LymeOnline Digital Edition - December 6 2019

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Record breaking Christmas crowds

LYME REGIS YOUNGSTER HELPS SPRE A FESTIVE CHE D ER PA GE 10

Mayor repeats call for dog ban on main beaches

THE Mayor of Lyme Regis has said the council has an “obligation to protect the public’s safety” as it continues its efforts to see dogs banned from the town’s main beaches all year round.

Councillor Brian Larcombe MBE called once again for a total ban on dogs from Lyme Regis’ sandy beach and Cobb Gate shingle beach at this week’s council meeting.

His comments came as town council members considered a draft consultation document from Dorset Council on its Public Space Protection Orders (PSPOs), which cover regulations regarding dogs in public spaces.

The consultation will be put to the public in the New Year.

REPORT, PAGE 7

Harbour predicts £75k overspend A RECORD crowd packed Broad Street, Lyme Regis, on Saturday evening for the much-anticipated switch-on of the town’s Christmas lights. Festivities included the annual lanternmaking workshop, competition and parade before the huge Christmas tree was lit up. See pages 12 & 13 for full report and more photos.

Photo by Richard Austin

Make those tills ring

MAYOR’S APPEAL TO SUPPORT LOCAL SHOPS THIS CHRISTMAS

AFTER Lyme Regis’ most successful switch-on of the Christmas lights, which brought thousands of people into Broad Street, the Mayor of Lyme Regis, Councillor Brian Larcombe MBE, is calling on residents to support their local shops over the festive period.

An

estimated

3,000

people

PHILIP EVANS

philip@lyme-online.co.uk watched the mayor turn on the lights on Saturday evening, following the traditional parade of lanterns made by local children and led by the majorettes.

And there were gasps from the crowd which filled Broad Street from top to bottom when the new illuminations, with a dramatic blue and white colour scheme, flickered

into light. It was the first year that the Christmas Lights Committee had purchased the illuminations rather than hiring them.

With 74 trees above trading premises and more additional featured displays than ever before, the big switch-on has become a mustsee event for locals and also attracts visitors especially for the occasion.

It has been estimated that if Lyme shoppers spent all their Christmas budget in town, it would give local

traders a million pound boost.

Buoyed by the public’s response to the Christmas lights, Councillor Larcombe, in a statement for this newspaper, has urged local people to support the local trading community, emphasising there is no comparison between the crowded bustle of the regional centres and Lyme’s local environment for a more pleasant shopping experience.

FULL STORY ON PAGE 2

FIGURES for Lyme Regis harbour were down this year with a predicted overspend of £75,600 – partially due to a series of south easterly winds which stopped pontoons being used and unexpected repairs.

Interim harbourmaster James Radcliffe, who took over from Grahame Forshaw MBE when he left in July, said that on 17 occasions the pontoons had to be broken down for safety reasons, compared to just once during the previous season.

The cost of this in lost income has been put at around £10,000 less than expected.

REPORT, PAGE 3

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Published by Lyme Regis Media Limited Hyper-local website and fortnightly newspaper serving the communities of Lyme Regis, Uplyme & Charmouth.

Unit 5 Uplyme Business Park, Uplyme Road, Lyme Regis, Dorset DT7 3LS www.lyme-online.co.uk edit@lyme-online.co.uk Facebook: facebook.com/LymeOnlineUK Twitter: twitter.com/LymeOnlineUK Instagram: instagram.com/lymeonline Editor: Francesca Evans francesca@lyme-online.co.uk 07810 221 420 Contributors: Philip Evans philip@lyme-online.co.uk Richard Austin edit@lyme-online.co.uk Regular Columnists: Sophia Moseley, Marine Theatre Mark Vandeweyer, Citizens Advice Peter Lacey, Tales of Lyme’s Past Production: Jackie Evans jackie@lyme-online.co.uk

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Lyme’s Christmas lights expected to boost trade WHILST the run-up to Christmas has so far been quiet for town centre traders, the popularity of Lyme’s Christmas lights is expected to boost business in the next three weeks.

Thousands crowded into the town on Saturday evening for the lantern parade and switch-on of the new illuminations by the Mayor of Lyme Regis, Councillor Brian Larcombe MBE. Accompanied by Andrew Hodder, who was rewarded by the Christmas Lights Committee for his fundraising efforts, Mr Larcombe told the crowd: “Lyme is a town that has something for every season of the year, and the contrast today with the bustling beaches of hot summer days couldn’t be greater.

“Thank you to the Christmas Lights Committee for their work throughout the year and all who make this special part of Lyme’s calendar as colourful as it is, which along with the lights in the gardens makes our town a truly illuminated and festive place.

“We’ve just come from the lanterns-making, and again what a tremendous event from so many children - thank you.

“Given it’s also the ‘Lyme-time’ of year, may I wish everyone here a merry Christmas and all the best for the New Year.”

This was the first year the lights committee, under the chairmanship for former mayoress Christine Lovell, has bought festive lights instead of hiring them.

The intention is to buy new lights every year for three of four years and then alternate the different schemes whilst acquiring additional displays. In the long term this should prove to be less costly.

The cost of lights has been met by a programme of fundraising events, including a recent harvest home auction which brought in

more than £1,300. A new event this year will be the formation of Lyme Regis Community Carollers, led by Sarah Causley, to tour the town on Sunday, December 15, and the annual charity Santa sleigh (see right), also organised by the Causley family, will donate their proceeds to the lights fund.

Councillor Larcombe has also lent his support to an appeal for Lyme people to shop local over the Christmas period, rather than doing their festive shopping out of town.

Councillor Larcombe said: “While there are large supermarkets and store chains in bigger towns and online shopping with the extensive range of warehoused stock they hold, Lyme by contrast offers a local Christmas environment of smaller shops which can provide something different.

“Whether it’s a special one-off, festive food or a last minute item from the local convenience store, Lyme can offer something on our doorstep: no travelling, no searching online and no waiting delivery.

“Because of their smaller scale our local shops are capable of switching from catering for summer visitors to a local winter offering. They can be more flexible. The town has the benefit of a mix of local-scale branches of the large chain stores and small speciality outlets within our community, plus the festive atmosphere it provides.

“There’s no denying the comparison between the crowded bustle of the regional centres and Lyme’s local environment, and who knows a Lyme shop might just have that something special, that something extra you are looking for, or that last minute need.”

See Lyme Matters - page 6 Christmas lights swith-on photos - pages 12 & 13

Look out for our next issue on December 20 Until then, stay up to date with all the local news at lyme-online.co.uk

www.lyme-online.co.uk

Santa’s coming to town!

SANTA Claus will be back in town on Monday, December 9 and Tuesday, December 10.

The charity Santa sleigh, organised by local residents Neville and Sarah Causley and their family, will be touring the streets of Lyme playing music and bringing festive cheer to children and grown ups too!

This will be the eighteenth year that the Causley family has organised the sleigh, raising thousands of pounds for local and national charities. This year’s proceeds will be donated to Lyme Regis Christmas Lights Committee and will go towards the purchasing of new lights for Broad Street.

If anybody would like to help sponsor the sleigh, contact Neville on 07427 709 533.

Santa and his helpers will be touring Lyme Regis between 4pm and 8.30pm on December 9 and 10. The route will be as follows: Monday, December 9 – Pound Road, Pound Street, Westhill Road, Hill Rise, Clappentail Lane, Portland Court, Clappentail Park, Somers Road, Somers Field, Sidmouth Road, Blue Waters Drive, Silver Street, Broad Street, Coombe Street, Hill Road, View Road, Woodmead Road, end of Avenue Road, Springhill Gardens, Haye Lane, Haye Close, St Georges Close, Uplyme Road.

Tuesday, December 10 – Uplyme Village Hall, Lym Close, Garmans Field, Dragons Hill, bottom of Timber Hill, Pine Ridge, Woodbury Down Way, Overton Close, Fairfield Park, Charmouth Close, Charmouth Road, Anning Road, Kingsway, bottom Of Summerhill Road, Henry’s Way, Appleby Way, end of Elizabeth Close, Queen’s Walk, end of Queen’s Court, South Avenue, Colway Lane, North Avenue, Manor Avenue, Bay View Road, Talbot Road, Broad Street, Silver Street, Cobb Road, Woodroffe Meadow.

Please note that the sleigh is not able to go into some roads that are not mentioned on this list, as it is either not safe to stop or there is no way of turning around.

■ CHILDREN will also be able to meet Father Christmas in his grotto at the Masonic Hall off Broad Street, Lyme Regis, on December 7, 8, 21, 22 and 23 from 11am to 3pm.

Visiting the grotto will cost £3 per child, with all proceeds going to the RNLI. Youngsters will also be able to post a letter to Santa in his special postbox and will receive a reply.

Friday, December 6 2019 3

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Lyme to host General Election hustings LYME Regis residents will have their chance to question parliamentary candidates at a hustings ahead of the General Election.

Three candidates standing for the West Dorset seat in the December 12 election have confirmed they will be attending the event this Sunday (December 8). They are Kelvin Clayton (Green Party), Edward Morello (Liberal Democrats) and Claudia Sorin (Labour).

Conservative candidate Chris Loder is unable to attend. He commented: “I have spent a lot of time in Lyme Regis over the last few months. I enjoy being here very much. I have visited Woodroffe School, met concerned residents about the lack of a pre-school, enjoyed the cof-

Seafront roof resurfacing work to start in January LYME Regis Town Council is hoping for a dry winter to allow resurfacing works to be completed on the flat roof area in Lister Gardens.

Work to repair and resurface the area above SWIM, the Amusement Arcade and Antiques & Craft Centre on Marine Parade has been months in the planning, but the start date has now been delayed until January 6 2020.

This is to allow time to resolve issues raised by the below tenants under the Party Wall Act, which prevents building work undertaken by one neighbour undermining the structural integrity of shared walls or neighbouring properties.

The works are due to be completed in April but councillors have expressed concerns that wet weather could cause significant delays, as nine weeks of dry weather is required for the resurfacing materials.

The Mayor, Councillor Brian Larcombe MBE, this week suggested patching the roof and putting off major works until later next year, but was told this “would raise major contractual issues”.

The council initially set a budget of £332,000 for the resurfacing and refurbishment project and later increased this to £400,000.

Members were shocked when they received quotes for almost double this amount and had to scale back the scope of works, which is now expected to cost between £600,000 and £700,000.

fee shops and pubs, I have been to every shop on Broad Street to introduce myself and have been throughout the town delivering leaflets personally and meeting residents in the town centre and of course attended the Christmas lights switch on this past Saturday.

“I would hate, for the sake of my absence, given the short notice for a meeting on a Sunday evening, that the good people of Lyme Regis had any other view of me than being fully supportive of Lyme Regis and who wants to be its champion in Westminster.”

The hustings will be held at The Hub in Church Street, Lyme Regis, on Sunday, December 8 with doors opening at 6pm for a 6.30pm

start. The event will be chaired by Uplyme resident Rene Wyndham.

Tickets are free but should preferably be booked in advance at eventbrite.co.uk/e/general-election-hustings-in-lyme-regis-tickets84360260811 or by emailing organiser Belinda Bawden on belindabawden@gmail.com. Questions to put to candidates should also be sent in advance to the email address above.

Refreshments will be available with donations welcome towards the cost of the event, with any profits to be split between the One Planet Working Group and The Word Forest Organisation.

Meet all the West Dorset candidates in our election special on page 8

Overspend of £75,600 predicted in Lyme Regis harbour budget FIGURES for Lyme Regis harbour were down this year with a predicted overspend of £75,600 – partially due to a series of south easterly winds which stopped pontoons being used and unexpected repairs.

Interim harbourmaster James Radcliffe, who took over from Grahame Forshaw MBE when he left in July, said that on 17 occasions the pontoons had to be broken down for safety reasons, compared to just once during the previous season.

The cost of this in lost income has been put at around £10,000 less than expected.

