Latest news with #SteveHarris
Telegraph
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
Hawk that attacked bald men is adopted by a bald man
A Harris Hawk that attacked bald men in a village has been adopted by a bald man. The bird of prey, nicknamed 'Bomber Harris', attacked over 50 people in Flamstead, Hertfordshire, during a four-week reign of terror in March. A falconer who helped trap the hawk previously told The Telegraph the bird 'saw bald men' and attacked them because it was 'hormonal'. But the bird has now been adopted by Wayne Housden, a falconer who has recently had a buzz cut. The 58-year-old village warden told The Telegraph that Bomber had changed – pointing to the fact he could shave his head without fear of attack. 'If you looked at me now, you'd say, 'he's bald',' Mr Housden said. 'I'm not worried about him. I've shaved my head and, when I shaved it, it was to the bone. 'But I go into his aviary and he doesn't attack me.' Mr Housden, who lives near Flamstead, described his new friend as 'really tame', adding: 'He wasn't terrible. He was more scared than anything when he was caught. 'I can kiss him on the head. He nibbles around my neck and on my chin... He's so friendly to me. He's obsessed with me.' For four weeks last year Flamstead ground to a halt. Postmen stopped delivering mail, fearful scaffolders left work unfinished and villagers would not dare leave their homes without a hat, umbrella or hooded coat to protect themselves. The siege was finally brought to an end when Steve Harris, 40, threw a cage over the bird after it followed him into his back garden. The physiotherapist and father-of-two, who had been returning from a run, told The Telegraph that he and his children had not been in their garden for 'weeks and weeks' because of the attacks. Mr Housden, who also owns another falcon, said that he had decided to adopt the bird after the police contacted him for help. Bomber is now housed in a new £1,000 aviary which was built by Mr Housden. The falconer said the idea that the bird might attack someone again was 'always in the back of your head' but added that 'he's got to go loose'. He said that he has already started taking Bomber on excursions, including a visit to his friend's house. 'He's calmed down', Mr Housden added. 'He needed to calm down.' Asked whether he thought the bird was misunderstood, he said: 'Yes he was. 'He's going to be going to a scarecrow festival in Flamstead and he will end up meeting everyone that he's hit on the head, so they will all see how he's changed.'
BBC News
31-03-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Dorset charity elephant sculpture damaged day after trail starts
An elephant sculpture that forms part of a charity trail of almost 60 has been found damaged a day after going on elephant in West Bay, Dorset, was found with a number of holes smashed along its head on charity art trail, Stampede by the Sea, said "as an event organised by, and raising money for, local charity Weldmar Hospicecare, this is really sad".The free trail, in place until 27 May, is followed by a map or app around Bridport, West Bay, and Lyme Regis. The charity added it was "disappointing" to find the damage after "so much positivity with the launch of the trail."Featuring 31 large and 28 smaller elephants it has been created by the specialist end of life care charity and public art trail producer Wild in the trail has ended its large artist-decorated sculptures are set to be auctioned at the Corn Exchange in Dorchester in June to raise money for the of the elephants been painted by Royal Academy artist Phillip Sutton, 96, who is partially features a cartoon of Radio Solent's Dorset Breakfast host, Steve Harris, by cartoonist Lyndon Wall.A map of the trail can be found on the Stampede by the Sea website. You can follow BBC Dorset on Facebook, X, or Instagram.
