk

An app designed to help make police officers lives easier has doubled its sales in less than six months.

Paul Cooper, 30, launched Pocket Sergeant last year in a bid to help police officers and staff carry out the daily duties.

The Mercury featured Paul’s story in February and since then, the phone application has made a name for itself, doubling its sales. It has been downloaded more than 6,500 times - an average of 600 downloads a month.

It is currently in the top 10 best selling apps in the books and reference chart on the Google Play store.

Paul, who lives in Market Deeping with his wife Linda and works as a police officer in Spalding, said: ““Everything that we have achieved with Pocket Sergeant has been done on a limited budget.

“This is my passion project and I was able to jump start the app through my own efforts. I even built the website, even though I had never done any kind of web building previously.

“We are so grateful for the success of Pocket Sergeant.”

Other successes included exceeding 10,000 followers on Twitter as well as attracting a sponsor and advertisers, which is exciting for Paul who self-funded the project. He worked alongside app developers Sockmonkey Studios.

Pocket Sergeant enables its users to search through an A-Z list of criminal law definitions, learn whether there is sufficient evidence to charge a suspect, and find out when a crime report should be submitted.

Individuals can also utilise the checklist section of what to cover when taking witness statements, a reference library which houses PDF documents such as the Codes of Practice; a contact list and a calendar. The app was initially created as a time management tool for police officers, but is also attracting attention from civilian staff.

The Pocket Sergeant app is £3.99 and is available for download from both the iTunes App Store and Google Play Store.

Leicestershire Police are asking for people who live in the south of Lincolnshire, particularly in the Deeping or Stamford areas to be on the look out for a missing 27-year-old.

Tom Roe of Uppingham, Rutland has been reported missing by his family - and has family and work connections in Lincolnshire.

He was last seen in Corby, Northamptonshire at 2.30pm on Tuesday, July 21 and he was reported missing by a family member on Wednesday afternoon (July 22).

Tom is white, about 5ft 10ins tall, of medium build, clean shaven, with short brown hair. When he was last seen he was wearing blue jeans, blue and white shirt, possibly checked or striped, and a blue light weight waterproof jacket.

If you have seen Tom since Tuesday or know where he is then contact Leicestershire Police on 101, quoting incident number 327 of July 22.

I am writing to urge people into action over the proposed review of the hunting ban.

It is simple. The main argument put forward by the pro-hunting lobby during the run-up to the parliamentary vote to enact the current hunting ban was a lie.

They argued that hunting was necessary to control the damage done to the countryside by foxes.

In fact, according to the Countryside Alliance’s (a pro-hunting group) own admission, in the years leading up to the current ban on hunting with dogs, more than 70 per cent of hunts in England had to use captive-bred foxes or imported foxes, because there were not sufficient foxes to hunt in their areas.

Add to that the amount of damage done to land traversed by the hunts, and the numerous more humane options that exist for controlling any damage that might be done by foxes, as well as the horrendous suffering endured by the animals, and you must surely ask yourselves whether your consciences can allow you to stand by elected representatives that are moving to quash the ban on hunting with dogs.

Police have confirmed that Tom Roe, 27, of Uppingham, Rutland has been found safe and well after he was reported missing on Wednesday afternoon.

Tom has family and work connections in Lincolnshire and residents had been asked to be on the look out.

Pupils and staff said farewell and good luck to the man who completely transformed a special school in his 19 years working there.

Last week the Willoughby School in Bourne held a goodbye assembly for headteacher Adam Booker, who will leave his post at the end of this term.

Mr Booker became headteacher in 2003, having started working at the school in 1994.

In that time he has overseen the development of the special school, which caters for pupils aged from two to 19 with severe and profound learning difficulties from across the south of Lincolnshire, helping it become an excellent example to others.

Deputy headteacher Clare Stamp called Mr Booker “inspirational, adding: “He has worked tirelessly for the pupils in the school, ensuring that they get a high quality education along with opportunities to take part in a wide range of enriching experiences. He has also built excellent relationships with the parents who are a crucial part of the Willoughby School community.

“The pupils, parents and staff wish him well for the future. He will certainly be missed.”

Mr Booker secured a building project that saw the size of the school double, and oversaw the development of a sensory integration suite and 4D sensory room - the first of their kind in a special school in Lincolnshire.

He set up the school’s Rainbow Group for pre-school children with special needs. He has also formed extensive links with the business community.

