PEOPLE of Bellingham –stand to your hanging baskets and set about those weeds!

The Northumbria in Bloom judges will be back for the main summer judging on Wednesday from 10am.

The theme chosen by the Bellingham in Bloom committee this year is In the Pink and many people will already have noticed the profusion of pink from Fairshaw Crescent down to the Catholic Corner and all points in between.

The businesses in the village have all bought into the offer of a hanging basket maintained by the volunteers, and that is working very well.

There are a number of entries this year in the special awards.

Sheila Proudlock and Pat and Edwin Wilkinson have entered the front garden category, Riverdale has entered hotel/public house and the allotments at Westlands are also entered in the allotment category, so a great effort all round.

All we need is a decent day to show off the village at its best.

WHAT dramas there were in the village last week with the emergency services called out not once, but twice.

There was a huge turn-out for an incident by the police station bridge, when a teenage girl dropped a £1 coin over the bridge, and scrambled down to retrieve the loot.

Unfortunately, she lost her footing, and damaged her ankle, resulting in the attendance of the community paramedic, a normal ambulance, two fire engines and three police cars.

There were those who thought that was something of an overkill response, especially as one of the fire engines was from Rothbury, but I should explain that the Coquetdale ambulance was already in Bellingham as the crew were on a breathing apparatus course – it had not made the 42-mile round trip in response to the call!

On Wednesday night, a 31-year man was knocked down outside the Cheviot, and the road outside the pub was blocked for over two hours while the incident was dealt with.

It looked a bad one – but the victim actually discharged himself from hospital later than night.

THE Stu-pendous Saturday for Stu at the town hall went exceptionally well, I‘m told, with scores of people tucking into one of the most glorious afternoon teas ever seen in the village.

Entertainment included live music, face painting and, to the delight of old and young, a magic show, as well as an appearance by the ever-popular Kevin the Minion.

One of the organisers, Mandy Corbett, reports: “Bellingham pulled out all the stops for #staystrongstu.

“ huge thank you to our ‘Bell City’ committee for all the hard work and to all those who donated food or came along on the day.

“Early indications are that we’ve made well over £2000, with money still coming in.”

IT is usually very frustrating to be held up in traffic, especially as the Wark-Bellingham road is hardly the M25, but I didn’t mind being 10 minutes late home the other night.

I was held up by the glorious sight of two badger cubs gambolling together in the middle of the road!