Wayland News digital on www.waylandnews.com Issue Number 194 - November 2012

Following months of planning and refurbishment two

historic features were unveiled at Carbrooke as part of the

village’s Heritage weekend.

The village sign was unveiled by Enid Clarke, well known

for her miniature paintings and one of Carbrooke’s oldest

residents. The sign was extensively renovated in the

workshops of HMP Wayland before being repainted by local

artist Fiona Davies and erected by Carbrooke carpenter Dave

Nickerson. The sign depicts the Knights Hospitallers and the

Commandery of St John of Jerusalem, sited in the village

between 1193 and 1540 – before the dissolution of the

monasteries by Henry VIII.

After the sign was blessed by the Reverend Jane Atkins,

another important part of Carbrooke’s history - the Hunton

plough - was unveiled by John and Richard Page. The

plough was made over 100 years ago at the Hunton foundry

in Carbrooke. In 1911 the foundry was taken over by T H

Page, grandfather of John and Richard. John remained a

director the Page Hunton Foundry until 1985 when it became

East Coast Castings. The plough was bought at auction by a

Carbrooke resident who recognised its unique value as a

piece of local history and donated it to the village. Like the

village sign it was also renovated at HMP Wayland before

being painted and bolted in place by staff of Carbrooke Hall

Estates and local farmer Nigel Webster. Both the sign and

the plough have been mounted on two new flint and brick

plinths constructed by local builder Tony Everett. Earlier in

the year, children from Carbrooke School buried a time

capsule in the plinth as it was being built.

Pictured right are 3 generations of the Page family with

the Hunton Plough produced in Carbooke over 100 years

ago. More information about the history of Carbrooke can be

found at http://www.carbrookehistory.co.uk/

Village Sign and Plough unveiled as part of Carbrooke Heritage Weekend

ART & PHOTOGRAPHIC EXHIBITION & SALE at St Mary’s Church, Watton

Saturday 17th Nov From 10am - 4pm

Sunday 18th Nov 12 - 4pm

Raffle and Refreshments Light lunches will be availa-

ble on the Saturday Enquiries to 01953 882570

November's here at last! It's been

a year in the planning but finally

the Wayland Players' production

of 'Calendar Girls' by Tim Firth

will be on in the Queens Hall on

14th, 15th, 16th and 17th of this

month. At the time of writing,

tickets are still available at

Adcocks but they are going fast,

so make sure you get yours as

soon as possible to avoid

disappointment.

It has taken a lot of hard work to

get the play ready for the stage

but we've also had a huge amount

of fun. Among other things,

eleven members of the cast and

crew went to the Royal Albert

Hall to see a special show in

celebration of all the original

Calendar Girls have achieved. A

host of celebrities took part

including Christopher Timothy,

Lesley Joseph, Richard Stilgoe,

Stephen Tompkinson, Lynda

Bellingham and other members

of cast from the film and play.

Alan Titchmarsh was one of the

hosts for the evening and there

was even an appearance on stage

by the Calendar Girls themselves,

who have now raised over £3

MILLION for Leukaemia &

Lymphoma Research. Help us

raise a little bit more by coming

to see our production! 50p from

each ticket sold will go to the

charity.

You could also help by joining us

at the Macmillan Craft Fair at the

Queens Hall on Saturday 3rd

November when Richard will be

having his head shaved in

preparation for his part in the

play. Donations to Leukaemia

Research will be gratefully

received and tickets will be on

sale - if there are any left! We

look forward to seeing you there

and on the nights of the play

itself. Don't forget, doors open at

7pm for curtain up at 7.45pm -

come early for the best seats!

Wendy Collins, Co-Director.

The Calendar Girls

are on their way

The Wayland News Page 2 News

Dereham Cats Protection

Christmas Bazaar Saturday 24th

November 11am – 3pm at Longham Village Hall

All our Christmas goodies will be available and of course you are

welcome to come and cuddle cats. Find us off the A47 between East

Dereham and Swaffham, follow the signs to Longham

For Details contact 01362 687919 or www.dereham.cats.org.uk

Presentations At St. Mary’s Church

Presentations were made by Rev Geoff

Garrett to John Adcock, Shirley

Hoggart, Joan Bayliss and Vera Amys

at the Festival Choral Evensong

Service celebrating the 350th

anniversary of the Book of Common

Prayer held at St Mary's Parish Church

Watton on 23rd September.

The service was sung by 32

choristers from Ashill, Barnham

Broom, Carbrooke, Necton, Saham

Toney, Swaffham, Threxton, Watton

and singers from the Mid Norfolk

Singers, Wymondham Choral

Society and Breckland Harmony

directed by Julia Grover. It was a

glorious service with the choir

singing Tudor anthems and the

congregation joining in well-loved

hymns!

John was presented with a tankard as a

leaving gift for his loyal service as

Cruificer for 40 years and Chorister for

65 years.

Shirley and Joan were presented with

medals for their loyal service to the

choir for 25 years and 19 years

respectively.

A leaving gift of flowers was also

presented to Vera for singing in the

choir for the last 10 years.

Enid Clarke (left), the well-known local

miniature artist who lives in Carbrooke,

has once again had three of her

paintings selected by the Royal

Miniature Society’s Exhibition which

will be held in the Mall Gallery in

London from October 16th. Selection

for this prestigious exhibition is

difficult at any time, but Enid is 92

years of age and the challenge of

meeting the high standard demanded is

much greater.

Enid moved with her family to

Carbrooke when she was a little girl

and the village has been her home ever

since. Her parents ran the post office in

the days when every village had one

and Enid grew up happily with her two

sisters, Betty and Norah and her two

brothers Geoffrey and Brian. The

Second World War took Enid away to

do factory work in Peterborough which

she endured rather than enjoyed, but

when it was all over she resumed her

Carbrooke life and in August 1950

married Jack Clarke. Together they

raised their two sons Paul and John and

once they were at school, Enid, by now

in her 40’s and with a little time to

spare, fulfilled a long held ambition and

took up painting, learning at a local art

group and exhibiting in local

exhibitions.

Enid’s life changed completely in the

1980’s when a friend persuaded her to

join her in miniature classes in Norwich

with Tutor Sheila Sewell. Enid took at

once to this new medium and her work

became very popular at a local level.

Her next step was to submit an entry to

the Royal Miniature Society’s annual

exhibition; her work was accepted and

her paintings have been accepted

frequently over the years and she is a

full member of that prestigious society.

Congratulations to Enid Clarke RMS.

By the time this appears in print

Country Market will already have a

collecting box available at the

market each Wednesday morning

for you to deposit milk and other

bottle tops to help this project which

does so much for young people

caught up in the ills of alcohol

abuse. One of our producers will

take the collected tops to the

appropriate major collection point in

Dereham. If you are not already

saving your tops for another charity

please bring them to us. All milk

bottle, water bottle and juice

container tops and other plastic

bottle tops can be saved in this way.

Christmas cards are already on sale

and the craft stalls have many lovely

items suitable for Christmas gifts.

Produce is going out very quickly

and the early birds get the best

choice of our fresh, home grown

vegetables. Our cooks regularly

produce a delicious selection of

cakes and savoury items as well as

jams, chutney, pickles, honey, home

made fudge and apple juice. Fresh

eggs come in four sizes. Pretty

jewellery is also on sale. Look out

for small gift boxes and bags

towards the end of the month.

We are open every Wednesday from

8.30 to 11.30 a.m. in the Watton

Christian Community Centre.

In December we shall again be

running a free raffle for our

customers: all who come into the

market on 5th and 12th December

will receive a free ticket: the draw

will be made by the first customer

through the door on 19th December.

As usual the prize will be a voucher

to spend in the market and the

winner can spend it on 19th

December or any time after we

reopen, following our Christmas

break, in February.

Watton Country Market helping the

Matthew Project fight alcohol abuse

News The Wayland News Page 3

www.waylandnews.com Don’t forget to check the new “Wayland News digital” website regularly to see items and reports that just cant be delivered in the pages of this paper edition. On the site you will find video and audio reports on events and occasions you might, or might not, have attended. To help, I suggest you consider joining Twitter - now, don't panic! Just read the article on page 5 of this month’s paper to help you understand how useful it is. Twitter is a place, where you can listen to what, folk who you choose, have to say because it interests, educates or amuses you. The Wayland News uses Twitter to announce when new articles are posted so by following @thewaylandnews you can stay up to date.

Do you want to get in to the Digital World?

A 'Digital World' is a world where

information is only accessible with the aid

of devices such as smart phones, tablets

and computers, and not all information in

the digital world is in the physical world

and vice versa; if you can't access both you

are in danger being disadvantaged.

The Wayland Partnership has long held the

desire to help the Wayland community get

in to the digital world but this has been

challenging to say the least as any funding

sources have gradually dried up.

Did you know that 90% of jobs require

basic internet skills, that the average

household can save up to £560 a year by

shopping and paying bills online; and over

25 million people are already using

Facebook to chat to friends and family

never mind Twitter and all the other social

media sites? We believe a significant

proportion of the Wayland community

does not have access to the internet and so

we want to try and help them get online.

Digital inclusion is a term which you may

have heard in the news or in conversation

with others. Like most "buzz phrases", it is

actually very easy to understand once you

have seen a definition. To us, digital

inclusion is about supporting others who

are not using the internet to get online.

This isn't just about providing you with the

technology to get online such as a

computer or a broadband connection but

also to give you the training, support and

most importantly a reason to get online in

the first place.

So to summarise, digital inclusion is really

about three different things:

1. Having a reason or the desire to get

online

2. Getting suitable equipment or

technology to get online

3. Being confident enough to use the

equipment or technology to get the best

out of the internet

What are the benefits of going “digital” or

to put it another way – going “online”?

1. Communication: keep in touch with

family and friends via email or Skype

2. Mobile technology: gives us the power

to do almost all of the things you normally

do online, but with the flexibility of doing

it almost anywhere. And using mobile

technology to get online might be easier

than you think

3. Save money: by browsing the Internet,

you can access free email, cut price

telephone calls and providers, lower cost

insurance, the cheapest power/fuel

suppliers and discounted holidays. You

can also compare prices and research

products and services so you can get the

best deal, from anywhere in the world, and

you cut down on travel costs by ordering

your shopping online. You can even make

money by selling unwanted items at a

profit on auction sites, rather like a virtual

car boot sale

4. Lifestyle: access advice, information

and services online

5. And many other uses

If you or someone you know is missing

out on all the benefits the internet can

bring, we want to help. We have identified

a possible new funding source which

would allow us to offer training and

support to those who want to “go digital”.

However, to enable us to proceed with

submitting a funding bid, we need to be

sure that there is enough interest locally.

One of the deciding factors for the funder

will be value for money in terms of

numbers of posteriors on seats. We will

have to commit to providing training and

support to a significant number of people

so this article is a request to you. Please let

us know if you would take the opportunity

to get in to the Digital World if we are

successful in our bid. This is not

guaranteed but we will do our best against

stiff competition.

Call Jan on 01953 880202 or Iain on

01953 880204, drop in to Wayland House

in Watton High Street or, if you are

already online but still want help, mail

your interest to iain@wayland.org.uk

EACH – The Wayland Happy Circle

Do you know what these letters stand for?

The members of Wayland Happy Circle do

now, after a very informative talk given by

Jess from East Anglian Children's

Hospice. With hospices in Cambridge and

Ipswich and our local at Quidenham

EACH is one of three place where life

threatened children and their families can

benefit from the care and attention they

deserve. With just six individually

furnished bedrooms plus playroom and a

fully equipped sensory room children can

have a few days of nurturing and their

families and few days respite. Although

the care of the hospice doesn't end with

this as the whole family can benefit from

counselling and support even when the

sick child is no longer alive. Every parents

nightmare is that their child should die at

an early age and it is very comforting to

know that there are local places that can

help. Jess, a very approachable young

lady, took us on a virtual tour of

Quidenham and brought various items that

we could purchase to help finance their

work. We gave her a cheque from our

funds and she seemed very pleased with

the money from sales and donations

promising to let us know how much we

had raised by post. Thanks Jess, keep up

the good work, it costs a small fortune we

now know to fund EACH but its good to

realise even our little bit is appreciated.

Next months meeting is traditionally in

the form of a lunch at the Hare and

Barrel and will enjoyed by all attending

and then on to December and another

year has passed by. The current

committee of the club has been in place

for several years and feel it is time to

hand over to new faces for 2013 let's

wish them well. Any queries please look

at our notice board or ring Doreen, her

numbers on your programme and the

noticeboard.

Who is Linus - what is he? Those of you

familiar with the character of that name in

the Peanuts Cartoons by Schulz will know

he was the kid who dragged a blanket or

comforter everywhere and so the story

begins but to us Linus is far, far more.

If you read the Hackers, Tackers and

Stuffers articles you may note frequent

reference to Project Linus. For years we

have made quilts; raised money at our

Exhibitions to buy materials; written and

even broadcast about and had open

meetings to promote this very worthy

cause. Speaking to someone who has

attended our exhibitions, had

conversations when the subject was

frequently mentioned I was completely

thrown when she said ‘Exactly what is

Linus?’. I decided that the time had come

for an explanation so that at least the

readers of this worthy publication may

have no reason for ignorance on the

subject and may even be moved to support

it locally.

Project Linus began in the USA in the

1990s and quickly spread internationally.

The aim is to produce quilts and blankets

for children from birth to late teens-who

are teminally ill or have a life changing

condition; have been traumatised by

accident, bereavement or family break up

and situations too numerous to recount. In

Norfolk we now concentrate on quilts and

all those produced are taken up within the

county. Examples of recipients include

Nelson’s journey camps for bereaved

children; seriously ill children in the

N&NUH; hospices and children in refuges

for those fleeing violent relationships. For

further information check

www.projectlinusuk.org.uk

Earlier this year Hackers, Tackers and

Stuffers (HTS) took over the co-ordination

of Project Linus for Norfolk from 2

exhausted ladies who been doing it for

years. This involves the collection and

distribution of quilts throughout the county

and it seemed to make sense if it was done

as a group, organised by a sub-committee

including 3 named co-ordinators. It is

proving to be no mean task as quilts need

labelling and checking and occasional

finishing touches. This is no criticism as in

modern parlance we have been ‘blown

away’ by the quantity and quality of quilts

donated. As an example 63 quilts were

delivered to Nelson’s journey in August

for their camps and they predict the need

for at least 200 in 2013.

We must thank the groups and individuals

who have provided us with quilts and

cannot possibly name all but they include

many handed over at the Norfolk Quilters

AGM; Lyn’s Geriatrics from Threxton,

with quilts planned for the cancelled

Wayland Show and so many more. The

HTS has had 2 specific workshops making

Linus quilts in as many months and we

continue to work on them at home.

Supplies using money raised will be

purchased at the Fabric Guild when

members visit on 18th October and we

plan a coffee morning in 6th April 2013 to

raise funds.

You may contact us by email

plnorfolk@yahoo.co.uk or ring: Jane

01953 884215; Susan 01760 440720 and

Suzanna 01953 880057

Have you heard about

Project Linus in Norfolk?

The Wayland News Page 4 News

Our September

speaker was Ian

Howard from the

Woad Centre in

Beetley where he

grows the woad

plant and extracts

dye to colour his

range of products.

He and his wife

Bernadette started

the business about

12 years ago when

he joined a group of

50 other farmers

who wanted to try to

grow alternative

crops instead of

traditional ones.

After several

setbacks Ian decided

to go it alone and tried a number of crops

before spending £500 on 10 kilos of woad

seed – and his new venture began.

He learned from poor germination that the

seed had to be put on and not in the

ground and after three years he joined

forces with a research scientist at Reading

University who obtained a massive grant

from the European Union.

Experimentation improved yields and the

number of cuts per year and in 2003 he

began to grow the crop independently and

used his kitchen to colour fabrics before

converting buildings at his farm.

Ian gave us a Powerpoint presentation that

revealed that the indigo dye produced

from the leaves of the woad plant can be

traced back to the Stone Age although

most people associate it with Boudicca

and the Iceni tribe who used it for body

paint when they challenged the Romans.

Apparently the colour can also be found in

the Bayeux Tapestry and was used in

police and RAF uniforms. In the late

nineteenth century synthetic colours were

developed which ruined the market for

natural indigo.

While the leaves produce the pigment

indigo which is used for textiles, wools

and homeware products, oil is extracted

from the flower seed of the woad plant to

produce soaps.

