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00:00Hello, good evening and welcome to Kentonite live on KMTV. I'm Abbey Hook. Here are your
00:27top stories on Thursday the 26th of September. Donate your clothes for victims of domestic
00:33abuse. Kent Charity makes plea for those who just want to stay warm this winter. They can't
00:39survive, they need clothing and they're basically trying to afford either clothing or food for
00:44their children. Royal seal of approval. Duchess of Edinburgh pops the cork as the champagne
00:49industry arrives in Kent. I believe and I really believe that Kent will be seen as the
00:55go-to destination if you want to taste high-quality sparkling wines. Feeling nostalgic, KMTV's
01:02own Chris Desey reflects on writing his first book while filming a national TV series. I
01:08use that term, turn to the self, because it's away from those big grand narratives and about
01:13what matters to us on a very personal basis in terms of our own lives and our own families.
01:26First tonight, they need it to survive. The message from a charity in Swell urging the
01:32public to donate clothing this winter. Satida supports families fleeing domestic violence
01:38and says it needs more items such as children's scarves and hats. For those who have to leave
01:43everything behind, the service is crucial when living costs are so high. Today volunteers were
01:49handing out clothes in Sheerness and our reporter Mahima Abedin was there. It's the first week of
01:55autumn and Kent is getting colder, but not everyone will be able to keep warm. That's why
02:00domestic abuse charity Satida is urging for donations of warm clothing for children and
02:06women who might be experiencing clothing poverty. It's heartbreaking having women come to us saying
02:11that what they need, they can't survive, they need clothing and they're basically trying to
02:17afford either clothing or food for their children, so if we can supply them with something then we
02:21know those kids are going to get fed as well. There are so many women out there that have
02:24experienced domestic abuse, sometimes they flee without any clothing on their backs and their
02:28children haven't got anything or they have economic abuse. If we can reach one or two women, whether
02:32it be at these pocket events or whether it be our base at Fort Luton in Chatham or our hub in
02:37Kemsley, anywhere where we can reach and support, it's vital that we can help out. So this stand
02:42that's been set up by Satida and Shareware has bags of clothing and it's for women and young
02:47children and they've been open since about 9.30 this morning and I've been here pretty much since
02:51that time and I've seen loads of women come through and they've been looking through the
02:55bags and collecting things like tops for their children or even shoes, but it's not just women
03:00who are coming here to collect clothes, there's also people that are donating too and you can see
03:05just how much this stand really means to them. I'm here to get support for my children for clothes
03:10because we haven't got a lot of accessibility around here for stuff like that. For shopping
03:15and stuff like food items, we don't have a lot of money so it gives us a lot of money to go
03:19shopping for food and items such as like that and then we can come in and get support with
03:24clothes and stuff. I found some items for my daughter, I've spoke to some lovely people to
03:30get some support and just more information about how I can get support around here.
03:34Although Vienna was able to find clothing for her daughter, the charity says it's in
03:39need of more children's winter clothing. Everyone's been kind enough to donate loads
03:42of summer items but we know we're going to need winter clothing. Thermals, hats, scarves, gloves,
03:47children's winter clothing is really what we're after at the moment and we've got a lot of women's
03:52clothing for winter already so it's mainly the children's wear. And with the colder months
03:56approaching, it's donations like the ones at Satida that many vulnerable women and children
04:01will be relying on to feel the warmth this winter. Mahima Abedin for KMTV in Sheerness.
04:06Mahima with our top story this evening. Now the Coast Guard is monitoring a cargo ship
04:12believed to be carrying 20,000 tonnes of potentially explosive material in Dover.
04:17The MV Ruby is carrying a large load of ammonium nitrate and now anchored off the
04:22Kent coast after leaving Russia in August. The cargo is believed to have seven times
04:27the amount that caused the Beirut explosion in 2020, meaning no port once it docked there.
04:33The ship is being closely monitored by HM Coast Guard as it travels through UK waters,
04:38escorted by a tugboat. The ship is currently 15 miles off Margate, heading for Malta.
04:43Now a driver has died after a serious crash that closed the A2 in both directions. Emergency
04:50services were called to the main road and M2 around half two this morning. A black VW Tiguan
04:55hit the central barrier and a bridge parapet. A 29-year-old man died at the scene. National
05:01highways, redirected drivers and long diversions were set up through Higham and nearby roads
05:06while officers stayed on the scene.
