ISSUE 94 February & March 2014 Walking along the Morston to Blakeney coastal path at high tide, Friday morning 6 December 2013
LOCAL TIDAL SURGE REPORTS p4-6
www.locallynx.co.uk 1
WHAT’S ON FEBRUARY 1st Sat. Langham Coffee &Sale, Parish Room 10-12 7th Fri. Bale Police Street Meeting, outside church 1112noon 10 –11am 7th Fri. Gunthorpe Police Street Meeting, outside Village Institute 10 –11am 8th Sat. Sharrington Police Street Meeting, outside Village Hall 10-11am 14th Fri. Bale Fish & Chips, Village Hall 7pm 15th Sat. Morston FMC Quiz 2014 VH 7.30pm 19th Wed. Binham Games evening. The Chequers pub, 7.30pm 20th Thu. Binham & Hindringham Open Circle meeting Hindringham Village Hall 7.15pm 20th Thu. Langham Mobile Library 22nd Sat. Gunthorpe 50:50 Club Village Institute 10.30am 27th Thu. Binham History Group talk, Village Hall 7.30pm 27th Thu. Gunthorpe & Bale PC Meeting Bale Village Hall 7pm MARCH 1st Sat. Langham Coffee, Parish Room 10am-12 noon 3rd Mon. Binham Pub Quiz The Chequers, 7.30pm 14th Fri. Bale Fish & Chips, Village Hall 7pm 14th Fri. Binham Friends Event, Village Hall 7pm 14th Fri. Field Dalling Cash Bingo, Village Hall (come early to avoid disappointment!) 17th Mon. Binham Parish Council meeting. 7 for 7.30pm start, Village Hall 20th Thu. Binham & Hindringham Open Circle meeting, Hindringham Village Hall. 7.15pm 20th Thu. Langham Mobile Library 21st Sat. Langham Talk by Sir Richard Gozney, Parish Room 7pm 27th Thu. Binham History Group talk, Village Hall 7.30pm 29th Sat. Gunthorpe 50:50 Club Village Institute 10.30am 29th Sat. Langham Leukaemia Sale, Parish Room 10-12
- is a non-profit-making community newspaper, run for the ten villages of the benefice. We warmly welcome drawings, articles and letters for publication, but must reserve the right to edit or exclude items. A maximum of 400 words is recommended. The items published do not necessarily reflect the views of the editors or the village representatives. For information about submitting items for publication, or if you want to help in any other way, please contact your village representative, through whom all village news must be submitted. For general information please send a message to our email address:
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CONTACT FOR ADVERTISERS For enquiries about advertising in Local Lynx, please contact Maxine Burlingham tel: 01328-830375 email: maxine.burlingham@me.com Rates for advertising (pre-paid) are: One column x 62 mm (1/8 page): £72 for six issues. Small Ads Panel on the back page: Available for individuals and businesses providing local services. Cost: £36 for six issues.
BLAKENEY METHODIST CHURCH High Street Blakeney Minister: The Rev’d J Pathmarajah Tel: 01263 712 181
Winter months: Sunday Services at 2.30pm For details of weekday services and preachers, please refer to the current issue of ‘ Glaven Valley Newsletter’.
REGULARS Mondays term time Binham Parent & Toddlers Group Village Hall 10-12 Mondays Field Dalling Keep Fit with Sally King Village Hall 6-7pm Tuesdays Binham Guild of Artists Village Hall 10-12 Tuesdays Field Dalling Village Hall Yoga with Richard Redmayne 7.30-8.30pm Wednesdays term time Binham Youth Group Village Hall 6-8pm 2nd Wednesday in month Field Dalling Coffee Morning Village Hall 10.30-12noon 4th Wednesday in month Field Dalling Friends & Neighbours 2.30pm Thursdays Field Dalling Village Hall Carpet Bowls 7.30pm 3rd Thursday in month Binham & Hindringham Open Circle, Hindringham Village Hall 7.15pm
BLAKENEY CATHOLIC CHURCH Back Lane Blakeney Father Keith Tulloch 12 Hindringham Road Gt. Walsingham Norfolk Tel: 01328 821 353
Priest in Residence Father William Wells (the house behind the church)
Service Times Masses: Vigil Mass Sunday
Saturday 6.00pm. 11.00am
DEANERY NEWS
Next Deanery Synod: Thursday March 13 th 7.15pm for 7.30pm at St. Andrew’s ‘Meeting Place’ Holt. Watch out for posters for details of Speaker.
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Church Services for Bale and Stiffkey Benefice for February and March 2014 HC=Holy Communion. CFS=Church Family Service. MP=Morning Prayer. BCP=Book of Common Prayer All Communion Services are in traditional language except those marked *
Parish Bale Field Dalling
2nd February 9.30am HC At Saxlingham
9th February 9.30am HC 11.00am CFS
16th February 9.30am HC At Saxlingham
23rd February 9.30am HC 11.00am MP BCP
9.30am HC
At Field Dalling 11.00am MP 9.30am HC 11.00am HC
11.00am HC 4.30pm Silent Meditation 9.30am MP CW 11.00am CFS 9.30am HC BCP At Stiffkey 9.30am HC
At Field Dalling 11.00am HC 9.30am HC 9.30am HC
Saxlingham Gunthorpe Sharrington Binham Morston Langham Stiffkey
9.30am MP BCP 11.00am HC 9.30am HC BCP At Stiffkey 9.30am MP
Parish
2nd March
9th March
16th March
23rd March
Bale Field Dalling
9.30am HC At Saxlingham
9.30am HC 11.00am CFS
9.30am HC At Saxlingham
9.30am HC 11.00am MP BCP
Saxlingham Gunthorpe
9.30am HC
At Field Dalling 11.00am MP
At Field Dalling 11.00am HC
Sharrington
9.30am MP BCP
9.30am HC
11.00am HC 4.30pm Silent Meditation 9.30am MP CW
Binham
11.00am HC
11.00am HC
11.00am CFS
9.30am HC
Morston
9.30am HC BCP
Langham Stiffkey
At Stiffkey 9.30am MP
9.30am MP At Langham
9.30am HC
9.30am HC BCP 9.30am MP At Langham
At Stiffkey 9.30am HC
9.30am HC At Langham
9.30am HC At Langham 30th March Mothering Sunday 11.00am Mothering Sunday At Field Dalling
9.30am Mothering Sunday 11.00am Mothering Sunday 9.30am Mothering Sunday At Stiffkey 9.30am Mothering Sunday
5th March (Ash Wednesday): Langham, Holy Communion at 10.00am Gunthorpe, Informal Evening Service at 6.00pm Regular Weekday Services Binham: Tuesday, 6.00pm Evening Pr ayer s, Langham: Wednesday, 10.00am Holy Communion Stiffkey: Fr iday, 10.00am Holy Communion
RECTOR’S LETTER
In the gospels we have the twisting together of the stories of the Magi, (the three wise men), the Presentation of Christ as a baby in the Temple, and the Baptism of the adult Jesus by his cousin John in the river Jordan. These make apparent the REALITY of the Presence of God in and for humanity. These things speak of redemptive sacrifice and incarnate hope. And the many words may perhaps be condensed into one. King. Christ is the King the wise men came to worship; and the work of Christ is to exercise the Kingship of God. His Kingdom is the whole universe. His Kingship is everlasting. Espoir en Dieu. Croyons à l’avenir. Yours very truly, Ian Whittle The Rectory, Langham 01328 830246
The star has risen in the heart, The sweet light flushes every part. The shepherds of the body know, The rumour reached them long ago, Abiding in the field were they When deity informed the clay. The wise kings of the mind bow down, They yield the wiser king his crown; Before a cradle they unfold The myrrh and frankincense and gold. Susan Mitchell, 1866 – 1926 Dear Friends and Parishioners, Christmas is behind us, and we are now in another great season, Epiphany. The word means “I show forth!” and the origin of both feast-day and season is the Eastern celebration of the Incarnation, the Lord’s putting on of flesh. Its fundamental concern is Theophany: the manifestation, the revealing of God to the world in Jesus Christ, born in that little town of Bethlehem.
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A FLOOD WARDEN’S ACCOUNT (First printed in the January 2014 edition of the Glaven Valley Newsletter) Although there have always been a few locals able to predict them, many tidal surge events in the past have come out of the blue. Today satellite based weather forecasts and digital media coupled with local knowledge offer opportunities to look a little further into the future and as early as the 2nd of December there was a clear indication that a very big tide was in the offing for the evening of Thursday the 5th. On Tuesday the 3rd, this email went out to the Wiveton Flood Wardens team – ‘John, Peter, and Steve, Thursday is a long way off, but if the current timings for the arrival of the ‘wind change’ on Thursday remain in place there could be a very big tide and a possible breach of the Blakeney bank, which of course is our cue to think about evacuations etc. I will keep you posted.’ As the days went by and the wind strength predictions increased and crucially the timing of the wind’s change of direction from SW to NW remained at 5 hours before high water, the likelihood of a major surge event increased. For Blakeney, tidal flooding is a ‘relatively’ gradual process, but for Wiveton, Cley and Glandford sitting behind the Glaven bank, a much faster moving spectre lurks because, should it fail, these three villages would go from dry streets to 20 feet of water in as many minutes. The first Glaven bank erected shortly after the ‘53 storm is a few feet lower than the new one that runs around the front of Cley Mill, a fact that was to become significant as the night wore on. By late afternoon on the 5th, most of those in Wiveton who might need to be evacuated had been informed that this might happen. The Flood Wardens came together at 6.00pm and equipped with torches and hand held radios went to look at the state of play at Blakeney. Pulling up over the rise, we were not surprised to see the Carnser deep under water with waves crashing against the Community Centre and the tide visibly flowing over the road toward us; not good with another 2 hours to high water and that was assuming the peak of the surge wouldn’t come later than that. We then went back to check that the Environment Agency had shut the main sluice at Cley; they had and we were able to go into the control room and see for ourselves the spinning gauge that showed how rapidly the water was rising, one of the EA team was standing in front of it as if hypnotised. At this point, two of us went back to monitor the
situation at Blakeney and as we arrived we could see water flowing over the Blakeney bank like a weir. That it had come up so far in such a short time was alarming, so we quickly returned to Cley. Getting back, we immediately checked to see if anything had changed. We stood by some Environment Agency steps, of which there were 12 spanning a height of about 14 feet, and decided that they would offer a very good gauge of how quickly the water was rising when it eventually arrived. We met the others where the old bank coming round from Blakeney joins the new one to see that the salt marshes were completely covered and a torrent of muddy water was pouring over the old bank into Blakeney Freshes. At this point they were still mostly dry with just the ditches filling and giving off a powerful rotten egg stench of sulphur, but then quite silently as if welling up from the ground a dark mass of water appeared, spreading fast, first through the lower areas but in seconds all was covered by a fast moving, foam-covered surface that in the light of our torches looked like a mighty river. Hastening back to the steps, we saw that four of them were already submerged and the fifth disappeared just minutes later. At this point, I needed a pee and, not wanting to add to the problem, I retreated to seek relief. On my return another step had - without any help from me disappeared under the water. By this time, the wind had died the stars were bright and it was a lovely night. This calm gave the whole scene an eerie feel like watching a train crash in slow motion. As we swung our torches over the water we picked out a hare swimming for its life, it was about 200 metres from safety so we shone our lights so that it could see the new shore. It took it a long time but it finally made it, then frightened perhaps by our torches it cowered down so we let it be. A bit later when we looked it had gone. We then reflected for a while on the thousands of small creatures, including all the fresh water fish that would have died while we had been standing there. Within a very short time it was three steps from the top and still 45 minutes to high water. We asked the Environment Agency men, who had retreated back to their vehicle, if they could get us an update on the timing of the surge’s peak. They contacted their coordinators and came back with the rather frightening news that it was thought it had another hour to go. With the water still rising so fast, they endorsed our decision to evacuate. Our evacuees, particularly those from bungalows, were taken to the Parish Room. Once we were certain all were safe we went back to
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the scene to find that the water had covered all the steps and had reached to within a foot of the top of the bank. In a spot where cattle had worn the surface down it was slowly creeping over the top. If the wind had not eased there is no doubt that that bank would have been overtopped, or worse it could have breached like the Blakeney bank; if that had happened a 20 foot wall of water would have rushed up the Glaven Valley and all the low lying properties in Wiveton would have been inundated, bungalows submerged to the tops of their roofs and the main part of Cley flooded with an almost certain loss of life.
