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culture

Easter at the Parish Church of Chandler’s Ford

March 5, 2016 By Hugh Benham 6 Comments

The Passion of Christ: Sunday 20 March (Palm Sunday) 2016 at 6.30pm – a selection of readings, hymns, and anthems sung by St. Boniface Choir.

Easter Praise: Sunday 27 March (Easter Day) 2016 at 6.30pm – readings, hymns and an anthem for Easter Sunday evening. [Read more…] about Easter at the Parish Church of Chandler’s Ford

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Tags: Chandler’s Ford community, Christianity, community, culture, Easter, education, history, music, poetry, religion, St. Boniface Church, tradition

Celebrate the 80th Anniversary of the Spitfire

March 4, 2016 By Janet Williams 6 Comments

Tomorrow the air will be filled with pride and excitement. March 5th 2016 marks the 80th anniversary of the first flight of the Spitfire.

The Supermarine Spitfire prototype Spitfire K5054 first took to the skies in 1936 from Southampton Airport.

Want to know where you could see the Spitfire 80th anniversary flight on Saturday? Read on. [Read more…] about Celebrate the 80th Anniversary of the Spitfire

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Tags: Chandler’s Ford community, community, culture, Eastleigh, event, Hampshire, history, Hursley, local interest, memory, news, Southampton, storytelling

Producing a Local Legend: Sir Bevis of Hampton

March 4, 2016 By Allison Symes 1 Comment

I love history. Always have done. Always will do. I suppose this is because history is another form of storytelling. It tells the story of where we come from.

I believe there is a great deal of truth in the saying that a nation which forgets its history is destined to relive it.

Stories can be told in many ways to reach differing audiences and this is true for history too.  I’ve recently heard of a new comic book (Blood and Valour) and play (The Legends of Sir Bevis) about local mythical medieval hero, Sir Bevis of Hampton. [Read more…] about Producing a Local Legend: Sir Bevis of Hampton

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Tags: arts and crafts, books, communication, culture, Eastleigh, Eastleigh Borough Council, education, entertainment, event, Hampshire, history, local businesses, storytelling, theatre, writing

National Theatre Live in Chandler’s Ford and Eastleigh Areas

February 26, 2016 By Allison Symes 4 Comments

In recent months it has been a great joy to watch three National Theatre Live productions at Thornden Hall – The Importance of Being Earnest with David Suchet as Lady Bracknell, Hamlet with Benedict Cumberbatch in the lead role, and Shakespeare’s glorious comedy As You Like It, which we just watched last night.

I’m glad to report there is not one but three nearby venues in Eastleigh borough which show National Theatre Live productions – Thornden Hall, The Point, Eastleigh and, a little further out at Hedge End, The Berry Theatre. [Read more…] about National Theatre Live in Chandler’s Ford and Eastleigh Areas

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Tags: arts and crafts, Chandler’s Ford community, community, culture, Eastleigh, entertainment, event, local interest, National Theatre Live, review, social, The Point, theatre, Thornden Hall, Winchester Road

Growing up in Chandler’s Ford: 1950s – 1960s: Witnessing My First Powerboat Race (Part 11)

February 19, 2016 By Martin Napier 1 Comment

growing up in Chandler's Ford Martin Napier

As 1963 started, I found myself more embroiled in preparations for the crucial exams in the spring.

My real energies were directed towards bikes and boats though!

I was never a very keen scholar, and spent far more time studying boats in magazines, than I did revising!

I knew I was poor at maths and physics, so effectively gave up on those subjects, and concentrated on English, History and Geography, where I knew I had hopes of positive results. [Read more…] about Growing up in Chandler’s Ford: 1950s – 1960s: Witnessing My First Powerboat Race (Part 11)

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Tags: Chandler’s Ford community, community, culture, cycling, Eastleigh, education, family, history, hobby, local interest, memory, North End School, powerboat, storytelling, travel

How Have Your Reading Habits Changed?