05:10Nashford Pharma has joined calls to end the use of misleading packaging in the Big 6 supermarkets.
05:16Farm washing is when shops use fake farm brands in the Union Jack to give customers the impression
05:21their products come from British family farms rather than from overseas. An open letter
05:27signed by 100 MPs, conservationists and farmers is calling for an end to these practices.
05:34Supermarkets insist they follow strict legislation on labelling, but for Kent farmer Zoe Colville
05:38the letter represents the first step towards progress.
05:41I've spoken to a lot of our friends, both farmers and non-farmers about it and they're
05:48absolutely gobsmacked. Even something so small as the fact that it can have printed on a
05:56product, farm, but it's not actually from a farm, which sounds so simple, doesn't it?
06:02But if the consumer, the shoppers, they're the most important people, if they have a
06:10problem and are more aware, then the supermarkets will have to listen.
06:16Could Kent be the next Bordeaux? With the most hours of sunshine and perfect soil,
06:20similar to the Champagne region, the creators of a new winery in Chilham definitely think so.
06:25The site also marks the first French investment in an English vineyard,
06:29with the Duchess of Edinburgh making a royal visit to commemorate the occasion.
06:32Finn McDermid was there.
06:35From royalty to representatives, many from across Kent gathered to see the opening of
06:39the first French-owned winery to start producing grapes from scratch in the UK.
06:44The Domaine Evremont winery has been nearly 10 years in the making
06:48and opened today in the countryside of Chilham near Canterbury.
06:51Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Edinburgh, who grew up in Brentley near Tunbridge Wells,
06:55arrived and gave a speech to commemorate the day, as well as unveiling their new plaque.
07:00Well, we're just outside Canterbury in Chilham and it's been seven years since the first vine
07:05was planted here at the Domaine Evremont winery. Now, seven years on, it's 150 hectares of vines
07:12that cover the land.
07:13The owner of Domaine Evremont seems confident that
07:16Kent is the start of something bigger for the wine industry.
07:19Kent, we have very fast communication, whether it's on the high speed HS1,
07:23whether we're down from London, promoting tourism in Kent.
07:26And I believe, and I really believe, that Kent will be seen as the go-to destination
07:32if you want to taste high quality sparkling wine, still wine, but also visit some amazing wineries,
07:38be educated, walk around the vineyards, have a picnic in the vineyards.
07:42It's going to be a fantastic new addition to the very strong tourist offering that Kent offers.
07:49Patrick is a master of wine, a title that only 416 people hold worldwide,
07:55and he joins the other master in Kent, Clive Barlow.
07:58Kent is known as the Garden of England, but many in the county might be surprised to hear
08:02that Kent is extremely similar geographically to the Champagne region of France.
08:07I asked the president of Tate de Champagne why Kent was chosen as the best place for the new winery.
08:13Kent because of the soil, because of the soil mainly, and after you have many things that are
08:20quite easy to work with for us, because we have a wonderful grower we are working with,
08:29with Mark Gaskin and his family, and I think that we have chosen this place for that,
08:36also for the proximity with the sea, the proximity of a big, big place of nature.
08:45According to experts, Kent has the best conditions in the UK for the production of wine and grapes,
08:50from the soil having the right amounts of clay and chalk,
08:53and the highest amount of hours with the sun in the sky.
08:56Well, even though that might be the case normally,
08:58British weather is about as unpredictable as you can get.
09:01Finn McDermid for KMTV in Chilham.
09:04Well, it's not just Finn in Chilham in the rain.
09:07Across Kent, a yellow weather alert is out in force,
09:09with 60 millimetres of rain expected to fall in just six hours,
09:13with warnings of flood and travel disruption on the cards.
09:16Well, how can you stay safe at home?
09:19Well, someone staying dry, surprisingly, in Chatham for us is our reporter Ollie.
09:25Ollie, it's pretty cloudy and windy where you are, but surprisingly, staying dry.
09:29Yes, I think I dodged a bullet, unlike Finn, Abby.
09:33As you can see off my shoulder, there are some dark clouds and you can hear that wind.
09:37It's quite cold up here on the Chatham Recreation Grounds.
