December 2013/January 2014

Anne Cordey 1941-2013

Anne was born in Bradford in 1941, to Jack and Mary Barron. She had a happy childhood in Yorkshire and was particularly close to her younger sister Caroline. After leaving school she trained to be a teacher and met her future husband Geoff when they were both students. They married in 1963 and a year later moved to Wallingford where their son Julian was born. They celebrated their Golden Wedding a few weeks ago.

Anne and Geoff moved to Brightwell-cum-Sotwell in 1973 where they met many people who would remain life long friends. Anne taught primary children in Wallingford and Didcot, as well as the village school in Brightwell, and her work allowed her to pursue her appreciation of music through playing the piano.

Anne threw herself into village life participating in lots of activities including the walking group, the WI and the coordination of the delivery of this magazine for Sotwell. She had numerous interests including gardening, reading, travelling and entertaining.

Anne was a devoted mother and wife who cherished her family with a kind and thoughtful passion. She lived such a full life with wonderful enthusiasm always seeing the best in people.

Her last two years were very difficult as she fought courageously against her illness. She never complained about what she had to endure, fighting bravely on. She was very appreciative of all the care and support she received from the medical staff and the village friends during this difficult time.

We are privileged to have shared our lives with this special person who will be dearly missed.

The family wish to express our deepest appreciation and thanks for the many messages of condolence we have received.

Julian Cordey

Letters

Red Lion - Not just a good pub: Having inadvertently locked myself out last Monday I thought I would take refuge in the Red Lion knowing Sandrine holds a French course. I was welcomed in by one of the bar staff and offered coffee. Ten minutes later Mark arrived, offered me coffee, the daily paper and spectacles. That’s what I call a good neighbour.

Dee Howarth

Style Acre House

The following is an extract of a letter, too long unfortunately to include here in its entirety. It documents the history of Style Acre House and its many changes. The full text can be read on this web site, in the History section under "Reminiscences" (click here to go directly to this article). It has been passed on also to the village History Group:

I refer to the article in The Villager ‘The Style Acre family – Born in Brightwell’. May I take your readers back to the true birth of Style Acre which was as long ago as 1895 when Alan and May Morphew built the house as their family home…….

… In 1959 Style Acre was acquired by the St Birinus Hospital Group and began to function as an NHS Hospital for mentally handicapped men (as they were then known) ……In 1980 the role of Style Acre changed again and it began to offer training and rehabilitation to the residents with progression into the community if appropriate. The old house had been allowed to fall into a serious state of disrepair over the years…

….. in 1985, Style Acre was sold, with the residents in it, to be run as a private hostel, reverting to a 'family home' … The residents were totally involved in the decorating and up-grading of the fabric of Style Acre. In 1995 the house was sold once again.. but has since been completely demolished. Style Acre, as remembered by many, was certainly born at Brightwell, but it died when the house was destroyed, although, no-one can destroy the happy memories of so many.

Val Pounds

Community Association

AGM – 24 September 2013

A big thank you to everyone who attended our AGM. Our Treasurer Susannah was pleased to be able to report that £3,559 was distributed to various clubs and charities in the Village and that £3,000 had been given to help fund the refurbishment of the Tennis Courts that we had been holding on behalf of the Tennis Club. We also provided Hampers for the Elderly in the village, with the generous support of the Fairthorne Trust.

We would like to record our sincere thanks to Jim and Madeline Sanger, who this year lent us their garden for the Fete.

Two of our committee members, Helen Baines and Julie Collum, left this year, we are grateful for all their hard work and dedication over the years. We are delighted that Sarah Jackson, Caroline Annets, Bill Horsfield, John Burdass, Andy Lewis, Graham Adlard and Charlotte and Mike Woods, were all happy to be re-elected. The Secretary (Laura Evans) and Treasurer (Susannah Magnion) and Chairman (James Davys) were also elected. Jim Sanger has kindly agreed to be Auditor again this year

Treasure Hunt – Sunday 20 October

Despite torrential rain and strong winds about thirty brave and hardy people took part in this Event and reported back that they had all had a good time. Congratulations to everybody who took part and especially to the joint winners- Three Boys on Bikes and the Old Ones. Many thanks to our Committee Members who organized this event and stood out in the rain to man the various stations

Carol Evening – Monday 9 December at 7:30 pm in the Village Hall

If you haven’t got into the Spirit of Christmas yet (or even if you have!), come and enjoy a fun-filled, festive frolic for all ages at the Carol Evening, where the talent of Brightwell will be once again on display. Andy Lewis and Anthony Finn host carol singing, poetry reading, musical interludes, sketches and mince pies, all washed down with Derek Brooker’s mulled wine.

