Marshwood+ March 2022

UK’s ‘finest Jazz singer’ comes to Dorset Page 48

David Tucker’s Past, Present and Future Page 16

Luke Wright and the ‘nimble’ genre Page 38

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Marshwood + Magazine

THE

© Harriet Laurie Photograph by Robin Mills

The best from West Dorset, South Somerset and East Devon No. 276 March 2022

COVER STORY Robin Mills met Harriet Laurie in Broadwey, Weymouth

© Harriet Laurie Photograph by Robin Mills

’I

was brought up with two brothers in London by my father who worked as a journalist and author and my mother who ran a ‘groovy’ clothes shop on the Portobello Market. We lived above the shop and the hustle and bustle of the market provided the backdrop to a lively family life filled with music, theatre, dinner parties and debate. We were expected to think for ourselves and join in the adults’ conversations. Our grandparents lived nearby and were part of our household—‘Grin Gran’ would dish up Birds Eye chicken pies as the perfect antidote to any upset, and I still turn to them in moments of crisis.

I went to the International School of London where I was given a shambolic but hilarious education. Dozens of languages were spoken and taught, though I proved to be a very poor linguist. I later moved from this small, diverse school to a huge sixth form college in Richmond. I struggled at college and, with hindsight, I realise I was suffering from anxiety. On the tube journey I often had to get off to be sick but didn’t think to mention it to anyone. I ended up leaving after a year and only later returning to education to do a degree in Law. My love affair with horses began with my homemade toy stables under a grand piano. Many of my childhood memories, Tel. 01308 423031 The Marshwood Vale Magazine March 2022 3

Harriet Laurie eavesdropping on the adults who existed only as ankles and knees, are from this dark world. I eventually grew too large and had to join the real world.

I learnt to ride in the New Forest. My father had borrowed a barn to build a 30 foot trimaran, on which we would later spend a great deal of time at sea, and he used to drop us off at the local stables each day to keep us busy. We had the money for one ride a week and worked to earn extras. The owner of the stables, Mrs Brown, took me under her wing and from the age of six I was regularly taking the train from Waterloo to Lymington to spend the weekends at her cottage.

Once the boat was built we sailed it to Weymouth and my parents rented a tumbledown cottage near Little Bredy, where we spent weekends and holidays from when I was aged eight. I pestered my parents relentlessly until they bought me a pony and from then on I was in love with Dorset and the countryside.

As a pony-mad teen I was invited to spend all my holidays at Wilton House, the home of Lady Pembroke, who was one of my mum’s best customers and a breeder of Arabian horses.

I slaved away in her stables where training for the Olympic equestrian teams also took place. I was used as a spare rider for horses in training and absorbed an amazing equestrian education by osmosis. In my spare time I hacked about on a Lipizzaner horse which had been handed on by the Queen— for me it was horsey heaven. Living in a stately home meant that there was a constant flow of ambassadors, actors, pop stars and celebrities, providing endless opportunities for me to make a fool of myself, I remember telling Andy Warhol he was really uncool and out of date! I frequently curled up with shame as a result of my impulsive remarks but Lady Pembroke was extremely tolerant.

In retrospect it is clear to me that the periods of my life where I didn’t have much to do with horses, the nightclubbing years in the eighties and later when my children were small, were more difficult—something was out of balance. Being with horses was healthy for me; physically, mentally and emotionally.

That must have fed into my developing TheHorseCourse, which was when I finally found my vocation.

After my law degree, being a solicitor didn’t really appeal so I started a desktop publishing business, which rapidly grew into a specialist typesetting firm until Maggie Thatcher’s recession hit us very hard. For the first time I learnt the panic and shame of being unable to afford food for my family. I taught myself

4 The Marshwood Vale Magazine March 2022 Tel. 01308 423031

graphic design, where the margins are higher, and managed to make ends meet. By the time I was pregnant with my second son I was desperate to leave London so that I could work less and spend more time with my babies.

We moved to Dorset in 1993—my parents were already living here and one of my brothers soon followed. With housing being cheaper in Dorset, I was lucky enough to be able to work part-time from home. My design career took off and I enjoyed the creative variety of working for local businesses as well as national IT firms where I had built a niche. To my surprise, I was approached by Triumph Motorcycles who gave me free rein for two years to work with paint colours and metal finishes for their whole range. Then, on one of my frequent flights working for Triumph, I noticed how awful the Virgin Atlantic planes looked. So I wrote a cocky letter to Richard Branson, telling him how I could sort the paint out on his planes. To my astonishment, Virgin replied with a non-disclosure agreement to sign and an invitation to London to give a presentation which led to a contract for paint and livery design for both planes and trains. All this, as a now single mother of three small boys in Dorset, seemed quite surreal.

Once my boys were old enough to go to school I returned to horses, becoming interested in natural horsemanship, and started learning more and more about a particular style of training called Parelli. Although I was still running my design business, for the next couple of years this became an obsession, and soon other people were asking me to help with their horses, so I started to teach. It became clear to me that the principles were not about training the horse, but about understanding what made sense to the horse and training yourself to be calmer, clearer and less predatory. Asking the opinion of the horses, I got some honest answers and humbling feedback. So through the horsemanship I worked on myself, and meanwhile my horsemanship students were telling me how much better their lives and relationships seemed to be going. I began to modify aspects of the Parelli approach to leverage the demands of the horsemanship to provide the greatest possible impact on the humans.

I had been thinking about how this technique could work with people in real need of help when my good friend Emily Bolton introduced me to John Thompson from New Orleans, whom she had helped exonerate after he’d spent 17 years on death row. Understandably he was someone who struggled to be calm in everyday life. After a session with my horse Flower,

© Harriet Laurie Photograph by Robin Mills

he literally grabbed me and said, “Harriet, you’ve got to do this for other people, this is important.”

Through Jim Knight, former MP for South Dorset, I was put in touch with the Young Offenders Institute on Portland. That led to my taking two horses into the prison and working with a small group of violent young offenders. It turned out to be really successful, so I quit my career as a designer, registered as a charity, got a couple of grants, and TheHorseCourse was born.

University researchers tracking my participants saw that, a year after release, the reoffending rates of the lads I’d worked with were halved (compared to their specific OASYS risk ratings).

To see these young men, with chaotic lives and with no faith in themselves, blossom as they learnt, in action, to self-calm, to set and hold a strong focus, to be safe and trustworthy leaders was incredibly moving. We would invite the governors to a display

where the prisoners would have the horses kicking giant balls, jumping barrels and standing on pedestals—all cued with subtle body language alone. It was like a circus, but a circus with a real purpose.

After several years in prisons we realised the programme could be helpful for a much wider cohort. We now work with young people, families and adults referred to us by social services, NHS and schools for a wide range of difficulties, when talk-based therapies and other services aren’t working.

TheHorseCourse employs six trained facilitators in Weymouth on an ex-dairy farm, which is covered in bunting and fairy lights and plays host to horses, hens and a horticulture programme. We train and support several similar centres across the country. I am proudest of how my three beautiful boys have turned out, but running this purposeful circus is a very close second.

’

6 The Marshwood Vale Magazine March 2022 Tel. 01308 423031

Tel. 01308 423031 The Marshwood Vale Magazine March 2022 7

UP FRONT Talking with the poet, Luke Wright, last week (page 38), I was struck by his newfound irritation with social media. Originally an early adopter, he now hates it, describing it as a shouting match. However, he feels compelled to use it to help promote his work. And he’s not alone. Businesses and individuals all across the world have been scrambling for years to find the best way to present their digital offerings on a range of different platforms. But as Tarzan might have said: ‘It’s a jungle out there.’

Not only are there too many platforms to deal with, figuring out how to avoid being roasted or shamed makes it a difficult place for brands to be comfortable. We now know that digital skulduggery can be dished out on an industrial scale. Which may be why at a recent conference Juan Señor, president of digital advancement company ‘Innovation Media Consultancy’, urged businesses to distance themselves from social media. He cited the credibility damage caused by association with platforms on which toxic behaviour is widespread and named some big brands that have reverted to traditional media. He also highlighted the irony of how the rise of fake news is helping to save proper journalism, as people increasingly turn to more trustworthy sources. There are many other areas where digital advances haven’t really helped. In his interview with Seth Dellow, (page 16) David Tucker, the former Director of Lyme Regis Museum pointed out that there are some things such as museums where people benefit from being able to view real things. Seeing with our own eyes can’t be underrated. But, like all discussions on digital advances, there is a need for balance. Lockdowns have taught us that there is a place for everything.

The advantages of digital communication are enormous. Easy connection with friends; being able to chat with loved ones abroad; the ability to find like-minded people who share hobbies, and the educational and advice opportunities delivered by groups and initiatives in every field. Perhaps moderated platforms are an answer, as long as we are savvy enough to know what to avoid and prepared to take a pinch of salt now and then.

Unless, of course, it’s a bad hair day on Instagram or Facebook. Perish the thought.

Fergus Byrne

Published Monthly and distributed by Marshwood Vale Ltd Lower Atrim, Bridport Dorset DT6 5PX For all Enquiries Tel: 01308 423031 info@marshwoodvale. com

THIS MONTH

3 10 16 20 21 22 24

Cover Story By Robin Mills Event News and Courses Past Present and Future - David Tucker News & Views Laterally Speaking By Humphrey Walwyn More Grist for the Mill - Or Electric Light? By Cecil Amor Village remembers forgotten airman

By Margery Hookings

28 28 30 32

House & Garden Vegetables in March By Ashley Wheeler March in the Garden By Russell Jordan Property Round Up By Helen Fisher

34 34 36

37

Food & Dining Fidget Pie By Lesley Waters Scallops with Black Pudding and Sea Purslane

By Mark Hix First Day Blues By Nick Fisher

38 Arts & Entertainment 38 Journeys off the sunken roads By Fergus Byrne 42 Galleries 46 Preview By Gay Pirrie Weir 52 Young Lit Fix By Antonia Squire 53 Screen Time By Nic Jeune

54 Health & Beauty 56 Services & Classified “Be kind to unkind people - they need it the most.”

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Editorial Director Fergus Byrne

Contributors

Deputy Editor

Seth Dellow Helen Fisher Nick Fisher Richard Gahagan Mark Hix Margery Hookings Nic Jeune

Victoria Byrne

Design

People Magazines Ltd

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Fergus Byrne info@marshwoodvale.com

8 The Marshwood Vale Magazine March 2022 Tel. 01308 423031

Russell Jordan Robin Mills Gay Pirrie Weir Antonia Squire Humphrey Walwyn Lesley Waters Ashley Wheeler

The views expressed in The Marshwood Vale Magazine and People Magazines are not necessarily those of the editorial team. Unless otherwise stated, Copyright of the entire magazine contents is strictly reserved on behalf of the Marshwood Vale Magazine and the authors.

Disclaimer: Whilst every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of dates, event information and advertisements, events may be cancelled or event dates may be subject to alteration. Neither Marshwood Vale Ltd nor People Magazines Ltd can accept any responsibility for the accuracy of any information or claims made by advertisers included within this publication.

NOTICE TO ADVERTISERS Trades descriptions act 1968. It is a criminal offence for anyone in the course of a trade or business to falsely describe goods they are offering. The Sale of Goods Act 1979 and the Supply of Goods and Services Act 1982. The legislation requires that items offered for sale by private vendors must be ‘as described’. Failure to observe this requirement may allow the purchaser to sue for damages.

Road Traffic Act. It is a criminal offence for anyone to sell a motor vehicle for use on the highway which is unroadworthy.

Mapping ‘The Place I Love’

T

he village of Broadwindsor in Dorset well and truly put itself on the map with the culmination of a community project led by Windrose Rural Media Trust.

Artist Megan Edwards created an interpretive map as part of The Place I Love, which celebrates the local landscape and rural heritage. The project included field names research, local folk songs, poetry and an art exhibition.

Margery Hookings, who managed the project for Windrose, said: ‘The idea for The Place I Love came during the first lockdown when I was walking to Lewesdon Hill and wondered what the fields were called. As a farmer’s daughter, I’m aware that all fields have names but I didn’t know the ones in Broadwindsor, which has been my home for the past 21 years.’ So, as a member of the Windrose team, she set about finding out.

The Place I Love was launched on 16 October 2021 with a village art exhibition and display of the 1840 parish tithe map. The project grew into something bigger than just field names, with the lynchpin being the creation of a village map by local artist Megan Edwards. The map was unveiled recently at the Comrades Hall, Broadwindsor, by Barry and Denise Dennett.

Margery said: ‘I was so pleased when they agreed to do the honours. They’ve lived in the area all their lives and walk everywhere. They probably know the fields, paths and lanes around Broadwindsor better than anyone.’

The map will be encased in a protective frame and installed in a central location in the village later in the year.

The event included a poetry recital by professional poet Peter Roe, who is working with the village primary school as part of the project, and local folk songs collected and performed by Amanda Boyd, a member of the Windrose team.

Maps showing field names around the village, collated by volunteer Kenzie Bicher, were the subject of much interest, as were photos by 1st Broadwindsor Guides and bloodthirsty limericks by pupils from the local primary school.

Margery said: ‘The project was not just about heritage and the past but also the present and future and how we connect with and protect our local landscape. So I was pleased that the village’s eco group had a stand at the event.

They’ve recently planted trees in the village as part of the “Gurt Darzet Hedge” project and are keen to work with people of all ages to look after the place we love.’

The project was funded through Dorset Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty’s Sustainable Development and Stepping Into Nature funds, Dorset Council’s Community and Culture Project Fund and Broadwindsor Group Parish Council.

A video of the project made by Windrose cameraman James Harrison looks set to be released in March and form part of a village film show.

Windrose specialises in saving old films from Dorset, Somerset and Wiltshire and creating new film to add to the archive. The charity uses the media to carry out educational, archival and creative work in rural communities. For more information, visit windroseruralmedia.org.

Artist Megan Edwards with the Broadwindsor map 10 The Marshwood Vale Magazine March 2022 Tel. 01308 423031

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March

EVENTS AND COURSES 28 February

Scottish Dancing in All Saints Near Axminster Evening of Scottish Dancing at All Saints Village Hall 7.30 - 10.00 p.m. Tea and coffee provided but please bring your own mug. No partner required. Cost £1.50 Contact David on 01460 65981 www. chardscottishdancing.org.

Modern Jive (Leroc) 6 Week Social Dance Course. 7:30pm, Chideock Village Hall. Come with or without a partner. Beginners Welcome. £36 per person per course Due to Covid restrictions places must be booked in advance www.dynamic-dance.uk Bridport Folk Dance Club If you enjoy music and dancing, gentle exercise, socialising and maybe learning something new, come along to the W.I Hall on Monday evenings -7.15 to 9.30pm.

All welcome, especially beginners. Tel:458165 or 459001.

1 March

Scottish Country Dancing every Tuesday at Ashill Village Hall TA19 9LX from 7.30 to 9.30 pm with a break for tea or coffee.

Contact Anita on 01460 929383 or email anitaandjim22@gmail. com for further information or just come along and join the fun.

All welcome including beginners. We look forward to seeing you soon.

Beaminster Museum Winter Talk series Matthew Kirkman is talking about “The Durotrigian to Roman transition in West Dorset.” Matthew is the new Chairman of Beaminster Museum Management committee, and his talk will be on current thinking on the Iron Age to Roman transition in West Dorset. Current perceptions of a violent transition with besieged hillforts are being challenged, based on a more impartial review of the evidence, and modern science not previously available. Mortimer Wheeler’s view, written in London during the Blitz, and influenced by his experiences at Passchendaele in WW1, heavily influenced the field, until challenged by more recent excavations, starting with the 1995 excavations at Maiden Castle. 2.30pm. Entry £3.

2 March

Solo Charleston 6 Week Dance Course 1:15pm St Mary’s Church Hall, Bridport. Beginners Welcome. £30 per person per course. Due to Covid restrictions places must be booked in advance www.dynamic-dance.uk

3 March

Lyme Voices Community Choir 19.30 to 21.15. Sing for fun.

Learn tunes by ear. Everyone welcome. Baptist Church (pine hall round the back), Silver St., Lyme Regis, DT7 3NY. Phone 01297 445078 or email petelinnett2@hotmail.com. Please let us know if you are coming.

The Friends of Lyme Regis Museum present A Talk: ‘Tomorrow’s Museum for Dorset Project’ by Roger Maughan.

Dorchester Museum re-opened in May 2021 following a 2year extension and refurbishment, providing new and exciting stateof-the-art displays. At 2.30pm Woodmead Halls, Hill Road, Lyme Regis. DT7 3PG. All welcome. Members £2.00, Visitors £3.00.

Please check the Friends section of the museum website for latest covid status at https://www.lymeregismuseum.co.uk Summer 1993 (2017, Spain, 12A, 96 mins, Subtitles, Director: 12 The Marshwood Vale Magazine March 2022 Tel. 01308 423031

Carla Simón.) 7:30 pm start. Clapton & Wayford Village Hall (TA18 8PS). Membership £22, guests £4 per film. Contact mickpwilson53@btinternet.com or ring Mick Wilson on 01460 74849 or Di Crawley on 01460 30508. Prices as they were in 2019.

Sensible COVID-19 precautions are in place.

Tatworth flower club Tatworth memorial hall TA20 2QW Demonstration by Lesley Hunt ‘Beside the Seaside’ Doors open 1.30pm for a 2pm start. Visitors £6,further detail Julie Kettle 01934 248536.

3 March - 7 April

Connecting through Drawing As part of Drawing into Life with Helen Garrett. Participants will use and experiment with a variety of materials including graphite, charcoal, Chinese brush inks and reed pens. Poetry and sound will be woven into our learning to inspire a sensory and imaginative approach to our subject. Many participants choose to continue throughout the year so there is always a sense of warmth and welcome within the group. No previous artistic experience is necessary. The Ballroom, The Bull Hotel, Bridport, Dorset, DT6 3LF. 10 – 12.30pm Cost: £210 (all materials included) Contact: Helen for all booking details. Places will be limited due to Covid safety restrictions info@helengarrett. org / mobile 07792916550 drawingintolife.com

4 - 5 March

Limitless. Bridport Youth Dance Luminous Youth Dance and the BYD street dance crew Celebrating 20 years of BYD. A showcase of live dance Friday 4th March 7.30pm. Saturday 5th March 3pm and 7.30pm Choreography by Nikki Northover, Bec Ayles, Claire Benson and Polly Constance. Tickets: Adults: £10.50 inc. bf Children/Students: £7.50 inc. bf www.bridportelectric palace.org.uk/theatre Or Bridport TIC Ticket line 01308 424 901 For more info visit www.bridportyouthdance.org.uk

5 March

Kevin, King of Egypt The story of an unlikely friendship between an escaped mental health patient and a lost six-year old.

