Pantomime japes, jeers & jokes

Karen Neville

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Karen Neville

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Love them or loathe them, pantomimes are most people’s first introduction to the theatre, the tales of good triumphing over evil are as old as time but that doesn’t stop their enduring allure. So book your tickets and take your seat…

Boo, hiss or sealed with a kiss, if it’s December then it must be panto month so start practising your jeering and cheering and tuck into those sweets as you enjoy Robin Hood and Maid Marion as they right wrongs, sing songs and sort out the wicked Sheriff in the swashbuckling panto at the Yvonne Arnaud, Nov 30th-Jan 5th. Starring Lucy Benjamin as the Sherriff of Nottingham who is making residents’ lives a misery raising taxes. Will Robin and his gang of merry men come to the rescue and help them fight back. Also stars Guildford favourite Peter Gordon and Guildford Shakespeare Company’s Matt Pinches. Book at Robin Hood | Yvonne Arnaud Theatre

Panto just wouldn’t be the same without a famous face gracing the stage and Woking’s New Victoria is welcoming Christopher Biggins and Steps’ Faye Tozer among its cast of Sleeping Beauty. Once upon a time in a land far away, Princess Aurora is given a 21st birthday present by her evil aunt Carabosse (Tozer). By pricking her finger on an enchanted spinning wheel she is placed under a cruel curse and forced to sleep for 100 years. Expect magic, music, comedy and special effects from Dec 6th-Jan 5th. Tickets: Sleeping Beauty Tickets | New Victoria Theatre, Woking in Woking | ATG Tickets

Get ready for a spellbinding pantomime like no other at Camberley Theatre this Christmas, Dec 7th-31st. Join Snow White and her lively band of friends in a fun-filled adventure packed with unforgettable songs, hilarious moments, and stunning scenery. With a few twists on the classic story, this is Snow White as you’ve never seen before and will have you laughing, smiling, cheering and booing all the way through. Buy tickets at Snow White | Camberley Theatre

Godalming Borough Hall is hosting Jack as he climbs that beanstalk in search of riches trying to evade the giant. The professional show – featuring a talented cast with top West End credits – promises spectacular song and dance, colourful costumes and lots of fun and laughs for the whole family, Dec 14th-28th. For the 6th year running, the Pay What You Can scheme will return to the venue’s popular panto, with the producers doing their best to ensure as many people as possible can enjoy a family pantomime. Book tickets for the giant of a pantomime, Jack and the Beanstalk by calling 01483 361101 or visit Godalming Panto | Jack & The Beanstalk 2024

Magic spells, glittering costumes and a few modern surprises await at Prior’s Field School theatre where you’ll find Godalming Theatre Group presenting Cinderella, Dec 18th-22nd. Tickets at Musicals | Godalming Theatre Group | Godalming

Pantos aren’t just for Christmas, many local theatre groups will be entertaining audiences in the new year, like the Ewhurst Players who are on stage at the village hall with Cinderella in February. Visit HOME | Ewhurstplayers nearer the time for dates & more. 

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs will be hi-ho-ing at The Arbuthnot Hall, Shamley Green thanks to SHADES on Jan 23rd-25th, more at shamleygreenshades.co.uk. Red Riding Hood will be trying to evade the wolf at Compton Little Theatre, Jan 16th-18th. Buy tickets at Compton Little Theatre event tickets from TicketSource. There’s fun for all with the mischievous puppet Pinocchio in Churt Amateur Dramatic Society’s panto in the village hall, Jan 28th-Feb 3rd, Churt Amateur Dramatic Society event tickets from TicketSource.

Enjoy all you could wish for with Byfleet Players’ Aladdin at the village hall, Jan 9th-11th. Book tickets at The Byfleet Players – Amateur drama group based in Byfleet, Surrey

Embark on an uproarious adventure with Peter Pan & the Lusty Boys the Adult Panto, the latest masterpiece from the Guildford Fringe team! Brace yourselves for an hour of non-stop hilarity with no dull moments, as this rib-tickling spectacle takes centre stage until Jan 4th at The Back Room of The Star Inn. Indulge in naughty, smutty, and downright silly humour that’s sure to leave you in stitches. Book at Peter Pan & the Lusty Boys at The Back Room of The Star Inn event tickets from TicketSource

