A nine-day festival encompassing the entire output of Thelonious Monk will take place in Birmingham between 12-20 June to celebrate the centenary of the master jazz musician.

Organised by Birmingham Conservatoire’s Jazz Department, Monkathon will see all 70 of Monk’s compositions performed at venues across the city by groups, soloists and internationally-renowned guest artists.  

Born in North Carolina in 1917, Thelonious Monk has made numerous contributions to the standard jazz repertoire including ‘Blue Monk’, ‘Round Midnight’ and ‘Well, You Needn’t’. Despite writing a relatively small amount of pieces, Monk is the second most-recorded jazz composer of all time and is one of only five jazz musicians to have appeared on the cover of ‘Time’ magazine.

Dr Hans Koller, Senior Lecturer at Birmingham Conservatoire, part of Birmingham City University, said:

“Thelonious Monk is one of the 20th century giants of music, not just of jazz. His art transcends boundaries of time, style and aesthetics. Monk at 100 is a wonderful excuse to celebrate his status as an iconic figure of inspiration to us all. 

The Birmingham Monkathon features students, alumni and staff at Birmingham City University, with leading international Monk-inspired performers including Steve Cardenas from New York, Liam Noble from the UK, and Professor François Théberge from Paris Conservatoire, as well as the eminent Monk biographer Professor Robin Kelley, for this grand celebration. In addition, we have international students, outreach programmes, and many gigs across the city.” 

Highlights include performances by Steve Cardenas with Martin Speake, Hans Koller, Calum Gourlay and James Maddren, ‘Jump Monk’ with the Arnie Somogyi Small Band, and the Birmingham Jazz Orchestra in original and re-worked compositions of Monk, plus brand new arrangements by special guest Trish Clowes. 

There’s also the chance to hear exciting arrangements of Monk’s early Blue Note recordings from senior students, adjudicated by Steve Cardenas, and a keynote speech by Monk biographer Professor Robin Kelley, Chair of the Department of African American Studies at the University of California at Los Angeles. 

Liam Noble’s small group’s gig also forms part of the Conservatoire’s two-day CODA marathon of new music, marking the very last events to be held in its Paradise Place buildings.

Italian conservatoire students from Verona, Milan, Bologna and Palermo will be visiting Birmingham to participate in Monkathon and four schools in Birmingham and the local area will be treated to outreach concerts featuring some of the small bands.

Birmingham Conservatoire, part of Birmingham City University, is currently preparing to move to a new state-of-the-art £57 million home in September, which will include the city’s only permanent jazz space – Eastside Jazz Club. Earlier this year, Birmingham Conservatoire launched its big band Ellington Orchestra, who will be a regular fixture in the new club.

For Arsene Wenger, it’s a chance to soften the blow and saving something from what has been the worst season in his 21-year tenure. Chelsea are Premier League champions with a record 30 victories from a 38-game season and a win will complete a remarkable first season for the amiable Antonio Conte, with a League and Cup double an impressive highlight on his Premier League debut season.

A record seventh FA Cup win for the Frenchman would hold no little appeal to his remaining acolytes, the type of romantic folk who consider millennials obsessing over UEFA Champions League qualification as being as uncouth as presenting a loved one with flowers plucked from a garage forecourt.

Conte's men go into this afternoon’s FA Cup final showdown having won eight of their past 11 competitive games against Arsenal. A record of six wins from their past seven games against teams in the top half is similarly impressive.

If Gooners chief, Wenger, can engineer a victor at Wembley he will become the standalone most successful manager in FA Cup history, with seven wins to his name. Victory for the boys from the King’s Road will be an almost immaculate debut season in English football for the infectiously likable Italian.

With football being nothing if not bittersweet - so it would turn out for one part of the nation’s capital, though probably more so in the north than west.

Tottenham will play a starring role in this year’s Chelsea Fringe, the alternative garden festival which runs until 4 June.

Running at the same time as the Chelsea Flower show, the Chelsea Fringe includes a host of horticultural events around London celebrating the excitement of gardens and gardening.  This year’s festival includes  ‘Discover Green Tottenham, Yes Tottenham!’, a free walking tour of some of Tottenham’s treasured gardens, parks and allotments with a chance to enjoy some tasty locally grown treats along the way.

