|
ABOUT THIS PAGE
This page contains recent articles and other features that
have appeared in the Blewbury Bulletin which we
hope will be of general interest. Items in this page will be replaced from time
to time, so if you want to keep a copy for non-commercial use, take it now.
|
|
Dick Francis - Memories |
|
printed
on page 1 of issue 509 (March 2010)
A
MEMORY
In
the winter of 1981/1982 one dark night in deep snow, the electrical
system in my Maxi (remember the Maxi?) failed. No power, no
lights. Out came Dick all smiles; he put on his
wellies and helped push it into his drive for the night. A pleasant
courteous man on my one brief encounter.
Bernardine
Shirley-Smith
printed
on page 18 of issue 509 (March 2010)
ANOTHER
MEMORY
A
few years ago I was waiting on Paddington tube platform to catch
the train and as it came in the doors opened right in front of me.
Dick Francis, who by that time had left this country, was
standing there about to get off. 'Dick Francis!' I said. He
backed off as if he'd been shot. 'Sheila Paine, Blewbury'
I said, to reassure him. He beamed and as he walked away down
the platform he followed the train and waved at me all the way,
clearly delighted with this unexpected link with the village.
Sheila
Paine
printed
on page 1 of issue 510 (April 2010)
AND
YET ANOTHER MEMORY
I
was being visited by Jack Cosby from the University of Virginia
in Charlottesville , USA , and we went into the Red Lion for a drink
at lunchtime. We were chatting away and Jack said ‘Isn’t there a
famous author living around this area. He writes all those books
on horse racing, named Dick Francis, I think’. I said yes that’s
right- do you want to meet him, as he is sitting at the bar, 3 feet
away from you. Jack nearly fell of his chair in surprise, at which
point Dick Francis turned around, said hallo and had a charming
and very friendly conversation with Jack.
Paul
Whitehead
Photo
courtesy of Oxford Mail/Oxford Times (Newsquest Oxfordshire). It
shows Dick Francis at work at his desk in Blewbury, after he had
retired as a jockey.
|
|
Nature Notes for April |
| printed
on page 5 of issue 509 (March 2010)
Listening
to The Living World on Radio 4 I learned of a Nature Reserve in
Somerset where five species of heron have settled. Maybe our
two visiting egrets had come from there. They do not mate
or lay eggs until there are enough birds to form a breeding colony.
Safety in numbers.
The
lone and lonely gander in Savages field has formed a perfect partnership
with the pony there.
A
glorious sight, up on the downs, on a late February evening
was flocks of starlings coming in to roost. More than one
party they swirled and dived in formation, now in line, then in
a cluster, each party dovetailing the other. I missed them
going to roost so rapid is their descent. Once in the trees
they are not silent. I have read that in 1486 Dame Juliana
Berners described them collectively as a 'murmuracion of stares'.
Now
in mid March I have seen them swirling over Blewbury but this winter
I have only had the odd one visit the garden. They must have been
hungry during the freezing blizzards when their source of
food was buried deep in snow. At one time they were a nuisance taking
everything from the bird table.
The
snowdrops have been so welcome surviving in the snow. They hang
their heads to protect from snow and rain and yet aconites and crocuses
remain upright and open fully in the sun. They
are able to close up tight when the warmth of the sun disappears.
Brimstone butterflies, a Peacock and Tortoiseshells, have all
been observed flying and visiting flowers after their long winter
hibernation. Hopefully they each will find a partner to make
the wait worthwhile.
Bernardine
Shirley-Smith
|
|
Astronomy Notes for April |
| printed
on page 11 of issue 509 (March 2010)
The
weather has not been kind to astronomers this winter. With night
after night of cloudy weather. When it did decide to clear for a
few nights, there was a blanket of snow covering the observatory,
and the temperature plummeted to record levels. Enough to keep the
most seasoned of observers in the warmth of their homes.
We
have just a few more weeks to observe Mars through the telescope,
before it will be so far away from the Earth, that the image becomes
too small to be able to see anything worthwhile. I did manage to
image Mars on just one occasion, see below, but I had to be quick.
Maybe
we will have more luck with Saturn, which is now rising earlier
in the evening sky as we move into spring. I had a quick look a
few nights ago, and it was nice to see the rings opening out now,
after being edge on to us for a while, and difficult to see with
small telescopes. You will find the planet high to the South East,
just after dark, beneath the constellation Leo. If you have a telescope,
see if you can spot the rings. Tilted at an angle of 3 degrees,
and very narrow. Don’t forget – if you are not sure which object
to point at – planets do not twinkle like the stars.
Venus
is now showing up in the evening sky, low down to the west, just
after sunset. Cannot mistake this planet, as it is so bright.
