Saturday December 8th
Christmas Coffee Morning
Despite the atrocious weather, this annual event was well attended.
Thanks to all who helped - donating, baking, serving, organising, selling and, above all, spending!
Have a wonderful Christmas - you deserve it!
Monday October 1st
Shearsby Harvest Supper and Auction
Margaret Godsmark writes:-
This event was a great success; I'm sure that everyone enjoyed the meal - once the baked potatoes were cooked.
A donation from the Harvest Service and the Auction will be sent to Christian Aid.
Friday September 28th
This event was held at the village hall to select the thirteen best entries that will be used to produce the Shearsby 2008 Calendar.
40 villagers entered 111 excellent photographs in the five categories Winter, Spring, Summer and Autumn and a separate section for children.
On the evening, 45 villagers attended and, whilst enjoying wine and cheese refreshment, chose the thirteen photographs from the wonderful entries.
The winning photographs in each section were submitted by:-
Winter: Bob Spree, Phil Poncelet and Martin Littlejones
Spring: Sally Timms, Bob Spree and David Austin
Summer: sally Timms, Bob Spree and Mick Page
Autumn: Mavis Jeffery, Nigel Walker and Bob Spree
Children: Beth Poncelet
The evening raised £92 for church funds - a big thank you to all who helped on the night.
All of the winning photographs will be featured in the Shearsby 2008 Calendar which should be available within a couple of weeks.
It will cost £5; copies can be obtained from Bill Mackie and also from The Chandlers Arms.
Saturday 1st September - Open Produce Show
Saturday 4th August - Live on the Green
'When shall we three meet again In thunder, lightning or in rain?'
Yes, you do recognise a quote from our last committee meeting minutes, one of the doom mongers (I recall it was young Bill Sheik-Spiro, the Bard of Avon Ladies everywhere) predicting a continuation of the deluge that had lasted from early May until the end of July.
'Not so' quoth I, 'for the Community Association hath made a pact with those who hath Dark Powers, namely the Met Office.'
And so it was that on the appointed First Saturday in August there gathered upon The Green in Shearsby a happy throng of 450 or thereabouts to make merry and enjoy the balmy evening airs, whilst having their lugholes assaulted with music from The Platforms, ably supported by Ian Derbyshire and The Silhouettes.
Great sounds from all three, but I have to say The Platforms were on top form.
Special mentions...
1.The bottle of champagne for the best table - The Glamrock Cafe, and there are pictures attached to show how much that result meant to them.
2.The late arrivals who had been 'Spree'd' ...more pics from Bob to show this herewith.
3.The cheapskates who went into the pub garden and took their own food...the nerve!
We hope everyone had a good time - they certainly seemed to.
I want to thank all who helped make the event happen - great effort and teamwork. We made over £3000 as well.
Richard Kew
Tuesday 31st July - Promises Auction Cream Tea
Some of the Shearsby ladies got together on a gorgeous Tuesday afternoon to enjoy the cream tea donated at the recent Promises auction by Lisa Stacey.
Sue Timms hosted the event, ably assisted by Gaynor Barnacle
Thanks to Sue for making us all so welcome, and to Lisa for the magnificent food.
Saturday 28th July 07 - Safari Supper
The Summer Safari Evening held on the 28th July was a great success, raising £500 for St Mary Magdalene Church Shearsby.
The evening started as you can see with all the guests having drinks and canapes then the safari commenced as 48 people split into groups and went to various houses for starters main course and sweet, ending up all back together at the Chandlers Arms Shearsby for the cheese course.
A big thank you to all the hosts, who all provided fantastic food and hospitality a wonderful evening enjoyed by all.
Brenda Garner & Anne Beeson
Monday 2nd July 07 - Morris Dancers
A troupe of Morris dancers performed outside the Chandler's Arms on Monday evening until the rains came.
The performance then carried on inside the pub.
Thank you Karen for the pictures»
Saturday 30th June 07 - Village Barbecue
As the Wimbledon jinx affected this year's Village Barbecue, proceedings carried on in the Village Hall - as David said "the Dunkirk spirit prevailed".
The Riff Raff element entertained after the meal was tidied away.
£815 - in aid of local church funds - was raised.
Thanks to all who helped out. .
3rd June 2007 - Arnesby v Shearsby Cricket
Sunday 3rd of June was the date set for the annual Shearsby v Arnesby crunch cricket match.
