Celtic Manor - brash and audacious

 Icon of confidence

Newspaper columnists must make outrageous statements to grab attention.

A TV hack Kevin McCloud (no I have never heard of him either) writes that he would like to bulldoze Newport’s Celtic Manor Resort Hotel.

Not serious stuff, but he has to fill his column. It’s an emotional spasm backed with the absurd comment, “It’s a huge monolith on an American scale which looks like it was about to swallow up the motorway. It’s not contextual – it doesn’t even look English.”

Good. It’s Welsh. The inspiration is Canadian – not American.  Its massive, brash self-confidence is an   inspiring icon for the new City of Newport. Its dominance rivals the surrounding hills. Crowned with a massive Welsh Dragon Flag, it eloquently creates its own artistic justification as a grand Welsh-Canadian idiom of tomorrow - not the stale yesterday of Kevin McCloud’s oak panelled world.

There are always those who always resent new concepts. Why should important buildings hide their presence in the shadow of hills? Why should new designs endlessly repeat the stale concepts and scale and of the past?

The sight of the Celtic Manor Hotel gives me a boost every time I drive past it on my journey from London. It’s unique, opulent and audacious in its solidity and scale.  It asserts pride in Newport and our stake in a prosperous twenty first century future.

Stow Hill Boost

Two rousing comments (below) on Labour losses in Stow Hill have come in.

Pictured are the four candidates (left to right), former mayor and splendid Councillor Miqdad al-Nuami and new candidate Fern Coster who lost to Bill Routley and Peter Davies.

Bill Routley previously vainly struggled to be an adequate councillor.  He recently mysteriously took to signing himself 'Lord' Routley. He has now modestly reverted to Mister. Why not 'Lord Councillor?

Peter Davies was diplomatic at the count and gracious in victory. But he has built a reputation as a populist piffle artist. His recent jape was a scare about a non-existent rat plague. Although the evidence indicates a reduction in the local rat population, Peter mis-read the figures to claim  a  local problem. A ‘Rats are out to devour your young’ story convinced the innumerate local paper.

Peter Davies provoked mocking laughter (from me and others) at the count when he compared the talents of 'Lord' Routley with those of Alan Howarth who is the real Lord Newport. Premier League compared the Beazer Home league.

Fern Coster did splendidly at her first outing. She was helped by an absurd mysogynist attack on her by local news rag hack 'Barking Buckingham'. Lots of her friends cooed over the 'nice picture'. None mentioned Buckingham's drivel. His Dad Army's prejudices and anti-women neurosis ensures that  his dense old fashioned prose remains un-read by those who do not share his prejudices.

A ‘revulsion at first sight’ new councillor for Malpas upset the audience at the count by attacking the marvellous hard-working three councillors known as the Malpas Three.

Short and over weight, like most of new Tory councillors, his idea of a charm offensive was to bark, ‘Tonight I made it the Malpas Two. Soon you’ll see the Malpas Zero'

I thought we were already listening to the 'Malpas Zero.' Perhap the Tory group leader who quoted membership of a local gym on his CV should get his new members BMI into shape.

The first  welcome message on Stow Hill read:

"Moving on from the feelings of despair that I felt on hearing the election news (especially in my own ward of Stow Hill where we lost an outstanding councillor in Miqdad) I am now determined to play a part in the fight back that you describe. I left the party in response to the war in Iraq - I will now rejoin and play whatever part I can to ensure a Labour victory, both in the next general election and in a future local election."

The second responded:

I never thought Stow Hill would turn Tory. I have always voted Labour and did so yesterday. However, it has now dawned on me that to vote is not enough. In the future I will actively campaign. Miqdad and Fern, you did nothing wrong. You were let down by local apathy and loathing of the war in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Four years of being represented by Tories...I might have to move!"

Hayat Pride
Unreported on the evening was a significant and welcome election of Doctor Ibrahim Hayat.

Newport Labour saw the election of one of Britain’s first Asian councillors in 1972, Ravendra Sumar Soni. To our shame we have had no other Labour Asian or Muslim councillors elected since.

Doctor Ibrahim Hayat is the one of the sons of Mohammed Hayat who was a greatly respected and loved father of the Newport based Hayat family. He is pictured here chairing a meeting on international peace at the Newport Civic Centre.

On a difficult day, Ibrahim topped the poll, above seven other candidates, at his first attempt. This is measure of his popularity and the need for the Newport West Labour Party to be more representative of the whole city. His father was intensely loyal to the Labour Party. He would have been proud had he lived to see this day.