Mercury
will be joining Venus for the first week of March. Look for it just
to the right of Venus. If you have not seen it before, this will
be.an ideal opportunity to spot this elusive planet.
Starfields
Observatory / 31st January 2010. 23.17ut. 180mm MC
Mars
– Showing a bright, short lived dust storm, on
the limb to the West of the North polar cap.
©John
Napper
New
Moon 14th. Full Moon 28th Clear skies: John Napper – Starfields
818853
|
| Poem
- Waiting for the Bus |
| printed
on page 18 of issue 509 (March 2010)
My
horizons once were endless
far
beyond Samarkand
beyond
the skulking hulks
of
stranded fishing boats
askew
on the desiccated sea
beyond
the turquoise minarets
summonsing
shrouded men
crumpled
in prayer
within
the shawls of Islam
where
once I wandered.
Housewives
now with plastic shoppers
trip
my clodding feet
and
the bus no longer
leads
to Samarkand
or
even Timbuktu
but
ends for me at Reading
where
my old bones
now
needs must stall
at
concrete stairs
that
used to face the stars.
Sheila
Paine
|
| Nature
Notes for May |
| printed
on page 13of issue 510 (May 2010)
I
suppose that it was inevitable that after the prolonged cold winter
everything would come out together with the first warm sun: grass,
spring flowers including tree clossom. At the time of writing
there have been none of the usual vicious winds that tear at delicate
leaves and petals. Even the cloud of debris from the volcano
in Iceland has passed high overhead sparing us a fall out of
dust and ashes.
Dandelions.
There must be an innate time switch for dandelions - one day there
are very few and then suddenly they are everywhere. I don't
dislike dandelions, but I am not attracted by their bright golden
yellow although colour therapists claim it has healing properties.
It is the same golden yellow seen on those cultivated daffodils
on their tall stalks grown for the flower trade. I do not
like seeing them planted along our roadsides. To me the practice
smacks of suburbia. However I do like the species daffodils (narcissus)
growing naturally in the Lake District and also in our chuchyard.
I admit this is a personal preference one over which we have some
control as they grow from seed as well as from bulbs.
Not
so with dandelions. They have no need of sex to reproduce.
Each seed is genetically identical; carried away on its parachute.
The plant does produce large quantities of pollen which provides
food for young bees but except when the plant is in danger of extinction
the pollen is of no use to its reproduction. Hardly ever;
each bit of chopped off root can reproduce the same uniform plants.
Two
swans have settled happily on the Manor lake. On the
last visit there was only one bird. Did the lone swan
go in search of a mate? Swan Rescue have no fear for them;
the birds have their own runway and have been seen to take off with
ease. They are learning to live beside people and dogs. The
Canada geese on the other hand are less welcome destroying vegetation
and puddling the ground.
Bernardine
Shirley-Smith
|
| Astronomy
Notes for May |
|
printed on page 13 of issue 510 (May 2010)
First of all, an apology for typing in the wrong month to spot Mercury.
I hope you realised that I meant the first week of April, not March,
and managed to see this tricky little planet.
After
seeing the Blewbury Wagon being launched into space the other evening,
it served as a timely reminder that, although we will not be able
to see the wagon moving across the night sky, it is now a good time
to see satellites.
There
are a great many of these, orbiting the Earth. You only have to
look up at the stars, on a moonless night for a few minutes at this
time of year, before you begin to see them. Looking just like a
star, but moving steadily across the sky. The brightest by a long
way, being the International Space Station (ISS). You can find predictions
for the ISS at heavens above.com .
If
you do want see a wagon - how about the Plough, the most familiar
asterism in the northern sky. Also known as the Saucepan. I have
an old book somewhere, which shows it as an ancient chinese constellation
of a Wagon. At this time of year, the Plough is right overhead.
This famous pattern of stars is used by many to find the pole star,
by following an imaginary line through the two end stars, known
as Merak, and Dubhe.
The
second star in from the end of the handle of the Plough, Saucepan
etc. can be seen as two stars close together. The bright star Mizar
together with it’s fainter companion Alcor. Also known as the Horse
and Rider, these stars are considered to be a good test of reasonably
good eyesight, and the clarity of the sky. A telescope will reveal
that Mizar itself has a fainter companion, forming a binary system,
where the two stars are revolving around each other.
Brilliant
Venus is struggling to make headway in the encroaching evening twilight.
Look for a pleasing view of Venus close to a crescent Moon on the
evening of 16th May.
Saturn
is still well placed, as is Mars. But the red planet is now a tiny
image in most telescopes.
New
Moon 14th Full Moon 28th
Clear
skies: John Napper – Starfields 818853
|
| Nature
Notes for June |
|
printed on page 3 of issue 511
(June 2010)
Early
morning is the time to watch garden birds or hear the dawn chorus.
