From Monday 12th November 2018 till Saturday 9th February 2019 one of the parking bays in Stalbridge high street will not be available for parking in. It's the one near Else's Butchers, almost opposite The former Crown Inn.
Below is the blurb from Dorset Council about why this is happening... 
Stalbridge commemorates Armistice day every year and, in order to guarantee the safety of participants in the parade we have to close the high street to traffic for two 15 minute periods on Sunday 11th November as the procession makes its way to and from The Church of St. Mary, both before and after the service of Remembrance. We have received notice of the closure from Dorset County Council, which we illustrate below, together with a map of the area affected.
Every month the Stalbridge Garden Society produces a report on their monthly meeting. Here is the October 2018 edition...
Tony Moore, our chairman, welcomed the members to our meeting, gave out the notices, on the after Christmas meal venue, the health /allergens certificate, and also asked if anyone would be willing to come forward to represent the S.G.S at the village hall meetings. Tony informed us that there were two places on the committee if anyone would like to join the existing member, they would be welcome. Marion Dale was the speaker for the evening, Tony welcomed her, she has given us great talks in the past, so we all were looking forward to this evening’s talk. “Designing with plants” was the title of the talk. Marion told us how she became a garden designer, after being made redundant from her job in the city. She went to college and gained an R.H.S. certificate, she helped students design a garden, and they won a gold medal, she then herself won a gold medal for her own design work’ Marion told us where to start when designing whether you want a themed, modern, contempary or cottage garden. Then do a P.H test on your garden soil, which might be acid, alkaline or neutral, this will help you greatly when choosing your plants. Next know your soil type; it is usually one of these three types, sandy, silty or the more difficult clay, this again will help you when choosing trees and shrubs. Another question to ask yourself is how much shade, or full sun does your garden get? This will effect what type for plants to put in your garden and where to plant them, for example lavender likes full sun, whereas woodland plants like shade. Think about trees and shrubs, how big will they get in five or ten years’ time! There is a good website called “shoot” which lists lots of trees and shrubs, and it is easy to find out how big some of your garden plants will get, so for example, eucalyptus reaches 15ft in ten years or larger, not ideal for small gardens. Screening do you need plants to screen your property, shed, neighbours, do they need to be evergreen? What type of leaf shape do you like or need, plants fit for purpose. Colour, all year round interest, pastel shades, bright hot colours to lift a dark area, pastels to soften a sharp edge, all these things need to be taken into account when designing a garden Marion gave us the best tip, when going to the garden centre or nursery, chose plants that you like , don’t take any money with you, just a note book and pen, make a note, when you get home check to see if they are right for your garden, do your research, then you can buy. Finally she told us that she still has not had time to do her own cottage garden, hopefully one day soon! Marion gave us a super talk with lots of pictures, and lots of information and tips about garden design, we all enjoyed it very much. Apple competition Thank you to Chris Wiles and Geoff for judging the lovely display of apples. The results are as follows:- Cooking: - 1st Angela Flavell 2nd Tony Moore 3rd Shirley Ketcher h/c Mary Moore Dessert: - 1st Dennis Ketcher 2nd Tony Moore 3rd Mary Moore A big thank you to all of you who took part and brought in some of the apple harvest. Next month we have a talk by Castle Gardens “Looking at Hedges and Barriers”, in the hall at 7.30pm on Thursday 8th November Please do come and visit our friendly garden society, you are always welcome. Time to start bringing in your plants that you wish to overwinter, the dahlias are hanging on giving a splash of colour. Don’t forget to plants the spring bulbs, and take lots of autumn photos with your cameras of phone, that is if this strong wind has not blown all of the leaves off before they change colour! Michelle Howell 
Stalbridge Pétanque and Croquet is a new club, set up to promote the playing of Pétanque & Croquet in Stalbridge. It is early days for the club, but if you would like to join this group, we will keep you updated about developments and facilities as we move forward.
Pétanque and Croquet are sports which can be enjoyed by people of all ages and abilities and both do not involve great strength or mobility in order to participate. So why not visit the facebook page, become a member, and hopefully soon we will have two more healthy and social activity clubs for Stalbridge! 
It's 400 years since the death of Sir Walter Raleigh and here at his favourite pub The Virginia Ash we are marking the occasion with some very traditional dishes he would have loved if he popped in today for a pint, a pie and of course a pipe of his famous tobacco!
