Q Award nomination for Murray James

We may be on the verge of having a real life pop star in the village. Milford on Sea born Murray James was recently nominated for a Q Award as the ‘Next Best Thing’. Murray James is actually a ‘stage name’ & he may be known better locally by his real name of James Billet. Now pursuing a career as a singer songwriter, Murray has signed a recording contract & he is in the process of writing his debut album between the UK and the USA. Murray’s musical style is a mix of soul, blues and reggae inspired songs, with a distinct vocal style that defies his appearance. He has already supported names such as Amy Macdonald, Candi Staton, Natalie Imbruglia, Joe Purdy, and Sir Elton John, at his only UK concert this year. The concert was performed to a sellout crowd at Watford FC’s Vicarage Road Stadium last May.

The 21st anniversary of the star-studded Q Awards were held at The Grosvenor House Hotel in London on Monday, 25th October 2010. Some artists who received awards on the night included Sir Paul McCartney, Take That, Florence Welch, Chemical Brothers, Bryan Ferry & Kasabian. So it looks like he is moving in the right company! Murray was nominated in the shortlist for the ‘Next Big Thing award'. The shortlist was chosen by a panel comprised of Columnist Of The Year Caitlin Moran from The Times, Radio1's new music guru Huw Stephens, The Sun's Showbiz Editor Gordon Smart and Q Editor In Chief Paul Rees. From a long list of 20 acts the panel shortlisted the list to six acts. Sadly, it wasn’t Murray’s night to pick up an award, but it sounds like he had a good time anyway according to the message he put on Twitter; “That was an unbelievable night... I'm so hung-over that I can barely move my arms! Russian vodka gets a big thumbs up!” We hope that this is the start of a great musical career for one of our very own, and as soon as we hear that his debut album has been released we will let you know.

You can hear some of Murray James’s music in the link below:

www.myspace.com/murrayjamesmusic

Milford’s Race to Infinity

We recently heard from two observant, & I have to say intelligent readers, who have made us aware of an opportunity for us all to apply for superfast fibre optic broadband in the village. BT are running a ‘Race to Infinity’ campaign to decide which communities will get superfast broadband. With enough votes, our village connection could increase to speeds of up to 40Mb. In other words, a totally transformed internet, where downloads, uploads, chat and play can all happen at once. Suddenly, all those things that used to take forever on the internet, don't. So far 32 Milford on Sea resident households have voted out of a total 3498.

In order for Milford on Sea to be connected, we need to demonstrate support within our community. So, to ensure we can gain an up to date infrastructure for village homes, businesses and community services, please ‘Vote Now’ using the website link below:

www.bt.com/racetoinfinity

If we are successful in getting the broadband upgrade, all we need next is a mobile phone company who can provide a service where I can get a signal inside my house!

MEG Newsletter & Social Evening

The Milford Environment Group (MEG) & Wildlife Recording Group have been busy all around Milford on Sea. You can read about all of their activities & adventures on the link below.

www.milfordonsea.org/#/meg-newsletter-1

MEG are also holding a Social Evening on the 19th November. The evening involves a talk about ‘Pennington & Keyhaven Marshes and Sturt Pond Nature Reserves’ by Pete Durnell (The Nature Reserve Manager). There will also be a small buffet. If you would like to go along, or simply find out more please take a look in the new Community Calendar from the link below.

http://www.milfordonseacalendar.org/

Get on your bike!

A new bicycle hire business has started in Milford on Sea. You may well have noticed this already, due to the bike positioned on the grass outside Harvest House B&B in Lymington Road. The new venture is called ‘Going Dutch Bicycle Hire’ run by Jon Devereux. The business name is inspired by the type of bikes they have available, as you may have guessed the bikes are from The Netherlands & like the thousands that can be seen on the streets of Amsterdam every day.  If you fancy a day in the saddle give Jon a call on 07968 765433, or visit their shiny new website from the link below.

http://www.goingdutchbicyclehire.co.uk/

Three Tenor’s Sell Out

Tickets for the forthcoming ‘Mince Pies, Mistletoe and Mischief’ performance by ‘Milford’s Three Tenors’ went on sale last Monday at Milford on Sea Community Centre. The temporary box office for the day was due to open at 10am, and a queue started to form from around 8.30am. As you may expect, the 146 tickets sold out almost immediately, leaving scores of people without a ticket. The guy’s have are now planning to do a second show during December on a date yet to be confirmed. There is a now list on the inside window of the Community Centre for anyone who wants to add their name to a ‘ticket waiting list’. At the last count it already contains over 100 names!  When the new date is announced it will appear in the Village Community Calendar: http://www.milfordonseacalendar.org/

...STOP PRESS... We have just heard the additional performance is now at 8.30pm on the 6th December......

