Iwas born in South-East London in 1980. My parents had met at Goldsmiths University. Coming from the North of England they were drawn to London in the ‘60s and Goldsmiths’ reputation as a hub of creativity. Our home was filled with books; the importance of education and the belief that it would open doors was deeply instilled. My father became an expert in children’s picture books, and my mother, after raising us, moved into literacy policy, becoming a consultant for Tony Blair’s government.
My father fostered my love for music and some of my fondest memories are of dancing around the living room to Prokofiev’s Romeo and Juliet. I started making up plays, soon realising that I enjoyed the limelight. My parents encouraged me, and I began learning the flute and piano, eventually finding that my preferred expression was singing. I trained as a singer, progressing through the grades as a teenager and joining the National Youth Choir. Classical music was my world.
When I was an early teenager, we left London when my father got a job at Exeter University. This rooted me in the South-West. My musical experience was then largely driven by the Devon County Music Service. While I did fine academically, what I truly loved was music, which I went on to study at Cardiff University. Cardiff in the 1990s was not the shiny place it is now, but it was a lot of fun, perhaps too much. One of the key things I learnt there was that I simply
didn’t have the discipline required to be a serious musician. I enjoyed friends, societies, clubs and community more. Meeting superb musicians later in my career, I saw the immense work involved in sustaining their expertise - hours alone in a practice room. I didn’t want that.
After university, I stayed in Cardiff. My first job was as an admin assistant for the team building the Wales Millennium Centre. This opportunity was pivotal, introducing me to the first of many inspiring women who mentored me and lifted me up - a pattern that was to be consistent throughout my professional life. I understand it’s now my responsibility to do the same.
From there, I worked for the Welsh National Opera in their outreach and education program. This time solidified my desire to help people enjoy art, especially seeing a child’s eyes widen walking into a concert hall or hearing an operatic voice for the first time. During this time, I also continued singing with a professional choir called Serendipity, recording a CD and supporting with Bryn Terfel at the Royal Albert Hall.
In my mid-20s I went to London and got a job with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, where I had some truly extraordinary opportunities. My favourite memory from this time is the day I spent in two of Her Majesty’s houses. In the morning, I was at HM Prison Belmarsh, working with prisoners to write lullabies for their children, some that they might never meet. It was deeply moving. I sang the songs, and we performed them in the cafeteria for about 100 prisoners. In the evening, the orchestra hosted an exclusive fundraising gala at Buckingham Palace. I joked with our hosts about visiting another of the Queen’s houses that morning and ended up being quoted by a member of the Royal family in their welcoming speech.
It was around this time I met my husband, and we decided to go travelling. His sister was living in Sydney and getting married, so we headed there with no real plan. I requested a sabbatical from my job, intending to come back.
While in Australia, I got a job at the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra. My husband, an audiologist, found work immediately, as his profession was a skill shortage. The New Zealand Symphony Orchestra sponsored my residency, and we ended up staying for nearly five years.
My role was to take the orchestra as far into the community as possible. While the full 90-piece orchestra performed in major concert halls, I took chamber groups into tiny settlements in the South Island. A real privilege was connecting with the Māori community. I had to learn Te Reo Māori to participate in their traditional introduction rituals, which involved speaking about my ancestral canoe, mountain, and river before even stating my name. This level of introduction to their culture was astonishing. It was a level of cultural penetration I’d never have experienced as a tourist.
We decided to leave New Zealand because we wanted to be closer to family and have children. I wanted my children to have the lovely relationship with their grandparents that
I had. We knew we wanted to be in the South-West, where I spent my teenage years, and where my husband was from.
I got a job running the Music Education Hub in Bournemouth, which brought us to Dorset. I started in 2012, at the beginning of the national plan for music education, a government policy focused on equitable delivery of music education. I believed in the project, having benefited from a fabulous music service in Devon. But this work coincided with becoming a mother and I found juggling leadership and motherhood incredibly hard: I was sleep-deprived and overwhelmed.
When my daughter was three and my son was just born, I decided to take a less prominent job at the Arts Council England. I loved my time there. The organisation is full of knowledgeable, skilful, passionate people who truly care about arts and culture in this country and strive to do their best with public investment.
But I soon wanted more. I already knew a lot about Bridport Art Centre because of its Arts Council funding. When the role of Director was advertised, I knew I was ready to move out of my musical lane and into a multidisciplinary space. I was tired of working in the arts from a distance, removed from my original motivation of helping people engage with art. I was supporting other organisations to do it, but I wasn’t doing it myself. I also knew that if I wanted community, I would find it here.
I’m really inspired by the idea of creating a space that is humming with activity and creativity, full of people sharing exciting experiences together. A cultural hub for community. I have already had so many wonderful experiences like that during my time at Bridport Art Centre. Connecting with people and sharing something wonderful together.
It soon became clear to me however that I didn’t need to simply bring art to Bridport, because so much is already being made here. This is an abundantly creative place. I now also see the Arts Centre as a place that must support, champion, and advocate for the creative community of Bridport and wider West Dorset - to provide a platform to celebrate the town’s creativity and share the stories of this area.
Arts centres can play a vital role in conveying the character of a place and I want us to enhance the appeal and prosperity of Bridport. It is my hope that people will one day see what’s happening here and want some of that for their own towns. We also run the Bridport Prize, an international writing competition that is considered one of the most prestigious awards in creative writing. We make a big impact from a small team, and I love that we put Bridport on the radar of a worldwide audience.
Unfortunately, the days of significant public subsidy for the arts are over and we need to find new ways to ensure Bridport Arts Centre’s future. If we want to preserve this place for our community, we all have a role to play. Whether by becoming a supporter, buying a ticket, or simply being proud of what we have here and spreading the word. ’
Early mornings offer many rewards. Today, as I listened to the morning chorus, my trusty Merlin App captured the sounds of wrens, robins, blackbirds, dunnocks, thrushes, and goldcrests as they competed with sheep and pheasants amidst the morning chatter. However, despite their prominence in the past, there was no nightingale, a bird that is becoming increasingly rare in these parts. Taking a final look at this issue, I was fascinated to learn from Michael McCarthy’s Nature Studies article that the nightingales that come to Britain all spend their winters in the same location, while European nightingales prefer to spread out over a wider area. Yet, it seems jetting off to the same spot each year may have its drawbacks. Michael expresses his concerns that we may lose them forever from these shores. Elsewhere in this issue, Dr Sam Rose speaks to Sophie Pavelle about the interconnectedness between species and the relationships that underpin natural environments. She perceives nature’s symbiotic relationships as offering valuable lessons for us on how to live better together and alongside the planet. Speaking with Emma Simpson about her relationship with wild swimming as a means of coping with trauma reminded me of how Anna Whitwham used boxing to deal with the trauma of losing her mother (see www. marshwoodvale.com). Sometimes, we need a physical immersion outside of our day-today lives to attempt a reset or counterpoint. Then there is, of course, the other immersion that has been the mainstay for relaxation and escape from daily pressures—the glass of wine. Bob Ward has been exploring how climate change could affect Dorset’s wine growers, and, as is often the case after a glass of wine, there are some positives.
Fergus Byrne
in your Marshwood Vale Magazine
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CATCH UP ON OUR JUNE ONLINE COVER STORY
Fergus Byrne met Paul Mears in Axemouth
Iwas born in Exmouth in 1945. My father was seconded to the RAF in the war, but when they discovered he had been building boats, they sent him off to Topsham to build 65 foot carvel MFVs. Wooden ones they used for mine sweeping.
He started his business over in Beer, in 1945, in a corn shed right at the top of the village. He used to build boats up top of the village, and they used to have to drag them all the way down through the village; so the boats got to the top of Sea Hill. And one of the chaps had a lorry, and he used to park the lorry at the top of the hill and let the boats down over the hill. And one day a boat ran away. Brand new boat, ran away and smashed up two winches. Smashed up the boat. They had to tow it back up the workshop and repair it.
Father was there in Beer until I started in 1960 in a shed and there was about four or five of us in there. We moved to our current site, technically in Axmouth, in the early 1960s. And then by 1983, it was only me and father, and the business rates were getting expensive, so we decided to build a smaller shed. But the rates and overheads were no different.
I went to Beer Primary School and Axminster Secondary Modern. School classes were 1A, 1B, 1C, and then what we used to call the farmers class, because they weren’t interested in learning, they just wanted to get back home to work. There are quite a few from school still around. Growing up, polio was rife. Quite a few kids in Beer died or were crippled with it. And I remember milk shortages. At one time at school, we used to have milk tablets, and they were bloody delicious.
I started in the yard at 15. Not long after, we were installing a Brit engine (made in Bridport), a 1620 Brit, into a boat. We had no lifting gear, so we had to man-handle the boat and engine. It was probably 5 or 6 hundredweight. Anyway, we would normally get the engine in over on the gunwale, and we were just sliding it up a plank, and I’m down at the bottom pushing, and all of a sudden the plank slides away and the engine runs onto my leg. It broke in two places, and I was in the hospital for two or three weeks. But you know what? We had been struggling to lift that engine, but when it landed on me, they lifted it off like it wasn’t there!
I mean, everything was different then. Prices were different, and you had to work harder, really bloody hard work. I can remember sitting under a boat for three or four days with a hand plane upside down, cleaning off the bottoms of boats. Brand new boats, getting them
nice and smooth. We mostly built new boats in those days. The ribs were all steamed around. They were so tough, I don’t know how we did it. I couldn’t do it now. We did some repairs, but it was before fiberglass, so you had wood or nothing. I enjoyed it, we were never going to make a fortune, but it’s a way of life. I have an iPad thing now, but I don’t know what to do with it.
It was mostly builders, farmers and fishermen living around here. But growing up in Beer we had two chemists, two butchers, a delicatessen and a greengrocer. There was a shoemaker, a fish shop, two bakers, a wine shop, a toy shop, and a tailor. Then there was the quarry for work, and everywhere did bed and breakfasts. My mother did bed and breakfast. And there was a doctor’s surgery. You could call a doctor and he’d come out at 10 o’clock at night. Now, if I try to make an appointment. I have to wait a month.
I can remember we used to sell a lot of boats to Lyme Regis, to people with plenty of money. And at the end of the season, we would collect them, bring them back here, look after them, service them, and do the decorating and stuff like that. And we used to come back, usually in convoy, because we knew somebody was going to break down! And I remember coming in the river mouth once, and my engine had stopped, and one bloke was towing me, and the wind got up so much I was six feet up looking down on him. That’s the nearest I’ve ever come to shit myself. There’s another bloke had a boat on Seaton beach and he used to get pissed out of his brains, and he come in one day from sea, and he put into Beer and he threw the anchor over, and he went over with it. The boat was still moving, and it ended up going round and round in circles with him, still with his thigh boots on. Luckily enough, somebody was on the shore and they went out and collected him or he’d be going round and round forever.
We used to build for West Bay, Lyme Regis, Beer, Sidmouth, I think the furthest away we’ve built one was for Aberystwyth in Wales. We built one for Salcombe (Granite State) and that ended up on the Isle of Ulva in Scotland. That boat would have cost about 2 to £3,000 when it was built in the seventies. It would cost about £200,000 now.
I remember when we built the 35-footer that went to Aberystwyth (Western Seas). It had a 12-foot six-beam, and it was 11 foot across the transom. And the day came when we had to go out on sea trials, and I said, it’s too rough to go but Mr Shears from the ‘White Fish
Authority’ (Inspector of new fishing boats at the time) insisted on going out. Anyway, we were bouncing up and down, and then he wanted to turn the boat around and go astern. I said what into these waves? He said, yeah. We went into the waves, and they were crashing over, and that went on for probably half an hour. I didn’t know if the boat was going to survive. Anyway, in the end, it was too rough to get back into the Axe, and we had to go to Lyme Regis and leave her up there for about a week.
Fishing’s changed obviously. Years ago, it was guesswork and knowledge. Nowadays they’ve got the machinery to tell them there’s one fish or that there’s a shoal of fish. They just scoop them all up. And I mean, to me, the worst type of dredging is scallop dredging, where they got these dredges going along the seabed, and it kills everything, and it just ruins the seabed.
My son Alex started in 2004, and not that long ago, he was working on a boat and accidentally ignited some acetone vapour with a hot air gun. And boom! Suddenly, he was in a ball of flames! He leapt down over the side of the boat with skin hanging over his arms like ribbons. The air ambulance came for him, but they couldn’t take
him to Bristol because the fog was too thick. So his partner took him home and gave him a cold shower. Then they took him to Exeter, where they couldn’t deal with it because it was too bad. So they took him up to Bristol burns unit, and he was there for two or three weeks. I managed to put the fire out with two fire extinguishers before the fire brigade came down.
I was never going to do anything else but boat building. My father offered to send me to Southampton to study naval architecture when I was 15, but I didn’t want to leave home. All three of our boys went to university. The eldest is a chartered building surveyor, the middle one is a doctor in the RAF, and Alex has a degree in structural engineering.
I still like making little bits and pieces of furniture and stuff like that, but I had a triple heart bypass about 18 months ago. Then I had a bloody heart attack after that, and they had to put a stent in. But there’s a chap over in Beer who had pioneering surgery in 1983. He had a quadruple heart bypass in London, and he’s still going at 93!
As long as Alex wants to carry on, I’m happy to keep coming down here. He keeps the company going now. I do odd jobs, but nothing too wearing.
Winsham Art Club, 2 pm at Jubilee Hall TA20 4HU. The theme this practical session is Working with Acrylics – observing tone, spaces and shapes. It is a 2.5 hr. session led by a visiting tutor. Small, friendly group of mixed abilities. Members £5, non-members £7. Annual membership £15. All welcome. Contact: Email: suzyna48@gmail.com for further details.
Tuesday, 1 - 6 July
Shops in Beaminster through time A special digital display at Beaminster museum during Beaminster Festival Week. The museum is open Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Bank Holidays, 10.30am –4pm, Sundays 2pm – 4.30pm. Admission is free, but donations are very welcome. Whitcombe Rd, Beaminster DT8 3NB. www.beaminstermuseum.co.uk.
Tuesday, 1 July
Dance Connection - movement to eclectic music that is guaranteed to make you feel better - no set steps - come alone or with a friend or partner, advance booking, 7-8:30pm (doors open 6:50pm), Latch, Litton Cheney Hall, DT2 9AU, 07787752201, danceconnectionwessex@ gmail.com, www.joysofdance.co.uk.
