onionbagblog

Here’s a letter that has been passed on to me, before being submitted to Richard Houghton, the Team Leader (Strategic Planning) of the Environment Agency, Anglian Coastal Authorities Group.

Phew - that’s quite a title, and one that deserves such a well-reasoned correspondence in relation to the continued vandalism of our natural Wivenhoe habitat by the EA.

I’m not one for letter writing, or even offering up templates for others to simply copy and paste and then pass on. But the sentiments below - penned by a very popular figure within the town - seem to capture perfectly the anger that many have felt over this issue.

There has still been no explanation as to why such a homogeneous national policy has been implemented so savagely within our unique Wivenhoe environment. The arguments are floored, contradictory and plain bad science.

The threat still remains that the diggers will return down to the front before the end of the month. The EA is coming close to its own deadline - whaddya reckon May Fair morning as when we first see (or maybe miss) the EA bully boys once again?

A very fine letter - many thanks for passing on…

Dear Mr Houghton,

I am writing to you regarding the advance notice just received by Wivenhoe Town Council of further vegetation clearance on sea defences which the EA plans to carry out in May, July and September / October of this year.

This represents a significant intensification of what is already regarded as controversial policy, with a radical aim of reducing all vegetation on sea defences to a bland monoculture of turf contravenes all standard policy on wildlife, biodiversity, landscape protection and public amenity.

In the case of Wivenhoe in particular, there is no evidence of damage to seawalls from either brushwood or rabbits, and the assessments in the Shoreline Management Plan make clear there is no problem with carrying out visual inspections. The seawalls downstream border a relatively sheltered stretch of the river Colne, and the seawalls upstream are protected by the Colne barrier.

In view of the damaging impact of this policy, I should be grateful if you could provide answers to the following questions:

Is it correct to assume that the current Sea Defence Vegetation Management programme is being applied to all 300 km. of seawalls in East Anglia which were subject to vegetation clearance in 2010-2011

What are the main drivers of this unprecedented top-down policy initiative? (Implemented in a one-size-fits-all manner, they appear to be mainly political and bureaucratic.)

How much of the annual EA budget for 2011-2012 is being allocated for this purpose? What will be the overall cost?

What is the scientific basis – i.e. published peer-reviewed papers - for adopting a policy which seeks to eliminate all woody growth from sea defences?

Who took the decision, and when was it decided (contrary to assurances received by Wivenhoe residents from EA officials in March) that three further clearance operations would take place in 2011?

Could you identify specific locations in Suffolk / Essex where rabbits have caused significant damage to sea walls?

Can you give an example of an Essex seawall that has failed due to the presence of ‘woody growth’?

Which bodies are monitoring the ecological impact of a regime of cutting up to three times a year – and what flora, apart from grasses, is expected to survive this treatment?

The original report of this management technique in last year’s RFDC minutes stated that you would be creating replacement habitat. Please could you report on your progress with this plan.

Has consideration been given to the likely impact of repeated use of heavy machinery on the structural integrity of seawalls?

And here’s the proposed sites for further sanctioned vandalism in the next round of destruction. Note: the red on the maps published below indicates the intended targets for destruction by the Environment Agency.

Alresford Creek North Bank

Alresford Creek South Bank

Wivenhoe Marsh Farm

Colne Barrier South

East Donyland

Wivenhoe Ferry Marsh

Published as part of the Keep Colchester Cycling project.

Did you catch the high-speed thrill of the Halford’s Tour Series on TV on Wednesday evening? ITV4 showcased the first round of criterium racing with Durham staging a demanding course, as well as something of a celebration of cycling.

It was all rather uplifting, presenting a healthy picture of both professional cycling in the UK, as well as the equally important grass roots support for a more sustainable transport policy around our towns and cities.

And here’s where Colchester comes in - next Thursday (2nd June) sees the Tour road show roll right into the centre of our hometown. We have blogged extensively over the past few weeks about the developments as the build up the Colchester criterium continues. We’ve even secured some hospitality tickets (hurrah!) and hope to catch up with some of the riders on the evening.

Meanwhile, Colchester Borough Council has just announced news of the programme of cycling events that will support the criterium next week. It is an incredibly well thought out and inclusive afternoon and evening of activities:

Castle Park will play host to an exciting afternoon of FREE cycling, sports and Olympic themed activity on Thursday 2 June culminating in a world-class cycling race as the 2011 Halfords Tour Series comes to town.

