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Blandford town guides Michael Le Bas and Clare Lowes on the staircase of Greyhound House designed by the Bastard brothers.
September 2015
Praise lavished on Greyhound House conversion work THE refurbishment of Greyhound House in the Market Place, one of Blandford's premier Grade I listed Georgian buildings, was celebrated at an open evening hosted by estate agents Symonds & Sampson, who are marketing the six apartments. The former commercial premises and home for hundreds of years to licensees, banks and solicitors were built in 1753 by then-owners John and William Bastard 20 years after the great fire of Blandford, which destroyed most of the town. After the building became vacant in 2010, planning permission was granted for its conversion and subsequently amended by its new owners to preserve and reinstate more of the building's original features. Among those eager to see the transformation and restoration of the building were members of Blandford & District Civic Society and their town guides Michael Le Bas and Clare Lowes, who were delighted to find the Bastard staircase uncompromised. They were equally pleased to find one of the apartments overlooking the Market Place to have been converted so as not to break up the richly decorated ceiling, which Mr Le Bas described as a very high status room.
Chairman Terence Dear said: "We were all very impressed with the imagination and sensitivity evident in the conversion of this listed building and in the high standard of the workmanship. "It will be to Blandford's advantage if this project can establish a benchmark against which future conversions and redevelopment in the town centre are considered. "Regrettably, there are too many historic buildings in the town centre that are in need of this sort of investment." Local contractors and suppliers included project manager Robert Acheson and Mark Caplen plumbing and heating of Dorchester, R & H Construction, Modo Interiors, tiler Russell Docker, Gary Kempster (groundworks), Service Appliances, Mark Robbins Carpets, and signwriter Len Prill, all of Blandford. Architectural consultant was Paul Dean and conservation consultant Colin Ellis, both of Weymouth, and other suppliers were Wincombe Kitchens of Shaftesbury, Dorset Electrical and Fire Alarms of Poole, and John Pitman (joinery) of Sturminster Newton. Visitors to the open evening were offered refreshments in Beatons Tearooms Blandford, which now occupies one of the units on the ground floor.
History book revision THE book Blandford Through Time, which features buildings and places now and as they were many years ago, is being revised by its authors Sara Loch and Sylvia Hixson Andrews. They are seeking the help of the public in sourcing photos showing a number of people and places, and in particular the following: Old Blandford shops and pubs; photos of what is now Forum Framers; old photos of the Market Place and the Corn Exchange; old photos of the Railway Arches and any photos of civic events. If you have photos that you think they might be interested in including in the new book, please contact Sylvia at 01258 458911 or the Blandford Museum at 01258 450388 or email blandfordtownmuseum@uwclub.net. GROW it Yourself Dorset will welcome Pennard Plants to their meeting in the Woodhouse Gardens Pavilion, Blandford, on 7th September, starting 7.30pm. Somerset-based Pennard specialise in heritage edible and useful plants, including many perennial vegetables that have dropped out of common use such as skirret and new introductions such as yacon. Their display of Sicilian vegetables won a gold medal at this year's Chelsea Show. They will be giving a talk and bringing a selection of plants and seeds for sale, so it is a great opportunity to pick the brains of an expert and acquire something new and exciting for the garden and for the kitchen. For more information call Wendy Pillar on 01258 818243.