In an effort to raise money for good causes, a retired policeman is flying the flag for donations.

When Jens Hislop and wife Andrea bought their house in Mill Hey, Haworth, a flagpole in the garden was included as part of the fixtures and fittings of the property. The flagpole was used occasionally for ceremonial occasions, but more of a topic of conversation than a well-used item. After restoring the flagpole to its former glory, Jens looked for something to use his flagpole for.

For a donation of at least £5, Jens will fly the Union Jack and donate the £5 to a local charity.

“I have recently restored the large flagpole, fitted a new halyard and bought a brand new Union flag” explained Jens. “So now we seek any excuse to fly it in addition to the prescribed national high days and holy days.

“For a minimum donation of £5 to Manorlands, or another specified charity, I will fly the flag from morning to dusk to celebrate any event for anyone on any day.”

Jens said that he is happy to fly any flag for a donation of £5 as long as, “it is not seditious or controversial, and does not clash with a Union flag-hoisting.”
So people can see who the flag is flying for, Jens is using a whiteboard in his garden for all to see, and where he puts information about the flag he is flying.

When Jens Hislop and his wife Andrea moved into their home in Yorkshire, there was an unused flagpole in their back garden. On occasion Mr Hislop, a retired policeman, would fly a Union Jack Flag from the pole, however when they became tatty he decided to do something else with the new flag and restored pole.

Now, Mr Hislop puts the flagpole to good use by flying a flag to raise money for good causes.

In exchange for a minimum £5 donation to a specified charity, he will fly the Union Jack flag from the flagpole.

“I have recently restored the large flagpole, fitted a new halyard and bought a brand new Union flag,” explained Jens. “So now we seek any excuse to fly it in addition to the prescribed national high days and holy days.

“For a minimum donation of £5 to Manorlands, or another specified charity, I will fly the flag from morning to dusk to celebrate any event for anyone on any day.”

Mr Hislop added that he would consider flying any flag for the same donation, providing it met few guidelines: “it is not seditious or controversial, and does not clash with a Union flag-hoisting”. He has placed a whiteboard at the base of the flagpole to let passers-by know for whom the flag is flying.

An auction to sell off items that have been taken on space missions include flags that have been flown on those missions.

PR Auctions, the Massachusetts-based online auction company which has arranged the sale, is including a number of flags, most of them the flag of the United States, a number of which that went to the moon.

One of the items that is also for sale is an early version of the Spanish flag, which was onboard the Apollo 14 space mission in 1971 – the last manned mission to the moon.

Flags are just some of the items for sale in the auction, with other items including personal mementos to the individual astronauts on the mission.

One of the more controversial items for sale is that of a Playboy calendar photo of a topless blonde model, holding a pool cue. It had been snuck aboard the Apollo 12 mission. The calendar bears the date November 1969, with the current bid for the item being tripe its opening bid, standing at $3,100.

Other items include a number of freeze-dried food items, including a complete dried beef pot roast, inside a plastic bag and nozzle for the hot water injection, plus a cube of strawberry cereal labelled “Space Food”.