GOSPORT CHOICE
and Lee on the Solent
CHARITY DOG WALK
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED!
THE BENEFITS OF NETTLES SPRING OFFERS
DELICIOUS CHOCOLATE CAKE RECIPE
VEGAN
YOUR FAVOURITE LOCAL, MAGAZINE
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED!
THE BENEFITS OF NETTLES SPRING OFFERS
DELICIOUS CHOCOLATE CAKE RECIPE
VEGAN
YOUR FAVOURITE LOCAL, MAGAZINE
April is my absolute favourite month! It’s my birthday month! I’m chuffed to be reaching another level! And I’m all for celebrating this!
The evenings are lighter, days feel longer and sunshine makes an appearance! It feels more like the start of the year, I’m invigorated with new energy! I’ve got more ‘oomph’ to do things! If you’ve got more ‘oomph’ to get that house project going or shed those extra pounds, contact that run club, join that gym, move house, get swimming, remortgage or get in the garden then this months magazine is ready to help! Use our advertisers and your energy to make things happen!
Of course this months recipe has to be for cake! I’ve include my favourite vegan chocolate cake recipe by Anna Jones. I’ve been known to make more than one of these in a week!
The brilliant ‘Walkies for my new hair’ is back! The charity dog walk organised by Trevor Sorbie MBE to raise money for 2 charities, My New Hair who create wigs for people suffering hair loss and the Guide Dogs Association. You don’t need a dog to take part! Details are inside.
Do you know Gosport? Want to share what you know? If so, Gosport Heritage Open Days need you! They are looking for volunteers for this years Open Days. See page 18 for all the details!
Louise Courtney talks about nettle this month. She tells us about it’s benefits and includes a recipe for nettle soup. Check out page 34.
Fancy 50% off a private tennis lesson? How about 10% off beauty services, 10% off your haircut, 10% off tanning, 10% off a dog groom? All these offers and more are inside!
You’ll also find the gardening guide inside, along with what is on locally plus the sudoku. You’ll also find lovely advertisers, news and more!
Don’t forget to follow us on our socials!
Why not try an advert in the May edition? Get your business in front of thousands of lovely local residents! Get in touch! Details below or scan the QR code.
I hope you enjoy this months edition. I also hope you have a lovely April! See you next month!
Read me, keep me or pass me on!
The perfect cake for the chocolate lover in your life! And it’s vegan! Recipe by Anna Jones. Serves 10 (if you’re happy sharing it!)
For the icing
• 100g olive, coconut or vegetable oil
• 65g dark muscovado sugar
• 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
• 200g dark chocolate finely chopped
For the cake
• 200g plain or light spelt flour
• 1 ½ teaspoons bicarbonate of soda
• 75g cocoa powder
• 250g dark muscovado sugar
• 75g olive, coconut or vegetable oil plus extra for greasing
• 1 ½ teaspoons vinegar (I use cider vinegar)
Heat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Grease a 20cm round springform cake tin with oil and line the base with baking paper.
Put all the icing ingredients except the chocolate into a saucepan with 60ml cold water. Heat until everything is melted, making sure the mixture doesn’t boil, then turn off the heat, add the chocolate at once and leave it to sit. After about a minute, the chocolate should have melted. Whisk until you have a thick icing and set aside. It should be cool by the time the cake has baked and cooled.
For the cake, whisk the flour, bicarbonate of soda, a good pinch of sea salt and the cocoa together in a bowl. Make sure there are no lumps of bicarbonate of soda.
In a separate bowl, mix the sugar, 375ml of just-boiled water, the oil and vinegar. Stir the mixture into the dry ingredients, then pour into the prepared tin (it will be quite a wet batter). Bake for 30-40 minutes.
When it is ready, the cake should have pulled away from the edges of the tin and a skewer inserted into the centre will come out clean. Cool for 30 minutes in the tin, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Spoon over the icing and decorate as you like. As you can see I used fruit and more chocolate!
