Winchelsea

This evening (Friday) the Poems of Anne Ridler will be chosen and introduced by her daughter, Kate Wilson in the Court Hall. Winchelsea Literary Society has arranged the event and it will begin at 7 for 7.30pm.

On Monday November 18th the Rye & District U3A (Reg. Charity) is meeting at 2pm in Rye Community Centre for a talk and the cost for non-members is £2. Following the recent commemoration of Armistice Day it is an illustrated talk by Charlotte Zeepvat entitled ‘Before Action’ and concerns poems and letters from the 1st World War.

The New Inn on German Street which is run by the tenants John Towler and Declan Clancy will be competing in the Channel 4 programme ‘Four in the Bed’. This series is on Mondays at 5pm and involves Bed & Breakfast owners taking turns to stay with one another and paying what they consider is value for money. The filming is due to take place at the New Inn this Monday November 18th.

The winter Talks season arranged by the Rye & District Association of the National Trust continues with, To Marry an English Lord presented by Sheila Boyd. Mrs Boyd will give a talk on the first generation of American heiresses who married into the English Aristocracy 1860-1900. This will be on Thursday November 21st and please note the change of venue for this season. All Talks will be at Brede Village Hall commencing at 2.00 pm. The entrance fee of £2 (members) and £3 (non-members) includes refreshments after the talk.

Say it with Music is a unique presentation of the life and songs of Irving Berlin (1888-1989) which is written and presented by Ann Rachlin. The interesting story of one of America’s greatest songwriters will be accompanied by a wide collection of images and video clips which will be shown on a screen. Iain Kerr has arranged the songs to be presented by members of the London choir Pegasus which has performed to large audiences in Winchelsea over the last three years. You may be ‘dreaming of a White Christmas’ so don’t miss this production which will be held in St Thomas’ Church on Sunday December 8th at 6.30pm. Tickets are £10 p.p. and will be on sale from this Monday (November 18th) at Winchelsea Post Office.

Following the ‘House of Commons Summit Meeting’ in September 2013 regarding the supermarket in Rye the matter has appeared to go quiet. However a letter Cindi received from MP Amber Rudd recently, confirms that she is continuing to harass both Tesco and Sainsburys to get a result. Once there is some concrete news Amber intends to be in contact.

The Winchelsea Corporation is keen to appoint a Town Clerk. This is an honorary and voluntary role with the Corporation of the Town of Winchelsea which is a charitable body, having responsibility for the ancient buildings in the town. The Corporation also undertakes certain duties as a head port of the Cinque Ports Confederation. Duties of the Town Clerk include organisation of meetings and preparation of minutes, dealing with correspondence, attendance at a number of events and advice to the Corporation on matters of protocol and procedures. A full role description and list of responsibilities will be circulated to prospective applicants. This is a unique opportunity to be part of an organisation which is involved in the preservation of the history and heritage of a town which was founded in the 13th Century. Although a voluntary role a small honorarium is paid to the Clerk to cover expenses incurred in undertaking their duties. If you are interested in undertaking this role, please contact the Corporation by e-mail to [email protected] .

In his book ‘Winchelsea Historic Methodist Chapel’ Keith Foord has produced a detailed study in just eight chapters of the development of Methodism in East Sussex since 1739. During his book launch at the Methodist Chapel last Saturday morning he also gave an entertaining talk on the way Methodism was affected by social change in the area and the various local benefactors who supported the mission. The numbers of people attending the Winchelsea Chapel after it was opened in 1785 fell during a period of impoverishment amongst agricultural workers when there was considerable emigration to Australia, New Zealand and North America. By the 1850s the economy had begun to improve and the Winchelsea Chapel survived and still had its services at 2pm and 6pm but there was an additional service once a fortnight on Thursday evenings. At the 1851 Religious Census it was recorded that 30 attended in the morning, 50 in the afternoon and 60 in the evening. These numbers led to the building of the second Methodist Chapel in 1867 on Higham Green but after the 2nd World War attendances steadily declined and in1969 the new chapel was demolished. Attendances at the main Wesleyan Chapel continued to fall during the 1980s and after 1994 the problem was resolved when the ‘Friends of the Methodist Circuit’ took over the responsibility of the chapel which has led to a special event being held each month. When John Wesley preached under the ash tree in Winchelsea (1771) a large crowd came to listen and in 1789 when he preached from the pulpit in the chapel he commented that it was “well filled with decent serious hearers, who seemed to receive the truth in the love of it.” In those days the chapel usually had a full congregation and nowadays it receives plenty of visitors.

Winchelsea Beach

A Winter Lecture entitled: Along the River will be given by Melvin Smith tomorrow (Saturday) at 7.30pm in the Community Hall. Melvin will be showing some of his best photos of wildlife near his home in Wittersham. The Lecture has been organised by the Friends of Rye Harbour Nature Reserve and donations would be very much appreciated.

On Sunday November 17th there is an opportunity to visit the wildlife at Rye Harbour Nature Reserve. This will be a three mile walk in search of: Winter Birds at the Beach Reserve and there will be a good variety of winter visitors such as wildfowl, waders, finches and raptors. Your donations are always gratefully received and please meet at Rye Harbour car park for 10.30 am to be finished by 1pm.

The Local Legends four-man band Rhythm Bound will be playing at Pub 31 on Sunday evening November 17th. You will find Pub 31 located next door to the Doctor’s Surgery and the Co-op.

An evening of Cash Bingo will be held on Wednesday November 20th in the Community Hall with light refreshments. As always friends and families are welcome and this will be at 7 for 7.30pm.