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The show covers a wide variety of subjects, issues and dilemmas - ranging from health, food & fashion to fitness, finance & family. We often hear from listeners who are keen to raise specific issues or are in need of urgent help.

Usually we are able to assist by getting to the truth, locating those involved or initiating a response or resolution. As a result the show has a growing portfolio of listener achievements.

Phone the programme on-air on 01473 212121 or text the show on 07786 2 07786.

Website Of The Week

Our Steve is the browsing king! Check out his surfing recommendations here:听听

Recipes of the Month

Each month James reveals a culinary delight from a local chef:

Wouldn't It Be Good...

...if home grown legend Nik Kershaw popped in? Well he did - and as well as talking about his career and his forthcoming gig at the New Wolsey Theatre on November 15th, Nik recalled some of his memories of growing up in Ipswich.

Hear the full interview on the James Hazell Show iplayer

Nik Kershaw joins James

Recycling Week

As part of recycling week James & Sal have made some pledges to cut down on waste, with forfeits if they fail. Sal has agreed to be rubbish free for a week with the penalty of cleaning all the computer keyboards at the station if she fails.

James on the other hand has the somewhat easier task of not using non-reusable bags for shopping. The cost of failure is to do a shopping trip with no moaning whatsoever - which, he admits, has never, ever happened.

See below for their daily blog...

Our recycling buddy Karen Cannard, of Rubbish Diet fame, is assisting and is a big part of the whole week's activities. Full details of Karen and the campaign are here:

Going For Gold

James recently joined Spandau Ballet frontman Tony Hadley for the launch of a new restaurant on the waterfront in Ipswich. Tony is a partner in a Suffolk micro-brewery and was keen for James to sample 'Hadley's Gold'...

James meets Tony Hadley

Know Your Limits

James recently spent the evening at the Ipswich Accident and Emergency Department to find out what effect patient's abuse of alcohol has on the team. James was surprised and 听in some cases horrified by what he saw.

The five piece series gives a true insight into the problems faced by the NHS when we don't know our limits...

Recycling Week Blog

Monday 22nd June,

Sally:
Having rashly agreed to do my part for Recycle Week, I now realise how much you need to be aware of the packaging surrounding ,everyday products.
After the programme went off air, I gaily dived into the biscuits one of my colleagues had brought back from his holiday in Italy.听 Having devoured the treat, I was then left with the cellophane wrapper which I can't recycle.听 I then followed Karen's advice, and ate up the leftovers of last night's fish pie.听 Unfortunately there was rather more than a portion and having eaten it for my lunch, I sank back into my chair and struggled to get on with the rest of the afternoon's work.听 Sadly I had covered my plate of fish pie with cling film and now that has joined the cellophane in a (recycled) carrier bag - washed and dried - to ask how I can recycle them when we report back next week.听 That's just the first day.听 Roll on the rest of the week!听听

James:
No shopping today except some petrol. Bags are not needed!

Tuesday 23rd June

Sally:

It鈥檚 really good this 鈥渘o rubbish鈥� lark.听听 Karen Cannard, the Queen of no rubbish, will be really proud of me!听 It really makes you aware of what you are buying and whether you can get rid of it easily.听 My carrier bag now has five pieces of rubbish I can鈥檛 recycle but I have managed to do most of it.听 My family are already getting tired of me asking them to think about where they are putting their waste, and hardly dare come into the kitchen any more.听 Even the dog isn鈥檛 safe 鈥� his old biscuit bags are being reused to collect garden refuse in and will be stored in the shed for future use.听 My challenge was meant to be for one day, but now I鈥檝e started I can see how it easily becomes a way of life so I鈥檓 hoping it will be the start of something new.听听 There鈥檚 no rubbish bin in the kitchen any more so it concentrates the mind on which bin to put which bit of rubbish in outside 鈥� this has particularly thrown the teenagers in the family as they鈥檙e used to just throwing stuff in the nearest thing they come across!

James:

No shopping. No bags used. This is easy..

