SSSE Limited, whose registered office is situated at 27 Athol Street, Douglas, bought 27 Athol Street, Douglas, for £515,000.

It was bought from Isworth Limited, whose registered office is situated at 27 Athol Street, Douglas.

Other recent transactions lodged at the General Registry in Douglas are as follows:

Colin David Brown and Margaret Elizabeth Brown, sold 8 The Crofts, Ballaughton Meadows, Douglas, for £415,000, to Padraig Anthony Smith and Stacey Patricia Smith, both of 15 Cooil Drive, Douglas.

Andrew Charles Carter Johnson sold The Asters, Tynwald Road, Peel, for £299,950, to Monica Joy George, of 27 Ballatessan Meadow, Peel.

Stephen John Porter, of South Africa, sold 2 Beech Close, Onchan, for £275,000, to Allan Albiston and Lauraine Albiston, of 46 York Road, Douglas.

Anne Elizabeth Hunter and Joyce Margaret Gaskell sold Beechwood, Ballure Estate, Maughold, for £266,000 to Martin Paul O’Shea.

William Barr, of Glasgow, as trustee, Mary Lambie Ellingham, by trustee, sold 29 Close Cam, Port Erin, for £230,000, to Malcolm Raymond Meath Smith and Brenda Ellen Smith, both of 5 Viking Hill, Ballakillowey, Colby.

Bruce Iain Williamson sold 2 Grafton Street, Douglas, for £188,000, to Marc Neville Taggart and Viviana Ines Toro, both of Hillcrest Grove, Birch Hill, Onchan.

Brian Samuel McGaw, of 52 Kerroo Glass, Lezayre Estate, Ramsey, sold 33 Waterloo Road, Ramsey, for £155,000, to Barbara Needham, of 6 Cronk Cardle, The Corony, Maughold.

Michelle Thomas, of West Sussex, sold a plot of land, Vernon Road, Ramsey, for £73,000, to Stephen Peter Bee and Susan Elizabeth Bee, both of 27 Fairway Drive, Ramsey.

Ian Philip Martin sold a parcel of land, Ballakaighen, for £50,000, to Ian Philip Martin, Carol Martin and Tynwald Pensions Limited, whose registered office is situated at 29/31 Athol Street, Douglas.

Mayor Aldermen and Burgesses of the Borough of Douglas and Douglas Corporation, whose registered office is situated at The Town Hall, Ridgeway Street, Douglas, sold a plot of land, Castle Mona Glen, Douglas, for £6,000, to Brian Kershaw and Tamsyn Anne Kershaw, both of Kione Droghad, Castle Hill, Douglas.

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We publish details of all house sales unless we receive a written request from the police or probation services.

The area of earmarked for a huge windfarm off the Manx coast will not affect Steam Packet sailings.

The government made the situation clear as it revealed plans earlier this week.

A previous potential development area in the North East zone sparked concerns from the Steam Packet, business leaders and the government that it would threaten lifeline ferry routes.

Steam Packet chief executive Mark Woodward said last year that the ferry operator had been working closely with the DoI to ensure any potential wind farm areas in Manx waters do not compromise sea routes to and from the island.

Earlier this week it was announced that 100 wind turbines, each up to 175m high, could be built between six and 12 miles off the island’s east coast following the signing of an historic wind power agreement.

The agreement, signed by Dong Energy and Department of Infrastructure chief executive Nick Black on Monday, will allow the energy firm to carry out preliminary surveys for a potential offshore wind farm in Manx waters. Dong’s head of asset management, Benj Sykes, promised full consultation with all stakeholders including the Steam Packet Company.

He said: ‘We want to bring everyone along with us. As part of the next stage there will be full consultation with all key stakeholders including the Steam Packet.’

The 700 megawatt wind farm could become a reality by 2021-23 if the seabed proves suitable. It will generate power for export to the UK. Depending on the size of the development, it could bring in rental income for the Manx government of about £5m a year.

An operations and maintenance facility could also be based in the island, creating jobs, the DED Minister told a press conference.

Economic Development Minister Laurence Skelly MHK said: ‘It’s a momentous event for the Isle of Man. It’s been a long time coming but everything is now in place to allow us to make this agreement so we can move on to the next phase. This is a partnership agreement not just with Dong but with the UK.’

The team from Dong’s arrival in the island was delayed, appropriately enough, by high winds. ‘We like to build somewhere it’s windy!’ remarked Mr Sykes.

