The West Dorset Magazine Edition 14: Friday, August 12, 2022

Edition 14

Friday, August 12, 2022

Fortnightly, FREE

The West Dorset Magazine HOORAY FOR HENRY! The friendly vacuum born in Beamister P16-17 OOH-ARR! Time to hitch your wagon for a stream of agricultural shows P12 Plus EIGHT pages of Whasson?, FIVE pages of Sport and FIVE pages of arts Same day emergency appointments NEW PATIENTS WELCOME

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The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

Nick Horton Chief Sub

Miranda Robertson Editor

Karen Bate News Editor

miranda@westdorsetmag.co.uk

karen@westdorsetmag.co.uk

Emma Mitchell Advertising sales manager

Lyndon Wall Cartoonist

emma@westdorsetmag.co.uk

justsocaricatures.co.uk

Contact us: News, letters to the editor and general feedback: newsdesk@westdorsetmag.co.uk Display advertising: advertising@westdorsetmag.co.uk Classified advertising (text ads): classifieds@westdorsetmag.co.uk Sport: sport@westdorsetmag.co.uk Post: 15 Stanstead Rd, Maiden Newton, Dorchester, Dorset, DT2 0BL

nickH@westdorsetmag.co.uk

Alana Robertson Classifieds

classifieds@westdorsetmag.co.uk

Stuart Wickham Sports editor

stuart@westdorsetmag.co.uk

Dan Goater Reporter dan@westdorsetmag.co.uk

( 01305 566336 Contents: News & features Whasson? (events) Obituaries Vittles Down to earth Culture Antiques & Collectibles Home & Garden

4-34 6-13 34 35-39 40-43 44-48

Constituency issues 54 Politics 54-55 Puzzles 56-57 & 70 Health & Wellbeing 58-60 Business 61 Church 62 Letters 63 64-68 49 Sport 69-71 50-53 Agriculture

REMOVALS l PACKING STORAGE l CLEANERS enquiries@back2market.com

( 01305 230830 l 07853 275379 l 0800 2425012

The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

RS! E N N U ST PAGE 3

This aptly named Yucca Gloriosa is in glorious flower and quite rightly, our Page 3 Stunner! This specimen, a native to south-east America, has been moved twice and is now thriving in a southfacing garden near Hooke.

Submit your Page 3 stunnas to newsdesk@westdorsetmag.co.uk

ANOTHER GREAT REASON TO VISIT BRIDPORT!

GLOBAL ART & ANTIQUES St Michael’s Trading Estate, DT6 3RR (next door to Ocean Bathrooms)

STUNNING ART FOR SALE BILLY MUMFORD FORGERIES ANTIQUES & CURIOS TOO HEAR OF BILLY’S EXPLOITS

We buy art & antiques etc – call 07894 555107 Open Weds to Sun 10am-4pm globalartandantiques.com

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The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

£25k grants are up for grabs Grants of up to £25,000 are being offered for projects that make a difference in the community.

Dorset Council recently launched a new grant to support not for profit community and cultural organisations to deliver new and improved facilities for local communities.

There are still four weeks left to apply for round two of the grants. The next assessment panel is taking place next month so applications for this round need to be completed no later than September 12.

The Capital Leverage Fund can help fund a range of projects, including village hall or community building enhancements, renovations, maintenance, or new build projects.

Projects need to meet at least one of the Dorset Council priorities and the Cultural Strategy priorities.

Applications can only be made at dorsetcouncil.gov.uk (search for Capital Leverage Fund).

Volunteers have CAN-do attitude Dorset Council has appointed Community Action Network (CAN) to be the local VCS infrastructure charity, to empower strong and resilient voluntary and community organisations.

CAN offer free bespoke support and advice through one-to-one sessions along with training, webinars and their popular ‘Meet the Funder’ series. Future topics include Governance, Starting Up a Charity, Trustee Recruitment and much more.If you’re a charity, voluntary group or community group looking for support and advice, visit can100.org, email at hello@can100.org or ring 01202 466130.

Grade I listed Parnham House, which was gutted by fire in 2017, is set to have six holiday chalets, a marquee restaurant and a new car park after plans were approved.

Its former owner Michael Treichl had spent years and over £10 million restoring it before the fire, which destroyed all but the bones of the place.

Treichl was quizzed by police about the fire before being found dead in Lake Geneva two months later in a suspected suicide.

New owner James Perkins – who sold his ‘party mansion’ in Oxfordshire to fund the restoration of Parnham – has already spent millions on the place.

James, 53, sold much of his eclectic hoard of taxidermy, fossils and 18th century portraits along with his party mansion Anyhoe, which played host to many an A-list star.

He moved to the stately home near Beaminster, along with his wife Sophie and three kids, after buying the shell of a building following a 15-minute viewing.

Now he hopes to use the estate to host weddings

IN RUINS: The charred remains of Parnham House before James Perkins bought it and below, the planned holiday chalets

Parnham holiday chalets approved and other small-scale events.

The timber-clad holiday lets are just a part of James’ plans for the estate,

and the Parnham Planning Response Group has indicated it would prefer a master plan rather than piecemeal applications.

Agricultural society’s charity fundraiser Dorchester Agricultural Society (DAS) will host its annual charity night on Wednesday, August 31 at 7pm in the Members Pavilion at Dorchester Showground.

Each year in the week leading up to the Dorset County Show, the society hosts an event to raise funds for charities. This

year the chosen charities are the Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institution (RABI) and the Farmer’s Crisis Network (FCN). Both are providing essential support during a time of significant challenges.

The theme of the Charity Night is ‘Best of British’, with

a prize given to the best dressed table.

Tickets for the charity night are available from info@ dorsetcountyshow.co.uk or 01305 264249. Tables are available for 8-10 people, alternatively tickets can be bought individually at £25 per person.

The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

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Disappointment over Vearse Farm go-ahead

By Dan Goater dan\@westdorsetmag.co.uk

Campaigners say it is a ‘great disappointment’ that Dorset Council has approved plans to build 760 new homes at Vearse Farm, Bridport.

The authority has approved plans to let a coalition of developers build at the site known as Vearse Farm, now officially renamed Foundry Lea. The 43-hectare site is in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and plans to build there have faced strong opposition.

After councillors approved development plans, a spokesperson for pressure group Advearse said: “This is needless to say a great disappointment given the multiple issues and concerns raised by ourselves and

many Bridport residents over a long period of time.

“The councillors on the committee also raised concerns but the council officers made it clear that the councillors had in effect little choice other than to accept the reserved matters application as it stood without any changes.

“Whilst there are positives from Foundry Lea such as the affordable housing there are many negatives for Bridport that will only start to be fully realised in the years to come.”

Developers now plan to begin construction on the first 318 houses at the site

by June 2025, shortly before new building regulations come into force.

Work on the new Miles Cross roundabout will begin early next year and is set to

take six months to complete.

Former Bridport Mayor David Tett said: “Vearse Farm has courted much adverse publicity from the time it was first incorporated in the Local Plan.

“It is a very controversial and contentious site with many problems. The road infrastructure in and around Bridport is inadequate to service a development of this nature.

“With an additional 2,000 plus traffic movements this will cause havoc and bedlam.”

Many of the homes, 318, will be three-bedroom builds with 212 fourbedroom homes and 195 two-bedroom homes.

Dorset Council has said the new development, which will include 300 ‘affordable’ homes, also allocates areas

for allotments, play areas, a sports pitch with changing facilities and an orchard.

It is expected that subsequent planning applications to build a new school, care home and areas for employment will now follow.

SPRINGER SPANIEL PUPPIES Two boys for sale from litter born on 7th June.

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The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

Whasson? (and where’s it to?)

Friday, August 12 Bere Marsh Farm is opening its doors to families of all ages during the school summer holidays for a series of free, weekly wildlife walks to discover more about birds, butterflies, bees and all the wonders of the countryside.

Every Friday afternoon, everyone from grandparents to youngsters, can join the farm’s wildlife experts on an hour-long walk to help spot different species and explain all about their behaviour and importance.

Friendship development manager Nick Dobbs said: “We hope that everyone who comes on the walks will have their imagination fired by what the countryside actually holds.

“It is a magic place and there is no more brilliant example of it than Bere Marsh Farm. We very much want them to come along and make the great discovery.”

The Countryside Regeneration Trust, which owns Bere Marsh is passionate about protecting, promoting and regenerating the countryside. The guided walks will include explanations of the conservation work being implemented at Bere

Follow Dorothy through the maize maze A terrific tornado has blown Dorothy to a Maize Maze all the way from Kansas to a South Dorset Farm. Can you help Dorothy and Toto find their way through the Maize Maze to find The Emerald City, or will you get lost? Join Dorothy as she meets three very special friends and hear their story along the way. During an interactive play within a Maize Maze, families of all ages can find out the truth about The Wizard of Oz and vanquish the Wicked Witch of the West – water pistols may be involved!

Bincombe Bump Events and AsOne

Marsh and how the farm is managed for the benefit of wildlife.

As children and youngsters are especially encouraged on the walks, the CRT will provide them with special spotter sheets to keep them busy looking for particular wildlife at different points around the farm.

Farm manager Elaine Spencer White said: “These walks provide us with an opportunity to share areas of the farm not normally open to the public.”

Meeting point for the

Theatre Company provide a characterful, participatory Wizard of Oz trail experience in the Maize Maze, every Saturday and Sunday in August, with shows at 10am/11.15am/12.30pm/ 2.30pm/3.45pm.

Café with drinks and snacks, and toilets.

Tickets: £8 and £11. Book at bincombebumpsevents.co.uk Head to Caius Copse, Bincombe, Weymouth, DT3 5PT

walks is the CRT Office alongside the Trailway at the farm and everyone is welcome for the 2pm start.

All walks end at the Dutch Barn where simple refreshments will be available and where a range of fascinating wildlife objects and artefacts will be on display.

Head to DT11 0QY. There’s a Holiday Hangout for children aged nine to 14 in Dorchester between 11am and 4pm on The Great Park – and another will be held on Friday,

August 19 too.

Children must be prebooked. Activities will be supervised and children must remain on site. If you have a summer in Dorset passcode, you can use it when booking to claim a free meal.

Activities include: – Inflatable bungee run – Arts and Crafts Tent – Football – Sumo Suits – Creepy Crawleys Barbecue for lunch, PiPs cafe, or bring a packed lunch.

Book at eventbrite.co.uk

The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

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Whasson? (and where’s it to?)

A quiz night is being held at Weymouth & Portland RFC in aid of Weldmar Hospicecare.

Join a fun night of speed quizzing hosted by Carl Greenham of Ultimate Party Nights, including bingo, games, fun and raffle. £50 prize fund to raise money for Weldmar.

Tickets from tickettailor.com/events/ultim atepartynights/723295 You can donate to their JustGiving page at: justgiving.com/fundraising/ Susan-Greenham

Saturday, Aug 13

Abbotsbury Swannery Summer Fair is being held this weekend with stalls, games, cars and of course, swans.

Members of Dorset Food & Drink will be on hand showcasing their wares, local crafts and photography. Classic cars and stationary engines will be on show pedal while youngsters can have heaps of fun on the pedal go-karts and in the Swan Maze. The Wild Meadow is ripe for exploring and there are plenty of spots perfect for enjoying a picnic.

The Fair runs from 10am to 4pm each day. Tickets are £7 for adults and £5 for children. They can be bought at the gate or in advance at abbotsburyswannery.co.uk

Awful Auntie is being brought to Maumbury Rings by Heartbreak Productions at 6pm.

The new playground at the Saxby Hall Orphanage is finally complete, and we can’t wait to celebrate with you! The orphanage was founded by Stella Saxby, who some of you may remember. Her parents were killed in a car crash in 1933, leaving her all alone with her Awful Auntie – and when we say awful, we mean awful.

Aunt Alberta and her best friend Wagner, a vicious Bavarian owl, try everything they can to torment Stella into signing over the deed to Saxby Hall, but Stella, with the help of her friend Soot (the ghost of a chimney sweep, but friends come in all shapes and sizes, don’t they?) fought off Aunt Alberta, saved Saxby Hall, and gifted the beautiful Saxby Hall to be used as an orphanage.

Tickets are £12 for adults, £10 for concessions and £40 for families from dorchesterarts.org.uk

THIS WEEK’S WEEK TOP TEN VINYL INYL SELLERS 1. Frank Zappa 2. Queen 3. Bob Marley 4. Duke Ellington 5. Kate Bush

6. Fleetwood Mac 7. Billie Eilish 8. The Who 9. David Bowie 10. New Order

Vinyl records bought and sold 01300 320118.

The unveiling of the Kings Road Steam Engine will be held at the Kings Road Play Area in Dorchester at 2pm – and there’s a chance to name it, too.

The engine is nearly 100 years old and has received A lino printing workshop is some much needed TLC. being held at Upwey Old Formerly a running School Village Hall at machine, it was donated at 10am-4pm. the end of its working to Justin and Nicola Cooke become play equipment. promise a lino printing Mayor Janet Hewitt will extravaganza, where you arrive at the play area on can make anything from a simple design for a card to a an engine and before awarding plaques to those large scale, multi-layer, multicolour reduction print who have supported this project. There will be using their A2 etching plenty of chance to play on press. the newly refurbished Paper, inks and all engine and there will be a equipment provided. host of steam engine Half day £25, whole day themed activities. £50. Email info@ thestudioartschool.co.uk to Janet will also announce book a place or phone the winner of a

St Michael's Estate, Bridport, DT6 3RR thecrew@clocktowermusic.co.uk

01308 458077

competition to name the machine.

Come along to the Library Gets Lively at Dorchester Library and Learning Centre at 10am and listen to stories, join in with rhymes and songs, and make a craft to take home!

Perfect for children aged between 18 months and five years old.

Damaris Fowler is performing at the Borough Gardens Bandstand at 2pm.

It’s Augtoberfest at Cerne Abbas Brewery!

Tickets are £10 and includes a two-pint stein to keep topped up with a superb range of German beers. Papa Cheese will be

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The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

Whasson? (and where’s it to?)

Cntd from page 7 serving German Bratwurst, Brockwurst among sausages, pork and beef and chilli and cheese, all served with slaw and sauerkraut or mashed potato, onions and gravy.

Music on the day will include Jesse Williams, Nick Parker, Kipper and many more Tickets from events.liveit.io/cerneabbas-brewery-2 There’s a colour trail at Dorset Adventure Park from 9am today until 5pm tomorrow.

Fancy getting covered in paint, powder and mud?

Then this is the perfect day out for you!

The day will involve over 2km muddy colourful fun with over 50 obstacles to test your skills on. By the end of it you should be unrecognisable due to a layer of paint and mud...

More info at dorsetadventurepark.com/e vents/colour-trail-2/

Sunday, August 14 Sherborne Steam & Waterwheel Centre is holding an open day between 11.30am and 3.30pm.

Waterwheel and steam engines will be running, audio visual displays and many items of local and historic interest will be on view. Visitors can bring a picnic or take refreshments in the tea room.

The Friends of the Borough Gardens are hosting the Watkins and Swarbrick Band in the bandstand at 2pm.

Cars raise cash for hospice

Weldmar fundraiser Trevor Lewis and Nick Aplin from TOY

At the Transport of Yesteryear’s August meeting and Static Vehicle Display the group presented £1,200 to Weldmar Hospicecare Trust at the Victoria Inn, Chickerell.

Amy Hopwood is celebrating the launch of her third album, Into the Woods at 4pm in the Convivial Rabbit micropub in Dorchester’s Trinity Street.

As well as new music from the album, there will some old favourites too.

Enchanting, thoughtprovoking, harmony-soaked, exploration of forests and fairy tales.

Monday, August 15 There’s an arts and crafts fair at Weymouth Bay Methodist Church from August 15-20, 10am-4pm.

Lots of craft stalls, bric-abrac and plants.

Food is available all day including hot drinks, cakes and bacon rolls.

Free entry.

The money was raised at the annual Hardy Country Classic Tour which took place earlier this year.

The next meeting is on September 6 at Weymouth Golf Club at 7.30pm.

Weds, August 17 The Fantasy Orchestra is performing in Buckydoo Square in Bridport at 1.15pm, as part of their international tour where members cycle between the Square and Compass and Bridport’s Twin Town in Normandy, St-Vaast-LaHougue.

The community project, based in Paris and Bristol, brings together some 50 musicians, professional and amateur, to create a kaleidoscopic symphonic brigade.

Their eclectic repertoire covers film soundtracks, Morricone, Barry, RD Burman, rock and pop favourites Hendrix, Beatles, Bowie, Radiohead and some more obscure treasures. Think psychedelic loveliness,

rousing choral noise, and some choice costumes.

The event is free, with a hat passed around for the Mayor’s charities, Bridport Youth Centre and The Bank of Dreams and Nightmares mental health for primary aged children.

Sing along, dance or just listen and enjoy!

There’s free family art and activities with Houseworks Dorset CIC at 9am at The Borough Gardens in Dorchester.

The sessions are being held throughout the summer.

The sessions are 9am-1pm and noon-4pm .

All sessions and a hot lunch are free to children with a Dorset Council HAF passcode.

To book a free child session text 07423 555318.

There’s also Junk Box Art at The Borough Gardens 9am-3pm.

Make a big monument, monster or monstrosity or take inspiration from the gardens and make a magical woodland crown and wings.

All free and hot lunch at 12 for children with a Dorset Council HAF passcode)

Thurs, August 18 A free drop-in event to decorate a pebble is being held at The Discovery Centre in West Bay today and Friday, August 20 between 11am and 3.30pm.

Pebbles and colouring materials will be provided.

Using the theme of West Bay, choose a pebble, decorate it and take it home or hide it for others to find.

Take a picture of your pebble and share it with us

The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

The Chiropody Clinic on social media. Head to DT6 4EN. Museum after hours is free entry event at Dorset Museum in Dorchester’s High West Street between 5pm and 8pm. More details at dorsetmuseum.org/event A Midsummer Night’s Dream – Shakespeare in the Gardens is being held at Abbotsbury Subtropical Gardens at 6.30pm.

Shakespeare’s wonderful fantasy comedy has always been a firm favourite for open-air production. As in the Bard’s day, Festival Players International will be performing with an allmale company of skilled professional actors, and invite you to share in the colour, poetry, and magical mayhem of this perennial favourite. This is an outdoor performance, so bring a picnic and something to sit on! abbotsburytickets.co.uk

Friday, August 19 A Charity Music Weekend is being held at The Five Bells Inn in Whitchurch Canonicorum, including camping.

The weekend is in aid of Cancer Research and Marie Curie Hospice Care.

Kicking off Friday night is Cover Up (AKA Brightside).

On Saturday, there’s a breakfast barbecue for anyone who camped for the night, then the music tent opens for midday and will have acoustic acts and music starting again from 2pm, continuing throughout the day and finishing off with ROXY – Kings of Pop, who play a

mixture of rock and pop.

Tickets are £5 for one night or £10 for both nights and camping. A barbecue will be going on throughout the weekend. Tickets are £5 for both nights or £10 for both nights + camping.

Find the Five bells on Facebook or call 01297 489262.

Sat, August 20 Dorchester Vegan MegaMarket is returning to Maumbury Rings for a free event this weekend.

There are 50 stalls full of vegan produce and many offering delicious hot and cold food, tea, coffee and yummy cakes, ice-creams, tasty cheeses and other fine cuisine.

Along with health and beauty care, ethical clothing, ecofriendly products, jewellery, information and advice and so much more!

With all stalls under gazebos the MegaMarket can go ahead rain or shine and, if weather permits, there will be an inflatable play zone with bouncy castles and slides and free Space Yoga taster sessions. The event is held between 10am and 4pm. Dogs must be kept on a lead.

To enquiry a stall, email wdveganevents@gmail.com An Expressive Watercolour Techniques Workshop is being held with Tina Peacock at 10.30am in the Shire Hall, Dorchester. You will paint a loose composition using a variety of watercolour techniques, tools and media.

Suitable for beginners and improvers.

Please state your preference of subject matter in the

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( 01305 25 99 09 dorchester-chiropody.co.uk Routine appointments £37 Express nail cut and file £20 £40 Diabetic Assessment Corn removal (2 corns) £25 Ingrowing toenail treatment £25 Verruca treatment £25 (acid) Verruca needling surgery (local anaesthetic) £180 LCN toenail from £50 reconstruction Ingrowing toenail surgery from £270

The Chiropody Clinic is under new ownership Come in and see our new Podiatrist and owner Gillian May BSc (Hons) MRCPod Degree in Podiatric Medicine HCPC Registerred CH33115

Open Mon-Sat, 8am4pm in Princes Street, near the old Argos Building, DT1 1RL

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The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

Whasson? (and where’s it to?) comments section when booking and bring an apron.