Wednesday, 2 July
Folk-Medicine Music Concert. An evening of live music with Anna-Rose Martelli and friends. Church of Our Lady, Queen of Martyrs, and St Ignatius, North Road, Chideock, DT6 6LF. Doors at 7pm, concert 7:30-9pm. Tickets include refreshments, £10 cash on the door or contact 07342 266318 to book.
Thursday, 3 July
Tatworth Flower Club are hosting a special event with a national demonstrator Alison Penno from Cornwall. The Tatworth Memorial Hall’s stage will be full of wonderful arrangements that are then raffled off. Also tea and cake is served afterwards. Non members £12. Hall is in Tatworth, Kents Rd, TA20 2QW. Doors open at 1.30pm. Colyton Town History Walk leaving from Colyton Dolphin Car Park at 2 pm – Guided walk approximately one hour. Cost £5, children under 16 free. No booking required, all weathers. Group bookings by arrangement –Contact 01297 552514 or 01297 33406.
Saturday, 5 July
Table Top Sale. Hire a table (small £5; large £10) to
sell your unwanted items, 10am – 2pm. Refreshments on sale. Clapton & Wayford Village Hall. Book a table in advance with Barbara (01460 74321) or Julia (01460 72769).
Bridport & West Dorset Rambling Club walk from Lyscombe. For further information please ring 01308 898484 or 01308 863340. New members/visitors welcome.
Dalwood’s 10th Music Day. 11.30am - 7.30pm. Dalwood Village EX13 7EG near Axminster. All styles of Music in 3 Venues in the centre of the village. Free parking (village centre), free programme, children under 16 free. Bars, BBQ, open garden, Tuckers Arms, village shop & coffee shop open all day. All Day Stroller ticket £15 purchased on arrival. See who’s performing and all other information at www.dalwoodvillage.co.uk.
West Dorset Ramblers 10 mile walk taking in Lewesden and Pilsen Pen. Start 10am Comrades Hall c.p. Broadwindsor. Please contact Heather, 07587 098079, to book and for further details.
For the Friends of Weymouth Library (F.O.W.L.) talk We will be going treasure hunting with Kevin Patience. He will tell the story of man’s endeavours to recover gold and silver bullion out of the depths, from earliest times to the present day, including a recent recovery of 110 tons silver coins. The talk begins at 10-30a.m. in Weymouth Library. Tickets can be obtained at the Library @ £2 for members and £3 for non-members. Refreshments are provided and everyone is welcome. For more information phone the Library on 01305762410 or phone 01305 832613.
Sunday, 6 July
Allington Strings, of Bridport - 3pm at Crewkerne Methodist Church, South Street - Echoes from the Near Distance: Music from the British Isles. Continuing our exploration of women composers, we turn our spotlight to the British Isle and have two remarkable pieces to offer; Joan Trimble’s Suite for Strings is a tour de force of string writing, full of energy and Irish lyricism; Morfydd Llwyn Owen’s Romance, a whirlwind of interweaving melodies. Both set beside their contemporaries, Britten’s Simple Symphony and Bantock’s Scenes from the Scottish Highlands, alongside a recent composition, Nicholas Hooper’s famous adagio, Dumbledore’s Farewell, from Harry Potter. Advance tickets £10 adult and £4 child, available from Crewkerne Tourist Office (cash only) Delilah Petal, Crewkerne
(cash only), or on the door at £12/£5 (cash). For ticket reservations or further information: allingtonstrings@ outlook.com.
Tuesday, 8 July
Singing Bowl Soundbath 9 PM Digby Memorial Hall, Sherborne DT9 3LN £17 Lie down, relax, and allow the Pure Sounds of a crystal and Tibetan bowl soundbath plus sacred vocal overtoning give you a sonic deep-tissue massage, charging and balancing the aura and chakras of the subtle body, and detoxing the physical body. Booking 01935 389655 ahiahel@live.com.
West Dorset Ramblers 7.5 mile walk via the Ashley Chase chapel and Abbotsbury Castle. Start 10am St Mary’s Church, Puncknowle. Please contact Heather, 07798732252, to book and for further details.
Wednesday, 9 July
Kilmington Film Night “Bridget Jones Mad About The Boy (15) Doors and bar open 6.45 film start 7.15 at Kilmington Village Hall EX13 7RF. Tickets @ £6, or £6.50 on the door, can be ordered by contacting: John at wattsjohn307@gmail.com or Tel: 01297 521681.
West Dorset Community Orchestra will perform their Summer concert at 7-30p.m. in St.Swithun’s Church, North Allington, Bridport. A varied programme of orchestral pieces, solo and group items. Free admission. Retiring collection Interval refreshments and a raffle.
Thursday, 10 July
Chard History Group History of the Battle of Britain by John Smith 7 for 7.30pm Chard Guildhall. £2.50 members £3.50 non members (welcome). For further details contact Tessa on 07894481634.
Kilmington Film Matinee “Bridget Jones Mad About The Boy” (15) (See 9th July). Matinee, doors open 1.45pm film starts 2pm, cream-teas served during the interval but must be pre-booked with your seats @ £4. see above and www.kilmingtonvillage.com/otherorganisations.html for more information.
Folk dancing at Combe St Nicholas village hall (TA20 3LT) at 1930 hrs. A Pair Of Shears will be providing the music and Simon Maplesden calling. It’s £4.00 per person which includes a cuppa and cake, all welcome and it is a lot of fun! Further details from Elaine on 01460 65909.
Colyton Town History Walk leaving from Colyton Dolphin Car Park at 2 pm – Guided walk approximately one hour. Cost £5, children under 16 free. No booking required, all weathers. Group bookings by arrangement –Contact 01297 552514 or 01297 33406.
Friday, 11 July
Colin Scobie and Jâms Coleman – From Anglesey, Jâms Coleman performs as a soloist, chamber musician, and vocal accompanist, with recent highlights including recitals at the BBC Proms. Colin Scobie is already
established as one of the most creative and compelling violinists and chamber musicians of his generation. Promoted by Concerts in the West. Tickets: £20. 7.30pm at Ilminster Arts Centre, TA19 0AN. 01460 54973 www. ilminsterartscentre.com
Saturday,
12 July
The Rise & Fall of a Chideock Cottage. This is the story of change, impacting life in a Chideock cottage, over five centuries. Chideock Village Hall, 6.30pm Tickets: £10 p.p. which includes home made Homity Pie served with a mixed leaves salad and a free cider taster from our very own Chideock Cider Shed. Our bar will be serving wine by glass or bottle, beer, cider, ales & soft drinks at excellent prices, cash or card accepted. To book call Jane at Warren House, Chideock : 01297 489996. Cream Tea 2.30 - 4.30pm. St. Swithun’s will celebrate with a cream tea in the church garden, 2.30 – 4.30pm. St. Swithun’s Band and the Lyric School of Dancing will entertain and there will be a produce and book stalls, children’s tombola and a raffle. Entry and parking are free with extra parking at Amsafe. Cream teas and cakes will be on sale in the hall, everyone is most welcome and at the door they can be assured of a friendly smile to greet them. St. Swithun’s church, Allington, Bridport, Dorset DT6 3LF. Contact: 07741457505.
Bridport & West Dorset Rambling Club 9 or 6.5 mile walk from Bridport. For further information please ring 01308 898484 or 01308 863340. New members/visitors welcome.
Hugo Haag (viola) & Ivelina Krasteva (piano) 7:30 PM (doors open at 7 PM). St Andrew’s Church, Colyton EX24 6JS. Programme includes Bach, Brahms, Kodaly, Schumann, Messaien. Tickets £15 via www.shutefest.org. uk/booking (children 16 and under FREE and do not need a ticket).
West Dorset Ramblers 9 mile or 6.5 mile walk ,via the tracks and paths around Lewsden and Pilsden. Start 10.30am from cross-roads, Four Ashes, south of Broadwindsor DT8 3JY . Please contact Ian on 07826 150114, to book and for further details.
Beaminster Museum Finds Day Ciorstaidh Heyward Trevarthen, Dorset Finds Liaison Officer for the national Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS), is back for another popular Finds Day. If you’ve come across something interesting bring it along to the museum between 11am and 2pm for free identification. Ciorstaidh is happy to take a look at any archaeological (not geological) item found within the county boundaries. Whitcombe Rd, Beaminster DT8 3NB. www.beaminstermuseum.co.uk
Sunday, 13 July
Cathedral-style Choral Eucharist at St Peter’s Church, Dorchester (High West Street, DT1 1XA) at 10.30am. Music by Ole Gjeilo, Michael Haydn and Philip Stopford. A free event. All welcome. More information at www. musicatstpetersdorchester.org.
Monday, 14 July
Dorchester Townswomen’s Guild, Dorchester Community Church, Liscombe Street, Poundbury, DT1 3DF. Monday 14th July at 2 pm. This month’s talk will be given by Charlie Wheeler who will be sharing photos and information on the Abbotsbury Swannery. Visitors are very welcome to attend (£4). Enquiries 01305 832857.
Tuesday, 15 July
Turn Lyme Green Talks - “Four Years of Our Seaside Store” Lisa Charleton, Manager, will describe how this social supermarket has grown into an important community support for local families & members in need of a helping hand. The Store supports over 100 people every week, with 350+ members signed up. Also, by supporting FareShare, the Store benefits the environment by tackling food waste. 7.15 for 7.30pm at the Driftwood Cafe, Baptist Church, top of Broad Street, Lyme Regis, DT7 3NY. FreeEvent, Refreshments available. Contact www.turnlymegreen.co.uk or 01297 446066.
Dance Connection - movement to eclectic music that is guaranteed to make you feel
better - no set steps - come alone or with a friend or partner, advance booking, 7-8:30pm (doors open 6:50pm), Uplyme Village Hall, DT7 3UY 07787752201, danceconnectionwessex@gmail.com, www. joysofdance.co.uk.
Wednesday, 16 July
Coffee Morning, including cakes, scones & savouries, and bacon/egg rolls (made to order), 10.30am – noon; all welcome. Clapton & Wayford Village Hall. More details from Julia (01460 72769). Colyton & District Garden Society ‘Bees’ with Basil Strickland from Exeter Beekeepers. Colyford Memorial Hall, EX24 6QJ, start 7.30 pm. Members free, guests £3.00. Parking in the hall car park. Information : Peter Clark : 01297 553341
Thursday, 17 July
West Dorset Ramblers 8.5 mile or 7 mile walk. Circular walk via Halstock, Lewcombe, Girt Farm and Hemlock Farm. Start 10.30am Village Hall, Corscombe DT2 0QP. Please contact Ian, 07826 150114, to book and for further details. Call Yourself ans Irishman? A one-man show about Ireland, Britain, and never
quite knowing which nationality you are.You’re born in one country. But your parents come from a different one. So what does that make you? Join Declan Duffy as he attempts to make some good sense out of it all. The Corn Exchange, Dorchester. 7.30pm, doors and bar 7pm. https://generationirish.net.
Colyton Town History Walk leaving from Colyton Dolphin Car Park at 2 pm – Guided walk approximately one hour. Cost £5, children under 16 free. No booking required, all weathers. Group bookings by arrangement – Contact 01297 552514 or 01297 33406.
The Bridport and District Gardening Club will be hosting the talk at the Women’s Institute Hall in North Street Bridport. Bryan J. Madders. Salvias and other Summer Flowering Perennials. Brian J. Madders is the Chairman of the New Forest Dahlia and Chrysanthemum Society, and is a public speaker and judge, and will be giving a talk at 7-30 pm. Entrance to the talk is free for members and £2 for non-members. For information, visit www.bridportgardeningclub. co.uk/
Friday, 18 July
Half-day retreats in the beautiful grounds of the Othona Community’s Four Seasons Studio with Susan Howse on Mindfulness and Stress Reduction .(£25) bookings at howsesp@yahoo.co.uk.
The Jurassic Choir present music from the Movies featuring Grace Lovelass. Including James Bond, Henry V, Carmen, Guys and Dolls. The Minster, Axminster EX13 5AQ. Doors open at 6.30 pm for 7pm. Tickets £15, includes Pimms and canapés, available from Archway Books or on the door. Supporting Axminster and Lyme Cancer Support charity.
Gardening for Moths, a talk by Higgy in Winsham’s Jubilee Hall at 7.30pm. The presentation will be an introduction to moths, showing the importance of providing garden habitat for these fascinating insects. It will give tips on what to plant to encourage moths into your garden and will also look at the life cycle of moths and the food plants we must stop eradicating, and instead start growing, for the caterpillar stage of a moth in our own gardens. Only £4.50 for Winsham Horticultural Society members and £5.50 for nonmembers. There will be the usual raffle plus tea, coffee & cake so don’t forget to bring some extra cash. Higgy may also have some wildlife loving plants & habitats for sale. For more detail please ring Debbie 07808 505357. Versus Arthritis. Andrew Whittle. Letter Carver and Designer. 6.30pm. Loders Village Hall DT6 3SA. £15 to include canapés. Bar. Raffle. Contact 01308 863690 or cropayne@icloud.com 07308 420071.
Milborne Movies – July Film Night! Join us for a fantastic evening of film and fun at Milborne Movies!
This Month’s Feature: Mr Burton. A heartwarming tale that’s sure to entertain! Doors & Bar Open: 7:00 PM. Film Starts: 7:30 PM. Tickets just £6.50 – includes a drink or an ice cream!
Cinechard at Chard Guildhall, doors at 7pm for a 7.30pm start. Nick Hoult stars in Juror #2, Clint Eastwood’s latest film. Tickets from Eleos and the PO for £6 & £3, from ticketsource or on the door for £7 & £3.50.
The Schmoozenbergs: Original Hot Club-esque Jazz, Eastern European flavours and a liberal sprinkling of high-energy folk, with two guitars, violin and double bass, they play spirited instrumental tunes, brimming with bouncing rhythm, irresistible melody and playful improvisation. Doors 7pm, Start time 7:30pm, The Dance House Crewkerne TA18 7AL Tickets £18:50 To book: https://www. eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-schmoozenbergs-tickets1330677896409?aff=oddtdtcreator
Saturday, 19 July
A lunchtime concert at St Peter’s Church Dorchester (High West Street, DT1 1XA) given by soprano Verity Joy, accompanied by Jonathan Prentice. Verity’s programme includes music from her recent LTCL singing diploma. Free admission, all welcome. More information at www.musicatstpetersdorchester.org
Sunday, 20 July
Stoke Abbott Street Fair, 2-5pm. One of the region’s most popular events, the traditional Stoke Abbott Street Fair will be officially opened by Edward Morello MP at 2pm on Sunday 20th July, preceded by the historic Sick Club Parade at 1.45pm. There’s fun for all the family with enticing stalls, live entertainment, ferret-racing, cream teas and more. Highlights for 2025 will include The Big Foolini Magic Show for children at 3pm together with the Discover Farming team who will have hands-on rural activities for all ages too. This year, proceeds will go to support Beaminster’s Friends of Mountjoy School as well as St Mary’s church and the village hall. Free parking from the Beaminster end. Entry £2 per adult, children under 16 free.