As a relative new comer to the area and debutant in the game I was sceptical about the tales of previous years, of players hospital visits and a road running across the pitch (all of which have since proven to be true) and was more worried about my lack of practice.
One too many golden ducks had lead me to hanging up my pads at least 4 years earlier and I was determined not to suffer the same fate again.
The day came, the sun shone and the pitch in Gumley provided a fantastic setting despite its various bumps and bobbles.
Arnesby batted first and, on a green, skiddy pitch with very little bounce, were restricted to 155 from their 40 overs.
Paul Sanders took 3 wickets in a very good spell, backed up by some superb fielding from Shearsby in what was a very commendable effort.
After a very nice tea and a welcome break, there was much deliberation over who would open the batting before I was finally persuaded to take the job.
After letting the 1st ball go I got a short one which I middled straight into the chest of an Arnesby fielder and that was that. Short, not very sweet and a long stint as umpire awaited me once I had got my pads off.
A good innings by Martin Conway (39) gave Shearsby hope, but when he was bowled by one that kept very low all looked lost until a brilliant final partnership between David Bramwell (17) and Paul Sanders (19) almost put Shearsby in with a chance. However, time ran out and Arnesby won by 30 odd runs.
All in all it was a terrific day for everyone and after the team photo it was back to the Chandler’s Arms for much debating and what ifs before collapsing in bed and looking forward to the inevitable aches and pains the next day.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank the organisers, the two captains Simon and Dave Hogg, the Arnesby team for lending us their kit and for a good, sporting match, and for everyone else involved helping with teas, scoring etc.
Terry Compton
Report to follow.
22nd April 2007
Richard Kew writes:-
Sunday 22nd April dawned and a steady stream of the frail and infirm arrived at Shearsby village hall ready to dish up dinners to a sprightly bunch of so-called senior citizens, one or two of whom were considerably younger than the volunteers who 'waited-on'.
The partners of Senior Citizens ( or toy girls and boys, as we called them) helpfully had donned 'Guest' Identity Cards so we knew who to dribble soup over.
Jill & Jill had organised much of the event, with one Jill (Littlejones) recently being of the aforementioned 'Guest' status, passing across the baton (or French stick) to the other Jill (Lewin). It was not dropped (well, not in front of the diners, and we managed to dust it off pretty well before serving).
Diners had been asked to bring a pud, and they did not fail in this duty. Pavlova, cheesecake, trifle, fruit pies and a couple of tarts, to name but a few of the delicacies I was forced to try before allowing the punters to have a go.
Some had thirds, but I won't embarrass anyone named Barney by mentioning the fact.
A big thank you to all the committee, all others who helped, and to all who kindly donated puddings.
Pictures of Senior Citizens Annual Dinner »
Saturday 21st April - St George's Day Celebrations at the Chandler's Arms
St. George's Day was celebrated in style in the Chandler's Arms, where Shearsby villagers enjoyed traditional English Fare in true English Style. Ladies dressed in red and white vied with chaps in Union Jack and St George's cross waistcoats, and the pub flew the flag proudly along its walls. Much merriment ensued, and although Roast Dragon was not featured on the menu (due to EU rules on the protection of mythical creatures), a fitting feast was enjoyed by all.
Pictures of St George Celebrations»
14th April 2007 - Coffee Morning at the Village Hall
A coffee morning for Diabetes UK and Cystic Fibrosis Trust raised a fantastic total of £504, which has been split between the 2 charities.
The success of this event owes much to the hard work of the Shearsby villagers.
There was a cake stall, tombola,bric-a-brac, plant stall, raffle and a Grand National sweepstake.
Ann and Jill would like to thank the people of Shearsby and surrounding villages for their generosity and their support for two very worthwile charities, and are already planning their next event - so watch this space.
Grand National Sweepstake Results
1st - Phil Stanley
2nd - Janet Skinner
3rd - Janet Skinner
4th - Julian Timms
Ruth Hackett writes:-
I would like to thank the people of Shearsby for fantastic generosity at our coffee morning last Saturday the work effort and time that people gave was staggering. The two charities involved will benefit greatly. When Elisabeth and I have completed our challenge I will forward some photos. Once again many thanks to the people of Shearsby.
Link to "Just Giving" web site.
Curry Night at the Village Hall
Barry Morris writes:-
A village hall, bursting at the seams, was the setting for the re-opening of the Shearsby "Ring of Fire" restaurant for one night only.