Aftermath First thing next morning, I went to Blakeney to record the damage and mark the height of the tide. On the north gable of the old coal barn at the bottom of the High Street are three plaques recording the flood levels for 1897, 1953 and 1978, my chalk mark sits at the top a line of bricks that corresponds exactly with the mark for 1978. I then went to look at the damage elsewhere to find the same bizarre redistribution of things as in 1953, where playing cards and cigarettes had been scattered all around the quayside: a large clump of reed bed perched on the top of a fence post, flights of steps leading nowhere, dead animals strung on barbed wire like a game keeper’s gibbet and where it wasn’t breached, giant bites out of the sea bank, some even looked to have teeth marks. It is almost as if at the height of nature’s assault on the works of man a gate opens and the devil comes through to play in the chaos. There have been the inevitable comparisons with the 1953 surge and claims that this one was more severe, mostly I note by people who were not alive in 1953. At Wells those claims may have some justification because in 1953 the west bank broke allowing an enormous volume of water to spill away into the reclaimed Holkham mashes, this time that bank held. So mixed blessings in that the west end of the town stayed dry but at the east end the flooding was worse. Having witnessed both events ‘here’ first hand, I can, without in any way diminishing the scale of this event, tell you that for us there was no comparison. In 1953 there were hurricane force winds, it was snowing and the wave damage was colossal, boats thrown through walls and houses knocked down. On this occasion the failure of the Blakeney bank saved Morston just as their bank was about to be overtopped and certainly reduced the flood level at Blakeney by about two feet; which somebody pointed out might have stopped
it from reaching the 53 level. But of course the same bank also broke in 1953. The significant difference between the two events was the wind, sea defence are now very much better - EN have done a good job - but had the wind been blowing as hard as it did in 53 I believe the damage and loss of life would have been just as great. Godfrey Sayers To read Godfrey Sayers’ article in full, go to www.locallynx.com and click on the ‘in more detail’.page.
TIDAL SURGE, DECEMBER 2013 The North Norfolk coast suffered serious damage and flooding during the evening of Thursday 5th December. A rare, but lethal, combination of factors caused tide levels to reach, and in some places exceed, the levels experienced in the 1953 floods, when many lives were lost along the coast. The factors causing this phenomenon were: (1) An intense low pressure system in northern Scotland, (2) Very high spring tides, (3) A strong to gale force west/north-west wind, (4) Low atmospheric pressure. There was extensive damage all along this coast with a lot of flood embankments seriously breached and many homes and businesses flooded up to a depth of 5ft in some places. Close to home, the beach at Salthouse was seriously breached, and this now allows almost every tide to flood the land north of the coast road, and on high spring tides the tide reaches the village and floods the coast road in places. In Blakeney, several properties were badly flooded including the Manor House Hotel and King’s Arms pub. The tide almost reached the Spar supermarket in Westgate Street and several wrecked boats blocked the road in front of the Blakeney Hotel. Damage and flooding would have been far worse at Blakeney and Morston if the embankment from Blakeney to Cley had not been breached in many places, causing huge quantities of water to flood all the land from Blakeney to Cley. This had the effect of “pulling the plug out of the harbour” at a critical point (1.5 hours before high water), causing the tide to drop several inches. A lucky escape for many properties, particularly in Morston where the tide reached the top of the emabankments, but there were no breaches. The tide level reached at the old lifeboat house on Blakeney Point was 3 inches lower than the ’53 floods and at Blakeney Quay it reached a height between the ’53 and ’78 flood levels. At Wells, where the beach road embankment
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defences allowing saltwater to flood the freshwater marshes. We have been seeking to understand what action the Environment Agency are considering to undertake and what influence this will have on this stretch of coastline. Thanks to everyone else from the community who has supported our team during this challenging period. Iain Wolfe
DISTRICT COUNCILLOR’S NOTES At Full Council just before Christmas the main item was the storm damage of 5th–6th December 2013 sustained by coastal areas of the District. The EDP Flood Appeal, with the possibility of donations earmarked specifically for victims of the storm surge in Walcott, was noted. Despite best efforts of the Environment Agency, the emergency services and co-ordinators, flood wardens and volunteers, families and businesses suffered loss and damage to property but we appreciate and acknowledge all endeavours and help which kept damage to the minimum. Also discussed and noted were the Council Tax Details for 2014/15 together with the Counter Fraud Policy and Prosecution Policy. NNDC Full Council supported the following motion regarding the coastal bus service, Coasthopper – North Norfolk District Council calls for Norfolk County Council to guarantee that there will be no reduction in the service and to consult fully with the residents and stakeholders in North Norfolk on the details of any potential changes when these are known. There has been correspondence recently with comments on the impact of planning applications in conservation areas as well as in areas of outstanding natural beauty. Perhaps it should be noted that Mrs. Nicola Baker was appointed in October as Head of Development Management and she is organising a programme of consultations with interested parties, including local Parishes, in the New Year. Finally, a word of thanks to all involved with the Lynx for their invitation to me and my husband to share in their pre-Christmas party which was much appreciated and enjoyed – so good to meet you all and of course see Bob Brandt again - Happy New Year to all. Lindsay Brettle
was not breached, many quayside businesses and some homes were very badly flooded and levels recorded were well in excess of 1953. Despite all the damage, thankfully no lives were lost, but it has left many property owners along this coast wondering how the Environment Agency will deal with all the damage to flood defences and how their policy of “Managed Retreat” will affect us. Charlie Ward
NATIONAL TRUST REPORT National Trust properties, structures and landforms were amongst the many on the Norfolk coast to suffer the brunt of the tidal surge during the evening of the 5th December. Following the flooding our team has been stretched along the coast from Brancaster Beach through to Blakeney National Nature Reserve and beyond to Horsey. At Blakeney National Nature Reserve one of our many concerns was the impact of the surge on the new born seal pups on the Point. However, thanks to the valuable support of a number of local volunteers (Alice, Finn, Henry, Dids, Terry, Brian, Sally, Elaine and Richard) walking the seven mile strand line; within 24 hours of the flooding our initial fears were allayed. Following our most recent seal pup count the colony has grown again year on year by 1561 new pups. Stiffkey Freshes was battered by the tidal surge. A huge volume of debris was washed up here with many boats forced high into the gorse bushes and jumbled on top of one another. If you owned a boat here please get in contact 01263740241. On the Point the Lifeboat House has suffered considerable damage both internally and externally, which will take a number of months to repair. Part of the boardwalk has been washed away so please let us know if you find it. At Morston Quay the tide swamped the boat park, washed away one of the large bridges to Morston marshes which lead to many creek moorings and dumped huge quantities of marsh thatch on its retreat. With the support of volunteers and staff from other National Trust properties, tonnes of washed up debris was sorted and disposed of and again thanks to the valuable support of a number of local volunteers (Guy, Jim, Andrew, Derek, Neil and Stuart) the vast majority of the boats were tidied up. The flooding of Blakeney Freshes has presented the most complex issue, with numerous breaches in the sea
District Councillors’ Contact Details: Jonathan Savory (01328 820719) e: jonathan.savory@north-norfolk.gov.uk – and Peter Terrington (01328 711126) e: peter.terrington@north-norfolk.gov.uk
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work of Flood Wardens along the coast and how they had proved themselves on that night. I also took the opportunity to ask about the future situation regarding insurance for flood risk areas. Mr Cameron assured me the current arrangement between the government and insurance companies had been extended whilst a new arrangement was being negotiated. Subsequently I received a letter from the PM saying his Private Secretary would be in touch with further information which I will share with you. As many of you will now the mobile ‘phone systems went down during at a particularly worrying time of the flood. Was it fortuitous or not that they were still down during the Prime Minister’s visit? It was certainly noted by his security staff.
(Binham, Langham & Stiffkey) Lindsay Brettle (01263 710030) e: lindsay.brettle@north-norfolk.gov.uk (Sharrington, Field Dalling, Saxlingham & Morston) Ann.R.Green (01328 878273) e: ann.green@north-norfolk.gov.uk (Gunthorpe & Bale)
Blakeney Marsh It is over a year ago since the combined efforts of our division put a halt to proposals by Natural England to “zone off” a section of Blakeney Marsh, endangering a whole range of activities that have taken place on the marshes for generations. A short while ago the newly-appointed Environment Minister, George Eustice MP, announced a further set Marine Conservation Zone sites to be designated by Natural England. Blakeney was not on the list, but we are worried that a new minister might not appreciate, as his predecessor did, the strength of local feeling about such proposals. Norman Lamb has asked for a meeting with George Eustice, so we can explain to him how important it is that the plans for Blakeney are not resurrected. The petition to Richard Benyon, the previous minister, was a key factor in saving Blakeney marsh. If you are able and willing to sign the new petition calling on the Minister to stop any plans by Natural England to zone off Blakeney Marsh visit www.normanlamb.org.uk/ Blakeney, fill in your name and email and you will be sending an email to the Minister calling on him to make sure that people.continue to be able to use Blakeney Marsh as they have for generations. Dr Marie Strong
COUNTY COUNCILLOR’S NEWS Better Broadband for Norfolk At last there is more information available regarding the future of broadband for our division. I have invited Town Councillors from Wells and Parish Councillors from all the villages in our division to a meeting at the end of January when Karen O’Kane - Programme Director, Better Broadband for Norfolk, will explain what speeds our parishes can expect to receive and in which tranche. Karen will also be able to answer any questions from Councillors regarding their area which they can then feedback at the town and parish councils.
Coastal Flooding Most of our coastal parishes from Holkham to Wiveton were affected by the flood of 5 December. At Wells the flood surpassed that of 1953 and the shops along Wells Quay were flooded as were a number of houses; Stiffkey felt luck to experience only minor flooding and Morston felt it was saved when the Blakeney bank went; a number of Blakeney homes and businesses were badly flooded; Wiveton evacuated a number of homes. Yet we have much to be thankful for since no lives were lost. In order to learn from all our experiences I have called for a de-brief of all Norfolk County Councillors and members of Gold Command (the multi-agency organisations in charge of major incidents) which will take place later this month. I have sent thanks on behalf of the division to the Chief Constable and the Deputy Head of the Fire Service for the efforts of their officers.
