Overbury's Winter Wonderland

As temperatures have dropped this week the whole of the Vale of Evesham has been shrouded in a cloak of freezing fog. The sun did creep out this evening on the top of Bredon Hill and the following pictures were sent to us by Ben Holland Martin - many thanks.

Alexandra Churchill's Christmas Show and Sale

Alexandra Churchill invites you to her Christmas Show and Sale at home in Overbury.





The new studio will be open on Sat 4th & Sun 5th Dec and also on Sat 11th & Sun 12th Dec between the hours of 11am and 4pm.


Guest artists: Danek Piechowiak (custom engraved glass), Fiona Cameron (hand made silver jewellery) and Toff Milway (renowned ceramic artist) will also be exhibiting and selling their wares.


For further information and contact details please visit http://www.alexandrachurchill.co.uk/

Planking our own timber

It was all hands on deck yesterday, as Mark, Alun, Simon and Martyn loaded more than a dozen oak trees onto the huge Hudson saw that Charles and William Vernon-Miller supplied and operated for us.

Martyn had already stripped the bark off the trunks and the timber was cut into planks and will be stored and dried for 3 or 4 years or more before it can be used in some of our houses and cottages.

We also had to use the fork lift and Martyn's crane to manhandle the timber; which was pretty weighty!

The timber will be stored under cover and raised off the ground with small chocs separating each layer - at some stage it will be turned to prevent the wood warping in one direction or the other to keep it as straight as possible.

Overbury Fireworks and Bonfire Night

A big thank you to everyone who helped make the Overbury Fireworks and Bonfire Night on Sunday evening such a success.

Our special thanks to Bruce for the fireworks, Martyn and the Overbury Farms team for building the bonfire, Tod, Harry and James Philips for assisting with the lighting and setting up all the tables for the food, David, Toff and John for collecting over £500 for the Village Hall in their bucket collection and the Friends of Overbury School for providing refreshments (they sold out after the 250th hot dog).

The fireworks were outstanding (the photos from Ant Sanger-Davies - tiny image files so only give a little of their impact) and the hotdogs and mulled wine really hit the spot on such a chilly night, although the fire also gave off quite a bit of heat!

Thank you also to the children from Overbury First School who carved a row of beautiful pumpkins to help light the way down School Lane.


And of course, our congratulations to Frazer Loveday, who won the competition for the best guy and whose prize was to light the bonfire !

The Race to Infinity has begun...

Please help keep our villages connected to fast internet services:

Over the next 5 years BT is rolling out superfast fibre optic broadband across the UK. The Overbury/Kemerton exchange is not currently included in the rollout plan, however, BT have pledged that if 75% of the users on the exchange register their interest on BT's 'Race to Infinity' website http://www.racetoinfinity.bt.com/ they will engage with our community to see what they can do in our area.

We are urging everyone in the Overbury, Kemerton and Conderton areas to vote; you don't need a telephone number to do this; the votes are counted for each relevant property/postcode address. Please let us know when you have voted (and your vote number) so we can keep track.

If you do not have an internet connection or need any help in order to vote, please do contact the Estate Office on 01386 725111 and speak to Clemmie or Suzie who will be pleased to assist or you can email us on infinity@bredonhillbroadband.co.uk

Overbury Cricket Club - Awards Night & President's Match

Overbury Cricket Club annual Awards Night was held on Friday 17th September, followed by The Presidents Match on Saturday afternoon. After a closely fought game with plenty of entertaining moments, the President's XI (Captained by Ben Holland-Martin)were bowled out still some 20 runs short of their target. Congratulations to the Overbury XI (captained by Adam Brookes) - victorious again!



The cricket club is a great way to get to know people in the village and the pavilion bar is open throughout the cricket season - May to September; annual social membership for a couple costs £20 per annum, but this is now free to new Overbury Estate tenants for the first year of membership and the atmosphere is friendly and informal; do come and join us for a drink or visit the club website at http://overbury.play-cricket.com/home/home.asp

Beckford Barn Dance

Our congratulations to the Evesham Round Table who hosted the Beckford Barn Dance last weekend. The evening was organised in memory of Rupert Ellis and they raised over £1500 towards a disabled hide for the Beckford Nature Reserve nearby.

If you would like to find out more about the local Round Table and what they get up to, do take a look at their website for further info: http://www.evesham295.com/




Sue Corbin and Nicky Griffiths from Overbury






David Broadie and his team spent quite a bit of time polishing up the old barn at Beckford Court Farm, with a sit-down hog roast before the dancing commenced.





Richard Ellis (Rupert's son) and his wife Tabitha








Richard Smith from Evesham Round Table handing out raffle
prizes

Iain McWilliams, Jonathan Peterson Jones (known as JP-J!) John Ward, Ali (from Overbury), Stewart Beach, and Glenn Lyons

Clipping our Yew hedges

George and Ted got stuck into our Yew hedges last week; it takes us about a month each year to trim the whole lot, culminating in us hiring a raised platform to do the tops at the end of September each year!

We used to sell the clippings for incorporation into medicines for chemotherapy, however, these drugs can now be made synthetically and the market for the yew seems to have largely disappeared - if anyone knows of companies who are still aquiring yew hedge clippings we would be pleased to hear from them.

Overbury Heritage Open Day - 11th & 12th September

We are pleased to invite you to visit Overbury on the weekend of Saturday 11th & Sunday 12th September any time between 12noon and 5pm - there will be a rare opportunity to climb the tower of St. Faith's Church and see the far reaching views from the top. (Please be aware that the steps to the top of the tower are very steep and narrow, so please wear suitable footwear).

There will also be an exhibition of old photographs of the village on show in the Village Hall, with tea, coffee and cakes being served from 2pm - 5pm. All proceeds will be going to the Village Hall and St Faiths Church.

