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Alex B Cann column: Back to the movies

Tameside Radio presenter Alex B Cann.

A return to the cinema, a bumper time for scammers, our town centres and a word on the recent elections - they're all packed into the Tameside Radio Breakfast presenter's latest offering...

We’ve almost reached another stage in the Government’s roadmap then. 

In some ways, it feels such a long time since that first lockdown began, and I was driving to work feeling pretty inadequate as a key worker compared to the likes of the health service and the police. 

Fast forward 14 months, and we all have our little bit of normality that we’re looking forward to. 

I have to admit I was overjoyed to receive an email from Cineworld Ashton confirming that the Big Screen is back next week. I just hope my first film after seven months is not Peter Rabbit 2.

I’ve been really enjoying catching up on my book mountain during the latest quiet spell, and hope to continue working my way through it without buying any more. 

If you’re looking for a crime fiction page turner, I can heartily recommend Snap by Belinda Bauer. A gripping plot which kept me guessing until the end, and I gather a whole lot more satisfying than the recent Line of Duty conclusion.

I was going to start watching that from the beginning, but after the avalanche of opprobrium heaped on the final episode, I think I’ll save myself approximately 36 hours for another book instead.

I’ve mentioned in this column before that I’m not in a great rush to get back to the pub, or go on holiday, but as I’ve said, I guess we all have our priorities.

Something that got me really cross lately was a story in this newspaper about a pensioner who was scammed out of thousands of pounds by a conman. This sort of thing really upsets me, as I imagine how I would feel if it was my mum or dad who they had conned.

The pandemic seems to have been a bumper time for scammers, in fact, with 15 times more online scams during 2020 compared to the year before. We’ve all had numerous texts purporting to be from DHL or the Royal Mail. Just click the handy link and give us all your bank details, and we’ll ask no more questions.

I’ve also read numerous stories about people being charged for vaccinations and all manner of other dodgy dealings. We all think we’re wise to these things, but it often just takes one wrong click on a dubious link to become yet another statistic. It’s frustrating more can’t be done to eliminate this stuff, but I guess we just all have to be super careful.

We reported recently that HSBC in Ashton is closing its customer service counter, which will become self service only. It’s easy to argue that no-one uses bank branches any more, but I worry about everything becoming automated. Are the likes of banking services not what bring people into town centres? Perhaps I’m living in the past, but I’m not sure shuttering them is progress.

Our town centres need reasons for people to visit. We’ve all got so used to buying everything online, it will take more than just the shops in my opinion to achieve this. The recent Artisan Market in Ashton was a great example of something new. If this goes well, on the final Saturday of the month, there is talk of it being extended to other towns. 

Experiences can’t be replicated online, and I love wandering through market stalls, with all the sights, sounds and smells. This is the sort of thing that might persuade people off their sofas.

I’m writing this whilst watching the Brit Awards 2021, and am reassured I know at least half of the artists nominated. 

It’s not quite 1989 though, when Sam Fox and Mick Fleetwood famously made a real hash of things and delighted viewers with their ineptitude. The surreal sight of Ronnie Wood presenting Best Newcomer to Bros was a real highlight.

Finally, a word about the recent elections. There were a couple of surprises in Tameside, and certainly a few more nationally. The question I think all parties need to consider is how to get the turnout figure up. So many people outside of the so-called ‘Westminster Bubble’ don’t have any affinity with politics at all, yet it affects every aspect of our lives. 

If you ever think your vote doesn’t matter, bear in mind one outcome had to be settled by the flip of a coin. Literally. But in spite of the lurid headlines, I still believe most politicians are in it for the right reasons.

You can listen to Alex every weekday from 7am to 11am and on the 'Super Scoreboard' show on Saturdays from 3pm to 7pm, on Tameside Radio 103.6FM

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