Local Lynx No.126 - June/July 2019 by Robert Metcalfe

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

ISSUE 126 June - July 2019

Stiffkey Cricket Club â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Summer 2018

ADS DIRECTORY now on back page and at 1 www.locallynx.co.uk

REGULARS Tuesdays Binham Art Group BMH 9.30am to 12.30pm. Wednesdays term time Binham Youth Group BMH 6-8pm Wednesdays Sharrington Zumba Gold classes VH 2-3pm Fourth Thursday in the month Binham Local History Group BMH 7.30pm 1st & 3rd Saturdays in month Langham Coffee Mornings, VH 10am -12noon

WHAT’S ON VH = Village Hall JUNE 3rd Mon. Binham Coffee morning, MH 10.30-12.30 5th Wed. Sharrington Gardening Group Outing. Sheringham Hall gardens 1.30pm 7th Fri. Binham Jonathan Gardener, Executive Chef at Greshams, MH 7pm 7th Fri. Sharrington Terence Blacker Concert VH 7.45pm 8th Sat. Bale church fete, Manor Farm, 2pm 8th Sat. Langham Dinner Dance, 7pm, East Hall Barn 9th Sun. Bale Painting Group open day, Village Hall, 10am - 4pm 11th Tue. Sharrington ‘Jammin’ for scones’ VH 2-4pm 12th Wed. Binham Cosy Club (afternoon tea), MH 2-4pm 12thWed. Field Dalling Coffee Morning, VH 10.30am 13th Thu. Sharrington Craft Group VH 2-4pm 13th Thu. Stiffkey Cricket, Home v. Thornham (20/20) 6pm 14th Fri. Bale fish and chips, Village Hall, 6.45pm 14thFri. Field Dalling Bereavement Group, Manor Farm Cottage 4pm 14thFri. Field Dalling Bingo, VH 7.30pm 15th Sat. Morston PCC Boat Trip 6.00 Quay followed by Crab Supper VH 15th Sat. Sharrington Strawberry Tea. Church Farm House 2.30pm 20th Thu. Binham and Hindringham Open Circle, ‘Suffragettes’, Hindringham VH, 7.15pm 22ndSat. Field Dalling Ceilidh Evening, VH 7pm 22nd Sat. Morston FMC AGM in VH 22nd Sat. Stiffkey Choral Recital by Moorland Voices, Church 7pm Free entry. 23rd Sun. Bale Purcell School concert, All Saints Church, 4pm 23rd Sun. Stiffkey Cricket, Away v. Marlingford 27th Thu. Langham Mobile Library 4.05pm St Mary’s & 4.25pm The Cornfield 29th Sat. Gunthorpe 50:50 Club Institute 10:30am 29th Sat. Saxlingham Albanwise Farm Open Day 10am-4pm 30th Sun. Sharrington Gardening Group Garden Party, Old Barn, 12.30pm 30th Sun. Stiffkey Cricket, Home v. Rodham

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: maxine.burlingham@me.com 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.

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

JULY 6th Sat. Binham PICNIC2JAZZ, Priory Ruins 5-8pm 9th Tue. Sharrington ‘Jammin for Scones’ VH 2-4pm 10thWed. Field Dalling Coffee Morning, VH 10.30am 12th Fri. Bale fish and chips, Village Hall, 6.45pm 14th Sun. Bale vintage tractor run, Village Hall, 10.30am and 2pm 12thFri. Field Dalling Bereavement Group, Manor Farm Cottage 4pm 12thFri. Field Dalling Bingo, VH 7.30pm 12th Fri. Gunthorpe Friends AGM, Fish & Chip Supper and Quiz Institute 6:30pm 12th Fri. Langham BBQ, VH, Time TBC 17th Wed. Sharrington Garden Safari 2.30pm 18th Thu. Binham & Hindringham Open Circle, ‘Gardening at the National Trust’, Hindringham VH, 7.15pm 19th Fri. Sharrington Noble Rotters VH 7.30pm 20th Sat. Gunthorpe 50:50 Club Institute 10:30am 20th Sat. Morston FMC Impromptu Shakespeare + pie & pint in Church Farm House garden. 25th Thu. Langham Mobile Library 4.05pm St Mary’s & 4.25pm The Cornfield 27th Sat. Gunthorpe Friends BBQ 7pm Gunthorpe Hall - booking essential 01263 861373 28th Sun. Gunthorpe Annual Village Fete Gunthorpe Hall 2pm 28th Sun. Stiffkey Cricket, Home vs Marlingford

BLAKENEY METHODIST CHURCH Minister: The Rev’d Cliff Shanganya, 8, St. Andrew’s Close, Holt. NR25 6EL 01263 712181 Email: CliffShanganya@methodist.org.uk Samantha Parfitt, Steward/Pioneer RuralChurch Planter.sammi.1980@live.co.uk 01263 711824 Sunday Café Church 10am Thursday 10am Morning Prayer with Holy Communion every third Thursday.

DEANERY NEWS Central Visitation for Holt Deanery Tuesday 4th June - All Saints Church Upper Sheringham. Signing in 6.30pm onwards. 7.30pm Evening Prayer including Archdeacon’s Charge. Deanery Synod Summer Event Sunday 7th July 3pm at St. Nicholas’ Church, Blakeney. Evensong, BCP, followed by afternoon tea.

Church Services for the Stiffkey and Bale Benefice for June and July 2019 HC=Holy Communion. CFS=Church Family Service. MP=Morning Prayer. BCP=Book of Common Prayer 2nd June 9.30am HC

Parish Bale Field Dalling Saxlingham Gunthorpe Sharrington Binham

9.30am MP BCP 11.00am HC

Morston Langham

9.30am HC BCP

Stiffkey

9th June

16th June 9.30am HC

23rd June 9.30am HC

30th June At Binham

11.00am CFS At Field Dalling

At Saxlingham 11.00am HC

11.00am MP BCP At Field Dalling

At Binham At Binham

11.00am HC

11.00am MP

At Binham

11.00am HC 11.00am HC

4.30pm Silent Meditation 9.30am MP CW 11.00am CFS

11.00am HC 9.30am HC

9.30am MP

9.30am HC BCP At Stiffkey

9.30am HC

At Binham 10.30am HC Group Service At Binham At Binham

At Langham

9.30am HC

At Langham

At Binham

7th July

Parish Bale Field Dalling Saxlingham Gunthorpe

9.30am HC

Sharrington Binham Morston Langham Stiffkey

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

14th July

21st July

11.00am CFS At Field Dalling 11.00am MP 9.30am HC 11.00am HC 9.30am MP At Langham

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

28th July 9.30am HC 11.00am MP BCP At Field Dalling

9.30am HC 9.30am HC 9.30am HC At Langham

Additional Services Regular Weekday Services Binham: Tuesday, 6.00pm Evening Prayer, Langham: Wednesday, 10.00am Holy Communion

RECTOR’S LETTER

Yours very truly, Ian Whittle The Rectory, Langham 01328 830246

Dear Friends and Parishioners, Summer at last and the long days of light and warmth, and we hope, temperate rain. The preparations of winter and spring lead to this: growth and fruition and Sharrington strawberries for breakfast, lunch and dinner. What I wasn’t prepared for though was the death of three pear trees and an apple, all due to a wandering honey fungus. It devoured a huge ash tree in the churchyard and invisibly made its way through my garden. Such is the way of malignity, and it is wasteful and sad. I am particularly sad to say goodbye to a venerable pear planted in the lawn and lovingly pruned into the shape of a chalice with a long stem with a pretty and productive bowl. Its grey green leaves delighted me in spring, the canopy made a lovely parasol in summer and the little sweet fruits fed me and the birds. Alas no more. May I wish you a peaceful and bountiful Summer and a nice lot of local cream on those strawberries. Yet when woodland bowers Though glimpses of gladness Are filled with fresh flowers, Are mingled with sadness, ‘Neath trees of green splendour With memories most tender ‘Tis comfort to rove; I seek the Ash Grove. Gaed gynt yn Llwyn On The Ash Grove, by Harold Boulton, from Songs of the Four Nations.

COMMUNITY nEWS

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.

COUNTY COUNCILLORS’ NEWS …from Dr Marie Strong Wells-next-the-Sea Recycling Centre Re-use Shop I know residents from a wide area beyond Wells use the Centre and I believe all will be pleased that following considerable debate and work a Re-use Shop will be open circa 20 May. Look out for signs confirming the opening. Re-use Shop Finances This is a win-win situation in terms of finance. As a rule of thumb the Reuse Shops generally each contribute a saving of around £10,000 a year which helps keep the costs of the Recycling Centre service down. (The precise level varies from site to site and from time to time due, for example, to opening hours and the variable nature of materials at different sites.) That saving is after the costs of the units, equipment and donation to the charity partner are taken into account. (All apart from saving waste.) 50%:50% Parish/NCC Partnership Congratulations to Binham, Langham, Thornage and Blakeney Parish Councils for successful applications (Blakeney 3!) to the Parish Partnership Scheme. This will benefit the parishes with more highways projects than they could normally afford. Well done parish clerks for playing key roles in the applications. And if the scheme continues I look forward to supporting more parishes in the future. Children’s Centres Norfolk County Council’s children’s services committee took what proved to be a controversial decision in January to close 38 of the 53 children’s centres. The council is moving towards providing support through a new Early Childhood and Family Service. Fifteen centres will survive as bases with the council promising a targeted service in other areas in libraries, village halls and people’s homes. The council had invited tenders from organisations to run the new service. The process has now been completed and the identity of the provider or providers will have been announced by the time you read this newsletter. Mobile Libraries The Library Service is writing to all local councils explaining the new arrangements and any change of stopping points. The information will also be available on the mobile library. Please share the information for where you live with neighbours and friends – particularly newcomers, recently retired and those with young children. For a new stopping off place I am told approximately 6 people will be considered. Talk with your parish councillors and/or the mobile library staff. Local Elections If you failed to register to vote for the recent elections now is the time to register for the next one! Have your say at the polling station – or by post – then you will really have something to grumble about if the outcome is not to your taste! In addition there has been a very low number of applicants for the town and parish councils – to the extent that most councils have been appointed without an election. I applaud all those who have put themselves forward to help

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

©AndrewMoncur

the residents of North Norfolk for the coming four years with or without an election – and hope that others will put themselves forward for co-option to share the work. Not always easy being a councillor at any level but mainly rewarding. Broadband Providers and Costs For those particularly still without fibre broadband the following link should help you check providers, costs etc. (Remember to consider length of contracts etc once fibre has been confirmed.) www.ofcom.org.uk/phones-telecomsand-internet/advice-for-consumers/costs-and-billing/pricecomparison. Blue Badges & Safe Parking Recently NCC Highways officers have reported to me their shock at seeing Blue Badge holders parking on the corners of roads putting themselves and others at risk. Apart from common sense as to your own safety, to others and even your vehicles, please remember a Blue Badge does not mean you can park anywhere and everywhere – read the details provided with your badge – residents in one parish watched a blue badge holder getting a ticket for just such an offence – please park safely and avoid a ticket! County Cllr Dr Marie Strong,

you have your say about this plan. The emerging Local Plan is now open for public consultation. This is your chance to give us your opinion. More information can be found on the NNDC website at www.north-norfolk.gov.uk/tasks/ planning-policy/local-plan-consultation/.

marie.strong@norfolk. gov.uk or 07920 286 597.

Events Events are running from 7th May onwards. The closest events for Lynx readers are as follows: Fakenham: Community Centre, Oak Street NR21 9DY on Friday 24 May. Blakeney: Village Hall, Langham Road NR25 7PG on Wednesday 29 May. Wells-next-the-Sea: The Maltings (Clore Community Room), Staithe Street NR23 1AU on Friday 31 May.

