New Ring at Community Care

The Milford on Sea Community Care Group do great work looking after local people with transport to medical & dental appointments. 

 

Not only is the help pracitical, it also provides a friendly face on what can be a stressful day.

 

The Community Care Group is run entirely by volunteers, and is based in the front office at the Community Centre in Sea Road. Recently a number of changes have taken place, and they now have:

 

New Phone No: 01590 641700 and .......
New Office Hours: Monday to Friday - 9am to 11am and 2pm to 4pm.

  

The group has also launched a new logo (above) to go along with the changes.

As ever, they are on the look-out for willing volunteers to drive, or to operate the office phone, even for a few hours a month.

You know the number to ring, if you can lend a hand! 01590 641700

Sound & Dance at Hurst Castle

Hurst Castle is to have a resident sound artist, Nimmi Naidoo, from 2nd to 14th September, and a resident dance artist Espirito Santo Mauricio from 15th to 30th September 2013. The studio will be open everyday 2pm – 4.30pm.

Espirito Santo Mauricio is a dance artist and will be arriving from Vancouver, Canada, and she is interested in connecting to local musicians who improvise, and for dancers who would like to get involved.

 

Espirito will be working on Project Unity, which is an artistic human experience, aiming at bringing people together through the art of contact dance improvisation, voice and music.

 

Over a 2 week period experienced contact dancers, musicians, voice artists and audience members will develop an ongoing relationship based on shared movement.

 

The object is to find or invent a form of ongoing interactive art that continues within a community, playing a different role that performance alone can play. Espirito is looking to undercut the increasingly mediated nature of this culture – the way it grows more electronically connected but, at the same time more physiologically disconnected. Her approach is to bring audience into re-opening their interactive Kinetic and tactile senses as a group.

 

If you would like to contact Espirito, her details are: Espirito Santo Mauricio at espiritosm@gmail.com

 

Espirito Santo Mauricio started performance at age 5, acting, singing dancing. Trained in folk dance, ballet, voice, theatre, gymnastics, improvisation, modern, Flamenco, Labban Barttenief, Body Mind Centering. Contact Improvisation, yoga, Ayurveda, hip hop. Her work is dedicated at generating peace within and out, through the meditative nature of contact dance improvisation.

 

www.espiritosantodance.com

Sound Artist in Residence at Hurst Castle

Sound Artist, Nimmi Naidoo will be creating a low-tech sound studio next to the Café in Hurst Castle from 2nd to 14th September.

“We chose a sound artist to be our first artist-in-residence because we wanted to offer visitors new way of experiencing the Castle,” said a spokesperson at the Fleetwood Initiative, the charity who are curating the Residency.

“Sound Art invites us to listen closely to where we are.” Nimmi said. “I will be rambling across the shingle and through the Castle in search of hidden sounds. I like to find the detail, small corners that are resonant with the character of a place.”

As well as recording sounds, this Sound Artist will be searching the ground for anything that will make a noise. Nimmi explained, “Found instruments are exciting to work with, you never know what you will hear from them.”

Visitors can join Nimmi on a free Listening Walk. At 4.30pm on Wed. 4th Sept, Sat. 7th Sept, Sun. 8th Sept, and Wed. 11th Sept. (You can book at the studio on the day)

Nimmi graduated with an MA in Interdisciplinary Arts from Oxford Brookes University in 2011.

Nimmi Naidoo
www.nimminaidoo.com

Hurst Castle is currently open daily 10.30am to 5.30pm.
www.hurstcastle.co.uk

Coffee, Cake & £520

The Homegrange Coffee and Cake was well attended on the morning on Friday 26th July 2013.

 

Held in the garden at Homegrange in Shinglebank Drive, homemade cakes made by the residents of Homegrange were enjoyed by a good turnout, as was the live piano music from Roger Boothroyd. There was also a well supported Bric-a-Brac stall and a grand raffle.

 

The event raised £520 for the Oakhaven Hospice fund ...all in all, a great team effort. 

