Volume 49 Christmas 2010

7/27/2019 Volume 49 Christmas 2010

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EDITORS: Roy Turner, Hall Barn, Main Street : 01636 894009

Kate Murrell, The Retreat, Amos Lane: 01636 893402

Please support THE SCARLIAN by contributing your news and views!

E MAIL: [email protected]

Vol 49. CHRISTMAS 2010


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A reminder to all we are still looking for some-one to take over theclerks duties from next April/May. The current clerk will be happy toassist the new clerk in the first year, if needed.

9 hardy souls (+ chairman and clerk) braved the snow and ice toattend the parish meeting on December 2

nd. There was 1

planning issue the proposed construction of a brick skin atRosa on Swinderby Rd. This was carried unanimously. Seebelow for 2 other items. Planning approved by Newark andSherwood in the past couple of months include items at WakesCottage, Post Office Lane, Chestnut Tree House, Main St andHall Cottage, Main St.

An initiative from BT the Race to Infinity was raised bythe chairman. It involves the provision of very quickbroadband to certain areas in the country. If you sign up on-line before the end of December then Collingham anddistrict (includes South Scarle) would stand a chance ofgetting it. Please help and sign up at http://www.racetoinfinity.bt.com/

Gritting of roads in South Scarle. The current situation fromHighways is that the roads feeding South Scarle are not in agritting group. Thanks to Linda Dales, this situation is beingreviewed. In the meantime the more people who log complaintsthe better. The Gritting Office can be reached on 08449 808080.The clerk ordered 3 full grit bins and 1 tonne of grit in October.The grit arrived on December 2

ndand the bins are on the way!!!.

The bins will be located at the junctions of Church Lane andCollingham Rd, Church Lane and Main St and Main St andSwinderby Rd. These bins have cost the parish 150 each!!

MIKE BOSSART
http://www.racetoinfinity.bt.com/http://www.racetoinfinity.bt.com/http://www.racetoinfinity.bt.com/http://www.racetoinfinity.bt.com/http://www.racetoinfinity.bt.com/


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Born and bred in Somerset, Dan, Donna, Fraya and Eden Pearcey moved tothe south of France to a little village north of Montpellier as a result of Dansemployment. Freya attended the local college whilst Eden was a pupil at the localprimary school; after many hours of extra French lessons the two girls are nowbilingual.

After five years of sun, sea, sand and fantastic french cuisine Dans contractcame to an end and the family returned to England.

They bought Honeywood Cottage at the bottom of Post Office Lane in SouthScarle so that Dan was able to start his new job involving computer software. Thismove also meant that the girls were able to return to English education and Donnato realise a lifelong ambition to own and live in an old country cottage.

And so a new chapter has opened in the adventures of the Pearcey family.We welcome them to our village and wish them a bright and happy future.

PROMOTION FOR THE PRIEST IN CHARGEIt has been announced that the Rev. David Milner is leaving his job as Priest inCharge of the 11 churches in the East Trent Group to take up a new post asDeanery Development Officer and Priest in Charge of Farndon wuth Thorpe,Hawton and Cotham.

His last service in his present position will be on SUNDAY 30th JANUARY at10.45am at ALL SAINTS, COLLINGHAM - the only service that day.

David will be certainly missed by the churches and parishioners he hasserved so well in recent years. He is to be thanked for all the hard work he

has put in to keep things running as smoothly as possible with such a largearea of ministry needs. We wish him well in his new job.


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When I saw the article in the last Scarlian about the bandSUBSTITUTE I thought I should mention another Scarlianband NATURAL BORN BOOGIE.

As many of you know, I moved to the village full time in2003 when I retired from the Police Force. One of the firstthings I did was to buy a drum kit. I had played in bandssince I was 14 years old but could not play when I wasemployed in the Police because of shift work. The lastband I played in was called Sgt Rock in which the leadsinger was one Andy Partridge. The musos amongst you

will know that Andy went on to form XTC who had severalhits at 2 or 3 in the charts; unfortunately my father would not allow me to goprofessional so I missed out on their success.

After moving to South Scarle I formed a blues band with Matt Stone who lived inthe village; we were joined by Rick Smith, a base player from Newark. We werecalled Main Street Blues as we used to practise in the Parish Room on MainStreet. Some Scarlians may remember us playing at a summer event. Then theband broke up leaving Rick and myself searching for another guitarist.