Ian explained that there was now a market

for woad dye as it was a natural product,

had a niche status and avoided noxious

chemicals. The procedure following

harvesting the woad leaves involves

washing the pulp several times and the

indigo sits on top of the water and is

insoluble; filtering, heating then cooling,

adding lime, filtering again and aereating

follows; after the water is pumped out and

citric acid has dispersed the lime, the paste

is dried and then ground into a powder.

We were then given a practical

demonstration of the dyeing process, using

a silk handkerchief. Ian said that, although

he is phasing out his production of towels

because there are no UK towel

manufacturers now, he produces a wide

range of products from sweaters and shirts

to throws and cushion covers, as well as

soaps and cosmetics from the woad oil.

One of the appeals of his products is that

the indigo pigment is never precisely the

same for each article so they have a

uniqueness. Intriguingly, the woad leaf

also has possible medicinal benefits in the

treatment of breast cancer and Alzheimer’s

Disease.

Ian was warmly thanked for a fascinating

talk and demonstration that the 40

members present much appreciated. I am

sure several will visit the Woad Centre in

the coming weeks.

The Chairman, David Green, informed the

meeting of the death of Terry Ryan, one of

the founder members of the Club. Eileen

Page had produced the following tribute: “It

is with great sadness that I have to tell you of

the death of Terry Ryan, a founder member

of the Garden Club. I received the news from

his daughter that he had passed away on

Saturday 25th August 2012. He was a very

good member and worked very hard for the

Club. Even after he moved away from Ashill

he liked to have all the news about the Club.

His name will live on with the Best in Show

Cup he kindly donated. I have sent a card

from all at the Club. All our thoughts go out

to his family at this sad time.”

Eileen Page won the prize for the late

summer pot plant. Members were

reminded of the visit to Jean and John

Walton’s garden at Dunbheagan in

Westfield at 3.00pm on Wednesday

October 3rd.

Ashill and Holme Hale Garden Club

Well here we are and here we go. First frost

here overnight Saturday 13th - Sunday 14th

October. You may well have had a frost

earlier than this as I am fortunate enough to

have a well-sheltered garden but it was still a

bit of a surprise to see the shed roof white for

the first time in months. At least we haven’t

had prolonged frost during our awful

summer. That and snow are about the only

missed weather items. We may have snow

this month, though, as we have done so in the

middle of the month the last two years and it

pretty much went downhill from there. That

is no excuse for neglecting things garden. I

generally get caught with tasks half-finished

and then have to try to catch up early in the

new year as December brings its own

hazards including Christmas and all that goes

with it.

Enough gloom and doom. Let’s have a look

at what should be going on in November. If

there’s been the first hard frost the foliage,

stems and flowers of dahlias and cannas will

be looking a bit sorry for themselves and

blackened. This is a depressing sight but we

are told to wait until this happens then lift the

plants to store the tubers. This involves

drying them thoroughly and constant

checking for mice damage. You have to be

keen. There’s been a tentative suggestion that

in mild areas the dahlias can be left in the

ground as long as they are provided with a

thick (4”) mulch. It might be worth giving it

a go but our Breckland sand allows frost to

go in quite deeply, which would make

leaving the tubers in the ground even more

risky.

November sees the planting season in full

swing so is a month of horticultural

optimism. Yes really. Now is the time to

plant tulips of all varieties from the tiny

botanical types that flower first to the stately

three-feet tall or more May flowering ones.

The little ones like tarda and kaufmanniana

that only grow a few inches high can be left

in and will multiply. However, it is

recommended that the tall May-flowering

ones should be lifted or treated as annuals.

Treating them as annuals is wasteful and

costly but I wouldn’t suggest leaving them in

containers more than one year. They look

wonderful in a large pot or pan but should be

planted in the ground after flowering. It you

lift them they should be stored dry until the

following November. If you leave them in

the ground or store them the quality of

flowers will deteriorate over a few year but is

still worth doing.

It is absolutely the last opportunity to plant

daffodils as they need longer in the ground to

get to flowering than tulips. Well that’s the

official version but I bet even the famous

have found a bag of forgotten bulbs in the

shed and shoved them in the ground in early

spring! If it’s your turn for this don’t despair.

Next year will bring few flowers but they

will catch up with the ones planted at the

proper time in years to come.

Bare-root trees and shrubs should also be

planted now, the most famous being roses

and fruit trees. No planting should be done if

the ground is frozen or waterlogged. This

sounds like a tall order for November but the

weather can be surprisingly ‘open’ this

month. Tree planting is always an optimistic

pastime whether you’re a Capability Brown

planting for generations to come or a normal

gardener planting for a result next summer.

Over the years the instructions have changed

somewhat and now it is recommended to dig

a shallow hole, just deep enough for the root

ball and a lot wider than it. The stake, if

necessary, should be at a 45 degree angle,

pointing into the prevailing wind. The stake

should also be fairly short so that the top of

the tree can move around. This will make the

tree stronger. In the old days it was

recommended we use a tall vertical stake in a

deep hole just wide enough for the root ball.

All change! Some experts also recommend

using mycorrhizal fungi in the planting soil.

This comes in powder form and is readily

available. I haven’t used it so cannot offer an

informed opinion but I do wonder about

these add-ons that turn up every now and

then, followed by a quick disappearance.

Perhaps someone who’s tried it could drop

us a line at the Wayland News.

The lawn is probably still growing so keep

mowing, once a fortnight should do it, lifting

the cut until the last one (soon hopefully). It’s

a good idea to rake it over with a springy

rake and aerate by pushing a fork in every

few inches and wiggling it about then brush

sharp sand into the resulting holes. You

won’t need to go anywhere near a gym after

that. Otherwise you have three choices:

ignore it, hire a machine or pay somebody.

Try to keep leaves off the lawn. Either

collect and bag them to make leaf mould or

put them on the borders around the plants as

a basic mulch. The worms will keep

themselves occupied dragging them down

for their own purposes and improving the

soil while they are at it. The downside of this

is that before the worms have finished the

leaves will blow about again. Don’t let them

linger on plants, though, as they will cause

rot.

There’s not a lot to do regarding veg this

month. Plant garlic and overwintering

‘Japanese’ onions but I have read that these

are prone to rot. Again, I haven’t tried but

keep looking at the possibility. I might get

round to it next year. If you have carrots and

parsnips it might be a good idea to dig them

out and store in boxes of moist compost in

case the ground becomes too frozen to

harvest them. Other than that the brassicas

will probably need protection from pigeons

and vacant ground will need digging. Hope

for snow.

November brings us the annual celebration

of Guy Fawkes so if you are having a

bonfire, please ensure you are not cremating

a hedgehog or two with the guy and the

potatoes. Please, move the fire ingredients

shortly before lighting it as hedgehog

numbers are dwindling which is a great pity.

One last word or two: they’ll still be growing

regardless of the weather so keep weeding!

In your garden with Lotta Potts

The Wayland News Page 5 News

Ashill Community Centre

Car Boot Sale Sunday 2nd December

£6 per table To book a table please contact Mark

on 01760 440 577 Refreshments & Tombola in Hall

Great

Hockham

Gardening

Club Our club meeting on Wednesday 10th

OCTOBER was attended by 23

members. Our Chairman, Ed,

welcomed everyone and informed us

that our designated speaker, Terry

Illsley, was unable to attend and so

despite attempts to find another speaker

we spent the evening doing club

business and catching up with friends

as well as having an impromptu

‘Gardeners Question Time’, led by the

newest member of our Committee,

Dave Thompson. The questions were

varied and led to interesting discussion

and suggestions, from compost making

to raspberry pruning… so much so we

are going to make it a feature at the end

of every indoor meeting. So bring any

questions along or send them to me in

advance.

After refreshments, Ed put us through

our paces with a fun Quiz, so thanks to

him for organizing that at such short

notice.

We now have 3 competition

opportunities each meeting, a flower, a

fruit or vegetable and a seasonal

photograph, garden or nature inspired.

The winners for October were:

Flower: 1st Jane Dalton, 2nd Jean

Wagner, 3rd Di Hough.

Veg/Fruit : 1st Chris Halford, 2nd Di

Hough, 3rd Jane Dalton

The Committees positions for 2012-13

were announced as:

Chairman Ed Szczepanowski;

Treasurer Prue; Vice Chair Mike Hall;

Vice Treasurer Hazel Dunn; Secretary

Jane Dalton; Programme Secretary.

Sue Thomas. Other C. Members Mike

Dunn and Dave Thomas.

Hazel will take orders for Fothergill’s

seed merchants at the December

meeting, from which we should get a

40% discount if we order up to £100 in

total. Everyone was reminded to bring

raffle prizes.

Our next Club meeting is on

Wednesday 14th November and is a

talk by Barry Gayton, Radio Gardener

and Question time broadcaster: entitled

‘Weird and wonderful’.

NB. We will be visiting Barry’s

garden, Desert World, Santon

Downham, in August 2013.

ADVANCE NOTICE : TRIP . . .

To: Little Bentley Hall Waterways &

Garden Show, home of the Palmer-

Tomkinsons, only open once every 3

years, for Charity.

On: Sunday 2nd June 2013 – Car

sharing. Time : Leave Village Hall

9.30 am Cost : £5 (£8 if not ordered in

advance as a group)

Please sign up at subsequent meetings

or telephone me if you would like a

place. Open to non-members.

It is an ideal time to join – membership

fees are just £10 per year – and there

are lots of benefits - free meetings and

refreshments, discounts on seeds and at

local nurseries. So come make new

friends and learn new skills.

Time:7.45pm at the Edinburgh Hall,

Harling Rd. Great Hockham. For more

information, or a lift to meetings,

telephone me or look us up on our

super website….

www.greathockhamgardeningclub.org.

uk Jane Dalton

(Club Sec. 01953 498694)

Ovington

Gardening

Club The October meeting saw another last

minute change in the speaker to Robert

Maidstone, who agreed to talk on

'Wild Flowers of the Central

Reservation' at very short notice. After

finally gaining access to the hall, the

speaker proceeded with his subject

which proved to be not the best choice

for a gardening club, but was very

interesting and informative

nonetheless.

The November meeting is a talk by

Ann Bridge on 'Colour, Chaos and

Curry'. This will take place in

Ovington Village Hall at 7.45pm on

Wednesday 7 November.

Hackers,

Tackers &

Stuffers Meetings began on the 11th

September following our August

break. Plans for the year were

discussed together with the subject of

a Christmas meal. Following a vote it

was decided to follow the example of

several other local groups and

consider a lunch or supper at a time

when we are not over-full of

Christmas cheer, also avoiding the

perennial problem of booking an

agreed venue and date. We will go

back to our former practice of a

mince pie with our coffee at the

meeting before Christmas and, by

popular request, continue with the

needlecraft related lucky dip we all

enjoy.

On the 24th September a member

demonstrated a Sock Snowman

(photograph on our Blog). This

involved no sewing and we were

assured that the rice needed for

filling should be of the cheapest

available and in answer to one

question, uncooked. On 23rd October

a smart apron, in ‘fun’ fabric,

suitable for adults and children will

be demonstrated (requirements and

pictures on our Blog, details below).

On 17th September 9 people enjoyed

an interesting and informative all-day

workshop led by local tutor Jane

Clark. Participants were shown

several new ideas and techniques

which will result in a cushion when

finished. On 18th October a coach

has been organised to the Fabric

Guild in Leicester. This has been

opened to include members of other

groups and individuals.

The HTS group meets in the

Christian Community Centre in

Watton High St on the 2nd and 4th

Tuesdays in each month from 7 to 9

pm. We also have occasional whole

day workshops at a different venue

sometimes making our Linus

contributions but at others projects

led by visiting tutors or our own

more talented members. For further

details contact Jane on 01953

884215 or check our Blog on http://

htsqgroup.blogspot.com . We

welcome new members, if you are

interested do come along for a couple

of meetings as a ‘tester’.

Christmas

Crafts

Market at

the Queens

Hall I would like to thank everyone

who attended this event in

October. We managed to raise

£35 for Macmillan Cancer

Support. This support will be

kept in Norfolk.

The Christmas Craft Market

will be on Saturday 3rd

November. There will be up to

20 stalls of locally hand made

items including cards, knitwear,

wooden items, jewellery,

textiles, photography, Christmas

gifts and decorations and some

unusual items as well. Start

your Christmas shopping with

us. The Wayland Players will be

available to let you all know

about their new show, Calendar

Girls, which is being held in the

Queens Hall on the 14th to 17th

November.

Opening times will be 9.30am

to 2pm and admission will be

free although a donation for

Macmillan Cancer Care and

Support would be appreciated.

Refreshments with home made

cakes will be available by the

Rotary Club until 11.30am.

Then hot lunches will be served

by the Thetford based charity

ASD - Helping Hands from

12pm. Please come and have a

coffee or lunch and support

these good causes.

If you require any further

information please call 07776

364456 or e-mail

wheelerevents@aol.com.

Generous

hearted

golfer

needed The British Heart Foundation is teeing

off a new national fundraising drive in

Watton and is looking for a generous

hearted volunteer to become to local

Junior Golf Coordinator.

British Heart Foundation Junior Golf

Tournaments are in launching in March

2013 at venues across the country

including the Richmond Park Golf

Course in Watton.

The Watton Junior Golf Co-ordinator

will develop and run one of these events

whilst being fully supported by British

Heart Foundation staff.

The role includes acting as a point of

contact between the venue, British Heart

Foundation and participants, checking

players eligibility to play, registering

teams and allocating tee times,

promoting tournaments locally to golf

clubs, schools and colleges, ensuring

players scores are accurately recorded,

acting as a referee and assisting with

prize giving. Full training will be

provided and out of pocket expenses.

If you want to have fun and save lives

by getting involved with the nation's

heart charity as a Junior Golf Volunteer

please call Paul Charge on 07920

823705 or email

chargep@bhf.org.uk

Watton

Table Tennis

Club I think everyone enjoyed the Olympics

and Paralympics this year - did it inspire

YOU to think about sport in a different

way? Did it make you think if people

can do those amazing things without

limbs and in wheelchairs surely I can

move myself about a bit more than I

thought!

Why not try table tennis? It’s as fun as

and as energetic as you want it to be.

It’s a great way to get fit and to meet

other people. Men, women, old, young,

the fit and not so fit can all play - did

YOU never play in a youth club, on

holiday or at the beach or in your own

home on the dining room table?

After all you only need a bat and one of

those little bouncy balls and you’re off!

The Watton Club, mainly for the over

50’s but also for younger members if

it’s the best time for you due to work or

other commitments, meets on Thursday

afternoons from 2.00 - 4.00. Bats and

balls are supplied and for new members

the first two sessions are FREE. If you

decide to join the Club membership is

£15 a year and £3 per session. If you

just come for the occasional session the

cost will be £5 .

There are also Club sessions for the

better players and those playing in the

local Leagues on a Wednesday evening

and new players are always welcome to

go along and have a go.

You can ring Club Chairman Dave

Attridge on 01760 336616 for more

information or just come along on the

next Thursday afternoon - go on - have

a go - see you there!

Can you

help the

Alzheimer's

Society? Join our friendly team of

Volunteers at the Dementia

Cafe in Watton.

Help us to support people with

dementia and their carers

locally at our café held on the

first Wednesday of the month

1.30pm – 3.30pm.

The role includes assisting

with setting up, serving of

refreshments, talking and

listening to people with

dementia and their carers,

helping them to join in

activities.

It is important that you have

good listening and

communication skills, are

willing to develop your

knowledge of dementia, and

are able to be calm, patient and

caring.

We can provide ongoing

support, good training and any

out of pocket expenses

Helen Dingle 01603 763517

Helen.dingle@alzheimers.org.

uk Registered Charity Number

296645

The Wayland News Page 6 News

The American

invasion of Griston Griston Archive Group would like to thank all those who

came along and supported their American invasion event.

This was our most successful event to date with £245 being

raised to continue the work of the Group. Thanks also go the

ladies of the parish church who provided the delicious

refreshments that raised funds for the church.

If you have any photographs or information regarding Griston

please contact the group by email gristonarchive@yahoo.co.uk

or telephone Bridget 01953 882840

They really

were

laughing all

the way Up

Pompeii

This year’s Boo and Hiss

Theatre Company's production

of the TV classic Up Pompeii

was unquestionably their best

yet. The show played to a

packed house on all three nights

and had the audience rolling in

aisles with laughter.

This stage version of the classic

TV series Up Pompeii, was

written by Miles Tredinnick.

Commissioned by Frankie

Howerd in the mid 80’s, the plan

was to take it on tour and then

into the West End. However,

before it went into production

Frankie Howerd was persuaded

to recreate his role in A Funny

Thing Happened On The Way

To The Forum, and after that he

was unable to continue with Up

Pompeii. So the play remained

unperformed for many years,

until last year, when it saw it’s

stage debut.