Breakfast with Gold Stars

The Bay Trees
click image to enlarge

Mark & Sarah at The Bay Trees in Milford on Sea High Street, had a unannounced visit from the Hotel Inspector from Visit England recently. After he had spent the night and had breakfast, he announced himself and told them that they had again been awarded a Four Star status with a Gold Award for a very high standard. This is the third successive year since the arrival of Mark & Sarah as owners in 2011 that the prestigious award has been received.

 

Sarah was particularly happy that, although the Bay Trees scored very highly in all sections of the assessment, she achieved a perfect 100% for the New Forest Breakfast and was awarded the Kellogg's Breakfast Award as well. This is especially welcome as they also have the New Forest Marque - awarded for serving locally sourced and produced products on the breakfast menu and other local products in the rooms. Who can resist a great breakfast!

 

In awarding the 4 Stars and Gold Award the Inspector wrote of the exemplary standards of cleanliness and housekeeping in all areas of the property and the warm friendliness of the welcome and hospitality from Mark & Sarah, and said 'breakfast in the Conservatory on a summer morning was a very jolly affair!'

The Bay Trees Garden
click image to enlarge

 

To see photographs of the Bay Trees luxury bed & breakfast bedrooms and beautiful garden, please visit their web site:

 

The Bay Trees

www.baytreebedandbreakfast.co.uk

50 B4 50-A New Dining Quest!

Having finished our 40 B4 40 Dining Challenge we were in need of a new challenge to keep us amused. We considered a number of options, but fortunately my wife's ideas of basing it on exercise, shopping, or going to the South Pole fell on deaf ears.

I suppose to decide we needed to know our main criteria. We soon agreed that it needed to be enjoyable, amusing, and not to involve sweating. Eating of course fit this criteria very well, unless of course you are eating a fierce curry.

Ultimately I guess, the whole point of our challenge is that it needs to be pointless. Collecting points, seems pointless, ...so that is what we are going to do.

50 B4 50-Dining Challenge: Our new challenge is to collect 50 points before my wife is 50. In this instance one Michelin Star will equal one point. So, we need to dine in various Michelin Star restaurants that have a collective total of 50 Michelin Stars.

Michelin Inspectors anonymously visit restaurants throughout the year using an inspection process that has been refined since 1926. The inspectors concentrate on the quality, flavours, mastery of technique, personality and consistency of the food. Earning One, Two of Three Michelin Stars is seen as one of the highest honours in the restaurant industry. In 2013 only 3 restaurants held three Michelin Star across the UK.

This may all sound pretentious, stuffy and expensive, but in reality it makes dining an experience and event, as much as you would get at the theatre or a concert.

Top Tip: A Saturday evening on the a la carte menu will certainly be felt in the pocket, but we have a 'Top Tip' to share; most, if not all, of these restaurant will do special lunch menus, or in London, pre-theatre menus, which are extensive and great value. Each restaurant has a reputation to protect, and the kitchen team preparing the food is the same, the only difference is you pay a fraction of what you may pay at other times.With my wife now being 40, we have ten years to collect 50 points (Stars) before her 50th birthday.To make things a bit easier, we have decided to include the Michelin Star restaurants that we have already dined in. This may appear cheating, but the good thing about setting the rules for a pointless points challenge, is that we can do what we like!

So, here we go, it is August 2013, we have 18 Michelin Star so far, the knife & forks are ready, and the race is on!

WI Scoop NF Show Awards

On Tuesday morning, despite the heavy rain, spirits were high as the spies from Milford on Sea WI entered the tent at the New Forest Show to view the results of Monday’s judging.

 

The Womens' Institute ladies were delighted to find their exhibits scattered with gold and silver stars.
 

1st on Produce Co-operative
'A packed lunch for a day’s walk in the New Forest'
Pat Brooks (Left) who made the fruit cake
and Suzie Watson
click image to enlarge.

The Produce Co-operative team found a red First on their exhibit 'A packed lunch for a day’s walk in the New Forest' and our accomplished artists gained a First and a Second in the Art category 'The Traveller'.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Art Exhibit 1st: Gillian Key
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Gillian Key also won the accolade of 'Best in Show' in Craft. Margaret Gibson came second in the 'Italian Bread'. Mayve Larke second in the fresh flower exhibit 'Flight' and Eileen Maycock, out of 193 entries, came third in the Novice Class 'T-shaped jumpers for Zimbabwe'.

