Issue 65 Winter 2010 - Ascott-under-Wychwood...Grapevine’ survives mainly on donations. If you would like to help The Grapevine continue, any donation large or small would be appreciated

Issue 65 Winter 2010

Page 2 Don’t forget about the Ascott website:

Grapevine Appeal

The Ascott Grapevine is providedFREE to every household in As-cott and we wish this to continuefor a long time to come.

Although ‘The Grapevine’ doesreceive support from the ParishCouncil and the PCC, it only rais-es a limited amount of revenuefrom advertising. ‘The AscottGrapevine’ survives mainly ondonations. If you would like tohelp The Grapevine continue,any donation large or smallwould be appreciated. You cangive a donation to any member ofthe editorial team.

If there is an aspect of villagelife not already covered in theGrapevine please contact a mem-ber of the team to discuss yourideas.

Articles for the Spring issue ofThe Grapevine should be sub-mitted by 5th April 2010.

Call 01993 831023 or email:[email protected]

Stuart Fox, Elaine Byles,Wendy Pearse, Maggie Lyon.

Content & Editorial Policy

If you have an article, story orpoem you would like to submitfor publication the Grapevine ed-itorial team would love to hearfrom you. Material for publica-tion is gratefully accepted. Due tospace considerations materialmay not be used immediately butmay be held over to be includedin a later issue. The Grapevine editorial teamreserve the right to shorten,amend or reject any material sub-mitted for publication. Opinions expressed in contribu-tions are not necessarily those ofthe editorial team.

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Unfortunately due to increasedpostal costs in mailing the maga-zine to our advertisers, it will benecessary to make a slight increasein our advertising rates for 2010.

www.ascott-under-wychwood.org.uk Page 3

HOLY TRINITY CHURCHASCOTT-UNDER-WYCHWOOD

The new pattern of worship has been agreed and from January 2010 itwill be :

1st weekend 0800 Enstone 1000 Spelsbury2nd weekend 0800 Ascott 1000 Chadlington & Heythrop3rd weekend 0800 Spelsbury 1000 Enstone4th weekend 0800 Chadlington 1000 Ascott

Please check notice boards for any changes.

Cyril Charles Edginton was born onthe 20th February 1923 in the farmcottage which stands opposite theForge Garage. He was the youngest offour children born to David and LilyEdginton. David was a farmer and Cyr-il would follow in his father’s foot-steps, working on the farm with hisfather until David died in the 1970’sand the farm was divided between oth-er Crown properties.

Cyril lived in Ascott his entire lifeand would see many changes takeplace, from steam trains to the moderndiesel engines, the introduction ofelectric lighting and working the landwith tractors instead of horses. Villagelife would see many changes in hislifetime. Cyril was educated at Ascott prima-ry school and after passing the elevenplus went on to finish his schooling at

OBITUARY

Cyril Charles Edginton1923 – 2009


Burford Grammar School, the first inis family to do so. He obtained a goodlevel of education and achieved goodmarks in his exams before leaving towork full time on the family farm. Farm life in those days was verydifferent and Cyril spent many hours inall weathers walking behind a pair ofhorses doing all the things that wouldlater be done by tractor. He would alsoremember the time when the familyhad cows that were hand milked anddelivering milk to the local people witha churn on a handcart. People wouldcome out and buy fresh milk by thejug, no bottles or pasteurisation inthose days. There was a pigsty in the garden of the cot-tage where there were al-ways pigs being reared forthe table. During the SecondWorld War, Cyril served inthe Home Guard. He testedto become a reargunner/radio operator withthe RAF but could not takeit up as he was in a reservedoccupation. Cyril played footballfor the village as a youngman and also was a regularin the cricket team for manyyears. He continued to playvarious sports for the villagethroughout his life, playingcribbage and dominoes untilrecent years.

In 1956, Cyril married KathleenHolloway from Chadlington and theywent on to have two children, a daugh-ter Valerie and a son Peter who contin-ues to live in the village. Cyril had many memories of life inthe village including playing footballby moonlight on the village green, nostreet lights in those days, and a vancalling by giving away samples of to-bacco which would halt the football asthe lads all left to try their free samples. Cyril died in Ascott on the 16th

September 2009, aged 86 years.

Valerie WeedonPeter Edginton


Many local residents will have fondmemories of feeding the ducks in theWild Garden in Shipton or walking inthe avenue in spring, when the snow-drops and aconites are out. Sadly, theWild Garden has been closed for abouta year due to damage to the ponds anddog fouling. We now have anopportunity to buy theWild Garden but to dothis we need your help!Brian Gorton, the pres-ent owner, has offeredthe garden to the com-munity for £50,000 anda campaign is underwayto raise both this amountof money and the furtherfunds needed for initialessential work and theon-going running costs.A charitable not-for-profit company has been formed andso far over £27,000 has been pledgedin support of the project. Our goal is toraise sufficient funds to be able toacquire the garden during 2010 andafter essential work, to open it fully tothe public by the end of 2010 or early2011, but to do this we need you tosupport us and help create a legacy forthe future. The Wild Garden in its presentform was laid out in the mid 19thcentury as a pleasure garden adjoining

Shipton Court, although the site wasused as a recreation garden dating backto the building of Shipton Court inElizabethan times. A tithe map of 1837shows some of the existing ponds andpaths, as well as the original dog ken-nels in the south-west corner which

gives Dog Kennel Laneits name. A number ofphotographs from theearly 1900s give us animpression of what thegarden was like at thattime. More recently thegardens have developedas a place of peace andtranquillity with the softpaths threading throughthe trees and ducks re-placing the originalswans on the upperponds. Our intention is

to keep the garden in very much thesame state, carrying out necessary workneeded to maintain safe access and do-ing a small amount of restoration wherethis is appropriate. Please visit our web sitewww.wychwoodwildgarden.org.ukfor further information and to down-load a pledge form. We have been en-couraged by the recent meetings inAscott, Milton and Shipton providingstrong support for acquiring the WildGarden by way of a community ownedcompany. This will ensure that the gar-

The Wild GardenCreating a Legacy for the Future


den is retained in local ownership with open and unrestricted access to all.Please support us to achieve this so that future generations of children can alsoenjoy feeding the ducks. Mike Watson

WYCHWOODS LOCAL HISTORY SOCIETY

On Thursday, February 18th at 7.30.pm in Shipton Village Hall, we are havinga talk by Ascott resident Nick Leadbetter. It is entitled The Civil War inOxfordshire, so if you would like to find out what happened in our county inthose far flung days, do come and join us for the talk. Another very popular speaker is booked for Thursday, 18th March at7.30.pm in Milton Village Hall, Tim Porter will be describing the role ofMedieval Hospitals. Tim’s talks are usually accompanied by really beautifulslides. In April we have a return by a speaker from Little Rissington. On Thursday15th April at 7.30.pm in Shipton Village Hall, Mike Boyes, who previouslydescribed the lives of a Victorian Rector of Little Rissington and his nine oldmaid daughters, will be back to describe The Adventurous Lives of FiveCotswold Brothers, of the same family. So much to look forward to. Old and new members are welcome. Subscriptions are £6 for an individualand £9 for a couple which includes a copy of Wychwoods History whenpublished. Visitors are welcome at any meeting at £2 per head. More infor-mation about the Society can be obtained from Wendy Pearse on 831023.


ASCOTT-U-WYCHWOODVILLAGE FETE

JUNE 12TH

AT THE SPORTSPAVILION, HIGH STREET

12.30 openingDog Show

(Bring your dog and enter the variousclasses)

Debbie Arthur’s Jazz BandPerformances from the local Schools

StallsChildren’s Corner

……and much more!

Come and treat yourself to lunch at our BBQ,sup a good beer, Pimms or soft drink in the

tent, and have afternoon tea later on!


