PARISH PUMP is published every month except January, and should be distributed to every household in the Shill Valley and Broadshire benefice. If you do not receive a copy, please contact Jane Brylewski. Advertising does not cover all our costs, and we welcome donations (suggesting £5/year) which you can send through your Parish Pump Correspondent (see inside back cover), the person who delivers your Parish Pump, or directly to Ellie Maughan. If you have not already done so, please send your £5 to cover 2005’s issues. We welcome articles, letters, diary items, or just good ideas for future articles (and criticism, whether good or bad! Ed). Please submit through your local Parish Pump Correspondent, or directly to Richard Martin. Photographs are also welcome. We prefer all copy to sent electronically ([email protected]), although paper is fine too! All copy for inclusion should reach the editorial office by the 10‘h of the month preceding publication. Advertising enquiries are welcomed, and should be directed to Lin Edgar.
Transcript
PARISH PUMP is published every month except January, and should be distributed to every household in the Shill Valley and Broadshire benefice. If you do not receive a copy, please contact Jane Brylewski.Advertising does not cover all our costs, and we welcome donations (suggesting £5/year) which you can send through your Parish Pump Correspondent (see inside back cover), the person who delivers your Parish Pump, or directly to Ellie Maughan. If you have not already done so, please send your £5 to cover 2005’s issues.We welcome articles, letters, diary items, or just good ideas for future articles (and criticism, whether good or bad! Ed). Please submit through your local Parish Pump Correspondent, or directly to Richard Martin. Photographs are also welcome. We prefer all copy to sent electronically ([email protected]), although paper is fine too!All copy for inclusion should reach the editorial office by the 10‘h of the month preceding publication.Advertising enquiries are welcomed, and should be directed to Lin Edgar.We are indebted to all the Parish Correspondents, and all those in all the parishes who make possible the publication and distribution of Parish Pump every month.
EDITOR
Richard MartinCotswold Woollen Weavers, Filkins, Nr Lechlade, Glos GL7 3JJ Tel: 01367 860491 Email: [email protected]
Any views expressed in Parish Pump are not necessarily those of the benefice clergy, nor of the editorial team.1EDITORIALEven belatedly in February it is difficult blithely to wish you all a Happy New Year without thinking of the terrible events in the Indian Ocean with which 2004 ended. As I write in mid January, 150,000 are dead, and many more injured and homeless, as whole towns are washed away.The pictures of death and destruction relentlessly paraded in newspapers and on television remind us, snug at home, that never has the other side of world seemed so achingly remote, and yet so near. As Michael Bywater says ‘Globalization? The world has always been global, we just did not realise it.’No sooner have we have convinced ourselves that we are masters of our destiny and everything is within our remit, that we can fix everything from global-warming to every-day discontent (sometimes it seems there is a councillor on hand to smooth away
every manifestation of human unhappiness), when Nature reminds us that she really is ‘red in tooth and claw’. It is very humbling.Turning to more parochial matters, on page 31, two correspondents fill in the details of the that cottage in Kelmscott: Sue Morris provides another picture pin-pointing where it was, and Dot Stephenson remembers who lived there!And as well as all the local news Round The Villages, we meet Mr Averies ‘making music on a gun’, remember 70 years of Gilbert & Sullivan in Broughton Poggs, worry about our New Year diet, and find out how our churches got their names. We are indebted to all our contributors, and I urge everyone with something to say to pick up their pens (actually, as always, I prefer contributions by editable email!)As readers know, we have been following Chris Rawson as he walks the Thames Path in aid of Water Aid, helping to bring clean drinking water to the many millions in the world for whom clean water is not a right, not even a luxury, but simply not available. Read Chris’s final report on page 29.Finally, can I remind readers that donations towards the 11 issues of Parish Pump in 2005 are now due. Please give your donations (we suggest £5) to whoever delivers your magazine, or to your village’s Parish Pump correspondent or representative, or send directly to Ellie Maughan, the Parish Pump treasurer (see page 1). We really do need your money! Richard Martin°”°” If you have not seen Michael Bywater’s ‘host Worlds’ (Granta, 2004), I urge you to read it. Erudition worn lightly, and laced with wisdom!
SELECTED CONTENTS3 Benefice Services 8 Round the Villages5 The Rector’s Letter 21 70 years of Gilbert & Sullivan27 New deal for Day Centres 34 Our churches’ names
BENEFICE SERVICES
6‘h February - Quinquagesima Sunday10.30am Alvescot6.00pm Filkins6.00pm Shilton9‘h February - Ash Wednesday7.30pm B Poggs13t6 February - Lent I8.00am Kencot9.OOam Westwell10.00am B Bourton10.00am Filkins11.OOam Broadwell11.OOam LFaringdon4.00pm Langford20a’ February - Lent II9.OOam Langford10.00am Alvescot10.00am Shilton11.OOam Kelmscott11 .00am Kencot/Broadwell6.00pm B Bourton6.OOpm Holwell/Westwell27‘h February - Lent III9.OOam Shilton10.00am Alvescot10.00am Broadwell10.00am Filkins10.00am Langford11 OOam L Faringdon6.OOpm Kencot6.00pm Westwell/Holwell
HM, I J& NUWLJHMLJ & NUWNUWLJNUWLJNU-WRMLJHMLJDPHMNUWHMNU-WNUWLJRMHMDKNUWHMTF
There is a communion service every Wednesday at 10.00am at B BourtonCombined services will be in the first-named churchSERVICE CELEBRANTSDK Denise KempDP Debs Price 01993 847039TF Tom FarrellHM Harry MacInnes 01993 845954LJ Liz Johnson 01367 860846NUW Neville Usher-Wilson 01993 822464RM Roland Meredith 01993 851142
THE LECTIONARY2nd February - Candlemass (G)Malachi 3.1-5Hebrews 2. 14-18
Psalm 24 7-10Luke 2.22-40
6‘h February - Quinquagesima Sunday (G)Exodus 24. 12-182 Peter 1. 16-21
Psalm 2Matthew 17. 1-9
9’h February Ash Wednesday (P)Joel 2.1-2, 12-17 Psalm 51. 1-172 Corinthians.5 20b-6.10 Matthew 6.1-6,16-21.13‘h February - Lent I (P)Genesis 2. 15-17; 3.1-7Romans 5. 12-1920‘h February - Lent II (P)Genesisl2. l-4a
Psalm 32Matthew 4. 1-11Psalm 121
Romans 4. 1-5,13-17 John 3.1-1727th February - Lent III (P)Exodus 17.1-7 Psalm 95Romans 5.1-11 John 4.5426th March Fourth Sunday of Lent Mothering Sunday (P)Exodus 2. 1-10 Psalm 342 Corinthians 1. 3-7 Luke 2. 33-35
‘Actually I’ve decided to give up abstinence for Lent’
(A)musing on Lent from Harry MacInnesTHE RECTOR’S LETTERDear Friends0 n 9‘h February it is Ash Wednesday when we will be holding a service in the Benefice to mark the beginning of Lent. The root origin of the word ‘Lent’ seems to have derived from the ‘lengthening’ of the days as Spring approaches. From about AD 325 it became the word used for a period of forty days before Easter when candidates for baptism were encouraged to prepare themselves by fasting. As time went on it became a general practice for all members of the church. Still today the idea of disciplining yourself by giving up chocolates, coffee, alcohol etc still lingers on in our society even among those who have also
‘given up’ church. Meanwhile many in the church have ‘given up’ observing Lent!In the light of this a couple of things are worth mentioning. First, selfdiscipline in itself does not necessarily lead to a deepening spiritual life; it can simply result in feeling proud and self righteous. St Paul talks about values which have an ‘appearance of wisdom’ with their false humility and harsh treatment of the body but which bring you no closer to life with God.Secondly, however, Christian spiritual wisdom down the ages has long recognised that material things can subdue the deep hunger and thirst for God that we all have. It is in abstinence of food, drink, newspapers, television and all the entertainment options we have, that we can find a new incentive to seek God afresh. We of course have a choice in choosing to give up things and I am reminded in the light of the terrible Tsunami disaster in the Indian Ocean that this is a privilege.So may I invite you to uncover some of your hunger for God by living more simply over Lent, perhaps missing a meal, forgoing a favourite TV programme, putting aside the newspaper and instead making space to listen for God in that time...?.Lent CourseDuring Lent we will be running a‘Lent Course’ which will be held in thehome of The Rev’d Liz Johnson at Filkins Vicarage. The theme of this course will be ‘A God of Suprises’. This will begin on Monday 14th February at 7.30pm and will run weekly through to 14th March.ConfirmationLater this year the Bishop of Dorchester will be coming to our Benefice to take a confirmation service on Sunday 5‘h June. If you are interested in getting confirmed, please contact me and I will give further details of a confirmation class I will be running.