In addition, we are also opening the doors of Sunnybank House. This fabulous 5 bedroom family home is currently available to rent through Overbury Estate. It has many period features, a walled garden and ample off road parking. The house was formerly the home of Didy Holland-Martin; Penelope's aunt and there will be some interesting visitors books dating back over 100 years as well as other photographs and family memorabilia on display.

We look forward to seeing you all.

Bank holiday bottleneck!

How do you get a ship into a bottle?...More importantly, how can we get the combine harvester and other farm machinery up through the village on a Bank Holiday weekend?

The same applies to parking across field gateways... and what if an emergency vehicle such as an ambulance or fire engine needed to get through?

We are delighted that so many walkers, cyclists and riders derive enjoyment from visiting Bredon Hill, but please, do bear in mind that if you are leaving your vehicle parked in one of the villages for any period of time, we need to be able to get the farm machinery past you.

The Farms team have been very busy over the past week (and weekend) working well into the evenings harvesting against the clock before the weather breaks, so bottlenecks like this can be a real nuisance to them.

Welcome back to Alexandra Churchill

We are delighted to welcome the renowned artist, Alexandra Churchill, who has recently re-located her studio back from Chipping Campden to Overbury, although she has lived in the village for many years.

Alexandra has a passion for painting horses, dogs and hare and gets much inspiration from the village and surrounding fields and countryside.

Many of her past originals of flowers and animals have been reproduced and sold worldwide from country shops to Harrods and Fortnums in London; her images are also available for licensing.

Alexandra would be happy to discuss commissions. Please see her website for more details: http://www.alexandrachurchill.co.uk/

or contact Alexandra at The Bothy, Stocktons Courtyard, Overbury. Tel. 01386 725 385 or on email via alex@alexandrachurchill.co.uk

Oak tree split

Sadly, one of the amazing old oak trees in the park split right down the middle last week and has lost a limb. We are hoping that the remaining upright section will be viable and can safely be left in situ once we have tidied away the fallen branches.

Using Barley Straw to control weed and pond algae

Martyn and George spent a hot day this week making barley straw 'sausages' to sink into The Break Pool and Robins Mill Pond. This is a traditional method of managing pond weed and algae; the theory being that as soon as the straw is placed into the water it starts to rot and produces mild hydrogen peroxide (all quite natural we assure you) and this reduces the algal and weed growth. In the next couple of weeks, the sausages will become saturated with water and will sink beneath the surface of the pond, so that they do not present an eyesore.

Unfortunately, the process is very much a 'trial and error' method and we may need to top up the straw in a few months time - in the meantime, it should improve the oxygen levels in the pond for any fish and invertebrates and we have scooped out the worst of an algal bloom in a specially designed net.

Our thanks to Kingcombe Aquacare for their expertise, nets and the use of their special sausage making machine. Martyn is looking forward to having a go at making his own 'replica' model!

www.kingcombe.com

Maypole Dancing

There was a full turnout of pupils and parents when the children of Overbury C of E First School crowned their May Queen on the last day of term last Friday, 28th May. They led a procession from the School for their annual Maypole Dancing in the courtyard at Overbury Court. Grasshoppers Nursery School came along to watch.

Farm and Estate Tour by the Royal Agricultural Society of England

We were very honoured last week to receive a visit from 45 members of the Royal Agricultural Society of England (also known as RASE); who came to look at both the Farm and Estate and see some of the work we do here.

In the morning we took the group for a tractor and trailer ride on the hill and around the Farm to look at the cropping and Jake and his team's conservation work for wild birds. We also called in at the Stud to see Simon Sweeting.

After lunch we visited the Joinery Workshop to see Alun and Simon, looked at some of our recent barn conversions and the businesses operating there as well as one of our current refurbishment projects and the wonderful Conderton Chase, with it's listed dovecote.

Since it was set up in 1840 RASE has supported farming and the rural industries by spreading information about the best in research, development and practice. As well as attending many of the big shows, they also organise conferences, events and projects such as 'Operation Bumble Bee' and The Edible Garden Show - do check out their website for more information http://www.rase.org.uk/

Our Apprentice of Distinction

Well done to our Apprentice Joiner, Simon Whitaker, who recently achieved a Distinction in his end of year theory exams at Gloucestershire College. Simon is currently in the 2nd year of a Carpentry and Joinery NVQ having commenced an Apprenticeship Programme with the college in 2008.

Simon works alongside his father, Alun Whitaker, in our Joinery workshop making windows, doors, staircases and other bespoke items of joinery for the Estate's houses and cottages.

Hunting on the hill

The morning of February 10th and the Croome and West Warwickshire Foxhounds annual meeting at Overbury Court dawned with blue skies. The pack set off onto the hill shortly after 11am and riders were able to take in the fantastic views and scenery on such a clear day.

The afternoon ended with a sprinkling of snow and a short trip back to the Court for a quick photo opportunity before heading home.

The hounds met again at nearby Kemerton on Tues 9th March.

Congratulations to Andrew John re the Wychavon Bursary Award nomination

Big congratulations are  due to villager Andrew John (as written up by Andy Dyke in his blog) who was nominated by the Overbury & Conderton Parish Council for the Wychavon Bursary award for his contribuition to our community.     http://andydyke.wordpress.com/2010/02/04/wychavon-bursary-awards/

There are numerous ways in which Andrew contributes to Overbury & Conderton village life. Visiting elderly and infirm villagers in their own homes offering support and helping with errands, driving people to appointments, shopping etc. Chairman of Overbury Street Market Committee, Chairman of Overbury Village hall committee, member of the churchyard mowing/maintenance team, member of the regular parish litter collection team & organiser of the village bonfire and firework display. Well done and thank you Andrew.