February 12, 2016 By Allison Symes 6 Comments

The natural follow up to my recent post about favourite forms of writing is about my favourite forms of reading in all its forms – non-fiction, fiction, poetry, books, magazines, e-books, newspapers.

It also takes a brief look at reading habits given it is not just a question of print media any more for sources of reading material. [Read more…] about How Have Your Reading Habits Changed?

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Tags: blogging, books, Chandler's Ford Library, Chandler’s Ford community, community, culture, event, hobby, library, literature, local interest, reading, storytelling, writing

Growing up in Chandler’s Ford: 1950s – 1960s: Bikes, Boats, and Adventures (Part 10)

February 11, 2016 By Martin Napier 2 Comments

growing up in Chandler's Ford Martin Napier

I returned to the weekly “Club Room” meets throughout the Autumn & winter of 1961/2, with The Cyclists Touring Club. Their Southampton Section, as it was titled, organised weekly Sunday club-runs (rides), to a variety of destinations, always with afternoon tea booked at a venue.

These venues varied in type, from pubs that provided simple bread, cake and tea, meals, to the few cafes, or even a couple of farmhouses! [Read more…] about Growing up in Chandler’s Ford: 1950s – 1960s: Bikes, Boats, and Adventures (Part 10)

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Tags: Chandler’s Ford community, community, culture, cycling, Eastleigh, education, family, history, hobby, local interest, memory, North End School, powerboat, storytelling, travel

Growing up in Chandler’s Ford: 1950s – 1960s: My Passions with Bikes and Boats (Part 9)

February 10, 2016 By Martin Napier 1 Comment

growing up in Chandler's Ford Martin Napier

I think that my ‘awareness’ of motor boats probably came from the early days of our little family moving from London to Chandler’s Ford.

Dad used to take us to Southampton, on a Saturday afternoon, and would see motor launches on Southampton Water from the Royal Pier, and also from my favoured ‘window seat’ of Mayes’ restaurant, where we often enjoyed afternoon tea, looking out across the Pirelli factory towards the “New Docks”. [Read more…] about Growing up in Chandler’s Ford: 1950s – 1960s: My Passions with Bikes and Boats (Part 9)

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Tags: Chandler’s Ford community, community, culture, cycling, Eastleigh, education, family, history, hobby, local interest, memory, North End School, powerboat, storytelling, travel

Welcoming Year of Monkey: 8 February 2016

February 8, 2016 By Janet Williams 6 Comments

Today is the first day of the Chinese New Year 2016.

It’s the Year of the Monkey, my Zodiac Year of Birth, which is known as 本命年 (Běn mìng nián).

Traditionally a lot of Chinese believe that your zodiac year (12 years as a cycle) will bring danger and misfortune, so you need to wear something red.

To ward off evil spirits, apparently one has to wear red underwear too. [Read more…] about Welcoming Year of Monkey: 8 February 2016

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Tags: Chandler’s Ford community, Chinese, Chinese New Year, community, crafts, culture, education, good neighbours, hobby, how-to, memory, origami, tradition

The Magic of Words: David Bowie and Alan Rickman

January 22, 2016 By Allison Symes 7 Comments

I’ve found one side benefit of being a writer is that I appreciate words more than I did before I wrote seriously. Writing short stories, novels and blog posts such as this have all given me a greater appreciation of how other writers work.  But it also makes me aware there are several ways to work with words.

It is ironic then that two of my heroes, who worked with words albeit in different ways, should both recently have died of cancer at 69. [Read more…] about The Magic of Words: David Bowie and Alan Rickman

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Tags: arts and crafts, culture, entertainment, film, music, review, theatre, writing

Shakespeare Inspirations – Hamlet at Thornden Hall

January 8, 2016 By Allison Symes 1 Comment

I went to see the National Theatre’s production of Hamlet at Thornden Hall in October 2015 with Janet Williams and her son Ben.

Benedict Cumberbatch was superb in the title role.

