The Steeple Times

Tag: Order of the British Empire

  • Talking Claudia Lawrence – ‘Crime Suspect’ on Talk TV 2024

    Talking Claudia Lawrence – ‘Crime Suspect’ on Talk TV 2024

    Matthew Steeples on discussing the disappearance of Claudia Lawrence fifteen years ago in York on TalkTV’s ‘Crime Suspect’ with esteemed former detective Peter Bleksley

    Earlier this month, I returned to News UK’s headquarters next to The Shard in London to be a guest, for the second time after appearing in February to discuss the ongoing Madeleine McCann case, on Peter Bleksley’s deservedly respected TalkTV Crime Suspect show.

     

    This time focused on the fifteenth anniversary of the literal ‘vanishing’ of a 35-year-old chef named Claudia Lawrence in the Heworth area of York, I appeared alongside the renowned criminologist and author Professor James Treadwell, the former police inspector and visiting lecturer at Leeds Trinity University Martin Holleran and the journalist and author of Gone: The Disappearance of Claudia Lawrence and Her Father’s Desperate Search for the Truth Neil Root.

     

    Aired first on TalkTV’s terrestrial and YouTube channels on the 5th April, the 21:22-minute version on the latter has been viewed nearly 130,000 times to date and focused on the key question: “Could there still be someone out there who knows what happened to the 35-year-old chef?”

     

    Aged just 35 at the time she disappeared into thin air on either the night of 18th March or the morning of the 19th March 2009, here is a case in which North Yorkshire Police – to date – have performed over 48 video recorded interviews under caution, but come to utterly no conclusion.

     

    Having similarities to the case of the also ‘vanished’ Australian Marion Barter in that no real evidence of her having ‘existed’ after the 19th March 2009 has ever come to light, I focused my commentary on Crime Suspect on the media portrayal of Claudia Lawrence and asked: “Would she have been made out to have been promiscuous and a drunk if she had been a man?”

     

    As has also been pointed out by Joan Lawrence, the likely victim of murder’s mother, who has subsequently received an OBE for her efforts in bringing about the passing of the Guardianship (Missing Persons) Act 2017 – which modified the law in order to allow the appointment of guardians for the affairs of missing people – the “intense” and “vicious stories” about what might have occurred helped nobody.

     

    In Claudia Lawrence: A Mother’s Story, a four-part series first aired on the BBC in March this year, the problems of allowing untruths about what actually occurred to be spread is further explained, but what is now required is for a community to come together and to finally realise that it is time to put aside past allegiances. It is time to do justice for this missing-for-fifteen-years lady and her family.

     

    To watch the full-length version of the Claudia Lawrence ‘Crime Suspect’ programme on TalkTV, click here.

    Follow Peter Bleksley on Twitter at @PeterBleksley, Martin Holleran at @Future110, Neil Root at @NEILROOTWriter and Professor James Treadwell at @James_Treadwell.

     

    Editor’s note – Unlike as is the case in many publications, this article was NOT sponsored or supported by a third-party. Follow Matthew Steeples on Twitter at @M_Steeples and watch his current nightly show on YouTube at 8.30pm daily.

     

    A message from our editorial team – Thank you for reading this article. We’re more reliant on your support than ever as the shift in consumer habits brought about by coronavirus and the cost-of-living crisis impacts our advertisers. If you haven’t already, please consider supporting our trusted, fact-checked journalism by supporting our work via Patreon.

     

    The YouTube version of the show; for a longer version first shown on TalkTV’s terrestrial channel, click here.
    On Twitter, Matthew Steeples asked: “It’s been 15 years since chef Claudia Lawrence vanished into thin air in Heworth, York. What do you think happened to her?” He added the hashtags: #ClaudiaLawrence #Heworth #York #Yorkshire #chef #missingpeople #missing #vanish #vanished #murder #accident #death #strangecases #ClaudiasLaw #anniversary and offered four options. 78.7% of respondents favoured the answer: “Killed, someone she knew” whilst only 6.5% believe that she “disappeared” seeking a “new life.”
    Claudia Lawrence vanished
    Claudia Lawrence was born on 27th February 1974 in Malton in the North Riding of Yorshire. She vanished on either the evening of the 18th March 2009 or the morning of 19th March 2009 in Heworth, York. She has never been seen or heard from again since.
    Claudia Lawrence disappearance mind map
    A mind map produced by Matthew Steeples about the case. Whilst it is just a starting point, it illustrates the links between different members of the community of Heworth, York and the presumed victim of murder most likely. It is now time for members of that community to think of justice and reexamine their allegiances; time has passed and surely now, it is time for those that clearly know to finally tell the truth about what occurred on 18th March 2009.
    Crime Suspect Peter Bleksley James Treadwell Neil Root Matthew Steeples Martin Holleran
    ‘Crime Suspect’ aired its programme about the vanished-likely-murdered chef on 5th April 2024 with Peter Bleksley as host. The daughter of a solicitor and town mayor has been missing now for over 15 years and not one trace of her has been found to date.
    The Nag's Head Heworth
    During the programme, there was much discussion of Miss Lawrence’s activities at a pub just six doors from her home, The Nag’s Head in Heworth, as well as at other hostelries she frequented.
  • Runners & Riders – The Coral-Eclipse 2020

