It is heartening to hear that neighbours are acting in solidarity with Jenny Mumford, the illustrator whose imaginative demonstration against the overdevelopment of the area near her house in Lansdown Place looks like landing her a date in court. A fortnight back Jenny put up a pop art poster on the front wall of her house, depicting Glenda Slagg, the fictitious Private Eye reporter, exclaiming in her inimitable manner 'MORE DEVELOPMENT! AREN'TCHA SICK OF IT?!' Lewes District Council sent an officer round to Jenny's house to instruct her to remove it within 48 hours, otherwise procecution proceedings would commence. She refused to do so, and the ball in now in the council's court.
It is, however, not illegal to put a poster up in your window, and nearby Castle Copy Shop have started selling A3 and A4 versions of the poster, at cut price (£1 and 50p) which are appearing all over town, especially in the area concerned. Added at the bottom is a message of support, and a comment on the irony of the situation: Jenny is being threatened with prosecution for criminal damage by the very council which has given the go-ahead for the destruction of a number of sections of beautiful ancient flint wall. If you are interested in lending your support, you can order a copy of the poster on 483696 or visit the shop.
The council are up against a formidable opponent: this is not, Jenny tells us, Glenda's first foray into local politics. She was put up in November 1985, as part of a successful campaign against the building of a supermarket and 21 shops in what is now the Railway Land. On a lighter note, eight years ago she appeared again to celebrate the return of Rodin's statue The Kiss to Lewes, her speech bubble reading 'RODIN! DON'TCHA LOVE HIM! GIVE US A KISS SWEETIE!!' "The pity is," says Ms Mumford, "it's all too late, because the council have already approved all the redevelopment in the area."
The painting at the top of this page courtesy of local artist Marco Crivello. Cover courtesy of Jenny Mumford
Fri 18th - Cinema - The Blossoming of Maximo Oliveros(15)
The Maximo in the title is a 12-year-old Filipino lady-boy who cooks and cleans for his street-hustling father and two brothers. The plot is driven by his crush on a rookie cop who saves him from being raped: when the cop starts sniffing into his family's dodgy business the lad is torn between familial loyalty and overwhelming puppy love. A surprisingly charming and sensitive film, beautifully shot on location in the crowded slums of Manila.
Rotten Tomatoes found that 88% of 17 reviewers enjoyed the film
The BBC's Tom Dawson found the film 'appealingly non-judgemental' and spotted some references to to Carol Reed's Third Man
(we do not feel the need to apologise for linking this not-strictly-relevant clip from the 1949 classic)
Watch a trailer of the film
Watch an interview in Filipino with star Nathan Lopez
Lewes Film Club, All Saints, 8pm, £5
Fri 18th : Talk - Lewes Castle
The Sussex Archaeological Group give you a historical insight into Lewes' most valuable tourist asset, and best-loved building (address angry disagreeing e-mails to this address). The talk is followed by the association's AGM, but everybody is welcome.
Watch a corny slideshow of Lewes Castle, accompanied by the Braveheart theme
Town Hall, 7.30pm, £3/£2
Sat 19th: Football - Lewes v Dorchester
On Tuesday, in front of a four-figure crowd, Lewes carved out a valuable victory over a fine Fisher Athletic side, which put them within sight of the Conference Championship. It was a tense affair, and Fisher ran the midfield for long periods, but Lewes held firm and Paul Booth scored a late goal, volleying in a punch-out by the keeper after substitute Leon Legge had created absolute havoc in the box. Now a Lewes victory against Dorchester will be enough to see them through. If Eastbourne lose at Newport, even a defeat against the relegation-threatened Dorset side will suffice. Get to the Pan, and cheer the lads on. Picture of Boothy celebrating his goal by James Boyes.
This upbeat folk-rock band describes itself as 'merging a joyous, uplifting cacophony of sound with a slightly sinister, distorted collision of music hall, Lotte Lenya, Robert Wyatt and pure theatre.' They have won the BBC Folk Awards' 'Best Live Act' three out of the last four years: an eleven-piece combo they feature instruments as diverse as the glockenspiel, the sousaphone and the helicon, as well as yer usual guitars, banjos and trumpets.
Town Hall, 7.30pm, £18.50/£16.50 book on 01323 841414
Sat 19th: Gig - Laser Crabs
This local foursome, who've been dubbed by this very mag 'punchy post-punk pogo-popstars' (sorry about that one) play a venue which is very much their local. There will, we assure you, be punters dancing on the tables, because these kids are on fire, and they do a great version of the Dead Kennedy's Too Drunk to Fuck, to boot.