There are more than pantos to enjoy with the magical musical Santa’s Wish at G Live, Dec 18th-24th. Snowflake the magical elf is in a tricky spot, Santa’s sleigh has crashed and now he is lost. Can Snowflake help Santa and save Christmas? The heart-warming adventure is full of colour and fun and a sprinkling of circus magic. Tickets at Book Santa’s Wish tickets | G Live Guildford

Enjoy a family show fit to burst with festive fun at Farnham Maltings. Diana Hendry and John Lawrence’s joyous tale, Christmas in Exeter Street, is being brought to life in the Maltings’ second annual Christmas show from Dec 13th – 24th. With 37 characters, seven animals, 10 instruments, and an abundance of Christmas magic, Cordelia O’Neill’s new adaptation conjures the beautiful chaos and heart-warming generosity of the festive season.Tickets are available from £10-£22 at Christmas in Exeter Street | Farnham Maltings

WAOS Musical Theatre are staging the moving and powerful Evita at the Rhoda McGaw Theatre, Dec 10th-14th. The story portrays Eva’s rise alongside her husband, President Juan Perón, her advocacy for the poor, and her battle with illness. The musical is renowned for its emotional depth, Latin-infused score, and the iconic ballad Don’t Cry for Me Argentina. Book tickets at WAOS Musical Theatre presents Evita Tickets | Rhoda McGaw Theatre, Woking in Woking | ATG Tickets

Enjoy these traditional treats & more, KN 

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I spy Christmas

Karen Neville

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Karen Neville

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Author and journalist Michael Smith introduces us to a Danish naval officer who was content with very ‘conventional’ inducements for passing on secrets

Trying to find a spy appropriate to the season, I thought it might be a good moment to write about the first agent ever run by MI6. Captain Walter Christmas, a former Danish naval officer who travelled in and out of Germany to collect intelligence on what the German navy was doing. MI6, then known as the foreign section of the Secret Service Bureau, was set up in 1909, amid fears of a German invasion. Its first boss was Mansfield Cumming, who was known only by the initial letter of his surname, C, which is still used by heads of MI6 today as an abbreviation for Chief.

Christmas was designated WK, perhaps because it was mistakenly assumed that his name began with a K, or that using the initials WC would lead to his reports being ridiculed in Whitehill. The first time Christmas met Cumming he stressed how keen he was to spy for MI6 having “always looked upon myself as at least half English”. Cumming concluded in his diary that Christmas “seemed straightforward”.

The Dane was in fact very straightforward indeed. He was willing to spy for what were already the standard inducements of sex and cash and went on to provide Cumming with a regular supply of the Danish navy’s ship-watching reports of German vessels passing through the channels joining the North Sea to the Baltic. As well as reports on new German equipment obtained by visits to the naval dockyards in Kiel, Hamburg and Breman. The 48-year-old insisted that the go-between who collected his intelligence should always be a ‘pretty’ young woman who was to meet him in a hotel in Skagen, the town at the northernmost tip of Denmark. The women concerned were prostitutes procured and paid for the purpose. The close links between what are alleged to be the world’s two oldest professions were to be repeated persistently throughout the Service’s early history. Sex and money often represented far better inducements to spy than Patriotic or moral beliefs.

When a few years later, the Germans got too close to Christmas and Cumming had to have him exfiltrated to London, he was lodged in the notorious Shepherd Market area of Mayfair, where there were plenty of pretty young women, all pursuing the same business as the go-betweens who used to collect his intelligence from the Skagen hotel.

But that was not his last job for MI6, Christmas was a close personal friend of King Constantine. So in an early form of the ‘parallel diplomacy’ practised by MI6 in a number of different situations over the years, most notably at the start of the Northern Ireland peace process, Cumming sent him to Athens, in the hope that he might persuade Constantine that Greece should join the war against Germany. Compton Mackenzie, then the MI6 man in Greece, seemingly unaware that Christmas was operating under the direction of his bosses in London, was furious at this intervention on his patch by “this irresponsible old man of the sea” and stymied the operation.

Frank Stagg, a senior MI6 officer, recalled that what Christmas had to say about Mackenzie on his return to Whitehall Court was “unrepeatable”. Stagg decided to take Christmas out as recompense for Mackenzie’s behaviour. “I took that most lovable man to the Hippodrome where Fay Compton was singing a song in which the last line of each verse was ‘I’ll take a little more off’. Christmas was getting more and more excited and clapping roundly. When at the height of his enthusiasm, I asked him if he knew she was Compton Mackenzie’s sister, he looked tragic and said, ‘I’ll take back everything I said about him. If only I had known he had a sister so lovely I should have made friends with him instead’.” 