County Councillors’ contact details: Dr Marie Strong: County Councillor Wells Division (Glaven, Priory and Walsingham Parishes) marie.strong@norfolk. gov.uk or 07920 286 597 David Ramsbotham: Melton Constable Division (Bale and Gunthorpe Parishes) david.ramsbotham@norfolk.gov.uk 01263 577418
Visit of the Prime Minister During the PM’s visit to Wells the weather was pleasant, the tide was well out across the marshes. I explained how the sea had crossed the marshes, risen above the sea wall, crossed the quayside, pavement and road. I then pointed to the East Quay road sign at and the height to which the sea had risen up the sign. The PM was quite startled and said this had a deeper effect on him than sitting in Cobra and being provided simply with facts. I then showed the PM a map of our division and explained the extent of flood damage to our other parishes. I also told him of valuable
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a 4-page Newsletter. It contained births, marriages, deaths, christenings. And a 'letter' from Robert. There must have been news of events too......".
THE ACORN GREW INTO A MIGHTY OAK: LOCAL LYNX A tribute by the Revd. John Penny One of the things I was taught when training for the priesthood, was never to do anything yourself that someone else can do better. So when I arrived at Langham and was asked to edit the news sheet Coast & Country, I claimed a certain incompetence and passed the buck. I had, after all, edited the School Magazine and the College Review, and knew how many pitfalls lie in wait for a would-be Rupert Murdoch. Those were the days before dyslexia was diagnosed and my efforts at journalism were as successful as the computer programme that converts my speech into the written word. On one occasion, I had spoken into the computer microphone the words, “I like baptising babies”. But what appeared on screen was the immortal phrase, “I like appetising babies”. Eventually Coast & Country faded away - despite the gallant work of its Editor (Carolyn Wright of Binham); and an editorial vacuum remained until Adrian Hill told me he would like to produce a magazine entitled The Langham Lynx. I encouraged Adrian as much as I could and took part in the distribution of copies. But I knew very well what a mammoth task he had undertaken. I was not surprised when he announced that he could not continue his efforts. Adrian was very disappointed, but little did he know that he had planted an acorn from which the Lynx would grow into a mighty oak. Every time I receive my copy of the current Lynx I give a silent cheer for Adrian’s courage and initiative. What followed was an encounter with that wonderful lady, the late Helen Brandt, one of the few people I have met in ministry, to whom it was impossible to say “No”. Helen asked me if I thought it was a god idea if she and Bob pick up the baton that Adrian had lain down. Tradition has it that I asked her to take on the work, but then she would have asked me to take part in the production of Lynx. Could I have said “No”? The rest, as they say, is history. The reborn Langham Lynx became the Local Lynx, a most professional amateur publication. The quality of its layout, writing and artwork –
LYNX CELEBRATIONS
On 7th December we held our Lynx Party at the Langham Parish Room with some 70+ attendees and our Guest of Honour Bob Brandt. As well as acknowledging the key, indeed lynch pin, role that Bob and his late wife Helen had played in making the Local Lynx such a success the other aims of the party were to celebrate our 15th anniversary of publication, and equally importantly to thank the other early “pioneers” for their essential and key role in making the magazine the success it has become. In this latter context we were very pleased to welcome many old friends. We also wanted to thank those directly involved in getting the Local Lynx to our villagers - the editorial team and publishers for all their excellent work; all the paper’s village representatives and those who contribute articles with them, and especially to thank our unsung “heroes” who are not always acknowledged, the main and local distributors who go out in all weathers to deliver a copy to your door. Thank you all for your essential and continuing support. Additionally we wanted to thank representatives from the local community, Parish Councils, PCC, Clergy, County and District Councillors and our constituency MPs for their contributions and continuing support. The Chair of the Lynx Production Committee made a short speech to thank all attendees for their support, whether current or in the past, and he made a plea for new blood to join the editorial and production team. Thus whether specifically mentioned or not we hope that all who attended felt that their contribution had been a very worthwhile one and one which leaves the Local Lynx well placed for the next 15 years. We should also not forget to thank the caterers “Truly Rural” - they provided an excellent range of finger food with many attendees asking for their contact details.
PRE-LYNX DAYS COAST & COUNTRY Joanna King contacted Carolyn Wright (Binham rep before her, who now lives in Oxford) about the Coast & Country magazine that preceded the Lynx. Carolyn Wright worked on the former with Editor Paul Colombé of Langham and the rector, the Revd Robert C. Wright of Langham (and later of Sheringham, and no relation). Carolyn wrote: “It was an A4 folded into 8
ROYAL BRITISH LEGION POPPY APPEAL 2014 This year it is 100 years since the start of the First World War. The R.B.L. are looking for more door to door Poppy sellers. If you are able to help with this request, please contact Tel: 01263 741118. Thank you. Mark Holman. Honorary Poppy Appeal Organiser
SUCCESSFUL FUNDRAISING
On December 28th and 29th a charity clay shoot was held at North Creake to raise funds for St Mary’s Church North Creake and Heritage House Day Centre in Wells-Next-The–Sea. On a cold crisp morning many foolhardy shooting folk arrived to pit their wits against the erratic clay pigeon. By the end of day one 130 rounds had been completed followed on the second day by another 106 rounds. A marvellous total of £879 was raised for each worthy cause making a grand total of over £1750 across the two days. Our thanks go to all who supported this event and also to those who organised it and gave their time to officiate, score and keep the traps loaded through the busy shoot. Due to its great success and popularity the organisers aim to repeat the event on a regular basis. And talking of foolhardy, what were you doing at 10.30am on New Year’s Day? Whilst you were lying in bed nursing a sore head a merry band of swimmers met on Wells beach and at 11am took the plunge! A dash and a dip in the sea was just what was needed to blow the cobwebs away! Cold, not at all (well maybe a little!) and didn’t we all feel smug after we had been in! To date this has raised over £800. And so a big thank you from all at Heritage House to those that were willing to give up their time (and money) during this festive season.
who can forget Bob’s drawings? – were streets ahead of any parish magazine that I have known. This was not without its cost. Bob once remarked to me in a time of trial, that when he died, anyone doing an autopsy would find Local Lynx engraved on his heart. But Bob persevered until he eventually handed over his side of production to other very talented people. Can I, along with everyone else, thank Bob for his courage and endeavour, and at the same time express my admiration for the many others who continue to make the Local Lynx a publication of the highest quality.
GLAVEN CENTRE SERVICES Toe-nail clinics
9am – 3.15pm: 31st January, 21st February, 7th March
Hearing Aid clinics
10am – 12noon: 31st January, 26th February, 25th March
Hairdressing Every Wednesday. Regular, occasional or casual appointments can be made. Ring 01263 740762 to make & check appointments.
NORTH NORFOLK WILDLIFE TRUST Paraguay – where birders never go An illustrated talk by Martin Woodcock Thursday 20th February 2014 Cley Village Hall at 7.30pm £2.00 members, £3.00 non-members including refreshments No need to book, just come along
FAKENHAM CHORAL SOCIETY SPRING CONCERT The Glories of Bach and Handel Fakenham Parish Church Saturday, 15th March at 7.30pm Tickets £12 from 01328 830639 or on the door
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CHRISTMAS AT BINHAM
BALE CHRISTMAS AND NEW YEAR
A huge “Thank You” to everybody who came and supported Binham’s Christmas events. We started the festivities with two events held in the Memorial Hall: another successful Christmas Market and the annual Christmas Supper. Following the delights of the traditional seasonal fayre, local residents (over 90 people) enjoyed singing a selection of carols and, by popular demand, the “Binham-oh, Binham” song with its amusing local references. Next year, the Binham Christmas Supper will be held on Saturday 6th December 2014. Another Binham tradition was the “Carols on the Green” where we sang our hearts out to the accompaniment of the Fakenham Town Band before enjoying the hospitality of our new hosts at The Chequers, filling our local to bursting point! £98 was collected during the evening. Thanks to Sarah and Simon, our new landlords for lovely refreshments, to everybody who contributed to provide such a lovely tree on the green, the sponsors of the tree, the transport provider, the erectors and the electricians. The Christmas Bingo night held in December raised £60 towards paying for the band. Liz Brown & Geoff Scott
Bale All Saints church’s beautiful carol service was early this year; the attendance was disappointing, the church being less than half full, despite the mix of professional and amateur singers which makes it so special. In spite of this, the congregation sang lustily, the tree looked gorgeous, the church beautiful and austere with hundreds of candles, and the carols and readings reminded us of the meaning of one of the great festivals of the Christian calendar, rising above all the commercial vulgarity and taking us to a more innocent and lovely place. Bale Village Hall Old Year’s Night party on the other hand was as jolly and silly as possible. Some of our regulars were missing, sadly, but their places were taken by new residents of Bale and their families and friends. The excellent supper was again cooked by Alastair Macorkindale and his minions (an operation taking two full days and many months of planning) the quiz was devised and quiz-mastered by Paula Moore, with possibly a tiny bit of help from her family, and won by a tie-breaker by the Rosebuds, which means that next year they will be devising and mastering. Some silly games were played, the newspaper fish race, the donkey’s tail game, and rolling a pound coin at the whisky bottle, which was won for the second year running by Anne Peppitt. Huge thanks to Alastair, and to Victoria Kurrein and Paul Turnbull, to Margaret Dent for her Christmas decorating of the hall and the beautiful table decorations, and to all of those who helped out with the washing up and the clear-up.
CHRISTMAS PRIORY SERVICES The Priory looked particularly fine this Christmas with a number of displays by our talented band of flower arrangers and a splendid tree provided and decorated by our Cockthorpe friends. On Saturday 21st the Service of Carols and Readings with the Iceni Christmas Choir was a fitting start to the celebrations. A large congregation enjoyed the evening and left warmed by the singing, the well-known texts, mince pies and mulled wine. The collection for UNICEF was £230. Well over 200 attended the three services on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, providing people with a choice of children's and adult worship. The generous collections from
VILLAGE HALL SOCIAL CLUB DRAW November 2013
December 2013
Alastair Macorkindale £ 25 Jane Wheeler £ 25 Peggy Burge £ 10 Carole Lee £ 10 Nina Nearney £ 5 David Ramm £ 5 Grace Gibbs £ 5 John Church £ 5 The special Christmas draw Walter Hammond £ 25
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BINHAM PARISH COUNCIL The work on the trees on the Upper Green was completed before Christmas. The removal of two of the flowering cherry trees and the trimming of the remaining ones will not have suited everyone, but the contractor has done a good job leaving the Green in a tidy state. The Council was grateful that the funding for the work was covered by a donation. Arrangements will be made in the New Year for planting the two replacement trees on the Memorial Hall Playing Field. We hope parishioners and visitors have enjoyed the Christmas Tree on the Lower Green. The Council was very fortunate that the cost of the tree was funded by donations from Peter Wordingham and Alan Brown, also that Mrs Sullivan from her nearby cottage continued to allow access to electrical power for the lights. Over the years parishioners’ concern about speeding has been raised with the Council. At the last Parish Council meeting in November the possibility was discussed of organising a volunteer “Speedwatch” team to occasionally monitor the speed of vehicles in the 30mph zone. If formed, the team would have to work under strict rules, supervised by the Police, with none of their reports resulting in any formal penalty to speeding drivers. Of the public present at the meeting only one expressed interest in volunteering, the majority showing no support. Before the Council drops the idea, if any parishioner has strong views in support or against, please leave a note at Howells Superstore addressed to the Parish Council. The next Parish Council meeting will be held on Monday 17th March at Binham Memorial Hall, 7pm for 7.30pm start. David Frost
these services amounted to over £700 to be split between The Children’s Society and the EPD Coastal Flood Appeal. The season ended with a Service of Carols and Readings for Epiphany Sunday with the Richeldis Singers. We would like to thank all who helped to make it a very memorable Christmas and hope those attending found it an uplifting experience with a message of hope and joy to take into 2014. Maureen Frost and Geoff Scott, Churchwardens
CHEQUERS PUB GAMES EVENING Wednesday, 19th February at 7.30pm
The table games evening is back again at The Chequers after a few years’ absence. There will be cards, draughts, dominoes, shove halfpenny, cribbage, bananagram, jenga and shuffleboard. Any other favourite games are welcome – just bring them along. Come and enjoy a happy evening. Mike & Sue Jeffery
FRIENDS OF BINHAM PRIORY
Friday 14th March, Binham Memorial Hall from 7.00 pm The work of The Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings; Sara Crofts, Deputy Director
BRIDGE CLUB ANYONE? Anyone interested in forming a bridge club in Binham? Playing one or two nights per week at the pavilion? Please contact Sue Craig on 01328830154 or sue6250@gmail.com if interested.
