Local Lynx No. 125 - April/May 2019 (updated)

BALE - BINHAM - COCKTHORPE - FIELD DALLING GUNTHORPE - LANGHAM - MORSTON SAXLINGHAM - SHARRINGTON - STIFFKEY

ISSUE 125 April - May 2019

Spring view of Gunthorpe Church

ADS DIRECTORY now on back page and at 1 www.locallynx.homestead.com

26th Sun. Stiffkey Warborough House Open Day 1-5pm 27th Mon. Langham Bring & Buy Church, 10am-12noon 29th Wed. Langham Village Hall AGM, VH 7.30pm

WHAT’S ON VH = Village Hall APRIL 3rd Wed. Sharrington Gardeners Group Talk VH 7pm 4th Thu. Binham Friends of Binham Priory AGM, Binham Memorial Hall 6.30pm 4th Thu. Binham Friends of Binham Priory, David Reeve ‗Protecting the Royals‘ BMH 7pm for 7.30pm 8th Mon. Field Dalling Parish Council Meeting, VH 7.30pm 9th Tue. Sharrington ‘Jammin for Scones‘ VH 2-4pm 10th Wed. Field Dalling Coffee Morning, VH 10.30am 11th Thu. Langham Mobile Library 9.55am St Mary‘s & 10.20am The Cornfield 11th Thu. Sharrington Craft Group VH 2–4pm 12th Fri. Bale fish and chips, VH 6.45pm 12th Fri. Field Dalling Bereavement Group, Manor Farm Cottage, 4pm 12th Fri. Field Dalling Easter Bingo, VH 7.30pm 13th Sat. Bale wine tasting, VH 7pm 14th Sun. Binham Palm Sunday, HC, BP 11am 16th Tue. Binham Village meeting and Memorial Hall AGM, BMH 7pm 18th Thu. Binham and Hindringham Open Circle, Annual Dinner, Walsingham Barns 6.30pm 20th Sat. Binham, Children‘s Service and Easter Egg Hunt, BP 4pm 20th Sat. Binham, Service of Light and Easter Candle lit, BP 8pm 21st Sun. Binham Easter Communion, BP 11am 22nd Mon. Stiffkey Village Life Exhibition, 10am-4pm 25th Thu. Binham Local History Group. Matt Williams ‗The grain of the place - from subterranean Norwich to highland Binham‘, MH 7:30pm 27th Sat. Gunthorpe 50:50 Club Institute 10:30am

REGULARS Tuesdays Binham Art Group BMH. 9.30am to 12.30pm Wednesdays term time Binham Youth Group BMH, 68pm Thursdays Field Dalling Carpet Bowls, VH 7.30pm Third Thursday in the month Binham & Hindringham Open Circle Meeting, Hindringham VH 7.15pm Fourth Thursday in the month Binham Local History Group BMH 7.30pm 1st & 3rd Saturdays in month Langham Coffee Mornings, VH 10am -12noon

Local Lynx is a non-profit-making community newspaper for the ten villages of the benefice. _________________________________________________________________________

We welcome articles, drawings, photos, poetry and advertisements for publication from all ages but the editor reserves the right to edit or omit submissions. A maximum of 400 words is recommended. Please contact your local rep on their email or phone number listed under your own village heading.

All submissions must go through the village rep.

For general information: lynxeditor@pobox.com. ________________________________________________________________________________

Deadlines for submissions to reps are: 6 January, 6 March, 6 May, 6 July, 6 September & 6 November Newsletter and Website Advertising For enquiries about advertising in Local Lynx, contact Maxine Burlingham tel: 01328-830375

email: maxine.burlingham@me.com

MAY 4th Sat-6th Mon Langham Art Exhibition, VH 10am4.30pm daily 4th Sat.-6th Mon. Morston FMC Book Sale, Morston Barn, NR25 7AA 10am-5pm 4th Sat. Sharrington Church Coffee Morning All Saints Cottage 10am 8th Wed. Field Dalling Coffee Morning, VH 10.30am 8th Wed. Sharrington Gardeners Group Talk VH 7pm 9th Thu. Langham Mobile Library 9.55am St Mary‘s & 10.20am The Cornfield 9th Thu. Sharrington Craft Group VH 2-4pm 10th Fri. Bale fish and chips, VH 6.45pm 10th Fri. Field Dalling Bereavement Group, Manor Farm Cottage, 4pm 14th Tue. Sharrington ‘Jammin for scones‘ VH 2-4pm 17th Fri. Field Dalling Bingo, VH 7.30pm 18th Sat. Langham Leukaemia Research Sale VH 10am12noon 19th Gunthorpe Churchyard Clear-up, St Mary‘s 9am 16th Thu. Binham and Hindringham Open Circle, ‗Mark Milson -First Aid training‘, Hindringham VH 7.15pm 21st Tue. Sharrington Village Hall AGM VH 7.30pm 22nd Wed. Sharrington Live Music Night VH 7.30pm 25th Sat. Bale tea at the Ritz, VH 2.30pm 25th Sat. Gunthorpe 50:50 Club end of year super draw, Institute 10:30am

Rates for advertising (pre-paid) are: One column x 62 mm (1/8 page): £72 for six issues.

Small Ads Panel on the back page: Available for individuals and businesses providing local services. Cost: £36 for six issues.

And please don’t forget….

Lynx 125 and all back issues are permanently available on our website at www.locallynx.homestead.com. The website now has an Ads Directory, an ‗In More Detail’ page and a ‘Local Charities’ page to cover relevant articles in greater depth. (Paper copies of website articles are always available from Roberta on 01263 740188.)

BLAKENEY CATHOLIC CHURCH Back Lane Blakeney Parish Priest, Father Keith Tulloch, Stella Maris, The Buttlands, Wells next the Sea 01328 713044 Priest in Residence, Father William Wells (the house behind the church).

Service Times: Masses: Saturday Vigil Mass 6.00pm Sunday 11.00am Wednesday 9.30am

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Church Services for Bale and Stiffkey Benefice for April and May 2019 HC=Holy Communion. CFS=Church Family Service. MP=Morning Prayer. BCP=Book of Common Prayer 7th April

Parish Bale Field Dalling Saxlingham Gunthorpe

9.30am HC

Sharrington Binham Morston Langham

9.30am MP CW 11.00am HC 9.30am HC BCP

14th April Palm Sunday 9.30am HC 11.00am CFS At Field Dalling 11.00am MP 9.30am HC 11.00am HC 9.30am MP

Stiffkey

At Langham 5th May

Parish Bale Field Dalling Saxlingham Gunthorpe Sharrington Binham Morston Langham Stiffkey

21st April Easter Sunday 9.30am HC 11.00am HC At Field Dalling 11.00am MP with Easter Hymns 4.30pm Silent Meditation 9.30am HC 11.00am HC 9.30am HC BCP 11.00am Easter Celebration with Choir 9.30am HC

9.30am MP BCP 11.00am HC 9.30am HC BCP At Stiffkey 9.30am MP

28th April

11.00am MP BCP At Field Dalling

9.30am MP BCP 9.30am HC 9.30am MP At Langham

12th May

19th May 9.30am HC

26thMay 9.30am HC

11.00am CFS At Field Dalling

At Saxlingham 11.00am HC

11.00am MP BCP At Field Dalling

11.00am MP 9.30am HC 11.00am HC

4.30pm Silent Meditation 9.30am MP CW 11.00am CFS 9.30am HC BCP At Stiffkey 9.30am HC

11.00am HC 9.30am HC 9.30am HC

9.30am MP At Langham

9.30am HC At Langham

Additional Services

Holy Week Monday - Wednesday(15th – 17th April): Field Dalling, Reflecting on the Holy, 6.30pm Maundy Thursday (18th April): Field Dalling, Maundy Thursday service, 6.30pm Good Friday (19th April): Field Dalling, Family Service, 10.30am Good Friday (19th April): Morston, Stations of the Cross, 10.30am Good Friday (19th April): Gunthorpe, Lift High the Cross, 12 noon Easter Eve (20th April): Binham, Family Service (with Egg Hunt), 4.00pm Easter Eve (20th April): Binham, Service of Light, 8.00pm Easter Day (21st April): Egg Hunt; Stiffkey, 3.00pm.

Ascension Day (May 30th): Langham, 10.00am. Holy Communion Regular Weekday Services Binham: Tuesday, 6.00pm Evening Prayer Langham: Wednesday, 10.00am Holy Communion

RECTOR’S LETTER Dear Friends and Parishioners, At last the days of Promise: bright early mornings and the evenings getting longer and longer; and all living things reaching up and out. And these blessed weeks make a golden setting for that most precious jewel, Easter. This yearly recalling of the actual day of the Resurrection of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ is packed with power. Here is Life given up, Life restored and Life eternal made available for all. It has changed everything and may change everyone. The persisting power of the Risen Christ glides on the wheels of promise.

BLAKENEY METHODIST CHURCH Minister: The Rev‘d Cliff Shanganya, 8, St. Andrew‘s Close, Holt. NR25 6EL 01263 712181 Email: CliffShanganya@methodist.org.uk Sunday: 10am Café Church Thursday: 10am Morning Prayer with Holy Communion.

DEANERY NEWS

Our next meeting will be on Thurs. 2nd May 2019. 7 for 7.30pm. in St. Andrew‘s Meeting Room, Holt.

Speaker: The Reverend Jennifer Elliott de Riverol.

Subject: Spiritual Direction in our Diocese and its importance towards church growth.

May 20: Very Early Morning by Luci Shaw (20th C.) all the field praises him/all dandelions are his glory/gold

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and silver all trilliums unfold white flames above their trinities of leaves all wild strawberries and massed wood violets reflect his skies‘ clean blue and white all brambles/all oxeyes all stalks and stems lift to his light all young windflower bells tremble on hair springs for his air‘s carillon touch/last year‘s yarrow (raising brittle star skeletons) tells age is not past praising all small low unknown unnamed weeds show his impossible greens all grasses sing tone on clear tone all mosses spread a spring – soft velvet for his feet and by all means all leaves/buds/all flowers cup jewels of fire and ice holding up to his kind of morning heat a silver sacrifice

LOOKING AFTER LOCAL LYNX    

covers 10 villages in North Norfolk published every other month voluntarily produced by village members distributed to 1,200 households, pubs, churches, libraries, tourist information offices and shops  estimated readership 2,000 plus 300+ on-line readers at www.locallynx.co.uk Until quite recently, all our production costs (mainly printing) were covered by donations we receive from Parish Councils and PCCs, and by advertisements. But, perhaps due to the trend towards online selling, our advertising revenue has decreased over the past few issues.

Although our overall financial position is still healthy, we need to make up the shortfall. So we are turning to you, our readers, for a little help. Firstly, if you run a local business or service, please consider advertising. Secondly, we know that you value your Local Lynx and, if you would like to help ensure its long-term future, then please think about making a small donation. Six pounds a year would be £1 per issue; ten pounds a year would be a round sum, but please give whatever you feel is appropriate.

Our bank details for making a direct BACS transfer are below or you may donate by cash or cheque. Please email lynxeditor @pobox.com to arrange this.

Lynx Internet Banking and Standing Orders Account number: 6500 4288 Sort code: 09-01-54 With special thanks to our individual donors. Ed.

now make of our hearts a field to raise your praise May I wish you a glorious Summer, Yours very truly, Ian Whittle The Rectory Langham 01328 830246

COMMUNITY nEWS COUNTY COUNCILLORS’ NEWS …from Dr.Marie Strong Norfolk County Council Budget: At the full council meeting on Monday 11 February county councillors voted on the forthcoming budget – in brief how money allocated to the county will be spent.