Together they embark on a journey that will change both their lives forever. 7:30pm Shipton Gorge Village Hall. Tickets £10, £5 (u18s) – suitable 16+ (show contains strong language and adult themes). Tickets online at www.artsreach.co.uk / by phone 01308 897407. Cash bar.

Spring Breakfast – full English breakfast + fruit juice, toast, tea/ coffee; £6, bookings taken. 9 – 11.30am, at Clapton & Wayford Village Hall. Further information from Julia (01460 72769).

Sidmouth Daffodil Day 10am - 3pm This is to celebrate the million daffodils that have been planted around the Sid Valley & raise funds to plant more daffodils. A plant fair with 11 South West independent nurseries, including 3 RHS Gold medal winners, trips on the Vintage Toast Rack bus to the Daffodil sites, Daffodil Art Exhibition, children’s Daffodil art competition, Daffodil Gifts, & refreshments. Entry only 1p. Kennaway House, Sidmouth, Devon, EX10 8NG 01395515551 www.sidmouthdaffodilsociety. org.uk Bridport & West Dorset Rambling Club 7 mile walk from Thorncombe Farm. For further information please ring 01308

898484 or 01308 863340.

Sidmouth Daffodil Day 10am-3pm, Plant fair including Chelsea Flower Show Gold Medal Winners, vintage toast rack trips, art, gifts, stalls & refreshments. Entry 1p. Kennaway House, 01395 515551, www.kennawayhouse.org.uk

7 March

Bridport Folk Dance Club If you enjoy music and dancing, gentle exercise, socialising and maybe learning something new, come along to the W.I, hall on Monday evenings - 7.15 to 9.30pm.

All welcome, especially beginners.. Tel: 458165 or 459001. Also on March 14th, 21st, and 28th.

Hawkchurch Film Nights in association with Devon Moviola, proudly presents ‘Spencer’ (Cert.12, 117 mins). Kristen Stewart (‘Twilight’, ‘Personal Shopper’) gives a remarkable performance as Diana, Princess of Wales, enduring an excruciating Christmas at Sandringham with the Royal Family as her marriage to Prince Charles disintegrates. Timothy Spall, Sally Hawkins, Sean Harris and Jack Farthing lead a strong supporting cast. Helmed by the acclaimed Chilean director Pablo Larrain (‘Jackie’). 6.30pm (doors 6.00pm) at Hawkchurch Village Hall, EX13 5XD. Reservations £5 from csma95@gmail.com or 01297 678176, or pay at the door.

Refreshments and socially-distanced seating available.

8 March

Scottish Country Dancing every Tuesday at Ashill Village Hall TA19 9LX from 7.30 to 9.30 pm with a break for tea or coffee.

Contact Anita on 01460 929383 or email anitaandjim22@gmail. com for further information or just come along and join the fun.

All welcome including beginners. We look forward to seeing you soon.

Care As You Are (CAYA) An unexpected journey and a peculiar gift. A film exploring the emotional experience of ‘becoming an ‘informal family carer’ for relative or friend with dementia on the big screen with audience Q&A with the film’s makers. Care As You Are (CAYA) is a compelling film and booklet guide in a DVD format for families who may find themselves on an unexpected journey when becoming informal family carers. The film and accompanying guide can be broken down into manageable chapters with informative reflections and activities to help viewers process and discuss the different aspects of the caring journey.

With a focus on the carer, it aims to help nurture an environment for supporting their emotional health needs. Sharing this film with families and carers is an ideal way to open discussion about the ‘unexpected journey and peculiar gift’ of being a carer for someone living with dementia. The booklet supports the viewer with a scene-by-scene booklet, themes identified, questions to consider and points for reflection. Screening at Westlands Entertainment Venue. 2.30pm. Tickets from Box Office 01934 422884. www. westlandsyeovil.co.uk.

9 March

Little Women (U)(2019) Kilmington Community Cinema (KCC) will be screening at the Village Hall (EX13 7RF). Doors open 6.45 film starts 7.15. Matinee on Thursday afternoon doors open 2pm film starts 2.15 advance booking required for this matinee very limited seating, and cream teas (£3) available if booked with the ticket reservation. Tickets can be pre-booked by email: wattsjohn307@gmail.com, see www.kilmingtonvillage.com/

EVENTS IN APRIL

Live or Online send your event details to info@marshwoodvale.com TH

BY MARCH 14 .

Tel. 01308 423031 The Marshwood Vale Magazine March 2022 13

March

EVENTS AND COURSES other-organisations.html for more information.

10 March

Lyme Voices Community Choir 19.30 to 21.15. Sing for fun.

Learn tunes by ear. Everyone welcome. Baptist Church (pine hall round the back), Silver St., Lyme Regis, DT7 3NY. Phone 01297 445078 or email petelinnett2@hotmail.com. Please let us know if you are coming.

Seaton Garden Club at 2.30 pm in the Masonic Hall, Queen Street, Seaton. Speaker Alan Nicholson who will give an illustrated talk on Lighthouses of Devon and Dorset. Visitors welcome cost £2 to include refreshments. Contact 01297 24049 Bridport Climate Response Progress and Networking Meeting.

This meeting is for voluntary organisations and individuals who want a shared overview of what’s happening locally with climate responses, and what more is needed. It will include an update on the new Bridport Climate Response project, and from the Town Council on their work, and the help they need from the community. There will also be space for other local projects with a climate connection to share their progress and highlight the help they need. 2-4pm, Bridport Town Hall. Free of charge but please book your place via Eventbrite: https://bcrprogressmeeting. eventbrite.co.uk.

Crewkerne Gardening Club is pleased to welcome Micky Little from Avon Bulbs to talk about their selection and care. This is sure to be very informative and inspiring! We meet at the Henhayes Centre at 7.30pm. Refreshments and a warm welcome await!

Visitors -£2.50.

11 March

East Devon Branch, Devonshire Association The Exeter Workmen’s Dwellings Company; Richard Holladay, grandson of Dr Charles Lovely, will speak about the pioneering work of his grandfather in helping alleviate the slum housing conditions suffered by Exeter’s poor in the early 20th century; 2.30pm, Manor Pavilion Theatre Sidmouth EX10 8RP; contact Brian Ludford 01395 513232 or edevon.sec@devonassoc.org.uk Talk and Tea with Dr Angela Smith This talk with Dr Angela Smith surveys the life and career of Richard Fox, one time bishop of Exeter and whose portrait is in the collection at The Museum of Somerset. Part of our Talk and Tea Series. 2.30 pm - 3.30 pm The Museum of Somerset, Taunton Castle, Castle Green, Taunton, Somerset, TA1 4AA Museumofsomerset.org.uk Booking, £5.

Kilmington Garden Club talk 7.30pm ‘Grow your own’ Kilmington Village hall, Whitford road, kilmington EX13 7RF Refreshments, all welcome, non members £3.

Sir James Thornhill, Sherborne House And the folke altarpiece A talk at Digby Memorial Hall Sherborne by Jeremy Barker, Sir James Thornhill researcher and enthusiast and Friend of Sherborne House 7 for 7.30pm Tickets £10 to include Glass of Wine and light refreshments. Telephone: 01935 816764 or 01963 23436. Raising funds for re-decoration of Folke Church.

Dream Horse at 7.30pm Village Hall, The Causeway, Milborne St Andrew DT11 0JX Doors and bar open 7.00 Tickets cost 14 The Marshwood Vale Magazine March 2022 Tel. 01308 423031

£5, which includes a drink or an ice-cream This month movie is described as ‘a Feel Good movie that will restore one’s faith in humanity.’

Virtual tour of Mapperton House presentation for Lyme Regis u3a. 11am This month’s talk via zoom for members of Lyme Regis u3a will feature a live, virtual tour of Mapperton House, the home of the Earl and Countess of Sandwich. This glorious sandstone manor house, thought to be the nation’s finest by Country Life Magazine, includes the Montagu family’s impressive collection of paintings and other artefacts. Please visit www. lymeregisu3a.org for details of membership and how to access this tour.

Spencer (12). CineChard at Holyrood Academy upper site, TA20 1JL. Kristen Stewart plays Diana in a ‘bold and mysterious portrait’ that plays out over three days at Sandringham. Doors open at 7pm for a 7.30pm start. Tickets £5 and £2.50 in advance from Eleos, PO or Barron’s, or £6 and £3 on the night. Tickets also available on ticketsource/ cinechard for a small booking fee.

12 March

Yarcombe Village Market – Returns 10am -12 noon at the Yarcombe Jubilee Hall. Local produce – eggs, cheese, cakes and jams, local woodwork and Ironwork, plants and much more. For further details contact 07858625421 Bridport & West Dorset Rambling Club 7.5 mile walk from Smitten Corner. For further information please ring 01308 898484 or 01308 863340.

Jumble Sale - South Perrott Village Hall from 2pm. In aid of St Mary’s Church roof fund. Contact Ann on 01935 891224.

Bookbinding Workshop 10am - 3.30pm. Hand made photo album - a portable boasting book for 6x4” photos. Suitable for beginners. £40, includes all materials. James Hargreaves Community Hall, Morcombelake, DT6 6EA Details and booking: info@leafwork.co.uk or call - 07984001830.

12 - 13 March

Angels of Sound 2 Voice Playshop 10am-5PM Oborne Village Hall Shakti Mantra Yoga: overtone singing, chakra dowsing, following on from last month’s event. £70 Bookings: 01935 389655 ahiahel@live.com www.centreforpuresound.org

13 March

The Friends of Lyme Regis Museum present A Talk: ‘Lyme in the 1920’s’ by Ken Gollop, local historian. At 2.30pm Woodmead Halls, Hill Road, Lyme Regis. DT7 3PG. This talk is a repeat of the one given on 7th November 2021. All welcome; entrance £3.00. Please check the Friends section of the museum website for latest covid status at https://www.lymeregismuseum.co.uk

14 March

The Rotary Club of Lyme Regis are holding their Annual ‘Soup and Ploughman’s Lunch’ at The Alexandra Hotel , Lyme Regis on 12 Noon - 2.00 pm. Tickets available from any Rotarian or contact : secretary@lymeregisrotary.org. Raising money for Wateraid A Rotary International Project.

Hawkchurch History Society are delighted to confirm that their first talk of the year will take place at 7pm (doors open at

6.30). Speaker is Robert Hesketh, (who has given talks several times over the years) on the subject of ‘Smuggling in Devon: The Facts behind the Fiction’. Now that restrictions have been lifted, they will no longer be requiring members to wear masks - but will leave that decision to individuals. However, they will still separate seating, so that if anyone (or group) feel they want to ‘social distance’ they can. Refreshment, for now, will be limited to just tea, coffee and biscuits. If anyone new to the village would like to become a member, the subscription is still £6 for the full year, giving free entry to each talk and advance bookings for the outing & any other event organized, so do get in touch or just come along.

15 March

Scottish Country Dancing every Tuesday at Ashill Village Hall TA19 9LX from 7.30 to 9.30 pm with a break for tea or coffee.

Contact Anita on 01460 929383 or email anitaandjim22@gmail. com for further information or just come along and join the fun.

All welcome including beginners. We look forward to seeing you soon.

Jurassic Trust Dinner Mark Hix is teaming up with the Jurassic Coast Trust for a special evening celebrating the Jurassic Coast, as part of celebrations to mark the twentieth anniversary of the World Heritage Site’s inauguration. These elements will be brought together with guest speaker Sarah Ayton OBE, Double Olympic Sailing Champion and Rolex World Sailor of the Year 2016. A proportion of income from the evening will go to the Jurassic Coast Trust to help protect and conserve the coast.

7pm, £60 – The Oyster & Fish House, Lyme Regis https:// theoysterandfishhouse.co.uk/news-events/jurassic-coast-event/ The Lyme Regis Society present A Talk: ‘World Heritage;

what went wrong for Lyme Regis’ – by Richard Edmonds To be held at 2pm Woodmead Halls, Hill Road, Lyme Regis. DT7 3PG All Welcome. Members Free. Visitors £3.00. Check website for further information: https://www.lymeregissociety.org.uk.

16 March

Angela Hartnett Takeover at the Fox Inn at Corscombe Chef, restaurateur, TV presenter and food writer. 7pm. £65 https://thefoxinncorscombe.co.uk/news-events/angela-hartnetttakeover/ Community Coffee Morning, including croissants & bacon rolls, 10.30am – noon, at Clapton & Wayford Village Hall. More details from Julia (01460 72769)

17 March

Lyme Voices Community Choir 19.30 to 21.15. Sing for fun.

Learn tunes by ear. Everyone welcome. Baptist Church (pine hall round the back), Silver St., Lyme Regis, DT7 3NY. Phone 01297 445078 or email petelinnett2@hotmail.com. Please let us know if you are coming.

Climate Fellowship Circle This is a pilot session for a potential ongoing monthly group. It is intended for anyone wanting to work through painful emotions about the climate crisis, and willing to explore spiritual approaches in the widest sense, which can help us find inner peace and outer purpose in these confusing times. The idea of the Fellowship Circle is to offer a safe and creative space to explore both of these aspects. Timing 6-8pm in central Bridport. Limited to 12 people. If interested, please contact Alan Heeks: alanheeks@gmail.com or 07976 602787 Bridport & District gardening club AGM is on at 7.30pm at the W I Hall North Street Bridport. This meeting is for Members only. The club is looking forward to welcoming back members

Tel. 01308 423031 The Marshwood Vale Magazine March 2022 15

“Modern Art, like it or loathe it” East Coker village hall BA22 9PL 9.45 - 1pm. Fee £20. The tutor will look at major art from the Impressionists to modern day, including Cezanne, Picasso, Dali to Pollock. To enrol quote C3533355 either on line @ WEA. org.uk or Tel:- 0300 303 3464 Local contacts:- 01935 862703/ 863954.

Cantamus presents ‘Darkness into Light’, a concert of music for Lent and spring. St Mary’s Church, South Street, Bridport DT6 3NW at 7pm. Tickets £10 on the door. Refreshments available.

20 March

Mike Denham and Hamish Maxwell at Tincleton Gallery on March 18 and 19

after a 2 year break. An overview of the last 2 years will be given and there will be an opportunity to meet the committee. The outings are organised the shows are planned and the regular monthly meetings at the hall will be resuming in April and are open to non members for a fee of £2.00 At the time of writing there are non Covid restrictions and further information can be found on the club’s web site http://www.bridportgardeningclub. co.uk.

HMS Heron Volunteer Band Martock Church; Church Street; Martock TA12 6JL; Time: 19:30 hrs; Admission: £12.00 or £ 10.00 at 07790 225357, Martock Gallery, Martock Newsagent http://www.martockonline.co.uk/events. https://www. hmsheronband.co.uk/ Arts Society West Dorset Gilded Splendour: The History of Couture Embroidery from 1850-Now. Speaker: Kate Strasdin 2.30pm Bridport Town Hall. Visitors welcome-£7.50.

Humans in the Landscape – drawing the body in the landscape 11am–1pm. Join artist Alice Simpson for a sequence of drawing from life workshops, both at the gallery, and at different locations.

Relaxed sessions, suitable for both the experienced and those new to drawing. £45 (£40 THG Friends/Students) per session. £35 each if all 3 sessions booked. All materials provided. Thelma Hulbert Gallery, thelmahulbert.com / 01404 45006. Also 24 and 31 March.

18 - 19 March

Jazz with Mike Dedham and Hamish Maxwell Jazz will return to Tincleton in early 2022 with Mike Denham delighting in the intimate gallery and doubtless an appreciative audience for “Rent Party Blues”. Fats Waller, Earl Hines and Jimmy Yancey cut their teeth at 1920s rent parties in New York and Chicago, playing solo and accompanying blues singers. Mike will perform some of their solo pieces. Special guest, veteran blues singer Hamish Maxwell, will contribute some entertaining and thought-provoking songs from the era. Tincleton Gallery, The Old School House, Tincleton, nr Dorchester, DT2 8QR Opening / performance times: doors open 19:30; concert starts 20:00. Admission fee: £15 Tel. 01305 848 909. www.tincletongallery.com.

19 March

Bridport & West Dorset Rambling Club 7-8 mile walk from Beaminster. For further information please ring 01308 898484 or 01308 863340.

Singing Bowl Soundbath 2-4PM Bridport Unitarian Chapel Let the Pure Sounds of crystal and Tibetan bowls and vocal overtoning take you into ‘the relaxation response’ £15 bookings 01935 389655 ahaihel@live.com www.centreforpuresound.org

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Bridport Chamber Orchestra Spring Concert Music to include Mozart: Divertimento in D; Finzi: Prelude for String Orchestra; Fiala: Concerto for English Horn (soloist Emily Penn); Bartok: Romanian Dances; Karl Jenkins: Palladio; and pieces by local composer Paul Coles: Three Dorset Seascapes and Tango de la Vida. 3 pm St Swithun’s Church, Bridport. Tickets £10 on the door and in advance from The Music Centre and The Book Shop, South Street, Bridport. Student admission free. Enquiries: 01935 824786.

Yeovil Railway Centre Yeovil Junction, Stoford BA22 9UU: first Steam Train Day of the season. Recorded information on 01935 410420, or visit www.yeovilrailway.freeservers.com.

22 March

Scottish Country Dancing every Tuesday at Ashill Village Hall TA19 9LX from 7.30 to 9.30 pm with a break for tea or coffee.

Contact Anita on 01460 929383 or email anitaandjim22@gmail. com for further information or just come along and join the fun.

All welcome including beginners. We look forward to seeing you soon.

23 March

‘The German Hansa in England’ an illustrated talk on the important role of German merchants in Medieval England by Brian Norris. Colyton Town Hall, 7.30pm. £4 non-members, £2 members to include refreshments. For more info email: secretarycolytonhistory.org.

Uplyme & Lyme Regis Horticultural Society Talk - Nature in the Garden by Paul Rendell (‘Dartmoor Paul’). 7.30pm, Uplyme Village Hall. Refreshments from 7pm. Members free; guests £3.

