DATES FOR YOUR DIARIES!

 

 

Thursday May 10^th at 2.00pm

Darjeeling Himalayan Railway

Talk by  David Mead

 

 

Thursday 21^st June at 2.00pm

Summer Outing

Behind the Scenes at the Everyman

Followed by Cream Tea

Details can be found on page 4

 

 

Thursday September 13^th

Diary of Anthony Heap

Talk by Robin Woolven

 

Thursday October 11^th at 2.00pm

AGM

Confessions of a Pantomime Dame

A talk given by Richard Westcott who, after arriving in a suit, transforms himself into a Pantomime Dame.

 

Thursday November 8^th at 2.00pm

A Tudor Christmas

A talk given by Martin Sirot-Smith

 

Thursday December 13^th

‘Ding Dong! Merrily on High’

A presentation by John Thompstone

and the U3A Singers with full audience participation.

 

 

 

Admission is open to Members and Non-Members at a cost of £2.00

Payable on the door.

 

 

Chairman’s Report

 

 

 

It is time to celebrate - the Diamond Jubilee of Her Majesty the Queen. Throughout the land - in towns and villages - people will gather to celebrate the event, and many of us will be involved in one way or another.

 

The older ones amongst us may look back and recall what we were doing on Coronation Day, the 2^nd June 1953 and 16 months into the Queen’s reign: we may remember gathering as families in the crowded room of the one family member who had a TV set: or reflect on the Queen’s arrival at Westminster Abbey, her entrance to Parry’s setting of Psalm 122  ‘I was glad when they said unto me: we will go into the house of the Lord’ and the greeting by the Scholars of Westminster School ‘Vivat Regina Elizabetha’. Probably, too, from that day we can date the enduring popularity of Handel’s anthem ‘Zadok the Priest’ sung as the Archbishop anointed the Queen with holy Oil ‘as kings, priests, and prophets were anointed, and as Solomon was anointed king…’  I think that however we may view the concept of Monarchy, no-one would deny the dedication that Elizabeth II has demonstrated.

 

Then there was the damp and dismal weather, and the stars of the procession through the streets of London on that damp, summer day: Queen Salote of Tonga, braving the rain in an open carriage; Sir Winston Churchill, Prime Minister at the time, waving his plumed hat through the window of his carriage: and gun salutes, and fireworks in many towns and villages. We were still recovering from War and this was the first bright event to light up towns and villages post 1945.

 

Her reign has not been without its controversies and personal troubles for, as with all of us, she is human and her family has many similarities to our own. There have been times of harsh criticism and a belittling of her rôle in the Nation’s life. But quite apart from supporting and being guided by twelve Prime Ministers, she has presided - successfully - over the Transformation of Empire to Commonwealth. Amidst all this she has been supported by the peoples’ loyalty, affection, and respect - not just here, but throughout that rather remarkable creation of 54 independent nations that look to her as Head.

 

So, let us hope for a sunny weekend of celebration in all our communities as we gather to celebrate something rather special in our history. Vivat Regina Elizabetha.

 

 

John Thompstone.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Geoffrey Rowe, the Chief Executive of the Everyman Theatre in Cheltenham, was due to give the talk on March 8^th but unfortunately Geoffrey was ill and John Whitehead very kindly came in his place.  The talk was on the history of the Everyman up to the present and there were many slides showing the recent refurbishment.  The interior looks wonderful and some of our members had either been to the theatre since it has reopened or had had a tour behind the scenes. 

 

It was agreed that an exclusive tour for our U3A members would be very interesting.  This has been arranged for 2.00pm on Thursday June 21^st.  If you would like to be part of this tour, which takes a little more than an hour, please phone Sonia Woolven on 01386 852211 or e-mail swoolven@btinternet.com .  After the tour a cream tea will be served in the theatre restaurant.  The cost for the tour and the tea will be £8.50.  Booking in advance is essential and cheques should be made out to the North Cotswold U3A and sent to: 

Sonia Woolven, Top House, Willersey WR12 7PG.   If you want to go to the Everyman for this tour but transport is a problem please let me know and I will do my best to organise rides.

 

April 12^th Muriel Pilkington gave her new talk on the Suffragette Movement.  This is a talk that Muriel is still developing and recently she had completed more research on the Movement in Gloucestershire.  Her talks are always interesting and historically accurate.  As usual the Open Meeting was very well attended.