Find more about Anna Jones at: annajones.co.uk
Wallflowers are familiar plants to many people, bringing colour and perfume to gardens in late winter and early spring, though some go on flowering for longer. Those we have in Crescent Garden are the perennial version, Erysimum mutabile, which continue growing and blooming for many years. Those under the old tulip tree have been there for at least 20 years and have long woody stems hidden under the surrounding ivy and usually continue to flower from March through to early summer; but this season, as many gardeners have found, has been a strange one with plants flowering at different times from usual. Wallflowers are popular plants as they are easy to grow, so there have been many modern varieties
introduced, but in Crescent Garden we limit ourselves to old varieties known in Britain before 1850. Erysimum mutabile is native to Morocco and was being grown in Britain by 1777. Erysimum chieri is the wild wallflower of southern Europe and has been grown in British gardens for centuries and has now naturalised on stony waste ground and field walls in Devon and Cornwall, hence the common name. Wallflowers grow well in poor soil and enjoy hot dry sunny conditions. If given too rich a soil they will produce large leafy plants, but no flowers. Wallflowers belong to the family Brassicaceae and are, therefore, related to mustard, cabbage and broccoli. All produce flowers with four petals arranged in a cross shape, hence the old name for the family, Cruciferae. The flowers are nectar rich, have a delicate perfume and, therefore, attract a wide range of pollinating insects; bees, butterflies, moths, hoverflies etc. The small leaves are lanceolate, grey-green and remain on the plant all year round, so making an attractive sight for twelve months of the year when the dead flowers have been removed. In the Victorian language of flowers, wallflowers stood for faithfulness, no doubt because of their faithful growth and blooming year after year.
Do come and enjoy Crescent Garden and look, not only at wallflowers, but the numerous other flowers bursting into bloom this time of year.
Rita RundleCrescent Garden, Crescent Road, Alverstoke alverstokecrescentgarden.co.uk
Photo credit: Rita Rundle
Opening Hours:
Monday to Thursday:8am-5pm Friday:8am-4pm unitrimplastics.co.uk Unit16
Telephone: 023 9252 2880 Email: enquiries@unitrimplastics.co.uk
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...to get involved and organise heritage events 6-15th September 2024
2024 sees the country’s largest festival of history and culture returning to Gosport on 615 September, 30 years after Heritage Open Days (HODs) started. Now Gosport HODS is looking for event organisers, history buffs and volunteers itching to get involved.
The 2024 European heritage routes, networks and connections theme looks at how people and ideas have come together. Anyone with ideas around transport routes, communication networks, trade unions and social clubs is invited to get involved.
For Gosport this could mean walks or talks featuring the Gosport Lines, land or sea defences or around inventions from Henry Court and his pig iron, to the Millennium bridge or others in Gosport. There are so many stories here just waiting to be uncovered, but organisers are now needed to tell them!
People or organisations with ideas around the theme (or not) just need to contact us https://www.gosportheritage.co.uk/getinvolved/ and the Events Team will work with them to help with speakers, venues, equipment, promotional materials, free public liability insurance and whatever is needed to
deliver their event.
Terry Rhodes, Chair of Gosport Heritage Open Days says: “This European Heritage theme is an opportunity to travel these roads, routes and paths of history to discover what we can learn from our ancient routes, business establishments, social clubs, post houses, towers and fortifications today. It is a chance to explore how Gosport’s heritage is connected to a wide variety of influences.”
Terry continued: “In 2023 we had over 24,000 visitors enjoying our 69 events and saw 90% of visitors rating our events either very enjoyable or enjoyable. If you haven’t before, do make this the year you reach out and get involved either by talking to us about a possible event, becoming a volunteer to help behind the scenes or meet the public. This is your chance to make the most of this incredible festival community network.”
Heritage Open Days (HODs) is brought to you by the National Trust, supported by players of People’s Postcode Lottery and run by thousands of local organisations and volunteers, HODs brings people together to celebrate their heritage, community and history.
• Pick off horrid lily beetles that start to emerge
• Mow the lawn
• Now is a good time to lay a new lawn
• Sow grass seed to fill gaps in the lawn
• Divide clumps of hardy perennials
• Prune forsythia once it finishes flowering
• Plant summer bulbs and dahlia tubers
• Trim & tidy wall-trained winter jasmine
• Pinch out fuschias
• Sow sunflowers outside
• Sow hardy annuals
• Tie in climbing and rambling roses
• Top dress containers with fresh compost
• Open doors and vents on warm days
• Sow herbs
• Pot on tomatoes and plant cucumbers
• Give the greenhouse a good clean
• Thin out leek seedlings
• Thin carrot seedlings
• Harvest asparagus spears when they’re no more than 18 cm tall
• Plant dwarf french beans or sow directly now.
