Hello there. Hope you're feeling well today.
When I was in Essex early this week two Welsh news stories caught my eye. (It's odd now to see Welsh stories relatively far away). One was of course the death of Carl Sargeant which I discussed on my previous post. The other though, got via Twitter concerned the Barry Island funfair.
Now a couple of quick asides before I go on about the funfair. Firstly with regard to Carl Sargeant my wife was in Bridgend yesterday and told me that she drove past the house of the first minister Carwyn Jones and saw a police car stationed there. As I recall there has never been such an obvious police presence, and you can only presume that's as a consequence of what happened.
The second is that I remember when my daughter was about two watching a programme with her on Ceebeebies called Doodle Do presented by the Welsh Comedian Chris Corcoran. He was telling a story to a couple of puppet figures about a man called Barry who was shipwrecked to a Desert Island. Once he got himself sorted out, one of the first things he did was to name the place "Barry Island".
Well I laughed. But I remember my daughter turning round giving me a look of puzzlement as she didn't understand why Dad was suddenly laughing in a programme meant for her.
And one final quick aside. Of all the pantomimes I saw with my daughter when she was younger. the two with Chris Corcoran in Porthcawl were by far the best (and I include in that much more expensive and star studded affairs in Cardiff and Swansea).
But back to the funfair. Now for those who don't know the area it's important to separate Barry Town with Barry Island. Barry Island is the place with the beach, the arcades and the funfair. It's the place where many people in South Wales go for the day. It is for the most part happy and welcoming.
It is Barrybados.
However it has been in relative decline since it's heyday and clearly needs investment to attract more people. The fairground is a good metaphor for the island as a whole.
Now according to the BBC Wales website the owner of the fairground has said that the new Ferris Wheel has been ordered to be dismantled by the Vale of Glamorgan council because it doesn't comply with planning regulations as it's too high. The council said in response that it hadn't asked him not to remove the wheel but to follow the regulations and seek planning permission. The Wales Online website suggested that a multi-million investment may be at risk.
Now whoever is correct here (and I've no idea) what is clear is that the relationship between the owner of the fairground and the council is not great. But for the future of Barry Island it needs to be sorted out. The fairground is an iconic landmark of the Island and this sort of animosity is not doing it any good.
In early October we took a day trip there on a Sunday (when the weather was surprisingly good). I tweeted some pictures at the time but didn't blog about it afterwards as I was feeling unwell. By the time I was better a few days later the moment had gone. This however means that the moment has come back. So let me give you a picture first of the fairground from the outside.
Now appearances can be deceptive. The building on the right was a pub/restaurant that we went too a few years ago to a wedding party.....closed down.
If looks were any guide the Ferris Wheel seemed far and away the newest thing there. Certainly the most impressive. We were told as we went in as we were stunned by what was around the wheel (which I'll talk about in a moment) that it cost two million pounds and was the first stage in a scheme to revitalise the fairground.
But otherwise, baring in mind that this was October so the summer season being over, the fairground seemed tired looking. As if struggling to be happy, trying to be happy, but finding it a burden.
To my untrained eye. Any objection to the Ferris wheel on the grounds of height seems odd. Leaving aside issues of Health and Safety there seems no reason why there should be planning permission at all. After all we're talking about putting a fairground attraction where a fairground already exists.
So the council (who must surely realise that a revitalised Barry Island will mean increased revenue for them) and the owner need to sort out their differences quickly. For whilst the Island is more than a fairground it's success following the owner's investment will help in an overall revival.
Of course Barry Island will always have the Beach.
Until the next time.
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