DISTRICT COUNCILLOR’S NEWS from Cllr. Karen Ward Local Elections Due to the recent boundary changes at the Local elections, readers of the Lynx now have three district councillors representing you depending on which parish you live in: Stiffkey and Morston represented by Karen Ward karen.ward@north-norfolk.gov.uk. Sharrington represented by Andrew Brown andrew.brown@north-norfolk.gov.uk. Bale, Binham, Cockthorpe, Gunthorpe, Field Dalling, Langham, Saxlingham represented by Richard Kershaw richard.kershaw@north-norfolk.gov.uk. We are all delighted to have been elected and look forward to working with you to make the experience of living and working in North Norfolk as positive as possible.

Planning and Enforcement Between January and April we ran twice the number of development committee meetings as usual to ensure applications were processed ahead of the local elections. There will be no development committee meeting during May to allow new councillors to receive their induction training – business as usual will resume in June. Planning officers are working on applications as normal throughout this time. If you have a live application and need to discuss it, please get in touch with your new local member as highlighted earlier.

Local Plan As you know from previous newsletters, the Local Plan is an important piece of work, as it will determine the shape of our towns and villages for the next 20 years. It is vital that

GLAVEN CENTRE SERVICES Toe-nail clinics Wednesdays 12, 19 & 26 June, 0900-1515

Hearing Aid clinics Friday 28 June & Wednesday 17 July, 1000-1200

Hairdressing Every Wednesday. Regular, occasional or casual appointments can be made. Ring 01263 740762 to make and check appointments.

PLANT SALE For Motor Neurone Disease Association

Blakeney Scout Hut Saturday 22 June Tea, coffee, cakes & raffle from 10.30am onwards, free parking. Hut is next to Village Hall, Coast Rd NR25 7PG. Further information: 01263 740962.

knowing that their partner or family member is well cared for, in a safe environment.” says Maureen Buckey, Glaven Centre Co-ordinator. ‘I’m pleased to arrange visits for people to see what the Centre offers, including bathing services, podiatry, hairdressing and a hearing aid clinic.” More information is available from the web site, www.glavencaring.co.uk, or contact Maureen on 01263 740762/email glavencentre1@btinternet.com.

GLAVEN CARING NEEDS YOUR TIME Could you find a few hours a month to help others? Are you able to serve coffee and chat to people? Are you able to drive a small mini-bus? Could you help people on to the bus without driving? Do you have a talent or skill that you could share with us? Perhaps you could come along and entertain us? We cannot provide this excellent service to Binham, Blakeney, Cley, Field Dalling, Glandford, Holt, Langham, Morston, Salthouse, Saxlingham, Thornage or Wiveton without the help of volunteers. Please call us to visit at The Glaven Centre, Thistleton Court, Blakeney - to view and see what we do. Tel: 01263 740762/ glavencentre1@btinternet.com.

A SECRET WALLED GARDEN Sunday 9 June 2 – 4.30pm The Merchant’s House, 86 High Street, Blakeney (entrance via Little Lane) You are invited to walk through a secret walled garden with… a woodland walk, vegetable garden, garden borders, ice house and ‘parterre’. Light musical entertainment, homemade cakes and refreshments. Entrance £5 – children free. All proceeds to Glaven Caring. Registered Charity 270185.

EXTRA DAY CARE PLACES CREATED FOR HOLT & VILLAGES Blakeney’s popular Glaven Centre is expanding its activities to create twenty new day care places for older people living in Holt and the twelve villages of the Glaven Valley. The centre has been providing care, entertainment and health related services for older people for over 40 years and in 2006 was honoured to receive The Queen’s Golden Jubilee Award for Voluntary Services. A small number of employed staff, including a qualified nurse, work with a large group of volunteers to enhance the lives of people who may otherwise be housebound. They enjoy going out to socialise and the opportunities to participate in activities such as quizzes, puzzles, exercise sessions, games, musical entertainment, craft hobbies and talks. Options range between the Lunch Club, providing an opportunity to get out of the house for a couple of hours twice a week, and between one and four days a week day care, enjoying all the facilities, care and support available. The Glaven Centre’s flexible arrangements suit both couples and single people. The day normally begins with morning coffee and later the delicious two course lunches, prepared and cooked on the premises, are a highlight. Minibus transport is available for those attending day care services and car transport for the Lunch Club on Tuesdays and Thursdays. “There are many people caring for parents and partners who would benefit from a break a few times a week too,

OPEN GARDEN ‘Fizz & Fruit’ Friday 28 June 6-8pm Southgate, Wiveton Road, Blakeney By kind invitation of Eddie Ray; a fundraising event on behalf of Glaven Caring. Tickets: £10 from Glaven Centre: 01263 740762 or Blakeney Garage.

THE BARD COMES TO THE MARSHES On Saturday 20th July 2019 at 7.00pm, Friends of Morston Church (in association with ‘Morston Tales & Ales’) proudly presents an evening of Elizabethan musical and theatrical entertainment in The Walled Garden, Church Farm House, Morston, NR25 7AA. Once audience ideas have been gathered, sit back, relax and enjoy the show. A naturally light-hearted, amusing play will unfold before your very eyes, with deft comic touches, subtle nuances and sheer improvisational skill. So clever are the performers that although the dialogue sounds as if it might have been written by the Bard, it is contemporary enough to be understood by all generations, whether familiar with Shakepeare’s tales or not. Impromptu Shakespeare regularly performs at the Edinburgh Fringe and comprises seasoned, talented actors who tour both the UK and overseas in various theatrical guises. Further information can be found on their website:

www.impromptushakespeare.com. The exceptional Martin Nathan, performing period pieces on the lute, will provide live music as an ambient accompaniment to your pie (meat or vegetarian) and ale, wine or soft drink. The event takes place under the stars in the picturesque walled garden of Church Manor Farm – the perfect setting for an unrivalled evening of music, drama, laughter and entertainment. There will also be a raffle – prizes currently kindly donated include: a ‘Finisterre’ jacket, Seal Boat trip tickets, Champagne, Bottles of wine … Tickets are priced at £20.00 for adults/£5.00 for under 16s. Ticket price includes the evening’s entertainment plus a pie and a drink. Further refreshments will be available throughout the night. Tickets can be purchased from Pete Tibbetts: 01263 741082/ petetibbetts@aol.com. E-tickets can be purchased from Sandra Morris: sandramaymorris@gmail.com. Proceeds from the event will go to Friends of Morston Church, a registered charity dedicated to raising funds for the maintenance and repair of All Saints Church, Morston, Norfolk, www.fmc.org.uk.

Regular Events Family History - Every Tues. 10am – 12 noon Dropin session with Val and Vic our Family History volunteers. Please check with library first. Bounce and Rhyme time - Every Tues. 10.30am – 11am. Please check with library first. In term time only. Natwest Community Banker Drop-in - Last Tues. in month 10am – 12 noon. 25th June. Computer Support Sessions – Every Wednesday 10am – 12 noon. Help with tablets too. Book a free ½ or 1 hour session with our Library IT Buddy Stephen. Craft and Chatter - Every Wednesday 10.00am – 12 noon. Chair Yoga - Every Wednesday 2 -3pm (term time only). £5. To book contact Toni on 07500887725. Barn Owl Book Group and Crime Book Group Check with library for next meeting. My Norfolk, My Holt - Thursday 20th June 11am – 12 noon. Ray Moore, Town Councillor. Writing Group - Normally every third Friday in month – check with library first. 21st June 1 – 3pm Just a Cuppa - Every Friday 10.30 am – 12 noon Come and join us for a drink and a chat. For details of events at Fakenham Library: 01328 862715 or www.facebook.com/fakenhamlibrary.

HOLT LIBRARY

LANGHAM DOME NEWS

For further information about events and to book please call 01263 712202 or check our Facebook page www.facebook.com/libholt. Please check with the library first in case of any changes to events.

The Dome re-opened for the 2019 season on 4 April and will be open according to the published schedule from now until the end of the October half-term. Our Spitfire memorial appeal on Crowd Funder has been very successful. With very generous pledges from 100 supporters and several additional donations outside the

Special Events Mini Movers - Thurs. 30th May 10am – 11am 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 skills. Booking essential. BookTrust’s Pyjamarama! - Thurs. 6th June 10.30 – 11.15am We’ll be celebrating BookTrust’s Pyjamarama, a new campaign to help all children experience the joy and wonder of bedtime stories! Stories, rhymes, activities and a free book! For preschool children and their parents/carers. The Great Get Together in honour of Jo Cox – Fri. 21st June 10.30 – 12 noon Come along for a cuppa and cake as part of the Great Get together. https:// www.greatgettogether.org/

initiative for both the Spitfire and the Dome itself we are now in a position to plan the completion of this project, for which we have planning permission and we hope that before the end of this season the Spitfire will be mounted outside the Dome. Although the appeal has finished you can still find the link at www.crowdfunder.co.uk/langham-dome-spitfirememorial. So if you would like more information on the project please have a look - especially at the very informative introductory film contributed by former Gunthorpe (now Blakeney) resident Barney Broom, and his colleague Phillip Mutton and their company Trafalgar Productions - undoubtedly a major contributor to the success of the appeal. Our iconic selection of eight aircraft prints, “The Langham Dome Aviation Collection”, from local Sheringham based artist Janet Samuel is now complete for the 2019 season. They will initially be sold in the Dome, the RAF Air Defence Museum at Neatishead, the House and Garden Shop Holt and Driftwood Gallery in Sheringham, 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 Beaufighter Mk X of 489 Sqn RNZAF, part of the ANZAC Wing operating from Langham in WW2, and the other is of a DHC Chipmunk 10 - an aircraft which can still be seen over Langham occasionally today. Plans for the RAF Langham Reunion and Dome Heritage Day on Saturday 1 June 2019 are now firming up. Our request for Battle of Britain Memorial Flight

related first prizes including a glider experience flight for two with the Norfolk Gliding Club at Tibenham; a Tiger Moth flight from Langham and a helicopter flight from Binham they are well worth “taking a bet on”, and there are many other prizes. We will also be selling draw tickets from the Dome on opening days between now and 1 June, but 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 Joanna Holden on 07760 193492 or e-mail: admin@langham dome.org. For more details, including on the 1 June event, opening hours etc, you can also check our web site at www.langhamdome.org. John Blakeley

FARMING UPDATE: MARCH & APRIL If you were to ask a group of people when spring started this year you’d be right to expect more than one answer. Many would probably go with one of the two official definitions: astronomical spring, beginning on the 20th of March with the spring equinox (the point in the first half of the year when day and night are equal in length); or meteorological spring beginning on the 1st of March, in line with the Gregorian calendar (twelve months split into four equal seasons). There might be some more traditional suggestions, like hearing the first cuckoo or daffodils flowering. For me, nothing marks the end of winter more than the clocks going forward, longer evenings allowing for more time outdoors without having to get up unbearably early is surely a day for celebration. This year has delivered a spring that was particularly easy to enjoy, with long spells of clear skies, and warm, bright sunshine, albeit with some cool temperatures in the shade and chilly breezes. A corresponding effect is a distinct lack of rainfall – particularly stark against the downpours of early spring last year – with our rainfall records showing 150mm from January to April this year, against 295mm in the equivalent period in 2018. Although the effect on the crops at the time of writing has been negligible it might become problematic if it stays dry in May and June, so fingers crossed for a couple of downpours, then back to sunshine! March and April are busy months on farm as the winter crops continue their rapid growth, and hence require feeding

participation has been granted and we will now enjoy a full display by a BBMF Hurricane as well as an eye stopping aerobatic display with the Extra 260 flown by Steve Carver. Come in 1940s dress if you wish - you may win a prize. There will be live 1940s music from the “Blighty Belles” and many other exhibits. Food and drink will be available from the Langham Village BBQ, the Binham Chequers and Ronaldo’s Ice Creams. Grand Draw tickets are now on sale at the Dome, and with local volunteers and trustees, and will also be on sale on the day. With three “equal” aviation

and converting them into useful items such as Planters. So our Men's Shed welcomes people with a flair for or interest in DIY, especially, but not exclusively, woodworking. Previous experience of working with the machinery is helpful, but not essential, and we are very health and safety conscious for obvious reasons. If woodwork is not your interest, bring your own DIY project along; or if you would just like to come along to meet the guys over a coffee and to see what they are doing, you are more than welcome to join us for a ‘bodge, banter and brew’. We are now seeking new members and if you think this is for you, then please visit our website for more information: www.wellsnexttheseamensshed.weebly.com or phone us on 07486 524603, or email us at mensshedwells@gmail.com.