Tickets are £70 from shirehall-historic-courthouse-muse um.myshopify.co.uk Dorchester Cider Festival 2022 returns to Borough Gardens on at 2pm.

A family-friendly celebration of the region’s finest cider producers, special guests, great food and live music throughout the day.

Meet and be served by guest cider makers and sample numerous award-winning tipples, from delicate elderflower infusions to leg wobbling scrumpy and everything in-between, all in the towns relaxed Victorian park atmosphere.

Soft drinks will also be served as well as beers and wines for non-cider drinkers who want to join the fun.

All profits from this event are distributed to local good causes by Dorchester Round Table.

There’s a You the Jury Day with award-winning novelist Diane Janes at Shire Hall in Dorchester at 9am. You the jury will consider the evidence, reach your own verdict, then decide whether or not justice was well served by the historical outcome. The cases have been selected with an eye to the insight they can give us on various aspects of our judicial system, or our social history.

No advance preparation is required, but you will find a pen, a notebook and an open mind invaluable.

Participants will be expected to listen to the evidence, making notes as they go, then discuss the case and attempt to reach a verdict, based on the evidence they have heard. No advance reading or knowledge

St John Ambulance NHS deal welcomed

CONTRACT: Chris Loder and Carole Lawrence-Parr, chief president of St John Ambulance

St John Ambulance has been commissioned by the NHS to support the ambulance service in Dorset.

The move has been welcomed by West Dorset MP Chris Loder, who said: “This announcement is a great step forward to address the problems we face in West

Dorset of unacceptably long wait times and stretched capacity, for which I have been lobbying hard in Parliament since covid.”

In July, following a competitive tender process, St John Ambulance was commissioned by NHS England to provide an

of the English judicial system is needed.

Although these are all real cases, no distressing crime scene photographs will be used.

Tickets are £30 (includes refreshments and lunch) from shire-hall-historic-courthousemuseum.myshopify.com

Monday, August 22

Tuesday, August 23

A slide show talk about the Cerne Giant will be held at Frampton Village Hall at 7.30pm.

Speaker Peter Emery was granted access to the Giant compound last year, by the National Trust, so he could archaeologically dowse for possible Roman connections.

The talk is based on his subsequent report with some additions to add interest.

The entrance fee will be £4 at the door with all proceeds going to the charity Little Hearts Matter after Peter’s first grandchild, Freya, suddenly and unexpectedly died at 10 weeks old in 2009 with heart failure.

Bridport & District U3A will holding its monthly meeting at 2pm in the United Church Hall in East Street. Author Marcus K. Paul will present an illustrated talk Ireland to the Wild West.

Marcus will give a true account of romance and adventure of emigration to the USA in the 1870s. Starting with the birth of an Irishman in 1846 who emigrates to Philadelphia at 17 years old, and moves to the Wild West in 1863, before the time of Wyatt Earp. The talk is richly illustrated with over 100 slides including many neverbefore-seen-photographs.

There will be an opportunity for questions

The Riverside Family Fest is being held in Sturminster Newton, DT10 2BS, from noon-10pm for Children With Cancer UK, The Vale Pantry and The Big Yellow Bus Community Garden Project.

A fun family festival with live bands and singers, including Mother Ukers, Fleur Lindsay and The Haze.

A barbecue, children’s activities, bar, cream teas, a raffle and bouncy castle Check out the riverside family fest on Facebook

auxiliary ambulance service to the NHS via a £27.5million contract over the next four years.

The auxiliary contract, commencing on August 1, will see St John’s crews provide crews and ambulances to 10 NHS trusts including Dorset.

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Whasson? (and where’s it to?) after, and refreshments.

The talk is free to members and £2 charge for nonmembers. More information at bridportu3a.org.uk

There are prizes to be won, and you’ll need to bring your own bucket, tackle and bait.

West Bay Discovery Centre is inviting its younger visitors to join in a programme of activities this summer. Make invisible pictures, capture shadows and print with the sun at the Oops Wow Messy Art outside the front of the Discovery Centre.

Drop-in anytime between 10.30am and 3pm for free.

Meet Mermaid Taurva at Portland Marina at 2pm.

For those children who don’t want to get in the water, you can still pop by and say hello from the pontoon. Children must be accompanied by a parent or guardian and wear a buoyancy aid whilst on the pontoon. You’ll need to bring your own buoyancy aid (they may have spares for you to borrow) and a change of clothing is recommended. A two hour free parking permit at the visitor centre is available for those attending Portland Week.

There’s a Kids Crabbing Competition at Portland Marina.

Grab your buckets, grab your lines and get crabbing!

The name of the game is to catch as many crabs as you can, or just the biggest one!

Motor Show 2022 with

Weds, August 24

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18th Sept

Car Exhibition & Family Fun Day 11-4 pm FREE

Lulworth Castle, Wareham, BH20 5QS

'Dorset Tour' & Showground Display 9-4 pm £12pp

01202 712865 dbamotorshow22.eventbrite.co.uk

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The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

Whasson? (and where’s it to?)

Thurs, August 25 The Melplash Show is being held at West Bay, featuring something for everyone!

The showground is packed full of exhibits including livestock, horses, homecrafts and horticulture.

There are over 400 trade stands selling everything from locally produced food to tractors and plenty in between!

They will be welcoming the world-famous Devil’s Horsemen to the main arena to perform their breathtaking extravaganza of Cossack stunt riding.

The countryside arena will be packed with displays including ferret racing, gun dog displays, falconry and a dog and duck display.

Meet lots of friendly characters around the showground including Professor Crump, Daphne and her otter Bee, Strawberry Jam Clown and lots more!

Farming and agriculture is at the heart of the show and visitors will be able to watch judging of the wonderful animals. The Discover Farming marquee is a must visit for all families who are interested in learning more about food production and farming. There are activities and interactive demonstrations. melplash. ticketsrv.co.uk/tickets The Great Dorset Steam Fair is back from today until August 29 at Tarrant Hinton with the biggest display of steam traction engines in the world.

Steam Traction World will

Farming fun and fabulous food at shows

COO, LOOK AT THEM: Prizewinning cattle at Melplash Show

A feast of farming is on offer over the next few weeks, with no fewer than four huge agricultural shows in Dorset.

The farming fun kicks off at the Turnpike Showground (SP7 9PL) on Wednesday, August 17 with The Gillingham and Shaftesbury Show (see advertisement, right).

The long-established show features a huge array of countryside pursuits, plus food, breathtaking entertainment and rides and games.

Tickets from gillinghamandshaftesbury show.co.uk Melplash Show is next up, on Thursday, August 25 at West Bay (see left).

Here you have the chance not not only have an amazing day out, but the WDM will be there with our cartoonist Lyndon Wall and copious showcase every current production engine. Single Crank and Double Crank, two inch and four inch, Burrell and Foden – Showmans, Agricultural,

AGRICULTURAL SHOWS COMING UP: Wednesday, August 17: Gillingham and Shaftesbury show Thursday, August 25: Melplash Show Thursday, August 25 to Monday, August 29: Great Dorset Steam Fair Saturday and Sunday, September 3 & 4: Dorset County Show quantities of Edition 15.

Our baking columnist Lizzie Baking Bird will be there too.

Buy tickets at melplashshow.co.uk or on the gate.

The Great Dorset Steam fair needs no introduction, with the largest collection of steam engines in the world being hauled to the Tarrant Valley near Blandford for a six-day celebration from August 25-29 (see left).

Then Dorset County Show makes its triumphant return to Cokers Frome on Saturday and Sunday, September 3 and 4.

The showground will be packed with attractions, prize-winning animals, trade stands and more, and there’ll be more food and drink to sample and buy than you can shake a whittled stick at. Head to dorsetcountyshow.co.uk to buy tickets.

Roller and Road Loco, Little Samson, Wagons and Bowsers, Four and Half Inch and Super Sixers.

Details and tickets can be bought at gdsf.co.uk

Email events to newsdesk@west dorsetmag.co.uk

The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

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The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

Advice surgery Citizens Advice Advisor Helen Jones is back at Pound Piece Surgery at Maiden Newton every Thursday morning to give advice to people in need.

Dorset CAB offers free, confidential, independent and impartial advice including benefits, housing, debt, employment, immigration.

Any patients registered with the surgery can make an appointment.

Lyme calendar The Love Lyme Regis website has published a 2023 calendar featuring 12 selected images captured around the town.

Calendars are £11.99 with free postage and packing.

To order one email info@lovelymeregis.co.uk

A hospital friends group is celebrating its 70th anniversary this year.

West Dorset MP Chris Loder opened a celebratory summer reception for the Friends of Yeatman Hospital earlier this month at Sherborne Castle.

Mr Loder said: “The Friends of the Yeatman hospital has been an integral part of our community for 70 years.

“I wish to take this opportunity to congratulate all of the volunteers, and thank those who have donated funds.”

Friends group chairman David Hayes welcomed 45 guests to the castle’s orangery, where he expressed his gratitude to the friends who have supported the charity.

“During our 70-year history the friends has established itself as an integral part of Sherborne life,” he said. “One only has to mention the word friends, and the charity is recognised immediately. “

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY: Yeatman Friends at Sherborne Castle

Friends’ 70th birthday Mr Hayes took the opportunity to thank Yeatman Hospital chaplain, The Rev Jane Craw, for her tireless support. He also acknowledged the immense support of the local Chamber of Commerce, various Sherborne businesses and of course the Sherborne Town Council’s loyal support of the Friends.

The patron for the anniversary,

Richard Hunt, chairman of Hunt’s Food Services, was presented with his portrait painted by Georgia Burton, a Year 6 pupil at Sherborne Girls School.

In closing Mr Hayes thanked Edward and Maria Wingfield Digby for their support and generosity in allowing the Friends to host this important reception at Sherborne Castle.

Council warned after boy misses school Dorset Council has been told to improve its alternative education provision after a boy with special needs missed almost two years of school.

The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman Michael King upheld a complaint against the authority made by the boy’s mother.

She complained that her son, who suffers from Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and shows symptoms of autism, was left feeling anxious and stressed because the council failed to secure a school place for him.

The ombudsman found that from February 2020 to November 2021 the boy was provided with ‘very little’ suitable education or support for his needs by the authority apart from one period of social activities.

The council has now apologised to the mother and paid her a total of £8,800 in recognition of the impact of the loss of education for her child, her loss of opportunity to contribute to his education and care plan, the stress caused to them both and for the council’s poor communication.

Michael King said: “Councils have a duty to ensure alternative education is provided for children who are unable to attend school for whatever reason, and they cannot delegate this duty to schools or other providers.

“In this case, a boy with special needs has been without proper education for a significant period.”

Cllr Andrew Parry, Dorset Council Portfolio Holder for Children, Education, Skills and Early Help, said: “We want all Dorset’s children and young people to receive the best

education and start in life, and are sorry we have failed to do this in this case.

“We have taken these matters seriously and have made a number of changes to our services so other families do not have to go through the same experience. We have also introduced additional improvements following our recent pilot Ofsted inspection and we will continue to proactively monitor our performance.

“We have completed all the actions required by the Ombudsman.”

Brewery Square welcomes good sports for activity days Dorchester’s Brewery Square is set to introduce a range of free sports-themed activities for shoppers every day throughout August.

The square is installing a table tennis table

and aerobics equipment will also be free to use between 10am and 4pm every day during the month, and guests can tee up for crazy golf in the square every Tuesday between 10am and 4pm.

Visitors are welcome to tag Brewery Square in their sporting pictures, or use the hashtag #SportsInTheSquare to see how other shoppers are playing! n See brewerysquare.com

The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

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Country parks flying the Green Flag In a record-breaking year, Dorset Council is raising its prestigious Green Flag Awards at five of its country parks, which have been officially recognised as some of the country’s best.

Avon Heath, Durlston, Stour Meadows, The Milldown, Thorncombe Woods, Black Heath and Hardy’s Birthplace country parks have received Green Flag status.

Parks and green spaces played a vital role for people through lockdowns as a place to relax, exercise and meet friends and family safely and the news that these sites have achieved the Green Flag Award is testament to the hard work and dedication of the teams that make these green spaces places that everyone can enjoy.

Cllr Ray Bryan, Dorset Council’s Portfolio Holder for Highways, Travel and Environment, said: “This is a fantastic result, and an important reminder of how important our country parks and greenspaces are to the public and visitors to Dorset. They are places where we can all enjoy wildlife, landscape, outdoor activities of Dorset or just catching up with friends in the fresh air.

“Winning these awards is recognition of what superb parks we have and a way of saying thank you to the hard-working employees and volunteers that maintain the high standards demanded by the Green Flag Award.”

The Green Flag Award scheme, managed by environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy under licence from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, recognises and rewards wellmanaged parks and green spaces, setting the benchmark standard for the management of green spaces across the United Kingdom and around the world.

Beach basks in Lyme-light

Lyme Regis Fossil Beach has been named one of the top ten beaches in England.

According to the 2022 best beaches index compiled by Holidu, the West Dorset beach comes in at number ten on the list.

Elsewhere in the county, Mudeford Sandbank came in at number six and Hengistbury Head Beach was ranked seventh.

The number one spot went to Bossiney Cove in Cornwall.

AWARDWINNERS: Thorncombe Woods and, right, Hardy’s Birthplace Centre

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The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

Hooray for Henry! The ruddy-faced

By Miranda Robertson miranda@westdorsetmag.co.uk

I’ve never wanted a Henry.

Never.

I already have far too many things with a face following me round the house – two dogs, a cat, a son, a husband…

In any case, I’ve been a Vax fanatic for 25 years – until the fateful day that my trusty 6131 bit the dust instead of sucking it up. The little orange wonder was a bit like Trigger’s broom. We had replaced so many bits, including the motor, over the years. It had sucked up everything from pooled water in the fridge to the crud at the bottom of a friend’s oil tank But the Joy of Vax came to an end abruptly a couple of months ago. Bereft, I immediately ordered a new Vax model and excitedly (I know, I am that old) put it together and started to vacuum the house. It was terrible. I packaged it back up and took the dogs out for a walk…

The neighbours over the road were clearing their house and I asked if they had a vacuum cleaner for sale. Out came Henry, beaming crazily. Oh no, I thought. But for 20 quid it would do the job for now.

I fired it up… and fell in love.

Man, the suction on this thing!* You could lose an arm.

So when Beaminster Museum posted on Facebook that Henry was produced in the town for 20 years, I found myself getting sucked in (sorry) to the story.

The story of how Henry was

PRODUCTION LINE: The Numatic factory in Beaminster where Henry was conceived

Left, the original Numatic building in Crewkerne and above, the Twitter account set up after a Henry was spotted in No10 Downing Street

born is fascinating.

Chris Duncan, now 83, started Numatic in Crewkerne in 1969, where he created his first commercial vacuum cleaner design for cleaning coal, oil and gas fired boilers.

At the beginning, the company employed six people in a tiny factory. The most sophisticated equipment they had was a drill.

Their first cleaners were made of a red oil drum, topped with a black washing

up bowl. They sat on furniture castors.

Incidentally, the thread of the modern Henrys still matches an oil drum thread.

By 1971, demand for Numatic vacuum cleaners had grown too big and Chris moved the business to a watermill in Yeovil. The watermill flooded often – but by then there was a Numatic machine to deal with that.

Their first serious commercial vacuum cleaners the NV-2 and NV-

250 were all-steel machines that were truly built to last – Numatic still provides spares for them, 50 years later.

Numatic moved to Broadwindsor Road in Beaminster in 1974, in the old Perry and Perry garage building, where it stayed until 1994 before expanding hugely with a move to Chard.

Sally-Ann Hutchings worked there for nine years in the sales office from 1983.

She said: “I loved working

The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

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machine with a massive following

FACE OF THE BUSINESS: Chris Duncan with one of his machines HAY BABY: One electrical store’s Nativity display

Left and above, the factory in the 70s and 80s

there. We had a good team in the office and always had a great laugh. I only left because I was having a baby.

“I never went back as they were leaving to go to Chard.”

Numatic employee Robin Teague, who started work in the stores there in 1988 and moved with them to Chard and retired at

60, said: “We went from building 10,000 machines a month to building 20,000 a week.”

Chris is now believed to be worth more than £150m and much of this wealth has been accrued through the Henry series, which have found particular fans in children on the autism spectrum.

There are also countless Henry

fan groups on Facebook.

Henry came to be quite by accident – bored at a trade show in the late 70s, Chris and one of the salesmen dressed up one of their machines and drew on a face, with the hose acting as a nose (a viral video shows Henry sucking up illicit substances, if you care to Google it).

They named him Henry and visitors to the trade show loved him.

Returning home, Chris had a face professionally designed

for the little fella and Henry started to be sold.

Children’s wards, schools and night cleaners were enamoured of the little chap and Chris increased production.

In 1981, the name Henry was added to the hat/lid and almost by accident, Henry became a legend. A Henry was given to Prince Charles and Diana on their wedding day and one has been seen tucked away in 10 Downing Street’s press briefing room (this one has his own Twitter account).

The accidental hit snowballed and soon Numatic were busy making relatives for Henry, in the guise of the pink Hetty, plus grey James, blue Charles, green George, smaller green Harry, William, Edward and David. There’s also a yellow one, but he’s also called Henry.

Chris now has more than 1,000 staff and has produced well over 15million Henrys, beloved by kids, and tradespeople, who use him to reliably rid their sites of plaster and dust.

The move to Chard – after Somerset proved more willing to help with expansion costs than Dorset – has paid off, sadly at the expense of providing hundreds of jobs in Beaminster. n Disclaimer: My 20 quid Henry is most likely more powerful than current models after a 2014 EU directive that manufacturers will not be able to make or import vacuum cleaners with a motor that exceeds 1,600 watts. *You may not lose an arm with a modern model.

18 The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022 Melplash Agricultural Society has welcomed Bradfords as the main sponsor for Melplash Show 2022.

Bradfords, one of the largest independent builders’ merchants in the UK with over 43 branches throughout the South West, IT’S SHOWTIME: Bradfords Builders Merchants is sponsoring this year’s Melplash Show has had a long association with Bridport, the farming community and the show.

It is believed the relationship between Bradfords and the town started after the opening of the Bridport Railway Devon that did not have a support. 2022 is a special Station in 1857. Bradfords’ Bradfords depot right next year for us; we have not real growth occurred with to it. Their first depot in held a show for the last two the advent of the railways Bridport was next to the years and are celebrating in mid 1800s, and that is railway station in Sea Road this year 175 years of the when the real expansion of North.

Melplash Agricultural their business down into Society president Nigel Society.

Dorset occurred.

Jones said: “We would like “It gives us immense It was said that there was to extend our appreciation pleasure to be celebrating barely a station in to Bradfords for their with Bradfords, who Somerset, Dorset and East continued generous themselves reached their

Show celebrating sponsorship deal

250 years anniversary in 2020. They have a long association with the show and the local farming community. Their support of the show and to our Discover Farming initiative and Bursary Scheme in particular is invaluable.”

David Young, CEO of Bradfords, said: “We are extremely proud and excited to continue our sponsorship of the Melplash Show this year.

“Very much like Bradfords, the show has a long pedigree and continues to keep the local community, particularly farming, at its heart.” n Melplash Show will be held on Thursday, August 25. Discounted adult tickets are available at melplashshow.co.uk Admission for 16 years and under is free.

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The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

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Cobb candles to be lit in loving memory Lyme Regis’ iconic Cobb will be illuminated with candles in memory of lost loved ones next month.

The famous Candles on the Cobb event will be held on Sunday, August 28.

Organised by the town’s rotary club, the stunning spectacle is run once every three years.

A rotary club spokesperson said: “The harbour has featured in countless images, but few compare with the mesmerising spectacle of its curved structure illuminated with thousands of tea light candles.

“Candles on the Cobb is one of the south coast’s most unique and moving events, with members of the public asked to sponsor

ILLUMINATING: Candles on the Cobb in Lyme Regis Picture: Ben Kapur

candles in memory of loved ones and watch as the town’s historic landmark is lit up in spectacular fashion. It’s an emotional event which captures the imagination of people worldwide.”

