What day is it?

A day of droll recognition of the celebrations happening over the other side of the pond, playing with a few American icons and their local resonances.

Cholmondeley, the real cat our Chumley is based on, was identical in appearance to Happy Cat, the cat that started off the entire LOLcats franchise. And of course, the cheeseburger is an American icon, so it made sense to include it here.

Frame two is a tribute to The America Ground, a bit of Hastings town centre that was for a short while the self-proclaimed 24th state of the union.

Here's the official story, taken from www.americaground.co.uk

The roots of the America Ground lay in the weather. Back in 1287 a series of terrible storms wreaked havoc on Kent and Sussex, submerging forests, shifting the course of rivers and dramatically reshaping their coastlines.

Hastings was badly affected. Once the south’s best natural port, the storms blocked the town’s harbour with silt and pebbles, forming a huge shingle bank.
This new piece of land, which comprises the area now bounded by Robertson Street, Trinity Triangle, Carlisle Parade and Harold Place, fell just outside the boundaries of Hastings Borough - effectively making it a no-man’s land.
The locals soon realised that they could live on this land free from taxes and rents. Consequently, many moved in, building a thriving but ramshackle community of shops, houses and workplaces.
By 1822, an estimated 1,000 people lived on the bank, forcing Hastings Borough into action. Taking inspiration from the recent American Revolution, the residents reacted defiantly, declaring themselves independent from Hastings as the ‘twenty-fourth’ US state and hoisting the Stars and Stripes flag. The famous America Ground was born.
Before being declared the America Ground, Hastings’ shingle bank was a hive of activity. In her 1919 book ‘Tamarisk Town’, novelist Sheila Kaye-Smith described it as having been “free to any beggars, gypsies or other undesirables ... a mock city of shacks, huts and tents.”
 
The main thoroughfare was a level stretch called ‘Rope Walk’, which largely corresponded with Robertson Street. Due to its flatness it attracted rope-makers who erected upturned boat hulls along it as makeshift shelters.
 
While Hastings Borough decried it as a lawless den of iniquity, the facts suggest a fairly well organised community. Research reveals that much land was occupied by lodging houses, pig-keepers, carpenters, limekilns, warehouses, tallow factories and small farm holdings. There was also a school and gin palace, but no church.
 
By the 1820s, the dark clouds that triggered the declaration of the America Ground were gathering. Squabbles arose between the Hastings Corporation and the Earl of Chichester over who officially owned the land. In addition, Hastings was turning into a fashionable resort, attracting new construction and affluent middle classes fascinated by the town’s ‘quaint’ poor communities. The spirit that fuelled the America Ground was about to be lit, but also quickly extinguished.
The storm clouds that forced the establishment of the America Ground also destroyed it. In the early 1820s, Hastings Borough made several attempts to impose control on the area, prompting the declaration of independence. However, the problems for the residents grew when it was found that no title deeds existed for property on the land.
 
The matter was referred to the Crown Authorities, who called for a Crown Commissioner’s Inquisition. Two other claimants of ownership also came forward - Lord Cornwallis, holder of the Priory Estate, and Battle Abbey Estates.
 The death knell came on 6th December 1827, when five Commissioners and 12 jurymen met at the George Hotel in Battle. Without consulting with or referring to the land’s residents, they ruled that the Ground should be seized on behalf of King George IV.
 
By 1834, the Ground was cleared, with many residents having already moved to St. Leonards. In 1849, a new chapter opened when the developer Patrick Robertson leased the Ground area from the Crown.
 
The America Ground may have gone but the spirit behind it is still celebrated in Hastings today, nearly 200 years on.

Hence the fireworks in frame three.

Have a great day, everyone.