Christmas Hampers

The profits from the Carol Evening are used to purchase hampers for older members of the village. If you know of anyone over the age of 70, whom you believe does not currently receive a hamper but would appreciate one, please notify Laura Evans by email (stardust_199@hotmail.com).

Village Quiz Evening – (date to be confirmed) in the Village Hall

We plan to send entry forms to all teams that took part last year. Anyone else who wants to enter a team should contact me on 834195.

James Davys

The Parish Church

I type this around the strange, but valuable, ‘triduum’ of Halloween, All Saints and All Souls. Why is it important, and why might it relate to Christmas? Because it offers a chance to look beyond our more mundane ‘getting & doing’ to some of the deeper and more holistic things of life. If we need good Physics to make our computers whirr, we need good Metaphysics to feed our souls.

I am possibly too much of a fan of the hymn Jerusalem precisely because it puts us in touch with things metaphysical. A friend, who will I hope forgive me, referred to the 1st verse as postulating four questions to which the answer, to all four, is ‘no’. I would like to suggest the opposite.

- And did those feet in ancient times walk upon England’s mountains green? Yes, if you like the idea of God walking in the garden in the cool of the day (and hopefully, metaphorically, in all our gardens too).

- Was the holy Lamb of God on England’s pleasant pastures seen? Yes, if you look at the way that sacrifice and fruits, which Christ blesses, feature in our calendar; from harvest through to the wassailing and back. And how many clubs, regiments or pubs feature ‘the lamb’ amongst their symbols?

- Did the countenance divine shine forth upon our clouded hills? There’s a wonderful picture, by Constable I think, of Salisbury Cathedral in cloud but with a shaft of sunlight breaking through. I like to think that the poet and engraver William Blake, who wrote the words to Jerusalem, was inspired by the same enlarged and mysterious view of the world which fired Constable. We need to rediscover that view of the world today with some urgency.

Blake walked to work each day from his home in Southwark to his engraving workshop, passing along the way the ‘dark satanic mills’ of the paper-making factories on the south side of the Thames (the industrial revolution was gathering speed).

There will be plenty of wars and rumours of wars, plenty of dark clouds for us to worry about this Christmastide and New Year. If we trust in the ‘goodness deep down things’ and, especially at this time of year, in ‘this little babe, so few days old…come to rifle Satan’s fold’ then we risk, and it’s a good risk, being inspired by things seen as well as unseen.

So come and see us, and have a wonderful Festival, each and every one of you. With love and prayers,

Jeremy

Your Shop needs you!

Our village shop is flourishing with new products arriving all the time (not to mention brand new freezers stocked with even more delicious items!). However, we are in need of some more volunteers to help us continue to run smoothly. Currently we have 54 volunteers who give up varying degrees of their spare time to come and work in the shop but we could do with some more people to enable things to run even more smoothly!

Volunteering in the shop involves a number of different jobs including serving customers, checking stock and sell by dates, stocking shelves, unpacking deliveries, general cleaning, and, most importantly, chatting to customers! You don't have to do all these jobs so if, for example, you are nervous or worried at the prospect of operating the till, then you don't have to do it. It's as simple as that. Shifts are 2.5 hours in length between the hours of 8.30 and 6 but, again, if you can only spare less time than that we would still love to hear from you. Steph, Margot and myself are contactable at the shop (01491 835551) or contact me at home on 01491 835540 or email mandyjfinn@yahoo.com.

Many thanks in anticipation.

Mandy Finn

Christmas at Our House

Preparations for Christmas in our house began in October. This was partly to spread the cost, but more importantly the time to make the two essentials for the forthcoming feasting; the Christmas puddings and the Christmas cake.

My mother was a fine cook, if at times a little heavy handed with the measurements, and it gave her great pleasure to begin her festive season in this way. In the early nineteen forties with the restraints of war, making any rich food was a struggle. Having an aunt with a small grocery shop and an uncle also in the grocery trade probably helped my mother obtain enough for her plans.

We were all involved in the making of the puddings. This activity took place in the early evening after tea, when, with the curtains drawn and a good fire roaring up the chimney we all gathered in the kitchen.

