LymeOnline Digital Edition - December 18 2020

Merry Christmas and a happy new year!

FESTIVE NEWS AND REVIEW OF THE YEAR INSIDE

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FOR LYME REGIS, UPLYME, CHARMOUTH & AXMINSTER ● FORTNIGHTLY ● DECEMBER 18 2020

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Christmas thanks for emergency services

VOLUNTEERS from Lyme Regis lifeboat and fire crews received some early Christmas presents from the local Co-op store this week. The lifeboat and fire crews have remained on-call throughout the pandemic and were thanked for their bravery and dedication to the Lyme Regis community with Christmas goodies from staff at the Co-op store in Broad Street. The store also donated Christmas treats to be distributed via the foodbank to families in need. Store manager Karl Josko said: “We wanted to say thank you to those in the community who have gone above and beyond this year, and what better people than the volunteers of RNLI and the fire crew. These guys are on call 24/7 and have had a busy year.”

Vaccinations underway

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Council toughens up on seafront drinking LYME Regis Town Council has agreed that tougher rules on drinking alcohol on the seafront should be enforced after a troublesome summer.

Incidents of anti-social behaviour increased during the first national lockdown and into the summer months, with the town council resorting to employing its own security guards to patrol the seafront and public gardens during the six-week summer holiday.

Now councillors have agreed to request a behaviour related Public Space Protection Order (PSPO) from Dorset Council, which will give enforcement officers and police more powers to deal with those drinking in public areas, including the seafront, Langmoor and Lister Gardens.

Police and enforcement officers will be given the power to stop people from drinking alcohol to prevent public nuisance, public disorder or anti-social behaviour, and could ask drinkers to surrender any alcohol in their possession.

Similar restrictions are already in place in Bridport and West Bay. Cllr Michaela Ellis said she agreed with the new PSPO but was concerned how it would be enforced and did not want the council to go down the route of employing private security guards again.

The Mayor, Cllr Brian Larcombe MBE, said this had been necessary over the summer and had helped the council’s argument for an increased police presence in the town.

Cllr Gillian Stammers said that enforcing the new PSPO would put a lot of responsibility on the town council’s own enforcement officers. The mayor agreed, adding that they would need as much support as possible.

LYME’S ELDERLY RESIDENTS AMONG FIRST TO RECEIVE COVID JAB BRIDPORT is one of six centres delivering coronavirus vaccines to those aged 80 and over this week, including to patients from Lyme Regis.

Bridport Medical Centre was selected the Jurassic Coast Primary Care Network’s site, which also cov-

FRANCESCA EVANS

francesca@lyme-online.co.uk ers practices in Beaminster, Lyme Regis and Charmouth, and they started vaccinations on Wednesday.

The medical centre has been allocated 975 doses of the vaccine in this first roll-out.

Three nurses from Lyme Regis were among those to help administer the vaccines, with deputy mayor Cllr Stan Williams, in his 80s, among the first to receive the jab.

Dr Karen Kirkham GP, clinical lead for Dorset COVID-19 vaccination programme and assistant clinical director of NHS Dorset Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), said:

“As a local GP in Dorset, I’m so proud of the huge effort that has been made locally to deliver this next phase of the vaccination programme.

“I would like to say a personal thank you to all of the local GPs, nurses, pharmacists, support and logistical staff, other primary care

CONTINUED ON PAGE 3

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Dog owners’ group calls for Dorset Council to scrap new beach rules A DOG owners’ group is appealing to Dorset Council not to enforce its new rules regarding dogs on the beach in Lyme Regis, which will ban exercising dogs off-lead on the town’s main sand and shingle beach from January 1 2021.

Instead, the ‘Lyme Regis’s Loving Dog Owners, Visitors & Friends’ Facebook group is asking the council to enforce laws already in place regarding dog ownership, which they say will “ensure loving dog owners are not unfairly penalised by only targeting those who break the law”.

Under Dorset Council’s new Public Space Protection Order (PSPO) coming into force on New Year’s Day, dogs will be excluded from the sand beach and Cobb Gate shingle beach in Lyme Regis between May 1 to September 30.

However, in a change to previous rules, they will now have to be kept on a lead on these beaches outside this period, having previously been allowed to run loose during the winter months.

The argument over whether dogs should be allowed on the town’s main beach has been one of the most hotly-debated local topics in recent years.

Lyme Regis Town Council pushed for an allyear-round ban of dogs from the sand and shingle beach. Their concerns came from a number of complaints about dog’s mess found on the beach and they were heightened following an incident in which a 12-year-old boy was bitten by a dog on the beach in December 2018.

A well-supported petition was launched against an all-year-round ban and, following public consultation, Dorset Council has now rejected this proposal and agreed that keeping dogs on leads during the winter months was a fair compromise.

However, the ‘Lyme Regis’s Loving Dog Owners, Visitors & Friends’ Facebook group says the new rules raises “major concerns” for dog owner safety, accessibility and mental wellbeing, especially for those who are older or have mobility issues who are signposted to “less safe beaches” in order to allow their dog to exercise off-lead, as no other suitable safe space has been provided.

They have also expressed concerns about dog welfare with “no safe space to exercise dogs off leads”, plus potential loss of income for local business, including the 33 businesses advertised as ‘dog-friendly’ around the town, as dog owners may take their pets elsewhere.

The group will be presenting a 9,000-strong petition to the council, signed by both residents and visitors, asking for restrictions not to be imposed using the new PSPO, as well as video evidence on their YouTube Channel of who is using the beaches on a regular basis.

Instead, they’re asking Dorset Council to use existing laws on dog ownership so only those who cause issues are penalised.

They are also appealing to the Lyme Regis Town Council, as landowners of the sandy beach, to allow dog owners to exercise their dogs off lead during the winter months, should the Dorset Council decline their appeal.

The group’s founder Debbie Conibere said: “The simple solution is to look at the example being set by North Devon Council who are enforcing the current laws surrounding dog ownership, only targeting those who break the laws, instead of using the PSPO to blanket ban all dog owners which discriminates against those loving dog owners who keep their dogs under control, pick up fouling and many of whom pick up litter and keep the beaches safe for all to use.

“Councils need to be mindful that, as well as the regular daily dog walkers who tend to be

creatures of habit and walk at the same time each day, there are many families with children who are also dog owners, who enjoy family time outdoors together as a unit on this safe and accessible beach.

“Families, and those with mobility issues, will be signposted to tidal beaches that are under seawater for a lot of the day and less safe beaches with steep steps, slippery large rocks, broken glass and twisted metal from the Victorian tip, blue lias and rock falls, which can lead to expensive rescues when cut off by the tide and accidents on the unsuitable terrain.

“This PSPO also gives a subliminal message that the welfare of the responsible and loving dog owners are not important enough to allow them off-lead exercise on the only safe accessible beach in Lyme Regis.

“Leaving your regular daily dog walker and families facing tidal beaches that are underwater at their usual dog walking time is unfair, discriminating and depressing.

“We are making this appeal at the same time that The Kennel Club are petitioning the government to cease the use of PSPO to impose restrictions on dog owners.”

Dorset Council’s recent public consultation on dogs on beaches, which was held with the aim of harmonising restrictions on beaches across the county, showed 49.2 per cent of respondents in favour of dogs off leads on Lyme Regis beach, against 48.7 per cent for dogs on leads.

Mrs Conibere added: “Instead of going with

the majority results which included input from visitors, who bring much needed revenue and income into the town, these visitors responses were dismissed and a new result of dogs on leads during the winter months was given.

“The dog group feel this blanket ban is highly unfair and questions why all responses were not taken into consideration especially when Dorset Council wanted to harmonise restrictions across their beaches.

“Lyme Regis Town Council submitted a statement to the PSPO Scrutiny Committee requesting a full-year ban of dogs on the only safe and accessible beach and stated that dog fouling to be one of the issues when, in fact, there have been zero fines for dog fouling in 2020 and only three issued in 2019 for the whole of Dorset.”

Regular visitor Marion Morris also expressed her disappointment at the restrictions, commenting: “Once the on-lead restrictions come into place I will no long be visiting Lyme Regis sandy beach with my three-year-old and 13year-old grandchildren, and two friendly springer spaniels, due to the alternative beaches not being accessible for me due to having trouble walking on uneven ground and slippery rocks.

“This means the local shops and dog friendly cafes will lose my custom too.”

You can find out more on the Lyme Regis’s Loving Dog Owners, Visitors & Friends Facebook page at www.facebook.com/groups/lymeregisdogowners

newsfromwestminster

A monthly column by West Dorset MP Chris Loder

I HAVE vigorously challenged the government on its tier review, four times in this week alone; including questions and a speech in the House of Commons and a call with 10 Downing Street.

I’ve pressed ministers to bring rural Dorset down to Tier 1, to reflect our current low case rate. I will be very frustrated if we remain in Tier 2, especially given the absence of a clear explanation.

Our diligence and self-responsibility have led to this lower case rate. Indeed, Lyme Regis, Charmouth and the Marshwood Vale area registers less than three cases for the seven days to December 10.

We cannot afford another spike of cases in January so, whilst enjoying each other’s company over Christmas, please also continue to be sensible.

We must also give further support to our small and micro-sized businesses and the self-employed in West Dorset; many of whom have invested heavily to become COVID-secure. I will continue to do all I can for them, to get rural Dorset to Tier 1, and I have also challenged the Business Secretary on fair financial support.

On Brexit, the Prime Minister and the European Commission President have agreed to go ‘the extra mile’ and I remain hopeful that a deal will be made. UK and European Parliaments will need to vote on any deal in advance of December 31; therefore, my colleagues and I will be on standby to attend the House of Commons at very short notice between Christmas and New Year.

One thing is for certain: that the UK will start

2021 in full control of its money, its borders and its laws; and with every opportunity ahead of us.

My campaigning for West Dorset in Westminster has again achieved investment, with £214,000 for Dorset Council through the Green Recovery Challenge; a plan to kick-start environmental renewal as part of the government’s 25 Year Environment Plan.

The funding will be used to restore freshwater ponds, rivers, lowland meadows, traditional orchards and hedgerows; benefiting jobs as well as increasing opportunities for us to connect with our natural environment.

Finally, I would like to thank all those responsible for the spectacular Christmas decorations adorning Lyme Regis which are bringing such cheer. And to wish all of you, your family and your friends, a very happy Christmas.

Visit www.chrisloder.co.uk for links to my social media channels and news, or email hello@chrisloder.co.uk if you are interested in a face-to-face meeting at one of my surgeries

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Lyme patients called for first COVID vaccinations CONTINUED FROM FRONT PAGE and social care system who have been working round the clock to make it happen.

“Primary care networks have been working rapidly to redesign their sites and put in place safe processes to meet the tough logistical challenges of offering the vaccination.

“This is very much going to be a marathon, rather than a sprint, and we’d like to ask for the continued help of the public to help us as we continue the roll-out of the vaccination programme for the people NURSES from Lyme Bay Medical Practice were among those heping to administer the vaccine in Bridport this week of Dorset.

“The NHS will let you it’s really important that we continue to follow know when it’s your turn to have the vaccine. It’s the rules to prevent transmission. important not to contact the NHS for a vaccina“Please only meet people from other housetion before then. holds outdoors and keep washing your hands “If you can’t make an appointment let us know regularly, wearing a face covering and maintainas soon as possible and we can then offer the slot ing your distance from others. to someone else. You will be called again.

“We also need to remain vigilant for any sympSam Crowe, director of public health for Dorset toms of COVID-19 – a new, continuous cough, a and Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole high temperature or a loss or change of taste or councils, said: “It’s great to see this next phase smell. Please self-isolate immediately and book of the COVID-19 vaccination programme getting a test if you have any of these, and remain at underway in Dorset. home with your household until you get your re“With such a huge programme, it is going to sults back.” take time to reach everybody and offer enough For more information, www.bridportmedicalprotection against the virus, so in the meantime centre.co.uk/covid-19

Mayor reflects on challenging year 2019 was a remarkably successful year and Lyme was on a real high as the town and the council planned and delivered on so many fronts.

Broad Street was full of scaffolding; businesses invested in all parts of the town, and the council lifted the levels of its contribution to raising the standard of Lyme as a destination of choice to live and visit. There was so much going on and real visibility of Lyme being 'on the up'.

