Introducing The Lewes Pound. Well it's been around for a while now and seems to be catching on in the town. As an idea to stimulate trade within the borough, it's caught on. You can buy your pounds at certain centres including the town hall and spend them in participating shops and pubs (and that seems to include most of the places you actually might want to shop or drink) - naturally Sid the supermarket supremo in any of his guises will have nothing to do with the scheme. If at any time you feel worried that you don't have 'real' money in your pocket you can exchange your Lewes note for a gold coloured clod. You can have them as change and thus increase circulation. The note itself is properly watermarked and has all the familiar swirls and flourishes so beloved of the engraver (sorry, Mac operator), it' s numbered too and the admirable Harveys brewery has a weekly draw based upon such numbers being in the lucky winners posession. A fine study of Lewes' most influential citizen, Tom Paine adorns the front and also an image of Lewes castle creeps into the local iconography. All this as you would expect from the town whose drinkers defeated, nay trounced, the mighty Greene King in a fight to have their local beer still served in one of Lewes' favourite pubs - The Lewes Arms.
12 comments:
If I ever got the chance I would happily use the rather attractive looking note.
This is marvellous Jon, it makes me want to come and live in Lewes, something that has crossed my mind in the past. But never mind the note, I like the look of that book it's resting on.
And you'd love it too. It has so much going for it. There's the smell of cordite in the air as we approach the glorious fifth and the anticipation is palpable.
Horsfield's History of Lewes is a two volume tome of great wonder and beauty, only approached by Gideon Mantell's (he of the Iguanadon) 'Guide to Lewes' - a slim book of the early 19th century designed for visitors to the town.
That well known Liberal Ron Combo would lurve Lewes's 5th Nov celebrations...!!! Is it a vain hope that you'll be covering it your next blog, Jon?
The Lewes Firework Authority could do no worse than to get Protestant Ron over, truss him up in a Papal overall and set fire to him. Not only would he burn well, like any 100% proof spirit, but they'd be some kind of primitive justice in his being mistaken for a papist.
Nov 5th may well be on the agenda...it is so positively anarchic despite the many attempts to dumb it down. Ron may find it more satisfactory to join others in the throwing of extremely dangerous fireworks at the 'Bishop' delivering his sermon at the Cliffe bonfire firesite. The walking wounded perambulate aimlessly around the town for days afterwards. When I were a lad you couldn't gain entrance to a pub without some sort of coded knock...now it's every man for himself especially at The Rainbow in the High Street.
This does sound like a Bloggety Bloggers excursion next year, with Mr.Dudley providing the 'open sesame' normally denied the passing touriste.
I have always wanted to attend the celebrations on November 5th. I was just thinking the other day actually of bringing a school trip over to London next autumn and then taking them all down to Lewes on November 5th to show them the true face of Anglican tolerance.
Personally, I would recommend the Ottery St Mary Tar Barrel run on Nov 5....infinitely more pagan!
I've got deja vue or whatever it is. Didn't we have exactly the same conversations last November? I'm about to take Youngest Boys to the Hallaton cricket pitch do, so I'll photograph the bonfire. Again.
Yes. Time flies. Bonfire Night once more. I had a look at the Lewes Town Council website and they advise non-Lewes folk to keep away or they'll be horribly burned or, worse, won't find anywhere to park.
I look forward to a DudleyVision 'I Went So You Didn't Have To' description in a subsequent post. Pass the sparklers Keith.
Yes, come on Jon. Things like Catherine Wheels going out of control and taking the Mayoress's eye out. Make it up if you have to, we don't mind.
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