24 March

Lyme Voices Community Choir 19.30 to 21.15. Sing for fun.

Learn tunes by ear. Everyone welcome. Baptist Church (pine hall round the back), Silver St., Lyme Regis, DT7 3NY. Phone 01297 445078 or email petelinnett2@hotmail.com. Please let us know if you are coming.

Meet the Actor/Author, John Nettles OBE best known for his lead roles in Bergerac and Midsomer Murders. 7.00pm for 7.30pm. Tickets £13. Kennaway House, 01395 515551, www. kennawayhouse.org.uk

25 March

Medical plants, an illustrated talk with tastings A talk by Tryphena Huntingdon covering such subjects as the planting, growing & benefits of plants for medical use plus the added bonus of the tasting of a number of Tryphena’s herbal teas.

Tryphena is a qualified medical herbalist who has an in-depth knowledge & experience of growing & supplying plants for caffeine-free teas, as ingredients for cosmetics & beers and herbal medicines. The talk will start at 7.30pm in Winsham’s Jubilee Hall.

Tickets will be £4.50 for members of the Winsham Horticultural Society and £5.50 for non members. For tickets and further details please call Debbie 01460 432815.

7pm. Tickets £10 on the door. Refreshments available.

Bridport & West Dorset Rambling Club 7.5 mile walk from Ringstead. For further information please ring 01308 898484 or 01308 863340.

Flamenco Evening with Salud Botella with tapas and sangria included. 7.30 pm Chideock Village Hall. Tickets and information from Janet Carey 01297 489 782. Janet.carey@ btinternet.com. WI Members £7, Non-members £9.

26 - 27 March.

Take Three Artists Paint Print Photography

By Elaine Harris, Debbie Leech , Dianne Mary Alice Three Weymouth artists inspired by local scenes, seascapes and countryside. Upwey Village Hall. Church St, Upwey,DT35QE Opp.Wishing Well Tea rooms. 10 am - 4pm. www.artwey.co.uk

27 March

Flamenco with Salud Botella at Chideock Village Hall on 26 March

Folk night @ South Perrott village hall Pipplepen Lane South Perrott Beaminster DT8 3HS. Starring: Reg Meuross. 7:30pm doors 6:45 pm. All profits to Macmillan cancer support Tickets £10 in advance £12 on the door Box office. 01935 892330 T & F Movies have restarted holding cinema evenings in Tatworth Memorial Hall. From the Directors of the Grand Budapest Hotel, the film will be “The French Dispatch” an eccentric comedy not to be misssed, starring Bill Murray and Saoirse Ronan. The doors open at 7.30pm and the film starts at 8.00pm. The entry charge is £5 and there will be a bar and raffle.

“The Nature of Somerset’s Coast” illustrated presentation by Nigel Phillips, Somerset Wildlife Trust’s Coastal Ambassador, ecologist and author. 7.30pm Parish Hall, North St. Ilminster TA19 0DG, roadside & town car parks. £3 SWT members, £4 non-members, no charge for children. Refreshments will be available. Enquiries Valerie Godsmark 01460 234551

26 March

Easter Art, Crafts, Wellbeing and Local Produce Fair A selection of local produce, paintings, cards, garden ornaments in wrought iron, plants and crafts, massage, mindfulness chiropractic and much more. Light refreshments available 10am to 4pm Drimpton Village Hall, Chard Road Drimpton, DT8 3RF Sellers arrive at 8.30am Tables/pitches £10 Contact: Lesley on tibballs55@outlook.com or 01308 867241.

Parnham Voices’ Concert – Reflection and Praise (Music for Lent) – St. Giles Church, Chideock, at 7pm. Tickets at £10 available in advance from the Chideock Stores or on the door.

Interval refreshments – donations appreciated.

Craft@Kennaway Fair 10.00am-4pm, indoor & outdoor fair with local, handmade crafts and food stands, Kennaway House, 01395 515551, www.kennawayhouse.org.uk Sunset Café Stompers offer a night of vintage New Orleans style jazz at St George’s Church, Hinton St George. Doors open 7:00pm. Concert starts at 8:00pm. Refreshments available.

Tickets £10 (£5 under18s) from ‘Our Shop’, Hinton or call ticket hotline: 07435 963042.

Cantamus presents ‘Darkness into Light’ a concert of music for Lent and spring. St Mary’s Church, Cerne Abbas DT2 7JQ at

Sculptural Figures 9.30am to 11.30 am Puddletown Village Hall, High Street, Puddletown This 2 hour pottery session will explore textures and slab building techniques. This class is on Mother’s day so is a fun activity to do with relative’s and finishes at 11.30 so plenty of time to get to your Sunday lunch. You will learn slab building techniques and explore textures. £25 including clay and kiln firing. Please email creativeclayforall@yahoo.co.uk to book your space.

Singing Bowl Soundbath 2-4PM Oborne Village Hall Let the Pure Sounds of crystal and Tibetan bowls and vocal overtoning take you into ‘the relaxation response’ £15 bookings 01935 389655 ahaihel@live.com www.centreforpuresound.org HamstoneLive 2022 at the Norton Village Hall In collaboration with Norton Village Hall we have another great national act coming to our village in 2022; Josephine – Suitable for audiences aged 8+ The Egg theatre, Bath has teamed up with the Holm Theatre to create a new play with original music, choreography, and design about the iconic entertainer, spy, civil rights activist, Josephine Baker. She was recently elected to the prestigious French Pantheon. Tickets available from 21 February 2022. Adults -£12; Children - £6. Tickets; Available from the Village Shop, www.takeart.org, John Bailey (01935 881227) Venue; Norton Sub Hamdon Village Hall, Recreation Ground, New Road, TA146SF Contact John Bailey on 881227 with any queries.

28 March

Golden Cap Association Annual General Meeting with special guest speaker, Leo Henley Lock, Countryside Manager, West and North Dorset National Trust. Managing Woodlands to Survive in a 2050-2100 Climate – What does it look like and why does it matter? 2.30 pm United Church Main Hall, East Street, Bridport.

Information from Mike Nicks 01308 459855.

29 March

Scottish Country Dancing every Tuesday at Ashill Village Hall TA19 9LX from 7.30 to 9.30 pm with a break for tea or coffee.

Contact Anita on 01460 929383 or email anitaandjim22@gmail. com for further information or just come along and join the fun.

All welcome including beginners. We look forward to seeing you soon.

31 March

Lyme Voices Community Choir 19.30 to 21.15. Sing for fun.

Learn tunes by ear. Everyone welcome. Baptist Church (pine hall round the back), Silver St., Lyme Regis, DT7 3NY. Phone 01297 445078 or email petelinnett2@hotmail.com. Please let us know if you are coming.

Tel. 01308 423031 The Marshwood Vale Magazine March 2022 17

Past, Present and FUTURE David Tucker talks to Seth Dellow

By Fergus Byrne

A

combination of a great mentor in his first job, Bruce Springsteen on his record player, and writing essays deep into the night helped David Tucker move from a ‘soul-destroying’ job chasing debts for Barclaycard to a degree in history after passing his A-Levels by correspondence course. He has recently stepped down as Director of the Lyme Regis Museum, and talked to Seth Dellow about his life before and during his tenure.

A good communicator and as he put it ‘good at synthesizing cleverer people’s ideas’ David initially toyed with the idea of being a university lecturer, but in those days as a mature student rules were different, and he believes his age may have gone against him. ‘Completely illegal nowadays of course’ he says.

So after a Museum Studies course at Leicester, he began a career in curation and museum management working in Manchester before moving down to Wiltshire then over to Norfolk, and eventually coming back to the West Country for two and a half years in the Tank Museum in Dorset.

He describes the Tank Museum as a great job remembering that he ‘got to zip round in a tank now and then.’ He then became County Museums Officer until 2012 when he decided to apply for the job as Director of Lyme Regis Museum. It was a museum he knew well in his role as County Museums Officer and in fact, it was at an event at the Lyme Regis Museum that he met Sir David Attenborough and convinced him to open a launch event

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David Tucker by Seth Dellow Tel. 01308 423031 The Marshwood Vale Magazine March 2022 19

at Dorset County Museum. He remembers making what could have been a rash promise when he first went for the Lyme Regis job. ‘So I was lucky enough to get an interview’ he tells Seth, ‘and I did one of the most stupid things I’ve ever done. I said if you give me the job, I’ll build the museum wing I know that you need!’ He had a few things to sort out first in the institution and began working on the bid at the end of 2012 to early 2013. ‘I looked at this blank sheet of paper and nearly wept thinking my God, what have I done?’ It obviously worked because ‘in July 2017 we opened the new building after we’d manage to raise a bit under £1.4 million.’

David now speaks with great pride on the museum. ‘As most people will know now, we are probably the most important site on the Jurassic Coast. I mean the museum is built on the site of Mary Anning’s house. The Princess of Palaeontology—the first great practical fossil hunter and geologist. Mary, working-class girl who lived where we are sitting now. Her house stood on the site of the museum now and the museum was actually paid for by the Philpot family and one of the Philpot’s, Elizabeth, was also a very significant fossil hunter. So it’s a great sort of historical tie to have. But the important thing, of course, is the beach between here and Charmouth and of course, our beach here on the other side because it rapidly erodes and because much of it is limestone, it’s basically packed full of fossilised lives. So we’ve got an accessible beach, an accessible fossil hunting site where the coast constantly erodes, and in a place that is accessible. You can’t become a great fossil site if you’re in a place where people can’t get to. But of course, we’re in the right place, the right time, the growth of science, the scientists beginning to question the age of the earth, and then this great practical scientist in Mary Anning on the site, finding these marvellous fossils in the early Nineteenth Century. So essentially we like to call ourselves the birthplace of Palaeontology.’

Despite all its advantages, the Lyme Regis Museum was in as precarious a position as all other businesses closed down by the pandemic. However, David believes that a combination of great staff and trustees helped him stay a step ahead. ‘I decided pretty early on that the last thing I was going to do was listen to anything that Johnson said on the radio’ says David. ‘What I did was I completely disregarded any of the media in March 2020. We set up a Cobra group at the museum in advance of the government activating Cobra. I’ve got two or three really well-informed ex-nurses on my team and they told me all about what we needed to do for hygiene. And then when the lockdown came, I got in touch with a fantastic patron of the museum, Professor Richard Lane, who spent a lifetime as an epidemiologist fighting diseases.’

With sound advice, an understanding that things were going to get rough, and no idea whether any support was going to come from government, David and his board looked to their reserves with a view to surviving for a long time without customers. ‘So we’d striven and successfully built up strong reserves over 10 years for the rainy day, but we never thought it would be quite as rainy as this one. In fact, our risk assessment spotted a tidal wave, which you get one every 300 years here, but we didn’t spot a pandemic, and you get one every 100 years! As I am a

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modern historian surrounded by scientists, I regard that as my fault that I didn’t think of Spanish Flu when we were putting together this strategic overview of risk.’ Thankfully government support did come and as David puts it ‘We actually got through Covid financially pretty well and other charities did too.’

Seth also asked David to talk a bit about how digital technology will affect places like museums. ‘Well, I would be very cautious about the word digital in the sense that one thing that people in museums know is that digital doesn’t pay.’ He explains how a project a colleague in Oxford undertook during lockdown proved much more expensive than expected. ‘There are always things you can do with digital’ he says ‘but museums are about real things.

Museums are about locations. People will always want to visit these museums. Museums are about the magic of real things.’ As examples, he mentions fossils discovered by Mary Anning or fossils discovered by Elizabeth Philpot or even William Butland’s concrete poos which are on loan to the museum at the moment. ‘It sounds like nothing but actually, that’s science in action.’

‘We set up a Cobra group at the museum in advance of the government activating Cobra.’

But, says David, it’s not all about geology. ‘We’ve also got great writers in Lyme Regis. Lyme has played its part in inspiring the arts. John Fowles worked here. I’ve got his old seat. Beatrix Potter based one of her stories here.

Of course, Tracy Chevalier, our great current patron, basically wonderful supporter of the museum. Tracy wrote Remarkable Creatures about Mary Anning, really good novel and that’s set here. Even Tolkien came here on holiday and was influenced by Lyme and did drawings of the cob.

And I believe that in Elvish, his invented language, Elvish for Harbour is Cobas.’ David also mentions Jane Austin’s inspiration from her visits to Lyme Regis.

But no conversation about Lyme’s historical figures could be had without mention of George Somers. ‘Of course, now we’re in the age of de-colonialisation in museums and heritage and culture, the fact that George Somers, the founder of Bermuda is from Lyme. George Somers obviously discovered an island that had no population on it, Bermuda. He wasn’t involved in slaving but he was part of that general move towards colonialisation and he was on his way to Virginia to take food to settlers. So he is part of that wider debate that we have at the moment.’

There is little doubt about David’s knowledge and pride in the Lyme Regis Museum and as he says it’s got lots of little stories ‘that are really great and sort of give us a connection with the world.’

Seth Dellow’s full interview with David Tucker is available to listen to on the Marshwood Vale Magazine website.

Visit www.marshwoodvale.com.

News&Views

WEYMOUTH TO LYME REGIS Pensioner saves bus service

First Wessex bus service has backtracked on its plan to axe one of its routes after a pensioner stepped in offering to pay for it to continue. Believing the X53 service from Weymouth to Lyme Regis was much needed, Bridport resident, Alan Williams, offered to pay £3,000 to keep its Sunday service running from January to March. In a statement First Wessex said they commended Mr Williams’ actions in supporting access to public transport for local customers and thanked him for his hard work in raising awareness of the funding challenges faced by operators. First Wessex will now continue to fund the service despite believing it now has significantly less demand that before.

BRIDPORT Food Festival gets the nod

The Bridport Local Food Group and Bridport Round Table have announced that the Bridport Food & Beer Festival will be back at Asker Meadows on Saturday 18 June.

The event is the focal point for the Festival fortnight which will be running from Sunday 12 – 24 June to celebrate everything delicious in the Bridport area. Bridport Local Food Group Chair, Kathy Green said: ‘Our aim has always been to get the community and visitors trying, tasting and talking about the amazing range of food and drink that we have on our doorstep. The last two years living through the pandemic has helped to remind us all how important local food is to the community.’

COLYTON/COLYFORD Two parish councils?

Should Colyford have its own parish council? That is what is being asked in a review being carried out by East Devon District Council (EDDC). Anyone living in the area covered by Colyton Parish Council is being asked to share their views on the draft proposals before the deadline at 5pm on 4 May 2022. A ‘Community Governance Review’, requested by the Colyford Village Residents Association, hopes to find the most suitable arrangement to represent the people of Colyford. Once EDDC has received everyone’s views it will consider the results and publish its proposal in spring 2022.

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WEST BAY Twin golds for Discovery Centre West Bay Discovery Centre collected no less than three awards at the recent Dorset Tourism Awards 2021/22 Finals.

Two golds and a bronze now sit alongside the New Business Award from two years ago. Discovery Centre Trustee John West said ‘Care for the environment and promoting sustainability has always been central to what we do, so winning gold in the Ethical, Responsible and Sustainable Tourism category, means a lot to us.’ The Discovery Centre other gold was for Visitor Information Service of the Year and the Bronze was for Small Visitor Attraction of the Year. The centre will return to six day opening from 22nd March.

WEYMOUTH Nominate green spaces

The Weymouth Neighbourhood Plan Steering Group is calling on people to nominate local green spaces across the town to be considered in Weymouth’s Neighbourhood Plan. Local green spaces are defined as small pockets of land, close to where people live, which are of particular importance to communities because of their beauty, historic significance, recreational value, tranquillity or richness of wildlife.

Nominations are called for by the closing date of Wednesday 6th April. Further information is available on the town council website at: www.weymouthtowncouncil. gov.uk/ or email neighbourhood@ weymouthtowncouncil.gov.uk.

Dragons’ Den Laterally Speaking by Humphrey Walwyn

F

irst broadcast in 2005, it’s been a regular fixture on BBC 1 for over 17 years. I don’t know if you, like me, also enjoy a regular visit to ‘the Den‘. Some of the original dragons are still there—nowadays getting quite long in their dragons’ teeth. And then there’s the weekly flow of new and hopeful entrepreneurs awaiting the possibility of Dragon cash for their various ideas and inventions which range from the faintly useful but boring to the unusual and financially loony. I am however getting a little tired of some of the inventions I’ve seen recently. Not another healthy coffee maker, please! And even worse, I’ve seen more types of over-clever stationery and address books when all I really needed was paper and pencil! Maybe someone should try ‘edible notepaper’? And what about the idea of a disposable dog bowl? Not for me—too obvious. The device should have read ‘disposable dog’, rather than ‘disposable bowl’.

Now, that would have been more memorable! I also might have invested in it myself. So here are my lateral inventions to tickle anyone’s financial flutter. Dragon’s Den people—do feel free to use any of these ideas—no charge!

Like many other UK homes, are you an ‘Alexa’ house yet? I bought her a couple of years ago and we’ve got her installed here at Walwyn Towers, although she sends my wife mad when her radio keeps dropping out. I quite like her voice and I find her quite useful but only at particular times of the day like for making shopping lists or turning off the lights. The rest of the time she can be very annoying.

Anyway, I probably need one in every room to make her truly useful. I wonder, do you sing in your bath? Or maybe you like to talk to yourself in the bathroom? Lots of people do apparently, so don’t be shy! If so, what you need is a truly sympathetic digital partner—someone (or something) who listens sensitively to your problems and advises you what to do next. All Alexa will say when I ask her is “Sorry, I’m having trouble understanding anything right now. Please try later.” This is worse than useless. I want an electronic thing that can sensibly argue any subject - UK politics, Russia and Ukraine, Spurs’ football matches or who’s going to win Strictly? My new invention will also monitor my dental hygiene and wash my back while singing me the News. Alexa can’t do that. Dare I say it, but Alexa’s just a little too dim for me! Maybe in five years’ time, Alexa will be up to the job of Top Conversationist and Home Assistant, but she can’t do it right now.

My invention will also be able to accompany my singing.

She would harmonize with my voice and make me sound absolutely brilliant with an automatic Heavenly Choir accompaniment while correcting any of my musical mistakes. Modern technology is wonderful!

I’d also like some major new inventions with glasses or contact lenses which have been around for decades.

