Titchfield Open Gardens and the St Peter’s Church Flower Festival 2022

Adrian Whyntie reports on the Open Gardens day and also the St Peter’s Church Flower Festival

“As part of the Platinum Jubilee celebrations in Titchfield, two events took place exploiting the wonderful talents of gardeners and flower arrangers in equal measure.

One of the many gardens that were open in Titchfield

“I was asked by the Friends of St Peter’s Church to photograph all the open gardens. This I did and you can see the results of the all the hard work each owner put in. It was a real privilege to be allowed to take these photographs. It was also nice to meet people who were visiting each garden.

“Secondly, I took photographs of all the wonderful flower arrangements displayed in the church. Examining each arrangement in detail, made me marvel at the exquisite work that went into each piece. So much thought and preparation by the arrangers created wonderful art in my humble opinion.

St Peter’s Church Flower Festival

“My late father was a clergyman and organised many flower festivals over the years. I know, from being involved just how much work is needed and how long it takes. I am reminded of a sermon he gave after a particular festival when all the arrangements had gone. He started the sermon with a recording of the song ‘Where have all the flowers gone?’ So, I hope these few photograph will be a fitting memory of a wonderful 3 days in the life of the church here in Titchfield.”

Platinum Jubilee celebrations showed the spirit of Titchfield

The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee group was formally disbanded on 15th June 2022. This group organised and ran the Seniors’ Tea Party and, with the Bonfire Boys, the Lighting of the Beacon.

Thanks to the generous donations of raffle prizes by local businesses and individuals and by the generosity of the public who bought tickets for the tombola, tuck shop and particularly the raffle at the Beacon Lighting, a small profit was unexpectedly made after expenses had been paid. This has been donated as follows:

Hounds for Heroes     £70 (They provided the tuck for us to sell)

The Bonfire Boys        £100 towards the Christmas party for the children in the village  

Friends of St Peter’s   £100 towards the fabric of the church

Suzy’s stitchers           £103 hopefully the crochet group will continue. They are already planning to make poppies for Remembrance Sunday 

Thanks to the generous donation from the Earl of Southampton Trust and from the ladies who made cakes including Titchfield WI members we were able to cover our costs. Again, raffle prizes were kindly donated by businesses and individuals to aid the fun of the afternoon. The Co-op also gave us supplies of tea, coffee etc. Our volunteer helpers at the tea party were magnificent. We couldn’t have done it without them.

 We hope that the historic video of Titchfield that was shown throughout the tea party will go on the History Society Web site for all to see. At the end of July we also hope to show this video/slide show in the Parish Rooms on a Friday morning during the Country Market.

WATCH THIS SPACE FOR NEWS OF BOTH.

Titchfield Open Gardens

A date for your diary, the Friends of St Peter’s Sunday 19 June 2022 1pm to 5pm.

Look behind closed gates and enjoy some of the lovely gardens of Titchfield, talk to the garden owners and enjoy afternoon tea in beautiful surroundings.

Book Your tickets at Ticket Source.co.uk Hearts & Hugs or Daisy B’s

Adults £7.50. Accompanied children under 12 years are free.

You must collect wristbands and map from St Peters Church after 12:45pm on the day.

All gardens are within walking distance of St Peters Church.

Be part of something special. Friends of St Peter’s, helping to maintain the fabric of our beautiful Church. www.friends-of-st-peters.org

Titchfield Platinum Jubilee celebrations get under way

Today marks the start of The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee events in the village.

Over 20 scarecrows have been created by residents for the St Peter’s Scarecrow Trail and village ‘Yarn Bombers’ have been busy crocheting red, white and blue bunting and flowers.

To view all the scarecrows a map and voting form for the best entry can be obtained from St Peter’s for just £5.

The trail takes place from the 28th of May through to the 5th of June, 10am till 4pm daily.

And those crafty ‘Yarn Bombers’ have also been decorating lamp posts and village signs with their handiwork.

The Parish magazine - Titchfield News out now

The Parish magazine, Titchfield News, contains information about church and village news and events and articles about village life. It is published bi-monthly and copies of previous issues are available at: http://www.stpetertitchfield.org.uk/titchfield-news .

There is a facility for online copies to be read aloud. Please see:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ETOohmYui3Q

The June issue of Titchfield News is a bumper edition, giving details of events for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. It’ll be delivered before the end of May, in plenty of time for you to read all about the forthcoming events. Individual copies, price £1.00, are available to buy in the church.