It is thought that the Boo & Hiss

Theatre Company are only the

third amateur group to perform

this classic.

Directed by Keith Gilbert, the

production was the Company's

seventh, and follows their record

of producing TV classics on the

stage and keeping audiences

engaged with beautifully

portrayed characters in a genre

that is not always easy to pull

off.

This year's lead, and star, was

undoubtedly Richard Brown

who played Frankie Howerd's

character, Lurcio; backed

admirably by some very strong

performances from all the cast

which included Gavin Challis,

Rita Lake, Alan Abel, Megan

Blake, Christine Conway, Stacy

Wilkinson, Chris Daly, Stephen

Smith, Chris Hannaway and

Fleur Ravell-Lake.

The back room crew included

Mary Adams, Pauline Daly,

Anne Brown, Lauren Brown,

with Rosemary Spencer, Adrian

Spencer and Richard Crabtree

looking after the Front of House.

Lighting was looked after by Mr

John Reed and Roy Ivory was

the Company's sound manager.

The Boo & Hiss Theatre

Company are always pleased to

welcome new members to our

group, whether you want to act

or help backstage. Some

members of the cast made their

debut performance this year.

If you are interested in joining

then either pop in and see Alan

at Mullenger’s Estate Agent’s or

phone Keith Gilbert on 01953

880172.

If you missed the show go to:

www.waylandnews.com

and watch the video there. A lot

of effort goes into putting on a

production like this and as you

will see from the video, which

does contain some adult

humour, it was all very worth

while!

West

Norfolk

Aviation

Society At their October meeting

members enjoyed a film presented

by society secretary David Allen

entitled ”50 years of the VC10 in

service with airlines and the

RAF”. The VC 10 Airliner was

built at Vickers Weybridge

factory. The first VC10 (G-

ARTA) off the production line

was rolled out for the first time on

April 15th 1962 followed by the

first flight on 29th June 1962.

The first VC10s went into service

with BOAC as the world’s largest

and truly first intercontinental

airliner. The RAF acquired Super

VC10s firstly as Transports and

later as Air Tankers. There are

now only eight VC10s still in

service. They were without doubt

one of the British aircraft

industries most successful aircraft.

Next Meeting Tuesday 6th

November 7.30pm at Methwold

Social Club. Speaker: Andrew

Barnes “One Hundred Years of

Flight” New members & guests

welcomed. For more Information

Tel: 01842 879210

October 2012 DYK answer

By Rosalie Davis Gibb

There are currently 14 British

Overseas Territories, but where

are they? Those bracketed

count as one territory -

Anguilla, Bermuda, British

Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands,

Montserrat, [Turks and Caicos

Islands] (all the Caribbean),

British Antarctic Territory,

British Indian Ocean Territory,

Gibraltar, Pitcairn Islands

(South Pacific Ocean), [Saint

Helena, Ascension Island,

Tristan da Cunha], Falkland

Islands, [South Georgia and the

South Sandwich Islands] (all

South Atlantic Ocean) and the

Sovereign Base areas of

[Akrotiri and Dhekelia]

(Cyprus).

All 14 are remnants of the

British Empire and come under

the jurisdiction of the United

Kingdom. They do not form

part of it although they share

Queen Elizabeth II as their

Head of State, each having their

own respective internal

leadership with most being self-

governing territories. They have

either not acquired

independence or have chosen to

remain British Territories,

unlike the 16 Commonwealth

Realms that have a total

population of 137 million, are

sovereign states within the

Commonwealth of Nations (a

voluntary association of 54

countries that mostly have

historic links to the British

Empire) and have Elizabeth II

as the constitutional monarch.

All but about 2 million live in

the six most populated states

comprising the United

Kingdom, Canada, Australia,

New Zealand, Jamaica and

Papua New Guinea (in a region

of the south west Pacific Ocean

known since the early 19th

century as Melanesia, being the

eastern half of the island of

New Guinea plus numerous

offshore islands). The other ten

Commonwealth Nations are

Antigua and Barbuda, the

Bahamas, Barbados, Grenada,

Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint

Lucia, Saint Vincent and the

Grenadines (all in the

Caribbean), Belize, formerly

known as British Honduras (on

the north eastern coast of

Central America), the Solomon

Islands (east of Papua New

Guinea) and Tuvalu, formerly

known as Ellice Islands, a

collection of four reef islands

and 5 atolls in the Pacific Ocean

midway between Hawaii and

Australia, the fourth smallest

country in the world after The

Vatican City, Monaco and

Nauru (in the South Pacific)

and the third least populated

with less than 11,000

inhabitants.

The Crown Dependencies of

Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of

Man also come under the

jurisdiction of the British

Crown but each have their own

independently administered

jurisdictions with a chief

minister serving as the island’s

head of government.

And did you know . . . the term

‘plantation’ originally referred

to a settlement or colony, from

the early method of

colonization in which settlers

were ‘planted’ abroad in order

to establish a permanent or semi

-permanent colonial base, rather

than a lush area of vegetation?

Did you know the answer . . . ?

Diabetes UK Although a bit depleted in numbers our members that

attended were able to hear about the fascinating life of a

Coroner, as William Armstrong, the Norfolk Coroner, was

our speaker. He started his talk with the history of how

Coroners came to be and took us through subjects such as

how an inquest is held, who is involved, the type of

situations that require an inquest and some of his more

remarkable cases - confidentially upheld. William was an

extremely interesting speaker and was able to answer some

of the questions that our members had. He was warmly

thanked for being able to give up some of his valuable to

come and see us.

Our next meeting is our AGM. All members past and

present are invited to attend. This will be held on

November 12th at 10.15am at the Pentecostal Church,

whom we thank for the generous use of their facilities.

For details of this or any of our meetings please phone

Helen, 01953 884713, leave a message and I will get back

to you as soon as possible.

PS Hello to Rod and John!!

News The Wayland News Page 7

We are now open to 5pm

Monday to Friday

Ashill Youth Club

Christmas Fair 2pm Saturday 15th December

Ashill Community Centre

Raffle ~ Tomboloa ~ Cake Stall Games and Santa in his Grotto

Refreshments To donate a prize for the Tombola or Raffle etc. please contact Mark on 01760 440 577

Luncheon Club for Senior Citizens

Watton Sports Centre starting Wednesday 7th of November

at 12 Noon

And following the first Wednesday of each month.

For bookings and details please ‘phone Paul & Christine

Weatherill 884213

Councillor's

Chat With Cllr Claire Bowes

As the song goes 'Times they are a

changing' and nothing could be more true

of Local Government at this moment in

time. Breckland Council's last (but not

least) "Could We Should We" public

consultation meeting was held in Watton

at the beginning of October. The meeting

was probably the best attended of all the

Breckland market town meetings and

residents had the opportunity to quiz

Breckland Cabinet Members about the

services Breckland provides and the

proposals to cut or reduce some of those

services in order to make the savings

needed, as we in Breckland have to play

our part in helping reduce the National

Debt. Breckland's settlement from central

Government will reduce by a third within

the next five years and efficiency

measures have already been taken to

combat this, including internal

restructuring, renegotiation of contracts

and shared services with other authorities.

However, in spite of this we unfortunately

now have to face the prospect of

reviewing and changing the ways we

provide frontline services as well.

Residents were encouraged to fill in a

survey stating their preferred service

options and an on line survey was open to

all. The results will be used to influence

and help shape the decisions Members

will be asked to make in the coming

months. I'd like to thank all the Watton

and surrounding area residents who

attended the meeting at the Queens Hall to

have their say. Some very good points

were made. As Councillors we really do

need and want to know what people think

and what you say and think really does

make a difference.

Don't miss your chance to vote in the

first ever Police and Crime

Commissioner Elections!

On Thursday 15th November the polls

will open across the country for the first

ever Police and Crime Commissioner

Elections. To vote, you must be registered

on the electoral roll by Wednesday 31

October.When elected the Commissioner

will replace the police authority in each

police force area and will be directly

accountable for how crime is tackled at a

local level.Norfolk’s winning candidate

will be announced on Friday 16

November after all seven District Council

counts have been combined. Once elected

the Commissioner will take up his/her post

on Thursday 22 November. The Electoral

Commission will be sending out a public

information booklet about the PCC elections

to all households. It will explain more about

the election and how to mark the ballot

paper. For more information visit the

Electoral Commission’s website or contact

Norwich City Council:

e: norfolk.pccelection@norwich.gov.uk

t: 01603 212055 or 212027

Please feel free to contact me with any

local concerns or issues

claire.bowes@breckland.gov.uk

Tel 07789796937 I'm also on twitter

@ClaireBowes (I will follow back!)

A Quick Look

Round by ORBITER

Surveys, Surveys, Surveys. Every day

we are beset with surveys or studies,

supposedly reflecting or influencing

our daily lives.

Thus we are told that coffee is (a)

good for you, or (b) detrimental

because of the caffeine in it, or that

life will be prolonged by the daily

ingestion of beetroot juice, spinach or

red wine, and countless other

commodities. Other so-called

surveys cover our daily habits and

report on the most stupid things, the

most recent of these pronouncements

being the suggestion that while, in

parts of the country many people

smile up to 300 times a day, those in

Norwich can only manage a total of

5.4 (probably Norwich City

supporters ). And it must be quite

difficult to do point four of a smile!

Who organises these inane surveys,

and why?

We have just passed that time of year

when the main political parties hold

their conferences, so it is no surprise

that we have been bombarded with new

initiatives that we would welcome as

desirable changes in our laws, so that

we feel that all looks good for the

future. Alas we overlook the fact that

most of the schemes put forward are

just wishful thinking and have little

chance of ever being adopted,

especially those suggested by the party

who are not even in power. Even those

ideas coming from members of the

coalition will rarely see the light of day

once the conferences are over, but one

important measure that does appear to

have universal approval is the

clarification of the legality of

householders to defend themselves and

their properties when confronted by

burglars. All this EU nonsense that has

meant that intruders have been

protected under the umbrella of ‘human

rights’ should never have been

considered in the first place.

Let us go back to the days when walls

could be topped with broken glass and

barbed wire to deter unwanted visitors.

Anyone climbing over would do so at

their own risk, and if they are shot by

the owner, so much the better !

While on the political theme, perhaps it

is not really to our advantage that our

leaders no longer command the respect

that was once reserved for government

ministers, even from the national press.

While privately we might have referred

to former prime ministers as ‘Winnie’,

‘Neville’, or ‘Maggie’, the press were

always respectful, and inspection of old

newspapers will show that they were

full of references to Mr. Churchill, Mr.

Chamberlain, or Mrs. Thatcher, instead

of the current trend of ‘Tony’,

‘Gordon’, ‘Dave’ or ‘Ed’.

How can we really respect them when

we refer to them in that way?

Perhaps I am just being old-fashioned,

but there you are.

One of the most controversial issues of

today is the introduction of wind

turbines to generate our electricity and

the various interested factions argue as

to their merits. What is not contested is

the fact that within a year or two,

whatever the source, we shall be short

of power. Yet great efforts are being

made to encourage the purchase of

electric cars, even to the extent of

financial concessions to that end.

One can envisage the time when power

cuts will not only cripple industry and

deprive the householder consumer, but

a great many motorists too, since the

prospect of electric cars having

anywhere near the range of petrol or

diesel ones is still a remote dream, and

to lose the facility to ‘plug in’ during a

journey would cause widespread chaos.

But not everyone is committed to the

motor car. Since the Olympics there

has been a noticeable increase in the

number of cyclists on our local roads.

Where it was usually only on Sunday

mornings that we saw helmeted and

lycrad forms pedalling through our

villages, they are now a common sight

at any time. And it is not only club

members, but entire private families

too.

But I do find it amusing when I see

cyclists on their many-geared machines

who have absolutely no idea what the

gears are for. Their legs flail round in

bottom gear, getting them nowhere

slowly.

All through this year the most

discussed topic has been the weather,

and as is usual when we endure a

‘difficult’ year the forecasters come in

for a great deal of criticism. When they

don’t give us sufficient warning of an

impending bad spell they are

castigated, but now they have been

subject to the wrath of some coastal

towns when they have correctly

predicted rain, for discouraging would-

be visitors.

Who would be a weatherman !

Finally I must report that I am just

about recovered from the shock of

seeing the front cover of the October

issue of Wayland News depicting a

dozen naked ladies (well, with hats on).

Not good for an old man!

And on the inside pages was a

suggestion that we should all attend the

local Health Centre to have our blood

pressures checked. Phew.

On Wednesday 26th September

Wayland Women in Business held

their autumn lunch at Broom Hall

hotel with guest speaker Georgina

Holloway, last year’s High Sheriff of

Norfolk. Georgina a self confessed

traditionalist talked about her role as

High Sherriff and her mission to

connect people from all parts of life

and backgrounds. High Sheriff is a

non political role appointed by the

queen and has been a traditional role

in this country since Saxon times.

Georgina was a delightful speaker

and highlighted the work and her

involvement in Leeway, which was

established in Norfolk 1974.

Leeway’s primary objective is to

offer advice, support and information

to adults and children who have or

are still experiencing domestic

violence.

Exhibiting this time were Suzanne

Lake and Catherine Downes.

Suzanne creates home décor pieces

and Catherine is a jewellery designer

and silversmith. Both ladies exhibited

a beautiful selection of bespoke gifts

and brought along a selection of

ready to buy items.

www.handmadefromtheheart.folksy.com

for home décor and

www.catherinedownes.com for full

details.

The next event will be held at Broom

Hall Saham Toney on Tuesday 27th

November 12-2.30 pm and includes

christmas lunch, a glass of wine and

tea and coffee served with mince

pies.

Our guest speaker is Jane Richards

from Jane Richards Interiors and Jane

will talk to us about her journey from

cottage industry to running a

boutique interiors business in the

centre of Norwich. We have invited

more exhibitors than usual for those

of you who are looking for that

unique Christmas gift, including The

Body Shop, Jane Goodchild

Handbags, Jane Richards Interiors,

Catherine Downes Jewellery and

Gone Crabbing.

Wayland Women in business lunch

meetings are open to everyone.

Although most attendees are running

businesses, do not let this deter you

from coming. We are always pleased

to see a number of employed and

retired ladies and a number of ladies

who are seeking to return to the work

place. It is a great social event and a

relaxed way to network and make

new contacts.

Our new website is up and running, if

you would like to know more about

us please go to

www.waylandwomeninbusiness.com

All are welcome. Advance tickets are

on sale now, only £15.50.

For further details please contact:

Jane Richards 001603 927365

sales@janerichards.co.uk or

Clare Rowling 01953 488993

enquiries@rowlingbuilding.co. uk

Ann Lusher lusherann@yahoo.co.uk

Wayland Women in Business and the Sheriff

The Wayland News Page 8 News

The Watton Society Quiz Wednesday, 7th November, 7.30 p.m. at the Queens Hall,

Watton. £6 per team of four, or less.

General knowledge, no individual questions.

Teams can enter on the night.

John and Judy Kerr 01953 882613 email:

johnkerr36@yahoo.com

Holme Hale

Christmas

Bazaar

Saturday 24th November 10.00 am - 3.00 pm

Plenty of stalls: Grand Draw Win a Turkey & Ham 1st Prize

Refreshments: Hot & Cold Lucky Dip for children

Father Christmas and much, much more

Shipdham & District

Book Group At the meeting on 16th October we discussed

Trespass by Rose Tremain. This is set among the hills

and gorges of the Cévennes in southern France. Two

pairs of siblings and their twisted pasts converge in

this dark novel of disputed territory, relationships and

revenge. Audrun lives a peaceful if bitter life in a

small bungalow near her family home. She's been cast

out by her drunken, spiteful brother, Aramon, who

still lives there hoping to sell the family home to

foreign tourists with little heed for his abused sister’s

wishes or welfare. Meanwhile, Anthony Verey, a

once-renowned London antiques dealer now failing in

business and personal life visits his sister, Veronica,

who lives near the Cévennes with her lover, Kitty. As

Anthony and Kitty vie for Veronica's affections,

Audrun and Aramon struggle with their background

and property. Anthony wants a home in the region,

hoping it will fill his empty life and give him a new

start.