My work is doing surveys for the Government. One evening I interviewed a Polishman named Przemek Druzkowski and noticed a very expensive guitar standing inthe corner of the room. I asked him if he would like to have a jam session with usand he agreed. This took place at a studio in Balderton. We could not pronouncehis first name so, from that time, he became known as Slick. To say his guitar-playing is incredible is an understatement! During the session, the owner of thestudio, Dave Hughes, approached us and offered his services as rhythm guitaristand vocals. The band was formed.

We played several gigs including the Newark Beer Festival. When Rick left theband we found another bass player, Marc Dicks, a semi-pro who plays in thePalace Theatre orchestra. We continue to play at various venues in Newark. If youwould like to know more please visit www.myspace.com/naturalbornboogie

or call me on 01636893805FRANK BRADBURY


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November would creep in if it could;But suddenly the clocks are turned back!

The days shortened and night begins at five oclock.Gardens are abandoned, doors closed,Fires lit and central heating turned on.

Trying not to give in to fallingTemperatures and premature duskWe hollow out pumpkin lanterns,

Create bonfires, and send dazzling rocketsSkywards to defy the darkness.

North-east winds sweep acrossSleeping fields, spinning the blades

Of a single wind turbine,Tearing Autumn s bronze and golden remnants

From hedges and black-branched trees.

Decembers early weeks are barely countedSo busy are we making festive plans.

The Church must be made ready;Choir and organ set in tune,Bell-ringers poised and practised.

Houses aglitter competeWith the stars. Christmas comes.

We embrace those we love, rememberOnes no longer with us, and welcome

Others lately come to join us.

December turns its icy back on the village

As gusty January swirls forthTo be received with noisy welcome,Showers of sulphurous rainbows and

Dazzling explosions of greeting and anticipation.

Friends and neighbours meeting,Greeting the New Year. Frosts and gales

Must yet be borne, but the year turns;The days lengthen and we

Look to the certain Spring.

TINA PARIS


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Christmas is a time of celebration,A time for everyone to share;It's a time when friends should be together

And a time when all the family are there.

Christmas morning is a time for all the children,Their excitement is more than they can bearTo see if Santa's filled their stockingsAnd left all their presents lying there.

The Christmas tree is standing in the corner,The lights upon it all aglowSurrounded by the cards and decorationsAmidst the holly and the mistletoe.

The table's laid for a Festive dinnerWith wine and Crackers big and small,And after we have finished Christmas dinnerWe'll drink a toast "Happy Christmas to You All"!

JOANNE JAY

A molten sun, low on the horizon,Pours glassy fingers over rimey ridges;

Turns stones to jewels and stalks to necklaces and magic wands,Spellbound in the freezing, noiseless air.

And at the bottom of the watery sky,A hazy rosy morning light tickles the spiky heads of hawthorn

And trickling down the furrows of the plough,Spreads a warm kiss across the land,

To melt a diamond and slide it down a shiny stem,To warm a bony birchs stiff black fingers, curl its bunion buds to the South

And grow thin shadows across the gemstone lane.

KATE MURRELL


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The ABC Book Group have continued their monthly meetings,enjoying the occasional glass of wine as they discuss the booksthey have read and score each one out of 10.

The White Queen by Philippa Gregory

This novel was not a resounding success! Several members could not even finishthe book, some stoically ploughed on to the end and were under-whelmed but asmall minority enjoyed it as a light hearted romp through British history with somenotable battles. There was general agreement that the content could have beenmuch better written to make sense of this interesting time in history and thatopportunities were wasted. Some of the group could not make much sense of it.Not one of Gregorys best books. Scored -4/10

Suite Francaise by Irene Nemirovsky

A quite remarkable book providing an interesting look at Paris and French cultureduring the exodus of Paris in the second World War. All the more exceptional forthe fact that the Author later died in Auschwitz.

Although most of us had never heard of this writer, our intrepid researchers showedthat she was actually already a highly respected author in France before she wrotethis book. It highlighted how the instinct for survival impacted on life, especially forthose of middle and upper-middle class society. It was written as two looselyconnected books. Some members found the huge amount of characters in the firstbook rather hard to get to grips with and preferred the intensity of the second book.