Woodland Day is from 10am to 5pm, at North Eggardon Farm, DT6 3ST. A celebration of woodland culture, Woodland Day is an opportunity for the local community to explore the woodland on our doorstep, and discover ways of living and working with wood. There will be walks, talks, demonstrations and hands-on activities for everyone. Entry is £5 and under-18s go free. Wear suitable footwear. Dogs on short leads are welcome.
Lyme Quaker Meeting will be hosting a Concert by KANEKT, including local musicians Ricky Romain (sitar) and Sudhi Salooja (violin), playing a fusion of
Indian classical with Eastern European and Celtic traditional music. 7pm (Doors open 6.30pm) Uplyme Village Hall DT7 3UY Tickets £10 can be purchased on the door or from Archway Bookshop, Axminster, or reserved in advance through Carl Holland07970 068700.
Tuesday, 22 July
Bridport u3a talk at 2pm in Bridport United Church hall, East Street, Bridport. DT6 3LJ. It will last 4 -60 minutes, followed by a Q&A then refreshments. This month’s speaker is James Porter, who gave us an excellent talk on the invasion of Sicily last year. His title this time is The German Occupation of the Channel Islands in WW2. James is a retired army officer who was born on Guernsey, so has an encyclopaedic knowledge of his subject. Hope you can join us - members free, visitors £3.
Wednesday, 23 July
Uplyme and Lyme Regis Horticultural Society. Panel discussion on Summer Show Judging in readiness for the Uplyme Summer Flower and Produce Show to be
held on 2nd August. Uplyme Village Hall 7.30pm. Doors open 7pm. Members free; guests £3. More information https://ulrhs. wordpress.com.
West Dorset Ramblers 6 mile walk. Bus to Chideok then walk back to Bridport via the SWCP. Start 10.30am Bridport Bus station DT6 3TP. Please contact Janet, 07947881635, to book and for further details.
Milborne St Andrew Village Hall, in partnership with Artsreach, presents: Taff Rapids – Blŵgras From Wales 7:30pm. Tickets: £12.50 / £6 (under 18s) / £35 (family ticket). Get ready for a night of foot-stomping fun as Cardiff’s bluegrass sensation Taff Rapids brings their highenergy sound to Dorset! This dynamic group – featuring Darren Eedens, Siôn Russell Jones, David Grubb, and Clem Saynor – is making waves on the international stage with their vibrant blend of traditional bluegrass, original compositions, and a unique twist of Welsh-language flair. Known for their rich harmonies, instrumental brilliance, and magnetic stage presence, Taff Rapids have
wowed audiences across the UK, Europe, and Canada. With regular BBC Radio play and their debut album Blŵgras on the horizon, 2025 is shaping up to be a big year for the band. Don’t miss this chance to catch them live in Milborne St Andrew! Book now at www.artsreach. co.uk or call 07798 720812.
Thursday, 24 July
Folk dancing at Combe St Nicholas village hall (TA20 3LT) at 1930 hrs. Ian Bryden will be providing the music and Jane Thomas is the caller. It’s £4.00 per person which includes a cuppa and cake, all welcome and it is a lot of fun! Further details from Elaine on 01460 65909.
Colyton Town History Walk leaving from Colyton Dolphin Car Park at 2 pm – Guided walk approximately one hour. Cost £5, children under 16 free. No booking required, all weathers. Group bookings by arrangement –Contact 01297 552514 or 01297 33406.
Friday, 25 July
Bowie Fashion – A fabulous tribute event celebrating the unforgettable music of iconic British superstar David Bowie. This authentic live show features Bowie Fashion performing all the best-loved hits from Bowie’s 45-year reign at the top of the global music industry. Tickets: £22. 7.30pm at Ilminster Arts Centre, TA19 0AN. 01460 54973 www.ilminsterartscentre.com
Saturday, 26 July
Cathedral-style Choral Evensong at St Peter’s Church, Dorchester (High West Street, DT1 1XA) at 4.30pm. The servicincludes music by Parsons, Trendell, Howells and Bainton. All welcome to this free event, which is followed by a glass of wine. More information at www. musicatstpetersdorchester.org.
Bridport & West Dorset Rambling Club 8.5 mile walk from Loders. For further information please ring 01308 898484 or 01308 863340. New members/visitors welcome.
Yeovil Railway Centre, Yeovil Junction, Stoford BA22 9UU: First day of this year’s Tractor & Train Weekend. Take a steam train ride to see the display of Tractors, Land Rovers and working Stationary Engines, plus the usual attractions on site. Anyone who would like to exhibit please contact John on 01297 32935, or events@ yeovilrailwaycentre.co.uk. Website is www.yeovilrailway. freeservers.com; recorded information on 01935 410420; also see updated information on Facebook.
Chideock WI Cake Bake Sale. Chideock WI will be holding a Bake Sale of delicious homemade cakes at tasty prices! All welcome! Foss Orchard Chideock DT6 6JQ, by Spar Shop. 8am-10am, come rain or shine!
Saturday, 26 - 27 July
The Yeovil Art Group will hold their 2025 Summer
Exhibition in Sherborne’s Digby Memorial Hall. After a popular one-day exhibition held at Digby Memorial Hall in 2023 and two successful exhibitions in the Ilminster Arts Centre, the Art Group is looking forward to showing the public just what skilled artists we have in Somerset–this time over two days instead of one. Digby Memorial Hall, Digby Street, Sherborne, DT9 3NL. Open 10.30 a.m. to 4.00 p.m. Entry: Free, Home-made refreshments. Yeovil Art Group, visit www.yeovilartgroup.com.
Sunday, 27 July
Singing Bowl Soundbath 2pm Oborne Village Hall, Oborne, nr. Sherborne, Dorset DT9 4LA £17 Lie down, relax, and allow the Pure Sounds of a crystal and Tibetan bowl soundbath plus sacred vocal overtoning give you a sonic deep-tissue massage while charging and balancing the aura and chakras of the subtle body, and detoxing the physical body. Booking 01935 389655 ahiahel@live.com.
Dalwood Jazz Club presents Mike Denham & The Sunset Cafe Stompers. Mike Denham - piano, Steve Graham - trumpet/cornet, Trevor Whiting - clarinet/ sax, Pete Middleton - trombone, Keith Hall - banjo and John Coad - drums. At 3pm. Dalwood Village Hall, EX13 7EG (near Axminster). Bar for beer/wine/soft drinks and teas/coffees/cake etc. Parking at the Village Hall.
£12.50p. If possible, please book in advance and pay (cash or card) at the door. t.mackenney111@btinternet. com.
Netherbury Repair Cafe The Repair Cafe runs from 10am – 12 noon on the last Sunday of every month, apart from August and December, at Netherbury Village Hall. Contact: Lisa Willis on 07870 950 666 or info@ repaircafenetherbury.org. www.repaircafenetherbury.org
Thursday, 31 July
Colyton Town History Walk leaving from Colyton Dolphin Car Park at 2 pm – Guided walk approximately one hour. Cost £5, children under 16 free. No booking required, all weathers. Group bookings by arrangement –Contact 01297 552514 or 01297 33406.
Saturday, 2 August
Loders fete, 2-5pm, near Bridport in the idyllic grounds of Loders Court (DT6 3RZ, next to Loders Church). Stalls include tea tent, bar, bbq, grand raffle, tombola, coconut shy, crockery smash, fresh produce, cakes, plants, artisan’s alley, books and more – there will be magic and mayhem from children’s entertainer Count Backwards, music from Lyme Bay Brass Band, a dog show and a classic vehicle display.
TNature Studies
By Michael McCarthy
his spring my wife and I listened to Dorset nightingales. We may not be able to do that for very much longer. The most celebrated of all songbirds has crashed in numbers in England in the last fifty years (it doesn’t occur in Wales or Scotland), and in Dorset, which is more or less the western limit of its range, it is nearly gone. In 2011 there were only 39 birds recorded singing in the county; by 2023 that was down to 12. This year we found ours in one of their last Dorset strongholds, a remaining wild area in the lush dairy farming country of the Blackmoor Vale. There were two of them, in dense scrub on either side of a path, singing to each other or so it seemed; singing so loudly, as the light faded, that it felt like they must surely be in competition. My wife, who had not heard nightingales before, was much moved, as indeed was I. This is one of the most thrilling experiences the natural world can provide.
But I was moved not only by the beauty of the birdsong but by its impending disappearance, at least from my own part of the world. The nightingale has caught imaginations for thousands of years and been versified more than any other bird—Greek and Latin poetry celebrates it widely and John Keats’s wonderful ode is of course one of the greatest poems in English—so it is a tragedy that in many places such as Dorset it may soon be gone. But along with the sadness at its vanishing has been puzzlement. Why has it happened? Between 1970 and 2022 nightingale numbers in England plummeted by a staggering 90 per cent. Yet in continental Europe their numbers have held up—across France, Spain, Italy and other countries there has been no comparable decline. Ornithological scientists have long searched for a reason. This year they may have found it.
Nightingales, brown robin-sized birds which are as plain in plumage as they are sublime in song, are summer migrants just like swallows—they fly here to nest in the spring, and
An incomer’s discovery of the natural world in the West Country
return to spend the winter in sub-Saharan Africa. In January researchers at the British Trust for Ornithology published an extraordinary paper in Nature showing that British nightingales all go back to one relatively tiny corner of the African continent—remarkably, they all end up in and around The Gambia, the smallest African country. Nightingales from the rest of Western Europe, however, spread out all across West Africa and are not concentrated on any single region.
The discovery was made by the use of electronic tracking devices, now miniaturised to such a degree that they can be fitted to small songbirds, and its implications are obvious: in recent decades something damaging may well have happened—such as widespread habitat degradation—to the relatively small area in which all British nightingales are concentrated during the winter months, so that very many of them have been affected by it. It may have happened in remote areas and there has been no monitoring of it, so it cannot be proved; but the possibility goes a long way to explaining why we have lost most of our birds when European countries have not lost theirs.
This discovery has had very little national publicity; perhaps it was too technical for standard news organisations. But I was riveted by it. To watch the nightingale disappear has been heartbreaking and for me there is a sort of relief, that at least we now know the probable cause. Not that the sadness at the disappearance is any the less, however; and listening to our birds this May, pouring out their song as the dark descended over the Blackmoor Vale, the beauty of it seemed to be intensified many times over by the knowledge that soon we may hear it there no more.
Recently relocated to Dorset, Michael McCarthy is the former Environment Editor of The Independent. His books include Say Goodbye To The Cuckoo and The Moth Snowstorm: Nature and Joy.
Magical Gardens open for charity in July
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Amongst the many beautiful gardens open for charity in July is Lower Abbotts Wootton Farm near Whitchurch Canonicorum in West Dorset.
Owned by renowned artist and sculptor Clare Trenchard, the garden reflects her creative flair in garden form, shape and colour.
Clare moved to Lower Abbott’s Wootton twenty
years ago, at which time the garden had been kept by the previous owner almost exclusively for the cultivation of fruit and vegetables. Over the next two or three years the vegetable patches and raspberry cages gradually gave way to flower beds and borders which have been arranged to form separate areas of garden protected from the elements by newly planted yew hedges. Twelve years ago the pond was dug, followed soon afterwards by the creation of the gravel beach and the planting of the surrounding trees and shrubs, creating a delightful, secluded refuge at the bottom of the garden. Finally, the last five years have witnessed the transformation of the area to the rear of the house from a muddy concreted parking area to the present colourfully planted gravel garden.
Evening opening: Sat 5 July (5-8), Sun 6 July (12-4). Admission is £10. Light refreshments.
Lower Abbotts Wootton Farm, Whitchurch Canonicorum, Bridport DT6 6NL is 6m West of Bridport and well signed from A35 at Morecombelake. Some disabled off-road parking.
For more information on gardens open for charity in July visit: https://ngs.org.uk.
Learning from Nature
Help our Planet talk offers Innovative Solutions for Local and Societal Challenges
An ecologist, nature guide, trainer, and regeneration facilitator, Dr Deborah Benham, will deliver the next Help Our Planet (HOP) talk at Sladers Yard in West Bay.
Deborah will explore how we can all learn from nature to develop innovative solutions for local and societal challenges. By engaging with Dorset’s landscapes, ecosystems, and communities, we can find unique answers to issues such as climate resilience and well-being. Deborah shares practical insights from nature’s 3.8 billion years of innovation to help us reconnect with and improve our local environment for stronger communities.
As co-lead for the Transition Towns movement, of which Bridport is a part, Deborah has worked parttime over the last five years in community-led climate resilience and place-based regeneration. She explores theories and practices of positive eco-social change, applies story-based impact evaluation methods for community-led actions, and supports a global network of trainers. She has previously managed the Newbold Trust and holds a PhD in wildlife conservation and ecotourism. Almost 20 years after her doctoral work on responsible interactions with sea otters, the outcomes are still used by tour operators in Monterey Bay, California.
Since then, she has coordinated an award-winning accreditation scheme for dolphin-watching tours in Scotland; consulted on international multi-stakeholder wildlife ecotourism projects; run her own eco-holiday business, developed and led interpretive training
courses for nature guides, and become a practitioner and leader in deep nature connection practices and nature-based community building.
Deborah, a Biomimicry Educator and accredited Gaia Education trainer and trainer of trainers, is passionate about solutions based on living systems. She helps communities and organisations move towards ecological citizenship and a net-positive future. To find out more about Deborah, go to https://www. deborahbenham.com.
The HOP talks are part of an initiative designed to inspire and inform individuals, families, and local communities with tangible actions to help combat the effects of climate change and environmental degradation. Additionally, they aim to raise funds for charities working in these areas. Each month, the charity is selected by the speaker. The project was started by Philip Howse OBE (Professor Emeritus, University of Southampton) alongside Professor Sir Ghillean Prance FRS VMH (former Director of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew) and the late James Lovelock CBE. Patrons include George Monbiot, Clive Farrell, Dr George McGavin, and Dr Kate Rawles.