Christmas was not only the first MI6 agent, he was the first of a long line of officers and agents to venture into spy fiction, a tradition that included Mackenzie himself and many  others, most famously John le Carre. Christmas wrote the first spy novel by an MI6 agent ̶   Svend Spejder (Svend the Scout), in which a young boy hunts down German spies in Denmark ̶   in 1911, relatively early in his MI6 career. 

Michael Smith’s spy novel, Ritter: No Man Dies Twice is published by Safe House books. 

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The gift of care

Karen Neville

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Your presence can mean just as much as a present for an older person this Christmas

“All I want for Christmas is you,” goes the song and for many older people, the only gift they crave is one of companionship.

The chance to get together with our loved ones is very special but for some, Christmas gatherings are about more than deciding where to spend Christmas Day or whose turn it is to do the cooking! If a loved one is receiving care, a harmonious festive period with the family altogether may not be without its challenges. Maintaining care routines over Christmas can be complicated and disrupting.

If you are the carer, juggling between your usual care responsibilities and get-together may seem impossible and having sole responsibility for caring for your relative may mean you are bound to your home making visiting other family and friends tough.

You may need some extra support at this hectic time of year. There are plenty of care companies and agencies who can provide a helping hand. Perhaps you just need someone to pay your relative a visit, as little or as often can be arranged? A live-in carer will help in the home, offering round-the-clock care for them and peace of mind for you. Respite care offers short-term support. Christmas has many demands on everyone’s time and if you’re going away this may be an option.

Choosing a care home for respite for your relative over Christmas can offer some much-needed respite time for you too to enjoy a break from the demands of caring. It can provide the perfect break to allow you to continue caring refreshed and ready to go again afterwards.

With the help of a respite carer, you can feel like you have everything under control, even during this hectic time. The person receiving care will certainly benefit from this as well. Thanks to their respite carer, they’ll be able to stick to their routine, and can enjoy your company more than if you were juggling caring responsibilities and stressful last-minute Christmas tasks.

You’ll be able to make home a peaceful, safe and quiet place to be, and your relative will be able to spend Christmas in the place they know best, well looked after and close to the people they love.

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Pantomime japes, jeers & jokes

Karen Neville

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Karen Neville

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Love them or loathe them, pantomimes are most people’s first introduction to the theatre, the tales of good triumphing over evil are as old as time but that doesn’t stop their enduring allure. So book your tickets and take your seat…

Boo, hiss or sealed with a kiss, if it’s December then it must be panto month so start practising your jeering and cheering and tuck into those sweets as you enjoy Sleeping Beauty who is being awoken with a kiss at The Anvil, Basingstoke, from Dec 12th-Jan 5th, in this fabulous family pantomime and laugh-a-minute extravaganza with stunning sets, top musical hits, fantastic costumes, and exciting special effects. A beautiful Princess is cursed by the evil Carabosse on the eve of her 18th birthday party and can only be woken by true love’s kiss. Can the Good Fairy’s magical spell break the curse? Will Princess Rose find true love and live happily ever after? Visit Sleeping Beauty | Anvil Arts for details or call the box office on 01256 844244. 

You shall go to the ball this Christmas thanks to Starburst Foundation at The Harlington, Fleet. Cinderella is a sweet and sassy young girl with big dreams and bigger problems with her wicked stepmother and downright dirty step-sisters, Zoflora and Lenore. But with the help of her best friend Buttons and her Fairy Godmother-in-training, she meets a mysterious, handsome stranger with royal connections who can help make her dreams come true. The clock is ticking for this traditional tale with a twist, Dec 13th-29th. Book at The Harlington – The Harlington or call 01252 811009. 

