Winchelsea

Secret Gardens: Tomorrow (Saturday) Six gardens will be open to visitors from 1 to 5.30pm for the National Gardens Scheme and combined admission is £6 and children free. The gardens are King's Leap, Rye View, The Well House, Cleveland House, Cleveland Place and Periteau House. Teas will be served in the New Hall and funds raised will go to the Conquest Hospital's scanner appeal. Also on this day the historic Methodist Chapel with its many original features and artefacts will be open to visitors from 2 till 4.30pm.

FOAM Cellars: The annual guided tours of Winchelsea’s ancient cellars for April take place on Saturday 14th and 28th and Sunday 29th. Please meet by the Town Well at 10.50 am for an 11am start and the cost is £6 per person with all proceeds in aid of the charity FOAM (Friends of the Ancient Monuments and Museum). If you would like to learn more about these cellars the number to contact for bookings is 07596 182 874 and you are advised to bring a torch and wear sensible shoes.

Literary Society: The Rye Bookshop will be open on Saturday April 14th at 6pm for crime author Graham Minett who will be giving an evening talk about his books and writing process, and signing copies of the recently released ‘Anything For Her’ - a thrilling page-turner perfect for fans of ‘The Girl Before’ and ‘Lie With Me’. He has also written ‘Lie in Wait’ and ‘The Hidden Legacy’ both of which are gripping psychological dramas.

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Action Alliance: The Rye & District Dementia Action Alliance is holding its Annual General Meeting on Wednesday April 18th at 6 to 8pm. This meeting will take place at Tilling Green Community Centre, Rye (TN31 7BE) and there will be Information stands, Speakers and Refreshments. If you would like to come along please ring 07737350896 or email: [email protected] to register your attendance.

Last Post: On Thursday April 19th a wreath will be laid and the Last Post will sound at 8.05pm by the War Memorial. This is to mark the centenary of the death of Archibald Balding who was a Private in The Kings Own (Royal Lancaster) Regiment. Archibald died from wounds at St Omer on April 19th 1918 aged 20. He was born in Belvedere, Kent, buried in St Omer and is remembered on Winchelsea’s War Memorial. All are welcome to attend this event which is organised as part of the town’s 1914-1918 Great War commemoration.

Spring Fashion: The popular annual Spring Fashion Show combined with Niche fashion boutique will be held at Rye Town Hall on Thursday April 19th and is in aid of the Rye & Winchelsea District Memorial Hospital. Doors are open at 6.30pm for a 7pm start and tickets cost £10 each which includes a glass of bubbly on arrival. To buy your tickets please phone 01797 223810 or visit Niche at 54 Cinque Ports Street Rye.

Romantic Literature: Next Friday the Literary Society has its monthly meeting on Friday April 20th at 7 for 7.30pm in the Court Hall. ‘The Romantic Seaside’ is the title of the talk which will be given by Jane Darcy. Dr Jane Darcy is Honorary Lecturer at UCL. Her interests are concerned with the literature and culture of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, especially the Romantic period. At present her projects include a study of Jane Austin, also the theme of melancholy as a way of exploring inner lives and in contrast, a book on Victorian comedy. Drinks will be served on arrival and non-members are welcome to come and listen.

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WAS talk: Dr Thomas Dhoop, Visiting Fellow in Archaeology, University of Southampton will be giving a talk on Saturday April 21st at 2.30pm in the New Hall. The talk is called ‘Shaped by Ships and Storms: A Maritime Archaeology of Medieval Winchelsea’. Dr Dhoop is a coastal scientist with an interest in interactions between humans and the sea. In the talk he will assess New Winchelsea from the perspective of the sea and show that the aspects of seafaring and storminess are vital for understanding how the town was structured and how life was lived in its medieval prime.

Garden Visits: The Garden Society has arranged visits to two magnificent gardens on Tuesday April 24th. These are Borde Hill with its rare plants and lakeside walks and High Beeches’ with its exotic flowers and water gardens. Both are located in central Sussex. They have very good tea rooms and there would be an opportunity to visit the house at Borde Hill (entrance is extra) Travelling time will be just over an hour and the combined cost for travel and entry to both gardens is £23. The tickets are currently on sale at the Farm Kitchen and please note that signing up should be done as soon as possible as the coach has to be paid for ten days in advance.

Walking Tour: Winchelsea Conservation Society is holding a Walking Tour of Burtons’ St Leonards on Friday May 4th at 11am. This event follows the interesting and informative talk on the work of Decimus Burton by Elizabeth Nathaniels that took place on February 17th. The number to phone is 01797 222162 for tickets which cost £5 each and includes tea or coffee. St Leonards was created by the London builder James Burton between 1827 and 1837. Later in the 1850s his son Decimus who was an architect built additional buildings. The original St Leonards is the attractive park area behind the Royal Victoria Hotel known as St Leonards Gardens.

Ceilidh Dance: Next month on Saturday May 12th a Fundraising Ceilidh Dance will be held in the New Hall at 7pm. The Dance is in aid of Cancer Research UK & Parkinson’s UK and tickets are £12 and children £5 and must be bought in advance from the Farm Kitchen or by email at [email protected]. You will be dancing to the exciting Muscadin and Friends live band with dance caller; plus, there will be a bar, canapes, songs and pipes.

Winchelsea Beach

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IPC News: At the recent Annual Parish Meeting Inspector Dan Russell the head of community policing in the Rother Area gave a presentation. In this he focused upon raising interest in Neighbourhood Watch in the area and also promoting Speedwatch more widely. At the moment there is only a small group in Winchelsea undertaking speed checks. He would like to see a Speedwatch group which involves all of Icklesham Parish and would support Winchelsea’s involvement and benefit the rest of the community. If you are interested in participating in Neighbourhood Watch or Speedwatch please contact the Clerk to Icklesham Parish Council. Already there is a somewhat impromptu slowing down of traffic due to the appalling state of local roads. Perhaps alongside Speedwatch a system of ‘Pot Hole Watch’ would be useful in warning traffic of the dangers ahead!