Once again this year Ascott’s residentpoet and playwright, Fred Russell, putquill to parchment and the pantomime‘Hell’s Bells’ was born. It is a grippingtale of an evil plot by Beelzebub and hisaccomplicethe wickedwitch to si-lence thechurch bells, aplot confound-ed as ever bybrave StGeorge. Along the way there were romances,detectives, explodingpuddings, vicars, uglysisters; in fact all the usu-al suspects! The cast ofthousands (well believeme there were quite afew!) threw themselvesheart and soul into theproduction, guided thisyear by a professionalproducer in the shape of Danny Brainin.All performed with gusto (oh yes theydid!) and, judging by the deafening ap-plause, the wholeevening was a greatsuccess. The Tiddy Hallaccommodated anear capacity audi-ence of over 90people. The pro-ceedings wereopened by Predwynand Kira Piper

HELL’S BELLS – IT’S THE ASCOTT PANTO!singing and playing. Then Jim Pearserecited a poem written by Wendy andthence to the panto. After a break forrefreshments, Daphne Abe led her chor-isters in some wonderful Victorian songsand carols so thatit really was a veryChristmassyevening that willbe long remem-bered by the chil-dren not totallytraumatised byPredwyn’s veryrealistic depiction

of Beelze-bub! Thanks must go to everyoneinvolved and especially to Fredfor bringing it alltogether. Thisevent is fundedby the discussiongroup so ourthanks to them

for laying on this splen-did evening of enter-tainment andrefreshments. Theykindly agreed that therecould be a collectionwith the proceeds going to the AscottGrapevine and your generosity raisedover £300. Rumour has it that Fred is alreadyhard at work on next year’s panto – notlong till Christmas! Tim Lyon




With an excellent Christmas and a fantastic New Year behind us we are nowonto the next decade. Many thanks to all who visited the Swan over the festiveseason. New Years Eve and New Years day brunch were particular highlightsand amazingly our chefs produced over 500 servings in less than 24 hours!Brunch proved very popular so we will try a few more during the year, probablyon Bank Holiday Mondays. Its hard to beat a "Full English."

The next Quiz Night is on Wednesday February 3rd, starting at 7.30pm. It isessential to book in advance for this and the cost is £7.00 each, including a meal.

Also, we are offering two main courses for the price of one every Tuesday,Wednesday and Thursday lunch and dinner throughout January and February.Who said there is no such thing as a free meal!

Who can tell what 2010 will hold for us all? Certainly 2009 has been a toughtime for the pub trade with a record number of pubs closing in the last 12months. Everyone is welcome at any time, whether for a drink or some food, andif you can persuade any friends to give the Swan a try so much the better. Thesaying "use it or lose it" has never been truer for the pub trade.

Good luck for 2010!

Richard Lait

NEWS FROM THE SWAN


For a final glimpse into Ascott’s pastthrough the early Deanery Maga-zines, I have gathered together a fewitems of passing interest.

On New Years Day 1881, HenryTaunt, the famous Oxford photogra-pher, visited Ascott, and put on anEntertainment in the Schoolroom. ‘MrTaunt, of Oxford, exhibited by dissolv-ing views “a journey down theThames” from its source, at the SevenWells, near Cheltenham, to LondonBridge. The views, chiefly from photo-graphs, gave charming pictures of thescenery: some amusing scenes fol-lowed with a brilliant succession ofchromatropes.’ Then in February the Railway wasthe subject of discussion. Sounds fa-miliar! ‘During the past month we havebeen invaded by a small army of Nav-vies, not for evil intent, but for thesafety of the passengers travelling bytrain Londonwards: they have re-laidthe line for about a mile between Ship-ton Station and our own. The railwaysof nowadays, strictly speaking, canscarcely be called “iron roads”; therails are of steel, the sleepers are ofwood, and only the cradles are of iron;in fact, considering the immense quan-

tity of timber used in their construc-tion, they may more justly be termedwooden ways, than ways of iron. TheNavvies who were billeted in the vil-lage seemed to differ happily fromthose of former years, and behavedthemselves well.’ Reverend York, it seems, was keento promote Ascott for the tourist trade.In August. ‘Ascott is now enlivened by thepresence of a good score of visitors,and not without reason; therein can befound very comfortable quarters,abundance of pure water, and appetiz-ing, fresh, country air, with the advan-tage also of a Station close at hand.The statistics of mortality show that itis a very healthy place. In the past 7years there have been 27 deaths ofadults, resident in this Parish, and 10children chiefly under a twelvemonthold; of the 27 adults, one reached near-ly 90, two were 88, two 87,one 85, two83, five from 76 to 81, and four from70 to 75.’ And in 1881, regarding the villageallotments, which at that time reachedall the way from the village, alongsideLondon Lane, to the Charlbury Road.’there seems no doubt about the gener-al abundance and good quality of thepotato crop; our Parish allotments have

A WINDOW ON THE PAST

PART 4

Incidentals


given some grand yields, and in anadjoining field 3 sacks were plantedand 39 sacks produced, all in goodsaleable condition, and not includingthe small: in other instances some rootshave produced from 30 to 40 potatoeseach, mostly of good size.’ Not that education was neglected inthe village at that time. Rev. Yorkerecords that in 1882, 32 youths attend-ed Night School together with othersover twenty one years of age, The num-ber of school children was 92. In factfrom a village of 401 inhabitants, 150were under education in the Parish.In September of that year, work hadcommenced once more on the Railway. ‘We have had lately another visita-tion of Navvies for the relaying of theline with new transverse sleepers inplace of longitudinal, and steel railsresting on iron chairs: this arrangementis said to be the most perfect planknown of laying a line.’Two notable events occurred in No-vember. ‘On Saturday, November 11th, ourusually quiet village experienced twoexcitements, a pleasant one in the meetof the Heythrop hounds on the Green,and, at mid-day, a very different sensa-tion by the cry a fire, a rick being foundin flames in Mrs Townsend’s yard,(Long House Farm) the burning strawthreatened to do much mischief, butmany helpful hands came to the rescue,and comparatively little damage wasdone: the disaster was caused by a

small boy playing with lucifer match-es.’ Finally a few suggestions from thepast, for those expecting an addition totheir families, and pondering over theinfant’s name. Rev.Yorke compiled alist of unusual boys and girls namesthat he found in the early parish regis-ters. Here are some of his discoveries. For boys – Foulke, Scroope, Limbo-rough, Acteon, Zacharia, Shadrach,Albion, Merry, Jabuz and Japeth. For girls – Fillimore, Bettresse,Morris, Maudlin, Jacomin, Livia, Abi-na, Damaris and Kezia.

Wendy Pearse

DEADLINE FOR

SPRING 2010 EDITION

APRIL 5TH

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In the comment column there was con-sternation at the large amount of cheapgrain and chilled meat that was beingimported, which was lowering theprices paid to British farmers. This wasreflected in an extract from Mr RiderHaggard’s paper on English Farming. ‘Compared with other and roughercountries it is curious to note the cease-less nature of the work needful to thecarrying on of an English farm. Wehave brought cultivation to such apitch of science that everyday has itsappropriate and necessary labour,without which all would be spoilt.Yet the pity of it is that under presentconditions it can scarcely be made topay, if the land is farmed fairly it is inmany instances being worked at a lossor at any rate without a living profit.The reader may say that no one wouldcarry on a business under these condi-tions: yet it is still carried on in manycases from sheer force of habit or be-cause those who practice it have noth-ing else to which to turn. The smallfarmers only too often keep up thegame till they are beggared, when theyadjourn to the workhouse or to liveupon the charity of their friends. Thelarger farmers go on until they areabsolutely impoverished and retire into

a cottage, or if they are fortunate, finda position as a steward on some estate.’(I suspect that some farmers mayhave carried on as long as possiblesimply because it pleased them to befarmers. JP)

Tuberculosis was also included in thecomment columns.‘ There was a proposal to slaughtercattle that are in an advanced stage andvisibly affected by the disease. Strin-gent precautions were not considerednecessary with a slowly progressingdisease like tuberculosis. Everybodyacknowledges that ‘stamping out’ tu-berculosis is impracticable.’(In the late 1940s and 50s a skin testwas used to obtain control of thedisease. The cattle being inoculatedon the side of the neck and checkedagain three days later when any ani-mal carrying the disease would havereacted with a significant lump atthe location of the injection. It wouldthen be sent for slaughter. By thismeans tuberculosis was to all intentsand purposes eradicated, and apartfrom regular tests to ensure that allherds were clear, it was forgotten.Then about 10 years ago we began tohear of a resurgence of the disease inGloucestershire and the west of Eng-

BLAIRS GOUT PILLS

EXTRACTS FROM THE AGRICULTURAL GAZETTEJanuary 9th 1899


All quickly relieved and curedwithout restraint

of diet by these celebrated Pills.At 2s 9d per box.

Cupiss Constitution BallsHORSES For Grease, Swelled

Legs, Cracked Heels,Coughs, Colds, Sore Throats,

Disordered Liver,Broken Wind, Influenza, Loss of

Appetite etc. etc. etc.