The event, first staged in 2000, will see some 5,000 candles set out at regular

intervals on the Cobb and the north wall.

The rotary club spokesperson added: “The first Candles on the Cobb event raised £7,200 and since then over £140,000 has been distributed to local youth projects and national charities.

“Local youth projects have

benefitted enormously over the years, giving the committee and sponsors great satisfaction.

“The focus on youth in the town and environs is very much in keeping with Rotary International’s aims. This year, the beneficiaries will be Lyme Regis Youth Projects, the British Red Cross, and Cancer Research UK.” You can sponsor a candle by visiting candlesonthe cobb.com or buy a certificate from participating stores at The Slipway and RNLI Shop at the Cobb plus other outlets (see website for details).

You will also be told where your candle will be positioned on the Cobb when it is lit.

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The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

Carry on camping with Terry and

By Miranda Robertson miranda@westdorsetmag.co.uk

At a campsite at the foot of Pilsdon Pen families are relaxing, Enid Blytonstyle, around campfires, toasting marshmallows that were a welcome gift from site owners Terry Odell, 74, and April Grayson, 61.

It was the pair’s retirement project – after first shepherding, then selling financial products for Abbey Life, then working for the Office of National Statistics Terry, then 68, thought buying a field and offering a spot of wild camping would be the perfect activity.

April, who was a midwife and still works as a vaccinator, agreed – as they do on most things.

This is the most ideally suited couple I may have ever met.

The pair met 18 years ago – early adopters of online dating through match.com in 2004.

They have since adopted each other’s hobbies, playing squeezeboxes, riding a tandem, motorbiking and skiing. Always up for a new challenge, they bought seven acres of land comprising four paddocks near Broadoak seven years ago and set about making it the perfect place for the type of camping people remember from their childhood – with a few extra comforts, such as gas-powered showers, nice loos, and Morrocan yurts

AND SO TO BED: One of the Morrocan yurts and April’s crochet bedspreads taking pride of place.

and bell tents far better appointed than you’d have found in the 60s and 70s.

There are also food vans serving meals at breakfast and in the evenings.

They called it Pilsdon View, as you have a fine view of the hillfort from here.

It was nearly called Back to Basics, in a nod to what they were trying to achieve, to let kids mingle with each other, away from technology, with space to play creatively.

I was a bit worried my son Robert, 14, would find it a little placid. But after a cycle to the pub, then lighting his own fire, then three superfast spins on the tyre swing – faster than any fairground ride –

he was truly contented.

The kids here have the luxury of space and safety, with only 40 pitches available across all that land.

“We didn’t want people queuing for the loos and showers,” said April.

That freedom and tranquillity has earned the pair rave reviews – 60 five-star reviews on Pitchup alone.

The couple live in Drimpton in winter – they moved from Thornford to make the commute easier – and on site at Pilsdon View in summer. The week before they open a

The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

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April at their haven of tranquility

WE CAN SQUEEZE YOU IN: Terry and April and their accordions at their site and, left, Terry at his fossil stall

tribe of family and friends form the YETIs – the Yurt Erection Team International –to spend a day putting up the gurt yurts, which take six to eight experienced people to put up.

Beds are made, with April’s crochet in pride of place.

Then Terry and April settle into their summer home – a shipping container lined with fresh bedding for the yurts and copious quantities of loo roll, with a kitchen and a bedroom.

They write welcome notes to all arriving guests on their blackboard and wave

cheerily at people as they come and go, off to explore the wonders of the Dorset countryside or on their way home.

Nothing’s too much trouble – they offer a range of items for kids to play with, such as rubber unicorns to bounce on, balance bikes etc, and if you’ve left your washing up liquid at home (I did) they’ll give you some. Logs and paper/card are on sale for people wanting to gather round one of their fab washing

machine drum fires into the evening. There’s a play park constructed in one of the old clay pits on the site. Nothing’s too far

away, and yet there’s so much space.

A mile away lies the Shave Cross Inn – a lovely old thatched pub with the most glorious looking food. Sadly I’d packed too much van scran to avail myself.

“We work well with our neighbours,” said Terry.

“We recommend places to go, such as a new petting zoo nearby and other campsites if we’re full.

“During winter the neighbours put their sheep here to keep the grass down, then before we open they come and clear the paddocks and bale it up.”

It’s hard, round-the-clock work for the couple which they clearly enjoy hugely, though plans are afoot for then to hand over some of the work in the next couple of years – possibly to Terry’s younger son, who is currently living on a boat on Montenegro.

“You can’t keep leaping on and off a tractor at nearly 80,” said April.

“We’re on the go all day, cleaning the loos and showers, dealing with the rubbish and recycling, and all the other jobs. It’s a full-time job.”

Not to mention all that waving and all those warm welcomes. n Pilsdon View is open during the school summer holidays, with prices from £18 a night for two adults.

Walkers and cyclists and NHS workers get 10% off site fees. Call 07974 810876 or book via Pitchup.

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The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

Writing’s on the wall for students’

LOOK WHAT WE’VE DONE: Artists Marina Renee-Cemmick, left, and Jo Burlington, right, with young artists, also Colfox student Zac Dixon, inset below. Right: Some of the sections of the 133-metre mural

Young artists from Bridport’s Colfox School have created what is believed to be the UK’s biggest mural.

Evoking themes of work/life balance and living by the coast, the 133-metre mural is the result of a youth-led project supported by Bridport Arts Centre.

Funding for the mural, which has been painted on the exterior wall of Bridport FC’s grounds, was provided by Bridport Town Council and Dorset Council.

Bridport Arts Centre director Mick Smith said: “We consulted young people in the town and asked what they wanted on the mural.

“It was basically more colour and less beige!

“They painted images that were themed around their ability to still live here when they’re older rather than move on to find work.

They also themed their painting around finding a work/life balance, around the fact that Bridport is quite an artistic town that is

very close to the sea.

“There was strong collaboration on a number of aspects.”

Mick added: “The aim of the mural project was to encourage young people to

design and create an ambitious artwork in the town that celebrated the local area and gave voice to their views for the future.”

The new mural is believed to be the longest in the UK, with the previous record held by a mural in Doncaster that measures 108 metres.

Bridport artists Marina ReneeCemmick, Jo Burlington, Kate Genevieve, Immy Nailen, Molly

Bruce, Delphine Jones and Annalisa Renee supported students during the painting, braving the hottest day of the year.

Local artist Marina ReneeCemmick said: “We’ve tried to transform 66 panels of concrete into something that’s exciting, energetic, and colourful for everyone to enjoy.

“When you create a nice environment and space that’s interesting for people, they enjoy it rather than defacing it, because they feel a part of it.”

Colfox student Zac Dixon said: “This is the first time I’ve done spray-painting so

The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

massive mural

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The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

MP Loder backing Truss West Dorset MP Chris Loder welcomed the Foreign Secretary and Conservative Party leadership candidate Liz Truss to his constituency.

Mr Loder has endorsed the Foreign Secretary as his choice to be the next party leader and Prime Minister.

Almost 200 Conservative Party members met Liz Truss at a meeting near Dorchester where she discussed bus and rail transport, digital connectivity and the NHS. Mr Loder said: “Her responses contained the characteristically straightforward, pragmatic and considered plans of actions for bus services, digital connectivity, railway links, the NHS and so much more that we have seen throughout her campaign. I am certainly of the view that Liz is good news for rural Britain and is why I am delighted to be supporting her.”

WELCOME: Chris Loder with Liz Truss

Fish diversity improving after action Protecting Lyme Bay from bottom-towed fishing has led to a four-fold increase in fish diversity and abundance, according to researchers.

University of Plymouth academics have been monitoring the overall health of the bay since 2008, when it was designated a Marine Protected Area (MPA) to prevent fishers trawling the seabed.

The research team has found the ground-breaking ‘whole site’ management approach – first implemented at Lyme Bay – has led to a huge resurgence in biodiversity, especially on the seabed.

A university spokesperson said: “The whole-site management of an MPA can increase the total abundance of

reef species within its borders by up to 95%.

“This is in contrast to regions where only known features are conserved, with species abundance increasing by just 15% in those areas compared to others where human activity is allowed to continue unchecked.”

Lyme Bay is home to two colocated MPAs that have

adopted different management styles in their exclusion of bottom-towed fishing.

There is a 270 square kilometre Special Area of Conservation, where measures are in place to protect the known extent of its sensitive reef habitats.

Within that SAC is a 206 square kilometre area – including a ‘mosaic of reef

and sedimentary habitats’ – where the whole site is protected under statute.

The University of Plymouth’s latest study shows that the whole site approach has led to an overall increase in reef abundance.

The research also found that there is now greater diversity in ‘mobile’ species in the whole site area, adding that this is also ‘indicative of a healthier seabed’ that is more resilient to storms that whip up the seabed.

Dr Bede Davies, who led the Lyme Bay research as part of his PhD studies, said: “This study shows that, given the right support these areas can recover, and Marine Protected Areas are undoubtedly part of the solution.”

Village cluster applying to form Neighbourhood Plan Residents of Bradford Abbas and Clifton Maybank hope to form a Neighbourhood Plan.

Dorset Council has received a request from Bradford Abbas Parish Council for the approval of a Bradford Abbas and Clifton Maybank Neighbourhood Area, which is the first formal stage of preparing a plan. The application includes consent

from representatives of Clifton Maybank Parish Meeting.

The application and supporting information can be viewed at dorsetcouncil.gov.uk/neighbou rhood-area A Neighbourhood Plan aims to give residents more control over their local area, when plans for new homes, shops and offices in their town or village are considered.

Any comments on whether this is the right area for the plan to cover can be sent to the Spatial Planning Team at Dorset Council by Friday, September 16.

Once the plan is written, it will be consulted on locally and submitted to Dorset Council for independent examination.

It will also be subject to a local referendum to make sure it has

the support of local people.

Post comments to Spatial Planning, County Hall, Colliton Park, Dorchester, DT1 1XJ or email neighbourhoodplanning @dorsetcouncil.gov.uk Those interested in helping with the preparation of the Neighbourhood Plan can contact the Parish Clerk at bradfordabbaspc@hotmail.co.uk

The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

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The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

Twinners pay their respects to French Dignitaries from Bridport paid their respects to French fisherman lost at sea on a visit to North West France.

Bridport Twinning Association members, the town’s mayor, clerk and crier recently returned from joining in the Benediction de la Mer event held once every ten years in St Vaast La Hougue.

Hosted by the French twinning association members, the Bridport delegation joined in the event which sees boats being blessed to protect the sailors from misfortune.

The fishing boats in Normandy harbour were festooned, alongside the

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CEREMONY: The twinning party on the beach at St Vaast La Hougue, one of the lobster decorations and, right, the Bridport party

rest of the town, with decorations and flowers made from coloured tissue paper by the locals. This year, the decorations included a giant lobster, seahorses, matelots and

everything marine.

The benediction event began with a civic parade through Normandy to the harbour side, followed by a service led by the Bishop of Coutances and

Avranches. The boats then sailed out to sea and the Benediction de la Mer (blessing) was carried out

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The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

Letting our summer visitors in on Award-winning travel writer GODFREY HALL looks at some of the Jurassic coast’s very special secrets and then ventures further afield….

Some years ago, Hilary Brandt, an acquaintance of mine and the founder of Brandt Guides, wrote the amazing book Bus Pass Britain which included a trip along our very own Jurassic coastline.

This service which is better known as the Jurassic Coaster (X52) is probably one of the most spectacular journeys in England and during the summer months connects in Weymouth with the 501 open topped service which will take you onto Portland and out to one of the most spectacular lighthouses in the UK, Portland Bill.

Having travelled extensively around the world, there is also a similar lighthouse at Peggy’s Cove in Nova Scotia.

Said to be one of the most photographed in Canada it has by its side a wonderful family run café and restaurant similar in many ways to the Lobster Pot at Portland Bill.

You can therefore easily organise a trip on the X52 with one on the 501 and a delicious fulfilling homemade lunch.

Combine this with some amazing views and Portland’s very own iconic lighthouse and you have a perfect day out.

Moving along the coast to Abbotsbury, there is yet another secret which is totally free and well worth exploring. This time you will need to turn right off the

TOP SPOT: The lighthouse at Portland Bill and, right, West Bay. Below: The Watch House Cafe at West Bay

B3517 between West Bay and Weymouth as you pass through the village of Abbotsbury and drive along

the road signposted to Abbotsbury Swannery.

Just a short distance from the turning, you will see an arch on your left, drive through and park your car by the church.

Walk down the footpath towards the lake and onto the road in the direction of the Swannery taking note of St Catherine’s Chapel on the hill to your right. Proceed along the road and take the lane to the right which leads you down to a converted water mill, several houses

and past a property selling delicious free-range eggs.

You will see the chickens running free in the garden.

A few metres further on you will enter the Swannery car park. On the right in the trees, you will find a delightful café selling local specialities including delicious Dorset apple cake.

The Swannery, which has an entrance fee, is also extremely interesting. After your visit retrace your steps back to the car park stopping off on your way at the small shop selling flowers and ice

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some of the Jurassic Coast secrets

GET WALKING: Hive Beach and, below, the footpath from West Bay

cream on the left of the footpath as you begin to climb up the hill towards the church.

If you are staying in West Bay, where we have a static caravan, you may like to explore the pretty village and the beach at Eype.

Follow the road by the harbour across the bridge and past the Peak Dean Caravan Park on your right.

Continue along the road past the fish and chip shop (excellent) and into the private estate. At the Tjunction take a right into Westcliff Road and climb the hill, then a left into Brit View Road.

Walk to the end of this road and continue onto the

footpath. After around 50 metres, you will see on the left a sign to West Bay. Take this track up the cliffs onto the main coastal path. Turn right and follow the route up and then down the hill into Eype.

Here you will find a delightful beach considered one of Dorset’s hidden gems.

For your return, retrace your steps but instead of taking the same track as before, follow the main coastal path down into West Bay where you will be able to enjoy some refreshments at Cherries café by the harbour or at the Watch House on the beach, which specialises in seafood, pastries and cakes.

My final secret is more of a warning than a route and involves a walk from West Bay in the direction of Burton Bradstock and Hive Beach beyond.

Rather than climbing the treacherous East Cliff follow the road out of West Bay in the direction of Weymouth.

As you leave, you will see a footpath on your right which takes you top of the hill. It is a steep but safe climb and leads you up to the golf course where you take the public footpath towards Freshwater Bay. On leaving the golf course, turn right down the hill onto the site then take a left by the shop and across the touring caravan site to the gate.

Follow the footpath over the

stream take a left and walk on past the allotments and the cottages. At the garage turn right onto the footpath along the main road.

As you leave Burton Bradstock, take the right turning indicated Hive Beach, and then walk along the road and down to the beach where you can enjoy a full breakfast or just a snack at the Hive Café.

After some refreshments, you can return back to West Bay by foot or, if necessary, catch the X52 which stops on the main road. Bus passes (if available) at the ready.

Next time journey with me along the coast to Lyme Regis in the east, inland to Bridport and to Weymouth in the west.

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The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

Dorset Premium Bond holder in line for £1m windfall One lucky premium Bond holder from Dorset has just discovered they are £1 million better off after winning the jackpot.

Dorset’s winner, who holds £45,000 in Premium Bonds, bought the

winning bond, number 469BR534389, in August 2021 and has become the 11th Premium Bonds £1million jackpot winner from Dorset.

In Dorset, there are 27,649 unclaimed

prizes worth £927,825. The largest unclaimed prize is £10,000 and is from the November 2019 prize draw.

The oldest unclaimed prize in Dorset is from February 1964 with a value of £25.

Quilters’ £3,500 donation to MND association Ladies of the Schoolroom Quilters in Eype presented a cheque of £3,000 to West Dorset Motor Neurone Disease Association.

Bridport Round Table gave an initial donation to the 13 members to buy the materials for them to create a copy of a hand stitched quilt the group’s much-loved former member Diana was making before she lost her battle with MND. Di Harvey from the Quilters said of their exhibition: “The public and friends were fabulous and really dug deep to support us.

“We also had donations,

A STITCH IN TIME: members of the Schoolroom Quilters and Bridport Round Table present the cheque to represenatatives of West Dorst MND Association

sales of cream teas (they went down a storm), refreshments and a percentage from sale of goods to the value of £1,006 to be shared

between West Dorset Motor Neurone Association and Friends of St Peter’s Church, where the quilt show was held, an impressive £503 each.

“Diana’s son arrived for the presentation of the cheque and the Davis family promptly offered to round the amount up ...ta da £3,000. Thank you!”

County’s medal honour for military work Dorset Council has won gold for its efforts to support the military community.

The Ministry of Defence Employer Recognition Scheme recognises organisations which go above and beyond to help and employ military people.

The council is the first public sector organisation in Dorset to achieve the Gold Award and one of only six Gold ERS award holders in the county.

It won gold with a number of initiatives to encourage and support employees who

are veterans, reservists, and cadet force adult volunteers, as well as spouses and partners of those serving Cllr David Walsh, Armed Forces Champion for Dorset Council, said: “We are delighted to receive the MOD’s Employer Recognition Scheme Gold Award. This demonstrates our support for over 80 Armed Forces colleagues including reservists, veterans and their families, and cadet force adult volunteers. Dorset has a strong association with the

Armed Forces, and we recognise the skills, knowledge and experience they bring to the council as well as the service they have given to our country.”

Matt Prosser – Dorset Council Chief Executive, said: “To be recognised for the progress we have made is great news – we know that our policies and enhanced opportunities are making a big difference to the lives of our armed forces community.”

Dorset Council has a range of policies that support the former armed forces

personnel and the reservists it employs. These include: n Up to ten working days, or two weeks, paid leave each year for reserve forces training. n Support for employees who are a partner or spouse of a reservist who is called up, including flexible working or a career break.

For reservists who are members of the Local Government Pension Scheme who are called up for Reservist service, their pension continues to build for the duration of the period they are called up.

The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

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The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

MELPLASH SHOW THURSDAY 25th AUGUST WEST BAY, BRIDPORT DT6 4EG

main ring Packed with entertainment throughout the day

Devil’s Horsemen • Dangerous Steve • Heavy horses Huntsmen & hounds • Inter hunt knock out competition Show Jumping • Grand parade

Adult advance tickets tickets (£17) available online FREE Admission for 16 years & under A wonderful day out for all the family

For latest info visit www.melplashshow.co.uk

The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

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Gala night for air ambulance funds A spectacular event is being held at Ilsington House in Puddletown on Saurday, October 8 to raise funds for the lifesaving charity - Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance (DSAA).

The Gala Ball: Mission Impossible is being organised by the owners of Ilsington House, Jo Sams and Nigel Diment.

With the approximate cost of one air ambulance mission hovering around the £3,000 mark, Jo and Nigel are hoping that this exclusive black-tie event will raise the cost of as many life-saving missions as possible.

Tickets are now on sale, for what is expected to be a spectacular evening which will include a wonderful gala dinner provided by Molecular Magic, the fantastic Brighton-based Brass Monkeys combining live DJ sets with stunning elements of live music playing favourite dance

anthems and floor fillers late into the night, along with a few surprises and lots of fun throughout the evening.

Jo said: “The DSAA are such a vital service for us all, yet they do not receive any direct funding from the Government or the National Lottery, relying solely upon the generosity of people like you and I.

RAISING MONEY: Ilsington Manor near Puddletown and, left the DSAA helicopter

hours per day providing a critical care service using our AW169 helicopter and critical care car. We also provide an enhanced care service for 12 hours per day using our outreach cars. Each life-saving mission that our critical care team are tasked to costs approximately £3,000, so we are incredibly grateful for Jo and Nigel’s support in their mission to raise as much as possible.”

The sparkling reception starts at 6.30pm, with carriages at 1am.

“They help to save lives and improve outcomes when we need them the most and it is this that drives our passion to contribute to their fundraising challenge, through hosting the exciting Gala Ball at our home.”

DSAA fundraising manager Emma Jones said: “DSAA operates 19

n Tickets cost £90 per person and can be purchased individually or there are tables of 10 available for reservation.

For all enquiries and to purchase tickets, contact Jo Sams by emailing: events@ilsington.house or by calling: 07919 488057.

To make a donation or enquire about sponsorship visit collectionpot.com/ pot/3008903

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The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

Obituary

James Lovelock World famous scientist and environmentalist James Lovelock has died on his 103rd birthday at his Abbotsbury home.