This will be fascinating illustrated presentation on the work of the SPAB in guiding the conservation and sensitive enhancement of the built environment. Sara is becoming increasingly influential at the national level, in the heritage field. Anyone living in, considering work on, or just visiting, old buildings will find Sara’s views of particular interest.
THE CHEQUERS PUB QUIZ There will be no pub quiz in February as The Chequers will be closed for two weeks at the beginning of February for redecoration. The next pub quiz will be Monday 3rd March.
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ALL THE BEST TUNES It is a common mistake that General William Booth, founder of the Salvation Army, said “Why should the Devil have all the best tunes?” It does not really matter who originally said this, but it is nonsense. Some of the finest music has been inspired by the Christian religion. However, Ralph Vaughan Williams was a composer who did not have a religious belief, yet as music director of the English Hymnal he drew on many folk tunes, arranged them and even wrote some of our most loved hymns. I was standing outside St Andrew’s church in Great Ryburgh recently, listening to the Sunday morning service. The small congregation was singing the familiar hymn “Come down O Love Divine,” which was intensely moving. The tune was Down Ampney, one of Vaughan Williams’ own compositions, named after the Cotswold village where he was born in 1872. How many regular churchgoers realise that the hymn tune they sing was written by him? He also wrote the usual tune for “For All the Saints,” with its own title, Sine Nomine, which incongruously means without a name. It was as an arranger of some traditional tunes by unknown composers that he was equally of service to the church. One such tune is Monks Gate, for John Bunyan’s “Who Would True Valour See.” According to various biographies he had a great fondness for Norfolk, often spending long periods here. It was while staying in Sheringham that he wrote his Pastoral Symphony, inspired by his experiences in the Royal Army Medical Corps during the First World War when over age for active service. It is often seen as a tribute to those who served and died in those trenches. It was also in Sheringham that he wrote his powerful Sea Symphony, and it is tempting to think that it was inspired by the stormy seas here. He collected and was inspired by Norfolk folk tunes and there is a plaque to his memory on a house on the Boulevard roundabout there. He based his Norfolk Rhapsody No.1 on those folk tunes, with the aim of incorporating it with two others in a Norfolk Symphony, but this did not happen. His Norfolk Rhapsody No. 2 was only partially completed and the Norfolk Rhapsody No.3 is now lost. He clearly loved East Anglia, as his “In the Fen Country” demonstrates. Like Cecil Sharp he was a pioneer in the preservation of fast disappearing English folk songs and at the time of his death in 1958 he was also President of the English Folk Song and
£8 a ticket to include light refreshments and wine from 7.00 pm and after the presentation. Tickets from David Frost, 18 Langham Road, Binham, NR21 0DW, 01328 830362, davidfrost226@btinternet.com
Sat. 5th July, Priory Cloisters, 5.00 - 8.00pm. Picnic2Jazz Details for booking will be announced later.
DIARY OF A FARMER’S SON Aged 36 A brief summary of highlights since we last reported: 1857 Sept 23 I went to the Board in Walsingham in the morning, the Gov. in the Chair, the schoolmaster dismissed and great commotion. Oct 7th (Wed) This was proclaimed a fast day. We had two services and a collection for India. Oct 20th I went to Binham this morning, heard that the squire had dismissed Eke (his gamekeeper). Oct 26th Saw Middleton this morning who told me his men had struck at 10/- per week. Oct 27th Ems and I rode to Binham and to the Middletons and to Walsingham. My men are very grumbly at their reduced wages. Nov 18th I went to Holkham to see a steam plough at work, lunched at the Hall with George Nobs at Lord Leicester’s invite. Dec 11th I sent a load of barley to R Sillett and brought Haycock’s back – our merchants are very troublesome and useless now. 1858 Jan 2nd I went to Norwich with Miss Kate to look at a carriage for them at Stanhams which we liked except the price of £50! Jan 4th Ems had her first ride and first lesson in trotting. Mrs Middleton is progressing favourably after birth of her daughter. Jan 24th Went to Binham to meet the hounds and we had the best run of the season – 1 ½ hours. Jan 27th We dined at Binham then went to Langham to hear Mrs Billington’s lecture on witches which was very poor indeed. Jan 30th We drove to Fakenham to have our chair mended and to see the picture at the Corn Hall of “The Baptism of Christ”. Richard & Norah Lewis
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REACHING FOR THE SPRING Even in winter we have visions of Spring Flowers in bloom and birds on the wing You find yourself looking for signs of new growth under the leaves, the mulch or both You remember the colours and scents of last year when bulbs already planted begin to appear Not even thinking of the hard work and sweat It's the beauty of flowers that you cannot forget You walk each morning down your garden path watching the birds as they take a bath Touching a bloom that has opened its face to be admired, but not in haste We love our gardens, the flowers, the birds more than ever we could put into words.
Dance Society. We have just had the centenary of the birth of that other fine East Anglian composer, Benjamin Britten, who went to Gresham’s school, Holt but lived most of his life near Aldeburgh in Suffolk. There have been claims that he was England’s greatest composer, which ignores such masters as Henry Purcell and alsoThomas Tallis, who wrote the sublime “Spem in Alium.” And what about Sir Edward Elgar? No-one would grudge Britten his fame, but for accessibility the music of Vaughan Williams stands alone, evoking the English countryside supremely, as in “Linden Lea.” Can you believe he was unfairly criticised for that as a “cowpat composer”? Anyway, although he also loved London, to me he stands alone as Norfolk’s own, great composer. Ian Johnson
ENGLISH HERITAGE PROJECT Visitors to Binham Priory over the past couple of months will have noticed work being done to conserve the walls in the ruins. These ruins are under the guardianship of English Heritage, so the repair work has been contracted out by English Heritage to a firm who specialises in this type of conservation, using traditional materials. The walls were originally built with a smooth limestone face and core of local flint and lime mortar. Over time, the facing stone has weathered away leaving the core of the walls exposed. Deterioration of the condition of the walls has increased over the last few years due to the harsh winters. The project is being funded by the Elizabeth Wagland Fund, through the English Heritage Foundation (charity No. 1140351). We are fortunate that such funds exist enabling the Priory precincts to be enjoyed by the local community and visitors both now and in the future. Geoff Scott
SUPPORT FOR HOLT FOODBANK “Binham folk are so kind and so generous” - the words of Michael McMahon who runs the distribution centre at Holt on our last delivery of your donations before Christmas. You will be pleased to hear that thanks to local people’s generosity, in addition to its normal activities, the Foodbank has been able to share some of its stock with flood victims in the Walcott area, support the Salvation Army in delivery of Christmas parcels to around 100 local people and give 40 extra festive parcels to families nominated by support officers. Thank you all for your generosity. You have helped to ease many people’s hunger and to make them happier for knowing that others care about their plight. Sadly, the demand is still growing, so when you can spare an item from your shopping please drop it into one of the Collection boxes. If everyone could spare just one item, what an impact that would have on the food poverty on our doorstep. If you would like any further information please contact Richard or Norah on 830723.
BINHAM & HINDRINGHAM OPEN CIRCLE
The speaker at our 20th February meeting will be Steve Dye, who will be explaining the life cycle and care of bees in Norfolk. On 20th March Pamela Miller will be speaking on nursing at the beginning of the NHS. The Open Circle Women's Club meets at 7.15pm on the third Thursday of each month at Hindringham Village Hall. New members are always welcome - just come along on the night or ring secretary Fiona Thompson on 01328 830639.
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BINHAM LOCAL HISTORY GROUP Our November meeting was a talk given by Dr. Clive Bond, Landscape Archaeologist on Neolithic and Bronze Age barrows in Norfolk. He explained that this is an area of archaeology that has not had much attention in Norfolk in the past 20 years beyond identifying a few new Bronze Age round barrows or ‘ring ditch’ sites from aerial photography. Many of the locations have been ‘lost’ in the working of landscape over the centuries. Dr. Clive Bond explored new approaches to previously discovered Neolithic long barrows and Bronze Age barrows in Norfolk. He discussed the way long barrows and round barrows were in fact intentionally sited and often elaborated into cemeteries over generations and how they may have been a focus of belief and pilgrimage for small-scale valley based communities. He felt there was much to be explored in Norfolk on this topic.
2014 PREDICTIONS It is the practice at the start of every New Year to make predictions for the next twelve months (but never account for their accuracy come December). With this in mind this is Cockthorpe’s forecast -Traffic will pass. through the village heeding the 30 mph signs and SLOW markings on the road. - Broadband speeds will be as fast as those advertised in the Broadband suppliers offers. -The Cockthorpe sign as you enter the village from the west which was knocked down two years ago will be replaced. -We can expect not to be affected by extreme weather and look forward to a barbeque summer. -The jury is still out on whether the Norfolk Churches Trust will get the funds to repair our church roof despite their best efforts. Happy and healthy New Year to all our readers.
Thursday 30th January 2014 7.30pm start at Binham Memorial Hall
Sedgeford: 5,000 Years of Human Settlement. Gary Rossin, Project Director SHARP Project.
Thursday 27th February 2014 7.30pm start at Binham Memorial Hall
A Tonic for All – Medicines, treatments, folklore and quacks – Neil Storey
Thursday 27th March 2014 7.30pm start at Binham Memorial Hall
The Care & Conservation of Historic Textiles – Elaine Owers Admission to talks £2 members and non members £4. All welcome. Contact Pennie Alford on 01328 830700.
BINHAM PRIORY CONCERT
Friday 11th April, 7.00 pm The Yorke Trust Chorus and Baroque Ensemble Choral Masterpieces by Gluck, Rameau and Brahms Further details and tickets from: The Yorke Trust, 01328 823501, www.yorketrust.org
BINHAM AGM
The AGM is to be held on Tuesday 22nd April at 7pm, along with the annual village parish meeting. Please make a note of this date and come along to hear what is going on in your village. Liz Brown
No seal trips today...
BINHAM GUILD OF ARTISTS We meet every Tuesday morning from 10am to 12noon in the Village Hall. A fee of £2 per morning includes coffee and biscuits. A demonstration of painting or craftwork normally takes place on the first Tuesday of every month except in January, February and the week in which the annual exhibition takes place. For information contact James Bucknill : 01328 830651
FOOD FOR THOUGHT This new year may we find peace and serenity to accept the things we cannot change, courage to change the things we can, and wisdom to know the difference.
