Category: Local News

It’s been a long time coming with plenty of speed bumps along the way but the Alice in Wonderland Llandudno app has finally been made available to the public. The wonderful seaside town now has more than a Liddell bit of a connection to the popular Lewis Carroll tale.

The app gives visitors the opportunity to virtually impose Wonderland’s vivid characters into the frame with them and it’s believed that this is the first interactive app of its kind in the United Kingdom. The creators and Conwy Council hope to have tourists from all over taking selfies with these fascinating avatars.

August should have seen the launch of the app but a calamitous misjudgement from the local council delayed the official unveiling. The statues, which could be analysed by the app had been painted over, meaning that it couldn’t be recognised. Plenty of scrambling around and one or two embarrassed looks later and the people of Llandudno can now see Wonderland come to life before their very eyes.

Simon Burrows, co-director of Alice in Wonderland Limited, which has co-ordinated the project, said: “People who use the app can look at Llandudno landmarks on screen, while characters from the Alice books tell the story behind them.

“It’s also possible to take a picture of yourself or your friends standing next to the Mad Hatter, the Cheshire Cat or Alice herself.”

Company director Barry Mortlock said: “I’ve lived in Llandudno for 36 years now, and it worried me that the town wasn’t doing enough in recent years to celebrate its links with the real life Alice.

“The app is now ready for next year’s important anniversary. It has the potential to attract more visitors from overseas, where there’s a huge interest in the Alice in Wonderland stories.”
Graham Rees, Conwy council’s cabinet member for tourism, said: “This will be a huge asset to Llandudno and really enhance what we can offer to visitors.”

This newest development comes at a great time as next year sees the 150th anniversary of Alice in Wonderland’s release. You can bet that Llandudno will be full of fans when it rolls around!

You may have walked past it many times in Llandudno without realising what it is, but these new plans to revive Clare’s department store could see an end to that in the near future.

One of the seaside town’s most famous places to shop has had the spotlight taken from it in recent years because of the development of two shopping centres on the outskirts of Llandudno. Their upmarket selections have faltered in the face of more affordable competitors just down the road which has brought about this most recent development.

£100k is being pumped into the store to broaden the ranges and introduce more diversity in the hope of inspiring the casual customer to come in and buy. Fashion, accessories and homeware will be available from a boutique-esque setting and will also have Moda in Pelle’s new shoe department.
The changes have been put into place this Saturday just past (September 27th) and now it’s a case of seeing if this illustrious shop bringing back the attention it richly deserves. It has been open since 1927 and has gone through many transformations with this one, which also offers click & collect for customers, being the most ambitious for a long time.

It was originally an independent store selling china and all kinds of kitchenware opened by Robert Clare Baxter before his death in 1950 saw it fall into the hands of his family. Ulster Stores acquired the business back in 2002.

Clare’s managing director Neville Moore said: “Clare’s is one of the oldest businesses in Llandudno and dates back to 1927.

“In reinventing the store we have drawn on its heritage, adapting it to produce an exciting new shopping environment, where the new exclusive and premium brands will sit.

“While some retailers have reduced their footprint in the area we have made the decision to invest in our business and differentiate ourselves from other retailers in the region to provide customers with a shopping environment range of lifestyle brands more akin to London than Llandudno.

“In this way we believe we are primed to better serve our customers and importantly secure the businesses future.”

“Beautiful Mannequin Woman” by www.flickr.com/photos/epsos, license: creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0 – 29/09/2014

Whether they’re a small annoyance or quite the hindrance to you, there’s no denying that the seagulls in Llandudno are a boisterous bunch. After calls have come for the council to clamp down on their behaviour, it’s time to look at how you can stop them from being a nuisance.

Amidst some of the reports of gull attacks, you will usually expect to hear stories of some chips being stolen out of your hands as you eat. However, particularly when it comes to nesting season, gulls can become quite aggressive and even cause injury as one person on Twitter attested to:

“A seagull stole my food and left me with a bruised chest. I just never, ever carry food in my hand and always go and sit in my car to eat now.”

Although one or two isolated incidents by no means tarnishes all seagulls, residents and tourists to the town can do some simple things to try and pacify the gulls’ nature.

• Do NOT feed the seagulls. As you may expect, chips are not on the natural menu of any type of bird and feeding them will only encourage them.
• Tidy up your rubbish. It’s already common courtesy to not dispose of your rubbish on the floor and especially in an area such as Llandudno. Seagulls will often snap up any discarded food and give them cause to get greedy.
• Be wary near nesting season. Adult seagulls will get a little reckless to protect their chicks so be aware of any telltale signs of aggression.