Present were members of the public who attended in order to demonstrate their concerns regarding cuts to the children‘s centres and to aspects of financial support for young people with special needs. Whilst a deputation regarding climate change received most of the media coverage you will be able to listen on the NCC website to the recording of the budget cuts debate. Although the two opposition groups opposed the cuts, the budget as presented by the majority group was approved in its entirety.

Cabinet System and Live Coverage: After May, NCC‘s committee system will be replaced by a cabinet system. At the same time, the main meetings such as cabinet and full council will be ‗live streamed‘. It is unfortunate, in my view, that we are moving back to a cabinet system particularly since the cabinet makes all

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©AndrewMoncur

major decisions and will consist of councillors from only one political party. Therefore, you will miss the healthy debate and exchange of views which the committee system engendered. Fairly or not, the cabinet system has been said to engender a democratic deficiency. Fortunately full Council meetings will continue to include the council‘s 84 members representing all county council political parties and importantly representing each and every county resident.

Changes to District Ward Boundaries: Consideration of how Norfolk‘s town and parish councils should be grouped into wards is now complete and will take affect from the May 2019 district council elections. Presently, the county division of Wells represents the town and parish councils shown at the end of this report. These councils are presently divided into three district wards – Priory, Glaven and Walsingham. Under the new ward system the same councils will be divided amongst the following wards: Coastal, Holt, Priory, Stody, Walsingham, Wells with Holkham.

Changes to County Divisions: Now the district wards have been agreed, the county divisions are to be re-assessed with the amended divisions in place by the 2021 county council elections. Although not confirmed, it is assumed that as with the re-shaping of the district wards there are likely to be fewer councillors.

County Divisions: To-date there has been a set number of residents each councillor should have in their division. Fewer councillors - and fewer residents (see below) - mean some county divisions are potentially set to become larger.

Wells Division is one of the most beautiful divisions in the county but, at the same time, many areas exemplify rural deprivation. As a result of the latter, it is one of the parts of the county where many local people find it necessary to move away for work and are less likely to be replaced by residents. (County archives show a time when Wells Division consisted of Wells town and two parishes – presumably with a very high proportion of residents.)

Non-residents do not count in the calculation of a division - although if they have bought property they, understandably, anticipate receiving assistance from the town/parish, district and county councillors.

I would also add that I am very conscious of the income that can accrue in parishes via non-residents employing tradespeople and of the income from holiday makers. I am also aware that new home-owners moving in and those who eventually become resident often become much welcomed members of our communities, volunteering for the many schemes which keep our parishes alive.

However there are obviously a range of socio-

My Dad says: counting the new royal baby, I’m now 66 millionth, six hundred thousandth, eight hundred and thirty fourth in line to the throne. But I don’t want anyone to make a fuss.

economic factors which come into play and which deserve further debate than this report.

For now I am focusing on the forthcoming assessment of county divisions and am wondering if the time is not right to carry out an examination of the system of governance at all levels across the county with particular regard to a re-organisation of power.

Such an approach would have many benefits and be preferable, in my view, to simply making county divisions larger thereby allowing less time for county councillors to do justice to those divisions. All for now, Marie News from County Councillor Dr Marie Strong Wells Division (Glaven, Priory and Walsingham Wards) marie.strong@norfolk.gov.uk or 07920 286 597.

Marie’s villages Binham & Cockthorpe, Blakeney, Brinton & Sharrington, Barshams & Houghton St Giles, Field Dalling & Saxlingham; Letheringsett & Glandford, Great Snoring, Great & Little Walsingham, Hindringham, Holkham, Hunworth & Stody, , Langham, Thornage & Little Thornage, Morston, Sculthorpe, Stiffkey, Warham, Wells-next-the-Sea, Wighton, Wiveton.

…from Steffan Aquarone It's time we went back to the beginning Politics is in an interesting state, and whilst people in parliament argue constantly and yet (in most cases) do very little, all of us are trying to get on with our lives. It

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enhance the special characteristics of each parish.

Planning and Enforcement: It has been a very busy start to 2019 with applications showing no sign of slowing down. Changes to the National Planning Policy Framework which came into force in August 2018 are being incorporated into the emerging Local Plan. Please continue to be our eyes and ears within your community and if you see something which you believe breaches planning permission then please do let me and our Enforcement team know on combined.enforcement @north-norfolk.gov.uk.

Forthcoming elections: Some of you may remember that last year the Electoral Commission reviewed the electoral boundaries across North Norfolk.

One consequence of this review was that the Glaven Valley electoral ward will be disbanded at the forthcoming elections on May 2nd and I will lose my current seat. I want to put on record my thanks and appreciation to all residents across the Glaven Valley who have made me feel welcome and provided advice and support since I had the privilege of becoming your District Councillor in September 2016.

Due to the imminent retirement of my colleague Cllr.

David Young, I have been selected as a candidate to stand for election in the newly created Coastal ward (which comprises the 8 coastal parishes from Stiffkey to Weybourne). I will continue to work across the Glaven Valley until the elections, and I will also work alongside David to learn about the important issues in the parishes I don‘t currently represent. I look forward to speaking to many of you in the coming weeks to hear about what matters to you. I can be contacted on karen.ward@north-norfolk.gov.uk or 07946 533983.

feels a bit like politics in general has lost the plot - so I've been trying to take a step back and find out what people think about the bigger picture.

Through a small series of events in North Norfolk, I've been asking people what their vision is for the future of society, what they think politicians and political parties should do differently, and what difference this would make to them, their families, and the wider world.

So far the results have been fascinating - and much more meaningful, I think, than political party manifestos.

We'll be coming to Sheringham at 6pm on 17th May. Visit www.norfolklibdems.org/village_hall_events for details. All are welcome - there'll even be cheese and wine thanks to a generous donor! Warm wishes, Steff Steffan Aquarone: County Councillor Melton Constable Division ( incl. Bale and Gunthorpe Parishes) steffanaquarone@gmail.com or 07879 451608

DISTRICT COUNCILLOR’S NEWS from Karen Ward Local Plan: After many months of work, we are getting close to the time when you, the residents of North Norfolk, will have the chance to review and provide feedback on the draft Local Plan. The public consultation will begin on Tuesday May 7th and run for six weeks. You will each receive a Local Plan briefing note with your Council tax letters, which will provide you with details of when and where you can review the draft documents. The Local Plan will shape the development in your community for the next 20 years, so I encourage you to take the time to review it and provide us with feedback. I will work with your parish councils as usual to ensure they can contribute their perspective to the consultation.

Glaven Ports Conservation Appraisals: All the feedback from the communities involved has been reviewed and collated and is now being incorporated into the draft documents. Final versions will be available for communities to review in April and shortly afterwards these documents can be used to protect and

District Councillors’ Contact Details: Vincent Fitzpatrick e:vincent.fitzpatrick@northnorfolk.gov.uk & Simon Hester e:simon.hester@northnorfolk.gov.uk (Binham, Langham & Stiffkey) Karen Ward e:karen.ward@north-norfolk.gov.uk (Sharrington, Field Dalling, Saxlingham & Morston) Ann.R.Green (01328 878273) e: ann.green@northnorfolk.gov.uk (Gunthorpe & Bale)

FAKENHAM LIBRARY For further information about events and to book please call 01328 862715 or check our Facebook page www.facebook.com/fakenhamlibrary. Please check with the library first in case of any changes to events.

Special Events Words with Wine Friday 5th April, 7 – 9 pm The theme of this evening will be ―Renewal‖. Please bring along a short pieces of poetry or prose (fact or fiction), which you would enjoy sharing in a friendly atmosphere. If you prefer not to read, come along to just listen. The ticket price is £4, which includes a glass of wine and some nibbles. Please book in advance at the

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Library desk, and pay on the night at the door. A Friends of Fakenham Library Event.

Mini Movers Tuesday 9th April 2 – 3pm Enjoy getting up and moving to music with the Sticky Kids CD. Mini Movers is for pre-school age to encourage movement to music and song whilst developing numeracy and literacy skill. Booking essential - to book contact the library on 01328 862715.

Fakenham Library Audio Book Club – 3rd Monday of the month 10.30 -12.00 (15 April) This is run by the Norfolk & Norwich Association for the Blind (NNAB). To book your place call Mark or Elaine on 01603 629558 or marksmith@nnab.org.uk.

Thursday Club – every Thursday 2.00 – 3.00pm.

Feeling at a loose end? Come to the library for a cuppa and a chat.

Norfolk Citizens Advice – Mondays and Thursdays 10am – 3pm. Drop in advice sessions.

Fakenham Library’s 50th birthday!

Thursday 18th April 3 - 4.30pm

NNDC LOCAL PLAN CONSULTATION

Come and celebrate with us! Enjoy some light refreshments and music from The Lighters!

Free event but donations welcome! For further information contact the library on 01328 862715.

Tuesday 7 May – Wednesday 19 June Drop-in events/displays at 12 locations including Holt, Blakeney, Wells & Fakenham NNDC is inviting residents, businesses and organisations to consider the content of the ‗First Draft Local Plan‘ and to let it know if any changes are necessary. As part of this consultation, NNDC will also publish details of the ‗Alternative Options‘ that have been considered, along with supporting evidence taken into account when preparing the Local Plan document.

Go to www.north-norfolk.gov.uk/localplanupdates.

From Tuesday 7 May, submit your comments via http://consult.north-norfolk.gov.uk/portal.

Regular Events Lego Club! - Normally after school on Tuesdays during term time (but check with library first). For children aged 5+ (but younger siblings welcome too!)

Help with your Family History - Book a one-to-one session with our volunteer. Contact the library for details.

Computer Support Sessions - Book your free space on a Monday afternoon for help with using computers and the Internet. Contact Fakenham Library for bookings.

Happy Hour – DVDs are all 2 for the price of 1 - every Tuesday 4pm – 6pm & Friday 5pm – 7pm Seated Exercise – Mondays 2.15pm-3.00pm £2.50 per week. Booking essential. Check dates and book your place with Sue Gathercole of Cardio & Core 07774 245810 sue@cardioandcore.co.uk.

Rag Rug Club – 1st Tuesday of the month 10.30-12 noon (2nd April). Beginners welcome. Share ideas – swap materials Book Club – 2nd Tuesday of the month 10.30-11.30 (9th April). New members always welcome. Ask staff for details of the books being discussed Games Afternoon - Mondays 1pm – 3pm. Come along and enjoy a game or two!

Rhyme Time – Tuesdays 2-2.45pm – weekly in term time. Sessions run by Fakenham Gateway SureStart Children‘s Centre staff.

HOLT & DISTRICT DEMENTIA SUPPORT Holt & District Dementia Support held a very successful celebration and re-launch event on Friday 1st February to mark its new beginning as a registered charity and to celebrate its achievements to date. The event held at St. Andrew‘s meeting room attracted a wide array of people including current volunteers and clients but also representatives from local businesses and other voluntary organisations; members of Holt Medical Practice and the Admiral Nursing service plus a number of local people who came to learn about the services the charity offers to those living with dementia.

Those attending were able to see displays about the work of the charity and to hear about its services, whilst enjoying refreshments and an opportunity to talk to volunteers about their role.