2020 followed and COVID-19 arrived in our world with all that accompanied it. It became practically all consuming, so much so that it is easy to forget just what was achieved in 2019, much of which helped the sustainability of the year that was to follow.

It has required a great deal of personal time and effort to get through the past year with fundamental questions of all we do and value.

Everyone has focussed on this, and the result of this and the previous year, has the council in a better position than would have been. It has created a position with every reason to be optimistic for 2020.

The finances are at a good level despite the early year impact of COVID; the measures we've taken are sound and, while we must remain cautious in our plans, carefully manage our commitments and look to ongoing efficiencies, the next few years will see the council's position better placed for subsequent years.

We've done a considerable number of things in the last two years, amongst them we had the essential but monumental cost of the 'once in a generation' seafront shelters roof resurfacing; we've worked hard to improve and raise the standards of the Langmoor Gardens and the cemetery - and both are looking better than ever; we've installed extensive feature lighting in an otherwise dull and under-used woodland walk area at the top of the gardens; we've put in place a long expanse of seafront benches - that became an instant successful feature of the length of the parade and the unique pedestrian area it is; we've raised the level of seafront and beach cleaning and waste collection; we've redesigned and refurbished the seafront toilets; we've replenished our stock of beach huts; we've con-

tinued to maintain a substantial level of support to local clubs, groups and societies - and given a level of grants that remains in total significantly higher than other towns across Dorset; we've invested in the maintenance of our assets and the listed Guildhall, and importantly we've raised our dialogue and relationship with others in Dorset and the surrounding area.

This is but a snapshot of the sizeable and more visible things we've done in the last two years; there has also been a significant range of other less obvious areas of effort and support, and measures that enables some room to continue to deliver on many of the things we are aiming to complete over the remaining life of the present council.

2019 and 2020 have been two contrasting and remarkable years.

If COVID has done anything it has required us to re-evaluate plans and priorities, our spend, and the way we do things - all of which has to be an ongoing habit whatever the social, health or economic climate we live within.

We can be aspirational and we have to be pragmatic; we can be ambitious and we have to be realistic; we can set targets and we have to deliver, and finally we can commit and we have to be adaptable. It's as true for government as it is for principal authorities, and as true for us as a council as it is for us as individuals.

Cllr Brian Larcombe MBE, Mayor of Lyme Regis

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NEWS ONLINE: Catch up with A round-up of the top stories from our website

Harbour remains in the black despite pandemic LYME Regis harbour has bucked the trend during the coronavirus pandemic and is still expected to finish the year having made a small profit.

All three of Dorset Council’s harbours – Weymouth, West Bay and Lyme Regis – have been affected by the pandemic this year, but Lyme is still expected to end the year with a £6,000 profit thanks to much lower expenditure than its neighbours.

Police launch drink driving campaign DORSET Police is running its annual Christmas drink and drug driving campaign until New Year’s Day. Officers want to raise awareness of the inherent dangers involved in drink and drug driving by encouraging people to take responsibility for their actions this Christmas. Throughout the operation, officers will be requesting roadside breath tests from all drivers who commit a moving road traffic offence, whether or not they suspect a drink driving offence or not.

Remote tourist information services to cease this month

LYME Regis Tourist Information Centre will cease all services later this month, with its office having been closed down earlier this year. The TIC office was closed for lockdown in March but never reopened, with Dorset Council taking the decision to permanently shut it down in August, public consultation overwhelmingly calling for a retained face-to-face service. Staff have since been working remotely, offering an information service via email and phone from home, but this will stop operating on December 29.

New boundary markers on coast path Reduced bus timetable for Christmas NEW boundary markers have appeared along the Dorset coast path, between Lyme Regis and Abbotsbury, to let walkers know when they have passed from one parish into the next.

They each revealing something about the area’s history and landscape, including references to fossil hunter Mary Anning.

DURING the holiday season, bus operator First Wessex will be operating revised levels of service from Sunday, December 20 until Saturday, January 2. The X51 between Axminster and Dorchester and the X53 between Axminster and Weymouth will be operating a reduced service

Follow LymeOnline on social media to stay up to date 24/7 facebook.com/ LymeOnlineUK twitter.com/ LymeOnlineUK instagram.com/ lymeonline

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Town council launches Discovery Trail AN exciting new tourism initiative is being launched this week by Lyme Regis Town Council. Lyme Regis Town Map and Discovery Trail has been introduced to replace the traditional, printed town brochure with a modern multi-media map and town guide. It also replaces the popular traders’, map which has not been produced in the past two years. The concept has been delivered by local design agency Coastline Creative, using the skills of local designers, illustrators, video producers and voiceover artists. You can find the trail at www.discoverlymeregis.co.uk

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the latest from Lyme Regis

FROM LYME’S OW N COMMUNIT Y WEBSITE

Stay up to date at www.lyme-online.co.uk - 24/7 news | sport | community

How you helped us through 2020

Was this Britain’s fifth Pandemic puts police mysterious monolith? £1.3m over budget AN unusual steel structure reportedly appeared on the Jurassic Coast between Lyme Regis and Charmouth last weekend. Was this the latest in a spate of mysterious monolith appearances at famous British landmarks? Lyme Regis fossil hunter Nigel Clarke posted the above photo of the structure, protruding from the sand, on social media.

DORSET Police is more than £1.3million over budget in its day to day spending so far this year – largely due to the pandemic and a higher than average number of large police operations. But the figure, until September, represents less than one per cent of the annual £143million revenue spend of the force.

WELL, we made it - Lyme Regis has almost reached the end of this most unprecedented and unforgettable year. Events cancelled, doors closed, streets empty 2020 will definitely go down in the history books and, while we’re not quite out of the woods yet, let’s hope it is just that - history - and we can all begin to move on in 2021.

It seems strange to think that maybe one day coronavirus will be a distant memory, and we’ll look back and say, “Do you remember that strange year when we couldn’t go out, when we couldn’t meet friends, when we all wore masks, when the pubs were closed?”

Here’s hoping anyway!

We started the year in an enthusiastic mood in the LymeOnline office. We launched our weekly video news bulletins on our website in January, marked our second anniversary in February and printed our most financially successful edition just before coronavirus really hit the UK in March, when we were forced to put the newspaper on hiatus due to the financial implications of lockdown.

For me, that was pretty heartbreaking. While I have worked in the local press since I was 18, LymeOnline is the first newspaper I have launched myself - I’ve built the website, written articles, taken photos, filmed videos, designed pages, sold adverts, grown our social media following and hand-delivered the papers around town (with lots of help from my family, that is!). Basically, I’ve obsessed about it everyday for almost three years - it is my baby.

Back in March, the idea of that all falling apart was devastating. But we stuck at it, knowing that the need for local, trusted news was probably greater than ever in such uncertain times. We continued to update our website everyday, produced a digital edition of the newspaper every fortnight for readers to flick through on screen, and for a few weeks even printed a scaledback, eight-page version to pop through the doors of some of our most loyal readers, especially those with no internet access.

Every day we wondered if our business would survive, but every day we were spurred on by the kindness and

support of our readers, who told us how much they appreciated LymeOnline - you really kept us going.

And finally some good news; having almost given up hope on grant applications, we were told we had been successful in applying for the Google News Initiative’s Journalism Emergency Relief Fund (the one we thought we were least likely to get!), and a little while later, a discretionary grant for Dorset Council - thanks in no small part to help from our local MP Chris Loder.

There were other reasons to celebrate in the midst of the pandemic, too; in May we teamed up with Nub News, a national network of hyperlocal news websites, to provide coverage of Axminster and Seaton; in June, LymeOnline was commended in the Community Website of the Year category of the newsawards 2020; and in August the LymeOnline site attracted record hits of 37,964.

August also saw the printed LymeOnline newspaper relaunched after 20 weeks and, while advertising revenues are not what they were back in February, we are building on them every week. The second national lockdown came as another bitter blow in November, but fortunately this time we were only out of print for two issues and are now fully up and running again.

We hope to keep it that way in 2021 - to continue to grow, flourish and bring you unrivalled coverage of the Lyme Regis area. Of course, we wouldn’t have been able to make it through this year without the continued support of our readers, sponsors, advertisers and volunteer paper ‘boys and girls’ - the biggest and most grateful thanks to you all. When you pick up a copy of this paper, click onto our website, book an advert, make a donation or share a story with us, you are supporting an independent, family-run business with the community at heart.

A very merry Christmas and a happy, healthy and prosperous new year to all.

Francesca Evans,

Editor

The

Woodmead Halls Charmouth caravan park sold to Park Holidays UK

YOUR LOCAL COMMUNITY HALL

PARK Holidays UK has bolstered its already strong presence in the West Country with the acquisition of long-established Wood Farm Caravan Park in Charmouth. Wood Farm joins the seven other parks operated by Park Holidays UK in Dorset and Devon, and brings to 32 the number of parks now in the group’s portfolio. Wood Farm has been owned by the same local family for about 50 years, bought by Duncan and Joan MacKinnon in 1972 and now owned by their daughter and parish councillor Jane Bremner.

Arts Council grant for Jazz Jurassica ONE of Lyme Regis’ most popular music festivals will go ahead next year after receiving a grant from the Arts Council. Jazz Jurassica – the town’s annual jazz and blues festival – was one of the first major, local events to be called off this year due to the coronavirus pandemic. But organisers are now looking forward to 2021, and said the festival will definitely go ahead in May unless a full national lockdown is called. For full details see www.jazzjurassica.co.uk

Wedding Venue | Corporate Events Clubs & Organisations | Children’s Parties Fitness Classes | Concerts & Shows

The perfect venue for every occasion!

For further details or to get in touch, vist woodmeadhalls.co.uk

6 Friday, December 18 2020

LYME MATTERS with Philip Evans Essential reading for all those with Lyme at heart

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philip@lyme-online.co.uk

To these and many others who helped to keep our spirits high I

PROMISED myself that I would not mention the dreaded C-word in this, my last column of this most distressing of years.

I am fed up of writing about it and you, dear reader, I am sure are fed up of reading about it.

But as this is the last LymeOnline of 2020 - the year we all want to forget - it is perhaps appropriate to be thankful we live in a town which always rises to the occasion in times of adversity.

Lyme is not alone in this, I know.

It is the British way. In cities, towns

Rikey Austin and Paddy Howe - giving up their home for a community garden

and villages all over this land, acts of kindness have dominated our television screens and newspaper columns. But many more have gone unrecognised and without publicity.

Here at LymeOnline we’ve done our best to chronicle the dozens of examples which demonstrate that Lyme is, and has always been, a caring town.

There will be dozens of other examples which we have not recorded; people offering help and support but who wished to remain anonymous.

The problem of making a list of good deeds is that there will always be someone who is not mentioned who should be.

What follows is a few examples of the kindly acts or community initiatives on which we have reported throughout the year.

You may know of many more. If so, please get in touch and we can express our thanks in print early in the New Year.

But let us remember, although all those aged 80 years and above who live in and around Lyme have received their vaccinations this week, this worrying situation is far from over.

We have to stay vigilant, probably for many months to come, until all who wish to have the vaccine have done so. And that means the support network set up in our town will

continue its wonderful work.

So here are a few examples of the good deeds and novel moraleboosting ideas we have reported on since the town first went into lockdown in March.

We acknowledge the following: ● The wonderful nurses and medical staff in Lyme, Uplyme and Charmouth who have risked their lives protecting all and sundry from the epidemic. ● LymeForward and all those shops and individuals who have contributed to helping to feed the needy through the Lyme Regis Foodbank. ● Local chefs for preparing meals for schoolchildren, the elderly and NHS front-line staff, using the kitchen facilities at the Woodmead Halls ● The Lyme Community Support, Group (set up originally by Victoria Cottle and Grace Herbert) for setting up a network of volunteers to help the vulnerable and those in need - work that continues to this day. ● The Lyme Garden Growers, launched by Rikey Austin with help from husband Paddy Howe, who have put their house on the market to be able to buy a piece of land to create a community garden and nursery to provide locally grown produce for those in need completely free of charge. Residents are being encouraged to grow their own

Joshua and Jacob Denning - fundraisers extraordinaires

fruit, vegetables and herbs and then donate or swap seeds and produce depending on the local need. ● Sarah and Neville Causley for raising spirits during the lockdown by organising weekly quiz nights on social media and performing hilarious cabaret routines during the intervals. ● The Denning family of Lym Close for their magnificent fundraising activities for numerous Lyme charities which have struggled through lockdown, especially brothers Joshua and Jacob. ● Local photographer Rob Coombe who made a photographic record of Lyme in lockdown to publish a book in aid of the foodbank.

