Thame.net

Author: Sonja Francis

  • January Gardening News Letter From Jane Follis

    I HOPE you all had a lovely Christmas and New Year. We had a very relaxed time catching up on everything, including sleep and I am feeling really excited about 2007. I have some lovely projects either underway or about to start and plenty more to design. My ?to do? list now runs to three pages!

    I spent New Year?s Day with my Marshall?s Seed catalogue planning the vegetable garden for this year. I invested in a new juicer over the break and have been stunned at the delicious recipes. My veg patch is going to reflect a lot of the ingredients I will need, including a new blueberry shrub. I have also decided to get rid of my fruit cage and all the fruit bar one row of raspberries. I think they are past their sell by date and I found I couldn?t physically eat all the fruit. This will give the extra space needed for the more exotic vegetables I want to grow.
    www.marshalls-seeds.co.uk

    If you missed sowing sweet peas last year, Marshalls offer plug plants which they send out at the appropriate time.
    My grand hopes of digging it all over during the break were thwarted by the inclement weather and lack of physical energy, (plus needing to do three months worth of accounts) but hopefully I can get out there this weekend and start preparing the ground. The timing will be perfect particularly if we get some sharp frosts as these help to break down the soil ready for planting in the spring. It will also be a great opportunity to empty my compost bins and incorporate this into the soil.

    Thank you to everyone who gave me contacts for the database. I have had to put this on hold for a wee while, but having said that a friend gave me a very good idea on New Year?s Eve which could push the whole idea ahead more quickly than I anticipated. I just need to find time to make some phone calls and find out how much it might all cost.

    NOTE: We have been experiencing technical difficulties with my website. If anyone has tried to reach me via the ?Contact? page, do please try again, or give me a call. We think it has been out of order since May!!

    RECIPE
    Roast Vegetables
    1 Squash Sweet potato (optional)
    Carrots Parma ham
    Potatoes Peccorino cheese
    Garlic
    Rosemary
    Olive oil

    This combination goes really well with almost anything and has a slight sweetness to it. It is equally good as a meal in itself.
    Chop all the vegetables into equal sizes. The sweet potato is optional ? not a favourite of mine, so I tend to leave it out. Leave the skin on the garlic and bash it with the back of a knife. Use about five cloves. Chop up the rosemary and toss everything in plenty of oil.
    Put into an oven about Gas Mark 5 or 180 Electric and roast for about 30 minutes until golden brown and not too soft. Add the parma ham, ripped up and return to the oven for about 5 minutes. Flake the peccorino cheese (you could use Parmesan) and sprinkle over.

    SEASONAL TIPS
    Although we still have a few months of horrible dank, cold weather to endure, I can?t help getting excited at this time of year. As already mentioned the seed order is in the post and I will probably get some of them started in the kitchen as soon as I can, in the hope of an early crop.

    I finally pulled, or dragged would be more appropriate, my pots of Agapanthus into the greenhouse and hope they will be comfortable there for the winter. As mentioned last month, do start putting protection around the more tender plants, such as Phormiums and Astelias, particularly if they were planted this year. If you need any advice, please contact me.

    All my tools are sitting in the shed ready for a clean. This is a good time to do it, although it is best to clean tools after each use. My intentions are always good, but I am guilty of not following my own advice and tend to leave it. I also try and wash all my pots ready for all those seedlings, using warm water and washing up liquid. At the same time the greenhouse will get a good clean and tidy up.

    Some of my grasses, particularly Miscanthus floridulus and Miscanthus zebrinus have really taken a battering by the wind. Normally, I would leave them until early spring before cutting them down, but they are looking tatty rather than attractive, so I shall have a bonfire very soon. I have also lost a huge branch of my buddliea, so this will be going the same way. The rest of the garden is looking remarkably good and just needs a gentle tidy up. I shall be removing any diseased leaves from the hellebores so that I can get the full benefit of their lovely nodding blooms over the next few weeks.

