Fairlight Village Voice

It seems we're all beginning to gear up for Christmas, with village fairs and Christmas markets popping up all over the place. This weekend, there's an Advent Craft and Cake Fair at St Peter's, while Pett WI will be holding its Winter Fair at Pett Village Hall, both getting underway at 10am. And if that's not enough festive shopping to get you going, next Saturday, 21st November, it's the turn of FAIRLIGHT’S CHRISTMAS MARKET at the Village Hall, running from 11am until 4pm. There'll be unusual handmade gifts, unique crafts and plenty of festive treats to sample. Entry is free and everyone is welcome, so there's really no excuse not to come along. After all, Christmas is only five minutes away, if you believe the shops!

But, of course, Christmas isn't the happiest time of year for everyone, and our friends at Pett WI are once again organising a special appeal throughout November and December for donations to the local FOOD BANK. Collection points can be found outside Hair Base, at the Village Hall, 18 Farley Way and at Wakeham's Farm Shop. So, if you have any spare festive goodies, tins, packets or other essentials that you could donate, please do. A little generosity can make a big difference to someone else's Christmas and help make the season a little brighter for those who might otherwise struggle.

Now, with Christmas cards soon to be dropping through the letterbox, there's a question worth asking. Do you ever receive a card from some distant aunt or uncle and spend the next ten minutes trying to work out exactly how you're related? Is it your mother's side or your father's? Were they married to someone you vaguely remember, or are they actually a cousin twice removed? And, more importantly, are you expected to send them a card back? If you've ever found yourself in this predicament, perhaps it's time to investigate your family tree. The FAIRLIGHT HISTORY GROUP’s next talk, on Wednesday, 18th November at 2.30pm, could be just the answer. Paul and Karen Draper will be talking about 'Family Tree Research – Ancestry and the Census Returns from 1841 to 1921'. Visitors are very welcome at £3, with refreshments afterwards. You never know, you might even discover that mysterious Christmas card sender is actually a long-lost relative rather than someone you've been politely acknowledging for the past twenty years! And while we're on the subject of the History Group, hopefully you've been rummaging through your cupboards, lofts and shelves looking for something interesting to bring along to their Christmas Artefact Meeting on 16th December. There's still plenty of time to unearth that long-forgotten family treasure, although perhaps best to check it's not something you've been meaning to throw away for the past thirty years! The meeting will also be an opportunity to renew your membership and collect a copy of the Group's 2027 calendar.

Meanwhile, the FRA committee has announced the winners of this year's Halloween Garden Competition, and it sounds as though some considerable effort went into frightening the living daylights out of the neighbourhood. First prize of £100 went to “Highfield”, in Hill Road, with “Brambles” on Primrose Hill taking a £50 second place. Three houses in Market Gardens also received highly commended awards in the form of chocolates. The committee would like to thank everyone who took part and put so much effort into their decorations, particularly the pumpkin carving and rather scary figures. Hopefully everyone enjoyed taking part, and passing motorists and pedestrians weren't too badly traumatised by the experience. Well done to everyone involved!

It's a busy week for church news, so let's start at St ANDREW’s. This Sunday, 15th November, Holy Communion will take place at 11am. Then, on Saturday 21st November, they're holding a rather intriguing-sounding "Community Fun-day - Brio Train & Lego Church" between 2pm and 4pm. Now, I'll be honest, your guess is as good as mine as to exactly what goes on at a Brio Train & Lego Church, but apparently all ages are welcome and refreshments will be available. Which, as regular readers will know, can only mean one thing: my favourite treat, Cake! Talking of which, Café Refresh is back next Thursday, 19th November, from 10.30am until noon, down in the village at St PETER's. And here there's no mystery whatsoever. One thing is guaranteed, yes, you've guessed it, cake! Along with good conversation, friendship and, as always, a very warm welcome. What's not to like? Last but not least, this year's Christingle service at St Andrew's will take place on 6th December, and they're in need of something rather essential. Oranges! About £40 worth, to be precise. So, if you happen to have a few spare oranges lying around (although quite why you would have £40 worth is another matter), or would like to make a donation towards the cost, please contact Val Relfe. And finally, we mustn't forget our friends over at the PETT METHODIST CHAPEL, who will be holding a PET service at 3pm this Sunday, 15th. Now, I'm not entirely sure whether this is a spelling mistake on their website or whether it's actually a service for our four-legged friends. Initial enquiries have drawn a blank, so the mystery remains unsolved. Either way, if you're curious, or happen to have a dog who's looking for a little spiritual guidance, be there at 3pm and all will presumably be revealed!

At the ROYAL OAK this Sunday, 15th November, local duo The Blues Cats will be performing their own style of music, which is, well, I guess the clue's in the name! They'll be on stage from 4.30pm.

Regular visitors to Eater's @ Pett's Café will have noticed that they're now closed on weekdays during the winter months. But fear not, all is not lost, and there's no need to resort to emergency biscuit supplies when walking along the beach. THE SMUGGLERS RETREAT has come to the rescue, expanding its café menu with some seriously delicious new offerings. A slightly healthier alternative, perhaps, for those trying to convince themselves they're being good! They're open weekdays from 10am–4pm, so there's still somewhere to enjoy a decent midweek bite.

This Saturday, 14th November, marks the final opening of the GARDENING CLUB HUT for the season, with the doors open from 10am to 12 noon. So, if you're a club member and still need to stock up on your winter essentials, compost, mulch, bird seed and the like, this is your last chance before we all officially tuck the gardens up in bed for their winter hibernation. Of course, there are other places where you can buy such things during the winter months, but frankly, I don't think the Club likes to encourage disloyalty! But fear not, "The Hut" isn't going into permanent retirement. It'll be dusting itself down, opening its doors again in February and welcoming everyone back for another season of horticultural happiness. Until then, happy gardening, or at least, happy putting it off until spring! And while we’re on the subject of the Gardening Club, a special mention must go to the volunteers who have done such a splendid job making the circle look so lovely for last weeks Remembrance Sunday. It really did look wonderful, so well done, everyone. Your hard work and efforts certainly don’t go unnoticed, even if some of us are better at admiring the results than getting our hands dirty!

SOUTHERN WATERS work continues on the replacement water pipework, accompanied, unfortunately, by the unwelcome return of those familiar, and frequently incorrect, diversion and road-closed signs popping up all over the place. Just when you thought you'd learned your way around the village, someone decides to change the rules again! It was hoped that the introduction of traffic lights in Broadway might at least make life a little easier for motorists. And they probably would, were it not for the small problem that some drivers appear to have missed that particular part of the Highway Code lesson explaining that red means STOP and green means GO. Apparently, it's not quite as straightforward as it sounds! Understandably, the seemingly endless roadworks are testing everyone's patience, and there's certainly no shortage of frustration being expressed on the village Facebook pages. Although, judging by some of the language being used, perhaps it would be wise to take a deep breath before reaching for the keyboard!

And finally, don't forget that this Thursday, Friday and Saturday, 12th, 13th and 14th November, the FAIRLIGHT PLAYERS will be treading the boards with their production of the dramatic comedy A Month of Sundays. At the time of writing, there are still seats available, so do consider booking yourself a ticket. You can do so online at fairlightplayers.org.uk or by calling 07988 540757. Performances start at 7.30pm, with a Saturday matinee also available. There's a bar, a raffle and, most importantly, the opportunity to support a talented bunch of local people who put an enormous amount of time, effort and enthusiasm into bringing these productions to the village. So let's give them a good audience. After all, they've done all the hard work; the least we can do is turn up and enjoy it!

Until next time, have a great week.

Bob Scattergood – [email protected]