If you don’t have a subscription and would like one, please contact Gerry Pontefract by text message on: 07818 568034 and she will see if there is a distributor for your area.

We do hope you enjoy reading Titchfield News.

TACT (Titchfield Arts Community Theatre) announcement

It’s with mixed emotions that we announce that it’s a wrap for TACT.

It has been an amazing and fun journey, some of us from the start with the Passion Play which was performed in The Square in 2002.

The then vicar of Titchfield, Bill Day, asked Heather Carling to direct a Passion Play to celebrate the Millennium. Heather is RADA trained and taught Drama at Southdowns College. The cast was widely drawn from members of the Church and Village. It was performed in the Square at Easter 2002 and drew a large crowd.

Building on that success Heather got together a cast from members of the Church and Village to celebrate the 200 th anniversary of the Battle of Trafalgar by performing a series of plays based on ‘Heroes’.

The success of this stimulated a desire for the company to put on further productions. These included an evening of plays by Noel Coward, a Nativity Play and more recently Cabarets of short skits and songs.

These were initially held in the Parish Room, more latterly moving to the Community Centre. The winning formula has always been for the audience to bring their supper and sit together at tables.

This decision to end has not been taken lightly but CoVID has understandably given people a chance to re-evaluate their time and commitments and we have decided to go out on a high!

Over the years we have supported many local charities by donating our proceeds. Our final monies will be split 50/50 between The Parish Rooms and The Community Centre, both of which have been good homes for TACT.

All props and costumes will be donated to Titchfield Festival Theatre.

Our company has changed over the years and we thank each and every performer and behind the scenes supporter for their time and contribution in making each year a success.

We could not have done any of this without the fantastic support from our audiences and we thank you so much for your enthusiasm and participation – we’ve loved entertaining you.

Pat Shirley

Director TACT

The Earl of Southampton invites you to a Fayre at Place House

Take yourself back to Tudor times and enjoy a day out in the beautiful setting of Place House (Titchfield Abbey), the Country home of the Earls of Southampton.

Here you will find Courtiers, Musicians or even royalty wandering around the Fayre.  

Performances will be on stage throughout the day.

Lots of fun activities for children, they can become part of a Midsummer Night’s Dream, or, if you misbehave, there is always the stocks!  

Have a caricature drawn in Tudor style, or have a go at spinning wool or just wander through the market and reflect on bygone times.  

Food and drink, will be available on site.

The Earl of Southampton’s Fayre, Sunday 28th August, 10am till 4pm

Tickets (Available soon)

£5 Adult - Concessions £3 - Free for under 5’s

Titchfield Art and Craft Show

Opens -Saturday 23rd April 2022 from 10am to 5pm and Sunday 24th April 2022 from 10am to 4pm

After an extended break the Titchfield Art & Craft Show was very pleased to be able to set-up and run the show again this year.  We had to move to a different time of the year, causing some confusion for regular visitors; but without the November ‘21 show it would have been a 2 year loss in our fund-raising contribution to the Titchfield Community Association, the charity that runs Titchfield Community Centre.

The Show had a great turn out of Artists, Photographers and Crafters this year with 130 artists exhibiting 377 pieces of art in the main hall.  There were also 18 Crafters in the Malt & Barleycorn rooms selling craft ranging from woodwork, glassware, jewellery, textiles, ceramics, ironwork and even a local micro-brewery.

Over the course of the Show weekend, including the preview evening, we had approximately 800 visitors.

Funds raised
With the funds raised from the sale of Preview Evening Tickets, Entrance fees and artwork sales we have raised a total of £6,000 to be donated.  This will help with the ongoing improvement projects currently running at the Titchfield Community Centre.

Some images form this years show.

Click HERE for larger images

Titchfield Village Jubilee I Spy

How well do you know Titchfield?

Come along and take part in a ‘Jubilee I Spy’ event on Saturday June 4th, part of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations..

To take part, collect your I Spy questions from the green at the bottom of West Street from 2pm, making sure that you have logged in with a start time on your answer sheet.

You need to return your answer sheets to the green by 5pm.

Prizes, that have been kindly donated by The Bugle Hotel and Hearts and Hugs, will be awarded for the most correct answers.

Click HERE for more Jubilee articles and a list of events

Jubilee knitters wanted

Those crafty yarn bombers are looking for crocheters and knitters to help make decorations for Titchfield Jubilee Celebrations.