 

The Programme on May 10^th will be a talk by David Mead on the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway.  David supports the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway Society, which is a registered charity.  He is involved with helping to improve the life and prospects of people living in the Darjeeling District of North East India.

 

Sonia Woolven

Programme Secretary

 

	CHANGE OF ADDRESS   We know that there are so many people to tell when you move house, but please put our Membership Secretary, John Bissett on your list. We would hate to lose you!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SUMMER OUTING

Behind the Scenes at the Everyman

Followed by Cream Tea.

Thursday 21^st June at 2.00pm

 

It was agreed that an exclusive tour for our U3A members would be very interesting.  This has been arranged for 2.00pm on Thursday June 21^st.  If you would like to be part of this tour, which takes a little more than an hour, please phone Sonia Woolven on 01386 852211 or e-mail swoolven@btinternet.com .  After the tour a cream tea will be served in the theatre restaurant.  The cost for the tour and the tea will be £8.50  Booking in advance is essential and cheques should be made out to the North Cotswold U3A and sent to: 

Sonia Woolven, Top House, Willersey WR12 7PG.   If you want to go to the Everyman for this tour but transport is a problem please let me know and I will do my best to organise rides.

 

 

Open Meetings Transport

 

The committee would like to facilitate lifts for those U3A members who would like to attend the Monthly Open Meetings but do not have transport.

If you are a member who would like a lift or a member prepared to offer a lift, please contact the Chairman, John Thompstone

 

 

U3A AGM

 

This Year’s AGM will be held at the Royal Agricultural College in Cirencester on Wednesday 12^th September 2012, commencing at 11.00am. More information can be obtained on the U3A website www.u3a.org.uk or by telephone on 020 8466 6139.

 

U3A Online Courses

 

An appeal has been sent out, by our National Office, for anyone who would like to learn how to write a course, how to tutor their own course, or tutor a course somebody else has written, or how to organise somebody else’s material into a course, to get in touch with them.

www.u3a.org or tel: 020 8466 6139

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

WOMEN WELCOME WOMEN WORLD WIDE

 

Faced with the prospect of holidaying alone after more than a decade of companionable meandering around France and Spain, the alternatives were all equally unappealing; meandering alone, a ‘Singles’ holiday or a standard holiday amongst couples where I would have my own solitary table and face possessive wives giving me hard looks if a husband spoke more than once!

 

So being told about 5W resulted in a nanosecond of thought before I joined and, in 10 years, I have never once regretted doing so. The 5 Ws are Women Welcome Women World Wide, started by a mother some 27 years ago when her daughter was doing gap year travel, which had not been part of growing up for our generation. The idea was to invite women round the world to come together in an ‘International Friendship Group’ so they could learn about other cultures and travel the world themselves with a safety net of friends willing to help and, in most cases, offer 2/3 nights’ accommodation.

 

At the present time, there are nearly 3,000 members in about 78 countries, both married and single women of all ages, though inevitably it is the older ones with more disposable income who are often the most active, though by no means exclusively so.  Members are listed in a directory giving details of their approx age, address/email etc and interests. Of course, there is a lot of contact between members purely on a friendship basis, like pen friendships on line, and they are invaluable when planning holidays, full of ideas and advice.

 

Members often come together in Gatherings at various places around the world, organised by the local members with all their local knowledge. These vary from a small group of a dozen or so to much larger events of up to thirty, often including husbands.

 

The joy, though, is in visiting members in their homes, getting to understand the way of life, the culture of that particular place. My own visits have been relatively modest, though I did have the whole of our 2006/7 Winter in New Zealand and Australia, 14 weeks in various members’ homes with all the minutiae of everyday life, as well as fantastic sightseeing. That is something a 3 week holiday with Titan Travel could never offer!

 

There is a website and I would be very happy to talk to anyone interested.

 

Carol Larkin

 Tel: 01386 438131

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

	A Celebration Choral Lunch In aid of St Richard’s Hospice   Wednesday 10th October 2012 At Dormy House Willersey Hill, Broadway, WR12 7LF   £29 per person for a 2 course lunch and coffee.   Post Lunch Performance from U3A Choir   Please contact Sonia Woolven on 01386 852211

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cookery Groups 1 and 2.  (1^st Thursday am and 2^nd Tuesday pm)

 

To Ford they come one day a month

I cook, they watch, they query why?