    Despite the drought conditions this year, we now have some very wet lawns. Try not to walk on them too much ? this goes for frost as well. The compaction damages the roots and will result in brown patches.

    Plant or transplant trees and hedging.
    Continue to check ties. The winds have been very strong.

    VEGETABLE & FRUIT GARDEN
    Sow broad bean, leek, brassicas and onion seeds under glass.
    Marshalls sell onion sets and I can thoroughly recommend ?Red Baron?. 100 onions cost about

  • Social Club Christmas Gig Reviewed

    Mean Poppa Lean, They? and Megan Goodwin; Thursday, 21st December – Rob Lowen (Ex The Thunderlemons) was there!
    TONIGHT it is absolutely freezing in Thame, and as a result, The Social club is pretty packed. Nevertheless, I arrived nice and early and managed to squeeze in on a sofa with my trusty notepad, feeling fully ready to enjoy an evening of quality music from three Brighton artists with a strong attachment to Thame.

    Megan Goodwin is a singer from Oxfordshire, who has been based in Brighton for the last year or so. Taking to the stage with just a guitarist for accompaniment, her music is a refreshing blend of lounge, jazz and soul, calling to mind the voice of Catatonia with the accompaniment of Jack Johnson. Refreshing, cheeky and light-hearted, she’s always smiling. A great start to the evening.

    Next to the stage are local legends, They? What the question mark means is anybody’s guess, but it’s easy to tell where the music is at. Catchy yet crushing riffs bleed into brooding, picked verses. They? have clearly mastered the art of stop-start dynamics, and Dave Vine delivers a massively powerful vocal performance from start to finish. The energy emanated from this band is awesome, and they sound absolutely huge for a three-piece.

    Mean Poppa Lean are definitely a funk band. Composed of two members from this area’s ex-premier funk-rock legends, Hedroom, and two members of They?, Mean Poppa Lean stride onto the stage wearing ridiculous pimp-style fur coats, and the already hyped-up room breaks into a frenzy of skanking and dancing. Their music is debauch and dangerous, like an upper-class Mother’s Milk-era Chili Peppers, with an especially virtuoso performance from lead guitarist Alex Camp. Everybody in the venue is dancing, singing, or blind drunk. If The Social is to play host to bands of this calibre frequently, they’re going to have to get bigger premises. Or at least reinforce the floor.

    Photo: Megan Goodwin

    Bands wishing to play at the Social next year, should contact Michele at Crash Records on:
    info@crash-records.co.uk
    www.myspace.com/thesocialthame

  • Thame United – Holiday Matches Reports

    THAME MISS GOALIE IN NEW YEARS DAY DEFEAT
    Ardley United 6, Thame United 2 – LEAGUE GAME

    Thame United registered their fourth successive defeat on New Years Day at Ardley United. Perhaps this was not totally unexpected as Ardley were in second league position (now top), whereas Thame are currently second from bottom.

    Thame were without their regular goalkeeper Paul Searl who was injured in Saturday?s game at Shrivenham. Mark West, who was player/manager until August 2005, was in the starting line-up.
    Ball possession was fairly even throughout the game but Ardley created more chances, particularly in the first half, and finished well. Ardley?s first goal came after a uneventful opening 25 minutes. The ball was fed to the unmarked Steve Garbutt who hit a well placed shot from 15 yards pass stand-in goalkeeper Mike Higgs. Two minutes later, Carl Standon hit a quality left foot volley from the edge of the area to make it two. Their third came on 41 minutes direct from a free kick, when dead ball specialist Danny Mason beat Higgs from 22 yards. Four minutes later Ardley were awarded another free kick and Mason hit a superb shot from 30 yards which Higgs got a hand to, but could not stop.