Best known for codeveloping Gaia theory – which proposes that all species on Earth have coevolved as part of a global ecosystem – the pioneering futurist passed away surrounded by his family earlier this month.

Mr Lovelock was arguably one of the greatest interdisciplinary scientists of his generation.

In 1957, Mr Lovelock invented the electron capture device, the first machine to ever detect chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) gases in the atmosphere and alerting the world to the damage they were doing.

Early in his career, Mr Lovelock also built a functional microwave before they were commercially available.

Mr Lovelock developed the prototype microwave as a means to thaw out and fully reanimate frozen hamsters for use in scientific experimentation.

Mr Lovelock was also in all likelihood the first person to ever eat a microwaved meal – he said in an interview with YouTuber Tom Scott that he used his prototype microwave to cook a potato for his lunch one day and that it was ‘perfectly fine’.

In 1961, NASA recruited Mr Lovelock to build atmospheric and planetary surface analysis

Picture: John Gurd PIONEERING: Scientist and environmentalist James Lovelock

instruments that were sent to Mars as part of its Viking mission – the instruments are still there to this day.

While working for NASA at its Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California, Mr Lovelock realised that analysing gases in the Martian atmosphere would indicate whether life was present.

This revelation was probably an early inspiration for what would later develop into his Gaia hypothesis – which had critics such as Richard Dawkins taking exception to its contradictions of Darwin’s ‘survival of the fittest’ theory.

In the 2000s, Mr Lovelock proposed a climate engineering project to help

restore algae species that consume carbon dioxide to the oceans.

In 2019 he co-authored Novacene with Bryan Appleyard. The book argues that humanity is on the brink of a new era of evolution and that in the future a benevolent, ecofriendly artificial intelligence will become Earth’s dominant lifeform.

Posting on Twitter, Mr Lovelock’s family said: “Our beloved James Lovelock died yesterday (July 26) in his home surrounded by his family on his 103rd birthday. To the world, he was best known as a scientific pioneer, climate prophet and conceiver of the Gaia theory. To us, he was a loving husband and

wonderful father with a boundless sense of curiosity, a mischievous sense of humour, and a passion for nature.

“Up until six months ago, he was still able to walk along the coast near his home in Dorset and take part in interviews, but his health deteriorated after a bad fall earlier this year.

He passed away at 21:55 of complications related to the fall. The funeral will be private. There will be a public memorial service later. The family requests privacy at this time.”

The statement was signed

by Mr Lovelock’s wife Sandra, his daughters Christine Lovelock and Jane Flynn and his sons Andrew and John Lovelock.

A life spent increasing the sum of human knowledge has ended.

DR DAVID CLIFFORD EVANS Man of letters 6 November 1942 - 31 July 2022 Funeral private Contact A J Wakely & Sons Ltd 91 East Street Bridport DT6 3LB Tel: 01308 423726 Valerie Evans Fleet Cottage 152 West Bay Road Bridport DT6 4AZ

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Vittles (food & drink) The White Lion in Broadwindsor is expanding its food offer to provide more services to people in the area.

The pub has renovated its kitchen facilities allowing it to offer a pub food menu and it is also planning to launch a takeaway meal service.

The new kitchen was opened with the expert help and a Community Services Fund grant from Pub is The Hub, the notfor-profit organisation that helps pubs to diversify and provide essential local services.

The White Lion is run by the local community, which was approached by Palmers Brewery, Bridport, who were keen to keep the pub open.

Working closely with the brewery, members of the community formed Broadwindsor Community Pub Ltd, and took on the tenancy, reopening the White Lion in April 2022 after a successful community fundraising campaign.

The White Lion, which is run by manager Kate Staff and her daughters Chloe and Louise, has already launched a successful

CHEERS ALL ROUND: Reg Clark, left, and Rick Dyke at the White Lion in Broadwindsor

Pub’s Hub deal means top grub Thursday pie night and Sunday lunch, but there are plans to expand the food offer further.

All dishes are home-made with locally-sourced produce, with meat and cheese supplied by Nick Tett Butchers, Beaminster

n Pub is The Hub is a not-forprofit organisation which offers independent specialist advice to publicans on rural services diversification or the options for the community ownership of pubs, so they can all provide viable local services at the heart of their community.

With a proven track record of rural project development and delivery over the last 20 years,

and fish from Davy’s Locker in Bridport, and fruit and vegetables from Washingpool Farm, Bridport.

Manager Kate Staff said: “The new food offer has been attracting more local people into the pub and

Pub is The Hub has worked with great publicans to open shops, libraries, cafes, community cinemas, allotments, play areas and much more.

Since 2013, the organisation has also been able to offer small grants through its Community Services Fund.

Pub is The Hub has helped over 600 pubs diversify, with almost 200 of these benefitting from help

helping to create connections. We had 36 farmers meet up on pie night which was a great way to get them talking and socialising.

“Our vision is to make the White Lion the hub of Broadwindsor where everyone feels welcome.”

Rick Dyke, chairman of Broadwindsor Community Pub Ltd, added: “By expanding the food offer we are giving people another reason to come out and visit the pub. We think this will also help combat isolation in this agricultural community and go some way to improve the health and wellbeing of people in the local area.”

Pub is The Hub regional advisor Reg Clark said: “This pub is the centre of this local village offering a place for people to drop in for anything from a coffee, lunch to just a get together for a chat. It is a great example of a pub supporting people in its local community.” n www.pubisthehub. org.uk nTwitter: @PubistheHub _uk n Facebook: pubisthehub

through the Community Services Fund. Building on its community services work, in 2018 Pub is The Hub conceived its ‘Join Inn – Last Orders for Loneliness’ campaign.

‘Join Inn’, specifically looks to support publicans and their communities to become better connected, helping local people feel less isolated and, in the process helping to alleviate loneliness.

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The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

Vittles (food & drink) Karen Broad lives in Burton Bradstock, with her husband and two mad dogs. She ran The Mousetrap in Dorchester, has lived in France and loves discovering new food producers.

Renamed to include Mr Hix’s brand name, The Fox Inn at Corscombe has called ‘last orders’ for the final time… for now anyway!

The Fox Inn was a haunt of mine during my youth.

Driving along ‘Toller Down’ on a wild windy night, swirling fog adding credibility to folklore including legends of ghostly figures and headless horsemen.

Back then the 400-year-old Fox Inn welcomed locals and travellers warmly, a friendly landlord, a huge crackling fire, church pew benches and cosy rocking chairs. The sausage and chips in the basket, just simple comforting food. It was the perfect traditional pub, and worth any ‘ghostly’ drive. I don’t understand the logic behind launching any hospitality business, in a remote location and during the height of a pandemic, especially as these were the reasons behind its demise.

Unfortunately,

DOING IT RIGHT: The New Inn at Shipton Gorge

Old-style quality of The New Inn

the consequence is another empty pub and after 400 years, that just seems careless. Landlords and breweries are custodians of these ancient buildings and have a responsibility. These beautiful buildings ooze history from their walls, echoes of centuries of hospitality embedded in their flagstones. Pubs shouldn’t be underestimated; they are a

vital part of village life today as they were 400 years ago.

Somewhere that has ‘got it right’ is The New Inn at Shipton Gorge, where we find Andrea and her team.

This delightfully comfortable pub, run by the village, is the heart of the village and its community is a driving force in its continued success pumping support through its veins.

Mum’s Kitchen...

Raspberry, Ricotta and Hazelnut Cake This unusual cake might also work well with blackberries as these come into their season Ingredients 100g blanched hazelnuts 200g caster sugar 175g plain flour 2 teaspoons baking powder

3 eggs 250g pot of Ricotta 1 teaspoon vanilla extract Grated zest of 1 unwaxed lemon 150g raspberries Method: Preheat the oven to 180C/160C fan.

Spread the hazelnuts out on a baking tray and roast for around 8 minutes or until they are golden. Set them aside to cool.

This pub is ‘old-style’ quality. stepping into the bar a warm and cheerful welcome greets you. The food is uncomplicated, homely, and good value, the service, attentive without being ingratiating.

This pub is everything a good traditional village pub should be. Al fresco dining is available in the pretty garden or snuggle up on a winter evening in front of the log burner. The New Inn caters for most tastes with a regular menu and specials and food is locally sourced.

Theme nights during the winter months, live music in the summer, from walkers to chance passersby, locals, and tourists, off the main road it may be, but people manage to find it as it’s always busy.

The New Inn has found that pathway through difficult times and is emerging today stronger than ever, and well deserved. Pubs aren’t just buildings, they are a living, breathing history of a village, and that needs respecting.

with Diana Holman Reduce the oven temperature to 170C/160C fan. Put the cooled hazelnuts into the food processor with 1 tablespoon of sugar taken from the measured 200g and whizz until the nuts are finely ground. In a bowl, stir them into the sugar, flour and baking powder.

In a large bowl whisk together the eggs, ricotta, vanilla and lemon zest until it is soft and fluffy. Add to the dry ingredients and gently fold

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Vittles (food & drink) Lizzie Crow – AKA Lizzie Baking Bird – is a self taught baker, who has a stall outside her home in Upwey each Saturday. See her scrumptious eats at lizziebakingbird.co.uk or find lizzibakingbird on Instagram.

Fanfare of trumpets for my crumpets Introducing the gorgeousness of the homemade crumpets, which are known as trumpets in my house – a hangover from when I was small.

Crumpets are yeasted and deliciously straightforward to make.

The surface is full of holes that allow butter to stream through from top to bottom after toasting.

Just add a cuppa and possibly cheese for lunch or jam for supper.

Makes 8 150ml milk 1 tsp sugar 1 tbsp olive oil 7g dried yeast 1/2tsp bicarbonate of soda 225g strong white flour 1 tsp salt Oil for greasing crumpet rings and frying 4 Crumpet rings (8cm) First heat the milk until just lukewarm and add 150ml

EASY TO MAKE: These crumpets are a real treat with a cup of tea

of lukewarm water. Pop in sugar and oil. Whisk dried yeast into the mixture.

Leave to one side until frothy (about 15 minutes – it may take longer if the weather is cooler).

Sift flour and salt in a bowl. Make a well in the centre and add the yeast mixture. Beat for 1-2 minutes, until smooth and elastic. Cover the bowl with oiled cling film and leave the dough, out of

together until combined.

Grease a 20cm round cake tin and line with baking parchment. Spoon half the cake mixture into the tin and sprinkle it with 75g raspberries. Spoon over the remaining cake mixture and top with the other 75g raspberries.

Bake for around 50 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.

If you wish to make a drizzle topping (and save wasting the fruit of the lemon!), mix the squeezed juice of the lemon with 80g caster sugar and drizzle it over the hot cake.

drafts, until bubbly (about one to one-and-a-half hours).

Dissolve the bicarbonate of soda with 60ml water and stir this into the batter. The bowl needs to be covered and left for about 30 minutes – it will be bubbly once more. Put the batter into a jug for pouring into the rings or you can use a large spoon.

Take out a frying pan (or griddle) and put on a high

heat. Once the pan is warmed through turn down to medium (Warning: you do not want the pan too hot or you will burn the base of the crumpets). Grease the rings with oil and put in the pan and leave to heat through. When hot pour a small amount of batter in each hoop (about 1 cm deep) it should begin to sizzle. Cook for about four or five minutes until the surface is set and studded with bubbles. Turn each of the crumpets from their tins (run a knife around if they stick). Flip and cook on the other side until light brown.

Transfer to a rack to cool.

Repeat until the batter is used up.

These freeze really well for up to three months.

n Lizzie can be found in The Old Ship Inn, Upwey on Saturdays with her bakes. Check her out on Instagram lizzibakingbird to see her making crumpets

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The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

Vittles (food & drink)

Al Molo comes to town and it’s so

By Miranda Robertson miranda@westdorsetmag.co.uk

and Andrew Diprose of dorsetbiznews.co.uk editor@dorsetbiznews.co.uk

Weymouth restaurateurs who have built up a big following in the resort have opened a second restaurant in Dorchester’s historic Judge Jeffreys, bringing their flavoursome Italianinspired menu to the county town.

Tim Newton and Guiseppe Vannucci, 50, have run Al Molo on the seafront for seven years, winning Restaurant of the MAGICAL MENU: Guiseppe Vannucci and Tom Newton have been refurbishing the former Year in the South West Judge Jeffreys restaurant in Dorchester Tourism Excellence of neglect has taken Awards 2020/21. months.

They were looking for a “But it’s been worth the great venue in Dorchester hard work to restore when Judge Jeffreys stunning features, became available. sympathetically design the Little did they know how interiors and refurbish much would have to be outdated infrastructure to done to make the building reveal a new, functional ready to open, however. and rather beautiful Delay after delay has hit setting to enjoy good the team, with all the food. electrics having to be “The fireplace was coated redone, plumbing in layers of thick paint nightmares and historic with areas of damaged features having to be stone and years of grime. restored after a nasty “It is gratifying to see it brush with gloss paint restored to its original from a previous tenant.

They have worked town. glory and it looks All while Guiseppe was sympathetically to restore “However, with the stunning.” undergoing treatment for the original features, amount of work that The restaurant’s decor cancer. previously hidden by needed to be done, and now has a contemporary Finally, they have been years of paint and neglect, Giuseppe’s treatment for edge, complementing the able to open Al Molo and invested heavily in re- cancer, we had to put back original features, coupled Dorchester – Ristorante establishing the distinctive the opening date. with a new, modern Di Pesce – a fish architecture of the “With Giuseppe on the commercial kitchen. restaurant with an Italian building. mend, we were able to Meanwhile Giuseppe, twist.

Tim said: “It is humbling take the time to respect who is Head Chef, has The restaurateurs have to work with a building the integrity of this created a new menu with spent seven months with such a rich heritage historic building. a strong focus on the refurbishing the listed and importance in the “Stripping back the years bounty from local seas 17th century building.

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Vittles (food & drink)

worth waiting for combined with traditional Italian cuisine.

He said: “The fish from our local waters is second to none and I have been developing these menus over a number of years in readiness for the perfect setting to serve them.

“They combine the fresh taste of our seas with traditional Italian cuisine.

“It is a pleasure to bring these new dishes, together with my new vegetarian and meat options, to the table in a setting which complements the quality of the produce.”

Dorchester Mayor Janet Hewitt said: “This new restaurant is a most welcome addition to the High West Street, not only because it has saved a historic asset in our town from further neglect and is creating more employment opportunities, but also for bringing a quality dining experience celebrating local produce to our doorstep.”

Sandra Jordan, of Jordan

Jewellers Dorchester, added: “The menu is an absolute delight.

“My favourite was the seared scallops and the sea bass fillets, sautéed garlic spinach and raspberry radish.

“Perfectly balanced, and an explosion of flavour.”

For those wishing to work in the restaurant industry, Al Molo has hospitality roles available.

It’s urging those who are returning to the workplace, have just left school or who are looking for a move to showcase their skills, to get in touch.

Tim said: “As we ramp up business we will be creating further employment opportunities and urge those looking for work in this fast paced and rewarding industry to get in touch now.

“We offer flexible hours, a friendly environment and fantastic training for those looking to work in our prestigious restaurants.” n Details and bookings at almolodorchester.co.uk

Discover the revolution of today’s Greek wines Jack Priestley, manager at wine merchants Morrish and Banham’s Dorchester shop talks ancient grapes and a revival of Greek Wines When you think of exciting, high quality, tiptop wine, which countries come to mind? Portugal?

South Africa? Australia?

Yes, for me all three of these countries are producing incredibly exciting wines at the moment, but I have a somewhat surprising addition to this list – maybe it’s time we take another look at the wines of Greece.

The country is blessed with a wealth of native grape varieties and has a rich history of winemaking.

Wine has been produced here for thousands of years.

However, it’s long been associated with that rather acquired taste of Retsina wine (made with the addition of pine resin), and relatively cheap and cheerful wines also.

All that is changing, a recent trip to visit a producer on the Greek island of Crete proved to me so. I discovered a flourishing wine scene and internationally we are just beginning to enjoy a revival of its unique and characterful wines. Long forgotten varieties have been saved from the brink of extinction and revived by the work of a few dedicated producers. It’s in these treasures that a

revolution is taking place.

Greece takes us outside of our comfort zone in terms of the classic wine styles and varieties that we’re familiar with. But it’s the element of discovery that makes wine so engaging and enjoyable! You’ll not find Sauvignon Blanc and Merlot here, instead you’ll likely come across Assyrtiko, Xinomavro, Liatiko and Vidiano.

Maybe not the easiest wines to pronounce but it’s in these native wines of Greece that you’ll discover many unique and exciting bottles.

Top recommendations: n Lyrarakis, Assyrtiko, Greece, 2020 (£12.99) Greece’s signature white grape variety. Dry with citrus-tinged flavours and a long mineral finish. An ideal partner for seafood. n Lyrarakis, Liatiko, Greece, 2021 (£13.99) Light-bodied, brimming with red currant, cherry and plum and fragrant exotic spice. Chill it down and it’s a perfect juicy red to enjoy with a BBQ or nibbles in the evening sun.

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The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

Down to earth

BEACHCOMBING with JO BELASCO BA Hons History of Architecture and Design

I will never forget the painting I saw at a friend’s house in Wyke Regis many years ago.

The bleached bark and tangled white glowed in the sun and I was hooked on driftwood from then on.

I suppose it already had associations of good times and hot summers as I had lived on the east coast of the US for a few years as a teenager.

In the States, driftwood design is much more mainstream, being used in houses and swanky hotels a lot more than in the UK. A few years ago we found some fossilised wood at West Bexington.

It has hung around since then but galvanised by writing this article I decided to see how easy it would be to turn it into a lamp!

As Bridport Lighting is doing a 10% off offer for customers who mention The WDM that was my first and only port of call.

Ann talked me through the various ways I could attempt to go about it but in the end I opted for the easiest solution – a switched bottle lamp adaptor, flex and plug.

A bargain at less than £10 in white.

My creative skills were rather curtailed by an unwelcome visit by Covid.

But still, here it is – a

WOOD YOU BELIEVE IT? Driftwood framing a view of the sea, making a driftwood mirror and, right, a first attempt at a driftwood lamp

YOU NEED HANDS: A helping hand at Bridport Lighting and, right, Zelda at Pirates Cove

Feel washed up & damaged?

You’ll enjoy driftwood craft driftwood beach lamp.

A few years ago I framed a bit of old mirror in a found wheel hub.

With rays of driftwood and some everlasting flowers it looked rather romantic. In truth it was just a slither of broken mirror I used and so not that practical if you wanted to see your whole face but useful to reflect

more light into a room.

If you are looking for more ideas for how to use driftwood I recommend the group Driftwood Collectors Worldwide on Facebook.

Driftwood is often used as a sales display for a variety of treasures and especially well utilised I think at Earth Design at Redlands Yard in Broadwindsor.

There are a quite a few large pieces of driftwood around Weymouth and along the Chesil beach where we sit, rest and take in the view. One such is at Pirates Cove where you can see Zelda keeping an eye on the crows while I roll clay beads. But I get ahead of myself… clay is for another time.

The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

41

Down to earth

No stone unturned in solving mystery of the Chesil pebbles

BY JUDITH STANTON

The phenomenon which is Chesil Beach stretches for some 16 miles along the Dorset coast.

Although it is a wellknown landmark, this shingle bank remains a mysterious and lonely place.

A curious place, which has given rise to many tales and theories – some of them more scientific than others.

It is now believed that the beach was created some ten thousand years ago, at the end of the last Ice Age, when rock debris from the hill-tops was washed down into the empty bay by the melting ice,

eventually filling the whole basin.

The debris was driven back to the shore by the force of the waves which swept diagonally across the bay from the southwest, sorting the pebbles as it went.

The heavier the pebble, the further it will travel; as the lighter pebbles drop behind.

There are other – perhaps more appealing – explanations of the beach’s creation.

One legend claims that it appeared overnight after a storm, providing unexpected shelter for a medieval pirate, who was escaping from the king’s men. Or maybe the beach

was the work of the Devil, who wished to travel to Portland without wetting his feet, and so threw up a chain of stones to keep them dry.

And then there’s the oftrepeated claim that a shipwrecked mariner would be able to tell where he had landed on the beach by the size of the pebbles on that part of the shore . This makes for a beguiling story – which might even be true..