Deborah will be at Sladers Yard on Thursday 31 July 2025, 7pm. Tickets: £12 (under 21s £6). All proceeds to Bridport Community Land Trust. Extra donations can be given on the night. Doors 6pm, bar and hot supper available. Tickets are available from the Bridport Tourist Information Centre. Tel: 01308 424901. or visit https://bridportandwestbay.co.uk/ tickets/talks/
New book studies a history of health services in Bridport
A NEW BOOK offering a study of Bridport health and well-being, and the development of hospitals, health centres, practices and services has been published by Sylvia Stafford. The book follows on from the author’s earlier work Down and Out in Bridport and the Surrounding Parishes 1200-1900. Until the development of the National Health Service and provision of universal health care, the development of hospitals and associated services depended very much on the vision and work of individuals, whether in instigating and driving development, or in providing the services. This would be the case in most towns, and as a consequence the provision varied considerably. The work is based on published accounts of local health and wellbeing, and the various hospitals, health centres and individual practices and services available over the last one hundred and fifty years. Bridport Hospitals and Health Services is available from: Beaminster Books, Beaminster; The Book Shop, Bridport; Bridport Museum; Bridport Tourist Information Centre; Waterstones Bridport; West Bay Discovery Centre. ISBN 978-1-0369-1659-6 £12.00.
Deborah Benham
The R-Word: Sophie Pavelle on Rewilding
Science communicator and presenter of the award-winning documentary Beavers Without Borders, Sophie Pavelle talks to Dr Sam Rose about environmental change and restoration
This edition of the R-Word is a break from the norm.
Three years ago, at the Bridport Literary Festival, I interviewed Sophie Pavelle on her excellent book about UK species at risk from climate change—Forget Me Not. She now has another book out— about symbiosis in nature—and I will be interviewing her again about this in November, so I thought I would get her take on Rewilding.
Q: So, Sophie Pavelle of Forget Me Not fame, how the devil are you, and I believe that you have a new book out?
A: I’m very good, thank you! Just coming out the epicentre of the To Have or To Hold tour-nado…trying to convince readers that symbiosis and parasitism is well worth our captivation!
Q: Sounds great! So, as you know, this column is called the R-Word (rather than just ‘rewilding’) because of the ongoing contention around the word. As an author in contact with many people in the nature restoration and conservation world, do you use the word, and in what context?
A: Yes, I absolutely do. I think ‘rewilding’ is the epitome of a positive disruptor and, if used strategically and sensibly, it can provoke powerful, positive change. I like to use the word sparingly—not necessarily to encourage us to see it as a process of ‘return’. Rather, to illustrate a concept of change and restoration.
Q: Why do you think people are frightened or wary of rewilding—or natural process-led ecosystem restoration, as its somewhat less catchier name?
A: I think it’s change—as a species we are wired to fear and feel threatened by change. But the fact is, we have interfered with ecological niches so much that we must interfere again, to preserve what remains. And part of that, is accepting and embracing change, and not necessarily associating it with threat.
Q: Your first book—Forget Me Not—highlighted very engagingly some of the UK’s forgotten species affected by climate
change. Thinking back to those species, can you think where rewilding approaches help any of them to survive and thrive?
A: The one that springs to mind immediately is seagrass—chapter two. Seagrass habitats declined by over 70% of their former range across the British Isles—their loss accelerated by coastal disturbance and disease. But thanks to organisations like Project Seagrass, effectively ‘rewilding’ lost seagrass meadows across the country, these meadows and the thousands of species they support are being restored. By giving seagrass space to recover, these ecosystems are reviving their crucial role as coastline buffer, carbon sink, and home for many species.
Q: To follow that up, do you think that may still be putting too much emphasis on species-focused conservation? One of the beautiful aspects of rewilding is that we don’t always (ever?) know what is going to happen if we allow nature to take the lead. What is the balance?
A: Species-focused conservation feels a little archaic, and unproductive. Rewilding encourages a more holistic approach, that regards the planet as whole, of countless moving parts that self-regulate and work together. Rewilding is about trust in one another as advocates and custodians, but placing trust in nature, that it can achieve balance and sustain it—if we let it.
Q: So, in an acorn’s cup (more relevant than a generic nutshell), tell us about your new book To Have and To Hold.
A: It investigates the thrilling phenomenon of ‘symbiosis’—the complex, stunning reality where completely different species have evolved to live together to survive. Symbiosis binds the world, and changes how we see it. Through improving our understanding of it, and how lives collide in brutal and beautiful ways, symbiosis offers valuable lessons for us in how to live better together, and alongside the planet. To spotlight this, I embark on a medley of stormy adventures across the British Isles, to profile eight astonishing relationships in nature, and ask how climate change might affect them.
Q: Sounds fascinating, and its already a page-tuner for me! But again, thinking about natural processes, what are we doing as a people and a nation that is stopping the kind of incredible symbiotic relationships you talk about in the book, and how can we allow nature to once again take the lead?
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A: We are taking too long to appreciate nature, and practice a fascinating act of restraint when it comes to accepting our entanglement with nature, and acknowledging our fate is tied up with one another. I think accepting this, and finding joy and purpose in re-dressing the balance with the planet and those species we are so fortunate to share life with, can offer immense liberation.
Q: Fantastic! Is there anything else you want to add to the rewilding debate?
A: I think we’d do ourselves and nature a favour if we stopped thinking quite so much, started trusting, and letting that trust translate into a not-so-radical act of doing.
Sophie Pavelle will be at BridLit this year in November. Her new book To Have or To Hold is published by Bloomsbury Wildlife. ISBN 9781399412162
Dr Sam Rose is a photographer and podcaster about nature and rewilding—see his website at whatifyoujustleaveit.info and podcast What if you just leave it?. He also heads up the charity West Dorset Wilding (westdorsetwilding.org) and the Brit Valley Landscape Recovery project (britvalley.org) but the views expressed here are personal and are not said on behalf of the Brit Valley Project or West Dorset Wilding.
VEGETABLES BEYOND THE GARDEN
by Caddy Sitwell
The Horticultural Show. Part Four - Staging and Display
‘I have always been convinced that vegetables when shown naked are more colourful than flowers.’ Medwyn Williams.
Horticultural shows reached their zenith at the end of the 19th century and the sheer abundance of what man could grow was reflected in the seedsmen’s bursting catalogues and spectacular vegetable displays.
Wondrous stage sets were put up by the seeds firms themselves or by groups of horticultural societies. It was a chance to show off to the public what it was possible to grow at close hand.
Edwin Beckett, a vegetable hero of the early 20th century was the Head Gardener at Aldenham Gardens, Elstree and a legendary display man. In his oft reprinted and modestly titled Vegetables for Home and Exhibition, he writes lovingly about the breeding and growing of vegetables but also how to show them, ‘with all the tasteful effect, skill and experience could devise.’
Our generation’s Edwin Beckett is certainly Medwyn Williams of Medwyns of Anglesea. A renowned Welsh vegetable grower who creates his own tremendous displays up and down the country. Amongst his numerous awards he has for thirteen consecutive years won the gold medal at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show.
Medwyn has regularly proved that a splendid vegetable exhibit can be more colourful and beautiful than that of flowers. With careful harvesting, handling and regular misting of clean water his vegetables can stand up well for five days at the show. However, he admits that by the end of seven days in the Great Pavillion the potatoes look a little bit grey and the parsley may have lost some of its zip.
His wonderful wife Gwenda keeps the washing machine running for days before a show, cleaning the black fabric that covers the wooden structure. Onto this he and his team painstakingly build a display of forty different kinds of vegetables The leeks and celery are always placed boldly on the top level next to the cauliflowers. On the shelves below cascade cones of tomatoes, peas hanging on hooks like roof tiles, piles of coloured potatoes, columns
of capsicums on pedestals and chillies in baskets—all snugly settled in parsley.
Parsley is a much-overlooked component of the showing world. ‘Faulds’ super-curly parsley is an old Scottish variety perfect for enhancing vegetables. It’s velvety, lush and a deep, deep green. The depth of colour seems to emanate from frenzied tight curls held up on turgid stems. It’s texture and greenness are never dominating, but rather the perfect foil for bright coloured vegetables. The golden orange of carrots glows next to it, the creamy tones of a cauliflower or leek are somehow made more dignified by it and the red tomatoes become positively jewel-like. Parsley can be teased into nests or carefully tucked into any gap or crack with a cocktail stick. Notoriously difficult to germinate but when well grown, parsley keeps its colour and form for a long time out of water. This feature may explain both its use as decoration in ancient Greek tombs and why Medwyn swears by it for show purposes.
Even on a small scale the artistry in staging and presentation of your exhibits at a show can make a difference to your success. In close competition your arrangement may be the deciding factor. Parsley is allowed at any stage, but ‘foreign enhancements’ such as oil, wax or Vaseline are banned and a judge will spot them immediately. Judges are also alert to holes in potatoes filled with soap, superglued tips of carrots that snapped on extraction and split onion skins stuck down with egg white. Shallots and tomatoes are usually shown on a plate of very fine ‘chinchilla’ sand bought from a pet shop, but illegal sand brought back from holiday has been known to add a sparkle. Brown onions rest solemnly on curtain rings with their tops tied with raffia and most other vegetables look best on neat boards of a matt black fabric such as velvet. Labelling exhibits legibly is important as is keeping exhibits covered with damp, white, tissue paper till judging time. It stops them drying out and has the added advantage of stopping nosey competitors sizing you up.
Staging and displaying your exhibits must be taken seriously. Take a fine misting spray, a sandwich and flask of tea—and as E. Beckett recommends in 1899…. ‘Be proud. Take time.’
Rewilding tours discount
Mapperton House, Gardens and Wildlands, near Beaminster, is offering anyone living in the DT postcode area 25% off Annual Memberships and 15% off single tickets for Garden, House & Garden, and Wildlands visits. This offer comes at an ideal time to join ecologist Professor Tom Brereton on an Introduction to Rewilding tour. There will be tours each month until September. The estate has handed more than 1,000 acres of marginal farmland and woodland back to nature For more information visit www. mappertonwildlands. com
July in the Garden
By Russell Jordan
Last month I began by pointing out that it was the driest start to the year ever recorded; although, officially, I think that might have been a bit of an exaggeration! I’m glad to say that, since then, the rain Gods have answered my prayers and provided some much needed rain so that now we seem to be enjoying a more ‘normal’ English summer. This should mean that plants growing in beds and borders, except for those that are newly planted, will not need supplementary watering. Anything growing in pots or containers will, obviously, require watering by hand as rain alone is seldom enough to keep these plants reliably moist.
Although we are now in ‘high summer’, it’s a sobering thought that we have now passed the longest day so that, in fact, every day is now becoming shorter than the one before. Shortening daylength is a signal for some plants to switch from vegetative growth into flowering mode so the palette of flowering plants shifts more towards the late summer bloomers. Traditionally this has led to there being something of a hiatus in floral borders, as early summer flowers fade and the later ones are yet to kick-in.
I’m not sure this is such a problem anymore because the traditional herbaceous border, characterised by the statuesque delphiniums and the more obscure Galega (Goat’s Rue), only really features in historic gardens and most domestic planting schemes are much more ‘mixed’ with shrubs, trees, bulbs, annuals, biennials and every other type of plant all planted together. In the past I would have suggested phlox as a good candidate to span the gap between early and late summer, I still have a soft spot for them, but in most years later flowering plants, such as heleniums, are often flowering early enough to
fill any perceived gap and then go on flowering well into late summer.
There are also herbaceous perennials, especially geraniums, which flower early and are then cut back, almost to the ground, so that they bounce back again and bloom for a second time. If the cutting back is phased, so that not every specimen is cut back at the same time, then a progression of flowering can be achieved to fill in any possible pauses in the flowering continuum. As a general principle, cutting back and deadheading should be carried out on any plant that is prone to setting seed, but which will keep on flowering as long as they are prevented from doing so. Summer bedding plants and tender perennials, grown in pots and containers, can be kept flowering until autumn if dead-headed and fed, with a liquid feed, all summer.
If you have a pond, or any sort of water feature, in your garden, they are a great way to add to the biodiversity of even the smallest plot, then July is a good month to assess how it’s doing and tackle any thinning or replanting jobs because it’s more pleasant to do this when the water is comparatively warm, rather than when it is uncomfortably chilly. It’s generally recommended that about half of the total water surface should be covered by floating plant growth in order to prevent rapid changes in water temperature and to reduce the likelihood of excessive algal growth. Water lilies are useful in that their ‘pads’ are good at covering the water surface during the summer months, when their cooling effect is most beneficial, but they require a good depth of water in order to thrive. Only the smallest, pygmy, forms are suitable for tiny ponds or container water features. July is a good month to see them in bloom,
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at specialist aquatic nurseries, and then choose the right one for your pond.
Another ‘timely task’, on a completely different tack, is taking cuttings. The theory is that at the height of summer, with good light levels and the longest days, there are the highest hormone levels within the plant tissues and this infers the best conditions for cuttings to produce new roots and shoots.
There are almost as many ‘cuttings taking’ techniques as there are types of plant in the garden. I tend to stick to one method and experiment with taking cuttings from anything that seems to have the right sort of propagating material. I take nonflowering shoots, where possible, thick enough to withstand pushing into loose compost, and then trim them up so that they are about finger length, with a couple of leaves at the shoot tip, but with all the lower leaves removed. Always trim below the lowest leaf joint with a sharp blade and also reduce the leaves at the tip if they are particularly large; this is all about reducing water loss from the cutting while it is in the process of growing new roots.
Insert these prepared cuttings into moist compost, such as multipurpose compost ‘loosened’ by the addition of 50% grit or perlite. The compost should only be lightly firmed into the pot so that it remains
full of air pockets and is able to drain freely when watered. Insert the cuttings around the outside of the pot, rooting tends to be quicker at the edge of the pot, and water in well with a fine nosed watering can or a spray bottle.
Finally, place a polythene bag over the whole ensemble, to prevent the cuttings from drying out before they have a chance to root, and tie at the top. A length of cane pushed into the centre of the pot keeps the bag off the cuttings and gives you something to tie against. Place somewhere inside, such as on a light windowsill, but not somewhere where they will roast in full sun because, just like for the pond, massive temperature fluctuations may prove fatal to the cuttings before they get a chance to grow new roots.