• Plant out potatoes, onion sets & shallots
• Sow broad beans, brussels sprouts, kale, beetroot, cabbages, cauliflowers, lettuce, mangetout, pak choi, parsnips, peas, rocket, spinach, spring onions, turnips, radish, squash, pumpkins, carrots, kale, salad crops
• Pick off faded and yellowing leaves from Brussels sprouts to stop disease spreading
• Order late-fruiting strawberry plants
• Give your fruit a feed to boost crops
• Water in dry weather
• Plant asparagus and artichokes
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CONCERT Saturday 27th April 7pm.
St Faith’s Church, Lee on the Solent Schubert Mass in G & Stabat Mater. Fauré Requiem with guest soloists and string quartet. Tickets £12.50 from choir members/07815 002620
Monthly litter pick first Sunday of the month
10-11am Meet in The Alverbank Hotel car park. We provide pickers, bags, gloves and smiles!
10th April 11am - 1pm.
FREE ENTRY, donations gratefully accepted. Payment can be made by card or cash. Crafts, plants and produce for sale, Homemade cake and drinks.
Walk around the peaceful garden and see what the Volunteers and Veterans do. Please park in the main Haslar site. Access for visitors through green pedestrian gate towards the junction of Haslar Road with Fort Road.
Tuesday 23rd April 10.30am
Alverstoke Parish Centre, Green Road, Alverstoke PO12 2ET
Every 4th Tuesday of each month (except December) alverstokeparishcentre.org.uk
Lunch Meeting last Wednesday of the month. Are you a retired professional or businessman? Would you like to meet others in a social atmosphere? Why not join us. We meet at Leeon-the-Solent at 12 noon for 12:30 for a threecourse meal, followed by a speaker. Info: 023 9235 9365 or email timaus29@gmail.com
31st March 12-5.30pm.
With Friends of Stanley Park at the Alverbank. There will be a Children's Easter Trail around the Park starting off from the Alverbank followed by a BBQ & Easter Fun! Tickets £3 for each child to take part, includes entry to the trail and an Easter Treat. Food & Drinks sold separately. Staggered slots for Easter Trail. All proceeds from ticket sales go to the Friends of Stanley Park. Tickets from events page: alverbank.co.uk
2nd & 4th Thursday of the month. Members
Bar Thorngate Hall, Bury Road. From 7:30pm. Free parking from 7pm. Come along and join in or just come along and enjoy the evening.
QUIZ every 1st & 3rd Saturdays of month. £1 to sign in £1 to play. Teams up to 6 followed by card bingo. gosportcommunityassociation.com
Thorngate Halls, Bury Road, Gosport PO12 3PX
2nd Tuesday of each month 1.45pm (not August) St Mary’s Parish Centre, Green Road, Alverstoke, PO12 2ET. First visit free. Watch inspiring demonstrations. Refreshments served. Sue 07841 873871 cravenfortescue@gmail.com or Elaine 023 9258 6961 erobere54@gmail.com
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One of the club’s midweek training sessions is called a ‘Loopy Run’. It is led by a club coach and allows for the fastest and slowest runners to run as one group with everyone running at a pace that they are comfortable with.
The faster runners will run ahead of the group for approximately two hundred metres and then return to join the back of the slower runners and that sequence keeps repeating itself so at the end of a run, a fast runner could have doubled or trebled the distance of the slower runner but everyone in the group has had a good training run, whatever their ability.
Being with other club members can help you to feel safer and more comfortable when out on a run, especially if you’re running when it’s dark or you’re in an area that you’re not familiar with. It’s harder to get lost if you’re with a group and even if you do take a wrong turn, you have each other to figure out how to find your way. And if someone in the group gets injured or ill, there’s always someone there to help.
By running with others, you will become part of a community and experience a sense of belonging. You will start to make friends and develop connections with people. When you
share struggle, friendships develop quickly. You spend a lot of time with people on runs, you end up trying harder and talk about things that you may not touch on so easily outside of the run. People share their world and you get to hear about their lives, listen to stories and share jokes. On a group run you have entertainment as well as inspiration!
On Sunday 25th February we had some great fun taking part in a Treasure Hunt in the Alver Valley. To reach each clue we had to use the ‘what3words’ App on a mobile phone. We split up into groups of five members in each group and only when we found a clue would we know the ‘what3words’ to proceed to the next one. With the recent endless wet weather there was plenty of mud in the valley and none of us escaped running ankle deep through mud at some point of the hunt. There were very welcome hot drinks and cake at the end, great camaraderie and couple of hours of hilarity.
