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| Tesco running out of Unilever products amid Brexit price row |
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Consumer goods giant Unilever has been accused of 'exploiting' British shoppers by withdrawing more than 200 much-loved products from Tesco after the supermarket refused to agree to its 10 per cent price hike. Critics claim the world's largest consumer goods manufacturer, which makes an estimated £2 billion profit a year, is “using Brexit as an excuse to raise prices”. The Anglo-Dutch firm, which heavily campaigned against Brexit, claims it has been forced to increase prices as a result of the falling value of the pound in the wake of the referendum. However major supermarket chains such as Tesco have rejected the higher prices – prompting Unilever to halt deliveries to its stores. It means popular Unilever products such as Marmite, Flora, Persil, Dove, PG Tips, Vaseline and Ben & Jerry's are no longer available on Tesco's website and will not be restocked when store shelves are empty. The stand-off has left the supermarket facing a shortage of more than 200 brands including Surf detergent, Comfort fabric conditioner, Hellmann's mayonnaise, Pot Noodle and Chicken Tonight.
Unilever has demanded steep price increases to offset the higher cost of imported commodities, which are priced in Euros and Dollars, according to executives at multiple supermarket groups. But Tesco signalled it would fight the rises, removing Unilever products from its website and warning that some of the items could disappear from shelves if the dispute dragged on. Other supermarkets have warned that they could follow suit.
Britain’s biggest grocer is led by Dave Lewis, a former Unilever “lifer” (pictured above) who ran the Anglo-Dutch company’s personal care business, overseeing brands that included Dove soap, Signal toothpaste and Tresemme shampoo. He had been seen as a potential successor to Paul Polman, Chief Executive of Unilever, before he jumped ship to Tesco two years ago.
The pound has fallen 17 per cent since Britain voted to leave the EU (see chart below). Officials cautioned ahead of the June 23 referendum that a vote for Brexit would cause food prices to rise, a warning that Eurosceptic MPs have dismissed as “scaremongering”. Mr Lewis signalled last week that he was limbering up for a fight with suppliers that tried to use the fall in sterling to push through price increases. He said many of them had failed to pass on currency benefits to consumers when sterling was on the way up, and that he was “uncomfortable” with efforts to raise prices on the way down.
“That’s the way you have to negotiate,” said Bruno Monteyne, an analyst at Bernstein. “You have to draw a line in the sand and say, ‘OK, we’re going to delist you.’” An executive at another British supermarket group said Unilever had threatened to cut off its entire supply unless it agreed to an across-the-board price increase of 10 per cent. He said the retailer would consider banishing Unilever products from its stores rather than comply with the ultimatum. An executive at another consumer goods manufacturer said Unilever would probably regard Tesco’s action as a negotiating tactic rather than a serious threat. Mr Monteyne agreed that, while Tesco’s size gave it a strong negotiating position, the grocer would untimately be forced to reach a compromise. “Unilever is very big and Tesco can’t get around not working with them,” he said. “Dave Lewis might be wanting to show he’s not shying away from his former employer, but really there is much more at stake.” However late on Thursday the Company released the following announcement: “Unilever is pleased to confirm that the supply situation with Tesco in the UK and Ireland has now been successfully resolved.” Suddenly peace has broken out between Tesco and Unilever!!
There was plenty of competition as well at the Oxshott Bridge Club last night as 11 + 1/2 Tables sat down to contest our regular Club Night. The Star Performance of the evening was shared between George Gardiner & Renate Lane and John Taylor & Dorothy Steinart who both scored an outstanding 60.91% to share First place among the Pairs playing East/West; they also shared 35 Master Points!! They were 8 Match points ahead of Wordy Price & Gabrielle Roberts who came Third with 59.09%, with Susan & Mike Sadler coming Fourth with 55.68%. Congratulations must also go to Mike Mulligan & John French who came First among the Pairs playing North/South; they scored 57.92%, and were only 6 Match points ahead of Kevin & Deanne Goddard who scored 56.67% in Second place. There was then a bit if a gap before Tony Scott & Barbara Shaw claimed Third spot with 52.71%; they were just 8 Match points ahead of two Pairs who shared Fourth place. Both Joyce Gibbs & Elisa Money and Philip Golenberg & Dave Bowen scored 51.04% in Fourth place!! Well done to all our Master Points Winners!!
The distribution of the cards was pretty even between all four Players; North and West both played the contract on 7 Boards, while South and East both played the contract on only 5 Boards!! Only 9 out of the 24 Boards offered the limited prospect of a part-game contract, whereas no less than 15 Boards offered the higher-scoring "game" contracts. Four of these Boards offered Slam Opportunities abd there were seven actual Slam contracts bid and delivered during the evening!! Board 1 gave East 14 High Card Points with 5 Spades to the KJxxx, 4 Hearts to the KJ10x and a singleton Club; they would open 1 Spade. West has 15 HCPs in support with 5 Hearts to the Axxxx, 5 Clubs to the AKJxx and a singleton King of Diamonds; they would jump to 3 Hearts. Now East has to decide just how much propsect there is in the hands as bid so far!!?? Well last night one intrepid North/South Pair bid 3 Diamonds; they made only 7 tricks but their 100 penalty points turned out to be the best score for N/S on the Board!!?? One East/West Pair bid 3 Hearts; they made 11 tricks for 200 points!! The remaining 9 East/West Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; three made 11 tricks for 450 points; five made 12 tricks for 480 points; and one made the full set of 13 tricks for 510 points!! Now the "Expert Analysis" - which you can find along with the Travellers in the "Results" section - informs us that it is possible for both East and West to make a Slam in both 6 Hearts and in 6 No Trumps!!
Board 19 was a really interesting Board!!?? West had only 7 Diamonds to the KQxxxxx with a void in Hearts and 10 HCPs; they would surely open a weak 3 Diamonds!! East has an amazing 16 HCPs with four good Diamonds to the AJ10x, 5 good Hearts to the KQxxx and a singleton Club. Now presumably the Diamonds were tied up so there was only a worry about the missing Ace of Hearts and the singleton Club. East must worry that they will have only one bid, given West's weak opener. Should they take the chance of no response from West of should they go straight for "Blackwood", with the possible escape to 5 Diamonds??!! Well last night one East/West Pair bid 4 Diamonds; they made all 13 tricks for 190 points!!?? Eight more E/W Pairs bid game in 5 Diamonds; one made 12 tricks for 620 points, while the other seven made 13 tricks for 640 points!! But two E/W Pairs braved a Slam contract!! Many congratulations must go to Daphne Pugh & Gillian Lowe and to Susan & Mike Sadler who both bid Slam in 6 Diamonds; they both made the "full set" of 13 tricks to share a whopping 1390 points!! Well done indeed!! Now the "Expert Analysis" confirms that it is possible for both East and West - even against the best of defences - to make a GRAND SLAM in 7 Diamonds!!
Board 9 gave North 14 HCPs with 6 Hearts to the AKxxxx; they would open 1 Heart. South has 14 HCPs with a 4441 distribution including 4 Hearts to the Qxxx, 4 Spades to the QJxx and 4 Clubs to the AQ10x; they might well jump to 3 Clubs to show support and strength!! Rather than go straight to game, North may well show their extra length by bidding 3 Hearts. This will cause South to consider "Blackwood" and the option of Slam in either Hearts or in No Trumps!!?? Well last night 9 North/South Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; one made 11 tricks for 450 points, while 8 more Pairs made 12 tricks for 480 points!! But two Pairs bid a Slam contract!! Many congratulations must go to Tony Scott & Barbara Shaw and to Sheila Price & Jonathan Spring; they both bid Slam in 6 Hearts; they both made exactly 12 tricks to share an excellent 980 points, the top score of the evening on this Board!! The "Expert Analysis" confirms that both North and South can make a Slam contract in either 6 Hearts or in 6 No Trumps!!
Finally there is Board 7 which is reproduced at the top of this Report. Take another look just now at how YOU would bid and play this hand to maximise the potential of these hands!!?? You can see that Dealer South has 12 HCPs with 5 Hearts to the KQ10xx, 4 Clubs to the AQJx and a singleton Spade; they would open 1 Heart. North has an excellent hand with 6 Spades to the AK10xxx, 4 Clubs to the Kxxx and a void in Diamonds; they will jump to 2 Spades!! East has only 9 HCPs but, with 6 Diamonds to the AQJxxx, they might try to disrupt the bidding by offering 3 Diamonds!!?? South will mention their second 4-card suit with 4 Clubs. This leaves North with the big decision as to where the maximum potential lies on this Board??!! Well last night four North/South Pairs bid 3 Spades; all four made 12 tricks for 230 points!!?? Four more N/S Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; one made 10 tricks for 620 points; one made 12 tricks for 680 points; and two made the "full set" of 13 tricks for 710 points!! The remaining three Pairs bid a Slam contract!! Congratulations must go to Mike Mulligan & John French who bid Slam in 6 Clubs; they made all 13 tricks for 1390 points!! Congratulations must also go to David Rotherham & Sue Osborne who bid Slam in 6 Spades; they made 12 tricks for 1430 points!! But special congratulations must go to Sheila Price & Jonathan Spring who bid Slam in 6 Hearts; they amde all 13 tricks for a whopping 1460 points which turned out to be the top score on this Board for the evening!! Well done indeed!! now the "Expert Analysis" confirms that it is possible for both North and South to make a Slam in 6 Spades!! But is also possible for both North and South to make a GRAND SLAM in EITHER 7 Clubs or in 7 Hearts!! How did YOU do on revisiting these hands?? It is always really difficult to bid a GRAND SLAM especially in a minor suit!!?? Did YOU succeeed in delivering the potential of these hands?? Anyway well done to all our Actual Slam Achievers of the evening!!
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| Last updated : 14th Oct 2016 00:41 BST |
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| Cobham Free School buys office complex to house Junior and Senior Departments |
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Cobham Free School has secured Munro House in Cobham to be the new permanent home for its junior and senior departments. The school announced in late September that it has purchased the large Portsmouth Road office complex, which is next to Cobham Rugby Club. A statement from the school, which is also in Portsmouth Road, says it will renovate and convert the block internally to provide the "much needed educational facilities" for the Cobham community. It adds: “The acquisition of Munro House will mean that Cobham Free School’s plans for expansion can at last become a reality. Once the new building is ready, the school will serve pupils from 7 to 18, being able to accommodate a four-form entry senior department, including sixth form, and a two-form key stage 2 phase (junior department).” It added that the infant department will remain at the school’s current Portsmouth Road base at the Old Police Station, and will expand to two-form entry.
In July 2014 the school caused consternation when it announced it had secured a permanent site in six acres of open space off Anvil Lane in Cobham. Later that year it submitted an unsuccessful application to the Department for Education to build a new senior school in East Molesey. In July 2015 Cobham Free announced it was moving its new senior department over to the former Hurst Park Primary site in West Molesey on a temporary basis. The purchase of Munro House will consolidate both junior and senior departments in one Cobham base. Munro House is currently occupied by companies including construction specialists Willmott Dixon, technology firm Crestron UK and IT company Advanced Computer Software.
Sir Gerry Archer, the Chairman of the Cobham Conservation & Heritage Trust, said: “It's good news that the Cobham Free School has abandoned its plans to develop a large new school on the Green Belt site adjoining Anvil Lane, Cobham and instead intends moving into Munro House off the Fairmile. Some years ago we argued that Munro House would be a far more suitable site! We should like to congratulate the planning department at Elmbridge BC and our Councillors who have steadfastly held out to protect our Green Belt. This sends a clear, strong and unequivocal message to other potential developers 'hands off our green belt'." But who is paying for this amazing expenditure on the new Cobham Free School, you might well ask?? In these times of austerity and the drive to reduce public debt, would it not have been cheaper, fairer and better to reopen the Senior Departments at the existing St Andrews School in Cobham which were closed only some 20 years ago??
Michaela Khatib, executive head of Cobham Free (pictured centre above), believes it is a "moment to celebrate" in the history of the school. She said: “We are thrilled to be able to announce this exciting news, which is a key milestone in our journey to develop and amazing all-through school for the Cobham community. We have faced some significant challenges to get to this point in the project but are now delighted that we have such a superb solution. This building will provide fantastic facilities to serve out existing and future school community and enable us to expand to provide the very highest quality education for even more of Cobham’s new generation of pupils.”
Michaela Khatib lives in Cobham and has two daughters of school age. Having graduated from Homerton College, Cambridge University with a degree in Education and Music, she has gained over 20 years teaching experience, primarily in independent preparatory schools. Michaela previously worked as a Partnerships and Outreach Education Manager at the Yehudi Menuhin School in Cobham, developing links with the local community. As one of the original proposers for the Free School, she made a significant contribution to developing the Education Plan and Vision for the school. Having passed the rigorous Future Leaders Assessment Centre as part of the selection process for the Principal Designate role, Michaela successfully led the Primary School. for the first 2 years of operations and in Sep 2014 was appointed Executive Head of the all-through school.
Cobham Free School moved to the former Police Station pictured below at 89-95 Portsmouth Road on 4 November 2013, having spent its first fourteen months in temporary accommodation. The Portsmouth Road site has eight purpose built classrooms (including two Early Years facilities) library and sports/dining hall. The external spaces around the school building have recently being developed to include a new playground, Early Years outdoor learning zone, music practice pod and kitchen garden. Once the all-through school opens in permanent accommodation, the Old Police Station will become a two form entry infant department and the Key Stage 2 pupils will join the senior students on their new site. In addition the school have recently taken out a lease on The Gospel Hall in Anyards Road, Cobham. This building has a special place in the history of the school, as it was our first ever 'home', having been occupied by the founder pupils and staff on opening in 2012. The Gospel Hall has been converted to provide a spacious Music and Modern Foreign Languages Department.
There were several Members who felt that they needed to go back to school after last night as 13 + 1/2 Tables sat down to contest our regular Club Night at the Oxshott Bridge Club!! The Star Performers were Joyce Gibbs & Jean Hutchinson who came First among the Pairs playing East/West; they scored an excellent 63.83% and also scooped the maximum 50 Master Points!! Well done indeed!! They were closely chased by Philip Duncan & Richard Burgess who came Second, just 11 Match points back, with 61.74%. There was than a bit of a gap before the "chasing pack" who were led by Robin & Hilary Lane; they were Third with 53.98%. however they were only a single Match point ahead of Margaret Lawson & Rosie Branch who came Fourth with 53.79%, and Barbara Shaw & Tony Scott were just another single point behind with 53.60% in Fifth place!! Congratulations must also go to Sheila Price & Gabrielle Roberts who came First among the Pairs playing North/South; they scored 59.72% and were a full 16 Match points ahead of Jonathan Spring & John French who came Second with 56.94%. Wordy Price & Elisa Money were placed Third with 55.38%, just four Match points ahead of Philip Goldenberg & Dave Bowen who came Fourth with 54.69%. Pam Oliveira & Margaret Monaghan picked up Fifth place with 52.78%. Well done to all our Master Points Winners!!
There was not any doubt as to who was lucky in the distribution of the cards!!?? Out of 24 Boards, East played the contract on no less than 12 Boards!! That left South with 5 contracts to play, and North with four contracts; that meant that poor old West got only three Boards where they played the contract all night!!?? For a change, the majority of the Boards offered only part-game contracts; in fact 14 Boards limited the ambitions to a "part-game", while 10 Boards offered the higher-scoring "Game" contracts!! There was only one Board that attracted a Slam bid and it was most interesting indeed!! Take another look just now, as this Board is reproduced at the top of this Report. How would YOU bid and play these hands to optimise the points scored?? Well you can see South has an excellent 6 Hearts to the KQ10xxx, 4 Spades to the KQxx and 14 High Card Points; they would quickly open 1 Heart. North has 11 HCPs with four small Hearts in support; they would show their good support by jumping and changing suit; they would bid 3 Clubs. South then bids 3 Hearts showing length; indeed this is a stronger bid than 4 Hearts, so North needs to be alert!! North may well go straight to "Blackwood" and so a Slam contract in 6 Hearts is the likely outcome!!?? Well last night six North/South Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; five made 11 tricks for 450 points while one made 12 tricks for 480 points!! Two more N/S Pairs went up to 5 Hearts; one made 11 tricks for 450 points, while the other made 12 tricks for 480 points!! That left the five North/South Pairs who attempted a Slam contract in 6 Hearts. Many congratulations must go to Wordy Price & Elisa Money, to Margaret Wilson & Janet Robb, and to Philip Goldenberg & Dave Bowen; all three made exactly 12 tricks to share the top score of 980 points on this Board!! Sadly the other two Pairs fell short of the required number of tricks; one made 11 tricks and so gave up 50 penalty points, while the other made only 10 tricks and so lost 100 penalty points!! So how did YOU so when you revisited the hands above?? There is an interesting twist in the tale however!! Clearly the Slam contract in Hearts is going to be played by South, as they will open in that suit. So the interesting question arises as to what the initial lead will be from West?? This is crucial to the success or failure of the Slam contract. If West leads anything other than a Club, then the Slam contract will fail??!! However if West leads a Club, this allows North to play the Jack and the needed second trick in Clubs is secured. This result is confirmed when you examine the "Expert Analysis" - which you can find attached to the Travellers in the "Results" section. In its analysis of Board 19, it confirms that - against the best of Defences - North/South can only make a maximum of 11 tricks on this Board!!
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| Last updated : 6th Oct 2016 15:28 BST |
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| Highland road is named the Quietest in UK, according to new research |
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When you live life in the fast lane, it is nice to drop down a gear now and again. And a new survey has shown that the best place to enjoy a peaceful drive in the UK in the Far North. The A897 between Helmsdale (pictured above) and Halladale Bridge, near Melvich, runs through several vast areas of wilderness and hamlets such as Kildonan, Kinbrace, Forsinard and Achiemore. Helmsdale is on the East-facing North Sea coast of Britain. Melvich is about 40 miles away, on the North-facing Atlantic coast. Apart from half a mile or so within Helmsdale, the entire road is single track. Official data gathered by the Department for Transport shows that the road only has 416 cars per year. The revelation comes following research by a car rental company into the top seven quietest roads in the country to mark the launch of a new fleet of cars. The seven quietest roads were identified from the most recent report on British roads from the Department for Transport. The company’s league table shows the quietest A roads in the UK, defined by the lowest amount of vehicles per kilometre, per year. The A897 came first, followed by the A481 in Powys, Wales and then the A3079 in the Devon countryside. Nina Bell of Avis Budget Group said: “We want to help our customers experience the real joys of driving with limited disruptions and stresses, such as traffic and busy city centre routes. Now with our new Select Series range, they can test drive the exact car they want where the only distractions are the fantastic and remote landscapes.”
The last Button A Button B telephone box to have been upgraded to automatic operation on the mainland was located about 12 West of Thurso in the north of Scotland, at the junction of the A836 and the A897. In October 1992 the box was upgraded, when the event received national coverage on BBC News!! The old eauipment required the caller to put their coins in the slot before making their call. Before making their call, the Caller could press Button B to cancel the call, and release their coins into a small tray at the front of the box. Other Button A Button B boxes survived for a time on the more remote islands off the Scottish coast. You can check out the old telephone box at the road junction to this day.
Caithness and Sutherland is rich in history and tradition and the local area offers a wealth of outdoor activities for all enthusiasts. Located on the north coast between Thurso and Bettyhill, Melvich is the ideal base for any and all activities in the North Highland area. Slightly further south of Melvich, the RSPB Nature Reserve at Forsinard (pictured above) offers daily excursions to enjoy some of the wildlife resident to the area and the Strath Halladale area is ideal for fishermen and stalkers to enjoy a day’s sport. The Halladale River, which runs to the sea at Melvich, offers first class fishing conditions during the season. Melvich Beach, an unspoilt stretch of golden sands, lies at the head of the bay. It can be reached from the village by a signposted track which leads to a parking area just above the dunes. On the Eastern side of the bay is Brighouse Lodge, pictured below. Built in the 1760s, this large house was owned by the Mackays, who also owned the lands of Strath Halladale. As well as the lodge, there are also other buildings including the barracks, a walled garden, a garden pavilion and an ice house. It is believed that the barracks were used to hose troops during the 1745 Jacobite rebellion. The Brighouse and its lands in Srath Halladale were sold to the Marquis of Stafford and the Countess of Sutherland in 1829, becoming part of the Sutherland Estates.
For surfers, bodyboarders and water sports enthusiasts alike, the north coast is renowned for its world class conditions. With WQS six star event, the O’Neill Highland Open, taking place every year in April in and around Thurso, the beaches and breaks of northern Scotland are worthy of even the world’s finest. Mountain bikers and cyclists will find various tracks to spend a day out, not least the Highland Wildcat at Golspie only an hour’s drive down the Strath. For the less-experienced cyclist, the roads and tracks in and around Melvich and Strathy Forest are excellent for an afternoon’s trip.
We could do with a few quieter roads around Surrey too, but there were 13 full tables turned out to contest our regular Club Night at the Oxshott Bridge Club yesterday evening. The Star Performers were Renate Lane & George Gardiner who came First among the Pairs playing East/West; they scored an outstanding 69.94% and scooped the maximum 50 Master Points!! Well done indeed!! They were miles ahead of the "chasing pack" who were led by Peter Tarran & Peter Thompson; they came Second with 58.37%, but they were only 1.9 Match points ahead of Ruth Rettie & Richard Pocock who came Third with 58.01%. Enid & James Pickering were Fourth, just a further 8 Match points back with a score of 56.50%; and Annemie Bisgood & Liam Creagh were Fifth with 53.66%. Congratulations must also go to Mike Mulligan & Elisa Money who came First among the Pairs playing North/South; they scored an excellent 66.23%. There was then quite a gap before Gail Norman & Nicole Lambourne claimed Second spot with 57.71%. They were 9 Match points ahead of Jonathan Spring & John French who came Third with 56.00%. Daphne Pugh & Edwin Jones came Fourth with 53.92%, and they were 1.9 Match points ahead of Kevin & Deanne Goddard who came Fifth with 53.56%. Well done to all our Master Points Winners!!
It was North who received the "good cards" last night; they played the contract on 9 out of the 26 Boards; they were closely followed by East who played 8 contracts!! That left South with only 5 contracts to play, and poor old West played only 4 contracts all night!!?? The split between part-game contracts and the higher-scoring "game" contracts was exactly even with 13 of each for us to explore. There were three Boards that offered a real Slam Opportunity; but there were four more that saw some illusory Slam bids being made, although they all failed to deliver!!?? Board 13 gave North strong Spades, and South had 17 HCPs in support, so there was some excitement!!?? Everyone attempted a "game" contract, three in 3 No Trumps and the rest in Spades. One intrepid Pair attempted a Slam contract in Spades, but it was never on??!! The Ace of Spades was a certain losing trick and there was no way to avoid the King of Hearts which sat in the hand after South's Ace!! It was a similar story on Board 19; here South had a nice balanced hand with 14 HCPs while North had a powerhouse of 17 HCPs with 5 Hearts to the AKQxx. Again everyone bid a "game" contract, three bid 3 No Trumps while the rest declared in Hearts. Again one intrepid Pair ventured a Slam bid in 6 Hearts, but - despite having only 9 points between them - East and West could quickly pick up two Spade tricks with the Ace and the King before the Slam attempt even got started!! C'est la vie!! Then Board 22 gave West an amazing hand; they had 7 Diamonds to the AKQJxxx, a void in Hearts, two Clubs and 4 Spades to the AQJx; they were hot to trot in Diamonds!! East did not have much strength to offer in support but they did have 7 Hearts to the Q10xxxxx, 4 Spades to the Kxxx and two singletons. You can imagine all sorts of attempts to find a matching conract; two East/West Pairs settled for "part-game" contracts in Diamonds; seven more bid and made game in 5 Diamonds; one each failed to make a game contract in Hearts and Clubs; and one E/W Pair bid Slam in 6 Diamonds. Surprisingly the "Expert Analysis" - which you can find attached to the Travellers in the "Results" section - shows us that you can only make 11 tricks on this Board as the Clubs are unprotected, but it is possible to make a Slam in Spades by eithe East or West!! But no one ever gets to consider this suit as they all try to communicate their 7-card wonder-suits??!! Finally in this section, Board 25 gave North had 7 Clubs to the AQJ10xxx and South had more to the Kxxx!! But they only had 20HCPs between them!!?? One North/South Pair got sufficiently excited to bid Slam in 6 Clubs; they went off by 3 tricks and so gave up 500 penalty points!!??
So lets turn to the three Boards that did offer real Slam Opportunities!! Board 11 gave West 16 High Card Points, a balanced hand and 4 Hearts to the KJxx; they would open 1 Heart. East has a whopping 17 HCPs in support, again with a balanced hand, with 4 Clubs to the K10xx; they might well jump straight to "Blackwood", but the more wary will want to know more about suit matching; they might well jump to 3 Clubs to show strength and continue the bidding. Maybe it is West who now moves to "Blackwood", but there is no doubt that "Opportunity Knocks!!" Well last night, three East/West Pairs stopped in 3 Clubs; two made 10 tricks for 130 points, while one made 11 tricks for 150 points!!?? Four more E/W Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; two made 10 tricks for 430 points, while one made 11 tricks for 460 points and one made 12 tricks for 490 points!! The other five E/W Pairs bid some kind of Slam contract!! One Pair bid Slam in 6 Hearts; sadly they made only 10 tricks and so gave up 100 penalty points!!?? Another bid Slam in 6 No Trumps; they made only 11 tricks to lose 50 penalty points!! But congratulations must go to Enid & James Pickering, to Dorothy Steinart & Valerie Jones, and to Renate Lane & George Gardiner; all three bid Slam in 6 No Trumps; all three made exactly 12 tricks to share an excellent 990 points and the top score!! The "Expert Analysis" confirms that it is possible for both East and West to make a Slam contract in any of 6 Diamonds, 6 Hearts and 6 No Trumps!!
Then Board 12 gave East a really extreme hand; they had 7 Clubs to the AQJ10xxx, 5 Spades to the AKxxx, a singleton King of Hearts and a void in Diamonds; given that they have 8 playing tricks in the bag, they might well open 2 Clubs!! South has 7 Diamonds to the Q10xxxxx with 7 HCPs, but they might try to confuse matters by bidding 3 Diamonds!!?? This leaves West trying to sort out what to bid; they have 6 Hearts to the QJxxxx and 8 HCPs; they will definitely bid, maybe 3 Hearts??!! Now it is up to West to drive things from here!! Is there a big contract in the offing, or should they settle for a "game" contract??!! Well last night one East/West Pair settled for 2 Hearts; they made 10 tricks for 170 points!!?? Two more E/W Pairs bid 3 Spades; they both made 12 tricks for 230 points!! Everyone else bid a game contract!! Four E/W Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; all four made 12 tricks for 480 points!! Two more E/W Pairs bid game in 5 Clubs; one made 12 tricks for 420 points, while the other made all 13 tricks for 440 points!! Surprisingly one intrepid North/South Pair made a sacrifice bid in 5 Diamonds; they were not doubled; they made 9 tricks and so lost 200 penalty points, which turned out to be a good score for N/S!! But one brave East/West Pair bid Slam in 6 Clubs. Congratulations must go to Susan & Mike Sadler who bid Slam in 6 Clubs; they were doubled; they made exactly 12 tricks for an outstanding 1090 points and the top score on this Board!! Interestingly the "Expert Analysis" tells us that it is possible for both East and West to make a Slam contract in either 6 Clubs or in 6 Spades!!
Finally there was Board 21 which is reproduced at the top of this Report. Take another look just now at how YOU would bid and play these interesting hands!! You can see that North has 18 HCPs with 5 Hearts to the A10xxx and 5 Spades to the AKxxx; they will. open 1 Spade!! South has an amazing supporting hand; they have 6 Spades to the J10xxxx, a void in Hearts and 4 Diamonds to the AQJx; they will want to show their strength by changing suit and jumping to 3 Diamonds!! North can now mention their second 5-card major with 3 Hearts. You have got to imagine that South will move to "Blackwood" at this stage!!?? Well last night five North/South Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; one made 12 tricks for 680 points while four made all 13 tricks for 710 points!! One more N/S Pairs bid up to 5 Spades; they made 13 tricks for 710 points!! However five N/S Pairs bid Slam in 6 Spades. Congratulations must go to Kevin & Deanne Goddard who bid Slam in 6 Spades; they made exactly 12 tricks for 1430 points!! But special congratulations must go to Mike Mulligan & Elisa Money, to Mary Bushell & Gill Smith, to June Buckland & Janet Kefford, and to Philip Goldenberg & Dave Bowen; they all bid Slam in 6 Spades; but they all made the full set of 13 tricks to score an excellent 1460 points!! But extra special congratulations must go to Jonathan Spring & John Spring; they braved a GRAND SLAM bid in 7 Spades; they made exactly 13 tricks for an outstanding 2210 points!! Well done indeed!! Now the "Expeert Analysis" informs us that it is possible for both North and South to make a GRAND SLAM in either 6 Spades and for 6 No Trumps!! How about that!!?? Anyway well done to all our Actual Slam Achievers of the evening!!
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| Last updated : 29th Sep 2016 23:35 BST |
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| The Strangest Bridge in Britain?? |
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Here are some of the most unusual bridges in Britain. Often described as one of the most beautiful bridges in the world, Kylesku Bridge was built in 1984 to replace a ferry service in the West of Sutherland. Designed to compliment the stunning scenery in which it is set, the bridge which has won several awards. A passenger ferry (a rowing boat) was introduced here in the early 1800s. Commercial traffic mainly comprised cattle on their way to central Scotland, and they had to swim across. Over the years various ferries came and went, and small car-carrying ferries first appeared between the wars. It was only in 1976 that the Maid of Glencoul, built in Ardrossan, became the first vessel capable of carrying fully loaded commercial vehicles. The Kylesku Ferry was unusual in being, for much of its life, free.
Its setting means you may even spot some wildlife - including seals, otters and eagles, that can be found in this area. In August 1982 the preparations for the building of the Kylesku Bridge started. Portacabins came and with them caravans, offices, lorries, cranes, tractors and many workmen. It took a while for any progress in the building of the £2.75m bridge to be seen, but they were constructing a pier and supports for the legs, on the North side and the South side simultaneously. The bridge looked as if it would be made of steel, until they put shutters on it and poured concrete over it.The next stage was the construction of the centre section on the shore of the kyle. When completed it was winched into position and the whole deck tarred. The bridge you see today was duly opened, in 1984, by the Queen. It must be one of the most beautiful examples of the bridge-builder's art anywhere in the world. It may only be 276m long, and may only cross a 130m stretch of water, but it is transformed into something very special by its wonderfully curved design, coupled with the stunning scenery of Sutherland.
Overtoun House in West Dumbartonshire was built in 1859-63 for the Glasgow chemical manufacturer James White, whose son became the first Lord Overtoun, but the bridge dates from 1895, and was built by H.E.Milner Although his son, John Campbell White (the aforementioned Lord Overtoun), was well known for his charitable works, he was famously lambasted in 1899 by Keir Hardie, who exposed the appalling working conditions faced by those employed in his chemical factory (in fairness, it should be said that White had probably been entirely unaware of these conditions).
The bridge has featured in news reports more than once. In 1994, a mentally-disturbed man threw his two-week-old son to his death from the bridge. In October 2006, the fact that a surprising number of dogs are said to have leapt to their death from the bridge was the subject of a television programme. This phenomenon has been reported under the sensational and misleading title of "Dog Suicides". Suggested explanations have included: the supernatural; peculiar sonic effects in the structure of the bridge; or a particular scent (for example, that of mink) tempting dogs, from whose viewpoint the long drop is not apparent, to leap the bridge wall.
But probably the strangest bridge in Britain is called “the Bridge to Nowhere” on the Isle of Lewis in Scotland. Built out of reinforced concrete, the bridge has nine arches and lies beyond the Tolsta Village. It was built as part of the ill fated route intended to make up part of Lord Leverhulme's (who owned the Isle of Lewis from 1918-1923) new road to Ness. Once over the bridge - there is just a "kind of rough path" which runs a mile or so along the cliff tops - and is very scenic - then peters out onto a route that is marked for walkers by way markers. The route however is over the boggy, peaty moorland tops and is eleven or so miles and is quite a tough walk. The Bridge to Nowhere - sometimes called Garry Bridge lies beyond the Tolsta Village - and is on the route of what was to be Lord Leverhulme's new route to Ness. It spans the deep gorge - overlooking the lovely Garry beach - one of the prettiest in the Western Isles. The bridge has a height of 50ft and a width of 100 feet.
We had our own kind of "Strange Bridge" to deal with as 15 + 1/2 Tables sat down to contest our regular Club Night at the Oxshott Bridge Club yesterday evening. The Star Performers were Richard Burgess & Philip Duncan!! They were the "runaway" Winners among the Pairs who played East/West with an outstanding score of 65.92%; they also scooped the maximum 50 Master Points!! Well done indeed!! Leading the "chasing pack" were Mike Mulligan & George Gardiner who scored 57.89% in Second place, with Don Porter & Doris Butterworth a further 14 Match Points back in Third place having scored 55.80%. They were just 5 Match points ahead of Marjorie Neal & Diana Till who came Fourth with 55.06%; and Therezinha Gold & Mary Bushell were a further 6 Match points back in Fifth spot with 54.17%. Congratulations must also go Judy Hickman & Kay O'Gorman who came First among the Pairs playing North/South; they scored an impressive 61.46%!! They were chased by Angie Watson & Ian Jeffrey who came Second with 57.47%. There was then a group of Pairs contending for the minor placings. Gail Norman & Eileen Goddard just claimed Third spot with 54.87%, but they were only 3 Match points ahead of Tony Scott & Barbara Shaw who scored 54.38% in Fourth place, and Peter Wardle & Peter Sharpe were 8 Match Points further back in Fifth spot with a score of 53.08%. Well done to all our Master Points Winners!!
There were lots of unusual hands to play last night!!?? It was North and West who receoved the "good cards"; North played the contract on 9 out of the 24 Boards, while West played a further 8 contracts. That left East to play the contract on 5 Boards, and poor old South had to be satisfied with only 2 Boards where they got to play the contract!!?? An amazingly high proportion of the Boards yielded the higher-scoring game-going contracts; there were no less than 20 "game Boards" to play, and only 4 Boards offered part-game contracts!!
The search for Slam Opportunities was much easier last night as there were 7 of the 24 Boards that gave some kind of a chance!!?? One Board collected no less than 8 Slam bids out of the 15 Pairs that played it, and seven of those were successful!! But the remaining 6 "Slam Opportunity" Boards produced only two successful Slam bids??!! How did YOU manage in your search for Slam Opportunities last night?? Board 3 gave North a strong hand with 19 High Card Points, a balanced hand, with 4 Hearts to the AKQx and 4 Spades to the Kxxx; they might well open 1 Heart. South had an unusual hand with 8 HCPs but they had 7 Diamonds to the Q10xxxxx; they might jump to 3 Diamonds. Now it is up to North to decide how ambitious they want to be??!! Well last night one North/South Pair settled for a part-game in 2 Spades; they made 11 tricks for 200 points!! Another Pair went for 3 Diamonds; they made 12 tricks for 170 points!! Five more N/S Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; one made 9 tricks for 400 points; one made 10 tricks for 430 points; one made 11 tricks for 460 points; and two made 12 tricks for 490 points!! One more N/S Pair bid up to 4 Diamonds; they made all 13 tricks for 190 points!! But six N/S pairs bid game in 5 Diamonds; one made 11 tricks for 400 points; and five made 12 tricks for 420 points!! However one intrepid North/South braved a Slam bid in 6 Diamonds!! Many congratulations must go to Jonathan Spring & Julie Minards who bid Slam in 6 Diamonds; they made exactly 12 tricks to score an outstanding top score of 920 points!! Well done indeed!! Now the "Expert Analysis" - which you can find attached to the Travellers in the "Results" section - confirms that it is possible for both North and South to make a Slam contract, even against the best of Defences, in 6 Diamonds on this Board!!
Board 8 gave West 12 HCPs with 7 Hearts to the K10xxxxx and a singleton Spade; they may have too many points for a "weak 3 Hearts", so they may well open 1 Heart!! East also has 12 HCPs with 5 Spades to the AQxxx, three Hearts to the AJx, and a singleton Club; they might well jump to 2 Spades!! West would repeat 3 Hearts, and so it is up to East to decide if a "big contract" is in the offing or whether they should settle for a "game" contract??!! Well last night 13 East/West Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; six made 11 tricks for 450 points, while seven made 12 tricks for 480 points!! One intrepid North/South Pair attempted a sacrifice bid of 5 Clubs; they were doubled!! Sadly they made only 7 tricks and so they lost 800 penalty points!!?? However one brave East/West Pair bid Slam in 6 Hearts. Many congratulations must go to Don Porter & Doris Butterworth who bid Slam in 6 Hearts; they made exactly 12 tricks for a whopping 980 points!! The "Expert Analysis" conforms that both East and West can make a Slam in 6 Hearts on this Board, even against the best of Defences!! Board 15 gave West 15 HCPs with 5 Spades to the AKxxx; they would open 1 Spade. East had 11 HCPs in support with 6 Hearts to the K10xxxx and 4 Spades to the Q10xx; they would jump to 2 Hearts!! West would repeat 2 Spades to show their five cards. Then East has to choose between the two major suits as to which would prove the more fruitful??!! Well last night seven East/West Pairs chose 4 Hearts for their game contract; six made 11 tricks for 450 points, while one made 12 tricks for 480 points!! Another eight E/W Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; one made 11 tricks 450 points; three made 12 tricks for 480 points; while five made all 13 tricks for 510 points!! Now the "Expert Analysis" informs us that it is possible for either East or West to make a Slam contract in either 6 Hearts or in 6 Spades!! The secret seems to lie in finessing the Queen of Hearts in South. As long as N/S do NOT lead a Club, it is possible for East/West to clear out the trumps and to make all the other tricks in Hearts and Diamonds!! Funny how easy things appear when you have 20-20 hindsight??!!
Board 16 gave West 18 HCPs with 4 Diamonds to the KQ10x and 4 Hearts to the KQxx; they would open 1 Diamond. East has 11 HCPs with 5 Clubs to the AJ10xx with three good hearts to the AJx; they would bid 2 Clubs!! West would then reverse to show their strength with 2 Hearts!! Now East has a big decision to make; should they repeat their clubs since they have 5 cards in that suit, or should they indicate support in Hearts? Well last night 11 East/West Pairs bid Slam in 3 No Trumps; five made 11 tricks for 660 points, while six made 12 tricks for 690 points!! Four more E/W Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; one made 10 tricks for 620 points, one made 11 tricks for 650 points, one made 12 tricks for 680 points, and finally one made all 13 tricks for 510 points!!?? now the "Expert Analysis" gives us some surprising information. It seems that it is possible for West to make a Slam contract in ANY of 6 Clubs, 6 Diamonds, 6 Hearts or in 6 No Trumps!! However it is only possible for East to make a Slam contract - against the best of Defences - in 6 Clubs!!?? They can only make 11 tricks in Diamonds and Hearts, and they can make only 10 tricks in No Trumps!! You see a Spade lead from South exposes West's doubleton AQ in Spades with the King lying in North's hand. When the lead comes from North, the Queen is a Winner with further protection sitting waiting with the Ace of Spades. Certainly the Ace of Diamonds is a Winner for North, so this protection is definitely needed!!
Board 20 is reproduced at the top of this Report. Take another look just now at how YOU would bid and play this intriguing set of hands??!! You can see that West has 13 HCPs with 5 Spades to the AKxxx; they would open 1 Spade. East has an excellent 17 HCPs with 5 Hearts to the AK10xx; they would jump to show their strength to 3 Hearts!! Now West has a decision to make. Will they repeat their Spades to show 5 cards on the suit, or will they go straight for "Blackwood" given their good three cards in Hearts?? Well last night one East/West Pair settled for a part-game contract in 3 Spades; they made 11 tricks for 200 points!! Three E/W Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; one made 10 tricks for 630 points; one made 11 tricks for 660 points; and one made 12 tricks for 690 points!! Eight more E/W Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; four made 10 tricks for 620 points; two made 11 tricks for 650 points; but two made only 9 tricks and so gave up 100 penalty points!!?? Two Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; one made 11 tricks for 650 points, while the other made 12 tricks for 680 points!! Finally one brave East/West Pair bid Slam in 6 No Trumps; sadly they made only 10 tricks and so gave up 200 penalty points which turned out to be a top score for North/South on this Board!!?? Now the "Expert Analysis" informs us that it is possible for both East and West to make a Slam in either 6 Hearts or in 6 Spades!! They say also that West can make a Slam in 6 No Trumps, although East can only make 11 tricks in this contract against the best of Defences!! How did YOU do on revisiting this Board? Did YOU manage to bid and make a Slam contract?? The secret seems to lie in getting the Ace of Diamonds losing trick out early, and extracting trumps. That allows lots of Hearts and Spades to be made, while "losing" Clubs are discarded. Unfortunately if the lead comes from South, a Club lead forces the Ace out of East and there is no protection thereafter to the Ace of Diamonds and the King of Clubs in North - thus the Slam conract from East falls short by one trick!!??