I love the idea of being able to watch West End productions without having the hassle of going there. I’ve never been to a West End production and if I had the time to go there, possibly with an overnight stay, I should imagine that would be a wonderful experience. [Read more…] about Shakespeare Inspirations – Hamlet at Thornden Hall

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Tags: arts and crafts, Chandler’s Ford community, community, culture, entertainment, event, local interest, National Theatre Live, review, social, theatre, Thornden Hall, Winchester Road, writing

Eastleigh Tec Hub Members Create Wearable Interactive Map for Agincourt Project

January 5, 2016 By SO53 News Leave a Comment

Members of Eastleigh’s Tec Hub have been commissioned to create an interactive map of Hampshire, which can be worn and provides users with historical context surrounding the battle of Agincourt.

The interactive wearable map is being created by Marcus Pullen of Blue Donut Studios, and David Overton of SplashMaps as part of Eastleigh Borough Council Culture Unit’s Road To Agincourt project in association with the national Agincourt 600 charity. [Read more…] about Eastleigh Tec Hub Members Create Wearable Interactive Map for Agincourt Project

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Tags: culture, Eastleigh, Eastleigh Borough Council, education, event, Hampshire

Dispatches from Sri Lanka – The Tunnel in Kandy

December 31, 2015 By Mike Sedgwick Leave a Comment

(Editor’s note: For new readers to Chandler’s Ford Today, just to say that once in a while this site has kind of become Sri Lanka Today, while our well-loved writer from Chandler’s Ford travelled to Sri Lanka as analysing snake poisons seems to be a fun hobby when you retire.

A few more interesting stories from Sri Lanka will soon appear in the next few days. Happy reading!)

To get to our house in Kandy we have to go through a tunnel. The alternative is a 3 km detour. The other day we had the Granddaddy of Tropical Storms with torrential rain from 3.00 pm until about 3.00 am. In the morning the tunnel was blocked and we had to get to work via another route. [Read more…] about Dispatches from Sri Lanka – The Tunnel in Kandy

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Tags: adventure, culture, nature, Sri Lanka, storytelling, travel

Read Bill Bryson’s Portrayal of Eastleigh Town. Do You Agree?

December 28, 2015 By Janet Williams 18 Comments

This Christmas I spent an enormous amount of time doing something rather strange.

I found myself ‘defending Eastleigh’ a lot to my family.

The problem was that I started reading Bill Bryson’s new book, The Road to Little Dribbling, on Christmas day, after gift-giving, and before mother-in-law’s turkey was ready. This book has now topped the UK hardback charts for the third week. [Read more…] about Read Bill Bryson’s Portrayal of Eastleigh Town. Do You Agree?

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Tags: arts and crafts, books, Chandler’s Ford community, charity, Christmas 2015 in Chandler's Ford, community, culture, Eastleigh, Eastleigh Borough Council, Eastleigh Museum, entertainment, local interest, music, reading, review, Sorting Office, travel, writing

An Unusual Carol Concert in Sri Lanka

December 23, 2015 By Mike Sedgwick 1 Comment

A choir of girls was scheduled to sing carols in the foyer of a new five-star hotel here in Kandy. As some of the girls attended the school where my wife Brenda has worked, we went along.

I expected to see a crush of proud parents but there were none. [Read more…] about An Unusual Carol Concert in Sri Lanka

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Tags: charity, Christmas, community, culture, music, social, Sri Lanka, storytelling, tradition, travel, viewpoint

Christmas Then and Now

December 21, 2015 By Doug Clews 1 Comment

As a child in Chandler’s Ford, Christmas was a special time for my family and me, albeit mostly during WW2, as I was 5½ at the outbreak.

