Birmingham: It's Not Shit

Flatpack6 :: programme highlights live

pr — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 13:51:18 +0000

hello,

I was about to kick off this email writing about
the icicles outside our office window, but then
remembered I wrote the same thing at almost
exactly the same time last year. Drat. Happily
though, you won’t find us repeating ourselves
with this year’s Flatpack programme. Once
again a feast of film events awaits you in
Birmingham next month…

FLATPACK FESTIVAL 6
14-18 MARCH 2012
BIRMINGHAM, UK

Contents may include:
CULT ANIMATORS / BIKER MOVIES /
LIVE CINEMA / FLOATING PICTUREHOUSE /
CARTOON ROCK / TURNTABLE ZOETROPES /
SLAPSTICK LEGENDS / WALKING TOURS

And of course all sorts of films in all sorts of places,
including new work by Werner Herzog, Park Chan-
Wook, Aki Kaurismaki, Ben Rivers and so much
more. As always we’re cramming as much as we
can into five days, and all you have to do is come
along and enjoy it.

A selection of highlights is up now and available
for booking on the website:
> http://www.flatpackfestival.org.uk
…With the full lineup coming on 22 Feb, and lovely
brochures shortly afterwards.

In the meantime, here are a few opportunities to
get involved:

VOLUNTEERS WANTED
Each year we’re knocked out by the energy and
enthusiasm of those who give their time to help
out on the festival – and they get a lot out of it too.
If you’d like to be involved in Flatpack 6, get
yourself to our blog:
> http://www.flatpackfestival.org/blog/2012/01/23/
We’ve just extended the deadline by a few days,
so you have until next Friday to sign up.

FIVE STORIES HIGH
In partnership with YARN and a cast of thousands
we’re retelling the story of Citizen Kane in words,
music, film, drawings and performance. Would you
like a piece of the tale? We’re very much open to
your ideas; deadline is 1 March, and the climactic
performance takes place at our festival hub in the
Custard Factory on Sunday 18 March.
> http://www.flatpackfestival.org/blog/2012/01/24/

BRING YOUR OWN BEAMER
On Flatpack Friday (16 March) the walls of VIVID
will be plastered with multiple projections, at the
Birmingham edition of a series of global events
dreamt up in Berlin. If you’d like to bring some
visuals to the party check the tumblr – deadline
is 24 Feb.
> http://byobbirmingham.tumblr.com
> http://www.byobworldwide.com

FLATPACK ADVERTISING
On a more commercial note, we still have a couple
of spare pages going in the Flatpack brochure if you
fancy placing an advert. 10,000 of these babies will
be distributed far and wide, and they will be well-read.
Get in touch with Holly Cooper if you’re interested:
holly@7inch.org.uk / 0121 771 1509

IN THE MEANTIME…
Other film stuff coming up in Birmingham

9-11 Feb at the Custard Factory
BRITISH ANIMATION AWARDS
Excellent crop of shorts and ads, showing in
three programmes at 7pm each night.
> http://baawardsbham.eventbrite.com

Tuesday 14 Feb, 6pm at the Barber Institute
KINO 10: IN LOVE WITH FILM
Celebrating LGBTQ History Month with short
films, wine and chocolate.
> http://www.kino10.com/events

Weds 15 Feb, 7pm at The Drum
THE NINE MUSES
John Akomfrah (Handsworth Songs) will be here to
present his new feature, again reworking archive
footage from the 50s and 60s.
> http://the-drum.org.uk/event/nine-muses

Friday 17 Feb, 11pm at the Electric
REPO MAN (dir: Alex Cox)
> http://www.theelectric.co.uk

18-19 Feb at VIVID
DEATHTRIPPING
Weekend of NY underground film.
> http://www.vivid.org.uk/projects.php?work=89

And we’re not the only festival in town.
Look out for:

STILL WALKING
15 March – 1 April
New pedestrian jamboree which will be linking
up with Flatpack on a couple of walking tours.
> http://stillwalking.org
> http://twitter.com/StillWalkers

FIERCE
29 March – 8 April
Live art festival, not coinciding with Flatpack this
year so you should be able to feast yourself on both.
> http://www.wearefierce.org

>>> What is Flatpack Festival?
An eclectic film jamboree which takes over venues across
Birmingham every March with all manner of events and screenings.
Flatpack was set up in 2006 by 7 Inch Cinema.
http://www.flatpackfestival.org.uk
http://www.7inch.org.uk

>>> How do I get on/off this list?
Sign up at the festival website, or sign off here:
http://www.7inch.org.uk/mailinglist/?do=remove&address=

>>> What if I have a burning desire to engage via social media?
http://www.twitter.com/flatpack
http://www.facebook.com/flatpackfestivalA piece of PR we couldn’t be bothered to re-write.