It’s recently been announced that 1,200 radio-tagged pebbles have been planted at the end of Chesil Beach between West Bay and Freshwater in order to track their movement and that of the

sediment around them.

The information provided by the pebbles will help in the planning of new sea and flood defences.

Just how many other pebbles are there along the beach? Google confidently states that there are 180 billion, but offers no explanation as to how this figure has been calculated. It’s yet another of the mysteries of Chesil Beach. n Judith Stinton’s Chesil Beach: A Peopled Solitude is published by Harlequin Press and is available from sales@ harlequinpress.net and from Abebooks and Amazon.

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The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

Down to earth

Make a date for start of harvesting PAGAN VIEWS

by JO BELASCO

From under the duvet on the settee I noticed on the news a feature about the grain ships leaving the Ukraine.

This sparked a family spat (granted, covid-fuelled) about whether it was really autumn in August as the harvesting had started?

Every summer on the longest day of the year, my husband loves to inform us that: “The days start getting shorter now!”

As usual it’s all a matter of definition and specialism.

By this I mean the sun being at its highest point in the northern hemisphere on June 21 is what we call the beginning of summer!

Surely it would make more sense to call it the height of summer as this part of the planet then has its maximum amount of sunlight.

(Okay, glad to have got that technical bit out of the way).

To me as a child and all children I believe real summer is the school holidays. Try to tell me that those August days on holiday were autumn and I would have laughed in your face as everyone knows autumn is when you go back to school!

From a Pagan point of view the beginning of August is seen as the first harvest. A harvest of grain and apples called Lughasadh after Lugh,

FIELDS OF GOLD: Grain ready for harvesting

HARVEST TIME: The first rose hip syrup, blackberries ready for picking and grab a hazelnut before the squirrels get them

one of the Pagan Gods of harvest and the sun. Our ancestors would have seen the shortening days as a reminder to start storing and preparing for when food was less plentiful.

Paganism and the outside nature of farming life are intrinsically linked, I don’t think I would have become a Pagan if I had stayed

living in a town. Just as we have mentioned ancient Pagan sites being commandeered for Christian worship the same thing happened with Pagan Festivals. Lugh became Lammas and was woven into the ecclesiastical year.

Some of the mismatch of the beginning of summer having the longest day can

be laid at the pompous feet of Julius and Augustus Caesar. These two Roman Emperors decided the calendar would benefit from a month named after themselves. This would be rather on a par with Donald Trump adding a 13th month in between May and June – perhaps calling it Trumpust!

The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

43

Down to earth

Hey grass snake! Have I got newts for you Sally Cooke lives in Tolpuddle with her husband, two grown up sons and her spotty rescue dog. You can follow Sally on Instagram at Sparrows in a Puddle I was pegging out the washing in the midday sun one day last summer when I was surprised to see a snake slither purposefully past my feet and head down the lawn to our pond. It swam straight across the surface and disappeared among the plants in the margins. Greenish brown in colour with a yellow and black collar I recognised it as our largest native reptile, the grass snake. I saw it again several times last summer, always around the same time of day and I’ve been watching it hunting in the pond again this year.

As well as its distinctive markings and

larger size the grass snake differs from the slow worm that I also see in my garden, in that it has no eyelids and has a marked neck region. The slow worm’s skin is smoother and shinier too. Although quite snake-like in appearance, the slow worm is actually a legless lizard. Both species of reptile are attracted to rural gardens like mine with ponds, compost heaps and some rather untidy areas!

The grass snake’s main diet is amphibians (although they can take fish, small birds and mammals) so my resident newts and frogs will be what they’re after! They have no venom so rely on surprise to strike out and grab their prey and swallow it whole, sometimes still alive. They are strong swimmers, keeping their head out as they glide across

the water, though if disturbed they can hold their breath under the surface for half an hour or more.

Our tiny garden pond doesn’t really challenge a grass snake’s swimming skills as it is capable of long, fast swims across open water. You might be lucky to see a snake in action if you take one of my favourite summer walks through the beautiful Thorncombe Wood nature reserve, attached to writer Thomas Hardy’s cottage. If you sit quietly by Rushy Pond up by Black Heath you may see one swimming in the water. Thomas Hardy was very much inspired by the beautiful countryside and its wildlife around his birthplace.

Apparently, his mother found a snake curled up in his crib when he was a baby, an event which the author liked to attribute to his lifelong love of nature.

Alien invasion from the kingdom of Protista JOHN WRIGHT is a naturalist and forager who lives in rural West Dorset. He has written eight books, four of which were for River Cottage. He wrote the award-winning Forager’s Calendar and in 2021 his Spotter’s Guide to Countryside Mysteries was published.

My first Dorset encounter with a slime mould was forty years ago when I found several creeping (very slowly) across some pasture near the isolated, hilltop farmhouse in which I lived. They were up to a fifteen inches across and looked to me like pale scrambled egg. It was Mucilago crustacea. Such a name is not to everyone’s taste, and on a British Mycological Society fungus foray back in the early 1980s, it was referred to by slime mould specialist, Professor Bruce Ing, as the ‘Dog-sick’ fungus, due to its appearance. The name has stuck.

M. crustacea is one of our largest slime moulds, but certain species

Left, Leucogala species and right, Maturing Texas Blob

can weigh in at twenty kilos.

Slime moulds, it should be noted, are not fungi, plant or animal, but in another kingdom – the Protista - a ragbag of organisms that don’t seem to fit anywhere else. Slime moulds feed by crawling across grass, leaf-litter or deciduous wood where they consume bacteria, yeasts and other microorganisms. While feeding, they consist of billions of motile amoebae, and/or tadpole-like ‘cells’, plus slime. The ‘tadpoles’, incidentally, have two tails. Once satisfied, they settle down to fruit.

In M. crustacea, it forms a mass

of spores in the grass that looks like compacted cocoa powder, all crusted over by a membrane of dried mucilage. Another species, Enteridium lycoperdon, forms neat, white and rounded sporemasses on trees that look like small puffballs. Some, however, form almost unbelievably complex structures – the ‘lollipop’ form being the most common.

Hundreds of spherical or cylindrical spore-bearing structures will cluster together, each on the end of a thin stem.

Slime moulds, both when feeding (the plasmoidial stage, don’t you

know) and in the fruiting stage, are often and inexplicably brightly coloured, with oranges, yellows, reds and purples predominating.

The largest and most notorious of the slime moulds is the common Fuligo septica, which gained the title of the ‘Texas Blob’ when large masses of pulsating (slowly, again), radiating and brilliant orange slime were found in several back yards in Dallas. The householders, not unreasonably, feared an alien invasion and the authorities called in. Eventually it was identified as a particularly large occurrence of the slime mould, Fuligo septica, a species I see every year. You will not need to call in the military should you find a slime mould – they are utterly harmless. But do be careful if you collect a specimen of the Dog-sick Fungus – sometimes it is dog sick.

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The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

Culture

Writer Harry’s trilogy goes from Rust to Bones Author and journalist Harry Walton has brought out the second book in his series about life in a postapocalypse England.

Rattle of Bones available on Amazon is the sequel to his first book, The Rusting Shires, and he is already working on the finale to this trilogy which he hopes to publish towards Christmas.

The characters in Rattle of Bones face new challenges when they are sent to Scotland to see what life has survived there.

But a deranged murderess leading a gang of cut-throats is threatening a new Dark Age as she preys on starving survivors in Edinburgh. John and Dawn Kane try to rally opposition to fight her unaware that

NEW BOOK: Harry Walton’s Rattle of Bones

their own little community in Cornwall is facing a terrible and very different threat.

Harry, who lives in Weymouth, said: “I have always been interested in the idea of a dystopian society, what would cause it and the challenges that society might face to survive and try and recover.

“I chose the Red Plague, a condition causing uncontrolled bleeding, as my decimator, but my real

interest lies in constructing how people try to stay alive in a world where only one in a thousand people have survived.

“To put that in perspective, the population of Weymouth, Portland and Dorchester would be reduced to about eighty people and that’s before more lives are lost to murder, disease, accident, injury and hunger.

“The more you think about it the more you realise that whole communities would be wiped out and that those who did manage to live for any length of time would have to band together for survival.”

His writing schedule is packed with ideas and he has already roughed out a

novel about first alien contact with Earth taking place in Weymouth. That could be published in 2023.

Harry said: “I am currently working on a second trilogy for my Rusting Shires and Rattle of Bones characters and there may be a third. On a completely different note, I am working on plot ideas for an historical trilogy set in England and Egypt.

“It follows the transformation of a school bully into a top Egyptologist who begins to realise he may have found clues to the location of a vast lost treasure.

“To round all this off I plan to write a love story with a difference, so the next six or seven years will be pretty busy!”

The following year he started a new studio on St Michael’s Trading Estate, before launching his own gallery, Bridport Contemporary, at 11 Downes Street in 2019.

Over the years, Kit has become well known for his Drip Figure series as well as his Café Royal series as well as a series of paintings of the Marshwood Vale.

Kit said: “The early stages of a painting tend to be quite raw with strong colours and vivid tones deliberately exaggerated so I can clearly spell out the grand themes of the painting.

“Then it’s a process of patiently building up the many glazes (layers) of oil paint required, gradually toning down the colour

palette to achieve ever greater subtlety over the following weeks and months, improvising and adapting various elements of the painting.

“This process means that none of my paintings are rushed, and, essentially, I take as long as I need to achieve the desired result.

From there on, it’s all about my relationship with the painting which will continue to evolve and develop in its own way until it feels finished.”

Kit will launch his new book at Bridport Contemporary Gallery from 2pm to 6pm on Saturday, August 13.

He will also give a talk at Waterstones, Bridport, from 6pm on Wednesday, August 17.

Artist’s career so far brought to book

Landscape artist Kit Glaisyer has compiled 15 years of his paintings into a new book.

The Marshwood Vale & Beyond is being published

by Downes Street Editions and is available to buy from August 13.

Bridport-based Kit’s love of painting began as a boy, accompanying his father on watercolour painting trips around Buckland Newton and Glanvilles Wootton.

After leaving school, Kit did a Foundation Studies course at Bournemouth and Poole College of Art, and then started a Fine Art Degree at West Surrey College of Art and Design.

He then moved to London where he started his own studios in derelict buildings in Camberwell and

LANDSCAPES: Kit Glaisyer in his Bridport studio

Borough, South London.

Kit was later invited to exhibit at the Suzanne Ruggles Gallery in King’s Road, Chelsea.

During a trip to the South West in 1998, Kit visited Symondsbury and moved into the Oakhayes Art Residency shortly after.

The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

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Culture An exhibition which invites the viewer to peek into an alternate reality is on show at the Eype Centre for the Arts from Saturday, August 20 until Saturday, August 27.

Imagination Unlocked 3 features the work of Caroline Ireland and David Brooke.

Caroline has a passion for colour, for making colours sing. Recently she has been painting imaginary landscapes inhabited by her own hands to convey some of the concerns she has about the dilemma of the human impact on the natural world and our spiritual need for nature and wild places.

She said: “I have a love of remote places in the landscape which still have traces of the ancient past; and a love of plants and especially old trees, which outlive us and have lives entirely independent of us, yet are the oldest inhabitants of our communities, sentinels of time.”

In David Brooke’s paintings people embark on unexpected adventures such as riding on the back of a large fish, or else they run across the landscape carrying a burning tree.

The paintings themselves are meticulously built up in many layers of acrylic

COLOURFUL: Caroline Ireland’s Full Moon and, right, Phoenix Tree

AMAZING: David Brookes’ Carrying a Burning Tree and Embarking on a Great Adventure

Unlock your imagination for an alternative reality paint creating texture and detail.

David said: “The idea of mystery for its own sake appeals to me. It seems to me that we always want to know the answers to everything. But I believe it is better just to experience the beauty of the mysterious world. To

ask lots of questions, but not to be too worried about knowing if there are any answers. Just enjoy the mysterious.”

A section of the exhibition is devoted to paintings from David’s archive from the 80s and 90s – the first time many have been shown together. Some of

these pieces have previously been shown at The Portal Gallery, London.

All the work is for sale.

The exhibition is open daily from 10am to 4.40pm. Head to DT6 6AR. Admission is free and both artists will be in attendance throughout.

Harmony in your head with mental health show Bridport-based mental health charity Harmony is putting on a show aimed at exploring how our minds work.

Around the Mind in 80 Days features stage and screen performances by local artists and is being held to coincide with World Mental Health

Day. The show takes place from 7pm to 10pm at Bridport Arts Centre on Monday, October 10.

Louise Gunnill, peer specialist at The Burrough Harmony Centre, said: “We have created and produced an event we would love people to come

to. We aim to reach as many individuals as possible on World Mental Health Day.” Tickets for the show are available at Bridport’s Tourist Information Centre, at bridport-arts.com or on the door.

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The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

Culture

Lawrence book explores mystery of his death Non-fiction book Who Killed Lawrence of Arabia? by Mark JT Griffin will be available from August 16.

In over 200 pages the book expands on the evidence shown in the Mr Griffin’s film Lawrence: After Arabia which was screened throughout Dorset earlier this year.

The book takes an in depth look at the circumstances of Lawrence’s fatal motorcycle crash on Cloud’s Hill.

Mr Griffin said: “This book is the result of many years of intense research, drawing on references

including biographies, original documents, maps and photographs, many in colour, and is the first time all the information regarding the Lawrence’s crash is gathered in a single volume.” n To order your signed copy please visit lawrencethe movie.com/ product-page/who-killedlawrence-of-arabia

SECRET LIFE OF ARABIA: Author Mark JT Griffin and the poster for his film Lawrence: After Arabia

Go with flow and learn about our rivers Downstream Dorset, River Tales and Local History is a colourful, easy-to-read journey of exploration and discovery along the many rivers and streams flowing through the beautiful county of Dorset.

For ease of navigation, Dorset author Mary van Coller, has divided the book into sections – North Dorset, West Dorset, The Isle of Purbeck, Poole Harbour and East Dorset with each chapter devoted to one of the rivers, tributaries or streams that have brought life to the countryside and to the people who live there.

Starting at the source of the river the author follows the waterway to its mouth, showing the derivation of place names along its

course and writing fascinating snippets about people and events both past and present.

The author has added a personal touch to the book by including her husband Ryan in anecdotes about their trips around Dorset.

Together they have walked the hills and travelled the byways looking for springs and mouths of rivers. They have verified facts and

stories and have taken many colour photographs that are beautiful and evocative. As the author is also a pet home boarder, different dogs have accompanied them and found their way into several of the photos.

The back cover review by Lady Fellowes who lives with her husband near the River Frome, describes Downstream Dorset as ‘an enchanting and extremely charming account of Dorset life. …. Julian and I have learned a huge amount …’

Also included in the book is a page with photographs describing the work of the Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance as the author will be donating 20% of royalties to their vital

service.

It is the author’s intention that Downstream Dorset will inspire readers to explore Dorset, chat to people who live locally and enjoy the beauty of nature so that they too can discover their own ‘treasures’. There are blank pages at the back of the book to record notes and reminders.

Clearly this has been a labour of love taking more than seven years to research and write but as Mary van Coller says on the page of Thanks – ‘What a joy it has been!’ n Published by Country Books . ISBN: 9781739582401. £14.95 Available from: countrybooks.biz and Amazon

The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

47

Culture

Look out! There’s music & laughter ahead Comedy and music will take centre stage in Dorset’s county town this September.

Dorchester Arts has announced its line-up of entertainment for the start of the autumn season – taking place at the Corn Exchange and the new Hardye Theatre at Thomas Hardye School.

On Thursday, September 8 a comedy network event will showcase new talent at Dorchester’s Corn Exchange from 8pm. The line-up includes Roger Monkhouse, Danny Clives and Horrible Histories’ Naz Osmanoglu. Tickets are £12. Doors and bar at 7.30pm. Age guidance 14+.

On Friday, September 9, Glasgow based Celtic band The Tannahill Weavers will perform at the Corn Exchange at 8pm. Doors and bar at 7.30pm. Tickets £15/£13 members and concessions.

On Saturday, September 10 film Pantani: The Accidental Death of a Cyclist will be screened at the Corn Exchange at 7pm.

The film tells the incredible story of cycling legend Marco Pantani.

Doors and bar at 6.30pm.

Tickets £6 (Certificate 15+).

On Sunday, September 11 comedian Kiri PritchardMcLean will perform at the Corn Exchange from 8pm. Doors and bar at 7.30pm. £16/£14 members and concessions.

On Wednesday, September 14 a movie double bill highlights the work of local actor and writer Sue Wylie,

MAKE A DATE: Isata Kanneh-Msson and, below, comedian Paul Foot are coming to Dorchester in September

exploring her experience of living with Parkinson’s.

Both based on Sue’s story, What A Load Of Balls: The Parkinson’s Lottery (aka WALOB) and her earlier film, Kinetics, will be shown as a double bill for the first time at the Corn Exchange at 7pm. Doors and bar 6.30pm. Tickets £8.

On Saturday, September 17

Dorchester favourite Frank Griffith performs an evening of terrific standards in Jazz Meets Bacharach at the Corn Exchange from 8pm.

Doors and bar 7.30pm. £18/£16 members and concessions.

On Wednesday, September 28, incorrigible theatre couple Living Spit return to the Corn Exchange at

8pm with Adolf and Winston - walking the tightrope of taste and decency with another slice of poorly researched history. Will either of them escape from this war alive?

Doors and bar at 7.30pm. £15/£13 members and concessions On Thursday, September 29, award-winning pianist Isata Kanneh-Mason returns to Dorchester to perform at Thomas Hardye Theatre at 8pm. Her performance is themed around the innocence of childhood. Doors and bar at 7.30pm. Tickets £25/£15 under 18s.

On Friday, September 30 surreal comedian Paul Foot brings his new show Swan Power! to the Corn Exchange from 8pm.

Doors and bar at 7.30pm.

Tickets £16/£14 members and concessions.

To book tickets at dorchesterarts.org.uk or call 01305 266926.

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The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

Culture

n Garden Pyramid Culver Rose

An exhibition of abstract paintings inspired by the history of Athelhampton House and its award winning gardens has gone on show.

Artist Belinda Smith offers a contemporary view on some of the stories that shape the identity of Athelhampton House and Gardens in her debut solo show in England: Under the Cedar Tree.

The colourful abstract paintings in this exhibition explore the significance of Athelhampton House and Gardens today and attempt to capture the atmosphere of this historic site in a contemporary, twenty-first century style.

The house at Athelhampton dates back to times of Tudor prosperity.

Echoes of shapes and themes from around the

n Looking Glass Ape

n Stone Crown Elegy

History of Athelhampton the inspiration for show

n Summertime, 2022, spray paint, acrylic and oil on three canvas panels

estate are recognisable in the artist’s work.

Whispers of some of the historical characters and stories associated with the House can also be found in the layers of paint, shining a new light on Athelhampton’s role as the seat of the ancient Martyn dynasty, the likes of its ‘wicked’ Regency owner and its gardens designed

by Francis Inigo Thomas.

A number of the paintings are influenced by the poetry of Thomas Hardy, who himself found inspiration from frequent visits to Athelhampton as a friend of a previous owner.

The series of 50 artworks are displayed in a variety of locations throughout the grounds.

Under the Cedar Tree continues at Athelhampton House and Gardens until October 4. All artworks in the exhibition are available to purchase and Athelhampton House and Gardens receives a commission on all sold artworks. n belindasmithstudio. com n Instagram: @belindasmithstudio

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Antiques

Jewellery popular at auction At Acreman St Antiques Auction Sherborne we had a very successful July auction despite the limited edition Rolex GMT MII Sea King watch being withdrawn by the vendor at the last minute. The highlights were an antique diamond and pearl bow brooch hammer £6,200, an antique sapphire and diamond ring hammer £4,000, 2 gents Rolex Oyster perpetual wristwatches sold for hammer £2,600 and £1,500. An antique silver chest and contents, hammer £4,800.

Also selling well was an abstract oil painting by Frank Auerbach hammer £4,000 and an cubist still life oil painting

by Georges Braque hammer £3,600. There was also strong bidding in our Oriental section with an antique bronze vessel selling for hammer £1,900.

We are now accepting items for our August 26 auction as well as the following specialist auctions: Coins & Banknotes.

Ephemera to include Stamps, postcards, Early Photographs etc, Antique Jewellery & watches, Textile, Fashion & Apparel, Oriental Ceramics & Objet D’art If you would like to make an appointment to discuss any items you may be considering for auction with any of our specialists please contact Gill Norman. We are also happy to make home visits and we can arrange a complete house clearance service if required.