Board 21 gave North 14 HCPs with a balanced hand and 4 Spades to the Jxxx; they might well open 1 No Trump!! South has a very unusual hand with two singletons, 6 Clubs to the J10xxxx and 5 Spades to the AKxxx; but they have only 8 HCPs!!?? Will they respond a weak 2 Spades, or will they be more ambitious with 3 Clubs or 3 Spades?? Well last night, seven North/South Pairs settled for a part-game contract in 2 Spades; two made 11 tricks for 200 points; three made 12 tricks for 230 points; and two made all 13 tricks for 260 points!! Two more N/S Pairs went up to 3 Spades; one made 11 tricks for 200 points, while the other made all 13 tricks for 260 points!! But six N/S Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; four made 12 tricks for 680 points, while two made all 13 tricks for 710 points!! Now the "Expert Analysis" informs us that it is possible for either North or South to make a Slam contract in Either 6 Clubs or in 6 Spades!! It turns out that the trumps are quickly drawn, and the losing cards can be thrown on the Club and Spade tricks. If the Defence do not lead their Hearts, they may not ever get the chance to win even one trick!!?? Finally there is Board 17 Dealer North had a whopping 18 HCPs with a 4441 distribution and a singleton in Spades; they might well open 1 Club. South has an excellent 15 HCPs with a balanced hand; they might well jump to 3 No Trumps to show at least 13 HCPs!! Now North has all the information they need!! With at least 31 HCPs they must surely investigate a Slam contract??!! Well last night six North/South Pair bid game in 3 No Trumps; three made 12 tricks for 490 points and three more made all 13 tricks for 520 points!! One more N/S pair bid game in 5 Clubs; they made 11 tricks for 400 points!! But the remaining eight North/South Pairs bid a Slam contract, all in 6 No Trumps!! Sadly one Pair fell short by one trick and so gave up 50 penalty points??!! But many congratulations must got to Rowena & Eric Austin, to Tony Fincham & Elisa Money, to Peter Wardle & Peter Sharpe, to Judy Hickman & Kay O'Gorman, to Daphne Pugh & Gillian Lowe, to Edwin Jones & Eve Reynolds, and to Rosemary Lynas & Jill Melener; they all bid Slam in 6 No Trumps; they all made exactly 12 tricks to share an excellent 990 points which was the top score on this Board!! Well done indeed!! now the "Expert Analysis" confirms that both North and South can indeed make a Slam contract in any of 6 Diamonds or in 6 No Trumps!! But it also reveals that it is possible for both North and South to make a GRAND SLAM in 7 Clubs on this Board!!?? Don't you just hate these "Smarty-Pants"??!! Anyway well done to all our actual Slam Achievers for the evening!!
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| Last updated : 8th Sep 2016 12:32 BST |
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| Shortlist revealed of Britain's ugliest building for the 2016 Carbuncle Award |
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The shortlist for the least desirable architectural accolade in Britain has been unveiled. Comprising six unfortunate finalists, the winner will be awarded the Carbuncle Cup, a trophy which has become the stuff of nightmares for architects with projects in the U.K. The Carbuncle Cup is now in its tenth successive year and is proving to be a humorous, tongue-in-cheek response from Building Design to the Royal Institute of British Architects’ Stirling Prize. Pedigree, it seems, won’t save you: Fosters + Partners and Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners have previously made the list for their Moor House office development and One Hyde Park projects, respectively, which are both in London. Last year, Rafael Vinoly’s car-melting 20 Fenchurch Sreet (a.k.a. The Walkie-Talkie Tower and pictured above) in London took the prize. Take a look at this year’s finalists below.
First on the “to-roast” list is Saffron Square (otherwise known as Saffron Tower) in Croydon, south London. Though Croydon currently holds the crown as having U.K.’s fastest growing local economy, the news surrounding its architecture scene has not been so positive. Developer Berkeley Homes’s offering, whose colorfully-clad tower can be seen from many-a-mile, has been described as having a “car crash of a facade.” The tower is clad in virulent purples, reds and oranges that can be seen from miles away. There is no chance of missing this one when staggering home after a long night out in the pub. The tower is clad in vertically arranged coloured cladding panels that make the whole thing look like an oversized Lego creation. The panels have been artfully arranged with red panels interspersed with orange in the centre of the tower, radiating towards the edges in dark and light purples.
This building in Yorkshire may provide accommodation for engineering students at the University of Sheffield, however, it is apparently “dwarfing” and “drowning” its neighboring church with its interior being “wasted,” “unused,” and “outrageously mismanaged.” A local taxi driver pointed out that it is only a matter of time before a student has a go at using the exterior cladding as a climbing wall as some people choose to study at Sheffield partly because of the good climbing in the Peak district. Despite local MP Paul Blomfield once saying that the building “will be the jewel in the crown, not only for the University itself, but also for the city,” it has divided opinions across the campus. There was a recent petition set up by university students, calling for more effective use of space in the Diamond, as competition for study places was fierce throughout the summer exam season.
This boring little project is just sad, and also a demonstration of what can happen without good controls and supervision. The Poole Methodist Church Extension was originally approved as a glass box on stilts, and what happens? Churches have not faired well according to this year’s iteration of the Carbuncle Cup. This extension to the existing gothic church has been derided as a building that “screams of the same bland, belligerent mediocrity that is the insidious moniker of ostensibly polite and ubiquitous background architecture everywhere.”
One Smithfield, Stoke on Trent, is described as an aesthetic mutation between the nostalgic 1980s brain games of Connect 4 and Blockbusters might not seem like a natural breeding ground for architectural malevolence but this building proves what happens when colour goes rogue. One commentator pilloried Stoke on Trent’s new council offices as being “hideous”, “nasty” and “awful”.
“A stainless steel-clad monster – known as a “Groundscraper” – the new headquarters of UBS at 5 Bishopsgate, by Make Architects, replaced a relatively good and modern building that was part of the influential 1980s development and the first incurion of US-style air-rights urbanism on the edge of the City. The replacement, an overscaled chunk of horizontal city that smashes through London’s urban grain, looks like a second-rate sci-fi dystopia. By comparison the demolished original looked like a masterpiece,” commented the Financial Times!! Such is the scorn that the structure has received that developers of the nearby 22 Bishopsgate project called 5 Broadgate the “worst large building in the City for 20 years.”
Last on the ill-fated architectural honors list is Lincoln Plaza in London. “31 stories of bilious cladding are piled one on top of the other to create an assortment of haphazardly assembled facades that are crude, jarring and shambolic,” wrote Building Design in an unforgiving critique of the high-rise. And that wasn’t all. “Were that not enough, the facades enwrap a grotesque Jenga game of rabid rectilinear blocks of no discernible form or profile and perforated by a series of balconies which one reader surmises “are an open invitation to commit suicide.” The winner of the Carbuncle Cup will be announced next Wednesday.
There were 12 + 1/2 Tables of Members and Guests who turned up at our own architectural masterpiece to contest our regular Club Night at the Oxshott Bridge Club last night. Congratulations must go to George Gardiner & Renate Lane who achieved the outstanding score of 64.77% to come First among the Pairs playing East/West; they also scooped the maximum 40 Master Points!! They were some distance ahead of Julie Minards & Pauline Harris who came Second with 59.91%. Elizabeth Gray & Rosemary Collin came Third with 57.95%, but they were only 10.5 Match points ahead of Susan & Mike Sadler who were Fourth with a score of 55.58%. Congratulations must also go to Mike Mulligan & Elisa Money who came First among the Pairs playing North/South; they sored 63.88% and they were 15.6 Match points ahead of Stephanie Postlethwaite & Pam Oliveira who came Second with 60.93%. Judy Hickman & Kay o'Gorman were just a further 6.5 Match points back in Third spot with 59.70, and Gail Norman & Joan Low came Fourth with 56.12%. Well done to all our Master Points Winners!! There was a quite fair distribution of the "good cards"; South played the contract on 8 Boards, while both North and East played a further 7 contracts each; that menat that poor old West got only 4 Boards where they played the contract!!!?? Only 10 of the 26 Boards offered part-game contracts, and that meant that there were 16 of the higher-scoring "Game" contracts to aim at!! Six of these latter contracts offered some kind of Slam Opportunity and there were a total of 11 actual Slam contracts achieved over the evening!!??
Board 3 gave West 15 High Card Points with 5 Hearts to the KQJxx and 4 Spades to the Axxx; they would open 1 Heart. East also had 15 HCPs with 5 Spades to the KQxxx and 4 Clubs to the K10xx; they would jump to 2 Spades to indicate their strength. West now supports their Partner but is careful NOT to close off the bidding; they reply 3 Spades. Now it is up to East to take the bidding on towards a Slam contract??!! Well last night one East/West Pair bid game in 3 No Trumps; they made 12 tricks for 690 points!! One intrepid N/S Pair bid 4 Diamonds; they were doubled; they made 7 tricks and so lost 500 penalty points which turned out to be the best score for N/S on this Board!! Five more E/W Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; one made 11 tricks for 650 points; three made 12 tricks for 680 points; and one made all 13 tricks for 710 points!! However three East/West Pairs ventured a Slam contract!! Many congratulations must go to Marjorie Neal & Diana Till, to Julie Minards & Pauline Harris, and to George Gardiner & Renate Lane who all bid Slam in 6 Spades; they all made exactly 12 tricks to share an impressive 1430 points!! Now the "Expert Analysis" - which you can find attached to the Travellers in the "Results" section - confirms that both East and West can achieve a Slam contract in any of 6 Clubs, 6 Spades or in 6 No Trumps!! Board 11 had a series of Passes before East is able to mention their 19 HCPs with a 4441 distirbution; they have 4 Diamonds to the AKQ10, 4 Hearts to the AQxx, and 4 Spades to the KJxx with a singleton Club; they will open 1 Diamond. West responds with 1 Heart, and this causes East to jump - to show strength and support - to 2 Spades. West then bids their second suit with 3 Clubs, and now it is up to East to decide whether anything spectacular is in the "offing"??!! Well last night ten East/West Pairs settled for a game contract in 4 Hearts; four made 11 tricks for 450 points, while six made 12 tricks for 480 points!! The remaining Pair bid up to 5 Hearts; they too made 12 tricks for 480 points!! Now the "Expert Analysis" informs us that it is possible for either East or West to make a Slam contract on this Board in either 6 Diamonds or in 6 Hearts!!??
Board 14 gave Dealer East a balanced hand with 4 Clubs to the K10xx and 4 Hearts to the AQxx; they would open 1 No Trump!! West has 13 HCPs with a very unbalanced hand; they have 5 Spades to the AQ10xx, 5 Hearts to the Kxxxx and a void in Clubs; they might well jump to 3 Hearts!! Now East has to decide if this is enough to encourage enquiries about a Slam contract??!! Well last night one East/West Pair settled for a part-game in 3 Spades; they made 9 tricks for 140 points!! Nine more E/W Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; four made exactly 10 tricks for 420 points; four made 11 tricks for 450 points; and one made 12 tricks for 480 points!! That left the one Pair who bid game in 4 Spades; sadly they made only 9 tricks to give up 50 penalty points!!?? Now the "Expert Analysis" informs us that it is possible for either East or West to make a Slam contract in 6 Hearts on this Board!! Finessing the King of Spades allows cross-trumping of Clubs and Spades to deliver the Slam contract!! Then Board 19 gave North an excellent 20 HCPs with 4 Diamonds to the AQxx, 4 Hearts to the AKxx and a balanced hand; they would open a strong 2 No Trumps!! South would be in some quandary about how to respond, but they might try 3 Clubs "Stamen" to ask for a 4-card Major??!! This might just cause North to respond 3 Hearts, but it might cause ambition to seize the day and "Blackwood" and all that follows??!! Well last night all 11 North/South Pairs who played these hands settled for a game comtract in 3 No Trumps; two made 9 tricks for 400 points; four made 10 tricks for 430 points; four more made 11 tricks for 460 points; and one made 12 tricks for 490 points!!?? Now the "Expert Analysis" tells us that it is possible for either North or South to make a Slam contract in 6 Hearts or in 6 No Trumps!! Clearly the Ace of Spades is a "loser" but North/South needs to make some brave finesses on Club and Spades to secure the Slam contract!!
Then on Board 17, after much Passing West opens with 18 HCPs, 5 Hearts to the Axxxx, 4 Diamonds to the AKQx and 4 Clubs to the AJxx; they would open 1 Heart!! East has four Hearts to the KJxx and 4 Spades to the Kxxx; they might well jump to 3 Hearts!! Now it is up to West to decide if a "big contract" is in prospect or not??!! Well last night one East/West Pair settled for a part-game in 3 Hearts; they made 11 tricks for 200 points!! Nine more E/W Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; five made exactly 10 tricks for 420 points; two made 11 tricks for 450 points; and two made 12 tricks for 480 points!! That left the one Pair who braved a Slam bid!! Many congratulations must go to Katherine Kreuter & Dave Cowell who bid Slam in 6 Hearts; they made exactly 12 tricks to achieve a fantastic 980 points, which was the top score on this Board for the evening!! Now the "Expert Analysis" confirms that it is possible - even against the best of Defences - for either East or West to make a Slam contract in 6 Hearts on this Board!!
Finally there was Board 21 which is reproduced at the top of this Report. Take another look just now to see how YOU would bid and play these interesting hands!!?? East has 16 HCPs with 6 Hearts to the AQJxxx and 4 Clubs to the KQxx; they would open 1 Heart!! West also has 16 HCPs with 5 Spades to the KQ10xx and 4 Diamonds to the AK10x; they would jump to 2 Spades!! East would then mention their second suit with 3 Clubs, and so would West with 3 Diamonds, which is "Fourth Suit Forcing"!! Now it is up to East to decide just how high they want to bid!! Well last night, one East/West Pair bid game in 3 No Trumps; they made 12 tricks for 490 points!! Three more Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; they all made 12 tricks for 480 points!! The remaining seven E/W Pairs bid some kind of Slam contract!! Congratulaions must go to Don Porter & Janet Kefford and to Rowena & Eric Austin who both bid 6 Hearts; they both made 12 tricks for 980 points!! Congratulions also to George Gardiner & Renate Lane who bid Slam in 6 Spades; they made exactly 12 tricks for 980 points!! Special congratulations are due to Julie Minards & Pauline Harris; they bid Slam in 6 No Trumps; they made exactly 12 tricks for 990 points!! But extra special congratulations are reserved for Valerie Jones & Dorothy Steinart, to Elizabeth Gray & Rosemary Collin and to Susan & Mike Sadler; all three bid Slam in 6 Hearts; but they made the full set of 13 tricks to share a whopping 1010 points and the top score on this Board!! Interestingly because the lead comes from South, it is very unlikely that South will lead a Club; thus it is possible for East to make all 13 tricks without needing to play a Club trick!! The "Expert Analysis" confirms that it is possible for both East and West to make a Slam contract in any of 6 Hearts, in 6 Spades, or on 6 No Trumps!! However they do not seem to notice the wrinkle where N/S fail to make their Ace of Clubs!!?? Whatever many congratulations must go to all our Actual Slam Achievers of the evening!!
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| Last updated : 1st Sep 2016 22:45 BST |
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| Arab supercars back in London's top neighbourhoods |
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Their souped-up supercars have become an annual feature on the streets of west London, when the 'summer season' is marked with million-pound Ferraris outside Harrods and Masaratis in front of the Dorchester Hotel. This summer, there seems to have been a dress code, with a number of matching blue cars at the central London hotel. These three blue supercars all appear to have been flown in from Kuwait. Range Rovers, such as the one pictured above, left, have starting prices of around £30,000 for minimum specifications. The car in the centre, finished in the same bright blue, looks to be a La Ferrari. The supercar can hit a maximum speed of 350km an hour. The supercar season has become popular as those wealthy enough to be able to, look to escape the sweltering heat in the Middle East, for a more reasonable summer climate in the UK . Once here, some of the over-the-top autos attract the attention of the police too - due to incorrect registration plates and insurance or parking regulation breaches.
But aside from their love of fast cars and expensive boutiques, little is known about the lives of the incredibly rich Arabs who frequent the capital's most exclusive districts every year. One of the men who helps organise the annual influx of the Middle East's most wealthy has now lifted the lid on their eye-watering spending. Michael Shaw, whose company Franklin organises homes and staff for the world's elite, told of the thousands his clients spend on making sure their beloved vehicles arrive in pristine condition, their outrageous property demands and the army of domestic staff who rush around them. But the appearance of the sportscars is the result of months of planning and work on behalf of huge teams of staff. Mr Shaw (pictured below) says some of his clients book their vehicle on to a ship weeks before they plan to arrive, while others are happy to spend £40,000 to have the vehicle packed up and put on a cargo plane. He said: “We have clients all around the world, but those from the Middle East tend to come to London not just because it's so hot over there, but because they want to spend time around and be seen in London's amazing array of restaurants and hotels. Having an expensive car is the ultimate status symbol and that's why our clients want to bring them over here with them.”
Mr Shaw's company also organises the garish bodywork and paint-jobs which make the cars stand out. He added: “We had one client who wanted his Lamborghini gold plated, and not just painted gold, but really, gold-plated. The work ended up coming to around five times the original value of the car. Some have homes in Italy with garages of classic cars and supercars, who fly them in from there. There is also a workshop there which offers £7,000 detailing jobs, using infra-red light to remove every little scratch and return to car to its original showroom condition.” As well as the cost of flying their cars in or hiring them, coupled with the fees of a high-security garage, many foreign billionaires employ a personal 'chaperone' for their vehicles, to make sure nobody touches them while they are parked on the streets of Mayfair and Chelsea. The bizarre role is one of scores of positions filled by Mr Shaw to ensure his clients have an easy a holiday as possible. His firm recruits pet handlers, groundskeepers and even yacht crews to supplement the up to 250 staff their clients are used to employ in their own countries.
The two Lamborghinis below are parked up either side of a Rolls Royce in Mayfair. The Lamborghinis, one of which is the Aventador which can cost around £300,000, was pictured parked up in Mayfair yesterday. Its acceleration is a fraction faster than the Ferrari - namely 0-60 in 2.9 seconds. It has a maximum speed of 217mph. The arrival has become a regular annual event, with rich Arabs trying to outdo each other with their modified cars. The rows and rows of cars attracted one superfan who walked across London to try to spot as many as possible this summer. This year, supercar fanatic flew 500 miles just to glimpse the extravagant cars clogging up London's most desirable postcodes. James O'Malley jetted from County Mayo, Ireland, to spend three weeks car spotting in the capital. He roamed the streets for seven hours a day and snapped more than 100 vehicles.
There may not have been too many "supercars" in the car park at the Oxshott Bridge Club as 13 + 1/2 Tables turned up to contest our regular Club Night. The Star Performers were Daphne Pugh & Gillian Lowe who scored an impressive 64.91% to capture First place among the Pairs playing North/South with an impressive score of 64.91%; they also scooped the maximum 50 Master Points!! They were well ahead of the "chasing pack" who were led by Mike Mulligan & Elisa Money who came Second with 57.39%. They were 4.3 Match points ahead of Jonathan Spring & John French who were Third with 56.57%, and Graham Norris & Richard Burgess came Fourth, just a further 7.6 Match points back. Alan & Pat Hammond were Fifth with 53.33%. The battle for the top places was much closer among the Pairs playing East/West. Congratulations must also go to Deanne & Kevin Goddard who came First with 58.80%; they were 7.3 Match Points ahead of Renate Lane & George Gardiner who came Second with 57.53%. There was then a small gap before Elizabeth Gibbon & Margaret Monaghan came Third with 54.34%; they were 9 Match Points ahead of Penny Webster-Smith & Sandra Doyle who came Fourth with 52.78%. Philip Duncan & Ormonde Webster-Smith were just a further 3.7 Match points in Fifth place with 52.14%. Well done to all our Master Points Winners!!
It was West and North who received the "best cards"; West played the contract on 8 of the 24 Boards, while North played a further 7 Boards!! East played the contract on 6 Boards, while poor old South was left with only 3 Boards to play!!?? There were many more game-going contracts than part-games to play; a total of 17 out of the 24 Boards offered the higher-scoring "Game" contract!! An unbelievable 8 Boards offered some kind of Slam Opportunity, although there were only five actual successful Slam bids delivered at Oxshott!!?? Board 2 gave South 12 High Card Points and a balanced hand with 4 cards to the Qxxx in Hearts; they would open 1 No Trumps. North has 15 HCPs with 5 Diamonds to the AJxxx and 4 Hearts to the AKxx; they would jump to 3 Diamonds. South then bids their 4-card suit with 3 Hearts, and it is up to North to decide how ambitious they are prepared to be??!! Well last night two North/South Pair bid game in 3 No Trumps; sadly they both made only 8 tricks and so gave up 200 penalty points??!! Nine more N/S Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; three made 11 tricks for 650 points, while five made 12 tricks for 680 points!! One more N/S Pair bid game in 5 Diamonds; they made 11 tricks for 600 points. But one Pair braved a Slam contract!! Many congratulations nust go to Graham Morris & Richard Burgess who bid Slam in 6 Hearts; they made 12 tricks for a whopping 1430 points and the top score on this Board!! Now the "Expert Analysis" - which you can find attached to the Travellers in the "Results" section - confirms that it is possible, even against the best of defences, for either North or South to make a Slam contract in 6 Hearts!!
Board 7 was more straight-forward. Here West had 15 HCPs with 6 Diamonds to the AQJxxx and 5 Spades to the KJ10xx with two singletons; they would open 1 Diamond!! East has also 15 HCPs with 5 Hearts to the KJxxx and 4 Clubs to the AKxx; they would jump to 2 Hearts!! West might well jump to 3 Spades to emphasise their strength. Clearly a "big contract" is somewhere on the horizon??!! Well last night 11 East/West Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; two made 10 tricks for 630 points; five made 11 tricks for 660 points ; and four made 12 tricks for 690 points!! However two E/W Pairs braved a Slam bid in 6 No Trumps!! Sadly one made only 11 tricks and so gave up 100 penalty points and a top score to their Opponents?!! But congratulations must go to Philip Duncan & Ormonde Webster-Smith who bid Slam in 6 No Trumps; they made exactly 12 tricks for an outstanding top score of 1430 points!! Now the "Expert Analysis" informs us that - even against the best of defences - it is possible for either East or West to achieve a Slam in 6 Spades; they can also achieve a GRAND SLAM in either 7 Diamonds or in 7 No Trumps!! Amazingly the singleton King of Diamonds in North and the doubleton Queen of Hearts in South fall to leading the top cards, and so the GRAND SLAM falls easily with 6 Diamonds tricks. Amazing what is possible with 20-20 hindsight??!!
Board 14 gave South a whopping 19 HCPs with 4 Clubs to the AJ10x and 4 Hearts to the AQ10x; they would open 1 Club. North has 9 HCPs with 5 Hearts to the Jxxxx; they would respond 1 No Trumps. South would then reverse with 2 Hearts showing strength and their second 4-card suit. Now North will be excited as they have 5 Hearts. Clearly a bid contract is in the "offing" but it would be a brave bidder to attempt a Slam contract!!?? Well three North/South Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; two made exactly 9 tricks for 400 points, but one made only 8 tricks and so gave up 50 penalty points??!! Nine more N/S Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; four made 10 tricks for 420 points; three made 11 tricks for 450 points; and two made 12 tricks for 480 points!! But one intrepid N/S Pair braved a Slam bid in 6 Hearts; sadly they made only 11 tricks and so gave up 50 penalty points to their opponents!!?? Now the "Expert Analysis" confirms that the best that N/S can hope to make against good defence is 5 Clubs or 5 Hearts on this Board!! Then Board 15 again presented North/South with a temptation for brave bidding??!! South had 12 HCPs with 5 Hearts to the Axxxx and a singleton Spade; they would open 1 Heart!! North has an outstanding 18 HCPs in support with 4 Clubs to the Axxx and 4 Spades to the AKJx; they would jump to 2 Spades. South might bid 3 Clubs to show their 4 cards even though the highest is the Nine (??!!), and then North may well be off to "Blackwood" and a Slam bid!! Well last night 8 North/South Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; three made 10 tricks for 630 points, while five made 11 tricks for 660 points!! One N/S pair bid game in 5 Clubs; they made 11 tricks for 600 points!! Another N/S Pair bid game in 5 Spades; sadly they made only 9 tricks and so gave up 200 penalty points??!! Finally three N/S Pairs braved a Slam bid??!! One bid Slam in 6 Clubs; they mad 10 tricks to lose 200 penalty points. The other two Pairs bid Slam in 6 No Trumps; one made 11 tricks and so gave up 100 penalty points, but the other made only 10 tricks and so gave up 200 penalty points to their Opponents??!! Now the "Expert Analysis" confirms that the biggest contract that North/South can achieve against the best defences is 5 Clubs, 5 Hearts or 5 No Trumps!! There was never a Slam Opportunity on this Board!!
Board 20 gave West an unusual hand with 8 HCPs, a void in Spades, 6 Clubs to the Jxxxxx and 5 Hearts to the AQJxx; they might open 1 Heart. North nas 14 HCPs with 4 Diamonds to the QJxx and 4 Spades to the KJxx; they might raise to 1 Spade. East would double since they have 13 HCPs with 6 Spades to the AQxxxx and 4 Hearts to the Kxxx. South has only 5 HCPs so they will pass. West will mention their second suit with 2 Clubs, and East would then confirm their strength in Hearts by jumping to 3 Hearts!! Now anything is possible from here??!! Well at Oxshott one East/West Pair played a contract in 1 Spade; they made 8 tricks for 110 points!! Seven more E/W Pairs bid up to 2 Spades; six made 8 tricks for 110 points, while one made 9 tricks for 140 points!! One more E/W Pair bid on to 3 Spades; sadly they made only 6 tricks and so lost 300 penalty points??!! However four North/South Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; one made 10 tricks for 620 points; one made 11 tricks for 650 points; another made 12 tricks for 680 points, but the fourth made only 8 tricks and so gave up 200 penalty points??!! Surprisingly the "Expert Analysis" informs us that is is possible for both East and West to make a Slam in 6 Hearts on this Board!! The secret seems to be to cross-trump three Spade tricks from West and two Club tricks fro East. this releases three winning Spade tricks and a Slam contract!! Board 22 gave West an unusual hand with 18 HCPs with a void in hearts, 5 Spades to the AKxxx and 5 Diamonds to the AKJxx; they might well open a strong 2 Spades!! East has only 5 HCPs and a balanced hand; they will respond with the negative 2 No Trumps. Now it is up to East to decide where they will ultimately aim!! Certainly they cannot expect their Partner to bid again unless they now bid "Blackwood"!!?? Well at Oxshott four N/S Pairs bid 3 Hearts; two made 8 tricks and so lost 50 penalty points; one made 7 tricks to lose 100 points; and one made only 6 tricks to lose 150 points??!! Three East/West Pairs bid 3 Spades; one made 9 tricks for 140 points; the second made 10 tricks for 170 points; and the third made 11 tricks for 200 points!! One N/S Pair bid game in 4 Hearts; they made only 8 tricks to lose 100 penalty points??!! Finally four East/West Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; two made exactly 10 tricks for 620 points; one made the full set of 13 tricks for 710 points; but one made only 6 tricks to lose 200 penalty points. Unusually one E/W ended up in a game contract in 4 Spades (??!!); they mae 8 tricks to lose 200 mpenalty points??!! Now the "Expert Analysis" informs us that it is possible for East or West to make a Slam contract in either 6 Diamonds or in 6 Hearts!!
Board 24 gave West 15 HCPs with 6 Spades to the AQxxxx and a singleton Ace of diamonds; the would open 1 Spade!! North has 7 Diamonds to the QJ10xxxx with 8 HCPs; they might pre-empt with 4 Diamonds!! East has 11 HCPs with 4 Clubs to the AKxx and 4 Hearts to the Axxx; they would probably offer a response of 4 Hearts or 4 Spades. It would take quite a "step into the impossible" for West to bid Slam in 6 Clubs??!! Well at Oxshott one East/West Pair bid 2 Spades; they amde 10 tricks for 170 points!! Another bid 3 Spades; they made 11 tricks for 200 points!! One Pair bid 4 Hearts; sadly they made only 8 tricks to lose 100 points??!! Nine more East/West pairs bid game in 4 Spades; two made 10 tricks for 420 points; six made 11 tricks for 450 points; the ninth was doubled and made 10 tricks for 590 points!! Of course the "Expert Analysis" tells us that it is possible for East/West to make a Slam contract in 6 Clubs; but only if the contract is started from West. However it is really difficult to see how West would be the initiator of a Club contract??
Finally there was Board 9 which is reproduced at the top of this Report. Take another look just now to see how YOU might bid and play these interesting hands to maximise the Opportunity presented??!! You can see that East will open 1 Spade with their 15 HCPs, a singleton in Diamonds and 6 Spades to the AJ10xxx. West has an excellent 14 HCPs and a balanced hand in support, with 4 Diamonds to the AKxx and 4 Spades to the Qxxx; they would jump to 3 Diamonds to show their strength. East would repeat 3 Spades to show their length, and it is up to West to decide how strong they think they can bid??!! Well at Oxshott ten East/West Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; two made 11 tricks for 650 points, while 8 made 12 tricks for 680 points!! However three intrepid East/West Pairs bid a Slam contract in 6 Spades. Many congratulations must go to Valerie Bornoift & Ursula Oscroft, to Deanne & Kevin Goddard, and to Susan & Mike Sadler; they all bid Slam in 6 Spades; they all made exactly 12 tricks to share a whopping top score of 1430 points!! Well done indeed!! Now the "Expert Analysis" informs us that it is possible for both East and West to make a Slam contract on this Board in either 6 Spades or in 6 No Trumps!! How did YOU get on after revisiting this Board? Did YOU make a Slam and did YOU venture ot the "big" contract in 6 No Trumps?? Anyway congratulations must go to all our Actual Slam Achievers of the evening!!
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| Last updated : 26th Aug 2016 14:06 BST |
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| How many Medals could Team GB win at the Rio Olympics?? |
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Despite setting a very high bar during London 2012, Team GB are doing all they can to leap higher still and surpass pre-Olympics expectations.Rio 2016 has been littered with gold medals - 21 and counting - with several more opportunities to come as the Games draw to a close. Perhaps the biggest surprise, however, is how Britain have kept in front of China with only three days remaining. But can it continue? So far Britain has secured 55 medals in total, while China has managed 54. However, Team GB are still officially in second place in the medal table thanks to 21 gold medals compared to China's 19.
Laura Trott and Jason Kenny have hit back at claims British cyclists were cheating at the Olympics. Rivals from Germany, France and Australia had questioned the performances that have seen Britain dominate in the velodrome, winning 11 medals — including six gold. Trott and Kenny have led the way and now have 10 gold medals between them, including five in Rio. Germany’s Kristina Vogel, who beat Britain’s Becky James to gold in the women’s sprint, claimed Team GB’s performances were ‘questionable’ and she had ‘no idea how they do it’. Becky James responded by saying she thought such criticism was ‘sad’ and ‘sour grapes’. Victoria Pendleton, a two-time gold medal winning former Olympic cyclist, commented: “I can completely understand why people are questioning Team GB's performances at the Velodrome. Six gold medals, four silvers and a bronze? This is the third Games running at which we have completely cleaned up. If you think about it, that is a typical athlete's entire lifetime in the sport. If you had slogged your guts out and did not get a sniff in those 12 years I can imagine it would be pretty soul-destroying.” She continued: “I recall walking into a room to find Ernie Feargrieve (GB's lead mechanic) applying a load of nail polish to remove all the Mavic stickers. The thought was the labels might add a tiny bit of extra weight and disrupt airflow. Talk about marginal gains. But cheating? Absolutely not. People talk of ‘financial doping’ and ‘kit doping’. And the kit in Rio clearly delivered a huge performance gain. But ‘doping’ implies cheating. It is a poor choice of word. There are no engines on the bike. No one takes drugs.”
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RIO 2016 - Latest Medal Table Thursday, 18th August
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Place
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Gold
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Silver
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Bronze
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Total
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1st
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UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
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31
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32
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31
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94
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2nd
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GREAT BRITAIN
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21
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21
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13
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55
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3rd
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PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA
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19
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15
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20
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54
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4th
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GERMANY
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13
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8
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10
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31
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5th
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RUSSIAN FEDERATION
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12
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14
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15
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41
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6th
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JAPAN
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10
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5
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18
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33
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Gymnastics, athletics and swimming victories have pushed the United States to the top of the Olympics medal league table above Team GB, but it will also leave their athletes with a hefty tax bill when they return home. Olympic medals won by any US athlete are given a value and taxed by US authorities, based on the value of the materials in a gold, silver or bronze award. Gold medals are worth around $600 based on today’s commodity prices, a silver medal around $30 0 and copper-made bronze medals just $4. Americans for Tax Reform, a lobby group that opposes the "medal tax", put the bills at $9,900 for a gold medallist, $5,940 for a silver medallist and $3,960 for a bronze.
Simone Biles (pictured below), the 19-year-old gymnast with five Olympic medals under her belt, could be paying tax on multiple medals including four golds. The US team counts some of the most decorated Olympic athletes in the world, notably swimmer Michael Phelps, who has won 28 medals, including 23 golds, during his career - earning him the nickname of the "Flying Fish". But unlike team GB, the US government pays athletes a financial bonus if they win medals at this summer’s games, much like rivals including Italy and Russia – although this, too, is taxed as income. US gold medallists are paid $25,000, silver winners $15,000, and bronze medallists earn $10,000. Prize money is usually taxed in the UK, including Andy Murray's £2m sweetener for taking the Wimbledon Men's Singles title earlier this summer. Great Britain doesn’t offer incentive payments to its medal-winning athletes, saying it isn’t important to motivating athletes, who are instead left to cash in on their post-Olympic fame through corporate deals and media appearances.
There was no monetary award at stake last night but there was certainly plenty of competition as 14 + 1/2 Tables sat down to contest our regular Club Night at the Oxshott Bridge Club. The Star Performers were Mike Mulligan & Elisa Money who achieved an outstanding score of 70.47% to come First among the Pairs who played North/South; they also scooped the maximum 50 Master Points!! They were 21 Match points ahead of visitors Paul & Sue Chapman who came Second with an excellent 66.68%. there was then quite a large gap before the "chasing pack" who were led by Alan & Pat Hammond who scored 53.94% in Third place. They were 12.1 Match points ahead of Jonathan Spring & John French who came Fourth with 51.84%, with Pauline Harris & Julue Minards just 0.1 of one Match point further back in Fifth place!!?? The competition for the top places was much closer among the Pairs playing East/West. Congratulaions must go to Deanne & Kevin Goddard who captured First place with 58.24%; they were 2.5 Match points ahead of Rowena & Eric Austin who were Second with 57.77%, with Susan & Mike Sadler coming Third with 55.51%!! Renate Lane & George Gardiner were only 2.7 Match points further back in Fourth place with 55.00%, and they were just 0.1 of one Match point ahead of Philip Goldenberg & Dave Bowen who came Fifth with 54.98%. Well done to all our Master Points Winners!!
It was North who received the "good cards"; they played the contract on no less than 11 Boards!! West got 7 contracts to play, while South played 5 contracts. That left poor old East with only 3 Boards where they got to play the contract!!?? There were 12 Boards that offered only part-game contracts, whereas 14 Boards presented the chance for the higher-scoring "game-going" contracts!!?? There were four Boards that offered Slam Opportunities, and they all fell to East/West!! Amazingly there was only two Slam bids in the whole evening...........and not one sucessful Slam contract was made!!?? Board 3 gave West an excellent 18 High Card Points, with 6 Clubs to the AQxxxx and a singleton Spade; they would open 1 Club. East had a sound 11 HCPs in support with 5 Diamonds to the K10xxx and two helpful Clubs being the KJ; they would respond 1 Diamonds. West might show their point count with 2 No Trumps, and East would raise further to 3 No Trumps. Now West has to decide if they should settle for the game contract or look for a bigger contract by calling "Blackwood"??!! Well last night two East/West Pairs stopped at 3 Clubs; one made 12 tricks for 170 points, while the other made all 13 tricks for 190 points!! Eight more E/W Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; two made 11 tricks for 660 points, five made all 13 tricks for 710 points, while one made only 8 tricks and so lost 100 penalty points!!?? Another E/W Pair bid game in 5 Diamonds; they made 11 tricks for 600 points. Finally one intrepid E/W Pair braved a Slam bid in 6 No Trumps; sadly they made only 8 tricks and so gave up a whopping 400 penalty points and a top score to their Opponents!!?? Now the "Expert Analysis" - which you can find along with the Travellers in the "Results" section - informs us that it is possible for West (and only West) to made a Slam contract in ANY of 6 Clubs, 6 Diamonds or in 6 No Trumps!! You see unfortunately West has only one card for protection in Hearts; if the lead comes from North, they will play the Ace of Hearts which allows the King in West to be a "Winner". However if the lead comes from South, they will definitely lead the Queen of Hearts which forces West to play their King and North overtakes with the Ace. Then a Heart return allows South to make 5 tricks in total!! Funny how difficult it can be to make a Slam contract??!!
Board 8 gave West another great hand with 18 HCPs; similar to Board 3, here West again had 6 Clubs to the AKQxxx with a singleton Heart; they would open 1 Heart. East has 10 HCPs in support, with 4 Hearts to the AJxx; the fact that they also had 4 Clubs to the J10xx might allow them to jump to 2 Hearts!! That allows West to show their point count with 2 No Trumps and East can then show their support in the other suit with 3 Clubs. Now it is up to West to decide how ambitious they want to be??!! Well last night 8 East/West Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; five made 11 tricks for 460 points, while three made 12 tricks for 490 points!! Four more E/W Pairs bid game in 5 Clubs; three made 11 tricks for 400 points, while one made 12 tricks for 420 points!! Finally one intrepid Pair attempted a Slam contract in 6 No Trumps!! Sadly they made only 11 tricks and so gave up 50 penalty points - and a top score - to their Opponents??!! Now the "Expert Analysis" confirms that it is possible for either East or West to make a Slam contract in 6 Clubs; but the maximum achievable against the best defences is 11 tricks in No Trumps!! It is always difficult to bid a Slam contract in a minor suit when the easier No Trumps contract is available with its higher points scoring potential??!!
Board 18 presented a similar Opportunity except the big cards fell to East this time and it was Diamonds rather than Clubs which were the feature suit. Dealer East had 16 HCPs with 6 Diamonds to the AKJxxx and a singleton Spade; they would open 1 Diamond. West had 11 HCPs with 4 Clubs to the Kxxx and 4 Spades to the A10xx; they would respond with 1 Spade. That allows East to show their point count with 1 No Trumps, but it does not make it easy for West to do some "brave" bidding??!! Well last night two East/West Pairs settled for 3 Diamonds; both made 12 tricks for 170 points!! Nine more E/W Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; two made 11 tricks for 460 points; five made 12 tricks for 490 points; and two made all 13 tricks for 520 points!! Two more E/W Pairs bid game in 5 Diamonds; one made 12 tricks for 420 points, while the other made all 13 tricks for 440 points!! So no one even attempted a Slam contract??!! As you can guess, the "Expert Analysis" confirms that it is possible for both East and West to make a Slam contract in 6 Diamonds!! You see the even split of the 4 Diamonds between North and South allows West to trump one Hearts trick and the rest of the contract is pretty straightforward with the Aces of Spades and Hearts as well as 3 Clubs and 6 Diamond tricks!! Easy when you have 20-20 hindsight??!!
Finally there was Board 9 which is reproduced at the top of this Report. Do take another look at these hands to see how YOU would bid and play the Board to maximise the Opportunity offered??!! You can see that Dealer North has only 6 HCPs, so they will pass. East has 10 HCPs and a balanced hand; they too will pass, as will South who has 7 HCPs. That means that it is West who has the "good cards"; they have 4 Clubs to the Q10xx and 4 Hearts to the AQ10x; they will open 1 Club. East will raise to 1 Heart, and West jumps to 3 Hearts to show their clear support. Now East has to decide whether to bid 4 Clubs or 4 Hearts, or even 3 No Trumps?? Well last night one East/West Pairs settled for 1 No Trumps; they made 9 tricks for 150 points!! Two more E/W Pairs bid 2 Hearts; both made 11 tricks for 200 points!! Another two bid up to 3 Hearts; one made 11 tricks for 200 points, while the other made 12 tricks for 230 points!! Two E/W Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; both made 12 tricks for 690 points!! Six more E/W Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; three made 10 tricks for 620 points; one made 11 tricks for 650 points; and two made 12 tricks for 680 points!! Now the "Expert Analysis" tells us that it is possible for EITHER East or West to make a Slam contract in ANY of 6 Clubs, 6 Hearts or in 6 No Trumps!! Amazingly the King of Spades can be finessed in South and the King of Clubs can be finessed in North, and the twelfth trick falls to a finesse of the Jack of Hearts in North!! Now three successes with finesses in one hand has to be a little fortunate??!! How did YOU do in bidding and playing these interesting hands?? Whatever let's hope we have more fortune with the Slam contracts next week. See you there!!
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| Last updated : 18th Aug 2016 21:07 BST |
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| Rumours that David Cameron is buying this £10.5 million Estate in Scotland!! |
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David Cameron’s rumoured moved to the North-East of Scotland has taken a leap forward today with news that the £10.5million Aberdeenshire estate favoured by his wife Samantha has been put up for sale. The Aberdeen newspaper, the Press and Journal,had previously revealed that the former Prime Minister and his family were eyeing the 12,000-acre Tillypronie estate near Tarland, Aberdeenshire. But estate agents Strutt and Parker initially ruled out the move saying the estate was “absolutely not” on the market. However, owner Philip Astor, who inherited Tillypronie in 1984, appears to have had a change of heart. He told reporters: “I have worked hard over the past few years to restore the grouse moors to something approaching their former glory, but I feel it is now time for someone else to continue that exercise.”
The most expensive estate in Scotland has been put on the market for an eye-watering price of at least £10.5 million. With stunning scenic views of the Dee Valley, the Tillypronie Estate is described as a 'truly magical place' by its owner. Along with its own salmon fishing, pheasant shoot and even a church, Migvie Kirk, the 12,000-acre estate also has family ties to Samantha Cameron, wife of the former Prime Minister. It has sweeping views across the Dee Valley and has been visited by famous names from Queen Victoria to the American writer Henry James. It is currently owned by Philip Astor, a member of the Anglo-American Astor family. Philip is a first cousin once removed to the 4th Viscount, Lord William Astor, who is married to Mrs Cameron's mother, Lady Annabel.