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SPEEDWATCH SCHEME Will you join the team and help? Our village 30 mph speed limit was instigated by the then Parish Council many years ago. The current Parish Council wishes to help uphold that limit and fully supports the Speedwatch scheme now operating very successfully to achieve that aim. The scheme is operated by a small team of volunteers under the direction of the Norfolk Police, who receive data on any speeding motorists from our team after each session held. To enable us to improve the coverage of the scheme we are in urgent need of additional members. Please, if you can spare an hour or two every month or so, it will help bolster our numbers, so that the good work can continue. Please contact me or any parish councillor if you are interested. Roy Findlater, Chairman Field Dalling & Saxlingham Parish Council email: royfindlater@gmail.com Tel: 01328 830442
look. Was it painted when the church was built in the late 1400s? Why was it plastered over? For religious reasons during the Reformation or in Oliver Cromwell’s time? Or perhaps to ‘modernise’ the nave? Margaret Smith, Churchwarden
VILLAGE HALL RE-OPENING PARTY A landmark in the history of the Field Dalling and Saxlingham Village Hall occurred in December when the newly revamped hall was used for the first time. Everybody was impressed with the ambience created by the new decorations, adjustable lighting, sound insulation and the quiet, effective heating system. There will be a re-opening ceremony on the 15th February from 2pm, followed by a party. We are delighted that our popular County Councillor Dr Marie Strong will be there to officially re-open the Village Hall. In line with this important occasion all villagers are invited as well as special guests. Food and drink will be available to make this a highly social special event.
ST ANDREWS CHURCH Good News! We at St Andrew’s have two pieces of good news . First, for several years, (since 2006) we have not had the funds to pay our share of Rev Ian Whittle’s stipend. Insurance, heat and light, and other costs of caring for the church building and running services take most of our income. Last summer, we appealed to the village to close our £2,000 shortfall for 2013. Thanks to the generous response, we have been able to send in the full amount due, which is £6,100. Thank you to everyone who made a donation. We on the PCC are delighted at this achievement. Second, in November, while carrying out repairs to the plaster on the north wall above the box pews, Reg Rogers uncovered part of a wall painting. About half a square metre is visible, and it looks like a tree (the Tree of Life?). We contacted our church architect and look forward to hearing from the experts. St Andrew’s is open daily, so do have a
CHRISTMAS BINGO The Xmas Bingo organised by Debbie Ladley was a huge success with people having to be turned away at the doors before the start as the hall was totally full. The multitude of bingo and raffle prizes was much appreciated by the many winners and most people seemed to have been lucky. A great evening was had by all in the new surroundings of the revamped hall and universal praise was echoed again on the Xmas Bingo night. The donations, given by several people, were very much appreciated and the committee is most grateful for their generosity towards the community.
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Thank you, also, to everyone who helped make the church look so festive, especially our flower ladies, one of whom, Joy Luscombe, is leaving the village after many years so a special thank you to her for all her support. We will miss her. This year marks the 150th anniversary of the church's restoration by the Sparke family in 1864. Hopefully, together with the “Friends”, we will be able to celebrate this with a suitable event.
FOGPC November
FRIENDS OF GUNTHORPE PARISH CHURCH
50/50 Club Draw Results December
Faith Bennell £20.00 Eric Izzard £15.00 Mark Last £10.00 David Partridge £5.00 Cissie Williamson £5.00 Hilary B-J £5.00 Colin Dewing £5.00
Linda Jenkinson £25.00 Louisa Clark £20.00 Fiona Flint £15.00 Daniel Good £10.00 Nicole Delteil £5.00 Matthew Hatfull £5.00 Margaret Reeve £5.00 Zena Churchill £5.00 Fred Morley £5.00 The club Christmas party was held on 14 December with some 25 club members enjoying festive refreshments, an enhanced draw and a host of raffle prizes. Very many thanks to all who contributed to the event with the hall Christmas decorations, raffle prizes and delicious food and drinks. Thank you also to all who have made additional, and often very generous, donations during the course of 2013. We will continue to have the increased prize money, which started in November, from January 2014, with the next enhanced draw in May 2014 at the end of the subscription year. If you are new to the village or would like to join us please do so as soon as possible – to “borrow” from another place “you have to be in it to win it”! If you would like more information on 50:50 Club and “Friends” memberships please contact John Blakeley on 01263 861008. Cheques for membership subscriptions should be made out to “FOGPC”.
The Friends held their annual, Harvest Supper in the Village Institute in November with a good turn-out. The Institute was decorated in seasonal style, the committee members all shared in the cooking, and a good evening was had by all. Thanks to those who attended and to all the committee members who supplied the food and good cheer. A special thanks to Rob Cutterham for his generous donation, yet again, of the wine – not only for the Harvest Supper but a great stash for our functions this year. Rob left Gunthorpe many years ago for France, but has stayed on as a Friends Committee member. He very generously donates his wine to the Friends each year. This year we were honoured that Rob was in attendance for the Harvest Supper and it was wonderful to see him there. A huge thanks to you, Rob, for your generosity and continued Gunthorpevillage-support! The Friends will carry on in 2014 with our usual annual events and hope to see many of you in attendance throughout the year. We very much hope to paint the church interior this year and to repair some old damage/ deterioration to the stained glass windows so your support will continue to be ‘seen’ in church maintenance and improvements. Joy Luscombe (who runs the 50/50 Club with Myfi Everett) will be moving from Gunthorpe to Holt soon and has retired from running the 50/50 Club coffee mornings. We can’t thank you enough, Joy, for all your work for Gunthorpe Village over the many (30+) years you have lived here! We wish you well in Holt and hope that you will visit Gunthorpe often. As a result of Joy’s move, we desperately need someone to assist Myfi in running the 50/50 Club coffee mornings. These take place over a two hour period, usually on the last Saturday morning of each month. John Blakeley (thank you John!) still runs the ‘books’ – so our need is for someone to help Myfi organise
ST MARY’S CHURCH NEWS A big thank you to Michael Wilson for taking our Christmas service. As always, it was a lovely and most enjoyable event with very well read lessons from our eight young readers, and a congregation of almost 50 Christmas worshippers enjoying mulled wine and mince pies after the service.
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unit. Patients are transferred from Heydon to Gunthorpe to provide capacity to receive patients on arrival at the hospital. Kate Holvey is now the Heydon/Gunthorpe stroke sister running both wards. This takes Gunthorpe back to a previous role at the NNUH. We very much look forward to welcoming the ward staff to our 2014 activities. If you would like to make a donation to the fund that we run to support Gunthorpe Ward please contact either Diane Blakeley (01263 861008) or Carole Wallace (01263 861636), who are the joint administrators of the Village Fund, for more details.
PARISH COUNCIL NEWS This item covers the major topics of discussion at the meeting of the Gunthorpe and Bale Parish council meeting held on 14 November. Local Crime PCSO Rachel Howard reported that no crimes had been committed but drew attention to the danger of heating oil theft and to an outbreak of late afternoon/early evening burglaries in neighbouring villages and towns. Security lights directed onto public roads is a matter for the NNDC Environmental Dept. Keith Simpson MP Though his constituency is geographically large, with many pensioners as well as many workers in the food industry, Mr Simpson tries to visit as many parish councils as possible. Receiving much e-mail lobbying, often to a standardized format, he finds regular contact through visits gives him a true majority view. Working with other Norfolk MPs, he stressed the need for good communication to encourage business, with emphasis on the A11 and A47, together with broadband as an essential contact for business. He referred to the cuts in financial support for local government. The effect of population change in villages on education emphasized the importance of good head teachers for good schools. In childrens’ services, he deplored the repetitive scandals with their expensive reports pointing to the lack of co-operation within the bodies dealing with these services. With the centenary commemoration of Norfolk in WW1 there is a meeting scheduled for February/March 2014. Questions to the MP centred on rural fuel prices dearer than urban, in energy the need for nuclear power stations (France as the example), in education the shortage of engineers and physicists, and to the ongoing historical
and ‘host’ the tea, coffee, cake element. Any volunteers PLEASE? For more information or to offer your services please contact John Blakeley on 01263-861008, or Myfi Everett on 01263-860035. As well as the monthly, social, get-together in the village, the revenue generated from the 50/50 Club is a very large part of the Friends’ annual earnings. It would be a great shame to lose this income and very hard to replace the financial loss. Hear my PLEA – please - SOMEONE? I wish you all a happy, healthy and exciting 2014 and thank you for your support. Marie Denholm, Friends Chairman
VILLAGE INSTITUTE NEWS I’m writing this as 2013 draws to a wet and windy close. The weather however did behave itself for the Christmas Drinks on 7th December which was once again held at Sandy and Carole Wallace’s barn. A lovely venue beautifully decorated for the occasion and enjoyed by approximately forty friends and neighbours, an evening of convivial company and a wonderful spread of festive food. Thank you for everyone’s contributions and especially to Sandy and Carole for providing White House Barn for the evening. As most regular Lynx readers will probably remember the Institute is available to hire, and it has recently been used on a weekly basis by a local yoga group. Sandra Warner is currently the contact for bookings, enquires etc, but due to increased work commitments would like to step back from the role in the Spring (April). If this is something you can help with, and you would like further details please contact Sandra after 6pm Tel No: 01263 862899. The next Institute event has not yet been decided, but we are looking at the possibility of spring or early summer, (any suggestions are always very welcome). Details will be confirmed in the April/May edition of the Lynx. Tony Dufour
GUNTHORPE WARD NNUH The usual box of Christmas “goodies” was delivered to our namesake ward on Christmas Day and was gratefully received by both the ward staff and those patients having to spend Christmas in hospital. There have been further changes to Gunthorpe Ward since the summer. It is now a 36 bedded stroke unit for acute strokes: whilst its associated ward, Heydon Ward, is the 12 bedded hyper acute stroke
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power shift from West to East with the effect on world demand for fuel & food. Gunthorpe Green Parking The specification and drawing are outstanding but the scheme has to be both within cost and the work complete by the end of March 2014. A request for a contribution from the Gunthorpe Estate awaits the outstanding information. Traffic through Bale In considering possible traffic calming measures and the routing of HGVs away from the village about which residents of Field Dalling Road, including two councillors, are concerned, a resident, Paul Lowrie, was invited to assist the Council. It was agreed that on-site surveys would be carried out for submission to the relevant authorities. The MP offered help if required. The Clerk is to write to the road safety department about poor visibility through hedge alignment on the north side of the A148 at the Bale Gunthorpe crossroads. Precept A letter from NNDC’s Head of Finance, dated November 5th about a council tax support grant and capping was considered. It appeared that no similar letter had been received in 2013 so no grant application had been made. As reserves appear sufficient for the next year, all Councillors present resolved to complete the Precept Form to remain at £1800 for the financial year 2014/15. Norfolk County Council Consultation Councillors may make individual comments about cuts to meet the expected grants. B1354 Junction Separate from the meeting the Parish Council welcomes the news that the road sign which had obscured the view at the B1354 junction, and which they had asked to be moved earlier in the year, had now been re-sited and was no longer seen as a road safety hazard. Next Meeting The next meeting will be held on Thursday 27 February 2014 in Bale Village Hall. John Church Chairman Gunthorpe and Bale Parish Council
veterinary nurse at the Westover Veterinary Centre in Hainford. We also warmly welcome Kimberley Morrison and her fiancée Ben Halton-Farrow who have moved into Little Victoria. Ben works with his future father-in-law’s company Wensum Pools, and Kimberley trains full-time as a triathlete, where she has represented Great Britain in the 25-29 Age Group competitions. Ben and Kimberley plan to marry in December 2014. It is great to see young people coming to the village, and we wish both couples every happiness and good fortune for their futures and for their time in our eclectic and friendly village. On a sadder note we wave goodbye to long-term resident Joy Luscombe from Appletree Cottage who is moving to Holt. Joy’s outstanding contribution to village life has been mentioned in other articles, but she will be missed by her many friends in Gunthorpe. She has promised that she will very much remain in touch with the village and her friends here we look forward to seeing her back for future events.