Probate valuations also given.

Please contact us on 01935 508764/ 07908 333577 or by email auction@acremanstreetantique s.co.uk

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* OVER 60 TRADERS * CAFÉ & GARDEN CENTRE * FREE PARKING * WHEELCHAIR ACCESSIBLE * DOG-FRIENDLY * SPACE AVAILABLE TO RENT on the A37 Dorchester to Yeovil Road, DT2 9PW Open Monday to Saturday, 9am-5pm & Sunday 9am-4pm

( 01935 83069

Find us on facebook

Catalogue available to view through saleroom.com & easyliveauction.com We are now accepting entries for our August sale For all enquiries please contact Gill Norman on 07908 333577 or 01935 508764 auction@acremanstreetantiques.co.uk

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The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

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Planning system under fire A conservation charity has slammed Dorset Council over what it calls a ‘progressive loss of democratic accountability within the planning system’.

A spokesperson for the Sherborne branch of CPRE said: “A recent meeting of the Sherborne and District Society CPRE questioned the progressive loss of democratic accountability within the planning system operated by Dorset Council.”

The spokesman said members were briefed on a planning decision in a local village where ‘radical changes from the permission given for a new building were retrospectively authorised by a planning office using delegated powers’.

Society chairman Sir

Christopher Coville said: “There is growing concern over the way this particular case was handled, and even more importantly a general drift towards delegation by those whom we elect to be accountable for important planning decisions.”

A Dorset Council spokesman “Local authority decisions are made by elected members but for the council to be able to function the law allows various executive and non-executive functions to be delegated to officers. In addition, there are some functions which the law says must be exercised by specific officers. There is a constitution that sets out the ways officers of the council can make decisions.”

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Homes & Gardensx

Local Plan to be delayed by two years Dorset Council is delaying the delivery of its local development plan by two years until 2026.

Authority leader Cllr Spencer Flower told a cabinet meeting the delay will give the authority time to focus on ‘the right development in the right places’.

Dorset Council has come under fire for the proposed Norchester development which would see 4,000 new homes built between Kingston Maurward roundabout and Charminster.

A council spokesperson said: “We received an unprecedented 9,000 responses to our consultation on the draft Dorset Council Local Plan.

“In summary, respondents told us we should challenge the housing numbers, saying they should reflect the needs of Dorset, not blindly follow a government calculation and not include housing for BCP Council.

“We were also told we should support building more affordable housing across the area, helping working families and young people to live in Dorset and protecting Dorset’s unique natural environment.

“We were also told to tackle climate change as our leading priority, ensuring the Dorset Council Local Plan and our Climate and Ecological Emergency Strategy and action plan are fully aligned.”

The spokesperson added:

“Over the past few months, the leader of the council has been in discussions with Michael Gove, the former Secretary of State for the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, as well as with the Chief Planning Officer and other

senior civil servants.

“Our discussions have been extremely constructive. We are now at a point where we can confirm that the adoption of the new Dorset Council Local Plan is expected in 2026. This gives us more time to develop the plan.”

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52

The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

Homes & Gardens x

Horticulture...

Born and bred in West Dorset, Dave has worked in horticulture and botany locally and internationally, notably in Belgium, Jordan and the UAE. He brings a wealth of practical knowledge with its underlying principles to his writing

Life and death of plants stressed out by When plants are stressed, they become increasingly vulnerable to pests and diseases.

In a changing climate, this is likely to occur with increasing frequency.

At the time of writing, rainfall in our area has been incredibly low with only 2mm falling in July, lower even than some desert countries.

Combined with record temperatures and a persistent breeze even established plants are demonstrating signs of stress.

A few weeks ago, I was asked to investigate the cause of death to parts of an established privet hedge near Bridport.

Although seemingly healthy in places, there were others that seemed dead.

The statement ‘dead’ is quite a general term often misapplied to healthy plants undergoing stress or entering a dormant phase when unfavourable conditions occur.

For example, many people may currently describe

DEAD OR ALIVE: A living branch and, right, a dead one

their yellow lawns as dead, where in fact the roots are very much alive awaiting the next rains.

With woody plants, the sure-fire way of identifying death is by undertaking a simple scratch test. Take your thumb nail and gently

scratch a small section of bark.

If you see a green layer beneath, the plant is still living, if brown, that section is dead.

If you find the latter, move down the branch and repeat the test.

Plant of the week: Fleabane Pulicaria dysenterica There are many yellow flowering natives of the aster family in west Dorset. Some are tricky to identify, but the fleabane is easy.

It inhabits damp ground, so often associated with riverbanks and ditches.

Its stems and leaves, that clasp the stem,

are hairy often giving the plant a greyishgreen appearance.

It blooms during August and September when most other yellow-flowering natives have set seed. When crushed the plant is aromatic, giving off odors reputed to ward off fleas, hence its common name.

If still brown, continue towards the base of the plant until you find a green layer and if there is none then it’s dead.

There are many reasons why small sections of woody plants die back, but rapid death of a whole plant warrants investigation.

Sections of the aforementioned privet hedge were found to be totally dead.

The next task to identify the cause. In the vicinity significant work had occurred in the recent past, but was this the reason, something sinister or another cause?

Donning my deerstalker hat in Conan Doyle fashion, I recalled privet (Ligustrum ovalifolium) suffers from a few diseases, the most common, honey fungus (Armillaria) and privet anthracnose.

Anthracnose is treatable, but there is no available control for honey fungus.

Accurately identifying the disease would have significant implications,

The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

53

Homes & Gardensx

...with botanist Dr Dave Aplin

a changing climate

NOT MUCH FUN: Bootlace fungal growth

both financial (removing the hedge and replanting) and from temporary loss of privacy.

Honey fungus can cause the death of established plants, often spreading along hedgerows, it can infect a large number of plants, but privet is more susceptible than most.

It was the wrong time of year to see the

characteristic honeycoloured fungi that give this mushroom its common name, but fortunately honey fungus has another omnipresent trait, underground, black rootlike structures that give it its alternative common name, the bootlace fungus.

Bootlaces are not always easy to find, but careful excavation in the soil at the base of plants revealed this tale-tale structure, allowing me to confirm cause of death as honey fungus.

It was important for the owners to take prompt action to remove infected sections of the hedge, including the roots and immediate surrounding ground, replacing it with new soil.

Heavy duty plastic barriers to 45cm deep and 5cm are sometimes adopted to help isolate an infection, followed by replanting with alternative hedging plants.

Privet, viburnum, cotoneaster and the leyland cypress are the most susceptible hedging plants to honey fungus, with yew, pittosporum and griselinia rarely affected.

Honey fungus is native to Britain, but its frequency is likely to increase as plants become more stressed from climate change.

Planting hedgerows with a mixture of species, or species rarely infected should provide greater resilience to this disease.

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54

The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

Constituency issues

with West Dorset MP Chris Loder

Honoured to welcome my choice for leader It was an honour to welcome our Foreign Secretary Liz Truss to Athelhampton near Dorchester on Tuesday afternoon.

I feel it is vital that our concerns in Dorset, some of them rather unique to our area, are listened to by those in such senior positions and I was very pleased that Liz took the time to visit and engage with local people.

We had some very important issues raised on Tuesday.

Dorset’s Bus Service Improvement Plan bid for example, and the need to properly address the state of bus services in West Dorset.

Broadband and mobile network infrastructure was also a major area which Liz believes needs far greater

investment in rural areas and she supports my desire to reset the imbalance and put forward clear ambitions to do this should she be elected leader.

Thefts and animal cruelty and drug dealing constitute a significant proportion of rural crime. I was therefore pleased to see that Liz has pledged a raft of new measures to cut key crimes by a fifth by 2024, including ensuring officers visit the scene of every burglary and slashing the paperwork/red tape to be completed.

Dorset is comprised mostly (97%) of small and micro sized businesses that would benefit significantly

from opportunities that a liberated public sector procurements sector can offer.

Liz also pledged keenness to use my knowledge of the rail industry and belief in small businesses in West Dorset to turbocharge the Procurements Bill going through Parliament. I discussed the foundations of this with Minister Jacob Rees-Mogg before the Queen’s Speech in May. For most people, the biggest question is which candidate will leave you with more money in your pocket.

Liz has set out some clear deliverables to help people through the cost of living.

She will scrap the National Insurance tax rise, saving the

average worker £240 a year.

She will also introduce a oneyear moratorium on energy levies, bringing average household energy bills down by £153 to help families through the winter.

As Foreign Secretary, Liz has shown exceptional strength in standing up against the Russian Invasion of Ukraine, and her commitment to the security and strength of our nation is underscored by her plans to increase defence spending to 3 per cent of GDP by 2030.

These are just some of the reasons why I am supporting Liz Truss, and as always I would welcome your thoughts on this process and of the candidates, so do please email hello@chrisloder.co.uk

Politics

Think it’s all over? Lionesses have hardly started On July 31, we witnessed an historic step forward for women’s sport as the Lionesses triumphed in the Euro 2022 contest. They showed the grit and determination to win at the highest level and provided a boost for the whole nation at a difficult time.

Their achievement shows how much our society has changed but there is still so much more that needs to be done.

It is amazing to realise that when the men won the World Cup in 1966 women were not allowed to play football at all.

Back in 1921 women had been banned from playing ‘the beautiful game’ and this only changed in 1969

By NICK IRELAND West Dorset LibDems

when the Women’s Football Association was founded.

It’s been a long journey to get from there to being the best in Europe.

It is welcome news that the entire Lionesses squad have written to the remaining contenders to become Leader of the Conservative Party and therefore PM. They said, “We are looking to the future. We want to create real change in this country and we are asking you, if you were to become PM on September 5, to help us achieve that change.

We want every young girl

in the nation to be able to play football at school.

“Currently only 63% of girls can play football in PE lessons. The reality is we are inspiring young girls to play football, only for many to end up going to school and not being able to play.

“This is something that we all experienced growing up.

We were often stopped from playing. So we made our own teams, we travelled across the country and despite the odds, we just kept playing football.

“Women’s football has come a long way. But it still has a long way to go.

“We ask you and your government to ensure that all girls have access to a minimum of two hours a

week PE. Not only should we be offering football to all girls, we also need to invest in and support female PE teachers too.

“Their role is crucial and we need to give them the resources to provide girls’ football sessions. They are key role models from which so many young girls can flourish.

“We have made incredible strides in the women’s game, but this generation of school girls deserve more.

They deserve to play football at lunchtime, they deserve to play football in PE lessons and they deserve to believe that they can one day play for England. We want their dreams to also come true.”

The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

55

Politics

Fast fashion is speeding up climate change I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but our desire for fast fashion is a major contributor to climate change, with the global textile industry producing more emissions than aviation and shipping combined.

Did you know that clothing production has roughly doubled since 2000 but people are only keeping their clothes half as long?

That an astonishing 60% of newly bought items end up in landfill in under one year? And whilst the UK buys more clothes than any other European country, only 1% get recycled? Our fashion behaviour is environmentally damaging every step of the way.

We don’t need to behave

By KELVIN CLAYTON West Dorset Green Party

this way. We could choose to buy fewer but better quality clothes, and if we do want a change we could recycle and re-purpose our old clothes, or swap them, whilst still looking good. By doubling the length of time we keep our clothes we could cut fashion emissions by an astonishing 44%. This was the main message from an event recently held in Bridport. Transition Town Bridport had originally planned to hold their Fashion Revolution event in the spring of 2020, as part of their annual Green Fortnight, but as with much

else this was curtailed by the covid pandemic.

However, as important as this message is, and as much as I support the aims if the Transition Towns movement, realistically there is a limit to the changes grassroots movements like this can bring about. Most of the time they only speak and influence people who are already receptive to their ideas. What we need is change from the top. We need wholescale system change. In the context of the fashion industry we need a carbon tax on cheap goods manufactured on the other side of the globe such that their retail cost reflects the damage their shipment causes. And we need some

method to disincentivise the exploitation of the cheap, bordering on slave labour that produces them.

But perhaps the real problem here is our economic system. The needs and demands of global capitalism provide the background story to how most of us view the world.

And central to this story is consumerism. We are actively encouraged to buy stuff we don’t need with money we haven’t got in order to impress people we don’t know. We are made to feel inadequate if we are not wearing the right brand, if we are not imitating the celebrities and influencers who are paid to wear certain items. Such behaviour is collective suicide.

critical care, it is failing. As a result, long waiting times are pushing people into paying thousands of pounds for private treatment – up by 39% compared to the same period before the pandemic.

This is a measure of desperation that tax cuts can only make worse.

Nobody likes paying tax, but the last decade has shown us what society is like when we stop recognising the social value of good public services.

When the NHS was founded it was made clear that under this new system, “There are no insurance qualifications. But it is not a ‘charity’. You are all

paying for it, mainly as taxpayers, and it will relieve your money worries in time of illness.”

The same principle was promoted across the full range of public services from housing to libraries.

Labour is justly proud of that message.

We believe in fair taxation, not less taxation. We believe in progressive taxation, which protects those on the lowest incomes by shifting the tax burden onto those most able to pay. Tax cuts may sound attractive but the reality is that one day it could be you waiting hours for an ambulance or grieving for someone who could have had a longer, or a better life.

Fair taxation will help fund our NHS

It is clear from the Conservative leadership debates that the next general election will be a choice between Tory tax cuts or a Labour government commitment to improving public services.

There was a time when all political parties felt compelled to argue that it was possible to cut taxes without any impact. All you had to do was cut out waste and become more efficient. A decade of austerity has consigned that theory to the dustbin. You simply cannot squeeze any more out of the public sector without putting something back in.

In a recent debate about the NHS in Dorset, a speaker stated that contrary to

By CLAUDIA SORIN West Dorset Labour Party

popular rhetoric the NHS was one of the most efficient organisations in the country. He argued the service had been forced to become so efficient that there was no spare capacity left in the system.

When the pandemic came along, the NHS struggled to respond. The same lack of capacity is why it has not been able to recover, leaving an increasing backlog of cases many of whom now need more complex care.

The service of which we are all rightly proud is in crisis. From a shortage of GPs right through to

56

The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

EASIER PUZZLES

Tudor Arcade, Dorchester

Arrow words

Crossword

Defence excuse

Office record keeper

Digger brand (inits)

Frost

Citrus fruit preserve

Teapot cover

Compel

Scottish council area

Bug

Enemy

US Republicans (inits)

Reorganize

3

4

5

6

7

9

10

Ascends

Member of Cooked a Biblical pig’s meat Jewish sect

2

8

Brussels politician (inits)

Open grill (inits)

Spike

1

Title for a young man (abbr)

11

12

13

15

16

19

14

17

18

21

20

22

Freezes over

23 Beers

Utter

‘Not yet public’ (inits)

Splendid

Online photo, perhaps (inits)

8 9 10 11 12 14 15 16 19 21 23 24

Handicap

Waffles

Wordsearch Four Consecutive Vowels

D M A O G O O I E S T I O A H

R C M I R P G I R I O T I E O

C L M U E A S E I U T E P I M

O A C I O O L G E U O Y T U O

AQUEOUS COOEE EUOI GIAOUR GOOIEST GUAIAC HOMOIOUSIAN MAIEUTIC

E T I R N I P S I P A E C H I

D N P A Q O E O O A N A A O O

E S E U U Q C T C U O Q I R U

U A I E U G A I I A U U H C S

A A A O O M E O T E M C R A I

E I I U O O U A O U S R E M A

T A A N C S C U U G E I A N N

A Q O U E S S E U I O I O H M

L S I Y A U A D S T R O A T P

MYTHOPOEIA ONOMATOPOEIA PHARMACOPOEIA PLATEAUED QUEUING RELIQUIAE SEQUOIA TENUIOUS

P G G N I U E U Q A E I I M I

24

Kind

A I S A I E O P O H T Y M R A

Across Pivotal (5) Causes harm (7) Dwell in (7) Soup spoon (5) Make instant coffee, eg (6-3) Elongated fish (3) One of seven deadly things (3) Bank account deficit (9) To any degree (2,3) At the front (7) Deep-seated (7) Get ready to propose, maybe (5)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 13 14 15 17 18 20 22

Down Import duty (6) Age of consent (8) Group or society (4) Amended (6) In a job (8) Got older (4) Also (2,4) Telephoto camera component (4,4) Test reviewer (8) Quest (6) Tangle up (6) Two-way switch (6) Land measure (4) Ancient symbol of life (4)

Sudoku

4

9 1 6 3 3

5 3

4 2

1 9 4

5 4 5

1 2

1 20

6

9 3 9

5 1 4 8

+50%

For the solutions turn to page 70

×1/2

2

÷3

+46

-17

RESULT

The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

HARDER PUZZLES

www.bestpricehearingaids.co.uk | 01305 602240

Cryptic Crossword

Jumbo 3D Sudoku

1 7

8 3

7

5 1

9

4

6

8 3 2 5 9 4 8 7 2

9

1

3 2 1 8 4 6 1

4

3

1

7 2

3 8

6 1 2

1

9 6

5 4

7

4 5

7

5 3 2

9

9 6

4 8 5 7

18+

12+

11+

1

4

2 6 1 8 2

10

11

13

14

16

20

13+

7+

3

504×

189×

1

810×

144×

12×

336×

84×

1

8÷

18+

4÷

0

7+

12×

7+

3

1

0

4

45×

Brain chain (Hard version) 142

+50%

-191

+167

6

7

9

17

21

23

8÷

1

5

-171

+10

12

7

3 6

1 3 6

4

4

2

1

7

3

8

8

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2

Place 1 to 9 once each into every black-bordered 3×3 area as well as each of the 54 rows indicated by the coloured lines. Rows don’t cross the thick black lines.

1

57

Killer Sudoku Pro: Place 1 to 9 once each into every row, column and bold-lined 3×3 box. No digit may be repeated in any dashed-line cage, and each dashed-line cage must result in the given value when the stated operation is applied between all of the digits in that cage.

For subtraction and division operations, start with the highest number in the cage and then subtract or divide by the other numbers in that cage.

RESULT

Can you solve these brain chains entirely in your head? Start with the bold value on the left of a chain, then follow the arrows and apply each operation in turn. Write the result in the box.

15

18

19

22

24

Across 1 Principal protest with month gone (4) 4 William is about working for huge amounts (8) 8 Government body in French city completely depleted (6) 9 Tiny figure wasted time around BBC executive (6) 10 Confused impression in Britpop group (4) 11 Goes ahead getting money (8) 13 Prominent lady is relaxed for the most part (13) 16 Hearty is mistakenly showing neurotic behaviour (8) 19 By the sound of it, encounter chicken, say (4) 20 Line by Arab cutting for instance wages (6) 22 A doctor with round appeal is skilful (6) 23 Confines much of group amid rowdy scenes (8) 24 Bollard caught by individual (4)

Down 2 Rule Gary broke about Latin in a consistent way (9) 3 A large number in old county division (7) 4 Purchase all stock with extra, we hear, raised (3,2) 5 Savage parody upset man with pool (7) 6 Non-mainstream group at home to stop working (5) 7 Joint not opening for unmarried female name (3) 12 Daughter with animal at ground spotted dog (9) 14 Tray awkwardly carried by married woman showing saints, maybe (7) 15 Miners given fine concerning figures? (7) 17 Advertise path in the wilds (5) 18 Gather together a service (5) 21 Shelter type that’s manipulated after losing power (3)

58

The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

Health & Wellbeing

Walking West Dorset

with retired Dorset rights of way officer Chris Slade

FROME VALLEY TRAIL: 11th WALK This stretch of the river Frome and its tributaries has no footpaths close by so the walk is entirely on asphalt. Traffic is busy on part of the route so make sure you’re visible. I was passed by quite a few cyclists, so if you’re a biker you might prefer wheels to feet. The route is undulating but not very steep.

Start near Tincleton Church and head south eastwards along the road for about a mile and a half past Clyffe and Pallington. The map shows that you will be passing numerous lakes and water features and the sculpture park but, unfortunately, everything is invisible because of the hedging. You can see more of the countryside to your left where there are good views.

Eventually you come to Waddock Cross where you turn right and head south west along the B3390, youcantalk.net is a new wellness and mental health resource launched by Bridport-based duo Kerry Miller, pictured, and Alex Fender. It features lots of free resources to help people relax and take stock.