Still Walking

Jon Bounds — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 13:00:28 +0000

A festival of walking taking place across Birmingham, 15th March – 1st April 2012.

Artists, architects, historians, ramblers and lovers will show you the city in a new a light… [link]

Pre-planning application ’consultation’ on Paradise…

brumblr — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 11:54:46 +0000

Pre-planning application ’consultation’ on Paradise Circus

(via Paradise Circus)

from Brumblr, the scrapbook of Brum web ephemera:

Back To The Future at the Town Hall

pr — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 12:28:32 +0000

It’s an advert, of a type, but this looks really nice to people of a *cough* certain age…

Jameson Cult Film Club goes Back To The Future

- Jameson Cult Film Club revs up to 88 miles per hour bringing Back to the Future to Birmingham -

Birmingham had better get ready, as Jameson returns to the city in 2012 with a unique screening of the cult classic, Back To The Future
Screening to take place at the iconic Birmingham Town Hall on 6^th March 2012
Box office for free tickets available through the Jameson Cult Film Club Facebook page facebook.com/jamesoncultfilmclub as well as the blog www.jamesoncultfilmclub.com

Birmingham better get ready to go ‘Back in Time’ when the Jameson Cult Film Club comes to town for an incredible showing of the quintessential 80’s classic, Back To The Future on Tuesday 6^th March 2012.

Throwing guests back to 1955, Birmingham Town Hall will be transformed into the Hill Valley Courthouse for one very special evening, playing host to the Enchantment Under the Sea dance, with a selection of 50’s inspired Jameson cocktails to boot. Outside Marty McFly and Doc Brown will be frantically checking the time circuits and the Flux Capacitor in the DeLorean, while Biff and his gang of motley followers storm through the venue, searching for McFly.

Entering the Town Hall, guests will step into a scene right out of the movie, with blue glitter curtains, couples smooching on the dance floor in their 50’s outfits and the dulcet tones of Marvin Berry and The Starlighters playing through the sound system to serenade the young lovers.

Under the watchful gaze of King Neptune and the giant sea creatures hanging from the ceiling, guests will be transported back in time, watching one of the most iconic movies of the past two decades.

All that remains to be seen is if the 1.21 gigawatt bolt of lightning will strike the clock tower at precisely 10.04pm…

This visit to Birmingham is the second Jameson Cult Film Club event to come to town, with a previous screening of The Birds at St. Paul’s Church held over Halloween that proved hugely popular with Birmingham film fans.

To get your free tickets to these events, all you have to do is sign up to the Jameson Cult Film Club blog http://jamesoncultfilmclub.com or visit facebook.com/jamesoncultfilmclub.

Fans of the Jameson Cult Film Club can also join in the weekly #CultFilmFriday competition – just head over to twitter.com/JamesonCultFilm or facebook.com/jamesoncultfilmclub and answer our cult-film related questions to be in with a chance of winning some great prizes each week.

-ends-

Notes to Editors

Jameson Cult Film Club

The Jameson Cult Film Club hosts spectacular screenings of cult films at venues staged to transport audiences straight into the film’s universe. Events this year have included a 3-night showing of The Usual Suspects at Trinity Buoy Wharf – an amazing, dockside location in East London where all guests were transported up the Thames to the venue by boat, Halloween screenings of The Birds in St Paul’s Church in Birmingham and The Blair Witch Project and Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978) at the Union Chapel in London.

Jameson Irish Whiskey

Jameson Irish Whiskey is the UK’s No 1 selling Irish whiskey and is amongst the elite of the fastest growing international spirit brands in the world. The success of the Irish brand is down to its great quality and smooth taste, coupled with a fantastic heritage, established in 1780 by the legendary John Jameson. It has the quality credentials which allow it to be consumed straight, but is versatile and is equally great when mixed.

A piece of PR we couldn’t be bothered to re-write.