Join us on Monday evening 29th October for some lovely comfort food classics and meet our very own Sir Walter! Considering how he died we won't be serving chops (he was beheaded), but as well as our usual dishes our specials for the night will include: 
So why not come and join us to mark occasion, raise a glass to Sir Walter and enjoy some heart warming home cooked food for this special Knight!
OPEN ALL DAY, 7 DAYS A WEEK
• DINING HOURS: MONDAY TO SATURDAY 12 NOON - 2.15PM AND 5.30PM - 8.30PM • SUNDAYS 12.30PM - 6.30PM • (LAST ORDERS FOR MEALS ARE 2.15PM AND 8.30PM MONDAY - SATURDAY AND 6.30PM ON SUNDAY) TABLE BOOKINGS AND GENERAL ENQUIRIES: 01963 363 868 • THE VIRGINIA ASH, SHERBORNE ROAD, HENSTRIDGE, SOMERSET BA8 0PL • 
This year we are commemorating the 100th anniversary of the end of the 1st World War. Now, more than ever we have a duty to honour the men, women and even animals who lost their lives in the defence of our country, allowing us to be the free country we are today. We would like to encourage as many residents of Stalbridge as possible to join the parade or line the streets on the parade route on the morning of the 11th November. Please buy a poppy and wear it with pride on the day.
For those of you who are not aware- The armistice (the formal end of hostilities) was signed at the 11th hour on the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918 in Compiegne, France. This was according to French time - in Germany it was 12 noon. The German delegation headed by Matthias Erzberger crossed the war's front line in five cars and was escorted for ten hours across the devastated war zone of Northern France, arriving on the morning of 8 November. They were then taken to the secret destination aboard General Foch of France's private train, parked in a railway siding in the forest of Compiegne. Foch appeared only twice in the three days of negotiations that took place: on the first day, to ask the German delegation what they wanted, and on the last day, to witness the signatures. The Germans were handed the list of Allied demands and given 3 days to agree. The Armistice demanded complete German demilitarization, with next to no promises made by the Allies in return. There was no question of negotiation. The Germans were able to correct a few of the demands (for example, the decommissioning of more submarines than their fleet actually possessed) - they also extended the schedule for the withdrawal and registered their formal protest at the harshness of Allied terms, but, in effect were in no position to refuse to sign. On Sunday 10 November, they were shown newspapers from Paris, informing them of the abdication of the German Kaiser. The Armistice was agreed at 5:00 a.m. on 11th November, to come into effect at 11:00 a.m. Paris time (noon German time), for which reason the occasion is sometimes referred to as "the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month". Signatures were actually made between 5:12 a.m. and 5:20 a.m., Paris time. By the end of the 4 year conflict The United Kingdom had lost 2% of its population to the war. This amounted to almost 1 million killed in action and nearly 2 million wounded. In total, the allies, consisting of The British Empire, Belgium, France, Greece, Italy, Japan, Montenegro, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Serbia and The United States of America lost nearly 13 million people. 
Yes, authentic German sausages will be on sale again at the spectacular Stalbridge YuleFest, returning after the extremely successful first year..."Welcome to Stalbridge Yulefest, the second instalment!"
There's plenty to do in Dorset over the summer but relatively little over the winter. Stalbridge Yulefest appeals to the whole family, young and old, with music, good food and drink, children's entertainment and festive shopping opportunities. All are located undercover in a decorated and fairy-lit village of marquees and tipis surrounded by the sights, smells and sounds of Christmas. In 2018 Stalbridge Yulefest is taking place over two days: Friday 7th December is for over 18s only and starts at 6pm whereas the Saturday 8th December is for everyone and starts at 2pm when the Christmas market and children's tent open. For adults there's live music from a variety of bands plus an Oktoberfest style bar offering quality German pilsners. For children there's a dedicated marquee with disco, bouncy castle, skittle alley and face painting. Stone-baked pizzas, authentic German sausages, mulled wine and warm mince pies will be on offer and on the Saturday a variety of stall holders will be selling Christmas trees, wreaths, gifts, food and drink. You can now buy tickets for Stalbridge Yulefest 2018 online or at Stalbridge Garage! We look forward to seeing you there! For more information, online tickets and updates visit the website by clicking on the button below... 