    Runners & Riders – The Coral-Eclipse 2020

    ‘The Steeple Times’ takes a look at the seven horse Group 1 Coral-Eclipse 2020 at Sandown and opts for a tasty outsider for an each way bet

    As was remarked on Twitter last night by our editor Matthew Steeples: “Serpentine’s owner’s son says he ‘just ran for fun’ in The Derby. The rest of the horses didn’t run for toffee.”

     

    Other than the winner, it was a hugely disappointing spectacle, but in the equally shaken up The Oaks thanks to a late tip, we did manage and each way second place with Ennistymon at 6/1.

     

    Today, it is an even harder call Coral-Eclipse 2020 at Sandown at 3.35pm with just 7 very impressive runners (out of a potential maximum of 17) in this 1 mile, 1 furlong and 209 yard race. Given that the battle for first is impossible to call at this stage – it is most definitely Enable (the 2019 winner) vs. Ghaiyyath according to the majority of tipsters with less of a threat from Japan – we are looking at a second for:

     

    EACH WAY 3.35pm – Sandown Park – Oisin Murphy ridden, Mitsuru Hashida trained Deirdre at 22/1.

    Templegate for The Sun says: “Deirdre won the Nassau Stakes at Glorious Goodwood last season so is proven at this level. She hasn’t run for four months so is entitled to need this and will come on for the outing.”

     

    Racing Post adds: “Won last year’s Nassau; needs a career best to land this prize.”

     

    At The Races concludes: “Japanese mare Deirdre cannot be discounted.”

     

    We hope you had a most enjoyable ‘Super Saturday’ yesterday and today we again wish you a happy day’s racing in the Coral-Eclipse 2020.

     

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    Runners & Riders – The Coral-Eclipse 2020 – ‘The Steeple Times’ takes a look at the seven horse Group 1 Coral-Eclipse 2020 at Sandown and opts for a tasty outsider for an each way bet on Oisin Murphy on Deirdre.
    The Coral-Eclipse was first run in 1886 and it was originally funded by Leopold de Rothschild. Lester Piggott, to date, has been its leading jockey, winning seven times between 1951 and 1977. In 1987, Piggott was stripped of his OBE and jailed for three years for tax fraud and later moved to Switzerland with his partner Lady Barbara FitzGerald.
    Runners & Riders – The Coral-Eclipse 2020 – ‘The Steeple Times’ takes a look at the seven horse Group 1 Coral-Eclipse 2020 at Sandown and opts for a tasty outsider for an each way bet on Oisin Murphy on Deirdre.
    Punters will be hoping it won’t be a case for a need to “Free The Weatherfield One” Deirdre Barlow style for the Toji Morita owned sire of Harbinger Deirdre in the Coral-Eclipse 2020 today. Back in 1998, one viewer sent in £5,000 to what she believed was a genuine campaign to free the ‘Coronation Street’ character Deirdre Rachid after she was wrongly jailed for mortgage and credit card fraud whilst her conman lover Jon Lindsay walked free.
  • Penny Streeter OBE (née Penny Stiff)

    Penny Streeter OBE (née Penny Stiff)

    A classic ‘rags to riches’ tale is that of Penny Streeter. Born in what was then Rhodesia, this police superintendent’s daughter came to England when she was 12 and worked on Margaret Thatcher’s Youth Training Scheme and in Pizzaland at the age of 16. She went into business with her mother at 22, went bust and after ending up living in a homeless refuge with her children, worked her way back and launched what has become A24 Group, a healthcare recruitment agency in 1995. By 2002, this hard-working woman’s company was the “fastest-growing company in the UK” and in 2019, she was listed as being worth £208 million in The Sunday Times ‘Rich List.’ Streeter and her husband now own a vineyard in South Africa and a winery in Horsham, West Sussex. We say: Cheers to her!