I’ve been trying to find a home on social media for a good while now, but so far nothing is sitting right.

I’ve done a bit of halfhearted posting on Instagram and Linkedin,

which can be busy but is nearly straight so you can see the traffic coming.

There are several interesting features to look out for including iron men and watercress beds.

You’ll cross lots of bridges.

After a mile, on your right, you’ll reach Hurst Heath which seems to be unfenced and unmanaged ferny woodland which looks as if it would be

interesting to explore to spot wildlife, but, unlike Pallington Heath further north, it’s not recorded as Access Land.

Turn right at the junction and head north west for a mile past Woodsford Lower Dairy then turn right and head north for mile towards Tincleton, again crossing many bridges over the streams. You might spot some swans.

At Tincleton Farm, turn right and walk eastwards through the village for a furlong where the road turns left and leads up to the main road where you turn right and soon find your car.

5.8 miles

Getting yourself involved in but it hasn’t really done anything for me, and I don’t think I’ve done much for it either!

A friend recently said that posting on social media feels like ‘just another place to be ignored’ and I agreed initially.

Then I tried playing the game and connecting with people with similar interests, and almost

immediately I felt overwhelmed. It was like being at a huge party where everybody was talking at the same time and I couldn’t tell if any of them were saying anything interesting because there was just so much racket and kerfuffle.

I’m not sure why, but somehow I just don’t fit in, I can’t find my place, I

can’t find a home on social media. However, an ‘old school’ opportunity arose recently. With the help of a friend who has done this sort of thing for many years – I have sponsored an event! (Thank you soooo much DE). yachtsandyachting.com/ news/251211/Youcantalkne t-sponsors-2022-CadetEuropeans

The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

59

Health & Wellbeing

Natural therapy of wildflower meadows

Over the last couple of months, we have been burning the candle both ends of the day moving The Potting Shed Secret Garden from Prince’s place at Closworth to our own premises at Middlemarch, creating a new site for The Potting Shed Wellbeing Nursery Therapy Garden.

We still have quite a bit to do and are hoping to meet the deadline for vacating the old site on time, but it is going to be tight.

On one of those long days, we had just finished supper and were having a nice cup of tea, discussing what we were going to do tomorrow, when out of the hedge popped a young fox.

He seemed not to bothered by our presence there and walked down the grass path towards us. He

jumped in and out of the long meadow grass as if playing with whatever he could see.

It was a beautiful sight and one that we will cherish for a long time, just sitting there in a quiet lovely space with natural wildlife around us and them not being bother by our presence is making all the effort and hard work well worthwhile.

The following day we were visited by a mass of goldfinches feeding on the

a way that helps And although I’ve never done anything like this before I have found that it feels so much more comfortable and authentic.

It means the opportunity to be on the telly and the radio, going out for dinners, stands, banners, tshirts and actually talking to real people. Best of all, much of this takes place

seeds in the meadow and these have been coming back for several days now.

The young woodpeckers are growing fast and still feeding on the fat balls and peanuts we are putting out, and the nut hatches have also arrived on the feeders.

The benefit of the site to the wildlife is also a benefit to our own wellbeing as our spirits are lifted when we see such wonderful things going on, especially when things are getting on top of us during the

pressure of moving and the fast-approaching deadline.

The fact that the healing is taking place in this space is of no surprise as wildflower meadows provide a great source of therapy and healing.

The energies from the grass and wildflowers relax and calm your mind, they slow down your whole metabolism, bringing a sense of peace and serenity to your whole being.

The sounds of the meadow when standing next to it are amazing. The area is alive with the sound of grasshoppers, bees and other insects, it is just buzzing with wildlife, these sounds just fill the mind and drive out all other thoughts of the day providing even more relaxation.

This is truly awesome and although our time to enjoy these wonderful experiences is fleeting and short lived the energy boost, we get gives us the incentive to do more and carry on, this is energy healing at its best.

how they want to live.

Priceless eh? If it gets one in a hundred of the human beings that set eyes on it thinking and moving in the right direction for them, I’ll be very happy. One in ten – I’ll be ecstatic!

Although I think the deck can stand alone, perhaps I think that because this is my world and these are ideas I’ve thought about a lot. Just in case it’s all a bit vague or confusing for newbies I am working on a

free companion journal to guide people through the process of identifying their core values and understanding how these might guide life choices and goal setting. No more blundering through life not knowing what you’re doing or why you’re doing it – phew! I’m still not sure what to do about social media though …let’s just hold that lightly and maybe in time things will become clearer.

WILD ABOUT HEALING: Flowers and grass relax your mind and is a fine example of energy healing at its best

Andy Cole is a reiki healer based in Middlemarsh.

He specialises in planting for healing.

outdoors and right by the sea. Could it get much better than that?

I’ve also designed a little something to go into the goodie bags: The SOS Values and Committed Action Card Deck. This is an opportunity to get young people and their parents thinking and talking about what actually, really matters to them and

60

The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

Health & Wellbeing

By Miranda Robertson miranda@westdorsetmag.co.uk

A hearing aid audiologist has launched a bold new business in Dorchester – determined to offer high quality devices at the lowest cost possible.

Charles Harris, who lives near Cerne Abbas, has been involved in hearing aids for 20 years, having been a police constable then making the leap into audiology by chance.

In those two decades the technology has moved on enormously, and in the last few years rechargeable aids, with Bluetooth technology have transformed the market.

No longer do people have to buy hundreds of batteries, and they can have the TV on at a volume that won’t deafen others, as the Bluetooth enables them to hear it directly.

All these advances mean prices can be high. But Charles’s vision was to find a way to provide these much better hearing aids at a much better price.

He said: “The whole point of our offering is to offer the best, premium hearing systems at an entry level sort of price.

“Our testing will also be better than the standard testing people might have experienced before.

“We include video otoscopy (seeing inside the ear), tympanometry (testing the performance of the tympanic membrane (ear drum).”

In launching Best Price Hearing Aids, which is now open in the Tudor Arcade near Waitrose,

A WORD IN YOUR EAR: Charles Harris at Best Price Hearing Aids in the Tudor Arcade

Listen to this: Improving hearing at affordable cost

Charles is taking on the high street giants, such as Boots, and offering lower prices.

“The margins are very tight,” he said, “but I would rather help more people.”

Charles says on average people will put up with hearing loss for five years before doing anything about it. But they should act sooner because the younger someone gets hearing correction the better their ears adapt and that can slow auditory decline.

It’s also the case that hearing loss contributes significantly to the risk of developing Alzheimer’s and dementia, due to the lack of aural stimulation and isolation so it’s well worth getting checked out earlier.

If you do need hearing aids, Charles has a

seasonal offer on at the moment – £2,500 for a top of the range set. But once they’re gone, they’re gone.

People can try the aids for free for two weeks (not custom aids or very high correction aids) and if they get on with them they can buy them outright or on 0% finance.

Once bought, they can then decide whether they want an aftercare plan or just an as and when kind of arrangement.

Charles said: “Historically people have had to pay monthly fees to get their hearing aids serviced and people knew they would be looked after. However this can get very expensive and be an unnecessary cost if people are going along okay and don’t need all the extra services.

“Now hearing aids are

more reliable and controllable, and people are getting more savvy with what things cost. We want to provide the best hearing aids at an entry level cost, by buying them in bulk and passing on that saving.”

The clinic also offers wax removal using microsuction, a safer alternative to traditional syringing.

“Wax is the big thing at the moment,” said Charles.

“Most surgeries don’t do wax removal now.

“People have nowhere to go and we are told we should charge more for this, but we’ve made it as affordable as possible at £35 per ear.” n Best Price Hearing Aids is open Monday to Friday and will open Saturdays to book appointments soon.

The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

61

Business

By Andrew Diprose editor@dorsetbiznews.co.uk

A renewable energy developer behind controversial plans for a solar park covering 190 acres has agreed a community benefit fund partnership with Dorset Community Foundation.

Once in action it will fund local projects, providing grants for a wide range of causes.

British Solar Renewables (BSR Energy) has submitted plans for North Dairy Solar Park on land at North Dairy Farm, Pulham, between Sherborne and Dorchester.

It will have a generating capacity of up to 49.9MW, which is expected to power 13,000 family homes while displacing 13,000 tonnes of CO2 per year.

BSR Energy says this represents an emission saving equivalent to a reduction in approximately 5,841 cars per year.

The company also claims the solar park will bring significant biodiversity net gains to the local ecosystem with a 52.9 per cent net gain in habitats and a 27.91 per cent net gain in hedgerows.

However, the plans have sparked fierce opposition with pressure group Save Hardy’s Vale claiming the solar farm will blight areas of unspoilt countryside in the Blackmore Vale which inspired the novelist Thomas Hardy.

The planning application is still under consideration with a committee date yet to be confirmed.

With each of its projects BSR explores options for community benefit funds.

Community funding deal agreed by solar farm firm

DELIGHTED: Colin Ramsay

NETWORK: Grant Robson

The aim is for local residents to directly benefit from solar farms built near them.

Colin Ramsay, Head of Development at BSR Energy, which also provides expert services to the renewable energy industry, said: “We are delighted to announce our community benefit partnership with Dorset Community Foundation.

“Ensuring the local people of Dorset can directly benefit from positive

projects that have a lasting impact is critical to the values of BSR. “Dorset Community Foundation is more adept to understanding and addressing the specific needs of local residents, which we believe is an essential of a major planning application.”

Grants from the community benefit partnership will be used to support youth projects including those helping disadvantaged children and young people.

The fund will also work with older people, to help to reduce loneliness and isolation, in addition to funding sports projects, address fuel poverty and support conservation and biodiversity schemes.

Grant Robson, Director at Dorset Community Foundation, said: “We are a part of a network of 47 local community foundations nationally.

“Many of our colleagues have distributed similar community benefit funds so we are proud that BSR Energy has chosen to work with us in Dorset. We will ensure the funds make a real difference to the lives of people in communities around the solar park.

“By working with the grassroots groups and charities who support these communities we can help them address real need in the area so we are very pleased BSR Energy has recognised our expertise.”

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The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

Church

Embrace the simplicity, it’s a blessing

By Canon Deb Smith, Team Rector of Bridport According to the travel writer Bill Bryson, simplicity is a national trait of the British. He says the British like their pleasures small. In his book, Notes from a Small Island, he writes: [The British] are the only people in the world who think of jam and currants as thrilling constituents of a pudding or cake. Offer them something genuinely tempting – a slice of gateau or a choice of chocolates from a box – and they will nearly always hesitate and begin to worry that it’s unwarranted and excessive, as if any pleasure beyond a very modest

Services Sherborne Abbey Weekday Services Monday to Saturday at 8.30am, Morning Prayer The Sepulchre Chapel Every Monday at 9am, Holy Communion - The Lady Chapel Every Tuesday at 12noon, Holy Communion - The Lady Chapel Every Wednesday at 10.30am, Holy Communion with Homily – The Lady Chapel Every Thursday at 12noon, BCP Holy Communion - The Lady Chapel Every Friday at 9am, Ecumenical Holy Communion - The Lady Chapel The first Friday of the month at 9am, Requiem Holy Communion - The Sepulchre Chapel -

threshold is vaguely unseemly.

‘Oh, I mustn’t really,’ they say. ‘Oh, go on,’ you prod encouragingly.

‘Well, just a small one then,’ they say and dartingly take a small one, and then get a look as if they have just done something terribly devilish.

I imagine that streak in us that yearns for simplicity comes from our Celtic roots.

That Celtic yearning for simplicity can be found in Celtic prayer too. This prayer is spoken by generations of ordinary folk in their homes on what today we’d call the ‘Celtic fringe’, Scotland’s rural west coast: Bless to me, O God, Each thing my eye sees;

Bless to me, O God, Each sound my ear hears; Bless to me, O God, Each odour that goes to my nostrils; Bless to me, O God, Each taste that goes to my lips; Each note that goes to my song; Each ray that guides my way…

It’s a simple prayer – asking for God’s blessing for the day ahead, preparing to go out into the world with God; confident that God’s love for us is real, and known in even the simplest moments in a day. The ancient Celts had prayers for milking the cows, welcoming the new light of dawn, making the fire in the hearth. Everything

they did connected with the giver of life.

Do we believe that God is with us in the simple, mundane activities of everyday life? In putting the kettle on to show welcome to a neighbour? In writing a card to a friend, in a smile to a stranger in the street?

Do we have a language to celebrate that, to talk to God and hear God in simple terms?

Why not try it this week?

Embrace our Celtic simplicity and give thanks for the simple blessings of our days.

Every Saturday at 9am, Holy Communion - The Sepulchre Chapel

5pm Hymns and Pimms (Milton Brook) Halstock 10am Holy Communion Melbury Osmond 9.30am Baptism Frome St Quentin 11am Holy Communion Maiden Newton 9.30am Worship Service Cattistock 6pm Holy Communion Friday, August 19 Sherborne Abbey 11am Remembering the Fallen

10.30am All Age Holy Communion St Mary Magdalene, Castleton 11am Mattins Burton Bradstock 9.30am Family Service Chilcombe 6.30pm Evening Prayer Swyre 6.30pm Songs of Praise Puncknowle 11am All Age Holy Communion Litton Cheney 9.30am Morning Prayer Long Bredy 9.30am Morning Worship Corscombe 10am Morning Prayer Evershot 10am Holy Communion Rampisham 11am Holy Communion Maiden Newton 9.30am Holy Communion Chilfrome 11am Holy Communion

Sunday, August 14 Sherborne Abbey 8am Holy Communion 9.30am Parish Eucharist 6pm Choral Evensong St James the Great in Longburton 10am Family Communion St Martin of Tours Lillington 10am Holy Communion St Paul’s at The Gryphon 10.30am All Age Worship Burton Bradstock 11am Holy Communion Shipton Gorge 9.30am Morning Prayer Swyre 6.30pm Songs of Praise – a village thank you Litton Cheney 9.30am Holy Communion Littlebredy 11am Holy Communion Corscombe

Sunday, August 21 Sherborne Abbey 8am Holy Communion 9.30am Parish Eucharist 6pm Choral Evensong St Martin of Tours Lillington 10am Morning Service St James the Great, Longburton 10am Family Communion St Paul’s at The Gryphon

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Letters

newsdesk@westdorsetmag.co.uk

On spitoons and peeling wallpaper I so agree with the sentiments raised in the article about the Bottle Inn. My two sisters and I lived there for many years, whilst my younger sister and I were born there my elder sister could not be as my parents had only just taken over the licence and the property was in really bad repair. My elder sister was born at the Rose and Crown at Birdsmorgate, where my grandmother was the landlady for 42-and-a-half years.

I remember my mother saying when they looked at it the first time the ceiling paper was hanging off and almost touched the floor. The men who frequented the bar said they were going to drink elsewhere as my mother took away their spittoons. They did not go as it was a long way to the New Inn in the middle of Marshwood.

Both parents worked really hard and opened a grocery shop in the wooden building that has now fallen down. My father built a house to house the engine which gave us electric. He even charged batteries for people to have some sort of light in their homes.

After 18-and-a-half years they moved to Chideock where they ran the Manning Stores.

But my mother did not like the grocery trade and they bought the Shave Cross Inn in the Marshwood Vale.

Joyce Dunford I very much enjoy Jo Belasco’s enthusiasticallywritten Pagan Views column, introducing readers of your excellent magazine to the ancient Pagan sites/stone circles in the Dorset area.

A very good contact for

further activities beyond Dorset is the network of ley hunters (C/O L-main, 9 Mawddwy Cottages, Minllyn, Dinas, Mawddy, Machynlleth, Wales, SY20 9LW).

T E Little Sherborne PS: Apologies for the handwritten letter (I’m 85 with no computer!)

Dear WDM I always enjoy reading WDM. BUT come on: page 3 of the July 29 issue contained a solecism of epic proportions: Quote, ‘a disproportionate amount of dogs’ unquote.

Were they stacked high in a great big pile? You mean quote, ‘number of dogs’ unquote. Please WDM, set the grammatical bar high!!

Richard Lewington During the pandemic, many of us rediscovered the simple act of walking – the oldest, cheapest and greenest transport there is. Walking kept us connected to ourselves and to others and helped us to stay healthy and happy.

Walking is good for our minds, our bodies, and our cities, towns and villages.

But lots of us still struggle with narrow, cluttered, uneven pavements; crossings that prioritise cars rather than people; and growing numbers of speeding vehicles.

It doesn’t have to be like this.

That’s why I support the demands Living Streets has made ahead of this year’s elections, calling on candidates to pledge to improve our streets for all, cut air pollution and make walking easier and safer. Visit livingstreets.org.uk/may22 for more info.

Candidates must commit to set Vision Zero targets of significant reductions in people killed and injured on our roads. We call for commitments on default 20mph speed limits in built-up areas, improvements to our crossings and junctions and an increase in the number of low traffic neighbourhoods. One person killed on our roads is one too many.

It is time we redesigned our streets around people, not cars.

That way we can all enjoy the benefits of walking and build healthier, happier communities.

Bridget Letten, Dorchester Having read The West Dorset Magazine found it a very informative and lovely mag, including clever quip titles of stories.

One story you have covered, is the Martyrs Festival in Tolpuddle, in which Nigel Costley has been organiser of the festival for 27yrs. In fact my father Stanley Harry Pitman was the man whom started this whole thing first, in early 70s. Stanley was landlord of a public house in Shaftesbury, before the breweries offered the only pub in Tolpuddle, being that he was closer to his family in Weymouth (at the time). The pub’s original name has escaped me at present, but my father wanted to change the pub name to The Martyrs Inn, the brewers agreed, and it was my father whom started this whole affair. He contacted the Head Trade Unionist Jack Jones to come down to Tolpuddle and open the Martyrs Inn and the first ever day’s show or festival with all

newspaper reporters etc making a day of it. This was the beginning of what is happening today’. Though I have never heard my father’s name mentioned. It is mentioned’ in my life story. I have just finished writing my life book which is extremely colourful, and a long story of International entertainment, though my beginnings were agonising, hence my desire to donate the entire book to BBC’s Children in Need Appeal.

Roger James Pitman It’s not just in the South West (Water companies slated, Edition 13); the dismal performance of all England’s water companies is characteristic of the industry as a whole: it continues to underinvest while running up huge corporate debt to pay handsome dividends to its shareholders. To keep this racket going it simply can’t afford to stop polluting.

The 32 years since denationalisation have demonstrated beyond any doubt that a privatised service simply cannot meet the nation’s needs. The blunt truth is that only a re-nationalised water industry is capable of providing the service we need.

If Loder is really serious about improving our water services he must press for the only reform capable of making structural improvements to the industry. Attending ‘summits’ with company officials is a waste of time: he can be no match for the supreme skill the industry has acquired in defending the indefensible.

Lawrence Hansen Bridport

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The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

Sport

Proud Puddletown’s invincible season

By Robin Potter

Puddletown 1st XI capped a magnificent season in the Evening League, achieving their goal of a 100% record by defeating St Georges.

Gautham Rajendar kept the Saints total down with three wickets for 16 and it took a whirlwind 44 not out from Jamie Barrett to set Puddle a target of just 116. Sam Goodhew took three for 13 in reply but Lucas Allen judged his innings perfectly with an unbeaten 69 to cement Puddle’s season with a sixwicket win.

St Georges fared better against Charlton Down, Jamie Barrett starring with three wickets for 14 and then 37 not out to give them victory. Hazelbury Bryan, however, beat the Saints by four wickets, with the crucial play being the run out of St Georges’

CUP OF JOY: Double winners Puddletown showing off their Evening League cup medals

Sam Goodhew for 64 when he was going well. Adam Fitzgerald’s 44 for Hazelbury was backed up well by his teammates to give them a four-wicket win.

The most exciting game of the week came at Cattistock. Steven Tucker set the Catts up well with 45 but it needed Ollie Legg

with 51 not out from a mere 16 balls to set Dewlish a decent target of 184. Crispin Brown’s 104 had his side well on course however three run outs left them agonisingly one run short.

The Division III title rests between Frampton and Bere Regis, who both finished with 18 points, so

a play-off on Wednesday, August 10, will decide who gets the honours.

Once the last games are completed, the trophy winners, including those for most runs, most wickets, most catches and most sixes will be decided ready for the league’s presentation evening on Thursday, September 15.

order reached double figures, however some disciplined Dorchester bowling meant that nobody went on to make a matchwinning score, with Mark House top-scoring with 34.