and protecting from disease, and we also have to plant the spring crops of barley, sugar beet and peas. As mentioned in the previous issue, the spring barley was drilled in February due to the unseasonably warm and dry conditions, so in March we focussed on drilling sugar beet and in April the vining peas. The dry conditions work in our favour from a practical point of view with a lower risk of tractors getting stuck and the drills less likely to get blocked up with mud and stones, so we can get on to the land without delay. The peas, destined for your freezers, have a short growing season and will be harvested by the pea viners in early July. They are drilled in a similar fashion to cereals, using the same equipment but the sugar beet, as many of you may see in the fields, is planted in widely spaced rows with a more specialist ‘precision drill’. Due to its large root the beet need plenty of space to expand so the precision drill drops one seed exactly every 18cm in order to give it the necessary room to reach its full potential; it is also a very sensitive crop and does not respond well to competition from its neighbours! All being well, neat rows of green leaves will be emerging in the next few weeks. Jonathan Darby, Albanwise Farm Manager

CAN WE CHANGE OUR ATTITUDE TO LITTER? In December 2018 the EDP published a letter I sent them, with a photo of litter I had picked up in Norfolk lanes. My letter broadly said: "This is typical of lanes in North Norfolk. On a walk near Warham earlier in the year there was a bit of litter every nine foot. The litter I pick up is mostly fast food containers, plastic and glass bottles, drink cans, plastic bags of rubbish, chocolate wrappings and cigarette butts. The plastic will stay on the ground for decades or perhaps even hundreds of years. The cans will also take a very long time to disappear. The glass bottles may last for ever and the broken glass will be a hazard for people and animals. I collect this litter regularly but may not want to go on doing this for ever, especially as I get older (I’m currently 64.) It would be great to get people involved in the idea so that they wanted to take their own litter home, ie not a campaign to name and shame but a campaign to get people on board with the idea that you no more drop litter from your van, lorry or car than you drop it outside your own front door." Since I wrote to the EDP I have had some ideas for addressing the issue, ie to bring about a change of attitude to litter. For maximum impact and effect any action would need to be taken in a coordinated way and in liaison with the relevant authorities. My ideas are:

WELLS-NEXT-THE-SEA ‘MEN’S SHED’ A Men’s Shed is a place to pursue practical interests at leisure, to practice skills and enjoy making and mending. The difference is that garden sheds and their activities are often solitary in nature while Men’s Sheds are the opposite. They’re about social connections and friendship building, sharing skills and knowledge, and of course a lot of laughter. Members work on individual projects and come together to work on community based projects and share their skills over a cuppa. The Wells Men’s Shed has developed over the last 6 months and we now have a shed which is being renovated. Two thirds of the shed has been fitted out and ready to use and the rest is work in progress. We have an inclusive policy to membership, including ladies, with the limitation that you must be over 18 years. The Wells Men’s Shed, is in fact, a Portakabin sited in the grounds of the Wells & Walsingham Light Railway complex. At the moment we are limited to what we can do as we do not have electricity which means we are working in traditional ways mostly on woodworking projects, or doing cycle or furniture repairs etc. As an example of what we do we have been recycling timber and unwanted pallets

 a campaign in schools which includes children reporting messages to their parents  a high profile mass litter pick-up, eg one village at a time, preceded by publicity  to involve employers whose employees drive vans and lorries  to involve supermarkets and providers of fast food  to ask newspapers to support a campaign - in January the Daily Mail asked readers to join a litter clear-up across the nation  to involve District Councils and other relevant authorities – some authorities are already taking steps against flytipping  to involve local voluntary organisations eg Young Farmers' Clubs, Women's Institutes and wildlife societies – these organisation may already have litter on their agendas. a local resident

(Susan Abulhawa) and A Little Life (Hanya Yanagihara): not easy but rewarding. No one will enjoy every book that comes out of the hat but one very good reason to join a book group is to read books that you might not have chosen yourself. I once picked up a copy of The Miniaturist in a book shop and put it back, thinking it was not for me. When, some time later, it was a book group choice, I thoroughly enjoyed it and was glad that I had ‘had’ to read it. I have noticed that my choice of books - Boy and Going Solo (Roald Dahl), The Sea (John Banville), The Good Doctor (Damon Galgut) - have not been popular. I am not offended (well, not much). The good news is that, after our current book, Dr Zhivago (Boris Pasternak), the group will welcome almost anything. Always supposing they come back. Maggie Thomas

HARES, LAMBS, HANNAH

FAKENHAM CHORAL SOCIETY

27th April, Bale Diary First, with the wind coming from the south, and veering south-west, we walked along the bottom of the field between the rape and the wood (and currently I feel as though I inhaled pepper this morning). I was expecting to get wet, but apart from an initial scatter of raindrops, it was fine and not even too windy at around eight-thirty this morning. We were dressed for it, but storm Hannah was still waiting in the wings, and the creatures were making the most of it. Countless pheasants wove in and out of crop and wood, and we saw four hares. In the green lane we were pleasantly sheltered. Chiffchaff and black cap singing all the way along and I am persuading myself that it wasn’t a blackcap with a sore throat but a whitethroat. Blackthorn blossom is decidedly over now, all the trees except the ash are showing green leaves, or at least their buds are opening. There are a few cowslips at the bottom of the lane, and in the old pasture field they dot the green with yellow. Soon there will be orchids. Ground ivy (not an ivy but a mint, used in medieval times as a clarifier and flavouring for beer, one of its names being alehoof) which has had its soft blue flowers out for weeks now is beginning to be overcast by hogweed and cow parsley. The very severely flogged hedge is slow to sprout again, but there are still primroses along here, and I could hear a lark singing despite the wind. All the ferns are beginning to uncoil new shoots, male fern, lady fern and hartstongue under the hedges. Hardly a sign of bracken beginning to unravel yet. There are still some violets where the grass is short, and my favourite hedge blossom, bird cherry, strong scented, like a wild version of white lilac, is out, though this bush was badly smashed by the hedger in the winter. In Clip Street on the bank of Patch Plantation there are wild strawberries flowering already. I had a good crop of these last year around my entrance, I’m always delighted to see them. If you visit my garden in Sharrington Road for Open Studios (May 26th, 27th and 28th and the two following weekends, all welcome) you will too. The oaks are just out, with leaves and catkins, and in Clip Street Lane stitchwort, white campion and a proper froth of cow parsley – this is a haven for wild flowers, later there is always a

Summer Concert Handel’s Coronation Anthems Rutter’s ‘Feel the Spirit’ Saturday 15 June 2019 at 7.30pm Fakenham Parish Church Tickets: £12 pre-paid (under 18 free) from 01485 544335 or £14 on the door.

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

BALE BOOK GROUP From small beginnings, Bale Book Group has gone from strength to strength. Currently ten members, with as many different opinions, meet bi-monthly to air their views on the book in hand. Discussions are always lively, sometimes heated and, shock alert, may contain the occasional expletive (usually from me). Over the past four years readers have enjoyed Apple Tree Yard (Louise Doughty), H is for Hawk (Helen Macdonald), Nutshell (Iain McEwan), Olive Kitteridge (Elizabeth Strout) and The Universe versus Alex Woods (Gavin Extence). More gruelling reads have included A Place Called Winter (Patrick Gale), Mornings in Jenin

pjmbale@icloud.com at £10, free to under-18s. If you have previously attended these concerts, you know already that another treat is in store; if you haven’t, why not give it a try? The atmosphere is very informal and a glass of wine (or juice) will add to the summer party atmosphere. P. Moore

wealth of field scabious, st john’s wort (the perforated sort, the commonest, good for dye colour) campion, dog roses, and more. On the corner there is the gate into the lovely long meadow, with its new lambs - a test of Bim’s behaviour – she still sees sheep as an excitement - causing one stern ewe to stamp her hooves in warning. But that slow hare, encountered on the green lane, faltering and then out in the open, was more than she could bear, and she made more fuss about being made to stay by me on the lead than ever before. I hope it is not a victim of RHDV2, the rabbit haemorragic virus which has crossed to hares. Jane Wheeler

BALE VILLAGE HALL NEWS April and May saw two new events in the Village Hall, with a very successful wine tasting evening in April (see separate report) and “Tea at the Ritz” in May. At time of writing, the Afternoon Tea has not yet taken place, but we hope to have had a good attendance as it was organised to raise funds for the East Anglian Air Ambulance. The air ambulance is a vital service in an area such as ours and plans are underway to operate a 24-hour, seven-day service. Of course, as with all events, the social aspect of getting together for high-class afternoon tea is an added advantage! It has come to our attention that, astonishing as it may seem, some people are not keen on fish & chips! If you are one of those folk, or simply prefer to eat earlier in the evening, there is good news re Bale Fish & Chip Night. You are welcome to come along anyway! Every month, we have a few people who spend the evening chatting and having a drink in the friendly, sociable atmosphere and either eat before they come, or bring their own food. We are delighted to see anyone who would like to join us and we even have a dart board awaiting installation so perhaps a little competitive sport could be on the cards? Just bring along you own refreshments and join us from 6.45pm on the second Friday of each month. The upcoming dates are 14th June and 12th July and please be prompt if you are ordering fish & chips. On 9th June the Hall will be hosting Bale Painting Group’s “Open Day” from 10am to 4pm. In addition to pictures for sale, or simply to be admired, some of the members of this group (which was set up by Duncan Thomas some four years ago) will be working on their latest pieces and will be happy to chat about the works on display. The local vintage tractors will be paying us another visit on Sunday 14th July. The Tractor Run will leave the Village Hall around 10.30am, following a snack of bacon butties, and return at about 2pm for tea and cake. If you would like to take part (£10 per tractor) call Margaret on 01328 878511 to book; or just come along, admire these lovely old machines and enjoy the refreshments! P.Moore

BALE CHURCHYARD SCENES Thirty six ramblers, mainly from the Norwich group enjoyed lunch on the benches and chairs in Bale churchyard on 28th April during a lovely ten mile walk, which took in beautiful Hindringham Hall and stunning bluebells seen from the lower circular path through Bullfer Grove. B.Moss

BALE GARDEN FETE Please come to our Fete on Saturday June 8th at 2 pm. at Manor Farm, Bale, Gunthorpe Road, NR21 0QR. Fun for all the family with lots of garden games and competitions to play with prizes. There are irresistible stalls too; homemade cakes, wine draw, produce (make sure you are early for the strawberries), white elephant, tombolas and many more. Homemade cakes, delicious filled rolls and refreshing cups of tea or coffee (squash for youngsters) are served on the lawn all afternoon and everyone can relax listening to the wonderful Sheringham and Cromer Brass Band. Grand Draw with many prizes and free admission. We hope you will come along to enjoy a really traditional garden fete.

