Fairlight

Brookfield, Broadway

There will be… just the one service in our churches this Sunday, May 26, and that is the 10.30am service of Morning Praise at St Andrew’s.

Any questions…? Such as, what’s the weather forecast? When’s high tide? Answers: You can find out at a glance on the village website! There is diary of events, Parish Council news, plus ‘for sale’ and forum pages, and much more. Do please have a look and bookmark the page as one of your favourites. It’s at www.fairlight.org.uk Of course, you can also follow the village goings-on with a look at this, your own Village Voice, always full of useful information and opinion, and quite often a smile or two as well…

The Fairlight Residents’ Association… held its AGM on the Wednesday of last week. The club reported a most satisfactory year and, among the Officers and Committee, only Vice Chairman Alan Grant was replaced – by Trevor Lewing, already known in the FRA’s ranks as he is responsible for their email scheme. Alan Grant, who expressed a wish to stand down, was thanked for all the work he had undertaken for the Association over his years in office. The Treasurer, Peter Norris, told the meeting that the group in a strong position financially, even though grants awarded in the past year had leapt from £50 to over £2,000. Support for worthwhile village causes is, of course, one of their aims. Including the Officers and Committee, there were more than 30 people present

After the meeting there was an interesting talk by Nick Russell, who has worked for many years with the United Nations.

You’ve been told before… but a reminder won’t go amiss, that Fairfest are organizing a Car Boot Sale on the Wood Field rec. on Sunday, June 16 from 10 am to 2pm. It really is time to earmark your spot, and you can do this by calling Terry Mosley, 812144, or Jennifer Annetts, 812476, or by emailing Jennifer at j.annetts@hotmail.co.uk Cars are £10 each, and vans £15. There will be refreshments available on the day in the Activate Clubhouse.

Have you booked your place yet… for the Fairlight Gardening Club’s outing to the Ardingly Show, the South of England Agricultural Society’s three day event, which falls this year on Thursday, June 6. Tickets are just £25, a price that includes your coach fare, entrance to the show and a tip for the driver. The coach will leave at 9.30 am from the Circle – NOT outside the village hall as previously notified. You do not need to be a Gardening Club member to enjoy this outing. When you get there, there’s the promise of a great day out as there is an amazing range of attractions to see, and you can then either picnic or eat from the huge choice of foods on offer. For more details, or to book, call Paul on 814154

The First Responders Race Night… went down well last Saturday, with some 70 people out of the eighty who had bought tickets in attendance (for various reasons, 10 people failed to come under starter’s orders! A great evening’s entertainment ensued, and the Responders were able to turn in a profit of over £800. They thank all those who either went along or made donations to this much appreciated facility within the village.

Always a big hit… is the Village Hall summer fair, coming up shortly on Saturday June 1, from 12noon to 3pm. All the old favourites will be there – the scrumptious filled jacket potatoes, the tombola the Booze Box and, as befits that Summer Fair title, Pimm’s. Plants, refreshments, games of chance – all awaiting your patronage. Be there – everyone else will be!

Kerb lines… Last week we mentioned the two small but very useful white marks on the Waites Lane and Broadway kerbs, showing the bits of the roads that should remain car-free. It turns out that someone within the church community painted them. With better use recently of the cones in these areas, it really should be much safer in the future, though it has to be said that some are still parking ridiculously close to the corner. Let’s put an end to this dangerous practice now.

Don’t forget… the visit of celebrated concert pianist Valerie Tryon is now little over a month away. Have you purchased your tickets yet? They are available from the Post Office, or by post direct from G. Wyatt, of 33, Waites Lane, Fairlight, TN35 4AX. If you are paying by cheque, make it payable to Fairlight PCC These tickets are £16 each, a sum that includes a glass of wine (or a soft drink) and a programme. The venue for the recital is St Andrews Church, and proceedings commence at 7pm. The proceeds are going to the help maintain St Andrews, which needs all the help you can give it.

High fives for the High Teas… Activate’s Saturday Afternoon Tea session at the village hall saw a steady supply of scrumptious cakes, clotted cream and strawberry jam scones, and those iconic cucumber sandwiches, with Earl Grey tea or fruit teas or the always popular English tea. All were served beautifully by the Activate girls to all who came to enjoy a lovely afternoon at the village hall. All the refreshments had been made by the youngsters at the clubhouse in the morning, and the scones, in particular, were excellent. (Well done to Esme and Tom!) Then the entertainment… ‘Dorey the Wise’, the local lads who are fast becoming a top draw, played some of their music unplugged, followed by club members Ollie, Josh and Matt showed they are following in the footsteps of their elders. ‘Dorey’ accompanied the trio as they sang one of their own compositions. A wonderful afternoon, enjoyed by all who came. The event raised about £85 for club funds.

Apologies are due… to the Floral Club, who kindly sent details of their meeting which was yesterday, only for the message to disappear ‘somewhere, out there’. Let’s hope this is a mistake that won’t be repeated. And also to the Trefoil Guild, and whatever is on at the Cove. Village Voice lead time is actually only three days, from first thing Tuesday morning to Friday, but that does mean eight to ten days for mid-week events coming next week. It also pays to think ahead for advertising your Saturday events, as several people do not buy their weekly local until the weekend

‘The Seekers’… are out and about on their Farewell Tour, and Christine Jones, Fairlight Outings personified, is running a trip to see them at the Brighton Centre at 7.30pm on Tuesday, October 1.

The tickets are priced at £40, plus coach, tip and so on. Please contact Christine Jones either by email at petechrisjones@btinternet.com, or by calling 813538

A Charity Auction evening… is coming up on Saturday, June 1 at the Cove. It starts at 6 pm. Well worth a look!

Flicks in the Village… is showing Hyde Park on Hudson on Thursday, June 6 at Pett Village Hall, at 7 for 7.30 pm. A pleasant biographical comedy-drama that stars Bill Murray as Roosevelt, Laura Linney as his distant cousin Daisy, Samuel West as King George VI, Bertie, and Olivia Colman as his Queen, Elizabeth, it charts the President’s affair with his cousin.

May the bugs be with you… May bugs are conspicuous by their absence so far this year - not that I’m complaining about it. They usually start to become noticeable at the end of April and, though their numbers do tend to rise and fall in cycles from year to year, I think they’ve probably forgotten to turn over a sheet or two on their bug calendars. The beautiful overlapping design of their cream undercarriages will obviously not be about until, or unless, it gets warmer.

As I write… there’s no news yet of the outcome of the latest Christian Aid week, which closed last Saturday. As soon as it’s to hand, you will know, too.