He said there was a lot of work to be done first including environmental and technical surveys. ‘We are still very much in the early stages but this agreement means we can move forward with assessing vital factors such as wind speeds and ground conditions, critical to determining the viability of the project,’ he said.

It will take a number of years to complete these investigations, after which there will be an option to secure the lease with the government for the seabed over the lifetime of the wind farm, if conditions are suitable.

Environmental consent would be needed before any lease is signed and if conditions are not suitable for an offshore wind farm, DONG Energy will hand the site back to the government.

The area being surveyed covers 253 sq km (about 96 sq miles). It runs parallel to, and about six miles off, the coast between Laxey and Maughold.

If built, the wind farm would generate some 700 megawatts of power, from some 100 turbines measuring up to 175m to the tip of the turbine blade. They will be visible from the coast on a clear day.

Dong Energy was involved in a joint venture with energy firm Centrica, which last year abandoned plans to develop three potential wind farms sites in the Irish Sea blaming ‘challenging’ ground conditions.

Mr Sykes said: ‘The seabed varies quite a lot. We need to do investigations to find out what geology we’ve got.’

If the wind farm scheme goes ahead, all construction costs will be borne by Dong Energy. The Manx government will be landlord and collect rental for leasing the seabed.

Offshore windfarms in the Irish Sea generate electricity about 80 to 85 per cent of the time. On windy days, Scotland and Ireland currently generate 50 per cent of their electricity from wind power.

It was announced last week that a survey licence had been granted to assess the potential to develop a tidal array off the Point of Ayre.

A major search operation is underway off the coast of Blackpool after a private aircraft vanished en-route from the Isle of Man.

There was just the pilot on board the light aircraft which had been due to arrive at Blackpool Airport from its base at Ronaldsway this morning.

Contact was lost with the plane shortly after 9am when the aircraft was three miles off the Lancashire coast.

Police now believe the private plane went down over the Irish Sea. They had earlier searched the sand dunes at Starr Gate.

A spokesman said: ‘We have ended our search on land and this is now a coastguard incident. The plane is presumed to be missing at sea.’

The UK Coastguard said seven crews, including RNLI volunteers, were searching three miles off-shore.

A search and rescue helicopter from Caernarfon in Wales is involved.

Duty controller Matthew Mace said: ‘There are reports of low visibility in the area so there is a strong likelihood that this aircraft may have ditched into the sea after contact was lost and it disappeared from the radar.

‘We currently have a helicopter and several Coastguard teams out searching for this aircraft.’

Airport director Ann Reynolds confirmed that the single engine prop aircraft was based at Ronaldsway but was not Manx-registered and had one person on board.

Manx trading standards officers have issued a warning about a potentially popular Christmas gift.

The Office of Fair Trading says that more than 17,000 self-balancing scooters – or ‘hoverboards’– have been examined at UK points of entry since October 15 due to safety concerns.

Of these, more than 15,000 (or 88 per cent) have been assessed as unsafe and have been detained at the border.

Now OFT enforcement officers are visiting retailers in the Isle of Man to carry out checks.

In the UK trading standards authorities have detained the boards due to a range of concerns, such as safety issues with the plug, cabling, charger, battery or the cut-off switch within the board, which often fails.

Many of the items detained and sent for testing have been found to have non-compliant plugs without fuses, which increases the risk of the device overheating, exploding or catching fire.

Products that have been tested have failed with significant safety issues and over 15,000 products detained have identical or very similar features to those already deemed as unsafe. With such large numbers being sent for testing since October many testing houses are full to capacity and additional staff training is underway to help meet the demand.

In recent months these faults have caused extensive damage to people’s property and the OFT is urging consumers to be vigilant this Christmas and avoid putting households at risk with unsafe products.

Whether you already own one of these products or are considering purchasing one this Christmas, the OFT is offering the following top tips:-

Never leave the device charging unattended – especially overnight: a faulty cut-off switch (designed to stop the battery from continuing to charge once fully charged) or a plug without a fuse, as seen in many products detained so far, could lead to the device overheating, exploding or catching fire.

Check the device: things to look out for include the shape of the plug – the first unsafe products identified often had a clover-shaped plug. Also check the device for markings or traceable information, such as the name and contact details of the manufacturer and/or importer.