09:41With that yellow weather alert, it's been happening here throughout Medway today,
09:45and we have seen torrential rain, we have seen clouds, we haven't even seen a rainbow,
09:50but I haven't seen any rain where I'm stood right now.
09:53It doesn't mean there won't be rain later on, though,
09:56those clouds behind me, for example, might be bringing some of that rain later.
09:59And I know for a fact there'll be rain across the county,
10:02and that does raise a few questions about what could be happening
10:05on the ground here in the coming hours.
10:08Ollie, definitely one that commuters will be keeping their eye on this evening,
10:11travelling home and to work tomorrow.
10:14What advice have you been given?
10:18So, I reached out to Network Rail and they told me they're taking a wait-and-see approach.
10:22And I think that's probably quite good advice,
10:24Keep an eye on those bus timetables, keep an eye on those train websites,
10:28keep an eye on the driving conditions where you are,
10:31and keep an eye out for flood alerts, and plan accordingly.
10:35At the moment, everything seems fine, but there is rain coming in later,
10:40so keep an eye out for that.
10:42And here is the weather where you are, if you are concerned.
10:55Well, it's a rainy and windy Thursday night,
10:57temperatures hovering between 12 and 13 degrees, cloud across the county.
11:01Tomorrow morning, that rain continuing across most parts of Kent,
11:05some sunshine in Folkestone, and the afternoon does not look much better.
11:09Southeasterly winds, lots of rain clouds, 12 degrees in Dartford,
11:14and the outlook for the weekend.
11:15Finally, some sunshine, temperatures rising to 15 degrees on Monday.
11:24Ollie, thank you very much for that information and advice.
11:28Now, get back inside to the newsroom and stay, continue to stay dry,
11:32but get out of that wind.
11:33It's going to be a wet and rainy night this evening, for sure.
11:36That's all we've got time for, for now.
11:38I'll be back in just a few minutes' time.
11:40I'll see you then.
14:54Hello and welcome back to Kent Tonight, live on KMTV.
15:13Now, a circus performer set to bring her show to Medway
15:17says becoming paralysed from the waist down
15:19is never going to stop her from performing.
15:22Silke Pan suffered a spinal injury back in 2007
15:25and has since gone on to becoming a handbike champion,
15:28motivational speaker, as well as returning to circus touring.
15:32Well, in just under a week, the Gravity Circus Company
15:35will be coming to Rochester,
15:36where Silke will be taking on Daredevil stunts,
15:40and I spoke to her about them earlier.
15:42So, I began my career as a contortionist and trapeze artist.
15:48I suffered a severe accident that left me paraplegic.
15:53I reinvented myself,
15:55continuing to pursue my passion for performance and sports.
16:00After that, I became involved in handbike racing,
16:05which is a very popular sport in the UK.
16:08After that, I became involved in handbike racing,
16:12and at the end of 2021, I came back to circus,
16:20creating a new technique to fix my paralysed legs and hips
16:28with a bar that is on my neck and on which I attach my ankles.
16:36It's incredibly impressive.
16:38It looks amazing what you do as well.
16:39So elegant and beautiful.
16:41What's the preparation and the training like for you?
16:43How does it differ?
16:48When I train, yes, like every athlete,
16:52I have to train my force, my flexibility,
16:56because I cannot feel my lower body.
17:02I cannot feel my hips, my legs, my feet.
17:06And what's the response been like from the circus community?
17:09I imagine you've inspired a lot of people
17:12who would have thought they wouldn't be able
17:13to take part in sports in general.
17:19Yes, the response was really positive.
17:24I didn't think, I didn't believe it at the beginning.
17:28At the beginning, when I did my first circus act
17:32as a paraplegic artist, I was afraid of the reaction,
17:36but I didn't expect it.
17:40But many people come to me and they tell me
17:46that I show the ability to rise above our challenges.
17:51Now I'm only, I'm just an artist.
17:54I can give a message of hope and inspire others
17:59to pursue their dreams, no matter the obstacles.
18:04Silke, it's been amazing to talk to you.
18:06Best of luck for next week as well.
18:08Thank you for bringing your message
18:10and your beautiful show to us here in Kent.
18:12We're really excited for it.
18:15Oh, you're welcome.
18:17Best of luck to Silke, amazing stuff there.
18:20Now, don't forget, you can keep up to date
18:21with all your latest stories across Kent
18:23over on our website, it's kntv.co.uk.