    The second half was a different story with Thame creating more chances and playing far more positively. On 55 minutes a strong shot from Darren Moore was headed of the goal line, the ball eventually came to defender Matt Graves who hit a strong, low shot from just outside the box to score Thame?s first. Two minutes later Ben Connolly was judged to have fowled in the penalty area, and Mason completed his hat trick from the resultant spot kick, making the score 5-1. With three minutes of normal time remaining Thame striker Nathan Jack hit a speculative shot from 30 yards which bounced before beating the Ardley keeper. The final goal was again scored direct from a free kick, but this time it was Garbutt who beat Higgs.

    Thame United: Higgs, Smith (Moore) Watkins, Kitson, Bell, Graves, Cowan, Green, Jack, West (Cairns), Connelly.

    Thame entertain Slimbridge at Hithercroft Stadium, Wallingford next Saturday (January 6th)

    ——————————————————
    30th December 2006

    Shrivenham 3 Thame United 2

    With heavy overnight rain and a persistent downpour for an hour before the game, it was somewhat of a surprise that the referee deemed the pitch playable. Nevertheless, it was Thame who adapted to the conditions quickest, taking the lead on 10 minutes when Nathan Jack crossed from the right to Ben Connelly on the edge of the six yard box. Connelly held the ball well before laying off to Jordan Weaver to drive the ball in to the left hand corner of the goal from ten yards.

    Shrivenham soon hit back in the 15th minute when a free kick from the wide left was met by the head of Jon Peters to beat Paul Searl at his near post. Five minutes later the same player hit the base of the post before a goal bound shot from Weaver on 30 minutes was blocked by a defender on the line. Ten minutes later a well worked free kick between Sion Kitson and Jack saw Jack strike the ball just wide of the left hand post from 25 yards. In the last minute of the half Shrivenham were unlucky to again see a shot come back off the crossbar.

    With the wind behind them in the second half and playing down hill, Thame came out with renewed confidence. This was rewarded in the 55th minute when Jack raced on to a through ball before calmly chipping the on-rushing keeper to give Thame the lead. Almost immediately Shrivenham forced Thame deep in to their own half and following a goal mouth scramble Martin Stratford placed the ball in to the left hand corner of the goal for the equaliser.

    With a torrential downpour mid-way through the second half, it looked debatable that the game would finish. In the worsening conditions and to their credit, Thame continued to press forward for the winner with Weaver from 10 yards and Jack Green from 25 yards both testing the Shrivenham keeper. Shrivenham also searched for the winner and a cross-shot from the left hit the woodwork for the third time on 63 minutes. By this stage, Shrivenham were in the ascendancy and pushed forward in numbers. Searl was increasingly busy and in the space of 5 minutes made three crucial saves. However, in the 92nd minute a cross from the left was again met by the head of Jon Peters to give Shrivenham the lead for the first time in the match. Thame immediately went in search of an equaliser, with an Alex Cairns shot from 25 yards beating the keeper but dropping agonisingly on to the roof of the net. It was the last chance for a Thame side who battled bravely in poor conditions and deserved a draw for their effort and commitment.

    Thame face a tough game at home (Hithercroft Stadium, Wallingford) against Slimbridge on 6th January (3:00pm kick off)

    Team: Searl, Smith, Watkins, Graves, Bell, Kitson, Green (Miller), Connelly, Cowan (Cairns), Jack, Weaver (Moore).

    ——————————————————

    Thame United 0, AFC Wallingford 2 – 26/12/06 – League
    BOXING DAY’S match against Wallingford was an uninspiring affair. Although there were long periods when Thame had more of the play they were unable to score. The Thame squad contains some promising players but after a period of disappointing results, they seem to have lost confidence in their ability to win games.

    The opening exchanges were fairly even. Wallingford went ahead in the 15th minute when Danny Leggett made a good run into the Thame penalty area, beat 2 Thame defenders, and laid on a square pass to the unmarked Abdouli Taha for a 5 yard tap in. Thame countered and, following a good move, a strong shot from James Tripp forced a superb save from the Wallingford goalkeeper, John Shea. In the 38th minute Thame keeper, Paul Searl came out of his goal to collect a ball crossed from the left. Uncharacteristically, Searl mishandled the ball and dropped it into the path of Aaron Baker who finished well from 8 yards.

