A busy month ahead

Diary dates for April

Friday 1 Crib drive, Village Hall, 7.30pm

Saturday 2 Debating Society, Village Hall, 10am to noon

Saturday 2 Spring tea party, Church Rooms, 2pm to 4pm

Sunday 3 Wargames club, Village Hall, 2.30pm to 6pm

Monday 4 Monday Mardle, Church Rooms, 2.15pm to 4.15pm

Tuesday 5 Coffee and chat, Church Rooms, 10.30am to 12 noon

Tuesday 5 Village Fete meeting, Village Hall, 7.30pm

Wednesday 6 Women's Fellowship, Methodist Chapel, 2.30pm

Wednesday 6 Village Hall AGM, Village Hall, 7.30pm

Thursday 7 Parish Council, Village Hall, 7.30pm

Sunday 10 Askew Agricultural Museum, open 2pm to 5pm

Monday 11 Whist drive, Church Rooms, 2pm

Wednesday 13 Luncheon Club outing

Thursday 14 Breckland Flower and Garden Club, Village Hall, 2pm

Thursday 14 Social and Wine Circle, Church Rooms, 7.45pm

Friday 15 'One Stop Bus' outside Village Shop, 10am to 12 noon

Saturday 16 Coffee morning, Methodist Chapel, 10am to 12.30pm

Sunday 17 Wargames club, Village Hall, 2.30pm to 6pm

Monday 18 Monday Mardle, Church Rooms, 2.15pm to 4.15pm

Wednesday 20 Songs of Praise, Methodist Chapel, 7.30pm

Wednesday 27 Luncheon Club, Village Hall, 10am to 2pm

Thursday 28 Women's Institute, Village Hall, 7.30pm

Available to read now

The April newsletter is now around in the village shop, the church, the pubs and the Clinic.

Pick up a copy today.

Horticultural A to Z

Growing interest
“The speaker has cancelled” are the words that strike fear into any committee member’s heart but, when it happened to Old Buckenham WI, help was not far away. It came in the shape of Ken and Angela who run the Garden Enclosure garden centre at Banham. At short notice the two horticulturists brought a van load of plants and their expertise to the meeting. The display of plants, shrubs and trees looked wonderful and were introduced by Ken as ‘an alphabet of plants’. The plant list started with aubretia and finished with zantedeschia. Ken expertly introduced each plant, and gave a brief synopsis of the planting requirements for each species. Vegetables and fruits were not excluded and the gardeners amongst the audience picked up a few useful tips. All the plants at the Garden Enclosure are sourced in East Anglia and Ken explained that the best nurserymen are, of course, British. During the tea break the plant stall was very popular and many members went home with a plant under their arm. At the end of the evening Ken and Angela were thanked for coming at such short notice and inspiring everyone with plants and information.

The meeting was reminded of the fund raising event on Saturday 2 April, when a Spring Tea Party will take place in the Church Rooms and the best-decorated Easter Bonnet will win a prize. All were also reminded that the annual Cator Cup competition will take place over the weekend Saturday 9 and Sunday 10 April at the Norfolk Showground. This is a chance for WI members to display varying skills and crafts to a high standard. The theme for the competition this year is ‘A Night at the Movies’. The question is, will there be an Oscar for the Old Buckenham team?
The next meeting in Old Buckenham village hall is on Thursday 28 April with a talk on ‘Canals and Waterways’ by Frances Hart. And the competition is ‘Cookery Recipes – your oldest or most interesting book.’

The class of 1928

Do you recognise anyone?

This photograph of pupils at Old Buckenham school in 1928 has just been passed to the blog editor.

Please let us know via the comments box.

Just click on the image to enlarge it so that you can see people more clearly.

Top flight

Successful draw

A thank you to everyone who supported Buckenham Pre-school Group’s Building Blocks raffle. The winning tickets were drawn outside the village shop. The raffle raised a fantastic £995 and special thanks go to Old Buckenham Aero Club, Susan Daynes and Nathan at the shop.
The main prize of a short flight from Old Buckenham Airfield was won by Fred from Aldertree kennels. He is reported to be really “chuffed” about this and looking forward to his time in the air. A full list of the other prize winners is available from the Pre-school on 07799 778806.