18:26There you'll find all our reports, including this one
18:28about an animal sanctuary in Tunbridge Wells
18:30that could close down without vital funding.
18:34Since 1994, Folly Wildlife Rescue Centre in Tunbridge Wells
18:38has taken in animals from mice to deer,
18:40giving them the care they need
18:42before releasing them into the wild again.
18:44They save more than 3,000 animals a year,
18:47but they're struggling to raise enough money
18:48to continue their work.
18:50With running the centre,
18:51costing between 20,000 to 30,000 pounds a month.
18:54Despite having around 150 volunteers,
18:57the centre is struggling to pay
18:59the full-time staff they do have,
19:01as the charity are only funded by public donations
19:04and any fundraising they do themselves.
19:06But it's not enough for the rising costs.
19:0830,000 a month to run the wildlife rescue.
19:15A lot of that is obviously for food.
19:17We have medication and our veterinary team's services
19:24and obviously the utilities.
19:25So heating, lights, running the washing machine.
19:30I think the main cost for us has been staffing
19:33and that's the biggest increase that we've seen
19:36with minimum wage going up.
19:38They don't receive any funding
19:39from the government or lottery grants
19:41and without any new cash flow coming in,
19:43the wildlife hospital will be forced
19:45to reduce their hours in September
19:47and then stop their operations entirely by 2025.
19:51For the animals, catastrophic
19:53because there's nowhere else local
19:55to take this wildlife, the birds, the hedgehogs.
19:59We have deer in here, swans, geese, ducks,
20:03snakes, you name it, it comes through the doors.
20:05And if there's nowhere else local to bring these animals,
20:11they're not going to be saved.
20:12If worst came to worst,
20:14Folly Animal Rescue would stop admitting their patients
20:16around a month in advance,
20:18rehabilitating the ones they already have
20:20and making sure that any with long-term needs
20:22could be transferred to new homes with other charities.
20:25In the present, the volunteers ensure the animals
20:27are kept in clean conditions
20:29and have enough food and water to recuperate.
20:35And finally this evening, KMTV's very own Chris Deasey,
20:39presenter of Kent Film Club,
20:41former University of Kent lecturer
20:42and presenter of Generation Y,
20:44series all about religion and spirituality,
20:47has now written a book to add to his plethora
20:49of things that Chris does.
20:51The book studies the relationship
20:52between nostalgia and religion,
20:54using the Queen's death as inspiration.
20:56Well, find out more.
20:58Kristen spoke to Chris at the University of Kent
21:00where he wrote most of his novel.
21:03I was here for over 20 years in this office since 2018.
21:07So every day I'd come from the Gulbenkian
21:10and get my coffee, that was my muse.
21:12I'd walk over here and all the writing actually
21:16for the nostalgia book was carried out in this office.
21:20Lecturer, radio host, TV presenter, now a writer.
21:24Chris Deasey may be most known to the viewers at home
21:27as the face of Kent's Film Club.
21:29Hello, I'm Chris and welcome to the Kent Film Club.
21:32But behind the scenes, he has been working away
21:35on his debut piece of work.
21:37But what inspired the KMTV veteran
21:39to turn his hand to writing?
21:41I went through a period of really needing
21:42to connect with people a few years ago.
21:45And I found that in connecting with people,
21:49it was helping me both with my podcast
21:52and also with the writing of the book.
21:54So everything seemed to be happening at the same time
21:56and Generation Y was the most sublime experience
21:58I've ever had.
21:59And I, from that of course, ended up doing various
22:03other media work with the wonderful team at KMTV.
22:06In the week that the Queen died,
22:10we started the process of filming Generation Y.
22:13So that took me around the country,
22:15meeting young people,
22:16talking about what faith matters to them.
22:18So I was learning from the young people
22:20who were talking about their religion,
22:22whether it was witchcraft, Judaism, Christianity, Islam.
22:25So I was being educated by the individual practitioners
22:28and their families that we were meeting.
22:30But it was places as much as people
22:32that inspired his journey with writing,
22:35with Canterbury Campus being at the heart of the work he did.
22:38As you can see around here, there are so many books.
22:40This is just the religious studies section,
22:42but I'd go to the film section on the floor below us.
22:46I was learning about sociology and anthropology
22:49and obviously effectively taking books out
22:53from authors and on topics that I didn't know very much about.