Mr Booker is moving to York to be nearer to his family. He will become head teacher of Applefields school. He is being replaced by James Husbands who is currently deputy headteacher of Marshfields School in Peterborough.

Mr Booker said: “I have been privileged to work with so many inspirational children, young people, staff and parents during my time here – and what a place the school has become because of them.

“This area has been our home for nearly 20 years, and it is difficult to leave. Our community have been so supportive of our school and all that we have done. Indeed this is the community that we brought our son into – and he will always have a root here – as we will too.”

Readers helped raise £20,000 towards the school’s specialist status application in 2008.

Yet again, litter is found in Spalding. I have only lived here for some 28 years and, over that time, in the ditch outside my property, I have witnessed bags of urine, plastic bags, food containers, drinks cans and other assorted rubbish.

I expect this to continue for decades to come and that litter picking in Spalding will remain a permanent feature of the town.

There is no 100 percent effective system in place that can prevent people depositing litter as far as I am aware.

So I applaud the current litter pickers and their successors in reducing the amount of rubbish locally. Some increased financial return should occur as more recyclable materials are put into use.

I am astonished and saddened that our Member of Parliament, whom I hold in very high regard, has stooped to repeating the shoddy and discredited myth about Gordon Brown’s handling of the global economic crisis.

“In 2010”, he writes in last week’s column, “Britain faced a miserable future as a consequence of Gordon Brown’s reckless spending.”

There is much that I would not defend about the record of the last Labour Government, but to lay at their feet the blame for a global financial meltdown is ludicrous.

The people to blame were the reckless bankers who mismanaged the task for which they are paid their grossly-inflated salaries, and it was Margaret Thatcher who launched the process of deregulation that made it possible for them to cause havoc in the UK and around the world.

The former Bank of England governor Mervyn King denied that the previous Labour government was responsible for the financial crash - and he should know.

Even the Daily Mail – hardly a friend of the Labour Party – recorded that: “The political leaders of Europe, who had come so perilously close to meltdown, were ‘unanimous in praise of Brown’ for saving them.

It was an extraordinary triumph. On the international stage, at least, he stood like a colossus.”

Whether George Osborne’s policies prove effective in bringing renewed stability to the financial sector, time alone will tell.

What we already know is that the price of recovery, if indeed it happens, will be borne by the poor, the marginalised, the disabled, and the vulnerable.

It will be marked by more hungry families, more despair, more unemployment, more zero-hour contracts, more suicides and more queues at the food banks (including at our own excellent Agape Food bank here in Spalding).

A “recovery” of this kind might bring joy to bankers and the billionaires, but it will be founded on principles of selfishness and greed; and the lesson of history is that nations who live by those principles are destined to destroy themselves.

A Spalding pensioner, whose father rejected him when he began to lose his sight as a child, has revealed how having a guide dog has changed his life.

Bryan Maindonald will never forget as an 11-year-old boy believing he was going to the zoo with his mum, only to be taken to a top eye specialist.

There was no trip to the zoo, just a traumatic journey home – his mother had been told her son was dying and would lose his sight and hearing. Mr Maindonald (79), of Park Avenue, said: “Sadly my father didn’t want anything to do with me because of my eye condition!”

Determined not to let his condition beat him and wanting desperately to win back the approval of his father, he turned to the thing he was good at in spite of his failing eyesight – sport.

He said: “I won a gold medal for skiing and also competed in archery. Now I sing in my local church choir. My guide dog has been known to sing during the service!

“Before Barclay, I waited for a guide dog for 18 months. Now I have my dog, we go out most days and he has changed my life.”

Barclays Bank raised £5,000 to name Mr Maindonald’s fifth guide dog, which staff aptly named Barclay.

Mr Maind-onald said: “Barclays Bank had made it possible for me to step outside my house and go for a walk. Just the two of us.

“Barclay will find the bridge that I need to cross weekly and stops at all kerbs to cross the roads safely. He is wonderful.”

One person every hour in the UK goes blind and 75 people every single day are diagnosed with some kind of sight loss.

Pete Osborne, a guide dog owner and manager of the local Guide Dogs Mobility Teams, says: “Raising the money to support a partnership like that between Bryan and Barclay is increasingly difficult. I know just how important this is and really urge people to think about naming their own very important pup.”

Guide Dogs is urging schools, community groups and businesses to sponsor and name a pup like Barclay. Call the Guide Dog team on 0845 3727414.

