The Phantom

I'm pretty sure the zookeepers look after, feed and clean the animals at the 'Wildlife Park'

Why is it not a zoo? I often call it the Zoo and get people up in arms, making outrageous statements that is a 'Wildlife Park'. No one thus far has given me a valid explanation of what the difference is!

I'm pretty certain I saw one run across the road in Maughold about 20 years ago. Either a fox or a large ginger cat with a very pointy face and bushy tail!

http://www.ballacain.co.uk/ From what I remember they have a couple of bungalow type accomodation with a central courtyard. It's in Onchan though.

How does it work - are there set times/shows like the Cinema? Website is not terribly informative... Looks good though!

Unfortunately there are a lot of funny weir things on the Laxey and Glen Roy Rivers. I was actually up the Glen Roy river valley last year and it was chocked full of fallen trees, just waiting for the next big rains...

The lake/reservior is a bit further up the valley than where the Gardens were, about a 15 min walk past some old abandoned buildings and is decent sized (Olympic swimming pool). I remember the pond and assumed outflow in the Balla-wotsit gardens and it was entirely separate and just joined onto the Glen Roy river on the valley floor. Not sure what the big lake/small reservoir was used for but it is still there and has some old buildings, a sluice and rusted gearing etc there.

The Laxey River is joined by the Glen Roy river in the Village pretty much exactly where the hole had been created - no doubt another contributory factor. The Laxey River goes up through the Valley Gardens/Old Washing floors, to a lake behind the Salmon Centre / Old Manx Engineers Building then onwards up towards Snaefell. The Glen Roy River goes under the big bridge, through the Glen Gardens and up through Glen Roy at the foot of the Axnfell plantation. Eventually it more or less terminates at a lake/reservoir. There are definitely Salmon that go up Laxey River then up Glen Roy river up at least as far as the foot of Axnfell plantation. Not sure about the Laxey River after it is joined by the Glen Roy river though. I think Sulby river is probably longer...

Anyone have any bright ideas what that weir was for back in the day? Seems a pretty odd structure to be honest.

2pm and it's a big one.

You'd think they would consider there 'might' be an issue with the hole in the wall and a weather forecast for a shitload of rain..... but no. Anyone any ideas who would be doing the work/be responsible?

I noticed a couple of weeks ago that they (I'm assuming DOT or similar) had taken out a section of the 5ft wall next to the Wollen Mills where the two rivers join, to do some sort of maintenance. Initially it looked like the river was coming through there. Although it also seems that the weir about 100m further down has become completely blocked by fallen trees etc and now the water is backing up over that. Wonder if the new bridge is holding up? Its a big high tide at 2 which could cause even more of a backlog.

Regarding the 'low re-offending rates'. Initially this had me puzzled too, as they all seem to be regulars there. But perhaps it's only the idiots who are likely to re-offend that were willing to be filmed for the series? If I had been locked up for something I had genuine remorse for/made a mistake and had no intention of ever getting locked up again, I would damn well ensure I wasn't filmed to advertise the fact I was locked up in the first place and give myself the chance to build my life back up again outside, without the fame from being featured on the show.

Yep, I can imagine exactly this happening in the UK. We don't have a monopoly on stupid ideas you know. One of the hospitals in the midlands, (Leamington / Warwick - I can't remember which exactly) has an A&E on the 1st floor, with main access is via an outside staircase. Not ideal if you've destroyed your knee.....

She's Baroness of Knightsbridge or something isn't she? And a member of the House of Lords (to which she rarely shows up to allegedly). To maintain these 'titles' would she not have to stay resident in the UK?