LOCAL NEWS – Midsomer Tours, Thame Museum, Local Author, Thame Food Festival and Thame Town Music Festival.

In its 4th year, the roads in central Thame will be closed to allow the main stage in front of the Town Hall, and a whole raft of food and craft stalls and bars in the streets. Nearly every pub will have live music showcasing a range of musical genres including jazz, folk, country, Americana, rock, pop, indie and reggae music. Main stage headliners are the incredible Big Country, a legendary act who are bound to deliver a superb rocking finale. They are joined on the bill throughout the day by over 60 other acts including Rusty Shackle, Laid Blak, James Kirby, Isla St.Clair, Jen Berkova, Curse of Lono, Self Help and many more. Johnnie continues: “I am also delighted to announce our partnerships with BBC Introducing in Oxfordshire and the Academy of Contemporary Music, both of whom will have their own stages showcasing the best of new talent from around the UK. We also confirm that our postponed concert with the brilliant Glen Miller Orchestra led by Ray McVay will also be going ahead in St. Mary’s Church on Friday 9th July starting at 7:30. All tickets sold last year are still valid, and there are still a few left over at WeGotTickets.com TTMF have consulted with Thame Town Council, SODC and the emergency services to ensure all health and safety guidelines are met. “As a free, open access festival we can only go ahead if all Covid 19 related restrictions have been completely lifted but we are very optimistic about this and are looking forward to a great party for our wonderful community. Where possible we are having our stages outdoors to give a little more space. It’s all made possible by our incredibly generous sponsors including Equias BV, Christopher Ward Limited, ASM, Haddenham Healthcare, Thame Town Council and many other local companies. For more information go to our Website: www.ThameTownMusicFestival.org or contact Contactus@ThameTownMusicFestival. org. We are always looking for volunteers to help on the day and we have a few slots available for artists and bands.

Sound familiar? Any similarity is entirely intentional. These are all characters in @emele, a comic opera by Wheatleybased composer Roger Simmonds. @emele is the first production by Oxfordshire Contemporary Opera, a new charity formed to provide a platform for

new work combining young professional talent and community involvement in the county. The show will receive its world premiere in July with a stellar professional cast, including Jessica Wise, Naomi Rogers and bass Aidan Smith who plays the philandering politico. The show is being staged outdoors for safety at Wheatley House, on July 7th, 9th and 10th July at 7.30 pm. Tickets are £35 & £25 and can be purchased by emailing: emeletickets@oxcontemporaryopera.org or bought through Tickets Oxford.

Midsomer Tours are back

Globetrotter - Meridien Travels the World is the story of a globetrotting horse. It is a story about friendship, travel and cultural insights - and of course a fabulous horse! Based on the travels of a real horse, the book takes you on a journey with Meridien to foreign lands. You will meet the friends he makes along the way and share in his experiences of different cultures. The book has been written with 8-12 year old children in mind. However, younger children will enjoy having it read to them and anyone is welcome to pick up a copy and join the journey and enjoy the fabulous illustrations.

Centre has opened its doors. Run by Mark Webster, it is a home to Masseurs and Pilates classes. Thame Massage & Well-being Centre is located at the back of Greens of Thame on Thame’s High Street. We wish them all well.

