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  • Thame to welcome walkers and cyclists – all the way from France!

    A GROUP of cyclists from Thame’s twin town of Montesson in France, today left for a week-long ride to Thame, arriving at the town hall next Friday evening to begin a weekend’s celebration of the fifteenth anniversary of the twinning between our two towns.

    départ cyclistes)montesson2016 (500x288)

    They will be joined at the town hall by the Mayors of Thame and Montesson, and around 40 other people from Montesson arriving by coach on the same evening, and a group of six, intrepid hikers from Montesson. They will arrive in London on Tuesday morning via Eurostar, and walk to Thame, mostly following The South Bucks Way from Denham railway station.

     

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    The final leg of the walk will take them along the Phoenix Trail, where they will be met by a group of Thame twinners with a picnic lunch, and then walk on to the Three Horseshoes pub at Towersey, where it is hoped that as many people as possible will join them for a celebration ‘pint’ and walk en mass along the Phoenix Trail into Thame.

    Independent Mortgae Solutions (RGB) - R1Arriving in the Upper High Street, Thame, at around 5.45pm, the group will be met by Towersey Morris who will dance before them as an escort, along Buttermarket to the town hall for a grand reception.

    Everyone is very welcome to join the walking party at any point along the way on the Phoenix Trail – the more the merrier ! Bring your own refreshments. Call: 07792487030 to find out timings on the day, because, although it is intended to meet at the cross benches just after Sandpit Lane, for lunch, exact timings for the rest of the walk to Thame, and the pub stop, are guess work at this stage – depending on the fitness of the French feet by day four of their trek!

  • 91 year-old woman victim of distraction burglary

    Image courtesy of Southernwater.co.uk
    Image courtesy of Southernwater.co.uk

    THAMES Valley Police is appealing for information after a distraction burglary in Longwick, near Princes Risborough.

    At around 8.15pm on Wednesday (4/5), a man knocked on the door of a house in Thame Road, (A4129), Longwick.

    When the victim, a 91-year-old woman, answered the door, the man said he worked for the water board and that there was an issue with the water.

    Despite being asked for identification which he failed to produce, the man was able to persuade the victim to let him into the house to check the sink and taps in the kitchen. Whilst he and the victim were in the kitchen, offenders climbed into the house through the front windows. They searched the bedrooms and stole a handbag containing her purse and money.

    All the offenders then left the property. It is thought that they may have used a vehicle to leave the area as Longwick is a rural location.

    Only the man in the kitchen was seen by the victim. He is described as being of mixed race, around 25 to 30 years-old, 5ft 8ins tall and of medium build. He was wearing leather gloves and a jacket.

    Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call the 24-hour Thames Valley Police enquiry centre on 101.

    Independent Mortgae Solutions (RGB) - R1If you do not want to speak directly to the police, you can contact the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111. No personal details are taken, information is not traced or recorded and you will not go to court.

  • Thame’s Town heroes rewarded

    AS part of the Thame Town Awards presentation evening at The Thame Barns centre tonight, May 5, the family of Nick White, the popular Thame drummer and photographer who died suddenly while on holiday last December, accepted The Lifetime Achievement Award 2016, awarded to him posthumously.

    L to R - Josh Preston, Mark Wilkins, Sarah White, Angela Wilson (peeping), Nichola Dixon, Sheena Beard, Holly Shiels and Chris Wren
    L to R – Josh Preston, Mark Wilkins, Sarah White, Angela Wilson (peeping), Nichola Dixon, Sheena Beard, Holly Shiels and Chris Wren

    The Mayor of Thame, Nichola Dixon, in one of her last official duties before the end of her mayoral year next week, presented Nick’s award to his wife, Sarah and their two daughters, Lucy and Martha, as well as awards to the following six other ‘local heroes’ nominated by the Thame public:

    Josh Preston – Chinnor Rugby Club – Sporting Achievement Award
    Mark Wilkins – Thame Tennis Club – Sporting Achievement Award
    Angela Wilson – Lea Park Residents Association – Voluntary Achievement Award
    Chris Wren – Wrens Butchers – Service with a Smile
    Holly Shiels – Thame Youth theatre – Creative Arts Achievement winner
    Sheena Beard – Thame Town Cricket Club – Lifetime Achievement Award

  • It’s poetry but not as you know it!

