Stephen Davy-Osborne Archives

Rock Challenge – NE Schools Battle It Out

Aberdeen City, Articles, Community, Featured, Information, News No Responses »

Feb 272012

By Stephen Davy-Osborne.

The AECC was alive with the sound of music as the region’s academies went head to head in the Aberdeen Rock Challenge heat.
Pupils from Hazlehead, Bucksburn, Mackie, Kemnay, Turiff, Westhill and Fraserburgh, along with premier team Peterhead Academy, danced it out on stage to win one of three coveted places in the first ever Scottish final. Opening the show were first time entrants Hazlehead Academy.

Drama teacher Morag Duncan told Aberdeen Voice:

“I felt that Rock Challenge was something that Hazlehead Academy really ought to get involved with as it brings children from all different year groups together. And by setting them a goal they all try to achieve better things.”

Dancing as part of Hazlehead’s performance was 16 year old Alexa Riley.

“I wanted to get involved to show the younger members of the school that the seniors aren’t so scary as everyone thinks they are,” she explained. “I love dancing, so I just wanted the younger pupils to feel that they could get involved too.”

Megan Joyce, 15, of Bucksburn Academy said:

“This was my third Rock Challenge. I love the atmosphere with all the schools getting involved. Backstage when you’re waiting to go on it’s really really exciting, that’s what I like about it all. And getting ready to go on, that’s a big part for everyone here, just because you’re hyping up, it’s a great feeling. “

Barbara Milroy, a teacher at Bucksburn Academy, said:

“I am so proud of them because they’ve done it all themselves. They’ve created their own ideas and they’ve danced their hearts out. They’ve just put everything into it!”

The idea behind rock challenge is for students to be at their best without any stimulants, but rather to get a natural high from being together and working together as a team. Pupils are also asked to sign a pledge that during the time they are working on Rock Challenge they won’t take part in drugs and alcohol and are going to lead a healthy existence.

“There have been very positive knock-on effects in the school as a result of taking part in Rock Challenge,” added Ms Milroy. “We have pupils who are attending regularly at school because of this activity and making this a focal point in their week, and it’s very evident that they are thinking more about their bodies and how they need to be healthy to take part.”

Playing an on-stage drunk in Bucksburn’s performance was 17 year old Shaun Lancaster.

“It was quite fun because it pushed my acting to the limits,” he explained. “By playing it melodramatically and very big I was able to portray to the audience that it’s not a good thing to be doing, and hopefully encourage others not to abuse alcohol in that way.”

Rock Challenge in Aberdeen has had longstanding relationship with Grampian Police, who have sponsored the event for the past 10 years. Karen Simpson, Youth Diversion Coordinator at Grampian Police enthused:

“I love Rock Challenge, and I think that it is just amazing that the young people are given an opportunity to perform in a venue like the AECC. The teachers are there just to guide them, all of the hard work that you see up on the stage is all their own, and the performances we see just get better and better each year!”

Stage manager Dan McCredy said:

“This year there was so much hype on Facebook and Twitter before the event we knew it was going to be a bit special and the teams certainly didn’t disappoint. The standard at the Aberdeen event was exceptional and the atmosphere throughout the entire day was absolutely electric. It was a perfect way to round off our time in Scotland and was a fantastic showcase of talent of young people in the North East of Scotland.”

Scottish Regional Representative Lesley-Ann Begg added:

“The news of the first ever Scottish final was a huge incentive for young people to be their best and I’m looking forward to seeing the performances again in Dundee.”

Walking away with the winning position from the Aberdeen heat was Fraserburgh Academy, who will be joined by runners-up Westhill and Kemnay for the Scottish final in Dundee in June.

www.rockchallenge.co.uk

Rock Challenge UK 2012 This Saturday 21.02.12

Aberdeen City, Aberdeenshire, Articles, Community, Featured, Information, News No Responses »

Feb 162012

By Stephen Davy-Osborne.

This weekend will see secondary school pupils from across the region create a right song and dance in the Aberdeen heat of Rock Challenge UK.
The event, which takes place at the AECC on Saturday, will see performances put on by pupils of the city and shire’s academies on the big stage in front of a huge audience, each hoping to win a coveted place in the first ever Scottish final.