WESTERN AUSTRALIATHE COMING COLONY,

LAND GIVEN AWAYSplendid Soil, Abundant and

Certain Rainfall,Great Climate, Good Harvests

andBEST MARKET IN THE

WORLDA LARGE AND INCREASING

GOLD YIELDCoal, Lead, Iron and Copper

Mines.Magnificent Timber Resources.Pearl, Shell and other fisheries.

It seems that Western Australia hadimproved after a young immigrantfrom Ascott sent a letter back to thevillage in 1881, as quoted in the lastGrapevine, Issue 64.

‘I must tell you that if one comesout here they must not care how theylive or they had better stay at home,

land, and it made steady progresseastwards. Now almost every farmerof cattle in this area has recently hadanimals shown to be carrying thedisease, in some cases a significantpercentage of their herd have had tobe slaughtered. A large increase inthe population of wild deer and bad-gers has occurred in recent years butwhatever the cause, the effect is alarge heavy cloud hanging over live-stock farmers. JP)

In the market section the price paid tofarmers for barley was 28 shillings aquarter (448lbs) which was £7 pertonne, compared to about £80 per tonnetoday. In 1899 a tonne of barley wouldhave paid a farm worker’s wage for 14weeks, but today’s tonne of barleywould pay a worker for less than twodays. With modern machinery howev-er, one worker can achieve results inone day undreamt of by farm workersin 1899. The crop yields have also in-creased about fourfold but the purchaseand maintenance of expensive machin-ery also has to be paid for, so every-thing is relative.

There were some interesting advertise-ments. It seems that even in those daysBlair was providing the great remedies.

The Great RemedyBLAIRS GOUT PILLS

Gout, Rheumatism, Sciatica,Lumbago.


though a man can earn more moneyhere, but I would not advise anyone tocome out here for I shall not stay long.’

‘News in 1882: Mrs Townsend’s threesons seem to be doing well, but theColony has suffered in the past sum-mer from a terrible drought such as hasnot been known there for 10 years. Thepastures have dried up and the sheep,cattle and horses have been dying bythe hundreds.’(Obviously the advertisements in1899, like their counterparts of to-day, needed to be taken with a touchof scepticism! JP)

I was rather intrigued by this recipeand method of making treacle toffy.

‘Treacle Toffy’Melt a quarter pound ofbutter in a good sizedsaucepan, and pour in 3lbof black treacle, boil fortwenty minutes and thenadd another quarterpound of butter and 1lbof sugar to which hasbeen added a mixture ofhalf a teaspoonful ofground ginger, ditto Ja-maica pepper, ditto cin-namon, ditto blackpepper; let it boil againand continue until itcomes to the crack,which may be known bydropping a little from the

spoon into a basin of cold water; whenit rattles on the bottom of the dish it isboiled enough, and may be immediate-ly poured into flat dishes previouslybuttered; when cold enough to handleit must be taken up and worked bypulling out till it gets too hard to pullwhen it is twisted into a rope and cutinto suitable pieces. Of course theoperator’s hands must be well oiled orbuttered to begin with.’(I wish you a happy toffee pullingepisode. JP)

Jim Pearse


After a number of re-quests (er..mainly fromme!) our Parish Councilcame up trumps, by ar-ranging a Christmastree for the VillageGreen and what a won-derful sight it was!Thanks to the generosi-ty of Chris and Janet Badger a magnif-icent tree was cut down earlyDecember. However, let’s go back

several months. Achannel had to bedug from the middleof the green to theelectricity pole toenable us to havepower for the lightscourtesy ofS.E. Board.This was alldug out by

volunteers, Shane Barnes andDavid Cook. Then once thetree was delivered it had tobe sunk into the ground.Thanks again go to the volunteersShane who wasjoined by RobinWalker. Thelights were hungand after a slightdelay with S.E.they were finallyswitched on and I

think you’ll allagree it lookedwonderful! Anotherfirst this year wascarol singing roundthe tree. The weath-er albeit cold wasvery seasonal and it

was lovely to seeso many peoplethere enjoying themince pies and themulled wine kindlysupplied by numer-ous people fromthe Village, and ofcourse singing aselection of carolssuggested by Daphne Abe. A collec-

tion was alsomade and a totalof £174.61 wasraised which wasdivided betweenChristian Aid andthe Village Chari-ty. It was certainly

a lovely way to start theChristmas festivities and let’s hopewe can do it again in 2010!

Debra Cull

ASCOTT CHRISTMAS TREE


Forest Schools are a unique way ofbuilding independence and self esteemin young children. They originated inScandinavia in the 1950’s and focusedon teaching children about the naturalworld. From here the idea was broughtto Bridgewater College, Somerset, in1995 and has spread throughout theUK since. In Oxfordshire, Forest Schools usethe outdoor environment to supportchildren’s learning across the wholecurriculum, using learning and teach-ing strategies boosts their confidenceand self esteem. It has been found thatthe combination of free-dom and responsibilityhas been particularly ben-eficial to children who,for whatever reason,struggle within a conven-tional classroom environ-ment, or who exhibitchallenging behaviour.The experience is fun,and the learning whichoccurs is observed andrecorded in a similar wayto the learning which oc-curs in school. The chil-dren splash about inpuddles, roll in the leavesand because of the highadult/child ratios, theycan safely experience

types of activities that are so oftenprohibited nowadays, such as climbingtrees or cooking on fires. Ideally children will attend ForestSchool sessions weekly, throughoutthe year, and although this isn’t a spe-cific environmental educational pro-gramme, they will experience allweathers and seasons and develop adeeper understanding about the naturalworld along the way. Children who go to Forest Schoolregularly visit a marked out area ofwoodland which has been specially setaside for their group. This usually in-

What is Forest School?

Excellent independentensuite rooms

for your friends or relativescoming to stay

Children welcome.


volves a trip either walking or by mini-bus to the woods. Once children get toForest School they are free to partici-pate in activities suggested by staff aswell as undertake their own exploring.The session will usually include timefor a drink and a snack and a chance toshare all the exciting things they havedone. In order to take the children toForest School you need to hold a Pae-diatric Outdoor First Aid qualification,as well as being a qualified ForestLeader. The Astor family has kindly al-lowed Ascott Pre-School to use part oftheir ‘woods’ for Forest School, on theBruern Estate. So the children go outevery week to the site in the minibus,hired from the Ace Centre, it’s evenbeing called the ‘Edie McCredie’ busby some! There is a bit of a walk to the sitefrom the minibus. This gives the chil-dren an opportunity to discuss how theenvironment is changing etc. At thesite camp base is sorted, the childrenhave a snack, then off to explore. Somerevisit their play; others choose theactivity or items brought. They havelunch back at ‘base’ then there is ashort time left before we have to leave.We all pile into the minibus, muddy,windswept, dishevelled………..butsmiling!

Lisa Munro Forest Leader

IT WAS ME!Mummy, what is that man doing?Why is he looking at the gravestones?What is he writing?

Between the end of May and the begin-ning of September this year I was oftenin the churchyard of Holy TrinityChurch, Ascott-under-Wychwoodlooking at all the grave stones. Whatwas I doing? I was recording all theinscriptions on as many gravestones asI could read. This was not an easy taskas many of the stones are old, flaked,covered in lichen and overgrown. Youmight have noticed that I was there atdifferent times of the day and in differ-ent weathers. This was because somestones could only be read when theshadows were in the right direction.You might have noticed that I wassometimes on my hands and knees.This was because some of the stoneshave religious texts along the bottomof them and you have to strain youreyes to read them.Why did I start this exercise. What wasthe trigger. I have started to look intomy own family history, like many peo-ple of a certain age. I have done theusual things like writing down what Iknow of my own generation, my par-ents generation and my grandparents.I then progressed to the public libraryto look up census forms and births,marriages and deaths. All this informa-tion is free in the reference sections ofall public libraries. Then, one day


provided for the community. Some ofthe hospital records were very reveal-ing. Many people were admitted onthe recommendation of the Vicar whoalso paid for their keep while theywere there. A typical case read

‘Case – Age 57, wife of a labourerfrom --- admitted 31 March underdoctor ---. Debility from disordereddigestion. This was a case of gastricderangement – originating in want ofproper nourishment – She was a poormiserable creature unable to really totake proper care of herself – her hus-band earned good wages but she didnot know how to spend her income totheir advantage. Her treatment wasfollowed by Rhubarb draught withAmmonia., diet at first was middle –afterwards meat and beer. Dis-charged Saturday, 25 May 1867. 8weeks in hospital.’