    THE first event of this year’s Thame Arts and Literary Festival will be an evening with Roger McGough CBE, one of Britain’s best-loved poets and presenter of Radio 4’s Poetry Please, who will be visiting Thame on Wednesday, October 12. For this unmissable show he will be joined by LiTTLe MaCHiNe, whose setting of vintage, classic and surprising poems to music has earned them a global reputation.

    Roger McGough
    Roger McGough – image by Colin Clarke (ARPS)

    From Lily the Pink and The Aintree Iron to his Molière adaptations for English Touring Theatre, Roger McGough’s work spans five decades and includes many poetry collections for all ages. Described as ‘the patron saint of poetry’ by Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy, his latest book, It Never Rains, features a new selection of comic verse, accompanied by his own drawings.

    Appearing in a full show, following their sell-out event at Thame Arts & Literature Festival (TAL) last year, are LiTTLe MaCHiNe – Walter Wray , Steve Halliwell and Chris Hardy. This follows numerous appearances at literary festivals in the UK and abroad, including The Hay Festival 2016 with Roger McGough. Drawing on three thousand years of poetry, LiTTLe MaCHiNe set poems to music and perform them with energy, passion, humour and wit. They have performed with many of the UK’s best-known poets, including Carol Ann Duffy, John Cooper-Clarke and John Hegley.

    An Evening with Roger McGough and LiTTLe MaCHiNe’  will be  at the Spread Eagle Hotel, Thame, Oxfordshire OX9 2BW

    Tickets can be purchased online at www.talfestival.org  or by phone on 0871 288 3420 (calls 8p per minute) at £17 full price, £15 concessions. Visit www.talfestival.org for details of the exciting line-up for TAL 2016. More events will be added over the next few weeks. The full programme is available in July. General booking opens 1st September.

     

  • Comic’s 550 mile quest without a penny reaches Thame

    STAND UP comedian, Damian Kingsley will be knock-knocking on the door of The Stables at The James Figg pub on Sunday, May 8, as his nationwide comedy tour in aid of the homeless charity, Shelter reaches Thame.

    KNOCK-KNOCK_James Figg (400x384)

    Damian chose Thame as one of the 120 stops he plans to make on his 550-mile Knock-Knock tour of the UK, which sees him travel from Land’s End to Edinburgh performing live at venues along the way. He is hoping to get to Edinburgh in time to perform his first, hour-long show at the Fringe in August, having polished his material at gigs along the way.

    Every show is free entry with a voluntary donation to Shelter at the end and after performing in Thame, Damian will be heading off to his next destination in Haddenham either on foot or by cadging a lift – he’s not allowed to use any money or public transport on the tour. Luckily the team at The James Figg won’t be seeing him off without making sure he has a hearty meal at the pub and a few glasses of ale to see him on his way.

    “It’s great that Damian’s tour is taking in Thame and that he chose us to do one of his charity gigs,” said Suzy Fenlon, assistant manager of The James Figg. “We don’t often get to host comedy – we’re usually more about music – but we’ve got a great crowd here and we’re sure they’ll be a great audience. We can’t wait.

    “We hope we’ll get as many regulars and new faces as possible in and that everyone will dig deeply as Damian tells us he’ll be ranking towns by how much they donate to find out which is the most generous and which is tight,” she continued. “We don’t want the last one so we’ll be encouraging everyone to part with their cash on the night and help Damian hit his target,”

    Damian set off on his tour on Friday, March 25, with a gig at The Star in St Just near Land’s End in Cornwall. By the time he reaches Thame he will already have 65 planned and probably some impromptu gigs under his belt – he is promising to do extra performances in return for favours along the way.

    “I’ve planned the distances between each gig so I should generally be able to get to them on foot. But I’m likely to end up performing on the street and mowing lawns in exchange for the use of a washing machine or somewhere to lay my sleeping bag,” explained Damian.

    ‘So far, take-up has been really good from venues. Most are country pubs and inns, who are often offering to put me up and provide a meal, but I’m also doing it at other venues like arts theatres and Working Men’s Clubs, mainly in villages and small towns.”