Wednesday 24th June

Sal:

It must be working 鈥� today I had hardly anything to throw away.听 My lunch was wrapped in foil instead of cling film.听 Instead of buying four bottles of soda water in the supermarket that I would normally get in a pack of four, wrapped in plastic I bought them individually.听 It worked out a bit more expensive though.听 Virtually no food was thrown away from the fridge, although the three day old piece of quiche I ate might be starting to work on my digestion system.听 Don鈥檛 waste food, get food poisoning instead 鈥� nice.听 The bonus, though, is that my recycling blue bin outside is stuffed to the rafters, and the brown food waste/garden waste bin is three quarters full.听 I can鈥檛 remember the last time I actually put anything in there so the dustmen are in for a real treat this week.听 Half way through the challenge, and I think I鈥檓 way ahead of James 鈥� who hasn鈥檛 done a thing towards his challenge.听 I expect his wife Karen is looking forward to receiving his forfeit 鈥� shopping in any shop she wants to!

James: Nearly had to go shopping, but got out of it with a brilliant excuse. So far so good. No bags used...

Thursday 25th June

Sal:

With a couple of days off it鈥檚 now a good time to go through the wardrobe and chuck out anything I haven鈥檛 worn for the last century.听 (Recycling doesn鈥檛 just stop at domestic rubbish you know!)听 Three hours later, sweat pouring from every pore I wonder whether this was a good idea.听 The dog is covered with clothes and shoes that haven鈥檛 seen the light of day for years and there are three black rubbish sacks waiting to be taken to the charity shop.听 Shoes and other clothes that I couldn鈥檛 possibly pass on to my worst enemy are going to the clothing bank.听 Feeling worn out but strangely cleansed, I鈥檓 already looking forward to tomorrow when the fruits of my labours this week disappear.

James: Still no shopping. This recycling lark is so easy.

Friday 26th June

Sal:

The big day dawns.听 It鈥檚 recycling bin day today.听 The blue bin is so full I鈥檝e had to stick the dog, who weighs a hefty 34 kg, on top to force the contents in 鈥� otherwise there鈥檚 a chance the bin men won鈥檛 take it if the lid won鈥檛 shut properly so I鈥檓 not taking any chances.听 The brown bin is three quarters full of garden waste and food waste wrapped up in newspaper as Karen told me.听 The grey general waste bin, which will be collected next Friday, has had nothing put in it this week and lo and behold I鈥檓 maggot free for the first year in ages.听 I鈥檓 now waiting, nose pressed against the living room window like a child in anticipation of Father Christmas arriving, for the bin men to come to collect my recycled rubbish.听 Has the week鈥檚 experiment of being rubbish free been successful?听 Hugely and I would recommend it to anyone.听 It leaves you feeling good about yourself, you鈥檝e done a good turn for the environment, and it鈥檚 obvious that supermarkets can do more to reduce the packaging of their products or do more to make sure it can be recycled.听 I鈥檓 looking forward t a big pat on the back from Karen Cannard next week.听 James 鈥� the floor is now yours.听 Let鈥檚 see what you鈥檝e done towards your challenge.

James: Uh oh. As a result of some pathetic conspiracy I have been given a shopping list. It contains things that I am not sure exist and certainly don't appear to be听 cary-able with no bags. I will not be defeated however. Watch this space...

Week Two

Nobody was convinced by my 'no shopping' trick. So they set me another challenge... zero waste for one week.

So here is my recycling challenge blog - I am a man without a clue.

The first priority was to work out which bin does what. Evidently the blue wheelie bin is the recycler. The brown one does garden waste (which does not count as waste right?) and the green one is the big issue. This is the bin I have to avoid. In the kitchen I have discovered two bins. One is for recycling! The Hazell family is known for occasionally creating a fair bit of rubbish - there are 5 of us after all. So this is going to be a bit of a culture shock I think.

Having said all of that I have consulted with the Domestic Waste Department here at Hazell Towers and she tells me we generate, on average, one half of a wheelie bin every two weeks of rubbish. Now I think that's quite impressive - so maybe this challenge will not be so bad after all.

So could I get to zero waste?

Wed 1st July - 4pm onwards.
Shepherd's Pie for tea. Both packets of mince were in recyclable containers. Spuds, carrots and peas from stock听 - so no immediate waste. 1 onion skin which went into the 'garden waste' bin. Received a load of junk mail. Put it all in shredder to use as packaging later. Faulty Xbox was returned. Will keep box and packaging for when my boys break it again and it has to go back. Smoked a few cigarettes. Creating waste? No. I have a plan...

Day one then... zero waste.