If buying online, look closely at the website before you hit the ‘buy’ button:

o Try searching for reviews of the product or the seller – do these seem genuine?

o Are there lots of spelling or grammar mistakes on the site? This can be a clue that a business is not professionally run.

o See if you can find out where the company’s head office is based – and whether that fits with how the website presents itself.

o Do they have a landline number you can call if there are any problems? Bear in mind that if the company is based abroad, it can be more difficult to get a complaint dealt with or return a faulty product.

o Read the small print – notice if anything seems odd, repetitive or in incorrect English.

o Is there an ‘s’ at the end of the ‘http’ part of the web address, or is there a padlock symbol in the task bar? This means the website is using an encrypted system that keeps your details more secure.

Don’t be dazzled by a bargain: Are the prices incredibly low? If they look too good to be true, they probably are – particularly if some of your other checks have put doubts in your mind.

Be aware that criminals exploit high demand: When items like self-balancing scooters start to sell out at well-known retailers, the void is quickly filled by crooks churning out poor quality imitations that can put people in danger. Don’t ‘panic buy’ from the first website you find – do your usual common-sense checks.

Criminals and irresponsible manufacturers will often exploit high demand and attempt to flood the market with cheap and dangerous products.

Consumers should not let a new fashion or craze cloud their judgement and remain vigilant at all times, to avoid taking home an unsafe product.

Some products that are made abroad are not fitted with the correct plug and fuse for use in the UK.

A spokesperson for Trading Standards in the UK has advised: ‘As a minimum consumers should check that the three pin plug on the device states it is made to BS 1363. If it doesn’t include this information, then don’t buy the product.’

John Peet, chief inspector of trading standards at the OFT in Douglas, said: ‘The authorities in the UK have taken appropriate action to prevent thousands of unsafe “hoverboards” entering the marketplace but consumers can also play their part by following the advice offered above.

‘We are aware of ‘hoverboards’ being offered for sale via local social media sites.

‘Our advice is not to purchase goods from such sites unless you know for certain who the seller is. With regard to enforcement, traceability is the key. If you know who you purchased goods from it makes it easier for us to establish who is in the supply chain.’

He added that while the advice offered above applies to ‘hoverboards’, it could equally apply to other electrical products and accessories.

For example, there have been problems with chargers for mobile phones and e-cigarettes.

Consumers should only purchase electrical products and accessories from reputable sources to avoid the risk of buying counterfeit and potentially dangerous products.

Genuine electrical products and accessories will generally be packaged with safety instructions. Check any text on the packaging or on the items themselves for misspellings. What looks like a bargain could actually be a potential death trap.

Anyone who thinks they have bought counterfeit or potentially dangerous electrical products or electrical accessories should report the matter to the OFT immediately.

Hospital waiting times are coming down but they remain a challenge, Health Minister Howard Quayle told MHKs.

But Mr Quayle was able to outline in the House of Keys some significant successes in reducing waiting lists which have been cut by 10 per cent over the last year.

He told MHKs: ‘Waiting times remain a challenge. However, UK hospitals are also facing similar difficulties. They are failing to meet waiting list targets and expect this position to worsen over the winter months.

‘We still have plenty of work ahead of us to reduce them and manage waiting times more effectively. However, I can report that we have continued to take significant steps through waiting time initiatives targeting hotspot areas.’

Mr Quayle said one example is orthopaedics, where hip and knee operation lists have been reduced by one year. ‘I am proud of that team for implementing changes without having additional funds,’ he said.

The Minister said weekend endoscopy lists throughout September, October and November provided extra capacity for 61 patients to be seen. and this initiative will continue into December.

Additional weekend pain management clinics will start next week, and run to mid-February, providing 10 additional appointments at each Saturday clinic for up to 400 patients in total over that period, MHKs were told. Six extra plastic surgery clinics have also been arranged for dates in January, allowing up to 120 patients to be seen.

‘I can assure members that waiting times are one of my priorities,’ he said.

Michael MHK Alfred Cannan said it was not acceptable that one of his constituents was having to wait up to three years to get their hip replaced.

Mr Quayle said the Department of Health and Social Care had reduced its waiting lists by 10 per cent in the last 12 months.

Referring to orthopaedic surgery, he said there were 663 people on the inpatient waiting list, of which 259 are waiting for up to two months, 161 from three to five months, 177 for six to 11 months, and 58 for 12 to 17 months. There are another eight people outside that time period but it could well be that they are waiting for the hip or knee to get to a certain level before the operation can take place, he told MHKs.