Saltley Gate 40th Anniversary Rally – Battle of Saltley Gate

Jon Bounds — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 11:00:26 +0000

Saltley Gate 40th Anniversary Rally

11am Friday 10th Feb

at the site Nr Saltley Gate Roundabout

Speakers from the Strike & Current Struggles

& performance by Banner Theatre

We are commemorating the day that 30,000 Birmingham Trade Unionists went on strike in support of the National Union of Mineworkers in their bid for fair pay.

15,000 engineering workers picketed to close the gates of the last remaining open fuel depot – Saltley. [link]

Russ L’s Lots Of Things To See And Do In The West Midlands – February 2012

Jon Bounds — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 22:00:55 +0000

You know the drill… [link]

Walk of Fame for King’s Heath

Jon Bounds — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 22:00:53 +0000

"A Walk of Fame is to be created along York Road to celebrate King’s Heath’s musical and comic heritage that will include a specially commissioned floral display featuring a guitar and microphone.

York Road has been chosen because it contains the Hare and Hounds where UB40 and Frank Skinner started their careers and the Cash Converters building which was previously the Ritz Ballroom – one of 4 ballrooms run in the 1960’s by Irish husband and wife team Mary (Ma) and Joe (Pa) Regan – where most of the famous groups and artists of the 1960’s played." [link]

Go Green week at Aston Uni

pr — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 17:27:38 +0000

Please see press release below for information on Go Green, a week of sustainability-themed activities taking place at Aston University in early February. Further information, images and interviewees are available should the content be of interest to you.

Many thanks,

Kathy Hopkin

***

PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

A SUSTAINABLE START TO THE YEAR AT ASTON UNIVERSITY

- 'Capitalism or a habitable planet' talk with comedian, author and environmental activist Robert Newman

- Friends of Earth, Greenpeace and Digbeth-based walkit.com to feature in Eco-Marketplace

- Second-hand bicycle sale from Birmingham-based social enterprise Cycle Chain

- Aston University Chaplaincy faith and climate change debate, ‘Safeguarding the planet’

- The Co-operative’s highly acclaimed ‘Tarnished Earth’ exhibition on campus

Aston University Go Green Week

Monday 6 February – Friday 10 February 2012

Aston University, Birmingham

All events are free and open to the public

Website: www.aston.ac.uk/go-green-week

Twitter: www.twitter.com/GreenAstonUni #AstonGGW

Facebook: Green Aston Uni

Go Green Week, a five-day programme of inspiring free events, talks, activities and exhibitions open to the public and celebrating Aston University's commitment to sustainability, is to take place between Monday 6 and Friday 10 February around it’s Birmingham city centre campus.

Building on the success of last year’s Go Green Week, Aston University’s Environment and Sustainability Team have organised the third annual week of free events to demonstrate sustainability and carbon reduction across their city centre campus, as part of the nationwide Go Green week run by People and Planet.

Highlights of Go Green Week at Aston University include an Eco-Marketplace offering greener living advice from organisations such as Friends of Earth, Greenpeace and the Digbeth-based business walkit.com, a screening of the award-winning deforestation film ‘Green’, a second-hand bicycle sale managed by Birmingham social enterprise Cycle Chain; a discussion on faith and climate change organised by Aston University Chaplaincy; a programme of sustainability themed lectures from academic staff; and an inspiring talk from the comedian turned environmental activist Robert Newman.

All events are free of charge and open to the general public.

Aston University Vice-Chancellor Professor Julia King, who is the UK’s Low Carbon Business Ambassador and a member of the Government's Committee on Climate Change, said ”We hope that our diverse programme of events and our convenient campus location in central Birmingham will help to make this year’s Go Green Week our most successful yet, attracting visitors from the wider community and local businesses as well as increasing awareness of sustainability issues amongst the University’s staff and students.”

Aston University ranked within the top 10 of People and Planet’s award winning Green League for the past two years. As a recognised leader in the field of sustainability, Aston University already has a number of technologies on campus, such as a Combined Heat and Power plant, a wind turbine and green roof on the recently built student residences, and an electric car and charging points, as well as ambitious targets to further reduce carbon emissions by 48% by 2020.

Past Go Green Week events at Aston University have included a World Food Market, a fuel efficient driving simulator and live webcam footage of Kestrels nesting within the main building on campus.