Simon Mitchen (3-33) and Gautham Rajendar (2-26) helped to restrict the middle order.

Evergreen Jim Ryall led the chase, scoring 40 at the top of the order, with Eral Anderson adding 26.

Wimborne chipped away with some disciplined bowling and regular wickets fell. When skipper Dan Belt and Owens were dismissed in the same over to leave the home side 152 for 7, the game looked to have swung

towards the away side.

However a patient and welltimed 21 not out from Rajendar, with 12 not out from Jamie Barrett was enough to steer Dorchester home for a vital win.

time Roca fell just six runs short of a century, he had steered his side to within 23 runs of victory. Fellow opener Ryan Monk made 45, with the pair adding 109 for the first wicket. Mark Lock (39 not out) and Roger Parfitt (11 not out) saw the hosts home with plenty of overs to spare.

Earlier, Martinstown had posted a competitive total, with opener Ed Nichols 50 the top scorer, and good support down the order from Tom Pope (33) and Finley Williams (40). Emlyn Kuhn was the pick of the Sherborne attack, bagging five for 40 from his ten overs, with Tim Durston returning 3-38.

CRICKET ROUND-UP

Wimborne & Colehill CC 1st XI 177 (45.3 overs) Dorchester CC 1st X1 180/7 (49.2 overs) Dorchester CC 1st XI won by 3 wickets – Dorchester CC 1st XI 20 points; Wimborne & Colehill CC 1st XI 6 points Dorchester Firsts leapfrogged their title rivals with a tense three-wicket win at the Rec, with just four balls to spare. The victory owed much to Dorchester’s bowlers, who dismissed the visitors inside their allotted overs, with Jack Owens picking up three crucial late wickets to return figures of three for 21. All of Wimborne’s top and middle

Martinstown CC 1st XI 205 (48.1 overs) Sherborne CC 1st X1 210/2 (43.4 overs) Sherborne CC 1st XI won by 8 wickets – Sherborne CC 1st XI 20 points; Martinstown CC 1st XI 5 points Mark Roca’s excellent 94 helped Sherborne ease to victory at home to Martinstown and consolidate their fifth place standing in the Premier Division. By the

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65

Sport Bridport Barracudas Water Polo will be playing two further matches in the open water court at West Bay in the coming fortnight, with free entry for those wanting to come along.

Yeovil Spartans will be the visitors on Saturday, August 13, at 8pm, with a local derby against Weymouth and Portland taking place on Saturday, August 27, with swim-off at 7pm.

Bridport first played matches at West Bay as long ago as 1898 and, with home matches generally taking place at Bridport Leisure Centre, the outdoor fixtures give an opportunity to showcase the sport to a much wider audience.

Previous events have been well-supported with many spectators stumbling across the games and being captivated by the skill and excitement on show.

Barracudas in Bay watch

POLO’S MINT: The Barracudas in action against Frome

Organiser Fred Fowler said: “The summer holidays enable us to return to our traditional home in West Bay harbour, and the games always have a really special atmosphere. The players and spectators really enjoy it. We usually have a few games here and we hope to get the Lyme

Splash Water Polo Festival going again after Covid.”

The Barracudas, a section of the Bridport Barracudas Swimming Club, were reformed in 1994 and have enjoyed an upsurge in interest in recent years, currently boasting 25 senior playing members as well as a further 20 juniors

(and growing) playing through a joint initiative with the leisure centre programme.

The junior sessions run on Monday evenings from 7.30 to 8.30 pm throughout the year from, with the exception of bank holidays and school summer holidays.

Senior sessions from 8.309.30pm for older juniors, senior men and ladies.

Fred added: “We are a very welcoming club, our aim is not only to give players the best training and playing opportunities but as with all team sports skills such as coaching can help anyone throughout their adult life. If you would like to try the sport, please pop by on a Monday evening and ask for me or contact us via uk.teamunify.com/ team/swrdbb/page/home.”

Stanley at the double for Magpies’ opener win Dorchester Town 2 North Leigh 1 Alfie Stanley scored a first half brace to give the Magpies a winning start to the Southern League Premier campaign.

Stanley’s first goal came after just four minutes, the striker applying a clever flicked finish to Shaq Gwengwe’s pass.

Louie Slough was denied by the woodwork, but Stanley doubled the home side’s advantage on 23 minutes, pouncing on a loose pass and making no mistake with the finish.

North Leigh scored shortly

after the break to get back into contention and threatened occasionally without seriously troubling Brad Snelling in the Magpies’ goal.

Sherborne Town 1 Millbrook 0 Keynsham Town 0 Sherborne Town 4 The Zebras enjoyed backto-back wins as they started their season in the Western League Premier Division, keeping two clean sheets and with five different players opening their accounts.

At home to Millbrook,

George Mapletoft’s headed finish on a hour was enough to give Town all three points, although the Zebras’ defence had to be resolute as Millbrook pushed hard in search of an equaliser.

Town found life much easier away to Keynsham with goals from Dec Cornish, Anth Herrin, Henry Lawrence-Napier and Josh Williams, giving them a comfortable win.

Ivybridge Town 1 Bridport Town 0 A controversial 78th minute goal from Fletcher

Williams denied Edgar Marcu’s men a return from their opening league fixture.

In an even contest, Williams was on hand to fire home after Bees’ goalkeeper Callum Smalley spilt the ball having appeared to have been impeded.

Marcu will take some encouragement from the performance, with his team creating the lion’s share of chances to score, with Callum Arnold and Bosley Yu unable to apply the finish when in good positions.

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The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

Sport

Women and children first as club

By Stuart Wickham stuart@westdorsetmag.co.uk

The club captain of Puddletown Cricket Club has been telling The West Dorset Magazine about its thriving membership, with their ladies and youth sections in particular being a shining example to other local clubs.

With many clubs struggling to re-energise ladies’ cricket following the pandemic, Adam talks about how Puddletown are managing to buck the trend by attracting even more women and girls to the sport.

Adam said: “The ladies’ section is a real success story for us. Much of this is due to the hard work of the section leader, Charlotte Mandale, who is absolutely superb at getting people involved. She encourages parents to bring their sons and daughters down and give cricket a try whilst also getting them involved too.

We are fielding two ladies teams – one softball and one hardball. The softball team are in the semi-final of the Dorset Port Regis Trophy league and the hardball team have one

GREAT TEAM: Puddletown’s First XI

game left to play on the August Bank Holiday to complete their season. It’s a first for us, and a sign of how far we’ve come.”

The WAGtails – women and girls – now boasts over 30 members, one of the largest female playing contingents in Dorset.

The club currently have no chairman following David Stevens’ decision to stand down in 2021 after five years in the role, leaving

Puddletown Cricket Club Fact File Ground The Club House, Puddletown Recreation Ground, Three Lanes Way, Puddletown, Dorchester DT2 8PY Teams Saturday XI: Dorset Cricket League Premier Division Second XI: Dorset Cricket League Division 5 Evening League 1st XI: Dorchester & District Evening League Division 1 Evening League 2nd XI: Dorchester & District Evening League Division 2

Adam to take an active role in making sure that the sections within the club run smoothly.

Adam was keen to acknowledge the hard work that Dave had put into the club during his tenure. “We are really grateful for what he did for the club, and without his dedication and hard work, we would not have the club we have today. We might not even have one at all.”

Evening League 3rd XI: Dorchester & District Evening League Division 3 WAGtails; Hardball; Dorset Super 8s WAGtails; Softball; Port Regis North & West Trophy League Friendly XI; Sunday T20; Junior U12; Junior U11; Junior U10; 3rd XI; Greens; Blues Club Officials Club Captain: Adam Barrett Club Captain: Stewart Newcombe Club Captain: Charlotte Mandale Junior Co-ordinator: Rob Snow Club Safeguarding Officer: Howard Mason n puddletowncc.play-cricket.com

“The club now rely on our inspirational section leads who are pivotal to our success and drive different aspects of the club. While Charlotte is doing a fantastic job with the girls, we are privileged to have Rob Snow looking after the Puffins – our junior section.

We have 30 juniors playing in the U11s and U12s. Add in our 30 AllStars and 30 Dynamos and we have around 90 youngsters playing cricket.”

Rob’s 15-year-old daughter, Evie, is a shining example of how Puddletown are nurturing their young talent.

Adam said: “Rob came down from Scotland about 10 years ago, saw the ground, and decided to get involved. He quickly got Evie playing too and she has progressed through the ranks, from AllStars and

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67

Sport

bucks trend with rising membership

GUYS AND GALS: Puddletown’s Saturday First XI, left, and the ladies’ team, above

Dynamos, then into the junior and senior teams as well as representing the county on a number of occasions. Evie is now in the senior Ladies Dorset County team for their upcoming match against Hampshire. We are so proud of what she has achieved but she’s by no means the only one who has done well, as we have six juniors in county squads in total”.

“For such a small club, we are immensely proud of this achievement. We couldn’t do it without a team of volunteers who are a massive part of this success.

“We want to use our social media presence to engage more youngsters and can see the potential for attracting more budding young cricketers this way.

“We just want to be a community-based, family friendly club, offering

cricket for all.”

Adam knows the importance of youth for the club’s long-term prosperity.

He said: “It’s vital for us that we have these players coming through, but it takes years of hard work for them to filter into the senior ranks. We have a relatively small catchment and have often lost players to teams like Dorchester.”

Puddletown are now competing against towns like Dorchester, Poole and Wimborne in Dorset Premier League, but have struggled with the step up in quality. Adam said: “We’ve come up through the leagues and it’s our first time in the Premier but it was never going to be easy.

It’s such a massive jump in standard and we’re competing against towns with huge catchment areas.

It demonstrates why the

drive for young players is so vital, as these are the players who will guarantee that we can be sustainable in the future.”

The club’s second team plays in County Division 5 and gives many of the emerging youngsters the chance to play weekend league cricket to a good standard.

Despite the club’s Saturday struggles, Puddletown have excelled in the Dorset Evening League, winning the Division One Doug Read Cup and looking set for a league and cup double with an unbeaten record so far this season.

Adam said: “We are really proud of what we do in the evening league. We’re the only club that fields three teams – one in each of the three divisions – and people really want to play for us in the 20-over game. We have

some players who play for other clubs at the weekend but want to turn out for Puddletown midweek. Dan Belt is a good example – Dan captains Dorchester at the weekend but we are his boyhood club and he still has that affection for us and wants to play. It’s great to have players of that calibre turning out for us.”

If you’re interested in playing for the club, or volunteering your support, you can contact Adam, Charlotte or Rob via the clubs website or social media pages.

Website: puddletowncc.playcricket.com Facebook: ‘Puddletown Cricket Club’ or ‘Puddletown Juniors, Womens & Girls’ Cricket’ Instagram: ‘puddletown_wagtails’ or ‘puddletown_cricket’

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The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

Sport

By Stuart Wickham stuart@westdorsetmag.co.uk

Sherborne Town Ladies’ manager Jemma Tewkesbury has been speaking to The West Dorset Magazine about her hopes for the season ahead and how the recent success of England’s Lionesses is inspiring players across Dorset.

Jemma combines her work with the Zebras with her job as Football Development Officer at Dorset County FA, giving her a unique insight into player trends across the county.

Jemma said: “I was lucky enough to be at the final at Wembley and it was fantastic. I’m still on a high! My partner bought tickets last year and we really could not have imagined that it would be England in the final and turn out to be such an exciting game.

“It feels like a once in a lifetime achievement and the team have created such a buzz which has certainly helped us.

“We have been building a development squad at Sherborne this summer and saw a real uptick in interest, particularly from the semi-final stage. The Lionesses seemed to have inspired an awful lot of people to start or return to the game. We’ve had plenty of interest from former players looking to play again, which has been really pleasing, as

WILL TO WIN: Sherborne ladies have been inspired by the success of the England Lionesses. Inset: Manager Jemma Tewkesbury Picture: BRENT SMITH

Zebras inspired by the Lionesses well as those looking to play for the first time.

“We have plans at county level to double the number of players and I’m aware of a real boost in numbers across the board in Dorset, much of which I think we can put down to the performance of the womens’ national team.”

Jemma is upbeat about the season ahead for the Zebras.

“From our perspective, it’s

been a really positive preseason. We have made a number of new signings and have had some promising players join the development squad and at U14 level. With the right coaching and encouragement, some of the younger girls can be playing for the first team in a couple of years, so we could see a really quick return on our investment in their potential.”

“We’ve made some good signings in the close season and only lost one or two players, one who

has decided to play for a more local side due to the travel costs, and one who we think will be off to uni.”

Sherborne Town Ladies have been handed a tricky start to the 2022/23 season in the South West Regional Women’s Football League.

They kick off their campaign on Sunday, September 4. They travel to Torquay United, before hosting last season’s runners-up, Ilminster Ladies, a week later.

Jemma said: “It’s a testing couple of games to begin with, but we will certainly be ready. I had yet to join the club when we played Ilminster last season, and we did edge Torquay 1-0.

We’re expecting them to be tough games but I’m positive that we can get a couple of good results to start our campaign.

“We are 100% focused on promotion this year – it’s our big aim and I am confident we can do this with the group of players we have.”

Sherborne Town Ladies are always looking for people to get involved on and off the pitch.

If you would like to play, help in a voluntary capacity or support the team commercially, please contact the club.

Sherborne Town Ladies – Opening Fixtures (All 2pm KO) Sunday, Sept 4: Torquay United A Sunday, Sept 11: Ilminster Ladies H Sunday, Sept 18: Royal Wootton Basset Town A Sunday, Sept 25: Liskeard Athletic Womens FC H Sunday, Oct 9: Poole Town Ladies A Sunday, Oct 16: Bishops Lydeard Ladies H

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69

Agriculture

Mud-phobic Tria Stebbing lives on the outskirts of Sherborne. She keeps sheep, is working on her first book, and works in a village school.

It has all been about the timing so far this year.

Sadly, a few weeks back, you may remember we lost my favourite ewe to complications that followed mastitis. This meant that the decision was made to wean the lambs off early from the ewes, so at six weeks instead of our usual 12 we took them away.

This meant that the lambs were turned out onto green grass which gave them the best possible start and they have grown well.

As the lambs were happy and the weather was playing ball we baled early and have baled some beautiful hay for winter feed. Fellow smallholders have not been so lucky, their lambs a bit later than ours have been turned out on brown stubble with no sign of those sweet green shoots, the lambs not doing so well.

The scorched fields are now becoming a real issue for sheep, with nothing to graze the smallholders are having to use the winter bales already, the shortage of bales already looking like a real issue if the winter is hard. The warm, humid weather has also

SCORCHED EARTH: Lambs are finding it tough going in the brown fields

Lambs finding it tough going with ‘stubble trouble’ meant the perfect breeding conditions for flies. We are absolutely inundated with them, in the house and all over the sheep.

One of the sheep is showing signs of being allergic to the bites and has something that resembles sweet itch. She is covered in scaly

inflamed skin which seems to attract even more flys as she scratches. We have found some amazing summer fly cream to coat her with, it is not the solution, instead it makes her day more comfortable as she is constantly scratching.

Our main aim currently is to get condition back in

the ewes, who believe it or not are on a countdown to the ram, Humphrey, visiting again. We are supplementing their feed at the moment to give them something else other than dry grass and have made mineral lick buckets part of their regime too.

The lambs have formed a flock with the ewes, all except four, who spend time on their own together. They remain by far the friendliest bunch that we have bred so far and still come over for a head rub when we take the food over.

The other half is busy topping the fields that we have not baled, some of which are on a very steep hillside. We are shortly to increase our workload massively as we have been given a few more acres to caretake for the owner.

There are many discussions as to what we put on the new bit of land, it needs a bit of attention clearing thistle and dock but will make for more grazing and has a barn too.

The big question has to be do we get more sheep or do we get some cows?

Dexter cattle would be ideal, but we are leaning towards following our dreams and investing in Highland cows. It will certainly up our game hugely, but seems a natural progression in our farming journey. Fingers crossed that we at least get a drop of rain before I write again, take a minute and look how brown those fields are!

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The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

Agriculture

Hot and humid weather, so ensure As I write this article, all we are talking about is the weather. Incredibly hot and humid spells appear to be coming more and more frequent with the changing climate. The increased temperatures bring their challenges for all sorts of reasons and one of these is the management of our youngstock.

We often talk about heat stress in dairy cattle and are aware of this, but we should also consider the affect that these hot days have on our calves.

By ELLEN TAYLOR BVetMed MRCVS Veterinary Surgeon Synergy Farm Health

Upper and Lower Critical Temperatures – what are they?

Calves will aim to maintain their core body temperature between 10°C and 22°C. Either side of this range the calf will use energy to restore body temperature back to their

target range which is known as the thermoneutral zone. The thresholds of the range are known as the upper and lower critical temperatures.

When a calf reaches the upper or lower critical temperature, they will be diverting energy that could have been otherwise used for growth and immunity to increase or decrease their core temperature.

The thermoneutral range will vary slightly depending on the age of the calf and will be

From pages 56-57

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affected by wind speeds and humidity. Above 25°C calves will be at risk of heat stress.

Top tips for managing calves in hot weather Calves that are suffering from heat stress will be lethargic and have increased respiratory rates.

They will also have a reduced milk and feed intake affecting growth rates again.

During times of abnormally warm weather there are several things you can do to help your calves

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The West Dorset Magazine, August 12, 2022

71

Agriculture

calves stay cool

through the heat.

Firstly, ensure you are monitoring what the temperature is at calf level. Consider getting a thermometer and monitoring around pens or if using hutches ensure you know what the temperature is reaching inside of the hutch. If hutches are sited on unshaded concrete, check if heat is reflecting off concrete yards.

Consider providing shade to the pen outside the hutch to allow calves to shelter from the sun whilst maintaining maximum ventilation, or move hutches temporarily into an empty building.

With different ventilation the temperature can vary in housing.

Think about if you can improve ventilation without causing draughts.

It is also important to ensure the calves have access to plenty of water and that this is being changed frequently to ensure it is as cool as possible, try to keep the water out of direct sunlight.

Consider reducing the stocking rate as high stocking rates will cause increase in temperature inside buildings and sheds and may make it difficult for calves to get access to water.

Shade should be provided so that calves can escape the heat of direct sunlight.

Any management plans such as vaccinating or fly treatment should be rearranged to reduce the chance of heat stress.

If they are absolutely vital speak to your vet for further advise on how to manage on the day but plan to do any movement during the coolest parts of the day.

With the warm weather will also come flies which should be managed to prevent diseases such as New Forest Eye. Speak to your vet about the best way to manage flies on your farm either through spot on products, or in future years consider use of friendly flies - parasitic wasps that aim to minimise the fly population on farm.

Farmers battling drought, heat, flooding and fire risk Farmers are working to reduce the risk of fires during the heatwave as they harvest their crops during the hot weather.

Dorset farmer James Cossins, who has a 2,000 acre (809 hectare) mixed farm near Blandford Forum, says his land is ‘particularly vulnerable’ to accidental fires.

Mr Cossins, who has dairy and beef cattle as well as wheat, barley and oilseed rape, said: “We’ve got a slurry tanker that we fill with water so we have our own mini fire engine and we use a cultivator that disturbs the soil to make a firebreak.

“Keeping the equipment clean and “blowing the dust off” at the end of the day was essential to preventing fire.

“In Dorset we get heath fires too so we have to look after the environment, we have to keep our machinery maintained well.”

Mr Cossins said climate change is now forcing him to consider planting new crops, adding: “We’re looking at growing herbal leys, all being well, which you don’t need to put fertiliser on and which are drought-resistant.”

Hannah Cloake, Professor of Hydrology and a natural hazards researcher at Reading University, said farming had become “really difficult”, not just in terms of heat and fire risk, but with flooding too.

She said: “There’s a limit: drought-resistant crops are fine up to a point but they won’t solve everything.

“Farming will still be impacted by events, I think we need to think outside the box, but it’s good they’re borrowing techniques to stop fires happening before someone’s field catches alight. A lot of farmers are thinking ahead, particularly when they are susceptible to natural hazards which are coming from all directions.”

NFU Mutual, which provides cover for three quarters of the UK’s farms, said one insurer saw a 35% increase in combine harvester fire claims during the 2021 harvest.

A spokesperson for the farming union also said insurers have already been informed of more than 400 fires involving farm machinery this year, at a total cost of over £15million nationwide.

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