One last thing that you’re meant to do in July, if you have one, is to remove all the whippy, long, growth from wisteria. This shortening prune helps to keep its growth in check and will reduce the likelihood of the wisteria from peeling itself from its support, be it a wall or a pergola, between now and next February when it gets pruned back even further. Elsewhere in the garden it’s just a question of carrying on with all the tasks that you’ve been doing thus far and, hopefully, finding time to just sit and enjoy the fruits of your labours whenever the sun is shining.
PROPERTY ROUND-UP
Gems in July
TYTHERLEIGH £425,000
A beautifully refurbished individual detached two-bedroom bungalow set in a generous plot with established gardens all around and close to village amenities. It occupies a pleasant semi-rural position. No onward chain. Greenslade Taylor Hunt: 01460 238382
AXMINSTER £725,000
HAWKCHURCH, £750,000
Steeped in history and character, this truly exceptional Grade II Listed period residence offers elegant, beautifully proportioned interiors, a double garage, and a private garden oasis amidst breathtaking unspoilt countryside.
DOMVS: 01308 805500
Charming detached five bedroom home, nestled in a large wrap private garden in a sought after rural location. Bursting with individuality and offering spacious and versatile accommodation whilst being set within beautiful rural grounds. Fox & Sons: 01297 32323
AXMOUTH £600,000
This charming Georgian house, centrally situated in the picturesque village of Axmouth, offers quite surprising internal space with flexible accommodation including a selfcontained one bedroom annexe. Gordon & Rumsby: 01297 553768
MOSTERTON £340,000
This delightful period cottage offers a blend of comfort and character. With two spacious living areas and a kitchen, along with three bedrooms, it presents a wonderful opportunity in a beautiful part of Dorset. Mayfair Town & Country: 01308 862606
MORCOMBELAKE £565,000
A semi-detached, renovated and improved 300year old 3-bed cottage in very quiet rural location with magnificent views and delightful newly landscaped gardens with plenty of parking, just a walk from the South West Coastal Path Kennedys: 01308 427329
Beyond the Grain
A day of timber craft and woodland wonders at North Eggardon
It’s fair to say that very few materials possess the allure of wood. It has a unique appeal, both sensory and psychological—wood offers warmth, texture, comfort, and timeless beauty. Unlike steel or concrete, wood seems alive and organic. It ages gracefully, telling the story of time. These are some of the many reasons why a unique Woodland Day in July at North Eggardon near Powerstock is such a special event.
In addition to demonstrations of log splitting, horse logging, sawmilling, steam bending, and hurdle making, as well as many other activities and talks, there will be special woodland walks that organiser Victor Crutchley describes as offering a fascinating diversity of species and insight into methods of cultivating trees.
Students from the Lyme Regis Boat Building Academy and Hooke Park School of Architecture frequently visit the woodland surrounding North Eggardon near Powerstock, and many have already enjoyed a special walk among the mature trees and young conifers, including Douglas Fir, Western red cedar, coastal redwood, and Japanese cedar. ‘This year the main walk will be into the lower part of Knowle’ says Victor, ‘where herb-paris and twayblade appear beneath the poplar and sycamore.’
The event also marks the 25th anniversary of the Carpenter’s Fellowship, with activities planned before and during Woodland Day. ‘They bring a lot of extra skills to show on the day, such as hewing a log into a beam, pit sawing, blacksmithing, and apparently, axe throwing,’ says Victor. ‘They are bringing a trebuchet they made which flings things—hopefully balloons of water rather than something smelly.’ He says they are also making a horse gin, which later in the year might be used to crush apples, ‘the power coming from the circlewalking horse (or a few minions) via a large wooden wheel and pinion gear to a shaft which spins, driving a machine like a scratter that pulps apples.’
Children can try their hand at peg making, shingle making, beam rolling, pole lathe turning, and older people can try cleaving with a froe and pit sawing.
This year, for the first time, there will be talks in the marquee, and Victor also promises ‘plenty of choice from Henry’s Beard to Yumlicious’s stews.’
With opportunities to discover new hobbies, meet like-minded enthusiasts, and make lasting memories, the North Eggardon Woodland Day promises much to explore and experience. It will be open from 10 am to 5 pm on July 20th at North Eggardon Farm, DT6 3ST.
Occasionally oyster fishermen bring up these huge oysters that have been returned several times and re grown as there isn’t really the market as they are somewhat overwhelming. If you can’t get your hands on the big ones then use the regular size ones and serve about three per person. I’m serving these at the Rock oyster festival at the end of July down in Cornwall along with natural oysters and oyster po boys. It’s a great fun festival for all the Familly with lots of food offers and great bands. I’ll also be doing an oyster demonstration and a ticketed forage of seashore vegetables along the estuary.
INGREDIENTS
• 4 large or 12 regular oysters, shucked
• Vegetable or corn oil for frying
• 1tsp black sesame seeds (optional)
• 1 tsp white sesame seeds
• A few sprigs of coriander For the sauce
• 120g Gochujang (Korean hot pepper sauce)
• 100g tomato ketchup
• 30 ml sweet soy sauce (ketjap manis) For the batter
• 100g Doves farm gluten free self raising flour
• Enough cold water to make a light batter
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Serves 4
DIRECTIONS
1. Mix all of the ingredients together for the sauce and adjust with a little water if necessary.
2. Whisk the flour with enough water to make a smooth batter and season to taste.
3. Preheat about 8cm of oil to 160180°C in a large thick bottomed saucepan or electric
4. deep fat fryer.
5. Mix the oysters with the batter a few pieces at a time, depending on the size of your fryer and carefully drop them into the oil turning them with a slotted spoon until golden then remove from the oil and drain on some kitchen paper and continue with the rest of the oysters.
6. To serve, place the oysters back in the shell, spoon over the sauce and scatter with the sesame seeds and scatter over the coriander.
KOREAN FRIED OYSTERS
MARK HIX
Matt Chorley makes a meal of it
COMEDIAN Matt Chorley is coming to the Marine Theatre at Lyme Regis on Thursday 3rd July—and the audience may find his offering highly indigestible ... or the best thing they have consumed this year!
For two decades Matt Chorley has feasted on politics, stalking the corridors, pubs and restaurants of Westminster.
Now the award-winning writer, podcaster, comedian and BBC Radio 5 Live presenter has all the ingredients to cook up an hilarious new show. Matt Chorley: Making a Meal of It looks at Parliament’s feuding food factions and how politicians really are what they eat.
WARNING: Politics may contain nuts.
Matt Chorley offers a health warning in July
Gold Medals and Global Warming
Bob Ward looks at climate change and the future of Dorset winemaking
Dorset’s winegrowers have been benefiting from the rising impacts of climate change, but must be prepared to adapt to hotter temperatures if they want to continue to produce award-winning vintages.
The county is home to 30 of England’s 1016 vineyards and wineries, according to the national database compiled by wine expert Stephen Skelton.
Even though it is dwarfed by the output from the south-east counties, particularly Kent and Sussex, Dorset is home to some champion wines.
At the International Wine and Spirit Competition earlier this year, Langham Wine Estate won a gold medal for its Blanc de Blancs, made from Chardonnay grapes, as did Bride Valley for its Reserve Brut 2018, produced from Chardonnay and Pinot Noir varieties.
These winners follow a long line of decorated sparkling wines, using grape varieties that are benefiting from temperatures that have warmed by about 1 Celsius degree during the growing season between April and October.
One previous study showed the importance of climate during an assessment of each of the components of terroir, the term coined by French winemakers to encompass the factors controlling wine quality.
It found that climate accounts for over 50 per cent of the variation in quality. Soil type is responsible for 25 per cent of the variation, and grape variety controls about 10%. The cultural component of wine contributes 15 to 20 per cent of quality.
Dorset and other parts of southern England have chalky well-drained soils, and average temperatures of between 13 and 15 degrees Celsius during the growing season.
This is the same combination of geology and climate that has allowed the Champagne region to cultivate Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier grapes for the world’s most famous sparkling wine variety.
However, rising temperatures in Champagne mean that its grapes now ripen more quickly and become sweeter, losing the distinctive acidity that is an essential component of its sparkling wines.
But warming has provided the ideal climate in Dorset and other parts of southern England to grow Champagne’s famous grape varieties.
The main grape varieties grown in England during the 1990s, were Müller-Thurgau, Seyval Blanc and Reichensteiner, but from the mid-2000s Chardonnay and Pinot Noir started to dominate as English growers focused increasingly on sparkling wine production.
The latest figures show that 2023 was a recordbreaking year for British wine, with the production of nearly 162 million litres of wine, more than threequarters of which was sparkling.
According to the trade association, Wine GB, the dominant varieties grown in Britain in 2023 were Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier, respectively representing 27, 32 and 9 per cent of the total planted area.
The overall area occupied by vineyards has more than doubled over the past 10 years.
The warmer months have extended the growing season, allowing the dominant grape varieties to achieve the right level of maturity before harvest in October.
Since the 1990s, flowering in UK vineyards has typically occurred in mid to late June, compared with the period between 1970–1990, when flowering in most years occurred in early July.
The additional warmth means that frosts, which can cause severe damage to vines during the growing season, are much less common in April.
However, warmer temperatures mean that vines start growing earlier, and can be exposed to frosts in March.
A recent study of climate resilience in the UK wine sector (CREWS-UK), funded by the Natural Environment Research Council, warned that continued climate change will create new challenges and opportunities for growers in Dorset and across the country.
It revealed that the spring months of April and May have experienced large increases in average temperature over the past few decades. These are the months when budburst and initial shoot growth occur.
The study revealed that the highest yielding years for the English wine industry, including 1996, 2006, 2010 and 2018, were primarily due to perfect temperature and weather conditions during flowering and ‘fruitset’, when the grapes first appear on vines. By contrast, low yields occurred in years such as 1997, 2007, 2008 and 2012 due to wet and cold weather during flowering and fruitset. Heavy rainfall during flowering in June can be particularly damaging for yields.
Heavy rain before harvest in October can also be destructive by encouraging the growth of diseases. While analysis by the Met Office suggests climate change is creating warmer wetter winters and drier summers, the warmer atmosphere can retain more moisture, increasing the probability of downpours when it rains.
The increasing risk of acute rainfall events during the growing season poses a mounting problem for Dorset’s wine industry to manage.
However, rising temperatures are also likely to create similar difficulties to those currently experienced by the Champagne region.
This means that Dorset winemakers should turn to other warmer regions, such as Burgundy, to provide insights into the future.
Although Pinot Noir grapes are an essential component of Champagne’s distinctive sparkling wine, in a warmer climate they can ripen sufficiently to provide the basis for high-quality still red wines.
Dorset winegrowers are already rising to the challenge of keeping pace with the changing climate.
The CREWS-UK study found that warming over the next 20 years will mean the average temperature during the growing season across parts of southern England, including Dorset, could reach 15 degrees Celsius.
This temperature represents the climate-maturity threshold for a wider selection of commercially popular grape varieties, many of which are rarely grown in Britain at present, including Pinot Gris, Gewürztraminer, Riesling, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon, Cabernet Franc, as well as Pinot Noir.
Hence, if the British wine industry wants to continue to grow in a changing climate, it will need to expand its range of wines and cultivate grape varieties other than those that have been producing awardwinning sparkling wines.
Unfortunately the climate is likely to continue to change beyond 2040, creating great uncertainty about the future of British winemaking beyond the next 20 years.
But in the meantime, there are signs that Dorset winegrowers are already rising to the challenge of keeping pace with the changing climate. Langham Estate was awarded a silver medal for its 2019 Pinot Noir in this year’s International Wine and Spirit Competition.
It may not be long before other varieties are as celebrated as Dorset’s sparkling wines.
Bob Ward FGS FRGS FEI is Policy and Communications Director at the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment
From Air Traffic Control to Open Water
FEmma Simpson talks to Fergus Byrne about her journey through grief, illness, and the liberation of wild swimming.
or Emma Simpson, author of Breaking Waves, her job as an air traffic controller was totally immersive. She describes it as a ‘complex puzzle that takes all your attention’. Her work was hyper vigilant. She was either planning a departure order, checking the weather, speaking with pilots or judging if an aircraft on the runway would get its wheels up before the next one thundered down to land. It was a relentless, concentrated, deep responsibility—and she was good at it.
That is, until one evening, a series of traumas that had slowly blackened her world began to break through her focus on ensuring the safety of hundreds of people. Unknowingly, she had been battling depression, and on a quiet night shift at Gatwick, the world’s busiest single runway, she suddenly came to a stark realisation: ‘I took my headset off, looked out at the airfield at night, and thought—I don’t think I’m okay.’
Emma was soon to realise that, although air traffic control is often regarded as one of the most stressful jobs in the world, it had also been the ideal role to help her avoid the gnawing pain and grief that had entered her life. The job provided her with a ‘subliminal pull’ that she subconsciously thought might help her ‘outrun’ her grief. ‘Forging ahead, keeping busy, returning to work early, moving house, having another child’ were all methods of batting away what was truly going on inside her.
Emma’s struggles began after the birth of her first daughter, who contracted meningitis within four hours of being born. The birth is a mix of vivid memories and hazy images alongside the hum of hospital lighting. She had a brief moment of bonding with her baby, Isobel, who was then suddenly taken away. Emma’s memories are a blur of doctors and nurses rushing past while words like: “seizure, white blood cells, lumbar puncture, brain swelling, meningitis, intensive care” pounded at the side of her head.
As the days in intensive care offered Emma little opportunity to see her child, she grappled with conversations that shifted from “dead baby” to “disabled baby” to “deaf baby”. She changed nappies through the armholes of an incubator and, every day,
took a photograph of her daughter. Her husband would print them off at home and bring them in so they could be blu-tacked to the hospital room wall the next morning.
At the same time and in the same hospital, her much-loved brother Brian was coming in for dialysis. They would wave to each other, and when her daughter was eventually returned to her room, Brian came to see her. Emma also visited him as he sat having his blood cleaned. They set the world to rights in the bubble of a hospital, and after two weeks, Emma and her baby were allowed home.
Ten weeks later, Brian was dead. The ‘system’ that had provided him with a new kidney many years earlier and kept him healthy for so long had failed him when he was left untreated overnight in hospital. While Emma slept by her weeks old baby, planning to visit him in the morning, he died from sepsis and heart failure. For Emma, it was the loss of someone who she felt had had his arms around her all her life.
Breaking Waves, a book that started as a testament to the transformative power of open water swimming and the healing properties of immersing oneself in water while communing with nature, evolved into a narrative of how these two traumas, just ten weeks apart, chipped away at the very foundations of her world.