“It has made a big difference to our figures,” he told the Dorset Council Harbours Committee.

The statistics show a drop from 63 to 39 for season tickets, 340 to 223 for visiting boat nights and private moorings down from 208 to 177.

Despite this payments for single launches were up from 180 to 217, also attributed to the weather.

The harbour budget is currently predicted to have a £75,600 overspend at the end of the fi-

nancial year, mainly due to unexpected repairs to the slipway, repairs and maintenance to the JCB and legal costs of £31,000 for the Harbour Revision Order.

Looking to the year ahead Mr Radcliffe told the committee that it was hoped that work on extending and repairing the slipway could be completed without the need to formally ask for planning permission.

He said that ground chains and weights would now have to be used to secure pontoons as piles were no longer considered a viable option due to a predicted cost rise of £400,000 due to nature of the seabed in the area.

Mr Radcliffe said he hoped that an EMFF grant secured to help with the cost of piles could be transferred to the alternative method.

It is also proposed to have wi-fi set up by the start of next season and a webcam and for dredging to begin before the start of the next season.

Other plans include work on the Harbour Revision Order which had now been approved by Dorset Council and has a budget of £31,500 over two years.

Festive fundraisers for Woodroffe School THE Woodroffe School PTFA are running their annual winter raffle, with £400 in cash to be won.

Tickets cost just £1 and are available from Serendip bookshop in Broad Street, Lyme Regis, with all funds raised going towards buying necessary equipment for the school.

The PTFA wish to thank Lyme Bay Holidays, Unique Holiday Stays and The Pilot Boat for sponsoring the first, second and third prizes of £250, £100 and £50.

Other prizes to be won include a £100 Harbour Inn voucher, £50 HIX Oyster & Fish House voucher, and hampers from Millers Farm Shop and Riverford Dorset Organic.

The draw will be made after the PTFA’s ‘Fun Festive Film Evening’ on Friday, December 13, where they will be screening a family-friendly Christmas film starring Kurt Russell, made by the producers of ‘Harry Potter & The Philosopher’s Stone’ and ‘Home Alone’.

For licensing reasons, the PTFA cannot advertise the name of the film in advance, but for full details, ticket information and a link to the film’s trailer visit www.facebook.com/WoodroffeSchoolPTFA/ The school will be making use of its tiered seating in the main hall for the screening, with doors opening at 6.30pm for a 7pm start. Tickets costing £5 include a soft drink and popcorn. Non-Woodroffe School children and those aged under 11 are asked to be accompanied by an adult.

Festival founder boosts youth club funds

THE founder of Glastonbury Festival, Michael Eavis, has helped raise more than £3,600 for Charmouth Youth Club.

The club was closed down following funding cuts from the county council, but trustees are hoping to raise enough funds to re-open it on a regular basis next year.

Mr Eavis attended a fundraising event last weekend, where he performed his own music and answered questions from the audience.

The event also included live music from other artists and DJs and an auction, raising a total of £3,647.04.

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

St Michael’s Children’s Choir sing at cathedral ST Michael’s Children’s Choir from Lyme Regis joined the Devon County Junior Choir (DCJC) on Saturday, November 23 to perform at Exeter Cathedral. The children relished the opportunity to sing with the DCJC again after a successful collaboration for the premiere of musical ‘Go Goliath!’ in Lyme Regis in June. Their next performance will be at the St Michael’s Parish Church Carol Service on Sunday, December 22 at 4pm.

Local Scouts compete in annual box kart battle B Sharp fundraising campaign a success LYME Regis-based music charity B Sharp has raised £6,000 in just one month thanks to a successful Crowdfunding campaign. The money will allow the charity to bring music-making events to even more young people, and the charity is now looking for further support from Dorset communities to stretch their target to £8,000. Pledges can still be made online at www.crowdfunder.co.uk/bsharpmusic

MEMBERS of 1st Charmouth and 1st Lym Valley joined six other Scout troops in the annual Dorchester & West Dorset District Box Kart Race.

Held at a very muddy Freshwater Holiday Park, the teams had to the chance to compete in four separate races: road; sprint; down hill, and off road.

‘Stealth’, the Charmouth Scouts’ box kart, did well in the road and sprint races and came first in the off road, despite having to be pushed about 400 yards through a quagmire that included a 60-yard, 12 inch deep puddle.

‘Borderline’, the Lym Valley Scouts’ entry, was doing really well in the down hill until it turned over

and snapped an axle. Fortunately, the troop were able to use a spare kart for their off road race.

After the presentations, 1st Lym Valley Scout leader Karen Yelland said: “Our Scouts had a great time, despite getting very wet and extremely muddy. They all came back with huge smiles on their faces.

“My thanks to Charmouth Scouts for inviting us along – we can’t wait for next year!”

Kevin Payne, Scout leader at Charmouth, added: “We were delighted to invite the Lym Valley Scouts to join in, as they had asked us to enter their cardboard boat race in July.”

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Woman and dogs rescued from incoming tide A WOMAN and two dogs were recused from cliffs between Lyme Regis and Charmouth on Monday, November 25 after being cut off by the tide. Coastguards from Lyme Regis and West Bay, Lyme Regis lifeboat crew, paramedics and the coastguard rescue helicopter from Newquay were involved in the rescue. The 33-year-old woman from Cardiff had spent the day fossil hunting with her dogs, but became trapped by the tide below Black Ven. Photo by Richard Austin (this is a stock photo of the coastguard helicopter and not related to this specific rescue)

Friday, December 6 2019 5

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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 It’s an electric blue Christmas for Lyme!

Top tips to cut down on litter this Christmas

CHRISTMAS is a time for family, festive food and fun but can also be a time of excess and increased waste, including single-use plastics and fats, oils and greases. Litter Free Dorset has launched its ‘Simple Seasonal Swaps’ campaign, offering advice on how to cut down on waste this Christmas, including creating homemade gifts and disposing of fat and grease correctly.

Free museum passes for local school pupils LYME Regis Museum has presented free entry passes for a year to children attending St Michael’s and Mrs Ethelston’s primary schools in Lyme Regis and Uplyme. The museum is keen to encourage more local families to visit and be inspired by the fascinating stories and artefacts on display, and welcomes the children to bring along their parents, brothers and sisters.

THERE’S no hiding from it anymore, Christmas time is upon us.

Lyme Regis was lit up in electric blue on Saturday - the colour matching the electrifying atmosphere as record crowds piled into Broad Street for the switch-on of another spectacular display.

It was an extra busy weekend for me as I headed back and forth between Lyme, Bath and Bristol on the train, luckily before the strikes got underway, to catch up with friends between covering the local festivities.

And we enjoyed our LymeOnline office party (plus a few friends there’s only three of us!) with an excellent cocktail-making class and dinner at the Pilot Boat.

So that’s two turkey dinners down... about 10 to go!

As if that wasn’t enough, the festive spirit continued at the golf club on Tuesday evening with a packed wreath-making workshop. I think we all looked a little clueless as we were presented with metal rings, a mound of moss and huge pile of green foliage, but we soon got stuck in.

A few pine cones and a touch of glitter spray later, and I sat back with a glass of mulled wine to admire my work... that was until I saw the spectacular and imaginative creations the other ladies (and one man - kudos to you!) had pulled together.

A few of my former teachers from the Woodroffe School were among

those taking part; fortunately not my art teacher, as I don’t think my minimal efforts did much to redeem my D at A-level. Still, my wreath is proudly hanging on my front door, although I’m not sure it will actually survive Christmas!

While I haven’t found time to start my Christmas shopping yet, I have visited lots of local traders over the past few weeks as I’ve been collecting donations for one of the bigger fundraisers of the year I organise - Lyme Regis Football Club’s annual Christmas Auction, which will be held at the Davey Fort tomorrow (Saturday) from about 7pm - all welcome!

I always start collecting with some trepidation, knowing that the shops are asked to support so many different causes, especially at this time of year, but they always come up trumps and once again we have some top prizes on offer.

There’s no doubt our local traders are a generous bunch and that’s why I’ll be shopping local as much as possible in the run-up to Christmas, as we advocate on this week’s front page.

Francesca Evans, Editor

NE W LOOK

Axminster train services Mill thanks water wheel affected by strike action refurbishment sponsors TRAIN services from Axminster are being affected by strike action called by the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers, which will run through Christmas until the New Year. From Axminster, trains to Exeter St David’s and London Waterloo will run every two hours rather than hourly.

THE Town Mill in Lyme Regis has unveiled a sponsorship board showing names of all supporters who helped fund the rebuild of the water wheel earlier this year. The mill would like to say a big thank you to all those who supported the rebuild, without whom the wheel could not have been refurbished and would of stopped turning.

Mercury Prize nominee to perform at the Marine IN one of its first programme announcements for 2020, the Marine Theatre has confirmed that Mercury Prize nominee Sam Lee will bring his band to Lyme Regis in February.

The highly-inventive folk singer will be visiting the Marine as part of a tour to coincide with the release of his new album ‘Old Wow’.

Sam Lee will be at the Marine Theatre on Saturday, February 8 2020 with tickets starting from £13. For full details and to book, call 01297 442138 or visit www.marinetheatre.com

LYME RE G I S

Sunday Sequence Every evening 8-10pm Dancing Fitness that’s ‘Strictly’ Fun New dancers welcome

Fun, Fab, Dance Based Fitness Join Sarah on Tuesday mornings from 10-11am for 1st session free Call 07788 946 427 for more information Other regular events include Ballet, Yoga, Pilates, Bingo and Town Band Rehearsals

To book the Woodmead Halls telephone Michaela Ellis on 07856 630975 Follow us on Twitter @WoodmeadHalls and Facebook at www.facebook.com/woodmeadhalls

6 Friday, December 6 2019

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

www.lyme-online.co.uk

philip@lyme-online.co.uk

Why I’m Christmas shopping locally

F

OR the last month I have been walking five kilometres a day, mainly for health reasons but also to raise money for the men’s health charity Movember.

In doing so I’ve raised £600 (thanks to all of you who have made donations), lost a stone in weight and gone a long way in reversing my type 2 diabetes which I have been suffering for ten years or more. I’m also on a strict diet.

I was motivated to do so by my eldest daughter Zoe’s efforts for Movember in Galway. She was appointed a Movember ambassador for the Western Ireland city where the fantastic sum of €52,000 has been raised.

I must admit it’s been a bit of a chore dragging myself out of bed at six in the morning to walk down to the end of the Cobb and back to get five kilometres under my belt for 30 days in succession. In all, I did more than 200,000 steps.

But it’s been fabulous seeing the sun rise over Golden Cap, or the sun set over the bay, and I intend to keep on walking, perhaps not as far or as often, but certainly on a regular basis because I’m very close to my diabetes being in remission.

When it was blowing of gale on the seafront I decided to take a walk up town instead one late evening and did a bit of window shopping. And I suddenly realised what a great little town Lyme

is for its range of shops. So I decided there and then that I would talk to Mrs E and suggest that this year we should do all our Christmas shopping in Lyme.

I also spoke to my colleague Geoff Baker about the idea and he did a bit of research for us which makes interesting reading. According to Deloittes, in 2018 the average UK Christmas spend was £567, the breakdown being (roughly) £300 on presents, £150 on food and drink, £65 on socialising and £50 on travelling.

But Geoff, in his usually inquisitive, investigative way, went a little bit further. There’s 1,843 people aged 16-64 in Lyme and 1,334 aged 65 plus. So that’s 3,117. Lop off the teens, who are skint, and the very oldies who are also skint, and call it 2,000 of present-buying capacity.

So those 2,000 could (not saying they will, but could) spend £300 on presents in Lyme, £150 on food from Lyme (do-able) and call it £50 on socialising, i.e. going to the pub or out for a meal. That’s £500 each.

Five hundred quid times 2,000 equals £1million - that’s the potential Christmas spend in Lyme.