Neville and Sarah Causley - raising spirits with weekly quizzes and cabaret acts ● Steve Batey and Kirsty Roberts, of Fossil Food Catering, for providing free meals for NHS and front-line workers during the first lockdown.

To all the above and many, many more whose efforts have gone unheralded, the town offers its gratitude and admiration.

Remember, if you know someone or a group which deserves recognition, please let us know.

To them and all our readers, I hope you find some peace this Christmas - safe in the knowledge that the town’s support network will stay in place no matter how long it takes to defeat the unmentionable C-word.

The last of the great landladies of Lyme I WAS so sorry to hear this week that Margaret Vincent, former mine host at the Pilot Boat in Lyme, had died, aged 92.

She was the last of the great landladies of Lyme and her passing will be especially be mourned by a generation of young men from my era who poured out their hearts over the bar at the Pilot when Cupid’s bow fell woefully short.

Margaret was never adverse to a bit of match-making either.

Two years ago I wrote about Margaret reaching her 90th year and I can think of no better tribute than to repeat those memories here: “Belated congratulations to one of Lyme’s most popular landladies. Margaret Vincent, wife of Jack Vincent, who ran the Pilot Boat, one of the town’s most fre-

quented hostelries (at least by me) for many years, recently celebrated her 90th year.

“When I was growing up Lyme had 11 pubs and we all had our favourites. Mine was definitely the Pilot Boat where, in his early days in Lyme, Jack also ran a garage at the back, converted to the Inn Plaice function suite when Bill and Caroline Wiscombe took over the pub.

“Margaret was the epitome of the glamorous pub landlady. Most nights she would make an entrance – and I mean an entrance – in the lounge bar (back bar to us locals), at around 9pm, immaculate make-up and dressed to the nines.

“This was in the days of the pub lock-in and Jack would ensure that non-locals emptied their glasses by 11.10pm and all

the locals were ushered into the back bar where the real fun would begin. Nobody expected to leave before 2am and I can remember on one occasion leaving the Pilot with another regular, John Lloyd, at five in the morning!

“Although Jack detested juke boxes, Margaret loved to dance and would take a twirl with all us regulars.

“Jack and Margaret were big supporters of the regatta and carnival during my years as secretary and always put great effort into the fancy dress nights that were staged in all the pubs. Invariably they won the cup for the best decorated bar.

“There were two other permanent fixtures at the Pilot – pot man F-F-Fred and Jack and Margaret’s much loved dog Azul.

“Things occasionally got out of hand, es-

pecially if Axminster farmer Martin Bright was in town. He would invariably strip down to his underpants and run from the Pilot Boat to Cobb Gate and back just for the hell of it, his modesty often protected by two dinner plates, back and font.

“Jack and Margaret would often take a winter break to Majorca and I joined them on a couple of occasions. On one late night in Palma I can remember we all winced when Margaret grabbed an armed policeman in the street and started dancing with him.”

Rest in peace Margaret. We will never forget you.

The funeral service will take place at 2pm at St Michael’s Parish Church on January 6.

Friday, December 18 2020 7

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New skate shop opens doors LYME Regis’ first skate shop has opened doors, joining a number of new local businesses that have managed to get off the ground during the most challenging year for high street traders.

Frontside Clothing was launched as an online shop last month and has now opened doors in Broad Street premises formerly occupied by House of Flowers florist and The Mad Hatter’s cake shop.

Owner of The Galley Café, Keian Gillet, and his chef Josh Caesar, who both share a passion for the skating scene, are behind the new business and reported on great support from the local community on their opening day last Saturday.

They’re now hoping to make the most of the pre-Christmas trade in their new high street shop, as schools break up for the festive holidays.

As well as stocking skating hardware, including decks and wheels, the shop offers a range of clothing which Keian says will appeal, not just to young skateboarders, but to a more grown up market too.

Frontside Clothing’s range of shirts, T-shirts and hoodies includes high-quality brands such as Brixton, Lakia and Alltimers, along with accessories such as hats and socks. Shoes from popular brands Vans and D.C are also expected to be in stock soon.

Keian and Josh said: “The idea was to bring together classic skate styles and hardware with modern streetwear fashion and become known as a street/lifestyle brand.

“We strive to bring the core skate brands from the UK and beyond, from small skater-backed brands like Death skateboards (the longest running UK skate brand) and Lovenskate (UK based clothing and hardware label), to global fashion

icons such as Vans and Brixton Clothing.

“We not only focus on choosing popular brands but also brands that we loved and supported back in the day. We endeavour to promote sustainable and local brands where possible and strive to support our local economy as much as we can.

“We aim to bring the skate communities within the South West of England together through events and skate jams, and our dream is to create our own Frontside-backed skate team, sponsoring local shredders and up and coming groms by providing boards, apparel and funding as much as we can.”

For more information visit the website frontsideclothing.co.uk

Tales From Lyme’s Past

A glimpse of our history with Peter Lacey

Elizabethan Lyme Regis, Part III THIS third and final part of my series will feature buildings and places that Elizabethans would have been familiar with.

The thriving Butter Market stood at the lower end of today’s Church Street on the site now occupied by the Guildhall and the museum it was then known as Cockmoil Square.

Close by there was a merchant’s house described as “a fair house in Lime and having a goodly tower”; the tower may have been constructed so that the merchant could keep watch on his ships leaving or returning from foreign parts.

On the seaward side of the square was Gun Cliff, so called because a cannon mounted there could defend the Cobb and the bay.

There are several references to the Dark House, which made up part of the square; it was in fact the town’s dungeon where those who broke the law were confined in a dark, damp and most likely rat-infested cell and fed only on bread and water.

Cockmoil was a provincialism for a jail; ‘cock’ was used to describe something small, ‘moil’ being an Elizabethan adage for drudgery.

Pound Street takes its name from the animal pound that was situated at the top end of today’s Broad Street, close by the bull ring where bulls and bears were baited by savage dogs, a popular blood sport of the times.

Also in the vicinity was the town’s bowling green and a nearby tavern for players to refresh themselves.

In 1569 The Court of Husting’s recorded “there is too much bowling and to little shooting”. Able bodied men aged 17-60 were required by law to keep a bow and four arrows and required to practice at the Archery Butts in Mill Green. It seems that Elizabethan men much preferred bowling, so fines of one shilling were imposed for being ‘common bowlers’.

The records state that “there be divers merchants and other honest men who doth bowl too much, unlawful games are used and no bows exercised”.

Strangely there was also a problem with “people using the butts on the Sabbath contrary to statue” - archery practice being more entertaining than church.

The town’s water supply, known as ‘pot water’, came from two natural springs. The west supply came from Saint Andrew’s well (originally the site of a chapel/shrine), which stood at the top of Silver Street, the name being linked to the Roman occupation and its Latin name via ad Silvestris, ‘the wooded way’, or ‘the way to the woods’.

The easterly source was from a spring located close to the Charmouth trackway. In 1550 the town accounts show an expenditure of just over £40 for building channels in West Street ‘for getting in the water.

This ends the three-part series on Elizabethan Lyme Regis, it also is the last of my ‘Tales, From Lyme’s Past’. In all there have been 20 in the series and I hope readers have enjoyed delving into our town’s unique and fascinating history.

For the past four years I have been researching and writing an historical novel which I hope to see published in 2021. It is set in Lyme, Bermuda and Virginia during the 16th and 17th centuries and is based on the life of a Lyme orphan.

If you have enjoyed my articles, maybe you will be tempted to purchase a copy.

Peter Lacey Local author and historian You can read all of Peter Lacey’s ‘Tales of Lyme’s Past’ columns on the Blogs section of the LymeOnline website www.lyme-online.co.uk

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thefoodreview

8 Friday, December 18 2020

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Warm welcome awaits at Mark’s cosy, country pub

T

HERE couldn’t be two more contrasting businesses – the suave but hugely relaxed Oyster & Fish House, with glorious views over Lyme Bay, and the quaint Fox Inn at Corscombe, everything you might expect from a country pub right down to the open fires and thatched roof.

Both are now run by chef, restaurateur and food author Mark Hix, who despite the current restrictions on eating out and socialising, is rebuilding his empire. Could you think of a more challenging time to open a new business is these fragile times?

Opening a country pub in the middle of a pandemic may well be considered brave or foolhardy. But, as they say, “you can’t keep a good man down”.

In many ways Mark, despite his reputation as one of the most innovative chefs in the country, is a private man but he has opened up in many a recent interview on how heartbroken he was when his much-lauded Lyme Regis restaurant became the first high profile casualty of COVID-19.

His fight to save HIX Oyster & Fish House in is home county of Dorset and the battle to buy it back from the administrator, after its parent company decided to pull the plug (a decision not supported by Mark), has also been well documented.

But it was the first restaurant that he owned after a glittering career in some of the most famous and successful eateries in London. And he wasn’t going to let it go without exhausting every opportunity to rebuild the business.

Mark was left with no income and nothing to do - but not for long. Instead of wallowing in his own disappointment, he started to exploit his great love of fish and his relationship with the local fishing fraternity – and bought a mobile truck serving fresh seafood and shellfish from the car park at Felicity’s Farm Shop in Morcombelake.

Soon word got round that Mark was back in business, not in his whites behind the pass in some elegant restaurant, but in an inhospitable former Army hospital truck. His many admirers soon caught on and the queues started to form, especially for the Flodge smoked salmon with Hix’s very own to-die-for home cure.

It wasn’t long before the news got out that Mark was negotiating to return The Oyster & Fish House to local ownership and, after a flurry of activity, he was back in his beloved Lyme eatery that attracts customers from far and wide. Despite the restrictions imposed by COVID-19 on the number of covers, The Oyster & Fish House, like many other restaurants in Lyme, enjoyed a better than expected summer and early autumn. Pandemic? What pandemic?

Mark’s experience and reputation was soon snapped up by another leading restaurant group in London, but he was seen more often than not back in West Dorset, where he grew up, and then out of the blue came some more surprising news – Mark is opening a pub!

Mark describes The Fox Inn in Corscombe as “a lovely contrast” to The Oyster & Fish House and admits that opening a new venture might not seem to be the best time. But he points out that he opened the HIX Oyster and Chop House in London during the credit crunch and

EATING OUT REVIEW

by Philip Evans

The Fox Inn, Corscombe it was an immediate success. Hopefully, a good omen.

There can be no denying it’s a country pub deep into West Dorset. On the opening night it was pouring with rain as we took the long and narrow climb in thick fog from Beaminster.

The road then opens and there it is – the 17th century Grade II Fox in all its picture-card glory.

There’s a real rural feel inside, much bigger than you would imagine, with cosy sitting areas, a bar and a dining area called Bill’s Garden Room, named after Mark’s late grandfather, and a Fox Room featuring illustrations by his daughter Lydia.

There’s also a large area at the back of the building where Mark intends to launch his new ‘Kitchen Library’ experience when COVID regulations allow, with guest chefs hosting ticketed dinners in this exclusive space, very similar to the one he had at his Tramshed restaurant in London.

There is also an outdoor seating area with panoramic views of the Dorset fields and rolling hills, which will be hugely popular during the summer months.

There will be a number of minor alterations made next spring with the creation of facilities for overnight stays.

During lockdown the pub is only open three days a week but Mark is intending to extend this to six days as soon as the COVID restrictions allow.

The menu is very Mark – locally sourced food from the Dorset countryside - and very ‘countryfide’ in contrast to the fish-dominated dishes at the Lyme Regis restaurant. Mark will be working with local farmers and gamekeepers offering local meat and game dishes and hearty pub classics, as well as traditional Sunday lunches.

Starters range in price from £7.75 to £13.25 and include Pennybun and chestnut soup, winter squash salad with pickled walnuts and pennywort, wood pigeon salad with elderberries, Heaven & Earth (black pudding and wild boar with potato and apple) and Flodge Hix cured salmon.

Game dishes feature prominently on the mains menu – roe deer hotpot with pickled red cabbage (£16.50) and Lyons Hill pheasant escalope ‘Holstein’ (£14.75). Also available: Bellair Haye bangers and mash with onion gravy (£13.50), Downhouse Farm mutton chop curry (£15.75), roast turbot with seashore vegetables (£28.75) and Hannan’s Himalayan salt aged sirloin (260g £25/500g £48).

