New pedestrian lights near Aldi now working. Other pedestrian lights suffer power cut.

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The new pedestrian lights, installed near the Aldi store on the Wootton Road a couple of months ago, have been turned on. Pedestrians from the Kings Gate estate now have a safe crossing. The lights may also help traffic turning right out of the Aldi and Kings Gate junctions.

On Sunday, at around noon, pedestrian lights on Ock Street were not working. A burglar alarm siren screamed on Ock Street. More burglar alarms were shrieking through the brewery development. When we got home, the clock on the oven was blinking. There had been a power cut.

We’re osing this bra h soon

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A few days remain until the Lloyds Bank in Ock Street will close.

Lloyds will remove the ATM, night safe, and other bank equipment. The business part of the building at the front will become smaller and may suit a start-up. The rest of the building will become 8 one-bedroom flats. The flat roof extension at the back of the building will be knocked down and rebuilt bigger. The front of the building will stay mostly the same (Grade II Listed).

Football Dreams and Reality

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A surge in England flags came in the days between semi-final and final

Sunday’s newspapers had a wrap-around advert with a patriotic twist. A ‘T’ was designed to resemble the England flag. It said, ‘Every Fan Helps’.  Tesco Express closed at 7:30pm so more fans could watch the match. The Co-op did the same.

Following England’s Euro Cup final loss, Monday’s headlines were: ‘Next Time, Boys’, ‘Shattered’, and ‘You did us proud’. The dramatic Trump assassination attempt in the US was mostly on the inside pages.

Elsewhere, thoughts turned to the summer holidays.

Caldecott Rec. was busy on Saturday as coaches celebrated last season’s successes by awarding trophies and describing the development of their young players. While no local lads made it into the England team this time, they can dream!

Uncover the Secrets of the Iron Age!

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From Saturday 6th July to Sunday 29th September, Abingdon County Hall Museum will take you back to the Iron Age!

Before the Romans, from around 50 BC to 50 AD, where the centre of Abingdon is now, there was a protected settlement called an ‘Oppidum‘ (Latin for Town). Iron Age Oppidum towns could be surrounded by ditches for fortification. When people were excavating near the old station and near West St Helen Street, they found what they thought were Oppidum-style ditches.

Before developing the Ashville Trading Estate in Abingdon, archaeologists discovered an even older Iron Age settlement that pre-dated the Oppidum.

At the exhibitions are information boards to explain:
* Iron Age
* Iron Age Abingdon before the Oppidum
* Abingdon’s ‘Oppidum’
* Iron Age Coins
* Weapons and a sword found in the Thames
* Jewellery, skin decoration, and clothes
* Pottery
* Food
* Rituals and burials

There’s also a video about recent discoveries near Wittenham Clumps where iron slag and iron offcuts could be evidence of an Iron Age blacksmith.