They scribble notes on recipes

While, I, within an hour or so

Make food for both the eye and tongue.

They sample all the dishes

While looking at the view then

Enjoy each others company

Until it's time to part.

In case you're wondering what is made

Two menus below will give you a taste.

 

Warm Spiced Kippers

Medieval Spiced Pork

Coffee Meringue Roll with

Rich Chocolate Sauce

Blackberry, Apple and Almond Sponge

 

Smoked Haddock and White Bean Soup

Chicken Saltimbocca

Chocolate, Amaretti and Ginger Tart

 

Phyllis Andrews

 

 

 

 

 

Digital Photography Group

 

The Digital Photography Group is a lively, interactive group of camera enthusiasts, meeting on the morning of the second Thursday in each month at Toddington Village Hall.

Our meetings and workshops provide instruction in all aspects of capturing, editing, and filing images. We have visiting speakers to share their know-how and pictures, and members of the group with particular expertise give instructive presentations and lead hands-on sessions when members bring their cameras for practical work, including studio portraiture.

Over the coming Spring, Summer and Autumn we have a full programme of monthly meetings and visits to Laycock, Bristol, Ironbridge and other places.

We could take just a few more members, so if you are a digital camera owner who would like to improve your photography and have fun with an informal and friendly group contact the group leader –

 

Alan Andrews,

Tel: 01386 584100 or email: alan.andrews401@btinternet.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

A CROQUET DITTY

 

Our U3A, inspired as ever,

Arranged a croquet lesson,

With an excellent tutor explaining the rules,

And to give us a lively session.

 

We opened the door on this cold afternoon,

And there was a sight to see –

The Methodist Room laid out for us –

Six pretty hoops and a winning stick

Intriguing, you must agree?

 

The carpet now was a perfect court

For the croquet to be laid.

But now we must learn the rules of the game,

And how it has to be played.

 

Our Penny Ingles is the leader,

And when soon she arranges a group,

We must answer her call with our mallets held high,

To hit our balls through each hoop.

 

Denise King

 

 

 

 

Group

 

 

 

 

 

               

 

Poetry and Prose

 

Labels

 

I need no hallmark, sign or label - a chair is a chair, a table a table.   I'm not analytical, cold and political, 'being' is different, appearance is fable.   Don't label me Christian, Heathen or Red;  don't label me single, married or dead.   I shall not be labelled old or disabled;  bigoted minds on labels are fed.   Don't label me black or white - what a sham - the world of to-day is in a big enough jam;  I don't need a plaque, a tag or a shield to win me fine graces when all is revealed - I really sincerely don't give a damn.   Do I need a label to say what I am?

 

From Age UK Life magazine

 

 

MORE CARGOES!

 

With Apologies To John Masefield!

 

Mrs Moss of ‘Mon Repos’ from distant Moreton,

Plodding to the check-out where she waits in line,

With a trolley of cornflakes,

Toothpaste and Brussels sprouts,

Mild Cheddar, sliced ham and cheap white wine.

 

Stately Mrs Crighton-Brown coming from the Manor,

Stalking past the ditherers as a lady should,

With a trolley of gravlax,

Stilton and mangoes,

Organic French bread and vintage port.

 

Scruffy Mr Piggins from the building work site,

Dripping lumps of plaster from his dust-caked jeans,

With a trolley of meat pies,

Cigarettes and tea bags,

Sandwiches, bottled beer and Heinz baked beans.

 

Margaret Jones

 

 

COOKERY CORNER

 

Spanish Chicken with Chick Peas

 

Serves 4

 

 

800g chicken thighs

2 red onions, cut into wedges

6 garlic cloves, skins on

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

1 tablespoon olive oil

400g can chopped tomatoes

400g can chick peas

2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley

 

Preheat the oven to 200C

 

Put the chicken in a large, non-stick roasting tin with the onion and garlic.  Sprinkle with the paprika, season, then drizzle with the oil and rub everything together.  Make sure the chicken pieces are all skin side up.

 

Roast for 30 minutes, then stir the tomatoes and chick peas around the meat and season.

 

Return to the oven for 15 minutes, after which time the chicken should be crisp on the top and cooked through.  Scatter over the parsley.

 

 

 

Fiona Tierney