Beware. Not all dragons are as nice as this one

How about zoom contact lenses? Blink once and your eyes will zoom in to look at anything more closely. Blink twice to return to ‘normal’ viewing. So useful! Here’s another invention I’d like to see… a TV that doesn’t just bend in half (I had a phone like that—expensive and too breakable), but it also rolls up like a towel so you can lie it flat in a drawer when you’re finished with it. I’m not sure you could wash it though… I think we’ve got one on those coming on Amazon next week?

I have lots more ideas for people who live in small apartments and simply don’t have enough room for extras like pets. I particularly like the ‘Thru the Window’ Pet cage.

You open the window and fix it round your window frame, so your hamster, rabbit, dog, cat, pet rat or whatever can sit in your window hanging basket and get some nice fresh air while looking vertically downwards onto the street below.

Your Kitty-Kat should be delighted to be safely suspended over the heads of passers-by. Perhaps it could cough up furballs and casually let them drop onto unsuspecting people below. Or maybe drop half-dead little birds or mice or horrid unmentionable smelly things onto any passing dogs below.

Such fun! And then there’s the Hamster exercise wheel which will be connected to your mobile phone charger of course. Watch your pet get exercised while the little wheel in his cage whirrs round and round and charges up your talktime! You could also make the wheel play nice tunes to make the day go past peacefully.

Tel. 01308 423031 The Marshwood Vale Magazine March 2022 23

More Grist for the Mill - Or Electric Light?

By Cecil Amor

W

ay back in Autumn 2019 I wrote about “Rivers of Dorset”, followed by “More Grist for the Mill” and noted that the Domesday Book recorded that there were 372 mills in the County of Dorset, most used for grinding corn into flour. By some twenty years ago the number reduced to about 130, with only about 9 in satisfactory order, with only one being commercial.

During the recent Pandemic, at least one mill, having been renovated, has been milling flour again because local families could not obtain domestic quantities, owing to the shortage of lorry drivers. This was probably the mill at Sturminster Newton.

However, Lyme Regis Town Mill, also renovated, has been grinding small quantities for the tourist industry, since around the year 2000.

Recently my son, Nigel, said why can these idle water mills not be brought back into use and produce electric power? I tried to visualise the size and speed of the mill stone and also the system of belts used to power the ancillary parts of the mill.

My thoughts reverted to the old bicycle I use to ride to school, which was equipped with a dynamo, driven by a small wheel which pressed against the tyre. I understand that these are known as sidewall or bottle dynamos. From memory this did not produce appreciable friction of drag and when cycling at reasonable speed produced a good headlight and red rear light. I believe the dynamo produced about 6 watts of alternating power and some 6 volts, depending on cycling speed. These two cycle lamps would have provided useful illumination in a small room, particularly using modern low energy lamps. This was, of course, a day dream of childhood.

However, a modern electrical generator of around the size of a mill stone could easily power the lighting and power requirements of a complete house, including charging its electric car batteries. Also a standby battery could be charged “off peak” during the night, when the water would still be available to power the water wheel.

We believe one or two mills have been converted in Somerset, possibly one at Bruton, with some success.

Nigel arranged for us to join in an online meeting with a local council, relative to Climate Change. None of the councillors were receptive to our suggestion, possibly as most of the local mills are in private ownership and would need persuasion. They suggested that most of the local mills did not have sufficient head of water and may not be the most satisfactory type of water wheel. However, some of these mills must have been satisfactory in years gone by, although maybe not all the time, depending on the water level. Nigel also suggested that where rivers exit to the sea, where the water may ebb and flow, depending on the tide, for example at West Bay, there might be the possibility of using both ebb and flow to generate power. An expert

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‘Off peak’ power?

in water wheel design is required, to choose the most appropriate type for given situations.

Even if the output from local small mills would be relatively small, surely if all were considered together, the total output might be worth having. Individual mills could supply their own locality.

Have the Government’s scientists, with suitable expertise, considered such proposals?

Readers may be interested in the bicycle I rode to school and many local excursions. It was a second hand Raleigh, with only the one fixed gear. I was a small child for my age and at 10 years old I could not reach the pedals. My clever father cut and formed pieces of wood to fit either side of each pedal, screwed together and at a stretch I could then pedal the machine. I think by the age of 11 years I had grown sufficiently for the blocks to be removed and I was able to cycle the two miles to my new school.

Bridport History Society meets again on Tuesday 8th March at 2.30 pm to hear about “The Green Man” from Dr. Lucy Goodison. (He may be looking at you through foliage, from a church wall !).

Cecil Amor, Hon. President, Bridport History Society.

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Village remembers forgotten airman On 15 March, a poignant ceremony is due to take place on a Dorset hillside to remember a World War II pilot who died in a plane crash during thick fog exactly 80 years ago. Up until late last year, the incident was surrounded by secrecy. The airman’s story—pieced together by a farmer with Covid—had been forgotten until his name was read out in Broadwindsor Church on Remembrance Sunday last year.

Margery Hookings tells the story.

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L

LEWESDON HILL, the highest point in Dorset, is often shrouded in mist.

When the sun shines in Bridport and down on the coast, the hinterland around Broadwindsor can sometimes be like the land that time forgot, concealed by fog, hidden from everything and known only to those who live there.

And that’s how it was on the early evening of 15 March 1942 when a young airman was flying a Supermarine Spitfire Mk Vb BL463. He was on his way from RAF Burtonwood to deliver the plane to No 317 Squadron at Exeter. He never made it. The 25-year-old was killed on impact when the plane crashed into the northern side of Lewesdon Hill.

Until late last year, no-one knew very much about the incident. Some locals had been told the distinctive dip in the treeline on Lewesdon was the result of a plane crash during the war. But ask anyone the nationality of the pilot or the circumstances of the crash and you’d draw a blank.

It took the dogged research of farmer Andrew Frampton to piece together the story, coming up with a name and then a photograph. If it hadn’t been for Covid, he might never have got round to it.

Stuck at home in isolation, Andrew binge-watched The World at War, the 26-episode British television series made in the 1970s and chronicling the events of the Second World War. It made him think about the plane crash, and a family story involving his late grandfather, Jack Frampton, who was on Home Guard duty in Broadwindsor on 15 March 1942 with his brother-in-law, funeral director Jack Wakely, and friend Doug Studley.

The story went that on that day at 6.15pm, just as the sun was setting, a plane’s engine could be heard spluttering above the village before it crashed into the wooded, northfacing hillside of Lewesdon.

Armed only with hazel sticks, the three young men made their way up the hill to investigate. At that point, they had no idea what they might find. They could have encountered a German airman on the run. There was some light-hearted banter though because, much to the two Jacks’ amusement, Doug’s cap kept getting knocked off by the tree branches in the fog.

When they reached the hill, they found the pilot’s body and wreckage of the plane. The report of the crash was kept very much under wraps, with no media coverage so as not to damage local morale.

Even so, the day after the crash, Broadwindsor schoolchildren skipped off lessons to visit the site. One young farmer and Home Guard man, Dudley Tolley, from Stoke Knapp Farm, managed to find one of the three propeller blades which he kept under his bed for 75 years.

They all now hang in Beaminster Museum.

The pilot’s body was taken to the mortuary at Bridport Hospital and later buried at Brookwood Cemetery Surrey, before being repatriated to Evere, Brussels, on 20 October 1949.

The crash site can be seen by walking about 250m to the top plateau of the hill, then turning right (west). After a further 200m you can see the gap in the beech trees to the

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Andrew Frampton at Lewesdon Hill

north, made by the Spitfire as it crashed.

After the accident happened, villagers put up a wooden cross at the site of the crash as a mark of respect. Flowers were place there on 15 March every year right up until the 1960s until the cross eventually disappeared under a carpet of fallen leaves.

Andrew’s research into the crash eventually yielded a name. The pilot was Jean Verdun Marie Aime De Cloedt who was born to Belgian parents on 31 May 1916 in the St Giles district of London. His father, Prosper De Cloedt, was the president of a dredging company and his mother, Jeanne Delanote, was descended from an old family of brewers in Bruges.

In 1940 Jean was unmarried and an engineer with the Belgium regiment Aeronatique in Ostend and as an NCO pilot and a candidate as an officer in the reserve. He came to England to join the RAF Volunteer Reserve with the Belgian section and trained as a pilot at RAF Sealand near Chester on No 61 training course with No 5 Service Flying Training School. But because he was colourblind he was unable to join operational squadrons and ended up at No 3 Delivery Flight at RAF High Ercall, Shropshire, tasked with delivering new and repaired Spitfires as replacements around the country.

In the early afternoon of 15 March 1942, at RAF Burtonwood near Warrington, some 222 miles north of Dorset, Jean climbed into his Spitfire. The plane was called Berar 1 and had been part-donated by the Central Provinces and Berar Relief War Fund, India, as part of the war effort and manufactured at Castle Bromwich aircraft factory, Birmingham.

He was flying it as a replacement to No 317 Squadron at Bolt Head, Devon, unaware that the squadron had already lost eight planes that day because of the thick fog blanketing the West Country. The squadron had been based at RAF Northolt west of London but had been moved further west to help protect Exeter and Plymouth from German Luftwaffe raids.

We will never know why the plane crashed in Broadwindsor. Was there a mechanical failure? Or pilot error? Perhaps Jean de Cloedt deliberately avoided an even bigger catastrophe by veering away from the village rooftops before ploughing into Lewesdon’s beech trees.

Jean Verdun Marie Aime De Cloedt

Jean’s story had been forgotten until his name was read out by Beaminster Area Team Vicar the Rev Jo Neary in Broadwindsor Church on Remembrance Sunday last year.

A few weeks afterwards, Andrew Frampton was sent a photograph of Jean’s squadron, with the village’s forgotten pilot sitting in the front row, a fresh-faced young man with an earnest expression.

Fittingly, the National Trust, which owns Lewesdon Hill, has worked with Andrew to create an information board which will be unveiled at the entrance to the hillfort at a ceremony on the 80th anniversary of the crash. Prayers will be said by the Rev Jo Neary. Among the guests will be Jack Frampton’s grandchildren, Gillian, Tim and Andrew, Doug Studley’s daughter, Heather, and Jack Wakely’s son, Clive, along with children from the village primary school who are studying the war. Guest of honour will be Jean de Cloedt’s great-niece who plans to travel from Belgium for the ceremony.

Andrew said: ‘I would ask all villagers who are free and would like to see the event to please come along and represent our village to show solidarity and compassion for the brave pilot who faced a horrible dilemma in the fog of our landmark hill exactly 80 years to the day this tragedy occurred.

‘The Parish of Broadwindsor will always remember the sacrifice of Jean de Cloedt.’

The Broadwindsor Platoon, Home Guard From left, back: Bill Phillips, Jack Wakely, Percy Welch, David Fursman, Fred Case, Dennis Fursman. Middle: Joe Tolley, Stan Sibley, Ned Fursman, John Dommett, Fred Dennett, Len Studley, Fred Sibley, Bert Peters, Ted Case, Jack Frampton, Ernie Chubb, Percy Bulgin, Wilfred Hardy, Doug Studley, Merthyr Childs, Jim Crabb, Ted Bartlett, Gerv Mudford, Cecil Hallson, Dudley Tolley, Len Baker, Howard Hardy. Front: Clive Wigram, Walt Lee, Arthur Paull, Jimmy Record, (Platoon Commander) Major Basil Ronald, Major McGreggor Knox, Vick Hawkins, Walt Fursman, Francis Jenkins. The dog between Jimmy’s legs is Ruggles. Photo taken at Broadwindsor House. Caption from Len Studley’s wonderful book, My Story.

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House&Garden

Vegetables in March

By Ashley Wheeler

And sow it begins!

MARCH marks the beginning of Spring, and for gardeners and growers this means the onslaught of seed sowing. This is such an exciting time and a relief after getting through winter which can sometimes be challenging for gardeners and growers (although it can also be one of the greatest times too). A grower friend calls the feeling she gets at this time of year “Spring disbelief ”. After having gone through the depths of winter when it feels like nothing is growing, you get to Spring and cannot believe how incredible it is when you see seeds germinating again. I still get the same sense of excitement and hope when we start seed sowing in the Spring—it is such a special time as a grower to see all of the potential from the seeds that you have sown starting to emerge. It is even more special when you sow seeds that you have saved yourself too.

We sow a huge number of crops through March, and have done a few early sowings in February too—mainly for early crops in the tunnels, but if you are on fairly freely draining soil they could be planted outside too, with a covering of fleece to protect them from the Spring frosts and wind. Most of the crops that we grow are started off in module or cell trays. We fill the trays up with compost (peat free) and firm the compost down. We then have a simple tool that dibs holes into the compost for us to place the seeds into (it is effectively a board with dowels coming out of it that are spaced apart the same distance as the cells of the tray and you can just push it down onto the compost and it makes a little indent in the compost. You can just use your fingers, but this just speeds it up for when we are doing thousands of seeds at a time!). Depending on the crops we sow between one and 10 seeds in each cell. For lettuce, endive, chicory, cabbages, kale and other crops that we only want one plant at each planting space we just sow one seed per cell. Leafy crops for cooking or for salad like chard, spinach, all the salad leaves (other than those mentioned above), beetroot, turnips, shallots, herbs like coriander, parsley, basil all get sown at about 3-5 seeds per cell. We sow around 10 seeds per cell of spring onions— effectively aiming for a bunch. These multi-sown cells are not thinned out at all—they are planted out as they are, so you end up with 3-5 plants in a clump (or 10 in the case of spring onions) and if planted at good spacings they develop well like this. Most of the crops mentioned above we plant out at around 20 x 20 cm or 30 x 30 cm in the case of chard and kale, and winter cabbages need to be more like 50 x 50 cm. Spacing is fairly critical for planting vegetables—as it will often determine the size of the vegetable, but will also allow enough space for plenty of good airflow between the plants, minimising the chance of fungal diseases, whilst being close enough together to crowd out the weeds.

Once we have sown the seeds into the cell trays we cover the seeds with a sprinkling of vermiculite which helps

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to maintain more consistent temperature and moisture around the seeds. We then soak the cell trays in trays of water (allowing the compost to soak up the water from the bottom rather than watering from the top which can wash away the seeds and can be more difficult to ensure a consistent level of moisture). Once soaked we put the trays on the propagating bench and cover them with a sheet of polystyrene to maintain consistent temperature and moisture.

They won’t need another water until after the seeds have germinated. The propagation bench has a layer of insulation on the top, then ontop of that a waterproof membrane, then about 2-3 inches of sharp sand on top of which we lay a soil warming cable, and then cover this with another 2-3 inches of sharp sand. The cable is linked to a thermostat so that we can set the temperature—generally around 18 degrees for most crops and around 23-25 for tomatoes, chillies, peppers and aubergines. We check underneath the sheets of polystyrene daily to see if the seeds are starting to germinate and at the first sign of germination we remove the polystyrene. The trays then get taken off the hot benches and placed on unheated benches, covering them with fleece through the Spring until they are ready to plant out.

Happy sowing, and don’t forget to plan in successions of crops—you don’t have to sow everything in the Spring!!

WHAT TO SOW THIS MONTH: turnips, chard, spinach, salad leaves—chervil, buckshorn plantain, lettuce, burnet, peashoots, anise hyssop, kales, mustards, agretti, sorell, summer purslane & goosefoot (end of month).

Radish, fennel, courgettes (end of month), spring onions, cucumbers, dill coriander, peas and mangetout. We sow all of these into trays in the propagating tunnel to be planted out in April mostly. Also all of the indoor solanaceae such as tomatoes, peppers, chillies and aubergines can be sown now.

WHAT TO PLANT THIS MONTH: OUTSIDE: salads—mustards, rockets etc., lettuce, peas, broad beans, potatoes, early kale.

INSIDE: If you sowed any early salad crops for a polytunnel or glasshouse they can go in at the beginning of March. Also successions of peas and spring onions will continue to be planted.

OTHER IMPORTANT TASKS THIS MONTH: If the weather dries, continue preparing beds for the spring by mulching with compost. Keep on top of the seed sowing, but don’t sow too much of anything—think about sowing successionally rather than doing one big sowing in early Spring. Things that are perfectly suited to successions include all salad leaves, spring onions, peas, beans, beetroot, chard, kale, carrots, fennel, radish and annual herbs.

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March in the Garden

By Russell Jordan

T

here’s a headlong rush, into spring and summer, from this point on in the gardening year. Unless you are a very keen and/or organised gardener there will be plenty of winter tasks that still need completing in your garden. The end of winter dormancy is a real turning point in the growing cycle of plants, especially deciduous trees and shrubs, and as such it marks the end of jobs that can only be completed before ‘bud burst’ : bare-root planting and winter pruning are chief amongst these.

It’s also the end of the time window for one of the easiest propagation techniques—hardwood cuttings. Most deciduous shrubs, and many climbers, are suited to this method of producing new plants. This is particularly felicitous because it also ties in with when I tend to cut ornamental dogwoods, Cornus, to the ground in order to force them to produce shiny new stems which will have the brightest bark to light up the winter months.

Newly planted dogwoods, and any other shrubs which are habitually ‘stooled’, need to establish for a few years before they are subjected to a full cutting back. If the shrubs are providing screening, as well as winter colour, then the usual rule of pruning out one in three stems, the oldest third, annually is a good compromise. Forking in a little general fertiliser, such as ‘fish, blood and bone’, and applying a surface organic mulch will promote good strong regrowth.

The stems that are cut off, during the stooling process, provide plenty of material for preparing hardwood cuttings.

They have to be a decent thickness, ‘pencil thick’ is the term usually applied, and around six inches in length. Long twigs may yield numerous ‘pencils’ and the important thing is that each one has a few healthy, dormant, buds along its length.

Make clean cuts below a bud at the base of the cutting and above a bud at the top. If you are in any doubt, as to which

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way up the cutting should be, then compare it to a stem that still attached to a deciduous shrub and note which way the buds point.

Prepare a cuttings bed, or trench, by forking over an area of ground, in a tucked away corner of your garden, and incorporate some compost (for moisture retention) and coarse grit (for good drainage) into the forked soil. The soil should be loose enough to allow your cuttings to be pushed into the ground without bending. I reckon that about two thirds underground, to one third above, should provide enough stem in the soil, to produce roots, and enough buds exposed to make shoots.