    12O NIGHTS, NO MONEY, NO TRANSPORT

    Damian had long wanted to help the homeless, but it was a series of upsets in his own life that spurred him into action. “Last year, all around the same time, I split up with my fiancé and lost my job and my flat,” he said. “That certainly made me put things into perspective, and as I suddenly had a lot of free time, I finally made a start on this tour idea that I’d had a couple of years before.”

    His target is to raise £7,000 by the end of August, including donations taken at his performances and by supporters along the way.

    Independent Mortgae Solutions (RGB) - R1More details about Damian’s Knock-Knock Comedy Tour and a donation link are on his web site www.damiankingsley.co.uk. To follow the journey and get all the podcasts, blogs and news, join Damian’s mailing list. Follow him on twitter: #TWOKNOCKTOUR

    Damian Kingsley’s gig at The Stables is from 8pm – 10pm on Sunday, May 8. The Stables is at The James Figg, 21 Cornmarket, Thame, Oxon, OX9 2BL. Tel: 01844 260 166. www.thejamesfiggthame.co.uk @figgthame

  • Legacy of Rugby World Cup 2015 lives on in Thame

    CHINNOR RFC hosted a Tag Festival for Years five and six boys and girls from local Primary schools in Thame last Wednesday, April 27, and what a fun time was had by all!

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    The event was co-ordinated by Nick Todd of England Rugby, Jamie Hazeldine and Steve Trenchard of Chinnor RFC. It was sponsored by Star Hotshots who provided the three trophies, all the medals and goodie bags for every competitor. An army of volunteers helped with refereeing, marshalling, and goffering, not only from Chinnor RFC but also some from the PACK Volunteer programme, a legacy from the Rugby World Cup 2015.

    Thame’s John Hampden and Barley Hill schools, St Andrew’s, Chinnor, Long Crendon and Testworth schools took part in the festival which was rescheduled from last term, because of bad weather. On the day however, the sun shone on these five schools which between them fielded six teams – all of mixed girls and boys. Each team played five matches in the preliminary rounds.

    As the matches progressed, the skills and confidence grew, and the rugby flowed. After the five matches, each team progressed to compete for either the Cup, Bowl or Plate. The final results saw St Andrews winning the Cup, John Hampden the Plate and Tetsworth the Bowl. Every player went away with a medal and a goodie bag.

    One partiular team is worthy of special mention. At first they didn’t even know each others’ names, but they quickly put their sporting skills into practice to soon become a creditable team. The ‘Federation’ was made up of a mix of players from John Hampden and Tetsworth schools.

    Hopefully every player, teacher, parent, volunteer and spectator went away with a positive view of competitive sport, and England Rugby’s message of Teamwork, Respect, Enjoyment, Discipline and Sportsmanship.
    SOURCE: Contributed by Steve Trenchard

  • Hurry! Farce tickets now available for matinee Saturday

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    IF you haven’t yet bought your tickets to see Thame Players’ production of Philip King’s celebrated farce, See How They Run, you might like to know that a matinee performance of the show will take place at 2.30pm on Saturday,  May 7.

    Tickets for this and all performances cost £9, concessions £8, and are available as usual from Spear Travels, Greyhound Walk, Thame, 01844 217228 or online from www.thameplayers.co.uk.

  • Best pub in Oxfordshire jostles to be the best in the land

    A Thame pub has been named the Best Pub in Oxfordshire at the inaugural National Pub & Bar Awards 2016, earning the popular gastro pub the chance to go forward to the grand finals next month and be a regional or even national winner.

    Tom Upham, Head Chef and Evelin Rae, General Manager, The Thatch, Thame
    Tom Upham, Head Chef and Evelin Rae, General Manager, The Thatch, Thame

    Manager at The Thatch, Evelin Rae and her team celebrated with a glass of bubbly on learning that the pub had been named top in its county, one of only 94 from across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland to earn the accolade of being best in their area.

    As county winner, Evelin will be off to London’s iconic BAFTA theatre on Tuesday, May 24, to the National Pub & Bar Awards Grand Final, when 12 regional winners and one overall National Pub & Bar of the Year will be announced.