It would appear that many were admit-ted because they were exhausted andundernourished. ‘Meat and Beer’ wereoften prescribed as their treatment.There were more serious cases and thedescriptions provided by the doctors oftheir treatment were quite harrowingsometimes ending in death. All of these details must have tak-en someone a long time to collate andput on the Web. It was extremelyuseful to me and I felt that I could givesomething back. So, back to Holy Trinity Church,Ascott under Wychwood. What did I

when it was raining and I didn’t wantto go out I googled the area where mygreat grandparents came from. Whata revelation! There was this websitewhich had all the birth, marriage anddeath registers from 1600 to 2003 forall of the churches in the area and Iwas able to trace all my relations backto the late 1700s. But there was a lotmore as well. All the Parish Maga-zines from the 1878 to 1951 for all ofthe churches were also there, as werethe school records, hospital recordsfor1868 to 1873 including Case detailsfor 1867 and half of 1868 and MinuteBooks from 1905 to 1943. Also therewere monument inscriptions and evencourt records. It was a veritable goldmine. All human life was there. Justby sitting at my computer I could findout when people were born, baptized,married and when they died and wereburied. I could also find out whichschool some of them went to and whenthey were missing to help with thepotato harvest. I also found out whomisbehaved and who won prizes forreading and knowing their tables. TheParish magazines gave me informationon who received, on loan, woollenblankets from the gentry to keep themwarm through the winter and whenthey had to return them to ‘The BigHouse’ for washing. Some of my fam-ily also received Christmas gifts of ‘3yards of cloth’ or ‘Christmas bread’.There was obviously a great sense ofcommunity since many were invited tothe Christmas and New Year dinners


find when reading the inscriptions.Many things. The number of childrenwho died in infancy must be a reflec-tion of the hard times people livedthrough. There is one person who islisted on one of the stones who is bur-ied in Bromley, Kent. There is a per-son who died in Jamaica who is buriedin Ascott. There is a farmer’s daughterwho married a London solicitor whowas born in Hanover Square. Aswould be expected there are wholegenerations buried there. There arementions of people who lost their livesin the wars, even the siege of Kut ismentioned. (The siege of Kut-al-Mara,1916, lasted 147days before 11,800British and Indian troops inside thegarrison town finallysurrendered on 29April 1916 to KhalilPasha, Baghdad’smilitary governor. Itwas the greatest hu-miliation to have be-fallen the BritishArmy in its history). What I didn’t find.I didn’t find out howmany people are bur-ied in the churchyard,nor did I find the ear-liest burial or the old-est person. All I didwas read the inscrip-tions that are legible.So please don’t askme where your great

aunt Sheila twice removed is buried. What happens next. My intention isto complete my list with, as far as ispossible, the birth, death and burialdates of the persons mentioned com-pleted. This will take a little time.Then I will present a copy to theChurch, Wychwood Local History So-ciety and Oxfordshire Library. I alsohope to place a copy on the Ascottwebsite. I am pleased to know that the infor-mation I have gathered has alreadybeen of use to other people in the vil-lage who are doing research.

Rob Morgan


"HAPPY NEW YEAR"

Carols round the Christmas TreeFirstly, a very big "thank you" to ChrisBadger for donating such a beautifulChristmas Tree. It was erected onSaturday 5 December and consideringthis was the first year it went verywell. A big "thank you" also to RobinWalker and Shane Barnes for coordi-nating the erecting of the tree and thenhelping to dress it with the lights whichwere very kindly donated by the Vil-lage Charity. The carol service round the treewas on Saturday 19 December led byMark Abrey and was very well attend-ed. Mulled wine and mince pies wereserved by John and Debra Cull. Acollection received from the carol serv-ice totalled £174.61 and was split£87.31 to Christian Aid and £87.31 tothe Village Charity. This was a trulyfestive evening enjoyed by all on acold and frosty night. Long may itcontinue.Parish Councillors and the 2010ElectionsIn the October edition the Parish Coun-cil reported that Peter Greening hadstepped down and they are activelyseeking to co-opt for this vacancy andwith the 2010 Elections now approach-ing the Parish Council need five coun-cillors in order to function. Please givethis some thought and feel free to con-

tact either myself or one of the council-lors noted below.Planning ApplicationsPlanning continues to be particularlyquiet.Flooding/ Contingency PlanThe Parish Council members and sev-eral volunteers organised a trial run ofthe Village Contingency Plan with thekind help of Nick Leadbetter, whichproved to be very useful. Sandbags,hi-viz jackets and shovels etc havebeen delivered by WODC and con-cerns were raised as the sandbags werebiodegradeable. Our District Council-lor Hilary Hibbert-Biles confirmedthat these were the correct ones to beused. Large maps have been pur-chased and laminated and are now keptin the Tiddy Hall room. All that nowremains is for the equipment to bemarked so that it can be easily identi-fied, a practice sandbag fill, a practiceloud hailer session together with a sec-ond practice run so that all know howto operate pumps, electrical equipmentetc.Ascott Signal BoxThe Parish Council are pleased to re-port good news that the Signal Boxwill now stay and continue to bemanned in Ascott as well as Moretonand Evesham. Just to confirm, the Parish Councilmeet every second Monday of themonth in the Tiddy Hall at 8pm, withthe exception of August. The monthly

ASCOTT-UNDER-WYCHWOOD PARISH COUNCIL


Agenda is displayed on the NoticeBoard at the bottom of High Street andDawls Close one week before themeeting and the Minutes are displayedon the Village Website after they havebeen approved. Should anybody wishto speak with a Parish Council mem-ber, the contact details are noted belowand of course on the Village Website.

Parish Council:Stuart Fox 832004Elaine Byles 831427Bridgette Crundwell 830671Rob Morgan 831958Angela Barnes(Parish Clerk) 01608 641045

ing and represents the Parish’s view tothe District and County Council. Parish Councillors meet regularlywith their County and District Coun-cillors and are invited to attend eventsand meetings where issues affectingthe local community are being dis-cussed. There are always new ideas comingforward to improve our environment,the renovation of the Pound and erec-tion of the Barrow stones is a goodexample. Also, events, like the Carolson the Green around the Christmastree, can be planned and organised. Much of the day-to-day administra-tion is carried out by Angela Barnes,our Parish Clerk, but individual Coun-cillors often decide to specialise in oneparticular area, for instance transport,allotments or flood relief work. Don’t hesitate, if you would like thechance to serve your communityplease put your name forward in 2010. If you would like further informa-tion contact Angela Barnes or one ofthe present Councillors. Our contactdetails are shown at the end of theParish Council report elsewhere in theGrape Vine.

Stuart Fox Chairman Ascott Parish Council

Elections will be held for your ParishCouncil on the 6th May 2010. Ascotthas five Parish Councillors and itseems likely that there will be an op-portunity for two or three new candi-dates to put their names forward toreplace retiring members. Becoming a Parish Councillor andrepresenting the community can be avery rewarding and interesting experi-ence and will enable you to becomeinformed of and involved in the vari-ous activities and events in the Parish.The Council meets eleven times eachyear and looks at planning issues andother matters affecting the village; isresponsible for maintaining the playingfield, village green and verges; dealswith issues such as drainage and flood-

SERVING YOURCOMMUNITY



Returning to a warm house after a cold,icy and muddy walk with our newspaniel puppy made me consider all thecreatures that have to survive the win-ter months without the benefit of shel-ter and central heating. Where does allthat abundant summer wildlife go andhow does it survive our inhospitablewinter? There seem to be three choices;flee the country and head south, likethe Swallows, Martins and other birds;remain here and hope to survive thecold and lack of food; finally enter astate of dormancy and let the worst ofthe winter pass you by. Living on an island it is mainlybirds that have the ability to movesouth, in search of food and a warmerclimate. Whilst some butterflies andmoths, like the Red Admiral and thePainted Lady, are summer immigrantsvery few of those that breed here arethought to make the journey in theother direction. The birds that leave ourshores are predominantly, but not ex-clusively insectivorous, the seed andberry eaters tend to stay. Indeed some,such as Redwings and Fieldfares, cometo England from their northern breed-ing grounds because our winters areless harsh. Birds, like the Blackbird,will modify their eating habits, search-ing for worms in the summer, but eat-ing fruit, berries and seeds in the winterwhen the ground is frozen. The mortal-ity rate amongst the bird population inwinter is very high, particularly

amongst the smallest species and thepopulation of Gold Crests, Wrens,Long-Tailed Tits and Blue Tits canplummet after a long lasting coldspell. Without sufficient food beingfound during the day, these birds willnot survive a long winter’s night, sotry and feed your garden birds regular-ly throughout the winter. If youcan’t flyaway thenyou have tocope withfood scarci-ty and coldweather byadopting other survival strategies. TheFox grows a thicker winter coat andMoles burrow deeper in their searchfor earthworms. Squirrels build a win-ter nest, called a drey, where they willsleep during bad weather, but on sun-ny and warm days they will ventureforth to find food, perhaps on yourbird table or by digging up a cache ofnuts that they buried during the previ-ous autumn. Unfortunately they alsostrip bark from trees to get to the nutri-tious sap-wood underneath, doing ex-tensive damage and leaving openwounds that may become subject tofungal attack. Smaller rodents likeShrews, Voles and Mice suffer veryhigh levels of mortality during thewinter. Shrews in particular rely oninsects as their main food source and