 

What a creative bunch!



'A packed lunch for a day’s walk in the New Forest'
click image to enlarge

3rd in the Jumpers: Eileen Maycock
click image to enlarge



Art Exhibit 1st: Gillian Key
2nd: Maureen Tate
click image to enlarge

Lady at The Fat Duck

A good friend of this blog and local lady, is Carol. Carol is also one of the key members of 'Ladies Who Lunch in Hampshire.'

 

Over several years 'The Ladies' have eaten just about everywhere across Hampshire, often pulling in willing or unwilling partners to join them.  The reviews show their pure enjoyment for fun and food.

 

Their website is now a definative guide to wherever you may want to eat in Hampshire.

 

So, why the mention here?  Well, Carol recently had a special occasion, and visited The Fat Duck in Bray. This particular restaurant is Heston Blumental's flagship and  one of only 4 restaurants in the UK that holds 3 Michelin Stars, and it was voted Best Restaurant in the World in 2005. It is also one I would love to visit one of these days. 

 

As you may expect, it is expensive, but so is getting the best tickets for a top concert or a West End theatre.  Whilst not every can indulge in such an experience, we hope people can enjoy someone else's luck in being able to go. (Not sure I want to sail around the world, but love hearing about people that have!)

 

We know there are plenty of foodies in Milford on Sea, so we just wanted to share Carol's review with you.

 

You can read Carol's Fat Duck Review by clicking here.

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Ladies Who Lunch in Hampshire
www.ladieswholunch-in-hampshire.co.uk

Col Richard Carver OBE Update

Since running an article about Colonel Richard Carver OBE RE last week, (view here), we have discovered more about his time in Milford on Sea. Below are some memories of his house, Arnwood, his involvement with All Saints' Church, Milford Art Group and MoS Historical Records Society, and also his final resting place.

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Colonel Richard Carver OBE RE, locally known as Dick Carver, was born on 26th May 1914. He lived in Milford on Sea for 28 years of his later life and died in the village on the 24th July 2007 at the age of 93.

Richard was a stepson of Field Marshal Viscount Montgomery of Alamein. Fighting with Montgomery as a forward liaison officer in the 8th Army (Commonly known as The Desert Rats), Richard was captured  in the Western Desert in 1942, and an extraordinary adventure ensued.


Richard Carver's House:

Carol Bartlett recalls; "I remember Dick Carver living next door to us in Lymington Road, Milford on Sea SO41 0QN. His house was named Arnwood, and was in between our property known as The Garden House, and The Vicarage. Arnwood was demolished about 4 years ago and replaced by Langtry House. Dick was a wonderful neighbour and a lovely man. My husband John and Dick were good friends and spent many happy evenings reminiscing and putting the world to rights!"

Christina Young remembers Richard's house: "Dick's house was called Arnwood. It was an attractive whitewashed house, with a slate roof, nearly opposite The Old House in Lymington Road. The house was demolished following his death and has now been Replaced." Today, Langtry House an imposing property built around 2010, sits in the ample grounds of Richard's former home.

Richard Carver & All Saints' Church

Alastair Dunn, Vicar at All Saints’ Church from 1990 to 2004 remembers Richard well. Alastair said; “Dick, as he was known to me, was a a regular worshipper at All Saints’ Church, and he was also a Housegroup leader and Churchwarden. I recall he became a Churchwarden just before I arrived in 1990 and he remained so until 1997.”

Richard Carver & Milford on Sea Historical Records Society

Brian Giles, Chairman of Milford on Sea Historical Records Society recalls; “Dick was a grand character. In all the times I went to his house with AGM papers when he was a member of MOSHRS, he never mentioned his connection with ‘Monty’.” From this, it is fair to assume that Richard was a modest and old school gentleman.

Richard Carver & Milford Art Group
 

It is believed that Dick was a member of Milford on Sea Art Group, although current members of the group have been unable to confirm this. His love of art may well have come from his mother, Betty Carver. Betty had been a student at The Slade School of Art in London, having always been interested in art and sculpture, she excelled in oil and watercolour painting. (Betty's brother was Col. Sir Percy Cleghorn Stanley Hobart MC DSO OBE KBE which confirms the family had fine military connections.)  