Head to Hollytrees Meadow, Castle Park to trial the amazing 54 metre Northshore mountain bike track. Bikes and helmets will be provided.

Budding BMX riders can freestyle on the BMX Park or brush up tricks with the skills sessions; bring your own bike!

Drop in on the Halfords Hub Arena where there will be all sorts of entertainment going on throughout the afternoon. Prepare to be amazed by the tricks and flips of Triple World Champion Ben Savage as he tackles the VooDoo Bikes Stunt Rig. There will be an opportunity to improve your cycle skills with some coaching from Ben himself.

Cllr Anne Turrell, Leader of Colchester Borough Council said: We are excited and thrilled to once again host this event. Colchester Borough Council, Essex County Council, the University of Essex, Colchester Institute and Sport England have joined together to deliver this spectacular event free, for the enjoyment of residents and visitors.”

Durham did rather in starting off the Tour Series, showing the way forward in how to simultaneously host and support the series. Here’s hoping that Colchester can deliver, and cycling in our town can become even more firmly established.

OK, Comrades - so here’s the calling card to signify that THE biggest weekend is almost upon us. I have some grubby fivers stashed away in the arse end of my jeans, a fridge full of Special Brew (blimey) and a weekend away ticket back to the mean streets of South London.

Only joking.

There is something of a mini May Fair fringe weekend, dahhhling, becoming established around Wivenhoe this year. Wilds horses wouldn’t keep me away - or even pneumonia, as is the case for a close friend that is coming to recuperate from a recent run of ill health by taking part in the Wivenhoe Run.

Good luck, fella.

But why wait until Bank Holiday Monday for all the madness to begin? The May Fair Fringe (NOT a haircut and NOT a phrase that you would be wise to repeat at The Station come closing time) starts on Thursday.

Where can you look for the highest cultural delights that can be found within Wivenhoe during a weekend when the whole town looks likely to fall over before the Bank Holiday comes crashing down?

How about some poetry?

Cripes.

Poetry Wivenhoe (or is it poetry wivenhoe, poetrywivenhoe or even poetrywivenhoe? These literary adjustments matter to the wordsmiths, apparently…) are putting on The Joy of Six.

I’ll ‘av a bit of that, thank you very much.

“The Joy of Six offer much more than a traditional poetry reading. Their vibrant multivoice performances blend five very different voices and styles into a seamless, unpredictable whole. Their style has been likened to a great jazz quintet, only with voices.”

Upstairs at The Greyhound, and another grubby fiver on the door should gain you entry on Thursday evening from 8pm.

The good folk of the Bookshop are staging the second of their Unplugged nights on Friday. This doesn’t mean a book reading with no words, but a very, very intimate acoustic performance in the back room across the sofa.

Hot Club / Tub Gitane will be performing, ahead of an appearance at the May Fair itself on the Sunrise Stage:

“The extraordinary Hot Club Gitane are purveyors of Manouche Jazz (Gypsy Jazz), and play an intriguing melange of Hot Club de Paris swing (Django / Grappelli) and French / German cafe standards of the 1930s / 1940s (Edith Piaf / Marlene Dietrich).”

Smells Like Teen spirit ropey covers probably aren’t included in the set. My sources tell me that only a few tickets are remaining, on sale at the Bookshop for the bargain price of a fiver.

But it’s not all about Gypsy Jazz.

Phew - Rock’n Roll and all that, which brings us nicely to Saturday evening and the Moving Image screening of The Runnaways. Billed as “an in-your-face look at teenage life and the rock scene in the 1970′s” - the setting of the Philip Road Centre seems perfect.

Essentially the story of Joan Jett, expect sex, drugs and rock ‘n roll. But probably not on the back row of the Philip Road Centre.

Assuming that the pneumatic friend is still standing, then it’s time to sit down once again on Sunday afternoon. Moving Image is staging a double bill, a feat in itself that requires stamina of epic rock ‘n roll proportions.

Separado! and Oil City Confidential are being screened, in a carefully thought out mini May Fair season of films that seems to fit the mood perfectly.

But sometimes you just need to get back to the music, man. Which is why I plan to shoot off down The Station (steady) sometime on Sunday evening to catch the very good Mr Mule and friends performing some Beatles covers.