NATURE NOTES


spend most of their waking hours eat-ing. The Common Shrew will starve todeath if it goes without food for morethan three hours. A Shrew that sur-vives one winter will never get throughanother. The final survival strategy is dor-mancy or hibernation. Badgers enter aperiod of dormancy in the winter afterhaving eaten well in the autumn in-creasing their body weight by up tosixty percent. From December untilMarch they will stay underground intheir sett, living mainly off their accu-mulated fat. This is not true hiberna-tion as they will venture forth duringwarmer periods. Amongst our native mammals onlyHedgehogs, Dormice and Bats trulyhibernate, thus reducing the body’senergy needs and food requirements.Prior to hibernating they will eat largeamounts of food, gorging on the sum-mer and early autumn surpluses, tobuild up reserves of fat. Two types offat are laid down; white fat which actsas an insulator and a source of nourish-ment, keeping the body ‘ticking-over’and brown fat which accumulates nearto the animals brain, heart and lungs,warming-up these vital organs when itis time to wake in the spring. If ananimal comes out of hibernation tooearly, because of a warm spell or dis-turbance, these fat reserves will quick-ly be used up and the animal may notsurvive the remainder of the winter. During hibernation body tempera-ture drops close to that of the surround-

ings, the heartbeat slows to a few beatsa minute and breathing too slows andbecomes almost imperceptible. Hiber-nation is triggered by a change inbloodchemistrythoughtto becaused byshorten-ing daylength and falling temperatures. All of our cold-blooded animals,amphibians and reptiles but not fish,hibernate during the winter as theirbody temperature is the same as theirsurroundings, but they must find some-where sheltered where the temperaturewill remain above freezing. Frogs willhibernate under a log or bury them-selves in the mud at the bottom of apond, absorbing oxygen through theirskin. Toads and Newts always findsomewhere on land burying them-selves under a stone or log pile whilstSnakes will often use discarded bur-rows. Fish do not hibernate, but tend tobecome lethargic in cold weather, re-ducing their food intake and migratingto the deeper parts of ponds, rivers andlakes. Snails literally ‘shut up house’ forthe winter, closing the opening of theirshell with a special slime containingcalcium phosphate that hardens into atough protective covering. They spendthe winter amid rotting vegetation, inthe leaf litter or under a log or stone.


Sometimes they will be found glued toa post or wall in a sheltered spot. Finally where do all the insects go?The majority will over winter as eggs

which werelaid in latesummer. Insome casesthese haveto be sub-jected to aperiod of

cold weather before they are able tohatch. Some moths survive as pupaeburied in the soil or leaf litter, whilstsome butterflies will spend the winteras adults in garages and outbuildingsor other sheltered spots such as denseivy thickets, emerging in spring tomate and start the next generation.There is a final group of butterflies andmoths that spend the winter as larva,such as the Speckled Wood, MarbledWhite and Large and Small Skippers.This arrested development is termedthe diapause. In order to survive thesetiny larva produce a natural anti-freezeand enter into a state of suspendedanimation until the warmer weatherreturns and they can start feeding andgrowing again. Given a choice I think that I willstick to central heating and a log fire!

Stuart Fox

The ProposalOxfordshire County Council withCottsway Housing are looking into thepossibility of creating Extra CareHousing on land to the West of GreenLane in Milton –u- Wychwood, onland owned by the County Council.The proposed scheme will be for 40units, and is intended to make up forthe loss of both Greenlands and Langs-ton House in the Wychwoods.

What is Extra-Care Housing"Extra Care Housing (ECH) is de-scribed in various government spon-sored reports as: “Purpose-builtaccommodation in which 24 hourpersonal care and support can beoffered and where various other ser-vices are shared.”

In this respect the most importantfactors that define ECH are:

· Purpose built ‘lifetime’homes for rent, sale orshared ownership

· An on-site team of carersproviding personal care ona 24-hour basis that providesan alternative to residentialcare and much more servicesthan sheltered housing

· Ability to provide a daily hotmeal (usually from an on-site kitchen) served in a com-munal dining room

EXTRA-CARE HOUSINGIN THE WYCHWOODS


· Enhanced bathing and toiletfacilities and a laundry

· Various communalrooms/areas offering a rangeof therapeutic, health, lei-sure and activity functions

· An ethos of extra care thatpromotes independence, notto foster a culture of depen-dency. Wherever possible,people are assisted in per-forming tasks themselves,rather than having themdone for them".

The theory of “Extra Care” is to pro-vide accommodation and support toenable us all to remain in our villagesfor as long as possible, and to remainas part of the Community. The amountof care increases as the need dictates.The Green Lane position gives closeproximity to Deli, Post Office, Co-op,Hairdressers, Pub, Library and more,making a perfect site for residents tofeel included in our community.

Concerns My only reservations on support tothis scheme are that of design and ac-cess to the site. I will not support aproposal that uses Green Lane as aroute into the proposed development.Cottsway Housing have explored theuse of a possible access through thegarden of 2 Shipton Rd, which theyown (opposite Elm Grove). I am happyto support this idea.

The Way ForwardCottsway have now produced draftplans for the scheme. These need to beaccepted by both the people who livein the area of the proposed develop-ment, and the local Planning Authorityat West Oxfordshire District Council.The first stage of this process will be aMeeting of OCC, Cottsway, and aworking Party of Milton –u- Wych-wood Parish Council during January,to discuss the draft Plans. This willhopefully be followed by a submissionfor Planning permission to WODC.Consultation within the Wychwoodswill also be part of this process. Apublic Meeting will be held, at whichPlans will be on view, and at whichvarious other questions can be an-swered, such as eligibility, costs, etc,etc. I will ensure that the Meeting iswell publicised. I will be happy toanswer any questions, but would sug-gest we wait until after the open Meet-ing.

Cllr Rodney Rose(Oxfordshire County Council and MiltonParish)

Email: [email protected]

Telephone: 07919298277


The Park remains open throughout the year and is a popularattraction over the winter months. There are a number of indoorenclosures and the restaurant serves hot snacks and meals.

The name meerkat comes from the Afrikaans language formarsh cat, which is funny because they are not frommarshland and they are not cats!Size: Weight: 750g-1 kg. Height: up to 30cm high whenstanding on back legs.

Habitat and Distribution: Rocky grass-land, scrub and desert in the Kalaharidesert , which extends through southAngola, Namibia and Botswana, all insouthern Africa. They are diurnal (active during the day) andat night live in burrows, which are complex tunnel systemsconsisting of mounds, access holes and tunnels which lead tonumerous sleeping chambers.Age: Meerkats live up to 10 years in the wild but up to 15 incaptivity.

Groups and Breeding: Meerkats typically live in groups of up to 25 animalsbut communities may get as large as 40 individuals. They are unusual as theydepend on each other for survival.


