October 30, 2017 3.09 pm
This story is over 48 months old
Historic Lincoln Harlequin Gallery almost ready for new tenants after revamp
An iconic Steep Hill building in Lincoln has been spruced up ready to welcome a new business after the closure of its former rare book store. Questions were raised over future of the Harlequin Gallery building when trading of rare and second hand books ceased and scaffolding was hoisted up on the outside of the…
An iconic Steep Hill building in Lincoln has been spruced up ready to welcome a new business after the closure of its former rare book store.
Questions were raised over future of the Harlequin Gallery building when trading of rare and second hand books ceased and scaffolding was hoisted up on the outside of the City of Lincoln Council-owned property.
Since the beginning of September, contractors from local firm Gelder Group have been conducting specialist conservation and refurbishment works work in excess of £15,000.
The building was a former public house turned bookshop, which opened in the late 15th century and was known as the Harlequin & Columbine Theatre Inn before becoming the Harlequin Gallery Bookshop over 50 years ago.
The city council said previous tenants are completing a few finishing touches before the move and officers will begin taking enquiries from prospective firms.
Works included the rendering of external panels, timber frame and gutter repairs, external decoration and new leaded glass glazing.
Dave Gladwin, construction director at Gelder Group, said: “The Harlequin is a well-known and much-admired building in Lincoln and we were honoured to work on its refurbishment which has restored the Tudor building to its former glory, making ready for a new chapter in its history.
“Harlequin now has a new lease of life and I’m sure its new tenants, whoever they may be, will be delighted to be in such a historic and prominent building on Steep Hill.
“The building is as stunning on the inside as the outside and its sympathetic restoration captures its heritage perfectly.”
Helen Bedford from City of Lincoln Council, said: “We are very pleased to have worked with Gelder Group to ensure this restoration project is completed in a manner sympathetic to the age and status of this historic building.
“We are impressed and happy with the end result and, in particular, the work undertaken by specialist craftsmen who were employed to refurbish the plastered panels and glass work.”
Any businesses wishing to make enquiries about the property should contact [email protected]
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Weapon-enabled crime in our county is low in comparison to other parts of the country – but we are not complacent, and one knife is one too many.
Now, our communities can feel even more reassured about the safety of our streets following a successful week of action to reduce knife crime which saw more than 240 blades handed in to stations across the county.
As part of the Op Sceptre week of action, eight surrender bins were set up at stations in Boston, Skegness, Louth, Horncastle, Spalding, Grantham, Stamford, South Park, and resulted in 246 weapons being anonymously handed in, including swords, flick knives and other bladed banned under the Offensive Weapons Act. This type of opportunity enables weapons to be safely removed from the streets and out of the hands of potential offenders.
Officers across the Force also carried out 35 stop and searches, resulting in five knife-related arrests, and four weapons being recovered from someone carrying it on the street. They also made six further weapons-related arrests, recovering a further three knives.
Officers and PCSOs from our Neighbourhood Policing Teams also carried out five engagement events at secondary schools which engaged just over 500 young people and provided an opportunity to educate them around the law and the risks of carrying a weapon.
A sculptor living in Lincoln has two new wood carving creations that have given a new lease of life to old tree trunks in the city.
Christian Andreolli, 56, carved his latest creation using an oak tree that is a quarter of a century old, and hopes it can be used as a sculpture in Lincolnshire.
The design is called Farmlife and depicts a goat, pig and horses intertwined into one wooden sculpture that stands 3.2 metres high, after being carved out of a 4.1 tonne English oak tree trunk.
A look at the gigantic tree trunk Christian carved to create Farmlife. | Photo: Christian Andreolli
Christian said it took him 16 days to make the sculpture, using at least 20 chains to remove ingrown metal nails from the wood, dating back over 100 years.
He said of Farmlife: “This oak was slow grown with no fungus or other diseases, it had to go because it was too close to a house in Legsby.
“The buyer of the sculpture can now enjoy the view of the artwork for another hundred years, and I would be very happy to see it stay in the county as a landmark or eye-catcher.”
He hopes that this sculpture will end up staying in Lincolnshire when it is bought. | Photo: Christian Andreolli
He has previously made garden benches for pubs, carved monuments for Woodside Wildlife Park, and animal designs for private clients.
Christian’s hand sculpture was made for Lincoln business Signs Express, and it sits proudly outside its offices. | Photo: Christian Andreolli
This latest creation is also announced alongside another design of his, which is a three-metre high carving of a hand, for signage experts Signs Express in Lincoln.
The design sits proudly outside the firm’s offices on Wrightsway, and was carved using a three tonne ash tree trunk.
