ON February 23 I and my five-year old son, along with a group of friends and their children, went to the theatre in Honley to see a matinee performance of the pantomime of Dick Whittington.

The performance of all the cast members was absolutely brilliant. They all kept the audience of both adults and young children fully entertained for a two hour performance. The theatre itself was a pleasure to visit with friendly and helpful staff and the price of this performance itself - £10 for two tickets! More than excellent value for money.

You can keep your big theatres with their extortionate prices in the big cities. Sometimes you need to look no further than the local area where you live or work for good all round value and entertainment.

I would like to thank the entire cast for an excellent afternoon out and some marvellous entertainment. The children are still talking about King Rat and the pirates days later. I can fully recommend a visit to this marvellous theatre and can’t wait for the next pantomime or family entertainment to come around. Well done to all.

Julie and Ben Astbury

Stainland

Paradise lost?

I HAVE just returned from my daily walk and cannot remain silent any longer!

Picture this ... a little piece of paradise? Open green spaces incorporating playing fields and recreational areas. Indigenous trees and wild flowers supporting a wide range of wildlife. Wonderful rural views in every direction. Public footpaths offering beautiful local walks. A sense of community.

Now picture this ... an urban wasteland?

Abandoned settees, empty vodka bottles, lager cans and upturned rubbish bins. Paths and public areas littered with broken glass, dog excrement, sweet papers and the occasional empty abandoned condom packet. Fly tipped garden waste, vandalised trees with branches hanging off, “coined” cars, trampled gardens etc, etc. A sense of sadness.

You’d be forgiven for thinking you were reading two different places, sadly both descriptions are of HD8, which was, until recently, a post code to aspire to.

Declining standards slowly destroy areas like Highburton. It is saddening to see. I have lived here for 20 years and have brought my children up here. My parents were local people so I have known the area for a very long time.

I prefer to remain anonymous as, the people who are destroying the area would not think twice about vandalising my car or house.

This is a risk I cannot take.

Highburton resident

Passing on thanks

I WOULD like to thank the kind person who found my bus pass and returned it to the bus station. Thank you again.

Brian Lockwood

Dalton

Missing choirs

DURING the last nine days Huddersfield Town Hall and the Huddersfield University has been hosting the Mrs Sunderland Music Festival. The halls have rung out with wonderful music of all kinds from African drumming, solo instruments, piano, woodwind, brass through to singing, children to adults of every style. There has been musical theatre, poetry and readings, a real feast of the arts. I do wonder, where are the audiences to support the artists who have worked so very hard to achieve such high standards?

However, the greatest surprise was Saturday, the adult choral day. Huddersfield has a wealth of choral singing, it is famous and well-known. So why, when the town supports at least five male voice choirs, six ladies choirs and a couple of mixed voice choirs were there only three of this number competing in “our own” music festival, which is probably one of the largest in the country?

It was a great day, meeting with choirs from other towns and cities and enjoying each choir’s music making.

I know some choirs are going through problems at present. The choir I belong to had its own very recent difficulties, but come on choirs make the effort and support the Mrs Sunderland Music Festival next year, Saturday, February 28 2009.

Pauline VE McNeil

Lindley

Positive pensioner

I AM sick of hearing the whingeing pensioners. We are given £200 for winter fuel, £300 if you are over 80, plus £8.50 if there is a very cold week. This has been a mild winter.

We get free bus fares and in April will be able to use our passes on local buses in Blackpool, Weston-Super-Mare etc.

Perhaps you would rather live in China or Russia.

A grateful nearly 70-year old

Lindley