Sides (£3.75) include chipped, parsley or mashed potatoes, buttered winter vegetables and lettuce heart salad.

Puddings are priced between £1.50 for a scoop of Mark’s famous Credit Crunch icecream, to £7.75 for Willies Peruvian gold chocolate mousse; bread and butter pudding (£7.50), apple pie with vanilla ice-cream (£7.25), and cranberry and hazelnut chocolate

MARK Hix pictured outside his new country pub, The Fox Inn in Corscombe. Below left, Bill’s Garden Room, named after Mark’s grandfather, and below right, the gamekeeper’s hot pot

shards (£4.50).

A selection of farmhouse cheeses served with crackers, chutney and Trish Maunder’s Somerset membrillo costs £12.

A bar menu is also available with such delights as Black Cow cauliflower cheese (£.75), toad in the hole with onion gravy (£8.50) and Flodge smoked herring with colcannon and poached Burford brown egg (£10.50).

The vegetarian and vegan menu offers such delights as steamed kale hearts with shaved Berkswell (£7.25) and autumn vegetable tart with a poached Burford brown egg (£12.50).

Children are welcome at The Fox and have their own menu options including minute steak and chips (£9.95) and a Foxy chip butty (£7).

As to be expected from one of Mark’s restaurants, there’s a full and varied wine list to suit all tastes and pockets and a selection of cocktails including one of Mark’s favourites – the Dorset Donkey (Black Cow vodka, Morello cherry brandy, lime juice, honey and ginger ale).

A warm welcome was extended to my family and I when we attended on opening night from Mark’s loyal marketing guru Jo Harris, the staff and Mark himself who was looking every bit the country gentleman in a tweed three-piece suit, in stark contrast to the shorts and T-shirt we often see him in when serving from his fish

truck or pottering about in the harbour at Lyme.

Opening times: Tuesday to Saturday, 11am to 10pm; Sunday, 11am to 10pm (last lunch booking at 3.30 pm). On Sunday evenings just one dish is available. Bookings are essential on 01935 317555 or visit www.thefoxinncorscombe.co.uk ■ MARK is also involved in two other projects – ‘Mark’s Bar At Home’ in which he has teamed up with Cocktail Market to create fresh, handmade cocktails, ready to shake or stir, delivered free and chilled to your door; and ‘Hix At Home’ – your chance to cook along with Mark at home during lockdown courtesy of Plymouth-based Sound Food, creating weekly fish boxes, also delivered free to your door.

Each week two fish species are chosen to serve two or four people. Once an order is placed you will receive the recipes and an exclusive link to watch the online tutorial with Mark to learn how to fillet and prepare the fish for a delicious start and course.

Orders have to be placed before 6pm on a Tuesday and will be delivered to your home on a Friday.

Details for ordering both these services can be found on The Fox Inn website www.thefoxinncorscombe.co.uk

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thefoodreview

Friday, December 18 2020 9

Tom’s adds to Lyme’s growing foodie reputation

S

EAFRONT restaurant Tom’s opened in Lyme Regis this week and is sure to add to the town’s growing reputation as one of the South West’s top food and drink destinations.

Tom Robinson, a former chef at London’s renowned East India Club, and his wife Chelsea share a passion for great food and high standards of customer service.

After a successful run over the summer at The Pop-Up Kitchen in Broad Street, which is proving to be a springboard for some of the best chefs in the area, the couple have now opened their family-run business in premises formally occupied by the Ocean View restaurant - a prime location on Marine Parade, offering inside and outside seating with stunning views across the bay.

The menu at Tom’s, which will change seasonally, showcases stunning seafood and the best of local produce, with a heavy focus on fish dishes along with varied meat and vegetarian options.

Ahead of the official opening this week, I was lucky enough to be invited to their soft launch event and took my Dad along as my guest - the only person in my family as obsessed with food and eating out as me!

We were greeted with a warm welcome from Chelsea and maître d Rob Moretto, former manager at HIX Oyster & Fish House, and quickly noticed the changes following a simple but stylish refurbishment of the seafront restaurant, including a selection of local artwork on the walls.

If scallops are on a menu I will always choose them and my starter was no disappointment perfectly cooked and served with cauliflower, girolle mushrooms and cognac (£12) - while Dad opted for the tasty crab and brandy bisque (£10).

Other starter options included the ‘G&T’

EATING OUT REVIEW

by Francesca Evans Tom’s, Lyme regis cured salmon with pickled fennel, cucumber and dill (£8) and the heritage beetroot carpaccio with whipped goats curd, pear and candied walnuts (£8).

Being just a few steps from the shore, I stuck with the seafood theme for my main, choosing the moules ‘Cafe de Paris’, served with a generous crusty white roll to soak up the delicious creamy sauce (£22).

Dad chose the peppered 8oz rib eye steak, which he described - and I can’t stress how a big a statement this is from him - as the best steak he had ever tasted! It was accompanied by fluffy chips, watercress, mushroom, tomatoes and Béarnaise sauce (£28).

Other fish options included sole meunière, pan roasted cod and the daily catch, ranging from £16 to £30, and the vegetarian option was spelt risotto with Jerusalem artichokes and chanterelles (£15).

Although already stuffed, there is always room for dessert and I opted the apple tart tatin with cinnamon ice cream (£6) - a perfect, warming choice for a winter’s evening - and Dad selected the indulgent chocolate and cherry parfait with Kirsch cream and griottines (£7).

The menu also offered a selection of ice creams and sorbets and a celebration of British cheeses.

There is also a full children’s menu and the bar is stocked with a varied choice of wines, spirits, local beers and ciders and selection of favourite cocktails.

THE seafront restaurant has been given a new simple but stylish look. Above right, the scallops starter; below left, the rib eye steak and, below left, the tart tatin

Tom’s will also be serving breakfast with lighter options including a selection of pastries, toasted sourdough or house muesli, as well as more substantial choices including a classic full English (£10), salmon and eggs (£10), garlic mushrooms (£8) and crab omelette ‘Arnold Bennet’ (£12).

Tom’s is currently open Wednesdays to Sundays, open for breakfast from 9am to 10.30am, lunch from 12noon to 3pm and dinner from 6pm to 9pm. Booking is advised, by calling 01297 816018, email bookings@tomslymeregis.com or visit www.tomslymeregis.com

Community Waffle House opens new 'dream' premises at Trinity House

THE new-look Community Waffle House at Trinity House in Axminster

A DREAM became a reality this week for the team behind Axminster’s hugelypopular Community Waffle House.

After months of hard work, an official opening was held for the Waffle House’s new, larger premises on the first floor of the town’s landmark Trinity House building.

Having been opened last year by directors Sophie McLachlan, Matt Smith and Tim Whiteway, the Community Waffle House was first based in West Street, but after a proving huge hit with residents and visitors, the not-for-profit cafe has now moved to premises five times the size.

As well as serving up its menu of delicious Belgian waffles, milkshakes and hot drinks, the new-look Waffle House also include a ‘Waffle Work’ space, which can be used for business meetings, community groups and those working from home who fancy a change of scenery.

Local computer whiz Luke Lawson will also be on hand at his new station to offer technical support, with assistance from Oliver Miller.

At the other end of the cafe, the ‘Waffle Play’ area with specially-designed

soft play for the under fives will open next year. There are also plans to install a stage for live music and performances in the New Year.

The Mayor of Axminster, Cllr Anni Young, cut the ribbon at the new Waffle House this morning (Tuesday) and it will be welcoming the public from Thursday, open 9am to 9pm. Due to COVID19 regulations, those keen to try out the new-look Waffle are encouraged to book a table in advance.

Taking over the whole of the first floor of the former Trinity House department store, the cafe has been finished to the highest standard thanks to the team from Axminster Property, who are in the process of renovating the entire building.

The space has been given a new lease of life, with lowered ceilings removed and huge windows previously covered up now unveiled to reveal views across Trinity Square and the Minster Green.

The bright and airy cafe has been fitted with handmade wooden counters and bars, modern light fittings, and is fully accessible with a lift and plenty of space for prams and wheelchairs.

But there is still a glimpse of the past,

with a window in the ceiling of the ‘Waffle Work’ area revealing the 1940s bedrooms discovered on the top floor.

Speaking at the opening event, Waffle House director Sophie McLachlan said she and the team had been dreaming of how they could best use the space for the community for months, but the result was “100 times better” thanks to the hard work of Axminster Property and all those who supported their successful crowdfunding campaign, which raised more than £25,000 towards the move.

She said that the Waffle House was here for the Axminster community, to help people feel less lonely and isolated and would welcome, even if they just wanted to come in for a chat.

Ian Styles, managing director of Axminster Property, said he hoped the opening of the new Waffle House would be an inclusive place for families and like-minded people to work together - a new beginning for Axminster as the local high street makes a comeback following the coronavirus pandemic.

To find out more about the Community Waffle House visit the website, visit waffle.org.uk

yearinreview 10 Friday, December 18 2020

www.lyme-online.co.uk

We look back at some of the biggest stories and best photos from a year like no other

JANUARY Back when coronavirus had barely crept into our vocabulary, more than 500 swimmers kicked off a new decade by dashing into the sea for the annual Lyme Lunge - the largest number of entrants the event had ever seen, rounding off a record-breaking festive season in Lyme Regis.

In local politics, Cheryl Reynolds made her return to the town council chamber - having resigned seven months earlier - after standing uncontested to fill a vacancy left by Jeff Scowen, who resigned and moved away from the town in December 2019.

Veteran councillor Stan Williams was elected deputy mayor to replace Mr Scowen.

The popular Rousdon Village Bakery and adjoining workshop and flats suffered severe damage after a fire started in a fuse box, leaving the flourishing business closed throughout 2020.

The Charmouth community was left shocked after 90-year-old Peter Bide was killed in a fatal hit and run incident in the village.

FEBRUARY Lyme Regis Town Council allocated grants totalling more than £340,000 for the next five years to seven local organisations.

Councillors struggled to reach a decision after the grants budget was reduced from £130,000 to £80,000, eventually agreeing on grants for the Marine Theatre, LymeForward, The Hub, B Sharp, Bridport & District CAB, Axe Valley and West Dorset Ring & Ride and Lyme Regis Museum.

Organisers of the popular Guitars On The Beach announced this year’s event would be the last ever - it would later be called off due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Palmers Brewery unveiled scaled-back plans to redevelop the former Three Cups Hotel, which had stood empty for 30 years.

They announced work would start in 2021.

The threat of COVID-19 edged closer to home as students from the Woodroffe School returned from a ski trip in northern Italy - the first area of Europe to be hit by the virus.

Natasha Kate Ward

APRIL

MARCH There was some positive news in March before life as we knew it in Lyme Regis completely changed for the remainder of the year. Community radio station Lyme Bay Radio was launched and the community welcomed a new rector, the Reverend Chris Martin.

Across the border in Devon, Axminster Carpets was saved from closure when it was bought by a consortium of proivate investors, having sllen into administration in February, but Exeter-based airline Flybe collapsed, described as a “hammer blow to the local economy”.

Fears over coronavirus started to take hold on local life; meetings and events were put on hold, local sport called off, and the first COVID-19 related death in Dorset was reported on March 21. The first national lockdown eventually came into effect on March 23 with all non-essential shops and businesses closing doors. Suddenly, the outlook for the rest of the year looked very different indeed...

Louise Hobb

Lyme Regis’ community spirit came to the fore with the establishment of the new Community Support Group, with volunteers carrying out grocery shopping, collecting prescriptions and checking in on the elderly and vulnerable as coronavirus gripped the UK. The Mayor of Lyme Regis wrote an open letter to residents, encouraging them to focus on positives during the pandemic, including the benefits of living in a small, rural, community-minded town.

Lyme Regis was shocked as HIX Oyster & Fish House, run by celebrity chef Mark Hix MBE, became the first local business to fall victim to the pandemic, with its parent company placed in administration.

The Clap for Carers initiative was launched, which saw Lyme Regis residents join a weekly, nationwide show of appreciation for NHS and frontline workers.

Easter was celebrated in lockdown, with a virtual version of the annual Easter Bonnet Parade held online.