Tsunami AppealFollowing on from the devastating Tsunami in the Indian Ocean it has beenencouraging to see the outpouring of generosity in the country as a whole and5no doubt many of you have given most generously already. At our last joint Benefice service we raised £297 for the Tsunami appeal. If you haven’t already given, and would still like to, you may wish to contact the disaster emergency appeal fund on 0870 6060900.Harry MacInnesCHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIPW e meet as usual in the Methodist Chapel Schoolroom on Wednesday 2°a February at 2.45pm. Mr Max Potter of Carterton will bring another batch of his superb slides to show us. His last, of travelling in Turkey, was fascinating. He has not said what his subject for this occasion will be - but everyone is invited to join us to find out!MABYOUTH WORSHIPT he first few services held under Harry’s leadership have been very well attended which has been most encouraging, so a big thank you to everyone. After wide consultation it has been decided that future services will be on Sundays and we hope this will not inconvenience anyone.The February service will be on Sunday 6th at 6.OOpm. The services are at Shilton Church, and collection time will be at about 7.15pm from the Old School House.On Saturday 5th March we are very fortunate to be invited to Burford Priory for tea, a talk and Evensong, followed by informal conversation around the fire. Harry McInnes is a regular visitor to
the Priory, and we thank him for organising this, which is an experience not to be missed. Tea will be at 4.00pm, and we expect to be finished around 7.15pm, but arrangements will be finalised and communicated to you nearer the time.Do remember to invite friends to the services, any young person aged 12 years and over is very welcome, and you do not need to have been confirmed.We hope to plan a social event in the Spring so do tell us any ideas you have. Jane BrylewskiWOMEN’S WORLD DAY OF PRAYERPlease put the date for the Women’s World Day of Prayer in your 2005 diaries: Friday 4th March. This year the service has been prepared by the Christian women of Poland and will be hosted at Kencot Church at 2.30pm.If you have never attended please do come along: everyone will be made welcome. Prior to the service we will be showing a few slides of Poland at the Fellowship meeting on Wednesday 2nd March in Filkins Chapel to give a6background to the country and how women live in Poland. For more information please contact Diane Blackett (01367 860504) or Helen Squire (01367 860337).THE GOD IN THE STONEWe might be Oxfordshire rather than Gloucestershire, but many of our stone villages can claim at least to be honourary Cotswold’!He raised the lovely Cotswold Hills, And saw that they were filled With lots of lovely Cotswold stone That man might also build.Then to that first great Architect Give praises that are due;But don’t forget that Cotswold men Deserve some credit too.JFW GibsonROYAL BRITISH LEGION
y Appeal 2004 - Broadshire VillagesPo pOnce again, there has been a marvellous response to the Poppy
Appeal.Over £1,430 was raised in the house-to-house collections, at the Static Points, and from the Remembrance Service Collection at St George’s Church Kencot.This was even better than last year’s splendid total and represents over £1.50 per adult in these six villages. The Poppy Appeal organisers would like to thank everyone who gave so generously and, of course, to those who helped ascollectors.The total raised in each village was:
A most successful Bingo evening took place in Filkins Village Hall on 9‘h December. £335 was raised for the Royal British Legion. Some of this will go towards purchasing a new standard, some will be sent to the Poppy Appeal,and some will be held by the Branch to cover expenses for the Dedication Service.The Branch Committee would like to thank the many players that supported the event, and those that helped in its organization; especially to Mick and Margaret Hambidge who master-minded the whole evening.Dedication Of New Standard
note for your Diary: the new standard will be dedicated during aABroadshire Group service in St Peter’s Filkins on Sunday 10,h July. This will be on the national commemoration day to mark the 60th Anniversary of ‘the end of World War ILThe old, ageing standard (now some 50 years old) will also be laid up during this service. It is hoped that members of the Royal British Legion and others T sympathetic to the welfare of ex-servicemen will attend this unique service.T T,,,..1,.,.FROM THE REGISTERS
Holy Baptism28‘h November28th November28‘h November
Black BourtonShiltonFilkins
Amelia Natasha EvansLucy and Libby Gotta.Katie Friend and Isaac James PyleeFuneral service followed by burial of KathleenMary Elaine Winterschladen aged 82 years
Holy Burial19‘n November Alvescot
ROUND THE VILLAGES
ALVESCOT St Peter’sTSUNAMI APPEALWe would like to support the survivors of the recent Tsunami disaster and are holding a Lent Lunch (bread, cheese and soup) at The Old Rectory, on Thursday 10‘h February. There will be a Bring & Buy stall and a raffle. We suggest a minimum donation of £5 for the lunch. Please come and show your concern for these people. If you cannot come to the lunch but would like to send a donation, please contact Diana Bagnall 01993 842238.When God created Gloucestershire, I’ve always understood,He looked upon his handiwork And found that it was good.
He raised our lovely Cotswold Hill And to the Cotswold man He gave the wit to carry on The work that he began.BRIDGE DRIVEThere will be a Bridge Drive at The Old Rectory on Friday March 4‘h at 6.30 for 7.OOpm. Tickets are available at £15 (including supper and a glass of wine) from Dee Stoot (01993 842938).PARISH COUNCILCalling all Alvescot residents: your Parish Council needs you!Do you want to have a greater input into how the village is managed? Do you want a greater say about how we spend your money?Have you ever said: ‘If I was on the Parish Council I wouldn’t do it that way...’?Have you ever thought of becoming a Parish Councillor, but held back because nobody asked you?!Well - now’s your chance!Most of the Parish Councillors have served for a long time, and several of them feel that it is time to make way for ‘new blood’. The Chairman will be resigning the post at the next AGM in May 2005 and will not be standing for re-election at the local council elections in May 2006. At least two other Councillors have indicated that they will also stand down before then.So - time for a change of faces and some new ideas. If you feel you can meet the challenge of helping to run this busy Council and joining a very proactive team, telephone me on 01993 841357.Malcolm FarleyST PETER’S INFANT SCHOOLOn behalf of the children, staff and governors of St Peter’s I would like to wish you all a very Happy New Year! In the light of some of the world events of 2004, the Year 2 children at St Peter’s have
been writing Recipes for a Happy New Year which we would like to share with you:s.. R~ale~ a~1 Put I kilogram of love in a bowl and pour in I S litres of peace 2 Melt 500 grams of kindness in a pan on the stove. 3 Add a pinch of friendship a stir slowly.4 Sieve 2 tablespoons of fun and mix it in with the kindness and friendship. S Measure 5 kilograms of happiness and a big bowl of helpfulness 6 Mix it all together and bake it in the oven on gas mark 5Then everyone in the world’s got a happy new year Liam Davies9The end of term was particularly busy for all at St Peter’s.The Christmas Bazaar was a great success with a record amount of money raised. As always this could not be achieved without the support of the local community.In the spring we are hoping to transport the top-soil from the playing field to the school field and the money raised will be used to turf the mound and possibly erect seats to form a small amphitheatre in which the children can perform!The end of term was filled with many wonderful moments. The nativity thisyear was truly spectacular. It was difficult not to be moved by the enthusiasmand gusto that every child in the school showed throughout the performances. ‘ Thanks, this year, particularly go to Caroline Wenham and Sandie Morris for their hard work. Unfortunately Colin Newlands was taken ill and was unable to accompany the children on the piano this year. We are delighted that he made a quick recovery and was able to come and watch the final
performance. Our thanks go to Sue Morris who stepped in at the last moment.All the children visited the Oxford Playhouse to see the pantomime of Peter Pan at the end of term and thoroughly enjoyed the experience.The Reverend MacInnes led the Christingle service on the last Sunday of the term. This was well supported and money was raised in aid of The Children’s Society. Thank you to all those who attended and for your donations, as well as Reg from the Cotswold Wildlife Park who donated the oranges.Thank you also to all those who contributed gifts to Simon House. Our , contributions are always gratefully received by those who find themselves ‘> homeless in Oxford.Unfortunately we had to say goodbye to Katie Briggs at the end of the ‘ Autumn Term. We hope that her and her family are happy in their new ‘ home.The end of the Autumn Term saw another success at St Peter’s. All the Year 2 children entered poems on the theme of Food to a competition to celebrate National Poetry Week run by the ICT team in the County. Out of all the applicants within the County, Lewis Pound from St Peter’s was successful in achieving first place in the Key Stage 1 category. He visited Stephen Freeman School, with his parents, to receive a prize of a digital camera for the school, presented by the poet, James Carter. He also received a professionally printed copy of his poem, framed, which is hanging in the entrance of the school forall to see.As the new year begins the diary is already filling fast.All the children will be receiving Brazilian Soccer coaching, the year 1 and 2 children are taking part in a gymnastics display and the annual cross-country run will be taking place at Cokethorpe so look out for us around the village!