FAMILY NAME GUNTHORPE This article again taken from research by former village historian Ray Steffans looks at some of the historical characters known to have carried the name Gunthorpe. There have been several people called Gunthorpe, or de Gunthorp. Since all those referred to here had strong Norfolk connections, it is probable that they, or their ancestors, once lived in this village or had lands here. In former times, particularly before 1550, it was not unusual to name people after the area in which they lived, or had
WELCOME AND GOODBYE A warm welcome goes to Edward Rivett and Libby Smith, who along with their dogs Pan (a whippet cross terrier) and terrier Stig (clearly a Top Gear fan) have moved into 28 Sharrington Road. Ed works with his father Nick Rivett on Valley Farm at Sharrington and Libby is a
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interests, eg John de Bodham and John de Bawdeswell. In 1281, William, son of Richard de Gunthorp, was one of the parties who appeared before the Judges at Norwich in connection with the release of the manor at Broke to John the Abbot of Bury. In 1303, John de Gunthorp was instituted to the Rectory and Church of St Ethelred in Thetford, being presented by the Bishop of Ely. William de Gunthorp, who died in 1400, was Rector of Fakenham from 1364-1400. He was also prebend, or canon, of Wighton, Yorks, of South Alton, Salisbury, and of Southwell (St Mary's). He is known to have been involved in the transfers of land at Caley's Manor North Barsham. Robert de Gunthorpe was parson of St Mary's Weeting, and died in 1539. Henry Gunthorpe was churchwarden at Holkham in 1552. Perhaps the most famous was John, otherwise known as "Bishop Gunthorpe". He was one of the earliest pioneers of the "New Learning", and he went to Ferrara to study Greek, under Guarino, in the 15th century. At one time he held the Rectory of Cley-Next-the -Sea. He was chaplain to Edward IV and was Dean of Wells (Somerset) from 1472 to 1498 where he built the deanery - a building that even Sir Christopher Wren declined to remodel. The changes in spelling seem to indicate that Gunthorp may have become Gunthorpe sometime between 1400 and 1500. The last recorded sighting of the surname Gunthorpe was with a party of Antipodean visitors to the village on August 7th 1986. Certainly the current telephone directory for this part of Norfolk does not have an entry for anyone named Gunthorpe. We would be delighted to hear from any reader who knows someone of this name.
FROM THE REGISTERS HOLY BAPTISM Alix Louise and daughter Mia Rose December 14th
FUNERAL Mr. Kenneth Twiddy December 6th
WELCOME We would like to extend a warm welcome to Jonathan Barnes; Graham and Janice Sharp; Amanda, Verity and Joshua; Steve and Marleen; Kevin and Kate. We hope that you will all be very happy living in Langham.
REMEMBERING KENNY (TWIDDLES)
Kenneth William Twiddy died on the 27th November 2013. I would like to thank everyone who has sent me cards, letters and made phone calls to me on the passing of Kenny. Yes, he was a character and much loved by all. He will be very much missed in Langham, where he is at rest. Kenny liked a good time and as you all know, a good drink! He did it his way. We were together for a total of 23 years, so I guess I can say that I knew him better than most and loved him very much. He was a good worker, he could turn his hand to anything. Gardening was his pride and joy and special thanks must go to Rod and Cavin who helped Kenny during his latter time at the allotment. Kenny’s love of wildlife was great, his knowledge of birds (of the feathered variety) was outstanding and the sea always called him back. I am sure you will all have your own memories of Kenny and will keep them in your hearts. “Be happy and live for today!” he would say, to all his mates, old and new friends and neighbours. The collection in memory of Kenny totalled £534.40 which will be divided between The Colney Centre and the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at the Norfolk & Norwich University Hospital. Thank you all for your kindness. Wishing you all a Healthy and Happy New Year. Juliette
STOP! Stop rushing, stop thinking, just be. On the third Sunday of each month at 4.30pm, there is a time of silent meditation in Gunthorpe Church which is open to anyone who feels that stillness and silence might be just what they need. “The purpose of meditation is to awaken in us the skylike nature of mind, and to introduce us to that which we really are, our unchanging, pure awareness that underlies the whole of life and death. In the silence and stillness of meditation, we glimpse and return to that deep inner nature that we so long ago lost sight of amid the busyness and distraction of our minds. “A quotation from the Tibetan Buddhist teacher Sogyal Rinpoche. I usually read such a quotation, and then speak briefly about ways of helping ourselves to be meditative, such as sitting with a straight back. Twenty minutes of silence ends with the traditional Prayer Book Evening Collect which begins “Lighten our darkness we beseech Thee O Lord ...” I hope you will think about coming and, if you want to ask more about it, you can ring on 01263 862289.
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LEUKAEMIA & LYMPHOMA RESEARCH
No of Sweets (96) Ann Sherriff 96 Christmas cake (Wt. with plate) (6lbs 6oz) won byMolly Lees 6lbs 1oz Hamper Raffle No 42 Wendy Tully Name the Doll ‘Catherine’ Doreen Nockles Thank you to everyone for all your help and support! We could not have done it without you!
Well as promised we shall be back with our sales – dates for your diary: March 29th – Early Sale May17th –Spring Sale with plants July 12th – Grand Sale October 18th – Autumn Sale Look forward to seeing you all. Maureen 01328830731
LANGHAM PARISH ROOM
LANGHAM STREET FAYRE
Table Top Sale & Coffee Morning February 1st 10am-12noon
ROAD CLOSURE NOTICE Please note
New Year – New Ideas! The next coffee morning on Saturday 1st February 2014 will also hold a Table Top Sale. Having a de-clutter for your new year’s resolution, selling off some unwanted Christmas presents, or just wishing to sell some of your home made goodies or craft creations, then please come along and take a table. Cost is £5 a table (approx. 6ft x 2ft.in size) with all profits going to the Parish Room Fund. Entry to the coffee morning is free with coffee, tea & biscuits available. Any money you make of course is yours and anyone is welcome whether to buy or sell – Langham resident or not! If you are interested in taking a table, please telephone me on Tel: 01328 830207 or email on christinacooper27@googlemail.com. Christina Cooper
Full details of road closures will appear in the next edition of Local Lynx. LSF Committee
LANGHAM STREET FAYRE Saturday 26th July 2014
The Fayre will start at 10.00 am. There will be entertainment for all from The Pinxton Puppets, Punch and Judy, children’s games and competitions together with live music.
Evening entertainment From 8pm there will be food available and music.
FRIENDS OF LANGHAM December
FOL 200 club winners January
Mr P Wright £20 Ms R Fairhead £10 Mr J Rossiter £20 Ms R Ransley £10 Mr G Dorricott £20 Mr E Allen £10 Mr R Davis £10 Ms J Snell £10 Peter Barlow Treasurer FOL
LANGHAM STREET FAYRE PRE-FAYRE ENTERTAINMENT
Wednesday 23rd July Quiz Night Parish Room Doors open at 7.00pm for 7.30pm start. Pay £2.50 at the door. To book a table contact John Hughes on Tel: 01328 830595 LSF Committee
CHRISTMAS FAIR
PARISH ROOM NOVEMBER 30th 2013
LANGHAM STREET FAYRE
Proceeds for this annual event amounted to £650.00 for the Langham Church General Fund. Although not as high an amount as previous years an enjoyable time was had by all. COMPETITION & RAFFLE RESULTS Plant Raffle No 185 Rosie Lambert
QUIZ SHEET The traditional fun quiz sheet, price £1, will be available in January from John on 01328 830595. The enigmatic working title is “A supermarket trolley full”.
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LADYBIRDS CHRISTMAS LUNCH
This event was held on December 11th in the Parish Room and was open to all past members. We walked into a lovely warm room with a beautifully decorated table and immediately felt in the festive spirit. We were given the most delicious three course meal, with wine, followed by coffee, mince pies and mints. The buzz of conversation vied with the earnestness of filling in an interesting quiz, all interjected by the hilarity caused by the reading of cracker jokes. Then we had a raffle, a reading by Ann Hill, ‘pass the parcel’ and carol singing. As you may gather, a thoroughly good time was had by all. Sincere thanks go to Jan Hope, Shelia Jenkinson, Barbara Allen and Ann Hill for their organisation of a wonderful and most enjoyable get-together.
RVS LANGHAM CAR SERVICE Schedule to April 6th 2014 Weekly driving duties beginning on a Monday Jan. 27th Tel: 830 537* Mar. 3rd Tel: 830 606* Feb. 3rd Tel: 830 731 Mar. 10th Tel: 830 696* Feb. 10th Tel: 830 847 Mar. 17th Tel: 830 056 Feb. 17th Tel: 830 677 Mar. 24th Tel: 830 605 Feb. 24th Tel: 830 847 Mar. 31st Tel: 830 605 Rate: 25p per mile. * These drivers do not go to Norwich If the driver for the week is unable to do the trip, contact the next person on the list. If your appointment is cancelled, please also cancel your car service booking. Please give three days notice wherever possible, except in an emergency. It would be very helpful if a car booking is made as soon as an appointment is arranged or journey planned so that drivers can arrange their schedule. When booking please advise of any walking aids to be transported. Please bring change. In the infrequent event that no driver is available – contact the Holt Caring Society Tel: 01263 711243 giving as much notice as possible. This roster is also sited on the church porch and village notice boards with dates beyond the above schedule, after March 9th. To avoid drivers having a double duty we are in need of three drivers for our full complement. If anyone would like to join us please give me a call. Ann Sherriff Tel: 01328 830 605
PARISH ROOM The carols and mince pies (and mulled wine and sausage rolls) was a resounding success. There was a full house, including two holiday makers from Yorkshire, staying in Cromer, who saw the poster placed in the Stiffkey Stores. The power of advertising! The carols were sung with gusto and the new sound deadening ceiling stood up to "raising the roof". Thanks to Pauline for playing the piano, to Jan and Ken for their poems and to Eileen, Wendy and Di for their descants and to the committee for their help in organising and preparing the sustenance. The theme of ‘Spring talks’ gets under way on Friday 21st March at 7pm. "40 years as a diplomat, dealing with difficult leaders". Sir Richard Gozney will recount his experiences of his career, Private Secretary to Foreign Minister Douglas Hurd, one day in the White House, next day at Indira Gandhi's funeral in India, British High Commissioner to Swaziland, British Ambassador to Indonesia, coping with aftermath of the Bali bombing, British High Commissioner to Nigeria and finally Governor to Bermuda and now a quiet (?) life in Langham. Quite a CV and we look forward to hearing all about it firsthand. Tickets £5.00 available from Edward Allen (01328 830276) and hopefully the Bluebell when it opens. Proceeds will be for the Parish Room Fund. Edward Allen Chairman
THANK YOU Following our serious accident in November we would like to thank our friends and neighbours for their support at such a difficult time. We have been overwhelmed by the generosity and kindness of so many people.