Mr Quayle reassured members that this particular area is going down – and rapidly – and he would very surprised if anyone is having to wait fo three years.

He said outpatient waiting lists for GP referrals for hip and knee replacement had been reduced from two years to four months over the last two years, which he said was a ‘phenomenal achievement’. ‘We have not got any spare money,’ he added.

November was a record-breaking month this year.

There were only 36.6 hours of sunshine during the whole month, making it the dullest November since sunshine was first measured at Ronaldsway in 1948.

The previous dullest was 1958 with 38.3 hours.

Half the days last month saw no sunshine at all.

A total of 151 mm of rain was recorded at the airport, which was 46 per cent more than normal.

Only the first two days of the month were completely dry.

The mean temperature for the month measured 10°C (50°F), compared to the long term mean of 8.6°C, ranking it the fourth mildest November on record.

The maximum temperature during the month of 15.7°C was recorded overnight of the 9th/10th and this was the second highest temperature ever recorded in November, only beaten by November 1, 2007, which saw 16.2°C.

The mean wind speed measured 18.9mph compared to the November average of 16.3mph.

There were six days with gales.

The strongest winds, on Sunday 29th, produced a maximum gust of 64mph at Ronaldsway and kept our colleagues busy clearing several fallen trees.

There were three days of fog at the start of the month, the most in November since 1973, two days with hail, sleet was recorded late on the 20th but there were no thunderstorms during the month.

The island’s Met Office is based at Ronaldsway Airport.

This week’s Examiner includes two pages of readers’ photographs of Sunday’s storm.

The paper is still in the shops.

Police have issued a warning after teenagers were spotted playing ‘chicken’ as waves crashed on to land in Sunday’s storm.

A member of the public rushed into Castletown police station and reported that there were two boys playing with the waves at the ‘Pepperpot’ lighthouse, at the end of Castletown Pier.

Constables Anne Tyler and Dave Trevethan investigated and could see that the boys were stuck and looked to be in real danger of being swept into the sea due to the ferocity of the waves.

The officers realised it was too risky for them to walk out on the pier, so they drove a van along the pier to the lighthouse and managed to get the boys into the van, between the waves.

The officers then reversed the van back hugging the sea wall.

While doing this a large wave struck the van, moving it over two feet towards the harbour.

Both boys, aged 14 and 15 and residents of the south, were unharmed by their experience and were taken home to their parents. They were advised about the dangers of playing near the sea, especially in such bad weather conditions. One of the children was a non-swimmer.

A police spokesman said: ‘To all parents, please can you speak with your children and explain the dangers of “playing” in stormy conditions. This was a near miss, and so nearly a tragedy.’

Southside resident Andy McGrath, who watched events unfold from the harbour side, emailed the police to say: ‘I wanted to bring to a senior police officers’ attention an amazing act of bravery that took place on Sunday by two of the police officers based in Castletown.

‘I was out with my camera taking photos of the high tide around the harbour, when I noticed a van on the pier next to the lighthouse. I zoomed in and took a shot thinking it was a works van, and it was only when I got home and put the photos on my laptop, I realised I managed to capture some amazing photos of these two brave police officers taking two teenagers off the pier. They had to reverse the van in some rather extreme conditions,

‘I have attached a few of these photos so you can judge for yourself and perhaps pass them on to their superior so there is some acknowledgement for this heroic act.

These young officers are a great credit to the police force on the Isle of Man.’

Page one of this week’s Examiner featured a family taking photos in the storm.

Volunteers from Fleetwood and Southport have joined the search for a light aircraft that went missing on its way from the Isle of Man to Blackpool this morning.

A total of seven RNLI boats have now been involved in the hunt for the plane since it disappeared shortly after 9am.

Two Coastguard helicopters and a police helicopter have also been involved.

The single engine prop plane was on its way to Blackpool Airport from the Isle of Man when air traffic controllers lost contact with the pilot, the only person on board, during poor weather.

It disappeared from radar and is now believed to have crashed into the Irish Sea after a search of the coastline found no sign of the downed aircraft.

A spokeswoman for the RNLI earlier said the search would continue until darkness, although senior coastal operations officer for the UK Coastguard service, Adam Bradbury, said a decision has not yet been made.

He said: ‘We are looking at the present, not the future. It remains a search for now and life is the biggest priority. We are doing everything we can and we have put a lot of resources out there.