10After the tremendous success of the seventies night last year a sixties night is planned for this year so keep a look out for the posters and we hope to see you there!Sam KingVILLAGE FETE 2005If you would like to help with the village fete this year, please come to a meeting at school at 8.00 pm on Monday 21” February, when we will form a Committee and sort out the jobs to be done. This is an important fundraiser for our village, benefitting the school, the village hall, the playing field, the WI, and the church, so your support would be most welcome. If you would like to help, but cannot come to the meeting, please contact Diana Bagnall 01993 842238.BLACK BOURTON St Mary’sDecember ServicesThe Benefice Eucharist service at St Mary’s on the 5‘h December was very well attended and Harry MacInnes and Liz Johnson made it very special. The Church Wardens were delighted to be able to give everyone their own Communion Book, as the Black Bourton Association have so generously donated the money to buy extra books and also, more Church History books for the many visitors who wish to know more about St Mary’s.At Christmas we were able to use the very beautiful altar cloth which has been made by Dinah Beckinsale and paid for by the BBVA. Many thank yous to everyone, we are very fortunate.MAWCHRISTMAS HAMPERSOn behalf of the ‘oldies’ of Black Bourton, thank you BBVA for our splendid hampers for Christmas. They were full of the most delicious goodies and so attractively presented. We do appreciate your generosity in giving us such a lovely present.
MAWCAROL SINGINGThank you to all the brave hearts who turned out on a wet and cold Saturday evening on 18th December to sing tunefully around this village this year. You11collected a massive £150, more than ever before. Our thanks as ever to Frank Stewart-Wood for providing luxury transport in the form of his customised trailer. And last but certainly not least, our thanks to all the children who came, sang and behaved liked little angels - even the big ones!ANNUAL GENERAL MEETINGContrary to our first announcement, the Village Association AGM will now be held on Tuesday lst March 2005. The venue remains Wellstodd’s Cottage Garden, Burford Road and the time 8.OOpm. More information will be circulated nearer the time, but if anyone is interested in joining the Village Association, please contact me on 01993 843746 or email [email protected] GarrettPLANT SALEAdvance notice of the 3‘d Annual Charity Plant Sale. If you enjoyed the sales in 2002 and 2003 (or if you wondered what you were missing!), I do hope you can come to the 2005 sale on 17‘h September.Also, please see Ann Greenwood’s ‘Pottering in the Pottering Shed’ on page 25 for details of a Clematis Workshop on 22nd and 25th February.Liz WelchBROADWELLSt Peter & St Paul’sNo news this month
FILKINS & BROUGHTON POGGS St Peter’sFILKINS CHARITY SHOPThe shop closed just before Christmas after making a staggering £1,500!! Thank you to all who came and bought and all of those of you who donated items, without whom we would not have functioned.Also thank you to Allison, Eileen and Gill who came regularly to keep the till ringing, although sometimes it was like Arkwright’s till and fought back! Also thank you to everyone who offered help and held the fort when required. We must also thank the Parish Council for allowing us to use the premises. Theyhave, however, said that we may use the premises for a further three months. As there are many things left to buy it is quite certain that the shop will reopen, although we do require new volunteers to form a rota. If you are interested please let me know on 01993 860504. Please listen out for opening times and always check when visiting the Post Office. Thank you all.Diane BlackettCOFFEE MORNINGEveryone will be very welcome at a coffee morning in aid of church restoration on Saturday 5‘h March 10.30am to Midday, at Stable Cottage, Manor Farm, Broughton Poggs. Do come, but please let me know in advance if possible (Telephone: 01367 860226)Mary PearceROSTER FOR VOLUNTARY CAR SERVICE TO SURGERIES Covering Filkim; Broughton Poggs, Kencot, Broadwell, Langford. Little Faringdon1” February Mrs J Higham 0136
7860197
3‘a February Dr H Squire 01367
860337
8” February Mrs K Neville-Rolf 01367
860329
10‘h February Mrs B Bristow 01367
860195
15‘h February Mrs K Morley 01367
860420
17‘h February Lt Col J Barstow 01367
860312
22”a February Mrs P Assiter 01367
860545
24‘h February Mrs C Lauzier 01367
860644
15‘ March Mrs L White 01367
860461
3‘a March Lady Cripps 01367
860209
Please contact the co-ordinator, Tony Woodford (Tel: 01367 860319) if hospital runs required.RISING STARSThe organizers of the recent ‘Rising Stars’ music evening would like to thank everyone for coming to the concert. We raised £150 for Winston’s Wish.Anne GreenwoodWI NEWSOur last speaker of the year, in November, was Mary Le Coyte
talking to usabout her charity ‘Forgotten Africa’. Mary founded the charity and runs a shop in Lechlade selling goods made in Africa to help raise funds.The charity helps small projects particularly in Uganda and it was very moving to see how these projects helped so many to learn to support themselves and improve their lives in the slum areas.Unfortunately, for personal reasons, Mary has decided to disband the charity next year and will be closing the shop. She had visited Uganda many times during her work and done a wonderful job in helping the country that shehad obviously come to love.
The members and guests enjoyed a Christmas party in December, made and served by committee members. After plentiful mulled wine and tasty supper we were entertained by some of our members, who told us about unusual and entertaining Christmas times they have had in the past. Certainly it seems that things have changed a great deal over the years, perhaps not always for the better. We finished the party with some good ‘rounds’ of festive songs and much good will for the New Year.The February meeting will be a members’ evening, so we will have to wait until the night to know what is in store. In March we will have our AGM followed, we hope, by some entertainment yet to be decided!HWBRIDGE FOR THE CHURCHCome and join our Bridge Drive in the Village Hall on Friday 25‘h February in aid of our church restoration. If you do not have a partner, we can probably help arrange one. Coffee will be served from 10.30am, with the first deal at 11.OOam. Tickets are £15.00, including coffee, lunch and a glass of wine. Tickets are available from me at Filkins Farmhouse (tel: 01367 860195.)Barbara BristowART IN FILKINSThe second session of drawing & painting classes will begin in February. We will explore landscape and movement using texture, colour and expression, and will work from direct observation and personal sketches. The first session is on 10‘h February from 7.30 to 9.30pm in the Village Hall. Telephone me on 01367 860630 to book a place. I do hope you can join us!Dinny LockTHE ST FILICA SOCIETYThe AGM will be held at the Five Alls on Tuesday 15th February 2005 at 8.OOpm. At the meeting we will serve wine & nibbles. A few reminders:
1 Only paid up members are eligible to vote2 Proxy votes are now acceptable if handed to the secretary (Annika Hansen,Apsley Cottage, Burford Rd, Filkins) by 8th February.3 We invite nominations from members for candidates to stand for electionsas officers and committee members.4 We are also inviting applications for considerations in the distribution ofsurplus funds. Applications to the secretary (as above) by 7th February.At the moment the committee are suggesting future events in 2005:19‘” June Filkins Feast 6“’ April Quiz Night3‘a July Treasure Hunt
14The providers (and purchasers) of surplus allotment and garden produce sold at the gate;The continuing help from villagers by way of GiftAid and other donations.This has resulted in only a minimal call on the Fabric Fund, leaving a healthy balance in hand towards the new roof which is the next and hopefully last, major project for some years to come.The Committee would also like to express its grateful thanks to David Chapman for giving a large amount of his free time to assembling and fitting the new units as well as dealing with the electrical improvements. He and a couple of Committee Members painted the walls, ceiling and woodwork.Watch the Parish Pump for details of the AGM, which will follow on from the Annual Parish Meeting on a date in March to be fixed - please come along to support the village, its Hall and your
Committee. Any enquiries about hiring the Hall should be directed to David Portergill (01367) 860217LANGFORD St Matthew’sCHURCH FLOWERS February 6th Mrs R Range(No flowers in lent)CAROL SINGINGThe singers, over 20 voices on each night, raised over £400 round the village of Langford. Luckily both nights were fine and the singing was helped along by refreshments along the way. Our thanks go to the Dudley’s for the mulled wine, Gerry Austin for more mulled wine and wonderful nibbles and finally for the Bell (Paul and Jacqui) for splendid homemade soup to finish our first evening of singing.Thanks go to Anne Head and Kay Lane for preparing the hall and mulled wine for our buffet supper on the second evening and to All Macdonald for the musical accompaniment to yet more carols!LANGFORD PARISH COUNCILThe Council welcomed Mr All Macdonald as our new Parish Clerk at our meeting in December.He has already produced a folder of information received by the Parish council of interest to residents of Langford. This can be found in the porchof St. Christopher’s church by kind permission of the Churchwardens. This information will be updated after each council meeting. The notice boards are now ‘up to date’ with information.Our next meeting will be on Tuesday 8‘h February at 7.OOpm in the Village Hall. Members of the public are welcome to attend any of our meetings.CHRISTMAS BAZAAR
The bazaar this raised the sum of £1118.83 to be shared between the village hall and the church. Thank you to helpers and buyers alike.LANGFORD LADIESOur meeting for 10‘h February will be a talk and slides on Ireland. We meet at Langford Village Hall on every 2°d Thursday starting at 7.30pm. If you are interested in becoming a member please telephone Chrissy on 01367 860514.BINGOThank you to everyone who supported the Village Hall Bingo, we raised the grand sum of £180. Thank vou!LITTLE FARINGDON St Margaret’sCHURCH FLOWERS Amanda ButlerSHILTON Holy RoodMERVYN WHITFIELDIt doesn’t seem possible that we won’t see Merv over the wall gardening when we go through the churchyard, or just standing by the front of his house happy to chat to anyone going by. As soon as they moved to Shilton it seemed as though Janet and Merv had always lived here.Merv threw himself into village life enthusiastically - he became a parish councillor, was a member and at one time chairman of the Old School Management Committee, and was one of the founders and committeemember of the Local History Group. Local History was one of his deep interests and he was always eager to find out more about this area.He will probably be missed most though by the people of the Baptist Chapel. He loved God and he loved the little Chapel and its people just as we all loved him. Every Sunday he was there in his place at the front ready to pray, to lead our informal meetings or to preach.