There are also some things you can do concerning your household if you’re a resident of Llandudno. To ward off the birds in the past, North Waleians from other regions have sought out measures such as spiking and putting up nets in open spaces with a Conwy Council representative echoing that sentiment:

“If property owners are not happy with gulls nesting on their properties they can take steps to proof their properties against future nest building. It is permissible to destroy a nest or take or destroy eggs where all other avenues of control have been ruled out, but only in the interests of public health or safety.”

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“Seagulls in Llandudno” by www.flickr.com/photos/38099915@N07, license: creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.0 – 18/08/2014

The people of Llandudno came out in their hundreds over the weekend to commemorate those who served in World War I in a touching display of community.

Across the region, there were many people paying their respects to the fallen millions during what was once known as the “Great War” which took place from 1914-1918. Millions of soldiers were killed in the conflict and this weekend marked 100 years since Britain’s involvement began.

A special service of remembrance was held at the Holy Trinity Church which was attended by Mary Oliver of Glan Conwy who was wearing a special brooch made by her grandfather for her grandmother. George Langford created it for his wife during his time spent on the frontline.

“My mother was aged two and a half when my grandfather was killed in the Somme with the Royal Welch Fusiliers. When she was 80 we took mother to see his grave, which was very emotional. I have a picture of her wearing the brooch,” said Mary.

“George was a miner when he was 14 then came up here and married. When he was killed he was within two months of his 21st birthday. He’d been wounded earlier in the war and wore a badge on his uniform to show this.”

Also in Llandudno over the weekend of commemoration was a special walk from the North Wales branch of the Royal British Legion. Members young and old all took to the famous town’s streets to remember and it was one of many special occasions held over the weekend throughout the region.

Marched with veterans in North Wales @PoppyLegion parade in Llandudno this morning to commemorate First World War #wewillrememberthem

— Darren Millar (@DarrenMillarAM) August 3, 2014

“We believe that it would not be appropriate to commemorate, on a large scale, the start of what was to become the greatest loss of life we have ever known,” a spokesman for the group said.

“However, we also believe that everyone should be reminded of the start of this terrible conflict.”

Tonight (Monday 4th of August) brings remembrance events throughout North Wales including a candle lit vigil in Ruthin, a service at St Peter’s Church in Ruthin and a ceremony from the North Wales Police in Colwyn Bay.

“British War Medal Rotherham Royal Marine Killed 1916″ by www.flickr.com/photos/chrisfp, license: creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0 – 04/08/2014

Though it might have appeared a brave decision when first announced in the midst of a recession, it has turned out to be a great one to build 182 new houses in the Victoria Park scheme over 5 years of hard work.

£24.5m was spent on bringing 182 new homes to Llandudno Junction and they aren’t going dormant either – 30 houses a year have been sold since work started in 2009. After the final house was sold, it was announced that the project had brought in £5million to the local economy and a further £1million in council tax from the new homeowners over the past half-decade.

In addition, the scheme has also provided 100 construction jobs and has been a huge boost to the profile of the area. Llandudno Junction is most commonly associated with its train station and not much else so this is a great step towards it gaining a better image, especially after the recent shops opening and businesses starting up.

Aberconwy AM Janet Finch-Saunders said: “They have certainly provided much needed investment and infrastructure here within the constituency of Aberconwy.

“People don’t tend to realise the value of a development like this to the local economy – it has actually taken £24.5 million in investment and we need more of it.

“It’s fair to say that this development has Macbryde’s name (the company behind the builds) which is a quality name. The fact that the houses have sold throughout says a lot about the developer.

“It also says a lot about where people actually want to come to live and I’m delighted with the number of houses here now and this development is going to bring over 300 people in to Aberconwy who’ve chosen to live and work here.”

Let’s hope that Llandudno’s smaller brother continues to have more success in the future and that stories like this are reported more often!

There’s a lot more than meets the eye to Llandudno.

As one of the most popular tourist destinations throughout Wales, Llandudno has thousands of eager visitors walk on its shores and busy streets each year in no small part thanks to its long and rich heritage.

A heritage that includes these 5 surprising facts – we didn’t even know about them before we did our research!

 

1. It inspired Alice in Wonderland

Well, partly.

Legend has it that Alice Liddell, the inspiration for Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland, would often frequent the town with her family for a holiday but the exact details and facts remain unclear.

This hasn’t stopped town officials from erecting statues dedicated to the much beloved series of novels and no matter how tenuous the link may be, locals and tourists embrace the lore nonetheless.

 

2. There are many shipwrecks in Llandudno Bay.

Over 30 of them, to be exact.