Come along to DaisyBs at 2pm on Wednesday 6th April and Suzy and Sara will show you their ideas - and even teach you how to crochet.

Donations of red, white, blue, purple, gold and silver yarn gratefully received. Collection box at DaisyB’s or please message them and they will collect. Message Suzy from her FaceBook page.

Unwanted crochet hooks would also be appreciated.

Jubilee Scarecrow Trail

As part of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations St Peter’s Church are organising a ‘Scarecrow Trail’ around the village.

Residents are being invited to build and display a scarecrow on the theme of ‘Great British Traditions’ which is open to anyone living in the parish of Titchfield.

The scarecrows will be on display in the Church grounds and all around the village from the 28th May to the 5th June from 10am to 4pm daily.

Visitors will be invited to follow the trail and take part in a competition to ‘Guess the title of the scarecrows’ they find.

To enter the competition please read the competition rules by visiting St Peter’s web and then completing the entry form.

You will also find some guidance on how to build a scarecrow and where you can obtain straw.

The fee for a household/business/organisation to enter a single scarecrow into the competition is £5.

The fee for visitors to enter the ‘Guess the title of the scarecrows’ competition is £5 per family/entry.

Click HERE for a list of current Platinum Jubilee events being organised in the village over the holidays.

Appeal for lost keys

Has anyone picked up a bunch of keys on Sunday morning (13 Feb) near to Hadlows or along the pavement from there to St Peter's.

I dropped them at some point on that route without realising. There are 3 keys, (car key plus 2 Yale door keys) and 2 key fobs - one with an image of Winnie the Pooh and my name - Helen. Easily identifiable therefore.

I am hoping some kind soul has picked them up and is hoping the owner will materialise somehow.

If you were able to put a notice online, anyone in possession of the keys could just post them through the church letter box which is on the external Chapter Room door and I would be very grateful.

Latest news from The Village Trust

Chair of the Titchfield Village Trust, Nick Girdler, reports on important developments concerning The Parish Rooms, the planting of a copse in Barry’s Meadow and the Posbrook Lane development

After almost 2 years we have now raised all the funds to commence work on replacing all the 125 year old tiles on the Village Hall and replacing the paths on the outside giving easier access for wheel chairs.

We originally set ourselves the target of £100,000. In the end rising costs meant we had to raise a further £33,000.

We managed to do this with grants from FBC and Hampshire County Council topping up the original £100,000 and expect work to commence sometime this spring.

The Village Trust and the Earl of Southampton Trust have joined forces to plant a copse at the top of Barry’s Meadow.

2022 seemed the ideal time to do this as part of a greening of Titchfield initiative undertaken by Fareham Borough Council, and the plant a tree for the Queens Jubilee scheme.

Our plan is to remove the brambles at the top of the meadow on the south west side of the meadows, while the brambles on the north east will remain.

We had a meeting in February with officers from FBC to discuss options and they suggested a way forward; removing the brambles in October to mitigate disturbing wildlife; and planting native species in drifts to create the copse.

During the project we will always be aware of our responsibility to the wildlife in the area. This will also mean we aim to do our planting in early November.

The area we want to plant means finding about 100 trees; depending on size they will be planted some 3 to 5 metres apart.

We are currently researching types, prices, planting costs, and overall scheme plan.

We are hoping to involve the whole village in different ways: Individuals could donate a tree, streets could get together and plant a tree, organisations within the village could contribute one, businesses might like to buy one. Different varieties and various sizes.

Among all the good news some bad as well. Foreman Homes have won their appeal to build 57 houses off land adjoining Posbrook Lane and adjacent to the Bellfield Estate.

We will be closely monitoring the development to ensure the safeguards on the remaining area of land, the 40% allocation to affordable homes, and other assurances mentioned in the inspectors report are adhered to by the developer.

Titchfield flags for the Jubilee

A new batch of Titchfield flags and bunting are now available from Hearts & Hugs. 

The new design features the emblem set within the union jack with the Jubilee emblem in the corner.  priced at £30

The bunting likewise is £15.

Hurry if you want to fly one during the Platinum Jubilee celebrations as there are only 10 available.

Click HERE for More Platinum Jubilee news

New books on Titchfield

Discover more about our historic village with three new books published by the Titchfield History Society.

The latest three publications are part of the 'Titchfield Papers’ series that were produced last year.

The latest books are:-

The Making of Place House' - How a medieval Abbey becomes a Tudor mansion.