Of course, it’s not realistic to think everyone in Lyme will do this. But it’s an interesting theory and having looked in all the shop windows in Lyme on my marathon walking month, there really is no reason to go out of town!

Yer, listen to this...

■

I WAS interested to see a piece in the Radio Times last week when the BBC’s political correspondent, Chris Mason, a proud Yorkshireman, was having a moan about the lack of regional accents on national TV. The new presenter of ‘Any Questions’ said he could not think of a single person on the national network that spoke with a West Country accent. Plenty of Brummies and Geordies but no one from this part of the world. “It’s mad,” he commented. I agree.

This has always been a bit of an issue with me. Many moons ago when I was a young reporter I was auditioned for a job with Westward TV. I got through the first interview but was finally rejected, having been told I was over-compensating for my West Country accent

and adopting a an ‘estuary’ accent, whatever that might be. It was just as well as I just don’t have the voice for television or radio, which is why I’ve stuck with print journalism all these years.

But I don’t agree with Mr Mason. I can think of only one reporter with a slight burr to his accent on local TV. But the BBC Spotlight’s best reporter, Hamish Marshall, is Scottish!

Also, has a West Country comedian ever made it really big? Admittedly, Jethro has enjoyed a fair bit of fame in recent years but no one else.

The reason of course is that anyone with a real West Country accent is considered to be thick.

I blame Worzel Gummidge.

ACCOMPANIED by Andrew Hodder - a reward for his fundraising efforts - the Mayor of Lyme Regis, Councillor Brian Larcombe MBE, about to switch on Lyme’s Christmas lights before a huge crowd

Are these the best ever Christmas lights?

SADLY, I missed the turning on of Lyme’s Christmas lights on Saturday. We were visiting our grandchildren in London on a preChristmas visit.

But I could not wait to drive down over town late on Sunday to see what we had missed. The first sight was almost breathtaking. This year’s illuminations just have to be the best ever. The actual volume of colour was intoxicating.

Lyme’s steep main street, of course, means that whether you are looking up or down the street, you can see all the lights.

And that gives us a great advantage over other town’s who have a level main highway.

I was even more gobsmacked when I saw Richard Austin’s switch on photos on Monday morning. I can’t ever remember seeing

so many people crowded into Broad Street, from top to bottom. There was a record number of lanterns made by children during the afternoon and the majorettes, resplendent in their Christmas costumes, added greatly to the occasion.

Many congratulations to the Christmas Lights Committee under the chairmanship of Christine Lovell, and to Virgil Turner and John King for their efforts in sourcing the illuminations and putting them up. Quite a task.

Well done also to marketing expert Rob James who sharpened up the committee’s publicity and proved that using Facebook to promote such events is now essential in this day and age.

School ready to open its doors again IT’S good to hear that the Woodroffe School is throwing open its facilities for the com■ munity to use once again.

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With my Royal British Legion hat on, I was one of a number of people invited to the school’s open evening to officially meet the new headmaster, Dan Watts, and to listen to his presentation on how he sees the future for the school.

During an excellent presentation, the headmaster announced that the school wanted to build better contacts with the community and that they would be making available their various facilities for hire by local organisations.

This used to be the case but a succession of headmasters in recent years have allowed the school’s profile in the community to deteriorate somewhat.

In future, the school hall, drama studio, sports hall and gymnasium, as well as other facilities, will be opened to the public at very reasonable hourly costs.

Going back to the 1970s, the school was the number one choice for Lyme’s big social events, including on many occasions’ the mayor’s civic ball. The first ever of these events was organised by the late Alderman Douglas Fortnam and his

wife Lydia when they were First Citizens in the late 1960s - and a very posh occasion it was too.

During that period I organised a number of events at the school, including the Regatta and Carnival Christmas Balls and a number of Miss Lyme Regis contests. At one of these we secured the services of Terry Wogan to compere the event.

The Joe Loss Orchestra, one of the most famous big bands in the world, appeared at the school for the Lyme 1200 Festival Ball in 1974.

The school hall was ideal for such events with a capacity well in excess of 300 in those days and a kitchen conveniently adjacent to the hall.

The only two other venues capable of staging such events are the Marine Theatre and the Woodmead Halls. The cost of hiring the theatre in prohibitive these days due to its extensive programme of events and the Woodmead Halls is so well used as a community centre that booking suitable dates is not always possible.

With in excess of 1,000 students now at the Woodroffe, the school is an integral part of Lyme Regis and as one member of the audience told Mr Watts - “this is music to our ears”.

LOCAL journalist David Cozens MBE welcomes Terry Wogan to Lyme, watched by former brewery PR Nigel Fortnam, at a reception before the Miss Lyme Regis Ball at the Woodroffe School, circa 1972

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Town council continues fight to ban dogs from Lyme’s main beaches THE Mayor of Lyme Regis has said the council has an “obligation to protect the public’s safety” as it continues its efforts to see dogs banned from the town’s main beaches all year round.

Councillor Brian Larcombe MBE called once again for a total ban on dogs from Lyme Regis’ sandy beach and Cobb Gate shingle beach at this week’s council meeting.

His comments came as town council members considered a draft consultation document from Dorset Council on its Public Space Protection Orders (PSPOs), which cover regulations regarding dogs in public spaces.

Following the introduction of a PSPO by the now defunct West Dorset District Council in October 2017, dogs are currently allowed on Lyme’s main sandy beach without a lead between October 1 and May 1. They previously had to be kept on leads at all times.

The PSPO, now enforced by the new Dorset Council, is due to expire on December 31 2020 and a public consultation will be held in the New Year to determine whether any changes should be made to it.

Lyme Regis Town Council objected to the PSPO when it was first introduced, with members arguing that dogs should be kept on leads, and a number of complaints from the public about dogs defecating, urinating and being out of control on the sandy beach have also been received.

Following an incident in which a 12-year-old boy was bitten by a dog on the beach in December 2018, further calls for reconsideration of the policy were made, as well as suggestions of a complete ban of dogs from the sandy beach.

However, the suggestion of a complete ban has proved controversial with some dog own-

FRANCESCA EVANS

francesca@lyme-online.co.uk

ers, who have said it is unfair to penalise wellbehaved dogs and owners who clean up after their pets.

A petition opposing the town council’s stance that dogs should be completely banned from the main beaches has been signed by more than 4,300 people.

The petition argues that a complete ban of dogs would be “discrimination” against the majority of responsible dog owners, and would have a negative effect on tourism in the winter and spring months.

The issue has also sparked some of the most vitriolic debates on local social media pages and has been described by the town council as “without doubt the most hotly debated issue in Lyme Regis”.

Speaking during the public forum at this week’s town council meeting, local resident Zoe Patrick offered her support of the town council’s stance. She said that the situation regarding dogs on the beach had got worse in recent months; it often made it difficult to go swimming in the winter months as there was no dog-free beach, and was “stressful” for those with families and young children.

She also expressed concerns about toxocariasis, which can be found in dog faeces and has been known to cause child blindness.

Mrs Patrick said: “Just one incidence of a child getting an infection that leads to blindness is one too many.”

“We only have a small sandy beach and we need to keep it a clean and safe space to enjoy,” she added.

The mayor, Councillor Larcombe, said he completely agreed with Mrs Patrick’s concerns. He pointed out that Monmouth Beach,

Lyme Regis mourns former councillor and popular sportsman

Church Cliff Beach and East Cliff Beach could be used by dogs all year round, adding: “Dogs aren’t bothered which beach they’re walked on, this is more about the owners.”

“Its also about the public, and we have an obligation to protect the public’s safety.

“The pebble beach cannot be raked and if dogs are above the high water line it could be a problem, so the whole of the front beach should not be available to dogs on or off leads.”

Councillor Belinda Bawden opposed the mayor’s views, saying she thought dogs should be allowed on the beaches on leads during the winter months.

Councillor Kelsey Ellis also spoke in favour of this, saying that Monmouth, Church Cliff and East Cliff beaches did not provide good disabled access for those who wanted to walk their dogs.

She proposed that the council request dogs be allowed on the main beaches during the winter months on leads, but this motion failed with only Councillor Bawden supporting it.

The mayor proposed that the town council take all opportunities to oppose dogs being allowed on the sandy beach and Cobb Gate shingle beach all year round, which was agreed.

The council now plans to contact Dorset Council officers to discuss the best way to take this forward, as they felt the draft consultation document did not include options for a complete ban.

It was also agreed last week to look into the possibility of including a ban on dogs from the town’s cemetery in the PSPO. Dorset Council will make all final decisions regarding the PSPOs and dogs on the beach with the public consultation to begin in the New Year.

LYME Regis has been saddened by the death of a former town councillor and popular local sportsman Carl Williams, aged 82.

Mr Williams, who served on the town council as an independent for a two-year period in the early 1990s, died after a period in hospital.

His funeral was held at the Whimple crematorium on Wednesday, conducted by the Reverend Rosemary Bragg. A eulogy was delivered by Philip Evans MBE and a poem read by his youngest daughter, Hayley.

Mr Williams was born in Lyme Regis and educated at St Michael’s Senior School.

Leaving at 15, he became an apprentice stonemason before joining the Royal Air Force for his National Service.

He continued to served in the RAF for 12 years, including a posting in Cyprus for the uprising, for which he received the General Service Medal.

Mr Williams and his wife Vivienne were married at St Michael’s Parish Church and after leaving the RAF they made their home in King’s Way. Mr Williams returned to the building trade working for many years for Wiscombes and then became manager of the NCP car park in Broad Street. He was a keen member of the Lyme Regis Pantomime Society, appearing in many productions, and was also an active supporter of the Royal British Legion after his service days.

A former player for Lyme Regis Football Club, he also managed the Reserves and in more recent times was a regular spectator at the club.

He is survived by two daughters, Cheryl and Hayley, three grandchildren and a great grandchild.

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ELECTION SPECIAL GENERAL ELECTION - THURSDAY, DECEMBER 12

KELVIN CLAYTON - GREEN PARTY I AM a Green Party councillor on both Dorset Council (Bridport ward) and Bridport Town Council, and a former chairman of the local Green Party. I stood as the Green Party candidate in the 2017 General Election.

Before entering politics I spent my whole working life in the public sector, first as a firefighter then as careers adviser, with a short spell as a part-time university lecturer.

I first went to university as a mature student after leaving the fire service, but continued studying philosophy on a part-time basis – eventually gaining a PhD in the subject. I currently organise the Bridport Philosophy in Pubs group, a grass roots community organisation promoting philosophy and critical thinking, and I write a monthly ‘philosophy’ column for a local magazine.

I am acting the chair of Bridport Youth & Community Centre, which I helped save from closure following the former Dorset County Council’s decision to cut their funding for youth centres, and am active in many other community initiatives. After living and working in various parts of the country I eventually discovered Bridport which I now regard as my home.

The most important issue of this General Election is not Brexit, it’s responding to our climate and ecological emergency. The five year period of the next government is half the ten year period the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) have given us to seriously reduce our carbon emissions. But, as report after report is highlighting, we are not even getting close to doing this.

Many scientists are now getting seriously wor-

ried about our lack of action. We all need to be getting worried. But more importantly we all need to be taking action.

I am actively involved in helping Dorset Council develop a Climate and Ecological Emergency Action Plan, and as your MP would put all my energy to driving forward The Green Party’s Green New Deal – a comprehensive 10 year plan to tackle this emergency by delivering a fast and fair transformation of our economy and society. We owe it to our children and grandchildren to do all we can to secure their future.

EDWARD MORELLO - LIBERAL DEMOCRATS MY name is Edward Morello and I am the Liberal Democrat candidate for parliament. I am an internationalist and environmentalist, and live in Bridport with my wife Keira and our two-year-old son Casper.

I was born in Bristol and grew up in Buckinghamshire, and South Africa. I studied International Relations at university in Wales, and spent nearly a decade working in the geopolitical and security intelligence sector; supporting charities, businesses, and international institutions operating in high-risk environments.

