SPOTLIGHT Bath’s next starring role

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Lily James and Emily Beecham star in the next Bath-filmed TV hit

History

FROZEN IN TIME

The team at Longleat has made a magical discovery. A collection of historic photographs has been ncovered showing wo nded irst orld ar soldiers playing in the snow. n the images from , yo can see soldiers skating and tobogganing on Half Mile Pond, the large lake next to ongleat o se. n one image yo see ady athleen hynne, da ghter of the fifth ar ess of ath and secretary of the hospital, skating on the ice with one of the o cers. he severely cold weather of late an ary and early ebr ary led to ongleat’s lakes free ing over. he ice on alf ile Pond was over a foot thick and patients, sta and members of the hynne family went skating, says ongleat c rator, Dr ames ord. iolet, fifth archioness of ath noted that this was only the second time she had seen the lakes free e thick eno gh to skate on, he added. ongleat was one of the first stately homes to become a hospital, opening its doors only three months after the war began. It remained so ntil an ary , and o ered care to , soldiers. For more: www.longleat.co.uk

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Bath on screen

STARRING ROLE

Hot on the tails of smash hit Bridgerton, Bath is set for another starring role. The Pursuit of Love, adapted from the classic Nancy Mitford novel by Emily Mortimer with Lily James (Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, Rebecca) and Emily Beecham (Little Joe, Cruella) in the lead roles will be primarily filmed aro nd ath and ristol. rom Open ook and oonage Pict res, the romantic comedy drama abo t two very di erent women’s o rneys to happiness will première on BBC One. Between world wars, two women h nt for love – one, anny, goes the traditional ro te of marriage and a steady life while the other, inda, seeks advent re. For more: www.bbc.co.uk

CLOCKWISE: Longleat’s dining room transformed into a relief hospital; soldiers push a makeshift toboggan; Lady Kathleen and Mr Hughes skating on the frozen lake; Half Mile Pond

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Each star the shop received contained a message of love, grief or comfort

Community

SUPER STARS

Julia Davey transformed the window of her shop on Bear Flat into a Valentine’s Day card to the community. Julia challenged customers local and not-so-local to create an origami star and send it in for the display – the catch was that every star had to include a wish. Whether it was easily seen or hidden in the folds of the paper was down to the discretion of its maker.

“We had stars arrive from the continent, Scotland and Ireland as well as our lovely city,” says Julia. “They are simply stunning. The variety is wonderful and I greatly enjoy hiding in the shop to listen to passing comments as people walk by.

“The hardest part was reading glimpses of heart-breaking messages that were folded, glued or printed into some of them. Loss, hardship, loneliness are all running themes.”

Julia has kept some of the notes pinned to the counter top to raise her spirits, messages she says are ‘as lovely as the stars’ themselves. “It made me feel worthwhile,” she continues. “I feel the role of the shopkeeper is to anticipate my customers’ needs. At the moment those are very hard to meet, but I felt that the window helped many, if only momentarily. We have had so many comments from proud makers who are delighted to see their stars displayed. It is magic and will be our most memorable Valentine’s window for sure.” For more: www.juliadavey.com

Juliet stars in this all singing, all dancing show

Theatre

THE SHOW MUST GO ON

Local children have turned to Zoom to rehearse an upcoming show. The new family musical MISSREAD will be performed in The Forum this August, restrictions allowing. The show was cast back in September of last year, with rehearsals set to begin just as lockdown landed. But, as the saying goes, the show must go on, and the talented cast of 38 children – including young actors with West End experience and a star of The Voice Kids UK – and 15 adults have been meeting weekly on Zoom to rehearse as best they can.

“MISSRED rehearsals have been a ray of sunshine in the darkness of lockdown. I am overjoyed to be part of this amazing project and can’t wait to perform it at The Forum,” says Pepper, age 10, who plays Eva in the show. “Being involved Isabelle will take in MISSRED has been on the role of fantastic for my daughter,” Rosie Blewitt says Suzy Yardley, whose daughter, Flo is in the show. “It has given her the opportunity to do something that she loves and to see her friends every week, which has been even more important during this challenging time.” The show is sponsored by The Forum, and performances are planned for 6 and 7 August. For more: www.missredthemusical.com