Sunday in Irthlingborough

Two kids jumping up and down in an overflowing waste skip throwing bags of festering rubbish about. Welcome to Irthlingborough, home of Doc Martens and the massive Rushden & Diamonds football stadium that Air Wear boots cash helped build. These days Doc Martens are made in China (where else?), the F.C. is languishing in the Conference and the town is more dead than alive.
But it does have the best moorings on the Nene. That's not hard – they're about the only ones since Peterborough where you can pump-out, empty the Thetford and chuck your rubbish. Actually you could probably chuck it all over the football club car park and no-one would notice there's so much there already.
It's a great river, the Nene, but frustrating short of facilities. Come on EA, we know you're strapped for cash but how about a couple more 48 hour landing stages? Or how about some villages having a go. Woodford, for example. Three pubs, shops, a chippy and no moorings. Oh but there are some - a long stretch of landing stage festooned with 'private no mooring' signs. And not a single boat there, ever, in all our trips on the river. Help boost the local shops and pubs, jetty owners, rent in out - a fiver a night. Earn a few quid for the parish council or the church fund.