Kent
- Bedgebury National Pinetum: Christmas trail lights up Kent forestwww.bbc.co.uk Bedgebury National Pinetum: Christmas trail lights up Kent forest
Bedgebury at Christmas illuminated forest trail launches for the seventh successive year.
- Leas Lift to re-open in 2025 - Leas Liftleaslift.co.uk Leas Lift to re-open in 2025 - Leas Lift
Folkestone’s Leas Lift is set to reopen in 2025 after securing £4.8m of support from the National Lottery Heritage Fund, meaning the overall fundraising target of £6.6m has been reached.
- All the Kent train stations that will benefit from £2 million improvementswww.kentlive.news All the Kent train stations that will benefit from £2 million improvements
There will also be deep cleans at over 100 Southeastern stations
- Brown bear in Kent recovering well after UK-first brain surgerywww.theguardian.com Brown bear in Kent recovering well after UK-first brain surgery
Conservation trust says Boki ‘not out of the woods’ yet but doing well after operation to drain buildup of fluid
cross-posted from: https://feddit.uk/post/18599009
> > A brown bear that underwent brain surgery in the first operation of its kind in the UK is doing well but is “not out of the woods” yet, a charity has said. > > > >Boki went under the knife on Wednesday after an MRI scan revealed he had hydrocephalus, a buildup of fluid in the brain. > > > >The two-year-old mammal, who had been suffering from seizures and related health issues, is awake and said to be doing well after the surgery. > > > > ... > > > > It was the first time a procedure of this kind has been carried out in the UK. Pizzi previously became the first surgeon to perform a similar operation on a black bear in Asia. > > > > ... > > > > The conservation charity is fundraising for Boki’s surgery and immediate aftercare costs, which is expected to be about £20,000.
- Tracey Emin among hundreds opposing changes to Margate ‘brutalist masterpiece’www.theguardian.com Tracey Emin among hundreds opposing changes to Margate ‘brutalist masterpiece’
Managers of building in which Emin owns a flat want to replace windows but opponents say they are a key feature
- Man freed under early prison release scheme allegedly sexually assaulted woman on same daynews.sky.com Man freed under early prison release scheme allegedly sexually assaulted woman on same day
The man allegedly reoffended in Sittingbourne in Kent and was later arrested at an address in south London. He has been recalled to prison.
> A man allegedly sexually assaulted a woman on the same day he was released from prison under the government's early release scheme. > >He allegedly reoffended in Sittingbourne in Kent and was later arrested at an address in south London. > >He was among more than 1,700 inmates released from prison last week in a bid to ease prison overcrowding, which the government said did not include terrorists and previously convicted sex offenders. > >The former inmate appeared at a magistrate's court on Thursday charged with sexual assault. He is due to appear at crown court next month. > >He has been recalled to prison.
- Huge labyrinth of tunnels hidden beneath Kent used by thousandswww.kentlive.news Huge labyrinth of tunnels hidden beneath Kent used by thousands
They are a truly remarkable place to visit
cross-posted from: https://feddit.uk/post/16909497
> > Just across the Kent border with Greater London, one of the UK's most unique locations is hidden - Chislehurst Caves. This remarkable place in historic Kent is nestled in the town of Chislehurst, a stone's throw from Bromley. > > > >The caves are an intricate network of over 22 miles of manmade tunnels, burrowed between the 1200s and 1800s, concealed deep beneath a leafy and unsuspecting slice of suburbia. > > > >Kent's rich history and culture have been significantly impacted by urban sprawl, and Chislehurst Caves is a prime example of this. Although technically the town and tunnels now fall under London, much of the caves' history unfolded when the area was part of Kent, making them an integral part of the county's past. > > > > ... > > > > Ancient Origins, a site dedicated to exploring archaeological discoveries, has delved into the history of the caves. According to them, when the caves first opened to the public in 1900, visitors were informed that parts of the system had been inhabited between 6,000 and 4,000 years ago. > > > >Legend has it that the initial phase of the caves was carved out by druids, before being expanded upon by the Romans and then the Saxons around 500 AD. Ancient Origins reports that one of the earliest historical records of Chislehurst Caves is a 13th-century charter, which mentions their use for mining lime-burning chalk and flint. > > > >There's also speculation that a prehistoric skeleton discovered in the ceiling could suggest the caves date back to 10,000 BC, when people sought refuge during the end of the Ice Age. However, as far as concrete origins go, the earliest evidence of anyone working or residing in the caves dates back to a 9th-century Saxon charter, which documents mines and lime-burning kilns in the area. > > > > ... > > > > It is reported that at the onset of the First World War in 1914, the caves served as a munitions depot. According to The Heritage Trail, they became part of the Woolwich Arsenal and a railway was installed to transport the munitions through the tunnels. > > > In the interwar period, the mines were utilised by the Kent Mushroom Company, with the humidity and darkness providing ideal conditions for mushroom cultivation. > > > > During the peak of the Blitz in the Second World War, the caves were converted into an underground city. They became the largest air raid shelter in Britain, housing 15,000 people with a pitch costing one old penny per night. > > > >The chapel space and hospital area are still present today for visitors to explore, along with a fully functioning electric lighting network - making living in the caves less daunting than it might initially appear.