Christian pictured here with the finished product. | Photo: Christian Andreolli
To see more of Christian’s portfolio or to book him for commission of a sculpture, visit his website.
An ex-Royal Marine from Lincolnshire who has been a bodyguard for Russell Crowe, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie is hoping to break the stigma around self-defence and protect society from unprovoked attacks.
Dene Josham, 50, from Louth, set up Streetwise Defence around 15 years ago after years of being trained to deal with combat and aggressive situations, both as a doorman and a bodyguard for some of the Hollywood elite.
He has always taken a keen interest in boxing and martial arts, having fought at Lincoln Drill Hall in his earlier years, before pursuing a career as a Royal Marine.
Dene has been running Streetwise for around 15 years. | Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite
His time in the marines was cut short after he was hit by a car, which prompted a rethink for Dene, who then went on to do body guarding courses, before being trusted to protect local authorities, and eventually movie stars.
Dene’s most notable clients were Russell Crowe, who he chaperoned during the run for 2006 film A Good Year, and then Hollywood power couple Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie.
Dene has looked after some very famous people as a bodyguard, including Brad Pitt. | Photo: Streetwise Defence
“When Angelina was pregnant with the twins I was called over to work for the family,” Dene told The Lincolnite. “There was an $8 million reward for the first pictures of the twins to be captured, and it was my job to stop that from happening, which was a lot of responsibility.”
Dene on the red carpet with Russell Crowe. | Photo: Streetwise Defence
After a few years away in Libya and Iraq during his body guarding days, Dene had a rethink about Streetwise Defence and how he could better hone in on his craft, and that started with breaking a pretty important stigma surrounding self-defence.
He has huge plans for Streetwise, and hopes it can help people feel safer in everyday life. | Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite
He said: “Various incidents over the last couple of years in local and national media prompted me to develop the brand differently, but it’s important to show people the reality of what we are dealing with.
“99% of social violence can be de-escalated, so long as the psychology of someone is understood, so we focus more on addressing and noticing the red flags. A physical response is often the last resort.”
Dene showed us a few techniques, including palm striking and something called shredding, which can distract attackers for long enough to plan an escape. | Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite
The Lincolnite met up with Dene to try out some of his techniques and learn a bit about what his classes can show you about the potential risks of an attack and how you can be better prepared against them.
Dene’s self-defence classes don’t focus heavily on martial arts techniques, but are instead centred around the emotion behind incidents like unprovoked attacks, or how the target can respond in the face of danger.
Dene ran through some really handy tips for reporter Ellis Karran. | Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite
As well as detailing criminal law and ensuring people who come to his classes understand their rights, Dene also looks at using everyday household items that could come in handy at an urgent time of crisis.
Part of the session looks at prevention methods from items that can be carried in a bag, such as spray, alarms, lights and pens. | Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite
Dene told us during this session: “If we can understand human nature and behaviour, we can understand the reasons behind why things happen.
“It is also about being aware of your surroundings. Red flags to look out for include gestures, body language and how close someone gets to you, as the threat level naturally rises the closer someone gets to you.
“It’s sad that I have to be here doing these sessions, ideally people wouldn’t need my knowledge, but the fact of the matter is these things happen and they can happen to us all, so we need to be prepared for that eventuality.”
Dene explained to us that 90% of attacks come from people we know. | Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite
The sessions are for both men and women, but Dene recommends booking sessions for the same gender due to the sensitive nature of the topics that can be covered.
They last around three and a half hours with comfort breaks, and look into the mindset of an attacker, adrenaline switches, improvised weapons, how to stay safe and role playing scenarios, all to increase your self-defence skills.
A series of very handy tips and tricks to help prevent attacks, whether they are provoked or not. | Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite
When asked about the ultimate goal and mission of Streetwise Defence, Dene said: “Ideally we want to go into more schools and educate children on how they can keep safe in these situations.
“It’s all about dispelling the notion that people have, a preconceived idea on self-defence. Despite what others may teach, it’s more about human psychology than physicality. Everyone is driven by emotion, so it is important to understand that and take it into consideration when facing a scenario.
“Ultimately it can happen to anyone, so we want to teach you to investigate risks, and focus on awareness and avoidance, because these are survival skills that mean you don’t need to walk around feeling intimidated all the time.”
Streetwise Defence is available for all people, young and old, to better educate society on the dangers that criminal attacks can possess. | Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite
Streetwise Defence has teamed up with Rob Fulton and Andy Parr at Lincoln Grappling Coalition on Wavell Drive, offering their facilities as a space for lessons. They can also travel to companies, universities and schools for group classes.
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