When planning and preparing for the family’s holiday, who do you think does most of the work: men or women?

According to a new YouGov survey, women do the lion’s share of chores in the run up to a holiday.

Over a third of women with children in the household do all the family packing, compared to six per cent of men.

The survey also shows that women do most of the research with regard to where to go, with men apparently more involved in the macho elements of holiday preparation.

They don’t want to be fussed with buying sun cream and travel wash when they can weigh up the exciting options available when booking the hire car.

Interesting reading, but in the Burgess household, it’s quite a different story.

Yes, I admit I do most of the planning, but then, as a travel blogger, that’s kind of my job and I’m at home, with more time to dedicate to the task.

As for packing, this is when my organised husband comes up trumps.

I will pull out clothes from cupboards and drawers, leave them on the spare bed and Dougie takes over. It’s quite something to watch the master at work.

He begins by splitting the clothes between cases so that each member of the family will have some clothes if one case is lost.

He lays out trousers, places folded shirts and T-shirts at the waist end of the trouser pile, then rolls up the whole bundle, using the legs. Underwear is squirrelled away in any gaps, shoes placed along the sides.

He can be there for some time readjusting the bundles, ensuring equal weights, keeping it all neat. It all works very well until he decides to take things out in order to re-pack them.

There was a very memorable weekend break when I discovered that none of my knickers were in the case. I wasn’t best pleased.

A few months later, having not learned from this experience, he left out all of his own undies.

Dougie is also the protector of the passports. He can’t trust me with any of the vital documents as he knows that my handbag has certain properties reminiscent of Mary Poppins’ capacious carpet-bag.

I put my hand in to retrieve something and who knows what will come out: sweets, old hankies, a hat stand?

This is when Dougie’s man-bag comes to the rescue – tickets, passports and EHIC cards, all have their place.

A man who does the packing and looks after the documents is to be cherished. And for anyone who’s wondering – I’m not lending him out any time soon.

Friends, family and carers have paid a special tribute to an elderly lady who loved Spalding so much that she chose to spend her last years in the town.

Last Saturday, Joan Fuller’s daugter Ros and others went on a poignant water taxi journey to remember the 91-year-old and her love of Spalding’s waterways.

Joan (91) moved to south Lincolnshire from Kent in 2001 to a home adjacent to the Coronation Channel.

Her daughter Ros Bird said: “The beautiful Lincolnshire scenery along the river and Coronation Channel was one of the driving factors for mum wanting to move to Spalding.

“She thought it was so beautiful and said ‘that’s where I want to end my days’.”

So she took the brave decision to move from her family home to Lincolnshire.

She found a lovely bungalow that gave easy access to the channel footpath and bridge and was often seen walking with camera in hand to capture yet another picture of the local wildlife and scenic views which she would send to her relatives back in Kent.”

Ros added: “We thought it would be a nice idea to make a reflective waterway journey in mum’s memory and in celebration of her happy later life spent in Spalding.”

“This outing on Saturday followed a memorial service held the day before at St John the Baptist Church on what would have been her 92nd birthday.

“I remember how very excited mum was about the introduction of the water taxi and she always made a point of encouraging people to go on it when they visited to have what she called her 
‘watery Spalding experience’.”

The private charter of the water taxi, referred to as ‘The Joanie’ for the night by the passengers, set off from Springfields and the two- hour trip held moments of quiet reflection, plus some fun times with quite a few toasts being made to Joan’s memory during the voyage.

When nearing her home location, the crew tossed rose petals from Joan’s garden on to the water and watched as they silently drifted downstream.

“It was a magic moment that will live with me forever,” said Ros. On board were carers, friends and neighbours, all of whom had played their part in helping Joan to retain her dignity to the end and 
derive so much pleasure from her locality.

Joan was a popular lady who was sadly diagnosed with Alzhiemers in 2006.

During her last years she was able to remain in her precious bungalow thanks to the dedication and support of her carers, until she suffered a stroke just six weeks before passing away peacefully in Ashwood Nursing Home in Spalding.

Doorstep crime specialist and retired West Yorkshire Police Detective Chief Superintendent Brian Steele, has today, Monday July 27, visited Lincolnshire to meet the people behind ‘Operation Repeat’.

Lincolnshire’s Operation ‘REPEAT’, trains professionals and carers of elderly and vulnerable people in what to look for and the advice they should be giving if they think someone is a victim of doorstep crime, rogue trading or scams.