On 29th February our club members combined a Thursday evening run with a jog to our local Waitrose store in Stoke Road and filled two trolleys with items for their Foodbank Donation Point. It was great to see the club support and friendship for each other in action. The Waitrose manager said it made a fun end to the day and we are welcome to run through any Thursday!
If you would like to know more about our club and all our activities, please read our newsletters which are available on the website https://gosportroadrunners.org.uk
WDo you have important legal documents in place to protect your interests and make life easier for you and your family, whatever the future brings?
If you have received a diagnosis of dementia, or are concerned about becoming ill and unable to cope with paying your bills, wouldn’t it be helpful for a family member to be able to step in and deal with your finances? If your family member needed to make decisions for you, instead of just acting on your instructions, they would need your formal written authority to do this.
Formal authority can be given by creating a Lasting Power of Attorney.
This document will allow your family member to take over managing your money, either temporarily or long term.
You can also create a Lasting Power of Attorney which allows your family member to make decisions for you about medical treatment, if you are unable for any reason to make your own decisions. This is not the same as an Advance Decision, which is a document which sets out your decision to refuse medical treatment in the future, under specific conditions.
Christine Davies SolicitorIf you are caring for an elderly relative, or are likely to be doing so in the future, a Lasting Power of Attorney will mean that you can provide the support your relative needs and access services on their behalf, without the difficulties, stress and resistance you would otherwise encounter.
Having a Will gives you peace of mind that your money, property and personal possessions will be going to the people you have chosen to benefit. An out of date Will can cause problems within the family or mean that a chosen beneficiary receives nothing.
If you have any unanswered questions about Wills or Lasting Powers of Attorney, Christine will be pleased to help, so do please get in touch for a free, no obligation, chat.
Call
Christine Davies Solicitoron 07860 772274 or email: christine@winterbornelegal.co.uk
Christine is a Fully Accredited Member of Solicitors for the Elderly and a Dementia Friend. Christine will visit you in your own home and aims to provide a warm personal touch to every meeting.
Nicholas Culpeper, the esteemed 17th century Sussex herbalist, proclaimed that nettles “they may be found by feeling in the darkest night” and if they are found, boy do they sting! This time of year, stinging nettles (Urtica dioica) are cropping up everywhere, and now is the perfect time to harvest the young leaves prior to flowering. The leaves can simply be washed and then steeped in hot water for 10-15 minutes for a refreshing, cleansing, antiinflammatory and nutritive tonic tea; especially beneficial for those in need of extra protein and iron. Nettle leaves are also a traditional remedy for hay fever and asthma support (being antihistamine), and can nourish the kidneys to aid elimination of toxins. This is particularly useful for people suffering from arthritis or gout, and for those suffering with skin conditions. However, it is not just the young leaves that have medicinal benefits. Nettle root, combined with other herbs, is one of the go-to herbs for the treatment of an enlarged prostate or other urinary symptoms, whereas
nettle seed is used to help enhance kidney function. Also, you don’t have to only take them as a tea, you can use the leaves in a pesto or make a nettle soup (see recipe below). Of course, you can pick the young leaves and freeze to use throughout the year. You will often find cleavers (the sticky one!) growing near nettle, so pick some of this too and combine with nettle for a refreshing spring clean tea! So go on, grasp the nettle, just don’t forget your gloves!!
• Approx 150g nettle tops
• A good knob of butter (or vegan alternative)
• 1 large onion peeled and chopped
• 1 litre of veg stock
• 2 celery sticks chopped
• 1 large potato, peeled and cut into cubes
• 50g peas (added towards the end)
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tbsp crème fraiche (or vegan alternative)
• A few drops of extra-virgin olive oil to finish I would wear gloves to sort through the nettles, discarding anything you do not like and any thick stalks. Wash the nettles and drain in a colander. Melt the butter, add the onion and cook gently for 5-7 minutes until softened. Add the stock, nettles, potato and bring to a simmer until the potato is soft, about 15 minutes. Remove from the heat. Purée the soup with a blender and then season with salt and pepper to taste. Ladle into bowls and add a teaspoonful of creme fraiche on top and then add a few drops of extra-virgin olive oil to top.
Follow Louise on instagram @wildsidehealth for photos, tips, research information and all things plant medicine!
That old clock on the wall has long ago stopped
And it needs some love and care
I can come to your house, it won't cost a thing
And try and fix it then and there.
If its really very sick and refuses to start I'll take it away for a while
I'll bring it back as good as new
At a cost that will make you smile.