During that time I lived in London, France and Brussels, and my job took me all over the world. My wife and I decided to settle in Bridport, the town where we were married three years earlier, to raise a family. I now work for a Dorset-based renewables company that invests in commercial solar projects.

I am a committed environmentalist. I strongly believe that climate change is the defining issue of our generation, and that we need bold environmental policies at the heart of all decision-making to avoid a climate catastrophe. I am also an internationalist, and believe Britain is at its strongest when it is playing a leading role in international institutions like the EU. West Dorset is a fantastic place to live, but to keep it that way we must do more to pro-

tect the communities that make it so unique.

That is why as your MP I will work tirelessly to bring back those vital services whose disappearance have left residents feel abandoned and isolated.

A vote for Edward Morello is a vote for change, it is a vote for a brighter future for Lyme Regis and West Dorset, it is a vote for Better.

CHRIS LODER - CONSERVATIVE I WAS born at the Yeatman Hospital in Sherborne, Chris Loder and enjoyed a rural upbringing on my family farm of four generations, attending primary schools at Holwell and Bishops Caundle before secondary education at The Gryphon School, Sherborne.

I didn't go to university, instead at aged 18 I began my railway career with a job as a train guard on the Waterloo to Exeter line. I progressed to lead a team of 300 running the UK’s best performing train company, creating more train services and better connections for Dorset, while delivering the multi-million-pound upgrade of London Waterloo station.

My public service career began as a teenager when I became parish clerk for Bishops Caundle in 1998/99, and was awarded the young person’s merit award for commitment to the local community. I was elected to West Dorset District Council to represent villages to the south of Sherborne in 2013 and was association chairman of West Dorset Conservative Association for three and a half years until August 2019.

I am very clear and principled on his views regarding Brexit. I wants us to leave the European Union and believe that the Prime Minister's deal is the best way to achieve this.

I voted to leave the EU in the 2016 referendum and I am the only candidate standing to deliver the democratic will for West Dorset in the 2019 General Election.

I look forward to championing West Dorset in Westminster. My key policy areas include: the environment, rural economy, the high street

and tourism; local housing and better connectivity, care and wellbeing, policing and tackling rural crime.

For Lyme Regis in particular I am determined to return a pre-school to the town; I will be championing Broad Street and local businesses by driving for infrastructure investment to grow the economy, and he commits to working hard to improve local transport networks.

You can see what Chris is doing by visiting www.twitter.com/chrisloder

CLAUDIA SORIN - LABOUR I GREW up in Dorchester and raised my family here. I work in a local school. I’ve lived in West Dorset for most of my life and I have a strong attachment to this beautiful area.

But over the years I've seen rising levels of inequality in West Dorset due to high housing costs, drastic cuts to public services and low wages.

Cuts to rural bus services and high fares have left both old and young isolated and left others with no choice but to use their cars, when we are facing a climate crisis. We desperately need good transport and infrastructure such as broadband, to boost West Dorset’s economy and tackle inequality and rural poverty.

Since joining the Labour Party in 2013, I’ve been campaigning for decent, genuinely affordable homes and social housing for local people and to keep NHS services and beds in the West of the county.

Education funding has been cut to such an extent that we are now seeing a damaging impact on schools and further education, endangering the future of young people and adding to a growing mental health crisis affecting the young.

Support for children and young people with additional needs has been particularly hard hit and I’ve worked hard over the past year to raise awareness about how these vulnerable

children and their families have been let down.

I support a public vote on any Brexit deal and I believe that it is the way to heal the divisions that have grown over the last three years.

With a commitment to properly fund our NHS and schools, build decent homes and take action on the climate crisis, I believe Labour is the only party that can give us the transformative government we all need.

USE YOUR VOTE ON THURSDAY, DECEMBER 12

Don’t miss the election hustings at The Hub in Church Street, Lyme Regis, on Sunday, December 8 at 6.30pm. See page 3 for full details.

Friday, December 6 2019 9

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It’s definitely looking a lot like Christmas

Come and join us!

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10 Friday, December 6 2019

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Co-op spreads festive cheer to local organisations

LYME Regis Football Club manager Gerard Hitchcock (centre) collects a cheque from Co-op staff. Below, representatives from Uplyme Village Hall pick up their cheque and, right, Chris Tipping from LymeForward, which runs the food bank, collects a cheque

THREE local organisations received early Christmas presents last week from the local Coop store.

Staff at the Lyme Regis grocery shop handed out cheques totalling almost £4,500 as part of the Big Co-op Payout, in which customers can choose their favourite local causes to support.

Lyme Regis Foodbank received £1,164.93, Uplyme Village Hall collected £1,136.10 and Lyme Regis Football Club received £1,113.09.

Cheques were presented by store manager Karl Josko and staff last week.

Nationally, the Co-op has raised £17million for more than 4,000 good causes this year.

■ The Lyme Regis branch has also supported local youngster Keiron Scott on his mission to deliver advent calendars to residents of all Lyme Regis nursing homes for Christmas.

The big-hearted nine-year-old, who attends St Michael’s Primary School, used his own pocket money and asked for donations to buy 76 calendars, with the Co-op store donating 10.

He has been busy delivering the advent calendars to residents and staff at local nursing homes in time for December 1 (pictured right).

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Hundreds line the streets for record switch-on RECORD crowds descended on Broad Street, Lyme Regis, on Saturday evening for the eagerlyawaited switch-on of the town’s impressive Christmas lights.

The afternoon’s festivities commenced with a Christmas lantern making workshop and competition at Lyme Regis Baptist Church, which also saw a record attendance with more than 120 lanterns made, joined in the judging by many other entrants who made lanterns at home.

Following the judging, the lantern parade made its way down Broad Street, illuminating the thousands of twinkling blue and white LED lights in its wake.

Lyme Regis Majorettes led the parade with a dazzling and energetic routine, followed by the mayor, Councillor Brian Larcombe MBE, mayoress Wendy Larcombe, town crier Alan Vian and local resident Andrew Hodder, who had been selected to switch on the lights in honour of his fundraising efforts for Lyme Regis Christmas Lights Committee.

At the bottom of Broad Street there were cheers and gasps of wonder from the thousands of excited onlookers as the stunning Christmas tree was illuminated.

Lyme Luggers ukulele band entertained the crowds at Bell Cliff before the parade and Lyme Morris added to the festive atmosphere Rob James from Lyme Regis Christmas Lights Committee said: “There was a fantastic atmosphere in Broad Street, it was wonderful to see so many families and children coming into the town to take part in the switch on, we could not have asked for a better turnout.

“The committee is delighted with the incredibly positive response it has received both in person and on social media with thousands commenting, sharing and liking content relating to the display, which makes all our work during the past 12 months worth it.

“We are so grateful to our sponsors Lyme Bay Holidays, Swim, St Austell Brewery and Toad Hall Cottages for their support along with many other local businesses, the town council, Rotary Club, Penn Farm for donating the tree, Judith Pothecary for sponsoring the lantern competition and members of the local community who have generously contributed to our fundraising efforts”.

The lights will continue to twinkle until the first week of January, taking the town into a bright and colourful New Year.

LYME’S sparkling blue and white Christmas display has been described as one of the best ever

MANY local children took part in the annual Christmas lantern competition, including Alfie Blackmore (left), Zebedee Durrant (right) and Reuben Aylott (above right) who was presented with a prize by the mayor. Adults also took part with Jayne Mace, Jayne Hutchings, Andrew Hodder and Annette Denning pictured above. Also above, Lyme Regis Majorettes lead the procession down Broad Street

Photo by Richard Austin

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CLOCKWISE from top left - a record number of children entered the lantern competition; Jacob Denning with his impressive Father Christmas entry; the Mayor of Lyme Regis, Councillor Brian Larcombe MBE, addresses the huge crowds and, right, switches on the Christmas tree with local resident Andrew Hodder; Lyme Morris entertain after the parade; and the enormous crowd in Broad Street

timeoutinLyme

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ART | MUSIC | THEATRE | WHAT’S ON | COMPETITIONS

What’s on...

Friday, December 6

Knit & Knatter Lyme Regis Library, 2.30pm A friendly group who meet weekly to chat and knit over a cup of tea - all welcome.

Charity Poker Night Lyme Regis Football Club, 7pm Raising funds for mental health charity Mind. Entry costs £20 include chilli and chips dinner. Call Seb Cope on 07877 321 435 to book.

‘Are You Going to the Marine?’

Marine Theatre, 6.30pm Community play celebrating the Marine’s 125th anniversary. Tickets from £3 upwards - call 01297 442138 or visit www.marinetheatre.com.

Bar opens 6.30pm for 7.30pm start.

Friday @ The Pilot The Pilot Boat, 9pm Weekly live music nights at the Pilot Boat.

Saturday, December 7

Human Rights Day Coffee Morning, Baptist Church, 10.30am Coffee and cakes, Amnesty International greetings card campaign.

Uplyme Church Fayre Uplyme Church, 12noon Stalls, games and children’s activities, festive refreshments and raffle.

Baby & Toddlers Almost New Sale Woodmead Halls, 2pm Used baby and toddler clothes, toys and equipment, plus refreshments, in aid of Little Buds of Wessex.

‘Are You Going to the Marine?’

Marine Theatre, 6.30pm Community play celebrating the Marine’s 125th anniversary. Tickets from £3 upwards - call 01297 442138 or visit www.marinetheatre.com.

Bar opens 6.30pm for 7.30pm start.

LRFC Christmas Auction Lyme Regis Football Club, 7pm Lots include sports memorabilia and tickets, vouchers for local restaurants and attractions, hampers and lots more.

All welcome.

Live DJs @ SWIM SWIM, 9pm DJ Tomjuno and friends perform every Saturday night at SWIM on Marine Parade.

Sunday, December 8

Sunday Craft Market The Pilot Boat, 10am A weekly Sunday craft market at the Pilot Boat Inn, Lyme Regis. Call 01297 443157 to book a stall.

Live DJs @ SWIM SWIM, 12noon DJ James Baker and friends perform a chilled out set every Sunday afternoon at SWIM on Marine Parade.

Lyme Bay Chorale Christmas Concert, St Michael’s Parish Church, 4.30pm Lyme Bay Chorale and soloists perform a special programme of festive music.

Tickets from £13 or free for under 18s available by calling 01297 442138 or from Penny Black Café.

General Election Hustings

The Hub, 6pm Three candidates for the West Dorset parliamentary sea - Kelvin Clayton, Edward Morello and Claudia Sorin (Chris Loder unavailable) will answer questions from the public ahead of the General Election. Doors open 6pm for 6.30pm - book your free tickets at https://bit.ly/2rLvDF7 Jazz in the Bar Marine Theatre, 7.30pm Christmas special with Charlie Bicknell. Tickets from £8 call 01297 442138 or visit marinetheatre.com.

Bar opens 7.30pm for 8.30pm start.

Sequence Dancing Woodmead Halls, 8pm Lyme Regis Sequence Dancing Club meets every Sunday at 7.45pm for an 8pm start.

The friendly, welcoming group.

Monday, December 9

Charity Santa Sleigh Touring around town from 4pm Look out for Father Christmas and his helpers as they tour the streets of Lyme Regis, collecting donations for the Christmas Lights Committee.

Tuesday, December 10

The Old School House Café The Hub, 9am Community café run by LymeForward, open every Tuesday morning at The Hub in Church Street. Hot drinks, homemade cakes and toast available – just pay what you can, if you can.

Charity Santa Sleigh Touring around town from 4pm Look out for Father Christmas and his helpers as they tour the streets of Lyme Regis, collecting donations for the Christmas Lights Committee.