are back! They recommenced on Wednesday 14th April, starting outside the Town Hall at 2 pm, and continue each Wednesday until 27th October. The tours are led by a team of seven knowledgeable guides (all volunteers) who are enthusiastic experts, not only on Midsomer Murders locations, the different episodes, the actors, the bizarre methods of murder and much more, but on local history too. The guides will escort you round the 23 Midsomer filming locations in Thame, tell you about each location – including Thame Town Hall (aka Causton Town Hall), the Spread Eagle and Swan Hotels, estate agents Chancellors and Tim Russ, Rumsey’s Chocolaterie and Thame Museum. Participants will also learn fascinating snippets about Thame’s history, from Neanderthal remains to the English Civil War and Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee. A popular stop point is the Prebendal, which featured in a recent episode, not only rich in history as a building, but also the former home of Bee Gee, Robin Gibb, buried in St Mary’s Churchyard nearby. The globally acclaimed Midsomer Murders is a TV phenomenon, which has been running since 1997 and is still going strong. Thame is one of the most-filmed locations, sometimes appearing as Causton, sometimes as one of the many picturesque villages in Midsomer County (aka Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire). Tony Long, tour organiser, commented, ‘We are delighted that the ever-popular Midsomer Tours can start again. Over 6 million people watch Midsomer Murders in the UK and millions more worldwide. When people see it on TV, they want to come and visit the beautiful towns and villages of Midsomer, such as Thame. When they are here, they spend money in our restaurants, pubs, hotels, and shops – which has got to be good for the town and its economy, especially following the lockdowns’. He added, ‘Following government advice, we will ensure that the now smaller tour groups comply with social distancing guidelines. Participants may wish to wear face masks, but none of the locations involve being indoors, so this is not necessary. Hand sanitiser can be provided on request’.

7.30pm-11pm (Gates open at 5pm ) Tickets available from www.ticketsource.co.uk

1.30pm-11pm (Gates open at 1pm ) Great food stalls and children’s activities also. Venue: Towersey Playing Fields

For more information:

Looking forward to the return of the Thame Food Festival.

Yet again Thame Food Festival will be a real foodie destination on the 25th & 26th September 2021 at Thame Showground. More importantly than ever it aims to raise awareness and support many of our artisan producers who have worked tirelessly over the last year to survive. As Lotte Duncan, organiser of the event says; “With the news that restrictions were planning to be lifted, we were keen to get preparations started and work towards creating a truly special end to the Summer. We know of so many small artisan businesses that have suffered and so it makes Thame Food Festival even more important now than ever. This is why we are working hard to give them an opportunity to showcase all the wonderful things they offer.” She continues; “Little did we know a year ago where we would be now. However, this is a chance for food lovers to enjoy a day out, while celebrating our artisan producers, supporting small businesses and to have something to look forward to. Obviously, several additional measures are being put in place to ensure that Covid-19 guidelines will be met. Our priority is to balance having a great event with keeping people safe and secure.” Central to everything at the event will be a myriad of food and drink experiences, foodie sampling and demonstrations including: Artisan and Street Food Markets Spoilt for choice…already confirmed are a mix of sweet, savoury, hot, cold, vegan, vegetarian and flavours from right the way around the world. Something delicious to suit every taste! Many producers are booked, but fortunately the scale of the showground lends itself to allowing plenty of space for more to join. Stall holder applications are now open, so if you are an artisan producers looking for an opportunity to share your food and drink delights, then get in contact. Chef and Baker Demonstrations On the main stage will be a myriad of demonstrations from some of our star chefs and bakers. These include a mix of both national and local leading lights who are all keen to reveal their love of food. They will be creating tempting dishes, while giving us their foodie insights and thoughts.

The core of Thame Food Festival is always about the food and drink. Easily accessible, there will be a free shuttle bus from the Town Hall. However, it would not be a festival without live music both in the Artisan Village and also from the live stage. Alongside will be the ever-popular Gin Garden and Pop-Up pub by FestivAles featuring a fantastic range of local awardwinning brews. Then for the shopaholics, step into the marquee of eclectic home and kitchenware which will be returning courtesy of Humble Country. The dedicated Children’s Activity Area will also be re-visiting featuring local charity Thomley (based just outside of Thame in Worminghall) with lots of art and fun things to do. And once again, there will be dog shows and demonstrations by Hearing Dogs for Deaf People with all money raised going directly to the charities. Finally Lotte says; “Fortunately, the space at the Showground means we can expand the event space and we are now actively in discussion with a number of local companies creating sponsorship packages. There is lots of scope and with the additional measures that need to be put in place to make sure the event works we would welcome conversations with others to create something that will appeal to everyone.”