I’m not a scientist, but I do questionour acceptance of the opinion thatglobal warming is caused solely byman’s activities and that this is a prov-en fact. Why? Probably because I’m anatural sceptic and always tend toquestion everything that I’m told, es-pecially if it’s a politician doing thetelling and particularly if it’s seen as anexcuse to raise ‘green’ taxes and wastevast sums of money building ineffi-cient and unsightly wind farms. Yes, I accept that carbon dioxide isa greenhouse gas, as is methane andboth are produced as a result of humanactivity, but water vapour is possiblymore important in the greenhouse ef-fect and is not generated to excess byhuman activity. Anyway, the amountof carbon dioxide that we add to theatmosphere is small compared with thetotal produced by nature. One belch bya large volcano will put far more car-bon dioxide into the atmosphere thanwe humans do each year. Carbon diox-ide is a natural component of our atmo-sphere and all plants require it forgrowth, they combine it with water andthrough photosynthesis manufacturethe sugars they require. Today, when compared with ourgeological past, the earth is much cool-er, the icecaps much larger and the seascover less land. Indeed we are still inan ice age, but enjoying a warmer in-terglacial period. There is no less ice atthe Earth’s poles today than there was

thirty years ago. It is also interesting tonote that there has only been ice onearth’s surface for less than 20 % of itshistory. In Europe we suffered a ‘Little IceAge’ from 1400 to 1850, with the cold-est period being in the 1600’s so weshould be expecting temperatures torise and glaciers to retreat as they havebeen doing unevenly for the last 250years. Prior to that we enjoyed a sixhundred year period of warming whichenabled grapes to be grown by theRomans as far north as Hadrian’s Walland allowed the Vikings to settle inparts of Greenland which are now icebound. More recently there have beenshorter periods of warming and cool-ing which do not seem to correlatewith mankind’s industrial activities.We are currently in the eighth year ofa period of global cooling. Climate is cyclical. In the currentera these cycles tend to be one hundredthousand years long, with ninety thou-sand years of variable glacial condi-tions followed by ten thousand years ofwarming. We are currently at the endof the current warming period, so per-haps we should be expecting anotherice age! Perhaps the carbon we emitmight keep us warm a little longer. I realise my views may be regard-ed as ‘deranged.’ if you think so pleaseuse the next issue of the Grape Vine toshoot me down in flames, after all I’mnot a scientist just a cynic.

GLOBAL WARMING


One final thought; at all of these international conferences why doesn’tanyone mention the real problem that the world is overcrowded and populationgrowth needs to be controlled. The following graph shows the average maximum and minimum tempera-tures that I have recorded, over twenty years, in this area. Sadly it provesnothing either way, but seems to indicate a period of cooling between thirteenand eight years ago with temperatures gradually retuning to the levels achievedin the late eighties and early nineties in 2009.

Stuart Fox

Robert GripperAntique Furniture Restorer

Repairs & rebuilds, veneering, carving &turning, colouring, French polishing,finishing, upholstery, desk leathers, gildingmirrors & picture frames, insurance work &valuations, clock repairs, and much more.....

Manor FarmAscott under WychwoodOxfordshire, OX7 6AL01993 83196001993 830395 fax [email protected]


FOOTBALL FOCUSWindrush Valley School football teams have been very busy of late,with 3 home matches against St John’s Priory and Kitebrook HouseSchool. On Wednesday 7th October, we welcomed St John’s Priory to our homeground at Ascott-under-Wychwood, and fielded two skilful under 9 and under11 teams. With Dan Milner scoring 3 and Edward Butler scoring a further 4goals, Windrush Valley under 9 boys sealed a confident 7 – 0 victory. Not to beoutdone, the Windrush Valley under 11 boys, also playing St John’s Priory,scored 7 goals in total; 2 each from Blake Richardson and Ross Hedigan with afurther 3 winning goals put in the back of the net by Alex Roscoe, resulting in a7 – 0 win. A few weeks on, and the Windrush Valley School under 9’s football teamwere back on the pitch, hosting Kitebrook House School. It was an action replyof their previous game, with Dan Milner scoring 3 and Edward Butler securingthe win with a further 4 goals. Well done to all those who took part fromWindrush Valley School, St John’s Priory and Kitebrook House School.

WINDRUSH VALLEY SCHOOL NEWS

NETBALL NEWS

With our football teams busy on the pitch, the girl’s netball squadhave been looking forward to their first competitive match, as badweather has seen off their first few fixtures. With the weatherholding off, the netball squad travelled to St John’s Priory School,Banbury, for their first game on 4th November. For some of theWindrush Valley squad, it was their first competitive match, but they certainlydidn’t let nerves get the better of them, and all of the team played exceptionally. Unfortunately, as sometimes happens, the score did not reflect the standardof play and Windrush Valley came away losing 10 goals to 2. This has notdeterred the girls; they had a great afternoon and are keener than ever to get backon the court!

Well done to all the girls who played in the match:

Romy Dawkins, Georgie Townley, Tiana Thomas, Hollie Taylor, CatherineHawkins, Lizzie Cornish and Augusta Townley.


Five teams from Windrush Valley School, Ascott-under-Wychwood, took partin St Hugh’s annual cross-country event, on a very cold Tuesday 10th November.Senior Mistress, Mrs Janice Askew said: “Windrush Valley School have sucha pool of sporting talent, we were able to take three boys teams for the under9 and 11 year age groups, and a further two girls’ teams in the samecategories. All the children have worked immensely hard during their schooltraining sessions, and this hard work paid off with our under 9 boys comingin third, and the under 11 boys running away with a first place victory”.

Staff and all the pupils from Windrush Valley School, would like to congratu-late our runners who all did so well:

U9 Boys (third place): Daniel Milner, Edward Butler, Caden SpencerU9 Girls: Rachel Purvis, Cassia Belardo, Poppy Kay

U11 Boys (first place): Ross Hedigan, Alex Roscoe, Luke MilnerU11 Boys: Henry Gardner-Roberts, Neil Atkinson, Charlie SpencerU11 Girls: Tiana Thomas, Flo Denham, Hollie Taylor

RUNAWAY SUCCESS FOR WINDRUSH VALLEY SCHOOL

SUCCESS FOR WINDRUSH VALLEY SCHOOL …..

15 children from Windrush Valley Independent School (Ascot-under-Wych-wood) travelled to London on the 15th October 2009 to represent the school atthe ISA North London swimming gala. With numerous schools from the Lon-don area attending, competition was tough! With determination and commit-ment, teamed with 110% effort from all the children, they were a formidable

force to be reckoned with.

All the children were successful in their heats with many 1st,2nd and 3rd places achieved, highlighted by four childrenbeing selected to compete in the ISA National Finals laterthis year, in Coventry. A great achievement for the schooland swimming squad alike.

Ross Hedigan (50m Freestyle & Relay National finalist); Neil Atkinson, Wil-liam Burnell and Alex Roscoe (Relay National finalists).


Headmaster, Mr Alan Wood, said, “I am so proud of all the children in theswimming squad, and to have four children selected for the national finals inCoventry, from a small independent primary school is absolutely fantastic, weseem to be breeding future athletes at Windrush Valley, as we have hadseveral children selected for the ISA National finals in athletics and cross-country!”- Go Windrush!

Windrush Valley is an award winning independent day school locatedin Ascott-Under-Wychwood. The school caters for 3 to 11 year boysand girls, and prides itself on providing a happy, positive atmospherefor learning. The school is a member of the Independent School As-sociation.


It’s cold outside but nice and warm inhere so come into Wy chwood Library,choose some books and get cosy. Thereare lots of new titles coming in all thetime so plenty to make a selection from. The new Afternoon Reading Groupis very active with some very interest-ing discussions on the chosen titles sofar. Come and join us. We meet on thesecond Thursday of each month, ex-cept August, at 1.15pm until about2.30pm. Future events at Wy chwood Libraryinclude a knitting group called “I knitLinks”, based on a nationwide non-profit Community Interest Company.Lorna Raye is to run the group whichwill meet every second Thursdaymorning from 10.30 until 12. You cancontact Lorna on 01993 832 121 formore information. The first meeting ison Thursday, 25th February. We will be having another ITLearning/Ancestry week on the 8th and10th of February from 2 – 5pm.. One-to-one tutition with the WychwoodVolunteers for an hour each. Come inand make a booking. The SWYCH group will be holdinga Film Night in the library on February11th at 7.30pm. No entrance fee but asmall charge for refreshments. Lookout for the flyers or contact Jenna on831 338!

Wordpeckers We have begun ourjunior reading group again but we arestill open to new members between8-12 years. We share our readingchoices and talk about the books weare currently reading and we are hop-ing to do some creative writing as wellif we have time. So if you love readingand talking about books and authorscome along and join us. Our nextmeeting will be on Wednesday 6th Jan-uary at 4pm. in the library and on thefirst Wednesday in the month after that. Remember, you can take out books,DVDs etc and return them anywhere inOxfordshire. If you do think you aregoing to be late, and the items will fit,pop them through our letterbox to savebeing charged overdue fines!