Doctors and Surgeons in Titchfield - A history of medical practice in the village from the early days to present times.

The Titchfield Tragedy - The tale from 1891 of the murders of the three Hinton family children in Titchfield.

Already published are:-

Titchfield Abbey - The history of the Abbey from its founding in 1232 to the year it was obtained by Thomas Wriothesley in 1537.

The New River - The Mystery of the Titchfield Canal.

The Adventurer - The story of William Beeston who became the Governor of Jamaica.

How to get away with Murder - A tale of revenge and murder from 1594.

All books only £3 a each.

They can be purchased on the website titchfieldhistory.co.uk or from Hearts and Hugs in the village

The Fareham Lottery and the History Society

Titchfield residents ared being urged to sign up for the Fareham Community Lottery for a chance to win a weekly prize while at the same time helping local organisations.

Tickets are only £1 per week, with at least 40% going to local good causes and prizes up to £25,000!

Tickets for the lottery cost just £1 per week. Each ticket has a 1 in 50 chance to win a prize each week, with a top prize of £25,000!

The draw takes place every Saturday and a 6 digit winning combination will be picked. FBC will notify the winner via email. Match all 6 and you win the JACKPOT!

From every £1 ticket you buy, 40p will go to local good causes in the Fareham area and improving our community. This is nearly double The National Lottery contribution rates and that's the way we like it.

Go to https://www.farehamlottery.org.uk/ Click the 'Play today' button in the first section to head to the find a cause page. Once there, you can search for a good cause to support and go to their own fundraising page. From here, click 'Buy tickets' and follow the checkout process.

You can support every month via Direct Debit or debit card. There is also one-off payment options of either 1, 3, 6 or 12 months.

Bowl along to Bridge Street

The members of Titchfield Old English Bowling Club would like to invite you to their Open Day on Saturday April 9th, 10am - 12.30pm.

The club was established in 1923 and is one of only six clubs that follow Old English style of play.

The club has a mixed membership who enjoy a full programme of social events and competitions.

They play out-doors between April and September on the Bowling Green in Bridge Street.

It’s gentle exercise in pleasant surroundings.

If you are interested in taking part or just like to learn a little bit about the sport you can pre-register your interest by emailing the Club Secretary at titchfieldbowling@gmail.com

Or just turn up on the day wearing flat soled shoes. If you can’s make the Open Day drop in whenever you see people playing.

Posbrook Lane development allowed

The appeal by Foreman Homes has been allowed by the Planning Inspectorate.

The appeal is allowed and outline planning permission is granted for the erection of up to 57 dwellings, together with associated parking, landscaping and access from Posbrook Lane, at Land east of Posbrook Lane, Titchfield, in accordance with the terms of the application Ref: P/19/1193/OA, dated
29 October 2019

Platinum Jubilee latest

You may remember the Titchfield Village Diamond Jubilee celebrations in June 2012.

Ann Whyntie was Chairman of the BonfireBoys and helped organise 4 days packed with events for all ages.

How 10 years have flown! We are now approaching the Queen's Platinum Jubilee!

The Bonfire Boys have already made inroads into organising the beacon lighting at West Hill (in line with the National Beacon lighting) on Thursday 2nd June, plus a children's party over the weekend, and are looking for more village groups to organise and participate in four days of festive fun.

Community-led events are being offered funding by the National Lottery Community Fund, National Lottery Heritage Fund, Arts Council England,

Sport England and the BFI to develop activities that bring people together to celebrate this Jubilee.

More details here: https://www.tnlcommunityfund.org.uk/news/press- releases/2021-11-17/over-22million-the-queens-platinum-jubilee

It is all about bringing communities together, whether it be a specific community project, a Jubilee-focused version of the Big Lunch, a creative project in partnership with established artists, or supporting communities to re-connect with the nature on their doorsteps.

So, if your organisation/group has an idea, the Community Centre and Parish Rooms are available for bookings; you can advertise here on the Titchfield News website and also on social medias such as Voice for Titchfield on Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/488811834587989/

Wandering Lonely?

Come along to the Arts society Lecture - with Annalie Talent.

Wordsworth’s Daffodils is one of the most famous poems in the English language. 

It is instantly recognisable, even by people who don’t like poetry.

Telling the true – and often surprising - story of Wordsworth’s best-known poem. And considering the poem’s relevance to our lives today.

Titchfield Community Centre, 15th Feb 2022, 10.30 am to 12 Noon.