LRTC Planning Guildhall, 7pm For agendas see www.lymeregistowncouncil.gov.uk

Wednesday, December 11

LRTC Tourism Community & Publicity, Guildhall, 7pm For agendas see www.lymeregistowncouncil.gov.uk Uplyme Parish Council Uplyme Village Hall, 7.15pm For agenda see https://uplymeparishcouncil.org/ Wednesday @ The Pilot The Pilot Boat, 8.30pm Weekly live music nights at the Pilot Boat.

Thursday, December 12

General Election Polling stations at Woodmead Halls at Hallett Court, open 7am to 10pm Don’t forget to use your vote in the General Election.

Check your polling card for the correct polling station.

Screening: ‘A Winter’s Tale’ Marine Theatre, 6pm Judi Dench and Kenneth Branagh star in Shakespeare’s timeless tragicomedy of obsession and redemption. Tickets from £5 c all 01297 442138 or visit www.marinetheatre.com. Bar opens 6pm for 7pm screen-

Send your diary dates to francesca@lyme-online.co.uk www.lyme-online.co.uk/events

ing.

Lyme Regis Community Bingo Woodmead Halls, 8pm Bingo night every Thursday at the Woodmead Halls, raising funds for local organisations which are members of Lyme Regis Community Bingo Association.

Pilot Boat Quiz Night Pilot Boat, 8pm Weekly quiz night at the Pilot Boat for teams of two or more with cash prize for the winner plus £100 jackpot prize!

Live Music @ SWIM SWIM, 8pm Weekly live music night every Thursday at SWIM on Marine Parade.

Friday, December 13

Knit & Knatter Lyme Regis Library, 2.30pm A friendly group who meet weekly to chat and knit over a cup of tea - all welcome.

Friday @ The Pilot The Pilot Boat, 9pm Weekly live music nights at the Pilot Boat.

Saturday, December 14

Polar Express Pyjama Party Marine Theatre, 1pm Don your cosiest pyjamas for this festive party including a screening of ‘The Polar Express’. Father Christmas and the Station Master will be making special appearances.

Tickets £4.50 - call 01297 442138 or visit www.marinetheatre.com.

Doors open 1pm for 2pm start.

Lyme Regis Comedy Club Marine Theatre, 7pm With headliner Laura Lexx and support from Jon Wagstaffe Morgan Rees and resident compere Tom Glover. Tickets from £8 - call 012397 442138 or visit marinetheatre.com.

Bar opens 7pm for 8pm start.

Live DJs @ SWIM SWIM, 9pm DJ Tomjuno and friends perform every Saturday night at SWIM on Marine Parade.

Sunday, December 15

Sunday Craft Market The Pilot Boat, 10am A weekly Sunday craft market at the Pilot Boat Inn, Lyme Regis. Call 01297 443157 to book a stall.

Live DJs @ SWIM SWIM, 12noon DJ James Baker and friends perform a chilled out set every Sunday afternoon at SWIM on Marine Parade.

LRFC Christmas Lunch Lyme Regis Football Club, 12.30pm Two-course Christmas lunch for £12.50 including a glass of prosecco and mince pie, or just £5 for children. Tickets must be booked in advance call Francesca on 07810 221 420.

Lyme Regis Town Band Christmas Concert, Woodmead Halls, 2.30pm Your favourite festive tunes from Lyme Regis Town Band and guest artists. Free tickets available from Martin Diplock

or on the door.

The Sunday Sessions Marine Theatre, 3pm Free live music in the Marine Theatre bar. If you want to play, just turn up!

Lyme Regis Community Carollers Touring around town from 5pm Traditional carol singing around the main residential area of Lyme Regis, raising funds for the Christmas Lights Committee.

Sequence Dancing Woodmead Halls, 8pm Lyme Regis Sequence Dancing Club meets every Sunday at 7.45pm for an 8pm start.

The friendly, welcoming group enjoys popular sequence dances and visitors are welcome.

Tuesday, December 17

The Old School House Café The Hub, 9am Community café run by LymeForward, open every Tuesday morning at The Hub in Church Street. Hot drinks, homemade cakes and toast available – just pay what you can, if you can.

LRTC Strategy & Finance Guildhall, 7pm For agendas see lymeregistowncouncil.gov.uk

Wednesday, December 18

LRTC Strategy & Finance Guildhall, 7pm For agendas see lymeregistowncouncil.gov.uk Wednesday @ The Pilot The Pilot Boat, 8.30pm Weekly live music nights at the Pilot Boat.

Thursday, December 19

Music: The Jerseys Marine Theatre, 6.30pm Tribute act celebrating the timeless music of Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons.

Tickets from £16 - call 01297 442138 or visit marinetheatre.com. Bar opens 6.30pm for 7.30pm start.

Lyme Regis Community Bingo Woodmead Halls, 8pm Bingo night every Thursday at the Woodmead Halls, raising funds for local organisations which are members of Lyme Regis Community Bingo Association.

Pilot Boat Quiz Night Pilot Boat, 8pm Weekly quiz night at the Pilot Boat for teams of two or more with cash prize for the winner plus £100 jackpot prize!

Live Music @ SWIM SWIM, 8pm Weekly live music night every Thursday at SWIM on Marine Parade.

Friday, December 20

Knit & Knatter Lyme Regis Library, 2.30pm A friendly group who meet weekly to chat and knit over a cup of tea - all welcome.

Friday @ The Pilot The Pilot Boat, 9pm Weekly live music nights at the Pilot Boat.

This month at the Marine Catch up with Lyme’s Little Theatre by the Sea

SEX sells. Unless you’re Victoria Beckham and your fashion empire is selling raunchy underwear that has lost its appeal, but naughty knickers aside and ignoring the PC, sex really does sell. You’re probably wondering where I’m heading with this, but bare, sorry, bear with me.

We’ve enjoyed some brilliant sellout performances including the Blues Band who needed two ‘humpers’ to help shift their gear.

Over the years I have been working at the Marine I’ve come across quite a few colloquial words and phrases, and this one always raises a smile. In the same way there is a very definite way to stack our theatre chairs, I haven’t yet asked if there is a particular technique to humping.

‘John Illsley: the life and times of Dire Straits’ was another excellent night packed with many wellknown chart-topping hits, including ‘Brothers in Arms’ which is when Gill, one of our wonderful volunteers (surname not included to protect the innocent) told me the song evoked very fond memories.

The glint in her eye was more than enough when pressed for more information. But how many of us rushed out to by the single (now we download) of the song we shared with a particular person. Do they even still have the smoochy bit at the end of a club night?

I had a meeting with the very bubbly outgoing deputy mayor Jeff Scowen who shocked the community when he suddenly decided to leave the high life of Lyme for a more sedate one in Wales. It’s always interesting to chat with Jeff; I was asking him about his experiences in the Guildhall and whilst I only needed a quick snapshot, I ended up with six pages of notes so plenty to choose from.

I enjoyed another trip to London, this time sans enfant to meet up with the lovely Viv Keene who is performing in ‘The Mousetrap’. We planned to go to the Ivy Club afterwards so I took along one of my ‘going-out’ tops that I save for the rare occasion I go anywhere other than the Pilot for Fizz Friday. A quick change in Viv’s dressing

room and I was ready.

Looking at the other women who arrived in the Ivy, I think I’ve been out of the London loop a bit too long although I’m certain I wouldn’t have been warm enough wearing a dress like that.

Talking of glamour, you can’t get much more glamourous than the life of a theatre manager, a role that includes meeting and greeting pop icons, internationally known comedians and TV stars and cleaning up sick five minutes before curtains up. Ably assisted by Pete our brilliant tech who shone his torch so I could see what I was doing, I soon had the area clean and sanitised.

Had to throw away a virtually new pair of Marigolds mind, perhaps the theatre fairies will find me another pair.

But I do enjoy the more hands-on stuff just as much as the romance; we have a long redundant blue office chair here, you know the sort of thing, the hydraulics packed up so it no longer goes up and down and the back support has dropped out.

So it’s been rolling around the theatre looking for a home.

So when one of our terrific theatre members arrived to watch Hansard I couldn’t help but notice his foot was bandaged and when he mentioned he needs to keep his leg raised as much as possible the old blue chair was the perfect solution.

Our annual fire alarm test took place, sadly no firemen this time.

It’s always very straight forward with some loud sirens and signing off but when he left saying a cheery “have a nice Christmas” I shrank back with a “Nooooo! Don’t say that, you’re far too early”. But how wrong I was because here we are, less than three weeks to go.

I was hoping to play a few Christmas songs as I decorated the theatre tree to remind me of my Christmas clubbing days, but I couldn’t find my CD. There’s nothing under the tree yet, maybe Santa’s helpers will leave me a new pair of Marigolds, far more use than Victoria’s saucy underwear.

Sophia Moseley

Theatre manager

The Harbour Inn - celebrating 15 years in Lyme!

timeoutinLyme

Friday, December 6 2019 15

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ART| MUSIC | THEATRE | WHAT’S ON | COMPETITIONS

Favourite festive tunes at special Jazz in the Bar DIVA and vocal sensation Charlie Bicknell is a force to be reckoned with and will be singing a special Christmas programme at the Marine Theatre’s Jazz in the Bar on Sunday, December 8.

Charlie first became a household name playing Delilah in BBC2′s ‘This Life’, and subsequently starred as Scout in Ben Elton’s West End hit ‘Popcorn’.

While continuing to work as an actress for the National Theatre and rep around the UK, Charlie developed a parallel career singing jazz and her own brand of dark comic cabaret for a number of years.

Described by The Observer as “always delighting… with an amazing voice,” Charlie has worked with fabulous singers such as Marie Wilson, Earl Okin, Anita Wardell and Alison Limerick.

She has sung at London jazz venues Pizza on the Park, The Pheasantry and Ronnie Scotts, an accolade she shares with Philip Clouts who will be accompanying her at the piano.

Internationally, Charlie has performed at venues in Australia (notably the basement of Sydney Opera House and a giant car park in Adelaide), Hong Kong, Copenhagen, Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

In addition to her extensive jazz repertoire from the likes of Cole Porter and Jerome Kern,

expect some Christmas classics like ‘Santa Baby’, ‘The Little Boy that Santa Claus Forgot’, and of course Nat King Cole’s ‘Christmas Song’.

This Jazz in the Bar Christmas edition will be held at the Marine Theatre on Sunday, December 8, opening at 7.30pm for an 8.30pm start.

Tickets cost £8 in advance or £12 on the door, and are available by calling 01297 442138 or visit www.marinetheatre.com. Please note, this event is upstairs and seating is limited.

Lyme Bay Chorale patron to perform at Christmas concert

PROFESSIONAL soprano Philippa Hyde, one of Lyme Bay Chorale’s patrons , will perform a solo

by Handel at the choir’s Christmas concert next weekend.

Philippa will sing ‘Haec est Regina Virginum’, as well as solo parts in two of the other works in the programme - ‘Laudate Pueri Dominum’, also by Handel, and the ‘Heiligmesse’ by Haydn.

The choir, which is based in Lyme Regis, will also sing ‘Jauchzet, Frohlocket’, the rousing opening chorus from J.S. Bach’s Christmas Oratorio.

They will be accompanied throughout much of the concert by a small orchestra of strings, woodwind and brass, plus organ, played by Peter Parshall, director of music at Axminster Parish Church, and harpsichord, played by local keyboard specialist and Bach expert Peter Lea-Cox. The other vocal soloists singing in the concert are Kate Barnes (soprano), Rachel Bennett (alto), Paul Tindall (tenor) and Julian Sutton (bass), as well as baritone David Fouracre, who lives in Colyton.

The concert will be held on Sunday, December 8 at 4.30pm in St Michael’s Parish Church, Lyme Regis. Tickets are £13 in advance from Lyme Regis TIC (01297 442138), Penny Black Cafe or choir members, or £15 on the door. Entry is free for those aged 18 and under.