Locals are speculating that Mr and Mrs Cameron may now be thinking of buying the property as a bolthole. If they did, they wouldn't be the first famous names associated with the estate, which is an example of late Victorian Gothic-style. It was built in 1867 by Queen Victoria's physician Sir James Clark, with Victoria laying the first foundation stone. The Queen would often visit, including with her servant and close personal friend John Brown. Philip Astor, who inherited it in 1984 from his parents, Lord and Lady Astor, described it as a 'truly magical place' following years of restoration work. For those rainy Scottish days there's a billiards room among the many delights on offer inside, with the walls plastered with memorabilia. The family oversaw the establishment of one of the most prolific grouse moors in the Highlands, with more than 2,000 brace of grouse a year in the 1960s. But Mr Astor, a barrister, said he felt the time had now come to sell the estate to someone who can continue developing it.
But the property has been at the centre of an EU funding row after it was revealed earlier this year that nearly £400,000 of farming subsidies were paid to the estate’s trust to plant trees. According to the most recent figures, the Tillypronie Estate Trust received £385,279 from the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) in 2014 for “first afforestation of agricultural and non-agricultural land”. At the time, David Strang Steel, of estate managers Strutt & Parker, said the funds were a “one of payment” and said the estate “does not receive an annual subsidy from the EU.” But the payments were criticised by UKIP MEP David Coburn who described the CAP system as a “mess” that could never be reformed. He said: “There is some outrageous squandering of public money within the CAP payments system, which has grown into such a monolith that it has become pretty much unreformable.”
The 12,000-acre Tillypronie Estate features the 11-bedroom Tillypronie House which was built in 1867. It also offers game shooting, deer stalking and salmon and trout fishing. The gardens have opened to the public twice a year to raise funds for the charity Scotland's Gardens. Robert McCulloch, of Strutt and Parker, said: "The style, setting and outlook of Tillypronie House is like no other in Scotland. "Nestled discreetly in the hills above the Howe of Cromar, the panoramic views across Deeside are inspirational at all times of year." Mr Cameron stood down as Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party in the aftermath of the Brexit referendum in June.
Some may be taking their leisure and sorting out new homes, but there was keen competition at the Oxshott Bridge Club last night as 14 + 1/2 Tables turned up to contest our regular Club Night. The Star Performers were David Rotherham & Sue Osborne who came First among the Pairs playing North/South with an outstanding svore of 62.19%; they also scooped the maximum 50 Master Points!! The were closely follwed by Philip Duncan & Richard Burgess who came Second with 60.14%, and Philip Goldenberg & David Bowen were Third with 58.53%. Tony Fincham & Elisa Money captured Fourth place with 56.08%, but they were only 1.3 Match points ahead of Judy Hickman & Kay O'Gorman who came Fifth with 55.86%. Congratulations must also go to Mike Mulligan & John French who just came through in First place in the closely contested battle among the Pairs playing East/West; they scored an excellent 60 85%, but they were only 9.5 Match points ahead of Gail Norman & Therezinha Gold who came Second with 59.33%, with Susan & Mike Sadler only 0.12% further back with 59.21% in Third place!! There was then a bit of a gap before Alan & Pat Hammond claimed Fourth spot with 55.05%; and they were just 1.4 Match points ahead of Jonathan & Sheila Spring who came Fifth with 54.82%. Well done to all our Master Points Winners!!
It was West who received the "good cards" last night; they played the contract on 9 Boards. They were closely followd by North who played 8 contracts. That left South to play 6 contracts, and poor old East spent the evening practising their defensive skills as they received only 3 Boards where they got to play the contract!!?? The split between part-game contracts and the higher scoring game-going contracts was much more even with 13 of each featuring among the 26 Boards in play. There were seven Boards that offered some kind of Slam Opportunity, and there were four actual Slam contracts delevered during the evening!! Board 10 presented East with 15 High Card Points with 6 Spades to the AK10xxx; they would open 1 Spade. West had 9 HCPs in support with an amazing 6 Spades in support; they would raise to 3 Spades. Now it is up to East to decide if there is a "big contract" in prospect or to settle for a game-contract??!! Well 9 East/West Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; six made exactly 10 tricks for 620 points, while two made 11 tricks for 650 points!! One opportunistic N/S Pair bid game in 5 Hearts; they were doubled; they made 10 tricks and so lost only 200 penalty points!! Two more E/W Pairs bid up to 5 Spades; they both made only 10 tricks and so gave up 100 penalty points. Finally one East/West Pair braved a Slam bid in 6 Spades; sadly they made only 10 tricks and so lost 200 penalty points!!?? Now the "Expert Analysis" - which you can find along with the Travellers in the "Results" section - confirms that it is possible for East/West to make a maximum of 10 tricks on this Board. A Club opening lead leaves E/W vulnerable to losing two Diamond and one Club tricks. So no surprise bouquets here!!??
Board 11 gave South 11 HCPs with six Clubs to the AKJxxx; using the "Rule of 20", they would open 1 Club. both West and North pass, and East has a whopping 16 HCPs with 6 Diamonds to the AQJxxx, 4 Spades to the AKQx and a void in Clubs; they would double, asking their Partner to show their best suit. South might redouble for devilment, but West would bid 1 Heart. Now it is up to East to lead the bidding to see how best to optimise the possible contracts??!! Well four East/West Pairs settled for 3 Diamonds; one made 10 tricks for 130 points; two made 11 tricks for 150 points; and one made 12 tricks for 170 points!! One North/South Pair bid 3 Clubs; they were doubled; sadly they made only 5 tricks and so gave up 800 penalty points!!?? Six East/West Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; one made exactly 9 tricks for 400 points; four made 10 tricks for 430 points; and one made 11 tricks for 460 points!! Two more E/W Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; one made 10 tricks for 420 points; but the other made only 9 tricks and so gave up 50 penalty points!!?? Now the "Expert Analysis" tells us that it is possible for both East and West to make a Slam contract in 6 Diamonds. Even more significantly it is possible for both East and West to make a GRAND SLAM in 7 Hearts!! It needs a clever finesse of the Queen of Hearts and the trumping of the final Diamonds trick by West to capture the missing King of Diamonds, but this is the sort of challenge that we all relish??!!
Board 13 gave South a good hand with 16 HCPs including 5 Diamonds to the AQJxx and 4 Clubs to the J10xx with a singleton Ace of Spades; they would open 1 Diamond. West has 11 HCPs with 5 Hearts to the Qxxxx and 4 Diamonds to the K10xx; they would bid 1 Heart. North has only 7 HCPs but with 6 Spades to the K10xxxx and 4 good Hearts to the KJ10x; they might well respond 1 Spade!! East has only 6 HCPs but they have 5 Spades to the Jxxxx and 5 Clubs to the KQxxx; they may well bid 2 Clubs. Now South will indicate a points count with 2 No Trumps. It is not easy to see how the bidding will end up from here, but last night there were plenty of different views??!! One North/South Pair bid 2 Diamonds; they made 7 tricks and so lost 100 penalty points!! Another N/S Pair settled for 2 Spades; they nade exactly 8 tricks for 110 points!! One East/West bid 3 Clubs; they made only 7 tricks to lose 200 penalty points!!?? A third N/S Pair bid up to 3 Diamonds; they made only 6 tricks to lose 300 penalty points??!! Another N/S Pair bid 3 Spades; they made 8 tricks to lose 100 penalty points!!?? Three N/S Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; all three made only 8 tricks to lose 100 penalty points!!?? One intrepid E/W Pair bid up to 4 Hearts; they made only 7 tricks to lose 300 points........and a top score on this board for their Opponents??!! Two more N/S Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; they both made only 8 tricks to lose 200 penalty points!! Finally there was one North/South Pair who could not contain their optimism??!! They bid Slam in 6 No Trumps; they made only 9 tricks to lose 300 points??!! The "Expert Analysis" informs us that - against the best of defences - it is only possible for North and South to win a maximum of 8 tricks in Diamonds, Hearts, Spades or in No Trumps!!
Board 20 gave South a whopping 19 HCPs with 6 Diamonds to the AKxxxx and a singleton Ace of Hearts; they would open 1 Diamond. North has 9 HCPs with 5 Hearts to the K10xxx and 4 Diamonds to the QJ10x; because of their Diamond support, they might jump to 2 Hearts!! Now South has to decide whether to close out on 3 No Trumps or show strength in Diamonds with 3 Diamonds??!! Well last night one N/S Pair settled for 2 Diamonds; they made all 13 tricks for 190 points!! A second N/S Pair bid up to 3 Diamonds; they also made 13 tricks for 190 points!! Five more N/S Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; all five made 11 tricks for 660 points!! Then five more N/S Pairs bid game in 5 Diamonds; one made 12 tricks for 620 points while the other four made all 13 tricks for 640 points!! However one North/South Pair bid a Slam contract!! Many congratulations must go to Tony Fincham & Elisa Money who bid Slam in 6 Diamonds; thry made the full set of 13 tricks to score an excellent top score of 1390 points!! Well done indeed!! Now the "Expert Analysis" informs us that it is possible for both North and South to make a GRAND SLAM in 7 Diamonds on this Board!!??
Board 22 gave East a super hand with 17 HCPs with 5 Diamonds to the AQJxx, 5 Clubs to the AQxxx and a void in Spades; they would open 1 Diamond. West has 9 HCPs with 5 Clubs to the KJ10xx; they would respond 1 No Trumps!! North has only 6 HCPs but they do have 7 Spades to the A10xxxxx; they might venture 3 Spades!! East would then bid 4 Clubs, their second suit!! South has four Spades to the KJxx; so they may support their Partner with 4 Spades!! It is now anyone's guess where the contraqct will end up??!! Well last night one East/West Pair settled for a contract in 1 No Trumps; sadly they made only 6 tricks to lose 100 penalty points!! Two East/West Pairs bid 4 Clubs; one made 11 tricks for 150 points. while the other made 12 tricks for 170 points!! One North/South Pair bid 4 Spades; they were doubled; they made only 9 tricks and so lost 100 penalty points!! Seven more E/W Pairs bid game in 5 Clubs; all seven made 12 tricks for 620 points!! Two more N/S Pairs bid up to 5 Spades; they both made 9 tricks, but one was not doubled so they lost 100 points while the second was doubled and so lost 300 penalty points!! Of course it will not surprise to learn that the "Expert Analysis" confirms that it is possible for both East and West to make a Slam in 6 Clubs on this Board!!
Then there is Board 23 where West has an excellent hand with17 HCPs and a 4441 distribution; they would open 1 Club. East has a healthy 13 HCPs with 5 Clubs to the KQ10xx and 4 Diamonds to the AJxx with a singleton Spade; they could go straight to 3 No Trumps but they will probable jump to 2 Diamonds to show strength!! West would probably show their point count at 17-18 by bidding 2 No Trumps and East might well jump again to 4 Clubs to show their 4-card strength supporting their Partner's initial bid. Now it is up to West to decide how brave they are in bidding the potential of this contract!!?? Well last night one East/West Pair settled for a part-game in 3 Clubs; they made 12 tricks for 170 points!! Five more E/W Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; two made 10 tricks for 630 points; two more made 11 tricks for 660 points; and one made 12 tricks for 690 points!! One intrepid North/South Pair braved a game bid of 4 Spades; they were doubled; sadly they made only 5 tricks and so lost a whopping 1400 penalty points and the top score for East/West??!! Four more E/W Pairs bid game in 5 Clubs; one made 12 tricks for 620 points; two made all 13 tricks for 640 points; but one made only 9 tricks to give up 200 penalty points??!! However one East/West Pair bid a Slam contract!! Many congratulations must go to Jonathan & Sheila Spring who bid Slam in 6 Clubs; they made all 13 tricks for a whopping top score of 1390 points!! Now the "Expert Analysis" informs us that it is possible for East or West to deliver a GRAND SLAM in 7 Clubs on this Board as well as a Small Slam in either 6 Hearts or in 6 No Trumps!!
Finally there was Board 25 which is reproduced at the top of this Report. Take another look just now at these hands to see how YOU would optimise the Opportunity presented by this Board??!! You can see that North has 16 HCPs with 5 Hearts to the QJxxx and 4 Clubs to the AJxx; they would open 1 Heart. South has 12 HCPs in support with a fantastic 6 Spades to the AQ10xxx; they would jump to 2 Spades. North then bids their second suit with 3 Clubs. South will avoid closing out the bidding with a 4 Spades bid and will prefer to bid 3 Spades to emphasise their strength in Spades. Now it is up to North to decide how high the contract should go??!! Well last night ten North/South Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; four made 12 tricks for 480 points while six made all 13 tricks for 510 points!! But congratulations must go to June Buckland & Eileen Goddard who bid Slam in 6 Spades; they made all 13 tricks for an excellent 1010 points. However extra special congratultions must go to David Rotherham & Sue Osborne who were brave enough to bid a GRAND SLAM in 7 Spades; fantastically they made all 13 tricks for an outstanding score of 1510 points and the top score on this Board!! The "Expert Analysis" tells us that it is possible for both North and South to make a Slam in 6 Hearts, but also that they can both make a GRAND SLAM in 7 Spades on this Board. Well done indeed!! Also congratulations to all our Actual Slam Achievers of the evening!!
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| Last updated : 11th Aug 2016 20:55 BST |
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| Australia allows Abuse of Refugees to Deter Others, Rights Groups Say |
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Asylum seekers and refugees being held on Nauru under Australia’s harsh immigration laws are being deliberately subjected to suffering to deter others from trying to reach Australia, human rights researchers said after visiting the tiny island nation. “The Australian government is commissioning the abuse of these people,” Anna Neistat, a senior director for research at Amnesty International who spent five days on Nauru in July, said by telephone from Paris. “It pays for the companies that detain the refugees, it pays for the guards, and it fails to provide adequate medical care. Australian taxpayers are funding it. And the world does not know this place exists.” Michael Bochenek, senior counsel for Human Rights Watch, also visited Nauru, one of two offshore Pacific sites where Australia sends migrants who try to reach its shores by sea, and the groups issued a joint report on Tuesday about their findings. It is unusual for rights groups or news organizations to gain access to Nauru, whose government routinely denies them visas; Ms. Neistat and Mr. Bochenek did not identify their employers in their visa applications, according to the report. Between them, the report said, the two spent 12 days interviewing 84 asylum seekers and refugees, including children, and spoke to service providers there. They said that asylum seekers were denied adequate medical care, that they were often the victims of crime and that depression and anxiety were rampant. “Australia’s policy of exiling asylum seekers who arrive by boat is cruel in the extreme,” Ms. Neistat said. “Few other countries go to such lengths to deliberately inflict suffering on people seeking safety and freedom.”
Australia's immigration has remained relatively steady over the last 20 years, with around 12,000 to 13,000 people typically accepted every year. In 2015-16, Australia accepted 13,750 people through its humanitarian programme and has committed to accepting an additional 12,000 refugees fleeing Syria and Iraq. Asylum seekers have attempted to reach Australia on boats from Indonesia, often paying large sums of money to people smugglers. Hundreds have died making the dangerous journey. At its peak, 18,000 people arrived in Australia illegally by sea. However the numbers plummeted after the government introduced tough new policies to "stop the boats".
Australia’s policy is that no asylum seekers who try to reach the country by sea will ever be allowed to settle here, regardless of whether they are granted refugee status. The government says that policy, which rights groups and the United Nations have criticized, is meant to stop migrants from trying the often dangerous voyage in rickety boats, which have sometimes ended in mass drownings. Migrants intercepted at sea are instead sent to Nauru or to Manus Island, a part of Papua New Guinea, where they are held indefinitely. A few refugees have been resettled in third countries, including Cambodia, and many have been returned to the countries they fled. In April, the Supreme Court of Papua New Guinea ruled that the detention centre there was illegal. More than 1,000 refugees and asylum seekers, including around 50 children, are being held on Nauru. About 470 live on the grounds of the Australian-funded processing camp, while the rest live elsewhere on the impoverished island.
A spokeswoman for International Health and Medical Services, a company that Australia pays to provide medical services on Nauru, wrote in an email that the company “refutes the claim that asylum seekers and refugees on Nauru are denied treatment by I.H.M.S. or receive poor quality treatment.” Peter Young, a psychiatrist who worked for the company from 2011 to 2014 as the director of mental health services, said the report was consistent with his experiences on Nauru. “I don’t doubt the veracity of the allegations,” Dr. Young said by telephone. “I know there are people there with significant mental health issues. The government is pursuing a policy that makes these people human sacrifices to stop more boats from coming.”
Nauru, the world's smallest republic, is a small oval shaped coral island, located just 25 miles south of the Equator. Dominated by a central phosphate plateau, it's surrounded by a coral reef and ringed by windswept palm trees and a sandy beach. Originally settled by Polynesian and Melanesian explorers, Nauru had little contact with Europeans until whaling ships and other traders began to visit the islands in the 1830s. Nauru, an island of eight square miles, was ravaged by decades of phosphate mining, and its economy is buoyed by payments and aid from the Australian government, which spent $314 million on its operations there last year, Amnesty said. The Refugee Action Coalition, based in Sydney, said the government spends about $900 million a year on the centres on Nauru and Manus Island. Nauru has limited tourism activities, however, those in the know recognize the diving and fishing conditions here are world class.
We may not have been near the Equator but there was plenty of hot competition as 13 full Tables attended our regular Club Night at the Oxshott Bridge Club yesterday evening. Hearty congratulations must go to Robin & Hilary Lane who ran away with First place among the Pairs playing East/West with an outstanding score of 64.02%; they also scooped the maximum 50 Master Points!! They were some way ahead of the "chasing pack" who were led by Philip Duncan & Richard Burgess who scored 58.14% in Second place; they were just 6 Match points ahead of Jonathan & Sheila Spring who came Third with 57.01%. Marjorie Neal & Diana Till were Fourth with 54.55%, and they were 9 match points ahead of Liam Creagh & Annemie Bisgood who came Fifth with 53.84%. Congratulations must also go to Rowena Austin & Julie Minards who came First among the Pairs playing North/South with an impressive 61.55%; thus was all the more noteworthy as Rowena was also acting as Director for the evening. It is not easy to double up the duties of Director while concentrating on playing the cards, so well done to Rowena and Julie for their success!! David Rotherham & Sue Osborne came Second with 57.95%. There was then a bit if a gap before Daphne Pugh & Gillian Lowe claimed Third spot with a score of 54.73%; they were 6 Match points ahead of Sheila & Wordy Price who came Fourth with 53.60%, and Tony Fincham & Elisa Money were a further 5 Match points back with 52.65% in Fifth position. Well done to all our Master Points Winners!!
it was an unusual evening in many ways!!?? The "good cards" fell to North on this occasion; they played the contract on 11 out of the 26 Boards. West got to play the contract on 7 Boards, and East played 5 contracts. That left poor old South to concentrate on their defensive skills as they received only 3 Boards where they got to play the contract!!?? It was an evening of game-going contracts as well!! No less than 20 of the 26 Boards offered a game-going contract to aim for!! That meant that there were only 6 Boards that offered the lower-scoring part-game contract to play!! There were three Boards that presented Slam Opportunities and there were actually 10 successful Slam contracts achieved during the evening!! Board 16 gave North an outstanding hand with 17 High Card points, a void in Spades, and 7 Clubs to the AKQxxxx; some might open a strong 2 Clubs because they looked to have 9 "playing tricks"!!?? East had 10 HCPs with 6 Hearts to the KQxxxx; they might bid 2 Hearts to indicate to their Partner what lead they wanted?? South had 10 HCPs with 7 Spades to the KJxxxxx and a doubleton KQ of Hearts; they would bid 3 Spades!! Now it is up to North to decide just how brave they are going to be??!! Well last night,four North/South Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; three made 11 tricks for 460 points, while one made 12 tricks for 490 points!! Four more N/S Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; one made 9 tricks to lose 50 penalty points; two more made 8 tricks to lose 100 points; and one made only 7 tricks and so lost 150 penalty points!! Three N/S Pairs bid game in 5 Clubs; one made 11 tricks for 400 points; the second made 12 tricks for 420 points; but the third was doubled and made 11 tricks, so they made an excellent 550 points!! However one intrepid North/South Pair braved a Slam bid!! Many congratulations must go to Jonathan & Sheila Spring who bid Slam in 6 Clubs; they were doubled; and they made exactly 12 tricks for a whopping 1090 points and a winning score!! The "Expert Analysis" - which you can find attached to the Travellers in the "Results" section - conforms that, even against the best of defences, it is possible for either North or South to make a Slam contract in 6 Clubs!!
Board 22 presented a "dream" hand to South. They had a whopping 24 HCPs, with 5 Clubs to the KQxxx and 4 Spdes to the AKJx; they would open a strong 2 Clubs!! North had 10 HCPs with 5 Clubs to the AJxxx; they would respond positively with 3 Clubs. Now it was up to South to guide the bidding from here!!?? Well last night, one North/South Pair settled for a part-game contract in 2 Diamonds; they made exactly 8 tricks for 90 points!!?? Five more N/S Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; four made 12 tricks for 490 points, while one made all 13 tricks for 520 points!! However the remaining six Pairs bid a Slam contract!! Congratulations must go to Rowena Austin & Julie Minards who bid Slam in 6 Clubs; they made all 13 tricks for 940 points!! But special congratulations must go to Tony Fincham & Elisa Money, to Linda Wheeler & Pauline Knee, to Daphne Pugh & Gillian Lowe, to Sheila & Wordy Price, and to David Rotherham & Sue Osborne; they all bid Slam in 6 No Trumps; they all made exactly 12 tricks to share 990 points!! Now the "Expert Analysis" points out that it is possible for North to make a GRAND SLAM in either 7 Spades or in 7 No Trumps; South can only make 6 tricks in these suits!!?? However both North and South can make a GRAND SLAM in 7 Clubs on this Board!! Well there you are!!
Finally there was Board 5 which is reproduced at the top of this Report. Take the chance just now to revisit this Board. How would YOU bid and play these hands to optimise the Opportunity offered?? So Dealer North quickly passes as they have 2 HCPs. East has a balanced hand with 12 HCPs; they will open 1 No Trump. South has only 6 HCPs so they will pass. Now West has a whopping 20 HCPs with 5 Spades to the AKQxx, 4 Diamonds to the AJxx and a singleton Queen of Clubs. It they bid 4 No Trumps, their Partner may pass if they have less than 14 HCPs!! A bid of 3 Spades would be stronger than 4 Spades, and would indicate the strength in Spades as well as indicating a wish to go for a game contract. Alternatively a "Gerber" bid of 4 Clubs would ask for Aces safely without closing off the bidding as may happen with 4 No Trumps??!! Well last night, four East/West Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; three made 12 tricks for 490 points, while one made all 13 tricks for 520 points!! Two more E/W Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; one made 12 tricks for 480 points, while the other made all 13 tricks for 510 points!! One E/W Pair bid up to 4 No Trumps; they nade 12 tricks for 490 points!! That left the five brave East/West Pairs who ventured a Slam contract!!?? Two bid Slam in 6 Spades; sadly one made only 11 tricks and so lost 50 penalty points!!?? However congratulations must go to Liam Creagh & Annemie Bisgood who bid Slam in 6 Spades; they nade exactly 12 tricks for 980 points!! Three more E/W Pairs bid Slam in 6 No Trumps; sadly one made only 11 tricks and so gave up 50 penalty points!!?? However special congratulations must go to Philip Duncan & Richard Burgess who bid Slam in 6 No Trumps; they made the required 12 tricks for 990 points!! But extra special congratulations must be saved for Philip Goldenberg & Dave Bowen; they bid Slam in 6 No Trumps; but they made the full set of 13 tricks to score a whopping 1020 points and the top score on this Board!! Now the "Expert Analysis" confirms that it is possible for both East and West to make a Slam contract in ANY of 6 Clubs, 6 Spades or 6 No Trumps!! How did YOU get on when you revisited this Board? The risk seems to lie in Hearts, but there are 5 clear tricks to be had in both Clubs and Spades, but an attempt at a finesse that allows the Queen of Diamonds to win will cause the contract to fail if a Heart lead follows!!?? Anyway many congrastulations to all our Actual Slam Achievers of the evening!!
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| Last updated : 4th Aug 2016 12:52 BST |
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| It's Ladies Day at Glorious Goodwoood!! |
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Ladies’ Day at Goodwood is hailed as the place to see and be seen - and it seems that racegoers took note of the memo. Glamorous in a rainbow of colourful hats, bright shift dresses and towering heels, the ladies were out in force as Ladies Day got underway at Goodwood Festival on Thursday. Without a strict Ascot-esque dress code in place, women used the day out as an excuse to don a medley of bold fashion looks, including a feathered visor hat and some daringly short dresses. Short dresses in an array of bold hues with slashed hemlines, cut-out cleavages and fancy headgear were the order of the day. One lady used the warm weather as an excuse to show off her trim figure wearing a revealing peach dress, with both her chest and legs on show.
It's known as Glorious Goodwood - and the beauty wasn't just in the verdant landscape on the third day of the famous Sussex race meet. Now in its sixth year, this renowned charity event sees female jockeys only taking to the track. Riders who are leading women in business, some with little or no experience of racing, take part in the opening race of Ladies' Day, at one of the most exciting and glamorous horse racing events in the world.
Sporting stunning bespoke silks designed especially for the occasion by prominent female fashion designers, this event claims to be as exhilarating as it is stylish. Raising money for Best Beginnings and World Vision, the race has already raised over £1 million for charity. The female riders are all high profile successful business women from many different industries. For some riders, such as Harper’s Bazaar Designer Alby Bailey, it will be their debut race; for others, such as Dido Harding, CEO of TalkTalk and the race’s most experienced rider, it is a chance to win. Hayley Turner, the most successful female jockey in British racing history, is the ambassador for the 6th Magnolia Cup. Turner, who retired at the end of the 2015 season, provided the riders with guidance and support along their journey before they rode in the charity race.
There were plenty of "Runners" and "Riders" who turned up for our regular Club Night at the Oxshott Bridge Club yesterday evening; indeed there were enough to fill 12 + 1/2 Tables. The Star Performers were Valerie Jones & Dorothy Steinart who scored an outstanding 68.26% to capture First place among the Pairs playing East/West; they also scooped the maximum 40 Master Points!! Well done indeed!! They were well clear of the next two Pairs, although George Gardiner & Renate Lane just came Second with 59.36%; but they were only 0.2 of one Match point ahead of Therezinha Gold & Mike Sadler who came Third with 59.32%. Philip Goldenberg & Dave Bowen were again some way back in Fourth place with 53.80%. Congratulations must also go to Jonathan Spring & John French who werethe clear Winners among the Pairs playing North/South; they scored an impressive 61.84% in First place. Leading the "chasing pack" was Mike Mulligan & Elisa Money who came Second with 56.10%; they were 5.1 Match points ahead of Alan & Pat Hammond who came Third with 55.13%. Gail Norman & Eileen Goddard were Fourth with 52.97%. Well done to all our Master Points Winners!!
It was North who received the "good cards" as they played the contract on 8 Boards; both East and West played the contract on 7 Boards each, and that left poor old South with only 4 Boards where they got to play the contract!!?? The split between non-game contracts and the higer-scoring game contracts was pretty even; there were 14 Boards that offered the higher-scoring game contracts whereas there were only 12 Boards where we had to do with the lesser score!!?? Amazingly there were 6 Boards that offered some kind of Slam Opportunity, although there were only three Slam bids that were successful last night!! Board 6 gave South an interesting hand with 12 High Card Points, but a void in Clubs and 6 good Diamonds to the AKQxxx; they would open 1 Diamond. North had an excellent 15 HCPs in support, with 4 Spades to the AKQx and 4 Clubs to the Qxxx; they might well jump to 2 Spades. South might then mention their second suit with 3 Hearts. Now North has to decide whether to repeat their Spades or to indicate they have three Diamonds with 4 Diamonds??!! An alternative might be to opt for a safe 3 No Trumps??!! Well last night 9 North/South Pairs opted for the "safe" 3 No Trumps; two made 10 tricks for 430 points; three made 11 tricks for 460 points; and four made 12 tricks for 490 points!! One N/S Pair bid game in 4 Spades; they made 11 tricks for 450 points!!?? Finally one Pair bid game in 5 Diamonds; they made exactly 11 tricks for 400 points!!?? Now the "Expert Analysis" - which you can find along with the Travellers in the "Results" section - informs us that it is possible for either North or South to make a Slam contract in either 6 Diamonds or in 6 Spades!! It turns out that the Spades split conveniently 3-3 between East and West, so South can trump two Club tricks before taking out all the remaining trumps and the Slam is achieved easily with the remaining Diamonds!! Easy after the event...........isn't it always??!!
Board 13 was more difficult to identify??!! Dealer North and East would pass, and so South would open with their 14 HCPs and 6 Hearts to the KJ10xxx; they would bid 1 Heart. West has an excellent 17 HCPs and a 4441 distribution with the singleton in Spades; they would bid 2 Clubs. North would pass again, but East has 5 Clubs to the AJxxx and 5 Spades to the 10xxxx within 6 HCPs; they might well support their Partner with 3 Clubs. Well it is anyone's guess where the final contract would settle between the ambitions of South and West??!! Well last night three North/South Pairs settled on 1 Heart; two made 7 tricks for 80 points, while one made 9 tricks for 140 points!! Three more N/S Pairs were forced up to 2 Hearts; again two made 7 tricks to lose 100 penalty points, while one made 9 tricks for 140 points!! Then three East/West Pairs bid 2 No Trumps; all three made exactly 9 tricks for 150 points!! One intrepid N/S Pair bid up to 3 Hearts; they were doubled; sadly they made only 7 tricks and so gave up 500 penalty points and the top score to their Opponents!!?? Finally one E/W Pair bid up to 4 Clubs; they made 10 tricks for 130 points!! Now the "Expert Analysis" tells us that it is possible for West to make a Slam contract in 6 Clubs on this Board!!?? It turns out that the two Kings of Hearts and Diamonds lie conveniently in South allowing a finesse by West, and so the only losing trick is of a Spade taking West's singleton. Well would you bleieve it??!!
Board 22 presented some interesting hands all round!! East had 11 HCPs with 5 Hearts to the AKJxx and 4 Spades to the QJxx; under the "Rule of 20" they would open 1 Heart. South has only 7 HCPs but they do have 6 Diamonds to the AQ10xxx; they might well bid 2 Diamonds. West has an excellent 15 HCPs with 5 Clubs to the AKQxx and 4 Hearts to the Q10xx; they would jump to 3 Clubs. North may have only 7 HCPs but they do have 4 Diamonds to the KJxx; they might well respond 3 Diamonds!! East would now mention their 4-card suit with 3 Spades. Now it depends on the ambition of the Players as to where the final contract will land??!! Well 7 East/West Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; four made 11 tricks for 650 points, while three made 12 tricks for 680 points!! One EW Pair bid game in 4 Spades; sadly they made only 9 tricks and so gave up 100 penalty points!!?? One intrepid North/South Pair bid game in 5 Diamonds; they were doubled; they made 9 tricks to lose only 300 penalty points!!?? Finally two East/West Pairs bid up to 5 Hearts; they both made exactly 11 tricks for 650 points!! Now the "Expert Analysis" suggests that - even against the best of defences - it is possible for either East or West to make a Slam contract in 6 Hearts!! Of course the first trick goes to the opposition with a Diamond lead, but everything falls nicely thereafter. Taking trumps out allows West to make all 5 Club tricks while East discards the losing Spades. Lo and behold the Slam contract is delivered!!
Board 25 again gives both sides bidable hands!!?? Dealer North opens with 14 HCPs, 6 Hearts to the AKxxxx and 4 Diamonds to the K10xx; they bid 1 Heart. East has 10 HCPs with 7 Spades to the AQ10xxxx and a void in Hearts; they would jump to 3 Spades. South has only 3 HCPs so they would pass. West has 13 HCPs with an excellent KJx to contribute in Spades, a singleton Ace of Diamonds and 5 Clubs to the QJ10xx; they would certainly support their Partner with 4 Spades!! You needed to have nerves of steel to bid further form here??!! Well one North/South Pair bid game in 4 Hearts; they made only 7 tricks but lost only 150 points!!?? Seven East/West Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; all seven made 12 tricks for 680 points!! Three more E/W Pairs were pushed up to 5 Spades; all three made 12 tricks for 680 points!! It will be no surprise that the "Expert Analysis" confirms that both East and West can make a Slam contract in 6 Spades on this Board!! Given all the Spades are safe, the Ace of Diamonds locks that suit and the Hearts are covered by the void in East. The only losing trick is to the Ace of Clubs, and a Slam contract is secure!!
Then we come to Board 7 where South has 12 HCPs with 5 Spades to the AK10xx and 4 Clubs to the AQxx; they would open 1 Spade. South has an excellent 16 HCPs in support with a balanced hand and 4 cards in each of Clubs and Diamonds; they would jump to 3 Clubs!! North would respond with their 4-card Diamonds suit; they would bid 3 Diamonds!! Now it is up to South to choose; will it be a safe 3 No Trumps or will they try something higher?? Well last night 8 North/South Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; one made 9 tricks for 600 points; another made 10 tricks for 630 points; four made 11 tricks for 660 points; and two made 12 tricks for 690 points!! Another N/S Pair bid game in 4 Spades; they made 10 tricks for 620 points!!?? One N/S Pair bid up to 5 Spades; they made 11 tricks for 650 points!! Finally one intrepid North/South Pair ventured a Slam bid in 6 Diamonds!! Many congratulations must go to Jonathan Spring & John French; they bid Slam in 6 Diamonds; they made exactly 12 tricks for a whopping 1370 points!! Now the "Expert Analysis" confirms that it is possible only for North to make a Slam contract in 6 Diamonds!!?? Amazingly a lead from East probably means a low Heart, and this locks in an extra Heart trick which makes the Slam contract secure!! If the lead is from West, You might expect a Club lead which leave North no option but to play the Ace, thereby leaving the King of Clubs as a "dagger in the air" in East??!! Given the Ace of Diamonds is a certain winner, one has to expect the contract to fail following a second Club lead!!?? However in the case of our intrepid Slam Achievers, they received a lead of a low Heart which allowed a finesse in South with the Queen and the contract to be achieved!! You have got to be lucky sometimes!!
Finally there was Board 8 which is reproduced at the top of this Report. take another look just now at this Board to see how YOU would bid and play this interesting Board!! Here North has a whopping 20 HCPs with 5 Hearts and a balanced hand; they would open a strong 2 No Trumps!! South has 7 HCPs with 4 Spades to the A10xx and 4 Hearts to the K10xx; they would respond with "Stamen" 3 Clubs, asking for a 4-card major. North has 5 Hearts so they may well jump to 4 Hearts, which allows South to investigate a Slam contract!!?? Well last night two North/South Pairs settled for a game contract in 3 No Trumps; one made 11 tricks for 460 points, while the second made 12 tricks for 490 points!! Six more N/S Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; two made 11 tricks for 450 points, while four made 12 tricks for 480 points!! But three intrepid North/South Pairs attempted a Slam contract in 6 Hearts!! Sadly one fell short with only 11 tricks and so gave up 50 penalty points - and a top score to their Opponents!!?? But many congratulations must go to Philip Duncan & Edwin Jones and to Jonathan Spring & John French who both bod Slam in 6 Hearts; they both made exactly 12 tricks to share a top score of 980 points!! It turns out that North (but not South) can make a Slam contract in 6 Clubs, 6 Hearts, or in 6 No Trumps on this Board!! Clearly the Ace of Clubs is a "loser" so the worry is to lose a trick in Spades. However a Spade lead from East gives the contract to North as a finesse with the Queen makes the Slam a certainty. However a Diamond lead from East poses some extra problems. Fortunately the Hearts fall evenly at 2-2 in the opposition so losing the Ace of Clubs allows four tricks to be made in clubs and the contract is secure!! Funny how things work out!!?? Anyway many congratulations to our Actual Slam Achievers of the evening!!
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| Last updated : 28th Jul 2016 21:56 BST |
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| Theresa May flies to meet Angela Merkel after a confrontation in Parliament |
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Underscoring her arrival in the political limelight, Britain’s new Prime Minister, Theresa May, on Wednesday faced down the opposition leader in Parliament before flying to Berlin to discuss British withdrawal from the European Union with Chancellor Angela Merkel. In Berlin, the early signs were positive, though the visit was less about detailed negotiation than it was establishing positions and developing a working rapport with Ms. Merkel, the Union’s most powerful politician.
Initially, the two leaders appeared tense, and, as Ms. Merkel opened with her remarks, she occasionally glanced at Mrs. May, who kept her gaze ahead, listening intently to the translation. But, when asked about their first impressions of one another, Mrs. May broke into a wide smile and responded that, “We have two women here who, if I may say so, want to get on with the job and want to deliver the best possible results for the people of the U.K. and of Germany.” The Chancellor, after pausing for a moment to hear the final words of the simultaneous translation, turned to Mrs. May with an equally broad smile and said, “Genau,” German for “exactly.” Ms. Merkel appeared to soften her impatience over London’s delay in triggering the start of formal negotiations, and signalled a willingness to give Mrs. May’s new government time to figure out what it wants before moving ahead. An understanding between the two leaders could provide crucial support, and time, for Mrs. May and her negotiators as they tackle the complex task of extricating Britain from more than four decades of European integration.
Mrs. May stressed her determination not to rush into making a formal declaration of Britain’s departure that would start the clock ticking on a two-year negotiating deadline. In London, she had reiterated a pledge to reduce net migration — a key issue in last month’s “Brexit” referendum — promising to cut it to below 100,000 a year, though appearing to backtrack on a deadline for doing so. In both capitals, Mrs. May showed few signs of being of being a novice, despite having been in the job for just one week. She seemed relatively at ease both in the rather sober and businesslike forum with Ms. Merkel, and in the rowdy atmosphere of Parliament during the question session for the Prime Minister.
Theresa May stunned political commentators with a formidable performance in her first Prime Minister's Questions. "Is someone putting something in May's tea?" tweeted the BBC's assistant political editor Norman Smith. "First she culls the Cabinet. Now she goes on the warpath at PMQs." The newly appointed Prime Minister held no punches during her debut at the despatch box, repeatedly mocking Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn for the crisis engulfing his party.
After Corbyn congratulated her on becoming the second female Prime Minister, she responded: "I've long heard Labour asking what the Conservative Party does for women. Well. It just keeps making us PM." She then used the Labour leader's question about job security to suggest Corbyn himself was an "unscrupulous boss", sparking huge laughter and applause from the Tory benches. "A boss who doesn't listen to his workers, a boss who asks workers to double their workload, a boss who exploits the rules?" she said, before lowering her voice and staring directly at Corbyn: "Remind you of anyone?" The barb was delivered in "uncanny Thatcheresque fashion", says Andrew Sparrow. "It was a rather funny joke, but unsettling, and it jarred slightly because it was out of character."
Mr. Corbyn, who faces a leadership challenge from a Labour rival, Owen Smith, has been hit by the mass resignation of much of his senior team in Parliament, leading some of those who remain loyal to have more than one portfolio. Mrs. May pointedly thanked Labour lawmakers who defied the views of Mr. Corbyn to vote alongside her on Monday to renew Britain’s Trident nuclear missile system. She noted that she was the Conservative Party’s — and the nation’s — second female Prime Minister (the first was Margaret Thatcher), saying that she had “long heard the Labour Party asking what the Conservative Party does for women” before adding the answer: “It just keeps making us Prime Minister.”
Clearly it is the Age of Women in Britain, and there was considerable interest if our lady Members would star in our regular Club Night at the Oxshott Bridge Club yesterday evening. Well the Star Performers were Kevin & Deanne Goddard who scored an outstanding 65.63% to run away with First place among the Pairs playing North/South; they also scooped the maximum 40 Master points. Well done indeed!! Leading the "chasing pack" were Sheila Price & Carole Tuininga who scored 55.00% in Second place, but they were only 7 Match points ahead of Mike Mulligan & Elisa Money who came Third with 53.54%. June Buckland & Eileen Goddard were just a further 8 Match points back in Fourth place with 51.88%. There was also a clear Winner among the Pairs playing East/West. Many congratulations must go to Philip Duncan & Edwin Jones who scored an impressive 64.09% in First place, winnning by a considerable margin!! There were a whole bunch of Pairs giving chase, with Philip Goldenberg & Dave Bowen just capturing Second place qith 53.41%; they were 5 Match points ahead of Mary Bushell & Margaret Monaghan who cake Third with 52.27%. Rosemary Collin & Elizabeth Gray were just a single Match point further back in Fourth place with 52.05%. Well done to all our Master Points Winners!!