The consensus of the group was that this is a very

clever, well crafted novel. The characterisations are

wonderful and we are ‘inside many heads’

throughout. The setting of the scene and

background are equally inspiring. We all felt

uncomfortable but drawn to this dark story with a

compulsion to read it to the end. All agreed this can

be seen as an interesting intellectual exercise for

writer and reader but not something one would

wish to read for escape or relaxation. There is

definitely nothing ‘cosy’ about it. It did lead to a

fascinating discussion about sibling and other

family relationships and what makes some appear

more dysfunctional than others.

It is hoped the book for our meeting on 20th

November, Family Album by Penelope Lively will

prove less disturbing.

A series of public meetings have

been held across the district

designed to give residents the

chance to show which services

they value most and which the

council could change or stop as it

looks to save money.

Over three weeks, Breckland

Council held five open meetings

and ran an online survey, asking

people for their views on a number

of money-saving and income-

generating options. Over 300

people attended the meetings and

almost 750 people completed the

survey to have their say on where

the District Council can make

savings.

Council leader William Nunn said:

“We have gone out and genuinely

involved people in identifying

where there is scope for the

Council to make savings.

“When we produce our spending

proposals, we will take into

account the main points that the

public has raised.”

Before the consultation started the

council identified ten services that

the law will allow them to stop or

reduce, and asked people to rank

them in order of importance. The

results show that residents value

clean streets, community safety

and CCTV in the district. Bottom

of the scale were arts and sport

development and the council

magazine, Breckland Voice.

To generate income the council

asked residents their views on

raising council tax; Cllr Nunn

continued; “We have worked

hard for many years to keep

Council Tax low but, in the

current financial climate,

increasing Council Tax is an

option we have to consider.”

Results of the consultation show

20.2 per cent thought Council

Tax should stay the same, 32.9%

wanted an increase that matched

inflation and 46.9% wanted a tax

increase to the maximum, which

at the time of the consultation

stood at 3.5%. However, under

the plans unveiled at the

Conservative party conference,

local authorities that wish to

increase council tax by more

than 2% next year will have to

hold a referendum.

Introducing charging in Breckland

Council car parks was another

option to make money, with

residents having three choices.

7.8% wanted the introduction of

hourly fees so the car parks self-

fund the annual £300,000 cost of

running them, 41.4% said they

would like to see the Council

introduce parking fees with the

first hour or possibly two free of

charge, and 50.8% wanted to keep

car parking in the district free.

Cllr Nunn said: “Within the next

five years our settlement from

Central Government, which makes

up the majority of our funding,

will reduce by about a third. We

cannot continue to operate as we

do now and it’s inevitable that we

will have to stop, reduce or charge

for many of the services we

currently provide. The results of

the survey will be used to inform

the difficult decisions we have to

make about short, medium and

long-term budget planning.”

Here are the survey results for

those ten services when combining

the all responses received. The

service at the top was judged as

the most important to keep and the

one at the bottom as the least

important. For those in the middle,

the higher on the list the more

important they were judged to be.

Top priority Continue to clean

streets regularly

2nd priority Continue to provide

community safety service

3rd priority Continue to provide

CCTV

4th priority Continue to support

Community Development

5th priority Continue to support

community transport

6th priority Keep grass-cutting

frequency

7th priority Keep free pest

control

8th priority Keep sports

development

9th priority Continue to support

arts

Lowest priority Continue with

Voice

Full results from the Could we,

Should we consultation can be

found at www.breckland.gov.uk

and video of the Watton meeting

is on www.waylandnews.com

Could We? Should We?

The results are in . . .

Lighthouses

and All That

The Watton Society Talk By Rosie Gibb on Wednesday, November 21st 7.45 pm at the

Christian Community Centre.

A mostly lighthearted talk, with artefacts and props! covering not

only the fascinating and factual how, where and when,

but a wide spectrum of associated topics, including something of the

life of a Keeper through the ages,

particularly on rock stations, and anecdotes from when Rosie

looked after the North Foreland Lighthouse at Broadstairs in Kent.

Entrance fee is £1.50 for members and £2.50 for non members, who

are very welcome to attend.

John and Judy Kerr. 882613. email: johnkerr36@yahoo.com for

more information.

Earlier this year the Queens Hall

Trustees appealed for new members to

augment the management committee.

We are glad to say that this had a

positive response and we gained three

new members, including one who was

hoping to take over as Treasurer.

Unfortunately due to family and health

problems she has reluctantly had to

withdraw her offer, so we are again

seeking a new Treasurer. We are

hoping to find someone with financial

or business experience who could join

the team and ensure that this important

Watton landmark can continue to

flourish.

At the moment the hall is well used

with plenty of support and a full diary

of bookings, so we have no doubt that

the people of Watton and the

surrounding area appreciate this

outstanding venue. The Hall has a

tradition of willing volunteers from its

beginning in 1952; sixty years later we

still rely of volunteers for the day to

day running and routine maintenance.

If you feel that you have the

appropriate skills and would be willing

to help to keep the hall continuing to

function for the benefit of everyone in

the town please contact Mike Rix

(01953 889890) or Janet Lundie

(01953 883529)

Queens Hall

Treasure(r)

Hunt

Watton Methodist Church are holding

their CHRISTMAS BAZAAR on

Saturday 24th November from 9.30am

to 1pm in the Watton Christian

Community Centre in the High Street.

There will be various stalls - Gifts,

Cakes, Toiletries, Bric a Brac etc.,

Competitions. Teas/Coffees available

from 9.30 onwards followed by light

lunches. Hope you can come?

Christmas

Bazaar

Following the success of our adult

book group, we've been asked to start

a Junior book club. The first meeting

will be on Friday 19th October

3.45pm to 4.15pm, and will meet on

the third Friday of each month. So if

you love reading and would like to

talk about books with people your

own age, come and join! We’ll share

all sorts of books we’ve enjoyed, and

help you discover new books that you

might not have tried. There will be

quizzes and other stuff to do, you can

even write some reviews to

recommend books to others. You can

also join our free Wordsworth Club if

you're not already a member. You can

collect badges and see your reviews

displayed in the library or even on our

website.

Ask in the branch for more details or

call the library on 01953 881671

Junior Book

Club at Watton

Library

News The Wayland News Page 9

Caston School Quiz Night Thursday 15th Nov 7pm, for teams of up

to 6 adults, £2 per person, cash prize. Refreshments available or bring your

own. For more details or to book phone Vicki on 01362 822020

Watton &

District

University of

the Third Age

(U3A)

At the September meeting Neil

Storey gave us a good idea who

“Jack the Ripper” really was but the

actual police evidence would not

support a conviction. Neil’s Blood

Curling photographs of the crime

scenes were the first ever taken by

the police in support of a crime.

Fifty members recently toured

Colchester and Constable Country

visiting many of the villages

associated with this great painter.

Our photograph shows a few

members at Flatford Mill.

Tickets for this years Christmas

lunch at the Richmond Park G.C on

Friday 7th December are now

available. Price is £13.50 and

includes a free raffle.

Alan’s Pub Luncheon Group will

meet at the White Horse at Longham

on Thursday 8th November.

The Garden Visit Group is having a

pre Christmas visit to a Garden

Centre. For further details call Susan

on 01953 881373

Our recently formed second Pub

Luncheon Group led by Brian Eular

will meet at The Windmill Gt

Cressingham on Tuesday 27th

November. New members wishing to

join this group should contact Brian

on 01953 889323.

A group has now been formed to

teach Bridge. If you wish to join

please contact Margaret on 01953

889951

The next monthly meeting is on

Thursday 22nd November. The

speaker at this meeting will be Steve

De-Roek with a trip round New

Zealand.

For further information on the

National U3A go to www.u3a.org.uk

London . . . Paris . . . Milan . . . WATTON!

On October 5th in the Queen’s Hall the town

joined the ranks of the famous Fashion

Houses when members of the Inner Wheel

Club took to the catwalk to present the

Autumn and Winter Collection from

Artichoke of Hackford near Hingham.

Described by owner Sarah Simmons as

‘Clothes for real women’ (rather than stick

insects!) the models showed a range of

mainly ‘smart casual’ clothes in a variety of

styles and colours. Also displayed were

accessories: bags, jewellery and scarves.

The event, which was attended by the

Mayoress Mrs. Maureen Cooper, began with

a wine reception and an introduction by Club

President Jenny Simons who read a poem,

written about an earlier Show, by member

Judy Wilson.

Eight models showed 16 complete outfits

with over 30 other garments which could be

worn to complement, or add to, the basic

ensembles.

After the show there was

opportunity to ‘try and

buy’ the fashions

displayed and many ladies

took full advantage of

this! The event raised an

initial £314.64 for Inner

Wheel Charities but this

total is set to rise as

commission on sales –

both on the night and for two weeks before

and after the event – is donated by Sarah of

Artichoke.

Inner Wheel members do not sit still!

Future events for your interest and delight

include the Barn Dance on November 2nd

and the Christmas Stall and Coffee Morning

with a marvellous array of home made cakes,

a Tombola and a Raffle on December 1st.

Making a welcome return on November 7th

and December 12th are the fabulous

LUNCH TIME CONCERTS where, for a

mere £5, you can enjoy entertainment and

lunch in a welcoming and friendly

atmosphere. The West End Waiters are the

guest entertainers in November and in

December come a join a Christmas

celebration with members of the Inner

Wheel. All these events take place in the

Queen’s Hall and all tickets are available

from Mullengers or Inner wheel members.

Lesley Cowling. Club Correspondent

Kate Moss eat

your heart out . . .

SSAFA Snippets It takes all Summer to get the garden

looking just how you want it – and then

comes Autumn! But the trees are looking

splendid so mustn’t complain, even though

we do!

So what’s news this month? Did you know

that Age UK have a befriending Service?

In order to target and reduce lonliness

among older people, Age UK developed

this service to introduce befrienders and

people needing company. This relationship

promotes well being and confidence and

can also help people in later life to remain

independent in their own homes.

However, if you are drawing ESA you will

benefit too by including this voluntary

work in your CV. The Job Centre will be

very impressed.

Befrienders are volunteers and can provide

the vital linkto the outside world often

acing as a gateway for access to other

services and support.

Age UK also provide a telephone

befriending service called ‘ Call in Time ‘

which consists of a regular daily or weekly

‘phone call. The relationship is structured

so that each befriender makes the call at

regular pre-agreed time. All befrienders are

volunteers.

Is this something you or a relative needs?

Or would you like to become a befriender?

You can contact Age UK on Freephone

0800 169 6565 or visit www.ageuk.org.uk

for more information.

And now for the C word! Just a timely

reminder that if you buy your charity

Christmas Cards esp SSAFA from the

Assembly House in Norwich all the

proceeds will stay in Norfolk to help

Norfolk people. If however you buy on

line the proceeds go to Head Office. So

please please buy your SSAFA Cards at

the Assembly House Norwich – before or

after your coffee, it doesn’t matter!

Finally, THAT telephone number 01 603

403322 mornings before 1200 if you

would like to speak to someone ( not a

machine) about help or about Volunteering

with SSAFA.

Macmillan

Coffee

Morning Dave and Jenny Simons are holding their

coffee morning in aid of Macmillan Cancer

Support on Friday, 9th November, from

10.30 till 12 noon at 95, Nelson Court. Please

come and enjoy a cup of coffee while

supporting this worthwhile cause - old

friends and new ones all most welcome.

The Wayland News Page 11 The Wayland News Page 10

News The Wayland News Page 12

WAYLAND CMA November 24th Country Company

Tel 01953 889 890 for details

“The Best In Country Music” 8 ‘til late

Watton air cadets have held their Annual

Presentation Award Evening on Friday

28th Spetember, where cadets were

rewarded and recognised for all their

efforts and hard work over the last year.

The evening started with a short speech

from the commanding officer Warrant

Officer Skelly, the presentation then

moved onto a slide show detailing some

of the activities that the cadets had taken

part in over the year from RAF station visits

and flying to sporting activities for the

squadron and wing, the slide show then

went onto show pictures of individual

participating in the activities including any

funny shots that had been taken.

The next stage of the evening was to

promote some of the cadets, two of the

corporals Batty & Blockwell were

promoted to sergeants, whilst cadets

Macloughlin and Grinsell were also

promoted to corporal, this is in

recognition on the cadet’s achievements,

hard work and dedication.

The next stage of the evening was the

presentation of the awards, these are

awarded to reward the highest achieving

cadets in each category.

The cadet who was best in exams - Cpl

Healy was the top scoring cadet in the

classification exams.

The Best cadet in Sports - Corporal

Macloughlin who has repeatedly

represented the squadron, wing and region

in a variety of sporting events over the year.

Best cadet at Shooting - Cadet Westwood,

who on his first attempt at shooting

gained a marksman badge, this is an

incredible achievement and a well-

deserved trophy winner.

Most Improved Cadet - Sgt Batty for all his

incredible hard work in bringing the band

together and organising the routines

Betty Wilkinson Trophy for best junior

cadet - Cadets Cowles & Anscombe. this

was awarded by the trophy’s namesake

Betty Wilkinson and is awarded for the best

new cadets, it was a joint award as the two

new cadets were very dedicated and there

was not much to choose between the two.

Most enthusiastic cadet - Cadet Everitt,

this is awarded for the cadet who is

always one of the first to volunteer and is

always keen in everything they do

Best In Modelling – Sergeant Palmer this

is awarded to the cadet who has been

judged to have been the best in aircraft

modelling, this year for helping make a

themed aircraft model to be entered into a

competition.

Best NCO - Corporal Anscombe this is

awarded for the NCO who has shown that

they are a valued member of the NCO

team, who is also one of the first to put

herself forward for any duties.

Runner up best cadet - Corporal Mcharg

this is awarded to the cadet judged to be

the runner up for best overall cadet, all the

cadets are considered for this award, this

was awarded to Corporal Mcharg by

Watton’s Mayor Paul Cooper.

Overall Best Cadet - Flight Sergeant

Steven this is awarded to recognise an

outstanding contribution to the squadron,

this year for Flight Sergeants Steven’s

efforts to bond the squadron and build a

strong NCO team to help bring on the

junior cadets. Again this award was

presented by Watton’s mayor Paul

Cooper, the award is created from a

Heads up Display from a tornado aircraft

from RAF Marham and is a stunning

trophy.

If you are interested in joining 864

Watton Air Cadets or just want to see

what we are all about check out our new

website at

www.864wattonsquadronaircadets.com

Follow us on Twitter at @864wattonaircadets,

Email enquiries@864wattonaircadets.co.uk or

call on 01953 885531 (only during parade

hours). Or come and visit on a parade evening

Mondays and Wednesdays 1900 – 2130hrs.

Watton Air Cadets' Presentation Evening

Back row from left to right Cpl Alice Macloughlin, Cpl Beth Anscombe, Cpl Thomas Mcharg, Sgt Lauren Blockwell, Flt Sgt

Mia Steven, Adult W/O Skelly (Squadron CO) Watton Mayor Paul Cooper, Cpl Josh Grinsell, Sgt Kristian Batty.

Front Row from Left to right Cdt Hollie Everitt, Cdt Natasha Cowles, Cdt Haidee Anscombe, Cdt Adam Westwood.

Charity Auction - Friday 9th

November 7.30pm start, at the East

Harling Sports & Social Club, Church

Road, East Harling, Norfolk NR16

2NA Bidding registration fee £1

Join us for a fun evening at our

Charity Auction in aid of Feline Care

Cat Rescue! We have a variety of

fabulous items to be auctioned; from

delicious food & drink items, to

indulgent human treats & gifts for

your animal friends!

There is something for everyone. You

may well solve your Christmas present

dilemma! Plus raffle with great prizes

to be won. All money raised goes to

our cats. It promises to be loads of

fun, so make a date in your diary and

bring your friends!

Feline Care Christmas Open

Afternoon Sunday 25th November 2 - 4

pm Feline Care - Roudham Road, East

Harling, Norfolk, NR16 2QN

Come along and bring your gifts for the

cats between 2-4pm at Feline Care. Lots

of fantastic stalls; a giant tombola, gifts

for Christmas, delicious home made

cakes & savouries, cat stall, raffle,

Christmas songs to get you in the festive

spirit and lots more! Our friendlier

residents will be begging for a fuss and

can't wait to see you there!

Entrance £1 per person, 50p for kids &

under 3's free!

Medium Night with Terri Lake Friday

30th November 7pm, East Harling

Sports & Social Club, Church Road,

East Harling, Norfolk NR16 2NA

£5 Entry Join us for an entertaining

evening and help raise money for

charity!