Jeanette Goodridge

MAY Lyme Regis Fossil Festival and Jazz Jurassica were the first two major, local festivals not to go ahead due to the pandemic.

The town’s events calendar was eventually completely decimated with announcements coming later in May that the biggest crowd-pullers of the year - Lifeboat Week and Regatta & Carnival Week - would also not go ahead.

Residents marked the 70th anniversary of VE Day in the midst of a national lockdown, many decorating their houses in red, white and blue, hosting their own garden parties and singing over fences with neighbours.

There was a glimmer of hope as local tennis and golf facilities reopened to the public, and boating returned to the harbour.

Local crews were among those to tackle a devastating fire at Wareham Forest, caused by disposable barbecues. In the dry weather, the fire continued for over a week and destroyed 220 hectares of forest.

Sasha Birkin

yearinreview

Friday, December 18 2020 11

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JUNE

JULY

With the UK enjoying spectacular spring weather during lockdown, tensions were raised between residents and visitors in the South West. Large crowds were seen on beaches across Dorset, coastguards reported their busiest weekend of the year and anti-social behaviour increased, including an incident in which a police officer was assaulted at Monmouth Beach.

As the UK came out of lockdown, pubs and restaurants opened doors, including the new-look Rock Point Inn in Broad Street, now owned by St Austell Brewery, and The Oyster & Fish House in Lister Gardens having been bought back by Mark Hix, who lost his restaurants earlier in the year due to the pandemic.

Students began a staggered return to school and non-essential shops opened doors after more than two months, with Dorset high streets given a £335k boost from the government.

After a spate in anti-social behaviour during lockdown, Lyme Regis Town Council took the unprecedented decision to hire security guards to patrol the seafront and public gardens during the summer holidays, for a total cost of £10,080.

The Admiral Sir George Somers statue in Lyme Regis was targeted amid anti-racist protests across the country, with the word ‘murderer’ scrawled across an information board next to it.

‘Ammonite’ - the Mary Anning biopic partially filmed in Lyme Regis in 2019 - was selected for a virtual version of the Cannes Film Festival.

We look back at some of the biggest stories and best photos from a year like no other

Lyme Regis mourned the loss of community stalwart and retired vicar, the Reverend Keith Vivian, who died in his 90s following a short stay at Dorset Community Hospital.

Local cricket finally got underway, with the announcement that Uplyme & Lyme Regis would take part in a mini league to get the sport up and running following lockdown.

Steve Cross

AUGUST The Mayor of Lyme Regis, Cllr Brian Larcombe MBE, called for heightened police presence in the town as a spate of crime continued, culminating in a violent altercation in Broad Street, described by witnesses as “truly horrifying”.

A letter dated 1829, written by Lyme Regis fossil hunter Mary Anning to her friend and collborator Dr William Buckland, sold at auction for a staggering £100,800.

The Woodroffe School in Lyme Regis impressed with A-level and GCSE results, despite national outrage over the system for awarding grades after exams were cancelled.

Tyler Wellman made local sporting history after hitting three centuries in three consecutive weeks for Uplyme & Lyme Regis Cricket Club.

Lyme Regis Tourist Information Centre office was closed down permanently, with staff continuing to offer a remote service from home.

SEPTEMBER Uplyme & Lyme Regis Cricket Club were crowned champions of the Devon Mini-League Tier 5 after completing all their matches undefeated with a home win against Pymouth CS. Meanwhile, local football was given the green light to start, but Lyme Regis Football Club put off home matches until October to complete improvements to the Davey Fort pitch.

Lyme Regis Museum opened its doors for the first time in six months but coronavirus contined to play havoc with the local events calendar, with several winter events, such as bonfire night, called off.

The Nag’s Head became the final Lyme Regis pub to reopen, under the management of new landlord Tony Allen.

Nigel Ball

OCTOBER

Plans for a new primary school in Uplyme, that would provide a “21st century education” for pupils, were given the final go ahead, despite concerns that the proposed access would cause safety issues at the petrol station opposite.

A preview screening of ‘Ammonite’, the Mary Anning biopic partially filmed in Lyme Regis in 2019, was held in cinemas across the UK as part of the British Film Fesitval, winning rave reviews from critics.

The quality of Lyme Regis Town Council’s £650,000 project to resurface the flat roof area above Marine Parade was called into question as it began to pool water during heavy rain and after one of the panels of the new glass fencing was broken, with smashed glass showering on to the seafront below.

Work began on the much-anticipated pedestrian crossing in Lyme Regis. The work was initally scheduled to take three weeks, but disruptions in Broad Street continued until December.

Lyme Regis Town Council held discussions on how it could make savings over the coming years, announcing that it lost an estimated £300,000 due to the coronavirus pandemic and a second lockdown in spring 2021 could wipe out its finances.

NOVEMBER

DECEMBER

Prime Minister Boris Johnson called a second national lockdown following a spike in coronavirus cases, which saw all non-essential shops, restaurants and pubs close for the second time. A sign on the Charmouth roundabout thanking NHS staff for their efforts during the pandemic was defaced.

The second national lockdown was lifted and Lyme Regis was placed in Tier 2, along with the rest of Dorset, despite objection from local MP Chris Loder.

Lyme Regis’ only travel agents, Your World Travel, announced it would be closing permanently having become unviable due to restrictions implemented during the pandemic.

The annual Remembrance parade and church service were called off, but scaled-back wreath laying events still went ahead.

Mary Anning Rocks launched its long-awaited £100,000 crowdfunfing campaign to see a statue of the fossil hunter erected in Lyme Regis.

Lyme enjoyed some early festive cheer as the Christmas lights were switched on, but without any major events.

Following a spate of crime over the summer months, Lyme Regis was promised that police officers would be stationed in the town once again, when new recruits arrived in West Dorset.

Residents and visitors expressed outrage as Dorset Council agreed to quadruple all-day charges at its car parks in Lyme Regis, from £2 to £8, although it scrapped plans to charge up until 8pm in the evening.

The pedestrian crossing in Broad Street was completed and switched on after years of debate and discussion.

Lyme Regis prepared for a very different Christmas season to usual, with favourite events such as Carols Around the Tree, the Charmouth Christmas Day Swim and Lyme Lunge all called off due to COVID restrictions.

12 Friday, December 18 2020

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NEWS FROM CITIZENS ADVICE CITIZENS Advice Bridport & District will be helping people reduce their energy bills and save money as part of Big Energy Saving Winter.

Local staff and volunteers will be sharing information to help people take three simple steps to prepare for the winter ahead. ● Check to see if they are eligible for discounts, grants and support ● Switch their tariff or energy supplier to get the best deal ● Save money by becoming more energy efficient As Big Energy Saving Winter 2020 kicks off, new research shows that one in three (35 per cent) bill payers say they are using more energy than they usually would at this time of year. This is because people are having to stay at home because of the coronavirus restrictions.

Citizens Advice aims to help households meet their heating requirements in order to stay warm and safe and avoid cold-related health problems.

Rovarn Wickremasinghe, chief officer, said: “With many people using more energy than normal because of the pandemic constraints it is crucial no-one is paying more than they need to for their energy.

“Switching energy suppliers is one of the quickest ways for us all to make sure we’re not paying more than we need to. But our advisers are also on hand to help make sure people are getting any extra grants, discounts and savings they might be entitled to and to look at ways to make people’s homes more energy efficient. There are a number of schemes that are available and we can advise vulnerable families on accessing these projects so they take practical steps to overcome energy issues and keep warm. ” A typical example of how we helped one family involved advising someone who was no longer able to work because of a health condition and struggling financially. We are help-

ing the family apply for appropriate benefits and our ‘Keep Warm for Less’ specialist is helping them manage their energy bills.

Having recently changed their energy supplier it wasn’t necessary to advise on switching suppliers at this time. However, the family has applied to their energy provider for a Warm Home Discount (which provides £140 off their energy bills) and has been referred to the Pre-payment Meter Voucher scheme.

This scheme can provide up to three vouchers worth £49 each to help with the cost of topping up a pre-payment meter.

We are also helping the family apply to Dorset Community Foundation for a Surviving Winter Grant and informed them of their eligibility for the Priority Services Register, which is free and provides extra support for vulnerable people, for example, during power cuts.

Nationally, Big Energy Saving Winter is calling on energy super savers, who have made savings to their own bills, to help their relatives, friends and neighbours to check, switch and save on their energy bills. Free resources and advice will enable energy super savers to help protect the UK’s most vulnerable people.

Citizens Advice is working with the Energy Saving Trust and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on this campaign and general information can be found at https://bigenergywinter.org.uk Additionally, for regional support pick up the phone and talk to Citizens Advice on Dorset Advice Line Freephone 0800-144-8848.

Bridport & District Citizens Advice have suspended their face-to-face drop-in service for the moment but they can be reached locally by using the contact form on their website www.bridportca.org.uk to send an email or you can leave a brief voicemail message on 01308 456594. You will be called back to help you find a way forward.

LymeOnline Letters

Send your letters to francesca@lyme-online.co.uk

■ WHY is it that the graffiti that appeared last weekend in the Monmouth Beach car park was removed within 24 hours by the local council, whereas almost identical graffiti (MHZE), has been in the Charmouth Road car park for several months?

Name and address withheld

Thanks for help finding dog Is there something we ■ I’M writing this to thank the Lyme Regis community for the help and support I received recan do to save post office?

cently when my dog went missing.

Benji is an Australian Kelpie and his recent disappearance has highlighted just how much he means to me and my family.

When he hadn’t returned after 24 hours I was really at a very low point and didn't know what to do. I sought help from fellow dog walkers and before long my plight was highlighted on Facebook and I received many messages of support.

Fortunately the dog was found by a farmer near Lambert's Castle and returned safely to me.

I would like to thank all those who helped and comforted me.

We really do have a fantastic community in Lyme.

Judith Burke (by email)

■ LYME Regis Post Office has been up for

sale for some time and I understand that nobody is interested in buying it.

It's very sad to hear this. I was in there yesterday and the postman collected 12 bags of letters and parcels so it's doing good business.

We've lost all our banks in Lyme Regis. Now it looks like we're going to lose the post office too.

When it's gone everybody will be very upset.

Is there something the community can do to jointly buy the place?

Vic Lent (by email)

Marine Parade Lyme Regis Bookings advisable

Tel 01297 442299 harbourinnlymeregis.co.uk

The alternative

Christmas at your favourite seaside restaurant

No Christmas parties this year but Christmas Fayre will still be served with all the festive trimmings as part of our menu

By writing a gift in your Will to Cancer Research UK

Homemade mulled wine £4.50 Warm homemade mince pie with cream £1.40

you’ll help develop long-term research that will save lives across the UK. Find out how you can write a gift in your Will at cruk/WriteAn End or call 0800 707 6006

All alcohlic drinks must be accompanied with plated food

BOOKING IS ESSENTIAL Apologies but we will not be open on Christmas Day

Social distancing rules observed at all times

GET INVOLVED WITH YOUR COMMUNIT Y PAPER

WE WILL BEAT CANCER SOONER

www.lyme-online.co.uk

Friday, December 18 2020 13

Christmas in Lyme

14 Friday, December 18 2020

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Still the best place to celebrate the festive season!

■ CHILDREN at Mrs Ethelston’s Primary School in Uplyme took part in the national Christmas Jumper Day to raise funds for Save the Children. The pupils attended school last Friday in their favourite festive jumpers and raised almost £200 for the charity.

THE children performed scenes from the Nativity story for a video sent to parents

Christmas traditions still go ahead at Uplyme Pre-school IT has been a busy few weeks at Uplyme Pre-school and, despite COVID-19 restrictions, the children have managed to enjoy the usual Christmas activities and fun.

They have been making paper chains, sending Christmas cards to themselves as well as playing Christmas party games. Father Christmas even spared time for a socially distanced visit.

Usually, the children would meet together to perform their Nativity play in front of all their family and friends. To ensure families

didn’t miss out on the Christmas tradition, the children have acted out parts of the Christmas story in their bubbles, which the staff filmed and this has been sent out to parents for their enjoyment.

The staff praised the children for the way they have coped with the changes that the pandemic has brought, with pre-school sessions being run outside whatever the weather, and they hope the new year will bring less restrictions.

■ PRIZES have been awarded to local children who made decorations to adorn a Christmas tree at the Town Mill in Lyme Regis.

