Dick Strawbridge Booked!

The whole process for making arrangements for Milford on Sea Food Week is now well under way, with fun & exciting events flooding in. It looks like next year will be even more spectacular than this year’s inaugural event. We are really pleased the we have managed to book Dick Strawbridge to appear, & even better, when I was chatting to Dick the other day he was genuinely excited to be coming along. ‘An Evening with Dick Strawbridge’ will feature Dick cooking, whilst telling easy going anecdotes & stories relating to his life exploring self sufficiency, together with his inside experiences as a TV Celebrity Master Chef. He will be cooking a demonstration menu of: Starter: Local seafood ravioli with crab & goats cheese buerre blanc and samphire | Main Course: Poachers/game roast with root dauphnoise, sweet chestnuts and a port reduction | Sweet: Rhubarb and ginger pudding with syllabub, whilst everyone enjoys his amusing & interesting stories, in his unique & exuberant style.  This is only one of a great programme that is coming together, so leave you diary free for Food week! We will let you know when tickets go on sale.

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Dick was a finalist in the 2010 BBC series of Celebrity Master Chef, and he is also a television presenter, Eco Engineer, Ex-Army Colonel & proud owner of the best moustache in showbiz! Dick’s warm & exuberant personality was energetically demonstrated in his 'Scrapheap Challenge' days, & in his popular BBC2 series 'It's not easy being green'. The series featured his family’s lifestyle changes and experiments into sustainable living and eco-technology. The programme was filmed at his family home, Newhouse Farm, which is a self-sufficient environmentally friendly smallholding in the West Country. Dick also published his latest book ‘Practical Self Sufficiency’ in 2010. His love of food is excitingly demonstrated in his hearty fare and focus on flavours.

To find out more about Dick Strawbridge, please click following link:

http://www.dickstrawbridge.com/

Milford on Sea Food Week runs from11th April to 17th April 2011

http://www.milfordonsesafoodweek.org/

LITA Newsletter

The Lymington & District International Twinning Association have published their October Newletter & you can read all about their activities from the link at the bottom of this page.

LITA was originally formed in 1981, and through exchange visits, fosters friendships between the people of the Lymington area and those of each of their three twin towns (Vitré/France, Almansa/Spain, and Mosbach/Germany). It supports community and civic links, and organises social events as well as French, Spanish and German conversation groups for its members.

As the 'District bit' in the organisation name, several Milford on Sea residents are members & enjoy the international social activities.

www.milfordonsea.org/lita-newsletter

A Poppy for Grandad

I am sure that at this time of year many families recall stories of the war years & the part their own families played in the eventual victory.  Our family never really had any ‘war stories’, well we didn’t until my brother Peter, did some genealogical research during 2009.  Like most families I guess, the war was not discussed when we were children, & the only thing I remember was that my dad’s older brother had been a WW2 prisoner of war in an horrific Japanese camp, but he never spoke about it to anyone, ever.

I also knew that my Grandad’s lungs were badly damaged during the first world war, but did not know how. I remember him as a warm & kindly man who lived with us when we were children. In fact our three bedroom home in Kingsbury, North London, housed Grandad, my Nan, Mum & Dad, plus us three kids. He fondly told me great children’s stories as I sat on his knee, with his oxygen cylinder & mask sitting ominously next to him in the living room. He even caught me doing something I shouldn’t have, but kept it a secret from anyone forever. My other Grandfather, Albert Long, I remember as a stern archetypal Victorian man, in a woollen suit with waistcoat & fob watch. His house was a standard semi-detached in Hendon, North London with an allotment at the bottom of the garden where he spent many hours. He was certainly of a mind that ‘children should be seen & not heard’ & the front parlour was a special treat to visit only on special Sundays. This all seems so far from the days we now live in. Having been born in the mid 1950's, I grew up with the war as being something 'old people' talked about, & in my teens & twenties I was much more interested in girls & pubs!

