The Autumn line up at Quarterhouse features stand up comedy from well known faces and emerging stars including Julian Clary, Jenny Éclair, Rich Hall, Isy Suttie, Russell Kane, Lee Nelson, Felix Dexter, Alun Cochrane and Greg Davies.

Live music highlights include the Folkestone Skabour Festival featuring The Beat, Arthur Kaye and The Originals, Intensified and more; Dub Pistols, the Beatles Blues and Blue Violin Tour, Seth Lakeman, Oxjam, Cancer Bats (supported by Trash Talk), Bluesky Pie nights, 3 Daft Monkeys, The Fugitives, Pama International, The Floyd Effect and Oysterband Acoustic.

Live performances include an Evening with Blowers (Henry Blofeld), A Friends of the Marlowe Magic Evening, Darren Shaw and the Dynamics and the Shakespeare Schools Festival.

Weekly Thursday film screenings continue with Four Lions, Cemetery Junction, The Disappearance of Alice Creed and more.

Fizz Family Sundays also return offering monthly Children’s Shows such as The Amazing Bubble Man, Twinkle Twonkle, How the Koala Learnt to Hug and A Little Bird Told Me. These shows are all preceded by FREE Creative workshops in the Quarterhouse foyer.

Plus, this year’s Folkestone Book Festival will take place between Friday 5 and Saturday 13 November. Authors announced so far include Arthur Smith, June Spencer (Peggy from the Archers), John Julius Norwich, The Fitzrovia Radio Hour and comedian Jeremy Hardy. There will also be special events for children over the first weekend of the Festival and the popular Schools Gala.

Comedy

· Julian Clary – Lord of the Mince, 1 and 2 Sept 8pm, £16*** (16+)

· Jenny Eclair – Old Dog New Tricks 25 Sept, 8pm, £18.50/£16 conc*** (16+)

· Isy Suttie – Love Lost in the British Retail Industry, 1 October, 8pm, £12/£10 conc*** (16+)

· Rich Hall – 16 October, 8pm, £15 (16+)

· Russell Kane – Smoke Screens & Castles, 30 October, 8pm, £14/12 conc (16+)

· Jeremy Hardy Tour 2010, 13^th Nov, 8pm, £15 (16+)

· Greg Davies – Firing Cheeseballs at a Dog, 20^th Nov, 8pm, £12.50/£10 conc (16+)

· Alun Cochrane - Jokes. Life. And Jokes About Life. 27 Nov, 8pm, £12/£10 conc (16+)

· Lee Nelson’s Well Good Tour, 3^rd Dec, 8pm, £12.50/£10 conc (16+)

· Felix Dexter – Multiple Personalities in Order, 11th Dec, 8pm, £15/£13 conc (16+)

Film Screenings

· Four Lions, 9 Sept, 8pm, £3.50 in advance/£4.50 on the door (15)

· Cemetery Junction, 16 Sept, 8pm, £3.50 in advance/£4.50 on the door (15)

· The Disappearance of Alice Creed, 30 Sept, 8pm, £3.50 in advance/£4.50 on the door (18)

Live Music

· Folkestone Skabour Festival – THE BEAT, Skatonics and Ska DJ, 3 September, 6.30pm, £16 (16+)

· Folkestone Skabour Festival – Rhoda Dakar + visuals from Dance Craze, ARTHUR KAYE & THE ORIGINALS, INTENSIFIED plus Ska DJ, 4 September, 6.30pm, £12 (16+)

· Beatles, Blues and Blue Violin Tour, 17 Sept, 8pm, £12/£10 conc***

· Bluesky Pie presents Folkestone’s Own, 24 Sept, 8pm, £5 (16+)

· The Floyd Effect, 2 October, 7.30pm, £15

· Bluesky Pie presents Folkestone’s Own, 8 October, 8pm £5 (16+)

· Oysterband Acoustic, 17 October, 8pm, £14***

· Oxjam – With a Little Help from your Friends 22^nd October, 7.30pm, £10 in advance, £15 on the door (16+)

· Cancer Bats supported by Trash Talk, 27 October, 7.30pm, £8 in advance, (16+)

· Dub Pistols, 29 October, 7.30pm, £10 in advance (16+)