He joined in enthusiastically when the Chapel celebrated the centenary of its restoration with an open-air service by the pond, and this last year he has set us a wonderful example as someone who was not knocked off course by the buffets of life but whose faith remained secure in Jesus Christ his Saviour.He is with Jesus his Saviour now, and we thank God for the last years that he lived in Shilton and for all the ways in which our lives have been enriched by knowing him.Elizabeth HadieldSHILTON CALENDAR 2005The Shilton Calendar 2005 is still on sale at £5.00, and incorporates the winning photos from the competition we held at Easter. If we sell all the copies we have printed we will raise another £1,000 for good causes so please buy some calendars for all your friends and relations, and anyone else you can think of.Shirley Cuthbertson (from whom the calendar is available)HISTORY GROUPOur next meeting is on Friday 11‘t’ February at 7.30pm in the Old School. The speaker will be Ken Betteridge from Asthall and he will be talking about Wychwood Forest from a different perspective. It promises to be a very interesting evening and as usual visitors are welcome.Elizabeth HarfieldKEEP FITUnfortunately our lovely Fun With Fitness instructor, Janey, is retiring. We thought it might have been something we’d done that brought about this decision but she assures us it is not only our session she’s giving up but all her classes! We shall miss her very much and she will be a tough act to follow but we wish her all the best for the future and thank her for all the fun and laughter (as well as strenuous workouts of course) that she has given us over the past couple of years.
The good news is that we have found a brave young man called Phil to take over the Shilton class. Phil’s classes commence on 13‘h January and will be same time same place, that is 7.00 to 8.OOpm on Thursdays in the Old School HallDATES FOR YOUR DIARYSaturday 5”’ March Quiz Night and buffet supper Saturday 26‘h March Easter-egg rolling and teaSunday 19‘h June Open GardensSaturday 16th July BBQ and Barn Dance (combined event )MILITARY VEHICLE TRUSTJohn Coghlan and The Military Vehicle Trust will be returning to the field behind the Rose & Crown, Shilton, for four days over Easter (25‘h to 28‘h March). WWII and post war vehicles welcome, also motor bikes and militaria. Free stalls so come along and sell those old military bits and pieces, jerricans etc. Free camping (4 days) and entertainment on Sunday 27‘h. Also, if you own a classic car, bus or lorry you will be most welcome. Restaurant bookings essential (01993 842280). For further details contact John Coghlan on 07801200662.WESTWELL St Mary’sNo news this monthVILLAGE VIGNETTESIf you like the ‘village vignettes’ drawn for Parish Pump by Patricia Broughton of Broadwell, why not commission her to do a pen and ink sketch of your house? Contact Patricia on 0785 552 8023.WESTMINSTER VIEWThey might all enter Parliament bursting to change the world, but David reflects that it is mostly the small successes and failures which make up most MPs’ working lives, and which give MP’s their biggest satisfaction...
With the New Year underway MPs of all parties start to wonder whether we actually achieved anything in the last session. Three and half years into the job and I have discovered that if you want to change the world you are bound to be disappointed, but if you want to change the size of speed humps on the A4095 then all things are possible.This ‘small is beautiful’ approach can lead to some rather surprising results.I battled to enable a local beekeeper to import Queen Bees from Hawaii, which produced a wonderful response from openly gay Agriculture minister Ben Bradshaw. Leaning over the despatch box he announced, tongue firmly incheek, that my constituent did not need to go to Hawaii as there were ‘magnificent queens’ in European countries, such as Slovakia.With others, I successfully pushed for changes to the Sexual Offences Act to ensure that naturists from Chipping Norton (the coldest place in England, incidentally) would not be caught by the new law.In response to pleas from Morris Dancers in Bampton (the world capital of Morris, apparently) I helped to force Ministers to make clear that the Licensing Act would not stop them dancing in West Oxfordshire’s pubs.And my coup de gras was holding a debate in the House about Trailer Parks after allegations that a local park owner was bullying his residents and forcing them to sell their trailers to him for a knock down price. After Hansard was published the owner sold up and left West Oxfordshire for good. With an election around the corner MPs’ agents will be asking them what they have done to shore up local support. I am looking forward to sending mine in search of naked bee keepers, living in trailer parks with an enthusiasm for Morris Dancing. They’re out there, somewhere.
In politics you learn as much from failure as from success. My biggest disappointment in the last year was my failed attempt to persuade the Government to change its ‘Baby bond’ proposal so that families with disabled children could put as much money as they liked into the bond, tax free, and take it all out before their child reached 18, as long as the money was spent on things like respite care and wheel chairs.The junior minister accepted my amendments at committee stage and then invited me to her office in the treasury for tea, biscuits and a compelling explanation about why my scheme wouldn’t work. I was - as the slogan goes - Let Down by Labour. But this was done with charm, understanding and sympathy. The name of the kindly Minister? Ruth Kelly, rising star and now secretary of state for Education. Definitely one to watch!David CameronGILBERT & SULLIVAN IN FILKINS & B POGGSA 70th AnniversaryMany of us remember that as part of the Filkins Festival in July 1990, Gerald Webb presented a Gala Concert by the Swindon G&S Society in Filkins Church. But as Gerald recalls here, this was by means the first time that the Webb family and G&S had met in Filkins. In fact as Gerald celebrates here, 2005 is the 70‘h Anniversary of the first G&S production in the parish.WS Gilbert and Sir Arthur Sullivan’s first really successful opera, HMS Pinafore; or the Lass Who Loved a Sailor, was first produced at the Opera Comique in London in May 1878. They had previously written Trial by Jury and The Sorcerer which had not particularlycaught the attention of the public, but Pinafore was different: with a clever libretto and a charming musical score, the work captivated audiences both in London and in the United States.In February 1935, fifty-seven years after its premiere, Pinafore was to be the first Gilbert and Sullivan opera to be performed in Filkins
by the newly formed -Broughton Poggs and Filkins Players. I should like to mark the seventieth anniversary of that momentous event by recalling a halcyon period in Filkins’ theatrical history and the roles played in it by the local vicar andhe time.Earlier in that decade, the Reverend Ronald Fletcher, an Oxford don, had become the Rector of Broughton Poggs and it was he and his wife who founded the Players. During the 1930’s, he produced a total of five Gilbert and Sullivan operas at Filkins, and also performed the leading baritone roles. The Mikado was the chosen opera for 1939, but the outbreak of war prevented them continuing.The Oxford Times said in 1935, ‘Don Produces HMS“ Pinafore - Broughton Poggs and Filkins Triumph’. TheMr Fletcher as Gazette and Herald said, ‘Filkins Amateurs Sparkle in HMSGenl Stanlev Pinafore. One of the best village musical shows I have ever seen was the production of HMS Pinafore by the Broughton Poggs and Filkins Players’.It is interesting to note that, whilst many productions of Gilbert and Sullivan’s most popular works are performed with a chorus of forty or more, for Pinafore the Reverend Fletcher had just twelve ladies and four gentlemen apart from the soloists.The Pirates of Penzance followed HMS Pinafore in London in December 1880, and firmly established the reputations of Gilbert and Sullivan.It came to Filkins in February 1936. The Reverend Fletcher played the part of Major General Stanley, and his gardener, Charley James, played the Sergeant of Police. The Oxford Times reported, ‘They gave their first show last year and this latest attempt maintained well the promising debut’. Of Charley James they said, ‘He brought the house down as a super-comic Sergeant of Police’.Ruddigore; or the Witch’s Curse had its world premiere at the Savoy in London in January 1887 and it was produced by Fletcher in Filkins in January 1937. This opera has all the ingredients of a Victorian melodrama - the curse of a burning witch, a mad girl with homicidal tendencies, a picture gallery full of ghosts and the
