The Horsington Blog

The North Cheriton Village Hall is being renovated The first stage sees the opening up of the roof space by removal of the false ceiling, adding up-to-date insulation to the pine clad roof and the repainting of the main area in attractive, heritage colours.

This stage of the work will be finished quite soon and the committee is planning a Gala re-Opening with a Quiz and Curry evening on Saturday, 5^th October.  All are welcome.

Further dates for your diary include a Film Night Supper on Saturday,  2^nd November, the Christmas Craft & Gift Fayre on Saturday, 9^th November and the Christmas Supper and Quiz on Saturday, 7^th December.

The committee has tried to keep the hall open and usable to all existing hirers while renovations are carried out and thank the building team for making this possible.

2014 will see further renovations which will be approached in stages so as to keep the disruption to users to a minimum.  There are plans for a new kitchen and a bar plus the creation of a new meeting room that will be cosier for smaller groups.

All this work, of course, comes at a cost and there will be plenty of fund raising events for you to attend and enjoy, starting this autumn.  The committee hopes, with your support and maybe the odd grant or two, to be able to give North Cheriton  the village hall it deserves.

“The Sunday Times” on August 25 reported that the Food Standards Agency has declared New Zealand Manuka Honey to be no better than locally produced British honey with regard to healing & health properties claimed for the product, which can sell for up to £40.00 per jar!

It gets worse. The FSA (Food Standards Agency) reports that although a  total of 1,700 tonnes of Manuka honey is produced in New Zealand each year, 1,800 tonnes is sold in the UK alone and as much as 10,000 tonnes is sold worldwide! The chances of finding any genuine Manuka Honey are very slim, since only 17% of all Manuka honey sold anywhere is the genuine article.

Horsington has a community of very active beekeepers. Those who have been lucky enough to get a honey harvest this year may be willing to sell you a jar of the local product, brimming with Mother Nature’s goodness. Luckily  (for you, dear reader, but not them), the asking price is a modest £4 to£5 a jar.

The local beeks are a shy bunch. The Blog approached them to ask if anyone has any local honey for sale, but none have replied so far. We shall keep you informed.

If you are a local beekeeper with honey for sale, email the editor-  editor@idnet.com .

Wondering how to pass the time during the long, grey, cold, winter ahead?  Come and exercise (or revive) your musical talents by joining several other Horsington, Templecombe and Wincanton residents in the Milborne Port Opera’s next production “Utopia Limited” by Gilbert & Sullivan.

The plot will be familiar to anyone who has followed the banking crisis and the gyrations of the Department for Overseas Development. It concerns the decision of a luxurious South sea Island-  Utopia – to embrace everything British, including some strange financial laws which turn the island itself into a limited liability company.

There’s plenty of satire and digs at familiar institutions such as the monarchy, bankers, bureaucrats, the law and the gutter press.

Rehearsals are every Thursday at 8pm, initially at the Methodist Hall in Milborne Port. There are breaks at half term and Christmas. Performances are the week after Easter (21-26 April 2014).

Come along. Have some fun. Don’t worry, there’s plenty of time to learn the words and how to sing them.

The first weeks are spent on music. After auditions for the main parts, the company moves into Milborne Port Primary School and begins setting the movements and dialogue.
The first rehearsal is this Thursday, September 5th, but you can also join at subsequent rehearsals during the next few weeks.

contact Sarah Bignell (sarah.bignell@btinternet.com)

Learn about the real Utopia!

The editor writes
I recently received an insurance renewal for my property. “No need to do anything, just relax and we’ll take the money from your bank account automatically” trilled the chatty letter from the marketing director for the company, which once upon a time was a household name based in Norwich, but is now French-owned.

When I looked in detail, I saw the premium had jumped a massive 44 per cent. Yes, 44 per cent! After an age of hanging on listening to lift music, I eventually got through to someone.

They were unable to explain any reason for the increase and immediately backed down, settling instead for a more acceptable £5 increase on the previous year’s premium.

Are there any honest companies left in this once great trading nation?
Moral: Watch everything, complain like mad. Never give up.