22:56So I have to be quiet,
22:57but here in the Templeman Library
22:59is where Chris spent a lot of his time
23:01researching and reading more about religion,
23:04helping him to write around 85,000 words of his own,
23:07putting his own spin from the books that surround me now.
23:10Given this book is not necessarily bedtime reading
23:13for people here in the county,
23:14I asked him what he hoped to achieve with the novel.
23:18So I've written lots of books on religion,
23:20but this in a way is the most special one to me
23:22because it's about what matters to real people
23:25rather than just the stories that are told
23:27on the pages of these very erudite and scholarly works.
23:31With the release of the book just around the corner,
23:34Chris is looking to the future
23:36just as much as his book draws on his nostalgic past.
23:39Kristen Hawthorne for KMTV in Canterbury.
23:43And Chris joins me now.
23:44We are both beaming ear to ear watching that.
23:48How do you feel? I suppose proud?
23:50And that was really surreal
23:51because what Kristen captured so wonderfully
23:53is the routine over many years
23:56of me getting my coffee from the Gulbenkian
23:58on the University of Kent campus,
23:59going to my office and writing this book,
24:01but also doing lots of other things.
24:03That's the creative process.
24:05You're not just doing one thing,
24:06you're wearing multiple hats.
24:07And actually going around the country with Generation Y,
24:09the filming for that also helped
24:11because the death of the Queen, obviously we didn't expect.
24:14And it sort of kick-started this national sense
24:18of what matters to us.
24:20What is our relationship with the past?
24:21The Queen is the grandmother of the nation
24:23or the Commonwealth and people's individual stories,
24:25which of course I'd been telling
24:26through my nostalgia podcast.
24:28So it all came together.
24:29So I was traveling up,
24:30we were staying in various hotels,
24:31doing all these wonderful pieces.
24:33And at the same time I was thinking,
24:34I need this for my book.
24:35So it somehow came together.
24:37I can't believe it did.
24:38And somehow, as Kristen said,
24:3985,000 words were somehow written
24:43in the period of 2022, 23.
24:44And you've probably said a lot more
24:46on the various shows you've done with us.
24:48But it is fascinating to see the Queen
24:51take such a prominent place in the book.
24:53On the cover, of course,
24:54it's going to be released in January.
24:57I suppose, explain to me a bit more about that connection
25:01because as you said, it is so poignant
25:02and it really reflects on that nostalgia aspect
25:05that we talked to you about time and time again
25:06that you're such an expert in.
25:08And I suppose, will it grab people's attention
25:11because it's something you remember?
25:12Yeah, and also it was the linchpin, if you like.
25:16It brought everything together
25:18because the death of the Queen
25:20made people sort of question,
25:22what does family mean?
25:23What are our relationships?
25:24A lot of people,
25:25and a lot of the case study that I undertook
25:28was looking at what was happening
25:30on the radio at the time.
25:30People were sending in their reminiscences
25:32of meeting the Queen,
25:34but also talking about maybe their parents or grandparents
25:38who had remembered the time
25:40when the Queen came to the throne in the early 1950s.
25:42So it was that family conversation.
25:44It wasn't about going to church.
25:46It wasn't about Westminster Abbey and the coronation.
25:49It was, or the funeral,
25:50it was largely about people's own individual reminiscences
25:53and they were deeply spiritually based.
25:55How different, very quickly,
25:57but how different would the book have looked
25:59and the content within it if this didn't happen,
26:01but also if you weren't doing so much with CAME TV?
26:04Now, that is the million dollar question
26:07because there was going to be a nostalgia book,
26:11but I knew that I was missing a case study.
26:15And on the day, the 8th of September, 2022,
26:17that I got permission from the University of Kent
26:19to have my study leave and write this book,
26:23The Queen Died.
26:24And so I asked this question all the time,
26:26what would have happened?
26:27It would have been a very different book.
26:29It couldn't have been a book
26:30that I'd be as proud of as I am as this one.
26:33Well, maybe there's a next one.
26:35Of course, well, yes.
26:36Who knows, maybe a ninth book, Chris.
26:37Thank you so much.
26:38Congratulations.
26:39Thank you, Abbey.
26:40Incredibly proud, the whole CAME TV team.
26:42Thank you very much for joining us.
26:43That's all we've got time for.
26:44Good night.