Cherrywood Bed & Breakfast IOM

Friday, 16 March 2012

MANANNAN’S ROUND-THE-ISLAND CRUISE

Tickets are on sale for Manannan’s annual round-the-Island cruise.

The trip on Sunday, April 1 will depart Douglas at 1100, lasting for around two hours, and offers passengers the opportunity to view the spectacular Manx coastline from the sea.

Tickets are priced at £21 for adults and £15 for children.

‘These cruises prove to be incredibly popular, with the public keen to see the Island from an angle they wouldn’t normally have the chance to experience,’ said Chief Executive Mark Woodward. ‘The Isle of Man has some stunning stretches of coastline and we’re confident it will be another great day out on board Manannan.’

To make a booking, please call in at the Ferry Travel Shop, Sea Terminal, Douglas or call the Reservations Team on 661661.

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Saturday, 10 March 2012

Isle of Man Coast to Coast on canvas

Tracey Dean @ Cherrywood.im

THE Isle of Man’s stunning and colourful vistas are perfectly captured in oils by Manx artist Tracey Dean, whose solo exhibition Coast to Coast opens tomorrow (Friday) in the Sayle Gallery.

Tracey, who paints under her maiden name of Dean, uses rich and vibrant colour to emphasise the beauty of the island’s coastline and landscape.

She has had numerous commissions, with the largest being the Plains of Heaven from Chibbanagh Plantation which will be on display at the exhibition.

A student of Norman Sayle at the Isle of Man College, Tracey went on to complete a degree in Graphic Design and won the Ella Olsen Scholarship, spending a year at Idaho University in the USA studying graphic design and life drawing.

After working for many years in London, she returned to the island to design for clients, including the then Department of Tourism and the Post Office and she is currently working on a new stamp issue for the Post Office that features paintings of six harbour lighthouses in Tracey’s unmistakable style.

Tracey Dean @ Cherrywood.im

She said: ‘The Isle of Man is such a rich and varied landscape just crying out to be captured on canvas. I like the medium of oil to work in with its rich colours and I often work ‘wet on wet’.

I try to make my brush strokes more light and spontaneous to add to the freshness of the painting and I’m learning all the time about colour and composition and the effects that can be achieved with them.’

As its title implies, the exhibition will feature coastal views and landscapes from across the island, making use of light and the seasons to remind us of its natural beauty.

In addition, eagle-eyed visitors should be able to find the tiny rabbit that Tracey incorporates into all her paintings – a playful touch that is part of the charm of her art.

Tracey Dean @ Cherrywood.im

‘I took up painting in 1989 as a hobby when I was given my first set of oil paints,’ said Tracey.

‘In the beginning I was doing a couple of paintings a year when I could find the time but now I’m painting full time and am happy to accept commissions.

‘I go out sketching and take reference photographs and then continue the work in the studio and have recently expanded my range to include watercolour which I plan to explore further.’

The Sayle Gallery is in the Villa Marina Arcade on Harris Promenade, Douglas. It is open between 10am and 5pm Tuesday to Saturday, between 1.30pm and 4.30pm on Sundays and 1pm and 5pm on Mondays. Entry is free.

For more information call the gallery on 674557 or visit www.saylegallery.com

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Thursday, 23 February 2012

2012 Group Travel Guide launched by Isle of Man Tourism

Group Travel Guide 2012 @ Cherrywood.im Isle of Man Tourism has just published its latest handbook for group travel organisers, which provides a comprehensive guide to the diverse attractions of the Island for group visits. The Isle of Man Group Travel Guide Issue 2 is designed to demonstrate the tremendous value for money available to groups visiting the Isle of Man and covers travel to and transport around the Island, accommodation options, tours, attractions and eating out.

Produced in a handy perfect-bound A5 format, the 92-page guide includes useful maps that pinpoint all the key points of interest within the Isle of Man’s main towns as well as showing approach roads and group drop-off points for the main visitor attractions.

For ease of reference, the guide is divided into four sections, North, South, East and West, in each case spotlighting that region’s main towns, attractions and tours.

To cater for the growing interest in themed breaks, the 2012 Group Travel Guide also includes a section on the wide choice of specialist activities, tours and attractions available to group visitors. These range from wildlife tours and specialist boat trips to see basking sharks and bottlenose dolphins to ghost tours and activities that include quad biking, sea kayaking and golfing.

As a shortcut to planning group trips, the guide features three full day and five half day itineraries. Each has been designed to focus on what makes a visit to the Isle of Man quite distinct from touring in the UK and to help group travel organisers make the most of the Island’s unique heritage and cultural attractions.

For example, on one such itinerary, groups take a trip on the Manx Electric Railway from Douglas to Ramsey before rejoining their coach to go back in time at the Grove Rural Museum and Milntown. The trip continues along part of the world famous TT course to Peel and its 11th century castle before returning to Douglas.

