Norfolk a bit backward?

Some might say that Norfolk is a little behind other more cosmopolitan parts of the country and many locals might agree saying that is what they love about it.

BBC

More telling, perhaps, is a more laid back attitude to life. It's not big news that a church clock stops or even that, when it starts again, it goes backwards. But when Norwich's St Clement's Church's clock stopped and started sending Norfolk back in time no one noticed. 'Nobody knows when it happened but it is likely to have been within the last month.'

Monet Missing

Masterpiece Monet missing, stolen at Suffolk seaside?

Ah, no. Technical typo about thieving tykes rather than an errant Expressionist artwork. 

Treacherous Travel Tales

Sleepy sailor starts speedy saviour shout. A man off the coast of Happisburgh, that's 'haze-brrrrr' for you outsiders, fell asleep on board his boat mustering the local RNLI lifeboat to discover that, in fact, he just forgot to turn his external lights on. More dramatically there was a bus fire on the outskirts of Norwich.

Amy Taylor/EDP

No one hurt. There was a much more awfully offal accident near Thetford on the A11 which caused chaos all day as the unspeakable bits of chicken were strewn across the road. 

EDP

Umhhh, Kentucky Fried Chicken anyone?

4 minutes of rain, 4 hours of no power

The storm clouds came to North Pickenham today, a few minutes of blustery wet stuff and the electricity went off. Sun returned with intermittent dark clouds but as of yet no more rain. The dusty roads look about the same, not enough rain to have made much difference to the still struggling seedlings. Dramatic skies, though, with the wind blowing the possible dousing black clouds past without delivering their load.

© J Reed

Queen's Pigeon Keeper Passes

A man with lofty ideas, the wonderfully named Carlo Napolitano has died at his home in Wolferton on the Royal Estate near Sandringham. Boyhood boxer and heir to family hairdressing business, Mr Napolitano was the Queen's pigeon keeper in Norfolk.

Matthew Usher/EDP

Incidentally the birds were for racing, not shooting and eating.

Even drier Norfolk

Being to the east of England, Norfolk is well used to being slightly colder than the Riviera of the south west counties but, as any visitor to Cornwall will attest, it rains down there and not so up here in England's driest county.

BBC

This year East Anglia is reminiscent of a 1930's US dust bowl with, as near as it makes no difference, no rain for over a month. Unseasonable warmth and sunshine has made everything grow too soon as well, but a below zero night time air frost killed not only tender bedding plants and vegetables plants but also normally totally hardy baby ivy leaves. My neighbour's lawn looks like a Wimbledon centre court after two weeks in a drought. Rain, rain, rain please to return England to a green and pleasant land.

Right Royal Rural Representative

Sure to be best in show, the Princess Royal returns to the Royal Norfolk Show this year.

Royal Norfolk Show

Princess Anne will visit on 30th June 2011 at the Norfolk Showground near Costessey, Cossy to you foreigners, on day two of the annual agricultural show.

Mobile Mobile Mouthing Morons

Sixty pounds, 3 points and higher insurance premiums.

Norfolk Police Crackdown

Get caught talking non hands free in Norfolk Constabulary's crackdown and that is the least you can expect with fines up to £1000 if it goes to court.

Happy Birthday Howard Carter ...

...an adopted local boy. More here....

All change for Wissey Ward

Local resident Jill Ball, current Parish Councillor in North Pickenham, has been ousted as incumbent Breckland councillor, a role she has had since 2003, after standing as an Independent. Jill's former party colours beat her into second place with the new Conservative candidate Paul Darby holding the post for the Tories. Third place was the Green's Alison Haines with a creditable 202 votes, Jill had 292 and Paul won with 475. Disappointingly there were no candidates from either of the other two main parties, Labour and Liberal Democrats, possibly explaining the 2% spoiled ballot papers in protest. The turnout was 51% compared to the national average of 42% who voted in the Alternative Vote at the same time although it should be noted that not all areas had a dual voting reason to turn up.

BBC

Whole country looks very blue, a lot less yellow and slightly redder within the council chambers.