Shelagh Delaney fans to get a taste of honey

We have joined forces with Kersal Vale Beekeepers to produce commemorative honey pots to mark the inaugural Shelagh Delaney Day taking place on Tuesday, November 25, which would have been the late Shelagh’s 76th birthday.

Salford-born Shelagh Delaney was one of the first working class, female playwrights and famously penned her most famous work – A Taste of Honey – when she was just 18 years old.

The locally produced honey, which has been named A Taste of Honey, will be handed out to visitors during the Shelagh Delaney Day celebrations at Salford Arts Theatre.

The honey pots will also be given to guests at Salix Homes’ community awards ceremony – The Salix Stars Awards, where for the first time the Shelagh Delaney Creativity Star category has been introduced in honour of the playwright.

Sue Sutton, chief executive at Salix Homes, said: A Taste of Honey was Shelagh’s most famous play and is set in 1950s Salford, so we thought it’d be a really fitting tribute to her to produce these honey pots in her honour.

Not only can Shelagh Delaney fans treasure the honey pots, but the honey itself has been produced locally in Salford by Kersal Vale Beekeepers, which is a wonderful community enterprise that Salix Homes is very proud to support.

Shelagh Delaney Day promises to be a fantastic event where the whole community can come together to celebrate Shelagh’s life and work, and it’s just fantastic that she is finally getting the recognition that she deserves.

Shelagh Delaney Day was the brainchild of proud Salfordian Louise Woodward-Styles who spearheaded a campaign for a special event to celebrate the playwright.
On the day, visitors can look forward to a re-enactment of a scene from A Taste of Honey as well as a Shelagh Delaney inspired art exhibition and a screening of Shelagh’s award winning screen play Dance With a Stranger.

Louise said: “It is with such delight and huge gratitude that I would like to thank Salix Homes and Kersal Vale Beekeepers for the wonderful tribute to Shelagh Delaney and the inaugural Shelagh Delaney Day celebration.

Both Salix Homes and Kersal Vale Beekeepers typify the Salfordian spirit and this delightful memento will surely thrill Shelagh Delaney fans whilst magnifying the importance of the work being done by Kersal Vale Beekeepers.

Kersal Vale Beekeepers, based at Kersal Vale Allotments in Lower Kersal, have eight hives and 500,000 bees producing more than 700lb of honey every year.

In September, Salix Homes also installed a plaque on Shelagh’s childhood home in Duchy Road, which was unveiled by her former sweetheart renowned artist Harold Riley.

To find out more about Shelagh Delaney Day go to http://louisewoodwardstyles.wix.com/shelaghdelaneyday public://Honey_WEB.jpg Alan Henning remembered at Salix Stars Awards 2014-11-13