THE PURCELL SCHOOL CONCERT We are delighted that students from the prestigious Purcell School will once again be performing at Bale Church on 23rd June at 4pm. Each time they visit we are privileged to hear talented and engaging Year 12 pupils from this renowned conservatoire play a wide range of music to the highest standard, with sensitivity and enthusiasm. Tickets are on sale from 01328 822012 or

Council presented him with gifts to mark his retirement. After that meeting, he had one last task to perform – to open the May meeting and ask for nominations for his replacement! We will miss his wise direction of the Parish Council in the future but are sure that he will remain active in other areas within Binham, and that we will be seeing him at those; and he is sure to be made very welcome in the audience at future PC meetings. Keith Leesmith – Binham Parish Clerk

WINE TASTING IN BALE A good time was had by everyone attending our first Wine Tasting Evening in Bale on Saturday 18th April. This was a “Maggie Thomas Production” and her organisational skills shone through, matched closely by her persuasive selling abilities. It was very satisfactory to be able to write “Sold Out” across posters a week before the event! It was great to see the evening so well supported, with many village hall regulars being joined by others from the village and further afield. A range of 10 wines was entertainingly presented by Roger Dubbins and Kieron West (Roger runs the Noble Rotters Wine Club in Sharrington) and a tasty array of accompanying canapes, charcuterie and cheeses were kindly provided by people in the village. Also generously donated were a fine array of wines as raffle prizes, half a case of which was won by Paul Turnbull. Thanks to all involved, organisers and participants, in making this wonderful evening happen. Martin Moore

BINHAM PARISH ANNUAL REPORT 16 April 2019 During the past year the Parish Council has met on ten occasions – seven regular meetings, two special meetings to discuss planning applications, and one to discuss the Parish Cemetery. We had become concerned at the rate that the cemetery was filling up; we know that the space is finite but would be happier if it outlasted most of us. An investigation seemed to show that we were attracting too many people from outside the village, and that probably this was because we were charging a lot less than other nearby burial authorities. Indeed, we were probably running the cemetery at a loss. In the end we decided that we had to increase the fees for everyone, but to make it very expensive for non-residents. We also worked out a series of rules to establish residency. The new rules and charges can be found on the Parish noticeboards. As well as all the normal expenditure, during the year we repaired and upgraded the noticeboards in the village, and, in conjunction with the history group provided a new bench for the green, to commemorate 100 years since the ending of the First World War. Right at the end of the year we paid for a scheme that we have been looking at for some time. You will know that we have a speed monitor that is moved around different locations in the village. This not only acts to slow traffic down, but also records the number of vehicles passing and the speed that they are doing as they pass the monitor. It will probably not surprise you to know that the road where the most speeding vehicles are recorded is the Hindringham Road. We have therefore decided to fit “entry gates” where the speed limit starts. These have been used for many years throughout the country and are known to slow the traffic down. We have successfully applied for a grant to enable the work to be carried out on a 50/50 cost basis with Norfolk County Highways. These should be

HUNDRED CLUB DRAW RESULTS March 19 Martin Moore Adam Chapman Ausan Buttifant Rose Jewitt

£25 £10 £5 £5

April 19 Ezra Postan Victoria Kurrein Ann Ramm David Ramm

£25 £10 £5 £5

BINHAM Contact: Liz Brady 01328 830830 lizsdavenport@gmail.com

THANK YOU Maureen Frost, Binham PCC The parish and priory church of St Marys and the Holy Cross at Binham has many splendours, inside and out, Maureen and David front left, with though some are invisible such Binham PCC members in St Marys as the care and devotion shown and the Holy Cross. by Mrs Maureen Frost as Churchwarden for twenty years. She has this year stepped down from office though the care and devotion which are the habits of a lifetime will not be put aside; and we wish her every happiness and satisfaction in an active retirement. Now Mrs. Frost’s many roles need people to take them on if the parish and priory church is to continue to flourish. She’ll be pleased to hear from you! Ian Whittle, Rector

David Frost, Binham Parish Council David Frost joined Binham Parish Council in May 2007 when he was invited to fill a vacancy which existed at that time. In 2012 he was unanimously elected as Chairman, a role which he has filled admirably for the last seven years. Parish Councillors have to stand for election every four years and David decided to stand down at the election in May this year, and not seek re-election. At the Annual Parish Meeting, held on 16 April, his colleagues on the

fitted in the coming year. Despite the above expenditure, we have not increased our part of the council tax since 2007. If only the county, district and police could say the same! We as many other parish councils were invited to attend an event on Thursday 4th April where key leaders from the U.S. Air Force’s 352nd Special Operations Wing, stationed at RAF Mildenhall, hosted a capabilities brief and live demonstration at RAF Sculthorpe. This interaction with civic leaders was to discuss the importance of military training in the Sculthorpe area. By all accounts the event was appreciated by all who attended despite it being rather cold. During the past few years the Parish Council has been skilfully led and chaired by David Frost. David has now decided that it is time to hand over to someone else, and we all wish him well in his retirement. Who takes over is undecided for the moment, but they will be appointed at the next PC meeting. Hopefully, we will be able to call on David to advise on those tricky parish council matters that arise from time to time. Keith Leesmith, Binham Parish Clerk

site had been withdrawn. The applicant’s agent explained the compliance of the plans for the site within the regulations. The location of the house towards the front of the site on Langham Road was noted, being to minimise the flood risk. Concerns were expressed about the danger posed by construction traffic entering and leaving the site. The Council accepted that the overall design was suitable and formally supported the application with the comment that there should be a traffic management plan developed for the construction traffic, particularly noting the close proximity of the site entrance to the Langham Road/Stiffkey Road junction. At the end of the March meeting, having confirmed my intention to stand down as an elected councillor, I was overwhelmed by the gifts from colleagues. I thought it would be the last council meeting I ever chaired, but our ever dependable Clerk, Keith Leesmith, remined me the rules state I’m in place until the new council is convened on 20th May and a Chair elected. The six councillors from the old Council, all indicted they would stand again, have automatically been appointed without triggering an election on 2nd May if more than Binham’s allowance of seven. Thus, in May nothing much will have changed except that the District Councillor, having special responsibility for Binham within the Priory Ward, will be Richard Kershaw, the successful candidate in the District Council election. David Frost

BINHAM PARISH COUNCIL Broadland and their contractor H Smith are pleased with the progress made on the Walsingham Road site. Some of the houses are nearing completion and the general layout of the area is becoming more apparent. Broadland Housing Group provided an outline of current status of the build and indeed how to and whom should be contacted regarding when properties will be coming available, see below. While occasionally there still has been some complaint about the parking of contractors’ vehicles it has generally been much better than in the early months. Binham PC were pleased to receive notification of success for their application to the County Council for 50% of the cost of the first pair of “entry gates”, another step in trying to reduce speed through Binham. This pair will be erected by the 30mph sign on Hindringham Road. The plan is to apply annually for help with purchasing “gates” for the other approach roads where our speed monitor has detected vehicles regularly entering at high speeds. A special meeting of the PC was called in early April with nine members of the public present to discuss an application for erection of a house on the Old Reading Room site. An earlier “application for lawful use” on this

BROADLAND HOUSING GROUP Broadland Housing Group is nearing completion of the first affordable homes on The Priory development. The 27 new homes, 14 of which are affordable, are due for completion by Spring 2020. The first new affordable homes will be available for occupation from May 2019. The affordable homes consist of 1, 2 and 3 bedroom houses and bungalows to suit the needs of the local community. Both affordable rented and shared ownership homes will be prioritised to those in housing need and with a local connection. Priority will be given to those who have a local connection to Binham and the adjoining parishes of Field Dalling, Hindringham, Langham, Morston, Stiffkey, Warham and Wighton. All homes will be advertised on the North Norfolk ‘Your Choice Your Home’ website. Anyone wishing to apply will need to register in advance at

percentage of additional heating installed in The Priory church. Once again, I would like to express my grateful thanks to all my fellow committee members and to all the other numerous helpers, who ensure our events are such a success. Pauline Scott. We would also all like to record our great sadness over Pauline’s untimely death in August last year. She had been a long-time Friends committee member and was always a mine of useful ideas and local information and a very wise counsel. She will be greatly missed by our group. We hope you might consider becoming a subscribing member of the Friends, for the small sum of £10 per annum. Please contact our membership secretary Mrs. Joanna King, 80 Warham Road, Binham, NR21 0DQ. Or see the form on the new website. Payment can be by cheque or BACS. Clive Brady, Hon. Chair

www.yourchoiceyourhome.org.uk. For help and further information,contact the North Norfolk District Council Housing Options Team on 01263 516375 or housing@north-norfolk.gov.uk. The shared ownership homes are being marketed by Sowerbys located in Wells-next-the-sea. To express an interest and find out more information about the application process please contact Sowerbys on 01328 711711. Shared ownership buyers will be subject to affordability assessment and must be registered with the Help to Buy scheme www.helptobuyese.org.uk. So, what is shared ownership? Shared ownership is a help to buy, low cost home ownership product and a fantastic opportunity for people to purchase their own home if they cannot afford to buy outright. You buy a share in the home, for example 50% of the current market value with a mortgage or savings. You then pay a reduced rent on the part you do not own. You may increase your level of ownership over time, this is restricted to 80% in Binham where rural restrictions apply. For more information on shared ownership please visit Broadland’s website at www.broadlandgroup.org or email the sales team on sales@broadland group.org.

BINHAM VILLAGE MEMORIAL HALL We had a very interesting and informative Hall AGM and parish meeting on April 16th . The Chairman, Andrew Cuthbert, stood down and was proposed and re-elected as chairman of the Memorial Hall. The trustees also stood down, were proposed en bloc by the Chairman and reelected so the team is all in place for 2019. The audited accounts were explained and those trustees with specific areas gave brief reports. About 20 members of the community were present – thank you very much for coming. We have a very exciting evening coming up on Friday 7th June when the executive chef at Gresham’s, Jonathan

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.