While the book recounts the stories of the numerous women Emma met as she began her slow journey to healing, it also tells how the physical toll of the resulting emotional burden ultimately led to a series of debilitating chronic health issues. Emma recognizes that there is an intrinsic link between our mental and physical well-being: ‘I know for myself that if my physical health is vulnerable, it can affect my mental health. And if my mental health is vulnerable, it can do the other way.’ She believes her struggles with chronic fatigue syndrome, histamine intolerance, mast cell disorder, panic attacks, and fibromyalgia, along with eczema, chronic hives, and other illnesses, are directly correlated with the intense grief she experienced. ‘Who knows, if I hadn’t experienced the grief, would I have had any of these conditions? I can’t say, but there is a direct correlation in the timing.’
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The turning point in Emma’s journey came with her discovery of open water swimming. Although she had never been a swimmer, an initial opportunity to swim during a holiday with her children in Swanage, Dorset, was revelatory. A profound sense of aliveness prompted a consistent return to the water, which gradually became ‘central to my well-being’. For Emma, the water also offers a unique connection to her late brother and father. She finds solace when swimming on her back and gazing at the clouds. ‘Every time I do that, it just makes me think of them.’
This connection is further amplified during ‘moon circles’ on the beach, where she finds herself looking for the North Star, a symbol of her father.
The trivial worries of everyday life—electricity prices, mortgages, social anxieties—simply vanished in the face of profound loss.
Through meeting and relaying the stories of many of the women Emma has met while wild swimming, the book emphasises the shared themes of healing, connection, and empowerment found in the open water.
Highlighting interviews with women from as far afield as Fiji, Finland, Africa, and Canada, she learns of grief, chronic illness, body confidence, birth, and community. Emma interweaves these women’s stories with her own personal journey and reflections, celebrating the collective experiences of women who have found solace and strength in the open water.
Her own description of depression is not as a ‘black dog,’ but an ‘elephant on my chest,’ a ‘crushing weight.’ A personal metaphor, stemming from her lifelong love for elephants, she says: ‘when I get in the water, it becomes lighter, and sometimes she swims away.’ For Emma, the elephant is not an enemy to be fought, but a part of her that can be made lighter through the therapeutic embrace of the water.
Emma also discovered a unique liberation in grief itself. ‘Nothing else mattered’, she says. The trivial worries of everyday life—electricity prices, mortgages, social anxieties—simply vanished in the face of profound loss. Although it is impossible to maintain this state perpetually, she views intense grief as ‘a real
blessing, because it is an anchor.’ It serves to provide a point of reference, offering a perspective that allows her to re-evaluate what truly matters in life.
On one trip to Aberdeen for “Winterfest”, her husband, whom she describes as her safety blanket, emerged from the freezing water ‘beaming like he had swallowed a coat hanger’. She speaks of a ‘perfect’ weekend of poignancy, hilarity, bravery, and community.
Later he introduces her to the concept of “Fika,” a Swedish practice of gathering and communing for emotional well-being. It deeply resonates with Emma’s open water swimming experience. ‘It’s not about the sharing of the tea’, she says. ‘It’s about the sharing of the time.’ The camaraderie found in cold water swimming groups, particularly in winter, fosters genuine connection and shared experience.
Perhaps one of the most powerful aspects of open water swimming for Emma is the ‘unique liberation that happens in water, and how open water swimming is a liberation from the pornification of the human body.’ In this environment, she finds ‘no judgment, no criticism, just understanding and acceptance and kindness.’
Emma Simpson will be speaking at this year’s Bridport Literary Festival. Check www.bridlit.com for updates.
Breaking Waves by Emma Simpson is published by Icon Books ISBN: 9781837731794.
1 - 31 July
Kit Glaisyer: The Cafe Royal explore Kit’s latest paintings of the iconic Bridport cafe alongside an evolving exhibition of West Country landscape paintings in his gallery and studio. Open Saturdays 10am - 3pm or by appointment. Bridport Contemporary, 11 Downes Street, Bridport, Dorset DT6 3JR. 07983 465789 www.kitglaisyery. com @kitglaisyer
5
- 9 July
The Trenchard Art Group Biennial Exhibition. Showing recent Paintings, Drawings and Sculptures. 10am - 5pm. Lower Abbott’s Wootton Farm, Wootton Fitzpaine, Bridport DT6 6NL. What 3 Words, wardrobe.nudge.hints
5
July - 2 August
The Fugitives Jane Harris & By Appointment Throughout August. A solo exhibition celebrating the acclaimed artist Jane Harris (1956–2022). Made possible by the Estate of Jane Harris, this exhibition marks the first time a selection of her work has been released and offered for acquisition under the stewardship of Freeny Yianni (founder of CLOSE Gallery) and Prue O’Day, on behalf of her husband Jiri Kratochvil and their son George Kratochvil. Opening Hours, Thursday: 11-4, Friday: 11-4, Saturday: 113, Sunday: Closed. For appointments, please get in touch info@closeltd.com. CLOSE Gallery, Close House, Hatch Beauchamp, Somerset TA3 6AE. info@closeltd.com. 01823 480 350. closeltd.com
Until 12 July
Beautiful, swift and bright. Paintings by Louise Balaam NEAC RWA, Nick Jones and James Lynch. Ceramics by Gabriele Koch. Furniture by Petter Southall. Sladers Yard,
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Contemporary Art, Furniture & Craft Gallery, Licensed Café, West Bay, Dorset DT6 4EL. www.sladersyard.co.uk. 01308 459511.
17 - 18 July
Ilminster Arts Centre Open Exhibition 2025 – The highly anticipated annual judged exhibition returns, inviting artists from across the region to showcase their work in one of Somerset’s leading artistic events. Open Tuesday to Saturday, 9.30am – 3.00pm. Prize Giving Event: Wednesday, June 18, 5.00pm – 6.30pm. Free entry at Ilminster Arts Centre, TA19 0AN. 01460 54973 www. ilminsterartscentre.com
Until 18 July
Ilminster Arts Centre Open Exhibition 2025 – A judged annual exhibition inviting regional artists to showcase their work in one of Somerset’s premier artistic events. Free entry. Open Tuesday to Saturday, 9.30am–3.00pm at Ilminster Arts Centre, TA19 0AN. 01460 54973 www. ilminsterartscentre.com. Prize Giving: Wednesday, June 18, 5.00pm–6.30pm. Everyone welcome!
19 July – 13 September
Sladers’ Summer Print Show Original wood engravings, woodblock, aquatint, carborundum and drypoint prints by Julian Bailey NEAC, Martyn Brewster ARE, Merlyn Chesterman RE, Michael Fairclough RE NEAC, Sally McLaren RE, Howard Phipps RWA ARE SWE; furniture by Petter Southall; ceramics by Björk Haraldsdóttir. Affordable works of art that celebrate the places, people and things that make life worth living made by brilliant contemporary printmakers with exceptional ceramics by Björk Haraldsdóttir and wonderful furniture by Petter
Southall. Sladers Yard Contemporary Art & Craft Gallery, Cafe Sladers, West Bay, Bridport Dorset DT6 4EL. Open Wednesday to Saturday 10am – 4.30pm. t: 01308 459511 gallery@sladersyard.co.uk sladersyard.co.uk
22 July – 8 August
Jackie Cox & Chris Sinden: Take Two – Take Two is a joint exhibition exploring landscape and wildlife through the distinctive styles of Jackie Cox and Chris Sinden. Featuring scraperboard, coloured pencil, mixed media paintings, and complex multiblock linocuts. Open Tuesday to Saturday, 9.30am – 3.00pm. Free entry at Ilminster Arts Centre, TA19 0AN. 01460 54973 www.ilminsterartscentre. com.
26 July - 13 September
An exclusive photographic exhibition exploring the world of reggae – from its origins to its icons. The exhibition features the work of internationally acclaimed photographer and West Dorset resident Adrian Boot, with images of Bob Marley and the Wailers, Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry, Gregory Isaacs and many other reggae legends. It also includes other key figures from the period including lovers rock star Janet Kaye, poet Benjamin Zephaniah, Mick Jagger, Nelson Mandela and even a very young Naomi Campbell! The exhibition is a partnership between
Bridport Arts Centre, Urban Image, Greensleeves Records and Clocktower Records. Bridport Arts Centre, South Street, Bridport DT6 3NR. 10am – 4pm, Tues – Sat. Free.
28 July to 10 August
Landmarks: the Colours and Patterns of Dorset – an exhibition of vibrant paintings by Hilary Buckley. After two successful solo exhibitions, this will be the third exhibition of vibrant paintings by Hilary Buckley, a LymeRegis-based artist, who specialises in depicting the local Dorset landscape in her own colourful style. For more information visit dorset-artist.uk. The Malthouse Gallery, Town Mill, Lyme Regis DT7 3PU. Daily 10.00am to 5.00pm. Free admission. Contact: 01297 444111. Website: Dorset-artist.uk.
Until, 7 September
Recurring Intricacies brings together photography, ceramics, papercuts, and sculptures made by three female artists: Helen Sear, Charlotte Hodes, and Amanda Benson. The exhibition takes visitors through the ‘recurring intricacies’ of the eighteenth century, celebrating Sherborne House’s fascinating, colourful, cultural, and theatrical past. The Sherborne Newland Sherborne, Dorset DT9 3JG.
PREVIEW
Small but perfectly formed
CERNE ABBAS
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Leveret, described as three of England’s finest folk musicians come to Sidmouth Folk Festival
Cerne Abbas, with its famous giant and its beautiful old stone houses, is also renowned as the home of one of the region’s most delightful music festivals. Now scaled back to just two days, 19th and 20th July at the beautiful and historic St Mary’s Church, Cerne Abbas, and nearby Ashton Farm, Cerne Abbas Music Festival is still one of the musical jewels of the summer.
The festival, founded in 1991 by Richard Hosford, seeks to present chamber music of the highest standard in a relaxed and informal atmosphere. Based around the international Gaudier Ensemble, it brought chamber music from the 18th century to the present day to this historic Dorset village. For the musicians, it was also a break from busy touring schedules.
In its new form, the festival will continue its ethos of presenting varied programmes of music from the established repertoire as well as lesser-known works performed by musicians with a particular commitment to chamber music.
The musicians will include not only familiar faces from previous festivals but also other international colleagues, outstanding young professionals at the outset of their careers and students who comprise the next generation of professional musicians. Richard Hosford continues as artistic director.
The first 2025 festival concert features the Hyde Clarinet Quartet, an award-winning ensemble of postgraduate clarinet students from the Royal College of Music. Their recital on Saturday 19th at 3pm includes works by Beethoven and Borodin and light-
hearted arrangements of other works.
That evening, Gaudier and Friends—an ensemble of violins, violas, cello and clarinet—will play a programme of works by Russian composers including Borodin and Glazunov, as well as Weber’s Quintet in B flat for clarinet and strings, and Dvorak’s Quintet in E flat for strings.
On Sunday afternoon at 3pm at Ashton Farm, the group of Gaudier musicians and friends will delight a family audience with Scandinavian and Scottish folk tunes, alongside some South American dance music.
Big birthday for folk festival SIDMOUTH
SIDMOUTH Folk Festival, one of the biggest events in the folk and traditional music and dance calendar, is 70 this year. It is not the 70th festival (Covid and other factors intervened), but this seaside celebration of folk music, dance and song began in 1955, and it’s back this year from 1st to 8th August, in marquees and venues around pretty Sidmouth, with an amazing line-up.
From Morris dancers and shanty singers to the big names in contemporary folk, there is folk music for all tastes. The list of this year’s performer is very long, so here are just a few of the performers ...
Richard Thompson, Dervish, Steve Knightley and friends, Grace Petrie, Talisk, Peatbog Faeries, Seth Lakeman Band, Jon Boden and The Remnant Kings, Martin and Eliza Carthy, John Tams, Leveret, The Rheingans Sisters and Sam Sweeney.
The festival has always prided itself on creating an inclusive music community that embraces variety— celebrating tradition in all its many forms, including
the rich diversity of folk arts in the UK, from the grassroots to the cutting edge, from long-established stars to emerging talent.
It’s an immersive, participative week-long gathering of songs, stories, tunes and shared culture—deeply rooted, ever-evolving and open to everyone.
It is also, of course, a great boost to the economy not only of this coastal town but of the East Devon area more widely, attracting tens of thousands of visitors every August.
Kick off Sidmouth folk week with a couple of exciting pre-festival gigs—Cornwall’s much-loved Fisherman’s Friends at The Ham on Thursday 31st July at 7.30pm, and the legendary Fairport Convention on Friday 1st August at 3pm.
Re-creating musical favourites BRIDPORT
JAZZ is all about reinvention, re-imagining the sounds and shapes of music, instrumental combinations and revisiting classics. Frome-based composer, improviser and pianist John Law brings his ensemble Re-Creations to Bridport Arts Centre on Friday 4th July with a programme that ranges rom Debussy to Dylan.
Classically trained and regarded as one of Europe’s leading jazz pianists, John Law’s quartet will be playing a wide-ranging programme of intriguing rearrangements from the worlds of jazz and pop and classical.
So Debussy’s Clair de Lune might sit alongside a rhythmic re-imagining of Smoke on the Water, or a boogie-type reshaping of Blowin’ in the Wind might rub shoulders with a baroque rearrangement of Fly Me to the Moon
As well as the melodic inventions of Parliamentary Jazz Award-winning saxophonist saxophonist Sam Crockatt, the quartet features Danish bass player Henrik Jensen and a new firebrand on the UK jazz drumming scene, Alex Goodyear.
Scottish violinist on tour CONCERTS IN THE WEST
THE talented Scottish violinist Colin Scobie comes to Bridport, Ilminster and Crewkerne on Friday 11th and Saturday 12th July, on a Concerts in the West tour, playing works by Beethoven, Elgar and Schumann, accompanied by pianist Jâms Coleman.
Born in Edinburgh in 1991, Scobie is already established as one of the most creative and compelling violinists and chamber musicians of his
John Law brings Re-Creations to Bridport Arts Centre
generation. He has performed as concerto soloist to critical acclaim across Europe and further afield, with orchestras including Camerata Nordica, the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Arcangelo, La Serenissima and Scottish Ensemble.
He began playing the violin at the age of eight, studying at St Mary’s Music School, Edinburgh, before going on to the Royal College of Music in London. He has given masterclasses at Oxford and Cambridge Universities.
In 2010, Colin was appointed second violin of the Fitzwilliam Quartet with whom he performed extensively for two years, touring Europe, Africa and America. His desire to explore the possibilities of the quartet repertoire and to lead a young and dynamic quartet led to him joining the Maxwell Quartet as first violin in 2013.