For family viewing

Forthcoming production

Old Buckenham Players next production will be ‘It runs in the family’, Ray Cooney‘s award-winning West End farce that will be taking an airing in Old Buckenham in May.
Dr David Mortimore is preparing to address a conference of neuro-surgeons with a speech certain to guarantee him a knighthood. In rushes a visitor, a nurse he had a fling with 18 years ago. Mortimore learns that as a result of their tryst she bore him a son; a son who is at this moment rampaging round the hospital searching for his wayward father!
Attempting to cover up such a catastrophe on this important day and against the clock, he starts a series of lies and cover ups that spin deliriously out of control. "If you‘re going to tell a lie, tell a whopper," he yells. In the ensuing chaos he traps friends and family into his increasingly impossible situation.
Performances take place on Thursday 19, Friday 20 and Saturday 21 May.
Tickets will be available from the beginning of April from Old Buckenham Post Office, Nuts ‘n’ Bolts in Attleborough or by calling 01603 810373.
Tickets will cost £6 - with concessions for groups of ten or more.

Meeting minutes

March Parish Council meeting
This report is provided by the blog editor from the draft minutes of the meeting and so may contain material that could be amended at a later date.
Three members of the public were present and apologies for non-attendance were received from councillors Stephen Thorley, Jonathan Kemp and Adrian Joel.
The minutes of the Parish Council Meeting on Thursday 3 February were signed as a true and accurate record of the meeting. There were no matters arising from these minutes.
Allotments. Tim Ing said he had a copy of the agreement for the land for the allotments and it would be signed later next week. Rent had been increased by £50 per year. The access to the allotments was quite wet and a large quantity of hard core would be laid down to solve the problem. The Parish Clerk will raise an invoice for the rent payable.
Cold calling areas. Derek Smalley said that he attended a meeting of Safer Neighbourhood Watch with Mike Craven-Romain. Some areas of Old Buckenham do not have coordinators and he volunteered to become one for the Cake Street area.
‘Doe Lane Meeting’ notes. Discussion was deferred to the April meeting as Adrian Joel was not in attendance.
ASHAAP. The Parish Clerk read out a letter from a resident who strongly opposed the Attleborough development. Derek Smalley said he attended a meeting in February at Breckland Council for the presentation of the petition. Richard Middleton of the Attleborough Community Trust (ACT) was allowed to speak for five minutes and then the matter was discussed for 45 minutes by Breckland Council Cabinet. A proposal to refer the whole subject for a fresh study to the Secretary of State was passed. A second proposal to include the ACT points was accepted and Richard Middleton was offered a position on the Task Force that is currently studying the expansion plan. He said it was important that continued pressure was put on Breckland to ensure the concerns of the town’s people and surrounding villages were taken into account. He also asked that Old Buckenham Parish Council be kept in the loop for updating information on the on-going situation. Tim Ing said it is important that if it does goes ahead then infrastructure should be put in place. Tom Johnson gave details of the Attleborough Task Force meeting he attended in March where a presentation was given by Atlas Consulting which said the development was restricted to Attleborough and would not impinge on Old Buckenham.
Planning applications. Cart Lodge, Cake Street. Single storey extension. No objections from parish council.
The meeting was informed that the planning application for Harlingwood Lane was refused by Breckland Council.