The highlight of the event came with the arrival of local MP, Norman Lamb, who was welcomed to the

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celebration by the Chair of Holt & District Dementia Support, Claire Roberts, before she went onto announce to those assembled that he had kindly agreed to become the Patron of the charity and to support the work that the charity undertakes. Mr Lamb gave a short speech about the challenge of dementia to society and the importance of ensuring that both statutory services and voluntary services work together to alleviate the difficulties that such families face, including the need to break down social isolation.

The event finished with a commitment to the future work of the charity and a call to those that might wish to consider becoming a volunteer.

To find out more about becoming a volunteer visit their website: www.holtdementiasupport.org.uk or contact Claire Roberts on 01263 713817.

Planning for the RAF Langham Reunion and Dome Heritage Day on Saturday 1 June 2019 continues to gather pace; although we still await confirmation of our request for Battle of Britain Memorial Flight participation. As usual we plan to have a Grand Draw on the day now with no less than three ―equal‖ aviation related first prizes. One being a glider experience flight for two with the Norfolk Gliding Club at Tibenham, the second a Tiger Moth flight from Langham and the third a helicopter flight from Binham. We will be selling draw tickets from the Dome on opening days. Please contact John Blakeley on 01263 861005 or Patrick Allen on 01328 839348 if you would like some sent to you.

If you would like more information on the Dome and how to become a Friend of Langham Dome (where annual membership gives unlimited free admission) or to join us as a volunteer please contact our Dome Manager Val Bowers on 07762 205578 or e-mail: val@langhamdome.org. For more details, including opening hours etc, you can also check our web site at www.langhamdome.org.

John Blakeley

LANGHAM DOME NEWS Our Spitfire memorial appeal has had a major boost with the start of a crowdfunding initiative running from early February until early April. At the time of writing thanks to some 50+ generous donors we had generated some £5,255 in pledges, and as some of you may have seen in the local newspaper a very generous offer from an anonymous US donor who is a Spitfire owner has promised to double this. You can find the link to the appeal, the rewards offered, and its latest status at www.crowdfunder.co.uk/langham-dome-spitfirememorial. Please have a look at the amazing introductory film on the link even if you do not want to pledge - this was made by former Gunthorpe (now Blakeney) resident Barney Broom, and we cannot thank him, his colleague Phillip Mutton and their company Trafalgar Productions enough for their incredibly generous professional support for the appeal.

After a very successful pilot project we will start the 2019 season with an iconic selection of eight aircraft prints, ―The Langham Dome Aviation Collection‖, from local Sheringham based artist Janet Samuel. They will initially be sold in the Dome and Driftwood Gallery in Sheringham, but we hope to have additional outlets later in the year. All profits will support the FoLD charity.

The last Lynx included pictures from two of the cards and here are two more. One is the DH84 Dragon which often flies from Langham today, and the other is of a FAA Swordfish - actually the first aircraft (from 819 Sqn) to operate from Langham after it officially opened as an independent unit in July 1942.

FARMING UPDATE: JANUARY AND FEBRUARY Dark winter months…or are they?

Who would have thought there would be a lot to write about at the end of February? Not me, I‘ll admit.

It is said the darkest hour is just before dawn and the same is often true for the seasons, with February habitually delivering the bleakest conditions before spring brings the countryside back to life in March and April. Not so, February 2019: on the back of a relatively dry autumn and winter the momentum was kept up with weeks of clear, bright sunshine and warm daytime temperatures.

With it, the slightly sad winter crops have been revitalised and started to put on new growth. Oilseed rape shows its new vigour with an extending main stem, reaching up toward the light; wheat and barley crops

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begin to ‗thicken up‘ and often start to exhibit signs of hunger in the form of yellow tips on the leaves. At this point we give all the winter crops a dose of nitrogen, potassium and trace elements – such as manganese, zinc or calcium, as required – in order to sustain this early growth. Fertiliser can be applied either as a solid granule through a spreader, or in a liquid solution through the sprayer. The theoretical ideal to feeding a plant would be a small dose every day in accordance with the climate (more when bright and warm, less when cold and cloudy) but this would be impractical given the area we have to cover, so instead we split our nitrogen application over four passes. Some farmers will do fewer, others may do more but we find four strikes an appropriate balance.

The dry weather has also allowed us to plant the first of our spring sown crops, spring barley. The seeds are drilled into fields that were sugar beet in 2018 and usually the wet weather makes it difficult to cultivate the land following the heavy harvesters, so this is somewhat earlier than normal. However, the conditions have been good and I‘m hoping that the old adage of ―well sown, half grown‖ will apply in this case, as the seedbeds are in good shape.

We have also been carrying out cultivations to prepare land for the other two spring crops, sugar beet and vining peas, following the departure of some ‗special guests‘ we had grazing cover crops that had been planted in the autumn. Cover crops are not harvested, instead they are grown to protect the soil from erosion, harness energy from the sun and retain nutrients that would otherwise have leached away in the winter rain. Once established, flocks of sheep can graze these plants ahead of spring to reduce the amount of leaf matter that we have to remove, whilst providing a ready source of organic manure for the following crop. The various flora and fauna that reside in the soil are able to feed on this natural fertiliser, which makes the soil ‗healthier‘ as a result – more on this in the next issue, perhaps!

Jonathan Darby Albanwise Farm Manager

RAF NORTH CREAKE DURING THE SECOND WORLD WAR Although not strictly within the Local Lynx orbit most of our readers will be familiar with the North Creake Airfield Control Tower which is run by its owners Nigel Morter and Claire Nugent. They want to commemorate those who served at RAF North Creake by building a memorial in a public place on the old airfield site so that people can learn more about what happened, those who were based there and what they did, and to honour those who were lost.

They aim to unveil the memorial in August 2020 to coincide with the 75th anniversary of the disbandment of the airfield and Nigel and Claire need to raise an estimated £30,000 for the memorial.

The memorial will have a sculpture of a Stirling aircraft in stainless steel skeletal form. The site will have the Roll of Honour, a time line and information boards about the airfield.

Nigel and Claire are holding events to raise funds - the next being a talk on the history of the airfield in the Marble Hall at Holkham Hall on 16th April commencing at 6:30pm. Lord Leicester will be in attendance and as well as donating the use of the hall and parking facilities for the evening, he will also be presenting his very generous donation of £5,000 on the night.

You can get tickets, which are £20.00 each to include light refreshments from the North Creake Control Tower Telephone : 01328 821 574 or e-mail mail@controltowerstays.com. They must be bought in advance as space is limited at The Marble Hall. More information about the project can be found at http:// controltowerstays.com/history.html.

Also, in conjunction with Beeston Brewery, they have launched a fundraising beer – if you spot ―Drink to

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Remember‖ while out and about in Norfolk you can, (unless you drink to forget!) support the memorial by buying a pint (or two) - you can take some home in bottles from The Real Ale Shop too.

February is the month for snowdrops. We visited Smokers‘ Hole, a place where the footings of a building and snowdrops from a long since treed over garden adjoin a bridge on a footpath, over the river Glaven. I‘ve always been puzzled by this place – the lane to it from Hempstead is called Mill Lane – so was there a mill here?

The snowdrops in my garden increase every year.

The warm weather finished them off rather soon, and already irises and crocuses have appeared through the grass where I planted bulbs last year. My distorted hazel has lots of magenta tasselled flowers – I always think of the nature lesson in D H Laurence‘s Women in Love when I see them. Will I get any nuts this year?

Blackthorn – in the hedges a few blossoms – so many hedges have recently been flayed that there‘s no chance of flower, but some small trees are smothered in white flowers.

On our walks we have been to Kelling Heath, Muckleburgh Hill, Wiverton Downs, Blakeney Downs, Cockthorpe Common, Holt Lowes, Morston saltmarsh – any one of which deserved a blog post, but in company I hardly got my phone out for pictures. Must try harder.

In the village I take a few on my usual green lane walk this morning – but the warm dry weather has made so much of it look even more wintery and dried up.

Cakes Lane has had its biennial haircut and is not very pretty; primroses just starting to come out, there and in the other lanes.

I've managed a clutch of small abstract mixed-media paintings, trying to allow the gestural; the weather being so warm, I have been able to work in my old pottery studio (originally my painting studio in fact). Please note; I am taking part in Open Studios again this year, all visitors most welcome. Signage will be up, for three weekends, starting with the second spring bank holiday.

Jane Wheeler

A NEW LOO FOR CLEY Cley Parish Council wants to build a welcoming, hygienic, accessible and free community toilet in the heart of the village.

Our preliminary quotes show that building this toilet will cost £40,000.

We already have our NNDC Big Society Fund grant of £15,000, for which we are very grateful. All we now need to raise is the remaining £25,000!

If you would like to find out more, go to https:// www.northnorfolknews.co.uk/news/loo-campaign-incley-next-the-sea-launched-1-5874145 or contact Cllr.

Dr Victoria Holliday, Cley Parish Council, avictoriaholliday@icloud.com, 07557054629.

We‘ll keep you up to date with our fund-raising progress on our website: www.cleyparishcouncil.org. uk/cley-loo/.

BALE Contact: Jane Wheeler 01328 878656 design@janewheeler.co.uk

A FEBRUARY DIARY 28th Feb 2019 This month most of my walks have been midmorning, after a writing session first thing, but a couple of times a week we get out earlier. On the fifth it was sunny but still frosty at eight-thirty, and we caught sight of four roe deer out in the sun on the rape field. Three went in one direction, and one more back into the wood.

Another early morning we saw seven just outside the wood. I‘ve never seen so many together before. Hares have been quite evident in the same huge field, despite the bird-scaring cannon which makes us jump, and despite reports of hares dying from rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus (which has crossed to hares, and is killing them in large numbers on the continent). My rescued hare-chasing sighthound is on the whole very good, she seems to have accepted that I won‘t let her go and chase all these creatures, and merely stops and stares.

Through February it has been very pleasant to open the curtains just before dawn and catch the eastern sky colouring up; different days give different colours pretty pink, gold and mauve stripes, one was lurid orange, halfway through the heat wave, presaging the three wildfires that made the news.

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extras will be admitted! For tickets call 01328 822481. Roger Dubbins and Kieron West will be our sommeliers for the evening and will be presenting a wide range of whites, reds and a touch of fizz.

On the Bank Holiday weekend at the end of May we are offering the opportunity to sample ―Tea at the (Bale) Ritz‖. Delicious home-made afternoon teas will be served on Saturday 25th May from 2.30 – 5.00pm in elegant surroundings and with musical accompaniment. All proceeds from this event will be donated to the East Anglian Air Ambulance so please come along to support a service which can be so important to the community and is reliant on charitable donations. If you would like to book a table in advance, call 01328 822012 – or just arrive on the afternoon with fingers crossed that there will be some scones left!

Fish and chips will be on 12th April and 10th May. We look forward to seeing lots of regulars and new faces are always welcome. This is a great way to keep in touch with neighbours from all around the village and beyond, so do give it a try if you never have.

Arrive by 6.45pm to place your order and bring your own drinks.

Paula Moore

BALE PAINTING GROUP Open Day 9th June 2019 The Bale Painting Group, which has been painting together since 2015, is staging its first open day in the refurbished Bale Village Hall on Sunday 9th June from 10:00 until 16:00.

We are excited to be able to present examples of our work, showing skills developed over the last 4 years, in various media and on diverse subjects.

