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Hello, welcome to another Merseyside Mouth, the newsletter which let's you know what's been happening at BBC Radio Merseyside and the place for you to hear what your fellow listeners are talking about. 

I'm Lee Bennion the station's Audience Editor and I'm here to make sure your stories are heard.  You can contact me via e-mail. Merseysidemouth@bbc.co.uk if you have a tale to tell.

This week, the Mersey witnesses a magnificent maritime occasion, the Radio Merseyside listeners who says he's being ripped off over the big digital telly switchover and more of your memories of the overhead railway.

Ship Shape

Thousands of people flocked to the River Mersey this weekend for one of the highlights of Liverpool's year as Capital of Culture.  The Tall Ships were here and what a spectacular sight they were. 

Their visit culminated in the Parade of Sail on Monday, and the sun even made an appearance as the magnificent vessels made their way out to sea. The parade proved just as popular as the last time the Tall Ships were here in 1992 and BBC Radio Merseyside devoted the whole day to the event bringing you all the latest travel information as well as painting a colourful picture of what was happening down on the river.

Life on the ocean wave

One of the highlights has to be Billy interviewing a man who'd just been hauled out of the water by the police in his amphibious car!  Loads of you got in touch. Pat from Eastham and Jimmy from Birkenhead both praised the organisation of the event and said they had a marvelous day. 

Fran , an ex pat scouser in Canada, listened to all out coverage and felt like she was there. There were a couple of gripes too though.  Marjorie from Aigburth was disappointed with the view from Otterspool Prom.  She said the weather was lovely, but the ships didn't get into formation like they were supposed to. "We didn't see what we thought we would" she said. 

Elsie from West Derby complained that she was charged to park at Crosby. But the vast majority of you had a fantastic time and George from West Derby thinks we should start a campaign for Liverpool to have its own Tall Ship. 

I think their popularity really illustrates the close bond Merseysiders have with the sea. Let's hope it's not another 16 years till they come back.

Digital rip off

I'm sure we all know the 'Big Digital Telly switchover' is coming, but lots of us are still confused over what it actually means.  Next year all the terrestrial TV signals will be turned off and one of our listeners reckons some landlords are using it as an excuse to rip their tenants off. 

One BBC Radio Merseyside listener, John from Southport, has taken it upon himself to fight on their behalf.  He lives in sheltered accommodation and his landlords, One Vision Housing, have told him and his neighbours that they'll have to pay an extra pound a week to fund the digital switchover. 

Digit-al is coming

That amounts to an extra £1500 a year in their coffers.  They claim they need the cash to make install and maintain a new aerial, but John thinks that's rubbish because the current aerial is perfectly adequate.  He's involved his local MP to lobby on his behalf and says he'll refuse to pay the extra charge.

"It's not the money, it's the principal" he says. One Vision say they are complying with existing regulations and they won't be making a profit.  But another listener Alf in St Helens called to say he thinks there is a lot of misinformation flying around about the switchover. He says the vast majority of existing TVs and decent roof aerials are able to get a perfectly adequate digital signal. 

If you're confused about the 'Big Switchover' visit www.digitaluk.co.uk for information.

Witness protection

We often hear on BBC Radio Merseyside news about witness intimidation.  It seems like there's a real problem in this area with getting people to testify in court cases because they're scared of reprisals.  Last week on Roger Phillips programme we heard a story from a listener which isn't likely to encourage people to come forward in those kind of cases. 

Peter from Bootle was brave enough to give evidence in a case of aggravated assault 3 months ago. The man was sent to jail for 8 years, but during the course of the trial Peter and his family received serious threats of violence.  So the police stepped in and advised them to leave their home.

Giving evidence isn't easy

They were put up in a hotel for a while and were promised they'd be rehoused.  But he told us he then felt like they were abandoned.  The family left a 3 bedroom house and were put on a housing association list.  But they were told they were only entitled to a 2 bedroom house because only Peter, his wife and daughter lived at their old home full time.

They're obviously not happy with that situation. Peter said "I feel like I'm being punished for helping the police".  The 3 of them are still living with friends. We got onto the housing association and the police and they're trying to resolve the situation.

Surprisingly Peter says "despite everything I would do exactly the same thing again."  We need more people like him to stand up to the criminals, but I think we also need to make sure they're taken care of afterwards.

Docker's Umbrella

Finally, your memories of the old Overhead Railway in Liverpool are still coming in.  A few weeks ago I told you about the new Museum of Liverpool which will have an exhibition on the 'Docker's Umbrella' when it opens at the Pier Head. 

The new Museum of Liverpool

They're looking for your memorabilia and memories to be part of it. I've already passed a few of them on, but it's something that is clearly dear to the hearts of many BBC Radio Merseyside listeners because I'm still getting them. 

Anthony emailed me to tell how he used to travel on it to see his grandma in who lived on Saltney Street. He said "The carriage was always crowded with dockers travelling home, there was a 'Fog' in the carriage from all the smokers.  They would always make sure that  my mother got a seat and the 'child' got near the window, even if it meant and it always did, sitting on the knee of some strange docker.

When we reached the Pier Head these same dockers would carry my mother's bags and others would take one of my arms each, lift me from the floor and carry me down the two flights of wooden stairs.  The sound of hundreds of boots tramping down those wooden stairs is something that sticks with you forever." 

Great memories. Keep them coming.

The e-mail address is merseysidemouth@bbc.co.uk.  And that's the address you can use for any stories you have that you think people should know about. It's the personal stories of our listeners that make BBC Radio Merseyside what it is. See you next week