Parish Councillors' reports. Gerald Norton said he had attended the Village Hall management meeting in March and a show was being put on by Old Buckenham Players in aid of their lighting system which needs replacing. There would also be a quiz night on Saturday 26 March and he asked if the Parish Council would enter a team. Also the AGM of the village hall would be held on Wednesday 6 April and they were seeking new committee members. Carol Marshall said goal posts for Recreation Area had not yet been ordered as there was a possibility of getting some for free. She also said the maintenance contractors could not be reached and had none of her messages had been returned. She would contact a possible new contractor. They are obtaining quotes and looking into possible funding and will go to a funding fair being held in Thetford on in April. Tim Ing raised concerns on the grass on the Recreation Area and said we should seek out an expert and get a report on the best way to maintain the grass on the area. Tim Ing also raised the matter of footpath walks around the village and asked if there were still any maps available. Other councillors gave possible information on where these might be obtained. Tim Ing also said there was no board in play area showing who funded the scheme, Mike Craven-Romain said this was being dealt with at the moment.
Parish Clerk’s report. Parish Clerk read out a letter from Tom Johnson following a letter received from Terry Cracknell alleging that he had spoken on matters in the Ox & Plough. Tom Johnson said this was not true as he had not been in the public house for over 10 years. The Clerk then read out notes from a Working Party looking at community action in support of village shop. The Parish Council agreed that the working party should proceed as they thought best way forward. The Parish Clerk is to contact Joan Jenkins on the matter. The Parish Clerk then informed meeting that as from April 2011 all Parish Clerks were now legally bound to become PAYE employees of parish councils. All parish councils had to register with HMRC for tax purposes and payroll records had to be maintained and all current legislation applied. The Parish Clerk said the best way forward was to outsource the payroll responsibility to a specialist company for an annual cost of approximately £150 per year. They would then deal with all matters including registration, payroll responsibilities and payment of taxes and national insurance to HMRC and all the end of year documentation. The Parish Council agreed to this suggestion.
Highways. Potholes were reported in Crown Road leading to Church and alongside the play area. There was also a large pothole in Grove Lane, approximately 500 yards from junction with Crown Road. The Parish Clerk is to contact Highways on the matter.
The Green. Tim Ing attended the AGM of Green Right Proprietors (GRP) in February when a proposal from the Parish Council to maintain the grass on behalf of the GRP for the year commencing 2012 was discussed. It was also stated that a contractor would cut the grass and then bale it for silage after the 15th July, this to be followed by acceptable topping levels possibly two or three times a year. Areas would be kept as conservation area for flora and fauna monitoring. It was agreed to set up a working party to study the requirements of each party. It was also agreed that a letter be sent to the existing contractor making him aware of the GRP’s dissatisfaction as to the state of the Green at the end of the haymaking season and making it known to him that they would be terminating their agreement with him. Tim Ing also said a proposal was put forward for an amenity area near the village shop. Full discussion on the matter took place and it was agreed to set up a working party to look at the matter. The next meeting was agreed for Tuesday 26 April and followed by a possible public meeting on Saturday 21 May. Derek Smalley thanked Tim Ing for all his efforts on the whole matter of the Green.
Correspondence received. Norman Cawston said the Parish Council had received a prize of £500 from Norfolk County Council for winning the Pride of Norfolk Award for villages of under 2,500 inhabitants.
Items for next agenda. Doe Lane Meeting notes.

The Annual Parish Meeting will be on Wednesday 23 March at 7.30pm in the Village Hall. The next Parish Council meeting was fixed for Thursday 7 April in the Village Hall starting at 7.30pm.

Happy with the parish council?

Please come along to the Old Buckenham Annual Parish Meeting and find out what your parish council has done this year. The meeting is in the Village Hall starting at 7.30pm on Wednesday 23 March. This is your annual chance to have your say to the elected representatives who serve on the parish council.

Pride in Breckland Awards 2011

Old Buckenham amongst the stars
A group from the Old Buckenham Village Environment and Recycling Group (VERG) have just returned home from an evening out at RAF Marham.
They are now proud possessors of one of the Pride in Breckland awards for 2011. VERG are the winner of the Greener Breckland Award and have a certificate and a glass trophy to prove it.

Well done VERG.