abduction of an elderly and respectable lady! The local papers reported, ‘Amateurs Triumph Again’ and ‘Local Players’ Excellent Presentation’.Of my uncle, Sydney Webb, it said, ‘He was a little too boisterous in the role of Dick Dauntless, but his singing left little to be desired’. Of my father itsaid, ‘Mr George Webb deserves commendation for his rendering of Sir Despard, both wicked and reformed, a part he took at three days’ notice owing to the ilIness of the original actor’. In Ruddigore, the gentlemen of the chorus are Regency bucks and blades who are much admired by the ladies of the quaint Cornish village of Rederring. At the beginning of the opera they make a striking entrance with an excellent example of Sullivan’s expertise at being able to create two complete and separate melodies and then put them together in one splendid harmony. The part of Mad Margaret was played at Filkins by Cynthia Fletcher, the wife of the producer.The Filkins Players tackle the Pirates of Penzance in 1936Iolanthe, or the Peer and the Peri, has a unique place in theatrical history. It had its premier at the Savoy Theatre in the Strand in November 1882 and was the first theatre production to be lit entirely by the new-fangled electric light. In this opera we have the unlikely combination of a chorus of fairies and Peers of the Realm from the House of Lords. To add to the confusion, there is a young man with a mortal father and a fairy mother, in other words he is half a fairy ! Although the plot is highly unusual, it prompted Sullivan to write some of his finest music.When lolanthe reached Filkins in December 1937, the Reverend Fletcher’s chorus then consisted of eight ladies and six gentlemen, apart from his soloists. He played the Lord Chancellor, and his wife, Iolanthe. The Peers in love with Phyllis (‘an Arcadian Shepherdess and Ward in Chancery’) were my father and my uncle. The gardener, Charley James turns up again, this time as
Private Willis of the Grenadier Guards. The Evening Advertiser dated 6th December 1937 reported: ‘Mr Fletcher himself gave a fine performance as the much harassed yet wholly delightful dignitary, the Lord Chancellor. Mrs23Ronald Fletcher in the title role gave a most capable performance; the part could scarcely have been in better hands. Messrs Sydney and George Webb were outstanding in the respective roles of Lord Tolloller and Lord Mountararat’.It is said that WS Gilbert was travelling on the Underground when it stopped at a station which had an advertisement inviting people to visit the Tower of London. He had been trying to conceive a plot for a new opera to be staged at the Savoy Theatre. The Mikado had been tremendously successful but Ruddigore, which followed it, was less so. The advertisement prompted him to construct a libretto based on the Tower of London, and the opera we know as The Yeomen of the Guard opened at the Savoy Theatre on the 3rd of October, 1888.It was different from all that had gone before. The first night audience was expecting the same combination of singable melodies, a funny libretto and a happy ending. The melodies were there, and there was also a fair amount of humour, but the opera ends sadly. It is the nearest that Gilbert and Sullivan ever got to grand opera. The Yeomen of the Guard was produced at Filkins fifty years later in December 1938. My uncle, Sydney Webb, played Colonel Fairfax and the part of Jack Point was played by the Reverend Fletcher himself. Patricia Caldwell played the part of Phoebe Meryll.It is a long time since I sang from the choir in St Peter’s in Filkins. I was baptized in this church, as was my mother and my grandmother, and my parents were married here. My father George and his brother Sydney always had close connections with the church. They were both choristers, and it seemed quite natural that
my brother Brian and I, and our cousins Roy, Eric and David should join them at the age of seven or eight. With members from the other Webb family in the village, there were at one time nine Webbs in the choir!My love of music I believe started here. As my father and uncle were both members of the Broughton Poggs and Filkins Players as well as the choir, I was brought up on a diet of Gilbert and Sullivan melodies and always longed for an opportunity to perform them. That opportunity presented itself while I was working in Swindon more than forty years ago, when I joined an amateur group at Pinehurst, from which grew the Swindon Gilbert and Sullivan Society. Over the last thirty-five years I have played no less than twenty-three different G & S roles!If you like coincidences, though, you might like to reflect upon (and perhaps even attend a performance of) this year’s production by the Swindon Gilbert and Sullivan Society at the Wyvern Theatre next month, HMS Pinafore.Gerald WebbPOTTERING IN THE POTTING SHEDFirst the results of December’s quiz..The full set of answers was: Evergreen, Ulex, Percy, Heligan, Oranges, Raspberry, Batsford, Iris, Alstromeria, Propogate, Uncinata, Lime (tree), Cammelia, Helleborus, Erica, Ringlet, Rachel, Ilex, Magnolia, Allium. So, taking the initial letters, the overall answer was Euphorbia Pulcherrima (or Poinsettia).The winner was Elizabeth Gidman (Filkins), who is welcome to pop into the shop at Cotswold Woollen Weavers to collect her £10 Burford Garden Centre Voucher. Well done, Elizabeth, and thanks to BGC!This month, Anne braves the elements in her wintry garden...You may find yourself wanting to hibernate at this time of the year, but a little judicious time spent outdoors can put you ahead of the game for the spring; there is already the promise of longer days
with aconites and early snowdrops peeping through. Remember also that much of our wildlife will depend on your thoughtfulness, especially on those frosty mornings.So, now let’s tackle those outside jobs. Winter is an excellent time to make sure garden tools are clean, oiled and stored. Store tools in a dry atmosphere - it’s better to hang them on a wall than to keep them on the floor. Apply linseed oil to handles. Wipe trowels and spades with an oily rag to keep rust free until next use. Keep hoses rolled tidily and away from risk of frost. Check mowers and strimmers and clean off all grass residues. If your mower is beyond sharpening yourself, send it for a service now. Sort through the shed and greenhouse and don’t keep what you don’t need.At this time of year wild birds will quickly learn to rely on a food source. If you have berry-bearing shrubs, sunflowers, a safe environment away from predators and you supply one of the many prepared wild bird seed mixes you will attract many varieties.Don’t forget different birds have different requirements. A tabletop will attract robins, chaffinches, doves, wood pigeons and dunnocks. A hanging feeder should serve woodpeckers, tits, greenfinches, nuthatches and siskins. Wrens and blackbirds like a ground feeder.Ponds and water features also benefit from winter care. If you have outdoor pond fish remember to ensure that the pond doesn’t freeze, either by using a pond heater or by leaving a ball floating on the top. If the pond should ice over, never use force to crack it. This can shock the fish to death! Use a kettle of boiling water, poured slowly to melt the ice. Remember also that your pond may be a regular source of water for wild birds.Many perennials can be cut back hard now and buckets or forcing jars over dormant clumps of rhubarb will encourage stems to form for a delicious earlyharvest. Keep an eye on the weather forecast and be ready to brush snow from evergreen shrubs and conifers. Dig over bare areas,
forking in plenty of compost or rotted manure. When you feel you’ve had enough fresh air, take yourself inside, curl up with your favourite gardening book and plan your next project, or better still make a date to attend Liz Welch’s clematis workshop...Climber careLiz Welch is running a‘Hands-on’ Clematis Pruning Workshop in Black Bourton on 22°d and 25‘h February from 10.00am to 3.OOpm. The cost is £15 including home-made soup and a drink. Numbers are limited, so book your place now. Telephone Liz (01993 841731) for details of the workshop.Liz also sends expert advice on winter-pruning your wisteria:‘Following on from the all-important Summer pruning, when the long wandering shoots were cut back to encourage young shoots and form flower buds, now is the time to take a look at the plant’s framework. If it is starting to get congested, prune back any long shoots, and thin out any surplus.An open framework of twisted and gnarled stems is half the charm of a wisteria, and it allows a better view of the flowers. Finally, shorten all Summer-pruned sideshoots to two buds. Check the established flower spurs and thin them carefully if there are too many. Finally, mulch generously and keep watered.’Anne Greenwood(See Classified Ads as on page for free gardening magazines. Ed)NATURE NOTESThe fieldfares and redwings were late in arriving in the local area this winter and I saw the first one on 2”d December since then they have been around in large numbers stripping hawthorn and other berries from the hedgerows. As happened last year they stripped a cotoneaster bush in the vicarage garden which was loaded with berries and in two days the bush was bare. When they have eaten all the berries they feed on all kinds of invertebrates on the ground. I remember in Norway some years ago seeing one nesting in a slight depression on a large boulder at the side of the road.
