The Yorkshire Soap Company has won this year’s Harrogate Christmas Shop Window Competition.
The shop on James Street’s woodland-themed window took the medium shop category prize and then claimed the overall title at an awards ceremony at the Crown Hotel last night.
Sophie Likes on Beulah Street won the small shop category and Bettys on Parliament Street claimed the large shop title.
Jane Fletcher, manager of the Yorkshire Soap Company, said it was “an absolute thrill” to win the contest for a first time, especially as it was up against retail giants like Bettys.
She added:
“When people bring children to see the window and you see they are pointing and laughing at it then it is something magical.”
The annual awards, again organised by the Rotary Club of Harrogate and sponsored by Harrogate Business Improvement District, attracted about 30 entrants.
Clare Granger, the High Sheriff of North Yorkshire, presented the awards along with Mervyn Darby, president of the Rotary Club of Harrogate and Dan Siddle, chair of Harrogate BID.
Graham Saunders, who organised the judging on behalf of The Rotary Club, said:
“The judges could see the incredible effort those who entered the competition put into their displays, and I’m sure the public also appreciate the work done by business owners to help Harrogate looks its very best for the festive season.
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Matthew Chapman, the manager of Harrogate BID, said:
“Since it featured on the Channel 5 documentary ‘Harrogate: A Yorkshire Christmas’ the shop window competition has continued to thrive, and it’s the businesses who take part that we have to thank for its ongoing success.
“The town centre shops, cafes and hotels have been beautifully presented this year, with the competition giving an incentive for business to go all-out.
Harrogate Christmas Shop Window Competition Results
Overall Winner:
The Yorkshire Soap Company, James Street
Large Shop Winner:
Bettys Café Tea Rooms, Parliament Street
Highly Commended: Weetons Food Hall, West Park
Medium Shop
Winner:The Yorkshire Soap Company, James Street
Highly Commended: Helen James Flowers, Station Parade and Baroque Hair, Kings Road
Small Shop
Winner: Sophie Likes, Beulah Street
Highly Commended: Imagined Things Bookshop, Montpellier Parade andBacchus Wine Bar, Station Parade
Representatives from Sophie Likes collect award for winning the small shop category.
Representatives from Bettys with Clare Granger, Mervyn Darby and (right) Dan Siddle.
Helen James Flowers was highly commended.
Starbeck tap dancers take part in world record bid
Forty dancers from Starbeck took part in a bid to break the world record yesterday for the largest number of people to perform the same tap routine at multiple venues simultaneously.
Children and adults from Summerbell Dance Academy took to the floor of the Victoria suite at the Crown Hotel in Harrogate as part of BBC Children in Need’s fundraising activities.
The youngest tapper was aged two and the oldest was 86.
They performed a routine they had been learning since September to Wham!’s Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go.
The figures are being collated today to see whether the tapathon world record of 7,596 was beaten.
Regardless of whether the target was achieved, the local dancers managed to raise £380 for Children in Need.
Performing their routine at the Crown Hotel.
Jennie Summerbell, the principal of Summerbell Dance Academy, said:
“It was a national initiative but it gave us a challenge and something to aim for.”
Summerbell Dance Academy, which is based at St Andrew’s church hall in Starbeck, has 200 students.
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Harrogate people given free short stories as literature festival begins
A free short stories dispenser has been brought to Harrogate to mark today’s start of the Raworths Harrogate Literature Festival.
The four-day festival, which ends on Sunday, takes place at the Crown Hotel. The line-up includes Sir Ranulph Fiennes, Andy McNab, Gaby Roslin, Carrie and David Grant and Sir Vince Cable.
As part of the celebration of books, local residents are being encouraged to head to the Crown Hotel until Sunday to collect a free bite sized piece of literature from the dispenser.
The stories are selected from a range of over 10,000 short works of literature and cover a range of genres, including romance, drama, crime fiction, thrillers, science fiction, fantasy, comedy, children’s stories and the classics.
At the touch of a button, visitors will receive a short story that will take one, three or five minutes to read. The story is printed on eco-friendly paper to read straight away or take away and read in a spare moment.
Authors range from Emily Dickinson to Lewis Carrol, Ernest Hemingway and William Shakespeare to contemporary stories by lesser-known authors and aspiring new writers.
The annual festival is curated and produced by Harrogate International Festivals and sponsored by Raworths Solicitors.
Rachel Tunnicliffe, senior partner at Raworths, said:
“The short stories dispenser allows us to take a moment to celebrate the joy of reading and storytelling, no matter how busy we are. It’s a fun and engaging way to bring great writing and literature to the whole community.”
The photo shows Ms Tunnicliffe and Dan Siddle, general manager of the Crown Hotel, with the short story dispenser.
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