"Terri works mainly on the Mediumship

vibration helping both Spirit and those left

behind move forward from the pain of

loss. Terri's messages are delivered with

love, kindness and compassion and she

has a lovely way of making you feel

totally at ease and comfortable, her

attention to detail is second to none. Terri

also has the ability to use psychometry to

gain information from objects. This is also

a lovely way to connect to friends and

family in the Spirit World." ~ Testimonial

by Mel Grundy.

Phone 01953 718529 for more details.

www.felinecare.org.uk

Registered Charity No 1144830

Feline Care Cat Rescue Fundraising Events

News The Wayland News Page 13

Any Old

Iron? A short story by John Egerton

Buster walked into the Red Lion,

nodded to the landlord, then went

through into the backroom, where he

found his brothers waiting for their

weekly business meeting.

“Right, lads,” he said, “let’s have it.

You first, Brian”.

“Well, there’s not much to tell, really.

Just the lead off the roof of St.

Mary’s”.

“I thought you were going to do St.

Peter’s”, said Buster.

“Well we were, but when we got there

we found that someone else had beaten

us to it, so we went to St.Mary’s

instead”.

“Oh, O.K. What about you, Lester ?”.

“Nothing much to report I’m afraid.

Just a few manhole covers. That

reminds me to tell you it might be best

not to drive down the High Street for

the next few days”.

Then it was Spike’s turn. “I got the

gates off the cemetery. Came off like a

treat”.

“And you, Pete ?”, asked Buster. “

You look a bit bruised and battered.

What have you been up to ?”

“Well, I managed to bring down one

of those cables that run between the

pylons on the Common”.

“Blimey”, said Brian, “there must

have been 25,000 volts going through

that”.

“Oh”, replied Pete, “no wonder it felt

so heavy”.

“So, how did you get all those

bruises ? Did you fall off your ladder

or something ?”

“No, that was the wife when I got

home. The power went off right in the

middle of Downton Abbey !”.

“And you, Billy”, said Buster. “What’s

that roll of paper you’ve got there ?”.

“Oh, that’s the design you asked me to

do for the logo on the back of that van

we bought”.

He unrolled it to reveal the words:

MEREDITH BROS. (NORFOLK)

METTLE RE-CYCLING

Buster inspected this, made the

necessary spelling correction, then

handed it back to Billy with the

instruction that he should get on with

the painting over the weekend.

“Meanwhile the rest of us have a big

job. The best we’ve ever taken on.”

The brothers were all eager to know

what this might entail, and gathered

round him, waiting for him to explain.

“Well, think about it. What’s the

biggest metal construction up north ?”

“You mean that Angel of the North

thing ?”, asked Brian.

“No. Bigger than that. Much bigger”.

They all looked blankly at him, until

eventually he made them wait no

longer. “I’m talking about the Forth

Bridge , of course !”

“Oh, don’t be daft, Buster”, said Pete,

“ those cantilever things are enormous,

and they’re sunk in great concrete

bases. We couldn’t possibly shift

those”.

“Not the big bits, silly. The connecting

part in the middle. It was the last piece

they put in when the bridge was built,

so it should fairly easy to take out.

Now I’ve hired a barge and some giant

spanners, and fixed it for us to go up

there on Saturday night, to start work

as soon as the last train has gone

through. There aren’t any more till

Sunday afternoon”.

“Well, what about the locals, won’t

they be suspicious?”

“No. We will be wearing high

visibility jackets and safety helmets,

and nobody ever doubts anyone

wearing them, and just in case we’ll

talk Scottish. If anyone comes too near

say “Och aye the noo, Jimmy”, and

they’ll think you’re from Glasgow”.

“Well, that might be O.K., but what

will you tell the scrap yard people

when we sail in with such a large bit

of bridge ?”

“Oh. I’ll think of something. Like ‘this

belonged to my son. He was a

Meccano freak, but now he’s gone to

Uni, we want his room’. That should

do it “.

The following Wednesday they met in

the pub, as usual. They all looked a bit

glum, and eventually Billy asked

“Well, how did it go?”

“It didn’t”, replied Buster. “We got as

far as Newcastle, and then found that

some thieving swines had pinched the

signal wires at Berwick, so we

couldn’t get any further. Blasted metal

thieves. Something should be done

about them. Never mind. As the saying

goes ‘You can’t win ‘em all’. Now,

Billy, how did you get on with

painting the van ?”

“Oh, I think you’ll be pleased, Buster.

I’ve done it exactly as you said. Come

outside and see”.

They all went into the car park, and

there was their new (second hand)

motor looking really smart.

“That looks great, Billy”, said Buster.

“I never thought a respray could be so

effective”.

They went round to the back and read

the logo, spread across the doors. It

read

MEREDITH BROS. (NORFOLK)

METTLE RE-CYCLING

METAL

“Well, as I said before”, said Buster,

“you can’t win ‘em all”.

Nelson's

Journey Quiz

Night A quiz night is being held at The

Christian Community Centre, Watton

on Wednesday, 28th November, at

7.30 pm.

Teams of up to six are welcome, £2

per person; funds raised will go to

the charity Nelson’s Journey. Space

is limited, so please book a table by

phoning Laura at Breckland Funeral

Services on 01953 881229 by Friday,

16th November. There will be prizes

for the winning team, a raffle and

refreshments. Please help support

this worthy charity!

Nelson’s Journey was founded by

Kim Greensmith, a qualified social

worker along with another group of

social service workers. The birth

mother of her adopted daughters

Katie and Hannah had died at a very

young age.

Recognising the importance of

support for children suffering a

bereavement the group established

Nelson’s Journey in November 1997,

to help bereaved children and young

people throughout Norfolk deal with

the anger, distress and confusion of

losing a loved one.

The name Nelson’s Journey was

chosen to inspire the two main

aspects of the charity - the use of

Norfolk’s own Admiral Nelson, and

‘Journey’ was chosen as

bereavement is a journey which

begins the minute your loved one

dies and lasts a lifetime.

Letter from

Australia By Chris O'Connor

Australia never ceases to amaze me and I

am not talking about the natural wonders

that abound. Just when you thought

people had become disassociated with

the world around them 30,000 people

took to the streets of our second largest

city to protest at the murder of a young

Irish woman.

Police have urged commentators to be

careful what they say for fear of

prejudicing the upcoming trial so I will

be very careful what I write. Suffice to

say that in my 40 odd years exploring the

public mind and observing fellow human

beings at their highest and lowest I was

moved to tears when these people slowly

marched down one of the busiest roads in

Melbourne, their grief and anger clearly

showing. Police admitted they had never

seen anything like it.

Why this murder impacted on the nation

in such a manner I am unable to explain

other than every so often along comes a

crime that shocks and horrifies us so

much that we look around and think –

that could been my daughter, my wife.

So where does this story begin? It begins

with a young Irish woman, Jill Meagher

and her husband Tom who moved to live

and work in Australia a few years ago.

Jill worked for the Australian

Broadcasting Corporation (same as the

BBC) in radio and was well respected

and loved by those around her.

To say that Jill was vivacious is an

understatement. Just look at a picture of

her and you can see the beauty in her

eyes, her smile and I’m sure her laughter.

She became part of Australian murder

history when she made the fatal mistake

of walking home on her own, despite an

offer by a work colleague to accompany

her, in the early hours of a Saturday

morning. She had been at a local club

with friends and had sent a text message

to her husband to pick her up at 11pm.

He had fallen asleep at home and did not

get the text until it was too late; the guilt

he will live with must be unbearable to

say the least. Finally just before 2am she

left the club and walked home on her

own. We know now that she called her

brother, who lives in Western Australia

at 1.43 am to enquire about the health of

their father. And then everything ended.

Jill Meagher’s phone had gone dead and

she did not attempt to access her bank

accounts which discounted thoughts she

had engineered her own disappearance.

As one Melbourne crime writer, John

Sylvester wrote ‘at first it was just a

missing person’s case. A person who had

had a little too much to drink had not

made it home – an event that happens

every night across Australia. By Saturday

afternoon Homicide Crew Four, the

suspicious missing persons unit began to

monitor the situation. Soon it became

obvious that this was not a matter of a

night spent on someone’s couch.’

We were to learn six days later that

shortly after that last phone call she was

abducted, raped and murdered; her body

dumped in a shallow grave on the

outskirts of Melbourne.

We do not yet know why and can only

imagine the horror of her last moments

on this earth. They would have been

brutal, heartless, vicious and pitiless; full

of terror. What a tragic ending for a

young woman who had sought a new and

decent life in another country but instead,

at the hands of an alleged 41 year old

male murderer, found callous

indifference to how it ended.

As far as we know up until then her life

had been one of balanced humanity not

that of a man who sated his vicious lust

on a young women.

As Sylvester continued to write....

’police will allege he eventually told

them the story, admitting he grabbed

Jill Meagher and took her to a side

street where he sexually assaulted her.

They will produce the video confession

in which he drove to Gisborne, a town

north-west of Melbourne and used his

own shovel to dig a shallow grave to

hide his victim.’

What a terribly sad end to life.

Over the coming months the court case

will be heard, argued and eventually

come up with a verdict.

For the time being the Australian public

has made up its mind and legal

arguments are unlikely to sway that

thinking.

The Ovington

Crower Hare yew gittin on tergither? Cor thas

tunned cowld agin int it, hed a bitta frorst

larst nite, thet’ll dew the owld frewt in

fer sure.

Yorl remember larst time I wos tellin yer

abowt me & Horry’s tryin ter set a wuld

record fer gitten ter Crooma afore tea.

Things hent gorn greart so far, but hevin

hed a cuppla pints o mild we wos rarin

ter get gooin, rearn or noo rearn.

I haada push tha owld bike ter git har to

fire up an tryin not ter nootice our wet

ahinds, we set orf agin. Jest along tha

rood a bit thar wos a little ole garidge so I

bunged a showt inta Horry’s lug, sayin

we orta put a drop o petrol in the tank. (I

wos hoopin tew warta down thet tew

strook ida put in by mistook)

“Yis” sed Horry. “But yewl hafta pay,

I‘me runin short arta orl thet beer yew

hulled down yare throot”

“Orrite” I say. We asked the owld chap

wot set owtside tha garridge iffen he cud

sell us harf a gallon of cheap petrol.

He say to us he say “Orl my petrol’s

cheap” he say, “But I carnt gi yer a half

gallon cos we ony sell in leeters”

“Well wos tha diffrunce” I say “Thas orl

petrol int it?” “Ah” he say “Thas tha loor

ole partna, yer’ll hefta hev yar petrol in

leeters”

“Goo on” I say “Blarst jist fill har up, ter

hell with tha exspence”.

Thet corst me four quid ter fill thet owld

tank up, so I say to tha ole chap “How

much didja put in then?”

“Dunno” he say “Abowt harf gallon I

reckon” Co blarst I wos suffin rore, thas

the cloosest hes cum to heving his petrol

hose put sumware tha sun doont shine.

I hatta gi tha ole gal notha shuv ter git har

a gooin, but when tha new petrol got

thru, cor ter hell dint she hoss along,

Horry lorst his cap and tha ole wind wos

mearkin his eyes warta so we wos orl

oova tha rood.

We hossed inta Crooma jist

arta forsis, an Horry wos so

shook up he hadta hev

anotha pint ter steddy his

narves, I had a tot o scotch

wi mine cos I hent hed no

control oova ower

proogress an wos sufferin

from a sore behind an orl.

We set on the worl wot kips

tha sea owt o tha town, an

gorped at orl tha young mawthas

slumokin on tha sand, wi next ter

northin on.

Thet dint dew Horry a lotta gud cos thet

meard his eyes warta agin an he coont git

a gud look attem, I haddta splain tew him

wot tha wos a doing but thet dint help a

lot.

We hadda a word wi tha ole boy Keith

Skippa, cor he tork posh Norfuk he do,

he rekkuned we orta git a medal fer

comin orl thet way wi’owt a map or a

blook wi a red flag ahid o us. Think he

wos tearking the jewce.

Arta a bit of cod an chips an gettin a

Crooma crab fer the missus, we started

fer hoom.

Cos Horry wos still slavrin oova tha

mawthas, we driv orl the way ter

Sherinham along tha cliff top corse he

dint wont ter miss anythin. Dutty ole

fewl.

Corse then he dint no tha way hoom

from Sherinham soo we haddta ride orl

the way back ter Crooma agin so he cud

start from ware he new ware tha rood

went tew.

Duzzy ole fewl.

Horry hed his day made cos he fownd his

owld cap a hangin in tha hidge, jist ware

thet blew orf.

Thet ment he hadta celbrate so we corled

at orl tha pubs along the rood. I spoose

we got hoom orl rite, orl I kin member is

my missus gin me a ding o tha lug corse

har Crooma crab wos orl sorft and

skwashed cos tha oonly plearce I hadta to

put it was on tha seat, mind yew thet

sartenly meard my ride hoom more

comftbal.

Horry cum rownd tha nex day an sed

we orta dew it agin, but wen he sore

tha luk my missus gi him he sune

slooped orf hoom.

Boy Julian reckuned I orta be

on telewishun, so I say ter

him I say, “Thet’ll be tha

day ole partna”

Thas time ter meark tha

missus har cuppa cooco,

(still sarving my sentence)

an then thas orf ter bed,

she rekkun thet’ll be anutha week afore I

Kin goo up tha pub agin. She’s a hard

wummon.

So dew yew kip a troshin and doont let

tha govmint git yew down.

Boy Sid

Ovington

Christmas

Bazaar Come to Ovington Village Hall on

Saturday 1 December between 12 noon

and 3pm to enjoy a traditional village

Christmas bazaar. There will be stalls

selling cakes, preserves, books, gifts and

home-made crafts, together with fun and

games for all the family. For children

under 16 there will be a competition to

design a Christmas card (folded A4 size,

name + age and contact number on the

reverse, please) - free entry, judging to

take place at 2pm. As well as the raffle

and bottle stall, there is the chance to win

a hamper and guess the weight of the

Christmas cake. Refreshments cater for

every need: from tea/coffee and cakes to

filled rolls or hearty home-made soups.

Proceeds from this event are split

between St John's Church, Ovington and

the Village Hall.

News The Wayland News Page 14

by Ray Phillips

This story was written in the 1990’s

by Group Captain Ray Phillips

DFC., AFC & Bar Retd., who

qualified as a pilot January 1943 in

Southern Rhodesia . He flew Avro

Lancasters during the 2nd world

war with 44 sqdn and was then

invited to join the elite Pathfinder

83 Sqdn where he completed a tour

of operations and was awarded his

Pathfinder Badge. In all he

completed 46 missions. After the

war he flew Avro Lincolns with 61

& 97 Sqdrns and finally Handley

Page Victors as part of the V

bomber force where he was

Squadron commander at 10

Sqdn.RAF Cottesmore He was also

Station Commander at RAF

Lindholme in 1971 and his final

posting was to the School of Air

Warfare as Asst., Commandant. He

retired from the RAF in 1977. He

went on to take a degree in

computing with the Open

University and taught part time at

Lincoln University.

Family Copyright Reserved

E ven the weather on the

way to Woodlands was

marvellous – real

squadron commander’s

stuff with half cover of small

cumulus at three and a half

thousand with tops at five and a

half. Below, the visibility was

crisp and sharp; from seven

thousand, where we were, it was

blue gin all the way to the sun. I

was already pretty pleased with

myself and the splendid weather

promised well for the future. I

dived down among the clouds,

weaving the Mosquito between

the cotton wool hillocks and

making little-boy machine gun

noises at imaginary targets.

Last week, Peter and I had flown

the last trip of our first tour, since

when we had alternated between

self-congratulatory junketings

and morning after worrying about

the future. Me especially, with a

recently acquired and very

vulnerable acting rank. Well,

yesterday there was a notice on

the squadron board for everyone

to see. “Movements” it said

“Flying Officer (acting Flight

Lieutenant) Robert Parker DFC

and Flying Officer Peter

Cartwright to RAF Woodlands,

3rd March 1944”.

It took some time for it to sink in.

The acting rank and the five bob a

day were safe, at least.

Woodlands was in Lincolnshire

and a week or so ago that was all

most of us could have told you.

Lately, however, the word had

got around that Johan Rushton

was forming a new low level

marker squadron there, and was

scouring the Command for

experienced crews.

It seemed likely, Wing

Commander Johan Harrington

Rushton DSO DFC was already

something of a legend among the

bomber boys, where respect had

to be earned the hard way.

I can still remember the first time

I heard him earning it.