Antique clocks are my thing and have been for years
The work that I do is guaranteed
There are no nasty shocks or surprises
You will pay just what we agreed.
If you are ready for a change
A new clock to admire
Then I am your go to man
I may have it in stock or if I have not
Then I'll get it for you if I can.
Pioneering UK charity, mynewhair, is gearing up to host another charity dog walk event in partnership with The Alverbank Hotel - this time to support the largest assistance dog organisation in the UK, Guide Dogs UK.
The public is invited to attend the Walkies event on Saturday 25th May at GAFIRS Stokes Bay Beach at 2pm, where Gosport Mayor Cllr Martin Pepper and Mayoress will begin the walk along the shoreline of Stokes Bay.
The event will take place in aid of mynewhair, founded by celebrity hairdresser Trevor Sorbie MBE, and aims to support people living with medical-related hair loss through its nationwide network of Salons that Care and dog assistance charity, Guide Dogs UK.
As well as the walk, guests can expect dog competitions, barbeque, live music, luxury raffle prizes and more.
Last year's Walkies event was supported by celebrities including Matthew Wright and Lorraine Kelly. Their participation contributed to raising over £2,000 for both mynewhair and renowned animal welfare charity, Battersea Dogs & Cats Home.
Trevor said: “We’re thrilled to announce the upcoming Walkies charity event, where we will be working with The Alverbank Hotel raising funds for both mynewhair and Guide Dogs UK.
“Last year we had an incredible day and I want to thank everyone who participated and helped us raise over £2,000 for mynewhair and Battersea. We're hopeful that this year's event will be bigger and better.
“mynewhair has allowed me to support countless individuals suffering with medical hair loss, both physically and mentally. I want to say a special thank you to my wife Carole for her dedication to both the charity and these events, I really couldn’t do it without you.”
To find out more about mynewhair visit www.mynewhair.org or via Twitter @mynewhairorg, or follow the charity on Facebook and LinkedIn.
Members of the Daedalus Aviation and Heritage Group (DA&HG) in Gosport went on a fascinating trip to Cotswold Airport near Cirencester this month.
The fifteen members visiting the airfield set off on a breezy but sunny day with cameras at the ready. Their tour guide at the airfield, Jim and his team, explained how they care for a beautifully restored Bristol Britannia which they’ve kept in the distinctive markings it flew whilst serving in the RAF.
The airport was originally RAF Kemble and the Red Arrows aerobatics team were based there until 1983. Since 2000, it’s been used for the storage and recycling of retired airliners, as well as flying schools and clubs who enjoy the facilities. The site was renamed Cotswold Airport in 2009.
Chair of DA&HG, Terry Coombes, said “We were given a thorough grounding on the history and restoration process for the Britannia, including videos, photographs and many models. We were treated to a seat in the cockpit, noting how times have moved on, no computer screens etc, all very 1950’s technology!”
Several baseball caps were procured, and literature for display in our clubhouse on return, which members and guests can enjoy at the Group’s regular meetings.
On departure from Cotswold Airport it was decided to visit the Gliding Club at Aston Down. One club member there used to glide from Daedalus many years ago and gave us a tour of the hangars noting many vintage/historic gliders amongst the more modern competition examples.
It was a great day and we encourage anyone interested in military and general aviation to visit and join us. We meet monthly on the fourth Wednesday and welcome visitors. www.daedalusaviation.org
Saturday 13th April 10am - 2pm
Alverstoke Parish Centre, Green Road, Alverstoke PO12 2ET
Tables £10.00/ £1.00 at door burleycroft6@gmail.com to book table.
Gosport & Fareham Rugby Club, Dolphin Cres, Gosport, PO12 2HE 8-10.30pm
10th John Maddocks Jazzmen
24th Kevin Grenfell’s Jazz Giants
M £10 G £12 - book early 023 9242 9302 or ww.gosportjazz.org.uk gjcreserve@gmail.com
April 9th, 23rd 10am-12noon
RC Church Hall, Bells Lane, Stubbington £6.50 Dances to beautiful music from around the World. No Partner or experience is required & all dances are taught. New members welcome. Contact Bob & Mary 01329 609589 Mobile: 07748009838 neal.bob61@gmail.com
Wednesday 15th May 6.45 for 7.30-10pm
Alverstoke Parish Centre, Green Road, Alverstoke PO12 2ET. Cheese and Wine Evening with Lecture by Andrew Negus
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- DMK skin revision
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- Advanced nutrition