It was North that received the "good cards"; they played the contract on 8 out of the total of 24 Boards!! West played 7 contracts and South played another 6 contracts. That left poor old East only 3 Boards where they played the contract!!?? The split between non-game contracts and the higher-scoring game contracts was pretty even, with 13 Boards offering only non-game contracts while 11 offered the chance for a game contract. There were three Boards that offered a real Slam Opportunity, but only two successful Slam contracts were achieved (!!??)...........and they were both achieved by the same intrepid Pair!! Board 3 gave South a "powerhouse" of a hand with 19 High Card Points, with 5 Hearts to the AJxxx and 4 Spades to the AQJx; they would open 1 Heart. North had 7 HCPs with 5 Hearts to the Qxxxx to support their Partner's suit; they might well jump to 3 Hearts!!?? Now it is up to South to decide just how keen they are to play a "big contract"??!! Well last night, 8 North/South Pairs settled for a game-contract in 4 Hearts; five made exactly 10 tricks for 420 points; two made 11 tricks for 450 points; but one Pair sadly fell short by one trick and so gave up 100 penalty points!! One more N/S Pair bid up to 5 Hearts; they made 11 tricks for 450 points!! Finally two intrepid Pairs braved a Slam bid in 6 Hearts; sadly they both fell short!!?? One N/S Pair made 10 tricks to give up 100 penalty points, while the other made only 9 tricks to lose 150 points!! Now the "Expert Analysis" - which you can find along with the Travellers in the "Results" section - confirms that there is very little chance of a Slam contract here. Indeed it suggests that North can make 5 Hearts but South can only made 4 Hearts on this Board!! Sadly the King of Spades sits on the wrong side of the AQ which are held in South, and a clever lead from West of the Queen of Diamonds will secure another two Diamonds tricks for East/West. Then you have to be brave and play the Ace on the first Hearts trick in order to catch the singleton Kind of Hearts in West!!?? Funny how certain these Slam contracts look in prospect, but they are not always so easy to deliver!!??
Board 12 gave West 12 HCPs with 5 Hearts to the Axxxx and 4 Spades to the Axxx; they would open 1 Heart!! North had 10 HCPs with 7 Clubs to the KQ10xxxx; they would bid a weak 3 Clubs. East has 12 HCPs in support with a void in Spades and 5 Diamonds to the Axxxx and 4 cards in each of Hearts and Clubs; they would respond 3 Diamonds!! South has only 6 HCPs with a singleton Club, so they would pass. West might well bid 3 Spades to show a 5/4 in the major suits. Now it is up to East to decide wwhehter to settle for game in 4 Hearts or whether anything even bigger is possible??!! Well one East/West Pair settled for a part-game contract in 3 Hearts; they made 12 tricks for 230 points!!?? Seven E/W Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; four made 11 tricks for 450 points, while three made 12 tricks for 480 points!! One North/South Pair bravely bid game in 4 Spades; they were doubled; sadly they made only 7 tricks to lose 800 penalty points!!?? One more E/W Pair went up to 5 Hearts; they made only 10 tricks and so gave up 50 penalty points!! However one intrepid East/West Pair was brave enough to bid a Slam contract in 6 Hearts!! Many congratulations must go to Marjorie Neal & Diana Till who bid Slam in 6 Hearts; they made exactly 12 tricks for 980 points!! The "Expert Analysis" informs us that it is possible for both East and West to make a GRAND SLAM in either 7 Diamonds or in 7 Hearts; they can also make a SMALL SLAM in 6 No Trumps!! It turns out that the King of Hearts is a singleton in North so West can capture it with the first trumps suit by playing the Ace. The Queen of Diamonds sits conveniently in South allowing a finesse from East to West. Then cross-trumping Spades and Clubs brings the GRAND SLAM home!!?? Well done to our Slam Achievers!!
Then there was Board 9 which is repproduced at the top of this Report. Take another look just now to see how YOU would bid and play these interesting hands??!! You can see that Dealer North has 7 HCPs, with 6 Spades to the KJxxxx; they might well bid a weak 2 Spades??!! East had only 3 HCPs with 7 Hearts to the Q10xxxxx; they might risk bidding 3 Hearts. South has 9 HCPs with 7 cards in Diamonds to the KJ10xxxx; they might well bid 4 Diamonds!! West has a whopping 21 HCPs with 6 Clubs to the AKQ10xx; they would bid 5 Clubs!! Now it is anyone's guess where the final contract will settle??!! Last night, one East/West Pair bid 4 Clubs; they made 10 tricks for 130 points!! One North/South Pair bid 4 Diamonds; they made 8 tricks and so sacrificed 100 penalty points!! Two E/W Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; one made 11 tricks for 650 points, while the other made 12 tricks for 680 points!! Two more E/W Pairs bid game in 5 Clubs; one made exactly 11 tricks for 600 points, but the other fell short by two tricks and so gave up 200 penalty points!!?? Two intrepid N/S Pairs bid game in 5 Diamonds; they were both doubled. One made 8 tricks and so gave up 500 penalty points, but the other made only 7 tricks and so gave up a whopping 800 penalty points!!?? However one brave East/West Pair attempted a Slam contract!! Many congratulations must go to Marjorie Neal & Diana Till who bid Slam in 6 Hearts; they made exactly 12 tricks to score a very satisfying 1430 points and the top score on this Board!! Note the "Expert Analysis" confirms that both East and West can make a Slam contract in 6 Hearts!! You see there is no way that E/W can stop the King of Hearts winning as it is one of three Hearts carried by South; but the Jack falls to the Ace and the fabulous Clubs are all winners so the contract is easily made!! How did YOU get on re-bidding and replaying this Board?? It was partucularly difficult but a brave approach brought it's justifiable reward. Well done to our fantastic Slam Double Achievers of the evening!!
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| Last updated : 21st Jul 2016 20:19 BST |
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| UN rebukes Beijing over South China Sea territorial claims |
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The Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague, Netherlands, has ruled there is “no legal basis” for China’s expansive claims in the South China Sea, handing Beijing a searing diplomatic rebuke of its efforts to assert control of international waters traditionally dominated by the US navy. The ruling, coming after a four-year Court battle with the Philippines, included a sweeping censure of China’s efforts to build man-made islands in the waterways. The case was decided by a five-judge panel with members from Ghana, France, Poland, the Netherlands and Germany.
At the centre of the fight is what Beijing calls the “Nine-Dash Line”, a U-shaped area of demarcation dipping far off the mainland’s southern coast, sweeping east of Vietnam, down near Malaysia and Brunei, and then looping back up west of the main Philippine islands. The loop encompasses the Paracel and Spratly Islands and Scarborough Shoal. Though China never explicitly defined what privileges it believes it has within the Nine-Dash Line, it has asserted “historic rights” across this huge swath of sea. In the last few years, it has engaged in massive engineering projects inside this line, turning formerly small reefs into land masses large enough to host landing strips and other facilities.
China claims almost all of the energy-rich waters in the South China Sea, through which about £3.8 trillion in ship-borne trade passes every year. Neighbours Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam also have claims. The panel said China had interfered with traditional Philippine fishing rights at Scarborough Shoal, one of the hundreds of reefs and shoals dotting the sea, and had breached the Philippines' sovereign rights by exploring for oil and gas near the Reed Bank, another feature in the region. None of China's reefs and holdings in the Spratly Islands entitled it to a 200-mile exclusive economic zone, it added.
The Philippines first lodged the case after its navy in 2012 apprehended eight Chinese fishing boats at Scarborough Shoal, 250km off the Philippines coast and inside its 200-mile Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), which is enshrined in the UN convention. It remains one of the Philippines' oldest known fishing grounds, although China has effectively controlled the surrounding waters since the dispute erupted in 2012. China regards Scarborough Shoal as an island — which it calls Huangyan Dao — and says ancient maps show it has been part of Chinese maritime territory for centuries.
The Court was ruling on questions including whether a number of disputed land masses in the area should be considered islands, rocks or “low tide elevations.” Those designations are important because under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, they affect what kind of territorial or economic rights go with the features. For example, if something is considered an island capable in its natural form of sustaining human habitation, the country controlling it would be entitled to 12 nautical miles of territorial waters and a 200-mile economic exclusion zone. But if it is a “low tide elevation,” which is submerged during high tide, it's entitled to no territorial waters. The court ruled that no features in the area were, in their natural state, anything bigger than rocks, and thus none were entitled to maritime zones bigger than 12 miles.
Xi Jinping, China’s President, repeated Beijing’s stance that the South China Sea has been Chinese territory since “ancient times” and said China’s sovereignty and interests there would not be influenced by the ruling, the official Xinhua news agency reported. However Paul Reichler, a lawyer Foley Hoag in Washington and lead attorney for Manila, said that the ruling was “a complete and total victory for the Philippines but it is a greater victory for the rule of law in international relations”. The dispite has parallels in the United Kingdom where disputes continue over the islands of St Kilda and the remote Rockall and their potential 200-mile economic exclusion zones.
We didn't need to call for any judgements from the UN Permanent Court of Arbitration last night but there was some fierce competition as 11 + 1/2 Tables settled down to contest our regular Club Night at the Oxshott Bridge Club yesterday. The Star Performers were Daphne Pugh & Gillian Lowe who came First among the Pairs playing East/West; they scored an outstanding 65.39% and scooped the maximum 40 Master Points!! Well done indeed!! They were chased by Marjorie Neal & Diana Till who came Second with 60.39%, but they were only 4.8 Match points ahead of Rosemary Collin & Elizabeth Gray who came Third with 59.30%. Susan & Mike Sadler were Fourth with 54.55%. Congratulations must also go to Jonathan & Sheila Price who came First among the Pairs playing North/South with an impressive 62.19%. They were chased by Gabrielle Roberts & Don Clarke who came Second with 57.17%; but they were only 8.1 Match points ahead of Rowena & Eric Austin who came Third with 53.10%. June Buckland & Eileen Goddard were just 4.6 Match points further back in Fourth place with 52.15%. Well done to all our Master Points Winners!! The distribution of the cards was pretty even; South played the most hands with 7 Boards, while both North and West played the contract on 6 Boards, while East played the contract on 5 Boards. There were 14 game-going contracts while 10 Boards offered the lower-scoring part-game contract. There were four Boards that offered some kind of Slam Opportunity, although some were more achievable than others!!?? Board 13 gave North only 10 High Card Points with 6 Spades to the AQJxxx and four Diamonds to the K10xx; but the "Rule of 20" would allow an opening bid of 1 Spade. South had an excellent 17 HCPs with 6 Clubs to the AKQxxx with a singleton Diamond; they might jump to 3 Clubs. North would repeat their 6-card Spade suit and South would give support with 4 Spades. Now it is up to North to decide if anything more is achievable??!! Well 8 N/S Pairs settled for a game contract in 4 Spades; two made 11 tricks for 650 points, while six Pairs made 12 tricks for 680 points!! One more N/S Pair went up to 5 Spades; they made exactly 11 tricks for 650 points!! But two Pairs braved a Slam bid in 6 Spades; sadly one made only 11 tricks and so sacrificed 100 penalty points and a top score to their Opponents!!?? But many congratulations must go to Mike Mulligan & John French who bid Slam in 6 Spades; they made the required 12 tricks to achieve a whopping 1430 points and the top score on this Board!! Now interestingly the "Expert Analysis" - which you can find along wwith the Travellers in the "Results" section - suggests that it is not possible for either North or South to achieve a Slam contract against the best of defences on this Board!! You see North and South will only bid the black suits. No matter who leads, both East and West possess an Ace each. They must play their own Ace as an opening lead when defending against a Slam, and then it would not be much of a gamble to return a card in the other red suit for their Partner to play their Ace?? Well it is always easier after the event to see how best to play these hands!!
Board 15 gave West and East really unusual hands!!?? West had 11 HCPs with an amazing 7 Hearts to the AQJxxxx and a singleton Ace of Spades; they would open 3 Hearts. East also had an extremme hand with 15 HCPs with 7 Clubs to the AKJ10xxx and a void in Hearts. It would seem mandatory to bid a game contract, but is there enough to attempt something bigger?? Well one East/West Pair settled for a part-game contract in 3 Hearts; sadly they made only 8 tricks and so lost 50 penalty points??!!! Another E/W Pair bid game in 3 No Trumps; they made 10 tricks for 430 points!! Five E/W Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; two made exactly 10 tricks for 420 points; two made 9 tricks to lose 50 points; and one made only 8 tricks and so lost 100 penalty points!!?? Three more E/W Pairs bid game in 5 Clubs; two made exactly 11 tricks for 400 points; but one made only 9 tricks to lose 100 penalty points!!?? However one intrepid Pair bid Slam in 6 Clubs; sadly they made only 11 tricks to lose 50 points??!! The "Expert Analysis" confirms that it is not possible for either East or West to make more than 11 tricks agains the best of defences. You see, poor old East has to trump the two remaining Spades in West, but there are not enough chances to return the lead back to East to take out all the trumps. Sadly it was never a real possibility??!!
Board 19 gave South an excellent 15 HCPs with 4 hearts to the Q10xx and 4 Spades to the AQxx; they would open 1 Heart. North has 11 HCPs in support with 5 Diamonds to the AQJxx and 4 Spades to the KJxx; they would respond with 2 Diamonds. South then mentions their second 4-card suit with 2 Spades. North will probably bid 3 Spades since this is supposedly stronger than 4 Spades in this circumstance; and that leaves it up to South to determine whether a big contract is in prospect or not??!! Well 6 North/South Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; one made exactly 9 tricks for 400 points; four more made 11 tricks for 460 points; and one made 12 tricks for 490 points!! Three more N/S Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; all three made 12 tricks for 480 points!! One N/S Pair ventured further to 5 Spades; they made 12 tricks for 480 points!! Finally one Pair braved a Slam bid in 6 Spades; sadly they made only 11 tricks and so gave up 50 penalty points and a top score to their Opponents!!?? Now interestingly the "Expert Analysis" suggests that it is possible for either North or South to make a Slam contract - even against the best of defences - in 6 Spades!! You see North can finesse the King of Diamonds, take out trumps and take the four remaining Diamond tricks, carefully discarding the losing Club trick, and the contract is made!! But it is always easier after the event, isn't it??
Finally there was Board 1 which is reproduced at the top of this Report. Take another look just now at these hands to see how YOU would bid and play them to maximise the Opportunity presented??!! You can see that East has an excellent 16 HCPs with 5 Spades to the AKxxx and 5 Clubs to the Axxxx; they would open 1 Spade. West has 10 HCPs with 7 Diamonds to the AQJxxxx and the QJ of Spades; they would jump to 3 Diamonds. East would now show their second 5-card suit with 4 Clubs. West then shows their strength with 4 Diamonds, and it is up to East to decide where to go from there??!! Well last night two East/West Pairs settled for a part-game in 2 Spades; one made 8 tricks for 110 points, while the second made 10 tricks for 170 points!! Two more E/W Pairs bid up to 3 Spades; one made 9 tricks for 140 points, but the other made only 7 tricks and so lost 100 penalty points!!?? One Pair bid 4 Diamonds; they made 12 tricks for 170 points!! One intrepid North/South Pair bid game in 4 Hearts; they were doubled; they made 9 tricks and so lost only 100 points!! Three more East/West Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; one made 9 tricks to lose 50 points; the second made 8 tricks to lose 100 points; and the third made only 7 tricks to lose 150 penalty points!!?? Finally two East/West Pairs bid game in 5 Diamonds; one made 11 tricks for 400 points, while the second made 12 tricks for 420 points!! Now the "Expert Analysis" suggests that it is possible for either East or West to make a Slam contract in 6 Diamonds on this Board!! The secret seems to be to use the two singleton suits to cross-trump. Taking all the trumps out allows E/W to make 4 tricks in Spades and everything falls nicely into place!! How did YOU get on playing these interesting hands?? Anyway many congratulations to our only Slam Achievers of the evening!!
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| Last updated : 14th Jul 2016 21:38 BST |
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| There was Good News and there was Bad News!! |
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Wales' progress to the quarter finals has netted the Football Association of Wales 11.3m in prize money so far. It will get another £3.2m if Chris Coleman's side make it through to the semi-finals with a win on Friday. It is big money for the relatively small FAW, which made a profit of £20,000 last year.
Chief executive Jonathan Ford explained that tournament progress had been "an absolute dream come true." "It has gone beyond my dreams, it has gone beyond the nation's dreams. Wales - wow - through to the last eight in Euro 2016," he added. The FAW will have to spend some of the prize money on hotels and transportation, staffing costs and player bonuses, but it will invest the rest in the sport itself. "It is the job of the FAW to develop, promote and protect Welsh football," said Mr Ford. "And what better way than to see our team play at the highest level in Europe. It certainly helps as far as achieving the objectives we set ourselves in our strategic plan and what we are now really able to do is to achieve those objectives more quickly and better than we would have without the team having qualified."
It has been a mixed week for the sporting teams of England. Confusion about tactics – exemplified by the cartoon above – seemed to paralyse the England football team in their match against Iceland and they lost infamously by 2-1 in Nice. Poor old Roy Hodgson had to resign immediately. “It’s a bad day for me,” said Hodgson. “The last thing on my mind is what England should be doing. I had my chance. It didn’t work out. Now it’s someone else’s turn.” Meanwhile the England rugby team achieved a spectacular Series win against Australia by an unbelievable 3 games to nil!! The Times provided an interesting comparison between the Football and the Rugby teams in terms of how much they currently earn in a week:-
| Losers versus Winners: what they earn in a week |
| England 1-2 Iceland (Monday) |
Australia 40 England 44 (Saturday) |
| Joe Hart |
£110,000 |
Mike Brown |
£4,800 |
| Kyle Walker |
£40,000 |
Anthony Watson |
£3,800 |
| Gary Cahill |
£85,000 |
Jonathan Joseph |
£4,200 |
| Chris Smalling |
£80,000 |
Owen Farrell |
£5,700 |
| Danny Rose |
£30,000 |
Jack Nowell |
£2,700 |
| Eric Dier |
£30,000 |
George Ford |
£6,200 |
| Wayne Rooney |
£250,000 |
Ben Youngs |
£5,300 |
| Dele Alli |
£25,000 |
Mako Vunipola |
£4,800 |
| Raheem Sterling |
£180,000 |
Dylan Hartley |
£5,700 |
| Harry Kane |
£50,000 |
Dan Cole |
£5,700 |
| Daniel Sturridge |
£120,000 |
Maro Itoje |
£4,800 |
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George Kruis |
£4,800 |
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Chris Robshaw |
£5,700 |
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Teimana Harrison |
£1,340 |
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Billy Vunipola |
£4,800 |
| Total England Soccer |
£1,000,000 |
Total England Rugby |
£70,340 |
But the ups and downs of England’s sporting teams was nothing to the chaos following the result of the European Union Referendum. Following the 52-48 decision to Leave, David Cameron resigned as Leader of the Conservative party and 80% of Labour MPs agreed a “No Confidence” motion against their Leader, Jeremy Corbyn. Amazingly the star of the Brexit compaign has declared that he is a non-runner for the Tory Leadership. Summing up a crazy week, the Folkstone Herald carried the following comment showing an iconic scene from Thomas the Tank Engine. Suggesting that the Channel Tunnel might be bricked up, it was captioned as “ugly scenes at Folkstone”. It has now gone viral on Facebook!!
Despite all the changes, spirits were still pretty lively as 13 + 1/2 Tables turned up to play in our regular Club Night at the Oxshott Bridge Club. The Star Performers were Alan & Pat Hammond who scored an impressive 60.50% to capture First place among the Pairs playing East/West; they also scooped the maximum 50 Master points!! They were 13.3 Match points ahead of Therezinha Gold & Margaret Monaghan who came Second with 58.19%. Philip Goldenberg & Dave Bowen came Third with 55.89%, but they were only 1.7 Match points ahead of David Rotherham & Sue Osborne who were Fourth with 55.59%. Don Porter & Doris Butterworth were just a further 4.2 Match points back in Fifth place with 54.86%. The competition was even closer among the Pairs playing North/South. Many congratulations must go to Daphne Pugh & Gillian Lowe who came First with 59.28%; they were 5.4 Match points ahead of Vernon Morton & Annemie Bisgood who came Second with 58.26%. They held off Mike Mulligan & Elisa Money by 1.4 Match points; they came Third with 57.99%; but they were only 0.4 of one Match points ahead of Jonathan Spring & John French who came Fourth with 57.92%. Eric & Rowena Austin were Fifth, just 8.3 Match points back. Well done to all our Master Points Winners!!
It was East who received the "good cards" as they played the contract on 8 Boards; South played 6 contracts, and that left both North and West with 5 Boards where they played the contract. The division between game-going contracts and the lower scoring part-game contracts favoured the latter; there were 13 part-game Boards whereas 11 boards resulted in game-going contracts!! There were only two Boards that offered any kind of Slam Opportunity; and there was only one actual successful Slam bid in the whole evening!! Board 23 gave West 13 High Card Points with 5 Clubs to the AQJxx; they may well open 1 No Trump. East has 16 HCPs with 5 Hearts to the A10xxx and 4 Diamonds to the AKQx; they would bid "Stamen" to see if their Partner has a 4-card major. When West responds with the negative 2 Diamonds, East may well bid 2 Hearts. This will allow West to bid 3 Clubs and West then bids their 4-card suit with 3 Diamonds. Now it is up to West to decide; will they go for a safe 3 No Trumps or will they go for something bigger??!! Well one East/West Pair settled for a contract in 2 Diamonds; they made 10 tricks for 130 points!! Another E/W Pair bids 3 Diamonds; they made 12 tricks for 170 points!! No less than 10 E/W Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; one made 10 tricks for 630 points; four made 11 tricks for 660 points; but five made 12 tricks for 690 points!! One E/W Pair bid game in 4 Hearts; sadly they only made 9 tricks and so they gave up 100 penalty points and a top score to their N/S opponents!!?? Now the "Expert Analysis" - which you can find attached to the Travellers in the "Results" section - suggests that, even against the best of defences, it is possible for both East and West to make a Slam contract in 6 Diamonds!! The King of Clubs is conveniently situated in South allowing a finesse and the distribution of the Diamonds is even, so the only trick to leak is the second Heart trick, before the contract is secured!!
Finally there was Board 22 which is reproduced at the top of this Report. Take another look just now to see how YOU would oprimise the contract on this interesting Board!! You can see that East has only 10 HCPs with 5 Hearts to the K10xxx and 4 Clubs to the KJ10x; they will probably pass. West has a whopping 18 HCPs with 5 Spades to the KJxxx and 5 Clubs to the AQxxx; they will open 1 Spade. East will respond 2 Hearts, and this allows West to bid 3 Clubs. East must be excited with this bid as they have four good Clubs!! Remembering that 4 Clubs is stronger than 5 Clubs; they may oblige with 4 Clubs, although some might opt for the safe option of 3 No Trumps??!! Whichever, it is now up to East to decide if anything bigger is in prospect??!! Well at Oxshott, two East/West Pairs settled for a part-game in 3 Clubs; one made 10 tricks for 130 points while the other made 11 tricks for 150 points!!?? Seven more E/W Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; two made exactly 9 tricks for 600 points; four made 10 tricks for 630 points; but one Pair made only 8 tricks and so gave up 100 penalty points!! Two E/W Pairs bid game in 5 Clubs; one made 11 tricks for 600 points, but the second made 12 tricks for 620 points!! That left the two Pairs who attempted a Slam contract!! One E/W Pair bid Slam in 6 No Trumps; sadly they only made 9 tricks and so gave up 300 penalty points!!?? However many congratulations must go to Alan & Pat Hammond who bid Slam in 6 Clubs; they made exactly 12 tricks for an outstanding 1370 points and the top score on this Board!! The "Expert Analysis" confirms that both East and West can make a Slam in 6 Clubs, and it turns out that only one Spade trick is at risk and the rest can easily be made!! But it is always much easier after the event than in prospect. How did YOU get on in maximising the Opportunity from this Board?? Certainly we congratulate our only Slam Achievers of the evening!!
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| Last updated : 30th Jun 2016 23:28 BST |
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| EU Referendum - Britain chooses to LEAVE!! |
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Britain has swept away 50 years of foreign policy, turning its back on the European Union in an extraordinary political upheaval that deposed its Prime Minister, sank its currency, and reopened the possibility of Scottish independence. After a lengthy and bad-tempered referendum campaign, Britons voted by 51.9% to sever the country’s 43-year membership of the EU, sending tremors across Europe and triggering global financial market turmoil. Markets expecting a Remain victory were caught completely off-guard when the first results landed.
In a frantic day of trading, the Pound dived to a 30-year low, setting a record intraday swing of more than 10% between its high and low points; the FTSE 100 slumped 8.7% on opening before trimming losses to 4.3%. Bank stocks took a hammering, with Lloyds down 21%, Royal Bank of Scotland down 18% and Deutche Bank falling 14%. The Euro Stoxx bank index fell 17%, back to levels last seen at the depths of the Eurozone debt crisis in August 2012. US equities tumbled by more than 2% as Wall Street joined a global flight to safety. The US Dollar posted one of its biggest rallies on record and gold prices shot higher.
Boris Johnson moved to centre stage in Westminster as the odds-on favourite to become the Britain’s next Prime Minister as his decision to back Brexit looked like a masterstroke – at least from the point of view of his own career. When David Cameron, his voice cracking with emotion, announced that he was quitting after 6 years as Prime Minister; his resignation statement in Downing Street was an interlude in news bulletins dominated by the momentous Brexit vote and the market chaos that ensued.
Young people flooded on to social media yesterday to express their outrage as it emerged that while the young had voted overwhelmingly to Remain, the final tally was swayed by more Euro-sceptic older voters. Polling by the conservative peer Lord Ashcroft after the ballot closed on Thursday showed 73% of 18 to 24-year-olds voted Remain compared with just 40% of those over 65. One of big winners of the campaign was Nigel Farage. The EU referendum would not have been held had UKIP not posed an electoral threat to David Cameron’s Tories; it probably would have been lost had traditional Labour voters not embraced Mr Farage’s English nationalism. During the campaign, Nigel Farage refused to speculate on his own future, or that of UKIP. Retirement is one option, although his back injuries mean that he can no longer play golf. Another is the House of Lords; he had said that his party, with 3.9m votes in last year’s General Election, should receive more seats in the unelected chamber.
Later in the day, Scotland’s First Minister opined that a second independence referendum is now “highly likely” after Scots bucked the national trend and voted for the UK to stay in the EU. Nicola Sturgeon announced legislative preparations to enable a vote that could end the three-century Anglo-Scottish political union. Ms Sturgeon’s declaration highlights the potential existential threat to UK unity raised by Thursday’s 52% vote for Brexit. Divisions also emerged between Unionists and Nationalist leaders in Northern Ireland as the implications of the result began to sink in. Scotland backed Remain by an emphatic margin of 62.38%, with every single Scottish constituency returning a positive vote for Remain.
The EU referendum was actually held at the Oxshott Village Hall on Thursday, but 12 + 1/2 Tables turned up the previous evening to contest our regular Club Night at the Oxshott Bridge Club. The Top Performers were Mike Mulligan & Elisa Money who scored an outstanding 66.14% to come First among the Pairs playing North/South; they also scooped the maximum 40 Master points!! They were only 3.4 Master points ahead of George Gardiner & Renate Lane who came Second with 49.98%. Philip Duncan & Richard Burgess were Third with 54.24%, but they were only 4.8 Match points ahead of Alan & Pat Hammond who came Fourth with 53.24%. The scores were much closer among the Pairs who played East/West. Philip Goldenberg & Dave Bowen came First with 59.55%, and they were 21.1 Match points ahead of Enid & James Pickering who came Second with 55.55%. Alan Gardner & Andrew Travers were just 5.3 Match points back in Third place with 54.55%, but they were only 1.2 Match points ahead of Lesley Milton & Fiona Ross who came Fourth with 54.32%. Many congratulations to all our Master Points Winners!!
It was North who received the "good cards" as they played the contract on 10 Boards; they were closely followed by East who played 8 contracts. That left South who played the contract on 5 Boards, and poor old West who had to concentrate on their defensive skills; they got only 3 Boards where they got to play the contract all evening!! There was a fair balance between game-going contracts and the lesser non-game contracts; there were 14 of the former against 12 of the latter. There were five Boards that offered a clear Slam Opportunity, although some were easier to spot than others??!! Board 6 gave South 16 High Card Points with 6 strong Hearts to the AKJ10xx; they would open 1 Heart. West had 13 HCPs themselves with 5 Spades to the QJxxx; they would bid 1 Spade. North has only 6 HCPs but they do have 4 small Hearts; they would bid 2 Hearts. East has 5 Spades to support their Partner but only 5 HCPs; they might bid 2 Spades for devilment??!! There is no doubt that South will bid further in Hearts, but how high depends on their appetite for risk. Well two North/South Pairs stopped at 3 Hearts; both made 12 tricks for 230 points!! Three more N/S Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; one made 10 tricks for 420 points; one made 11 triccks for 450 points; and one made 12 tricks for 480 points!! Four East/West Pairs bravely bid game in 4 Spades; one was not doubled and made 9 tricks to sacrifice only 100 panlaty points; a second was doubled and made 8 tricks to sacrifice 500 penalty points; but the other two were also doubled and they made only 7 tricks, so they gave up a whopping 800 points each to their Opponents!!?? Two more N/S Pairs bid up to 5 Hearts; they both made 12 tricks for 480 points!! Now the "Expert Analysis" - which you can find along with the Travellers in the "Results" section - informs us that it is possible for both North and South to make a Slam contract, even against the best of defences, in 6 Hearts on this Board!!
Board 9 gave East 14 HCPs with 6 really strong Spades to the AKQJ10x and a singleton Club; they would open 1 Spade. West has a fantastic 17 HCPs and a balanced hand with 4 Clubs to the AKxx; they must show strength by jumping, but they do not have a 5-card suit; they would probably bid 3 Clubs!! When East responds 3 Hearts to show their 4-card suit, West may well bid "Blackwood" to see how high they might go??!! Well one East/West Pair settled for a game contract in 3 No Trumps; they made 12 tricks for 690 points!! Five more E/W Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; all five made 12 tricks for 680 points!! Another E/W Pair bid up tp 5 Spades; they made 12 tricks for 680 points!! But four Pairs bid a Slam contract!! Congratulations must go to John French & Jonathan Spring and to Daphne Pugh & Gillian Lowe who both bid Slam in 6 Spades; they both made an excellent 1430 points!! But special congratulations must go to Rosie Branch & Gill Apted and to Philip Goldenberg & Dave Bowen who bid Slam in 6 No Trumps; they both also made 12 tricks to share the top score of a whopping 1440 points!! The "Expert Analysis" confirms that both East and West can make a Slam contract in either 6 Spades or in 6 No Trumps!! Board 13 gave North a balanced hand with 13 HCPs; they would open 1 No Trumps. East has an unusual hand with only 9 HCPs but they have 7 Spades to the AQxxxxx and 4 Clubs to the Kxxx with two singletons; they might well jump to 3 Spades!! South has only 8 HCPs but they do have 6 Hearts to the K10xxxx and 4 Diamonds to the KQxx with a void in Spades; they would bid 4 Hearts!! West has 10 HCPs with 3 Spades and 4 Clubs to the AJ10x; they might well bid 4 Spades. Now we are in a bidding contest and it was interesting who would blink??!! Well one East/West Pair bid a part-game in 3 Spades; they made 12 tricks for 230 points!! Five North/South Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; all five made 10 tricks for 420 points!! Three East/West Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; two made 11 tricks for 650 points; the third was doubled and they made 12 tricks for a top score of 1190 points!!?? One N/S Pair went on to bid 5 Hearts; they made 10 tricks and so gave up 100 penalty points!! Finally one E/W Pair bid up to 5 Spades; they made 11 tricks for 650 points!! Now the "Expert Analysis" informs us that it is possible for East and West, even against the best of defences, to make a Slam contract in 6 Spades on this Board. You see the first Spades trick establishes that the King lies in North's hand. That allows East to finesse by leading from West and then the contract is made with the Club tricks.
Board 14 gave East 6 Hearts to the KJxxxx but only 9 HCPs; they would probably pass. South has 15 HCPs with a void in Hearts, 5 Diamonds to the AKxxx, 4 Spades to the J10xx and 4 Clubs to the AKxx; they would open 1 Diamond. North has 9 HCPs with 4 Spades to the Kxxx and 4 Clubs to the Q10xx; they would respond 1 Spade. East might well interject 2 Hearts at this stage, and South would bid their 4-card Spades with 3 Spades. West had 4 Hearts to the Qxxx with 7 HCPs so they might support their Partner with 4 Hearts!! Now it is anyone's guess as to where the final contract might end up??!! Well one North/South Pair settled for a part-game in 3 Spades; they made 12 tricks for 230 points. Two East/West Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; one made 9 tricks and gave up 50 penalty points, while the second made only 8 tricks and so lost 100 penalty points!! The remaining seven North/South Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; three made 10 tricks for 420 points; one made 11 tricks for 450 points; and three made 12 tricks for 480 points!! It will be no surprise to learn that the "Expert Analysis" confirms that it is possible for both North and South to make a Slam contract on this Board in 6 Spades!! It needs some clever finessing from South through West to ensure that a second Spade trick is not lost but the contract is easily made once that is achieved!!
Finally there is Board 23. Now we have reproduced the hands that made up this Board at the top of this Report. Take another look now and see how YOU would bid and play this Board to maximise the possible Opportunity!!?? Dealer South had 6 Spades to the AQ10xxx but only 6 HCPs; they may well pass in the first Round. West has a powerhouse of a balanced hand with 18 HCPs; they might well open 1 Club. North passes; but East has a very unusual hand. They have only 9 HCPs, but they have really strong 7 Hearts to the AKQxxxx; given their Partner has opened, they may well jump to 4 Hearts!!?? Now it is up to West to go further if they have the courage??!! Well at Oxshott, 4 East/West Pairs settled for a game contract in 3 No Trumps; one made 10 tricks for 630 points; the second made 12 tricks for 690 points; but the third made only 8 tricks and so gave up 100 penalty points to their opponents!!?? Five more E/W Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; two made 11 tricks for 650 points, while three made 12 tricks for 680 points. But two more East/West Pairs braved a Slam bid!! One bid Slam in 6 No Trumps; sadly they made only 9 tricks and so gave up 300 penalty points and a top score to their N/S Opponents!!?? But many congratulations must go to Susan & Mike Sadler who bid Slam in 6 Hearts; they made exactly 12 tricks to achieve a very satisfying 1430 points and the top score on this Board!! Now the "Expert Analysis" suggests that it is possible for both East and West to make a Slam contract in either 6 Hearts or in 6 No Trumps!! The secret is to take out trumps, and to make the four Club tricks. Then a Spade from East forces South to choose between playing the Ace or the Queen. Whichever, this allows West to make the King of Spades and for East to throw the second Diamond. The contract is pretty straight-forward from there!! How did YOU do in maximising these interesting hands?? Anyway well done to all our Actual Slam Achievers of the evening!!
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| Last updated : 26th Jun 2016 00:04 BST |
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| Tate Modern unveils dramatic new £260m Wing |
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On Friday the world’s most popular modern art museum, the Tate Modern, opens a new 10-story wing designed by the Swiss architects Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron. Called the Switch House, the extension will show off contemporary work, including film, installation and live performance, and will add 60 percent more space to the already enormous former power station on the banks of the Thames. The 10-storey Switch House, built adjacent to the Bankside gallery and clad in a perforated lattice of 336,000 bricks, will house three new floors of galleries as well as a restaurant and top-floor viewing level.
Few anticipated when the Tate Modern opened in 2000 that it would transform both the idea of a museum and the nature of museum-going. Its director, Nicholas Serota, hoped for two million annual visitors. More than five million have passed through its doors each year. They have flocked to its gigantic Turbine Hall to watch a glowing “sunrise” from hundreds of tungsten lights in Olafur Eliasson's "The Weather Project", sifted Ai Weiwei's hand-painted sunflower seeds through their fingers and heard actors telling intimate stories in Tino Sehgal’s “These Associations,” among many highlights.
The new extension adapts parts of the original power station that the 2000 renovation by Herzog & de Meuron didn’t touch. Adjacent to this older layer is a pyramidal tower 212 feet tall, clad in perforated brick that the architects have described as looking like “knitwear”. You can enter from the huge Turbine Hall in the older building, passing through the subterranean Tanks, which once held a million gallons of oil to power the refinery. The new building cost 260 million pounds from public and private funding, with the largest donation (£50 million) from the British Government.
The gallery has re-hung some 800 works by more than 300 artists. New acquisitions such as 1930s photography by Lionel Wendt and 1960s sculpture by Lebanon's Saloua Raouda Choucair add to works by the likes of Pablo Picasso and Henri Mattisse. Half of the solo displays are dedicated to female artists. Contemporary works on display include a model of the ancient Algerian city of Ghardaia made entirely of couscous by Kader Attia, a room full of human hair and car bumpers by Indian artist Sheela Gowda as well as a tower of 800 radios by Brazil's Cildo Meireles.
Plenty of famous paintings can still be found in the museum’s original building, the Boiler House, but the Switch House galleries are designed to show how art has become more “active” in the past century. Since the 1960s, the relationship between artist, audience, and object has shifted to a playful and reciprocal dynamic, leading to interactive creations like the Tate’s gigantic black rubber map of Beirut,; the two live parrots (part of an installation that approximates Brazil’s favelas); or steel cages you can crawl into with a partner (pictured below). Across both buildings, the museum’s re-hung collection shows work from 300 artists from more than 50 countries, and remains free to the public. The ‘New Tate Modern’ will open to the public on Friday, 17th June.
It was a quiter night at the Oxshott Bridge Club yesterday evening as 10 + 1/2 Tables turned out for out regular Club Night. Maybe Members were hiding under the table from raving Russian football fans (??!!); or maybe they were considering their options ahead of next week's crucial Referendum vote; or maybe they were saving their energy to race into London to catch the opening of the new Switch House at the Tate Modern on Friday!!?? Whatever Members missed an exciting evening's Bridge!! We have never had a closer competition for the top places!! Many congratulations must go to Angie Watson & Ian Jeffrey who bagged First place with an outstanding score of 61.64%; they also scooped the maximum 42 master points!! But their lead was only 0.02% ahead of Renate Lane & George Gardiner who came Second with an impressive 61.62%, and Mike & Susan Sadler were only a further 0.3 of one Match point further back in Third place with 61.54%. Well done to all three of them!! There was then a bit of a gap before Kevin & Deanne Goddard came Fourth with 57.71%. Jonathan Spring & John French were placed Fifth with 55.10%, but they were only 1.48 match points ahead of David Rotherham & Sue Osborne who came Sixth with 54.72%. The final Master Points placing went to Rowena & Eric Austin who came Seventh with 53.17%. Well done to all our Master Points Winners!!
It seemed that the good cards fell to East and South last night!! East got 9 Boards where they played the contract, while South played a further 7 contracts. That left poor old North and West concentrating on defensive strategies as they each played the contract on only 4 Boards!!?? A clear majority of the Boards offered game-going contracts; indeed 16 out of the 24 Boards what we played gave the Opportunity for the higher-scoring "game" contracts!! However there was only one Slam Opportunity and there was not one successful Slam made all night!!?? You can take another look at Board 10 because it is reproduced at the top of this Report. How would YOU bid and play these hands to maximise the Opportunity presented?? You can see that Dealer East has 15 High Card Points, with 5 Clubs to the AQ10xx, 4 Spades to the K10xx and a singleton Diamond; they would open 1 Club. West has a whopping 17 HCPs, with four cards in both Hearts and Spades; they would jump to show strength and bid 2 Hearts!! East would show their four-card Spade trick with 2 Spades. Now West might jump to 4 Spades, and it is up to East to determine if anything bigger is in the "offing"??!! Well last night six East/West Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; two made 11 tricks for 650 points, while the other four made 12 tricks for 680 points!! Another three E/W Pairs bid up to 5 Spades; one made 11 tricks for 650 points, while two made 12 tricks for 680 points!! But one intrepid Pair girded their loins and braved a GRAND SLAM bid in 7 Spades!! Sadly they fell short by two tricks and so gave up 200 penalty points and a top score to their Opponents!!?? Now the "Expert Analysis" - which you can find attached to the Travellers in the "Results" section - informs us that it is possible for EITHER East or West to make a Slam contract in 6 Clubs, in 6 Hearts, in 6 Spades or in 6 No Trumps!! As it tuns out, once the inevitable trick is lost to the Ace of Hearts, it is a straightforward play to collect 5 Club tricks, the remaining three Heart tricks and two tricks each in Spades and Diamonds, without taking any risks whatsoever!!?? How did YOU get on as you reviewed these hands? It is always much easier when you have a clue that it might be a "Slam" hand, isn't it?? Let's hope we have more fortune in achieving Slam contracts next week!!??
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| Last updated : 16th Jun 2016 12:10 BST |
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| New plastic Five Pound Note features Winston Churchill |
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We’ve washed them in the laundry, crumpled them beyond recognition and ripped them in two – but that’s all about to change. In September our wallets will be graced with smaller five-pound notes, made from flexible plastic polymer. And now 440 million will be created with the face of Winston Churchill, replacing prison reformer Elizabeth Fry. The wartime leader will become the first politician of the modern era to feature on a banknote when it is issued in September. The design will feature a renowned portrait of the prime minister in defiant pose, taken by photographer Yousuf Karsh in December 1941. Behind him is a view of the Houses of Parliament, with the hands on Big Ben showing three o’clock. It reflects the approximate time of a statement to the House of Commons on May 13 1940 when he famously told MPs: “I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears and sweat.” The quote itself is also shown on the design. A background image shows the Nobel Prize for Literature, with citation, awarded in 1953 to Churchill - who apart from being a politician was a prolific historical writer.
The polymer £5 note repels dirt and moisture and is designed to last for about five years, compared with between 18 months and two years for the cotton paper version which should save the Bank of England about £100m over 10 years. A plastic £10 note featuring author Jane Austen will be released next summer and a £20 note with a picture of the artist JMW Turner will be launched by 2020.
Victoria Cleland, 46, the Bank’s chief cashier, explained the new notes were getting a good reaction from members of the public who had seen them. She said: “They often said, ‘Wow, that’s really cool!!’ You don’t often get ‘cool’ and ‘the Bank of England’ in the same sentence. They are more modern and I think they’re beautiful.” Ms Cleland said: “Yes, you can put them through washing machines but we’re not encouraging people to do that. We didn’t design them to go into washing machines: it is a fortunate by-product that they are more resilient when washed."