  • Rotten Rolf

    Rotten Rolf

    As convicted paedo Rolf Harris walks free from court and his nutty supporters once again reveal themselves, it must be remembered he is still a convicted abuser of girls as young as eight

     

    Rolf Harris might well have walked free from court on Monday after a jury failed to reach a verdict on historical assault charges against three teenagers, but the public should remember one thing: This monster is still a monster and he is still a man convicted of 12 counts of indecent assault on victims as young as 8 years old.

     

    Outside the court and once again failing to show an ounce of compassion to those he had previously been jailed for molesting, a spokesman for Harris read out a statement. In it, Harris remarked:

     

    “While I’m pleased that this is all I over I feel no sense of victory, just relief. I’m 87 years old, my wife is in ill health and we simply want to spend our remaining time together in peace”.

     

    Rightly stripped of his MBE, OBE and CBE, the former television presenter and shockingly bad performer – best known for now seemingly rather inappropriate renditions such as Two Little Boys – should now do the decent thing. ‘Rotten Rolf’ should simply fade into obscurity and forever be consigned to social Siberia.

     

    Elsewhere, on Change.org, loopy ‘fans’ of the paedophile took the opportunity to brag about the verdict on a page titled: “A man who is innocent and knows he is innocent”. One, Cardiff based, Milford Haven School educated Sally Roberts, ridiculously commented: “This is as good as an innocent verdict considering there was no evidence to prove either way” before delusionally adding: “And an appeal over his first trial is imminent!!”

     

    Pictured above: Paedophile Rolf Harris with his “tireless [or ‘blind to his guilt’] supporter”, niece Jenny Harris.

     

    Rotten Rolf – Paedo Rolf Harris might be free but he’s still a paedo
    Rolf Harris was mobbed by the media as he left court with Jenny Harris on Tuesday 30th May 2017

  • A Kinky Car

    A Kinky Car

    1960 Bentley S2 currently owned by musician Sir Ray Davies to be auctioned; he wrote the hit song ‘Apeman’ on its back seat

     

    A 1960 Bentley S2 owned but rarely used by Sir Ray Davies CBE – best known for hits with The Kinks that included You Really Got Me and All Day and All of the Night – is to be sold at auction in May.

     

    Presented in unrestored condition after having been left in storage since 1991, the 6.2-litre car was purchased by the musician in 1970 and previously belonged to George Greenfield – agent to Enid Blyton, John le Carré, Sir Francis Chichester, Sir Ranulph Fiennes OBE, Sir Rex Harrison, Sir Stirling Moss and David Niven.

     

    Of the black with red leather interior car, the musician once remarked:

     

    After success the success of ‘Lola’ I was persuaded by my family to invest in a big car, which was unusual for me because I did not drive. However, I succumbed to the pressure and purchased a second-hand Bentley from Hadleigh Green Garage in Barnet… My (then) wife drove it on my behalf because as I previously mentioned I was unable to drive.


    We lived in a little semi in Muswell Hill and the neighbours were in shock and awe when they saw this huge black Bentley drive up along the narrow shingle path to the house. We subsequently went on a family holiday in the Bentley to Cornwall. While on our holiday in Mullion I sat in the back seat of the Bentley and wrote a follow up to Lola called ‘Apeman’ on the Spanish guitar which I carried in the back.


    The Kinks used it in a photo shoot for the ‘Preservation’ album and it still exists in some old black and white footage of us posing as gangsters outside KONK studios.


    When I moved to Surrey in the 1970s the car came down with me, I still could not drive and I was forty-four before I tried for my licence. It was occasionally taken out for special events like weddings and family outings. The Kinks took it on the road in England but the fans started writing on the car with lipstick and our (then) manager Ken Jones promptly retired my car to the garage.

     

    Silverstone Auctions have placed an estimate of £25,000 to £30,000 ($32,000 to $39,000, €29,000 to €35,000 or درهم118,000 to درهم142,000) on the vehicle. They will sell it at Silverstone Circuit in Northamptonshire on 13th May.

     

    Of the classic car, Arwel Richards of Silverstone Auctions told ClassicCars.com: “It is rare to auction a car direct from rock royalty, and this Bentley offers an incredible opportunity for rock ‘n roll fans and Bentley aficionados alike”.