There will be light refreshments on offer and the opportunity to meet some of the artists who will be painting on the day. You will be welcome to ask the artists present about the pictures on display, some of which will be available to purchase.

We are artists of all abilities including beginners and always welcome new members. So do come along for a chat and introduction if you are interested.

Please note that car parking is very limited in front of the hall and additional parking will be signposted.

Peter Jones

HUNDRED CLUB DRAW RESULTS January 19 Evan Turnbull Alan Sankey Will Powney Sarah Mitchell

February 19 £25 £10 £5 £5

Maggie Thomas Grace Gibbs Carole Lee Alan Sankey

£25 £10 £5 £5

BINHAM

BALE VILLAGE HALL NEWS

Contact: Liz Brady 01328 830830 lizsdavenport@gmail.com

The AGM of the Village Hall committee took place on 10th February, with all committee members continuing, with their current responsibilities, with the exception of Alastair, who is taking a break from acting as treasurer. Until he is able to resume, Jane very kindly offered to take his place. The other committee members are very grateful to her for stepping up and her years of running her own business should make the job seem quite straightforward!

We will be hosting a wine tasting evening on Saturday 13th April at 7pm. Tickets are £10 and the number is limited to 36 so please book your place as no

BINHAM PARISH COUNCIL The better weather has helped the contractor building the Walsingham Road development to make good progress. The general layout, roadway and appearance of the 27 houses is becoming clear.

The main concern of adjacent residents has been the parking of the many sub-contractors‘ vehicles, in Priory Crescent, Walsingham Road and down the Bridle Path. This was stressed at the recent PC‘s Liaison

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facebook page and on the big board outside the hall.

There is now a Cosy Club in the afternoon of the third Wednesday in the month which is a chance for a cup of tea and a natter and don‘t forget the bi-monthly coffee mornings. In the meantime, I can tell you that the village meeting and the hall AGM is at 7pm on April 16th. This is an opportunity for you to come and listen to the reports from the various village groups and activities and to comment and ask questions. Please do come along – it‘s a really interesting evening!

Mary Hunt

Meeting with the contractor and Liz Brown followed it further by direct contact with the developer‘s director.

More on-site parking is being made available and ―No Contractors‘ Vehicle Parking‖ notices have been put up in the worst affected areas. Hopefully these actions will alleviated the problem.

The first site along the Walsingham Road, having been sold separately for private development, was the subject to discussion on a revised planning application for a single house. There was concern raised about the positioning and size of windows on the east elevation overlooking the neighbouring property. On other planning matters the PC made no objection to Broadlands wishing to a change of the pattern of flint walling on three of the main site properties and also to an application for 12 Front Street, changing the boundary hedge to a 1.5 m high flint wall.

It is hoped the outcome of the PC‘s application for funding for the Hindringham Road ―entrance gates‖ will be positive, for the ―gates‖ to be installed this year.

The plan is then to apply, over the next two years for ―gates‖ on the other entrance roads where the start of the 30mph is also not so obvious and the speed aware monitor has shown drivers to be reluctant to slow down.

The present council‘s four-year term will be completed at the next meeting on 18th March. This is the opportunity for residents to submit applications to be candidates for elections in early May. Although the parish council has fairly limited powers, it is the first rung of democratic government. Anyone interested in the well-being of the parish might consider applying.

Keith Leesmith, clerk to the council (01328 710261), will offer guidance and provide an application form.

There will also be the opportunity at the March meeting for residents to explore the duties and responsibilities involved.

On a personal note, having been the chairman for several years, I feel it right that the March meeting will be my last in that capacity. It has been a privilege to serve the parish and I owe a big debt of gratitude to my fellow councillors over this period for their support and input, but especially to Keith Leesmith, without his help and guidance I would probably not have survived.

David Frost

EASTER SERVICES AT BINHAM PRIORY Come and join us on Palm Sunday 14th April at 11 am for blessing the palms and a procession to the High Altar in the monastic ruins for the first part of the service. The whole family will be very welcome.

Easter Saturday 20th April 4 pm - Children‘s Service followed by the Easter Egg hunt in the monastic ruins.

8 pm - Service of Light and the Easter Candle is lit.

Easter Sunday 21st April 11 am Easter Communion.

All very welcome.

BINHAM PRIORY GUIDED TOUR Free guided tours throughout the summer months. every Tuesday and Sunday starting in May until the end of September. You are asked to meet at 3pm. in the Priory. For group tours, please, contact Maureen on 01328 830362, to arrange a mutual time.

BINHAM VILLAGE MEMORIAL HALL In the last issue, I made the rookie error of describing an event in the hall as if it had happened rather than just explaining that it might be happening.

The Wighton Players panto in January had to be cancelled at the last minute, sadly, due to illness. It‘s the second time I‘ve done this and it‘s safe to say that I‘ve learned my lesson. We are still in the process of putting events together for 2019 – please do keep an eye on our website (www.binhamvillagehall.co.uk), on our

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BINHAM PRIORY CONCERTS

BINHAM YOUTH GROUP

Summer/Autumn Series August – September 2019

Binham youth group is held in the Binham Memorial Hall on Wednesdays 6-8 pm, term time only, age 5-16 years, £1 entry fee, tuck shop. All staff DBS checked.

We have art ‗n‘ craft, board games, table tennis, pool table, karaoke, books, 10 pin bowling, indoors during winter and summer time we use the large playing field and play equipment or just chill out and make new friends.

Sat 3rd Aug. Sat 24th Aug. Sat 31st Aug.

Fri. 6th Sept.

Sat 21st Sept.

Norwich Baroque Jonathan Sage and Eleanor Kornas (clarinet and piano) Civitas Ensemble (string quartet with readings, motets and paintings, a cross-arts venture) Heath Quartet (string quartet) Xuefei Yang (classical guitar)

“You can do whatever you want for two hours and get away from homework and be creative” (Hollie)

We are always looking for volunteers to help out, even if only now and again. Contact Amanda Able (01328 830828) or Andrew Marsh (01328 830178) for further information.

Dates for your diary and further details will be available in the next edition of Lynx.

FRIENDS OF BINHAM PRIORY BINHAM LOCAL HISTORY GROUP

Protecting the Royals – a talk by David Reeve Thursday April 4th 7pm for 7.30pm Binham Memorial Hall

A Landscape of Towers Our February talk was by Clive Dunn, an award winning film maker. Apart from a lifetime‘s work writing and producing documentaries, his other passion is photography. Clive has spent many years compiling a photographic record of Norfolk‘s 250 ruined and redundant churches . Despite a gremlin in the works giving him a technical hitch with his PowerPoint presentation, Clive talked about the reasons why churches had become redundant through the ages, and how with the help of Redundant Churches and Other Religious Buildings Act 1969, and the formation of The Churches Conservation Trust, many buildings have been preserved. He then showed us a selection of his photographs of the Norfolk churches including those within our locality and of course Binham Priory ruins.

Clive will be publishing a book at the end of March ―A Landscape of Towers‖.

Next Talk - Binham Memorial Hall 25 April 7:30pm, The grain of the place - from subterranean Norwich to highland Binham.- Matt Williams. Members £3 Non members £5.

Pennie Alford blhg@btinternet.com 01328 8307000.

Former Chief Superintendent David Reeve - who is also chairman of Sandringham Flower Show commanded the royal protection team at Sandringham before retiring after 34 years with Norfolk Constabulary.

Tickets, £6 each including a glass of wine/soft drink.

Email fobptickets@gmail.com or call Clare Winkley (01328 831848). Organised by the Friends of Binham Priory.

BINHAM ART GROUP We had a very good result from the sale of postcards which members painted for the Centenary Remembrance Day celebrations. Following the 11th November the cards continued on display at both the Priory Church and the Chequers. The total raised was over £130. The Group will add to this amount before the final amount is split between the British Legion and Help for Heroes. We would like to thank everybody who contributed.

The group held its Christmas lunch at the Chequers on the 4th December. It was attended by 23 members who all enjoyed the excellent hospitality provided by Sarah, Simon and their team. We would like to thank them all, not only for the lunch but also their continuing support of the group through the gallery.

The group is now well into its stride for 2019. We are looking forward to another successful year with our weekly meetings on Tuesday mornings, the gallery at the Chequers, and our annual exhibition in August. We are planning a series of demonstrations throughout the year with some new artists and some old friends.

If you would like any information about the group and its activities please look us up on our website. www.binhamartgroup.weebly.com.

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BINHAM AND HINDRINGHAM OPEN CIRCLE

FIELD DALLING

We are a women‘s group that meet on the third Thursday of each month at 7.15 pm in Hindringham village hall. It would be lovely to welcome new members to our group. Either come along or ring our secretary Sue Elkins 01328 878487 for more information.

18th April is the date for our annual dinner, to meet at Walsingham Barns for 6.30pom and we look forward to a jolly evening and good food. On 16thMay we are having a first aid training session with Mark Milson who is the training manager with the East Anglian Air Ambulance. Partners are welcome to come along to this.

Sue Elkins

Contact: Julie Wiltshire julie_wilson75@hotmail.com

ST ANDREW’S CHURCH First a big thank you to all those who rode or helped with the Bike Ride in September, for which we have received a super cheque for £557 – the Norfolk Churches Trust, who contributed so much to our roof appeal, received the same amount. This year‘s ride is on Saturday September 14th; please keep the date free.

Secondly, a reminder that we will be holding a special service on Mothering Sunday, March 31st, at 11am to which all are invited. There will be posies for loved ones. This is in addition to the Group Communion service elsewhere.

Thirdly a word about Lent and Easter. The Lent group provides a welcoming and informal opportunity to ponder some big issues on Mondays from 4.45pm to 6pm at the home of Ian and Fiona Newton, 67 Langham Road. There is plenty of cake and a special welcome for any who like to join us from other villages.

Similarly, all are welcome at the short services at 630pm from Monday to Thursday in Holy Week, and at the service of reflection on Good Friday. These all lead to the climax of Holy week when we join together for our Easter Communion on Easter Sunday. Ian Newton

100+ CLUB WINNERS January winners: £25 Kevin Cooke, £10 Christine Rand, Mike Bond, £5 Nora Lewis, Dianne Tilley, Simon Carter.

February winners: £25 Nora Bond, £10 Wendy Marsh, Charlie Hunt, £5 Alan Brown, Angela Townend, Edward Bartram If anyone would like to join the 100+ club, please call at 8 Priory Crescent or ring June Read on 01328 830106.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT We expect to pass through this world but once; any good thing, therefore, that we can do, or any kindness that we can show to our fellow creature, let us do it now; let us not defer or neglect it, for we shall not pass this way again. Proverbial saying.

SAFARI SUPPER Saturday 27th April We shall be eating different courses of meals in different homes. It is a fund-raiser (£10) per ticket, but the real fun is meeting folk in a homely setting and eating with friends old and new. Contact Fiona 830497 or Lou (Lou_shone@hotmail.com) for more details.

COCKTHORPE Contact: Maurice Matthews 01328 830350 maurice.matthews@peppard.net

FIELD DALLING AND SAXLINGHAM SUMMER FETE

No news from Cockthorpe this time.

Saturday 10th August 2019, 2-4pm Villagers’ Hall The fete returns to its usual place on the second Saturday afternoon in August. Plans are underway and the live music has been booked. Traditional stalls and games and an excellent team of helpers ensure the afternoon is a happy and successful one but new ideas and new people are always very welcome.