    Thame had the majority of the possession in the second half and put some good moves together. Their best chance came when Alex Cairns hit a strong shot from 15yards which forced another excellent save from Shea. Apart from the occasional break away Wallingford did not really threaten the Thame goal in the second half and they seemed content to defend. The strategy worked and Wallingford succeeded in snuffing out any Thame chances and held out to collect their three points.

    Wallingford is a quite physical team who conceded numerous free kicks in their own half. Thame, frustratingly, totally wasted these by blasting them off target.

    Thame United: Searl, Tripp, Watkins, Kitson, Graves, Connelly, Moore, Cairns, Reading, Jack, Smith (Johnson).
    ——————————————————

    RAYNERS LANE 3, Thame United 2; Linaker Cup 23/12/06
    This was a game which Thame could, and should have won. They had the majority of possession and with 25 minutes to play Thame had a 1-2 lead. Their eventual defeat at the hands of a team from a lower division was the result of sloppy defending and poor finishing.

    Thame had a good chance after 16 minutes when Darren Moore found himself 5 yards from goal and in a 1 to 1 with the home team?s goalkeeper, but he took the season of goodwill too far when his shot hit the delighted keeper. Rayners lane took the lead in the 38th minute after Thame goalkeeper Paul Searl had parried a shot which Ian Jones collected and fired home. Moore equalized for Thame on 45 minutes with a strong 20 yard shot low into the left corner of the home goal.

    Thame took the lead 8 minutes after the restart when Nathan Jack made a quality run to the left by-line before hitting a low cross which the goalkeeper fumbled and Adrian Smith tapped in. Rayners Lane equalized 15 minutes later when Jones netted his second from close range following a defensive mix up. Thame continued to have more of the play but frustratingly squandered their goal scoring chances. With 15 minutes remaining the home side made a rare trip into the Thame half and Jamahni Henry beat Thame goalkeeper Paul Searl with a blistering 25 yard shot to give Rayners Lane the lead.

    The last few minutes saw relentless pressure on the home goal with at least 2 goal line clearances. Searl joined in the attack and Thame should have been awarded a penalty when a defender clearly blocked a shot with his hand. The referee however did not see the infringement and a few seconds later blew the final whistle.

    Thame United: Searl, Tripp, Watkins (Da Silva), Bell, Kitson, Cairns, Jackson (Reading), Moore, Smith, Jack, Ricketts.

  • Employers’ Help With Pandemic Flu Planning

    OXFORDSHIRE emergency planners are asking employers to help with a government survey as part of routine pandemic flu planning.
    The short survey is to assess the effect potential school closures could have on absence at work in the event of pandemic flu.

    The online survey is at or http://www.teachernet.gov.uk/ )

    John Kelly, the Emergency Planning Officer for Oxfordshire County Council said: ?The results of this survey are important to contingency planning for pandemic flu.
    ?School closures could result in absences at work as parents would have to take time off to look after their children and this could in turn impact on other services.
    ?We are asking employers to respond to the survey so that the right decisions can be made if a flu pandemic ever does come.?

  • Recycling After Christmas

    CHRISTMAS cards can be recycled for The Woodland Trust up until January 31, by taking them to any mainland WH Smith store, Tesco supermarket (including selected Express stores) and TK Maxx stores.
    Visit www.woodland-trust.org.uk/cards for more information.