Ace.

“There is a Beatle-ish gig at The Station Hotel, night before the May Fair. Probably about 8 to 8.30. I must point out here, that this is not MY band per se. It’s a fun occasional project. There are five of us, Roddy, Darryl, Dan, Phil and me. What we do, as we did for one night only last Christmas, is to try and recreate about 20 Beatle songs, from the entire canon, 1963 -1969, as accurately as we can.”

Well shake it on baby now, etc.

Which all leaves the rather minor event of May Fair itself on Monday. The line-up of local artists is impressive. Ady Johnson is the rising star of the Sunny Colch circuit. The former Fuzzface singer looks set for wider recognition, and so now is a good time to catch him in Wivenhoe.

CAV OK are a little more than OK, and Housework are a damn hard working and tight funk rock band. Local lad Lou Terry on the Sunrise Stage should also be put aside as a time to take it easy on the Special Brew and appreciate this incredibly special local talent.

Elsewhere around the site (oh OK - the KGV then…) and you’ll find Moving Image and Transition Town Wivenhoe working together and showing a series of locally produced films, all powered by the Revolutionary Pedal Powered Cinema.

The Open Mic stage is brought to you by the same good folk who have made such a success of late of the Open Mic nights down at the Black Buoy. Any local performers wanting to do a turn (oooh) should sign up from midday when the stage opens.

Stalls of course will be aplenty. Some will be selling ethical, worthy and rather worthless tat, but hey - it’s got to be better than a burger van. Some will be selling wonderful local Wivenhoe produce and deserve your loose change (hellooo Wivenhoe in Bloom.)

Others will be selling booze. You should pitch yer tent up here.

If you still want more (more? MORE?) then I’m sure you can navigate your way around to the back door entrances of the well know watering holes around Wivenhoe. I’ve been told that many will have a local’s only policy later in the evening - which may make it a little inbred, but yeah, I’m up for that as well.

And so that’s the Wivenhoe May Fair fringe weekend. If pulling a sickie at 7am on Tuesday morning is required, consider coming down to the KGV at 10am to help out with the clean up.

Oh yeah - *cough* Bowie, Comrades…

Rumours of the demise of the esteemed organ of truth and justice that is The Brightlingsea and Wivenhoe Chronicle are as premature as rumours of the demise of my king size courgette.

Sure, it took a bit of a battering the other day (courgette, not the Chronicle) but both still stand proud and mighty; both equally respected as they are eagerly awaited once a fortnight.

Recent conversations around the town have led to some doubt about the future of The Chronicle. Wivenhoe is built upon rumour and assumptions. If you were to dig a big hole at the foot of Black Buoy Hill, you’d find buried away some of the many myths that have been doing the rounds over the centuries, usually after an afternoon spent boozing away.

Is there a Roman bath along Bath Street? Is Bowie the *shhh* secret headliner for May Fair? Has the Chronicle chronicled local life around these parts for the very last time?

Two out of three ‘aint bad, my lovelies…

And so with a rusty squeak of the old letterbox, and a cheerful smile from Scoop as he wanders off into some magical Wivenhoe kingdom for dreamers and journos: it’s only the May 2011 edition of The Brightlingsea and Wivenhoe Chronicle.

Hurrah!

As is now customary on m’blog, I don’t give a blind man’s buff about those buggers down the road at Brightlingsea. Nice enough folk ‘n all that, but as ever, start yer own b****y hyperlocal blog, Comrades.

And so a turning of the grubby newsprint, and we’re straight in with all the local news and scandal that is fit to print about Wivenhoe. How about starting with The Local Election Results?

Oh Lordy.

Except there wasn’t any seismic change in the local political landscape in the May elections that have just passed. Smiling Councillor Steve Ford continues to smile away down at the Quay, doing his #workingforwivenhoe red flag waving. His Comrade in the Colchester coalition (cripes) - the young man about town Councillor Mark Cory - kept his LibDem seat up at the Cross.

Wivenhoe Town Council meanwhile is left with two spanners short of a full toolbox, with two new Councillors needed for co-option to complete the full quota of thirteen.

Scoop reports:

“At Wivenhoe, Steve Ford, Labour, comfortably retained the town’s Quay ward, securing 1,279 votes, more than double that of his nearest rival, the Conservative candidate Mercedes Mussard [ACE name.]