Bridget Nicholson 01328 830614

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MOBILE POST OFFICE

GUNTHORPE

A new mobile post office service is due to commence on 26th March. The service will stop at the Field Dalling and Saxlingham Villagers‘ Hall for an hour a week on a Wednesday, 09:45 until 10:45am.

Contact: John Blakeley 01263 861008 jbconsult@btinternet.com www.gunthorpefriends.co.uk

VILLAGERS’ HALL

FOGPC

www.fdands.org Ceilidh Evening Saturday 22nd June, 7pm

50/50 Club Draw Results January February John Lemberger £20 Donald Burton £20 Lisa Rush £15 Rebecca Partridge £15 Neil Sturman £5 Mia Partridge £5 Roland Bohn £5 Marie Denholm £5 Myfi Everett £ 5.

Ellen Hill £5 Libby Norton £5 George Brough £5 Margot Worsley £ 5 Helen Ford £5 If you are not already a member please think about joining us. More members means higher prize money and more money to maintain the fabric of St Mary‘s. It costs just £1 per month payable in advance from the time of joining until May 2019. Payments can also include your ―Friends‖ membership of a minimum of £5 per annum or part, and a single cheque, cash or BACS payment can cover both. Cheques should please me made out to FOGPC. BACS payments can be made as detailed below, but please inform John Blakeley (email: jbconsult@btinternet.com) if you pay by BACS so that records can be kept up to date and you do not miss the chance to participate in the first draw after you have joined.

The Friends membership and any other donation, but not the 50:50 Club subscriptions, can be Gift Aided and if you have not already completed a form we would be most grateful if you could consider doing this – provided you are and remain a taxpayer of course.

The return of the fabulous ceilidh evening: tickets are £10 and include entrance and BBQ (BYO drinks).

Tickets will be on pre-sale. Doors open at 7pm and music starts from 7.30pm.

Contact Steve and Susie Collins for tickets: steveandsusie100@gmail.com.

Coffee Mornings Wednesday 10th April and Wednesday 8th May are the next dates for the coffee morning, held every second Wednesday of the month in the village hall at Field Dalling, 10.30 a.m. to 12 noon. Why not pop in to try the fresh coffee, tea and cake. It‘s a great chance to meet new people or catch up with old friends.

Refreshments are free of charge, but donations are gratefully received. Hope to see you there.

Mel and Brian Goodale

Important Diary Dates Bingo Nights: 12th Apr (Easter), 17th May, 14th Jun, 12th Jul, 16th Aug, 13th Sep, 11th Oct, 15th Nov, 13th Dec Ceilidh Evening: 22nd Jun Village Fete: 10th Aug Harvest Supper: 12th Oct Christmas Fair: 23rd Nov

200 CLUB Dec 2018: £50 Stewart Sims; £25 Kathy Chesney; £15 Steve Collins Jan 2019: £50 Bridget Nicholson; £25 Shirley Bugg; £15 Bridget Newman Feb 2019: £50 June Bowen-Woods; £25 Martin Worby; £15 Margaret Reeves

NAT WEST Bank plc Sort code 53-50-73 Account number 25727532 To once again quote the motto of a somewhat larger lottery can we remind you that ―you have to be in it to win it!‖ Myfi Everett & John Blakeley

ST MARY’S CHURCH NEWS We were all so sad to hear of the death of dear Fred Morley. I took over as churchwarden from Fred ten years ago. He was kindness itself, guiding me through the procedures and responsibilities with great patience. I will always remember a gentle nudge in my back when I had forgotten to take the collection during the hymn!

His funeral took place on Saturday February 16th at St Mary‘s. Needless to say, it was very well attended by family and friends. Marie decorated the church with armfuls of daffodils and tulips, which looked beautiful.

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As one important item for now Nuala Howard is appealing for help from all village crafters - she would normally have been very busy in December and January making items for her popular craft stall, but this year she was sadly in hospital for much of the time. If you can help by making items for the stall please call her on 01263 862789.

All profits from the fete are shared between Church and Village Institute.

See you there!

Val King 01263 862265 Jenny Kelly 01263 860095 valatt@btinternet.com. jennykellynorfolk@hotmail.com

I am sure Fred was pleased looking down on us all.

Marie gave a very moving eulogy telling us endearing stories and heartfelt memories. There were readings from Fred‘s family and Ginny Worsley. Dear Fred, he holds a special place in so many hearts, we will all miss him.

Penny Brough Church Warden

FRIENDS OF GUNTHORPE PARISH CHURCH The Friends Annual Churchyard Clear-Up will be held on Sunday the 19th of May from 9am. All who are free are welcome and your help will be much appreciated. There are jobs of all sorts and sizes to suit everyone. Stay for an hour or two or the morning – any time spent will be worthwhile. Bring tools with you or we will have them for you to use on site. The morning‘s gardening work will end around noon with sausage & veggie rolls and drinks. All we accomplish sets the gardening-season off to a good start – and we have a good laugh to boot.

The Friends were especially saddened by the death of Fred Morley at the end of January. He was a most supportive, founder-member of the Friends. Fred had been involved in the church - from choir boy to church warden, and looked after the churchyard voluntarily, lovingly and wonderfully for most of his life. We would like to propose that the village get together to purchase a garden bench in memory of Fred, to be placed in the churchyard he looked after with great care and loved so well. We will discuss the best way to go about this at our next joint village committees‘ meeting. We send our condolences to Fred‘s family and all those who loved him. He will be remembered with great affection and appreciation by the Friends!

The Friends AGM will be held in the Institute on Friday 12th July starting at 6:30pm. As usual a fish and chip supper will follow. All welcome, whether members of the ―Friends― or not - although non-members are encouraged to join on the night! ...Marie Denholm Friends Chairman

FREDERICK WALTER “FRED” MORLEY We were very sad to hear that Fred Morley, perhaps the longest serving Gunthorpe resident the village has ever had passed away in the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital on 31st January following a stroke on 23rd January.

He was 94 years old.

Although Fred had been resident in the Kingsgate residential care home for almost 6 years he was born in Gunthorpe on 6th April 1924 and had lived in the village in the same house until just before his 89th birthday. He lived through changing times - as a youngster he and a friend used to go up to the main road and got very excited as one day they counted 3 cars! He would not have had to wait too long to see three cars in 10 minutes in Gunthorpe in his later years.

Fred was a familiar sight in the village on his bicycle - sometimes walking it as his hips were a problem, and often making his way to his sister Cissie Williamson for his lunch. We all knew him as the church warden, a duty which as a devoted Christian he undertook for

GUNTHORPE VILLAGE FETE A Date For Your Diary!

This year‘s Gunthorpe Village Fete will be held on Sunday, 28th July at 2.00 p.m. in the stunning grounds of Gunthorpe Hall by kind permission of Jeremy and Marie Denholm.

If you appreciate a traditional garden fete with cream teas, brass band and a variety of games and stalls then you won‘t be disappointed.

More details to follow in the next edition of The Lynx but in the meantime if you have any queries or wish to volunteer your services then please contact Jenny or Val, details below.

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children - most of whom still reside in Norfolk, and who themselves were very close to ―Uncle Fred‖.

Fred‘s funeral service took place at St Mary‘s on 16th February in the presence of his family and many friends followed by his burial in the churchyard near his parents and grandparents. At the time of writing it is also planned to plant a tree in St Mary‘s churchyard on 10 th March to honour Fred‘s memory, and as a tribute to his unstinting and lifetime‘s work to support the Church.

We offer Fred‘s nieces and nephew and their families, as well as his many friends in Gunthorpe and beyond, all of whom will have very fond memories of Fred and his major contribution to life in Gunthorpe our sincere condolences.

many years - indeed it is believed that he took on this role directly from being a chorister at St Mary‘s. A very keen cyclist, his family reckoned he cycled over 120,000 miles throughout his life. An abiding memory is seeing him cycling up to the churchyard carrying his scythe on his back.

Fred supported virtually all aspects of village social life ranging from running the Aunt Sally at the annual fete to being a leading light in the now closed village gardening club. He was a judge at the annual gardening show and used his horticultural expertise writing gardening articles for the Local Lynx. He was a contributor to the village history with many photographs he had being added to the record. He also contributed his wages slip from 1948 - again how times have changed!

On leaving school Fred worked at the old Bale Rectory as a gardener. He then worked for a short time in a bakery at Briston. He soon found he preferred the outdoor life and started work on Hammond‘s farm at Bale and later with Ted Hotblack at Field Dalling where he stayed until he reached retirement age. As well as his work on the farms many villagers benefitted from his advice on growing vegetables and flowers. When working on the farm he is reputed to have had a daily diet of raw onion, a bottle of cold tea and bread and cheese. Clearly this was a very healthy diet in terms of his longevity.

He had tried to sign up for service in WW2 but a minor disability with one leg being slightly longer than the other, and his employment on what was seen as essential work, caused him to be rejected - albeit he then served in the Home Guard. He never married but stayed close to, and outlived, his brother Henry Richard (known as Dick) and sister Evelyn (known by many as Cissie) who also lived in Gunthorpe, and to Cissie's

GUNTHORPE AND THE BOLEYN FAMILY Lynx readers will know of the connection between Anne Boleyn and Blickling, but there is also a much more local connection to several Lynx and other local villages as this extract, part 1 of an article by Gunthorpe village historical researcher Ray Steffans, shows. Part 2 will follow in Lynx 126.

James Boleyn, who died in 1492, was buried in the church at Gunthorpe. It is most probable that he was related to the famous Anne, consort of Henry VIII, and another local connection exists since Dr Butts, physician to Henry VIII, was living at Thornage at the time when Anne Boleyn (otherwise Nan Bullen) was Queen. She herself was the daughter of Sir Thomas Boleyn, and his relatives were closely associated with Salle and Blickling in Norfolk. One difficulty encountered in establishing a connection between Anne‘s family and the Boleyns at Gunthorpe is that the family name was spelt at various times as Bulleyn or Bullen. Sir Thomas, father of Queen Anne, has his name as Bullen on his ''brass" at Hever, where he died in 1538.

It is known that James Boleyn was not the only one of that name in the Gunthorpe area. The Boleyns, although not major landowners, were at Gunthorpe and

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Bale for well over a hundred years. At Bale, for example, forty-eight members of the family were born between 1540 and 1640, a long time after the death of James. The Boleyns at Gunthorpe were related to the family at Bale, and there is little doubt also that they were related to the Boleyns of Salle and Blickling. Anne Boleyn's great-grandfather was Geoffrey Boleyn, who died in 1463. He was the son of Geoffrey and Alice Boleyn who lived at Salle. The Geoffrey who died in 1463 (Geoffrey II) became Lord Mayor of London, and it was he who, between 1447 and 1450, negotiated with Sir John Fastolf for the purchase of the Manor of Blickling. Various members of the family were also connected with the church. Thomas Boleyn for example, son of Geoffrey I, was Rector of Reepham between 1422 and 1429. Another Thomas was sub-dean of Wells from 1450-1472; William Boleyn (died 1551) was Archdeacon of Winchester, and Simon (1430-1482) was parochial chaplain at Salle circa 1435. It is Simon Boleyn who is the key figure in establishing the relationship with James of Gunthorpe, for he was a friend of John Perry who was rector of Gunthorpe at about the same time. When Perry died be left Simon ''a book with two clasps" and refers to his friend as ''Dominus''.

