More about us & "The Rumble"

My photo
Cuppaster , Isle of Yell, Shetland Isles, United Kingdom

Saturday 13 October 2012

Mareel begins its magic






Mentioned in an earlier blog entry that Mareel, the new arts & music venue, recently opened in Lerwick

Last Sunday Cerys Matthews of Catatonia arrived bringing a eclectic & polished mix of supporting artists; the show is part of the grand opening season of Mareel starting a new chapter for music performance on the islands.
 
 

Boyo does that girl have a Welsh accent - so strong! Clear too that her roots were very important to her as heard in some of the music she played. She also played a couple of her Catatonia hits, Road Rage http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yH04i4eTrJk

As for the brilliant Musa Okwonga spoken word artist  - check him out on You Tube.

MAREEL'S MAIN AUDITORIUM
We were regulars at The Bury Met venuewhen living in Rossendale, now we have that kind of venue up here - better even - can't wait to see the next .... tickets already purchased for the fab Bruce Molsky who was up here last year for the Transatlantic Sessions (and who I last saw in Bury!).


If I was a millionaire, I'd follow this guy around the world.
(Have to say though that I'd probably be a lone traveller as this remains more
my music more than Steves!!)



Thursday 11 October 2012

A sad day & the end of an era ...


How often does the Cycle of Life see one door close as another opens ?

We heard sad news about Satterthwaites Bakery of Crosby, Liverpool which has announced that its closing its doors for the last time  - after 112 years of trading. It holds a special place for Our Stephen. 



 
 

Steve was lucky enough to do his bakery apprenticeship at this time honoured establishment under the mentoring of the much loved 65 year old Snowy Billington, a baker who had already worked for Satts for 50 years ... man & boy.

At the age of 14 Steve knew what he wanted to do when he left school. His Uncle Harry  - a cook in the Navy - had revealed the magic of making bread when home on leave one time. That made his mind up, he was going to be a baker.

In the year before leaving school he nagged and pestered the then owner Mrs Wilson  until she agreed to give him a job. She was the daughter of old Wally Satterthwaite who opened the shop in 1910



Starting upstairs in the bakery, he learned his craft, made his mistakes but started his lifelong journey of making his living out of doing something he really loved doing.

"Satts" was famous for many delicacies, not  least of which was the Lancashire pork pie made from pork brought in from the rural areas surrounding Liverpool ... this was in the days before intensive pig farming that sadly today accounts for much of what is sold.

As a 16 year old, one of the apprentices jobs was to learn how to "jelly the pies". Upstairs in the "pie room" the older bakers had made the hot water pastry (that makes pork pies distinctively different), chopped and seasoned the pork before hand raising the pie ready for lidding.

Old Wally - retired when Steve was an apprentice but a regular visitor to his bakeries and shops - announced that Steve was without doubt the best young pie jellier they had ever had, never a drop spilled.


MR SATTERTHWAITE


HOWEVER ...
 
He was a bit of a scally at times :-)
 
 
Like the time he was in the bakery , late afternoon when he and another lad were cleaning up at the end of a day. His mate asked Steve to chuck him the wooden handbrush so he could clear down the table of flour. Chuck it he did, although the ceiling was a bit lower than he anticipated (so he says!) and he hit the fluorescant tube on the ceiling ... this promptly exploded scattering everything around with shattered glass. On the table was a bucket with 30lb of minced pork ... now laced with glass. Suffice to say this was not one of his best days.





Or the time he was working in "despatch" , packing up the orders ready for delivery.  There was one particular lad who came into the area to collect his deliveries every Saturday and all he woud say to Steve was "Give us a pie" week in week out. He was older than Steve but he was told to b**ger off. Until finally Steve did give him a pie, although a doctored one  (he'd removed the lid, added a handful of pepper replacing the lid carefully afterwards). The following week he was chased around the bakery by the furious delivery lad who determined to wreak revenge on his oppressor. Didn't catch him though  - a scally Steve may be, but he's a fast one!




Satts had taught him well.  During his apprenticeship he earned "Student of the Year" at Colquitt Bakery College, Liverpool followed by the National Hovis Baker of the year.



When he left at 21, Mrs Wilson knew he would make it, just 4 years later and he had set up his first bakery.

He learned much at Satts, from the traditions of bread making the many varieties we all used to see piled high on old bakery shelves, to the finer art of patisserie. Afraid  nothing but the real McCoy tastes like patisserie confectionary.




So here we are 35 years after starting as that young apprentice, Steve still proudly continues the traditions of the bakers he learnt from and loves his job.

So as I was saying, as one door closes another opens. What better tribute to that lifelong baker Snowy Billington & the Satts establishment that  Da Kitchen Bakery's best selling products are Satterthwaites most popular product, the Bavarian Slice. Still going strong 690 miles north of Liverpool in Yell, Shetland.


Satterthwaites 1910-2012 .
 
Thanks for everything.


















Da Gallery