The 20-foot tree was donated to the mill by town councillor Cheryl Reynolds and her granddaughter Lillie, having been given to Lillie has a gift when it was just six inches tall.

Local children were invited to make decorations and special prizes were awarded to the seven top entries, judged by Lillie and local art teacher Dot Wood.

Everyone who entered also received a Cadbury’s selection pack and the decorations have been placed on a small tree inside the Town Mill’s Malthouse Gallery (pictured below) temporarily to protect them from the weather, and should be on the big tree in the courtyard (right) in time for Christmas.

Christmas in Lyme

Friday, December 18 2020 15

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Still the best place to celebrate the festive season!

Festive magic at Charmouth Primary School CHARMOUTH Primary School PTFA organised a highly successful ‘Drive Thru Santa’s Grotto’, with more than 75 children meeting Father Christmas from the safety of their cars.

COVID restrictions have led to a great deal of change within school communities, but the PTFA did not want this to stop the children from experiencing the Christmas spirit.

Volunteers arranged an outdoor grotto with lights and decorations ready for children to visit Father Christmas after school on Friday, December 11. Parents, including some who also work at the school, dressed as elves and a Christmas tree to dance and have fake snow ball fights while Christmas music played, entertaining children as they waited to move around the car park to speak to Santa, who asked them what they would like for Christmas.

As well as organising the ‘Drive Thru Santa’s Grotto’ event, the PTFA used their contacts in the North Pole to arrange boxes to be delivered to each class.

The parcels were delivered with a warning notice that they needed to be quarantined before opening - a sign of the current times - and included Christmas craft activities, crackers and treats for the final days of the term.

Janna McDonald, chair of the PTFA, commented: “Not only did we want to ensure that our children felt the magic and fun of Christmas,

but we also wanted to support the staff with fun activities ready prepared after they have worked tirelessly to support the children during these challenging times.”

Headteacher Laura Cornish added: “We are very fortunate to have such a supportive PTFA, who not only raise funds for the school, but also work to provide enriching experiences for our children and recognise the impact on the unprecedented situation on both staff and children.”

Charmouth Primary School PTFA arrange a variety of events throughout the year, many of which have had to be cancelled, including the Charmouth Challenge run, which involves many members of the local community and raises a significant amount for the school.

Despite these challenges, the PTFA have continued meeting online and have risen to the challenge of raising money through distanced activities, such as a school lottery, and organising a pantomime visit for the whole school, performed three times, once for each bubble.

Charmouth Primary School and the PTFA would like to extend their thanks to those who have volunteered and supported these events, including Penn Farm, Morrisons, Dorset Leisure Centre Ltd and Shave Cross Inn, as well as the many individuals, companies and organisations who have supported previous events.

Santa sleigh raises £1,810 for good causes THE charity Santa sleigh which toured Lyme Regis, Uplyme and Charmouth this week has raised £1,810 for local good causes.

This was the nineteenth year that Neville and Sarah Causley and their family organised the Christmas sleigh tour, bringing much joy to local children including in Charmouth, with the village added to the route for the first time this year.

The money raised will this year go towards local organisations that are part of Lyme Regis Community Bingo Association.

These include Lyme Regis Musical Theatre, Lyme Regis Pantomime Society, St Michael’s Primary School PFA, Lyme Regis Football Club, Lyme Regis Christmas Lights Committee, Over 70s Christmas Lunch Committee and Lyme Regis Majorettes.

Father Christmas toured the area in a brand new sleigh this year, thanks to money donated by supporters earlier this year.

Mr Causley commented: “We would like to take this opportunity to say a big thank you to everybody in Lyme Regis, Uplyme, and Charmouth who helped us to raise a massive £1,810 for this years cause, Lyme Regis Community Bingo Association.

“This is the most we have ever collected in the 19 years we have been taking the sleigh out and were blessed with probably the best weather we have ever had, which undoubtedly helped.

“The initial total raised was £1,703, but since then we have had some more donations, including a whip round at the lifeboat crew training night, and this has increased the total to £1,810.

“This money will, this year, go towards the various groups who benefit from the weekly bingo nights that are held at the Woodmead Halls. Due to COVID-19, these groups have been unable to do their usual fundraising this year, so we wanted to help them to get back on their feet in 2021.

“This year has been a year like no other; with countless events being cancelled, we have been more determined than ever to try and bring something positive to the town in these very difficult times.

“This is our nineteenth year of touring the streets of Lyme Regis, and due to the Bridport Lions Club deciding not to tour Charmouth this year, we also added some areas of Charmouth to our usual route so residents would not miss out.

“This year we built a new sleigh; the money for this was kindly donated during the first lockdown by the people who took part in our weekly Causley Cabs Quiz Nights. A crowdfunding page was set up by the Christmas Lights Committee chairman Rob James and this raised almost £700 in three days.

“However, we could not have got out on the road with Santa, without the support of so many special people, all helping in their own way to bring the sleigh together.

“It all started a few months ago with a caravan kindly donated to us by Ken Wilson. During the next few weeks the whole caravan was taken apart, right down to its floor by John Rickard.

Next, very kindly, the Collier family allowed us the use of one of their barns, and we were able to build the sleigh in a roomy, socially distanced area.

“The next phase was to build the frame, and retired carpenter Alan Reynolds stepped up, giving up several days to build the whole of the sleigh and roof structure, with just a few pictures for guidance, before we finally painted it all and added the lights and trimmings.”

Mr Causley thanked the following people who have helped with this year’s sleigh: Ken Wilson, Alan Reynolds, John Rickard, Carl Salter; the Collier family; Creative Solutions; Sandra Vernon; Dave Ostler; Sparkbrights; Fowler Plant Hire; Lyme Regis Co-op; Mark Ellis. Also a big thank you to the Lyme Regis Carnival Commit-

tee for covering the cost of public liability insurance.

He added: “I must just mention the staff and residents of Bymead House in Charmouth who all dressed up and came outside to see Santa, even the dog was dressed up!

“This was a huge effort by the owners and all of the staff, and we also thank them for their most generous donation.

“Our sleigh has once again brought a smile to faces young and old, with people dancing in the street (socially distanced of course!) and enjoying getting into the Christmas spirit.

“It is always a pleasure to bring the sleigh round, and as ever, this is a family effort and I must say a special thank you to my family, and all of Santa’s elves for their help.”

16 Friday, December 18 2020

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Friday, December 18 2020 17

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Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from all at the Pilot Boat

Many thanks for all your support during 2020 and good wishes for 2021

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axminsternews

18 Friday, December 18 2020

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Sponsored by Axminster Nub News - axminster.nub.news

New mine hosts at Kilmington back on track after lockdown TAKING over a village pub is a challenge at any time but doing it in the middle of a pandemic would be considered by many to be a brave step indeed.

But that’s just what partners Georgie Bell and Stephen Clark have done by becoming the new landlords at the quaint New Inn in Kilmington – and after just four weeks at the popular pub they have no regrets at all.

Georgie and Stephen looked at a number of pubs in the area owned by Palmer’s Brewery but decided on the New Inn in the middle of lockdown. In fact, they opened for just one day before lockdown2 was introduced so they had to lock the doors and plan how they could trade within the new government restrictions.

Before moving to the West Country, the couple ran a pub in Rugby, Warwickshire, after Georgie had retired from working in the Prison Service for 23 years.

Stephen hails from the North East and spent many holidays in the West Country as a child.

He also lived in Exeter for a while.

He worked as a cook when he served in the Army with the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME) and was also a steward at a couple of golf clubs responsible for catering before he and Georgie took a pub in the market town of Rugby.

After being forced to close the Kilmington pub after just one day’s trading due to the second COVID lockdown, Georgie and Stephen put together a takeaway menu and delivery service for the more elderly villagers which was well sup-

ported.

Lockdown has also enabled them to put in place all the essential arrangements necessary when taking over a new business and they look upon their move to the Axminster area as the long term future for their family. They have a daughter, Lauren, aged 12, who is now settled at Honiton Community College, a friendly dog Harry, a cockapoo, and a horse which is stabled at near-by Cranberrry’s which Georgie hopes to ride occasionally.

Talking about their plans when the coronavirus has been eradicated, Stephen said: “We will of course welcome visitors to the pub but our main focus will be on the locals who will always come first. We have already received great support from the people of Kilmington.”

The skittle alley at the New Inn has always been in popular demand and Stephen confirmed they would be welcoming back the ten teams that play at the pub as well as the darts and cribbage teams as soon as coronavirus restrictions are eased.

The New Inn is conforming to the present lockdown Tier 2 regulations offering substantial meals with alcohol for a maximum of six diners from the same household or support bubble with waitress service.

At the moment the New Inn will be closed on Monday and Tuesday but open for the rest of the week from 12noon to 3pm and 6pm to 10pm, Wednesday to Saturday. On Sundays, they will be open from 12noon to 7pm. The takeaway service will continue seven days a week.

A national network of h hyperlocal news websites, now covering the Axminster & Seatton areas With editorial content provided by the team from Ly Lym meOnline

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NEW mine hosts - Georgie Bell and Stephen Clark behind the bar at the New Inn, Kilmington A traditional Sunday lunch with a choice of roast pork, beef, gammon and chicken is available - £10.95 for one course, £14.95 for two courses and £17.95 for three courses.

A Kilmington breakfast club is also being introduced with a full English being served on Saturdays for £8.50 between 9am and 11am.

A special turkey, beef or salmon Christmas menu will be served on the following dates: December 16 to 20, December 23 and December 27 to 30.

Three courses will cost £23.95 and two courses £19.95. A carrot and cashew Wellington will also be available for vegetarians.

Georgie and Stephen have also introduced a meat draw at 6.30pm on Friday evenings which

is already proving popular with tickets at 50p a strip.

With Georgie and Stephen having been at the pub for just only a month, it is already clear they are determined to establish the New Inn as an important part of Kilmington’s community life.

To book table call 01297 333376.

Axminster Musical Theatre to stage smash hit ‘Evita’ GOOD news for theatre-goers in Axminster.

The town’s Musical Theatre group will be returning to the Guildhall stage in 2021 to perform the Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber smash hit ‘Evita’.

The musical concentrates on the life of Argentinian political leader Eva Perón, the second wife of Argentinian President Juan Perón. The story follows Evita's early life, rise to power, work of charity and factual death.

The show contains some of musical theatre's best loved songs, including ‘Don’t Cry For Me Argentina’ and ‘Oh What A Circus’.

In the film version, the role of Evita was played by Madonna with Jonathan Pryce as Perón.

The show was staged in 2015 by the Lyme Regis Musical Theatre with Kelly Apps receiving rave reviews for her performance of Evita. She played opposite Ian Styles who

gave a stellar performance as Perón.

Both are also stalwart members of Axminster Musical Theatre (AMT) and Kelly has been appointed as director with Joe Binmore as musical director and Jack Price as stage manager, all three of them having worked together on staging ‘Anything Goes’ by Lyme Regis Musical Theatre in 2019.

A press release from AMT stated: “The team are all very excited to be working together again under Kelly’s leadership.

“Kelly has previously played the role of Evita which gives her the knowledge and experience of this incredible show.”

‘Evita’ will be performed at Axminster Guildhall from Tuesday, September 16 to Saturday, November 20 2021. Information regarding an introduction evening and auditions will be made available in the Spring on the AMT website www.axmt.co.uk

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PROMOTED CONTENT

Friday, December 18 2020 19

LYME REGIS TOWN COUNCIL 2020 brought challenges we could never have planned for IN our last column of the year, it seems a good time to reflect on how significantly things have changed for the council in 2020.

COVID-19 has created challenges we could never have planned for, asking us to respond in an unprecedented manner and compelling us to find new ways of working.

During this global pandemic and at a time of national crisis, it has been the ultra-local response which has seen our community through these difficult times.

The council has worked flexibly and with many other partners to support the community and keep services running where possible, being mindful of our responsibility to balance the needs of residents with the needs of local businesses.

A lot of work has gone on behind the scenes to engage with local organisations and support and encourage the swell of volunteers in our community who stepped up to help.

We made our workforce available to any other organisation which required support, including making deliveries for the food bank, providing administrative resources to Lyme Regis Com-

munity Support, training staff to carry out kerbside waste collections, and installing signs and hand sanitising stations for Dorset Council.