From Anglesey, Jâms Coleman performs as a soloist, chamber musician and vocal accompanist. He regularly performs at prestigious festivals and recent highlights include recitals at the Aldeburgh Festival, BBC Proms, Cheltenham Festival, LSO St Luke’s, Prussia Cove Open Chamber Music, the Royal Concertgebouw (Amsterdam) and the Wigmore Hall.
The concerts are at Bridport Arts Centre for the usual coffee concert on Friday 11th at 11.30am, Ilminster Arts Centre that evening at 7.30pm and Crewkerne Dance House on Saturday at 7.30.
Showcasing young talent
BRIDPORT
BRIDPORT Arts Centre celebrates up and coming musicians with the Harbour Records Emerging Talent Showcase, on Friday 18th July.
Giving a platform to local young musicians, who perform across a wide range of styles and genres, this talented group has been working with Harbour Records since September 2024.
They have been supported to write, record and release their own original music, develop their skills and build confidence to take the next steps into the music industry. Expect a night of vibrant performances and amazing talent!
Circus Raj returns BRIDPORT
FOLLOWING last year’s sell-out show, Circus Raj returns to Bridport’s Millennium Green on Wednesday 30th July with an afternoon of exciting music, dance and enthralling acrobatics.
Colourful, noisy, musical, heart-stopping—Circus Raj brings to Dorset the street circus style of the dramatically beautiful Rajasthan region of India. The cast of aerialists, acrobats, musicians, slackrope walkers, giant puppet characters and the eyewatering displays by their fakir, present a colourful,
vibrant, fast-moving extravaganza of intrigue, drama, feats of daring, music, laughter and surprise.
Rajasthan is home to elite street circus performers drawn from this fascinating region’s legendary entertainment communities, who combine their amazing skills to perform breathtaking acts of courage and bravery.
Bring your picnic blankets, cushions and camping chairs and enjoy a fantastic afternoon of live entertainment.
A classic novel comes to the stage LYME REGIS
JOHN Fowles’ most famous novel, The French Lieutenant’s Woman, has so many connections with Lyme Regis: the story is set there, the award-winning film with Meryl Streep and Jeremy Irons was filmed there ... and the author lived there. Now this great book is coming to the stage, and actors in the Lyme area are invited to audition for the production, which will be in February next year.
There are two auditions, at The Hub in Church Street on Saturday 5th July and at the Marine Theatre on Sunday 6th, both at 2pm. The novel has been adapted by Mark Healy, and the play will be directed by Chris Gill.
Following the auditions, there will be workshops in
Elite street circus performers, Circus Raj, come to Bridport in July
September, and rehearsals will start in December, with the performance dates set for 11th – 14th February 2026.
Boogie-woogie
Waters
LYME REGIS
BEN Waters has for years been one of the biggest names in boogie-woogie. The Dorset-born musician, whose cousin is another Dorset star, the brilliant singersongwriter PJ Harvey, also has a talented son, Tom. Father and son are coming to the Marine Theatre at Lyme Regis on Thursday 10th July.
The duo, who are two of the finest musicians in the world of boogie-woogie, rock ’n’ roll and blues, combine breathtaking musicianship, deep family connection and stories from their extraordinary lives in music.
This is not just a gig—it’s a joyous celebration of rhythm, soul and decades of unforgettable experiences shared with legends.
An agonising choice
DORCHESTER
DORCHESTER Drama tackles a profoundly challenging story in its new production, Not For Keeps, at the Corn Exchange on Friday 4th and Saturday 5th July at 7.30pm.
While her husband is away in Borneo during the Second World War, Mary is drawn to a handsome American soldier. The temporary fling leaves Mary pregnant. Faced with being shunned from society and rejected by her husband, will she keep the child?
Performed by Dorchester Drama, and based on the birth of the play’s local author, Vince Jones, Not For Keeps is set both in the 1940s and 1990s and tells the story of a woman who is forced to make an agonising choice.
On Thursday July 17th Declan Duffy brings his one man show Call yourself an Irishman? to the Corn Exchange, where he will attempt to answer the vexed question of how many boxes you technically have to tick in order to confidently state: “I am Irish (sort of)”.
A new style of flamenco DORCHESTER
IF you think you know about flamenco, you are in for a shock at Dorchester Corn Exchange on Friday 11th July, when performers Luz and Mannion bring Blue Ghost to the stage.
The production draws our attention to the unexpected beauty and rhythm harboured in the insect world in a visual, dynamic and electric flamenco show. Inspired by the Blue Ghost Firefly and the importance of insect conservation for the survival of our natural world, this is a nostalgic celebration that reminds us of our interconnectedness, embraces our need for transformation and shows us that even the smallest
creatures have an important part to play.
Choreographers Luz and Mannion don’t play to the usual flamenco stereotype, but instead investigate the potential of this powerful and dynamic art, paying homage to its traditional forms while stretching its boundaries, embracing open-minded approaches and generating diverse, fresh and unique voices for contemporary flamenco.
Little Mermaids
LYME
REGIS
THE youth theatre group based at the Marine Theatre at Lyme Regis takes to the stage on Sunday 20th July for two performances of a Disney family favourite, The Little Mermaid Jr.
The Marine Youth Theatre show will have a cast of talented seven to 12 year olds, performing songs including Under the Sea and Part of your World. There are performances at 2pm and 6pm.
What would you do?
DORCHESTER
HOW many times, when you hear of the devastating, horrifying, tragic or just astonishing things that happen to other people, do you ask yourself, what you would do in their place? That is the premise of a challenging new play coming to Dorchester Corn Exchange on Wednesday 16th July at 7.30pm.
In Behind The Doors’ Extra Ordinary, we meet Rachel and Max, an ordinary couple, living ordinary lives until something extraordinary turns everything upside down. Now they have the single most important decision of their life to make.
They piece together their thoughts, bit by bit, good and bad, speaking the things you don’t or shouldn’t say
Unique approaches to flamenco in Dorchester in July
Screen Time
with Nic Jeune
Top Six at the Flix
Bridport Arts Centre
The Ghost and Mrs Muir (1947)
A classic from director Jospeh L Mankiewicz. “An out-of-this world love story; Tierney was never more beautiful; Harrison never as rugged or handsome. A timeless treasure.” Bob Bloom. Journal and Courier.
Babylon (1980)
“All of that observation in Babylon amounts to something that still feels new. You’re looking at people who, in 1980 England, were, at last, being properly, seriously seen.” Wesley Morris. The New York Times.
Bridport Electric Palace
The Ballad of Wallis Island (2025)
“Directed by James Griffiths, this is the sort of hilarious heart-warmer that only comes around once or twice a year to offer a blessed break from darkness, snobbery and streaming schlock.” Jonny Oleksinski. New York Post.
How to train Your Dragon (2025)
“How to Train Your Dragon live-action remake is a fantastic movie, not just emulating the animated original, but elevating it, all while also delivering an exciting summer blockbuster poised to thrill.” Screen Rant.
Plaza Cinema Dorchester
Superman (2025)
DC comic’s franchise based on the character of the same name was created by Jerry Seigel and Joe Shuster in June 1938. In James Gunn’s reimagining of the iconic superhero, Superman follows a young Clark Kent (David Corenswet) as he navigates the challenges of balancing his Kryptonian heritage with his human upbringing in Smallville, Kansas.
Jurrasic World Rebirth (2025)
The seventh film in the 31-year-old franchise, starring Scarlett Johansson, Jonathan Bailey and Mahershala Ali. Gareth Edwards (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, The Creator) directs from a script by David Koepp, who wrote the original Jurassic Park released in 1993.
and contemplating the never ending ‘What ifs’.
This piece of new writing examines the effects of genetic testing and the impact this has on the diversity of our society. Extra Ordinary is a powerful, thought-provoking experience that will leave you wondering ... what you would do in their position?
Well-seasoned folk HONITON
HONITON’s Beehive Centre welcomes acclaimed folk band The Salts on Saturday 26th July for an evening of sea shanties and songs from the sea.
The five-strong band, whose performances are described as “21st century folk fires a respectful broadside at the traditional,” will play a set that celebrates maritime classics that we all know and love, including Bound for South Australia, Blow the Man Down, Drunken Sailor and many more, alongside well crafted original tunes.
The Salts are multi-instrumentalists, and have gained a reputation as one of the most exciting and energetic concept bands around, performing original material alongside interpretations of traditional songs.
An added bonus for this Honiton gig—they will be joined by the muchloved folk star Phil Beer!
French violist at Shute Festival COLYTON
FRENCH violist Hugo Haag and pianist Ivelina Krasteva give the July recital in this year’s Shute Festival series, at St Andrew’s Church, Colyton, on Saturday 12th July at 7.30pm.
The attractive programme includes Bach’s Cello Suite No 2 and his Sonata for viola da gamba and keyboard No 1 in G major, Kodaly’s Adagio for viola and piano, Robert Schumann’s Fantasiestücke, selected preludes by Messiaen and Brahms’ Sonata for viola and piano Op 120 No 2 in E flat major Hugo Haag has played as a soloist,
The Salts season things at the Beehive in Honiton
Hugo Haag
chamber and orchestral musician at numerous venues all over Europe. He is musical director of a festival in Normandy, Les Musiques Vagabondes, and former student at the Yehudi Menuhin School and Guildhall School of Music and Drama.
Classical pianist Ivelina Krasteva performs internationally as a soloist and chamber musician, and has received numerous awards for her performance. An alumna of the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, she is passionate about bringing music to new audiences as well as teaching.
ARTSREACH
IT may be a long way from the blue grass mountains of Virginia to the Welsh valleys but the five musicians of Taff Rapids have created their own musical genre—Blwgras from Wales. They have a short tour with Artsreach to village halls at Melbourne St Andrew on Wednesday 23rd August, Halstock, on Thursday 24th and East Stour on Friday 25th, all beginning at 7.30pm.
Taff Rapids from Cardiff have been making a big impression on folk audiences with their live performances, rich harmonies and instrumental mastery across the UK, Europe and Canada, while regular airtime on BBC Radio has solidified their reputation as an exciting new force in the genre.
Comprised of seasoned musicians Darren Eedens, Siôn Russell Jones, David Grubb and Clem Saynor, Taff Rapids brings a fresh perspective to bluegrass, infusing traditional American classics and captivating originals with Welsh-language elements for a unique global appeal.
This is a landmark year for the band, with the highly anticipated release of their debut album, Blŵgras, and an extensive live schedule, including a return tour to Canada alongside concerts and festival appearances around the UK and Europe.
The Young Lit Fix
Ghostlines
By Katya Balen Illustrated by Jill Calder
Published by Bloomsbury Children’s Books
Paperback £7.99
Reviewed by Nicky Mathewson
HAVE you ever dreamed of living on a remote island in the wild North Sea where you and a few other residents were lucky enough to dwell on unspoilt, rugged landscapes shared with Puffins and Seals and the tumultuous sea as your neighbour? Learning to swim and handle a kayak from a young age, ready to follow the ghostlines of seafarers past?
Tilda and her family live on such an island and are part of a tight knit community who cherish their beautiful home. The island is called Ayrie and boasts beaches, caves, mountains and waterfalls, but island life isn’t for everyone and the pull of the mainland can pull families apart.
Albie and his mum have moved to the island but Albie can’t see the beauty. He misses home terribly and it’s up to Tilda to show him the wonder of Ayrie. She can’t understand how anyone couldn’t love island life but it’s a hard sell for Albie. She resorts to taking a big risk to impress him but she may have gone a step too far. Ayrie may be beautiful, but the elements are unpredictable and this could put the two of them in real danger.
This is definitely a dream of mine and I loved exploring the island of Ayrie with Tilda in this stunning book from Katya Balen. She writes with passion and creates a story that embraces the reader and fills them with wonder. I loved it and would recommend it to readers age 9+ who are fans of adventure and stories of friendship.
10% off for Marshwood Vale readers at The Bookshop on South Street, Bridport. 01308 422964 www.dorsetbooks.com
Blwgras – from Wales
Ivelina Krasteva
Taff Rapids coming to Melbourne St Andrew, Halstock and East Stour
Like a Rolling Stone
Click Here for an Easy Read version of this article
Photographs by Neil Ebden and Bjornulf Vik-iorr
John Nicholls, a resident of Bridport, became a fan of The Rolling Stones purely by accident. When he was thirteen, a friend gave him a box of Beatles records. It also contained a few singles by a group called The Rolling Stones. Hearing songs like Paint It Black, Satisfaction and Jumpin Jack Flash for the first time meant there was no going back.
John finally got to see the Stones at Wembley Stadium in the summer of 1982. The impact was palpable. It was an adrenaline rush like no other, something he would experience countless times over the next five decades.
Obtaining show tickets proved problematic at first until a chance posting on a fans’ forum in Germany proved momentous and opened up easier access. He was soon to follow the group all over Europe, to the United States and South America.
With the passing of Charlie Watts in 2021 and John’s own personal battles, time may no longer be on his side. Mick Jagger and Keith Richards are in their eighties so where and when this rock and roll juggernaut will come to its final resting place is anyone’s guess.
Dateline: September 29th, 2003: Keith’s photograph
I hear that Keith Richards is staying at The Landmark Hotel in London.
The previous day, while in Bill Wyman’s Sticky Fingers restaurant, I meet a German fan selling photographs he has taken of The Stones. I like the one of Keith and promptly make a purchase.
Down at The Landmark Hotel, I join some friends but they leave to make the journey to Wembley Arena. I recognise Keith’s minder exiting the front of the hotel. Just behind him is Keith himself. I’m stood next to an SUV with darkened windows and they’re walking in my direction. Next thing I know, Keith is stood right in front of me. Armed with a pen, I ask if he will sign my photo which he does “With love Keith Richards 03”. I shake his hand and wish him all the best for the show. I can’t believe my luck. I’d bought the photograph and got to meet Keith Richards the very next day. Definitely one to tick off the bucket list.
Dateline: South America 2016: The Holy Grail
The Rolling Stones tour dates in South America are to be in February and March. Good friend Martin Elliott comes up with the idea of taking in shows in Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay.
a disc jockey. Next thing we know Lyn puts the mics in front of us and soon we are going out over the airwaves.
After crossing the USA/Canada border to take a show in Toronto we face a long drive back.