Somewhere south of the Ruhr, it

was, the heavies had been

hammered all the way from the

French coast – the big chopper

was really swinging that night –

and you could sense that it was

going to be a bad one. Five

minutes to go and as the green

and red target indicators cascaded

slowly earthwards, the defences

finally shrugged off all hope that

it might not be their turn, and

erupted. More than a hundred

searchlights probed the darkness,

five hundred guns began to fill

the sky with twinkling stars

disgorging their iron fragments

and, worst of all, strings of

parachute flares cast their fearful

light from above.

As if the crews did not know

already, enemy night fighters

were about in numbers, and what

had been a rough trip was going

to get rougher. You could feel the

tension as the already battered

stream of aircraft converged on

the target, as aircrews tried to

conceal the edge in their voices

and keep the lid on the “twitch”.

And then, from 16,000 feet

below, “Good evening,

gentlemen” said Johan, “This is

your master bomber”. The

conductor had rapped his baton

and the players gave him their

full attention. Radiating calm and

confidence he orchestrated and

controlled that attack, directing

the bomb aimers, heartening the

nervous and gently chiding the

wayward.

The defences might not have

existed, and what had all the

markings of a total shambles

became almost copy book in its

execution. Another bunch of

crews had come through the fire

with new- found confidence.

Johan had saved them. I was not

surprised – two years ago, in very

different circumstances I had seen

him save somebody else. Me

So Rushton had picked us. I could

hardly believe my luck and was

still dreaming when Peter, who

was still standing behind me at

the notice board, brought me back

to earth with a bump. “The third”

he said, “Christ, that’s tomorrow”

But good things go together and

even that turned out to be a

blessing – however else could we

have borrowed an aircraft!

So there we were, weaving in and

out of the clouds feeling pleased

and proud; if you like; a bit smug.

A pleasant female voice, using

the Woodlands call sign,

interrupted the euphoria and

enquired as to our whereabouts

and intentions.

“If you get back to seven

thousand and steer 034”, said

Peter, “and stop behaving like a

frustrated fighter pilot, we should

be there in eleven minutes. Tell

them we’re forty miles south

west”.

I passed the message and settled

down to wondering whether

Rushton would remember me or

not. If he did, ought I to own up?

It was two years ago, after all,

and the whole episode had lasted

less than an hour.

It was, in fact, January 1942. It

was sunny and hot, but even the

Rhodesian midsummer could do

nothing for my morale. I slumped

across a battered wooden crew

room chair looking out at the neat

row of Tiger Moths reflecting

yellowy in the sunlight. Two of

the lads were walking out

together, parachutes slung over

right shoulders, helmets hanging

from left hands. Off on their

second solos. Lucky devils. I

kicked the wooden hut morosely

and went back to my slump,

waiting. I was waiting for what

was officially known as a

suspension test – the formality

before you got scrubbed from

training.

Of course, we had all known

there was a good chance of not

making it. Pretty well daily for

the last four months we had been

told how good you had to be to

pass. And just as frequently we

had been told that we were

nowhere near the standard. It was

the very frequency of the cries

“Wolf” that had blunted the

warning: sure, it was going to

happen to someone, sometime.

Well, that morning it had been

made painfully clear that

sometime was now and someone

was me. Standing rigidly to

attention, I had listened to the

flight commander enumerating

the failings listed in my

instructors’ reports. I had left him

no option, I gathered, but his

recommendation would be

subject to the report of a visiting

officer who would test me that

afternoon. There was no

sympathy, not even a suspicion of

help – just a formal statements

required by the rules before the

end. It had hurt. But what had

hurt more was the realisation that

most of me was relieved.

The early phase of learning to fly

is a pretty emotional experience

for the pupil. The key to his

transformation from earthling to

airman is his first flying

instructor, a man who occupies a

very special place in the pupil’s

mind – a place he has already

occupied throughout the

anticipatory

periods of gravel crunching,

physical training and the general

morning to night harassment of

basic training. The future flying

instructor is the man who

promises to make it all worth

while: the let down cannot be

measured when the idol turns out

to have feet of clay. My personal

joy lasted about an hour – I had

drawn a plain old fashioned bully.

The only enemies he knew were

his pupils, and he nagged them

raw.

I suppose the system felt there

was a never ending stream of raw

material like me so why bother to

be nice? Whatever the system

felt, my ten hours of dual had

been undiluted agony. The pupil

pilot is totally at his instructor’s

mercy and the moment he pins up

his harness and plugs in the

Gosport tubes he cannot escape

from the bullying and nagging,

and any confidence he starts with

is soon destroyed. I had learned to

hate flying, not for its own sake,

but because it entailed being

subjected to non-stop abuse. And

now it was going to stop.

I went back to surveying the

scene outside. A voice behind me

said, gently interrogative,

“Parker?”. I turned, almost falling

over in my hurry to leap to

attention. Facing me was a small,

thin flight lieutenant I had not

seen before. Beneath his wings

were purple and silver diagonals

and a silver rosette . DFC and bar.

I was wholly unprepared for what

followed. He put out his hand.

“My name’s Rushton. I believe

we’re flying together” and, after a

short pause, “relax, laddie, let’s

go outside and talk about it”. All

of a sudden I needed to get

through.

It had been a long time since

anyone had treated me as though

my opinion mattered or I might

actually have sensibilities. The

realisation was good for the ego.

Rushton explained he had

recently come down from the

Middle East and had taken this

job because he had some ideas on

the training machine and its

products.

“Basically”, he explained, “air

combat is like Rugby football. If

you decide to tackle, get in close

and give it all you’ve got. Never

try to do it from arms length”. “If

my theory is right” he went on

“anybody can be taught to fly

aggressively. That being so I

intend spending my time here

making sure we don’t fail

fighters, even if they are a bit

rough”. He grinned. “They said

you were just about as rough as

they come”.

We drew our parachutes and

walked out towards the Tigers.

“There will only be one

unfamiliar aspect to this trip” he

observed as we walked “ I want

you to fly in the front”. “Oh don’t

worry” he added, seeing my face

drop, “I know you haven’t flown

there before, but you’ll find you

can see much better and it’s a

whole lot easier”

I got in, and while I fussed with

the straps he clambered up the

wing root and, with a red crayon,

drew a cross on the windscreen.

“That”, he said, “is your gunsight,

when we get airborne I’ll find a

target for you to aim at. Go in as

fast as you can and break away

upwards when you’re as close as

you dare go. I won’t interfere

unless I get nervous. OK?”. He

chuckled and got in behind.

He was right about the front seat.

You really can see and the

dreaded instructors head isn’t

superimposed on everything. Nor

did he say a word as I started up,

mag checked the engine, taxied

out and took off, swinging rather

less than usual.

We thrummed along towards the

low flying area at 80mph and a

thousand feet. Five minutes and I

hadn’t been sworn at once – you

could get to like this flying game.

“OK”, said the Gosport tubes,

“there comes your target – that

big tree coming up on the port

side. Fly past for about a mile,

turn round, put the cross on the

top of the tree and keep it there

until you see the whites of their

eyes”.

I could feel him grinning in the

back as the target passed under

the wing and I began to count the

50 seconds I reckoned to a mile.

Then I turned, praying the tree

would appear. It didn’t. So I

turned, prayed some more – and

some more: my heart was right

down in my boots when the tree

finally appeared, but I got the

cross on it, briefly at any rate,

before it slipped off again. I

realigned, but again it slid off.

“Don’t bother with the aircraft”,

said the voice from the back “just

fly the cross. That’s where your

guns are pointing, remember”.

That was much easier, and we ran

in with the cross more or less

steady on the tree. Get close, he

had urged. What was close? I

decided he didn’t want to die

either, and I was blowed if I was

going to be the first to chicken

out. The tree got larger and larger

and I’ll swear I could count the

leaves, but no word from the

back. We were terrifyingly close

and I gave up.

“Firing now” I called, and pulled

hard back. We must have

repeated that performance seven

or eight times, with hardly a work

from Rushton. It began to dawn

on me that I was enjoying myself

and, what was more, I was doing

all right.

Finally he said “OK, up to 3000

feet on this heading” and I

opened the throttle and settled

into a climb at 65mph. But before

we got to height he took control,

announced he was going to clean

the cockpit and promptly half

rolled the Tiger on to its back,

pushing the stick forward at the

same time. I hung by the shoulder

straps as chewing gum papers,

bits of pencil and a mixture of

sand and dust fell from the

cockpit floor. While this was

going on the throttle closed and

the chuckle came again,

“Engines have a habit of packing

up at awkward moments. You

have control. Put us down in one

Round Trip

The Wayland News Page 15 News

piece”.

Of course, there are drills to be

followed in the event of engine

failure and no check ride is

complete without a forced landing

practice. So I really shouldn’t have

been so shaken. But hanging

upside down covered in cockpit

crud is not an ideal situation to

deal with emergencies, and my

new found confidence seemed to

have fallen out with the dirt.

Eventually – it felt like hours – the

brain began to work. Look for the

cause of the trouble – don’t waste

time, we know. Get right way up –

should have done that straightaway

– and set up a proper glide. That’s

much more like it, and if the

friendly vibrations of the Gypsy

Major were still missing, at least

the wind sounded normal in the

rigging. But we were down below

2000 feet and hadn’t found a field

yet. Yes, there was one. Bit small,

triangular, good colour – more like

grass than crops. Good enough for

a practice anyway, instructors

didn’t let you actually touch down

except on a proper airstrip. Fly to

the downwind wide – what’s the

wind velocity. No friendly smoke,

no tell tales. What direction did we

take off in? South easterly, I think.

OK, it’ll have to do, fly to the

northwest edge always turning

towards the field. Down to 1000

feet already – Christ, it is small.

But we are stuck with it, small or

not. Down to 500 feet now,

running out of field. Too high to

turn in. Damn. Too low to turn

away, dear God, this time you’ve

really done it. But you must do

something: I cursed myself. There

was nothing for it, I turned into

wind, towards the field. Miles too

close and miles too high – there

was no possible way to land in

here. But we’ve got to try, so

sideslip some height off. I

steepened the bank angle and

lashed on the top rudder. The hum

from the flying wires changed note

as the wind rushed in from the

starboard side, and the rate of

descent increased alarmingly. But

it was no good: all we could

achieve would be a crash in the far

hedge, now less than a hundred

yards away. I straightened up,

eased the nose up to get back to

gliding speed and waited, utterly

disconsolate, for Rushton to take

over. I had failed, just, when for

the first time I wanted to succeed.

But Rushton did not take over, nor

did he say a word. We glided on,

into wind, and it became obvious

that we were going to clear the far

hedge comfortably. For the first

time I began to take an interest in

the field beyond: it was dark in

colour, certainly, but it looked hard

and it was level. Above it looked

huge. I eased back to check the

descent and kept the stick coming

back as the speed fell off. We

bumped once, twice, then tailslid a

bit and we came gently to a

standstill. I couldn’t believe it as I

offered silent thanks. I had picked

a stupid field, I had completely

misjudged the approach: what was

perhaps more unforgivable I had

been on the verge of giving up.

But the old pilot in the sky had

been on the ball, had put a

beautiful landing strip in exactly

the right place and had turned

failure into success.

What is more, only he and I really

knew how much I’d screwed it up.

On the face of it it had been a pretty

efficient forced landing. That was

the end of it, I suppose. Rushton

recommended that I get another four

hours dual and, with the new

confidence he’d given me I never

looked back. The trip had been the

turning point in my flying career.

And I had never told anyone the

truth about the forced landing.

Peter was making descending

signs and I started down through

the clouds. “Woodlands ten miles

on the nose” he said. I nodded and

called them up on the HF. The

same female voice replied that

runway 27 was in use, the wind

was westerly at ten, the pressure

was 998 millibars and added that

there was no weather or traffic

I rogered and spotted the airfield

between the clouds. “What range?”

I asked. Peter consulted. “Eight

miles” he replied, “dead ahead”. “I

have it”, I said, “nearer five miles

and fifteen degrees to starboard”.

He grunted, a bit huffed.

Navigators are like meteorologists,

they only believe what their charts

and instruments tell them. Never

try to confuse them with factual

information that you can actually

see out of the window.

I joined the circuit and called

downwind on the westerly runway,

to be told that we had the circuit to

ourselves. I could see what looked

like a Mosquito taking off and made

a mental note of sloppy flying

control as we turned on to the final

approach. The runway looked very

short for a 2000 yarder and it was

going to be busy soon. I could see

two more Mosquitos waiting to take

off. The tower called again, querying

our position.

I was about to snarl some

comment when doubt nagged at

me, followed by awful realisation.

No wonder they couldn’t see me.

The runway wasn’t 2000 yards

long. The Mosquitos weren’t

Mosquitos, they were Oxfords.

This wasn’t Woodlands at all.

Savagely I smashed both throttles

through the gate, hauled up the

wheels and flaps and over shot.

Peter was grinning from ear to ear

and pointing out to the left.

“Three miles” he yelled, not using

the intercom. He had the grace not

to say “I told you so”. I believe I

tried to look cheerful, but failed.

A very chastened Parker landed at

Woodlands five minutes later.

And I was even more chastened

when I was ushered into the Wing

Commander’s office. He was in

battledress and he had gained a

DSO: otherwise he hadn’t changed

a bit. He came forward, hand

extended, welcoming. “Hello,

Parker, nice to see you”. And then

that old chuckle “ I hear you damn

near did it again”.

This year’s Remembrance weekend

commences with the laying of the

Poppy crosses on the War graves in St

Mary’s Churchyard at 12.00 hrs

Saturday 10th November 2012. A

short service precedes the reading out

of the names of the fallen and then the

laying of the Poppy crosses. It is

hoped representatives of the Town

Council plus volunteer organisations

will be present, members of the

general public are also invited. The

RBL and RAFA Standards will

provisionally be at the ceremony plus

a Bugler will sound Last Post and

Reveille if not on other duties.

The Remembrance Service at the War

Memorial commences at 14.30 hrs

Sunday 11th November and all

voluntary organisations are invited to

take part.

The Parade will form up at 14.20 hrs -

march on at 14.25 hrs. After the

Service at the War Memorial and the

laying of wreaths the Parade will

march to St Mary’s Church for the

main service at approximately 15.00

hrs. It is hoped that the Band of 864

Sqn ATC will lead the Parade.

It is politely requested that the

Memorial car park opposite the Tesco

store be left clear from midnight on

Saturday 10th November until 16.00

hrs Sunday 11th November as the car

park will be provisionally closed

depending on the permission of

Breckland Council.

The Poppy Appeal 2012 officially

runs from Saturday 27th October 2012

until Sunday 11th November 2012

inclusive. Watton street collections

will take place on Saturday 3rd,

Wednesday 7th and Saturday 10th

November 2012.

Watton And District Royal British Legion

Remembrance Weekend

Saturday 10th and Sunday 11th November 2012

Watton Rotary Roundup

Following our report about supporting

the respite initiative for Chernobyl

Children last month, on 1st October

several members joined hosts and

other supporters at Broom Hall Hotel

to see a delightful “Farewell and

Thank You” concert given by the 10

visiting youngsters. A full report on

their stay in Breckland is given

elsewhere in this edition; we do hope

that financial support will be

forthcoming so that these kids can

return here next year and 3 more years

thereafter.

The visit was made possible in part

by the fund-raising efforts of the

Rotary Club of Watton and District

and also the magnificent generosity of

local firms in Thetford and Watton.

Special thanks should go to Mr Mike

Boniface of Boniface Engineering

Ltd, Atkin Automation and Coach

Services Ltd.

This is a rolling five-year programme,

so the sights of Watton and District

Rotary Club are firmly set on raising

funds for next year’s visit.

If you are interested in making a

donation to this worthy cause, cheques

– made out to Friends of Chernobyl’s

Children (Breckland) or to FOCC

(Breckland) – can be sent to Watton

and District Rotary Club, c/o The

Hare and Barrel Hotel, 80 Brandon

Road, Watton IP25 6LB Your gift will

help to prolong a child’s life.

We hosted a pair of most interesting

speakers recently: two police officers

spoke about their work in the armed

response and family liaison facilities

of the Norfolk Constabulary. A

fascinating insight into the highly

complex duties undertaken by

specialist police officers that most of

us know little about and are unlikely

to encounter in our lifetimes!

During the last week of September 4

members of the club hosted couples

on a Rotary Friendship Exchange

from D5080 (Canada & America).

Thetford Rotarians hosted 2 other

members of the group, and a highlight

of their 4-day stay was a visit to the

Mayors Parlour in King’s House,

Thetford. They were greeted by the

Mayor, Terry Lamb who explained

that Thetford, being an ancient

borough, has amongst its regalia, not

only a mace but also a sword of state,

much to the enthrallment of our

guests.