A year of flowers

Breckland Flower and Garden Club

At the Annual General Meeting held in March members learned that the club had had another busy year with visiting demonstrators, speakers and workshops. The club is thriving with several new members joining during the year. The programme for the coming year contains a good variety of demonstrations and speakers together with some interesting titles for the flower arranging competitions and the table show. The club members were thanked for their continued support and the committee for 'making things happen'. Last year's committee was re-elected en bloc and Olive Hepple took over the president's badge.
Peter Gooch from Thorncroft Nurseries then showed some slides of some of their wonderful clematis grown locally at Reymeston.
Ursula Jackson won the President's trophy and voucher for gaining the most points in competitions throughout the year and Sally Westrup won the table show trophy.
Janet Skidmore and Susan Thurlow were joint winners in the March competition for ‘New Hands’ and Ursula Jackson was first of the ‘Old Hands’ with Margaret Smith second joint with Shirley Penfold.
The next meeting will take place at Old Buckenham Village Hall starting at 2pm on Thursday 14 April when Helen Bird will demonstrate, her title being 'A Passion for Flowers'. The competition will be for an arrangement entitled ‘Nostalgis’ - a tribute to Julia Clements - using a pinholder. The table show will be for a decorated hat for Easter.
Visitors are always welcome. Further details from Pat on 457305 or Sally on 788712.

Windmill to reopen

Going round again
The Old Buckenham windmill committee are pleased to confirm that the windmill is to be re-opened to the public this year on the second Sunday of the month from May to September. The dates and times are:-
Sunday 8 May; 2pm to 5pm
Sunday 12 June; 2pm to 5pm
Sunday 10 July; 2pm to 5pm
Sunday 14 August; 2pm to 5pm
and Sunday 11 September; 2pm to 5pm.
It will not have escaped your attention that the sails were taken down in 2010 for an inspection of their condition. Unfortunately they were found to be seriously decayed and because of limited funding the Windmill Trust have not been in a position to replace these with new sails.
Increasingly the responsibility to fund such repairs will be with local communities and the windmill committee are considering a number of fund-raising opportunities and ideas to restore the sails. Please spread the word and come to visit this important local landmark to learn (or refresh your memories) about how the mill worked. The more visitors that come, the closer the replacing of the sails will be.
The open days require a number of volunteers to welcome the visitors, take payment for entrance and merchandise, and supervise visitors as they explore the mill. If you are interested in helping on a Sunday then please contact Tom on 860691. Full training will be provided and you can help on as many or as few days as are suitable for you.
The open days for the windmill are the same as for the Askew Agricultural Museum (see post on Thursday 22 February) so why not get a double dose of heritage on a sunny Sunday afternoon walk?

Debating the big society

Time to talk

The next meeting of the Old Buckenham and District Debating Society will be held on Saturday 2 April from 10am to 12 noon. It will be held in Old Buckenham Village Hall and the debates will centre around two issues:
1) The concept of the Big Society.
2) Local democracy and decision making.
All are welcome and you can contact Tim on 860388 or Robert on 861489 for more information.

Coffee morning

Coffee and more at the Chapel
Old Buckenham Methodist Church will be holding a coffee morning on Saturday 16 April. It will run from 10am to 12.30pm at the chapel in Hargham Road. There will be refreshments and a variety of stalls including cakes, lucky dip, books, nearly-new items, bric-a-brac, tombola and, of course, a raffle.

Any donations to provide things for these stalls will be most welcome.
Why not go along to this event, enjoy your morning and also raise funds for the chapel?

Allotment activity

Digging in
The ground is dry and the sun is shining so just the time to work on the new allotments.