The following day Lyn Davis is on the phone. She wants me to recite several lines to be used as a radio jingle. “Hi, I’m John from England and you’re listening to Lyn Davis on K103 in the Mahoning Valley. She rocks”. I think they liked my English accent. When we’re back in England, we hear there is no escaping my voice as the jingle is being played constantly.
Dateline: Isle of Wight 2007: Hello Jade
The Stones are the headline act. At the site I go to the ticket office and hear a voice from behind the counter say, “We’ve got you a hospitality pass with Virgin Radio from mid-day. I hope that’s OK?” Yes, it b***** well is OK, I think.
In hospitality, I briefly chat to Jade Jagger and inform her that her dad has cost me a fortune over the years. She laughs.
At one point I have five different currencies stuffed in my pockets. In Bueno Aries we stay in a hotel opposite the cemetery in which Eva Peron is buried. It really is the Holy Grail to see a live band in Argentina and the reaction of the crowd when The Stones appear on stage is a memory that will stay with me forever.
Then it’s on to Montevideo and the Estadio Centenario. It was built for the World Cup in 1930 and to be honest doesn’t look like it’s been touched since. It’s vast and people at the back are a long way from the stage.
A hotel on Copacabana Beach awaits in Rio de Janeiro and we take in the sights, Sugar Loaf Mountain and the statue of Christ the Redeemer. Truly breathtaking but in stark contrast to the shanty towns (favelas). The Maracana is an iconic venue packed with almost eighty thousand people.
Dateline: United States 2005: Radio jingle
After a show in Columbus, Ohio, we meet Lyn Davis who invites us to a radio station where she works as
Later I stand on the balcony outside where a few of us are subjected to verbal abuse and hand gestures from some of the crowd below. Hell, I’m thinking, I’ve been a fan since I was thirteen and they presume I’m only here for the free champagne on offer.
Dateline: New York 2006: Removal men
My friend, Martin, has nowhere to stay so we decide to put him up in our hotel although there is nowhere in the room to sleep. As we walk through the hotel lobby, Martin grabs one end of a chaise lounge and me the other. Casually we walk down the corridor to our room. I can only assume the onlookers thought we worked for the hotel and were just moving furniture around. Martin slept very well and the following morning we return the chaise lounge to its rightful place.
After the gig we head for a bar called Walters. We see two guys on the floor punching each other. A woman then screams out, “He’s got a gun.” In the distance I can see a police car. I manage to grab his attention and tell them what is happening. He speeds over and arrests the guy. A very eventful night in New York City. A real roller-coaster of a ride and one I’m not entirely sure I wish to repeat.
This Month
in the not so distant past
Click Here for an Easy Read version of this article
Looking back at historical moments that happened in July, John Davis highlights The Underground Railroad
The Underground Railroad was a network of secret routes and safe houses used by enslaved African Americans to escape to freedom in the northern part of the United States and Canada.
As a name it is a misnomer since it was neither underground or a railroad but rather a metaphor for the covert and often highly dangerous system of helping people flee slavery.
More of The Underground Railroad later but first the crucial role played in the concept by two Harriets, Beecher Stowe and Tubman. The first was an abolitionist and the writer of the seminal anti-slavery novel that became known as Uncle Tom’s Cabin and the second a ‘conductor’ on the railroad itself who assisted ‘passengers’ as they fled north.
Harriet Beecher Stowe, who died at the age of eighty-five in July 1896, came from the state of Connecticut in the United States. She was the sixth of eleven children in the family, her father being a hardline and outspoken Calvinist preacher.
She worked as a teacher for some time before moving to Cincinnati where her husband encouraged to pen articles for a women’s magazine. Uncle Tom’s Cabin was partly inspired by the loss of her son from cholera and the passing of the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 which legally forced those living in the north of the USA to return runaway slaves.
The novel, first published in serial form in The National Era magazine, was an instant success and, once published in book form, sold over 300,000 copies in the first year. It’s strong anti-slavery stance had an enormous impact on public opinion. Beecher Stowe’s intention was to acquaint those living in the north about the conditions faced by slaves in the south and to attempt to make slave-owners there more empathetic. It was immediately banned in the southern states and, reputedly, also in Imperial Russia, where parallels were made between slavery and serfdom.
Critics of Uncle Tom’s Cabin produced rival versions to counteract the themes expressed in the book but later Beecher Stowe wrote her own Key to Uncle Tom’s Cabin which included primary source historical documents to back up her depiction of life for slaves
in the southern states. Harriet spent much of the later part of her life speaking nationally and internationally, giving donations and raising money to help boost the anti-slavery movement. When she met Abraham Lincoln, he is supposed to have told her, “So you are the little woman who wrote the book that started that great war (the American Civil War).” The quote though is unsubstantiated and is probably an example of journalistic licence gone mad.
‘In more recent times certain high school libraries removed the book from their shelves largely because of its ‘inappropriate
language’
In more recent times certain high school libraries removed the book from their shelves largely because of its ‘inappropriate language’ and ‘stereotypical stock characters’. Since, though, common sense has prevailed and the novel is now viewed as a literary work which should be considered in the context of the time in which it was written and for an intended purpose and audience.
There is a Harriet Beecher Stowe Center (sic) in Hartford, Connecticut which is open to the public and each year an HBS Literary Award is made to a writer espousing the civil rights cause. The winner this year is Percival Everett for his novel James, a re-imagining of the Mark Twain tale The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn but told from the perspective of Huckleberry’s friend James, who is an escaped slave. If Harriett Beecher Stowe led the literary charge towards the abolition of slavery, it was her namesake Harriet Tubman who was to become one of the hands-on protagonists who propelled the movement forward.
Tubman’s maternal grandmother is believed to have arrived in the USA on a slave ship from Africa and Tubman was brought up as a slave in Maryland. As a youngster she was hit in the head when a slaveowner threw a heavy metal object at someone close to her and all her life suffered from dizziness, pain and some aspects of narcolepsy, especially experiencing dreams and visions.
In 1849 Tubman escaped to Philadelphia but she missed the support and social interaction of her family and friends despite the harsh conditions in which they had all been forced to live. In close cooperation with others, she helped to set up The Underground Railroad, a system of waterways, secret trails and safe-houses along which slaves passed until they reached safety in the northern states or in some cases Canada. Once her family and friends had been liberated, Tubman focused on other slaves who wanted emancipation. Escaping slaves were called ‘passengers’ while those leading them were termed as ‘conductors’. Tubman used the codename ‘Moses’ and, discounting exaggerated claims by some biographers later, is known to have made thirteen trips to the south and ‘conducted’ some eighty people to safety.
During the Civil War (1861-1865) Tubman worked for the Union Army first as a cook and nurse but later as a scout and spy. She was heavily involved in planning and executing a number of military raids carried out by the Union Army specifically
aimed at releasing large numbers of slaves like that at Combahee Ferry. She is believed to be the only woman closely connected with such raids and was posthumously awarded the honorary rank of Brigadier-General after her death.
At the end of the war, she moved to live in property she owned in Auburn, New York where she looked after her parents and other family members. She married for a second time and adopted a daughter. Harriet became increasingly associated with the cause of women’s suffrage in later life and was thought to be ninety when she died. No accurate figure could be given as the date of her birth had never been officially recorded.
Footnote: In addition to Uncle Tom’s Cabin, further information can be obtained through the book The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead and from the film Harriet currently streaming on Netflix.
Semi-retired and living in Lyme Regis, John Davis started working life as a newspaper journalist before moving on to teach in schools, colleges and as a private tutor. He is a history graduate with Bachelors and Masters degrees from Bristol University with a particular interest in the History of Education and Twentieth Century European History.
Uncle Tom’s Cabin is an anti-slavery novel by American author Harriet Beecher Stowe
The Heroes of Sainte-MereEglise by
J.D.Keene.
IF THERE is one period of history in which enthusiasm never seems to have dimmed it is the Second World War. Whether it’s the build-up in Europe during the 1930s, the conflict itself or the aftermath worldwide, the novels keep coming by the bookshop load.
According to the author this book had been in the planning for a number of years and he was finally inspired to get it written when he visited Sainte-Mere-Eglise, an actual town in Normandy on the Cotentin Peninsula.
The place is actually only a few kilometres from the legendary Utah Beach used during the D-Day landings and was one of the first towns to be liberated by American soldiers.
Rewind, and following the invasion of France, the Nazis, including a detachment of the Waffen-SS, arrive with a plan to occupy this quiet French town. Some of the locals, the French Resistance and later Allied forces have other plans though.
The narrative is certainly engaging and fast paced as we switch from one piece of action to another. Locations with date-lines are included so readers know exactly how things are progressing chronologically.
The diverse range of characters introduced are appealing and easy to identify with and, although some of the writing may be a little uneven in places, there is an excellent balance between actual historical events and fictional creations.
Personally, I found the section dealing with the refugees escape from France via the Pyrenees into neutral Spain over-long and could not wait to get back into France as D-Day loomed. But that’s a minor gripe in what otherwise is a very readable example of the genre.
Published by Vinci Books.
Reviewed by John Davis
Bjork at Sladers Yard
DORSET-based Icelandic ceramic artist Björk Haraldsdóttir shows her work at Sladers Yard in West Bay from July 19th. Björk makes strong sculptural forms which she drapes with monochromatic patterns. At the core of this work is a conversation between three-dimensional form and two-dimensional pattern. Initially working as an architect for twenty years she made ceramics as an antidote for the many creative constraints placed on an architect, seeing it as ‘small architecture with no brief and no client’. For more information about the Sladers Yard show visit www.sladersyard.co.uk
Behind ‘The Art of the Photograph’
A NEW series of articles about photographers working in the wider local community began in the April edition of Marshwood+, the online issue of The Marshwood Vale Magazine. In this series we learn about local photographers, as well as those drawn to the people and places that make up the area in and around the Jurassic Coast.
In August we will meet Alison Webber. Speaking about her photograph above, entitled Tandem, Alison says that it forms part of her Shadows series and the image is an important example of the way in which she approaches photography. ‘I like to capture what I see in the moment’ says Alison, ‘never knowing what might appear. It could be a beautiful reflection or a graphic pattern but in this case my eye was drawn to a bold shadow which appeared fleetingly as the sun momentarily came out from behind a cloud.’
Now published monthly online and every two months in print, make sure not to miss this article and other issues of Marshwood+ by visiting www. marshwoodvale.com and subscribing to our monthly newsletter.
A NEW exhibition opening at Exeter City Council’s Royal Albert Memorial Museum & Art Gallery (RAMM) in July examines our relationship with the natural world and innovative approaches to environmental recovery. The exhibition will explore how individuals are creating, rebuilding, and repairing connections with nature, and how we can address the climate and biodiversity crisis by making our world and local environments more wild.
Visitors will be introduced to five wild places across the globe and hear a diverse range of voices—from Aboriginal elders to researchers to community activists—to discover how they are all looking to ‘wild’ for a more positive future.
‘Wild’ opens at RAMM 26 July 2025, to 4 January 2026. For more visit: rammuseum.org.
Axminster wood lathe. Good order. Wood/ metal jaws, revolving centres, drill chuck. Set of 8 tools and many purpose made. Bargain £95. Buyer collects 01460 22081.
I believe it’s from a Canterbury sidecar. Consists of the frame, suspension unit and solid wheel. Located near Stockland. £40 ono. Call 07479474392 and leave a message.
Canadian Canoe Large brown 16 ft grp canoe with built in storage/ buoyancy compartments . No repairs, just a few
FOR SALE
nicks and scratches. The interior will need repainting. Unusual upturned ends, very Hiawatha. £400 ono. Near Stockland. Call 07479474392 and leave a message. For sale 4 wheel trailer, braking on front wheels drop tail board lights new tyres vgc 6’6”x3’6”x19” £300 o.v.n.o. photo’s available on request. 07803177164.
BOSS me-50 COSM
Guitar multiple effects Studio 10s music. (Gibson Baldwin) ed. also elect guitar. £110.00. Tel 07494057654.
Charbroil x200 Grill2Go portable gas BBQ with spare gas canisters,
£75.00 Bridport. 07843 752438.
Free : several hundred clean jam jars with fixed tea lights and safe string handles. Ideal for an evening community event. Collect from Weymouth. 01305 750557.
Mountfield Princess 34 electric rotary mower for sale, only two and a half seasons use. Good condition and can be seen working. Ideal for smaller garden. Absolute bargain £30 cash. Phone/text 07876550056 (Bridport) buyer collects.
Relyon Sofa Bed pattern ‘Juliet’. Dark Blue - width 5’3” (1.6m). VGC, little used. £215 ONO.
01460 242 254 (near Crewkerne).
Tent 3 man fitted ground sheet Good condition £20. Also Boys 6 gear 16 inch wheels Good condition £25. 07984 481634. Hot water dispenser. “Neostar electronics”. 2.2 Litre. Boxed + instruction Manuel. As new. £20. Bargain. Can do photo.07398760637. DT6 3PP
Ladies Raleigh Shopper 6 speed bike. £45. 07709 915759. 120 150mm x 150mm Pink Wall Tiles with some border tiles. £25. 07709915759.
Folding bed -single. As new complete with
FOR SALE
mattress and original packaging. £15 Purchaser collects - Beaminster. Phone 01308 861067. Beautiful large American walnut dresser/sideboard. 8 drawers, great storage. Excellent condition. 164 x 90 x 48. Downsizing can email photo. Bargain £45 01935 872217.
WANTED
Collectables, bygones, vintage, autojumble, Job-lots & collections a specialty. Good prices paid 07875677897 mar 24p x 4
WRITING
Budding Authors. Writing an interesting story, the past achievements of an organisation or a family history for self-publishing and need some advice with style, layout and editing? Contact freelance author and editor John Davis on johndavis77@ btinternet.com.
CHIMNEY SWEEP WANTED
Secondhand tools. All trades and crafts. Old and modern. G. Dawson. 01297 23826. www.secondhandtools. co.uk.
Stamps & Coins wanted by collector / investor. We are keen to purchase small or large collections at this time. Tel Rod 01308 863790 or 07802261339.
Vintage & antique textiles, linens, costume buttons etc. always sought by Caroline Bushell. Tel. 01404 45901. Jan 25
Coins wanted. Part or full collections purchased for cash. Please phone John on 01460 62109 or 07980 165047. July 24
Dave buys all types of tools 01935 428975
RESTORATION FURNITURE.
Antique restoration and bespoke furniture. Furniture carefully restored and new commissions undertaken. French polishing and modern hand finishes. Phil Meadley. 01297 560335. phil.meadley@btinternet.com Sept 24