I was, to all intents and purposes, an only child (my sister, Jean, died from Scarlet Fever aged 7, 4 years before I was born), so, I guess, understandably, I was ‘spoilt’ (so I was often told). [Read more…] about Christmas Then and Now

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Tags: Chandler’s Ford community, Christmas, Christmas 2015 in Chandler's Ford, community, culture, Eastleigh, education, family, history, local businesses, local interest, memory, storytelling, writing

Oh Happy Days! Fond Christmas Memories in Chandler’s Ford 1950s – 1960s

December 20, 2015 By Martin Napier 7 Comments

Reading Andy Vining’s recent article, Farming in the Winter and Christmas at Hiltonbury Farm, sends me back to the 1950s and 60s, when my step-mother, Dad and I lived in the bungalows in the fourth service road (nowadays the third one!), on Hursley Road.

We looked from our back garden across the field to Hiltonbury Farmhouse where, in the 1960s, Andy was milking the cows and delivering milk. [Read more…] about Oh Happy Days! Fond Christmas Memories in Chandler’s Ford 1950s – 1960s

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Tags: Chandler’s Ford community, Christmas, Christmas 2015 in Chandler's Ford, community, culture, education, family, Hiltonbury Farmhouse, history, local businesses, local interest, memory, storytelling, writing

Farming in the Winter and Christmas at Hiltonbury Farm

December 19, 2015 By Andy Vining 6 Comments

I am now going back to the 1962/3 before I was married, it was often very cold at this time of year. I used to get up at around 5.00 am to get the cows in for milking as we had yet to build the Cubicle House to keep the cows inside.

Sometimes when it was particularly cold and wet we kept the cows overnight in the cowshed but there was only room for thirty six of them in the cowshed so some had to stay under the lean-too to keep out of the weather, usually about 10 to twelve were the unlucky ones, usually the ones giving the least milk! [Read more…] about Farming in the Winter and Christmas at Hiltonbury Farm

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Tags: Chandler’s Ford community, Christmas, Christmas 2015 in Chandler's Ford, community, culture, education, family, Hiltonbury Farmhouse, history, local businesses, local interest, memory, storytelling, writing

Christmas in Sri Lanka: 9 Things in England I’ll Miss This Christmas

December 15, 2015 By Mike Sedgwick 1 Comment

Yes, I know that when it comes to Christmas, I am a miserable old fart.

This year I will be 7,000 miles from Chandler’s Ford; will I be unhappy because…? [Read more…] about Christmas in Sri Lanka: 9 Things in England I’ll Miss This Christmas

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Tags: charity, Christmas, Christmas 2015 in Chandler's Ford, community, culture, music, social, Sri Lanka, storytelling, tradition, travel, viewpoint

Dispatches from Sri Lanka: a Loverly Bunch of Coconuts

December 13, 2015 By Mike Sedgwick 5 Comments

Two or three times a year, the coconut boy comes around to harvest the coconuts. This year he was delayed as there has been so much rain it has left the palm trunks slippery.

There are six coconut palms (Cocos nucifera) in our garden here and they all have a ‘loverly bunch’ on them. Two of the trees are King Coconut, a variety of large yellow nut found in Sri Lanka. [Read more…] about Dispatches from Sri Lanka: a Loverly Bunch of Coconuts

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Tags: adventure, culture, education, history, nature, Sri Lanka, storytelling, travel
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Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal by Joan Adelaide Goater

Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal by Joan Adelaide Goater

Growing up in Chandler’s Ford: 1950s – 1960s by Martin Napier

Growing up in Chandler’s Ford: 1950s – 1960s by Martin Napier

My Memories of the War Years in Chandler’s Ford 1939 – 1945 by Doug Clews

My Memories of the War Years in Chandler’s Ford 1939 – 1945 by Doug Clews

Chandler’s Ford War Memorial Research by Margaret Doores

Chandler’s Ford War Memorial Research by Margaret Doores

History of Hiltonbury Farmhouse by Andy Vining

History of Hiltonbury Farmhouse by Andy Vining

My Family History in Chandler’s Ford and Hursley by Roger White

My Family History in Chandler’s Ford and Hursley by Roger White

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Do You Remember The Hutments? By Nick John

Memory of Peter Green by Wendy Green

Memory of Peter Green by Wendy Green

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History of Vickers Armstrongs (Supermarine) Hursley Park by Dave Key

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