The main discussion point was imagining what it must have been like to live in anoccupied country, especially in the rural areas. We also looked at it from the point ofview of occupying troops and how they managed to retain their authority and live foryears alongside the rest of the population. We mostly agreed that Nemirovskyswriting is quite exquisite, unafraid of portraying the delicate alongside the brutal,and very French. Scored 8/10

At our last meeting, each member brought along a piece of poetry. Favouritesincluded: The Birthright (anon), Daffodils (Wordsworth), He wishes for theCloths of Heaven (Yeats), Sea Fever (Masefield), Nicholas Nye (de La Mare),Beleaguered Cities (Lucas), Story of a Hotel Room (Tonks), Abou Ben

Adhem (Leigh Hunt).KATE MURRELL


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TINA PARIS had a busy Octoberorganising the annual WOLFIT ENDOWMENT FUNDlecture. In recent years Tina has obtained the support ofleading names in the theatrical and entertainment world

and this years event was no exception. Actress IMELDASTAUNTON, known to many for her acclaimed roles intelevision and film, talked about her life and career at thePalace Theatre, Newark.

Imelda is a versatile actress and has brought her talents

to a wide variety of roles including VERA DRAKE, MISS

POLE (Cranford), and DOLORES UMBRIDGE (Harry

Potter). She talked about how she started acting and the

roles she has played as her career progressed. She also

answered questions from the audience. The event was

featured in the Newark Advertiser (pictured right).

Chris Paris has been asked to put together some material about StHelenasChurch bells to feature on the East Trent Churches website. He has some

technical details already, but he would like to any members of the village who have

more personal information to contact him at Washtub Lane or on 01636 892748.

He is looking for stories relating to the restoration of the bells or their ringing

history, and any photographs relating to the bells which he could scan and place on

the website.

Halloween fun at Terry and Carols on Amos Lane. It is hard to recognise

most of these guests but we had fun trying!


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I am old enough to have had the sound and sight of Bing Crosby singing Imdreaming of a white Christmas as a very present memory in the run up to all mychildhood Christmass. As I look out of my study window the snow is falling heavilyfor the fourth day. The weather seems quite extreme. Schools are closed, busesand trains are stopped, even a number of church events have been abandoned. Itseems almost as if time has changed, so many of our usual routines are on hold.The snow, albeit a potent one, is only a distraction amongst others against whichwe are all preparing for Christmas.

The disruption we have all experienced will certainly help us all to focus on whatis really important as Christmas approaches. For me, planning and supporting CarolServices across the East Trent Group is a major task and, along with Christmasservices and other seasonal events, a very intensive time. This year has aparticular poignancy, as it will be my last as Priest in Charge to the East TrentGroup.

As many of you know, Kristina and I are moving to Farndon where we will begin anew ministry. Half my time will be as parish priest to Farndon, Cotham Hawton andThorpe. The other half will be a new role as the Newark and Southwell DeaneryDevelopment Officer. Kristina will continue at Tuxford as an Assistant HeadTeacher.

GREAT FUN

The past seven years have been a blast. I have much valued the support I havereceived and friendships made. Harvest, the various village social events have allbeen great fun and will be warmly remembered. It was particularly pleasing towelcome our Diocesan Bishop Paul Butler in June to South Scarle for ChoralEvensong. The service was very well supported, especially by the East Trent Choirlead by Alan Stone. I am thankful to the Church Council, PCC, who have providedsuch great support and particularly to wardens Anne Ackroyd and Florence Baldwinfor their ongoing support and advice.

Christmas can just be another holiday for some interrupted by an inconvenientbirth. My hope is that the disruption caused by Jesus birth may be life-changingand life-giving. The current snowy snap will soon be a memory, whilst the goodnews of Jesus birth will remain a present reality as long as the story is re-told. Ihope, the weather permitting, I will see many of you over the Christmas period atone event or another!! On behalf of us both a very happy Christmas to you all.

David and Kristina


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SOUTH SCARLE BOOK CLUBWe continue to enjoy our monthly reading and in particular our livelymeetings, at which we share our opinions and ideas on many things over aglass of wine or two. Heres a summary of our recent reads:

Titus Groan by Mervyn Peake thought by Jan and Linda D to be the best booktheyd ever read, others in the group found it hard to agree - or even to finish thebook! The first novel of a trilogy, the story starts with Titus Groan being born into theancient Gormenghast dynasty. A dark, often menacing tale unwinds of feud,jealousy and ambition, all ruthlessly manipulated by escaped kitchen boy

Steerpike, Peake uses powerful language and evocative descriptions to bring alivethe castle and all of the machinations within. A difficult book to read but those thatpersevered were glad that they did. (ABC Book Club we challenge you to readthis book and let us know what you think!!)

