30 January 2026
Bedford Ian has been looking at recent goings on across Bedford Borough and tells us what he thinks of it all…
Phallic Frosting
Bedfordshire-based Wooden Hill Coffee Roasters gave me a childish chuckle this week with a Facebook post celebrating their cake maker, Tracey.
According to the post, Tracey “always uses premium ingredients, locally grown and sourced whenever possible, no junk, just good quality ingredients”, and her cakes are “revered across the county”. All very wholesome.
Now, I’m sure the carrot cake itself was absolutely delicious, but as the attached photo shows, the icing had a little extra something. Let’s just say it may not be one for a church fête and leave it at that.
Christmas curse
I was all set to blame Bedford Borough Mayor Tom Wootton’s recent run of political bad luck on the Christmas Tree and decorations still up in Harpur Square.
After all, everyone knows it’s unlucky to leave your tree up after Twelfth Night. And with everyone seemingly having a go at him and the wider council recently about, well, everything, maybe it’s the festive foliage that was tempting fate.
Except it turns out that bit of “wisdom” is nonsense. Or at least, modern nonsense.
Dig a little deeper (because even satire needs a fact check), and you’ll find that in medieval times it was perfectly normal to keep Christmas decorations up well into February.
According to Dr Michael Carter, English Heritage’s Senior Properties Historian, the Christmas season traditionally runs right through to Candlemas on 2 February.
The idea that decorations must come down by 6 January is a relatively recent invention. Though, in fairness, medieval folk did believe that decorations left up after Candlemas Eve might become possessed by goblins, which feels like a detail worth respecting.
So perhaps there’s still hope. If the Harpur Square tree and decorations come down by Monday, we can safely rule out supernatural mischief. I guess there must be another reason for the criticisms our local politicians have faced lately.
Parking politics
How hard is it to get something as basic as parking right?
You set a pricing structure, you explain it clearly, and you offer free parking at certain times to help the local economy tick along. Simple, right?
Apparently not.
Fist Bedford Borough Council offers lots of free parking, but the budget won’t balance. So they reduce the length of free parking sessions, and businesses feel let down.
Read: Anger over Bedford’s evening parking grows while councillor defends controversial charges
The latest debacle takes it even further, with overnight charges now penalising people who want to use the town centre for what it is evolving into, a destination for food, drink and entertainment.
Stay one second after 8pm, and you’ll get an extra charge to your stay, even if you plan to be home and in your PJs by 9pm.
But, over the last couple of years, while the length of free parking sessions and parking prices may have fluctuated, one thing has remained constant.
The Borough councillors arguing about what they think is the best solution
Huh, I wonder if that’s the problem.
A council that can’t stop squabbling long enough to work together and work out what’s best for Bedford.
Cricket cuisine
It’s genuinely good to see new businesses opening their doors in Bedford, and we wish every one of them the very best of luck, in particular a new restaurant (that will remain nameless).
While early whispers about the food are promising, they might want to give their website one more careful read.
We’re not sure whether it’s the AI-generated photos or the names in the review section that are wrong, but featuring a review from a young woman called ‘Ian Botham’ should probably be taken with a pinch of salt.
See you soon, Bedford Ian.
PS: If you see anything Bedford Ian might find amusing, let us know at news@BedfordIndependent.co.uk