‘We have a fairly rough idea of a search area based upon the information we have and we have extended it throughout the day to around three miles off the shore.

‘The wind is currently easterly at 10mph but it’s due to get worse. The wind will pick up and become south-westerly, which means the waves will get rougher.

‘We are doing everything we can and we have put a lot of resources out there.”

Isle of Man Airport director Ann Reynolds confirmed that the single engine prop aircraft was based at Ronaldsway but was not Manx-registered.

> Click here to watch video footage of the search operation, from our colleagues on the Blackpool Gazette

> Search for island-based aircraft believed missing at sea

This was the scene after a van got stranded on Port Erin beach.

Dawn Cummings, of Athol Park, spotted the van driver getting into difficulties and rang 999.

She told iomtoday: ‘He hit soft sand and I saw he had got stuck. He was getting a bit frantic.’

Dawn went to the driver’s aid and rang her son James to help push.

But despite the two men pushing, the van wouldn’t budge. Dawn then rang 999.

The coastguard was able to tow the van out.

The Legislative Council sitting was delayed due to the late arrival of the Bishop, who was leading the only item on the agenda.

Bishop Robert Paterson was in charge of the War Memorials Bill, which was given its second reading.

He told MLCs: ‘A certain airline, which is borrowing some episcopal colours, sometimes takes its time to get here, and then they would not let us off the plane.’

The Manx Youth Band and Manx Concert Brass, under the baton of musical director Ian Clague, will host a ‘Celebration of Christmas’.

The concert takes place at the Villa Marina’s Royal Hall on Saturday afternoon.

Joining the bands this year as special guests will be Onchan School Choir, conducted by Angela Gerrard.

Ian said: ‘The concert will entertain all ages and it is hoped that the mixture of brass band and the voices of a school choir will appeal to the local Christmas shoppers of Douglas and all friends of both organisations.

‘Both choir and band have really enjoyed preparing for this concert and would like to welcome one and all to come along to start the Christmas festivities with a very enjoyable afternoon of music which will of course require much audience participation.’

The family fun extravaganza gets underway at 2.30pm with an opportunity to meet Frozen’s Anna and Elsa, along with a Stormtrooper and R2D2 from Star Wars.

For the good girls and boys it is also hoped that Father Christmas will be able to make a flying visit during his busy schedule.  

The concert itself then starts at 3pm with both bands and the choir performing everyone’s favourite songs.

The audience can expect the likes of ‘Jingle Bells’, ‘Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer’, ‘Last Christmas’ and ‘All I Want for Christmas’. 

The first half of the concert will be opened by the Manx Youth Band and will close with Manx Concert Brass.

Singing throughout the afternoon will be the children from Onchan School choir, whose pieces will include Glee’s ‘Deck the Rooftop’ and ‘Merry Christmas (Snow is Falling)’.

After a short interval the joint bands and the choir will join forces and perform some more popular carols and other well known audience singalongs.

To bring the concert to a close, the band will be joined by special guest Allan Wilcocks to lead everyone in the very popular Christmas song ‘White Christmas’.

It’s been a busy year for both bands.

In March, the Manx Youth Band travelled to Blackpool to perform in the Brass Band North West Regional Championships at the Winter Gardens for the first time.

Both bands enjoyed huge success at this year’s Guild.

In the finale of brass band classes, Manx Concert Brass was awarded the Jim Crosbie Memorial Rose Bowl for their 20-minute entertainment programme, as well as winning the Test Piece and March and Hymn classes. Manx Youth Band were runners up in the Test Piece class.

Four-times Cleveland Medal winner, Mandy Griffin, was guest soloist at the bands’ Manx Last Night of the Proms at the Gaiety in September.

And in October, Douglas Council renamed the bandstand in Noble’s Park in Ian’s honour.

Tickets (£10 for adults, £2.50 for children) are available from the Villa Marina Box office on 600555 or visit www.villagaiety.com

Environmental campaigners took to the streets of Douglas to call for government action against climate change.

Around 150 campaigners marched from the Sea Terminal through Duke Street and onwards to the War Memorial to highlight climate change and the Paris Climate Summit, which began on Monday (November 30) and ends on December 11.

Videos of the march were taken to screen at the United Nations summit which aims to create a new international agreement on climate change to keep global warming below 2C.

Pete Christian, from Friends of the Earth who co-ordinated the march, said: ‘There was a great turnout. It was a success in that we got a lot of people and new faces. We had a samba band with us and there was a lot of smiling faces looking at us – it caught people’s attention!