FRIENDS OF BINHAM PRIORY The AGM was held on 4th April 2019. Reports were made by both the chairman and treasurer outlining the successful events and funding that the Friends had been involved with during 2018. The post-AGM public talk was by retired Chief Superintendent David Reeve who was, for many years, in charge of the Royal Protection Service for Sandringham and Norfolk. David’s talk was to a sold-out audience and was full of the most interesting and amusing information and anecdotes. He was the most engaging and entertaining speaker and generated many questions from the audience. Picnic2Jazz had fantastic weather last year and this along with the return of our original band, DixieMix, made for excellent attendance and gate takings. The autumn conversation evening in December with Roger Law of Spitting Image fame was another great success with a complete tour through the many phases of Roger’s working life from graphic artist, through political cartoons and Spitting Image, to his latest incarnation as a potter of magnificent, huge Chinese pottery. Our stand-alone website: www.friendsofbinham priory.weebly.com flourishes and is very conscientiously managed by co-secretary Carolyn Raymond. The whole site is a rapid and easy source of full details of upcoming events, which are continuously updated. The treasurer, Hilary Brown, again reported a healthy balance of our funds in spite of our 2018-19 expenditures. These included funding for the total cost of the major revamp of the ‘binhampriory.org’ website and a substantial

members in a secret ballot to find the ‘Painting of the Month’. The first round was held on the 30th April and this was won by Mo Pakenham with her mixed media picture “Wind rain and water”. The monthly winner will be hung in the Gallery @ The Chequers on a new board at the end of the gallery. The next competition will be held on the 28th May and the winner will hang in the gallery till the end of June. For more information about the group visit our website www.binhamartgroup.weebly.com. John Hill

Gardener, will be presenting a taster evening generously sponsored by Holroyd Howe. Tickets are wonderfully priced at £5 and are available from Janet Hewitt on 01328 830652 or Liz Brown on 01328 830519 or on the door and it starts at 7pm. The Village Show is on Sunday 4th August – all the details of all the classes and the timings are on the blog section of the website (www.binhamvillagehall.co.uk) and on our Facebook page. It’s definitely time to start growing the funny shaped vegetables or making delicious jams! Also, do check out the ‘fun’ classes especially those for children - tallest sunflower and longest runner bean sponsored by the Binham Youth Group. Finally, don’t forget our Cosy Club (afternoon tea) and coffee mornings. The events board outside the Hall announces all such events a day or two before they happen. See you there. Mary Hunt

HINDRINGHAM & BINHAM OPEN CIRCLE On Thurs June 20th Sue Slack will talk to the group about the Suffragettes, about whom she has written a book. We welcome a member of the National Trust on July 18th to tell us about gardening at their properties, something to look forward to as all the local National Trust gardens look so splendid all year round. We are a women’s group that meets 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. Sue Elkins

FRIENDS OF BINHAM PRIORY 2019 PICNIC2JAZZ Saturday 6th July 2019, 5pm to 8pm In Binham Priory Ruins Once again come and enjoy your picnic in the wonderful ruins of Binham Priory. There will be the usual, easylistening jazz, this year again provided by DixieMix. You may bring whatever picnic items you like, (except barbeques please), and all your own drinks. Children under 16 have free entry. There is plenty of parking at the venue. This is a fantastic event and a great opportunity for families and friends to enjoy the wonderful, historic, countryside setting of Binham Priory. This event continues to prove very popular over the years and attendance numbers are restricted, so early booking is advised, for which there is also a discount. Tickets are £10 per adult, paid in advance by close of business on Friday 5th July, or £13 during Saturday and on the gate. Box Office: The Chequers Inn, Front Street, Binham, NR21 0AL or Tel: 01328 830297 (payment by cash or cheque).

BINHAM YOUTH GROUP 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 now have a no mobile phones policy. 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. “It’s a great way to spend your time” (William) 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.

BINHAM PRIORY CONCERTS Saturday 3 August Norwich Baroque Saturday 24 August Jonathan Sage and Eleanor Kornas, (clarinet and piano) Saturday 31 August, Civitas Ensemble, Friday 6 September Heath Quartet (string quartet) Saturday 21 September Xuefei Yang (classical guitar) Full details for advanced booking can be found at www.binhampriory.org.

BINHAM ART GROUP On the 30th April we had an excellent demonstration and workshop by the Suffolk watercolour artist Andrew Pitt. He showed us some exciting techniques and really made us think about how we should paint. His aim is to create a lively and fresh picture with the minimum of paint that makes for transparency. After lunch at the Chequers twelve members attended the workshop to put Andrew’s theories into practice. We all thoroughly enjoyed the day having learnt a great deal, and hoping that he will be able to return at a later date. The next demonstration and workshop will be on 18th June when Gareth Jones returns to entertain and teach us about painting with pastels. He is a master at seascapes as he showed us at his last visit in 2017. The demonstration is open to anyone and the cost will be £5.00 which will include coffee and biscuits. The workshop is for members only as numbers are limited. The group has started a monthly painting competition which involves members submitting a recent painting on the last Tuesday of the month. These are then voted on by the

BINHAM LOCAL HISTORY GROUP Our March meeting was on the life and times of archaeologist and Egyptologist Howard Carter (1874 – 1939 ) by Dr. Sue Gattuso, manager of Swaffham Museum. For me personally my interest in history was really sparked as a child by the story of the discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun by Howard Carter in the Valley of the Kings in 1922. Although born in London, Howard’s parents, Samuel John Carter and Martha Joyce Sands both originated from Swaffham. Samuel was an artist who was noted for painting animals. Howard spent much of his childhood with his relatives in Swaffham and often accompanied his father to the large houses locally when he had been commissioned to

paint the family’s animals. They visited Didlington Hall, home of Lord and Lady Amherst a noted historian and collector of ancient Egyptian antiquities and this is where Howard’s interest in Egyptology started. Both the Amherst’s were very instrumental in encouraging Howard’s interest and eventually aged 17 to the post as a tracer - someone who copies inscriptions and art work found in excavations onto paper for later study - for the Egyptian Exploration Fund (EEF) in 1891 at the British Museum. He then began his rise towards studying archaeology in the field at various locations in Egypt and gained a distinguished reputation for his artistic ability and dedication. Though various ups and downs he was eventually introduced in 1907 to George Herbert, 5th Earl of Carnarvon. Carnarvon was extremely wealthy and was keen to fund archaeological excavations and so began a successful partnership in archaeological digs. By 1922 however Carnarvon was growing tired of Carter’s four year exploration for lost tomb of an unknown pharaoh in the Valley of the Kings and told Carter he would only sanction one more digging season. The rest of this particular story of course is very firmly planted in history with the discovery of Tutankhamun’s tomb. Carter never forgot the people who helped him overcome his humble beginnings and his connection with the Amherst family continued throughout his life. Sadly, the Amherst family were embezzled out of a large part of their wealth by their solicitor and land agent and they were forced to sell all their collections and Didlington Hall. The Hall later fell into ruin and was demolished in 1950. Carter died in 1939 and for years many myths perpetuated that both he and Lord Carnarvon had died as a result of a curse from the Pharaoh’s tomb. A great deal of the diaries, drawings and photos taken by the excavation are held at The Griffith Institute and can be viewed at www.griffith.ox.ac.uk/discoveringTut/. There is also a new exhibition of the Treasures of Tutankhamun to be held in London 2nd November - 3rd May 2020 at The Saatchi Gallery https://tutankhamunlondon.com. Swaffham Museum also has its own gallery dedicated to the finding of the tomb of Tutankhamun in 1922. Well worth a visit to explore a famous local connection http:// www.swaffhammuseum.co.uk/community/swaffhammuseum-12715/home. Binham Local History Group’s next talk will be scheduled for 26th September 2019, 7:30pm. Details will appear in the next issue of Lynx. Pennie Alford

COCKTHORPE Contact: Maurice Matthews 01328 830350 maurice.matthews@peppard.net No news from Cockthorpe this time.

FIELD DALLING Contact: Julie Wiltshire julie_wilson75@hotmail.com

ST ANDREW’S CHURCH Baptism & Confirmation There have been various enquiries recently about young people being ‘christened’ or ‘baptised’ (whichever word you prefer to use) and ‘confirmed’. If that’s something you too have wondered about, please get in touch with Ian Whittle (01328 830246) or Fiona Newton (01328 830947, fionanewton46@gmail.com).You don’t have to be a certain age or stage, it’s really about a desire of the heart and soul. Fiona Newton

SAFARI SUPPER A very jolly evening was held at the end of April as we ate different courses of our meal in different homes. Hidden corners of Saxlingham and Field Dalling were explored, and it was a particular treat to finish all together for coffee in the ancient home of Liz and Graeme Peart. Very many thanks to them, and to all the hosts. Delicious morsels were eaten everywhere! About £250 was raised to help the ministry of the church - but the real value was in the networking of villagers and the building of community. . Lou Shone and Fiona Newton

MOBILE POST OFFICE A reminder of the mobile post office service which stops outside the Field Dalling and Saxlingham Village Hall every Wednesday, 09:45 until 10.45. As well as post office services, magazines, groceries and a selection of household items are available to buy.

BINHAM MEMORIAL HALL 100+ Club winners March winners: £25 D Tann, £10 Mr & Mrs Jeffrey Christine Rand, £5 Tom Walduck, Sheilin Cuthbert, Emma Salvadori. April winners: £25 Jan Hewitt, £10 Clare Winkley, Beverly Taylor, £5 Vanessa Buxton, Alan Brown, Marie Grange. If anyone would like to join the 100+ club, please call at 8 Priory Crescent or ring June Read on 01328 830106.

200 CLUB

Chrissie Whyman £5 Paul Tacon £5 Isabella Dudman £5 Ellen Hill £5 Thomas Brough £5 Joy Luscombe £5 The final draw of this subscription year will have taken place on 25th May just as this issue of the Lynx is being distributed, and this means that it is time to renew your memberships. If you have not already renewed can we please ask for the subscriptions for the next year, ie June 2019 to May 2020 inclusive, to be paid as soon as possible, and before 29th June so as to be in the first draw - we hope that all existing members will again want to re-join and, of course, we welcome new members. It costs just £1 per month (payable in advance for the year) to join and you can get your subscriptions and more back if you are lucky enough to win a prize. The 50:50 Club contributes over £1000 per annum to the “Friends” funds - full details are placed on the “Friends” Notice Board before the AGM. Payments can also include your “Friends” membership of a minimum of £5 per annum, and a cheque, cash or BACS payment of just £17 per person will cover both. Cheques should please me made out to FOGPC. BACS payments can be made as detailed below, but please inform John Blakeley (e-mail: 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 a future draw. Some subscriptions are already “rolling in” so thanks if you have already re-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. 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

Mar 2019: £50 Dawn Finnerty; £25 Precious Peccary III; £15 Christina Searle Apr 2019: Carol Wood £50; Brian Goodale £25; Les Anthony £15.

FIELD DALLING AND SAXLINGHAM SUMMER FETE Saturday 10th August 2019, 2-4pm Villagers’ Hall Plans are well underway for this year’s summer fete, the Norfolk Jazz Quartet will be entertaining us once again with their popular live music, and all the traditional stalls and games will be there to enjoy. There is an excellent team ready to make the afternoon a success but we can always do with more help. Contributions to the white elephant, good second hand clothes and the book stalls, plus items for the gift stall, will all be very welcome and storage can be organised until the day. Please contact Bridget Nicholson 01328 830614 for more information. The fete is the main annual fundraising event in the year for the two villages and we are working towards a bumper afternoon of fun for all ages again this time. Bridget Nicholson and the Fete Committee

VILLAGERS’ HALL www.fdands.org Ceilidh Evening Saturday 22nd June, 7pm 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 Coffee mornings are held every second Wednesday of the month in the village hall at Field Dalling, 10.30am to 12 noon, and all are welcome. 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 at the Summer Special coffee morning on Wednesday 12th June, and at the following one on Wednesday 10th July. Mel and Brian Goodale

ST MARY’S CHURCH NEWS This Easter we had two lovely services. The first, on Good Friday, was a memorable one. It was taken by Ian with the Cantelina Choir in attendance. How lucky we were to have them. Rosemary Kimmins and her choir gave us a glorious morning. A huge thank you to them all. Apparently the acoustics in St Mary’s are very good so it is a great

Important Diary Dates Bingo Nights: 14th June, 12th July Ceilidh Evening: 22nd June

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

FOGPC 50/50 CLUB DRAW RESULTS March Nuala Howard £20 Marcus Aitman £15 Carole Wallace £5 Virginia Worsley £5.

