Editorial
I
took this picture this morning in St Ann ’ s Well while Harry and Polly were looking for the squirrels . It was about 7.30am . We ’ d been up for so long it was practically tomorrow . And where were the idiot rodents ? Still in bed , nibbling their nuts . Anyway . The sky is clear and blue . The air crisp and still cold . The ground is muddy , but through the mud , the crocuses , all blue and white , have broken through . The trees look bare but there are small buds peeking out , just about to bloom .
Spring . Thank God for that . I blimmin hate winter . Wet , cold , dark . I don ’ t buy into that “ Oh , it ’ s part of the natural cycle ” stuff at all . Give me 12 months all called June and I ’ m happy . Winter . Not a fan . I love spring . Buds everywhere . Everything is on the cusp .
And so to this month ’ s exciting electric car news . This month we ’ re not going to have a moan about ordinary cars taking the electric spots , we ’ re going to talk about Blink , the company that runs all the chargers in our green and pleasant city . When I say “ runs all the chargers ”, what I really mean is “ mans all the phones you have have to call to say that the charger isn ’ t working ”.
This week , they pulled a special stunt . They changed the app you have to use - no , of course they didn ’ t say - so when it ’ s late and dark and cold and you ’ ve just driven around using your precious few last miles looking for one of the few chargers and you find one
that ’ s free - OK , it ’ s nearer Doncaster than Buckingham Road , but it ’ s a charger and some idiot Ford Fiesta isn ’ t sitting there - it doesn ’ t work because you ’ re using the old app . It ’ s a fantastic ruse , must have taken ages to come up with . Credit where it ’ s due .
Just a word about The Brighton Festival . It ’ s the biggest arts festival inEngland and is something that we ’ re rightly proud of ( it ’ s a bit of a nuisance that everything ’ s in May , but that ’ s another story ). More details and stories about the Festival can be found on our website , but in the interests of supporting the home team , I just though I ’ d give a should out to “ Beside The Sea ” a photography exhibition put on by Martin Parr and JJ Waller , whose work adorns our cover the month . Billed as “ an exhibition that can only be seen from the top of a bus ” ( Sat 3 – Mon 26 May , https :// brightonfestival . org / whats-on / XCB-beside-the-sea /).
Looks lovely - just don ’ t sell Mitoma to pay for it
April 1 has , until now , been known for one thing . It ’ s a date which is lodged in everyone ’ s calendar as The Whistler ’ s editor ’ s wedding anniversary , but this year there ’ s something else .
This year it ’ s also the date The Terrace at the Amex Stadium opens . ( As presents go , it ’ s up there , but by now we know Tony Bloom doesn ’ t do things by halves ). As chance would have it , we ’ re also playing Aston Villa on April 1 .
The Terrace , for those of you who aren ’ t Seagulls fans , is the large piece of scaffolding that has , for months , stared down at us while we ’ ve been wondering whatever happened to Dick ’ s Bar .
Officially “ The Heineken Fan Zone at The Terrace ”, it ’ s “ a brand-new digital sports bar experience that will be open for longer hours pre and post-match for supporters coming to the game ”. Which is nice . The indoor / outdoor space for up to 3,000 people makes it the biggest in the Premier League . There ’ ll be food by
Steven Edwards from etch ., chicken from Lost Boys Chicken , Asian fusion , melts , vegetarian / vegan options . Something for everyone .
There ’ s a day ’ s entertainment lined up from 12noon , including live music and a DJ -
whoever that may be - set . No , me neither . It all looks fantastic though , just the thing to welcome those fans from Europe who ’ ll be coming to visit next season . See https :// www . brightonandhovealbion . com / for details