As they grapple with shrinking profitability and the threat of a British exit from the European Union, Britain's banks also face another challenge: slippery banknotes!! Lenders from HSBC Holdings to Royal Bank of Scotland are working to upgrade or replace thousands of cash machines before the Bank of England starts to switch paper money with notes made of sophisticated polymers later this year. While the plastic notes have many advantages, they can be "too slippery" for older machines using friction to count bills, Andy Mattes, chief executive officer of ATM manufacturer Diebold, said in London. The ATM upgrades could bring a potential cost of £45 million across the industry, according to CMS Payments Intelligence, a researcher. There are more than 70,000 ATMs across the country, according to payments processing firm VocaLink. ATMs aren't the only equipment that will need to be rejigged. CMS estimates a total of between £230 million and £240 million will have to be spent on the transition, including £55 million for vending machines and £25 million for new anti-counterfeiting equipment.
The new Churchill Fiver will be issued on September 13th 2016 and the old paper £5 notes will be gradually withdrawn from circulation. People can carry on spending the old notes as usual until May 2017 after which they will cease to be legal tender. Paper notes can still be exchanged at the Bank of England after this date. Here is a picture of the new £10 notes which will be circulated with the face of novelist Jane Austen.
Taking 15% off the size of the £5 Note carries some risk for the UK Government!!?? Many members will remember Harold Wilson became the butt of cartoonists, comics and impressionists with his assertion that the "pound in your pocket" would not change value after the 1967 devaluation!!?? There was a big turnout of 15 + 1/2 Tables at the Oxshott Bridge Club this Wednesday for our regular Club Night. Many congratulations must go to Fay D'Abo & Edwin Jones who were the Star Performers; they came First among the Pairs playing East/West with an outstanding score of 65.77%; they also scooped the maximum 50 Master points. They were a full 32 Match points ahead of Andrew Travers & Victoria Hemy who came Second with 61.01%; they themselves were well clear of the "chasing pack" who were led by Marjorie Neal & Diana Till who came Third with 57.74%. They were just a single Match point ahead of Elizabeth Gray & Rosemary Collin who were Fourth with 57.59%, with Andrew & Lesley Young a further 11 Match points back in Fifth place with 55.95%. Congratulations must also go to Vernon Morton & Liam Creagh who came First among the Pairs playing North/South with an impressive score of 63.96%; they were 19 Match points ahead of Kevin & Deanne Goddard who came Second with 60.88%, with Philip Duncan & Richard Burgess a further 18 Match points back in Third place with 57.95%. They were just ahead of David Rotherham & Sue Osborne who came Fourth with 57.59%, and Tony Fincham & Elisa Money came Fifth with 55.84%. Well done to all our Master Points Winners!!
It was North and East who received the "good cards"; they both played the contract on 8 Boards each, while South and West were left with only 4 Boards each where they got to play the contract!!?? For a change, the vast majority of the Boards offered the "game-going" contracts; out of the total of 24 Boards, no less than 17 boards offered the higher-scoring "game" contracts"!! There were a fantastic six Boards that offered Slam Opportunities but only seven Pairs could clain success in actually making a Slam!! Board 1 gave East 14 High Card Points with 6 Diamonds to the KQ10xxx and a singleton Club; they would open 1 Diamond. West had a whopping 18 HCPs with 5 Hearts to the KQxxx and great support in Diamonds with the AJx; they would jump maybe even to 3 Hearts!?? This would give East the option of going for Slam in either Diamonds or Hearts!! Well two East/West Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; both made all 13 tricks for 520 points!! Four more E/W Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; three made 11 tricks for 450 points, while one made all 13 tricks for 510 points!! Another five Pairs bid game in 5 Diamonds; two made 12 tricks for 420 points, while three made all 13 tricks for 440 points!! Two more E/W Pairs bid up to 5 Hearts; one made 11 tricks for 450 points, while the other made 13 tricks for 510 points!! But two East/West Pairs braved a Slam contract!! Congratulations must go to Andrew Travers & Lesley Young and to Annemie Bisgood & Pamela Newton; the both bid Slam in 6 Diamonds; they both made exactly 12 tricks to share a excellent 920 points and the top score on this Board!! Now the "Expert Analysis" - which you can find along with the Travellers in the "Results" section - informs us that, against the best of defences, it is only possible for East to succeed with a Slam in any of 6 Diamonds, 6 Hearts or in 6 No Trumps!! Interestingly West can only make 11 tricks in any of these three contracts, because a Spade lead from North allows South to make two tricks with the Queen and Ace of Spades, since the King sits with East as Dummy. When the lead comes from South, they can only make one Spades trick before East/West take control and race home with their Diamonds and Hearts!!
Board 6 gave South 15 HCPs with 4 Clubs to the Axxx and a balanced hand; they would open 1 Club. North also has 15 HCPs with a balanced hand; they have 4 Clubs in support to the QJxx and 4 Diamonds to the Q10xx. There is a clear temptation to respond with a straight jump to 3 No Trumps, but more joy might be gained by going a little slower??!! Well one intrepid East/West Pair bid 2 Spades; they were doubled; sadly they made only 5 tricks and so gave up a whopping 800 peanlty points which turned out to be the top score by N/S on this Board!! One North/South Pair bid 2 No Trumps; they made 11 tricks for 210 points!! A second N/S Pair bid 3 Clubs; they made 12 tricks for 170 points. Eleven N/S Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; one made 9 tricks for 400 points; another made 10 tricks for 430 points; seven more Pairs made 11 tricks for 460 points; and two made 12 tricks for 490 points!! Finally one N/S Pair bid game in 5 Clubs; they made 12 tricks for 420 points!! Now the "Expert Analysis" informs us that both North and South can make a Slam contract in either 6 Clubs or 6 No Trumps!! Board 9 gave East 13 HCPs with 5 Diamonds to the AK10xx, 4 Hearts to the Jxxx and a singleton Ace of Spades; they would open 1 Diamond!! West has 16 HCPs with 5 Hearts to the AKQxx and 5 Spades to the Kxxxx; they will jump tp 2 Hearts!! East might jump tp 4 Hearts given their 4 cards support in the suit. West then has to decide whether there is a chance of something even bigger??!! Well eleven East/West Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; five made 11 tricks for 650 points; five more made 12 tricks for 680 points; and one Pair made all 13 tricks for 710 points!! But four East/West Pairs braved a Slam bid in 6 Hearts!! Sadly one made only 11 tricks and so gave up 100 penalty points and a top score to their N/S opponents!! But congratulations must go to Elizabeth Gray & Rosemary Collin, to Robin & Hilary Lane and to Fay D'Abo & Edwin Jones who all bid Slam in 6 Hearts; all three made exactly 12 tricks to share a spectacular 1430 points!! This outcome was confirmed by the "Expert Analysis" which informs us that both East and West can make a Slam contract in 6 Hearts!!
Then Board 14 presented some intriguing hands all round. Dealer East had only 9 HCPs but they had 7 Diamonds to the KQJxxxx; they would receive a saintly award if they did not open a weak 3 Diamonds!! South has 12 HCPs with 6 Hearts to the AQJxxx and a singleton Diamond; they will bid 3 Hearts!! West has only 3 HCPs and will presumably pass, so North - who has 16 HCPs with 5 Spades to the Qxxxx and four Clubs to the AKQJ - might well brave a response of 3 Spades to indicate their 5-card suit. Now both sides have mileage to go; will East push on with Diamonds, or will North/South go for the bid contract potential?? Well eight N/S Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; one made 10 tricks for 420 points; one made 11 tricks for 450 points; and six made 12 tricks for 480 points!! Five more N/S Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; one made 10 tricks for 420 points, while four made 12 tricks for 480 points!! Two intrepid East/West Pairs bid up to 5 Diamonds; they were both doubled; one made 8 tricks and so sacrificed 500 points; the second made only 7 tricks and so they sacrificed 800 penalty points!!?? However the "Expert Analysis" informs us that both North and South can make a Slam contract in ANY of 6 Hearts, 6 Spades and in 6 No Trumps!! They can both also make a GRAND SLAM in 7 Clubs!! So Lady Opportunity offered her wares, but there were no takers whatsoever and she passed on unrequited to the next chance for a Slam!!?? Then on Board 20, North had 17 HCPs with 4 Spades to the AKQx and 4 Diamonds to the KJxx; they would open 1 Diamond. South has 10 HCPs and a superb support of 5 Diamonds to the A10xxx and 4 Hearts to the Qxxx. They would jump to 3 Diamonds!! Now North has to decide if "safety first" is their motto or if something even bigger is in prospect??!! Well one North/South Pair ended in a part-game contract in 3 Diamonds; they made 10 tricks for 130 points!! Eight more N/S Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; four made 10 tricks for 630 points; two made 11 tricks for 660 points; one made 12 tricks for 690 points; but one fell short by two tricks and so gave up 200 penalty points!!?? Two more Pairs bid on to 4 Clubs; they both made 11 tricks for 150 points!! Four more Pairs bid game in 5 Diamonds; one made exactly 11 tricks for 600 points; two made 10 tricks to lose 100 penalty points; and one made only 9 tricks and so gave up 200 penalty points!!?? No one was tempted to bid a Slam contract!!?? But the "Expert Analysis" informs us that both North and South can make a Slam contract in 6 Diamonds on this Board!!
Finally there is Board 19 which is reproduced at the top of this Report. You can take this chance to revisit this Board and see how YOU would bid and play this Board to maximise the Opportunity offered!!?? You can see that everyone will probably pass until we come to East who has a whopping 22 HCPs with 4 Hearts to the AKJx and 4 Diamonds to the AQxx; they will open a strong 2 No Trumps!! West has 10 HCPs with 4 Clubs to the A10xx and 4 Hearts to the Qxxx; they will bid "Stamen" with 3 Clubs. Here it happens that East has a 4-card Heart suit so they will respond 3 Hearts, and West would bid 4 Hearts. Now it is up to East to decide if anything further should be explored?? Well at Oxshott, eight East/West Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; two made exactly 9 tricks for 600 points; five more made 10 tricks for 630 points; and one Pair made 11 tricks for 660 points!! Another E/W Pair bid game in 4 Hearts; they made 11 tricks for 650 points!! One intrepid North/South Pair bid game in 4 Spades; they were doubled; they made only 6 tricks and so lost 800 penalty points!! That left the five East/West Pairs who bid a Slam contract!! Sadly one bid Slam in 6 Spades; they made only 8 tricks and so lost 400 penalty points!! The other four bid Slam in 6 Hearts!! Two made only 11 tricks to lose 100 penalty points. But congratulations must go to Andrew Travers & Victoria Hemy and to Penny & Ormonde Webster-Smith who both bid Slam in 6 Hearts; they both made exactly 12 tricks to share an outstanding top score of 1430 points!!. The "Expert Analysis" informs us that it is possible for BOTH East and West to make Slam in ANY of 6 Clubs, 6 Hearts or in 6 No Trumps!! Anyway well done to all our Actual Slam Achievers of the evening!!
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| Last updated : 16th Jun 2016 11:53 BST |
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| A Remote Scottish Castle could be YOURS for only £450,000 |
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A REMOTE Scottish castle that tested the adventuring spirit of writer Samuel Johnson to destruction could be yours for just £450,000. Breachacha Castle is an A-listed Georgian building on the southern end of the Isle of Coll, boasting sea views as spectacular as the solitude. Johnson stayed at the impressive property during an 83-day tour of the Western Isles with his biographer, James Boswell, in 1773. He first described his temporary accommodation as a “neat, new-built gentleman’s house” and used it as a base for his travels. A few weeks later he was driven from the island by its fierce weather, describing the castle as a “tradesman’s box” and living on Coll “a waste of life”!!??
Until 1944 Breachacha was the seat of the Lairds of Coll. For some centuries the 'old' castle was occupied by the Macleans, who in 1750 constructed the 'new' Georgian castle as a modern home in the Palladian taste. The Macleans lived in the 'new' castle from 1750 until the sale of Coll to John Lorne Stewart in 1856. By this time Palladian architecture had fallen from fashion and further extensions and alterations were made to meet the new Gothic Baronial style, fashionable at the time. A fourth storey was added to the main house, windows were enlarged, pavilions extended and the appearance altered to include crenelated parapets and turrets. Further internal alterations and external additions such as the porch were made at the end of the 19th century.
From 1944 to 1968 the property was uninhabited and fell into a state of substantial disrepair, before being sold to a new buyer who sought to use it as a holiday home. Some restoration work was undertaken to the fabric of the building, although work stalled and by 1998 the property was sold again. By this stage it was uninhabitable and the owners spent holidays living in a caravan in the castle grounds. The current owners purchased the building in 2006 and over 10 years have undertaken a great deal of work to secure the future of the building using a team of conservation specialists. The vendors planned the full restoration of the castle, and have undertaken a great deal of work with an independent conservation specialist who has worked closely with Scottish Heritage and explored options for grant funding. Sadly a change in circumstances necessitates a sale, offering buyers a unique opportunity to restore a very special building in a truly unique setting.
“We found here a neat new-built gentleman's house, better than any we had been in since we were at Lord Errol's. Dr Johnson relished it much” wrote James Boswell in 1773. The building seen today is a hybrid of the original plainer Palladian style and the 19th Century romanticised style favoured by the Victorians, which harked back to the medieval gothic of the older castle. The result is a bright, spacious building with a great deal of period charm and character, which is imposing but remains homely in scale.
Currently the vendors live largely on the top two floors, with accommodation comprising 6 bedrooms (3 ensuite), 2 bathrooms, 1 sitting room and 1 kitchen, all with central heating. The ground floor rooms are charming but are currently little used, whilst the side wings and pavilions are derelict shells, one of which is used as a workshop and store. The rooms of the main castle are reminiscent of a well-proportioned Georgian manor house, with high ceilings and a number of original plaster mouldings, cornices and period doors and ironmongery. The large sash windows frame the fantastic views over the Atlantic and surrounding beaches and countryside. Of particular note is the view from the original cast iron roll-top bath on the third floor which looks straight out to sea.
One of the Inner Hebrides, Coll measures some 13 miles by 4, and lies just to the north-east of its near neighbour, Tiree. The modern car ferry from Oban takes about three hours to reach the island and runs five times a week in summer, three times in winter. There is also a small airport on the island of Coll.
It may prove a little inconvenient getting back and forward from Breachacha Castle to attend our regular Club Nights at the Oxshott Bridge Club, but at least you would have plenty of time to study the latest Bridge conventions while you set about renovating your new home!! There were 14 + 1/2 Tables who turned up last night for some fierce competition. The Star Performers were Philip Goldenberg & Dave Bowen who came First among the Pairs playing North/South with an excellent 61.56%; they also scooped the maximum 50 Master points!! Well done indeed!! They were just ahead of Mike Mulligan & Jonathan Spring who came Second with 58.8%, some 18.4 Match points ahead of David Rotherham & Sue Osborne who came Third with 55.61%. They held off Edwin Jones & Eve Reynolds who scored 55.43% in Fourth spot; and Peter & Bernice Rowley were Fifth with 54.41%. Congratulations must also go to Alan Hammond & Liam Creagh who came First among the Pairs playing East/West with 59.36%. They were well clear of the "chasing pack" who were led by Daphne Pugh & Gillian Lowe; they came Second with 54.81%, but they were only just ahead of Valerie Bornhoft & Ursula Oscroft who were Third with 53.94%. Ruth Rettie & Richard Pocock were only 1.4 match points further back in Fourth spot, and John French & Gabrielle Roberts claimed Fifth place with 53.08%. Well done to all our Master Points Winners!!
It was South and East who received the "good cards", with each of them playing the conract on 8 Boards; West played a further 6 Boards, and that left poor old North with only 4 Boards where they got the chance to play the contract!! The split between part-game contracts and the higher-scoring game contracts was pretty even; there were 14 out of the 26 Boards that offered game contracts!! There were five Boards that seemed to offer some kind of Slam Opportunity, and there were plenty of successful Slam contracts achieved by both sides during the evening. Board 2 gave East 10 High Card Points with 6 Hearts to the AK10xxx; they might well brave an opening bid of 2 Heart!! South had 14 HCPs and two long suits; they had 6 Spades to the AQ10xxx and 4 Clubs to the KQJx; they would bid 1 Spade. West ahd a miserable 2 HCPs but they did have 4 small Hearts in support; they might just squeeze a response of 2 Hearts!!?? North has a good hand with 14 HCPs, 6 Diamonds to the AQxxxx and 4 Clubs to the Axxx; they would bid 3 Diamonds. Now South might be getting excited, as they have at least three suits pretty well covered!! Well all 13 South Players ended up in a game contract in 4 Spades; four made 11 tricks for 650 points, while the other nine made 12 tricks for 680 points!! now the "Expert Analysis" - which you can find attached to the Travellers in the "Results" section - reveals something quite dramatic for North/South on this Board. You see it is possible for EITHER North or South to make a Slam contract in 6 Clubs or in 6 Spades on this Board, even against the best of defences!!??
Board 5 gave East 12 HCPs with 5 Hearts to the QJxxx. Now some Players open 1 No Trump with 12 points, but others will note five cards in a major suit and open 1 Heart. Here it was quite important because of the impression created in mind of their Partner??!! West had a whopping 20 HCPs, with 5 Hearts to the AK10xx; they might immediately head for "Blackwood" to ensure that there was no chance of missing a possible Slam contract??!! Well one East/West Pair bid game in 4 No Trumps; they made 11 tricks for 460 points!! Another E/W Pair bid 5 Hearts; they mad 12 tricks for 680 points!! The other 11 Pairs bid a Slam contract. Many congratulations must go to Pam Harries & Valerie Howe, to Daphne Pugh & Gillian Lowe, to Ken Wilshire & John Taylor, to David & Sandra Doyle, to Peter Wardle & Peter Sharpe, to Alan Hammond & Liam Creagh, to Valerie Bornhoft & Ursula Oscroft, to Dorothy Steinart & Valerie Jones, and to Ruth Rettie & Richard Pocock; all nine of them made Slam in 6 Hearts to score 980 points!! But two more E/W Pairs went further and bid Slam in 6 No Trumps!! Sadly one fell short by one trick, but special congratulations must go to Joyce Gibbs & Jean Hutchinson who braved the Slam bid in 6 No Trumps; they made exactly 12 tricks to capture 990 points and the top score on this Board!! The "Expert Analysis" confirms that both East and West can make a Slam in 6 Hearts and in 6 No Trumps; the only possible difficulty is in Diamonds, where a finesse of Queen in North's hand brings the contract home!!
Board 23 gave West 16 HCPs with 5 cards in Hearts; they would open 1 Heart. East had 11 HCPs with 5 cards in Spades to the AKJxx and 4 Clubs to the Kxxx; they would respond 1 Spade. When West repeats 2 Hearts, East will take the opportunity to mention their 4-card suit, with 3 Clubs. Now West will be sitting up because they do seem to have cover everywhere and at least three good suits!!?? Well one East/West Pair settled for a part-game contract in 2 Hearts; they made 12 tricks for 230 points!! Another two E/W Pairs bid 2 Spades; they both made 12 tricks for 230 points!! Three E/W Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; one made 11 tricks for 660 points; a second made 12 tricks for 690 points; and the third made all 13 tricks for 720 points!! Four more Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; one made 11 tricks for 650 points, while the other three made 12 tricks for 680 points!! Finally three E/W Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; all three made 12 tricks for 680 points!! Now the "Expert Analysis" tells us that - even against the best of defences - it is possible for BOTH East and West to make a Slam contract in 6 Clubs, in 6 Hearts, in 6 Spades, or in 6 No Trumps!! Seems like this was one occasion where "Lady Opportunity" had to pass on without anyone taking the chance offered!!?? Then on Board 26, East had 11 HCPs, with 6 Hearts to the QJ10xxx; they would open 1 Heart!! West had a super hand with 19 HCPs; they would jump to 3 Hearts. Now it looked as though "Opportunity knocked", with the sky being the limit!! Well one East/West Pair bid game in 3 No Trumps; they made 12 tricks for 690 points!! Two more Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; one made 10 tricks for 620 points, while the second made 12 tricks for 680 points!! Another E/W Pair bid up to 5 Hearts; they made 11 tricks for 650 points!! But eight more East/West Pairs braved a Slam bid of 6 Hearts!!?? Sadly seven of them fell short with only 11 tricks and so gave up 100 penalty points each!! But congratulations must go to Ruth Rettie & Richard Pocock who bid Slam in 6 Hearts; they made exactly 12 tricks to scoop a fantastic 1430 points and the top score on this Board!! Now the "Expert Analysis" informs us that - against the best defences - the highest number of tricks that East can make is 11 tricks; indeed their view is that West can only make 10 tricks!!?? But if you don't try, you certainly won't succeed!!
Finally there was Board 7. Now this Board is reproduced at the top of this Report, so you can take another look right now as to how YOU would bid and play this Board to maximise the Opportunity presented!!?? You can see that Dealer South has 13 HCPs with 5 Diamonds to the AKQxx and 4 Hearts to the KJxx; they would open 1 Diamond. North has a whopping 19 HCPs with 5 Clubs to the AKQxx and 4 Spades to the K10xx; they would jump to 3 Clubs!! Now South can take the chance to mention their 4-card suit with 3 Hearts. Well North can clearly see that there is something big in the "offing" but they must decide what to bid at this stage to best further the bidding??!! Well last night seven North/South Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; three made 11 tricks for 660 points; two made 12 tricks for 690 points; and two made all 13 tricks for 720 points!! The remaining six N/S Pairs braved a Slam bid!! Sadly two pairs made only 11 tricks and so gave their Opponents 100 penalty points!!?? However congratulations must go to Rosemary Collin & Elizabeth Gray and to Mike Mulligan & Jonathan Spring who both bid Slam in 6 No Trumps to share 1440 points!! But special congratulaions must go to Eric & Rowena Austin and to Philip Duncan & Richard Burgess; they also bid Slam in 6 No Trumps; but they both made the full set of 13 tricks for a fantastic 1470 points each!! Well done indeed!! Interestingly the "Expert Analysis" informs us that - against the best of defences - it is NOT possible for anybody to make a Slam on this Board!! It seems that if West holds on to their two four card suits, Hearts and Diamonds, and if East holds on to their 5 Hearts, discarding other suits when necessary, then eventually North or South has to yield one trick which immediately triggers another dropped trick with the Ace of Spades. How did YOU do when you revisited this hand?? It is always much easier when you can see all four hands, isn't it?? Anyway many congratulations to all our Acutal Slam Achievers of the evening!!
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| Last updated : 2nd Jun 2016 18:45 BST |
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| After the White House, the Obamas lease $4.3 million Home |
President Obama and first lady Michelle Obama have leased a spectacular 8,200 square foot home in one of Washington DC’s most elegant neighbourhoods as their first post-White House dwelling. The $4.3 million home features plenty of rooms for the Obamas to stretch out – with separate dressing rooms and his and her bathrooms, entertaining space, and a tranquil garden. The home was built in 1928 and features nine bedrooms and eight and a half baths, and it is leased by the Obamas from Joe Lockhart, who served as Press Secretary to Bill Clinton. Lockhart’s wife, Giovanna Gray, was Washington editor of Glamour magazine, and she recently completed a profile of Michelle Obama.
The home features plenty for the Obamas to brag about in the D.C. hot real estate market!! A graceful foyer features marble flooring. It has a gourmet kitchen featuring a six burner stove. In case the Obamas have grown accustomed to having help around the house, there is a butler’s pantry. A dining room with wood flooring can serve as an entertainment space, or a place for ‘kitchen table’ discussions about the family budget, not that Obama will no longer draw a government salary. There’s an upstairs office where Obama would be free to work on his memoirs, having already written two successful books that made him wealthy. There is a wet bar and a wine cellar.
Although Obama will have to give up ‘the Beast’, he will maintain Secret Service protection. The home features two parking spaces, which could be tight, but may suffice. The most appealing part of the home is its location, in one of the nation’s priciest zip codes, and just a few minutes from D.C. attractions. The leafy enclave played host to Woodrow Wilson after he retired from the White House. FDR lived there when he was Secretary of the Navy. Donald Rumsfeld was a Kalorama resident when he ran the Pentagon for George W Bush. The French ambassador’s residence just up the road has Obama’s new pad beat for style and splendour. Hilary Clinton will be nearby even if she loses the Presidency. Her D.C. home is just off nearby Embassy Row. The Clintons have maintained a $5.6 million second home there since Bill left office in 2001.
Lockhart and Gray who had been known as a Washington power couple, have moved to Manhattan where Lockhart is the executive vice-president of communications for the NFL. Lockhart, 56, was best known as Bill Clinton’s press secretary from October 1998 to September 2000, during the impeachment of the President over his affair with Monica Lewinsky. He was later an adviser to John Kerry’s failed presidential campaign and has worked for Facebook as a spokesman. His wife, who is 36, with whom he has a young family, was a long term Democratic aide on Capitol Hill. The Obamas made the unusual decision to stay in the capital because they do not want to interrupt their younger daughter Sasha’s time at high school. The 14-year-old is a student at Sidwell Friends School, where the fees are $39,000 a year. Her elder sister, Malia, will be in the middle of a year off when they leave the White House. She is then going to study at Harvard. Barak Obama said: “Transferring someone in the middle of high school is tough!!”
There were no Obamas or Clintons among the 13 full Tables who turned up to contest the regular Club Night at the Oxshott Bridge Club yesterday, although maybe some would have preferred if Donald Trump had attended??!! The top performance of the evening came from Philip Duncan & Edwin Jones who came First among the Pairs playing North/South; they scored an impressive 62.58% and also scooped the maximum 50 Master Points!! Well done indeed!! They were 12.1 Match points ahead of Mike Mulligan & Elisa Money who came Second with 60.28%. There was then a bit of a gap before Alan & Pat Hammond clained Third spot with 55.74%; they were 12.3 Match points ahead of Marjorie MacVicar & Fiona Ross who came Fourth with 53.41%, and Peter Wardle & Peter Sharpe were Fifth with 52.222%, another 5.3 Match points back. Congratulations must also go to Philip Goldenberg & Dave Bowen who came First among the Pairs playing East/West; they scored 58.79%. But they were only 8.5 Match points ahead of Deanne & Kevin Goddard who came Second with 57.185, with Audrey Griffin & Barbara Shaw just another 3.3 match points back in Third place with 56.55%. Therezinha Gold & Mary Bushell were only 5.3 Match points behind in Fourth place, and they were 8.6 Match Points ahead of Gill Apted & Rosie Branch who came Fifth with 53.92%. Well done to all our Master Points Winners!!
The distribution of the cards was very even between the four Players last night; North and East played the contract on 7 Boards, while South and West played the contract on a further 6 Boards!! There were three boards that offered some kind of Slam Opportunity but we do not have the facility of the "Expert Analysis" or the replication of the hands this week to help us understand what went on!!?? Certainly Board 9 gave North/South the good cards, but it was definitely not easy to see any Slam potential at first blush!! Eight of the eleven North/South Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; two made 9 tricks for 400 points; one made 10 tricks for 430 points; three made 11 tricks for 460 points; and three made 12 tricks for 490 points!! Three more N/S pairs bid game in 4 Spades; one made 11 tricks for 450 points, while two made 12 tricks for 480 points!! Certainly it looks as though it was possible for N/S to make a Slam contreact in either 6 Spades or in 6 No Trumps!! Then Board 26 presented a pair of interesting hands to North/South; they clearly had a super hand in Hearts. Well five N/S Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; all five made 11 tricks for 650 points!! Three more Pairs went on but stopped in 5 Hearts; one made 11 tricks for 650 points, but two fell short by one trick and so gave up 100 penalty points!! Finally two intrepid N/S Pairs braved a Slam bid in 6 Hearts; sadly one made only 11 tricks and so gave up 100 points, while the second made only 10 tricks and so gave up 200 penalty points and a top score to their Opponents!! It seems clear that there was NEVER any Slam Opportunity on this Board!!??
Finally there was Board 11 where both sides looked to have good cards and it was going to be interesting who came out with the good scores in the end??!! North/South had good Spades and Diamonds, while East/West had good Hearts and Clubs. Now who should have been in which suit to maximise the opportunity from this hand?? Well one East/West Pair bid game in 5 Clubs; they made exactly 11 tricks for 400 points!! Three North/South Pairs bid game in 5 Diamonds; all thre made 12 tricks for 420 points!! One E/W Pair bid 5 Hearts; they were doubled (!!??); they made 11 tricks for 650 points!! Four N/S Pairs bid 5 Spades; two were undoubled with both making 12 tricks for 480 points; but the other two were doubled; they both made 12 tricks to share a whopping 750 points!! One E/W Pair bid Slam in 6 Clubs; congratulations must go to Philip Goldenberg & Dave Bowen who braced the Slam bid in 6 Clubs; they made exactly 12 tricks for a excellent to score of 1090 points!! The one remaining E/W Pair got excited and they bid a GRAND SLAM in 7 Clubs!! Sadly they made only 11 tricks and so gave up 100 penalty points!!?? So it seems that a Slam contract was certainly poosible on this Board. It may well be that North/South could have made Slam in either 6 Diamonds or in 6 Spades!! Equally it is clear that East/West could make Slam in 6 Clubs!! anyway many congratulations to our only Slam Achiever of the evening!!
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| Last updated : 26th May 2016 21:25 BST |
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| Conservatives lose control of Elmbridge Council |
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Talks continue to establish the new political power in Elmbridge after the Conservatives lost overall control of the borough council in last week’s elections. The Residents’ Group hope to team up with the Liberal Democrats to form a new administration and have already hinted at cutting car parking charges and a review of the controversial Walton sports hub and the sale of Stompland Lane if they come to power, while the Tories hope to remain in charge as the largest party.
Restructuring of the ward boundaries (see diagram below), which led to the number of councillors in the borough reduced from 60 to 48, was labelled a contributing factor to the dark day suffered by the ruling party as they lost control of the council for the first time in 8 years and saw council leader John O’Reilly unseated in Hersham. Following last Thursday’s elections the Conservatives have 22 seats on the borough council, the Residents’ Group 19 and the Liberal Democrats seven. With no overall majority, negotiations have been taking place this week between the three parties – the Liberal Democrats find themselves as the key party in terms of forming a potential coalition. Apparently senior councillors will meet this Friday to thrash out a deal ahead of the full council meeting on Wednesday.
Councillor Andrew Davis, leader of the Liberal Democrats, said he had “never had so many friends” following his election to the Weybridge Riverside ward. “As a group we will meet and discuss the possible permutations,” he said. “At this stage I cannot say, your guess is as good as mine; both parties want us. Basically Elmbridge needs a view where it is going. We want to go from year to year rather than week to week and the staff and the whole administration needs to be clear what the future holds for them.”
Councillor Roy Green for the Hersham Village Society (third from the right in the top picture) was more certain as he spoke on behalf of the Residents’ Group. He said: “We’ve got control of the council. As far as I’m concerned we will join the Liberal Democrats and we will form the new council.” However Councillor Selleck leader of the Residents’ Group, adopted a more cautious tone. “We would like to take the administration but it is not in our control,” he said. “We have got our own ideas but it depends on what the other groups do, clearly we would seek the support of the Liberals. Now we have got to get on with it and come up with a sensible solution for the residents.”
The Conservative Party is rallying this week after suffering some notable setbacks in the elections. In addition to Mr O’Reilly losing to Hersham Village Society candidate Anne Hill, a committee member at Walton & Hersham FC, both Conservatives in Molesay East lost their seats. Councillor Tim Oliver, leader of the Conservative group, remained bullish after he was narrowly confirmed as one of Esher’s three representatives. He said: “I am disappointed we’ve lost some excellent councillors, particularly in Molesey East and my own ward of Esher, that is the way it is. We are still the largest group.” It was the right decision, he said, to reduce the number of councillors. The Conservatives could continue to run the borough council as a minority administration, Cllr Oliver added, although he admitted the decision largely rests with the Liberal Democrats.
Meanwhile the Conservative candidate David Munro for Police and Crime Commissioner for Surrey ousted Kevin Hurley by 100,122 votes to 57,681. The seven candidates for the PCC position are pictured below, although no one has managed to identify more than one of them so far!!??
People were looking for the Police Commissioner at our regular Club Night at the Oxshott Bridge Club this week but no one stepped forward to declare themselves!!?? The Star Performers among the 13 + 1/2 Tables were George Gardiner $ Renate Lane who ran away with First place among the Pairs playing North/South; they scored an outstanding 68.37% and scooped the maximum 50 Master points!! They also achieved four Slam contracts from the 22 Boards that they played, so it really was a "red letter" day for George and Renate!! Peter Wardle & Peter Sharpe came Second with 62.15%, and June Buckland & Eileen Goddard were Third with 57.39%. Fourth place went to Angie Watson & Ian Jeffrey with 53.98%, but they were only 5 Match points ahead of Mary Bushell & Pat Hammond who scored 53.03% in Fifth place. There was a much closer competition for the top places among the Pairs playing East/West. Gail Norman & Therezina Gold claimed First place with 58.68%, but they were only 8 Match points ahead of Ormonde & Penny Webster-Smith who camw Second with 57.29%, with Philip Goldenberg & Dave Bowen just two further Match points back with 56.94% in Third place. Margaret Monaghan & Janet Kefford came Fourth with 53.47%, and they were 13 Match points ahead of Don Porter & Doris Butterworth who came Fifth with 51.22%. Well done to all our Master Points Winners!!
The "good cards" fell to North and to West; North played the contract on 9 Boards while West played 8 contracts. That left 5 Boards where East played the contract, and poor old South got only 3 Boards where they played the contract!! There were lots of game contracts to aim for, as 17 out of the 24 Boards offered the higher-scoring game contract target. There were five Boards that offered Slam Opportunities, four for North/South and one for East/West. Amazingly one Pair managed to bid all four of the Opportunities offered to North/South!! How about that!!?? Board 5 gave North 14 High Card Points with a 4441 distribution with the singleton in Clubs; the simple rule is to open the suit below the singleton, and Spades is the suit below Clubs; thus North might open 1 Spade!! South has a whopping 17 points in support with 6 Clubs to the AQ10xxx; they would jump to 3 Clubs. Given the singleton Club is importantly the King, North may well become excited at this moment with thoughts of "Blackwood" and a significant contract!!?? Well one North/South Pair settled for 2 Hearts; they made 8 tricks for 110 points!!?? A second N/S Pair bid 3 Clubs; they made 12 tricks for 170 points!!?? Three more Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; two made 11 tricks for 660 points, while one made all 13 tricks for 720 points!! Another Pair bid game in 4 Hearts; they made 10 tricks for 620 points!! That left the seven Pairs who bid a Slam contract!! One N/S Pair bid Slam in 6 Hearts; sadly they made only 7 tricks and so gave up 500 penalty points!! But many congratulations must go to Joan Low & Pam Oliveira, to Peter Wardle & Peter Sharpe, to Eric & Rowena Austin, to Mary Bushell & Pat Hammond, and to George Gardiner & Renate Lane; they all bid Slam in 6 No Trumps; they made exactly 12 tricks to share 1440 points!! However special congratulations must go to Philip Duncan & Richard Burgess who also bid Slam in 6 No Trumps; but they made all 13 tricks to capture the top score of a fantastic 1470 points!! Now the "Expert Analysis" - which you can find along with the Travellers in the "Results" section - tells us that it is possible for either North or South to achieve a GRAND SLAM in either 7 Clubs or in 7 No Trumps!!
Board 17 gave North 13 HCPs with 6 Spades to the AQxxxx; they would open 1 Spade. South had an excellent 17 HCPs with 6 Diamonds to the AKQ10xx and a singleton Spade; they might jump to 3 Diaamonds. Now either North or South could get ambitious at this stage or they might settle for a simple game contract!! Well 8 North/South Pairs settled for a game contract in 3 No Trumps; four made 11 tricks for 460 points while four more made 12 tricks for 490 points!! Another N/S Pair bid game in 4 Spades; they amde 10 tricks for 420 points!! One more N/S Pair bid up to 5 Spades; sadly they made only 10 tricks and so gave up 50 penalty points!!?? That left the three Pairs who bid a Slam contract in 6 No Trumps; unfortunately one made only 11 tricks and so lost 50 penalty points. But many congratulations must go to Annemie Bisgood & Pamela Newton and to George Gardiner & Renate Lane who both bid Slam in 6 No Trumps; they both made exactly 12 tricks to share the top score of 990 points!! The "Expert Analysis" confirms that both North and South can make a Slam contract in either 6 Diamonds or in 6 No Trumps!! Then Board 19 gave North a whopping 20 HCPs with 5 Spades to the KQJxx; if you play "Strong Twos", then it is easy to start with 2 Spades. South has 4 Hearts to the Axxx and 4 Spades to the Kxxx; they might well respond 3 Hearts. Now it is up to North to take the initiative and test for a big contract!! Well two North/South Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; one made 11 tricks for 460 points, while the other made 12 tricks for 490 points!! 8 more N/S Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; one made 11 tricks for 450 points; five made 12 tricks for 480 points and two made all 13 tricks for 510 points!! That left the three Pairs who bid a Slam contract in 6 Spades!! Congratulations must go to Peter Wardle & Peter Sharpe and to George Gardiner & Renate Lane who both made 12 tricks in 6 Spades for 980 points!! But special congratulations must go to Tony Fincham & Elisa Money; they bid Slam in 6 Spades: but they made all 13 tricks for a top score of 1010 points!! Now the "Expert Analysis" suggests that, against the best of defences, it is only possible for North or South to make a Slam contract in any of 6 Hearts, 6 Spades or in 6 No Trumps!! Finally for North/South, there was Board 23, where South had 14 HCPs with 5 Diamonds to the AQxxx snf 4 Spades to the AKxx; they will probably open 1 Diamond. North ahs 13 HCPs with a void in Diamonds, 6 Spades to the QJ10xxx and 5 Clubs to the AQ10xx; they will respond 1 Spade. South might well jump to 3 spades since they have 4 Spades to the AKxx!! Now it is up to North to decide whether a "big contract" is in prospect or not!!?? Well 8 North/South Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; one made 11 tricks for 650 points; four made 12 tricks for 680 points; and three made all 13 tricks for 710 points!! The remaining five N/S Pairs bid Slam in 6 Spades!! Congratulations must go to Tony Fincham & Elisa Money, to June Buckland & Eileen Goddard, to Mary Bushell & Pat Hammond, and to George Gardiner & Renate Lane; they all bid 6 Spdaes; they all made exactly 12 tricks to share 1430 points!! But special congratulations must go to Annemie Bisgood & Pamela Newton who also bid Slam in 6 Spades; but they made all 13 tricks for the top score of 1460 points!! Well done indeed!! Now the "Expert Analysis" confirms that it is possible for both North and South to bid a GRAND SLAM in 7 Spades with an "optimal" score of 2210 points!!
Finally there was Board 9 where the Slam Opportunity fell to East and West. You can take another look at these hands as they are reproduced at the top of this Report. How would YOU bid and play these hands to maximise the Opportunity for East and West?? You can see that East has 16 HCPs with 5 Clubs to the AK10xx and 4 Spades tot he AKxx; they will open 1 Club. West has an excellent 17 HCPs with 7 great Diamonds to the AKQJxxx, a doubleton AK of Hearts, and a singleton low Spades. Already West might be asking for Aces, but they might just jump to 2 Diamonds. Now East has a strong hand and can show their 5-4 split by mentioning 3 Spades. Then surely one of the two will use "Blackwwod" to see if a Slam is possible?? Well at Oxshott 5 East/West Pairs bid game in 5 Diamonds; all 5 made the full set of 13 tricks for 640 points!!?? Three more E/W Pairs bid Slam in 6 Diamonds!! Congratulations go to Don Porter & Doris Butterworth, to Daphne Pugh & Gillian Lowe and to Philip Goldenberg & Dave Bowen; they all bid Slam in 6 Diamonds; they all made 13 tricks to share 1390 points!! But special congratulations must go to Sheila Price & Jonathan Spring, to Dorothy Steinart & Valerie Jones, and to Tony Scott & Barbara Shaw who bid Slam in 6 No Trumps; they all made the full set of 13 tricks to share 1470 points!! But extra special congratulations must go to Ormonde & Penny Webster-Smith; they bravely bid a GRAND SLAM in 7 No Trumps; they made all 13 tricks for a spectacular top score of 2220 points!! Well done indeed!! Now the "Expert Analysis" confirms that it is possible for both East and West to achieve a GRAND SLAM in any of 7 Clubs, in 7 Diamonds, or in 7 No Trumps!! So well done to all our Actual Slam Achievers of the evening!!
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| Last updated : 13th May 2016 17:40 BST |
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| Europe to remove 'bin Laden' Bank Note that Criminals love |
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The 500 Euro note has long been a favourite of top-level criminals and vast quantities have turned up in raids on drugs gangs from London to Latin America. Pictured above usually in a suit of replica notes, the €500 bills have been dubbed the ''bin Laden'' because everyone knows what it looks like but rarely sees one; crooks love its portability!! The same value in cash takes up only a tenth of its Sterling alternative, making it easier to smuggle across borders. An adult male can stuff and swallow 150,000 euros and 20,000 euros can be hidden in a cigarette packet.
In a move aimed at hampering cash transactions by terrorists, drug dealers and money launderers, the European Central Bank on Wednesday announced an end to the 500-Euro bank note. When it comes to moving money nefariously, the €500 note has been especially handy. It is a large denomination in a widely circulated and easily convertible currency. In the United States, the largest denomination is $100, after the Federal Reserve discontinued the $500, $1,000, $5,000 and $10,000 bills in 1969. Switzerland has a 1,000-franc note, worth about $1,050, but its supply is limited. While the necessity of the €500 note has been debated for a while, the pressure to abolish it grew after the terrorist attacks in and around Paris in November and in Brussels in March. The decision simply means that, beginning at the end of 2018, Central Banks in the 19 countries of the Eurozone will no longer replace €500 bills that are returned for sorting or other reasons.