Simon Boleyn died at Salle in 1482, and there is a brass to him in the church there. The inscription (translated from the Latin) reads: "Pray for the soul of Simon Boleyn, Chaplain, who died on the third day of the month of August in the year of our Lord 1482". As Simon lies buried next to Geoffrey Boleyn I and his wife Alice, a relationship may be implied. The relationship between Simon and the Boleyns at Gunthorpe is clearly shown by his will of 1484. The will left ..."six shillings and eight pence (half a mark) to the repair of the church of Gunthorp (sic), and an altarcloth of diaper to it''. The will also names his sister Jean, his niece Joan (daughter of big brother Thomas), and his two nephews Simon and John (sons of his other brother, James). His brothers Thomas and James ("of Gunthorp") together with John Crome, Rector of Bale, were executors. John Crome had been chaplain at Salle

in 1470 and may have succeeded Simon Boleyn in that office, before going to Bale.

Part 2 will follow in Lynx 126

NEWS FROM THE VILLAGE INSTITUTE What a difference a year makes; last year‘s AGM was also held on 2nd March and we were in the grips of ―The Beast from the East. So a welcome change for this year and thank you all that turned out for the annual update and performance report on the Institute.

The discussion included the use of the hall which has had a slight decrease in income from last year although we have regular use by Richard Redmayne organising Yoga classes on a weekly basis and further information is available on the exterior notice board.

Our village fete is traditionally held on the last Sunday in July and has been confirmed as Sunday 28th July 2019. We take this opportunity to extend an open invitation to our own and neighbouring villages and beyond and Lynx readers.

Always a memorable day and, as for the past many years, the fete will be held in the beautiful gardens and surroundings of Gunthorpe Hall. We would like to offer our sincere thanks to Jeremy and Marie Denholm for their generosity in providing this lovely location for the day once again. Also thank you once again to Val King and Jenny Kelly for their time and work devoted to the fete last year despite the almost gale force conditions, and thank you to everyone else involved in helping.

We now have our two new large front windows. They look very good when one compares before and after photographs. It‘s difficult to see any design change and it‘s possibly a little warmer inside.

In May we applied for planning permission to modernise the rear of the hall and bring it up to modern day standards.

Plans were drawn up and passed by the Planning Authority and we are pleased this first step has been completed successfully. So here‘s to MORE FUNDRAISING something many readers of the Lynx will relate to!

Tony Dufour Institute Committee Chairman

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BRING & BUY SALE

LANGHAM

Bank Holiday Monday 27th May 10am-12noon

Contact: Christina Cooper 01328 830207 christinacooper27@googlemail.com

This will be held in the churchyard or inside the church if the weather is inclement. There will be the usual coffee morning stalls and refreshments. If anyone would like to bake a cake or bring along books, gifts, bric-a-brac or a raffle prize, all will be gratefully received. If you would like to help on a stall do get in touch. Proceeds are for Langham Church General Fund.

We look forward to seeing you.

Ann Sherriff 01328 830605

FRIENDS OF LANGHAM 200 Club Draw Winners January 2019 £10 86 Mrs A Hazelhurst 68 Mrs B North 76 Mr & Mrs Warwick 9 Mr S Newman 153 Mrs G Newton 176 Mrs A Sherriff

February 2019 £10 129 Mrs M Lees 138 Mrs M Freeth 147 Mrs B Garrett 170 Mrs Freeth Jnr 160 Mrs Morton 154 Mr & Mrs Dennis FOL Committee

LANGHAM VILLAGE HALL NEWS The next village hall quiz will be held on the 29th March after which we will be taking a break until the autumn. The quizzes have been a great success and many thanks to the people who gave up their time and provided us with very entertaining evenings, and the support of the villagers in making them so successful.

May sees the return of the ever popular exhibition of paintings, photographs and ceramics at the hall from Saturday 4th May – Monday 6th May 10am – 4.30pm daily. "The Big Arts Quiz" will be available in the hall and in the village to swell exhibition funds. There will also be the usual delicious refreshments available.

Proceeds will be going to the village hall so please add to your diary and come along and enjoy the exhibition.

The village hall AGM will be held on Wednesday th 29 May at 7.30 in the evening. After the AGM there will be a chance to socialize with a glass of wine and nibbles. The committee is always looking for new members to help with the running and maintenance of the hall so if anyone is interested please speak to any member of the committee for further information. Look out for notices in the village.

Following the success of last year‘s summer BBQ, another will be held on Friday 12th July. Notices will appear nearer the date with further details.

Village Hall Committee

ART EXHIBITION Paintings, Photographs, Ceramics & Other Interesting Things!

Langham Village Hall Saturday 4th May – Monday 6th May 10am – 4.30pm daily Free Entry Our usual wonderful refreshments served daily.

Come for coffee.

Put the dates in your diary.

Proceeds for Langham Village Hall Application forms and further details, please contact Pauline 01328 830696 / bartlett16@btinternet.com

WELCOME Ann & Keith Wade, and Ian & Maggie Ferguson have recently moved into the village. We hope they will be very happy living in Langham.

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LEUKAEMIA RESEARCH SPRING SALE

Bean, and Susie Harrison for organising the splendid raffle and to Roberta Hamond on running a brilliant bar.

Joc Wingfield is retiring from running this but will help his relief set the questions in October 2019. The evening made £1200 for the FMC.

Saturday 18th May Langham Village Hall 10 – 11.30am Plants, Bric a brac, Tools, Clothes and More Come along for lots of bargains.

Tea & Coffee available.

MORSTON REGATTA Saturday 3 August 8am & 7pm Morston Regatta will be on Saturday August 3rd.

The sailing race will be a bank start at the North end of Blakeney Cut as usual. First boat pushes off at 8am.

The prize giving will be at 7pm at the NorfolkEtc site as usual. Live music will then follow immediately afterwards for the rest of the evening, no doubt with much dancing!

BBQs will be provided for cooking your own food.

Bring a picnic supper. The evening party is free of charge. All costs will be covered by Morston Parish Council.

All proceeds to Leukaemia Research [Bloodwise] Maureen Dennis

MORSTON Contact: Jock Wingfield 01263 740431 jocelynwingfield@gmail.com

DIARY DATES

FMC BOOK SALE RETURNS

Mon 8 Apr. 9.30am PCC AGM at Coastguard House.

Sat 4 May - Mon 6 May 10am – 5pm, FMC Book Sale: Morston Barn, Binham Lane, Morston, NR25 7AA. If you have books to donate, please contact Sally Metcalfe 07813 369145.

Sat 15 June PCC Boat Trip, & Crab Supper in VH. Sat 22 June 6.30pm, FMC AGM in VH. Sat 20 July 7pm. FMC Impromptu Shakespeare + pie & pint at Gill Kay‘s, Church Farmhouse, Morston, NR25 7AA (Adult: £20; Under-16s: £5). Contact: petetibbetts@aol.com or 01263 741082 & see: www.impromptushakespeare.com; ETickets from sandramaymorris@gmail.com.

Fri 26 July See next entry.

Sat 27 July Norfolk Oyster & Norfolk Gypsy Regatta.

Contact: rachel@neilthompsonboats.co.uk or tel: 01263 741172; Warm up: Fri 26 Jul pm.

Sat 3 Aug. Morston Regatta. The sailing race will be a bank start at the North end of Blakeney Cut as usual, first boat pushing off at 8am. Prizegiving and party commences at 7pm on Morston Quay at NorfolkEtc. (See entry below).

Sat 12 Oct 2019. 14th FMC Shovell Dinner 2019 in the Anchor.

for the 10th & final time Saturday 4 - Monday 6 May 2019, 10am-5pm 2019‘s first May Bank Holiday weekend sees the return of the Morston Book Sale for the tenth and final time. This remarkable three-day sale attracts book lovers from all over the county and beyond, with all proceeds going to the charity Friends of Morston Church.

FMC QUIZ RESULTS The 18th FMC Quiz in February was won by Morston Macaroons captained by Jill Tibbetts.

The FMC Committee is most grateful to all who participated, or gave raffle prizes or helped run the evening (especially the cooks). Particular thanks are due to Mally Bullard & Vivienne Wilson for washing the myriad dishes and to Jill Tibbetts for organizing a delicious supper, and to FMC Deputy Chairman Carole

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A slew of generous book donations means that there are more volumes on offer than ever this year, with bargains to be had in every category, from paperback fiction to antiquarian and collectors‘ books.

As usual, a plant sale will run alongside the book sale, while refreshments are available throughout the three days of the event. Admission is free and there is ample free parking. Although 2019 will be the last physical book sale on this scale, online sales and pop-up events are planned for the future. If you have books to donate, please contact Sally Metcalfe 07813 369145.

Morston Book Sale, Saturday 4th to Monday 6th May, 10am – 5pm, Morston Barn, Binham Lane, Morston, NR25 7AA.

the harbour and as soon as we get these drafts we will share them around and be back in touch with members.

This follows on from the questionnaire that some of you will remember we talked about last year on "nonlicensable activities‖. We don't know if there's anything to worry about in all of this but what's for sure is the issue isn't going away. Interestingly at roughly the same time we received a report from Natural England on the challenges of balancing the tourist economy (visitor numbers) with the environment (what people come to see in the first place). It didn't offer any solutions but encouragingly concluded that "best results will be achieved through local ownership of the problem and partnership working ―. Hopefully "local knowledge" will get a say.

Enough! – for the moment anyway – of all this bureaucracy stuff. Spring is just around the corner and BHA's had a busy winter. Have a look on the website for our latest newsletter which gives you all the details.

We are organising a safety workshop on 8 June. The AGM is on 13 April at 7pm at Blakeney Village Hall – doors open (so does the bar!) at 6 PM We now have a brand-new wind measuring instrument at the Blakeney Information Buoy; we have a new secretary; enquiries are already coming in from cruising yachtsmen planning their summer passage; there's some great new harbour history stuff on the website; amazing new photographs; a whizzy new way to monitor buoyage that might be going walkabout in the winter as well as changes to the harbour channels; our own draft voluntary codes of conduct are being discussed; we have just about completed all the winter servicing of buoyage – and there's more - look on the website! And all this with one paid, part-time secretary.

For the love of the harbour!! Oh by the way annual donations are due if you haven't already paid. Time to service the outboard.

TH

BLAKENEY HARBOUR ASSOCIATION Morston quay alert!

Saturday March 2nd/Sunday March 3rd: We‘ve been told by our very helpful local police liaison that there was a report of a suspicious transit van poking about the parked up vessels on the quay. It was confirmed as suspicious behaviour and there were links to marine crime.

Please be vigilant. Firstly, if you spot anything suspicious, let us know and we‘ll get the info out to members urgently. We‘ll alert the police too. If you spot a theft in progress call 999.

Secondly, make it difficult for thieves - ensure any removable items aren't accessible. Take anything valuable away with you.

Join our Virtual Boatwatch: http://blakeney harbourassociation.co.uk/combat-theft/. Don‘t make it easy for them!

Other News We have heard from the Wash and North Norfolk Partnership (advisers to the Marine Management Organisation) that they are preparing draft "Codes of Conduct" for a range of recreational activities, all of which go on in our harbour. As we understand it they will be voluntary and just what they will cover we won't know until we see the drafts, likely to be in March. We've contacted other clubs and groups who use

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CHURCH REPAIRS

SAXLINGHAM

The PCC has now completed the re-roofing and decoration of All Saints Church‘s chancel arch and is now embarking on the replacement of the lead on the south aisle.