Richard Carvers Resting Place: Richard is buried in All Saints' Churchyard in Milford on Sea, alongside his wife, Audrey.

click image to enlarge

The grave for Mr Carver is in area 3, behind the church. Walk towards the shed at the back, about 3 rows up from the “cross roads”, and about 6 graves in.

All Saints' Church Yard Map

 

The Book:

Richard’s son, Tom Carver has written an excellent book about Dick's life and war exploits called 'Where the hell have you been?’ View or buy book here.

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We would like to hear anything about Richard Carver's life and particularly his time in Milford on Sea, ...what can you tell us?

Reply to: david@milfordonsea.org or post a comment below.

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Other notable Graves at All Saints' Church: Identified by Jim Butterworth (MoS Historical Society)

• Sir Stephen Hope Carhill
• Charles Dickens Granddaughter
• Charles Augustus Lord, Officer of the Chinese Imperial Maritime Service
• Two brothers who drowned at Hurst Castle
• Revd Willis, Bishop Of Honolulu 1872-1902

Stay at The Marine

The Marine, perfectly situated on Milford on Sea Seafront, is now offering rooms for diners wishing to stay over night, or holiday makers wishing a longer stay to enjoy all that our delightful seaside village has to offer.

The spectacularly located ‘Art Deco’ styled landmark building, occupies a dramatic position with stunning views to The Needles, Christchurch Bay & Sturt Pond Nature Reserve.

There is now the opportunity to stay, in one of the three comfortable executive bed & breakfast bedrooms or the luxury self-catering Hurst Penthouse Suite, all with excellent facilities and panoramic sea views.

Having had a sneak peek, it is clear that no expense has been spared in the quality of the furnishing and fixtures in any of the rooms.

The Marine | B&B Bedroom

Comfort will be ensured for anyone staying, with every B&B bedroom featuring a contemporary design and benefiting from glorious views of this wonderful coastline.

The Hurst Penthouse Suite is open plan and spacious, with a kitchen that most people would love to have in their own homes, added to this, there is a balcony where you can enjoy a glass of wine and arguably one of the best panoramic views in the country.

The Marine | Hurst Penthouse Suite

Guests will have little need to stray far to eat, thanks to the ground floor contemporary, fully licensed, Café Bar during the daytime or evening, which serves coffee, snack, a delicious informal lunch, afternoon tea, or evening meal. There is also and elegant first floor Restaurant, providing a more formal dining experience, serving the very best modern British cuisine, and enjoying captivating panoramic sea & coast views.

Milford on Sea offers so many attractions for visitors, and anyone staying a few days can also take advantage of the wide variety of shops and places to eat in the village centre. There is a very good reason that Milford on Sea is becoming known as the 'South Coast's Foodie Heaven'!

------------------
The Marine
Hurst Road, Milford on Sea, SO41 0PY | Tel: 01590 644369
www.themarinemos.co.uk
info@themarinemos.co.uk

Events: *The Marine is also available for private parties and corporate hire. They can accommodate individual parties of between 10 & 100+ for birthdays, anniversaries, weddings, wakes etc, - so get in touch if you're looking for a special venue for an occasion you are celebrating.

Visiting Milford on Sea?

Check out what do, where to stay, local news and more: www.milfordonsea.org



WI in the South Seas

MoS WI President, Penny Ramus
& Kath Brookes 

The girls at Milford on Sea WI went a bit tropical recently.

 

As members arrived for the July 'Garden Meeting', they had a bit of a surprise when they were greeted with a scene from the exotic South Seas, complete with parrots in palm trees!

 

Knowing the fun loving girls in our local Women's Institute I was not the least bit surprised that they were dressing up again!  Some of you may remember a variety of humorous and daring costumes in the Milford on Sea Carnival over the years!, ... I rest my case.

 

The tables were gaily decorated with vine leaves, pineapples and fresh fruits and background music playing. President, Penny Ramus, complete with grass skirt and garlands of flowers, greeted members old and new with “Aloha”.