Don’t let your cuttings dry out in the summer and, especially with specimens like Cornus, some form of protection, such as a cloche, may aid rooting. It can take a whole year before you know whether they’ve rooted or not—hence the need to place them in a tucked away spot where they won’t annoy you too much while they ‘do or die’.

It’s always cheerful to fill every square inch of the garden with summer flowers. Hardy annuals are one of the cheapest and easiest ways of doing this and they can be sown as early as March if the weather starts to warm up.

As long as your flower beds are relatively weed-free then sowing the seeds in situ couldn’t be easier. If you are worried that you’ll not recognise weed seedlings from your chosen hardy annuals then sowing in rows, just inches apart, means that they will be obvious once they start to grow.

The regimented lines completely disappear once the annuals fill out and meld together. If conditions take a turn for the worst, or there is a danger of birds and other wildlife disturbing the seed-bed, then covering it with horticultural fleece protects the seedlings until they are out of danger.

Some favourite, ‘cottagey’, hardy annuals include; pot

marigolds (Calendula), candytuft (Iberis), Nemophila and ‘Lovein-a-Mist’ (Nigella).

If you are growing your own tender annuals, the sort that are generally available later as ‘bedding plants’, you will need somewhere heated and light. In a cold greenhouse the extra heat may be supplied with an electrically heated propagator.

If such contraptions aren’t available, a warm windowsill may suffice. Some experimentation is required as a sunny windowsill could ‘cook’ your seedlings, while a north facing spot may never get warm enough for seeds requiring a steady 65-75ºF to germinate. Buying bedding as ‘young plants’ or ‘plugs’, in a few weeks time, may make more sense where providing the extra heat is not feasible.

Elsewhere, lawns will be growing now whenever the temperature is above 6°C or so. If the weather is dry then mowing with the mower on a high cut will help to keep on top of things. Letting it get really long before the first cut means that, when you do get around to it, the task will be more onerous for you, the mower and the grass.

In my meadow I try to get one last cut in, on the highest setting with the collector on, which weakens the grass just as the wild flowers put on a spurt of growth. The timing of this is tricky; if I cut the meadow too short I will be damaging a large quantity of newly germinated plants, sown at the end of last summer. If I don’t get a late cut in, now, then there is a risk that the grass will get the upper hand and shade out some of the finer meadow plants, reducing the diversity of the meadow. If you think that meadows are an effortless / easy form of gardening—think again!

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PROPERTY ROUND-UP

Spring - into your new home

By Helen Fisher

CHARD JUNCTION £825,000

Large detached former farmhouse with 4 bedrooms and a 1 bedroom annex. Period features inc: arched doors and windows, window seats and wall panelling. Bespoke family kitchen with hand-made solid wood units. Beautiful gardens, a paddock, water meadow, sun terrace and several outbuildings. Ample parking. All set in around 1.75 acres.

Gordon & Rumsby Tel: 01297 553768

BRIDPORT Guide: £250,000 (1 bed) £350,000 (2 bed) For sale or rent, 38 brand new prestigious 1 & 2 bedroom retirement apartments for the over 60s. Off plan reservations being taken now.

Communal lounge and guest suite. Beautiful landscaped garden, private parking and on site house manager. All set within walking distance of the town centre.

Goadsby Tel: 01308 420000

BRIDPORT £650,000

WEYMOUTH £1.85m

Built in 2003 in a sought after road, near open countryside yet walking distance to town. Arranged over 3 floors with 4 bedrooms.

With a light, airy and spacious feeling throughout. Oak flooring, sash windows (UPVC double glazed) and high ceilings. Generous lawned garden, patio area, walled fruit garden and detached double garage.

Symonds and Sampson Tel: 01308 422092

An impressive, contemporary house with 5 bedrooms built in 2018. Designed to maximise the incredible south facing, sea views across Castle Cove and beyond. With 2 open-plan reception rooms; one with access to the verandah, the other to a balcony. Set over 3 floors with natural light and an airy spacious interior. Large rear garden with several mature specimen trees. Double garage.

Knight Frank Tel: 01935 810062

BRIDPORT £720,000

BRIDPORT £485,000

A unique detached 1950’s home with 3 bedrooms. Benefiting from a large, detached brick-built studio with PV panels with a feed-in tariff. Period features inc: picture rails & woodblock flooring plus a sun room/observatory leading onto a balcony with southerly views.

Mature, established gardens with fruit trees, raised veg beds and an attached garage and further outbuildings. Ample parking.

Kennedys Tel: 01308 427329

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A very well presented 3 bedroom spacious bungalow built in 1987. Newly modernised with new kitchen, bathroom and redecoration inc: carpets. West facing UPVC double-glazed conservatory. Well stocked, private rear garden with greenhouse and shed. Garage with workshop area. Close to both town and countryside.

Stags Tel: 01308 428000

Go ahead for Melplash

THIS year’s Melplash Show was given the go ahead at a well attended AGM in February. The show will take place this year on Thursday 25th August. The current President, Nigel Jones and Chairman, James Vickery were both re-elected and are looking forward to at last hosting the Show. For both of them it will be third time lucky.

As well as the re-election of some Board Members, the Society said farewell to two longstanding Directors, Marcus Beresford and Bill Dupont who both were presented with gifts of appreciation by the President and given Honorary Lifetime Membership to the Society, along with Philip Crawford who retired from the Board in 2020. Three new Directors were elected to the Board: Richard Bugler, Will Bowditch and Simon Wakely.

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Food&Dining

FIDGET PIE INGREDIENTS

DIRECTIONS

• •

1.

•

LESLEY WATERS

• • • • • • • • • • • •

30g butter 1 large red onion, finely chopped 3 Cox’s apples, washed (with the skin left on), quartered, cored and each quarter cut in half 1 bay leaf 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves 25g plain flour 200ml Bridge Farm Kingston Black cider 300ml milk 3 tablespoons double cream Freshly ground black pepper 2 x 135g pre-packed Honey Smoked Ham, torn into large strips 2tsp Dijon mustard 1 x 375g Puff or Shortcrust pastry 1 egg, beaten 1 x large, shallow pie dish approx. 23cm diameter Serves 4 - 6

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2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

Heat the butter in a shallow pan. Add the onion and cook gently over a medium heat for 5 minutes.

Stir in the apples, bay and thyme and cook for 3-4 minutes. Sprinkle over the flour, stir and cook for 1 minute.

Splash in the cider and pour in the milk. Bring up to the boil and simmer for 4-5 minutes, stirring continuously, until thickened. Add the cream and season to taste with black pepper.

Stir in the strips of ham and mustard.

Pour into a large, shallow pie or ovenproof dish and set aside to cool slightly.

Pre-heat oven to 200C/400F, Gas Mark 6.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out the pastry slightly larger than the pie dish. Lightly wet the rim of the pie dish with a little water. Lay over the pastry and trim to fit the pie dish.

Brush well with beaten egg.

With a small, sharp knife cut a cross in the centre of the pie, place on a baking tray and cook for 25-30 minutes or until pastry is golden and puffed.

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SCALLOPS WITH BLACK PUDDING AND SEA PURSLANE On Wednesday 6th April we are hosting a dinner and talk with John Wright who is the local authoritative forager. You’ll be surprised what’s out there to feed on for free and often you would walk past edible plants without even knowing. I find I never stop learning about wild food and how lucky are we being next to the ocean which keeps us in good supply of great seafood.

INGREDIENTS

DIRECTIONS

•

1. Cover the artichokes in salted water, bring to the boil and simmer for 10-15 minutes or until tender. Drain well and blend until smooth in a blender or food processor. Return to a clean pan on a low heat, stirring so it doesn’t stick, until the purée is of spooning consistency, but not wet and sloppy. Season and stir in about 30g butter and keep warm.

2. Meanwhile, rub a non-stick pan with the tiniest amount of oil (too much will make the scallops boil and not fry) and heat until almost smoking. Add the scallops and cook for a minute on each side, then remove from the pan and place on a plate. Lower the heat and add the black pudding and the rest of the butter to the pan.

3. Cook gently for 2-3 minutes, stirring every so often. 30 seconds before serving add the sea purslane to the pan.

4. To serve, spoon the Jerusalem artichoke purée on to warmed plates, place scallops on top then spoon the butter, black pudding and sea purslane over the top.

•

MARK HIX

• • • • •

12 medium dived scallops, cleaned and trimmed 300g Jerusalem artichokes, peeled and halved if large or potatoes 1 tbsp of rapeseed or vegetable oil 150g black pudding, cut into small nuggets 80g butter A handful of picked sea purslane Salt and freshly ground black pepper Serves 4

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First Day Blues

By Nick Fisher

T

here’s only one thing worse than nearly catching a fish, and that’s nearly catching a lot of fish. The first trout outing of the year, is a bit of a symbolic occasion in the sporting calendar. It’s a portent of the things to come. A sample of the sport and luck that you can expect in the months to follow. So, of course, you want it to go well.

What you don’t want is a series of minor disasters and cock ups to poison your prospects, to sour your sport with disappointment and superstition... like I did.

My mate Floyd appeared on my doorstep out of the blue, unexpected and uninvited, but always welcome. He’s a mate that I taught to fly fish many years ago, and who rarely fishes on his own, instead he regards me as some sort of hairy guru, who can always be relied upon to find a place to wet a line.

‘I want you back for lunch’ said my wife Helen, using a firm tone, as Floyd and I shuffled backwards out of the kitchen door, on Sunday morning. ‘It’ll be on the table at one-thirty. The boys’ll be starving, so... Don’t Be Late.’

Weekends are never the best time for me to go fishing. It leaves Helen mob-handed policing the family, while trying to transform a fat chicken and a bag of spuds, into a full-blown Sunday lunch.

With ‘uncle’ Floyd in tow, it’s easier to get a green light to go and thrash some wet stuff, but even so, I have to confess to suffering from a nagging, irksome, needle of conscience. I felt bad. Sort of.

‘It’s fishing too well’ said Ivan the fishery manager at Sutton Bingham reservoir, fifteen minutes later, as Floyd and I stood in his fishing lodge, clutching money and a collection of hurriedly assembled tackle. ‘It’s too easy. The fish are all in the shallows, feeding hard. Most people are catching a limitbag in a couple of hours’.

Now, for two guys on a trout mission, who happen to have a stern-faced ticking-clock hanging over them, these are sweet words. All we wanted was a fast fix. A quickie. A kind of whambam-thank-you-mam session to fill our boots and mark the start of the season with a fish-filled flourish.

I asked Ivan if we should hire a boat to further increase our chances, to prospect portions of water the bank anglers couldn’t reach. ‘No point’ he answered. ‘Save your money. Just fish the bank down in front of the lodge. Really, they’re all over the place. You won’t have any trouble catching this morning’ Ivan might just have well ushered a voodoo curse and shaken chicken bones in my face. This, I knew was the voice of doom. These are easy words to say and yet impossible to fulfil. Ivan recommended nymphs, damsels, hare’s ears, gold heads. A slow retrieve, a longish leader and a stout carrier bag to lug our catch back to the car.

As I cast my pair of highly-recommended nymphs out into the lightly rippling surface of this Somerset jewel of a fishery, I could see a handful of other bank anglers, whose rods were arced and lines taut, as splashes from jumping fish, broke the surface in front of them.

Anglers were catching. Fish were feeding. The sun was shining, and the season was well and truly started. The signs signals and runes all spelt success. As a welcome christening to a

new year of trout bashing, this looked set to be a doozy.

As I concentrated hard on my smooth figure-of-eight retrieve, I heard huffing and panting and heavy footfalls coming from behind. A quick glance over my shoulder revealed a trout fisherman already on his way back home.

Trudging back from the far bank loaded down with his tackle, lugging his open landing net which was heaving with huge dead trout. His catch for the morning was a silver glistening orgy of fit fat rainbow trout.

My eyes met with his and he smiled and shrugged happily, indicating his straining net. I smiled back and raised my eyebrows. It was a silent communication. An unspoken utterance that simply said - God ain’t we lucky... to be up to our ears in fat fish and fine weather. Nothing could be better, or easier.

Except it wasn’t. While all around me bathed in the beatific fruits of early season carbon straining, I soon descended into a hellish pit of depression and disillusionment. Everything I did was wrong. Every move I made smacked of school boy error and rabid cack-handidness.

Fish tugged at my flies with sporting frequency. But my every reaction was wrong. I struck too soon. I struck too late.

Too hard. Too soft. I snapped my leader four times. I lost my flies in the grass, the trees, in fish. I cast like an epileptic chimp suffering from a wasp attack. And the harder I tried the worse it got. Floyd, who hasn’t caught a fish in three years, who had a dodgy floating line and a badly matched rod, soon had a huge rainbow on the bank. Small children under ten years old staggered past struggling with the weight of their huge fishfilled bags. Men lazed on the bank smoking ciggies and taking necessary breaks from their repeated battles with feisty fish. Yet, the more I thrashed, the more I tried, the sadder it all got.

If I’d been camping in Germ Central, I couldn’t have caught a cold. And, all the while, the clock ticked, and my wife’s pretty, but stern face kept coming into to focus, uttering those fundousing words... ‘And Don’t Be Late’ If I’m honest, I blame her. Bless her. No man should have to fish under the pressure of a ticking clock. I kept digging into my pocket to retrieve my mobile phone, to check the digital clock for evidence of my impending failure. I was running out of time... and I was all out of luck.

With a very heavy heart and an empty net, I trudged back to the car, as Floyd walked beside me wittering on about what a great morning he’d had, and how hard his fish had fought.

On the drive home in the car, it was all I could do to unclench my rigid frustrated jaw to offer a few chatty platitudes. Inside I was steaming with frustration and annoyance - how could I have fished with such undiluted, unbridled uselessness?

Back at the house, Helen’s face was a picture of cold disapproval. Everyone had already eaten, and our lunch lay crinkling in the oven. Calcifying from too much heat. Not only was I fish-less and fed up, I was late.

Oh, how bittersweet fishing can be. Sometimes it isn’t funny or clever or thrilling. Sometimes fishing is simply cruel. Not to the fish. But to the angler. As the trout season opens with a bang, all you’ll hear round my house, is a sorry little whimper.

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Arts&Entertainment

Luke Wright photographs by Emily Fae 40 The Marshwood Vale Magazine March 2022 Tel. 01308 423031

Journeys

off the Sunken Roads A professional poet for twenty years, Luke Wright is taking a new show on the road. He talked to Fergus Byrne ahead of his visit to Bridport.

A

poet for 23 years and scraping a living from it for 20, Luke Wright describes his genre as ‘nimble’.

He talks about poetry’s ability to take you on a roller coaster of emotions. ‘From a really sad moment that might make you cry’ to something funny in the space of a minute. ‘That’s what poetry can do better than any other genre’ he says.

He is talking about his new show which comes to Bridport in March. ‘I want to make you laugh. I want to make you cry. I want to make you angry and retching and soft, and all of those things’ he says.

It might be described as a show of two halves—with maybe a middle, a start and a finish. And there will also be ups and downs, laughs and tears, and visceral observations in between. He’s not promising to make you feel good. ‘But I am promising to make you feel’.

Luke Wright has form when it comes to making his audience feel something. Whether he’s opening for the Libertines or reciting Georgian ballads down your local, Luke is adept at taking poetry to places it doesn’t normally go. Long time host of Latitude’s Poetry Arena and John Cooper Clarke’s regular warm-up guy, he writes poems that are tender, riotous, caustic, and romantic then delivers them with ferocity and panache.

And although the excitement, freshness, and spirit that erupts from his sometimes fevered mind are unlikely to ever abate, there is change in the air. Luke has just turned forty and is keenly aware of the onset of wisdom—a development that often comes to those who wait. Now divorced and the father of two boys, his latest book The Feel-Good Movie of the Year presents what he describes as an older, more battle-hardened man ‘but also a more mature and wider person.’

He describes the title as a bit of a joke because he hates that line that is so often used to promote new movies. For him, a ‘feel-good’ movie is very different. ‘What I’m hinting at is that I realise that feeling good, feeling positive is about looking at all the difficult stuff head on’ he says. ‘I feel enriched in many ways by the pain that I’ve gone through and the difficult things that I’ve gone through. And if I want to feel good I watch difficult films’. He laughs. ‘For me, a feel-good movie is one that really makes me weep and cry, and it doesn’t necessarily have to have a happy ending.

It’s an appreciation of life and all its peaks and pitfalls.’

The book offers a window into that same world of emotional snakes and ladders. Heart-wrenching poems like Ex or A Piece of Quiet, Merch Stall, and Reading for Pleasure are about his children. The poems plant poignant frozen moments into the pages—and they leave a long footprint.

The Lay-bys and Bypasses asks aching questions about how well we know the country we live in. “I love and loathe it as I love and loathe myself,” he writes “and yes, I know it, because I know myself ”.

Status Update could be a cry for help, screaming for a hand to pull us out of the quicksand of social media. Luke is part of the growing assemblage of people disillusioned with it. ‘I hate it’ he says. He was an early adopter and at first found it quite cool. ‘I have to be on it because of my job really’. He liked the shop front feel of having a website and enjoyed blogging when that started, but social media he sees as a shouting match. He talks about a new band he is working with and a song they released called The People who run the Country. He spent ‘all week on bloody Twitter shouting about the song. I just found it such a depressing place to be.

I hate it really and I think that Status Update is a direct result of that. I’m aware of that now, I’m much more aware of how social media makes me feel. I just kind of avoid it.’

He is also aware of a depressing shift in the world around him since Brexit. Initially, a staunch Remainer Luke was quick to accept that other people didn’t feel the same way.

‘Some stuff is obvious’ he says. ‘Being socially liberal is a no-brainer. It’s not really up for debate. I mean why wouldn’t you be socially liberal? I think that’s my generation in that respect. With Brexit I was pro-Remain, I didn’t see the point of leaving. I thought it was a really divisive thing to have a referendum, and it was.’ He talks about the social media bubble where people are sucked into thinking that everybody feels the same way as they do. He recognises the algorithm that sucks you down a rabbit hole to keep you engaged on the platform. ‘I think Brexit was a really interesting moment for me politically because I thought quite quickly that actually, we need to accept that other people have an opinion too.’