Parrot in the Pepper Tree by Chris Stewart . We thought that this was going to bean exciting read. Some of us had enjoyed its prequel Driving over Lemons and soexpectations were high. We think that it is fair to say that this one turned out to be alame duck, more of a tweet than a squawk. Starting well with tales of the authorssheep-shearing experiences in Sweden, the book quickly fizzled out, becomingLemons Revisited with not much of a tale to tell at all. Stewart was briefly thedrummer with Genesis and maybe he should have stayed with them - it would havebeen a more interesting story!

The BBC Anthology More Poetry Please gave us an opportunity to get to gripswith something other than prose and so this was a welcome choice. Linda M hadselected three poems at random as a springboard for us all to read.these were:Ballad of the Bread Man by Charles Causley, To a Descendant by Lorna Woodand Lessons of the War by Henry Reed.By the time we came back to review the book, most of us had read most of thepoems and more than once. It seems that poetry triggers many memories for usof times and places in our pasts. Indeed the more wine we consumed, the more wereminisced.

Continued on the next page


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SOUTH SCARLE BOOK CLUB

The Red Queen by Margaret Drabble is a novel whose first half is an account ofthe life story of an 18

thcentury Korean princess whose seemingly privileged life

behind palace walls was not as fairytale as you might have imagined. The second

half of the novel sees the princess emerging in the 20th century by intriguing andthus infiltrating the life of an academic through whom she seeks to keep her storyalive. Some of us preferred the 17c story, some of us the 20c but most felt that thetwo halves of the novel didnt really come together. Good job that the wine at Joswas excellent - it scored more highly than the book!

Things My Mother Never Told Me by Blake Morrison (a sequel to When Did YouLast See Your Father). After his parents deaths, Wilson found his parents lettersfrom their courting days and through them discovered a side to his parents' earlylives and relationship that he had known little about and which gave him a newcontext for their subsequent family life. The book provoked some serious debate

within the team about attitudes towards Catholicism, past and present. We alsodiscovered an excellent rose wine from the Collingham Co-op !

It wasnt plain sailing with regard to Fortunes Rocks by Anita Shreve. The bookhad very mixed reviews, with the use of the present tense throughout causing someof us to run aground. Jo had abandoned ship, but having listened to the debate,she decided to set sail again and finish reading it, and so we have not scored thisone yet. Carols Shiraz proved very effective in steadying the vessel, however, andwe look forward to completing the voyage with the final scoring at the next meeting.

BLAISE THOMAS

Whenever there are special services and events inSt.Helenas Church there

are always some eye-catching flower arrangements on display. This visualfeast for the eyes is not created without effort and commitment and lots of skill.

An example of this can be seen in the photographs on PAGE 10 of this issue.So we thought it time to offer our thanks to the ladies of the Church FlowerRota and to congratulate them on their contribution to the life of the village.

They include: Judy Muirhead, Lyn Broughton, Joan Genvey, Jean Ashley, AnnCandlish, Elaine Leak, Betty Clements, Margaret Matthews, Connie Noble,Carol Jacklin, Maureen Pollard, Judy Thorpe and Florence Baldwin, who alsoorganises the rota.


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RIP

HUGO MUIRHEAD

A great character

Hugo arrived at the Old Vicarage in 1997, at 10 weeks old, having already beenrejected by his first owner. He was bred at Folly Farm by Rachel Bellaby and had a

lot to live up to, as Toby, his black Labrador predecessor, had been our best everdog.

After years of golden Labradors, followed by two black Labradors, we had foundthat they were generally self-training, obedient and friendly dogs. We werecompletely shocked, when after two weeks Hugo would still not respond to hisname. We discovered, sometime after he had well and truly become a fixture, thathis mothers name was Born to be Wild. Very rapidly this bundle of black fur wasrunning circles round us. Something drastic had to be done! After a suitable lengthof time he was packed off to dog training school with Chas. Worrell, an ex-RAF doghandler. The standard stay for training was a fortnight, but at the end of two weeks

Chas rang up and asked if he could keep him a further week, as he was the mostdifficult dog he had ever had in to train. He was returned to us after three weeksand Judy had a further week of training with Hugo. Chass parting shot to us wasthat Hugo was a professionals dog (whatever that means) and if we could managehim we would be doing very well. Judy found the secret was to try and get insideHugos head and anticipate what he might do next before he did it! Colins solutionwas to keep him on the lead.