FE Y ALEGRÍA SCHOOL COFFEE MORNING AT CRAFER’S BARN Thank you very much to everyone who came to support this event. Over £320 was raised during the course of the weekend. Sister Cruz, the headmistress, sends her heartfelt gratitude from El Salvador. The money continues to be used towards the wages of a school psychiatrist who treats the children, many of whom suffer from physical and sexual abuse in the slum. Roger and Jutta Davis
MOBILE LIBRARY This will now visit on a four weekly basis, on Thursdays: February 20th and March 20th The van will call, on each of these days, for 20 minutes at: St. Mary’s - 10.00am. Old Post Office - 10.25am. Swan’s Close - 10.50am The Cornfield - 11.15am. Enquiries : Wells Library Tel: 01328 710467.
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DATES FOR YOUR DIARY Sat 15 Feb. FMC Annual Quiz in VH. Tue 22 Apr. 10am. PCC AGM at the Rolfes’. Sat 31 May. FMC Talk on “Formula 1: Behind the Scenes” by Pete Tibbetts, FMC Chairman in Blakeney VH. With Dinner. (See article below). Sat 3 May to Mon 5 May (3 days), May Bank Holiday. FMC Book Sale in VH. Fri 13 Jun. PCC Crab Supper in VH after Seal Trip. Sat 14 Jun: FMC AGM (TBC). Sat 26 Jul: Langham Street Fayre (+Morston Stall) Sat 2 Aug. Morston Regatta. Sat 9 Aug. Greasy Pole Competition: Blakeney Quay. Sat 16 - Sun 17 Aug. Blakeney Regatta. Fri 29 Aug – Sat 30 Aug. Norfolk Oyster World Championship. Sat 18th Oct. Shovell Dinner at the Anchor. Martin Stephen, late High Master St.Paul’s School, London, on “Stuart Admiral Sir Christopher Myngs of Salthouse”.
We would especially like to thank the Holt Fire Crew, East Anglia Air Ambulance, Friends of Langham, Blakeney Twelve, Langham Primary School and our friends and colleagues from the National Trust and Sheringham High School. John, Annie and Finnian Sizer
REMEMBRANCE SUNDAY The church collection of £196.00 was donated to the Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal.
ILLUMINATED LANGHAM Throughout Christmas Langham was illuminated firstly with the decorated tree opposite the Bluebell and then by the floodlights on the church. We must thank Friends of Langham and helpers for the tree lights plus Mr. and Mrs. Hughes for the power supply. The church was brightly lit over the 12 days of Christmas thanks to a generous donation from an anonymous parishioner. A big thank you to them all, on behalf of the village, for their kindness.
FORMULA 1 TALK 31ST MAY There will be a talk (with slides) and dinner by Dr Pete Tibbetts, at Blakeney Village Hall on Saturday 31st May at 6.30pm. Pete Tibbetts, who has officiated in over 300 Grands Prix, runs the FIA (Federation Internationale de l’Automobile) track-side fuel testing laboratory and is the FIA observer in the Formula One safety car. There will be a raffle including signed merchandise. Tickets at £30 including dinner are available from Beans Boats at 12 The Street, Morston or call Carole Bean (FMC Deputy Chairman) on 01263-740438. All proceeds will go to the Friends of Morston Church (Charity no. 1099831) – of which Pete Tibbetts is Chairman - for church repairs and maintenance. More info by email: FMCF1Talk@aol.com.
THANK YOU FRIENDS OF LANGHAM A very relaxing, free trip to Norwich, was enjoyed by members of the Friends of Langham ‘200 club’ in early December. Later in the month we had another challenging quiz evening and at the end of the month a Pantomime trip was organised for the children. All this was very much appreciated by the various sections of the village. A big thank you to the Friends of Langham for all their efforts during the year in providing the village with such an enjoyable variety of events. Like all organisations they need our support so if you are not in the ‘200’ club do give it a thought. You’ve got to be ‘in it to win it!’ You can contact the Treasurer, Peter Barlow, on Tel: 01328 830 606. A Villager
CAROL SINGERS The carol singers on Christmas Eve, led by Jane Temple and Pete Tibbetts, were in very good voice. They raised £212-09 for All Saints church funds.
HAPPY NEW YEAR Langham PCC would like to thank all those who help to keep Langham Church a going concern; all who preach, attend and help with church services, clean, arrange flowers, put up flags, play the organ, wash the altar linen, help with refreshments, work in the churchyard, maintain our churchyard equipment, look after the clock, supply church leaflets, carry out administration and support us financially. You are all very valuable to us and we appreciate your participation most sincerely. We wish you all a very Happy New Year. Langham PCC.
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CAROL SERVICE The Revd Ian Whittle took the candlelit Carol Service on 23rd December. The church looked wonderful and the descant by the three Ward sisters and the Gough family was magnificent. Some 150 people attended and the Collection – which was divided equally between Wells and the Kelling Cottage Hospitals – came to £709-55.
ADVENT CAROL SERVICE
HONOURING MORSTON’S WAR DEAD
The PCC opted for an early celebration of the Christmas story which involved using some well-known Christmas hymns serving as Advent carols! Combined with appropriate readings, the chosen music provided an agreeable opportunity for the congregation to show their mettle. The seasonal decoration, largely the work of Caro Robson, currently taking a course in floristry, and Churchwarden Liz Peart, was quite delightful, our church benefiting from Jeanette Moir’s gift of multicoloured spruce. The service, conducted by the Rector, ended with a cheering glass of mulled wine and a lively rendition of ‘We wish you a merry Christmas’ by Fergus Robson on his trumpet!
On Remembrance Day, Sunday 10th November, two wreaths were laid as usual on the Morston War Memorial, one by Parish Council Chairman John Burdell and the other by Stephen Bean. Trumpeter Ray Todd played Last Post and Reveille impeccably. The collection was sent to the Royal British Legion in Blakeney for the Poppy Fund. Those honoured – their names were read out by John Burdell – included: John Morris, George James Balding, Alec Gray, Edward George Balding, Leslie James Docking, Renton Palmer Walker and Frederick Charles Starman. We were delighted that after the service, we were contacted by Mr Gray, who has since presented a framed photograph of Alec Gray, his relation, which now hangs on the war memorial with the other photographs. Alec Gray’s ship blew up at Scapa Flow on 9th July 1917 – not 9th July 1914 – and the Morston Church booklet will be amended accordingly.
FROM THE GARDEN
MY SAILOR
Having weeded and cut back the herbaceous borders in autumn, I became aware how this action produced a tidy but very uninteresting area. To overcome this, I have decided to set aside part of the garden and by using plants with interesting leaves, stems, berries or flowers, hope to create a colourful display for next winter. In my case, it will be a fairly small area so this restricts the size of plants I can use. The gold euonymus and silver queen along with the lovely yellow jasmine, which flowers from November onwards, make a good start. Stems of cornus, yellow, red or green, can be eyecatching while phorniums like sundowner will help to bulk up the area. Grasses with ornamental seed heads provide interest and movement and for scent, nothing can compare to the daphnes, which should blend well with helleborus niger. Towards the front of the border, hardy pink and white heathers and the very early flowering snow drops, aconites and iris. This, I hope, should provide a focus of interest throughout the dull days of winter. Green Pinkie
I once had a crush on a boy But he threw me away like a toy; When he found someone else, I was left on the shelf. But I soon found a sailor, ahoy. My sailor, he taught me to sail: We went on bounding all over the main. With him at the helm and me at the bail, I was happy, oh happy, again. And that wasn’t all, let me say: We got wed on a beautiful day. In April it was, in the spring With lilacs and birds on the wing.
We’ve still got a boat on the lawn A bit batter’d now, with its sails all torn. She misses the sea and, yes, so do we, But we’ve done now with rounding the Horn.
MORSTON QUIZ by Samphire (answers on p.25) 1.Who is R2D2’s robot companion in “Star Wars”? 2.What is the surname of athlete Dame Kelly? 3.What is “variola” more commonly called? 4.What is a traditional Indian dress called? 5.From which country’s language does “anorak” come? 6.Which story of a boy dancer became a film and then a west end musical? 7.Which part of a golden eagle is gold? 8.What is the smallest breed of dog? 9.What is the term for a group of monkeys? 10.The names of British racehorses are limited to how many letters?
From “Dandelion Days”, a memoir in prose and poetry by Pam Noyes, a well-known artist which has been recently published. She records her childhood in Saxlingham where her father was Rector of Field Dalling and Saxlingham. She recollects in memorable terms a wide range of personal experiences from before the warup to present times. Poetry lovers of this part of North Norfolk will find much to enjoy in this book which can be bought at the Holt Bookshop priced at £6.99.
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After the wine and canapés (for which Sharrington has something of a reputation) and once the twittering had stopped, our gaze was firmly fixed on the fantastic photographer, David Tipling, who took us on a magical journey through the book he has just co-produced with the nature writer Mark Cocker, which examines the relationship between and is called ‘Birds and People’. David is a very accomplished speaker and impressed his audience as he swooped from Papua New Guinea to Mongolia via Kelling Heath, his camera always at the ready to capture the stunning image. Another successful year for the group came to a close with a pre-Christmas party very generously hosted by Francoise and Adrian Allenby. Rather more prosaically, the first meeting of 2014 will be the AGM and will be held in the village hall at 7pm on Wednesday 5th February when membership will be due for renewal, we will finalise the programme for 2014 and amongst other things, discuss the joint purchase of plants. The group welcomes new members from both inside and outside the village and anyone interested should contact Roger Dubbins on 01263 862261 or r.dubbins @ btinternet. com. Finally, many thanks for her hard work and enthusiasm to Robin Burkitt who stood down as chair person with effect from the end of 2013. Roger Dubbins
SHARRINGTON WINE CLUB I have been mulling over the idea of setting up a wine club for residents of Sharrington and the surrounding terroirs. The plan would be to meet up, say once a month and taste drive a number of wines, maybe wines made from the same grape or from the same region. If you would be interested in joining, please give me a call on 01263 862261 or email me on r.dubbins@btinternet.com Roger Dubbins
VILLAGE HALL 50/50 CLUB For some years the 50/50 club has provided much needed financial support for the village hall. The idea is that members of the club contribute £12 per year and each month a draw is held. So, for example, if the club has 100 members £50 is distributed in prize money each month. Membership is on the wane and the hall is currently running at a deficit. It is in need of increased support if it is to continue to provide facilities for the various activities it has hosted over the years. If you are not already a member of the club and would like to offer your support through membership, please contact Ann Abrams at Turnstone Cottage on the corner of The Street and Thornage Road. T 01263 861404
ALL SAINTS CHURCH NEWS On 11th November our Holy Communion service was presided over by the Ven Michael Handley who also included the words and prayers for Remembrance Sunday and reading the list of the fallen in the two world wars. This year it was made more poignant by the presence of a serving officer in the congregation. Our Advent carol service took place on Sunday 22nd December at 5pm. The church looked really beautiful, full of flowers, candles and a fully decorated Christmas tree together with the crib. The congregation numbered 46 including five children under 16 and a good proportion processed with lanterns from the village hall to church. With each carol children, parents and other adults placed the various figures in the crib and it was a very happy service. Thanks to our four readers and a special thank you to Anna who played the organ for us. We ended with mulled wine and mince pies before departing for homes and suppers.