On 3rd October members spent the

afternoon being shown round the

Ecotech Centre in Swaffham. Despite

their age, some climbed the 300+

steps of the Enercon E-66 wind

turbine; this one, it is claimed, is the

only one in the world with a viewing

platform open to the public. That

morning, our market-day ‘books and

bric-a-brac’ stall realised £57. With

£73 in September, these were very

good days, making up for previous

curtailments due to bad weather. We

will not have a stall in November but

will try again on the 1st Wednesday of

December, weather permitting.

We have also booked a stall on the

Town Team’s charity market in

Middle Street on Saturday 15th

December when we hope to have

Christmas-related bric-a-brac; has

anyone got any spare mistletoe?

Our 58th Charter Night Dinner on

12th October was attended by 61

members and guests including the

District Governor, Trevor Sayer, and

the Presidents of the Diss, Swaffham,

and Thetford Rotary Clubs: Keith

Day, Claire Dunne and John Connolly

respectively.

We are running a coffee morning on

Saturday 3rd November in the gallery

at the Queens Hall. Usual time: 9.30

to 11.30am. There is a Craft Market in

the Hall, and that organisation will

take over refreshments when we

finish. Sorry there’s no more Farmers

Market – come and have 2 cups of

coffee instead!! Martin Anscombe

Cash Bingo

at Ovington Avid bingo fans are invited for a fun

evening at Ovington Village Hall on

Wednesday 14 November with cash

prizes and a raffle. Refreshments (tea/

coffee/soft drinks) will be available and

all proceeds go to village hall funds.

Doors open 7pm, eyes down at 7.30pm.

Don't be late - space is limited! For

details ring Christine on 01953 885848

or see posters around Watton.

Visiting Rotary group with Thetford Mayor Terry Lamb, centre, Town Manager, Susan Glossop, far right.

The Wayland News Page 16 News

High Street Saturday Markets 17th November - Entrepreneurs’ Market 1st December - The ‘Inside Out’ Market

Come and meet some of the High Street businesses you might never have visited!

15th December Entrepreneurs’ Market and Charity Christmas Market

Ashill Youth Club Christmas Bingo

Tuesday 6th November

Doors open 7pm yes Down 7.30pm To donate a prize or more details

Mark 01760 440 577

Watton Hockey Club Christmas Bingo Weds. 5th December in the Gallery Bar

Doors open 7pm, Eyes down 7.30pm

Great Prizes - Everyone Welcome

Help from the

Chamber . . . Does your business have challenges? Starting

up a new business? Want FREE advice from

business professionals?

Drop in on Wayland Chamber of Commerce’s

next Business Benefit Event 14th of

November between 4 and 6 at Wayland House,

Watton.

Free no obligation chat with some of Waylands

leading professionals in Accountancy,

Banking, Employment Law, Financial

Advisors, Marketing, Management,

Bookkeeping, Payroll, Internet and Bog

Snorkeling*

You can contact the Chamber of Commerce

via their website: wayland-chamber.org.uk, by

email: secretary@wayland-chamber.org.uk or

by phone on 07979 264047 and 01760 440834.

* subject to change, give us a call if you would

like advice on another area.

Discovering

the world of

Twitter In October the Wayland Partnership & The

Wayland News launched a Wayland

community Twitter account,

@waylandtweets.

Why did the Partnership & the News decide

to set up a Twitter account? We wanted to

find a free and simple way of communicating

within the Wayland business community,

local voluntary and community groups and

local decisions makers. It won’t just work for

us – it can work for you too.

For those of you yet to unravel the mysteries

of Twitter, it is a micro-blogging service that

consists of 140 character “tweets” that are

broadcast to a person’s subscribers.

We have been looking at how best Twitter

can work in Wayland. It can:

Promote news, information and advice to

followers

Plug local events

Provide updates on funding, training and

volunteering

Build relationships between businesses,

voluntary and community groups,

councillors, MPs and local networks and

media contacts

Provide a portal for business exchange or

finding suppliers

Offer B2B opportunities for sales/

procurement

Anything else you want – lack or

imagination is the only obstacle

Have you thought about starting a Twitter

account for your organisation or

community group? It is free, easy to use

and can be less time consuming than

writing press releases or constant

marketing emails. With Twitter you can

promote yourself and network with

specific audiences based on location and

theme. And the more we build up an online

network of local groups in Wayland, the

more useful it becomes.

If you are already a tweeter, find us at

@waylandtweets, follow us and let’s grow

the Wayland Twitter network together.

Or if you’d like support and advice in

setting up your own Twitter account or any

other aspect of social media so that you

can take part, email Iain Cockburn on

iain@wayland.org.uk.

We have already held one successful free

training course on Twitter basics and we

are planning additional beginner and

advanced sessions. Details will appear in

the Wayland News and on

www.waylandnews.com

and via @waylandtweets.

Our thanks to our Entertainments

Officer Mrs. Jean Eyres, who arranged

a trip to the Gorleston Pavilion in what

is becoming an annual event to see

“Showtime.” It was a very enjoyable

day out.

There was a good attendance at our

meeting on the 10th of October to hear

our speakers Sheena and Bob, known

as the “Memory Joggers.” Sheena and

Bob were keen to impress upon us that

their talks were not just for

entertainment but were a valid way of

helping people whose memory may be

failing. They give talks in care homes,

hospitals and clubs . They have been

able to help nurses, doctors and care

assistants to interact and understand

people with dementia and strokes.

From two tables of memorabilia, Bob

& Sheena selected items to illustrate

their talk. We were asked to guess

their purpose before it was explained

where they fitted in to the smooth

running of the household in days gone

by. Bob held up what looked like a

meat mincer but with the opening at

the side instead of on top. Sheena held

up a pair of tongs and asked us to

guess the connection. First of all, Bob

explained that the “mincer” was in fact

a device for slicing up oranges for

making marmalade and Sheena went

on to tell us that in days gone by, poor

households could only afford one

saucepan large enough for making

marmalade. This pan was used for

boiling nappies, knickers and

handkerchiefs at the beginning of the

week, as the copper in the scullery was

used for large items like sheets,

pillowcases and towels. After the

nappies etc., were done, they were

removed with the tongs and the

saucepan was cleaned with soda or a

boiling of rhubarb or cinder ash. Then

the marmalade or jam was made

towards the end of the week in it! An

early version of spit roasting on a

spitjack was explained. This device

was wound up and suspended over the

fire in the grate with the meat hanging

from it. The meat was cooked while it

slowly unwound and the family was at

church ( and the animals locked out in

the garden we hoped!) There was

much hilarity as examples of women’s

undergarments were displayed, but

there was nothing wrong with our

members memory as they could

remember parents and relations and in

some cases they themselves wearing

such items. Sheena said that the need

to have a fashionably tiny waist would

result in a change of shape in a

woman’s ribcage after being laced

into some of these stays. It was

impossible to have each item

explained in one afternoon but

everyone got the flavour of days gone

by and were probably pleased that

such garments were now curiousities.

The task to bring along a piece of

your favourite jewellery was won by

Mrs. Joyce Briggs of Attleborough.

WHAT’S ON FOR NOVEMBER

14th Nov. Our entertainer for the

afternoon will be Robert Maidstone,

who will give us an illustrated talk on

“Wild Flowers in the Garden.” Robert

Maidstone is a naturalist who knows

his subject , so we can look forward to

a well informed afternoon. Meeting

begins at 2pm till 4pm. Tea/Coffee,

raffle and usual mardle.

Christmas Bazaar 17 November. The

time is 12 noon to 3.30 pm everyone

who reads this is invited along with

their friends.

This event is a new inclusion in our

usual programme and we are hoping for

great results, so please give us your

support. Get those baking tins out and

bake up a storm so that we can have a

really good stall of home baked goods.

After all the inspiration of the “Bake

Off” on television, you are sure to do us

proud. It’s not too late for donations to

our bottle stall and as it’s so late in the

year when garden produce is at a

minimum, maybe you would like to

donate tins of fruit and vegetables and

plants to that stall.

19th Nov. A trip to Highway Nursery.

Ring Mrs. J. Eyres if you would like

to join the party going. First pick-up

is in Gt. Ellingham at 10.30am. All

other usual stops 10 to 15 mins. later.

22nd Nov. Marion’s Lunch Club at

the White Lodge, Attleborough. For

further information please contact

Marion on 01953 483431.

New members are always welcome.

Only £2 per person to join and £1 on

the door on club days. Excellent value

for an afternoon’s entertainment and a

chance to make new friends. Venue:

The Village Hall, The Street,

Rocklands All Saints. Nr.

Attleborough.

Shellrock Circle Club

For The Over 50’s

Sale of collectables and

antiques - free admission Caston Village Hall will be holing a sale of collectables and antiques on Saturday

10th November between 10am and 4pm.

There will be a variety of stalls ranging from clocks and furniture to jewellery.

Refreshments will be available and admission is free.

Please do support this event at Caston Village Hall, The Street, Caston NR17 1DD.

Proceeds from stall fees and refreshments will be for the village hall refurbishment

fund.

Watton Senior Citizens Party Takes place again on the 15th December at Wayland Academy in Merton Road.

Free tickets will at Mullengers Estate Agents in November and, as for so many

years, the evening will include good food, entertainment from youngsters at the

school and the fellowship of old friends. With around 100 people involved in

looking after our 200 visitors this is a true free community event with the funding

and staffing provided freely from within the town and the school. Watch out for the

posters.

The first 200 will get the tickets for this early Christmas evening, enjoyed by many

over the past 40 plus years.

News The Wayland News Page 17

Watton

Ballroom

Dancing

Association

Queen’s Hall, Watton

8 to 11.00 Admission £3.50

Saturday November 3rd

Saturday December 1st

Mike 01953 882799

By the time this has gone to print we

should have put the clocks back one

hour. I am sure most of our senior

readers especially those who live alone

dread this time of year, I know my

parents did. Curtains drawn early, they

miss all the pedestrians and dog

walkers who pass by. One of my close

neighbours, Mrs. Kathleen Brown who

is now residing at Taverham Care

Home always had a wave for me and

loved to see my dogs scamper past, I

do miss her.

Halloween and Guy Fawkes are also

reminders that summer is long gone.

All the readers with children who go

out Trick or Treating please have

respect for residents who do not wish

to partake and have signs displayed in

their windows/doors. I can’t seem to

remember much about Halloween in

my early days. It’s something we have

adopted from our cousins across the

pond (Atlantic), I wonder when it took

off in this country?

What’s been happening over the last

month?

The Town Clerk Mrs. Jacqui Seal

together with her husband Graham

opened up their gardens to host the

Royal British Legion Cream Tea on

Saturday 22 September. The weather

was kind to us although it got a bit

chilly by the end. We didn’t have to

wait for the football results as

Norwich were playing on the Sunday

and they lost.

On Wednesday 26 September the

Mayoress and myself were invited to

visit, Watton Junior School. Our host

for the visit was Kathryn Burgess. In

December 2010 the school was

deemed to be in need of special

measures. However at the beginning

of this year the school has now

reached a Satisfactory Standard and

no need to have special measures

place upon them. The Ofsted report

for all schools are available on line.

We spent a very enjoyable couple of

hours at the school, met staff and

children. I never attended this school

being a Saham boy. With what we

saw at the school, lets hope it will be

graded even higher at the next

inspection. We have also been

invited back for assembly in the near

future, I will report on that visit in

my next mardle.

We had the honour to be asked to

attend 864 Watton Air Training

Corps presentation evening on 28

September at St. Mary’s Church. It

was extremely gratifying to present

the winner and runner up with their

prizes. The members of 864 really do

them selves and the town proud, my

congratulations to W/O Steve Skelly

and all those involved. Since

becoming a councilor and now the

Mayor, when ever I have come into

official contact with this group of

young people I know there is hope

for the future. Quite a few who I

chatted to stated they had an

ambition to join the Royal Air Force

in the future, what’s wrong with the

Royal Navy, we have aircraft.

Perhaps I’m just biased.

On Tuesday 2 October I attended the

Queen’s Hall for the presentation by

Breckland Council concerning the

shortfall of funding including the

possible charging of Car Parking. It

was encouraging to see a full house

and all questions asked were

appertaining to the agenda except for

one. Remember Watton Town

Council voted against Car Park

Charging. A full report on the

meeting is available on the Wayland

News website. Needless to say

Watton was the last of the Breckland

towns visited. I did make the point,

although alphabetically it is last, it

would be nice to be up the pecking

order once in a while when involved

with the other Breckland towns.

Thursday 4 October took us to the

Monday Art Group preview evening

held at the Methodist Hall.

I would like to thank Sheila Woods

for the invitation. I have been along

to this evening for quite a few years

as my Maureen is one of the group.

With Sheila’s expert guidance I have

seen a marked improvement in

Maureen’s artwork. Her pictures are

always well received when we

donate a picture as a raffle prize.

Norwich Cathedral for the Justice

Service was on Sunday 7 October,

lots of Big Wigs, literally and Bling

on display. We have to admit it’s the

first time we have ever been to the

Cathedral, a very impressive

building and well worth another

visit. I believe we have another

invite in November.

You might recall in an earlier mardle

of mine I mentioned about our IP

postcode and having to use Thetford

as our postal town, I have spoken

and written to Royal Mail about this

matter and guess what? No reply or

response, I guess I didn’t expect

anything else. At least I tried.

Some of you may have seen a

disheveled male around the town

begging. It is a summary offence to

beg or try and obtain contributions

from the public. Remember he is

entitled to supplementary benefits.

Please read Watton Town Council’s

website for information of meetings

and other items of interest.

Driving Tips for November:

I have already mentioned about the

clocks going back, so it means darker

evenings. Please check your lights

both front dipped and full plus rear

lights. The number of defective lights

at this time of the year is unbelievable,

commercial vehicles, including white

van man and taxis are some of the

worst. Drive on dipped headlights

when it’s lighting up time.

Windscreen washer reservoir should

include additive at the correct

strength for winter driving, not

washing up liquid. It was frosty this

morning and I write this article two

weeks before print. Don’t forget your

wiper blades either, they should be

renewed each year and this is the

ideal time for renewal prior to

Winter. Tyres should have a

minimum of 1.6mm of tread by law,

I change mine a lot sooner. 1.6mm is

not a lot and remember it’s only the

size of the palm of your hand x 4 that

is in contact with the road surface.

Stopping distances are doubled in the

wet and ten times greater on the ice,

a scary thought. No matter how good

a driver you think you are stay back

from the car in front. Remember,

“Only a fool breaks the two second

rule” same rules above apply for wet

and icy conditions. Please don’t

tailgate.

Mayor’s Mardle

With Cllr Paul Cooper, Chairman Watton Town Council

Letters to the Editor Thank you Chris and Conrad: I wonder please, if through your paper, I

may be allowed to say a very big thank you to Watton businessmen who

recently helped save my bacon.

A few weeks ago I had the misfortune of having a fall at my home and was

unable to either move or access either my mobile or main

telephone. As this fall happened about 2am I laid on the floor for some 8 or

9 hours and was beginning to despair and wondered what on earth I was

ever going to do to raise help.

Well Lady Luck must have been on my side as at about 11am I saw two

men looking through the back window of my home. These two men were

Mr Chris Edwards (Newsagent) and Mr Conrad Sellers (Home James

Taxis). With the aid of a neighbour Chris and Conrad were able to access

my house and telephoned the paramedics who in turn got me to the Norfolk

& Norwich Hospital where I spent 2 weeks being treated.

The reason for Chris and Conrad's visit to my home was because neither had

seen me around Watton for a few days and were both concerned for my

welfare as they know both my health and mobility are very precarious these

days. Well Chris and Conrad, Thank you for your help and kindness

because without you I could well still be laying on the floor. Peter Leveridge

Loch Neaton thanks: We the Loch Neaton Management committee would

like to say a huge thank you to the manager and staff from our local Spar

shop who volunteered to assist the Management Committee with a general

tidy up of the area around the loch and painting of the disabled fishing bays

keeping the area tidy for the people in our community is a never ending job

and it is always great to get support from anyone who is willing to give their

time. So many thanks to: C Humphrey's (manager) J Smith, C Tucker, C

Fegan, and W Porter,Watton Loch Neaton Management Committee are all

volunteers who maintain the area around the Loch for your enjoyment.If you

would like further information about the loch please phone

07938847118.Tony Watson (chairman)

Trips to Yarmouth: Readers may be interested to know that the visit of the

3rd Watton Brownies to Yarmouth, reported last month, is continuing the

long history of such visits to that town from this area.