April David Aitman Lisa Rush John Clark Jessie Lindsay

£20 £15 £5 £5

church to perform in. The Cantelina Choir are welcome at any time! The Easter Service was taken by Richard Redmayne. We were very grateful to him, especially for his thought provoking sermon. Thank you also to all those who decorated the church with spring flowers. As always it looked so beautiful. The bottle bank continues to boost the church coffers. Last year we took £350 which is an increase on the year before - it provides a much needed contribution to our expenses. Thank you to all for your continued support and of course for your contribution to recycling. Penny Brough Church Warden

local people and businesses will be offering the usual tempting prizes. Despite the gale-force conditions hundreds of people still turned up for the 2018 Fete and we are very grateful to all the stall-holders and members of the public who braved the weather to make it such a success. Thanks also to the Aylsham Band who held on to their instruments and played with gusto! Thanks to everyone in the village and beyond who have offered their services for the day – especially new arrivals in Gunthorpe. If there is anyone in Gunthorpe and surrounding villages who would like to help but hasn’t yet come forward then please contact Val or Jenny. See you there! Val King 01263 862265 valatt@btinternet.com Jenny Kelly 01263 860095 jennykellynorfolk@hotmail. com.

FRIENDS OF GUNTHORPE PC The St. Mary’s Churchyard Clear-up will have been held on Sunday the 19th of May after the copy deadline date for this issue. So I can only hope that many attended to prune, mow, strim, weed, re-coat the gates, clean the vestry and spruce-up the church and churchyard for the season ahead. Hope too that you enjoyed the mid-day sausages, buns beverages and cake and a huge thank you to all who came to help! The next Friends event will be the AGM on Friday the 12th of July at 6:30 in the Village Institute – followed by fish and chips, a raffle and even perhaps a quiz! We hope to see many of the ‘regulars’ there, and if you are new in the village please come along. We are a friendly, secular group who raise funds to maintain the fabric of St. Mary’s Church. The AGM is a painless and friendly way to find out about the Friends and to meet others in the village. We always have a good laugh! Please mark Saturday the 27th of July in your diary for the Friends fete BBQ in the Gunthorpe Hall gardens. It begins at 7pm. Fruit punch will be included but please bring your own wine. Tickets are £9 per adult, £6 for children age 5 to 12, with under 5 year olds free. Please phone Gunthorpe Hall on 01263-861373 to reserve your seats, and also let us know at that time if you want a vegetarian meal. The village fete is the following afternoon (2pm, Sunday 28th of July) and the BBQ is a great way to spend the evening before the fete. Thanks to all for their support and we hope to see you at these events. Have a great summer!

“FRED” MORLEY We reported on the sad death of Fred Morley in the last issue of the Lynx, but we had not then had time to give details of the village’s plans to remember Fred and his lifetime’s unstinting support to the village and St Mary’s Church. We have now purchased a bench which will be placed in St Mary’s Churchyard along with a commemorative plaque in the very near future. Also on 10th March, and despite very inclement weather a small group of Fred’s family and villagers led by the Rev Ian Whittle gathered to plant a tree in Fred’s Fred’s niece Janet Murley at memory in the corner of the the ceremony. churchyard.

WELCOME Simon & Laura Latham We offer a slightly belated but nevertheless just as warm a welcome to Simon & Laura Latham who have moved into Little Victoria. This will be a second family home for now as their main home is near Cambridge, where Laura is a primary school head teacher and Simon is a management consultant in the retail industry. But North Norfolk is an area they have visited for many years, and they plan to spend as much time in the village as possible, inter alia to support their hobby of both being keen cyclists. Simon and Laura have two daughters, Beth, 23, who is also a teacher in Cambridgeshire and Jazz, 19, a student of criminology at

Marie Denholm Friends Chairman

GUNTHORPE VILLAGE FETE Gunthorpe Hall (NR24 2PA) Sunday 28h July 2019 at 2pm As usual, this year’s Gunthorpe Fete will be held in the grounds of Gunthorpe Hall by kind permission of Marie and Jeremy Denholm. We are truly fortunate to be able to hold Gunthorpe’s annual fete in the beautiful gardens and surroundings of Gunthorpe Hall. It provides the perfect background for a traditional English fete, with The Aylsham Band, superb tea tent, and stalls to include, delicious homemade cakes; colourful garden plants and posies; bric-a-brac and jumble. There are games of chance and skill such as wellie throwing; skittles; catch the rat and a bottle stall – not forgetting the grand draw which, thanks to the generosity of

Leicester University. As always we hope they will be very happy in their new home in our friendly and eclectic village community.

five years" and ''one pennyworth of white bread” be distributed to each house for five years''. It is known that Simon Jnr, second son of Alice died in 1504, leaving his house and lands to his wife Beatrice (who died in 1515). To his brother John he left twelve pence, and to John's wife Christina, eight pence. John Boleyn "of Gunthorp", 'brother of Simon Jnr died in 1517. His will left to Christina.."all my household, that is to say brasses, pewter, laten, bedding etc, all my nete catale and also my messuage that I dwell in, and a priest to sing in Gunthorp". ("Laten" may mean latten, an alloy of copper, zinc and tin. This was made into sheets and beaten flat by hammering. The product was expensive and usually available to the rich only. It was sometimes used for brasses in the churches of the 15th Century. ''Nete catale" means cows and oxen.) After the passing of the known relatives of Simon the priest members of the Boleyn (or Bullen etc) family continued at Gunthorpe until about 1650 and at Bale until nearly 1800. Robert Boleyn (Bulleyn) was churchwarden at Bale in 1552 and died there in 1586. A later Robert, described as "Gentleman", died at Bale c.1640. He had been supervisor of the highways for Bale around 1611. Mary Bullen of Bale was excommunicated in 1597.

Jessica Cattermole We also offer a very warm welcome to Jessica Cattermole who, together with her working cocker spaniel “Span”, has moved into the Old School House - having previously lived in Little Snoring. Jessica works as an interior designer for Albanwise, and has recently been working on the refurbishment of Valley Farm House. She also owns the very successful clothing and interiors shop in the Little Walsingham Farm Shop complex. Again we hope she will be very happy in her new home in our small but very sociable community.

GUNTHORPE & THE BOLEYN FAMILY This is part 2 of an article by Gunthorpe historical researcher Ray Steffans. Part 1 was in Lynx 125. Mention should be made of the money left by Simon to Gunthorpe. The half a mark was quite a usual bequest to a church at the time, and to put it in perspective, represented six months wages to a ploughman. The family connections with this area are underlined by the fact that ''John of Briston” is known to have been a Boleyn. There is record also of the will of ''Thomas Boleyn of Briston". This could have been the person who had eight acres of land at Gunthorpe in 1470-1475 - the land being part of ”Mauteby Manor", some of which was nearby at Briston. James Boleyn, brother of Simon the former priest at Salle, died in 1492 and was buried here at Gunthorpe. His will, and that of his wife Alice, are on record. Both people are described as ''of Gunthorp". James left to his wife “a tenement and ten acres plus ten marks and (his) goods “provided she keep my anniversary for ten years”. He willed also a ''Trentale" for his soul, and masses for three years. (A Trentale is a set of thirty requiem masses, usually one mass being said daily.) Alice was not able to keep strictly to the will for she herself died within six years in 1498. In her will she left money to the inmates of four houses for the sick (Sykehowses) at Norwich. To Gunthorpe she bequeathed ten shillings for a Trentale and a canopy to be placed behind the crucifix - ''between the Church and chancel of the Blessed Virgin Mary at Gumthorp". To her son John she left her "messuage (house) and ten acres "at Gunthorp, Bale and Hindringham”, directing that her anniversary ''be kept for

LANGHAM Contact: Christina Cooper 01328 830207 christinacooper27@googlemail.com

FRIENDS OF LANGHAM 200 Club Draw Winners March 2019 £20 9 Mr S Newman 20 Julia Thompson 69 Mrs A Cox

April 2019 £10 51 Mrs K Tombling 73 Mrs C Grand 131 Mr P Hartley 69 Mrs A Cox 108 Mrs V Tulley 169 Mrs J Johns FOL Committee

MOBILE LIBRARY Change of Schedule For those not already aware, the mobile library service have recently changed their routes and times. The Langham service is now at the end of the month and visiting in the afternoons. The service is still on a Thursday to St Mary’s and The Cornfield, and the new times are listed under the What’s On section of the Lynx as usual.

GET YOUR DANCING SHOES ON! Keep your diaries free on Saturday 8th June 2019, as we are holding a “Dine and Dance in a Barn” at East Hall Farm Barn on the Blakeney Road. Hog roast

(vegetarian option available) with cheese board to follow, fully licensed bar from 7pm till midnight, and live music and disco. Entrance is by ticket only, £15 per person, available to buy from The Blue Bell. Any donations for the ‘wheelbarrow of booze’ raffle will be most gratefully received! We look forward to seeing you and your friends there! All profits will go to the Langham Dome and next year’s Street Fayre.

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

DIARY DATES Sat 15 June. PCC Boat Trip 6pm on Quay, followed by Crab Supper in VH. Tickets from Mary Athill 01263740306. Sat 22 Jun. 6.30pm. FMC AGM in VH. Sat 20 July. 7pm. FMC Impromptu Shakespeare + pie & pint at Church Farmhouse, Morston, NR25 7AA. See “Bard Comes to the Marshes” on p.6 for details. Sat 27 July. Norfolk Oyster & Norfolk Gypsy Regatta. Contact: rachel@neilthompsonboats.co.uk or 01263741172; (Warm up: Fri 26 July 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..

LANGHAM VILLAGE HALL The village hall quizzes have now come to an end and will start up again in September. Thank you to everyone who has supported them throughout the season. The evenings were much enjoyed and raised valuable funds for the hall. The new village hall sign has been added to the hall which we are sure everyone will agree is very nice indeed. Many thanks to Sarah Bowen for organising the village quizzes and villagers for attending them in the previous season, which raised funds enabling us to organise and purchase the sign. Following the success of last year’s summer BBQ, another will be held on Friday 12th July. Tickets will be £10 per head for adults and £5 per head for under 16s to cover the cost of the food. Liquid refreshment will be on a ‘bring your own’ basis. As last year, tickets should be ordered in advance from Carole Blundell with a cut-off date of one week before the BBQ to finalise numbers and allow time for order and purchase of the food. As a reminder, posters for the evening will appear nearer the date in the village with contact details. Langham Village Hall Committee

CRAB SUPPER & SEAL TRIP Saturday 15 June, 6pm on Morston Quay followed by a candlelit supper in the village hall National Trust wardens will be on the boat trip to brief visitors on the seals and birds and the year’s happenings on Blakeney Point. After this, Morston Village Hall will be ready for the supper with candles and flowers and delicious food made and served by Morston PCC members. There will be crabs from Willie Weston and there will also be a cash bar. Numbers are sadly restricted owing to village hall

STALL ON THE GREEN Please Bake For Us As there are five Saturdays in August this year, this cake and produce stall event will not commence in July but we will be open for business on The Green for all of the Saturdays in August, starting on 3rd August from 9.3011am. If anyone would like to help man the stall, please ring. More details in next issue. Ann Sherriff 01328 830 605

fire safety regulations, so please book early. Tickets are £25 a head from Mary Athill on 01263 740306. Funds in aid of church repair funds.

NATIONAL TRUST REPORT Blakeney National Nature Reserve The 2019 breeding bird season is now in full swing and Blakeney National Nature Reserve is a hive of activity with birds already sitting on eggs and plenty more scoping out potential mates and breeding grounds. We have recently put up fences around nesting areas and have volunteers on hand daily to speak to visitors who make the walk up Blakeney Point so do say hello if you are passing. If you would like to learn more about the wildlife on Blakeney Point then why not book onto one of our guided walks? Led by our team they will help you discover more about this internationally important reserve. For more information and to book see www.nationaltrust.org.uk/ blakeney. The dog restrictions are now in place on Blakeney Point until 15 August. This is to help protect vulnerable groundnesting birds from disturbance and damage, and we kindly ask that you keep a distance from fence lines and respect any signs or advice given by the National Trust. We have worked with Norfolk Wildlife Trust to produce a leaflet with advice as to where you can walk your dogs at Blakeney Point and Cley Beach, for more information please visit www.nationaltrust.org.uk/ blakeney. Our refreshment kiosk and information centre is open daily at Morston Quay and we have recently added an ice cream hut that will be selling scooped ice cream at weekends and school holidays. If ice cream isn’t your thing or the weather calls for something a little warmer, then we also have hot drinks and tasty treats on offer. For opening times please see our website. To keep up to date with latest news from the reserve then please check out our website or follow us on social media at NorfolkCoastNT. Alex Green, Senior Marketing & Comms Officer

BLAKENEY HARBOUR ASSOCIATION Close to 90 people turned out to our AGM in April (although we seemed to have catering for 5 times that thanks Graves). For those who couldn’t make it here are the highlights.

