No one can have failed to see the huge impact that the London to Birmingham High Speed Rail Link (HS2) has had on our local road network and the surrounding countryside.  This talk was by a local resident, Richard Clifford, who first developed his interest in HS2 whilst cycling along Kenilworth Greenway (a disused railway route) during the first lockdown in spring 2020.

Wanting a better view of what was happening along the construction route, he dug out his drone and started to get views of what was happening from vantage points high above the construction sites.  His talk shared with us those aerial views and many others that he has subsequently collected, and gave us a better understanding of the vastness of this project that has had such an impact upon us, and continues to do so.

This was a fascinating talk giving us an insight of HS2 from a most unusual perspective.

We learned about an emergency service that we are grateful for the existence of, but which we hope never to have to use!

Kay Starkey, of the Midlands Air Ambulance Charity (MAAC) gave a brief overview of their history, shared what they bring to the scene, the procedures they can undertake and some of the equipment they use.  We heard storeys of past patients, share updated news on what they are up to, and why they attend to people on what is probably the worst day of their life.  The talk ended with a short video that bought to life the impact that the MAAS can make.

The MAAC is a charity and, unbelievably, receives no support from the government, the National Lottery nor the NHS!

Speaker: Javed Hashemi

Dr. Hashemi, a well-known local speaker who has addressed our u3a twice before, came yet again, this time to share with us his knowledge of the history of the silk routes.  These ancient routes have, for many centuries, brought goods and ideas from the Far East to the West, changing their routes over time, but still continuing up to the present day.

Javed illustrated his talk with many images including maps showing the changing routes.

A fascinating talk which members found very enlightening.

Speaker: Geoff Lambert

Geoff, who works for the Medical Detection Dogs Charity, gave us a fascinating insight into the work of these very special dogs.  Dogs have a far more acute sense of smell than humans have, and many medical conditions have their own unique smell which dogs can be trained to detect.

Geoff described how the charity trains dogs for two distinct purposes.  Some dogs are trained to look after people with long term illnesses.  The dog can detect changes in the person’s wellbeing much sooner than the person themselves can, so they, or their carer, are alerted to the change and can take corrective action sooner, e.g. ‘brittle’ diabetic patients.  This relies on the dog being able to be with the person 24/7 so there can be no internal doors in the house that would prevent the dog from being close-by to the person they are looking at!

The other use of medical detection dogs is initial detection of illnesses.  Specially-trained dogs are able to detect the specific smell associated with certain diseases and are often able to detect it more quickly than doctors can through more traditional means.

All in all, a great presentation and insight into the marvellous skills of medical detection dogs.

Aunty Jen Productions

For anyone who likes a good old-fashioned pantomime - and we think that's probably most of us, this was a real treat.

This local theatre company put on a special performance of their 39-date pantomime in the Bentley Heath Community Centre just for us, and "pulled out all the stops".  In a fun-packed show designed for all ages, and especially our generation, we were gloriously entertained by Jenny Rigby and her troupe for two hours.

The show included song & dance, slap-stick, bad jokes and double-entendres, as all good panto's do.  We hissed and booed the wicked Carabosse as she threatened Princess Beauty for agreeing to marry the handsome but penniless Prince Richard, and for tricking the princess into pricking her finger on the spinning wheel.  And we helpfully shouted "he's behind you!" as the castle ghost crept up on the unsuspecting cast whilst the princess slept.  In-between, Jenny, as the Court Jester, kept us amused during scene changes, and led & directed the audience in a fun communal dance near the end of the show.

The interval prosecco and mince pies gave the afternoon a true Christmassy feel, and we can truly say that "a really good time was had by all"!

Saqib Bhatti

Our local MP for Meriden and Solihull East started his address with an eloquent and unscripted 30-minute overview of his background and introduction to national politics, including amusing anecdotes and aspirations.

Afterwards, he took questions from our members in the audience, offering his views on local and regional concerns about Housing and Infrastructure, Police stations and Solihull A&E, and national concerns about Artificial Intelligence, Digital ID, the “End of Life” bill, children's mobile phone usage and the future of the BBC.

He ended by citing Margaret Thatcher as his most inspirational politician, and offered a pledge of dignity for the elderly and hope for the young.