Norfolk folk songs

Songs, Social and Wine

The speaker/singer at the March meeting of the Old Buckenham Social and Wine Circle was villager Howard Marshall. He has always enjoyed singing throughout his life and has taken a particular interest in folk songs. He based his talk on a visit the Ralph Vaughan Williams made to the local area in 1911. Ralph was 39 years old at the time and, along with George Butterworth, came to the Tibenham and Gissing area to collect the details of folk songs and words direct from local people.
There were no written words and music, all were passed down by hearing other people sing them. So it was a matter of visiting the singers, whether in the local workhouse or pub, and listening to them singing while writing down the tunes and words for later ‘translation’. During this three day trip the pair managed to collect details of 26 songs to take back with them. Vaughan Williams collected around 800 during his lifetime.
To illustrate the talk there were old photos of local buildings and the places that Vaughan Williams had visited along with facsimile copies of the notebooks where the lyrics and notes had been written down. But best of all, the talk was interspersed with renditions of the folk songs themselves by Howard.
There was plenty of discussion afterwards, particularly on the tough and resilient country people of a hundred years ago who were quite likely to end up, through no fault of there own, in the local workhouse living in prison-like conditions.
At the next Social and Wine Circle meeting, John Lee will be talking about the old local cinemas under the title of ‘Let’s go to the movies’. All are welcome to come along to the Church Rooms at 7.45pm on Thursday 14 April.

Improving the lights

Lighting up the stage
The ‘Ruby and her horses’ event is understood to have raised just over £500. This is to go towards necessary improvements to the existing stage lighting equipment in Old Buckenham’s village hall. At present the stage lighting is all analogue and very old. There are two dimmer racks which service the on stage lights and the ones on the lighting bar. These dimmer racks are obsolete, one of the circuits has already failed and it is doubtful, should another circuit fail, that an electrician would even agree to touch it. For each production nowadays the Players have to hire a converter box to go from analogue to digital, run cabling along the side of the hall and further heavy duty cabling from the lighting bar to the digital dimmer rack.

There would be two stages to upgrade the lighting and the staging.
Stage 1 involves replacing all cabling and replacing with digital, plus replaying two lighting bars in the hall and on stage with internally wired bars, hard wired to the existing and one new digital dimmer rack. Also hardwired cabling from the lighting box at back of hall to the dimmer racks at side of stage and the installation of a new power supply and consumer board. This will save the players an enormous amount of effort each show and also benefit other users of the hall with a modern, easy to use, fixed lighting system for flower displays, concerts, etc, leading to increased income from ad hoc hirers for events and discos. Total costs, including labour would be in the region of £5,000.
Stage 2 (which could be incorporated into stage 1 as one project if a benefactor or some grant funding can be found) would include the dismantling of the existing false ceiling, installation of new mid-stage curtaining, installation of a square rigging grid above the stage to hand scenery, drapes and additional lighting, permanent microphone points either side of stage patched to the lighting box, speaker brackets and permanent video camera. Estimated cost for this would be around £10,000 to £15,000.

Ruby and her horses

Talking, singing and a Powerpoint projection...
It turned out to be a special evening at the Old Buckenham village hall. The aim was to raise some funds towards the money needed to improve and update the stage lighting in the hall. The Old Buckenham Players had arranged for a performance of ‘Ruby and her Horses’ by the Bumpstead Boys.

Neil Lanham had brought along his own soapbox to stand on while he told true stories based on his family history, particularly that of his mother Ruby. Neil is a natural storyteller and conveyed the harsh times that his family lived through without being too sentimental. His speaking was supported by a wonderful collection of old photographs projected on a large screen, a successful marriage of old and new technology. At appropriate moments in the storytelling, Neil’s place on the soapbox was taken by Andrew Stannard who performed unaccompanied folk songs that fitted in to the narrative and reinforced both the mood and the message.
The two hours flew by, the audience did their bit by joining in the choruses of the songs and the interval was enhanced by cakes provided by Old Buckenham WI. If you missed coming along to this performance, keep your eyes open as the Bumstead Boys will be talking and singing around the village halls and churches of Suffolk and Norfolk throughout 2011.

Photographer of Robert Cocks

Only the best
There is a framed photograph of Robert Cocks hanging on the wall in one of the Old Buckenham almshouses The blog editor did take a quick photograph of this picture and it shows what our village benefactor looked like in 1861. If you look at the details on the print it shows it was taken by a firm called Maull and Polyblank.