Sadly, when I eventually became interested in what happened during the two World Wars it was too late to ask many of those I had known that had been there. It was not until I was in my early forties that I took a trip to Ypres & the Belgian World War One Battlefields & Trenches, and the experience was unexpectedly emotional & a disturbing realisation of the scale of the slaughter. In subsequent years my interest in the war years grew, as I tried to understand & make sense of what had happened. It just felt important to know. A visit to the World War Two D-Day Beaches of France soon followed. If these are trips you have never made, I thoroughly recommend a visit. I cannot say it will be fun, I also cannot guarantee you will not have an involuntary tear or two, but I can guarantee that the sights will put everything into perspective & steel your resolve for such a thing to never happen again. In my view, it should be on the curriculum of every school in the country to visit the battlefields & cemeteries to ensure our children never forget what happened to their own forefathers.

click image to enlarge

Back to Peter, (my Brother), a few years ago he gave me a surprise present of two photograph frames with the most amazing contents following his research: each had a sepia photograph, name & rank panel, miniature medals & script on the back. The photographs were pictures of each of my Grandfathers in their military uniforms during WW1. The stories on the back revealed amazing things about two ordinary men during wartime.

My Grandad, Staff Sergeant Horace W Hunt had been in the Royal Army Ordnance Corps during WW1 as a Mine Sweeper, unfortunately he was involved in an explosion which necessitated his return to Hendon Cottage Hospital, England for treatment for temporary blindness & respiratory problems. During World War Two he served as a corporal in the Southgate Home Guard. Being an engineer he invented an improved loading device for 97 round Lewis Light Machine Gun which improved the loading efficiency by forty percent, which he donated to the war effort.  Our family now has a letter from a Major M. A Moir, congratulating him on his ingenuity.

click image to enlarge

My other Grandfather, Rifleman Albert Long, of the Rifle Brigade was one of the few to return from the atrocious battlefields of Passchendaele, Belgium. During his time in the trenches we were proud to discover that he had been awarded the Military Medal for an individual act of bravery. His Military Medal was awarded on the 18th October 1917. Unfortunately, all records of the exact event were destroyed during the bombing of the Army Records Office in London during World War 2. However, from family memory Peter discovered that he had saved a comrade from ‘no man’s land’ during battle. His medals were bequeathed by the family to his Regimental museum, the Royal Green Jackets Museum in Winchester, when he died in 1965 & can still be seen there today.

This personal story may not be read by many, but for those that do read this, I hope it conjures up memories from your own families.  Most importantly, now that I have written this story online my grandads will never be forgotten, and like so many other fathers & grandfathers who sacrificed so much, they never should.

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/

Ashtons start letting service

Local village estate agents, Ashtons have announced that they are now offering a lettings service as well as residential sales. There is a strong demand for rental property in the area, both from local residents and from visitors to the area who wish to rent in the locality initially to get a true feel of living here before making a big move on a permanent basis.

If you have a property to let, or are looking for a property to rent, I’m sure Sarah and Linda will be happy to help.

25 High Street, Milford on Sea | Tel: 01590 644191.

Ashtons website: http://www.ashtonsrealestate.com/

Would you like a Milford on Sea twin?

Thanks to the Village Voice, I recently discovered that Hordle is twinned with Yerville, not far from my old adopted homeland in Deauville, France. I already knew that Lymington has a Twinning Association. I guess it is because Lymington is so posh that they can have three twinned towns, Vitré in France, Almansa in Spain, and Mosbach in Germany. I am not sure if these should be more accurately described as ‘tripleted towns’?

As you may expect, the fact that Milford on Sea hasn’t even got one ‘Twinned Town’ got me thinking. My first reaction was to see if we could nick one of Lymington’s friends, but that plan may not be easy to execute. I therefore wondered why we did not get a twin when the others did. I am unsure whether this is due to us never considering the concept, or whether we have approached towns around the world to only receive abject rejection.

Previous readers will of course know that a few years ago we emigrated to France, for 6 weeks, so almost being a Frenchman myself, I consider myself an expert of cultural exchanges.  I asked a few friends for their ideas of places for us to twin with, Alistair came up with Monte Carlo, Colin thought New York might be good, Jon suggested Blackpool (Don’t think he really got the gist of the twinning concept!), and Bill recommended that I just join the Lymington or Hordle groups & leave the other poor unsuspecting international towns alone.