According to a study published by Europol last year, shops often refuse to accept €500 bills but nevertheless they account for one-third of the value of all euro banknotes in circulation. ECB data suggest the number of €500 notes has grown disproportionately compared with most other denominations since single currency notes and coins entered circulation in 2002. Yet 56 percent of European Union citizens have never seen one, according to a 2011 ECB survey, because the note is mainly used for hoarding cash, rather than paying.
British banks have already withdrawn 500 Euro notes from sale since 2010 after the amazing police case of the “Kellogg’s cereal box plan”!! One afternoon, Eftychia Symeonidoy stood outside a London apartment, casually holding the box under her arm. But instead of it containing the recommended daily amount of vitamins and minerals, it had been stuffed with 300,000 euros. As the undercover team from HM Revenue and Customs secretly filmed her (pictured above), an ordinary estate car pulled up and the box was handed to the driver. It was another consignment of laundered drugs cash safely delivered - or so the gang thought.
Symeonidoy and the rest of the 13-strong laundering gang were all later convicted and jailed. The group smashed by HMRC investigators had taken £24m of dirty money from their clients in the criminal underworld - and returned "clean" euros. Every month, they'd take in between £1m and £4m in cash - massive bags of sterling notes. They had so much of it, they had to stack it on sofas and in cabinets, and stuff it in bags in cupboards. The jailing of that gang was a major breakthrough for investigators - but it's only the tip of the money laundering iceberg which revolves around fake bureau de change and the 500 Euro banknote.
But critics argue the 500 euro note serves a legitimate purpose as a store of value, particularly at a time when bank deposits are not remunerated, several lenders are in distress and financial markets are turbulent. Currently the central bank deposit rate is minus 0.4 percent!! Cash remains king particularly in Germany and Austria, where more than half of all transactions are made with paper money and coins. The former president of Germany’s constitutional court, Hans-Jürgen Papier, stated that restrictions on cash were at odds with individual freedom, while tabloid newspaper Bild has launched a petition in defence of paper money, including the €500 note - “hands off my cash”.
Fortunately no one tried to pay their Table Money with a 500 Euro note last night, but there were 13 + 1/2 Tables who turned up to contest our regular Club Night. The "good cards" went to South and North who got to play 8 and 7 contracts respectively among the 24 Boards; that left West with 5 contracts to play and poor old East who played the contract on only 4 Boards!! There were plenty of game-going contracts to aim for, as they represented 14 out of the total of 24 Boards. Many congratulations must go to Philip Duncan & Edwin Jones who ran away with First place among the Pairs playing North/South; they scored and outstanding 64.18% and scooped the maximum 50 Master points. Jonathan Spring & John French were Second with 60 83%, and they were 19.8 Match points ahead of George Gardiner & June Buckland who came Third with 57.08%. David Rotherham & Sue Osborne were Fourth with 54.34%, and they were 7.7 Match points ahead of Eric & Rowena Austin who came Fifth with 52.88%. Congratulations must also go to Gill Apted & Rosie Branch who came First among the Pairs playing East/West with an impressive 61.08%; they were 2.2% ahead of Jill Mellener & Rosemary Lynas who came Second with 58.88%. Joan Low & Stephanie Postlethwaite came Third with 54.13%, 17 Match points ahead of Joyce Gibbs & Jean Hutchinson who score 51.18% in Fourth place, with Marjorie Neal & Diana Till coming Fifth with 50 40%. Well done to all our Master Points Winners!!
There were four Boards whuch offered a Slam Opportunity and a total of 7 actual Slam contracts were achieved!! Board 1 presented East with a good hand; they had 16 High Card Points, with 6 Hearts to the AJxxxx ; they would open 1 Heart. West had an excellent supporting hand with 11 HCPs and 4 Clubs to the Axxx and 4 Diamonds to the Q10xx; they might well respond 2 No Trumps to indicate 11 or 12 points. Now it is up to East to decide how ambitious they want to be!! Will they try "Blackwood" to check for Aces or will they settle for a game contract?? Well last night one East/West Pair bid game in 3NT; they made 12 tricks for 490 points. Ten more E/W Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; one made exactly 10 tricks for 420 points; two made 11 tricks for 450 points; five made 12 tricks for 480 points; one made all 13 tricks for 510 points; but one fell short by one trick and gave up 50 penalty points!! But two E/W braved a Slam bid!! Many congratulations must go to Eric & Rowena Austin and to Pam Oliveira & Margaret Monaghan; they both bid Slam in 6 Hearts; they both made exactly 12 tricks to share the top score on this Board of 980 points!! Well done indeed!! Now the "Expert Analysis" - which you can find along with the Travellers in the "Results" section - reveals that it is possible, even against the best of defences, for both East and West to make a GRAND SLAM on this Board in either 7 Clubs or in 7 No Trumps!!
Board 6 gave South 15 HCPs with 5 Spades to the AQ10xx and 4 Diamonds to the K10xx with a singleton Queen of Hearts; they would open 1 Spade. North had an excellent supporting, balanced hand with 16 HCPs and 4 Hearts to the AKxx; they might well jump to 3 Hearts. Now it is up to South to decide if something big contract is in prospect or whether it is better to settle for a simple "game" contract??!! Well last night five North/South Pairs bid game in 3NT; three made 11 tricks for 460 points while the other two made 12 tricks for 480 points!! Another 6 N/S Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; one made exactly 10 tricks for 420 pionts; three made 11 tricks for 450 points; and two made 12 tricks for 480 points!! That leaves the two intrepid Pairs who bid a Slam contract!! Many congratulations must go to Robin & Hilary Lane who bid Slam in 6 Spades; they made 12 tricks for an exceelent 980 points!! But special congratulations must go to Philip Goldenberg & Dave Bowen who bid Slam in 6 No Trumps; they too made 12 tricks for 990 points which was the top score achieved on this Board!! The "Expert Analysis" is interesting here because it reveals that a Slam contract is only achievable by South and not by North on this Board; indeed South can make a Slam contract on any of 6 Diamonds, 6 Spades or on 6 No Trumps; North can only make 11 tricks against the best defences in each of these suits!!??
Then there was Board 20 where North has only 8 HCPs but they do have 7 Hearts to the QJxxxxx; they might well open with a weak 3 Hearts??!! Now South has a big decision to make; they have a whopping 21 HCPs with a doubleton AK of Hearts. It is probable that there will be only one chance to decide which game contract to bid. Asking for Aces is pointless since all four sit in South's hand. Well last night one N/S Pair settled for a part-game in 2 No Trumps; they made 8 tricks for 120 points!! A second Pair bid game in 3NT; they made 11 tricks for 660 points. Six more N/S Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; three made 11 tricks for 650 points, while the other three made 12 tricks for 680 points!! One Pair took a look and went up to 5 Hearts; they made 12 tricks for 680 points!! That left the four Pairs who bid a Slam contract; all of them were in 6 Hearts. Sadly one made only 11 tricks and so gave up 100 penalty points. But many congratulations must go to Elizabeth Gibbon & Janet Kefford, to Susan & Mike Sadler and to Philip Goldenberg & Dave Bowen; they all bid Slam in 6 Hearts; they all made exactly 12 tricks to share an impressive top score of 1430 points!! Well done indeed!! Now the "Expert Analysis" informs us that it is possible for both North and South to make a Slam contract on this Board in either 6 Hearts or in 6 No Trumps!!
Finally there is Board 4 which is reproduced at the top of this Report!! take another look at this Board just now and see how YOU would bid and play these hands to maximise the opportunity presented??!! You can see Dealer West has an outstanding hand with 23 HCPs, a balanced hand and 4 Clubs to the AJxx; they would open an Acol strong 2 Clubs!! East has 8 HCPs with 5 Hearts to the Qxxxx and 4 Diamonds to the Qxxx; they would respond positively with 2 Hearts. now it is up to West to manage the bidding to determine the optimal contract. Well last night 8 East/West Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; two made 9 tricks for 600 points; two made 11 tricks for 660 points; and four made 12 tricks for 690 points!! Two more N/S Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; one made 10 tricks for 620 points, and the other made 12 tricks for 680 points!! Finally three East/West Pairs bid a Slam contract; one bid 6 Clubs; one bid 6 Diamonds; and one bid 6 No Trumps. Sadly all three fell short by 3 tricks and so gave up 300 penalty points!!?? Now the "Expert Analysis" suggests that it is possible for both East and West to make a Slam contract in 6 Diamonds and in 6 Hearts!! The secret seems to lie in playing the Hearts tricks from West. If West plays the Queen of Hearts, that forces North to play the King as alternatively East will finesse. A subsequent Heart from West leaves North with the same decision, except that - if they do not play the King - East will finesse with the Jack; East would then sweep up the King with the Ace and makes the remaining tricks easily!! Easy after the event, isn't it? Anyway many congratulations to all our actual Slam Achievers of the evening!!
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| Last updated : 5th May 2016 14:36 BST |
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| Does Philip Green need to pay his Pension Bill? |
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Sir Philip Green once jokingly called his wife’s vast income ‘housekepping money’. When, in a rare interview, Lady Green was asked about the resentment her wealth caused, she said: “It’s about how England is. And its too scary for me!!” Well England is a lot angrier now with Sir Philip and Lady Green. With calls to strip the retail tycoon of his knighthood over the sale and collapse of BHS and the superyacht-sized hole in its pension scheme, there is intense focus on the king of retail and his Monaco-based queen.
Green bought BHS for £200 million in 2000 and sold it for £1 last year. While that might on the face of it sound like a personal misfortune for Green it was anything but. Within four years of the purchase he had paid himself and his wife Tina £358 million in dividends – nearly twice as much as it had cost him to buy the company. Yet despite his own finances being in such rude shape between 2000 and 2004, BHS’s pension fund swung from a healthy surplus to a deficit of £81 million. That deficit has since grown to an estimated £571 million.
For tax purposes, Green is British, allowing him to spend as much time as he wishes in London, where he runs his businesses. He commutes there via private jet from the French Riviera, the stretch of coastline once described by novelist Somerset Maugham as a ‘sunny place for shady people’, often overnighting in a Mayfair hotel. By contrast, Sir Philip’s wife, Lady Green, is resident full-time in Monte Carlo where the income tax rate is handily zero!!. And, crucially, almost all of his business assets are ultimately held in her name. As a result, many dividend payments taken out of his companies are not liable to UK tax. In 2005, she famously received £1.2 billion in this manner, avoiding around £300 million that would have been due to the Exchequer had she lived in the UK. “I’m not criticising success,” comments Frank Field MP, who is the Chairman of the Work and Pensions Committee in the House of Commons. “There’s nothing wrong with people who make fortunes and sail around in expensive yachts, provided they pay taxes and don’t leave mega-holes in pension funds. But Philip Green is different. He should be regarded as a pariah.”
With regard to Sir Philip’s tax status, the friend adds: “His firms have paid £2 billion in direct and indirect tax in the past ten years. He’s never tried any rinky-dinky stuff with HMRC, like Starbucks and Google. Arcadia [which owns his High Street companies] is based in the UK, and pays corporation tax in Britain. He also employs tens of thousands of people, has saved some of the biggest brands on the High Street and is one of the best trainers of talent in UK history. He’s a huge supporter of charities and does a lot of good stuff on the quiet. So to call him some sort of villain is complete b******t!!??”
Maybe so. But that won’t stop people trying, particularly when regulators start digging into the detail of his stewardship of BHS. Analysis of the firm’s accounts by experts at the business consultancy Opus Restructuring show that, during 15 years under Green’s control, it made a tiny combined taxable profit of £78 million, during good years and bad, on a vast turnover of £11 billion. Yet over this time, £807 million was taken from its books and funnelled to other firms owned by Sir Philip. Around £252 million of that £807 million was ‘management charges’ paid to his Arcadia Group, in return for accounting and other services. Another £141 million was ‘ground rent’ for the use of stores and offices, while £414 million was paid to Lady Green by way of dividends. “What is particularly hard to swallow is the dividends,” says Nick Hood, who carried out the research. “£414 million was stripped out of the business, which only managed to make overall profits of a paltry £78 million during the 15 years under Sir Philip’s control. No wonder BHS has ended up such a shabby High Street presence, starved of the investment needed to modernise its stores and beef up its pallid online offering.”
It seems that in a world of haves, have yachts and have superyachts, there are also the Greens, who have two superyachts and are soon to take delivery on a third, a 90m floating tower of decks, pools, whirlpool baths, state rooms and staff quarters, called Lionheart, the biggest creation from the yard of the Italian luxury boatbuilder Benetti. Summer isn’t summer in the Mediterranean without photographs of Green tanning his prosperous belly on the deck on the deck of one of his yachts with the likes of Simon Cowell, Kate Moss, Sylvester Stallone and Naomi Campbell.
Well there were no billionaires to be seen among the 14 Tables who turmed up to contest our regular Club Night yesterday evening at the Oxshott Bridge Club!! Many congratulations must go to Alan & Pat Hammond who were the Star Performers scoring an outstanding 69.23% to capture First place among the Pairs playing North/South; they also scooped the maximum 50 Master Points!! They were a full 61 Match points ahead of the "chasing pack" who were led by Philip Goldenberg & Dave Bowen who came Second with 59.46%; but they were only 5 Match points ahead of David Rotherham & Sue Osborne who came Third with 58.65%. Sheila Price & Barry North were placed Fourth with 56.09%, and they were 3 Match points ahead of Philip Duncan & Richard Burgess who came Fifth with 55.61%. Congratulations must also go to Renata Lane & George Gardiner who won the First place among the Pairs playing East/West with 59.62%; they were 7 Match points ahead of Stephanie Postlethwaite & Janet Kefford who came Second with 58.49%. Gill Apted & Rosie Branch were Third with 55.29%. Then Margaret Monaghan & Therezinha Gold came Fourth with 52.40%, but they were only 5 Match points ahead of the two Pairs who shared Fifth position; both Joyce Gibbs & Jean Hutchinson and Julie Minards & Pauline Harris scored 51.60% to share Fifth spot. Well done to all our Master Points Winners!!
It was South that received the "good cards" as they played the contract on 8 out of the total of 24 Boards; East and West got to play 6 contracts each, so that left poor old North with only 4 Boards where they got to play the contract!!?? 13 out of the 24 Boards delivered game-going contracts if bid and carefully played, which meant that there were 11 Boards that offered only part-game contracts!! There were two Boards which offered some kind of Slam Opportunity, but each of them faced some interesting aspects!!?? Board 22 gave East 14 High Card Points with 5 Clubs to the AQxxxx and a useful singleton Ace of Diamonds; they would open 1 Club. West had 12 HCPs in support with 6 Spades to the AJ10xxx but only a singleton Club; they might jump to 2 Spades!! East will probably repeat with 3 Clubs; and West will also repeat with 3 Spades!!?? Now it is up to East to decide if there is a "big contract" in prospect, or whether they should settle for a game-going contract??!! Well all 14 East/West Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; 8 made exactly 10 tricks for 620 points; one made 11 tricks for 650 points; four made 12 tricks for 680 points; but one unfortunate Pair made only 9 tricks to lose 100 penalty points!! Now the "Expert Analysis" - which you can find along with the Travellers in the "Results" section - suggests that BOTH East and West can make a Slam contract in 6 Spades!! With cross-trumping available in Clubs and Diamonds, the issue boils down to East finessing the Hearts trick when North win the King of Spades!!
Then there was Board 1 which is reproduced at the top of this Report. Take another look at these hands because they offer an impossible Slam Opportunity for the unsuspecting Player??!! Here Dealer North passes with only 10 HCPs, but East has 7 Spades to the AKJ10xxx and a void in Hearts with 10 HCPs; they will open 3 Spades!! South has opening 12 HCPs with a singleton Spade; they might double to invite their Partner to name their best suit. Now West has got four small Spades, 5 Hearts to the AKxxx and a void in Diamonds; they would surely raise to 4 Spades. North would probably pass, and it is left to East to decide if anything bigger than a game contract is worth trying for?? Well last night, one East/West Pair bid 3 Spades; they made 12 tricks for 230 points!! A second E/W Pair also bid 3 Spades; they were doubled; they too made 12 tricks for 830 points!! One North/South Pair bid game in 4 Hearts; they were doubled; they made only 6 tricks to lose 800 penalty points!! Four more E/W Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; one made 10 tricks for 420 points; the other three Pairs made 12 tricks for 480 points!! One N/S Pair braved 5 Hearts; they were doubled; sadly they made only 7 tricks to lose 800 points!! Three E/W Pairs bid 5 Spades; all three made 12 tricks for 480 points. Then one more E/W Pair also bid 5 Spades and were doubled; they made 12 tricks for 750 points!! That left the two Pairs who attempted a Slam contract. First the Traveller states that one North/South Pair bid Slam in 6 Spades; this is clearly a mistake, and one must assume that the bid was 6 Diamonds; they made 9 tricks to lose 150 points to record the top score for N/S on the Board!! Finally many congratulations must go to Pam Harries & Valerie Howe who bid a Slam contract in 6 Spades; they made exactly 12 tricks for a splendid 980 points which was the top score for East/West on this Board!! Now the "Expert Analysis" suggests that, against the best opposition, it is only possible for E/W to make 4 Spades on this Board!! So how can it be that someone actually made a Slam contract, you may well ask!!?? Well the contract will be played by East, which menas that South has two cards to lead against a Slam contract; either they lead the Ace of Clubs or they lead the Ace of Diamonds. If South leads the Ace of Clubs, then three tricks fall immediately in Clubs and E/W can only make 10 tricks. However if South leads the Ace of Diamonds, the void in Diamonds by West allows them to trump; then playing the Ace and King of Hearts allows East to discard two Clubs. Then there is only one losing trick left to the third Club and the Slam contract is successful!! Now was this SKILL or LUCK??!! Who knows, but many congratulations must go to our Actual Slam Achiever!!
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| Last updated : 29th Apr 2016 08:46 BST |
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| Court rules that President Zuma Violated Constitution!! |
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South Africa’s highest court ruled on Thursday that President Jacob Zuma had violated the Constitution by refusing to pay back part of millions of pounds in public funds used for private home improvements, saying he had flouted laws meant to safeguard this country’s young democracy. Dealing a humiliating rebuke to Mr. Zuma, who had for years derided any suggestions that he pay for the upgrades, the Constitutional Court said unanimously that the president had “failed to uphold, defend and respect the Constitution as the supreme law of the land.” The Court ordered Mr. Zuma to reimburse the state for certain upgrades, as demanded by the state body charged with investigating official corruption, once the national treasury has determined the appropriate amounts.
The Constitutional Court has ruled against all three post-apartheid Presidents in a handful of cases focusing on technical legal matters, said Pierre de Vos, a constitutional scholar at the University of Cape Town. “What makes this different is that it is about personal benefits accruing to the President and his family, and the failure of the President to put a stop to it,” he said. “But how significant this is will depend on how the governing party responds. It’s a political issue now.” The ruling by the Court was the final legal verdict in a long-running scandal that, to many South Africans, has come to symbolize the corruption and arrogance in Mr. Zuma’s administration and in his party, the African National Congress, which has governed South Africa since the end of apartheid in 1994.
The Court’s ruling dealt with 246 million rand, or about £11.7 million at current exchange rates, in upgrades made to Mr. Zuma’s private homestead in Nkandla, a town in KwaZulu-Natal Province, after he assumed office in 2009. The improvements included a chicken coop, a cattle enclosure, an amphitheater, a swimming pool, a Visitor Centre, a helipad and three houses for staff. The Government has insisted that upgrades to the President's home in Nkandla were purely for security reasons but the evidence - including satellite pictures, shown above and below suggest otherwise, with images showing an amphitheatre, cattle enclosure and swimming pool were all part of the work.
It is believed that President Zuma has occupied the land, which sits about 24km (15 miles) south of Nkandla town, since 2000. By 2010, the satellite image above showed only a few buildings on the land. A security assessment of the property in May 2009, the same month President Zuma was sworn in, confirmed the need for a security upgrade and this increased when three new houses were built on the land later that year. The satellite image of the land below in 2013 shows substantial work had been done since 2010, with a new security fence encircling the entire residence, a football pitch, helipads and swimming pool. Other additions included houses for some relatives as well as a Visitors' lounge and an amphitheatre.
It was unclear how A.N.C. members, many of whom are likely to face serious challenges for the first time in municipal elections later this year, would react to the judgment against Mr. Zuma. Some, including high-ranking A.N.C. members, recently criticized Mr. Zuma in another case involving the Gupta family, which has close ties to Mr. Zuma and are believed to have influenced government affairs. The party’s National Executive Committee, stacked with allies of the President, said after a three-day summit meeting two weeks ago that it had full confidence in him.
Aubrey Matshiqi, a political analyst at the Helen Suzman Foundation, said that in order to protect their own interests A.N.C. members would likely stand by Mr. Zuma, including in Parliament. “The A.N.C. will use its parliamentary majority to quash any impeachment motion,” he said. “It’s not going to happen in an election year. It’s not in the interests of the A.N.C. even if it’s the right thing to do.” Mr. Matshiqi added that the court ruling had stopped short of finding Mr. Zuma guilty of having deliberately violated the Constitution, leaving open the possibility that he had misunderstood the proper legal procedures. Now it is up to President Zuma, pictured below dancing at his marriage to his fiancee Bongi Ngema, to make the next move!!??
There weren't too may Members challenging the Constitution or dancing with their fiancee, but there were 13 + 1/2 Tables who turned up to compete in our regular Club Night at the Oxshott Bridge Club yesterday evening!! Many congratulations must go to Mary Bushell & Therezinha Gold who were the Top Performers; they came First among the Pairs playing East/West with an outstanding score of 62.33%; they also scooped the maximum 50 Master points!! They were well clear of the "chasing pack" who were led by Daphne Pugh & Gillian Lowe who came Second with 58.16%; they were 8 Match points ahead of Richard Burgess & Philip Duncan who came Third with 56.77%. There was then a bit if a gap before Marjorie Neal & Diana Till came Fourth with 53.13%; they were only 3 Match points ahead of Valerie Bornhoft & Ursula Oscroft who came Fifth with 52.60%. Congratulations must also go to Joan Low & Gail Norman who came First among the Pairs playing North/South; they scored an impressive 61.55%. They were well clear of Rosemary Collin & Elizabeth Gray who came Second with 57.20%; but they only held off Eliizabeth Gibbon & Eileen Goddard by 2 Match points; they came Third. Mike Mulligan & Elisa Money were a further 6 Match points back in Fourth spot, and Peter Wardle & Peter Sharpe captured the Fifth position with 52.46%. Well done to all our Master Points Winners!!
There were some strange distributions among the 24 Boards that we played, and it was West who recieved the "good cards"; they played the contract on more than half the Boards!! There were 13 contracts played by West and that left North and South to play only 4 contracts each, and poor old East had only 3 Boards where they got to play the contracts!! The majority of the Boards offered the higher-scoring game-going contracts; they made up 15 of the 24 Boards in play; and there were four Boards that offered a Slam Opportunity. Surprisingly there was only one actual attempt at a Slam contract throughout the evening, and even it was unsuccessful!!?? Board 19 gave West a whopping 18 High Card Points, with 5 Clubs to the AKxxx; they would open 1 Club. East has an excellent 12 HCPs in support with 4 Diamonds to the AKxx and 4 Hearts to the KQxx; they might jump to 2 Diamonds. West may then bid 2 No Trumps to show a point count. East then shows their second four-card suit by bidding 3 Hearts. now it is up to West to decide if their is a "big contract" on offer here or to settle for a simple game contract!!?? Well one East/West Pair settled for 2 Clubs; they made 11 tricks for 150 points. The next E/W Pair bid 2 No Trumps; they made 12 tricks for 240 points!! A third E/W Pair bid up to 3 Clubs; they made 10 tricks for 130 points!! Another Pair bid 3 Diamonds; they also made 10 tricks for 130 points!! Eight E/W Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; three made exactly 9 tricks for 600 points, while five made 10 tricks for 630 points!! Finally one E/W Pair bid up to 5 Hearts; they made exactly 11 tricks for 650 points, which was the top score on this Board!! Now the "Expert Analysis" - which you can find along with the Travellers in the "Results" section - suggests that it is possible for either East or West to make a Slam in 6 Hearts on this Board!! Fortunately the trumps split evenly, 3-3, and the third Club trick is trumped by East. This allows the other two Club tricks to be Winners and so the only "loser" is the Ace of Spades. Easy after the event, isn't it??
Board 14 gave South 11 HCPs with 5 Spades to the AQ10xx; it is probable that they would not be constrained from opening 1 Spades!!?? North had 14 HCPs with a 4441 distibution, importantly 4 Spades to the Jxxxx and four good cards in Clubs and Hearts; they would jump to 3 Clubs. When South comes back with 3 Spades, it is up to North to decide how brave they are??!! Well one North/South Pair bid game in 3 No Trumps; they made 11 tricks for 460 points!! 11 more N/S Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; four made 11 tricks for 450 points, wheras seven made 12 tricks for 480 points!! Finally one Pair took a look and bid 5 Spades; they made 12 tricks for 480 points!! It will not surprise you to learn the the "Expert Analysis" suggests that it is possible for either North or South to make a Slam contract in 6 Spades on this Board!! It turns out that all the finesses are situated in the right hands and 12 tricks is really quite achievable!!
Board 13 gave West the good hand with 17 HCPs, 5 Clubs to the AKxxx and 4 Spades to the Kxxx; they would open 1 Club. East has 9 HCPs with 5 Hearts to the 10xxxxx and 4 Spades to AQJx, so they might reply 2 Hearts. West is strong enough to "reverse" with 2 Spades, which allows East to show that they have 4 Spades as well by bidding 4 Spades. Then it is up to West to take it further if they wish......??!! Well one East/West Pair bid 2 Clubs; they made 10 tricks for 130 points!! Another bid 2 Spades; they made 12 tricks for 230 points!! Three E/W Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; two made 9 tricks for 600 points, while one made 10 tricks for 630 points!! Meanwhile 8 E/W Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; three made 10 tricks for 620 points; two made 11 tricks for 650 points; and three mae 12 tricks for 680 points!! Now the "Expert Analysis" suggests that both East and West can make a Slam contract in 6 Spades on this Board!! Astute cross-trumping means that the Ace of Hearts is the only "loser"!!
Finally Board 8 is reproduced at the top of this Report. Take another look at these hands and see how YOU would bid and play this Board to maximise the Opportunity offered!!?? North has 13 HCPs with 6 Clubs to the AKJxxx; they would open 1 Club. South has a whopping 16 HCPs in support with 5 Spades to the AK10xx and 5 Diamonds to the AJxxx; they would jump to 2 Spades!! North repeats with 3 Clubs, and South shows their other suit with a jump to 4 Diamonds. North must be a little confused at this stage, but they will probably bid 5 Clubs because they have 6 cards in this suit; and it is just possible that South will bid the Slam contract in 6 Clubs, given they have the Queen of Clubs and a singleton in the unbid Hearts suit??!! Well one North/South Pair bid a part-game in 2 Spades; they made 10 tricks for 170 points!! No less than 11 N/S Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; one made only 8 tricks and so gave up 100 peanlty points (??!!); one made 10 tricks for 420 points; two made 11 tricks for 450 points; six made 12 tricks for 480 points; and one made the full set of 13 tricks for 510 points!! However one intrepid Pair ventured a Slam contract in 6 Clubs; sadly they made only 11 tricks and so gave up 50 penalty points!! Now the "Expert Analysis" confirms that - even against the best of defences - it is possible for both North and South to make a Slam contract in 6 Clubs on this Board!! The lead is likely to be the 2 of Spades, which South takes with the Ace. Playing the Queen of Hearts to the Ace in North allows an extra trick to be made off the second Heart. Then taking trumps out prevents adverse trumping, and the sacrifice of a Spade to the Queen brings the contract home!! How did you do after looking again at this Board??
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| Last updated : 31st Mar 2016 22:35 BST |
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| New Zealand votes to keep the Current Flag |
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The results are in and New Zealand have rejected a change of the national flag, voting to retain the Union Jack-emblazoned incumbent. The referendum asked whether the flag which includes the Union Jack should be replaced by a design called Silver Fern, which won an earlier ballot. The results show 56.6% voted for no change, while 43.1% opted for the new design. Just over 2.1m votes were cast. PM John Key had advocated the new flag but called on New Zealanders to "embrace" the people's decision. A final result taking into account late ballots will be announced next Wednesday.
The judges weighed 10,292 options – including a flightless kiwi bird firing lasers from its eyes – and the country spent two years thinking about it. But in the end, officials said on Thursday, New Zealanders chose decisively to keep their century-old flag, a blue ensign with Britain’s Union Jack in the upper left corner and the four stars of the Southern Cross in red on the right. The current flag was legally introduced in 1902, 62 years after the Treaty of Waitangi brought New Zealand into the British Empire. The South Pacific nation ceased to be a British colony in 1907.
Thousands of submitted designs – including a woolly sheep with stars for eyes and the laser-equipped kiwi bird, among less conventional entries – were reduced to five finalists by a panel of 12 judges. Four of the five featured variations on a fern, a plant of symbolic importance in the native Maori culture (and the logo of the national rugby team). In December, Silver Fern (Black, White and Blue) won the first nationwide postal referendum, and the support of Mr Key, who had floated the idea of a new flag in an election campaign speech in March 2014.
At the time, Prime Minister John Key said that if his National Party won the elections in September, he would hold a referendum on the flag. Besides the existing flag’s colonial associations, Mr Key had contended that a flag bearing a fern could generate more national pride, given its associations with the rugby team. He also raised a practical concern: New Zealand’s flag is similar to Australia’s, and Mr Key said that he had sometimes been placed in front of the wrong flag at international events!!
One of the most vocal groups opposing the flag change was the military veteran group, the Returned and Services Association. It called Thursday’s result “an inspiring, strong show of democracy in action”. The lobby group Change the NZ Flag declared that it would continue to push for a new flag. “We’ll keep campaigning, we have a strong support base and (there is still) strong sentiment, but simply the issues got in the way of the process,” its Chair Lewis Holden said. The exercise was mired in controversy from the start. Many objected to the 12-member panel overseeing the process not having a designer, and the longlist whittled down from thousands of entries was said to lack imagination. Many also described the process as unnecessarily expensive, with the bulk of the NZ$26m (or £12m) cost going towards conducting postal voting. However the Electoral Commission confirmed that 1.2 million people voted for the old flag and 915,008 voted for the new one. About 67% of the country cast a vote.
There were no flag carriers but there were lots of "Returning Members" who rolled up for 16 full Tables at our regular Club Night yesterday evening at the Oxshott Bridge Club!! Many congratulations must go to Mike Mulligan & Elisa Money who were the Star Performers!! They achieved an outstanding score of 62.64% to claim First place among the Pairs playing North/South; they also scooped the maximum 60 Master points!! Well done, indeed!! Closely behind were George Gardiner & Renata Lane who scored 60.42% in Second place, but they were only 2 Match points ahead of Judy Hickman & Kay O'Gorman who came Third with 60.14%. There was then a bit if a gap before Angie Watson & Ian Jeffrey came Fourth with 56.53%; they were 7 Match points ahead of Alan & Pat Hammond who came Fifth with 55.56%. And Jonathan Spring & John French were a further 12 Match points back in Sixth position with 53.89%. Congratulations must also go to Daphne Pugh & Gillian Lowe who came First among the Pairs playing East/West with 60.97%. They were quite some distance ahead of the "chasing pack", who were led by Don Porter & Doris Butterworth who scored 55.56% in Second place. They were 7 Match points ahead of Joyce Gibbs & Joyce Hutchinson who scored 54.58% in Third position, with Valerie Bornhoft & Ursula Oscroft just 8 Match points further back in Fourth spot with a score of 53.47%. Then Valerie Jones & Dorothy Steinart came Fifth with 52.78%, and they held off Pam Harries & Valerie Howe by 2 Match points; they scored 52.50% in Sixth position. Well done to all our Master Points Winners!!
It was East and West that received the "good cards", as they both played 7 contracts each; that left South to play the contract on 6 Boards and poor old North got to play only 4 contracts all evening!! There were 11 game-going contracts as a gainst 13 non-game contracts among the 24 Boards that we played; but there were three Boards that offered some kind of Slam Opportunities!!?? Board 7 gave East a whopping 20 High Card Points with 6 Hearts to the AKQxxx; they might open a stromg 2 Hearts!! West had 10 HCPs in support with 4 Hearts to the J10xx and 4 Clubs to the Kxxx; they might jump to 4 Clubs. Now East might go straight to "Blackwood" or bid game in 4 Hearts??!! Well 11 East/West Pairs settled for a game-contract in 4 Hearts; six made 11 tricks for 650 points, while five made 12 tricks for 680 points!! But five more East/West Pairs bid a Slam contract in 6 Hearts. Sadly two fell short, making only 11 tricks and so gave up 100 penalty points!! However congratulations must go to Pauline Harris & Julie Minards, to Valerie Bornhoft & Ursula Oscroft, and to Alison Tebboth & Stephanie Postlethwaite; all three bid a Slam contract in 6 Hearts; all three made exactly 12 tricks to share the top score of an impressive 1430 points!! The "Expert Analysis" - which you can find attached to the Travellers in the "Results" section - confirms that it is possible for both East and West to make a Slam contract in either 6 Hearts or in 6 No Trumps!! The secret seems to be to keep calm with the Spade tricks; it turns out that the Queen falls in the first two tricks, allowing the Jack to be a Winner. Thereafter there is only one "loser" trick in Diamonds before the Slam contract is achieved!!
Board 18 gave East 15 HCPs with 6 Clubs to the AK10xxx, 4 Spades to the KQxx and a singleton in Diamonds; they will open 1 Club. West has 11 HCPs with 4 Hearts to the AQxx and 4 Spades to the Axxx; they would respond 1 Heart. East might now jump to 2 Spades, which allows West to show their support in this suit with 4 Spades. Now it is up to East to decide if there is more potential here than a simple game contract??!! Well one East/West Pair bid 2 Spades; they made all 13 tricks for 190 points!! Another E/W Pair bid game with 3 No Trumps; sadly they made only 7 tricks and so lost 100 penalty points!!?? 12 more E/W Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; one made 10 tricks for 420 points; five made 11 tricks for 450 points; three made 12 tricks for 480 points; and three made 13 tricks for 510 points!! That left the two East/West Pairs who bid a Slam contract!! Many congratulations must go to Dave Bowen & Philip Goldenberg and to Don Porter & Doris Butterworth; they both bid Slam in 6 Spades; and they both made exactly 12 tricks for 980 points!! Now the "Expert Analysis" confirms that it is possible for East and West to make a Slam contract in either 6 Clubs or in 6 Spades!!
Finally we have Board 1 which is reproduced at the top of this Report. Now here it is possible to make a Slam contract, to fall short of a Slam contract by one trick, or to bid and make a GRAND SLAM!! Have another look at these hands and see how YOU would bid and play this contract to maximise the opportunity presented!!?? East has 11 HCPs with 5 Hearts to the AQJxx and 4 Clubs to the Axxx; they would open 1 Heart. West has a superb 20 HCPs with a 4441 distribution with 4 Spades to the AK10x, 4 Diamonds to the AKJ10 and 4 Clubs to the KQxx; they might go straight to "Blackwood" since they seem to have every suit covered and good points; however they might just jump to 2 Spades??!! Communication is key to make sure that the right final contract is agreed!! Well last night seven East/West Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; one made 10 tricks for 430 points; three made 11 tricks for 460 points; and three made 12 tricks for 490 points!! Another bid 5 No Trumps; they made 12 tricks for 490 points!! But the remaining eight Pairs bid a Slam contract!! One bid Slam in 6 Hearts; they were doubled; they made only 11 tricks to lose 50 penalty points!! Five more E/W Pairs bid Slam in 6 No Trumps; sadly two fell short by one trick and gave up 50 penalty points!! But congratulations must go to Edwin Jones & Alan Gardner, to Pauline Harris & Julie Minards and to Valerie Jones & Dorothy Steinart; they all made exactly 12 tricks for 990 points!! However two more East/West Pairs bid on to a GRAND SLAM. One bid a Grand Slam in 7 Clubs; they made only 11 tricks and so gave up 100 penalty points!! But special congratulations must go to Graham Morris & Richard Burgess; they bid a GRAND SLAM in 7 No Trumps; they made exactly 13 tricks for a spectacular top score of 1520 points!! Well done indeed!! Now how did YOU get on when you revisited the Board at the top of this Report?? Interestingly the "Expert Analysis" suggests that it is possible for both East and West to make a Slam contract in any of 6 Clubs, 6 Diamonds, 6 Hearts or 6 No Trumps; it also suggests that - against the best of defences - a GRAND SLAM is only possible in 7 Clubs!! Funny how differently the outcome of a Board can be!! Whatever, we offer our congratulations to all our Actual Slam Achievers of the evening!!
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| Last updated : 24th Mar 2016 20:13 GMT |
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| Maria Sharapova admits she failed drug test at Australian Open |
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During the past decade or so, Maria Sharapova has been ranked one of the best tennis players in the world. She has also been among its most recognizable people, thanks to endorsement contracts with major companies—Nike, Porsche, TAG Heuer, Cole Haan, and Evian, to name but a few —and her goodwill work with the United Nations Development Program. And she has achieved the status of the highest paid female athlete on the planet. But Sharapova may be remembered for doing something else during that span of time: cheating by taking a drug that is now banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency!! At a press conference this week, Sharapova said that she has been taking a drug called Mildronate for the past 10 years. It was prescribed by her family doctor to help with the health effects of a magnesium deficiency, regular influenza, irregular heart test results, and early signs of diabetes. Mildronate is an anti-ischemic drug. This type of medication is used to help prevent interruptions in the supply of blood to tissues, organs, and extremities. It is usually used for patients with heart disease, though it has shown benefits for people with neurological and other issues where there is decreased blood supply in the body. So, why had WADA officials and medical experts been monitoring the drug for some time before adding it to the banned list?
It’s highly probable those at WADA were learning the same things that others in the anti-doping community were also discovering. As researchers at the German Sport University and the European Monitoring Center for Emerging Doping Agents pointed out in a peer-reviewed study published last year, “Mildronate demonstrates an increase in endurance performance of athletes, improved rehabilitation after exercise, protection against stress, and enhanced activations of central nervous system (CNS) functions.” The study also makes clear the rising misuse of the drug in sports. People who are walking around with too little magnesium in their bodies can end up with bouts of irritability, muscle weakness, and irregular heartbeat. The condition is usually remedied by consuming a healthy, balanced diet and, if really need be, magnesium supplements. Both are readily accessible to a professional athlete. So are treatments for frequent cases of the flu. The same goes for diabetes.
Sharapova said she is taking “full responsibility” for what she knows was a “huge mistake.” When WADA officials released the 2016 list of Prohibited Substances and Methods late last year, a spokesman explained that “for a substance or method to be prohibited, it must meet two of three criteria: enhance performance; pose a threat to athlete health; violate the spirit of sport.” Sharapova may have had a medical need for Mildronate. But it is her responsibility to heed warnings about medications that can serve non-medical purposes. Tennis, with its current woes, can ill afford to have one of its most prominent champions caught up in a doping scandal, whether by accident or by design.
Andy Murray declared his disappointment that Head, the racquet company he has used throughout his career, should have promised Maria Sharapova a contract extension without waiting to see how her case developed. Head broke ranks from Sharapova's other sponsors Nike, Porsche and Tag Heuer by expressing its support. "Maria may have made a mistake," a statement explained, "but she has earned the benefit of the doubt and we are extending it to her." However, Murray expressed his surprise at this decision in his pre-tournament press conference in Indian Wells. Asked if he was disappointed, he replied: "Yeah, I personally wouldn't have responded like that. I think it's a strange stance, given everything that's happened the last few days. I think at this stage it's important really to get hold of the facts and let things play out, like more information coming out before making a decision to extend the contract like that." Murray has long been one of the most vocal tennis celebrities on the issue of anti-doping, and yesterday he once again suggested that tennis's safeguards were not as tight as they should be. Asked if the International Tennis Federation was doing enough to protect the integrity of the sport, he replied: "No, I think all sports can do more. Last year I got tested loads, whereas this year it's only been twice, and we're three months into the year, which is clearly not enough. One was out of competition just before the Davis Cup and the other was after I lost in the Australian Open."
Maria Sharapova is pictured below in better times with Serena Williams after winning the 2004 Wimbledon ladies’ singles final. Aged 28, Maria could now become the biggest financial loser in sporting history, missing out on estimated future earnings of as much as £100 million!!
There were one of two Players last night muttering that their Partner needed some stimulants to improve their play, as 14 +1/2 Tables sat down to contest our regular Club Night at the Oxshott Bridge Club!! Many congratulations must go to Rosemary Collin & Elizabeth Gray who were the Top Performers, capturing First place among the Pairs playing North/South with the top score of 59.65%; they also scooped the maximum 50 Master points!! They were 12.7 Match points ahead of Renata Lane & George Gardiner who came Second with 57.45%. The next three Pairs were very close indeed!! Tony Scott & Barbara Shaw came Third with 56.22%, but they were only 2.1 Match points ahead of June Buckland & Eileen Goddard who came Fourth with 55.85%. Judy Hickman & Kay O'Gorman were just a further 1.9 Match points back with 55.52% in Fifth position!! Congratutions must also go to Marjorie Neal & Diana Till who came First among the Pairs playing East/West; they scored 58.17% in First place!! They were 1% ahead of Margaret Monaghan & Janet Kefford who came Second with 57.01%. Daphne Pugh & Gillian Lowe were only 4.7 Match points back in Third place, and Pauline Harris & Mandy Mahalski captured Fourth spot with 54.79%. The final Master points placing went to Jill Melener & Brenda Hall who came Fifth with 52.57%. Well done to all our Master Points Wniiners!!