Scottish Regional Representative for Rock Challenge UK, Lesley-Ann Begg, said:

“This really is such a special event. It allows young people to get up there on the stage, at somewhere as big as the AECC, and put on a performance, doing something that they love, in front of all their friends and family.”

Rock Challenge is a world-wide performing arts competition for children aged 12-18. Young people perform with their school and are given eight minutes to express themselves through dance or drama. Ms Begg said:

“The idea behind Rock Challenge is to try and promote an adrenaline high, getting young people away from drink and drugs and into something more creative.”

After the Aberdeen heat this weekend, the winning acts will join the winners from the two other Scottish heats, held earlier in the month in Inverness and Arbroath, for the Scottish final in Dundee on June 23.

“This really is quite exciting,” Ms Begg added. “We’ve never had a final in Scotland before. In the past we have always had to travel down to Grimsby. This just shows how popular the event is becoming.”

Tickets for Saturday’s heat are available from the AECC Box Office and ticketmaster.co.uk

Round The World In 2 x 80 Days – City Man Gets On His Bike

Articles, Charity, Community, Information, News, Sport No Responses »

Feb 162012

An Aberdeen man, set to cycle the entire circumference of the globe, has set off on his adventure. Stephen Davy-Osborne reports.

Kyle Hewitt, 25, of Northfield, boarded a train at Aberdeen on Thursday afternoon to journey down to London where his immense challenge will begin. Mr Hewitt has spent the last year training hard in anticipation of the gruelling task, and even undertook a sponsored stationary cycle through the Bon-Accord Centre to help raise awareness of his two chosen charities, Barnardos and Inspire.

While waiting to board the East Coast service that would take him south, Kyle was weighing up the challenge ahead.

“I’m ready to go!” he enthused

“The enormity of what I am doing will probably hit me in a moment of solitary abandonment, and I’ll probably be in the middle of nowhere, but right now I’m raring to go!

“My training has been going well recently. It has mainly been a case of winding it down and eating as much as I can, calorie-wise, although it has been hard trying to find the time to do so!”

The cycle will see Kyle travel 18,000 miles in just 160 days, arriving home in time for the opening ceremony of the London Olympics, bringing the record for the fastest circumnavigation of the globe back to Scotland.

“I will definitely be home in time for the Games,” he added.

“I’d love to come home within 100 days, but you never know what could happen out on the road, and even just one little thing could slow me down, and end up hampering that.”

Despite not being daunted by the extent of what awaits him on his departure from Greenwich Park, there is one part of his journey which is a cause for concern.

“The big bit that keeps coming up is British Columbia and Alaska,” he confides,

“It’s quite solitary and by the time I get there in around 45 days time it will be time for the bears to wake up! And I imagine they’ll be quite hungry!
“But that’s the real sense of adventure; I can’t wait to get stuck in there!”

www.inspired2inspire.org.uk

Who’s Cross? – What A Catastrapostrophe!

Aberdeen City, Articles, Community, Information, Opinion No Responses »

Jan 192012

By Stephen Davy-Osborne

Nationwide book-retailer Waterstone’s may well be investing in the future by making the change over to e-books and readers, but the announcement that stores are soon to lose the apostrophe from their shop-fronts is what will drag the company into modern times.
– Or at least, that is the idea.

Announcing the change, which enraged the grammar police, Managing Director James Daunt said:

“Waterstones without an apostrophe is, in a digital world of URLs and email addresses, a more versatile and practical spelling.”

If the humble apostrophe is no longer good enough for a purveyor of literacy, then what place does it have in the fast food chain of McDonald’s or supermarket Sainsbury’s?

Neither of these non academic stores include the apostrophe in their website URLs, yet the apostrophe remains perched precariously between the final two letters on their shop facade, showing that these companies once belonged to a someone.

Indeed, Waterstone’s also was once a family run business, founded by a Mr Tim Waterstone a good 30-odd years ago. He no longer has anything to do with his legacy, nor is a family member at the helm in these uncertain waters. The removal of the apostrophe therefore distances the modern day company from its heritage.