A talented cast of local players will showcase Rumpelstiltskin at Holybourne Theatre, Alton, Jan 25th-Feb 8th. Once upon a time, a miller proudly told the King that his beautiful daughter had a special talent: she could spin straw into gold. Unfortunately, it wasn’t true, but the poor girl’s life depended on completing this impossible task. How could she ever succeed? Only with the help of a strange little man with a magical touch… Book at Box Office – Holybourne Theatre

Journey with Winton Players to meet Robinson Crusoe at Petersfield Festival Hall, Jan 10th-18th. In the busy 18th century port of Portsmouth, Robinson and his sweetheart, Polly Perkins, find a bottle containing a treasure map. Robinson believes he can win Polly’s hand if he finds the treasure. Together with Squire Perkins, mum Olivia and brother, Billy, they travel 
to the desert island where the treasure is hidden with Captain Hand to command their ship – little knowing he is a pirate, and has designs on the treasure himself. For tickets visit Upcoming Shows | Winton Players

You’ll be egg-cited by the panto at the Theatre Royal Winchester this year. Have a gander at Mother Goose, Nov 30th-Jan 5th. Poor Mother Goose’s fortunes change when she meets the magical Priscilla, the goose that lays golden eggs! But when Priscilla is stolen away, Mother Goose and her son Jack embark on an adventure (or wild goose chase!) to rescue her, with a little help from their friends and you, of course! Visit Mother Goose | Theatre Royal Winchester to book. 

Be the guest of Princes Hall, Aldershot, and follow Belle and the Beast, a handsome Prince who has been placed under an evil spell. If the Beast can learn to love and be loved in return, the spell will be broken and he will return to his true self. But time is running out… for Beauty and the Beast, Dec 6th-31st. Book tickets at princeshall.com

Get ready for a spellbinding pantomime like no other at Camberley Theatre this Christmas, Dec 7th-31st. Join Snow White and her lively band of friends in a fun-filled adventure packed with unforgettable songs, hilarious moments, and stunning scenery. With a few twists on the classic story, this is Snow White as you’ve never seen before and will have you laughing, smiling, cheering and booing all the way through. Buy tickets at Snow White | Camberley Theatre

The Phoenix Players are back with another spectacular panto at Phoenix Arts, Bordon. Featuring a gallant prince, an evil witch, a beautiful heroine and, of course, a hilarious pantomime dame. Sleeping Beauty will have the whole family in stitches from Jan 16th-25th. Tickets available from Sleeping Beauty | Phoenix Arts 

Go to the ball with The Medstead Players at Medstead Village Hall on December 6th & 7th when they present Cinderella. For tickets call 07709 553804 and at Medstead Players – amateur dramatic society

Enjoy a family show fit to burst with festive fun at Farnham Maltings. Diana Hendry and John Lawrence’s joyous tale, Christmas in Exeter Street, is being brought to life in the Maltings’ second annual Christmas show from Dec 13th – 24th. With 37 characters, seven animals, 10 instruments, and an abundance of Christmas magic, Cordelia O’Neill’s new adaptation conjures the beautiful chaos and heart-warming generosity of the festive season. Tickets are available from £10-£22 at Christmas in Exeter Street | Farnham Maltings 

One definitely not for all the family is the adult panto Robinson Crude-soe, Dec 12th-14th at Phoenix Arts, Bordon. Join comic hero, Robinson Crude-soe as he takes to the high seas on an adventure to defeat the evil buccaneer, Captain Hooker and their salty seamen. Featuring a cast of hilarious characters including a magical mermaid and the feisty local innkeeper, Dame Beatrix Bender on this raunchy romp to sail the seven seas! Tickets from Robinson Crude-Soe: Adult Panto | Phoenix Arts

Whichever panto you see, you’re sure of a riotous time, oh yes you are! KN 

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Nathalie Beauvillain Scott’s Faces of Guildford 

Karen Neville

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How many of Nathalie Beauvillain Scott’s detailed life-like portraits will you recognise in her Faces of Guildford exhibition?

You may well recognise the people featured in the work of French artist Nathalie Beauvillain Scott currently on display at venues in Guildford. 

She started the Faces of Guildford project five years ago and it is now coming to an end with an exhibition which runs through to January in the town centre. It includes 13 oil portrait paintings and 13 pencil drawings of Guildfordians who have had an impact on the community in the past and the present. Nathalie has had a close relationship at some point with most of the people included in her exhibition.  

Nathalie was born in Fontainebleau, a little town near Paris and as a child always had an interest in drawing. At Secondary school she specialised in Art and History of Art.  

In 1989 she became involved with a group of artists based in Weybridge. She was then creating deltaic paintings on a huge scale based on the shape of the delta. She then went back to Paris to study art for a few years. 

In 1993 she returned to the UK where she met Tony Scott, founder of Guilfest. While bringing up their three children, Nathalie worked as a mural artist getting commissions all around Surrey in schools, private houses, bars and hospitals. 