With excellent local produce that includes award-winning Manx Queenies, smoked kippers and rare breed Loaghtan lamb, the guide also explains the Taste Isle of Man quality assurance scheme that signposts where groups will find the best home grown food on restaurant menus and supermarket shelves. Group travel organisers are encouraged to get a copy of the free Taste Isle of Man Directory, available online at www.visitisleofman.com/taste or to pick up from the Welcome Centre at the Sea Terminal in Douglas.

Mr Geoff Corkish, MBE, MHK, Member of the Department of Economic Development responsible for Tourism said:

As part of the drive to attract more groups to the Island, Isle of Man Tourism will be exhibiting on Stand E80 at Best of Britain & Ireland (BoBI), which takes place at the NEC, Birmingham on 14-15 March. Copies of the Group Travel Guide will be available to stand visitors, where members of the Isle of Man Tourism team will be joined by six industry partners: Flybe, Isle of Man Steam Packet Company, Manx Heritage Railways, Manx National Heritage, Manx2.com and Premier Holidays.

Copies of the Guide are available on request by calling Julie Colquitt on 01624 686888 or emailing traveltrade@gov.im. It can also be downloaded from the official Isle of Man Tourism website at www.visitisleofman.com/groups.

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Monday, 13 February 2012

Isle of Man Gaelic music, song and dance weekend

noeleen ni cholla @ Cherrywood.im

THE Manx Heritage Foundation’s annual traditional music, song and dance workshop weekend is back in 2012, and while the timetable is yet to be finalised, the dates, venue and guests of honour have been revealed.

The workshops are confirmed for the weekend of March 10 and 11, to be held at Manx Heritage Foundation headquarters in the stable building and chapel at The Nunnery in Douglas and will be led by Donegal singer Noeleen Ni Cholla and Belfast-based dancer and instrumentalist Tim Flaherty.

Both visitors are experienced tutors as well as performers.

Noeleen is well-known in the Gaelic world and has performed around the world with some of the scene’s biggest names. She will be teaching Irish solo and choral singing to the adults, as well as a traditional music session with youngsters.

Tim dances will Belfast’s All Set, and will teach set dancing as well as sean nos – a very social, fast moving dance style – to more experienced dancers. He will also lead sessions on the whistle and teach Irish tunes to all instruments.

Manx Heritage Foundation’s Breesha Maddrell is pleased to welcome both on what will be their first visits to the island.

She said: ‘Noeleen is a fantastic Irish Gaelic singer, I saw her perform at Festival Interceltique de Lorient in Brittany in France. She brings an opportunity to learn solo and harmony vocals in Irish Gaelic.’

Breesha went on to explain: ‘We like to do these weekends once a year, and try to vary where our guests come from, and the instruments they specialise in, as it brings in new ideas and techniques.’

Noeleen and Tim needed no convincing to come over, as people heavily involved in the Celtic identity of Ireland they were both intrigued by parallels to the Isle of Man. They both speak Irish, and Noeleen is from the Donegal Gaeltacht (an area where Irish is the predominant first language) and also speaks Scottish Gaelic, so she in particular is looking forward to getting her ears around the Manx language.

Breesha added: ‘It’s very important for the island- it contextualises Manx culture and arts in the wider Gaelic context, which is why each year we try to get guests from Scotland and Ireland in particular because of the Gaelic link.’

The setting lends itself well to the workshop weekends. Aside from the inspiring landscape of The Nunnery grounds, and good parking, the converted chapel is a good sized hall for singing and dancing, and the smaller seminar rooms around the building are used for instrument workshops.

Previous weekends have culminated in concert performances, and Breesha says this year there will again likely be an opportunity for the tutors to showcase what they do.

Breesha can be contacted at mhfmusic@mhf.org.im for more details.

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Thursday, 26 January 2012

Isle of Man to be showcased on BBC’s Great British Railways series

Michael Portillo and Andrew Scarffe @ Cherrywood.im BBC2's Great British Railways programme featuring the Isle of Man will be broadcast on Friday 27th January at 6.30pm.

In a series of five epic journeys, TV presenter, journalist and former conservative politician and Cabinet Minister, Michael Portillo travels the length and breadth of the country, with his copy of George Bradshaw’s Victorian Railway Guidebook, to see how the railways changed us, and what of Bradshaw’s Britain remains. In week four of the series he will be travelling through the north of England from Berwick-Upon-Tweed, crossing the Pennines to the Lake District before completing the journey to the beautiful and unique Isle of Man.

Michael sets sail from Heysham to the Isle of Man, where he discovers the horse trams of Douglas, the 19th century secrets of the Laxey Waterwheel and the Victorian history of the Snaefell mountain railway.

Talkback Thames, the production company, visited the Isle of Man in August 2011 to film for the very popular travel documentary. The main subject of the programme is about how the Victorians travelling to the Island would have been surprised at the feats of engineering in the local infrastructure for both industry and leisure. The television crew were assisted by Department of Economic Development, Department of Community, Culture and Leisure, Manx National Heritage and Isle of Man Steam Packet Company during their visit.