Due to the less than great conditions and lack of assistance that many sailors and merchants had to endure, Llandudno Bay is the final resting place for many unfortunate souls.

The Phoenix is believed to be the largest wreck located in the bay and the warship is estimated to have crashed as far back in 1642.

 

3. Llandudno could have been called Port Wrexham

That is, if St George’s Harbour & Railway Company had their way.

Llandudno was once seen as little more than an export base for the then wildly popular Denbighshire coal as it was a one horse town back in the day.

However, thanks to Lord Mostyn, the proud town is now one of the jewels of the Welsh crown and is known as the Queen of Welsh Resorts for good reason!

 

4. The pier is home to one of the oldest Punch & Judy shows

And it’s still going strong to this day.

Many people come to Llandudno Pier every summer to enjoy one of the oldest Punch & Judy shows still going on and all signs point towards it being one of the first anywhere, coming in at 150 years old.

Richard Codman was the genius behind the new show and his original puppets and theatre are still used today! If it ain’t broke…

 

5. There’s a Llandudno in South Africa

It’s even named after the coastal town too!

“Parish of Saint Tudno” is the translation of Llandudno and is so named in South Africa after the similarities between the two areas were obvious.

Located on the seaboard of the Cape Peninsula in Cape Town, it’s home to one of the famous Cape’s most stunning beaches and with a population of just 570, is a really quaint place to holiday in.

Now if we could only find a way to share the same weather as well…

There isn’t any opinionated bias in this article’s title – the people of Wales have voted our beautiful seaside town of Llandudno as the best place to stay throughout the whole country.

The results have been measured by way of many hotels in the area making it into the top 20 best establishments in Wales with the large majority of them being made up of hotels based in Llandudno.

They’ve been rated as superior to some of the most famous places of accommodation throughout Wales, including the likes of Newport’s Celtic Manor Resort and Morgan’s Hotel in Swansea. In fact, that pair didn’t even manage to rank, leaving Llandudno to claim 6 out of 10 spots in the pole positions.

The Wilton Hotel managed a respectable 9th thanks to its personable service and charming décor, the much-loved Tynedale Hotel came in 5th, the Clontarf scooped 4th, The Wellington deserved its 3rd place finish, Can-Y-Bae was just pipped to the number one spot and last year’s winning hotel kept its accolade also.

Castlebank Hotel of Conwy also managed 6th position, meaning that it was a resounding success for North Wales businesses as Southern hotels were definitely found wanting. Llandudno was also voted in the top 10 of the best places to stay throughout the whole of the UK, giving a huge boost to its desirability as a tourism hotspot.

“It’s great to see a mix of hotels in Wales’ top 20 from bargain hotels through to luxury 5 star establishments. This diverse list proves that a great hotel isn’t always predicted on price,” said TripAdvisor spokesman James Kay, the review aggregator behind the statistics.

Users of TripAdvisor are frequently kind to establishments throughout North Wales and deservedly so – if you’re yet to take a holiday here, why not come and see what all the fuss is about soon?

Recent reports have revolved around calls for the Llandudno beach to become a sandy one in an attempt to keep in competition with the coasts of nearby towns.

Currently, visitors and locals can enjoy a mainly stone beach in the historic area in an effort to boost sea defences at the expense of accessibility for all. However, after the recent storm, some of the stones have been washed away which has led to requests from many corners to bring back sand to the thriving coastline, despite the costs which could amount to millions of pounds.

The calls to action have been so immense over the past couple of weeks that a Facebook group first set up by Mike and Alison Shields now has more than 1700 members. People turned up in plenty of numbers to make their feelings known at a recent public meeting near Llandudno’s bandstand.

Alison on the subject: “I’m a local – born and bred in Llandudno – and I spent the majority of my childhood on North Shore on the sand. I know only too well how beautiful the beach was.

“This isn’t just about the townspeople of Llandudno – this is about the visitors that come to visit our town. It’s going to kill our tourism.”

With all this fierce opposition to contend with, Cllr Mike Priestly of the Conwy cabinet said: “Some people were saying we need to bring back a beach and what will hold that in place is old wooden groynes.

“No-one in their right mind is going to give you millions and millions of pounds to do that knowing what evidence there is to keep that sand in place.

“To get that evidence you’re going to have to model what your proposals are. To model those proposals it’s going to cost tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of pounds.”

In late last year and early 2014, the Welsh Governement had agreed to assist with the repair costs for the recent damages to the North Shore and Deganwy Promenade. However, many locals of the town will no doubt be hoping that the powers that be can open their purse strings a little bit more.

“llandudno beach” by www.flickr.com/photos/brianac37, License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/