Waving the simple sword of truth and the trusty shield of British fair play, Scoop adds:

“It was an exceptionally good achievement by this particularly active Labour candidate, once described by the Deputy Prime Minister Harriet Harman during one of her visits as being one of the hardest working local councillors in the region.”

Hear, hear (to the hardest working, and not in praise of the fragrant Hattie. Phew.)

But don’t just look at little Wivenhoe; nope - move up the map and towards the bigger picture of the Cross. The Chronicle reports:

“Across much of the country there were dismal results for the Liberal Democrats, but in the Wivenhoe Cross ward, Mark Cory, the young 23 year old candidate [easy, ladies] helped to stem the tide against his party, retaining the seat with the support of 673 votes.”

It of course helped the cause of the “young” Cllr Cory (what is this - a Grace Brothers sitcom?) that the #workingforwivenhoe red flag flying comrades pretty much deserted the locals during the campaign, concentrating on the campus instead.

Whoops.

To complete the local political picture, the Chronicle lead concludes:

“There was no election for places on Wivenhoe Town Council as only ten candidates stood for the thirteen available seats.”

It was actually eleven candidates, but then that simple sword of truth and the trusty shield of British fair play probably got lost down a back seat at The Greyhound.

Passing over all the Brightlingsea puff, and then on p.2 we come across:

Art and Poetry in the Trenches.

Walk it like you talk it, Comrades:

“A one day course entitled Art and Poetry in the Trenches, presented by Graham Slimming and Colin Padgett, will be run by the WEA in Wivenhoe next month. This course will be held on 11th June at the Congregational Hall, from 10:30am to 4pm.”

Janice Allen on 824470 secures you a booking.

My eyes were momentarily fixed upon the big blueness that is the advert for Brightlingsea Open Air Swimming Pool as the p.3 pin up. I am historically a man suited to an outdoor aquatic lifestyle. Fifteen summers have been spent swimming in unheated lidos.

I spent one spring afternoon walking past the Brightlingsea Open-Air Pool / oversized duck pond, and thought, nah - that’s no pool, my friends: that’s a large hole in the ground with a bit of a drainage situation.

There’s Plenty of Entertainment at the May Fair [*cough* Bowie] is the p.4 headline. It’s pretty much a run through of the May Fair Committee press release, covering the fact that a rather ace line up including Ady Johnson (see) local lad Lou Terry (MUST see) Cav OK (pals) and Housework (hardest working band in, um, Sunny Colch) will all be helping you to get tired and emotional at the KGV, come Bank Holiday Monday.

Pages 10 and 11 cover a couple of lovely, lovely local stories, which although haven’t been picked up the nationals, they certainly represent the charm and quality in which the Chronicle is so respected for locally.

Hearing Dogs for Deaf People… is all about the Hearing Day Centre which runs a weekly hearing clinic at the lovely Wivenhoe Eyecare. The target of £5,000 has just been reached to help sponsor a hearing dog:

“The centre has been raising funds over several years for Hearing Dogs for Deaf People, through donations from its clients, and larger events such as golf days.”

Meanwhile, Deans’ Nursery and Garden Centre Celebrates Fifty Years of Trading pretty much Tells It Like It Is in the headline for a story with a very proud local Wivenhoe history:

“In the late 1950s two young brothers, having just completed a horticultural course at the Writtle Agricultural College near Chelmsford, started to grow outdoor tomatoes in Wivenhoe. The brothers, Anthony and Steve Dean, son of the Wivenhoe GP, the late Dr William Dean, ran this modest enterprise behind the old cemetery just off Belle View Road.”

The business is now based on the Harwich Road at Great Bromley. It is managed by Sarah Dean, the granddaughter of Dr Dean. It may be a puff piece of advertorial, but it’s a lovely read in The Chronicle, rightfully celebrating half a century of trading from a local business.

An Afternoon Upstairs with Martin Newell on p.12 once again tells you all you need to know. With locally baked cakes being promised upstairs at The Greyhound on the afternoon of 11th June, tickets are selling like… hot cakes. Seriously - get yourself down to the Bookshop for a £4 bargain.

Wivenhoe’s Funny Farm for this Thursday (26th) gets a plug on p.15.