SHARRINGTON GARDENERS “.....on such a day as this Christopher Robin whistled in a special way he had and Owl came flying out of the Hundred Acre Wood to see what was wanted. ‘Owl’ said Christopher Robin, ‘I am going to give a party’.” Such was pretty well the limit of my experience of birds with people until I was amongst the 40 or so folk (including a sizeable flock of winter visitors - two from the Scilly Isles - clearly blown off course) who came to roost in the village hall on Wednesday 4th December in the expectation of spotting a very rare specimen, the fantastic photographer.
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NATURE NOTES
Obviously the tidal surge on December 5th was, and still is, the “nature” topic of this winter – the ecological damage was immense, and while property and some homes and businesses were severely damaged, the effects of salt water inundation on our highly valued wildlife as the sea topped or burst through the banks has been disastrous. The National Trust, the Norfolk Wildlife Trust and RSPB are counting the cost – of course it had happened before (I remember 1953 when thousands of people lost their lives in Holland and the UK), but the power of raw nature is still a feature – Cornwall and the South Coast have also been hit this winter. Fortunately the Wells bank held, as did the Burnham Overy bank and the Holkham pinewoods held. The result was 98,000 Pinkfoot Geese on Holkham marsh on Monday after the storm; 25 % of the world population of the species – a fantastic sight. Probably never to be repeated. But invertebrates, mammals, plants and fish have been seriously hit by saline inundation – and wildlife wardens need all the support possible to repair dykes, gates, fences, sluices and to restore the precious grazing marshes. Bird watching is now a huge tourist feature of our area – this kind of event does not help this important North
Christmas Day dawned bright and dry and again we had a good attendance of 27, including three small children. Holy Communion was taken by Canon Paul Atkins in his lovely gentle contemplative way aided by his server Ellen who read a lovely poem about Bethlehem by Carol Ann Duffy. The children, Lucy, Jack and Poppy were beautifully behaved as were the three dogs who came to church, Nick and Claire Rivett’s two terriers and Rufus the miniature dachshund who was on his holidays with the Allenbys. A lovely service to set the tone for this special festival. APG
FOOD BANK Thanks to the continuing generosity of people in the village, we were able to make a further contribution of three boxes just in time for Christmas, with plenty of festive treats kindly being given. We regularly receive updates and thanks from the Cromer Food Bank and anyone interested can see the latest letter on the notice-board at the back of the church. The need for contributions is ongoing and in view of the success of the recent campaign, the box will remain in church for further donations. With Easter on the horizon any small chocolate eggs or similar gifts will be gratefully received and provide children with a treat they might not otherwise have. In the meantime all non perishable food and some non food items are always welcome. A list of things particularly needed is also on the notice-board. Thank you again to all who have given so generously. CD
MORSTON QUIZ: ANSWERS (see page 23) 1.C3PO. 2. Holmes. 3. Smallpox. 4.Sari. 5.Greenland. [G. is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark]. 6.Billy Elliott. 7.Neck feathers. 8. The chihuahua. 9. A troop. 10. 18 letters and spaces.
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Norfolk activity. Away from the shoreline the story is one of waterlogged ground and a general lack of hard frost. No doubt when this is in print it will have been overtaken by events and we will be snowed up. Pightle
Davy Jackson Treasurer. Raffles and auctions helped raise a substantial amount for club funds. A new venture is taking place in 2014, in order to help players to improve their skills for the coming season. The Club has booked winter nets at Gresham School. Anybody who is interested in a little out of season action can come along, we have two lanes booked every other week the dates are set out below so plenty of room for extra’s who might even like to play for us at some point this coming season. So if you are interested, come along. Each net session starts at 11: am on a Sunday Morning at Gresham School, Holt (Sports Hall). Kit provided. Sunday 09/02/14 Sunday 23/02/14 Sunday 09/03/14 Steven Bashforth
CHURCH NOTES Christmas has come and gone and in spite of the awful weather Stiffkey parishioners did justice to the season of good cheer and the celebration of the birth of Christ. Carols in the Red Lion (thanks to the staff) were led by our Rector and Christingle Carols were well supported in the church. The crib on the knoll says so much. Thanks to all for leading in my absence (in Scotland with a family of over 20 strong where the rain fell, the gales blew, but our clan besported themselves (driving 25 mile to church there and back) – dancing reels – (after a few “drams”, even my gammy hip behaved); and with grandchildren loving a huge Victorian house with ballroom and vast Victorian plumbing gushing, (thank goodness), hot water into baths big enough to swim in. Stiffkey seemed far away!) Two trees in the churchyard have given trouble; one of them has fallen narrowly missing headstones. These are being dealt with. We still need more help to play the organ – and I would be grateful if any musicians could contact me on 830344. The two services are Sundays; first in the month and the third – we share the others with Langham at Langham. Lent looms (perhaps not the right word!) but Easter beckons. Can summer be far behind? To all Stiffkey I say a warm welcome awaits you always in our lovely church. Keith McDougall
STIFFKEY WI Stiffkey WI has voted to close owing to low membership. As per members' wishes at our last meeting we are donating funds for the improvement of the Camping Hill Bus Shelter and also sending a cheque to Wells Maritime Trust. The Trust is open to everyone within a 10 mile radius of Wells. It provides funding for courses in seabased activities such as sailing, learning to swim etc. for those who can't afford them. It also funds Sea Survival courses for teenagers wishing to find employment in the fishing industry. We also have agreed to leave a sum on account with the Norfolk Federation of Women's Institutes to be held in trust for three years for any new WI that may be opened in that period. This would cover hire of the village hall and speakers for the first year. Helen Leach
LOCAL HISTORY GROUP
The 5th of December was an historic night, as the tidal surge caused havoc along the cost, following the earlier high winds. Appropriate for the Stiffkey Local History Group AGM? A few weeks previously the group had launched their book on the history of the village, ‘Stiffkey with Cockthorpe: a story of Norfolk people’, with well over 100 people attending, and a complete sell out of the initial supplies of the book. (more are now available). The December meeting was different; the speaker was unable to attend due to the extreme weather, the AGM taking place with depleted numbers. The Chairman, Keith McDougall reported upon a successful year, the highlight of which was the book publication. Officers and committee were re-elected, with Helen Leach joining the committee. After refreshments Steven Bashforth gave a talk on the Rectors of Stiffkey 1700-1830. Steven Bashforth
CRICKET NEWS Once again the Stiffkey Red Lion hosted the winter get together of the Stiffkey Cricket Club, as we looked back on the 2013 season, celebrated our successes and presented the individual awards. Our ‘Player of the Year’ was all rounder Stephen Cook, whilst Davy Jackson once again is ‘Clubman of the Year’, having taken on Treasurers duties in addition to all the other supporting and cricketing activities he carries out. There are no changes this year to club administration, John ‘the Fish’ Griffin, continues as club chairman, Siemon Scamell-Katz as captain, Mark Hunter vice captain, and
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about Digging for Victory, Rationing, Air Raid precautions and gas masks and gas attacks. The whole day was in role, and it was such amazing fun. Something we will all remember for a very long time to come.
Christmas Show Class 3’s part of the Langham Christmas Show involved Dad’s Army and Narnia, but not both at the same time! We must say a big thank you to Homebase in Cromer. A group of us had an idea, to create a special Narnia-like setting for the play, but it was difficult with the resources we had in school. Abbie, Charlotte, Ellie and Mrs Cotton drafted a persuasive letter to the store to see if they could help with our need for snow and trees. To our surprise, we received a phone call from Homebase saying that we could go and choose some things for our scenery. They were incredibly generous, donating a 7ft snowy tree, metres and metres of sparkly snow-like material, hundreds of blue twinkling lights and a little tinsel thrown in for good measure. It really went to make our scenery special, and we felt so proud that our writing had persuaded them. The productions went very well. Dad’s Army was funny; everyone laughed at our accents and followed the mystery story through to the end. We loved Narnia too. Class 2 (aged 6 – 8) put on a superb production of “The Owl Who was Afraid of the Dark”, and Class 1 (aged 4 – 6) gave a lovely nativity scene with carols and performed a French version of the Hokey Cokey.
SCHOOL NEWS Happy New Year from all at Langham Village School. Here is the latest news from our intrepid reporters in Class 3 (aged 8 – 11).
Football What an exciting sports opportunity for Langham. We were all desperately excited, on our way to the one and only Carrow Road to play Ashwickham on the actual pitch that Norwich City play on! Sadly Langham didn’t win - the final result was 5:2 – but well done to the Langham goal scorers, Joel and Archie.
Hockey Two teams from Langham entered the hockey tournament at Alderman Peel High School in Wells. Langham A team were triumphant, winning all 5 matches; Langham B team, winning 3 and a draw for 2. Very respectable result for the day!
Swimming
Other News around the school
Alderman Peel High School hosted the first round of the interschool swimming gala. Everyone who competed tried their absolute best. Mrs Cotton said, “What was most impressive was the way the children all supported each other, pleased with wins, and offering thoughtful remarks when the result was not what the competitor wanted.” Tight results and a tense final count up of scores, but overall Langham were the winners, retaining the trophy from last year. Great stuff!
Class 1’s topic has been Light and Dark. They have learnt about other countries around the world, made calendars and in science they have been very clever – finding out about opaque and transparent! They carried out a fantastic experiment, growing cress both in the light and in the dark and seeing what happened. We were amazed. In the light it grew and it was green, but in the dark it grew and it was yellow! Class 1 had a brilliant trip to Holkham Hall, where they saw all the Christmas trees, and even had a special visit to see Father Christmas. Class 2 have been learning about Health and Growth, Medicines and Germs. They have been learning how to write good instructions, for example how to play games like Hopscotch. In Design & Technology their work has been focused around Yetis, designing and making shoes to fit Big Foot! In Personal, Social & Health Education (PSHE) they have been working on making friends, what to do when you fall out and how best to get along. In Maths, Class 2 have worked very hard learning to tell the time, working out fractions, multiplication and division – it’s been very busy! Class 2 also went to Holkham Hall, and Leah Bushell even played the grand piano in the entrance hall.
Film Club We have just started a new venture for Class 3 - Film Club, where we watch all kinds of films rated appropriately for primary age children. We kicked off with ET. We were in tears, of laughter and sadness. Everyone who attended thought it was an excellent film and can’t wait for the next Film Club. We had drinks and snacks of fruit and popcorn, and all the children want to thank Mrs Cotton for organising it. The next film is the Laurel and Hardy classic ‘Sons of the Desert’.
Living History Day After studying about Norfolk in World War II, it was organised for Class 3 to go to Holt Railway Institute to experience evacuation for a day. Everyone came to school dressed in 1940s clothes, with gas masks, small suitcases and even teddy bears. An evacuation officer sorted us into family groups and talked to us about our responsibilities for the war effort. (Thank you to Mr Fawcett, for helping us out with our role-play.) After that a coach arrived and we got on board, waving to our mums and dads. I think I even saw one crying a little! When we arrived we were led to the train track to carry on our evacuation journey, but a bomb had hit the line… we were of course now in 1940. We learnt
End of an era Headteacher Mike Green and Class 2 teacher Vee Hopkins will be retiring from Langham Village School at the end of the summer term. Mike has been head for an incredible 23 years and Vee joined the school in 1993. Together with the rest of the staff they have built the school up from one class and 30 pupils to three classes and 91 pupils, and with an Outstanding Ofsted rating, they will be leaving on a high. We will give them a proper farewell in the summer.
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