It is a collaborative project between Lincolnshire Trading Standards and Lincolnshire Police and has, to date, trained 831 professionals, who, on a daily basis, work with over 7,000 older and vulnerable people within Lincolnshire.

Expert Brian Steele said: “Doorstep crime continues to blight our communities and leaves many of our most vulnerable citizens scared, scarred and bankrupt.

“Tackling it is everyone’s responsibility. Lincolnshire is a great example of agencies working together in helping to inform and protect elderly people, and its Operation REPEAT is one of the best in the UK.”

Sergeant Caroline Broughton at Lincolnshire Police, said: “We are honoured that Brian has visited us today. He has so much experience and expertise in the area – having dealt with the murder of Isobel Gray and his subsequent research into doorstep criminals, so it was great to hear his thoughts on what we were doing – and on how we can improve further.”

Sally Gray, Senior Trading Standards Officer at Lincolnshire County Council, said: “Rogue traders can be very persuasive and convincing in their approach and it can be very distressing and frightening and even life changing for an elderly or vulnerable person who is unaware of how to protect themselves, so the more we can do to help protect them, the better.”

Reg Burrell, Operation Repeat Director, added: “We know that vulnerable people are continually targeted by ruthless rogue traders, and we know that health and social care professionals are some of the best placed people to monitor those at risk of this type of crime.

“Research shows us that 80% of all such victims are already in receipt of health and social care services. As such our Operation REPEAT, which works directly with carers, is a key way of getting our safety messages to the right audience.

For the latest advice on doorstep crime and scams follow @lincsts @lincspolice.

Police have arrested 13 men, all thought to be Middle Eastern, on suspicion of illegally entering the UK after an operation in Pinchbeck.

It happened in Apple Way shortly before 3pm on Sunday when police arrested the group, aged between 15 and 34 and all believed to be from either Iran or Iraq.

Eleven men were held in police custody to be handed on to Home Office Immigration Enforcement officers for interview, while two youngsters were passed on to social services for further investigation.

A Home Office spokesman said: “Our immigration enforcement teams work closely with the police and other agencies to tackle the criminal gangs that try to smuggle migrants into Britain.

“We also continue to strengthen border security to stop illegal migrants entering the UK in the first place and last year, we foiled nearly 40,000 attempts to cross the English Channel illegally.

“The Immigration Act of 2014 made it harder for people to live in the UK illegally and last year, nearly 36,000 immigration offenders were removed from the UK.

“If someone is found to have no legal right to remain in the UK, we will take action to remove them.”

A campaigner spreading the message that hot cars kill dogs is grateful for support given by South Holland District Council who have allowed her to put up warning posters in their car parks.

Loraine Walker decided to act after two dogs were found distressed in a hot car at Holbeach Town and Country Fayre and heard of three incidents at Tesco in Boston Road, Holbeach.

South Holland’s dog warden Rachel Thompson and environmental warden Mike Knight joined Loraine on Friday to spread the message that leaving a dog in a car can rapidly become a life or death emergency.

Rachel said studies have shown the effects of being in a hot car, even for as little as two minutes, can be drastic for any dog – and it’s worse for short-nosed breeds like Boxers, Pugs, Shih Tzus and French Bulldogs as well as long haired breeds who quickly overheat.

“We sweat, we can cool ourselves down,” said Rachel. “Dogs can only pant and that’s not enough when they’re left in a car.”

Animal welfare charity the RSPCA says the temperature in a car can rocket to 47C within an hour when it’s as little as 22C outside.

Rachel said leaving car windows open or parking in shade sometimes isn’t enough to stop dogs dying – and the best advice is for people to leave dogs at home or go out in the car with someone else who can stand with the dog in a shaded place rather than leave the pet alone in the car.

She said owners who leave their dogs in cars face the twin risks of losing them through heatstroke or theft.

Loraine, who lives in Holbeach, said the Tesco manager there has agreed to display warning posters published by PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) – and she hopes Tesco and other supermarket chains will roll that out nationally.

The RSPCA say people who break into hot cars to free dogs cars may risk prosecution for criminal damage if they do so “without proper justification”.

Lincolnshire Police are advising members of the public who see dogs in hot cars first to establish whether they are in distress and then try to trace the owner before they call the police on 999.

Spokesman Dick Holmes said if the police were dealing with a serious accident and could not arrive quickly enough, only then – having taken all reasonable steps – should members of the public consider breaking into the car to rescue the dog.