Her interest in portraiture started in 2003 and she has received many portrait commissions ever since.  

She specialises in highly detailed portrait paintings of everyday life. Her portraits of everyone from children to celebrities and royals are recognised for their incredible likeness. Nathalie paints almost exclusively in oil on canvas. The time-consuming process begins with a detailed drawing and she then applies a succession of thin layers of oil. Some of her portraits will have a narrative content telling a story whereas others will be more about capturing the personalities of her sitters at a specific time in their lives. She recently started to draw portraits in pencil on paper. 

Her meticulous approach to portraiture resulted in her work being displayed in the National Portrait Gallery in 2004, 2010, 2012 and 2015 as part of the BP Portrait Award.  

For the last few years, along with six other local artists, Nathalie has been running an artist-run exhibition space, GU ART currently in White Lion Walk Guildford. 

You can view Nathalie’s incredible work at New House Art and Space Gallery, Fays Passage until November 30th, GU ART, White Lion Walk, December 4th-11th, St Mary’s Church, Quarry Street, January 4th-12th and Growlers & Cans, Chertsey Street, January 15th-22nd. 

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Always in our hearts

Karen Neville

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Woking & Sam Beare Hospice’s new appeal wants to ensure everyone receives the best possible care and support when it matters most

Christmas is the time for giving, caring and sharing so how about supporting local charity, Woking & Sam Beare Hospice and their Always In Our Hearts Appeal to raise £500,000 by the end of March 2025.  

Kerry Gibb tells us more: “There has been a lot in the press and media recently about the financial struggle faced by Hospices across the country. Whilst we do receive some very much appreciated funding from the NHS, we have to self-generate two-thirds of our income from fundraising and the sale of goods in our charity shops. As a charity, we need the support of our local community to keep our services running.  

“We are working closely with our healthcare and NHS partners across North West Surrey to ensure the best possible palliative and end of life care for the people of North West Surrey. All of our services are free to those who need them, but demand is growing. Not only are we seeing an increasingly ageing population, we are also seeing a lot of younger patients.” 

One such patient was Nicky Newman who became well known as a public figure, raising awareness for breast cancer. Her husband, Alex, is continuing her legacy by supporting us with our appeal so that other families can continue to receive the amazing care that we were able to give to him and Nicky.  

Alex says: “All of the care we received was free of charge. To give other families memories like we have in their closing days in this world really is a gift that donations help to provide. You cannot put a value on the impact of having such precious memories, even at the very end. Memories I will cherish forever.” 

The appeal was launched in September in Woking town centre with a flash mob choreographed by Emma at First Dance Studios. Dancers, Hospice staff, and volunteers showed just what an amazing, positive place the Hospice is as they danced in the torrential rain, embracing the elements.  

Kerry adds: “We have a new head of ‘fun-raising’ at the Hospice to support the appeal. Sam Bear will be helping to raise awareness by making guest appearances at the Hospice and out in the community so keep an eye out for him! 

“Our Hospice is such a vital part of our community, and together we can continue to see it thrive.” 

For more information about the appeal please visit: Always In Our Hearts Appeal – Woking & Sam Beare Hospices

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Sensory delights at West Horsley Place

Karen Neville

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West Horsley Place is sharing the benefits and beauty of the estate with everyone in the community with the opening of a new sensory garden

The peaceful and beautiful sensory garden at West Horsley Place has been designed to be as accessible as possible to all.

In creating the garden, a group of blind and partially-blind people and members of their access panel who face a variety of different access barriers, were consulted.

The design included raised beds to bring plants closer to people, colours that help create contrast and ‘banks of smells’, as well as benches and places for sitting and reflecting.

The West Horsley Place team, which includes a dedicated group of gardening volunteers, worked for six months to transform the neglected patch of ground into a charming space. Plants were transported and propagated from the existing collection and materials were all recycled from the wider estate.   

Over the last few years, West Horsley Place, the ancient Manor House where the BBC series Ghosts was filmed, has started opening to the public with an exciting programme of tours, workshops and performances. In Oct ober 2022, they announced a two-year project funded by the National Heritage Lottery called Heritage Without Barriers. This project has helped them to fulfil their aim to improve people’s wellbeing with access to culture, heritage and nature.  