Sometimes I really wonder why I ask for opinions from the half-witted friends I have. My wife, ever interested in my fanciful projects, helped by suggesting; ‘Baghdad’, adding that I should perhaps go on a research mission for a year or so.

If you have any ridiculous suggestions of Towns we should twin with just let us know by posting a comment below. Should you prefer to get involved in some ‘proper’ local Twinning Associations, take a look at the following links:

Hordle & District Twinning Association:

www.hordle-twinning.co.uk

Lymington & District Town Twinning Association

www.lymingtontwinning.weebly.com

www.lymington.org/towntwinning

www.lymingtoninternationaltwinningassociation.co.uk

Are we going to lose our Carnival?

The Milford on Sea Carnival is one of the highlights of our village summer. The event has raised money for good causes, and provided many days of fun for villagers & holidaymakers alike. At a recent open village meeting it was revealed that the carnival needs more floats joining the procession to keep it viable. The organising committee are also in dire need of some more ‘helping hands’. The current tough economic times are of course adding pressure to people participating, but the main success of any float is not really the cost, it is more to do with creativity & the simple willingness to be involved. Indeed, a number of ‘floats’ are now dressed vans, classic cars or ‘walking groups’, which enable more people to get involved, even if they do not have access to a lorry. Having watched the carnival for several years, it is a great day of ‘old fashioned village life’ which achieves a simple aim of bringing people together. The carnival crosses all age boundary’s, it is great to see the young one’s beaming faces & the adults dressed in costumes they would never normally consider! The smiles run from one end of the village to the other when everyone enters the spirit of the day.

Our Milford on Sea Carnival is organised by the Milford on Sea Village Community Committee, which was founded in 1977 to create the village celebrations for the Queen’s Silver Jubilee. Since then they have annually run the Carnival, the May Fayre & the Christmas ‘Carols on the Green’. Like some many great activities & events in our village, the Milford on Sea Carnival is run by a small group of dedicated volunteers.

It would be sad to think the carnival is under real threat due to dwindling support, but the event is of course totally dependent on local people getting involved. If you are a member of a local club or association, or run any type of local business, why not give some thought as to how you could be involved with a float next year? Alternatively, if you can spare a few hours as an individual volunteer, this would also be gratefully received. There is a real chance we may have seen our last village carnival unless more people step forward to help run the event, or join the procession. Let’s not lose this ‘old time’ tradition from our seaside village.

To get involved or lend a hand please contact:

Ray Sales, Milford on Sea Village Community Committee Chairman on 01590 643149 | e-mail: info@milfordcarnival.com

Milford on Sea Carnival website:

http://www.milfordcarnival.com/

Wind Farm plans revealed

Plans of the proposed giant wind farm west of the Isle of Wight & 12 miles from the New Forest coastline (Sounds like that could be due south of Milford on Sea?), will be on display at St Thomas’s Church Hall on the 11th November. The Wind Farm would apparently be the size of Anglesey & if approved building would commence in 2016.

The Wind Farm would be built by a Dutch company, Eneco, & would comprise of 200 wind turbines rising 145 metres from the water. It has been reported in the Daily Echo that the £175m scheme will generate enough electricity to power about 500,000 homes and is expected to bring more than 2,000 jobs to the area. An Eneco representative was reported in the Daily Echo as saying: “They will only be seen far in the distance on a clear day.” Whilst it is likely that environmental groups will raise objections, it appears that support can be found in council offices & at Westminster. If you would like to see the plans, ask questions or air your views you can visit the exhibition below.

Wind Farm Exhibition: 11th November | 2.30pm to 8.30pm

Location: St Thomas Church Hall, St Thomas’s Street, Lymington

http://www.milfordonseacalendar.org/

Flu Jabs

The next round of Flu Jabs are being held at Milford Medical Centre in Sea Road on: 

Thursday: 11th November 2010 - 2pm to 6pm

Monday: 29th November 2010 - 2pm to 5pm

To Book please call: 01590 643022

http://www.milfordmedicalcentre.com/