He thinks we could have had a better Brexit but says there were very few Remainer voices in those discussions ‘because they were still playing the whole “we don’t accept the result” thing, which just smacked of privilege. It was the worst of us’ he says. ‘Left-wing people are supposed to be open-minded and progressive but what came out of that Remainer camp was this gross snobbishness about how the working classes shouldn’t be allowed to vote because they don’t know what they’re voting for, “they’re idiots” and all that. And it made me feel so uncomfortable and I really hated it.’ He believes the culture war that’s being fought in the wake of Brexit is being lost. ‘The idea that being, “woke” is somehow a bad thing, when it just means to be awake to the world.’

Luke also bemoans the damage caused by the trail left by keyboard activists ‘that go on social crusades but don’t live that life’—what he describes as people of privilege who want to lecture those they see beneath them. ‘I think it’s done us a lot of damage and it’s going to make it harder to win other wars, because I think we’ve been setting ourselves up to be quite intolerant people.’

However, despite his new ‘middle-aged’ self-styling, Luke Wright is as driven as ever. He remembers making up stories with his mother when he was tiny. He would dictate his ideas to her to write down because he hadn’t yet learned to write.

But he also remembers encouragement. ‘It certainly would have given me a sense that I was able to, I was entitled to, I was allowed to create’ he says. ‘Because a lot of kids aren’t encouraged or told that. It’s a great gift she gave to me. It is super satisfying to create something, to see it on the page.

I’m adopted and you could look at it psychologically as an attempt to create a sense of self. You know who you are. It’s a beautiful thing to have made something and I would have been aware of that almost immediately.’ When he first saw John Cooper Clarke and Martin Newell perform he saw it as ‘something I could do. It played to my strengths.’

He remembers being ‘horrendously bullied’ for about a year when he was 15 or 16. And now muses on whether you could argue that writing gave him something positive away from all that. Playing in a band before he took to performing poetry, there was lots of teenage angst in his songs. ‘But when I started writing the poetry it was the opposite.’ Seeing other poets writing about actual things, making comments on society flipped a switch. ‘I suddenly realised that was so much better than writing all this vague, sort of depressive bullshit about nothing. And then all of a sudden people wanted to hear them because they were about something. They weren’t

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self-indulgent.’ He agrees that you have to be allowed to be a little self-indulgent ‘but ultimately don’t be surprised if no one wants to hear it.’

It’s hard to talk about ‘actual things’ without politics creeping in. However, Luke doesn’t believe in using his work to promote a crusade. ‘I am now—in my more advanced years—unconvinced of the use of poetry as a sort of political soapbox tool’ he says. ‘I think generally short poems about politics are just soapboxing on the whole. In my new show, I’ve got a poem about the culture war which doesn’t really come down on either side. It talks about my anxiety around it.’

But there are moments where his writing gets political ‘but I don’t have a soapbox anymore because I don’t see the point of it. The older I get the more uncertain I feel about things. I like to explore it in longer pieces where you really are slowly building up a picture and trying to explore political ideas and political events, and I think that’s more satisfying.’

Today, as we look forward to Spring in what some people are calling an early ‘post pandemic’ period in our lives, maybe we can tentatively hope that we are awakening from a deeply uncomfortable slumber. If so, looking forward to Luke Wright’s new show might give us a glimpse and a sense of being back in real life—albeit with his own particular nod to ‘actual things’. He describes the show as being about how to present these more complex, more touching, empathetic—‘in a literary sense’—moments on stage, and still be able to present a proper night out.

‘I’ve worked really hard at being able to take the audience to what I hope are moments of genuine pathos and emotion’ he says. ‘I really want to make people laugh and cry in this show and not have one ruin the other. It’s a show about being at a mid-point in life, and I’m examining that from a political sense. I’m looking at the culture war.

And it’s also being aware that there are a whole lot of younger people now who are sneering at me the way I sneered at my parents. But it’s also about looking for the

joy in life and saying “yea it’s ok to be sad” and “it’s ok to not be snobby”. And it’s also about how I was becoming a bit snobby about the new way I’d been writing poems, being a bit disparaging about rhyme and stuff like that.’

Under the hood of Luke Wright’s thought processes, there is a turbocharged engine trying to live with the many gear changes of life. And there is no doubt that they will occasionally crunch or that he might take corners at a startlingly rapid speed. Or that, like the rest of us, he might once in a while go down a dead end. It might be a wild ride, but we could do a lot worse than hop on board and enjoy it.

Luke Wright appears at Bridport Arts Centre on Saturday 19 March at 7.30pm. For tickets telephone 01308 427183 or visit www.bridport-arts.com.

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March GALLERIES

1 - 27 March

Robert William Jordan exhibiting mostly landscapes in watercolours, acrylics and pen and ink. Rob travelled widely for many years, pursuing a career in Civil Engineering and Environmental Consultancy, this involved working and living in Hong Kong. Rob has enjoyed the art of drawing and sketching all his life from plant drawing and life classes. Rob’s inspiration comes from the beautiful landscapes of East Devon and West Dorset and his travels in Spain, Italy, Wales and the Lake District. Rob’s recent works have included studies of trees in oils and acrylics, a close inspection of ‘Wood spirits’ reveals a number of surprises (look for the Jazz Musician) and reflect the changing nature of our local woodlands. Art prints, cards and poster prints will be available during this exhibition. Viewing daily from 8.30 - 4pm at Unique Framecraft, Unit’s 4 - 5 Millwey Rise Workshops, Second Avenue, Axminster. EX13 5HH. Telephone 01297 631614 or 07801 260259.

Instagram @uniqueframecraft.

1 - 31 March

Kit Glaisyer: Cinematic Landscape Paintings an evolving exhibition of West Country landscapes with a range of works on show in gallery and studio. Open Weds & Sat 11-3pm or by appointment. Bridport Contemporary Gallery, 11 Downes Street, Bridport, Dorset DT6 3JR. 07983 465789 www. bridportcontemporary.com @bridportcontemporary.

2 - 25 March

Donna Goold and Helen Slater; Metal and Glass. Donna Goold’s paintings are an exploration of colour and light. Working purely by hand and without the use of brushes, Donna carefully layers thin veils of high pigment oil and wax onto an aluminium surface, which in turn acts like a mirror and significantly enhances the colour. Complimenting Donna’s works on metal will be the highly accomplished glass artworks by Helen Slater. Helen exploits the qualities of the material with technical brilliance as the glass

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is made to magnify, refract, distort or obscure; it shines, reflects, glistens and at times may appear frosted or hazy. Artwave West, Morcombelake, Dorset DT6 6DY Wed - Sat 10-5pm. 01297 489746. wwww.artwavewest.com

Until 5 March

Attic Stories Michael Taylor The Art Stable, Kelly Ross Fine Art. ‘Having lived and worked in Child Okeford for over 30 years, I am particularly delighted to be having this exhibition at The Art Stable, having known Kelly since she opened the gallery in 2006. All but one of the works in the show were created in my attic studio just a few hundred yards away, and it features in most of them, along with the objects and people familiar to me. I became so accustomed to this wonderful space with its warped elm floor and quirky beamed walls that it developed into a kind of visual shorthand for me: a language I could manipulate instinctively and expressively for the compositions that evolved in it. After work it was wonderful to be able to walk out on to the nearby Hambledon Hill, whose high perspectives and ancient landscape acted as a perfect counterpoint to the slightly claustrophobic intensity of the attic. Coinciding as it does with my 70th birthday, and being situated in the heart of this lovely area, The Art Stable is an especially appropriate venue for this, my first gallery show outside central London for over 30 years.’

Open Thursday - Friday, 10am - 3pm, or by appointment. The Art Stable Child Okeford Blandford Dorset DT11 8HB. Mikhail Karikis multi-venue exhibition Children of Unquiet & Sea Women: Two immersive film installations by international artist Mikhail Karikis. The works share the experience of two very different communities: fisherwomen on Jeju island, Korea, and children from Devil’s Valley, Tuscany. Open Tuesday – Saturday, 10-5. Thelma Hulbert Gallery, Dowell Street, Honiton EX14 1LX, 01404 45006 www.thelmahulbert.com / Ocean, Queen’s Drive, Exmouth EX8 2AY www.oceanexmouth.co.uk Radiance Paintings by Rachel Fenner ARCA and Alfred Stockham ARCA RWA, Prints by Martyn Brewster and Sally McLaren RE,

Furniture by Petter Southall. Radiance brings together prints and paintings by four exceptional artists with the fabulous furniture of Petter Southall. Inspired by the natural world of coast and countryside, ancient woodlands, rolling hills, sunshine and sea these are works of art to light us through the dark months at the beginning of the year. Sladers Yard Gallery and Café Sladers, West Bay Road, West Bay, Bridport, Dorset DT6 4EL +44 (0)1308 459511

Until 6 March

An Artist’s Journey: Paintings by Dianne Mary Alice This Dorset-based artist is inspired by images and and forms from the natural world and experiments with all mediums in an impressionistic style. Rotunda Gallery, Lyme Regis Museum, Bridge Street, Lyme Regis DT7 3QA, Wed-Sat 10am-5pm, Sun 10am-4pm, www. lymeregismuseum.co.uk.

Talking Heads, an exhibition of clay sculptures inspired

by Elisabeth Frink, will open on 2nd December 2021 at Dorset Museum. The heads are on display in the Alice Ellen Cooper Dean Community Space, and the exhibition is free to en-ter. They are displayed in a recreation of the artists’ workspace, on turntables where visitors can explore them through touch. A film of the project and quotes from the participants will accompany the display. Dorset Museum, High West Street, Dorchester DT1 1XA

8 March - 24 April

Every Breath We Take: paintings by Christine Allison.

In this exhibition, Lyme Regis-based artist Christine Allison celebrates trees, the planet’s most important and too often undervalued resource. Rotunda Gallery, Lyme Regis Museum, Bridge Street, Lyme Regis DT7 3QA, Tues-Sat 10am-5pm, Sun 10am-4pm, www. lymeregismuseum.co.uk

12 March - 8 May

Cliffland Vanessa Gardiner A solo show of recent paintings and drawings. All Vanessa’s paintings are presented beautifully framed with white box frames.

She works in acrylic on board or plywood. Furniture by Petter Southall. Sladers Yard Gallery and Café Sladers, West Bay Road, West Bay, Bridport, Dorset DT6 4EL +44 (0)1308 459511.

GALLERIES IN APRIL Live or Online send your gallery details to info@marshwoodvale.com

BY MARCH 14TH.

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March GALLERIES

12 March - 25 June

In Xanadu: Coleridge and the West Country. An exhibition in partnership with the British Library to showcase the earliest manuscript of Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s extraordinary poem Kubla Khan. The exhibition celebrates the manuscript’s return to the county where it was written. It will tell the story of Coleridge’s time spent living in and near the Quantock Hills, his relationship with William and Dorothy Wordsworth, and the legacy of his writing.

10.00 am – 5.00 pm Tue – Sat (some Sunday opening) The Museum of Somerset, Taunton Castle, Castle Green, Taunton, Somerset, TA1 4AA Museumofsomerset.org.uk See website for booking information

Until 19 March

The Blackdown Hills: A Photographic Portrait by Pauline Rook A photographic exhibition documenting two decades of farming life on the Blackdown Hills. Somerset-based photographer Pauline Rook has photographed this hidden landscape for almost 20 years. Over this period she has explored hundreds of miles of country lanes and paths, getting to know the individuals, countryside and buildings that make up the distinctive landscape of the Blackdowns. Includes a selection of Pauline’s most recent work which has been captured using an infrared sensitive camera. Open 10.00 am – 5.00 pm Tuesday – Saturday, booking advised. Somerset Rural Life Museum, Chilkwell Street, Glastonbury, Somerset BA6 8DB 01458 831197 Charge: Normal admission applies/FREE for Museum Unlimited pass holders SRLM.ORG.UK

19 March - 31 October

Exhibition Buried in Time at West Bay Discovery Centre. We are marking the 20th anniversary of the designation of the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site by looking at the geology of the stretch of coast between Eype and Burton Bradstock, its fossils and the human element of those who study and collect them. Open daily 11 am - 4 pm excluding Mondays. Admission free, donations welcomed. There will be various walks, talks and events associated with this exhibition during this period. Further details. http://www. westbaydiscoverycentre.org.uk/

Until 20 March

‘Sou’-Sou’-West Spring Open’: mixed open Sou’-Sou’-West Arts Gallery, Symondsbury Estate, Bridport DT6 6HG. Open daily 10:30-4:30. Free admission & parking. Contact 01308 301326 www.sousouwest.co.uk SSW Gallery’s annual Spring Open, in a variety of media.

25 - 27 March

‘Create’: Sou’-Sou’-West Arts Gallery, Symondsbury Estate, Bridport DT6 6HG. Open daily 10:30-4:30. Free admission & parking. Contact 01308 301326 www.sousouwest.co.uk. Explore different areas of creativity, with opportunities to meet artists and makers of varying disciplines and watch their demonstrations.

Participation is encouraged!

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March 26 - April 8

John Hammond - Master of Light. Accessible online from early-March, and will be available to view in the gallery daily from 10am – 5.30pm. Everyone is welcome to attend the launch day on Saturday 26 March from 11.00am, when John will be present.

One of the UK’s leading and critically acclaimed landscape painters, John Hammond SWAc, is back for another eagerly awaited solo show at Marine House. From the coastal landscapes of South West England, to a vibrant French café, or to the dappled reflections bouncing off Venice’s waterways, John is a true master of his subject. His painting methods have been the subject of several books and even a film! Having spent the greater part of two years creating these new works, we’re delighted to be presenting John’s new grouping of 35 paintings. Marine House at Beer, Fore Street, Beer Nr Seaton, Devon, EX 12 3EF. 01297 625257, info@marinehouseatbeer.co.uk, www.marinehouseatbeer. co.uk

Until 2 April

Lisa Hammond: Future Perfect Inviting a dialogue between mentor and apprentice, the exhibition presents works by potter Lisa Hammond MBE and three of her former students to explore the passing of knowledge between makers. Featuring Lisa Hammond MBE, Florian Gadsby, Darren Ellis and Francis Lloyd-Jones. Wed – Sat, 10 am – 1 pm and 2 – 4 pm. Make Hauser & Wirth Somerset, Stockwell House, 13 High Street, Bruton, Somerset BA10 0AB.

Until 8 April

Wildlife Photographer of the Year The world-renowned exhibition, on loan from the Natural History Museum in London, is open at Seaton Tramway. It features exceptional images which capture fascinating animal behaviour, spectacular species and the breathtaking diversity of the natural world. Using photography’s unique emotive power to engage and inspire audiences, the images shine a light on stories and species around the world and encourage a future of advocating for the planet. Wildlife Photographer of the Year is the most prestigious photography event of its kind, providing a global platform that showcases the natural world’s most astonishing and challenging sights for over 55 years. This year’s award-winning images will embark on an international tour that will allow them to be seen by well over a million people. The 100 photos will be on display at Seaton Station from 11th February – 8th April, 10am - 4pm. Seaton Station, EX12 2WD. Visitor Enquiries: 01297 20375.

Until 29 April

Body Beautiful: Diversity on the Catwalk examines how today’s fashion industry is challenging perceptions and championing alternative ideals of beauty on the catwalk, in advertising, editorial and behind the camera. The first exhibition of its kind in the world, it looks at how fashion creatives are embracing inclusivity

and body positivity by exploring five key themes: size; gender; age; race and disability. Visitors will learn how the industry is calling into question existing practice, and why it must address diversity from the inside out to reappraise contemporary ideals of beauty. A National Museums Scotland exhibition. The Gallery, Arts University Bournemouth.

Until 2 May

Ida Applebroog. Right Up To Now. Over the past six decades Ida Applebroog has navigated an indepth inquiry into the polemics of human relations, dissecting and reassembling the world around her spanning diverse mediums and modes of display.

Now in her 90s, this comprehensive survey speaks to her radical introspection as a woman and an artist, presenting life as it is and the repetitive patterns of our existence. Tue – Sun, 10 am – 4 pm. Hauser & Wirth Somerset, Durslade Farm, Dropping Lane, Bruton, Somerset BA10 0NL

Storm Fox © by Johnny Armstrong. Highly commended in the Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition.

100 images are on show at Seaton Tramway until April 8.

Until 16 June

Mixed Spring Exhibition of Gallery and Guest Artists. Returning to normality we hope with an exhibition featuring all our gallery artists including sculptors Johannes von Stumm and Sarah Moore, ceramicist Alison Wear and many paintings and prints from Phillippa Headley, Kim Pragnell, Colin Moore, Ruth Ander, to name but a few. Visitors also welcome outside normal hours by prior appointment.

Tincleton Gallery, The Old School House, Tincleton, nr Dorchester, DT2 8QR. Opening / performance times: Fri/Sat/Sun/Mon from 10:00 – 16:00. Tel. 01305 848 909. www.tincletongallery.com

Until 26 June

Ray Balkwill’s The River’s Voice is a celebratory exhibition of painting the Exe Estuary for over four decades. Ray Balkwill was born in Exeter and graduated from Exeter College of Art in the late 60s. He returned to Exeter in the late 70s to work in advertising giving up his job as an Art Director to paint professionally in 1990. Since then he has lived and worked in Exmouth for over forty years, mainly capturing the many moods of the river.

The exhibition will also feature some of his Mixed Media Assemblages from material washed up on its foreshore. The Cafe at RAMM, Queen Street, Exeter, EX4 3RX. Open Tuesday to Sunday 10am to 5pm.

Closed Mondays and Bank Holidays. Admission free and all work is for sale. rammuseum.org.uk. raybalkwill.co.uk.

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March PREVIEW

Pianist Alasdair Beatson and the Eusebius Quartet have three dates with Concerts in the West

Alasdair Beatson

TOURING PIANIST Alasdair Beatson makes a welcome return to the West Country for the March Concerts in the West, on 4th and 5th March, with the Eusebius Quartet.

The tour, featuring works by Elgar, Korngold and Faure, begins with a coffee concert at Bridport Arts Centre on Friday 4th at 11.30am, with a full concert at Ilminster Arts Centre that evening at 7.30pm. The full programme will also be played on Saturday 5th at the Dance House at Crewkerne.

The Eusebius Quartet, Beatrice Philips and Venetia Jollands, violins, Hannah Shaw, viola, and Hannah Sloane, cello, was founded in 2016 out of the four musicians’ passion for the extraordinary music written for string quartets. As well as concerts at major UK venues, the quartet has toured throughout Europe and to Santa Fe in New Mexico.