Henry Maull formed several partnerships that were based at London addresses and the dates of Maull and Polyblank were 1856 to 1865.
They appear to have been amongst the top photographers of their day and took the portraits of many famous people. Robert Stevenson, Rowland Hill, Michael Faraday, Charles Darwin and David Livingstone were some of their clients.
So it seems Robert Cocks, as one would expect, used the society photographer of the day.

Local heritage

Learning more local history
The speaker at Old Buckenham WI’s February meeting was Cliff Amos from the Attleborough Heritage Group. He told members about the formation of the group in February 2005 with the aid of an ‘Awards for All’ grant of £8,800. This had enabled the group to set up the centre at Cliff’s home in Station Road, Attleborough, which was formerly the Station Hotel. Since its formation, the group has amassed a large collection of photographs, mainly from family albums belonging to local residents and these provide a public resource for research in family history and local history.
The group undertook a survey of Attleborough churchyard, which was a painstaking task, especially in removing the ivy which had covered the tombstones. All this information is stored on their computer and this has also proved very helpful to people researching their ancestors. The group hopes to complete a survey of other churchyards in the town.
Cliff then showed photographs of Old Buckenham, including Old Buckenham Hall before the fire in 1952, Mr William Booty (a local farmer) at work, the old Post Office situated at one time in Rod Alley Row, the pub which is now ‘The Gamekeeper’ and the former Baptist Chapel. Cliff explained that old picture postcards from some of the well-known printers often display a serial number which does help to identify the date.
He then went on to talk about Attleborough. The railway came to the town in 1845 when the present station was complete. At that time it came under the auspices of the Brandon and Norwich Railway Company and eventually the line became the Great Eastern Railway. He showed photographs of the turkeys arriving at the Station for onward transmission to London. There was an enormous turkey sale at the Surrogate Street market every Michaelmas.
No talk about Attleborough could be complete without reference to Gaymers Cider factory, complete in 1896. It was bombed by enemy aircraft in December 1940 and re-built in 1948. Members saw photographs of the old Wesleyan Chapel, the old Police Station and the very grand Attleborough Rectory which had been taken over by the Army during the two World Wars and since demolished to make way for Holly Court.
Cliff also showed photographs of Church Street and told some anecdotes about the old International Stores, the façade of which is much the same today. He included something of the history of the old Corn Hall, complete in 1860 and much used by local farmers. This eventually became the old Town Hall, then during WWI it became the Red Cross Hospital and 636 patients passed through the hospital during the period 1914-1917. After its use as a military hospital it became the “picture house” showing silent movies before it became a full time cinema. Cliff also stated that at one time there were no less than 23 pubs in Attleborough!
This was a fascinating talk for the WI members, especially as some of them remembered Attleborough as it was during the earlier part of the 20th century, and those members who had only lived locally for a short time were interested to hear something of its history.

Regulations for Old Buckenham almshouses

This blog has mentioned Robert Cocks and the almshouses that he founded in Old Buckenham during 1860 in several earlier posts. Here are the rules and regulations for those occupying this almshouses that were published soon after they opened. The modern set of rules are not quite so onerous and the residents have to pay to live in them rather than receiving £2 each quarter and a ton of coal each year...

Rules and Regulations

for the government of the ten

Alms Houses

at Old Buckenham, Near Attleboro’, Norfolk.

Founded by Robert Cocks, AD 1860

l.- The intention of the-Founder is that these Alms Houses should be the home for those persons, of the age of Fifty-five years and upwards, who have seen better days, whose habits are known to be temperate and cleanly and who have kept themselves independent of parochial relief.