On an upstairs landing stood a long sideboard on which rested, from one year to the next, a large floral china bowl that was carefully carried down to the kitchen and placed in the centre of the table. Around it we would put all the ingredients. An exotic array of dried fruits, almonds, sugar, brown and white, suet in greaseproof, golden syrup, flour, crystallized fruit from the Middle East, eggs from next door’s chickens, and some of my granddad’s whiskey. All of these required some preparation. The precious spices, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg were kept to one side to be carefully measured as a last addition.

There were raisins to be stoned, almonds to be blanched, suet to be grated and fruit to be chopped. I usually had to work on the almonds, soaking them in a bowl of hot water so that the brown skins would slip away, revealing the pale cream nut, ready for chopping into small slivers of crunchiness. The crystallized fruit was my father’s contribution. During his service in the Royal Artillery he was based in Beirut, where he saw very little action and seemed from his letters to spend most of his time playing football or going to the races. This might of course have been a smoke screen to reassure my mother that he was not in any danger. We benefited in that he was able to send us a box of fruit. This arrived in the autumn, in a round box covered in sacking. It was a joy to open, to see the rounds of fruit gleaming like exotic jewels, each centre full of delicious crumbly sugar.

Once everything was ready my mother began the mixing, adding the ingredients one by one into the bowl. Pudding basins of various sizes stood waiting, with their cloth bags secure around their necks, and a circle of greaseproof paper to cover the resulting mixture.

Once all the ingredients were in the bowl we all took turns in making a stir and a wish before my mother added the silver coins rescued from last year’s puddings. The full basins were placed in an enormous cast iron steamer pot, property of our very kind neighbour, ready for the morning when, covering two rings on the gas stove and a quarter filled with water, the contents would simmer all day, filling the room with steam and being topped up, from time to time, with more hot water from a kettle.

Tired but exhilarated we would slide off to bed, leaving our poor mother with the job of clearing away the mess we had created. Returning home from school the next day, we were greeted by a strange aroma of washday punctuated by the richness of boiled fruit and spices.

Margaret Smith

Parish Council

Planning Inspector misled over Wallingford Site B

It has become apparent that 430 metres of the 20 years old shelterbelt that currently screens Site B along the bypass will be removed in order to facilitate the new road junction. This will have a highly significant, detrimental impact on the landscape. Throughout the public examination the developer said that they would ‘…reinforce the existing and maturing site screening along the bypass…’ The Inspector in his report clearly believed this to be the situation, ‘…where present, existing trees and boundary vegetation can be retained and supplemented.’ There is a condition for the development of Site B that the western boundary is reinforced with significant landscape buffers. The Parish Council has highlighted this serious breach of the planning policy to SODC.

Neighbourhood Plan

Work is starting on the parish neighbourhood plan. Activity will begin in earnest once information is available from the recent village questionnaire.

Slade End bend

New white lines and SLOW markings will soon appear on the road leading to this bend in order to encourage all drivers to drive with care and consideration.

‘Twenty is plenty’ speed stickers are available from the Parish Clerk.

New venue for Parish Council meetings will be in the Church annexe.

Adrian Wood

Brightwell School

It is with sadness that we said goodbye to Mrs O’Reilly at the end of October. Mrs O’Reilly has worked in the office at Brightwell School for almost 9 years. She was the first impression of the school for many people as they step through the door and I know many have appreciated her smile, humour and ability to immediately put people at ease. She has moved to an independent school where she is busy reorganising their processes and procedures already. I know that all who have worked with her will miss her very much, and I would like to thank her for all her hard work. The school is currently without a full time administrator; however we are delighted to welcome Mrs Sindy Major as our morning receptionist.

We are getting ready this week to host a talent show for Children in Need. 30 acts are going to delight us with magic, singing, dancing, gymnastics and so much more besides! Joining us will be Radio Oxford who will be interviewing the children throughout Friday as they host their talent show and hold a cake sale with coffee at the end of the day. We are being treated to a magic show after school – live on air – not sure how that works with radio? This is, in fact, the second time this month that Radio Oxford have joined us - some of you might have heard us talking about our apple trees with Alison Bloomfield and Paul Chilton. It is a wonderful opportunity for the children to experience live media reporting and help promote our lovely village and all it has to offer.