He said: “I suppose the watchword is common sense. If people are acting sensibly, with the best of intentions, then it is unlikely that someone will be prosecuted.”

Home furniture giant IKEA has reminded customers to ensure they use wall brackets for some of its furniture after sets of drawers fell on two toddlers causing their death.

In separate incidents, children aged two and 23 months were killed when dressers tipped over on them and the Swedish retailer has launched a safety campaign to encourage customers to use wall mounting brackets.

IKEA say that the wall-anchoring kits are readily available in-store and come free of charge with the products, while they can also be ordered online and are designed to prevent tip-over hazards.

It is believed there were three other recorded incidents of deaths because of other furniture tipping over since 1989 as reported by USA Today.

Gerard Bos, IKEA UK and Ireland Customer Relations Manager, said, “Product safety and quality are top priorities for IKEA.

“Furniture tip over is a serious safety risk in the home, however IKEA chests of drawers and dressers are safe to use when assembled according to the assembly instruction and attached to the wall using the restraints provided in the packaging of these products.

“IKEA is committed to raising awareness of the hazard of furniture tip over and in many IKEA markets, including the UK, we are running a safety awareness campaign called ‘Safer Homes together - Secure it!’ in order to raise awareness of this issue.

“IKEA already provides tip over restraints and instructions with all floor standing units that are purchased which are required to be fastened to the wall. Warnings about the importance of using the tip over restraints provided are included in the assembly instructions which give step by step instructions for their use.

“Information about furniture tip over restraints is available on the price tag on display units, in IKEA store signage and online.

“The best way to help prevent furniture tip over accidents is to secure furniture to the wall. IKEA urges customers to inspect their IKEA chests of drawers and dressers to ensure that they are securely anchored to the wall.

“Should any customer be concerned about their furniture, they are welcome to contact us on 0203 6450010 (UK) or 01 5413302 (ROI) to request a free restraint kit if the original one was disposed of.”

14-year-old Caitlin Sheppherd, who had been missing from Spalding in Lincolnshire since Saturday, July 25, has been found safe and well.

Police would like to thank members of the public and media for sharing the appeal to find her.

Whenever I tell people I’m from Lincolnshire, they usually nod their heads and say one of two things.

Either: “So you live on a farm?” or: “Oh yes, it’s very flat there, isn’t it?”

Sometimes they make reference to cabbages too, but that’s about as far as it goes.

Once upon a time I used to think this county of ours was a bit dull if I’m honest. But over the years I’ve had the privilege of interviewing many interesting people and I’ve learnt a lot of surprising things about it in relation to some of the most important, political, social and environmental developments in the history of Britain.

I’m sure after reading this, you’ll agree, that there’s more to Lincolnshire than meets the eye.

• The first policewoman to be granted full powers of arrest in Great Britain 100 years ago was Edith Smith who patrolled the streets of Grantham.

The former midwife worked seven days a week for two years from 1915-17, when her main duties were to deal with the frivolous girls who sold their bodies on the streets.

• Lincoln is where the story of the Magna Carta begins and ends. Stephen Langton, a young county cleric, later became the Archbishop of Canterbury and instilled in Magna Carta his ideas on just kingship – enshrining the rights, privileges and liberties of the clergy and nobles and placing limits on the power of the crown. Within weeks of agreeing to it, King John renounced the document and cut a swathe through Lincolnshire in civil war to save his throne. Illness ended his life in Newark Castle, but fighting continued until the climax was reached in a battle in Lincoln, which defeated the French prince and rebel barons, asserting the succession of John’s son Henry III to the English throne.

Lincoln Castle is home to one of only four surviving copies of the document dating back to the 13th century.

• English mathematician and physicist Sir Isaac Newton was born in a manor house at Woolsthorpe, near Grantham, in 1642, where he made many of his most important discoveries about light and gravity during the plague years of 1666-7.

Visitors to the National Trust property can still see the famous apple tree that inspired his thoughts on gravity from one of the bedroom windows.

• Stamford was the first conservation area to be designated in England and Wales in 1967 – since then the whole of the old town and St Martin’s has been made an outstanding area of architectural or historic interest that is of national importance. The town has more than 600 listed buildings – more than half the total for the whole county.

• Long Sutton was home to Dick Turpin for around nine months in 1737, when the notorious highwayman sought refuge away from London. The rogue changed his name to John Palmer and used Lincolnshire as his private poaching ground, stealing horses and cattle and selling them on for profit before he was finally caught in 1739 and hanged in York.