“Headliner is the outrageous Californian comic Scott Capurro, familiar to watchers of 8 out of 10 cats. MC will be Wivenhoe’s very own [and most splendid] Hazel Humphreys. The show starts at the Cricket Club at 8pm with £6 on the door.”

And finally…

Mrs. Ackroyd at the Wivenhoe Folk Club.

Cripes.

“On 2nd June, Wivenhoe Folk Club are hosting Mrs. Ackroyd as their main guests. Mrs. Ackroyd is a band, not a person.”

Blimey.

It is this type of bonkers news in brief that separates the wheat from the chaff, and also separates the exceedingly splendid Brightlingsea and Wivenhoe Chronicle from some of the crap that gets pushed our way via the nationals.

The Chronicle may be in rude health, but that’s a fine position in which to preach from.

The Brightlingsea and Wivenhoe Chronicle is distributed free amongst local households. Additional copies are 25p from local newsagents.

Published as part of the Keep Colchester Cycling project.

With less than two weeks to go before the Halfords Tour Series rolls into Colchester, the final preparations are being put into place. High profile riders such as Tour de France stage winner Magnus Backstedt will be racing around our historic town on the evening of 2nd June.

ITV will be televising the race live, creating the perfect opportunity to raise the profile of cycling in Colchester, as well as to experience at first hand the excitement of town centre criterium road racing.

Help is needed however in making sure that the event runs smoothly. The race organisers are keen to involve as many local Colchester folk as possible. Stewards in particular are currently required:

“We are still in need of more volunteer stewards to support the Halfords Tour Series cycling event in Colchester on 2nd June. Volunteers are needed for a briefing at 13.30pm and then from 2pm until 9pm. Volunteers will work directly under the control of Sweet Spot, the race organisers, and will man the circuit for and around the race.

Please do consider helping with this. It will be great fun and you’ll be supporting a fantastic cycling event in Colchester! Please contact [email protected] if you can help.”

Meanwhile the race map for Colchester has just been released. Taking the form of a number of circuits with high paced sprints around our historic town, the Tour Series will take in the High Street, Head Street, St John’s Street and then back up along Queen Street.

Here at Keep Colchester Cycling and we know of the perfect vantage point in which to watch the race, right from the creative hub in the cultural quarter.

Chapeau!

Woh - where to start with Wivenhoe Open Gardens 2011? How about twenty-eight private gardens becoming public open spaces for the weekend, and Wivenhoe being transformed into a local treasure hunt?

Blimey.

Green fingered and green envied gardeners delighted in the form and forna. Was it really less than four months ago when the big freeze threatened to wipe out the local Wivenhoe habitat? Or maybe that was just the Environment Agency…

Anyway - the wonderfully produced programme is a good pointer when trying to unravel the splendour of Open Garden weekend:

“Another bitter winter arrived in Wivenhoe in December, burying our gardens under a thick blanket of snow. As it slowly disappeared, the effects of some of the coldest weather for many years became apparent.”

Yep - one tree down in the Park Road region. Whoops.

“Most gardens will probably have lost some tender specimens in the last two winters, but nature is very resilient. The bulbs may have been a little slow to start flowering this year, but the sudden flourish of crocuses and the following blaze of daffodils lifted the spirits.”

And then some. HONK!! LOOK!! I’ve grown a daffodil. I’ve grown a b****y daffodil! I’m still dining out on that achievement by the way.

“The sunshine and mild weather in April have brought such a rush of growth that it seems unbelievable that there was ever any doubt of our gardens’ reappearance.”

I confess to being a non-believer when the makeshift ice rink beyond the back door bedded down for a month. Three months later and who would have thought that topless sunbathing in Wivenhoe (him, not her) would be possible?

But anyway - what of the twenty eight local gardens of delight that very, very kindly allowed locals to parade around the pansies and poppies in what is unofficially being dubbed RHS Wivenhoe by some?

Much like the gardens of Wivenhoe itself, @AnnaJCowen and I took very different approaches. You need a system, a plan, and a strategy. I favoured a regimented approach that was planned with military precision. I like neatly trimmed herbaceous borders.

The girl wanted to wander lonely as a cloud, refreshing in the boozers en route and seeing where the day would take her. The girl likes getting her knees mucky in the long deep grass.

A compromise of sorts was established: we would start off at the Quay, and then take a random walk up towards the Cross, taking in any of the Open Gardens that appeared en route.