Opening Times:Monday:2.00pm to 7.00pmTuesday:ClosedWednesday:9.30am to 1.00pm/2.00pm to 5.00pmThursday:ClosedFriday:2.00pm to 7.00pmSaturday9.30am to 1.00pm

WYCHWOOD LIBRARY


The Wychwoods Day Centre annualChristmas Party was held on Thursdaythe 17th December in the BeaconsfieldHall and - as I say every year - wasprobably the best one yet!! Thanks toour wonderful band ofvolunteers we now havethe organisation of the"Day" resembling some-thing of a military opera-tion, from thinking aboutand creating the stockingsthrough to providing afull turkey dinner and allthe trimmings for 50-plus members,volunteers andguests. We startedwith coffee and bis-cuits on arrival at10am and the usualgames ofscrabble/dominoes/rummicub beforeguests arrived to joinin our Carol Service led by Rev. Wen-dy Callan. Sherry and mince piesswiftly followed whilst the kitchenwas a hive of activity in preparation forthe main culinary event with 3 largeHartley's turkeys under the carvingknife! As ever the meal was deliciousand was finished off by Christmas pud,trifle, pavlova, teas and coffees. Youmay reasonably think that by now itwas time for a snooze - but oh no! -there was more to come and there wasno escape until we'd been festively

THE WYCHWOODS DAY CENTRE

entertained by Mark Jessey and Rich-ard Sandate on guitars and"Doolallybird" or rather MandyraeLarge in one of her wonderful hand-made costumes. Before their carriages

arrived to takethem home themembers were du-ly presented withtheir ChristmasStockings by twoextra special guestsin the guise of Ru-dolph and a very

tall giraffe - aka James Walmsley andTom Gidman! All in all we had awonderful day and I canonly reiterate mythanks and appreciationto all those in this greatand caring communitywho gave so much oftheir time and energy

towards making it the success it wasand also for all their support during theyear! Thank you also to all the mem-


bers for my beautiful bouquet of flow-ers which has lasted well into the NewYear! I am only sorry that, due to thesnow and ice, we have had to miss ourfirst Thursday back after the Christmasbreak but look forward to meeting upagain soon.

Katherine Gidman Co-ordinator


The new year, a time to take stock andmake plans for the gardening year.With all the vegetation cut down bysnow and frost and with leaves lostfrom trees and shrubs, it is the besttime to view the basic layout and de-sign of the garden. The bareness makesit easier to decide what needs changingand what fresh opportunities thechanges will give. We have been a bitahead of what is normal for us bystarting to take stock in the Autumnrather than wait forWinter. We removedtwo trees in Novemberbecause we realised wehad planted too many intoo small a space. Itwas such a shame toremove trees that hadjust begun to establishthemselves. They wereplanted in the garden just five or sixyears ago. Unfortunately it is a com-mon mistake to plant too many thingsin a new garden: with so many bareareas of ground to cover, the tempta-tion is always to put in too much. Thenwhen everything starts to grow well,you realise some have to be taken out. Now with the bones of the gardenlaid bare by Winter, we can see that wedid the right thing. There is a betterbalance between the size of the plantedareas, hard landscaping and grass.Space has been made to develop anoth-er reasonably-sized flowerbed where

previously there was a mish-mash oftoo many trees and too many smallareas separating each one. So what toplant in this new area? I shall be spend-ing many a miserable, grey, Winterday looking through garden books andplant lists, getting ideas and gettingexcited by the possibilities. But havethe bare bones showed us we need toget to grips with anything else? I amamazed to say I cannot see anythingmajor in the way of layout that needs

doing. That`s not to say itis perfect but it is what weare happy with at the mo-ment. Jobs for this time ofthe year generally invoIvetidying up, pruning andclearing messy corners(but I will keep some cor-ners for wildlife to shel-

ter), the soil is too wet to do much else.I do not need to cut down last year`sspent flower stems, most were done inAutumn but I left some for the birds.Gold finches and others seem to enjoythe seed heads of ornamental grassesand verbena bonariensis and anywaythe seed heads glistening with hoarfrost are a glorious sight. The rose andshrub pruning can be done during anyfrost-free time between now andMarch. Vicious thorns and a scrambleof stems put me off doing the ramblers.Thank goodness they do not have tobe done each year but one or two have

GARDENING NOTES


come to the point where they aresmothering other plants and must betaken in hand. Even though most ram-blers only flower once a year, if yourgarden is large enough do not ignorethem, as they bear such an abundanceof flowers for some four or five weeksin mid summer and the scent is deli-cious. Last year, two or three of themhad a good second flush of flowers inAutumn, an unexpected delight,brought on I assume bythe prolonged mildweather during October. It is exciting knowingthat spring is just aroundthe corner. There arequite a few bulbs pokingup through the soil, daf-fodils as well as snowdrops and I hopethat there will be some tulips. Gardenexperts advise that they should be dugup and replaced each year whichcomes a little expensive and labourintensive so I left them in the groundlast year in a foolhardy way. About sixyears ago I planted something like twohundred tulips in blocks of boldcolours, twenty five to a block, theywere a really glorious show and thesecond year was equally good. I hadplanted them twelve inches deep asadvised, also by experts, to ward offtulip disease. But the third year they allsuccumbed to that dreadful funguswhich stays around the garden forthree years afterwards. They all had tobe dug up and destroyed. The yearbefore last, I thought I would try again

because I am very fond of tulips. Iplanted just a few and at a normaldepth because there seemed no point inrepeating deep planting which had nothelped and was hard work. They flow-ered well last year so I am anxious tosee whether they will survive for asecond year, then a third or beyond. Iam not hopeful and if I am provedright will try again but planting in pots,throwing away after flowering and

buying in new eachyear as the first expertadvice said. I have gotto succeed, tulips are soshapely and colourful. Thoughts will soon beturning to vegetablegardening because po-

tatoes will be available at any momentto buy for chitting. January is a longmonth but once over February willflash by, then March is potato plantingmonth. Nobody wants to be caughtout, but to be ready with well-chittedpotatoes to plant as soon as the weath-er and soil are right. Broad beans canbe sown and garlic planted in Februaryso the new gardening year will soon beupon us. Catalogues are already com-ing through the door bringing thepromise of Winter`s end. Monty Donlikes to get out and do something in orconnected with garden every day ofthe year and that`s what I am trying todo to make the winter hurry by and tobe ready for Spring.

Yvette Keauffling


Does the BBC promote gluttony, oneof the seven deadly sins condemned bythe church? I asked this because therecannot be many days go by when therearen’t at least two programmes aboutcooking on the television. This annoysand amuses me. It annoys me becausethe BBC must think I have a fortune tospend on the food they prepare. Itamuses me because if you cooked theway they do, you would have a sinkfull of pots and pans that would takelonger to wash up than to eat the meal.I have some experience in cooking.Over fifty years ago I worked in theOfficers Mess in Cyprus whilst doingmy National Service. There I could useas many utensils as I wished. Therewas always some poor Cypriot to dothe washing up. I would like to digress for a while.Before going ashore in Cyprus ussquaddies were given a pep talk by theC.O. It went along the lines of this.Now look here chaps, when you getashore you will find most of the peoplevery friendly, but always rememberthey are not as good as you. This gavesome of the men I served with, whocame from some of the no go areas ofour large cities, the idea, whoever theCypriot they met, they could addressthem as Wog. Sometimes I had diffi-culty in doing this. Most Cypriots I metcould speak English. I could speak noGreek. One man I met who worked asa waiter in the Mess, had been a teach-

er. He liked to talk in English aboutGreek philosophy. One story he toldme of Socrates. It was said Socrateshad a nagging wife. After a row oneday she broke a water pot over hishead. Socrates is supposed to havesaid, ‘After the thunder comes therain.’ If you detect some left wingviews in my writing, then you ought tobe a detective. In my younger days Iwas often told to go and live in Russia.I would like to say I have never been aleft winger. I would admit to being aninside left, sometimes in the old Wformation. I wonder how many of youknow what I am talking about! Returning to the BBC and cooking– do we eat to live or live to eat? It’s awonder the whole country doesn’t suf-fer from deep depression, indigestionand heartburn. I overcome depressionby, whenever I hear the opening barsof EASTENDERS, I quickly reach forthe off switch. I would like to put myfoot through the screen but that wouldbe too costly. In a few short years, if things re-main as they are, I will no longer haveto pay a T.V. license. So I will thenhave no right to criticise the B.B.C.Then I shall slump back on the sofalike a great lump of pudding, eatingjunk food, and having mind numbingcooking programmes, etc. on televi-sion to watch. Fred Russell

TOO MANY COOKS


Opening hours:Mon.-Fri. 9am - 5.30pm (Closed 1-2 for lunch)

Saturday 9am - 1.00pm

Friday 2.00pm - 4.00pm (Bank Holidays Excepted)

We have a good selection of Greeting Cards, Stationery,Agents for Dry Cleaners

We will be pleased to see you

AWARD FOR ASCOTT VILLAGE SHOP


In November, I went to a talk given bya very attractive young woman calledKira from the United States. She gavea talk on being a DRUID.