· Festival Folk with 3 Daft Monkeys and The Fugitives, 12 Nov, 8.30, £10/£8 conc

· Seth Lakeman – Hearts and Minds Tour, 19^th Nov, 7.30pm, £18.50 in advance

· Bluesky Pie presents Secret Party “Quarantine”, 26 Nov, 8pm £5 (16+)

· Pama International meets Mad Professor Rewired! In Dub on Tour, 17^th Dec, 8pm, £13 in advance, £15 on the door, (£16+)

Live Performances

· Shakespeare Schools Festival, 5-7 October, 7pm, £7.50/£5.50 conc

· Friends of the Marlowe Magic Evening, 9 October, 7.45pm, £17.50

· An Evening with Blowers, 15 October, 7.30pm, £15/£12.50 conc***

· Darren Shaw and the Dynamics, 4^th Dec, 7.45pm, £12/£10 conc

Fizz Family Sundays

· The Amazing Bubble Man, 12 Sept, 2.30pm, £5 Adult / £4 Child / £15 Family*

· Twinkle Twonkle, 10 October, 2.30pm, £5 Adult / £4 Child / £15 Family*

· How the Koala Learnt to Hug, 7 Nov, 2.30pm, £5 Adult / £4 Child / £15 family*

· A Little Bird Told Me, 21 Nov, 2.30pm, 2.30pm, £5 Adult / £4 Child/ £15 family*

FREE Creative Family Workshops take place in the Quarterhouse foyer at 11am and 12.15pm before most of the Sunday children’s shows, see website for details.

*denotes a family ticket for 2 adults and 2 children under 12

***denotes ticket available with meal deal at Quarterhouse Bar at Restaurant

Conc: concessionary rates apply (where stated) to under 16s, full time students, senior citizens, registered unemployed and registered disabled. Proof of status is required.

To book tickets for an event or for more information visit www.quarterhouse.co.uk, call the box office on 01303 858500 or pop into Quarterhouse at 45 Tontine Street, Folkestone, Kent CT20 1JT. To book a table in the restaurant call 01303 858540.
http://twitter.com/quarterhouse_uk

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Folkestone-United-Kingdom/Creative-Quarter-Folkestone

The practice was commissioned by regeneration company the Creative Foundation, which aims to revitalise the once fashionable seaside town.

“We entered a competition for a gallery for the same client in Folkestone, very close to this site,” said project architect Ryute Hirayama.

“We didn’t get that. But the client was interested in our approach to the surrounding area, and our combination of existing and new materials, and came back to us later with this project.”

Hirayama’s design proposes a new public courtyard with cafés and shops as well as alleyways to create three routes connecting Folkestone’s Old High Street and Tontine Street, which is lined with newer commercial buildings.

An existing 400sq m brick and stucco building on Old High Street will be retained, with two new flats added above ground-floor level shop units.

On Tontine Street, a new 480sq m four-storey building will house a further four flats as well as retail space and cafes. The two buildings will be connected via a bridge structure at the first and second floor levels.

The Tontine Street building will also feature a polycarbonate panel facade on its top two floors.

During the day, this will allow natural light into the building, while at night light from within will create a kinetic display to reflect the changing uses of the building.

Pending planning, the project is due to start on site this summer and complete next year

By Anna Winston
Read more: http://www.bdonline.co.uk/story.asp?sectioncode=426&storycode=3161442&channel=426&c=2#ixzz0kZ5JpakH

Related articles by Zemanta

• Can we love to be beside the seaside again? (telegraph.co.uk)
• MP backs return of lamb teacher (news.bbc.co.uk)

I received a last minute email invite to this event and decided it was too interesting to miss, so I scooted along there in time to have my name added to the list of great and good - and was allowed in to what was a very well attended event - a full house no less.

The ’21st Century Kent - A Blueprint For The County’s Future’ presentation was led by Paul Carter Leader of Kent County Council and Kevin Lynes Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Economic Development, Kent County Council - with renowned architect and urban designer Sir Terry Farrell CBE, RIBA, FRSA, FCSD, MRTPI.