    South Oxfordshire District Council is encouraging residents to recycle their Christmas trees in the New Year, in a drive to reduce the amount of waste going to landfill over the holiday period.
    The Council is encouraging its 10,000 residents to use its new garden waste scheme to take advantage of the service to dispose of their trees.
    Residents with brown bins can put their chopped up Christmas trees inside their bin for normal collection. The trees collected will be composted locally and used to improve local farmland. For those people without a brown bin, there are a number of alternatives for getting rid of used Christmas trees. The Council has arranged with a number of local garden centres for residents to return their trees for composting. Residents can also take their trees to one of the household recycling centres in the area for composting. The Council is also encouraging residents to recycle as much of their Christmas waste as possible via their kerbside collection in an effort to reduce the excess rubbish usually generated at this time of year.

    For details of locations and more information, visit www.southoxon.gov.uk.
    This service is only for Christmas trees and at the times listed, before 12 noon, on Sunday, January 14.

    Photo: TV soap star Debra Stephenson ? Corrie?s Frankie Baldwin, is helping The Woodland Trust promote its Christmas Card re-cycling scheme.

  • EVENT DATES – PLEASE NOTE

    IMPORTANT – Please note that the date shown next to the events listed below, is NOT the date of the event itself, but the date on which the event was added to the diary. Click ‘Read More’ for event details including the date.

  • Proposed New 50mph Speed Limits

    NEW speed limits in the Thame area are being proposed in an effort to reduce road casualties.
    The project, which has come from the county council’s Executive Committee, will include the A329 Milton Common to the A418 Thame, and the B4012 Thame to the A40 at Tetsworth.
    Copies of the public notices, draft Orders and location plans for these can be seen at the Thame Information Centre in Thame Town Hall. Objections to the proposal, specifying the grounds on which they are made and any other representations, should be sent in writing to James Wright, Oxfordshire County Council, Speedwell House, Speedwell Street, Oxford OX1 1NE, or e-mailed to: james.wright@oxfordshire.gov.uk by no later than January 12, 2007.

  • Haddenham Events Up-date

    HADDENHAM MUSEUM. Please note that the museum will be closed on Sunday this week (Christmas Eve) but will be open for its normal Tuesday opening on Boxing Day (10am-12noon). Don’t forget to go along to see the special exhibition on Romano British Haddenham, with coins, metal items and pottery lent by Nick Heath of Cuddington, a collection of coins lent by Emlyn Bowman and Dick Taylor and descriptions of the exhibits written by Bruce Alexander (president of the Haddenham Museum Trust and author of an article in the 2nd issue of The Haddenham Chronicles). Copies of Bruce Alexander’s recently published book ‘Before Domesday: Haddenham and Cuddington’ are now on sale at the museum (

  • Putting Down Roots For The Future – Contributed

    OXFORDSHIRE County Council workers have put down roots in the countryside to help make up for the paper they used in producing an up-to-date map of the county’s public rights of way network.

    The council’s rights of way team is legally obliged to produce a Definitive Map and Statement of footpaths, bridleways and byways every few years – the latest was earlier in 2006.

    Inevitably a lot of paper was used in creating the document – and environmentally conscious officers wanted to do something to make up for this.

    Yesterday, the officers planted 50 new ash trees at the county council’s Centenary Woodland at Charlbury. The Rights of Way staff travelled there by train to plant trees which, over the next 80 to 100 years, will produce around 12 tonnes of wood.

    Eric Dougliss, County Forester, said: “People are well aware that paper is made from wood. The 12 tonnes of wood that these trees will produce is considerably more than the amount of conifer wood used up to research, print and distribute the documents. They will also take up to four tonnes of carbon from the atmosphere, which will more than offset the amount of fossil fuel burned, in survey work and in distributing maps.

    “Using ash instead of conifers also means that there will benefits for local wildlife.”

  • Presents Taken In Thame Burglary (Ring Master Message)

    ON Wednesday, December 20, a property in Cedar Crescent, Thame, was burgled. Entry was gained via rear patio doors. Property stolen included jewellery and wrapped Christmas presents, which were left under the tree.

    If you have seen anyone suspicious in the area, or have any information relating to this message, please call the police on 08458 505 505