II.- The Pensioners, who shall from time to time partake of the benefits of this Institution, shall be ten poor persons or families, natives of the above-named parish of Old Buckenham; and be Unmarried Men, Widowers, Spinsters, or Widows; such Families to consist of Husband and Wife only (one of whom, at least, shall be a native of the said parish); or of a Widow born in the said parish and one infirm daughter; and if either be removed by the “will of God” then the Survivor shall enjoy every privilege as tenant during his or her life, in the same manner as if both were living, unless such Survivor shall marry again, in which case he or she shall thereupon immediately quit the Alms House, and shall lose all the privileges of a Pensioner. Each Pensioner, besides living Rent Free, shall receive, every Quarter, Two Pounds, and One Ton of Coals every Year.

III.- No Lodger to be admitted.

IV.- No Relatives or Survivors of a deceased Pensioner are to have any part of the current Quarters payment.

V.- The Pensioners to visit and assist each other in lameness or sickness.

VI.- The Men not to swear or quarrel, and the Women not to brawl or scold.

VII.- No nails to be driven in the walls without the consent of one of the Trustees.

VIII.- No Shrubs, Plants, Flowers, or Trees, to be nailed against any of the external or fence walls of the Alms Houses.

IX.-- The Ground in front of the Alms Houses to be kept as a Flower Garden.

X.-- No Pensioner to keep Pigs, Poultry, nor Animals of any kind, except Birds, or a Cat.

XI.- No Pensioner to build, or cause to be erected, any Shed or Building of any kind on the uncovered ground attached to the Alms Houses.

XII.- No Alms House to be used as a Shop, and no Sale of Furniture or other things to take place, either by Auction or otherwise, on the Premises.

XIII.- It is required that all Pensioners will have the Chimneys of their Rooms swept three times in each year, namely, on the first Friday in January; the first Friday in April; and the first Friday in October; and will keep their Rooms clean, and preserve the same from ill-usage.

XIV.- It is imperative that the Pensioners should be regular attendants at a place of worship on the Lord's Day, unless prevented by illness.

XV.- Any Pensioner who shall wilfully Damage the Property, papering of the walls, painted wood, or any part thereof, shall, at his or her own cost, make good such damage to the satisfaction of the Trustees.

XVI.- All broken Windows, caused by negligence of a Pensioner, to be repaired by, and at his or her expense.

XVII.- The Trustees shall have power to remove any Pensioner known to be in the habit of tippling or frequenting the public houses, or not strictly conforming to the above Rules.

By Order of  ROBERT COCKS, the founder

And the Trustees, The Rev Thos Fulcher, Mr Richard Bird and Mr Stroud Lincoln Cocks

21 August 1876



Entertaining the senior citizens

Party time in Old Buckenham

The “Senior Citizens’ Party” in Old Buckenham took place on Saturday 26 February. Over eighty people gathered together in the village hall to eat and drink on what is now an established annual village event. This was the chance for many of the older village residents to sit down together for a most enjoyable afternoon, to be entertained and, of course, talk.
There were a couple of quiz sheets on the ready-laid tables to keep everyone busy before the meal started. Then a full roast beef dinner was served up to everyone. Each table was also provided with wine, soft drinks, crackers and mints and there was a selection of sweets followed by cheese and biscuits. There was a photographer, Ivan Hardy, around to take pictures of all the guests to remind them of their afternoon out.
The after-dinner entertainment was provided by a young gentleman known as ‘Guitar George’ who, naturally, played the guitar as well as singing, doing some juggling and magic tricks.
To keep things moving there were a couple of cards of bingo (with cash prizes) before tea and hot mince pies were served. There was also a large free raffle with lots of prizes and the tables getting most marks in the quizzes were able to take away yet more prizes.
Eileen Oliver, who has the responsibility for this annual event, got out her clipboard and took the opportunity to thank all those who had helped to make the event possible. There were those who had run events such as cream teas and bingo sessions to raise funds during 2010. Thanks were also due to all the helpers, both young and old, who had prepared vegetables, cooked the food, served food and drink to the tables, cleared it away and then washed up. In particular she mentioned her husband Brian and Julie, the cook, for their support throughout.
In reply Gerald Norton spoke up for the participants and said how much the afternoon was enjoyed by all those attending and how much they appreciated all the effort that Eileen had again put in to make it such a success.