• Pinchbeck’s Key Market store (where Morrison’s now stands) was chosen to host the historic moment when the country’s first barcode – on a packet of Melrose teabags – was scanned back in October 1979.

The technological advance featured on an episode of science program Tomorrow’s World.

• RAF officer and engineer Frank Whittle invented jet travel in the heavily-guarded secrecy of RAF Cranwell, Sleaford.

On May 15, 1941 the first British jet-powered plane took off from the base on an historic 17-minute flight – a moment which would change the way future generations would travel forever.

•Lincoln’s contribution to modern warfare was the invention of the tank. Built by William Foster & Co during World War One, the very first machines were tested on the area now occupied by Tritton Road.

• Spalding blazed a trail in the music world as host to the country’s first true rock festival back in 1967 before the likes of the Reading, Leeds or the Isle of Wight events. BBQ ’67 held in the town’s old Bulb Auction was headlined by acts including Jimi Hendrix, Cream fronted by Eric Clapton and Pink Floyd.

• In 2011 Lincolnshire was voted the country’s food capital, pipping Cornwall to the title. A public vote to tie in with British Food Fortnight helped put traditional county delicacies such as plum loaf, stuffed chine and pigs fry well and truly on the map.

• Known as Bomber County during World War Two, Lincolnshire’s air bases played a pivotal role during the conflict. The most famous mission – 617 Squadron’s Dambuster raid in 1943 – to knock out dams and disrupt industrial production in the Ruhr Valley of Germany – flew from RAF Scampton.

Of the 19 Lancasters that took part in the attacks with 133 crew, eight planes and 56 men were lost.

• RAF Scampton is also home to the world-famous RAF Aerobatic Team, the Red Arrows, which has been displaying since 1965.

The team, famous for its trademark combinations of close formations and precision flying, is made up of 120 people including pilots, engineers and essential support staff.

• Immigrants who settled in the United States of America started their pilgrimage from Boston, in Lincolnshire, to Boston, Massachusetts during the early 1600s.

Coming from an age of when there were just two, yes two television stations and before you wonder we did have sound in those days and these stations were the BBC and ITV. Now we have so many channels that are received by aerial, cable or a waddyoumacallit on your ‘device’ but in most cases, whatever you saw yesterday will be repeated today.

Years ago if you saw a programme you never saw it again unless back by ‘popular demand’ (read as in it’s cheaper to bung a repeat on) but now with the wonders of this entertainment age you have about eight or nine channels that at any one time you can watch the likes of ‘You’ve Been Framed’ within minutes of each other because as one finishes another one starts or is half way through.

The old joke about programmes interrupting the adverts has now become fact. The other week (or was it weak?), a programme started and within seven minutes there was an advert break! Seven minutes!. Problem is the advert breaks are so long that by the time we get back to the programme plot, I have forgotten what is going on although I do know from the ‘break’ what broadband services are available, what hotel to book into or the price of fish fingers but for the life of me I have no idea what is 
the story line to the programme I am supposed to be watching about – aaaaaaggghhhhh!!!

We have come a long way in some respects as we have remote controls that flick channels, set timers, zoom in and out and a lot of other things that by the time you read this there will be another remote with even more knobs and buttons to juggle with. In our day - sniff – the remote consisted of a broom handle and you jabbed button one of two and that was it – to adjust the sound it was round trip of three walking paces, scratch your rear end and sit down again. Oh how we suffered.

Remotes these days can be self diagnostic and sort out any problems – back then we clouted or thumped the side of the telly in question or if all else failed you ‘sent for the telly repair man’ who would come round and look at the set and then with a skilful hand give the set a thump in a spot we had missed out and all was well – hopefully.

Plan B was to crawl up on the roof and give the aerial a quick twiddle.

Today’s televisions are getting bigger by the minute – I like a model at the moment that does a lot of things but the fly in the ointment is do we have the wall moved out and the screen slid in as it’s getting that way – you know it’s bad news when you are on one to one speaking terms with the fork lift truck driver who is there to ‘install’ the set.

The instruction manual – this is anything from twenty to hundred plus pages thick but the ‘Quick start’ guide is four pages?!

Well I’ll leave you now as I think the adverts are coming on and I don’t want to miss the really exciting one with the meerkat selling insurance.

So, last weekend I had the rare treat of a night out, listening to live music at the “This is Peterborough Calling” event.