    “It’s a great honour to be named best in our county and to have a shot at being the South East winner or even come away with the title of best pub in the land at the National Pub & Bar Awards,” said Evelin. “With so many fine hostelries on our doorstep, we know there’s a lot of stiff competition out there so it’s fantastic to be recognised by being a finalist.

    “In the eight years we’ve been at the pub, we have invested a lot into it, bringing a new look and feel to the place, seasonal food and a quality drink offer served by people who’ve been well trained and who like me, love working here. We are proud of what we have achieved and even prouder at being able to represent the county at the awards,” she added.

    The Thatch joins 93 other county winners selected by Pub & Bar magazine’s internal judging panel on all of the aspects required to provide ultimate hospitality within the on-trade. The panel looked at everything from perfect service to product range, aesthetic design to entertainment schedules in selecting its finalists.

    Tristan O’Hana, Editor of Pub & Bar magazine, said: “These pubs represent all that is great about the modern on-trade. You can only imagine the fantastic variety of operations we have discovered through the judging process – it’s been an absolute pleasure to investigate just how all of these incredible operators run their businesses.

    “What’s great about the awards is that all the attendees of the grand final are already winners – we’re very much looking forward to celebrating with everyone at BAFTA in London on May 24.”

    The Thatch is at 29-30 Lower High Street, Thame, Oxon, OX9 2AA. Tel: 01844 214340.
    www.thethatchthame.co.uk

  • Championships double for Duellist Hal

    YOUNG Thame Duellists’ Fencer, Hal Seed, fought to strong results in the National Youth Championships in Sheffield last weekend.

    Hal Seed, 11, at the British Fencing Youth Championships
    Hal Seed, 11, at the British Fencing Youth Championships

    Fencing in the Boys’ Under 12 category, Hal was taking part in his first National Championships, having qualified with strong performances at regional level earlier in the year in both the foil and épée disciplines of fencing.

    Lord Williams pupil Hal, who now trains with the England Fencing youth development training programme as well as in Thame, secured 23rd place in the epee event on Saturday, April 30. Not content with that, he returned on Monday for what was expected to be a tougher foil event and exceeded his épée result with 11th place in the foil. He started strongly, winning five out of six fights in the group stage, only losing to the eventual overall winner of the competition, Jaimie Cook of Scotland.

    Hal then fenced through to the last sixteen with a bye in the round of 128, then fighting through a taxing bout in the last 64 – managing his frustration after a couple of early errors and coming back strongly at the end of the fight. His bout at the last 32 stage was a more comfortable 10-2 win, before finally falling short 2-10 in the last 16 to Joseph Blair of Yorkshire who went on to take bronze.

    Club coach, James Kingston, said: “I’m thrilled for Hal doing so well in his first appearance at the National Championships – and to do that in two different weapon events is fantastic. He’s worked hard all year and is maturing as a fencer all the time.”

    SOURCE: Contributed

  • Promote your group at Thame market’s Community Day

    BE part of Thame Market Traders Community Day this year, and help make it the biggest and best ever.

    Chris Hurdman, Secretary of Thame Market Traders Cooperative’s message to local community groups is:

    “This year we have even more activity on the market we are hoping for an outside broadcast from BBC Radio Oxford and or Mix 96. So no doubt this will be a great opportunity to promote your group.

    “We do have limited space on the Market but we will endeavour to accommodate all groups who express an interest. Just furnish us with the following information:

    Name and contact details address telephone number of Group or Charity.

    Size of stall or gazebo you will be using.

    Will you be trying to raise funds and how this will be achieved?

    “A tip to remember is that the bigger and bolder the stalls are decorated, the stall holders who dress to promote their stalls are the stalls that get the biggest response from the public.

    “Get everyone involved; link up with us on our Thame Market Traders Facebook page

    Members of Thame Choral Society promoting themselves at last year's Community Day at Thame Market
    Members of Thame Choral Society promoting themselves at last year’s Community Day at Thame Market

    and let’s get this social media thing going! Create an ‘Event’ on your Facebook page and feel free to pass on this email to any other interested groups.”

    Let Chris have your group’s application by July 15, either on the market or by email: chrishurdman@btinternet.com – No applications can be considered after this date.