STALBRIDGE LIBRARY PRESENTS
AN EVENING WITH SUE ASHBY AND TONY BENGE On Tuesday 30th October 2018 at TheHub@Stalbridge 6.30pm for 7.00pm Tickets available from the Library: £3.00 Guests £1.00 Friends/Volunteers "WRITING DRAMA FROM LOCAL HISTORY" Find out how the authors research, plot, write and with the help of actors, bring history to life. Sue and Tony have been writing plays for over thirty years, and you might have seen ‘On Them Our Lives Depend’ about the eighty women who produced Mills Bombs at Bourton Foundry during the First World War.
"Comedy Hotspot returns to Stalbridge with another four brilliant comedians. You are guaranteed a night of laughter with these guys. Our two previous gigs at Stalbridge have been superb, if you attended one then please help us spread the word and get this lovely venue sold out. Tickets are available from Williams Florists in Stalbridge or buy them online here www.comedyhotspot.nutickets.com We are helping to raise funds for Stalbright so come along for a giggle knowing that you are raising money for your community. See you there xx
Buy your tickets (£12) on-line or at Williams Florist Stalbridge and save £3 (tickets are £15 on the door) - you can spend the money saved on the fabulous raffle - prizes include Large bottle of bubbly with 2 tickets to the next comedy night (donated by Nick Barnes) - Hamper with 3 bottles of wine, 2 boxes of chocolates, 2 glasses and a candle (for that romantic evening) - Sunday lunch for 2 at the Virginia Ash (donated by the Virginia Ash) and a lovely fruit basket (donated by Dike & son) - RAFFLE IN AID OF STALBRIGHT Doors open at 7pm on Saturday 17th November for cash bar. Performances start at 8pm. 
The Swan pub in Stalbridge are having a Halloween Disco on Saturday 27th October from 8.00pm till Midnight. They expect everyone to be in Fancy Dress! 
The Hub@Stalbridge celebrates its 5th Anniversary on Saturday 20th October 2018. Join them from 10am to 2pm for refreshments and...
Stalbridge Scouts Bonfire and Fireworks Display is on Monday 5th November 2018 at Stalbridge Playing Fields, (the top park). Gates Open at 6.15pm - Display Starts at 7.00pm. Tickets on the Gate: £4.00 Adult and £3.00 Children (U16s). Family Ticket £12 (2 Adults & 2 Children) BBQ & Refreshments The Scout Group has run this event for many years which acts as one of their key fundraisers for the Group as well as being a great evening for the community of Stalbridge. 
The Stalbridge Singers present "Sing a Song for Sophie"...a special concert in memory of Sophie Spicer, and supporting Weldmar Hospice. The concert takes place at Stalbridge Primary School at 2pm on Sunday 14th October 2018. Tickets at £5 are available in advance from Stalbridge Post Office or on the door. There will also be a raffle and tea and cake.
At this special concert The Stalbridge Singers are stepping out of their comfort zone and singing solo! For some brave souls it will be the first time they stand alone. Please come and support us and help raise money for Weldmar Hospicecare. After the concert there will be refreshments and a raffle. Do come along and join us, hear some lovely singing and support this very worthy cause.
Stalbridge Players are holding auditions for "A 1940s Radio Christmas Carol", which is their next production. The auditions are being held this Sunday 7th October at Stalbridge Hall, starting at 2pm. All are welcome! The performances of this production will 'air' on Thursday 22nd, Friday 23rd and Saturday 24th of November. All are welcome! 
The Swan Pub in Stalbridge present Mods & Rockers Night with The Badger Boys this Friday 5th October 2018. 
It's going to be a classic evening at The Virginia Ash Pub in Henstridge tonight as many fine vehicles will be on display in the car park for their "Classics at The Ash" evening. So grab a pint, drool over some classics, then drool over some lovely home-cooked classic pub food. Have a look at their main menu below, and don't forget to check out the specials boards on the bar when you're there!
Stalbridge Friday Morning Coffee Group will be serving "High Tea" as part of their Autumn Fayre on Sat 27th October... The event runs from 2.00pm to 4.00pm at Stalbridge Hall. Entrance is 50p. There will be various stalls including craft, cards, books and a raffle. "High Tea", consisting of Sandwiches, Cakes and Tea or Coffee will be available at £5 per person. 