Christmas is fast approaching. I hope you have noticed our posters and the change of date to 6 December for the Christmas Fayre. Please do come and support us. We have some fabulous Christmas hampers available and you can even learn how to make a Christmas wreath and order one for your door. The youngest children in the school are getting ready to perform their nativity which this year is called A Christmas Recipe. I am sure it will be as beautiful as ever and I am very much looking forward to it. Our Choir are also preparing for Christmas when they will sing at the annual Root One private lunch party and also at Sotwell Hill House for our older residents. If you would like them to come and sing at any other event please do let us know – we could extend our tour!

January will bring more challenges and excitement but for now, may I wish you all a wonderful Christmas and a peaceful New Year.

Liz Hunt

St Agatha’s Church Extension

A concluding reflection

Thanks to a final financial reconciliation by our redoubtable Fundraising Committee treasurer Ken Templeton, and with a last payment of retention monies to the building contractor imminent, it is opportune to look back and report on the outcome of St Agatha’s Extension project - so actively supported by the local community during the three years it took to raise the necessary funds.

The funds raised ……..

After all costs are taken into account the net sum raised was almost £177,000. Grants accounted for 56% of this total, coming from 16 different organisations. Personal donations provided 18.5% while local fundraising events gave rise to a further 17%. The remaining 8.5% was from St Agatha’s own resources which started off the project appeal fund.

It would be inequitable to single out particular individuals for their contribution to this outcome. Everyone who donated or who organised or participated in the fundraising events is deserving of thanks; it was heartening to see events such as the concerts, the open gardens, the sponsored walk, the safari suppers, the summer ball and so on bring together all ages and interests in our community. However I would like to express particular thanks to the members of the Fundraising Committee for their tireless efforts throughout.

…….. were more than the project cost

The Building Committee, under the formidable chairmanship of David Greasby, brought in the project at a cost of nearly £172,000, split 5:1 between building costs and professional fees. This results in an excess of over £5,000 which will be offset against the original £15,000 from St Agatha’s own resources – a welcome contribution towards addressing other longstanding maintenance issues facing St Agatha’s.

A new village amenity

The extension is already being well used by both church and non-church bodies. It was taken over for a time by the team filming ‘The Wonder of Dogs’ and from this month, it will be the venue for meetings of the Parish Council. It provides a very comfortable environment for small gatherings, so if you wish to make use of it, Janice Chilton (836661) will be delighted to talk to you.

Tony Lascelles - Chairman, Fundraising Committee

Environment Group, December/January 2014

Sustainable Transport

Professor Allan Hutchinson entertained and intrigued the audience in his talk on 29 October which was sub-titled “The future of personal mobility”. He started by discussing the efficiency of present methods of moving around - the weight of a vehicle against the number of people being transported. For example a bike weighs 15kg and carries a person weighing on average 75kg, as opposed to a train of 500 tonnes carrying 600 passengers, a far worse ratio. Emissions from vehicles, especially particulates from diesel engines, cause about 3000 deaths a year, about the same as the number of road deaths. Car manufacturers are aiming to reduce vehicle weight and upgrade engine efficiency, changing to hybrid systems as well as to electric power. Vehicle manufacturing in the UK is booming with over 1 million being produced each year, the majority for export. Battery weight and performance are being improved and solar powered cars developed. For the present, most electric powered cars have a range of about a quarter of that of petrol vehicles. Is the future going to be better systems of public transport, such as by improvements to the railways, and by joint car ownership and car sharing, or are the internet and video-conferencing the answer? Is HS2 the best way of investing £50 billion when there are alternatives that might benefit the nation more effectively, such as the Severn Tidal Barrage?

Millennium Wood

Have you visited the Wood recently - the piece of land owned by the Parish Council on the right as you take the western-most turning out of the Village? The native trees were planted in the spring of 2000, many by parishioners, and are now flourishing. From the gate, a path leads you around the wood amidst the profusion of colours from the fallen leaves. A number of apple trees adds to the diversity. There is a lot of bird life, the occasional deer and relative tranquillity -- relative because of the noise of the moving traffic on the adjacent A4130.

John Rodda

WI

Did you see our exhibit in the village telephone box opposite the Red Lion, if you are quick you might catch it before the exhibition changes!

