Excitement for the grandchildren on the day of a visit to Marwell Zoo. Parents primed, grandparents had the tickets but it was raining stair rods. So we went to the Pub for lunch. As the bill was paid, the air cleared and the sun came out.
Many people have mixed feelings about zoos and I am one of them. There is nothing to beat the thrill of seeing a wild animal in its natural surroundings even if it is only a glimpse. [Read more…] about Visit to Marwell Zoo and Animal Conservation
This is a new Do you Remember series. You’re invited to share your fond memories of Chandler’s Ford.
Is there a particular shop, a person, or a service that you remember and want to share?
Today I start off this series with my favourite gift shop, The Precinct Gift Centre, which closed in February 2006.
The Precinct Gift Centre was a precious gift shop at the Central Precinct of Chandler’s Ford. [Read more…] about Do You Remember…The Precinct Gift Centre?
St. George visited Eastleigh early this year.
Yesterday Eastleigh town centre celebrated everything about old England with an enjoyable family fun day – celebrating the Patron Saint of England, St. George who apparently single-handedly slayed the Dragon. [Read more…] about St. George Visited Eastleigh – Who is St. George?
The kids have gone out for a ‘Works’ evening. That means mountains of chips, steak and sticky toffee pudding all washed down the gullet with tsunamis of lager and rioja. They would not be well the next day.
So, as often before, we have our lovely 20 month old granddaughter to look after for the night. My wife is a super Nana and takes it all in her stride. All went well until 4.00am when my wife got up. Not for the baby but for the Norovirus which had struck. [Read more…] about Why Don’t They Say They Are Nappies?
Butterflies in February? Poor things will be caught in the next frost. But not if they are in a hothouse.
For the next week or so there is a magnificent display of butterflies in the Glasshouse at the Royal Horticultural Society’s gardens at Wisley.
[Read more…] about Butterflies in February
It is rare for snow to affect life here in the balmy South very much. This morning was different. Overnight we did some babysitting.
“Why are you called baby sitter?” asked our grand daughter, “You never sat on us, even when we were small.” [Read more…] about Snow Bound
Congratulations to Brandon Hulcoop in Year 8 from The Toynbee School in Chandler’s Ford.
Brandon has won a prestigious writing competition in the International Onkyo Braille Contest.
The competition was run by European Blind Union. From 62 entries in 21 countries, 12-year-old Brandon Hulcoop came first in the Junior section. [Read more…] about Congratulations to Brandon Hulcoop: Winner of Onkyo World Braille Competition
A few days ago my wife and I had the pleasure of meeting up with Janet Williams and her husband at the Hiltonbury Pub, my old home, and we discussed the way Chandler’s Ford had grown over the years.
In the entrance hall of the pub there is a photograph of Hiltonbury taken from the air in about 1974 and Janet suggested that I took a photograph of it and put it on the blog with some descriptions of some of the buildings in the photographs so here goes. [Read more…] about History of Hiltonbury Farmhouse
My family farmed the North and South Millers Dale and surrounding areas for over 100 years living in Hiltonbury Farmhouse until 1976.
On the 6th of May in 2012, my family gave a picnic table and benches at the corner of North Millers Dale (off Hursley Road) to the NMDCA (North Millers Dale Community Association), unfortunately the little plaque attached to the table was removed some time ago.
Vining’s Copse is named after my family. [Read more…] about The Vining Family and Hiltonbury Farmhouse
The most difficult job in television must be producing an advert that people will watch.
When the adverts come on, most people get up to make a cup of tea or visit the loo or maybe start to argue about what to watch next.
There have been some notable adverts worth watching. The first UK commercial TV advert was for SR toothpaste [Read more…] about The Voice And A Raven
It was Christmas Eve 1944; my sister and I had been packed off to bed with the warning common to all children that if we were not good Father Christmas would not visit. I remember how dark it was in the house with the blackout curtains.
Our house, in Sheffield, had a special role to play in World War II. We had a telephone. [Read more…] about Christmas 70 Years Ago
I always start to feel that Christmas is getting near when the town centre gets dark before the shops close. So what do I remember of Christmases as a child (apart from the dark high street)?
Mum was very strict on the time when decorations could go up – not before the start of the school holidays. But my sisters and I would often (at least when we were old enough) be trusted to decorate the tree. Except [Read more…] about My Favourite Childhood Christmas Memories in a Village
You must have lit fires when you were young and out in the country.
It’s frowned upon by adults but you have to do these things to learn.
The first lesson is that wet things do not burn. The second is that there is nothing as satisfying as something cooked on your own log fire. [Read more…] about Log Fires
Christmas is Creativity.
It is found in the story of the Nativity, Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol and film stories like The Polar Express.
It is found in poems such as A Visit from St. Nicholas (probably better known as The Night Before Christmas) by Clement Clarke Moore and In the Bleak Midwinter by Christina Rossetti. [Read more…] about What Christmas Means To Me
In the last post, Chandler’s Ford writer Allison Symes shared her passion with writing. She has taken us into her Fairy Kingdom.
Allison writes on her websites, Fairytales with Bite and This World and Others.
Today, Allison shares with us her publishing journey, and gives us some publishing tips. [Read more…] about Interview Chandler’s Ford Writer Allison Symes: Part 2
I have had the pleasure of interviewing Chandler’s Ford writer Allison Symes.
Allison Symes loves reading and writing fairytales.
Novels are her first love, though she also flirts with short stories, occasionally has a fling with poems and now writes radio scripts.
[Read more…] about Interview Chandler’s Ford Writer Allison Symes
After Nick John’s post about the Hutments I made enquiries from a friend, Robbie Sprague, who was born and bred in Chandler’s Ford. He wrote to me as follows:
I wonder if I could throw this topic out there in the hope that those people who have lived (or whose families have lived) in the Chandler’s Ford area for more than half a century may be able to contribute.
I was born in the 1950’s and my parents were at the time living in a development called The Hutments. [Read more…] about Do You Remember The Hutments?
Have you had to learn new things because of your children or grandchildren?
Horses have never featured much in my life. Not since, as a boy, I was put on one and sent off onto the beach at Cleethorpes. The horse ambled into the middle of a tidal puddle and sat down. I fell off into the cold water and the horse ran away. [Read more…] about Learning From Children – Horse Play
The Central Precinct of Chandler’s Ford is a paradise for snooker players. Chandler’s Ford Snooker Club is located at the back of the Central Precinct, facing Ahmad Tea company.
It is the last remaining snooker club in Winchester, Chandler’s Ford and Eastleigh.
The family run club has ten well-maintained tables and is open seven days a week to members and non-members. [Read more…] about Chandler’s Ford Snooker Club and Central Precinct