BBC News
28-03-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Stampede by the Sea: Elephant sculpture trail unveiled in Dorset
A public art trail featuring individually designed elephant sculptures painted by different artists has been unveiled in by the Sea is a collaboration between local charity Weldmar Hospicecare and public art trail producer Wild in than 50 elephants are on display around Bridport, West Bay and Lyme Regis for eight event aims to raise money and awareness for the charity. One of the elephants been painted by Royal Academy artist Phillip Sutton, 96, who is partially features a cartoon of Radio Solent's Dorset Breakfast host, Steve Harris, by cartoonist Lyndon Wall, who draws primarily for the West Dorset Magazine, said: "The suggestion from the magazine was to draw lots of cartoons, covering all aspects of Dorset - famous people, places and things that were newsworthy as well."A map of the trail can be found on the Stampede by the Sea artist-decorated sculptures will be auctioned at the end of the trail. You can follow BBC Dorset on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
BBC News
20-03-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
BBC presenter appears in elephant art trail in Dorset
A BBC radio presenter has been immortalised in a charity sculpture trail in by the Sea is a trail of 50 individually decorated elephants, launching on 28 March in Bridport, Lyme Regis and West designs are yet to be unveiled but it has been revealed that Radio Solent's Dorset Breakfast host, Steve Harris, appears on an elephant by cartoonist Lyndon presenter is set to come cheek to cheek with his likeness ahead of the official launch. The elephant - named Cartoons - was created in partnership with West Dorset image on the animal's rump depicts the presenter sitting on the edge of a swimming pool during the radio station's 2024 Children in Need swimming cartoon resembles a photo taken of Harris in 2023 after he had a tattoo marking the 10th anniversary of the Dorset Breakfast said he was "thrilled" to be featured in the trail. He said: "You know how some things happen in your life but, because you're prepared for them, they don't excite you?"And then you get a message saying someone's painted you on the side of an elephant and it's somehow the most exciting thing that's happened all year. "We'd already planned, as a family, to get out and see the Stampede - now I can't wait to take my five-year-old and twin two-year-olds to go and see this particular element and surprise them with my topless form."The free trail, which lasts for eight weeks, aims to raise awareness and support for Weldmar Hospicecare, which provides end-of-life care to adults, and support for their families. You can follow BBC Dorset on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
Yahoo
10-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
'We had a song called Heat-Crazed Vole. You know, like a rat. It was pretty awful!': Iron Maiden's Steve Harris recalls his early days
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. In the 50 years since he formed Iron Maiden, bassist Steve Harris has been the band's leader and main songwriter - the author of classic heavy metal anthems including Run To The Hills, The Number Of The Beast and The Trooper. But as he admits to MusicRadar, he wrote some very strange songs in his younger days before Maiden. In his first band, Influence, Harris wrote the music but left the lyrics to a school friend named Dave Smith. 'Dave came up with a song that was called Heat-Crazed Vole,' Harris recalls. 'You know, like a rat. Which I thought was a pretty awful title.' Dave Smith also provided the title for another of Harris' early songs - Endless Pit. 'That was a terrible title as well,' Harris says. But that song ended up being hugely significant for Steve Harris and Iron Maiden. The main riff in Endless Pit was developed into a new song named Innocent Exile. Innocent Exile would eventually be featured on Iron Maiden's second album, Killers, released in 1981. But Steve Harris first performed the song with Smiler, the band he joined after his spells with Influence and another group, Gypsy's Kiss. 'I played quite a few gigs with Smiler,' Harris says. 'Maybe twenty-six, twenty-seven shows with them. 'And it was good experience playing with guys that were quite a bit older than me. It's funny because at the time, I was seventeen, and they were like mid-twenties, and I thought they were pretty old! 'Smiler was a boogie band, so they quite liked Innocent Exile, because it's got a sort of a boogie bit at the end. 'But they didn't want to play any of my other songs, and that's when it got a bit weird. "They told me, 'Oh, there's too many time changes in your songs.' And well, fair enough. I mean, I joined them! 'They were a boogie band, and that's what I joined. So I should have been content with that, really, but I wasn't. 'I wanted to introduce more of my stuff, and it wasn't really suitable for that band. 'We played a lot of covers, and because they had two guitar players I introduced a bit of Wishbone Ash. But they liked the boogie stuff like Savoy Brown and bands like that. That's what they were all about. 'So I was trying to pull them in a direction that they weren't really that comfortable with. 'And in the end I realised that the only way to do my own stuff is to leave and form my own band. Then I can do what I want.' Harris put the first line-up of Iron Maiden together in the last months of 1975. 50 years later, the band are celebrating that anniversary with the Run For Your Lives tour.