‘We wanted to bring attention to the vital Paris talks and show solidarity with people around the world, and particularly the other islands who are in the firing line already from rising sea levels. [Climate change] is one of our main priorities.’

As well as Friends of the Earth, many other organisations took part including The One World Centre, Christian Aid, Isle of Man Freethinkers, The Green Centre, Isle of Man Amnesty and Bishop Robert Paterson and the Anglican Church.

Climate change marches also took place across the world in cities including London, Paris and Vancouver.

Pete said: ‘We are at a crossroads for preventing temperature rise exceeding 2C. Even that is not a safe level as many seem to think, rather it is the point beyond which catastrophic events will occur. We are painfully aware of the limits to the influence we in the island can exert but we believe we should do what we can.’

The Friends of the Earth organisation is now hoping that the government will meet the target of reducing carbon emissions by 80 per cent by 2050.

After the march a ‘Gathering of Light’ lantern parade was held at Tynwald Hill to support the action needed to combat global warming.

The flooding which struck the Isle of Man earlier today is starting to subside - and residents are bracing themselves for the big clean up tomorrow morning.

The police have issued information regarding the latest situation.

> Bus ends in river as bridge collapses in Laxey

The statement released at 8.30pm said: ‘The problems which were caused by the flooding earlier are now subsiding.

‘A summary of the main road issues is as follows.

‘The Mountain Road is closed due to a landslip and will remain closed until further notice.

‘The north of the island can be accessed via the Laxey coast road or the TT course.

‘Peel Road, Douglas, is closed owing to flooding, as is the main Douglas to Peel Road between Quarter Bridge roundabout and Braddan Oak Tree.

‘Traffic can join the Peel Road and head west via Braddan Road (past Braddan School) or via Saddle Road, joining at Braddan Bridge.

‘Main arterial routes south are passable.

‘The public is advised to use main routes only, as the condition of minor routes is largely unknown at this time.

‘A large number of emergency services personnel and volunteers are in the process of inspecting roads at this time.

‘A large multi-agency operation has been undertaken involving a whole range of services and voluntary organisations and everyone involved is wholeheartedly thanked for their efforts. The police wish to thank all members of the public who heeded the advice provided by the emergency services.

‘Further bad weather is anticipated for later tomorrow (Friday) and a multi-agency emergency planning meeting will be held tomorrow to ensure that the island is prepared as it can be for further weather-related issues. Further travel advice is likely to be issued tomorrow.’

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Do you have images to share or a story to tell of your flood experience? Perhaps you have people to thank or would like to pay tribute to the emergency services and Department of Infrastructure workers.

Contact the newsroom by emailing newsdesk@newsiom.co.im and help us get the full picture.

Fuel and debris have been found in the search for a missing aircraft that vanished en-route from Ronaldsway to Blackpool.

Senior coastal operations officer for the UK Coastguard service, Adam Bradbury, said: ‘All I can say is there have been some objects recovered but we don’t know where they are from yet. It’s too early.’

The pilot, who was flying solo, had been due to arrive at Blackpool Airport after taking off from Ronaldsway this morning.

Contact was lost with the plane shortly after 9am when the aircraft was three miles off the Lancashire coast.

A major search and rescue operation was launched involving seven lifeboats, two Coastguard helicopters and a police helicopter.

Police had earlier searched the sand dunes at Starr Gate, to the south of Blackpool.

A spokeswoman for the RNLI earlier said the search would continue until darkness.

Airport director Ann Reynolds said: ‘There appears to have been some fuel found.’

She said her department was liaising with the Air Accidents Investigation Branch.

The missing aircraft was based at Ronaldsway but was not Manx registered.

A bus has crashed into the river in Laxey after flooding hit the Isle of Man this evening.

There were no reports of any injuries.

Parliament Square in Ramsey is just one area that’s been flooded.

We also pictured the scene outside Isle of Man Newspapers’ headquarters after a car broke down in flood water on Peel Road, Douglas, at about 4.30pm.

Many roads are impassable.

The TT course beyond Ballig Bridge is closed due to flooding.

Routes from Douglas to the south of the island are only accessible via the main New Castletown Road.

The road to Port Erin via Ballabeg and Colby is closed due to flooding.

Douglas to the north: Only accessible via the coast road through Laxey. Lower Laxey is closed due to flooding.