- Folkestone: Host of trial markets to openwww.bbc.co.uk Folkestone: Host of trial markets to open
The local authority says trial markets aim to bring “vibrancy” to Folkestone town centre.
- Dungeness nuclear power station earlier today
Picture taken just before lunch today from the old lighthouse.
Boy was it windy!
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dungeness_nuclear_power_stations
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dungeness_Lighthouse
- Council rejects solar farm plan branded 'insane'www.bbc.com Kent: Council rejects solar farm plan branded 'insane'
Supporters say the installation near Sittingbourne would have powered 11,500 homes.
cross-posted from: https://feddit.uk/post/16139774
> > Plans to build a solar farm the size of 86 football fields in Kent have been rejected as "insane". > > > >Developers of the installation on "high-grade" farmland near Sittingbourne were told by a councillor the panels should instead be placed on roofs and car parks. > > > >Supporters pointed out the site - sitting either side of Vigo Lane and Wrens Road near Borden - would have provided clean energy for 11,500 homes. > > > >Developers Industria Solar said they were "disappointed" by the decision, but would review their application and consider "further steps". > > > > ... > > > > Building the sprawling solar farm near the boundary of the Kent Downs National Landscape was criticised by Green Party councillor Terry Thompson, who pointed out it took up Grade 1 farmland. > > > >As a farmer, he said it was "insane" to build on such fertile land, reported the Local Democracy Reporting Service. > > > >“It isn’t an industrial landscape, it’s the garden of England.” > > > >“We really seriously need to think about security of food production," he added.
- River Stour: Anglers fear pollution is killing the waterwaywww.bbc.co.uk River Stour: Anglers fear pollution is killing the waterway
Anglers using Kent's rivers say pollution levels are killing all life in some of the waterways.
- Woodland Trust: Charity urges more tree planting across South Eastwww.bbc.co.uk Woodland Trust: Charity urges more tree planting across South East
In spring 2024 the conservation charity sent 35,645 trees to be planted across the South East.
- Airport passengers head to Port of Dover after flight delayswww.bbc.co.uk Airport passengers head to Port of Dover after flight delays
Kent's transport resilience manager says holidaymakers are likely to face queues on Saturday.
- Ground-breaking wilding project reaches two-year milestone | Kent Wildlife Trustwww.kentwildlifetrust.org.uk Ground-breaking wilding project reaches two-year milestone | Kent Wildlife Trust
Since 2022, the UK has sworn in four new prime ministers, the interest rate has risen from 0.25% to 5.25%, and, as of the 18th July, bison have been in the Blean for two whole years.
cross-posted from: https://feddit.uk/post/14880829
> > > For the team behind the Wilder Blean bison release at Kent Wildlife Trust and Wildwood Trust it seems like only yesterday when, in front of the world’s media, the founding herd members made their first tentative steps into the woodland. It was a historic day, not just in conservation but in climate, as the UK experienced temperatures past 40 degrees for the first time since records began – a stark reminder of the challenges faced by climate change. > > In the two years that followed the release of three original herd members, they increased in number to six, with a surprise calf, a bull arriving from Germany and a not-so-unexpected birth of a male calf in the winter. The woodland now has a New Forest feel to it, with free-roaming Exmoor ponies, longhorn cattle, and Iron-Age pigs, all bringing their unique browsing behaviours to the reserve, shaping the landscape naturally, boosting biodiversity, and helping to build climate resilience. >
- Early human life in Kent revealed at archaeological dig near Faversham unearthing artefacts from Neolithic and Bronze Agewww.kentonline.co.uk Secrets unearthed at huge ancient burial ground in Kent
Archaeologists are finding out more about prehistoric life in Kent at one of the country’s largest burial grounds even older than Stonehenge.
cross-posted from: https://feddit.uk/post/14688506
> > Archaeologists are finding out more about prehistoric life in Kent from 5,000 years ago at one of the country’s largest ancient burial grounds. > > > >Experts say the multi-year dig at Stringmans Farm on the Lees Court Estate, near Faversham, has uncovered artefacts dating back to the Neolithic or Bronze Age period. > > > > The community excavation project led by a team from the Kent Archaeological Society unearthed a selection of items including flint chippings (leftovers from making stone tools), fragments of rare, decorated pottery created 3,000 years before the Romans came to Kent, and evidence of human prehistoric cremations.
