The Media Archive for Central England is the public screen archive for the East and West Midlands. An independent charity and company based at the University of Lincoln, MACE acquires, catalogues, preserves and makes widely available moving image materials that inform our understanding of the diverse cultures and histories of communities between the Lincolnshire coast and the Welsh border.
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Swimmers at Bodymoor Heath
A notorious winter freezes out even the hardiest of swimmers.
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Overview
It's a winter that saw the English Channel freeze over and yet Arthur Endersby and Arthur Ayres still strip off for their traditional Boxing Day dip at Bodymoor Heath in North Warwickshire. In these conditions most people are reaching for hats and gloves rather than swimming trunks, so we have to admire these Channel swimmers' for dipping more than a toe in the icy water. Interestingly it's the thickness of the ice and not the cold that puts a stop to their madness.
The winter of 1962-1963 was infamous for its big freeze which produced the coldest temperatures in England for the entire twentieth century. Bodymoor Heath is the home to Aston Villa FC's training ground although we doubt the players will ever follow the Arthurs' lead and take their ice baths in the frozen lake.
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