Fairlight village voice

You simply mustn’t forget… that next Saturday, September 22 is the date for the Concert by Canterbury Boy Choristers at St Andrews Church, starting at 7 pm. Tickets are £8 in advance, or £10 on the door, to include a glass of wine. Call either Alex Brodie on 813515 or Patrick Cox-Smith on 812560 to make sure of your ticket.

Oh, no they’re not… The Hastings and Rye Conservative Association’s Autumn Buffet is not taking place on September 29, as was erroneously noted last week. It’s the week before, which is now only eight days away on Saturday, September 22. Sorry to have confused you all, but it isn’t too late to book your spot by contacting Anne Bird on 813636. Your ticket will cost you £12, and our M.P. Amber Rudd will be there. This excellent ‘do’ commences at 12.30 pm.

The Tuesday Ladies Club… meets next Tuesday, 18th, next week, at 2.15 pm in the village hall. The speaker will be Donald Wise, Country Park Ranger, and there’s also the chance to meet Kathleen Barnes, who will share her knowledge of the making of gift boxes. Not a member? No problem – visitors are welcome on payment of £2, which includes not just the afternoon, but tea and cake!

Knit and Knatter… sorry, Natter, will be meeting this coming Wednesday, 19th, from 10.30 am to 12.30 pm chez Betty Snow at Kingsdown, Channel Way. If you’re tempted to join them, you can get more details from Lynette Forward on 813417 or Betty Snow on 812694.

One lump or two…? In the village hall from 10 am to 12 noon on Saturday, September 29, the Floral Club will be participating in this year’s McMillan Nurses Big Coffee Morning. Do make a note to go along and support this truly excellent cause.

The Fairlight Residents Association… will be holding their annual quiz night on Saturday, September 29 at 7.30 pm in the village hall, with doors open from 7.00 pm. Tickets are £6 per head, a price that includes a buffet. The organisers are not having a bar this year, so you are invited to take along your own. Tickets are available either from the Post Office or by contacting Chairman Joyce Grant, who can be found on 814742

Under New Management… the plaudits rolled in for Fairlight News Editor Richard Pollard on his retirement from the job, and a new team was assembled to take up the reins. The members of that team - Editor Roland Friday, Sub-Editor Ken Hall, Proof Reader Joan Hall, Club Liaison Mary Stewart, Distribution Sally Watson, Treasurer Peter Norris, Secretary Lyn Mosley and Team Member Trevor Lewing - are all now be congratulated on their First Edition, which covers the months September to November. A number of favourable comments have been heard, with only the loss of the three month calendar diary being sadly missed. However, the prudent sale of the full colour back cover, where the events diary sat, makes economic sense for the magazine, and would surely make sense, too, for the advertisers, Skinners of Rye, had they submitted their correct phone number, which is 01797 223334. (They had given too many threes and not enough twos!) That

The new acting archivist for the village… is Trevor Lewing, already known to several as he has taken over the Residents’ Association village email info. dissemination from Andrew Mier. Trevor has inherited a collection of material but it is short of several newsletters or magazines. The gaps are mainly between December 2004 and December 2008, during which period the Fairlight News ceased to be a newsletter and became a glossy magazine under Richard Pollard’s guidance. The September issues for both 2009 and 2010 are also missing. If you have any copies, or other memorabilia, and would like to see them go into safe custody, please contact Trevor on 812340.

Happy second birthday to the Village Choir… which is going from strength to strength, having been busy in the summer at Pett Flower Show, POPPs and at Fairfest, with programmes including songs from the shows and folk and popular songs. They have a great time rehearsing, chatting and having a cuppa, and they know there are several people out there who would like to join them, so this is an invitation for you to go along on Monday, September 24 to Pett Chapel at 7.30 pm and join in the fun singing. You don’t need to worry about having to read music or not having sung for years, neither will be a problem. Subs are just £1 per session.

An important early warning… For the Royal British Legion Pett, Fairlight, Guestling and Icklesham branch, as for many others, October and November are the busiest months. If you’re fit and would like to help the local branch of the RBL, perhaps you would consider giving up a little of your valuable time (and energy!) between October 27 and November 11. Any help during this time, which is when the annual Poppy Appeal will be taking place, would be very much appreciated. Have a word with John Pulfer, the local Poppy Appeals Organiser, on 814866

If there’s a wrong way to do it… We were having a late breakfast when the doorbell rings. A tall, imposing man says ‘We’re working with Southern Water, and need to take a water sample from your premises.’ ‘O.K.’ says I. ‘There’s a garden tap round by the garage.’ ‘No,’ he says, ‘it’s got to come from your kitchen.’ ‘I’m not prepared to let you do that’ I said (bearing in mind breakfast clutter, barking dogs and dressing gowns, etc.) Despite what I assumed was his company name, ‘Eurofins’ being embroidered on his neat navy blue sweater, this is a no cold calling village, and he had offered no ID. I rang a Man Who Knows, and he said I was to call the Police on 101. A polite, patient and painstaking lady took the details and said she would pass them to their Radio facility, and within very few minutes two policemen arrived. They had checked with Southern Water and the caller was kosher. Meanwhile I had googled Eurofins, to discover they are one of the largest testing companies in the world, with 12,000 employees and 170 laboratories. However, they obviously do not have anyone with sufficient brains to train their staff to show potentially senile and nervous householders, like me, some ID, as we’ve all watched enough television, including government information films, to expect that first off. Point two was that, in confirming the man’s credentials, Southern Water had added that there was no need for him to insist on entering my kitchen. So why did he claim he had to? And finally, what the heck were Southern Water thinking about? I’m sure they didn’t commission the guy at 8 am and send him out to Fairlight. His visit was planned, and we possess as many notice boards as there are power poles in the village, plus an excellent and immediate email facility, and a village word-of-mouth network Miss Marple would be proud of. Southern Water – you could, and should, have done better.

The missing key… shortly before Fairfest at the end of August Andrew Mier mislaid a key, most probably in the vicinity of Mistral, The Circle, Shepherds Way. If anyone has found a key, would they please contact Andrew on 814178 - or perhaps offer to nip round with their metal detector for a few minutes.

Selling time… The village hall’s Craft Fair will be on Saturday, October 13 this year, from 10 am to 12 noon. Customers are not expected to remember these details for the next five weeks, but those who would like to book a table, at £10 each, should get in touch with wither Brenda on 813113 or Val on 814753.

Time to be heard… don’t miss your chance to be in next January’s offering from the Fairlight Panto Group. The group’s winter warmers are often a sell-out, and very probably Sinbad in 2013 will be among them. Auditions will be in the village hall on Friday, September 28 at 7 pm, with the show to be directed by Group Chairman Ben Burford. Rehearsals commence late in November and carry on throughout December and January on two or three weeknights and Sundays, so you will need to be prepared to commit to this schedule. The performances will be on January 24, 25 and 26, 2013.

Rother Voluntary Action… has been in our Voice quite a bit lately, and here they are again. They’ll be co-ordinating ‘Celebrating Community Transport’ week, outside Debenhams on Tuesday, September 18 from 10 am to 4 pm. Battle Area Community Transport and Hastings Community Transport, who offer Dial-a-Ride services to Fairlight – and to Pett, Guestling and Three Oaks - will be at the Hastings event. They are hoping to raise people’s awareness of what services are available and thus to attract new users and volunteers.

Keith Pollard, Brookfield, Broadway