Hello all. Just a reminder that today at 2pm the town’s traditional St Patrick’s Day Parade will be setting off from the town hall. We are predicting that about six floats and an Irish marching band will be taking part so there’s plenty for the whole family to see. Due to fracking on the high street the parade will take a slight detour this year, going through the council estate, past the mosque and nuclear energy plant before ending up at the playing fields where this year’s Shamrock Queen will be crowned. The parade will then return along the same circuitous route ending up at The Blind Badger pub car park where traditional Irish refreshments are being laid on. It’s bound to be a grand afternoon and celebrations in the pub will probably last most of the week as they’ve got 24 hour opening until Tuesday. So “have a grand St Paddy’s day and have a drink on the little people” as they say in the emerald isle. Gary “The Leprechaun” Grimsby. Mayor. Beckworth Town Council

(Above) A traditional float from the Beckworth St Patricks Day Parade, circa 1920, with The Shamrock Queen on top (Photo courtesy of Beckworth Museum)