There have been as many as a dozen or more goldfinches feeding in the garden regularly for three months among large groups of greenfinches and chaffinches. Song thrushes and mistle thrushes were singing on days in December. A family group of long tailed tits have been visiting the window feeder. Among the usual coal tits two uncommon marsh tits appeared on 30th November and also an aviary escapee.This was a glossy black bird about the size of a goldfinch with a thick white seed eating beak - pink legs and feet and shiny black eyes. It stayed aroundfeeding hungrily on seed for over an hour and then flew off strongly across the village.Although we have had odd days of frost the weather has been predominately mild so far this winter and has led to various things in the garden flowering unseasonably. There were second flowerings of late lupins and delphiniums, the odd rose and I have some pinks covered in buds with the odd flower actually opening on a sunny day. At the other end of the scale the first aconites are opening their beautiful yellow flowers immediately above the ground and snowdrops are in bud ready to open soon.The bird to look out for this winter is the waxwing, about the size and shape of a starling but is the only buff brown bird with a bold crest on its head, it has bright red waxy appendages on its secondary feathers, yellow or white tips to primary feathers and black bib. Sixteen of these striking birds were seen in a garden at Churchill near Chipping Norton a couple of days ago (5th January) and they flew off in a southerly direction. They breed in the Arctic and sub-arctic and erupt in substantial numbers in this country every few years. I have not been lucky enough to see one yet but keep your eyes peeled!David Roberts
FIVE ALLS DAY CENTRE, FILKINS
Following the appointment of a Deputy Coordinator at the Day Centre we have been able to offer additional places for local older people. We are glad to report that the extra places have been taken up very quickly.However this does mean that we urgently need to recruit more drivers, ideally from the villages of Clanfield, Shilton, Holwell and Little Faringdon. Can you spare an hour or two just once per month to help local people get to and/or from the Day Centre in Filkins Village Hall on a Tuesday? Such help really would contribute to the effective running of this local and much appreciated Centre. Do please contact me on 01367 860319.Chris WoodfordA NEW DEAL FOR DAY CENTRESOxfordshire County Councillor Don Seale, Executive Member for Social and Health Care sets out the county’s ambitious plans for enlarging the network of Day Care Centres.The NHS and County Council staff have been working on a scheme to fundamentally improve our Day Services for older people. We have been working to get these ambitious big ideas into the next budget so that we can make a start this year, and bring them to fruition over the next few years.The scheme is called ‘Prevention and Day Services for Older People’. It will provide increased care services for people usually near to their homes. The plan is to provide, throughout the County, a number of ‘Resource Centres’. There could be up to 17, which would be a mixture of the present Day Centres, considerably improved, and new centres.Each Resource centre would have a cluster of smaller Day Centres, much like the present ones, but with improvements to what they can provide. The Resource Centres will have trained staff to provide specialist services, dementia care, and intermediate care for rehabilitation after hospital. Transport will be provided
extensively with suitably trained escorts on board. Increased opening hours, including at weekends, will mean that the large Centres are available seven days a week. The increased capacity should provide I 100 new places by 2010.The emphasis is on prevention. We want, as far as possible, to maintain the fitness of people as they grow old, to enable them to continue to live an independent and comfortable life preferably in their own homes.The scheme could cost about £12 million to set up and run over a five-year period and then an annual running cost. The financing would come from a mix of NHS and County Council money, Government grants, and charges for some of the services provided.Can we afford it with this year’s belt-tightening? It will be difficult as there are many competing calls on our budget, but the answer is yes, because it is very important to our plans for the long-term care of elderly people. But we must be sure of the long-term financing.If the scheme receives approval, we will start with a relatively modest spend in the first year when we will need a project manager. We plan to start with a refurbished centre in Witney.From where do we get the necessary staff? We are confident that the people to provide the care and man the centres can be found by recruiting new staff, and by retraining and redeploying existing NHS and Social and Health Care staff.Is there a danger that we will over-provide? We intend to build up the service cautiously to assess the take-up. There is little doubt that the NHS will become even more tightly stressed as older people enjoy a good quality of life but need help to continue.Will the hard pressed NHS come up with its’ share of the costs? The scheme will be a joint effort and the NHS staffs are well aware that the scheme will considerably ease their burden for health care; therefore it is in their interests to assist in funding the scheme properly.
Don SealeCALL MY WINE BLUFFHere is your chance to combine a very light-hearted quiz with some excellent tippling! Cotswold Wine Company of Lechlade provides the wine, you guess which of the ‘expert analysts’ is telling the truth, and everyone has fun!Call My Wine Bluff is on 11‘” February in Langford Village Hall at 7.30pm. Tickets are £10 per head, including supper. Discounted wine will also be available. Telephone 01993 846255 or 01367 250226 to reserve tickets.
GP NOT AVAILABLE?T he South West Oxfordshire NHS Primary Care Trust wish to make everyone aware that if you need urgent medical help that cannot wait until your local surgery is open, between Monday - Friday 6.30pm and 8.30am, week-ends and Bank Holidays, you should call 0845 345 8995. Please note the number. You can also get general health advice 24 hours a day by calling NHS Direct on 0845 46 47. For emergency medical help dial 999.WALKING FOR WATEROn Sunday 12‘h December at about 2.OOpm Sara and I arrived at the Thames barrier, having set out from Tower Bridge that morning to walk through Bermondsey, Rotherhithe, Greenwich, and past the Dome. The walk from Thames Head beyond Kemble, 160 miles back up the river, was over. I loved every minute of it, and especially the fact that we raised the wonderful sum of £3500 for WaterAid.When you consider that £15 can provide a person with a lasting supply of safe water and sanitation, you can see what a huge, life-enhancing difference our efforts will make to over 200 desperately poor people. A huge thank you yo everyone who supported WaterAid. The fund stays open until the end of February for
anyone who would still like to contribute. (Contact me at Little Hay, Broadwell. Tel: 01367 860255)Chris RawsonCALLING ALL DOG-LOVERS!We have a lively two-year-old Weimaraner cross. He is a rescue dog and just does not cope with kennels. We are therefore looking for a holiday arrangement (for a consideration) so that he can stay in someone’s home, be cared for and get two walks a day, which he needs. He is very endearing with good manners and no (really) bad habits. Would you take in a dog for a week or two? We would consider a reciprocal arrangement. Please telephone us on 01367 252413.THE LOCAL NETWORK FUNDT his Fund exists to provide support to help get your ideas off the ground! In 2003 The Fund awarded £200,000 in grants to 40 groups in Oxfordshire working with Children and Young People. They have provided funding to: Develop projects in Youth Clubs in Woodstock, Blackbird Leys
and Didcot. Extend the opening hours of village pre-schools. Provide equipment for skate parks and games areas across the
county. Support African and Asian cultural activities in Oxford. Run an art project in Standlake. Launch a youth sailing club in Faringdon. Parenting groups in Bicester and Abingdon.Locally, more recently the Fund made a grant to Kencot Village Hall, and to a Pre-School Group in Carterton to enable them to buy a lap-top computer.If you run a community or youth group and have an idea that will help children and young people fulfil their potential, the Fund would like to hear from you. For an informal discussion telephone 01865 798666.
