Winchelsea village voice

The dates are: 15th, 17th, 20th, 22nd, 25th and 27th September starting at 11 am. Tours should be booked at the Box Office (01797 224442) and you will need to meet at the Town Well, Castle Street; also bring a torch and wear sensible shoes.

The Rye and District Association of the National Trust is holding a coffee morning at Bodiam Castle Tea Rooms from 11.00 am on Saturday 15th September. Members and prospective members are invited to come and meet the committee in convivial surroundings for an informal chat over a cup of tea/coffee.

There will be no 8 am service at St Thomas’ Church this Sunday 16th September. The Choral Eucharist will be as normal at 10.30 am and the Revd. Canon David Sherwood will be conducting the service. If you have time please stay after the service as tea & coffee will be served.

Westside Story which is a guided walk along the western defences and lost quarters of medieval Winchelsea has been arranged by WAS (Winchelsea Archaeological Society) for Sunday 16th September. The cost is £5 per person with proceeds in aid of WAS. You will need to meet in Castle Street at 2 pm wearing good walking boots and possible wet weather gear. It is a pleasant two mile walk of about two miles and involves crossing fields and stiles.

The Junior Choir practises have recently started at St Thomas’ Church on Mondays from 6 – 7 pm. New members are very welcome including 7/8 year olds for the Mini-choir and Marion Lovell would be pleased to provide more information on the choir.

The Winchelsea Singers began rehearsals last Tuesday for their autumn production of The Merry Widow. Each week the choir rehearses from 2 to 4 pm in the New Hall and new members are warmly welcomed. If you are interested in joining the group please contact 223159.

On Wednesday 19th September La Serenissima Ensemble will be performing at St Thomas’ Church at 7.30 pm. The group specialises in the music of Vivaldi and his contemporaries and is directed by Adrian Chandler. If you would like to purchase tickets please contact the Rye Festival Box Office.

The Mobile Library will be in Castle Street as usual from 1.40 to 2.10 pm on Wednesday 19th September, for books and information.

On Thursday 20th September the Rye & District NT begins its winter Talks season with a presentation by Ray Shayler on History of the families of Scotney Castle. The plan is to vary the venue each month during the coming talks season as it has been suggested that a regular venue doesn’t suit everybody. The NT will welcome your feedback on this point. This Talk will be at the Playden WI Hall commencing at 2.30 pm. The entrance fee of £2 (members) and £3 (non-members) includes refreshments after the talk

Winchelsea Conservation Society is holding an Open Forum on Saturday 13th October at 10.30- 12.30 pm in the New Hall. The theme is: The Issues Involved in Obtaining Planning Consent and there will be speakers from Rother District Council and East Sussex County Council. In the meantime you are invited to submit written questions with your name and hand in to Linda in at Winchelsea Post Office by 22nd September (2012). The Government recently proposed making planning consent easier to obtain and gave examples such as the building of conservatories and extensions on houses.

This year’s Harvest Supper is scheduled for Saturday 13th October at 7 pm and will be on similar lines to last year. Basically this will include a flat charge to cover food and soft drinks; bring your own wine and as usual there will be the popular sing-song. The numbers needed to make it viable are between 30 and 50 people so please sign up as soon as you can and the lists are at the back of St Thomas’ Church.

The Friends of the Ancient Monuments Society staged another successful exhibition with thirty-two exhibits sold to a value of £2,977. Raffle Prizes were won by Jan Pett, Paul Anderson and Charles Lew-Gor. After payments to artists and expenses the net proceeds to the Society amounted to £1,188 and FOAM thanks all those who assisted with the exhibition, also to the local artists and residents for their continued support. These funds will enable FOAM to maintain the Town’s artefacts and make an annual donation to St. Thomas’ School of £250 to encourage the development of budding artists.

Last Saturday’s Church Market raised the good sum of £315.88 of which £77 came from the sale of books. Thank you to all who attended and also to Howard Norton for including the book sale. Another book sale is planned, probably for the next Church Market which is on Saturday 29th September, as there are two markets this month.

The results of the Autumn Flower Show last Saturday are as follows:

The Cleveland challenge bowl for vegetables and fruit - Richard Suter

The society’s challenge cup for flowers - John Dunk

The Veness award for Dahlias - John Dunk

The society’s challenge cup for the best

exhibit in vegetables, fruit and flowers – Jimmy Fishenden

The challenge cup for floral art - Celia King

The Armoury challenge bowl for handicrafts - Helen Redmond

The Armoury challenge bowl for longest runner bean - Mike de Smith

The David and Margaret Bowen memorial cup for

the exhibitor gaining most points in the show - Richard Suter

Winchelsea cup for Children’s classes - Alexander Redmond

Having changed the timing of the Garden Society’s flower show from summer to autumn last year when entries were down, the Society were delighted this year to get so many entrants plus more people coming to enjoy themselves. It gained them a healthy profit of around £100. There were some spectacular fruit and vegetables on show, as well as beautiful and imaginative handicrafts and arrangements, entries of herbs, foliage and grasses were popular, and the dahlias must have been some of the largest in East Sussex! It was a treat to be able to sit and have a cup of tea in the sunshine before autumn descends.

Cindi Cogswell, 31 Highfords, Icklesham