Oddly enough it was East that received the "good cards"; they played the contract on 10 Boards!! South played a further 8 contracts, and that meant that North and West were left with only 4 Boards each where they got to play the contract!!?? For a change, more than half the Boards offered part-game contracts; indeed only 11 out of the 26 Boards offered the higher-scoring "game" contracts!! There was only one Board that offered any sort of Slam Opportunity, but not one Pair even attempted a Slam bid last night!!?? You can check it out for yourself once again as it is reproduced at the top of this Report. Is there any way that YOU can find to actually bid a Slam on this Board?? Dealer South has 13 High Card points with a balanced hand; they will open 1 No Trump. North has an excellent supporting hand with 5 Hearts to the AQxxx, 4 Diamonds to the QJ10x and two doubletons; they might try "Stamen" or a "Transfer" into Hearts. See how YOU would bid on from here?? Well last night, one North/South Pair settled for a part-game in 2 No Trumps; they made 11 tricks for 210 points!! Another N/S Pair bid 3 Hearts; they made 11 tricks for 200 points!! Six N/S Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; five made 11 tricks for 460 points. but one made only 7 tricks and so lost 100 penalty points!! Three more Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; one made 10 tricks for 420 points, while two made 11 tricks for 450 points!! Finally one intrepid East/West Pair bid game in 4 Spades; they made 9 tricks and so gave up 100 penalty points.........which turned out to be a wise sacrifice bid!! Now the "Expert Analysis" - which you can find along with the Travellers in the "Results" section - informs us that, even against the best of Defences, it is possible for North or South to make a Slam contract in 6 Diamonds!! After winning the Ace of Spades to the obvious Spade lead, a low Diamond passes the lead to South while clearing the singleton trump from East. Then Heart leads from South allow a finesse from north or the capture of the King of Hearts. Whichever, a second Diamond passes the lead to North, who can play the fourth Heart which permits South to discard the losing Spade. Cross-trumping ensures the neceesary 12 tricks are secure!! It is always easy after the event, but it would nearly take a genius to even attempt a Slam contract on this Board!!
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| Last updated : 11th Mar 2016 19:29 GMT |
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| Queen unveils logo for new Elizabeth line |
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She's an avid user of the rail network and now a new multi-billion pound line which will run under London is being named after the Queen. Crossrail, which will link parts of Berkshire and Buckinghamshire to Essex, will be known as the Elizabeth line once it opens through the centre of the capital in December 2018. The announcement was made by London Mayor Boris Johnson as the Queen visited the construction site at Bond Street station. Her Majesty is often spotted catching the train at King's Cross when returning to her country estate in Sandringham at Christmas. Yesterday morning she unveiled the purple Elizabeth line logo which will feature across the network, in an Angela Kelly lilac wool crepe dress with matching coat and hat for the occasion.
After greeting representatives, The Queen was taken in an industrial lift to the site 92ft below ground, where she viewed part of the railway tunnel and met construction apprentices dressed in bright orange jackets and trousers. Mr Johnson said: “Crossrail is already proving a huge success for the UK economy and, as we move closer to bringing this transformative new railway into service, I think it's truly wonderful that such a significant line for our capital will carry such a significant name from our country. As well as radically improving travel right across our city, the Elizabeth line will provide a lasting tribute to our longest-serving monarch.”
The Queen became the first reigning monarch to travel on the London Underground in 1969 when she opened the Victoria line. In 1977 the Jubilee line was opened by the Prince of Wales and was named to mark 25 years since the Queen's accession to the throne. Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin, who also attended the Crossrail event, described the naming of the Elizabeth line as “very fitting” given the Queen's long association with UK transport.
The network will stretch from Reading and Heathrow in the west to Shenfield and Abbey Wood in the east. A fleet of new 656ft (200m) long trains with nine walk-through air-conditioned carriages will run on the line. The network will be opened in several phases, beginning with the Liverpool Street to Shenfield route in May next year. Some 24 trains an hour will run in each direction in the central London tunnels when they open in December 2018. The full through service to Reading is due to begin in December 2019. London's Transport Commissioner Mike Brown said: 'In running this important new railway we will ensure that it serves as a fitting tribute to Her Majesty the Queen.'
Meanwhile, it seems The Queen may be using the rail network more often after it was revealed she has sold her Jaguar. The monarch's X-type - which comes complete with heated seats, parking sensors and a dog grille to stop the corgis distracting the driver - sold for £15,000 after being offered online. London-based car firm Fletchdale Ltd was involved in the sale and said the new owner did not realise they were buying from Her Majesty. The three-litre automatic vehicle had just 7,600 miles on the clock at the time of the sale despite being seven years old and the sale was described as being the next-best thing to buying a top-of-the-range X-type.
There were some rumours that the Queen was going to be using her Bus Pass to visit the Oxshott Bridge Club yesterday evening, but these proved to be scurrilous and without foundation, although there were 11 + 1/2 Tables who brqaved a cold evening to attend our regular Club Night!! Many congratulations must go to Alan & Pat Hammond who were the Top Performers; they came First among the Pairs playing North/South with an outstanding 62.92%; they also scooped the maximum 40 Master points, but they were only 3 Match points ahead of Sheila Price & Gabrielle Roberts, who came Second with 62.20%. There was then a big gap of 28 Match points before June Buckland & Janet Kefford claimed Third spot with a score of 56.46%; they were only 3 Match points ahead of Penny & Ormonde Webster-Smith who came Fourth with 55.83%!! Congratulations must also go to Jonathan Spring & John French who were First among the Pairs playing East/West; they scored an excellent 60.00% and were a full 15 Match points ahead of Gill Apted & Rosie Branch who came Second with 56.59%. Susan & Mike Sadler came Third with 54.55%, but they were only 2 Match points ahead of Vernon Morton & Margaret Monaghan who came Fourth with 54.09%. Well done to all our Master Points Winners!!
It was a funny evening for distributing the cards. It seemed that South was particularly lucky in receiving the “good cards”; they played the contract in 12 out of the 24 Boards!! North played a further 5 Boards, and that left West and East with only 4 and 3 Boards respectively where they got to play the contract!!?? There were 10 Boards that offered only part-game contracts; indeed there were two Boards (No 9 and 21) where the distribution of the cards was so even that many Pairs passed the hands out!! Such is the penalty of having pre-set hands which can be published on the Website with the Travellers for us all to examine afterwards at our leisure. The Committee may well consider whether they are prepared to sacrifice that ability to allow such evenly-balanced hands to be redealt when first played to enable more interesting hands in future??!!
14 of the Boards offered the higher-scoring “game” contracts, and three of them brought some kind of “Slam Opportunity”!! Board 12 is reproduced at the top of this Report, so you can take another look just now at how you might bid and play these hands to maximise their potential!!?? You can see that there might well be three Passes before South opens the bidding; they have a whopping 20 High Card Points with 5 Hearts to the AQ10xx and 5 Clubs to the AQJxx; they might open a strong 2 Hearts. North has 10 HCPs with 5 good Spades to the KQJxx and 4 Clubs to the Kxxx; they would respond 2 Spades. South then shows their second 5-card suit with 3 Clubs. Now North has to make a decision; how do they best support their Partner without pre-emptively closing off the bidding?? Well three North/South Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; two made 12 tricks for 680 points while one made all 13 tricks for 710 points!! Three more N/S Pairs bid game in 5 Clubs; all three made exactly 12 tricks for 620 points!! One intrepid East/West Pair bid game in 5 Diamonds; they were doubled; they made 8 tricks and so lost only 500 penalty points!! But two North/South Pairs ventured a Slam bid!! Many congratulations must go to Alan & Pat Hammond and to Sheila Price & Gabrielle Roberts who both bid Slam in 6 Clubs; they both made exactly 12 tricks to share a very satisfying top score of 1370 points!! Now the “Expert Analysis” – which you can find attached to the Travellers in the “Results” section – informs us that BOTH North and South can make a Slam contract in 6 Clubs, 6 Hearts or in 6 Spades even against the best of defences, but it does need very careful playing!! How did YOU get on with these hands??
Board 2 gave everyone a peculiar hand and so it was always going to be interesting to see how the bidding would be determined??!! Dealer East had 9 HCPs with 7 Clubs to the KJ10xxxx and 4 Hearts to the Axxx with two singletons; they would open a weak 3 Clubs!! South also has 9 HCPs with 7 Spades to the Q10xxxxx and three doubletons; they would probably bid 3 Spades!! Now West has 12 HCPs and their 7-card suit is Diamonds to the AQ10xxxx, but they do have three Clubs to the Queen to support their Partner. Will they mention their 7-card Diamonds, or will they repeat their Partner’s Clubs?? Meanwhile North also has three cards to support their Partner’s Spades including the Ace, and they have really good Hearts to the KQJxxx. You can imagine everyone bidding with some abandon, but what is the ideal contract?? Well one East/West Pair settled for a part-game in 4 Clubs; they made 11 tricks for 150 points!! One North/South Pair bid game in 4 Spades; sadly they made only 9 tricks and so gave up 100 penalty points!! Three more E/W Pairs bid game in 5 Clubs; one made exactly 11 tricks for 400 points; the second made 10 tricks and lost 100 penalty points; but the third made 12 tricks for the top score on the Board of 420 points!! Three East/West Pairs bid game in 5 Diamonds; one made only 10 tricks and so lost 100 points; but the other two made the required 11 tricks for 400 points!! But one intrepid E/W Pair bid up to a Slam contract in 6 Clubs; they were doubled; sadly they made only 10 tricks and so lost 300 penalty points, which was the top score for N/S on the Board!!?? Now the “Expert Analysis” confirms that no one can make a Slam contract on this Board against a good defence!! The best is 5 Clubs by East or West and the maximum tricks in Diamonds should be held to 4 Diamonds!! So now you know!!
Finally there was Board 17 which gave a whopping hand to East; they had 22 HCPs with 5 fantastic Clubs to the AKQJx and 4 Hearts to the KQxx; they had at least 8 playing tricks in prospect, so they would open a strong 2 Clubs!! West has a nicely balanced hand with 10 HCPs and 4 cards in Spades and Diamonds; they would answer positively with 2 Spades. Now East must not rush things until the suit is determined; they will repeat 3 Clubs to show their best suit. West then shows 3 Diamonds as their alternative suit; and this allows East to move on to “Blackwood” to check Aces and to bid a Slam contract!! Well two East/West Pairs settled for a game contract in 3 No Trumps; one made 12 tricks for 490 points, while the other made the full set of 13 tricks for 520 points!! Another Pair bid game in 4 Spades; they made 12 tricks for 480 points!! The other 8 East/West Pairs bid a Slam contract!! Congratulations must go to Don Porter & Doris Butterworth who bid Slam in 6 Clubs; they made exactly 12 tricks for 920 points!! Congratulations must also go to Daphne Pugh & Gillian Lowe who bid Slam in 6 Spades; they made 12 tricks for 980 points; and achievement that was all the better because one other E/W Pair failed in this same contract, making only 11 tricks and so losing 50 penalty points??!! But special congratulations mist go to Vernon Morton & Margaret Monaghan, to Gill Apted & Rosie Branch, to Susan & Mike Sadler, to Jonathan Spring & John French and to Valerie Bornhoft & Ursula Oscroft; all five Pairs bid Slam in 6 No Trumps; all five made exactly 12 tricks to share the top score of 990 points!! Well done indeed!! Now the “Expert Analysis” confirms that both East and West can make a Slam contract in ANY of 6 Clubs, 6 Spades or in 6 No Trumps, but the missing Ace of Hearts should ensure that the maximum number of tricks is held to 12 on this Board, whatever the contract!! Anyway well done to all our Slam Achievers of the evening!!
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| Last updated : 11th Mar 2016 18:27 GMT |
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| Thai Police arrest elderly Bridge players in Pattaya |
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It is a game of suits and bids associated with genteel respectability and card-playing acumen rather than vice and sin. But the tip-off alerted the Thailand Interior Ministry officials to a supposedly suspicious gathering of foreign nationals engaged in an alleged gambling operation. Some police surrounded the building to ensure none of the suspects escaped, although two players slipped behind a curtain, scurried downstairs and disappeared into the streets of Pattaya, a seaside city renowned for sex tourism, a seedy nightlife and as a base for foreign gangsters. And so it was that a 50-strong anti-vice squad stormed up the stairs and into a room above a restaurant the beachside resort of Pattaya. There they found a dozen British retirees, along with another 19 Westerners, coming towards the end of a regular Wednesday afternoon session of Bridge. Even though no money was changing hands in a country where gambling on cards is illegal, the 31 players ranging in age from 50 to 84 were carted off by the police and held for 12 hours.
Their offence, the vigilant officers established, was that they were using more than 120 cards at one time – in violation of the Playing Cards Act of 1935. The cards also lacked official government customs excise markings. Video footage shows the elderly detainees, including an 84-year-old Dutch woman with a walking stick, dutifully climbing into an open-sided police van. All were released at 3am on Thursday after paying bail of 5,000 Baht (£96) following the intervention of a Thai aristocrat who now heads the Asia-Pacific Bridge Federation.
The most high profile detainee was Barry Kenyon (pictured below), a former British Honorary Consul who received the MBE for his services to Britain and founded the Jomtien and Pattaya Bridge Club more than 30 years ago. “It was an ordeal for our elder members some of whom are over 80 years old,” he said. “Luckily someone from a local 7/11 store provided a shuttle service for food and police provided water. This morning we all attended the police station again as the ‘black Maria’ was prepared to take us to court. Then everything came to an end. The police said charges were being dropped. They saw the computer we had to record each players bridge records and must have thought something big was going on. It was all quite absurd.”
An Australian Bridge champion was among 31 westerners who were arrested. Three time National Australian Bridge Champion, Avon Wilsmore, says police ordered the Bridge players to sign false declarations to say they were gambling or they would be detained. Mr Wilsmore said that he has an “aversion to signing false declarations”. But a local police encouraged them to sign. “Her view was that this 'confession' was no big deal, we could retract and contest the matter in court,” Mr Wilsmore said. “Getting home was preferred, so that's what we did.” The players were forced to pay £96 bail and had their passports confiscated. Pattaya's police chief Sukthat Pumphanmuang said police were 'just doing their job' in defence of the raid which has been ridiculed globally.
The players believe they fell foul of a Thai woman with a grudge against a Western man who worked for the club’s landlord. The raid was conducted after a tip-off was filed with an anti-corruption centre set up by the junta. “We had another raid three months ago by the local police so when this one took place we just carried on playing,” explained one detained Briton. “But this time they carted us all off.”
It took the arrival in Pattaya of Khunying Chodchoy Sophonpanich, the Thai President of the Asia-Pacific Bridge Federation, to persuade the police not to pursue gambling charges against those detained. “Bridge is not a well-known game in Thailand and a lot of people associate playing cards with gambling,” she explained. “We are trying to build up the popularity of Bridge here and it is very important that the game is not linked to gambling.”
The club still faces sanctions for playing with more cards than legally allowed in one place and using packs for which Thai import duties had not been paid. The British player explained that all the packs had brought into the country legally and been donated by visitors. The club's website has meanwhile been updated to address the swoop. It reads: "CLOSED TEMPORARILY whilst we get a new licence to have cards on the premises. All problems have been solved with understanding by the authorities."
Well there wasn't a police raid last night at the Oxshott Bridge Club, but there were one or two Members who were seen slipping away early on the rumour that there might be one!!?? Anyway 13 + 1/2 Tables sat down to contest the regular Club Night, and there was lors of exciting Boards to play!! Many congratulations must go to Philip Duncan & Richard Burgess who were the Star Performers; they came First among the Pairs playing North/South with an outstanding 62.33%; they also scooped the maximum 50 Master points!! They were only 4 Match points ahead of David Rotherham & Sue Osborne who came Second with 61.63%. There was then a bit of a gap before Mike Mulligan & John French came Third with 58.33%; they were 8 Match points ahead of Kevin & Deanne Goddard who came Fourth with 56.25%, and June Buckland & Eileen Goddard came Fifth with 53.25%. Congratulations must also go to George Gardiner & Susan Sadler who came First among the Pairs playing East/West; they scored an outstanding 61.74%, and were just ahead of Julie Minards & Pauline Harris who were places Second with 60.76%. The "chasing pack" were a little behind, but they were led by Enid & James Pickering who came Third with 56.25%. They were just 3 Match points ahead of Jonathan Spring & Tony Scott who came Fourth with 55.68%, and Margaret Lawson & Rosie Branch claimed Fifth spot with 53.98%. Well done to all out Master Points Winners!!
It was West who received the "good cards" since they got to play the contract on 8 Boards; and South played a further 7 contracts. That meant that East and North were mostly concerned with defence since they played the contract on five and four Boards respectively. There were plenty of non-game contracts; indeed, they made up 15 of the 24 Boards that were in play. That meant that there were only 9 Boards where there was a real prospect of the higher-scoring game-going contracts. But surprisingly 5 out of those 9 Boards offered some kind of Slam Opportunity!! Board 5 is reproduced at the top of this Report, so you can take another look just now to see how YOU would maximise the potential of these hands??!! You can see that North has a nicely balanced hand with 16 High Card Points, including 4 Spades to the AJxx and 4 Diamonds to the AKQx; they would open 1 Diamond. South had a most unusual hand with 11 HCPs, 6 Spades to the KQxxxx and 5 Clubs to the AQ10xx, with two singletons as well; they would almost certainly jump to 2 Spades. North must be smiling internally already, but they would remember that a bid of 3 Spades is more powerful than 4 Spades in this circumstance. Alternatively they might move straight to Blackwood to see how many Aces their partner has to offer??!! Well last night three North/South Pairs settled for a game-contract in 4 Spades; all three made 11 tricks for 650 points. The remaining ten N/S Pairs bid Slam in 6 Spades. Sadly six of them made only 11 tricks and so gave up 100 penalty points to their opponents. However the other four North/South Pairs were successful!! Many congratulations must go to Sheila Price & Carole Tuininga and to Vernon Morton & Liam Creagh who both bid Slam in 6 Spades and made exactly 12 tricks for an excellent 1430 points!! But special congratulations must also go to Peter Wardle & Peter Sharpe and to Kevin & Deanne Goddard; they also bid Slam in 6 Spades, but they both made the full set of 13 tricks for a whopping 1460 points to share the top score on this Board!! Well done indeed!! Now we get to the interesting bit......??!! The "Expert Analysis" - which you can find attached to the Travellers in the "Results" section - suggests that the maximum number of tricks that either North or South should make against a "good defence" on this Board is 11 tricks!! You see if East leads the Ace of Hearts and follows with a low Club, South has to use their Ace of Clubs to save the contract; but now East and West can sit back and wait because eventually one of North or South will have to play the second Club which will be captured by West with their King!! So how come four out of ten N/S Pairs were successful with their Slam contracts, I hear you ask!!?? Well all four of these successes played the contract in 6 Spades from South; that meant the lead had to come from West. Now West might have been reluctant to lead a Heart when they already had the KJ10x in their own hand!! I wonder how YOU did after taking another look at these hands?? Amazingly there should not be a successful Slam bid here, according to the "Expert Analysis"!!
Board 19 gave West 12 HCPs with 5 Spades to the K10xxx and 4 Hearts to the A10xx; they would open 1 Spade. North had an unusual hand with 6 Diamonds to the KJ10xxx and 5 Hearts to the KQxxx, with two singletons; using the "Rule of 20" they would bid 2 Diamonds. East had 11 HCPs with a void in Hearts; given North had just bid their 5 card Diamonds suit, they might jump to show their 4-card Spade suit to 3 Spades. Soon there is a bidding contest between West and North bidding Spades and Hearts respectively??!! Well 6 East/West Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; four made 10 tricks for 620 points, while two made 11 tricks for 650 points!! Three North/South Pairs bid game in 5 Diamonds; one remained undoubled and made 6 tricks to lose 250 penalty points; a second was doubled and also made 6 tricks for 1100 points; and the third was doubled and made only 5 tricks to lose a whopping 1400 penalty points!! Three more N/S Pairs bid game in 5 Hearts; one remained undoubled and made 6 tricks to lose 250 penalty points; and the other two were doubled and both made 7 tricks for 800 penalty points!! That left one intrepid North/South Pair who bid Slam in 6 Hearts; they were doubled; sadly they made only 9 tricks to lose 500 penalty points!! Interestingly the "Expert Analysis" suggests that it is possible for both East and West to make a Slam contract in 6 Spades on this Board!! Now clearly this takes some clever playing, since none of our six N/S Pairs were successful in making 12 tricks??!! You can review the Traveller for this Board in the "Results" section. The secret seems to be sacrificing one Club trick to South and finessing the Kings of Diamonds and Clubs, but it looks a pretty tall order to achieve!!
Boards 15 & 17 called for a brave Slam bid in a minor suit, which is always a challenge!! Sadly no one even attempted a Slam on either of these Boards!! Then there was Board 14 which gave East/West great Hearts while North/South possessed fantastic Clubs. Dealer was East who had 15 HCPs with 7 Hearts to the AK10xxxx, 4 Diamonds to the AKxx, and two singletons; they had too much for a weak opening, so they might well open 4 Hearts!! South had 10 HCPs with 7 Clubs to the AKJxxxx, and so might well enter a counterbid of 5 Clubs. West has two small Hearts with 5 cards in Diamonds and Spades including the Ace of Spades; they might well nudge the bidding up to 5 Hearts; then anything might happen!!?? Well one East/West Pair settled for 3 Hearts; they made 12 tricks for 230 points!! One North/South Pair bid 4 Clubs; they made only 9 tricks, but lost only 50 penalty points!! Five more E/W Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; all five made 12 tricks for 480 points!! A second N/S Pair bid game in 5 Clubs; they were doubled; sadly they made only 8 tricks and so lost 500 points!! Another E/W Pair bid game in 5 Diamonds; they made 11 tricks for 400 points!! Two more E/W Pairs bid up to 5 Hearts; they both made 12 tricks for 480 points!! That left the two East/West Pairs who bid a Slam contract in 6 Hearts!! Many congratulations must go to George Gardiner & Susan Sadler who bid Slam in 6 Hearts; they made exactly 12 tricks for 980 points!! But special congratulations must go to Enid & James Pickering; they also bid Slam in 6 Hearts; but they made all 13 tricks for a whopping 1010 points which was the top score achieved on this Board!! Well done to both of them!! Now the "Expert Analysis" suggests that - against the best of defences - the maximum contract possible for East or West is in 6 Diamonds or in 6 Hearts. The Ace of Clubs taking the singleton Club in both North and South should ensure that the maximum trick count is kept at 12, as long as you don't give East or West the chance to discard their Club!! So a FUN night for Slam Opportunities!! Well done to all our Slam Achievers of the evening!!
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| Last updated : 11th Feb 2016 18:20 GMT |
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| Emissions Scandal engulfs Volkswagen |
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Volkswagen has admitted that 11 million of its cars worldwide were designed to cheat emissions testing, in an escalating scandal that has loaded pressure on the wider motor industry. On Wednesday Chief Executive Martin Winterkorn resigned, although surprisingly he said he was standing down “in the interests of the Company, although I am not aware of any wrong-doing on my part”!!?? VW revealed that it had put aside €6.5bn (£4.7bn) to deal with the potential costs of the crisis, although it could still face fines of up to $18bn in a criminal investigation in the US, as well as possible charges for its executives and legal action from customers and shareholders. The US Justice Department has reportedly already begun an investigation into the alleged cheating. Yesterday prosecutors in Lower Saxony, the German state where VW is based, said they were considering a preliminary investigation into certain employees at the Company, and the New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has his own investigation underway. “No company should be allowed to evade our environmental laws or promise consumers a fake bill of goods,” he said in a statement. Volkswagen recalled 482,000 VW and Audi brand cars in the US after the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) found models with Type EA 189 engines had been fitted with a device designed to reduce emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOx) under testing conditions.
About €25bn, or a third, has now been wiped off the value of Volkswagen’s shares in the two days of trading since the scandal erupted. Shares in other car makers have also fallen heavily, with Peugeot down 7%, BMW down 5% and Daimler, the owner of Mercedes-Benz, also down 5%. German Chancellor Angela Merkel demanded “complete transparency” from Volkswagen to clear up the crisis. Her transport ministry is sending a fact-finding team to examine if the vehicles were built and tested according to German and European rules. About one-in-10 new cars sold worldwide is a Volkswagen. With the other brands in its group, including Audi, Seat and Skoda, VW manufactured one-in-five new cars sold in the UK last year. The vehicles identified in the US under the EPA investigation included the Audi A3 and the Golf – two of the top 10 bestselling car models in the UK.
VW engineers installed a 'defeat device' in the engine software of diesel models to make emissions appear low. This switched the engine to a super-efficient running mode during laboratory tests that is up to 40 times cleaner than when the cars are driven normally. The software is thought to work by injecting urea fluid into the emission control system to reduce the amount of nitrogen oxide released. However, it switches off when cars are driven on the road as otherwise it would quickly run out of fluid. The car's software can detect when it is being run under test conditions because in the laboratory devices such as anti-collision systems are turned off. The cheating meant VW vehicles appeared to meet the safe emission standards set by US authorities when they were actually pumping out toxic gases and tiny particles which are a threat to health. Manufacturers' official test figures for emissions and fuel consumption have been under suspicion for years. European consumer body BEUC has accused them of a series of tricks to manipulate results by running cars on over-inflated tyres, taping up gaps in the body work, reducing weight and using special lubricants.
Once the sting of the lie fades, the US customers who bought 482,000 of those cars will feel the real pain. Because Volkswagen will be forced to recall those vehicles and somehow make them to meet federal standards. There are two apparent ways to do that, and owners who value performance, fuel economy, and trunk space won’t like either. One is to “reflash” the engine control module, recalibrating the software so the car always runs the way it does during EPA testing, and always meets emission standards. The downside here is that to achieve the drastic drop in NOx emissions, the cars in test mode sacrificed some fuel economy, or performance. And a drop in mileage would likely cost VW, since hundreds of thousands of drivers would have to spend more on fuel than VW promised at the time of sale.
The standard way of making a diesel run cleanly is to use selective catalytic reduction, a chemical process that breaks NOx down into nitrogen and water. Part of that process includes adding urea to the mix. The downside is that it adds complication to the system, and cost— $5,000 to $8,000 per car. Not only do you have to spend an afternoon with your local dealer, you have to make room for the tank. That could mean sacrificing cargo space or giving up the spare tyre!! So why not just ignore the recall notice? People ignore recalls all the time, even when they’re to fix critical safety issues. A 2011 GAO report found just 65 percent of recalled cars are repaired. The man can’t compel you to get it fixed. Except here, maybe he can. These Volkswagens are a public health threat and exuberantly break federal law. It’s not crazy to think state agencies or NHTSA would flag them, and refuse to issue a new registration, or let them pass a smog test, unless proof of a fix is offered. “It should be fairly easy to police,” says Matt DeLorenzo, managing editor of news at Kelley Blue Book. Professor Martin Williams at King’s College London said that emissions from diesel cars cause roughly 5,800 premature deaths in the UK each year. “If you were to make the cars emit at the legal limit you could reduce those deaths by at least a factor of two and maybe more. Maybe a factor of five.”
Carmakers including BMW, Daimler, Ford, the Renault Nissan alliance and Jaguar Land Rover have denied using similar software-based defeat devices to Volkswagen. However the Institution of Air Quality Management has produced this infographic showing how much rival carmakers exceed the diesel emission limit set by EU law, and certainly VW are not the worst??!! Public confidence in the industry is low after a series of high-profile vehicle recalls, including General Motor’s deadly ignition switches, Toyota’s “unintended acceleration fault and Takata’s airbag scandal. One wonders how many more manufacturers will be drawn into the latest tangled web??
There were serious brain emissions at the Oxshott Bridge Club last night as 12 full Tables settled down to compete in the Surrey Pairs Challenge. Master Points Winners were entitled to attend the County Pairs Challenge Play-Off at Wimbledon Bridge Club next month, so absolute concentration was the name of the game!! Many congratulations must go to Philip Duncan & Edwin Jones who ran away with First place among the Pairs playing North/South; they scored an outstanding 67.99% to scoop the maximum 40 Master points!! Well done indeed!! They were 37 Match points ahead of Kevin & Deanne Goddard who scored 60.98% in Second place, and they were 13 Match points ahead of George Gardiner & Jean Knott who came Third with 58.52%. Two Pairs tied for Fourth place; both Mike Mulligan & Elisa Money and Tony Scott & Jill Melener scored 51.33% to share the Fourth and final Master Points placing!! The competition between the top Pairs who played East/West was much closer altogether!! Indeed only 3 Match points separated the first three Pairs!! Congratulations must go to Susan & Mike Sadler who captured the First place with an excellent 59.66%, but they were only two Match points ahead of Valerie Jones & Dorothy Steinart who came Second with 59.28%, with Valerie Bornhoft & Ursula Oscroft only one more Match point back with 59.09% in Third place. There was then a bit of a gap before our welcome guests, Martin Lee & Roger Eddleston, who were placed Fourth with 56.82%. Well done to all our Master Points Winners!!
It was South that received the "good cards" as they played the contract on 9 Boards; they were closely followed by North who played 7 contracts. That left 5 contracts for East to play, and poor old West received only 3 Boards on which to play the contract all evening!! There were lots of part-game contracts among the 24 Boards that we played, with 16 Boards offering the lower scores and 8 Boards offering game-going contracts. Oddly enough there were still three Boards that offered reasonable Slam Opportunities. How many did you recognise?? Board 1 gave North 12 High Card Points with 5 Diamonds to the AQxxx; they might well open 1 No Trump. South had a useful 16 HCPs in support with 5 Clubs to the KQxxx and 4 Hearts to the A10xx; they might well jump to 3 Clubs. This could alert North to the potential of these hands with a question through "Blackwood". Well one North/South Pair settled for a part-game contract in 2 Clubs; they made 11 tricks for 150 points. one intrepid East/West Pair ventured a sacrifice bid of 3 Spades; they were doubled; they made 8 tricks and so gave up only 100 penalty points!! Then seven N/S Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; one made exactly 9 tricks for 400 points; another made 10 tricks for 430 points; a third made 11 tricks for 460 points; three more made 12 tricks for 490 points; but one Pair made only 7 tricks and so lost 100 penalty points!! One N/S Pair bid game in 4 Hearts; they made 8 tricks and so gave up 100 penalty points. Another N/S Pair went up to 5 Hearts; they made 10 tricks to lose 50 penalty points!! Finally one North/South Pair braved a Slam bid in 6 No Trumps; sadly they made only 6 tricks to lose 300 penalty points which represented a top score for their opponents!! Now the "Expert Analysis" - which you can find attached to the Travellers in the Results section - suggests that it is possible for North (but not South) can make a Slam contract in any of 6 Clubs, 6 Hearts, or 6 No Trumps. This is because East has to lead, which give them an extra trick in Spades of Hearts, while enabling North to free up the Clubs suit to make the last two tricks required!!
Then Board 6 gave East 15 HCPs with 5 Diamonds to the QJxxx; they would open 1 Diamond. West had a very interesting hand with 12 HCPs, 6 cards in Hearts to the QJ10xxx and a void in Spades; they would jump to 2 Hearts. North has only 5 HCPs but 6 cards in Spades to the Q10xxxx; they might well interject with 2 Spades. Now it is up to East to determine if a big contract is possible here or not!!?? Well 9 East/West Pairs settled for a game contract in 4 Hearts; one made 11 tricks for 650 points, while the other 8 made 12 tricks for 680 points!! One North/South Pair ventured a game bid of 4 Spades; they were doubled; they made only 6 tricks and so gave up 800 penalty points. Oops!! But two East/West Pairs went on to bid 5 Hearts; they both made 12 tricks for 680 points!! Now the "Expert Analysis" suggests that both East and West can make a Slam contract in 6 Hearts on this Board, mainly because the singleton King of Hearts at North will fall to the Ace in East, and there are 4 Diamond tricks available after the Ace is extracted from South!!
Finally there was Board 2 where East had an unusual hand; they had only 11 HCPs, but they had a void in Spades, 6 Hearts to the AQ10xxx and 4 Clubs to the Qxxx; they would open 1 Heart. South had a whopping 7 Spades to the AKJ10xxx with 12 HCPs; they might jump to 3 Spades. West also had 12 HCPs with 6 Clubs to the AJ10xxx; they would bid 4 Clubs. North may only have 5 HCPs but they have a void in Clubs and four Spades to the Qxxx; they would bid 4 Spades!! Now East has all the options; they can rebid their Hearts, or they can show their strong support in Clubs, or they can test their partner's strength with "Blackwood". You can take another look at these hands as they are attached at the top of this Report. How eould you bid these hands to optimise the contract?? Well, at Oxshott last night, one N/S Pair was left in 3 Spades; they made 10 tricks for 170 points!! Four more N/S Pairs went up to a game contract in 4 Spades; two were successful in making 10 tricks for 620 points; one made only 9 tricks to give up 100 points; and the fourth Pair was doubled and made only 8 tricks to lose a whopping 500 points!! One East/West Pair bid game in 4 Hearts; they made exactly 10 tricks for 420 points!! Another E/W Pair went up to 5 Hearts; they were doubled; they made 12 tricks to score a very satisfying 750 points!! Three more N/S Pairs went up to 5 Spades; they were all doubled; two made 10 tricks to lose 200 penalty points; and one Pair made only 9 tricks to lose 500 points!! Finally two East/West Pairs bid Slam in 6 Clubs; they were both doubled. Sadly one made only 10 tricks to give up 300 penalty points!! But many congratulations must go to Annemie Bisgood & Liam Creagh who braved a Slam contract in 6 Clubs; they too were doubled; they mae exactly 12 tricks to score a top score of 1090 points!! Well done indeed!! Now the "Expert Analysis" sugests that - even against the best defence - both East and West can make a Slam contract in 6 Hearts, and that both can make a GRAND SLAM contract in 7 Clubs!! So there you are!!
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| Last updated : 24th Sep 2015 18:04 BST |
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| Oxshott launches its Automated Scoring as Emir takes over with the Largest Yacht!! |
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The Emirati royal family has dethroned Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich in the race to own the world's biggest mega-yacht, Yachts France magazine has reported. Pictured above, the 180-metre (590-foot) "Azzam" built for Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahayan, the President of the United Arab Emirates and Emir of Abu Dhabi, has ousted Abramovich's 163.5-metre (536-foot) "Eclipse" from the top of the yacht league table, the magazine said in its annual survey of the world's 100 biggest yachts. After holding the top spot for three years, the "Eclipse" was pushed into second place by the "Azzam" after its delivery this year by German builder Lurssen Yachts.
The floating palace features six bridges and a 550-square-metre (6,000-square-foot) lounge decorated in the opulent turn-of-the-century Empire style. Despite its size, the behemoth can also move at a top speed of 31.5 knots (58 kilometres per hour or 36 miles per hour), making it the third-fastest yacht among the top 100. The magazine did not divulge its price but previous media reports suggested the "Azzam" cost between $400 million and $600 million (300-450 million euros) to build. “Azzam” breaks new ground in many ways, in terms of technology, dimensions and performance. The Emir is pictured below when he met with President Putin of Russia recently.
The race to build larger mega-yachts has been intense in recent years, with industry experts saying the trend is for ever-bigger and more luxurious ships. Of the 100 top yachts profiled by Yachts France, 31 were owned by people from the Middle East, 19 by Russians and 17 by Americans. The biggest British-owned yacht on the list was the 91-metre (299-foot) Nahlin, belonging to inventor and entrepreneur James Dyson, which ranked 36th.
Prior to the launch of the “Azzam”, the largest yacht in the world was owned by Roman Abramovich. Mr Abramovich, 46, is reputedly worth a cool £8.4 millions, and has six children with his first wife Irina and girlfriend Dasha Zhukova. The “Eclipse” (pictured below) has two swimming pools, one of which is 16-metres long with an adjustable depth feature that allows it to be converted into a dance floor. Other extras include an exterior fireplace and six tenders as well as accommodation for three helicopters; there are two helicopter pads, a dedicated disco hall, around 30 cabins, a mini-submarine, and even a missile defence system!!?? The vessel has 80 members of staff to operate the craft who all wear discreet tan uniforms while on board. The yacht is often available for you to charter at a cost of several million dollars per week!!
Just failing to make the Top 100 list was Tiger Wood’s yacht “Privacy”. Sadly the Palm Beach Post reported on Tuesday that Tiger is selling his 155-foot yacht. He had been seen with his new girlfriend, Lindsey Vonn on the yacht. Woods reportedly offered it to his ex-wife Elin Nordegren during the divorce settlement talks, but she turned it down. In March of this year, on the same day that he and Lindsey Vonn went public with their much-rumoured romance, the New York Post reported that Tiger accidentally docked his yacht (pictured below) right next to the craft of Chris Cline, the 54-year-old billionaire coal magnate who happens to be dating Elin Nordegren, Tiger’s ex-wife………….and Cline’s boat was the longer!! Well now “Privacy” is up for sale, so hurry along with your offer!!
It was also a big night at the Oxshott Bridge Club yesterday evening with the launch of the Automated Wireless Scoring System from Bridgemate II. After lots of preparatory work by Jonathan Spring and Eric Austin, all the new equipment was purchased and made ready for its Official Launch. We were lucky to have the assistance of Marietta Andree to ensure that everything ran smoothly, and a big crowd of 14 + 1/2 Tables turned up to test out the new System. Well everything operated excellently, with almost every Member getting an opportunity to try out the new technology. No one had a heart attack and everyone seemed to be well contented with the new modern world of the Automated Wireless Scoring System. Now Oxshott Bridge Club has joined the "Big League" by having the latest technology. We must ensure that we retain the essential friendliness and relaxed atmosphere that has made our Club so distinctive and successful. Onwards and upwards!!
It was FUN watching the Display screen as the cumulative results were recorded at the end of each Board...........at least as long as you were not the bottom Pair!!?? The battle for the top place among the Pairs playing North/South changed hads dramatically during the evening. First Deanne & Kevin Goddard were in the lead; then Peter Camp & Francoise Miller assumed the First place; all the time - after a poor start - Gail Norman & Therezinha Gold were storming up the Leaderboard. But the final congratulations have to go to our welcome technical Guests for the evening. Marietta Andree & Janet Cahm; they finished in First place with an impressive score of 62.61%, and they also captured the maximum 50 Master points. Gail norman & Therezinha Gold eventually won Second place with 59.78%, but they were only 0.62% ahead of Kevin & Deanne Goddard who were Third with 59.16%. In turn they were only 0.78% ahead of Peter Camp & Francoise Miller who came Fourth with 58.38%. The Fifth place went to Mike Sinclair & Elisa Money who scored 55.85%.
The ranking among the Pairs playing East/West was much more settled, throughout the evening. Congratulations must go to Alan & Pat Hammond who quickly established dominance and ended up in First place with 62.39%. They were 12.94 Match points ahead of Susan & Mike Sadler who came Second with 59.45%, although they were only 4.2 Match points ahead of Third placed June Buckland & Eileen Goddard who scored 58.45%. Joyce Gibbs & Gwendoline Rawlings just came Fourth with 54.77%, but they were only 5.1 Match points ahead of Edwin Jones & Philip Duncan who came Fifth with 53.84%. Well done to all our Master Points Winners!!
Keeping the pace up was quite a challenge as the 14 + 1/2 Tables attempted to understand how to use the new technology, feeding in EBU numbers and the correct contract, score and lead. The efforts of project manager Jonathan Spring and of Director Rowena Austin were much appreciated by all. In the end, those Pairs playing East/West played 22 Boards, while - because of the "sit-out" - most of the North/South Pairs played only 20 Boards. The distribution of cards was remarkably even with South playing the most contracts (9 Boards), while both North and east played the contract on 8 Boards each, and West played contracts on 7 Boards. in addition the number of Boards that ended in game-going contracts amounted to exactly 16 (or half) of the 32 Boards that we played.
There were 3 Boards that offered Slam Opportunities, although they were not always obvious to the bidders!!?? Board 19 gave South great Hearts, and North had good support in the other three suits. Four North/South Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; two made 10 tricks for 430 points, while the other two made 11 tricks for 460 points. Five more N/S Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; one made 10 tricks for 420 points; three made 11 tricks for 450 points; and one made 12 tricks for 480 points. That left the one N/S Pair who bid a Slam contract. Many congratulations to Joan Low & Pam Oliveira who bid Slam in 6 Hearts; they mde exactly 12 tricks for 980 points and a top score on this Board!!
The Board 18 gave North/South a super pair of hands. North opened with 1 No Trump, and South had 18 High Card Points and a boog 5-card Diamonds suit. Some intrepid Players in the South seat were prepared to immediately jump to a Slam contract!! Others took more time to decide. In the end, four North/South Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; two made 10 tricks for 630 points; one made 11 tricks for 660 points; and one made 12 tricks for 690 points. Two more N/S Pairs bid game in 5 Diamonds; both made exactly 11 tricks for 600 points. That left the four Pairs who bid a Slam contract. Congratulaions must go to Eric & Rowena Austin, to Mike Mulligan & John French, and to Gail Norman & Therezinha Gold who all bid Slam in 6 No Trumps; all three made exactly 12 tricks for an excellent 1440 points. But special congratulations must go to Peter Wardle & Peter Sharpe who also bid Slam in 6 No Trumps; but they made all 13 tricks to score an outstanding 1470 points, and the top score on this Board!! An interesting off-shoot of the Automated Scoring system is that you can see what the initial lead was on the first trick. On this Board it was really important for East to lead with the Ace of Spades; those who tried to lead away from their King with a low Heart simply gave North an extra trick and the opportunity to throw away their losing Spades!!
