Skip Hire Blog

What a week! Not only have we moved offices, but I also got the chance to name check Topskips.com Skip Hire services on BBC Radio 2's Chris Evans Show on Tuesday after being invited on to talk about our trade industry magazine, The Skip, as it's (admittedly) an obscure publication. I really enjoyed being interviewed by Chris as he's one very clever and funny guy. I hope you enjoy this too:

You know us, we’re all about making skip hire easy, that’s why we were the first to do it online and now we’ve taken it a step further by making sure Topskips.com is truly mobile! On Friday, Apple released their iphone 3G on the O2 network, a cutting edge handset with built-in ipod and easy to use internet facilities. So to make the most of it, we’ve optimised our website to be crystal clear and easy to use when you’re on the move. Check it out!

Check out the excerpt below from www.wikipedia.org, for the definition of a skip. In one paragraph it manages to sum up the staggering highs (literally) and frustrating lows associated with our beloved metal friends...

“It has been known for an empty skip to be lifted high by a crane and used as an emergency platform for rescue workers to work from. It is traditional for an old mattress to be discarded in a skip, regardless of who rents it. This applies especially in a housing estate.”

Now I’ve heard of skips as rescue platforms but after all these years in the skip hire industry, I didn’t know it was traditional to make an offering of a mattress to the skip gods! Or that it was especially important to do it in a housing estate, I hope I haven’t ruined my karma!

It’s almost the weekend, which is usually a sad time for all Topskips employees as it means time away from the world of skips and our glorious new offices…

That’s right isn’t it guys....guys....they’re all nodding, you’ll have to take my word for it.

Anyway, this weekend is like no other as all at Topskips Towers are being treated to a right royal slap up do.

We’ve got our Summer Ball on Saturday which brings with it a chance to celebrate our success over the last 12 months; look forward to a bright future in the skip hire industry and sneak a few little snifters in while we’re at it! It’s a formal affair, with the gents kitted out in Savile Row’s finest and the ladies rockin’ the frock look.

Sure, there’s been a few last minute flies in the ointment, in particular a ‘wardrobe malfunction’ that almost left the boys a little less suited and booted than we’d like. But excellent 11th hour Topskips team-work saved the day!

As for proof of this most decadent gala event, our in-house photographer will make sure you don’t miss a thing, with next weeks Topskips blogs no doubt chocked full of our resplendent beautifulness…best take the photo’s at the start of the night then!

It's the Monday after the Saturday before and looking around the TopSkips office, everyone seems to have recovered from their Summer Ball experience. It was a fabulous affair, held at Manchester 235 with dancing, singing, food and drink not to mention the occasional trip to the roulette wheel. We did the skip hire industry proud and as promised, there'll be some carefully chosen pictures gracing the blog this week and to start it off, well, the chap who started it all off; our MD Mark Attwood, mid speech, check out the attention on those faces!

It's a big one tonight for our 5 a-side football team, as TopSkips FC entertain a capacity crowd against bottom of the league 'Fatballers'. Its a real chance for the skip hire ambassadors to build on last weeks gutsy performance which saw sterling displays across the team but resulted in a narrow 8-6 defeat. Tune in tomorrow for a full match report, good luck boys!

Last night saw TopSkips FC enter the 5 a-side arena, once again taking with them the hopes of the entire skip hire industry. Proceedings took an ominous turn early on with a lack of players threatening to end all hopes of victory even before kick-off! However, a last minute cavalry advance guaranteed the game was on.

Our resident Sports Reporter Matthew Wilkinson writes:

A stunning solo effort from Kyle Davidson opened proceedings followed by two goals each for Dave Roberts and Matt Wilkinson making it 5. With little reprisal, two more goals from Steven Long rounded up the 7-4 victory. The goals, however, were merely the trivial points of the night. On his debut Mike “the tiger” Kivell was the star of the show. His engine ran the team and his words of wisdom inspired the final result. We caught up with Mike at the end of the game. “It felt really nice to be part of something, we all shared in the moment of victory and I love all these guys. People say team mates but we’re nothing short of team brothers".

Beautiful. Lets hope it's the start of a TopSkips FC winning streak, Nice one boys!

You've no doubt heard about 'The Skip' magazine, it's TopSkips' industry publication with a twist! Unlike most boring trade mags, 'The Skip' is an entertaining mixture of news about skip hire, people in the skip hire industry, environmental issues, health & safety and products and services.

The latest issue is released this Friday and contains grenades, alien life forms, skip chicks, skip hunks and a cracking feature on Plant Systems! Now is it just me, or is there something for everyone in that line up, so what are you waiting for?! 'The Skip' magazine isn't available in-store so if you fancy a butchers, click here to get it delivered direct to your door every month!

TopSkips skip hire-sponsored Year 7 Basketball team the 'Warriors' rounded off their season with a fantastic 50-28 win over the Mystics, the game saw a close opening 10 minutes after which the Withington-based side pulled away and victory never looked in doubt!

The previous week the 'Warriors' came within a minute of beating the impressive 'Westleigh Wildcats'. In the end, Westleigh ran out 32-29 winners but it was a measure of the development of the 'Warriors' as just a couple of months ago, Westleigh won the corresponding fixture by twenty points!

The two games marked an upbeat end to a tough Division 1 Summer season which was their first in the secondary school age band. The team narrowly missed out on the play-offs but next season they'll be graduating to Y8's and with new signings on the way, there'll no doubt be some silver-wear to display.

Great work and good luck for next season from all of the TopSkips Team!

I know you're itching to find out how the TopSkips boys got on last night so i'll hand you over to our in-house sports journo Matt Wilkinson for a full match report...

After weathering an early storm which saw the skip hire side go 2-0 down, two magnificent individual goals brought the team level and set the tone for the remainder of the game. Any danger of defeat soon fizzled out due to a tiring opponent and crafty use of the numbers game.

Thanks to regular substitutions and excellent passing, goals were quick and plentyful. Two each from Steven Long and Matthew Wilkinson, a stunning 8 yard drive from Mike Lahiri and a tidy finish from Dave Roberts saw TopSkips round off an impressive 8-7 victory and climb the league table.

"I just swung my leg and Bob’s your Uncle"

After the win we caught up with Mike Lahiri and asked about his wonder strike; “I just tried to kick it as hard as I could, I wasn’t really aiming for anything, I just swung my leg and Bob’s your Uncle. I hadn’t really realised it had gone in until Dan came up and hugged me".

Such friendship and modesty that's seldom seen in the modern game. With two wins in two for the TopSkips side and a joint 3rd position in the league, it's a great time to be one of the tens of faithful supporters. Lets hope the boys can make it three in next weeks game against the 'Orange Pencils'!