Some of the members went to the Didcot group meeting which was hosted by Blewbury Village Hall when the author Carol Bunyan talked about her first novel at 60 “The Choir Mistress”. Another of our trips was the annual science lecture held at Oxford Museum of Natural History. The curator talked about the history of the museum and the renovations that are being made to the building. Also included was the Director of Archaeology speaking on “Is Archaeology Science” and Robin Bunbar, Professor of Evolutionary Psychology on ”How many friends do you need”. This was a fascinating insight to how we make and keep friends, the uses made of this by social media and how some of the most successful commercial enterprises use the optimum number of association (250) as the maximum size for any factory. Apparently we never have more than five really close friends, including romantic partner and family.

At the moment we are working hard putting together our Christmas Celebration so, if you haven’t been to a meeting for a while, put 10 December in your diary. Also in January you can be part of evaluating our WI and influence any changes for 2014.

Anne Honeyball

The Bach Centre

We heard the other day that Bach remedies made with plants from the Mount Vernon garden can now be bought on Easter Island, one of the most remote inhabited islands in the world. Easter Island is more than 2,000 miles away from the nearest mainland, and the nearest populated island to it - with 50 inhabitants - is 1,300 miles away.

We really have come a long way, so it's fitting perhaps that the Bach Centre won an award this year. We were named Best Complementary Medicine Company 2013 by the Institute for Complementary and Natural Medicine (ICNM), at a ceremony in London. The award citation recognises the Centre's 80 years of continued service to complementary medicine, "first as a lone pioneer for flower remedies, then as a highly-regarded manufacturing company, and latterly as a committed and forward-looking registering and educational body."

But perhaps the height of fame came earlier this autumn. Some of the contestants in the Great British Bake-Off were seen swigging back Rescue Remedy on screen. And that too, like the Easter Island remedies, starts off in the garden in Bakers Lane.

Stefan

Allsorts Pre-School

Various musical instruments have made appearances at Allsorts over the last few weeks. The children have listened to a euphonium, trombone, guitar, clarinet, flute, piccolo and recorder, and had a go at playing them. They have also been singing lots of nursery rhymes and a welcome song to help learn each other’s names.

Allsorts has also had a visit from Simon, the pastor at Wallingford Baptist Church, and his puppet hedgehog – thank you. French club started again, now on a Monday morning, so that more children can attend. The children have made the most of autumn, collecting lots of leaves and sticks for craft activities. They have also been to Julie’s allotment, paddled down the stream and played games in the park.

Back in the Allsorts garden, the children have picked armfuls of tomatoes, practised kicking, throwing and catching balls, and done some golfing. The garden received an autumn make-over from a weekend working party that included the WI – thank you. We are looking forward to seeing the bulbs create lots of colour.

To mark Halloween, the children ate roasted pumpkin seeds, watched pumpkin lantern-making, and made pumpkin pictures and witches hats. On the night itself, we met at the Red Lion (thank you Mark for hosting us) to eat hotdogs and Halloween cakes, and to guess the weight of the pumpkin. The event raised £96.

We have an ambitious target of raising £6,000 this year to improve the back garden. We are aiming to apply for as many grants as possible, as well as organising fundraising events. These will include a stall at Brightwell School’s Christmas Fayre on 6 December.

The Allsorts committee held its AGM in October. All the existing committee stood again and we welcome one new member, Rachel A. We would like to increase our pool of bank staff who we can call on at short notice to cover staff sickness and other unplanned absences. If you would be interested in joining our bank staff, please do get in touch with Julie, Allsorts manager: allsortsadmin@btinternet.com.

Team Allsorts

Brightwell cum Sotwell Dogfest

Here are the results of the Dog Competition held on the morning of Brightfest in September but too late to include in the last issue of the Villager:.

1. Handsomest Dog =1^st Rio, 2^nd Rory, 3^rd Ewok, 4^th Kay

2. Prettiest Bitch = 1^st Gemma, 2^nd Poppy R, 3^rd Zillah, 4^th Jess

3. Young handler = 1^st Amber, 2^nd Freckle, 3^rd Gemma, 4^th Poppy B

4. Waggiest tail = 1^st Coco, 2^nd Zillah, 3^rd Rio, 4^th Jess

5. Best trick = 1^st Ewok (reading), 2^nd Poppy B, 3^rd Zillah, 4^th Coco

6. Most like owner = 1^st Ewok, 2^nd Bailey, 3^rd Zillah

7. 7-11 legged race = 1^st Ewok, 2^nd Poppy B, 3^rd Digby, 4^th Murphy

8. Egg and spoon = 1^st Poppy B, 2^nd Digby, 3^rd Amber, 4^th Gemma

9. Musical sit = 1^st Amber, 2^nd Gemma, 3^rd Zillah, 4^th Dexter

10. Biscuit race = 1^st Poppy R, 2^nd Poppy B, 3^rd Dexter, 4^th Gemma

11. Judges Favourite =1^st Murphy, 2^nd Gemma, 3^rd Jack, 4^th Poppy R/Poppy B

The winners of each class went through to the champion of the day class:

Champion of the day: Ewok owned by Fay Ford

Reserve Champion: Poppy R. owned by the Richardson family.