Contact: Caroline Robson 01328 830298 carorobson@btinternet.com No news from Saxlingham this time.

CHURCH TYMPANUM Morston PCC is investigating and planning to conserve the church‘s Tympanum* and Decalogue**.

The PCC has costings and will ask for a faculty from the Diocesan Advisory Council.

SHARRINGTON

*The “Tympanum” is the panel that used to be in the chancel arch. **The “Decalogue” means The Ten Commandments, to which add The Lord’s Prayer.

Contact: Claire Dubbins 01263 862261 cdubbins@btinternet.com www.sharrington.org.uk

MORSTON QUIZ

CHURCH COFFEE MORNING

by Samphire (answers on Page 27) 1.Which British monarch was the last to lead troops into battle?

2.Who was the first English Prince of Wales NOT to become king?

3.What is the most easterly point of mainland Britain?

4.What is the most southerly point of mainland Britain?

5.What is the most easterly point of the English mainland?

6.What is the biggest English island?

7.What is the largest artificial body of water in Britain, by surface area?

8.What is the largest natural lake in England?

9.Which is the only English cathedral to have three spires?

10.Who is the only person in Britain to be allowed to keep a private army?

Sharrington looks forward to welcoming as many people as possible from across the benefice, and wider afield, for our spring coffee morning to be held on Saturday May 4th 10am - 12noon at All Saints Cottage, next to the church.

The coffee will be hot, the biscuits home-made and we hope the sun will shine so that guests can enjoy a lovely spring garden, cake, book and plant stalls. A raffle of course and another exciting auction of promises which proved very popular last year.

AS

CRAFT MEETING ―Get together with craft‖ had its inaugural meeting on March 14th in the village hall from 2-4pm. We are lucky to have Sarah Bell living in the village who is a very talented young crafter. She regularly has a stall at our Christmas fayre where she showcases her various makes. Wells–next-the-Sea already has a monthly meeting run by Sarah so it seemed a good idea to give it a go in Sharrington.

No experience is required as Sarah brings along all that is necessary, for a small fee, to make your own item in the time we have. There is no pressure to take part so

NEW FMC MEMBERS In the 2017/18 financial year, the FMC raised just under £19,300. After expenditure, the total raised in the year was slightly less than the previous year, but nevertheless represents the second highest annual income since the foundation of ‗The Friends‘.

A large part of the reduction in income is, sadly, due to the demographics of North Norfolk and, in particular, those of ―The Friends‖, which is causing our numbers to dwindle over time. We therefore need a recruitment drive to encourage new, younger members, who can take up the baton in years to come. If any of you know of anybody who may be interested in joining the ―Friends of Morston Church‖ please put them in touch.

As always, the success of our fundraising is due to the time and effort put in by the committee and many helpers.

ST

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bring your own project or have a chat with friends instead.

Refreshments are available and our afternoon coincides with the library van visiting so you can get a library book and then pop in for tea and a chat. Our next get-togethers are Thursdays 11th April and 9th May. Ann Abrams

Thackray and Jacques Peel. His is a satirical and amusing style of storytelling focusing on the fringes of our daily lives, looking at outsiders and misfits whilst being undeniably and simultaneously witty and wistful.‖(Rock Society magazine November/December 2018).

You can find out more by visiting his website www.terenceblacker.com.

Tickets are available at the cost of just £10 each from Chris Abrams by emailing him at: abrams.chris@gmail.com.

Later this year we will be welcoming back the brilliant guitarist Gordon Giltrap who will shortly be receiving an MBE and has just been working with Pete Townshend on the next album by The Who. Details of this concert and all live music events will be on our website www.sharrington.org.uk.

We look forward to welcoming you to one of our music events soon.

Chris Abrams

NOBLE ROTTERS For tasting five in February the brave old Rotters faced something of a challenge. 11 wines and all in one sitting!

The wines were all from New Zealand which is better known for its white wines than its reds and if the Rotters generally share a preference it is for red wines over the whites; a bit of a conundrum for the Rotter in Chief.

Only one sensible solution; 11 wines instead of the usual nine. Five different grape varieties got the evening off to a jolly and to some a surprisingly good start; a Riesling, a Pinot Gris, a Grűner Veltliner, a Chardonnay and, of course a Sauvignon Blanc. Then on to more comfortable ground, les vins rouges; a Merlot and Syrah from Hawkes Bay were followed by three Pinot Noirs at three different price points and from three different regions; Central Otago, Martinborough and Marlborough. Finally, a botrytised Sauvignon Blanc.

Any anxiety about its name ‗Sticky End‘ soon evaporated as members gently sipped the 2018 vintage; delightfully sweet but by no means cloying.

And so, the satisfied Rotters melted into the unseasonably mild night wondering what would be in store for them at the final tasting in the current series in March when their taste buds would head to Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil and possibly, even deepest, darkest Peru.

The programme for season six is in the making and details will appear on the Sharrington village website www.sharrington.org.uk Chief Rotter

CHURCH NOTES After all the festivities and celebrations of Christmas and New Year it is quite pleasant to return to our normal pattern of Sunday services, at least in the short term.

Our annual Burns Night supper took place on February 1st in the village hall. We welcomed back Richard the piper who got the celebrations off to a fine start piping in and then addressing the haggis after a full house had enjoyed the cock-a-leekie soup. The traditional meal of haggis and neeps and a selection of puddings was followed after the loyal toast by the toast and reply on behalf of the lads and lassies, with witty contributions from Martin Burkitt and Pippa Long.

After a raffle and quiz – both Scottish themed – the evening was rounded off with some Scottish dancing.

Yet again the event was deemed a success by one and all and raised around £500 for the church. Many thanks to all who helped in so many ways to make the evening a success.

With the weather being so glorious for late February the churchyard looks splendid with a beautiful swathe

SHARRINGTON MUSIC NIGHTS We regularly hold musical events at Sharrington and are always looking for new genres to entertain our everexpanding audiences. I am still trying to find a jazz group!

Most of our music nights are free but occasionally we host ticketed concerts and we are truly fortunate to be able to welcome Terence Blacker, author, columnist and singer/songwriter for an evening of entertainment and laughter at Sharrington village hall on Friday June 7th at 7.30pm. He is an excellent guitarist and storyteller. Those of you unfamiliar with his extremely amusing songs can easily find examples on YouTube.

Gyles Brandreth and Tom Robinson are big fans too. ―Terence‘s songsmith style is not unlike Jake

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of snowdrops now joined by daffodils and crocus. When I first came to Sharrington in 1998 those snowdrops were limited to the south west corner, now they are on a steady march south eastwards. Of course we have our very smart new bench with more daffodils to the fore so please do use it when coming to take care of graves or take a break when walking or cycling. It is for everyone to take advantage of.

Those who come to church here and indeed those who visit to enjoy the peace and quiet to remember loved ones and seek sanctuary from the mad rush of our world cannot have failed to notice our beautiful new kneelers which are gradually replacing the old ones. Many thanks to Brenda Young who has worked many of them along with one or two others and her latest offering which has a musical theme is in remembrance of Anna Moore, our organist for many years. It is very beautiful and is to be found on the altar steps. There are more to come including one for Mary Lee and one for Françoise Allenby.

With Easter looming on the horizon, now would seem to be a good time to remind you of our food bank.

Donations please would be very welcome and treats as well as staples would be very acceptable. Thank you.

APG

and you will be made welcome.

Future dates are the 9th of April and 14th of May, 2 4pm. Further information from mason378@btinternet. com or sandgrunwald@gmail.com.

Angela Mason

VILLAGE HALL A good start to the year for the hall with significant more use and our music nights and concerts going from strength to strength.

The committee welcomes constructive feedback and suggestions on how the hall might better serve its community. Your chance to do this is at the hall‘s Annual General Meeting which this year takes place from 7.30pm on Tuesday 21st May. On a more sombre note it is with great sadness we learnt of the passing of Daphne Harris, wife of Derek, after a short illness. A stalwart of the village hall committee she and her husband worked tirelessly to ensure the village hall remains available for our community to use today. Our thoughts are with Derek at this time.

Village Hall Committee

SHARRINGTON & DISTRICT GARDENING GROUP The programme for the new year was unveiled at the AGM in January and members enjoyed refreshments and shared news about the forthcoming events.

Chairman Robin Burkitt, treasurer Adrian Allenby and committee members Rory Kenny and Pippa Long gave their reports and welcomed Averil Cooper to their ranks.

Two of our speakers have already paid their visits to the group. In February we gathered to hear Richard Hobbs give an illustrated talk on mountains and meadow flowers in Slovenia. His slides were breathtakingly beautiful and cheered us up on a dark winter‘s evening. A completely different offering came from last month‘s speaker, Darren Lerigo. He has many strings to his bow, award winning playwright, stand–up comedian and radio scriptwriter, but for us he appeared in his latest role as a garden designer. His title was

JAMMIN’ FOR SCONES ‗Jammin‘ for Scones‘ was born out of a desire for an informal group willing to share anything musical or literary, songs, instrumental music, readings and poetry.

Afternoons were thought an appropriate time, therefore tea and cake became a necessity and someone thought of our name. Our first meeting in January was attended by over 20 people, the second in February was a smaller group but just as much enjoyed.

Entrance is free but we ask for donations to cover the cost of hiring the hall. We were amazed by the generosity of folk at the January meeting who gave nearly £50 all of which was given to the village hall fund. February‘s smaller group raised even more and with everyone‘s agreement a donation of £41.40 was made to Sing Your Heart Out, a Norfolk charity that runs singing workshops specifically aimed at people with challenges to their mental wellbeing. (See www.syho.org for more information). Suggestions of charities for future donations will be decided by the group.

Generally people say the meetings provide a safe and informal setting for sharing something we all enjoy.

There is no obligation to ‗perform‘ – bring a few scones

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STIFFKEY AND DISTRICT BOOK CLUB

―What do I do with this space?‖ a question which many of us have asked but now we have some answers!

Coming up next on 3rd April is a talk entitled ―Gardening in the Shade‖ by Jim Paine from the Walnut Garden Nursery. He will also be bringing along some plants for sale, which is always an added bonus for our members.

Dr. Sally Francis is our guest speaker on 8th May, talking about Norfolk Saffron, the award-winning company she runs from a base near Burnham Market.

One of its many accolades is selection by the government as a ―Food Star‖, one of the country‘s 50 most innovative food and drink businesses. The meetings are held in Sharrington village hall and the doors will open at 6.30pm to allow time to chat, enjoy a drink and canapes, browse the raffle and prepare for a 7pm start.

We always welcome new members and have a full programme of events to tempt you, so do contact Robin for further details on 01263 861939 or robin@daubeneyhallfarm.com PEL

As you will see we have relaunched and renamed the book club to welcome people from the surrounding villages. We now meet monthly and our first book of the year was Home Fire by Kamila Shamsie. An exciting discussion and debate ensued and we can strongly recommend this book. It was absolutely compelling and towards the end, breathtaking, as it moved inexorably towards a shattering climax. As an exposition of the position of British Muslims it was heartbreakingly vivid and the portrayal of a young Muslim family caught between politics and betrayal rang true to us. One member said it should be required reading on the school curriculum - not just for its disturbing insights but also for its lovely, inspired prose.