     

    A Kinky Car – Sir Ray Davies owned 1960 Bentley S2 to be auctioned by Silverstone Auctions at Silverstone Circuit, Northamptonshire on 13th May 2017 with an estimate of £25,000 to £30,000 ($32,000 to $39,000, €29,000 to €35,000 or درهم118,000) – Previously owned by literary agent George GreenfieldA Kinky Car – Sir Ray Davies owned 1960 Bentley S2 to be auctioned by Silverstone Auctions at Silverstone Circuit, Northamptonshire on 13th May 2017 with an estimate of £25,000 to £30,000 ($32,000 to $39,000, €29,000 to €35,000 or درهم118,000) – Previously owned by literary agent George GreenfieldA Kinky Car – Sir Ray Davies owned 1960 Bentley S2 to be auctioned by Silverstone Auctions at Silverstone Circuit, Northamptonshire on 13th May 2017 with an estimate of £25,000 to £30,000 ($32,000 to $39,000, €29,000 to €35,000 or درهم118,000) – Previously owned by literary agent George GreenfieldA Kinky Car – Sir Ray Davies owned 1960 Bentley S2 to be auctioned by Silverstone Auctions at Silverstone Circuit, Northamptonshire on 13th May 2017 with an estimate of £25,000 to £30,000 ($32,000 to $39,000, €29,000 to €35,000 or درهم118,000) – Previously owned by literary agent George GreenfieldA Kinky Car – Sir Ray Davies owned 1960 Bentley S2 to be auctioned by Silverstone Auctions at Silverstone Circuit, Northamptonshire on 13th May 2017 with an estimate of £25,000 to £30,000 ($32,000 to $39,000, €29,000 to €35,000 or درهم118,000) – Previously owned by literary agent George GreenfieldA Kinky Car – Sir Ray Davies owned 1960 Bentley S2 to be auctioned by Silverstone Auctions at Silverstone Circuit, Northamptonshire on 13th May 2017 with an estimate of £25,000 to £30,000 ($32,000 to $39,000, €29,000 to €35,000 or درهم118,000) – Previously owned by literary agent George GreenfieldA Kinky Car – Sir Ray Davies owned 1960 Bentley S2 to be auctioned by Silverstone Auctions at Silverstone Circuit, Northamptonshire on 13th May 2017 with an estimate of £25,000 to £30,000 ($32,000 to $39,000, €29,000 to €35,000 or درهم118,000) – Previously owned by literary agent George GreenfieldA Kinky Car – Sir Ray Davies owned 1960 Bentley S2 to be auctioned by Silverstone Auctions at Silverstone Circuit, Northamptonshire on 13th May 2017 with an estimate of £25,000 to £30,000 ($32,000 to $39,000, €29,000 to €35,000 or درهم118,000) – Previously owned by literary agent George GreenfieldA Kinky Car – Sir Ray Davies owned 1960 Bentley S2 to be auctioned by Silverstone Auctions at Silverstone Circuit, Northamptonshire on 13th May 2017 with an estimate of £25,000 to £30,000 ($32,000 to $39,000, €29,000 to €35,000 or درهم118,000) – Previously owned by literary agent George Greenfield

  • Miriam Margolyes OBE

    Miriam Margolyes OBE

    In April 2017, esteemed actress Miriam Margolyes described Theresa May as “that awful woman” and hinted that she had little-to-any enthusiasm for Jeremy Corbyn’s “hell of a mess” also. In the same interview, in her “distinctive voice”, she added: “It is the job of the arts to engage in life… That’s what I care about”. She is best known for having won a BAFTA for her role in Martin Scorsese’s The Age of Innocence in 1993 but is famous to younger audiences for having appeared in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets and Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows. A dual British-Australian citizen and humanitarian advocate, Oxford born Margolyes also played the self-made cosmetics billionairess Helena Rubinstein in 2017 and lives with her partner, Heather Sutherland, in London, Tuscany and New South Wales.

  • Professor Ken Howard OBE, RA

    Professor Ken Howard OBE, RA

    Ken HowardLondon born Ken Howard is renowned as a painter of scenes in London, Cornwall and Venice. (more…)

  • Henry Blofeld OBE (AKA “Blowers”, “Tycoon” and “Typhoon”)

    Henry Blofeld OBE (AKA “Blowers”, “Tycoon” and “Typhoon”)

    Henry BlofeldThe legendary cricket commentator and author Henry Blofeld describes his world as “bubbly and boisterous”. (more…)

  • Doreen Lofthouse OBE MBE (AKA “Mrs Fisherman’s Friend”)

    Doreen Lofthouse OBE MBE (AKA “Mrs Fisherman’s Friend”)

    Doreen LofthouseCredited with taking Fisherman’s Friend global, Fleetwood based Doreen Lofthouse is modest, decent and unpretentious. (more…)

  • Moron of the Month: Gregory Lauder-Frost

    Moron of the Month: Gregory Lauder-Frost

    Matthew Steeples suggests Gregory Lauder-Frost, the vice president of the Traditional Britain Group, as the second The Steeple Times ‘Moron of the Moment’

    (more…)