Highlights/AGM I know- rather pleasing to be able to use both terms in the same sentence! To business. A new secretary (I finally managed to get myself sacked after years of trying) was introduced. Linda Millett has joined us, and Colin is helping too, and it’s already clear she’s going to be a great asset. Sarah Green has joined the trustees. Local and keen on sailing and waterskiing - the recreational sailors are getting a strong voice. Charlie Ward put up some fascinating images of the changes to the sand banks that are going on in the lower harbour and at the entrance. You can see the details on the website. That’s meant a lot of work and planning for him and his volunteer team to keep the navigation aids all in the right places. Check out the website too for the interactive harbour navigation map and real time weather station.

Safety Workshop Sarah ran through the events she is organising. One that could be of particular interest to members is a safety workshop on the 8th of June from 3pm at Blakeney Village Hall. Jason Bean, our trustee who heads up the harbour wardens, and who sees a lot of what goes on on the water suggested that some of the things that were happening, and shouldn’t be, were down to a lack of understanding. So we thought a safety workshop might be helpful. It will appeal to beginners and the more experienced. If you’ve not paid your subs - we guide £25 for individuals and £40 for families - then it would be nice if you did. Thanks. By the way, if you’re moving or giving up a life on the water and don’t want to be a member could you let us know? Because donations are voluntary, it can be difficult to keep track. We used to be able to look at the list and know who might not be renewing but with over 600 members now.........?! More varnishing. Have fun. Linda Millett, Secretary

BOOK SALE THANK YOU 2019 Early May Bank Holiday total raised: £18,105.34 It should be emphasised that the huge success of the Friends of Morston Church Book Sale over the last ten years is largely due to the year-round dedication of the Metcalfes and their extended family. They devote so much time and effort to collecting, pricing, storing and researching the books that are donated, and also to putting out press releases and advertising posters far and wide. Thus, when

the book sale comes around, all of the books are priced and categorised, making the whole event look very professional, which is why it has been so well supported by the book trade and the public. As Chairman of the ‘Friends’ I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks and that of the rest of the committee for an amazing achievement. PT

Place Tel 01263 860613 and she will answer all your questions. Thank you in anticipation. APG

ART EXHIBITION

Daphne grew up in an Art Deco house just outside Tonbridge. Her father who held a senior position with a firm of steel stockholders was the last person in the avenue to commute in a bowler hat, starched white collar, pinstripes and a tightly furled umbrella. From her mother’s side of the family she inherited Spanish blood and probably explains why she was a hot house plant and so deeply tanned in the summer. Her sister, ten years older was academically brilliant and stunningly beautiful. As a little girl she was constantly being told that it was such a pity she was not more like her sister. This would have diminished most people, but instead it served to instil grit and determination in Daphne. One day she overheard her sister declare that although she enjoyed watching ballet she could never afford the countless hours learning to dance it. Promptly Daphne persuaded her parents to enrol her in the excellent local ballet school. She achieved high marks in all the exams and succeeded in earning her living with a touring ballet company for a good number of years before, out of the blue she caught the travel bug. She was bright at arithmetic and landed a job in the City in the accounts department of P&O. The real reason for the career move was her discovery that the firm gave staff members sea cruises at half price. On moving to Norfolk she was for 11 years treasurer of the village hall management committee. She had no qualms about approaching local businesses to seek their help with prizes for the Grand Christmas Draw. 20 of the firms were in Norwich and the rest all over North Norfolk. With over 100 sponsors 5000 raffle tickets were printed each year and one year she got so carried away that another 5000 had to be printed. She persuaded Sir John White every year to donate a dozen brace of pheasants. It was her bright idea to invite the Archers back to Sharrington and there is a photograph hanging in the village hall of her welcoming the two top stars who played Peggy and Jill Archer. For 30 years she showed Siamese cats all over England,

DAPHNE DIANA HARRIS 13th January 1934 – 26th February 2019

Morston Village Hall 25 May – 2 June Local artist, Eddie Goodridge (IEA), is holding an oil painting exhibition at Morston Quay Village Hall from 25 May - 2 June. Admission is free. Open from 9 a.m. until 7 p.m.

MORSTON QUIZ (answers on page 27) 1. Mount Ararat is the traditional resting place of which ship or boat? 2. In “Treasure Island” which sailor dreamed of toasted cheese? 3. Which country won the Battle of Flodden? 4. In the USA what item of clothing do they call suspenders? 5. Which of these is not a freshwater fish: cod, pike, carp, roach? 6. What is the common name for solidified carbon dioxide? 7. Nowadays, which is the largest British bird? 8. Which is the highest female voice? 9. What was the last year which looked the same when the figures were looked at upside down? 10. Which islands inspired Darwin to write “The Origin of Species?” 11. What is the legal term for telling lies under oath? 12. What do the letters AIDS stand for?

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

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

HELP WANTED Would you consider joining our rota for church cleaning/ flower arranging on a regular basis? Over the last two years or so our helpers have been reduced somewhat and we are anxious to recruit a few replacements. It is not an onerous task, some light dusting, vacuuming the carpet and most importantly flowers. We operate two at a time. If you feel you can help please contact Pippa at The

winning many Best in Show and Best of Breeds awards as well as cups, shields and trophies galore. Her first Siamese, Merlin, made friends with Lucy, the boxer dog owned by Peter Coke of Sharrington Hall. Every day Merlin would wait in the drive at the appointed hour and the two would rub noses. When Merlin passed away it was poignant to watch Lucy stopping daily and looking for Merlin up the drive for five long lonely months. No wonder Daphne loved animals. Daphne adored music and never missed a concert at all of the ten local theatres. Every month she attended Jazz at the Hub Sheringham and was there for the last time on October 28th, the very day before her serious fall. She also enjoyed good films and those with Audrey Hepburn particularly fascinated her. She relished shopping in Norwich and usually took tea at Jarrolds. It was in their book department that she came upon the Rough Guide books for independent travellers. From then on she spent months every year planning trips around the world, quite apart from her annual pilgrimage to Crete and Gavdos in late June. She went several times to Goa, Kerala, Gambia, Tobago, Penang, Morocco and independent island hopping in the Canary Islands. She loved to be off the beaten track, finding for example the little Thai island paradises of Ko Hai and Ko Kradan, only accessible by ‘long tails’. She made friends easily and in Morocco met Khadija who had just graduated in law. The king, Hassan II had decided the surest way to deter violent extremism was by giving more influence to women throughout society believing that women are a force for good. Khadija became the first woman judge in Morocco and for 30 years Daphne regularly corresponded with her. Daphne crossed the Sahara on camel back, with her husband and just one guide to reach Rissani. From there she stayed at Merzouga before travelling up the Ziz valley for the three day Date Festival at Erfoud attended by multi thousands of Moroccans. On the last night there was a huge open air concert. In front of the stage was a roped off enclosure for 400 VIPs. Daphne and her husband had managed to find a spot right up by the rope. To their surprise a very high ranking policeman lifted the rope and led them to two seats in the VIP enclosure. This was an example of Moslem traditional hospitality towards the only two Europeans there. In the Philippines Daphne and her husband were presented with one of five exclusive and luxurious bungalows as ‘guest of the owner’ for five nights. Their next door neighbour just happened to be the President of the Philippines, Joseph Estrada. In Kerala, when guests in a tea planter’s mansion, Daphne broke her ankle on the very first night. The travel insurance company wanted to arrange an immediate air ambulance back to the UK but Daphne exclaimed “I did not come half way round the globe to see the elephants in the Periyar Wildlife Reserve and the sky high Hindu temple at Madurai to be sent straight back home”. She achieved an extra two weeks’ holiday by arranging a pair of extension tickets. Life with Daphne was like being on a magic carpet. She never did anything without putting her whole body and soul

into it. She loved animals, flowers and making friends. The last stroke paralysed all but her left hand and she could not speak. She was served by outstanding specialists, Doctor Kneale Metcalf and Doctors Woodhouse and Grice, all gold standard and to whom we are deeply grateful. The resolution and raw courage Daphne displayed up to the end, listening to book reading and to the recall of memories of her Siamese cats and world travel was movingly impressive. Derek Harris

IN MEMORY OF DAPHNE DIANA HARRIS A service of thanksgiving for the life of Daphne Harris and that was exactly what was revealed at Cromer Crematorium on the 21st March. No hymns, no prayers but a lovely simple reflection on our own memories of Daphne and listening to a few of her favourite pieces of music. I was a neighbour for nearly 20 years and I knew of her great love of Siamese cats, indeed all animals including my dogs who she always made a fuss of. I did not know she was an accomplished ballet dancer and in fact succeeded in earning her living for a good number of years before the travel bug took over. She loved hot places in the world and I do not think she ever really lost her tan. So after a welcome by son James we sat and listened to a beautiful rendition of music and songs from La Paloma by Nana Mouskouri, Swan Lake, Bistro Fada by Stephane Wrembel and Petit Fleur by Sidney Bechet played by Chris Barber with Monty Sunshine on clarinet. She was a keen trad jazz fan and attended concerts around North Norfolk. Daphne enjoyed helping with village affairs and was always the first to offer help with the teas at the fete. It was so peaceful that I was unaware of the coffin leaving, accompanied by the clarinet of Mr Acker Bilk and we left to Somewhere over the Rainbow, again played by Acker Bilk. Rest in peace Daphne. APG

CHURCH NOTES Easter Sunday dawned bright and beautiful, warm and sunny as we welcomed the Rev. Fiona Newton to take our Holy Communion service and much as 2018 she arrived with a basket of tiny Easter eggs, not gold as last year but pale mauve. The four children in the congregation greeted these gifts very happily and there were plenty left for her next service. We were blessed with a good congregation and

our customary Christmas tasting in December. The membership fee for the new season is £80 and for more information please visit the Rotters’ page on the village website www.sharrington.org.uk. Chief Rotter

favourite hymns to sing and during the sermon a short lesson in the art of paper plane making; sadly they did not fly very well until a few tweaks by an expert at the end of the service made all the difference! APG

STRAWBERRY TEA

SHARRINGTON ENJOYS FUN ON THE WATER WITH BLAKENEY ROWING CLUB

On Saturday 15th June we will be holding our Strawberry Tea in aid of All Saints Church, with strawberries and cream, scones, jam and cream. This year the venue will be Church Farm House gardens, where the fete used to be held, courtesy of Steve and Sarah George for which we are very grateful. There will be parking in the field opposite and the event will be from 2.30pm to 4pm. We will have a few stalls such as cakes and possibly plants and books. If the weather is inclement then we will use the village hall. APG