February's book, All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr, will be reviewed at our next meeting on 11th March and then we will be reading My Sister Lives On The Mantlepiece by Annabel Pitcher. We still have vacancies for one or two members so if interested please contact me. Sally Vanson dr.sallyvanson@gmail.com

RIDING FOR THE DISABLED We are delighted to introduce the newest Riding for the Disabled Group in our region: Norfolk Coast RDA, which is run entirely by volunteers, is a riding group for school age children and adults. We meet at North Norfolk Riding Centre, NR22 6EH, where we have charming dedicated facilities.

We welcome mentally and physically disabled riders ride with us in 40 minute sessions. All are given the opportunity to experience the pleasure, independence & therapeutic benefits of riding and contact with our delightful horses and ponies. When ready, you will be encouraged to take part in RDA challenge days, dressage & take RDA proficiency tests if you wish. To look after our riders and horses for riding sessions, attendance at events and for group administration, our volunteers need many different skills. All are given inhouse RDA training and encouraged to enhance their

STIFFKEY Contact: Geraldine Green 01328 830245 green978@btinternet.com

FACEBOOK/STIFFKEY VILLAGE Our Facebook page now has 96 members. Are you one of the four that need to join to get us to 100?

Adverts are slowly coming in and there is room for so much more. Please use the page to advertise and coordinate events, sell those unwanted bits and pieces, ask questions about the area and more. Neighbouring villages seem to have very vibrant pages so we need to give more life to ours. Please sign up now at Facebook/ StiffkeyVillage.

Sally Vanson

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volunteering experience by attending regional, national & external training.

We are a happy, vibrant group and take great pleasure and pride in helping our riders in their achievements, whether it is a smile or a rosette. Our trustee and secretary lives in Stiffkey and would be delighted to chat with you. For information on riding or volunteering contact norfolkcoastrda@gmail.com.

STIFFKEY VILLAGE HALL 200 Club results for March- 1st - 112, 2nd – 17, 3rd 93 and 4th - 114. We are now pressing ahead with the village hall improvements and have received quotes from builders for the work ahead.

Village Hall Exhibition On Easter Monday 22nd April 10am- 4pm we shall start the fund raising with an exhibition of Stiffkey life at the village hall in the form of photographs, postcards, artifacts, books and maps from a private collection in the village. Centre piece will be the only known remains of a Stiffkey RCAT*.

Also present will be a Stiffkey history group stand along with lots of yummy cakes teas and coffees. This event is free, so we hope that lots of you will come along to see the various exhibits on display. Should you have time to help on the day, please do get in touch.

Ian Curtis, Chairman Stiffkey village hall I.curtis@ymail.com

CHURCH NEWS News of the Christmas Services and carols was not reported in the last edition of the Local Lynx, however a Christingle Service was held in the afternoon of the 23rd December and the mulled wine and mince pies afterwards were much enjoyed by the congregation.

On Christmas Eve carols were once again sung in the Red Lion. This has become a regular and popular start to the Christmas festivities. A morning service was held the first Sunday in March and a holy communion on the third. Unfortunately there was no Mothering Sunday service planned at the end of March for this year.

The next service will be Holy Communion at 9.30 am on Easter Sunday, 21st April, followed by an Easter egg hunt in the churchyard at 3p.m.

Warborough House is once again holding an 'Open Garden' on May Bank Holiday Sunday, 26th May from 1.30 - 5p.m. We shall be serving refreshments and cakes in the courtyard and hoping for a lovely spring day. HH

*RCAT - Radio controlled, unmanned small planes or drones as we would call them, used for target practice for the anti aircraft artillery bofors guns upon which the soldiers were being trained.

The Whirligig After the second World war the AA training camp continued to be used. However, in 1952 the USAF arrived in order to develop a circular launching system, the A2 Rotary Launcher, for RCAT radio controlled target planes.

WARBOROUGH HOUSE OPEN GARDENS

Launching in America. The same system was used here at Stiffkey.

Sunday 26th May 1-5pm Once again the gardens at Warborough House will be open for the National Garden Scheme (NGS) beneficiary charities on the above date. Teas will be served in aid of St Johns Church Stiffkey. There is parking signed from the entrance on the main road.

Please do not park on the main road as this causes congestion. The coast hopper bus stops outside the garden entrance (Stiffkey Stores stop).Arabella Morgan

Development of these planes stemmed from the pre war work of Reginald Denny, a successful English actor who lived in America. He founded the firm ‗Radioplane‘ supplying amateur enthusiasts.

Denny saw an opportunity for war work and he contracted with the United States Government to produce target Reginald Denny in his hobby shop in drones. Not only Hollywood were the RCATS used for target practice by the British and US troops, but

26

Reginald Denny with his first RCAT.

school and they love to read and comment on each other‘s writing.

This month Quartz Class have visited the Sainsbury Centre in Norwich to take part in an art workshop linked to their topic; ‘Footprints from the past.‘ Together with looking at the artwork the children made an incredible piece of art by putting Vaseline on the souls of their feet, walking on a huge piece of paper and then applying coloured ink; messy but great fun and a beautiful effect. They also made plaster cast of their feet. It was such an inspiring day!

The youngest children in Coral Class visited Blicking Estate to meet the Tiger Who Came To Tea. This book by Judith Kerr was first published in 1968 and has sold more than five million copies in total since it was first published 50 years ago. The children enjoyed hunting for the tiny tigers around the house, listening to a story telling session and meeting the full size tiger in the kitchen.

We have had some sporting success this term, we won the golf tournament and four students qualified for the county cross county finals, which were held at Holkham Hall this week. One of these students – Izzy in year 5 came 16th out of 80 children, well done Izzy! We have taken part in a football tournament where we came second and third. We are currently in training the next netball tournament.

Langham continues to go from strength to strength and we are excited about all the activities and learning we have planned over the next few months.

development of early computerised systems for the B29 Washington bombers were also tested here.

CRICKET 2019 SEASON The 2019 cricket season is on the horizon and as always Stiffkey is looking for new talent to strengthen the playing squad. Chris Bateman continues as captain for the coming season. If you would like to join us, please contact Chris: chrisbateman78@gmail.com. The fixture list for 2019: Sunday 12th May away v. Holkham Sunday 19th May away v. Rudham Thursday 13th June home v. Thornham (20/20) 6pm Sunday 23rd June away v. Marlingford Sunday 30th June home v. Rudham Sunday 28th July home v. Marlingford Sunday 4th August home v. Wombats Sunday 11th August home v. Norwich Hockey Sunday 18th August away v.Reepham & Salle Sunday 8th September home v. Ashby (Lincs) Sunday 15th September home v. Thornham A home fixture against Holkham is to be confirmed.

Sunday matches usually begin at 1.30pm. If you don‘t play come and support us – entertaining if not always successful!

Steven Bashforth

Our vision is ‗A place for fun, creativity, friendship, ambition and discovery.‘ Polly Kossowicz - Head teacher For further information please visit our website www.langham.norfolk.co.uk or follow us on twitter @langhamvill.

MORSTON QUIZ ANSWERS

LANGHAM VILLAGE SCHOOL NEWS

(Questions on p.22) 1. King George II (Battle of Dettingen, NW Bavaria, won against the French, 1743). 2. The Black Prince [Edward of Woodstock, (15 June 1330 – 8 June 1376), was the eldest son of King Edward III]. 3. Lowestoft Ness, Suffolk. 4. Lizard Point, Cornwall. 5. Land‘s End, Cornwall. 6. The Isle of Wight. 7. Rutland Water.

8. Windermere. 9. Lichfield. 10. The Duke of Atholl.

[With permission of Queen Victoria].

We have had some super weather recently, which has made learning outside extra special. The younger children have made Welsh cakes on the fire and the older children have enjoyed sitting on the decking to complete their work. We have even had lunch outside on a couple of occasions!

The month of March brings ‗The World Creative Writing Competition.‘ This is a contest on the website that we use to promote writing called ‗The Night Zoo Keeper.‘ It is an international competition with schools from all over the world competing to see which class can write the most during the month of March. There are rewards for the quality together with the quantity of writing. This is the fourth time we have entered this competition and it always inspires fantastic writing across the school. Many children write at home and at

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LYNX 125 ADS DIRECTORY FURTHER SERVICES LISTED BELOW DIRECTORY

Art/Interiors/Furniture/Textiles Nick Hamond Furniture: cabinet-maker Rosamund Ulph Open Studios Sandra‘s Soft Furnishings Children’s Nurseries Hindringham Toddler Group age 0-4 Cleaning Services The Outdoor Cleaning Company Health Alison Courtney Acupuncture Beyond 19: Beauty and Holistic Claire Dye: Physiotherapist Gunthorpe Osteopaths Marianne Atherton Homeopathy Philippa Stancomb Reflexology Pilates at Binham Memorial Hall The Body & Face Place Hall Rentals Binham Memorial Hall Warham Reading Room

page 21 front cover 19 18 7 21 12 22 15 6 11 17 24 4 front cover

Leisure Blakeney Hotel Sharrington & District Gardening Group The Blue Bell, Langham

9 11 10

Services and Suppliers Adam Sexton Domestic Services 26 Allied Glass: Trade and Domestic Glazing 14 Burnham Motors 18 Butcher Andrews Solicitors 20 Darren Betts Building and Maintenance 13 David Thompson Chimney Sweep 9 Dawn‘s Dog Walking and Pet Care Services front cover Elv‘s: Woodburner Services 17 Gowards Funeral Services 8 Kaywood Design & Build 25 Keeble Roofing Contractor 16 M G Myhill Chimney Sweep 19 P J Electrics 23 Taxis Stuart‘s Taxi

Advertising space in this publication is sold in good faith and the editor/publication team can take no responsibility for the quality of goods or services offered.

CHIMNEY SWEEP David Thompson 01328 851081

PTM PLUMBING & HEATING 07824 877 084 Email ptmplumbing@icloud.com

SIVANANDA YOGA CLASS Gunthorpe Village Institute Hall Wednesdays in Term Time 7.30-8.45pm Contact Richard Redmayne 01263 862 289

B.A. TREE SERVICES (Tree Surgeon) Free quotes available Full Public Liability Insurance held 01263 588994 or 07748 570121

GENTLE CHAIR YOGA Gunthorpe Village Institute Hall Thursdays in Term Time 11am - 12 noon Contact Richard Redmayne 01263 862 289

DEBRA’S CHIMNEY SWEEP SERVICES Sharrington 01263 663 214 or 07799 715496

GARY WALLER Painter , Decorator & Carpet Cleaner 20 years Experience No job too small 01263 860 705 Mob: 07990 993 406

JAYNE BIRD MCFHP MAFHP Foot care in your own home Routine and Diabetic Foot Care 01328 851332 or 07881 107571

BRUCE FLOORING & SUPPLY Carpet & Vinyl Fitting - Free Estimates - No Job Too Small 07779 133 025 bwjflooring@gmail.com

HAMLYN PEST CONTROL County Council Accredited—NPTA Member Control of Rats, Mice, Wasps, etc., 01263 860112 or 861587

SPACE TO RENT Storage or Hobby use apprx. 250 Sq Ft Car Parking available Contact David 07421 705 306

WOULD YOU LIKE TO ADVERTISE HERE? email: maxine.burlingham@me.com

Local Lynx is printed by Century Printing, 132 High Street, Stalham, Norwich NR12 9AZ Tel: 01692 28 582958

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