The sensory garden, which was opened by the Mayor of Guildford, Cllr Sallie Barker, pictured, is part of that project. It has also been supported by Surrey Gardens Trust, West Horsley Parish Council, East Horsley Parish Council, the Stevenson Family Trust, the Banister Charity Trust, the Horsley Community Fund and other charitable donors.  

The Trust’s Director, Ilona Harris said: “We would like to thank the National Heritage Lottery Fund and our generous supporters for making this project possible. We are proud custodians of a 400-acre estate that is free for people to enjoy. It is wonderful to now have a space which is accessible and brings the benefits and beauty of that estate to everyone in our community. We hope you will come and enjoy it soon.”   

West Horsley Place is a Grade I listed medieval manor house and estate, the house dates from 1425, though there has been a building on site since Saxon times. Recent work to conserve and maintain the house has made the principal rooms safe and comfortable for public access, but the house remains on Historic England’s Heritage at Risk Register.   

The West Horsley Place Trust aims to bring the house, gardens, 400-acre estate and eight Grade II listed outbuildings back into good repair and to improve people’s wellbeing through culture, heritage & nature. 

Find out more at West Horsley Place Trust

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Help change lives with Home-Start

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Nicola Winter invites you to be the change that lasts a lifetime with Home-Start Butser

Home-Start Butser, a local family support charity, was set up over 25 years ago and has been supporting thousands of families with young children in Petersfield and the southern areas of East Hampshire.   

Volunteers with parenting experience are recruited and trained, then matched with families, with at least one child under five, going through challenging times.   

Volunteering will look different depending on the family being supported but every family will typically receive 2-3 hours of support each week where their volunteer goes into the home and does something that the family need or want. That might be playing with the children to allow the parent to get a job done or have a shower. It could be that the parent needs someone to speak to, someone who can listen without judgement or bias. Or they may have a disability and that extra pair of hands is a lifeline. Sometimes our volunteers help families to get out and meet other parents or they act as an advocate for the parent in a tricky situation, accompanying them to appointments and accessing other support services.  

Alongside our home-visiting support, we also run a number of groups, offering families a safe space to chat, play and make new friends and many of our volunteers choose to be involved this way instead. 

In such challenging times, with statutory resources stretched and the ongoing cost of living crisis, Home-Start Butser and the wonderful volunteers are always there, never wavering in their support. Thousands and thousands of hours have been given by volunteers since we started in 1998.  The impact is considerable, many describing their volunteers as: 

‘Amazingly kind and caring’ 

‘I honestly don’t know whether I would have survived without my volunteer.‘ 

‘She is our God send, we love her!’  

‘You have helped my family so much’ 

‘I love love love her, I don’t want her to leave until they are at uni’ 

‘The best practical and emotional support I ever had, apart from my mum’ 

Many more families locally need our help, and we always need to raise funds to continue our vital work. 

We are very excited to be part of the Big Give Christmas Challenge which means for one week, December 3rd to 10th, every penny donated will be doubled.   

To find out more about us; to become a volunteer, to get help for your family, or to make a donation please visit Home-Start Butser | the leading local family support charity

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Uncover the Oxford Indie Book Fair

Karen Neville

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The fifth fair is all set to be the biggest & best yet

The fifth Oxford Indie Book Fair takes place at Oxford University Examination Schools in the High Street on December 1st, opened by the charismatic Chancellor of Oxford Brookes University, the actor and author Paterson Joseph.

Thanks to the sponsorship of the Lucy Group, the Fair is doubling up again this year and will fill both halls in the impressive venue – Oxford University Examination Halls. The declared aim of Oxib is to be free entry so no one in excluded. All the talks and activities are free too. Like many underprivileged young people, access to books, particularly through libraries, opened doors to opportunity for Paterson.

What’s On December 2024 – Oxford Indie Book Fair

Speakers include the historian Janina Ramirez, the naturalist Hugh Warwick – he of The Prickly Affair in discussion with Canon Rev. Dr. Charlotte Bannister Parker on the topic is there hope for creation? The discussion will be chaired by Ray Foulk who ran Planet Earth workshops in the nineties in most Oxfordshire state secondary schools.

There is lots to attract children and families, including activities provided by Korky Paul, and the Pegasus Youth Theatre. The organisers are delighted to announce that the international children’s author, Paul Gustafson, known for his series of Eggbert’s Adventures, will be exhibiting. His books are illustrated by Ray Mutimer (illustrator of Postman Pat, Paddington, Noddy, Rupert and Friends magazine, Charlie Chalk and Star Hill Pony’s magazine for the BBC). Paul’s giant Eggbert will also providing fun activities for the youngest readers.