Kevin Lynes and then Paul Carter set the scene with information about changing demographics and trends in Kent which include: a rising average life expectancy, a growth in single person households, targets for housing growth,  experience that an older (and growing) population brings to the work force, the polarisation between the deprived coastal and urban areas and the more affluent areas of Kent as well as National and Global trends which will likely undergo an upheaval over the next 20 years. These wide ranging trends and changes as well as presenting huge challenges also gave an unprecedented opportunity to create a framework and vision to shape our future.  Sir Terry Farrell was appointed to help produce a spatial vision for Kent for the next 20 years, taking into account the broad issues of housing, transport, skills and economic development.

Sir Terry picked up on a theme mentioned by Paul Carter earlier, about how important it was to have a vision - as demonstrated by the Victorians who used considerable vision when, for example, designing and creating the London underground network. At the time some of the stations were placed in areas which were little more than countryside - but within a short time becoming the vibrant business and residential communities of central London - and he said that it was this type of vision that was needed now to shape the future of Kent, but with a light handed approach.

Sir Terry said that Kent was already well positioned in many respects because we already have an identity as The Garden of England - so it wasn’t a matter of trying to build a new identity or change a negative one.  HS1, sited down the backbone of Kent, also reinforced Ashford’s status as the powerhouse of Kent and was already attracting businesses and people to the area.

Sir Terry then shared with us his thoughts on the increasingly critical role within the regional economy of the Greater South East that Kent plays:

“The Greater South East drives the UK economy. London’s status as a major world city allows the UK to compete internationally. The region is one of the world’s biggest markets for UK businesses and revenue generated by its high value economy supports investment in other regions. It is the only region within the UK than can compete with the major regional economies of Europe, the American and Asia. Kent is the UK’s front door”.

Sir Terry talked about Ebbsfleet a chalk quarry but will become a dynamic modern town with residents living in a rural setting while benefiting from rapid access to London - and with a major learning campus with links to University College London. Medway’s five towns: Strood, Rochester, Chatham, Gilliingham and Rainham will become a major city - a major European centre of excellence for advanced manufacturing and known world wide for the application of clean power generation.  Ashford and its surrounding villages are already attracting businesses and people who recognise the benefits of its accessibility and its affordability with a population expected to almost double by 2030 living in a 21st Century Garden City. Margate with the Turner Contemporary, Canterbury with the Marlow Theatre and the culturally driven regeneration of Tontine Street in Folkestone are already reinforcing the Kent Coast’s appeal as a draw for creative industries and the arts - the coast becoming an international destination for water sports and recreation.

Sir Terry finished by saying that this was just the beginning of a wider piece of work which will be further enriched and shaped by conversations with stakeholders and the wider community.

I came away with lots to think about and a folder full of well produced supporting literature. I realise that any vision of worth cannot be achieved overnight - but it is very important to work towards the vision and not be pulled off course. This will need buy in by all residents and businesses and that means the vision must be compelling and believable.

Something Sir Terry said earlier in the presentation struck a note and that was when change is significant and generally over a period of time folk will often deny there is any change - complaining that ‘nothing is happening’ or ‘nothing ever changes’.  It struck a note with me because I have heard that said so many times by local people. And yet, if you stand back and recall what Tontine Street looked like 5 years ago - you will notice that it has changed significantly - and in another 5 years it will probably not be recognisable as the same street. Shepway people have waited a long time for things to start getting better - we need to be patient because little bit by little bit it will happen. Or summarised simply by this statement from one of the publications:

“Think long term, plan for the future, take many small steps and hold true to the vision”.

Read ’21st Century’ (PDF, 4mb) here.

Jan Holben

Councillor for SDC

Related articles by Zemanta

• Radical sea defence rethink urged (news.bbc.co.uk)
• The Secret Garden for sale (telegraph.co.uk)

I was invited to the opening of Momo House on Tontine Street yesterday evening and what a pleasure it was. This new Nepalese restaurant does not pander to the British palette sticking to original Nepalese dishes untouched to satisfy the western palette.

The owners are very hospitable and friendly. One can order the whole menu for a mere £60.00 The food comes out in Tapas style dishes which makes it great for sharing. A group of 4 can eat out for £15.00 a head.

Another great addition to Tontine Street.