Alasdair Beatson works prolifically as soloist and chamber musician. Despite the pandemic he kept busy, with concerts at the Wigmore Hall, and with the Nash Ensemble for BBC Radio 3.

From the steppes to summer fun

TOURING IT may seem a long haul to summer, but the West Country’s leading orchestra has some exciting concerts and events throughout the spring, leading up to a return

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to Proms in the Park in August. The BSO has a series of family events at Yeovil’s Westlands entertainments centre, including Time Together, a concert for young families and new parents, at 10am on Sunday 10th March, and Homelands, folk-tinged classical music, as well as sea shanties and folk songs, on Sunday 29th May at 2.30pm.

The West Country’s leading orchestra makes one of its regular visits to the University Great Hall at Exeter on Thursday 7th April when BSO principal conductor Kirill Karabits will conduct an exciting programme Soviet Heritage, with Suite from The Seven Beauties by the Azerbaijani composer Kara Karayev and the world premiere of Cosmology by his student Franghiz Ali-Zadeh. Her work encompasses both contemporary western technique and the unique traditions of her ancient homeland in the Central Asian steppes. The concert, which is also at Poole’s Lighthouse arts centre on Wednesday 6th April, ends with Shostakovich’s Symphony No 12.

Proms in the Park, in Bournemouth’s Meyrick Park, will take place on Friday and Saturday, 5th and 6th August, starting at 8pm. Friday’s classical extravaganza includes the usual Proms favourites by Tchaikovsky and Elgar, while the Queen Spectacular show on Saturday will see conductor Pete Harrison harnessing the full forces of the BSO with an on-stage rock band and soloists from the West End musical We Will Rock You, in an evening of hits from (arguably) the greatest British rock band.

Delusions and diversions

VILLAGES YOU might think that mental health problems are not a suitable subject for stand-up comedy, but former mental health nurse Rob Gee, now an acclaimed comedian and performance poet, proves otherwise with his latest show, Kevin, King of Egypt!, coming to Dorset in March for two dates with Artsreach, at Shipton Gorge village hall on Saturday 5th and Milborne St Andrew on Sunday 6th, both at 7.30pm.

This one-man show is by turns hilarious and heartwarming, as it recounts the unlikely friendship between an escaped mental health patient and a lost child.

Kevin Haggerty is not pleased about his diagnosis, even less pleased about being on a section of the Mental Health Act, and distinctly upset about being told he is not the reincarnation of the pharaoh Ramses II. On his way to Egypt, via the Tesco Express, he stumbles across the nemesis to all his plans: Millie—a lost six-yearold. Together they embark on a journey that will change both their lives forever…

Rob Gee spent 12 years working in mental health units in the UK and Australia. Now a stand-up poet, he has won more than 20 awards for his solo show.

Kevin, King of Egypt has been created with the help and

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Jazz star Claire Martin has a gig at Lyme Regis’ Marine Theatre

support people on both sides of the psychiatric fence and aims to dispel some of the stereotypes and myths about bipolar.

Rob says: “When I first wrote Kevin, I performed it to an audience of ex-patients. I couldn’t have done it without them. One gentleman I’d nursed many times in the past approached me with a huge grin, shook my hand and said, ‘An old Egyptian pharaoh—that’s not much of a delusion of grandeur, is it?’”

UK’s “finest jazz singer”

LYME REGIS JAZZ vocalist Claire Martin—named as “our finest jazz singer” by The Times—comes to the Marine Theatre at Lyme Regis on Saturday 12th March, with pianist David Newton, for an intimate concert celebrating the sublime duo recordings of jazz legends Carmen McRae and George Shearing. The programme will include musical gems such as I Don’t Stand a Ghost of a Chance with You, Gentleman Friend and If I Should Lose You. As a performer, recording artist and BBC radio presenter, Claire Martin has spent the last 30 years honing the craft of jazz singing, establishing herself as a leading figure on the UK jazz scene. Her many awards include winning seven British Jazz Awards.

After leaving stage school she became a professional singer at 19 and two years later realised her dream of singing at Ronnie Scott’s legendary jazz club in Soho.

Signed to Glasgow-based Linn Records in 1990, Claire has released 20 CDs, regularly collaborating with top musicians, including Martin Taylor, John Martyn, Stephane Grappelli, Richard Rodney Bennett and Jim Mullen.

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From the Clyde to the coast

PORTLAND IT’s a long way from the Clyde to the island of Portland, but the audience at Portland’s Royal Manor Theatre on Friday 18th March will be transported 50 years back to the Glasgow shipyards for Yes! Yes! UCS!, the latest historical, political play from Townsend Theatre.

This new play, which chronicles the story of the Upper Clyde Shipbuilders’ work-in of the early 70s, combines powerful storytelling and animated projection with live rock and folk music from the period.

It’s 1971 and, straight out of school, Aggy McGraw gets a job at Fairfields shipyard in Govan, a week before the new Tory government decides to stop investment in ‘lame duck’ industries, including shipbuilding on the Clyde.

Facing an uncertain future, with nothing to lose except her job, Aggy is swept up into the famous work-in to demonstrate that shipbuilding has a future, and that the jobs, traditions, skills and communities can be saved.

Yes! Yes! U.C.S! is a celebration of the community solidarity and collective resistance inspired and led by Upper Clyde Shipbuilders’ shop stewards Jimmy Reid and Jimmy Airlie.

Marking the 50th anniversary of the famous UCS industrial action, the play explores how the workers took over the yards and continued building ships, and how their struggle inspired huge support from all over Britain and internationally, from trade unions, the labour movement, industry suppliers, local authorities, churches, local communities and shop-keepers, eventually leading to victory in the fight for the Right to Work.

Townsend Productions has two Dorset dates with

Artsreach, at Portland on Friday 18th and Studland village hall on Saturday 19th. Other regional dates on the long tour include 2nd April at Poole’s Lighthouse arts centre, Crediton Arts Centre on 8th April, Soapbox Theatre at Plymouth on 9th April, and Plough Arts at Great Torrington in North Devon on 10th April.

Blame it on the 90s

BRIDPORT SHAPARAK Khorsandi lived life to the full in the 1990s. In fact, she says, she left an important part of her brain somewhere in a field in Hampshire. Now she is picking up the pieces in her new show, coming to Bridport’s Electric Palace on Thursday 17th March.

It was the 90s! explores her life as a typical girl of her time. From indie discos to unflattering crop tops, the show is a trip down memory lane to the decade where ‘kinky’ was nurse roleplay and whipped cream, and Shaparak found herself flying about London with hope in her heart, a tenner in her pocket and spare knickers in her handbag.

How does the decade of binge drinking and walks of shame look now without snakebite and black tinted specs?

Irish comedian Ed Byrne is also taking a long hard look at himself and trying to decide if he has any traits that may be worth passing on to his children.

His new show, If I’m Honest…, coming to the Electric Palace on Friday 18th, is another masterclass in observational comedy from this brilliant and much-loved stand-up.

YAOS to stage hit musical

YEOVIL YEOVIL Amateur Operatic Society will be one of the first groups in the country to stage the hit musical Kinky Boots, when this true story of how a young businessman and a drag queen saved a struggling shoe company.

The Tony, Grammy and Olivier Awardwinning musical by pop singer Cyndi Lauper and playwright Harvey Fierstein will be at the Octagon Theatre from 9th to 19th March.

Set in Northampton, it is the story of two people with nothing in common—or so they think. Young Charlie Price reluctantly inherits his father’s struggling shoe factory, much to the dismay of his demanding fiancée, who dreams of life in London. Charlie wrestles with his desires to leave his home town while facing up with his responsibility to save his father’s legacy and the family business from bankruptcy.

After a slow start, Charlie finds inspiration in the form of Lola, a fabulous drag performer who is in need of some sturdy stilettos for her act.

Against all the odds Lola turns out to be the one

Tel. 01308 423031 The Marshwood Vale Magazine March 2022 51

person who can help Charlie, and they work together to ensure the factory becomes a success.

As they work together to change people’s opinions, this unlikely pair find out that they have more in common than they ever thought, and together they come to understand that when you change your mind, you can change the world.

The leading roles of Charlie and Lola are played by Matt Parker, who has appeared in many YAOS shows, in smaller parts, and Carl Holdway-Bradley from Bridgwater, making his Yeovil debut. Nicole, Charlie’s wife, is played by Claire Brimble.

Moishe’s Bagel are on a short Artsreach tour

Klezmer band

TOURING MOISHE’S Bagel, a fiery Scottish five-piece band who play some of the most exciting klezmer music around, are coming to Dorset for two dates with Artsreach in March— on Friday 12th at Sturminster Marshall and Saturday 13th at Cerne Abbas.

Formed in Edinburgh in 2003, Moishe’s Bagel combines the energy and passion of Eastern European folk music with the excitement and soul of improvisation. Stunning original compositions meet sublime traditional melodies, all backed up by infectious foot-stomping grooves.

The virtuoso musicians, on fiddle, accordion, piano, bass and percussionband, have had sell-out gigs at venues including the Sage Gateshead, St George’s Bristol and Edinburgh’s Queens Hall. They have recorded four albums, and gained a Songlines’ Top of the World and Sunday Telegraph top 10 world albums accolade. Both gigs begin at 7.30pm.

Pelleas Ensemble

TOURING THE Pelleas Ensemble, Henry Roberts, flute, Luba Tunnicliffe, viola, and Anne Denholm, harp, becomes to the area at the beginning of April for four dates with Concerts in the West.

Formed at the Guildhall School of Music and drama in 2011, the ensemble begins the series at the Methodist Church at Minehead on Thursday 31st March at 7pm, followed by a coffee concert at Bridport Arts Centre at 11.30, and an evening performance at Ilminster Arts Centre at 7.30. The fourth concert is at The Dance House, Crewkerne on Saturday 2nd at 7.30, and the final

52 The Marshwood Vale Magazine March 2022 Tel. 01308 423031

programme is at the Church of St Roch at Pendomer on Sunday 2nd at 3pm.

The Pelleas have won many awards, including the Royal Philharmonic Society”s Henderson Chamber Ensemble Award in 2018, and the 2016 Grand Prize and Audience Prize in the St Martin-in-the-Fields Chamber Music competition. They are dedicated to performing new music and have had four pieces written for their ensemble.

The programme for the tour includes Beamish’s Between Earth and Sea, and works by Debussy, Dowland, Smyth and Prokofiev.

Stories crossing time and space

VILLAGES THE Sheffield-based Utopia Theatre has two dates with Artsreach in Dorset in March, the only West Country venues on a long tour for Here’s What She Said to Me, a play that explores the experience of three generations of African women.

The local dates are Saturday 12th March at Portesham village hall and Sunday 13th at Motcombe. Both performances start at 7.30pm.

Meet Agbeke, Omotola and Aramide, the three generations of proud African women connecting with each other across two continents, across time and space.

Together they share their struggles, their joys, tragedies and broken dreams in order to find healing in the present.

Here’s What She Said to Me combines drama with music and poetry to tell a moving story of daughters and mothers in the world of migrations and shifting identities, braving life with an undying hope, optimism and resilience.

The play was first staged at the Crucible Theatre in 2020.

Cut short by the Covid pandemic, the production found a new life online through livestreaming. Now Utopia are back on stage with a live audience.

Artistic director Mojisola Elufowoju says: “We are so excited to finally be able to take our production of Here’s What She Said to Me on tour. Since its first staging in 2020, we always intended to bring the production to audiences across the country.”

Taking tea with Mr Barnes

STURMINSTER NEWTON THE Ridgway Singers and Band, with Tim Laycock, Phil Humphries and members of the William Barnes Society, celebrate the works of Dorset’s famous dialect poet at the 2022 Tea with William Barnes at the Exchange at Sturminster Newton Exchange at 3pm on Sunday 6th March.

Barnes, who is recognised as Britain’s greatest dialect poet relished the country-dances, folksongs and carols of Dorset, and often wrote about community celebrations, where music was a key part of the proceedings. That tradition is continued by the Ridgeway Singers and Band, supported by Dorset’s rural touring charity Artsreach.

As well as his poems in the Dorset vernacular, Barnes was also, as Thomas Hardy wrote ‘probably the most interesting link between present and past forms of rural life that England possessed’. Born in Bagber in 1801, he went to school in Sturminster Newton and grew up to become an innovative schoolmaster, with a knowledge of more

Captain Accident and the Disasters will be rocking the Beehive

than 70 languages, the author of more than 30 books in prose, an artist, engraver, musician, folklorist, inventor and parish priest.

Many of Barnes contemporaries regarded him as hopelessly old fashioned, with his love of old ways, old words, and old customs; but now we have cause to be thankful that he captured the sound of the Dorset speech in such an artistic and imaginative way.

Led by Tim Laycock and Phil Humphries, The Ridgeway Singers and Band will celebrate the sounds and stories of old Dorset, performing traditional songs collected across the county, playing dance tunes from the repertoire of Blackmore Vale fiddler Benjamin Rose, and reciting some of the poems that keep alive the rich dialect of Dorset.

Tickets include a Dorset Cream tea, and are available from The Exchange (01258 475137) or online at www.artsreach. co.uk

Eclectic mix for March

HONITON WHATEVER your musical tastes, from grand opera to contemporary folk to reggae, the March programme at Honiton’s Beehive centre has something to entertain you, alongside a line-up of films that includes one of the year’s outstanding releases.

Verdi’s dark masterpiece, Rigoletto, is brought up to date by director Oliver Mears, and Sir Antonio Pappano conducts in this startling new production, which will be streamed from the Royal Opera House at 7.15pm on Thursday 10th March. It contains some of Verdi’s greatest music, his most heartless tenor lead, a tragic heroine and, at the heart of the action, the ambivalent figure of the twisted

jester, Rigoletto, who plays along with his master’s decadent games until he realises it is his own daughter who is the object of the Duke’s sexual appetite.

One of the most popular duos on the folk song, husband and wife Sean Lakeman and Kathryn Roberts come to the Beehive on Friday 11th at 8pm, with a programme that showcases their musical talents, mixing traditional songs with their own original material. The Beehive has its regular Folk Cafe night on Wednesday 16th from 7.30.

The month’s musical events end, on Friday 25th, with the musical delights of Captain Accident and the Disasters.

At his home, Captain Accident creates a blend of rockdriven soulful roots reggae, ska, dub and rocksteady which is brought to life on stage with a musicians collective, The Disasters.

Nominated for multiple BAFTAs and Oscars, Kenneth Branagh’s semi-autobiographical film Belfast is being shown on Friday 4th at 7.30pm. It’s not being streamed, so don’t miss this beautiful, poignant and occasionally joyous slice of life at the start of the Troubles, through the eyes of an energetic child.

Another acclaimed new film, The Souvenir II, starring Tilda Swinton’s daughter, Honor Swinton Byrne, is on screen on Saturday 12th at 7.30pm. Another Oscar hopeful, The Eyes of Tammy Faye, is on Friday 18th. The Beehive turns the clock back to 1957 for the March nostalgic cinema event,on Thursday 24th, with An Affair to Remember starring Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr.

World Land Speed Record breaker Richard Noble comes to the Beehive on Thursday 24th for a talk, A Supersonic Evening of Adventure, which will be raising funds for 1064 (Honiton) Squadron Air Training Corps.

GPW

Tel. 01308 423031 The Marshwood Vale Magazine March 2022 53

YOUNG LIT FIX IN MARCH PICTURE BOOK Ten Minutes to Bed: Little…

By Rhiannon Fielding, Illustrated by Chris Chatterton Published by Ladybird, an Imprint of Penguin Random House Children’s UK. RRP £6.99 each Recommended for children ages 3 and up WELCOME to the Land of Nod, a series of beautifully illustrated picture books, where each Little creature finds themselves avoiding bedtime. Calm and soothing these books are the perfect way to get little ones ready for bed and ready to sleep.

Little Unicorn gets distracted Ten Minutes to Bed in her book, following a shooting star, a flying dragon, fleeing a little monster until following her rainbow home in time for bed.

Little Monster investigates strange noises Ten Minutes to Bed while his monster friends cause havoc before he gets sleepy and sends them all home to bed.

Little Mermaid, Little Dinosaur and Little Dragons also find adventure in the Land of Nod before they settle down to sleep.

How do you settle your Little one down in the Ten Minutes to Bed?

MIDDLE GRADE Dragon Storm Series

by Alastair Chisholm Published by Nosy Crow, RRP £6.99 each Recommended for independent readers aged 7 and up ‘In the land of Draconis, there are no Dragons’.

So begins the Dragon Storm Saga, where Dragons are remembered only as legend and myth. But something strange is happening in the Land of Draconis and the Dragons may be ready to return.

The first two books in this fantastic new fantasy series for younger readers: Tomas and Ironskin and Cara and Silverthief we meet the children who are destined to be Dragonseers. Each Dragon chooses their own Dragonseer to bond with, the human who can call them from their own world into the world of Draconis. But Tomas and Cara, and their bonded dragons, have to figure out their own barriers to becoming one with each other.

Love and loyalty, friendship and trust are the overriding themes of this thrilling series. Sophisticated storytelling with accessible language, perfect for both confident younger readers and reluctant readers looking for high interest books. I absolutely love this series.

TEEN The Revelry

by Katherine Webber Published by Walker Books, RRP £7.99 Recommended for Ages 14 and up BITSY Clark has lived her whole life in Ember Grove, like both her parents and all her grandparents, and as everyone in Ember Grove knows, The Revelry will be the best night of your life. But that is all anyone knows until it is their time to join The Revelry. And you do not go to any Revelry that isn’t your own.

Amy wasn’t born in Ember Grove, but her best friend Bitsy was determined to make her one of them. Amy doesn’t necessarily believe in all the local superstitions and so when she decides to sneak into The Revelry a year early, she has no idea what harm can come of it. She’s so convincing, Bitsy agrees to go with her.

When Bitsy wakes up the following morning with no recollection of what happened the night before, and no sign of Amy, she’s terrified. But when Amy finally appears she is completely unconcerned. And things just get worse from there. All good things happen to Amy, but awful things are happening to Bitsy that everyone around her dismisses as hallucinations, telling her not to worry. Worse still, every time she tries to talk to someone about their Revelry they just become vague and tell her it was the best night of their lives.

Bitsy alone has to figure out what on earth happened in the woods that night, and undo the curse that only she seems aware of.

A chilling and thrilling tale of friendship and rivalry, love and family. Oh so good.