Perhaps a deliberate move. Or perhaps a minimal cost PR stunt, knowing that any misuse or slight made against the apostrophe, which many would argue is integral to the English language, is likely to draw criticism and extensive media coverage. Especially from the Apostrophe Protection Society.

Professor Patrick Crotty, Head of the School of Language and Literature at the University of Aberdeen said:

“Everybody knows what Waterstone’s means, whether there is an apostrophe there or not. I don’t think that anything major is lost. I know some people get very excited about this and write to the Mail and Telegraph and so forth, but I must confess to a certain scepticism about their zeal. But when marking a student’s essay I would want the apostrophes to be in the correct place, because that is part of what we call Standard English.

“The English language has been around for a fair number of centuries, but the apostrophe rule itself has only been around for two centuries. There are some establishments, such as Kings College Cambridge which is far older than the apostrophe rule; and that has always been Kings College without an apostrophe. But these things change over time.”

Charity Cash For Cans

Aberdeen City, Articles, Charity, Community, Featured, Information, News No Responses »

Jan 072012

By Stephen Davy-Osborne, with thanks to David Forbes.

An Aberdeen charity is seeking all of your old aluminium cans to help them raise enough money to buy a much needed mini bus.

Future Choices Aberdeen was set up following the closure of the Choices Day Centre, which left a number of members of the community with nowhere to socialise in a safe and friendly environment.

The charity offers disabled people and their carers in Aberdeen opportunities to get involved in the community through a number of voluntary projects within the city.

They now desperately require much needed funds so that they can buy a minibus to allow them to get out and about in the city.

City carer David Forbes, 29, said:

“The Cash for Cans Appeal doesn’t ask for your money, it simply asks for your empty undamaged aluminium cans, which then can be used in exchange for cash to go towards getting the charity its dream.”

So far, the appeal has reached over 100 cans already and also received the backing from Dame Anne Begg MP, Lewis Macdonald MSP and many other local high profile individuals. Even local schools are getting on board this appeal.

To support the Cans for Cash Appeal, please donate any aluminium cans to:

The Stewart Craft Centre,
Unit 2,
Deemouth Business Centre
South Esplanade East,
Aberdeen, AB11 9PB,
or alternatively to Lewis Macdonald MSP Office, 80 Rosemount Place, Aberdeen. AB25 2XN or call Mr Forbes on 07821700046 to arrange a pick-up.

Contact Aberdeen Charity, cash for cans appeal on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100003294062956&ref=ts

City Man In 1000 Mile Charity Cycle ‘Through’ Bon-Accord Centre

Aberdeen City, Articles, Charity, Community, Information, News, Sport No Responses »

Dec 152011

Are you feeling inspired to do something for charity this festive period? Maybe cycling, walking, running – maybe not ? At least you can go along, show your support for an amazing fundraising effort and hand over some of your hard-earned cash for a great cause. Voice’s Stephen Davy Osborne caught up with cyclist Kyle Hewitt.

An Aberdeen man is cycling 1000 miles through the Bon-Accord Centre this week to raise funds for charity. Perched atop a stationary bicycle, Kyle Hewitt, 25, is undertaking the marathon mission to help raise funds for local charity Inspire and national children’s charity Barnardos.
He began peddling on Monday morning, with much support from friends, family and passersby, and hopes to reach his goal of 1000 miles by closing time on Sunday evening.

Still peddling hard, Kyle took some time to speak to the Aberdeen Voice:

“Inspiration is the biggest reason that I am here. I was inspired to get out there and do something different by people that have done something different, enduring and challenging in the past. It is really about me doing what I was inspired to do, but instead of just being inspired and doing it, I’m hoping to keep the inspiration chain going. So from one person inspiring two others, two others will inspire four others and so on.”

However, this event is just a mere warm-up for a significantly more arduous challenge which faces Kyle in the New Year. On February 18th, he will be cycling out of London’s Greenwich Park on an 18,000 mile circumnavigation of the globe, aiming to be back in London within 160 days in time for the opening ceremony of the 2012 Olympics.