Check out the Crabs' myspace site Watch the Crabs at last year's Lark in the Park. Great hand-stands
Town Hall, 7.30pm, £18.50/£16.50 book on 01323 841414
Sat 19th: Concert - Musicians of All Saints
An annual platform for some of the finest up-and-coming classical musicians around, in the old church which gives the MAS group its name. Performers from the Trinity College of Music play pieces by Janacek, Prokofiev and Astor Piazzolla (left). The latter, the Argentinian musician who moved tango music into the modern age, is paid homage to as part of the MAS's South American season.
All Saints , 7.45pm, £8/£6/children free. Tickets on door or in advance from Academy Music on Lansdown Place.
Sat 19th: Art - Louise Chavannes
HQ Gallery hosts a solo exhibition for the Northumbrian artist whose rich, colourful watercolour landscapes, with the help of natural pigments like lapis lazuli and manganese blue take the wishy-washy out of the genre. Her Venetian bridges are to die for; we're not so sure, though, about the sheep.
Check out her website Read how her dog Henry miraculously survived a leap off a Seven Sister cliff
HQ Gallery , open 10.30-5pm Tues-Sat, 1-5pm Sun, free entry
Sat 19th: Classical Music - Paul Simmonds
Paul is one of the very few early keyboard players who give public concerts on the clavichord. Lewes being the world centre of replica clavichord construction he is, of course, a frequent visitor. Tonight he plays music of the 'inconsistent and original' Johann Friedrich Hassler.
The Workshop, English Passage, 8pm, 552548 for details
Wed 23rd: Talk - Do Prisons Work?
Eoin McLellan Murray is in charge of Lewes' most populated building, the prison, housing nearly 500 inmates. In 2004, just after his appointment, the prison was controversially branded the most violent in Britain. Using a progressive approach, he has attempted since to clean things up. He is, then, well qualified to give this talk, brought to us by the Friends of Lewes.
Town Hall, 7.45pm, all welcome
Thurs 24th: Talk - Conrad's Heart of Darkness and its Critics
Professor Cedric Watts follows Marlow up the Congo for the U3A. His mission? To return the 'gone native' Kurtz to civilisation. That's Marlow, of course, not Watts. Conrad's tenebrous novella is based loosely on his own experiences as the skipper of a steamboat in Africa. Francis Ford Coppola, of course, popularised the story in his film Apoclypse Now. The horror, the horror.
A good excuse to reproduce the 'horror' clip of Coppola's film
Town Hall, 2.30pm, all welcome
Sat 26th: Football - Lewes v Weston Super-Mare
Whether this is a nail-biting finale to what has been a nail-biting season, or a raucous celebration of Lewes' championship win very much depends on results between our webmag going live and kick-off. If Lewes have won the championship by then, the directors of the club are calling supporters to attend the match in fancy dress, though this is not, of course, compulsory for entry. Expect a bumper crowd, whatever the case: this match might well represent the end of one era, and the dawning of a new one.
Paul Thomas Andersen has been heralded by many as being the saviour of American cinema, and There Will be Blood is the director of Magnolia and Punch Drunk Love's most complete movie yet. It stars Daniel Day-Lewis as a 1920's oil Tycoon who will stop at nothing to get what he wants. In his way is a young boy-preacher with a churchful of disciples. 160 minutes of tense, powerful, epic stuff, and a spellbinding performance by Day-Lewis make this a must-see movie. Great cinematography, too. Milkshakes will never be the same.
Or 'There will be Blood II' judging by the extraordinary window display in the Town Hall. The Esterhazy Choir perform JS Bach's affirmation of faith, with a baroque orchestra conducted by Nigel Perrin, performing with period instruments.
DJ Digitalis, a Brighton DJ who’s recently moved to Lewes, takes you back to the alternative sound of the 80’s. Get out you drainpipes, back-comb your hair, and get serious to Siouxsie , Bauhaus, and the Jesus and Mary Chain. Or otherwise: remember King Kurt , anyone?
Lansdown, 8.30pm, free
Mon 28th: Art - Rachael Plummer
Same gallery, new name. What was the Star, is now the Hop. The inaugural exhibition in this under-new-management space (it's being directed by Angie Osbourne, formerly of Thebes) is by Rachael Plummer, a semi-abstract painter 'inspired by small areas of local wilderness and a preoccupation with aviation'.
Hop Gallery, Castle Ditch Lane, open 10-5pm, Mon-Sat, till May 10th
Or 'There will be Blood II' judging by the extraordinary window display in the Town Hall. The Esterhazy Choir perform JS Bach's affirmation of faith, with a baroque orchestra conducted by 