Finally there was Board 27 where North had good Hearts, but East had strong Spades and West had outstanding Clubs. It was going to be interesting to see who ended up in the final contract!!?? Well one East/West Pair ended in a part-game contract in 4 Clubs; they made all 13 tricks for 190 points!! Two more E/W Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; they both made exactly 10 tricks for 420 points. Another two E/W Pairs bid game in 5 Clubs; they both made all 13 tricks for 440 points. One North/South Pair bid game in 4 Hearts; they were doubled; they made only 9 tricks and so gave up 100 panalty points to E/W!! Another two North/South Pairs bid up to 5 Hearts; they were both doubled of course; they both made 9 tricks and so gave up 300 penalty points to E/W!! That left the two intrepid East/West Pairs who bid Slam in 6 Clubs. Many congratulations must go to Edwin Jones & Philip Duncan and to Barbara Shaw & Tony Scott for bidding 6 Clubs; they both made all 13 tricks to share a very satisfying joint-top score of 940 points!! Well done to all our Slam Achievers!!
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| Last updated : 30th Oct 2013 09:32 GMT |
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| Australian accused of Misogyny and Sexism |
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Last week, Australia's Julia Gillard, the first woman to serve as the country's Prime Minister, gave an impassioned speech against sexism, accusing Conservative Opposition Leader Tony Abbott of being a misogynist. That video made its way around the Internet, as these things do, to the applause and “you go, girl” of many and the predictable anger and criticism of others.
"I will not be lectured about sexism or misogyny by this man ... not now, not ever," she said. "If he wants to know what misogyny looks like in modern Australia, he doesn't need a motion in the House of Representatives, he needs a mirror." She goes on to give numerous examples to uphold her claim, including Abbott's references to her as a "witch" and someone who needs to "make an honest woman" of herself. If you missed it, here it is, in all its glory. Just click on the following URL, turn your volume up and sit back and enjoy. The excoriation lasts just over 15 minutes:-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ihd7ofrwQX0
Abbott responded calling the speech "cheap" and a personal attack, part of a Government smear campaign. But inspired by Gillard's words, according to Reuter’s James Grubel, Australia's national Macquarie Dictionary, edited by Susan Butler(pictured below), is expanding its definition of the word misogyny to keep up with the times. The dictionary currently defines misogyny as "hatred of women", but will now add a second definition to include "entrenched prejudice against women," suggesting Abbott discriminated against women with his sexist views.
More than 2 million people have viewed the video of Gillard's speech. The Prime Minister tore strips off Abbott for standing in front of signs outside Parliament urging voters to "Ditch the Witch" and others that described her as another man's "bitch". "I was offended by those things. Misogyny, sexism, every day from this leader of the opposition," Julia Gillard said.
In the days that followed the speech, Abbott accused Gillard of playing the gender card and of having double standards on sexism after she refused to sack the (now former) Parliamentary Speaker, Peter Slipper, for sending vulgar text messages. Much of Australia's mainstream media criticised Gillard's speech as a political disaster. By contrast, social media largely praised the Prime Minister, something more in line with the latest poll results.
Julia Gillard's approval rating has risen significantly in the first public opinion survey since the Australian Prime Minister branded her Conservative opponent, Tony Abbott, a sexist and misogynist. The Herald/Nielsen poll, carried out after Gillard’s landmark speech to Parliament, showed her personal standing among men and women improved by five points to 47%.
Well, there was no Misogyny at the Oxshott Bridge Club last night mainly because no one knew what it was and certainly we could not spell it!!?? It was the Annual General Meeting and the Committee, led by Chairman Gail Norman, marked the occasion of our 50th Birthday as a Bridge Club with a spectacular Birthday Cake and a free glass of wine. It was in 1962 that the Oxshott Bridge Club was founded and the Committee and all their predecessors are to be much congratulated for their fine work in creating and continuing such a fine Club for our enjoyment. Well done indeed to Gail and to her Committee!!
At the AGM, the prizes for the major competitions for the 2012 Club Year were presented. Winners were:-
Individual Champion (Master Points Trophy):- Elisa Money
Pairs Champions (Tilling Trophy):- Elisa Money & Mike Mulligan
Teams Champions:- Robert Melbourne & Edwin Jones and Michael Sinclair & Mike Sadler
Congratulations to these worth Champions for 2012!!
We also debated the issues around the Electronic Scoring proposal. It was decided that "the Membership would like the Committee to further investigate computerised card dealing and scoring with a view to purchasing a suitable system". The Club President, Elisa Money, proposed a vote of thanks to the Chairman and her Committee and this was loudly and unanimously supported by all who were present before we tucked into our Birthday cake and glass of wine which was kindly supplied free of charge.
All this business and Birthday celebration meant that we were very late in commencing the Bridge session, but Director Alan Hammond had things quickly under control and we were able to complete 20 Boards before the 10.30 p.m. deadline that had been set. Congratulations must go to George Gardiner & Mike Sinclair for achieving the top score of the night. They were placed First among the Pairs playing North/South with an excellent score of 65.52%; and they also claimed the maximum 50 Master points. They were 9 Match points ahead of Richard Burgess & Robert Melbourne who came Second with 62.75%, and Deanne & Kevin Goddard were Third with 60.17%. There was then quite a gap until the Fourth Pair who were Alan & Pat Hammond who scored 54.88%. They were 9.1 Match points ahead of Pam Oliveira & Staphanie Postlethwaite who came Fifth with 52.07%. The top Pair among the Pairs playind East/West were Pam Harries & Valerie Howe who scored 61.28% to capture First place. They were 15.8 Match points ahead of Susan & Mike Sadler who came Second with 56.89%, with Jonathan Spring & John French only a further 6.6 Match points behind them in Third place with a score of 55.06%. Marjorie Neal & Annie Everett were Fourth with 51.61%, and they were 3.5 Match points ahead of Peter Sharpe & Peter Wardle who were placed Fifth with 50.64%. Well done to all our Master Points Winners!!
There were lots of very strange distributions among the 28 Boards that we played, although the good cards appeared to go to East/West. Indeed East played contracts on 11 out of the 28 Boards, while West played an additional 6 Boards. That left South plying contracts on only 7 Boards and poor old North had as few as four contracts to play themselves. There was only one Board that gave a real Slam Opportunity and you had to have "nerves of steel" to spot it!!?? On Board 11, South had seven Clubs and enough points in the other suits to preclude a "Weak 3" opening. North had some good support and shortages, so the challenge was to communicate the strength of both hands. Well, seven of the nine Pairs who played this Board decided on a game contract in 4 Hearts; three made 12 tricks for 480 points and four made all 13 tricks for 510 points. One Pair bid game in 3 No Trumps; they made all 13 tricks for 520 points. But one Pair was brave enough to bid Slam!! Congratulations to David Rotherham & Sue Osborne who bid Slam in 6 Hearts; they made all 13 tricks for a top score of 1010 points!! The were our only Slam Achievers on the night!! |
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| Last updated : 25th Oct 2012 11:51 BST |
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| Be as Good as You Are |
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Opening ceremonies of the Paralympics have, in the past, been earnest, insipid affairs. Jokes were not in abundance. Hastily-constructed afterthoughts to the main Olympics, they were forgotten soon after they had finished. Not last night. At the Olympic Stadium, 62,000 paying customers were treated to three hours of noisy, colourful, bolshie brouhaha. Plus umbrellas. Umbrellas used as boats, umbrellas as flying machines, an umbrella forming the central stage.
It was a ceremony of ideas. It was a brilliant stroke by the artistic directors, Jenny Sealey and Bradley Hemmings, to latch upon the theme of "Enlightenment", and to link it to two apparently quite different notions: a hoped-for lifting of prejudice against disabled people; and the 18th-century onrush of scientific knowledge and quest for the rights of man. The two prongs of this idea found their perfect embodiment in the person of Stephen Hawking, whose words urged the audience: "Look at the stars and not down at your feet … Be curious." This was a ceremony about the life of the mind as much as the body. "Look" was the keynote. At one point, the phalanxes of dancing, umbrella-wielding volunteers rendered themselves into the shape of a giant eye. Just as the intellectual enlightenment was about empirical knowledge, rational gathering of information and observation, so, the ceremony seemed to suggest, the only barrier to disabled people's fulfilling their potential was one of perception. Look again, was the message. Think again. Crucially, the ideas of the ceremony were not cliches: there was no preaching text on inspirational lives, or triumph against adversity. Such lazy paradigms were left to the politicians interviewed by Channel 4 before the ceremony began, and to the TV commentary team.
Athletes from 164 countries filed in to a score by three bouncy, dancey London DJs and accompanied by standard bearers carrying country names on — naturally enough — umbrellas. With big gaps between the delegations, it took a while, the long parade — a long, long while. Fifty minutes longer than scheduled it lasted, before the ParalympicGB team (pictured above) arrived at the rear to a huge ovation, marching to David Bowie’s Heroes, some sporting Union wheel covers on their chairs.
And it was surely the first time an Olympic audience had been coached not only in the basics of sign language so we could all join in with Beverley Knight's 'I am what I am' finale, but also how to take part in 'the world's biggest ever apple crunch' - 62,000 people biting into 62,000 Royal Gala apples simultaneously to tie in with an extraordinary sequence involving Sir Isaac Newton's law of gravity, dozens of wheelbarrows and a sea of giant inflatable apples that would naughtily defy gravity and float up through the stadium.
And now that the inflatables have been paraded, now the 62,000 apples have been bitten in unison by the stadium crowd during a tableau celebrating the theories of Isaac Newton, the Games will start this morning in earnest. After an opening ceremony expected to produce the biggest television viewing figures in the event’s history, the athletes have an opportunity to demonstrate to a sympathetic new audience the stirring abilities of the disabled. Which is why the most symbolic moment of last night’s ceremony was not the homage to the human rights act, or the arrival in the stadium of a large-scale reproduction of Marc Quinn’s statue Alison Lapper Pregnant. It was when Sir Ian McKellen, playing Prospero, encouraged Miranda to fly upwards and smash through a glass ceiling.
And what a lot there was to look at. A giant umbrella in the centre of the stadium transformed itself into a smoking, sparkling, fiery orb that signified the big bang. The Higgs particle was described by a pulsating mushroom of silver umbrellas. A vast golden orrery descended, and here was the Moon, too, and the universal Declaration of Human Rights rendered, it appeared at first, as a super-size Rolodex with pages turned by the spinning wheels of a wheelchair. Above somersaulted and twirled acrobatic airborne figures like birds or angels. The brolly: joyful symbol of Britain's notorious raininess.
The most attractive team was from Mexico (pictured below). As Jon Snow's commentary in Channel 4 coverage of the athletes' procession constantly reminded us, a good number of the competitors were appearing in the games having lost limbs in armed conflict. It was in the wake of the Second World War that the visionary neurologist, Sir Ludwig Guttmann, in whose care were so many injured veterans, organised the first tournament at Stoke Mandeville Hospital, alongside the London Olympics of 1948. The Paralympics have come back home. There is every sign that they will change perceptions of the rights and roles of disabled people in our national life. In that, the Opening Ceremony – passionate, smart, moving and original – will have played a considerable, and honourable, part.
Despite the Opening Ceremony appearing live on Channel 4, we had our largest attendance of the year with 16 full Tables turning out for our Olympic 3 Club Night. Circumstances allowed that we had a Guest Director to oversee proceedings last night. Frank Marshallsay, who is the Chairman of the Effingham Bridge Club - with which we have a mutual exchange relationship - and is currently ranked as a "6+ Star Premier Regional Master" on the English Bridge Union database!! We were grateful for Frank's gentlemanly direction. And we had our highest scoring performance of the Club Year!! Many congratulations must go to Jonathan Spring & John French who raced away with the First place among the Pairs playing East/West, scoring an incredible 77.27% and collecting the maximum 60 Master Points. They were miles ahead of Doris Butterworth & Don Porter who scored a quite commendable 63.07% in Second place. They were 10 Match points ahead of Pat & Alan Hammond who came Third with 61.17%, and Susan & Mike Sadler were a similar 10 Match points behind them with 59.28% in Fourth place. There was then a small gap until Sue Osborne & Alison Tebboth who came Fifth with 53.60% and June Buckland & Janet Kefford who came Sixth with 51.89%. The scoring among the Pairs playing North/South was much closer. Congratulations must go to Elisa Money & Mike Mulligan who came First with 64.20%, but they were only 2 Match points ahead of Frank Marshallsay & George Gardiner who came Second with 63.83%. Judy Hickman & Kay O'Gorman came Third with 58.52%, and then three Pairs fought out a tight battle for the remaining Master Points positions. Bernice & Peter Rowley just captured Fourth place with 52.27%, but they were only 2 Match points ahead of Deanne & Kevin Goddard who scored 51,89%; in turn, they were just 2 Match points ahead of Philip Duncan & Ormonde Webster-Smith who came Sixth with 51.52%. Well done to all our Master Points Winners!!
The distributions favoured East/West last night, with East in particular enjoying some good hands; East Players played contracts on 12 of the 32 Boards while West only played contracts on 5!! North played 7 Boards while South played contracts on 8 Boards. There were two Boards that offered Slam Opportunities and one of them is shown at the top of this Report. Have a look at the hands and see how you would bid this interesting hand; North is the Dealer and no one is vulnerable. The first three Players have bid; how would you continue the bidding for here? More on this Board later..........
Board 10 gave East a really strong hand with 21 High Card Points, a 4441 distribution and a singleton in Hearts. An Acol opening bid of 2 Diamonds would set the juices flowing. Well West had only 5 HCPs, but she did have no less than 7 cards in Spades and not a single Diamond to behold!! One might have expected at least one Pair to brave a Slam bid.......but that was not the case!!?? 8 East/West Pairs bid game in 4 Spades, while the remaining four Pairs bid up to 5 Spades. In fact all 12 Pairs made exactly 12 tricks and shared 680 points in what prioved to be a "Lay-down Slam" hand. Funny how Lady Opportunity slips by so easily!!??
Then back to Board 1 which is reproduced at the top of this Report. Last night, 9 out of the 12 East/West Pairs who played this Board bid a simple Game contract in 3 No Trumps; one made 9 tricks for 400 points; five made 10 tricks for 430 points; two made 11 tricks for 460 points; and one made 12 tricks for 490 points. One E/W Pair bid Game in 4 Hearts; they made exactly 10 tricks for 420 points. Another Pair bid up to 4 No Trumps; they made 11 tricks for 460 points. But one Pair braved a Slam contract bid!! Congratulations go to Susan & Mike Sadler who bid 6 Clubs; they made the required 12 tricks to achieve 920 points, the top score on this Board and the only Slam contract achieved in the evening!! |
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| Last updated : 30th Oct 2013 09:05 GMT |
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| The Queen of Team GB |
In a poll on the main Olympic section of Eurosport.Yahoo.com more than 36,000 fans voted for their favourite moment of London 2012 so far, with Jessica Ennis thrashing the competition as she did in her Heptathlon to emerge the clear winner. Nearly 12,000 fans (32.5% of those polled) voted for the Sheffield starlet’s brilliant Heptathlon win, whilst Andy Murray’s Men’s Singles Tennis gold at Wimbledon took second place with just over 20% of the votes. Mo Farah’s brave and impressive 10,000 metres gold medal victory, secured on the same night as Ennis’ triumph, was the third favourite (getting 15.5% of the votes) – just ahead of Usain Bolt’s 100m final win which polled in fourth place, while Bradley Wiggins who won the famous Road Race Time Trial through our local roads in Surrey came fifth. Jessica Ennis has captured the public’s imagination as the ‘poster girl’ for Team GB during the build-up to London 2012, but she has not buckled under immense pressure and came through to delight the nation with her remarkable dominance of the Heptathlon event. She is a deserving winner.
It has been a truly international Olympics with every nation opening their team selection to having Women Athletes among their ranks for the very first time. Above, Palestinian runner Woroud Sawalha, right, and Kenya’s Cherono Keoch compete in a heat of the Women’s 800 metres competition. Sawalha finished eighth in the heat and was eliminated. Keoch was third and advanced to the next round.
But it has been a very special Olympics for all our British women. Nicola Adams (pictured below) struck gold in the first ever Women’s Olympics Boxing final. It is the realisation of a 17-year-old dream for the fighter, who has scraped together money working as a builder and even an extra on EastEnders and Coronation Street to fund her sports career over the years. Dee Adams, 51, the fighter’s mother hailed her daughter as a “pioneer” who would inspire other women but also sees a different side to her daughter. She said: “She is gentle in a way and she is a mummy’s girl and easygoing when she is out of the ring. She is totally different when she is in the ring."
The effervescent Laura Trott won the hugely competitive Team Pursuit and Omnium gold medals during the six-day London 2012 Track programme at the iconic Olympic Velodrome. And today she confirmed that the double Olympic Champion cyclist Laura Trott and Jason Kenny are an item. After the couple were pictured kissing last night while watching beach volleyball at Horse Guards Parade, Trott admitted they were dating. The 20-year-old wrote on Twitter: "So yes its out there me and JasonKenny107 are dating. Been a little while now just didn't want the distraction before the games x." Below she is pictured after capturing the Gold medal in the Omnium event.
But the star female performer of the whole London 2012 Olympic Games has to be Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth!! At the Opening Ceremony only 12 days ago, the Queen appeared in her first movie acting role – and proved herself an instant comedy hit. Her Majesty was seen in a film alongside James Bond actor Daniel Craig before apparently ‘parachuting’ into the stadium for the opening ceremony. The recorded sequence opened at Buckingham Palace, where a tuxedo-wearing Craig as 007 was presented to the Queen by her personal footman as she was writing a letter and training her corgis Monty, Willow and Holly to roll over. Greeting him with an ‘Evening, Mr Bond’, the Queen, in a rose-pink dress, was seen striding briskly through the palace with the action hero before climbing into a helicopter emblazoned with the Union Flag. The two were depicted as soaring over the streets of London and through Tower Bridge until they finally reached the Olympic Park. The nation was immediately again immensely proud of a Queen who has celebrated 60 years of outstanding service at Queen of Team GB!!
It was Gold medals for the Ladies at the Oxshott Bridge Club last night as 15 Tables turned out to contest our second Olympic Club Night. Star performers were Victoria Coke-Smyth & Liz Dunjay who scored 61.55% in coming First among the Pairs playing North/South; they also captured the maximum 50 Master points. Deanne & Kevin Goddard were second with 60.23%, and Peter Wardle & Peter Sharpe were Third with 57.01%. They were only 2 Match points ahead of Pam Oliveira & Stephanie Postlethwaite who scored 56.63% in Fourth place. Elisa Money & Mike Sinclair were placed Fifth with 55.68%. The Ladies also topped the poll among the Pairs playing East/West. Janet Kefford & June Buckland captured First place with 60.61%, although they were only 5 Match points ahead of Mike Mulligan & John French who scored 59.66% in Second place. Annemie Bisgood & Dorothy Edney were Third with 58.52%, while Margaret & Graham Main were Fourth with 56.63%. They were just one Match point ahead of Therezinha Gold & Gail Norman who came Fifth. Well done to all our Master Points Winners!!
The new cards provided some great hands to play. It was North who received the best cards, playing contracts on 11 Boards, while South played contracts on a further 8 Boards. That left West playing contracts on 9 Boards, and poor East who got really poor cards and played contracts on only 2 Boards!!?? There were not very many Slam Opportunities, although there were a few speculative bids!! Board 7 gave West an excellent hand of Diamonds containing no less than 8 trumps; East had 4 further Diamonds to support. The importance lay in the shortages of the other suits as North/South had strength in the black suits. Seven West players played a game contract in 5 Diamonds; five made exactly 11 tricks for 600 points, while the other two made 12 tricks for 620 points. Two more East/West Pairs bid game in 5 Diamonds and were doubled; one made 11 tricks to win 750 points; the second made 12 tricks to win an impressive 950 points...........which turned out to be the top score for E/W on this Board!! Two Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; both made only 7 tricks to give North/South a top score with 200 penalty points!! But one Pair braved a Slam bid in 6 Diamonds; sadly they made only 12 tricks and so gave 100 penalty points to N/S.
Then Board 11 gave superb Spades to North. Eleven of the twelve Pairs played a simple game contract in 4 Spades; four made 11 tricks for 450 points; six made 12 tricks for 480 points; and one made 13 tricks for 510 points. That left one Pair who braved a Slam bid in 6 Spades; they made only 11 tricks to yield 50 penalty points - and a top score - to East/West!! As so often, the defence is always very different when a Slam contract is bid!!
Finally there was Board 14 where there seemed to be strength all over the place!!?? One East/West Pair settled for a part-game contract in 1 Spade; they made 8 tricks for 110 points. Another E/W Pair bid 3 Hearts; they made 12 tricks for 230 points!! A third E/W Pair bid 3 Spades; they made 11 tricks for 200 points. Everyone else bid a game contract. Three East/West Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; two made 12 tricks for 680 points; but one won all 13 tricks for 510 points!! Three East/West Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; two made only 9 tricks and so gave 50 penalty points to North/South, while one fell two tricks short and so lost 100 penalty points and gave a top score to North/South!! Two intrepid North Players bid game in 5 Diamonds; they were both doubled; they both fell short by 4 tricks to lose 800 points to East/West!! However one East/West Pair braved a Slam bid in 6 Hearts; they made all 13 tricks for an impressive top score of 1010 points!! Congratulations must go to Chris & P.J. Goodchild who bid 6 Hearts and made all 13 tricks for the only Slam achieved in the evening. Well done indeed!! |
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| Last updated : 30th Oct 2013 09:00 GMT |
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| Time for a Cruise.......especially if you have got the Missing Travellers!!?? |
It's crunch time for the cruise industry. Following the Costa Concordia disaster, cruise companies have been aggressively lowering rates and ratcheting up promotions to lure back hesitant passengers. The two biggest companies — Carnival Corporation, the parent of more than a half-dozen lines, including Princess and Costa Cruises, and Royal Caribbean — saw bookings drop by percentages in the midteens in the weeks after the Concordia ran aground off the coast of Isola del Giglio on January 13th. The accident, in which 32 people lost their lives or are presumed dead, led the industry to suspend advertising campaigns temporarily and focus on reassuring cruisers about safety instead of sales during its most critical booking time. About a third of all cruises are reserved during the first three months of the year, a time the industry refers to as "wave season".
It hasn’t helped that images of the Concordia, which remains partly submerged off the Tuscan coast are ubiquitous in the news media and on the Internet. “No one wanted Julia Somerville going on TV with a picture of the sunken Concordia, followed by a Carnival ad, ‘fun for all,’ ” said Heidi M. Allison, chief executive of Allison & Taylor, a public relations firm that represents various travel companies. After the Concordia shipwreck, cruise deals on Expedia.com, for example, jumped 60 percent compared with the same time last year. In addition to the reduced deposits and cabin upgrades that Norwegian Cruise Line offered last year during "wave season", the company is offering what it calls "free balconies" — for example, cabins with balconies for the same price as an ocean-view room.
And the “News” gets no better! The latest disaster occurred on the Costa Allegra where a fire in the generator room left over 1,000 people adrift on the stricken ship with tug boats towing the ship some 320 km to safety in the Seychelles!!?? Here is an aerial photo from the Costa Allegra with passengers having to stay on deck where there is a cooling breeze in the sweltering weather.
There are plenty of last-minute opportunities for those interested in a quick Caribbean getaway. A seven-night cruise on Carnival Dream, one of the newest Fun Ships, from Port Canaveral to the eastern Caribbean (Nassau, St Thomas and St. Maarten) was as low as £280 or £40 a person a night for an inside cabin, including free upgrades, according to Travelocity. And Europe-bound repositioning cruises — one-way sailings that cruise lines sell at deep discounts when they relocate ships from, say, the Caribbean in the winter to Europe in the spring — are particularly good bargains. Norwegian Epic’s 11-night trans-Atlantic crossing from Miami to Barcelona on April 14, for example, starts at £440 for a balcony stateroom. That’s less than the cheapest one-way flight — £475 on Iberia with a stop in Düsseldorf — found on Kayak.com in a recent search. One place you won’t find bargains is on European river cruises, which travel agents say continue to fill up fast. Avalon Waterways, for example, reports that bookings are much higher than this time last year for its sailings on the Danube, Rhine and other European rivers. Last year at this time Avalon offered travelers £125 off, per person, versus £95 this year.
Luxury lines continue to slash rates and add perks to get travelers to trade up. “The luxury market is almost in an arms race of who can give more away,” said Mr. Tucker of Cruisedeals.com. Seabourn, for instance, has introduced a “signature package of benefits,” including savings of up to 50 percent, suite upgrades, £625 in shipboard credit for premium suites and complimentary pre- or post-cruise hotel stays for guests. And Crystal Cruises said it would stop charging extra for fine wines, premium spirits and gratuities for housekeeping, bar and dining staff beginning next month. The luxury line is also offering tremendous savings through “book now” fares through Feb. 28, points out Bob Miller, an owner of Cruise Holidays in Alexandria, Va. For instance, the 10-day trans-Atlantic Crystal cruise from Miami to Lisbon, departing March 19, has an ocean-view room starting at £850 a person or £85 a person, a day, down from the £2,950 brochure rate. “This cruise is the lowest-priced Crystal Cruise I have ever seen,” Mr. Miller, said. “The danger is”, once travellers have experienced high-end cruising, he added, “it would be hard to sail on anything less.”
Now while we are talking about Travellers, we had a little problem with the scoring of last night's Club Night at the Oxshott Bridge Club because someone ran off with the Travellers for two of the Boards!!?? No one really knows who the malcreant is, but suspicion is currently falling on the two Pairs who played the Board in the final Round. Given it took three times the normal time for the Scorer to finalise the Leaderboard, maybe it would be sense for the "Guilty Party" to fix up one of these cheap cruises quickly, before we all reek some justifiable retribution!!
There were 12 full Tables in attendance and the competition was indeed fierce. Top score of the evening was achieved by John French & Jonathan Spring who were playing East/West; they scored an excellent 65.53% to capture First place and the 40 maximum Master points. They were 15 Match points ahead of Wendy Lancaster & Sandra Simpson who came Second with 62.69%. Judy Hickman & Kay O'Gorman came Third, only a further 5 Match points behind, with 61.74%, and Susan & Mike Sadler were Fourth with 54.36%. There were some good performances among the Pairs playing North/South as well. First place went to Elisa Money & Mike Mulligan who scored an excellent 65.16%; they were only 9 Match points ahead of Alan & Pat Hammond who came Second with 63.45%. Robert Melbourne & Richard Burgess came Third with 53.79%, and George Gardiner & Jean Knott came Fourth with 50.76%. Well done to all our Master Points Winners!!
There was only one Slam Opportunity among the 24 Boards that we played last night, and that arose on Board 1. Here East opened with 1 Club; West responded with 1 Diamond; and East bid 1 No Trump to show 15/16 HCPs. Well, West had 17 High Card Points so a Slam was clearly in prospect. However three Pairs actually settled for a game contract in 3 No Trumps; one made 12 tricks for 490 points while the other three made all 13 tricks for 520 points. Two more Pairs settled for a game contract in 5 Diamonds; they both made all 13 tricks for 440 points. But six Pairs were brave enough to attempt a Slam contract. Congratulations go to Hillary & Robin Lane and to Wendy Lancaster & Sandra Simpson who both bid Slam in 6 Diamonds; they both made all 13 tricks to capture 940 points. But special congratulations must go to Valerie Jones & Dorothy Steinart, to Judy Hickman & Kay O'Gorman, to John French & Jonathan Spring and to Susan & Mike Sadler; these four Pairs bid Slam in 6 No Trumps; all four made the full pack of 13 tricks to capture a joint top score of 1020 points!! Well done to all our Slam Achievers!! |
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| Last updated : 30th Oct 2013 08:55 GMT |
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| Report identifies Causes of the Oxshott Rail Crash |
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At about 15:29 hrs on Friday 5 November 2010, a lorry fell from the Warren Lane (A244) road bridge near Oxshott station and struck the roof of the 15.05 hrs train service from Guildford to London Waterloo via Cobham, which was passing below. The train had departed from Oxshott station less than one minute earlier. The lorry was fitted with a Concrete Mixer body and had been travelling southbound on the A244 when it struck the North end of the bridge's East parapet. After travelling across the bridge for a further 10-15 metres, it collided with the East parapet for a second time. The parapet collapsed allowing the lorry to slip sideways over the unprotected edge and onto the railway. The impact of the lorry damaged the rear three coaches of the train and derailed the rear bogie of the last coach. This distorted the track and displaced the conductor rail. Of the 36 passengers on the train, one was seriously injured and five were slightly injured. The lorry driver was also seriously injured. The Rail Accident Report was issues this week by the Department of Transport.
According to the Report, the driver of the lorry only obtained his Large Goods Vehicle (LGV) driving licence just three weeks before the accident. This period included two weeks of driver mentoring which he had successfully completed. The accident occurred during his first week of unaccompanied driving. On 2 June 2011, seven months after the accident happened, Petru Achim, 36, of Ravenscourt, Hook, Hampshire, appeared at Staines Magistrates' Court. He admitted driving without due care and attention and failing to ensure proper use of recording equipment on the day that the crash happened. He was fined £100, ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £15, £43 Court costs and his driving licence was endorsed with five penalty points!!??
Network Rail produced to the Inquiry a photograph of the North end of the East parapet showing "new and long standing damage" after a similar collision in December 2003, and further damage was recorded in August 2006 provides evidence that the most recent accident was neither an isolated nor an unforseeable event. However Surrey County Council regarded this part of the A244 as having a relatively good accident history and, as a consequence, no works were planned or considered necessary for this site!!
The Report identified four causal factors:-
1) Visible Road Markings - the parapet end was not sufficiently visible to appraching traffic; Surrey County Council should check regularly.
2) The Driver - he was unable to regain control of his vehicle after an initial collision with the parapet end.
3) The strength of the parapet - Network Rail's policy for new bridges are designed to resist the impact from a 30 tonne lorry travelling at 40 mph at an angle of 20 degrees; this would have prevented this accident, but there are no plans to upgrade existing bridges so far!!
4) The failure to check the visibility of parapet ends in Network Rail's six yearly structures examination, and to report repeated vehicle strikes to the relevant highway authority, the Surrey County Council.
The complete Summary of the Rail Accident Report will appear on this website in the next week or two.
There was a big crowd at the Oxshott Bridge Club last night; for the third time this year, we had 15 Tables sitting down to play. Top performance of the evening came from Ormonde & Penny Webster-Smith who were placed First among the Pairs playing East/West; they scored 64.96% to scoop the maximum 50 Master points. Second place went to Jean Hutchinson & Joyce Gibbs who scored 61.55%. There was then quite a gap until Sheila Brewer & Liam Creagh who came Third with 57.20% and Annie Everett & Marjorie Neal who came Fourth with 57.01%, only 1 Match point behind. The Fifth place went to Gerald & Tricia Brown with 51.14%. The battle for the top places among the Pairs playing North/South was very close indeed. Congratulations go to Mike Mulligan & John French who just captured First place with a score of 63.45%, but they were only 6 Match points ahead of Elisa Money & Mike Sinclair who came Second with 62.31%. The next three places were also closely contended. Alan & Pat Hammond just captured Third place with 58.52%, just 3 Match points ahead of Kevin & Deanne Goddard who scored 57.95%; and Edwin Jones & Mikiko Gissing were just 5 more Match points behind in Fifth place with a score of 57.01%. Well done to all our Master points Winners!!
There was plenty of brave bidding as Pairs attempted to find Slam Opportunities, but there were only three successful Slam bid and made throughout the 30 Boards that we played!! Board 2 seemed to present East/West with a great hand in Clubs, but North/South had useful Hearts to attempt to divert the opposition. In the event three E/W Pairs settled for part game contracts in Clubs; one bid 3 Clubs and made all 13 tricks for 190 points; the other two bid 4 Clubs; one made 11 tricks for 150 points while the second made 12 tricks for 170 points. Six East/West Pairs bid game in 5 Clubs; two made 11 tricks for 400 points; three made 12 tricks for 420 points; and one made all 13 tricks for 440 points. One North/South Pair bravely bid 5 Hearts; they went only two tricks off for a reasonable score of 200 points. But two East/West Pairs bid Slam in 6 Clubs!! One was doubled; they made only 11 tricks and so gave 100 points and a top score to North/South. However congratulations go to Ormonde & Penny Webster-Smith who bid 6 Clubs and made 12 tricks for 920 points!!
Board 12 gave East/West a very good hand with prospects for game or higher in Diamonds, Hearts or No Trumps. Seven E/W Pairs bid game in 3 No Trumps; five made 10 tricks for 430 points; one made 11 tricks for 460 points; and one made 12 tricks for 490 points, which proved the top score!! Two E/W Pairs selected 4 Hearts for their game contract; they both made 11 tricks for 450 points. One Pair bid Slam in 6 Diamonds; they made only 10 tricks and gave N/S 100 penalty points. The last two Pairs bid 6 No Trumps; they also made 10 tricks and so gave N/S 100 penalty points. The defence is often very different when a Slam is declared!! With Board 13, it was North/South who had the good hands with possibilities apparent in Clubs, Hearts and No Trumps. Two Pairs settled for a part-game contract in 4 Clubs; one made 10 tricks for 130 points; the other made 11 tricks for 150 points. Another Pair bid game in 5 Clubs; they made 11 tricks for 600 points. Three N/S Pairs chose a game contract in 3 No Trumps; one made only 7 tricks giving 200 penalty points to East/West; the second made 9 tricks for 600 points; while the third made 12 tricks for 690 points, the top score by East/West!! Three Pairs bid game in 4 Hearts; one made only 9 tricks, giving 100 penalty points to E/W; a seond made 10 tricks for 620 points; while the third made 11 tricks for 650 points. That left the three Pairs who bid Slam contracts. Two Pairs bid Slam in 6 Clubs; one made 10 tricks to give 200 penalty points to E/W; the other made 11 tricks and so gave only 100 points away. Finally one North/South Pair bid Slam in 6 Hearts; they made 11 tricks to yield 100 penalty points to E/W!! C'est la vie!!
Board 21 presented a really interesting pair of hands to North/South. Three Pairs bid game in 4 Spades; all three made exactly 10 tricks for 620 points. Two Pairs went further and bid 5 Spades; they both fell one trick short of their contract and gave East/West 100 penalty points. One Pair chose Diamonds for their game contract and bid 5 Diamonds; they made only 10 tricks and so gave E/W 100 penalty points. That left six Pairs who attempted Slam contracts!! One Pair bid Slam in 6 Diamonds; they made 9 tricks to lose 300 penalty points. Four Pairs bid Slam in 6 Spades; they all fell 2 tricks short, but two were not doubled and lost only 200 points while the other two were doubled and so lost 500 points!! The final Pair went for GOLD!! They bid Slam in 6 No Trumps; they were doubled; sadly they fell 5 tricks short of their contract to yield a whopping 1400 penalty points to East/West!!
Finally we come to Board 8. Here North/South again had good cards and all 12 Pairs who played the Board ended in a game contract. Nine Pairs bid 3 No Trumps; four made 11 tricks for 460 points; four more made 12 tricks for 490 points; and one N/S Pair made all 13 tricks for 520 points. One Pair bid 5 No Trumps; they made 12 tricks for 490 points. That left two Pairs who bid Slam in 6 No Trumps. Congratulations go to Alan & Pat Hammond and to George Gardiner & Jean Knott for bidding and making the necessary 12 tricks to share the top score of 990 points on this Board!! Well done to all our Slam Achievers!! |
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| Last updated : 11th Aug 2011 20:43 BST |
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| Navy Seals training pays off!! |
In this image released by the White House and digitally altered to diffuse the paper in front of Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden, along with members of the National Security Team, receive an update on the mission against Osama bin Laden in the Situation Room of the White House, Sunday, May 1, 2011, in Washington. The man with all the scrambled egg on his blue uniform is Marshall Brad Webb, responsible for the Navy Seal team that killed Osama bin Laden.
Amazingly the world’s most wanted terrorist apparently had lived in this affluent compound, just down the road from the Pakistan Military Academy, in Abbottabad, near the capital of Pakistan, for five years before the Special Task Force of Navy Seals raided it early on Monday morning and killed the 9/11 mastermind. It’s good to be a Navy Seal right now. The elite sailors are being showered with praise for their successful operation in Pakistan. “If the world ever learns the names of those Navy Seals who took out Bin Laden, those guys will never have to buy their own drinks again,” said one Member of the National Security Team.
To qualify as Navy Seals, sailors have to pass physical, mental and intelligence screening before they can even start training. Only men ages 17-28 with good eyesight and no criminal record are admitted. After six months of initial training candidates need to be able to swim 1000 meters in 20 minutes, do at least 70 pushups in two minutes and run four miles in under 31 minutes wearing long pants. Then comes Hell Week: five and a half days in which candidates train for 20 hours a day, run more than 200 miles and sleep a total of just four hours. "Hell Week finds those candidates who have the commitment and dedication required of a SEAL," according to the unit's website. "Hell Week is the ultimate test of a man’s will and the class’ teamwork.”
If a recruit makes it through the initial training period, there is an addition six months of special skills training, which could include foreign languages, freefall parachuting and sniper lessons. Training continues even after candidates have made it into the force, said Gidget Fuentes, senior writer for Navy Times. Jeff Everage, who became a SEAL at age 22, says he trained for about three years before he went out on his first mission. “I saw a wash-out rate of 87 percent of people who quit or got hurt during the initial training," he said. "Because of the tough requirements, the Navy has had a difficult time recruiting enough qualified individuals and has made efforts to bolster its recruitment, especially over the past six years," Fuentes said. She said: "The force has roughly 2,500 members and could probably use another 400 to 500."
Now Reuters reports from Islamabad that Egyptian-born doctor and surgeon Ayman al-Zawahri is al Qaeda's second-in-command expected to succeed Osama bin Laden following his killing in a firefight with U.S. forces in Pakistan. Zawahri has been the brains behind bin Laden and his al Qaeda network, and at times its most public face, repeatedly denouncing the United States and its allies in video messages. Born in 1951, he was the son of a pharmacology professor and grandson of the grand imam of Al Azhar, one of the most important mosques in the Muslim world. Zawahri is pictured above talking with Osama bin Laden on a video broadcast on the Al-Jazeera television on Monday 15th April 2007. Maybe another job for the Navy Seals!!??
Well some of the male Members of the Oxshott Bridge Club felt like they were undergoing Navy Seal training at our Club Night yesterday. There were 15 Tables competing with plenty of uneven distributions to test your bidding and playing skills. Most of the good hands seemed to go to the Pairs playing North/South - they played contracts in 17 out of the 30 Boards - and there were very clear Winners among the N/S Pairs. Congratulations go to Jonathan Spring & John French who scored an impressive 67.05% to capture First place and the maximum 50 Master Points. They were 5.31% ahead of Tony Fincham & Elisa Money who came Second with 61.74%. Graham & Shirley Butler were Third with 58.90%, but they were only one Match point ahead of Marjorie Lewis & June Buckland who came Fourth with 58.71%. Mike Mulligan & Jean Knott came Fifth with 53.60%. These five Pairs were the only Pairs playing N/S who exceeded 50% on the final Leaderboard!!
The competition for the top places was much closer among the Pairs playing East/West; indeed the top two Pairs tied for First place! Congratulations go to Valerie Jones & Dorothy Steinart and to Sue Osborne & David Rotherham who both scored exactly 59.09% to share First place and the 45 Master Points. They were 3.22% ahead of Annemie Bisgood & Pat Hammond who came Third with 55.87%. Only two Match points behind came Valerie Howe & Pam Harries in Fourth place with 55.49%, and Kay Ziatabari & Maria Christou were Fifth with 55.11%, a further two Match points behind. Well done to all our Master Points Winners!!
There were three Slam Opportunities among the 30 Boards that we played last night, and all three fell to North/South Pairs. Board 2 gave an excellent balanced hand to N/S with lots of potential. Seven of the 12 Pairs who played the Board won 12 tricks - and an eighth Pair made all 13 tricks - but not one Pair was brave enough to bid a Slam contract. All 12 Pairs bid the game contract of 3NT and so the top score was only 720 points!! Meanwhile Board 3 gave a more difficult opportunity again to North/South. It seemed difficult to choose between Spades and No Trumps for the game contract. Three Pairs selected 3NT; one made 10 tricks for 430 points while the other two made 11 tricks for 460 points. The other nine Pairs chose Spades for their contact suit. One Pair stuck at 2S; they made 12 tricks for 230 points. Seven more Pairs chose 4S for their contract; one made just 10 tricks for 420 points; three made 11 tricks for 450 points; and three made 12 tricks for 480 points. The final Pair was tempted to bid Slam; but they settled for a game contract in 5S; they made 12 tricks for 480 points!
Then on Board 16, North had great Clubs although there seemed good cover for a No trumps contract. Well four Pairs bid 3NT; all four made 11 tricks for 460 points. Five more Pairs chose a game contract in 5 Clubs; all five made 12 tricks for 420 points. One Pair braved a Slam bid of 6NT; sadly they made only 10 tricks and so gave E/W a top score of 100 points! That left two Pairs who braved a Slam bid in 6 Clubs. Congratulations go to Mike Mulligan & Jean Knott and to Graham & Shirley Butler who both bid 6C; they made the required 12 tricks to share the top score of 920 points on this Board!! Well done to our two Slam Achievers!! |
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| Last updated : 5th May 2011 12:47 BST |
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