Aston University Environment and Sustainability Assistant Kathy Hopkin said, “Following on from the success of Go Green Weeks 2010 and 2011, we've put together the most varied programme of events yet, designed to appeal to students and staff alike as well as reaching out to the wider community. Visitors can receive advice on reducing energy use and costs in the home, explore alternative travel options or simply learn more about environmental issues.”

***END***

Notes for editors

Images attached:

Aston University Lake © http://www.flickr.com/people/donabelandewen/

Programme of events for Aston University Go Green Week 2012

Listings:

“Green”

6.00pm Monday 6^th February 2012

Main Building Room 155, Aston University

The story of a female orang-utan in the Indonesian rainforest, struggling for survival against the devastating impacts of logging and land clearance for palm oil plantations.

Eco-Marketplace

11.30am – 2.30pm Tuesday 7^th February 2012

Student’s Guild Hall, Aston University

Exhibitors include: Birmingham Friends of the Earth, Greenpeace, Student Switch Off, The Co-operative, Globally Local, Office Depot, walkit.com, Riverford Organic Veg, Change Agents, Traidcraft, Fair-trade Design and The Body Shop.

“Safeguarding the planet”

6.00pm, Tuesday 7th February 2012

Martin Luther King Multi-Faith Centre, Aston University

Aston University Chaplaincy faith and climate change discussion evening.

Bicycle Sale, managed by Cycle Chain

9.00am to 1.00pm Wednesday 8^th February 2012

Main Building Reception, Aston University

Cycle Chain is a social enterprise working in Birmingham and the West Midlands to refurbish unwanted bicycles for re-sale. Cycle Chain works with people with visual impairment and those recovering from mental health problems and gives them training in bicycle maintenance.

RSPB city centre wildlife walk

1.00pm – 2.00pm Friday 10^th February 2012

Meeting point: Main Building Reception, Aston University

“Capitalism or a habitable planet”

6.00pm. Friday 10^th February 2012Main Building Room G8, Aston University.

Interactive talk from stand-up comedian turned environmental activist Robert Newman.

Further enquiries:

Victoria Johnsen / Kathy Hopkin

Environment and Sustainability Officer / Environment and Sustainability Assistant

E. v.johnsen1@aston.ac.uk / k.hopkin@aston.ac.uk

T. 0121 204 4970 / 0121 204 4961

Aston University, Aston Triangle, Birmingham, B4 7ET. http://www1.aston.ac.uk/go-green-week

Background:

Go Green Week is a national initiative organised by People and Planet, which is the largest student network in Britain campaigning to end world poverty, defend human rights and protect the environment. http://peopleandplanet.org/

Issue date:

Tuesday 17 January 2012

Aston University GGW 2012 Press Release.doc Download this file

AstonGGW2012Programme.pdf Download this file

A piece of PR we couldn’t be bothered to re-write.

The Oasis Radio

pr — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 16:38:20 +0000

On Monday 16th January, students from Birmingham City University are
launching The Oasis Radio, the official radio station for the legendary
Oasis Market – Birmingham’s alternative lifestyle centre since 1971.

The station will run until January 27th, broadcasting from Birmingham City
University and being played out inside the market as well as online at
theoasisradio.net. The station’s music has been selected to reflect the
Market’s diverse range of store.

Everything from rock, dance and urban will have their place on The Oasis
Radio. The flagship shows, The Alternative Breakfast and Oasis Afternoons,
will be live every week day, playing the best in against the curve music,
as well as giving away prizes and providing up to the minute entertainment
news and opinions.

If that wasn’t enough, during the day there will be three different shows,
tailor made to reflect some aspect of the Market. On a new theme every
hour, the shows can range from specific genres of music, to ones dedicated
to certain stores in the Market itself.

The Oasis Radio is keeping things fresh by having a constantly revolving
line up of presenters, so there will be something you like sooner rather
than later. On top of that, they will have specialist shows between 7-9pm
weekday evenings exclusively for their online listeners at
theoasisradio.net, getting you ready for your nights out!

A lot of hard work and planning has gone into making this a station that
really speaks to fans of the iconic market, making sure it covers its
diversity in full. No stone has been left unturned in their effort to make
a radio station worthy of the Oasis name.

The Oasis Radio is a station that marches to the beat of its own drum, and
they hope you’re along for the ride! Get in touch, they would love to hear
from you:

Twitter: @TheOasisRadio
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/theoasisradio
Online: http://theoasisradio.net/

The Oasis Radio – Your Alternative
Launches Monday 16th January at 10amA piece of PR we couldn’t be bothered to re-write.