Check out who’s going to be there in the exhibitor directory.

The fabulous assemblage of children and young adult writers include:

Angela Kecojevic: Being Brace, Frank’s Secret Yeti, Sleuth School: Jeremy Swift Investigates, and The Laughing Shepherd.

Vie Portland: inclusive children’s picture books.

Griselda Heppel: Ante’s Inferno, The Tragickall History of Henry Fowst, The Fall of a Sparrow.

Milo McGivern: Five books, detailling the adventures of Aubrey, Clifford and Walli on the mysterious Island of Animaux.

JM Carr: Wonder Girls

Veneficia Publications: With books for children of all ages.

Oxford Children’s Book Group: Featuring a variety of children’s books including the story of St Frideswide who founded Oxford told for young children in The Princess who Hid in a Tree.

There’s non-ficton too, Crosswords for Boffins and Rebecca Mileham, author of popular science books. Her most recent book is ‘Cracking the Elements’ (2018) which takes a comprehensive look at the development of the periodic table – and reveals untold stories, unsung pioneers and intriguing science along the way.

For budding authors there’ll be lots of publishers and publishing professionals and the future of English Poetry is in the safe hands of Ignition Press, a publishing arm of Oxford Brookes. Niall Munroe has organised the poetry slam. You can even learn How Tennis Invented Everything…

More info

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Guildford welcomes Bird & Blend Tea

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Bird & Blend Tea Co brings its tea mixology innovation to Surrey with an array of tea-licious flavours

Bird & Blend are taking the humble cuppa to the next level with the opening of their new shop in Market Street, Guildford on Friday, 22nd November.

Offering an imaginative and magical customer journey, Bird & Blend Tea Co. create a fun, interactive in-store experience, mixing award winning, tea-based drinks. Flavours as inventive as Birthday Cake and Strawberry Lemonade to Chocolate Digestives, alongside firm favourites Builders Breakfast Brew, Earl Grey Crème and many more will be available alongside a brand new limited edition flavour, created exclusively for Guildford, called ‘Surrey Hills,’ a green tea packed with English berries to reflect the town’s beautiful countryside surroundings. 

Retail stores are the heart of Bird & Blend Tea Co., alongside its ecommerce business, and in addition to mixing tea, the Guildford team of six will also host live free Matcha tea demos, offer a tea matching service, showcase new and innovative flavour combinations, run mixology masterclasses, events and so much more.  The Guildford team are passionate about spreading happiness one cup of tea at a time…the new roles really are TEA-riffic. 

The store will showcase its range of teas, and the largest Matcha tea range that can be found in the UK, via its bespoke Tea Wall display, alongside the wide range of tea tools and utensils and its takeaway tea bar. The store will even run its own award-winning Mixology Workshops, where guests can learn all about tea and even blend their own to take home!  

At the opening party, on 5th December, guests will be treated to Bird & Blend’s signature Spiced Rum Chai or Strawberry Lemonade Drop on arrival. The first 50 customers will also receive an exclusive Guildford goody bag and lots of free tea. There will be plenty of seasonal samples for guests to taste, alongside the Guildford store blend, Surrey Hills.

With its arrival in Guildford, the team at the new store has nominated local charity Guildford Institute as its charity of the quarter, raising money and awareness to support the charity’s mission to provide an educational, cultural and social community hub in the heart of the town offering a special place for people of all backgrounds to meet, learn and explore. In store fundraising activities will raise funds and 50% of the in store profits of Surrey Hills will be donated.   

Bird & Blend Tea Co. was founded by Krisi Smith and Mike Turner, who met at university. The brand is leading the way in tea innovation in the UK; creating a range of over 100 exciting tea flavours by blending ingredients including herbs, flowers, fruits, caramel, chocolate… & even cake sprinkles.

Co-Founder & Managing Director of Bird & Blend Tea Co., Mike said: “Customer experience is at the heart of everything we do.  Alongside the fast growth of the digital side of our business, we’re proudly continuing to invest in local high streets too. We see our stores as not just retail spaces, but as community hubs where customers can come to make connections with one another and our team, and enjoy interacting with our teas. For us, there will always be a place for magical in-person experiences and we’re delighted to be arriving in Guildford.”

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