I wouldn’t normally go to a Scooterist Weekender…the only scooter in my household is a Disney Princess one that would sooooo not fit in and my days of staying up all night are long gone, but there was a very good reason that I went there Saturday evening.

I arrived on my own as my friends had been unable to join me…I don’t know about you, but I find it quite daunting to walk into a venue alone. There were groups of people outside the marquee, a vast array of broad shoulders, tattooed arms, all drinking pints…and that was just the women!

I quickly made my way to the bar to get a drink. A guy with a huge beard turned and smiled, asking me if I was ok. I said yes and thanked him and went and sat on a bench. I was joined by two women who chatted away, including me in their dialogue. I relaxed as I realised that everyone was a lot friendlier than they looked.

The real reason I was there was because my eldest brother is in The Skatonics, who were supporting the legendary Geno Washington. Some of my earliest memories as a kid was listening to my brother playing ska music on our old upright piano…Madness, The Specials, he played them all, practicing for hours, perfecting every note until he sounded like the real thing. His hard work paid off and he got the job in the band.

It was the first time I had heard him play with them and I wasn’t disappointed. From the moment they started, the atmosphere changed from pint-glass-holding-indifference to energetic-ska-induced dancing and singing, providing great entertainment to those watching. The different characters in the band came across and you couldn’t help but have a smile on your face as they played. Whether you like ska music or not, it is worth travelling to see these guys, or booking them for an event. I know I am biased but I was not the only one that thought they were fantastic that night…

As I said, they were there to support Geno Washington. When I first saw him at the back of the stage, surrounded by his young fans, I wondered how well he would perform…talk about not judging by appearances. When he took to the stage, he acted like a man half his age, dancing about, cracking jokes and his voice was amazing to hear, a soul sound that rang out as we bopped on the dance floor. His band were brilliant musicians too.

After Geno had finished, my brother and the other band members had an opportunity to chat to him backstage. He held his drink in one hand and fixed them with a steely gaze.

“You guys are never supporting me again,” He growled at them all “You’re too (unprintable word) good!”

They all laughed, shook hands and went back to their tents, the words of a legend ringing in their ears.

Sainsbury’s​ has returned to its position as the UK’s second largest supermarket chain, according to data released today.

The latest grocery share figures from Kantar Worldpanel, published today for the 12 weeks ending July 19 this year, show a slow growth in the British grocery market.

Overall sales have increased by 0.8 per cent compared with a year ago, with stronger growth being enjoyed by the smaller retailers.

Fraser McKevitt, head of consumer and retail insight at Kantar Worldpanel, said: “The Co-operative has returned to growth for the first time since July 2014, increasing its sales by 1.0 per cent.

“The Manchester-based grocer’s focus on its convenience offer has been rewarded with an increase in shopper numbers, which have risen by 133,000.

“While The Co-operative’s growth is slightly ahead of the market, its overall share of 6.3 per cent has remained the same as last year.”

Despite a fall in sales of 0.3 per cent, Sainsbury’s has edged its market share of 16.5 per cent ahead of Asda, which now stands at 16.4 per cent.

Sainsbury’s has returned to its position as the nation’s second largest supermarket for the first time since January, boosted by non-food sales, its Sainsbury’s Local outlets and faster market growth in the south of the country, where it operates a larger number of stores.

Growth has accelerated at Waitrose, where sales have risen by 3.0 per cent.

Customers have taken advantage of the recently introduced ‘Pick Your Own Offers’ initiative to push market share up to 5.0 per cent, an increase of 0.1 percentage points compared with last year.

Mr McKevitt said: “The continued slow growth of the overall market can be explained by minimal volume growth and lower like-for-like prices, both as a result of cheaper commodity prices and the fierce competition between supermarkets.

“Comparable groceries are now 1.6 per cent cheaper than a year ago, meaning prices have been falling since September 2014, although they are projected to start rising again by early 2016.”

Aldi grew by 16.6 per cent while Lidl saw growth of 11.3 per cent, meaning both have moved to new market share highs of 5.6 per cent and 4.0 per cent respectively.

Morrisons was the best performer among the ‘big four’ retailers, although sales fell back by 0.1 per cent.

Meanwhile, sales at Tesco fell by 0.6 per cent and at Asda by 2.7 per cent.

At Iceland sales were up by 3.0 per cent, coinciding with its recent ‘Power of Frozen’ advertising campaign.