Mince Pies, Mistletoe and Mischief is a gala operatic performance from Milford's Three Tenors with a splattering of spontaneous humour. The evening brings together professional opera singers; Milford's own Colin Judson, Nick Ransley & Wynne Evans (from the ‘Go Compare’ TV advert). Anyone who saw the boys perform at the Milford Arts & Music Festival will be looking forward to being thrilled once again. Proceeds will be going to the new Milford Village Music Trust Fund founded by Colin Judson in support of young people in the village who have musical talent and who are in need of financial assistance to develop that ability.

To find out more about Milford's Three Tenors, please visit: http://www.maestro-class.com/

More about the individual artists :

Colin Judson: http://www.colinjudson.co.uk/

Wynne Evans: http://www.wynneevans.co.uk/

Nicholas Ransley: http://www.nicholasransley.com/

Spain comes to Westover Hall

Westover Hall are holding a ‘Spanish Night’ in aid of Naomi House Children’s Hospice next Wednesday, 10th November. A last few tickets are still available, so you would like enjoy a special Spanish Night, with a fabulous three course dinner including tapas, plus entertainment from Classic Spanish Guitarist & flamenco dancers it might be best to book now. The event starts with a welcome glass of Cava from 7pm. Tickets are £35 per person.

If you can’t make that one, Westover Hall are now offering Full Afternoon Tea with 2 for the price of 1! Now, that is right up my street, a classic British Afternoon Tea with fresh baked scones, jam & Cream, homemade cakes & sandwiches!  At only £19.50 for the lot, I am planning to treat my wife.  She doesn’t like cream, but being a martyr I will only be too happy to help her out with her scones!  I know, she is lucky that I am so chivalrous.

To book for the Spanish Night: Please call Westover Hall on 01590 643044 or e-mail:

info@westoverhallhotel.com

Mark wins Retail Award

One of our local newsagents, Mark Cumming of The Village News in the heart of Milford on Sea village, has won a major regional Retail Excellence Award.

Mark was aware of his nomination when he attended the ‘Retail Excellence Awards 2010 Presentation Evening at the De Vere Grand Harbour Hotel in Southampton, what he did not know, was that he was about to be presented with the CTN (Confectionery, Tobacco & News) Sector Runner Up for the NFRN South East Region.

Congratulations Mark, it was worth wearing a suit to the evening!

Magic Night at Zaika

To celebrate Fireworks Night, (& having decided a firework display would not be too practial inside of a Milford on Sea restaurant!), Zaika are having an Evening of Magic on the 5th of November.

Why not go along & enjoy ther fun.

Zaika is open from 6pm, ideal if you want to eat before going onto your firework party!

To Book please call: 01590 643084 (Booking recommended)

Zaika Indian Restaurant website:

http://www.zaikanewforest.co.uk/ 

New Producers Market in Everton

Following the end of the farmers market’s at Braxton Gardens in Milford on Sea, we are pleased to report that the ‘New Forest Marque Producers Market’ is moving just across the road! The relocated farmers markets will be held on the first Saturday of each month at Everton Nurseries Garden Centre, which is on the main Lymington to New Milton road. The market will run from 9am to 3pm every first Saturday. Having not really enjoyed the muddy field at Braxton, we are now looking forward to buying some local produce at the new market’s first day on Saturday the 6th November.

Everton Nurseries Garden Centre website: http://www.evertonnurseries.co.uk/

See market dates on the Milford on Sea Community Calendar:
http://www.milfordonseacalendar.org/

Food Week Public Meeting

I know open meetings are generally boring to attend, but why not make the exception with this one. Everyone in the village is invited to come along to find out what is being planned to happen in April next year.  You can even get involved to lend a hand at some events if you wish. We only expect the meeting to last around an hour.

Milford on Sea Food Week website:

http://www.milfordonseafoodweek.org/

Wildlife Trust launch book

We have heard from Peter Hutchings that the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust are just entering their 50th Anniversary year.

To mark the occasion they have produced an impressively illustrated book called ‘Wild Hampshire and the Isle of Wight’. The new publication has a foreword by Chris Packham, who says; "Such is the abundance of species in Hampshire. We have the rare, the glamorous, the bizarre and the beautiful. The author's (Clive Chatters) admiration, lifelong experience and enthusiasm for the region shine through in this exploration of our local wildlife".

If you would like a copy, the book costs £14.99 and proceeds go to support the Wildlife Trust's conservation work. Copies can be ordered online at http://www.hwt.org.uk/ or call 01489 774400

From Wind Farm to Solar

Following our recent story about the proposed Wind Farm we have heard from a Milford on Sea resident who runs a local Solar Energy company which is an approved solar photovoltaic installation company under the Microgeneration Certification Scheme. A lot of long words there that I don’t understand, but basically Aztec Solar provide systems to generate your own electricity using the power of the sun.

To encourage people to use solar energy the 'Green Energy Cash Back scheme' was launched in April 2010. It is a government backed scheme designed to incentivise people to generate their own zero carbon electricity using solar systems. The encouragement takes the form of a very generous payment scheme, called the "Feed in Tariff" and it's guaranteed and index linked for 25 years.

If you would like any more information, you can find it on their website below.

Aztec Solar website: http://www.aztecsolar.co.uk/