We continued to provide grant funding to some of the town’s biggest organisations to ensure their survival, including the Marine Theatre, The Hub and the Citizens’ Advice Bureau, as well as smaller grants to groups like the 1st Lym Valley Scouts, Lyme Regis Majorettes and Turn Lyme Green.

When anti-social behaviour became an issue late at night on the seafront and in the gardens, we responded to a plea from Dorset Police and employed security guards to patrol these areas.

It’s resulted in some really positive conversations about the level of police presence in Lyme in the future.

MAJOR refurbishment of the Langmoor and Lister Gardens has continued this year and we know many people have found the beauty and peace of the gardens to be a real solace during troubled times.

Our relationships with external organisations have been strengthened during this crisis, creating a more co-ordinated and productive com-

Kitchen garden in Langmoor A KITCHEN garden in the seafront gardens will hopefully be ripe for picking by the summer.

The council has handed over management of a flower bed in the Langmoor Gardens to Lyme Garden Growers to create a community garden.

Our operations supervisor Pete Williams put the idea to the group, who jumped at the opportunity to provide a shared space to grow and learn about fruit, vegetables and plants.

Pete said: “I knew PICTURED from left, Tara Webb, Jo Smith, Paddy Howe and Rikey Austin of Lyme Garthe Garden Growers den Growers, and the council’s operations supervisor Pete Williams were looking for space “People will be able to come and take the proso I came up with the idea of giving them a duce and that’s part of the education – if someflower bed. It fits in with the council’s refurbish- one needs something, take it. The worst thing ment of the gardens, as well as the initiatives we that can happen is that produce goes over and are pursuing as part of our recent climate and doesn’t get used so it’s going to be there for evenvironmental emergency declaration.” eryone to share.”

Our gardeners prepared the bed and the GarOne of the most excited of the Garden Growden Growers are now busy planning what ers is local resident Tara Webb, who had never they’d like to do with the space. gardened before lockdown but according to Lyme Garden Growers was formed last year Rikey, has been a real inspiration and has by local couple Rikey Austin and Paddy Howe worked tirelessly for the community. but it really took off during lockdown and now Tara said: “I will certainly help out wherever I has around 600 online members. can and hopefully lots of other people will get Rikey said: “Lockdown was awful but it gave involved. There are already a few community people time to stop and think and reconnect herb gardens in Lyme Regis that work well and with the soil and nature.” people have been respectful about what they The group is thrilled to have this new space to take and what they leave.” develop and will be carrying out most of the With the gardens looking so good after all the preparation work in January, to hopefully start hard work our gardeners have put in, there’s no planting in the spring. doubt the kitchen garden will enhance the area.

Rikey said: “We were looking for land to create Rikey said: “There’s a perception that veg garshared community spaces, just to put the idea dens are ugly and messy and although it’s not of growing veg in front of people who might not always going to be full of flowers and it won’t have thought about it. I want people to be able always look like a formal garden, if there are to walk past and feel it’s their garden, to get in- enough of us putting a little bit of time into this, volved, do a bit of weeding and tidy things up. it will stay beautiful.”

munity support network which we believe will continue in the future.

Our work has also been a contribution and support to the wider local effort – our community has pulled together to respond to the crisis, with new support groups emerging, individuals going above and beyond to help friends and strangers, neighbours looking out for each other, and a sense of trust and belonging emerging.

The council’s normal services and facilities have been heavily disrupted, with each government announcement requiring a new approach and every decision made with the best intentions and with the safety of our community in mind.

Most of our services are now operational, albeit with safety measures in place, but the tier 2 restrictions mean we aren’t quite back to ‘normal’.

The council office remains closed and staff are working from home, which we expect to continue until the spring, the number of people who can attend weddings and funerals is restricted, and all our council meetings are taking

place virtually.

While we are keen to return to face-to-face meetings, the national bodies which advise us are still strongly recommending local councils continue to meet remotely. We’re pleased to see more members of the public joining our meetings on ‘Zoom’.

As the council has declared a climate and environmental emergency, this approach will help us achieve our goals as there is reduced travel, less paper as we use digital means where possible, and reduced power consumption.

Training and information-sharing is more readily available, with a surge in online webinars and seminars, helping us to continually improve our skills and knowledge.

With these kinds of benefits beginning to emerge, the council will continuously improve its ways of working and engaging with the community.

We’re in the process of setting a budget, which places us in a better financial position than we could have imagined at the height of the pandemic, making plans to carry out some projects in 2021 and beyond.

Share your thoughts on climate action plan WE welcome the opportunity to have a say on Dorset Council’s plans to tackle the climate and ecological emergency and would encourage others to share their thoughts.

Dorset Council is gathering feedback from residents, organisations and partners to further develop its plans to achieve a carbon neutral Dorset.

They have recently published their draft Climate and Ecological Emergency Strategy, which presents eight areas for action, including food and drink, waste, and transport.

We believe the strategy is a great start and we are pleased Dorset Council has gone this far but we also think there needs to be more urgency to meet national and international agreements to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

We’d also like to see Dorset Council work more closely with town and parish councils and com-

munity groups, drawing on their expertise, commitment and knowledge to support the implementation of the strategy.

Dorset Council is aiming for carbon neutrality by 2040 but we’re urging them to aim for 2030, while the 2050 target for the whole county is nowhere near ambitious enough in our opinion.

These are the kinds of views we will be including in our response to the consultation.

We would urge everyone in the community to respond – Dorset Council want to hear from as many people as possible by the deadline on 20 January 2021, so please don’t miss the opportunity.

You can find the strategy and have your say at dorsetcouncil.gov.uk/climate-strategy

Tour the town with new interactive map WE’RE looking ahead to next year with hopes that we will be able to invite visitors back to safely enjoy our town.

With that in mind, we’ve launched a free multimedia town map to help tourists make the most out of their visit to Lyme Regis.

A beautifully illustrated map and video trail guides people around the town, helping them to discover areas they never knew existed.

Tourists will often arrive in the town and not get any further than the beach and seafront.

Christmas opening hours

THE council will close down for Christmas and New Year and provide essential cover during this period.

We will close at midday on Christmas Eve and re-open at 9am on Monday 4 January.

Staff will be working throughout this period to provide essential services such as bin collections, parking and dog enforcement, and emergency repairs.

All that remains is to wish our residents, businesses and visitors a happy Christmas and a healthy and prosperous New Year.

We wanted to show them how much more there is to Lyme Regis, help them explore our town’s rich history, and promote our local businesses – we feel we have achieved all these aims.

Copies of the map will be available from many local businesses and on the website www.discoverlymeregis.co.uk

Census to be held in 2021 A CENSUS will be held in 2021 and we will be helping to spread the word of this important national survey.

The census, which will be held on Sunday 21 March, is a compulsory survey that gives the most accurate estimate of all the people and households in England and Wales.

The information collected from the census helps inform local authorities and government about demands for vital public services such as school places, hospital and GP services and social care provision.

We would encourage all residents to take part to help ensure our community is well-served.

From January, we will be providing more information about the survey and how we will be helping the process, so please keep an eye out for updates.

The content on this page is promoted and provided by Lyme Regis Town Council

20 Friday, December 18 2020

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The bright light of Christmas

JUPITER AND SATURN - THE CHRISTMAS ‘STAR’ OF 2020 SCIENCE FEATURE

by Professor Glenn Patrick

Professor Glenn Patrick is a particle physicist and science communicator who explores the quantum world of sub-atomic particles (including at the Large Hadron Collider) and now lives in Lyme Regis

2

020 has been a memorable year for all the wrong reasons, but it looks like the cosmos will ensure that it ends with an astronomical highlight on December 21!

This is, of course, the usual date of the winter solstice when the Northern Hemisphere is tilted furthest from the Sun and we have the shortest day.

From this point, the days get longer as we head optimistically into 2021 and 2020 starts to fade into a surreal memory.

The date is even more momentous this year because a very special event will occur in the skies over Lyme Regis, which has not been observed for almost 800 years!

This is the ‘Great Conjunction’ of Jupiter and Saturn, when the two planets align so closely that – to our naked eye - they appear to be a single object in the sky.

Although these alignments occur about once every 20 years, this will be the closest visible alignment since 1226. The next time these two planets are this close will be March 15 2080, so – clouds permitting – make sure that you take this opportunity to observe these majestic clockwork movements of the solar system.

Jupiter is easily the largest planet in the solar system orbiting the Sun every 12 years at a distance of 474 million miles.

Saturn, with those iconic rings of ice and rock, is the second largest planet and, because it is 928 million miles away from the Sun, orbits every 29 years.

These orbital differences mean that over the last few weeks Jupiter has been chasing the slower Saturn and from our Earthly perspective it will catch up on December 21.

This planetary conjunction may have even greater significance. In the early 17th century, the German astronomer, Johannes Kepler, started to apply mathematics to the solar system. His early ideas were published in the wonderfully titled book ‘Mysterium Cosmographicum’ – which sounds like something out of a Philip Pullman novel.

He not only went on to derive his famous laws of planetary motion describing the elliptical orbits of the planets, but also used these to observe and predict planetary conjunctions.

In 1604, Kepler observed what we today call a supernova – or exploding star – in the middle of a conjunction of Jupiter, Saturn and Mars. This prompted him to wrongly assume that the supernova was somehow produced by the planetary alignment.

He methodically calculated backwards in time to discover that another similar conjunction had happened in 7 BC – close enough to the nominal date for the birth of Jesus to suggest that this might have been the origin of the Star of Bethlehem!

Could this really be what is described in St Matthew’s Gospel when the Magi travelled to

Simulation of the night sky on the day of the Great Conjunction, as will be seen from Lyme Regis at 5pm. Below left, Jupiter and its moon Europa captured by the Hubble Space Telescope on August 25 2020 and, below right, Saturn captured by the Hubble Space Telescope on July 4 2020 (credits: NASA, ESA, A. Simon of Goddard Space Flight Center, M.H. Wong of University of California, Berkeley, and the OPAL Team)

Jerusalem and Bethlehem and said, “For we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him”?

The exact date that Jesus was born is unknown, although the period 6 BC - 4 BC is often assumed by scholars – a few years earlier than we traditionally assume in the modern Gregorian Calendar.

As well as star explosions – in the form of nova or supernova – other cosmic phenomena have been proposed to explain what the Wise Men saw in the sky. These include meteors and comets.

A meteor is easily dismissed as they streak across the sky in seconds – nowhere long enough to lead the Magi on their long journey. A comet is a possible explanation, but there are no recorded observations near this time. In any case, they were often regarded as portents of doom – surely not the sort of sign that would have been celebrated.

Similarly, there are no supernova events recorded by ancient astronomers (such as the Chinese and Koreans) over the Holy Land and there are no astronomical remnants that fit the bill.

The Magi travelled first to Jerusalem to report their cosmic sighting to King Herod and

then on to Bethlehem – with the guiding star supposedly visible for a journey estimated to have taken up to two months.

Tantalisingly, we can now calculate that the alignment during the year 7 BC was what is termed a ‘triple conjunction’. This means that Jupiter and Saturn came close together and separated not just once, but three times over several months - all against the backdrop of the stars in the constellation of Pisces.

These even rarer events are due to the Earth overtaking the planets due to its faster orbit around the Sun. Maybe this is what the Magi saw?

Despite these amazing reconstructions of events from over 2 millennia ago, it is not clear whether the Star of Bethlehem will ever be fully explained. Perhaps, it was a supernatural event that defies explanation by current science or perhaps the account in the Bible is not entirely accurate.

Nonetheless, since the 19th century, a Christmas tree with a star sitting atop has been a cultural symbol of peace and goodwill - something that resonates with us all.

Whatever our beliefs, the Great Conjunction is a once in a lifetime event. Observing

the motion of heavenly bodies over vast distances from the privilege of our position on Earth can only be a source of inspiration and wonder – just as it was in biblical times.

As we proceed through December, go outdoors and watch Jupiter and Saturn get ever closer in the night sky. Look to the south west for Jupiter - be careful not to confuse it with the red planet of Mars, which is also observable but in the east. Saturn will be fainter and will be to the left – or just to the east - of Jupiter.

On December 21, the precise time of conjunction will be at 1.22pm which unfortunately coincides with the day sky. However, the two planets will become visible around 30 to 45 minutes after sunset, which is at 4.09pm in Lyme Regis.