Every month the Stalbridge Garden Society produces a report on their monthly meeting. Here is September's edition... Tony Moore our chairman welcomed everyone to the meeting, along with some new visitors. There was also a lovely display of “Dahlias” for the competition, which Geoff Jeans kindly agreed to judge for us as we were unable to have our usual judges, so thank you for that Geoff, as it meant that he was not able to enter his own fabulous blooms in our competition. This evening’s speaker was Jonathan Owen from “Dorset Wildlife Trust”, and the talk was entitled “Marine Plastics”. Jonathan, showed us lots of slides on how plastics effect our marine life in the sea and around the coast, also along with rivers and tributaries. He works on Brownsea Island, Kimmeridge bay and Worbarrow, where they often have the “big beach” clean-up, and it’s amazing how much plastic and rubbish is washed up on our beaches. This is then mostly recycled, by the wildlife trust. He told us that when checked 100% of shell fish had micro plastic inside, which is very worrying! He explained, how abandoned fishing nets known as “ghost nets” trap our sea creatures, such as dolphin, sharks and many other fish these then die. Sea life also will be attracted to plastic such as bags thinking that it is food, along with sea birds as they are attracted to bright colours, of course these wildlife will eventually die. Plastic: - it is now found in all of the world’s oceans, and in lots of rivers, it breaks down into micro plastic which badly effects wildlife. Also tiny plastic pellets get washed up on the shore, these escape from the big containers on ships and are called “nurdles”, sea life think that they are fish eggs and will pick these up. Jonathan talked about “single use” plastic, such as water bottles, and how we can all help by doing our bit to reduce our use of plastic. This is a global problem which we all need to be aware of and do our best to reduce the use of plastic! This was one of the best talks that we have had and it was so informative, we could have listened to Jonathan for hours, we all enjoyed this if a little sobering, thank you Jonathan. Now the results from our Dahlia Competition, these are as follows. Decorative: - 1st Wendy Bailey 2nd Michelle Howell 3rd Carolyn Loosen h/c Angela Flavell Cactus/semi-cactus:- 1st John Farrant 2nd Michelle 3rd John h/c Wendy and Shirley Hosea Ball; - 1st Wendy Pompom; - 1st Michelle Any other; - 1st Wendy 2nd Wendy Thank you so very much to all of you who took part in the competition, it was a lovely display and thank you to Geoff, for his expertise, in judging. Next month’s talk is entitled “Designing with Plants” with Marion Dale. Thursday 11th October 7.30pm in the Hall, do come and join our friendly garden Society and pick up some new gardening ideas! Also it is the apple competition, so do bring along your dessert and cooking apples, you will need 3 of each variety, have ago you might get a first. Enjoy the autumn colour in your garden, or visit a larger garden, the NT ones are lovely this time of year. Harvest, now time to pick enjoy, freeze, bottle , jam and chutney make with your produce, it is always nice to have a pickled beetroot, or garden vegetable chutney over the Christmas period., something from your garden is always special. Michelle Howell 
Every 3 months Stalbridge Town Council produce a newsletter. Here is the Autumn edition...
The Swan pub in Stalbridge are hosting a MacMillan Coffee Morning on Saturday September 29th 2018 from 11am to 2pm.
Living Spit Comedy Theatre presents "Giants of Science"
on Sat 20th October 2018 from 7.30pm at Stalbridge Hall, Lower Road Stalbridge. Tickets available from Williams Florist in Station Road, Stalbridge: 01963 362355. £15 for a standard ticket (includes food and a drink.) "A brilliantly bonkers new show from this much-loved duo! Howard Coggins knows nothing about science. Stu Mcloughlin knows even less. Nevertheless, they have agreed to give a lecture on the subject, and after enlisting the help of the smartest scientific sages of the ages, that’s just what they aim to do. But even with the likes of Albert Einstein, Galileo, Isaac Newton, Charles Darwin and… um… Kriss Akabusi along for the ride, the chances of the dim-witted duo making it through the evening with any sense of dignity remaining intact seems less than likely. Still, they’re determined, like a pair of Atoms missing a couple of electrons, to stay positive. With jarring jokes, pitiful puppetry, and the silliest of scientific songs, you can expect this raucous romp through the hilarious history of scientific stupidity to be… well, if nothing else, thoroughly entertaining. It might even be… scien-triffic!" Suitable for ages 12+ Enjoy a Play, Pasty and Pint at Stalbridge! Tickets for the performance at Stalbridge Hall include a cheese and onion or meat pasty and a pint/glass of wine or soft drink. Food served at 7:30pm, performance at 8pm. Booking essential. Please confirm food choices when booking. 
We're Living Spit. We make comedy-theatre shows. Which have music in. That we write. Some people like them. And laugh. In an appropriate way. We make them in Clevedon, North Somerset, UK. Cos that's where we live. Then we put them on all over the place. Come and see us!