{http://www.iomtoday.co.im/news/isle-of-man-news/mountain-road-closed-as-heavy-rain-causes-range-of-issues-1-7605783|The Mountain Road is among many closed.}

The police say that emergency services resources have been deployed to the worst affected areas. DoI and Civil Defence personnel have also been deployed to assist.

A number of vehicles have been abandoned in various locations.

A spokesman said: ‘The public are advised NOT to travel at this time until weather conditions improve. It is essential that people heed the advice in order to avoid becoming stranded.

‘With the sheer number of affected roads, the police and other emergency response agencies will respond to calls on a priority basis, dealing with those who are vulnerable first and foremost.’

Email photos of flooding in your area to newsdesk@newsiom.co.im

The Steam Packet is warning of potential disruption to its services tomorrow because of forecast stormy weather.

All the sailings from the 8.45am service from Douglas to Heysham tomorrow morning until the Sunday 2.15am sailing from Heysham to Douglas are in jeopardy.

To see the latest from the Steam Packet {https://www.steam-packet.com/LatestSailings|click here}

The Isle of Man Natural History and Antiquarian Society (IOMNHAS) will be hosting a lecture on Saturday on the maritime power of the Norse Kings of Mann and the Isles and their interaction and conflicts with the Norse Earls of Orkney and other Scottish sea kingdoms.

It will be taken by Canadian Professor of Medieval History R Andrew McDonald on a weekend coinciding with events marking the opening of the Manx Museum’s new Viking Heroes exhibition.

Complementing his Friday lecture on ‘Heroes and Villains in the Kingdom of Man and the Isles’, focusing on the characterisation of individuals and relative scarcity of mentions of women in the Manx Chronicle, Prof McDonald’s IOMNHAS presentation will take place in the Manx Museum lecture theatre at 2.30pm and is entitled ‘Medieval Water Worlds: maritime mobility and connectivity in the late Norse empires of Atlantic Scotland, 1000-1300’.

The talk will look not only at what the Chronicle of the Kings of Man and the Isles tells us about Norse seapower but also information contained in the famous sagas penned in Iceland in the 1200s, based on earlier Norse oral traditions, and in accounts found in the writings of a famous Welsh churchman and traveller and in Irish annals.

Sagas such as the Orkneyinga Saga, written in Iceland by Sturla Thordason in the mid-1260s and Heimskringla (meaning ‘the Earth’s Circle’ or ‘the Turn of the World’) written by Snorri Sturlason in around 1230, mention the Isle of Man and the prominent Archdeacon Gerald of Wales wrote a famous account of a journey he made around his home country in the early 1190s, which also recorded a number of facts about the sea kingdoms of the northern British Isles.

Andrew McDonald is well placed to guide his audience through these sources as a historian of medieval Britain, with particular focus on Scotland and the Isle of Man, based in the Faculty of Humanities at Canada’s Brock University in St Catharine’s, Ontario, located on the Niagara Peninsula and across Lake Ontario from Toronto.

Prof McDonald was holder of the university’s Chancellor’s Chair for Research Excellence in 2004-07 and received its Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching in 2007.

His current research is concentrated on the long-neglected topic of the medieval Norse sea kings of the Isle of Man and his Brock University website profile features a photo of him visiting Peel Castle.

As well as contributing to the forthcoming third volume of The New History of the Isle of Man - The Medieval Period 1000-1406 (edited by S Duffy and H Mintum), Prof McDonald wrote the superb 2007 book Manx Kingship in Its Irish Sea Setting, 1187-1229: King Rognvalr and the Crovan Dynasty. His other books include Outlaws of Medieval Scotland: Challenges to the Canmore Kings, 1058-1266 (2003); and The Kingdom of The Isles: Scotland’s Western Seaboard c. 1100-1336 (1997).

He was also editor of History, Literature and Music in Scotland 700-1560 (2002) and co-editor of both Alba: Celtic Scotland in the Middle Ages (2005) and The Viking Age: A Reader (2010) and contributed chapters to Studies in the Medieval Atlantic (2012), The British Isles 900-1300 (1999), Women in Scotland 1100-1700 (1999) and the forthcoming volume Native Kindreds of Medieval Scotland.

In addition he has written for the Journal of Medieval History, Studies in Medieval and Renaissance History, the Scottish Historical Review, and Albion.

...And that is that!

The Battle of the Bands at Amber is complete for another year.