Philippa will also give a masterclass in the church on the previous day at 2.30pm with fellow patron Paul Esswood (countertenor). Several members of the choir will be taking part, and ev-

LYME RE REGIS, GISS, PUT YO YOUURR

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Music kicks offf around 8.30pm

Marine Parade, Lyme Regi g s, Dorset, DT7 3JH Follow us on social media @swimlyme | 01297 442668 | info@weswim.co.uk

eryone is welcome to come along and listen free of charge with a retiring collection.

Lyme Bay Chorale’s musical director Alex Davies said: “We’re excited to welcome Philippa and Paul back to Lyme Regis. Their masterclass is a wonderful opportunity for some of our singers to learn from the best in their field, and Philippa’s solo piece in our concert is certain to be magical.

“We’re lucky to have such talented, renowned professionals as our patrons.”

PROFESSIONAL soprano Philippa Hyde will be among those to perform at Lyme bay Chorale’s Christmas concert

timeoutinLyme

16 Friday, December 6 2019

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ART | MUSIC | THEATRE | WHAT’S ON | COMPETITIONS

Scoundrels misbehave at the Guildhall THEATRE REVIEW

HILARIOUS - Tucker Scott-Stevens and Billy Matthews brought the house down with their antics

‘DIRTY ROTTEN SCOUNDRELS’

Axminster Musical Theatre Review by Philip Evans

A

XMINSTER Musical Theatre have never been frightened to take on a challenge. A glance at their previous productions bears witness to this: ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’, ‘The Fully Monty’, ‘Little Shop of Horrors’, ‘Made in Dagenham’.

They have all entertained Axminster audiences in recent years - and all received critical acclaim.

I doubt, however, whether they have staged many shows more challenging than ‘Dirty Rotten Scoundrels’, staged recently at the Guildhall.

Not only because it’s not a blockbuster with musical numbers that immediately spring to mind. But because the whole show depends on the comedic talents of the two main characters.

But not every amateur society can call on the talents of Tucker Scott-Stevens and Billy Matthews. In a long career of covering amateur shows, I can’t remember a production in which two characters have produced such outstanding performances. For a moment I thought I was

watching a West End show.

‘Dirty Rotten Scoundrels’ was a 1988 American comedy film starring Steve Martin, Michael Caine and Glenne Headly, a remake of the 1964 Marlon Brando/David Niven film ‘Bedtime Story’, and was later remade in 2019 as ‘The Hustle’, starring Anne Hathaway and Rebel Wilson.

SOUP AND SWEET LUNCH Saturday 18 January 2020 Woodmead Halls £6

PIZZA NIGHT AT THE PILOT BOAT

Tuesday 18 February 2020 Choice of 2 pizzas and a glass of wine - £12 Phone 07796 951991 for tickets

THE BIG BREAKFAST

Friday 20 March 2020 Woodmead Halls 8am - 1pm Full English with orange juice and toast £7 Bacon roll £3 – We can deliver Thank you to everyone who supported our events in 2019

Playing alongside him as the rooky con man, the brash newcomer on the block Freddy Benson, was Billy Matthews who looked every inch the professional and brought down the house with his crazy antics on stage. A perfect foil for Jameson’s prince alter-ego.

I have watched Billy Matthews’ career on the local stage since he was a youngster but this was by far his most accomplished performance. He and Tucker must have had so much fun in these parts and that sense of frivolity was transferred across the footlights in no small measure.

They were backed by a hugely talented cast, led

by Vanessa Laoder, who has featured on the Axminster stage for more than four decades, in the role of socialite Muriel Eubanks. This was another performance in which Vanessa’s energy levels exceeded the richter-scale.

Silvey Webber played the role of American soap queen Christine Colgate with her usual level of sassiness, and featured in the musical highlight of the show, a duet with Billy Matthews - ‘Nothing Is Too Wonderful’.

Harvey Causley has emerged in recent years as a natural and his role of the chief of police was played with a almost Clouseau-esque influence.

The experienced Nick Lawrence returned to his role as director alongside choreographer Rachel Worsley and musical director Joseph Binmore, and I suspect they had as much fun as the cast!

It tells the story of two con men competing to swindle an heiress out of $50,000. The action takes place on the French Riviera.

Tucker Scott-Stevens, a former professional actor, played the part of the sophisticated, suave ex-con-man Lawrence Jameson.

Having trained professionally, he has appeared in roles as diverse as Shakespeare to pantomime, as well as parts in television shows such as ‘Eastenders’ and ‘London’s Burning’.

The role of Lawrence Jameson might well have been written for him and one imagines he had to use all those skills honed on the professional stage to provide local audiences with such a high stan- VANESSA Loader (socialite Muriel Ewbanks) and Harvey Causley (the head of podard. Simply brilliant. lice Andre Thibault) ■ Cast List: Silvey Webber (Christine Colgate), Tucker Scott-Stevens (Lawrence Jameson), Billy Matthews (Freddy Benson), Harvey Causley (Andre Thibault), Vanessa Loader (Muriel Ewbanks), Robin Brakstad (Jolene Oakes), Dan Wilde (Hotel Manager), Steve Egan (Bell Boy), David Adams (Waiter), Susie Gamble, Robin Brakstad, Silvey Webber, Jasmine Hussey, Caitlin Jackson and Emily Smith (Maids), Emily Smith (Leonore), Tracey Wakeling (Sophia), Silvey Webber (Josephine), Jasmine Hussey (Marie), Robin Brakstad (Collette), Susie Gamble (Usherette), Karen Hussey (Renee), Jerry Holt (Gerard), Val Cullimore (Hortense), Barry Marshall (Nikos), Caitlin Jackson (Helene), Tina Woodhall (Claudette), Brian Cursley (Claud), Roland Kelly and Adam Chudley (Sailors).

Nuns of Abbey Beaumont sur Mer, Citizens of Okes, Oklahoma, Sailors, Godspellers, Railway Staff, Gendarmes, Detectives, Tea Dancers, Greek Millionaires and others played by members of the cast.

■ Orchestra under the direction of Joseph Binmore: Steve Grant (Reed1), Kate Grant (Reed 2), Josh Westrip (Trumpet), Christopher Holland (Trombone), Glyn

Rattenbury (Kit), Steve Douglas (Percussion), Fraser Morgan (Guitar), Pete Mansfield (Bass Guitar), Cathy Binmore (Keyboard 1), Ian Crew (Keyboard 2).

■ Production team: Jack Price (Production Manager), Adam Chudley assisted by Dennis Freeth, Ann Long, Roland Kelly and Kris Brakstad (Stage Manager), Stuart Courtman and Sue Close (Front of House), Roland Kelly and Sue Kelly (Set Design and Construction), Ian Whilden (Lighting), Seventh Wave Audio (Sound), Brian Cursley (Properties), Sue Kelly and Roland Kelly (Wardrobe), Jasmine Hussey and helpers (Hair and Make Up), Joseph Binmore (Rehearsal Pianist), Emily Appleton of South West Photography (Production Photographer), Rose Harvey (Programme), Helma Belbin (Programme Advertisements), The Archway Bookshop, Open Door Internet and Friends of AMT (Ticket Sales and Box Office), Footeprints (Printing), Pam Cridge (Floral Arrangements), Helma Belbin (Raffle and Ice Cream Sales), Members and Friends of Axminster Musical Theatre (Stewards, Programmes and Raffle Sellers), Rose Harvey, Robin Brakstad and Jasmine Hussey (Publicity), Ian Crew (Editorial for Advertising).

Friday, December 6 2019 17

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18 Friday, December 6 2019

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NEWS FROM CITIZENS ADVICE CITIZENS Advice has produced its own manifesto for next week’s General Election in which it is calling on whoever is elected to take action to prevent some of the problems faced by the over 2.5 million people who seek its help each year.

Included in a policy document that has been sent to all the main political parties are proposals for major reforms in welfare, debts, housing, consumer markets and energy.

Gillian Guy, the chief executive of Citizens Advice, commented: “We know the problems that people face every day, because it is us they turn to for advice and support. But many of these problems are preventable.

“The next government has a major opportunity to make a meaningful difference to people’s lives, from fixing the difficulties people face with housing, welfare and debt through to ensuring consumers are protected.”

On welfare Citizens Advice is demanding an end to the benefits freeze and an increase in working-age benefits by two per cent above inflation for each of the next four years, beginning in April, so that more is done to enable people keep up with the cost of living.

It also wants to make sure money reaches people quicker by reducing the five-week wait for Universal Credit and that the benefits system supports people to manage their money effectively, through having more choice about when and how they are paid.

Problems with debt account for over a quarter of all enquiries to Citizens Advice. In its manifesto it says that too many households are struggling with debt and demands the creation of an independent bailiff regulator to help ensure that people are treated fairly.

In housing there is a call for ‘no-fault’ eviction notices to be eliminated and the introduction of indefinite tenancies in the private rented sector.

For consumers Citizens Advice wants action to tackle the loyalty penalty where customers pay more for staying with their existing providers in markets, such as broad-

band, home insurance and mobiles, and in energy it says customers need to be protected as new technology products and markets emerge as the UK moves to a low-carbon economy.

It is also asking the new government to commit to continuing to support the 3,000 remaining rural Post Offices so that everyone has reasonable access to a permanent, fulltime branch.

Ms Guy said: “The benefits system needs to provide enough for people to live on. Private renters should have safe and secure tenancies with landlords who are held accountable.

And people who fall into debt need advice, support and to be treated fairly.

“Where existing markets are failing - like the £4 billion loyalty penalty people pay for staying with essential service providers - they need to be re-balanced in favour of consumers and prevent those who can least afford it from being ripped off.”

The help offered by Citizens Advice is always free, confidential and impartial and no appointment is required. Two sessions are held each week in Lyme Regis, on Mondays between 10am and 12noon at the medical centre in Uplyme Road (DT7 3LS), and on Wednesdays from 10am to 3pm at St Michael's Business Centre (DT7 3DB).

Anyone who is seeking help from Citizens Advice can also visit its offices in South Street, Bridport (DT6 3NY) every weekday between 10am and 3pm. Alternatively they can contact Citizens Advice by email on advice@bridport-cab.org.uk or by telephone on 03444 111 444, which gets them through to the Dorset AdviceLine.

People having problems with Universal Credit can contact Citizens Advice on a national freephone number which is 0800 144 8444 and the webchat support service is available through its website.

YEARS

in Lyme Regis

■ RESIDENTS, trustees and supporters of the Abbeyfield house in Lyme Regis recently celebrated its 40th anniversary. The Abbeyfield Society was established by Richard Carr-Gomm in 1955 in an attempt to tackle loneliness. It now has more than 400 houses in seven countries, providing support and community to 7,500 residents. Abbeyfield opened at West Hill in Silver Street, Lyme Regis, in 1979 and was once described by Carr-Gomm as "the happiest Abbeyfield he had ever visited".

Residents, trustees, staff and supporters recently came together to celebrate the anniversary with a tea party and enjoyed sharing stories of former residents. For details of independent living at Abbeyfield, visit www.abbeyfield.com

■ THE Lyme Regis branch of Save the Children raised £285 at their charity lunch at the Pilot Boat. Staff from the popular restaurant served up fish and chips or scampi and chips to diners to help raised funds for the charity. Organisers would like to thank staff for supporting the event and for their generosity in donating to the raffle as well as hosting the lunch.

Colourflair

Christmas Party Menu STARTERS Roasted Tomato & Red Onion Soup

Garnished with crisped red onion and roasted cherry tomato

Confit of Somerset Duck Leg

Duck and Sevilla gin sauce, fried orange zest dumpling

Portland Crab Griddle Cake

Crispy greens and leaves, shellfish mayonniase

Toasted Sesame Tempura Battered Vegetables Noodle salad with Goma dressing

MAIN COURSES Traditional Roast Dorset Turkey

Served with roasted potatoes, chestnut stuffing, bacon rolls, cranberry sauce and roast gravy

Slow Roasted Devon Pork Belly

Served with pork stuffing and apple pie, cider and juice from the roast gravy

Pan Roasted Fillet of Plaice

Smoked salmon dauphinoise with a smoked salmon, white wine and cream sauce

Butternut Squash Risotto Tower

Layered with chargrilled vegetables and smoked artichoke, beetroot coulis

DESSERTS Christmas Pudding served with white chocolate and brandy sauce Raspberry Crème Brûlée with shortbread biscuits Chocolate & Passionfruit Cheesecake with passionfruit coulis

£26.50 for three courses. Menu served from December 2nd to 24th.