The aromas of Indian spices, gently wafting along Church Lane, greeted villagers and guests as they converged on to the village hall.
Once seated inside, and wine bottles opened, the first course, trays of starters, arrived at the tables. Onion bhajis samosas and an array of exotic delicacies, suitably complemented with raita, chutney and pickles prepared everyone for a main course to remember.
Bowls of chicken curry, vegetable curry, dahl with boiled rice, popadoms and naan bread were delivered to the tables by the waiters, who were all beautifully dressed in white shirts and dicky bows.
The kitchen resembled a TV restaurant kitchen (without the swearing!) while the staff worked frantically filling the dishes with gastronomic delights. The girls looked delightful in Punjabi suits and saris. However, head chef John retained his dignity by wearing a traditional apron.
Once all the guests had been served, the volunteer kitchen staff and waiters briefly sat to sample the fare and indulge in the odd glass or two.
The sweet, ice-cream with Indian sweet mango sauce, disappeared as quickly as it arrived.
Whilst the huge task of clearing away took place, diners merrily chatted away with the continued popping of corks.
The obligatory raffle followed after a few announcements and a special welcome to Reverend Alison Hampton.
Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves as there were several requests for a repeat performance in the future.
The evening raised £520 for church funds.
Children's Society Boxes
Many thanks to everyone in Shearsby who had Children's Society Boxes.
The amount raised was £223.10.
Tuesday 13th February
Richard Kew writes:- This evening saw the second annual S & M Evening (Strimmers & Mowers - what on earth were you thinking...?) held for the first time in the Chandlers Arms.
The event is held for those who take on the grass cutting at the church and this year consisted of a glass of finest ale followed by a game of skill involving a table, some cheeses and a quantity of wooden pins, then plenty of edible comestibles. OK, OK, it was beer and skittles.
After the teams had gone through the traditional preliminaries of shaking hands and hurling abuse at one another the skittles commenced. This was going to be child's play I thought to myself - I mean to say, how hard can it be to knock down nine of the blasted things - I soon found out.
I have no idea where the expression 'going down like ninepins' comes from as I consistently averaged four. Somehow the rest of my team did rather better than that and the Strimmers emerged as the winners. Ha! That is 2 years on the run, and the losing Captain ( B.Morris) trudged forward to hand the cup (The Shearsby Strimmers and Mowers Perpetual Challenge Cup) to the visibly triumphant Captain of the Strimmers ( D.Durran) who, along with the rest of his team was hardly gloating at all.
Then we had the beer leg - and with the losers having to fork out cash the Mowers picked up their game and gave us Strimmers a bit of a pasting. We won't dwell on this.
Luckily by now Karen had prepared an excellent supper of 'Men's Food' - Sausages, Mushy Peas, Home Made Beef Pie, Beans and Chips. We all felt this fabulous nosh was just reward for our labours in the 'wood yard' and are looking forward to the next grass cutting season with relish. No, not chutney sort of relish - enthusiasm, that's the word I was looking for.
Saturday 10th February
GAME TO EAT
They say every cloud has a silver lining, and such is the case in the little hamlet of Shearsby in South Leicestershire. The end of the shooting season predictably brings a sense of sadness to many, but the subsequent Game Lunch at the Chandler’s Arms is such an occasion, it more than makes up for any end-of-season blues.
The Game Lunch is a traditional event for which villagers empty their freezers of any remaining game acquired during the season. Dishes of all sorts are prepared at homes and brought to the local pub, where the residents of Shearsby and their guests tuck into a feast of local game.
This year’s extravaganza was no exception, and the dishes included roast venison, hare in cider, goose and duck curry, venison stroganoff, mixed game casserole in re.jpg)
d wine, venison casserole in stout and port with fresh herb dumplings, tattie pot with root vegetables and black pudding, a mixed game pot cooked with pancetta and onion dumplings simmered in red wine and port. Accompaniments included a selection of potatoes, rice, and red cabbage cooked in an orange, cranberry and port sauce.
Those still able to walk to the selection of sweets were treated to village specialities of apple and bakewell tart, apple and raspberry pie, and a mincemeat and apple tart.
Landlord Steve Compton and his wife Karen only recently acquired the Chandler’s Arms, and themselves serve a menu of home-cooked food and a selection of real ales. Steve said it was a unique experience, with an amazing array of local game that had to be seen to be believed.
The Game Lunch was started many years ago, and to this day demonstrates country life at its best.
