By Monica Chard It is great to see another new business setting up and getting ready for life after lockdown. This time it is Palmer’s Dog Grooming Salon, next to Sisu and Glow in the new parade of shops at the end of Green Lane. You can drop your dog off at Palmers and spend […]
It’s All About Dogs! Read More »
Bob Noble, Shepperton Aurora Rotary Club Dealing with bereavement has had to take a very different path during the pandemic. Loved ones have often been unable to be with the person who is dying or, possibly more importantly, be with other members of the close family who would normally provide strength and support at such
Coping with Loss During the Pandemic Read More »
Continuing our celebration of local scenes we are pleased to share this months local captures, taken by local residents. Thanks to this months contributors Lucy Hayes, Alex Hardy Photos to monica@villagematters.co.uk
A reader contacted us in great excitement last month. He was reading the piece on the disastrous fire at Kempton Park in 1932 when the grandstand was destroyed by fire. “I think I have some of the old grandstand as my porch”, he said. So, I went round to have a look. Kempton Avenue is
Kempton Fire Posts and Spandrels Reclaimed? Read More »
By Monica Chard We all know the boat ‘Jeannette’, at the end of the high street. And you will no doubt have noticed the tended beds and boxes outside our shops. What about the hanging baskets which embellish our community, bringing us cheer as we do our shopping in the high street? And the flowering
Shepperton Village Conservation Group Asks for your Help Read More »
For nearly twelve months now the pandemic that has engulfed the world has disrupted everyone’s lives. And I do mean everyone’s. From major national and international events through to special birthdays, anniversaries, weddings and wakes, all have had to pass by without the hint of a proper memorable celebration. Not being able to meet safely
Caring for the Community is proving a challenge under Covid Read More »
During lockdown, many of us came to appre-ciate the benefits that being outdoors with nature and gardening can bring, and maxim-ised our gardens to enjoy the fresh air and benefits gardening can offer to both physical and mental health well-being, despite the colder weather! Many who discovered gardening during this time decided they wanted to
Discover Your Outdoor Office Read More »
Heavenly Hellebores I fell in love with Hellebores a few years ago after an early spring visit to the Botanical Gardens in Cambridge where there are some beautiful displays. They provide a spring garden with elegant colour, and I admit to being quite excited when they appear. They are poisonous plants so are probably best
Jan Lancaster (pictured) decided she needed to find a focus during lockdown last year. She had retired from a career in office management some 4 years earlier, but lockdown gave her time to think. She decided that at the marvellous age of 67 she was going to launch her first business. What a brilliant thing
It’s Never Too Late to Start a Business Read More »
Thanks to a number of locals who contacted me to tell me about their vaccination experiences. By all accounts, it is a relatively simple procedure, painless and without side effects. The actual process of booking seems to have a few things to iron out. One reader told us that he had initially received a letter
COVID Jab. What to Expect Read More »
By Monica Chard Hardy by name and hardy by nature! Sheppertonian and former Halliford pupil, Alex Hardy set himself a challenge before Christmas of walking 1500 miles in 100 days. He is walking locally, so you may spot him (you may know him from his job in Prezzo in fact). He tells me his target
Alex’s Walkathon for MIND Read More »
By Bob Speel, Church Monument Researcher There are over 40 ancient churches in West London surviving from the lost county of Middle-sex, with St Nicholas Church in Shepperton the most southerly. Like most of them, it contains interesting wall monuments. Visiting churches to see the monuments is not a hobby to pursue now, alas, but
Exploring St Nicholas Church Read More »
By Nigel Scott I noted your comment about Sea Eagles over Shepperton in the January edition. The Sea Eagles released by the Roy Dennis Founda-tion in the Isle of Wight ranged far and wide over the UK this summer, one even flew back to Scotland where it had been born! Birdwatch magazine last year reported
Bird Watching and Sea Eagles! Read More »
By Barbara Unsworth, Big Tree Night Committee The Big Tree Night Committee would like to take this belated opportunity to extend Happy New Year wishes for 2021 to you all. To overcome the diffi-culties that Covid 19 have presented we still have challenging times ahead of us. With the vaccination being rolled out we are
Christmas Windows Bring Cheer Read More »
By Nick Pollard On the night of 28th September 1932, a mysterious fire destroyed several of the stands at Kempton Park, which dated back to the opening of the course by Samuel Hyde in 1878. Mysterious, as it was the second time in a month that a fire had broken out at the racecourse, and
Disastrous Fire at Kempton Park 1932 Read More »
By John Taylor Some readers, may recall with nostalgia the Festival of Britain, perhaps attend-ing the main events at the South Bank London, or going to the funfair at Bat-tersea. It was in 1951, just six years after the end of World War Two, that the event was held to celebrate the British contribution to
The Festival of Britain 1951 Read More »
You may have read in the press and on social media that pop musician Gerry Marsden died on 3rd January. His group ‘Gerry and the Pacemakers’ was founded in 1959 and were at one time almost as famous as their contemporaries and fellow Liverpudlians The Beatles. Their songs included ‘Ferry Cross the Mersey’ and a
Gerry Marsden & the Sunbury connection Read More »
Last August it became clear that driving through France would not be possible, so we sold the car, fin-ished packing up the house and took a plane from Heathrow to Pisa. Freight was still allowed so our belongings ar-rived three days later, just time enough for us to paint a room. Getting to Coreglia before
By Monica Chard It was 1950 when Terrick Fitzhugh started a couple of projects. His hobby was historical research and he had decided to write a history of Shepperton, at the same time as considering starting a magazine for fellow history enthusiasts. It was while he was mulling these projects over, that the idea of
Sunbury & Shepperton Local History Society Celebrates 70 Years Read More »
It’s that time of year again, when the season’s change to give nature a chance to re-cover its strength, renew re-serves, and get ready for the dawn of a new season in a couple of months. The picture shows the pond just after the rains resulting in a minor flood around the site. Part of
Winter at Laleham Pond Read More »
