South Wales Evening Post

Fringe back to lift the city’s spirits

- ROBERT DALLING REPORTER rob.dalling@walesonlin­e.co.uk

JOANNA LONGSTAFFE is clinical director of the Independen­t General Practice in Swansea at Sancta Maria Hospital in SA1, which specialise­s in general practice and primary care.

A FOUR-DAY festival event hosting some of Swansea’s finest live music, comedy and spoken word is set to return later this year, it has been confirmed.

The Swansea Fringe will take place from October 21 to 24 and promises to be a weekend-long celebratio­n.

The concept of the event sees venues across the city centre each host a schedule of events from comedians, bands, poetry, film screenings and more, with people hopping from one place to the next to catch different acts and performanc­es, according to their own tastes.

Acts to have performed in the past include names such as Trampolene, Bandicoot and Afro Cluster.

Already announced to kick-start the weekend at one of the venues, The Bunkhouse, is Oxfordshir­e-based band Desert Storm, a progressiv­e sludge/groove metal band, who will be joined on the bill by South Wales bands Suns of Thunder, Sigiriya, Lifer and They Live We Sleep.

There will also be an extra special launch party on the Thursday night.

The event had to be postponed last year due to uncertaint­y surroundin­g the coronaviru­s pandemic, but organisers say they are looking forward

to getting back to normality this year.

Co-ordinator of the Swansea Fringe, Joe Bayliss, said: “We’ve made the perhaps overly ambitious decision to go ahead with this year’s Swansea Fringe Festival, and it’s shaping up amazingly so far.

“Those in attendance can expect to see the return of some familiar Swansea Fringe faces, as well as the addition of some exciting new ones, with as many of your favourite city centre venues and businesses being involved as possible – there will most certainly be something for everyone at this year’s festival, with events for young people, older and families alike.

“We’re going to be keeping a lot under wraps whilst we chip away at things behind the scenes, but expect a vibrant, colourful weekend, filled with fun and frivolitie­s from early in the morning spilling into even earlier the next morning.

“This year’s festival is something to look forward to, and we’re putting it together with that in mind, to be something that we can all get involved in, celebrate a return to (subjective) normality and toast to the sacrifices everyone has made over the last year or so.”

For all the latest announceme­nts on the Swansea Fringe, see www.facebook.com/ Fringeswan­sea/

QI sometimes get pins and needles in my feet if I’m sat down a lot. Is it normal, and can I prevent it?

APins and needles is obviously a common condition we get when the blood supply to a part of our body is cut off. It normally lasts only a short period of time. If yours happens frequently and is longlastin­g, this is known as paraesthes­ia – or chronic pins and needles – and it can point to a number of conditions, including diabetes, a compressed ulnar nerve, carpal tunnel syndrome or sciatica. There are certain things that can also bring on an episode, including a poor diet and drinking too much alcohol. You should see your GP if you have persistent pins and needles so they can determine the exact cause and recommend the best treatment.

Q My husband grinds his teeth in his sleep. How can I get him to stop?

ATeeth grinding is medically known as bruxism. When adults grind their teeth it’s normally down to stress or anxiety. Sometimes people can experience side effects such as headaches, earaches and broken teeth.

There are several methods of treatment that should be able to help. Your husband can use a mouth guard, which should reduce the grinding action. If you believe it is a result of stress, your husband can try CBT to try to get to the root of the cause.

Alcohol, smoking and too much caffeine can also increase teeth grinding, so perhaps your husband could cut down on these if they are currently part of his diet.

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 ?? Pictures: Swansea Fringe Festival ?? Trampolene are among the bands to have previously played the festival.
Pictures: Swansea Fringe Festival Trampolene are among the bands to have previously played the festival.
 ??  ?? Swansea Fringe Festival will return in October 2021, it has been announced.
Swansea Fringe Festival will return in October 2021, it has been announced.

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