- Kent County council to hand over windmills to save £150,000 a yearwww.bbc.com Kent County council to hand over windmills to save £150,000 a year
The authority will look for local groups to take over the maintenance of the historic buildings.
- Landmark statue gets makeover as ‘yarn bombers stitch up’ townswww.kentonline.co.uk Landmark statue gets makeover as ‘yarn bombers stitch up’ towns
A group of volunteers have crocheted, knitted and sewn a series of novelty knits to mark a charity trust’s anniversary celebrations.
- Re-enactors, mock battles and family fun to mark 75th anniversary of Viking ship Hugin’s arrival in Thanettheisleofthanetnews.com Re-enactors, mock battles and family fun to mark 75th anniversary of Viking ship Hugin’s arrival in Thanet
A free family fun day will be held in Cliffsend to mark the 75th anniversary of the arrival of Viking ship Hugin in Thanet. On July 28, 1949, the replica longship, now sited at Cliffsend, was met b…
> A free family fun day will be held in Cliffsend to mark the 75th anniversary of the arrival of Viking ship Hugin in Thanet. > >On July 28, 1949, the replica longship, now sited at Cliffsend, was met by a large crowd at Viking Bay (formerly called Main Bay), Broadstairs. > > It had sailed from Denmark to Thanet to celebrate the 1500th anniversary of the invasion of Britain, the landing of Hengist and Horsa and the betrothal of Hengist’s daughter, Rowena, to King Vortigen of Kent. > > The boat was built in Denmark to a design used by the Vikings between the 5th and 8th centuries. It was then sailed by 53 Danes to Broadstairs. It was presented to the people of Thanet by the King of Denmark, its costs having been paid by The Daily Mail, and was placed in its current location at Cliffsend. > >In 2005 the ship underwent major repairs coordinated by marine restoration specialist Fred Walker and funded by Thanet District Council, assisted by EU funding. > >Hugin’s arrival was presented in a newsreel short entitled “Kent Welcomes Viking Invaders”, which British Pathé has uploaded to YouTube.
- The Kent councils that have closed the most public toiletswww.kentonline.co.uk The Kent councils that have closed the most public toilets
Vandalism and cash-strapped council budgets are putting public toilets at risk, fear charities, as one suggests charging a fee may be the answer.
- M20: Operation Brock to roll out in Kent with new permit systemwww.bbc.co.uk M20: Operation Brock to roll out in Kent with new permit system
A new permit system is aimed at preventing freight drivers from dodging queues at the Port of Dover.
- Bomb squad descend on seafront after fisherman catches ‘large war mine’www.kentonline.co.uk Bomb squad descend on seafront after fisherman catches ‘large war mine’
Bomb disposal teams have been spotted at a seafront after a fisherman reported an unusual catch.
- London Resort: Land earmarked for £2.5bn Disneyland-style park on Swanscombe Peninsula goes up for salewww.kentonline.co.uk Is this the end? London Resort site now up for sale
The company which owns the land earmarked for a multi-billion pound theme park is up for sale - so is this the final nail in its coffin?
- Folkestone: Vandals remove head from sculpture in parkwww.bbc.co.uk Folkestone: Vandals remove head from sculpture in park
The council says the removal of a statue's head in Radnor Park was an act of 'pointless vandalism'.
- Leading winemaker [Chapel Down] could put itself up for salewww.kentonline.co.uk Leading winemaker could put itself up for sale
One of Kent’s most successful winemakers says it is considering putting itself up for sale.
- Floating arts and events venue allowed to staywww.kentonline.co.uk Floating arts and events venue allowed to stay
A historic ship used as an arts space can continue to dock along the river in hopes it will bring more footfall to a town.
- Kent County Council warns of cuts as it launches budget consultationwww.bbc.co.uk Kent County Council warns of cuts as it launches budget consultation
The authority says it needs to save £81m in the next financial year and wants ideas from the public.