Reviews by Antonia Squire

10% off for Marshwood Vale readers at The Bookshop on South Street, Bridport. 01308 422964 www.dorsetbooks.com 54 The Marshwood Vale Magazine March 2022 Tel. 01308 423031

Screen Time with Nic Jeune

Emelia Jones in Coda

The Oscars - my selection from the 2022 nominations Best Picture Belfast has seven Oscar nominations 11-year-old Jude Hill is a revelation as the young Kenneth Branagh. Shot in black and white. It is made with great affection by the writer director. Branagh and his excellent cast all work hard to pull at our heart strings. In Cinemas currently.

However, my choice for Best Picture would be: Coda Emilia Jones as the child of deaf adult stars alongside deaf actors Troy Kotsur, Marlee Matlin and Daniel Durant. Coda won more awards at Sundance in 2021 than any film in its history. It is a joy to watch. Available on Appletv+ Best Actor The Power of the Dog Annie Proulx who wrote Brokeback Mountain spoke of Thomas Savages 1960s novel The Power of The Dog as an inspiration. These are both stories about cowboys, but neither are in truth westerns.

The Power of the Dog has been nominated for twelve Oscars but by far the most deserved is best supporting actor for Kodi SmitMcPhee who at nine years old played The Boy in the 2009 film Road. Available on Netflix.

Best Actress The Lost Daughter is nominated for three Oscars and the one I would pick is best supporting actress for Jessie Buckley currently starring in the West End as Sally Bowles alongside Eddie Redmayne in Cabaret. Here she brilliantly plays the young mother of two Leda. “In this remarkable directorial debut, Maggie Gyllenhaal challenges conventional thinking about motherhood.”

Variety. Peter Debruge. Available on Netflix.

Best Documentary Summer of Soul (or when the revolution could not be televised) This documentary is a revelation. For 52 years this footage has been gathering dust in a cupboard. The list of performers is remarkable, Nina Simone, B.B. King, the 5th Dimension, the Staple Singers, Stevie Wonder, Gladys Knight, Sly and The Family Stone and more, many more. “It’s a music documentary like no other, because while it’s a joyful, cataclysmic, and soulfully seductive concert movie, what it’s really about, is a key turning point in Black life in America.” Variety. Owen Glieberman. Available on Disney+

Flee Best Animation Film Five films nominated for this category and four of them great entertainment for children. However Flee is rated PG-13 and is not only nominated for Best Animation but also for Best International Feature and for Documentary. The film follows Amin Nawabi, who, on the verge of marrying his husband, shares his story for the first time about his hidden past fleeing his home country Afghanistan to Denmark as a refugee. Flee has appeared on over 33 film critics’ top-ten lists for 2021. Available Curzon Home Cinema.

Tel. 01308 423031 The Marshwood Vale Magazine March 2022 55

Health&Environment

Trust aims for wildlife haven

Support for young people with learning difficulties

The Woodland Trust hopes to attract beavers to the Devon site. Photograph by Laurie Campbell

T

he Woodland Trust needs public’s help to hit a £2.5 million target to turn a Devon site into a woodland haven for rare wildlife. The charity—celebrating its 50th year—is looking to go back to its roots and is seeking the public’s help as it raises funds to create a new woodland in the backyard of where it was formed.

The stunning 54-hectare site near Lympstone, Devon, is set in a wonderful location—a scenic rural valley close to the Exe Estuary, itself a Site of Special Scientific Interest.

The charity will look to plant trees and encourage natural regeneration (letting trees and shrubs regrow naturally), as well as leave areas open, to create the conditions for a rich array of species to one day colonise it. These include rare birds such as the nightjar, several threatened species of bat, the hazel dormouse, the dingy skipper butterfly, and a whole host of unusual invertebrates.

They are even hoping to attract beavers to the site from a nearby river once the streams and waterways have been restored and colonised with native trees such as alder and willow.

It would be a fitting purchase for the charity which was created in 1972 when a group of friends sat round a table in a Devon home to discuss saving a local wood.

It quickly led to its first woodland purchase, Avon Woods in the county, and from there the charity’s presence and influence has grown—it now cares for 1,000 woods across the UK and is the largest woodland conservation charity in the country.

Paul Allen, site manager in Devon for the Woodland Trust said this is a unique opportunity in a special year for the charity, but at a crucial time for nature. He said: ‘Nestled in a hidden valley in east Devon, the site has areas of existing broadleaf woodland, several streams and a scattering of isolated veteran trees, which would once have been part of hedgerows, criss-crossing fields. What makes this land such a prize is the outstanding array of rare wildlife found nearby, and which we hope will move in, once a richer variety of habitats, from trees to open spaces, have been established.

In our 50th year, with the twin threats of climate change and nature loss looming ever larger—it’s a hugely important time to create this woodland and provide more spaces for nature to thrive and improve the connectivity of the wider landscape.’

Volunteers and local people will play a key part in creating the new wooded landscape, and the charity has pledged to plant the wood without using plastic tree shelters—heralding its new commitment to have a plastic-free estate.

The charity has now planted more than 50 million trees, protects and cares for more than 1,000 woodland havens for wildlife and people, and has saved 1,172 woods from the likes of development.

To support the appeal visit: woodlandtrust.org.uk/devonappeal

56 The Marshwood Vale Magazine March 2022 Tel. 01308 423031

Mark Tattersall, Dorchester Arts with Roy Chapman and Vanessa Lucas from Dorchester Casterbridge Rotary,

DORCHESTER Arts is delighted to have received £1,700 from the Dorchester Casterbridge Rotary Club to enable several theatre performances for young people with profound mental and learning difficulties.

The funding is as a result of the Rotary’s successful Christmas fundraising drive to benefit local causes, and Dorchester Arts is delighted to be a recipient.

Two sold out performances by specialist theatre company Frozen Light of its show ‘2065’ will take place this month; and performances by another company— Concrete Youth—are planned for later in the summer. All have been made possible by this generous donation.

Mark Tattersall, Artistic Director, said: ‘Providing a theatrical experience for those with complex needs is vital but costly due to the small audience numbers involved.

This generous donation will enable us to bring not one but two specialist theatre companies to Dorset in 2022, and we are incredibly grateful to the Rotary.’

Roy Chapman, Chair of the Dorchester Casterbridge Rotary Club, said: ‘Dorchester Casterbridge Rotary Club are very pleased to support Dorchester Arts in providing drama specifically commissioned to provide entertainment for youngsters with profound and multiple learning difficulties.

We have been able to do this due to the generosity of the Dorchester public in supporting our Christmas sleigh collections in South Street’.

Tel. 01308 423031 The Marshwood Vale Magazine March 2022 57

Services&Classified SITUATIONS VACANT

Copper coal scuttle £25; Antique copper water carrier with double spout (4litre capacity) £45; EPNS tea set - Georgian style (Teapot, Sugar bowl, Milk jug) £25; Vintage enamel bread bin and bowl (cream and green) 25 magazines, Tractor £20. 01460 52645: Near and Machinery, Heritage Ilminster.

Commercials £20 more Brand new pura bloque details and photos 01460 puracast single ended bath 1700 x 700. Legs 55105. attached but last minute Gents Scarpa walking change of bathroom boots, size 12.Goretex plan. Priced for quick lined.Good condition. £35. Decorative cobbles sale as sat in my lounge £200 ono may be able for garden 1”- 3” to arrange local delivery. diameter. 6 x 20kg Cash on collection. bags. £4 each. Sand Collection is Puddletown coloured, round ‘stone effect’ paving stones. 12 07909 846433.

Glass bath shower x 16”. £3 each. Gazco screen etched irises V.G Logic convector gas condition £75. Nursing fire to fit in fireplace chair in pink dralon. V.G. with conventional flue. condition. £75. 01297 Regulary serviced but now no longer required. 553423.

Riser Recliner HSL £175. Plastic compost Penrith dual motor riser bin 330 lt with lid. £8. recliner upholstered in Tel. 01308 423849.

Collier’s Encyclopedia wine boucle fabric As new has had minimal volumes 1-24 plus “1967/8 Year Book” and use Cost £1700 new “International Standard will accept £400 Buyer collects. 01308 868717.

Dictionary x2”. vgc Offers t: 01297 561512. Beautiful, newly Titan Oil Tank H1250 restored conversation not bunded 285 gal size sofa. Victorian, Walnut, French. Upholstery 1440x1120 height 1260 traditional materials. Top mm green plastic fitted cover grey,velvet rose 2002 for sale for £5.00 design Blendworth. A buyer to collect from lockdown project but Morcombelake phone I need the space. Price 01297 489521.

Charmouth Heritage Coast Centre. Two Trustees wanted. Grant application experience welcome. Email info@ charmouth.org. Phone 01297 560772 for more information.

58 The Marshwood Vale Magazine March 2022 Tel. 01308 423031

FOR SALE negotiable. Need to cover my materials and some of my time! I have a record in photos of all the construction, so it will last another 100 years. Please phone for details, size and photos.

01404 881312 or 07788 757611.

Bernina 830 Sewing Machine. Swiss made, serviced and in excellent condition complete with all the original components for sewing, embroidery and appliqué work. Photographs available, £250. Contact 01305 251133.

Minster Stone Fireplace/Hearth No 5404 98cmx137cm.

Good condition £250.

Can email photo.

Telephone 01297 552714 or 07786787392.

Brush cutter/strimmer heavy duty petrol Titan.

Complete with harness and blade. Used once not needed since house move. See Screwfix site half price £55.

Ilminster/Chard – 07806 937987.

Stressless recliner chair by ekornes in fine leather. Cost £1000.

Arms and part seat need attention £50 weymouth 01305 833523.

Pine Welsh dresser, excellent condition, H200 W160 D25/45. £195 can deliver. Photo available. 07963 951651.

RESTORATION Hay £3.50 Haylage £5.00 Straw £2.75 Free local delivery 07970 288272 C.F. Martin +Co Acoustic. Model OM21 year 2005. Superb instrument with Martin had case £1,690. only.

Dorchester Tel: 07719 535094

Hayter SP36 scarifier, excellent machine by Top company £275. Good condition 01308 862495 Ladies bike reliable, 3 gears, shopping basket, rear luggage holder and reflector. £30. Fridge £25. Crewkerne area.

01460 279687.

Metal detector 11” Searchead and cover, control box cover, WHP superb condition, very little used, in original box. £590 ono collected.

07591 058862 any evening after 6pm.

Car battery 12V YuaSa YBX302Y 1 year old only £35. 01305 871089.

Bang and Olufsen Beosystem 2200? Vintage system before CD players. Ideal for vinyl revival. £100. Dorchester 07719 535094.

16” spare wheel, full size, 4 studs and 195/55R16 tyre (used), compatible with Vauxhall Corsa Generation E 2014-2019 £60. 07506 699540.

FURNITURE. Antique Restoration and Bespoke Furniture.

Furniture large and small carefully restored and new commissions undertaken. City and Guilds qualified.

Experienced local family firm. Phil Meadley 01297 560335

Mar 22

PEST CONTROL Three Counties Pest Control. Friendly, professional service.

Pest problems? Call us on 07484 677457 www.3cpestcontrol.co.uk Apr 22

STALLHOLDERS Stallholders wanted.

Halstock Fete are inviting stallholders to book their pitches for Saturday 3rd September 2022. For information phone Peter on 01935 891822.

FOR SALE Gokart electric golf trolley, very good condition, recent new battery. £95. 07803 322062.

Modern three seater settee with matching armchair, wide arms, beige, vgc, Bargain £60ono. 01308 301377.

Lovely Willow and Hall two eater oatmeal settee, excellent condition pet and smoke free home. £125ono. Can deliver locally for a small cost.

Two spare seat covers.

01297 489431.

Primrose 2 metre awning, ‘New’ canopy striped yellow and green, full cassette cost £700.

Now £250. Purchased by mistake. 01308 423620.

ELECTRICAL

WANTED

CHIMNEY SWEEP

Vintage & antique textiles, linens, costume buttons etc. always sought by Caroline Bushell. Tel. 01404 45901.

Apr 22

Secondhand tools. All trades and crafts. Old and modern. G & E C Dawson. 01297 23826. www.secondhandtools. co.uk.

Aug 22

Dave buys all types of tools 01935 428975

Apr 22

Wanted: Old tractors and vehicles. Running, non running. Good price paid. 01308 482320 07971 866364 Dec 22

Coins wanted. Part or full collections purchased for cash.

Please phone John on 01460 62109

Apr 22

Too much clutter in your Loft, shed, Garage, barn. I buy job-lots of vintage items.

07875677897

Mar 22

FOR SALE Cake decorating equipment, tools, cutters, moulds, books and lot more. £35ono. 01460 52979.

Electric Singer sewing machine model 2282, straight stitch plus 11 pattern stitches and instruction manual, good condition, £35.

Crewkerne 07891 705598.

Stihl FS360c brush cutter/ strimmer with full harness and helmet with ear defenders, bery good condition, £250ono.

077965 63475.

Safety circuit breaker,

FOR SALE brand new £10. Control switch used once, £5.

01935 475640.

Italian leather, two seater settee, dark tan, no scratches or marks, in very good condition, £120ono. View photos at patsmith89@hotmail. com. 07731 559560.

Moulinex Masterchef 450 complete with instruction book. £25.

01308 422361.

Crockery – Fresh Fruit by Johnson Brothers, octagonal and dishwasher, microwave, and freezer safe.

Various plates, bowls etc. 69 pieces in all. £50ovno. 01305 897488 (answerphone if out) Burton Bradstock.

Natural History Collections including books on Ornithology, Entomology, Botanical plus equipment surpluses and geological collection. £90. 01980 621111.

Jacket 26 – 28 cream and black wool mix, contemporary design. £30. Comes below hips.

01935 881801.

Breadmaker- Fastbake Morphy Richards hardly used £25ono. Chideock deliver locally. Nissan Juke crossbar roof-rack, new £30. 01297 489567.

Vintage Ercol easychair, low armchair Yorkshire design circa 1960s, new webbing recovered as new, £500ono. Matching footstool, £250ono.

01297 443930.

Ercol 1960s Windsor Carver chair, £150ono. G plan Teak cabinet H 48” x W 30” x D 16”, 2 full size 2 half size drawers, 2 doors above, £50.

01297 443930.

Sleeping bag, single, maroon, as new, £5. Lilo, not plastic, with foot pump, as new £7. 01935 475640.

Alto Saxophone hardly used with music stand. £80. Vital Max food processor, slightly damaged but works well. £40. 01308 867278.

Two Settee cottage style settee, vgc, suitable for lounge or conservatory, Musbury nr Axminster. Free of charge but must collect.

01297 552497.

32” Panasonic Viera TV with remote and instruction book. Very good condition on swivel stand. Have upgraded to larger smart TV hence sale. £50. Thorncombe 07469 791449.

Bang & Olufson: Amplifier Beomaster

DISTRIBUTION

FOR SALE 4000 GWO £80ono; Two Beovox 560 Loudspeakers GWO £180ono; Swiss Army Rucsac, stout leather reinforced £80ono.

Delivery in Dorset.

Please call 07846 976268.

Jacket Harris Tweed 44 chest £35. Bagatelle pin ball game, beechwood £10. Solitaire board

game green glass marble set £5. 077879 880250.

New pale grey pleated thermal Hilarys blind for skylight window 18” width 38” drop £40.

Offers. 2 cerise pink silky fabric 6” square lamp light shades with tassels £5 each. 07500 592119.

Tel. 01308 423031 The Marshwood Vale Magazine March 2022 59

FREE ADS for items under £1,000 This FREE ADS FORM is for articles for sale, where the sale price is under £1000 (Private advertisers only — no trade, motor, animals, alcohol, firearms etc). Just fill in the form and send it to the Marshwood Vale Magazine, Lower Atrim, Bridport, Dorset DT6 5PX or email the text to info@marshwoodvale.com.

Unfortunately due to space constraints there is no guarantee of insertion of free advertising. We reserve the right to withhold advertisements. For guaranteed classified advertising please use ‘Classified Ads’ form

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Monthly Quiz –

Win a book from Little Toller Books

Send in your answer on a postcard, along with your name and address to: Hargreaves Quiz, Marshwood Vale Magazine, Lower Atrim, Bridport, Dorset DT6 5PX. Study the clues contained in the rhyme and look carefully at the signposts to work out which town or village in South Somerset, West Dorset or East Devon is indicated. The first correct answer drawn out of a hat will win a book from local publisher Little Toller Books.

There is no cash equivalent and no correspondence will be entered into.

Last month’s answer was Up Sydling. The winner was Mr Squibb from Dorchester.

60 The Marshwood Vale Magazine March 2022 Tel. 01308 423031

BUSINESS NEWS Businesses support Dorset County Hospital DORSET County Hospital has highlighted two local businesses which have fundraised in support of Kingfisher Children’s Ward and the Special Care Baby Unit.

Kirsten and Mark Walbridge, who own Walbridge Motor Company in King’s Stag, have been fundraising with their brother-in-law Daniel Curtis, and his wife Alison who works in the Emergency Department at DCH. Kirsten and Mark’s daughter spent time on Kingfisher ward and in the Special Care Baby Unit at DCH and they felt they needed to do Kirsten & Mark Walbridge fundraising something special to support the hospital.

In 2020 they made a ‘Santa’s sleigh’ using a quad bike and trailer. Over Christmas Santa visited with Rudolph and an elf and they went around the local villages to cheer up children in the lockdown. In December 2021 they decided to do it all again but this time they included local pubs. Over two nights they covered a number of villages including King’s Stagg, Hazelbury Bryan, Higher Ansty, Melcombe Bingham, Cheselbourne, Dewlish and Puddletown and raised a total of £593 to be split equally between Kingfisher Ward and the SCBU. Louisa Franzen, owner of the Highbrow Group, comprising The Highbrow clinic, The Highbrow Skin and Laser Clinic and The Highbrow Training Academy in Brewery Square, Dorchester, recently raised over £2,000 for Kingfisher Ward with her daughter Rosie. Rosie had been treated on the ward and they wanted to say thank you for the excellent care and support she received.

Both donations have gone towards a Virtual Reality headset kit for children which will be used on Kingfisher Ward. For further information or to offer support email charity@dchft.nhs.uk or visit www.dchcharity. org.uk

Tel. 01308 423031 The Marshwood Vale Magazine March 2022 61