My family were long associated with Bucks Road Methodist Church, indeed my Uncle Jack, like his father, was a superintendent.
Lots will remember his private business Chapman Travel Agents with offices in Victoria Street and Athol Street.
Others will recall his life-long association and position within the Douglas Choral Union promoting shows at our lovely Gaiety Theatre.
Some of my happy memories were Bucks Road events.
We had an annual Sunday School picnic where we would visit places like Silverdale and Mooragh Park.
We would all take part in fun sporting events and a very exciting aspect was a scramble for loads of sweets being thrown around.
My dad always provided sticky buns and oranges for all the children before we took off for the next stop.
If we were in Ramsey we always headed for the little joke shop on the quayside and then tried to fool all the others with our bargains.
We also had another coach trip, I think on Easter Monday, which was called the ramble with other exciting locations visited. Like many other places in those days we had an annual eisteddfod with a quiz on general knowledge, spelling bee, solo performances and other competitions.
I remember once singing ‘if you were the only girl in the world’ to Verina Quiggin and believe me, I have never had a good singing voice.
We also had the annual Sunday School anniversary with rows and rows of boys and girls all in their Sunday best.
Another favourite was the annual nativity play where we were all encouraged to play our part and I remember scripture study exams with our award for studying successfully being one of the children’s hard backed books with a notation inside the front cover recognising the achievement.
Bucks Road amalgamated with Rosemount in 1967 to form the newly created Trinity Methodist Church on the latter site. When I attended Ballakermeen High School my non-descript voice once again came in to its own again this time as part of the school choir and like so many others we appeared at the Villa Marina in the Manx Music Festival or as it is perhaps better known, the Guild.
The festival first took place in 1892 and has been a regular feature of island life since.
Many of those who unlike me have gifted voices have gone on to great things.
The premier competition was always the Cleveland medal.
I remember my dad used to take two aunts with him Hilda and Emmie who I remember from my Uncle Stanley’s farm in Santon.
They lived in Woodlea Villas in Crosby and I remember being told how glad they were to have been successful in obtaining tickets to this sell-out event.
The competition is competed for by the three highest marked women and three highest marked men from across the solo classes held during the week. The festival continues this year between April 27 and May 4 and these days is known as the Manx Music, Speech and Dance Festival (or the Guild).
Like all other successful long-standing institutions the festival has adapted to meet modern tastes as well as the traditional categories and continues to provide opportunities whatever your interest. In music the classes consist of brass, choirs (junior and adult), composition, folk song, instrumental (ensembles), strings and woodwind, Manx song, organ, piano, recorder/tin whistle and vocal. In speech and drama classes consist of bible reading, drag, duologue, mime, monologue, news reading, presentation, public speaking, reading at sight, sacred texts, Shakespeare, spoken word and stand-up comedy. Finally in dance classes exist for ballet, character, country and national, Manx folk, modern and tap. New classes for 2024 include piano ensemble class with up to eight hands on the piano at the same time.
There’s also a little stars class for performers who must be in reception in the year of the festival.
Two minutes to give it all with a song, a dance, a drama piece, or a solo instrument.
This class is non-competitive and is an introduction to the festival. All performers will receive adjudicator comments to help them develop their talents. Finally new this year is a modern dance solo for up to Year 6, up to Year 10 and Year 11 and over. A special occasion this year for the Guild is that of the 50th anniversary of the Sheffield Plate awarded by adjudicator Dr David Clover in 1974 who was so impressed with the young singers in the solo classes he presented the steel salver in order for them to sing off against each other.
Many of whom have since gone on to great success in the adult classes. The event will be touched with sadness this year as Margaret Curphey one of the youngest Cleveland medal winners in 1961 who went on to become a very famous opera singer sadly passed away last month.
A friend of mine said this about her: ‘Definitely the most famous Cleveland medalist and despite her huge success was still an ordinary Manx girl.’ Two other guild stalwarts will be sadly missed this year, the lovely Shirley Savage so long associated with the Villa was the competitions front of house steward and David Cowley who held the position of guild secretary between 2008 and 2014 and was very much an enthusiastic choir member and music supporter. I cannot finish without mentioning a former constituent of mine. Eleanor Shimmin BEM, as mentioned a three-time Cleveland medal winner and singing teacher to many winners as well. She was the reason my friend Sarah Kelly, her niece, became so transfixed with the Guild and Eleanor was its first woman chair in 124 years. A couple of years ago my grandson Stan was calling around the houses singing Hop tu Naa and called at her house.
She came and listened intently to him singing but had no sweets to hand.
She asked his name and a day or so later called to Scoill Vallajeelt and said a little boy called Stan had called to her house and she would like him to have a gift of some sweets for singing so nicely.