- New Herne Bay restaurant The Bay launched by Mehmet Dari after £250,000 transformationwww.kentonline.co.uk Eye-catching seafront restaurant ‘could attract Londoners to Kent coast’
A restaurant boss is celebrating the launch of his latest seafront venue - and believes it could attract Londoners to the Kent coast.
- The Bat Beast of Kent: mysterious figure spooks four at Sandling Railway Station
cross-posted from: https://feddit.uk/post/13268442
> cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/16448379 > > > The Bat Beast of Kent, sometimes referred to as the ‘Saltwood Mystery’, is often considered to be an extraterrestrial sighting. Let’s begin with the story as it is roughly retold today. > > > >> November 16th, 1963, Four teenagers were making their way home from a party through Sandling Lane. Something unusual in the sky caught their attention: a golden oval shaped orb, seemingly a few metres in diameter. The object was intensely bright, they began to run from it, and it followed them, before returning back to its original position, it then slowly descended behind some trees. Curious about what it might have been, the boys headed to where they thought the object had ‘Landed’, but all was now dark. Soon they heard some rustling and felt a change in the air to cold and ‘charged like static electricity’, they looked towards the sound to see a hairy figure, around 5 feet tall, headless, with bat-like wings and webbed feet shambling out of the trees. > > > > ... > > > > It seems reasonable to think that there was no evidence of a deliberate hoax, there is some corroboration from the pub landlord that the original group were indeed spooked by the encounter, and there is a fair amount of consistency between the reports from the three boys. While additional sightings of the figure can be questioned as influenced by previous reports or even fabricated, there do appear to be some kind of unusual lights appearing with some frequency in the area, which may have various explanations, although none confirmed.
- Asian hornets: Kent on front-line after record number of reportswww.bbc.co.uk Asian hornets: Kent on front-line after record number of reports
There have been 108 sightings of Asian hornets since 2016, of which 56 were in 2023.
- ‘Goosebumps and tears’ as stunning Northern Lights seen across Kentwww.kentonline.co.uk ‘Goosebumps and tears’ as stunning Northern Lights seen across Kent
Awestruck spectators were moved to tears after witnessing the stunning Northern Lights in the skies across Kent following a massive solar storm.
- Venues across Kent are named as CAMRA Pubs of the Yearwww.kentonline.co.uk Kent’s best pubs for a pint revealed
Judges have crowned an array of Kent pubs for their great beer in the coveted Campaign for Real Ale awards.
- The UK’s only ‘desert’ with bleakly ‘captivating’ views and a 10-mile beachmetro.co.uk The UK’s only ‘desert’ with 'bleakly captivating’ views and a 10-mile beach
Some have called it a 'history-filled natural paradise'.
> The idyllic and peaceful landscapes of Dungeness, the UK’s only desert, should be all you need for an otherworldly getaway right without going abroad. > > Based in Kent, Dungeness is described by reviewers on Tripadvisor as a ‘history-filled natural paradise’ with sandy terrains stretching 16km long. > > With views like that, it should come as no surprise that the place was identified by Jeep as one of the best ‘off the beaten track’ places to visit this Easter. > > From seals, to Arctic terns, to porpoises, Dungeness is full of lively wildlife and unexpected treasures to discover.
- Sheppey Kent County councillor suspended over drink-drivingwww.bbc.co.uk Sheppey Kent County councillor suspended over drink-driving
Mike Whiting is now listed as an Independent on the Kent County Council website.
- Southeastern rakes in £2.5m as fare-dodgers hit with bumped-up £100 fineswww.kentonline.co.uk Southeastern rakes in £2.5m as fare-dodgers hit with bumped-up £100 fines
Exclusive data given to KentOnline has revealed Southeastern recovered millions in penalty payments in one year after fines were increased.
- Palm Sunday: Archbishop of Canterbury leads Maidstone processionwww.bbc.co.uk Palm Sunday: Archbishop of Canterbury leads Maidstone procession
The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby leads a procession in Maidstone to mark Palm Sunday.
- More than £1 million for county’s walking, cycling and wheeling travel choiceswww.kentonline.co.uk More than £1 million for county’s walking, cycling and wheeling travel choices
Kent County Council and Medway Council is getting funding from Active Travel England for new walking and cycling schemes.
- Kent: University confirms axing of six courses to cut costswww.bbc.co.uk Kent: University confirms axing of six courses to cut costs
The University of Kent will stop recruiting to six subjects, including art history and journalism.
cross-posted from: https://feddit.uk/post/9503273
> Kent: University confirms axing of six courses to cut costs