Before I go on, I should like to deny Ihave ever said, or you have heard mesay, ’Yanks go home.’ When I gothome I found a letter which I almostsent to the W.O.D.C. I hope the Grape-vine will print it.

To the Housing Officer ofW.O.D.C.

Dear Sir,I wish to make the most seriouscomplaint concerning my next,door neighbours. Their behav-iour every full moon leaves muchto be desired.The trouble starts when the moonreaches the highest part of theheavens. It is then, they and theirfriends, strip off and run nakedaround the garden, dancing in afrenzy that culminates in wildscenes of sex and drink.I have two teenage children whoseem desperate to join them intheir depravity. I have gone togreat lengths to restrain them,the last deterrent being a highvoltage electric fence dividing ourtwo properties. Unfortunately it

electrocuted the cat, and burntthe testicles off the dog when itjumped the fence chasing thepostman.Can I suggest you send someonefrom the Council to act as anundercover agent to monitor thebehaviour of my neighbours ev-ery full moon. They could use arent card as a loincloth to covertheir credentials.

I remain, yours sincerely,

I.B.A. Nutter

IT IS LEFTENANT, NOT LEWTENANT, KIRA

DEADLINE FOR

SPRING 2010 EDITION

APRIL 5TH

PLEASE DON’T BE LATE


Meetings last week with NR and theEA concluded that piling had to behalted until the New Year. The pilesunder the bridge have to be welded tomake up the full length required andthe river has been too high to allow thisto be done. Also, to drive the pilesunder the bridge requires a temporaryplatform (coffer dam) to be built in theriver and that was not possible whileEA Flood Warnings were in place re-cently. The upstream piling(on the Ridleys' land) iscomplete and so Dyerand Butler are concen-trating on finishing allthe EA work upstreamof the bridge before theXmas break. Thatmeans the 2 bunds andthe swale plus all themaking good should becomplete. The finishedjob so far looks verygood and the sweep ofthe bend approachingthe railway bridge ismuch improved. Oncethe grass grows back Ithink everyone will bevery happy. Dyer and Butlerthen expect to take 3weeks finishing underand downstream of thebridge and they shall

attempt to identify a window of timewhen the water levels will be accept-able. They are keen to do this as soonas possible in the New Year as they arenow losing money on the project,mainly due to the delay caused by thedifficulty in anchoring the bridge wallin October. Without that delay the jobwould be done. Philippa Carter

FLOOD RELIEF UPDATE



ASCOTT ACCOLADES !During the current snowy conditions, people have really pulled together andgone out of their way to help others. Here are just a few letters of appreciation:

Were you one of those villagers who benefited from our lovely village shop duringthe January snow? I most certainly was. I am a villager (of Shipton Road) with anindirect connection to the shop and a great supporter of all the shop brings to ourvillage. Praise must go to the volunteers who kept it open throughout the badweather and to the local suppliers who kept it stocked and brought fresh produce tothe village. Whilst the shop enjoyed record takings recently, this facility can onlysustain itself with the continued good will of the volunteers and a constant highlevel of sales. So remember, if you enjoyed your shopping experience through the bad weatherbut are not normally a regular village shop supporter, maybe you could start to usethe shop throughout the year. We don’t need to do our weekly shop there, but I’msure you must need to top up at some point between supermarket shopping, like Ido. Maybe, just maybe, you can get the odd thing from our village shop. Thinkabout the extra revenue you can bring in over a year by just spending a fiver everyweek. So, next time you hop in the car to make a journey to a local co-op, please thinkfirst – do I need to make this journey and could I buy what I need from our villageshop instead? This goes hand in hand with the Government’s current campaign ….Drive 5 miles less a week. Maybe you’ll be saving money as well!

Anonymous

I am the first to acknowledge that I

could come under the heading of

'Grumpy Old Woman' so it is particu-

larly nice to give an accolade. My

praise goes to Tyacks Coal Yard where

one is met with friendliness and help

from all the staff.

They are cheerfully delivering logs

and coal via treacherous roads and I

should like them to know how much

they are appreciated!

Sue Boyer

Photograph by Lorraine Knight

Another accolade. To Brenda ourspecial Postlady, who, with a love-ly smile and socks over her boots,has made sure we got our mail! Sue Boyer



TIDDY HALL

Regular Activities:Monday – Friday MorningsPre-schoolContact: Mrs Pauline Plant07968006451

Wednesday AfternoonsPiano LessonsContact: Pauline Carter01993 774568

Tuesday Evenings 7.30 – 9pmYogaContact: Jan Holah 01608 810620

Tuesday Evenings 6 – 7pmKarate Class

Post Office runs every Fridayafternoon 2pm – 4pm

Special Events:

Flix in the Stix in February TBC

To book the Tiddy Hall contact:

Ingrid Ridley01993 830612


The improvements to the emergencylighting and fire alarm system at TiddyHall were finally completed at the endof August and we breathed a sigh ofrelief when the Fire Officer gave the allclear after his inspection. Although wewere fortunate in receiving a grant of£2000 from Grass Roots, we still need-ed to use a large chunk of our reserveaccount to cover the cost of these im-provements. Another grant was alsoreceived by Pre School which wenttowards the improvements to the en-trance of the car park and the fencingaround the hall. We are now turningour attention to raising more funds tobuild up our reserve account onceagain and to make plans to renew thekitchen, which is looking tired, in thenext couple of years. We are delighted to welcome twonew trustees on to the board – RebeccaBaxter and Chris Morgan. Thank youfor joining us! The end of 2009 saw plenty ofactivities at Tiddy Hall. Back in Octo-ber, the Fishing Club held a RaceNight. Pre School held their annualcarol concert and also a quiz nightwhile Windrush Valley School heldtheir Christmas party. The village pan-tomime was enjoyed by many. A bigthank you to Fred Russell and DannyBrainin for putting the pantomime to-gether and to those who gave up theirtime in making it such a success.

Look out for another Flix in the Stixevening in February - a film eveningonly this time, possibly a triple bill,and another film and supper evening inthe spring. We would be delighted tosee you there! Don’t forget our regular activities!Ever fancied learning the piano? Les-sons are held at Tiddy Hall onWednesday afternoon/early evening.Or if you would like to try a yogasession or karate session (limber up inthe New Year!), than please contact theindividual organisers. The aim of the Tiddy Hall Trusteesis to keep hiring fees reasonable, diffi-cult with the increasing demands ofelectricity bills, health & safety re-quirements, insurance etc, etc! But westill feel Tiddy Hall provides excellentvalue for money and we are very luckyto have such a beautiful hall in ourvillage. Indeed, many people who seeit for the first time are always hugelyimpressed. So, if you are interested inholding a function, please ring Ingridon 01993 830612 for further details.

Ingrid Ridley

TIDDY HALL


Broccoli and Pear Soup

1 onion2 large heads of broccoli2 over-ripe pearsChicken stockCream, stilton cheese and parsley to garnish.

Cook the onion until translucent and add the florets of broccoli and thepeeled and cored pears. Cook for a few minutes then add really goodchicken stock and seasoning including a few chili flakes.

Continue to simmer until the vegetables are soft then blitz with a blender.To serve, top with a blob of cream and some crumbled stilton cheese andchopped parsley.

This recipe can be made with broccoli that has passed its best and thepears can be bruised....

Sue Boyer

COOK’S CORNER: ASCOTT’S FAVOURITE RECIPES




ASCOTT-UNDER-WYCHWOOD IN THE SNOW

Photographs by Kingsley


A BYGONE ERA

Corner House Farm, Ascott-under-Wychwood


LAST BUT CERTAINLY NOT LEAST ...........................

...... THANK YOU ......... THANK YOU......... THANK YOU ..............

A HUGE THANK YOU TO THE DISCUSSION GROUP FOROFFERING TO TAKE A COLLECTION AT THE ASCOTT PAN-TOMIME WITH THE PROCEEDS BEING DONATED TO THEASCOTT GRAPEVINE.

A GRAND SUM OF £303 WAS RAISED AND THIS WILL CER-TAINLY GO A LONG WAY TOWARDS THE SURVIVAL OFTHIS MAGAZINE AND WE ARE EXTREMELY GRATEFULFOR THIS FUNDING.

THANK YOU ALL ONCE AGAIN.

The Editorial TeamThe Ascott Grapevine


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Issue 65 Winter 2010 - Ascott-under-Wychwood...Grapevine’ survives mainly on donations. If you would like to help The Grapevine continue, any donation large or small would be appreciated