OPEN ALL DAY, 7 DAYS A WEEK DINING HOURS: MONDAY TO SATURDAY 12 NOON - 2.15PM AND 5.30PM - 8.30PM • SUNDAYS 12.30PM - 6.30PM. (LAST ORDERS FOR MEALS ARE 2.15PM AND 8.30PM MONDAY - SATURDAY AND 6.30PM ON SUNDAY) TABLE BOOKINGS AND GENERAL ENQUIRIES: 01963 363 868 THE VIRGINIA ASH, SHERBORNE ROAD, HENSTRIDGE, SOMERSET BA8 0PL 
Come to Our Mammoth Book Sale and pick up some winter reading! Takes place in The Community Information Office (next to the library) at The Hub , Station Road, Stalbridge on Saturday 29th September from 10am-4pm. There will be a Children's Corner, Tombola, and Refreshments will available. Meet our Local Authors and enjoy browsing for your inexpensive Autumn and Winter reading.. 
A Galaxy of Stars at Sherborne Literary Festival This October Sherborne Literary Society are set to welcome a diverse smorgasbord of authors and speakers for its seventh Literary Festival. From bestselling authors, to biographers, novelists, politicians and historians, the impressive five-day festival which will celebrate two special anniversaries, will feature informative and interactive talks in venues around Sherborne sparking creativity, laughter and discussion among the community. 
The festival will open (10th October, 11am, Digby Hall) with an epic exhibition to commemorate the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy 40th anniversary and its author, Stalbridge’s literary and multi-media legend Douglas Adams. Bringing together members of the original cast and crew, behind-the-scenes anecdotes, video clips and props, as well as Douglas Adams’ family and friends, the two-part festival item will share how the worlds of Arthur Dent, Slartibartfast and twin-headed Zaphod Beeblebrox came to be. Thursday (11th October, 11am, Digby Hall) will see Maria Wingfield Digby revisit the life of one of the Elizabethan era’s and Sherborne’s best loved characters, Sir Walter Raleigh (or Ralegh as he preferred to be spelt) 400 years on. Credited with introducing tobacco and potatoes in England, this is the tale of one man’s ascent from relatively humbled origins to international legend, leaving his mark not only on Sherborne, but on much of Europe and America too. Based on his Sunday Times bestseller ‘M’, Henry Hemming will reveal the dramatic true story of a maverick M15 officer, Maxwell Knight - M15’s greatest spymaster - in a gripping, interactive talk on the Thursday evening (11th October, 7pm, Digby Hall). A fascinating item following the Salisbury novichok poisoning earlier this year, it will feature a song and game to find out which member of the audience would make the perfect spy. Hemming tales of two remarkable female spies who were recruited by Knight in the 1930s to penetrate the British Communist movement is one not to be missed.
The festival will round off on Sunday with Kevin Davies and Friends Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy Part 2 (14th October, 12pm, Digby Hall), and a talk by Mark Price author of Fairness for All and Workplace Fables (2.30pm, Digby Hall). Working for the John Lewis Partnership for over three decades, Price’s books explore the Partnership’s ways of working which has employee’s well-being at its heart, the latter modern business fables with morals drawn. The audience will be invited to question Mark on these books as well as from his recent past as Trade Minister in a pre- and post- Brexit referendum.
Author of 26 books Max Hasting will be among bestsellers including Gill Sims sharing her comical novel Why Mummy Swears, Lord Peter Hain the former British anti-apartheid leader reflecting on Mandela’s remarkable story, and Mark Kermode as he recounts his foolhardy attempts to fulfil his dreams of stardom in How Does It Feel? A Life of Musical Misadventures – there may even be some music too. Supported by Sue Cameron’s superb schools programme, local children will hear from a variety of lively and interesting writers throughout the week and will have the chance to enter the Creative Writing Competition for Juniors (Years 5 & 6) and Seniors (7,8 & 9) launching this year. For the full programme and ticketing information please visit www.sherborneliterarysociety.com or call 01935 815341. 
The Stalbridge History Society AGM will be held on Wednesday 19th September, at 7.00 pm at The Hub. We intend to have a small display of items from the 1918 Stalbridge for Sale Exhibition. If you were unable to attend the Exhibition, and are interested in a particular property (or properties), please let us know so that we can include this. No promises, but we will try. We look forward to seeing you there. |
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