The rowing season at Blakeney is now going at full pace with outings taking place every week in a variety of weather. Several new rowers have taken part in sessions in both Bluejacket and Hoi Larnton, the club’s beautiful skiffs, and have been impressed with the welcome and of course, with the experience of rowing. Five people from Sharrington have enjoyed expeditions in a club skiff. Usually, outings consist of a row either to Cley or to Blakeney Point. This is great exercise, but it is also an opportunity to meet and chat with a variety of friendly people. A welcome refreshment stop is always included. Comments from trial rowers include, “My expectations were exceeded and I thoroughly enjoyed the row with great company” and “… a very enjoyable introduction and very friendly members.” The competitive season promises to be as full as ever. The schedule will include the King’s Lynn Hanse Rowing Festival at which Blakeney will defend six trophies, the Great River Race on the Thames, the local Morston and Blakeney regattas, several races in Essex and the Carrow Cup event in Norwich. At the time of writing club members are looking forward to a row in Brittany at La Semaine du Golfe du Morbihan between 27th May and 2nd June 2019. I hope this brief article gives a sense of the wealth of activities in which the “Crabbers” are involved. If you are interested in experiencing rowing, socially or competitively, contact Tom on 01263 761750; other information is on the club website at www.crablakeney.wordpress.com. Remember, there is no necessity to race. Simply come and enjoy rowing on the waters around Blakeney Point in pleasant company. Barry Howes

SHARRINGTON & DISTRICT GARDENING GROUP Our April meeting proved to be a fascinating evening in the company of Jim Paine, from the Walnut Garden Nursery, near Attleborough. His title was ‘Gardening in the Shade’, but it turned out to be so much more as he explained how plants have evolved, and spoke from a scientific perspective about the importance of light and photosynthesis. While some of his talk may have been more scientific than we are used to, his excellent slides illustrated his main point clearly - that you can make shady areas as beautiful as anywhere else - and I am sure we all appreciated the chance to stretch our minds a bit and look beyond our usual comfort zone. At the time of writing we are expecting a visit in early May from Dr. Sally Francis of Norfolk Saffron, England’s leading commercial saffron producer. As always, our meetings bring the chance to mix and mingle over a glass and nibbles, and take part in the regular raffle. Coming up later this summer are the members-only outing to Sheringham Park’s private gardens on 5th June, the garden party for members and guests at The Old Barn in Sharrington on 30th June (booking essential! £10 for members and £15 for guests) and the popular Garden Safari on 17th July, starting at 2.30pm, this time round Sharrington gardens and open to all. The usual costs of £3 for members and £5 for guests will apply. Afternoon tea is provided, and further details of this and other events will be sent out later. Our big-name speaker for this year is the perennially popular Alan Grey from East Ruston, who is visiting us in the larger venue of Binham Village Memorial Hall on

NOBLE ROTTERS Season five came to a slightly muted close on 22nd March when members explored 11 wines from South America. The general consensus was that whilst the tasting gave members an insight into the wines from Chile, Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Peru, they were not outstanding. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the Argentinian Malbec was voted ‘Man of the Match’. 25 members are signed up for season six which will include more variety in format and more ‘audience participation’. In addition to tastings which will focus on the wines of the USA, Spain and the Rhone Valley, three tastings will present members with a challenge. ‘Would I Lie to You?’ in July will test their observational skills. ‘Top of the Pops’ in November will give them the chance to vote for their No 1 little sparkler. ‘Ladies v Gentlemen’ in February next year will pitch two teams against one another to see who tickles best the Rotters taste buds. On top of all that, we plan a paella night in October and

Friday 6th September. Tickets for this and other events will be on sale at our meetings, or via a member of the committee. Pippa Long

accomplished musicians and we look forward to welcoming them back next year. Our next music evening is on Friday 7th June when we will be entertained by the popular and amusing singer/songwriter Terence Blacker. Tickets have sold well but, at the time of writing, there are still a few available at £10 which can be purchased by emailing me at abrams.chris2@gmail.com. We are excited to announce a return visit by one of the world’s greatest acoustic guitarists, the internationally renowned Gordon Giltrap. He is fresh from recording his contribution to the next album by The Who with Pete Townshend. The gig will take place on Saturday 24th August. At the moment, we are only taking reservations for tickets and will begin collecting funds after the Terence Blacker event. Tickets are just £19 each and can be reserved by contacting Chris at the above email address. Undoubtedly, it will be a fabulous evening. Further information about all forthcoming events can be found on our website www.sharrington.org.uk. You can also be added to our emailing list for musical events by contacting Chris. We look forward to seeing you. C.Abrams

ZUMBA GOLD CLASSES AT THE VILLAGE HALL Fi Riley runs a Zumba gold class for one hour each Wednesday afternoon in Sharrington village hall at 2pm. Zumba Gold is a low intensity dance workout with moves to music. It’s good for the heart, balance, movement and coordination and also burns calories. It is also good for the brain, improving cognitive functions as we learn new steps and moves. No experience in dance is necessary with low impact routines which are easy to follow. The classes allow you to go at your own speed and moves don’t have to be perfect. It’s about having fun and improving fitness, all to music. Classes cost £5 each, payable monthly. Just come along and try a session or contact Fi on 07771 650929 for more information. DH

GET TOGETHER WITH CRAFT At the April get together, those who came along made a cup and saucer. The perfect item in which to give an Easter egg. The June meeting is on Thursday 13th June in the village hall from 2-4pm. Sarah will be showing us how to make an item of jewellery. We ask those that take part in the craft afternoon to pay Sarah for her materials and a suggested donation of £1.50 is requested from all those who come along, for the refreshments and hall hire Not everyone wants to make the item we suggest and that is fine. You can bring along something you are working on or just pop in for the refreshments and a chat. Certainly we welcome friends, family and visitors to Sharrington. Anne Abrams

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

STIFFKEY VILLAGE HALL We have now started our fund raising campaign for Stiffkey village hall with the exhibition of village life on the 22nd April. This was well attended by people from the community and beyond. There was much interest in all the exhibits on display as well as in the teas and cakes. On the day we raised £620 with more to follow. If you would like to support our fund raising you can do so by requesting and returning one of our buy a brick forms which are available from myself either i.curtis@ymail.com or 07787394088. They are either £10 a brick or £15 with an inscription. I would like to thank Alex, Claire, Kerensa, Geraldine and Heather for making cakes for the day and Alex and Claire for serving the refreshments. We shall have another exhibition on the first Sunday of August, with other events in the pipeline. Please remember you can still join our 200 club; forms from myself. Winning

SHARRINGTON MUSIC EVENINGS What a wealth of musical talent we have in North Norfolk. Our bi-monthly music evenings in our village hall have become very successful due to the quality of the acts we have been fortunate to attract. At our last event in March we were entertained by a semi-professional duo called ‘Snapshot’ with talented singer/songwriter Wendy Benefer accompanied by multi-instrumentalist, Chris Austin. They provided a wide variety of music from popular hits and ceilidh music to self-penned songs. Both are extremely

numbers for May draw as follows- 1st 99, 2nd 89, 3rd 27 and 4th 114. Ian Curtis

find valuable. We do also accept business adverts but only one per month per business. Looking forward to seeing more people join and comment. Sally Vanson

CHURCH NEWS

RIDING FOR THE DISABLED

On Thursday 28th March Alan Curtis, one of Stiffkey's most senior residents, was buried quietly in the churchyard with his three sons and their families in attendance. Easter weekend: With the good weather continuing the weekend brought many visitors to the village and following a well attended Easter Sunday communion service several children enjoyed the Easter Egg Hunt around the old churchyard. The eggs needed to be found before melting in the heat! A date to make note of is Saturday 22nd June, 7.00pm, when we shall be holding a choral concert in the church given by the Moorland Voices, a choir from the North of England, one of whom now lives with us here in Stiffkey. There will be free entry, but with a retiring collection which will go towards the upkeep of the church and churchyard. Refreshments will also be served during the interval. An early notification of the History Exhibition in the church on the Bank Holiday weekend of August, 24th, 25th and 26th. This will be in the form of a ‘timeline’ linking British and global events with local ones. We shall also be holding the stalls on the knoll again during the Sunday morning, anyone wishing to help with these and also the serving of refreshments during the weekend please contact me on 830323. Thank you. HH

Norfolk Coast RDA is delighted to announce that we have attracted Piggy French to become our patron. Piggy is one of Britain’s leading event riders, with numerous wins and placings at the top level of eventing. These include being a team member for Great Britain at World and European Championships as well as winning the Individual Silver medal at the 2009 Europeans at Fontainebleau. Most recently, she was part of the 2018 World Championship gold medal winning British team at Tryon, North Carolina. Piggy says "I am very proud to be patron of the Norfolk Coast RDA. They do such fabulous work and I am delighted to be able to support this excellent cause. 2019 is the 50th Anniversary of the Riding for the Disabled Association (RDA) and I am looking forward to being a small part of their continued success in my home county of Norfolk in the years to come. Should you wish to ride with us (physically or mentally disabled, mental health issues or learning difficulties, age 5 and above), to volunteer either with riding sessions or fundraising please contact us. You will be made very welcome. We currently meet on Wednesdays at North Norfolk Riding Centre in Little Walsingham and due to continuing growth we will be adding another date shortly. Sally Vanson

STIFFKEY BOOKCLUB

MORSTON QUIZ ANSWERS (questions on page 23) 1. Noah’s Ark. 2. Ben Gunn. 3. England. 4. Braces. 5. Cod. 6. Dry ice. 7. Mute Swan. 8. Soprano. 9. 1961. 10. Galapagos. 11. Perjury. 12. Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome.

The Stiffkey and District book club is going from strength to strength and we have welcomed another new member. Our June book is 'Educated’ by Tara Westover and then we take a summer break until September. We also now have an account at Wells library so can borrow books in bulk which saves everyone the cost of buying. We continue to meet in members' homes and welcome new members to what has become a vibrant discussion group. Please contact me for details. Sally Vanson

STIFFKEY FACEBOOK Our Stiffkey Village facebook page now stands at 109 members. We are gradually seeing more people join but a great opportunity is being lost in the village to buy and sell things. If you are having a clear out it's free advertising for all those things you no longer need but someone else would

LYNX 126 ADS DIRECTORY SEE FURTHER SERVICES LISTED BELOW DIRECTORY

Art/Interiors/Furniture/Textiles Nick Hamond Furniture: cabinet-maker Sandra’s Soft Furnishings Rosamund Ulph Open Studios Children’s Nurseries Hindringham Toddler Group age 0-4 Gardening Glaven Gardens Health Alison Courtney Acupuncture Claire Dye: Physiotherapist Gunthorpe Osteopaths Marianne Atherton Homeopathy Philippa Stancomb Reflexology Pilates at Binham Memorial Hall The Body and Face Place Hall Rentals Binham Memorial Hall Warham Reading Room Leisure Albanwise Binham Art Group Blakeney Hotel

page 16 7 25 13 3 27 6 9 23 26 24 5 7 19 8 4 22

Sharrington & District Gardening Group 10 Morston Swimming Pool front cover The Bluebell, Langham 12 Impromptu Shakespeare front cover Services and Suppliers Adam Sexton Domestic Services 14 Allied Glass: Trade and Domestic Glazing 26 Burnham Motors 6 Butcher Andrews Solicitors 15 Daren Betts Building and Maintenance 22 David Thompson Chimney Sweep 27 Dawn’s Dog Walking and Pet Care Services 21 Debra’s Chimney Sweep front cover Elv’s Stoves: Woodburner Services 10 Kaywood Builders 20 Gowards Funeral Services 9 Keeble Roofing Contractor 18 M G Myhill Chimney Sweep 11 Outdoor Cleaning Company 20 P J Electrics 12 Taxis Stuart’s Taxi 14

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

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

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

FINCH GARDEN DESIGN Design - Build - Planting www.finchgardendesign.co.uk Jackie Finch 07776 292 211

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

CHIMNEY SWEEP David Thompson 01328 851081

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

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