It was thirsty work to be honest, but the booze could wait. There was something of a beer festival rationale however in ticking off all the gardens that we managed to clock up.

On our travels and we took in a great depth of different styles and use of space. A selection of the relatively new gardens down by the West Quay development improvised superbly. South facing front gardens became vegetable patches, making the most of the limited land available.

Clifton Terrace was a highlight for many, judging by our conversations with fellow wanderers around Wivenhoe. The incredibly high steeping garden looking down above the railway line was ingenious in the use of layers. A series of stairs had effectively been put in place, making the garden manageable and most adorable.

At the other end (and extreme) of Clifton Terrace was the garden come Country Park. We spent half an hour walking from one end to the other in the magnificent and majestic setting. You haven’t got a garden kind Sir - you have a country estate.

On a practical level and it was useful to observe how similar plants are performing when compared to what we have planted back at base. We’re holding our own, so to speak: “You have the largest courgette in Wivenhoe,” as the girl later complemented me with as we sipped away on a stiff one in the back garden.

The pride that Wivenhoe folk take in their gardens, and the genuine love of sharing their achievements really was quite humbling. Open Gardens only works with a tremendous amount of trust in place. The guest books around the garden tables rightfully heaped praise and thanks on all of those participating.

Many of the gatherings became social spaces for the afternoon. The tea, cakes and soft drinks added to the occasion. I can proudly say that I have now sat in the lovely, lovely garden in the old Falcon and be served up with a drink by the equally lovely, lovely hosts.

The good @MrBoom shadowed our movements as we swapped tales and tips at different stages around the town. Strangers became acquaintances, acquaintances become friends. It’s also a great way to find your way around a town that has many hidden back roads that you wouldn’t normally have any need to visit.

With 5pm on Saturday signalling that Open Gardens was closed for the day, we made a last minute dash up to enjoy the garden and company of the newly installed Mr Mayor. A warm welcome and a drink was our reward.

And then it was back down the town, and reflecting on how most gardens actually take the physical form and characteristics of their owners. I pondered my prize courgette and felt rightly proud.

Many, many thanks to all the very kind participants who opened up their private gardens to the public over the weekend. This has been the highlight of our Year in Wivenhoe so far.

Thanks also to the joint organisers:

“Wivenhoe Open Gardens is organised jointly by St Mary’s Church and the Wivenhoe Society. All profits are shared between the Church and other Wivenhoe causes chosen by the Wivenhoe Society; this year the Society’s beneficiary is Wivenhoe Helping Hands, a new venture to spread assistance to people in need of the community’s help and consideration.”

Anyone wanna see my cracker of a courgette next year?

Full flickr set over here.

To the Congregational Hall on Saturday morning for the monthly Wivenhoe Farmer’s Market. The musty smell inside sums up village halls, as the not so fragrant @AnnaJCowen remarked to me. No worries - I rather like the aroma of history giving you a sense of nasal perspective.

For those not wanting some eau de Congregational Hall, thankfully most of the stalls were situated outside. Early summer is upon us and now is the time to bask in the great outdoors and stock up on all that winter veg.

The lovely, lovely herb man (steady) was incredibly helpful as ever, advising us on some rocket action back at base. If we’re not dining out on fine rocket and parmesan salad by the end of the week, then there will be a rocket around these parts heading perhaps where it shouldn’t.

The Colne Soap Makers (seriously) were equally charming. I took advantage of the local produce and stocked up the for the bathroom cabinet. The girl surprisingly scrubs up rather well.

Transition Town Wivenhoe were once again offering the seed swap service, as well as many other green and great activities. I’m pleased to report that rocket aside, our own seeds sourced at the last Farmer’s Market from TTW have transformed the garden. Give it another month and I’ll have courgettes that will make middle-aged ladies lustful.

It was slightly disappointing not to find the farmer’s basics of fruit and veg indoors at the Congregational Hall. Only tomatoes were added to the basket. No worries - Mr Irish Soda Bread Man very kindly made up for the oversight; a trip down to Cansdale and Ross soon put us right with our five a day.

The next Wivenhoe Farmer’s Market takes place on Saturday 18th June in the Congregational Hall. To rent a stall, call 01206 367776, or to volunteer help, call 01206 826226.

More lusty courgettes, less musty smells.