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NORMAN
HART, CHAIRMAN OF FOND
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| NORMAN
HART |
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GOING
WEST
WE
MADE OUR TRIP
a little further west than normal when we had our latest ‘dew’
at Fincham where the entertainment was provided by Tina, her
sister Christine and Ted.
Attendance
was our normal level but not that of the Tony Hall ‘dew’
at Saxthorpe. Please do send in your comments about where
we should meet and who would be a big attraction.
I
am surprised that Norwich has not been a venue in recent years.
At present we try to have a mixture of speakers/turns and
to take ‘dews’ all over the county.
NATIONAL
DIALECT DAY
WE
SENT A DELEGATION
to Louth in Lincolnshire for the third time, in October. Previously
it had been exchanges with Far Welter’d (East Lincs Dialect
Society) but on this occasion it was the National Dialect
Day – a relatively new venture in which we had not previously
participated. However, with it being closer to home than previously
and hosted by our friends from Far Welter’d we made sure
we were there. Rosemary and Alan Cooper, Susan Palmer and
I made up the FOND team.
I
had visited Louth three weeks earlier for a hockey tournament
(hockey umpiring and its development being another of my passions)
and been caught in Boston’s traffic, even on a Sunday
afternoon!
Using
my ancient geographical skills – it is 44 years since
I took a degree in the subject – I found the B1192, which
is a far easier route!
On
arrival I found Alan, Rosemary and Susan already there –
having set up our display boards and distributed our literature
– and were tucking in to scones and coffee. Our hosts
offered four or five different types of scones on arrival!
We
quickly found groups representing Lancashire and Northumbria,
an informal representative of County Durham and lots of our
Lincolnshire friends. Lancashire and Northumbria have interests
which go far wider than dialect and into music, dance and
other local culture. Look North BBC TV interviewed us all.
(I wonder if a few exiles will understand what I said, as
I had to translate for the interviewer!) We waited in vain
for the other societies and groups who had promised attendance.
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| “ORL
BEWTIFUL AN NEW” |
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During
the afternoon there were three competitions:
(1)
Own dialect, own writing (Bill o’ Bows Trophy); (2) Any
dialect, any author (Eric Topping Trophy); (3) Host organisation’s
dialect (Sam Laycock Trophy).
I
participated in Comp 2 reading Colin Riches’ version
of The Creation, Orl Bewtiful and New. I hope my vice-chairman
will forgive me for using his party piece.
Rosemary
Cooper was invited to join the panel of judges for Comp 3,
and I was one of the judges for Comp 1.
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JUDGE
ROSEMARY COOPER, ON RIGHT |
As
there was a break between the afternoon and evening events
we went off to a local hostelry to watch Liverpool v Norwich
where we found two other City supporters and one ‘very
quiet’ Liverpool fan. “On the Ball, City!”
Let’s hope they maintain their present form for the final
three quarters of the season.
The
evening event started fifteen minutes after the final whistle
had gone in the football match! It was for ‘entertainment’
with a copious buffet of local food. Far Welter’d turned
out in force and it was a full house.
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| SUSAN
PALMER |
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Star
of the show was our Susan Palmer with an account of how she
became a doctor and her introduction to Norfolk and its ways
and words. As far as Far Welter’d are concerned, Tina
and Susan are the stars of FOND! Bringing Susan home, I was
fascinated by her conversation.
Writing
this in Nice, none of you will believe it is pouring with
rain, which is forecast to continue for three days! Is it
a coincidence that this period of poor weather corresponds
with the G20 Summit just along the coast at Cannes?
THE
BIBLE IN DIALECT
SADLY,
as many of you may already have heard, the Rev Colin Riches
– broadcaster and author – died on 25 November 2011,
following a long illness.
Along
the Waveney Valley, Colin was a much-loved Methodist minister
and, as I write this, I am looking out of my front window
which overlooks Harleston Methodist Church where he preached
on many an occasion. It is, however, his transcriptions of
the Testaments – Old and New – into our Norfolk
dialect that I wish to laud.
How
many locals suffer from doctors, lawyers, teachers, nurses
and ministers who speak a different language and do not understand
us?
Not
so Colin!
Known
across Norfolk as ‘the voice of Methodism’ Colin
was well loved for his biblical stories in ‘Broad Norfolk’,
with his first book Dew Yew Lissen Hare – published
in 1975 – containing a collection from the New Testament.
This
was followed in 1978 with Orl Bewtiful an New, a selection
of stories from the Old Testament.
Orl
Bewtiful an New – the story of the Creation –
is music to the ears of the locals and, during the summer
of 2011, I enjoyed our vice-chairman’s (Ted Peachment)
rendition of this story at St Matthew’s church, Thorpe
Hamlet, in Norwich.
I
also attempted it in the second competition – any dialect,
any author – at the National Dialect Day at Louth in
October 2011.
Thank
you, Colin, for bringing the Testaments to us in our native
tongue.
NORMAN
HART,
chairman, Friends of Norfolk Dialect (FOND)
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