102 years ago, on July 4th, 1910 the headmistress of Scoulton School

records in the Log Book 'I took Standards I to VI to Yarmouth today'. This

would have been about 60 children aged about 7 to 13. I would imagine that

they would have travelled on the railway from Watton. One wonders what

the experience of this 'day out' would have been like to the children, most of

whose parents were farm labourers. Who paid their fares? The picture below

was taken in the early 20th century and shows Mrs Priscilla Stallworthy with

pupils. Julia Grover

Watton Pantomime

Group update Its that time of year again and we are in full swing with our rehearsals

for the pantomime this year - Little Miss Muffet. If you are around

Thompson you will probably hear the laughter from the group as the

script it's traditional family pantomime, we have plenty of loveable

goodies, a couple of baddies and some monkey business!!

I am your director Tracey Denny and if you're still interested in joining

our jolly group please don't hesitate to come down to Thompson Village

Hall on a Tuesday and Thursday every week from 7 30 to say Hi.

Caston Christmas Fayre Our annual Christmas Fayre this year will be on Saturday 17th

November in the Village Hall, starting at 2pm until around 3:30pm

There will be raffles, games and a Tombola as well as Cakes, Fancy

Goods/Bric-a-brac, a Christmas Goods stall - all the traditional

Christmas Fayre contents. In addition, the HAMPER DRAW will take

place - a chance to win a wicker picnic basket packed with many items

for Christmas.

Why not come along and have a go at winning one of the super prizes

and enjoy your first mince pie of the season?

Church Times and News The Wayland News Page 18

Watton Churches Together Service Calendar for November

St. Mary’s Church, Watton

1st, 3rd & 4th Wednesday at 9.30am Holy Communion

2nd Wednesday Morning Worship

Church Office opens Tues, Wed & Thurs 9am-1pm

Tel: 01953 881252 margaret@churchadm.freeserve.co.uk

www.stmaryswatton.org

Sun 4th 8.00am Holy Communion

10.00am Holy Communion

7.00pm Informal Worship at Colin MC

Sat 10th 12 Noon Remembrance in St. Mary’s Churchyard

Sun 11th 8.00am Holy Communion

10.00am Holy Communion

2.15pm Remembrance Sunday Act

of Remembrance at the War Memorial followed

by procession to St Mary’s Church for

3.00pm Service of Remembrance 7.00pm Informal Worship at St Mary’s Church

Sun 18th 8.00am Holy Communion

10.00am Holy Communion

7.00pm Informal Worship at St Mary’s Church

Sun 25th 8.00am Holy Communion

10.00am All Age Worship

6.30pm Choral Evensong

7.00pm Informal Worship at Colin MC

Watton Methodist Church

Every Wednesday the Church is open for quiet reflection and

prayer between 10am & 12Noon It’s your quiet place.

At 10.30 there is a half-hour Midweek Service in the Large

Vestry led by the Minister or a Church Member.

www.wattonmethodist.btck.co.uk

Minister: Deacon S Sowerby 01953 881035

Sun 4th 10.45am Deacon S Sowerby

6.30pm Mr A Warby

Sun 11th 10.45am Mr D Fisher

2.15pm Town Remembrance Service at the

War Memorial followed by

3.00pm Service at St Mary’s Church

6.30pm Mr M & Mrs P Cook

Sun 18th 10.45am Mrs S Mann

6.30pm Rev’d M Pillay

Sun 25th 10.45am Rev’d M Pillay & Deacon S Sowerby

Holy Communion

2.30pm Section Service at Great Ellingham

Roman Catholic Community

Each Sat 5.30pm Mass at Watton Methodist Church

Pentecostal Church, Dereham Road, Watton

Children have their own programme during the

Sunday morning services

Sun 4th 10.30am In Praise of the Lord - Watch over me

6.00pm Pudding, Praise and Prayer

Sun 11th 10.30am In Praise of the Lord -

An experience of Faith

Sun 18th 10.30am Samaritan’s Purse Operation Christmas

Child Shoebox Appeal Celebration

Sun 25th 10.30am Worshipper & Worship Leaders Workshop

St. Nicholas’ Church, Ashill

Tuesdays at 10.00am Said Holy Communion

Sun 4th 9.30am Lay Led Morning Worship

Sun 11th 9.30am Morning Worship & Act of Remembrance

Sun 18th 9.30am All Age Worship

12.30pm Holy Baptism

Sun 25th 9.30am Holy Communion

St. George’s Church, Saham Toney

Sun 11th 11.00am Morning Worship & Act of Remembrance

Sun 18th 11.00am All Age Worship

Sun 25th 11.00am Holy Communion

S. S. Peter & Paul’s Church, Carbrooke

Sun 4th 10.30am Benefice Service of Holy Communion

Sun 11th 10.30am Morning Worship & Act of Remembrance

Sun 18th 10.30am All Age Worship

Sun 25th 10.30am Lay Led Worship

St John the Evangelist Church, Ovington

Sun 11th 9.30am Remembrance Day Service

Breckles, Caston, Great Hockham,

Griston, Merton,

Stow Bedon & Thompson

Worship Calendar for November

Sunday 4th November - 4th Sunday before Advent

10:30 am United Holy Communion Stow Bedon*

7:00 pm Service to Remember Caston

Departed Loved Ones

Sunday 11th November - Armistice Day

(Remembrance Sunday)

10:00 am Merton (for Merton, Thompson, Tottington)*

10:45 am Great Hockham

10:55 am Caston (for Breckles, Caston, Stow Bedon)

6:30 pm Griston

Sunday 18th November - 2nd Sunday Before Advent

9:00 am Matins (BCP) Gt. Hockham

10:30 am United Holy Communion Thompson

Saturday 24th November

10 am – Noon Messy Church Gt. Hockham

Creative Advent activities for children aged 4 to

11 and their families, brief worship & refreshments

Sunday 25th November - Christ The King

9:00 am Holy Communion (BCP) Merton*

10:30 am United Holy Communion Breckles

Sunday 2nd December - First Sunday Of Advent

10:30 am United Holy Communion Caston*

* Watton Food Bank collection box at this service.

PRAM SERVICES Wednesdays at 10:15 am at Caston School Hall. For those of all

our parishes with children aged 0-5. Short Holy Communion with

kiddies’ Christian songs; social & play time

‘THE WAY’ YOUTH GROUP (ages 11+) Friday 16th November, 7-9:30 pm

Gathering with other Church youth groups,

Enquiries: The Revd. Bob Nichols: Tel.: (01953) 483222;

Email: revbobnichols@gmail.com

All Saints Church, Threxton

Service of Remembrance to be held on

Sunday 11th November at 10. 30 a.m.

SUNDAY AFTERNOON TEAS Hosted by St. Mary’s Church in November

Sunday 18th at Watton Christian Community Centre 2.30pm

until 4.00pm Please join us, a warm welcome awaits you and

your friends.

Watton Bereavement Support Group Meetings in November

Weds 7th 2pm Tea and Chat at Watton CCC Mon 19th 12 for 12.30pm Lunch at Griston Wagon & Horses

LITTLE CRESSINGHAM’S 2nd MARKET AUTUMN/CHRISTMAS MARKET

Don’t forget this date: Saturday 3rd November Time: 10.00am – 2.00pm

Venue: St. Andrew’s Church

For Sale: Cakes and Bakes; plants and preserves; local

crafts; books; jewellery; Christmas decorations; bric a

brac; unusual gifts and toys. Free Prize Draw ticket with

every coffee/tea purchased. All visitors are welcome to

browse and chat over a cup of coffee/ tea and a cake in the

unique surroundings of a beautiful half ruined church!

Norfolk Wildlife Trust

To ask a question about the Norfolk’s Wildlife please call the Norfolk Wildlife Information Service. Wildline 01603 598333 9am - 5pm Mon - Fri.

E-mail wild@norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk Website http://www.norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/naturalconnections

Further details and Membership enquiries 01953 498467 Local group E-mail: breckland@norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk

Tuesday 20th November, 7.45pm-9pm. Working Lives in Breckland. A talk by Cliff Amos from the Attleborough Heritage Group, followed by refreshments and raffle. Venue: Watton Christian Community Centre, 57 High Street Watton. Cost : Members £2 Non-members £3

CHRISTMAS PRIZE BINGO Wednesday 28th November

Queens Hall, Watton

Doors open 6.30pm Raffle and Tombola

In aid of East Anglian Air Ambulance

Coffee and Crafts at the

Queens Hall Christmas Craft Market at the Queens Hall Saturday 3rd November at 9.30am to 2pm

In aid of Macmillan Cancer

Thought for the Month

What’s Your Perspective on Life?

Two people can be living similar lives, in the same set of

circumstances, but see what’s happening from a totally different

perspective to each other.

What a difference a mindset can make, as illustrated by the

following humorous passages:

Excerpts From A Dog's Diary…

8:00 am - Dog food! My favourite thing!

9:30 am - A car ride! My favourite thing!

9:40 am - A walk in the park! My favourite thing!

10:30 am - Got rubbed and petted! My favourite thing!

12:00 pm - Lunch! My favourite thing!

1:00 pm - Played in the yard! My favourite thing!

3:00 pm - Wagged my tail! My favourite thing!

5:00 pm - Milk bones! My favourite thing!

7:00 pm - Got to play ball! My favourite thing!

8:00 pm - Wow! Watched TV with the people! My favourite thing!

11:00 pm - Sleeping on the bed! My favourite thing!

Excerpts From A Cat's Diary…

Day 983 of my captivity. My captors continue to taunt me with

bizarre little dangling objects.

They dine lavishly on fresh meat, while the other inmate and I are

fed hash or some sort of dry nuggets. Although I make my contempt

for the rations perfectly clear, I nevertheless must eat something in

order to keep up my strength.

The only thing that keeps me going is my dream of escape!

We can’t always change our circumstances, or even escape from

them, but we can change how we look at them. Why not try being

thankful for the good things you do have and looking at your life

from God’s point of view?

“Don’t shuffle along, eyes to the ground, absorbed with the things

right in front of you. Look up, and be alert to what is going on

around Christ - that’s where the action is. See things from his

perspective.” Colossians 3:2 The Message

Angela Pye, Watton Pentecostal Church

Rocklands Bingo The next Bingo will be held at Rocklands Village Hall on

Wednesday 21st November. Doors open 7pm for 7.45pm start.

Have a great night out for less than £5! As well as a warm

welcome, there will be cash prizes, refreshments, raffle and a very

generous Jackpot on offer. All Proceeds go to the Village Hall.

Advertising The Wayland News Page 19

The Wayland News Page 20 News

THE WAYLAND NEWS Page space is allocated strictly on a first come, first served basis. Deadline is 12Noon on 16th of the month preceding publication

and that is the last date and time that copy will be considered for inclusion. Arrival of copy before deadline does not guarantee

inclusion, if you wish to be certain your entry gets published, then please make sure it arrives in plenty of time otherwise you may still be disappointed. If you are submitting on paper you MUST sign and

include your contact details with each item. If you do not, the item will NOT be published.

You can contact Julian by ringing (01953) 858908. You can write to 8 Princess Close, Watton IP25 6XA

The e-mail address is julian@waylandnews.com Views expressed in articles in The Wayland News are those of the

contributors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publishers or printers.

While every care and effort has been taken to ensure accuracy, the

publisher cannot accept responsibility for errors or omissions.

This issue of the The Wayland News was published by: Julian Horn, 32 High Street, Watton IP25 6AE and

printed by

Sharman & Company Ltd, Newark Road

Peterborough PE1 5TD. Phone: 01733 424 949

WAYLAND EVENTS DIARY

November

Sat 3rd Little Cressingham’s Autumn Christmas Market. See ad

Tues 6th Ashill Youth Club Christmas Bingo See ad

Weds 7th Ovington Gardening Club

Weds 7th The Watton Society Quiz 7.30pm Queens Hall See ad

Fri 9th Macmillan Coffee Morning 95 Nelson Court 10.30 to 12

Wed 14th Cash Bingo at Ovington Village Hall 7.30pm

Wed 14th The Wayland Players Present . . .

Thur 15th ‘Calendar Girls’ by Tim Firth

Fri 16th Curtain up 7.45pm

Sat 17th Tickets at Adcocks 01953 881 248

Thurs 15th Caston School Quiz Night See advert.

Sat 17th Entrepreneurs’ Market, in the High Street from 9am

Sat 17th { Art and Photographic Exhibition

Sun 18th { At St Mary’s Church, Watton

Tue 20th 7.45 NWT Talk Working Lives in Breckland. See Ad

Weds 28th Christmas Prize Bingo at the Queens Hall EAAA See ad

December

Sat 1st Ovington Christmas Bazaar from 12 Noon

Sat 1st ‘Inside Out’ Market Watton High Street from 9am

Sun 2nd Ashill Community Centre Car Boot Sale See ad

Wed 5th Watton Hockey Club Christmas Bingo See ad

Sat 15th Charity Festive Market and Entrepreneurs Market

High Street Watton from 9am

Sat 15th Ashill Youth Club Christmas Fair See as

Tue 18th NWT Talk in Search of Wild Orchids. WCCC.

By Jake Holman

Set in beautiful surroundings on the

outskirts of Watton, Loch Neaton is a

well stocked fishing lake, perfect for

anglers of all ages and abilities. With a

large head of hard fighting carp as well

as bream, tench, perch, roach, barbel

and pike, it has something to offer every

angler. At two and a half acres it is an

intimate fishery that has that old English

feel to it.

Loch Neaton has been a beautiful

feature of the Watton landscape since

the late 1800's, and started life as a

leisure park. Sadly it no longer offers

boating or concerts in the bandstand, but

there is still the fishing and the beautiful

surroundings of the picnic area. The

Loch area also provides an ideal

location for dog walking and other

outdoor family fun. With the work that

Paul Howe (pictured), the head bailiff,

and his small but dedicated team have

put into the banks, it is a truly beautiful

location for just about anything you

could imagine.

The Loch can be fished from the bank

or any one of the swims, two of which

are suitable for disabled anglers. For

wheelchair access for the purpose of

fishing, a key to the entrance gate by the

Sports Centre can be obtained from

Reception.

Some of my fondest fishing memories

come from early summer days spent float

fishing at the Loch for roach and bream.

It is not particularly difficult or expensive

fishing and is very family friendly.

Whole fishing kits can be bought for as

little as £50 in some cases. Really all you

need is a rod, reel, a few floats and hooks,

and some maggots. With the recent

closure of Rudlings in Watton the best

place for bait is now Maggies in the high

street or Su-Bridge on Cressingham road

in Saham.

On the specimen side, we are in for a very

exciting few seasons on the Loch. With

carp in the upper 20lbs, pike to 20lb+ and

some beautiful perch to over 3lbs it's easy

to justify that cheap

season ticket. Paul and

his team have firmly put

to bed the rumours of fish

theft and trouble that have

plagued the venue in

recent times and

confidence is slowly

returning in the local

area. With the addition of

night fishing for anyone

willing to brave the cool

Norfolk evenings, at £5 a

night for non ticket

holders, the fishing

community has matured

and is coming on in leaps

and bounds. Added to the

work that has gone into

expanding and renovating

the swims the Loch is fast

becoming a high class

fishery for everyone to

enjoy.

Keeping up to date with all

the goings on at the Loch

couldn't be easier with the

impressive website at

www.lochneaton.org.uk.

Including a gallery, events

calendar, news, history and much more. It

is certainly worth a look and showcases

everything that Loch Neaton has to offer.

You can also find all the ticket price

information and the all important rules

section there so be sure to have a read

before you wet a line!

Like all inland coarse fisheries in the UK,

Loch Neaton is patrolled by officials from

the Environment Agency regularly to

ensure that all anglers have the relevant

rod licences. These are a legal

requirement to fish in the UK so be sure

to have yours before doing any fishing.

You can buy your licence at the post

office or over the phone on 0844 800

5386. A full adult licence costs £27 for

the season and covers two rods. You

could be fined for not having one so don't

risk it. For more information on rod

licences visit your local post office or

check the EA website at http://

www.environment-agency.gov.uk under

the fishing section.

The Loch holds an exciting future for us

anglers. After Christmas and through

the coming season there will be

specimen matches for all ages and

abilities including pike, carp, coarse and

junior events. With a full adult season

ticket costing only £40, with children at

£20 and seniors at £30, it is excellent

value for money. Day and evening

tickets are also available for £5 and £2

respectively. Just wait for one of the

bailiffs to come round and see you on

the bank.

For more information or to buy tickets

call Paul Howe, the head bailiff, on 07518

078844.

Fishing at Loch Neaton

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