A good time will be 5pm - the planets will only be 6 degrees above the horizon so try to get an unobstructed view with altitude if possible. Do not leave it too late as they will both sink below the horizon shortly after 6pm.

In the words of the late Stephen Hawking: “Remember to look up at the stars and not down at your feet. Try to make sense of what you see and wonder about what makes a universe exist. Be curious”.

Friday, December 18 2020 21

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ITEMS FOR SALE

DE-HUMIDIFIER, Meaco DD8L, £100 07840 938 374.

HEADBOARD, Antique, pine, solid-wood headboard for double 4’ 6” bed, excellent conditions, £30 ono - 01297 442198.

SETTEE, leather, dark green, three-seater, very good condition, £50 - 01297 443419.

DVDs, Wildfowling Shooting Adventures by Chris Green, five DVDs, £30 for all - 01297 443419.

TENNIS RAQUET, Dunlop Max 27 with cover, £10 - 01297 443930.

SQUASH RAQUET, with cover, £10 - 01297 443930.

HOSTESS TROLLEY, Ekco ‘Royal’ heated hostess trolley, hardly used, with instruction book, £25 - 01297 443930.

SOFA, black faux leather, two seater, raiseable leg rest, good conditions, free 01297 443930.

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WANTED CHALET

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PLEASE TEXT:

CARAVAN FOR SALE

Elddis Odyssey 505 caravan on site between Beer and Colyton in East Devon - Leacroft EX24 6HY. Two owners from new in 2002, full and porch awnings, everything available to move into. Price £2,600.

01217 051483 or 07980 729 551

TOY CAMPER VAN, Fisher Price, complete with extras, boat and seven people, very good condition, £30 - 01297 442627.

panel, H77" (1960mm) x W30" (760mm), thickness 1 3/4" (44mm), £40 - 01297 678584.

SINDY dune buggy and caravan, very good condition, £38 - 01297 442627.

PORTAPUZZLES, two puzzles, felt surface keeps your puzzles safe, with side panels, one large 43” x 30”, one medium 30” x 21”, £10 - 01297 443963.

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HOSTESS HEATED TROLLEY, very good condition, L29" (750mm) x W16" (400mm) x H27" (700mm), £20 - 01297 678584.

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TOY SCHOOL BUS, Fisher Price 192 with seven people in very good condition, £28 01297 442627.

TOY CIRCUS TRAIN, Fisher Price 991, with seven people, three wagons and five animals, very good condition, £35 - 01297 442627

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FULL SIZE UKULELE, instruction book an case included, as new, unwanted gift, originally cost £95 now asking for £65 - 01297 33745.

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LymeOnline Sport

email your sports reports to edit@lyme-online.co.uk

Uplyme back in the groove with another impressive win ■ FROM PAGE 24 the advancing keeper and tucking away his sixth goal of the season.

The second half became a little bogged down on the worsening pitch, but there was still plenty of attacking flair on show from Souter-Phillips, Sladen and Fifer.

The management team of Gillan and Blandamer were delighted with the win and

clean sheet.

Blandamer said: “A great team performance today, mature, managed the game perfectly and didn’t get phased by any robust challenges.”

New signing Alex Shute looked very impressive at the back, but the drive of the middle three of Holmes, Mclean and Prosser provided the drive and control

needed against a physical Chard side.

This victory keeps Uplyme in second place in the table behind Forton Rangers Reserves.

Tomorrow (Saturday) Uplyme 1sts are away to Shepton Beachamp Reserves . Uplyme Reserves are at home to Merriott Saints who are two places below them in Perry Street Division 3 (kick-off 2.30 pm).

Outstanding form from 17-year-old keeper Sayers ALL eyes were on the Reserves, as Uplyme Firsts had no game last Saturday.

They welcomed Combe St Nicholas A, a team full of experienced players who proved an excellent opponent in very tricky conditions. However, the great form of the Uplyme youngsters continued as they ran out worthy 3 - 0 winners.

The deadlock was broken in the first half from a Freddie Andrews’ free kick that was deflected past the excellent Combe keeper.

This, mid-way through the first half, proved the catalyst for some excellent possession football from

Uplyme. The second goal came 10 minutes later, after great work down the left from Marcus Symonds. He found Andrews on the overlap, who centred a good ball, which fell to Harry Robson outside the box. He stroked it home first-time to send Uplyme into half time two up.

Second half - and uphill - Uplyme tried to keep the ball and utilise the better conditions out wide. Combe stepped up their attacks, but found 17-year-old Mikey Sayers in blistering form in goal. He held onto everything and gave his defence great confidence.

The third goal came after good

work through the midfield and George Symonds swept home to seal the points. There was still time for chances at both ends, but the final score remained 3 - 0.

Manager Steve Gillan was proud of the young team, saying: "Again, we faced a team older, a little wiser in experience and looking to impose themselves on our team.

“Fair play to Combe who played some excellent football in tough conditions.

“We've come so far and no-one epitomises that progression more than Mikey in goal. Outstanding, today!"

Late equaliser costs Tigers first double AFTER a break of five weeks without a game due to a COVID-19 scare at the club and lockdown2, Axminster Town supporters were looking forward to the Tigers returning to action against Crediton United at Tiger Way on Saturday.

It has not been the best of starts for Axe in this interrupted season with only two wins and a draw making up their seven points, which leaves them second from bottom in the South West Peninsular League Premier East.

But one of those victories came on September 14 when they travelled to Crediton for 3-2 victory and the Tiger Way hopeful were looking forward their side chalking up their first double of the season.

And it nearly happened with the Tigers leading 2-1 with just minutes to play when the visitors scored a late equaliser, much to the disappointment of the crowd and the Axminster management. tomorrow (Saturday) the Tigers face an even tougher task when they travel to the dangerous Dartmouth AFC who are in eighth place in the Premier East division, having won seven of their 13 games.

Axminster remain second from bottom in the table just above the struggling Stoke Gabriel who have

shipped 196 goals in their 17 games.

The Tigers have competed well in most of their games but have failed to capitalise on many of the chances created leading manager Josh Stunnell to bring former top scorer Tony Pinder back into his squad. It was Pinder who got one of the Axminster goals on Saturday, the other strike coming from Joshua Phillips.

Axe have played only 11 of their 36 league matches and they have games in hand over all other teams in the bottom half of the table.

A couple of three-pointers, however, could see them climb out of the danger zone and with the players in good spirits the Axminster management team, which now includes former Yeovil Town striker Warren Patmore, an experienced manager at non-league level, have confidence in the squad to pull matters around as the season gets underway again after the COVID interruptions Axminster Reserves continued their 100 per cent record with a 41 win at Cranbrook which keeps them top of the Devon and Exeter league Division Two East.

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December 18 2020

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NOW IN THE DEVON & EXETER LEAGUE

Saturday, December 19 Lyme Regis Reserves v Honiton 2nds

Double county cup win for Seasiders PHILIP EVANS

philip@lyme-online.co.uk

LYME Regis 1st team celebrated their return to football with an excellent 2-0 away victory over Dorset Premier side Wareham Rangers in the Dorset Senior Trophy.

On a big pitch on which the Seasiders traditionally struggle, the opening exchanges were quite even but as Lyme grew into the game chances began to flow with Joe Bond, Fred Parsons and Dan Rendall going close on a number of occasions, and Mark Bailey drawing a good save from a long-

range drive. Despite Lyme missing some guilt-edged chances the home side held level at half time with Chris Higgs being called into action to make a smart front-post save just before the break. The biggest moment of the game came just after the break when a Wareham player headed wide from point blank, a real let-off for the Seasiders.

Parsons’ magic

This seemed to re-focus Lyme who regained control and created a number of chances, but it wasn’t until the 57th minute when Fred Parsons produced a bit of magic dancing round his marker and squaring to Joe Bond, who put his

Uplyme return with win A RETURN to football was celebrated with a comfortable 2–0 victory for Uplyme 1sts against Chard United Reserves in Perry Street Division Two last Saturday.

Even on a pitch made incredibly tricky from overnight rain, the team stuck to their principles of passing, movement and shape, against a Chard United Reserves team fielding a number of premier players.

The opening goal came from a pinpoint corner from skipper Jonnie Harris, with Fin Mclean meeting it with a bullet header.

Chard had no answer to the constant pressure coming from the midfield trio of Mclean, Daley Holmes and Ben Prosser.

Before half-time, Uplyme scored a deserved second, when a through ball from Harris wasn’t dealt with and Niall Fifer anticipated brilliantly, darting in front of ■ continued on page 23

Dorset Senior Trophy previous misses behind him to drill him from close range.

Lyme continued to press and created more scoring opportunities with Mark Bailey and Rob Fellingham having free kicks well saved and hitting the angle respectively, but it wasn’t until the 70th minute the game was made safe when Sam Pollard Jones danced through the home defence to square

unselfishly for Joe Bond to grab his second. There was still time for Rob Fellingham to round the keeper only to find the side netting.

Lyme will no doubt feel they were rusty after a five-week layoff, especially in front of goal, but managers Julien Simier and Mark Bailey were more than happy with the result and the way they controlled the game.

The Seasiders now meet Poole Borough in the quarter finals on January 9.

Tomorrow (Saturday) Lyme return to Devon and Exeter Premier Division East action, only their fourth league game of the season, when they entertain leaders Feniton who have won all nine of their matches with a commanding lead at the top of the table (kick-off 2.15pm).

Rovers in cup quarter finals IN THIS hard-fought encounter over decent opponents Sturminster Newton in this Dorset Junior Cup, the scoreline flattered the home side in the end.

Both teams were fielding unusual sides due to Dorset cup eligibility, with the home side able to draft in a Western League goalkeeper.

After a fairly even back and forth first 35 minutes, in which the Rovers’ keeper Robbie Fowler made several superb saves, the Rovers took the lead as Cody Bowditch whipped in an cross from the left and Josh Daines got in front of his man to poke in from close range.

The Rovers’ back line defended

Dorset Junior Cup resolutely against a pacey attack, and the attacking players paid back that hard work with a second on 55 minutes when Bowditch raced on to a through ball before smashing home.

The tireless work rate across the whole Rovers side was rewarded with a third goal on 70 minutes, after brilliant work from Harvey Brimicombe set Bowditch through on goal, and Jack Handy was in the right place to slot home.

After several contentious decisions for both sides, the home side were awarded a soft

penalty for handball with 10 minutes to play. Fowler saved the first attempts, but the rebound was finished. And with six minutes left to play, the home side grabbed a second after a scramble from a corner. But the Rovers held on for an excellent 3-2 win.

Top performers for the Rovers were keeper Robbie Fowler, Ryan Norman at right back and forward Harvey Brimicombe, though the entire side “were brilliant on the day”, according to manager Rob Larcombe.

The Rovers will be heading off to face Redlands in Dorset Junior Cup tomorrow (Saturday) with a place in the quarter finals at stake.

Reserves turn it on for new managers LYME Regis Reserves’ new management team got off to a blazing start on with a 6-2 victory over Devon & Exeter League Division 1 East opponents, Tipton St John.

HAT-TRICK man – Cody Bowditch

Former Millwey Rise manager Shane Featherstone, a Lyme player for the past three season, and defender Mark Batey have taken over the running of the Seasiders’ second string after Nick Tregale and Darren Stewart stood down due to work commitments.

Lyme had made a shaky start to the season, winning only one game in four, although they ran league leaders Exmouth Rovers close on two occasions and spirit remained high.

Lyme travelled to third placed Tipton with a new attacking line-up which in-

cluded Cody Bowditch, back with his home town club after a brief sojourn at Bridport, and first-teamer Brad Rowe who made an bid impact.

Bowditch grabbed himself a hat-trick and Rowe scored twice.

The scoreline was completed by new signing Tom Boston, a former Millwey player, who impressed on his debut.

Lyme went 1-0 down early in the game after a lapse of defensive concentration which has been something of a trait for the Seasiders this season.

But they bounced back, going into halftime with a 3-1 lead, and continued to dominate after the break.

Bret Garner was back in goal for Lyme, his first game of the season, and was in fine form.

The Seasiders’ second string have played

fewer games than any other team in Division One East and currently lie in ninth place with six points from five games.

Tomorrow (Saturday) they a tough fixture when they are away to Beer Albion 2nds who are second in the Division One East table behind Exmouth Rovers with 16 points from seven games (kick-off 2.15 pm).

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