I received several well intentioned calls earlier this evening from folks that had seen ‘a massive meal being prepared’ in a layby under Stanage.
I messaged the farmer and asked if he could pop by. He did. Ten minutes later he sent me a photo of a pile of curry.
I asked if they would they still be there in 10 minutes and got a 👍
15 Bangladeshi chaps on a day trip in ‘Uncle Phil’s Community Bus’ from Luton.
Once a year they head off for the day and have a walk and then serve food for themselves and strangers. Last year Bournemouth, this year Stanage.
I arrived to find Nick the local farmer giving them a chat about cattle and sheep farming and fielding lots of interested questions about prices and weights and ages and the butchering process.
I was handed a plate and it was piled high. Every time i said ‘that’s plenty thank you’, another 2 ladlefulls went on.
Vast quantities of chicken and beef curry, dahl, pop, tea and cake were consumed. Laughs aplenty.
Nobody has got up Stanage in the last 2 hours without first having at least 2 courses from these lovely fellas. No qualms about who you are, where you’ve come from or what you’re driving. Anyone and everyone got plied with curry.
It was lovely to see Nick, who suffers at the sharp end of much of the anti social behaviour on and around the North Lees Estate, belly-laughing with complete strangers, telling them all about his Belties, and sipping cups of Dudh Cha, the cup held by fingers stained yellow from the turmeric.
I think we have an invite to a curry house somewhere near Tower Bridge ? For some reason we sang Kylie Minogie songs 🤷♂️. When the midge started biting the gentlemen said ‘we’re from Bangladesh …. we don’t need any spray, these aren’t proper biting insects’ !!
A lovely evening.
The minute we waved them off on their long journey home the heavens opened.
Thank you and safe journey home my friends 🙏.