Prof. Emma Smith in Blewbury for talk on Shakespeare’s ‘Romance Plays’

In a great coup for Blewbury’s newly-formed Shakespeare group (now officially known as The Motley Crew!) Emma Smith, of Hertford College, Oxford, has agreed to give a talk on Shakespeare’s late works Pericles, The Winter’s Tale, Cymbeline and The Tempest, often collectively known as the ‘Romance Plays’. Professor Smith is among the best-known names in contemporary Shakespeare scholarship: a world-leading authority on the First Folio, a regular guest on Melvyn Bragg’s In Our Time on Radio 4, and the author or co-author of multiple studies of the Poet and his work. She’s well known because she’s not only a great scholar but also a great speaker, so her appearance at 8pm on Monday September 30th in Blewbury Village Hall is a not-to-be-missed opportunity for all local residents who are remotely interested in Shakespeare. Our thanks go to Motley Crew member Sarah Salter for making it happen!

Tickets are a bargain at £7.50, including a glass of refreshment, and are on sale at the Post Office or can be reserved by email at admin@themotleycrew.org.uk. You can also use this address to join the Motley Crew mailing list.

This year’s Beer Festival was a huge success!

Thank you to everyone who made it: the sun was shining, and you were clearly in need of hydration as the kegs were almost emptied and the gin bar was drained! Thank you to all our fantastic performers, and to the PTA and Pre-School for running the food and soft drinks/cakes stalls. Most of all, a massive thank you to everyone who helped and supported and made the event happen. Profits will go to the UNICEF Ukraine appeal, Blewbury Pre-School and the BVS, which will help us to continue to put on the many other village events that run on a break-even basis throughout the year.

Summer Dance – Saturday 22nd June – The annual Summer Dance will be held on the evening of Saturday 22nd June in the wonderful gardens of Ashbrook House on Westbrook Street. Local band McFunky are back by popular demand after their fantastic performances in previous years. This is a great evening to get together with your village friends and beyond, to enjoy “bring your own” food and drink in beautiful surroundings, listen and dance to great live music. Gates open at 7:30pm; dancing until midnight. Bring your own picnic and drinks (no bar). Gazebo set-up at 4–5pm; collect by 11am on Sunday. Tickets are £15.00. They can be bought in advance from Blewbury Post Office, via email to blewburybvs@gmail.com or at the gate on the night. See also the separate advert on page 4 of the printed Bulletin.

Blewbury Garden Market, Saturdays, 9:15–11:00 – The BGM is back for its 15th year on Saturday mornings at the garage forecourt. It is a community venture, giving local people an opportunity to sell excess home-grown or home-made produce and plants, to promote local food and reduce waste. We welcome all types of produce for sale, including fresh fruit and vegetables, cut flowers, seedlings, bedding plants and perennials, free-range eggs and home cooking – such as jams and chutneys, bread, cakes and biscuits. Producers set their own prices for their sale items; the BGM takes a 10% levy to cover costs. See blewburygm.co.uk for more information.

BVS marquee for hire – The BVS has purchased a marquee that we would like to make available for other groups, societies and individuals in the village. It measures 12m × 6m and has sides if needed. If you were at the Beer Festival, or have supported the Fireworks or Summer Dance you may have seen it in action. We would ask for a small donation to cover ongoing maintenance, and you’ll need to put it up and take it down yourself. If you are interested, please email blewburybvs@gmail.com and let us know what the event is and dates.

Thank you to the outgoing BVS Chair – The BVS committee would like to thank Caroline Pettigrew for her hard work, great leadership, tact and patience during her seven years on the committee (four as Chair).

Blewbury WI generally meet on the 4^th Wednesday of the month in the Vale room. An interesting speaker plus a little light refreshment, what’s not to like?

Most of all we are a group of friends and support each other at all times. Just look at our packed calendar below – join in as much or as little as suits you.

Our next meeting will be Wednesday 26 June “Dragons and Rescue Dogs – my inspiration to write books” – intriguing!  Debi Evans will give us an Illustrated talk.  Her books are full of history and loved by children and adults.  Rolo, her real life rescue Jack Russell, makes things happen in history, magical!

There is a fantastic new element to the benefits of being a WI member. At no extra cost to members, National WI offer a range of online courses at the “Learning Hub” which will give you the freedom and control to learn anywhere, empowering women to further their ‘learning journey’. Courses are generally 1 hour long and held on Zoom. At the time of writing there were 50 courses coming up and over 60 on ‘catch up’ – they are available for a week after the live course. Topics range from history, travel, craft and well-being to exercise classes, art and business skills.

If you’d like to come to Blewbury WI with someone else or find out more, ring our Secretary, Joy, on 850543 or email blewburywi@gmail.com.  New members can join at any time and pay a ‘pro-rata’ rate for the rest of the year.

Calendar of events

Do you love tasting new and interesting wines, presented by enthusiastic and entertaining experts? The Blewbury Wine Tasting group usually meets on the 3^rd Friday each month, in the Village Hall and always welcomes new people.

At each event, you can discover new wines, learn more about familiar ones and enjoy sharing the experience with other enthusiasts – no prior knowledge is of wine is necessary.

There is no membership, you can just come to the tastings that are of interest to you. We normally charge £22 per person, and typically taste 7-9 wines over a couple of hours, in a friendly and relaxed atmosphere. You are welcome to bring small plates of food to accompany the wines.

Our tastings are run by either someone from Grape Minds, the Wallingford wine shop, or Tim Syrad who runs his own wine tours, tastings and sales business. Why not book a place and come along to give it a try? We would be delighted to see you! To make a booking or to find out more email blewburywine@gmail.com