COOKING WITH KATEIn dank February, Kate prepares quick and comfortable food...This is the time of year to relax and eat comfort food. For me a meal including cheese sauce is the ultimate comfort, excluding puddings! The following dishes involve blanched vegetables wrapped in ham and baked in cheese sauce.The first uses leeks. When you buy the leeks or dig them from the garden choose those with the longest length of white. Trim the leeks to provide eight lengths of six inches. Clean well to remove all grit.Cook the leeks by either steaming , boiling or microwaving until just tender. Cool slightly and wrap a piece of thinly sliced ham round each leek. Arrange in gratin dish.The second recipe uses chicory this is slightly bitter but goes well with the cheese. Treat in exactly the same way as the leeks above.Cheese Sauce1 pint milk8 oz grated cheese2 table spoons plain flour 2 oz butterMelt butter in saucepan add flour and stir well until all
incorporated. Removefrom heat and whisk in the milk a little at a time, return to the heat and bring to the boil stirring all the time. Then add the cheese (like Leicester) and pepper and salt to taste.In each case pour the sauce over the prepared vegetables and bake in a preheated oven of 190C 375F Gas mark 5. After 30 minutes, sprinkle a little more grated cheese over the top. Then cook for 10 more minutes. Serve with a green salad and crusty bread.Kate Morley LETTERSWe welcome letters on any subject, so do pick up your pens, and let the world (well this benefice anyway) hear your views about
Parish Pump, or anything else. Letters may be edited for reasons of space.CLASH OF THE LATINISTS!In last November’s issue, we carried a splendid translation of the Goodenough memorial in Broughton Poggs church. Patrick asked for further explanation of one clause. (What a tribute to us all that Fred Robertson assumes that our Benefice is full of Latinists.)Sir: My compliments to Patrick Coleman on his presentation of the Latin inscription with his excellent translation. He did however invite elucidation of one phrase, which I take to be:‘... et tibi, ut te pares in casus subitos’the precise meaning of which is:‘... and to you, so that you may prepare yourself for sudden
misfortunes.’I apologise if you have been inundated with similar suggestions! Yours sincerely (Salutem Dicit Plurimam) Fred RobertsonOLD KELMSCOTTIn December’s issue, we ran a photograph of a cottage in Kelmscott (see inset below), and asked if any readers knew where it had been..Sir: The photograph of the cottages in Kelmscott was indeed taken there, opposite the Plough Inn, some time before 1943°’ when I came to live in the village.A family named Froud, with numerous children, lived there until the cottages were demolished some time in the 50’s when a very nice hard tennis court was built on thesite for the benefit of the village. The highlights were the matches playedagainst neighbouring villages, which proved to be very popular. Gradually members grew up and left the village and the court gradually deteriorated into the rough area we see today. For
interest, opposite the cottages, behind the pub, was where the old Post Office used to be.Yours sincerely Dot StephensonSue Morris also contacted Parish Pump, to say the cottage was near the Plough Inn, and very kindly lent us this postcard for inclusion. The thatched cottage can be seen on the extreme left of the picture.A big thankyou to both correspondents. EdTHE HUNTING DEBATESir: I take issue with your statement of the Bishop of Chelmsford’s case where he says ‘On moral issues, where there is no disadvantage to the majority, the rights of minorities should not be curtailed.’For thousands of years in all societies the holding of slaves was a right exercised by a privileged minority that did not unduly bear down on the majority to its disadvantage - apart that is, from those actually held in bondage. It took until the early 19’ century for the immorality of this ‘right’ to be accepted by society in this country, and that only after a long hardfought campaign by the not-disadvantaged majority against those holding slaves or profiting from the slave trade.Now I fully accept that there are degrees of what society deems important and I would never equate the evil of slavery with the unpleasantness of huntingfor ‘sport’. Not being a church-goer, perhaps I see morality more in terms of humanity, in this case a humane consideration for less sentient creatures, rather than just the rights of any group of people to pursue their own interests irrespective of the general will of society.And so it is the general will of society that we should heed. In two manifestos the governing party declared its intention, if elected, to ban fox-hunting with hounds. It has taken over seven years and numerous debates in Parliament to arrive at the position where that
undertaking is shortly to take legal effect. In a democratic society the will of the people as expressed through the laws enacted by its parliament imposes upon us a duty to observe those laws, and not pick and choose only those, which out of individual and personal inclinations we accept.Benefice ResidentThe Bishop of Chelmsford might contend that the rights of a one minority, slaves, were unduly curtailed at the expense of a much smaller minority, slave owners. So the abolition of slavery was correct for the same reason that the Bishop argues that the abolition of fox-hunting is not correct. Or he might very reasonably cite what he called in his speech ‘over-riding reasons’. On the other .hand, the Bishop might find even a casual comparison of slavery and fox-hunting a bit odd. EdWILLIAM AVERIES & THE LANGFORD BANDIf you want to learn to play the cello, first get a gun! Curious? Read on... In 1935 Mr William Averies of Langford looked back over a long life and recalled his musical exploits to a local journalist. He sets an example for us all.“He has always been keenly interested in music,‘, which he has found a great source of inspiration. ‘, Much encouragement has been given to him to‘, develop this talent by Mrs Averies, who shares hislove for good compositions. When a boy he‘ obtained a flute and made sounds on it for about a year. Then he visited an uncle in Shilton, whotaught him one simple tune, and there began a bigstudy.“Later Mr Averies lived near a man who played the , violincello, and he became very interested in this! instrument, so much so that he wished to learn this ‘ instrument. Money being scarce, he first purchased ‘ a book of instruction.
“At that time he worked for a man who possessed a gun, and to keep it clean was one of Mr Avieries’ duties. When opportunities occurred young Averies sat on a chair, placed the butt upon the floor, and held it in the position ofthe instrument. Then he would practise fingering as shown in the book, and so paved the way to finding positions on the much-desired instrument, which was eventually purchased.“When at last that happy day arrived, Mr Averies was fortunate enough to work for a gentleman also interested in the ‘cello, and employer and employee spent many pleasant leisure hours in practising duets and having talks on the theory of music. Eventually they became efficient enough to play in the Philharmonic Society of Tewkesbury.“After 12 years, Mr Averies returned to Langford. With the help of the late Mr P Cooper, an orchestra was formed in the village comprising two first violins, one second violin, a‘cello, a viola, a piano, a cornet, a euphonium and a double bass.“Of the later formation of a brass band, Mr Avieries has vivid memories. Mr Jesse Farmer of Filkins thought such music would be more appropriate for outdoor occasions. Players and instruments being to hand, a difficulty arose over music, but Mr Averies came to the rescue and transposed from a piano part for each part..“Before the retirement of bandmaster Mr J Farmer, the results of many practices were appreciated by audiences. Known as the Langford and Filkins Band, it has attained a high reputation. Mr Averies for many years played the E flat bass, and finally held the drum.”Some of Mr Averies’ descendants (including great-grand-daughter Christine, without whom many of us would breakfast sadly newpaperless!) still live in Langford in the same cottage next to the Bell Inn, but the Langford & Filkins Band is no more. Anyone who
has any more information about the band, do get in touch with Parish Pump, and we will return to this intriguing episode.HOW DID OUR CHURCHES GET THEIR NAMES?We must all have asked ourselves: Why St George’s, why St Mary’, what a lot of St Peter’s, who, or what, is ‘Holy Rood’.., and is St Margaret’s, Little Faringdon really named after Mrs Thatcher?Mike Clark investigatesThe veneration accorded to saints in the Christian church has existed since the earliest days of the church itself. It was originally rooted in the belief that the soul of a martyr who had died for his or her faith would most certainly be in Heaven, and therefore be in a good position to intercede with the Almighty on behalf of a supplicant.Until around the third century, Christians generally assembled in private houses, and only occasionally was it possible to build or adapt premises specially for religious rites and ceremonies. Where this occurred, the place wasspoken of as the House of God or the House of Prayer, and it is important to remember this in the context of the later practice of dedicating churches to the memory of a martyr. All churches are dedicated to God, but often named in honour of an individual or sometimes a religious concept.The choice of titular dedications, though, is a fascinating study in itself. The Catholic Encyclopaedia has it that “a patron is one who has been assigned by a venerable tradition, or chosen by election, as a special intercessor with God and the proper advocate of a particular locality.”The term “patron” actually has a slightly wider meaning than “titular”, which may be applied only to a church or an institution, but both, according to current legislation, must have the rank of a canonized saint.