To book call 01297 442299 - harbourinnlymeregis.co.uk

at In Harmony, Silver Street, Lyme Regis

Call Jacquie on

01297 445533

to find out about the full range of treatments available, including:

✤ Group make-up lessons ✤ Nail and lip matching ✤ Wardrobe planning ✤ Personal shopping Gift vouchers available for all

Friday, December 6 2019 19

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Christmas!

AT THE

Photos by Richard Austin

Cheers!

join us in our Winter Wonderland

Christmas bookings still being taken Festive menu all day, every day

LIVE MUSIC FOR DECEMBER December 6th Chris Ostler December 7th Ellie McCall plus Guests December 13th Adam Sweet and Steve Black

December 14th Space Scorcher December 20th Epiphany Strange December 21st Jess and Irve December 27th The Skalatans

Come and celebrate Christmas with us in Lyme’s most festive surroundings 1 BRIDGE STREET, LYME REGIS DT7 3QA - 01297 443157 - www.thepilotboat.co.uk

20 Friday, December 6 2019

FLASHBACKS with Richard Austin

www.lyme-online.co.uk

Tales from behind the lens of our award-winning photographer

■ IN 2001 the army was called in to help topple an out of date water tower somewhere near Exeter.

One of the organisers decided to make the exercise a public one and newspapers and television were invited along to capture the moment the tank was brought down. So a large viewing platform was erected especially for the photographers and TV cameras.

The officer in charge then spent five minutes explaining just how sophisticated plastic explosives were and how the charge would cut the supporting legs clean in half and bring it down.

Guess what… a huge explosion occurred and half of the press crew were blown backwards off the platform, causing one or two to miss the detonation all together. Then to add insult to injury it hadn’t worked - the tower was still in one piece!

The glow from red faces was bad enough but the stifled sniggering by the press core was almost deafening. So the whole tower was refitted with explosives, the press moved back 50 yards and a second detonation did the job, but it was a heavy jolt in the chest and the bang sent rooks and crows off in all directions.

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

Uplyme filling station and shop a ‘necessity’ ■ IT is unthinkable that there might be even a possibility of losing Uplyme Filling Station, shop and post office - an immensely valuable asset to the community (LymeOnline, November 22).

Uplyme has the only garage for miles, and the shop and post office are key services for residents and visitors alike - particularly essential to so many local residents who are elderly or have difficulty travelling further afield.

Certainly easy access to a local general shop was a necessity on my list when considering moving to this area and I’m certain I am not alone in that.

Surely - especially after all the time that the school has been in the planning - it cannot be beyond the wit of the council to come up with a sensible scheme that delivers a new school without endangering the sustainability of such a vital amenity for us all.

Ros Cliffe (by email)

Auction raises £3,200 for Uplyme sponsorship scheme AN Arabian Nights theme supper and auction raised £3,200 for Uplyme Community Sponsorship Scheme.

The scheme is raising funds to resettle a Syrian refugee family in the local area, and this latest fundraising has helped it reach the £9,000 required by government to start the resettlement process.

Eva Fahle-Clouts from Uplyme Community Sponsorshop Scheme said: “We would like to thank all the people involved with the Arabian Nights auction of promises last Saturday in the Uplyme Village Hall, for all the wonderful contributions and for coming along to the evening.

“We had a great evening; Cathy and Amanda’s food was excellent and we had two brilliant auctioneers, John Gooden and John Snape, who managed to persuade people to part from their money.

“We had the most wonderful promises – music lessons, maths lessons, artists offered to do portraits, a local photographer offered photo sessions, a fossil walk, fishing trip, boat trips, Alexander Technique and other therapy sessions, vintage dresses, a bread baking course and local cafés offered coffee and cake (Amid

Giants & Idols), cream tea (Black Dog Tea Room) and breakfast (Court Yard Café), and last but not least help with a planning application and/or planning of house extension.

“A wonderful team of helpers transformed the village hall and beautiful flowers on the tables created a very festive atmosphere.

Thanks also to Richard Main from the Rotary Club of Lyme Regis for all their support.

“We made more than £3,200 on the night, which means we have the £9,000 together that the government requires to start the actual resettlement process. A house is in sight and we are planning to hand in our application form in December.

“We will continue with fundraising to get a bit more money together than the bare minimum. So watch out for further events.”

Upcoming fundraising events including a coffee morning on Saturday, December 7 at the Driftwood Café in Lyme Regis Baptist Church; a performance by Uplyme Gospel Singers at Axmouth Church for the opening of its Christmas tree festival at 7.30pm on December 10; and a concert by the Lyme Light Singers at Lyme Regis Baptist Church from 7.30pm on December 15.

Uplyme Community Sponsorship Scheme is also taking part in Lyme Regis Christmas Tree Festival, to be held at the Baptist Church from December 20 to 22.

Eva added: “In case we don’t see you there we are wishing you all a festive season, a joyful Christmas and a peaceful and wonderful 2020!”

Friday, December 6 2019 21

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classifieds&jobs

22 Friday, December 6 2019

ITEMS FOR SALE GREY TROUSERS, 32” waist, 29” length, new with tags from F&F, cost £14 new but selling for £10 - 01297 443930.

ARTIFICIAL CHRISTMAS TREE, 5ft, spruce looking, all lights included, £10 - 01297 445788.

CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS, including ornaments and baubles, £10 for all - 01297 445788.

BABYLISS HAIR STYLING WAND, used once, boxed and in perfect condition, £5 01297 445724.

BASKET WEAVE COMMODE CHAIR, cream/beige, very attractive chair, excellent condition, as new, height 31”, width 23”, depth 20”, £99 - 07828 172 375 (Ottery St Mary).

LADIES TAP SHOES, black, size 6½, as new, £10 for quick sale - 01297 442198.

www.lyme-online.co.uk

£10 for quick sale - 01297 444104.

CHRISTMAS TRINKET BOXES with Santa and snowman, Villeroy & Bosch, new £20 each - 07768 901 443.

LARGE SANTA for tea light, new £25 - 07768 901 443.

SNOWMAN ORNAMENT to hang on tree, £20 - 07768 901 443.

ESPRESSO CUPS & SAUCERS, Colport, four cups, six saucers, bone china, £19 - 07768 901 443.

TEA SET, Duchess Tranquility tea sea including six tea plates, two-tier cake stand, six cups, five saucers, hardly used, £35 or will consider offers - 07768 901 443.

RUCKSACK, unused Katmadu rucksuck, ideal for backpacking, £100 - 07768 901 443.

BREAD MAKER, Panasonic model SD-254, excellent condition as hardly used. complete with manual, £38 - 01297 560402.

MEN’S COAT, long black winter coat, wool/cashmere mix, size medium, 40 inch chest, very good condition, originally cost £140, selling for £30 ono - 01297 445788.

LADIES FLYING JACKET, leather, size 12, very good condition, ideal Christmas present, £50 - 01297 35234.

GOLFING JACKET & TROUSERS, Ping brand, waterproof, black, 42 inch chest, very good condition, £20 - 01297 445788.

ROOF TILES, approximately 60 including 10 round edge ridge tiles, surplus to requirements, £30, buyer to collect - 01297 445108.

CHRIS GREEN SHOOTING VIDEOS, ideal Christmas present, ‘Wildfowling’ 3 volumes (£25), New Fowling Adventures’ 3 volumes (£25), ‘Pigeon Shooting: The Whole Story’ 3 volumes (£25), or buy all nine for £60 - 01297 443419.

DENBY CHINA, ‘Cotswold’ collection, including 1 pint tea pot, 1½ pint coffee/water pot, ½ pint milk jug, sugar basin with lid, salt and pepper pots, all in excellent condition, £20 - 07828 172 375 (Ottery St Mary).

SHOWER SCREENS, 8mm glass, measuirng 2,000 x 640 and 2,000 x 720 with fittings, only

Please note, items for sale will move down the list each issue as we receive new listings, or will be removed earlier if we are contacted to confirm they have been sold.

ROYAL BRITISH LEGION

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Friday, December 6 2019 23

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Ressies run out of ‘puff and ideas’ in 4-1 defeat against Teignmouth LIFE doesn’t get any easier for Lyme Regis Reserves, struggling in Division Three of the Devon & Exeter League.

Seasiders’ boss Dominic Rowe, one of Lyme’s most classiest defenders in recent years, is experiencing a real baptism of fire in his first year as a manager.

He’s undoubtedly got some talent under his charge but with eight league games played, they have not been able to forge a cohesive unit which is making any real impact on the third tier in Devon and Exeter football.

Rowe was looking for a better performance when he took his side to Teignmouth 2nds on Saturday, after a disappointing 2-0 defeat at home to Dunkeswell two weeks ago.

And whilst thee were some signs of better things to come, a 4-1 defeat leaves them perilously close to the relegation zone.

Rowe stuck to his preferred 3-52 line-up and the Reserves started much stronger and created three or four good scoring chances early on. But they were caught on the counter after around 25 minutes when the home side took the lead and then dominated proceedings, going in at half-time with a 2-0 lead.

Lyme rallied after the break and narrowed arrears through Steve Batey with a sweet shot into the top corner from just inside the box.

The Ressies pushed hard for the equaliser with Dan Rendell and Cam Fowler looking dangerous down the left flank. Shane Featherstone came on for Bradley Rowe to shake things about up front and substitute Freddie Andrews also found space to pressurise the home defence.

But as the game progressed Lyme ran out of steam and ideas and Teignmouth made sure of the points with two late goals.

Rowe recognises that his side is in need of a real goalscorer. “We just have to kick on from here, it will come,” he said.

His man-of-the-match accolade went to the ever-reliable Rob Harp who pulled off a string of good saves and was very strong between the sticks.

TABLE-toppers Lyme Rovers ground out a solid, if unspectacular win, in conditions not suited for attractive football their 2-0 win over Crewkerne Rangers on Saturday to stay ahead of the rest in Perry Street League Division Two. The Rovers started well, playing with an end-to-end wind, and with five minutes on the clock, Rhys Evans swung a corner in under the bar deflecting in off of a helpless Crewkerne defender.

Growing steadily into the game, the Seasiders spent the majority of the first 45 camped in Crewkerne’s half, but failing to take chances.

Forwards Pete Peacock and Darius Pickering both went close, and Crewkerne’s keeper made several excellent stops to keep the visitors in the game. 1-0 half time.

The visitors started the second half stronger, pinning the Rovers back, but not troubling keeper Chris Higgs throughout the 90.

As the second half wore on, Rovers fought back into the game and the result was sealed on 70 minutes, when substitute Jonny Davies, making his Seasiders’ debut, tapped in an open goal within a minute of coming on.

Man-of-the-match was Rhys Evans. Alfie Jaques, in his first game for Lyme in a couple years, and Pete Peacock, also had excellent hard-working games.

PHILIP EVANS

philip@lyme-online.co.hb

Rovers grind out victory to stay top of the table

skittles

It’s tight at the top for the men and women skittlers IT’S tight at the top in the Men’s Division One of the Lyme Regis Skittles League with three teams pushing for the number one spot after just five games.

Flyers, Marksmen and No Hopers are making the running with eight points apiece.

It’s also a close run affair in the Ladies Division with Hot Gossips.

Skittso’s and Wootton Wobblers fighting it out for top spot.