Member for the Department of Economic Development responsible for Tourism, Mr Geoff Corkish, MBE, MHK said:

Colin Kniveton, Chief Executive Officer, the Department of Economic Development, said:

The Department of Economic Development assisted another TV crew from BBC Scotland in July 2011. They visited the Island to film the programme ‘All Over the Place’. This is a CBBC programme in which presenter Ed Petrie travels around the country to find out about some of the weird and wonderful things happening in the British Isles. The Isle of Man will feature in episode one of the series on Wednesday 25th January and episode five on Wednesday 22nd February at 5.45pm. In the first episode they visit the Joey Dunlop statue at the Bungalow on the Snaefell Mountain road where they talk about Joey Dunlop’s achievements and the TT Races and episode five features the Tin Bath Races at Castletown.

The Isle of Man Department of Economic Development’s marketing team targets a broad range of media throughout the year, from national and regional newspapers to consumer magazines and television programmes, all of which remain key to the overall PR campaign. Television programmes hosted last year also include World’s Greatest Motorcycle Rides, BBC The One Show, BBC Spring Watch, Come Dine with Me and Granada TV’s ‘Where’s Fred’.

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Wednesday, 18 January 2012

Reach for the skies | Astronomy events Isle of Man 2012

TRANSIT OF VENUS @ Cherrywood Bed & Breakfast Isle of Man

TRANSIT OF VENUS: The planet Venus crossing the face of the sun in June 2004, taken by Howard Parkin from the Isle of Man Observatory in Foxdale. The rare event will be repeated in June of this year.

THE Isle of Man is home to some first-rate star spotting – and not just when the likes of Zac Efron, Johnny Depp or John Malkovich have been here filming on location.

The Isle of Man Astronomical Society (IoMAS) is keen to promote astronomy in the island and has released details of significant cosmic events that will be visible in Manx skies in 2012.

By way of introduction to the subject the society will be hosting a live stargazing event in Noble’s Park on January 18.

IoMAS chairman Howard Parkin explained: ‘We haven’t done it before, but it’s something we’ve wanted to do for a while, as we can’t invite the public up to the observatory [in Foxdale].

‘The dates coincide with the BBC’s Stargazing Live event, so we thought we’d do a Manx version.’

An estimated 40,000 people scan the skies across the British Isles during the annual Stargazing Live event, and in Noble’s Park IoMAS members will be on hand to explain constellations and supervise telescopes.

Howard assures us that it is an interesting time to be looking to the heavens: ‘There are spectacular views of Venus low in the west, Jupiter high in the south, Mars in the east and Saturn can be seen in the morning,’ he said, adding: ‘The stars of winter are always impressive.’

Providing the sky is clear enough for the event to go ahead, enthusiasts should gather near the tennis courts from 7pm-9pm.

Howard, who has been teaching astronomy at the Isle of Man College since 1984 and has delivered lectures in Hawaii, South Africa and in the UK, is most excited about June 6, when Venus will cross the face of the Sun. These transits only occur every 100-plus years, and then in pairs eight years apart. The last one was in 2004 and the next is in 2117.

He says 2012 will also see a few conjuctions (when two planets come close in the night sky), as well as the usual meteor showers, although they could be better than previous years as moonlight will not interfere with the best showers, the Perseids in August and the Geminids in December.

On January 25, Howard will also be delivering a lecture at the Noble’s Park Pavilion on the Manx Night Sky in 2012, and a look at the island’s role in space commerce. The talk will be from 7.30pm, and the £2 charge includes refreshments. Tickets are available from the Henry Bloom Noble Library in Douglas.

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Wednesday, 11 January 2012

Astronomical Society to discuss Manx night sky

TICKETS are still available for a Manx Night Sky presentation which will be given by the chairman of the Isle of Man Astronomical Society.

On January 25 Howard Parkin will discuss what local stargazers will be able to see in the Manx skies over the Isle of Man during the next 12 months.

The event follows another successful Manx Night Sky presentation in November last year when ticket supply was unable to meet demand.

Douglas borough librarian Jan Macartney explained: "Howard Parkin's talk in November attracted record numbers to the library which meant that we couldn't accommodate everyone.

"So in a move – literally – to ensure more people can enjoy what I'm sure will be another fascinating presentation we're holding the Manx Night Sky 2012 event in the Noble's Park Pavilion community room which is a much larger venue, has easy parking outside and disabled access.

"The timing for the talk couldn't be better with BBC 2 running its Stargazing LIVE series from January 16 to 18.

"We're especially excited about this as the Stargazing Live website will be promoting local stargazing events and Howard and some of his Isle of Man Astronomical Society colleagues will be hosting a Stargazing LIVE event in Noble's Park on January 18 from 7pm to 9pm to give people an opportunity to discover a little about the wonders of the solar system and our Manx night skies."

The Manx Night Sky presentation will take place on Wednesday, January 25 at 7.30pm. It should finish at 9.30pm. Tickets cost £2 and are available from the Henry Bloom Noble Library on Victoria Street in Douglas.

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