Although not traditionally recognised for its green credentials, Tottenham is actually home to Lee Valley Park, London’s largest green and open space, as well as a number of award winning parks and open spaces. The tour will include visits to an urban tropical garden and a thriving community allotment, a stop-off at the Tottenham Green Market, as well as a tour of the award winning Lee Valley Estates urban garden  in Hale Village.

The tour starts at Seven Sisters Tube station (exit 1) at 11am on Sunday 28 May

Dads can indulge their hunter gatherer instincts in the Yorkshire Dales by enjoying a special Father's Day (Sunday 18 June) 'Catch and Cook' fishing trip.

It's hard to beat the taste of freshly-caught fish and Kilnsey Park near Skipton is ideally placed to offer a lake-to-plate experience for dads and their families.

After landing a rainbow trout from one of the scenic fishing ponds, the chef at Kilnsey's Café by the Lake will prepare and cook it before serving the park's twist on fish and chips with homemade mushy peas to the proud fishermen.

The Father's Day Catch & Cook day costs £22.50 per person which includes the fishing experience, rod, and the landing of one fish that is then served as a lunchtime meal with a drink in the café.

Kilnsey Park, in the heart of the spectacularly scenic Upper Wharfedale, runs a fly fishery which includes fishing ponds specifically for those new to fly fishing.

Jamie Roberts, managing partner of Kilnsey Park explains: “Whether it's the thrill of catching that first fish or enjoying friendly competition between other members of the family, the Catch & Cook day will be a great opportunity for dads to relax and spend time doing something a bit different from the norm.”

With 1 in 3 of dogs suffering from skin complaints across the UK, YuMEGA, the UK’s No.1 veterinary skin supplement by Lintbells have launched a campaign to encourage dog owners to “Quit That Itch”. The month long campaign will raise awareness of the importance of healthy skin for dogs, whilst highlighting how dog owners can help support healthy skin and coat for their four legged friends.

To help dog owners throughout the month of June YuMEGA have put together a healthy skin guide detailing the tell-tale signs of skin complaints and top tips on how to treat them. They will also be running a number of competitions giving people the chance to win the YuMEGA Itchy Dog supplement, as well as sharing lots of tips and advice on their social media channels. Lintbells can be found on Facebook (@Lintbells.Pet.Health) and Twitter (@LintbellsPet).

John Davies, co-founder of Lintbells the creators of YuMEGA, said: “We are thrilled to be launching our first ‘Quit That Itch’ Itchy Skin Awareness campaign. The importance of a dog’s skin health is not highlighted enough nowadays and we are aiming to change this, by raising awareness among dog owners and beyond. The health and wellbeing of dogs is at the heart of everything we do and we believe that ‘Quit That Itch’ campaign proves that”

The NEC Group has been announced as Large Company Management Team of the Year (Midlands) at the 2017 British Private Equity & Venture Capital Association (BVCA) Management Team Awards in Birmingham.

The awards, now in their ninth year, are an annual celebration of UK companies, recognising and rewarding brilliant businesses that have been backed by UK private equity and venture capital investors.

NEC Group CEO Paul Thandi said: “Our driver for external investment was to realise our business plan and beyond.  Deliverability and pace are essential for us in responding to market opportunities, and bringing on board an external investor with the experience and breadth of LDC has brought a renewed energy and confidence to our teams and business, which has been essential in our progress.

“We have a clear strategy focused on data, customer experience and optimisation. Our key initiatives are helping us to push out the right messages, at the right time, to the right audience. We’re transforming our regional and national offer through a focused business and leisure destination strategy to give our visitors more compelling reasons to visit, and we’re extending our footprint through consultancy, management and operational expertise internationally.

“LDC have backed our management team since day one. Together we have changed the way we work and operate, and that speed of focus and speed of decision making has been fantastic for us; it’s injected huge energy into our company. We know we can grow our business exponentially over the next few years and LDC have been the catalyst for that, giving us a real singularity of focus.”

The Judges said: “Backed by LDC in 2015, Paul Thandi and his team impressed the judges by the way in which they are developing the commercial potential of this venue, notably the launch of Resorts World. Their management of the day-to-day business was also impressive, including their investment in people and in data capture technology.”

As regional winners, the NEC Group will now represent the Midlands in the national final at the BVCA Gala Dinner in London on 30 November.