A particular talent

We did debate three years into our relationship with Hugo, that perhaps he should

have been handed over for service as a snifter dog maybe Customs andExcise or the Police Service, to exploit his particular talent. He had an exceptionalnose, and spent many happy hours routing things out.

He grew into a very good looking dog and was always full of mischief, but despitehis size and power, was very gentle with children. This was borne out when ourgrandchildren arrived on the scene. Both Dexter, but particularly Petra had manyhappy hours grooming, playing and feeding him. However their ball games wereoften frustrated, as being an alpha male, once Hugo got the ball he absolutelyrefused to let it go again. He never seemed to cotton on to the fact that is would bemuch more fun for him if it could be thrown again!

Continued on next page


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RIP - HUGO MUIRHEAD (continued)

Hugo was a great people dog and always wanted to be around you and helping!

He did have a fear, however, and that was German Shepherds and Border Collies.As a puppy he was attacked by a dog from both breeds and he never could bringhimself to face up to them, he would hide behind your legs, or run in the oppositedirection if he saw one. While out walking with Colin one day Hugo suddenly shotoff and disappeared out of sight. He had spotted Beryl Rudkins collie coming forhim over the field, unbeknown to Colin who spent quite a while panicking as to howhe was going to explain the disappearance of the dog while in his care. All was wellas Margaret Matthews saw him approaching up Swinderby Lane and corralled himin her garden until she managed to contact Judy.

Hugo also had a passion fruit any kind of fruit. In June he would delicately pick

off individual raspberries, and in September strip apple, pear and the fig trees toothe height he could reach. He also enjoyed courgettes and carrots fresh from thegarden, not to mention rotting sugar beet in the autumn in the surrounding fields ofPlot Lane.

He proved to be quite a character, loving and loyal friend for 13 years and, when hisend came on Wednesday 22

ndSeptember, it was mercifully quick. He lay in the

garden on a sunny afternoon. We realised things were not quite normal, as heshowed no interest in his usual pursuit of fruit. At 4pm he wandered into the kitchenand collapsed. Within a short time he had gone.

Rest in peace, old friend. Colin and Judy


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ALAN MOLINEAUX - Corner Farm Barn, Main Street.

Book: The Day of the Triffids by John Wyndham.

Song: Blueberry Hill sung by Fats Domino.

Singer: Johnny Cash. Music: Rock and Roll.

Film: Monty Pythons Life of Brian.

Actor: Tom Hanks. Actress: Julia Roberts.

TV Prog: Blackadder BBC1 historical situation comedy.

Website: Tropicalglen.com.well worth a visit!

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MARGARET MATTHEWS - Yew Tree Cottage, Swinderby Road.

Book: Great Expectations by Charles Dickens.

Song: David of the White Rock traditional welsh air/folksong

Singer: Placido Domingo. Music: Opera.

Film: Dances with Wolves.

Actor: Charles Dance. Actress: Judi Dench.

TV Prog: Strictly Come Dancing.

Stage Show: Les Miserables.

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JIM THOMAS - Old Toms Cottage, Washtub Lane.

Book: A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens.

Song: Broken Wings by Mr. Mister, 80s US Pop/Rock Band.

Singer: Nat King Cole. Music: Pop.

Film: Christmas Carol.

Actor: Tom Hanks. Actress: Emma Thompson.

TV Prog: Star Trek.

Stage Show: Barnum.

Website: Cup of Tea & a slice of Cake.com.

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JAN SMITH - Wheats Cottage, Main Street.

Book: To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee.

Song: The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down by The Band.

Singer: Joni Mitchell. Music: Soul.

Film: One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest.

Actor: Jack Nicholson. Actress: Julie Walters.

TV Prog: Boys from the Blackstuff.

Stage Show: Guys and Dolls.


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* * * * * * * *FRONT COVER: Lyn Broughton and Elaine Leak putting theMERRY into Merry Christmas surrounded by the many and

varied entries in last years Festive Tree display in

Documents

Volume 49 Christmas 2010