Today – Birmingham ‘beats space’ as tourist destination

Jon Bounds — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 16:01:10 +0000

Little bit of vanity, this was me on the radio. [link]

Why contribute to the spread of ugliness?

Jon Bounds — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 12:00:42 +0000

Alan Clawley reviews Stuart Whipps's new exhibition at the Ikon gallery. [link]

Libraries Petition And Campaign by Birmingham Against The Cuts

Jon Bounds — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 18:01:24 +0000

Libraries are to open reduced hours, Birmingham Against The Cuts is organising protest. [link]

Birmingham music in the 60s… Untold Stories Part 1

brumblr — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 14:54:47 +0000

(by BMHMusic)

from Brumblr, the scrapbook of Brum web ephemera:

NUJ Public Meeting – "Crisis in Midlands Journalism"

Jon Bounds — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 10:00:53 +0000

With the BBC cuts, and those at the Post and Mail, is it the end for journalism round this way? [link]

An old punk’s elegy for The Old Wharf

Jon Bounds — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 17:49:50 +0000

Sad as another boozer bites the dust. [link]

Review: The Little Book Of Birmingham

Jon Bounds — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 12:28:26 +0000

Books make ideal low-impact presents, they’re easy to wrap, they pretty much always describe their contents so you can be roughly sure that you’ve got something acceptable, and they are so portable that unthankful recipients can pop them down to the British Heart Foundation shop and say “yes, it was so good I’ve been lending it to people” to explain its absence from their bookshelves.

Publishers know this and will knock out any old tat around Christmas, books aimed at becoming presents for people you know or care very little about. Why else would Jeremy Clarkson be a published author, why else would tedious collections of Shakespeare’s unfunniest jokes clog the tills at WH Smiths (when all you really want is to pay for your fountain pen cartridges and get out of there, and no I don’t want a slab of Dairy Milk the size of Belgium for 5p thanks)?

But every so often there’s a book which, despite having the a title starting “The Little Book of…”, you can safely read without bemoaning the crass commercialisation of the spectacle. Such a book is my, as yet unpublished, Little Book of Cliff Richards’s Girlfriends, but another one is Norman Bartlam’s The Little Book of Birmingham.

It’s not that little, for a start, 200 odd full pages of normal book size facts and fun about England’s second city. Admittedly the back blurb won’t win any prizes for mentioning new things about Brum: Bill Oddie, motorways and Crossroad’s Amy Turtle all feature. Inside it’s not all lower-division culture, there are facts new and new to me.

Did you know that American novelist Washington Irvine wrote Rip Van Winkle while staying with his sister in Lee Bank? I did, but it’s nice to have it confirmed.

Could you list all seven of Birmingham’s official city organists? No, I couldn’t. I could have made a stab at a bunch of onanists though.

Did you know that Nick Owen and Bob Warman went to school together? I did, but being reminded of it made me think again just how much of a good ‘Alan Partridge’s School Days’-type sitcom it would make.

And that’s the joy of such a niche book, even the bits you know already will spark off interesting thoughts, memories and ideas. Some of the connections to Birmingham are a touch tenuous—a page on Dixon of Dock Green, as the character is named after its author’s school—but what is a city if it isn’t a collection of obscure links and bizarre thought-paths?

The Little Book of Birmingham is out now and would make a decent present…

Beside the B-side: The Lilac Time: ‘Street Corner’

Jon Bounds — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 11:00:36 +0000

Pete Paphides on a record that "is what it was like to grow up in the West Midlands in the 70s". mmmmmm [link]

Should Birmingham have a directly elected mayor? – Arguments for and against | a debate visualisation on Wrangl

Jon Bounds — Fri, 25 Nov 2011 19:00:43 +0000

BiNS is firmly in the 'Yes' camp, but this is an interesting way to present the argument. [link]

The Hungry Hobbit gets a nastygram

Jon Bounds — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 19:00:40 +0000

" local cafe a stone's throw from Sarehole Mill near to where JRR Tolkien grew up, has been threatened with legal action by lawyers working for a US film company. Wouldn't they be better employed chasing ambulances?" [link]

A drive around central Birmingham early 1950s

Jon Bounds — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 11:39:37 +0000

from, oddly, the council’s new Facebook page.