Thank you to all the dogs and owners who supported me.

Amelia Butterfield

Game on!

Our Junior tennis coaching is now well underway at the Stewart Hall, with Tony Galante from the Community Tennis Association (CTA) proving to be a fantastic coach to the children. There are still a few places available for so please contact Tony directly at tony@ctatennis.org or via the CTA website http://www.ctatennis.org/venues/brightwell/contact/ .

The ladies of the parish now play regularly during the day on a Monday and Thursday and our Sunday club sessions are also off to a flying start. A ‘round robin email’ system has been introduced for interested players to register their availability on a week-by-week basis. The sessions are 9am to 10am and 10am to 11am, with each time slot accommodating up to 8 players. Racquets, for all ages, and balls are available for members to borrow during these informal games, so don’t let outdated or broken equipment stop you from coming along!

As a club we continue to grow in number, with over 100 registered members. We are looking to increase that total over the coming months, and as mentioned before, subscription fees are not due until April 2014. Visit us at http://bcskingsmeadowtennisclub.org.uk/ to register online.

Nicola Benning

Food Bank

The Food bank in Wallingford is organised by Churches Together at the Bullcroft. Our village churches have been supporting them for the past two years. Donations of tinned and dried food are regularly collected. Tinned and dried food can be left in the collection box in church or dropped off at the Ridgway centre in town. Harvest donations from the churches and schools in the area provided a great boost to the reserves recently but the need is ever present.

Over the year several hundred people have been supported and this last month 35 adults and 17 children were provided with emergency food. It is worth taking note that the number of people in need this year is greater than last year. I meet people from time to time who have no knowledge of the Food Bank in Wallingford or of the good work that is done in the name of Churches Together with Street Pastors

People in need can collect a voucher from the social services or health service etc and visit the bank at the Bullcroft on Monday and Thursday mornings each week. They receive three days emergency food. At the moment we are reasonably well stocked but short of hot dogs, apple juice and drinking chocolate. With Christmas fast approaching any seasonal items would be most welcome. Last year we were able to make use of the supermarket small Christmas puddings and small treats for the children to put in the bags of food. We would be grateful for any help you can give.

Neville & Jean Burt, Church Lane, are the trustees of the local Food Bank so any donations of money may be given to them and would be most helpful for ongoing needs.

Gloria Hamilton-Peach

Calling All Music Lovers

For music lovers in Brightwell cum Sotwell there will be a rare treat next February and one not to be missed. British soprano Claire Booth has become internationally renowned both for her extraordinary breadth of repertoire and for the vitality and musicianship she brings to the operatic stage and concert platform.

Having appeared with Scottish Opera, Welsh National Opera and English National Opera the next twelve months will see Claire perform at the Royal Opera House as well as her debuts with both the Boston Symphony and Los Angeles Philarmonic orchestras. But the really exciting news is that amid her performances all over the world Claire has very generously offered to find time to appear at our very own St Agatha’s on Saturday 15 February (6pm).

Claire and her family are relative new comers to Mackney and her performance locally will raise funds for St Agatha’s. She will sing opera arias by Mozart and Rossini, selected folk songs by Percy Grainger as well as music by Claude Debussy and Robert Schumann. Claire will be accompanied on piano by Christopher Glynn, a Professor at the Royal College of Music.

Tickets will be on sale in the New Year (Village Stores and see posters for other details). Do put it in your diary now as this promises to be a spectacular village occasion.

Alec McGivan

In Brief – round and about

Langtree Sinfonia: Do you play, or have you played, an orchestral instrument? We are a friendly, non-auditioning, local orchestra meeting on Wednesday evenings in Langtree School, Woodcote, and always welcome new members. Anyone interested can contact our memberhip secretary, Nick Kiff, on 01491 833515 (nick.kiff@tesco.net), or go to our website www.langtreesinfonia.co.uk .