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Christmas Greetings from the European Capital of Culture 2008!

For the past year, the Jewells have enjoyed Liverpool's status as Capital of Culture and participated in many of the key events.

Starting with The Liverpool Nativity in December 2007. Alan & Rose stood in the freezing cold to watch the BBC TV live broadcast featuring Jennifer Ellison and that bloke who used to be Eddie Yeats in Coronation Street. We sang along to the Liverpool pop soundtrack, ably backed by local band, the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra.

The official launch itself got mixed reviews from the Jewell family: it was visually spectacular (acrobats on cranes and actors on the top of tall buildings) but when the headline act is Ringo Starr, singing a song what he wrote specially, you just know you shouldn't have got your hopes up.

Alan & Rose went to Anfield to see Paul McCartney and were glad they did. The man has quite a back catalogue, you'll have to agree. As compère Peter Kay observed, he's a local lad who has done pretty well in the old music business.

We all made trips into the city to see La Princesse - the 50-foot mechanical spider that roamed Liverpool accompanied by musicians and French actors playing mad scientists. Local scallies nicknamed her "Princess La" - but you probably have to be a scouser to find that funny.

Rose particularly enjoyed spotting SuperLambBananas - clones of the original statue that appeared all over the city, and beyond.

Here in Halewood, we organised CultureFest 2008, a fortnight of cultural events to make sure that the fun wasn't confined to the city. Alan claims that it was his idea - he suggested at a church council meeting that we should arrange a cultural festival in Halewood (despite some wag suggesting that there was more culture in a pot of yoghurt). Another church member took up the idea with some enthusiasm and we pitched it to Halewood Town Council. The Town Council decided it was a good idea - so good that they soon forgot it was ours and organised their own festival. In the end, the two festivals merged and a whole fortnight of events was arranged in June/July. Highlights include bagging the Liverpool Phil for a concert at Halewood Leisure Centre, a performance of Trial By Jury by the Bentley Operatic Society, and having our evening service from St Nicholas' recorded and broadcast on BBC Radio Merseyside. (CDs available from Alan.)

Plans for CultureFest 2009 are already under way and we are also talking about a Winter Festival. (Alan is thinking of suggesting calling it 'Christmas'.)

Family News

For the first time in 6 years, all three of the children are in full-time education. Ta da! Regular readers of News of the Jewells will remember that each of them has had M.E. and that they have missed an awful lot of school. (The home tutor once arrived on our doorstep and reached into her handbag to find her keys, only to remember that she doesn't actually live in our house and therefore doesn't have a key to our front door.) They all seem to have come through the worst of it and are beginning to make good progress again. Chris was 21 in October (imagine that!) and is in his second year reading maths at Liverpool University. Matthew, 18 in July, has begun his anatomy course at Liverpool; and Lizzy, 16 in July, is doing A levels in English, English Literature, Psychology and History at Liverpool Community College. Haven't they done well?

The Institution (the heavy metal band in which Chris plays drums and Matt, guitar) launched an album in May this year. (It was recorded in our dining room.) They got a great crowd at the Barfly in Liverpool and rocked the joint. Sadly, their front man, Joe Maryanji, in a moment of characteristic ebullience began their last gig by wrecking his knee. He performed a few numbers lying on his back on the stage, before being taken away by ambulance. The band has been rather quiet for a while, but hopes to begin gigging again in the New Year.

Rose has a new job! She now teaches at Sir John Deane's 6th Form College in Northwich. Having said that she would never get a job that meant crossing the Runcorn Bridge every morning, she now does exactly that and describes it as "the best job ever". As well as teaching maths, she also played piano for the college's production of Little Shop of Horrors and accompanies the choir.

Alan is still Team Rector in Halewood, having been Vicar and then Rector for a total of 11 years. His Licence expired in November, which presumably means he is currently doing the job illegally, but after a review process, the Bishop has agreed to re-licence him in the New Year. Alan is pleased still to have a job and is enjoying a newly refurbished church building. He is also quietly pleased to report that on a number of occasions this year, the church has been so full that it has been standing room only. (On Remembrance Sunday - not his favourite occasion in the church year, admittedly - he was faced with over 300 people in a building that seats 220. He doesn't want to take all the credit, you understand, but feels that he must be doing something right. Or at least, not doing anything too wrong.)