The Pillgwenlly ward will be well represented by the long serving councillor Ron Jones and Ibrahim. The Hayat family will continue to make their prominent distinguished contribution to the life of the City of Newport.

Comments

[Tonypandy Andy]

Five Stages of Grief and Loss

First Stage: Denial and Isolation

Retreat to Newport, closet self with gang of 4 sympathisers, fingers in ears. Ignore the big picture - don’t talk about clear message from voters countrywide reinforced by London mayoral election result

Second Stage: Anger (rage, envy and resentment)
Spit bile at the class enemy, rail at the stupidity of anyone who disagrees with the creed, urge policies “that will be loved by our core working class voters” (whoever they are – anyone who works ?), “Keep reminding them about the successes of Labour in redistributing wealth” (don’t bother with how to create it). Maintain superiority and aloofness (a tip: why not find out who Kevin McCloud is, he’s rather popular in his field – that means with voters in the real world)

Still to come (that’s the theory, anyway).....
Third Stage: Bargaining
Fourth Stage: Depression
Fifth Stage: Acceptance

[valleylad]

I'm half with you, and half with McCloud on the celtic manor. It was built for function (which it does very well) and internally is glorious, but the facade particularly from the M4 will win few admirers.

Sorry to hear you have Tory councillors in Newport (they also took New Inn in torfaen) - (not quite as welcome as rats - but that was made up) but cheer up, as the party closest poltically to zanu-labour, they'll no doubt be able to find lots of common ground with their new collegues.

[paulflynn]

What's the clear message, Andy ?

that a month of lies exaggerations and myths from the Evening Standard secured a narrow victory for Boris?

or that

convincing Labour voters that money has not been redistributed to the less well off over the past 11 years and Labour believe in further impoverishing the already poor?

These are the myths that won the victories. What message am I missing?

[paulflynn]

There has to be a rebuttal Valleylad when a media person attacks a Newport icon. He said good things about the Transporter Bridge but I must challenge the idea that the only good buildings are ivy clad and turreted.

[David Walters]

Is there any relvance in the description of the Tory councillors as "short and over weight"?

Echoes of a description some time ago of Labour councillors a "short, fat, slimy and fundamentally corrupt".

Don't tell me that Paul Flynn is aspiring to be the new Rod Richards.

Love Matt Withers' description of you in his WOS column today - one of the first perceptive comments he's ever made!

[Paul Flynn]

This is adding a little colour to the blog. Several of the Tory councillors included membership of a local gym in their CVs. At the count the most striking characteristic of the new Tory councillors is that they are short and overweight.

They are worse things about them. They will become obvious later.

There were no journalists at the count after 5.00 am although it continued until 7.00 am. Their pictures were posed the next day. Writing a blog provides news on part of Newport's history that the papers do not reach.

I look up the comment from WOS on Google. What a let down. I was expected a sharp insult. I have never spoken to this journalist. His comment is a superficial distortion and meaningless.

I admire many journalists. None of them are working for the Welsh print media. What's the point of a Sunday Paper if all they do is to repeat stale comments of others and write them up in poorly written constipated prose? You say this is the journalist at his best. That says everything.

[Paul Flynn]

Thanks Tonypandy Andy.
It's surprising how many of those who knock the Celtic Manor have never been inside. It's five-star plus. The designs all hall Welsh motifs and have been made to the high artistic standards. It's a wonderful facility for Newport and , by far, the best hotel in Wales.

[rwendland]

Paul, I'm sure sticking up for a local landmark is doing you no harm. But you should understand Kevin McCloud is more significant than a simple journalist. eg in 2006 he was awarded an Honorary Fellowship of the Royal Institute of British Architects. He started out in Architecture before becoming an author, then TV presenter, and doing a bit of journalism. Fair enough to have a dig at him defending the locality, but a lot of people think highly of him from his programs and elsewhere.

[Paul Flynn]

Thanks for the background on Kevin McClour, rwendland.

How can anyone be taken seriously when he calls for a profitable building, that cost hundreds of £millions, to be bulldozed.

His arguments appears to crass and little more than attention seeking. I hope to have a chance of confronting him.

[Jeff Jones]

Sorry Paul to disagree with you. But from the outside the Celtic Manor looks like the sort of gift Stalin would have given to the Polish people in 1950.Who was the architect? Every time I return to Wales it reminds me of a prison from an Orwell novel.

[Paul Flynn]

Thanks Jeff. You must see this with fresh eyes. Few things compare with Eastern European concrete blocks. It is a massive design but one that is commonplace in Canada. There they are often set in glorious lake and woodland settings.