 

As things got underway, Barbara Pidgeon showed the certificate and her prize winning quilt (runner-up in the national Makeover competition) which is currently touring various county shows and will be at Denman College by Christmas.

The meetings business was kept to a minimum, after all there was a party to enjoy!


click image to enlarge

The choir performed a selection of hit songs from the musical, South Pacific to enthusiastic applause. The Committee, all dressed in similar polenysian style with multi-coloured grass skirts and bedecked with flowers, then served a sumptuous afternoon tea to approximately eighty appreciative ladies. Fortified with tea, the brain-teasing quiz was tackled with renewed vigour.

To close, Shirley Headley was thanked for her delightful flower arrangement, and the committee earned a huge round of applause for excellent catering and a fun afternoon.

The Next meeting is on 17 September in All Saints' Church Hall.

If you fancy joining the WI please contact: Maureen Askin on 01590 641420 or see website by clicking here.
 

Ross, David and Heston

A face that was familiar around Milford on Sea not so long ago has made his way to the pages of OK! Magazine.

Ross Clarke, is a locally born chef who initially learnt his craft under the guidance of David Wykes, owner/head chef at Verveine Fishmarket Restaurant in the village.

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From Verveine, ambitious Ross went to join Heston Blumenthal at The Fat Duck experimental kitchen in Bray. The Fat Duck is one of the world's most famous restaurants, which been awarded three Michelin stars and was voted Best Restaurant in the world in 2005.

Surprisingly, Heston Blumenthal is a totally self-taught chef, whose route to the top has been an unconventional one, involving rule-breaking, unusual experiments and totally amazing food creations.

Ross's career continues to develop, and today he has his own food consultancy & training business which operates in both the UK and Dubai in the UAE. His company now provides services which can further a restaurants menu, atmosphere, standard, efficiency and overall level of performance.

The OK! Magazine interview, (picture shown above) was conducted at one of Ross's Multi Sensory Dining course's in Dubai. The course covered topics such as; the effects that playing with senses can have on the perception of the food, the use of modern dining equipment to increase dining experience and the atmosphere of the restaurant from start to end.  Also covered was the safe and effective way to use dry ice and liquid nitrogen to increase dining experience instead of just making clouds!

The magazine article covers Ross's thoughts on cooking, and he quotes that the best ever meal he has had was at Verveine.  Obviously an excellent judge!

Ross also runs food events to fit a clients needs, which could be anything from a product launch to 500 people through to a private dinner on a super yacht for two people, in addition he also runs a selection of training courses in the UK and the UAE. The courses can follow a set subject or they can be tailor made towards any aspect of modern dining.

To add to his recent experiences Ross has also become involved in filming, from consulting on creative concepts to presenting for culinary programmes. His previous filming experience includes; Heston's Fantastical Food, BBC Good Food  and Platinum Fusion Awards.

Ross Clarke

www.rossclarke.co.uk
ross@rossclarke.co.uk | 07712 449775

Verveine Fishmarket Restaurant
98 High Street, Milford on Sea, SO41 0QE
01590 642176
www.verveine.co.uk

The Fat Duck
High Street, Bray, Berkshire, SL6 2AQ
www.thefatduck.co.uk

Old Walls, ...New Website!

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David & Kate Danby has been providing excellent holidays in their quality self catering properties for several years, and have now decided to bring their holiday collection 'under one roof' on a new website.

 

The new website has been given a light sea side breezy feel that gives visitors a great deal of local information from the best local beaches, to great days out, top children attractions and details of where to eat whether it is pubs or restaurants either in Milford village or further afield in the forest. It even allows visitors to check on the state of the tides!

This has been combined with a booking platform that enables clients to immediately look at the availability for their preferred dates, check prices and then book on-line.

 

The three New Forest Coastal properties are Mulberry Barn, which has the Visit England highest 5 Star Gold rating, Old Walls Apartment which is Visit England 4 Star, and Lime Grove Bungalow in Everton which is NFTA Quality Assessed.

To check out the website for yourself please visit: www.newforestcoastalcottages.co.uk

 

New Forest Coastal Cottages
David & Kate Danby
www.newforestcoastalcottages.co.uk
info@newforestcoastalcottages.co.uk