Given that Christians had always held the memory of their heroic predecessors in great reverence, it was natural that the church’s rites were often associated with the burial places and tombs of its martyrs. In Rome, the great churches of St Peter, St Paul, St Lawrence, St Sebastian and St Agnes, founded at the time of Constantine, were all originally cemeterial basilicas.However, from this custom came the idea of relics, either corporeal or objects associated with the saint in some other way, like the chains that bound St Peter, which could be held at a particular church, often buried under or within the altar.Throughout the ages, though, ecclesiastical authority, generally benignly, guided popular local choice of titulars, who increasingly included men or women noted for their miracles, the saintliness of their lives or their success in converting heathen peoples to Christianity, as well as the martyrs. From about the fourth century, bishops, priests, hermits and nuns who had demonstrated particular holiness in their lives began to be honoured by having churches and chapels dedicated to their names.In 1638, Pope Urban VIII laid down the rules for the Catholic Church, but took care not to interfere with existing traditional patronage, and as recently as 1897 Leo XIII formally endorsed a long-standing practice of naming churches with a specific devotion or concept, such as the ‘Blessed Sacrament’ or the ‘Sacred Heart’, whilst reminding his flock that a church is always dedicated to God and any other dedication is on a different plane altogether.The hierarchy of principles governing the choice of dedication in the Roman Church had, then, been enumerated. The ranking is:1 God,, or the sacred humanity of Christ and His emblems 2 The
Mother of God3 The Angels4 Major holy personages5 Apostles and evangelists6 Other saints
Towards the end of the sixth century, Saint Augustine brought with him to England the Roman customs and rules of the time regarding the naming of churches. In order of popularity after Christ Church and All Hallows came St Mary’s and St Peter’s. It is to St Peter that the greatest number of Anglo-Saxon churches were dedicated. It should not be forgotten, though, that after the Romans left Britain around AD 410, and until Augustine arrived, it has been the Celts who had largely kept the faith in the face of godless invasions from Northern Europe.The memory of Celtic and Welsh saints was kept strongly alive in the West Country and Wales until the incoming Angles and Saxons eventually became converted to Christianity and adopted the Roman tradition of saints such as Peter, Paul, Andrew, Martin and Pancras.In many cases, especially in the West and Southwest of Britain, where a church was originally dedicated to a native saint, the dedication was changed at a later date to feature that of a more scriptural saint. Sometimes the new name was simply added to the old, but elsewhere the Celtic saint was superseded by the scriptural one. There was a good deal of name-changing immediately following the Norman Conquest.The Normans were politically astute enough to realize that introducing their own way of doing things would help to destroy the nationalistic focus that the old saints might have given to the Saxons, and at the same time reinforce the idea that the Normans were in control.Of course, sometimes there were instances where a church needed to be extended or rebuilt, in which case it had to be reconsecrated. The bishop or local dignitary in charge of the consecration would sometimes take the opportunity to change the saint’s name in the church’s dedication to one which they preferred more.
Frances Arnold Forster in her epic three-volume work Studies in Church Dedications, without drawing a line between pre- and post Reformation English churches, counted the following:Peter 936 Michael 721 John the Baptist 576 Nicholas 397 Paul 329 Peter and Paul 277 Lawrence 228 George 160St Mary was the simplest designation of Our Lady, which totalled 2,162, not including about another 2,000 Lady chapels built in cathedrals and abbeys with other dedications, such as Winchester and Ely. Emblem names, such as Holy Rood and Holy Cross, occurred a total of 83 times.The reasons for making a particular choice of dedication or titular, therefore, can be summarized as follows:1 The possession of the body or some important relic of a saint 2 A saint’s announcement of the Gospel to the nation 3 A saint’s work or death in the locality4 A saint’s adoption as the national patron5 A special devotion of the founder of the church 6 Secifically focused religious fervour at the timeAs we have observed, before the Reformation, the life of the Catholic Church was to a great extent sustained by the idea that the citizens of Heaven would benevolently watch over those still earthbound, provided they were suitably venerated and appealed to. In England in the Middle Ages it has been calculated that there were some 40,000 religious corporations, including ecclesiastical bodies of all kinds, each of which had a patron.In the grouping of eleven parishes and thirteen villages in West Oxfordshire known as the Shill Valley and Broadshire Benefice, the national picture is reflected fairly well. There are three St Marys, three St Peters, two St Georges, one St Peter and St Paul, one St Matthew, one St Margaret and a Holy Rood.From the Church’s earliest days, St Peter was venerated both in the Liturgy and, less formally, by graffiti in the catacombs. In England
there were important dedication to St Peter at Canterbury, Glastonbury, Lindisfarne and Westminster, with cathedrals at York, Lichfield and Worcester. The total of pre-Reformation dedications has been estimated at around a thousand, not including those in the name of Peter and Paul together. On churches, St Peter’s dedication is often marked by the image of a cockerel at the top of the steeple of other high point, recalling the story of Peter’s scriptural denial of Christ before the cock crew.St Paul, who is said to have been martyred exactly a year to the day after St Peter during the persecution of Christians by Nero, was buried where the basilica of St Paul “outside the walls” now stands in Rome. As a titular, he was never as popular as St Peter, and ancient English churches dedicated to Paul alone number less than fifty. The most celebrated English cathedral in his name is, of course, in the City of London.In the Gospels, Mary, the Mother of Jesus, figures most prominently in the Matthew and Luke accounts of the nativity but subsequently she appears only occasionally. In England, at least until the time of Henry VIII, the doctrine associated with Mary was the same as in the rest of the Catholic Church. By the end of the eighth century there were only twenty churches dedicated to her, but by the time of the Reformation this had risen to two thousand. Another Mary, Mary Magdalen, the patron saint of repentant sinners, was popular in the Middle Ages - her feast was kept since the eighth century - and both Oxford and Cambridge universities have colleges dedicated to her.Although St George was adopted as the patron saint of England, it is likely that he never set foot here at all. He was a late third century soldier who was born, died and probably served most of his time in Palestine. The famous story of St George and the Dragon is a legend dating from the sixth century, and George was certainly known in England before his cult took on a special significance during the Crusades, by which time he had been
chosen as the patron saint of soldiers. In England, some 160 ancient churches and a few modern ones are dedicated to him.St Matthew was the first century apostle and evangelist known to Mark and Luke as Levi. By profession he was a tax collector for the Romans before leaving it all to answer the call of Christ. There is some difference of opinion between various martyrologies as to where Matthew met his end: some hold it to be Ethiopia while others say Persia, but his relics are supposed to have been translated to Salerno in Italy. Matthew is the patron saint of accountants and book-keepers, and it is interesting that in the later Middle Ages he is sometimes depicted as wearing spectacles.There are several Margarets to whom feasts and places of worship have been dedicated. St Margaret of Antioch was very popular in England in the Middle Ages, but, according to the Oxford Dictionary of Saints, she may never have existed except as a character in pious fiction. She was supposed to have been martyred at the time of the Emperor Diocletian, but, notwithstanding the fact that in AD 494 Pope Gelasius declared her to be apocryphal, there were more than 200 churches in her name in pre-Norman Conquest England.Margaret of England, who died in 1192, was a Cistercian nun who spent most of her life in the Holy Land and in France. Margaret of Scotland married King Malcolm III at about the same time as the Norman invasion, and the present English Royal Family can trace their descent from her. The document of her canonization has been lost, but her pocket Gospel Book survives in the Bodleian Library at Oxford.The parish church at Shilton is the only one in Shill Valley and Broadshire not dedicated to a saint by name. This is the church of the Holy Rood (‘rood’ being another name for the cross or crucifix).In an obscure way it is quite fitting that the Vicarage at Shilton is the seat of the present Rector of the combined benefice: under
Pope Urban’s rules the Holy Rood would take precedence over even the most exalted of Saints.Mike ClarkJOKE!The Vicar decided to paint his church. After he’d painted one wall, he found he’d already used half his paint, so he watered the rest down and finished the job. Next day he found the last three walls were pretty streaky. ‘What shall I do’, he cried. A voice came from the heavens: ‘Repaint, and thin no more’!RESOLUTIONS, RESOLUTIONS!Twas’ Jenny Symes, the Filkins Diva of the Diet, is still wrestling with that New Year’s resolution (with apologies to Rabbie Burns) as the month after Christmas and all through the houseNothing would fit me, not even a blouse. The goodies I’d eaten, the drink I did taste At the holiday parties, have gone to my waist.When I got on the scales, there arose such a number! Did I walk to the shops? No, t’was more of a lumber.I remember the marvellous meals I’d prepare,The gravies, the sauces, the beef nicely rare.The wine, and the rum-balls, the biscuits, the cheese, And the way that I never said “No thanks”, but “Please!” As I dress myself now in my husband’s old shirt And prepare once again to do battle with dirt, I say to myself, as only I can, ‘You can’t spend a winter disguised as a man!’So, away with the last of the yummy cream dips, Get rid of the cake, and the crackers and chips. Every last bit of food that I love must be banished Till all the additional pounds have quite vanished. I won’t have a cream cake, not even a lick... I’ll only chew on a long celery stick. I will not have biscuits, or sweeties, or pie, But munch on a carrot and quietly cry.
I’m hungry! No starving! And life is a bore, But isn’t that what this dull February’s for? I’m unable to giggle, no longer a riot, So, a Happy New Year to you all, And to all... A Good Diet!Jenny SymesCLASSIFIED ADVERTISEMENTS (private sales only)Email Parish Pump for a FREE way to sell/buy whatever you like...Keyboard for sale: Armon Super Piano with stand. Any reasonable offer accepted. Telephone 01367 860217Garden Magazines: Back copies of RHS Garden Magazine, Illustrated Gardens, and English Garden available free. Telephone 01367 860218Typewriter for sale: Still pre-PC, and prefer it? IBM Superselectric Model 6747-2. £50 ono. Telephone 01993 841356
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