After three heats, lots of sweat, some head scratching from the judges and numerous hangovers all round it all came down to one band.

After six years of performing in the competition The Fletcher Christian Mutiny are finally victorious!

A huge congratulations and well deserved first place to Keef, Nell, Justine, Ste and Andrew.

A fantastic set to close the event and well done guys and girl! The band take away a first prize of £750 plus a £50 voucher from Peter Norris Music in Douglas.

Compere and judge Ed Oldham had this to say about The Fletcher Christian Mutiny: ‘For me, they were the complete package – big riffs and catchy hooks, strong vocals.

‘Their sound balance was excellent – some of those riffs and breakdowns were absolutely massive!

‘Good audience interaction, courtesy of Keef, and the crowd going absolutely bonkers for them pretty much the whole way through.’

Also competing in the final were Mae Challis and her band, along with Han FX (aka Keiran Hannifan).

Whilst we’re on the subject of Amber, this coming Saturday sees a return to the stage for trip hop, heavy psychedelia, rock behemoth Post War Stories.

The band that has been together since 2012 and is made up by the trio of Paul Salisbury (vocals/guitar), Martyn Cain (bass) and Ben O’Hare (drums/samples) have been away from the live arena since the summer of this year to work on writing new material.

Fans of the band will know what they’re in for, however if you haven’t seen them before, influence wise think of the likes of Dark Star, Massive Attack, Oceansize, iLikeTrains and Amplifier and you’re in the right ball park.

Joining the band on the bill for this show will be a stripped down, minimalist version of local alternative band, Postcode who will be playing an acoustic set and also Gypo Buggane from Ballagroove Records, playing tunes before and in-between the bands.

The doors for this show open at 8pm and it’s free entry!

For more information on Post War Stories, please visit www.facebook.com/postwarstories

Tomorrow night (Friday) sees local singer/songwriter turned covers machine Ian Thompson play one of his regular shows at Jaks Bar, in Douglas.

Expect a plethora of covers from the likes of The Kinks, REM, Steve Harley and Cockney Rebel, The Beatles, Simon and Garfunkel, The Eagles, Fleetwood Mac, The Killers, Coldplay and Oasis amongst many others.

Ian will kick of his set at around 9.45pm.

If you have any news or views on the Manx music and gig scene for inclusion in the The Manx Sound Exchange, email leachsteve@hotmail.com

A festive range of Christmas puddings and sauces has been launched to raise money for Crossroads Care.

The award winning puddings were officially launched at Government House in Onchan where guests enjoyed a pudding and wine tasting evening.

The range of six desserts, made by The Ultimate Plum Pudding Company in Cumbria, includes The Ultimate Plum Pudding, Triple Chocolate Pudding, Sticky Toffee Pudding, Triple Ginger Pudding, Luscious Lemon Pudding and the Golden Syrup Pudding.

As well as this, The Ultimate Brandy and Rum Butter sauces and chocolate and sticky toffee sauces are available to accompany the festive desserts.

Fundraising co-ordinator for Crossroads Care, Julia Cullen, said: ‘Guests were greeted by His Excellency (Lieutenant Governor Adam Wood) and CEO of Crossroads, Jackie Betteridge, and then Jackie gave a talk about the charity and we’ve been doing over the past couple of months.

‘The fundraising puddings are sold over the festive period to raise money for Crossroads Care and guests had the chance to try out the puddings and buy them as well.’

The festive desserts were accompanied by a specially selected range of wines chosen by Anne Berry from The Wine Cellar in Douglas.

Julia said: ‘The puddings are available now in all of our shops so if anyone wants to pop in they can buy them now!’

The full range, priced between £1.75 and £5.75, can be bought from Crossroads’ charity shops in Strand Street, Windsor Road and Prospect Terrace, Douglas. Order forms can also be picked up from the stores and orders by card can be taken over the phone by calling the charity on 673103.

To find out more about the charity go to www.crossroadsiom.org or visit its Facebook page at Crossroads Care Isle of Man.

Celebrate Christmas with The Salvation Army.

The Salvation Army band, songsters and junior members are leading a carol service at the Gaiety Theatre on Sunday (December 6).

And joining them as special guests are Stage One Theatre School.

Christmas with the Salvation Army starts at 2.30pm (doors open at 2pm) and runs until 4pm.

Tickets cost £1.50 and all proceeds from the event will be donated to The Salvation Army Isle of Man’s Christmas appeal.