Results (week-ending November 23) Ladies Pairs Cup The following go through to final at The Ship Inn on Monday, April 20 2020: I Pratt and M Pratt; J Wyatt and A Gillings; J White and L Taylor; K Quick and Sam Churchill; E Blackmore and T Holmes; E Bearpark and R Parsons; J Hancock and S Sayers; S Larcombe and Sarah Churchill.

Results (week-ending November 30th)

Ladies’ League Generations 254 v Pin Pals 283 (BL = Tied);;La Creme 332 v Hot Gossips 336 (+BL); Skittso’s 310 v Wootton Wobblers 349 (+BL).

High Scores: Ros Parsons 79; Emma Blackmore 66; Jan Wyatt 61; Judy Dale 59 Men’s League Skittle Me Timbers 318 v Alleytwits 348 (+BL); Shakers 319 v President’s Men 365 (+BL); No Hopers 372 v British Legion 360 (+BL);Anthill Mob 322 (+BL) v Marksmen 341; Roadrunners 366 v Wreckers 336 (+BL); Rousdon Rebels 382 (+BL) v Flyers 354; Miscellaneous v Young Guns TBC; Trappers v Clueless TBC High Scores: Rob Chapple 83; Ellis Hoole 80; Jon Broome 74.

LADIES DIVISION P W D L PtsB/L Hot Gossips

4 3 0 1 6

8

Skittso’s W/Wobblers Pin Pals La Creme Generations

4 4 4 4 4

3 3 2 1 0

0 0 0 0 0

1 1 2 3 4

6 6 4 2 0

4 4 3 2 3

8 8 8 6 4 2 2 0

8 4 8 6 8 3 4 2 7

8 6 4 4 2 2 2 0

4 6 7 0 4 3 0 4

MEN’S DIVISION ONE Flyers 5 Marksmen 5 No Hopers 5 Roadrunners 5 Rousdon Rebels 5 British Legion 4 Anthill Mob 4 Wreckers 5

4 4 4 3 2 1 1 0

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

1 1 1 2 3 3 3 5

MEN’S DIVISION TWO President’s Men 5 Clueless 3 Alleytwits 4 Trappers 3 Shakers 4 Young Guns 3 Miscellaneous 2 Skittle Me Timbers 4

4 3 2 2 1 1 1 0

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

1 0 2 1 3 2 1 4

Swallows fail to compete at Shepton AFTER competing in all their games so far this season, Uplyme failed to impress in a 3-0 defeat at Shepton Beauchamp on Saturday. The tone was set when no referee was allocated for the game.

James Beddows had to don the gloves again with Harvey Brimicombe away and Jake Sargent and Henry Rudkin absent.

The Swallows found themselves under pressure in the first half and on a sluggish pitch failed to clear in their own area which resulted in the home side going 1-0 up.

However, Uplyme grew stronger as the half wore on and had some decent counter attacks but failed to carve out any real clear-cut chances.

Playing down the slope in a second half, Uplyme looked more confident but what followed was probably their most disappointing 45 minutes of football this season.

They failed to create any

golf

chances of note, passing went astray and they were overrun in midfield.

Shepton scored a second after another error and a third followed when Uplyme were caught on the break. Shepton were good value for the win, making very few mistakes in contrast to Uplyme’s disappointing performance.

Manager Stu Wooster said afterwards: “After competing in most of our fixtures so far, this felt like a step backwards and gives us lots to focus and work on going forward.”

The manager picked out James Beddows in goal and Jack Heath, in at right back at short notice, for special mention and gave Toby Barnes the nod for man-of-the-match following a solid performance at the back.

This defeat leaves Uplyme second from bottom in Perry Street Division One.

with Richard Jackman

Freddie romps home in junior stableford

THE junior stableford at Lyme Regis Golf Club proved a good hunting ground for Freddie Pearce as he romped through the course finishing strongly compiling 39 points to win comfortably from Casey Gibbons (26 points) and Katie Hampton-Rumbold (24 points).

The monthly stableford was very well supported despite some testing conditions. Coping exceptionally well and with the best score of the day was Division 1 winner James Newcombe who included a gross birdie on the stroke index 1 in his winning score of 40 points.

Mark Scott and Chris Brice were hard on his heels with 39 points each, but on countback Scott’s 20 points on the back nine gave him silver.

Division 2 was well won by Sean Whelan with 38 points as he sprinkled both nines with nett pars and a birdie. There was also a tie for 2nd place as James Turner and Mark Thirlwell both tied on 35 points, but by a point on countback Turner took second place.

In the midweek stableford regular James Phillips kept his form to win comfortably with 34 points while Mark Lewis just beat Gerry Whiteley on countback to claim second. In very testing conditions for the ladies stableford, Jean Jolley braved the elements best in Division 1 to win with 30 points, one ahead of Di Harris in second

who in turn beat Hanna Jacobsen by one in third place.

Division 2 saw the best score of the day and a well-deserved handicap reduction for Sarah Kilcoyne as she accumulated 34 points. Anna Lennon-Smith and Judith Ellard were second and third respectively with 32 and 31 points.

■ THE Lyme Regis Golf Club ladies played a nine-hole competition and as expected the results were close.

Jean Jolley is on form and duly won Division 1 with a very creditable 16 points, ahead of Rosie Jackman on countback with Emma Davies third on 15.

There was no stopping Division 2 winner Jane Broom who came in with the best score of the day (17 points) while Rosemary Dare and Ros Clemmans both on 16 points took second and third respectively, on countback.

The club septuagenarians competition was brilliantly won by Graham Winter. In testing conditions, he found his putting arms on the 15th and 16th holes with two good long putts to gain seven points and subsequently win with a worthy 38 points.

David Lines came through well on the back nine to take second place on countback as he just eclipsed Bob Shepherd as both scored 36 points.

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24 Friday, December 6 2019

December 6 2019

NOW IN THE DEVON & EXETER PREMIER LEAGUE

Saturday, December 7 Lyme Regis Reserves v Pinhoe (kick-off 2.30pm)

Seasiders back on league duty

sailing

MEMBERS of Lyme Regis Sailing Club with their trophies presented at their annual dinner-dance at the golf club

Sailors celebrate in style LYME Regis Sailing Club celebrated another successful season with a dinner dance and prizegiving was held at the golf club.

Seventy guests were greeted by retiring Commodore Jerry Rook and his wife, Pauline.

Following an excellent meal, the Commodore spoke of the main highlights of members' successes on the national and international scene in 2019, paid tribute to Colin and Eileen Walters who have contributed so much to the club but are moving to be nearer their family, and thanked Pauline and all who had supported him during his five years in office.

Flowers were presented later to Pauline, Fern Cottis who arranged the evening and Di Mattock who assisted.

Master of ceremonies was Rear Commodore Alan Cottis. Both he and the incoming Commodore Jeremy Wallace, thanked Jerry for the improvements achieved while he was at the helm, particularly with regard to youth race training.

Sailing Secretary (racing) Cameron Moss, presented the trophies to the Dinghy section, assisted by Simon Boyle. There are a mixture of individual cups and series races giving a good

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range of opportunities for competition. Twenty nine helms collected awards, with Guy Woodhouse (K1) winning six series and two cup races, and national champion Laser Grand Masters sailor Mike Pridham taking two series and three trophies.

The Seamanship Trophy was won by Hugh Duncan and the Commodore’s Pursuit Cup by Crispin Read-Wilson. Coin Walters, crewed by young Simon Law, took the Albacore Super Series, and Jerry Rook the remaining three dedicated Albacore trophies, crewed by either his wife, Pauline, Jake Stow or youth member Ferdy Parry-Leyshon. The final race of the season saw Cameron Moss and Jake Stow take the honours, the Prescott Trophy and Hat. Awarded trophies went to Jim Thomas, (Persistence), Improver's Lantern to Stephan Laeger, Holman Trophy (for Race management) to Chris Turner.

The 11 Cruiser trophies were presented by Rob Walker, their Sailing Secretary, the predominant winners being Peter Thomas and Rob Wiscombe and their crews.

Rob and Sharyn Walker took two series cups,

while Rob and Margaret Wiscombe claimed four cups including the Mike Pitt Memorial and Metaphysical Wine Bottle. The John Lee Trophy (long distance passage) was awarded to Mike Diffin who cruised from Sicily back to Lyme, and the Alan Pugh Trophy (enjoyment) to Jeremy and Sharon Wallace.

Dancing to DJ Kathy concluded a convivial evening for members who thanked their hosts and the Golf Club staff.

Winter racing continued on Sunday morning, followed by the Cruiser forum in the afternoon at which the 2020 calendar was planned.

The cruiser section continues to welcome new members although limited by the availability of moorings for bigger yachts.

The Dinghy forum was held recently, the programme for 2020 being the focus of attention as renewals become due at the beginning of December and the club looks forward to the sailing season starting in the spring.

Details of membership, sailing and social facilities can be found on the club website, lymeregissailingclub.org

County Cup K-O AFTER conceding a goal in under 30 seconds, Lyme Regis first team never managed to lift their game to win a place in the next round of the Dorset Senior Trophy, losing 3-1 to Dorset Premier League side Shaftesbury Town Reserves on Saturday.

Manager Gerard Hitchcock admitted his side were “a bit rusty and not at the races” defensively but they recovered and spent 20 minutes camped in the home side’s half, creating a number of chances but conFRED Parsons - goalscorer and Lyme’s verting none of them. man-of-the-match The in-form Fred Parsons got

PHILIP EVANS

philip@lyme-online.co.uk Lyme back on equal terms when he smashed the ball home from a cleared corner and the Seasiders could have taken the lead from the penalty spot but Ben Vine missed the spot kick.

Shaftesbury immediately hit back to make it 2-0 and Lyme thought they should have been given a nailedon penalty when a defender handled the ball but the referee judged against them.

Lyme dominated the rest of the first

half but in the second period they just ran out of ideas.

They had plenty of possession but the longer the game went on the more it looked like Lyme would never get the equaliser and the home team secured their place in the next round with a third goal two minutes from time.

“We played well in patches but never punished them,” said Hitchcock who gave Parson his man-ofthe-match award and praised Vine for his efforts in trying to get Lyme back in the game, especially in te first half.

AFTER exiting the Dorset Senior Trophy last Saturday, losing 3-1 at Dorset Premier side Shaftesbury Town Reserves, Lyme Regis first team return to Devon and Exeter Premier league duty on tomorrow (Saturday) when they travel to Feniton.

Lyme are clinging to their second place in the table but Feniton are one of the clubs that could catch them, having the same number of points (21) but with a game in hand.

A trip to Feniton is never easy and the Seasiders will have to be on good form to return with three points, essential to maintain their league place.

Lyme Regis Reserves are hovering dangerously close to the foot of Division Three but have a good chance of increasing their points tally when they meet Pinhoe at home (kick-off 3.30pm).

The Exeter side are second from bottom in the table with just four point from seven game. The Seasiders’ second string are just two places above them.

Lyme Rovers continue their excellent form and will be hoping to win a place in the third round of the Dorset Junior Cup with a home tie (Woodroffe School) against close neighbours Netherbury (kick-off 1.30pm). In the same competition, Charmouth are at home to Portland United Panthers.

Uplyme find themselves in the relegation zone after last week’s 3-0 defeat at Shepton Beauchamp and have another tough fixture at home to Crewkerne Rangers, second in Perry Street Division One.

Christmas auction at the football club LYME Regis Football Club are staging one of their most lucrative fundraising events of the year tomorrow (Saturday) when they hold their Christmas auction at the Davey Fort clubhouse, starting at 7pm.

Dozens of auction items have been donated, including tickets to see football matches at West Ham, Southampton, Exeter City and Yeovil Town. Some sports memorabilia will also be on offer, as will local restaurant vouchers, hampers, gifts and more, to be auctioned by Simon Flux.

Last week Uplyme FC raised £1,300 at their auction at the Nag’s Head.

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