Halloween at “Farmer Parr-a-Normal”

Meeting the resident pony

It was a grey damp day last Saturday October 23rd and I had two little ones to entertain. I remembered some leaflets that had been delivered to Visit Fleetwood by Farmer Parrs Animal World. Could this be the answer? We piled into the car and made our way to Fleetwood.

I had a 7 year old little girl in a wheelchair (Millie) and a very active boy of 2 (Alfie). We entered the building via the museum and arrived in the first barn which was all decked out with scary creatures and a tunnel just asking to go through. After a good ten minutes going in and out of the tunnel which contained some rather large spiders (!), we went on to see the first batch of animals, rabbits, guinea pigs and other furry little creatures.

On our way to the next barn we encountered a rather fearsome sight of a ghost riding around in a large cage. Milly made a quick exit in her wheelchair to the Llama pen. We then went on to visit the little ponies all peeping out wanting a stroke. A large woolly lamb seemed to take a shine to Alfie and followed him everywhere. He was much more interested in looking for Baba black sheep, which we eventually found.

Of course we could not go past the dodgem tractor cars without a ride and Milly, having such good driving skills riding her wheelchair, was by far the fastest around the track. The visit was completed with ice cream cornets eaten on the train ride. We did not seem to notice the cold during our Halloween visit.

We always pay a visit to Farmers Parrs Christmas grotto with real donkeys and deer with Father Christmas but this was a different experience and enjoyed by us all.

Joy Allen, Visit Fleetwood & Visit Cleveleys Supervisor

Any good with a hammer and nail?

Just one of the many tools we'll be using...

What would Wyre BC’s arts officers possibly need with 15 telescopic magnets? Well, we’re getting ready for our first Family Sculpture Day on Sunday (3rd October).

If you want to see the opposition, this is one I started 25 years ago in Gateshead…..see here

They held theirs last week and we’re hoping to start the same tradition in Wyre at the Wyre Estuary Country Park. Come and join in and as well as having a go at sculpture, you can also decorate your own tile and see it being fired. Raku pottery is really exciting as the tiles come out of the kiln piping hot and are plunged into a bath of sawdust to cool down, then plunged into cold water and cleaned up, before being handed back to their creator.

Also currently piled up in the arts and events office are protective gloves, pens and paper, boxes of nails….. well, we’re goona need it as we’ve got three local schools sending children on Thursday and Friday to start creating!

If your creative juices are flowing this weekend then come along and make a bird box, or watch a carver at work fashioning owls. There’s free music too from the Marsh Mellows and at 4pm we’re going to take a mass photograph of everyone and their sculptures.

The telescopic magnets? Well, there’ll be lots of nails on the Family Field when we’ve finished, so children will be encouraged to use them and help us clear up by taking the magnets around and picking up spare nails. They’ll be rewarded with a lolly, as will anyone helping to clear spare wood too… even adults.

Do come and help me beat Gateshead!

Jean

P.S Look out for pics next week of how we got on!