On July 21,  1973, Liskeard’s Leisure Centre (aka Lux) was officially opened by her late Majesty Princes Margaret with the unveiling of a commemorative plaque.

Last Friday, 50 years to that exact date, the occasion was marked with a celebratory Open Day organised by General Manager Brett Price and his formidable team, including Charlie Brown and Manager Steve Luscombe and we, of course, were on hand to provide the music and entertainment for their visitors.

On the list of exciting freebies on offer were swimming, badminton, walking football, soft play for the youngsters, some tempting goodies at the Helluva Pasty Cafe and a number of local stall holders providing fun and games.

We had been invited to come along a number of weeks previously and, seeing the wonderful facilities available and the hard work the staff put in to make the centre inviting and open to all, we were more than happy to take up the offer and help promote this auspicious occasion ahead of the day.

Sharon and myself arrived at around 11.30am to set up our PA equipment in the reception area....we didn’t need full kit this time but we still wanted to make a great impression with our banners and (designer-ish) Liskeard Radio t-shirts!

We were welcomed by a very enthusiastic Charlie who told us they were already having guests numbers well beyond their expectations which was excellent news.

Of course we needed little fuel to energise ourselves so Sharon was quickly off to the Cafe to take advantage of the ‘taster’ cake bites and coffee...there has to be coffee!

Now, whilst we were in the comfort of the enclosed reception area, there were a number of stalls outside that caught our eye, in particular the human fruit machine which seemed particularly popular.

A stall that proved too much of a temptation for, ex-Navy, Sharon was the Community Treasure Chest ‘bed-making’ competition...her challenger was Charlie, an ex-RAF engineer and so, of course, it quickly became an inter-service ‘Who Dares Wins’ affair!

All I can say was that It was riotous and to see who won you’ll just have to visit our Liskeard Radio Facebook Page for the footage!

By this time the ever-present Mayor of Liskeard Cllr Simon Cassidy had arrived to present a framed certificate to the Leisure Centre, on behalf of Liskeard Town Council, which will sit below the original plaque.

His first words were of course, “Mike, where’s your coffee flask?” 

To his dismay I hadn’t brought one knowing the Helluva Cafe was open...indeed he even bought ours!!

The Cancer Research UK stand was situated just inside the main foyer and Sharon spent time speaking to the lovely Morag about the Teddy Bear adoption scheme...indeed she kindly donated Freddie, Liskeard Radio’s new studio and touring mascot to her.

Having been invited to join in for a kick around in the sports hall I spoke to the centre’s Karen Edwards and Will from the CFA (Cornish Football Association) to discuss ‘Walking Football’, a popular game that is likely to find itself a home at Lux in the near future. They described it as a great opportunity to get fit and have fun doing so...and that it is open to all ages and ability.

When the time came for us to leave we agreed we hadn’t really known what to expect on the day but we both came away feeling like four hours had passed very quickly.

For us, the idea is always to fly the flag of Liskeard Radio, let people know about us, support the local community and have fun...I think we did all of that!If you haven’t visited the centre before then it is an absolute must and I’m sure the staff, including Charlie and Steve will give you a warm welcome.