With less than nine weeks to go until he sets off, Kyle’s enthusiasm remains high.

“Time is ticking away, and even the weeks are into single figures now! It’s a whole years planning coming to a head and it’s really exciting to watch it all click in the last worrying few months!”

Kyle can be found in the Bon-Accord Centre atrium until Sunday evening.

For further information check out: www.inspired2inspire.org.uk

Hurricane ‘Bawbag’ – City Gets Off ‘Lightly’

Aberdeen City, Articles, Community, Featured, Information, News No Responses »

Dec 092011

After experiencing one of the mildest Novembers on record, winter has taken a hold of the region with a vengeance, with forecasters predicting worse still to come. Voice’s Stephen Davy Osborne reports.

Rewind 12 months and you would find the region hidden under several feet of snow, with salt stockpiles dwindling.

So far this year however, December has yet to see a heavy snow fall within the city. Instead, Aberdeen and the Shire have been battered by severe gales, with wind speeds reaching up to 160mph in the highlands.
A number of homes have also been left without power as a result.

But in true local spirit, residents of the North-East haven’t let this storm get them down, and have taken it deep into their hearts; affectionately endorsing the renaming of “Hurricane Bawbag”, which now even has its very own entry on Wikipedia.

Grampian Police have put out weather warnings to motorists on a number of highland roads, and have even closed the snow gates between Cockbridge and Tomintoul leading to the Lecht Ski Centre. A similar situation can be found on the A93 Braemar to Cairnwell Road, which is also closed due to drifting snow.

The A939 between Ballater and Corgarff, and the A96 from Inverurie to Elgin have been left open, but given an advisory “pass with care” status.

Interestingly though, Aberdeen’s main thoroughfare, Union Street was not included on this list, despite a very dangerous large obstruction. A section of the much-hyped brand new Christmas lights was blown from its moorings on either side of the street and came crashing down onto the busy main street between Natwest and the Filling Station towards the west end of the granite mile.

Miraculously nobody was injured in the freak incident, although traffic was disrupted while police cleared the debris of the mangled metal lights structure.

One on-looker was very pleased to note however that local bus services continued to run, even manoeuvring around the obstruction to get to the bus stops, so as not to cause further disruption to passengers.

Whoever said that the Christmas spirit was not alive amongst Aberdeen’s public transport system?

The bad weather is expected to continue into the weekend and the start of next week, with blizzards forecasted as the cold weather sets in once again.

Grand Tour – A ‘Mega Mini Drive’ For Childrens Charity

Aberdeen City, Charity, Community, Events, Featured, Information No Responses »

Aug 242011

Two Aberdeen residents are embarking upon a Mini adventure of epic proportions to attend a charity event. Voice’s Stephen Davy-Osborne is all set to participate in the event.

Stephen Davy-Osborne and Steven Gerrie will be driving cross-country from Aberdeen to Westward Ho! in Devon, South West England in a classic Mini Cooper, to take part in the annual Legendary North Devon Grand Tour.

Hundreds of Minis will come together to raise money for local children’s charity Children’s Hospice South West.

The event, now in its 17th year, has raised thousands of pounds in sponsorship and donations for the charity, and their North Devon Hospice Little Bridge House.

Event organiser Terry Baker, who has been driving the event right from the very beginning spoke to the Aberdeen Voice about what he thinks makes the event truly unique, encouraging – as they are affectionately referred to in Mini circles – “nutcases” to come back year after year to participate:

“Maybe it is the Mini owners who take part and the incredible amount of money they have raised over the years. Maybe it is the thousands of people who line the streets and wait in lay-bys, stand on street corners and fill the villages and towns just waiting for the Minis to go by.

“Maybe it is the fantastic motorbike marshals who ride ahead and keep all the minis together and close the roads so that we can keep going. Any one of these would make the Grand Tour special, but when you put them all together with a group of very special children and their families from the children’s Hospice you have something that is pure magic and not just for the Mini owners.”

The event takes place over the August bank holiday weekend, taking in some of the finest scenery the South-west has to offer; driving through streets lined with locals and holiday makers alike who have come out in force to show their support for the charity.

