2016: A year in pictures - July and August

Tuesday, July 5

SWINDON College was visited by a former student who went on to become one of the world’s biggest celebrities. Gilbert O’Sullivan had studied art there, and was a friend and contemporary of artist Ken White and future Supertramp star Rick Davies.

Gilbert achieved huge international stardom in the 1970s with hits such as Get Down and Alone Again (Naturally). His visit to Swindon College was part of a segment he filmed for The One Show, and he happily posed with a painting he had produced during his time as a student.

“I didn’t like school, but I loved the Art College,” he said.

Wednesday, July 6

SWINDON would lose 11 of its 15 libraries over the next year, the borough council announced. The plan, in a slightly modified form, would eventually be approved by the council in the face of widespread horror among the public.

Councillors advocating the plan suggested that pubs, clubs and assorted volunteers might apply for transitional funding to take over the functions of the threatened libraries.

The decision to go ahead flew in the face of petitions, demonstrations and letter-writing campaigns.

Wednesday, July 20

A WROUGHTON couple received a new garden ornament in the form of an aircraft towing truck.

The heavy machine rolled from a lorry which was transporting it, trundled briefly along High Street, knocked over an electricity pole and came to rest amid a jumble of bricks outside the home of Emma and David Turner.

Emma said: “I was in the bedroom at the time and I was aware of an engine labouring to get up the hill. Then I heard a car horn being sounded.

"It kept sounding and I thought that was very strange, so I went to the window and looked out and I saw the truck in my front garden.”

Thursday, July 28

FIRE ripped through the former Madison Hotel near the A419 in Swindon. The blaze was so serious that nine fire crews came from four counties to tackle it. They were sustained by sandwiches and drinks brought by staff from the nearby Sainsbury’s supermarket.

The Oxford Road hotel had closed in June of 2014, leaving about 30 staff jobless.

At the time, it had been announced that a buyer had yet to be finalised and negotiations were ongoing. Six young people were subsequently arrested on suspicion of arson, and the investigation continues.

Saturday, July 30

AMANDA Mularczyk and Adam Saunders, both 35, booked their wedding reception at South Marston Hotel and Leisure Club, only to learn less than 48 hours before the big day that the venue was to close and all 45 staff had been sacked.

The couple were naturally horrified, but reckoned without the kindness and decency of the affected staff.

In spite of having been thrown out of their jobs and forbidden to tell anybody about the impending closure, they saw to it that the reception went ahead. The building was owned by multi-millionaire Paul Cripps. Enraged local MP Justin Tomlinson demanded an inquiry into what he described as a catalogue of poor communication.

Saturday, August 6

THE Pokemon Go craze saw countless local young people – and a surprising number of adults – gazing intently at their phones as they pursued and captured virtual creatures.

When Christ Church in Old Town turned out to be a major hunting ground, it put out bottles of water for players to prevent them from becoming dehydrated in the hot weather.

Associate Minister the Rev Daphne Hardwick said: “It’s all about making people feel welcome and connecting with the community in a very practical way whilst at the same time demonstrating God’s love for them with the simple gift of a bottle of water.”

Wednesday, August 17

THERE was tragedy as holidaymaker Michael Doyle, 29, from Penhill, died in Bulgaria.

He had been struck three weeks earlier by severe stomach pains. The former Headlands School pupil was remembered by his many friends and loved ones as a kind, fun-loving and sociable young man whose passions included Celtic Football Club, horse racing and darts.

Before his death his family had been trying to raise the funds needed to bring him home, as it emerged that his travel insurance wouldn’t cover the costs. Close family were with him at the end.

Monday, August 15

SWINDON-born swimmer Jazz Carlin took silver medals in the 400m and 800m freestyle events at the Rio Olympics. Jazz, who turned 26 in September, had moved to Wales as a teenager but was a former member of Swindon’s Tigersharks swimming club.

Tigersharks head coach Lesley Leffers said: “She is hugely popular in the club still. When she comes down and trains with us she will get in the lane with a nine-year-old.

I cannot tell you how that makes them feel, to have someone like her in the same lane as them. She is an extremely kind and giving young lady.”

Thursday, August 18

MANY 80-year-olds find air travel tiring and taxing, even if they have the best seat. Former RAF member John Brown is not among them.

He decided to celebrate his 80th birthday strapped to the top wing of a Boeing Stearman biplane, raising sponsorship money for Wiltshire Air Ambulance in the process.

He said: “It was fantastic, exhilarating, just as I thought it would be. I thoroughly enjoyed it and wouldn’t have missed it for the world. When we last heard from Mr Brown, he was considering a bungie jump for his 85th.

Friday, August 19

THE private sector operators of Swindon’s Oasis Leisure Centre announced that the pool would be closing for a while. GLL said the measure was necessary to allow essential maintenance.

It was later revealed that Cryptosporidium, a bacteria which can cause up to three weeks of vomiting, nausea, dehydration and weight loss, had been discovered in the water.

The council said not all recent reported cases involved people who had been swimming – but it didn’t indicate how many had.