Throughout May I have been pleasantly surprised at the variety of
birds visiting the garden, though numbers are down; mostly they
come in pairs. A nearby dense hedge and a few trees provide
nesting sites. So far the smaller visitors have been: robin, chaffinch,
great tit, blue tit, goldfinch, dunnock, house sparrow and blackbird.
Residents are the pigeon and collared dove! Opportunist "droppers-in"
are jackdaws, a thieving magpie and a heron flying over the garden
which put me in mind of dinosaurs. Not so long ago two greedy
species used to raid the bird feeders; this year I have not seen
a greenfinch (said to be a victim of a virus) nor a starling.
Starlings have taken advantage of arable fields.
Swallows
returned in good time to find their former nesting sites but I have
not seen any house martins whereas there used to be lots in the
village
The
Manor Lake is quite fecund; two swans, two Canada geese, coots and
tufted ducks have been busy nesting. On the Cleve moorhens
have hatched their young early. By the time you read this
Mallard ducks may be out and about again with their young ducklings
rejoining the drakes which have been loafing around looking dejected.
An earlier buzzing of Queen wasps has gone quiet; there were a lot
flying in April. Those that have escaped being killed have very
likely nested in sheds or garages or wherever they can strip wood
for their nests.
Even
earlier one of my Hostas started to flower, leaving
nothing to chance after the cold winter. Now the battle is
on against snails and slugs which seem to be less numerous having
failed to survive the winter, but the aphids are here with a vengeance.
Bernardine
Shirley-Smith
|
| Horses
on the Gallops |
| printed
on page 8 of issue 511 (June 2010)
Photograph
by Bernard Mattimore
|
| Poem
- the Snowdrop |
| printed
on page 13 of issue 511 (June 2010)
The
snowdrop that cried
I am planted in your village greens
Oh! What a delight to be seen
I am so pure and white
I’m sure I bring such delight
To grow during the winter months
is
such a fight
So why pick me during the night
In
the grass 1 live so long
I know this is where I belong
Next
seen, spare a thought
For the pleasures I have brought
In a vase I want to cry
For my life is short and a sure goodbye
Marie Hughes
|
| Local
History Group - Wells |
| printed
on page 19 of issue 511 (June 2010)
Wells
. We have had several replies
to our request last month for information and pictures of wells
and pumps. At least three are not recorded on the Ordnance Survey
maps commonly available, and we would very much like to know when
they were dug. Keep the pictures coming in, and any stories attached
to them too. The picture here is of a well now covered, showing
the brick construction at the top, widening into the chalk lining.
( Photo: Mark Vaughn) Do you remember using a well in Blewbury?
Look at the website for the latest pictures – www.blewburyhistory.org.uk.
We
are still collecting stories about WW2, so do tell your story to
Mark or Audrey or any other history group member.
Please
contact either Mark (email mjpalethorpe@hotmail.co.uk
, tel 851609) or
Audrey (email audrey.long@waitrose.com
tel 850427 ) with any information.
Next
meeting is at Robinsons, Parsonage Lane , at 8 pm, a week later
than usual, on Tuesday, June 15th .
|
| Nature
Notes for July |
| printed
on page 13 of issue 512 (July/August 2010)
Last
month I wrote that I had not seen a greenfinch or a starling.
Oh dear! The greenfinches then arrived and the bird feed bills
increased. One starling tried to hang onto the feeders, but gave
up and flew away. I am so lucky that I don't get squirrels
or muntjac deer. Perhaps it is tempting providence to say
this.
The
goldfinches continue to delight. Together they are known as a 'charm
of goldfinches' - a perfect description. They flit,
rather than fly, from one food source to the next. This year dandelions
have supplied them with an abundant supply of seed, but they have
to work to get them I have heard that there are larger numbers
of these little birds this spring. I wonder? Since
the introduction of niger thistle seed in special feeders they have
had a much easier 'fast food' supply and have flocked
into gardens. They have also discovered sunflower seed hearts.
I
have never seen a spotted flycatcher nor a yellow hammer here.
They are known to frequent gardens on the edge of the village nearer
open land.
The
Manor lake birds have been busy - perhaps too busy claiming territory
to get on with the business of nesting. The swans lord it
over all, but curiously accept one of the dogs that wades into the
lake. They respect each other and when the dog has quenched
his thirst he retreats without a backward glance. The coots are
troublesome squabbling with the moorhens, but in spite of this have
raised a family now almost as large as their parents. The tufted ducks
come and go; the moat provides an easy exit. A dabchick that
nested on the moat raised one youngster.
Bernardine
Shirley-Smith
|
|