The convoy of around 300 Minis drives noisily right up to the front door of Little Bridge House and around the purpose-built roundabout the wrong way, while children staying at the hospice wave them on with flags and banners created especially for the day.

This part of the run is especially poignant, as Terry recounts:

“When we drive through the Hospice we are privileged to see the children having fun; laughing, smiling and waving flags. It is hard to remember that Little Bridge House is a place where get well cards do not work, and that no matter how many hugs you give the special children you can never kiss them better; all the magic in the world cannot change their diagnosis.”

Perhaps it is not surprising that many a driver and co-pilot emerge from Little Bridge House with a lump in their throats.

If you would like to make a donation to the event, or for further information, check out: www.justgiving.com/LNDGT/

Charity The Winner As Rowan Scoops Nex-Factor Prize

Aberdeen City, Articles, Community, Information, News No Responses »

Aug 182011

After months of auditions and much speculation, the North East has spoken and chosen the winner of the first ever NEX Factor. Voice’s Stephen Davy-Osborne reports, with thanks to Yasmeen Ali.

The singing contest, organised by Aberdeen based charity Malaika Africa and Cove based event management company Valley Events, encouraged teenagers to put their musical skills to the test in order to raise funds to build a learning centre for street kids in Mirerani, Tanzania.

The first rounds of auditions were held during June and July in Aberdeen, Dundee and Elgin and out of a total of 45 hopefuls including bands, ten finalists were chosen to perform at the Aberdeen Exhibition and Conference Centre in the live grand final.

Whittling the ten semi finalists down to three were judges Alex Miller, Steven Milne, Joanne Randall and Ross Milne who selected Rowan Ah-See, Amber Hughes and Cara Mitchell to perform again, leaving the final decision to the audience, who chose 16-year old Rowan – from Aberdeen – as the winner of the first ever NEX Factor thanks to his fantastic voice and guitar playing skills,

Rowan Ah-See ( pictured ) walked away with the much coveted prizes of £1,000 in cash, a professional photo shoot, a recording session at a local recording studio and a luxury car to take the winner to the photo shoot.

Yasmeen Ali and Mirjam Meek were very pleased with how the evening went and with all the positive feedback received:

“We couldn’t have wanted for a better event and it will be a challenge to do even better next year because the standard of talent was already so high”.

The sell-out evening was a huge success and the charity managed to raise nearly £6,000.

More info and Pictures of the event here: The-NEX-Factor-2011.html

By Order Of Me – Unique Views From Broad Hill

Aberdeen City, Articles, Environment, Events, Featured No Responses »

Apr 152011

By Stephen Davy-Osborne.

With the recent fair weather and the school holidays in full-swing, many visitors to Aberdeen beach may have noticed an addition to Broad Hill.

Situated between the Beach Ballroom and Pittodrie, the small hill is well known as a spot to avoid on a blustery day, but with better weather on the horizon the installation of a new open-air exhibition could not have chosen a better location.

BY ORDER OF ME is a collection of wooden signs scattered across the hill, and is the collective work of visual artist Rachel O’Neill, writer Davey Anderson and 54 pupils from Kingsford Primary School. The collaboration, organised by Extreme Aberdeen and the National Theatre Scotland, in partnership with the City Council’s Art Education team, set out to challenge the way visitors interact with their surroundings.

The signs themselves were inspired by the many prohibitive signs found across the city, and were created to represent many young people’s view of a an urban landscape that is cluttered with signage ordering what can and cannot be done: No Ball Games, No Skateboarding, Keep Off the Grass, to name but a few.

With such signs as “No Kissing on the Hill, I Mean It”, it is evident that those taking in the fresh sea breeze are being encouraged to ponder the world from a different point of view.

While they are not inviting visitors to run amok on Broad Hill (although one sign does state we should run down the hill screaming) the purpose remains to encourage visitors to enjoy their surroundings and the spectacular views across the bay to one side, and the city sky-line to the other. The exhibition will be in place until early next spring.

For further information please visit www.nationaltheatrescotland.com

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